A new year....

I've been thinking of last year and how crazy it has been. I am so very grateful to have survived with a happy heart and my faith and hope still intact. I was joking with John today about our snow forecast that was .5" to 1.5" as of Monday night and then increased all of the sudden today to between 6" to 9"s. That is a lot of snow. I told Kate not to get her hopes up. I told myself not to get my hopes up. We would only end up with an inch. At 10:30p.m. this is what we discovered out our back door. These snowflakes are the hugest ever...

Oh you could hear them hitting the ground too!

Paige's new favorite comment is ooh wee.

You can see she's enjoying the snow.

(She was mad because her hand was sooo cold a minute later.)

My daughters having a dance party in the snow.


You know that it's important to be stylish when catching snowflakes.
(If only you could see her rockin yellow rain boots.)




My eye my eye there's a snowflake in my eye.
This shot will be kept for future bribery.
John already uploaded it as our background photo just to torture kate.


Proof of the biggest snowflakes ever.
Our yard has at least a half inch in the past 20 minutes.
So no matter how much snow we get at least

we got to play in the snow.
Maybe I didn't plan the most fabulous New Year's Party...

we miss the Stalling's fun family parties.
But we still get to have John's famous
Peanut Butter Pie.

Sooooo, have a happy and rockin' new year!
From all the Skrappingirls and Skrappinguy.

Lights Before Christmas

We love our Zoo! On Wednesday Laura, Jade and I took our girls plus one extra to see "The Lights Before Christmas" at the Toledo Zoo. We had fun and it wasn't too cold. But I definitely need to work on getting into shape. Here are our Highlights.

All the girls ready to roll. Hannah, Macy, Kate, Abby, and a reluctant Sydney.

Paige all bundled in and singing.

Yes, it's dark outside and yes she INSISTED

on wearing her sunglasses and carrying BlueBeary.

My favorite tree.

And the favorite of all the girls the musical lights.

Two minutes of happy, happy fun.

Sad to report that we've had a virus running through both our families since late Wednesday night. Family togetherness can be a little overrated.
Hopefully all parents and little girls are better for Christmas

Jolly Holly Christmas

My girls make me laugh! I have a friend who sends out the best letters for Christmas that include "The Best of" Qoutes from her boys. I've never remembered to write them all down. Well Miss Sydney has been on a roll.

We caught her playing dress up and took a couple of photos.

A few minutes after John and I left the room we heard.

"Can I get a little help in here?" Look at who we found!

Sometimes a girl just needs a hand.
We still don't know why she was in the box.

Then John and I were busy,(ha ha ha) finding cool things on the internet. I heard Syd in the hallway, singing over and over,"Have a Jolly Holly Christmas its the best time in the WORLD." She kept singing and became more enthusiastic with each repeat. Gotta love little people especially when they don't get the words right and get the meaning anyway.


Today I laid down for 15 minutes until Kate got off of the bus. Sydney was told to be quite since John and Paige were asleep. When you're four it's hard to be quiet, hey my girls can't even walk quiet. So I expected her to wake Paige up at any second. I saw her go into the bathroom and then for a couple of minutes I heard a lot of jumping. I opened the door to peek in and see what was going on. She was doing the potty dance! Leotard on under her t-shirt....bouncing and saying "I hope someone comes to help me...I hope someone comes to help me!" Poor kid. After we took care of the major crisis I couldn't stop giggling. At least I know she listens sometimes!

My friend, Jean sent me a funny Utube video about Mom's. You may have heard it before but every time I see it I laugh more. Kate overheard me listening and thought it was sooooo funny. "Mom that's you!" I said, "No honey that's ALL moms." Thank goodness for creative moms who can let us all know that we are normal. So have a Jolly Holly Christmas and have a good laugh today. I know I did!

Digital Designs for Christmas

I love to play. When I received a copy of the new 101 Hip, Handmade Gifts from my sweet friend Charlene after surgery.(Thyroid, two weeks ago and I'm better than Okay, I'm great!)

I was inspired to make the best Christmas gifts ever.

But alas so little time to work on my inspiration.

It was already Dec 5th!

How many cute handmade gifts can a girl

come up with in a mere 19 days.

I was wandering around 2 Peas in a Bucket and found

the BEST little CD Calendar

by Cherie Mask 2007 Ck Hall of Famer and 2Peas Garden Girl.

and Birthday Book Downloads
by Rhonna Farrer, LOVE her work.

Soooo, thought I'd share my find so everyone can go to 2Peas spend $12 TOTAL and take advantage of these fun, happy mostly pre-created, amazing gifts. Top it off with a creatively made bag topper, a few pens, Post Its, and some custom stationery and you have a ROCKIN gift. I promise that I'll show you a completed set when I have one ready. I did already give away twelve of the CD Calendars and they were a hit! Can't wait to see what I'm going to do with the birthday book...but I think I see clipboards in my future.

By the way if you're on my gifting list...sorry to ruin the surprise. On my list of other gifts to complete I have Three aprons done,

only eleven more to go!

Snow Day Sunday!

I loved snowdays as a child...my sister Brandy and I would build snow forts by our mailbox. I remeber them as huge...using the snow that the plows would pile up on the edge of our street. I hope my girls will also have great winter memories. Too much snow + no church = lots of playtime and some cocomotion. This was our favorite christmas gift last year....thanks Leanne! I love being able to make everyone hot chocolate at the same time. It makes me feel like Super Susan, see I knew I had a super power.

Advent Calendars & Snowflakes falling all around,

Today my goal was to complete my advent calendar that I've been working on for three weeks. So off to crop with die hard Skrappaper fans...Thanks to Mary Ruth for organizing a monthly crop four faithful friends were there Mary Ruth, Laura, Linda and Mary Ellen.
The advent calendar was my take on the Calendar Book assignment for the Pine Cone Press Bookclub I host. Perfect excuse to get to finally use the fun idea I found on Two Peas in a Bucket a couple of years ago. I've had more than my share of oops on this project. First rule if it looks good let it go, don't try to fix it. I could have just laminated the pieces but no I didn't think that would be shiny enough. Next rule don't apply diamond glaze without a heavy backing on your pieces or else it will curl...duh, I really did know that. Third, don't apply diamond glaze to the back(to help them curl the other way...really it sounded good at the time) of your pieces and walk away. Typical mom emergencies, "Kate won't let me watch KID shows Mom","But Mom she always watches kids shows can I play on the computer then?" "No I want to play on the computer she can't!!!" Oh and Paige needed a diaper change, juice and then they all wanted lunch. Upon going back to my previously pretty pieces I discovered some of the glaze had dripped off and stuck to the cookie sheet. I'm relatively creative so I took my craft knife to remove the pieces very carefully. Nope careful didn't help. After much patience and embellishing with buttons and the dew drops from Robin's nest my calendar was done. My daughters love it and you will see our daily updates here.


Winter Snow Advisory....to me this means don't get the girls hopes up! How many times are we promised at least three inches and only get 1/4 inch. I love snow as much as they do. So, to our surprise John went to the grocery store for 30 minutes and just before he came home we saw it SNOW actually sticking on the ground. Paige doesn't remember snow so she was amazed by this miracle. Kate ran out in the driveway in her jeans and coat and started making snow angels. Little Miss Sydney was busy catching it on her tongue...thank goodness she didn't try to lick the old well pump! Check out the slide show on the top left and I hope for you that it feels a little like Christmas today! ~Susan

Happiness is...

Today I folded and folded laundry, sorting out clothes that don't fit the girls. Boring right? I did promise to post some of my new craftiness. Here is all of the fun fabric I am using to make aprons. Inspired by Melly's handiwork and all of the cool aprons I've seen online. I'm going to be a sewing fool. Of course I'm making the one with cherries for me yummy right?

Speaking of yummy...I'm planing to gift a few little girls with aprons and the Kids in the Kitchen cookbook by Gooseberry Patch. My girls love to make the french fry recipe. Oh and don't forget the fondue.

Hope I didn't make you too hungry.

Just so you know happiness is fabric, french fries and fondue!~Susan

Busy? Heck yes!!!

Some days are the best...especially when you receive two packages in the mail. I love my friends. Thankyou Melly for all of your time your spent knitting! You have amazing SKILLS! Emily I miss seeing you and smelling your candles more often my house is all gingerbread-a-licious now! Thankyou! Thankyou! Thankyou! It almost makes me feel like mailing a package. Okay so not really but I did think about it.

I have been BUSY. When you are gone from your house seven days a week for 7 to 10 hours a day for 2 1/2 years a LOT of stuff can accumulate in your house. I have been creative lately which has been so fun. But I'm still cleaning. So here is todays great accomplishment. I forgot to take a before picture,but needless to say we had to shovel a path to the door. Yeah now we can have Christmas!!!

I'm trying something new and hopefully you can see these fun pictures of Paige and her new favorite candy Tic -Tacs. Check the top right of the blog. I couldn't figure out how to embed html code(that's why I have a Melly! Ha!) so I did a side slide show. Say that three times fast.
I will post my crafty things tomorrow but until then I BLOGGED today!

It's done.

Today I started out knowing that I would have to pack up the last of the paper trays, take down one more display and pick up all the odds and ends that were left at "the Paper". John was already there and working. I was frantically loading up two very busy little girls into our car (named "Larry Boy" after a famous superhero from Veggie Tales...no wonder Syd likes to eat vegetables so much.)

Okay focus, focus. I started to drive down the street. Suddenly I saw all of these papers flying out behind my car, in the ditch, in the street, in a couple of yards. "I don't remember seeing them when I drove through there a second ago." I know ha, ha it really did take me a few seconds to realize that the confetti behind my car all belonged to me. I have my store paperwork, home paperwork all organized into neat folders in the binder that I happened to leave on TOP of Larry Boy while buckling in Paige. It was fun watching my life fly all over the neighborhood. Did I mention that today it was WINDY with a capital W.

So I pulled over and went to work. A man that lives in our neighborhood drove by with the front part of his rig and leaned out, "That's gotta stink." Duh buddy...he was of no help but rigs do make papers fly around even more. I debated between laughing maniacly or crying and then decided this was too good of a story so crying would have to be out of the question. I should have known something was going to happen. Since starting out the day I was soooo proud that I had taken a shower and shaved for the first time in a week, the shaving was the big deal, not the showering. Then to find myself not an hour later in our neighborhood ditch with mud on my feet, in my shoes, on my legs...I tell you why do I still bother to try to clean myself.

After collecting half of the paperwork that was still blowing this way and that did I realize this might be a fun game for Sydney. At age four running around neighbors yards, under bushes and repeatedly hearing me say..."not the street Syd. I'll get the street." What more could a little girl ask for? Mission accomplished, papers picked up, Mom still mostly sane, and one little girl pretty proud that she helped her mom and her only request when we got back in the car. Mom can I choose the Cootties song on the Hairspray CD. I loved that!

Sometime I'll have to tell you about our temporary paper tray storage solution (hilarious, ingenious a very John Rapp solution)...but not tonight. I am now off to bed. I don't have to go to "The Paper" tomorrow and I'm a little sad, a little excited but right now I'm just working on having peace. ~Susan

P.S. Sorry I didn't take any "Susan's life flying all over the neighborhood" photos, I was a little distracted. Like a good scrapbooker should I at least journalled it for posterity.

One of those weeks...

Today we spent organizing and cleaning out our home away from home for the past two years. I can actually say it was just one of those weeks.

You know the days that are good... wish you could have been there for the bouncy ball games we have had in our empty classroom this week. Just picture all three girls, mom, a couple of friends and three extra bouncy little balls rolling, skipping, and landing anywhere and everywhere for the most laughter I've had in a long time.

Then again there are the not good days like today which we spent packing and cleaning...okay anyone who loves me knows that I can clean, will clean, but frequently find it on my list of things to let fall to the side. I'd rather create, play with my girls, read, read to my girls, or be with my friends before I would choose to clean. On the other hand I can't leave my little store a mess...knowing that my friend Julia will be using the space after me. So we have packed and organized and can proudly say we are almost done. I love that soon I'll be home creating again.


So tonight to celebrate I finished a book I've been trying to read for a couple of weeks(Thanks Phyllis! It's good to know an English teacher.) Usually this book would have taken me a day or two to finish but I've been busy. The story has really touched me so I had to put it down before I cried, happy tears but tears none the less. A few tissues later and I'm done. Here's one my favorite quotes from"Annie Freeman's Fabulous Traveling Funeral" By Kris Radish hope you can stop for a minute and find this book, it's worth it.

"I fill my house with guests to help pay the heating bills but I also do that because I like people and what the familiarity of family brings to a life," Lou tells them, closing her hand over the six keys. "Family does not mean people with the same last name or the same DNA. It means people who care about you, who you trust, who you care about - people you can count on."


Thanks Kris for writing an amazing book, for putting my feelings into words and special thanks to all of my sister friends out there I appreciate your love, laughter and support.

~Susan

Goodbye to a Friend.

Today we say goodbye to a friend. A friend that we only got to know for two years, young in anyone's book. A friend that was there when needed, whether it was a quick visit during a lunch hour or an extended stay to escape life that can be too hard to handle without the bright, warm and welcoming comfort only you could provide. You listened to it all, not saying a word, and that was what your friends needed. From the happiness of " I am pregnant" , "I have a boyfriend " and "I am getting married" and the passage of time that brings about "They are going away to college" and "My best friend is moving", to the sadness of "I am ill" and "He has passed on" you have stood strong for one and all. You lifted people's burdens, if not completely, you at least let them rest from them for a spell or helped them re-adjust their load so they could carry on. You inspired others to find their greatness, whether as a scrapbook artist or most importantly as a person.

But you were more than a friend to us you were family, someone we cared for with all our being. We spent the majority of the past two years working and playing together. We met new people, great people, and now those people are our friends too. You had great potential and we were here to help you grow and mature but that sadly can not happen now. You were to grow old with us, to give us a solid foundation on which to build forever on. You helped us realize a dream and we now understand that dreams are not necessarily permanent, some dreams are to be attained, lived and moved on from, better for the experience, to seek out the next dream.


Today we say goodbye to a friend.
Today we say goodbye to Skrappaper.
We are thankful for the time we had, but it was not enough.


It has been written that " At my passing, people will mourn my loss with a smile not a tear." Please post your favorite memory of our store and smile, the "Paper" would have wanted it that way. Our favorites will be posted later.

Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Look at her go.

Okay it's was official last Saturday night Paige finally started walking.

Since she started she hasn't stopped and here is the proof.

When did my littlest girl get soooo big.

Here are some more fun photos from today.

I love the botanical gardens.

As Paige would say..."Whoa, Whoa, Whoa!"

Paper, Punches and More

New today fun product lines from Imagination Project, fashionista, music, cowboy, driving, calendar stickers and papers and lots of alphabet rub-ons.
Fiskar hand squeeze punches...fun and easy.

Thought you might want to see. ~Susan

I love my friends!

So yesterday was my thirty fourth birthday. Although my dear friend Lisa's son Travis said I could definitely get away with twenty nine again.(I just love Trav! )

I came to my store and discovered this on my window. John made my whole day by putting this in the window. You know it's love when he got off work at 4a.m. and came to the paper to write this in the window. I told him not to spend any money you see and I said that I would love a card. Then the fun began... hand made cards(love you Jennifer), phonecalls Melly, Lisa, Brandy, Laura love you sister friends, balloons courtesy of Linda and Mary Ellen, lunch with Vicky and Lisa, and a few phonecalls from long lost friends Karin, Jadi, Andrea and Kelly(thanks for emailing them skrappinguy) and Ice Cream with my birthday buddy Katie and the littlest skrappingirls. My favorite dinner in the fridge when I went home - sausage, saurkraut...(you just don't want to know.) So I had a rockin birthday!!!! I am thankful to be surrounded by such amazing women. P.s. John only spent $7 on dinner so he did a great job too.

Thanks for My Happy Happy Birthday!!!

Cool Cards

I was inspired to create these fun little cards for a birthday gift today. Fast and Fun!!!

Mums the word.

Sometimes I realize that my husband has some serious skills...love this!

Woohoo!

Yeah! I finally did it. I officially have a blog. Love that I will be able to keep up with my friends by posting here.