I've Moved!!

I have a new home on the web! You can catch me being bloggy at http://herebygrace.typepad.com/here_by_grace// !!! Come on over and visit me!!

Don't forget to Vote For Me!

If you have a chance, please go by www.ScrapsAhoy.com to vote for me in the Idol Contest! You have to register to vote and it only takes a second. I really am having a great time with this contest. There are 7 rounds and we are ending up the 4th. I love how it's pushing me to expand my style and scrap more than one photo at a time. The layout I've posted today is a scraplift of the talented Teresa Olier. Today is her birthday, so some folks at 2Peas got together to lift her in honor of her special day. I really am honored to have been in on her surprise because I just love her work! If you want to see more of her stuff, check her out at one of my favorite sites where she's on the DT; of course that would be CreativeXpress! Soooooo glad tomorrow is Friday!! Be blessed!

Scrap-Tastic Design Team Call

1. September's contest winner will be the Girlie of the Month in November!!
2. Then, in October, the contest winner will be our Girlie of the Month for December!
3. At the end of the year we will choose a permanent member to join our DT based on the past 8 Girlies of the month!

*The new DT Girlie will be choosen based on their talent, participation and how much fun they are to have here at Scrap-Tastic! *

**This month's contest is to create a LO using pp from 4 DIFFERENT manufacturers. The LO must be new and made for this contest. Your image should be of good quality. If it is blurry, it's hard for me to see your work/detail. Also, I will need you to be able to produce good quality images to be posted into the gallery if you are to become a DT Girlie. Make sure you list the manufacturer of the different pp along with all other products and techniques in the details. Your LO may be a one- or two-page LO, 12x12 or 8.5x11. You may enter as many LOs as you'd like! Actually, the more LOs the better, that way we can get a sense of your "style"!

**Upload to the "Design Team Tryouts 2006" section for your LO to be considered for this contest. Entries must be posted by 11:59 CST on September 24th. The winner will be announced on September 30th.

Here's a little info on what's expected of a Design Team Girlie:
*Design Team members must be active members of the Scrap-Tastic community, this means posting on the boards, leaving comments in the gallery, posting challenges/questions and just being social!
*Each DT member will be required to submit at least 4 LOs/projects per month. Each month I will send you product either from the store or from a sponsor. You must use the product for 2 of the LOs/projects, the other 2 LOs/projects you may use any product. The 2 LOs/projects that you create for Scrap-Tastic may only be posted in other galleries if you mention that they were made specifically for Scrap-Tastic.
*DT members should use the Scrap-Tastic DT blinkie and promote Scrap-Tastic where ever and when ever possible! I want each DT member to be proud to be a Design Team Girlie!!! *Each DT member will have a simple task and will change from month-to-month. i.e... challenges, art inspirations, games International scrappers may apply. Although, I will need to work something out with postage. What do you get as a DT member?
* Free product! Who doesn't like that!! Some months I will have sponsors and you will receive what they give me. Other months, you will have your choice of products. It may be from a particular manufacturer or you may get to choose the color you receive. It all depends on what's going on for that particular month.
* 15% Discount at the Scrap-Tastic store. * Your own bio on our Design Team page.
* Each designer and their work will receive wonderful exposure, and I will do everything to encourage and showcase the DT's work to manufacturers.
* Did I mention free product???
**** If you have any questions, please let me know and I will answer them as soon as I can. Comments are welcome as well.

Imagie, Create, Scrap Ezine Call

Imagine, Create, Scrap E-Zine Call!!
Deadline: Tuesday, September 12, 2006

For our September issue of The Memory Garden we want to see your layouts about the following subjects:

* Back to School
*Festivals
* Doodling
Please send your submissions to submissions@imaginecreatescrap.com. Submissions must be in .jpg format and no larger than 150kb in size. Please include and supplies used and if you did not take the photo, please credit the photographer.
Deadline for submissions is Tuesday, September 12th.

Feeling Loud and Colorful Today!

I don't know why, I just felt like doing a loud page, so I chose my loud child to feature!(LOL) I hope everyone had a good Labor Day! I didn't do much this weekend which was just fine with me. You know, sometimes I LOVE to have nothing to do with nothing planned for the weekend. As Martha Stewart says, "It's a good thing!" I did go out to see dad today, and he's still weak from his heart surgery, but that's to be expected. Say a little prayer for him when you get a chance! Be Blessed!

Altering Me!

I've been in an altering mood lately! This is a switch for me because I've never considered myself to be into the altered arts, but I'm so feeling it right now! Here are a few items I've altered that I really like. One is a cards lunch pail that I've had for a while, and the other is dominoes! I really had a good time making the dominoes because it allowed me to really be artistic! I love the way they came out too! Tons of fun! And hey, I've moved on to round 4 in the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest! Now I need the help of my family again! I need votes in order to move on to round 5, so if you've got a minute or two will you go over and vote for me again? If you aren't registered there you can't vote, but it only takes a second to register, so PLEEEEEZE help me stay in this contest by voting for me! Here is the direct link:http://www.scrapsahoy.com/content/round_4/round_4.htmlThanks guys!

Boy, I've really been a bad blogger lately, but there just haven't been enough hours in the day here lately to get everything done I would like to get done! Well, school is going great! I have the sweetest class ever! I really have a ton of scrap ideas I need to get out of me so this weekend I'm gonna try to focus on doing some good stuff. I also haven't taken the time to check out the new calls so I'm gonna spend some time looking at those too! Maybe I have some scrappy stuff that is publishable! I was on a publishing high this past year, but it's slowed down to nothing because I haven't submitted anything. I have no idea why, but maybe I can get the ball rolling again! Anyway, here are some DT assignments I did for Imagine, Create, Scrap http://www.imaginecreatescrap.com using 3 Bugs in a Rug stuff. Okay, I'm out! Be Blessed!!

The Tag

Here is the tag I made at Red Lead Paperworks!

Okay, this week has been like a whirlwind! It was the week my own kids started school, it was the week I actually taught my new class of students, it was the week my daddy had heart surgery, it was the week I made it to round 4 of the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest (thanks for your votes!), and it was the week I ended by going to the coolest store I think I've ever been to! I could write a book on each of the above topics, but I think I'll focus on the last one. If you ever get a chance, you need to visit Red ead Paperworks in St. Louis www.redleadstl.com ! All I can say is,"Wow"!! This is a store for the scrapper who is also a true artist; not just a hobbier. They had classes and demos constantly! And the people were the most amazingly helpful, nice, and talented folks I've ever met in a craft store! Love this place I tell ya! Too bad for my family, but great for me! I'm glad it was a pay week for me, cause I think I spent the grocery money in this place! (LOL!) Anyway, here's a cool sparkly tag I made during my 5 hours in this store! Be blessed!

Okay, I must have really been tired when I made my last post because I didn't upload the layout! Here it is... for real! Be blessed!

Back To Work!

So this was my first week back at work. I am sooooo tired!! You would think that after teaching 15 years, I would'nt be so tired! I think I forget how much work we do and how much preparation it takes to get your classroom ready for a new year. This week only the staff is back. The kids don't come until next week! Now, that will be a week! My own kids start next week too, so I'm gonna have to get back into cracking the whip to get them going every morning! Well, I think it's past my bedtime! Oh, Here's the layout I did for round 2 of the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest. I want to thank everyone who went to ScrapsAhoy to vote for me! And with your help, I made it to the 3rd round!! I'm gonna ask for your help again, but for now I just want to say thank you!! Take care and be blessed!

Good Things Happen Everyday!

Something really wonderful happened to me the other day. I got an e-mail from Pamela Scruggs who is the Artwork Coordinator for Stampington & Company http://www.stampington.com telling me that a wonderful woman had contacted her about my work in the June/July issue of Legacy Magazine. She said that this lady loved my work so much that she wanted to send me a gift. I was like, "Are you kidding me? Someone liked my stuff so much that they want to send me a gift?!" Well, let me tell you that this totally blew me away! I would never think in a million years that someone liked my work so much that they would go through the trouble of contacting the magazine to get in touch with me! Well, you can't imagine how good this feels to my soul. Things have been so crazy in my life here lately, and this is just the kind of medicine I needed to get myself back to my happy place. And you wouldn't believe how sweet this lady is! She is an amazing person herself who I am thrilled to get to know! It just goes to show you that good things do happen and you never know where your next blessing is coming from. Be blessed all!

Super sweet Nicole H. sent this to me with her answers and asked me to answer the questions too, so I did! I guess this is like being tagged! It was really fun to answer because it made me think about the things I like. I don't know about you, but I never have time to think about me, so it was pretty cool. Thanks Nicole!! Things you may not have known about me..... A) Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Worked at Long John Silver's for about a week!
2. Clerk at a Beauty Supply store
3. Cosmetic Salesperson at Famous Barr
4. Hair Stylist at several Beauty Salons
B) Four movies I would watch over and over:
1. The Color Purple
2. Forest Gump
3. Ray
4. Steel Magnolias C)Four places I have lived:
(All of these are in St. Louis, MO)
1. Purdue Avenue
2. Clara Avenue
3. Kingsbury Place
4. Appleton Drive D) Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. Big Brother All Stars
2. Hell's Kitchen
3. Biography
4. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
E) Four places I have been on vacation
1. Washington D.C.
2. Memphis, Tennessee
3. Long Beach, California
4. The Great Smokey Mountains F) Four Websites I visit daily:
1. Scrap-Tastic.com 2. Imaginecreatescrap.com
3. CreativeXpress.com
4. TwoPeasInABucket.com G) Four of my favorite foods
1. Spring Rolls
2. Chicken Wings
3. Imo's Pizza
4. Steak and Shake H) Four places I would like to be right now
1.Scrapbooking 2. Hanging out with family
3. On the beach
4. Shopping Here is a page I did of Michael and Tatum for a Scrap-Tastic DT assignment. Be Blessed!!

PLEEAAASE!!!

Okay, the voting is open for the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest. Will you please go vote for me???? PLEEEEAASe, Pretty Please with sugar on top?? If you remember me now, I'll remember you when I hit the lottery!! (LOL) Here's the link. It only takes 2 seconds to cast your vote!! http://www.scrapsahoy.com/content/round_2/round_2.html Okay, be blessed you lovely people!!

Oops!!

I forgot to upload my digital page!!! Pray for me! (LOL)

Digital Me!

Hey everybody! I did a digital layout and it was tons of fun, but it was hard! I decided to give this new trend a whirl, so I enrolled in the fabulous Renee Pearson's digital class at Big Picture Scrapbooking http://bigpicturescrapbooking.com and it was a great experience! I think it was so hard for me because I'm a brand new user of photoshop and I really didn't know the program very well. Let me tell you that Renee is a great teacher and she answers every question you have in a timely manner! I love professionalism! Hey, I'm in the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest and I need votes! PLEASE, PLEASE go to the site and vote for me! The competition is fierce (loads of talented ladies in the contest) so I'm gonna need some help. Here's the link: http://scrapsahoy.com . GO NOW! It won't take long! Okay, enough begging (LOL)! Here is my digital page. Remember it's my first so be kind! Be Blessed!!

Power to the People!

That's what we've all been saying in St. Louis for the past week! Get the power to the people! More homes are back in business today, but there are still 1 million families still left in the dark. Thank goodness our power came back on last night. 5 days without electricity, no food, no water, and my family was crazy in this hotter than hot St. Louis summer weather! We had to get rid of EVERYTHING in the refridgerator and then I had to clean it good because you wouldn't believe the smell !! UHGGG! Anyway, all is good with my family, but there are still those who need help. So...say a prayer for them. I did get to scrap and I came up with my favorite layout I've ever done! Hey, maybe if I suffer more maybe I can become famous?? Here it is. Be Blessed!

Blackout!

We haven't had electricity since Wednesday!!! The entire city of St. Louis and St. Louis County had a blackout!! I can't begin to tell you how horrible it has been! Thursday was the hottest day of the year-101 degrees!!! Thank God my mom's power came on Friday evening, so we're all camped out over here. The power company says they hope they can get our power back on by MONDAY!!!! I think I'm gonna have some kind of attack or something if I can't home before then! The city has gone crazy too! There are hardly any gas stations opened and only a few grocery stores opened. St. Louis City and County are huge to say the least so you can imagine the mess and hysteria! Oh, I forgot...we're also on a water boil order!! But we can't boil water because we don't have any electric!!!! Soooo, everyone is on the hunt for ice and bottled water and it's scarce! Trying to get gas and food today I saw at least 5 fist fights!! I'm also disappointed because I think I'm gonna have to drop out of the ScrapsAhoy Idol Contest. I have my entry done, but I can't upload it and retrieve my article by the deadline because it's on my computer. Oh well, I'll give it a go again next year. Actually, as I look at things I realize it could have been a much worse situation. I think of the Katrina victims and my sister-in-law whose house just burned down. At least we still have homes to go to! These people don't. Okay, we're blessed and you be blessed too!

Happy Monday to 'Ya!

Happy Monday everyone! This is the start of a brand new week and I'm feeling great! I've got a few projects I need to get done so I'm gonna focus on that before school starts again. What are you gonna do with your time this week? Will you spend it relaxing and taking it easy? Will you be finishing up projects you've been putting off for a while? Will you do something positive for a friend, family or yourself? Will you help someone who is in need? Or will you choose to hurt yourself or someone else because of anger, resentment, or jealousy? Only you make the choice. Remember, your attitude makes a big difference in your altitude!! Be Blessed!

Thank You!!

I just want to say thank you to all of you wonderful people who wished me a happy birthday yesterday! I've got to tell you that I had the best birthday I've had in years!! It was just so perfect from beginning to end! Thank you everybody for caring and I love you all! Here's a page I did yesterday of my cutie little cousin Tatum. Take care and Be Blessed!