Celebrate Hump Day With a Good Friend

Happy Hump Day! It's my day to celebrate hump day on the S.W.A.T. blog. It has been so busy around here that I literally missed a day somewhere and didn't realize we were already at Wednesday. Surgeries, MRI's...my son's are keeping me and the medical professionals busy these days. Life hasn't been all bad though. My very good friend Dawn came to visit and brighten my week last week. It was such a welcome distraction in the midst of life that gets overrun with too many things to accomplish and not enough time. Being with Dawn made me think back to how our friendship started. We both moved to Lincoln from Denver around the same time in 2002. It took moving to a whole new place for us to meet even though looking back we had many places and people in common in Denver. Funny how that happens. Our friendship was instantaneous but our time living close together was short lived. They were transferred to a new area only 18 months after we met. Sometimes friendships suffer with distance, but Dawn and I had an incredible connection as did our husbands and kids too. We have made it work even though real life face time is few and far between. Here is a layout I made of Dawn and I just before she moved away.

Hump Day seems like a good day to think about friendships and how much they add to our lives. How about you? Do you have that special friend that can instantly pick you up when you are down, or make you laugh when you just need to? Maybe you should scrap that today. What better way to celebrate a good friend.

Lisa

S.W.A.T- Love is in the Air

I'm back. Two posts in two days. That is kind of a record for me lately. Life has been super busy and I am finding it hard to juggle everything and do it all well lately.
Yesterday I promised a layout that I find dear to my heart. David and I have been married for 20 years. My biggest regret from the actual wedding was not hiring a dependable and great photographer. We were given some of the proofs, about 1/2 of what we ordered and then he disappeared. We have no album, some great shots and some that are just eh. My very favorite picture of us in the limo was one that we never got back and didn't get the proof of. I think since they were such a source of disappointment I haven't ever really done much with them but lately I have been pulling them out and getting the urge to get what I do have into some great pages that will showcase a day that is so important to us. This was our official first kiss as husband and wife.

Oh my goodness, we look young! 19 and 21...way too young when it comes to my boys. I think about Nathan being married in less than 5 years and my head spins. NO WAY! Anyway, I was able to use up a lot of my stash with this layout. This line is from Authentique. It is their Lovely collection and it has been sitting in my stash for awhile now. I used one of the very first Cricut cartridges I bought way back, Love Struck. I did add a little new with the cute wooden hearts from Creative Embellishments. that I first covered with a white gelatto and then painted with red paint. It doesn't show well on this picture but when you look at it in real life it made a very cool ombre effect.

Make sure you take a look at all the love inspiration on the S.W.A.T.  blog today. Our new drill is all about love and we would love to see what you create. There is an awesome prize up for grabs this month. Come take a look and play.

Lisa

Practical Scrappers- Scrapping Our Stash Blog Hop

Happy Valentine's Day and welcome to my little stop on the Practical Scrappers Scrapping Our Stash Valentine's Blog Hop. You should have arrived here from Erin Morehouse's blog where I know you saw some pure awesomeness. I love that this is a valentine theme hop seeing as how I have plenty of love themed stash to use. I have a super easy gift to share with you today and if you come back tomorrow I am sharing a LOVE layout created for the new S.W.A.T drill that is also made using only things from my stash.

I had two fun glass containers that have been sitting on a shelf in my craft room for quite some time now. I knew I wanted to do something with them, so when I needed to come up with a quick gift on the fly this week I put them to good use. 

Simple, quick and the perfect little bit of Valentine fun. After filling the pieces with M&M's (because who doesn't love a bit of chocolate?) I added some simple stickers left over from an older Authentique line and tied on some Echo Park tags I had left over using ribbon and twine from where else? My stash of course :) Again, nothing complicated...everything was ready to go and waiting in my stash. It just needed to be pulled together into something that can bring a little smile to some special friends.

Today used just a few little things from my stash. Like I said earlier, come back tomorrow for a layout that is dear to my heart using even more fabulousness I had laying around. Now head over to see what Claude Campeau has created to inspire you with today. If you want a full list of the hop use you can check back on the Practical Scrappers post for today. You can also read about the fabulous prize being offered by Kiwi Lane Designs and find out how you can be entered. 

Lisa

Catching Up

Hi there!
Doing some serious catch up work today. I have been very out of it this last week, doing the things that needed to be done day to day to try to get by but falling behind on everything else. I started with a migraine last Monday and have had a severe headache since. Trying something new today from the doctor to see if we can knock this out but thought I would pop in here really quick to post my projects from Practical Scrappers and S.W.A.T last week.

First up was the On Trend post from Practical Scrappers. We were focused on the ever popular chalkboard look that is currently found everywhere. I used the Basic Grey Fresh Cut line and some awesome chalkboard cards from Studio Calico for this page which is part of my 2014 One Word layouts. This month I have chosen to focus on Hope. We've had some challenging things facing us these last few months as a family. Sometimes in the midst of those challenges I find myself so looking for something to hang onto because things seem impossible and too hard to face head on. That is when I find myself reaching out for the only thing that gives me the full and steady hope that I need, Jesus. Sometimes it's just saying His name and letting it whisper over me that gets me to take one more breath and say "We can do this". He is the anchor that keeps me steady and grounded. The anchor sentiment is a perfect reminder to me of a verse that I hold close to me, Hebrews 6:19. The other sentiment is actually part of a song that has long been a favorite of mine.  Every time I hear this song played it brings a peace to me that is unexplainable. As soon as I saw this journal card set with these two cards I knew that they would make the perfect page for me to express my focus on choosing hope when things seem insurmountable. I have a second side to the page which includes some journaling, but I am choosing to keep that piece just for me and hopefully one day looked at and read by my children and grandchildren to let them see the piece of me that kept me anchored. Don't you love the anchor piece too? That is from a friend's store, Creative Embellishments and this fits the challenge they are having this month as well. There could not have been a better piece for this page.

The second project I am sharing is actually a blast from the past. With the migraine going I wasn't able to make a new project for the new drill at S.W.A.T.  February's first drill is a celebration of one year as a challenge site. I have been with it since the beginning and love the challenges that Lanette puts together. There is such a variety of challenges to use product, sketches, inspirations...you name it. I love the versatility and seeing the fun link ups that come in from blog readers. If you haven't checked it out yet I am hoping you will. The challenges are easy, laid back and there are always some great prizes.  Our new drill focuses on One. Your challenge is to use black and white with just one other color. Having that one pop of color against the black and white can be so eye catching. Let's see what you can do with it. By the way, the prize for this month is a kit from 3 Scrappy Boys and it is a good one. There is a picture of it on the S.W.A.T. blog if you click the link above. My project was a card I made last year that is still one of my faves because of the blue that is so bright against the background.

Thanks for stopping by! Off to see about knocking this headache out.
Lisa