September Upsy Daisy share..

How has your Friday been people? Is it a good one or are you like me, counting the hours till it's officially the weekend?
Well after I pick up the kids today from school I will be glad that I don't have to do all that driving around, having to force myself to get up from bed early and dealing with "what am I going to wear today?" dilemmas for two whole days. Oh the beauty of kids at school.

Anyways thought I'd start my weekend off with my share of Upsy Daisy layouts. This month our lovely DT coordinator Kim has given us a great sketch and a challenge to work with. I love being given assignments, it gets me to focus on something while I create and most of the time it breaks me out of my comfort zone.

Their love

This layout was based on the Kim's sketch. I love her sketch but was a little intimidated by the shaped frame. I honestly don't free hand anything so when I saw the sketch I knew that I needed to turn it into a block design so I can make the sketch work for me.


I used the new Avalanche line here and added some rubons and brads which are also from Upsy Daisy designs. The blue ric rac is also from UDD. They're part of the new ribbon line.


the color red added such a blast of color to what was a considerably muted page.

Family 2009

this will be the front page of my 2009 family album. Our next assignment was to make a page about something we are grateful for. As you can see my family is something that I'm always grateful for.


the lovely papers from the Home Sweet Home line made this page have that "home" feel that I was looking for.


I did a lot of handcutting of flowers from the papers and also added some brads and rubons, also from Upsy Daisy Designs.

Ok so now that you've seen what I've made, make sure you check out the monthly sketch and what the rest of DT's made with it here. And also check out the site for more eye candy products.

Till next time,
Grace

A loose end

Hi all, kids are finally in school. AACCCKK!!! I was excited but now that I sit in my almost empty house with it's silence I'm feeling a little sad. Oh well I guess that just means I have more time to create right?!

Anyways just wanted to share something I read recently. About a week ago I finished this book...

It's a sad story. Very tragic but a good read.

in this book this was said...
"A loose end- that's what we women call it, when we are overwhelmed by the care of small children, the weight of small tasks, a life in which we fall into bed at the end of the day exhausted from being all things to all people"

I thought FINALLY something to describe ME!!!

Hahahaha. thought I just share that with some of you cause I know I'm not the only "loose end" around here. *wink*

Till next time,
Grace

The Essentials of a Happy Life

Happy Thursday. Today the kids go back to school. You don't know how much I was looking forward to this day. Finally some type of normalcy in what had been a not so normal Summer. I'll share some photos of our day soon but first let me share a mini I made using the new Chipboard Deco Brag bag album from Clear Scraps.

The Essentials of a Happy life

ironically my life is not so happy right now but making this mini did help fight off those unwanted blues. In the front of the book, I layered some papers and added a scallop circle frame to house my title. I made it pop out a little against the background by using some pearl pen. The titles are a combination of tiny alphas from Cosmo Cricket and letter stickers from Hambly Screen Prints.


I used the Lydia collection from GCD Studios for my papers. They are bursting with color and yet with the texture and some gray in there, it has that "adult" feel to it. Perfect for a "me" album, don't you think?


I used some flowers from Accent Creative Designs. I added my favorite Viva Pearl Pens to the middle. I just love how these liquid pearls add that final touches with ease.


Here's the first page inside. Making something yummy in the kitchen has always brought me joy. The flowers were the same size and since I wanted to layer them and be able to show both colors, I snipped the pink ones down a bit so it'll rest on top of the white.


Second page. Here I played with more pearl pen and added some lines to go from the middle of the white flower out to the end of the petals. I also added more pearl effect in the centers of the small flowers.


Third page. In this page I folded the large white flower in half, adhered it and then added a green flower embellishment on top.


Last page. I used leftover photos in this book and I especially love this page cause it shows my three favorite people in the world.


and finally the back of the book. As you can see I used some thin ribbons to tie the book all together.

So there you have it. Thank you for stopping by and till next time...

Grace

LA Fair

Labor day has always been celebrated swimming at Grandma Tolman's house but this year being that it was going to be a tad cold to be in the water and Lola would be available to celebrate the day, we decided to change up traditions and go to the Los Angeles Fair instead. We had Lola, Uncle George and Aunt Alleli came and joined us.


The crowd was definitely in full force today. Not only was it because it was a holiday but also bec. admission during the Labor Day weekend was only a buck. Heck that was what made us decide on being in the middle of all this commotion! I'm telling you right now that if Mitch was with us, he would not have even bothered going in. Just getting a parking space took me 45 minutes. I know if he was the one driving, he would've immediately turned around and got back on the freeway. Don't get me wrong I love him (for eternity) but these are the days when I'm glad I can do this without him. He would've pouted the whole time. *wink*


Anyways we had a great time. Since this was our first time to see the place, we really didn't get to see EVERYTHING. We tried to squeeze all the shopping, eating and getting on the rides we can do in about 5 hours.


If you've been to the fair you know eating is one of the most important thing you need to do. Eating was the first thing on our list and I had a brisket sandwich. I wanted to try the turkey legs but was a little intimidated by how HUGE it was. I knew I could not eat all that leg. Maybe next time and I'll split it with somebody. My sister in law Alleli and I were looking hard to find those fried twinkies but only saw fried Reese's and Snicker bars. I was too scared of a heart attack to attempt to try them.


Then we went to the farm and petting zoo. We saw lots of farm animals like this goat. The ponies were so adorable and I was in awe at how humongous Clydesdale horses are. Huge creatures.


Then the kids got to go on the rides. Oh the fun they had! They didn't want to stop but unfortunately for them Mom's pocket of cash doesn't refill itself so we had to stop when the funds were gone. But this picture totally made me happy. I love how things like this bring so much joy to a kids' face. Just love it!


and then they had a dinosaur show and Marcus was totally loving it. He is sooo into dinosaurs and I think we've borrowed every dino book in the library. He even had to correct me when I thought a Gigantosaurus was a T Rex. I didn't know that T Rex's only have two claws on their hands. Good for me Marcus knew it and he definitely put me in my place. It was kinda cute.

The kids had so much fun at the fair that when it was time to go home,we literally had to drag them out of there. Marcus was crying all the way back to the car.

So that was our Labor Day. Hope yours was a good one.

till next time,
Grace

Los Angeles Zoo

Last Friday I took the kids on a little field trip to the LA Zoo. We've never been and since school is starting in a few days I thought what better time to explore the zoo.


My brother Gary went with us. When we left the house it was a little overcast and I forgot to check the temperature that day. I would learn later on the day that it would have been a good idea to have checked the temps because it became extremely hot in the zoo.


We saw a lot of neat animals. This Zoo definitely had way more animals that Santa Ana Zoo which we frequent often.


We saw farm animals like this goat.


Pretty but kinda stinky birds like these flamingos.


and I marveled at how tall giraffes are in real life. The taller one was over 18 ft. Just amazing.


and his spots were just magnificent to behold. We also saw gorrillas, rhino, hippo, kimono dragon, snake, tortoise, lion and tiger. Maddie was a little upset though that they didn't have the elephants. While we walked that's all she would ask for.. "where's the elephants?", "I want to see the elephants." After reading the map, I found out that they are building an elephant exhibit but it won't be ready anytime soon. Maybe when it comes out, we'll visit again.


and my brother was kind enough to take a pic of me with the kids. Look at those faces- (me) happy; (Maddie) Passive; (Marcus) Tired. The trip was definitely too much at times for the kids. All the walking and the heat got them a little cranky at the end.

Then after touring the zoo, Gary took us to a great Korean restaurant in downtown LA. We were so hungry that I'm not sure if the kids ate their food because they were so famished or they actually like Korean BBQ. Whatever it is, we had a great time.

Till next time,
Grace

Thank you for being you

Happy Friday. As promised here's my card for the Get Sketchy challenge #54.

Thank you for being you

The sponsor this week is Janlynn. I was so excited when I got an email from that company telling us to go to their site and pick our wishlist from which we will get the products we will use for our card. I'm telling you being the GS team has had tremendous rewards for me.


Anyways I picked this background stamp and the metallic embroidery thread that I used for the flowers.

Now go play along with the sketch this week. I'm sure the prize package is a good one.

oh and since you're off surfing the web, check out my latest blog post at Clear Scraps blog. Here's a sneek peek..


Thanks for stopping by and have a great Labor Day weekend.

till next time,
Grace

my Get Sketchy experience

So last month when the wonderful people behind Get Sketchy challenge blog put out their design team call, the DT's were given the awesome opportunity to renew our term. I thought about this long and hard. I've had such a great time in the team and have enjoyed taking each sketch and making it my own. I've learned and grew as a card maker because of my experience in the team plus the wonderful ladies I've gotten to know. They're just A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I'll never forget Bree, Camille and all of the lovely girls in the team.

But with much sadness, I've decided that I will not renew my term. Things in my home is such in limbo that I wasn't sure if I can commit to the weekly demand of this job.

Tomorrows card will be my last one at a team member but before I post that I thought of going through my file of Get Sketchy cards and I picked my favorite ones....

Roar-ing Good Time!

this is from GS #42. I love this card because of the story behind on how I got this card done. You see this was done in the middle of all the "home improvement" time. I made a mistake of making a card that was not for that week and didn't realize this till a day or two before the deadline. I was panicking. I've never ever missed a deadline. Plus I was having a hard time working the card and the cute 3d image from the sponsor of that week. Anyways, my loving husband crafted with me that night and helped me with this project. He was the one that put the cute dinosaur together. I will always cherish this card because it was a product of a moment that my husband despite of his non crafty skills went to work with me so I can get this done and sent in on time. He is definitely a big rock of support for me.

With deepest Sympathy

this one is from GS #46. I love this card because it came together so quickly and seemed so effortlessly. I have to admit, card making is never one of my best areas of expertise. Really, I struggle to layer things together hoping they'll all blend in. So when I started with this project and how the butterfly was just the perfect finish to this card, I was amazed. This doesn't happen often in my card making.

A Mother is

this one is from GS #36. I love this card because of the digital stamp that I used as part of the sentiment. I love that it encompasses everything we mothers do on a regular basis. Plus I was very excited when I was able to come up with the technique of making flowers out of ruffled ribbon by playing around in this card.
and finally

Make a wish

I can't remember which sketch this was from but I know it was during the month of May. I love it because (a) I really took the time to make that digi stamp of the girl colored it. I rarely put any details on my stamped images so this was a first to me; (b) the colors just resonates to me everytime I look at it. I love the girly colors mix in with some green and (c) it's a gatefold card. I don't do that often.


here's what it looks inside.

So there you have it. Check back tomorrow to see what I made with the Get Sketchy #54 sketch.

Till next time,
Grace

Three things on my mind right now...

Sorry for the previous sad post. I know it's not the type to hear from a place like this but I thought I'd share. Maybe some one out there needed that little reality check like I did.

Anyways.... my goal for this coming weeks is to stay busy. Think of things other than the house or the move because clearly that's not happening anytime soon. So with that being said, I'm shifting my mind and start thinking of "happy thoughts".

Today there's three things that is making me happy and they are...

1. Baker's Twine

I know I'm not the only one that has seen the big "rage" for this in the papercrafting world. Just ordered some from Etsy. Gosh I love that place.

2. Happiness in the wind (Korean soap opera)

Before you laugh out loud and totally discredit everything I've said in this blog....hear me first. A few weeks ago I was thumbing through the TV channels. I came across this and got stopped dead in my tracks because it had English subtitles. I watched until it was over. Then I made a mental note on what channel it was and what time it was showing. And then the next day I watched it again, and then the next, and then the next. And before you know it, I was planning my nightly routines around this show. How crazy was that!?
I'm not sure if you guys know this about me, but I'm fascinated about other cultures. I'm very engaged at conversations where people describe how life is like in other parts of the world. Being that I grew up overseas (Philippines) and then eventually "Americanized", how people behave/eat/sleep/think and do their daily tasks around the world really intrigues me. So with that being said that's why I was hooked on this show. Not only did it have a good story line but it also gave me a glimpse on how conservative South Koreans are. Although they are very hip and up to date with technology and fashion, this show and it's characters are not vulgar, they're very true to the family ties and respect for elders and there's no sexual innuendos. I mean the husband and wife kiss on the cheek or the forehead, how sweet is that!!!

I know this totally drove my character meter to "totally dorky" but what the heck, I want everyone to know that I'm dorky that way. *wink*

and third...

daydreaming and wishing for this (photo courtesy of Pottery Barn). Oh how I've missed having my scrapbook space. I'm getting tired of working on the floor, or on a small TV dinner table. But alas, I can only dream right now.

So there you have it, three things on my mind.

What's on your mind?

Till next time,
Grace

In a blink of an eye.....

On Friday night I got a call from a friend telling me of a tragedy that happened in our church family. One of the families in our ward (church) had lost their 8 year old child. She died in her sleep.

Even now this news shocks me. This truly reinforces the fact that we will never know when our time is up, when our work here is done. I've known this little girl since she was a toddler. I was very privileged to be her leader in Primary (children Sunday school) for 6 years. I've been a recipient of her love, her enthusiasm and her wonderful and beautiful smile.

She will surely be missed but at the same time I'm very grateful to have known her. This tragedy, as bad as it is definitely put things in perspective for me right now. I can say I needed this jolt to get me out of my "poor me funk". As most of you know, the limbo we call our lives right now is still an ongoing stress. We still can't see the light outside of the tunnel and as each day passes it seems like it's getting worse before it gets better.

But after hearing of this sad event, I really, truly can't be complaining about anything. My life, even the stress that it is, is still very full of blessings. Too many too count.

So with that note, let's hug our family members a little tighter tonight. Kiss our children a little longer and smile at our loved ones a little more. We never know when they're "job" on this earth is done. We can never take loved ones/people/moments for granted.

And I leave you with two of the most beautiful and precious people in my life...



Till next time,
Grace

Clear Scrap and Unity Stamp blog hop

Well hello again. It's a busy day on the blog today because I'm doing two posts. If you came to check out my latest Get Sketchy card, scroll down a little bit but if you're here because you are following along with the Clear Scraps and Unity Stamp blog hop, welcome and hope you enjoy your hop...

This past year, we had an awesome opportunity to team up with Unity Stamps and we'd love to show you some of the projects we were able to create pairing a crisp, clean rubber stamp image and the acrylic and chipboard products from Clear Scraps.

Start at the Clear Scraps blog and follow the list of designers blogs. Comment on everyone's blog and then come back to the Clear Scraps blog and let us know that you did. Everyone who completes this blog hop will be entered for a really nice prize package from Clear Scraps.

Here's my project...

Delight in the little things card

I used the Clear Scrap frame and Best wishes and Blooms set from Unity stamp in this card. I also used some Cosmo Cricket papers and Viva Decor's pearl pen.


To add some sheer on the acrylic, I brushed some pearl pen onto it and then added dots on the edges to emphasize the shape some more.


I stamped the image onto white cardstock with black ink and then colored it in with colored pencils and then added some Viva Decor pearl pen for the middle for more texture and shine.

Now check out the rest of the projects....

This will be the order of blogs:

You are here: Grace's blog
Pinky's blog
Rita's blog
Hilde's blog
Irene's blog
Elisa's blog
Cathy's blog
Tonya's blog
end here: Clear Scraps blog

Thank you for stopping by.

Till next time,
Grace