Another end to another month...

Happy Memorial day, to those of you in the States! In our family we take a few extra minutes on this day to remember not just our service men and women, but also those in our family who have gone home to be with the Lord. My Dad is one of those who have gone ahead of us. We have made it a family tradition to go out and take Dad flowers and talk about him at his graveside on this day each year. My husband and kids never got to meet my Dad, as he passed when I was 17 years old. Dad and I had a very strained relationship for many reasons, one of them being that he was my 'step' Dad, even though I've never called him that, because I was only 7 months old when he met and married my Mom. Growing up he and I never seemed to find a common ground... Until now. Well, make that about 15 years ago. That would be when I met and married my hubby and his 2 kids. When I became a 'step' Mom I was able to see and understand his side of things SO much better. I only wish he had been around long enough for me to tell him how much I appreciate what he did for all of us. What a wonderful man he was for marrying my Mom, with her 2 little girls, and raising us to the best of his ability. What an amazing example of a husband he was to all of us kids. My Mom was always his first joy and priority. He was an amazing provider for our family, and definitely a man of God. If it had not been for his insistence that we attend church while I was growing up, I probably wouldn't have the relationship with my Heavenly Father that I do now. I wish that he could've met my Husband and children. He would have loved them all and they would've loved him, too. So, I today I take just a couple extra minutes to tell my Dad how much I love him and miss him. I love you, Dad!

Alright, enough, cuz now I can hardly see thru my tears... So, let's get back to scrapbooking ;)

Here is one that I completed a couple weeks ago, for Brandy's Design. When I saw this kit, my first thought was, "Hmm... None of my boys have ever been into dinosaurs :(" But then I got looking at the kit more closely and realized just how versatile it can be. I really liked the unique elements that Brandy included in this kit. And the color scheme is soft and natural. I really liked it! Take a look at the kit (which is linked to the product in the store), followed by my page:

The template I used is Blog Freebie #13 by Colie's Corner. And the fonts are Socially Awkward and Reservoir Grunge.

I also had some fun playing with some of Brandy's older kits for this next page! These are the products I used (again, linked to the store):

*A little news from Brandy Designs: Brandy has decided to close her shop at Scrapable for personal reasons. But, she can still be found at Polka Dot Plum! The template set was sold at Scrapable, so I'm not sure if/when it will be made available at PDP.

Here's my page:

I used a Word Art by Katie Pertiet. And the font is Larger Mime. I also used a photo action by Pioneer Woman called "Soft and Faded".

Now for a bit of a catch up again, but this time it isn't my fault. All of these pages where due at the same time! The SUN was down for a total of 16 days for remodeling, and tomorrow will be our first day back up! Yay! AND, It's also our 2nd birthday!! Whoo Hoo! So I hope you'll join us for TONS of new challenges and excitement this week! (Just remember, these kits won't be available until tomorrow, June 1st.)

Here is a page I just completed using Valarie Ostrom's "Boys Club Grab Bag". This kit is a great deal! You get 2 mini-kits, a full alpha AND a template pack! Remember, the page image is clickable to see it larger. (I will come back tomorrow and link the kit previews up to the products in the store, once they are available)

I LOVE the color scheme of this kit! And it's, obviously, very versatile as well! The template is Freebie 45 by ChrissyW, and the font is Century Gothic.

My next 2 pages are also made with kits you'll find at Sunshine Studio Scraps, but they were both made with kits by Ellie Lash. (Can I just say, I am LOVIN' being on her CT! Her style is SO my style! I can't get enough of the cute!)

My first page is made from her grab bag, which includes 2 full kits! It's FULL of total cuteness!

That is just one of the kits in the bag. The template is from a template pack called 'Lotsa Paperz' by ChrissyW ( I just LOVE her templates!!) And the font is DJB Coffeeshoppe Venti.

Ellie's other kit, available tomorrow in the SUN, is called "Little Grad's". Just in time for all those preschool and Pre-K graduations that are fast approaching! I decided to us this kit to showcase another educational milestone that Zach met not too long ago... learning to read!

The template is 'Layout Builders - Wave On Wave' by Amanda Heimann and the font is DJB Coffeeshoppe Venti. I love that font!!

A little note about Ellie: Her guest spot over at Scrapable has been extended another month! So you can find her there through June, as well as in the SUN! She has some adorable new kits coming out exclusively to Scrapable, too. I'll be back to share those with you soon!

And last, but surely not least... A couple of amazing new kits by Creations By Rachael.

Rachel is a guest designer at The Digi Chick for the month June! How exciting is that?! Her first exclusive kit there is called "Berry Sweet" and it is Oh, SO SWEET! I just love it! (Kits will be linked tomorrow, when available in the store)

I used this great template by wm[squared] from a Tuesday Template Challenge at Scrap Matters. The font is Pea Cari.

This last kit by Rachael is a collaboration with Late Night Scraps. They work together quite often under the name of Plucky Pear Designs. This kit is called "Star Light, Star Bright" and can only be found at Scrapbook Bytes. I love the dreaminess of this kit. There are so many unique elements and some gorgeous background papers. It's just beautiful!

I used another template by ChrissyW, 'In The Middle' Template pack. The font is SS Whimsy.

The template is 'For The Fans' Freebie by Tiny Toes Designs. I used a Photo action - 'Faded Day Dreams' by CoffeeShop. And the fonts are DJB Angel Baby and Love Ya Like A Sister.

Well, that's it! I hope you've found some inspiration, or at least enjoyed my pages! ;) I also hope that June brings you all the love and blessings you can handle, and then some more! Thanks for visiting my little corner of the world!

xoxo, Krista

All better!

I just came back to fix the images in that wonky post, and now I have some updated links! (all ads are clickable!)

First off, news from Brandy Designs. You can now find Brandy Designs' Scrapable store here, and here is her PDP store. She is having an amazing 50% off sale at BOTH of her stores, running from April 30 - May 2! Don't miss that, and don't forget to grab up that HUGE QP bundle from her blog!

Next, Ellie Lash's Scrapable store is now open! Click on her ad to go there!
And don't forget to visit her Sunshine Studio Scrap's store for more sale, sale, sale!

Now, here's what's going on with Creations By Rachael. She's having sales at ALL of her stores. Check out her ads:

Here is her NSD Grab Bag, only available at Scrap Matters:

Gotta Pixel:



Now, what are you waiting for? NSD, and the sales, will all be over Sunday night! And.... Go!

xoxo, Krista

Time for an update?

Yeah, I think so. lol.

So, NSD is this weekend!! WHAT?! You don't know what NSD is?? Oh, no, that won't do! It's National Scrapbooking Day! Any kind of scrapbooking, traditional paper or digital! But here in the digi world of scrapbooking we pull out all stops! Sales, chats, challenges and FREEBIES!!! Oh yeah! For example, if you head on over to Brandy Designs blog, she's giving away a BUNCH of QPs that were made by all of us girls on her CT. You will love them all! Go check that out to get you started.

You'll also notice that she's opening a new store over at Scrapable. Check that out too, while you're there. She is re-releasing several of her kits plus she's got lots of new stuff exclusive to Scrapable. I am so excited to work with her new stuff!! In fact, I've already used one of her Template Packs, "Fingerprints Set 2" along with one of her older kits "Gone Huntin". Here is the page I made:

You will also still find Brandy's Designs at Polka Dot Plum. I don't have the link yet to her Scrapable store, but I will link you up as soon as I can. :)

Creations By Rachael is opening her new store this weekend, too! She can now be found at Scrap Matters, as well as her original haunts, Plucky Pear, Gotta Pixel and Scrapbook-Bytes. She has tons of great plans for NSD at each of her stores, which include sales, a blog hop, and a MASSIVE Grab Bag (which will only be available at SM)! You do NOT want to miss that! Here is a 2-pager I made using just a small bit of her Grab Bag:

Funny story... I actually made my hubby take off with me last Saturday for a special Road Trip to Astoria just so I would have pictures to scrap! We took Zach and went and found new things we'd never seen before and did new things we'd never done before. Unfortunately Zach is TERRIFIED of heights, So he and Charles stayed on the ground while I climb all the way to the top of Astoria Column. I wish I had counted the stairs, I just know I was cramping by the time I got to the top AND bottom! lol But the view from the top was outstanding! Well worth it! And we had a GREAT day!

Now for some SUPER EXCITING news of my own! I am now CTing for Ellie Lash!!! She is SUCH an amazing designer! And her style is right up my alley. I absolutely LOVE working with her kits! She has a great eye for color, texture and her doodled elements are absolutely adorable!! Here is the link to her blog. Go take a look for yourself and see how much fun she is! I am having a BLAST! Ellie took some time off from designing last year, but after about 6 months she found she was ready to come back, and I am SO glad she did! She was one of the original Sunshine Studio Scraps girls and that's where she has come back to set up shop (that's how I met her... while CTing for SUN). But, for the month of May she will be a Guest Designer over at Scrapable! (I don't have the link for that one yet either, but I will post it asap).

So far, I have had the privilege to work with 5 of her kits and have LOVED every one of them!

So far I've used "Rainy Day Ducks":

"Detour":

"My Favorite Things":

"Birds of a Feather", which is new in her SUN shop today:

and "Ladybug Hotel", a collab with Project B, also new today at SUN:

My last one will have to wait, because it's her first exclusive kit to Scrapable, and her store isn't quite open yet. Hopefully by later today...

That about wraps things up for now! I hope I've given you a little taste of what to expect this weekend. NSD is AWESOME!! I hope to see you around, shopping...and playing... and shopping, Lol! Have a wonderful weekend!

xoxo, Krista

Catch up time...

Sorry I've not been keeping up this week. I've been doing a LOT of Scrap Therapy. BUT! My honey is finally on his way home! YAY! I have missed him terribly this whole week! But I am happy now, because I will see him very soon. Of course, Tyler to. It's been strangely quiet around here with him gone, lol. I'm very much looking forward to them both being back.

So, let's get ya caught up on what I've been doing...

First, I found my most favorite kit yet! It's called "Country Princess" by mimi's digiscraps. It's full of pinks and browns, which is FAV color combo, AND it's country. I've always wanted a horse! The alpha is from "Neapolitan Taffy" by Dani's Delusions. And the template is from Trixie Scraps out of the "Essence Collab". All found in the SUN! The photo is of my niece, Akaila, on my brother-in-laws horse and another niece, Kayla, leading it. Here is "Horsin' Around":

I love this next one! I have an old picture of my Mom when she was about 3 years old. It's the cutest photo! I scanned it a long time ago, but have never anything with it, until now. I'd like to think I was jst waiting for the perfect opportunity to use it, and this was definitely it! I did this page for a Speed Scrap over at Elemental Scraps. The kit is "Back To Basics" Collab from Elemental Scraps. The alpha is from the Nov. Mega DDD by CAZ. And the template is by Laurie's Scraps from Ahhh Scrap Blog Train. Here is "Precious Girl":

I did my next page in a Speed Scrap at DesignsInDigital. The template was provided for the challenge by Tiger Lily's Digis. The kit is 'Boys Rule' by Scrap Berry Designs at Scrapable. I liked that I was able to use several of my photos of Cody in this one, but I plan to do pages highlighting each of them better. Here is "One Awesome Kid!":

My next page was done for a Scraplift Challenge at the SUN. You can find the page by Theresa that we were lifting here. But I also drew inspirations from this page by Caro here. I absolutely LOVE this photo of Charles and Zach, so I am thrilled that I was able to showcase it this way. The kit is 'Beachy Treasures' by Joanne Bain Designs found at PickleBerryPop. It is a gorgeous kit! Here is "Seaside Moments":

Here is a second page I just did for this one in a Speed Scrap in the SUN, using the same kit as above.

Here's one I did for an "All About Me" Challenge over at ElementalScraps. We had to scrap something that we can't go a day with out, LOL. Me? I can't go a day without my computer!

The kit is 'Cherish Friends' by Ramona the Pest Designs. The template was a freebie by ChrissyW. (I LOVE her templates!) Here is "My Daily Obsession":

And this last one is one I've been wanting to do for quite a while. I found a condensed version of President Obama's Speech To America's Schoolchildren on someone's blog (I can't remember where) and was actually really impressed by his words. I'm not a huge fan of his, so I wasn't to excited at the idea of him speaking directly to all of our kids, but like I said, I was impressed. Since finding this condensed version I have now read the entire speech and was even more impressed. He did a good job! (or at least his speech writers did, lol) Anyway, Searching through my digi stash I found this kit that I did not even know I had (which isn't really surprising :P) called "Inauguration" by DigitalFingers at eidou (which has since shut down, sorry). I got the white bow from 'Boom Boom Pow" by Penny's Creative Team at SweetShoppeDesigns. Here is "Obama's Speech To Students '09":

Whew! That is it! I told you I have been scrappin' like crazy this week. I really needed someething to pass the time waiting for my hubby to return. But in the time since I started this post, he has returned! YAY!!! So, I'm off now, to spend a little quality time with him. ;) I will be back when I have something new to share with you! Until then... C'ya!