December Daily 13 and 14

As usual, I am sitting here a few days before Christmas and I have no idea what gifts I still need to get.  The ones I did buy the day after Thanksgiving had been wrapped immediately, which seemed to be a good idea at the time.  However, right now the only one I can remember is the one that continually barks every time I walk past it. So today I need to unwrap those gifts, minus the obnoxious fake barking dog, and make a list.  Then re-wrap, hit the stores and get cracking, because a storm is blowing in and right after that another one is hitting.  It's a good thing the storms are coming, because I work better under pressure and Mother Nature provides the best pressure known to man.

So this past weekend, while I should have been power shopping, I made a few more pages for my December Daily.  I sure wish I was chock full of creativity this weekend, but it just wasn't happening.  Oh well.

Day 13 - a comparison of a decked out house in my neighborhood to my house. While I don't want my house to look like a sticker sneeze of blow molds and air inflatables, I would like it to be a little more decked out than I did.  Maybe half a sticker sneeze.

Day 14.  On this day I met a friend to shop and have dinner at a new Mexican restaurant called Rojo.  A dinner, which has haunted me ever since.  Dang Sticky Rice...how I love you. Sigh.  It was sweet and a bit spicy.  Darn...I need that recipe and Google isn't meeting my needs in my quest.  Sigh. We also shopped at Anthropologie. I love that store.  Sure the clothing would only fit my left cheek, but the bowls, unique gifts and home decor has me squealing in glee.

And glee is what I will be squealing once I am done shopping.  Then I can start on baking Christmas cookies. Mmmmm.

Hallmark Movies : BYOK (Bring Your Own Kleenex) and Suffer

The Hallmark Channel is playing continuous Christmas movies and dang are they depressing.  Why must every holiday movie rip your guts out and spit them out? I think I better turn the channel back to watching Billy the Exterminator or Southern Fried Stings.  At least they leave you feeling jolly, if not a little grossed out and shocked.

Since I mentioned shock, I am still moving along on my December Daily.

Day 11 was supposed to be a day of going to see the Holidazzle parade.  Unfortunately, it was canceled due to the storm.  And so continued the weekend of shoveling.

Day 12 was another day of cancellations. The day was supposed to be the annual cookie Bake-A-Thon with my friend, but snow drifts in my driveway of 2-4 feet pretty much did that in.  I shoveled instead.  Yeehah.  

If these cancellations keep happening, I will have the world's most boring December Daily.  I mean...truly...how many photos of myself can I slap into a book without becoming narcisistic?  Not that it worries me too much.  I am pretty awesome.  Pfft! 

Let's change the subject.

Lauren has been hosting a Twelve Crafts of Christmas Past on her blog.  A couple of days ago she posted about gift wrapping.  I am usually a last minute throw it in a Target bag kind of wrapper.  Deep down I strove to be Martha Stewart.  Not really, but just a bit better than what I was doing.  So surprising myself, I wrapped presents this week and with Lauren's posting in mind the above is what happened.  With saying this, I have to say that I shopped for the first time at Anthropologie.  If for nothing else, that store is worth buying something just for their boxes.  The "Fay" Box above is their box with colorful additions by me.  I cannot believe they don't charge for their boxes.  I bought more than one item. I should have asked for more than one box.  Duh. I was always a bit slow in figuring things out.

Well, time to go catch the ending of the Hallmark movie of the moment.  I figured, if I sat through 1.5 hours of sadness and tears, I might as well catch the happy, tear-filled feel good ending.  Dang...I am going to be ugly at work tomorrow with these puffy eyes. Maybe I will just go to bed.

December Daily 9 and 10

-1 degree.  That was the temperature as I drove to work yesterday. I don't mean to complain, but couldn't my forefathers have chosen a warmer place to set roots?  I know I could up and move, but I think I have admitted previously that I am lazy.  Packing up a room of scrap supplies is enough for a person to get assimilated once again to the frozen state that is Minnesota.  I just want it known that in my next life I am going to live in Hawaii.  Oh and I am going to be a size 5 even when eating all the sweets and fat I wish.

Speaking of sweet and fat, here's a couple more December Daily pages.

Day 9 Santa Claus is Coming to Town was on television.  I grew up with the puppet stop action animatronic (or whatever you call them) holiday specials and whenever they are on my remote control stops working and forces me to watch it again.  Brings back great memories, but it also makes me wonder why anyone would leave a baby outside of Bergermeister Meisterberger's house.  Come on!  He's a creep.  Probably always has been and always will be.  Do you really want to abandon your baby to a creep?  I guess it worked out in the long run, but I think there was a bit of divine intervention helping out on that one.  Thank goodness for Tanta Kringle.  Whew!

Day 10 was the beginning of the snowstorm that hit Minnesota with a vengeance.  Fearing being snowed in for months I had to run to Target to get nothing.  This was all explained in the previous blog posting.  What I didn't tell you is that upon leaving I stopped and stood in line for a Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate.  It was my turn to order and the 16 year old barista said she was closed.  Now I have a decision to make.  Do I cause a scene and point out I had been waiting for five minutes and stamp my feet at the unfairness?  Do I point out she is closing five minutes early?  Or do I say thanks for saving me the calories and the four bucks?  A little of all.  I didn't cause a scene, but I did give her the hairy eyeball as I left.  Why not let her have it?  I just don't know.  I think deep down I knew Santa was watching.  That tends to keep me from ripping out someone's eyeballs.

SNOMG 2010

It was one heck of a weekend, which all began innocently.

You see...I doubted the TV morons/weather forecasters 

when they enthusiastically and giddily said 24 inches.

After all, it's the only job that you can be wrong 90% of the time 

and still remain employed.  Bunch of yahoos.

As the hours went by, 

it became clear that those morons might be right.  

So I went to Target like the rest of the population 

of the metro Twin Cities area, 

because I needed nothing.

I left $70 later.  Mostly spent on chocolate.  

Then I went to bed and woke up the next day to lots of snow, 

which heavily continued to fall for hours.

And hours.

And hours.

I shoveled.

And shoveled.

Then gave up and went to bed.

Woke up the next day to find I was the 

last survivor of SNOMG (Snow My God) 2010.

And that is when the fun started.

I started shoveling again.

Don't be jealous.

I finally got halfway down my sidewalk and that was it.

  All my energy was zapped, so I walked 

through 3' drifts to get to my garage 

to sit and ponder my existence.

And from inside this is what I saw.

My driveway is about 30 feet long and a double wide.

I realized my current (and future) existence was crappy
and full of snow.

I decided that perhaps becoming homebound until May
wasn't such a bad thing.

OK...in all seriousness it was a calm and peaceful weekend.
All my plans were canceled over the weekend due to the storm. 
No Holidazzle Parade.  No Cookie Bake-A-Thon.
No seeing my Godson's band at the Fine Line. 
But there was time to watch TV and scrap.  Here are the results:

December Daily Day 7.  

The day I was planning the cookies

for the Bake-A-Thon that never transpired.  

December Daily Page 8.  

A layout on what holiday themed books I am reading. 

I lead such an exciting life.  

 Basically, I could have summarized this whole blog
entry into a few words.
SNOMG...the weather forecasters
were right for once and I scrapped.
But what fun would that be?  ;o)

What's KayJewelers Have to Do With Anything???

Not that this has anything to do with anything, but just for the record I have to admit that the Kay Jewelers commercial for the holidays drives me insane.  Enter man and woman in a house on a stormy night.  Big clap of thunder and the woman fearfully turns into the arms of Mr. Macho and he says Don't be afraid I will always be here.   What a sexist...stupid, poorly acted ad.  I love thunder storms.  The louder the better.  It is clear Mr. Macho and I would conflict.  Don't get me wrong.  I'll take the diamonds, but I plan on oo-ing and ahhing at the lightning, while comforting one of my cabana boys.   

Now snow storms are a different story.  Not really.  But I needed a transition.

I am rolling along on my December Daily.  Not quite up to date, but not too far behind that I feel the stabs of wanting to give up and take up golf or some other form of strenuous exercise.  Whew!     

 

First up is Day 5 where my sister, family and I went to a tree farm to get our trees.  Yes, a farm without any cows as I mentioned in my last post.  Sadly, no cows, but lots of options for trees.  Great time.  The rub-on on this page cracks me up.  Obviously the designer does not live in a cold climate, because when you are cold and shivering there is no way you can add in a letter U when saying BRRRRRRRR.  That U makes me love this rub on.  

Day 6 is about "cranky, complaining about everything tonight" me.  This day I wore my brand new green scarf and realized I am going overboard on shopping the sales for everyone, but mostly me.  The journaling mentions that I bought both a Cricut and a Silhouette.  For the record I bought a Silhouette and then was presented with someone doing a favor for me by picking up a Cricut that probably fell off a truck.  Kidding, but what a deal!  Yay Fay! $100 for a Cricut and I didn't have to wait in line at Menard's three hours before opening, fighting hoards of crafters for 15 units?  Well, not a good comparison.  Menards was charging approximately $150.  HA...SCORE!  Whoa...now there's undeniable proof that I am a hoarder.  My mom has claimed the Cricut, so have no fear.  Finally, I can rest easy as I know she has found something to keep her off the streets.  Well, a good snow storm would do that, too, and one is blowing in today.  I better find a man with Kay Jewelers' diamonds to comfort me.  Hmmm...I am beginning to like that commercial. 

December Daily 2010....Days 2, 3 and 4

My dry sense of humor is often taken wrong, so I feel clarification is in order.  Anything that you read on this blog that makes you even remotely wonder, if I am being serious, you can pretty much count on being crap.  For those that emailed me threats in order to get me motivated on doing entries into my December Daily I thank you.  From now on, you can just send me chocolate.  It's kind of  like a dangling carrot to a rabbit.  It will get me to move.  On second thought...either chocolate or a Silhouette will work.  Let me know if you need my address.

With saying the above I did get a few more days completed in my book.  Day 2 was Emily's school program.  The poor girl worried the whole time that I was going to get up and dance once they started singing Oh Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah.  Little did she know I was actually waiting for Silver Bells to "bust a move."  I'm not completely happy with this page.  I tried to get to the concert early, so I could nab a nice color program that would match my pattern paper.  Yeah, I know....most people do that to get the best seats.  Not only did I get a neon "red" program, but I also sat in the nose bleed seats.  Oh well...more leg room to dance the Hora.     

Day 3 was about snow.  Good thing it snowed, because I was sadly lacking on anything interesting happening that day.  I was able to break out my orange shoes (as if they ever really get put away), go to work and get stuck in traffic for a two hour drive home.  A drive that usually takes 15 minutes.  But hey...it makes the December Daily interesting, so I sang along to the Christmas music radio station all the way home.  Remember what I said about a dry sense of humor?  Yeah...this would be a good example.

Journaling will be done on the green tag, if the typewriter ribbon I ordered ever arrives.

Day 4 was more celebration of snow.  We headed to the park and went sliding.  A total blast and let me tell you....the tree that tried to mangle me can take that.  Game on, Tree!  I plan on coming back next time with a chain saw. I put a photo of me after the wipe out on this page.  I want it to go on record that I purposely only showed a quarter of me.  I look like the freaking Pillsbury Dough Boy in my puffy, white jacket.  I am sure the sales people at that store laughed their butts off seeing that jacket leaving in a bag.  Sigh. At least it's warm and I have my orange shoes, if I ever get stuck in a snow bank.

 

So that is that about that.  In a couple of days I will post a few more days.  Day 5 is all about going to the tree farm.  Speaking of which, I don't think you should be able to call yourself a farm when you do not own at least one cow, but I guess my opinion doesn't matter as the men just laughed and shook their heads upon my inquiry.  Of course, I was wearing my "dough boy" suit, so the snickering could have been due to that. 

You Have to be Kidding

Yes, I wish I was kidding, but I tend to fold under peer pressure and when others are doing a December Daily I must follow suit.  So in reality I am not kidding.  This will be the third attempt at creating a December Daily album.  The first year - 2008 - I made it to December 26.  I consider this a success.  I failed miserably on 2009 and made it to day ten.  It sure is pretty though.  I realized I never blogged or even photographed it.  HA...it truly did do me in.  So this is year three and I am up to date.  Kind of.

This is the cover. Color scheme is lime-ish green, red and teal-ish blue and maybe orange. I don't know why orange. I just have to throw in a wrench every now and then. The other day I was texting with Mandie and decided I did such a great job of keeping the Paperkin name out there and not allowing it to fall away into oblivion.  LOL...really? Anyway....due to this, I have declared myself to be the press agent for reindeer.  We've had owl, bird and butterfly trends in scrapbooking. It's time to spread the love beyond the winged.  Think Reindeer people!  It is their time to shine.  Amen and Alleluia!  

Day One is based on my sister and I shopping at a local gift store/plant nursery.  Bachman's is an amazing place in summer.  Surrounded by gorgeous sights and smells of flowers and garden goods, but in winter it is just as amazing.  However, think red, green, neon lights and lots of tchotchkes.  Best of all, there is always some huge winter display to make my sister pose by.  One year I made her snuggle with an ugly elf and boy did she snuggle.  This year I made her kiss a snowman, but we got the stink eye from a tour of blue hairs.  Thought they were mad at us for touching the display.  No, we were in their way of hugging Mr. Balls.  You gotta watch out for old ladies.  You never know how they will swing.

So that's that.  Please send good thoughts my way that I get further than day 1. If you come back in a couple of days and don't see at least day 2, track me down and give me a swift kick in the creative patootie.  I thank you in advance. I think.

Sigh.............Failure.

Failure.  That about says it.  I know hard to believe that someone as swell as me could even get close to being a failure, but alas it is true.  Well, at least in terms of my goal to use up all the November Studio Calico kit before the December one arrives.  We are about halfway through the time allotment and I have done one layout.  ONE.  Crap.  I'm not totally to blame.  Do you like how I conveniently shove the total blame off of me?  Hold on.  Watch this.  You'll love the scapegoat.  Here it comes....It's the weather's fault.  Didn't see that coming, did you?  So it snowed.  A LOT.  Well, a lot for the first snowfall of the season.  

On top of it being the first snowfall, it was also sticky, which means excitement .  Here's the equation:

Excitement + sticky = snow fun = snow man = no time to scrap.  Oh well, scrapping is about photos, too.

  

So we built forts and snow families and even a snow dog, because everyone knows a well-rounded snow family needs a snow dog.

She attempted to bring the snow dog into the garage for the night.  Has she not seen Frosty the Snowman a million times?  What happens in the poinsettia greenhouse?  Ugh.  Thank goodness for Santa.  I couldn't promise Santa could make a special trip to apply magical Christmas fix potion for a snow dog   So he stayed outside with his frozen family with a lesson about removing creatures from their natural environments.  A science lesson revolving around a snow dog, that is one for the books.  And, yes, the dog has antlers.  So does Mr. The Grinch's dog.  Her exact words.  Cute.  

With chilly toes and nose we made it here.  I don't drink coffee.  I am all about the hot chocolate.  Caribou usually has the best hot chocolate.  They let you order it in white, milk or dark chocolate.  Three choices...three times the fun.  However, Starbucks has salted caramel hot chocolate.  I am sorry Caribou, but right now the drink love is with 'Bucks.  I will return soon though.  I promise.

Because I am a nerd, I was excited to wear these:

 And these:

Oh and I might as well confess. We made it here, too.  The girl loves her tacos.  Not sure if this is a good thing yet.  She thought this was a happy meal and all for her.  A quick lesson in portions.  I bet you thought Taco Bell was only good for making butts expand.  Nope.  Now you know the truth.  Nutritional education.  HA!

Oh and that one layout I have done.  It was a team effort.  I did the layout and she did the journaling.  She wanted to write on the layout.  I had to let go of my OCD perfectionistic behavior.  It's hard.

The layout was for the Studio Calico Sunday Sketch based on Waleska's Big Adventure layout.  

Lest you believe she has no brothers.  She does.  One was spending the day with grandma and grandpa. 

The other:

had his head stuck in a snow bank due to the continual bombardment of snow balls at us.  We will thaw him out next spring.

Long Time No Type

So long time no type.  What can I say?  I wish it was that I have been busy, but in truth it is called laziness.  Add a capital L to that and that makes it seem more fitting.  My scrapping has taken a back seat to my Facebooking.  Seems silly to say that as a majority of my Facebook friends come from the field of scrapping.  LOL  So before the Google or Blogger Gods confiscate my blog name and deem me past history, I thought I better do a quick update.

I created one thing in October.  This is it:

Photo stinks, but I think you get the gist.  Even though I didn't create a lot in October I sure added to my hoards of supplies.  I bought the Tim Holtz Sizzix Paper Rosette die.  I  know you can make these doodads by hand, but think about who is making this - Me.  Need I say more?  I am the shortcut queen and this die short cuts it enough to make me want to make rosette banners for every holiday of the year.and then make up some holidays just so I can make more.  We all need a St. Denise Day, right?  Maybe not.  Anyway, I love it.  I am currently in the midst of making a Thanksgiving banner.  It will look exactly like the one above. I am a slave to avoiding change.  Gah!

After making the rosette banner I figured I might as well go all out for Halloween.  I gathered my nephews and niece.  The nephews pretty much ran for the safety of the TV once I told them it was craft time.  Good thing neighbor, Henry, showed up and I was able to rope him into my plot.  We made these:

The idea came from the Halloween issue of the Betty Crocker cookbook.  It can also be found here.  The real recipe called for licorice strings for the legs.  I was working with an eight year old.  She doesn't like licorice even though she has never tasted it.  Huh?  Chow Mein noodles worked just as well even if the color wasn't as dramatic.

One step further.  I carved pumpkins.  OK...I always carve pumpkins and go way overboard with research on what to carve and patterns for doing so.  Well, it was one hour to trick or treating and no research had been done.  I just went willy nilly on five pumpkins and had them done in about 45 minutes.  Sure it isn't my usual Spongebob, Chicken Little, five car Thomas the Train or stacked pumpkin heads, but still it got done and no one attempted to smash them due to ugliness.  Here's the outcome:

 

In hindsight I should have have pumpkin seeds and "guts" spilling out of the mouth of the little in the mouth pumpkin.  Maybe next year.

Finally, I will close with a few layouts I did this past weekend and finished this morning.  Hopefully, this means I am back into the swing of scrapping.  OK...I am giggling at the comment.  Fingers are crossed though.

I feel they all could use some pizzazz, but I patoot in the pizzazz department.  Anyone have extras?  ;o)

Twin Cities Film Fest

My godson, Dave's, band, Postina,  has been given the opportunity to be a part of the Twin Cities Film Fest.  Before every film shown during the festival they will be playing Postina's music.  I am not sure of all the details.  Nonetheless, it is very exciting.  Below is a blurb found on the Twin Cities Film Fest blog and a promo video with background music by Postina.  Saweet! 

The Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF) is a Minneapolis–based 501(c)3 non–profit arts organization that will have its inaugural event, a major mainstream 5-day film festival in downtown Minneapolis, during the fall of 2010. The goal is a simple one: To offer audiences’ access to the best films the global industry has to offer, to stimulate economic activity in the Twin Cities and to offer filmmakers a premiere venue at which to premiere their work.

Twin Cities Film Fest Promo Trailer from Sammy Sarzoza on Vimeo.

Back to the Grindstone/School

This font reminds me of school and makes total sense to use it in honor of today's layouts.  They are all about Back to School. I didn't go for the extra credit points, so they are pretty minimal and simple, but that's the way I roll.  Come to think about it I should get extra credit.  I scrapped in the dark.  Crazy road crew working on improving the streets around my home feel it is ok to turn off the power whenever they wish.  Even when the most important elements on a layout is being contemplated. Gah! So there I was - perched on the edge of my seat vacillating on the placement of a die cut thingie and whammo the lights went out.  Whatever.  I continued and sadly I have to admit, I scrap better in the dark.  Go figure.  Here's what I came up with:  

Working with the same kit - Studio Calico Continental - that I have been using for over two weeks.  How many layouts can you make from one Studio Calico kit?  Well, it is endless.  I think I have enough supplies for two more layouts. 

In regard to the layouts, the top layout is Emily.  Grade 2. It seems Hello Kitty is her new best friend.  Either that or she is hiding the fact that she has to wear a uniform.  The second is  Jake.  Grade 6.  He had a rough start this year.  Someone stole all his school supplies the first day. All is good now, but it was touch and go for a few hours on whether he was going to go back for a second day or drop out.  He chose wisely.  Truly, he did not have a choice, but what matters is that he thinks he did.  OK...the third layout is Nick.  Grade 8.  Holy cow....grade 8. I had to be sneaky about taking photos at the bus stop.  The kids go to a charter school, which is grades K through 8.  This is the only reason I still have photos of Nick.  We blame it on  the Fairness Factor.  I have to be there to take photos of his little sister.  Fair is fair.  HA! He's just lucky I don't chase the bus to school and wave like a mad man like I used to. Now that is embarrassing. 

The Hmmm Pose

Did a bit more scrapping this week.  I thought I might as well scrap, since the Vikings were being trounced by the Saints.  Not that I watch football that much, but my little scrappin' friend, Judi, was poking me with a stick ...I mean a Super Bowl ring all day long saying her team was all that and a bag of beignets.  I had to back the Vikings with the fervor of a....ummmm....drunken Viking.  Skol Vikings!  A quarter into the game and I realized scrapping and watching Destination Truth was probably a better way to spend the evening.  If only I had one of those beignets, my night would have been complete.  

So I whipped out the remaining pieces of the Studio Calico kit I am trying to eradicate and worked on the current Sunday Sketch.  Here is the sketch based on Nicole Harper's Just Be Still layout:

Nice, right?  You can see Nik's original layout by clicking on the Sunday Sketch link above.  It is a gorgeous layout.  Here is my take:

 

OK...what the hummingbird has to do with anything on the layout I do not know.  I just thought he needed to be slapped on.  In other words he was the right size.  Let's say it is a metaphor for living a life with a little poser.  Does that even make sense?  In my world it actually does.  Scary.

Scrap Kits and Bob Barker...Let's Discuss

I'm on a quest.  Sounds ominous, doesn't it?  Well, basically I am on a quest to once and for all use up every single item in a Studio Calico kit.  I bet you thought the quest was going to be something serious and important, like ending world hunger or boarding the Bob Barker and saving the whales.  Ummm....you need to watch Whale Wars on Animal Planet, if you don't get that last remark.  Speaking of Whale Wars, I get why they named one ship the Steve Irwin, but why is the other named the Bob Barker?  If anyone has an answer, please tell me why?  It can't be all about spaying and neutering cats and dogs.  Or can it?  Anyway....the layout below is the sixth layout I've made with the Continental Kit.  Seeing that some of my kits sit unused this is stellar in the book of Denise.  I came across a challenge posted by Waleska and Celine that intrigued me.  The challenge was to use themed items on a non-theme layout.  Check it out HERE.  This is my take:

 

In non-scrapping news, much like almost all of the US, today was the first day of school.  A few snaps of how my morning went:
LOL  OK...that is funny.  Lots of yawns and sleepiness.  They went to bed early, but couldn't fall asleep due to first day jitters.  Poor kids.  Hopefully they will sleep better tonight.  Here are a few better shots:

Well, that's that for today. River Monsters is on.  I have to go learn about Killer Snakehead Fish.  Who am I kidding?  I am watching it to catch the hot host - Jeremy Wade.  Don't hate.  Good lord...what an accent.  This dang Animal Planet Channel.