if vision is the only validation, then most of my life isn't real

Not much has been going on in the casa de Summers. We haven't travelled lately, but blame that on the rising cost of...well, everything. Josh has some vacation time coming up. I've been eyeing Wiesbaden for our next getaway. It's fairly close to Frankfurt, has a beautiful downtown, other sites, and more importantly, an Army hotel with reasonable rates.

Josh has been busy with school. He's taking online correspondence courses from Berklee school of Music. I don't remember the exact degree plan he's taking, but he is really enjoying it. That's important. His music seems to be taking off too. Believe it or not, they've had a couple of offers for shows...but being that he's in Germany and his "counterpart" is in the States, it would be kind of hard. A new song that is extraordinary is coming out soon. Be prepared to shake yer bacon.

Speaking of which, Josh turned me onto a new artist, Sam Sparro. Reminds me of Prince. He's got a soulful voice, with amazing beats, and poetic lyrics. He's gonna be big one day, trust me. If you get a chance, check out his self-titled album and some songs worth a listen (they're all good) are "Black and Gold," "21st Century Life," "Cut Me Loose."

A quick musical complaint. Josh has a Zune mp3 player. Basically he pays a flat fee to Microsoft and has unlimited downloads to his player. It's great b/c I can listen to a bunch of bands before deciding if I want to buy something to put on my ipod. Most bands are free, but there are a select few in which you have to actually purchase the album. And, for reasons I don't know, my fave band Fall Out Boy has become one of those bands. :( It doesn't effect me in the aspect that I have their albums on my ipod, but I like to steal Josh's Zune simply b/c he has more music. I feel so burned.

Anyways! I don't remember the last time I've been so productive, but I know why. I'm sick of making stuff for the craft fair and I'm avoiding it! Here are lots of photos of what's been going down in my dining room.
My Happy Place is my scrap area. It's getting to be quite large and I could seriously go for my own room, but I can't complain too much. The location is perfect, since I can keep an eye on the kids while they play. Or often, they join me at the table for arts and crafts while I scrap. You can see my Mary Blair collection along the top of my shelf.
Not completely happy with this LO, but you can't win them all, eh? This photo is of my husband and the owner of a local italian restaurant, Franco. The first night we went there, he came to our table and asked, "Do you like spicey?" Remember, read it with a thick italian accent. Josh replies yes and he leaves, then comes back with a bottle of his very own, "homemade hot pepper liquor." It was a regular fear factor at our table. Josh took a shot and took nearly 30 minutes for him to recover. LOL!!

This layout was made for a contest going on at SiSTV called "Project Catwalk." For round 1, we had to implement everyday household items. I chose coffee filters and a fly swatter (brand new of course). The coffee filters are colored with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist (I'm obsessed with this stuff). I then cut them into strips to resemble organza ribbon. The hearts are cut from the flyswatter then painted with black acrylic paint.

This layout was made for Heather's "Reel Classics" on SiS. I used the quote from Casa Blanca, "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." I altered the photo in photoship to make it have more of a vintage feel. I added a canvas texture, then a vignette. Another reason for doing this is the original was a bit blurry.

This was also done for another challenge on SiS called "Pass the Parcel." My item to use for the layout was a book page. I colored it with Glimmer Mist, then stamped with Autumn Leaves stamps. The photos are from 4th of July. Anberlin got a huge butterfly painted on her face. :) When we came home that night, she would not let me wash it off. The next morning she begrudgingly allowed me to wash her face, but then sulked the whole day.

This is an altered agenda book from Kaiser Crafts that I made using the new KI Memories Bloom line. Lots of work went into it. For a complete list of materials and a how to, please visit A Daily Inspiration.
The newest ScrapMojo challenge is up. The prompt is to scrap someone answering the question, "What would you do with a million dollars?" Then you also have to use a pin or a pen. These are my best friends...a few are missing though. lol. I have a big group of friends, but we're all spread out now. :(

That's it for now. I have another project to post, but I have to edit the photos. Here is a link to my other site, geared towards my Memory Works side project. Please drop by here and let me know how it looks. I only have one real entry, but hope to get more up tonight after the kids are in bed. Site is here.

xoxo

Jess

woot!

Guess who is now registered to have a home based business?

That's right! Me!

It's all legal.

And to celebrate, I've been scrapping today. My hands are covered in ink and I have an "ice cream social" to go to in a few hours. I hope to sink my teeth into some customers. lol.

Hmm..I had some things to complain about, but I'm in such a chipper mood, I think I'll save that for later.

xoxo

When Life Hands you Lemons...

I'm drowning in lemonade over here.

I got in touch with the manager at the hobby/craft shop on the neighboring base and it's a no-go. :( It's not that she's not interested. Apparently she has trouble getting groups of ladies to come in for classes. A big part of it is location. They're on an annex type base, about 15 minutes away from the main base. Plus the store is tucked away in the corner. But, she did tell me that when she had classes on my base she had a bit of success. So with a good luck wish from her, I'm back at square one.

However, she did ask that I call back after summer vacation. She may need an instructor for crafts aimed towards kids and teens.

I started another blog for my Memory-Works stuff. On that one (aimed primarily at beginners), I have an entry about the basics of scrapbooking. I plan on adding more. That site is also going to be layouts made with brands from MW and sketches to go along with the lo. I'm pretty excited about it, although I do wish my writing capabilities were better. Ah well.

Still busy with craft fair junk. I want to get started with cards, but I'm waiting for some stamp sets (all clear stamps were 40% off at Joanns), an embossing heat tool, and some powders to come in. I found a 6 pack of Pearl Ex powders for $6 on ebay...and also scored a 12 pack of Craft Essentials embossing powders for $5 from the same lady!

I don't have any layouts to show right now. Unless you're interested in scrapbooks in a box or paper bag albums. LOL. However, the new Mojo layout is due soon as well as a scrapbookmate lo, so I should have something in a day or so. But for now, I'm off to eat some sushi. It's been so long since I've had it!!

xoxo
jess

News

I guess I shall start with the bad news. My terms for Scrapping the Music is up and I decided not to extend it. Things are hectic these days, trying to get a business going and I don't want to put my other obligations on the back burner...it's just not fair to the others on the team. I'm going to miss that team...we were pretty tight nit. BUT the good news is that one of my fave people, Laura Fiore has taken over one of the spots so yay for her!!

I have an appointment to turn in my application for a home based business on Monday. Hopefully it won't take too long to get approved. SO...here is what I've decided to do. I am now an independent consultant for Memory Works. It's not exactly the route I WANTED to go, but it allows me to "legally" work from home.


I received my business packet in the mail yesterday and I can't wait to get started. I hope to have my first "party" at the end of the month. There's a few reasons why I chose this company. It carries the materials that I am familiar with and personally use. They put to company paper lines together in one kit at reasonable prices. Also, the monthly express kit is AWESOME. I'm waiting for the July one to come. At any rate, my website is all set up and ready to go. I've also started putting together an album featuring layouts that are made with what is sold on the site. I should also have a seperate blog setup for my customers with tips and sketches. Lots to do!!!

Yesterday was a great mail day. I got the Memory Works business packet, my Magistical Memories kit (OMG DROOOOOOOOL), and Josh's Dad sent me a computer. No more dumb laptop for me!!! I just need to get on the ball and reinstall all of my programs onto this one.

I've gotten word that there is going to be another Bazaar at one of the neighboring bases next month. I emailed those in charge and I hope to get a table to sell my crafts. I've gotten started on paper bag albums, then I hope to start on those word albums in a week or so. Then I plan on doing a bunch of cards. This is going to be a great way to use up my old stash and hopefully make some extra cash.

OH! Who gets the scrapbook.com newsletter?? Well, in the most recent one this layout was featured as one of the fresh pages! Pretty cool! I made it for A Daily Inspiration. We've started a new format. Instead of featuring layouts/projects with materials that Scrapbookmate stocks, we've started doing manufacturer spotlights. We're doing Luxe Designs for the next couple of weeks. It's great b/c I LOOOOVE their products.

Last week I made a going away gift for one of Josh's Sargeants. She's been a huge help since we've been here and I wanted to make her something special.

It was a big hit, and I'm glad. :) It's one thing to buy something for someone, but to make something from the heart makes it unique and special.

ScrapMojo is back after a short hiatus! And we have a super special guest...the one...the only ELSIE! I squeeled when I found out she'd be the guest b/c I LOOOOVE her line of products.

Ummm. That's it I believe. Hope you stop by the Daily Inspiration blog. Seriously there's some outstanding work going up!

xoxo
Jess

As Promised

Here are some things as promised.

Few are sneaks.

I have others that are secret. ;)

Spoke to someone in our legal office on the base. My original plans regarding teaching and selling scrap materials has been flushed down the toilet. Apparently I cannot use my mailing address because I do not pay sales tax (it's exempt). But I do have something else up my sleeve and I think it's going to work out better than my first plan.

On to the pics. The first few are from the Volksfest. Lizee, your comment cracked me up. A Volksfest is a festival ("Volks" meaning people I believe). lol. You're so cute. They had rides that the kids were able to take advantage of. Games, food booths, and a little flea market was also there. We spent a good amount of time in the Beer Garden enjoying some super yummy rotisserie chicken, german potato salad, and french fries. Oh, and this monster of a thing:

(Don't worry, he's sneaky, but not THAT sneaky).

Check this dude out. What you can't see are the three mugs he's holding in the right hand, while balancing the 7th glass ontop of everything! By the way, that's a liter of beer in the mugs. Josh and I people watched for a bit while in the garden and noticed that in the time Josh finished one beer, most of the guys around him were almost done with their second. It's like water here. ha!

SCRAP

Thank you card I made for Anberlin's Preschool Child Development teacher.
I finally made a door hanging for the front door. I used the new KI "Bloom" to cover the Fancy Pants chipboard. Also used some Hambly and Making Memories. Oh and I am officially in love with the Heidi Swapp mirrors!!

My crazy son. This isn't a super new layout, but I don't think I posted it on the blog yet. Used the newish BasicGrey Archaic line. Love the dinos!!

The latest Scrapping the Music challenge is up. Our song this week is the ultra sexy "Drive" by Incubus. I remember when that video came out, and drooling over the lead singer. lol.

My bulletin board, kinda unorganized. I've started hanging up my newest layouts up. And here are a couple of sneaks:

That's it for now folks.

xoxo

PS- Want to know something funny? Josh went to school with Gabriel Garcia, the Texan on "Nashville Star." They are both from Lytle, Texas. I watched an episode of that show for the first time last night (not a huge country fan) just so I could see who he is. Have to admit, I love what he did to "living la vida loca."

MIA

A photoless, quick entry.

Been pretty sick all week. Tonsilitis strikes again. Today was the first day I could eat and drink without cringing in pain.

Took the kids to a "Volksfest" and enjoyed the 80 degree weather with a cool breeze. The food was excellent and it was overall a good day. Actually, it's the first day in a couple of weeks we didn't need a sweater. That still blows this Texas girl's mind.

Still trying to get things set up for teaching. Going to speak to the legal office to see if I need a license. Not sure how it will work on the base.

Have a pile of scrap stuff to share, but when I'm not busy, I'm busy being lazy. :) Tomorrow, I promise I'll have stuff to share.

xoxo

ps- this conversation with sebastian (which happens alot b/c he repeats the SAME question 10 times, even when he either knows the answer or has been told the answer).

Sebastian: Mommy. Mommy?
Me: *Blank stare
Sebastian: Mommy. Talk Mommy.
Me: *staring continues
Sebastian: Mommy, are you a statue?

Oh and half of the time, he's a cat nowadays. If you call him "Sebastian" he gets angry and insists that you call him "Kitty." He gets into full character too, with the meowing and rubbing his head on your cheek. Anberlin is obsessed with "Green Eggs and Ham." She mimicks the story with her play food. Pretty darn cute.

Oh To Be A Kid (photo heavy)

I want to start off my post with a little plug to my friend Heather's store. I designed a little kit for her that I think you'd like! For $15 you get:


Love, Elsie Forrest Ranger double sided
Love, Elsie Forrest Outdoors double sided
Love Elsie Bonfire double sided
Love Elsie Leaflet embossed cardstock
Flower Child lace paper

1 Grandma's wallpaper Antique White Overlay
1 yd brown floral ribbon
2 Gel Blossoms Flowers and some leaves. A mixture of the sky and kiwi (NOT the whole packet)
10 queen & co. brads 5 of each shade of green
15 Old Fashioned Buttons 5 ea of Small, Medium, & Large
6 flowers from the Petalo Daisy Box Blend 3 small 3 medium
2 trees from Maya Road Trees chipboard set as well as 1 bird and 1 apple

To find this kit go to Everything Scrapp'n, look under category Designed Kits. Heather also has a lot of specials constantly running, so it's worth it to check her out. Right now I believe ALL of the cardstock is 50%! That includes all the new stuff like KI Bloom and the lace cardstock.



Anberlin is out of her preschool child development school for the summer and we're back into the whole "let's find something to do" routine. Luckily we found out that she's been accepted into the regular preschool for next year! Now we need to get Sebastian a spot in a German kindergarten. We've been spending our days playing outside or staying inside (since the weather has been ugh lately) painting and reading stories.


I'm really looking into teaching scrapbooking courses at my base and the other one about 30 minutes away. I think it is something that people want to do, just don't know where to start. On Saturday I believe I'll take a drive to the nearby hobby store on a different base and talk to whoever is in charge. Wish me luck!


Monday we took the kids to this adorable place called "Playmobil Park." It's a family leisure park based on the playmobil toys. There are no rides, it's an interactive kind of place. The kids had a blast...Josh and I did too. The favorite spot was the Pirate Ship. We had to cross through a little lagoon to get to it (don't worry, the water was like a foot deep?). Once on the ship, the kids could climp up the mast, crawl under the deck, "steer," etc.

The other attractions included a medeival castle. When you sat on the throne, it lit up and a trumpet fanfare was played over the loudspeakers.
There was a farm area where the kids pretended to take care of animals. Yes, that is Anberlin "milking" a cow.
There was a giant play indoor area where they had the playmobil toys set up for the kids to enjoy. Anberlin went straight to the princess area and Sebastian found a little area filled with trains and airplanes.



Anyways, you get the point! It was a lot of fun and thankfully, not too far from our house. We've had to put a hault on our weekend excursions b/c gas is getting ridiculous.

New post coming tomorrow with scrap stuff. :) Ta ta.

xoxo
jess

*yaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn*

Wowzas.

The past few days were a whirlwind. I blinked and it was over. The trip to Holland was grand.

I left thursday afternoon and arrived within 45 minutes. Travelling is already nerve racking, but doing it by yourself in a foreign country is overwhelming. Schipol airport is huge and my meeting point was going to be in Departures. Once I got my luggage, I speed walked through the airport for maybe 15 minutes until I found my meeting area. I wore a bright yellow shirt so I could be spotted easily.

I left the airport with Heidi Heideveld, the owner of ScrapbookMate. She was so funny, but terribly busy and stressed the whole weekend. But once it was over, she was back to her normal fun self. Anyways, we made a quick pitstop at her house, which is in the middle of Amsterdam, right on a canal. I couldn't believe the thousands and thousands of bicycles I saw on the way there! Of course, my camera was in my carry on in a different vehicle so I didn't get a photo, but here's one I found online:

Apparently there is about 20,000 bikes parked outside Amsterdam's Central Station. It's amazing to see a parking garage filled with them.

Thursday evening was spent in Heidi's warehouse, finishing up kits and drooling over the vastness of her property. I cannot even begin to describe how HUGE her warehouse is. But to give you an example:

That, Dear Friends, is floor to ceiling Bazzill and it stretched from one end of the warehouse almost to the other. O_O She has evey prima imaginable, things I've never even seen! I can't wait to visit there again. After I wiped the floor clean from my drool, I helped kit the last bit of Karen Burniston's class "Wall Toy." She used the new October Afternoon papers that are so gorgeous! After an hour or so there, we made our way to the hotel in a town called "Noordwijkerhout." The hotel was lovely...definitely a place I'd stay again.

Friday started early in the morning. After grabbing a quick breakfast, I made way to the "Teacher's Lounge" a.k.a. the "VIP Room." lol. The whole weekend was spent running around, finding missing items for teachers, putting up a shop, working in the shop, teaching make and takes, and just helping out where I could. And in my spare time, I got to have really cool conversations with some of the teachers. The first one I met was Nellie Hulsman, a Dutch scrapper that everyone thinks is British because of her accent. I LOVE Nellie!! I feel like we totally bonded this weekend. Jen Starr talked to me for probably an hour about the industry. It was quite a learning experience. I had lunch with C.D. Muckosky and her husband on Sunday. Donna Downey was HILARIOUS and I got to hear Teresa Collins talk about some of her future plans. Lance Anderson got a kick out of walking up behind me and scaring me (I looked like an idiot screaming). Vicki Boutin was so cute, especially when she got self-conscience about her accent. I met a couple of ladies from a Dutch Scrapbooking magazine and we exchanged business cards. They love the Daily Inspiration blog and I've sort of formed a new business relationship with them. Totally excited about that one. Jennifer Moody had a lot of complications this weekend, the poor thing, but once it was ironed out, she rocked. Then on Monday, after finishing up her retailer demonstration, she let me have the extra kits to divide up amongst my design team. SWEET!! Then I shared a ride with Karen Burninston and her husband. Big thanks to Michelle Grant for showing me the ropes this weekend and being my chaffeur. :D She was so fab and I can't wait to see her again.

Give me a second while I sweep up all these names I just dropped.

So am I bummed I didn't have the chance to take classes? Totally! BUT, the things I learned could not have been learned in a class, so I think I made out pretty good. Speaking of making out, check out my stash:

I can't wait to play.

I have to confess, I took about 5 photos the whole time I was there. Sheesh. next time I go to an event, I am going to be animate about shooting. Here are the shots I managed to take:

This is a photo of two gals from my team, Mireille Divjak and Emma Trout. LOOOOOOVED these ladies. I mean, it's one thing forming an online friendship with some, but it's a whole new world when you get to meet them in real life!

I taught make and takes this weekend. I was under the impression that I would just be the "manager" and making sure the teachers were where they were supposed to be. Nope. But I'm not complaining because I really do want to get into teaching. I met some wonderful scrappers and seriously can't wait for the next event (which I believe will be in November).

I was sad to leave, but anxious to see my family. I arrived at the airport a little later than I wanted. When I jumped out of the van, the wheel on my carry-on broke!! So I had to run through the airport with a heavy case stuffed with scrap stuff, in some greek style sandals. Then when I went through security check, they told me to place my ticket on the top of my belongings. Well, I nearly had a heartattack when my things came out of the xray machine and my ticket was GONE. I started to shake, because at this point, I had about 20 minutes before my flight left. They found it though, stuck inside the machine. I didn't appreciate the looks of impatience that were shot by the passengers behind me, but what can you do? Once it was found, I RAN to my gate, which felt like was on the complete opposite side of the airport security check. So today, my arms and shoulders are sore and I have blisters on the bottoms of my feet from my sandals.

It's good to be home.

And last but not least, my Mojo project I did before I left.

Sorry for the long post. Off to clean and do laundry and fix dinner. No rest for the weary.

xoxo
Jess

PS- The question of the weekend was "So is it 'Jess' or 'Jessica'?" Well, FYI, it's either or. I tend to type Jess online simply b/c it's faster. I respond to both so whatever you want to call me!

**Insert Gnarls Barkley Song**

I feel like I've been MIA for awhile. I haven't chatted with my girls on yahoo in a really long time. I'll be on tonight. I miss those crazy ladies.

The next few days are going to be a whirlwind for me. I'm taking a breather from doing layouts to post an update.

I'm leaving for the Netherlands on Thursday. Wow. Thursday!! I'm not even close to being ready. Last night I pulled down my rolling scraptote and found my cropping bag that I've never used. I plan on packing light since I'm hoping to score a lot of stash while I'm there.

There's nothing like the unexpected to put a little shake in your hands. I was trying to scrap yesterday for "Scrapping the Music" and I found it extremely hard to concentrate. I did my layout THREE times before I was satisfied. My anxiety is a bit on edge but this morning my transportation from the airport to the hotel was confirmed. For a while I thought I'd have to take a train from the airport into Amsterdam. Then from there take another train to a different city, then ride two different buses before arriving to the hotel. *phew* That is one thing I DO not want to do.

Here's some work:

The newest Scrapping the Music challenge is up, "Lost in the Moment" by Big and Rich. I don't remember the details of the day when I took this photo. One thing though, Josh rarely takes naps. I don't know how he does it. My mornings start around 630-7 am, depending if Anberlin goes to school. His starts with exercise at 530 and then he works until 5 or 6 pm. Naps are wonderful and if I can get one in with the kids, I'll do it in a heartbeat!

I have another layout up at A Daily Inspiration. Actually I whipped this one out this morning. Please visit the blog for a how to.

I started making cards in hopes of selling them on my Etsy. I liked the way these came out, although Josh thinks he would like them better if I didn't age/distress the backgrounds. At any rate, I used a mix of prisma color pencils and Sakura Gelly Rolls (Glaze and Souffle) to add a bit more dimension. I plan on making 2 more designs to sell tham as a set.

Lastly, I have decided to sell my Cricut. If anyone is interested please email me at jessica.griffinsummers@gmail.com. I have the machine, instructions, one new mat, one extra cutting blade and FIVE cartridges to sell. I'd prefer to sell it as a set and I'm asking $375 for all of it (that includes S&H). Please pass an "enabler alert" if you know anyone who has been wanting one of these.

Ok. I've procrastinated and have to do my Mojo layout.

Remember.

Cricut for sale. Pass it on.

xoxo