TS Survivor Week #2

For this weeks Challenge we needed
to take our inspiration from paper
lines by October Afternoon.
We need to take the name of a paper
line of theirs and use it as a title
as well as use the same color scheme
from that paper line.
Then pick three standout colors in
the collection and predominantly
use them on your layout.

Olivia & Ava were not quite smiling
back to us yet at this point, but
during one of Olivia's naps I was
able to catch her smiling.
Yes some people say it's gas, but
come now it's so cute when they "smile".



I used the Title Day Dream I thought it
was fitting with both colors and title.

Be sure to check out Tally Scrapper,
the ladies there are FULL of
inspiration and there are always new
challenges to get your mojo in gear.

Tally Scrapper Survivor Week 1

Every year Tally Scrapper
hosts weekly challenges
during TV Survivor Season.
I try to participate every week,
because not only does it motivate
me to try something new but it
also helps you complete projects.

During Week #1 the challenge was to
create a map layout, use at least
three different patterned papers &
follow the idea for map from Kelly Purkey.

I have yet to finish the album
from our 5th Anniversary so this
will make the perfect cover page.


I Cheated alittle :0).
I used my 50 states Cricut
Cartridge to start my map and
cut it into pieces from there.
Once assebled I used one photo from each
place we visited and used circles and
ovals to cut them out and attach to the page.
I used twine and arrow brads to indicate
where each place was located on the map.

Thanks for looking
and Happy Scrappin'!

Hello Friends!

Hello Friends,
It's been so long since I posted.
July I think was my last post.
Since then life has
certainly become different.

August 22, 2011 we welcomed into the
world our beautiful little Cupcakes.
Olivia Marie, 4lbs 15 oz, 16 1/2 inches
& Ava Danielle 4lbs 4oz, 16 1/4 inches.
The Cupcakes were 4 weeks
early, but so healthy.
Olivia however was a little to excited
coming into the world and took some liquid
into her lungs with her first breath and
it caused complications with her breathing.
She stayed on oxygen for alittle over 3 weeks.
Now Olivia is happy and healthy little baby.
Ava has been a little diva from the start,
she lets you know what she wants.
She's also a happy and healthy little baby.

They just got to 2 months old as of Saturday.
Both are double the weight just about and
slowly fitting into thier larger newborn
and 0-3 month clothing.
Being the proud mommy and daddy we've already
taken them to Sears and Walmart for photos.
*Tip- Sears has a better set up &
ends up the same price as Walmart!
Not mention we've taken lots of
photos since we brought them home.

September 30, 2011

October 19, 2011


What a difference just a few weeks.
Where did all the chunk come from? :0)

I have been crafting, though now it
takes a few days to finish projects.
So I'll slowly be loading new projects
here on the blog over the next week.
I hope to drop in more often and
share a tutorial or two soon.
Happy Scrappin'!

Oh the belly!

Every week the belly gets bigger
and less I can move as easily!
But I'm excited and it mean the
babies are getting bigger and
it's closer to when they arrive!

Here I am at 27, 29 and 30 weeks.


The babies like to be silly during
ultrasounds so the last two growth
ultrasounds they've hidden their
little faces and the Techs have had
trouble viewing their hearts to make
sure everything is growing correctly.
But today they made an appearance
and I was one very happy mommy-to-be!
Seeing their little faces for the
first time made it even more real!
Yes the kicking makes it real but
to see faces left me in awe...


You can follow our baby updates every
week here: Twin Lambs 2011.
Thanks for looking!

The nursery...

My husband has worked hard
making the nursery as
wonderful as it is and even
moved the furniture for me
a couple times.
Who knew getting two cribs
into a room would be so hard!

Here he is preparing the room.


Here is the room once
I got to help decorate.


The trees are vinyl wall stickers
from Target and the furniture is
from Ikea! Yay for Ikea!

thanks for looking.

Catching up...

I began a pregnancy album with
the first ultrasound photo months
ago, and have slowly made layouts
with out photos for later.
But photos have stared to
pile up and they need to
make a home in the album.
I've done 5 layouts the
last couple days and I'm
so excited to share!
If this mojo keeps up I'll
be all caught up for this
album, for now any way.
I'll be splitting this
up into 3 days of posts!

Being pregnant with twins
has been amazing especially
to see their grown.
Here we are at 19 weeks,
two little heads
and two little babies.


During this ultrasound
Baby A was being shy,
however Baby B at least
let us see her profile.


This week is another Belly
Shot and the Baby Shower!
So there will be plenty
more photos to scrap.
See you again soon!
Thanks for looking!

Our babies' Nursery

*Copied from the Twins Blog*
Though my creativity for scrapping
has be lost for the time being, Nesting
sure has come into play. I thought I'd
share with you all our latest creation.
* * * * *

Justin is amazing!
I told him the other morning that
the furniture needed to be moved.
The set up just wasn't working.
He was hoping I was kidding.
I was serious.

So when he came home from work he
was ready to start the moving process.
It wasn't going to work the way I had
hoped so we had to think it out again.
Luckily Justin had an idea and TADA!
Our new set up is perfect and functional.
Who knew getting two cribs and all those
shelves to fit was gonna be so hard.

The nursery is a work in
progress, but for now we're done.
We have a busy week ahead of us.
I need to clean up the rest of the
house, find new homes for the many
items removed from the "guestroom"
and clean the carpet.
It seems our little dogs had a few
fits while we were in Las Vegas.
Little monsters.
Thank goodness they are adorable.

I spent the afternoon with my mom
yesterday getting a few of the last
little details, a changing pad,
another tree,and frames and that
little toy box under the window.
(We have one just like it in
the living room and I LOVE IT!)





A quote from a friend about the
changing table: Erin said
"Too bad such a pretty piece has to
be used for such a stinky job. :)"

I washed all their little items
like bibs, hats and receiving
blankets in order to put them away
right away in the little green bins.
I really want more of the bins.
They store flat for storage
and pop-up perfectly when needed.

I put away as much as I could.
Washing what was going
to be displayed ect.
And was able to clear out a
few boxes from our room. YAY!
I didn't wash clothes yet.
Maybe in a month or so.

I'm so happy the nursery is set up.
I worry that later on I'm going to
have trouble getting around and
would hate to know that I couldn't help.

Thank you Justin for making it
work and look so beautiful!

*Update - New items are added to the
room every week from photo frames to
baby gear. Once our baby girls arrive,
they will be the room's focus.

My and my honey!
June 16, 2011

This belly gets bigger and bigger, it's crazy!

Where did I go?

Well, life has been full of
being extra busy or lots of naps.
I have little mojo for scrap-
booking which makes me sad.
If'd you'd like to see what's
going on with me, you're welcome
to visit the blog I've been writing
about our journey to becoming parents.
Twin Lambs 2011.

I update this much more often,
though not ful of crafty inspiration,
it's a journal of my life right now.
One day I'll scrap all the photos!

Peanut Butter for Elephants

Bree is doing a wonderful
challenge at Tallyscrapper!

Helping the Elephants -
Peanut Butter Challenge

She has 12 bottles of Peanut Butter
she'll be donating to a Elephant
Sanctuary to be used to mix with
the elephants medications.
For each person to submit a LO
she is donating a jar of Peanut
Butter in their name.

I haven't done a lo in couple weeks
and this challenge got me to thinking.
My first thought reading the
challenge this morning was oh, Elvis!
In 2005 when traveling to VA
we stopped in Graceland.
Justin & Mom are Elvis fans and
found a recipe for The Elvis Peanut
Butter Banana Sandwich.
We've tried it twice.
Once with the Bacon once without.
Let's just say it's yummy, but as
Justin calls it a heart attack
waiting to happen. Yikes.

SO for the challenge I thought
making a 12x12 recipe card for
my books would be perfect.
Of course if Momma sees it may
make it's way to a new home.




If you want to help the Sanctuary
as well you can send them a jar of
peanut butter too.

The address is

The Elephant Sanctuary
804 Darbytown Rd.
Hohenwald, TN 38462

Trying to get back on track...

I've been lost again. I'm so sorry.
I need to take photos of all
the stuff I've done lately!

Next Week is our Card Class.
I'll post photos soon.

And Monday is the day we
hopefully find out if our little
Lambs are Boys or Girls.
Justin and I are so excited to find out.
He's hoping for Boys.
I'm hoping for a Boy & Girl.
Either way I'll be pleased.

Mom has started planning the
baby shower for next month.
Can you believe the little
ones will be here mid August!
Today we took advantage of some
great coupons from Babies R US
and got thier car seats, a baby
gate, a diaper bag and a body pillow
for me. Everything 15-20% off each.
A major savings for us.

My mind wonders much to easily so
that's part of why I'm not around.
We've also been out and
about alot more lately.

I promise to update with project pics soon.
But for now here's the Twins
@ 19 weeks 5 weeks, April 25, 2011.

About where I live...

My friend's little girl is doing
a project for school.
The children are writing letters to
people from all over and asking
that a letter be written in return.

I of course had a bolt of inspiration!
I Used my 50 States Cartridge to
make a card with the state flag,
state bird, & state flower.

Inside I wrote the letter back
to Emily about where I live.
Talking about near by day trips,
the weather and facts about the state.
I was even able to include postcards
for the nearby areas of interest.





I hope she gets LOTS of letters back!
Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Scrappin'!

Happy Anniversary...

Justin's great uncle and aunt recently
celebrated their 52nd anniversary.
What an inspiration!

I knew I just had to send them a card!
I came up with this and was able to cut
out enough of everything for extra cards
for my stash as well as for a class!
The girls are ready for a class!

It's simple yet elegant!



Thanks for looking!
Happy Scrappin'!

Starting my pregancy/baby album...

I figure if I start now and
make the pages, I might be
able to keep up just alittle.
Lol, we'll see.
One page down many to go!

I picked all bright colors
to use for the album.
In other words I've been
collecting papers, hehe!



This is the last day for Crop Lo's
that I completed however it's not
the last day of projects I've
completely recently! Yay!

Stay tuned!

Baby it's cold outside!

OMG, I never seen REAL snow before,
until our trip to Chicago last year
for Joe's Navy Boot Camp Graduation.

Before heading to the Museum of
Science and Industry we took a
walk on the shore.
Beware, don't ever focus on the ice
on the top of the water, as it moves
with the wave you may get sea sick, lol!
But it's so pretty!



Thanks for looking!
Happy Scrappin'!

Winner for No Housework Day!

Sorry for the delay!
My mind has been wondering.

So with out further delay our
lovely winner for National No
House Work Day is :

JAZZY!

Congrats!
Please be sure to email me
with your address so I can
send out your prize.

Jazzy makes beautiful cards so
be sure to check her blog out!

Thanks ladies for commenting
on my project as well as
sharing what you'd rather
do than housework!

Oceanside, CA

Awww the smell of fishy water!
Can you believe I kinda
missed it from Va?
Any who, Joe took us to Oceanside
to enjoy a wonderful lunch on
the Pier at Rosie's Diner!
(You can see the diner in the background.)
During our LONG walk to the restaurant
we took plenty of stops to take photos.




Geeze how I miss the beach, but at the
same time the desert isn't so bad, our
biggest issue is dust storms and tumble weeds.
Beach side means big storms, & hurricanes.
I'll sit tight in my boring, safe, town and
dream of going to those beautiful places.

Thanks for stopping by, just a few days to go!
Happy Scrappin'!

Botanical Gardens

Mom and I had a day to wander
while in Cali, so we took the
opportunity to visit Balboa
Park in San Diego!
It's huge and so beautiful!
WE went to 2 museums and
the Botanical Gardens.

Here's momma showing off her new
bag indicating where we are!



Mom and I took advantage of being
in a scrapbook store for the Crop.
Nearly everything on this page is
NEW items from the store, lol!
But the hubs can't say I bought
it and never used it, haha!

Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Scrappin'!

Goodness Age is creeping up on me!

It's not often I find photos from
birthdays on my hard drive so when
I found this one from my 27th
birthday last year in October I knew
I had to scrap it.
(I'm still 27, swear!)

I used January's ScrapbookSussies Kit!
I LOVE Sussies!



Thanks for lookin!
Happy Scrappin'!

Safari!

In January both Dad and
Joe came home on leave.
We had a busy couple of weeks
going back and forth to Tucson
and Phoenix and during one of
our trips stopped at Cabella's.
The boys were in their happy place!

They have many displays of
animals through out the store,
however this is one that caught
mom's eye with the elephant!

So here are Mom, Dad & Joe
on pretend Safari!


Thanks for Stopping by!
Happy Craftin'!

Fly!

In March Daniel flew Snoopy
down for the weekend and the
boys spent time fixing it up.
Justin even made new slip covers
for the plane (yet another lo.)

When Daniel was to head back to
Tucson, we were gonna meet him
there to do some shopping.
Momma went along for the ride
and got to Snoopy in all it's
Orange and Yellow Glory.

We got lucky with it being
such a beautiful day out.



Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Scrappin'!

Snoopy!

You all might have already seen the
Mini Album I did with this photos,
but it was a must for a LO.
The Album was a gift for my BIL Daniel.

Daniel was so excited that he
got to purchase his first
airplane before he was 21.
I went with him to do the
checks before he bought the plane.
I made sure to take plenty of
photos to document this event.
Here's the LO I did to
keep for my scrapbooks!


TFL! Come back SOON!
Happy Scrappin'!

Who's toy is that?

Buzz Lightyear has made a
huge impression in my life.
In fact this is the 2nd,
yep 2nd post all about him!
Since that first post he's
had a few more adventures.

Buzz has many battle scars, melted
hand, yellowed helmet, missing rockets,
and most recently a broken Leg.
He even has a new nickname, one
which dates us both horribly.
He's now Grandpa Buzz according
to my little friend Joshua.

So during that Marathon Crop
did a page just for Buzz.
There's even a pull out
journaling spot with his story!
Many of the ladies who saw my page in
progress kept asking, "who's toy is that?"
Well mine of course, lol!




TFL! Happy Scrappin'!

Are you Feeling Crabby?

My brother is CRAZY!
When we went to see Joe in San Diego,
we went to Joe's Crab Shack for dinner.
YUMMY!
Joe acted like the crab was attacking
him, so I just had to take photos!
And I love how they came out!




I used the Life's a Beach Cricut
Cartridge to make the little Crabs.
I was so upset with myself at the
crop for not remembering to take
little bitty googly eyes!
But here is it all done! YAY!

Thanks for stopping by, come
back for another LO tomorrow!

Happy Scrappin'!

Are you Ready?

Are you ready to see new projects
here on Leading a Craftastic Life?

I'm am so ready Ready!

It's been so LONG!
But it's finally time to show
off all the recent projects!

A few weeks ago, a few of us ladies
went to Tucson for a Marathon Crop!
Geeze that was fun, and so exhausting!
But it was very and I mean very productive!
So productive in fact I completed 11 LOs.
Mom & Kay completed their first
full 12x12 LOS with photos!
And Jen Completed quite a few LOs too!

So what's my point?
This week starts at least 11
days worth of projects to share.
A project a day keeps
the inspiration fresh!

To Start off the week my LO
for this months Challenge!

This is my little cousin
(I lied he's taller than me)
Kristian last May after
his First Communion.

Isn't he a cutie?
Thanks for stopping by!
Happy Scrappin'!

National NO Housework Day Blog Hop!

Welcome to the National No
Housework Day Online Blog hop!
If you have arrived not knowing
until now about the hop, no problem
...just go back to If It's Groovy where
this hop starts and work your way through.
You may find games, prizes, projects and
how do-you-dos along the path :).
We would appreciate it if you sign up
to keep in touch with us by "following"
and would love your comments!

Perhaps you arrived here from
Life With...(Julie), Great!

Hope you enjoyed that stop
and the others so far!!!

We celebrate this national holiday by
scrapping today and into the weekend
with projects that remind us of housework
or getting away from it!!!
Take the day off, put up your feet and let's hop!

House work has been like a four letter word here
at home lately. With company coming and going often.
Now that's I'm pregnant I rather nap then clean, lol!
But it must be done, sometimes.
(especially after this project, lol!)
But from April 7-10 We'll be celebrating No House
Work Day, which should in fact be every day!
So in honor of this very
important day I made this sign.




I used a $1 store platter, SassaFrass Papers
& the house from Sweethearts Cricut Cart.

Become a Follower & leave me a comment
about your favorite thing to do
when NO Housework is Required!
Be sure to leave an email in the
comments so I know where to contact you!

I'll be giving away the prize below:


Thanks for your visit, please head over to
see Scrappy Side of Me (Jen T) Enjoy!

The following List is
your stops along the way!

1. If It's Groovy (Groovy Deb)
2. Life With...(Julie)
3. Leading a Craftastic Life (Kristin)
4. Scrappy Side of Me (Jen T)
5. Peg's Crafting Corner (Peg)
6. All Things Crafty (Erica)
7. Scrapping the Guys (Heather)
8. Let's Get Peachy (Laura)
9. Creating Sensations (Vanessa)
10. Everyday Me (Michelle)
11. Basement Chronicles (Maya)
12. Love to Create (Misty)
13. Scrappy Go Lucky (Darlene)
14. Dragonfly Destiny (Jean-Marie)
15. Andrea's Metta (Andrea)
16. Red Car Productions (Krista)
17. Greets N Treats (Becky)
18. Paper Universe (Silvana)
19. The Limitations of Thought (Irini)
20. Step Into My World (Becky)
21. From the Owls Nest (Sharon)
22. Creations with Becka (Becka)
23. Crafty Go Lucky (Valerie)
24. Crafty Diva Lounge (Jen)
25. Just a Glimpse...(Jenneke)
26. Scrap it Girl (Kimberly)
27. These are a Few...(Julie)
28. Really? That Just Happened (Doreen)
29. Nikki Sivils (Julie c/o Nikki)
30. Marci's Scrapping Spot (Marci)
31. Scrapbookers Anonymous (Theresa)
32.Intrepid Thread (Julie)
33. Scrapbooking SOS (Michelle)
34. Flamingo Scraps (Amanda)
35. Scrapbook Abundance (Jana)
36. Artful Delight(Leeanne)
37. Mommy of 5 Kidz (Misty)
38. Designs by Diana(Diana)
39. Polka Cabana(Jeannie)
40. A Day in the Life...(Kelly)
41. MarBare Scraps (Mary)
42. One by One...(Karel)

Craftastic Challenge #23 April 1-30

*****ATTENTION!*****
I am no longer able to send packages
to international countries.
Participants must be in the US.

Are you ready for challenges?
Here's the details:

Below you'll find 4 challenges.
2 LO Challenges, 1 Card Challenge and 1 Altered Item Challenge.
You are not being asked to do all challenges, though.
For each Challenge you submit to me your name will be
entered into a "raffle" for the monthly RAK.
So if you do one challenge you will be entered once, do 4
then you'll be entered 4 times.
This is just a way to Challenge you and give you the chance
to try new techniques.
If you have suggestions on RAKs or Challenges let me know
and I'll be more than happy to try to incorporate them.

Layout Sketch
For this one just follow the sketch and make it your own at the same time.
This Sketch is brought to you by the talented Becky Fleck of www.Pagemaps.com.


Layout Shopping List
Use at least 3 of the following items in a LO.
~ 2+ Photos
~ 2+ Buttons
~ Flowers
~ Stitching
~ Color Teal
~ LARGE Monogram
~ Border Punche
~ 3+ Pattern Papers
~ Stamp
~ Journaling
~ Doodling

(If you combine LO Challenges 1 & 2 your name will be entered an extra time, so instead of 2 chance to win the RAK it'll be 3.)

Card Sketch
Follow the sketch and make it your own at the same time.
This Sketch is brought to you by the talented Becky Fleck of www.Pagemaps.com.


Outta the Box
This Month we're celebrating
NO Housework Day on April 7!
So This month Make a project using this idea.
A sign, an altered house object like a broom.
Anything ...!
Check out the up coming post for this event!

Submitting your work is easy,
either post a comment here with the
link or email me a photo @ craftasticlife@hotmail.com.
Just make sure to put in the Subject Line
"Craftastic Challenge #22"
and the Title(s) of your project(s).
Multiple entries for a challenge are welcomed!
Challenge ends April 30, 2011.

*****ATTENTION!*****
I am no longer able to send packages
to international countries.
Participants must be in the US.

Now for goodies!!
I'll be adding a mini
album to all RAKs when there are more
than 10 entries for the Challenge.
Here is the Prize:



Have fun ladies and I can't
wait to see what you create!!