I think I'm getting the hang of it!

So over the past few days I have gotten my pictures back out and started to do some scrapbooking. I try to do it when the kids are preoccupied or sleeping since we know how hard it can be with little hands in everything!

I think I'm getting back into the groove of it now. Scrapbooking is really quite different then card making. Would you agree? I never noticed it before but I think it is. I feel like to do a page I have to pull all my stuff out because I just don't know what I might want to use. I don't really have to do that for a card. I let the pictures show my what should be on the page. Then I change things and add things and take things away. Card making is much more simple for me.

The pages I have been working on are from 3 years ago. It was what I had started before we moved here so I figured I should finish them. Then I will TRY to get on track with Jodus and Leila. We will see. I do scrapbooking more for the joy of it then for the finished books. I think that's why I don't like premade layouts. I would rather the pages be done by me then by someone else.

So here are my pages from the past few days.

Saying goodbye to Cody on our last day with him at his basic training graduation.

Our trip to the Alamo which was okay! Rodney enjoyed it!

Spending some time at the pool and hot tub after the long days of Texas heat and Cody's graudation schedule

And since we couldn't go anywhere his last day we decided to stay on base and do some bowling!

I have to say I felt pretty bad for Cody having to be in his Blues the entire weekend. And to think my mom wanted to go to an amusement park! He would have died!

Frustrated

I have not done a single scrapbook page in almost 2 years. Yes, that's right.....2 years. Once I packed up all my things for our move to Germany, I unpacked them, set everything up and didn't do much of anything for a while. Moving here was a HUGE culture shock and getting used to things here took me a while. To top it all off, Rodney and I decided we were ready to have another baby....what were we thinking......so my pregnancy was HORRIBLE! I was sooooooooo sick the entire time so once again, my stuff just sat there being unloved! Well, Rodney left for Iraq 3 1/2 months ago and I finally decided I needed to get my things out and start using them more....kind to keep me busy. My BFF told me to join the DSS on Splitcoast and I did. It turned out great for me. It got me back into crafting again and I had a wonderful big and little sister. So I started to get really involved with SCS and am doing some swaps. I am all caught up so I figured, I really need to get back into scrapbooking.
OMG.......let's just say I feel it takes a different part of the brain to do scrapbooking verses, card making/crafting. My page turned out like crap! And it takes some concentration too and, well, when you have a 3 1/2 year old wanting to have his little nose in every single thing you are doing you tend to lose your concentration a bit. Plus I share my craft room with Jodus and Leila, it is there play room too so to get things out I had to "try" to step over mounds of toys. GRRRRRR! Let's just say from now on I am going to be scrapbooking after bedtime! I was so distracted and irritated that I just couldn't get it together. Plus I think you just need to be in the flow to scrapbook, or to craft or to stamp cards and seeing how I hadn't made a page in 2 years I totally was not in the flow!
Well, I just thought I would share my afternoon of fun times with you! Or....not so fun times!

Stamped Candles

Finally finished my candles for a swap I'm in. I think they came out pretty good. They were certainly a labor of love! Lot's of stamping, coloring, trimming tissue paper (not so easy), and melting....plus trying not to burn my fingers in the process!
I used Stamping Bella huggybella and saying "It's a friendship thing". The flowers are from an SU! set called Delight in Life. I colored them with SU! markers and then at the end....nothing is finished without a little bling...sparkle....or glitz....and my favorite to use is........STICKLES. So in a few spots I added some stickles. I hope the people that get these in the swap like them. I worked hard on them!

Here are a few pictures of the babies! Jodus having fun on his favorite ride at the park. Okay, I enjoy it too.......it's fun!!! It's fun to be a kid sometimes!!!!

And here is my precious baby girl! She fell asleep on the couch today while I was cleaning out the pantry. She has learned how to get up on the couch but hasn't figured out how to get back down. Poor baby!

The past few days..........

Well, I have been working on a few things. I just finished up my purse gift card holders for a swap on SCS. Now I have to do stamped candles. I'm not sure what I am going to do with the candles yet but I bought a few extras to try a few things first....practice candles!

I had not been feeling well the past few weeks and had been going through a few things but I'm thinking I'm doing better. But whenever I feel better I then start to wonder.....what's next.

I have also finally after 7 years given in and am going to be signing up to sell SU! I'm really excited about this. I don't know why I didn't do it years ago. I love SU!'s products and for the most part my stock of stamping and scrapping stuff is 90% SU! stuff. My husband on the other hand isn't quite as "excited" about me signing up......crafting just isn't his thing. I send him pictures of what I'm working on anyway....he tries to be supportive but I can see through it!!!

Speaking of my husband, we are at the one month mark! FINALLY! He does have a date but as with every deployment he has ever been on that date changes about a million times! I am just happy that the time is nearing! It will be good to have him home and have our family back together again!

So, a few pictures........

Of course now that I am finished with all six of them there are a few things I would have done differently! But this was my first time trying these with this pattern. I can live with it!

Me and the babies playing around in the backyard. Enjoying a nice German day. They are far and few in between so we try to take advantage of them when we can!

Card Swap

I just finished up a swap I was working on and I was pretty proud of the turnout of the cards so I thought I would share! Can you tell my love....okay.....obsession with Bellas? I just wish I was more creative with my coloring. I always thought I was a good colorer (bad English I know) but that is with crayons, I use markers mostly and I just don't do as well. And forget about pastels....I SUCK at using them! Maybe I will try colored pencils....that might work too! Anyway......

I did loveybella and a Stamping Bella saying "I just love you". I have been using that saying alot just in general so I thought I would use it for the card too! Nothing really special going on, just the Bella, my favorite stickles which you can never see with the damn camera a background stamp and some embellishements. I used, baubles (from Stamping Bella), brads, and eyelets. Just changed the positions of the images on the cards. I used the old "New In Colors" from SU!