Good bye 2008...

...here we are the end of the year. I've been thinking back upon the events of the past year...and it's been a good year for the most part. I'm especially thankful for that because for many it hasn't been a good year. I feel I've become a bit of a better photographer over the past year. I've met new friends through different blogs and websites. (I love the internet because of that). I've become aware of things that need to change. And things I'd like keep nurturing. After reading Ali Edwards' blog today, I've been thinking about what my word for 2009 could be. For 2008 it was 'possibilities'. The possibilities came when I least expected them. Blessings.

I wish all of you a happy, safe New Year's eve and I wish you many blessings and delightful surprises, new possibilities in 2009. I'm thankful that I was able to "meet" all of you. :)

Hello 2009...

The Final Spy

Spy #47:

...time

A picture of my photo folders...all the pictures taken over the past year. A snapshot of time. Thanks again Beth & Nicole for challenging us to see the world differently. :) Blessings to you both. :)

Thanks for stopping by to check out my spy. I'm going to continue to post photos of the challenges I'm participating in so check back if you'd like! I'd love to hear from you :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Say it isn't so...

I've been following along with We Spy:You Spy for a while now (since Spy #13, something blue). I don't remember how I found out about it...I believe it was through my friend 'themathchick' (thanks Tara!). Today, I went to see what 2008's last spy was for the year and I read that Nicole & Beth are ending the We Spy:You Spy challenge blog. :*( But, I can totally understand. With families, work, LIVES in general, it takes a lot of diligence to keep up a blog and maintain some sort of balance & sanity to your life. ;) And that's coming from someone who doesn't even blog frequently. LOL But, here's a Very Big Thank You to Nicole and Beth...

(cute gals, aren't they?)

for sharing their creative thoughts, pictures, words & comments. Thank you both for being a part of my life. I hope to see you out here on the internet from time to time. :) I've thoroughly enjoyed taking a part in their challenges (and one of the main reasons I started my blog!) and thankful for all the wonderful people I've met through following along. I think I've become a better photographer, in part due to them and their challenges. :) Thanks gals! I wish you both nothing but the very best! I hope 2009 is a great year for you both...and all of you out there who drop by my little blog from time to time.

So, go check out this last spy....it's your last chance! Have fun!

We Spy : You Spy #46

...a gift

I received this birthday gift in the mail the other day, from my friend! Here's what was inside:A collection of Tazo teas in a pretty little bamboo box. I've tried a couple flavors so far - they're very good. It was a nice birthday :)

Hope you're all enjoying the holiday season. Thanks for stopping by for a peek!

Have yourselves a merry little Christmas...

...just a little note to wish you all a Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful holiday :)

We Spy : You Spy #45

...a tree

(click the link to go to the WS:YS blog, here.)

This tree is at our local library, to help promote the drive for scarves, mittens, hats, gloves, socks, etc.

Thanks for stopping by & taking a look! Have a wonderful holiday season. :)

We Spy : You Spy #44

....a favorite
(click: We Spy:You Spy)
This Peppermint Mocha coffee creamer is my favorite. I like the coolness that the peppermint leaves in your mouth, even though you're drinking hot coffee. I wish they sold this all year long!

Thanks for stopping by & taking a look. Happy holidays to you & yours, however you celebrate this time of year!

12 of 12 for the Twelfth Month

*1/5/09 - Update! Here's my December edition of 12 of 12:(Used Holly McCaig's "Jingle Bell" kit - freebie).
Thanks for stopping by and taking a look!

Have a great day :)
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
12/12/08:

Today is/was the 12th of the month and that means '12 of 12'! I forgot to post this at the beginning of the day, in case anyone reading this was interested in participating. Sorry :) If you'd like to participate, it isn't too late. If you took pictures today, pick 12 and put them on a layout page. Doesn't have to be fancy. A little journaling about what's going on in each picture is nice so you can look back at it months (years?) from now and you'll know what you did (or didn't do) on this day. Then, share your 12 of 12 over at the 12 of 12 blog - click here, and post a link in the comments. :)

Twilight

This week's challenge at ShutterSister.com is to capture twilight. Here's mine...

We Spy : You Spy #42

...gratitude

Among all the things I'm grateful for...family, friends are givens...I'm grateful for my son making a turnaround in his grades, attitude, etc this year. We've had a little bit of a rough couple of years and God has carried us through. I commented about this same gratitude over at Crystal's blog ( http://littlebitfunky.blogspot.com/ ) and won this darling set of feltie Christmas cookies from Becky ( http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5128266 ). I'm grateful too, for Crystal for hosting the giveaway on her blog and grateful to Becky for sharing her beautiful handiwork. :)

Thanks for stopping by to take a peek! Have a great day~

What I know...

I just wanted to share with you (whoever's interested) what I know now, after making my December Daily album. I {heart} my Crop-A-Dile tool (by We R Memory Keepers; they have another version too: Big Bite II). This isn't a new product by any means but I used it more making my December Daily than I had before. It punches holes through acrylic pages {almost} like but-tah! And it eats chipboard, cardboard, and multiple layers of cardstock for breakfast. If you don't have one, put it on your wish list so Santa can bring it to you. :) I'd like to know if you have one, and do you love it or not so much?

Gigi thinks it's pretty nifty too, as a head scratcher...

The Crop-A-Dile in action...

and once I got started... I. couldn't. stop.

So, that's just my two cents about it. I hadn't used it much before but it came in handy when I made this newest album. (btw, it also sets eyelets...no noisy setting with a hammer).

Have a super day! :)

December Daily Album

Hi :) Have any of you made a December Daily album, like Ali Edwards is doing at her blog? I thought I'd share mine (finally finished it up today!):

(click on pictures for larger views!)

If you've made one, I'd love to see it :)

Have a great day!

Welcome December

It's the first day of December, the holiday season is underway! I wish for you all a wonderful holiday season, whatever holiday you celebrate in December. I'm hoping I can keep things simple & pared down this year. Cozy & focused on what matters. :) Today I enjoyed a favorite holiday drink, a peppermint mocha twist. Sip a cup of your favorite holiday drink, listen to some holiday music (one of my favorite's is 'It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year') and take a moment to relax...before the hustle and bustle of the season sneaks up on you. :)

We Spy : You Spy #41

...something open The shutter of my camera is open quite a bit ;) (eeek, I should've made sure the mirror was clean before snapping this picture. oh well...lol)

Thanks for stopping by for a look! Happy Thanksgiving to all of you in the USA. Have a wonderful & safe weekend.

We Spy : You Spy #40

...something brown
Cups of hot cocoa for my daughter & myself. :) Swiss Miss w/mini marshmallows...hers with whipped cream & chocolate chips!

Thanks for stopping by :)

Twelve of 12

*Update: Below is my finished November edition of 12 of 12 :) -- thanks for stopping by to take a peek!

Journaling (click on image for larger view): 1.Every morning we give Gigi a drink from the tub faucet. 2. Drove the kids to school on a rainy morning. 3. Read through decor books I got from the library. 4. Went to daughter's school for SEOP conference. 5. Did some grocery shopping & got a great parking spot! 6. Took son to pick up his copy of the new Banjo Kazooie game. 7. Took funny pictures of the kids w/cell phone camera. 8. Self-portrait: HI! 9. Had hot cocoa with daughter. 10. Made penne bake for dinner. 11. Took less than $20 to fill up gas tank today! 12. Watched the CMA's - Kenny Chesney won Entertainer of the Year.

(Credits: used Danielle Corbitt's 'Blissfully Autumn' blog freebie. Click the name to be taken to Danielle's blog. She has alot of lovely free gift mini kits. If you take one please leave her some love in the comments section!).

If you're following along/participating with Jessica Sprague's 'Stories in Hand' class, how're you doing with it? I'm following along. I've had to wait to buy a new printer cartridge to finish my binder but that will be remedied in the next couple of days :)

Hope the rest of your weekend is nice :)

We Spy : You Spy #39

...choices
A peek into our pantry closet at the many choices for breakfast we have. We're blessed, really, to have a choice. Some get no breakfast at all--it's not a choice...it's a fact of life. Keep those people in your prayers & thoughts, especially this Thanksgiving :) Thanks for stopping by for a peek!

FYI...Stories in Hand

Hi...just a reminder that Jessica Sprague's 'Stories in Hand' class begins today. :)

Love Thursday

A leaf that caught my eye today:
Happy Love Thursday :) Thanks for stopping by!

We Spy : You Spy #38

...candy

(click picture to go to We Spy:You Spy)

The Halloween candy ready to be given out. Hope had a nice Halloween! Thanks for stopping by for a peek :)

Happy Halloween

If anyone should stop by my blog...I just wanted to wish you a...

Happy (and safe & fun) Halloween!

October's 12 of 12...finally!

Here's my October edition of 12 of 12...thanks for taking a peek :)

front...

back...

just the pictures...

Here are the reasons why I can't seem to get my challenges done quickly...

I can't work in these conditions. (Or are they just trying to help?) ;) LOL

Again, thanks for stopping by to take a look at my 12 of 12.

Have a great day~

Stories in Hand class - a short word about registering...

FYI: To whoever is interested...I registered for Jessica Sprague's 'Stories in Hand' class today & I just wanted to say it's very easy to register. You have to register at her site first...easy peasy...then you log-in and follow the very short list of instructions to register for the class. I'm looking forward to learning from her about how to be a better story-teller. I love telling stories through photographs so any words, journaling & stories I can put with them will be a plus. :) Now, I just hope I can follow through with participating in the class. :) {I'm a bit of a procrastinator}.

It doesn't seem like I'm "up for the challenge" lately, eh?

LOL :) Well, we all get busy and it turned out to be a busier time lately for me & my family than I expected. I've been working on my Week in the Life project (click this link here, if you want to know more about that, hosted by awesome Ali Edwards). Egads, I keep forgetting....I still have to put my October 12 of 12 together too! Anyhoo, what I can post today are my We Spy:You Spy entries. I'm having to catch up...again. ;) So, without further ado...here they are - thanks for stopping by to look!

Something #35:

...tools
...my kitchen tools. I know knives shouldn't really be stored that way but we have limited storage. :)

Something #36:

...orange
...the orange pumpkin-shaped candy jar that I keep on my kitchen countertop. It's a Target dollar spot find...for $2.50.

Something #37:

...shadows
...our dog Lizzie. This was a fun challenge. The more pictures I shot, the more shadows I found. When I was showing the pictures to my son he pointed out the knot hole on the deck right about where her eye should be. Great spy, P2!

Again, thanks for looking! Are any of you going to be participating in Jessica Sprague's 'Stories in Hand' class? (Click the button to the right to go to Jessica's website, if you'd like to know more about it). I've been so busy that I haven't even signed up yet. I'll do that today though. I love seeing all the the creative things you've all been working on so leave a link to your stuff! Have a great weekend!

October's 12 of 12

**10/27 update...I finished! Scroll up (or click here) to see the layout & pictures :)

*10/24 update...egads, where does the time go?! I'm still working on my October edition of 12 of 12. Are any of you participating in it this month? Hopefully this weekend I'll get all caught up on my 12 of 12. You can still join in the 12 of 12 for October if you'd like to. See the link below for more info. :)

...I'm still putting together my 12 of 12. You can join in....even though it's the 14th :) If you happened to take a bunch of photos on the 12th, pick 12 and put a layout together (or just choose 12 from that day and post them at a photo-hosting site) or you could even do a 14 on the 14th. Or ;) maybe you'd like to join in next month. Click here...'12 of 12' and check out Susan's 12 of 12 blog.

Thanks for stopping by. :) Check back in a few days and I may have my 12 of 12 posted. (I'm still working on my Week in a Life challenge too.)

Stories in Hand

*Something I'd like to share:

This morning on Ali Edwards' blog, she posted about wonderful Jessica Sprague and her upcoming free -yay! free!- class called 'Stories in Hand'. Registration begins October 20th and you can register at Jessica's website.


(click picture to be taken to her site or click on the blog badge over on the right hand side).

As Jessica said on her blog, "Come, tell some stories. Make a cute project. Change your life."

Have a great day & a wonderful weekend :)

Love Thursday

...friends
...love
(can you spot the little heart-shaped rain-drop? )

Happy Love Thursday :) Thanks for stopping by for a peek!

FYI: Love Thursday can be found - and participated in - at ShutterSisters.com.

Autumn...

Happy autumn to all my creative friends out there! Hope everything is well in your little corner of the world. Thanks for stopping by my blog :)

The first

...of October :)

Just a little something I wanted to post. :) Happy Autumn...welcome to October.

We Spy : You Spy #34

...changes

Autumn is here, evident by the changing color of the leaves.


And then the breeze kicked up a little bit and made it's own changes...

Thanks for stopping by to take a peek! :) And, thanks to you who leave your nice comments when you've stopped by. I enjoy reading them. Have a great day!

We Spy : You Spy #33

...something tied

I put this bouquet together & took some pictures of it yesterday to send to my friend to celebrate the first day of autumn. In the movie 'You've Got Mail', I love what Tom Hanks' character, Joe Fox, says to Meg Ryan's character, Kathleen Kelly, "Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address."

Thanks for stopping by & taking a look!

Welcome to autumn...or fall...whichever you like to call it! :)