Monday 30 April 2007

Hula Ladies

Well as promised, (sorry I am a day late) I am posting the coconut shell pics...and a few others!


Yup! Thats right. A Rusty Pickle between two coconuts. Such stylish staff!


Amanda with her dressed up cow...sorry Amanda I forget her name - but she looks smashing!

Charlene - perfect fit!

Nice seashells Darcy

Another perfect fit!??
Laura - need we say more???

Ralna keeping the chocolate volcano well supplied. VERY important job!

Brittany helping a 'special 'customer'

Wilna's make and take was so much fun! What a treat to have Wilna with us for the day!

Thank you Wilna!!
Have a great evening everyone. Leave me a comment so I know you were here!
Blessings!
Julie

Saturday 28 April 2007

Mahalo Saskatchewan Scrapbookers

Mahalo, thank you Saskatchewan scrapbookers for a fun filled two days. What a great time!
Can anyone guess what this is a picture of?

Take your time...this is a toughy! well maybe it is easy for some of you...










Okay, here is a hint!
It can be tastefully used with some of these....


here's the giveaway clue!


Okay what goes better with a day of scrapbooking than chocolate! mmmmmm and some healthy fruit to dip into it. Are we enjoying this treat? I think so! Darcy will demonstrate...


Now that was fun!!



Lorraine and Dawn looking Hawaiian!
Corinne, Heidi and Keli all smiles!

Dawns corner is very tropical...and what! more food? Is anybody scrapbooking here?

Okay so we are getting some pages done.
Can't wait to see all the pages entered in the competition!
Stay tuned! Tomorrow I will upload the coconut cup pictures. WOAH!!

Friday 27 April 2007

ALOHA!!!!

I stopped in at the scrapbook store on my way home from work (the health care job) and Just Scrap It is just a buzz of tropical activity. There are people walking around in bare feet with their Hawaiian skirts and tops and of course everyone has a lei on. We have palm trees and beach umbrellas. Dawn H did an incredible job of her corner. It looks like an Hawaiian beach equipped with big colourful sand pails for all your scraps. It is so much fun to see everyone getting into the Hawaiian groove! Aloha Saskatoon! If you are in the area, stop in and take a look!
Can't wait to join in the fun later on.
I am posting this wedding page at Angie's request. It's a pocket for those special items. Just a piece of vellum glued down. The glue is covered by ribbon and flowers and then I had fun with rub ons.


Thought for the day....
Act 4:11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in Him.

Blessings everyone!

Wednesday 25 April 2007

Great Day - I love spring!

What a great day - but I am really tired. Busy, busy! Up early to get a few things done around here, dog out for a run...even did some exercise in the park myself, then drove Allison to school, grocery shopping, home to get a few things ready for supper tonight. I am cooking a turkey supper with all the trimmings. Mark leaves for the Canadian Forces base in Shilo Manitoba Friday and I wanted to have a big meal for him before he left...also send him on his way with 8 turkey sandwiches. We won't see him until late July...sigh. One day your little ones will leave the nest too.Thank you Laura for picking up my Just Scrap It shift tonight! So everything is in the oven as I type..will put the vegys on soon but they are all ready and oh man does it smell good in here..almost like Thanksgiving.
I spent an hour in the front garden today too - filled a couple of large bags full of leaves etc from the garden and grass. Look'n good! My tulips are up but they look a little spindly this year. I had over 100 last year. Maybe this is a rest year. Still early...or is it? Spent a few hours working on Allison's grad book. I sure do enjoy having a day off! I love the productive day I had but I will likely be in bed by 8pm tonight.

Here are two new pages I did a few days ago. One of our favorite treats in Mexico was ordering 'dos cerveza por favor' at lunch. Two beer on a hot day while feeling the ocean breeze on your face - well it feels pretty good...especially when you are with your sweetheart. Used up some stuff from my stash too! I love this picture. There were always orchids on the table. Took this with my lensbaby!



Journalling reads ... It is a wonderful thing when you share special pleasures with your life mate. Oh how we so looked forward to lunch at the Grill restaurant. We always waited until a table overlooking the ocean was available. One of our indulgences while in Mexico was to order “dos cerveza por favor”. We would order our shrimp cocktail (served in a coconut shell) and two Corona (dos cerveza), and just sit and enjoy looking at one another. Ya sounds kind of mushy, but Mexico does that to you – and we LOVE it! Then we would leisurely order something from the grill – pork, hamburger, maybe a salad. It was all so delicious! It was soooo relaxing. Not a care in the world. We would finish our leisurely lunch and head back to our lounge chairs by the ocean to sun bathe the afternoon away and discuss what was on the agenda for tonight’s gourmet meal and entertainment.

This next layout has a picture of the view from our balcony. We were on the fourth floor and on the corner so we had a 180 degree view. I am not one for balconies but loved looking out on the ocean, especially when the sun was coming up at 6:00am. Rub ons and stamps and some old labels for this Beautiful View.


Hey I thought I would add a few pictures from last Saturdays mornings walk with David. We love to walk to A J's on Central Ave ...because they make the best cup of coffee in the world and Bonnie and Darcy are terrific. Just don't sit in the comfy chairs by the window between 8:30 and 9:30 on a Saturday morning...that's where David and I sit!!! When you go, say Julie (from Just Scrap It) sent you. BTW the cocoa, mocha latte with whipped cream is sooooo wonderful!!



And a few pics of our demolition project in the family room - removing the bar/sink/cupboard. BTW I have a Frigidaire gas stove, fridge, Maytag dishwasher and stainless steel sink for sale. :) that's the kitchen project which is on the go right now.

Thats our pastor in brown(far left) ...supervising you know, Larry in the middle doing all the work, and Mark playing with Larry's cool tools! And you can see the wall behind Mark - my job..to patch that hole and get the wall ready to be painted brown like the rest of the wall. It actually turned out quite well. Oh and David - yes he was in on the project too...Larry's assistant! and refreshment provider.


Last Saturday I spent 10 hours - yes ten hours! in the basement going through the storage room and cleaning, tossing, organizing, and making a garage sale pile - more like a "hey if you want it, it's yours" pile. Also washed the carpets in two rooms down there. It feels so good to get to these projects - get them done. Kind of a workout too! So now the garage if full of stuff..but it is closer to getting out of the house! One third of the storage room is Marks military gear - oh, my they have a lot of stuff and you wouldn't believe how heavy it is. Next time you see a picture of one of our finest soldiers, take a look at his vest - yes his vest alone weighs about 30 pounds...and add under that a 20 pound bullet proof vest - how do they wear that in the heat and dust of Afghanistan! Let's pray for our soldiers serving in Afghanistan tonight okay?

This is long enough.

Today's wisdom...
Proverbs 13:4 "The soul of the sluggard desires and has nothing; but the soul of the hard worker shall be made fat."

I am feeling fat and it feels good! I will sleep well tonight.

Have a blessed evening!

Julie

Saturday 21 April 2007

A couple more pages

A couple more pages and then I have to take a break from scrapbooking and get some stuff done around the house - the list of have to's is growing! And I promised Allison we would go shopping for grad shoes today. I love the fullness of my days but sometimes I feel overwhelmed - so much to do, so much I want to do and sooo little time. Oh if I didn't have to sleep.

Okay - two new pages. This first one is of the ocean in Hawaii - a little different than the beach shots - this was one powerful sea we watched for about half an hour - wow. Try double clicking on the page to see the colors in the ocean. The ocean is one powerful force to be respected!

This next photo I took this winter. I had a little fun with stamps on this page! The journalling reads...You may see a blurry train here, but I took this picture because it reminded me of an early prairie morning. Waiting at the train crossing on a cold winter morning, I had dropped Allison off at school and the sun was just coming up. It was another beautiful morning and I had my camera. So what you really see here is an old farm fence, last year’s dead growth just starting to feel the morning sun, staunchly standing despite the fierce winter, and the sun filling the sky. Here is the beauty of creation, tranquil and steady despite a few tons of locomotion passing through.
January, 2007

Great news - David has a conference in Halifax and I get to tag along!! I am soo excited. I have not been east of Toronto. I have signed up for two tours - Peggys Cove - an all day tour including lunch. And a guided tour, by a fellow in a kilt, through old Halifax - heritage buildings and all - I will take a thousand pictures. Do I need more than 2 Gb of disk space??? Could use that wide angle lens I didn't buy because I redecorated my computer/scrapbooking room. I will resist. Looking forward to some fun time scrapbooking these pictures. Will I ever finish scrapbooking Hawaii? Mexico? Still on the year 2000 in the kids albums. YIKES!

Todays thought...
Know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. Deu 4:39

Have a wonderful day everyone...and leave a comment!

Friday 20 April 2007

todays scripture!

I should be running out the door to work but there is still coffee in my mug and I hate to waste coffee! hehe. This is for all of you to brighten your day...

A new pastor was visiting in the homes of his parishioners.
At one house it seemed obvious that someone was at home,
but no answer came to his repeated knocks at the door.
Therefore, he took out a business card and
wrote "Revelation 3:20" on the back of it and stuck it in
the door. When the offering was processed the following
Sunday, he found that his card had been returned. Added to
it was this cryptic message, "Genesis 3:10." Reaching for
his Bible to check out the citation, he broke up in gales
of laughter. Revelation 3:20 begins "Behold, I stand at the
door and knock." Genesis 3:10 reads, "I heard your voice in
the garden and I was afraid for I was naked."


Have a wonderful day! :)

Tuesday 17 April 2007

Busy week!

Hey - busy week - working a 40 plus hour week here...renovations make saying yes to extra shifts kind of easy. I am enjoying this phase of life when my kids - although 3/4 of them are at home, are all really busy with work, school and social outings. They don't seem to notice that I am not home..until we run out of milk. I did manage three pages over the past few days and a project for the store - stop in and check out the front counter for our creations - we will be doing classes. Brittany and Laura did an awesome job on their chipboard books! So here are the pages...


Hidden journalling reads Relax dear….David seems to always be saying this to me. When he wanted to get away for a romantic trip for just the two of us to a Mexican resort…well you would think I would jump at the opportunity after so many years at home looking after and home schooling four children ~but not me. Even with the kids almost all grown up I was having trouble separating from house and home – especially so far away. Who would look after things if something happened? I thought of every excuse but David eventually got me on the plane and to the resort. It was so relaxing just to breathe the ocean air but I still felt uneasy until out first telephone conversation back home to them. Crazy eh? But Mexico was wonderful of course and I can not imagine a more relaxed atmosphere – all the pampering made me feel guilty though. There I go again- I just could not kick back and enjoy!! Okay, here is a picture David took of me one morning after breakfast. I look pretty relaxed! Mexico does that to you! I need to go again!


Journalling reads Mayan Riviera Sunrise. Yup got up at 5:45am for this picture and a few more. I have always been an early riser.

And of course a sunset - but this one was taken close to home. Journaling reads...Summer Sunset. haha just kidding - used my new Technique Tuesday letter stamps - just arrrived - oh my, I wanted one of every one...but since Deb already bought one of every one I thought I had better leave some for the customers. hehe They are going fast! Check em out!

Thought for the day ...
Therefore be followers of God, as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us, and has given Himself for us as an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor.Eph 5:1-2

Blessings to you all,

Thursday 12 April 2007

Over 50

As most of you know (and Laura reminded me the other night with a small red gift) I am over 50 - about 50 and three week actually...so I thought I would share a little bit of wisdom and some of the benefits of being over 50.

PERKS OF BEING OVER 50
1. Kidnappers are not very interested in you.
2. In a hostage situation you are likely to be released first.
3. No one expects you to run - anywhere.
4. People call at 9 pm and ask, "Did I wake you?"
5. People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.
6. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.
7. Things you buy now won't wear out.
8. You can eat dinner at 4 pm.
9. You can live without sex , but not your glasses. ...um not sure about this one..doesn't it get better???
10. You enjoy hearing about other people's operations.
11. You get into heated arguments about pension plans.
12. You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.
13. You quit trying to hold your stomach in no matter who walks into the room.
14. You sing along with elevator music.
15. Your eyes won't get much worse.
16. Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to pay off.
17. Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service.
18. Your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't remember them either.
19. Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.
20. You can't remember who sent you this list.

Have a great evening! ps - got my internet up and going - I rewired my connection at the wall - all eight color coded wires!! Good thing I had my glasses!! :)

Wednesday 11 April 2007

scrapbooking fever!

Another busy night at the store - so many people excited about scrapbooking - it's like scrapbooking fever at JSI - what fun!!! Here is a page I got done on my day off. Looks like I won't be getting too much done for the next few days though with my work schedule into the weekend...but hey someone has to pay for the new kitchen floor..hey I will try to take some before and after shots of the kitchen reno.
This is my sweetheart getting me a refreshment in Mexico - we had such fun! This layout has some neat stamps on the edges but the scan bit them off! It says Cheers at the bottom.
Thanks for looking.


Tuesday 10 April 2007

last wedding page

Well I have internet access now after loosing it again - it seems my computer was configured for the network here at home and ..well... remember I disconnected the network to get internet access...my computer got confused "where are all the other computers I am supposed to be connected to - I lost my friends" I told it to get over it - we were a lone team right now! It secumbed. The kids won't be too thrilled when they get home and have to physically reset up the network and reconfigure the computers...maybe it is time for remote access. No more wires getting in the way. Does anyone have remote? Is it slower? I really don't want slower.


Here is another wedding page - the last one I put in the album before sending it off to Victoria to the newlyweds. I think everyone is happy with the album. Sigh. It was a lot of work but so enjoyable. Hope it is treasure in many years to come. :)

It has been a very long day! I started working this am in the three Emergency departments and they were all really busy. I assess the elderly in Emerg for home care needs when they are discharged (not my usual job - just filling in) It is quite interesting but sometimes there are a lot of them to see and communication can be difficult at times. It was sooo busy today. Don't know why - maybe people were waiting for all their Easter guests to go home before showing up really sick. I figured - no problem, just get through the eight hour shift and enjoy my slow evening shift at the scrapbook store....well you wouldn't believe how busy we were tonight. But it was fun and everyone seems to be getting back into scrapbooking after many months off - so that is exciting. Spring fever? I don't know but there were so many people in the store and in the crop room scrapbooking. It was a buzz of activity! I am running on overdrive right now....really lacking sleep. Got to go to bed.


Thanks for looking!

Monday 9 April 2007

computer woes

It has been one of those days. Should have just stayed home and done a few pages. I lost my Internet last night around 9 pm! Need I say more!! I spent at least two hours trying every possible fix is to no avail. The problem seems to be in the cables to my computer, one of which runs clear across the house - inside the walls! But why it decided to stop working while I was on Two Peas I don't know!! Anyways a trip to OTV to buy some connectors didn't solve the problem - neither did a long distant daytime call to my computer genius son....I tried everything he said. So I have disabled the network system in the basement and I have internet coming directly into my office through the tv cable- no network, no router - just raw internet just for me. Why not, I pay for it! The kids won't be to happy when they get home to discover they don't have Internet to all their computers, but SOMETHING had to be done! This is serious stuff! Wow it felt so good to see the Google page upload and no error message...am I dependent here?

A trip to Home Depot this am to get oak floor boards was frustrating - half of Saskatoon was there and three tills open and I was trying to maneuver with 8 feet of oak. Oh brother!! So here it is 2pm and I have not got a lot accomplished ( i now have internet though) and I have some studying to do for work tomorrow so I will know what I am doing (Health Dept stuff - not Just Scrap It - the only studying I do for Just Scrap It is scrapbooking haha)

Okay a couple more pages of Mexico...





the picture isn't so dark in real. This was a favvvorite night for us on our Mexico trip...well they were all pretty fantastic!
stamps, stamps and more stamps - so much fun!

Saturday 7 April 2007

MEXICO

Okay my first Mexico 2007 page. There will be more soon because I just sent David to Blacks to pick up a pile of 8x10's. (he is also stopping at M&M's for their "Too Tall chocolate Truffle cake" - oh to die for! What a great guy!)

I digress...

Blacks have a special on - an 8x10 for $1.99 with every order. But there is a glich in the system! The web site has ALL 8x10'S @ $1.99 ... so I just sent in 12 of them over the net. You have to love them at blacks - talk about service. Since my pics are usually cropped to weird sizes, I phoned ahead and rather than crop them to the 8x10 she just printed them on the 8x12 sheet as they were - no making them fit the 8x10. Great people at Blacks...I love the people at Don's too. Okay - so here is Mexico using our new overlays - they are soooo nice! Doesn't this just shout Mexico??? I am itching to do another layout...but supper guests tonight and well I really should clean up all the plaster and dust in the family room. Desert is all figured out. :) I didn't catch the garage visitor yet...maybe he has a peanut allergy..hehe

...it should say JUST at the top...hmm love my scanner but it always scans just shy of 12 inches.

thanks for looking...

coffee party

I love blogging. I can sit here in my dressing gown with a cup of coffee at 7:25am looking like...well you don't want to know...and it feels like we are all sitting around my family room having wine/coffee/cheesecake and sharing our loves and fears, hopes and laughs, our precious pictures and creative work with words and pictures - kind of wonderful to be able to do that without having to make a fashion statement at the same time - which I am NOT good at. And I stick my foot in my mouth a lot less with blogging! hehe

I have three pages I am really wanting to get to....cause I bought a whole lot of stuff this week!!!!! And I am really anxious to use it - the ideas are giving me a headache and I have to get them onto paper! I bought some really neat stuff - do I NEED more pebbles????? But I love the little case they come in, BLING - can't get enough, Sharon talked me into the Fancy Pants big stamps - that sure wasn't hard for her to do...just asked her - do you like them? YES is an understatement ....oh my they are so wonderful that I will be stamping everything around here!!! And the new overlays are sitting on my desk crying out for some colorful Mexico pictures....and I found another decent pic of me in Mexico so I get to do a little more of the "scary but liberating" journalling. "Scary but liberating" yup Ralna that is the perfect discription!

But alas I have a reno that needs sanding and another coat of plaster and then paint- we yanked out the bar in the family room yesterday and my job is wall repair and paint, and the garage has a visitor - really tiny and he had better be in the trap good and dead this am - but I want it cleaned out and swept thoroughly today! our goal? FILL the garbage container!! My husbands job but I may need to be there. So my goal is reno and at least one page today - maybe the Mexico one since overlays are so easy...with a few stamps of course. ohhhh can't wait - I better throw on the paint clothes and get sanding. Speaking of which hey Brit - how is the painting going? Call if you need any stuff - I have lots of plaster!!

Wednesday 4 April 2007

Just Scrap It April Challenge

Okay here is my challenge page - this was hard - much easier talking about my wonderful kids and vacation spots than about me...although I must say I got verbose! I just couldn't say mother, wife ... because they are only a small part of who I am.




the words read...
Who am I? That’s a huge question. I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up – a photographer, photojournalist, own my own business that involves photos and scrapbooking on the computer, Photoshop guru, world traveler, go back to university and get smart and earn a lot of money?…or maybe a grandma who lives in a neat clean condo and travels to visit all her grandkids. I would love to travel the world with my sweetheart and take pictures and scrapbook them. All dreams, thoughts, musings… but they don’t really say who I am today and , well to tell the truth I am not sure I know myself. Yes I am a mother to four fabulous kids, a wife, a scrapbooker, a volunteer, a healthcare worker, a friend, a lover, the mainstay of our home, a chauffeur, cook, home creator, a wannabe gardener, a teacher, encourager, a neighbor, full time Mom and homeschooler (retired). I love to laugh – gosh it feels so good. I hate to cry –it feels so awful - usually, I want to love people and help people and do things for people, I have a servant’s heart and a heart for those with struggles, pains and losses, but my pride and self-centeredness get in the way sometimes. All these thoughts and wants and realities are temporal and will all someday be gone – just a moment in my lifetime however long that might be.. Here today and gone tomorrow – a memory in a scrapbook. The groundwork, the foundation, the core of who I am, what I do and why I do it, is the Lord Jesus Christ.. I am who I am, whatever that might be, because of Him. He is my Creator, my sustainer, my Savior. I am, I exist, I do, because of Him and so in all the things I do and say and think, in all the things I am, He is the reason.. He is perfection - something I will never know or understand this side of eternity. But because of Him I can strive towards perfection – for His glory. I fail miserably all the time, every day – oh this wicked flesh - but because of Him I can also pick myself up out of the dust, brush myself off and keep running the race He has set before me…because my eyes are on Him, because He has paid the ultimate price for undeserving me. I can give unselfishly, because He has given me the ultimate gift – life – not just in this present moment in time, but real life – life eternal without any of the groaning and trials and sin of this world. Yes I guess I am a lot of things to a lot of people – but the foundation, the cornerstone of all those things is Jesus. I am a child of the King! And so in all things I have joy! Even in the trials and tribulations of this life – there is joy in knowing and being known by Him. I stand in the love of Christ. There is no better place to be.

Thanks for looking...and reading. :)

Tuesday 3 April 2007

My Little Girl

Hi Everyone, I am busy working on somthing for Allison's graduation from highschool. Not sure what but it will involve pictures. So I have pulled out the old albums and pictures and am busy scanning them all. I just had to share a few with you since little people are so cute and all you get to see on my pages are big people! I am tempted to redo a few pages in her album since I scrapped these so long ago - but do I do that before or after I get the thousands of pictures done that I am already behind on!







Our little Sweet Pea!

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