Kiss and Tell Scrapbooking

Whole Family in Christmas Hats Photo? Yep, I can check that one off my list.

Super cute & easy mini album how to - go here: http://www.ellapublishing.com/node/224

just found my favorite scrapbooking page protectors online here: http://www.c-lineproducts.com/product_detail.php?product_id=702 . They fit a full 12x12 sheet and they are cheap & I've been using them for years - they used to be at my local craft store but they stopped carrying them a few years ago - so I ordered directly w/ no shipping costs - sweet!

CHA SuperShow

This just in:

The Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) is excited to announce that it will be holding a consumer show, the Craft SuperShow, this January in Anaheim, CA.  Dedicated to inspiring and educating craft and hobby enthusiasts, CHA is now offering a place for consumers to explore a broad range of crafts.  From knitting to scrapbooking, and everything in between, the show features make-n-takes, educational workshops, celebrity appearances and much more!

Want more info?  Just click here.

P.S. I went to the Super Show this past summer at CHA Orlando & it was like a giant scrapbooking discount store - bring a suitcase to haul all the stuff you'll pick up at bargain prices.

Scrapbooking 2009 - A very short review

Ahhh, December 2009 and looking back the year started off pretty sad for me in the world of scrapbooking with my very favorite magazine Simple Scrapbooks coming to a close.  But things got better, in my mind anyway, when I saw that lots of the old Simple Scrapbookers formed Write. Click. Scrapbook. a free online blog kind of thing that comes out every month with a new theme and somthing like 30 pages from some of the Simple Gals we all know and love.  Things got a LOT better - fabulous in fact - when I got an email from Lain Ehmann asking me to be a part of her and Angie Lucas's new ezine and ebooks service called Ella Publishing.  Then I got to attend Summer CHA in Orlando - by some fluke it was in Florida and therefore close to me this year - and probably this year only - its back in Chicago Summer 2010; my big takeaway from CHA was that I am in love with KaiserCraft.  Seriously, its love people, you can find them at   And just this morning, I "discovered" another new scrapbooking magazine called Scrapbooks and Cards Today and one of my favorite Simple Scrapbookers Emily Pitts is on their 2010 design team.  So congrats Emily!  & you all can read all about it and enter a contest on Emily's blog.   

Here's a little year in review - or at least 12 pages from 2009 - you'll notice most of them are from the summer - but I did go on a bit of a scrapbooking hiatus this fall - as I am known to do and am completely OK with - and I'm thinking I'm back and full of pages I'd like to create - but here's a quick look back at 2009 from my scrapbooking desk:

 
My kids are cute aren't they, I just love those faces, they are my number one favorite thing to scrapbook about.  But in 2010, I've got the itch to travel and I'm thinking I'll be making lots of pages for the "Places We Go" album. 

Ok, go to run, I've got an appt this morning & hoping they are going to say I'm A-OK - so wish me luck.

December 2

So we have a new visitor named "Advent the Snowman" who drops off a present everyday of December, Yesterday he brough this cute little snowman.

 
We put this little cutie under the tree because 1. we are repainting the house and 2. we are having a giant storm that isn't really a storm but the waves are coming into my backyard - eek!

Tonight Advent brought some pop-poms and pipecleaners and we made ornaments with the pipe cleaners and pom pom and popcorn strings - look how cute!

 

Ok need to go now... Little Miss Lu Lu is demanding the computer so she can check in with PBS Kids.

Don't forget to check out Margie Romney-Aslett's Vintage Hip Christmas Crafts ebook with www.ellapublishing.com . And stay tuned to the Ella Friends blogs for BOOK GIVEAWAYS and a 25% exclusive discount code. More info soon.

Another New Tradition for the Scott Family: Advent the Snowman

So I completely up "Advent the Snowman" but my kids, especially Allison, love Frosty more than Santa.  So "Advent the Snowman" will be visiting us with some kind of present every day of December - the fun starts today!  Here are some pictures of the kids opening the first present - the Advent Calendar:

Funny thing is that Allison is calling him "Edwin" the Snowman.    

Sew-Simple Lavender Handmade Christmas Gifts

Of course I am buying presents (since I can't home-make Barbies & Bakugans) - but I am making some too like these sew-simple and very cute little lavender sachets that smell amazing:

I love simple sewing every so often.  I picked these co-ordinated fabric squares up at Joann's - they look a bit like scrapbooking paper don't they?  As I cruised through the fabric aisles, I noticed there were lots of patterns in fabric that I've seen before in paper.  May just get me back into sewing more often.  I did different stitches for each square just because my Brother Project Runway sewing machine has so many options.  I finally got a new sewing machine after using the same JC Penney sewing machine that my Dad gave me for Christmas in 1986 - I gave it to my mother in law and she's promised to leave it to Allison so it will stay in the family.

I also printed up little labels that say "Sachet Handmade by Katie Scott" with a drawing of lavender that I found here.  I love the google image searcher - how did we ever live without it?!? 

   

My New Thanksgiving Tradition: Left Over Turkey

Why not make Thanksgiving last a little longer?

Its 10:47pm on the Monday after Thanksgiving and guess what I'm doing?  Cooking a honey turkey, its almost done and smells delicious but its too late to eat.  So why did I start cooking a turkey on a Monday night after work?  Left-overs!  Every year we go to my sister-in-laws for a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner and I am thankful that its not my job to put on the feast every year.  But what I miss is the turkey leftovers for the next week, plus turkey is healthy and economical and my entire family loves it.  So last year I started making a turkey just for the leftovers!  This year I decided to make it a honey turkey so I used the bear bottle of Miller's Pure Honey from Salt Lake City, Utah that Ella Publishing's Angie Lucas brought to CHA Orlando this past summer. 

So thanks Angie! and I'll let you know how the turkey tastes tomorrow!

P.S. Go Check out Angie's Blog by clicking here - she's cooking up something yummy with bushels of apples! 

Working on a post for the Ella Blog :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family:

Took this shot with my Canon Rebel using my gorilla tripod attached to a chain link fence.  I need to get the family Christmas card photo taken & I'm thinking i'm going to use that clever little tripod again.

We brought an advent calendar over to my sister-in-law as the hostess gift - she does Thanksgiving every year Martha Stewart Style.  I was out of wrapping paper because I've already wrapped 80% of my Christmas presents!  Mac made the paper here - my fingers are covering it up but it says "Mom Says" with a picture of me since I was dictating to him. 

And we all (most of us - a few of the men including Charlie somehow didn't do this) wrote down what we were thankful for:

Notice that both of my kids are thankful for meat.  I've been sort of trying to go vegetarian - or at least trying not to eat mammals - just fish and birds - so I don't make a lot of meat at home - so I guess they knew they were getting some meat today and they were pretty pleased about that.
 

Just a Little Scrapbooking for the Fun of It

Just did a couple of pages, just for fun:

sorry - having computer issues & can't seem to edit anything...but tilt you head to the right & take a gander.

 
Sallie happens to be visiting now for Thanksgiving - Hi Sallie :)  As an aside - we've been catching grouper in Mac's crab trap and I've been cooking it - after Charlie cleans it - and then Charlie eats it & assures me that its better than any restaurant grouper.  (I just can't cook & eat fish myself; somehow I can only eat it if someone else cooks it - weird I know).

 
Ha! another one on its side - I printed this photo collage out on 10-12-09 meaning to do the 12 on the 12th page but somehow just didn't get to it until now.  But there it is. 
This one was loosely based on a Stacy Julian photo collage thing she did for her nanny I think.  I've had this paper for years and years and finally found a use for it.  Here's to old paper :)

Finally Finished the 2007 Jennifer Stewart Inspired Project

Jennifer Stewart was one of the teachers at Donna Downey's 2007 Inspired Event and Jennifer got these landscaping things from a home improvement store, my project didn't come out exactly like hers - ok at all like hers - but Allison helped and there were 6 spaces which perfectly coincided with Allison's 6th birthday on Saturday:

Quick & Easy way to display family photos. I picked up the Family hooks unit at a discount store and tied pictures to ribbons and embellished a little and presto!