From left to right;  Mandy, Grandson Joey, Jim and I, Chrissy.  We had a wonderful weekend celebrating Grandma's birthday.  I got to see all of my siblings – which was very special!

From left to right;  Bonnie from Hastings, Sally from Fort Collins, Dad from Otter tail, MN, me, Bob from Indianapolis, Jim from Terra Haute.

And the queen for the day was Grandma – doesn't she look awesome at 100?

I am about exactly half of grandma's age.  Both of our birthday's are in November – we celebrated early to cooincide with a family reunion and everyone's travel plans.  So, yes – I'll have a BIG birthday this year. 

This year on cruise since it was later in the year (close to fishing season) and Jim had concerns about his health, he opted to not go on cruise.  Now I can tell you when I left home that he was sad that he chose not to go as he knows how much fun I'll have and how well Stampin' Up! will treat us.  But, he also knows that I will have fun and will treasure the time I will be spending with my sister.  My older sister, Sally from Fort Collins Colorado is cruising with me.  Some of you know that I have only known this sis for about 17 years and with the distance, we don't get to spend as much time together as we would like.  So, we will enjoy this time with great pleasure!

As I got ready for cruise, I thought that I should bring a little gift for my sis to add some of her favorite pictures to.  She already has a My Digital Studio but, knew that she would appreciate something like this.  I used one of the chipboard albums from the current mini catalog (ladies – here's the deal – these are fantastic and you can do so much more than make scrapbooks with them – you will be said if you don't buy 1 or 2 of them before the end of the month when they go away!)  The paper I used is a sneak peak from the upcoming summer mini catalog – I thought it was fun, bright and reminded me of the fun colors I will be seeing in the caribbean.  This album only took a bit to put together but, the memories will last a lifetime. 

Happy Stamping!

I am loving the Occastions Mini Catalog.  get a load of this VERY cute box shown at our recent Stampin' Up! leadership conference.  It uses 2 of the chipboard hearts (On Board Heart Book – $4.95!)and the new jumbo flower punch and the sweet pea felt flowers.  A perfect gift for valentines day for that someone special.  Here's another sample using the book – a great gift for Valentines Day that is quick and easy!

If you haven't yet checked out the Occasions Mini Catalog, click on the link in the left sidebar.   You won't be disappointed! 

You'll also see and make some awesome ideas at my upcoming events!

• Jan 18 Stampin' Up! class – just 4U!
• Jan 20 Chicks, Chocolate and Cards!
• Jan 21 Scrapbooking Club
• Jan 23 North Starz Get Together
• Jan 24 Fun with Fabrics
• Jan 25 Big Shot Box class
• Jan 30 Birthday Card Bonanza

A couple of weeks ago, I had a "scrapbooking date" with my daughter Chrissy.  She had called me up and said she had a bunch of pictures she wanted to scrapbook.  When she got home she had over 150 pictures and she thought we would get them done in a day. . . well, she arrived home around 6pm and had to leave at noon on Sunday – yeah right!   Well, we got 26 pages done!  Pretty good I thought.  We made a great team, she bunched the pictures, I chose the colors, she helped with layouts, titles and taping in place.   We even decorated the front of her new album using the decor elementsand ribbon.  We cut her initials from the chocolate vinyl available in our catalog and that was the finishing touch.  Chrissy had a great time showing all of her friends her new scrapbook. 

Oh, you might wonder how many pictures were left?  Well, quite a few – no new dates scheduled but, she did leave the pictures home for me to work on in my spare time! 

Can I say, I love quick and easy?  This was made in l hour from concept to finish – including journaling!  What do you think?  I am sure you can find an hour to make this memory that will look great on your coffee table – and your friends will think it’s great too!

This scrapbook celebrates the fun I had at the Stampin’ Up! convention in 2008.  Many of my downline went and we had a great time celebrating with each other.  In this pic, Sue, Tatiana and myself enjoyed a great night of entertainment from a Minnesota group – Tonic Sol Fa!  They were awesome – and they are coming back this year!  (If you want to go to convention with me – it’s not too late.  Give me a call and I’ll tell you when and where)

To make this scrapbook, you will need the clear Card, Telephone & Address die from the bigz clear die sizzix line.  The clear die is just that, clear so that you can place over your picture and see what the result will be.  Then you just flip and send through your sizzix!  I bought the holder from WM. 

Ah, yes. . . . the guys are fishing and I had a day just for me.  I spent the day playing – and scrapbooking.  Something I haven’t had a chance to do for a long time – too long.  This is a scrapbook of me and my girls.  It was inspired by a book I saw at a recent Stampin’ Up! meeting (thanks Renee!).  I used Stampin’ Up!’s longboard chipboard.  It is a great quality and it was sooo easy to work with.  Of course I had to use our great Designer Series paper (on sale this month), this one is "Always."  It’s got pizzaz and a girls best friend – Chocolate (chip).  The longboard comes 5 3/4" tall by 14 3/4 inches wide.  It covers so easily – and cut very well in the Big Shot. 

Other supplies I used in this mini book are;

• Circle Scissors Plus cutter plus circle punches.  I carried the circle theme throughout.
  
• Felt fusion flowers – simple and easy to add that little extra texture and interest.
  
• Serif Essentials Alphabet – a must have for any scrapbooker
  
• Bits of ribbon – I just love how I have ribbon that matches my color scheme.
  

Interested in making your own mini book?  Sign up for my Stamp Camp on May 16 and I will help you create your lovely mini book!