Winkflash Sale Extended!

So if there were any of you who wanted to take advantage of Winkflash's flat rate book sale but couldn't beat the clock...the deal has been extended to February 10th. Promo code ITSBACK.
BTW, I got my book and I LOVE it!

winkflash Book Sale!

I'm really excited. winkflash is having a flat rate photo book sale. That means you can have up to 100 pages for a flat rate. The price depends on the size, starting at $12.95 and on up. I scrapbook in 12"x12" and they have a book that is pretty much square. I might have to make some minor adjustments but it's WAY better than the alternative, and my original, plan. If I printed each page out seperately the best price would be $2 each. I currently have 90 pages for 2009 and I have yet to do December. So... I'm pretty psyched I can get them all printed and bound in one book for less than $30...rather than $180+!

If you're not a current member, it's free to sign up. I'm going to use it as a place to store my pages in case my computer crashes...

You don't have to have photos already scrapped, they have layouts to fill in your pictures. I'm just going to do pages with a "full bleed" so my scrapbook page takes up the whole page.

If you're interested, use the coupon code: ITSBACK at checkout!

Ahg! I forgot to tell you to act fast...it ends the 27th!

Do you Lagoon?

Yellowstone!

Chaz's only vacation this summer was our trip to Island Park, Idaho with our neighbors at the end of August. It was such a relief to be able to relax after He took the DAT.

Turkey Day

I left Chaz on his birthday this year. I took the girls up to the cabin so he could have some much-needed study time alone. He studied for 10 hours on his birthday and didn't even get fireworks.




Not even a week has passed since we got home and I have already scrapbooked Thanksgiving! My goal has been to get all of 2009 scrapbooked by the time we get our tax return or, even better, by mid-January! I only have July through November to do. :) Only.

Wynn's Heritage Assignment

Wynn had a project for school to write about your heritage (or some part) and to make a little clothespin doll. She decided to do a viking because lots of people could do a pioneer and she wanted to be different.

My Family Heritage

By Wynn Gibbons

What I would like you to know about my family heritage:

A long time ago one of my ancestors was a viking. Vikings were warriors from a part of Europe called Scandinavia. Vikings were the best at building ships and sailing them. Their ships were called longships and the vikings would paint them lots of bright colors and put striped sails on them. If they were at sea and didn't know where the land was, the vikings would let go a bird, called a raven, and follow the bird to find land. Lots of people think the vikings had horns on their helmets, but they didn't.

In other parts of Europe women were not treated well. They couldn't do what they wanted. But the vikings were different. The viking women could have land, money, and even go fight with the men vikings.

We were supposed to work on the doll as a family. Wynn picked out the fabric and style for the clothes and decided on the kind of face and hair (and length). She wanted her doll to have spikes even though they didn't really have spikes.... Chaz helped out by carving the nubs off the acorn top for the shield so Wynn could paint it and by carving the sword. Wynn kept saying how her doll was the coolest and it would be the most awesome doll at school.

And yes, about the scrape on her nose and lip, she got hurt at her Papa and Grandma's house. She stole the little 3-wheeled bike Ellie had and, as she was zooming away on it, flipped over the front wheel and face planted. She cut the inside of both top and bottom lips too. I think half the ward asked about it on Sunday.

Canning Hotline

I was chatting with my sister and found out there is a canning question hotline. Any question you have, any time, free. Sweet. If only I had that at the beginnning of the canning season... Well, here it is for you:
1(888)823-3663

A Love-Hate relationship with canning

Some time around the end of August or beginning of November I heard much talk of canning and thought, "Why am I not canning?" I got the canning bug and proceeded to search out things to can. Then it all grew exponentially. I ended up canning more than I ever have before. This year I did:

• peaches


• peach pit jelly


• apricots


• pears


• pear sauce


• pear peel jelly


• pear peel and peach pit jelly


• sweet zuchini relish (anyone want some? I have WAY too much)


• tomatoes


• tomato soup


• peach pear salsa (twice)


• turkey


• turkey broth


• chicken


• applesauce

...with some help from Chaz. (yes! Chaz!)

I am running low on canned beans (black and great northern) so maybe I'll get the gumption to do those sometime. Also, next year I plan on buying lots of carrots from my friends, the Donaldson's, and canning those as well.

Despite loving the feeling of accomplishment and how easy it is to pull a jar off the shelf and dump it in a pot, I must say...

I. am. SO. done. with. canning.

A Day For Play

RIBS!

Kiddie Art and Pre-School

This is my summary page for Wynn's preschool experience. I am pretty happy with my method of preserving her artwork. I've heard from so many people how difficult it is to keep it under control (aka: keep it from taking over the house). We kept maybe... 2 originals (Including one she painted for her future baby brother...apparently I am going to have a couple boys next). I might have to add some more journalling talking about this Caden. He liked Wynn and wanted to marry her. For a while she was on a marriage kick and was constantly wondering who her future husband would be... :) When she was helping me with the journalling for this page she informed me that she was Lucas's girlfriend. Not too sure how I feel about that. I think it's kind of cute. But... she has a boyfriend. And she's 5.

Coral is on the computer and not cleaning

Some more pages... I'm actually done with May! Every year I start out the new year scrapping and doing my best to keep up. I don't know if I've ever finished as far as May. Go me. Hope it lasts!

Child Labor

Here's my latest page!

Hermit Me...

I have been a hermit the past few days, enjoying (mostly) time with my new printer/scanner/copy/fax. LOVING the top document feeder. Without it I would never have been able to scan my Grandmother's wonderful geneology papers. She passed away a couple months ago and I have been designated to go through all her photos and little scraps of paper and scan them. Okay...I volunteered. I wanted to make sure I got a copy of her things and this was the best way to make sure that happened.

I have truly enjoyed learning so much more about her through her papers. I love to see the care she put into mounting newspaper clippings on cardboard and carefully wrapping them with plastic to keep them safe. She would write little notes of whatever she remembered...mostly dates for family history, and I keep finding little tidbits here and there. One of my favorite things I found in her geneology suitcase is this report card that was my great grandmother's, dated 1892.

I've learned so much about my family, and I've felt the spirit close. I'm so grateful for my wonderful Grandmother's example. She had a hard life, and always made the best of it. I love you Grandma! xoxoxox

A Fairy Tale....

I have had many requests for pictures of the dresses I made, so I whipped up a page...I DON'T like the picture of me/my dress, but look at Wynn!

(Isn't she cute!)

Any photoshop pros out there that can tell me how to improve my shadows? I can't seem to make buttons and brads more real looking...I struggle!

Girl's Camp

Here are my girl's camp pages...finally. I've had them mostly done for a long time now and just didn't spend the extra 5 minutes to get them post-ready. They aren't the cutest but I like how they show the fun, carefree spirit of our camp. The girls were so amazing, I hope I get to go next year too!

Fishies!

I'm really loving getting so many pictures on one page...

Laziness

Well, I've been rationalizing again. Rationalizing all the time I spend on the computer, that is. I tell myself that Ellie's nap can be my "me" time and I deserve it. But when she sleeps for 3-4 hours every day... I really need to use that time more constructivly! But this is what I did with yesterday's and today's "me" time...

LAZY SCRAPBOOKING

That's right, lazy. But at least it's done. I have a really hard time scrapbooking all the random pix of everyday. And I am at a point where I don't want a million pages...so here is my solution.

(and those of you pictured...I hope you don't mind. If you do, I'll fix it!)

I never thought I would like collages as much as I do.

And I know I've posted these pics but I actually scrapbooked them (finally). I love them. My family, I mean.

5 Years Old and Photogenic (when she wants to be)

Wynn helped me scrapbook her birthday...if she keeps at it she will be a photoshop pro by the end of the summer!

I loved the pics from this trip to the zoo. I had sooo many good ones of Wynn (surprise) it was hard to choose!

The Latest...

I'm not scrapbooking in any particular order. I have occasions I would LOVE to get scrappin' but I don't have pics from my siblings yet...and they inevitably have some good ones!

btw, I'm addicted to my computer...can you tell?