The O'Banion's

new beginnings // taking risks

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 19:47:00 +0000

In June 2010 I decided that I wanted to find a place that I could put all of my crazy thoughts, dreams, and ideas in one place to call home. I started by writing about, well, everything. I threw in some tutorials along the way, wrote about Project Life, and even hosted a giveaway or two. It was a good three years. I made mistakes along the way. I wrote too much and I times I didn't write enough.

It's now August of 2013 and I have decided that I am in a place in my life where the memories of my family, and our dreams are so important. This blog plays a huge place in that memory keeping process. I also have decided, with the encouragement and support of Landen that I am going to take a huge risk and try to develop something that I love, which is a passion for design, paper crafting, scrapbooking, mini books, and graphic art. I have played around with it and included it in our daily life for as long as I can remember. I've even created things for friends now and then, but I have decided to take the plunge and make a business out of it.

With that comes this....

my new blogging home. I have been working tirelessly over the last month and a half to get everything moved over from this blog to my new one and get it all customized. I also created my own shop:

which holds my three shop items to date. I have a new mini in the works as well as a fairly large project that I can't wait to share.

It has been a mixture of emotions making the decision to switch homes. This blog has been a sounding board and I would be foolish to deny that I'm afraid that no one will be interested over at my new space. But that is a chance I have to take. Because this is my dream, and dreams are worth chasing.

I would love if you visited my over at my new bloggy home. I would love if you would subscribe so I can feel like someone is interested in my thoughts. I would even love it if you would check out my shop and support my design efforts.

This has been a great home and I am going to miss it dearly, but I am so excited to see what the next 3 years holds and the three years after that. This life is going on with or without us. It time we hop on and enjoy the ride!

Taking chances // the beginning

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 17:01:00 +0000

There are lots of exciting things going on around here.

Top secret things and some not so secret.

I am currently in the process of writing down my dreams and evaluating what it would take to reach them.

I am praying

and budgeting

and designing

and praying some more.

I am talking with Landen who is one of my biggest dream-supporters and we are working together in some very exciting ways.

I am trusting others and learning to trust myself more.

Who knows how this will all play out.

Only time will tell.

Here's to taking chances!

*The photos were taken in our neighborhood. There is a hot air balloon company nearby and they go over our house almost every weekend.*

Dear Eleanor / your feet

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 15:00:00 +0000

Dear Eleanor,

This is the letter I have put off writing. I'm not even sure why, as the ending of the story is perfect. Maybe it's because it brings up those same feelings of uncertainty, of a lack of control, of fear, that I don't like to deal with as your Mama.

But nonetheless, this story is yours, and therefore it has to be told.

When your Daddy and I saw you for the first time, it was when you had been in my belly for 20 weeks. I was halfway through my pregnancy with you and we were so excited to see your little face on that black and white screen. When Mommy was pregnant with your sister we saw her when I was 8 weeks pregnant, but since there were no problems with that pregnancy, they decided I could wait with you. It was so exciting, we were talking about what whether you were a girl or boy, and if you would look like your sister or look completely different.

When you popped up on that screen we were filled with amazement at how feisty you were (and you haven't changed a bit). We marveled at how your profile looked just like Adeline except that your nose was different. We wondered if you were a boy or a girl. We were in awe that God had once again blessed us with a healthy, beautiful, baby.

When we left the Dr's office, Daddy and I went out to eat and talked about you some more and looked at your cute pictures. We prayed and thanked God for all He had done for us. Mommy went home since I had taken a half day from work for the appointment but Daddy went back to work.

I was just getting settled in at home when I got a phone call from Dr. Bonar, Mommy's doctor. She said that she wanted to schedule another ultrasound for a month away because there were some concerns from the ultrasound. They were worried about your feet. You see, they couldn't see one of them. It wasn't showing up on the ultrasound and in the rush to get to her next patient she had forgot to mention it to us at the office.

She explained that it could be a number of things. It could be that you were simply positioned weirdly and thus your foot wasn't easily seen. It could be club feet, where your feet are twisted inwardly and would require multiple surgeries beginning soon after birth. It could also be that you simply didn't have one foot.

I hung up the phone feeling numb. Although I knew that what the Dr. had just told me wasn't life threatening, I knew that there was a possibility that you had something wrong with you. Something that could impact your quality of life. Something that would be painful for you to fix and very expensive.

I called your Daddy and explained to him what the doctor had said and I kept up a very strong front until I heard the quiver in his voice over the phone, reflecting his own worry. At that point I broke down and cried for you and prayed that everything would be okay.

The next month was the longest month ever. At times, it was easy for your Daddy and I to forget about your feet, and at other times, I would get images of you struggling to walk and having one surgery after another in hopes of correcting the problem. I would imagine you never being able to ride a bike, or play with your sister. These times were the hardest. It was during these times that I clung to two specific verses that God placed in my heart.

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mothers womb." Psalm 139:13

and

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I set you apart." Jeremiah 1:5

These verses brought comfort to me over and over again and reminded me that God was in control of your body and that He loves you more than I ever could.

You are also surrounded by powerful prayer warriors sweet girl. There were so many people praying for you. Praying sweet words of healing over your little body and precious words of comfort over your Mommy and Daddy. You are blessed to be loved by so many amazing servants of God.

When the day of the ultrasound rolled around, I woke up feeling so nervous and yet, there was a sense of peace around us that I can't explain. As the ultrasound tech rubbed the gel on my belly and began the ultrasound your Daddy and I held hands and watched, both scared to death, and yet comforting one another silently.

It seemed like forever before the ultrasound tech began to examine your limbs. She found one hand and then the next. One foot, and then...

the other foot. Perfectly straight, perfectly positioned. Perfect.

I remember hearing those words "the feet look fine."

So simple, so calm, and yet so profound. While they bore no significance to her, they were everything to us. Your Daddy let out the breath he had been holding and I let out a big "Praise Jesus!" A weight I didn't even know existed fell off our shoulders. You were fine.

Immediately I sent out a text and posted on Facebook the ultrasound of your feet with the simple words "Her beautiful, perfect, feet." Only a select few even knew that there had been a concern but I didn't care.

We called your grandparents and they were so excited. Your Grandma McGee however stopped me in my tracks when she said that "God had performed a miracle and healed your feet." You see, your silly Mama's thinking was off. I was thinking that since you feet were fine, they must have always been fine and it was just a misunderstanding from day one. But your Grandma made me stop and think. What if your foot was clubbed on that ultrasound? What if it was missing? What if, something had been wrong, but by faith and prayer all had been made new and right? Baby girl, we will never know what your little foot looked like on that ultrasound at 20 weeks, but what we do know is that God had performed a miracle by the one at 24 weeks.

So what do I want you to take from this? Sweet child, I want you to know that you have been prayed over since you were conceived. You have been given a gift, perhaps even a second chance. I want you to run like the wind and remember the prayers that allowed it to happen. I want you to walk for Christ and thank Him for all He has already done for you. I want you to look at other people who God may have had another plan for and remember that His plan for you could have been different. I want you to know that you are blessed.

When you were born, the first thing I wanted to do was just like every other mother - I wanted to count your fingers and your toes. But this time it was special. When I counted your toes, I was reminded again that they are all absolutely

perfect.

I love you baby girl.

Yours forever,

Mama

Eleanor / newborn photos

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 16:11:00 +0000

One week after we brought baby Eleanor home we had the pleasure of welcoming our photographer Lydia into our home to take her precious newborn photos. It was only a year ago that we were taking the same photos with Adeline. This time the photos were much easier on Mama, since I wasn't recovering from a c-section, but a little harder on Adeline. Since she had 4 teeth coming in at the same time she was extremely whiny and miserable so we had the family shots done at the very beginning. Afterwards Daddy took her to the grocery while I stayed behind to take more photos with Eleanor. You can clearly see how bad Adeline felt in most of the pictures.

One thing is for sure, Adeline loves her little sister and loves smothering her with kisses. I can't wait to see their relationship develop the older they get.

Daddy with both of his girls.

I love both of my little girls and I love that Eleanor look more like me.

Eleanor was awake for the entire photo shoot. She is always very alert and active and I'm glad that these photos reflect that.

Lydia always does a wonderful job. I'm so glad we have been able to capture our precious girls at the very beginning.

Dear Landen / you are 30

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 08 Jul 2013 05:22:00 +0000

Today you turn 30.

Thirty years. Where does the time go? I can imagine you as a little boy, your big eyes taking in everything around you with the same curiosity I see reflected in your eyes today. I can see you as a toddler, much like our own sweet Adeline and your little mini-me. I can see you running around jibber-jabbering away to anyone who would listen.

Fast forward a few years and now I see you in the grocery store, as your mom has told me so many times, and you are checking all of the vending machines for money that someone else has left behind, definite signs of your very frugal adulthood.

Your high school days were spent mostly on the run. Literally. Between cross country and basketball your days were full of activity. You excelled at cross country and went on to get a scholarship that sent you to Cumberland College.

I can imagine you on your first day of college. Scared, and wanting to go home, but so full of ideas for what you could do during your four years in that place and thinking of all the ways to make those ideas happen. I can see you meeting you new people, chatting them up in the cafe or the Grill. Passing people on the via-duct and waving a friendly hello. I can see you rushing to practice so that you weren't late...again. I can see you studying your bible in your dorm room and asking God to show you what He wants for your life.

I love thinking about what you were like before I met you. Sometimes I wonder just how much our little girls are going to be like you.

When I look at you now, I imagine you taking in all the wonder of new things with our own little girls. They share your big, curious, eyes and I can see the same curiosity reflecting in their eyes that I imagine you had at their age. I imagine you taking them to the grocery store and teaching them to look for the best price...not on the sticker, but the best 'unit' price. I hope you teach them to have your frugal ways unlike their Mama. I imagine you running around the neighborhood with them helping them develop their stride and breathing techniques. I imagine you sitting with them doing school projects helping them develop ideas and find ways to make it the best project ever. Leave Mama to do the pretty stuff, you will always be the engineer in our family.

You are 30.

You have lived 30 full years full of lots of exciting things. But you are just beginning. You are still growing, and wondering, and inspiring others around you. You have many more friends to meet, and things to see for the first time. You have more miles to run. You have accomplished much in your first 30 years, as many people will attest to both personally and professionally, but you have much more to accomplish. You have more studying to do, both academically and biblically. You have so much more.
Thirty seems like such a big number, and while it is, it represents so much in both of our lives. As exciting as your 20's were, I can't wait to write you your 40 year old letter and see all of the fun and exciting blessings you received in your 30's.
Live strong darling, these are the best years of your life.
Love,
Your Sweetpea

Dear Eleanor / one month

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Sat, 29 Jun 2013 05:43:00 +0000

Dear Eleanor,

Hello sweet girl. You are one month old today. One month. How does that happen? How is it that one minute you are being placed on my chest for the first time and I am taking my first glances at your sweet face and the next it is one month later. You are so graceful and so small. And so calm. You are the perfect example of peace. Everything you do is peaceful. From the way you move your hands so gracefully, to your bright eyes that take in so much wonder. Everything you do amazes me.
You are so different from your sister, baby girl. I love that about you. I love that you are your own person and that you are challenging me as a Mommy in new and exciting ways. You only wake up one time a night and I appreciate that about you so much. It's like you know that I need to get my rest so I can take care of you and your big sister everyday.
You are nursing so well and we are really in a groove with it. You are a porker sweet girl! You eat so well and I have had to start supplementing some formula into your diet because you like to hang out and eat for a long, long time! It makes it hard to take care of Adeline too, but you are dealing with it like a champ. You are gaining weight and your little body is filling out into a healthy, chunky, little lady. It's such a good feeling to know that I am providing for you.
You are having some issues with acid reflux, and more than once I have had to change the sheets or wash the couch cushion covers after you have thrown up everything you have eaten. I don't want you to have to go on medicine so we are trying to work it out on our own.
You like to be held and cuddled a lot and I am happy to do it! I love the way your sweet little red head rests so perfectly on my chest. I love the way you sigh so sweetly as you sleep. You have such a humble spirit.
Your big sister loves you so much. Every morning when she wakes up she runs to find you and slaps you with a big ole' kiss. She loves to hold you and wants to feed you your bottle. You love your sister too. You get so bright eyed when you hear her voice and you deal with her 'lovings' so well.
You went to Mammaw and Pappaws for the first time this month and got to meet a lot of your aunts and uncles at your cousin Nathan's farewell party. You didn't cry or whine at all while everyone loved on you. I can tell that you are going to be so loving.
I am in awe of you everyday. I knew that I would love you sweet girl, but I had no idea that I would love you so much. You and your sister are everything to me and I love each day that I get to wake up to you. I want to cherish each sweet little moment I have. I want you to know that I would do anything for you, and that you have been the perfect addition to our family. You have my whole heart.

Love forever,

Your Mama

Summer Reading: The Outcast- A review

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 16:50:00 +0000

Happy Thursday everyone!

Instead of doing my regular Guest Scrapper series today wanted take a few minutes to update you on how my summer reading is going and to share one of the books that I just read and LOVE with you as well.

At the beginning of the year I made the decision to force myself to read more. Reading has always been such a passion of mine, but like many other things it was the first thing to be put on the back burner when life happened.

It just so happened that it was around the same time that I found out that The Outcast by Jolina Petersheim was going to be released during the summer and I immediately knew that I had to have it!

When I found out that I could pre-order the book and receive it days before its actual release I jumped onto Amazon and snatched it up. Two days later there it was in my mailbox and as soon as I got the girls down for their naps I made my daily cup of Mother's Milk tea and curled up on the couch to dive in.

It's been a while since I have found that kind of book. You know the one, the book that from the minute you read the first few pages you are so sucked in that you can't put it down. The book takes place in Tennessee and the main character, Rachel, has found herself in one of the biggest trials of her life. As the mother of an illegitimate child and a member of the Mennonite church, she has been rejected by almost everyone she loves, kicked out of the community, and she finds herself raising her son, who will soon face his own battle, with the help of Ida Mae, an older lady who takes her in and allows her to work in her country store. Rachel's twin sister Leah and her husband Tobias play integral parts in the story, as well as Tobias' brother who stole Rachel's heart a long time ago. Jolina does an amazing job of telling Rachel's story through Rachel's eyes as well as through the perspective of Amos, Tobias' father who recently passed away and is overlooking the plot of the story from his place in heaven.

This book is a beautifully written tale of love, forgiveness, and the grace of God and how it works in our lives. Through trials and tribulations you see how Rachel and the other characters in the book are changed for the better by allowing God to work in their lives. There were several times while reading this book that I found myself moved to tears and I found myself crying as I closed the book and wishing that the story continued.

If you are looking for a book to read this summer that will both inspire you and challenge your faith you really need to grab this book off the shelf. It is all the major bookstores and you can also find it on Amazon. If you have Prime shipping you can get it in just two days with free shipping!

So what are you waiting for? GO READ THE BOOK Y'ALL!

*I have received no compensation for reviewing this book. The opinions are completely my own.*

Going from one to two...

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 15:38:00 +0000

Someone once told me that going from one child to two was way easier than going from zero to one.

I am quite positive that this person may indeed be addicted to crack cocaine.

This Saturday, Eleanor will turn a month old. Last Saturday, Adeline turned 15 months old. One whole month has passed since we became a family of four.

I remember the first month after becoming a family of three. I was still very much in the "honeymoon" phase of new motherhood. I had that "I'm a first time mom" glow about myself and I loved getting Adeline dressed up and ready to go out on the town and show her off. I was writing mushy posts to Landen about his stellarness (is that even a word?) and I spent hours making sure that I told Adeline's birth story with absolute perfection here on the blog. Other than a few issues breastfeeding I took to being a new mom like a duck out of water. We had our hiccups, I cried like a baby the first time Landen went back to work. I had to call him to find out how to lock the infant seat into the base the first time out of the house. I wasn't always dressed nice and dinner wasn't always made, but I had the mom thing down pat. Spit up and all.

I have recently found myself, during those few precious hours a day when Adeline is napping, remembering this time last year. I remember holding Adeline and watching her sleep, not a care in the world except whether she needed her diaper changed or when she needed to eat, or whether I needed to take Abbey outside. I remember wishing that I could have a few minutes of "me time" but using those few moments I got holding her instead of laying her down for a nap.

Maybe I was the crack head.

Since becoming a family of four I have spent more time picking up Puffs that have gotten stuck in the carpet while trying to keep Eleanor latched on and eating while chasing Adeline around the house. I don't have time to scrub each and every apple juice drop that falls on the carpet and therefore have had to hire carpet cleaners to come in and do it for me. I became the mom that plops her in kid in front of the TV with sugary cereal in her highchair so that I can change Eleanor's diaper or put on deodorant after just catching a whiff of myself.

Instead of eating oatmeal each morning to increase milk supply, I eat handfuls of Oreo's washed down with a glass of milk that I used the day before and didn't have time to wash. Adeline may or may not wear the same clothes two days in a row because well, we aren't going anywhere anyway and I don't have time to change her in between picking cereal out of the carpet and changing diapers. I see a lot of butts throughout the day. I have to plan at least 10 minutes in advance if I have to even pee, and then the whole time I'm listening for the sound of impending doom coming from the living room praying that God will put a "hedge of protection around them" long enough for me to do my business.

Adeline loves to give her sister kisses but sometimes follows it up with a whack to the head. Sometimes I catch her and stop her and sometimes I don't get there in time. We are in the character building business in our house. Eleanor is building lots of character through head whacking.

With all the chaos though I have found time to maintain some sort of a schedule. Mostly centered around Adeline. It goes something like this:

Sometime between 8 and 9:30: Adeline wakes up.

I get breakfast ready and her bottle and put her in the highchair.

She feeds herself, I feed Adeline.

We spend the next few hours playing, cuddling, loving on Eleanor, feeding Eleanor, changing diapers, making messes. Around 12:00 I feed Adeline her lunch and get her ready for her nap.

1:00: Adeline goes down for a nap. Every. day. at 1:00. Landen jokes around telling me I just have to make it until 1:00. He has no idea just how right he is.
Adeline usually sleeps between two and three hours during her nap and I use this time to feed Eleanor, straighten up the house, eat lunch, and sometimes even nap a little myself.
When Adeline wakes up I give her a small snack and we commence the playing, cuddling, changing diapers, etc.
Landen gets home around 6:00 and I pass off the girls to him while I take a few minutes to myself. Usually I take a shower.

My goal now, since establishing a little bit of a daily schedule, is to get Eleanor on a sleeping schedule. We are still struggling in this area and this Mama is getting wore out!

All in all I would say that things could be going much worse. I am adjusting to being Mommy to two and Adeline is adjusting to being a big sister. Abbey, the dog, spends a lot of time hiding out in the corner of the couch with her ears covered. Can't say as I blame her!

I'll leave you with a little glimpse of the occasional sweetness between my girls. This makes it all worth it.

Hope you are having a wonderful Monday!

Right Now

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 21:28:00 +0000

Scenes from our week...

Surprise visits to KY. Family hangouts. Daily walks. Tent fun with Daddy. Puppy lovins. Just us girls. A great book and tea. Messy eats. Temper tantrums. Big eyes.

How did your week go?

Guest Scrapper 004: Sandra Gonzalez

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 15:45:00 +0000

Hello everyone! I'm so glad to be back into my regular posting schedule again! Baby Eleanor is doing great and so is Adeline. We are getting into the swing of things just fine!

This week's guest scrapper is Sandra Gonzalez or ohsnapgonzo on YouTube. I have been watching her videos for some time now and her style of scrapbooking really inspires me. I don't know how many of her layouts I have lifted some part of! I was thrilled when she agreed to guest post here on my little blog. So, I won't keep you waiting any longer!

Hello crafters. I am so excited to be part of Amanda's blog and would like to thank her for this opportunity. My name is Sandra Gonzalez and on YouTube I go by Ohsnapgonzo. I am 36 years old and live in Chattanooga, TN. I have been married to a really great husband and dad for 9 years and we have two girls. If you have seen any of my YouTube videos you have probably seen a little hand wave across or even heard their commentary on my page or products I am showing...let's just say they're my little helpers...lol. Isabelle is 6 years old and Gabby is 3 years old and I love to hear them talk about washi tape and making layouts or a Gabby says "mom are you booking (scrapbooking)? My husband is very supportive and even enables me by stopping at Archivers if he is working in Atlanta and Skyping with me so I can shop. The lady recognizes him at the store and always helps him out. See I told you he was a really great husband. :)

Tell us a little bit behind your scrappy process and what inspires you.

‪I find that most anything can inspire me to create a layout. Sometimes it's the moment or mood that is captured in a photograph. I can look at a collection of papers or embellishments and it will spark an interest in creating a specific layout for a specific picture I have. Lately I have noticed that I have been creating layouts on white or kraft paper and then adding pattern paper for layers or a pop of color. I love to use Thickers for titles and will use anything like brown bags from kits that I receive, packaging from a stamp or sticker and even the girls art work as embellishment on a layout. I love for my layout to have layers and a "puffyness" to them for lack of a better word.

When do you scrap?

I tend to do most of my crafting towards the end of the day after dinner and when the kids have gone to bed. I just find that I get more done and have less interruptions. I have also been Skype scrapping during the night and that really has motivated me to scrap. You might be saying...what is she talking about skype scrapping? Well I have made many great friends in the YouTube community and one of them is Lisa, who is Maggiemylow on You Tube and even though she lives in Canada and I live in Tennessee we have been scrapbooking together over Skype. Gotta love technology...right? It is so much fun. We talk as we are creating layouts or working on project life and it is nice having the company of another crafter who loves it as much as you do. I would encourage anyone to get on skype and craft together, it really is so much fun. So yes I am a night owl and will stay up until midnight or 2 am if I really want to complete layouts.

‪ What inspired you to begin scrapbooking?

I first started scrapbooking about 11 years ago. I have always loved to take pictures...I can remember my first polaroid camera my brother gave me. It was pink and grey or even the 110 film cameras and disk cameras. I have always loved to take pictures. So one day I was shopping and I came across a crafting isle and started looking around I saw some Christmas stickers and a spiral album and thought it would be fun to put pictures in there instead of a regular album. You want to know something it was way more fun!!! I was hooked and from there I went to buying crafting magazines and finding Hobby Lobby and really going crazy for stickers, paper and paper trimmers....there was no stopping me now.

What are your favorite techniques.

‪When I start a layout I generally have one or two pictures I want to use. I will put them down on my 12x12 white paper and start to pull pattern paper from a collection that I want to use. Sometimes I rip the paper the size I want to use or cut it with the paper trimmer. I find that I like my layers to be uneven and I will usually put distress ink around the layers to help them pop out a little...black sout and vintage brown are my favorite. I normally don't spend to much time on one layout it can take me from 20 or 30 minutes to complete a layout. I don't get to worried about the perfect placement of a sticker or any type of embellishment. I don't know many of the design rules so if I like where it is at I glue it down and move one and most of the time in the end I am very happy with my layout.

What is your goal as a scrapbooker?

‪My ultimate goal would be to have every picture on a layout, in my project life album or in a regular album all nice and neat and organized. Yeah right? Wouldn't we all love that but I know that will never happen so I will be happy with just creating as much as I can. I want my kids and even grandkids one day to be able to open up a album and feel like I am sitting right beside them telling them the story behind the picture.

‪You can find me on You Tube as Ohsnapgonzo or friend me on Facebook Oh Snap Gonzo. Thanks again Amanda for letting me share a little about myself and I hope everyone is finding a some time to craft. Have a great day:)

Sandra, thank you so much! I got a little teary eyed when I read about our kids and grandkids feeling like we are sitting right next to them as they look at our scrapbooks. Isn't that really what it's all about? Leaving behind memories for our loved ones. It's just an added bonus that we get to make things pretty at the same time!

I hope you've enjoyed this weeks guest scrapper as much as I have! Go check Sandra out and leave her some love on her channel and Facebook page! I know she would appreciate it!

Eleanor's birth story

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:30:00 +0000

Eleanor was supposed to be born on a Friday morning at 8:00.

Instead, Eleanor decided to surprise us all and come a little bit early.

Nothing about this little girl was really expected.

Between finding out we were having her when Adeline was barely 5 months old, and then finding out she might have club feet (which she didn't), we should have known that she would try to sneak in another little surprise at the very end.

Let me start at the beginning.

For weeks now I have been in planning mode, trying to anticipate everything and anything that would need to be completed before our little girl arrived. I had pages of to-do lists at work and with the school year ending I was trying to get everything put away and stored while still leaving out the skeletal items that would be needed to finish out the year and make things easier on my sub.

At home we were furiously cleaning and organizing and working really hard to keep the house tidy and organized just in case I went in to labor. You see, when Adeline was born we weren't prepared for anything, didn't even have our bags packed even, and I vowed I would not let the same thing happen this time!

So after spending Memorial Day at home, finishing up a few final details and cooking out with friends, I made up my mind that Eleanor would in fact stay in place and that our Friday c-section was going to happen after all. I began working through my nerves of the surgery and trying to mentally prepare myself for this life changing event that would be rocking our world very soon.

On Tuesday I went to work and finished up the rest of my to-do list items. I felt good about ending the school year, and I was finally beginning to feel relaxed. I commented to one of the teachers that now that I was finally ready for the baby to come my nerves had began to kick in about having another c-section. Even though I had already had one with Adeline, it was an emergency one so I didn't have time to process the fact that I was getting split open.

That evening we went to our Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University class at church that Landen was leading and left with lots of words of encouragement from the people in our group.
When we got home we ate a late night dinner of hamburgers and watched an episode of Monk on Netflix before going to bed. We had barely laid down when I felt a weird I-just-peed-my-pants feeling. Now to be honest, at this point in the pregnancy, it is completely possibly that I was, in fact, peeing my pants. I had an small feeling though that this was the real deal.

I jumped out of bed alerting Landen to the situation and he jumped out of bed frantic. If you remember from Adeline's birth story, Landen was at work when my baby juices started flowing freely so this was a new experience for him. He asked me if he had time to take a quick shower to which I agreed because I wasn't feeling any contractions yet. We called a friend from church who was our backup plan to watch Adeline just in case I did go into labor in the middle of the night. By the time she arrived I had packed the last few items, written a note about Adeline and what she was eating, and was feeling some pretty strong contractions. I was more than ready to head to the hospital.

Landen and I were quiet on the way to the hospital (other than the normal "drive faster. run the stupid red light. when will be there" pregnant lady outbursts). I can't be sure what he was thinking but I can imagine it had a lot to with the the new little girl that we would hold in our arms soon and the sweet little girl we left laying in the crib asleep at home. I know that's what I was thinking about.

We arrived at the hospital around the time my contractions were starting to get pretty intense. After confirming that I was in labor, (duh), the nurse asked if I was still wanting to go ahead with the c-section or if I wanted to try and attempt a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). This sparked a two hour back and forth discussion between Landen and I and the nurses. I had made it to the end of my pregnancy fully expecting to have another c-section. Now, being faced with the choice of delivering vaginally, I was scared to death. Landen, being the stellar husband that he is demanded that they provide us with all of the statistics and risks associated both with having a repeat c-section and having a VBAC. After praying about it, I made the choice that I would try and chance a vaginal delivery. They wheeled me from the triage room into my very own labor and delivery room, set me up with my epidural, and the waiting began.

After my epidural kicked in, I was feeling pretty good. I emailed my principal, my substitute teacher, and the other 2nd grade teachers to tie up some loose ends since I would not be going to back to school. I watched a movie on my computer, Landen slept, and my parents, sister, and niece arrived. While everyone else tried to get some sleep in the late night hours my mind was going full force. I had no idea what to expect from my body, and I knew that labor could take hours. Many. many. hours. I prayed for our little girl, both the one in my belly and the one at home. I begin to understand that my little family was changing. When the nurse checked me and I was still at 3 cm they decided to do a very light drip of Pitocin to see if things would get rolling faster.

I can't tell you what time of the morning it was when I realized that my epidural was wearing off, but I remember that I quickly became aware that I could feel my right leg more than my left one. After alerting the nurses to the situation we tried adjusting my position to let gravity do it's job and when that didn't work the anesthesiologist came back in to up my dosage.

It was around this time that I began to feel a weird cramp in my right side. The Dr's came in and checked me again and I was at 6 cm with her head at minus 2 (which I guess means that she wasn't ready to make her grand entrance yet). As time went on the cramping continued to get worse and worse and before I knew it I couldn't talk through the pain anymore. This all seemed to happen in no time and I was suddenly in the worst pain I've ever felt in my life. It's true that words can't describe the pain of labor. All I can say is that at one point I think I said something along the lines of "stupid freaking Eve and that stupid freaking apple!"I was in pain y'all!

To make a short story story, the pain that I was feeling was what they call very active labor. It's the kind that is caused when you go from 6 cm dilated with a baby not ready to come out to 10 cm and a baby pushing her way out on her own. I was told that the epidural simply couldn't '
keep up" with the pain I was feelings. Thank a lot epidural. I went from 6cm to a baby in 45 minutes after only 20 minutes of pushing. I think Eleanor is going to have her mother's sense of urgency. Pushing was a lot harder than I thought, but not for the reason that you probably would think. My neck and my arms felt like they were going to fall off my body. I kept complaining about my arms hurting and the nurses kept laughing. They kept reminding me that I was in labor and that it wasn't supposed to be pleasant.

As Eleanor's head started crowning everyone started talking about her hair. Can I just insert here how weird it is to be spread out for God and everybody to see and everyone is looking down there talking about the color hair the baby has and playing with their hair and talking about all the hair. Come on y'all. I'm kinda all exposed over here. Please stop looking at my nether regions! My mom and my sister were allowed to join us in the delivery room and just as sweet mothers do my mom was so worried that they were going to do an episiotomy and I kept hearing her ask the Dr in her sweet southern drawl to not "cut me" if they didn't have to. You gotta love Mama's who have your..uhhmmm... back.

At 8:31 a.m, after one last push, Eleanor Mae was born. The feeling of seeing Eleanor come up out of my..well, you know...was incredible. I looked at Landen and he looked at me and we looked at her and there were so many emotions that I couldn't possibly capture them in words. I went from the worse pain ever to having a baby crying and flailing about on my chest. I will say however, that she was the most beautiful little girl, just like her sister, and she had RED HAIR!!! WHAT THE HAYDAY! How did I birth a kid from my loins that had red hair! I was surprised when Adeline had black hair but at least her father shared that trait. No one in our immediate family has red hair. She also looks a lot like her Momma, which makes me this lady really happy. Adeline is the spitting image of her father so I love that we both have our little mini-mes.

It's also amazing how in that moment, we were also both thinking about Adeline and how much we missed her. I wish she could have been there, but alas, she is one.

Eleanor weighed 7lbs 2 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. She barely beat out her sister in both weight and length. She suffered a little bit of jaundice which led to Children's hospital coming out for home visits for a couple of days but she soon received a clear bill of health from that. I did fine and had very minimal tearing which made the healing process a breeze. I'm so thankful for that because I was able to enjoy our little girls so much more!

Adeline meets her sister for the first time!

We are adjusting to being a family of 4 very well. Adeline loves her sister and is constantly wanting to give her hugs and kisses. Other than the one time she looked at me, smiled, and stomped on her baby doll that was laying on the floor I haven't worried to much about her future relationship with her baby sister. They definitely don't look much alike but I know that they are going to be the best of friends!

Eleanor took us by surprise in a lot of ways. She came on her own in her own little way, and for that I am thankful. I am thankful that she gave me the experience of labor and delivery. I am thankful that she has red hair. And Landen's eyes. And my chin. I'm thankful that she was healthy and strong and that her jaundice was low. I am thankful that she is ours. She is such a joy and she has definitely been just the right addition to our family.

We love you Eleanor Mae!

Guest Scrapper 003: Lina Maria Ullerup Witzner

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Hello everyone and welcome back for week 3 of my Guest Scrapper series, a series where I feature an amazing scrapper on my blog each Thursday.

When I first began watching process videos online, I was immediately drawn to Lina, or Aurora Inbag as she is known on YouTube. Her style really inspires me to go beyond my comfortable zone in my scrapbooking and stretch my creativity in ways I never would have thought of before. You can image how thrilled I was when she agreed to be a guest poster on my blog! So here she is...

Hello. My name is Lina, and I live in Denmark. A tiny country in Scandinavia, Europe. I’ve been married to my husband since 2001, but known him since 1992. I guess you could call us high school/college sweethearts. And then there’s my daughter, born in 2007, whose everyday life is often portrayed on my scrapbook layouts. I love animals, and have a history of breeding Somali cats and Chocolate Fox guinea pigs, and I used to have horses as well. Today we live with an Abyssinian cat, the true queen of the house, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel dog and three guinea pigs.

What inspires you to scrapbook?

It’s the story that inspires me to scrapbook . But that kind of starts at the time I’m deciding which pictures to get developed. I guess you could say my albums are divided into different stories. I have albums about our everyday family life, about the dog, about my childhood etc. And I go through these albums, looking for stories I have yet to tell, and decide on which pictures to develop to compliment those stories. Then when I sit down to scrapbook, I go through the pictures, and know exactly what story I want to tell with that picture. From there I gather the papers, embellishments, stamps and everything else I think I’d like to use. Once I begin the scrapbook process in earnest, it usually takes me an hour to an hour and a half to complete a page.

I’ve been taking quite a few design principle classes since I started scrapbooking back in 2007, so even though I don’t often think about them consciously, you’ll often find visually triangles and complimentary colors etc. on my pages. I’ve also come to love somewhat flat embellishments. I typically scrap 6-8 layouts a week, so the amount of space the layouts claim in my albums is something I think about. But if I think the theme of the page would go well with a huge, bulky flower, then I’ll add it.

When do you scrapbook?

I’m a stay at home mom. So I usually scrap while my daughter is at school and husband at work. I try to be active every morning, so 3 times a week I go to the gym, and two times I go for a run. But once I’m home, showered, and cleaned the house a bit, you’ll most likely find me immersed in some creative endeavor until it’s time to take the dog for his second walk of the day and pick up my daughter.

I actually held off beginning to scrapbook for a few years. I used to work with 3D modeling and texturing, and from there learned a little about digital scrapbooking. I loved the pretty papers and beautiful embellishments, but knew that if I started down the scrapbooking road it would be an expensive and time consuming hobby. And I wasn’t ready to devote that kind of time. But then my daughter started daycare, and I had to pass a local scrapbook store twice a day…every weekday! Needless to say, passing all those so cute mini albums and gorgeous papers in the shop window proved to be too big a temptation, and one day saw me entering the store. I guess the rest is history, as they say *wink*.

What do you love most about scrapbooking? What tips and techniques do you use?

I love color. In fact I’m a little bit obsessed about color. You wouldn’t know, looking into my closet, since most of my clothing is black or neutral. But paint, paper, washi tape even nail polish. If it comes in a range of color, I have to have it. And when I gather papers and embellishment for my layouts, I’m often taking my cue from colors of the photo, or maybe I think the mood of the layout could be set nicely with a certain color. I very rarely use a sketch of plan my layouts. One I have the ‘kit’ assembled; I just go with the flow. But I think that comes from knowing my own style and really knowing what I like and don’t like. I guess in some ways I am using some kind of plan, since I often use the same ‘setup’ of papers or the same places for my embellishment clusters. But I also like to shake things up every now and again, and if I see a layout or a technique I really like in a gallery somewhere, I’m never afraid to try it out, even if it is far from my usually style. I truly believe that, for me, creativity comes from experimentation, practice and knowledge. Knowing design principles means I don’t have to think hard about them, and can knowingly break them if I want to/need to. Years of scrapbook practice makes me confident in my own style, likes and dislikes. And experimentation is what makes it all fun and new again. And every once in a while it results in a style change for me.

What is your goal as a scrapbooker?

I guess you could call this my goal as a scrapbooker, is to have fun, enjoy the process and create something my husband and daughter enjoys reading/looking through. After all, it is ‘only’ a hobby, and if I don’t enjoy it, I should be doing something else. That said, being able to share what I do through my YouTube channel and blog has really made everything even more fun. People are so nice to comment. And I am so happy when I learn I have inspired others to be creative and have fun, to tell their stories and get them down on paper one way or another. That’s definitely one of the best parts of sharing my works with others.

Isn't her work amazing! And 6-8 layouts a week! Holy smokes! I wish!

Inspiration truly pours out of everything Lina does! Make sure to check out her YouTube channel as well as her blog and show her some love! I hope you are all finding time to be creative in some way this week. Next week my blog will resume it's normal posting schedule as hopefully I have found some kind of a routine with our new baby girl! Be looking for a post all about Miss Eleanor on Monday!

Guest Scrapper 002: Lisa Fritzler

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 30 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Welcome back to another Guest Scrapper post. This is a weekly series that puts the spotlight on one craft scrapbooker or crafter that is crazy talented! This week we have Lisa Fritzler!

You might know Lisa better as MaggieMylow on YouTube. She has several process videos as well as some haul videos and kit reveals. She does a wonderful job coordinating all of her elements into absolutely beautiful pages. She is one of my favorite scrapbookers to watch and I know that you will enjoy her as well!

Let's hear from Lisa herself

A Bit About Me

Hi everyone. My name is Lisa Fritzler. Most of you may know me as MaggieMylow on YouTube. I know I totally confused people with the MaggieMylow thing, but I was really nervous when I first started posting videos on YouTube and wanted to keep my identity anonymous. I guess the secrets out and everyone knows now….LOL. I am 36 years old and a mother of 2 wonderful kids. I have been with my husband for 8 years now and I can say that I’ve finally met my soul mate. He is my rock for all of the turbulent times I’ve been through and I thank him every day for it.

What Inspired You to Start Scrapbooking?

At first, I just started scrapbooking to put some pictures into an album with pretty stickers and pretty paper. There really wasn't any "meat and potatoes" to my layouts. I can't remember the day I started scrapbooking, but I can remember the day it meant more to me recording memories and journaling about them. It was the day after Father's Day in 2004. My dad died very suddenly from heart problems. He was only 53 years old. As you can imagine it was an extremely difficult time to get past. You always assume your dad will be a very old man before he passes on and when they are taken from us before their time it’s hard for your brain to get past it. He was a very quiet man and as such I didn’t really know too much about him. After this event, I looked at pictures differently. Before I would scrapbook and I was completely okay if there wasn't any journaling on the page, in fact, I preferred it. But now, a page doesn't feel right unless there is some sort of fact or story, or a few small sentences to put on the page.

Recently, I have had my own health problems, which included Pre-Cervical Cancer. And I think when something as serious as Cancer comes into your life, you start to sit back and think about what you will leave your children. My kids are now 16 and 14 and will soon be leaving the nest, and I wonder if my kids really know me. Do they know what my favorite color is? Do they know why I hate zucchini? (I hate it so much, I probably spelt it wrong.) What was my childhood like? Why do I hate snakes? What was it like to for me leave home for the first time? So I guess here is where I've evolved as a scrapbooker again. I'm starting to look past the photos and look farther into the story that needs to be told.

Describe Your Scrapbook Process

I have a variation of ways that I scrapbook. I generally go with, "what speaks to me" sort of style, whether it is photos, paper or an embellishment. Most of the time it's a picture that grabs my attention. After I decide what my one item that "spoke" to me was, I branch off of that. I generally start with 1-2 more papers that go with the item that I chose. (I don't try to get too matchy-matchy with photos. My thought is that there are a lot of other colors going on in the photos that I don't have to worry too much about making sure that I have the right color of yellow to match my son's shirt, for example.) I then will go to my embellishments and pick some that will go with my papers.

As for the process of how I come up with the layout concept, most of the time I start with the photo on the page and see where I like it to sit. I then will start making some paper layers under the photo. If the photo is starting to feel like it is getting a little bottom heavy, I will start adding a cluster to the top of the page. Or vice versa, if it’s starting to feel top heavy, I will add a cluster to the bottom of the page. This will then make me start to look at the page and see if it’s unbalanced. If I add something to one side of the page, I will try to add something to the other side to balance it off. This can be anything such as color, a doily, brads, etc.

I don’t normally start with a sketch or even an idea, most of the time I just start putting stuff down and just run with it. I know some people probably just gasped for air when I said I don’t start off with a plan, but I have been scrapbooking for a long time and I really know my style. It took me a while but I think I’ve finally figured it out. So because I know my style, I know what I’m looking for my page to look like in the end. It’s made it far less stressful for me. Instead of spending so much time figuring out what sketch to use or look through galleries, I just start making the page. I will still use a sketch, look at galleries or watch videos. I will use these if I’m stuck in a creative rut and it helps get the creative juices going again. Or sometimes someone will have an amazing technique that I just have to try.

What is Your Favorite Technique?

My favorite technique….hmm….that’s a tough one. I don’t know if it’s a technique, but I love layering. I love how you can get a small pop of color with a small amount of paper, or just a peek of an embellishment. It’s almost like your teasing the viewer with just hints of it.

I guess I’m not really scared to cut into a piece of paper. I used to be. It horrified me. To cut into a beautiful piece of paper felt like I was committing some sort of sin against the scrapbooking gods….lol. But now, I look at paper as a consumable item. It doesn’t cost a lot and it can be found almost anywhere. There are so many manufacturers and some of the papers from the different manufacturers are so close in color or in pattern that they can be intermingled together to stretch your stash out even more. But I love how I can use a little bit of pattern paper and it gives such an impact on the page. I look at paper as the frosted cake and the embellishments are the sprinkles.

When Do You Scrapbook?

Most of my time scrapbooking is on the weekends in between doing household chores. I do occasionally scrapbook on weekday evenings, but this is what I call my "prep" time. I've been doing a 15 minute a day rule for a while now and it's really helped me prep and get things ready for me to make a layout. What is the 15 minute rule, you ask? I take 15 minutes every day to prep products, sort through pictures, write down idea, print out pictures, etc. This way when I am ready to sit down and scrapbook I have everything ready and I can just focus on that. It’s a small amount of time that I know I can fit into my busy week that won’t leaving me feeling guilty because it took me away from my family or guilty that I didn’t do anything “crafty.” I've found this way to be way more rewarding and I accomplish so much more. If I do find myself with an abundance of time during the weekday, I will sneak downstairs and get a layout done. It doesn’t happen very often, but when I do it’s a bonus.

What is Your Goal as a Scrapbooker?

I guess I would have to say that I have small goals and big goals. As for my small goals, I would love to be caught up on all of my albums that I have on the go, but I know that this is a Pipe Dream and I will just enjoy the process of making the pages. However, a more realistic goal of mine would be to make an album about myself. As I mentioned earlier, I would hate for my children to grow up not knowing all of the important and maybe not so important facts about me. I would love for them to pick up the album one day and think that it is the most treasured item that I left behind after I’m gone.

As for a big goal, I would love to be on a design team one day. I just love what these guys and gals do and I find them so inspiring and I would love to do that for someone else one day. I find I scrapbook better with the ideas they give and techniques they try. I wish I could say I’m in the same caliber as these ladies are. I’m not there yet but I hope to be one day.

I would just like to say a big “Thank You” to Amanda for asking me to do this blog post. I loved the opportunity and it was a lot of fun to get my thoughts out. (You know this is going to go on a scrapbook page.) LOL.

Isn't Lisa so much fun! I totally love her 15 minute idea! I hope you have enjoyed this post and I know that you are getting ready to head over to YouTube and check her out! Thank you Lisa for taking the time to share such valuable information with us! You are awesome, keep doing what you're doing and I KNOW you are going to end up on that design team!

Process Tuesday: Little Red Wagon

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Tue, 28 May 2013 21:14:00 +0000

Good golly! How did it get to be Tuesday already!

I hope your week is going great and that you are getting lots accomplished!

This weeks layout is once again using the May Cocoa Daisy kit, "Record Label." I mentioned earlier that I was having a hard time using this kit because of the colors and the overall themey-ness to it but I have created several pages that I adore and so I guess you could say I surprised myself!

Here is the layout. You can find the process video at the end of the post!

Supplies I used: Cocoa Daisy May Kit, October Afternoon mist

Process behind it: One of the main reasons this page came about was because of the red in the photos. I had some bits of red left in my kit and when I paired them with the yellow paper and the bits of blue (which is more grey-toned blue) I loved the look of it all. I knew that I wanted to keep the layering and the clustering simple because I wanted the emphasis to be on the photos. Every embellishment on the page is either a sticker or a paper layer with the exception of the paperclip.

Journaling: The story behind these photos is of my daughters first wagon ride around our block. She loves being outdoors and she really enjoyed the ride.

How long did it take me? Around an hour. It took some time to find the specific elements and color combination that I wanted, but once I did the page came together very quickly.

Here are some close up photos.

You can view the process video on my YouTube channel here

I hope you have enjoyed this layout! Check back tomorrow for a special Wednesday blog post about my scrap room! I'm so excited!

Happy scrapping!

A tale of two daughters

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 27 May 2013 05:30:00 +0000

It seems just like yesterday I was writing this post about impatiently awaiting the arrive of baby Adeline and now here I am a week away from meeting baby Eleanor.

There are a lot of emotions that come with becoming a mother again. Especially when your oldest is only 14 months old. I have struggled with fears and anxieties about whether or not I am going to be able to be the best mother to Adeline when I have a newborn to feed and give all my attention to. I wonder if Adeline is going to be forced to grow up to fast because she is no longer the 'baby' but is now the 'big sister'. I dream about them being super close and having the type of sisterly relationship that I missed out on because my sister is 14 years older than me. There is so much that I wonder about.

Finding out that I was pregnant when Adeline was just 5 months old was...in a word...surreal. We are that couple. The ones that say "Well it took us a while to get pregnant with Adeline so this one will be the same way. I guess we are also that couple that stands in the bathroom staring at a pregnancy test with an infant on their hip and an ohmygoodness-you've got to be kidding me expression on their face. I was overcome with so many feelings, and I don't think it makes me a horrible person to admit that excitement wasn't immediately one of them. Fear, anxiety, and a tad bit of anger even- yes those were there. Excitement did come though. In the weeks after finding out and after hearing her heartbeat, finding out that she was going to be a girl, discovering that she might have a club foot and then finding out that she didn't...yes, the excitement definitely grew.

And now here I am, 5 days away from meeting this sweet precious girl and I am so completely and totally, excited. And overwhelmed. And so, so, so in love with the thought of having two little girls. Am I still a little worried as to how this part of our story is going to play out? Absolutely. Do I still lay awake at night listening to Adeline's breathing and wonder if I am going to miss some of her best days because I am going to be wrapped up in her sister? Definitely. I also lay awake though and dream of matching outfits, holding hands, teaching Adeline to help with getting diapers and bottles, play time, make believe, and a future of two little girlies.

My girls will be grown before I know it. These are the days I want to remember, because soon, I won't have time to wonder about what life will be like with two little girl because I will be busy living it.

Right Now

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Fri, 24 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

here's a look at what our life looked like this week

(see bottom for descriptions)

...chopping plastic, saturday morning pancake traditions, seasonal morel mushroom hunting and good eats, temper tantrums, curiosity, pregnant belly, cleaned the garage and got it organized (feels so good to FINALLY park the car in there!), messy dinner time, warm spring evening walks, tasty Starbucks treat.

It's hard to believe that our life is about to change again when Eleanor gets here. Can't wait to see how our 'right now' changes.

Happy Memorial Day everyone!

Guest Scrapper 001: Nicole Jones

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 23 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Welcome to my first "Guest Scrapper" post. A weekly series where a fabulous scrapper is featured on the blog!

Oh my goodness I am so excited about today's post!

Anyone who has been around the YouTube scrapbooking scene for the last few months you will be very familiar with Nicole Jones or nicolejones911. She has shared over 40 process videos in a very short amount of time and she is crazy talented!

When I decided to begin this weekly guest post series on the blog featuring fabulous scrappers I knew immediately who I wanted my first guest to be, and I was thrilled when she agreed to take the time to share with us.

So without further ado...the incredibly talented Mrs. Nicole Jones!

Why do you Scrapbook?

Over the years I've had so many people ask me that question. In short I love papers, embellishments and all the toys related to Scrapbooking. Finally, "Toys for Big Girls"!!! I started Scrapbooking because I wanted to have a few "cute" albums for my family, but this has turned into a passion that I cannot go one day without at least thinking about.

A little background about me... I started Scrapbooking 15 years ago when I found out I was pregnant with my third child and because of this my 10 rolls of film per year turned into over 100 rolls per year (of course now totally digital so even more photos per year) and I totally fell in love with photography and keeping track of my families growth.

I've been married for 21 years and have 3 children and 1 grandson (which by the way I am way too young to be a grandma LOL but totally loving it). I work at a 9-1-1 center and it can be stressful and exhausting. This is where Scrapbooking is an outlet, I walk into my Scrapbook room which is my little haven and everything is right with the world and I just have fun.

What is my process?

I love Scrapbooking with kits. I grab my Studio Calico kit and start having fun. I have a video uploaded on You Tube which is "My process when I start with a new kit" and it outlines how my brain thinks when I get started with a fresh kit. My first step is pairing up the papers and this really helps the "mojo". Then I put together a "page kit". I gather all the materials I might need for my layout (stamps, inks, embellies, masks, stickers etc...) and that usually decides what photo should go with that kit ... I know I am kinda backwards I don't start with the photo but with papers. I usually don't plan my layouts but just pick up my scissors and my cutter and start cutting papers, if I don't like a layout I just keep adding layers and embellishments until I do. One of my favorite things about scrapbooking is the journaling. I feel like I am leaving little letters to my kids which they can appreciate later. My journaling is rarely about the event taking place but more about the story behind the photo if that makes any sense...

When do I Scrapbook?

Four words " I do shift work" so I never scrapbook at the same time, I've seen myself after a night shift scrapbook for one hour before going to bed as a way to relax.

For over 10 years I taught classes at a local scrapbook store and also as a representative for a stamp company. I recently started doing process videos on You Tube and I am having a blast.

Hobbies have come and gone but scrapbooking is here to stay, and besides my hubby would probably strangle me if I said I was done scrapbooking with all the "stuff" I have accumulated over the years. LOL

My name is Nicole Jones and I am a scrap-a-holic!

PS: Now I totally need to do a Scrapbook page about Why I Scrapbook!

Thank you Nicole!
I find it completely inspiring that she creates such beautiful papers while having such an inconsistent schedule. I would struggle with that big time!
You can find Nicole's YouTube channel here and I am sure she would love for you to subscribe and leave her lots of lovely comments!

I hope you have enjoyed this guest posts as much I have! It's so important that we encourage and support other scrapbookers. I definitely don't scrap to please the masses but with each kind word and comment that I get, it encourages me to try something new and keep pushing on!

Happy Thursday everyone!

Process Tuesday and a few other layouts...

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Tue, 21 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

It's Tuesday which means it's time to link up another process video and layout that I have been working on.

This week's layout is the first layout I created using Cocoa Daisy's May "Record Label" kit. I also purchased the "Johnny B" and "Buddy" add-ons. I will admit, this kit has challenged me. It is full of blacks, reds, oranges, and a mixture of blues and greens. I don't scrapbook with a lot of black or orange, and black cardstock scares me to death! I'm working through it though and I am surprising myself with how much I am loving the resulting pages.

Here is the layout for the week:

"A Frappe Built For Two"

Supplies I used: Cocoa Daisy May Kit

Process behind it: I knew that I wanted to use both the picture and the gift card on the layout. I very quickly decided that I didn't like the way the green in the gift card clashed with the blues and grey/kraft tones of the patterned papers that I chose so I decided to tuck it into the little file folder that came in the kit. A few stickers and cardboard elements later, throw in some twine and awesome alphabet Thickers and I LOVE how this page turned out.

Journaling: The journaling is about how my husband and I used our gift card to share a special treat instead of spending our own money. We are on the road to paying off our debt and so aside from our own personal hobby allowance we said goodbye to all of the "extras" like Starbucks. It was a nice treat and the two straws made it feel kind of romantic. Corny, I know.

How long did it take me? About 40 minutes. The hardest part was figuring out what to do with the gift card.

Here are some close up photos. You can find the process video below as well.

The YouTube process video can be viewed here.

Here is another layout that I completed for a color challenge that I forgot to link up. Oops! I've never attempted a grid type layout before and I was really intimidated but I am so excited by the page and I adore the fun, playful feel to the page and the story behind it.

Don't forget to check out yesterday's post and comment to be entered into the giveaway. Hope you have a happy, blessed, week!

Nursery happenings and a small giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Our house has been a hubbub of activity the last few weeks. It seems my nesting has been in overdrive and my to-do lists can't keep up. I have had Landen running from one end of the house to other carrying newborn clothes up from the basement, clothes that Adeline has outgrown down to the basement. We have hung pompoms in the nursery, dusted ceiling fans, straightened up all the bedrooms and cleaned all the baseboards (okay that one was me, Landen thought I was insane for going around on my knees with a dryer sheet wiping them down, but Pinterest says it works!).

I've also been busy trying to get scrapbook process videos filmed so that I can continue posting weekly while I am recovering once the baby is born. I am scheduled for a c-section on May 31st so I won't be able to make it upstairs to my studio for awhile.

There have been so many crafty projects that I have wanted to tackle to update the nursery before Baby Eleanor arrives but I seem to be slacking in the energy department. One thing that I did get accomplished however was a little dresser decor! The girls are going to be sharing a dresser until Adeline gets moved into another bedroom here in a few months. I wanted a way to distinguish between her things and Eleanor's while still staying organized and of course cute! I searched high and low on Pinterest and found this which I loved but knew the lettering was to big and that it would be way to time consuming. So I did a little thinking and decided to use my Silhouette Cameo to make my own letters. I love the result!

*Sorry for the awful picture but I took this at night.*

To do this was simple! I just typed out the words using one of my favorite fonts in my Cameo, cut it out, and then adhered the vinyl onto the drawers. Easy-peasy! In my current state of mind however I accidentally cut out three of each word instead of just two soo....I am going to give them away on my blog!

In order to enter simply leave a comment below letting me know what you would do with the words play, twirl, and dance if you received them. I was thinking they would look cute on the corner of a picture frame with a picture of your kids playing, twirling, and dreaming. I will leave the comments open until Sunday night at midnight and then I will randomly select a winner and announce it next Monday.

There are still things I hope to get finished in the nursery but at this point in the game it might not happen and I have to be okay with that. I will make sure to keep you updated though in all of the fun things going on!

OH! and this Thursday is going to be super cool! Nicole Jones from nicolejones911 on Youtube is going to be guest posting on my blog! She has lots of great tips and techniques to share and if you haven't checked out her YouTube channel yet...well get to it! So make sure to check back on Thursday!

Plans for this space

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 16 May 2013 00:27:00 +0000

I have been reflecting lately on what I want from this precious little space that I take up on the internet.
For the last several years I have used this little spot of the World Wide Web to tell funny stories, share photos, occasionally vent about life's ordeals, and other random things.

Part of my problem is wanting to make this a place that people want to come visit, while still keeping it simple enough that I can be free of the guilt of posting every single day.

I am wanting to begin a regular posting schedule during the week and there are a couple of things that I know I want to include on a weekly basis. These are things like:

Scrapbooking Process video and weekly layout update.
An 'around here' type post to document the goings on of our life at the moment.
A misc post each week.
And a guest post featuring other scrapbookers and crafters who aren't well known but are still crazy creative.

If I stick with this schedule I will be posting faithfully 4 times a week with an optional 5th day.

Here's where you can help: what would you like to see from this space? What would bring you back day after day or lead you to subscribe? I have had a steady number of subscribers for some time, and my goal is not to become a mega blogger or anything like that. My goal is to simply use this space effectively to inspire and encourage others while capturing our life as we are living it.

I would REALLY appreciate feedback on this subject as I would love to begin prepping posts for next week in advance.

And if you would be interested in possibly being part of my weekly guest post series please let me know about that too. I am not a well-known scrapper, but I do love this hobby and I would love to have your beautiful creations in this space!

Thanks in advance and happy Wednesday!

Layouts Within Limitations: A scrapbook challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 23:58:00 +0000

Last week, one of my favorite scrapbookers, the infamous Glitter Girl, posted a challenge to create three layouts from a very limited amount of supplies in the hopes of helping other scrappers push past the "frozen" stage of the process when you have the papers and pictures but don't quite know how to finish the page.

I decided to step up to the challenge and see just what I could create given only a handful of supplies. While I didn't take a photo of my "kit" that I created I did take photos of the layouts.

Layout 1: A one-photo layout.

"You Do Crazy Things"

This is the layout I created for the 1-photo part of the challenge. I used it as an opportunity to use up some of my scraps and I searched for papers that would help me pull in the red from the photo as I balanced it out with the grey and white background paper and several other grey and yellow patterned papers. I love the way that it turned out and I know that this technique of layering lots of blocks of patterned paper on top of each other is something I would have never normally tackled on my own.

Layout 2: A two-photo layout.

"Pumpkin Festival"

This is the 2-photo layout I created for the challenge. I really went out of my comfort zone for this one because I scrapped seasonal photos without using any seasonal or theme-y products. I pulled colors from the photos and I love the way that it turned out. You would really never know that these photos were taken in the fall if not for the title and some of the scenery in the background.

and finally

Layout 3: A three-photo layout.

"Love Knows No Distance"

This is the 3-photo layout I created. I love the simplicity behind this page. I also love that I have just one main cluster of embellishments and journaling as opposed to trying to come up with several different spots. I think the colors work well together and I am so glad that I finally got around to documenting this story of how distance can't separate those who love each other.

You can view Glitter Girl's video below, and make sure you check out her other videos in the Adventures of Glitter Girl series. They are so inspiring and she is truly one of my favorite scrappers!

Why I scrapbook...

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:01:00 +0000

Have you ever stopped to consider why you do some of the things that you do.

I mean really considered it?

Each day is full of so many monotonous activities like washing the dishes, doing laundry, making the beds, picking up toys, etc.

It seems that everyday is the same and we are just going through the motions in order to make it through to the next day when we can go through the motions again.

As I've been pondering these things over the last few weeks getting ready for our second little girl to enter this world, I have really began questioning why I do some of the things that I do. This led my thoughts down the path to scrapbooking, a passion I hold so dear to my heart.

My passion for scrapbooking began in high school. My mom would buy me the disposable cameras when I would have a special occasion such as a field trip or church event and I would take so many pictures I wouldn't know what to do with them all. We would get them printed and I would immediately stick them in a photo album and stick some on my bulletin board to be admired by all. Around 9th grade I was introduced to the art of combining the pictures with pretty paper and putting it all together with fun stickers. I'm not really sure how I first heard about scrapbooking, or whether the idea just came to me one night while sitting at home looking through my pictures, but before I knew it I was creating scrapbook albums for mission trips, and for fun trips to concerts. It didn't matter to me at the time if I was using the latest technique or the newest supplies because a.) I didn't know such things existed and b.) I was having fun documenting memories and stories and there wasn't any pressure to make it perfect.

*These were the days of huge color blocking, flat, speech bubble stickers that said things like "I'm so awesome!" and letter stencils.*

Fast forward a few years and I still get a joy out of putting those pictures and pretty papers together on a page and sticking them in an album. My techniques have definitely changed, and with the plethora of internet inspiration that we have right at our finger tips there is an added sense of pressure to create the perfect page, but at the end of the day my job is still the same: document the memories and capture the story.

You see, my job in my house is a big one. It goes beyond making sure the laundry gets put away and the floors stay swept. It's more than paying the bills and getting everyone where they need to be. My biggest job in my family is that of "memory keeper".

No one else in my house, at this time, spends any time writing down our story. I am the picture-taker, the blogger, the story teller. I am the one who has the responsibility of preserving what our days look like right now, so that 40 years from now our daughters can look back and see how we lived and what we were doing in 2013, and why we were doing it. I can choose to do this anyway I want. I can take picture and put them in albums and stick them on a shelf. Our memories are documented and there for everyone to see, and that is amazing. OR I can go one step further and take those pictures, put them on a page and tell a story behind the picture. How we were feeling, what we were doing, and why.

For example:

think about some of the oldest family photos you have, and I mean old! We're talking black and white here (before we could edit them to be that way). Wouldn't you love to know why your great grandpa was surrounded by all of his brothers and sisters standing in front of a tree? Was it a birthday celebration? Did someone have a baby and everyone was gathered together for that? What is the story behind the picture?

Our lives are full of stories that will be forgotten as soon as we are gone. It's up to us to take those stories and make them known.

This is why I scrapbook.

This is why I take my job as memory-keeper seriously.

Why do you scrapbook?

You Are Scholar: Cocoa Daisy April kit layout #3

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:52:00 +0000

Whoa, if I didn't know better I would think it was March!

This is definitely one of the most 'green' layouts I have ever done!

Once again though, I have proven to myself that I can step out of my comfort zone and use colors that I normally wouldn't and LOVE the results.

Another reason why I love Cocoa Daisy kits!

I have been in a 'olden days' kind of mood lately and it seems that every picture that speaks to me is an older one. I am so excited to be getting these photos down on paper and even more excited to be sharing them with you.

This story is about Landen's graduation and how successful he has been. I love that the page is masculine without being all blue or black or brown. I did end up pulling some brown Thickers from my stash as well a couple of stickers and labels but other than that everything is from the kit. Using the ribbon that came in the kit as tabs was a random thought and I am so pleased with how it came out!

You can check out more still picture and the process video below, and don't forget to check out my YouTube video for information on how to win a $25 gift certificate to Two Peas in a Bucket!

Happy scrappin' and God bless!

Me and You: Cocoa Daisy April kit layout #2

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 23:40:00 +0000

This is my second (well really 3rd) layout using this months kit and I still love the products!

For this layout I decided to scrap a photo of Adeline and I that I love but hadn't put on paper yet. I very rarely ever do a vertical layout that lays in the middle of the page and I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to use up some more of that great pink chevron and the kraft polka dot paper. I layered everything in the middle and then used some of the embellishments that came in the kit as well as some that I quickly handmade and others from my stash. I love how this page came out, but I am was not too thrilled with the way that the paint looked around the photo. Oh well, we live and learn. I still have one more story documented and that is all that matters!

So without further ado here is the process video and some still shots.

Thanks for looking and God bless!

Oh, and don't forget about my subbie challenge! You've only got until April 30th! You can find out more information on my YouTube channel!

Those Legs: Cocoa Daisy April kit layout #1

noreply@blogger.com (Amanda O'Banion) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:28:00 +0000

I just finished my first layout from my April Cocoa Daisy kit and I am loving it! I recorded a scrapbooking process video for it and everything...well except that I forgot to hit record and didn't notice it until I was already done! Epic Fail! Oh well. At least I took pictures!

Materials:

I was; however, so frustrated that I forgot to write down any of the supplies that I used from the kit so I'm sorry about that. One of the things that I did that I hadn't done before was to use acrylic paint along with my enamel dots on the layout. I adore how it turned out! It added so much texture to the page. It will definitely be something that I repeat in the future! The Thickers aren't from the kit but I think they matched the greens in the papers perfectly! The clouds are from the stamp set that came in the kit. I just stamped them on some white cardstock and then cut them out. They added the perfect touch!

The Story:

This layout is of my daughter when she was just a few months old wearing her new leggings. I love how her little chubby legs looked in them and had to take some pictures. And no, she wasn't standing on her own, my darling hubby was gracious enough to hold her up for me.

Oh, and see that blue line? Somebody needed a diaper change. Oh well!

The Pictures:

Here are the pictures! I'm loving this kit so much and I can't wait to scrap some more!