My Life And Scrap

Nose to the Grind Stone- And a freebie

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:35:00 +0000

All good things must come to an end and today is that day for me. I've enjoyed 4 wonderful days at home with my super wonderful hubby for our anniversary. We did everything and nothing, but most importantly we just enjoyed each others company. It's been 9 years since the day we stood together said "I Do". My how the time flies. In so many ways it seems like it was just yesterday and in other ways it feels like a lifetime ago. Whatever the case, I just know that I'm still happy and still loved.

Today it's back to work. I'm okay with that though. I enjoy my work (most days).

Things over at My Life and Scrap are REALLY hopping. There are all sorts of new challenges and some contests are going, new items are going up in the shop every day and people have posted some really stunning layouts there. In just a few short months it will be the 1 year anniversary of My Life and Scrap! Linda and I have put a lot of hard work into it and it's all been SO worth it. We've both met lots of great people and learned so many new things. What a ride it has been (and we're not getting off any time soon LOL).

Being in a kid free home Halloween tends to be pretty low key around here. But I'll bet that lots of other people have really had an eventful Halloween. I'd love to hear about it. Even better, I'd LOVE to see some of the cute costumes your kids wore. If you leave me a comment and link me to a picture of your kid's costume and which kit you'd like (Scary or Sweet) I'll pick a winner for each. Take a look and tell me which you like.

Okay, now I must go get ready for work. Hope you all have a really great week.

Introduction to Masks

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 18:05:00 +0000

Today I'm hosting a Speed Scrap at My Life and Scrap and thought I'd do a little introduction to Photo Masks. I've been having a lot of fun making them and JUST realized there are all sorts of people out there who don't know how to use them.

To start, you can grab my set of free samples at the shop. Just click on the image to be taken there.

Open the mask in PhotoShop
Place your photo on top of the mask
Press CTRL + ALT + G
Grab your photo and move it around until you're happy with the position
Press CTRL + E to merge the two together
And you're DONE!!

Here's my latest layout using a photo mask:

Busy, Busy, Busy

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:47:00 +0000

Gosh it feels good to get things done. I've had lots piling up and it sort of stresses me when that happens. Today I was up early before work and just got busy and started crossing things off my list. It's good to get things done WOW! What a relief. The list isn't done but some of the things I've been putting off for one reason or another are now crossed off! I even finished the My Life and Scrap Newsletter. I think I do my best creative work under pressure, so the newsletter is usually not done until late Wednesday night, just in time to be mailed out on Thursday morning, but today I just had the go-juice to get it done. And it feels kind of good. Now what will I do with my Wednesday evening?

35

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 05:34:00 +0000

I couldn't let the day go by without recognizing that today is a special day. This would have been my parents' 35th wedding anniversary. They were the perfect pair and every day I strive to be just like them- Happy and in love.

Happy Birthday

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 17:27:00 +0000

Today it's my mom's birthday and I can't express how happy I am that I get to spend part of it with her. There were several years that we lived on opposite sides of the country and a phone call had to suffice. Granted, hearing her voice and wishing her a happy birthday over the phone was far better than nothing at all, but being 5 minutes away is MUCH better.

Mom, I hope you have a very happy birthday and I'm really looking forward to a wonderful dinner and spending some time with you today. I'm so fortunate to have you close and I hope you know that I enjoy our time together, whether we're out on a new adventure or at home on the phone. I love you mom!

WHO am I?

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 03:13:00 +0000

Lately, I'm not sure. I don't even recognize me after the past 2 days.

Lastnight I went to pick up my computer from the ~~wonderful~~ folks at BestBuy. Come to find out, they've installed a new hard drive but no operating system. SERIOUSLY??? So that means I have a nice shiny computer that (still) doesn't work. Shockingly, I didn't bother yelling and screaming at the Geek on duty and I didn't ask for a supervisor. I took many deep breaths, looked away and tried to refocus that energy that was building up inside me. I took my poor pathetic computer and left.

This morning I called my ~~friendly~~ Gateway customer service center to speak with them about getting a set of recovery disks that the Geek at BestBuy said I should be able to get for free since I've only had my computer for 10 months. I was quickly told that I would NOT get those disks free of charge, in fact I'd have to pay for them AND the shipping charges. So rather than yelling and screaming and asking for a supervisor I said I would buy the disks (my super sweet hubby was standing above me reminding me that "it's not worth having a heart attack over"). Just as I was about to give them my information Hubby asked for the phone. To my surprise, he spent 20 minutes on the phone giving them hell... in the end I gave them my credit card number and agreed to their charge of $27 (including shipping- but delivered right to my door step in 7-10 days!) what a deal! NOT!!! I'm not happy... but such is life.

So there ya have it, that's the update on the last couple days for me. I feel like I'm walking an emotional tight rope over this, how have I let something like this get to me so much?

Clear Creek Celebration

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 06:37:00 +0000

Today mom and I stopped by the Clear Creek Celebration for a salmon feed. When we arrived there was Native American drumming and dancing going on so we sat and watched for a while. Having some Native American background it brought a chill to my spine to learn some of their traditions. After the entertainment we enjoyed a salmon dinner then a walk through the Interpretive Center on the trail. We met the granddaughter of the family who donated the barn to the city and enjoyed looking at some of the antiques that have been collected there over the years. It was a really nice time.

After the celebration it was off to Costco for a pizza for Leonard (who's not much of a salmon person). I waited in the food court while the pizza was baking and while I was there another shopper approached the older couple seated next to me. The other shopper said that she recognized the insignia on his hat and that her son is in the same unit in the military. He said that he served many years ago, in the Korean War. They chatted a bit and she thanked him for serving then she was on her way. Many times a week I realize just how proud I am to be an American. Around every corner there is patriotism and pride in our wonderful country and this too brings a chill to my spine.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend and that you're as proud to be from where ever you are from as I am proud to be where I am from.

Party!!

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 16:04:00 +0000

Yesterday was my hubby's birthday! And actually there was no party, it was pretty low key. He isn't really into birthdays. As a kid he never had parties and no one ever really made a big deal of his birthday so that's what he's used to. Because of how he was treated as a kid is exactly why I always want to make a big deal of them. It's funny how so many things in life have a certain balance, in this case it's a matter of letting him know his birthday is being acknowledged and celebrated without going overboard.
Anyway, mom took us out to a nice Mexican dinner. They both enjoyed strawberry margaritas, it was fun watching mom try to drink from that HUGE glass. She'd never had a margarita before!! Ahhh... my mom and her second childhood. After dinner we went to the grocery store and picked up some things mom needed and we also picked up a little cake for Leonard. It was a really good time.
Leonard actually let mom take some pictures of him (which I hope to have to scrap with for the MLAS festivities this weekend).
OH!! Speaking of MLAS festivities... I thought I'd share a little of what's going on. We're having a PARTY!! Be sure to keep an eye on the Site News section of the store for more details. Until then... here's a little teaser of what's to come:

Gettin' in the Groove

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:21:00 +0000

We've tested, we've played, we've poked around and it seems My Life and Scrap is fully functional. There were a few little bumps in the beginning but they're all cleared up now. Be sure to check in through out the week, especially at the end of the week, we have some surprises coming up for you. Don't worry, I'll be sure to post them here on my blog as well : ) Definitely don't want anyone to miss anything.

Next week we'll be introducing some new designers to you as well, so be ready for that. You can bet there will be some good sales to go with those intros along with some other surprises.

One other thing, our challenges are in FULL swing over in the forums. Since our service was interrupted right in the middle of the first week of challenges we've decided to extend them for the whole month- meaning you have until the end of the month to post your challenges and earn points from the first half of the month. There are also new challenges going for the second half of the month as well. Be sure to take advantage of these, it's a great way to earn free stuff at My Life and Scrap.

Hope you're all having a wonderful Monday. Next week I'll get back to posting my Scrapbook Pages, I've got quite a few to show you. That downtime proved to be a good time to scrap.

Movie Review: 17 Again

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 00:20:00 +0000

Super fun movie about a guy who gets to be 17 again. His wish is granted, to go back and re-live his "best" years only to find out if he'll make the same choices he has already made. Leonard and I both really enjoyed this movie. 2 thumbs up.

We're Baaaack!!!

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:04:00 +0000

I'm just thrilled to pieces! My Life and Scrap is back up. After suffering long withdrawals I'm just chomping at the bit to get back in there and catch up on things. BUT I wanted to pop in here and let everyone know. So... YAYYYYY!!!! Come by and visit. And be sure to check in often, we've got some incredible surprises coming up.

Still Waiting

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 20:19:00 +0000

Nothing new to report regarding My Life and Scrap, sorry : ( Fingers crossed we'll at least get some sort of update this afternoon. Thanks for checking in.

It's always something

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:01:00 +0000

Yesterday after work I cam home to find that my hard drive on my computer took a dive. Dead as a door nail. His new name- Dead Fred. I took Fred to BestBuy where I bought him less than 10 months ago and had a Geek take a look at him. Said Geek confirmed Fred's death and sent him off to California to be revived. Fred will be getting spa treatment from the nice folks in California for the next 2 weeks and when he comes back he'll be good as new and ready to return to work. Until his return I'll be using his ~~much~~ older sister- Still kickin' Stella who is a laptop version. I'll still update as I can, but Stella is one hot mama and and when she gets too tired she goes down for a nap. SO... I'm pretty much out of commission for the next 2 weeks. Please be sure to see Linda's blog for details about My Life and Scrap and when we'll be back online.

My Life and Scrap Update

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:31:00 +0000

Just a little update on the site. Things are moving but very slowly. We do not have an updated down time yet as we've hit a very minor road bump but Linda is working fervently to get this resolved.

Thank you all for sticking with us.

My Life and Scrap- Down Time

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:17:00 +0000

Hello Ladies,

Just wanted to let you all know that the site went down today, sometime between noon and 12:30 Pacific time due to... You guessed it- we finally burst at the seems LOL. We've grown so much that we outgrew our old server and we're being transferred to our own dedicated server. This is a VERY good thing. We'll also have a Private SSL Certificate which will further secure our shoppers' information when they make a purchase.

We're really excited about the transfer, we're just sorry that it happened unexpectedly and we couldn't give anyone any warning. SO... If you could, we'd really appreciate if you'd spread the word in any way that you can -- your blogs, FB account, twitter accounts or post at DST or any place you can think of. We're anticipating 48 hours of down time, but these things are time consuming and it's possible it could take longer, so please be patient. We're REALLY sorry for the inconvenience and we appreciate you're understanding while we continue to grow.

Thank you all for making My Life and Scrap such a wonderful place.

Monday's Layouts

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 05:38:00 +0000

Where have the past 2 weeks gone? In fact... where has August gone? I just cannot believe that tomorrow is the 1st of September *sigh*

There hasn't been much time for scrapping this week. In fact the first 2 layouts I'm going to show you were completed a week or more ago and I just finally found the time to upload them.

Bad to the Bone

full credits can be seen HERE

Dream

full credits can be seen HERE

Point No Point
featuring
All Inspired by Kate Designs
full credits can be seen HERE

Okay... that's it. Now I'm off to bed. Better late than never, right?

Muttballs

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 20:03:00 +0000

I thought I'd do a fun little post today about a super yummy treat that I found while scouring the net.
One of the blogs I like to look at for inspiration is called "Last Door... Down the Hall". She always has something fun posted, but I never expected to come across Muttballs! They're so quick and easy to make and so healthy, I couldn't resist whipping up a batch. And my dogs will confirm: They're delish!

Try them yourself, I'll bet your dogs will agree with mine.

Muttballs
1 pound ground or minced raw chicken
5 ounces of dried bread crumbs or crushed crackers
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 egg

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a greased baking pan.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven. Cool. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
These can also be frozen for up to six weeks.

Grand Opening: Designs by Sassy

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 14:52:00 +0000

This week we're celebrating the
Grand Opening of
Designs by Sassy
at My Life and Scrap.
Most of you probably already know Sassy
for her incredible CU Grab Bags
and her other beautiful designs.
Well, you can NOW get them at
My Life and Scrap
and at a
30% discount this week only
(excludes grab bags, of course).

Here are a few of my favorites:

August CU Grab Bag
(of course)

Dark Dream

A Day to Remember

Monday's Layouts

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

It's been a little crazy this past week so I didn't get to do much scrapping. Even though it was crazy it felt productive. I kinda like it when I have days like that. So... here's what I was able to get scrapped this past week:

Precious
full credits can be seen HERE

Got It
featuring
A Dog's Life by RebeccaPSP
full credits can be seen HERE

Here Kitteh

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:19:00 +0000

Some of you have heard about the kitten incident from a few nights ago, if you have, no need to keep reading, just scroll down for the cuteness. If you haven't heard the story... here it is.

I was exhausted so I hit the sack early. I was sleeping pretty good when Kaycee woke me up, barking. I heard a screechy sound outside so I went to look and saw nothing. Went back to bed. An hour later, more barking and repeated screeching. Back outside I found a kitten, just the size of my hand. SO tiny. The ironic part? She was on the stairs just outside my door. How in the heck could something so tiny get onto the stairs?

Well, of course, I picked the little thing up and she was just crying like crazy and she was terrified, poor baby. I brought her inside and woke up my ~~cat loving~~ hubby to ask for help. I totally expected him to be less than pleased with the situation but he didn't freak out. Oh, I should mention, he's VERY allergic to kitties. He helped me try to feed it soy milk and mushy tuna (as I learned from searching the web that night, you should never give a cat cow's milk). We put her in a box with a towel and she slept (or at least was quiet) all night.

In the morning we took her to the Humane Society. They said she was about 3 weeks old. They gave her vaccines and wormed her while we were there and they said she'd go to a foster home for the next 7 weeks then she would be spayed and made available for adoption. Fortunately kittens go quick, so they said it's not likely she'll have any trouble finding a forever home. I made a donation and felt good about the way things ended.

Grand Opening: creationFrenchgirl

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

That's right, we have a new designer at My Life and Scrap. Her name is Aline and designs under the name creationFrenchgirl. This week will be her Grand Opening Blitz and she'll be selling her designs at 65% off!!! What an amazing deal. You'll find everything from wild and crazy overlays to game pieces to flowers (and most are available for Commercial Use as well). Here are just a FEW of my favorites:

Thanks for looking and happy scrapping.

Movie Review: Alvin and The Chipmunks

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

This movie was SO super cute and fun. I laughed the entire time both at the movie and the memories it brought back from my childhood. This one is good for ALL ages both young and old. I mean really, how can you resist singing chipmunks? So the movie is about these 3 little guys and how they find their way into Dave Seville's life and eventually his heart. Staring Jason Lee as Dave- now that is incredible talent to be able to interact with something that isn't there. Fun and heart warming- 2 thumbs up.

Anyone?

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

I wonder if this reminds anyone of their dog...

Movie Review: Seven Pounds

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Oh my gosh, this was SUCH a sad movie. It kept Leonard and I both guessing until the very end. And let me just say that watching a movie with a twist is never fun with Leonard because he always knows what the twists are before anyone else even knows there IS a twist. This movie was different though.
Will Smith is the lead, he plays an IRS agent who wants to help people, give them breaks or something of that nature. In the end he gives the ultimate break to seven different people and leaves those of us on this side of the glass a blubbering mess of sniffles and tears. If you don't want to cry do NOT watch this movie. I don't care what the critics say- I give it 2 thumbs up!

Monday's Layouts

cfalbro@gmail.com (Carolyn) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Yayyy another Monday! I'm becoming a fan of Mondays because I get most of them off. Oh AND I get to show off my latest scrapbook pages. And here they are... Oh wait... I forgot... I'm ALL CAUGHT UP!!! So for today I only have one page to show you- the only page I scrapped ALL week LOL. And I have to tell you... I think this is now officially my favorite page to date. I LOVE it : )

In The Window
featuring
Sunny by Malou Design
and
Love Eternal Alpha by Designs by Laura
full credits can be seen HERE