It was a gorgeous day today. Perfect for going to the fair.

Nika and I started off having some raspberry filled scones and elephant ears!

Nika’s favorite barn was the cows this year. Baby cows are always cute!

And we made 2 trips to the bunny barn.

Lot’s of adorable photos and drawings from the 4-H kids.

There was a fun collection on display with some cool vintage Smoky the Bear trinkets and memorabilia.

I always enjoy the grange displays.

Here’s a photo for you quilting fans. I want to learn how to quilt one day.

I thought this quilt was very unique.

This was an incredible entry in the wood (art) category. Lots of detail, my photo doesn’t do it justice.

These cute ladies hosted a free kids make and take table (painted ceramics and design your own frame).

Nika painted a purple cow.

A photo from inside the Western Heritage Museum. Always lots of interesting and fun finds in here.

Today was kids day at the fair, all kids under age 15 receive free admission! Be sure to check out all the specials and discounts here. The Evergreen State Fair is going on until September 7th in Monroe Washington.

Check these out:

• flowerstoflourishes.com
• myscrapdeals.com **Note: I tried to order here twice and had no luck, also tried to contact them and have not heard back. Anyone used them before?
• scrapbookmoja.com
• craftysteals.com
• peachycheap.com
• scrapbooksteals.com – awesome deals, placed an order and it shipped the next day!
• cropchocolate.com

Leave me a comment if you know of any others. My baby better come soon or I might get in trouble for all this online shopping I’m doing, lol. XOXO

ps – Basic Grey fans check out this store for 50%off and more!!

I purchased today’s steal, a Cosmo Cricket Fleuriste collection for $18.36 (plus free shipping) that included the following:

• 12 double sided design papers
• Two die cut papers
• Journaling cards
• 12” x 12” Strip Tease sheet
• Design studio

Also included:

• Jack’s Blackboard Album
• Fleuriste Ribbon: 5 designs, all with beautiful colors and textures. Approx. 1 yd. each.
• Fleuriste Cardstock Stickers: includes 14 cardstock stickers.
• Fleuriste Blackboard Shapes: 45 assorted black chipboard shapes feature flowers, floral frames, and flourishes. Color or cover with die-cuts, for a different look.
• Stickers: Drop Me A Note: 13″ x 6″ sheet, 15 stickers
• Stickers: Fabulous You: 13″ x 6″ sheet, 15 stickers
• Stickers: Girls Galore: 13″ x 6″ sheet, 15 stickers

That’s a whole lot a goodies at 55% off the regular price!! There is also a sister site called babysteals.com with super great buys on cute baby stuff too.

Hope you’re having a great weekend! XOXO

The layout is one I made last year at CKC Seattle in the “2008 Latest & Greatest with Basic Grey” class. It’s not exactly how the instructor taught it as I always like to make my own version of what is taught. I like how it came out. This photo worked on here perfect! The papers and embellishments are from Basic Grey’s Urban Prairie line.

When I pulled out this pre-made layout I had put some stickers on there that I didn’t want to use with this photo. I went out and purchased a bottle of un-du. Un-du is a sticker, tape and label remover. I had heard this stuff works great and it does!! I was able to remove the stickers without damaging them. If you are in need of re-doing a layout that you’ve already stuck down you’ll want to give this a try. I highly recommend it. You can check out all kinds of videos demonstrating the many useful ways this stuff comes in handy. Watch the videos here.

Here’s a few more close-ups of my layout.

It’s hard to see in the photo, the text reads: love (luv) a strong, deep, affection and devotion for another, unconditional and unexplained.

Thanks for stopping by today! XOXO

They are surprisingly hard to mess-up…I love that! For mine I used 24 gauge wire, about 25″ in length. For the eggs I used the small pearl beads from the Stampin Up pretties kit. Here’s how it turned out.

I watched this tutorial to learn how to make it.

I also referred to this blog for some tips too.

Products used

• Shipping tag (purchased from Staples)
• Journaling tag (K & Company)
• Chipboard heart (Heidi Grace)
• Beaded trim (purchased from Ben Franklin)
• Love stickers (Making Memories)
• Antique Distress ink (Ranger)
• Amaretto chalk powder puff (Quick Quotes)
• Adhesive (Kokuyo & Aleene’s)

I sure missed you! Where have I been and why have I been such a bad blogger? Many of you know every summer my nieces come and stay with us. We’ve been busy doing lots of touristy things and having tons of fun. So much fun that I’ve been just too tired at night to get any personal time to blog or craft much.

The girls have gone back home now and I’m resting up and preparing for the arrival of our new baby. I’m due in 2 weeks (August 29th is the official due date). But I hope this little guy is coming early. For those of you who are on Facebook I will be updating on there during my delivery. Feel free to connect to me. I would love to see more of my crafty friends on there (NanaB, Tona)!!

I also post a lot of photos on Facebook too. I have a “Summer Fun” album on there that is public so you can see some of things I’ve been up to the last couple of months. Feel free to check out the pics here. Shown in the photo to the right is me and Nika at Boehms Chocolate factory in Issaquah Washington. One of the many places we took the kids while they were here.

Oh and I almost forgot to share we got a new puppy!! This is Scar, our new Great Dane. We got him end of June. Here’s a photo of him hanging out in Grandma’s garden.

I just wanted to give everyone an update since I’ve been MIA for a while. Now that summer is winding down I’m hoping to have more time to craft and blog. Thank you to all my blog subscribers who have been waiting and wondering when I was going to come back to my blog. I’m here and have missed you.

What have all of you been up to? Would love to hear from you or just leave a comment and say hi. Connect to me on Facebook so you don’t miss any of the baby delivery news. I’ll try and be back as much as I can. XOXO

I hope she likes it. Happy Birthday to all you fellow twins! I decided to take a peek at my horoscope today. I actually used to to be an avid horoscope reader when I was younger. I would get those mini horoscope scrolls from the gas station (my dad called them horrible-scopes). Here’s what Horoscope.com has to say about being born today.

“Celebrate in style on your birthday in preparation for great things to come. As your own personal new year sets in, you will be offered a number of appealing opportunities to choose from. Love, work and travel top the list, and your own problem may be choosing just a few from so many exciting options. Try to remember what is really important to you, and what you value in life above all else. By September, you should have a clear idea of what direction to take, as your life moves forward in a completely different direction than you might have expected. Fall is your transition time, as you make the leap from one reality to the next. Go more slowly then, but do go.”

For my b-day celebrating I’ve got a dim sum lunch planned with my honey and Nika. Then a little crafty shopping. Tonight Vlad’s mom is having a family dinner party for me (home cooked Russian food)…yay!! I hope you have a fabulous day today. Big hugs & kisses!! XOXO

Get the Friday Freebies

• Doodle Alpha
• Doodle Frames
• Doodle Brackets
• Paisley Brushes

Be sure to browse through all The Scrappin Cop’s freebies here. Lots of good stuff. Some adorable animal characters that would be great for kids projects or to print coloring pages. I love this school journal/envelope download. Oh and some nice wood tiles too. That’s just a sampling of all the unique and interesting freebies you’ll find. Hope you have a fun and crafty weekend! XOXO

Here’s the next step of  me painting over my journaling. I still need to add more and finish it. That’s the beauty of a journal. Always a work in progress and I can flip around and come back to when ever.

This is how pages 2 and 3 started.

This is page 3 after the fun scavenger hunt. This page still needs some doodling before it’s complete.

I’ll share more of my pages as I go along. This is such a great way to try out new techniques, play and just be free to create.

You can access all of Sarah’s Soul Journaling prompts here. She really makes getting started so easy and fun. If you are interested in art journaling be sure to join the Soul Journaling Yahoo group too. Thanks for stopping by today! XOXO