Last Post for 2007!

Can you believe 2007 is over! CRAZY! Kevin took the kids to a movie. I got to stay home and SCRAP while the baby is sleeping! YAY! I LOVE having a quiet house to myself! Is that terrible? Hee, hee!

Here are a few projects using products from Adornit by Carolee's Creations. I loved this snow paper so much, I dug out a few old photos just so I could use it! :)

This is my nine year old as a youngster (look how short and cute she is!) getting a snowman-building lesson from her dad. I love these pictures because Kevin was totally late for work (that's why he's not wearing a coat) but he took the time to show Jensyn how to roll and stack those snowballs. She was soooo proud! :)
I was flipping through our older scrapbooks and found this photo of Owen just stuck in one of the page protectors. At the time I would've NEVER put only one photo on a page and so I was at a loss of how to scrap this cute picture of Owen's baby blues. It was fun to find it, scrap it, and fill in that "hole" in our book.
Every fall Kevin helps the kids scoop out their pumpkins. I finish them off by carving the faces and roasting the seeds. It's always the same, and so I guess it's a tradition. :) Another thing we always do is leave a bag of "goodies" on the counter for the kids to find on Halloween morning.

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Last, but not least I thought I would leave you with a few projects I created using the January Crop Addict Kit. Love that Webster's Pages paper. So soft and pretty!

Camryn is a ray of sunshine in our family. I adore this photo of her, because she is always this thrilled and happy about everything she's discovering right now in her young life. You'll definitely be seeing this photo scrapped again. LOVE it! :)

Happy New Year! See you in 2008!

WooHOOOO!

I really do hate to "toot" about things, but I had to let you know how excited I am that I was chosen as a designer at NoelMignon.com. Ever since I came across her site and her kits I've been hoping for the chance to design for her. Well, I tried out and MADE IT!!! I can't believe it! Not only does Noel put together BEAUTIFUL kits! But she has a very inspiring layout blog and challenge blog as well. You can link to these from her home page by clicking on the link at right. ------>



Before becoming a designer for Noel I frequently played along on her challenge blog and actually won PSE! I KNOW!!!! You gotta check her out! In the coming months, not only is she offering fabulous prizes for the challenges, but the winner will also be the Guest Design Team Member for the upcoming month. I hope you'll come over and PLAY! :)

So how was your Christmas? Mine was absolutely FABULOUS. So relaxed and unrushed. We didn't do anything different, so I'm not sure what exactly made it that way, but it was just so nice to enjoy the day and spending time with our loved ones.

The day after Christmas we had a call from a realtor who wanted to bring their client through our home to see it. (It's up for sale.) We spent the day running around like crazy people getting all the Christmas "junque" put away. That night I started to feel sick. The next few days I battled a tummy bug. YUCK! I hate being sick! Today I'm finally feeling back to "normal". AND the realtor will be bringing the same people back through our house sometime next week. I guess we'll see. I'm not in any rush to move twice. But, that usually goes with the territory of building a home, right?

I wish I had more interesting things to post about, but basically we've been hanging out with the kids and trying to keep the house clean. LOL!

Until next time I'll leave you with a few more cards with the Piggy Tales stuff I received from Crop Addict.

Talk to you in a few!
XOXOXO, Jana

Piggy Tales Challenge

In January Crop Addict is hosting a challenge by Piggy Tales. Be sure to stop by and check out the amazing sketch by the oh-so-talented Tessa Ann Watte!

Here's some projects using the sketch by Tessa (top one) and the Ba, Ba Black Sheep collection by Piggy Tales.

Thanks for stopping by!
Jana

My mom is always concocting fun things for the grandkids (and the adults!) to do at holiday dinners. At Thanksgiving she brought these colored bells. She made charts with Christmas carols on them so we could do some bellringing. She's so cute! After the kids had their turn, the adults spent another 45 minutes performing our own "concert". It was so much fun! I can't wait until Christmas dinner in a few days so I can play with them again! LOL! Just playing around with a circle layout. Do you like my felt ladybugs I bought at Michael's Dollar Section (or was it the Dollar Tree?) a million years ago?! :)
Getting a headstart on a Valentine Card! Thanks for looking!

January Sweet Pea Scraps Projects

Christmas is coming fast whether I want it to or not! It's always at this point that I'm pretty sure I'm ready for it, but then at the same time I'm a little panicky that I am forgetting something. Every year I vow that I'm going to have everything done before Thanksgiving, but . . . that year is yet to happen. There's always 2008, right? :)

We've been so busy with building decisions, that we literally didn't start shopping for Christmas until a week ago. Amazingly, my get-it-done husband ran his little legs off and it's ALL done. One more present left that I'm picking up tonight, and then that's it! Yay! I'm ready to just relax and enjoy the parties and festivities. I must admit I've been slow to get in the Christmas spirit. So I'm ready to do that, too! I think part of it was fighting with the lights on my Christmas tree for almost 6 days. But I've conquered them and I can stop cussing in my mind at that darn tree. LOL! It's much easier to be Christmas-sy with glittering lights surrounding you, don'tcha think? :)

My kids received letters from Santa in the mail this week. Owen was so funny! He had that twinkle in his eye and ran around the house yelling "It's Santa! It's Santa!" just like Buddy in the movie Elf when he finds out Santa is coming to the department store. Owen, you're so funny, Bud! I love you to pieces!
Jensyn "knows" about Santa, but still very much believes in magic. She asked me, "Was this you, Mom?" I could honestly say that "No, Jensyn, it wasn't me." Can you tell she was a little skeptical. She looked at me and said, "Mom, I'm watching you!" LOL!
Along with the letter the kids received an official embossed gold seal that they were on the "Nice List." They LOVED that. Maryn proudly held it up for a picture. A few minutes later, she came to me privately very concerned that she really didn't deserve to be on the nice list and that there had been a mistake. If you know Maryn, you know that she is quite spicey and there is a legitimate backing to her worry. :) I assured her that Santa had been noticing the way she helps take care of her little sister and that she needed to be extra good until the big day. ;) Maryn, I love you! You'll be just fine.
Sooooo . . . Have you seen the Sneak Peek of the January Sweet Pea Scraps kit? You gotta go take a look! (Click on the link at right.) It's full of so many fun, playful & colorful goodies you're gonna want to get your hands on one!

Here are the projects I've created with the kit so far.

Yep! My parents really are the BEST EVAH! And I loved doing a layout about it! :)

Kevin brought Camryn this little Hello, Kitty rabbit (sorry fans, don't know her name) from a business trip. Cam's been hauling it around the house ever since.
I LOVE these pictures of Maryn playing in the snow. Doesn't it take you right back to being a kid?!
Finally, the perfect kit to scrap Maryns' Hello Kitty Birthday Party pictures. I added the alpha and the pink flowers to complete the cartoon "lawn" look.

I hope to check in again before Christmas. But, . . . just in case the next few days are a little crazy . . . I hope you all have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

xoxox, Jana

Uh . . . Jana? . . . Are you there, Jana? . . .

Yes, I'm here. I am so crazy-busy with holiday stuff! (I'm sure all of you are, too!) We literally didn't start shopping for the holidays until last Thursday. I know. What's up with that?! Well, we are now 3/4 of the way done! Whew! This week I'll be tying up those loose ends and getting our Christmas cards out.

I've been tagged twice by Danielle and Cassie. So here are 7 more facts about me. LOL! Stuff you never knew you didn't really care to know about me! :) If you want to play along, consider yourself tagged and link us in the comment box.

1. I have had the bad habit of biting my nails ever since I was a little kid.

2. I can't sleep unless I am sleeping on my stomach.

3. I really do like the Wiggles. :) Anthony is my favorite and I'm totally bummed that Greg had to stop working for health reasons and that their show is barely on the Disney channel anymore. Seriously. :)

4. I am a very indecisive person. It takes me forever to pick out anything at the store.

5. My most embarrassing moment happened when we first moved to this neighborhood. A cute family a street away asked my daughter over for a playdate. When I opened the car door to let her out, a can of bright royal blue paint (for a decorating project I was doing) fell out of my car and started running down their driveway. The dad was outside washing the windows. I yelled for him, "Help! Help!" as I tried to use my hands to block the paint from going any further. He came running with a roll of paper towels and a hose. I cried the entire time, I was so embarrassed, I never wanted to show my face to them again. Fortunately, the paint washed away. This family is now one of our closest family friends. :)

6. I didn't learn to whistle until I was an adult. And I'm still not very good at it! LOL!

7. My favorite food is mashed potatoes with butter, salt and pepper.

Talk to you later! ;)
Jana

December BackPorch Memories Projects

Here are the projects I did for the December BackPorch Memories Solo Kit! LOOOOOOVE their stamps. Can you tell?! LOL! I think I used them on every project! Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week! :)

RAK Winner and More!

I just want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who posts such sweet things to me here on my blog. Seriously, it makes my day every single time I get a little message! Thanks for all the warm fuzzies! You gals are the best! MMmmmmmmmmWAH! ;)


And the winner of the Adornit Christmas Pattern Book is . . .










bruinbr! WOOHOO!


Email me your address at jana.eubank@gmail.com and I'll get your book sent out to you ASAP! :)


Today I took some pictures of the Cookie Sheet Christmas Countdown Calendars I'm giving my family this year. I think I'm safe posting this here because none of them even know I have a blog! LOL! I was going to give these to them at Thanksgiving, but . . . life took over and I didn't get them all done. Why does life seem to always do that?!


I did it a little different than the ones I've seen. I put the #'s on the actual cookie sheet instead of on the magnets. I knew my kids would want to choose their magnet instead of having to fish through them all to find the specific day. They came together pretty easily thanks to a bunch of charms I ordered from Oriental Trading and bags of buttons from Michael's. The other things I picked up here and there from frugalities.com. For the title I used the Dollar Tree "Thickers" which helped keep the cost down. I'm hoping my siblings' families like them. :)




Here's one last picture for you. Today we went to check on the house and I realized that I haven't posted a picture of the progress for awhile. The framing is coming along nicely. It should be done by the end of the year. (Doesn't that sound funny to say? I mean, I know it's December, but it never sinks in that it's the end of the year, too!) Poor framers . . . working in the snow. They are troopers!

Well, that's it for tonight! Talk to you in a few days! :)

Jana

Christmas with the Adornit Gals & a RAK! :)

Over on the Adornit blog the Design Team is taking turns posting a Christmas project and telling about how we each prepare for Christmas and the traditions we enjoy. Check it out! http://georganahall.typepad.com/

Adornit is offering FREE SHIPPING for any online orders until Dec. 13th. You'll want to check out their adorable chipboard mini books and new acrylic stamps in the NEW PRODUCT section as well as all of their other yummy products!

Alright, so who's ready for a RAK? I have an extra Christmas Pattern Book to give away! This book is full of tons of great Christmas layouts and project ideas by the Adornit designers, including the patterns to make them. Post a comment here and on Sunday I'll draw a winner. :)

Backporch December Challenge from Me!

This month I am hosting one of the challenges at BackPorch Memories. If you'd like to participate, here it is! :)

Jana's DECEMBER "You Could Even Say It Glows" Challenge

Take inspiration from all the sparkly christmas lights and shiny packages popping up around you and create a layout that glows! Bling it, Baby! Rhinestones, metals, glitter, . . . you name it! I want to see where your sugarplum vision takes you!

(You can upload your challenge in the gallery at BackPorch Memories and post the image or link in the coordinating thread on the Message Board by December 31 to be entered in the December Challenge Prize random drawing. The more challenges you complete...the more entries you receive! ) WOOHOO! Who doesn't love a chance at a prize! ;)

Here's a sample from me! I used the Doodlebug Sugar Coated Cardstock, Making Memories Glittery Chipboard letters, and Prima Say It in Crystals. (And if anyone has any tips on how to photograph glittery things better, I'd love to hear them! LOL!)

It's official, I'm a Backporch Memories girl!

I am sooooo excited. In November I was the Guest Designer for Backporch Memories. Well, they asked me to join the Backporch Memories Team and I couldn't be more thrilled!



Here is a sneak peek layout using the upcoming December Solo kit featuring My Mind's Eye Frost papers. The "list" stamp was from their November stamps, and the circle "Family Traditions" stamp is from the December Add-On stamps. Beautiful stuff!



Also, I wanted to pass on that Tami Floyd has a DARLING free project posted on the Backporch Memories website. It is a Christmas Countdown Calendar for the holidays that is absolutely adorable! Check it out on the Backporch Memories homepage or by clicking here.
http://www.backporchmemories.com/Christmas%20Countdown.pdf

I LOVE my Camryn and December Sugardumplin

These aren't the greatest pics, but I had to share them and the story behind them because despite a sad start to our day, my little Camryn is such a trooper!

We woke up to 3 inches of snow on the ground and it was still coming down hard. Naturally the kids woke up before Kevin and I did and had turned on the fireplace to snuggle by and get warm. Kevin and I had NO CLUE that it was on because it's now hidden by the wide bottom of our 10-foot Christmas tree. Well, we went about our morning as usual, bringing 1-year-old Cam down and putting her in her high chair for some breakfast. When everyone was finished we got Camryn out of the high chair and went about the daily business of cleaning up and getting everyone ready.

Next thing we know Camryn starts crying her little eyes out! She had gone up to the fireplace, saw the flame, . . . wanted to check it out and had touched the HOT glass (gas enclosed fireplace) with both of her hands. We immediately put her hands in cool water and did what we could to calm her down. After 20 minutes or so, she wouldn't calm down and big blisters were popping up on the palms of her hands and fingertips. Kevin jumped in the car and took her to InstaCare.

I stayed home with the other kids and tried to calm my oldest daughter down. Jensyn (9) was the one who had turned the fireplace on and was blaming herself for this accident. :( I tried to assure her that it was nobody's fault, just an unfortunate accident, but I know my little tenderheart, Jensyn, will blame herself for this no matter what I tell her. My heart was hurting for both of them.

Fortunately, Camryn will be okay. The burns aren't too severe. She'll just have to have some topical medicine and gauze on them until they heal.

Camryn came home with 2 bright pink mittens and didn't even seem bothered by them for the rest of the day. What a little sweetie she is! I couldn't get very good pictures of her because it was a gray day with the snowstorm and she just wouldn't hold still! Later tonight she held very still to get her wraps changed. And then wanted a cuddle for awhile. But all-in-all she is in great spirit considering what happened. I hope she stays this optimistic about those mitts during the next few weeks. Poor little thing! Gosh! I love that kid! Anyway, just had to share.


For the December Sugardumplin Kit I worked with the Seasonal kit featuring Cosmo Cricket to create the projects below. I hope you'll go take a look at this paper in person. It is GORGEOUS! And photos of it just can't do it justice. I believe the Seasonal kit is already sold out at Sugardumplin, but Clara also has another gorgeous December kit featuring some amazing Daisy D's. So check it out if you get a chance.

Until next time, be safe and be merry!
Jana



My nephew's first Christmas.

Maryn in her Halloween costume (Lucy from Narnia). I found this quote several years ago and have been waiting for a princess-y page to use it on. It says: "A young girl may dream of becoming a princess, but in the eyes of her parents, she already is."