My new weight loss blog!

Good Saturday afternoon all! I wanted to come over here to let you all know that I've started a new blog (non-scrappy)... Getting To Know The Real Nicole...my journey to lose 130 pounds and getting to know the real me. Stop on over and say hello if you'd like! This has turned into my life's passion right now, so I'm more apt to update over there a LOT more than over here, lol!

Enjoy your weekend!

Getting caught up...

...is not going to happen, lol. It's been a while since I posted (it's summer and it's been a busy one!) but I've missed blogging so here's a bit of this and that of what I've been up to and perhaps several useless and random thoughts. :)

• I've read Elizabeth Edwards's memoir, Resilience (I REALLY enjoyed it.).
  
  
• After my first design team term with Citrus Tree Studio was up in July, I decided not to continue on with the second term. I think I just need to take a scrap break.
  
  
• I've been anxiously awaiting all the green tomatoes on my Topsy Turvy to turn red. I've got a lot on there but sheesh, where were all the warm, sunny days this summer that the tomatoes love? Oh well, at least it hasn't been so humid!
  
  
• I'm seriously IN LOVE with Febreze vacuum bags. Oh my stars, they make my house smell soooooo clean! Have you tried them? I can't find a link to them for some reason but I have a Hoover and get mine at Walmart.
  
  
• I'm going to make this Fresh Pea Salad soon! Doesn't it look refreshing? I'm going to dial down the fat though...reduced fat cheese (Cabot makes a 75% reduced fat cheddar that is delicious!) and maybe non-fat yogurt or reduced-fat sour cream instead of the mayo. Oh and probably no bacon. :)
  
  
• I turned 34 on August 25th. I believe it was my BEST birthday on record, lol! Will share why in a soon-to-come post! :)
  
  
• I've recently installed the Weather Station Google Gadget on my home page and being a weather nerd, I LOVE it! Real-time radar and forecast! LOL!
  
  
• I read 3/4 of Melissa Gilbert's (she played Laura on Little House on the Prairie for those of you who have been living in a box, lol) memoir, Prairie Tale. I returned it to the library not fully read. The first half was interesting and the rest of it...well, wasn't. I got really sick of the Hollywood name-dropping and...I was just over the book, lol. I kind of wish I wouldn't of read what I did read. It tarnished my "Half-Pint" vision. :)
  
  
• I've discovered (by help of Google!) that Tea Tree Oil is very good at stopping the itch and help heal chigger bites. YUCK.
  
  
• Umm...has anyone watched Toddlers and Tiaras on TLC? OH.MY.WORD.
  
  
• I found this recipe for homemade taco seasoning, made it and tried it with shredded chicken for our taco night. I love that I can control the sodium (I cut it down to a 1/4 of the amount). It was really good!
  
  
• I've been living on our front porch this summer and loving it! I'll take whatever book I'm reading and sit out there in the sun, take my laptop out, make my grocery list, talk with my neighbor lady and sometimes just soak up the rays. I love that this summer wasn't a hot, humid one for the most part!
  
  
• I think I'm going to spend some birthday money and buy these Rollerblades!
  
  
• My sister, her boys and I went to the Cincinnati Museum to see the Dinosaurs Unearthed exhibit as well as the Omnimax film, Dinosaurs Alive. It was really an amazing exhibit and the boys kept saying how awesome it was! ;)
  
  
• I'm sad that The Next Food Network Star is already over! I really liked watching it. Melissa's new show, $10 Dinners, seems okay but I just can't get into it, lol. I'm more into watching Ellie Krieger's Healthy Appetite these days.
  
  
• I started Aquatic Therapy and it's kick started a new healthy way of eating, exercise and an overall different attitude about myself over the last 7 weeks! More to come on that soon!
  
  
• DH and I bought a new kitchen island light (it was on clearance, so I can't find an image except that one on Ebay, lol) at Lowe's and had it hung. Fun!
  
  
• I am not looking forward to fall at all. I think this is the first summer in the last 10-15 years or so that I have thoroughly enjoyed 100%. I do NOT want it to end. The other day, hubby and I went for a walk and there was a house that was all decked out in fall decor already. It seriously made me sad, lol. I was like...uh, it's still August, people! I guess I'll keep my fingers crossed for a warmer-than-usual fall. ;)
  
  Okay, lots more to come soon! :) Enjoy your day and make the most of it!
  

Still here...

Who's ready for a new post? Coming soon! Neener, neener! LOL! :)

Win a Tamron lens!

Oooooh, this would be a fun one to win, don't you think? You can check out all the details here! Good luck!

*Yum* Cupcakes!

Please try not to lick the screen. Please. I'm out of lens wipes.

These were so much fun to make and I loved how colorful and of course how delicious they were! Thanks to Recipe Girl for the inspiration!

Look at how blue that batter is! Smurfville city, don't ya think? ;) I loved how the red, white and blue batter looked through the cupcake liner.



Festive and rich - icing in red, white and blue and my husband couldn't keep his fingers out of it! I think he shed a tear when I dumped the leftover icing down the drain, lol!







I used a star tip to pipe the icing on. I piped and piped...



...and piped and piped, 56 cupcakes! Yes. 56.





Have no fear... they were gobbled up! My nieces, nephews and in-laws really enjoyed them and I had so much fun making something festive for the day! I think I'll carry this "I want to bake something red, white and blue" tradition on each July 4th!

Have a great night! :)

Citrus Tree Studio: July "Days of Summer" Kit *REVEAL*!

Happy Monday all! Looks like a beautiful day here today! I hope it's also lovely where you are!

Yesterday was the 5th which means *reveal day* for Citrus Tree Studio's July "Days of Summer" kit! This is truly my favorite kit thus far! It's right up my alley with the bright, vivid colors, the summer/beach/pool/vacation theme is always a FAVORITE of mine and this kit is bursting at the seams!

I was also up for this month's Product Spotlight which features Kaiser Craft's wood albums. I chose the Fancy Flower one and had a super fun time creating it while using July's "Days of Summer" kit (will edit this post when I have a link)!

{Notes}
1. All projects were created with Citrus Tree Studio July's "Days of Summer" kit with stash item exceptions noted below each project.
2. All photos taken with my underwater digital camera (in case anyone is wondering!)







Stash items: Bazzill white cardstock, American Crafts green button

Stash items: Jenni Bowlin patterned paper & Bazzill white cardstock


Stash items: Bazzill white cardstock

For this card, I used my American Crafts Slick Writers to "dot" the foam Thickers to help them stand out against the white...

Stash items: Scenic Route Grid patterned paper, Bazzill white cardstock


Stash items: Scenic Route Grid patterned paper, Bazzill white cardstock, American Crafts Thickers

What do you guys think? Isn't it a great kit?

Thanks for looking! Have a super Monday! :)

Red, White & Blue Treats...

I've been seeing so many fun July 4th (red, white and blue-themed, of course) treats on some of my favorite food blogs and I'm bound and determined to make at least one of these recipes (you can find the recipe links below each photo) for Saturday!

At first, I saw these "Happy Meals" around Father's Day and flipped out! Come on! The "hamburgers" are cupcakes, brownies and icing and the fries are made from sugar cookie dough! Oh dear! I just love them and think they'd be fun for this coming weekend!




{Photos/Recipe}: Bakerella

Then I saw these Red, White & Blue Finger Jello treats and for heaven's sake, I LOVE all the layers! Don't they look delicious and festive?!


{Photos/Recipe}: Recipe Girl

My eyes soaked these up too! I'm a huge cake/icing lover and these are surely scruptious-looking cupcakes! Love the swirled icing!


{Photos/Recipe}: Recipe Girl

Or maybe these cheesecake bars with raspberries and blueberries?! These look so creamy and rich, don't they?


{Photos/Recipe}: Recipe Girl

Last but not least, these are calling my name also! I just want to pick one up and try it now! Love the star shape!


{Photos/Recipe}: Brown Eyed Baker

Decisions, decisions!

What are you making this July 4th? Anything festive? Link me! I'd love to see!

This and that...

I don't know where you are, but it's HOT and STICKY here and I'm soooo glad for central air! LOL!

I meant to post the Father's Day cards I made ON Father's Day but alas, time got away from me.

I made this one for my father-in-law. Isn't the crossword puzzle paper cute? I was originally inspired by this card and since my father-in-law enjoys his daily crossword puzzles, I wanted to use the idea but when I went through my stash, I didn't have any paper like that. So, I went online and printed this crossword puzzle on cardstock. It worked perfectly!



This was the card I made for my dad. Isn't that little grill hilarious? That's one of those $1 Studio G stamps I picked up at Joann's. Love those little stamps!



With all the different color challenges on various blogs, I was excited to see that my assigned design team challenge was color this month. These are the colors I chose (and the cards I made) and I just love them together! You can join in on my challenge here! We're always looking for newbies!







Can you tell I was in my October Afternoon stash that day, lol? I just LOVE their stuff!

Okay, one more card. I made for this one for my sister-in-law. I had a photo to send to her and thought it'd be a lot more fun to tuck it into a handmade card, right? ;) The majority of the products are from Citrus Tree's June "Zinnia" kit.

You may remember this card? I did the same for the card below by sewing 2 of the die-cut papers together (in the kit!) and used my hole punch down the side. Remember those Lil' Davis ticket alphabet stickers? Holy smokes, those are old! LOL! I've always loved them though! Those were in my stash!



Speaking of Citrus Tree, the design team and board members are all getting geared up for our "Christmas In July" crop - Saturday, July 25 & Sunday, July 26, 2009! Dig out those Christmas photos, papers and supplies! We'd love to have you stop in and participate! Cindy's prizes are OUTRAGEOUS!! You can read all the details here!

And just because I can...a photo of my dog's horribly hard life. Oh my. She's a worker. I don't know how she does it, day in and day out. *Whew*. I should really give her a break. ;)



Alright, off I go to plan my day. Hope you have a wonderful Friday! Nice of you to stop by! :)

A little more Project 365...

Have any of you seen the Disney*Pixar movie, Up yet?



I went with my sister and nephews last weekend and it was really cute, although I'll warn you to bring a tissue (or four), lol. Gosh, my sister and I were shedding some tears! It went over the boys' heads but not ours, lol. It was a cute movie and we had fun. I'd definitely recommend it!

Okay, a few more Project 365 photos to share with you! I'll get caught up eventually, lol.

I finally reorganized all of my acrylic stamps and put them in binders, so I set up a blanket with the pupster and I on the porch one day. I got a little sun and finished my stamp organization!


A little braid in my hair...


Trash day!


I was starting to get behind on backing up my photos, so one day I sat and did it. That's always a relief to get done!


I picked up the book, "The Duggars: 20 and Counting!: Raising One of America's Largest Families--How they Do It" from the libary. It was interesting and I read it in 2 days.


Every year I hang Boston Ferns from our porch - 4 hang from our wrap-around porch and 1 from our back porch.


Violas that I planted. This ceramic planter sits on our table on our front porch. Bright and cheery don't you think?


Off to bed I go! Thanks for stopping! :)

This is a BIG one!

For Pete's sake. That was a long blogcation, lol. So, let's take this slow and add a little at a time. :) I am at least 5 weeks behind on posting my Project 365 photos, but I'll get them up in time. Today, I'm posting a few and will get the rest of them up here soon. I will, I will, I will! ;)

BUT, first of all, today is reveal day @ Citrus Tree Studio and there's LOTS to share! This month Cindy put together TWO wonderful kits (a full and a mini...although it's not very mini!)! "Easy Rider" features the Rebel line from Glitz and "Zinnia" features the Little Yellow Bicycle Zinnia line. Both of these kits are packed full! You can pick them u here!

I created 4 layouts and 4 cards and still have a LOT of product left!


Easy Rider Kit exclusive except for the Jenni Bowlin alphabet/star stickers (available in Citrus Tree's May "County Fair" kit) and American Crafts Thickers


Easy Rider Kit exclusive with the exception of the 7Gypsies "Journey" stamp, Jenni Bowlin alphabet stickers (link above) & additional white cardstock


Zinnia Kit exclusive with the exception of the chipboard owl (thanks to my friend, Beth)and Prima flower


Combination of Easy Rider and Zinnia Kit

For this card, I sewed together 2 of the Zinnia die-cut papers and to finish the edging I used my hole punch to give it a notebook paper feel...

Zinnia Kit exclusive

For this card, I cut the spades from the patterned paper and then hand-formed the flower...

Combination of Easy Rider and Zinnia Kits


Combination of both Easy Rider and Zinnia kits with the exception of the "friends forever" rub-on. I also used the American Crafts Photo Corner packaging (the black/white polka dot cardstock).


Combination of both Easy Rider and Zinnia Kits with the exception of the rub-on
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Okay, here's a few of my Project 365 photos that I'm behind on posting. Excuse my rounded corners and the inconsistency, lol. I'm practicing and went overboard on the plane one, lol!!

My pile of Box Tops that I gave to my mom to take to her school...


I was making eggs one morning and to my surprise, I cracked into a double yolk! Isn't that good luck or something? Did I eat twins? Ha!


While driving home on the interstate, I saw this plane. We have an airport really close.


Hubby and I took 2 of our nephews to our favorite pizza place one day. We had so much fun with them! Notice the ginormous balls of bubble gum in their mouths! LOL!


My sister's birthday cookie. Don't ask why it says what it says. It's a loooong, funny story!


Taco salads/tacos at my parent's for Sunday dinner...


We ordered pizza in one night. Yum! I like a little green pepper on mine. ;)


Hubby's brother came over and worked alllll day on replacing/fixing some plumbing in our basement.


*Whew*! Thanks for stickin' with me! :) I'll be back this weekend to post some more of my photos! Have a good one!