Big Rock Creek "Dog Day Afternoon"

Throw Back Thursday!!  This week it's Big Rock Creek with our fur babies.  Toto and Dippy get so excited when we all hop in the car. Like they know it is a trip that will be further than the drive thru dairy.  Their smiles do show how excited they are. 

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For this 12x12 double page layout I was so excited to use the rock  themed paper I had gotten from Tuesday Morning a few years ago. 

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The papers used to back the pictures came from my stash and I punched the small matching flowers from the paper that was left over after backing the pictures.  I centered the tiny blue flowers of the paper in the window of punch to get the variegated flowers. 

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The pine greenery is cut with the Tim Holtz Christmas greenery dies, also from left over paper scraps.

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The phrase stickers are from a Tim Holtz phrase pad small talk. 

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I was excited to use project Life cards from the Rain collection for my journaling and title cards.  

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To make the picture of me become the focal point I matted it with both papers making it stand out from the page and the layout.  (There are not many pictures of just me in our books unless I took a Selfie).  

The page style for the left page shown above, I call one+two punch.  It makes a great left side page for 3 portrait style photos.  This style can easily be reversed for a right side page as well.  Any one of the three pictures can be chosen as the focal point of the layout.  

The page style for the right page shown here, I call the 4by4x6 pinwheel Using 2 4x6 portrait and 2 4x6 landscape photos to form a pinwheel formation.  Each photo is matted to accent the photo then matted onto blue cardstock then onto the rock paper...   Photos will need a little cropping for it to fit just right with the matting. 

I added the title Big Rock Creek with alpha stickers from my stash to a project life card from the Rain Collection and also journaling on a matching project life card to finish this layout...   

This was a great day for the creek and they both loved it and enjoyed in the way that they love best.  

I hope you enjoyed these pages and if you would like to see more please subscribe...   Im new to this blogging thing but I am excited and I have big plans to share lots of great scrapbooking and celebration Ideas right here on this blog...   Im working on getting my videos to not be upside down so I can post the too...   So watch for those coming soon too...   Thank you for stopping by!!!  

Enjoy!!!

julie

Ceating a life that i love, so glad you are in it!!

Special~
Tip of the day!!!

Choosing your focal point!!!  

When you are looking at the photos you are planning to use is there one just stands out.  It may be the one that tells the whole story.  It may be the one that is the most vibrant and clear.  It just may be your favorite and you don't know why...   By making this photo special and having it stand out you will be able to make sure that anyone looking at your layout sees it as the focal point...   

How do you make it stand out?

Matting the photo that is to stand out is the easiest way to make it stand out from the rest...   Having arrows point to it...  Framing it...  Embellishments around it all will get your point across...  Look here this is the most important picture...   Have the focal point in color and other photos black and white or the opposite have it black and white and the others color...  Make the focal point photo Larger than the other photos...   Have the main photo stand alone from the other photos...   

All of these when used properly will make your photo stand out...  It does take practice and some of these ideas will work better with certain photos and layouts then others...   

I will be explaining my focal point or main photo in my future posts to give you an idea how I choose my main photo and how I chose to make it stand out from the others...

Celebrate the National Days this week? What are they?

Hi everyone!!!   Here is a list of some silly things to celebrate this week along with the rest of the nation...  The National Days!!

Tuesday Oct 4th- National Taco Day, National Golf lovers Day, National Vodka Day
Wednesday Oct 5th- National do something nice day, National walk to school day, Apple Betty day,             National Pumpkin Seed Day
Thursday Oct 6th- National Mad Hatter Day, National German-American Day, National Noodle Day
Friday Oct 7th- National LED light day, National Frappe Day, National Manufacturing Day
Saturday Oct 8th- National costume swap day, National Pierogi day, National touch tag day, National           Motorcycle ride day, National Fluffernutter day
Sunday Oct 9th-National Chess Day, National Clergy Appreciation Day, National Pro Life cupcake               day, National Moldy Cheese Day, National Leif Erickson Day

Some of these days are given the Date for their celebration some are celebrated on a specific calender spot (ex: 2nd Sunday in October)   these are the dates for this week in October...

Also Celebrated this week!!!
No Salt Week – October 3-10, 2016
Mental Illness Awareness Week – October 2-8, 2016
Mystery Series Week – October 2-8, 2016 (First Full Week of October)
National Carry a Tune Week – 2-8, 2016
International Post Card Week – October 2-8, 2016 (First Full Week)
National Midwifery Week – October 2-8, 2016 (Sunday to Saturday During the First Full Week)
National Chili Week – First Week of October
National Chimney Safety Week – October 2-8, 2016 (Week before Fire Prevention Week)
National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend – October 8-9, 2016
Customer Service Week – October 3-7, 2016
Kid’s Goal Setting Week – October 3-7, 2016
National Heimlich Heroes Week – October 3-7, 2016 (First Full Monday through Friday Week)
Spinning & Weaving Week – October 3-9, 2016 (First Full Week, Monday through Sunday)
National Healthcare Food Service Workers Week – October 3-9, 2016
Financial Planning Week – October 3-9, 2016 (First Mon-Sun Week in October)
World Space Week – October 4-10
World Dairy Expo – October 4-8, 2016 (First Tuesday – Sunday)

For more info on these days go to the National Calendar Page...  http://www.nationaldaycalendar.com

I love to celebrate these fun days and many of these days call on us to remember our friends and others that are in a special occupation or situation...  Sometimes they just help me decide whats for dinner...  Or what new DIY project I should try...

 I hope you enjoy this information and find it fun and maybe even helpful...  If you would like to be up to date on Celebration Dates and Ideas please subscribe to my blog and share it too...  The Updates will post on Friday so you have an idea of what is coming up...   I also post almost daily on my instagram how we are celebrating here at TnJRanch...  @dearjuliejulie

Its Tuesday and it is National Taco Day!!!   Celebrate with and style taco you like...   We had these amazing garlicy shrimp tacos Sunday night... Oh yum...  added just a lil Garlic Garlic seasoning, and Chipolte seasoning that I got from my Tastefully Simple gal Lee and it flaved them up to perfection...   I spread a lil ranchero salsa sauce on the shell and added finely chopped onions, tomatoes from the garden, and spring mix salad mixture...  To top it off I put 7 lil shrimp on each taco...  Yes there was a shrimp in every bite...   What is your favorite kind of taco???   Will you be having tacos tonight?  After all it is Tuesday!!!   Happy National Taco Day!!!

October 2nd Happy Name Your Car Day!!!

Today is name your car day...   Kind of silly, Yes?  Well I know that all my cars were shes...   Did they all have a name?  Nope...  But the car I currently drive is our family car and yes she has a name...  Her name is Pearl...  She is beautiful and shiny and sparkly...  Tom and I named her when he first brought her to meet me...  I think she really likes her name...  See she is smiling!!!   Find something to celebrate everyday...  and today if there is nothing else, name your car!!!  Enjoy!!!  Here is a picture of our Pearl...  See that smile!!!  Enjoy!!

Just as a little note my last car was the "green machine"   It was a she car...   Convertible Sebring...  Oh there were some great rides in that car...   Does your car have a name?  If not today is the day to give it a name!!!  

Make It Monday Introducing Izybelle

Here it is Make it Monday and I would like to introduce Izybelle and her first appearance in our family album...                                                    

 The papers used are from Crate Paper Hello Love collection which was a hot buy!!!   The 8X8 pink grid paper came from my stash as did the various flowers and tags...   I cut the yellow flower in half and used half on top and half on bottom of the layout to bring out the yellow in the Izybelle bunting..   The bunting banners have letters on one side and just the color on the other side making them very versatile, were also from my stash and are strung together with pink and yellow embroidery floss and adhered with Zots on just 4 of the banners to give it a little movement...  As a final touch I added bling dots that I purchased at our local $1.29 store...  I matted the 4X6 picture of Izybelle with a cream colored piece that came from a mat stack that I had in my stash...   I love the softness of this layout and how Izybelle truly is the focus on this page...  

A Graduation Album for my niece  

https://youtu.be/WFTwUwqPlTU
This is the latest scrapbook album i made and it is a gift for my neice...  She graduated today from high school...   I made this album in less than one day using items and paper from my stash...   I used my cinch machine to bind it...

It has pages in the front to include memories from her senior year including a page that is about getting her drivers license...   Most of the album is themed for graduation day...  The flowers used are all punched except the gray pointy ones were from Michael bridal section...  I hope you Enjoy!!!

Its Watcha been wearing Wednesday!!!   This week I was channeling my inner Peg Bundy with the Ruby Ribbon cheetah cami in full support...  I added the Ruby Ribbon Ballet Wrap Top in Peony and tied it in the front as a cardigan...  To bottom it off, I am wearing my favorite, the Ruby Ribbon lace panel leggings...   I am still amazed at these leggings...  I have had them since September and I wash them at least once a week and they still look just like the brand new ones hanging on my rack...  No color change...  No pilling...  I love the thicker material and the way they hide everything...  The lace inset down the side is very flattering and on trend... I can wear these leggings tucked in my boots or with a strappy sandal or like today with my close toed short heels...  Accessories today I added a long necklace from paparazzi and my cheetah flower hair clip that was a valentine gift from a special friend...  This is a great and fun look for spring...

This week I also have been wearing my tennis shoes given to me for Christmas by Mike, my brothers caregiver...   They are Curves brand from Avon...   How did he know that I would be joining Curves this year lol...  I was excited to have these to just slip in my bag and wear only at Curves...   They are cute and comfortable and probably get me a better work out hehehehe...   My Ruby Ribbon cami's have been working out really well for my workout...   I feel supported and confident and stylish too...   My leggings with the Intomi technology and skinny band do not move while I am working out...   These leggings are a workout game changer for me...  So I am styled head to toe...  Happy Wednesday almost Thursday!!!  Enjoy this day!! 

If I had my way 

I would be princess for a day

I would put my tiara and necklace on and say

"today is my very own holiday"

I would make the grown ups go away

so I may play princess all day...

Michelle Webster 6 yrs old 2010

I love this poem!!!  Written in 2010 by my then 6 year old grandkiddo Shelly...  She had to write a story using all her spelling words, and this is what she came up with...   What girl wouldn't love to be princess for a day...   I know I would!!!   I love the line, I would make all the grown ups go away so I may play princess all day...  Here I am at 53 and there are days I would love to make all the grown ups and the grown up responsibilities just go away...   There are days that I do just that...   

Its kind of funny that when I think of being a princess my first thought is being outside with the birds and wild animals happily all around...   To be able to just be, with no particular chore that has brought me outside, and to be able to enjoy the sunshine, birds chirping, and wind blowing with not a care is what I think of as a princesses life...   Oh and there would probably be some singing,  and dancing too...  

Then there are the other days where I am Queen...  

   There are things to plan, things to get done, and the life of a queen is not as much fun...  

No time for the birds, and no time to sing,  just keeping up with all that's happening...

Dishes to do,  laundry must get done, no time to waste or to bask in the sun... 

Bills must be paid, mail must be sent, no not today that moneys been spent...

The life of a queen is full of decisions... and filling the home with needed provisions...

day in and day out, the castle she runs... 

Thank goodness princess charming knows how to have fun...

Prince charming reminds me to stop and to breathe,  to enjoy all the beauty that our castle brings

to take moments in time and spend them outside, Do watch the birds and the squirrels go and hide

Prince charming says I was waiting for you, when i was building this castle for two...

So today I am reminded that I don't have to play, because I get to be a princess everyday...  

So for now  I guess what that means every once in a while i will have to be queen... 

  I do live the life of a princess...  Oh and my Father truly is King!!!  

I put Revive the Sunday Drive on my vision board!!!   So...  We have added an outing with the dogs to our Sunday afternoons when we can...   Both Todo and Dorothy can not wait to go for a ride and then wonder with us wherever Tom has decided to take us...     This particular Sunday it was a new place...   The riverbed near our house...   It was a bit windy but a beautiful day to just stroll...  We found some trees with very unusual ways of stretching out their branches...  Their bark was thick and narly...   While we were there a dust devil blew through right next to us...  It sounded like a train was coming as it swirled the leaves, branches and sand...  
     I did find a couple of rusty treasures to add to my collection including a very large bolt and a piece of rebar...  There were no birds of distraction for Dorothy so she stayed right with us...   It is amazing to see Todo try and keep up with her...   Our Sunday Stroll is a great way to wind down the week and get ready for the next one...  All four of us loved the time together...   Great way to revive the Sunday drive!!!  

Baby boy scrapbook album Animoto Video

Babies, Babies everywhere!!!!

Here at the bottom of todays post is the video of the baby boy albums I made this week, and a little story about the why and how I am making 12 baby books so far this year!!!  3 done so far!!

     We have the arrival of new babies being announced all over the place...  We have new great neices and nephews coming...  Friends are having babies...  and Some of my favorite people are becoming grandparents too!!!   And we will be adding grandkiddo #9 to our could be baseball team when Payge delivers sometime around Aug 1st...
At the beginning of the year I had decided that i would make baby albums for all the babies coming this year...  At this time there are 12 on my list...  Yes, 12...  That includes friends and family having babies as well as a couple of grandparents that i will be making brag books for...
     I started with scrapbooks I already had actually purchased many years ago...  Wanting to use up my stash of paper products I choose a color scheme with 3-4 colors...  I went through the craft supplies  and added other products that would compliment the paper...  I went through my drawers of rubber stamps and pulled out all that would be appropriate and put them in a shallow box...  I had purchased a baby's first month calendar that included  stickers for firsts and months 1 through 12...   The calendar also matched the color scheme...  I had bear stickers that said "sweet baby boy" and a sheet of suns and clouds, also a sheet that said Its a boy and had foot prints, bottle, baby pin on it...  I also purchased some puffy baby stickers that had a stork and stars and a baby duck that all matched the theme...  With all the products out and ready I set my cricket cutting machine up and programmed it with baby theme items that I could use as well...
     I made up a layout of what I wanted to fit in the baby book...  Some of the things I had thought to add was a page that had the name, date, height, weight, place, time....  I found that in the calendar and cut it out and used it as the first page...  I added a page for home sweet home, family, sleeping, and a couple of pages that were generic and will hold more pictures...  then I added a page for each month 1 through 12 and two pages for the first birthday the last page just for general photos...  I also found in the  calendar lists of what baby does and will add them to the 1 - 12 month pages...  I also will be including the extra stickers from the calendar as they have all the first time doing things and the months of the year that can be added to the album later...
     So I started with an album for my best friends son who is having a boy!!!  (update born March 8th congrats)   I used an 8X8 binded album that had 24 white pages already included...  I was able to use my sticker sheets and stash paper as well as some other stickers that I only have one or two sets of...  I purchased a primary color puffy sticker set to add to the book...   This book took a while to make but I was okay with that because it is a special book and I could use the page layout ideas for the other 11 books I will be making in the coming weeks, months...  Im sure we will have a few more added to the list too!!
     I am so glad I made the special album first and it has made a great template for the ones to be made after...  I sat down and made 2 books on Monday...   Start to finish and they are great...  They have a few less embellishments, but they are beautiful and they are ready to go to their new homes...  These two books are also the 8X8 binded format that included white pages...   I covered most pages with colored and patterned paper and stamped a few pages too...   The result is adorable...  It is a small album and should be easy for the family to complete and feel good that they have something to show... one of the families this is their 3rd child and well, we know what kind of baby book #3 gets...  beautiful but probably empty...   I hope you enjoy this video...

And here as promised is the link to the whole album!!  enjoy!!  please comment and share ;)
Baby boy scrapbook album Animoto Video

I love my Cabana!!!

I was so excited to see it come back in stock and loved the tan color much better than the blue and white striped cabana that was available before then out of stock for months...   I was able to use a gift card we had received for Christmas to purchase it...  It is classy, eye catching and a definite conversation opener...

Carolyn and I put it up in the living room as practice for an indoor event i was doing in town...   It does take two of us to put it up and if you gently pull and push on the crossbars it does click into place...   We found that putting the curtains in a circle on the floor then lifting up was the best way to put the curtains on...   It was a hit and attracted attention with the mounted hanging mirror, hanging pictures and especially the chair with the frilly black and white pillow inside...   At 5X5 it is spacious and has plenty of room to comfortably change inside, just need to add the coat rack and it will be much like the upscale dressing room experience I was looking for...

My next event was outside...  It was cold, blustery, and raining...  The cabana was a great respite from the elements...  It stayed warm inside...  This time the cabana was protected under my 10X10 easy up...   It was also great to have  the cabana to put the clothes in when it started raining, as well as a place to warm up and still watch the crowd...  At this event I had many try on clothes and a lil ballerina even changed out of her costume in complete privacy...   We were even able to put all the contents of the booth inside the cabana and close it up and leave it there for the two day event...   This event had lots of security so leaving merchandise was an option...

I cant wait to use the cabana as a photo booth at our family reunion in June...  In case we dont have the cool Fischer Tent this year it can be used for resting babies and mommas... Protection for grand babies from the elements, and their cousins at parties and events...    This cabana could even be used as a place for a bride to wait before her grand entrance, as it has zippered openings on two sides... The cabana will make a great central location easy for family members to find when they wander off to other places at the park, or beach...  I can see our radios set up inside and again protected from the sun, wind and other elements...  Even the roadside set ups for bike rides, races and parades, it is after all a 5X5 easy up when you do not used the curtains...  I see lots of potential for our little striped cabana...  Any other ideas of uses for the Cabana?

Wedding Album for Randy and Amber

Wedding Album for Randy and Amber

Happy National Pound Cake Day

Outfit of the day #OOTD

LBD!!!  This little black dress has a secret!!!  Shhhhhhh!!  The shapewear is built in.   Yes, really, there is a shaping slip that comfortably smooths and shapes.  Oh and you just might be able to wear it without a bra.  Available now sizes XS to 3XL.

The kimono shawl is one size fits all!!!  This shawl is a fun, floral addition to your spring and summer wardrobe and it is so versatile.   Wear it long, wear it short, wear it as a scarf even wear it upside down.  It will be a great bathing suit cover up too!  One size fits all you can even safely buy one for your sister, mom or friend!!!  Enjoy these great fashions and more at www.rubyribbon.com/juliefreeman

https://youtu.be/5zNqsHOBUe8

Happy National Anthem day!!!   I have heard this song so many times.  Many times it brings me to tears, especially when reminded just how blessed I am to call the USA my home.  I have heard the song butchered when the singer did not know the words.   I have seen the singer get so emotional that someone else came up and sang with them.  I have seen children sing it and adults.  I have seen it performed by a large choir and a barbershop quartet.  I have heard it sung as the traditional hymn we know, and some have changed the tune.  I have heard it with some very high and long notes.   I have heard it with a very low and long note.  Some of the singers have been famous and for some of the singers that one song may have been there 15 minutes of fame.  I am not sure when or where i heard my favorite, or even who sang it the best.  I just know that this song touches me deep in my soul and I probably cry at every baseball game when "the Land of the Freeeeeeee, And the Home of the Braaaaaaave is sung!!!!  God Bless America!!!  Which is your favorite National Anthem ever sung?

Hello and Happy Peanut Butter day...  I have to ask creamy or crunchy?   at this house it is creamy!!!   and every once in awhile it is just great to have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on white bread...  shhhh or yes just right off the spoon!!!    Find something to celebrate everyday today its peanut butter!!!  Enjoy!!!

Here are some great balloon ideas!!!    http://www.faithtap.com/5647/new-balloon-decor-ideas/?v=1   Remember to Find something to celebrate everyday!!!