Opening Ceremonies

Did you watch, what did you think?   I thought it was amazing.  I loved that it was perfectly British, I loved that they did their own thing that was completely different than what has been done in the past.  I loved that they told stories about who they were and about their past.  I loved that they showcased their iconic figures. 

I found myself snapping pictures of my TV screen wanting to capture the moments as they happened.  Here are some of my favorite parts (please forgive the unedited photos, I haven't had time to crop them)

I loved the section on the Industrial Age

and how they forged the rings

and the way the rings rose up into the air

and the sparkle

and James

with the Queen

I LOVED this part...

the lighting of the torch

so beautiful

and the finale!

Way to go London and way to go Danny Boyle, I thought you did a fantastic job!

Olympic Fever takes over

It happens every two years, the Olympics!  We love watching them, especially the summer games.  I'm beyond excited to watch the opening ceremonies tonight and see all the events.  I just know London will put on an impressive show!  I also hope that Simone will enjoying watching some events, we especially want her to watch the swimming events and I know she'll love all the gymnastics too.  Wouldn't it be awesome to see them live in person!  Since we couldn't be there in person, what better way to share in the fun than Olympic themed decor!

Wednesday Simone and I were playing around with the Cameo cutting out a Nemo fish and I came upon a super cute Union Jack Mini Cooper print and cut.  I decided to print some out thinking I would decorate our guest room for my sister in law who's coming to visit next week.  She has a Mini that looks just like it.  It turned out super cute and it got me thinking about the Olympics so I went searching for other Olympic themed cuts.  I found a few that I really liked and the next thing you know I was a cutting like a mad woman. 

My cuts evolved to this a cute banner for our family room to keep up during the games.

Here's a closer look at the pieces.

I cut this Team USA piece last because I didn't have the right glitter cardstock so I had to run out yesterday to pick some up.  The top Team USA piece is the original cut file.  I traced it and made an offset for the silver glitter paper.  After I did that I did an offset of the silver cut file to make another larger offset for the blue glitter paper.  They layered exactly how I was hoping it would look.  I ran all the pieces through my Xyron 500 Create-A-Sticker so I could stick them down really well.  The back of the glitter paper can be tricky to stick down since its so slick.  I absolutely love this!  This is a prime example of being super happy I didn't toss that Xyron ages ago, its been sitting collecting dust for years not getting any use!

Next is the Olympic Torch.  I cut the handle from bronze POW glitter paper and the flames from regular cardstock.  I needed to stick the handle to something else because the POW paper is so thin so I assembled the torch pieces as they would look when it was finished, traced around the edge and created an offset.  I then cut that file out of plain white cardstock and stuck the pieces down to it.  It helps give it more rigidity for hanging as well.

The Union Jack Mini Cooper was the only print and cut.  This one was super easy but so cute!

The Heart was a bit of a pain.  I'm still learning the Cameo so I believe my issues with this one were just not having enough experience with the machine.  It took a few tries to get it right and I had to piece it together more than I was hoping to have.  One thing I thought about after I had finished was I should have just colored in the pieces and turned it into a print and cut and it would have been much easier.  It looks great finished so I guess that's all that matters.

This London Games Logo was a challenge as well.  I had to separate all the elements to cut them in the right colors and when I was finished and started to assemble the pieces I knew there was no way I could hang it from a banner, it was just too delicate.  I had to have a base of some sort so like the torch I assembled the cuts the way they would look finished, traced around it and made an offset.  I also ran the pieces through the Xyron to make sure all the small bits were stuck down.  I did this one first so by the time I got to the Torch, I had my system down.

Here are a few more shots of it hanging.  Simone made that super cute Olympic Torch during craft time at our gym, I thought it was the cutest thing and goes nicely with my banner.

Let's hope the good ole USA brings home lots of Gold, we'll be rooting all of the athletes on from our own little Olympic Village!

Enjoy the games!

Project Life - Week 29

Well it appears my mojo came back, and by mojo I mean I didn't feel like I had to do anything over.  So I consider that a huge success!

Here's a look at the whole spread

and the left side up close

I've been wanting to do a Silhouette cut with the POW Glitter Paper for awhile and finally did one.  It cuts beautifully with no loose glitter everywhere!  It's a bit hard to see in the photo but it sparkles so nicely.

I just love the little tag that Kelly sent with her stamps, it was begging to be used so it happened.

Simone loves to lay on the hot concrete after swimming, it warms her right up. 

The photo prompt for the 16th was a sign, it really was a good sign.  The geotag was done digitally with the .png file Kelly sent with the stamps, I clipped a paper to it and added a hefty drop shadow.

My birchbox came this past week and I made a yummy peach crisp for dessert!

Simone took swim lessons this past week and did really well!

A cold front came through so it made for a chilly play date.  Simone's game was pretty cute though.

Here's the right side

I wanted to add a full size photo and this one totally worked.  Journaling is done right on the photo before printing. 

A few random shots from Thursday.

A trip to the movies for us girls and a screen grab of the coolest Swackett graphic I've seen yet.  I just matched the two up in photoshop and they fit together perfectly.  The fact that it was Star Trek just makes me smile.  We were totally Trekkie's in my house growing up.

I had to include this Instagram shot, not so much for the photo but more so for my caption. People really need to chill out! 

My Glam Bag came as well.  The glitter frame is actually a 12 x 12 frame I just shrunk it down and clipped some glitter paper to it and laid my photo on top.

We were without sun most of the week so it was nice to see it come back.

The BBQ I already spoke of on Monday.  A cute shot of the girls from their fashion show.

I'm so happy this week came together without so much drama.  It's good to feel good about it again!

Weekend Recap

What a weekend! Summer is here full swing and blazing hot.  Saturday we had some friends over for a BBQ, their kids go to school with Simone so it was an awesome time to hang out and let the kids play, 6 total, it was like kid soup in the pool!  We adults hung out had some drinks ate some yummy appetizers and had an awesome BBQ dinner. 

I made this recipe for the first time, come to find out it was one of our guests family favorite.  It's called Cowboy Caviar and it was delicious.  Here's the recipe if you want to try it too.  Super yummy and great for a hot summer day.

As you can see the weather was quite warm, the adults stayed in the shade and let the kids play in the pool.

After everyone left Larry and I enjoyed the super warm evening, it was still 91° at 9pm.

Before we went to bed I left out some cinnamon rolls to rise, they sure loved the nice warm air and more than doubled in size overnight!

My in-laws came over in the afternoon and brought all kinds of yummy food to cook on the smoker, including this beautiful salmon.  It came out awesome as did the pork roast.

We set up a tent over part of the pool to have some shade and spent all day in it.  A few breaks here and there for some sun but boy was it a hot one. The drink of the day was Picinich Punch, my favorite.  The recipe is easy, Malibu rum, pineapple juice and Sierra Mist.  Super refreshing and just enough coconut.

That shot above was my 1,000th Instagram shot, felt it warranted some celebration!

I hope your weekend was awesome too!  We are hitting the gym this morning, its been awhile so wish me luck!

Construction Project - Part 3 | My wheels are spinning freely!

I'm sitting at my desk and my chair is gliding effortlessly over my brand new tiled floor!  Larry's been working the past three days getting the floor done for me and its fantastic!

Here are some photos...

Day 1, he laid the cement board

Day 2, laying the first tile

the first row done

all in and drying

Day 3, grouting

Today, all dried and ready for me to roll around on.

It still needs one more polish that he is waiting to do as we speak and then he has to stretch the carpet back to position and tack it down.  I thought about putting in a transition but I think we'll see how this works for awhile and if I need one later we'll add one.

The curtains are next and will be tackled next month when my mom comes to visit!

For now though I'm going to enjoy my smooth and slick floor!

Project Life - Week 28

Wow, what a hard week for me this week.  I didn't like anything I did and found myself re-doing a few slots because I hated it so much.  I've never struggled so much with this project, I guess I just lost my mojo this week. 

Here's a look at the whole spread

and the left side

This is the 4th title card I made, the others were crap and had to be discarded.  It ended up being super simple, had nothing to do with the other slots and I love it.  I'm now officially pinwheel obsessed, you've been warned!

A slot for our adventures last Sunday.  I need to make a pull out to add some journaling, I never feel like I write enough and I know looking back later I'll be like now why did we do this?  I think I'll make a little pull our for behind one of the photos.

I loved this photo from Tahoe and opted not to use the Instagram version because I wanted it to fill the whole slot.  I replicated what I did on the Instargram upload and added the digital version of Kelly Purkey's geotag stamp.  I love this and know I'll use it over an over again. The other slot is a new favorite photo. Simone won the pink dolphin at the arcade in Tahoe. When we got home Monday we got right in the pool and this shot was a very happy accident. The light and sparkle is totally natural and not added by me. I love that I can see her swimming under the water like a mermaid.



Another Kelly Purkey digital element that came with the stamp and another card that was done three times and discarded until I made this one.  I had used the stamp as it was but it wasn't coming out right. I wanted it bigger so I used the digital version.  I love how it turned out in the end.  The other slot was a shot from my Costco run the same day.

I kind of felt like a total stalker getting up at 6am to buy stamps, so I had to include that little story. 

Simone and me at the Little Mermaid show.  I wish the photos weren't so grainy but I love them anyway.

A look at the right side

Simone turned a little hat box into a drum and she's still playing with it.  Larry thought I had made it for her but nope she did it all on her own.  Love that about her, super creative!

My Studio Calico kits, so much this month, way too much I think!

It was so hot last week, ugh!  We also switched carriers as you know and I wanted to use a piece of their literature but cut it wrong so I had to improvise.  I got the logo online and decided to do a speed test and grab a screen capture, having fast Internet again is so nice!

Big Brother started, it seems to be starting off slow for me this year, I hope it gets a bit better.  The twists this year are very interesting for sure.  I ordered some stamps from Cocoa Daisy for the first time, I loved their backing cards and slipped one in.

Dinner out and an awesome fortune!

A slot about the Pirate Party.

So many struggles this week, I don't know if I was rushing or just trying to do too much.  Either way I'm glad its done, lets hope next week is a bit better for me!