Leelou Blogs

October 14, 2010




It's been awhile and I haven't done much scrapbooking, but finally I finished another layout. This came together really quickly thanks to a sketch from the My Sketch World sketch ebook. The kit is Little Boy Blue from Karen Funk Designs.

October 1, 2010


I lost my adoptive father on September 9 this year. I will post more about him later, but here is my first LO since his death that shows him from a young man to 10 months before he died. He was such a wonderful man and I miss him so much!

August 24, 2010

August 20, 2010

Another Baseball LO

I can't get enough of this kit, naturally because my daughter is a baseball-playing addict! Here's some of her hitting.


August 19, 2010

Super Cutie

Now I am totally partial to my daughter of course, but Miss Mia (my "niece" by friends) is super cute too! Here she is sitting on the bench that we bought for Sammie when she was smaller. So of course when we were cleaning house I immediately thought of Mia and delvered it to her. She loves it and we are so glad.





Made with Backyard Bugs Kit by SusDesigns

August 7, 2010

Cyber Crop This Weekend

Check out A Cherry on Top today for their Summer Crop. I discovered online crops a few years ago and have been hooked sine. Now that I scrap digi more than traditional it's even better. They have lots of fun and games and the challenges are awesome too. Just browse through the gallery and see how many ideas you can get! Everyone is so creative there! Here's one of my layouts for Challenge 1


July 25, 2010

ScrapHD is closing

I received an email from ScrapHD that they are closing! I am very sad to hear this since it is because of ScrapHD that I got into digital scrapbooking! And thanks to them I was able to get onto two design teams. I am hoping that this is a temporary closure and that they will be able to get back online. Go here, courtesy of Scrapbook Update for more details.



Sorry to see you go ScrapHD!

July 10, 2010

Beautiful You

I love this kit and those that know me will know why...it's all purple!

It's the Aurora Kit from WDDesignz on NutHouse-Scraps.com which right now is on sale for a bargain!

And now I've managed 2 layouts with GIMP! Very excited!



July 9, 2010


I finally finished a layout in GIMP. With the help of some forums and such I managed to get it done. I really wanted to make the title with images of the hydrangeas in the font but I just couldn't make it work or figure out why. Either way, I like how it turned out!


Anyway, I just love this kit Susanne made. The colors are so me! Perfect for nature or girls or just something special for you!

Made with SusDesgins Loving Life kit, the font is Flores from dafont.com

June 29, 2010

GIMP Success

Well, just a little bit of success anyway. I finally managed to cut out a shape with a transparent background! I will be posting a tutorial with these steps on www.nuthouse-scraps.com in the help forum, but if you see this and can't wait, check out www.gimptalk.com. They have a ton of tutorials and help topics. They too seem to be geared toward the graphic designer, not the scrapbooker, so my mission continues.

June 28, 2010

GIMP!

So I am trying to learn GIMP, GNU Image Manipulation Program (www.gimp.org). It's a free program, supposedly very similar to Photoshop (PS). I cannot vouch for this because I have never used PS but everything I have read so far says this. Anyway, I decided to try GIMP so I can save the $9.99/month I spend for the online digi program I have been using, plus it will enable me to manipulate photos, papers, elements, etc., more than I can now.

Well, it's safe to say I am GIMP-ing along! I have manged to create a fairly basic layout and add text. YouTube tutorials have gotten me this far. I am trying clipping masks now and getting frustrated. I know there must be a good tutorial to tell me how to do this so all I get is the image without the background...or maybe I need a transparent background...hold that thought, be right back!

OK that didn't work like I thought so I am off to read more tutorials. Be back!

June 2, 2010

AT LAST!!!!!

I am so excited....and I've been having such good luck lately I can't believe it. I am finally after many tries on a design team!!! And it's digital scrapbooking...who would've thought when I dipped my "toes" into the digi world I would get on a digi team first! So the good stuff...it's for SusDesigns. Her designs are adorable! I love everything and I can't wait to play with all her kits! Here is my first LO from my first assignment! I am very nervous, so I hope everyone, especially Susanne, likes it! The kit is Blushing and I just love the colors! I took some great rainbow pics yesterday and immediately thought of this kit...that'll be the next LO with this kit. Thanks for looking...oh and did you see my new blinkie? :)

May 17, 2010

Big Foot!



The journaling says it all!

Credits:
Boys Rock Kit by Isabel Mendez
Scratch It kit by Merkeley Designs
both can be found at www.acherryontop.com

May 12, 2010

Serenity

My Aunt and Uncle's backyard view...isn't it awesome! Every time I visit I take a picture and it's always fabulous. So peaceful and beautiful. Truly serene.



Credits:
Sketch - Creative Scrappers #78
Stones & Leaves from Shawnery Mathis' Sticks and Stones Kit
Acrylic Alpha from Kim Hill/CGessentials available at http://www.cgessentials.com
Flowers from Hot August Nights it created by Marcia Parmeley d/b/a Hot Flash Designs
Green Circle - paper from January Countdown Freebie kit by Amy Teets Designs
Green Stitches - from Simply Stitches kit by Jeanne Marie Scraps
everything else from ScrapHD.com library

The Many Faces of Princess Patience

Here's my "3rd child". She is such a little princess and as these pics show (with fur in many stages or disarray) what a little cuddle bug she is. She acts like such a princess, the title fits like a tee.



Credits:
Sketch - sketches by Tamara
Swirls - In The Name of Romance Doodles kit, Laura Burger
Papers, alpha, twill, brads, flower & journaling from ScrapHD.com library

May 1, 2010

Young Love

I LOVE this picture. No idea who took it. My son texted it to me and I've been dying to scrap it. If this isn't the picture of young love, I don't know what is!

April 17, 2010

My 36th Birthday! I don't remember :(

I found these pictures when I was looking through my mom's camera card for her Greece pictures. I don't remember this at all but it's obviously my birthday (my name IS on the cake)and since it's a Robots cake I know Sammie must have picked it out. Plus her grin is so big...she looks so proud. This was almost 4 years ago and looking at Nick I can't believe how young he looks here and how old he is now. Time sure does fly.


April 4, 2010




Another digi layout of my best friend's girls when they were visiting up here. But we just didn't manage to get together! I miss them so much (like the title says!

April 3, 2010

Digi #2, I'm in so much trouble!




I just adore this pic of my daughter from our trip to Cape Cod last year. It must have been just perfect timing with the sun, hermood, and my camera. Isn't is beautiful behind her too!

I gave digi another try here and still love it! I'm still going to do a paper LO for this pic and the difference will be huge I'm sure. Loving ScrapHD

My first Digi LO totally from Scratch!



So I dared to walk on the dark side! I absolutely love A Cherry on Top and spend quite a bit of time there on a daily basis. So I took a look at the ScrapHD website and thought I'd give the free trial a try. Well, one simple layout with a pre-designed template and I was hooked! I joined right away and proceeded to make 5 more layouts. This is my first from scratch. I really like how it came out. I'm not giving up my paper scrapping - I have too much stuff for that! Plus I love to get may hands on the different embellishments and such. But I have to say, digi is so easy and very fun! Beware if you try.

February 12, 2010

Post Snowmaggedon

Well the snow has finally stopped and the snow removal equipment is in full force! I have to say they are doing a fabulous job. The heavy duty equipment from New York is really helping. I made it home last night and I don't think I have ever been so happy to go home! I am planning to get some scrapbooking done this weekend and my pics from the last two storms are waiting for me at the store. Maybe I'll stop on the way home and treat myself to some snow-related products? Pics to follow!

February 10, 2010

Snowmaggedon 2010


So for my first post I can find nothing more appropriate talk about than the snow. And for any readers who happen by my new blog, and haven't seen the national weather in the last few days, the DC area is getting PUMMELED. Yes, I am "based" in Gettysburg, and even though it seems to many we are really far from DC, we're not. So we get basically the same weather, including ALL THIS SNOW. What that means is snowstorm #1 in December - 2 feet; snowstorm #2 Feb 5 - 2.5 feet & blizzard conditions; snowstorm #3 Feb 9 - 1.5 to 2 feet and blizzard conditions for several hours.

Now having grown up in Maryland, just outside of DC, and being that I work for the county government, I am a little more than vaguely familiar with how the government operates...or doesn't. Now I am not busting on the plow drivers at all, they are doing the best they can with what they've got. It's the lack of planning for situations like these that are so rare. I know planning is a challenge for any agency or company, but since we have been in the throws of blizzard-like weather before, yo u might think they would be more prepared for this. NOT!

Now I will clarify...Montgomery County is all about development, being number one, being ahead of the rest. So they develop and encourage more businesses and approve more housing construction, all of which adds to the population and requires more roads. But considering the road system was difficult before the development, what little is added to it does not nearly make up for the increase in resident and transient population. So we have all these roads, over 4,100 miles worth, in a count ranked (last I knew) in the top ten richest in the country, but residents get snowed in and lose power for days at a time. Some have been without power for 5 or more days.

Now in contrast, take my beautiful little country town with only 22,000 people, and much less of a budget. Until this week's snow storm the schools have not been closed for snow. Yes, we got 2 feet the last two storms and yes, my kids went to school. A couple of delayed-openings and early closings, but not closed for the day. And how is that possible you ask? Well my humble opinion is that they have not overdeveloped. There are not too many residents or transient population (even with tourism) to handle the road system, and the plows can get through and do their job. The true challenge we usually face is getting out of our own 200ft+ driveway. After a few bumps during our first couple of years there, we got a snowblower and now it's a piece of cake, more or less. My husband does it all (he's great that way) and managed to clear the first 2 .5 feet of snow in 3.5 hours. Not bad. And since the road in front of our house was already clear, we were FREE! Oh and did I mention we never lost power, not once, not even for a minute.

So the moral to this story is, bigger isn't necessarily better. I'll take my country home and my 45 minute commute thank you very much.
911 Never Forget 911 Candle