Daze of Suzanne

Catching up...

2010-09-07T19:46:00.001-05:00

So I just noticed that I never posted photos from my 5k race that I did back in July! That was pretty much one of the items on my 'list' of things to do in my life. Except I never really THOUGHT I'd make the time to train for and do it.... but this summer I did!! It's the first step in my ultimate goal of completing a (mini) tri-athalon. I'm thinking of doing the All Women's Tri-athalon in Portland next summer.... but there is always the Granite Man tri-athalon that is near my parents... so we'll see.
Anyhow, I don't have any photos of me actually doing the run. There are some out there but I haven't received them yet (a reminder to bug Matthew again). So here is what I have for now.... The tall guy in the photo to the left is my friend Matthew. He beat everyone in the race (and was less than half my time!!).

I also never posted any photos from our fun camping weekend in Haynesville, ME.Every summer Marc and Tracy, Chris and myself go up to Tracy's family camp for a relaxing camping weekend. It is so beautiful up there with all of the trees around us and no one to bother us. It's quiet and peaceful and this year we got to enjoy it with another member of the family, Lexie! She was so good up there too! I think she really enjoyed it and so did we. Other than her first night of not sleeping (and whining in the crate) we figured out that she could handle sleeping on the air mattress with us. :) Here is a photo of the little camp that we stay in. No electricity, no running water and no cell service! Well that's all for this post.... the next topic deserves a post all its own. :)

Two cards!

2010-08-13T17:43:00.002-05:00

So at my bi-monthly card club gathering we made the following two cards courtesy of Katee:

I didn't think I'd enjoy this card because it uses one of my least favorite techniques (coloring) however I was delightfully surprised how much I enjoyed coloring with the aqua painters! It was actually super fun, and of course I LOVE using embossing folders so that made it awesome too!

We made this second card too - which I totally love in person and especially love the sparkles that Katee added for some POP. :) It was pretty simple to make and not too long, but came out really well. Thanks to Katee for demonstrating these cards and thanks to Holly for hosting the club in July! :)

That's funny....

2010-08-11T21:22:00.001-05:00

hat's funny, you ask? When you go to your OWN blog and don't recognize it. I totally forgot I attempted a make-over a few weeks back. And now look at me.... I have a cute background and you can't even read my font on half the posts..... haha.... go me. ;-) I haven't been creating too much so you're really not missing a lot. It's been so gorgeous here in Maine that it's been sucking out all of my creative juices.... but don't worry, they'll come back when the cooler weather returns in September/October. I can guarantee. :)

So back in July I did a photo walk with my mom and friend Katee. I was planning to submit some photos to the photo walk competition, but didn't make it in time. So here are a few of my favorite shots from walking around the Old Port. :)

ooops....I'm a slacker!

2010-07-13T20:23:00.000-05:00

I guess I felt that having my brithday post at the top of my page was very important because I haven't posted anything else in over 2 weeks!!

I had a very nice 4th of July at my parents house on the lake. I will have some photos to share later (need to upload them) but in the mean time, I'd like to share a few creations! :)

A very cool tri-shutter card that I made for my mom's birthday. You can get the tutorial on how to make it here. It's really not as hard as it looks and I thought it was fun! :)

I made this card for my sister's birthday.... I made the flower by hand. I saw one (store bought) on a scrapbooking website and decided I should try to make one. Well... mine didn't turn out so well... it's cute, just not like the one from the store ;-)

And this one I made for a friend who is going through a rough time right now. I got the window tutorial from my friend Debbie. You can access it here.

Thats all I have to share right now. I just started on the MOST adorable mini book I think I've ever made. It's of one of my favorite subjects - LEXIE!!! I only have 3 pages done right now so I'll save the photos for the full reveal.... it's just adorable and I can't wait to show you! :) Chat soon... ~ Suzanne

Happy Birthday to me......

2010-06-28T17:37:00.000-05:00

Yes... I'm writing my own happy birthday post. :) Today is my 27th birthday..... and I'm not afraid to share it with you all..... and I'm going to share a few pictures from my early birthday celebration in New York City. I got to spend time with two of my really close girlfriends from college. They both live down there and I get down about once each year to visit for a few days. I love these girls.....

Don't we look super-imposed in front of that awesome Manhattan sunset?? It's totally real! We were on the roof of their apartment. And we took a 'water taxi' on our way to the Governor's Island Beer Festival. To ns of fun!!!

And this is the sweet photo I took my way home..... yes thats totally my mom sunning herself on the dock as I flew by!! Can't you see her????

Not so small anymore....

2010-06-26T08:43:00.000-05:00

Hi there friends! :) My most recent creation might have been one of the LONGEST ones in the making. Not because it was hard or I couldn't make up my mind, but I would just pick it up, put it down, pick up my craft room, leave it in a pile on the side. So I figured before I ruined the photo I should just finish up the layout and get it into a book. :) So here it is...

Lexie looks so little in that photo! It was during the first two weeks that we had her home. Her ears weren't even cropped yet..... What a cutie.

That's all for now.... Chris's band is playing this afternoon at a party so thats pretty exciting! Not sure the exact date of their first bar gig, but they've got a few things in the works locally. :)

Pioneer Woman

2010-06-21T17:34:00.001-05:00

Have you ever heard of her? If NOT well then you're really missing out. I know I was for a while. Well for those that aren't familiar, Pioneer Woman (PW) is a lady named Ree who has a fabulous blog full of thousands of her recipes and submitted recipes that are all delicous! Not that I've tried them all, but I've heard enough testimonials to feel comfortable saying it! So if you're ever looking for something new..... look her up HERE.

Tonight I made Hot & Sweet Drumsticks except I substituted the drumsticks for boneless breasts.

They are in the oven now and boy do they smell good! I hope that husband enjoys them! I even added a bit of extra hot sauce, since we both like things spicy. :) What is your favorte Pioneer Woman recipe???

Some more craftyness....

2010-06-06T20:03:00.000-05:00

I've really been on a crafty roll for the past few months... I'm so glad that my lack of mojo from last year has subsided! I think a lot of my crafty juices were eaten up with wedding planning, but so glad to see they've returned now that I'm no longer a "Bride-to-be" :) So here are a few of the newest things to share. A layout of my cousin Madison when she was only a year old.

A card that I made from a kit that I received in the mail from ScrappinCoast2Coast and a layout about how I met my friend Patrice.

This card I made for a card swap at ScrappinCoast2Coast. I love participating in card swaps because it's a great way to stock up on a variety of cards with a variety of styles. :)

And I also want to share a SUPER fun photo from last weekend! Chris, myself, my Mom, Dad and friends Jess and TJ all went to the Country Music Throwdown at Meadowbrook Musical Arts facility. We saw a plethora of fun country music including Emily West, Sarah Buxton, Eli Young, Eric Church, Jamey Johnson, Montgomery Gentry and MY FAVORITE Little Big Town! There were others there that we saw, however I can't remember all their names... There were three stages set up with probably 20 or so artists total playing. What a fun day it was! Well... .to top it off, Jess and I happened to be at the right place at the right time and we scored Little Big Town Meet and Greet Passes!!! So at 6:00 we went up to their booth and got to meet them, say hello, ask a few questions and then they snapped a photo of us! I told them that Chris and I danced our first dance at our wedding to their song and they were flattered. Even more amazing, When they performed "A Little More You" on stage, they gave us a wave! (we were in the 5th row!!). That was so amazingly cool...... Here is our photo from the meet and greet:

I have more photos that I took from the concert but they are on my Mom's camera so I won't be able to get them until this weekend.... but I'll definitely post a few more photos. :)

Cheer me on with my new adventure...

2010-06-02T19:23:00.000-05:00

Well I'm doing it - and I'm making it public too.... I've officially started the Couch-to-5k running program! I'm going to need all the support I can get! I *thought* I signed up for a 5k here in Auburn for June 12th. Well unfortunately (and fortunately) I didn't actually sign up! It works out well because now I'd be double booked that day, but I'm still going to run a 5k this summer. There is another one in Auburn in July. I'm aiming for that one!

So three reasons I'm running (Ok, let's face it, I'll be jogging) the Couch-2-5k:
1. My thighs slap when I run. Ughhh
2. I've always wanted to run a 5k
3. It will help me get healthy for the summer

Today I started on week 3 because I'm in good health and I do run occassionally...... week 3 seemed like a good (and easy) place to start for my level of running.

My amazing wedding photographer, Suzanne Simmons, completed the couch-to-5k and did her first 5k a few weekends ago..... and I plan to do the same. Thanks for inspiring me Suzanne!

If anyone out there is interested in joining, or has completed this, give me a shout out!

Some Cards....

2010-05-24T19:34:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I posted anything crafty.... and I've been crafty! Even though the weather has been gorgeous there have been events that warrant cards so I've been making them! Plus I wanted to get a few more challenges done this month at ScrappinCoast2Coast and A Walk Down Memory Lane. So here are a few things I've made... I still have more to upload from my camera.
I made this for a friend's birthday. I'm LOVING the Martha Stewart "Around the Page" punches!!

I made this one for a friend's Dad who finally graduated with his Master's! YAY KEN!

This one was for a challenge at C2C. I had to use ric rac (the zig zag stuff) and I don't use it much so I had to go all out....

And this last one was a color challenge. I wound up using it for a baby shower card. The Flower was super 3D and wouldn't fit into an envelope so I just punched a hole in the corner of the card and tied it to the gift bag. It doubled as a card and a decoration!!

I have 2 or 3 more images sitting on my camera. Hope to share them soon!

A Sketch - I love sketches!

2010-05-09T18:25:00.002-05:00

So for those of you who aren't as addicted to scrapbooking as I am, let me introduce you to the world of sketches. Basically, a sketch is a rough outline on how to set up your scrapbooking page. You don't have to take the sketch literally, you can change it, rotate it, make it a different size, or completely move things around. However it's a piece of inspiration to create something from. So another scrappy friend of mine posted her first sketch challenge on her Thoughts2Paper blog. You can see the sketch at right.

And below is my take on the sketch:

The photo is about 1.5 years old, it's my little cousin Madison when she was a flower girl at my sister's wedding in September 2008. I just adore the photo and had to make something nice with it!

CKC 2010

2010-05-09T17:44:00.001-05:00

Well CKC (Creating Keepsakes Convention) was last weekend and it was as FABULOUS as ever. It was even more special this year for two reasons -

1) My Mom came and took 5 classes!! I think she was tired out after so much crafty goodness.

2) It was Katee's birthday! We celebrated with one of her favorites - Sushi at Taipei and Tokyo and then dessert at Dairy Queen!

I took 5 classes myself (signed up for one last minute on Saturday) and even volunteered for 4 hours. It

was totally worth the volunteering - Katee and I got to do it together, we got to help out for three classes and learn all the tricks and techniques that the fabulous Vicky Shepherd of Simplicraft taught AND she gave us free product!! (on top of the $30 CKC gives us for volunteering) so it was TOTALLY worth it - and made me feel good too!

So I made LOTS of cards..... so I hope you're ready to get through them all. Sorry it's so photos intensive.

My first class was actually a lecture style class, but it was sponsored by Boxer Scrapbooks - which of course stole my heart when I heard about them last year! And yes, the company is named after the owner's Boxers. :) I got a whole bunch of free stuff (which I haven't played with yet... ) and a lot of it is dog themed! The best part about that class, I won the door prize, which means I got $15 in free product (of my choice!) at their booth. Very cool!

The second class I took was with Katee and the Gail's. It was a card class and we made 4 decent cards. I didn't fall in LOVE with them all but they were cute and worth making the class.

The third class I took was a fabulous flower technique class. I LOVE the techniques I learned in there and I've already reused some of the ideas. It was a great class!

The 4th class I took was was my favorite - it was sponsored by Technique Tuesday and we made some gorgeous cards in there! I will forever take the Technique Tuesday card classes at CKC!

And the lat class was one I signed up for on a whim because all the other gals in the group were taking it. It was a pocket tag book class and I must say, that I'm glad I got in free with my volunteer voucher! The project was so-so, the papers were so-so and the teacher was unprepared and a bit frazzled. Overall - my least favorite class.

But all in all the weekend was a fun time, with great friends (and family) and some fabulous crafting!

Natalie Turns 2!

2010-05-03T19:26:00.001-05:00

Well her actual birthday was a few weeks ago, and I'm wayyy over due on posting about it!. What a GREAT turnout it was! Tiffany and Darlene did an awesome job getting the place to be 'dog' themed complete with dog ears and tails for all the kids, plenty of doggie decorations and dog themed food including devil dogs, hot dogs and bone shaped cookies! It was a huge success and I have the photos to prove it!

Natalie was so proud after she blew out her candles - I think she surprised herself when they went out with ONE blow!! Happy Birthday little cupcake!

Where did the sun go??

2010-04-16T18:30:00.000-05:00

Well it sure was beautiful here in Maine for a few days. You would have thought it was early summer the way the sun was shining and it was warm out! But now we're back to normal for a few days. Today was drizzly and a high of 40. Ughh... what a difference when the high last week was 80! Oh well, I knew what I signed up for when I moved to this state - it's pretty similar to New Hampshire where I grew up :)

When the sun comes out and it gets warm, I tend to get more ambitious with my photo taking so I have a few photos to share from the past week, before it got all dreary and gray. First, a photo from my cousin Madison's birthday party last weekend. She turned 5 years old!

It was a complete Hannah Montana birthday party and the cake was no exception. :)

I also wanted to share some of my flowers with you. I have to remind (or tell) you that we just bought this house in January so I really had no idea what the gardens were like. And to my surprise I had these beauties popping through the ground last week:

I also found these very strange plants in the garden in my back yard....

Not sure exactly what they are but I'm hoping they flower! :)

I also have to share this photo with you. There are all kinds of stuff in my new yard that I'm finding out about this spring. Including this tree which has been attached by a woodpecker.... :)

And last but not least I have to share my latest scrapbook page. My good friend (sister, as I call her) Molly sent me some great photos that she took while she was in Maine/New Hampshire for my wedding last fall. And I could not WAIT to scrapbook them....

It's been so warm!

2010-04-07T14:30:00.001-05:00

So unusually warm and I'm loving it! Although I do realize that it's entirely possible to still get snow - but for now I'm enjoying the occasional 70 degree day!

Easter weekend was beautiful! I spent it with my family in New Hampshire. I got a few nice photos while the sun was shining. My cute cousins:

And my cute puppy, surveying the 38 degree lake! Grammie even made her a cute Easter Bandana to wear!

Lexie got to play all day long with her cousin, Bailey! Bailey loves the water no matter how cold it is, but Lexie wouldn't go in past her paws. Just enough to get a drink and no further. Maybe she won't be a lake dog, but I think that the ball was calling to her from the water.

And when I got home, I had a very nice surprise waiting for me. My husband was slaving while i was away and he painted our living room and kitchen! We still have one more color to put up so it's definitely not done. AND as i type, he's hanging crown molding! so expect more to come on this, but i had to get a few 'teaser' photos up...

Been Creative!

2010-04-01T19:58:00.003-05:00

Well I've got some more cards to share. One of which I kinda whipped up very quickly on a request from Katee... :) So enjoy the card eye candy!
Can you tell that I'm addicted to sewing on my cards? If you're a card maker and you haven't tried this technique yet, I HIGHLY recommend it! It's so easy and really just perks up the card! I have a few layouts too.....but those must be revealed to the recipient of them first before I can post on here!

Happy Day!

2010-03-30T20:23:00.006-05:00

I got a letter in the mail from Subaru: My car is officially paid off!!!!! This is so exciting! It's the first time since I bought my own car that I won't have a car payment! YAY. It's pretty much one of the happiest things of 2010 - so far. :)

So it's been pretty rainy in the northeast for the last few days. I've been cleaning the house and scrapbooking - two utterly opposite ends of the spectrum of fun - but both necessary. However I'm really looking forward to some warm days this weekend! And I'm definitely looking forward to spending them with my family at the Lake!

In other good news my amazing hubby not only cleaned BOTH toilets this evening he ALSO found out he got a promotion at work! It's been 5 years in the making so I'm very very proud of him. He's now a "Technology Leader" at the plant and will have other engineers reporting to him. So good news all around!

The time has come.....

2010-03-28T08:02:00.004-05:00

To get serious about Lexie's yard training. Now that the weather is warm and we're outside more, we really need to get serious about yard training Lexie. This fact is even more proven by her running away last Thursday afternoon. She was gone almost 30 minutes and it made me want to cry! Fortunately she ran to the neighbors BBQ (she's a people dog!) and they saw her and tied her to a tree. We had never met those neighbors but I am so greatful that they kept her out harms way!

So we went to Cabela's yesterday afternoon and Lexie is all fitted for a Maine summer. The full package includes:

Whistle - to train her to come back to us

Bell - so we can hear her if she runs off again

and drum roll please......

A Shock collar. It's one of those manual ones so we can give her one quick zap if she takes off after Rocky and Bulwinkle in the Maine woods.

We took her out in the yard today with a 40 foot rope, the collar, bell and whistle. She did very well it was almost like she knew what would happen if she messed up. We walked the perimter of the yard 3 times and threw the ball for her. If she didn't listen, first we gave her the beep from the collar. That surprised her the first few times but quickly she lost interest. Then if we called her and she didn't come, we'd blow the whistle. That worked GREAT. So well, that we didn't even have to shock her...... yet. :)

This one's for Mom... :)

2010-03-27T16:57:00.006-05:00

So I've been working on a few little card projects here and there and I know you're all DYING to see them (Ok I know MOM is... hehe) so here are a few of my recent cards:

I have been making a lot of cards lately and I've really started to get away from scrapbooking so I am going to try to make a resolution of sorts - to do more scrapbooking. I have alllll these photos in folders that are just collecting electronic dust. It's time to crack those open (before my hard drive fails and I lose them all) and get them into scrapbooks!!!

Get Well Cards

2010-02-27T08:44:00.003-05:00

So I'm a lot behind - it's been two weeks since I've posted but thats because my husband is home so I've been spending time with him! :) Anyhow, I did get to make two cards this week while his band was practicing.... they are of the same style.... and here they are:

I embossed the brocade pattern so it's 3-d :) I made them for two sick co-workers. It seems like there is a lot of that going around.

Well, I'm off - really off. To Las Vegas that is! I might post from there - or I might not. We'll see how much sleep I get and how much fun I'm having.

Glorious Picnik

2010-02-14T15:07:00.006-05:00

So I know others have been using this for a while..... but I just edited my FIRST Picnik photo. It was so easy and quick. I'm in love....no pun intended. I forsee many more picnik edited photos in my future!

And on that theme, here are two more Valentine's that I made yesterday:
Now don't get me wrong, I love and miss my husband, but I get a lot more crafty stuff done when he's out of town!! Toodles for now.... I'm off to run errands - or take a nap. I can't decide which. ;-)

Ahh finally Friday....

2010-02-12T22:00:00.004-05:00

This has been a long week. My husband is out of town for work for two weeks which means I'm a 'single mom' to our adorable puppy. On top of that....I had to take the pup to the vet this week. She's been having soft stools. We tried changing her food, nothing. We tried putting her on a chicken and rice diet. Nothing. So the vet gave her some antibiotics and I'm still cooking her chicken and rice for every meal. It's more cooking than I do for myself! Add that to some late nights and boy.... am.....I....glad....it's.... FRIDAY.

So for a little therapy I've retreated to my craft room. I can't share everything on here (sorry Mom!!) but I can share this CUTE little card I made. It's 3.5"x3.5" square.

I made it all with scraps in my craft room - how resourceful of me, right? Martha would be proud. ;-)

I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I will put my house back together (I've been a bad house-wife), run my errands and then an afternoon/evening/night of fun! First stop, Buxton to check in with the in-laws. Then (aunt) Maureen has agreen to baby sit the puppy for me and I'll head off to meet some co-worker's for dinner. After dinner I'll be heading into Portland for Susan's birthday! Should be fun.....

Obsession.....

2010-02-09T19:13:00.002-05:00

Since I'm slightly obsessed with Martha Stewart I think it only fitting to share some of her tips with you. Thanks Mom for the email with these in it!

1. Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of an ice cream cone to prevent ice cream drips
2. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.
3. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead and there won't be any white mess on the outside of the cake.
4. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant 'fix-me-up.'
5. Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
6. Brush some beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.
7. Cure for headaches: take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
8. If you have a problem opening jars, try using latex dish washing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.
9. Don't throw out all that leftover wine. Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

Pretty cards!!

2010-02-07T12:09:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was my stampin UP! card party and as expected Katee came up with some beautiful cards!! here are the two we made: The little treat cup in the middle has valentine's M&M's! How cute is that??? I'm so excited to see my party total and see what I'll be picking out. I have a gift certificate from the most amazing mom on the planet so I'll be using some of that. YAY! :)

Thanks to all who came! It was a lot of fun.....

I know you want more....

2010-01-29T21:51:00.005-05:00

Photos of the new house that is. It's so hard to get GOOD photos of the inside of a house. I'm really having a hard time letting the photos do the house justice..... but Chris and I did get some new furniture this week - we can call it a wedding present. :) So I took some decent pictures to showcase the furniture.

We finally got a table for the dining area. I say dining AREA because it's just one open room upstairs.... everyone seems to call their house 'open layout' but this TRULY is. :)So there is the table and I moved our hand-made wine rack (wedding gift from Aaron and Kim) to a new location that you can see in the photo too. So I really want my house to look like it's out of a Martha Stewart Living Magazine... getting closer. Just need a FEW more photos for the walls. :) You can see the gorgeous print hanging over the table. It's a drawing by a Maine artist, it's the Portland waterfront. Yet another wedding present! This picture doesn't do it justice....

And we also picked up half of our bedroom set!

I now am in DYER need of a dust ruffle. You can't see it in these photos but our sheets don't even cover the mattress completely (because it's a pillow top). Mom says you can buy deep sheets, so I guess thats now on the list. The photo above the bed - another BEAUTY is a canvas photo - wedding gift from Billy and Audrey. But the best part about that photo, is it was taken from the top of Mount Major - which is where Chris and I got engaged. What a thoughtful present!

We are waiting on our matching bureau's to come in and complete the set! Hopefully they'll be in next week! I wish I could have taken a photo from further way from the bed, but the room is only so big :) Here is the web's photo of the bedroom set:

I guess looking at this photo, I don't need a dust ruffle, just a wider comforter! I guess we should have gone with the King sized down comforter!!

I'm a music girl....

2010-01-28T20:12:00.003-05:00

I really am. I've always loved music. From when I was in middle school and I would record songs off the radio with my tape deck and replay the song over and over while I wrote down the words, to my first concert (Matchbox 20) and memorizing all the words to songs like "Baby Got Back". I've gone through the whole spectrum of genres from new rock to rap to pop, country and classic rock. And I can say I love it all.....

I think I love music so much because there is always something new out there that gets my attention. Whethere it's a good song to dance to, well musically orchestrated or just a song that brings back memories there are so many songs out there that suck me in.

Tonight I heard a new song by Mongomery Gentry - and it made me stop and really listen to the lyrics. I love it.

Montgomery Gentry: Oughta Be More Songs About That

I've heard a million country songs
'bout love gone wrong good times and crazy women
and I've sung about tractors
trucks fast cars and small town living
and I love to hear a band that rocks
with words that make me stop
and think about family but if you ask me

Oughta be more songs about that old man
who worked hard all his life
then Wall Street broke his nest egg
now he cant afford to die
and more songs about forgivness
And other things that I believe in like Jesus
and letting him back in class
oughta be more songs
oughta be more songs about that

Weekend Fun!

2010-01-26T21:08:00.006-05:00

This past weekend was a good time. It started with a visit from Katee and Titus! They came up on Friday night and stayed through Saturday afternoon. The dogs had a lot of fun playing tug and running up and down the driveway together. For a few other pictures of Titus and Lexie you can visit Katee's blog. We spend the late morning and afternoon cleaning out my scrapbook room and putting some fun rub-on type decals in my bathroom. They look fabulous!!! We also took some time out to watch Julie & Julia - great chick flick!

Then on Saturday night Chris and I went unexpectedly to the P&G Winter Gala. Yes, you read that right, a bit unexpectedly..... Only a MAN decides at 5:30 that we should go to the Gala which starts at 6, is a 20 minute drive away and neither of us are showered yet!!! Well.... I wasn't going to let the opportunity pass me by for the 5th time. I jumped in the shower, picked out my dress, did my hair and make-up and we were out the door and at the Hilton just as Happy Hour was ending. :) The camera I brought had dead batteries so unfortunately no photos from me! I'm hoping a friend of ours will have some posted later on Facebook....

Then on Sunday we went ice fishing on a pond right down the street from us. We met up with several co-workers and sat out on the ice and enjoyed a few frosty beverages.

We brought Lexie along too, but were afraid that she'd get cold in the snow so we bundled her up in a hooded sweat shirt. She didn't like that too much.... but she looked so cute!The sweatshirt didn't last too long. She was running around on the ice with another dog, Ticra and she kept getting stuck inside her sweatshirt and I'd have to go rescue her because she couldn't walk. So we wound up taking it off, knowing that she was running around anyhow and should be plenty warm. It was pretty close to freezing on Sunday anyhow.

So that was our weekend.... it was quite a bit of fun. :) Then Monday night our bowling league started! I bowled two rounds - 97 and 115! Thats super good for me. My goal is usually to break 100 so I'd say I started off well... hopefully it only gets better from here!

Some Craftyness

2010-01-23T08:02:00.005-05:00

So my craft room may not be completely settled, but I was itching to work with paper.... so I made a banner for a co-worker's baby shower that we had at work yesterday. Here are a few photos The animals were cut out on my cricut using the Every Day Paper Dolls cartridge. WHO KNEW they had animals and all kinds of fun things on that cartridge!! I almost sold it because I didn't want it - but when I decided to cut out some paper dolls for Andrew to play with, I found out how cool that cartridge really is! I never would haev known what I was missing...... how sad!

Last night Katee came over and she brought Titus. I'll have a few pics posted later I'm sure. She's helping me finish putting my scrap room together and also help hang some vinyl things on the wall in my bathroom. I'll take some photos so you can see, don't worry. :)

My Yellow Ribbon Pup!

2010-01-17T20:46:00.004-05:00

Well this weekend was HUGE for the puppy - it was her FIRST dog show!! We went down to Fitchburg, Massachusetts on Saturday and Sunday for Lexie to compete in her show! We were so proud - I really expected her to jump on the judge and just not listen at all.....and she got 3rd place!! here area few photos from the show.....

Have to look pretty for the judges! She looks thrilled, doesn't she???

What a good girl! She's listening to dave!
We were such proud parents.... :)It was nice to spend a night with my Mom and Dad too - we drove down to Massachusetts on Saturday morning, then up to their house that night and then back down for day 2 of the show on Sunday. It was a busy weekend, but I enjoyed it! Not sure when the next show is, but I can't wait - the more practice she gets, the better the chance for that BLUE ribbon!

Week 2....

2010-01-14T20:01:00.006-05:00

Well today signifies two full weeks that we have lived here in Poland and we LOVE it! :) The neighborhood is cute (we have yet to actually meet any neighbors) and we're only 10 minutes to work! On the days that Lexie isn't at Daycare, we leave her home and can go home at lunch to let her out, it works out great.

Our kitchen was the first room that we got settled. The bedroom is pretty well there, but we need a few new pieces of furniture to really pull it together. The living room took a while to figure out how to lay out the furniture. This is how it was for the first two weeks. I HATED the couch....

but now we have it like this.....I think we've got it right. We just moved it tonight! What do you think?

Did you notice too that the TV is on the wall? We brought it to a local place in Auburn and they put a new capaciter in it and now it works! YAY!

And Chris has his band set up in the basement. He's still looking for a drummer so the back corner would be full of a drum set, some day. :)I guess that is all for now! Maybe I'll give a few more sneak peaks in the next few days.... as we get things where we 'really' want them. :)

Martha would be proud!

2010-01-10T18:59:00.004-05:00

So, I have this little confession to make. I don't think many people know this about me, and particularly not my blog readers but here it goes....... I want to be Martha Stewart. Seriously.... I do. I think she makes some of the most amazing crafts and food and she's a business woman too! She has used her smarts to capitalize on her hobbies and turn it into a multi million dollar enterprise.

So now that this is out in the open.... :) Chris and I stopped into his Aunt's house today while we were inbetween showings of the apartment and she had a Martha Stewart Living Magazine - so I pawed through it and decided to try one of the recipes for dinner. It's a chicken cutlet with mushrooms, onions and a red wine sauce and a side of baked french fries. OH MY GOSH! it was soooooooo good. Here is Martha's article:

And here is what we made.... it came out so well. :) We'll definitely be putting it into our recipe book and cooking it again in the future!

So Like I said....Martha would be proud. :)

2009 Year in Review

2010-01-10T18:54:00.002-05:00

So I noticed at the end of 2007 I did this on my blog, and I wish I had done it at the end of 2008....so I'm doing it again in 2009 and hoping to continue the tradition! Basically, just reminiscing about one thing that happened each month. These are probably the things that years from now I'll forgot happened. Well...not all of them. ;-)

In January I spent a weekend at Sugarloaf but it was so windy they closed the lifts and offered us refunds on our tickets.

In February I went to Asia and visisted: Japan, China, Singapore and New Zealand

In March Chris and I spent a gorgeous day of Spring Skiing at Sugarloaf - courtesy of two returned tickets from my annual trip in January!

In April the Christian Camp cottages in Alton Bay caught fire. The bay will never look the same again.

In May I went to CKC with Julie and Katee!

In June I had a surprise birthday party and got laid off from my job.

In July I went to NYC for Tracy's bachelorette party, Aaron and Kim got married and we picked up Lexie!

In August Tracy and Marc got married and so did Kristen and Kenny

In September Chris and I had our Jack and Jill Wedding shower at the shed - which included fireworks (of course!) And my Dad FINALLY won the Club Championship at Farmington Country Club! I think he's been runner up about 7 times. I also started a new job on 9/9/09

In October Chris and I got married and tried to honeymoon in Mexico.

In November we put an offer in on the house in Poland

In December we packed our life away and closed on the new house and took our little cousins bowling for Christmas Eve!

A sigh of relief?

2009-12-23T21:10:00.003-05:00

I don't think so....not yet at least. I didn't realize until today when I explained it to my boss how much stress I'm under this holiday season. As a personal goal, I have set a budget of HALF what I typically spend for Christmas - and I'm happy to say that I stuck to it! That means I did a lot of home-made gifts....which are generally less expensive, but typically more time intensive....of course adding a bit to the stress. ;-)

The holidays are stressful as it is - money, presents, shopping hassles, driving here there and everywhere - but Chris and I have chosen to make this holiday even more stressful with the purchase of a house - we close December 30th as well as keeping our duplex and trying to get tenants to fill both sides. Those two items alone (buying and looking for tenants) can be enough work as it is, without adding holiday things to it.......

After tonight I'm feeling a little more on top of things though. I have all my Christmas shopping done and all buy one little piece of my Christmas 'making' done as well. I'm really happy with how most of it turned out (I will reveal after Christmas for anyone that doesn't see what I made in person). All that is left at this point, is wrapping. Which for some is a major chore - but for me, it's playing with paper and ribbon, one of my FAVORITE things to do any time of year....hehe. :)

I hope everyone has a FABULOUS Christmas! Here is a photo to get you through the holidays...... I hope everyone stays safe during this season and is able to spend time with the ones they love most.

Christmas Parties!

2009-12-20T21:16:00.010-05:00

Well - Saturday night was the Richards Christmas party and Sunday was the George Christmas party. Both were an absolute hit with the children, as always, stealing the show. Their Christmas excitement and over-sugared smiles just always blow me away.

Meet my NEW cousin (by marriage) Landon! He's Chris's cousin Ben's son and he's 17 months old! Such an adorable little boy - he's just learning to talk. And for the George Christmas there are LOTS of little cuties running around. Two of which are these guys!! I love them to pieces. My niece and nephew, Andrew and Natalie!

And these adorable little girls..... my cousins Courtney and Mallory posing in front of the tree. They love eachother so much -

And last but not least I have to share a few photos because little miss Natalie is adorable. And she happens to be in love with our puppy, Lexie, who joined us at the party today. Natalie loves all animals, especially dogs but she gets a little nervous when they get close. She loves to see Lexie, call her name and tell her to sit, but she is still getting used to Lexie giving her kisses and actually touching the dog. She's so cute. While Lexie was sleeping, Natalie got the nerve up to touch her - and give her a little pat.

And eventually Natalie got more and more comfortable and Chris actually helped Lexie give her a high five! Too cute. :) Well it was a fabulous weekend! Spending time with lots of family is always fun. Christmas is officially only a few days away! I still have a few presents to finish up so I better hurry! Merry Christmas!

It's beginning to feel a lot like....

2009-12-19T10:11:00.005-05:00

CHRISTMAS! Oh yes it is!!! Between the snow on the ground (it's been here for almost 2 weeks now) and the crisp feel in the air - the pot luck dinners at work, the family parties - Christmas is really almost here! And I will be spending most of my weekend either preparing for it, or enjoying it with family. I hope to have some fun photos to post on Sunday/Monday after it's all over.

In other news.... the house is JUST ABOUT FINAL!!!!! I know it's not final final until we sign the papers but we've made it through all the hurdles of financing, inspections and appraisals. Woohoooo! In less than 2 weeks we'll be living here:

And this will be my fabulous new kitchen:

You know they say that Christmas is a time for everyone to feel like a kid again - and reading my sister in law's facebook message the other day just reminded me of that.... "... feeling some of Andrew's Christmas excitement!" Everyone loves the excitement of a 3-year old at Christmas time! So.......feel the excitement! :)

Shhhhhh.........

2009-12-14T21:54:00.006-05:00

My husband and my puppy are sleeping...seeeeeee:That is just simply and adorable sight.

On Sunday we had our Berrill family Christmas party. As usual, Abigail was my premiere photographer. She loves using my camera and really takes some great shots. I have such a beautiful family and I can't get enough of my little niece Natalie and nephew, Andrew! here are some of my favorite shots...

The Christmas trees that Andrew made

And my favorite Berrill girls!

Time with Mom and scrappy fun!

2009-12-12T17:41:00.004-05:00

Last night I had a girl's get together at my house. There were 9 of us total I think! Katee had yet another FABULOUS project planned for us. This time a treat box and tote! It was rather extensive and took a while to do, but they came out wonderful and I think everyone enjoyed themselves! So it was either fun, or we had too many lemon drop martini's....hehe :) It was definitely a good time.

Here area few photos of the project:
They were so much fun to make! A lot of steps, but it came out fabulous. All of the little touches between coloring in the stamps and adding little ribbons, I think everyone enjoyed them. :)
Then today Mom and I did some Christmas shopping. We stayed away from the Maine Mall but did hit up one of my favorite Maine stores, Marden's! If you've never been to Marden's then you have no idea what you're missing. It's basically a 2nds store and they have everything from scrapbooking supplies to rakes, clothing and food. It's all there. I wouldn't recommend buying the food 2nds....but most other things are just fine. :)

We also hit up Big Lots, JoAnne's and Lowe's. It was a fun day with my mumsy!

Snow Day!

2009-12-06T17:54:00.008-05:00

Well last night we got about 4 inches of that fluffy white stuff! I think I'm in heaven :) I do love snow and I can't wait to dig out my snowboard and take it for a whirl.

Anyhow, today was also Lexie's first time seeing snow! I knew she'd be hesitant at first, and she was. I literally had to DRAG her out onto the deck to go pee this morning. But after she got over the shivers and started running around she really started to like it! It didn't take her long before she realized she can eat it, lick it, chase it and make holes in it. A Dog's paradise, right??? About 10 minutes later she was panting as usual as she ran around the yard making tracks in the snow.

Here are a few of my favorite shots:

Who couldn't love that face????

Other than frolicking in the snow this morning, Chris and I have put some more major hours into renovating our apartment next door. We actually have someone coming to look at it on Tuesday too! I hope we can get it rented out for January. Here are a few of the 'after' shots. I think it's looking pretty fabulous - especially considering how far we've come...

Chris and I did the wood flooring, all the painting (trim and walls) and Chris did the carpet on the stairs all by hisself! I can't believe how nice it looks now. Anyone want to rent it out????

Happy Birthday Brother!!!

2009-11-30T22:11:00.004-05:00

All I have to say is:

My brother turns 30 years old today!!! We celebrated his birthday at a dinner and bowling on Saturday night. It was a lot of fun and a yummy dinner. We had lots of laughs and lots of reminiscing. So, happy birthday brother! here's to 30 more!

And I had to share this fabulous photo of my sister and Brian that I took on Saturday night.... what a great photo!!

(Love you Val! Does this make up for the straight jacket photo?? hehe)

Some cards and Turkey Day!!

2009-11-29T13:12:00.012-05:00

Hi there! Thanksgiving weekend is almost over, and I'm rather sad! Chris and I have been SUPER busy renovating the tenants apartment so new tenants can move in. I can't believe how much has been done in three days!

I wanted to share some cards I made this week. The first one is for my sister-in-law Kim's birthday. Two funny things I want to note.... 1) Kim (Chris's sister) and Pete (my brother) were born on the same day. 2) Valerie and I both have sister's in law named Kim! :) Kinda ironic.

So now that you know my brother had a birthday this week too, here is his card:

I don't know if you can tell, but I used Glossy Accents by Ranger to make the frosting glossy. I hadn't used that product in over a year and I kind of forgot I had it....but I've fallen in love with it all over again. :)

Both of these cards were inspired by Unscripted Sketches Sketch #34. What great card sketches they have weekly!!

Thanksgiving went as expected this year. A bit of driving around, but we had fun. We went to my Mom's on Wednesday night and stayed through lunch on Thursday. Here are a few photos from Thanksgiving to share!

Pete and his daughter Natalie:

Mom carving the turky.

And one of my FAVORITE photos of the weekend - this was the girl-cousins shot. :)

These last two photos were taken at Chris's aunt Maureen's house. I didn't get any photos of people while we were there (oops!) but I did get this super cute one of Lexie curled up in a cat bed:
And to put it in perspective as to how curled up she is.... she's about 38 lbs. And this is her sitting in a 'normal' pose on the bed..... hehe

2009 Year In Review

2009-11-25T00:00:00.005-05:00

Baking Machine!

2009-11-24T23:32:00.008-05:00

Ok, ok I know I'm slacking on my one post/day thing. But to be honest, I see it as an accomplishment for the fact that I've posted more this month than any other month...and we're only 24 days into it! So regardless of whether or not I meet the exact expectations.....I have still surpassed all previous behavior. Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!

So today has been an interesting day. It started with our 2.5 hour home inspection! YAY! We are that much closer to being Poland (Maine) residents! Here are a few snapshots I took of the house this mroning:

There were only two minor things that need to be fixed before we go to closing, and the seller agreed to fix them (chimney and woodstove fire code). The only other things we are waiting on are the water and air tests. Fingers crossed!!!

So after the home inspection, Chris and I went to work for only a few hours. We actually took two cars and Chris left work before me. Just as I was walking out the door I get a call that our power was off at home. Apparently when the tenants moved out next door, they called the power company to have their power turned off. That is fine....but the power company turned OUR power off, not theirs! Well, I got a call in to their 24 hour line and it was supposed to be fixed shortly.

So for dinner, we headed over to the farm. We had meatloaf, squash, potaotes and an apple turnover just waiting for us and thats on top of dog sitting for us all day - what awesome in-laws I have. :)

Knowing that I had lots of Thanksgiving baking to do, I wanted to head to the grocery store and then home right after dinner. Well, I finally got home around 7pm and the power was still off....but my awesome hubby had the generator all fired up and going by the time I got there. I was in the process of dialing the electric company again (at this point it had been 2.5 hours since my first call) when we saw flashing lights coming down our driveway. YAY! Within 5 minutes the power was back on and I began boiling my sweet potatoes.....

So that was around 7:30....it's now 11:30 and Ijust finished cleaning up the kitchen after my whirlwind of baking. I actually don't like baking. But i usually do it about 2-3 times/year. Yes, that is all! Every few months I have to get my fill of baking and this year i decided to make all kinds of breads for our two Thanksgiving dinners! So tonight I made:

2 loaves of banana bread

5 dozen sweet potato biscuits

2 pans of corn bread

I had to snap a few photos to prove I did it from scratch!

Finished product:

And this is why I hate baking........... Sorry for the long post.... I guess I just had a lot to say!

Cards I'm crazy about....

2009-11-22T08:48:00.003-05:00

On Friday night we had our monthly 'Marker club". Basically Holly, myself, Katee and Valerie have created this club, where we meet monthly and each purchase 1/4 of the Stampin Write Markers from Stampin Up. At the end of 4 months, we'll each have a FULL set of the markers and the carrying case without the pain of spending the money all at once! The best part (for me) is cracking open that bottle of wine, spending time with the gals and making cards! Katee has been our sole designer and coordinator for the club and she has continued to impress and amaze us! The two cards we did this month were:

This card used the Delightful Decorations stamp set and the ornament with the sentiment on it is actually popping off the page using some foam dimensionals. The coolest part of this stamp set, is there is an ornament shaped punch that fits perfect with each of the (4) stamped images!

The 2nd card was full of layering:

The stamp is actually sold separately from Stampin Up and his name is Dasher! We used the snowflake punch to get the snowflakes in the corner and both Dasher and the snowflakes are covered in Embossed Glitter (my request). I'm in LOVE with both of these cards - fabulous job Katee!!!

Please vote for my project!!

2009-11-19T23:16:00.003-05:00

I am trying to win a gift card to Michales with the Christmas ornament project I made! You can vote once/day - so keep voting. I thank you all so much!!

http://www.michaelscontest.com/uploads/850

Missed a few days.......

2009-11-19T22:15:00.002-05:00

But I"m ok with it. I've been busy cleaning my house and re-arrangin because my husband comes home tomorrow!!!! I miss him.... so I can't wait for him to be back in Maine! Chris has been in Cincinati, OH for two weeks now. It's been tough as we've put an offer on a house, countered twice, finally agreed and are now under contract on a HOUSE! :)

So tonight I made a cute paper Christmas tree. I need to take a photo, but I"m too exhausted! I just needed to make sure I posted tonight.

Tomorrow night is marker club and I'm so excited! I know Katee has some purdy cards lined up for us to make tomorrow!!!

Monday is almost over...

2009-11-16T22:23:00.003-05:00

You know, I used to hate mondays at my old job. But at my new job, Monday's go by so fast, in fact the whole week goes by so fast that I can't say I mind Monday's. In fact, I'm wondering if after you turn 26, your whole life just goes by in the blink of an eye. I mean, when I was a kid days and weeks and summers lasted forever and as I got older, I learned the concept of wasting time and spending time. But I think in the last 6 months.... it has gotten exponentially worse. I know....it's just the beginning.

So late last week I noticed something that made me happy (well lots of things make me happy...hehe). But what i noticed is that my Christmas cactus is about to bloom! I suppose it should make me sad, because it only blooms when there are short days, but I'm happy that I've had it a year and it's still alive! Anyone that knows me, knows I have a brown thumb.....but maybe the Frugal Farmer's are wearing off on me. ;-) I am a Richards and all!
And I have to say Thank you to Natalie for pointing out that my profile needed to be updated! I'm a wife now! ! ! That's exciting, because I just don't like the ring of 'fiance'. :)

So I realized at about 3pm today that my Free Jessica Sprague online class started today! So I've been spending the last 15 minutes trying to download the free trial of Adobe Photo Elements. I've downloaded it once before, but it was a different computer so hopefully they won't know it's me again! :) I wish this download would go faster because I'm ready for bed!!

I missed Saturday!!

2009-11-15T21:50:00.010-05:00

Well I missed a blog post yesterday, but it's because I was having fun with my sister and my mom! And making cards.....so I was a little pre-occupied. So want to see the beautiful cards that I made?? Here they are:

And what a fabulous weekend it was hanging out with my sister and my mom! We did a lot of chatting, a lot of eating and a bit of getting crafty too. In fact I showed them how to make some cute Christmas decorations....and though they weren't 'perfect' they go the idea. :) Hehe......It was so much fun i didn't want the weekend to end! And.... I wish I took a few photos to remember it. I guess we have the memories!! :)

a few minutes late....

2009-11-14T00:09:00.002-05:00

ok, I think it's technially after midnight.....but I'm still counting this for Friday's post...hehe.

I'm SO EXCITED for tomorrow! Not only do I get to spend THREE WHOLE HOURS making beautiful cards designed by none other than Julie....but I also get to go to my sister's house in Massachusetts and play with BOTH of our personal cutting machines. Yes, I"m referring to scrapbooking goodies, for those of you that don't know. :) I can't wait to get down there and for her to see my little Lexie who is getting so big !

Hope to share LOTS of photos tomorrow or Sunday of cards and hanging out at the sisters house. :)

a peek into my life..... and an anniversary!

2009-11-12T20:06:00.003-05:00

Well.... a few posts ago I wrote how my TV had officially broken and wouldn't work any more. I think that was over a week ago now. Well, it wouldn' turn on and I Figured I could get through the next month or two without a tv. I knew it wouldn't be easy, but I'd be reading more books...hopefully. :) Well..... Ryan and I decided that it was time to hook up his little TV to the cable box. So now, this is my living room:
Pretty sad....having such a nice set up all hung on the wall (only 6 months ago) and I'm watching tV on the little old school screen...hehe. :)

So as i was making this post, I realized that yesterday's post was my 200th post! I should have thrown a blog party! Not REALLY sure what that is...haha but it sounds good in theory.

Uhhhh I really wanted to make a scrapbook page or two tonight, but its 8pm and I'm JUST getting to dinner... I guess tonight i'll cozy up with my puppy and a book and head off to sleep :)

short and sweet...

2009-11-11T22:32:00.002-05:00

Wednesdays are tough for me to post, but I am. I'm staying up later than I should jsut to get something up here. I'll be glad when November is over - I like doing this 'once/day challenge' but some nights I just want to go to bed. However it's great to get me posting more frequently.

Anyhow.....wednesdays are crazy and it starts with a meeting frmo 4pm-5pm that typically runs late. So I'm usually rushing out of the plant at 5:30 to go pick up the puppy at daycare (they close at 6) and then rush home to find some food and change and leave the house by 6:30 (today I didn't get HOME until 6:35) and head out to volleyball which runs from 7-9:30, then half hour drive home and I'm back at 10. YIkes...busy night considering I have to get up at 5:30 tomorrow!!

So as i'm sitting here listening to the CMA awards (I love country music) it makes me realize what strong memories I have to music. Lots of songs remind me of things, but already in the 30 min I've been listening to the CMA's, two songs have had significant memories come up. "Big Green Tractor" by Jason Aldean reminds me of our wedding, Chris danced with his grandmother to that song. And now "People are Crazy" by Billy Currington is on..... and thats a sadder memory, but the phrase "God is Great, Beer is good, and people are crazy" was the last line that the priest used at my friend Nick's funeral this fall. It sums Nick up very well in one sentence. RIP.

I'm Suzanne and that's what I think.....

2009-11-10T19:12:00.003-05:00

So ever since Chris and I have been carpooling to work, I started listening to a new morning show, The Free Beer and Hot Wings Show. They are radio personalities that are sent via satellite (sp?) to radio stations all over the country. Anyhow, every morning they play a segment where Free Beer (yes, thats his name) goes on a 2-3 minute rant about something. Anything, really but it's usually related to something in the news or pop culture.

Anyhow, I've decided that on Tuesdays I'm going to start sharing some of my thoughts. I don't think it'll be much of a rant (although it might on some days) but just some random thoughts that I always wondered if I was the only crazy one who feels that way. :)

So for today.......as I was grocery shopping in the local supermarket I noticed that there was a large stack of clementine's in the fruit section. I love a good clementine or two, so I decided to buy a box. Now why is it ,that you can only buy clementine's in a whole box? Are only large families supposed to buy clementines? Or are you just supposed to hoard them in your fridge for the next 6 weeks? Why doesn't the Clementine market cater to singles and couples with no kids? I know they are small, but seriously how long does it take a normal person to eat 37 clementines all by themselves?? I'm Suzanne. And that's what I think.

Monday Monday...

2009-11-09T20:51:00.003-05:00

Well today seemed like your average Monday, but that was until I got home and retrieved the mail. Many of your know my terrible Honeymoon story.....well we applied to both United Airlines and Travel Guard (insurance) to try and recoup some of the money spent. Wellll......I got a check in the mail today from Travel Guard for 98% of the claim that I put in! I'M SO EXCITED!!! I really was hoping to get HALF of our claim....and wer pretty much got all of it! I can jump up and down right now!! YAY!

And after getting home I did a bit of a Lexie photo shoot. She was SO TIRED from doggy day care and I decided to take sleeping puppy photos. I love that girl so much. :) here is my favorite:

That is all for now......I'll be on here tomorrow I'm sure. :)

Sunny Sunday!

2009-11-08T18:50:00.002-05:00

I love Sunday's when I can be productive. But I like Sunday's even more when my husband has been productive! I got home from my volleyball tournament around 6:00 and Chris had the WHOLE HOUSE clean! He picked up every room in the house (except for my scrap desk...haha) and he swept the floor downstairs and wiped down the kitched. Then he hopped on a bus for Boston because he flies out of the airport there at 5am. I'll miss him while he's in Cincinatti.....but maybe I'll have a bit of girl time while he's gone. :)

Whoops....

2009-11-07T22:05:00.001-05:00

Ok, so I missed a day of NaBloPoMo........BUT I think I'm covered because I did two posts on Thursday. So that covers me for Friday, right? I still say that I'm on pace to do one post/day. Haha.....

So this morning I crawled out of bed to head to a craft fair that my sister and SIL were both selling items at. I decided to bring my camera along to get some photos of the girls in action and get photos of their booths from the perspective of the buyers. I was there for about three hours and both girls seemed to be fairly happy with their results. I don't think neither Val nor Tiffany will get rich of these craft fairs, but at least they will get some satisfaction that they've made a product that someone else feels has value. It was really nice to spend a few quality catch-up hours with both sisters after the wedding :) Here's a shot I snapped of Val at her booth:
After the craft fair I went to the bank to get my name officially changed there and to open a joint account for us to deposit our wedding money into. SORRY IF YOU WROTE US A CHECK BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T CASHED IT YET!!! But I'll be cashing them all this week.... :) After the bank I went to the Farm (Chris's family farm) to hear all about Marc's deer that he shot! It was his first deer ever! He was like a kid on Christmas he was so excited. We hung out there, ate home-made apple pie and even played a bit of croquet at Maureen's house. Had dinner at Maureen's, watched Audrey's sky-diving video and now we're back at the house. And what is awesome is that its 10pm on a saturday and I'm going to bed! Hehe :)

Unscripted Sketches 29!

2009-11-05T21:46:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite places to look for skteches is Unscripted Sketches. Every Saturday they post a new sketch and about 10 examples of how to use that sketch on cards, layouts or altered items. Anyhow, I finally got around to making a card with their sketch this week! Sketch 29:

And in the spirit of the snow this morning I made this card:The photo isn't great, but I used two new techniques. The first one I got from my friend April. I used those old cheap decorative edge scissors to border an element on the page. I sifted through my $1 scissors that i thought I'd NEVER use again and cut out the snowman! The 2nd technique is on the snowman's hat. I actually used a product called flower soft, but it's basically like flocking, or colored pocket lint that you glue to your page. I thought it made the snowman's hat look nice and fluffy! Here is a detail view:

And then of course I used dry and wet embossing. One of my favorite techniques to do! Enjoy!

First snow....

2009-11-05T19:30:00.002-05:00

Well, when I woke up this morning and took Lexie out for a walk I felt like a child on Christmas! It was snowing!! It was just a dusting, but it was definitely full out snowing this morning. After Lexie pee'd I had to go grab the camera and try to get a few shots of the newly fallen white stuff. :) This was my deck:I don't think this is any early snow, it's pretty normal to start getting dustings in the first week of November. In fact, last year it snowed on Halloween. But our weather has been so warm (unseasonably cool, then unseasonably warm) that it took me for a surprise a bit. Just last Saturday it was 70 outside! Needless to say, it was a good morning to wake up to. :)

I realized that I haven't said much on my blog about my new job. Most of you know that I got a new job, but I haven't elaborated much on what I'm doing and (more importantly) if I like it. Hehe... well I do! I like it a lot. I'm learning a lot right now, but I feel really empowered at this job because I can actually fix stuffy and troubleshoot myself! And I feel like women in general are given more reponsibility here compared to my old job. In my old job, it felt like it was 'easy' to succeed because expectations were lower. In this job, I feel like I've got higher expectations, which pushes me to work harder and be better. And to be honest, I like the challenge. :)

And tonight my hubby cooked me dinner! I guess I picked a good one. He grilled steak (with a delicious dry rub) and made mashed potatoes. He even called me to find out where the 'trigger' was. I said....whatt?? He said, I found the metal sticks that you beat the potatoes with but can't find the trigger. Too funny....... haha....

Well thats all for today. I can't ramble on tonight or I'll have nothing to talk about tomorrow, right?? ;-)

RIP Samsung 720p!

2009-11-04T18:25:00.003-05:00

Well, I have some sad news to share. AFter a week of it not acting right, our HD TV has officially bit the dust. It's only 3.5 years old which is a bit disappointing. And of course, it happened when we're not exactly rolling in the dough....but we'll be able to get another one.....in a few months. And no, we don't have any other TV's in the house. We honestly don't watch it THAT much. So RIP our TV that we just got hung on the wall (finally) and all the wires hid back in June.....

On a brighter note I scrapbooked my two cuties in their halloween costumes!

I'm actually in the mood to stay up all night long and work one some fun crafty projects....but I don't think that I'll be a very happy worker tomorrow if I did that. So I'll do the right thing and go to bed. That makes me a better me, when I'm rested and can perform at work properly!! :)

A bit of a revelation....

2009-11-03T06:13:00.003-05:00

It hit me today. As I was getting dressed this morning, thinking about my day, I finally put into words what I've been thinking/working on for the past few weeks. I’m not sure what exactly sparked it; it could have been a variety of things including:
1. My new job
2. Putting our house on the market
3. Reading a blog yesterday about how miserable this woman was before she got divorced. I didn't want to read it, didn't really care, but couldn't stop myself (think car accident analogy)
4. Recognizing the need for routine

I think it was a combination of the things mentioned above that made me recognize what I’ve been working for: I am going to be a better me. Now, I know just about everyone that has ever seen Oprah is working on being a better something. Friend. Wife. Lover. Christian, Daughter, Mother, ....etc. etc. But what I am doing is slightly different. I'm being a better me....meaning the people and things that I love and care about and the things and people I want in my future. Those are the things I'm putting my focus and energy into.

Ever since I was laid off this summer, I realized more than ever that if you don’t fill your time with something, you will fill it with nothing. So I’m choosing to fill my time with things that are purposeful – which for me means less facebook and more scrapbook. Less Jon & Kate plus 8 and more family/friend dates!

For starters, I'm getting into a weekly routine. This will keep me organized (and sane) and also keep my house in order for any short-notice home shows. I have many do-able fulfilling wants and keeping a routine will ensure my life is full of the things I need: A strong loving relationship with my (new) husband. A full social calendar with family and friends. A presentable, clean house. Time to scrapbook. Time to read. Time to play sports and be active.

So far my schedule is:
Mondays - Laundry and Bathroom wipe-down
Tuesdays - ??
Wednesdays - Water the spider plant, volleyball league
Thursdays - ??
Fridays – Family/friend time
Saturdays - Scrapbooking and family/friend time
Sundays - Water the spider plant and cactus, sweep the kitchen.

As you can see I have a lot of blanks, which just means I'll add to them as I go. I know I'll find more things that need to fit into my weekly routing (grocery shopping etc...) so it's good to start with room to expand.Some other things I’ve done recently that contribute to being a better me include:
1) Joining a book club. It hasn't started yet...but I hope it does soon! I am in the middle of a book right now and it's going slow so I think this is a good reason to keep me reading. I love to read, it's a fantasy world for a few minutes. :)
2) I've been making my lunch every day for work instead of buying it. Something I usually do about 60% of the time.
3) I've been having monthly 'girls nights' which is really an excuse to scrapbook and gossip. Perfect. Two things I love.

Some other things I'd like to add to my 'routine' include eating better, cooking more home-made meals and going to the gym. But I'm taking baby steps........

Day 2- so far so good!

2009-11-02T16:57:00.005-05:00

So I signed up for a free online class from Jessica Sprague. She teaches lots of digital scrapbooking, photo shop and photography stuff. It was on the recommendation of Katee..

It starts in 2 weeks and I can't wait!

And last week, Chris's sister (Kim) and her husband brought over their wedding present to us. Aaron made us a BEAUTIFUL wine rack/cabinet. Isn't this just amazing?

Aaron does such fabulous work! I'll find a link to his growing website and post it here when I get the chance.....

NaBloPoMo

2009-11-01T15:58:00.005-05:00

I have signed up for a bit of a challenge on my blog. I'm taking part in the National Blog Posting of the Month (NaBloPoMo) The challenge is to post a blog posting every day in the month of November. And what's funny, is I almost forgot it started today. Yikes! I almost blew it on the first day...haha... but I made it. So wish me luck!

So last night was Halloween and Tracy and I were carebears. We upgraded the outfits a bit from last week....what do you think of our care bear stare pose??And our tail touch.... notice the cute care bear heart on Tracy's bum (I had one too on the other cheek).

And Lexie and Clive learned to play nice yesterday. I think it helps that Lexie has been playing with lots of other dogs. Here is my favorite photo from the pups yesterday...

Notice there is not tape on Lexie's ears!!! Keeping my fingers crossed that her ears are all done!! :) Talk to you tomorrow!

Halloween Birthday Party and our Anniversary!

2009-10-28T20:25:00.007-05:00

On Saturday I went to Sammy's Halloween themed birthday party. Mom and I dressed up as Care Bears: One of the first games was one where you have to tie a balloon to your leg and then try to pop everyone else's balloons before yours gets popped.

And the birthday girl was dressed up as Dorothy! Here she is playing pin the nose on the pumpkin:

The party was a lot of fun, Kim did SUCH a great job! :)

And tonight (Wednesday) Chris and I decided to celebrate our 18th day of marriage, and we broke out the engraved champagne glasses and opened a bottle of champagne. Why not......right?

Lexie's first day of daycare!

2009-10-26T19:23:00.002-05:00

Lexie went to Doggie Day Care today for her first time. She was so hyper this morning, it's almost as if she knew she was going. Chris associated it with a child on their first day of school. Very cute. :) We dropped her off around 6:45am and picked her up at 5:30pm. She was utterly exhausted! She was sleeping when we picked her up, slept the whole way home and has been sleeping for 2 hours since we got home......she's one tired pup!

wedding sneak peek!

2009-10-24T18:01:00.002-05:00

My photographer has a video of shots from the wedding that she's worked on. Take a peek here

I've been wedding crazy...

2009-10-22T21:09:00.004-05:00

And I'm now Suzanne Richards! Well, not officially, I haven't really changed anything yet....but I am married and I am taking his last name, so it's only a matter of time. :)

Anyhow...the wedding went off beautifully! The sun showed up right on time, around noon and the temp was a crisp 58....but it went well and I'm happy! Other than us getting a last minute Pastor Change....the wedding was (dare i say....) perfect!

The honeymoon.....was another story all together.... ughhh I will type it all again later, but for now I want to share some photos from friends and family from the wedding! Thanks to all who came, had a good time and wished us well!

The Law of the Garbage Truck....

2009-09-24T23:45:00.001-05:00

One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches!

The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly. So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!' This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so... love the people who treat you right. Pray for the ones who don't.

Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!

Life updates....

2009-09-18T23:03:00.008-05:00

So I haven't blogged in a while... SO SORRY! I started work on Sept 9th. So I've been a bit busy between that and all the WEDDING PLANNING! By the way - 21 days!!!

Let's see, my cousing Doug (DJ) got married at the Poland Springs Resort on labor day weekend. It was a gorgeous outdoor wedding and a beautiful day! Here are a few of my favorite photos:
Let's see....what else is going on? I'm working a strange schedule while I"m training. I switch between days and nights and even have to work a full weekend of nights. But I get PLENTY of time off for the wedding so that is AWESOME!

oh and a card to share for my Friend Jen's wedding tomorrow:I used my new CRICUT to cut out the Mr&Mrs. and the champagne glasses. :)

That is all for now.... next post I'll get you some Lexie photos, I promise. :)

Fall into Scraptember at Coast2coast!

2009-09-02T20:56:00.003-05:00

Hey all you creative crafty ladies - I know you're out there and read my blog!!! We're having a big crop at Coast2Coast from September 5th - September 27th. Why don't you come on by, and try the challenge out for yourself! There are some AWESOME prizes to be won including a $50 Visa gift card as the grand prize!!!! Come on over, sign yourself up and join in on the fun!!!!

The master list of challenges can be found here. Please, tell them Suzanne sent you! We can't wait to hear from you!!!

Two Lights State Park

2009-08-26T15:41:00.004-05:00

Yesterday Tracy and I went on a little Maine adventure. Funny that she's grown up here and seen only a few of the lighthouses in the area. Isn't that what Maine is known for?? I've only seen two (both this year) so we figured we'd take Lexie to go visit Two Lights State Park. It's named for the two light houses you can see from the Park - although we only found one and it was in severe need of painting, I decided not to photograph it.... but we had fun climbing on the rocks anyhow. I guess I need to read up on my Maine Visitors information. haha!

here are a few of my favorite shots that we snapped while there:

Fun weekend!

2009-08-24T11:46:00.008-05:00

Kenny's wedding on Saturday was a good time. :) It was so nice to see them and they were both looking wonderful! The reception ended around 9:00 so we went to the Sea Dog Brewing Company afterwards with some of the wedding party and other friends. It was a good time. :) Unfortunately I didn't bring the memory card for my camera so I didn't get any photos :( Boooooo to that! But luckily Kenny and Kristen had cards on their place card table that listed a link where the official photos will be uploaded. I'll post a few once they are up!

Then on Sunday Chris and I took Lexie out on her first boat ride with Marc and Tracy! The boys were fishing for Stripers on the Saco River/Ocean. Unfortunately we didn't catch anything except a buzz - but we had fun! here are a few of my favorite photos:

A Wedding day.......

2009-08-22T06:39:00.006-05:00

Today Chris and I are headed up to Bangor for a college friend's wedding. I'm so excited for Kenny and Kristen! Bangor is about 2.5 hours north of here. We booked a hotel within walking distance of the reception so we don't have to drive home late at night. I'm super excited and can't remember the last time Chris and I had a hotel with just the two of us! We usually bunk with a bunch of friends..... so this is a big treat! Lexie will be staying with her grandmother Richards. :) She's so kind to take her whenever we need it.

Here is the card I made for their wedding. I got the sketch from Unscripted Sketches, Sketch #19.Lexie got her ears posted yesterday, finally! That means no more cup on her head, no more cone around her neck and she's much more comfortable now! She'll have her ears taped to these posts for about a month, maybe more. The ears are all healed, but now we must train them to stand.

Lexie and I did a little photo shoot this morning. I'm still in my glasses and PJ's (a rare occasion to see a photo of me in my glasses!!). Here are the new posts!We are taking off around 11am today (after I make them a card) and will be back sometime around noon tomorrow. Have a fun weekend!

A typical Thursday!

2009-08-20T15:05:00.009-05:00

Well I have officially accepted a job with Proctor & Gamble in Auburn, ME. I will be starting on September 9th - wish me luck!

So a few days ago when I was cleaning our my freezer I came across this:who knew that I had a Christmas present in my freezer from Katie and Tiffany that was just WAITING to be gobbled up??? Well - I dug into that cookie dough and at three of them - raw - And they were very yummy. Hehe.. Thanks Tiffany and Katie!What the heck took me so long, right?

Lexie is *hopefully* getting her ears posted up today. That means she can get rid of her 'Shriner' hat. As cute as she is, I think she'll be more comfortable with just the little posts. It should be cooler and easier for Chris and I to manage too. Here is our first 'family photo'. It's not very good, but it's our first. :)

I'm so excited I came up with this 5 point (Weight Watchers Points) lunch today! It's one of those Sandwich rounds bread, two slices of cheese, turkey pepperoni and a sprinkle of shredded cheese on top. I threw it all into the toaster oven. YUM!And here is a photo from last night - Chris taught Lexie to lay down on command in about a day!
And today Lex and I played in the yard for a bit. She's so cute!!!Happy Thursday!

Sebago Lake!

2009-08-18T21:12:00.002-05:00

I had a blast yesterday - I met my Aunt Corinne and her play-group friends at her Grandmother's house on Sebago Lake! Lucky for me it's only about 2o minutes from my house! I had a blast and even brought Lexie for some more socialization! I didn't actually get any photos, but I know Corinne did so maybe I can steal one from her on facebook. I bonded particularly well with one Miss Julia. She was adorable at 4.5 years old :) So glad that I could see the family!

And on wedding notes, my invitations are all in the mail! I'm 52 days from the wedding and so glad to know they are all in the mail! onto decorations, favors and all the other little details of the day! :)

I GOT CRAFTY!!!

2009-08-16T12:12:00.003-05:00

Ok, if you don't know how much I'm into scrapbooking and card-making that title might seem a bit strange. haha..... but I did! I finally started making cards again! Other than a wedding card for Kim back in July, I don't think I've done anything crafty in like 2 months..... that's what happens in the summer though. There are so few chances to enjoy the good weather here in Maine.... that I tend to put my scrappiness away for the warm months.

Anyhow, I'm doing a summer-long card swap. 36 cards that I had to make! And I pumped them all out in two days! They were Christmas themed too which TOTALLY got me ready for the Holiday season. I know, it's a few months away. :) Anyhow, I can't share those cards there (its a surprise for you swap gals) but I can share two other cards I made yesterday. :)

and on the puppy front - Lexie is doing really well! She got her stitches out on Friday and will hopefully have the 'lampshade' off tomorrow or Tuesday! Right now it just keeps her from scratching at the cup on her head that holds her ears up. But the cup should come off soon and she'll just have popsicle sticks (or something similar) holding them up, until they stay up on their own. Getting closer.... :)

Had a (mostly) Fabulous weekend!

2009-08-09T20:46:00.007-05:00

I'm going to try to keep this short and sweet, because it's getting late but I just had an (almost) perfect weekend. If only I were HEALTHY! This darn summer cold has really gotten me, it's probably the worst cold I've ever had! Ughhhh but there was too much excitement to dwell on the cold, so I just kept my mind busy and plastered a smile on my face!

So Saturday was Marc and Tracy's wedding! Marc is Chris's best friend and Tracy mine, so we were almost as excited for their wedding as we are for ours! Friday night rehearsal went off without a hitch, ceremony at Bug Lighthouse in Cape Elizabeth, Maine and the rehearsal dinner at Sebago Brewing Company in Portland. Saturday morning after a brief stop at the clinic to get myself checked out, we were ready to be pampered and prettied up! The hall looked so STUNNING with the surprise chair covers from Tracy's mom and matching pink sashes. All the centerpieces were flowers that were grown in Tracy's mom's garden too! How awesome! Here are a few photos, just quickies to share....

And little Lexie had her ears cropped on Friday.... so now we're calling her cone-head. I hope they heal fast so we can take off all the gauze!!!

More animal news....

2009-08-03T20:08:00.007-05:00

This time it's about my Lizard, Cosine. Many of you probably don't even know I have a lizard. I got her when I was in college, 6 years ago. She's a leopard Gecko and quite the easy pet to take care of. That was until I noticed a swollen pocket on her belly about a week and a half ago. Well the swelling got worse, so I brought her to the vet to get it checked out. Who brings a gecko to the vet, right? Well apparently not many people because after calling 8 vets in southern Maine, I found the ONE that will see reptiles. And how FORTUNATE that it's right in Gorham! :) Cosine will be ok, hopefully. But I Have medicine cabinet full of stuff to take care of her with: So I have to flush out her wound with the blue liquid, I have to orally force feed her 0.03mL of antibiotics with the syringe. Do you have any idea how SMALL 0.03mL's is? It's like one drop of water. Haha..... Apparently the antibiotics will dehydrate her so I have to spray her with water (pink water bottle) and then soak her in 90 deg water once/day. LIke literally fill a tub full of water and plop her into it, and make sure she doesn't drown. Good thing I like her! Her tank usually has sand substrate on the floor of it, but because her wound was on her belly the vet was afraid it would get caked into her skin, so I had to exchange the sand for paper towels. This whole regime continues for 4 weeks. I sure am a dedicated mama! The vet thinks it happened because of all the humid weather we've been having and it threw off her shedding cycle. Grrrr to mother nature!

Here are a few shots I took of her today because I was realizing that I don't take enough photos of her and someday I will scrapbook her. :)

And I can't put up a post without including a recent Lexie photo!! Here she is on her new doggie bed!

Puppy time.... 9 weeks

2009-07-28T07:13:00.007-05:00

Well, on Sunday we drove to Northwood, NH to pick up our little bundle of joy. Chris and I are parents! Well....kinda. :) Now what did we finally decide on the name? After all the discussion and back and forth the only name we could STILL decide on was Josie. However I did come up with a list of 30 names to discuss. Well..... when we got to the breeder to sign the papers and make it official we started discussing names. We told them we were leaning towards Josie but might take a day or two to figure it all out. The breeder was telling us that her father (Bentley Turbo R is his show name) was named after a car so maybe Lexie (for Lexus) or Sadie (for Mercedes) would be cute. Well funny enough, both of those names were on my list! Chris really liked the sound of Lexie so now we had two options... Lexie or Josie? As we walked out the door, puppy in hand Chris asked me "so is it Lexie?" I smiled and said definitely! So let me share some pictures from our first 24 hours!She is a very good puppy too! She is learning 'off' very well actually! We don't let her on the furniture and for now, she's not allowed upstairs, since our whole upstairs is carpet. I figured after we get through a few weeks of puppy 'oops' we'll slowly let her up there too. :) At night and for a few hours during the day we are putting her in a crate. She doesn't like getting into it, but once she's in there she sleeps like a baby. So it's day 2 and we're doing well!

Dog news and NYC

2009-07-25T11:14:00.013-05:00

Goodness gracious it's been a long journey to getting our puppy. We still don't have her Yet, BUT we do have a plan to get her! Although it's not the one pictured below. Long story short, she has health problems and it was recommended we choose another dog. So we went with her brindle colored sister. And you know what, I'm ok with it. :) I'll love no matter what dog we get. Color is only fur deep. Hehe. ;-) I don't have as many photos of the brindle girl, but here is one to share from 3 weeks ago. I'm sure she's MUCH bigger now and will share photos after we pick her up tomorrow!She's on the left in the 2nd photo. We are torn between keeping the name Josie or not. It's still the only name we can both agree on, so we might end up with it. :)

In other news Tracy and I had a FABULOUS time in NYC over the 4th of July! It was a bachelorette party for her and we met up with her other bridesmaids, Liz and Melanie. What fun! here are a few photos to share.
We deemed this lighthouse "Roosevelt Island Lighthouse" hehe, since it's on Roosevelt Island where Melanie lives! What a beautiful part of NYC! It's an island down the side of Manhattan and there is a tram that you can take over the river and into the city. The island is grassy, clean, safe and even has a lighthouse and trees! It reminds me of Maine. ;-)
Me taking a bit of a glamor shot on Roosevelt Island. Didn't I tell you it was pretty!!??!!??

I don't have many photos of all four of us, but here we are in Central Park enjoying an ice-cream!

This is my sexy pose on the roof of a building where we watched the 4th of July Fireworks!!!
I think you're guaranteed a good time when you're on the subway late-night! This was Tracy (and the rest of us) dancing it up to Ride.,..Sally....Ride..... :)And what trip to NYC isn't complete without seeking out the naked cowgirl in Times Square!! haha
we all had a blast in NYC and I think Tracy really enjoyed herself. It was a weekend I know she'll never forget and neither will we! It was a nice vacation for all of us! her wedding is only TWO weeks away so I can't wait!!

PS - if you didn't notice above, my wedding planning website was updated today too!

lots of changes...

2009-07-08T18:24:00.006-05:00

So it's been a while since I have posted. I was doing so well too! However there have been lots of changes since I last posted. We don't have the puppy yet, BUT we do have THE ONE picked out. I haven't shared any photos yet, so I'll do that now. We've decided to go with Josie. It's the one name that Chris and I both REALLY like - there really wasn't anything that we both could agree on more..... so Josie it is! Now we need a show name. It will likely be Rampart's -something- Josephine or Rampart's Josephine -something-. Chris likes Rampart's Rock and Roll Josephine. Haha.So there she is! Isn't she adorable?????

Weekend warriors....

2009-06-21T16:29:00.008-05:00

This weekend was a BUSY one for Chris and I. Ok, mostly for Chris but still. We got two new vinyl windows and Chris and Marc installed them yesterday. Today Chris and I did the finish work and cleaned up the house and the yard and I single-handedly cleaned up the WHOLE garage! Organized, put away, trashed, swept and gave our garage a pretty big make-over. :) I'm proud of myself. hehe.....

Here is a picture of Marc up on the staging. You can see one window out on the left, and the old window is still in on the right. It was a bigger project than I expected!
This is the same view from the inside of the living room. Sorry for the poor photo. The light from the window washed out the room and I tried to lighten it. And the finished product, with two new vinyl windows and the room is all cleaned up! I'm so happy that those are done! 2 down, and 6 to go. I guess we'll be busy for a few more weekends. :)

And I have to share the card that I just whipped up. I just like the simplicity, I have a hard time just leaving things simple on cards. :)
P.S. See that little lantern next to the card? I ordered it for wedding ideas/inspiration. I think it'll be part of our centerpieces! I love it, and I think Chris really likes it too!!

Puppy Pictures!!!

2009-06-14T17:22:00.009-05:00

So on Friday night, Chris and I went to visit the breeder that we have a deposit with for a Boxer Puppy. There are actually 5 litters to choose from, but we are looking for a flashy female fawn boxer so we wanted to check them all out. We saw two litters this weekend and look at these cuties! And a few more pictures to share because I can't get enough of these guys:

We did put one on hold, until we can see the rest of them next weekend. Here are a few pictures of our favorite this far. We were thinking the name Josie - but it's too close to "no" so we're re-thinking names. I like Skyler and Ruby Jean (it's from a Jeremiah Freed song) and Chris likes Isis and Rogue (girl from X-Men). Any other names suggestions?? leave them in the comments section!

Great weekend!

2009-06-07T17:04:00.008-05:00

I knew I had a lot planned this weekend and it was a blast. On Friday night, Kenny came over. I hadn't seen him since this winter so it was good to hang out. Kenny, Chris and I went over to Doug's house and Chris and Doug played a few songs. Josh joined on the drums (he's not the normal drummer) and Kenny and I lent a bit of help on the vocals.

Then on Saturday Tracy and I played Tennis in the morning, then we went to Dougs to hang out a bit and the boys played a bit of guitar. Went to Olive Garden for dinner (I had manicotti and two meals of leftovers!!) and then we went to Marc and Tracy's pre-nuptial dance. This is a Biddeford, Maine thing. You could consider it an engagement party, but there are raffles to raise money for the wedding too.

Then today, I had a bit of girl's day. The five of us ladies (Me, Laura, Tracy, Jess and Roberta)

Met at Grittys and walked around the Old Port Festival. I had never been before so it was a lot of fun! But super busy, lots of people. I have never seen so many people in one place in Maine before. The best part for me was the free concerts. They had three stages (maybe more?) set up in the Old Port and we just walked around from stage to stage. We got to see Eliot Yamine (from American Idol) I have to say that Eliot sounds better on the radio than he does live, but he sounded. ok. as well as We the Kings The lead singer of this band was so animated and really got the crowd involved, so that was a huge plus. They sounded pretty good live too. Although during the last song the lead singer took his shirt off....and I could have lived without the skin.

And Thriving Ivy was awesome live! The lead singers voice is just so unique - it has a bit of an Our Lady Peace feel, but I really hate to compare them to OLP.....but it just reminded me of the singer from OLP. Anyhow...all in all a fun day!

Thanks Dad!!

2009-06-04T21:06:00.001-05:00

So I'm posting this because Dad made me these gorgeous window boxes last summer - and I never got any flowers in them. I'm bad.... I'll admit it. But this year, I got them in! And I'm posting because they are beautiful! Hopefully the impatients will fill in as the summer goes on - wish me luck that I don't kill them - I don't have a very green thumb... So thanks Dad - I love you!

I forgot to post a few photos!!

2009-06-04T20:17:00.004-05:00

I have more cards that I made when I went to CKC that I didn't share with you folks. What a bad scrapbooking sharer!! :) Ok, so without further a do - here they are! The class was called Joy of Cardmaking - and yes cardmaking is SO JOYOUS! haha.... Ok, here they are:

Yummy Quiche!

2009-06-01T19:41:00.006-05:00

Well I'm back on a weight watchers kick so I pulled out some of my favorite weight watcher's recipes. The first thing I made was a spinach and cheese quiche. It's only 3 points per serving.... so I usually have 2-3 servings. ;-)

The recipe:

Makes 12 servings

one 12-oz can evaporated skim milk

1/3 c. low fat cottage cheese

1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese

2 eggs

3 egg whites

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. black pepper

One 10 oz box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

Plain Pie Crust, baked and cooled (recipe found here)

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. In a medium bowl, whisk the milk, cottage cheese, Parmesan, eggs, egg whites, salt and pepper.

2. Spread spinach over the pie crust, then pour the filling over the spinach. Bake 15 minutes; reduce the oven temperature to 350 F and bake until filling is set, 20 minutes longer. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Per serving: 139 calories. 5g total fat, 2g saturated fat, 40mg cholesterol, 359 mg sodium, 14g total carbohydrate, 1g dietary fiber, 9 g protein, 188mg calcium. Points per serving: 3

Thanks to MOM for the WW cookbook!

New Wedding Blog...

2009-05-31T17:18:00.003-05:00

So I stumbed across this website that hosts wedding blogs. I was actually looking for ideas for our wedding, and I decided that I should start a blog with all my DIY ideas so others can benefit from them too!

So I've started a wedding related blog - I know I have lots of family and friends that are always asking "how's the wedding planning going??" well now you can read up on it! So if you are interested in what's going on related to wedding stuff... then check it out and bookmark it!

Suzanne's Wedding Planning Blog

Ta ta for now!

wedding sneak peak....

2009-05-28T20:07:00.004-05:00

Well I'm not sure how much of my family and close friends read this blog, but I know a few do because they leave comments - or talk about things I posted on here...hehe. Well you're in for a treat! I'm posting a sneak peak to my wedding invitations! I'll be making them myself. My sample invite is hand written but of course I'll be printing them all. Anyhow, without further a-do:

I'm actually thinking of starting a blog that is primarily dedicated to wedding planning - because I know some people like to follow all the little details, ideas and plans. I'll let you know if I decide to follow up on that idea. Hehe...

Oh and what do you think of my cake mock up??It will be detailed and likely topped off with flowers!

I have more cards to share from CKC but I haven't gotten them loaded onto the computer yet - so thats for another day!

I'm Back from CKC!

2009-05-18T19:59:00.007-05:00

And what a wonderful weekend it was! :) I took four classes, a four hour crop and had a great girly weekend of fun! First I will share a few project photos. I only took photos of my classes from Saturday and those were a perpetual calendar (I'm not done still need to fill it out)

And this acrylic album was a class provided by the Button Farm which is located in maine!

I don't have photos (yet) of my two other classes, but I'll show those when I can. :) And the last two photos are of us girls having fun. Katee finally bought her Spellbinders Nestabilities Wizard! It's kinda like a cuttlebug for those of you that aren't familiar. Anyhow, this was her getting really excited as she opened it:

And this is Julie, playing with her sleep number bed... we turned it all the way down and Julie almost disappeared....

And on Friday night I finished two layouts at the four hour crop. And yes I was working the whole time... and ALL I FINISHED was two layouts..ha.... :)

Almost a week!

2009-05-09T20:18:00.012-05:00

Since my last post. I thought I was doing so well posting a couple times a week. Oh well....

Today was the strangest weather! I woke up and thought it was going to rain so I stayed inside and scrapbooked. It didn't end up raining, so the boys went fishing and I cleaned up the house. After lunch I decided to shoot my bow. I need to get practicing if I'm going to start shooting tournaments this summer! As I was finishing it started sprinkling on me. Then it quickly passed and the sun came out, so Ryan, Chris and I went over to the farm to try out Chris's new gun. He ordered it about 7 months ago and it's finally in! We brought over a broken TV and shot at that...HOW REDNECK ARE WE??? Haha.... Then we went back home, ate some dinner and started watching hockey play off games. Then we noticed it was POURING outside. It only lasted about 15 min and then the sun came out again and a rainbow! I got a photo but haven't loaded it on my computer yet.

Anyhow.... here are some of the cards I made today... I can't share them all because some *might* be for people that read this blog. ;-)

want some free goodies!

2009-05-03T20:49:00.001-05:00

Well hop on over to this blog....

she's giving away free stamps from My Stamp Box. Woohooo!! goodluck!

Trying out the new camera....

2009-05-03T14:41:00.009-05:00

So as you probably saw on one of my previous posts, I purhcased a Canon Rebel XTi from my good friend Katee last weekend. Well, I've been waiting for some time to really sit down and take some good photos and today I finally did that! I had to go get something at the farm for Chris and while I was there I snapped a few shots.

These flowers were on the side of the road when I was driving back to our house. I have to admit, I did cut some off and put them in a vase in my living room. Don't tell, OK?? They were wild, really! These two were taken at my house. The first is a fence by my mailbox and the 2nd is a decoration from the graveyard that borders my property.

Well, there are some more shots that I love, but I don't want to bore you with a huge long list of photos. ;-) So I guess I'll finish watching the Red Sox and fold the laundry!

Happy Birthday!!!!!

2009-05-01T19:14:00.003-05:00

A Big ol' Happy Birthday Goes out to this girl today!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATEE!!!!!

Blog Candy from TwiddleyBitz

2009-05-01T19:12:00.002-05:00

Hey there! Want to win some free products?? all you have to do is go to this site, leave a comment and post a link on your blog. This company is out of Austrailia and they have some cute stuff. Their products can be seen here. So go enter and good luck!!

New Living Room set up!

2009-04-28T19:26:00.003-05:00

Well - for the last two weeks Chris has been on a tear - he has decided that our living room needs to be reorganized and our TV should no longer be on the stand, but actually hanging on the wall. So thats what he did! Here are Chris (left) and ryan (right) unscrewing the base on the tv.

Here they are hanging it on the wall....

And the final product (not a great photo... but you get the idea!)

That is all I have to share right now. I'm in the process of selling TONS of leftover TLC kits online and need to post some photos of those....wish me luck selling them! I have over $1,000 of inventory left in my closet that I just want to get rid of!

What a weekend!

2009-04-26T19:26:00.004-05:00

It was gorgeous here in Maine this weekend. It was about 82 on Saturday and completely sunny and clear. Sunday was slightly cooler (75) and cloudy but I still really can't complain! I had a nice relaxing day - went to the Gun Show in Biddeford with Chris this morning. It was my first gun show - and fortunately I had a lunch date so we had a strict timeline to stick to. After that I had lunch with Katee's family which is always fun and entertaining! It was actually her grandfather's 88th birthday so Aunt Joyce made enchilada's and I brought a layered taco dip. Katee and Elizabeth brought cake and ice cream - It was a fun time and it was yummy!

Then we all went to a play at the Saco River Grange Hall. Apparently they do about 3 plays each year. This one was called Leading Ladies by Ken Ludwig. It was pretty funny and definitely entertaining however I think it was geared towards a more elderly crowd (which there were plenty of there!) but I still had a good time and I think Katee did too!

And on another note - Katee sold me her Canon Digital Rebel xTi!!! I'm so excited about that and I think she is too. here she is:

My plan was to take some photos this afternoon but I didn't actually get to it. :( Very disappointing because I should be playing with my new toy.....but I'll get to it eventually. I think I just need a sunny blue sky day - the clouds disappointed me a little bit.

So that crosses one item off my list.... however now I have one to add- and that would be a lens. Katee actually is keeping the lens that it came with, but she's letting me borrow it for a little while. I have a lens from my film Rebel G camera that will fit this, but I just need to find it. So until then, Katee is gracious enough to let me borrow it. :)

So I got this link from April (thank you) because there is some fabulous blog candy that you can win here. Goodluck and you'll share if you win, riiiight?

Well that is all for tonight - it's time to watch the Red Sox playing the Yankee!!

Yard Sales here I come... and wish list...

2009-04-23T19:51:00.003-05:00

Well I dropped by my friend Jenny's blog the other day and found out her daughter recently got engaged! Congrats Toni and welcome to the club ;-) However the coolest thing that I found on Jenny's blog....is the candelabra's that she picked up at a yard sale for her daughters wedding. How cute is this? I was going to post a picture directly, but decided I better get Jenny's permission first so all you get right now is a link. ;-)

So that got me thinking - I'm a Frugal Bride (I should coin that term, shouldn't I, MOM??) I should keep my eyes open for awesome ideas like that a yard sales! So I can't wait for this warm sunny weekend so I can go look for wedding bargins.....

Also on my yard sale list is an old (light) window.... so I can transform it into a scrapbooking piece of heaven like this frame from Fancy Pants

Oh I'm feeling so creative and inspired right now!! :) I guess I better go finish my cards for the swap while I'm still in a crafty mood!!

So I decided today that there are a number of 'big' ticket items I've been saying I want for a while but haven't gotten any of them. So it's time to actually start saving and go purchase some of these items. Ideally I'd like to buy them second hand.... or not quite the latest and greatest but something that WAS the latest and greatest 1-2 years ago. I don't have to have All the newest gadgets..... well I do, I just can't afford them. ;-) So here is my list.... and slowly I will work towards getting them!

1. Lap Top - Through work I can get good deals on Dell and IBM laptops, and i need to utilize this before I get laid off....

2. Photoshop Elements for my Laptop. I downloaded the 3o day trial version and fell in love! So it's on the list

3. A Digital SLR Camera - do you have one? What is it? Do you love it? Do you want to sell it?? ;-)

4. IPod port for my car. Chris and I share and IPod that we got for free, but I think it's time I get into the year 2000 and play it in my car. ;-)

I think that is all right now.....

I've made a decision!

2009-04-22T05:05:00.002-05:00

On my bridesmaid dresses! It's been funny planning for this wedding - every time I have to decide on something, it's like I want to keep looking for something 'better'. Nothing is quite good enough. But sometimes it just feels good to have the decision behind me. So thats what I've done with my bridesmaid dresses! The decision is done - Molly has ordered and Kim will order this week. That just leaves my Sissy and Tracy! Woohooo!! Here are some pics so you can see them too. :) This is the color I'll be having also:

And here is a detail shot of the ruching at the top

You can look forward to seeing my lovely ladies in these!!! :)

National Scrapbooking Day!

2009-04-21T18:47:00.002-05:00

So - what are you doing for National scrapbooking day (NSD)? You know, it's kinda funny because I was mentioning it to a co-worker today and she said that she is going to a crop THIS weekend (April 25th) in honor of national scrapbooking day. But then I found this crop on May 2nd for NSD. So now I'm confused, but the more scrapbooking days the better for me!

So the coolest thing about the crop on May 2nd is that 1) It's only 30 minutes from my sister's house. 2) Danielle Flanders will be there teaching two classes! I'm a serious fan of her work, particularly her cards..... so it would be SO COOL to meet her!

So, what are your plans for National Scrapbooking Day??

Easter, a tutorial and a birthday!

2009-04-19T10:34:00.012-05:00

Well, i've been absent for a while and I apologize! But this will be my catch up post!

I had a few projects I was getting ready for Easter with, which took up some time. One project was decorating these candles to give to my family. The yellow tags were glued to the bottom. I had a thought.... WEDDING FAVORS?? I could wrap them in tulle.... hmmmmm.....Our Easter was very nice, I hope your was too! I had to share a picture of my little cutie (Natalie) from easter because it's too adorable not to share: We also got a few great shots of Great Nana (she's my Nana) and all the little great-grandchildren. This photo is precious...

I wouldn't say it was uneventful because around 4:30 our power went out and shortly after we saw the MASSIVE cloud of black smoke down the lake. It turns out there was a fire near one of the summer homes at Alton Bay and because of the wind and dry conditions about 45 homes were damaged, many of them burned completely. SO LUCKy though because it is April and not July so most of the homes were empty. Then after Easter I had a new project for Natalie's birthday party. Tiffany asked me to put together some boards with photos of her on it - scrapbook style. So I sure did.... I bought some foam board and cut it into cupcake shapes. Then I found some cute fabric and covered the chipboard with fabric, pulling the fabric over the edges and attaching with a hot glue gun. Then I put photos and flowers and little cupcake embellishments on the cupcakes. I attached them with a hot glue gun, but wound up with strings of hot glue on the photos, so I would recommend using photo squares or a liquid glue.

They really were easy to make - inexpensive and well liked by all. :)

And here is a cute photo of the birthday girl while she was eating her birthday cone

And a photo of Miss Natalie in her new birthday chair

That is all for now - I think I'm caught up. Hopefully I won't leave you hanging for so long between posts!

Wow have you been to this blog....

2009-04-03T16:37:00.001-05:00

I think I just found a new scrap-crush! her name is Celine... and her work is AMAZING!!!! Check out her blog here She gets to travel all over the world (kinda like me) but she's teaching SCRAPBOOKING CLASSES!!! I'm so jealous. :) CAn you tell?

Oh and my couch is ALREADY SOLD! Chris said thats because I should have priced it higher... but whateva! I couldn't charge more than I paid for it, you know? At least not in good conscience. ;-)

Ok, short post today, I just got excited about running across Celine's blog!

For sale and mock invites

2009-04-02T20:29:00.010-05:00

So I love craig's list. When Chris and I first moved in together we didn't really have the money to purchase all the furniture that we didn't have, so we looked on Craig's list to find some gently used things that would get us by until we were ready to make the purchases. Well, it's now time for us to pass on the good bargains...hehe. I just posted two things for sale on Craig's list. But of course, these items are FREE to family! So if you're in need, let us know!

First up for sale - a loveseat. asking $60.

2nd up for sale are some plastic drawers. Asking $10 And now for the good stuff! I spent about 2 hours on Monday night making up some REALLY quick mock ups for invitations. I'm not sure which design I'll use yet... but I was really just playing around with design and color. Then i decided I needed some writing on them so I could figure out what it would look like, so I wrote in some wording (this will be all printed!! haha). It's just for effect. And I don't know what stamps I'll use yet either..... but here are some general ideas I'm running with....

Which one is your favorite?? I can mix and match the stamps, of course! Ok, time for bed, goodnight!!!