Homegrown Hospitality

where are the challenges?

as if there are not enough challenges in life....I really would like a creative one....I was so sad when Rhonna "retired" from the 21 day challenges...the Polka Dot Chicks are still recouping from South Africa...the Freestyle & Color challenges are over....so who has one...can somebody direct towards a challenge?  Is that the strangest request EVER????  Since I get up at 4am to scrap sew & bake, it is my time & I LOVE to start my day with journaling....I used to do my bible study at this time, but when I started working, I had to put my bible study on hiatus...OH MAN....THAT IS AWFUL to say...at least I have "The Good News Club" and Church on Saturday...whew...anyways...I really enjoy the creative mind exercise that a challenge brings...so somebody, anybody...everybody....point in the direction of a challenge...

p.s. I would maybe start one myself...if I had some interested parties

Okay, and here is another reason why I scrapbook... a GREAT picture of my mom's Christmas Tree...My niece DELANEY (age 3) helped mom decorate the tree.....(melts my heart!) keep making memories....& have a great day!

Guess What?????

I am back...and up & running, and my pictures are here, and my files are fine and all of my artwork is safe...it was a power source...power surge knocked it out, and now, only $ 72.00 later, all is well....Praise GOD (& George at PC Warehouse...& Randy who would have come at the drop of a hat, and Matt, who also would have come over...and Dave....) It is so good to have good friends that are married to good computer guys...so LESSON FOR EVERYONE...BACK-UP, BURN DISKS, DO WHATEVER YOU NEED TO DO so that the 3,000 plus pictures you have on your hard drive are SAFE!

It has, of course taught me the lesson about the proper care & feeding of computers, but really & importantly about WHY I SCRAP....I mean , I know why I do...because of the love of memories, family, friends, moments, special times, silly things, travel, holidays, just because, joyous events...on and on and on....and although I want to believe that have mega memory in my brain of the countless memories, it has alot to do with the pictures.  I can look at a picture from 20 years ago, and I can instantly go back...but how long will I be able to do that....It really is so important to document your life...for you, for your family, for the future generations....it doesn't always have to be ultra embellished...pen, paper, and pictures...really, and the moments....I heard Lisa say on QVC that it takes 30 seconds to make a memory and 3 hours to create a layout on paper.....well, for now, fine tune it. Don't wait until you "wished you had..."Jot it down, make your notes, and embellish later.....check'em out here...they are sooooo cute, and funny, and hyper and fun.....

oh, P.S...look who I finally met in AZ.....the "chick's of Bazzill..

www.polkadotchicks.com

Glad & Happy and THANKFUL to be back in blog business...

p.s.s. here are a few simple layouts for you to recreate...simply-complicated, I know...it is just me....

coming to you from a remote location

my computer died...and yes...with all of my pictures ( i did have a few hundred on disk, but not the most recent July-October)...with all of my artwork...all of my scans...everything...I am sad...more than sad....I do not know what to do and did not realize how much I rely on my computer...even missed this...till somebody told me...YIKES!

www.lisabearnson.com

if anyone has a suggestion on what to do to retrieve my pictures.(if even possible) ..please email me at stafoya4@cox.net

thankful..

for so much, for the little things, for the big things, for family, for the friends that I have, for the difficult situations I have endured, for the fun & silly times I have shared with so many, for the feelings of sadness, and the feelings of elation, thankful for the abilities GOD has provided in me to share with others, thankful for so much....I hope that you are are just as thankful...for everything that comes your way, should it all be clear to you, or confusing at times...continue to be thankful for what GOD provides us with...strength, courage,wisdom,fear,love,knowledge & truth..I think that with those ingrediants, you just cant go wrong!

"Simply Complicated" this is me..I once compared my life to a scrap piece of RIC-RAC...up & down, cute & clean with a tiny bit of a straight edge and some frays...a bit shabby & dusty with LOTS of details and for that, I AM THANKFUL...

REMEMBER THIS

Life is never a straight line...it is full of twists & turns...the way to lead a happy & thankful life is to not avoid them, but to embrace them &  find happiness  & joy in them.

she....

is silly, is complimentary, is emotional, is funny, is gracious, is kind, is a crack up...she, is Lisa B...sitting with me, at TT in the OC... She is more than I ever would have wished her to be...I smiled ALOT....everyone did...she touched us all with her personal stories, she was just one of the girls, sitting and chatting....My best pal suezi missed all of it cuz she was sick...and Lisa sent her a little get well wish...that is the kind of girl she is...I am gushing, but I am sure that everyone that was there feels the same way!  It was like we were at a little retreat, just girls...oh, and LEON, who was this really nice husband of a gal that drove in from San Diego to meet her...turns out LEON is not his name, but that is one of the silly things...guess you had to be there ( I taught Lisa that LEON spelled backwards spells NOEL...)okay, I am sure that lots of pictures will stat to come in...so I will share as they do....Lisa, should you read this...THANK YOU...for so much!

What Matters Most

Lisa Bearnson, yep, the "queen Bee" of scrap booking (and a little empire called Creating Keepsakes) is coming to Timeless Treasure in two days....I am more than excited...which bugs me a bit.  I am so excited to meet her...to watch her, to see how she ticks....to listen to her...to let her know how much she inspires me...to do what I love, to express my thoughts through a creative outlet...but all in all, God created her, just like me, and you...she is just a person who has created a life around what she loves, what she believes in, and a way to express what matters most to her....with a little perk here & there...of creating an EMPIRE...sounds like Oprah, Donald & Martha....yes, in my rolodex of important people, she is filed under B...(next to Bon Jovi)

There is a page contest & she gave the challenge to those who are coming to crop & meet her, to create a page based on the theme of "What Matters Most" and since I am an employee, I can not enter..BUT I love the title and the thoughts that it presents....I am choosing that phrase as my mantra. To use it  for creating scrapbooks, journal entries, design work, basic everyday living, parenting, love, family life...you name it, it is going to be based on it.  Maybe all along it has been, and I just did not realize it until it was written down in front of me, but now, it is going to be a noticeable standard. something I will teach my children to live by.  When I make a decision, when I create a thought, when I answer a question, when I ask a question, when I make a choice...It will be based around that phrase....and as I was blogging this REALLY EARLY morning...I can across this quote, from none other than OPRAH....

"It does not matter what you have been through,

where you come from....

None of it matters.

What does matter is how you choose to love.

How you choose to express the love.

Through your work,

through your family

&

through what you give to the world..."

Oprah Winfrey.

can you imagine what this world would be like if everyone lived like that?  I am sure GOD has mentioned it numerous times to us, and we have heard it....we just have not listened.

enough said...challenge yourself to go out and make it matter!

p.s....thanks Lisa B...

dreams...with conditions

my dreamy job...well, it is still that...my dreamy job...although I have had to step away from a few things that I loved to do...I guess it is all compromise, but makes me sad that I can not do everything that I want to do....and as I begin to question all of my changes...It all starts to sink in...yesterday, as I was walking down the hall, I stopped to "ew & ahh" at some sample pages that a designer had put together & then  I realized that it was my stuff...the stuff I created....wow! It is very similar to when you look at your newborn baby and go..."OH MY GOSH...I MADE THIS" It all exploded in my head like 4th of July..and now, at 4 am in the morning...I am wide awake, ready to share with whomever wants to hear, and to tell those whom I love...but, it is 4am...I am awake..but no body else is (except for GOD, and he already knows, he has heard & keeps hearing about how grateful I am)... Gosh, last night at 6:30 pm I was sound asleep...and everyone else was awake....I coulda shared then...hmmmm

(and another rambling on...GOD is not tired of hearing me, shoot,  he heard me for 26.2 straight miles, in the rain, about thanking him for all of my ups & downs....and still loves to hear me...and you too!)

on another note...have you met MAGNOLIA? it is the new realese from My Minds Eye...I like to say, the sister of BOHEMIA...YUMMY PAPERS..go getcha some! here is a picture of my chotic creative space loots like right now...I am working on 5 albums...all at the same time......is that ADD or ADHD?

lastly...IT IS RAINING....YIPPEE...Our first rain....

If you were a fly on the wall..

at my house this Sunday Fall Morning....you would have seen Ben &  I dancing here....You would hear the" Time-Life Holiday Collection" blasting from the garage....you would smell the yummy cinnamon holiday candle burning & homemade chicken soup simmering....& of course, it would not be home with the boys bickering about who is gonna clean up the playstation, and who is picking up the misc. toys around the house...It is a fall Sunday morning in So. California, high 60's, mild skies, a bit of clouds...I have my Jammie's on, Hurley Hat on,  I miss my mom....but I love life...the people in it, the people around it, the people that pass through it, the things I get to do, the home  I struggle to create & keep...(struggle in a positive creative way)..I love the busy life I lead, and all of the projects that I have to finish....and it helps that the Holiday music is blasting...off to cut, color, paste & paint...have a chaotic, creative pre-Christmas day.....

have you met my mom?

tomorrow is my mom's 60th birthday...60? my mom can't be 60...I remember when she turned 40....and I will be 40 in 2 years...oh man...well, for those who don't know her...this is my mom ...

she is a great mom...always has a gift for everyone that pops by at Christmas...still is very close friends with her "brat pack" from elementary & high school....has kitchen towels for each holiday....loves the color red...hangs up the latest artwork from Jack, Ben, Kamryn & Delaney in cute white "pottery barn" style frames as art in her guest room...still has mine & my sisters baby cups in the cupboard...straightens UP the straightened house before the cleaning lady comes...does YOGA, goes to bible study, floats on "noodles" with the kids in the pool, eats little white donuts with Ben, plays Yatzee with the kids, makes the BEST "Sunday" dinners, but is also open to eating cereal for dinner...watches ALOT of HGTV (Home & Garden)...she has been right by my side at the birth of my two boys, has been through the ringer with me & my teenage years (& some  adult years) (sorry mom)...and just like a  mom....still loves me!!!

she taught me to love home...love being home, love keeping a home, love making a home, she taught me to love the Christmas "holidays"  from September -December...(her house looks like Santa's village)..not messy though...very kept...but don't get me wrong, she accepts messes too...just picks up after-wards....she taught me to bake, to cook, to sew, to craft, she taught me what it is to be a mom...thank you mom...I love you...Happy 60th birthday....

Happy November

thank you to all who came by my cozy lil holiday home for a little shopping, sipping, snacking, etc.  It was fun and hopefully got you on a good start to your holiday shopping...there are still some things available, and I will posting some pics later on today to purchase!

I am leaving up the tree, lights and keeping the candles lit cuz, I love this season...even though, here is CALIFORNIA...it is in the 90's with dry wind and high fire danger...I would prefer it to be opposite of all that, with a fire in the fire place, but hey, to live here, it is give and take...so maybe we will head to the beach, even though the towels &  sunscreen are packed away for next summer....

so it is voting day...do you vote?  I need to be honest and tell you that I do not.  I don't want to vote by the commercial ad's, by here say, and who says what...and I don't know the issues nor do I take the time to read the propositions....I know that there are 13, but that is because the news is on RIGHT NOW ( at 5:07 am) and BRAD PITT is joining the forces to reach the public...nope, sorry BRAD, It doesnt change my mind...I know that my vote cold make the difference, and I apologize to you whom I may offend...I know that it is important, so I will make a conscious effort to prep myself for the presidential elections....for now I , must take a shower. make lunches, straighten the house, feed the dog, get backpacks by the front door, make sure the bunny has water...and load my car for the day...those are my propositions....

one other thing... look at these cute stamps that I got at MICHAELS..oh, and this...

www.purpleoniondesigns.com (click on "NEW" stamps)

you can now purchase my own stamps...... hehehe...have a great day...

ONE MORE THING.....check this out

http://www.timeless-scrapbooking.com/cruise.htm