Teasers...

A few more from my June gallery. Our new kit "Mayberry" will be up for sale on June 1st (tomorrow) at 8:00 a.m. CST. Don't miss it!

See you then!! Hope you all had a great weekend!

Sneak Peeks...

Just stopping by quick to share some sneak peeks. I am making a fabric mini album for my gallery this month. It has really stretched me creatively...and it's taken me a LOT longer to finish than a few layouts would have. But I like the way it's turning out, so that makes it all worth while. This is a tiny little look at the front cover. I used the new Maya Mist spray ink, and it was definitely a learning experience! LOL.
I used the Fancy Pants mixed media felt page and framed my photo with hand embroidery. I must admit that embroidery is very relaxing. But it felt like it took forever!
I decided to use my Easter pictures for this book because there were so many of them that I really loved. The colors work really well also! I used 3 coats of paint on this page. I felt very artsy busting out my Heidi Swapp polka dot mask, but I always seem to get a little carried away when I am working with paint. More is always better! LOL.

I love those sweet Crate Paper rub-ons!

This canvas album already had stitching around each page so I added to it with my own.

Hope you have a great night! I just might have to share some more tomorrow!

Last day...

Last day of school. Awwww...it was a sad day, but fun day. These two ladies have been amazing this year. They have poured out as much love and knowledge and kindness to these two little ones as humanly possible.
The kids are really going to miss them...I think I may miss the whole school routine also! I offered to come in and help with their party and they gave me the important job of being the official face painter for the afternoon. That was fine, except for Tanner and his friends wanted things like crocodiles and black sharks. Ummm yeah, I have a hard enough time drawing on a piece of paper, let alone a squirmy 5 year old! LOL. They didn't care though...you can see Tanner is trying to show his off in the picture above.
I stopped and took a picture of the sky on the way home. This picture doesn't do it justice, but you should have seen how beautiful it was in person! A few seconds after I took it, it started pouring rain.

It makes me think of the quote that says:

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass, it's about learning how to dance in the rain." And we did dance today, rain and all, both physically and metaphorically. Hope you have a great day! I'll be back tomorrow with sneak peeks of my June gallery!

Camp-out...

A couple of things about the camp-out...

1. The organic bug spray I bought that made us all smell like a citronella candle...does NOT work!

2. Camping is IDEAL when you are 15 steps from your own bathroom and shower.

3. You would have thought I had taken these three to Disney World with all the excitement in the air.
4. Camping on soft grass is the only way to go.
5. A portable DVD player makes an excellent flash light.
6. Listening to the wind blow through the trees as you fall asleep is magical.
7. The birds are up WAAAAY too early. Like 4:30 a.m. too early! One word: woodpeckers! Ugh!

8. Pitching a tent alone can be done...and I was pretty proud of myself I must admit.
9. When they say 4 man tent...they really mean 3 kids (and all of their stuffed animals )and one adult is ALL there is room for!

10. My dog is not a camper.

11. Marcus and Tanner are good team...they wear each other out! Both of them slept until around 9:00.
12. Camping is just NOT camping without making s'mores!

13. For anyone to get any sleep you have to remind the kids that there are NO bears anywhere near our forest!

We had a blast. We all slept remarkably well, and it was really warm. (The one thing about camping that I don't like, is being cold!) And the first thing out of Tanner's mouth when he woke up this morning was "Mom? Can we do this everyday?" To which I replied..."sometime soon." Happy Memorial Day!

Memorial Day Weekend...

around here means it is officially the kick off for summer! We are celebrating with a camp-out in the backyard. Unless it rains, then the tent will be pitched in the house. The kids are beside themselves with excitement!
We love summer!! I am also very excited to announce who our guest designer for the month of June is. Heather Preckel!! Heather is as sweet as can be and I can't wait to see what she comes up with to share with us! Hope you all have a fabulous loooong weekend...the official kick-off to summer! Hugs!

Friday funnies...

Chloe brought home a binder from school yesterday...it was really a scrapbook of pictures of her from the year and projects that they had done together as a class. At the end their was a "student interview." It had questions like "what is your name?" and "what is your favorite food?" There was also "what is your favorite thing to do at school?" Half way down the page there is another question...

Apparently I love to work!! LOL. (Maybe that is because I am scrapbooking and I call it "work?") And I don't tell her how old I am. I would have loved to see what the other kids said about how old their moms were. Too funny!

I also just had to share a little sneak peek of Celeste Smith's projects for June. Aren't they just darling? I'll be back tomorrow to announce our guest designer for June. See you then! Hope you had some laughter in your day also! Happy Friday!

Hump day...

Things you really *must* have to mow the yard. (Oh and a working lawn mower would be helpful! I guess I'll just have to put it off another day or so.) Vitamin Water, music, and sunglasses.
Here's another sneak of a few of the papers for our upcoming June kit...3 of them are specialty die-cut papers...all of them are totally cute!

Hope you had a great day!

Newsletter!

I had a few people email me that they couldn't see the photo of Celeste's project...so of course I'll share it here!

Freehand Scraps Newsletter
Whew! I don’t know what it’s like at your house right now, but around here it’s a whirlwind of year-end school parties, the beginning of summer sports and adjusting to new summer schedules. I’m looking forward to settling in and taking some “me” time to document the details of our everyday lives. I’m also looking forward to sharing a sneak peek of our new June kit that is going to be revealed in all its’ glory on June 1st at 8:00 a.m. CST. This cute project was made by our talented designer Celeste Smith. I am absolutely thrilled to have these darling handmade trees as an exclusive this coming month! I love anything that cannot be found in a scrapbook store…any time I can find something unique with amazing details, I am one happy girl!

Spring Cleaning Sale!! (Get them while they last.)
For a limited time, as we make room for all of our new products here at Freehand Scraps, we are having our first ever Spring Cleaning Sale! Buy any kit at full price, including our latest kit, and choose one of our past kits for half off!! Also you cannot take advantage of this offer through our website as Pay Pal cannot apply the discount on your second kit, so you must email Heidi if you are interested at heidi@freehandscraps.com. From there we will email you an invoice through Pay Pal to take care of the cost of the kits and the shipping cost as well. Remember, it only costs $1.50 extra in shipping for your second kit! Quantities are limited and this offer is available for a limited time, so make sure to take advantage of these special savings!

Most of you know our latest kit, Mary Jane has sold out. As always we are sending each and every one of you a big THANK YOU for your continued support of Freehand Scraps, we have the best customers! It has been so much fun to get to know so many of you…I count each and every one of you my friends.

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! I am working on getting out our mid-month newsletter today, so be looking for it in your inbox by tomorrow! I will be sharing sneak peeks and more!
I'll also announce our guest designer for the month of June! Stay tuned!

Mini book...

Here is the project I have been working on this weekend. This little book will document our family tradition of visiting Tanner's Orchard each fall. I finally decided that I had so many pictures from going for 2 years in a row now, and they were all photos that I wanted to use, that I should just make a mini book instead of a million layouts in my family album. (I got this cute album at Walmart on clearance it's called the Gumdrop Scrapbook kit by Martha Stewart.) I used some fabric and a journaling spot from this month's kit. The apple is from our July kit called "Flutter."
I used the first page to tell the story of what this album is all about. I love that little Fancy Pants flower transparency!!
I bought an old atlas at a garage sale and cut up bits and pieces of it to use. I love the way it looks on these pages. (This apple farm is about 45 minutes from where we live...so I could even find the exact location on this old map.)

The blue grid background is how several of the pages included in the book are pre-printed.

The kids got to go on Cider Barrel rides...they are being pulled by a tractor. How much fun?

The sun and cloud are Cosmo Cricket from their Jack's World line (I added the suns rays.)

They also LOVED the pony rides! Tanner waited an extra turn so that he could ride the "tiger stripes" pony. AKA the horse with the tiger printed saddle blanket. LOL. The photo on the left was very blurry, but I loved it anyway and wrote my little title with a slick writer right on top of it.

Since this book isn't going to have page protectors on it, I wanted to make it a little interactive and added a spinner so that the kids could be "hands-on" with it.

There are a few more pages that I am finishing up to add to this. It was so nice to sit and make something that I just had fun with. I wasn't thinking about perfection or the perfect photos. My focus was making it fun for the kids to look at, and telling the story of how much fun they have each year that we visit! Hope you all had a great weekend! Did anybody else get crafty?

Stormy...

It has been a very stormy day here today...and I had planned to tackle mowing the yard, since it already looks like a jungle out there. So because of the rain, I finished up all of my Freehand Scraps work...(MORE shipping) and got busy cleaning. Spring cleaning. Deep spring cleaning. As in, vacuuming under the couch cushions and cleaning the windows. Yes, I am exhausted. You add all of that to my other weekly housework and it makes for a long day. I made a big dinner for the kids and am feeling a huge sense of accomplishment and very domestic. LOL. Tanner exclaimed at dinner that I am "just such the best cook." I'm glad he doesn't really know that a pot of chili and quesadillas is not a gourmet meal. At dinner we talked about what he wants to be when he grows up. He had about 10 or more ideas of what he would like to "try." Rain forest explorer, space astronaut, dinosaur killer (?what in the world is that?)and jungle animal rescuer were all on the list. I think most of them sounded pretty tropical. LOL. He has asked me more than once if we can move to the rain forest. Hmmm...sounds like fun to me! I don't think I would like the bugs or snakes though.

In Freehand news...our May kit "Mary Jane" is sold out, I am proud to say!! We still have our Spring Cleaning Sale going on where you can purchase any kit at full price and order a second kit for half off. SO many of you have taken advantage of the sale...and gotten in on a steal of a deal. Thanks to all of you who got your hands on Mary Jane! I am headed to put the kids to bed and scrapbook. I have a little project I am working on that I'll hopefully get to share with you tomorrow. Hope you have a great night! (And that your weather is better than ours! LOL)

Things I should know by now...

Going to garage sales and buying GIANT old buoys for 25 cents when you know that you have a tiny car and 2 kids to get home, isn't always the best idea. The kids played by the cow pasture while I literally sawed and cut with pruning sheers and my tiny Swiss Army knife on my key chain, to leave the broken buoys behind. I fit them in the car, however I think the farmer and his wife...and his daughters...and their six kids that were running around...and the roofers that were working there...ALL thought I was crazy! Maybe I am! After 20 minutes of trying to untie sailor knots, (is there such a thing?? LOL.) I was ready to just leave them with the people instead. They all wanted to know what exactly I was planning to do with them, and that is a very good question. I have NO idea. But I love them anyway. For now they will probably hang in the garage until I find them a place. All is well that ends well, if you ask me!
Here is another picture I snapped of Tanner's bookcase last night. I always laugh because I am a neat and tidy person where everything needs to be in it's place. Tanner, on the other hand, just wants to be able to enjoy all of his stuff all at once. I had given them a bath, and had put all of these items in their "homes." By the time I had Chloe's hair dried...Tanner had put them all on "display" all over again. Only this time his Jesus toy was standing amongst the mess...as if Tanner was hoping he might protect his little sanctuary of toys, and you know what? It worked. I left them as they were.
Hope you all have a wonderful night!

Schtuff...

I don't know about you...but I love patterns and designs. I read a few design blogs daily and always seem to find something that strikes me as beautiful. Today I was over at Print & Pattern and found the cutest salt and pepper shakers by Johnathan Adler...I have a "thing" for penguins...I have NO idea why. But these are cute! I like the packaging almost as much as the shakers! My kids would love the whales too! Aren't they funky? Love...love...love.

There was also this darling print by Ellen Crimi-Trent. This would look so cute in Chloe's room. She has a woodland whimsy room. But it would also look cute in my room...I've got the red theme! LOL. She would have to fight me for it! Ha ha.
The good thing is...I don't have to "have" these things to appreciate how beautiful I think they are. I just like looking! And I can use these fun images to inspire me on my next scrapbooking project!

It's off to the post office for us! Hope you have a happy "hump" day!

Sassafras Lass

Since our May kit "Mary Jane" is loaded with Sassafras Lass products...they are featuring us today over on their blog! What a compliment! ALSO, they are doing a giveaway for a free "Mary Jane" kit! So head over there and post a comment to be in the running!! They also showcased some layouts from our gallery as well. Congrats to our design team that continues every month to INSPIRE!

Sassafras is one of my favorite scrapbook manufacturers. It best embodies my personal style. I have said more than once that if I could sew their papers into clothing I would wear them! Their booth each year at CHA is incredible! They are super sweet people, and VERY reliable from a on-a-tight-time-frame-kit-club standpoint. Hayley (the owner) has more than once gone to the post office personally to make sure I have what I need early for our DT. I have just loved working with them! Thanks for featuring Freehand Scraps! I decided to post their sweet booth from CHA in January.

Hope you have a great night!

My mom...

Is one of the most beautiful women I have ever met. (Let me explain that she is dressed up as a pirate for Tanner's 4th birthday in this picture...she isn't usually the type to make you walk the plank. LOL.) She is humble and modest and the love and light of Jesus shine through her actions...her words...and her example. She is an artist and creativity oozes out of her. She throw the BEST tea parties for grandchildren. She loves orange chocolate and chai tea. She loves decorating and a good DIY magazine. She can make ANYTHING out of nothing at all. She is fun, and positive and always upbeat. She can teach a Bible story unlike any other!! She taught me how to sew and helped me make the coolest school projects that always got me the highest grade in the class. (Even in college...yes, I said college.) She doesn't have a lazy bone in her body and is always multi-tasking, luckily I inherited her multi-tasking abilities, even though I am much lazier than she is. She is a wonderful wife and partner to my dad. (Seriously...aren't these two just the cutest?)

She can bake...boy can she bake...that is why I gain 5 pounds every time I go home for a visit! But it's soooo worth it!
I don't know how you did it mom!? I was not the "easiest" child to raise. I was stubborn and strong willed. I remember how I treated you when I was 17 and knew EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING. I would have disowned me if I were you. But you never wavered with your unconditional love. Your paTiEncE!! Your prayers for me. Thank you so much. From the bottom of my heart. If I could be more like one person in this world it would be you! I hope to mother my kids with the same heart that you did. If I can, they will turn out just fine. Happy Mother's Day! I loVe you!

Mom's Day...

We spent a fun day together today! We had a great church service and they gave flowers out to all of the mothers afterwards, which I thought was a very sweet gesture. I took myself and the kids to a yummy lunch at Chili's afterwards. In the afternoon I went to the scrapbook store...as if I needed one more thing!! LOL. I HAD to get myself something for Mother's Day right? I took home one of the new Prima canvas albums and some of the new Maya Road mists. It was fun. Totally unnecessary, but you have to spoil yourself some times.

As promised here are the layouts that I finished at the crop Friday night. There is one more that isn't quite "together" yet. I was pretty productive for just being there a couple hours.
This paper is Crate Paper the peach flowers is Heidi Grace and the chipboard die cuts are Basic Grey. I love that "swell" word!
This page is of the kids playing in the first snow of the season. I know that the pear SEI sticker is ancient...but I just loved what it said, and it adds a pop of color.

The journal spot is by Jenni Bowlin the "you are here" badge is by American Crafts, with a little Sassafras Lass paper too.

Hope that all of you mother's had a very special day! You deserve to be celebrated MORE than once a year! Happy Mother's Day!