Unexpected Destination

Announcing 2009 classes at Get It Scrapped

Here's the mailing that went out last week announcing the Jan-April 2009 schedule of classes. If you're not on the mailing list, sign up to the right ---> you'll want to know when the free sample class from "Be Real" goes up as well as when I offer a free journaling-exercises chat in December.

Get It Scrapped!
our favorite spot for online scrapbooking classes
Consider making Get It Scrapped! your home for online classes. We're big enough to offer a variety of classes and top-notch teachers. We're small enough to know your face and recognize your work in the gallery.

Several new teachers are joining Get It Scrapped!, and the early 2009 offerings are now posted. Classes cover journaling, hand-crafting techniques, digital scrapbooking, photo editing, art journaling, page design, and much much more.

Whether you're taking a class or not, come chat in the general forums, which are open to all, and check out our ongoing challenges. Right now we're in the midst of  Tami's "Must-See-TV Challenge" which is yielding all kinds of unexpected pages. Just yesterday, Paula posted a brand a new hybrid challenge with how-to, product links, and inspiration.

Come on over! We're ready now to Get It Scrapped! in 2009.

The Get It Scrapped! team: (top row photo) Debbie Hodge, Tania Willis, Sharyn Tormanen, Trish Turay, Lynn Weber; (bottom row) Pattie Knox, Dina Wakley, Doris Sander, Janet Ohlson, Tami Taylor, and Paula Gilarde

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Registration for the Sense & Sensibility Symposium is open and registration for "Embellishments: Beautifully Handmade" will open soon. Check out the printable holiday giftcards that you could have a loved one slip under the tree or next to the menorah. OR I'd be glad to work out secret details with your loved ones :)

end of a good day

*edited & sent out mailing for Sharyn's class
* made meatballs & sauce & bread
* put up new banners for the Get It Scrapped forums
* did several loads of laundry
* got clean sheets on ALL beds (I really hate making up bunk beds)
* the sleepovers have begun -- everyone had dinner, Neil's got our first fire going, big boys played xbox a while and then I heard them say let's eat ice cream,watch tv, and "play a jolly board game" all at the same time. The little boys have closed Isaac's bottom bunk in with blankets and hauled every throw pillow in there and are playing board games by lantern light. Love listening to them. I heard Will complain very sweetly, "IZ, you can't do that." Isaac said, "OK. You're right. I'll win the next game."
* really tired and wanted to digi scrap with laptop BUT the power cable is kind of broken and Isaac ran it down after school so there's not enough juice for me to use it and move much. thus no links tonight.
* going to read a book and keep listening to the little boys. -- Reading Lynn Freed "Reading, Writing & Leaving Home."
* little boys just came in & are kind of dragging---off to make them a cozy spot & pick out a movie.
* i have the new typepad! Nothing "eaten" yet (hopefully all you who got it 1st debugged things) and I really like all the new features.

Jolly Board Games . . . and other stuff

Sunshine Math with IZ’s class today --- 1st session this year since his class has been so busy with field trips and classroom visitors. The kids were really nice. They still want to know, though, WHAT’S N? Love Isaac’s teacher. She wanted to know how it went and I love how & when she nods and smiles – these are her kids and she’s really fond of all of them.

Cleaned the downstairs: whoohooo. Tomorrow the up. Made cookies (from a tub) for the boys’ after-school-guests. Suggested to Joshua and Logan that they play a jolly board game since they thought the outdoors was too cold. They laughed . . . and then they did play. Isaac and Will spent time outdoors and then indoors doing Isaac’s favorite thing --- dragging every pillow and blanket to his room and . . . I thought they were making a fort, but when I went in they had the pillows piled up to his top bunk and were hoping to slide down them. Sorry: no.

Made a roast for dinner since Neil’s at a working dinner and he doesn’t like roast. Will & Logan ended up staying for dinner and I loved seeing 4 boys digging into mashed potatoes and meat and gravy! And then they yakked and picked at all the salad stuff til it was gone. Both boys having sleepovers tomorrow. For Joshua, especially, there are friends here a lot--sleepovers every couple of weeks.

Earlier this week, the boys had checkups. For Josh it was the first time having time alone with the dr. When she came back to get me as we were in the hall she said, “You have *really* nice boys.” Always love hearing that. Joshua told her that he gave school a 9 out of 10 (which shocked me since he’s always complainging AND more, tho, it pleased me since last year was so tough). She asked why it was so good and he told her he had really nice teachers. And he does. They have all been teaching for quite a while and it appears to me (as a mom on the sidelines) they’re really into doing a great job and enjoying their students. At IZ’s checkup we found out that he’s gone from being shorter than the average boy his age to being taller than 75% of these boys. Of course, Joshua’s taller than 90% of . . . not 12 years olds like himself, but 15 years olds!

Life is good and I would really like to get caught up on blogging my photos from the last 3 months. It was especially driven home to me this weekend because I made these two pages and was able to lift the journaling almost exactly from my blog. All supplies from designer digitals. Bulkhead credits. Power Outage credits.

Good luck, Kelly!

crowdSPRING, hire Kelly Purkey for your new Community Marketing Manager!

If you're familiar with Kelly and her work and want to help her land a new job, check out her blog.

Go Kelly!

Christmas: the collective & individual experiences

When you include memorabilia on your scrapbook pages you create an account of your culture at that time AND your individual experience within it. For example, take wrapping paper: the colors, images, and styles reveal: 1) the times in which the paper was designed; and 2) your choices and preferences in those times. Imagine creating and sharing an album that incorporates a variety of Christmas souvenirs alongside photos and journaled memories.

In a new online class "Souvenirs of the Season," Sharyn Tormanen is ready to take you on a holiday ride that begins with peeks at both cultural and personal histories of Christmas memorabilia. From there she’ll show you the practical and creative aspects of gathering your own Christmas souvenirs and then getting them onto holiday pages. Don’t miss this December experience that’s sure to trigger memories of holidays past while inspiring rich memory-keeping of holidays future.

Class starts December 1st and the welcome forum is already open. If you register by this Friday, November 21, you'll receive a 20% off coupon for use at Ideabooks4u.com and be entered into a drawing to win a copy of "Sharing Your Story" by Ali Edwards from IdeaBooks4u.

Finished my first Shutterfly book. Whew!

   Click here to view this photo book.

I've got til midnight

to finish my shutterfly books --- doing one for Isaac and one for Joshua . . . probably won't get either done and will have to wait for another coupon, but I just came across this layout. which I love. and which I'd been thinking about and wondering if I'd scanned. From 2005. At a tree my kids love.

And while I work on at least one shutterfly book, I'm finalizing the early 09 calendar for Get It Scrapped! Here's a peek --- check out Jan-April 0 9--descriptions coming soon. There are some really really fine teachers and totally original and fun classses coming up.

the hidden art journaler in me

Dina's class + Andrea's new "Caged Brushes" at Designer Digitals on a sale weekend brought out my hidden art journaler yesterday. Credits are here AND there is 30% off everything at Designer Digitals all weekend AND you don't need a coupon to access the sale AND great chats are going on all day today, which I'll be peeking in at between bowling and going to dinner at Robin and Don's tonight. While the formal part of Dina's class is over, you could still take it on your own with access to all materials until Feb 1.

Field Trip Anyone?

'Cause I've got an extra one for you. LOL. In the past, Isaac has had the unfortunate luck to be in the class that just didn't do many field trips. And he LOVES field trips. That luck has ended this year. Mrs. McNelly is a fabulous field tripper. I especially have appreciation for that since I went on many of these field trips with her 3 years ago (with Josh) and I know that . . . it's a lot of work and you don't always feel like going. I often don't feel like going BUT I have this sahm/wahm gig and Isaac always asks me to please come and I know this isn't going to last much longer. AND I'm always really happy that I went afterward. Since school started, Isaac has been on all these field trips (and even one more that I didn't go on).

The Discovery Center at Great Bay. We had Ann as our guide (and she was Joshua's guide 3 years ago) and she is incredible. The women who told us about the gundalow in the photo actually help build it 20ish years ago---as it would have been built long ago. I learned a lot about tides and salt marshes and rivers and estuaries that I don't remember from the last time around (tho it was REALLY COLD that time around and I think I had my arms around kids and my chin down.)

Squam Lake Discovery Center in Holderness. Awesome again. An 80 mile drive one way--and I did it rather than take the bus because: 1) gas prices are down; 2) I have long legs; and 3) I had to buy cheesecloth and googly eyes and adhesive for Iz's class party the next day----and had to do it on the way home because we were trick-or-treating this very night. LOVE the presentation here on predators and the kids really had a great time with the displays.

Wadleigh Falls (got the call for this one at 8:55 am on the day of: "Mom. We don't have enough chaperones--translate we have 1 and need 5--so could you meet us there?") Mrs. McNelly played a big part in developing the Lamprey River curriculum and I love hearing her talk about the area's history and its . . .well the science of it. The kids took measurements of temp, ph, oxygen here (and they did this on another field trip I missed and they did it on the next one to Heron Point). They also learned about the history of these falls.

Heron Point in Newmarket. Lots of interesting history and we hiked down the river to where it widens out and talked about the Great Bay (which we'd visited on another day) AND I'd never realized the water was flowing two ways here --- the bay / rising tide is coming up against the water from upriver ---- above those falls. AND we live a bit above those falls. AND those falls is where the salt stops. Very cool. Isaac took Neil and Josh here the next weekend and told them all kinds of great details.

And tomorrow . . . . well here are the photos from 3 years ago. The Museums at York Maine. I was hoping to see a picture of me here and figure out how I dressed since I need to come up with an outfit. Isaac will be wearing that vest and tricorn that Josh has on. I remember this was a lot of work and very cool --- we'll be preparing a meal as it would have been done in colonial times and eating it family style and using colonial manners. Silhouettes, old games, even a schoolhouse experience. Love the photo of Mrs. McNelly with Joshua on the stilts. She is a fabulous teacher --- she really understands 4th graders and 4th grade curriculum and she really knows and likes each of her students. Josh had a great year with her and Isaac has already had a great 2 mos with her. She told Neil and I that she really enjoys Isaac--she likes his sense of humor and that he's natural and comfortable. And now I'm feeling psyched for the trip--esp since I got a huge amount of the last round of raking done today!

The circus came to town . . . kind of

this was a fun Sunday afternoon for Isaac. Links and journaling here.

IdeaBooks4U is doing a challenge from my book this week

And my book is on sale for 20% off. Jill used my "About Dinner" layout and Betsy Veldman's "These Hands" as the challenge starters--with the challenge being to scrap yourself (a favorite subject of mine & I even have an archived class on this topic).

There are challenge pages on the IdeaBooks4U blog and more in the gallery. Check them out --- it's always fun reading "About Me" pages ---- a pictorial memoir. (And I love memoir--and biography. Right now I'm reading Carol Shields' bio of Jane Austen and Susan Sonnenberg's memoir "Her Last Death.")

2 layouts

Riding Late (all supplies from Designer Digitals using several products new in the store today -- links here).

Late to the Party (links here-- all Designer Digitals).

Holiday Minibook Projects

By request, I set up a Minibook Forum and a Card Forum at Get It Scrapped! where we all can share holiday projects. I've got two projects of my own posted in the minibook forum to kick things off and some printables in the card forum. Here are the minibooks.

"Thanksgiving Gratitude Book"

Use this book as a Thanksgiving gratitude book or insert a different title and use it as an album or journal. For a gratitude book, Include a page for everyone at your table and have them record what they’re grateful for this year. Later, include a photo of each person next to their gratitude. Begin a tradition -- make one each year so you can look back on your blessings over the years.

Click HERE for instructions.

"Our Channukah Home"

I made this Hannukah mini album last year with pages that record all of our traditions around the holiday --- from the latke recipe to the music we listen to and the dreidel game rules. There are extensive instructions for this project since it was used in the BPS Heidi Swapp class last year as a complement to her Christmas project.

Click HERE for instructions.

this made me happy

and now I better get off of facebook and make it look like I've done a day's worth of housework!

Consider making a mini-album for a child in the hospital

Deb Wisker recently told me about the Sunshine Albums Project, which is a wonderful opportunity to create an album for a child who is in the hospital facing illness. Many of the children in hospitals are there for cancer treatment. The albums are a way for the children and their families to document their journeys to wellness. Deb and Angie Smith are heading up the drive to collect these albums. The albums should be small and simple and durable. Check out details here, and please consider using your stash to make an album or two. The albums are needed by November 25. Thanks.

I made this one last night at our PTO crop.

Thanks for the great party, Ellen & Dave!

You guys really made the 70s come alive --- and, hey!, that was the decade when Neil and I came of age. These are just some of the photos --if you were at the party and want to see all of them and be able to download your faves, email me and I'll send you a flickr invite so you'll have access.

make Jane proud

find out what I'm getting at RIGHT HERE. I'm working on the announcements for several '09 classes with new and old Get It Scrapped! teachers -- so get on my mailing list if you're interested.

We had breakfast and voted

Check out the guy in the bottom right photo. That's David. He's a UNH student. Guess where he was one year and 2 days ago. At my house for a house party for Hillary Clinton. He did give me a big hug and say "Oh, Hillary!" and then, "I know it's hard but go on in and vote for Obama!" It's hard changing horses. But I did. Off to gather the boys and watch the returns.

I'm into a "series" groove

I scrapped these four pages this weekend. They're all from a recent school party. I used the same products and general "look/mood/tone" for all of them. It was really fun to find ways to make variations using the same product over and over AND it was really satisfying to get all of these scrapped relatively quickly. All supplies are from Designer Digitals (links here).