My Best Christmas Present Ever

Came just a little late eleven years ago, but when it arrived it was like nothing I'd ever received before. Eleven years ago, this beautiful bundle was handed to me and my life changed forever - I became a mama for the very first time. I can hardly believe it's been so long because I can hardly remember my life before he was in it.

Happy 11th Birthday, my Ethan. I love you all times.

-mama

Hey, Santa!

Thank you so much for visiting, but I have to admit I'm also glad you're gone for another year! (Does anyone else feel that way?! hee!) We had an amazing Christmas and am so thankful for the time spent with my family and friends. I hope the holidays were just as blessed for you and yours!

Speaking of Santa, I did this fun little layout as part of my gig for AllyScraps. It uses fun October Afternoon Very Merry paper and boy is it cute! These are my littles writing out their annual letters to Santa. Apparently they were pretty good boys because they got most of the things on their list. :)

Source List: October Afternoon paper, alpha stickers, stickers; Bazzill cardstock; Pink Paislee chipboard alphas; Ranger Stickles; Fiskars punches; Colorbox (Clearsnap) chalk ink.

And I apologize on the delay in announcing the winner of the PAGEMAPS2 book, so please let me get to it right now! A huge congrats goes to Meggan! YAY! Please contact me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your fun prize!

Also I'm still looking for one of the winners from my last post - ItsRenee. Renee, you have some Jovial goodies coming your way if you get in contact with me!

Have a wonderful week, everyone!

xoxo,

k.

Merry Christmas

From our home to yours!

I hope this holiday is a wonderful and blessed one for all of you and thank you for being my readers!
Much love,

k.

The Christmas Squirrel Album

Good morning and happy Monday, everyone!

I know I've shared here before about our family tradition of the Christmas Squirrel (our elf on a shelf rendition, Kentucky-style ;)). It's long been a favorite of ours and while I've scrapbooked a layout or two about it, I just always felt it wasn't "enough" to encompass our favorite ongoing tradition.
Then enter AllyScraps. This month I've had the pleasure of guest designing for them and one of the super-fun perks was getting to go shopping in their store. As you might imagine, by working directly for a manufacturer my chance to play with other products and companies is pretty limited so this was a rare treat. When I stumbled upon this chipboard tree mini album by Maya Road, I was hooked...and knew I had just what I needed to record years of memories along with the legend of the Squirrel. I managed to record from 2003 when we started this tale all the way through this year along with the full legend. Now that it's done, I couldn't love this album more. To me, it's what scrapbooking is all about and I want to share it here with you. I hope you love it as much as I do! :)


Source List: Maya Road Tree Album, Echo Park Papers, October Afternoon stickers, Ranger Stickles, Bazzill Cardstock; Zig pen (brown), Fiskars circle punch, scallop border punch, snowflake punch








Have a great day and remember - you can still enter my PageMaps2 giveaway on the post below until Noon on the 20th!
xoxo,
k.

And the best gift of all!

I told you all that my final giveaway this holiday season would be the best gift of all and I truly believe that! Up for grabs today is the PageMaps2: More Creative Sketches for Layouts & Cards by Becky Fleck. I had the extreme honor to work with Becky, founder of the PageMaps site, on this book and it's truly outstanding. Becky outdid herself with the work in here and I'm thrilled to be sharing it with one of you. If you love sketches, this gift is for you!


Simply leave your comment here on this post by Noon Eastern on Monday, December 20th to be entered to win! And we'll do our best to get the book to you by the holidays!

And now for the winners of the giveaways from last week! (I know that's what you've really been waiting for! ;))

Huge Congratulations to Suzy & Karen P. - Winners of the PageMaps/Scrapbook & Cards Today calendars! Please email me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize! :)


And for the winner of the Jovial goodies! A hearty congratulations to ItsRenee! It's all yours! Please email me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize! (And thank you for that Christmas ditty! :))


Have a wonderful last weekend before Christmas!
xoxo,
k

A little present for you..and you...and YOU!

Good morning! Happy {icy} Thursday to you!

Because we're cooped up here with no school and fun, cold temps, I needed a little something to warm up my spirits and what's better for that than gift giving!?

First from BasicGrey:

We are offering an adorable FREE calendar wallpaper a month for all of 2011!! How cool is that?! January's is already available for download and you can pick the screen size that works best with your monitor. Easy peasy! I so love this and I have to confess, I've already downloaded it so I'm ready to go come January 1!


Also, the PageMaps/Scrapbooks & Cards Today giveaway is still going on through noon tomorrow! Simply enter HERE for a chance to win an adorable 2011 calendar with proceeds going toward Breast Cancer research both in the US and Canada! Such a good cause and such an amazing calendar!


And last but not least, I have one more collection pack (plus a few bonus goodies!) of JOVIAL (my favorite holiday like EVER!) to give away to one of you amazing and lucky blog readers! Simply leave your name and something "holiday-ish" ;) on this post also by FRIDAY, December 17th at NOON Eastern so I can have a chance to get it in the mail to you in time for the holidays!

And just to let you know - I have one final holiday goodie to giveaway in the next couple of days! You won't want to miss it! I promise it's the best so far!

Have a wonderful day!
xoxo,
k.

Guesting at AllyScraps

Good {freezing cold} morning to you, everyone!

Brrrrr! It's unreal how cold it is here. I hope this cold snap will hush all those people who said it didn't "feel like Christmas!" hee! I feel it, I feel it! Enough already!

I so don't need the cold to get me in the holiday spirit. Instead I had the honor of guest designing over at AllyScraps this month and I got to play with some super-fun holiday paper! I have to agree with Echo Park that "Everybody Loves Christmas!" How stinkin' cute is this paper? I combined it with a bit of October Afternoon stickers and some mists and this was the end result:

Gingerbread House

Source List: Echo Park patterned papers, We R Memory Keepers stitched cardstock, October Afternoon element stickers & alpha stickers, BasicGrey chipboard alphas & brad, Maya Road mist, Tattered Angels Glimmer mist, Bazzill cardstock, Making Memories decorative brad, Ranger Stickles, Uniball Signo pen, Pentel pen, Fiskars Scallop punch, scallop scissors and circle punch



I truly loved playing with something a bit different for me for a change. I mean - did you see me use MIST?! ;) I'll be putting up a new project with AllyScraps on their blog once a week for the next 3 weeks so keep checking back!

Have a wonderful Tuesday!
xoxo,
k.

The holidays can be hard...

As wonderful and full of joy as the holidays *can* be, sometimes, too, they are so very hard. Everything about the holidays seems to be magnified. For me, the hardest part is missing those I love the most - my grand mother and my father - especially during this beautiful time that is about Christ's birth and family and love.

Considering what I do for a living, it could be considered strange that I never scrapbooked about my losses. It's not that I never scrapbooked difficult things or things that weren't "perfect" like my son's speech delay or small hole in his heart, but the loss of those I loved so much were just too painful, too raw, to put down on paper even years later. Perhaps I thought I couldn't do it justice or that writing it down would just be too traumatic for me. In any case, it never got done.

But as fate would have it, a sweet friend of mine, Suzy, somehow knew that precisely that would be exactly what I would need and so she contacted me for then-upcoming article (January 2011 Creating Keepsakes) about dealing with loss through scrapbooking. I can't tell you how many times I told her at first "No, no, no, no, NO! I just don't think that I could do that, Suzy!" All said in my very best whine. And then her patient response back, "Oh yes, you can. You need to. And you will."

I can't tell you how much I thank her for that. Because it turns out that writing that layout (and for me it was much much more about the writing than the design process) was one of the most cathartic, healing things I've ever done. Because for that layout? For that layout, I finally got true with myself and with my feelings towards my dad's death. I allowed myself right then, for this one page, to be honest and selfish and whatever else came to mind in that moment. I allowed myself to *be* in that moment. And now, I have a page I cherish - one that is not only about my pain, but about the great love I had (and have) for my father.

For Just One Day
As seen in the January, 2011 issue of Creating Keepsakes magazine. Copyright Creative Crafts Group. Posted with prior permission from the publisher.

Source List: Bazzill Cardstock; BasicGrey paper, lace die-cut paper, alpha stickers; BoBunny papers; Dusty Attic chipboard accent; Heidi Swapp (Advantus) chipboard alphas and paint; Sizzix die-cut; Making Memories papers, flower paper clip; Hero Arts rhinestones; Fiskars scallop border punch; Uni-ball pen; Pentel pen

The journaling reads:

I tell myself all the time that I miss you the most for the boys, for what they never knew of you. But if I’m truly honest with myself, I can be selfish and say I miss you the most for me. Because I know what I’m missing. I know all I’ve lost. I sit here and look at photos of you and I can almost hear your voice speaking to me, feel your arms around me - “almost,” but not quite. It’s been ten years already, Daddy, and it’s passed in the blink of an eye yet gone so slowly all at the same time. So much has happened yet things are strangely the same. There’s been a scab put over the raw wound that I was left with when you died, but the scab is still there and the hurt just sits below the surface, threatening to erupt at any given moment…like right now as I try and say these words. It’s the little things I miss the most, things like how you would fuss at me and Cracker Jack when we got to wrestling and being silly, how you always knew when I needed you. Always. You were my rock, my constant, my Daddy….and what I wouldn’t give for just one more day with you. No matter how much time passes, I love you always, Kelly

Thank you again, Suzy. And happy holidays to all of you!

Remember - there's still time to get in on the PageMaps/Scrapbook & Cards today calendar giveaway. Enter here!
xoxo,
k.

Around here...

The bigs are out hiking with the Scouts looking at bobcat, deer, rabbit (and I don't wanna know what else) tracks and more...sipping hot chocolate and roasting a few hot dogs.

The little and I were forced to stay home (one of us not being of the right age and the other not of the right sex ;)) so we've been hanging out together and getting in the Christmas spirit.

Right now around here, it looks like this:




Someone is very busy concentrating on writing out his holiday cards. Yes, they're Curious George and yes, I love that tongue!

Happy Saturday, all! May it be full of holiday cheer!
xoxo,
k.

Hero Arts 2011 Catalog Blog Hop -Come along for the Ride!

Hello everyone and welcome to the HERO ARTS 2011 Catalog BLOG HOP! I'm so excited to have you here as well as over-the-moon excited to share one of the new brand new Hero stamps that I've completely fallen in love with.

The stamps I used on these cards is the clear 4"x6" "Just Saying Hi" (CL502) set. How stinkin' cute is that telephone?! And I'm only showing you one of them - there are 4 different phones in this set along with various phrases. They are so perfect and kitschy and vintage-y, I literally squealed when I saw them.


Source List: NEW Hero Arts 2011 Clear Stamps "Just Saying Hi" CL502
October Afternoon papers and diecut, Bazzill cardstock, Staz-On & Ranger ink, Ranger embossing powder, BasicGrey ribbon, misc. buttons, Fiskars circle punch, The Leather Factory floss, Pentel pen, Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L adhesives

Here's a closer look:

This card is a 4.25"x5.5" card. I embossed the telephone (it gives it a wonderful, shiny look and feel) but the sentiment was stamped with Staz-on.


The dimensions for this card are 5"x5" with the opening on the right. Again, I embossed the cutie telephone to make it look shiny (just like an old phone would) and then surrounded it with a raised frame using pop dots.

I'm so excited for this release from Hero I can't even tell you - and I really don't stamp tons. But almost all of these are a must-have for me!

Now since this is a BLOG HOP and mine was just a short stop, I get the honor of directing you to the blog of one of my scrapbooking idols. Not only is she amazingly talented, but she has a wicked sense of humor and is the life of any party! So hop on over and see what MARGIE ROMNEY-ASLETT has in store for you! It's bound to knock your socks off!

And remember, if you find a link that doesn't work, you can always hop back to the Hero Arts Blog for a list of direct links to all the blogs in the hop.

Have a wonderful Friday, all!
xoxo,
k.

Catching up a bit...

I'm trying to hang in there with my December Daily, folks. It's a battle, but I'm determined to win it! Here are a few from the past few days - Days 3, 4 and 5.

Day 3:
For this one I wanted to use the picture of the holly predominantly so it is my entire page on the right. I loved the snow hitting the tops of the red berries. It totally made me happy. To add a little interest as well as to have a place to put the "3", I used a transparent overly from BasicGrey's Take Notes from the Jovial line. It was just enough to add a little flair to the page without overwhelming it.
Then, so you couldn't see the adhesive through the transparency, I did the same thing on the other side and just matched it up.


Source List: BasicGrey Jovial papers, transparent overlay, Olio Rub-on; BasicGrey Basics paper (white) and Mini monos (colored brown); BasicGrey Pyrus Micro monos (colored); Zig pen; Uni-ball pen; Fiskars punches.

Day 4 and 5:
For Days 4 and 5, I really didn't have many photos - in fact I was doing well to have these! - so I really only used one side of the page for the day. After I was finished I realized I didn't have much room for a title, so I created this scalloped semi-circle page to fit in between the. It ended up being just the right amount of space for a title and added some fun interest with its unusual shape.


Source List: BasicGrey Jovial papers, Olio rub-ons; BasicGrey Oliver micro mono alphas; Sizzix/BasicGrey diecut; Fiskars scallop scissors and border punch; Magill label punch; Uni-ball pen; Zig pen

Check back tomorrow for a little bit of blogging fun! It's going to be a great time and I promise, you won't want to miss it!
Have a wonderful Thursday and don't forget to leave your name for the PageMaps calendar giveaway a couple posts below. It's still open until the 17th!
xo,
k.

How is it possible?

That it's only the 6th (ONLY!) and I'm already behind on my December Daily album? See, I knew being caught up wouldn't last long. In the spirit of "keeping it real" I will confess that I'm only just now working on Day 3.
But here's Day 2 (The Legend of the Christmas Tree Squirrel) to tie you over (and get my butt moving!)



Supplies: BasicGrey Jovial papers, alpha stickers, chip sticker shapes, office tabs, olio rub-ons; Maya Road kraft envelope; McGill label punch; Fiskars Scallop border punch

My favorite part of this is that I used the Maya Road envie to hold the story about our Christmas Tree squirrel and how the legend came about. It worked out beautifully to just tuck it in there. And because I know some of you might ask, here's the legend as it was first told to our boys and appeared on a layout way back in the Christmas of 2003~

"This year Daddy decided to share with you boys "The Legend of the Christmas Squirrel." As it goes, this legend tells of a little squirrel that lives in the Christmas trees of all the good little boys and girls. This squirrel is a magical squirrel, of course, and his tail is red and white striped like a candy cane. Every morning from the time the tree is up and decorated in the house until Christmas morning, the Christmas Squirrel will leave a candy cane somewhere in the tree for the children to find. You boys were completely fascinated with this tale and eagerly hunted every morning for your candy. Some days it was harder to find than others, but it was always there! Guess you little men were very good this year! Christmas, 2003"

Happy Holidays and happy Monday, everyone! And don't forget - the PageMaps/Scrapbook & Cards Today calendar giveaway is still open on this post! Get over there and get your name in by the 17th to be entered to win yours!
xoxo,
k.

PageMaps Calendar Giveaway

Hi all and Happy Friday!

Today I have something extra special that I want to not only share with you, but to give to one of you. It's the 2011 13-month calendar by Scrapbook & Cards Today & PageMaps. This is an incredible sketch-based calendar with extra sketches thrown in and examples done by 14 talented artists. I'm beyond honored to say I have the opening page in the calendar right next to the greeting by Catherine and Becky - the masterminds behind it. Here's a bit more about this amazing calendar that would be such a great gift this holiday season:

The 2011 SCT-PageMaps Sketch Calendar is here! From the beautiful design to the stunning artwork, from the techniques to the bonus sketches, from the sponsors that provided our designers with great product to the wonderful practicality of the calendar itself—SCT and PageMaps are thrilled to share it with you!

This limited edition calendar will be on your bookshelf long after 2011 has come and gone with its 26 never-before-seen PageMaps sketches that will keep you inspired for some time (including CardMaps, too!). This calendar makes a great gift, too! Order by December 14th to ensure your copies arrive in time for gift giving.

And the best part? A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the 2011 SCT-PageMaps Sketch Calendar will be donated to both Canadian and American breast cancer research charities!

Should any of you not be able to wait and have to get one of your own now or for a gift, you can order one here for the $9.95 price listed above.

But to win your own, simply leave your name here between now and Friday, December 17th at Noon Eastern and you'll be entered to win! It's that easy! And I may or may not have more than one to give away...ahem! ;)

Oh! And while I'm at it - let me also say that the Winter Issue of Scrapbook & Cards Today hits the stores (or can be downloaded for FREE) TODAY! How awesome is that! I had the thrill of writing the Easy/Detailed/Expert article for this issue again using BasicGrey's Jovial line. I hope you'll hop over and check it out. Did I mention it's FREE?! Seriously, what could be better? That's like a gift itself!

Here's a little preview of one of my pages. (This is the advanced version.)

Supplies: BasicGrey Jovial Patterned paper, alpha stickers, chip sticker shapes, element stickers, brads; Uni-ball pen; jute; Fiskars punches; Sizzix/BasicGrey embossing template

P.S. And if you look reaaallly closely at that home page, you may just see someone you know...maybe. Just sayin'!

Have a wonderful weekend!
xo,
k.

December Daily - The Next Day

How'd you like that original title?! Hee.

I'm posting my completed Day 1 of my December Daily to keep me accountable. It's worked pretty well for me with my Project 365 on Facebook so I thought I'd give it a go here. Heaven knows, I need accountability! ;)

Anyhoo - here's Day 1 completed. Day 1 was putting up/completing our Christmas tree.

Again there's a lot of BasicGrey's Jovial line, but that really cool lace page is plastic Prima packaging! So awesome! I loved this idea so much when I saw Sharon Laakkonen do it.

This view is reaaaally late at night looking in our front door from my porch. I love how cozy and warm it looks.


I also want to quickly announce the winner of my Jovial Prize pack! I adored reading about all your traditions (and want to adopt a few as my own!) and what you loved most about the holidays. It really filled me with such a wonderful spirit, so thank you! Now a huge congrats goes to: KIM!

Kim, please send me your addy at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com and I'll get that right out to you! Stay tuned tomorrow for another giveaway! This one is pretty special to me and I can't wait to share it with you!

Happy Holidays!
xoxo,
k.

December Daily

Happy December, everyone!

It's the first! Can you believe it's already here? This year has flown by at a crazy warp speed! Sadly, December always is the fastest month of them all and New Years will be here before I know it! Because December is a whirlwind (and because I hate scrapbooking holiday photos in a normal way), I completely caved and decided to create a December Daily mini album. (I'm blaming Ali & Lisa for this. Gah! I just can't take peer pressure! ;))



Supplies: BasicGrey Jovial papers, clips, rub-ons, element stickers, chip sticker shapes, album; Prima packaging; Zig pen; Uni-ball pen; Fiskars scallop border punch

I started with a BasicGrey tabbed album and lots of the Jovial line (I can't get enough of those snowmen!) and then added in a few things like Maya Road envies and some Prima Packaging (Thank you, Sharon Laakkonen for turning me on to that!). I haven't gotten any further than Day 1 (hee - I'm doing good to get that far!), but it's a start and I'm loving how it's going.




I'll share more as we go along and it starts getting fuller with pictures and memories! In the mean time, please don't forget to leave a comment on the post below to be entered to win a Jovial prize package of your very own!

xoxo,
k.

20 Days of Holiday Sharing (and I do mean *sharing!*)

Ok, so I might not quite make it to 20 this month though I'm gonna try, but let's at least start with this one!

Back in October, I was asked by the adorable Jamie Sorenson, community + education director at TwoPeas if I wanted to take part in their upcoming 20 Days of Holiday Sharing. As always, I jumped at the chance to do something with one of my favorite websites, especially when it is combined with something else I love - Christmas! After a lot of thought (a. lot.) I decided create a layout - my favorite crafting thing to do even though I usually cringe at scrapping holiday photos. Here are few images of the results and my corresponding guest blog post.


Source List: BasicGrey patterned paper, die-cuts, clips, rub-ons, alpha stickers, element stickers, glazed brads, Woolies, magnets; Uni-ball pen (white); Zig pen (brown); Sizzix die-cuts (inspired by BasicGrey); Fiskars scallop border punch.

********************************************************************************
I have a confession: I used to hate to scrapbook double-page layouts.
Yep, it's true.

I couldn't ever seem to figure out how to fill up two whole pages. Paper that size totally overwhelmed me. Then I figured out that two-page spreads were a fantastic way to document a huge event or large period of time. It was like an epiphany for me! (Can you hear the angels singing?!) I began to love the space a 24"x12" canvas gave me for all the pictures I wanted to show off but couldn't fit into a smaller frame.

One of my favorite layouts I did with this idea in mind was a blocked page that resembled a calendar and marked off in increments exactly what happened and when on a wonderful African vacation I got to take. I adored that I could fit all the wonderful memories I had of that time in one layout. I loved that page. So this got me thinking...about another thing I usually don't like to do - scrapbooking the holidays.

Let me just say in my defense that the holiday photos scare me! There's so many different picture-taking opportunities with usually such horrible lighting conditions and such bad images that I never really wanted to document them. I know. I'm bad. But then the idea struck of putting them all into one, all-encompassing layout and I was sold. I could DO that! Even more, I loved the idea of making a type of Advent Calendar all right on my layout so I set to work.

First I pulled out all my favorite photos from the month of December. I organized them by the date or event. I built a grid based on a 2 1/2" square and started laying out my pictures. The ones that didn't easily fit into a square format, I scored at the 2 1/2" mark and then hid them under their corresponding date like a special present to be opened.



I utilized small hidden magnets to keep some of my windows closed and then I kept some days completely visible and easily opened.






It was so much fun playing around with this and it has been by far the favorite layout for my boys that I've ever created. They love seeing the month in review, what they were doing and opening up all the little compartments and I love that I got the holidays scrapped in one fun layout!

Merry Christmas, everyone!
****************************************************************************

For those of you that are dedicated enough to read through all of this ;) I have a little *extra* sharing I want to do with you! Just leave a comment here by WEDNESDAY, December 1st at11:59 PM Eastern about your favorite part of the holidays, a special tradition, etc. that you have with your family, or anything else you like and you can be entered to win a BasicGrey JOVIAL prize pack of your very own! AND there might even be a little something extra in there, too - it is the holidays, after all!

Thanks for reading and I hope you'll keep checking back at TwoPeas daily for more holiday inspiration!
Happy Tuesday and Happy 40th Birthday to my sweet husband!
xoxo,
k.

Thanksgiving Favor Boxes/ Place Cards

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving Eve to you all!

I have a something special to share with you today. I hope you'll take a minute to follow me over to the Scrapbooks Etc. blog where I did a guest post and tutorial on making the fun and simple Thanksgiving favor boxes/place cards you see below. They're a really great way to make your holiday table extra special. I hope you enjoy it.






Source List: BasicGrey Pyrus & Basics paper, Olio rub-ons, Micro alpha stickers; Martha Stewart butterfly punch; Fiskars scallop border punch; Zig pen

During this season of Thanksgiving, I want to say thank you and to let each one of you know just how grateful I am to have you in my life - as blog readers, as friends, as family. I am incredibly blessed. May each of you spend the day surrounded by those you love and who love you.

Finally, HUGE congratulations to Monica (lunetapatineta) for being the winner of my Ella Giveaway - the Essential Guide to Scrapbooking Boys! Please email me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize!

Have a wonderful, happy and safe Thanksgiving!

xoxo,
k.