Sketchy Thursdays and another layout to share!

I've been on vacation since December 23rd and have been enjoying every moment!

Even though a lot of time has been spent taking care of our home, I'm grateful to have a home to take care of.  On Thursday, I finally spent a good chunk of day scrapping. Go me!  Both pages were created using papers from the Winter Twig line by Little Yellow Bicycle.

Here is what I created~

This page will be the 2nd page to a page I did earlier this month, thus the lack of title and journaling. This was created using Sketchy Thursday's sketch for inspiration.

This page was created using the Little Yellow Bicycle sketch challenge~

Thanks for looking!

2011 Favorites {September through December}

Here it is...the last post of 2011 favorites!  I hope you've enjoyed my walk down memory lane :)

September

 Original post {HERE}

 Original post {HERE}

Highlight of the month:

Celebrating our first anniversary and belated honeymoon 

at Walt Disney World!!

October

Original post {HERE}

Highlights of the month:

We celebrated our first anniversary of Amber's adoption.

We had snow! The first time I can remember that in my lifetime!

November

Original post {HERE}

December

 Original post {HERE}

I created this last week and hadn't had a chance to blog it. 

Love the ribbon flowers I made! Glubers ROCK!

2011 Favorites {May through August}

Good morning!

Today I'm sharing my favorite creations from May through August. I also added in some fun highlight pictures for almost each month. Enjoy!

May

Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

Highlight of the month:

Getting to meet my online friend, Sue, in person!!

June

This one was never blogged, although it was uploaded to SCS for a sketch challenge.

Original post {HERE}

Highlight of the month:

My husband celebrated his 40th birthday and we hosted our first party!

July

Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

August

Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

Highlight of the month:

Getting to go to Fenway Park for the first time!

This is the month I also felt my first earthquake and we were hit by Tropical Storm Irene and had no power for 2 days...after that I really don't think I'd survive camping LOL

Tomorrow I'll share September through December!

2011 Favorites {January through April}

The past few years I have done 'favorites' posts rounding out my favorite cards/layouts/projects of each month.   I will break it up into 4 months each, so 3 posts leading up to the new year that's just around the corner! I hope you enjoy my look back.  I enjoy going back and seeing everything I've done all year.

January

 Original post {HERE}

 Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

February

Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

March

 Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

April

 Original post {HERE}

Original post {HERE}

I'll be back tomorrow with May through August!

From our house to yours...

We wish you a very Merry Christmas! 

Card created using My Memories Suite and a template from the Christmas Mr. Claus Printables kit.

Waiting on Wednesday: Scrapbook of Secrets

This is a weekly meme hosted on Breaking the Spine~

This week's 'pre-publication' that I can't wait to read is:

Scrapbook of Secrets is a new cozy series starting and I can't wait to read it. It is the best of both worlds for me scrapbooking and reading :)  I have quite a few series that are dedicated to both and I love finding new series to add!

Here is a synopsis from Goodreads:

Having traded in her career as a successful investigative journalist for the life of a stay-at-home mom in picturesque Cumberland Creek, Virginia, Annie can't help but feel that something's missing. But she finds solace in a local "crop circle" of scrapbookers united by chore-shy husbands, demanding children, and occasional fantasies of their former single lives. And when the quiet idyll of their small town is shattered by a young mother's suicide, they band together to find out what went wrong. . . 

Annie resurrects her reporting skills and discovers that Maggie Rae was a closet scrapbooker who left behind more than a few secrets--and perhaps a few enemies. As they sift through Maggie Rae's mysteriously discarded scrapbooks, Annie and her "crop" sisters begin to suspect that her suicide may have been murder. It seems that something sinister is lurking beneath the town's beguilingly calm façade--like a killer with unfinished business.

Have a great day!

I scrapped!

It's been quite some time since I've done a layout. I joined in with the 24 hour challenge at Scrappin-n-Chattin, an awesome yahoo group that I belong to. My friend Sue picked THIS sketch from Jillibean Soup and the Winter Twig collection from Little Yellow Bicycle for me.  I am so glad she picked this collection, it gave me the incentive to scrap and enter this week's Lasting Memories challenge - Winter Wonderland and Falling Snowflakes! It has been ages and ages since I've been able to get a page entered there. I am also entering this week's Anything Goes challenge at The Paper Variety, it's been awhile since I've played there too. I think the desire to craft is slowly coming back, yay!

This is a picture from the day after the October snowstorm that we had. I cut into almost every piece of paper that I bought from my LSS. I think I need to get more so that I have enough to scrap the rest of the pictures! For some extra embellishing, I punched a few snowflakes from different Martha Stewart punches and added them with popdots.

Thanks for looking!

Reading Addict Challenge 2012

I found another fun challenge to join, it's called Reading Addict Challenge for those of us addicted to reading challenges. I haven't even started yet but I think I'm addicted since I've signed up for 5!

I'm addicted as Easy as Pie - 1-5 challenges...and the good thing is that I can level up if I find more challenges to enter! I've provided quick links to each challenge post and a more detailed description of each challenge below. All challenges except the first one run from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2012.

Quick Links to each reading challenge post:

The TBR Double Dare Challenge

Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

Off the Shelf 2012

2012 Cruisin through the Cozies Reading Challenge

Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

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I'm going to participate in the following book challenges ~

You can find more details HERE. I'm committed to read 15 books from my TBR piles from January 1st through April 1st. 

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You can find more details HERE. I'm going to commit to finish reading these 5 series (to start with). 

These are the 6 series that I hope to finish~ (I just had to add a 6th lol - found some books on my shelves that I want to read!)

Paige Shelton's Farmers Market Mystery  (I need to read 2)

• Fruit of All Evil
• Crops and Robbers

Jessica Beck's Donut Shop Mystery (I need to read 4)

• Sinister Sprinkles
• Evil Eclairs
• Tragic Toppings
• Killer Crullers

Lorna Barrett's Booktown Mystery Series (I need to 4)

• Bookmarked for Death
• Bookplate Special
• Chapter and Hearse
• Sentenced to Death

Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mysteries (I need to read 5)

• French Pressed
• Espresso Shot
• Holiday Grind
• Roast Mortem
• Murder by Mocha

Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove Series (I need to read 10)

• 50 Harbor Street
• 5-B Poppy Lane
• 6 Rainier Drive
• 74 Seaside Avenue
• 8 Sandpiper Way
• A Cedar Cove Christmas
• 92 Pacific Boulevard
• 1022 Evergreen Place
• 1105 Yakima Street
• 1225 Christmas Tree Lane

Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen Mysteries (I need to read 3)

• Plum Pudding Murder
• Apple Turnover Murder
• Devil's Food Cake Murder

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Another challenge I found is Off the Shelf 2012 - maybe this will be the year I can say I've read every book in one of my bookcases??

I'm going to select the On a Roll level with 50 books to read...I'm not sure which books those will be yet but I'll update my post as I read!

.

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2012 Crusin through the Cozies Reading Challenge.  I adore cozies - they are definitely my favorite genre by far.

I'm shooting for Level 3 - Super Sleuth - Read 13 books or more. (shooting for 25 books!)

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Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge 2012

In 2011, I've read 64 books and shooting for 67 by year's end.
My 2012 goal is 75 books. Not much of a jump but realistic for me to handle.

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Some of you may think I'm crazy or over-committing myself, however these challenges can overlap and I also spend a miminum of 30-60 minutes a day reading. That adds up after a few days/weeks/months!

Ready, set, let's READ!

Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge 2012

Oops, I lied...there is a huge world out there involving reading challenges. I didn't know so many existed!  I found a few more to join in on. 

 

For this challenge, I'm going with the I'm on Fire Level - to read 16 or more books. My ultimate goal is 75 books for 2012, so far in 2011 I'm up to 64 books and possibly getting up to 67 by year's end.

I'll update my progress on this post throughout the year!

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1. Sinister Sprinkles by Jessica Beck (pb) - finished 1/9/12
2. Buzz Off by Hannah Reed (kindle) - finished
3. Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close (kindle) - finished 1/31/12
4. A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady (pb) - finished 2/1/12
5. Killer Crab Cakes by Livia Washburn (kindle) - finished 2/10/12
6. Escape by Barbara Delinksy (kindle) - finished 2/18/12
7. Evil Eclairs by Jessica Beck (kindle) - finished 2/24/12
8. Deep Down True by Juliette Fay (kindle) - finished 25/25/12
9. Silver Girl by Elin Hildebrand (kindle) - finished 3/1/12
10. Tuscan Holiday by Holly Chamberlain - finished 3/7/12
11. Tragic Toppings by Jessica Beck (kindle) - finished 3/11/12
12. The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia Washburn (kindle) - finished 3/16/12
13. Fruit of All Evil by Paige Shelton (kindle) - finished 3/19/12
14. Killer Crullers by Jessica Beck (kindle) - finished 3/23/12
15. Bookmarked for Death by Lorna Barrett (paperback) - finished 3/25/12
16. The Gingerbread Bump Off by Livia Washburn (kindle) - finished 3/27/12
17. Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan (kindle) - finished 4/16/12
18. Unnatural Acts by Stuart Woods (kindle) - finished 4/19/12
19. Crops and Robbers by Paige Shelton (kindle) - finished 4/26/12
20. Rest in Pizza by Chris Cavender (kindle) - finished 4/30/12

2012 Cruisin' through the Cozies Reading Challenge

I found another and the absolute last challenge that I will join is the 2012 Cruisin through the Cozies Reading Challenge.  I adore cozies - they are definitely my favorite genre by far.

I'm shooting for Level 3 - Super Sleuth - Read 13 books or more.

1. Sinister Sprinkles by Jessica Beck - finished 1/9/12
2. Buzz Off by Hannah Reed - finished
3. A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady - finished 2/1/12
4. Killer Crab Cakes by Livia Washburn - finished 2/10/12
5. Evil Eclairs by Jessica Beck - finished 2/24/12
6. Tragic Toppings by Jessica Beck - finished 3/11/12
7. The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia Washburn - finished 3/16/12
8. Fruit of All Evil by Paige Shelton - finished 3/19/12
9. Killer Crullers by Jessica Beck - finished 3/23/12
10. Bookmarked for Death by Lorna Barrett - finished 3/25/12
11. The Gingerbread Bump-Off by Livia Washburn - finished 3/27/12
12. Crops and Robbers by Paige Shelton - finished 4/26/12
13. Rest in Pizza by Chris Cavender - finished 4/30/12
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.

Some of you may think I'm crazy or over-committing myself, however these challenges can overlap and I also spend a miminum of 30-60 minutes a day reading. That adds up after a few days/weeks/months!

Teaser Tuesdays

I found this weekly meme on Yvonne's blog last night and decided to join in on the fun!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


This week I'm reading ~

"Why do you have this?" "It belongs to my gentleman friend; he loaned it to me so that I can keep in touch with him while I'm out of the country."

Off the Shelf 2012

The last challenge is Off the Shelf 2012 - maybe this will be the year I can say I've read every book in one of my bookcases?? I have several around the house and still more books at my parents that haven't been moved yet!

I'm going to select the On a Roll level with 50 books to read...I'm not sure which books those will be yet but I'll update this list as I read!

1. Sinister Sprinkles by Jessica Beck - finished 1/9/12

2. Buzz Off by Hannah Reed - finished

3. Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close - finished 1/31/12

4. A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady - finished 2/1/12

5. Killer Crab Cakes by Livia Washburn - finished 2/10/12

6. Escape by Barbara Delinsky - finished 2/18/12

7. Evil Eclairs by Jessica Beck - finished 2/24/12

8. Deep Down True by Juliette Fay - finished 2/25/12

9. Silver Girl by Elin Hildebrand - finished 3/1/12

10. Tuscan Holiday by Holly Chamberlain - finished 3/7/12
11. Tragic Toppings by Jessica Beck - finished 3/11/12
12. The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia Washburn - finished 3/16/12

13. Fruit of All Evil by Paige Shelton - finished 3/19/12

14. Killer Crullers by Jessica Beck - finished 3/23/12

15. Bookmarked for Death by Lorna Barrett - finished 3/25/12

16. The Gingerbread Bump-Off by Livia Washburn - finished 3/27/12

17. Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan - finished 4/16/12

18. Unnatural Acts by Stuart Woods - finished 4/19/12

19. Crops and Robbers by Paige Shelton - finished 4/26/12

20. Rest in Pizza by Chris Cavender - finished 4/30/12

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

27.

28.

29.

30.

31.

32.

33.

34.

35.

36.

37.

38.

39.

40.

41.

42.

43.

44.

45.

46.

47.

48.

49.

50.

Ready, set, let's READ!

Finishing the Series Reading Challenge for 2012

Here's another reading challenge - perfect for me as I've already had this on my goal list for next year!

These are the 5 series that I hope to finish~ I had to add a 6th after perusing my shelves last night!

Paige Shelton's Farmers Market Mystery  (I need to read 2) - COMPLETED 4/26/12

• Fruit of All Evil - finished 3/19/12
• Crops and Robbers - finished 4/26/12

Jessica Beck's Donut Shop Mystery (I need to read 4) - COMPLETED 3/23/12

• Sinister Sprinkles - finished 1/9/12
• Evil Eclairs - finished 2/24/12
• Tragic Toppings - finished 3/11/12
• Killer Crullers - finished 3/23/12

Lorna Barrett's Booktown Mystery Series (I need to read 4)

• Bookmarked for Death - finished 3/25/12
• Bookplate Special
• Chapter and Hearse
• Sentenced to Death

Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mysteries (I need to read 5)

• French Pressed
• Espresso Shot
• Holiday Grind
• Roast Mortem
• Murder by Mocha

Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove Series (I need to read 10)

• 50 Harbor Street
• 5-B Poppy Lane
• 6 Rainier Drive
• 74 Seaside Avenue
• 8 Sandpiper Way
• A Cedar Cove Christmas
• 92 Pacific Boulevard
• 1022 Evergreen Place
• 1105 Yakima Street
• 1225 Christmas Tree Lane

Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen Mysteries (I need to read 3)

• Apple Turnover Murder - finished
• Devil's Food Cake Murder
• Cinnamon Roll Murder

I can't wait to start!

The TBR Double Dare 2012

Completed!! I read 16 books between January 1-April 1.

I've been perusing 2012 Book Challenges on A Novel Challenge and came across this one.

I'm going to commit to reading 15 books from my TBR piles from January 1st through April 1st.

Wish me luck!
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Progress:
1. Sinister Sprinkles by Jessica Beck (Donut Shop #3) finished 1/9/12
2. Buzz Off by Hannah Reed (Queen Bee #1) finished
3. Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close finished 1/31/12
4. A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady finished 2/1/12
5. Killer Crab Cakes by Livia Washburn finished 2/10/12
6. Escape by Barbara Delinksy finished 2/18/12
7. Evil Eclairs by Jessica Beck (Donut Shop #4) finished 2/24/12
8. Deep Down True by Juliette Fay finished 2/25/12
9. Silver Girl by Elin Hildebrand finished 3/1/12
10. Tuscan Holiday by Holly Chamberlain finished 3/7/12
11. Tragic Toppings by Jessica Beck finished 3/11/12
12. The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia Washburn finished 3/16/12
13. Fruit of All Evil by Paige Shelton finished 3/19/12
14. Killer Crullers by Jessica Beck finished 3/23/12
15. Bookmarked for Death by Lorna Barrett finished 3/25/12
16. The Gingerbread Bump-Off by Livia Washburn finished 3/27/12