Clearing the dust...

So, its been about a week since I last blogged.I've been so busy lately with Halloween happening.. then SD4U'spooktacular online crop.. and then getting sick. It likely wasn't the flu b/c I didn't exhibit all of the symptoms.. maybe half... though, what I was feeling seemed more in-line with a really bad head cold.

Anyway, here's my recent layouts from the weekend crop and one from last night.

Safety First! Always check your Halloween candy!

This was before Cassius had his Pooh nose painted on...posing with our jack-o-lantern.

After the costume came off.. his nose remained :-) The journaling reads, "I love when you bat your eyelashes"

He really is a sweet boy :-)

This was when he was about 9 months to a year old. He made it to the top of the baby slide by himself.

And I "scrap lifted" this layout. I loved the simple design and these papers are too cute!

Thanks for looking!

New Layout - I Spy

Its been a busy last couple of weeks.Work has had its obstacles and school has been a little more challenging with each assignment. I did, however, complete my art course. I had a lot of fun in that class and learned a lot about the more modern works, thanks to my professor. She added some information that she had written and substituted her knowledge with a few chapters in the textbook. I really admire that she included other pieces of information and discussed some of my other favorite photographers when teaching about new media.

In any case, I did get some free time and was able to create t his layout for Challenge #43 at SD4U. This is James and Cassius on the Queen Mary deck using a telescope to view Long Beach. It was a sunny day and the ocean breeze felt fantastic on deck.

Los Dos Molinos Birthday Sketch

This is a little late. I have so many photos that I need to scrap by the end of the year.

Well.. this one is from March. My family from James' side and my sister's family met up at Los Dos Molinos to celebrate March birthdays.

Los Dos Molinos is a great little Mexican restaurant in Phoenix. They aren't kidding with their slogan, "Some Like It Hot!" I'm not sure how better to classify their food other than HOT.. its so hot that it supercedes the "Spicy hot" classification...

Well, it was a grand time with everyone there. The restaurant even did a "black out" for the birthday celebration. During this time, the whole restaurant makes a ruckus and the staff brings a flaming tray full of dessert! Its crazy! I actually think they drizzle Sambuca on the tray to make it fiery. As you can see, I got a pretty good image of it as they placed in in front of my nephew, Nick. His birthday is in March too.. and was the day of the dinner, March 7th.

Last weekend's Sedona Trip

Last weekend we had a quick family get-away to the Sedona area where we visited "Bramma" and Fred. Cassius can't quite enunciate "grandma" so she's become "bramma." Its really quite adorable and he's on target for his speech development according to his last Pedi appointment.

Anyway, I'm getting off track here.

We went to visit the Chapel as you're driving into Sedona. The views that day were spectacular! Here is James & Cassius at the Chapel entrance.

© 2009 Celeste Wyrick

On Sunday, we had a great hike to Cathedral Rock. It got pretty hot that day searching for the creek that I heard about. Turns out, we took the wrong trail in the opposite direction. In any case, it was a great day outdoors with the family. Here are a few pics:

Alt Book Class for A Cause

Its such a tragedy that a natural disaster has affected so many lives in the Phillipines. Please follow the link below to participate in this online class. Proceeds benefit victims of Typhoon Ondoy (aka Ketsana). The class is only $5 and you'll not only help people in need, but you'll take away a fabulous project in the process.

Here is a little snippet from Prima Designer Iris Babao-Uy's blog:

"Enjoy The Process" is a layout class that is all about letting go and enjoying the process. It will be freestyle with lots of embellishments and photos. Plus, there will be NO PATTERNED PAPER at all, except for the cardstock which is meant to support the fabric layout. Of course, there will be lots of Prima goodness! So please sign up for the class, let's have fun creating, and get those Prima products of yours out of their boxes and into your pages. ~Iris

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In support of Breast Cancer Awareness month, please help by clicking the following image link. It'll only take a moment and it helps to fund free mammograms. It wouldn't hurt to donate either :-)

Thanks!

Little Girls Are Angels and a Little Boy On The Go

So, its been a very busy week. I didn't have much time to scrapbook. Though, I needed some ME time and found a moment to do two layouts.

These were challenge entries for SD4U's cramfest challenge. We're in week 3 and I tell you, there are some talented ladies on that board!

Here are two of my layouts. The first is of my niece Gabby. It was her birthday the day we arrived in New Mexico. She turned 2 and got to enjoy a playset that my older sister delivered to my mom & dad's house. She's so cute!!

The second layout is of my son a few weeks after he got his spider man bike. I never got a chance to really clip an ad that showed the price of the bike, but I found one in this weekend's paper. I thought it might be neat to have him look back and see what market prices or offers were for his first bike. :-) I hope he won't mind all the button brads I used. I kind of got carried away. hehe.

Bright Eyed

Cassius loves the weekends like no other! He loves to rest and relax, watch Thomas, play with his toys and go outside to play.  However, during the summer, we're limited to indoor play because its so scorching out!

Here he is looking out of his bedroom window, wishing he could go outside. Bright Eyed and Bushy Tailed!

Cassius - 6 Months, Expert Teether

So, my favorite scrap forum posted a challenge in which we were to use a mailer ad as the basis for our layout inspiration. So, I used the basic concepts of the layout and used their coupon space as the area where my photos were to be placed and used their location list as my three-column "journaling" spot. This is actually a reprint from an article about teething.

These challenges are fun and help me take my mind off of my hectic schedule. Its nice to document my family and the things we experience. Hence, I present, "6 Months" .. a time when Cassius was cutting teeth and I busted him gnawing on one of his toys in his playroom at the old house.

What a week! New Card Creation

So, its been a long week! Work is non-stop and school is very demanding at the moment. This past weekend, we went to New Mexico and Window Rock, AZ to attend the Navajo Nation Fair. It was very rainy that day so I didn't get to shoot very much as my camera isn't currently waterproof. Of the photos I did get, I will share this weekend. I got some great expressions from my wonderful nieces and nephews. So aside from that....

In what little free time I do have, I participate in a card swap with some other very talented ladies. And every other month or so, we focus on a theme and send our batch of cards to one person who then sends one of each back out to everyone in the swap.

This month's theme that I decided to focus on was "Best Wishes." Though, my design is a little simple, I wanted to keep the layout fairly simple since I thought the paper designs were beautifully "illustrated." I didn't want to take away from the paper patterns. What better way to highlight them than with large blocks? Maybe its just me, but I think the cheery colors definitely convey the message, Best Wishes.

Here they are:

A Quick Card - Thinking of You

Well.. I'm probably addicted to scrapping in challenges at SD4U... This is Challenge #40 - a card layout presented by Page Maps. This is a lovely sketch that you'll have to share your rendition of (aka challenge the rest of us) at SD4U. :-)

This paper was actually left-overs from an old project. I'm so glad I got to put them to use AND use my new glitter pen. And, have another excuse to use my stickles!

My Loveable Son

Thanks to Inspired Blueprints for this fantastic layout! This sketch is #29 on their site and is currently being promoted for September.

This precious child is my son and while he may look innocent, don't let his good looks fool you. :-)  He loves sports, being outdoors and doing tough-guy stuff like making mud pies and looking at bugs! He also has an affinity for various toys from trains, cars, jungle animals to sports balls.

Belated Birthday Celebration for Cheii

My parents were in town this Labor Day weekend to spend time with family here. Today was their last day to visit. So, my brother and his wife held a small luncheon at their home. In addition to today's luncheon, we celebrated my father's birthday which was last week.

We had his favorite cuisine, Mexican food, and my niece, Morgan, made a birthday cake for him.

After we had lunch, my dad was relaxing with my nephew, Noah, and I thought this was the perfect photo op. My brother's house has beautiful lighting. I'm secretly jealous of his huge windows :-)  Anyway, I created a scrapbook page for SD4U's new four-week challenge, CramFest. You should check it out if you're into scrapbooking.

Made The Jump...

For now, I'm making the move to have a blog site solely for me. I have another site which I primarily use to post updates about my son. Though, he is my life and joy, I do like a number of other things which I'd like to share here.

Likely, this will be an area where I post my favorite client photo sessions or various craft creations.

Without further ado, time to spruce this place up and make it a little more personal!