Art Girlz Scrapbook Nook

OH So glad Orientation is Over!!

Just spend 4 days away from home. One day/night I stopped to visit my parents, and three days we were at the college that my DD will be attending in the fall. The students stayed with roommates in the dorms -- so they could get that dorm experience. Parents had the option of staying in the dorms too. I decided I'd like to stay on campus and see what it was like (again). Parents got lucky ... we had an air-conditioned dorm. And didn't have to share a room. But the twin bed was mildly uncomfortable, hall was noisy and I had to share a bathroom with the dorm room next door. Not a whole lot different than home!

We were SO busy for the 2 days of Orientation. The school fed us well though! Everwhere we went there was drinks, fruit, ice cream, snacks ... and lunch and dinner were wonderful (the first day). The second day we ate in the cafeteria with all the students. Cafeteria food ... is cafeteria food. But it was free ... not really free, it was part of the orientation cost.

Thankfully the weather was nice. It was warm, but there was a nice breeze. In the afternoons it did get pretty warm, and we started to drag by 4pm. We were going from 7am - 9:30 (and the kids stayed up till midnight). They didn't want us to sleep much.

As we were checking out of the dorms & going to breakfast on the second day, I hit a curb as I rounded a corner (they have VERY narrow roads, and I mean that as a real understatement) ... and my tire received a 2 inch gash in the side. I knew it was gone when I literally heard "SSS  SSS SSSS". Pull over into the parking lot, change the flat tire. No big deal. I have changed more flat tires ... it's really old hat now.

Now I only have a small spare tire and we were almost 300 miles from home -- that was an issue. And we were in a very rural location -- no tires to fit my car. It wasn't an issue of needing the GoodYear Eagles that are currently on there, I mean NO TIRES to fit the car. Don't know where they got the tire, they ordered it from somewhere ... it arrived just before they close at 5pm. It was at a small local gas / service station. You know, the kind that used to be everywhere ... 2 garages with lifts and a TINY office to pay. The gas pumps still have the numbers that go around and around -- not electronic kind. And no "pay at the pump with credit card". And yes, they CLOSE at 5pm, gas pumps too!

The mechanic and other men at the gas station were WONDERFUL. Very helpful and understanding. I just couldn't thank them enough. They packed my tiny spare back into the trunk all nice and neat. They wrote me a receipt for the tire from a small receipt book. I guess you still get that in small town America. Makes me want to pack up my stuff and move there, seriously.

We have almost 2 months until the move-in day ... we're hosting a "Crop Till You Drop" tomorrow. Am I a glutton for punishment or what? Will post some pictures of our projects soon!

Pomp & Circumstance -- Caps & Gowns

Saturday was the BIG day! We assembled together to see 361 graduates walk across the stage to get their High School diploma.

WHEW! Glad that's over! My DD is probably very glad too. LOTS of stress. Although there was no danger of her not graduating ... I guess the realization of it all has just hit her.

To everyone who has a graduate in the house (8th grade, HS, college -- even Pre-school!) -- it's the beginning of a whole new phase. Hope you all have a great future.

High School Chorus Concert filled with Heavenly Voices

I didn't realize it's Memorial Day Weekend. So much going on this week (and weeks past). Last night we attended the last chorus concert of the year. There are about 5 different choral groups, and in each group the teacher announced the Seniors and the other students presented them with little gifts.

It was really nice. I love the sound of voices singing. This choral teacher always has her best groups do a cappella (no music). Really beautiful.

My daughter did not tell me that one of the songs her group was singing was "Bridge Over Troubled Water". As soon as I realized what they were singing, I started crying. The song is beautiful, but has a lot of personal meaning for me. Closed my eyes -- it was like angels singing.

The last song of the night was the "elite" choral group -- the East Men, the Chiefs of Staff, and the Alley Cats (all names the kids gave to their small singing groups). I couldn't read the program because I forgot my classes ... and it was another tear jerker. They sang "Oh Shenandoa". A melody so beautifully mellow and haunting. I have played both of these songs on the piano many times, and I could picture my fingers going over the keys as they were singing. Closed my eyes and their voices were heavenly. No piano accompanying them -- just voices.

I will miss attending the chorus concerts. My younger daughter said she'd still like to go next year because she has friends in the groups. Maybe I can "tag along"!

The Wind in Your Hair ...

Just came across this website and thought it was fun. At least it was interesting enough to break the stress level here at work (budget NOT looking good).

Guess what type of car I am?

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Funny it should come up as a Corvette. I suppose I would like an old stingray model Corvette. But I own a Mustang Convertible ... yellow, black LeMans stripes, white leather interior and white ragtop. I used to have a Mazda Miata ... and she was WONDERFUL. Red with camel (tan) top and interior. Mimi (my Miata) and I went everywhere -- until I got the 'Stang. Miss my Miata.

Anyone have a car they dearly loved? Have you scrapped your car(s)? I scrapped the Mustang's transformation from "Mild to Wild" ... I'll have to share these soon!

Happy Mother's Day (a little late!)

I'm a little late, but I didn't work on Mother's Day. It was a day of leisure, which is rare!

Hope all of the mothers reading this had a wonderful Mother's Day. Any day can (and should) be Mother's Day.

FREE Shipping

We're still celebrating National Scrapbooking Day!

It's so fun, we just couldn't stop at one day!  Right now you can still get 15% off all orders of $40 or more -- use code: NSD08.

Starting May 12th (Monday) and going through to the end of the month, we're offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders $10 or more. Now is a good time to stock up on items for gift giving, starting holiday projects, and more. Use code: Ship-Free.

Take some supplies on vacation and scrap your vacation as you go! Make a vacation scrapbook before you leave and add journaling and photos as you go on your trip. Come home with a complete book!

We've received some new goodies for our store -- check them out at Art Girlz Scrappin Attic, Ltd.

A visit to Appalachian State University

I don't know about you, but I LOVE the mountains. I like the beach, but I really LOVE the mountains. This weekend my younger daughter and I went to Boone, NC to visit Appalachian State University. It is a very beautiful place. A mix of old and new. A mid-size university with a very small town feel.

We even had nice enough weather to put the top down and ride on Saturday afternoon with wind in our hair! Drive up 421 North out of Boone and you'll soon be in Tennesee! Coming into Boone from Wilkesboro, NC you cross the "Eastern Continental Divide" at 3,100 feet above sea level. You can jump on the Blue Ridge Parkway, go skiing (or any winter mountain sport) and so much more.

Back home now, and we found out that Boone (and higher elevations) had snow! So glad we didn't run into the snow. The Mustang (convertible) is not really a "snow" worthy car.

If you are in this area and looking for a nice small town to spend a weekend or vacation, Boone is great.

We certainly had a good time.

Just for fun!

I went to a crop last weekend and made almost 8 pages! Yipee! Of course, I still have 20+ years of photos, but I HAD to crop this Christmas and Thanksgiving!

Just some fun & humor for mid-week:

The Recipe For Tish

3 parts Sweetness 2 parts Pizzazz 1 part Allure Splash of Uniqueness Limit yourself to one serving. This cocktail is strong!

What's the Recipe for Your Personality?

ENJOY.

A Visit to Western Carolina University

This fall we've spent a number of weekends visiting various colleges & universities in North Carolina. This has been a wonderful experience (for the most part), but quite time consuming also.

Just wanted to share some photos of our trip out to Cullowhee, home of Western Carolina University. This is one of the smaller universities in the NC university system. Only about 8,000 students, nestled in a VERY small town (think way out small town), with the beautiful scenery of the Blue Ridge Mountains all around.

This is the marching band at half-time. The girls were given free tickets to the football game: WCU vs. Clemson Tigers. We didn't stay too long as there was alot too see and experience at the Open House, but the bank was AWESOME! And you can see the mountains in the background!

On the way back home, we got on the Blue Ridge Parkway. If you've ever had the chance to drive a bit on the Parkway - do it! The scenery is beautiful at ANY time of the year. And as you can see, we reached the highest elevation sign @ 6,053 feet. Although this was mid-November, a number of the trees still had some of their beautifully colored leaves. Stopping at the various overlooks, you can see across the valleys and the mountains look so beautiful.

I'm working on scrapbooking this trip, as the girls and I had so much fun stopping at the overlooks. The speed limit is only 45 mph (and believe me ... you don't want to be speeding around those curves with no guardrails!), so it took us over an hour to go about 15 miles. Stopping and looking, taking pictures, etc. It was all worth it.

Here's a view of the mountains from one of the overlooks. A beautiful sunny day, but you can still see the clouds skimming the top of the mountain. Pisgah Mountain & Mount Mitchell were completely cloud-covered.

Enjoy the view and Happy New Year!

Almost 2008!

We haven't posted very much in December. It's been a busy month! School projects, Chorus concerts, exams, holidays, traveling for holidays & more.

There was some quiet time for working on scrapbook pages. I also made Christmas cards and will post some pictures of those. STILL working on our 2002-03 Disney Vacation. No, we weren't gone for a year, we went at New Year's! It was the most exciting New Year's I think I've ever had.

Now it's almost 2008 -- what are YOU doing for the new year? How about a commitment to making at least ONE scrapbook page each week? Take 10-15 minutes a day and organize your time and your supplies:

1) day 1: gather photos, make copies & enlargements (if needed);

2) day 2: gather papers & embellishments;

3) day 3: try layouts /sketches

4) day 4: cut papers for sketch

5) day 5: assemble layout!

I know I can take 3 hours on one layout. EEK! This 5-day assembly helps me to gather items and think about the choices (you know, sleep on it!). On day 3, when you try the sketch, move pictures around to the most pleasing layout. You may have to go back and make enlargements or reduce some pictures. I have been trying to work more with the 4x6 photos. I tend to crop them, but not really enlarging too many photos. That gets expensive!

Happy New Year!