I finished my “G” layouts on-time, just wasn’t able to post it here yesterday ‘coz you know, LIFE happened and before I knew it, it’s midnight already. Anyway, I managed to make 3 LOs this week… yup, I’m still in a very productive mood by my standard that is. So here we go… first up is the “Glimpse of U” page.

the page design:

I love how this turned out and to think I only used scraps from the previous LO I made a few months back which I will share with you in the next few days. Anyway, this may seem like a one-photo LO but it’s really not. I wanted to include all the ultrasound photos of Zach but I don’t want to over crowd the page, so I did this…

As you may have noticed, I like to include a lot of photos on my pages and I’m always finding ways to do it without ending up with the same look. This accordion style is kind of cool!

the title:

I wanted to include a hidden message on my title and I wanted it to stand out, so I chose a different color, in this case, it’s RED for the “i {heart} U”. I must admit I wasn’t too sure about the color combination ‘coz I like my pages to be coordinated plus red and green is so Christmas-y. (Changing the paper was not an option ’coz I already adhered it). But to really get the message across I had to be bold. Anyway, I like to think that the RED added visual interest on this otherwise, ordinary page.

other details:

The string was inspired by my idol, Laura Vegas. She uses string on most of her LOs and I just love the effect, so from now on, I’ll try to incorporate it on my LOs, I hope she won’t mind that I copied her idea.

The lace doily for matting and the letter “Z” for Zachary.

And I added {3} buttons to balance the red elements.

Next is the “Grand Time, with Grandpa, on the grand piano” LO. I wanted to document Zach’s love for music at such an early age. He was six months old when we found out that he will eat without any protest if he hears the “Love Song” by Sara Bareilles. (My sister would play this song on her cell phone). From then on, he soon discovered music videos on MTv and MYX, and mind you he has his own favorites. Once he hears the intro of his favorite songs he will stop what he is doing and just watch … I can’t even do that, I have to hear the lyrics before I can identify the song ‘coz apparently I’m tone deaf. He got his love for music from his Grandpa who plays the piano and guitar and can also sing well. I’m glad I captured this candid moment and I am able to document their shared interest.

Since the title is so full of “grand”, I wanted this page to look grand and I think I have achieved that. From the luxurious paper to the glittered title and intricate looking accents/embellishments, this LO really look grand to me.

I love the flourish behind the “G”. I stamped it using my Autumn Leaves flourishes acrylic stamp before adhering the “G”.

For the chandelier, I downloaded it from the internet and printed it on a glossy photo paper and then cut out the image. I had a hard time cutting the intricate detail so I just inked it using a light brown chalk ink to fit the background but when it was all dry I discovered that the black part kind of lost its shine because of the chalk, good think I have a black slick writer so I just covered it up being careful not to color the brown parts. Its hard work I know but I love the final outcome.

For added detail, I used my Bo Bunny black lace ribbon which I absolutely love and some bling. I also matted the focal photo with again the doily which I inked a little to fit the background.

For the journaling, I hid it behind one of the smaller photos. You just have to open the photo to reveal it.

The last LO is “the Great Adventure at the Grand Canyon”. I dug deep into my photo box and got these 1996 photos of my DH. These photos were taken while he was vacationing in the US way before we got married.

Again for this LO, I wanted to include all the photos of him at the Grand Canyon ‘coz I don’t want to waste all those panoramic shots. I had a difficult time creating this 2-page LO with {5} panoramic pics and {7} 3×5 pics but I was up for a new creative challenge so here it goes.

I started out by laying down my CS as foundation and then arranging the photos to the placement it is now. If you’ll notice, I arranged the photos to mimic the boulders you see on the photo and it also reflects the horizontal lines of the Grand Canyon.

My original idea was to create a pocket to insert all those extra pics but I decided to just do this…

and more hidden photos…

I also punched some of the photos using my Fiskars threading water puncher to break all the lines.

Here are close up shots of the title…

I also embellish some of the photos using string and flowers.

For the journaling, I asked my DH to write down his story so that I can include it on the LO. I then adhered it on the inside pages.

To finish off this LO, I just added a few embellishments.

So I guess that’s it for my “G” week. Do check out my sister’s work here. I’m off to plan my “H” project… I still don’t have any idea what to do, so wish me luck. I’ll also be working on my December Daily this week. I hope to finish it and share it with you in two weeks time.

Sally‘s blog candy… so yummy! You have until the 27th of March to enter the draw, so what are you waiting for… go check out her blog!

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This one is Shannon‘s candy. Do check it out and while your at it you may want to check out her studio… it’s awesome… so neat and organized!

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You don’t want to miss this one from Zoe. She got some awesome cards!

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Don’t you just want to WIN this one? Do check out Helen‘s blog for your chance to join the giveaway. You have until th 29th of March so hurry!

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I personally would want to win this one and if you like to win too, just check out Jennifer‘s blog. You have until the 12th of April to enter the giveaway.

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Candy has candy and they are so yummy. I am loving the nestabilities (I’ve been wanting one for some time now but it is quite expensive ) and all the yummy stuff. And you have until the 30th to enter.

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Stamp With Us is giving away Stampin’ Up products worth over £100. I know your excited so go check out their blog… you have until the 1st of April to join.

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Sonia is giving away some really great products so you might want to check it out. While your at it, check out her cards… they are AWESOME and oh so inspiring!

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Check out Caryn‘s giveaway! You have until the 1st of April to join.

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Below is Maria’s EXTRA SPECIAL blog candy. If you want to win this do check out her blog. You have until the 27th of March to do so.

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Stacey is giving away some lovely papers, stamps and a lot more. So if you want to win this, go check out her blog.

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Paula is giving away this blog candy to one lucky winner. So if you are feeling oh so lucky check out her blog.

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Debra is giving away these delightful goodies. If you want them go check out her blog for a chance to win.

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Donalda is giving away some… i mean a LOT of yummy goodies! Check out her blog ASAP. You have until the 3rd of April to join.

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Gina‘s blog candy includes a spellbinder tags, stamp and papers. If you want to win these yummy goodies, check out her blog. She will announce the winner on the 31st of March.

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One “Stressed Mother” is having a give away over at her blog. Do check out the fabulous goodies you might win. You have until the 14th of April to join.

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Louise is giving away some fabulous stuff. You might want to check her creative work… I love it!

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Nicky is giving away some fabulous products, so if you want to win it do check out her blog. (I did not really understand what she wrote on her blog ‘coz it is a different language but the photos of the goodies is enough for me to join in the fun.) You have until the 31st  to join.

Wow! That was a lot of blog candies. And yes, it took me awhile to finish this post but I had a great time checking out these ladies blogs and I hope you’ll do the same.

That’s it for now. Happy a happy Wednesday everyone!

For the record, I have officially made 7 1-page layouts, 3 2-page LOs, 1 altered project and ½ mini-album (The other half is still put on hold until… I don’t know when. LOL) and I still have a few lined up before the month ends. WOW! That is a lot of output from me. I must say I’m proud of myself for sticking with our 26-letters: 26-weekends challenge and I am truly “enjoying the process”. (ala Heidi Swapp)

I had a lot of projects planned for “F” week but unfortunately I didn’t have enough time to finish it all because it was a very busy and tiring two weeks with 2 out of town trips.

Anyway here are my LOs…

Faces of Zach

My hubby, my sister and I have a lot of favorite photos of Zach and since I can’t scrap it all individually, I decided to make just one LO out of all our favorites. These photos were taken when Zach was less than a year old.

Since this LO is loaded with a lot of photos I did not feel the need to add a lot of embellishments. I just added some gromlets, a few stars and circles, ribbons, buttons and of course the title and it’s done.

I also added photo captions on each picture to illustrate Zach many expressions.

My hubby loves this LO and it never failed to put a smile on his face every time he looks at it.

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Zach’s FIRST milestones

FIRST STEP: Baby Steps

Capturing and documenting Zach’s milestones is one of the many reasons why I started scrapping. I know I am a lucky Mom to be able to do this and I am so grateful.

I finished this LO in a short period of time. I didn’t really do much with this one. I love the paper so much that I did not have the heart to cut it up. LOL. So I just adhered it to a cardstock, added the photos, stripe paper, ribbons, buttons, title, journaling and tadah… it’s done.

Up close:

This is a simple and easy to make LO and the outcome is one fun and lively page.

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FIRST SOLID FOOD: Spoon FULL of… LOVE

This is one of my favorites. I just love the color combination and the layout of the whole page. When I started making this I really didn’t have an idea how it will look like.

I would have used some chipboard and rub-on letters for the title but since I don’t have any, I decided to stamp the letters and added string and flowers.

A little bit of flourishes and bling…

My journaling tag... (I still have to write my journaling for this one).

More details…

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FIRST HAIRCUT: The Mane Event

I have to admit that I made this LO late last year but since I consider any LO unfinished until I share it then technically this is still new.

This is one of those pages that took me a long time to finish because {one} I wanted to include a lot of photos, {two} I don’t know how to do it without over crowding the page and {three} I don’t normally do a two-page LO. After reading Ali Edwards’ A Designer’s Eye for scrapbooking book I got inspired to do this…

I created balance on the 2 pages by {one} using one focal photo on the first page and a gathering of photos on the second and {two} the elements on both pages are visually equal.

I included some of Zach’s hair and put it inside a vellum envelope I created.

I printed the title (MANE) using free fonts from the net I just edited the colors to fit with the paper. I would love to acknowledge the designer of this font but honestly I forgot where I downloaded it. I’m sorry for not mentioning your name but I’m really thankful.

Here is the second page.

I solved my dilemma of not overcrowding the page with a lot of photos by hiding some of them. I created these flaps on the cardstock by using a craft knife and adhering the four photos under it. I then proceeded on embellishing the top with elements that matches with the first page.

Even though it took me awhile to finish this LO, I am happy with the outcome.

I still have a lot of “Zach’s FIRST” to scrap like his first bath, his first swim and so on but since I don’t have the time to finish it all I am considering “F” week as an unfinished project like my “D” week.

I decided to make a page about me being pregnant with Zach. This has been on my “to scrap list” for the longest time and now he is already 1 year and 6 months old… so it’s about time I finally did it.

The original title was actually “Expecting YOU” but in the middle of the project I decided o change it. I like this title better and anyway, the story I wanted to document is the feelings I had while I was EXPECTING Zach. I opted to document this stage in my life for the following reasons… {one} this is a first for me… {two} I want to remember how it feels like to be pregnant just in case I want to go through this again. LOL.

the DETAILS…

Selecting the paper was hard… I knew beforehand that I was going to use the Provo Craft maternity themed paper my sister, Hope, gave me more than a year ago, but finding the coordinating paper that went with it was hard. The “wave” paper is actually part of DCWV’s Christmas collection but since the colors matches the CS and my PP I decided to use it and anyway it’s not really that “Christmasy”.

I matted the photo with a plain pink paper that I tore and inked for a distress look and then embossed using my Cuttlebug. I adhered the photo using a double-sided foam tape for added dimension.

I wanted to incorporate my Prenatal Record so I tucked it behind the photo and my journaling. You can actually pull it out for a closer look.

For my title, I made use of Heidi Swapp’s free digital elements and I just edited it to fit my needs. I printed it on a CS and cut along the image.

The paper flower I made using my Cuttlebug and I added Petaloo silk flowers with DCWV brad on top. I adhered it using pop dots.

To finish it off I added a burgundy lace ribbon behind the photo… I stitched and adhered buttons on the Prenatal Record to draw the viewer’s eyes on it and lastly I added black crystals/bling to outline the wave pattern of the paper.

That’s it for my “E” project. Stay tuned for our “F” week. I am planning to make more than one LO for this one. As for my December Daily… still no update but I haven’t forgotten it.

Feb 23

Cruising

Errands day today… I just deposited money for my sister’s condo in Makati and we dropped by Mega World to pay Real Estate Ta…, again for the condo. I took this picture while we were cruising along High Street in Fort Bonifacio on our way to check out Rudy Project and iPod shops.

Feb 24

family affair

We had dinner at Abe in Serendra with my MIL, BIL and 2 of Jasper’s cousins. I did not like the food so much, it’s too salty for my taste but the atmosphere there is great. After dinner we went to High Street and had coffee and as usual Zach had a blast.

Feb 25

RAK

Oh, my goodies arrived today. This is the very first RAK I received. They also sent me a catalog of their products for 2009 and I tell you they are so yummy. Do check out Crafty Secrets if you are into vintage stuffs, you won’t be disappointed with their product line-up.

Feb 26

kayang-kaya kaya?

I’m in front of the computer again and this time I am preparing my very first entry to Pinoy Scrapbookers’ Challenge blog. I decided to join this month’s challenge because {one} I love the RAK and {two} I have the perfect LO.

Feb 27

party with a view

We attended a birthday party of Jasper’s friend, Tina. And while Zach was playing with Tina’s 4-year-old daughter, Cheska I managed to take this photo of the guests.

Feb 28

Kaya!

My entry is up over at Pinoy Scrapbookers’ Challenge blog. It is cool to see my work in another site and being viewed by a lot of scrappers.

Mar 01

Sunday Scene

This is the usual scene every Sunday at my in-laws’ place. Both my FIL & MIL are very busy people but every Sunday they make sure that they are home to play with their one and only grandchild.

U R My Sonshine

I finally decided to join in the fun over at Pinoy Scrapbookers’ blog.

The challenge for this month is to:
1)    Create a LO about a love one
2)    Choose a song associated with your love
3)    Use song title or a phrase from the song you chose
4)    Journaling should be the entire song or part of the song that is meaningful to you
5)    Use stitches… hand or machine made

Here is my take…

This LO is inspired by the song “You Are My Sunshine”. I just played with the title a little bit and changed it to “U R My Sonshine”. There is one verse in the song that really conveys how I feel about my one and only son. I’m sure most of you are familiar with this song.

Up close:

Some stitching…

Journaling:

-You brighten my day with just a smile.
- You fill my heart with love and joy.
- You mean the world to me.
- You are my everything.
I wouldn’t ask for anything more coz’ I have you, my perfect little “SONSHINE”!

love,
Mommy

When I see the world through your young eyes, everything becomes new again.
The moon is brighter, the sun warmer, and the stars even more mysterious.
Yet nothing is as glorious as YOU. ~~~ Maya Angelou ~~~

This is the song lyric that I incorporated in my LO:

You are my sunshine, My only sunshine.
You make me happy when skies are grey.
You’ll never know, dear, How much I love you.
Please don’t take my sunshine away.

Materials Used:

K & Company Mira Golden Swirl Die-Cut Paper, DCWV Cardstock, MY Mind’s Eye, Magnolia Collection Paper, Computer Fonts, Buttons, Diamond Glaze, Colorbox Ink Pad, Tombow and Zots adhesives

You can check out my entry as well as the other beautiful entries here.

Nap Time

Yah, he can be in this position and still sleep the day/night away. It doesn’t look comfortable to me, but I don’t want to disturb his sleep so I just let him be.

Feb 17

Treasure Chest

I saw this native treasure chest in the mall today and I immediately thought of my sister, Hope. She loves this kind of stuff so I took a picture so that I can show it to her. I’m sure she’s going to love this! This is the perfect storage for her treasured mini albums.

Feb 18

day @ the park

This is one of the spots that I love to photograph when I’m in High Street. I love to hang out here and just relax while watching Zach explore.

Feb 19

beating the deadline

I am in a rush to finish my December Daily album but no one is available to watch over Zach. So I brought all my scrapbooking stuff downstairs and scrapped on the dining table. Good thing Zach was in a good mood and he did not bother me at all. The thing I discovered while scrapping downstairs is that I need a bigger table for my Scraptuary upstairs. I wish I had more room!

Feb 20

enough!

Snapshot of the day! Zach is use to having his picture taken being a son of a scrapper mom. But today, he was not in the mood. He was more interested in the camera than having his photo taken.

Feb 21

addicted to “pastillas”

Jasper love “pastillas” so much that he was willing to make one. What he didn’t realize is it takes a lot of hard work to do it. The process is really simple but the mixing part is the problem. You see, we do not have an electric mixer so he had to do it by hand. He was glad when he was done and of course he savored the fruit of his labor.

Feb 22

memorabilia

I have to admit that I almost did not push through with this project. I was thinking of using this for my 2009 DD but when I thought of how much my sister spent (money & time) so that I can document our holiday made me feel guilty. And I know she is going to be disappointed if I back out.

So for my “D” week I decided to work on this album. I know this is a big project to embark and I need more than 2 weeks to finish it but this is my opportunity and if I’m not going to work on it now then I may never find the time or the right motivation to do so.

Anyway, brace yourself to a pic-loaded post coz here comes the first batch. I finished days 1 to 14 and I’ll be working on the rest while also doing my take on “E” week. Good luck to me.

Front Cover (Holiday Memories)

It looks exactly like my sister’s but the content is very different…

Cover page (2008 December to Remember)

Up close (2008 December to Remember)

Pages 1 & 2

Up close: page 1 (The countdown begins…)

Up close: page 2

Note: This tag I got from Jessica Sprague’s Stories in Hand on-line class. I just edited the color and the text. When you lift the page, you can find my journal for this particular day. It is attached to a sheer page.

Pages 3 & 4 ( a gift of a family)

Note: For the 3rd page, I haven’t decided yet if I want to add something or just leave it as it is.

Up close: page 4

Pages 5 & 6

Up close: page 5 (Jolly Young Fella)

Up close: page 6 (1, 2, 3 Kiss)

Pages 7 & 8

Up close: page 7

Up close: page 8 (moments)

Note: Journaling behind the photos.

Pages 9 & 10

Up close: page 9 (Sights & Sounds of Christmas)

Up close: page 10

Pages 11 & 12

Up close: page 11 (silent night)

Up close: page 12 (7)

Pages 13 & 14

Up close: page 13 (Notes from Today)

Up close: page 14

Pages 15 & 16

Up close: page 15

Up close: page 16 (fun memories)

Pages 17 & 18

Note: For page 17, I still have to add my journaling.

Up close: page 18 (Party)

Pages 19 & 20

Up close: page 19

Up close: page 20

Pages 21 & 22

Up close: page 21

Up close: page 22 (on the 12th day of Christmas)

Pages 23 & 24

Up close: page 23

Up close: page 24 (Mommy, where’s Santa?)

Pages 25 & 26

Up close: pages 25 (all wrapped up)

Up close: page 26 (Around the House)

Note: I had to edit each photo so that it will show through the overlay page). Hard work!

Pages 27 & 28 (Trimmings)

This is what it looks like from the side. I still have more room for the remaining pages but I have to be careful not to overdo this.

Whew, I’m finally done! Good thing I only finished days 1 to 14, if not, it would have taken me forever just to post this. LOL. Anyway, I’ll be sharing the rest of the pages when I’m done. As to when it will be, I still don’t know but do drop by to check it out.

Bath time

Zach use to fit in that little white basin he is sitting on… look at him now. Can’t believe how fast he has grown, next thing I know he’ll be taking a bath on his own.

Feb 10

Explore

Zach and I went to High Street, our usual hang out place @ the Fort. My little guy is starting to explore his surroundings. He was keen on touching the water and he did it several times. The satisfaction you see on his face every time he does is priceless. I managed to take a number of photos and I can’t wait to start scrapping.

Feb 11

not your kind of day

Zach’s 4th visit to the kiddie salon… and he wasn’t happy about it. The barber used electric razor and he doesn’t like the sound so he started crying. Jasper held him but still he wouldn’t stop. It was too late when I mentioned to the barber that Zach doesn’t like the razor if I told him earlier then he would have used plain old scissors… dah! In my defense, I thought he had to use the razor with the haircut Jasper chose for Zach. Oh well, what’s done is done and anyway, my baby looked so adorable after.

Feb 12

my world

I started working on my December Daily today. I’m still trying to sort my supplies and organize everything. Hopefully I can finish this project on schedule but I have my doubts coz this is a big project to undertake. So good luck to me…

Feb 13

Jasper went out today and when he got back he brought me this…

Happy Valentine’s Day

His early Valentine’s day gift for me… SUWEEET! It got a little damaged in transit but hey, it still taste good! Happy Valentine’s Day Honey!

Feb 14

“blueprint”

I mentioned before that it is easier for me to make a layout if I have a sketch beforehand… well this is a classic example. These sketches are for my December Daily album. I’ve been working on this since yesterday and finally it’s done. It took me awhile because I had to measure each paper, coordinate the colors and I had to decide which photos to use.

Feb 15

work in progress