The AWESOME NEWS...

with ginger
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

I HAVE A JOB!!! I officially accepted a position with Imagination Project this morning. I am their new Education Director - I've already started. If you know me, you probably assumed I'd land with Ginger by my side...and you were right - but I couldn't say anything about this 'til today. I'm so happy to be working for a company I really believe in!!! Morris & Janice, thank you for the opportunity! Ginger, Laura & Barb - I'm so excited to be working with all of you!

I decided to resign from the IP design team...I can only do so much and my new job will keep me quite busy. It's been an honor working with such talented women {& Sam}. I cherish the friendships I have built there and will continue to be inspired by their work...if you haven't taken a look lately, this is one of the biggest & best teams in the industry! - check them out!

More down time...

lunch with Martha
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

I forgot to change the clocks & have been "off" all day...I finished State of Fear this afternoon - I fell asleep about 500 pages in yesterday but couldn't quite make it. It was really good - made me think. Here's a great quote that fits in with the book..."There is nothing so firmly believed as what we least know" -Michel de Montaigne

One of my best friends, Martha picked me up & we had a leisurely lunch at Olive Garden*. She has a new job & wanted to give me all the details. We met 8 or 9 years ago when we both worked as tellers at Swiss Avenue Bank - how time flies! Martha is a former Scrappy's & Magic Scraps employee as well {coincidentally all 3 now out of business - go figure}. I hadn't realized we hadn't talked in a month {yikes - my bad}...sometimes it's easy to get wrapped up in my travel schedule - Angie, you're next! I miss you too! I'm going to be calling!

Anyway...afterwards we went looking for a tube of icecicle stickles. No luck - the Stamp Asylum was closed & the Scrap Bucket had no idea what I was talking about. Then we dropped by the Dollar Tree to see if there were any bargains we couldn't live without & across the street to the closing Hancock's {now at 60% - 70% off}. We didn't find much, but had a good time going.

Matt's still not home from his uncle's...but will arrive later tonight. Ces't la vie...

*Did you know Olive Garden will sell you a bottle of their freshly made salad dressing if you ask? They have such cute bottles and it will guarantee my husband will eat salads regularly so it's a good deal for me. It's about $4 {which considering how cheap I am is kind of steep}, but a little goes a long way & it's fabulous! Some locations {not all apparently} will refill your bottle for less $ if you wash it and bring it back with you...

Social stuff...

We did have the time to visit Teresa's house while we were in Utah. We just hung out & caught up - I love her - she's so down to earth & grounded. I really respect her as an artist, a person & a mother. It was neat to see her in her home environment.

After the marathon trip home yesterday, we headed over to Matt's sister Tracy's house for what I thought was an impromptu family gathering for her birthday - and we walked into a Halloween party in full swing! The kids were precious, but I was too dazed to remember to take pictures. What I took were some of the late night pictures after the kids left & our nieces changed back into regular clothes - we just stayed for some extra family time. My favorite costume? Our niece Amy with a baby doll strapped to her butt saying "look - I'm a baby-sitter" and plopping onto a chair - it was pretty funny. We stayed & visited past midnight...The kids wanted to show their Uncle Matt a trick they learned to test their lung capacity and had an impromptu bubble blow-off. Next thing we know we look over at Haley who was sitting there talking to us & she's passed out on the table, too tired to stay in the conversation {bless her heart} with the cat climbing over her as if she's just conquered her - pretty darling stuff.

Catching up from Utah...

Well, I'm taking the day "off". No work. No creating. No cleaning. No grocery shopping. Matt's in Bonham at his uncle's. All I've done today is solve the power cord problem {or rather do what my dad told me to to solve the problem} and read A State of Fear {totally awesome M Crichton book - so far 350+ pages in today}. I went to Pei Wei & got Pad Thai with chicken and added tofu. It's been a good day.

I have pictures from the trip: The window pane shot on the right is out the window of the La Quinta in Orem - I love the scenery in Utah, it's so beautiful it's a little unreal. On the left {the dark cloudy one} is the next morning...8:30 AM...scary dark outside. Those were snow clouds in the mountains - that was the 20 degree drop they were talking about. The idyllic mountain shot {2nd on right} is outside the CK offices in Bluffdale. The sun was starting to set & the mountains got kind of rosy...pretty. The Primedia building houses the offices for CK, Simple Scrapbooks & Paper Crafts. I don't know why I was expecting it to be tall. I didn't remember to have anyone take pictures of me filming...how lame is that? I will have some more pics when I get Ashley's pictures in - fun stuff like the cameras & production guys. I'll post more of those later.

Some trips are like this...

missing from utah
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

Well, the prodigal bags showed up at 2 AM. The power cord for my laptop may be gone forever...I did find a reasonable replacement after a few tense hours though. Both my flights were delayed yesterday, so what should've been a 2 hr 40 minute flight turned into an 11 hour ordeal. Ooof. Good to be home.

I think I'm ready now???

In the hotel room in Orem, psyching myself out to film tomorrow. I'm really excited about the two classes I'm doing. TrendWatcher has been reborn with so much new material - I have to say creating it has been one of the greatest processes I've ever been through. I'm really proud of it. It's a state of mind...a way to help you recognize and identify trends as they happen around you. The class answers the what and why of design cycles. The what covers a decade-by-decade breakdown of the last century, hitting the highlights of what was happening in history and pop culture and the colors and styles of each period. The why delves into the psyche of merican Generations and how the personality of each group shaped history and design. We talk about how design microcycles through the scrapbooking market & make a TrendWatcher journal to track your observations & predictions. It sounds like a lot of info, but it's really user friendly and very practical. I think it's really a class for anyone. I'm also doing "Extreme Altered Coasters" a creative brainstorming session with 20 altering techniques for Imagination Project's coaster pieces {and 60 listed in the bonus materials!}. I had to pack 3 suitcases to bring everything I need to use on set.

Speaking of the 3 cases...I gambled and it appears I have lost. There was no room for a coat, but how bad could it be? Let me tell you how bad it's going to be...tonight the temperature will drop a freak 20 degrees. The high will be at 6 am - 44 degrees. It will drop into the 30's and snow.

I said the s-word. snow. I-t-i-s-g-o-i-n-g-t-o-S-N-O-W.

I brought 2 sweaters and a sweet knitted poncho -neither is very snow worthy. I did bring the socks I brought in St. Louis. All this brings into sharp focus how thankful I am to live in Texas with its mild winters, blazing summers & prevalent air conditioning.

Ashley is here too, prepping to film for her Home Study class. She's totally outdone herself - it's the most unbelievable hybrid album I've ever seen. I keep having to touch the pages to see what's real and what's virtual. I like looking at digital, but haven't converted - but I WANT this book. Hopefully all of our classes will be available in November...so check them out!

And being in Utah can mean only one thing...a large Happy Jack's Chicken Curry with almonds & scallions at my favorite place...Big City Soup! Ash had the Cream of Tomato with Gorgonzola - they serve everything with a huge hunk of light, fresh focaccia bread & a piece of sharp cheddar cheese - heaven...I soooooo wish these were in Dallas...

too funny...

Sometimes I don't open forward emails right away...to be honest, sometimes I don't open them at all...but today, boy am I glad I did.

Virginia directed me to a fab sight called KnockKnock and I have been chuckling through it for the last few minutes. Need some slang flashcards? Want a notecard with the super happy pill picture on the front and a sentiment of "go take a pill" on the inside? How about a spinner that's called a compass for losers {brainstorming ideas of where you might have put down your junk that you're looking for}? Go take a look, it's clever stuff! Thanks Ginny - you really picked a winner!

Speaking of St. Louis & other ramblings...

I never blogged about the wonderful women I got to hang out with in St. Louis...I've already gotten a few emails scolding me for not posting yet ;) sorry guys...

My internet has been out all day {neighborhood maintenance} so I'm over at my dad's on his computer. Anyway...I had such a great time with everybody! I learned all about White Castles and their "distinct aroma" {you know what I mean} - they had me so worked up over the potentially gassy consequences, I changed my mind about wanting to try one. Michelle did finally buy me 2 to try...I got through 1 bite & chickened out. After all, I was about to get on a plane for heavens sake.

Let's see...someone who shall remain nameless {NOT ME} "got her boob stuck in the salad bar" ROTFLOL. She was reaching in for the croutons with a plate in one hand & the tongs in the other and her bra got caught on the guard of the salad bar. She had to do this funny, twitchy dance to get unhooked...OMG...it was so funny. So she comes back top the table and sits down and just says it..."I'm sorry I took so long. My boob got caught in the salad bar." Just like that - totally matter-of-fact. So the waitress comes up and asks, "So ladies, is the salad bar fresh?"

I couldn't help myself. "Yes, it sounds pretty fresh to me". We all lost it. I can't remember the last time I laughed that hard. Our poor waitress, I think she thought we were laughing at her...

Anyway, thank you girls for a wonderful weekend! Keep in touch & I hope to see you again next year!!!

Now a short note about yesterday...I was in Lane Bryant trying to find a new shirt to film in and after a few trips out of the dressing room with "Honey, what about this one?", the woman in the dressing room next to mine popped out and asked "Are you Emily Adams of Magic Scraps?" um- wow. I've never been recognized in a non-scrapbook setting before. My husband was duly impressed. I guess I'm like Prince now "the artist formerly known as...", I'm Emily who used to be with Magic Scraps. I'm just Emily now. She was with her friend and both of them were in my CKU Houston classes. They helped me pick out my clothes for filming...it was pretty neat. They said purple was good on me and the blue & green together made me look more creative...I'm glad they were there. I hate picking out clothes - if I had my way I'd be in a uniform of black tops, blue jeans & crocs.

Well, I have tons of packing to do. I'm off to Utah at dark thirty in the morning.

Beautiful St. Louis...

The arch is surrounded by a pretty park that was exploding in fall colors. It was so peaceful and quiet. These pictures were views from the park and from the arch and a few random city shots.

The arch & the view..

Here are the promised pics from St. Louis. It was very cold and overcast when we went to the St. Louis Arch {the "Gateway to the West"}. I included a shot of the scary elevator they had on display when you were in line to go up. I had Diane take a picture of me at the top next to the marker, but there were focus issues - I still love it! The view from the top was breathtaking. I took more than this, but the others were all of the same kind of thing...hope you enjoy!

OUCH...

Ouch. I can't believe when all this went down one of my first thoughts {after going to the ER} was a pic for the blog. I did this while Matt was starting the car...

We were about to fall asleep last night {12/12:30 am} and Matt said his eye itched. I noticed my eye itched. He went to put drops in and I rubbed my eye and noticed something didn't feel right. We had only been in bed about 5 minutes and my eye was fine when we laid down. When he got back from putting his drops in I turned my light on and asked...does my eye look OK to you? He recoiled and said...daaaaaaaaammmmmmmmmnnn.

That woke us up. I made the mistake of looking at it in a mirror & then I started freaking out. I had the presence of mind to take 2 benadryl & we headed over to the ER at 1 am. We waited a lot. The benadryl was kicking my butt & I was falling asleep all over the place. Matt was just plain exhausted. At 3 am we saw a doctor and he told me I was right to take the benadryl. I was having allergic conjunctivitis {this has happened twice before, but it scares the heebie jeebies out of me each time} - basically, something got into my eye that I was allergic to. Perhaps eye makeup remover? We'll never know. The other times I got bug spray and then hair spray in them accidentally. Believe it or not it actually got biggger than that - it went up over my eyebrow and the eye almost swelled shut. The whites of my eye started swelling out too and turning into red jelly. Ugh. Sorry for being so totally disgusting. I was sent home to take even more Benadryl {oh joy} and got some eye drops. Thanks to the 4 benadryl I ended up taking, I just woke up. It's gone down considerably, but is still swollen on my lower lid. I FILM in 2 days...they say they hope it will be fine by then. They HOPE it will be fine by then...wow. I hope so too. Sheeesh.

Sweet relief...

I've gotten so much done tonight not finished yet, but much closer...I might just get finished by my deadline... :)

Rewarding myself with a wee blogging break...

I got back to the hotel after dinner & a day long of teaching {4 in a row from 8 am on} and all I wanted to do was nap. But I checked my {overstuffed} email first & that jolted me awake...called Utah, called Cincinatti & Chicago, answered emails, called home and tackled my mega bonus gallery for the Extreme Altered Coasters class. {ooof - resizing, cropping close-ups, figuring out who-did-what-how and laying it out...as much work as I thought it would be} Well, I FINISHED it! I just rewarded myself with my first check of the blog today & a quick spin down to the restauant to get a hot chocolate before they closed. I got a small fancy one last night in a cute glass with whipped cream it was deliscious...tonight they served it up in a giant to go cup, no whipped cream, just as tasty, but also at no charge - yep, gratis hot chocolate - I feel so special. I'm feeling fueled up sipping my cocoa - I think I'm going to keep going. My 8 am class was canceled so I can get a slightly later start in the morning...whoohoo!

Happy surprises at the Holiday Inn...

It's been a while since I've stayed at one of these and these small things made me happy...

1. quick subbing of feather pillows for hypoallergetic ones
2. Bath & Body Works cucumber melon soap & citrus basil lotion
3. free wireless internet
4. a steakhouse with surprising ambiance & amazing hot chocolate
5. a sleep timer on the tv

good stuff...btw, people here are so HAPPY - the Cardinals made it into the World Series tonight & people are filpping out!

The unexpected response & the ride to the top...

I was asked this morning if I wanted to check out the St. Louis arch and I thought...why not? Good photo op for the blog. Diane asked if I wanted to go up in it and I gave the immediate & emphatic no. Then I started to think...I don't want to be an "on the sidelines" person, I want to get in the game. I want to live my life. Every day is a gift. I was psyched. So I said "OK - Let's go up!"

UM.... {what did I just say out loud?}

Then I saw it. That thing is HUGE, and it doesn't really look like you can fit people in it. The more pics I took of it I realized, I didn't really grasp the commitment I made driving in. Wow. That's a lot of up. I had to lie on my back on the ground to get the whole thing in my camera.

Anyway, we walked through the entrance and bam - we were in this really cool underground museum of the west. It was amazing. We did the whole museum thing {I loved it} before we got in line for the "elevators". Now, if I had seen these before the point of no return, I might have changed my mind. They're these little metal balls that you sit in that are jerked up and sideways through the arch to get you to the top. It takes 4 minutes of pull-jerk!-pull-jerk! UM, I'M OK. Luckily, there was a kid on the way up with us so I had to act like everything was fine because he wasn't so sure.

So we reach the top and they say, "It's perfectly normal for the structure to sway in the breeze when the wind blows, so don't be alarmed". Pardon moi, my middle name is alarmed at these heights. So you lean on these big slopes on your stomach and look straight down. I can't believe I did it. I'm still kind of in awe of myself. It was actually great. I'm so glad I went. I have some great pictures, but left my card reader at home {again!} and will share them once I get rested. I pulled these off the net so you could see what I saw today.

It is freakin' freezing here. I forgot & had to go buy socks. Also, I am the master of suitcase packing...I had 1 case with class materials in it that Matt swore was over the weight limit {55 lbs} & we had this big disagreement and I said I've flown enough that I could tell it was under...anyway...it weighed in this morning at 54.85 lbs. Whew...and I was right. I just love it when I'm right.

Project Runway **SPOLIER**...

Just when you think you have life figured out...they pick Jeffrey. Of course, I wanted Michael to win based on the entire competition, but I think Uli & Laura slam dunked the walk. I seriously couldn't figure how the judges could pick between them. Like - the only thing of Jeffrey's I liked was the green striped dress at the end {and I did actually LOVE that}. I see the value in it, but to create a whole line of fashion that's that, um, out there...I dunno. But if it's based on innovation, I guess Jeffrey did deserve it. I just think Laura & Uli's clothes were so much more beautiful. OK, season over... back to the real world. Matt's taking me to the airport on his way to work in the morning {4:30 am - ugh} for my 8 am flight to St. Louis. I've packed, but I have that I've forgotten something feeling...I hate that feeling.

Rated R...

There's a new 30-second Bunny film...just got the email this morning. This is for all of you Fight Club fans out there. Remember, l-a-n-g-u-a-g-e, this is a parody of the original, not a sanitization. Other than that, it's a pretty decent parody...it's not Jaws, the Shining or Pulp Fiction, but one could rarely hope to repeat such masterpieces...so go check out Fight Club.

A musical triumph & other things...

What a difference a day makes...I saw Tracy tonight at Amy's flute recital {the flute only needed a screw to fix it} and she's a different woman than yesterday. They gave her some breathing treatments and figured out it was some kind of bronchitis and/or asthma - another round of doctor visits to make sure...But doesn't she look fab now?

Speaking of doctors, I dragged myself to my pcp today...with a case of the post Vegas crud. Must sound better - teaching this weekend & filming next week...speaking of which the LAST thing I should be doing right now is blogging, but - oh well...

It's ironic really, I can cook a fancy meal from scratch and do up a gourmet spread...but apparently I can't defrost a lasagna. TWO HOURS we waited -we had to go to the recital without eating {but stopped at Burger Street on the way}...maybe tomorrow? Maybe next time I'll read the box...oopsie.

We're super proud of our niece, Amy. She started playing the flute this year and has only had a few weeks with the instrument. This took real guts & she was WONDERFUL! Amy, when you read this...Uncle Matt & I are soooooo proud of you!

How nerdy are you???

I found this on Ashley's blog & had to share. Ashley's a 14. Her husband Ben is a 56. I'm a 72 {ouch}. What are you???

Life goes on...Haley's party...

Well, life goes on...our niece Haley had her 8th birthday party this afternoon - it was a cat & dog party and all the kids made presents for the dogs and cats at the SPCA as their craft project {painted & foam stamped kercheifs for the puppies and toy mice for the kitties - how cute is that???}. Tracy called me, super sick {ironically with a severe allergic reaction to their cats}, so Meg & I headed over early to help with errands and cake icing & decorating. The girls and their dad had made 2 cakes the night before - one was a dog paw & the other I "transformed" into a cat face {kind of an icing sculpture, but the 8 year-olds didn't judge too harshly}.

Her sister Amy {sixth grade} is SUCH a preteen...she asked this year if she HAD to go to Haleys party??? As in your sister that will be having the party in your house? Um, like, yes you HAVE to go to Haley's party. She actually looked like she was having a good time, too. She played her flute for us..but then it kind of broke...and, um she has a recital tomorrow night...so we'll see what happens. After the party Tracy {their mom/Matt's sister} was in such bad shape she headed straight to the ER & the girls came home with us - they're here now helping Matt with dinner.

I snapped this pic of Meg with one of their cats...it reminded me so much of Upside Down Ada, I had to share...I call it Upside Down Meg with attached cat...

Three years ago today...

I lost my mother...and I miss her still so very, very much. She was my father's mother, but stepped into the "mother" role the day I came home from the hospital as a wee baby. She was loving and creative and had the softest hands and the sweetest smile. I remember the difficult things too, she was a super-worrier and had a tendency to smother - but all of these were born out of a level of devotion to her children that was unbelievable. I feel I owe my current life {in scrapbooking as well as everything else} to her...She threw herself into the role of Camp Fire Girl leader zealously and gave me an arts & crafts background that was unparalleled in my age group. She encouraged me in all the arts, painting, drawing, mixed media, photography {we even had a darkroom in the house}, pottery, doll making, singing, acting, creative writing, cooking - you name it, we did it! She had me competing in the arts from an early age - it actually led me to scrapbooking. When I was 8 {1979} I competed for the first time in the Jr. Chef of Dallas competition - we had to make a scrapbook cookbook as part of the competition {my first one}. On the surface I was a "perfect child", but she dealt with my down times, putting me back together through a childhood of chronic migraines and being stunningly unpopular & kind of a loner. I was awkwardly tall, "matured" early {you know what I mean}, played bridge, read a lot and got along much better with adults than children. She held me when I cried and stroked my hair with her fingers and somehow it all melted away. I lost her to congestive heart failure three years ago. I was dying of it myself at the time and watching her go through that scared me to death. There have been so many things I wish she could've seen {although I know she has} - the success I feel like I've finally achieved, Amy & Meg in high school {they're not children anymore} and most of all I wish she could've seen my transformation after I've gotten the pacemaker and how radically it has changed my life. I dream about her all the time and when I wake I desperately cling to the memory of her voice, her touch, her smell...I have worn her favorite night gown to shreds - I put it on whenever I want to feel close to her. I have a real problem facing the cemetery and am ashamed to admit I have only been able to bring myself to visit her three times there...I will celebrate her life at home today, in my heart. I love you mom and miss you so...

My Saturday evening post...

Today was a sea of errands...running around, doing laundry & honestly kind of edgy & stressed. Never quite figured out why...probably Memory-Trends-post-partem-syndrome. Had dinner with the fam for my uncle's birthday and brought home an extra - my cousin Meg {15}. She brought Serenity, decent sci-fi but with a great fight sequence - so we watched that and packed class kits for my St Louis classes. Believe it or not Matt stayed awake for the whole movie {a minor miracle}. When we finished we popped in Scrapped...which was, well, GREAT. I was so nice to share that with a non-scrapping family member, it explained so much I've tried to describe. I cried when he was with his dad and the horses, but I'm a complete sap when it comes to people sharing their stories...I highly recommend it. When it finished we looked up and it was 1:41 in the morning - ouch. So I'm flying through the blogging {which is more Sunday morning than Saturday evening} so I can get some sleep!

Here's the pic of the day - found this snap on fabulous Jane Hasty's blog of me & Laura at the show... Jane you take the best photos ever!

The Memory Trends Report...

Well, I’m home...aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.
gambling risk: $4
gambling loss: $4
2 margaritas after the show closed: $16
bumping my plane ticket up to a different time: $25
getting home at 1AM instead of 3:30AM: priceless

Post Vegas assessment: I have a case of "Vegas voice", my face has broken out & I lost a nail. My suitcase was about 25 lbs heavier coming home than going & {as I feared} I gave up on wearing my cute skull & crossbone buckle mary janes and switched to crocs after only 2 hours on day 1. I have grown accustomed to the omlette bar and missed it terribly this morning...I took some fun pictures...bonded with Jane, made a new friend {Wes}, spent ALL my free time with Ginger, got to know all my dt "homies" a little better {LOL} and continued to fall head over heels for IP & the way they run their company.

Let's see, picture details...the fuzzed picture is from that night in our hotel room. I labeled it "obscured to protect the {not so} innocent" since we were doing a rude gesture & didn't want to be recognized. If it doesn't look that offensive, that's good, but the story behind it is HILARIOUS.

Then is a pic of me with fellow IPDT members, Chrys Queen Rose & Dana Newsom. I'd never met them before & we were assigned together as roommates. They're really nice & I really enjoyed being in there with them...and apparently I snore - badly. I place full blame on the feather pillows {discarded after night 1}, the down comforter {discarded after night 2} and, um, and...after that I guess I was just myself. Sorry, guys.

Oh yes, Laura & Sherry. Oh my. Well, I kept calling Sherry "Shelly", then I started calling her mom because I kept asking her to pass me things...and Laura? What can I say? Laura is such a neat person - I think of her as a young Barbara Streisand - can you see it? Super talented scrapper, responsible, kind, sweet - she's the total package.

Next, Becky came by to see me...I met Becky in Utah one night through having dinner with Teresa. She & Roxanne from that night were both at this show & now we're going to try to all get together when I go out to Utah to film in 2 weeks - so email me girls!

Kandice did the cutest booth. They're starting to sell hybrid scrapbooking kits at Cross My Heart, with hands-on embellishments and digital art on discs. So they put records up on the walls all over their booths with paper samples as the centers. Their real papers wee mounted to foam board and put into the boxy-table-thingie, like flipping through albums at a record store, if you're old enough to remember that!

I missed a lot of photos too - in our booth: Morris & Janice, Barb, Greta, then there was also Vicki Boutin & Sharon Laakkonen, Roxanne, Ashley & Ben, Pam & Jen, Brandy & Sam, super cool Claire from the UK, Eileen...I'm sure there were others. It all went by so fast.

This is my second event with Jane & I've decided we're birds of a feather. I'm blown away by her talent & smarts {she's a RN as well as a professional photographer} - but most of all I like her sense of fun. Jane has fun. It's infectious. I like her style.

And then there's Ginger...what can I say? One of my closest friends. Wild. Brutally honest. Devoted mother. Downright raunchy Nick Lachey fan. Master ofthe inappropriate text messages to her husband. Ginger keeps me laughing too. Her artwork is, well, flawless. We get along well and work well together. Genetically combined we would be the ultimate scrapper - but don't worry, we're not cloning - yet.

This is very unlike me...{and if you're out there saying - it's exactly like me, you're probably right, but I like to perceive this as not being like me...so here goes}. I was eating lunch with Ginger and looked up and a few tables over sitting alone was Wes Thomsen. I did the quiet freak out & told Ginger he was sitting there. So, since she had no idea who he was, I was on my own and, yes, I interrupted his lunch {sorry, Wes} to introduce myself {if I could even talk properly - I was all nervous}. He was super nice and we went by and picked up a copy of his DVD & got a signed poster later. But after that, we kept crossing paths on the show floor and we got to talk a bit. He really made an impression on me - he seems to really "get" scrapbooking and is surprisingly genuine and charming. And somehow he stuck his finger in my ear and took his shirt off for me...but that's a different story.

Well, that's my Memory Trends report for 2006. I wish I could say I'll be home a while, but I have to unpack so I can repack - I'm off to St. Louis to teach next weekend; then Utah to film; then San Antonio...oooof. Makes me tired just spelling it out. Hope you enjoyed & have a great day!

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas...

Had a great day - heard about the news going on in the outside world from my dad on the phone. When I got back to my room tonight I was delighted to see a living room full of happy faces. I made some new friends...but we made a vow not to talk about what we discussed or who was in attendance - but here are some highlights - pictures will follow {with blurred faces} when I find somebody who remembered their cardreader!

highlights from tonight's conversation:
1. I've learned a new gesture and heard about some anatomically correct altered art. Just plain wrong, not to mention not waterproof {NOT my observation}.
2. It's all about "passing the b*!@# stick"
3. Where my homegirl at?

Tomorrow my goal is to get these pics up & take some at the booth. I fly home tomorrow night & arrive back home around 3:30 AM Friday...ick - but at least I'll be home!

Another day in Vegas....

After my post, my day started in line at a breakfast buffet with three extremely drunk Scottish men insisting I order their omlettes since "they've never been to this country before and didn't know how" - so I did. Bless their stinky hearts {you could get drunk off their fumes}, I don't know how they could've possibly navigated back to their table. They were trying to spoon raw ingredients from the omlette bar onto their plates while I was waiting for mine to finish being cooked.

baskets_of_heirloom_tomatoes
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

The morning rocked at the IP booth, but the whole show floor kind of quieted down at about 2 PM...it was as if there was something going on we didn't know about...very wierd - all the booths I talked to had the same big lul. After the day was done {6 PM} 15 of us headed back to Paris & the wonder buffet. Found a new favorite thing - they had the most amazing varieties of heirloom tomatoes I've ever tasted in a smooth & subtle vinegar with fresh parsley & chunks of garlic...OMG. I had them with my salad, with my dinner and another bowl instead of a dessert. Vicki Boutin's a hoot! We were teasting her about her Canadian accent, so Janice said "say p-a-s-t-a" & she answered "paste" - it took us a minute to realize how strong her daquari must have been, then we ended up laughing for what seemed like ages...maybe you had to be there? I just love the "Bout". Quite a few made it to the dinner from th IPDT: Dana, Chrys, Jane, Becky, Sherry, Greta, Vicki {the "Bout" - pronounced "boot"}, me, Jaura, Ginger, Barb, Janice & Morris of course and the nice couple from Rocky Mountain Hobbies. We split up after that - shoppers, gamblers & fountain viewers...except for me & Laura - we headed "home" to our hotel & talked for a while. She's left for her room & I plan to take a long soak in this awesome tub and get an earlier nights' sleep!!! CK announced Scrapbooker of the Year tonight somewhere out here at a big bash...click{here} for the video announcement of the winner! Congatulations!!!!

Up with the time change...

Why is it I always get up so early when I'm out of town? Time change? Excited? Nervous about oversleeping??? I woke up at 5:30 AM Vegas time & here I am - totally up & running.

We got the booth set up by 4 yesterday & headed out to watch Barb teach her class {5 - 6:30}. After that we cabbed it to Paris to one of the most divine buffets, like ever, where we all proceeded to stuff ourselves. We're up high in the Venetian {32nd floor} in a Venetian Bella suite {dad - that link is for you I know you're checking up on me}. Anyway - time to be quiet 'til my roomies get up - I'm staying with Dana & Chrys from the IP design team. And by the way, for those of you who I told booth 623, um, try coming to booth 263. Sorry.

Leaving on a jet plane...

vegas 3
Originally uploaded by emilykhadams.

I'm packing today & taking care of any last minute details. I have that feeling of dread like I've already forgotten something...I've taken stock of the "laundry situation" {bad} and I've started the washer. I'm a slow packer - I tend to overthink things. Things to do today: laundry, pack, make an itinerary, print tickets, price shuttle v parking, make cool pins for my shirt out of coasters for the show...um, try to FIND my new business cards {that could be part of the dread}, balance the ole' bank account, email the stores I'll be teaching at, buy AA batteries....um...um...i don't know...

If you're at the show COME BY - I'll be working in the Imagination Project booth {# 263} with Ginger, Laura & Barb - you can't miss us, we'll be the hotties in the black & yellow bowling shirts!!!

Yesterday I actually finished my "to do" list early and thought I earned a nap {a real luxury since I've been so busy lately} - I laid down at 2:30 & never dreamed I wouldn't wake up 'til 6:20!!! Which wouldn't have been so bad, but we were going to Kandice's housewarming last night from 7-9. Spent most of the evening on the patio with Kate & Pam - fun! Matt & I went to Chili's afterwards and I stayed up late watching The Birdcage {again}.

It's BOX season...

I just love the sound of feet on the ramp these days {yes, the handicap ramp is still up at our house} - it's "box season". Whenever I'm working on something big - this time around getting ready to film for CKU Home Study - I always end up ordering some things & getting a few donations if possible. Well, today was the FedEx jackpot!

Fiskars sent me their new {and completely beautiful} trimmer - which is a godsend because my current cutter was, well, fuzzy - even with a new blade and a new strip. I'm desperately trying to stay focused with my tasks at hand today, but I just HAD to share. I'm going to break it open right now!!!!!

Let's see...what else makes it box season? A purchase from Paper Source, a bunch of cd envelopes from Staples.com, rub-ons from Making Memories, 40 Scrappers Blocks from PM Designs, some things from Ranger, 2 boxes of stuff for BootCamp class kits from Imagination Project, a crop-a-dile from We R Memory Keepers, clear bags that I haven't even ordered yet...some of it has already come & some is still on the way. If you know where I live, please do not come & hide on my porch, lying in wait to pounce on my poor delivery man {LOL} {I'm not kidding}.

Conquering Christmas...

I knew obsessive-list-making would come in handy! This is a new class called "Conquering Christmas". It's a 2 1/2 hour class in which we'll build a 3 year Christmas organizer. It will have a reference section, holiday calendar, gift lists {made, wrapped & delivered categories}, a 3 yr. card address book & checklist, an idea & sizes section, a spot for holiday recipes, a place to journal your holiday memories, envelopes for receipts {or cards}, sleeves for cds of holiday pictures - fun dividers, a ribbon bookmark {complete with jingle bell}, a custom library pocket...the works!!!!!!!

I love creating a project that can get so much use and can take so much stress out of getting ready for Christmas! I'll be teaching this in San Antonio at Scrapbook 911 November 4th; at the PDP Lounge in Richardson {DFW area} November 11th and in Waco at Crop, Paper, Scissors on November 18th. I'll also be putting together a Christmas card workshop so keep an eye on the schedule...

Seven years ago today...

Seven years ago today...my whole life changed. I was blessed with the best husband a girl could wish for - funny, handsome, thoughtful, kind - a rock in the middle of my swirling, stressful life. He has taken care of me when I was so very ill, he has stood by me through dramatic career changes, he comforted me through the death of my mother - he has put up with a lot. Through it all he has always remembered the little things and he's never complained. He believes in me - he really thinks I can do anything. I love him more than I can say...I'm tearing up just writing this. Happy anniversary, sweetie! I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!