Wednesday, April 30, 2008

37 today...

Yep, it's my birthday. I did dwell for a couple of weeks that 37 was "on the downslide to 40", but I'm totally adjusted now. 37 rocks.

Anything past 35 with my heart is like icing on the cake so I'm thankful for every day & year I have.

So, I'm spending my b-day quietly working from home. No plans to celebrate yet - there's too much going on between Matt's eye, Tammy's wedding & some of my family out of town. I'm used to belated celebrations - the day itself is not that big a deal. I did already have one b-day standard, though - the wake-me-up singing-happy-birthday call from my dad at o-dark thirty this morning. Cool. So glad I remembered to put the phone by my bed this year.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

"Sense"-ational Sunday...

Our senses tell a story. I've committed to recording my 5 senses once a week to explore my sensory world. I challenge you to do the same. If you choose to do so, just blog your 5 senses every Sunday & let me know, I'd love to read them.

I SEE:
I treated myself to another flower ring & I think this may be my favorite yet. I now have 4 red ones, but I think this is the coolest! I've been wearing it since the moment it arrived.

I HEAR:

Ugly Betty episodes running in the background on my computer at home. I love this show & have really missed it during the writers strike.

I TASTE:
Thank you, thank you, thank you Jen for bringing this back for me from Canada!!! Tim Horton's English Toffee Coffee is my absolute favorite!


I TOUCH:

Buttons, buttons & more buttons. This is one of the more fun sets we've worked on in a while. I had a blast laying these out. Nobody wants the kong, it's all about the 'Zilla...who knew? Personally, I love the Kong, he is the King after all.

I SMELL:

Honeysuckle. It grows right by my front door. After it rains the smell is intoxicating. It used to grow at my mom's and I would always "suck the honey out" of the blooms...it reminds me of my childhood.

Saturday, April 26, 2008


One more set to go...have you checked the Luxe blog yet???

Thursday, April 24, 2008

The 0-dark-thirty update...

Well, it's late...and the rain is pounding outside. I've just been working on the etsy shop & icing my arm down. I've been listing to back episodes of Ugly Betty on the computer while I've been working, catching up before the new episodes start back up again tomorrow. OK, I'm going to put this in print - I think Gio & Betty are great as Pam & Jim...different, but great. And if you know my opinion of The Office, you will know that is high praise indeed.


I have done some more scrapbooking lately & wanted to share a new layout from last weekend. I was in a funky mood when I was working on it - not my usual style, but I like it.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Can you count the breaks???

So, this is what we know...

Four breaks going across the bulb of my humerus. They don't show up in the x-ray because it's been jigsawed back together perfectly {go doc}. Now the eight short screws were a surprise. But, as he said - four breaks, 4 sets of screws...I mean I knew there were screws - but eight?

Now, not only was this next one a complete surprise, it answered a major question I had. There's a fifth break on one of the bones below the elbow! Somehow I hadn't heard anything other than humerus-this and humerus-that. That finally explains that long screw which seemed so unnecessary before - I just thought it was part of the overall apparatus.

No wonder I have so much bruising below the elbow. Also must be why it's so sensitive when I rest my elbow on anything.

Good news - I did not re-break it last week {which was actually a concern for a few days after a particularly painful pt session}. There's just another break that I {and my physical therapist} didn't know about...interesting.

101 reasons to DOUBLE the giveaway...

Wow...101 entries to win the blues. Outstanding. I was so excited to wake up to that this morning I decided to give a second set away!!! Here are the girls who got the blues:

Blogger Sarah said...
Love the blue here too! I certainly won't have the blues if I win this! :) 1:13 PM

Blogger Peg Robinson said...
These are the kind of blues to have! I usually work on the warmer side, but this blue has a warm spot in my book. Thanks for sharing. 5:27 PM

Now - Sarah & Peg: please email your mailing addresses to emily@luxedesigns.com to claim your prize.

For all of you other players - go find pink! And be on the look out for the *grand prize* going up later this week. Thanks for hunting! :)

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Still Blue...GIVEAWAY BELOW!

So, I'm still blogging & now the giveaway is slinking it's way down the blog. But it's still going!!!! So be sure to go down to the post on Thursday, April 17th and enter to win!

"Sense"-ational Sunday...

Our senses tell a story. I've committed to recording my 5 senses once a week to explore my sensory world. I challenge you to do the same. If you choose to do so, just blog your 5 senses every Sunday & let me know, I'd love to read them.

I SEE:


I HEAR:
A radio scanner. Matt's loves listening to police calls - he had a scanner for years until one of his brothers broke it {I'm not naming names - starts with a D...}. As a matter of fact my mom used to have a scanner too & we would stay up late on summer nights crafting & listening to the police...{strange, but true}. So Matt & I broke down and got a scanner. The minute we turned it on it was like instant flashback, comforting somehow - like mom was here with us. Cool.

I TASTE:
Savory chocolate - Jen introduced me to it. She gave me a sampling of one of her chocolate finds at Central Market and it blew me away!!! Redstone's Milk Chocolate with Salted Peanuts and Jalapenos. WOW! So I've decided I'm on a mission. This shouldn't be hard to recreate. All I'll need is salted peanuts, good milk chocolate and dried jalapeno flakes. I thought I could make it like I do almond bark - spread the peanuts on a baking sheet, pour melted chocolate over it & sprinkle on the jalapeno flakes before it sets...can't wait to try this.

Now - here's something so easy I made this weekend. Matt wanted me to make breakfast Saturday & I had no idea what to do so I got a can of croissant dough out of the fridge and on half the triangles I added a small dab of sour cream & a dab of jelly {some with peach preserves, others with strawberry jam - just what I had on hand} before I rolled them up. On the other triangles I put a small amount of nutella. I baked them and it was like instant stuffed pastries - they were so yummy & Matt loved them!

I TOUCH:
Vitamin E Oil & some awesome lotion with topical ibuprofen that my physical therapist introduced me to. As my scar is healing it's been getting really tight & I've been rubbing stuff into it constantly. And ice packs - the better it gets, the harder they're working my arm & pain's been a big problem this week.

I SMELL:
Irish Spring. Target was out of our usual shower soap so I got Irish Spring instead. And I don't like it as much. I prefer "mountain" scent instead of "meadow" {whatever that really means...}. I really prefer Dove White bars over every soap smell, but we've been using the liquid lately - the dial in the dark blue bottle. It's different than Dove, but yummily clean in it's own way.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Another life lesson from Matt...ALWAYS GO TO THE EYE DOCTOR

Didn't I just post this??? I am kicking myself - I should have DRAGGED his behind to an eye doctor or the ER Wednesday - or at least by Thursday...

Matt felt like something blew into his eye Wednesday {it was super windy that day}. Wednesday night he said - don't worry, it will flush out when I go to sleep tonight.

Thursday he asked the pharmacist how to properly flush out his eye and was sure "it" washed out and his eye was just sore because he'd aggravated it so much trying to get "it" out. We never could see "it" - he was positive "it" was on his upper eyelid since it hurt every time he blinked.

Well, Friday night when he got home I took him to PrimaCare {and btw, don't go there for eye injuries - just go to the ER}. They put drops in and said whatever "it" was "it" was gone and it must have left a nasty scratch on his cornea. They did numb his eye & put a patch on him like a pirate and that's how I brought him home. The numbing wore off when he was sleeping & he woke up worse than ever.

So this morning I called a zillion eye places trying to get any opthamologist in a 50 mile radius to look at him. I ended up finding an angel {and our new eye doc} 5 minutes from our house. The minute she put him under the scope she gasped and said "WOW - I'm getting my digital camera, don't move!" Um............not exactly what you want to hear, but relieved we're about to find out what "it" was.

Matt had a piece of rusted metal fly into his eye and embed into his cornea. She explained every time he rubbed, blinked or shut his eye it embedded deeper into his eye. *cringe* She had to dig it out of his eye *cringe* and it broke in half *ugh* and she had to dig some more....She said she couldn't get the ring of rust residue out because if she dug in the "crater" any more she would create more scar tissue. She also said the rusty part would work it's way out as the cells regenerate.

Luckily Matt's tetanus was up to date {when he did this in January} - so now he has antibiotic drops, has to keep it super lubricated & has to wear sunglasses {he hates that one}. He'll probably get a "shadow" in his vision as the scar tissue forms {within3 days}, but the doc said once he becomes accustomed to it, it will be like it's not there.

So - the moral of this story - NEVER take eye problems lightly. If it hurts, there's a reason - go ahead and call the after hours line at the eye doctor's - that's what it's there for.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

I have the BLUES...would you like them?

This is my favorite color:

Believe it or not it was even my wedding color. I *adore* cobalt blue! When we started to plan out the Luxe Scavenger Hunt we all claimed our colors pretty quickly. I'm so glad I got to run the giveaway for blue! To win this fabulous set of blue Simply Luxe, just post a comment on this thread then keep your eyes peeled. You can enter to win Simply Blue until midnight Monday, April 21st. I'll name the winner here the morning of the 22nd.

Here's what I created with the Blue Simply Luxe...

I wanted to celebrate my favorite color. I enjoyed putting this book together SO MUCH I'm thinking of doing a few more color books. {red & black are already in the planning stages in my head}

GOOD LUCK & thank you for participating in the Luxe Scavenger Hunt!

A blast from the past...more BLUES

In the spirit of all the posts saying this was their wedding color too, I decided to dig out one of our wedding pictures...

Do you recognize these people? On the far left is little Amy, now defending our country in the US Army. The little blond to my left is Matt's baby sister who is getting married next month. Front & center is Meg...fun trip down memory lane.

Have a great day & good luck winning the blues!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

"For shiz, home skillet..."


It's out today, honest blog. That's one doodle that can't be undid, home skillet. Must go to Target ASAP...

I was taken aback that I enjoyed this movie so much - I don't know what it was, the witty banter, Justin Bateman, the stellar performance by Ellen Page - it just made me laugh. A lot. If you haven't seen it, it's well worth the rental.

How I'm Simplifying with Simply Luxe...

Well, here's one of the layouts I've done with the Simplify your Stash challenge. I love how it came together. If you're loving the red, go hunt - it went up in the scavenger hunt Monday night!

I paired the red simply with the black simple alpha stickers and some "old" Scenic Route paper. I love how mixing the Simply papers into my current stash is making each of the papers as exciting & fresh as the day I bought them.

If you have to have Simply Luxe NOW - go to our online store! Simply Luxe is going live online Tuesday morning at 9 AM!!! Our new Luxe-urious stamps will be for sale too! ***HEADS UP*** We're going to be running a big promotion with free domestic shipping (for purchases of $50 or more), which should go up right at 9, too - so now is the time to stock up on the new stuff!!!

Sunday, April 13, 2008

"Sense"-ational Sundays...

Our senses tell a story. I've committed to recording my 5 senses once a week to explore my sensory world. I challenge you to do the same. If you choose to do so, just blog your 5 senses every Sunday & let me know, I'd love to read them.

I SEE:

Friday night we went & saw our niece Amy {7th grade} in her middle school production of the Wizard of Oz. She was a munchkin & a darn cute one! The play was completely directed, choreographed, etc. by the nearby high school theater magnet.

What is it about the Wizard of Oz? Amy's the third family member I know of to be in it. Back in the day I played Auntie Em in The Wiz, Meg played the Wicked Witch of the West in the traditional version & now we have a munchkin. Too cool...

Saturday my c.c. {cousin's cousin}, "Little Matt" had his eagle scout ceremony. I've never been to one before and was quite moved to realize all he has accomplished. His service project was refurbishing two rooms at a center {in part of our church} where volunteers teach ESL classes. He's so grown up - where did the time go?

I HEAR:
Luxe Radio. All the girls in the office turned in a list of their favorite tunes & I uploaded them into a ProjectPlaylist player. It automatically shuffles through and plays all of our songs. I love it. I feel like I'm getting to know another side of them through their music. It's a great playlist - you should take a listen.

I TASTE:

It must be springtime! I'm craving Caprese salad & once again the new spot by my job, Cavalli's came through with this fresh salad & crispy bread to make my taste of the week. I had this Caprese salad with focaccia for lunch one day and it was out of this world!

I TOUCH:

I've been in a creative flurry. Once my Simplify Your Stash challenge gets posted on the Luxe Blog I can start sharing my layouts on here. Let's just say I had a LOT of fun with these two pieces of paper.

I SMELL:
Community Coffee. I blame Pam Lambie. I drink Starbucks, but it's usually a little too strong for my tastes. And I've tried Sonic's froofy coffee, but I didn't love it. Then Pam told me to go to a Shell station and try any flavor of Community Coffee there. I was particularly tired one morning last week & happened to be filling up at my local Shell so I got a cup. WOW. Can we say I went to Shell THREE times last week? I'm an addict...and I'm loving it!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Are you playing??? Really you should. In case you missed the details we're running an online scavenger hunt over at Luxe. We're giving away 7 big sets of Simply Luxe (and stamps) on 7 sites. Hunt for the product photos (like the ones in these sneaks), then follow the instructions on how to enter to win. So far 3 out of our seven are up for grabs...good luck!

Here's where you hunt if you want to play: the Luxe blog, my blog, Jen's blog, Pam's blog, Brandy's blog, Luxe's MySpace page & Luxe's Facebook page.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

On my desk...

I did some creating last night...it felt so good. I am reserving some of my projects to show on the luxe blog first, but I wanted to share one first glimpse over here. I love this clipboard & notepad. I cut up a short stack of old ledger paper for the notebook & stapled it along the top. I added the cover & used some Imagination Project cotton art tape (man, I'm gonna miss that stuff when I run out) to bind the top. The clipboard is by Art Blanche (love that stuff!). The papers are Scenic Route & Simply Luxe. I have it sitting on my desk at work. It's a cheery little thing.


Speaking of "on my desk", I would like you to take a look at a great blog. It's actually called "On My Desk". It features photos of what's on the desks (and in the workspaces) of creative people. It's fascinating, inspiring & often has great organizing ideas. So, what's something special on your desk?

That explains things...

Ever since my fall my head's hurt. Not, oh I have a headache, but a knot on my temple where it bashed into a bathroom fixture. Well, the swelling has finally gone down and now there's a strange and foreign looking lump. I had my pt look at it today and she solved the mystery...it's scar tissue.

I had a cat scan when it happened and it came up clear, but she said that's pretty common when there's swelling pushing everything together. She said it looks like I probably got a little crack on my skull - that's why the scar tissue is "bubbling". She told me when I go in for my follow up in 2 weeks to get it x-rayed or rescanned.

That explains why it still hurts. I was worried I was being a weakling. Turns out I'm just hard headed.

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Litle things...

I'm focusing on small blessings...
  • The house smells good. I made Tequila Lime Turkey Soup in the crock pot early this morning & it's getting close to readiness. I'm glad it smells good because I kind of concocted it from what was around the house this morning.
  • I'm about to have creative time. And it's been so long it's like I crave it.
  • I overhauled the Luxe MySpace page last night. I've never done a custom layout before & taught myself. Feeling pretty pleased. Next comes the fun stuff - I've asked all the Luxe girls for a list of their top songs & will be updating the player on there to create "Luxe Radio".
  • My cousin-cousin {"Little Matt"} is becoming an eagle scout this Saturday.
  • It's gray and rain is pelting against my window, but the warm yellow of my studio wraps around me like a blanket of warm sunshine.
These are the little things that are making me smile.

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Sending you on a Scavenger Hunt...

Now, here's something fun! Luxe is sending you in a Scavenger Hunt!!! Over the next couple of weeks we're going to be giving away SEVEN prize packages of Simply Luxe!!! Here's the deal - we'll tell you where to hunt, but not when & where wee're posting the giveaways. But here's a hint. They started TODAY!!!

Here are the seven sites you need to monitor for giveaways: the Luxe blog, Luxe's MySpace, Luxe's FaceBook, Jen's Blog, Brandy's Blog, Emily's Blog & Pam's Blog.

Good luck & live LUXE!

Sunday, April 06, 2008

"Sense"-ational Sunday {night}...

Our senses tell a story. I've committed to recording my 5 senses once a week to explore my sensory world. I challenge you to do the same. If you choose to do so, just blog your 5 senses every Sunday & let me know, I'd love to read them.

I SEE:

My friends. Debby Schuh was in town to teach in Rockwall and the two of us had dinner Friday at the Grand Lux. Saturday night we went out to Saltgrass with Ashley, Virginia & her sister Debbie. Good times!
I HEAR:
These are the songs stuck in my head last week.


I TASTE:
Pasta Fresca from the Grand Lux Cafe. I think I'm going to start making this tasty dish at home! {Corkscrew Pasta Tossed with Roasted Eggplant, Cherry Tomatoes, Asparagus, Broccoli, Garlic, Olive Oil and Parmesan - YUM!}
I TOUCH:

There was more cleaning than crafting this weekend so I have no exciting creations to share (although now I have control of my studio I hope to start getting crafty again this week!}. I did finally photograph some new button sets we had done a while back & got them up on ManHandled.
I SMELL:
Old books. I love old paper smell. Matt & I went to the main Half Price Books location tonight & looked around. I found comic books in Japanese in the foreign language section {I never thought of looking there}. I even picked up a Last Gasp address book I wanted for just $3 while we were there.

Thursday, April 03, 2008

All about work...

That's what life's been about. This is not a complaint post & it's not a rant about my job. It's just all about work. Work I've been doing & work I want to do.

Work is cooking dinner. It's adjusting to starting physical therapy & committing to a lot of exercises outside of my 3 sessions a week. Work is doing laundry. WORK IS ITEMIZING RECEIPTS...it's tax time in the house of Adams (ugh). Work is getting out of bed extra early when all you want to do is roll over & hit the snooze.

Work work (Luxe) is good. I love when we get new products in. I get so wired to create!!! I'm running a simplify your stash challenge for the Luxe girls. I haven't posted my montage yet, but I wanted to give you a sneak peek at one of my favorite matches so you can see why I'm so jazzed to get crafting...This rocking paper is actually an oversized specialty sheet I picked up at Paper Source in Georgetown.

Here's another peek at a bit of goodness I treated myself with. These came in the mail today. (I absolutely love woodgrain right now! SO RETRO) The papers, transparencies & rub on are from Hambly. If you're looking for the woodgrain fabric it's a Joel Dewberry which I found at Material Girl.

One more picture...I can't help myself!!! These arrived at Luxe today!!! They will be on sale on our online store some time next week along with all of our new Simply Luxe!

Now you can see why I'm frenzied to start scrapping again! I'm really feeling "in the zone" - I've had a blast setting up myspace & facebook profiles for Luxe, working on a Luxe site redesign and opening personal profiles on mycraftivity & sistv. Oh - and speaking of facebook...Jen has a bunch of us addicted to playing PackRat. It's not something I necessarily have time for, but as more & more of my friends are playing I'm finding myself occasionally sucked in. Also Pam & I are psyched about the Luxe design team contest! There is some awesome stuff happening out there & I've made a resolution (online) to participate rather than lurk this year.

Well that's what I've been working on. What about you? What have you been up to?