Layout: Animal Tamer

A blast from my past…
A trip to the Toledo Zoo in 1960 using Sweet Digi Scrap’s “Zoo Keeper” and a template from Scrapping With Liz’s Sweet and Simple collection.

Layout: Space Mountain

I spent the day at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom May 24, 2013.  I wandered around the park on my own for most of the day. My cousin, Bruce, met me for the evening.  One of my favorite rides has always been Space Mountain. Instead of riding it during the day, I waited to go on it with Bruce. We got our fast pass for it which happened to fall right between the parade and the fireworks.
I used Sweet Digi Scrap’s “Sort of Cosmic” kit and a template from Scrapping With Liz’s Recyclables 19.

Dream Manager: March 2013 Individual

 

I met with Kim Radison for approximately 30 minutes after our group session.  We went over my target dreams so she could get an idea of what I was looking to accomplish.  It was also a get to know you a little better session.

We talked quite a bit about the planning for my vacation in May. We discussed the steps I had determined I needed to do for a successful vacation:

• schedule the time off – done!
• save approximately $1500 – done!
• nail down specific dates for the 2 phases of the vacation
  • 5/11-18: North Carolina
  • 5/19-25: Florida
• purchase a WDW Magic Pass – need to know # of days needed

I would later add the following steps:

• determine a location to stop for the night on 5/18
• determine a location to stop for the night on 5/25

By our next meeting in May, I had successfully completed all of my steps. The WDW Magic Pass was purchased and in hand. I knew I would stay in Georgia close to the Florida border.  I had also made arrangements to stop in Acworth, Georgia to stay with Christy and Craig on the 25th.

After our session, I felt very energized about the program and couldn’t wait to delve into it even more!

Dream Manager: March 2013

 

Session 2:

The Architecture of Dreams

During this session we discussed the points or ideas we highlighted in the reading material and did our scorecard check-in.

The scorecard check-in is always interesting.  We have to determine if we feel we are “green” “yellow” or “red” in the areas of physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual.  “Green” is on track and working well. “Yellow” is okay…but not quite where I want to be. “Red” needs work and definitely not where I want to be.  We have a couple participants that just cannot bring themselves to mark anything as “green”.  So they developed their own color system.  If they weren’t “green” but better than “yellow”, they became “lime green”.  We had fun with that in each session that followed!

We also discussed some of our dreams and why we might be excited about them. A priority exercise was done to help us prioritize the steps to achieving our dreams.  We were to list 5 things we wanted to do. For example, I listed 5 books I wanted to read.  We then went down the list comparing #1 to #2 and deciding which was more important to us and putting a mark beside the one we chose.  Next up was comparing #1 and #3, again checking which one was given preference.  We continued on comparing #1 and #4, then #1 and #5, then #2 and #3, #2 and #4, #2 and #5, #3 and #4, #3 and #5 and last #4 and #5.  At the end you will have 10 check marks.  The one with the most check marks is where your priority is. This is how my 5 books priortized:

1. EntreLeadership = |||
2. First Man = |
3. Steve Jobs = ||
4. A Stolen Life =
5. Battle for Leyte Gulf = ||||

As you can see, a book about the Battle of Leyte Gulf is the most important for me. The reasoning behind that decision: my father’s brother was killed during that battle on the USS Birmingham.  I never knew this uncle but my father thought a lot of him and I would like to know more about his last hours alive.  A year later and I still haven’t read any of these books! I must remedy that!

We also discussed breaking down our target dreams into measurable steps to achieve them.  It is one thing to say “I will declutter the house”.  Makes it seem very overwhelming.  But breaking it down into areas such as:

• Paper clutter – shred, recycle, scan important information
• Clothes – remove and possibly donate clothes not worn in a year
• Basement – do a “clean sweep” of pitch, sell or keep

This makes it seem more doable.  Baby steps will get you somewhere faster than trying to run a marathon the first time out!

Our homework, besides the reading, consisted of finalizing the action plans for our five target dreams.  We were also encouraged to identify, cut out, and paste pictures of our target dreams in our dream book. Any other dreams would do also!

My first individual session was in March also.  I’ll cover that in my next post!

Layout: When I Grow Up

 

I’ve always loved this picture and when I saw this kit, I knew I had to use it to highlight the picture of my impression of a teacher.

The kit is “Hit The Books” by Sweet Digi Scraps. The template is from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s Sunbeam collection.

Layout: Old Sheldon Church

 

When I was researching for my trip last May, I ran across a website that listed free things to do off the beaten path of the interstate system.  I checked out the stretch of I-95 from Rocky Mount, NC to Florida.  I saw an article and some pictures of an old, burned out church in South Carolina.  It was only 7 miles off the highway in Yemassee.  I decided it would be a good place to stop and take some pictures.

It was AWESOME!  The story behind the ruins is amazing also. The building was originally known as Prince William’s Parish Church.  It was built between 1745 and 1753, then burned by the British in 1779 during the Revolutionary War. In 1826 it was rebuilt.  According to the sign placed in 1937 at the ruins, it was then burned in 1865 by Sherman’s men during their “march to the Sea” campaign.  Since then another possible fate has come to light. A letter dated February 3, 1866 states that the church wasn’t burned out, just torn up inside but could be rebuilt. Evidently, the inside of the church was gutted by local people for materials to rebuild their homes that were burned by Sherman’s army.  Either way, it was not rebuilt but is now on the National Register of Historic Places.

The ruins are surrounded by majestic oak trees and scattered graves with some of them dating in the 1990’s.  The remains of Colonel William Bull who organized and funded the church in the 1740s and 1750s are within the ruins.

While I was there, I saw a couple with a photographer taking engagement pictures.  It is so gorgeous that it is used for that quite often and also is available for weddings.

I used Sweet Digi Scrap’s kit “Like A Weed” and a template from Scrapping With Liz’s Recyclables 20  collection.

Layout: Punta Morena

 

Sweet Digi Scrap’s kit “Shore Thing” was perfect for this picture I took in February 2010 at Punta Morena, Cozumel.  I also used a template from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s Sunbeam collection.

Layout: Dream Big Paris

On a whim, some of my scrapping internet friends decided they wanted to go to Paris, France in the spring. Several girls were serious about it so one of them started a Facebook group. She added others to the group that she thought might be interested.  I was one of them. Now, I’ve never really had a dream to go to Paris but I stayed in the group just to see what was going on.  Then one of them mentioned wanting to go to Disneyland Paris. Now that is something I’d like to do!  The more I thought about it, the more I thought I’d really like to do this. Especially when the dates were selected. April of 2015.  Exactly 1 year from now!

Well, what a way to celebrate my 60th birthday (a few months early).  And, this layout was born…

I used Sweet Digi Scrap’s “Dreaming Is” and a template from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s Piece of Pie collection for the layout.

Layout: Water Babies

 

I was able to get some fun pictures of my cousin playing with his grandkids (along with his son-in-law) in the pool while staying with them in May of 2013.  “Summertime” by Sweet Digi Scraps was the perfect kit to highlight the pictures.  The template was a freebie by Scrapping With Liz.

Layout: Dad and Me

 

I used Sweet Digi Scrap’s “My Hero” and a template from Amber Morrison’s Chilly Morning collection for this layout.  This is the latest picture I have of just Dad and me.  Guess it is time for a new one!

Dream Manager: February 2013

 

In February, we started our group sessions of the Dream Manager Program.  Each participant was given a small 3 ring binder for our session work papers.

Right on the front of the binder is the phrase that we are focusing on in the program ~~ Become The Best Version of Yourself.  This is the theme of the book we read during the program, “The Rhythm of Life”.

Session 1: Your Essential Purpose

During the session we were introduced to the program, discussed the confidentiality of the program and explored our hopes and expectations. We also discussed the framework of the book… Physical, Emotional, Intellectual, and Spiritual. Each session, we come back to those 4 areas in our Rhythm of Life Scorecard. We also talked about what some of our dreams are.

There is homework in the program after each session.  Readings from “The Rhythm of Life” and experiencing a new activity, choice or behavior in each of the 4 areas is in the homework of every single session.  In our reading, we were to highlight 2 points or ideas that stood out to us during that reading. We then discussed these during the next session.

The first session homework also involved completing our list of 100 dreams. We then had to classify each dream as to whether it is a <1 or 1 year, 1-5 year, or 5+ years dream.  We then had to choose target dreams. 3 were to be completed in the next year, 1 to achieve in 1-5 years, and 1 for achievement in 5+ years.

It was really hard to come up with 100 dreams. I had 50 right off the bat… I want to visit (and scrap those visits) of all 50 states.  We also were told that no dream was too small to be included on our list.  Of course, some dreams are bigger than others and those are the ones that take more work to achieve.

My target dreams to work on ended up being:

1. 2 week vacation in May 2013 to North Carolina and Florida
2. Facilitate Core Financial Wellness for Miller’s employees
3. Learn to knit the stitches needed to make an afghan pattern my mom made
4. Declutter and purge the house of junk
5. Retire in 2021

Needless to say the first 3 dreams were my <1 and 1 year dreams. Decluttering will definitely take 1-5 years and retirement is more than 5 but less than 10 years away.

More in the next installment of Dream Manager!

Layout: We Are Family

As a surprise for my cousin and his family, I did a Shutterfly book for them of layouts I did of pictures that included their family over the years. 
In 1990, we gathered in Archbold for an afternoon.  I have a lot of pictures from the day so did these 2 layouts using Sweet Digi Scrap’s kit, “Cotton Tail”. The colors were perfect for the pictures.  I used a template from Scrapping With Liz’s Recyclables 2, mirroring it for the 2nd page.

Layout: Caroline 2012

Need to get some sweetness aka Caroline scrapped also!  Here she is in April of 2012 playing in the caterpillar Luke got for his birthday in 2011. She was wearing a sunsuit worn by her mother, Allison about 30 years earlier! “Upside Turvy” by Sweet Digi Scraps is the kit and the template was a freebie from Fiddle-Dee-Dee.

Layout: We’re All Mad

I went to California in November 1997 and stayed for a long weekend with an online friend of mine.  First time I met her!  A group of us from an AOL board dedicated to the show “As The World Turns” were going to meet for brunch on Sunday. But on Saturday, several of us went to Disneyland!  I’m not fond of the teacup ride but Donna, Laura, and Linda couldn’t wait to go on it.  When I saw the kit “We’re All Mad” by Sweet Digi Scraps, I knew what pictures to use with it.  I also used a Sweet Digi Scraps template from her Sweet Inspirations Peek A Boo collection.

Layout: Tea 4 Two

I found a childhood picture that complimented Sweet Digi Scrap’s kit, “Tea 4 Two”.  I again used one of the Single Serves templates by Sweet Digi Scraps.

I’m really enjoying scrapping the “old” pictures and Sweet Digi Scraps designs kits that are great for the oldies as well as current photos!

Layout: Perfect Pair

Sweet Digi Scrap’s Single Serves Templates and “Perfect Pair” kit worked perfectly for this layout.  I have always loved this picture of my parents.

Layout: Swagger

Another layout of the adorable Luke!  This uses Sweet Digi Scraps kit “Prince Charming”.  The template is from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s Encinatas collection.

Dream Manager: January 2013

The program started with a large group session of the participants, managers and a few other interested employees. Presenting the session was Dan Brunnert of Floyd Consulting.

All participants were given a Dream Journal to record the dreams and a copy of the book, “The Dream Manager”.  We were also given a copy of the book “The Rhythm of Life” also by Matthew Kelly. We also had a training workbook to follow along with the training. It contained various worksheets we had to brainstorm to fill out during the training.  We went through some exercises and interacted with our fellow employees during them.  Dan took some pictures with his cell phone and kindly shared them with me.

The training session took most of the day and was very intensive. But it got the participants started on our journey.  Our Dream Manager, Kim Radison, was also at the training and helped Dan out at times.

We discussed a few of the areas that we would be focusing on during the 12 group sessions the 10 participants would have starting in February.  Each of the 10 participants would have 6 individual sessions with Kim as well over the course of the year.

More in my next post!

Layout: Christmas 1983

In 1983 The Longaberger Company made a baby cradle basket. My cousin’s wife, Wendy, fell in love with it and purchased it.  In December, their 2nd daughter was born so she used the cradle for their Christmas picture that year.  Ashley is in the cradle and Allison is looking over her in front of the Christmas tree.
For this layout, I used “Christmas Punch” by Sweet Digi Scraps and a template from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s Play It Again collection.

Layout: Pepper’s Birthday

 

Sweet Digi Scraps and etc by Danyale collaborated on a kit called “Birthday Chic”.  Since it was released right around Pepper’s 13th birthday, I used it to scrap his birthday picture. I used a template from Fiddle-Dee-Dee’s A Girl’s Best Friend collection.

Here’s hoping for a few more birthdays for my birthday boy!  Happy barkday Pepper!

Layout: Sunrise

I love taking pictures of the sunrise and sunset. On a November day in 2012, I was able to capture an awesome sunrise before going to work.  Wouldn’t you know Sweet Digi Scraps came out with a kit that was perfect for these pictures a few days later!  Kit is “Happy To Have You”. I used a template from Scrapping With Liz’s “3’s A Charm Collection”.