Scrappy Hearts

Almost...

Thanks to some very cool postal love, I am well on my way to having my December Daily Album ready for ...December!

Project Life, Week 45

Week 45, better known as the week we finally arrived back at home, with electricity. Monday we celebrated Halloween and our friend Robin arrived from Washington. Yup, you guessed it, another full week.Sunday we packed up our belongings and food and left my mom's house after dinner. I was able to complete a couple of Sunday chores, like changing the sheets and doing a load of wash before I fell exhausted into bed. Fortunately, it was not a very "serious" week at school. Monday was the annual Halloween parade and classroom parties. The kids were excited to finally celebrate!

Tuesday, Election Day, was an inservice for teachers. Not a difficult day, but a great day in terms of getting some things accomplished.

Wednesday was supposed to be the last day of school for the week, but since the Teacher's Convention was canceled due to the damage in Atlantic City, our schedule was revised. Many of our parents take their vacations during this week. We were warned about teaching new concepts and were able to spend a good deal of time doing intervention and extension work.Wednesday evening we headed into Philly for a beer dinner with Jason at Vedge. It was a great evening with lots of great conversation. It also snowed! I had my fingers crossed that it would snow enough to warrant a delayed opening, wishful thinking!

Thursday morning there was a bit of snow on the ground, but nothing to speak of. An easy day at school and then a dental appointment in the afternoon. Friday, another school day and then in the evening, I broke out the holiday videos. Poor Mark, he hid in his office. I needed a bit of cheering up and holiday videos always do the trick!Saturday was a low key day. I slept really late and spent the day tearing apart my studio trying to clean up my space and empty my suitcases. It was also the last night of our season tickets to the Ritz. South Pacific. Wonderful production and a great evening out!Moving forward I am working on finishing up to current on Project Life and preparing our December Daily album for the upcoming month. Report cards are finished so now I think I can focus on stuff at home which makes me smile!

Project Life, Week 44

A quick post celebrating the completion of Week 44 in Project Life.This week began with my workshop in Miami, my return flight canceled and my second return flight canceled.

The funny thing about all this was the fact that the airline canceled the second leg of my flight out of Miami which was heading to Paris, but they never canceled the first leg of the flight. I was not sure what to think so I gave them a call. Apparently they overlooked the first part of the flight. Go figure. When all was said and done they, the airline, decided that we would be able to fly out on Tuesday. Yippee I thought...but that wasn't the case. The earliest flight out of Miami, into Philadelphia, 6am on Thursday. Being stuck in Miami was no hardship, it was actually quite a treat. Unfortunately my mind kept thinking about the effects of Sandy on New Jersey and the surrounding areas.Mark lost electricity on Monday. When I finally arrived home, after work on Thursday, the electricity was still out. I went to the gym, ran and took a shower. Mark attended a meeting and then we met at home. It was cold. 

On Friday we cleaned out the refrigerator and freezer. Once that was complete, we high-tailed it over to my mother's house. She had heat. So happy we had someplace to go. So happy we were really so blessed throughout the entire storm. Almost completely caught up. My printer must have gotten wind of this because it has decided to act up, again. Me and technology, we just do not do well together!

Project Life, Week 44

A quick post celebrating the completion of Week 44 in Project Life.This week began with my workshop in Miami, my return flight canceled and my second return flight canceled.

The funny thing about all this was the fact that the airline canceled the second leg of my flight out of Miami which was heading to Paris, but they never canceled the first leg of the flight. I was not sure what to think so I gave them a call. Apparently they overlooked the first part of the flight. Go figure. When all was said and done they, the airline, decided that we would be able to fly out on Tuesday. Yippee I thought...but that wasn't the case. The earliest flight out of Miami, into Philadelphia, 6am on Thursday. Being stuck in Miami was no hardship, it was actually quite a treat. Unfortunately my mind kept thinking about the effects of Sandy on New Jersey and the surrounding areas.Mark lost electricity on Monday. When I finally arrived home, after work on Thursday, the electricity was still out. I went to the gym, ran and took a shower. Mark attended a meeting and then we met at home. It was cold. 

On Friday we cleaned out the refrigerator and freezer. Once that was complete, we high-tailed it over to my mother's house. She had heat. So happy we had someplace to go. So happy we were really so blessed throughout the entire storm. Almost completely caught up. My printer must have gotten wind of this because it has decided to act up, again. Me and technology, we just do not do well together!

Thanksgiving

Just a few photos from a wonderful day spent with family.

Couldn't as for more!

Small Business Saturday

For the second year in a row, Mark and I have traveled north on Small Business Saturday to finish up the Magical Mistletoe Tour and enjoy the Dicken's Festival in Clinton. What a fun way to celebrate small businesses. This year we started our day at Pennington Quilt Works.Inspiration filled every nook and cranny of the store. I did pick up a bit of fabric intended for holiday gifts, we'll see how that goes. Next stop - Kindred Quilts in Clinton.Just look at those neon signs, yup, another quilt shop is closing. While I am sad that we will be losing such a wonderful shop, I am happy to report that it is NOT as a result of big store competition. This store is closing because the owner made a conscious decision that the time had come. She is moving on toward retirement and the opportunity to enjoy her family. What a blessing!

At the quilt shop we also had the opportunity to meet another small business owner. His job, as he described it, "is the business of helping small businesses reap the most from their inventory and move on with their lives." Well, it seemed like a win win to us. The store owner, while a bit melancholy, was thrilled at the prospect of moving on with her life. 

We enjoyed the balance of the evening, wandering Main Street and enjoying the scenery. We even caught a peek at Father Christmas as he was getting ready to go for a ride.Clinton is such a pretty little town, just perfect for a Dicken's Festival. Just the perfect place to spend Small Business Saturday.

Project Life, Week 43

The week beginning Sunday, October 21st and the week I flew to Miami to teach an IB workshop. All in all, a pretty uneventful week. Project Life-wise, this was an easy week to pull together. My printer has been the big problem in my ability to keep up with Project Life, lately. I have spent a great deal of time fighting with it and trying to get the color right. Down right annoying at times. But, now that we are over the most recent hurdle, I am feeling better about getting things accomplished.

This week was all about photos and words. Plain and simple. It was my first Sunday receiving the New York Times weekend edition. I just love the Book Review. I made pasta sauce and we were able to enjoy quite a few meals with the one pot that I made. The autumn splendor maple in the back yard was in it's full glory this week.

In reality, I spent most of my time this week preparing for my trip, the workshop and getting my classroom ready for my time away.Sandy and I arrived in Miami at the same time. The photo in the upper right corner actually has a faint rainbow. The bottom photos show how rough the surf was. The storm itself was pretty much a non-event here, although the one beach hut in the picture on the bottom left needed to be dug out from beneath sand when Sandy was finally done with Miami. The bottom right photo shows a cruise ship sailing into the sunset. Pretty much a daily occurance from this vantage point.Another week documented. The weeks keep rolling by, I cannot believe that we are nearing December. I hope that we are able to slow time down just a bit so that we are able to enjoy the peacefulness of the season.

Project Life, Week 42

Week 42, another full week. It all started on Sunday, the 14th, and the day of the Vineyard 5K. Mark was still recuperating so I ran it with a couple of my friends. It was a tough run, soft and hilly. Next year I need to train better for running hills.Several inserts are included with this week's layout. The first page features a photo of the run around the pond at the vineyard. On the bottom left corner is a photo I took from the house. We get the most beautiful skies around my house. The colors of the sky are spectacular at times and I do not believe that a photo even gets near to capturing the beauty. The last photo on the bottom is where Jason works. I snapped that shot on our way to The Mildred on Thursday evening.The first insert includes 6 photos from Sunday at the vineyard. The 2nd insert is our bibs from the race. There are two additional photos on the cardstock behind our bibs and the last insert is an additional 10 photos from our hike along the Delaware River on Mark's birthday.Thursday was dinner at The Miildred, Friday we celebrated Mark's birthday at Casona. We had a wonderful meal on the porch. It was a beautiful fall evening.

Satruday, after driving up to Stockton, NJ and hiking along the Delaware on both the New Jersey and Pennsylvania sides, we drove down to New Hope for dinner at Havana.

It was a beautiful fall evening.Another full week. Plenty of time spent out and about. We enjoyed the beautiful fall weather and the opportunity to spend some time out celebrating.

Today I ordered my "core kit" for next year's Project Life. Black Friday is the only day that Becky Higgins offers a discount on her products. I am glad that I was able to take advantage of the sale to get the Clementine kit. So looking forward to continuing this project into the coming year.

The Short List - Gratitude

Just because the day is waning and this cold is still kicking my butt!

ONE - my children. Jason and Jessica continue to amaze me as they grow into outstanding adults. I am constantly touched by their generosity and kindness. Each day they help me to become a better parent and person.

TWO - my hubby. Mark has been a real blessing in my life. His quiet strength and endless patience allows me to do what it is I do, without having to worry about the details. He always has my back and supports my craziest endeavours. When the world starts crashing in around me, it it Mark that keeps me from spinning out of control.

THREE - my family. What can I say? As crazy as we all are, we have got each other. So many wonderful memories and thoughts go out to my family. Those close and far. Truly so much of who I am can be attributed to the family that raised me; and I mean that in a good way.

FOUR - friends. I am blessed with so many wonderful friends, both old and new. I am so very lucky.

FIVE - work. I feel very fortunate that I am able to work each day. There are times when I am frustrated and discouraged, but I am lucky to have a place to go each day where I am able to earn a living.

I wish everyone a glorious Thanksgiving and quiet time to reflect on the blessings of the day.

Project Life, Week 41

This week begins on Sunday, October 7th. A very typical sort of week around here. After completing the journaling and taking the photos, I realized that this was a week that I took quite a few pictures. So, after all was said and done, I added a 6x12 insert which holds an additional 6 photos.School work dominated much of this Sunday, along with cooking for the week. Tuesday saw the arrival of my second binder for Project Life! I can't believe I needed two albums to hold all of this year's happenings. This must mean I am making better use of the album in terms of my ephemera storage. Mark was still not feeling well this week so much of what I experienced I did so without his company. Wednesday it was back into the water with my training buddy. Thursday, to offset any caloric reduction experienced on Wednesday, I baked scones. Yum! Friday was very low key. 

Saturday I ventured into Bloktoberfest alone. Poor Mark was really in much worse shape. It was a great time. I volunteered from 4 until 8, stationed at the pumpkin beer booth. What fun I had!Looking back at week 41, I remember striving for balance in my days. I was feeling overwhelmed at work and desperate for some semblance of a routine that I could embrace moving forward. I am still striving for balance. Perhaps it is hopeless!