He Loved Farming

My dad  loved to farm.  He was never able to own his own farm or work his own land, but every spring and fall he could be found in the fields, making round after round in that tractor as he farmed for a dear friend.  I remember spending hours riding along with him in the tractor and when my kids were old enough they would do the same. I miss those days.  With Father's Day right around the corner thoughts of him are frequently on my mind.  When I first spotted the Tractors  paper from SS&M's "Down on the Farm" line, I knew it would be perfect for a tribute to my dad and his love of farming.

Supplies include:

#1302 Tractors 12 x 12 paper

#5563 Tractors Cardstock Stickers

#1148 Classic Cheerleading 12 x 12 paper

#1237 Baseball Game Day 12 x 12 paper

#1248 Soccer Game Day 12 x 12 paper

Thanks for looking.  Happy Father's Day.

Scrapping out of context

The photos on the layout were taken at an outdoor concert last year.  They were not intended to document a relationship or any other emotion, but when I started looking at them, they showed a very candid moment between my husband and my son.  So many times these moments happen and we don't think to take a picture.  I call this my happy accident. 

Another element to this layout is the quote.  I searched high and low for words that would express their relationship.  I finally found it in this quote found at http://www.quotegarden.com/ .  Instead of adding a title, I enlarged the quote and emphasized a few words to convey the meaning of the layout.  No journaling needed. 

Another happy accident is the shirt my husband was wearing.  The writing on the shirt was camoflauge.  I added simliar paper to bring the colors across the layout.  How wonderful that Scrappin Sports and More had just the right papers.  Who knew a paper with a hunting theme could work so well on a Father's Day layout? 

~Shannon

Scrappin Sports and More
Products Used:
#1273 Grandpa-Papa Paper
#1274 Uncle-Aunt Paper
#1245 Huntin Game Paper

This Man of Mine

Father's Day is right around the corner and I was excited for the chance to showcase my husband in a layout!  He is an amazing father and never ceases to amaze me with the things he does - he is an wonderful teacher, a tiehard cheerleader, and a fabulous example for my children.  There isn't a day that goes by that I am not thankful he is the father of my children. 

I wish him and all the fathers out there a wonderful Father's Day!

Products Used:

#1306 Blue Stars
#1295 - Four H
#1253 - Volleyball Game
#1250 - Swimming Game
#1087 - Hop, Skip & Jump

June Celebrates Special Men

This month we are going to honor the special men in our lives.

I decided to honor my husband, who is a fantastic father and husband - who probably isn't thanked nearly enough for everything he does for our family.

I have two layouts I want to share with you today.

The first one is called 'you give him wings'.  I love the butterfly trails on this paper so to emphasize them I hand-stitched over the trails.

Journaling:
you guys spend so much time together being pals yet still being a great father teaching Seth to become a great man.  May 2010

Products used:
Defining Summer Paper #1223
Classic Cheerleading Paper #1148

My second layout is called 'coach dad'.  I created this layout as a tribute to my husband who is an assistant coach on all three of our son's sports teams.  Being a coach isn't easy but season after season he commits to the team and to the athletic growth of our son.

Journaling:

I know Seth really enjoys having you as an Assistant Coach on all three

of his sports teams -- football, baseball and basketball.  I know it isn’t 

always easy - working at every game and every practice or the

complaining parents but you are setting a great example to Seth while 

creating a wonderful relationship with lots of memories!  Photos: 2009

Products used:
Football Double Sided Paper #1257
Baseball Double Sided Paper #1255
Basketball Double Sided Paper #1256


Thanks for stopping by our blog and be sure to come back to see more layouts by our fabulous Design Team!

~Carolyn

A Salute to Preschool Graduation

My son attended the same preschool from the time he was 22 months old until he graduated and earned his pillow at five.  He was so excited and so ready to go to Kindergarten!  And, of course the Scrappin' Sports & More Preschool and Blocks paper were perfect to scrap the occasion! 

Happy graduation and congratulations to all of the graduates out there!

Products Used:
#1205- Defining Preschool
#5016- Defining Preschool Cardstock Stickers
#1166- Young & Active Blocks

The Time for Graduations!

It's definitely that time of year again - school is out and summer is getting underway.  Graduation ceremonies and parties are abundant and families are getting ready to send their children off to college.  Such a bittersweet time - scary and exciting all at the same moment! 

I love the possibility that graduation holds, the future is there for the taking.  I have graduated 4 children from high school and I have 3 kids left to go.  This year, however, is an off year for us.  No one is graduating at any level:  preschool, 8th grade, high school or college.  So I took this chance to take a look back to 2006, graduation night for Travis. 

Time to build the future:

Products Used:

#1166 - Blocks
#1241 - Cross Country Game
##1297 - Rabbits

Graduation Cards

I know for many people, Memorial Day weekend equals Graduation parties.  I am no exception this year.  So instead of a layout, since none of my kids are old enough to Graduation from High School, I decided to make a couple of cards.  For the first one, I used some Scrappin' Sports Custom Paper.  This paper is so fun, letting you create your own sayings, picking your own colors.  If you are interested in seeing all the paper styles and colors we offer, just click here. 

My second card is simple cut from the Generations paper and I've added a bunch of rub-ons from the Graduation Rub-ons Sheet.  So if your in a hurry, you can recreate this is a couple of minutes.

I hope everyone has a safe holiday weekend.  Enjoy those graduation parties :)
Scrappin' Sports Product Used:
#1278 Family/Generations Paper
#1269 Mother/Mom Paper (red on graduation hat)
#906 Custom Spirit Names (hats off to the grad/ way to go)
#631 Graduation Rub-On
#7015 Graduation Academics Rub-on (note: this item has been discontinued and may not be available)

Graduation Day

Time passes by so quickly, it's hard to believe it's been 2 years since I proudly watched my kids as they graduated from high school.  Even with the passage of time, it's still so important to get those memories into the scrapbook.  SS&M makes that so easy with their School line of papers that includes graduation paper and rub-ons!  Mix together patterns and papers from some of their other  lines, and viola! - a great looking layout documenting an important moment in our lives.

Thanks for looking.

Graduation...a time of reflection

When we were given the assignment to highlight gradations, I thought about doing a page of a neice or nephew since my kids are still too young, but then I started looking through an old album that I had made pre-scrapbooking.  And let me just note that I was destined to scrapbook...even back then.  I saved everything and found a way to make it pretty...even without EMBELLISHMENTS!!  *Shock*  I know...I should have warned you before I said that!! 

So I came upon probably one of the only pictures taken of me for my high school graduation.  My family wasn't "big" on taking pictures and I am pretty sure my neighbor took these and gave them to me later.  THANK YOU MRS. REUTER!!!!

So my advice to all you graduating and whose children are graduating is this...
1.  Take LOTS of pictures
2.  Document the "real" moments (the jitters, the tears...)
3.  Don't forget the journaling.  If you have a notebook that people can write message in...use some of those inserts for a page or two. 
4. Finally, carry plenty of KLEENEX!!!!!


Finally, Scrappin Sports and More has TONS of graduation themed products.  As well, the Family line is mostly solid colored (as seen above) and you can easily find your school color combination.  Still want more?  Customize YOUR OWN PAPER!!!

What are you waiting on?  Get to scrappin'!  :)

~Shannon

Scrappin Sports & More Products Used:
#1276 Nephew/Niece Paper
#1271 Brother/Sister Paper

Celebrating Graduations!

With the end of the school year upon most of us, we decided to celebrate our graduations / graduates!

I created a layout using some photos from my son's kindergarden graduation;  I had already scrapped the ceremony photos but I still had a lot of snapshots of him with his pals and one of my favorites - my son giving his teacher a great big bear hug (I also figured you didn't want to see my horrible early 1990's graduations photos ;) )

I really love Scrappin' Sports & More's grade specific papers and stickers - they were just so fun to use!!

Supplies:

#1206 Defining Kindergarten (both sides)

#1269 Mother / Mom

#5017 Defining Kindergarten Cardstock Stickers

Thanks for stopping by the Scrappin' Sports & More blog ... be sure to check back soon to see more graduation tributes by other members of our design team!

~Carolyn

Project 12: Exploring Fort Williams

Hi, All!  What a fun sketch we had to work with for Project 12 this month!  I chose to document our first ever trip to Fort Williams in Cape Elizabeth, Maine during our April vacation.  It is a very popular spot for tourists to visit, but we had never been there.  I don't tend to be much of a journaler, but this sketch gave me the push I needed to really document the story of what we did that day.  We had a blast and we can't wait to go again!

Products Used:
#1237 Baseball Game
#1253 Volley Ball Game

~Nicole~

Project 12 - APRIL

Oh my gosh!  I did it!  I actually completed a 2-page layout!  Can you tell how shocked I am?  I haven't done a 2-pager since .... well, since forever!  But, this month's sketch over at Scrapbook & Cards Today was perfect for my Easter pictures!



Products Used:

#1025 - Defining Gymnastics
#1085 - Blowing Bubbles
#1295 - Four H
#1241 - Cross Country Game
#1300 - Pigs

Believe

Believing in yourself, having faith in God and your Family was the theme for my April 2010 Project 12 layout. I really had no plans for this layout until I really looked at my pictures and I realized that just believing in these 3 things made our whole month memorable. I hope this is something that my children remember as they grow and go through the trials that life throws their way. Believing in yourself is a powerful thing and backed by your faith and your family, you can get through anything.

Scrappin' Sports & More Products Used:
#1300 Pigs (pink) Down on the Farm line
#1219 Defining Spring Paper (words)
#1152 Classic Hockey (blue)
#1226 Frozen Treats (yellow)
#1033 Defining Running

Journaling:
This one word can sum up our whole month. Believing in yourself and your abilities is such a strong lesson. You can and will succeed when you dig deep, work hard and have faith in your abilities. All three of you set goals, worked hard and made me and your coaches very happy with your track accomplishments. This month was also the celebration of our faith in God, not only with the Easter season, but also with Victoria’s confirmation. She has taken this responsibility of her faith very seriously and we are all very proud. Angie stood up as her sponsor and Victoria honored her by choosing Angela as her confirmation name. Lastly, believing in your family, that they are always there for you no matter what life throws your way. You can always find strength in our love. You can always come to us and find comfort in our arms. You can always talk with us and find wisdom in our words. We are here for you. Always & Forever, Just Believe.

Thanks for taking a look.

Project 12 for April

Spring Break, Softball and a speeding ticket.... those are the things that highlighted April 2010.


Every month, when Scrapbook and Cards reveals it's Project 12 sketch I get more and more excited.  What a great way to document your life throughout each month and by the time December rolls around you'll have 12 great looking layouts documenting an entire year in the lives of you and those you love most.  Here's my layout for  April.

Journaling reads:
Michael’s spring break was the week before Easter. He and some friends spent a weekend in Iowa City so on Saturday, he, Kelsey and Cody met us in Cedar Rapids for the Coe Tournament. Following the games Leo and I took all the kids out for supper at Texas RoadHouse. It was a lot of fun seeing all the kids together.

While he was home, Michael was finally able to use his gift certificate from the Asylum. I sure think his tattoo came out pretty cool. He was thrilled with it too.

I got a speeding ticket on my way home from one of Micah’s games. Guess I’d better watch my lead foot - an $87 lesson learned!

Products include:
#1194 Girls Softball 12 x 12 paper
#7510 Girls at Bat rub-on
#1148 Classic Cheerleading 12 x 12 paper
#1237 Baseball Game Day 12 x 12 paper
#1246 Marching Band Game Day 12 x 12 paper

Thanks for looking!  Have a great weekend.

Project 12...the good and the bad

April was a month of ups and downs for our family.  We went on a WONDERFUL vacation, but ended the month in a serious car accident that totalled our vehicle.  So this month when I was working on my Project 12 layout, I wanted to make sure to document it all.  Because afterall, what is life but a bunch of ups and downs.  We often document the holidays, the cute things our kids say, etc.  But sometimes it is good to write down what went wrong...or a trying time we're going through. 

I hope that this inspires you to scrap some of the harder times.  Afterall, it is from our darker times that allow us to see the light! 

Blessing to all!!
~Shannon

Scrappin Sports and More Products Used:
#1275 Cousins Paper

Project 12: April Sketch

Yup, it's already that time again!  We are going to reveal our Project 12 layouts for April!  I am having so much fun with the sketches and the recap of each month!

Here is the Project 12 sketch:

Here is my layout using the sketch:

Journaling:
With April came the baseball games - every Saturday and Sunday thru June!  Seth is really becoming a fantastic ball player this year - it's so neat to watch him grow!  We celebrated Easter with my family and caught some rare group photos!  It wouldn't be spring time in CO without a few big snow storms!  Also caught this great shot of Seth and Ninja!  April 2010

Products used:
Girls Soccer #1193
Defining Swimming #1040
Swing Rubons #7520
Down on the fields Rubons #7506

Thanks for stoppin' by the Scrappin' Sports & More blog, be sure to stop back often to see the rest of the Design Team's work with this sketch! :)

~Carolyn

Happy Mother's Day!!!

She is their blanket to warm them on a cold winter night.  She is the food that satisfies their hungry spirit.  She is their shelter from the storm, their comfort in times of pain, their nursemaid to heal all hurts.  She is the wind that lifts them up when they have fallen.  She is encouragement that guides them forward.  She is the love that brought them here.  She is the heart daily praying them through.  She is their Mother. - Linda LaTourelle

I hope everyone is enjoying their Mother's Day today.  I am lucky enough to spend it with my mom and three sisters and our wonderful families.  I decided to honor all of them today in this layout.  The picture was just taken at Easter of this year.  I hope everyone will stop and take the time to remember how blessed we are to have the title of Mother, Mom, Mommy, Mum, Mummy, Grandma, etc.  Give all your loved ones an extra hug and kiss today, because nothing is more precious or stronger than a Mother's Love.

Scrappin Sports Paper:
#1300 Pigs (pink) Down on the Farm line
#1299 Steers (red) Down on the Farm line

Happy Mother's Day!

Hi, All!  Happy Mother's Day!  This is my first blog post as a Designer for Scrappin' Sports & More and I am SUPER excited!  I made a layout to feature my  beautiful grandmother.  I live in Maine, and I, like many of us here, have French Canadian roots.  My Memere (pronounced mem-may) is the sweetest lady on earth and I feel so lucky to have her in my life and for my kids to be able to know her.  And, this summer she will celebrate her 30th birthday for the 61st time!!  Oh, and for those of you who may not speak French, "je t'aime" means "I love you!"

Products Used:
#1224- Summer Wishes
#1249- Game Day: Softball Game

Thankful for Motherhood!

Mother's Day is this weekend and it always makes me reflect on my own journey as a mom.  It's pretty ironic that as a young girl of babysitting age, I thought I didn't want kids.  It just wasn't the job for me and I thought that meant that I wasn't cut out to be a mother.  Then I got married and the hormones kicked in and I ended up raising 7 kids, 5 of my own!  Quite a change from those early teenage years!

For this Mother's Day, I thought I would document a little of that irony:



Love that all the black & white papers coordinate!

Products Used:

#1253 - Volleyball Game
#1291 - Cats
#1175 - Defining Competition
#1022 - Teed Up
#1278 - Family/Generation
#1164 - Cards, Anyone?
#7521 - Up & Down Rub-on

Book Titles

There are many books out there that tell a mother's love for her child.  One of my favorites is Love You Forever.  I don't think I have been able to read through that book once without getting a tear in my eye.  So when I was scrapping this page for my sister-in-law, Ashley, for her first Mother's Day, I thought this would be a perfect title to add.  I mean just look at my nephew, Nathaniel...how can you not love that face?!!  :)

                                                                                                          ~Shannon

Scrappin Sports and More products used:

#1295 Four H Paper (backside)

#1250 Swimming Game paper