Hello, I'm back...

...bet you did not even think I'd been gone, LOL!!!! I haven't posted anything in the last month due to the fact that I was out of the country visiting my sister in L.A. My sister just had a baby and just as she was about to return to work got into a motor vehicle accident. She was headed to work when a lady rear-ended her on the 101. It was bumper to bumper traffic and the lady behind her stepped on the gas and caught my sis unaware causing my sister to hit her head on the steering wheel and then back (classic whiplash!). She has been in pain ever since and had to even stop breast feeding her child because of the inability to look down for extended periods of time. She still can function and do the same stuff but she is in pain everyday. She sent me an SOS and asked if I could take a break for 3 weeks and help her out so she could get some much needed rest and go do the rounds of her doctors visits, therapy and the whole hullaballoo.

So there I went, it definitely was not a vacation as others may think, but it really was to help out and be with her and my nephew - whom I adore!! (Gush, gush, gushing, he is the sweetest!). Evan my nephew slept in my bed every night, it makes me kind of miss having a baby, my kids are 10 and 13 now. But I realized during my stay there that we in the Philippines are so lucky to have our help and nannies around us. We sometimes take that for granted because we just assume it is a normal thing to have. Being in the U.S., taking care of a baby at night who wakes up every 2 hours, then having to do house work, go to work, do errands, attend to a hubby and all that stuff is really hard. I have so much more respect for mothers in countries where maids and nannies are not part of the norm, especially those who have several children. And I also have more respect for our maids and nannies over here. How we could run our households and hold jobs at the same time is largely due to having them to depend on. They are our households unsung heroes, and deserve as much respect as we would allot any other office worker. They help keep our households running smoothly and efficiently and I feel very lucky to be blessed with one very efficient household help.

So I guess, what I'm trying to say is, while there, I had totally no time whatsoever to do as much scrapping as I would or even take a peek into my blog to post something (LOL excuses!) How all you scrapping/blogging moms in the U.S. do it so consistently is beyond me, I take my hats off to you!! All I was able to do was create at Baptism Guest book for my nephew and of course my Baptism gift which will be printed in canvas to be hung on my sisters wall.

I did a Andy Warhol Pop Art type design and used background papers given as freebies from the SYTYCD (So You Think You Can Design) Contest over at DigiscrapAddicts. Papers used were from Round 3 of the SYTYCD Contest, designs submitted were supposed to be created around the theme of any chosen Beatles song - needless to say, I loved that round!!

Here is what I created:






I can't wait to see them printed on canvass. Do any of you know where I can get it done and it won't cost an arm and a leg? I'm asking for both U.S. and Philippine locations. Kinko's is way too much. Any local printers in the Philippines?

BTW, Rachelle of Rachness Designs (known as Doodelle) is having a CT call for this kit she is creating (based on the previews, it looks like a really cute and fun kit!)


I'm applying!!! Haha, best to try and try until I get it. So I'm crossing my fingers that I do get a chance. Wink, wink!

Have a happy day everyone! I've got loads of work to do and the kids have to be ready for their first day of school on June 9!

See you all soon! Mwah!

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Nothing much, I just want to post some layouts I made using one of my favorite artist's kits, so whimsical, so enchanting - so Lorie Davison. Its called "Bunnies, Bees, and The Birds' Big Balloon" (A Spring Collection), available here at scrapbookgraphics.com.

Here are some previews of the kit:







If that's not enough to make you fall in love with it, then I don't know what will. I guess Lorie's work reminds me so much of the books we used to read as kids, of fantasy lands and creatures....and that's why it really tugs at my heart and appeals so much to me. I love reading children's books, to this very day! So many ways to scrap this kit, I LOVE IT! I'm not done making all my layouts, just finding the right photos for it though, lots of extraction. So far, I've scrapped 2 layouts, do you like it?





Can't wait to make more!

I also have another layout using another great kit, Treasures From the Deep, a collab between Irene Alexeeva and Studio MGL, also at scrapbookgraphics.com.



We had just gone on a summer trip to Talisay, Batangas, which is just by the lake of Taal Volcano (one of the smallest volcanoes) and I had lots of photos of the kids in a speed boat (not a high res camera though), I extracted them nonetheless! I also wanted to scrap the photo of some family members, our 4 boys we started calling V-boys, hahaha, its sort of a family joke pertaining to the ideal v-shape of a mans body when one works-out and is fit. The men started hamming it up and posing, claiming they had v-shaped bodies, what a laugh! So I extracted their pictures and created a layout using this really great kit!

Check out my family's very own V-boys! LOL! Enjoyed creating this!



If you like these kits, you may find them at scrapbookgraphics.com, or just click on the links above to be brought straight to the kit.

Have a happy day ahead ;)

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