the little girl dog

This month at From Screen to Scrap the challenge is to use the Juno movie poster as your inspiration, which includes a handmade title (I hand stamped mine), stripes, and a pregnancy or new baby photo. Our fur kids are the closest to new babies as we're going to get!

I had some not-so-cute striped baby paper that came in a pack, and made it cuter with some Love, Elsie strips of heart paper. I could have either used the BABY BABY BABY paper for this scrapbook page, or a scrapbook page about Justin Bieber and that's about as likely as me having a real baby! That fun dog paper in the middle is actually from Victoria's Secret junk mail.

These pictures are from when we took Caprica Six to get spayed yesterday. When they brought her out she was wrapped up in that pink blanket because her temperature was too low, which inspired this page just in time for the deadline! She was pretty out of it last night but is doing much better today. She started licking a few hours ago so she's wearing Captain's life-preserver now.
Here are the pictures again in case you wanted a better look:


Also in 2008 I did a challenge for ScrapMojo which was also to use the Juno movie poster as inspiration. My page from then is on Flickr.

Are you a Juno fan too?

Michael Kors Similes

Episode 4 (Hats Off to You)
"I guess if you're going for a 3 day weekend it looks like you layered your underpants for the weekend and each day you kind of unpeeled and you had a new panty."

P.S. Victoria's Secret has some panties I'd like to wear for a 3 day weekend. But I wouldn't layer them and peel them away. Now that I know from Michael Kors that's a no-no.

only 98 shopping days until my birthday

Remember that Hello Owl picture I like? Now it's been made into a necklace! Cute, cute, cute.

The Remedy

This week Scrapping the Music asks that we use The Remedy by Jason Mraz as inspiration. I love Mr. A-Z! I saw him in concert in 2008, and my niece's new husband loves to play his songs on the guitar!


I've been wanting to use the pictures from my new Fujifilm Instax Mini 7S that I took during the day of our biggest monsoon storm this summer. It was such a beautiful day, and ultra refreshing not to be so hot! The pictures seemed to go perfectly with the lyrics.

Aren't our little dogs cute?

Michael Kors Similes

I love Project Runway and all its creative splendor. One of my favorite parts is when Michael Kors gives his critique at the end. You know you just made a piece of crap outfit if he uses a simile to describe it. I decided this season to keep track of them and share them here because they conjure laughable images in the imagination.

Episode 1 (And Sew It Begins)
"It looks like some kind of disco apron." (That was actually one of my favorite dresses, and she was eliminated!)

"She's like a mother of the bride who's a belly dancer. She's a pole dancer in Dubai."

Episode 2 (Larger Than Life)
"It's like an Amish cocktail dress."

Episode 3 (It's a Party)
"She looks like a transvestite flamenco dancer at a funeral! (Then in a smaller voice) I mean she just does."

"(It looks like) a pinata exploded."

Stay tuned for more Michael Kors Similes. I wish he used more metaphors because Michael Kors Metaphors sounds more snazzy.

P.S. Who else did the dance of joy when they found out Project Runway is now 90 minutes long?

feeling the love

Sometimes something so simple can mean so much. In the past week 2 online friends have separately called me out for some blogging/scrapbooking recognition and it really brightened my day when I found out. The first award came last Thursday from Lisa at Her Book Self. She gave me The Versatile Blogger Award!

In lieu of an acceptance speech I am required to share 7 random things about myself:
1. I got bit on my foot by a tiny black ant Monday morning during playground duty. My foot swelled up so much you couldn't differentiate my ankle from my calf. It really hurt for 2 days! One of the 2nd grade teachers made up an EpiPen song about me.

2. I have a really challenging class this year. Coming home to Lisa and Shazza's kind awards actually picked me up. What a relief though - the past 2 days have been sort of normal (aside from the sharp scissors in the face incident this afternoon).

3. One of my new favorite reality shows is Pit Boss. Dwarfs + Animal Rescue = good times

4. I didn't think it was possible for Corey to be cuter, but with a dog in each arm he is.

5. Caprica Six cracks me up because she's hyper and clumsy. Her energy is infectious to Captain Skippyjon Jones which makes me laugh even harder.

6. I'm reading The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman right now and it's picturesque and touching! It's so sad I'm sure my mother-in-law will love it.

7. I should be grading papers right now.

Then Shazza from Shazza's Craft Connection gave me a Sunshine Award on Wednesday.

Even though I live in the desert I could always use some sunshine!

So I'm supposed to pass on my awards to 15 bloggers, but I'm only sharing them with the elite:

My first award goes to my sister-in-law at Rhubarb's Rants. Her keen observations about life are funny and she always has cute pet pictures and stories about my fur nieces. That's versatility.

I'd like to send a shout out to my friend Stephanie at Unvaulted. Some day she will be a famous writer. If you read her blog you can brag to people you knew her since way back. Tell her you like her stories and you will bring her some sunshine.

My favorite Australian crafter/reader blog has to be Luvvie's Musings. She knits. She reads. She has guinea pigs. What's more versatile than that?

Last but not least I'd like to send some sunshine to The Avid Reader's Musings. She writes beautiful book reviews without spoiling it for you. She also has mad photography skills.

Now it's your turn to spread the love.

8.9.10

The bean bag had a happy day.

The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman

"Random House Children's Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read."

After reading that on the title page, I knew I was in for some fun! In 2008 my book club read the first book in this trilogy, The Golden Compass, because we heard it was the atheist's answer to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe series by C. S. Lewis. Really we didn't feel there was anything too earth-shattering in The Golden Compass, but bible thumpers probably had a special book burning for The Amber Spyglass, my favorite in the series which I finished this morning.

A few of my favorite lighter fluid moments:
Gay Angels!
A nun who leaves the church to become a scientist!
The discovery that there is no heaven, but a sad purgatory-esque land to go to when we die!

I heard matches striking after quotes like this one:
I used to be a nun, you see. I thought physics could be done to the glory of God, till I saw there wasn't any God at all and that physics was more interesting anyway. The Christian religion is a very powerful and convincing mistake, that's all.

Don't get me wrong; some of my favorite people are christians. It's just nice to know that there's something out there for everyone! I, too, support the First Amendment and celebrate the right to read!

P.S. This book is 3/9 for my Colorful Reading Challenge.

P.P.S. There was a marten in this book, which I had never heard of before. Look how cute!
Curious Marten is by Adam Lyon.

at least it's not a mustache

I'm not sure if I'm digging Jon Stewart avec goatee. As long as he keeps throwing punches I guess it doesn't matter.

P.S. I have since heard Jon Stewart say that with a goatee he looks "...like a communist pirate." 8.9.10

at least he's clean

I was just transferring Corey's laundry from the washer to the drier when I heard a clinking sound at the bottom. What I thought would be loose change was actually my hermit crab Arjiki!!! And he's ALIVE!!! He must have escaped and climbed into Corey's dirty laundry. Silly crabby.

I think this could be the making of a children's book. Maybe poordogfarm will illustrate it for me.