Ten on Tuesday (the North Shore version)

This past weekend, I finally got to the North Shore. It's a magical place. I only wish I could be there more. Maybe I'll get there again this fall.

1) I wanted to go primarily to see Gooseberry Falls. It didn't disappoint. The Falls were beautiful. We talked about what they would look like in the spring, as they weren't very full Falls. There were also A LOT of people, which is another reason to return in the fall.

2) We had lunch at the Vanilla Bean and dessert at Bridgeman's. I haven't had a cone at Bridgeman's in years. Brought back many fun memories. I, of course, had mint bon bon.

3) We stopped in Two Harbors on our way back. There's a spot where you can get really close to Lake Superior and it's quiet and peaceful. You can soak in the beauty.

4) On the way in we saw this statute and I knew we needed to stop on the way back and get our picture with it. I have no idea who this is though.

5) We had dinner at Pizza Luce. We had the Baked Potato pizza. I was a bit unsure about it, but it was simply delicious.

6) It wouldn't be a trip to the North Shore without a trip to a gas station to pick up playing cards, so we could play 500 back in the hotel.

7) We had a lakeshore view in our hotel and there was a full moon that night. It was bathed in a yellowish light. There were also fireworks across the lake. They were pretty teeny tiny, but fun to see nonetheless.

8) The next day we toured the Gleensheen Mansion. This home was extraordinary. The attention to design detail was amazing.

9) The gardens and views of the lake at the Mansion were also outstanding. All this beauty and jaw dropping astonishment at her interior design choices and ooohing and aahing is seriously tainted by the tragic death in the house of the youngest daughter. It was always on my mind.

10) I took my Instax along and snapped a bunch of pictures. I thought I would share the creepiest one with you all. This first one is a picture of Gooseberry's upper falls. Nothing unusual right?

Take a look at it when you turn it upside down. Do you see it? You might need to click on the picture to make it bigger. See it now? The face bathed in a bright white light? Um, yeah. I hope this doesn't cause you to have nightmares.

Glimpse

On the grocery list: Everything! (I really need to go grocery shopping)
On the radio: Still MPR. I'm boring that way. 
On the TV: Surprisingly, I'm not watching much TV lately. I'm looking forward to the new fall season though. 
On the nightstand: Little Bee by Chris Cleave
On the to do list: Take my car in. My air conditioning doesn't work. Ugh. 
On the scrap table: My layouts for my June and July overviews
On the movie list: Inception

American Crafts Challenge

This week's American Crafts challenge is to make a two page layout. I haven't made a two page layout in a really long time, but I made one recently because I had more photos than would fit on one page.

I made it as part of my grandparent/grandchild series that I (finally) finished. I'll share more of them over the next few weeks. I'm really pleased with how they all turned out. Will definitely need to do another series again several years from now.

And here's each page on it's own.

Products used:
American Crafts
Paper: Dear Lizzy
Thickers: By the Yard, Dear Lizzy Glitter and Patterned Chipboard
Dear Lizzy Crocheted Flower
Elements Pearl Brads
Dear Lizzy Mini Marks

October Afternoon
Paper: Fly a Kite

Happy Birthday A!

Today is my youngest niece's birthday! Her parents and her brother all have their birthdays before hers and this year she kept asking when her birthday was going to be. She was always very patient. So, this last week, when the whole family was together, we decided to make a big to do about her birthday. We celebrated all week really. What fun! Isn't that cake adorable?!

So, this week's Ten on Tuesday is dedicated to her. These are 10 things I want to remember about her from this last week.

1) She loved walking around the block with the grocery cart that I used when I was a little girl, and what my two older nieces also used. We wondered how many miles have been put on it over the years. I think this is such a sweet photo. 


2) Her cousins immediately named her the Cutanator (for their super hero video). You simply can't say no to her. She's just too cute.

3) Toward the end of the week, she had two gifts left to open. She asked if she could open them, but it wasn't a good time, so we said a bit later. She decided to take the gifts up to her room and shortly thereafter came down with them open.

4) She loves the swings. It's the first thing she went to each time we went to the park. She loved going higher and higher. She kept telling me to push her more and more.

5) She's a fashionista. She loves clothes and shoes. She loves choosing her outfits. She let her cousin, D, do her hair too. And of course she looks adorable in everything.

6) She's a great napper. Everyday, she went down for a nap without any fuss and slept for three hours.

7) She loved playing with her girl cousins; Calico Critters (these are so cute), with Gossie (her stuffed animal) and Pegasus (D's stuffed animal), and drawing and coloring.

8) The kids tried to go to the community pool to swim, but unfortunately it was closed for the season. So, the parents bought a couple blow up pools for the backyard. She took her nap, so she wasn't able to play in it until after dinner. She was so excited when she woke up. She was having so much fun, she didn't even notice she was shivering in the cool night air.

9) I want to remember her giving me a high five after our canoeing adventure.

10) She loved all the streamer decorations and was upset when we took them down on the day of our departure.

A very happy birthday to you Miss A. I'm so glad I got to celebrate with you.

Happy Birthdays

A very happy birthday to my Mom who celebrated her birthday on Saturday. Many wishes for a happy, healthy, fun and blessed year.

And to my big brother who would have celebrated his 41st birthday today. I miss you everyday.

Ten on Tuesday

1) The garage sale I had was pretty much a bust. But my nieces rocked the lemonade/popcorn stand.

2) My project to do list is always long in August, as there are three family birthdays and we celebrate them all together. I can't wait to share everything! I love birthdays and I love making them special and making a big to do.

3) The county fair has some freaky looking rides. A lot of twisting and turning and being high in the air. No. thank. you. I think I'll stick with Skee-Ball and mini-donuts.

4) I'm looking forward to seeing Eat, Pray, Love. I still need to see Inception too.

5) If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you've heard this before. My nieces and nephew are four of the coolest people I know. I'm having a blast spending this time with them.

6) Smores are the perfect summer dessert.

7) This looks like fun.

8) I learned this week that I love beets. Who knew?

9) This skirt looks so cute.

10) This reader's retreat sounds divine. I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for next year's registration.

Some layouts

Hello Monday. The hot, humid weather has finally hit the road and it's absolutely gorgeous here this week. Can't wait to get outside again and soak up these last days of summer.

It's been awhile since I've shared any layouts with you all, so today you're in for a treat. Well, if you like layouts that is. As I've mentioned a few times, I'm taking the online class Sketchbook 2. More info. here. I've been having so much fun and getting many new layouts created. Wahoo! It's so fun to receive an email in my inbox stocked full of inspiration.

I'm updating the gallery every few days through next week, so if you're interested you can check it out here.

So, without further ado.

This one is about my niece and what she has been up to this summer. A very busy gal. I'm really liking the smaller, vertical photo and the paper matching in size and shape. I did some misting too, where I made a little scalloped mask on the top and I placed a sentiment inside.

This one is about when I came to spend a week with my brother and sister-in-law after my nephew was born. This was such a special time and I adore this photo. He's so little! How were they ever this little?! I had fun being messy with paint. I used the end of a toilet paper roll and the eraser end of a pencil to create the shapes.

This one is about what I think a good night looks like. These layouts that aren't about a specific person have been added to my list more often lately. I like the idea of looking back on these 10 years from now and see what I was up to. I've been hanging onto these photos for awhile, so it was fun to finally use them.

This layout is about a family trip to Galena, IL to see the hot air balloon festival. Seeing all the balloons taking off and sprinkling the sky with bright colors was really beautiful. I used misting and painting both on this one. I took a credit card (an old one) and put paint on the end and then just dragged it across the paper. With the misting, I used a sheet of paper that had circles hole punched out of it and used it as a mask. I'm really liking how it turned out.

This one is about my niece, A, when she was a baby. I really like this picture too. I know, I know, I always say that. I'm liking the simplicity of this one and keeping the focus on the photo. I rounded the edges of the photo and the patterned paper to add some softness.

Thanks for staying with me this long. Enjoy your Monday!