Business Launch!

As many of you know, I have decided to launch my own scrapbooking/craft business.  Many moons ago, I was a Creative Memories consultant.  I loved teaching people how to scrapbook and sharing my passion for this hobby.  And, hopefully, inspiring a few others to become passionate about it as well!  Eventually, CM just wasn't fitting into my life anymore but I continued to scrap (obviously!).  And, over the past several years, I've been dreaming of having my own scrapbooking business.  In my short 2 years in San Antonio, I've seen 3 local scrapbook stores close.  The reality of those stores closing and the terrifying thought of a small business loan have prevented me from taking the risk of opening an actual brick and mortar storefront.  But, there is always the power of the internet!

I am in the process of creating an Etsy store, building a better blog (that will be updated more regularly), and promoting my work on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  I'm really excited and have spent a lot of time doing a lot of research.  I still have a lot of work to do!  But, I'm really excited about this new venture and looking forward to helping preserve memories for others.  Not to mention, all the other fun handmade goodies I'm coming up with!

And, to kick off this new venture, here are some photos of a Baby Boy album I'm working on right now!

Sunday Bike Riding Adventures

Mark and I have been kicking around the idea of purchasing bikes to ride together, so we decided to rent bikes for a couple of hours to give it a test run.  We've rented bikes from Blue Star Bike Shop once before, so we headed back there this afternoon.  Prices are reasonable, the bikes are decent, and they are conveniently located downtown near the Riverwalk, King William District, and other popular bike friendly areas.  Typically, I always carry my camera with me on excursions like this, but today I decided to document using just my iPhone and my favorite apps (Instagram and Instraframe).

We got our bikes and headed out on our great Sunday adventure!  We rode through the hub of the downtown area and make a quick stop at The Alamo before heading back toward the King William District.

The King William District is a beautiful, peaceful historic neighborhood that I absolutely fell in love with.  It is truly the best of both worlds - trendy and hipster meets suburban living.  Old, gorgeous houses sitting just blocks away from the Riverwalk, Blue Star Brewery, an endless number of restaurants and various things to do.  I would live there in a heartbeat!

After we rode through King William and dreamed of house hunting there one day, we headed back to the Riverwalk to explore a little more before returning our bikes.  We will definitely be heading back to the less crowded areas of the Riverwalk - it was so peaceful!  A great area for bikers and runners...

After two hours of bike riding, site seeing, and baking in the 100 degree South Texas sun, we headed back to return our bikes and grab a beer at Blue Star Brewery.  I highly recommend the Pilsner.  As my husband said, it is a light, crisp, refreshing beer for a hot summer afternoon.  He was absolutely right!

  

Pinterest Idea - Coasters

In an effort to jump start my so-called blog, I decided to document my Friday night Pinterest project.  And, may I just say, this is the easiest project ever!  Here is the pin I used as inspiration -

Make Your Own Coasters

I put my own little spin on it, but, that is the point of Pinterest isn't it?  I already had the ever lovely Mod Podge in my craft repertoire, so I made a quick stop in Hobby Lobby and purchased Clear Acrylic High Gloss Coating (with my 40% off coupon of course).  I also purchased the cork at HL.  They sell rolls of cork, however, this being my first attempt at this project, I decided to only buy what I needed to make one set of coasters.  If it goes well, and it has, I'll go back for more.  I also chose to purchase the pre-cut 4x4 square coasters because I'm a lazy, corner cutting crafter who didn't want to have to deal with cutting a huge piece of cork into 4x4 squares when I could just buy it that way.

The tiles themselves were purchased at Home Depot, but you could find them at Lowes or any other home improvement type store.  They were very inexpensive and found in the bathroom/kitchen area with all the other tiles.  I used the smooth ceramic style.

The first step is to decide on what you are going to use on your coaster.  Some choices - stamps, scrapbook paper, pictures, paper napkins, etc..  I'm sure there are other things I just haven't thought of yet.  I decided to use some of my extra photos that I always have leftover from scrapbooks.  So, my set ended up being an Alamo theme.

I trimmed my photos down to 4x4 which was super easy since they were printed as 4x6.  I used my paper trimmer to crop the photos (again borrowing from my scrapping supplies!).

Now comes the fun part.  Apply the Mod Podge generously and evenly over the tile.  Then, place your photo (or whatever you are using) on the tile.  Then, apply another layer of Mod Podge over top of the picture.  

Once you have applied the coat of Mod Podge over your picture, set aside and allow it to dry for about 15 minutes.  Then, apply several more coats allowing them to dry for 15-20 minutes between each.  The directions on the Mod Podge say 5 coats, so when in doubt, just follow the directions!  =)

Next, I hot glued the cork squares to the bottom of the tiles.  Then, the final step is to spray Clear Acrylic High Gloss Coating over your coasters.  This not only gives them a beautiful glossy finish, it give your coasters a nice water-resistent finish.

And, voila!  Personalized coasters!  They make a great gift too.  Just tie a pretty ribbon around them and you've got a great gift for newlyweds, new home owners, grandparents, new parents, etc.  Imagine giving your parents coasters with pictures of your family on them!  Happiness!  

Ringing in 2012

The past week has been fun, crazy, and super busy!  My mom and my mother-in-law came to visit us for the first time since we moved to Texas.  It was the first vacation either has had since our wedding almost 3 years ago.  It was great to have them visit and we are so grateful that we were able to provide them the trip as their Christmas gifts. 


Here are just a few pictures of the fun we had!

My mom at The Alamo!

My mother-in-law at the River Walk!

At Gruene Hall, the oldest dance hall in Texas!

They absolutely fell in love with Gruene, Texas (as have my husband and I).  It is the most quaint, old, Texas country town we have found.  The music, food, and atmosphere are one of a kind!


I took over 400 pictures during their 4 day stay!  I'll spare you all of those here, because they can all be found on Facebook!


Now, on to 2012.  Do you make resolutions?  I try not to jump on the New Year's Resolution bandwagon because people always fall off the wagon by the end of February.  So, instead, I'm making it my goal to simply get back on track with healthier choices.  Over the past two months, I've really gotten lazy in that area of my life.  Today and tomorrow are preparation days.  I'm getting organized, making my shopping list, shopping for healthy foods, and determining REALISTIC goals!  The first of which is to fit into a pair of these - Miss Me Jeans - before summer.  Then, I'll get these for my birthday - Cowgirl Boots!


By the way, a picture of those jeans is going on the fridge so every time I walk into the kitchen, I'll see them.  After I get the jeans, a picture of the boots will be on the fridge!


Happy New Year!

Happy Boxing Day!

If you are not familiar with Boxing Day, here's a little intro - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing_Day.

I hope all of you enjoyed Christmas!  Mark and I had a wonderful day.  On Christmas Eve, driving home from church, I learned that my sweet husband had NEVER opened gifts on Christmas morning.  He always got them early - Christmas Eve was the latest he had ever had to wait.  Well, that explains a lot of things, such as why he gets his birthday present in March and his birthday is in May!  ;)  Here he opening presents on Christmas morning!

After our presents to each other, we made a delicious breakfast of blue berry pancakes and omelets.  Yum!

We spent the rest of the day lounging around the house in our pajamas playing with our new toys.  It was a fun, relaxing way to spend Christmas day!

Oh, and we ate...a lot.  So, today, I'm off to the gym.  Our moms will arrive tomorrow afternoon for their first visit to Texas!  Lots to do today to get ready for them.

Just one more sleep 'til Christmas!

There is nothing like Christmas Eve.  The peaceful, calmness of the holiday season is ever present on this night.  Don't get me wrong - I'm still a kid at heart and love the excitement you feel waking up on Christmas morning.  And, no matter how old you get, you are still excited on Christmas morning!


We have spent this holiday season at home in San Antonio.  It has been odd not being with our families, but, at the same time, it's been nice to enjoy Christmas in Texas just the two of us.  We have spent the days and weeks leading up to this weekend enjoying office holiday parties, gatherings with friends, and learning about other family's traditions because they were kind enough to allow us to join them.  We are truly blessed with great friends who are now scattered all over the country.

Today was all about relaxing!  After morning workouts and lunch, we spent the day watching Christmas movies (A Christmas Story and A Muppet Christmas Carol are our favorites) and just enjoying the quiet of the day.  Tonight, we will continue our annual tradition of attending Christmas Eve Mass, then return home to wait for Santa. ;)

Merry Christmas!