The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Orlando

And now for the conclusion to my honeymoon scrapbook album...

I shared how my husband and I stalked Dan Marino. Then I told you a story about the hell cruise and showed you a layout with me in a pillory in the Bahamas...Let's go to Medieval Times in Orlando!

Page twenty takes us there. We look so cute in our crowns. (Page eighteen is on the laptop that's in the shop and page nineteen is a private layout...no peeking!)

Journaling: We traveled back to the 11th century, dined without silverware and cheered on the Blue Knight as he showed off his equestrian skills at Medieval Times.

Page twenty-one continues the two-page Medieval Times spread:

Journaling: The place was packed when we arrived and when it was time to enter the arena, we were put into the blue section, one of six color zones, to cheer on our Knight of the Realm. We had a serving wench who delivered us soup, roasted chicken, ribs and potatoes as we watched jousting, weaponry and the Royal Falconer. Our knight won and I got his autograph! When we left, I thought it would be funny to ask the cop outside if I could take a photo of my new hubby in the back of his police car...and he obliged.

We like to eat and checked out this McDonald's on page twenty-two:

Journaling: Before we left Florida, we stopped at the World's Largest McDonald's in Orlando for lunch. It's more of a place for kids, but we still enjoyed our time dining near the waterfall. There are over 100 arcade games, a 500 gallon fish aquarium, plenty of tubes and slides for the kids to play in and on, as well as items not normally seen on the regular McDonald's menu like pizza and pasta.

The very last page of the honeymoon scrapbook showcases photos from the airplane:

Journaling: Saying goodbye is never easy, but as we flew out of Florida, we said hello to our new life together.

Well, there you have it! That was my honeymoon from October 2000. Thanks for going down memory lane with me. I'll have an extra post tomorrow for ScrapTiffany which will kick off my new blog schedule. During the summer, I'll only be posting on Wednesdays to spend more time with my girls. Can't wait!

These layouts feature the Simple Stories Destinations Kit. Contact me to place an order or visit my MemoryWorks shop.

Related posts:

• The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Fort Lauderdale
• From Smash Books to Glubers, find the scrapbooking products you love in the new MemoryWorks catalog 
• MemoryWorks Products: Searching for Cool Scrapbooking Techniques & Tutorials

The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Postponed

The honeymoon scrapbook album will (hopefully) continue next week since I'm having computer issues. Here's a little eye-candy until then...

You can see the first post here, second here and the third post is here.

The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Cruise to The Bahamas (Part Two)

Just joining in? See the beginning of my honeymoon here and the first part of the cruise here. 

Let's continue our journey...

We spent the day in the Bahamas: shopping, eating and relaxing after a crazy night at sea (otherwise known as the puke fest, but we weren't the ones sick).

Here's my first attempt at page twelve of the honeymoon scrapbook:

and then I redid it when I had more time:

Journaling: What can I say about the Bahamas? It is surrounded by water...looks beautiful and sunny on postcards, but it wasn't the dream experience I had imagined. Maybe next time... (I created this layout during Layout A Day and people had asked why it wasn't a dream experience. My answer to that is when you imagine the Bahamas as being sunny and beautiful, then when you are there, it's windy and cloudy, there is a sense of disappointment. Despite that, we still had a great time.)

Page thirteen shows me being silly and I couldn't name that thing I was in. First, I Googled "pirate jail", then "guillotine" and "stockade" before I figured out I was in a pillory. Doh!

Journaling: On the cruise ship, we were given a variety of options to choose from for our Nassau day trip. Since the weather was a bit poor, we decided on sight seeing & shopping instead of relaxing on the beach. 

We headed to the Straw Market (I think) near Prince George Wharf & purchased home decor (handmade wood masks & a statue), cigars & liqour (Spiced Rum, Butterscotch & Fire in de Hole). We were also approached by locals to see if we wanted anything illegal or if I wanted my hair braided (we passed on both). 

Shortly before we departed, I couldn't pass up 1. being a pirate (Pirates of Nassau). Then I realized that I didn't take many photos of actual landmarks, so I snapped away: 2. A Parliament Square building (all are pink) with a statue of Queen Victoria. 3. Planet Hollywood & 4. Atlantis in the distance.

Page fourteen is our departure from the Bahamas (I love the black matted photo):

Journaling: We boarded the ship with plenty of goodies and cruised back out to sea, saying goodbye to the Bahamas.

Page fifteen, another favorite honeymoon scrapbook page, shows us all dressed up for dinner with the captain:

Journaling:  After spending the day in Nassau, we took turns in the teeny, tiny bathroom, washing up in the mini low-flow shower. Tyler looked handsome in his suit and tie, and I was all dressed up in a sparkly gown I wore to a formal dance in college. 

We walked down to the dining hall, which wasn't as eventful as the night before (when we went to the so-called five star disco, which wasn't five stars at all, it was just called the "Five Star Disco." There were only about a dozen passengers having a rockin' good time as most people were sick in their cabins.) 

We had our photo taken with the captain and then sat at our table drinking mimosas. Most people were in formal attire, but there were still a few that dressed casually. And that's about all I remember about the evening.

Page sixteen and seventeen was the last day of our cruise AND (of course) the nicest one:

 

Journaling: The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with One Single Cruise: the nicest day of the cruise...beautiful, sunny & warm...all the passengers emerged from their cabins on this quiet morning...my favorite honeymoon photo of Tyler's silhouette...cruising toward the Florida coastline...ending our journey.

I'll be finishing up the honeymoon album on Thursday with photos from Orlando, Florida!

Until then...

Check out my Tuesday Tutorial on the ScrapTiffany blog where I tell you how I made this:

Photo in Oil

And if you haven't been over to EcoScrapbook lately, you've missed Don't delete your past, the future depends on it and Digital scrapbooking with Picasa.

Don't forget that you can purchase the Simple Stories Destinations Kit show in the above layouts through Memory Works. Contact me by email or at my MemoryWorks website.

The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Cruise to The Bahamas (Part One)

On Tuesday, I showed you the first five pages of my honeymoon scrapbook album when my husband and I were in Fort Lauderdale. My favorite was the "D is for Destination Dan Marino Stalker" layout. We still laugh about our little excursion to the Marino mansion.

Today, I'm sharing the beginning of our cruise to the Bahamas, an adventure that we'll never forget.

Page six begins our "Destination Hell Cruise 2000" (and I am being over-dramatic...):

Journaling: We were so clueless in this photo, but we were excited to go on our first cruise together. Did we know that there would be 35' waves? No. Or that their would be a puke fest? No. Were we lucky I packed Dramamine? YES!

Page seven shows my husband relaxing as we head out to sea and say goodbye to the Florida coastline:

Journaling: What did I learn about my first time in Florida? The piña coladas taste better the further south you go, avoid time share deals and when it comes to cruise ships, bigger = better. (Imperial Majesty is a small cruise ship.)

Page eight and nine explains our crazy adventure at sea. Even if it sounds horrible, we had so much fun together:

Journaling: So maybe there were not 35 ft. waves, it was more like 5 to 20 ft. waves & 35 to 50 mph winds, but the ship was still a rockin and people were a pukin (& there were puke bags in the hallway, maintenance cleaning up messes everywhere; we were lucky we weren't part of the puke fest & soon found out that fresh air was best.) 

It was windy on our cruise and many passengers were seasick. We were part of the small portion of people who didn't get sick & pretty much had the ship to ourselves (besides the lady with the dress that flew up in our faces revealing her big behind). At dinner, waiters dropped the food on people, liquor bottles fell out of cabinets, dishes crashed to the floor, but we still made the best out of a not so good situations (good times!). 

Sidenotes: We pretended that we needed rescued (as the closet doors kept opening & closing). We took Dramamine, left our cabin & walked a few miles on the (closed) top deck.

Page ten is my favorite honeymoon scrapbook page:

Journaling: The Little Ship that took us to the Bahamas was much smaller compared to the large cruise ships, but at least we arrived safely.

And here's page eleven (I like this one too):

Journaling: {Who} The Newlyweds: Tyler & Danielle {What} Shopping in the Bahamas for the day. {When} Honeymoon: October 2000 {Where} Nassau/Paradise Island.

We'll continue our journey next Tuesday!

These layouts feature the Simple Stories Destinations Kit. Contact me to place an order or visit my MemoryWorks shop.

Related posts:

• The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Fort Lauderdale
• From Smash Books to Glubers, find the scrapbooking products you love in the new MemoryWorks catalog 
• MemoryWorks Products: Searching for Cool Scrapbooking Techniques & Tutorials

The Honeymoon Scrapbook Album: Fort Lauderdale

A couple weeks ago, I gave you a little sneak peak into my honeymoon album during the MemoryWorks Blog Hop. And if you've been following along during Layout A Day, you have probably seen many of the honeymoon scrapbook pages I've created this month. If not, to recap, I've been working on (and almost finished with) scrapbooking honeymoon photos from October 2000.

Today begins a series of posts that will showcase my honeymoon scrapbook and the Simple Stories Destination Kit. First, let's go to Fort Lauderdale, Florida!

Here's page one with our honeymoon itinerary and a few postcards (every vacation, even the weekend getaways, I bring back postcards):

Page two shows us on the beach. This was actually my very first time in Florida:

Journaling:  We were only in Ft. Lauderdale for two nights before we went on our cruise, but we managed to: 1. Make it to the beach and ended up with sand in places that it shouldn't be. 2. Buy new beach towels including the silly one I purchased that said "My friends went to Florida and bought me this lousy towel for less than $5.00." 3. Leave the top down in the white Chevy Cavalier convertible we rented while it rained. 4. Lock ourselves out of our room when we relaxed on our patio.

Page three is dinner at Mai Kai...when we were young and sexy:

Journaling:  Mai Kai Polynesian Restaurant-From flame throwers to tropical gardens and mai tais, Mai Kai was a fun and "unique dining experience." (A bit on the boring side and I got the "unique dining experience" from Mai Kai's website.)

Page four is all about Dan Marino. My husband is a huge Miami Dolphins fan and "D is 4 destination Dan Marino Stalker" is just for him.

Journaling: Our adventure to Dan Marino's house started with a timeshare tour, which we had to do as part of the "deal" I got when I booked our vacation/honeymoon. The saleswoman pretty much knew we weren't going to buy a timeshare, but we still had to do the tour and since we were near Dan Marino's house, she offered to show it to us during the tour. We pulled over to the side of the road and Tyler got out and walked through the tress to snap a pic of the Marino mansion surrounded by a moat. When we were free from the timeshare spiel, we stalked Dan Marino even more by visiting his Town Tavern. We were underdressed in jeans while the other customers were in suits with no Dan Marino in sight.

Page five celebrates the "Nite Life" with bright colors (this layout does not use the Simple Stories Destinations Kit):

Journaling: Let's play a game! Which layout is not like the others? If you chose this one, you're correct! This scrapbook page is about the nightlife: parties, clubs and having a good time. The photos on the page aren't the best, but they were the only ones I took when we drove down A1A to experience the Florida "Nite Life." We don't really remember going to a nightclub called Atlantis, but we have the wristbands to prove it. We do know that there was dancing involved and plenty of fun! (Note: Don't judge. We were very young and this is not how we do things these days. Just had to put that in there.)

Stop by on Thursday to read about the puke fest on our cruise. Yay! (Either you'll be back for more or I've scared you away for good.)

If you like the Simple Stories Destinations Kit,  contact me to place an order or visit my MemoryWorks shop.

Related posts:

• From Smash Books to Glubers, find the scrapbooking products you love in the new MemoryWorks catalog 
• MemoryWorks Products: Searching for Cool Scrapbooking Techniques & Tutorials
• It's a Layout A Day Blog Hop

What's Your Guilty Pleasure?

Do you have a guilty pleasure? That's what ScrapTiffany asked the design team recently and here's mine...

Guilty! - Digital Scrapbook Collage Made with Picasa

I am so guilty of having a sweet tooth, especially when it comes in chocolate form. It's not so much cookies (which I am guilty of eating an entire box in one day), but it's anything chocolatey. If I had to choose my last meal, it would be a super-duper, rich, double-fudge, sinfully delicious, chocolate cake that's almost like a chocolate fudge cheesecake. Can you picture it? Can you taste it? That's what I'm talkin' about!

Is that too much chocolate for you?

You heard my guilty pleasure, click here see more at the ScrapTiffany blog.

Related posts:

• Stamping on a Scrapbook Layout + To Do Lists
• A Silly & Sweet Scrapbook Layout + the Sketch
• Paint, Pretty Things & Bubble Wrap on a Girlie Girl Scrapbook Layout

Make a Party Banner with Glue Dots

Party Banner Tutorial

Are you planning a birthday party soon (like me)? Or maybe a special event in the summer? Then this party banner is just for you. 

Supplies:

Glue Dots®: Mini, Memory Book

Our Craft Lounge: Sparkly Fluff (Rockin Pink, Brown Sugar) and Crafty Sparkles (Blue-Berry)

pre-made paper pennants (I found a 5-pack at the Dollar Tree)

cardstock (brown, green)

hole punches

ribbon

craft knife

scissors

Step 1. Make letters. Use a pencil to draw the outline of each letter onto brown cardstock, then cut with scissors and a craft knife. Adhere a letter to each pennant with Memory Book Glue Dots®.

Step 2. Create a border. Make a template for the border design on cardboard and cut out. Use the template to trace the border onto green cardstock. Punch out circles with a hole punch as shown in the photo before using Memory Book Glue Dots® to attach the border to the pennants.

Step 3. Add Sparkle. Place Memory Book Glue Dots® all over each pennant, sprinkle the Rockin Pink and Brown Sugar Sparkly Fluff onto the adhesive and shake off excess. Add Mini Glue Dots in the empty spaces, sprinkle Blue-Berry Crafty Sprinkles over top and remove excess. (Note: A paint brush is useful in removing extra sparkles.)

Step 4. Connect the pennants. Punch two holes in the top corners of each pennant. Connect each piece with ribbon, making two knots and a bow.

Now you have a party banner that's perfect for the summer, birthdays or any fun occasion! 

Related posts:

• It's (Almost) My Birthday So I Made Myself a Mother's Day Banner
• Festive Hair Flair: Paper Flower Hair Clip Tutorial
• How to Make Cupcake Toppers For a Birthday Party

Disclosure: This blog post was written while participating on the Glue Dots design team.

Celebrate Spring with Shutterfly Announcements (Special Offer for Bloggers)

Spring is one of my favorite seasons. It's a time of new growth, birthdays and plenty of photos indoors and out. I celebrate my birthday in April, then it's on to Mother's Day and my youngest daughter's birthday in May. There is more cake than you can imagine and loads of fun during these months.

Three years ago, my daughter was born and shortly after, we announced it to the world by sending out birth announcements like these ones from Shutterfly. We couldn't have been prouder to welcome another adorable and healthy baby girl to our family.

Photo used for birth announcement.

When it's time to start planning birthday parties, I want things fast and easy (since I don't always have the time to make everything) and often order birthday invitations so I have one less thing to worry about. At the party, I take (way too many) photos with the knowledge that I will never have the time to sit down and put them into a scrapbook.

First birthday!

After my daughter's first birthday party, I found the perfect solution...photobooks. I can fit ALL the birthday photos into one book (I like the 8x8 size), add the journaling, order it and have it within a week. And you know what that means? Less time scrapbooking and more time with my family!

Second birthday!

This year will be no different, as I plan to scrapbook all of my 2011 photos into Shutterfly photobooks. Yep,  I'm going completely digital this year (besides all the old photos I've been scrapbooking recently and I'm sure I'll print off some of my favorite photos this year and turn them into traditional scrapbook pages).

Do you like Shutterfly too? If you're a blogger, you can share the love and sign up for a chance at 50 free cards from Shutterfly just like I did. 

Related posts (starring the birthday girl):

• A Silly & Sweet Scrapbook Layout + the Sketch
• Paint, Pretty Things & Bubble Wrap on a Girlie Girl Scrapbook Layout  
• Scrapbook Layouts that Celebrate Children

The World of EcoScrapbook

Handmade flowers made with K&Company reusable packaging.

It's been a month since I launched my new blog, ecoScrapbook, and if you haven't made your way over there, here's what you've been missing:

• We can change how we scrapbook (so we don't look like this in the future)
• 10 nature-loving quotes for your scrapbooks
• How many things can I recycle on a scrapbook page?
• Documenting Earth Day activities in a mini-album
• How to fail at Etsy
• 25 eco-friendly & free scrapbooking supplies

There's a new post every Monday and I just created an ecoScrapbook Facebook page. I'm pretty lonely over there with only two likes, so as an incentive, I'll do a giveaway on the ecoScrapbook blog once I have 25 likes on Facebook.

I was also feeling a little silly over the weekend as I designed an eco-friendly tote bag (click here or see sidebar for image) with the words "I scrap dangerously." If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen the tweet that inspired the bag:

And what did I do during the tornado warning? I scrapbooked, upstairs, with the windows open. Yep, I scrap dangerously.

I was busy finishing up a project before lunch time and no tornado was going to stop me! Luckily, there wasn't one nearby and I'm still here today.

P.S. Happy Cinco de Mayo! Want a little fiesta hair flair? Check out the paper flower hair clip tutorial (made with Glue Dots).

Festive Hair Flair: Paper Flower Hair Clip Tutorial

Whether it's Cinco de Mayo or any other festive time, add a little flair to your hair with one of these paper flowers:

Supplies:

Glue Dots®
cardstock
circle punches (or circular objects to trace)
button
needle
thread
hair clip

(Directions are for one hair clip.)

Step 1: Make circles: 5 large (3.25" diameter) and 4 small (2" diameter).

Step 2: Fold four of the large circles in half, twice. Add a Glue Dot® to the inside of each circle to keep them folded. Adhere a Glue Dot® to the back of each folded circle and attach to the large circle that is not folded.

Step 3: Repeat the folding process with the four small circles and use Glue Dots® to adhere them to the large folded circles.

Step 4: Attach the button to the center of the paper flower using a needle and thread and a Micro Glue Dot® to secure it in place.

Step 5: Add the hair clip to the back of the flower using Glue Lines®.

Now your hair is ready for a fiesta! (Or a Cabbage Patch Doll's hair since two-year-olds can't sit still for an up-close photo.)

And here I am with my paper flower hair clip and new Glue Dots Dottess apron:

If you're wondering if I had fun during my photo shoot. YES! Of course! It's not often that I curl my hair, put a clip in it, wear an apron and carry a tray of Glue Dots.

Related posts:

• It's (Almost) My Birthday So I Made Myself a Mother's Day Banner
• Kids Craft Idea: Upcycled Toy Storage Containers
• How to Make Cupcake Toppers For a Birthday Party

Disclosure: This blog post was written while participating on the Glue Dots design team.

Friendship Quotes & a Scrapbook Layout

"Forever Friends" 12x12 Scrapbook Layout

When I think of friendship, I think of my mom, Patricia, and her long-time friend, Sandra. These two ladies have been friends longer than I have been alive. It was only suitable that I created a scrapbook page about their friendship for today's ScrapTiffany challenge.

I surprised my mom with this layout and left her plenty of space to journal. I look forward to seeing the finished page and I'm sure she'll share it with her friend as well.

I also compiled a list of friendship quotes that I (or you) could use on future scrapbook layouts or cards:

If all my friends were to jump off a bridge, I wouldn't jump with them, I'd be at the bottom to catch them. ~Author Unknown

A good friend is cheaper than therapy. ~Author Unknown

If you live to be 100, I hope I live to be 100 minus 1 day, so I never have to live without you. ~Winnie the Pooh

Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies. ~Aristotle

 
Friends are like a good bra, supportive, hard to find, and always close to your heart! ~Author Unknown

A stranger stabs you in the front; a friend stabs you in the back; a boyfriend stabs you in the heart, but best friends only poke each other with straws. ~Author Unknown

The friend is the man who knows all about you, and still likes you. ~Elbert Hubbard

All you have to do in life is go out with your friends, party hard and look twice as good as the bitch standing next to you. ~Paris Hilton 

Good friends are like stars...You don't always see them, but you know they are always there. ~Author Unknown

The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growning apart." ~Katherine Mansfield

See more friendship-inspired cards and scrapbook layouts on the ScrapTiffany blog.

Related posts:

• Stamping on a Scrapbook Layout + To Do Lists
• A Silly & Sweet Scrapbook Layout + the Sketch
• Paint, Pretty Things & Bubble Wrap on a Girlie Girl Scrapbook Layout