being 30something

he's one funny guy.

He'd have you believe that he got all the brains, good looks, AND personality in the family. I don't know if I'd go that far...but I will say that he got the funny. My little brother can definitely get the laughs. I'm soooo very proud of him for testing the comedy waters with a stand-up gig. Tonight, he'll be at The Backdoor Comedy Club in Dallas. The show starts at 8:30. If you're in Texas/OK...head on down! (Robert, you know that I wish I could be there...I'm sending Jason & the legendary Trent Bass in my place)

have you met Ella?

Ella Publishing

Ella Publishing Co. is an exciting new niche publisher providing targeted, high-quality e-media products to scrapbookers and paper crafters of all levels and interests.

(In English, that means we create really great eBooks for crafters!)

(oh, and...it's the brainchild of Angie Lucas and Lain Ehmann)

What makes Ella different? Ella is the ONLY publisher to offer professionally designed, photographed, and edited eBooks, optimized for at-home viewing and printing, to the paper crafting market!

What is an eBook? An electronic document in PDF format that can be purchased from our website, then downloaded and printed by the consumer. Ella Publishing Co.’s books are professionally written, edited, designed (by Cathy Zielske!) and photographed, so you’re getting top-notch quality at recession-friendly prices!

How much will they cost? Our current eBooks will run from $4.99 - $5.99 for approximately 25 pages. This price point is comparable to an issue of a newsstand magazine – but with no ads!

What are the advantages of an eBook? The consumer gets on-demand access to the content she wants, when she wants it. Because consumers serve as their own printer, the costs are much lower – and there’s no sales tax or shipping fees! Our eBooks are also environment-friendly, portable, and gorgeous!

What is an eZine? We are offering a FREE monthly electronic magazine (Electronic magaZINE = “eZine”) called “Ellaments” to our readers with scrapbooking how-tos, tips, ideas, interviews, and more. One important reminder: Ella Publishing Co. is not selling an eZine – we are selling eBooks. (The eZine is free; the eBooks are not.)

Why should YOU sign up for the mailing list? The mailing list will be the main way for you to know what’s happening at Ella Publishing Co. We’ll announce the new eZine, talk about upcoming books, issue special coupons, etc.

Have you signed up yet??

Fiskars for fall...

Since I'm NOT on my way to Florida for CHA right now, I've been checking out all the new product sneaks online. Wanna see what's new with Fiskars? Here's a few projects that I did with the new punches that are being introduced at the show...

Sweet Maple Squeeze Punch

Sea Pearls 3-in-1 Corner Punch (I couldn't find an image of the actual punch...but you get the idea)

Snow Bubbles Border & Corner Punch

Sunflower Combo Punch

barb & kat's excellent adventures

If I were to sum up the year so far in one word, that word would be "friends." I've been so fortunate to see so many of my friends this year. This week, Barb came to spend a couple of days with us after a work gig in Boston...

Monday: I picked Barb up at the airport after work, then we came home to a lovely dinner out on the deck...we introduced Barb to Mazza's Cheese Bread, along with tri-tip on the grill, green beans, and a bottle of wine. (for some reason, I didn't take any monday pics)

Tuesday: After breakfast on the deck, we headed down 89 to see a few of VT's tourist attractions. First stop...Ben & Jerry's. A visit to the flavor graveyard, a tour of the factory, a sample of mint chocolate chunk ice cream, and a few cheesy photo ops...all washed down with some lovely milkshakes:

 

After B&J's, we took a quick drive through Stowe ...unfortunately, it started raining, so we showed Barb the scenic drive through the windows of the car :(. We did stop at our favorite Stowe pizza place - Pie in the Sky for some Blond Vermonter pizza...yum! On the way home, we stopped in at the Cabot cheese annex, and Lake Champlain Chocolates:

(clearly, I was worried about us all having enough to eat during this visit)

We ended Tuesday with lots of laughing, talking, and facebooking.

Wednesday: More eating! We had a lovely breakfast at The Skinny Pancake:

Did a little shopping on Church Street :

Took a few photos:

and, of course, stopped at Starbucks...

After that, Barb & I headed out to the factory so that she could see some lip gloss being made...and she learned that taste tests aren't as fun as they sound.

Next, we did a little more tasting at the Magic Hat Brewery...
 

We wrapped up the day with dinner @ American Flatbread with Lori & Colleen, then more talking, laughing, and coffee drinking at Muddy Waters. Good times with good friends!

I miss you, Barb!!

 

sad to see her go...

I've had the privilege of enjoying a few days with my friend Barb, who made a detour from her Boston work trip to come visit VT. Miss her already. More pics later...

embracing the idea of "good enough"

At various times in my life, I've been called a perfectionist (among other terms, I'm sure). It's true, I like to do things well. My problem (among many) is that I like to do ALOT of things, at any given time, and I like to do ALL OF THEM well. Sometimes I'm happy with the results. Sometimes...I have to embrace "good enough"...

Good enough painting - We spent a chunk of time this weekend painting Austin's room. I stole the color from Josie...I absolutely loooved how it looked in her house. I really don't aim for perfection when I paint...it's more of a "get more paint on the walls than the ceiling or the floor" kind of a goal. Mission accomplished! We still have lots to do in his room, but at least the painting is done. The next project - build a platform bed (b/c I'm one of those people who looks at things like platform beds & says "I can make that!" In other words? I'm cheap.)

Good enough gardening - I stood out on the deck yesterday, coffee in hand, and surveyed the raised flowerbed that we put in a few months ago. I'll say this...it's abundantly green. Sure, the green is coming from weeds...but what's a girl to do with 2 months straight of daily rain? I'm going for the "natural" look, not the "groomed" look. Yeah, that's it. I am very excited that we have zucchini and yellow squash...but perplexed at the lack of progress cucumbers.

Good enough cleaning - I will never, ever be called a neat freak. I think that my mother passed on what little cleaning genes she had to my sister...and then there was just nothing left for me. Yesterday, we embarked on a "company's coming!" cleaning frenzy. I need to find a resettlement program for all the dust bunnies that I displaced. I'm hoping that Barb doesn't mind the disheveled look.

Part of the reason for these good enough segments of my weekend is that I decided to reprioritize a bit. I typically make a list of all the things that I need to accomplish in the weekend, and then put scrapbooking as the "and if I have time" item at the end. Yesterday, I started with scrapbooking...and did manage to get a few things done that I'm happy with...

(american crafts patterned paper, rubon, and ribbon; bazzill cardstock)

(american crafts patterned paper, thickers and flair; bazzill cardstock; fiskars punch)

(american crafts patterned paper, flair, thickers, and ribbon; memo/cork board from Michaels)

all in a day's work

I'm often reminded, by lip-gloss loving friends, that I have a cool job. I don't disagree. Yesterday was not a "typical" day in my job...but it was certainly a day that served as a reminder that I am very, very fortunate... Started the day out with a quick flight down to NYC. It was a gorgeous day in the city...sunny & warm. We stopped at my favorite lunch spot in Soho - where I had a beautiful fruit salad, and prosciutto & mozarella tartines. Then had a few meetings, all which went very well. After our meetings, we met up with the fabulous Kelly Purkey, and watched this...

That spec in the distance is Paul McCartney! After watching a bit of his performance, we headed over to McCormick & Schmick's for a yummy dinner...capped off with dessert, of course! Not a bad work day, eh?

a quickie layout that took waaaay too long.

Sometimes I get so accustomed to assignment-scrapping that the "freedom" to do whatever I want is too much to handle! How weird is that? Doing this layout also reminded me that I need to be better about posting stuff...I was in the magazine routine of NOT posting for so long! Anyway...a relatively simple layout that took FOREVER to do...

October Afternoon (patterned paper, label sticker), American Crafts (thickers), Fiskars (upper crest border punch, heart punch)

always looking for new ways to "green" our life...

I take my lunch to work (almost) every day. I bring reusable containers most of the time. Now I can add these to my lunch habits...

These super-simple (and green!) lunch sacks are the newest lesson in Fiskars Summer School. Check it out here.

monday morning gratitude.

Today got off to a rough start...sort of typical for a monday. So, to offset the bad vibes this morning, I think that a gratitude list is in order...

*I am grateful for sunny skies this morning

*I am grateful for the beautiful fruit salad that I'll enjoy at lunch

*I am grateful for the unexpected ...sometimes that universe turns everything upside down (in a good way)

*I am grateful for monday night yoga (sooo looking forward to this)

*I am grateful for the creative opportunities that I have

*I am grateful for a NYC trip this week...the buzz of the city is always exciting

*I am grateful for a job that allows me to wear flip flops to work

What are you grateful for today?