May Day...tomorrow

It's so hard to believe that May is less than a day away.  Which means the heat won't be too far behind.  :/  On the bright side, it's time for celebrating graduations from Kindergarten to College {of course mine are both in college!}.  Our cute nephew, Tanner, is going to be graduating from Red Mountain High School and I was lucky enough to get to take his senior pics this past weekend.  We took his sweet girlfriend along for some photos as well.  We took quite a few, so we were able to pick and chose our favorites.

This past weekend I also spent my Saturday at a garbage truck road-e-o...I know sounds pretty corny, but it was lots of fun.  :)

Tonite I ate at Fuddrucker's and have double checked on the junk status in this castle.  Tomorrow is the FIRST day of my 90 day race to gain control of my eating habits and lose some weight.  The personal trainer shared some disappointing news last week...I have 41% body fat.  In addition to that I weigh more now than I ever have in my entire life...even when I was at my pregnancy weight.  OUCH! 

OK...you don't need cute shoes, any fancy equipment to join me!  You just need to want to change your eating habits and be willing to buy new clothes when you start losing weight.

I have stocked the pantry with Luna Bars, almonds and Kashi cereal and the fridge with some of my favorite fruits and vegetables.  I am shooting for a max of 1,500 calories per day.  {400} at breakfast; {400} at lunch; {400} at dinner; two {100 cal} snacks and one {50 cal} snack after dinner.  In addition...I will consume lots of water to ensure I stay hydrated.  This is gonna be a piece of cake...or should I say easy peasy?

Here's to a new day, a new month and a healthier me!  :)

Lose It!

OK...I have been thinking lately how I really want to get healthy and do something good for me that also benefits others in my life.  Here's what I have come up with...Beginning May 1st and for the following 90 days, I am going to post about my journey and encourage others to join along!  Those of you that are already "fit" can provide motivation and support to keep us going.

I hope many of you will be motivated and encouraged to make some life style changes that benefit you!  Honestly, when is the last time you have done anything for yourself?  That's what I thought...it has been a while.  The significant other, the kids, work, church commitments, the dog, the cat...heck we even put the goldfish before us.

Here's the deal:
set your own goals {share 'em or not}
monitor your own success {share it or not}
share personal experiences {or not}
post your favorite lo cal snacks or recipes
support and encourage others
have fun

I think we stand to learn a lot about one another and ourselves as we take this big leap.  And what do you have to lose, but some extra pounds?

In order for us to be more successful, we need to prepare for the journey.  SO, devour all the junk in your house that you shouldn't be eating, dine at your favorite restaurants and make your last Cold Stone purchase.  Then, before the first of May, stock the house with food that is good for you and start thinking about an exercise plan that you can stick with.  Walking, weightlifting, jogging, Zumba, swimming, or a combination...whatever you know you can stick with!

Once May 1st hits...commit to increasing your exercise and making better food choices.  Stay with the program for 90 days and let's see the power of encouragement and support!  My goal is 30 in 90...that's 30 pounds in 90 days.  Set a personal goal for yourself.  Be reasonable and do your best to make it achieveable.

I know some of my readers have lost weight and kept it off...I hope they will consider being our "cheerleaders" {no stunting required}.  Chelle and Cicely...are you in? 

Time Lost

OK...it seems like I have lost some hours, days and weeks recently.  Things have been hopping in the Collins house!  A whirlwind trip to Tucson and a visit from Ashley and Preston.  In addition to working on graduation announcements...for Preston, Ashley, Jenaye, Justin, and my nephew Tanner.  YIKES.  Wedding invites need to be completed and in the mail by the middle of June.  Between announcements, ceremonies {graduation and wedding} I have a feeling it is going to get even busier.

I ran up to ETC tonite, and some of my favorite people were there...Debbie, Linda, Angie and Louise.  In desperate need of a 1" circle die cut, Angie came to my rescue.  The smallest circle die I found was 1-1/4".  But look what Angie found for me. 

How lucky can a gal be?  After cutting 75 of these I was off to fight the crowd at WalMart to buy candy for my DO ME A FAVOR workshop tomorrow nite.  I was able to get what I needed and scurry home to start kitting.  Now that I have that completed, I thought I would post the pics of the favors we will be making tomorrow nite.

The first project is a little open cardstock box, perfect for little treats.  It would hold some cash or a gift card  for that special graduate.  The second is an over sized matchbook that has some cute custom printwork and is perfect for that amaZing someone in your life.  The third project was hard to photograph.  It is a cardstock structure with mini Hershey bars that would make an adorable wedding favor.  The last favor is one of my favorite little plastic jars adorned with washi tape.  Love this little teal combo!  :)

I had a few of you contact me today and yes...there are still 3 slots open if you want to join me!  ETC opens at 10:00 and you can jingle them at 480.854.2303.  Would love to see you there! 

As I left ETC tonite and thought about returning tomorrow nite, it dawned on me how lucky I was to find that place 11 or so years ago.  I have met lots of people there, made lots of friends and all while fulfilling my creative passion.  It doesn't get much better than that.  :)

Make it a great lucky week,
Kelli
:)

College Graduation Photos?

YES, it's true.  The baby of our family is graduating from U of A in May!  Oh my...where did all the time go?

It really seems like only yesterday that I was running her to cheer practice and taking her school clothes shopping.  It is a great feeling knowing that while those days are gone, there are other memorable ones to come.

May is going to be a busy month for the Collins family.  Preston and Ashley will graduate from the University of Colorado and Jenaye and Justin from the University of Arizona.  So glad my mom will be there with us to take it all in.  Dad and Val...wish you could be there...you were always such great supporters of our kids!

We'll make the moments count and take plenty of photos to share in the nursing home in later years!  :)

Happy Easter!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter.  It's been really quiet around here for us.  With the kids being grown and gone...no more egg dying or hunting and no more baskets to fill and present.  Heck, the Easter Bunny doesn't even stop here anymore!  Just as well, as I really don't need to be tempted!

I spent most of the day crafting with Tim Holtz.  Well, what I really mean is crafting with Tim Holtz product. I am having fun experimenting with his stains and distress inks to create some unique backgrounds on tags.  Right now I am just focusing on learning the techniques and being able to execute them without thinking.  Then I will concentrate on color selection and stamp positioning...one things at a time.  I really need to consider dedicating some time each day...even 30 minutes to master this.  Between the Chemistry 101 on-line class with Tim and the workshop with Jack & Cat {aka Mike Putman & Lesley} I have been introduced to so many techniques and ideas that it is hard to keep them straight!

One thing I noticed is that no matter how many colors I mix up and layer...I seem to end up with a similar color palette on the tags.  Maybe the trick is to combine less than 8 or 9 colors {giggle}.  But I am known for "junking it up"...huh Naye?  And as Earleen would say, "more is more!".  

Lucky for me, Tim's product is plentiful around here!  ETC sells oodles of his stuff.  I was there yesterday and noticed that they are almost sold out of his new distress markers that were just released.  When I got there, only 5 colors were in stock, a total of about 9 markers.  Seriously.  Guess I will have to wait for the reorder. 

Well...the work week ahead is quickly approaching, so I better get to preparing for it.

Tim Holtz'ed

In addition to the Tim Holtz Chemistry 101 on-line class I finished up last week, I also took a great class with the amaZing Mike Putman {and Lesley}.  WOW...talk about energized.  I am dreaming about Tim Techniques from inks to powders and stickles to distress markers.  I have learned SO much about Tim's products lately and I love being able to use paints, inks, and other messy stuff to create unique one-of-a-kind tags, cards, layouts and wood based projects.  I can hardly wait to sit down and try my hand at all the new techniques that were taught.  

Here are some tags I made after my first on-line lesson.

While I don't own every single distress ink pad and all of Tim's stamps {yet}...I do own a lot of them and DON'T have a favorite.  Honestly, if his name is on it...it is a product worth owning.  I definitely have more ink than stamps, so I will be adding stamps to my collection in the near future.  

One of the problems I have is that I get so involved in what I am doing that I don't want to quit.  And sometimes, this causes me to lose sleep by going to bed extra late and rising extra early for that dang job that provides the paycheck that supports all my creative endeavors.  Gosh if only I could have ended up with a career in art instead of garbage and recycling.  :/

This week I work Wednesday thru Saturday, so today was a laid back day...slept in, did a little work stuff to prepare for a foreman recruitment that we are in the middle of and did a little creative stuff with paper and scissors.  I teach paper crafting classes at one of the most amazing paper and fabric craft stores around...ETC in Mesa {AZ} and one of the things we do to promote our classes is decorate a 24" X 24" framed board that hangs in the classroom.  They are updated and changed out about every 4 months.  Updated boards are due today...so I thought it would be good to wrap mine up and get it on display tonight.  It's always a good idea to meet a deadline that the boss sets.  I am certain, once again there will be some amazing boards.  Probably my favorite boards have come from the uber talented Pam Black {aka "wee"}.  She is a great artist and has many fabulous ideas she pulls from inspiration from her home decor background.  ALL of the boards seem to have great design elements and are very polished.  Mine...usually simple and clean lined.  Here's a peek at the one I finished up today.

I used several cute printed papers from My Mind's Eye, Pink Paisley, American Crafts & Echo Park, some fun little weekly planner pages, cute labels, and an adorable new ruffly trim...all of which are available at ETC.  The funky numbers were cut by hand since I was too laZy to get out my Cricut.  I think it adds some whimsical charm and certainly adds to the originality.  I always am thrilled to have mine completed and look forward to seeing what all the other gals have created...Joey Otlo, Shelley Ellis, Jamie Andersen, Amy Totty, Heidi Lynn Schreiber, Angie Dunn, Mamie Coffee, Connie K, Pam Black...they all blow me away.  If you are local, stop in the large class room and take a peek at all the updated boards.  I am sure they will blow you away too!  :)

To top off a near perfect day...my hubby announced we are dining at Nando's tonite.  Yum. 

I really need to start thinking about the wedding...and get back on track.  Thursday I am starting a routine with a personal trainer.  Pretty sad I need someone to tell me what I already know - layoff the crap, exercise more, drink lots of water and get plenty of rest.  But I plan on using her to encourage me...motivate me and hold me accountable.  I will keep you posted on my success, but for tonite, we are headed to Nando's!  :)

Make it a fabulous week!
Kelli
:)