For nearly two weeks we'd waited to see Jeff's pinball machine. Ethan had been beyond excited to check it out. So, for two weeks, it was the only thing he'd talk about until we finally reached Jeff's house on Saturday. Here's the run down on our exchanges - I think you'll get a good chuckle out it. Be prepared, there's a curve ball head...
Visit arranged, one week to go...
"Mom, how many more days until we go to Jeff's house?"
"In a couple of weeks, Ethan."
"Mom, that's a long time. How about we go tomorrow?"
"Jeff won't be home tomorrow."
"Well, I want to see his pinball machine now. I don't want to waaaaait."
Fast forward to the big day, just hours prior...
"Mom, is it time to go? How many more hours?"
"Four more hours. That's it!"
"But that's a long time. Can't we go now?"
"Nope. Jeff is working."
Leaving the house, officially...
"How long is it going to take to get there?"
"Thirty-minutes, Ethan. Remember, first we're having dinner with our friends."
"I want to see the pinball machine before we eat."
"Sorry bud, it's food before games."
"Ohhhh man."
Destination behold...
"Mom, it's in the living room."
"Do you want to play it?"
"Not yet."
"Really? But you've been super excited about it..."
"First, I'm going to play with the Legos."
I should of known. Legos. What about that pinball machine he'd been talking about the last two weeks? Eventually, with Jeff's motivation, he gave it a whirl. He had a blast, too. And now that we're home, he's asking about it again. Something tells me there will be another visit to Jeff's soon. Laugh. Ethan is such a hoot! Maybe next time he'll skip the Legos, you think?
~

Over the years, I've been so very fortunate to meet an abundance of wonderful people from within the scrapbook community. Some of them have turned into blossoming friendships that I greatly cherish. They're my saving grace. And no matter the amount of time that passes, the friendships never change. Naturally, they just exist, as is. They're some of the best friendships you'll ever create, truly.
One such friend, is Elle. Yes, Elle from Elle's Studio. I've known her a couple of years. Love her. Love her tags. Love her kits. I recently had a chance to create with Elle's Studio April kit, "Here & Now". Over the weekend, I laid the kit contents on my desk and immediately got to work.
The kit's color palette gave me the idea to take out a recent photo of our furry cute creature, Casper. Like many of my photos, it had been waiting for the right moment. The soft colors fit him perfectly.

There's a hidden secret about Elle, and I'm about to expose it. Inside her well packaged boxes is the cutest shade of pink tissue paper you'll ever see. Every time I open an Elle's Studio box, almost instantly, the pinkness of the paper makes me smile. Not surprisingly, with the kit, the paper greeted me once again. I pulled it out, folded it multiple times and trimmed a small flower from the layers and layers of paper. I gathered them together with a tiny brad and then placed on top, a velvet yellow flower (Maya Road). I also curled up the edges, just slightly, to give it that messy look. Finally, I positioned it on the layout for an extra boost of pink!



Polaroid frames from Studio Calico's "Numerical" patterned paper serve as frames for the layout's titlework. I filled them in with antiqued Vanilla cardstock. I then taped them up with peach colored washi tape.
*The numbers are not included in the kit. They're from my personal collection and manufactured by Bella Blvd.

One of my classic, everyday tools that I keep near me while working is a gold gel pen. For the longest time, it's been my tool of choice. I love it's reflective qualities and how kindly it takes to strong, vibrant colors. You can't go wrong with gold!



Fill those tiny spaces with Dimensional adhesive! The dotted pattern can be created on top of anything, really. I was wanting to expand upon the already beautiful hexagons from My Mind's Eye.

It's difficult to see, but I also applied a thin layer of dimensional adhesive to Jenni Bowlin's hexagon stickers.

There's a couple of additional layouts posted at the Elle's Studio blog if you'd like further kit usage ideas! Also, a brand new Elle's Studio Inspiration Gallery is live - get your pin button ready 'cause there's lots to love!
I'll see you again on a brand new day! Oops, before I forget, Blue Birds take flight at the Crate Paper blog all this week! There's a Pretty Party giveaway up for grabs, too! Chirp. Chirp. >>
