HAPPY NEW YEAR!

ROFL - wow, I've got some catching up to do, don't I?  So, let's see ... Happy New Year, happy Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, Australia Day ... and Valentine's Day (figured since I was posting, I'd get something in ahead of time LOL).  So much has happened since I last blogged, so let's do an abbreviated version:

• Enjoyed Christmas in Australia, visiting with family; got to see my brother race in a duathlon (cool!)
• Took Mum to New Zealand (Rotorua) for the holidays
• Spent New Year's day traveling for 20+ hours from NZ to the US
• Didn't celebrate Australia Day (I'm not a very good Aussie, am I?)
• Family joined Gold's Gym in an effort to be more healthy; I'm also working with personal trainer
• DS passed all but one mid-term exam (not too shabby)
• I got invited to join the creative team at Two Peas in a Bucket
• I'm really behind on my Facebook games - my neighbors on Farmville and Frontierville are probably wondering where I am!

So, that's the last 6-8 weeks, in a nutshell.  Well, I DID say it was the abbreviated version (LOL).   On top of all that, I've been crafting my little heart out, creating pages for the designers at Design House Digital, and also items for publication at Scrapbook News and Review magazine.  See one of those bullets up there, too ... I've joined the digital team at Two Peas in a Bucket.  Thankfully, I love lists and use them to keep organized.  Between scrapbooking, getting to the gym, trying to eat better ... oh, and hold down a full-time job ... LOL

Speaking of getting healthy, I've been doing a fun challenge run by Two Peas designer, Kerry Stewart - it's a lifestyle challenge.  Participants are journaling all kinds of things as they work towards a healthier lifestyle.  We've covered goals, exercise, and this week it's nutrition.  Here's the pages I've completed so far - everything's linked so you can see credits for the pages:

I've also completed a few others pages with Two Peas designers ... like these ones:

That last one is a set of digital Artist Trading Cards (ATCs) - really love doing these.  The kit I used, Teal Ambition by Vinnie Pearce, has some really great rub-ons.  In fact, there's more than 400 MB of digi goodies in this kit.  Not too shabby at all!

Over at Design House Digital, if you haven't stopped by this month, you're missing out on $1 deals EVERY DAY in February.

There are some awesome deals to be had - and all on sale for a few weeks yet.  Grab them while you can!  While you're there, stop by the challenge pages.  We just finished up a great Super Bowl week, with one participant winning a Bamboo tablet (cool, huh?).  *** hint hint *** Check out this month's Technique Challenge - a really cool person is running it this month.

Here's a sampling of some recent pages for the DHD designers - all linked, as well, for credits:

That last page was for the January Speed Scrap at DHD, which is a regular feature on the second Saturday of each month.  Oh yeah, a really cool person runs that game, too (LOL) *** wink ***  We've introduced something new beginning in 2011 - SWAT, or [Speed] Scrap With A Twist.  Last month's additional challenge was to use 10 different designers.  This month is ... well, hey, the game starts at 8:00 pm MST, so you'll have to stop by to find out! LOL

Wow, a longer post than I originally thought.  A new issue of Scrapbook News and Review magazine will be out shortly ... I'll post more on that in the next day or two.  Until then, I've still got some prep to finish up for tonight's speed scrap.