I am all done with my CHA work - I finished all my pages for CK, MAMBI and for Queen and Company today and they are all "in the mail". Such a great feeling! I am now starting to make some pages with the A Million Memories January kit. I am the guest designer this month. I love, love, love this kit that is full of October Afternoon and My Minds Eye - it is totally me with all blues and pinks. I will post the pages I make later this week.
I am looking forward to CHA - it is always so fun to see all my friends and the new products. There will be lots of CK peeps there and most of the Dream Team is going. Lizzy and Collin are coming with baby Lola - can't wait to steal, I mean meet that little beauty. I get to hang out with my buddy Lisa Vanderveen which will be fun. And as usual, I will probably be causing trouble, pulling practical jokes, and laughing non-stop for three days. Say hi if you are there! And of course I will post LOTS of pictures afterwards.
I never posted our Christmas Card pictures this year, so here they are. Thane has gotten very tall - he is about 6'4" now and still growing. His dad is 6'8" and my dad is 6'7", so he has the tall genes running through him! It was great to be able to finally get some pictures with all six of us (I mean seven of us) in them!
And last, I wanted to post a layout that was in my article in the January issue of Creating Keepsakes as well as on their blog this week (so sorry if you have already seen it!). This layout shows how you can hide personal journaling by putting it inside a flap. I took a piece of die cut 12x12 paper and cut it in half; then I joined the two halves back to back and tied them to the front of a layout with ribbon. This allowed me to type a letter that can remain personal, hidden on the inside of my layout.
The picture on this layout is super special to me. I only lived with my birth mother until I was four years old. I saw her one more time when I was in third grade. She died when I was 21 and I have never been able to tell her my feelings about her giving me life. For years it haunted me and I had so many unanswered questions about her and why she gave me and my sister up.
About two years ago, I decided to find some answers. I located my aunt and we had the most wonderful conversation. Then right before Thanksgiving, she flew down to stay with me for a few days. We had the best time getting to know her, learning about our blood ancestors, and finding out lots of details about our birth mom's life. It was a wonderful experience!
I had never seen pictures of my birth mom, so my Aunt gave me this one that is on the layout. I LOVE this picture because I think I look so much like her (the eyes). I wrote her a letter telling her all the things I have always wanted to be able to say to her. It was so therapeutic to get all of this out and I have a beautiful page to keep her memory alive.
Here is a picture of me with Aunt Karen. Hmmm...not sure WHERE I got my crazy personality! Let's just say we hit it off immediately! I'm so glad she is now a part of my life! She was out going, witty, funny, honest, warm, out spoken bordering on rude, and many more traits I luckily didn't get - haha!
Sorry for such a serious post today. I will work on re-establishing my sense of humor before I return! Have a great day! Suzy
I'll also be at CHA--hopefully I'll get to meet you there!
Posted by: Keshet Shenkar | January 12, 2011 at 06:46 AM
Suzy, you really do look like your mom!! Same big smile! What a beautiful photo to treasure. My mom passed away when I was nine, and all I have left are pictures too. I don't remember anything about her except for little things like birthdays or an outing to the beach. Your journaling brought tears, how lucky you are to have your aunt in your life now. Loved your Christmas photo, your son is a picture of you!
Posted by: Laurie | January 12, 2011 at 09:25 AM
Suzy, thank you so much for posting this layout of your birth mom. It's beautiful, as are all your layouts. My mom just passed away on Dec 19th, and I know using your layout as a guide to the many things I want to remember about her is just what I need. I don't feel quite ready to do it, but with your layout, at least I don't have to figure out the design.
Posted by: Sandra A | January 12, 2011 at 12:24 PM
How special is this?! This is a WONDERFUL layout, what a special memory to have and preserve for yourself and your family. I'll be at CHA too! I sure hope i see you! :)
Posted by: Diana | January 12, 2011 at 04:19 PM
Can't wait to see you soon, Q! And, as you know, I love this layout and the feature!
XO!
M
Posted by: Megan Hoeppner | January 15, 2011 at 08:20 PM
I love that you did a layout about your mom. How special is that and so creative to hide the journaling that way. That's great that you get to bond with your aunt and you both have a fun,humorous side. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Those are great family photos, the second one is my favorite, looks so cool with the color of it.
Posted by: dawn | January 17, 2011 at 02:57 AM