Melissa Runcie | Uniquely Yours Scrapbooks & More

Overlooked

I snapped this shot for the "Overlooked" challenge...neat concept...and I suppose it speaks to me because when I started scrapbooking I realized how many things flashed before my eyes going unnoticed...being overlooked...and scrapbooking honestly does challenge me to live life a little deeper. I have a tendency to want to rush things...only to realize later that sometimes the most important things required a little more of my time and attention...

I also think of this in a godly sense too...a lot of times when we go through trials we are consumed by the trial itself and the "aftermath" that we forget somewhere admist all the fog there is something beautiful God is trying to show us...and if it is "overlooked" we miss out on the blessing that God desires to give....

So I'm hoping to stick with this challenge...for fun...for reflection...just to make me stop and think! We shall see!

01: Coffee Mug

My coffee mug.
From my purple kitchen.
Always filled with ice-cream.
Rocky Road or Gold Medal Ribbon.
The perfect way to end the night.
Especially on a rainy day with a cozy blanket...

and listening to this song over and over and over again...until the ice cream is gone (after seconds...it's a small mug!)

Just Window Shopping...

We JUST purchased some baskets for the girls bedroom as I showed a couple posts ago, but I am LOVING The MacBeth Collection tins and totes and bins....I love all the office supplies, and the FILE FOLDERS...oh goodness - definitely JUST window shopping!

And since I am JUST wishin' and hopin' - here are the bins I would buy for the girls room (of course, pink!)...

Just look at all the PATTERN possibilities! This alone makes me what to go out and organize everything in bins and buckets!

Image from The MacBeth Collection website.

And speaking of organizing and the girls...one of the ways I organize my daughter's MANY art projects is through an online "art gallery". I wish I was the genius that came up with the idea...but it was Heather Ann Melzer who inspired me to do this. My daughter just loves it - that she can pick out her favorite drawings and keep them online! (And I don't feel guilty for not keeping every single one!!! I hope I can always cultivate a love for the arts in my children!

Back In July...

I started a monthly cooking club after my girlfriends and I went out on our own for some dinner (sans the kids and hubs!) and realized that we just don't do it often enough! In my world, life and work simply get in the way of spending quality time with friends. It grew into a time of fellowship and searching to be godly women through God's word in the midst of all the craziness that the world feeds us every day!

And that is when "Soul Food" began - purposed as a way to nourish both the body and the soul, this has allowed me to realize that I could actually ENJOY cooking, although I don't always have time for it.

I finally finished posting our recipes and some of the stories we have learned along the way -as we feed our bodies and our souls! Tonight we will attempt Ethiopian food (although I've lost my recipes from my friend! Yikes!) - but if you LOVE cooking, I think you might enjoy the Soul Food blog! I will also be adding in our weekly meal plans every now and then. Check it out and feel free to send me some of your favorite recipes to try! 

More Creative Organizing

So the little kidlets that run around this house are 3 and 5....I think that is a good age to begin to establish chores, right?  I don't really know...but what I DO know is I NEED HELP! The girls  helped me clean out their closet today...I have been avoiding it for a LONG time and I was talking to them about teamwork...and "assembly lines"...which didn't really sound fun until I promised a couple dollars! But the good news - was they did it themselves...together....see:

Well, as part of the "organizing flame" that has been ignited in me this month, I made this chore chart. (Click to view larger) I'm hoping that we can all stick to this...trying to make it all as simple as possible so it is easy.  (And YES - you read that right - EATING is part of this little system...they are the pickiest eaters and it's a constant struggle.) I'm not exactly sure at this point how this chart will coincide with a reward system...but at least I have a pretty chart to hang!

For now, I just print out a copy, put it in a frame without the glass and hung it at the kids level. Soon, I will laminate this and stick to magnet sheets so they can just put magnets when they finish a chore...at least that is what I think I'm going to do. I will test it out for a couple of weeks and see what works.

I am VERY interested if you happen to have some kind of chore system for your kiddos. What works for you??? This is somewhat of an experiment, so I'm still searching for ideas.

A Few Projects

It seems like forever since I shared any layouts that I've done, so I thought I'd post some of my projects.

Now - I am TOTALLY out of the Christmas mode...BUT I did PROMISE myself that I would create some holiday layouts. Pardon the poor photography, but here's a few pictures of my layouts. I think having great paper to work with makes the world of difference in jump starting my "creative process." I managed to do a record breaking 3 layouts in just a few days! There are so many times that I just sit and stare at the paper, desperately waiting for something magical to happen! But alas, it never does!

This is my attempt at not being so linear! So I added a circle!

I was completely inspired to used these leftover letters from my JOY banner from the fabulously talented Candice Carpenter. Also like that I was able to pull from my heaping pile of scraps to add to the new paper line...And of course, I just adore this picture...when you kinda just say, get together girls and this happens...a sweet and tender moment of my little one holding on to sister!

Had to get in a multi-photo layout!

This is one of the shadow boxes I did for the mother of the women in the picture. I hope she liked it! I know (or I should say, I think), I have a distinct style of scrapbooking... but I always try to envision it in the home of who will receive it and what their style or colors might be like...so this was very much an attempt to capture that with the subdued colors and "homey" feel. Not sure if that's what I accomplished - but nonetheless what I was going for.

Another project (of which I only had time to scan the inside cover) was this 6x6 mini album. I have 2 more to do that are essentially duplicates, so maybe I'll get to share the pages. But I tried to give myself a small amount of options and repeated a lot of elements throughout this 20 pager...which I was able to finish in a short amount of time. So when I finish the other 2, I will share the very simple formula - which is not new - but perhaps a motivating reminder if you are trying to get something done quickly!

Creative Organizing

The aftermath of all that is Christmas from four family parties has settled and the house is just about back to "better-than-usual".... unfortunately back to normal is more messy than I would like! But such is life! So I will enjoy the organization for about a day or so and then it will be back to normal for sure!

I hate to admit it but this was one, if not THE, most unorganized Christmas for me ever! I had presents in their bags for weeks in my car, the house was a disaster until AFTER Christmas, I stayed up until 3:30 a.m. way too many nights...definitely NOT the spirit of Christmas that I look forward to each year....BUT all that DISORGANIZATION was fuel and motivation for REORGANIZATION! (That along with this simply magical little gift.)

One of the most challenging areas in my home (aside from my scrapbook room!) is the girls room and their TOYS! It's not really that they have a wealth of toys as much as there is just so little space! So when we get NEW toys - we must first purge and make decisions about what to keep because we just can't keep it all. So after three bags ready for Goodwill and a trip to Home Depot (and one very willing husband!), we added more shelves and baskets in two alcoves in the girls room.

The baskets make my life so much easier. Everything - down to that tiny Barbie shoe that shows up behind the couch - has a home. It helps my kids put away the things too and my older one who is 5, loves that she can READ the labels. Add some pretty tags and voilà, all is happy again in our home!

The tags were made with Holly McCaig's Ooh La La Digital Kit and 2Peas Swank Labels.

Merry Christmas!

This is such a special time of year for my family and I...I just love Christmas....and this season has been so exciting....it is not even Christmas Day yet and we have already had 2 family parties and 2 wedding engagements! But what makes it most special is pausing to really reflect on what the true meaning of Christmas is....and that's hard to do amidst all the chaos!

The real Christmas Story began many, many years ago....long before there was ever a manger. I made this family slideshow to try and capture the essence of why God came into this world. My mom looked up all the scriptures and I put it together with some pictures and music...

So if you have about 10 minutes...watch it! It's really neat! And just a firm reminder that Jesus, is indeed (still!) the reason for the season! I hope you are blessed by it! Enjoy!

Song Credits:
Joy to the World (Mariah Carey)
All Because of You (Kate Hurley)
Christ is Come (Big Daddy Weave)
We Are the Reason (Avalon)

My Creative Escape...

...is my art journal.

I never really have intentions of what I want to create. I just sit down and try to express what's on my mind or what's heavy in my heart. Then, when I look back at the pages, it's a reflection of who I was at that particular time...I did a lot of entries about my struggle to keep balance in my life, but that is something that I  have been actively working on and it isn't all consuming like it used to be. So it's interesting to walk down that path and see where I've been.

And as usual, there isn't really a grand plan, just a few scraps here and there. These few entries were done at different times recently, so they are all completely unrelated.   

"Goals"

"Art"

"Me Raw"

Merry December!

Happy December 1st! The Christmas season has crept up on us again! Christmas music is playing, our stockings are up by the fireplace and my scrapbook room is CLEAN again, as I prepare for new projects. As posted on my website, December 10th will be the last day that I am taking any orders for 2007. All custom albums and shadow boxes are 15% off.

Here's a recent framed layout I did (pictured without the frame) for an engagement gift. Framed layouts and shadowboxes are so versatile and they are neat gifts to give because you can really personalize them!

Besides making gifts this month, here are a few things that are on our Christmas Calendar. If you are in Southern California, you may want to check them out!

Glory of Christmas Play at Crystal Cathedral

December Nights at Balboa Park, San Diego

Winter Wonderettes Holiday Musical in North Hollywood

Holiday Toy Express

We are also taking the kids to see the play "Too Many Tamales" at the Teatro Carmen Zapata in Los Angeles. It's a really cute play about family, the Christmas season...and tamales! A big tradition in our family.

So we have lots planned. As you can tell we LOVE Christmas. And through it all, I have to remind my children that the greatest gift of all in the whole entire world is the birth of Jesus Christ! I will have a little more on that later... the mile high pile of laundry is beckoning me now!!!

The Ones You Didn't See

The ones behind the camera...The ones who would tell us quiet on the set (many times!)...They always arrived before us (well before ME anyway...I was always the um, fashionably late one)...They encouraged us...Shed light on us...Directed us...Made us laugh like crazy...

They edited out our mistakes...and sometimes left them in just for fun...

They were the crew you didn't get to see...unless you saw the April Fool's episode, featuring Ian, Chris and Tony!

This is just a small way of saying THANK YOU to the Scrapbook LifeStyle crew for their amazing work...(although they will probably kill me for posting their pictures!)

And last but not least, THIS GIRL, the amazingly, talented super star - literally. Always with the red notebook, who kept us all on our toes. She was too busy working on the set for me to get a picture, but I went on her blog and stole this layout of her, Pattye and I in Las Vegas at Memory Trends...right after the big JACKPOT!