Lasting Memories Challenge #120!!!

Santa Claus Is Coming!
Hello!! Well, this is our last challenge of 2012, can you even believe that?? Thank you all so very much for joining us each and every week! Your encouragement and support has meant the world to us!! Looking forward to a great 2013 with LOADS of new challenges!! So, onto our last challenge of 2012!!

 Our challenge this week is ..

"Santa Claus Is Coming!"

and you're welcome to use this amazing sketch from Tanya!!

I didn't use the sketch because I had only one pic for this challenge and it is of my son with Santa this year. For the first time I have a picture of him WITHOUT me in Santa's lap too!! Last year the only way I could get JaKobe in Santa's lap was for me to sit on his lap, then JaKobe sat on mine!! Merry Christmas Santa!!! LOL!! I just bribed JaKobe a little and told him I wanted a picture so he kindly obliged and let me get the pic!

The Santa paper behind the picture is actually the front of a Christmas card we received this year! And from the same card I cut out the Santa you see on the left!! Love it!! Now go see some other DT inspiration and get scrapping those cards with your pictures!

Challenge ends 12/29/2012 at 6pm EST

Lasting Memories Challenge #118

ANYTHING BUT SNOW!!! Make a LO WITHOUT snow!!

We don't even have snow here yet in Cleveland Ohio! Not that I'm complaining one bit! LOL

I did this LO with 2 pages from this stack! That's it!! Everything on here is from this stack, no other embellies!

I used a blue sheet of paper from the stack and a page that had a bunch of different borders on it. The stars were one, the grass with the stripes were another, the flowers were one that I fussy cut out and popped up along with the mushrooms. 

The word 'fun' was from another page in the stack that I cut out and popped up. The stripes on my pictures were a border from the border page that I cut and adhered to the edge of my photos and then cut triangles for the corners. The bottom pic is popped up also.

Now go scrapbook something without snow and enter it in our challenge at Lasting Memories! You DO NOT want to miss it since we have a sponsor this week and you could win a $10.00 gift certificate!!

Snow Layout Challenge #117!!!!

Hello Everyone!!!
Happy Sunday and happy new challenge!! It's all about the snow, snow pics, kids playing in snow, your favorite snow pics, whatever about the snow that inspires you to make a layout of it we want to see it!!!
I did not make a layout with pics because, well, my pics from quite a few months are in the bottom of Lake Erie! Yep, you read that right! I'm one of those procrastinators that never take the time to upload pics from my phone.
Me, my boyfriend and my son sailed to Kelly's Island over the summer, had a fabulous trip, took lots of pics, and welp, we were on our way sailing back and here's me, trying to get one of those uber great shots of the morning sun behind the sail. I tell my boyfriend to move his big head as I started to lean to get the shot..........and..........there it went............bounced off the rim of the boat..........off the second ledge..............PLOP!!!! My HTC 4G Evo sunk with a quickness. The Lake consumed it with a fury like it was tasting a cell phone for the first time and it was a candy like no other!
I watched it for a second, slowly cry for help as it was sucked in by the waves of Lake Erie. Sheer terror on my face, I turned around to face Joe. He was now standing over me, the look of shock had drained the color from both of our faces. He looked at me and said "Honey, I will buy you a new phone cause I love you". (btw, first time he EVER said that 4 letter word!)
My eyes started to burn as I held back the fit of rage and sadness that was welling up. Every cute, funny, weird, hilarious occasion, single moment, planned celebration for the past 6 months was on that phone.................was now sinking hundreds of feet below the surface where we breath..........to thump (if it makes sound under water) (will it? if no one's around to hear it..lol) into the bottom causing a cloud of sand to settle around it, where it will rest for the days of it's life.....
SO! That's why I do not have any 'snow' pics!!!!! How was that for a suspenseful story of a scrap book LO!! hahaha!!

Can't wait to see what you've got!!  

Link up by Saturday 12/8/12 at 6pm EST to be a part or our TOP 3 or Featured throughout the week!! Be sure to come back tomorrow to see our MONDAY MOJO  and check out all of our DT projects up close and personal!!
xoxo Charity

A Homespun Christmas Blog Hop!!

Hello and welcome to the A Homespun Christmas Blog Hop. Thank you so much for hopping with us, we hope this hop provides lots of inspiration on gifts to make for the holiday season. We have 2 sponsors for this blog hop.
The first sponsor is Scraptastical Kreations.
She is offering a $20 Gift Certificate to her store:
http://www.scraptasticalkreations.com/To be eligible to win the Gift Certificate you must go to her Facebook fanpage https://www.facebook.com/pages/Scraptastical-Kreations/120204111343309?fref=ts and like the page (if you’re not a fan already) and you must also leave a comment on the fan page.
The second sponsor is Hot Berry Designs.
She is also offering a $20 Gift Certificate to her store:
http://www.hotberrydesigns.net/To be eligible to win the Gift Certificate you must go to her Facebook fanpage https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hot-Berry-Designs/288054737891436?fref=ts and like the page (if you’re not a fan already) and you must also leave a comment on the fan page.
You should have came from Cathie's Blog. If you started at my blog please go back to the beginning to Christine's Blog so you don’t miss any inspiring gift ideas.
My boyfriend's Mom loves the cards I make and I always give them to her after making one for a challenge or a Design Team. So for an early Christmas gift I decided to make a bunch of Christmas cards for her to give to her friends.
I punched out the reindeer with an EK Success punch in glitter cardstock and white cardstock. The background was embossed with the snowflake cuttlebug embossing folder. The 'Merry Christmas' is a sticker I purchased from Pat Catans. It was a whole sheet of them.
I wrapped a ribbon around the center paper, popped up the reindeer and added the googly eye and red rhinestone for his nose.
 I used all different paper from the DCWV Christmas short stack. It's hard to tell from the pictures but I adorned various snowflakes with Stickles so they glitter! Gotta have some Stickles somewhere!
Your next stop on the hop is Vanessa T!!
Here is the complete list of blogs just in case someone is having technical issues. Thank you for hopping along with us!
Christine -http://hotberrydesigns.blogspot.com/Kristy - http://scraptasticalkreations.blogspot.com 
Nancy - http://alwaysastorycreationsbynancy.blogspot.com/Cathie - http://cathiescafe-scraphappy.blogspot.com/*YOU ARE HERE* Charity - http://thebookinroom.blogspot.com/*NEXT*Vanessa T http://wwwpaperkraftsunlimiteddesings.blogspot.com/Suzanne - http://www.zannieberry.blogspot.comKatie - http://www.ktscreativeinsights.blogspot.comElecia - http://creationsby-kahaulani.blogspot.com/Leslie- http://krochtacreations.blogspot.com/

Naked Layouts Challenge #116

Hey everyone!

OMG!! With JaKobe getting so sick this past week and work and life itself time totally got away from me and before I realized it, it was time for another challenge at Lasting Memories!! Holy cow I have to get it together!! So as you can see my LO is late, the challenge started yesterday!

Your challenge is to make a NAKED layout!! That's right, you saw that right....naked!!

I made a layout that is not like my usual work. When they say challenge they are not kidding! This one had me stumped and I had a hard time pulling this together. Inside the envelope is a letter I wrote to my son. Hopefully one day he will be looking through his scrapbook and he will find this letter I wrote to him.

While I was writing this letter, my son was drawing a picture for me, so I put that into the envelope as well!!

Sorry for the glare! Was in a rush to get this posted.

So go check out the rest of the Design Team, get inspired and link up your Naked Layout by 12.1.12!

xoxo Charity

Lasting Memories Challenge #115!!!

Hey everyone!!

I am excited to announce I am officially back on the Lasting Memories Design Team!! WOO HOO!!

Our challenge this week is to make a layout with stamping on it. I used the sketch provided so feel free to use it as well!

I chose to do a layout of our sweet cat Seva. She is no longer with us and dearly missed. We rescued her from our cable guy who's daughter found her abandoned and very ill. She was with us for about a year before her entire system failed and I had to put her to rest. She loved my son more than anything. She would sit on his chest for days if he let her. You didn't even have to pet her, she just wanted to snuggle. This particular picture I took with her in my arms wrapped in a towel. She had been extremely sick for a couple days. On this day when I came home from work she was lifeless in the middle of the floor. I picked her up, wrapped her in a towel because she was freezing cold and immediately took her to the vet. She opened her eyes for me while I cried uncontrollably and thanked her for being there for my son.

Seva was a very important part of our lives and we miss her greatly.

I made a pocket to hold the other pictures I have of her with my son.

So now wipe your tears and go get your scrap on!! Make a layout with stamping somewhere on the page and follow the sketch if you would like. Don't forget to go to Lasting Memories and check out the other Design Team ladies to get some fabulous inspiration!!

Veteran's Day Blog Hop!!

Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary of the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday beginning in 1938. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation in 1954 to change the name to Veterans Day as a way to honor those who served in all American wars. The day honors military veterans with parades and speeches across the nation. A national ceremony takes place at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

America is the Land of the Free, because of the brave. Veteran’s Day celebrates and acknowledges the service of all United States Military Veterans. Today we honor the brave men and women who have served in the American Military. With great respect, and a heart full of pride, we say a great big THANK YOU to those who have served. Please hop with us as we pay homage to the people who help keep America the Land of the Free.

You should have started at Melissa's Blog. If you did not, please go back and start from the beginning. You don't want to miss any of these fabulous projects!

I bartend Saturday nights at the American Legion Post 170 and we watched the Honor Guard yesterday.Absolutely beautiful! So I made them a card to show our appreciation!

The card is kind of plain, but I didn't want to add too much fuss for it. I thought for this it would be better with it straight to the point!

Your next stop is Camille! Have fun hopping!!

1 . Melissa Lipcsey - http://papershenaniganz.blogspot.com/ 

2. Robin Carroll - http://cutonedesignsbyrobin.blogspot.com/

3. Marji Franklin- http://www.fstampaholic.blogspot.com/

4. Sharon Littrell-http://simplysweetbysharon.blogspot.com/

5. Robin Lane - http://create-a-latte.blogspot.com/

6. Susie Gerdes - http://scrappyrandomness.blogspot.com/

7. Jenn Jackson - http://scraphappensembellishit.blogspot.com/

8. Charity Thebookinroom - http://thebookinroom.blogspot.com *U R HERE*

9. Camille Short - http://shortonideasaz.blogspot.com/

10. Suzanne - http://www.zannieberry.blogspot.com

11. Jearise - http://lorbysworld.blogspot.com

Thankful Blog Hop!!

I am LOVING these blog hops I've been signing up for!! Everyone has been soooo nice and informative!......why didn't I sign up for these a looong time ago?!

If you stumbled upon this hop and didn't start from the beginning, then you want to go to Melanie's blog and start from there. You don't want to miss ANY of these uber fabulous projects, cause let me tell you, they are GREAT!!! This is a 2-day hop and you are on the 2nd day if you are hopping through!

This hop is all about being Thankful! I made this card to give to my boyfriend's mom whose bday was recently.

The gift is from K & Company, the bling and trim are from Recollections. I inked the edges of all my paper including my 'thanks' tag. The tag I just hand-cut after stamping 'thanks' on the paper.

I hope you like my card, but I must say it doesn't even begin to compare to some of the other intricate projects along the hop! So be sure NOT to skip anyone if you can and spread some love to all the designers! 

Melanie has some candy so make sure you visit her and follow her rules because this is one winning you don't want to miss!

In case you get lost, here is the line-up:

Day 1, Saturday, Nov. 10
1. Melanie Rozwood http://afternoonscrapper.blogspot.com/
2. Miranda Enclade http://www.nanasscrapspot.com/

3. Elecia Reyes Betts http://creationsby-kahaulani.blogspot.com/
4. Robin Scott http://scrapandchat.blogspot.com/
5. Diana Saldivar http://thescrappytree.blogspot.com/
6. Melissa Sanders Chesser http://iamapapermaniac.blogspot.com/
7. Haidee Shableau http://created2bunique.blogspot.com/
8. Suzanne Roseberry http://www.zannieberry.blogspot.com/
9. Tara Barnes Bruening http://craftindesertdivas.blogspot.com/
10. Kristy http://scraptasticalkreations.blogspot.com/
11. Nancy Carter Kirkup http://alwaysastorycreationsbynancy.blogspot.com/

Day 2, Sunday, Nov. 11

1. Melanie Rozwood http://afternoonscrapper.blogspot.com/
2. Claire Rambo http://threewaterscreations.blogspot.com/
3. Jenn Jackson http://scraphappensembellishit.blogspot.com/
4. Robin Caroll http://cutonedesignsbyrobin.blogspot.com/
5. Ashlely Walker http://marinewifesscrappinlife.blogspot.com/
6. Amanda Youkilis http://a-prata-design.blogspot.com/
7. Misses Crafty http://sweetbirdmemories.blogspot.com/
8. Diana Rivero http://daisylovecreations.blogspot.com/
9. Jearise Havenga http://lorbysworld.blogspot.com/
10. Sarah Walker Woodring www.craftingwithsarah.blogspot.com
11. Charity Semczyszyn http://thebookinroom.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping/hopping and have fun!!

xoxo Charity

WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!!

Hey everyone!!

Wow!! That was one fun hop filled with fabulous designers and uber great projects! Thanks everyone for making my very first EVER blog hop so much fun!

Ok ok, now onto what you are really here for! THE WINNER!!! (chosen by random.org)

drum roll please......

#18 Absolutely beautiful!!!!!!!! Gorgeous work! Suzanne Roseberry

CONGRATS SUZANNE ROSEBERRY!!

Please email thebookinroom@hotmail.com with your mailing address and I will get your winnings out to you asap!

Thank you again to everyone who now follows my blog and makes this all worth it!

xoxo Charity

Happy Owl-ween Blog Hop!!!

Hey everyone!!

Thanks for joining me in the Happy Owl-ween 2-day Hop! If you are just visiting and stumbled upon a hop, then start at our wonderful host Susanne's blog! (she has candy too he he he!)

 Hope you are ready to get inspired by some fabulous designers as I'm sure you already are with the previous 3! You are now on stop 4 with little 'ol me and I cannot wait to show you what I have in store.

I made an owl card for halloween using Sure Cuts Alot and my cricut. SCAL is my all time fave software and I use it 90% of the time when cutting with my cricut! I did not record a video for this card due to life as we know it taking over! The time as gotten away from me with some changes going on so I just have a couple of pics.

I used DCWV halloween short stack for the owl and background and orange glitter paper for the scallop. The ribbon is from Michaels $1 bin and the bling is Recollections (my second fave in the world!). I used his eyes as the oo in Boo! for a little play. This was super easy and quick....once I actually sat down and put it all together! I love googly eyes, especially colored ones. Sometimes they just add that missing touch, like inking the edges of your paper, which I did on the card. I popped Mr. Whoo on pop dots for some dimension.

NOW FOR WHAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!! BLOG CANDY!!!!!

Yep! I have blog candy to give away to one lucky winner in US/Canada who becomes a follower (also a requirement for the grand prize at Suzanne's blog). Just leave me a comment that you are a follower, or already one and the winner will be chosen by random.org and announced Nov. 1st 

Good luck everyone, keep hopping cause some other designers have blog candy too! Don't forget to leave comments and become followers to win Suzanne's grand prize! Happy hopping and here is your next stop!

1 Suzanne http://www.zannieberry.blogspot.com/   

2 Cathie http://cathiescafe-scraphappy.blogspot.com/   

3 Sheila http://2pawprints.blogspot.com  

4 Charity http://www.thebookinroom.blogspot.com/  

5 Christine http://hotberrydesigns.blogspot.com/   

6 Jenn http://scraphappensembellishit.blogspot.com/    

7 LLuvia aka misses crafty http://sweetbirdmemories.blogspot.com   

8 Elecia http://creationsby-kahaulani.blogspot.com/

9 Nancy http://alwaysastorycreationsbynancy.blogspot.com/

10 Vanessa http://wwwpaperkraftsunlimiteddesings.blogspot.com/

11 Tara http://www.craftindesertdivas.blogspot.com/

12. Shawnee http://quiverofangels.blogspot.com

13. Robin C - http://cutonedesignsbyrobin.blogspot.com

14 Beth ~ http://motherandaughterdesigns.blogspot.com 

15 Diana ~ http://daisylovecreations.blogspot.com

16 ClaireR http://threewaterscreations.blogspot.com/

17 Anita http://scrappyhappymommy.blogspot.com

18 Sarah http://craftingwithsarah.blogspot.com/

19. Melissa http://papershenaniganz.blogspot.com/

20. Jearise - http://lorbysworld.blogspot.com

Halloween Goody Bag & Challenge Entry!

Good Afternoon Everyone!!

I have been ill all week, along with my little 4yo man  :(
We have been diligently trying to work on his goody bags for daycare all week! OMG! How daunting is a little task when you feel like your face will blow off your head! Crazy! Anyways, here is a goody bag (yes, I said 'a'--hence we have 19 more!) I made also to enter into a challenge at Decorate To Celebrate. For this challenge you have to make a party supply (invitation, decoration etc.). So here is my entry:

I hope you enjoyed the video! Now get your scrappy juices flowing and enter some challenges!!

xoxo Charity

Challenge Entry

Hey Everyone!!!

I'm back and in full swing entering challenges, posting videos and trying to get back in the loop of the crafting world! So here is my first challenge entry in about a year I think!

I am entering this S-fold Halloween card in two challenges:
1. Cardz TV challenge, make an s-fold card and use a cricut cartridge, enter by Oct. 9th
2. My Creative Time challenge, add googly eyes to any project, enter by Oct. 9th

I LOVE both of these blogs! You must check them out, very inspiring!

I hope you like my take on the s-fold card! I also show you how to make one in the video. So get inspired and get crafting to enter some challenges and meet some wonderful people!!

Have a great weekend!

xoxo Charity

I'M BAAAAAACK!!

HELLO EVERYONE!!

How is everyone doing??! I am exhausted and working on getting my life back together! Since my son and I moved back to Ohio from Las Vegas, it has been a roller coaster ride. We moved around a bit and finally was able to afford our own apartment! It's the cutest little apartment with a great price! He's soooo excited that he still asks "are we at our new house?" every time we pull into the driveway! And we got our keys on April 1st!

So I cannot wait to catch up with everyone. I dearly miss being on the design teams and my design team sisters. I will have some projects coming up since we have a blank slate in our apt to work with! Fun fun!! Plus...I just purchased a new paper cutter, the Craftwell Ecraft cutter (more to come on that).

So I just wanted to say Hi to everyone, I miss my crafty family and cannot wait to get back into the loop!

xoxo
Charity!