Tis The Seas-on

In a break from the traditional holiday subjects that usually consume December, our team at ESS did a nautical reveal this past week.  We used Jen Reed's new Nautical Nights Collection (Papers and Elements).  There are a number of cute layouts up on the blog.  Here's the one I created:

Shuttle Boat Ride

When Michelle and Bob were down to visit with the girls in October, John and I met up with them and brought Bianca and Libby along.  Ages ranging 4 - 7, it was a great match-up and all the girls got along really well.  They had fun together, beginning with the shuttle boat ride we took from Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter to Downtown Disney's Marketplace.

A Warrior, A Scholar, A Husband, A Friend

Uncle Pots passed away suddenly on October 29.  It stunned us all.  Sure, he's had health problems, but even Aunt Yone felt he was doing well.  It was devestating - not just to lose Uncle Pots but to watch Aunt Yone deal with the loss.  It's the loss of her world and my heart breaks for her.  I was able to go up not just for the funeral but for a few days before to spend with Aunt Yone and Uncle Donald, who had rushed there to be with her when he heard the news.  Dad's reaction was almost as quick as Uncle D; he was on a train within 6 hours of getting the news and arrived in Lakeland in time to drive to South Carolina with us.  I'm truly blessed with the men in my life.

I created a memorial plaque for Aunt Yone, and created a poem to recognize the exceptional person that my uncle was:

Fight the battle, win the war
As you did the time before
Down the path, open the gate
Into his arms, you won’t be late

You are precious in his sight
You are safe within his might
Ne’er more to have to roam
Now you wait for us at home

And the time will come I hear
When again we will be near
Until then we face our fight
Walking always to the light

His obituary appeared online and in the Columbia paper:
Rest in Peace: Funeral service for First Sgt. Henry Melville Jackson Jr., U.S. Army (Ret.), 76, will be held 1 p.m. Tuesday, November 2, 2010, at Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel, with burial with full military honors in Ft. Jackson National Cemetery. Visitation will precede the service at the funeral home, beginning at noon.

Mr. Jackson died October 28, 2010. Born October 8, 1934, in Cincinnati, Ohio, he was a son of the late Henry M. Jackson Sr. and Gertrude Louise Cumpton Jackson. He retired as a First Sergeant from the U.S. Army, serving three tours in Vietnam. A former Green Beret, he was a life member of the Special Forces Association and the National Rifle Association. He had retired from the SWAT Team of the Columbia Police Department after 24 years service. Sgt. Jackson joined the Columbia Police Department in August 1973 as a patrolman. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1993 and once named “Outstanding Officer of the Year.” Sgt. Jackson played a vital role in the Special Operations group as primary instructor and technical officer for the police department’s SWAT Teams and Civil Disturbance Training. A true patriot, he loved his country and enjoyed wood and leather working. He was a loving husband of 43 years and a loving uncle who loved to spoil his great-nephews.

Surviving are his wife of 43 years, Yone O. Jackson; brother, Donald Jackson of Alabama; sister, Toni Hesson of Florida; sister, Ann Anderson of Alabama; sister, Laura Colquitt of Wisconsin; nephew, Butch Jackson (Susan), nephew Bill Jackson, great-niece Meredith and great-nephew Hunter; nieces Tania Ruiz (John), Nicole Hickey (Dana), and Lisa Roberts; great-nieces Tabatha and Trinity Roberts and great-nephews Trevor Roberts and Logan Hickey; niece Anna Schrock (Brian), great-nephew Christian and great-niece Trinity; nephew, Nobuo Yamashiro (Dawn); great-nieces and nephews, Amy, Ken, Chris and Kyle Yamashiro, all of Irmo.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Heart Association, 520 Gervais St., Suite 300, Columbia, SC 29201.

It's Family History Month

October is Family History Month.  We thought we’d kick off this month’s reveals over at E-Scape and Scrap with a reveal about preserving our family history on scrapbook pages.  This month is an excuse to dust off those old photographs and take another look at the stories behind them.  Take some time to capture the history behind your family; it’s something you won’t regret doing.

This project also motivated me to scan in some more of those old family photos.  That project has been on hold for a while and there are still plenty of pictures to scan.  I would love to dive back into my genealogy research, but that is limited for now until I can renew my membership with Ancestry.com.

Both of my layouts for this month's reveal used Scrapdragon Designs new Family Roots kit.

For my first layout in this reveal, I presented some of the surprising information we've learned about great-grandmother Catherine and Catherine’s siblings.  We're lucky enough to have pictures of most of the children together and the openings in this newspaper template included in Scrapdragon Designs’ new Family Roots kit allowed me to incorporate the pictures and journaling both into the design of the page.

On my second layout I chose to focus on a non-physical trait shared by many women in our family - the love of reading. 

The team did a fantastic job on their layouts as well - check them out here.

It's Like Looking Through a Window

I had the privilege of playing with the new Folded Papers series from Scrapdragon Designs, just released over at E-Scape and Scrap.  These papers are fun!  And even better, in every kit a set of solid papers in the same colors is included, giving you backgrounds for those windows if you choose not to completely fill them with your picture.  I used the Jewel Brights and Pastels lines.

Take a look at what I've done with these:

Ushering in a New Era
Moving Mom last December was a family affair.  Here I used the whole paper and embellished on top of it.

Rocks the Band
I haven't played in a while, but I love playing the drums in Rock Band!  For this layout I chose to use only the top half of the folded paper in order to leave room to show more of my photo.

Concentrate - Create
Trinity drawing; doesn't she look serious about her work?  I wanted to use multiple photos on this page so I backed the whole layout with one of the solid papers included in the folded paper pack and sized my photos to fit along the opening with the solid paper showing through to separate them.

Keeping the Faith

When Kay Eflin put out a request for faith layouts to go along with her new kit, Scrap Your Faith, it really struck a cord in me.  As much a role as my faith plays in my life, I don't think it gets equal time in my scrapbooking and that's sad.  I'm not even sure that the people I come in contact with on a daily basis always know where I stand on issues of God and church, and that bothers me too.  It's hard in these PC-days not to simply talk around your true beliefs; putting them in front of others, especially in the workplace, can cause quite a stir.  But if the apostles hadn't caused a stir back in their days, to the point of persecution, I might not be able to stand up and say "I love the Lord" today.  I might not even know the Lord had it not been for the bravery and faithfulness of early disciples.  So here it is - I do love the Lord, and I count on him for every piece of my life. I am not as faithful as I should be, but I recognize that faith and obedience is a daily struggle, and I fight that fight every day of my life.

Hope for Lisa

My Prayer for Us

God Bless!

Logan Goes Shopping

and other adventures.

Logan Goes Shopping
When Nicole and Dana needed to find the perfect accessories for the guest bathroom after moving into their new apartment, Logan accompanied them on their marathon shopping trip.  I suppose he didn't exactly have a choice, lol, but he seemed happy enough about it.

kit used - My Little Man by Sus Designs

Stop Eating Your Shoe
Imagine how thrilled we were to get pictures of Logan wearing shoes!  Not only does it mean he's close to walking (and since the pictures were taken he's already gotten adept at standing and even moving himself along the length of the couch), it also means we can now buy shoes!  :-))

Journaling:
It must be almost time for walking!
Woot Woot! Logan is finally allowed to wear shoes!
“Logan, stop eating your shoes!”
“Try it, Mom! They taste like baby food!”
“It’s ok, Mom, I’m pretty sure that’s what they’re for.”
But I have a feeling Dana and I still disagree on what kind. He says no Jordans - basketball shoes are for basketball. I say - What? No Way! For the Love of the Shoe! (Although I must say, the shoes he’s wearing are super-cute!)

kit used - Falling by The Busy Elf Designs
 
And the pictures keep coming - Nicole is such a good sister, I get a few picture texts every week with Logan's newest developments.
 
Coming soon, Logan Takes His First Steps, and of course, Let's Meet New Baby will premiere sometime after September 24, when we get the news... girl or boy?!  Until then, Scrap Your Heart Out

Here's Your Sign

I spent some more time working with the new Astrological Dreams Collab Kit that was released as a part of the E-Scape and Scrap 6th Birthday Celebration.  The kit includes full sets of the astrological signs in multiple media - picture cards, sign cards, stand-alone images and even a set of papers.  Whether you are into astrology or not, there's lots of fun to be had with this mega-kit.  Here are a few of the layouts I've finished this week.

Pisces – Virgo
This picture of John and I was taken during his birthday party earlier this year. I listed the positive qualities associated with our signs and our birthdates, found on the “How Stuff Works” website, next to our picture. The sign information in the body of the journaling came from “about.com”.

Journaling Excerpt:
Pisces and Virgo are directly opposite each other on the Zodiacal wheel, but both are mutable, able to 'go with the flow. Pisces likes to wax poetic, or dreamily let their imagination take the lead. Virgo has 2 feet firmly in this world, but constantly refines their body, routine, skills, etc. Virgo likes to be precise & can be detached. Pisces self-expression is looser and filtered thru sensitive emotions. When there is understanding, they stand to benefit from the other's balancing perspective. Whether our signs are compatible or not, John and I balance each other out. And whatever doesn‘t go out with the wash is conquered by true love.

Aquarius Ladies
We are busy celebrating birthdays in February – here are Lisa, Mom and Tabatha, all with birthdays in the first half of February.

If you missed the birthday give away you can still get the kit; it's on sale now in the ESS Boutique.
 
That's it for now - hope you have a Scrappy Day!