Last full day in Maine ...and it rains...

Today was the last full day in Maine. We woke this morning to a huge thunderstorm and a deluge of rain… look closely and you can see the waterfall of rain on the steps...

We had nothing planned for today, just a day of relaxation and possibly some lakeside fun. Well, there was no lakeside fun to be had, although we did walk down to the lake to see this beautiful site…

They were very close to our shore. It appeared that Mom and Dad were fishing and feeding the little ones. It’s so amazing to see nature like this.

So, due to the rain and the many thunderstorms, Patrick and the kids spent the rest of the day watching all of this…

Yup. all 3 Back to the Futures, 1 Indiana Jones, Free Willy and a Homeward Bound II.

While I worked on laundry and some of this… (Bryce played with the metal too, I'll post his artwork this weekend)

these will be for something I'll be announcing soon! Stay tuned, I'm very excited but can't 'officially' say anything yet!!!

Andthen, just before dark, I took this picture…

Still raining. Look at all the sand washed down. It was pouring today!

Tomorrow we travel home.

Howdy Pardner!

We went to 6 Gun City today. It's located in Jefferson, NH.

On a scale from 1-10 on a value rating. 10 being highest, this is probably only a 4. While the kids had fun, it really doesn't offer much in rides and attractions. Don't get me wrong, we had a good time but when they tell you there is a waterpark there, well... I don't think one waterslide and one kiddie waterslide with a kiddie wading pool should really count as a waterpark. I'm glad we did the 6 Gun City trek this year and not another. Both boys loved it and were entertained fully for 4 hours. But at $78 for all of us to get in, I really needed them to be entertained for 6, you know.! So we were home early and we got some pictures near the dam and waterfall on Lake Keewaydin. Bryce and I went out on the canoe, we had dinner and then I finally got to do some crafting. The day was still a good one! I've got a triple play for you today! A slideshow of the day, a video of a rollercoaster ride and my work with the Flower Soft I bought yesterday...

OK, so... The Flower Soft is extremely easy to use. I think that when Bernadette and I share our wares I'll put mine in different containers. They really need to be 'fluffed'. It works better than directly from the jar. The jars keep them packed. And while you get the most for your money, it's just not the way it should be used. So this is what the paper looked like BEFORE I added any Flower Soft (the lighting isn't great, I was on the porch and it was getting dark)...

Pretty flat. Well, here's a little slideshow on what it looks like as you work with it...

And then I created little 'sprigs'. You'd put these in little paper cones and add to a card. Aren't they cute?

I'm Inspired to Bee Scrappy

Today was the day I went off on my Scrapbooking adventure... (if the relatives are reading... you can venture to the bottom of the post to see some of today's other adventures in Maine)

My first stop was in South Paris. Yes, South Paris. Of course, South Paris is in Maine, not France. I did get slightly lost getting to my first stop but once there, I was pretty pleased with myself. Whew! Thank you Google Maps. And... Dear Santa... I would like a Garmin for Christmas!

I met my friend Bernadette at Bee Scrappy. They are located at 20 Market Square in South Paris. She's got a great little store. A lot of scrapbooking and basketweaving supplies. She has a little turnstile that she sells handmade blank cards. I bought a few, they were so cute and although I did bring my camera, I didn't take a single picture. Oh, well. So what did I get at Bee Scrappy? I got a Snow Writer and some Glamour Dust. She used them on some cards and it was a gorgeous combo! I also picked up some Outline Stickers by a company called Anita's Art Stamps. I hadn't heard of the company. I'll have to look into it some more later. I was pretty happy because they had some Christmas Stockings that I think will be perfect on a Rolodex card that I need to work on. (When are they due Kerriann??) I also picked up a few Cuttlebug embossing folders after seeing the video on the 10 Seconds Studio website. Man, I can't wait to try them out! I try not to go to Michael's or AC Moore too often, so to find these on my travels meant they were meant for me!

From Bee Scrappy, Bernadette (and kids) and I were off to Inspire Me in Auburn, ME. Inspire Me doesn't have a website, just a blog. Cheryl does these wonderful tutorials on her website and one of the latest ones for her to do is on this new product called Flower Soft. Well she was fully stocked on them, so between Bernadette and I... we bought all the colors. Cheryl's store is in the basement of her home. Located at 401 Turner Street, it doesn't appear that she carries regular office hours. You kinda have to read her blog or newsletter to see when she's open. I had contacted her a few weeks ago and had already made arraignments. She was very gracious, welcoming us and explaining that we really needed to look around as she had a ton of stuff in a small space. Well! She must have! I walked out of there $95 poorer. But, in fairness it wasn't all mine. My good friend, Donna ordered a bunch of things. (Donna - you or your peeps will NOT be disappointed!!!) Anyway, what else did I buy? I bought some cool photo boxes that I'm going to decorate in metal. Some Flower Soft card toppers, wires and glue. I got a cute Ice Cream die cut, some rhinestone buckles (which I learned a cool technique on how to use them while I was there!!) and some mini paper stumps! Yup, tiny ones. I'm gonna test them out, maybe tomorrow night.
Cheryl's store was wonderful. She had stamps, scrapbooking papers (a little), alterable items, soldering stuff from Simply Swank, the Flower Soft products and a ton of other stuff. She was definitely a girl after my own heart with a small section dedicated to 10 Seconds Studio. I'm telling you now, this stuff is HOT! If you haven't gotten into metal yet, NOW is the time! And remember, I'll be happy to travel to teach. Just shoot me an email. We'll talk! Bernadette faired just as well as I, although I 'beat' her at both stores. (spending-wise that is) After finishing up with Cheryl, Bernadette went in one direction and I went home. Well, the camp home. I thought I got lost. I didn't go the way the Google directions told me to go but I did end up on the same street that Bernadette's GPS told us to go getting there. So, I still made it home (ahh. to the camp) safe and sound. I was happy to be there. I left at about 9:30AM and didn't return home until about 3:15PM. I've meant to play with some of my new stuff today but after putting away groceries, making brownies, playing Mancala, canoeing, making dinner and folding laundry, I just haven't done it yet. It's getting kinda late for today. Maybe tomorrow... I'll post pictures of my projects when I do. I promise!


And on to the family post.

Bryce and I went on a canoe ride just before sunset. I saw the loons out on the lake and I wanted to get a slightly closer picture. I KNOW I have to respect their space so I was very careful to not get too close and to not make too much noise while out there. They make the cutest little noise, if you listen closely to the video, you can hear them....
Oh, before I upload the video. Nana... Bryce say Hi! and that he loves you!!
Enjoy the video and listen closely. I had stopped paddling a LONG time before they swam by. They were about 50 feet away, maybe?

Storyland...

First a disclaimer... Mom and Gram are reading my blog (Hi! Mom, Hi! Gram!) so I'm keeping them up to date on what we are doing. This blog post has nothing to do with scrapbooking or metal effects. If you are just here to read about that, check back tomorrow. I'm off to Be Scrappy and Be Inspired tomorrow. I'll be sure to have some updates then.

Today we went to Storyland. It was a beautiful day for it. We got there at about 10AM. It was slightly cloudy and a nice 75 degrees. You really can't get better weather than that for an amusement park! I've created a little slideshow for everyone to enjoy. The first one is still some pictures from Sunday. Not only did we relax but we went canoeing, fishing, Bryce poured over the map of Storyland (tracking the train, of course!), a fire with Smores, hanging out at the beach and more swimming. We also watched a movie, had popcorn and just had fun together. So I'll show you that one first and then the slide show of today's adventures in Storyland...

Beautiful... Peaceful... What more could I say...

Lots of relaxation today. I hope you enjoy the view...

We're here!

We're here at the camp in Maine. We've already settled and enjoyed the lake. Caleb and Bryce played in the water as soon as we got here...

After Patrick and I brought in all our belongings, we let the boys swim and Patrick brought them out in the canoe.

More of the same planned for tomorrow...