2012 New Year's Scrap Bash!

2012 is right around the corner, and so is the Second Annual New Year's Eve Scrap Bash, hosted by Laura Denison of Following the Paper Trail and Carol & Barrie of Scrapadabadoo! This year they've added a second show, hosted by yours truly.

New in 2012 is the First Annual New Year's Day Hangover Party, hosted by me and Carol & Barrie of Scrapadabadoo! This year there are additional prizes and sponsors from our friends in the crafting community. Check out the event blog linked below for all the manufacturers who have generously contributed to making this event a success.

The New Year's Eve party starts on Saturday, December 31st at 9:00 PM Pacific USA time on Laura's USTREAM Channel: Following the Paper Trail.

The Hangover party starts on Sunday, January 1st at Noon Pacific USA time on Kathryn's USTREAM Channel: Kathryn Scraps.

To RSVP for these events, and to be entered to win one of our many fabulous prizes, please go to the event blog: 2012 New Year's Scrap Bash. You must RSVP on the event blog BEFORE 11:59 PM Pacific USA time on Friday, December 23rd to be eligible to win one of these fabulous prizes. Read all the directions on the rsvp/entry form CAREFULLY as it afffects your eligibility for prizes.

Hope to see you there!

~Kathryn :D

I'm Ba-ack!

It's been several weeks of packing, unpacking, packing again, loading, unloading and loading again, but we are finally starting to get settled her in NOVA. The scrap area is not even close to being set up, but it is organized enough for us to have USTREAM tonight! Hooray for the return of Monday Night Scrapping!

Tonight, Monday, November 28th at 8:30 PM: Gratitude Album on my USTREAM channel

A big thanks to Laura Denison of Following the Paper Trail for all her assistance the last couple weeks!

~Kathryn :D

Home

We're finally here! We have reached that place called "home" which Robert Frost described in his poem Death of a Hired Man as "the place where, when you have to go there, / They have to take you in.” (lines 122-123). You can read the whole poem here, if you like: Death of a Hired Man.
 
Now we just have to unload this truck, make it through Thanksgiving & then things should settle down. Whew!

Last Day!

Hi, everyone! Last night we made it to Wilson, NC before calling it a day. We made up all the time we lost Saturday switching vehicles around and re-packing stuff. Because we did so well yesterday, today is an easy day. Just four hours left on the road & then we'll be there. Yay! So we'll be heading out soon for our last little bit of driving. First, though, we have to wait for Mr. Lifeguard to finish a phone interview. Wish us luck!

Yay! We're in Georgia!

Woo-hoo!!! We are FINALLY over the Florida border. That means that over 1/3 of our trip is already done. Nice!

We had to get off the highway right before the border for an Agricultural Inspection. I totally would have taken pictures for you guys of what an Agricultural Inspection looks like (I was hoping for dogs), but they didn't even ask us if we had any produce - they just waved us through. So boring! How did they know the back of our truck wasn't filled with illegal cabbages!? If border security is this lax, I think I might have a career as a cabbage mule.

Next stop: South Carolina!

Is It Sunday Already?

Well, folks, even the most organized of movers can still experience set-backs. We had two in the last two days. The first was the fact that it poured down rain Friday and slowed our trailer packing progress immensely. So much so that when we were only about 75% packed at 6:00 PM, we threw in the towel. Then we discovered on Saturday that we had 25% space and 30% stuff. After wrestling with it for a while, we realized there was no way it was all getting in there. So we put it ALL in the garage & went back to U-Haul and exchanged our trailer for a truck with an auto transporter, so we are now driving a 14ft U-Haul that is mostly empty & towing our car behind.

Last night we made it as far as Titusville, FL before calling it quits. Today I hope to spend the night in NC if I can & be in VA tomorrow around lunchtime.

And I am never moving again, so my mom better have plenty of towels.

~Kathryn :D

Hit It, Willie!

Today is the big day! We're hitting the road and heading back to DC! It's been a long week of de-cluttering, organizing, packing an even more packing, but we're finally ready!

So here's the schedule for today:

9:00 AM: Return cable boxes and modems to Comcast so we don't have to pay them a billion dollar fine for not returning their equipment.

10:00 AM: Pick up trailer from U-Haul

10:30 AM: Head to truck scale to get trailer and car weighed empty

11:00 AM: Start loading trailer and car full of stuff

2:00 PM: Return keys and whatnot to leasing office

2:30 PM: Hit the road!

5:30 PM: Stop in Cocoa Beach, FL for dinner and to visit with Mr. Lifeguard's dad

9:00 PM: Hit the road! Again!

11:00 PM: Arrive in Kingsland, GA to stop for the night

It's a long day, but the second day of travel will be easier since we don't have to load or unload anything. All we have to do is drive and not kill each other.

TGIF!

~Kathryn :D

Bye, Bye, Stuff!

Our super movers came back today at 7:55 AM (!) and commenced loading our boxes and furniture into their truck to go to the storage warehouse. Despite a minor SNAFU related to crating our plasma TV and a little whining from the movers about how we have the heaviest mattress on the planet (we know, we know - you're not the first movers to mention this to us) they were finished loading and on their way by 12:55. This is my 7th move since 2003 and it has been the smoothest by far. I have to thank Suddath Relocation Systems, Inc. (part of United Van Lines) for being on time, efficient, thorough, polite and very professional.

Next on the agenda is a trip to Costco for more boxes. Then we have tomorrow to finish packing the rest of the things we set aside to bring ourselves. We've used tape to mark off a 4.5'x8' rectangle on what used to be the dining room carpet. We'll use that as a guide for figuring out the most efficient way to pack the trailer. Once we have it done perfectly, we'll take pictures and sort the boxes into the order in which they need to be loaded. Thursday the cleaners come to give the apartment a thorough scrub down & we are off to the movies for some R&R. Friday morning we pick up the trailer and go to the truck scale to have it weighed empty. Then we load it, take it back to the truck scale & we're on our way! We should be staying in Kingsland, GA late Friday night after stopping along the way to have dinner with Mr. Lifeguard's dad. If all goes well, we should be in VA early Sunday afternoon!

I'll be sure to check in again soon and let you know how everything's going. Thank you all so much for your good wishes and support - it means a lot and we really appreciate it!

Thanks!

~Kathryn :D

Moving Day! (Sort Of)

Hi, everyone!

Imagine my surprise yesterday when the packers who were supposed to be at our apartment between 8:30 AM and 9:30 AM actually showed up five minutes early. Anyone familiar with the concept of Miami Time knows that an estimated arrival time of 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM is code for 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM. Consequently, I was still asleep when they pounded on the door at 8:25 AM. All was well, though, and I got into some clothes and some coffee in record speed.

The packers were able to get all our stuff boxed up in four hours instead of the estimated two days because of our mad organizational and de-cluttering skills, so they are coming back today at 8:30 AM with the truck to pick everything up. Even though that means an extra night of air mattresses and camp chairs for us, it actually gives us more time and space to sort, pack and organize the stuff for the trailer, so it's really a good thing.

We were able to keep on top of them pretty well while they were boxing everything up. So far the only thing we've found that they packed that we didn't want packed was a box of paper napkins. Bygones.

I can only hope this is my last day of getting up early for a while. I need to rest up for the big road trip!

~Kathryn :D
wake me up, before you go, go

Tonight's USTREAM Hosted by Laura Denison

Hi, everyone!

Well, we worked hard all weekend, and everything is ready for the packers. We got rid of everything in our house that wasn't beautiul, useful or of sentimental value. When our stuff is finally delivered from storage it will be only our very best and most loved things. It's a relief to know we won't be unpacking and finding places for any junk.

Today is a big day around here. The packers are coming between 8:30 AM and 9:30 AM to start boxing up all our stuff. Things should go really smoothly since we are so well prepared. Even though it is nice not to have to pack ourselves, watching packers is still a big job. They will literally pack EVERYTHING in your house that isn't nailed down because the military pays them by the pound, so you have to carefully organize and watch carefully.

We've found the best way to avoid problems with packers is to take all the things you DON'T want packed and put them all together in one room that has nothing you DO want packed. Usually the master bathroom is the best place for this, but this time we are using the office/scraproom because we won't have access to the bulk of our belonging for at least three months. So there is a lot more stuff we are taking ourselves on this move than on previous moves. Wish me luck!

Today is Monday, but I am not able to host our regular Monday Night show on my channel since most of my stuff is in boxes. Laura Denison from Following the Paper Trail has graciously offered to guest host for me, so there will still be entertainment tonight! She is having a pajama party tonight for all the football widows. I have even heard rumors that there may be prizes involved. Shh!

USTREAM Schedule for November:

This Week:
Tonight at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail; Poinsettia Album (I won't be able to broadcast Monday night because my scraproom will be packed, but I will still have my laptop and be in the audience)
Thursday, November 17th at 2:00 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: CANCELLED

Next Week:
Monday, November 21st at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 24th at 2:00 PM: CANCELLED ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: CANCELLED ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Last Week of November:
Monday, November 28th at 8:30 PM: Gratitude Album on my USTREAM channel

See you all tonight at Laura's Pajama Party! I'll be in need of some pajamas and also probably a martini after a long day of watching packers like a hawk.

~Kathryn :D
eye of the tiger

I {HEART} Moving!

Oh, who am I kidding? Moving is a huge pain. Let's get real.

So here was yesterday's schedule of activities:

1. Organize and de-clutter the dreaded third bedroom aka the room where we put stuff when we have no idea what else to do with it, but we're not quite ready to get rid of it. WE DID IT! It looks so nice in there now ~ we could even have guests over to stay without them tripping on anything.


2. Move everything from the scraproom/office that is going with the movers into the third bedroom. Eh. This is mostly done. The only things left to move are some posters from the walls, one of my glass desktops and a little rolling printer cart. Will take all of fifteen minutes.


3. Stage what's left in the scraproom/office so that it will be easier to pack ourselves. BAM! Did this AND have packed a few boxes already ~ we're ahead of the game in this area.


4. Put all items we are moving ourselves into the scraproom so we can close the doors and keep the movers and packers out of there. Eh. This is also not 100% done, but all the items we are taking ourselves have been labelled with a piece of blue painter's tape, so it will be easy to do.


5. De-clutter and organize the garage. DONE! This was really good. Found some stuff we wanted to take that we'd forgotten about AND took the opportunity to get rid of some stuff that had just randomly been hanging out down there.

Yesterday was a really productive day. We purged TWO CARLOADS of clutter from the house between the spare bedroom and the garage. All of it stuff we should have gotten rid of long ago. I feel so light and free today! YES!!! Actually, I am a merciless de-clutterer when I put my mind to it, so this has been almost enjoyable for me. It really clears your head to get rid of all the stuff that can weigh you own. It's amazing how exhausting it is just seeing this stuff around you all the time. At least for me.

The packers are coming tomorrow between 8:30 AM and 9:30 AM which is seriously way too early. Hopefully they can start in a room other than the master bedroom because I will not be a happy camper if I have to be up and showered and ready to be polite by 8:30 AM.

So this is what we have left to do today & then we can take things a little easier for a while:

1. Move everything from the scraproom/office that is going with the movers into the third bedroom. Since this is already 90% done, it shouldn't take very long at all.


2. Put all items we are moving ourselves into the scraproom so we can close the doors and keep the movers and packers out of there. This is also about 90% done, so we should finish in no time.


3. Give the living room and dining room one last once over to make sure it is perfectly tidy and organized for the packers. Since we've already de-cluttered these areas, this is more about just picking up a few things than anything else. Easy peasy.


4. Go through the kitchen and pull out any non-perishables and/or small appliances, coffee cups, etc., that we want to take with us. Also make sure every single dish, pot, pan, etc., is scrubbed totally clean for packing. This should also go pretty quickly since we don't have to deal with the Fridge of Doom yet & we switched over to paper plates and Solo cups yesterday.

So, we are in so much better shape than I expected to be. We also found another sheet of pegboard and extra hardware in the garage, so if my mom has the wall space, I will have even more pegboard than before & that will be sweet!

Have a great Sunday everyone & I'll hopefully be back tomorrow with another update!

~Kathryn :D
packing the day away

Happy Saturday + Moving Sucks!

Hi, everyone!

I hope you are all enjoying your Saturdays. Somebody in the universe should be able to relax and enjoy the weekend. Unlike those of us who have to spend the weekend on moving-related issues. Yesterday we tackled the Master bedroom, master bathroom and master closet for de-cluttering. That was a HUGE project. We got together two large contractor sized bags that needed to go to the Dumpster. Some of the treasures included:

• Receipts from every purchase we have made in the last year, cleverly hidden in every nook and cranny of the room so if we actually needed a receipt we could never find it


• So many ponytail holders that I now wonder why it is I can never find a ponytail holder when I need it


• At least a dozen bottles of shampoo that had only one wash's worth of soap left. They had obviously been replaced with other, better shampoos & then stored under the sink. Why I saved all of them is beyond me. Maybe for the Zombie Apocalypse?


• THREE round horsehair hairbrushes. I have no idea how they even got into my house because I NEVER EVER buy that kind of hairbrush. My hair is too thick to use them & they just get stuck in my hair & have to be cut out. Bizarre.


• Approximately eleven billion bobby pins. I found all of them with my bare feet.

We also got together a bunch of bags of clothes for Good Will. Some of it is stuff I should have donated the last time we moved, since I am pretty sure I haven't worn it in the last three years we've been living in Miami. And that's not because they are for cold weather ~ it's just because I don't like them anymore. An we de-cluttered all his old uniforms. He kept one full uniform for memories & the rest he gleefully tossed. They made a lot of bags themselves because of all the matching socks, boots, t-shirts, etc.

In addition to the master bedroom progress, we have de-cluttered and organized all our books, movies and video games. That was a lengthy process, but we made a ton of space and I am so much happier with what we have now and how easy it is to store. Well, except for the books. We went from having hundreds of overflow books that wouldn't fit on our 6"x12" book shelves to having less than one hundred books that wouldn't fit on our book shelves. There is probably more progress to be made there but it is very hard for me to part with books. This is a learned behavior from my parents, for sure. We also cleaned and de-cluttered the dining room which was barely visible under a giant pile of stuff we stored there while we decided what to do with it + all the shipping supplies for pumpkins and whatever else.

Here's the schedule for today:

1. Organize and de-clutter the dreaded third bedroom aka the room where we put stuff when we have no idea what else to do with it, but we're not quite ready to get rid of it


2. Move everything from the scraproom/office that is going with the movers into the third bedroom


3. Stage what's left in the scraproom/office so that it will be easier to pack ourselves


4. Put all items we are moving ourselves into the scraproom so we can close the doors and keep the movers and packers out of there


5. De-clutter and organize the garage (this is not actually a very big task because our car still fits in the garage and we keep very little down there anyway ~ mostly just holiday decorations and stuff like that)

After all this fun and excitement, I think it will be time for dinner and lots and lots of drinks. LOTS OF DRINKS!

~Kathryn :D
So much packing!

USTREAM Today + Public Service Announcement

Here's a friendly video reminder about the importance of breast self-exams. Even if you're already doing breast self exams, you should really take a look at this video:





You're welcome!

Now, on to USTREAM. As most of you already know, I am moving back to the Washington, DC area during November. That is going to disrupt the normal USTREAM schedule, as I will be taking two weeks off from the show. Laura Denison from Following the Paper Trail graciously offered to guest host some of the shows for me while I was gone, so you won't be missing too many shows at all! Thanks, Laura!

All times below are Eastern USA (Miami/New York).

Today:
Thursday, November 10th at 2:00 PM: Pumpkin Album; my USTREAM channel
Thursday, November 10th at 9:00 PM: Pumpkin Album; my USTREAM channel (this should conclude the pumpkin, if all goes well)

Next Week:
Monday, November 14th at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail (I won't be able to broadcast Monday night because my scraproom will be packed, but I will still have my laptop and be in the audience)
Thursday, November 17th at 2:00 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: CANCELLED

Thanksgiving Week:
Monday, November 21st at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 24th at 2:00 PM: CANCELLED ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: CANCELLED ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Last Week of November:
Monday, November 28th at 8:30 PM: Gratitude Album on my USTREAM channel

All in all, we're only going to be missing one regularly scheduled show: Thursday night on November 17th. All the other shows are either being covered OR they're on Thanksgiving, when we wouldn't have had shows anyways. Since we'll really be pushing hard this week to finish the pumpkin, it might be nice to have extra night off to get it finished before Thanksgiving.

See you all this afternoon! Monday's page was so adorable, I can't wait to get to work on it again!

~Kathryn :D
packing the night away

November USTREAM Schedule

Hi, everyone! As most of you already know, I am moving this week! We'll be packing up and heading back to the Washington, DC area during November, so I just wanted to write and let you know what the USTREAM schedule will be for the rest of the month. I will be taking two weeks off from the show, but Laura Denison from Following the Paper Trail graciously offered to guest host some of the shows for me while I was gone, so you won't be missing too many shows at all! Thanks, Laura! Remember that all times below are Eastern USA (Miami/New York).

This Week:
Monday, November 7th at 8:30 PM: Pumpkin Album on my USTREAM channel
Thursday, November 10th at 2:00 PM: Pumpkin Album my USTREAM channel
Thursday, November 10th at 9:00 PM: Pumpkin Album (this should conclude the pumpkin, if all goes well) my USTREAM channel

Next Week:
Monday, November 14th at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 17th at 2:00 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: NO SHOW

Thanksgiving Week:
Monday, November 21st at 8:30 PM: Guest Host Laura Denison on Following the Paper Trail
Thursday, November 24th at 2:00 PM: NO SHOW ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Thursday, November 17th at 9:00 PM: NO SHOW ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Last Week of November:
Monday, November 28th at 8:30 PM: Gratitude Album on my USTREAM channel

All in all, we're only going to be missing one regularly scheduled show: Thursday night on November 17th. All the other shows are either being covered OR they're on Thanksgiving, when we wouldn't have had shows anyways. Since we'll really be pushing hard this week to finish the pumpkin, it might be nice to have extra night off to get it finished before Thanksgiving. How wonderful would it be to have it filled with your favorite fall photos and displayed for your family to look through!

See you all tonight! I am SO EXCITED about the pumpkin page I have planned for tonight. I hope you all love it as much as I do!

~Kathryn :D
packing the night away

USTREAM Today: Thanksgiving Gratitude Project!

Hi, everyone!

I swear I am not dead or anything, even though I haven't updated my blog in forever. Lately I have been WAY busy getting ready to move. This move has had some additional complications that we didn't have to deal with in past moves. There are lots of details we're not used to dealing with. For example, the bulk of our stuff is going into long term storage and not into a new home. Since we won't be able to access this long term storage, we have to be REALLY careful with how we pack.

To ensure that we have enough room to move what we'll need, we purchased a tow package for our car {arrives today!}. Now we can pack and tow a rented trailer behind us as we travel up I-95 {yay?}. We just have to make sure that anything we'll need over the next three to six months gets packed in the trailer and not sent off to storage. That means we have been going through our place room by room, decluttering, organizing and making lots and LOTS of lists. I usually like making lists, but even I am getting a little tired of the list-making process at this point.

So that's just a little update on what's been going on with us. All that aside, today we have our regularly scheduled USTREAM show! We finished the recipe album last week, so this week we will be concentrating on the table placecard/gratitude album project. The way this project works is BEFORE Thanksgiving you make personalized placecards for everyone attending your Thanksgiving dinner. DURING the Thanksgiving meal, everyone shares something they are grateful for from the last year & writes it down on the inside of their placecard. AFTER Thanksgiving, you gather all the placecards together and bind them into a family gratitude album. It's a simple and easy project to complete & a wonderful way to involve your whole family in an album's creation process.

If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, you can still participate in this project. If you celebrate a winter holiday {like Christmas or Hanukkah}, consider doing this project for your big holiday family meal. Just choose colors that work with your holiday decor to embellish your placecards instead of the traditional fall/harvest colors of Thanksgiving that I'll be using this afternoon.

Today and every Thursday, I stream live from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and again from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on my USTREAM Channel: Live on the {Scrap}Beach.

During regualar football season, I am live every Monday from 8:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. during the Monday Night Football broadcast.

All times above are Eastern USA {Miami/New York}. To convert to your time zone, click here: Time Zone Converter.

~Kathryn :D
gobble, gobble