I've Been Tagged!

Oh, thanks a lot, Painterlady! "Scrap Celebrity" and Red Bee Design Team leader tagged my blog at 1:30 a.m. today (Go to sleep, girl!)and I have to post 7 random facts about me.
Here are the rules for this tag:
1. Link (I don't know how to do this because I am a remedial blogger, but Donna's blog is in my blog list on the side there - click on it!) to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs (And in Donna's words: OMG! 7 is a lot of people... Please love me still even if I'm tagging you!)
4. Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
OK, Here goes ...
Random Fact #1
I am SUPER competetive. I have spent much of my adult life trying to contain myself as to not to irritate/offend/anger any one and act maturely about competition. As a matter of fact, after two years of winning second place in the Ontario Scrapbook Expo, my layout was not even a finalist this year. I am still getting over the disappointment. Pathetic, huh?
Random Fact #2
While I have tried many alcoholic beverages (mostly in college), there is only one I LOVE (when done right, of course): Margaritas! Traditional, strawberry, raspberry, amaretto, golden ... I love them all! And what's even better is tequila never makes me hung over ... at least not so far!
Random Fact #3
I will try just about anything once. But if it's not for me, don't expect me to do it again. I tried Sushi - at a highly-recommended sushi restaurant - and did not like most of the food choices presented to me. I have been sky diving with the Army Golden Knights - ask me to see the video some time. I have done 4 G's in a jet plane over the desert. I nearly passed out - went blind and everything, but refused to conk out ... I kept talking to the pilot to stay awake. There is nothing quite like looking UP and seeing the desertscape above you! I have been married and divorced once before. Marriage (to the right guy!!!) is DEFINITELY for me, so I did it again. :) Divorce ... not so much ...
Random Fact #4
I LOVE to teach people how to scrapbook, especially when they are learning something new. They get this "lightbulb" moment, where their eyes sparkle with amazement/amusement/accomplishment and I love seeing it each and every time.
Random Fact #5
I love being Rodney's wife. He instictively knows how to keep me in balance ... he allows me to be type-A and independent without allowing me to go overboard.
Random Fact #6
Motherhood is not easy for me. I LOVE my boys ... they are funny, smart and talented in their own ways. But sometimes I just want to run away to my scrap room to escape the chaos and noise. How do stay-at-home Moms do it and keep their sanity intact?
Random Fact #7
I drink Wal-mart Clear American carbonated water every night - either Cherry or Strawberry/Kiwi flavored. Oh, and I am a huge fan of a LARGE, regular -flavord iced tea with a ton of Sweet & Low...

Ok, the lucky girls I am bugging about this are (and their blogs are all listed on the side, cuz, again, I suck at blogging):
Angela Daniels - Scrapbook Lifestyle
Judy Ogle - scrap buddy and fellow poker widow
Naomi Murphy - Fellow Crops2Remember organizer
Jennifer Priest - Fellow SoCal Scrap Instructor
Erin Bassett - 'Cuz she's a big Scrapbook Expo wiener, er, WINNER!
Cindy Fahrbach - 'Cuz I want to know what MammaJammaBlabba is all about!

OK, that's only 6, but I have got some work to do!

The Red Bee gave thanks to "Friends and Family..."

Wow! I did some nice damage to my pocketbook at The Red Bee last night. But a 40 percent off discount on your ENTIRE purchase - by invitation only - just might do that to a girl. I wasn't the only one with a full shopping cart! Not only did they have plenty of holiday stuff available, they also have the brand new Creative Cafe from Creative Imaginations up and running. I was sure to snap up some of that stuff. The line looks like it will help make holiday gifts in a snap with all of its coordinating papers and embellishments. I got some other holiday gifts for family members, but since I don;t want to ruin any surprises, I think I will refrain from listing them in detail!

This week's scrap-tivities ...

Kits2Remember and I had a busy week this week! It started off with the 2nd Anniversary sale at The Red Bee Oct. 20 and 21. I was there Saturday morning, doing an acrylic mini book make and take and showing those who stopped by for the sale how much fun the Bind-it-All is to use.

Sunday, I cropped at Table Scrapz in Placentia, with the girls from Scrapbook Lifestyle: Angela Daniels, Leah Fung and Pattye Duffner. It was great to hear how they produce their online shows, and I gave them a quick Bind-it-All lesson and shared some of the new acrylic with them and the staff at Table Scrapz. To see Angela's perspective, log on to: http://angeladaniels.squarespace.com/.

I was at Scrapbook Boulevard in Victorville Thursday evening, teaching my "Pure Girl" class, a project that is a 6 x 6 wire-bound album with acrylic cover. The ladies seems to really enjoy learning the ins and out of using the BiA and had some great questions! I had dinner with store owner Vesta Myers and we had a great chat about all sorts of scrappy stuff. I am looking forward to going back Nov. 13 to teach my 8 x 8 all-acrylic album class "My Guys."

Then there was the Scrapbook Expo in Ontario Friday and yesterday. I was so excited about Strictly Scrapbooking and The Red Bee having my acrylic and, in Strictly's case, project kits, in their booths. And the acrylic was such a hit Friday, I had to bring more Saturday! Whoo-hoo! I took three classes Friday: 10 x 20 canvas class with Quick Quotes (where I sat with fellow scrap instructor Jennifer Priest and near fellow CKUer Lori Shrout), Rusty Pickle's "I Have" 6 x 6 spiral album (where I chatted it up with fellow CKUer Erin Bassett - who was also the lucky winner of the Expo's Epson printer giveaway!!!!) and Rusty Pickle's "Bloom" double-page layout. Each of classes were fun and it got me to scrap in a bit of a different style than usual.

Saturday, I drug my DH Rodney with me, since I have applied to be an exhibitor and instructor at the California Expos next year, Just in case I am chosen, I needed Rodney to see what an Expo is like. We even took a class together ... SEI's Wild and Crazy double layout class. Rodney learned a lot and was able to keep up just fine in this fast-paced class. The only true testosterone moment was when he had to cut out a square from the middle of the project. He broke out his pocket knife and started slicing away. I was quick to get a photo of this manly maneuver before I stopped him and handed him an Xacto knife!

As for this week, I am busy with Halloween and getting ready for the Marine Corps ball Friday night, Saturday, my mom and I head to Rancho Mirage for the Desert Scrappers weekend retreat. I will be teaching two classes there Saturday afternoon and spending the night at the hotel, spending some quality time with my Mom, who loves the Palm Springs area.

Be sure to check the Kits2Remember.com calendar page to see if there is an event or class near coming up near you!

Look for these at the Ontario Expo!

The Red Bee and Strictly Scrapbooking will be carrying some Kits2Remember products in their booths at the Ontario Expo this weekend. I am so excited to have my stuff out for serious public consumption! Be sure to stop by the two booths to check out the acrylic and project kits. When you are in the Red Bee booth, you might see these projects, showing off some of the creative possibilites with acrylic!

The end of an era ...

Well, I won't be maintaining the Zutter Zisters web site any more. The company decided to maintain it internally. I am a bit bummed, as I enjoyed corresponding with fellow Bind-it-All lovers and posting projects to inspire others. But now I can channel my efforts in to my own web site - Kits2Remember.com. Not only do I have helpful hints and tips, project ideas and information, I also have a message board now, to help people with their mini album questions and to chat about WHATEVER! I'll continue to teach classes - I'm pretty booked up and I love seeing people get those "light bulb" moments as they create mini books and other projects in class. Plus, both Nan and I will do make and takes at events - once a Zutter Zister, always a Zutter Zister! I am not sure of the Zutter Zister calendar of events will be maintained, but I will continue to update my calendar on Kits2Remember.com, plus I will blog here. Looking forward to the new opportunities the future brings!

Lots of classes coming up!

I have a number of classes that I am teaching across SoCal in the next two months. There is the "My Guys" and "Pure Girl" classes at Scrapbook Boulevard in Victorville; the purse and 4 x 4 acrylic album kit at Cool Scrapbook Stuff in Poway; a 12 x 12 acylic page and 4 x 4 mini book at the Desert Scrappers retreat in Rancho Mirage; and the acrylic holiday home decor project at The Red Bee in Tustin and Cool Scrapbook Stuff. This last one allows you to create any word or name you want because everyone gets a full Pressed Petals 5-inch Glitzy chipboard alphabet in their class kit - a $10.99 value, alone! Check out more at www.zutterzisters.com/calendar.

I have got a lot of classes coming up for the remainder of the year ... and it just picks up more in January!

Crops2Remember plans are in full swing!

Ok, if you are anything like Crops2Remember organizers Nan, Naomi and I, boy have you been busy! Both Nan and I have new kindergartners, Naomi and I have been tackling fall sports schedules and Nan has a new junior high student and a Daisy Girl Scout! Not to mention, I have been launching my new business. Whew! We're sure you're right there with us with the busy schedules! So, it's time to take a break! Nov. 10 is our Crops2Remember Day Crop - our first one EVER!

We're cropping at The Red Bee in Tustin, and this crop promises to be FUN and PRODUCTIVE. We'll feed you lunch, dinner and all the snacks you can handle, so you don't have to break away from the page count for too long. Plus, we've got two make and takes - or take and makes if you would prefer not to be interrupted!

One of the make and takes is sponsored by Designs and Such, an online web site and kit club. If you were at the April C2R weekend crop, you met Cyndi and Ashli. They are planning to do a popular new style of mini book - a stadium word book. You may have seen them, where each page is longer than the next and they spell out an entire word? And C2R day croppers get it FREE!!! See more about Designs and Such at www.designsandsuch.com!

Not only that, but my new business, Kits2Remember has sturdy, clear acrylic that can be punched with the Bind-it-All and Crop-a-dile, and can be cut with Tim Holtz's Tonic Scissors. We'll be using 4 x 4 sheets of acrylic to create a cute, all-acrylic 4 x 4 holiday mini book - a perfect stocking stuffer for someone special! And it is FREE to C2R croppers, too!

Find out more details at www.Crops2Remember.com and on our blog at www.crops2remember.blogspot.com, as we will post new details there ... like when we email out discounts and special offers from our sponsors to our croppers before the event! You don't want to miss out on discounts OR free delivery to the crop, do you!? Of course not! So sign up to crop today (we'll fill up fast once we leave fliers at the Ontario Expo in next weekend) and be sure to check the C2R blog often!

The CE Lottery: You can't win if you don't play!

Just like any other lottery! Creative Escape in Arizona had such a debacle during registration for this year's event that they decided to have a lottery system. People can register this week for the random OPPORTUNITY to register themselves and friend for the event, which is in Sept. 2008. And, OF COURSE I have my name in. Now I am just waiting to see if my name is pulled up in the lottery so that I may have the OPPORTUNITY to spend $600+ to go. LOL!

CKU-Provo here I come!

Just when the CKU-Anaheim Yahoo! Message Board was becoming deathly silent, it lit up again with news of the three Creating Keepsake Universities' schedules for next year! Chicago in March, Houston in June and Provo in August. I have always wanted to go to "Scrapbook Mecca" - Utah - so Provo sounds great to me! I already have my room reserved - at the CKU rate, no less - and a new CKU Provo Yahoo! Message Board has been started! Looking forward to seeing my scrap pals there! Now, all I have to do is actually GET IN to CKU and decide whether I want to drive to Provo or fly ...

A Scrapbooker's Habitat ... a must see!

This is a very clever video, done Croc Hunter-style, of one scrapbooker's lair ...

http://embers.typepad.com/e/2007/10/you-asked-for-i.html

OK, (deep breath) here goes nothing ....

Daisy D's announced yesterday that they are looking for design team members ... amd I just HAVE to enter! You can;t win if you don;t play, right?! I need to email them links that show samples of my work. I figured it wouldn't hurt to have some projects with their papers, so I took some pictures of these. The winners won't be announced until the beginning of December, so I have a few weeks' worth of waiting ahead of me. But what fun it would be to be able to design projects for them with their latest and greatest products! Wish me luck!

Real Men Scrap!

You have got to see what happens when men try to make cards ... involves car tires, circular saws and caulk ...

http://www.livevideo.com/video/537FF9DA20B44560845DEE157D1F9DD6/man-made-card.aspx

Classes I am teaching ...

I am teaching a lot of new classes in the next few months. I am really excited about using My Minds Eye and Frances Meyers papers and the fabulous new BiA acrylic!!! I've had it about three weeks and have probably made close to two dozen albums and projects with it. (Check it out at www.kits2remember.com). To see my schedule of classes, log on to www.kits2remember.com/calendar.

SoCal Shop Hop ... Winner!

There are photos of me at the stores I went to - I only forgot one photo ... Stamp Your Heart Out. As for the So Cal Shop Hop winners list, I did not see my name at first glance, but I happened to check back and I won a $50 gift certifcate at Angel's Scrapbook Garden! Whoo-hoo! Can't wait to spend it! The scrapbook store reference book, Scrapbooking roads, sponsored the So Cal Shop Hop, where 29 stores opened their doors and gave goodies and discounts to those who stopped by. I did all 29! I head there were about 65 who did ... go us! While the entire Shop Hop was about 9 days lomg, I had the home show in Vegas to do, so I had to do it in 4 days ... it made for long driving days, but I broke it up into four paths and that made it easier. And it was so much fun to finally get out to stores I had heard of and never been to.

Freckle Friends' Scrap Pink Crop

I had a great time at the Freckle Friends' crop in Newport Beach for Scrap Pink. I got quite a few layouts done, this is one of them. I also did a make and take for the 26 croppers, a 4 x 4 Halloween-themed mini book that had a spider dangling from the wires. Nan had come up with the idea of using wire remnants for spider legs. I thought I'd scraplift that idea and take it a step further,using DMC floss to tie him on to the album. Add a Stickles web to the corner, and it's an easy and fun acrylic album for Halloween.

Freckle Friends Susan and Debbie were great hostesses. The food was great, the prizes fun and the goodies were all things I will use! To see more layouts that I and the rest of the croppers created, log on to www.frecklefriends.com. Several hundred dollars was raised for the Susan G. Koman foundation and it appeared that everyone had a great time! The best part was that I got to reconnect with some CKUers from the bus tour, including my CKU-Anaheim secret sister, Jennifer. Fun Stuff!