Things I love about you

This picture was taken when we visited Legoland in 2007, and when you were really into face-painting.  By now, you've already outgrown face-painting... and it got me thinking, how fast you've grown.  Well, not that fast, really.  But in my mind, I seem to only remember holding you UPRIGHT in our arms, walking around and around in the living room, sometimes for hours it seems, until the tiny little you stop crying and fall asleep.

And we never seem to have told you enough how much we love you.  We want to tell you for each 'issue' we have with you, there is a blessing that you bring to us.  And really, as many flaws as you or anyone has, you have as many wonderful good qualities.  But it really doesn't matter, because really, deep in our hearts, we love you just for who you are: a gift to us from God.  We need to tell you that.

And I probably could also tell you that I really love the new Konnichiwa line from Basic Grey!   And I'm taking up on the challenge to use some other shapes than rectangle and square... so I used quite a few circles, taken from the blossom motif in the background paper.   And while we're on the Asian theme here, I also break out some K&Co Mira embellishments.  And that reminds me, we have to scrap those Shanghai pictures soon... before we make 3 more trips there....

(I'm very honored to have this layout featured in Basic Grey's Eye Spy on 5/19/12).

Supplies:
Basic Grey Konnichiwa patterned paper and stickers
Basic Grey Gypsy patterned paper
K&Co Serendipity stickers
K&Co BW Mira stickers and rub-ons
Prima flowers
Queen & Co and Recollections crystal flourish stickers

Home (from ours to yours)

One of the NSD challenges today is to create a layout about home... or what makes it a home.  For a family like ours, it is of course all about ......  FOOD!   

Culturally, we always gather with family and friends around food.  It is more so for our family.  We all love food, the kiddies love dessert especially, and I happen to like baking... well I got into baking because of them.   It has become my love language, and hopefully their best family memories.  

We always bake cookies or cupcakes together for major holidays.. perhaps it's just an excuse.  But I love cooking for them, and I love it when they love my food!   My son once told his teacher, of all things, that I'm a baker.  I can be a gazillion things (you know how moms are), but to my dear child, I'm a baker - Ha!   I had no idea I would make this kind of mark in his life!  And my daughter requests that I make this special sponge cake (of course complete with whipped cream frosting and a ton of fruit) for her birthday every year.   It just warms my heart.  Of course, I cooked everything the way my love would want, and for the first year of our married life, I had his mom's number on speed dial (there are no recipes in her generation).  This.. is how I think of my home, food, made with love, and eaten together as a family as we share our daily stories from work or from school.  And I hope this is how my family remembers it, full of delightful aromas.. maybe from sautéed onion and garlic, or the sweet smell of vanilla cupcakes or fresh baked Chinese pastries...  and eaten around the dinner table, full of laughter and silly stories.  

For this important layout, I naturally chose... Basic Grey's Nook and Pantry line!  I based it off of a Becky Fleck sketch from her book.  The rest is just ... natural!  

Thanks for looking!  Bon Appétit!

Supplies:

Basic Grey Nook and Pantry patterned paper, rub-ons, stickers and chipboards

Basic Grey Lilykate patterned paper