HELLO

Hi. I'm Amanda...a happy wife and mom to three awesome guys. We've lived here in Fort Collins for more than 20 years and are proud to call it home. Before moving to CO, I worked at a city attorney's office, making use of my law and Master's degrees from Duke. After settling in Fort Collins, I homeschooled my three (now teenage and older) sons and was delighted to experience music classes, soccer, karate, swim team, archery, Science Olympiad, First Lego League, parkour, and climbing (not all at the same time!). From 2005-10, I was also a contributing editor for a national scrapbooking magazine, authoring a book and a couple of monthly columns. From 2009-10, I founded and ran the Good Grief Blog. I enjoy learning new things, spending time with my family, volunteering with The Matthews House, traveling and indoor rock climbing.

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Monday
Nov162009

New challenge up!

Yup, another challenge is up over at the Good Grief Blog...check it out! :)

Friday
Nov132009

Five on Friday.

Just five quick, unrelated things to share. :)

1. If you haven't already, be sure to check out Cathy Z's giveaway post today! That 25 Days of Templates class looks awesome (and I don't just say that because Tiffany rocks)! I hate to admit it, but digital scrapbooking has really started drawing me in lately (not that I've done much, but I'm becoming more and more aware of the ease of it all, and that appeals to me). 

2. Micah went to a birthday party last night and promptly declared it "the best thing I've ever done in my whole life!" Yup, that's 4 year old enthusiasm for you. :) To be fair, it really was a fun party...14 mostly four or five year old boys playing in a giant ball pit, running obstacle courses and playing running games and then getting pizza, cake and ice cream. Doesn't get much better. The boy didn't stop smiling all night and woke up today still talking about it. (Meanwhile, Noah and Asher got to go to a friend's house for a play date and had a blast, themselves. So fortunate to have good friends like that!)

3. I don't think I've yet documented the power of the purple lego cone. For some unknown reason, the boys have developed their own little hierarchy of the relative "power" of different lego pieces. Purple cones are the most powerful. Probably because they're the most rare...haven't been able to find them by the piece (like many of the other legos) but they're available in kits like this one (photo courtesy of the Lego website):

Yup, the boys covet those transparent purple cone pieces. Makes me laugh. ;) Oh, I just asked Noah and he says it has something to do with ultraviolet rays and the power of light. (He explained it better, obviously.) If, by any chance, you come across any stray purple cones that need a home, I find myself now on the lookout for some. ;)

4. I've been noticing a bunch of people documenting things they're thankful for daily this month. Just wanted to chime in that I don't do this daily but have, in fact, documented 30 things I'm thankful for right now (beyond the obvious):


Yes, I'm still doing my weekly Lists of Me album. Yes, I'm embarrassingly behind on sharing those here. I'll work on it...promise! In the meantime, be happy that I'm remembering to share this one (which is for the most recently completed week). :) (By the way, I also happen to have done this layout using the November Paper Posies kit and am hosting their challenge this week...check it out!)

5. I'm so excited about scrapping with some friends tomorrow at the fabulous Treasure Box scrapbooking store, just minutes from my home. It's gonna be awesome! Just me, an entire store full of supplies to oogle, and good friends to share it all with! Hoping to get a jump on some holiday projects...wish me luck!

Okay, that's five. ;) I'll stop for now. 

Thursday
Nov122009

Prism rocks!

By the way, my layout is up over at the Prism blog today. Check it out, because there's some awesome inspiration to be had over there, folks. (And don't forget that pre-Black Friday sale, details below...) Oh, and here's a peek if you're too impatient to wait for that other link to open, lol:

Thursday
Nov122009

Early Black Friday sale...

Because you're my friends, I'll share this awesome info with you... ;)

Are you looking for fantastic, inexpensive gifts to get your favorite scrapbooker this year?
Do you need to stock up on your favorite Card Stock?
Does your husband never know what to get you - and you have to buy your own gifts anyway?

Here is your chance!

You are invited to attend the Prism Black Friday Sales Event!
(before the actual shopping day)


DiscountCardstock.com is having a promotion to keep you all stocked up for the holidays on your FAV Prismatics Cardstock!  View all of your 27 pack options here.  

Starting Friday Nov 13th thru Sunday Nov 15 (pssst! That's THIS weekend!) you can buy the Prismatics Multipacks for only $5.00!!!  Typical pack price retails at $7.99!  In each pack you will get 12, 12x12 sheets total!  4 sheets of each of the 3 colors (light, medium, and dark shade).  $5.00 per pack = $0.42/sheet in 12x12!

This deal expires at 11:59pm MST on Sunday Nov 15.  Some quantities are limited - so please order quickly!

Please email Jamie (jamie@prismpapers.com) if you have any questions regarding the sale!

Wednesday
Nov112009

Winner!

Used the random number generator thingie and it says post number 8 is the lucky winner! So, post number 8 was:

Usually between 6:30 and 7:30, then off and on most of the day. Glad you're back.
November 9, 2009 | packrat

Congrats! Email me your mailing info and I'll get this out to you, okay? Thanks all!

Oh! And, also, my layout is up over on the Good Grief Blog today. Check it out please. :)