...last night...

I made Mexican for dinner.

aside from lasagna, definitely a favorite in La Casa Griffin!

...at courtney's dance lesson last night, susan started teaching the girls their new hornpipe steps for the upcoming competition ( it has to be a 5 step, plus a mandatory 3rd step for all dancers )

so the girls were having fun with something new...and as always, courtney soaks up the 'new stuff' and has been hornpiping around here all night tonight...

:)

..i was super excited to come home last night to watch American Idol ( THANK GOD FOR PVR, ya know! )

i am soooooo loving James this season...i am just so, sooo happy for everything that is happening for him...it's so inspiring to watch him go for it every week and ENJOY every minute of it...

James is just so real.

maybe because he's also so QUIRKY ( like my courtney ) i feel a connection to him...I get him.

i would love to see him go all the way....

...and tonight...
( while watching the results show...GAH...so exciting, I could barely contain myself! )

anyway...tonight...
I. PLAYED.

awwwwwww yyeeeaaaaahhhhhh!!!

I have found my mojo the last few days, and feeling so inspired from reading my favorite blogs...
here's my take on one of Sasha's layouts over at
http://www.sassysasha.typepad.com/

( sesriously...CHECK. OUT. THE. CRAZY. TALENT. OVER. THERE!! )

while on her blog, if you click on the top right of her screen "LAYOUTS" it will take you to her flickr album of all her posted layouts...
my following layout is off her sketch called "A Hero @ 10"....love it, love it, LOVE it!!
( sorry I couldn't figure out how to add the link to make it easier...)

...i had fun using my butterfly punch on MACK TACK and CORK, and adding bling!!!

i also 'splashed' glimmer mist over the patterned paper as well to add some funk!

...and then the mojo just took over me!! HAHA!!

i have been asked recently to maybe check out teaching different flower embellishments to add to layouts, so i was in a learning / producing mood tonight and here's what i banged out...

( NOTE: i plan to share and show these faily easy techniques at my May 2 day crop...FREE!!! )

Okay...for starters, these totally cute felt / button lollipop embellies were posted all over in blog world months and months ago. i just haven't bothered really making them until now, so for the most part, these were my own creations, long since inspired!!

...and these cute loopy flowers i found on a tutorial on

Paper Trunk

http://www.papertrunk.com/

sooooo cute and fun to make!!

...and these chifon distressed lovelies i was told how to make by my inspiring and talented friend

Thelma Findlay!

i couldn't wait to try making them, and LOVE how they turned out ( and i did them in green, intending to add them to my Scotland scrapbook, but I can't wait to make them in in a TON of different colors and bling! )

check out thelma's beautiful creativity at

http://www.originalinspirations.blogspot.com/

:)

...and probably the hardest, fussiest, testiest ( is that a word? ) was these pleated paper flowers...

another tutorial i played with on the AMAZING Studio Calico blog...

(shown by Emily Pitts )

www.studiocalico.com

OOPSSS!!!!

hahaha...i accidentally just DELETED the finished paper flower...

Grrr....

i guess that's what happens when you blog at 10:36pm and your eyeballs would rather be watching Big Bang Theory....

but have no fear...i intend to scrap with it tomorrow, so you WILL see it soon enough!!

...be back soon...

:)