It's my turn...

up at the rocking girls blog,  nina's ct members have been alternating in the spotlight and now it's finally my turn!  my very first spotlight, i'm so thrilled!!

there's a mini bio about me, answers to some questions so you can get to know me better, some examples of my work, a really, really fun challenge, freebies and prizes too!

the challenge is called "7 random facts" and it is all about expressing ourselves - i've always find out that that it can be gratifying, beneficial & so much fun!

here's one of the pages i created for the challenge and just wait and see all the fabulous ones my rocking

teammates have done!

click on the image for credits

hurry over to the rocking girls blog for details, rules for the challenge and to grab some great freebies: 3 of my grungy masks (one layered) and some of nina's wonderful word art.

 take a look at the previews:

post all your layouts in nina's gallery at o'scraps before midnight january 31st and have fun! can't wait to see all the fabulous pages you talented digi-scrappers can do!!

A bit of news!

i was waiting for the weekend to post the details of the spotlight challenge i mentioned to you last time but something wonderful happened this week and i wanted to let you in it & make it official: i am now part of leiko beck designs scrap artists team!!! did you notice my new blinkie?

leiko asked me to be part of her amazing ct team and i said yes without any hesitation - i love the clean lines, her color palettes, the quirky doodles and modernity of her designs. i'm certainly going to have fun with her products which i think go perfectly with my artistic style. take a look at her latest kit:

her store 

i've made 2 pages already!  i'm telling you... i'm thrilled to be on her team and creating with her wonderful stuff!

for credits click on image

for credits click on image

thanks leiko for the awesome opportunity and for trusting your products to my creations! thanks to my friend helen for putting in a good word for me too! ;)

see you sunday for info on the spotlight challenge and some more freebies!
 t.g.i.f. !!

Making life a little simpler

i'm thankful for many things that happened in 2009 but i'm glad we are already on to something new - i have a good feeling about 2010 and i can't wait to fill all those little blocks of the new calendar with amazing stuff!

as far as resolutions for this year...... i haven't really made a list (and i love lists) but the goal will be to SIMPLIFY.  clutter drives me crazy and makes my life stressful so i think this is a goal which can have amazing effects in many areas of my life.
i want to tackle routines, finances, online stuff & home organization (room by room). in order to simplify i have to purge, organize and prioritize & of course doing it one area at a time! my closet would be the perfect place to start -taking out things i haven't worn in a while and keeping only the things i really need. one more idea here is simply to refuse to buy any more items with a "dry clean only" label unless it is a definite must! a smaller dry cleaning bill would be an extra plus.

i'll work on different things as time moves on and hopefully by the end of the year the only place with lots of stored items will be the folder with my finished scrapbook pages!

so how about you? made your new year resolutions yet? if you have, the very best of luck achieving all of your goals!

now on to the digi-scrapping news:

nina's new kit is simply so amazing - one you can use all year long. modern and very versatile. take a look:

her store

here's a page i made with a template from her kit:

click on image for credits

sue also has a new kit for the 52 inspirations 2010 and a beautiful qp. check her store here.

one page with sue's 52 inspirations 2010 week 2:

click on image for credits

next week i'll be on the spotlight at nina's rocking girls blog. there's going to be a really cool challenge, lots of freebies and prizes too. i'll post the link here in my next post so that you can play too!!

while i was working on the freebies for the spotlight, i also managed to make an additional set of 3 grungy masks and i thought it would make a great freebie! here they are and i hope you like them!

download here

see you soon!

Getting back to my daily routine...

hope you all had a wonderful holiday season with friends and family and my very best of wishes for the new year!!! may it be filled with health, love and creativity!!
i just got back from my winter taos vacation. i had, as always, an extraordinary time & hopefully we'll get to go again next december! taos is a different kind of ski town - very laid back, artistic, magical, spiritual & with skiing second to none.
the tewa indians believe that once you visit taos, the mountain will keep you going back - my husband and son have skied the slopes of vail, snowmass, deer valley & telluride among others but this mountain  challenging runs, powdery snow and almost non-existent lift lines certainly have kept them going back year after year! I think that the breathtaking views will be enough reason to want to go back time after time to tiny taos. the US national anthem talks about "purple mountains majesty" - they certainly must have been standing on top of taos mountain!!

some pics and layouts of the the trip:

sangre de cristo mountains

at the rio grande gorge bridge

hitting the slopes

the boys going up on the lift

approaching taos ski valley

                                

click for credits

click for credits

click for credits

i'm glad to be back but i guess i have to take little steps to implement my daily routine and not be overwhelm by all the many things i have to do! i just unpacked 4 suitcases full of dirty ski clothes & sorted it by dry cleaning, hand wash and machine wash but i guess i'll start tomorrow the actual washing....uuugh!

i have to take down the christmas tree, packed away the decorations but most important start my exercise and healthy eating routine - i think i had enough new mexican cuisine to last me until the end of the year!

in other words....it is time to get back to reality!

remembering the good times through photographs taken, journaling about special moments and lots of digi-scrapping will definitely help me ease onto my routine. truth is, life is a continuos cycle and we have to learn to enjoy it - so it is a relief to know it is january and that i am happy, content and looking forward to 2010! i am sure it will be an amazing year!

now for news about the digi-scrapping world - sue has the new 52 inspirations 2010 subscription - living life inspired - which looks to be simply amazing! check it out!

click to go to sue's store

last but not least.....(drum roll).......... i have another freebie for you! grungy mask #6 (layered) in .psd format. hope you like it!

click here to download

thanks for all your comments and e-mails. please leave me a link if you use my products - i'd love to see how you use them!

A holiday freebie!!

so you know, i finished my christmas shopping, mailed my packages, created my ct layouts and now i'm ready to pack my bags! i need to get away for a bit, relax and recharge batteries and what a better place to do it that at taos and santa fe.

i'm sorry but this is a drive by posting to leave you with a free template while i'm away. i'll be back the first week of january hopefully with some nice pictures to share here.

have a wonderful holiday season and enjoy!

template #4:

click on image to download freebie

here's a page i created with it using nina's snowy days kit:

click on image for credits

Christmas shopping....... and some freebies.

it is almost christmas and of course time for shopping. i'm getting in the familiar panic mode not of "gift buying" but of "what do i buy for....".
our family consists of of various age groups so i make a list and add gift ideas besides each name hoping to find an ideal gift for that person & today with the internet at hand i  manage to skip some of the driving around town, the mall crowds & long lines at the stores - having them ready and all wrapped-up by mid-december or sooner, when my husband travels to el salvador taking most of the gifts with him, it's what makes it stressful.
i only have 2 more gifts to buy but i'm clueless of what to get - which means more time in the computer tonight!

i've learned that men have an easier time buying gifts. i bet my husband would go to the mall, spend a couple of hours there (or less) and get a gift for everyone on the list without torturing himself to buy those "perfect' gifts. we women, on the other hand,  want our gifts to be meaningful & tend to browse around looking at a bunch of choices here and there - men go straight for the kill!  maybe i should let him do the shopping next year while i focus on the joy, cheer and festive part of the season!

i'm glad i'm almost done so i can focus on getting all of our winter clothes & ski gear together. once in taos i can relax and enjoy the rest of december with no rush & no set routine.

ok.... enough of my thoughts on christmas shopping and back to business.
i've manage to work on a couple of freebies that i want to post here just in case i don't have enough time next week. hope you like them.

Template #3 (.psd file)

download here

download here

i have not had time to do much digi-scrapping lately and have only managed a few pages.

this first layout i did for sue cummings - december challenge "a letter to santa" which made me journal for a change. the other two layouts are also using her products. you can check her store here

good luck with your christmas shopping, stay safe and i'll be back with more freebies and hopefully more layouts to show you by next week.

Thanksgiving day is gone and Christmas is almost here....again

hope you all had a fantastic thanksgiving day, and much to be thankful for, whether you celebrate this holiday or not.

i'm thankful i got to spend time with my sister and her family in orlando, that we had a safe trip with relatively little traffic, that the kids got to spend time together & that i didn't have to do the cooking! lol!!

of course the food is not the primary reason to celebrate thanksgiving but i thought i mention that the turkey was fabulous as always but the day- after- thanksgiving turkey sandwiches are always the best. white bread, a moist mix of white and dark meat, a bit of lettuce ( watercress will be better), slice of tomato and slathered with the special salvadoran style turkey sauce. ahhh!!

for recipe go here

some photos from the thanksgiving holiday:

arturo preparing the turkey

judith & me sharing some coffee 

right before dinner

at the cat in the hat store- islands of adventure

max, lourdes, javier & gustavo being silly.. again!

having fun & getting wet!

a thanksgiving layout - credits here

so, thanksgiving has come and gone and christmas is almost here! the christmas tree is up ( a fake one by the way) and for the very first time i think i decorated it all by myself since hubby was busy on the computer (no, not helping to shop for christmas presents but working... i guess) and my teenager had also more important things to do (homework, he said?!) the tree is not as fancy, as big and/or as fabulous as it used to be a few years ago when i was living in el salvador but i guess coordinated bows, ornaments and a real tree do not make it special - the important thing is that every little ornament was carefully chosen & placed with love - even if it was only me doing it!! i have to say i was very please with it when it was done & they were very happy and though it was pretty fabulous anyway!

i wish i could say that i'm done with my christmas shopping, that the presents are all wrapped up & that i have a plan of attack for the rest of the gift buying but i'm afraid i am still in need of some ideas..... i really wanted to go to the mall today but the prospect of walking around with no particular ideas of what to buy did not appeal to me at all. i should go tomorrow though  because the idea of encountering the frenzied consuming masses during the weekend is already filling me with dread just to think about it!

and wait!!! before i finish here i want to mention that sue has some awesome christmas products. a new holiday daily digital download kit and lots of freebies for all her newsletter subscribers. details at her blog or at her store at o'scraps.

click on the image to go to her blog for details

some of my latest layouts - click on images for full list of credits.

snowy day moment

days to remember

winter days

constantly reinvent yourself

hope everyone is having a great start of the holiday season... for me.....christmas vacation can not get here fast enough!