Our heavy hearts

Yesterday we had to say goodbye to our sweet and beloved Abby.  She is no longer suffering anymore. We miss her so much!  I never knew that a dog can make such an impact in your life.  This was my first dog that I was very close to and our first dog as a family.  My daughter and Abby had such a great relationship. Unconditional love.  I am so glad because of my hobby and my love for photography.. I have a lot of photos that well keep our memory alive.  This is why I scrapbook.  I want to remember.
Here's a little excerpt my husband wrote for our family and friends on FB:

Abby was a rescue dog. The story goes she was found in someone's backyard tied to a pole in a bathtub. Her original name was "Pele", after the Hawaiian goddess of fire. The SFSPCA rescued her, and when she was 3, Abby was adopted by a young couple. She was a city dog who loved being with her new mom and dad, whom they loved and cared for her like Abby was their only child. They were the ones who gave her the name Abby. Although I’m not sure who she was named after, I like to say that she was named after one of my favorite Beatles albums.

In April 2008, we were so blessed that Abby was a part of our lives. As a new addition to our family, we moved Abby out to the suburbs at age 7. From that point on, Abby would never leave our side. We will never forget all the walks/jogs around the neighborhood, the trips we would take to all the different the parks and beaches, the family parties we would bring her to… Abby loved being around family and made friends everywhere she went.

There will never be a better friend like you, Abby. You are a part of us, and we will never forget you. We will miss you.

  She's such an easy going dog.  She didn't even care that I had put these reindeer ears and took a picture of her.

They loved each other so very much.

All she wants is our LOVE.

Always near whenever I scrapped.

Farewell Abby.  We love you very much!!  You were THE BEST DOG EVER!

Love always,

mom, dad and Ella

What to do with your vacation photos.

Now that you have stacks of photos from vacation or staycations.  What do you do with them?  Well.. I created a Memory box out of a card board box I've had in my stash and painted it and covered with paper. I created this back in April or May this year but it was never posted.   I used lots of Heidi Swapp No Limits line and other Heidi Swapp goodies along with my favorite die cutting machine - the Silhouette.

For the front cover I used a photo mat you can buy at any craft store to mount over a memory file folder I had cut in half.

When you open up the box you'll see at the top the other half of the memory file I used for the cover as a

pocket to house tix stubs and other memorabilia.  

I also used my silhouette to die cut a cd holder to put a a CD that has all the photos from our trip.  

I placed a polaroid snapshot in front of the CD sleeve with a faux washi tape that I used from Heidi's packaging.  I love finding out creative ways to use packages so nothing goes to waste.   You'll notice a transparent Hibiscus.  Some of you may remember it's from my old stash of vintage Heidi Swapp products.

In the box you can place more memorabilia.  Here I gathered some sand from the  different beaches we went to, added a map, some menus from the many different local restaurants we went to and coffee sleeves.

Inside is a mini Memory file folder that fits inside the Memory box.  I used a postcard to adorn the front cover and the palm tree from my silhouette and misted it.

"relax" cut out in which I stamped over it.  I also fussy cut Heidi's 'explore' flag.

Below I used a page protector and the edges is cut out from the ends of one of the No Limits Memory file folder.  Again, I misted the silhouette cut out in blue.  I had brought my trusty and favorite Fujifilm Pivi printer along with me and placed the photos inside the page protectors.

This is the mini file folder opened up.  To the right is a mini book. That is attached to the right side of the file folder. 

The Hawaiian Islands cut out from my Silhouette.  

The first page is a page protector that opens up.

Love Heidi Swapp's Foto stacks which sold out super quick last CHA Winter show.

ALOHA!   Hope you enjoyed my Hawaii Memory file box and album.

Santa Monica and Venice

I forgot to share these.   In celebration of Super hero summer blockbusters here are some photos I edited using a fun iPhone app.  Below is my silly hubby at Magic Mountain and his Batman cape. 

We went to this beautiful outdoor mall called Americana.  We had a nice brunch and walked around.  The weather was perfect.  Bought the girls some sunglasses and so now they're stylin' with their cool sunglasses.

This is our lovely hotel in Santa Monica which is across from the Santa Monica beach.  Loved this hotel.  So beautiful.  The girls loved it and said that this was the coolest hotel ever!  Oh girls.  haha!

The view from our balcony which is the mall.  This place has a huge outdoor mall.

This is the store Amy Tan promotes.  Cute stationary boutique.

Left a note for my niece who wished she was with us.

She loved our sand message.  

My fave.. Affogato.  Gelato and espresso.  Yummm.

Before heading home we stopped over Urth Cafe.  It's a pretty popular spot for their lattes which were ok.  I think all the hype is that stars come by and hang out.

Until next time.  We always have a great time in SoCal.