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Another summer day
Has come and gone away
In Paris and Rome
But I wanna go home
Mmmmmmmm

May be surrounded by
A million people I
Still feel all alone
I just wanna go home
Oh, I miss you, you know

 

And I’ve been keeping all the letters that I wrote to you
Each one a line or two
“I’m fine baby, how are you?”
Well I would send them but I know that it’s just not enough
My words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that

Another aeroplane
Another sunny place
I’m lucky, I know
But I wanna go home
Mmmm, I’ve got to go home

Let me go home
I’m just too far from where you are
I wanna come home

And I feel just like I’m living someone else’s life
It’s like I just stepped outside
When everything was going right
And I know just why you could not
Come along with me
'Cause this was not your dream
But you always believed in me

Another winter day has come
And gone away
In even Paris and Rome
And I wanna go home
Let me go home

 

And I’m surrounded by
A million people I
Still feel all alone
Oh, let me go home
Oh, I miss you, you know

Let me go home
I’ve had my run
Baby, I’m done
I gotta go home
Let me go home
It will all be all right
I’ll be home TONIGHT
I’m coming back home

Susan

these two

Look who's getting married today! Yep, that's our Fred, former colleague and good pal, gettin' hitched to his cutie pie bride, Sadie. They're so adorable and cuddly together, just like a pair of lovebirds should be.

"Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord."
--Proverbs 18:22

Wishing them many years of happiness together!

Beth

P.S. I bet we'll be taking lots of pictures today...sure wish we had a fancy Tamron lens like the one being given away on the Creating Keepsakes blog! Go check it out! You have until Aug. 27 to enter!

a girl with a will to grill

I'd like to think of myself as a decent cook.

When I was growing up, I would beg my mom to let me plan and fix the meals for a week. She'd always hesitate, because I was drawn to fancy things with exotic ingredients. But on those occasions when she'd allow it, I cooked up a storm. I developed an especially strong prowess in baking--biscuits, pies and cakes from scratch, cookies and desserts of many varieties. Yep, licking the beaters and scraping the bowl are some of my favorite memories of that kitchen back in Bay City.

Years later, having concocted dishes in my own kitchens in several states, my repertoire of best recipes falls most squarely in baking, salads, and casseroles. Somehow the "plainer" dishes with fewer ingredients intimidate me. Maybe it's because when it's all about getting it done perfectly and seasoning it just right, I don't have confidence or experience enough. Meats especially have always been a bit of a mystery to me, and since I'm a total carnivore, that's a problem!

For almost a year I've been letting Jenny Craig design my meals, but now I need to begin transitioning to preparing them myself. I've always loved the taste of food off the grill, and know how healthy it can be. But though I'd tried grilling in the past and decided it was a man's domain, I knew it was time to give it a go again.

With the help and advice of a grillmaster whose abilities I envy, I came up with a menu of salmon with honey mustard sauce, sesame ginger yellow squash, and fresh asparagus spears. And it was pretty good. I didn't have the timing quite right, because I took the veggies off before the salmon and then had to nuke them when I plated it all, which rendered them a little overdone, and I think I left the salmon on longer than I should have, because I was having trouble recognizing what color meant it was ready...

But I did it. And I'm going to keep trying until I master the timing and the knowing and everything. It was really very enjoyable there on my pretty patio, and I'm going to get it perfect (or at least better) next time!

Beth

things i miss about the midwest

Yes, I love this job. That's a fact. It really rocks. But Utah?  I'm not so sure. I have this dream that someday soon the higher ups will say, "Hey everybody! We've decided to move our offices to the Midwest!" OK, that's SO not gonna happen, but I can't help but wonder what it would be like if they decided to do it. The new owners DO have corporate offices in Cincinnati, you know. Now wouldn't that be nice? Of course, all of my colleagues would have to move with the magazines away from their families and the West, but they'd learn to adapt, right?

So I figured since I'm out West for now, I can enumerate a few things that I miss.

1. Fireflies - While rare in my home state of Michigan, they could definitely make an appearance when we lived in Indiana. There's something so fun and mysterious about them.

2. Cornfields - The smell of them. The rustle. The cool place to hide on a summer's day. LOVED living in the country amidst tall, tall corn.

 

3. Thunderstorms - I'll admit that mountains are pretty, but there is NOTHING in this world like a Midwestern thunderstorm. I have awesome memories of sitting on the front porch with Dad watching a storm roll in. We were NOT basement sissies!

4. Meijer - Oh, you had to know it was coming!

5. Gorgeous, historic Gothic places of worship - Like my home church, St. John Lutheran - Amelith in Bay City, MI. We like our church family here in Utah, but the stained glass windows and the high ceilings and the powerful organs of Midwestern Lutheran churches are sorely missed.

So pooh on anyone who dares call the Midwest the fly-over states. I miss that place. Lots. So much so that I recently created this layout:

Susan

i like orange shoes, and i cannot lie

Orange is my favorite color, and I've noticed that I like to wear orange shoes. Say hello to three of my faves!

The pointy-toed pair on the left were a 40th birthday gift from my fab friend Gabriella who swears I am so easy to buy for.

In the middle are my new-ish Nike Shox. They feel like pillows on my feet as I hit the gym. There were other colors to choose from, but I gravitated toward the orange.

On the right are my Chinese Laundry patent leather platform sandals that I bought a few years back at The Attic, a hip and happening vintage store in Las Vegas.

Do you find yourself gravitating toward shoes in a certain color?

Susan

the best part of my job

There are so many things to love about my job: the creativity, the colleagues, the free product (I'm not gonna lie!). But more than anything, I love all of the super cool people that I come into contact with. We've met through message boards, design teams, and magazine contacts, and when I travel for work, it's such fun to give them a hug in person!

  

Pictured above are some lovely ladies I got to hug while at CHA in Orlando at the end of July. Clockwise from the top left: Rebecca Cross- Rebecca is the owner and mastermind behind Pink Paislee. I first met her on the Create My Keepsake message board. Jessica Witty - Jessica is one of the new Go-to Gals for Paper Crafts magazine. She has a brand new blog that is, well, rather witty! Maren Benedict - Maren (pictured with my Moxie Fab colleague, Cath) is also a new Go-to Gal, and is relatively new to the card making scene. Her cards are so cute, and often have a big old luscious bow that makes me say WOW! Maren got her first ever text message from me when we were in FL! Angela Magnuson - Angela is the brains behind the totally hip stamp company, Unity. She is oh so positive and super savvy! Anabelle O'Malley - Anabelle is another CMK girl whom I've "known" for awhile, but this was our first time to meet. She's pretty much adorable. Kimberly Crawford - Kimberly designs cute cards for Paper Crafts and is also one of my most dedicated commenters on Facebook! Renee Foss - I've known Renee the longest, and despite her rabid love for Pittsburgh sports, I still love her! We designed together at Luv2Scrapbook and Deja Views, and she was a HOFer the same year as Beth. Noel Culbertson - Noel is so fun! I met her at CHA Summer '08, and was able to work with her in an upcoming issue of Paper Crafts. Angie Hagist - Angie is a Paper Crafts contributor, and she works with October Afternoon (who had some of my favey-faves at the show!). Ashley Harris - Ashely and I "met" at CMK (I'm seeing a trend here!), and then we really met at the Winter CHA show. She is sweeter than sweet, and she interviewed Cath and me about the future of Paper Crafts for The Scrap Review. There many more hugs and hellos that I cherished as well, but alas, no pictures.

While at CKC, I met lots of wonderful ladies, but wouldn't you know, my camera battery gave out on me, so luckily Kalyn Kepner was able to share this picture with me. Kalyn was an intern with Paper Crafts last summer, and she and I had a delightful dinner one night while I was in PA. She and her sweet mom were even model students in two of my classes.

Yes, the job is phenomenal, but the friendships that I've made along the way have been the icing on top! A shout out to my Luv2Scrapbook friends, my Scrap Etc. girls, the ladies of Create My Keepsake, and the crazy chicas at SIStv! Love you creative peeps!

Susan

 

long may they love

This Sunday, August 9, is my parents' wedding anniversary. Married 51 years. Last year we had the big shindig, and even though they won't be feted in quite the same extravagant way this time, I still want to thank them for continuing to show the world how it's done. The best parents a kid could have (even a grown-up kid), they are the model of a Christian marriage. Love you guys forever!

"There is no more lovely, friendly and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage." --Martin Luther 

 

Beth

a sneak peek into my traveling week

Last Monday morning I left home at about 7 am, and I'm still gone. I've been making a tour of the old US of A. By the time I get back to home sweet home, I will have been in SLC, Las Vegas (layover), Orlando, Philadelphia, Valley Forge, Denver (layover), and home. I think I can be classified as an expert traveler by now. No major problems to speak of. I lost my phone for a couple of hours, and the camera battery died, but other than that, I'm doing A-ok!

The first stop was Orlando, FL, for the CHA trade show. Yeah, Orlando in July. I was definitely having some Monica Gellar humidity hair! I used hot rollers and after a brief walk to breakfast looked like I hadn't. Cath and I walked the floor on Tuesday and Wednesday - much more on that later. Oh - and totally wild thing?  Of all of the books in the universe, Cath and I were reading the EXACT same one - Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan.  How weird is that?  I took a picture of our books side by side on the nightstand, but the battery died. Here's a look at some of the stuff I saw in Orlando on Tuesday:

After two very exhausting days hugging, greeting, looking, and listening, I had a super crazy early ride to the airport to catch my flight to Philly on Thursday morning. Since I hadn't slept well on Wednesday night, little catnaps on the plane were nice, and then once I got to Valley Forge, I sank into the king-sized bed for a nap and then took a luxurious bath in the jetted tub. Yes, I was able to recharge for the teaching on Friday.

Today I have four more classes to teach, and then it's dinner with Kalyn. And finally tomorrow, it will be home sweet home. :)

Until then,
Susan