Vegas Recap - Takin' a Break

It's been a LONG time since my last post. Okay, maybe just over a week, but still! Soon after returning home from our Vegas trip, Hubby and I got really sick with the flu. The picture above (at the fight) is not at all what we looked or felt like last week! Luckily, we did not contract the H1N1 flu. However, whatever virus we caught was simply awful! Not only did I suffer from the typical symptoms of the flu, but I had a loss in appetite for food AND paper crafting! GASP! Can you believe it?! I'm just glad the worst is over and we are feeling much better these days.

Today, my co-worker (Hi Tammy!) noticed I had not blogged in awhile. Also my older sister, who sometimes visits my blog (Hi Ruth!) to make sure I'm still alive, was wondering why I haven't posted anything lately. Yes, I'm still breathing! Just taking a break to get over this darn flu. So I thought I would at least post a re-cap of our trip to Vegas. Perhaps this will fill the void on my blog until I'm 100% again. By the way, I received my Green Tangerines kit for April and it's so awesome! Can't wait to get back on the craft table to create! For now, enjoy the photos:)

It doesn't look like it, but we are on our way to Vegas. Okay, okay....so this is a picture of the short cut we took on back roads to the Sacramento International Airport.

Yay! We made it! My brother-in-law Steve and his girlfriend Riza were so nice to allow us to stay with them at their timeshare in Vegas. I attempted to capture a nice pic of me and the hubsters BUT he kept playing jokes on me! He kept saying, "Okay, babe! This time I'll be serious". How many clicks later, I still did not have a shot until a passerby asked if he could take the picture for us. HA! How embarrassing!
Filipinos totally know how to keep cool in hot weather. A Filipino delivery company called LBC provided fans for....well, fans! HA! LOL!
Watching the Pacquiao fight. This was happiness after a successful round 1!

The newspapers said 15K Britons flew to LV for this fight. Hatton fans had 5 really good chants. What do you expect when you bring in a band to lead?! Filipinos would have taken over with a united "Man-ny! Man-ny!" chant except the fight was over before we even had the chance! Needless to say not a peep from 'Hatton Wonderland' after Manny put the smack down.

Getting out was no fun. However, this picture makes me laugh. The only reason you don’t see any Filipinos in this pic is because we are too short! HA! LOL!

Even Larry Merchant was so small, I didn't realize I was walking beside him, For those of you don't know him, he's an HBO announcer for major boxing matches. I love my souvenir Pacquiao T-shirt!

Dining at BLT Burger at The Mirage. I ordered kobe beef sliders with sweet potato fries. Aren't they super cute? I ended up eating only the meat and fries because it was all just too much!

One of our stops was Fat Tuesday’s cantina inside Planet Hollywood’s mall. My brother-in-law Steve ordered us the largest container possible. In fact they had to pull this one from underneath the bar. There are 27 shots of Vodka in this thing......or something like that!

Group shot at the Hawaiian Tropic Zone at Planet Hollywood. Notice how we all pushed our drinks to Steve's side of the table.

This is a pic of a cab driver who nearly killed us on our way back to the hotel! I turned off the volume on my camera in order to take every picture possible of this crazy man - including his cab license! HEY! Just in case! The guy was seriously insane!

YAY! We finally saw Cirque Du Soleil’s “O” Show! A pic souvenir of our date night! So corny! HA!

Hubby’s favorite breakfast. The Grand Lux Cafe is a great spot to eat at the Venetian. They are known for the hollandaise sauce on their eggs Benedict. Very bad but oh so good!

Leaving for the airport. Hubby sporting his souvenir shirt with pride.

Until next time, LV! Hope to see you at Pacquiao vs. Mayweather!!!

In Las Vegas for Manny Pacquiao

The hubby and I are in Las Vegas to watch Manny Pacquiao battle Ricky Hatton tonight at the MGM. I'm filled with such pride because I think Manny truly represents the Filipino culture well. I love how he is so humble, is faithful to his God and shows respect at all times.

Having worked in pro-sports for over 5 years now, I'm always amazed at how sports has such an impact on all walks of life. The Pacman has not only gained great respect from his opponents and boxing fans all over the world, but he has lifted the spirit of an entire country. Now that's amazing!

So I'm sitting here in our hotel room waiting to head out to the mall, anxious to watch the fight tonight live. We arrived last night and will be taking it easy all of today (shopping, etc). My husband and I are very excited for tonight's fight!!!! Woo hoo! No matter the outcome, I'm *hands down* a Manny fan and feel very fortunate to witness one of his fights. Let's go, Manny! Filipino! Filipino!!!

Prepare - GTKC March Kit

I had time last night to do a quick one-word card to add to my book of motivation. I used supplies from my Green Tangerines Kit for March.

Hilarious - GTKC March Kit

Oh! It's so nice to be home!!! Can you believe I was home all day today?! I got crack-a-lackin' on more LO's with my GT March kit. Woo hoo! This 2-pager was dedicated to our puppy Murray. I snapped a photo of him mid-yawn, but doesn't it look like he is busting up? HA! I'm seriously considering making greeting cards with it. It still cracks me up when I look at it.

By the way (it's a bit difficult to see), I tried more doodling on these pages. I had so much fun with it! The perfectionist in me is learning to let go.

At Home with Mom - GTKC March Kit

I finished another LO of our visit to the Bay Area to see my Mom. I'm havin' lots of fun with my Green Tangerines Kit for March. The spring colors make me happy!

JOURNAL:
She has always been a great cook. Every time we visit, she always take the time to buy and prepare foods we love. Even when she says, "No I can't make that" or "I don't think I have time", she manages to still accommodate our special requests - on the table are the very foods we asked for. Thank you, Mom, for slaving away in the kitchen.

When we arrive at the house, Mom has already prepared all our favorite dishes (written around photo)

She's a clean cook with all the best shortcuts. Just take a look at her perfect round omelet! Yummy! (written around photo)

Daily Routine - GTKC March Kit

JOURNAL:
Every morning growing up, I could always find my mom in the kitchen putting on make-up. Same place, same time every single day! I remember her daily routine also included making coffee, vacuuming, cleaning, gardening and the wash. She loved taking care of everything in the morning so she could be worry-free for the rest of the day.

I made this layout using my GTKC March Kit. My favorite item to use on this LO was the felt ribbon. It was a bit difficult to adhere since the design is so intricate - a little sticky on the fingers! Can you believe my mom is 67 years old? I can only wish to be so lucky when I am that age. GO MOM!

Luckily I had extra time tonight to create a simple hello card. It felt good to be at the craft table again.

NOT in the Trunk

Dear Hubbs,

Aww...you were so kind to leave a comment on my Balmonte Book post. And I love that you visit my blog now and then to show support. So I guess now is a good time to let you know (via my blog) that I went to Michael's to buy a few things that were on sale. It was good of me to find such great deals right? I mean, take a look at the rolling scrapbook luggage. It was 50% off, babe! That's a steal!!! Those green plastic cases were half off too. Only $5 each. And remember how we talked about how expensive Cricut supplies are? For example, Cricut cartridges run $89-$99 each, remember? Well, Michael's happened to have one last Paper Pups cartridge for ONLY $39.99. So it only made sense to get it, right? There are other things I found, but I put them all away already. I'll have to show you those things later. Don't you agree the luggage was a necessary purchase? Now we don't have to haul everything in small bags and boxes when we travel.

So surprise, babe! I got a few things. Let me know when you read this post. I'm wondering how long it will take for you to discover this. I changed the date of the post to April 23rd since you visited my blog today already (April 24th). Yes, I took the picture while you were in the shower and posted while you were downstairs making breakfast for us this morning.

OH! I love you! THANK YOU:)

Bubbs

Baby Book for Balmonte Baby

Wow! Say that title 5x in a row! I have been putting my Bind-It-All to good use lately. Here's another mini-album I made for Chris and Lori and their new family of three:) I guess it's not quite so mini as it was a 6x12 album. It was great to do it this way because all I needed to do with each 12x12 was cut it in half! Don't you just love Penny Lane from My Mind's Eye? What great color combinations! I can't wait to see the finished album when they add family photos.

Yes, I know. Lots of pictures and long posts. But my blog is a place for me to look back at all I have done, so I like to record it all. Thanks so much for visiting! Hope you are keeping it cozy!

The top has two squares stand for Chris and Lori. Then I added three squares to the next page to show they are now a family of three! I made the flowers using Cuttlebug.


I really loved adding the button badges to the photo insert pages. Neat way to separate them.

I left a lot of space for journaling. Lori is one of THE MOST creative people I know. I'm sure she will add nice touches and make this album all their own. You think this book is good? She will make it great!


I love how acrylic paints and sponge stamps make letters pop!

A true labor of love! One of my favorite albums!

Baby Card

Our friends Lori and Chris recently gave birth to a new son! We are so excited for this sweet blessing in their lives. They also asked hubby to be a God parent. YAY!

Here's the card I made to accompany the Balmonte mini-album. I used paper from the My Mind's Eye Penny Lane collection. I really, really love the colors and designs of this entire line! I needed an envelope and my older sister came to the rescue with this awesome one! (By the way, she is one of my creative gurus. My sister is GREAT at paper crafting and packaging...GENIUS, I tell you!). For someone who says her eyesight is going, she did a great job centering everything and cutting awesome lines for this super cute envelope! Thanks, Sis!!! I love you!

An Album to Inspire

I'm starting another album. This time it's just for me! I'm scrapping one inspiration word a week and writing whatever is on my mind on the back. The 5x7 playing cards are from Heidi Swapp. I used my Green Tangerines March kit for this particular page.

Weight Watchers is hosting a Momentum Walk-It challenge. I signed up yesterday in order to start training for a 5K in June. I'm very excited to train and record my journey in my inspiration album. I think incorporating my hobby will keep me motivated:)