Off To The Castle!

I’m off to the Castle, aka the hospital, this Friday for a total abdominal hysterectomy (sad face). I’ve been practicing my princess moves in my head (“Honey, could you get this for me,” and “Sweetie, could you please bring me that”). I need to get used to being waited on, rather than the other way around!

As usual, my family is facing this challenge with humor. This is the conversation that I had with DD a few months ago:

Me: Shawna, I have some sad news. Your first home is being demolished.
DD: Camelia Court?
Me: No, honey. Your first home.
DD: Oh! Oh, that’s sad.
Me: Yes, it is, but it’s time.
DD: But Mom! We shared that together! I grew inside of there.
Me: Yes, sweetie. But the uterus no longer plays well with others, so it’s time.
DD: But Mom, they call it “uter-US”, not “uter-YOU”
LOL!!!

We wrapped up our conversation with hugs, and an acceptance that sometimes things are not in our control.

Through this process I have managed to add another “You know you’re a scrapbooker when” that is definitely for the books. “You know you’re a scrapbooker when you schedule your surgery around a major scrapbooking event”! When my surgeon and I discussed dates, all I could think of was, “don’t let this interfere with the Texas Fiskateers event”. Fortunately, holding off the surgery until now has worked well, but it’s time.

OK…I’m off to do laundry, dishes and wrap Christmas presents. Aaackkk! So much to do, and the clock is ticking!

Heading Out-Part II aka The Three Stooges Routine

Let me start by saying that the San Antonio airport isn't exactly the friendliest airport. For starters, the shuttle buses stop a looooooooong way from the terminals. Hisaho, Merlene and I lugged our suitcases and carry-ons into the terminal. It's important to know that very few Fiskateers were able to fit our big, orange hats into our bags, so we wore them. So while struggling with the luggage, we were concurrently being strangled by these hats!

We said a temporary goodbye to Merlene as she checked in with a different airline than Hisaho and I did. The American Airlines counter was very confusing. You could stand in line, or you could check-in electronically and then stand in line. No one was really sure what the advantage was, except that we were forced to lug our paraphernalia even further to the check-in area.

Once I checked-in and my name was called, I had to lug my giganticase over to the scale. I put it on the scale and watched as it flipped from 48 pounds to 65 pounds, to 49 pounds, to 55 pounds (the limit is 50lb). It was one confused scale! The attendant rudely asked me to remove items from my suitcase. I pulled out a 6 ounce canvas bag, and my 3-pound collapsible rolling tote, and the weight dropped down to 48 pounds. Whatever. The attendant then mumbled something and pointed to a red flag about 100 yards from the scale (OK, so it was probably only 50 feet, but it was really all the same to me). I said, "What? What did you say?" as she walked off, shooing her hand at me as if I were a pesty child. I must say, the San Antonio airport staff rates about a 1 out of 10 in politeness!! Hisaho then said, "I think we have to bring our suitcases all the way over to that red flag". Holey Shmoley!! Was she kidding? Nope. There was no conveyor belt for the luggage behind the counter. Sigh. I lugged my suitcase over, slipped it under an unmonitored rope (aren't we supposed to monitor luggage at ALL times?), and went back to help Hisaho. Did it occur to me to put my rolling tote back into the suitcase during the 50-foot trek to the flag? Noooooo! I helped Hisaho lug her things over, and she slipped her bags under the rope only to be told that she put it under the wrong rope. No signs, just one rope with a post in the middle. The attendant rudely told her, "if you put it under this side, then your suitcase goes to St. Louis". Ummm.....wanna guess which side mine went under? Yep....the wrong side. I asked the man about my suitcase, and he smiled and said, "Oh, I caught yours. Yours is fine" (my eyes rolling!!).

The security checkpoint was pretty bizarre. First off, it was all uphill. We struggled with our carry-ons, our IDs, our boarding passes, our shoes, all while walking uphill, and all while being strangled by our hats. I was able to get my things easily into the security bins, and then helped Hisaho. It was pretty comical. Ah....if only I had my camera, but no....it was in one of the bins! We were stopped at one point and a security guard ripped Hisaho's bag out off the security belt and slammed it on the counter. He glared at her. She gasped and said to me, "Oh no! I must have left my scissors in my carry-on". But no, it was nothing that alarming. The guard reached in her bag and RIPPED out a half-drunken bottle of water. Oh....the horror! Fortunately, the guard simply tossed the bottle instead of sending Hisaho off to prison, which was a surprise, considering the menacing look on his face!

What a relief it was to collapse into our seats at the gate and relax. Merlene caught up to us and it was fun chatting about the weekend. After a while, Elena Etcheverry and Melanie Christie (of Scrapbook Royalty) arrived. They were loaded down with far more luggage then we were, and because of an American Airlines booking mistake (one of a few I observed that day), they barely got to the gate on time. Melanie had left her scissors in her carry-on and was stopped by security. They measured her scissors, and it was decided that the 8-inch scissors with 4-inch blades were acceptable. Go figure. We all struggled onto the plane with our carry-ons, but Elena was stopped because she had TWO carry-ons. Never mind that security asked each of us if we had 2 or 3 carry-ons. I'm not sure how Elena did it, but she managed to convince the flight attendant to board with her bags (and there was plenty of room in the overheads for everything).

Once we arrived in Dallas, we had to use the SkyTrain to relocate to different terminals. The Three Stooges Act just continued. Remember, with every move we make, we are being strangled by those hats!! We climbed into the SkyTrain, and as the train began to move, Melanie, Hisaho and I could do nothing but watch in horror (and really, in amusement) as Elena and her gianormous bag were flung to the opposite side of the train. We wondered how Elena managed to get on her next flight with that giant bag, and we learned later that she simply slung the bag over her shoulder, like an over sized purse, and the flight attendant never batted an eye!

The rest of our trip was pretty uneventful. I was so exhausted from the weekend's numerous activities and lack of sleep, that I slept quite a while on the flight from Dallas to Oakland, and I never sleep on planes! Hisaho's husband met us at the Oakland airport and helped with the luggage, which was very helpful.

This trip was definitely a highlight in my life. I truly hope that I get to participate in another event like this again (hmmm....maybe a reunion??). This trip proves that the Fiskateers is definitely and online and an offline community.

What an adventure!

Pictures were taken by Elena and/or Melanie. Check my links out to connect to Scrapbook Royalty.

Heading Out - Part I

My roomie and I stayed up until 1 or 2 am packing our suitcases. The trick was to get all of the goodies, including our "horses", into our luggage. We were told to bring an empty suitcase, so I was able to fit all my clothes into a duffel bag, and pack my pillow and goodies into my large suitcase. I then had to pray that it wasn't overweight! But.....more on that in part 2.

Thank goodness Daylight Savings Time ended this weekend, because it bought us an extra hour of sleep. Whew! After a weekend like this, it was necessary.

We gathered in the ballroom once more. The Fiskateer leads, Cheryl, Stephenie and Holly all spoke. They cried. We cried. It was a cry-fest. We listened to several speakers, including representatives from JoAnns and AC Moore.

The morning wrapped up with a small graduation ceremony. We had our pictures taken, received hugs, received a lovely scissors-necklace, and a rose.

Shortly after it was a 50+ person group hug, and then we went our different ways. There were many different flight times. Some went to lunch, some had to catch a shuttle right away. Hisaho, her sister Hiroko and I walked to the Alamo with some others, then walked back through the mall, retrieved our luggage from the bell desk, and relaxed until our shuttle came. We needed our rest, because the adventure at the airport was something else! More on that tomorrow!

Lights, Camera, Action!

On Saturday night, the Fiskateers who brought holiday related projects were asked to share them with Suzanne Walker of Fiskars TV. Suzanne gathered us up and led us to a beautiful and quiet area of the hotel. Suzanne quickly filmed her usual Fiskars TV introduction. I was first in line, and she asked me to sit in the "hot seat". She said, "Tell us your name, your Fiskateer number, where you are from, and a very brief description of your project", and she stepped back. I looked toward Spike, our cameraman, and he said, "Ready.....and....GO". Egads! No rehearsal, no examples, just "Go". And....I went with it! When I was done, Suzanne complimented me saying that I did a great job. Spike said, "You are a natural", and a couple of the other Fiskateers-in-waiting joked about me presenting their projects for them. It was a fabulous experience!

I don't honestly expect my segment to get aired. I felt like my eyes were all over the place (on Suzanne who was off-screen, on Spike, on my project), and I felt like I was speed-talking. OK...I was speed talking! If it's aired, I will be sure to post a link and a new blog for it!

On Cloud 9

I think that it was only fitting that my final crafting class of the weekend was taught by Nancy Martinez of Cloud 9 designs. In Nancy's class, we put together 12 darling calendar pages. Nancy is a wonderful teacher, and no doubt one of the best I've ever learned from. She said something that was wonderful, yet so simple, "You will not finish this project tonight. You may get through March or April. You will get through January and February". I found it utterly relaxing to hear those words. All to often, when I sit down for classes, the project far exceeds the time allotted. I always feel like I'm in a race. Just hearing those words calmed me, and taught me the importance of using them when teaching classes in the future.

The Riverwalk

The Riverwalk in San Antonio is just gorgeous! If there is one reason I will return to San Antonio, it will be to visit the Riverwalk.

After Heidi's class, we gathered outside the ballroom and were greeted by a mariachi band. They played their music as we followed them to a water-boat docked downstairs, outside our hotel.

We loaded into 2 riverboats, all wearing our orange hats. It was quite the site! The tour was wonderful. Our tour guide was quite the comedian. We saw at least 6 weddings along the way because of all the gorgeous locations.

We docked at the Hilton for a private Tex-Mex dinner party at one of their lounges. After a relaxing dinner, we strolled back to the Riverwalk Mall for a Starbucks stop, then back to the hotel to resume the evening festivities.

Heidi Grace!

After our wonderful afternoon at the Alamo, our breakout sessions/classes resumed. My last core class of the day was taught by the Brains On Fire marketing staff. We learned about blogs, among other things. It was nice to just sit and listen and relax. Heidi Grace attended our class and had lots of great questions and input.

Following that was another highlight of my weekend.......a class taught by Heidi Grace! She is a real delight and her class was probably my favorite (although, admittedly, it is hard to choose a favorite from so many great classes). Before teaching us a great notebook-design with her great products, she told us some very funny stories about her husband and father. Her sense of humor and ability to laugh at herself are just two of her great qualities.

I didn't get a chance to finish my project, and like all the projects before, THIS project was now the one I was going to complete at the evening crop!!

Remember the Orange Hats!

Remember the Alamo is pretty cliche, but I will always remember my visit. And so will a lot of other visitors when a group of 50+ ladies with orange hats swooped down upon this gorgeous site.

Our hotel was just 3 long blocks from the Alamo. We stopped for a scrumptious lunch at the beautiful Menger Hotel.

Everyone asks me, "Isn't the Alamo smaller than you thought it would be?". Well, not really, because a few people told me ahead of time that it was pretty small. I was surprised, however, that it was originally a mission. I thought missions were just a California thing. I guess I need to spruce up on my Alamo history!

The visit was wonderful. The company delightful. Heidi Grace joined us, and she is such a fun person to hang out with!

This is Cool! Wait, This is Cooler...no, this is the Coolest!!

My first training class of the day Was taught by Holly Ashby. We worked with canvas, Heidi Grace papers, and a Fiskars embossing border punch (waaaaay cool). I found it very interesting to watch how the other scrapbookers went about their projects. Some would put together, take apart, and put together (again) their projects, over and over until they got it just right. Others worked very slowly and methodically, and others chatted while assembling a few pieces. A few of us, myself included, quickly slapped things together, and then ran around the room, learning new techniques from the others, such as ho to miter corners.

I didn't finish my project, but decided I would finish it at the free crop time at the end of the day.

Our group moved next to Stephenie' Hamen's class, where we worked with a circle border punch. First we cut out circles, and then we placed them into this very cool punch to create a beautiful border around the entire circle. Very cool!

I didn't finish Stephenie's project, but decided that THIS would be the project that I finish up at the free crop time (this would be an ongoing theme for me all day, LOL).

Our last class of the morning was taught my Cheryl Waters. We worked with texture plates, which was a lot of fun. I had already purchased texture plates about a year ago, but wasn't quite sure how to use them. They sat in their package for the entire year. This is one reason why Fiskars wants demonstrators! Their products are very easy to use, they create great effects, but often sit on the shelf for people like me who need hands-on training.

I nearly finished my project for Cheryl's class, but not quite. I decided that THIS would now be the project that I would finish up at the free crop time.

As of this writing, all three projects are still waiting to be finished! So much to do.....so little time!

Where's the Coffee????

Saturday morning at the Fiskateer's Nifty Fifty round up came EARLY! I think I had about 8 hours sleep the entire weekend, with about 5 hours on this first night.

We convened in the hotel Ballroom in the morning for a yummy buffet breakfast. We were asked to bring out rolling carts (aka our "horses"), and wear our giant orange hats. Everything moved so fast. We started out listening to a history of the Fiskars company (it's been around for 350+ years!), and then saw an upcoming PBS-type profile that to date had only been seen by 3 people in the company. It was fascinating.

After breakfast, we were split into 4 groups and headed off to our first classes. I walked into my first class and WOW!!!! There were trimmers (yes....that is multiple), a Shape Express Cutter, eyelet setters, templates and and and.......the list keeps going on. I couldn't even fit everything into my "horse".

The class started quickly, and frankly, I think I sat with my mouth agape the entire time. I was barely recovered from the shock of the previous evening's festivities, and now I've hit the scrapbook jackpot!

Holly Ashby led my first class, which was great. More on that tomorrow!

You-Tube

The entire Fiskateers' weekend was caputured on video, and then hours upon hours of footage was edited down to 5 minutes.

Catch it here:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7rfUQakCBCk

Into The Evening

My first evening in Texas with the Fiskateers was wonderful, and it just kept getting better! The Fiskars team including the lead Fiskateers, Stephenie, Holly and Cheryl greeted us, and Suzanne Walker from Fiskars TV spoke to us. Geno from the Brains On Fire team led us with some quick exercises. We were given scrap goodies and then told to make two different projects right then! It was quite a challenge to work so quickly without my usual hours-to-plan-a-page methods, but I went with the flow and had a great time. We then shared special projects that we made for Fiskars TV. After sharing my project with the group at my table, I stepped out for a few minutes. When I came back, Suzanne was looking thoroughly through my project. She loved it. What a treat!

The entire evening, well, the entire weekend for that matter, was a bit like an infomercial in that each time we thought we hit the jackpot, there was more, "Wait....there's more"!!! After spoiling us with scrap goodies, they brought out large, gallon size mugs. What fun!

From 10pm until midnight (yeah, sleep was NOT a priority), we yakked and visited while finishing up our challenges. Erin Yamabe decided to RAK her wonderful advent calendar that she made for a class at the LSS where she works. Holly took charge of showing off the project, and then announced that one of us would win it. She said "Who wants this?" and of course 50 hands flew up into the air. She then said, "Well, let's see how we'll do this.....I know! Is it anyone's birthday today?". LOL!!! Perfect for me! I kept my hand up and yelled, "YES!" So much for flying under the radar with my birthday! I was delighted to take home Erin's wonderful creation. Everyone sang, "Happy Birthday". I have to admit.....this was one wonderful birthday!

The goodies just kept coming after that. When I returned to my room, my roomie and I each had a beautiful package of scrap goodies from Heidi Grace placed on our beds!

It was an awesome night!

Welcome Dinner - WOW

Fiskars greeted us with a fantastic welcome dinner on our first night. After settling in and meeting my super-wonderful roomie, Kelly Edgerton, I headed down for dinner. Everyone gathered around a buffet area just outside the closed, ballroom doors. Holly and Stephenie (lead Fiskateers) and Carrie (Brains on Fire) were all secretive and wouldn't let us peek in the room. We joyfully visted each other as we quickly met new friends. It was loud and noisy and fun and so exciting!

Finally, the doors opened, and WOW. Each of us had our own Fiskars rolling cart, topped with a large, Fiskars-orange cowboy hat adorned with our Fiskateers number. It was so exciting, and everywhere you looked was a sea of hats!

More tomorrow.....

Off to Texas!

I left for Texas early, early, early Friday morning on November 2. I was so genuinely excited about going to Texas, that I kept forgetting that it was my birthday. I received my first "birthday call" from my good friend, Sandy. My first thought was, "Oh no! What's wrong?". I was surprised to hear, "Happy Birthday!". My kids called me throughout the day, and once again I forgot. Instead I was thinking, "What do these guys want?", LOL!

I met my fellow Fiskateer, Hisaho, at the Oakland airport just prior to boarding the plane. We traveled together, connecting in Dallas. Dallas is a HUGE airport. I guess what they say about Texas (everything is big) is true.

We arrived in San Antonio many, many, many clock hours later. It took us only a few minutes to find other Fiskateers in the hotel lobby, as we recognized each other by our avitars. Upon check-in, we were given a cute orange & green (Fiskars colors) gift bag filled with bottled waters, snacks, some ribbon and ribbon-stiff from Stano Designs (as seen on Fiskars TV), and a beautiful pair of Fiskar scissors with our names engraved on them! Very awesome!

I'll blog later about the rest of the evening, which was fantastic. While I was impressed with the orange and green goody bag, it was nothing compared to what was to come. The evening also held a wonderful birthday surprise for me, but more on that later!

In The Beginning........

Hello to All! I've blogged a few times, mostly at Scrapbook.com. My favorite things to blog about are life's everyday moments, especially the funny ones (even if I'm not laughing when the moment occurs!).

Until now, I haven't had anything too exciting to blog about; however, this last weekend was anything but ordinary, and certainly deserves some blogging!

It all started this last May. I spent National Scrapbooking Day hanging out at Scrapbook.com. While there, I came across a post from May Flaum, encouraging sb.c members to check out Fiskateers.com. I did, and and I have been grateful and astounded many times over since that day. I received beautiful Fiskars scissors engraved with my Fiskateer number, #1626. I received wonderful RAKs, I attended a super-fun gathering at May's house, and I met lots of genuinely nice cyber-friends.

Then, I received a phone call. A HUGE phone call. May called me in September to let me know that I was one of 49 other Fiskateers who would be attending an all-expenses paid weekend in San Antonio, Texas from Nov 2 to Nov 4. I was floored!

The next weekend I attended a crop at Suzy West's store, Picture Me Perfect, in Fremont, CA. As I sat cropping with my fellow Fiskateer, Erin Yamabe, another San Antonio-destined friend, we couldn't help but wonder, "is this for real?"

Well, it certainly was. Last week was the magical weekend, and I can honestly say that it is a highlight in my life. Not as important as my wedding, births, or graduations, but definitely one for the Jennifer Nenni history books.

Over the next few days, I'll fill you in on all the wonderful moments from my magical weekend.