happy monday! i'm starting slow today - trying to get back into the groove after the long holiday weekend away. matthew has today off, so we're using it to catch up on errands and laundry. good times. =)
i wanted to share a bit of the process behind my "he waits" page with you today. i snapped a few pics as i made it so i could show you how it went together.

i started by stamping my vanilla cardstock (i order more with every kit, LOL) with the days of the week stamps in pumice stone ink. i used a stamp block with a grid on it - it really helps for lining up a design like this without drawing in guidelines. i tried to stagger the words so they weren't lined up, and didn't worry about stamping all the way to the right side of the paper, since i knew it would be covered with the ki calendar paper. as a side note, i think i need to invest in a second basic grey magnetic mat - i'm addicted to mine, and it's hard to do 2 pagers with just one! i still used it here - it was invaluable in keeping my two sheets of cardstock in place so that i could stamp across the page break. and since i had someone ask - this is a 8.5x11 2 pager. =)

next, i cut the clear backing on the KI stickers from metropolitan so i could arrange them without sticking them down. i didn't want the words to be lined up and i wanted the swirls to weave over and under the photos, so i had to do a little experimenting to get it just right. there were a few places where i trimmed off swirls and added them other places to get the look i wanted.

to get the KI stickers into place, i peeled about 1/2 of the sticker off the backing and carefully placed it before removing the rest of the backing. these things are pretty sticky, and i didn't want them to accidently land on my photos! this step took a bit of fussing - i had to adhere my photos down enough that they wouldn't move, but some of them had to be lifted to the stickers could go underneath. i love the end effect, so i'm glad i made the extra effort on this step rather than just running the stickers under all the photos! my title letters were the making memories stickers from busy sidewalks - i misted them with mister huey's warm calico so they'd show up on the white background.

i finished the page by adding little strips of paper between my stamped borders - i just grabbed scraps from my desk and trimmed them with my scissor - & then using my craft knife to cut the date stickers where they crossed the page break. i also added some handwritten journaling into the background design as well as some typed strips near the title. at this point, i felt like the page still needed something, so i grabbed the butterflies from mass transit. when i opened the package i was delighted to find that there were gray ones mixed in with the black and white - they made the perfect accent to finish off this page. most of the pp on this page are the SC & Sass exclusives that are only available with metropolitan - i can't get enough of these patterns.
and now... IKEA!

(can you spot the kid in this photo? ;)
like any IKEA-less person, any trip i make to an area lucky enough to have one has to include a shopping trip. of course, i had to take into account the limited room in the car once you have three kids and a vacation's worth of STUFF. here's what made the cut and came home with me :
a rug for my scraproom (um, i gotta do some major cleaning to get this in. the current rug will go down to the basement lego room)

a new quilt for sam - he calls it his puzzle blanket. the grey is perfect w/ all the crazy brights in his room.
lots of felt food + kitchen accessories for sam for christmas
shelves for the bigs' room (but not the brackets. OOPS)

frames, frames and more frames. i got a few ribba (2 large, 2 small),3 virserum, and 4 sets of clips (big plans for these!) i actually stood there and looked up my etsy account while at ikea, trying to figure out which of the larger frames i needed. and still managed to buy one that was too small. i made it work, though, by trimming back my keep calm print - i lost the crown at the top, but i'm liking the look. i've had it for over a year, and am glad to have it up on the wall. not sure the other prints will stay in those frames - i just grabbed the first ones i came across!
vases + jars. vases for me, jars for the boys. they're good for holding the STUFF that comes home in pockets.
that's it from me today - i'll be back tomorrow with some december daily(ish) talk! =) have a good one!