Kelly Falardeau (Memories in Motion Scrapbooking)

People

2009-11-25T11:19:00.002-07:00

On Sun, we decided to take our kids to the pool and of course I had to hang out in the hot tub. A young man, probably only around 19 or 20 yrs old came and sat next to me and started talking. You could tell he was a little different just by the questions he asked me. My daughter was sitting next to me and he asked what her favorite movies were. He also said that girls are sure strong nowadays and wondered why they are so strong. He mentioned that he worked at Safeway and I asked him what he did there and he said they keep him very busy bagging groceries, price checking, cleaning, just very busy. We laughed and had a great time chatting.

Well, my husband got out of the hot tub and some lady came up to him and said that she almost didn't get into it because of him. I was shocked! I said what? Why, just because a guy who is a little different wants to talk? He's just a friendly adult/kid who likes people and wants to talk. He had absolutely no intentions of harming me or my daughter.

I was floored, but really not surprised. I know people have gotten out of the hot tub because I've gotten in. I think they think my scars are contagious or something. I don't know. I just don't get it. I know we have to protect ourselves and kids nowadays, but we don't have to be over protective. I think it would have been rude of me to just ignore the guy. All he wanted to do was talk!

Have a great week! And hopefully those camera purses should be in soon, very soon!

kel

Fabulous Camera Purses

2009-11-05T11:12:00.007-07:00

This fabulous Camera Purse is so awesome, I just can't wait to get mine and show it to everyone!

Faux leather, with a Hot Pink interior. Three exterior pockets with magnetic closures for your phone, keys, batteries and more. Interior has movable dividers: one with a mesh pocket, one with a cut-out to cradle your on-camera lens. One zippered pocket for pens or memory cards. Interior adjusts to fit DSLR camera, an extra lens, external flash, wallet or other supplies. Looks like a handbag...but disguises your camera! Use it for a camera bag or your everyday handbag!

Only $75, you choose whether you want the giraffe or zebra pattern.

SPECIAL PURSE REFERRAL PROGRAM:

For every person that you refer to me who buys a purse, you get a 10% commission applied to your purchase. Refer 10 people who buy and you get yours FREE!

Email your pre-order to kelly@MemoriesInMotionScrapbooking.com

Have a great day! I'm so excited, I can't wait for my purse to come, no more hauling around a purse and camera bag at the same time! AND, just in time for Christmas.

Fall is Here

2009-09-14T11:16:00.002-06:00

I know it's been a long time since I've written and so much has happened, but I just haven't taken the time to write, so now is the time because my favorite time of year is happening. Yep, Scrapbooking Retreat season is here and I'm excited about getting going again.

I also have an exciting announcement to make and that is the welcoming of Kelly Walton to the team. She is the exciting new owner of MIM Scrapbooking Online division. She is the owner of our online store and will be working on developing the online portion of the website. We are so excited to have her onboard and she is a great addition to the team. She has been riding with me on the truck for the last 6 months and eventually wants to purchase my truck and service the Alberta area. In 2 weeks our online store should be up and running. We'll make a big announcement when it's ready.

I'm also back to teaching at the Unity Centre by Londonderry Mall, every Fri from 12 - 2 pm. Very excited about that. I love my regulars there, they make me feel so special and it's such a stress-free environment to teach in. We have fun making new projects and laughing and teasing eachother. That to me is what scrapbooking is all about.

Kids are all in school now. It feels really weird for me having the twins in grade 1 and going Mon to Fri. I don't have to try and remember which Fridays they have off. Twice last year I sent them to school on a Friday when they weren't supposed to be. lol. Oh well, can't always remember everything.

Well, time to get back to work on the new website, will chat again soon. We're starting to get bookings for the fall, so if you would like us to come to your retreat or crop, pls send us an email at kelly@MemoriesInMotionScrapbooking.com

Kelly F and Kelly W

ps - I know, the name thing is going to definitely be confusing. lol

Yearly Garage Sale

2009-08-05T15:47:00.003-06:00

Well, it is that time of year again and it's time to clear out the old inventory and bring in the new yummy stuff. This year our annual garage sale is going to be in Edmonton on this Fri and Sat at: 10629 - 154 Street. My friend is also going to have a regular garage sale going on at the same time, so there will be scrapbooking goodies plus her goodies too.

Everything is 25% off in the truck and if you bring a friend you both get 30% off. We're also going to have a draw for a goodie basket and if you would like to donate items to the Children's Burn Camp, that would be awesome. I am going to do some scrapbooking projects with the kids this Aug, so we are looking for gently used products that the kids can play with to make their own burn camp albums.

So, here's the details again:

10629 - 154 Street
Fri, Aug 7 - noon - 5 pm
Sat, Aug 8 - 9 - 5 pm

And bring a friend so you both get 30% off everything.

I hope everyone is having a great summer! I'm looking forward to getting rolling again this fall, we are starting to get fall bookings. If you refer someone to us, you will get a $20 gift certificate plus the retreat/crop organizer will get a 10% discount on her order.

Cheers!
Kelly

My Zoo Book

2009-06-30T15:42:00.008-06:00

This is my second attempt at digital scrapbooking with Heritage Makers and I have to say that I love the templates. I will always truly be a traditional scrapbooker, but when I want to do a quick book and don't have all the supplies handy, this is definitely a great option.

The first digital scrapbook I made was when my dad was in the hospital and the nurses told us to let our dad have a rest so my sister had her MacBook at the hospital, we signed up for internet and then signed up for Heritage Makers and worked on a baby book for her daughter. We had a lot of fun working with the templates. Fortunately, my sister had about a thousand or two pictures on her computer which made it even more fun.

One of the things that I like about digital scrapbooking is that someone like my sister who tried traditional scrapbooking and hated it, really enjoyed doing Heritage Makers. She really enjoyed how easy it was to drag and drop the pictures, resize, rotate and scale them. She will never be a traditional scrapbooker like me, but totally enjoyed that she could do some scrapbooking quickly and easily.

The Zoo Book was made because I have been invited to go to the Children's Burn Camp and teach the kids how to do scrapbooking plus possibly do a "Girl Talk". The purpose of the Girl Talk is to let them know about how I got burnt and how I eventually found my husband and had kids. Plus, the kids will be invited to chat about their own story. While I was growing up, I never thought I would find someone to marry and have kids with, so I never even thought it would be an option.

So, this Zoo Book was made using the Heritage Makers template and if you like it, you can click on the link and make your own, or just search for the other great products they have.

Kids Summer Scrapbooking Day Camps

2009-06-16T17:00:00.007-06:00

Summer is coming and what are you going to do with those kids?

We have decided to host some summer camps and teach your kids how to scrapbook. The camps will be one week, in the afternoons from 12:30 - 3:30 pm. Each day your kid will make some sort of mini-album or scrapbook layouts. After we finish scrapbooking, we will have a snack and then the kids will get to play in the sprinkler or go to the park.

The dates are as follows:

Stony Plain - July 13-17 ($99) (Click here to register)
Stony Plain - Aug 4 - 7 ($80) (Click here to register)

Sherwood Park - July 13-17 ($99) (Click here to register)
Sherwood Park - Aug 10-14 ($99) (Click here to register)

Kids are encouraged to bring their digital cameras so we can take pictures during the week and scrapbook them, plus their swim suit and towels.

Want to get your camp at a lower cost? Refer your friends to our camp. For every friend you refer, you get $20 off your registration up to 2 friends.

Send us an email at: kelly@MemoriesInMotionScrapbooking.com if you are interested. If the weeks don't work for you, and you have other friends with kids who would like to do a day camp, let us know. We'll try and organize more.

Life is Too Short

2009-06-04T09:28:00.005-06:00

Yes, that is right, life is too short and we need to take more pictures and make our memories more permanent and if you're a scrapbooker, we need to scrapbook more too. Many of you know that I have made three trips to Toronto in Apr and May. One for business and two for my dad. In April, we had the truck/store shipped to Toronto to attend both Scrapfest and Creativ Festival. I spent 12 days in Toronto with my dad and I didn't think those were going to be my last 12 days with him. I got home from the shows and then a week and a half later got a call that my dad had a massive heart attack. My sister and I flew back to Toronto and spent another 5 days there in the hospital. Before we left, we did get to see him awake, but he couldn't talk to us. I told him that he should of just asked me to stay longer if that was what he wanted instead of having a heart attack to get me back and bring my sister. I told him that I guess I didn't drive him crazy enough, he had to get me back for more. lol He just smiled and then shook his fist at me. lol. My dad still had his sense of humor even in the hospital.

I know it was really hard for him to wake up and see his 2 daughters and wife standing around him wondering what had happened and fortunately he had his heart attack in the hospital. My sister and I found it really hard to leave him especially since he couldn't talk to us. We know he wanted to tell us how much he loved us. My sister missed her first mother's day, but not once did she complain about it, she knew she would get to celebrate many more in the future.

Every day my step mom and step sister would phone or email us and give us updates on my dad and eventually they decided to do open heart surgery and fix his leaky valve. He came out of the surgery well, but the next day developed a clot in his stomach which ended up killing all the rest of his organs including his kidneys, lungs, bowels and heart. My sister, husband and I rushed back to Toronto and fortunately my dad was able to hold on until we got there. As hard as it was to see him pass, it was also good for us to be there.

While I was there, I decided to do an 8x8 album of my dad and his life. I made 34 8x8 pages and 3 12x12 pgs plus I also did the Slide show presentation for the Memorial. The fortunate thing is, I actually had too many pictures. My step mom loved to take pictures and my dad had no problem posing. Very rare when you have too many pictures to choose from. My step mom also still had my Dad's boxing shoes from when he boxed in the Pan Am games in 1971. That was so cool, and I made sure I had pictures of them. One regret I do have is I remember when Dad was taking me to the airport in April and I thought, I should get a picture of dad and me and I didn't. My lifelong lesson is that from now on, whenever I think I should take a picture, I should! No more regrets about taking pictures. Needless to say, my camera got overworked this weekend, only about 700 pictures plus had to be charged twice while I was in Toronto. Hey, I finally got to the Toronto Zoo. And if you ever get there, make sure you check out the new stingray pond, that was so awesome. Stingrays are like little puppy dogs, they love to be pet and when you put your hand in the water, they come right up to it and lift your hand up. They're also very playful and love to splash water on you. I got splashed 3 times.

Thank you to all my friends and family, you were all so supportive and sent us so many kind messages. It was so great to see how everyone was praying for us and helping us through this difficult time. I also really want to thank my friends Trisha Ladouceur and Kelly Walton. While I was gone, my store was booked to go to Lessard Hall to a charity event and both of them were able to get the truck ready to go. Thx everyone! And like I said, life is too short and too precious, take more pictures and create more memories.

Truck Update

2009-04-14T20:02:00.002-06:00

I just got off the phone with my dad and he picked up the truck and now it's in his neighbor's driveway. In Brampton they have a crazy law that you can't park on the street and his driveway is full with his car so it is parked in his neighbor's driveway. Also got 2 more shipments in and 2 to go.

If my dad was a little more computer savvy I would get him to email me a pict, but that is definitely not going to happen. Plus he said it's TOO DIRTY!

Well, that's it for an update, can't wait to see my baby when I get to Toronto on Thurs afternoon.

The contest has been extended til Apr 27, so if you spot it or see us driving it around Ontario, don't forget to take a picture, email it to us with the location. kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

We're coming soon, Ontario girls!

kelly

.... and the winner is.... THE TRUCK

2009-04-14T08:02:00.004-06:00

Yes, that's right, the truck beat me to Ontario- yay! I'm excited and of course a bit nervous too. I phoned the driver to get an update about where she was and she sounded a little surprised. She had already dropped off the truck and phoned my dad to let him know where it was. We weren't expecting to arrive today and it was early.

I'm excited my truck is there because now I know it will be there for both trade shows, www.scrapfest.ca and www.creativfestival.ca but I hate that it is so far away. Hurry up Thurs, I need to get on that plane! lol

My poor Dad, he lives in Brampton so I don't get to see him very often and I haven't seen him in 2 yrs. He heard lots about my truck and what I was doing, but hadn't seen it, so now it's in Ontario and now he actually has to drive it to his house. Poor guy! Even my husband doesn't like to be seen in a giant lime green scrapbooking truck and now my dad has to too. Oh, the things our family will do for us.... lol.

The other reason I feel bad for my dad is that he is also getting shipments for me in Ontario. Most of my orders I had shipped directly to me, but I also had about 6 shipments come from Ontario and the U.S. so they are going to his house. One order is direct from Neat Nix and they have the most awesome scrapbooking buckets that are just fantastic. They are also collapsible which is great for traveling with. (I think I need 2, one for all my tools and the round one for garbage) I have 10 boxes of them coming direct to his house. Yikes!

Plus, he told me he just got 4 boxes of stuff from California. I'm also excited about that order because that means all my GLIMMER MIST arrived. Yes, all 200 bottles of them. If you're going to Scrapfest, you don't want to miss out on Trisha Ladouceur's classes. She is the Glimmer Mist Queen and will rock your world with it. Her projects are so kick ass that you will love her forever. One thing I love about Trisha's classes and projects is that she helps you to think out of the box and use things in a new way. I've seen her projects for Scrapfest and the upcoming cruise and they're just amazing. Check out her blog.

I also have to mention my great friend Terrie Moxam. Originally my husband was going to come with me, but then he decided it would make more sense for me to have a scrapbooking fanatic friend go. I talked to my friend Terrie and she said, "do you need to twist my rubber arm? Of course I'll come to Toronto." So she is taking time away from her awesome husband (yep, I have to compliment him, he's now accusing me of being a "wife stealer" lol) and come and work her butt off with me. She is great, she reminds me of everything I forget and absolutely loves scrapbooking and what we do, so she will be a great help in Toronto. She truly is an amazing woman! We're going to have FUN, right Terrie? Ok, we're going to work our butts off, but we will have fun too. I've been told that we're staying on the Sat night at the hotel because the girls are going out. What???? I need my sleep, I'm too old to party when I've been working my ass off. I love my bed and pillow. lol

Have a great week everyone and we'll keep in touch from Toronto.

Kelly

Spot the Lime green Truck Contest from Alberta to Ontario

2009-04-07T19:47:00.003-06:00

Hi everyone,

We are shipping our mobile scrapbook store (lime green cube van) all the way from Edmonton, Alberta to Scrapfest. Yes, that's right, we're crazy and we love to have fun. We decided to bring our store all across Canada so that we can meet all the awesome scrapbookers from Ontario that we keep hearing about and share our dealership/business opportunity. http://www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com/

Here's the contest:
Spot the lime green truck on the bigger truck, take a picture of it, say where you saw it and email it to me at: kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com and you could win a $100 shopping spree. That's right. Every day I will be phoning the driver and finding out where she is just to make it a little easier, watch for daily updates.

So, the lime green truck is leaving tomorrow (Apr 8) a.m. from Edmonton and scheduled to arrive in Calgary some time and then head to Regina. It should reach it's final destination (Mississauga) Tue or Wed (Apr 14 or 15). And we fly out Apr 16, Thurs.

Watch for the truck girlfriends and you could be a lucky winner of a $100 shopping spree!

We'll be in Kitchener, April 17 & 18 at Scrapfest (http://www.scrapfest.ca/) and

Mississauga, Apr 24 - 26 at Creativ Festival (http://www.creativfestival.ca/)

Dealership Opportunity Session:

Apr 18, Saturday 5:30 - 6:30 pm

Scrapfest Studio

Kitchener, ON

Private consultations, Apr 21 - 23, Brampton Ontario

Cheers and happy hunting for the lime green truck!

Kelly and Terrie

kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

http://www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com/

We're Going to Ontario!!!

2009-04-02T15:38:00.002-06:00

Yes, the crazy lady has found a way to ship the big lime green truck/mobile store all the way from Edmonton, Alberta to Kitchener, Ontario. We are attending two shows, Scrapfest and the Creativ Festival. Check out their websites for details on their events www.scrapfest and www.creativfestival.com

Along with selling products (and we're really excited about some of the stuff we're bringing with us) we will be doing dealership opportunity presentations so that we can show you how you too can own your own Memories in Motion Scrapbooking business.

Dealership Opportunity Session:
Saturday, April 18, 2009
5:30 - 6:30 pm
Scrapfest Studio
Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Complex

We will also be in Brampton from Sun, Apr 19 til Apr 23 and then we will be setting up for the Creativ Festival at the Mississauga International Centre Apr 24 - 26.

If you would like to set up a private appointment to meet with me in Ontario, call me at (780) 297-0019.

Excited about meeting the awesome Ontario Scrapbookers!

Kelly

PS- Watch for the lime green truck being shipped from Alberta to Ontario, snap a picture of it and then email it to me and you could win a prize!

Planning a Road Trip to Scrapfest

2009-03-19T13:38:00.003-06:00

My latest challenge has been to find a way to ship my mobile store all the way to Kitchener, Ontario and back. Who would of thought I would want to take on that task and risk, only me, the crazy woman! lol. It would definitely be cheaper to drive it there, but I want to make sure it gets there in one piece and without a stressed-out driver (me) and also without a stressed-out husband waiting to hear if he has to come get me. And why Kitchener you ask? Because that's where Scrapfest is Apr 17 & 18 and my good friend Lisa is organizing the biggest and best scrapbooking show ever. Check out her website at: http://www.scrapfest.ca/ My other good friend Trisha Ladouceur will be teaching there and let me tell you, you don't want to miss her class, guaranteed to be awesome! So awesome, she can't even tell me about it. Ugh!

So, today Trisha and I are on the phone and she's reconfirming that I'm a psycho woman for doing what I'm doing (in a good way) and especially in today's economy and recession, who is going to want to buy a mobile scrapbook store? Well, there is no time like the present to get into your own business even though everyone says we're in a recession (what we're in a recession? People are still buying supplies from me and my business has grown). Everyone knows that with your own business your income can be as large or as small as you make it. This is the time to break free from making only $15/hr at a job, this is the time that you can make $$$$ with your scrapbooking passion without chaining your self to a long-term and expensive lease. With a mobile store, you also do not have expensive overhead and staffing costs and you end up putting way more money into your own pocket and that's what we all need. Anyways, Trisha and I had a very good talk and then she had this major breakthrough for me and proceeded to tell me that there's actually another show in Ontario, the weekend after and wouldn't it make more sense for me to go to not ONE, but TWO scrapbooking shows.

OH MY GAWD!!!! Now, I'm calling Trisha a psycho woman for not only making my already crazy life crazier, but her crazy for giving me another crazy idea to make my life crazier. (I don't think that made sense, but anyways, we're now both crazy). She told me that the Creativ Festival is the following weekend and I should have a booth there too since that way I would have two shows to make money at plus meet even more potential franchisees plus blah blah blah. Plus I could spend the week meeting potential franchisees and go on some morning shows and I could go sell stuff in front of the CN tower and I could....... Oh my goodness, my head is hurting already.

So then I proceed to phone Rita from the Creativ Festival and now she's excited about me coming because now that means we can also get some more media involved and ..... even more yikes. Wow, is that ever a big show, 20,000 attendees and 50% of them are scrapbookers, check out their website at: http://www.creativfestival.ca/ Both shows are definitely a MUST ATTEND event for everyone. I know they both have fantastic events planned.

So, eventually in April, watch for pictures of the truck getting ready to go on a road trip and we'll follow on a plane. The truck will be on the train and we'll be on the plane, who's going to get there first????

Have a great week everyone and I look forward to hearing from you. We're still looking for some out of town events to attend on National Scrapbook Day, let us know if you know of any.

You know what is going to be the worst part of this all? Telling my husband that I'm going to be gone for 10 days, doing 2 shows, plus.... well, you get the picture, it's going to be crazy, but it's going to be a great crazy and I'm so looking forward to helping more women get into their own mobile scrapbook stores. Who knows, maybe I'll even just sell mine there and not have to bring it back at all???? Hey, I know he'd like that one. lol Then I'd just have to build another one to service all my great customers that I have here.

Wonderful Friends

2008-12-21T11:03:00.002-07:00

One of the things I am most grateful for is my friends. I have many friends of all types, some are rich some are poor, some are successful and some are not, some are successful in other ways besides money and some are not so successful. Each of my friends enrich my life in some way and I have learned over the years, that I cannot live without them. Even though I do not get to communicate with them or visit them or call them or even email them as much as I would like they are all in my hearts in some way.

I remember as a kid how I would wake up on a Saturday morning and go over to my grandparents' house and wait to see who would show up for coffee. If someone wasn't coming over, then we were going to visit someone. And nowadays, there is no way you would just pop in to someone's house and visit, it always has to be a planned event. It seems like our generation has cocooned so much that we forget who brings us happiness in our lives besides our family and that is our friends. We seem to forget to make time for our friends and socialize. Whenever my husband and I get together with our friends, we realize how much fun they are and wonder why we don't hang out with them more often. My parents and grandparents were always socializing with their friends and family. And they always had so much fun.

What made me think about our friends at Christmas was a teaching job that I was at on Friday. Every Friday morning since September, I have been teaching scrapbooking at a drop-in centre for low income people and people in need. I have really enjoyed teaching there because they have no expectations. They don't expect me to create masterpieces, they're just happy to get out of the house and have a place to go to socialize and make some pages. Never once have they complained about not learning anything and they just love whatever it is they do because they take my idea and make it their own. And they are just happy that I take the time out of my day to come and be with them and show them something new. They all gave me gifts and cards for Christmas and I brought them donuts. Their handmade gifts were so special and are something I will treasure forever. They helped me to realize that Christmas doesn't have to be this big major commercialized event. It just has to be something little and special. And now I consider these girls to be my friends, they're awesome!

Thank you to all my friends you make my life special and I hope in some way I touch your lives. This is the year for me to spend more time with my friends and not cocoon so much.

Have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

BoBunny Serendipity Clear Album

2008-12-04T17:04:00.012-07:00

Last night I decided to play again with the clear albums. I just got in the new BoBunny Clearly Mixed Up albums and are they ever fun to play with. They're acrylic albums, but all the shapes are mixed up. When you see the one I played with, you'll see what I mean. I also used the Fancy Pants new Arctic Chill line and that is just to die for, it is so awesome. Keep in mind, I added some extra pages into this album plus I also added some of the fancy pants artic chill transparencies cut in the same shape as some of the album pages. I didn't take picts of all the pages, just a couple, but you get the idea. They also have some different types, so if you'd like to see them, let me know and I'll get you pics of them. They're definitely lots of fun to work with.

Melissa Buhler published too

2008-11-19T20:16:00.003-07:00

I forgot one other thing, our web designer, Melissa Buhler - she was also published this month. She is an awesome scrapbooker too, plus she designs great websites. I'm really excited about her new printing company called Green Pixel Printing. Check it out she caters especially to scrapbookers and knows what we need. www.greenpixelprinting.com

Canadian Scrapbooker is here

2008-11-19T19:43:00.005-07:00

Yes, the winter issue of Canadian Scrapbooker is in and it's better than ever! One thing I love about this magazine is how it always has exciting layouts with every single issue and every time it gets better and better. I have 6 issues available, so if you would like one, feel free to send me an email so I can put one aside for you. And for all the girls I'll see at Camp He Ho Ha this weekend, I'll have it there.

I'm excited about two things with this magazine. One is that my customer/friend Candace Robichaud has been published for the first time. I met Candace over a year ago and she had just started scrapbooking at the time. One thing about Candace is that she was instantly good. She didn't have the warm-up to scrapbooking period like a lot of us do. I know with myself, it took a long while for me to really feel comfortable about my layouts and doing things without scraplifting. Candace just happens to have this fabulous style and a natural ability to scrapbook. She has a great eye for what looks good and has no problems mixing & matching different mediums and making them look great together. I have always loved her style and I hope she submits more layouts to the magazines because then you'll see more of her unique scrapbooking ability and style. The layout in the magazine is a great one, but she has even greater ones than that. (I know she's going to be blushing when she sees this). I've been trying to get her to buy her own Memories in Motion Franchise because she would be fantastic at it, but she's too busy working with her husband http://www.carsgone.com/ plus raising her awesome kids. Anyways, Candace, I hope you continue scrapbooking even though you're so crazy busy becoming a gazillionaire. lol.

Ok, so the second thing about the magazine is that we're on page 22 with a picture of my husband & I on the Dragons' Den tv show pitching our business. I know, everyone is bugging me and even bribing me to tell them what happened and I still can't. I know, it's just as hard on you as it is on me. The Mom Magazine has asked for the exclusive story about my experience on the Dragons' Den and I'll be sure to tell you as much as I can. My one friend asked me if I would tell her and I told her she'd have to come bail me out of jail after they sue me. The show is every Mon on CBC until Dec 14. www.cbc.ca/dragonsden Ok, I will tell you this much - I didn't get beat up. How's that?

Oh, one other thing I have to tell you about. I just got in the Glue Glider Pro and it is AWESOME! I love it. It's like those big honking ATG guns, only way smaller and easier to handle. Plus, it doesn't take up so much space in your scrapbook bag and the other great feature is it's half the price. Check it out, I just love it and I only have 4 left.

Also, don't forget about our contest - the "Most Embarrassing Layout" Contest. We're pretty excited about it and all the prizes we have to give away. I just got an email from a lady who said she definitely had to enter this contest. I just laughed.

Take care and have a great day/weekend! Check out http://www.canadianscrapbooker.ca/ and their new winter issue, it's awesome. Great job Katharina and Jackie and the rest of the team!

Contest Time!

2008-10-29T11:14:00.003-06:00

Hi everyone,

We're so excited, it's time to do a contest. So, check out: http://www.youtube.com/user/scrapmobile for the details of the "Most Embarrassing Layout" contest and tell all your friends to check it out too. And of course, submit your layout to our gallery.

We're so excited, we have lots of prizes to be given away from Cosmo Cricket, We R Memory Keepers, 3L Adhesives, Prima Marketing, Fire and Ice Designs and Fiskars.

I'm looking forward to seeing your layouts and giving away lots of prizes!

Kelly Falardeau
www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

Winter is coming

2008-10-27T11:48:00.002-06:00

Yes, it definitely feels like winter is coming and I'm already tired of it and it hasn't come yet. I asked my husband the other week what he thought about moving to a warmer climate and he just laughed at me. I took that to mean "no". He started a new job just over a month ago and he really likes it, so I don't think I'll be able to convince him to move any time soon. Bummer!

Anyways, on to the good stuff. So what has been up with the Scrapmobile? Well, I was driving home from the Heartland Inn (Thorsby) and all of a sudden the truck quit and so I pulled over and called my husband to come pick me up. Well, this time, the transmission and motor went. Ugh! So anyways, to make a long story short, the Scrapmobile is up and running again and ready to get back on the road. I have lots of great events to attend in the next couple months, so I'm really excited. I'm going to be in Hinton and Viking in November. If any of you are from there, send me an email and I'll pass on your info to the girls. I'm pretty sure both events have room for more attendees.

I am also putting the finishing touches on our first contest. We're being crazy and starting a "Most Embarrassing Layout"contest. Yes, that's right, remember all those first layouts that we did so long ago and we're totally embarrassed about? Well, those are the layouts we're looking for. I wanted to do something fun, crazy and stress-free. Once I get it up on the website, I'll put out another notice and then you're more than welcome to upload your layouts and refer it to all your friends. And of course we have lots of prizes, including a We R Memory Keepers Big Bite and some other great stuff from Cosmo Cricket, 3L Adhesives, Prima Marketing and Fire and Ice Designs.

I am also proud to announce that we have added Peter Singleton and Steven Bell from TLC Franchising to our team. Peter and Steven are experts in the franchising area and are looking forward to chatting with people who are interested in purchasing their very own mobile scrapbook store. If you are interested, don't hesitate to call or email us any time.

Well, nothing else new and exciting. I'm really looking forward to going to more retreats this fall plus announce the exciting contest we're organizing. Take care and have a great halloween.

Kelly

Summer Update

2008-08-19T11:20:00.007-06:00

Wow, it's been a very long time since I've blogged and I have so much to say. I have to get into blogging a lot more, a few of my girlfriends have been bugging me because they haven't heard from me in a long time. So what's up in my world this past summer?

Firstly, we've been hanging out at the lake lots. This summer has been beautiful with tons of hot weather. I've been taking the kids out to our lake lot at Mink Lake. This is our 3rd summer there and we have really been developing a lot of great friendships there.

Secondly, the Dragon's Den. In June my husband & I went to Toronto to do the taping of the third season of Dragon's Den. I got to meet all the dragons and what a long day that was. My husband was secretly laughing at me watching me pace the floor and go to the bathroom a hundred times, trying to settle myself down. Ugh! I was definitely very nervous about it, but once I did my introduction to the dragons and they started asking questions, I got into the right mode and threw out my fears and just did the best I could do. I hope I represented the scrapbooking industry well. The show starts airing Sep 29 and NO, I cannot tell you anything, but I can tell you this, Kevin O'Leary didn't call me a "Crazy Chicken". It's been very hard not to tell my friends and family the outcome of the show. You just have to watch the show on cbc. I also want to thank my sponsors for donating products for the show, they are: 3L Adhesives, Fiskars, We R Memory Keepers, Prima Marketing, Fire and Ice Designs, Cosmo Cricket, Basic Grey, Memories Wholesale, Canadian Scrapbooker and Mom Magazine. Thank you for your generous donations, the products will be used as prizes for our upcoming layout contest.

Yep, I said it, a layout contest with lots of prizes. We will be starting a layout contest in the fall that will run until Dec. And we're putting a twist on it, it will be the "Ugliest Layout" contest. That's right, remember those first layouts we did that we're very ashamed of? Well, this is the contest to enter those pages. Everyone does the "best layout" contest, so why not do something different and less stressful, submit to us your "ugliest layout" and there will be lots of prizes to win. We will post the details on our website in the next couple days. Of course we will also have a category for the "best layout".

What else have we done this summer? Of course, I attended CHA in Chicago. That was a lot of fun seeing all the new stuff. My most favorite product was the new GlueGlider Pro. Remember those big adhesive guns that the girls are using? Well this one is a lot smaller and does the same thing and for a heck of a lot cheaper.

Oh, I was also selected as the Mom Executive Officer for June at the Mom Magazine. What an awesome magazine! I just love all the cool stories they tell and they're not afraid to push the limits and cross the boundary to tell us the things we all want to know about but are afraid to ask. They also plan some awesome events and this Sept they're planning a great first anniversary party. Check out their website for more details and tell Tamara that you heard about them from me. She's great!

Annual garage sale, yep, it's garage sale time. I need to get rid of the old stuff so I can bring in all the new stuff. I'm so excited about all the new stuff, that I just need to empty the truck and fill it up with new stuff. I'll post the dates for the garage sale soon. I am going to do one in Stony Plain and the other one in St. Albert or Edmonton.

I am starting to get booked up for the fall and a couple of ladies have asked me if I could help them promote their events. I have been to both events before and these girls organize great events! Details are as follows:

Raising Money for a Cure - (raise money for Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation) Sept 19 - 21
Father Kenneth Kearns School, Sherwood Park
Contact: Cathy Hopcraft at: 780-464-9023 or email: hopcraftcathy@yahoo.com

Scrapbook Day - Nov. 15 $30
Strawberry Hall (Thorsby)
Contact: Dalyce Wesley-Leeder at 780-758-1168 or email: dalyceleeder@shaw.ca

See you soon and watch for updates!!! I hope everyone is having a great summer, I can't wait to see everyone in the fall again!

We are also taking bookings for fall Girls' Night Out Clubs. If you have 6 or more girls who would like to get together on a monthly basis and scrapbook, give us a call at (780) 297-0019. For $30/month, each girl gets the kit of the month, hands-on instruction to make a two-page layout plus retail therapy in the mobile store. Each girl takes turns being the hostess and she gets her kit for half price. At the end of the 6 months, you have a complete book with 12 layouts in it! A great way to get your scrapbooking done and socialize at the same time. Call or email today to book your dates and get a special bonus!

Off to Toronto

2008-06-06T11:16:00.002-06:00

Well, today is the day we leave for Toronto to do the taping of Dragon's Den. I'm looking forward to making my presentation and pitching to the dragons. I made up a scrapbook for each of the dragons and I even got some picts of the new dragon Brett Wilson.

I would like to thank my sponsors, so many companies have offered to sponsor the albums and presentation display by donating a variety of products. The sponsors are:

* Memories Wholesale
* We R Memory Keepers www.weronthenet.com
* Cosmo Cricket www.cosmocricket.com
* 3L Adhesives www.scrapbook-adhesives.com
* Canadian Scrapbooker www.canadianscrapbooker.ca
* Mom Magazine www.mommagazine.ca
* Fiskars www.fiskars.com
* Basic Grey www.basicgrey.com
* Prima Marketing www.primamarketing.com
* Fire and Ice Designs www.fireandicedesigns.blogspot.com

My coach (Cindy Ulmer www.cindyulmer.com) has been doing a great job in getting my head prepared for this.

I would also like to thank my family, friends and customers for all their support and helping me to get through this wild and crazy time. I will do everything I can to make you all proud.

Take care and have a great weekend.

Kelly

Exciting News

2008-05-12T15:47:00.001-06:00

A lot of people already know about my exciting news, but some don't so I thought I would post it here. On Apr 21, I auditioned for the Dragon's Den TV Show and they called me back a week later and asked me if I wanted to come to Toronto to face the dragons. Of course I said yes, I have been waiting for this opportunity since I started my business. On June 9, my husband and I will be presenting in Toronto.

What is the Dragon's Den? Well, it is a TV show whereby inventors and business owners can present their business idea to 5 different venture capitalists called the Dragons. They then ask you some questions and decide if they want to invest or not. They can go in on the deal together or individually or not at all. This is the third season and I have been watching the show since day one. It is my favorite show even though some times the deals are pretty crazy. I'm looking forward to facing the dragons and seeing what they have to say about my business. If you want to check out their website go to: www.cbc.ca/dragonsden

The hard part is going to be keeping my mouth shut. I am not allowed to tell anybody what the outcome was including my family until it airs on TV. And it won't be airing until the fall. Ugh!

In preparation for the audition I have signed up for some private coaching with the ultimate Cindy Ulmer, she is the most awesome coach I know. She's so full of energy and is teaching me so much cool stuff. She is teaching me how to think in a different way and making me grow in so many ways. Check out her website at www.cindyulmer.com, she is an amazing woman.

I have also finally been able to set up a lunch mtg with the famous Dale Wishewan from Booster Juice. I'm so looking forward to meeting him in person and chatting with him about his success story. He told me today that our mtg is long overdue and I'm sure he will have lots of great advice for me.

I have been also doing lots of research on the history of scrapbooking and the industry and that has also been very interesting. I was very curious about the relationship between the Latter Day Saints (Mormon) religion and scrapbooking. I know the Mormons are very much interested in preserving family history and geneaology plus a lot of the manufacturers are based in Utah so I was wondering if there's something about that. So I put out a question to a couple message boards about why so many manufacturers were based in Utah and if it had anything to do with the Mormon religion and if it was the Mormons who started scrapbooking as we know it today. I got a lot of different answers, but a few of the Mormon ladies said that their religion had nothing to do with it and that it was purely coincidental. I also phoned a manufacturer about it and they too confirmed that it was purely coincidental. I was happy to be more informed about that question.

We've been getting a lot of franchise requests lately. Some from as far away as Malaysia and Australia. Plus I've been getting a lot from the U.S. and across Canada. I can't wait to start getting more people started in their own businesses. It's going to be so much fun having more lime green trucks or trailers on the road. I'm also excited because I now have 3 financing partners who are really excited about our business opportunity and can't wait to get them funded. I have also had tremendous interest in the Edmonton territory. I have 5 girls who have enquired about my territory. Edmonton would be a great territory to buy because it is already established and has future bookings. But no matter where someone buys a franchise, our team will be right by their side helping them to be a great success. I've already talked to Cindy my coach about setting up monthly conference calls for all franchisees and she's so excited about that! Me too!

Well, time to get back to work. I'm going to make up some scrapbooks for the Dragons so they know exactly what scrapbooking is. I'm so excited!

Have a great week everyone and I hope you have lots of time to scrapbook your memories! I promised my friend Sherri that I would blog more.... (she's so funny, I went scrapbooking her, my high school buddy Dawn and her friend Jen and I have never laughed so hard in my life!!! Oh yeah, and I walked into the men's bathroom in the church and I just about peed my pants) Life is great!

What's new?

2008-04-18T11:23:00.003-06:00

What's new with me?

Well, lots of great stuff is happening at the MIM world. Lots of new CHA stuff coming in weekly, new website coming on this Mon, (yay! Melissa from GreenPixel Designs has done a great job with our new website), lots of new customers, new events to go to, new plans for expansion, new potential franchisees, a new old high school buddy back in my life after 20 yrs of being apart, new neice or nephew coming in Oct..... Oh yeah, and husband starts a new job on Mon.

I'm so excited about all the new stuff that has been arriving from CHA. The new Cosmo Cricket has been a best seller. I just got all the new Basic Grey collection packs plus the matching brads and buttons (they're so adorable). Finally, I also got the Crop-a-dile 2 Big Bite in. A couple of my customers were playing with it yesterday and said it's definitely a must have. No more needing the piercing tool to punch holes for brads in the middle of the page. I love that.

Oh yeah, one other thing, I'm auditioning to be on the TV show called Dragon's Den on this Mon. I've been working on my business plan and presentation for two weeks now. I think I'm finally ready for that. I'm sure Mon will be a nerve wracking day for me as I have to drive my husband to his new job (he had a company truck before), then go to the audition (by myself, yikes) wait and wait and wait. I'm hoping they will like my presentation and understand the concept. I'll have picts of the mobile store there, but if they really want to see it, they're more than welcome to come out and see. I'm also going to do a video audition and then I'll email everyone and let them know where they can see it. They want us to direct people to the website, watch the video audition and then they get to vote for their favorite one. The top 10 video auditions get selected to go directly to Toronto to do their presentation in front of the dragons. I'm hoping that lots of my customers and friends will vote for me.

Anyways, nothing else new, heading to Mayerthorpe tomorrow for a charity fundraiser for the Kinette Club. The ladies there are raising money for the Cystic Fibrosis charity and I'm happy to be a part of that and I'll donate 5% of the sales to them.

My friend Shannon Miller is also hosting a weekend retreat in Edmonton, she's helping to raise money for the Kids Kottage next weekend, another great charity.

I still have openings for National Scrapbook Day, so if anyone would like to book me to come, pls let me know.

I hope everyone is having a great spring! Take care and drop me a line any time.

Kelly

2008-02-26T13:57:00.002-07:00

Two things I believe in is mentorship and the Law of Attraction. I really believe that you create your own destiny and that if you want it bad enough and take action you will attract the right things into your life and it will happen. This weekend I was in Cold Lake at Scraptacular 2. An awesome scrapbooking event put on by these awesome ladies at the MFSC (military base). At the end of Sat evening, I was exhausted I went back to my room and turned on the tv. I flipped the channel and came across my new favorite show (although I don't get to watch it very often) Fortune Hunters. It's a spinoff from Dragons Den and Diane Buckner is the host and it's an awesome show because it follows different Canadian businesses and shows how they got started and so on. Well, Saturday's show was on "franchising" which is what I've been working towards since I started my business a year ago.

On the show they showcased Dog Camps and Booster Juice. On the expert panel they had Mack from M & M Meat Shops and some other lawyer dude. I was really intrigued by Booster Juice because of the quick success they've had. The owner is Dale Wishewan who started his first store in Sherwood Park in 1999. The next year they opened 15 stores, then in 2001 50 and 2003 100 and now they have over 200 stores across North America and their revenues are over $46 million. One thing that intrigued me was that he said even though he is a millionaire he doesn't feel like one. So, me being who I am decided that maybe Dale would be a great guy to mentor me and help me. On Mon a.m. I decided to call him, I got his phone # but left it aside. I thought he wouldn't want to help me, I'm not good enough, but then on Tues, afternoon I finally got the courage to call him and he called me back within 10 min of my message.

We had such a great chat. He said absolutely he would love to mentor me (he loves to see people and their entrepreneurial spirit) and would love to go for lunch with me to share his experiences and answer any questions that I might have. And in fact, Mack from M & M Meat Shops had asked him when they were filming the Fortune Hunter show if he was mentoring anyone and he said that he would mentor someone if they came calling and sure enough I called. Dale thought it was pretty cool that I was calling to be mentored when Mack had just asked him if he was mentoring anyone. And I thought it was pretty cool that when I turned on the TV the Fortune Hunter's episode was about franchising which has been the focus of my business for the last little while. If you want to see their website, check it out at: www.boosterjuice.ca. They have a very cool website.

I have also decided that I am going to sell the Edmonton territory so that I can totally focus on franchising and have someone else focus on servicing the Edmonton and area. The great thing about the Edmonton territory is that I have been working hard on marketing for the past year so someone will be buying it complete with a busy schedule.

I'm really excited about the interest we've been having in our franchise opportunity. We have ladies waiting for their financing to go through in PEI, Ontario, and Regina. Plus we also have a couple ladies interested in the Cold Lake area. Every day we're getting emails from all around Canada and the U.S. We're really excited to see all this interest for our business opportunity and can't wait to see more lime green trucks or trailers traveling around. If you are interested in our franchise opportunity or know of someone who might be, please don't hesitate to call (780) 297-0019 or email us any time kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

Have a great week and drop us an email any time.

Wow, it's been so long since I've posted

2008-01-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

Wow, I didn't know I hadn't posted since Dec 4. A lot has happened since then, the motor went on my truck (ouch, $4500 later), then after I got the truck back the water pump went too (another little ouch), Christmas and New Years came and went, new products in the online store and another thing we're really excited about is the addition of a trailer to our franchise opportunity model. Yes, that's right, after all the problems I've been having and the events that I had to miss, I decided to add a trailer option to the franchise opportunity. So if someone doesn't want to drive a cube van or postal van around, they can purchase a Memories in Motion trailer (with inventory) and pull it to different events. The advantage to the trailer is that if your truck breaks down you can just rent a truck to pull it to your events instead of missing out on meeting new people and selling supplies. The trailer option is also good because it is cheaper and more affordable. If you're interested in our franchise opportunity, don't hesitate to email or phone us (780) 297-0019.

The other service we added was "Online Shopping Parties". This is just like an online tupperware party only with scrapbooking supplies. One person signs up to be a "hostess" and then she tells all her friends to come to our website to shop and everyone gets a 5% discount on their orders. Then at the end of the time period, the hostess gets 10% of the sales in FREE stuff.

Feb 7 - 10 we'll be at the Southern Alberta Bible Camp (Vulcan) for a retreat. Carmen told me that they still have spots available. If you would like to attend this retreat, email her at: carmb@la.shockware.com

Since this is retreat season, we have scheduled a retreat every month at Bittern Lake Lodge (www.bitternlakelodge.com) from now until June. Some of the dates are booked up, but there are still some spots available.

Chat with you soon!
Kelly
www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

Never Before Published Layout Book

2007-12-04T13:09:00.000-07:00

Every day I'm getting 1 or 2 people submitting layouts for our book. I am so happy to be working on this project and seeing how people are so excited about getting published. I totally understand from a publisher's point of view how hard it is to select layouts when they get so many every day. For those who dream of being published in the big magazines, this will also give them something to put on their scrapbooking resume. A chance to say "yes, I have been published". We are also getting stores pre-ordering the book and we definitely have enough pre-orders to meet the minimum. Yay! I'm really excited about that. There is still time to submit layouts to us, so don't be shy, just submit up to 3 layouts that you're proud of to kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

So, what else is new?
Well, Christmas is coming and of course everyone has those friends or family they don't know what to buy for. Have you thought about our Pre-Paid Shopping Spree? You pre-pay a set amount and then we show up at your friend's or family's home so they can shop for whatever they want. This is also a great gift idea for the husbands or boyfriends who don't know what to buy us. Ordering a Pre-Paid Shopping Spree is so easy, all you have to do is call us at (780) 297-0019 or email us at: kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com. We have so much fun surprising people when we show up at their door.

The other new thing is I've been adding more stuff to our online store. Yesterday I added another 200 products. Lots of new paper has been added and more to come. I just love the new My Mind's Eye and Scrapworx Christmas lines, they're awesome. I also still have 2 DCWV Christmas stacks and they're so awesome too.

New - Girls Night Out Clubs starting in January - if you have 6 friends who would like to start up a club in Jan for $29.99/month, you each get a FREE kit! Six girls for six months at $29.99, we show you how to make a 2-page layout and then you get to shop in the truck. And best of all you take home your purchases that night.

Hey - Fort McMurray friends, I'm planning a trip up there in Jan, I haven't selected the dates yet and I'm still looking for a good location to set up. If you know of any place that I can sell my stuff at, pls let me know. My Vulcan friends, they know I'm coming back in Feb, I had such a great time that I'm staying longer too. When I come back from Vulcan, I'll have to stock up again and then head out to Cold Lake for their big Scraptacular event. I can't wait because I've never been to Cold Lake before and it should be a lot of fun. I hear there's lots of wild and crazy scrapbooking gals up there.

Upcoming Events

My friend/customer Jacki is hosting a retreat at Bittern Lake Lodge (45 min from Sher Park) on Jan 25 - 27 and she needs to fill 5 more spots. To book your spot call her at 929-9219 or email: robjacki@telus.net.

My friend/design team member Rhonda is starting a new venture selling Mock-Off Purses/Handbags from home. Just in time for Christmas. She is having 3 open houses, Sun Dec 9, Mon Dec 10 and Wed Dec 12 from 7 - 9 pm at her house, email her at: croppindiva@hotmail.com for more details.

My Publishing Dream

2007-11-21T12:26:00.000-07:00

One of my dreams is to be published in a scrapbook magazine and a few of my friends have said the same thing. A few times I have submitted layouts only to be ignored and eventually I got discouraged and stopped trying. I decided to try something else and came up with an idea, why not do a magazine/book for people who have NEVER been published before? So that’s what I’m doing, a book dedicated to scrapbookers who have never been published before and you're invited to submit layouts/projects.

I found a place to do self publishing with very low minimums, but the only problem is that it has to be paid for upfront. We are going to take pre-orders to pay for the book plus a portion of the sales will go to charity. Pre-orders will also ensure that we print enough books for everyone who wants them. If you or your friends would like to have your layout included in this book, email by Dec 15 up to 3 layouts to: Kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com. We will select the layout that we want to include in the book and request it for photographing. The book is going to cost $25 plus $10 for shipping (includes shipping your layout back with the book).

I am also going to have a special section for business listings for only $50 and you get a free book included in that price. There will also be a price for retailers who want to sell them. If this is something you would be interested in, pls let me know.

Thx and I look forward to hearing from you. I'd love to get 100 people in the book. This book is about being proud of what we do and I'd love for other scrapbookers to be able to showcase their talents too.

Kelly & Alexanna Falardeau
www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

This past weekend

2007-11-19T12:26:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was a lot of fun and as busy as I could be. I wanted to see if I could do 3 events in a day and I did. I was worried about having vehicle troubles, but my scrapmobile did great and so did we. My daughter Alex has also been awesome. She insists that she wants to come with me and work. She helps me set up the paper and puts items out on the shelves. Then she also likes to help me write up everyone's orders and use the calculator to add things up. Then she goes and hangs out with the ladies. A few of the girls came in to me to say how awesome of a sales person she was. She definitely has the gift of the gab and isn't shy. She talks to everyone and helps them get stuff from the store. She's an awesome daughter and I'm sure she's going to be taking over the business some day.

This Sat, we had three events to go to. One was a retreat in Bittern Lake (1 hr away from me), then we went North across a couple different cities and drove for 1.5 hrs to get to Gibbons and then ended the evening with a Girls Night Out Club in Northeast Edmonton where we taught 6 ladies how to make a beautiful canvas project for their wall. We had a lot of fun and by the end of the day we were very exhausted.

One of the highlights of our day, which was also sad is that at one retreat we attended, they have a friend who is dying of cancer, so everyone there was making at least one layout for her book. Alex and I gathered up about 7 layouts that we had in the truck and donated them to their friend. They were extremely appreciative that we were willing to help out their friend too. It made us feel so sad that she was dying and so happy that we could help out too.

That's all for now and I hope everyone had a great weekend!

New Canvas Kit

2007-11-09T11:38:00.000-07:00

Last night I decided I had to do a canvas project and do I ever love it. I took a 24x18 canvas, painted it, then attached an 8x10 canvas to it. I then got some snowflakes and painted them with white paint. Some of the snowflakes I put tons of glitter on and other ones I didn't. I love the chipboard letters, I also put glitter on them. They are about 3" in size. With the kit, you get a whole set of letters. I then got some of that snowball ribbon from Walmart and attached that to the top and bottom of the big canvas. The blue you see around the 8x10 canvas is actually blue ribbon around the edge of it. This really makes the 8x10 canvas stand out and would be a great spot for a 5x7 or 8x10 pict or even 2 4x6 picts. If you like this project, I'm making up some kits and they're only $35 and that includes both canvasses, paint and glitter too. Let me know if you'd like me to make you a kit.

This weekend I'll be at 3 different events. Two retreats and one crop at the Sherwood Park Church called Scrapalicious. This is a free crop and everyone is welcome.

Have a great weekend!

Charity Weekend

2007-11-05T13:24:00.001-07:00

This weekend was busy and fun. I helped two different charities. Fri night I attended Harry Ainlay School in Edmonton to help the synchronized swimming club raise money to go to Perth Australia for a competition. The group was very small and sales were very low, but what a great group of ladies. These ladies have never organized a scrapbook event before, but it looked like everyone was having a great time. The biggest problem was when they started to lock the doors and if people came out to my truck store, they couldn't get back in, including me. Oh well, I'm sure they had a great time.

The 2nd charity event that I helped was for the Make a Wish Foundation. They had over 400 picts and they didn't know what to do with them. Eight of us came to the event and helped to create 35 pages for their office scrapbook. Wow! We were thoroughly impressed with how much scrapbooking we were able to get done. We also want to thank everyone who donated supplies for the event including Debbie from Creative Scrapbooks. She donated a whole bunch of Disney stuff for the Disney pages plus a big stack of cardstock and adhesive. Check out Debbie's website at: http://creative-scrapbooks.com/ She has an awesome store in Edmonton and the biggest selection of sports and travel lines.

It was also great to see Susan Tarling come, her son Brandon received a wish last year, a family vacation to Vancouver. Brandon has since passed and is greatly missed by everyone who knew him. Susan brought her friend Karen who is so much fun and quirky. Another awesome mom to help us was Heather (sorry, I don't remember her last name), her son passed away last year when he was 7 yrs old. Heather is an amazing woman who keeps at it and never gives up.

Rhonda Duncan brought her funky son with cool pink hair plus she also brought her best friend Fran. While we were creating pages, her son was creating mini-wish boxes for the kids. Rhonda just had her head shaved for breast cancer on Fri. She raised $4000 and plus she also brought 2 gigantic boxes full of paper, embellishments and stickers for us to use. Fran was so fun and it was great to see her spirit at this event.

And last but not least was Bev. Bev drove all the way from Ponoka to be at this charity event. She also showed us how to make her awesome puzzle piece titles. Thank you Bev for being involved and traveling such a long distance to help us out. I had a great time sitting with you and chatting.

Miriam and Rachel from the Make a Wish Fdn were so awesome and made sure we had everything we needed including a big box of chocolates! Miriam's husband made a big pot of stew for lunch and we all ate it like crazy.

The one I felt the most sorry for was Shona the Executive Director from Make a Wish, she is an avid scrapbooker herself, but had to stay locked in her office working on budget and marketing reports for her board mtg today. She was dying to get out and help us, but she didn't want to miss her deadlines. Don't worry Shona, we'll let you help us next time.

All in all, the weekend was awesome, it wasn't about making money, it was about giving back to people in need and sharing. I had a great time making pages even though I didn't do that many, the ones I did I was proud of and I'm happy to be a part of this great charity. Shona was bugging us about doing this event on a regular basis and we're looking forward to having the next one.

I also want to thank another lady for dropping off a big box off stuff. I don't know her name, but she knows who she is. Thx again for helping out!

Take care and have a great week. I'll post pictures when the girls email them to me.

Cool Demos and Techniques

2007-11-02T10:17:00.001-06:00

One of my favorite places to visit is TV Weekly Crafts. Their name doesn't totally explain what they do, but they have the most awesome videos of the coolest projects. I learn so much from them and I find it a great place to find out how to do neat things. I met the guys at CHA in Chicago and they're so full of energy and have such exciting things planned. I always look forward to seeing what kind of surprises they have. I just watched two demos, one was the Jacob's Ladder cube (how awesome is that) plus the wine bottle box (using the Creative Imaginations round bottle box) and I loved both of them. I can't wait to try making them. I just know I'm going to struggle with the cube project, but I think it's one of those projects that you just need to do it once and then it won't seem so hard. I'll post a pict of the project when I get it done. Check out their site at: www. crafttvweekly.com.

I'm looking forward to doing more workshops in the winter. We're going to start doing our Super Sunday workshops again starting in Nov. We have some exciting Christmas projects planned including a really awesome Advent Calendar that Monica Lipscombe designed. If you're interested in purchasing the kit, it's only $25 (includes the cookie sheet), you can email me at kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com.

This weekend is a charity weekend. Tonight I'm going to a crop at Harry Ainlay School in Edmonton to help raise funds for the synchronized swimming club to go to Perth Australia for a competition. Then tomorrow I'm going to the Make a Wish Foundation office to help them make pages for their office scrapbook.

Talk to you soon and have a great weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-10-09T12:01:00.000-06:00

I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving. We had my husband's family over on Mon evening for our yearly family dinner. Thanksgiving is great because we both do the cooking and so it's not such a big task for either of us. The funny thing is, my husband's family is an "eat and run" type of family. Really, they basically stay for only 2 hours or less. And if they've stayed more than 2 hours, well, let's just say that is totally unusual and rare. Most of them showed up at 5 and left by 6:30, just long enough to eat turkey, clean up, eat dessert, sit down for no more than 10 min and head out the door. Why does his family do that? I don't know and I don't get it. When my family used to get together for holidays, it was always an all afternoon, all evening and then even turkey sandwiches at 9 pm before the long evening of drinking, celebrating, singing, and playing games until you couldn't keep your eyes open. I used to stay up the latest because then I got to hear all the funny stories about my family from before I was born.

I have to show you this new thanksgiving recipe. My friend/franchise director Janeen emailed this to me and we tried it, but it didn't turn out like the pict. What a bummer, but it was fun doing it. My turkey didn't turn out as brown as the pict did. Oh well. I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving like we did. What am I thankful for this year? Two things, a happy and healthy family and lots of great new friends and customers from my mobile store. I want to thank everyone who has helped to make my mobile store as successful as it is. I'm looking forward to making lots of new friends in the coming years. Thx!

The Scrapmobile is on YouTube!

2007-10-03T12:07:00.001-06:00

My new friend Monica (she was one of my teacher's asssitants at Scrapfest) has this cool YouTube demos called "Monica's Place" and this month she featured our mobile store plus the Cosmo Cricket "Best Buds" project that I designed plus the Zutter Bind-it-All tool. I just love her demos and her blog. If you want to check out Monica's Place and see the mobile store in action, click: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ukba6uuZoo

I still have some Bind-it-All tools available, just email me at kelly@memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com

I hope you enjoy Monica's demos as much as I do. I also spent a lot of time at her house looking over her projects and she's an awesome scrapbooker. I hope I can get her to do more stuff with us and to submit some of her layouts to the gallery. Our forum is getting busier, check it out at www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com.

What a cool way to display layouts

2007-10-03T11:50:00.000-06:00

You have to check this out: http://www.memorymakersmagazine.com/08Masters/Functional+Wall+Art.aspx What a cool way to display layouts on the wall. Amy has this set up in her scrapbook room and I just love it. I can't wait to do that in my store/truck. It just looks so nice and organized.

Scrapfest was a success!

2007-09-10T10:25:00.000-06:00

This is the first time I have ever done Scrapfest and what a success it was. I have done other trade shows before, but never specific to scrapbooking and it was great to meet so many women who were as passionate about scrapbooking as I was. At first I was a little concerned about doing a show with so many of my indirect competitors, but because we're different than the brick and mortar stores and the online stores, we reach a different market.

I wanted to first start by chatting about my team, Rhonda Duncan, Carrie Zahorodney and Terrie Moxam. What a fabulous team! We had such a great time together and had so much fun, that the 2.5 days flew by. At times, I thought I was forgetting something and my team was right behind me remembering and using their own initiative to get things done. I couldn't have done it without such great girls right beside me helping to get things done and spread the word about our company. I'm so grateful for them and I know our customers were loving them too. I want to thank them again from the bottom of my heart for being so awesome! Thx Rhonda, Carrie and Terrie. I look forward to working together very very soon! You three are the best!

I also want to thank Deb & Lisa from Scrapfest for putting on such an excellent show. They have done an awesome job turning the show around and making it a great success. I know next year will be even bigger and better. I thought the mini-album workshop was great. We were a little confused though, we had 200 kits and only 120 people had tickets and we ran out of stuff. We felt bad for the few who didn't get kits, but we gave them some of our own stuff to help them with their project. If you took the workshop, but didn't get a kit, let me know and we'll see what we can do.

I also want to thank Cdn Scrapbooker (Jackie & Katharina) and Mylene English (the writer) for doing such an awesome job on the article about us this fall. What a great article and we've been getting so many calls and requests for franchise info. Our goal is to start up a Calgary franchise right away because we are going to be at the Creative Stitches show at the end of Sept in Calgary. We're going to have tons of leads for a potential franchisee, so we're looking to get that franchise going asap.

I also want to thank all the gals who took my "Best Buds" lacing board class. I had a great time teaching them and my assistants Monica and Joanne were awesome! Because we had such a small class I was able to give everyone an extra kit plus I sold the extra supplies at a great discount and donated the cash to the Breast Cancer Foundation. We were able to donate $60 to them. We're helping Rhonda to raise $3000 so she has to shave her head at the Hair Massacre on Valentine's Day.

Anyways, that's all for now, I hope everyone else had as much fun as we did at Scrapfest and I'm looking forward to seeing my new friends again. Thx to everyone for helping us.

Oh, I forgot to mention my trip to Red Deer on Fri night. Our Bind-it-All machine was such a success that I phoned my supplier in Calgary and asked if they had more and they had just rec'd a huge shipment in so I asked if I could bring in 20 of them. They were so awesome to put them aside for me and I had my friend pick them up and we met in Red Deer on Fri night so that I could get them. (Greyhound couldn't guarantee that we'd have them in time) My husband thought I was nuts and doing everything he could to convince me not to go. I told him I just had to get them for my customers. I got home at 1:30 am and had lots of Bind-it-All machines for everyone who wanted them. I couldn't believe the hugs I got from a lady in Drumheller. She was so excited that I was going to get more bind-it-alls and bags for her. What a sweetheart! What a feeling it was for me to see how happy she was. And I also want to thank Janeen my Marketing and Franchise Director for taking time out of her day to go all across Calgary to get the order and then drive all the way to Red Deer just for me. Thx Janeen! You're awesome.

My Guest Designer and Friend, Sherri Tirschmann

2007-08-22T12:20:00.000-06:00

I just have to brag about my friend Sherri. She is such an awesome person who I met on the internet a few years ago. We met on the internet on Thurs and she came to my first CTMH party on Fri. I was worried about her because we had a girl at that party who scared a lot of my friends there that night, but she gave me another chance to prove that I wasn't crazy. Well, crazy, but not that kind of crazy. lol. Anyways, I have seen Sherri's style change and change and change some more and I've seen her build up her confidence that she really is a great scrapbooker.

What do I admire about Sherri? She is so down-to-earth, humble, fun, creative and a great friend. Whenever I need help, Sherri is there and she never expects anything in return. When I needed help at the Woman's Show or the Mom & Tot show, she was there even though she had a bad back and hates crowds. She helps me to stay down-to-earth and to appreciate what I already have in life. Whenever I am with her, I never feel any pressure to be anyone but myself and I always feel relaxed around her. And when I'm feeling crappy about my scrapbooking, she always makes me feel great.

I asked Sherri to be a guest designer because I really do believe she's a great scrapbooker and she is hard on herself and doesn't believe she's good enough. I hope that when you see her layouts that she did with the Sep Kit of the Month that you too will think that she's good enough. I really like how she was able to create such different and unique layouts with this kit. She was able to make it look really feminine and masculine with the same kit. If you're intersted in purchasing this kit for $25, pls go to our website at http://www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com/. Sherri also gets a bonus for every kit sold, so let's help Sherri, she's awesome! If you come to my Facebook group MIM Srapaholics, you'll see more of Sherri's layouts plus you'll be able to chat with her.

Garage Sale Coming Soon

2007-08-21T17:43:00.000-06:00

I'm getting excited to see how many people come out to my garage sale this Thurs & Fri. If you haven't already heard, everything is 25% off and if you bring a friend then you both get 30% off. It's going to be so much fun and I have some door prizes too.

I'm starting to get ready for my sister's wedding in Kelowna, we leave next Wed and I'll be back on Tues. Then I have to finish getting ready for Scrapfest. I'm really excited about Scrapfest because Lisa & Deb have some amazing things planned for the event plus all there stuff has been shipped to my house. No, I haven't opened any boxes other than the box that Vicki Boutin called me about. You're going to love her project.

And if you haven't registered yet, check it out at: http://www.scrapfest.ca/ I'm teaching a class for them too called "Best Buds" using Cosmo Cricket's Halfway Cafe line (http://www.cosmocricket.com/). I have a little surprise for that class too. I'm also excited because Lisa was able to line up a sponsor for the ribbon, http://www.savvynsassy.com/. You have to check them out - if you love ribbon, then you'll love their stuff and they're Canadian. I'm so happy that they were generous enough to sponsor the ribbon and of course Cosmo to sponsor the class kits.

My design team is looking for more people to join our forum. Patti has contests and fun stuff planned, but not enough people to do it with, so pls pls pls join our forum at www.memoriesinmotionscrapbooking.com If you join, then you will also get a $10 gift certificate from me to use in the store.

I ordered some more Clip-it-Ups, they should be here in time for Scrapfest. If you would like me to reserve you one, pls email me. They're so awesome and great for organizing all our collections. Take care and have a great day. I look forward to chatting more in a couple days before I head to Kelowna. Don't forget about the garage sale 14 Grayridge Bay, Stony Plain, half a mile South on Boundary Road (West of Spruce Grove on Hwy 16A), turn right, then turn right at GRayridge Bay and you can't miss the lime green truck. lol. Nobody can miss that blinding truck. lol

Page Maps

2007-08-14T18:28:00.001-06:00

Ok everyone, I just have to tell you about this. My old high school buddy who I just found out last year is an avid scrapbooker (Dawn Ofner) just told me about this awesome website called Page Maps. If you like sketches, you'll love this website. I think sketches are a great way to learn the foundation of scrapbooking plus it takes the guesswork out of it all. Plus it will help you to get more pages done faster because all the thinking is done for you. So, I went to this site www.pagemaps.com (by Becky Fleck) and I was totally blown away by the Page Maps (sketches). They are phenomenal (not sure if I spelled that one right) and you know what I loved the best - she also has ROUND page maps. Yep, that's right, for all of you who are doing lots of stuff with round pages (especially those cool acrylic round pages), round page maps and they're awesome. Check them out, I know I'll be using this website a lot.

Sept Kit of the Month

2007-08-14T10:23:00.000-06:00

Hi everyone,

I just finished creating the Sep Kit of the Month using the Upsy Daisy "Oodles of Doodles" line. The kit comes with 6 sheets of cardstock (teal, red, lime green), 6 double-sided sheets of pattern paper, 4" chipboard letters, crystal sticker bling and 2 sheets of matching rub-ons. Patti McCarthy and Sherri Tirschmann, two very talented designers are working on some layouts & projects to go with this kit, so come back soon to see what they've created.

Pre-orders are being accepted and if you sign up today then you get a package of 80 brads for FREE (a $6.50 value). The KOTM is $25 plus $5 for shipping. Email me today at: mimscrapbooking@hotmail.com to order.

I can't wait to see what kinds of layouts you all create with this awesome kit.

Scrapbook Garage Sale

2007-08-07T10:55:00.000-06:00

Well, I have no room and lots of new stuff coming from CHA, so I've decided to do a garage sale and sell everything for 25% off and if you bring a friend, then you both get 30% off. The dates are Thurs Aug 23 and Fri Aug 24 from 10am - 8 pm at my house. Email me and I'll email you my address in Stony Plain, Alberta.

I'm so excited because I have lots of cool stuff coming. You're going to love the new Zutter Bind-it-All machine. You'll be able to make all kinds of cool mini-books and even coil-ring albums. I love them so much that I'm doing a special promotion. If you start up a Girls Night Out Club, then you get one for FREE! Yes, that's right, a $75 value for free. All you need is 8 girlfriends who want to spend $29.99/month (they get the kit of the month) plus then I come out and show you how to make a 2-pg layout using that kit. Then after the workshop is over, you get to shop in the mobile store. If you're interested in starting a Girls Night Out Club, email me at: mimscrapbooking@hotmail.com I'm limiting this special promotion to only 10 clubs.

I met Tim Holtz at CHA

2007-07-25T10:26:00.000-06:00

I was so excited when finally I got to see Tim alone and chat with him about his new products. He asked me if I had seen his new SCRUNCH BOARD and I hadn't. So I asked him what was so unique and special about this product and he scrunched it up in a ball and then it flattened out when he let go of it. It seems like a chipboard/rubber kind of product. So I asked him why did he want this kind of product and he said because this doesn't break and so he can hammer it, twist it and be ruff with it and doesn't have to worry about it breaking like chipboard does. He said it's way more durable and can handle any kind of distressing. And yes, you can do anything to it that you can do to chipboard. You can paint it, ink it and texturize it. Yes, Tim also has this cool hammer that you can hammer different textures into chipboard. It's awesome.

I also loved the new scrunchboard letters that he made because they come really big (8") and then they have various other smaller sizes in the same package. They're awesome and I can't wait to get them in.

CHA - Chicago

2007-07-24T21:55:00.000-06:00

I just got back from CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) trade show. This is the big trade show where craft, hobby and scrapbooking manufacturers showcase their new lines of products. It was HUGE and I've never been to a trade show with 500 booths. It was very overwhelming so I took pictures of the product lines that I liked and then I'll remember what I saw. I took over 275 pictures. On the way home, I flipped through each picture and took notes about what I wanted to order.

The other thing I loved was seeing all the project ideas. There was so many great layouts and projects that I was extremely inspired. Don't ask me what my favorite was because there's too many to list. I just can't wait to have my scrapbooking garage sale so that I can clear out the current inventory I have and order all brand new stuff.

If you'd like to see picts of the new stuff from CHA, go here: http://picasaweb.google.com/MIMScrapbooking/CHASummer You'll find all the picts I took (275 of them) oh yeah and of course one where Austin Powers had his leg wrapped around me. Good thing my husband doesn't get jealous. lol

Kelly