Pinterest Project...

So, I'm a HUGE fan of Pinterest.  I've found so many fun ideas and I have actually put many of them to good use.

Tonight, I actually made something FOR US, from an idea I found...

And my version... I used a "Hot Chocolate" cylinder I've been holding onto, and altered it to hold my large popsicle sticks... I got the sticks at WalMart for $2.47.  I'm glad I got the big package because we have a  HUGE family!  There's a stick for each family member, and some for friends we are praying for... I have a few spares to add in, too.

Paper is Basic Grey, and the key is from my friend, Betsy... she brought me those Tim Holtz beauties when I was laid up with my crazy broken foot.  Letters were cut out using the Cricut, Wall Decor cartridge.  I ended up putting some clear packing tape over the paper since it will be on the table, plus, I did not exactly glue my letters down that well.

I'm loving this idea, and can't wait for the kids to see it on the dining room table in the morning... I think they will have fun Randomly choosing a handful of sticks to pray for!  

Almost made it...

... I was REALLY trying to go a WHOLE year without posting cards, but alas, I gave up.  13 days before I completed my goal.  How unlike me.  Ok, kidding...

So last fall, we had a few changes around our house... namely, I changed hours at my job and to be honest?  It kind of took me a while to lock in to the New Life it created for us!  You would think that going from Night Shift to Day Shift and not really working weekends anymore would have given me MORE time to do things, but it ended up doing the opposite.  Suddenly, all the time I used to spend getting things done while the fam was at school, THEY WERE HOME FOR, so not much got done around here:)  That's not entirely true... we had (have) TONS of time to spend together, and even more than we bargained for (11 weeks, to be exact) after this little incident.

Who am I kidding?  I made plenty of cards and crafts:)  I just didn't post anything!!!  So here are a few, because I kept VERY GOOD picture documents of everything.  And now I will post them.  In a very un-clever fashion, which suites me just fine, seeing how this is just for my own.  Do not be alarmed, Self... I'm not going to post ALL of them.  Today.

I needed plenty of Thank You cards to send out this summer, for all the people who helped us out!  Our church family was Awesome ministering to us with meals and phone calls... my friends from worked also visited and called and brought over an ADORABLE bag from Thirty One with tons of goodies in it.  This is the card I made for them... DSP from SU! and the "thank you" die cut is SU as well... and the metal tag, too.  

I also got hooked on the Owl Punch from SU! for a while, too... He's just cute, and fun.

... and it was a good time to get caught up on the cards I needed to make for my friends who donated Box Tops for Education for Carly's school... "A" cards for my friend Arlene.

A few "T" cards for my sister, who just might be the Insane Champion for cutting out the most Box Tops.  When I asked people to clip them for Carly, I meant, off things you would buy anyways... not Go Out and Purchase Items Just Because They Have Lots of Box Tops on Them.  But apparently, Auntie didn't get that message.  I think she just likes to cut them out, if you ask me!  Plus, then I had to make her 100 cards.  Grrrrrr.

And in case it wasn't obvious by now... I pretty much make cards with whatever paper is sitting on my desk, so in any given sitting, they are all going to be the same color scheme:)  It's entertaining for me, to say the least.

I also figured out how to make digital stamps, and made a few "sentiments" that I needed...

Birthday card for Parker!  I got GREAT use out of my Cricut making Camp Crafts for our Wild West theme.  Now my Cricut is busily cutting out poster stuff for Ben's ENDLESS school projects.  I've decided teachers make you decorate a poster board for every research project now since actually doing the research is so much easier these days with the internet...

wow.  That was so fun... only 434 more cards to post...

Scripture Challenge: COMPASSION

Compassion... sympathetic consciousness of other's distress, together with a desire to alleviate it.

I have actually spent quite a bit of random time in the past thinking about this word.  Especially when I was in nursing school... is it not the word that should describe a Prudent Nurse?  It is what I have built my whole career around.  Ironically enough, I have never once actually considered it when thinking about God!  Even when singing "Great is Thy Faithfulness" in church, I have skipped right over one of the most important words!  And so, I spent some time reconsidering it this week, and it has been so encouraging. 

The first verse I came across (Lamentations 3:22, 23) just reminded me so much of our trip out west last summer.  We were surrounded by incredible nature and well, majestic mountains and glaciers.  I was literally overwhelmed by how big everything was.  How small we are.  God's creation.  All of it.  The verse fit the last picture I took as we were flying home.  From the plane window at 6am, Mount Rainier.

But what fit how my heart has been feeling these past few weeks, was Isaiah 54:10.  I have just been overwhelmed by life:  Middle School.  New Routines.  Work.  Sickness in our Family.  Family Members Far Away.  Rehearsals.  Swim Team.  Homework.  Not Enough Time.  Change.  To say I have felt "consumed" feels like an understatement.  So, I'm reading this verse and I can't help but feeling, and envisioning, God whispering it into my ear... "Though the mountans be shaken and the hills be removed...yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed".  And all I can think to say back is "say it again.  Please!  Tell me again!" and of course, He does.   Says the Lord, who has a sympathetic consciousness of my distress and has a great desire to alleviate it.

Wow.

Scripture Challenge: PRAYER

Prayer... a petition to God in word or thought.

I have to say, I love doing these scripture challenges.  They have totally made me pay attention.  And for someone who, sadly, has trouble REALLY listening without being distracted, this is HUGE.  These verses are exactly what I have needed over these past few weeks of Newness in Our Lives (Um, Ben starting Middle School.  It's been, well, trying.)  I feel like I am at the ends of the earth crying for help.  I'm sure he feels the same way!  I'm so thankful there is Someone who hears.  Who listens.  Without being distracted.

Photo... took it with my cell phone while we were at Adventure Island, the day before school started.  Little did I know when I took it (they are actually the border of storm clouds, with the sun peeking though... ironic, I know!) that this picture would conjure up so much meaning for me over the next few weeks! 

For a REALLY GREAT blog post in regards to prayer...  click HERE.  I found it very encouraging.

Random Cards #5

Just a few cards... a birthday card with 1/2 the cardstock embossed using my Still Favorite, the cuttlebug!  A little Basic Grey patterned paper, "birthday" stamp which I dismantled from a very old Michael's stamp... butterfly sizzlit from SU a few brads and some gingham ribbon. 

Kind of like this style of card... Especially with contrasting patterned paper, but this one has embossed cardstock on the bottom portion.  The patterned paper is from theAngelCompany and the "Praying for You" is from a SU stamp set, punched out with the oval punch and scalloped oval punch to back it.  Those punches are becoming favorites of mine! 

These next few cards are actually for my friend who "helps" our pastors send out birthday cards to people in the church... I had read a few things online about cardmakers making cards for their church to use and thought it was a cool idea and something I would enjoy doing.  My friend said she always has trouble finding cards for kids, so I've been working on some... sadly, this conversation took place a WHILE ago, and I'm pretty behind... ANYWAYS, this one is made using a 4x6 paper pack from Michael's, that Bday stamp I dismantled, a star punch and some ribbon. 

The Little Girl Versions...

This card is similar to the first one because sometimes I just use whatever is laying on the desk (which is usually EVERYTHING!!!)  Basic Grey paper, sentiment is from the SU stamp set, and that's a Nestabilities die for the ribbon holding label. 

Love this butterfly stamp from TAC.  I think I stamp about every envelope with it these days! 

Inside of the above card.

My odd attempt at a card a teenager would like.  Do they even like cards?  The paper came with everything on it but the "you Rock" part... Cosmo Cricket paper.  I wasn't so wild about the outside,

But really enjoyed the inside:)  Thanks Betsy for letting me borrow the Rocker stamps... You might get them back, SOMEDAY!  These are more for the church.  Ironic, I know, but appropriate.

These paper scraps were left over on my desk after I made Parker's birth announcements.  I think I was going to send them to Randee, but as you can see, 2 months later, they are still at my house.  Sorry about that, R5!!!  Still think those letters are fun!  They are kind of annoying to individually glue down, but I like how they look.

My project of the week!  Finally made some cards using pictures from our fantastic vacation!  This set is for my sister who went with us... I ordered pictures from mpix.com because they have the 3.5x5 size which is much nicer for using on cards.  I LOVE the quality of the prints!!  They have the option of paying a little more and they will touch the colors up for you, or you can get them printed "as is" for cheaper.  These were "as is" and they came out so nice!!!  The pictures are just mounted on SU cardstock (Mellow Moss, now retired!  and Marina Mist) and I labeled them because there was room to do so and it seemed like a good thing to do:)

Scripture Challenge: FORGIVE

Forgive.  To cease to feel resentment against. 

I'd love to say that this is EASY for me... mostly I have issues realizing that I need to ASK for forgiveness.  Or wanting to give up the resentment towards others.  I seem to REALLY have "Ceasing" issues.  Anyways, LOVE doing this challenge because it makes me look up verses I would normally just pass over.  And think.  It makes me think.  I need that.  I might be VERY BEHIND in the challenge, but that comes from NEEDING so much EXTRA time to contemplate these things... it takes me a very long time since I have LISTENING issues, too.  Grrrrr.

This verse!  Guess who the Remnant of His Inheritance is?  Lucky day, it's ME!  So He pardons my sins, and forgives my transgressions.  All of them.  There are many.  And the 2nd best part... He does not stay angry forever... but DELIGHTS to show mercy!  I love so much that God is our Father, because it gives me such a clear picture of His love for us.  I mean, I am a parent, and there are times (even though my MOM would DISAGREE!) when my kids are disobedient and they make me angry!  How many times must I ask them to do what I tell them?  To (ironic!) STOP saying "Stooooooooooooop!" to each other!  How many times do I have to talk to them about their rotten attitudes, their selfishness, their apathy?  But I am their mom.  I don't stay angry forever.  They might (or maybe not!) ask for forgiveness, and I melt.  I am pleased that they get it.  I am happy to show them some mercy.

Pretty sure God gets tired of telling me over and over again what to do (and I just DON'T!!)... I annoy him with bratty behavior.... my own rotten attitude.  My selfishness.  My apathy.  And yet.  You know, God's Mercy is incredible.  He forgives.  He still calls me His.  He forgives.

Let THAT inspire you today!

photo:  That would be Word of Life Island in Schroon Lake, New York, Where Ryan and I were camp counselors the summer of 1991.  It WAS the most tiring summer of our lives, until we had kids!  Pretty sure THAT relates with the above verse somehow!

Announcing Parker!

*Sigh*  There really isn't anything else to say. 

This is Parker Erwin K.!!!  Our sweetly adorable, newest nephew!  Ryan's youngest sister, Randee, gave birth to her FIRST baby nearly 2 weeks ago... safely delivered on his Great Grandpa Tuinstra's birthday, hence his middle name, Erwin!  We are SO HAPPY for this precious addition to our FAST growing family!  Parker makes GrandBaby #11 for Ryan's parents, and our kids are the oldest, so they've about gotten a new baby every year!  CONGRATULATIONS to Randee and Johnnny!  We are so proud of you and Parker!

So, I was THRILLED to make these for Parker!  These birth announcements were pretty fun to make, and Randee sending me txt messages with pictures of Parker while I was cutting, certainly help keep the momentum going!  That is Bo Bunny paper (it is actually Fourth of July paper!), SU! cardstock, and stamp sets from Michael's brand, Recollections (letters, and Baby Boy set).  Ribbon from SU!

For the inside, I printed all his "stats" and name on the computer and cut each one out using the CuttleBug and Nestabilities Label Eight.  Randee just needs to add a photo to the top half of the inside of the card, and these announcements are ready to go!  I also covered a tin box with paper from Creative Imaginations that already had that pattern and circles, etc on it.  Seriously, just glued it on the box, so no great creativity there. 

Aren't they so very sweet!  I just LOVE this picture of Parker!  He's so in love with his Mama, it just makes me smile.  Can't wait to meet you, Little One!

*A word about the photo's.... the first one I stole from Ryan's sisters blog, Renae.  THANK YOU!  I would have asked, but when I thought to call, it was the middle of the night, and generally speaking, no one REALLY wants to talk to me then.  It is a completely beautiful photo, and since you got to hold Parker and I didn't, it's the least you can do.  I mean, I'm giving you Photo Credit, so it's not really stealing, right?  Kidding about the "least you can do" part:)  Amazing picture! 

The last picture, I'm sure Parker's dad took, as he's a photographer person and it looks so professional.  It was on facebook, so that DEFINATELY isn't stealing.  HA!  Besides, if you look that great after giving birth, I doubt you really care if someone posts your picture on their blog, right? 

Congratulations Randee and Johnny!

Scripture Challenge: FEAR NOT

You know what?  This is hands down my favorite verse.  Ever.  Last fall I made this verse into a blog header for our family blog and wrote a whole bunch about my feelings on it HERE.  And now, 10 months later, I'm STILL amazed by the deep meaning revealed in this verse.  When I read it, I  feel this overwhelming sense of  unworthiness and amazement that HE called ME by name (you know, because HE knows it!).  I catch my breath every single time.  I love the ownership it reveals.  His ownership of me.  Tonight, our kids were having a swim meet and my husband asked me to hold MY ipod for him.  I said, "hey, this is MINE anyways!" and he stroked my cheek and quietly said to me, "YOU are mine!".  Such love.  And to think that the Creator of the Universe feels even more love towards me.  It is amazing.  Still.

And fear. I feel like I am constantly asking God to take it away from me.  And He does.  But it seems minutes later I am ignoring His protection and allowing fear to grip me again.  It's a constant battle for me.  Fear of losing someone I love.  This verse DOES comfort me, especially when I think of it in these terms:

"Fear not, for I have redeemed THEM!

I have summoned THEM by name!

THEY are MINE!"

His.  Not mine.  There is something so comforting about that, even though that might seem odd. 

The photo... from the Oregon Coast.  And our amazing vacation there last summer!  Loved every minute of it, and pictures of it make me so happy:)

Scripture Challenge: GROW

GROW: to spring up and develop to maturity.  I love this passage because I think it is REALLY encouraging... definately worth checking out!  I find that I need to remind myself daily to "live a life worthy of the Lord", so I'm glad to have this reminder. 

The photo.... NOT taken by me!  I knew the day would come when I would rely on someone else.  And I've been relying on her for years now!  My BFF grows amazing flowers.  I am certain that I have a BLACK thumb, so I am so very impressed with her capacity to GROW things, and also, quite impressed with her mad photography skills.  She has a really cool flower blog now, which you can check out HERE... I used to live in her backyard.  I wouldn't mind living in her backyard again, because there are many, many flowers.  She sent me my first flowers once when I was REALLY sick in high school (and also hid a bag of Munchos potato chips under my pillow because my mother wouldn't let me eat anything!) and she's still sending me flowers NOW, although they are digital files of her amazing handiwork!  THANK YOU, Sioux!!! 

Your Invited

Retirement party invitations for the Principal of the kids school.... she retired this year after being with the school for 36 years (as teacher, asst. principal, then principal).  She's been a GREAT boss for Ryan and Principal for the kids, and friend to all of us!  She will really really be missed.  I was pretty honored when the office staff told me they really wanted me to make these for her party.  I made 100. 

I printed the inside part on the computer, but stamped the flower thing in green.  The outside is kraft cardstock (SU!) and K&Company paper.  Scallop oval and Oval punches (SU!) for the "an invitation" part... that was also printed on the computer so the fonts would match.

On Mrs. B's last day, they had a Clap Out for her, complete with red carpet!  Ok, not a fan of the Clap Out, but just thinking about THAT one could bring a tear to my eye. 

Project Tiles

These are dry erase message boards I made for the Principal of the kids school to give out to the teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week.  She retired this year and wanted to give them something personalized.

They are tiles from Home Depot (white glazed tiles) and I stamped on them with Staz-On ink, then baked them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 30minutes.  I turned the oven off and left them in there to cool off over night.  If you stamp on them and it doesn't look right or isn't clear (the tiles ARE slippery!!!) you can wipe it off immediately with a paper towel soaked with Staz-On cleaner.  Then you can try again.  You CAN get it off the same way after time passes (but BEFORE you bake it!) but you are going to have to really work at it.  Once it's baked, it's STUCK:)

I made 55 of these!  and packaged them up for her with a dry erase marker and a stand.  They were actually pretty fun to make.  Many years ago my sister-in-law KRISTI made dry erase tiles for us and I always thought they would make GREAT teacher presents!  We are actually going to make a "kid friendly" version of these at camp... you can draw on them with Sharpie markers and then bake them (as above) and the marker stays on.  They are going to just decorate them and have their camp friends sign them, not so much a dry erase board.  If you try this method, the yellow and green do turn an odd shade, but all the other colors stay true! 

Scripture Challenge: PURPOSE

Purpose... an end to be obtained.  I loved this verse the most because I am a planner!  When my son says "What's the Plan for today?" I smile because I know exactly where he gets it from!  You don't have to have Asperger's Syndrome to need that "comfort"!!  But I know that there is GREATER comfort from the Master Planner.  I admit, it is hard for me to rest in that most days.  This verse and picture seem to make that a little easier for some reason.

The picture:  I took it on the back deck of Ryan's parents house in Michigan... the resting corn fields on an evening in December.  There were about 26 people INSIDE the house (about 10 of them small children all under the age of 10!) and I distinctly remember thinking it was CRAZY QUIET outside when I took the picture! 

Scripture Challenge: EXAMPLE

Example... one that serves as a pattern to be imitated. 

I almost chose a different verse to put on here, but went with THIS one because I just love this whole Chapter...  Big night for Jesus.  And he takes the time to wash his disciples feet.  Teaches them to be a servant.  And tells them to follow His example.  I think when people know they are going to die and their time has come, the stuff they are telling you is REALLY REALLY important.  The last opportunity to make you understand what their life's passion was or what they hope for you, etc... of course EVERYTHING Jesus said was REALLY REALL important, but I can't help thinking that he reiterated this stuff at the end for a reason.  Anyways, it's good stuff...

The picture.  It's no secret around here that our family are HUGE Tampa Bay Ray's fans.  It's a comical understatement.  We get it from my husband.  When he was a little boy he LOVED baseball.  Not playing, but listening to the Detroit Tiger's games on the radio.  And talking baseball with his grandma.  I tell you, you haven't lived until you've watched that very tiny little-grandma-lady screaming at baseball players to "get it together!"  Ryan grew up loving the stats the most, not so much a team.  Just the game.  So when we moved to Tampa in 1996, there was talk about an expansion team coming our way and he decided the opportunity was too great to pass up, and decided to jump on board, BIG TIME.  And I went along with him, you know, because we are married:)  Good chance I couldn't even identify a baseball at that time.  We spent many evenings attending games, took our brand-new son to his first MLB baseball game when he was just 8 weeks old (um, it would have been sooner, but that was nearly opening day as it was!), he took our babies by himself when I was working (quite the site to see a father toting a 3 year old, plus baby-girl-in-the-snuggli, and diaper bag to a baseball game by himself, i'm sure!), we've travelled all over the country on Official McGregor Baseball Road Trips to see these Boys play... well, you get the idea.  This is one of the things that defines us as a family.  I'm ok with that.  Because we ALL love it.  It's just one small way we spend time together as a family.  This picture is our little crew (well, of course I took the picture, so you can't see me!) heading across the parking lot to Tropicana Field.  My brother got Ryan his shirt for Christmas.  He's been a fan since 1998...  and those kids?  Well, they were BORN Rays fans!  (I may or may not tell Carly that she was named after Carl Crawford... or Carlos Pena.  Depends on who just got a good hit!  "And that's why we named you after him, Carly!!!"  She may or may not appreciate such information.)

Scripture Challenge: QUIET

I'm a little behind on this challenge... but I really enjoy "researching" the words and finding verses.  This was kind of a hard word for me because I have a REALLY hard time being QUIET!  My Mom is COMPLETELY agreeing, and sending up a quick prayer of THANKS to God for giving me a daughter who talks about as much as I do!! 

What I REALLY wanted to use for a picture was impossible as the church no longer exists.  In 1997 and the first half of 1998, I spent a lot of time praying to God for a very specific reason.  Baby.  We were fortunate that it didn't last longer.  A few infertility treatments and 9 months later, we were the proud parents of a darling baby boy!  But I never forgot praying.  And more specifically, WHERE I prayed.  Ryan was teaching at a Christian school at the time, and his office was right off the church's sanctuary.  What an appropriate name.  While I would wait for him to be done each day, I would "sneak" into the sanctuary and just sit there.  It was usually dark, or very dimly lit.  It was quiet.  In fact, the silence was deafening most days.  It is so rare that I find myself in such quiet!  But I know for me, that is what I need to really focus and NOT be distracted.  Quiet.

This picture was the NEXT thing that came to mind... our family member, Miggy.  Enjoying a quiet, afternoon nap.  He just looks so peaceful.  14 years of doing nothing will do that to you, I guess!

I love this verse, but I think it might be one of the hardest verses to actually DO!  I really love the verse that comes a few before:

Delight yourself also in the Lord

and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4

Black and White Mother's Day

Mother's Day... we are so thankful my parents are home from Israel for a few months!   We had a fun day celebrating Mother's Day and my Mom's birthday, which was actually in March.  Her favorite store is Coldwater Creek and this is what they give you when you purchase a gift card there.  You know, to wrap it in.  Which would have been fine, except my BROTHER chose to "trump" me, by giving her the SAME EXACT gift the day BEFORE.  So then I felt OBLIGATED to at least upgrade my packaging, if I couldn't upgrade the gift.  Childish?  I'm ok with that. 

I'm on a sort of Black and White kick these days... thanks to the K&Company paper pack I got.  And I'm glad this is Mom's favorite store because then I have access to lots of these little boxes and bags to alter! 

Here are her Mother's Day and Birthday cards... the one on the left is actually a paper pack I picked up at Ross.  Did you know they sell scrapbooking/cardmaking supplies?  Who knew?  Over by the books.  For REALLY cheap:)  The card on the right has Stampin'Up! stamps and Basic Grey patterned paper (2nd Favorite!... Um, #1 Cosmo Cricket, #3 K&Company.  I know you were dying to know).

And the card Carly made for her Grammy.  She had fun heckling me for items.  I think she's pretty clever!

*side note: My brother did NOT hand make any cards.  I'm just saying.  Sibling Rivalry NEVER gets old:)

Scripture Challenge: HYMN

One of the things we love about our church is worshipping God.  Together, with our church family.  A community.  Our new sanctuary was completed this winter (you can read about it HERE if you are so inclined)... this picture is of the bell that is in the new bell tower.  Someone rings it every Sunday to call us to worship.  This verse is God's call to worship for us... it's what we were created for.  To worship Him.  Love that.

Scripture Challenge: PERFECT

A couple more verses I wanted to add, but alas, not enough room...

As or God, His way is perfect;  the word of the Lord is flawless.

He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.

Psalm 18:30

It is God who arms me with strength

and makes my way perfect.

Psalm 18:32

But mostly these days, I'm really loving Isaiah.  And this Scripture Challenge.  I have learned a lot, and a few nights ago, I made up my own... not so much to be creative and make a digital image, but because something was really weighing heavy on my mind and it seemed like the best way for me to figure out what God had to say about it.  Turns out, God isn't silent afterall.  Love that.

This picture is from our vacation last summer.  I was having trouble finding a picture for this challenge (hence my 11th hour posting!) and decided to look in pictures from our "Perfect Vacation" and smiled when I remembered this one!  We were on our cruise ship leaving from Pier 91 in Seattle, and as I was taking pictures of the Space Needle, the Blue Angels flew over!  Not sure why, but it sure was impressive to watch them!  Such precision.  Such PERFECTION.  Stedfast.  It was the beginning of a GREAT vacation where we spent every minute being in awe of God's perfection in nature.  Pretty cool.  Love these verses.

Travel Journal

A post for my sister.  Everyone knows I will do ANYTHING for my sisters.  When they ask, I hook them up.  This is for you, Laurie.... Travel journal post.  Since you are making one for your trip to Israel.  Excuse me, 2 other readers, as I address my sister here...

Ok, I started with a SU blank journal... I chose this because it comes with a "blank" chipboard cover, and cardstock pages.  So, sturdy.  You can use ANY pre-made journal and alter it, or you could get REALLY Creative and cut your OWN carstock and chipboard cover and MAKE the whole thing using a Bind-It-All.  That's pretty ambitious:)  ANYWAYS, I started by covering it with some "travel-y" looking scrapbook paper from Michael's (it's double sided, and red on the flipside) so I secured it using super sticky double-sided tape.  I put that "Alaska" plastic cut out on the front, mostly because I had it in my stash of "Alaska" items I bought at YOUR scrapbook store (remember that?  It was a YEAR before our trip!!) it was too long, so I had to cut off 1/2 of the moose!  I tied the "coins" on the top of the rings just because I thought they were fun. 

Ok, so the inside...  I cut a DIFFERENT travel paper to fit the inside cover... I did NOT fold paper over the edges (you know with mitered corners, etc) I just cut it to fit to the edges.  A ruler is a HUGE must for this, unless you are REALLY into Trial-and-Error.  Which DOES come in handy, sometimes!  Anyways, Trial an Error is how I made the pocket:)  I STARTED by cutting the paper bigger than the size I wanted the pocket to be... punched holes with the Bind-it-All (right side of paper) and RE-cut the paper after lining it all up (remember the Ruler?  This is why you REALLY need it!) then I covered all but the punched holes with clear packing tape, and taped that bad boy down.  Hind sight?  Don't bother with the pocket.  I never used them:)  HA!  I won't put them on again.  You know, for me.  ANYWAYS, speaking of the packing tape... before I put the pocket all the way on I covered the whole cover (front and back) with strips of the packing tape.  I WOULD recommend this as it makes it kind-of-water proof.  I know you can see the tape, but I was glad I did... of course, we were on a cruise, so since you are going to the DESSERT, you might not need this option. 

So, We had the luxury of knowing for the most part, what we were going to do each day.  I made a list of "Day one, Day two..." and put the dates with them, etc.  I think the dates look cool typed out like "03.25.10" but that's me.  You can do it anyway you want, or no dates at all.  I would definately have pages for TRAVELLING because you know something fun is going to happen while you are travelling with Amanda!  HA!  That's the whole point of the travel journal... you take the time to write these things down when they happen, or at the very least, each night, while they are fresh in your mind.  You will be SO happy to have those memories in a few months when you completely forget the minor details and only remember the "Big things".  Trust me.  ANYWAYS, I figured out how many days we were going to be gone, broke it down into dates, and figured out how many pages I could have for each day.  I knew there were some days we were going to be doing a TON of stuff, and some we were going to be just driving, so I shifted pages accordingly (ie, 7 pages for the day we went to Skagway, and only 3 for travelling).  Once I got that figured out, I printed out "labels" on the computer.  Then I punched them out using my SU oval punch, and backed them with the scallop oval punch.  Yes, I justified this purchase EXCLUSIVELY for this book.  Of course, I've used it a million times since, but this is what I really wanted it for.  I attached the labels...  then I made MORE labels for each of the places I thought we would see...  while we were on the cruise, we had an itinerary that we would  DEFINATELY be sticking to, so I put those on the pages on the dates they fell under... but AFTER the cruise, when we were "just" doing our own thing out west, I made labels, but didn't attach them to the book.  You could put double sided tape on them and stick them on a piece of clear acetate and tuck them in those pockets and attach like stickers when you need them!  What a GREAT idea for those useless pockets!  HA... I just stuck them on when I got home.  Well, really, last week.

I also "assigned" pages to Ben and Carly that they were supposed to write on.  Their point of view is always so funny!  Renae had given me stamps with their names on them, so I stamped their pages with those. They didn't do much writing, in the end, however.  What ended up happening with us was that "Journal time" came at 11pm at night when they were in bed, so they just shouted out to me what they thought were the best parts of the day, and I included it... sometimes they wrote, though:)  I had to get over their scribbly handwriting, which was NOT SO EASY FOR ME, but I did it:)

See, there's Ketchikan day...

Oh, YOU MUST DO THIS... each night, I wrote down the digital numbers that my camera attaches to each picture and wrote what the pictures were of... EXPECIALLY when we were on the Oregon Coast (actually, I wrote those down IMMEDIATELY because we were going to so many cool places that kind of looked the same).  I burned a CD to stick in the back of this journal after we got home, so I can always see the pictures that go with each day. 

Ok, so you get the idea that I stamped travel stamps through out the journal.... decorate it anyway you want. 

Then I attached the hair elastic to the back with my crop-a-dile.  Punch the hole first, then put the elastic through (I used the LARGE ones that go on like a headband... Target, and cut it in 1/2), then stick the eyelet through the hole (BESIDE The elastic) and smoosh.  You  might need to look at that picture for a little bit and play around with it so that your elastic will lay flat, like below. 

Lastly, here's how I put the ribbon bookmark on... just laced it through the rings.  Real fancy, huh?!  I did find the book mark helpful to "keep my place"... which is what a book mark does, right?  Real Rocket Science here.

Hope that helps you and that you have fun making your Israel Journal.  Send me some pictures!