Laura Vegas

day three of our trip … saturday. we started the day out bright and early. i had been up until 2:00am typing up my blog post from day two … seriously. but we were up by 6:30am … getting ready, finishing packing, making sure we had everything. we were checked out of the hotel by 8:45 … and on the road to meet wendy!

we met up with wendy at a starbucks and got some drinks … and just hung out for 2 hours to chat. it was soooo nice! wendy has become one of my closest friends over the past year … and is one of my go-to people to discuss design team stuff, publishing stuff, and scrapping in general. and it was so fun to actually sit face to face and talk … so much easier than typing all the time. lol! the 2 hours went by far to quickly though!

then we headed over to chili's to meet some of the girls for lunch. jen, shaunte, wendy, brenda, and wendy were all able to come … and deneen's cousin, jenn and her friend, judi joined us. i know a few others wanted to come, but just couldn't make it. but it was a fun group. and lots of good conversation. i love having other designers to chat with … to get their points of views … and to know that they're just as crazy overwhelmed with projects and stuff too. i just really enjoyed hanging out with everyone!

shaunte … we go back a few years to our paperkuts days. she is seriously one of the funniest people i know … and a mad scrapper! she can whip up a layout on any given theme, at any given time … even if it means posing her kids in swimming suits in the snow. lol! and "oh my heck" … a phrase that deneen has already declared her new favorite! she is also a fantastic enabler … she can convince you that you HAVE to have just about anything that is a great deal!

brenda … i'm not even sure how i came across her blog. but she has the most gorgeous layouts … so much detail and texture. and the cutest kids … her daughter is adorable! and she is tall … something random … but next time i see her i must bring my heeled boots that i normally wear all the time. lol! and you might recognize her a little … she was the one that i did a RAK layout for a few months ago. totally not rigged in the least. lol! but i thought it was fun that i got to do it for her! 

jen … such an amazing person. i didn't know if jen remembered (since there was never really chit chat on the team) … but we were on lil davis DT together for a bit. and i have been a fan of her work for years. she has been dealt things in life that no one should have to go through … but she has such a positive and happy way about her. and she has beautiful layouts … and some awesome projects that are on my to-do list!

back row: wendy, wendy sue, deneen, jenn, and judi. front row: brenda, shaunte, jen, and me.

and i didn't get a picture with wendy. but i met wendy back in my short-lived paperkuts days … when i taught at a scrapbook expo. i walked into that hotel room not knowing what to expect or who would be there. i found wendy and her daughter … surrounded by boxes and boxes and boxes of product. and we had to kit all the classes for the next 3 days that night … 15 classes worth. it was the most exhausting 3 days of my life … but also the funnest days. and wendy and her sense of humor made it all so much fun. she is hilarious … and it was so nice to see her again!

after lunch … deneen and i made our way back to the warehouse sales. see up there … we got a sign of the american crafts sign for you! and even a glimpse of the snow on the mountains behind us … the closest we came to snow on our trip. we actually went to quikutz first … since deneen was missing a few parts for her revolution that she bought the day before. and who did we run into there? shaunte and wendy of course. deneen got her missing pieces … and also picked up a deal on a quickutz alphabet for only $5! then we all made our way back over to american crafts … and found even better deals than the day before. thickers and rubons and ribbon … you just can't pass up things like that. not when you use them as much as i do. lol! we also found their travel collection of paper … and decided we'd use that for our album on this trip. we have the paper, the flair, and lots of ribbon to match.

afterwards, we came to deneen's cousins house … where we were staying for the night. we were exhausted in all honesty … and sort of ready to come home. we even did try calling to see if we could get an earlier flight home. we could have … for $200 each. lol! so we passed and decided we'd stay. we spent about 2 hours going through our bags and trying to get everything to fit. actually, it wasn't fitting everything that was the problem … it was the weight of what we had. deneen even got an extra full-sized suitcase from her cousin … figured she'd just pay to check a second bag. but we had lots of paper and books … and that gets heavy very quickly. we would get everything situated … and then weigh the bags and realize that they were over on the weight. no idea what they charge if you're over … but not something we want to mess with. lol! so we kept re-arranging and moving things around … and we think we have it all ready.

this morning … we're taking our time a little getting up and ready. the first morning that hasn't been rushed. we're just about ready to pack up the rental car … and go see what we can find to do the rest of the day. our flight is at 9:00pm tonight. kind of late … since i have to work tomorrow morning. and i really wanted to see my girls when i get home. but i figure we won't get back to our homes until about 11:30pm tonight. more odds and ends to come for day 4 … from the warmth of my own home!