Welcome to the Family

And our Europe album is COMPLETE! Woohoo!

These are just some cute pictures I took of my brother's new gerbils. They are adorable and have funny names. =P

Details: Brown die cut paper is by Sandylion and came in a two paper set. Scalloped edge was made with the Fiskars Threading Water punch. Green letter stickers are by mls. "Welcome" was cut using the Alphalicious Cricut cartridge.

After Party

We went to a pub where my brother used to work after the parade. It was so nice to inside and WARM. But then it got reallt loud when one of the bands from the parade decided to join us and play inside the pub.

Details: Heart ribbon is actually from my trip. Black bands on the ribbon are Fastenator staples. Yellow/blue star paper is by Basic Grey. Spotted rainbow paper is by DCWV Pet's Stack. Shield was cut using the Paper Dolls Cricut cartridge. "After Party" was cut using Lyrical Letters (Jack Sprat feature).

Karlsruhe

On Friday after getting back from Austria, we went to downtown Karlsruhe to wander and shop.

Details: Cream/brown patterned paper is from the SEI Alpine Frost stack. "From far and near we're all here" embellishment is by Me and My Big Ideas (Soft Spoken). Travel journaling block is by Little Yellow Bicycle. "Karlsruhe" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge (Connected feature).

Heidelberg

Pictures on the pedestrian bridge in Heidelberg, Germany. And Warren being silly with a statue. =P

Details: Green patterned paper that says "Germany" is by Stamping Station. Flower is by K&Company (but I changed the rhinestone color). Travel journaling block is by Little Yellow Bicycle. Ribbon is by Basic Grey. "Heidelberg" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge (Jumbo feature).

Heidelberg Castle

Pictures from the Heidelberg castle. The best parts of this castle are the "small" and large kegs (actually were used for wine). That's what we're standing in front of and on top of on the left page. The large keg holds 220,000 litres.

Details: Grid patterned paper is by Basic Grey - Dragonwell from the Marrakech collection. Maroon shimmery patterned paper is by Reminisce - Autumn Nights Shimmer. "Heidelberg castle" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge (Jack Sprat feature).

Fasching

The first Germany layout from our Europe trip. On the last day at my brother's we went to a Fasching Parade. It's basically Carnival. You dress up crazy, drink, and catch candy from the passing floats.

Details: Spotted paper is from the DCWV Pet Stack. Green patterned paper is by My Mind's Eye - Penny Lane. Orange ribbon was from the $1 bin at Michael's. Scalloped edge was made with the Fiskars Threading Water punch. Blue metal dots are by Mark Richards. "Fasching" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge (Jack Sprat feature).

Souvenirs

And the Austria layouts are done! Next up: the Germany leg of our Europe 2009 trip.

These are some postcards my mom picked up in Soelden along with a map of the ski resort and another ski pass.

Details: Background patterned paper is by Heidi Grace. Ski clothes paper is from the DCWV Christmas Glitter Stack 2007. House and "Ski Trip" stickers are by Jolee's Boutique. "Souvenirs" was cut using the Calligraphy Cricut cartridge.

Downtime

Pictures from our evenings in Austria. After skiing, we settled in at our huge table for dinner and games. My family loves board games. =P

Details: I used scraps, so I only remember some details. Orange patterned paper is by Crate Paper. Dark brown striped paper is by K&Company from their recycled mat stack. "if found please return to" stamp is by Making Memories Passport line. "Downtime" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge.

Soelden

Here is my mom and I by the river that ran through the town of Soelden. On our day off from skiing we walked down to town for lunch.

Details: Blue paper with swirls is by Heidi Grace - Vineyard Shimmer. Grey and white swirl was cut out of American Crafts paper (see Ski Tunnel post). Button is also American Crafts. Scalloped line was made using an EK Success corner rounding punch. Letters/Numbers are from two different glitter alpha sets by Making Memories.

Ski Tunnel

We'd never seen a ski tunnel before and thought this needed to be documented. =) In order to get to one area of the ski resort, you had to pass through this concrete tunnel they bore through the mountain.

Details: The background grey/white patterned paper is by American Crafts - Modabella Pretty. The striped paper is Heidi Grace - exclusively for Archiver's. The embellishment in the center was cut out of the background paper (center) before glueing the papers together. Stitching was done on my regular sewing machine. "Ski" was written with Making Memories glitter alphas. "Tunnel" was written with American Crafts Thickers foam alphas.

Kasespaetzle

I took a picture of my food in Austria because it was a Bavarian specialty, but my sister-in-law got a little mad when I called it "German Macaroni and Cheese." =P

Details: I don't remember the brand for the background paper. Cream/brown patterned paper is from the SEI Alpine Frost paper stack. Orange scalloped border is by Crate Paper (Lemon Grass collection). Scalloped journaling circle is by Jenni Bowlin. Glitter rubon of sticks/leaves is by Colorbok (my Wild Life). "Kasespatzle" was written with Prima flocked alphas.

Design inspiration: Paperclipping featured on Ali Edwards' blog

Beautiful Views

A pretty simple layout of the views we saw on the mountain in Austria. I really wanted the focus to be the photos. But I swear this layout has more tecture in person with the shiny and fuzzy papers I used.

Details: Silver paper is Bazill Bling. White paper is doodlebug design - lily white chenille cardstock. Ski chair is by Jolee's Boutique. Black glitter lettering is by Making Memories. "Beautiful" was cut using the Storybook Cricut cartridge.

The Gondola

These pictures are of my family on the gondola that we took up the ski mountain each day. I also included one of our ski passes. Sadly, my dad has his eyes closed, but sometimes you just have to use what photos you took. =P

Details: I forget the origin of the snow words paper. The ski embellishments are by Jolee's boutique. "The Gondola" was cut using the Stamped Cricut cartridge.

Family

Here are pictures of our famiy at lunch after we checked into our rental apartment.

Details: Striped paper is by Heidi Grace. Ribbon is also by Heidi Grace. "Family" was written with K&Company recycled chipboard letters.

Belledonne

Here is the apartment building we stayed in during our Austria ski vacation.  It had ski in/ski out access.  Perfect!  The top is a view of the bunny slope in front.

Details:  Grey patterned papers are by American Crafts.  Ribbon from Michael's.  "Belledonne" was written with Making Memories glitter alpha stickers.

A Snowy Drive Home

As thejournalig says, we woke up to a heavy snow and quickly packed a started on our way home.  We were worried about the conditions on the roads driving through the mountains.  My dad had to drive quite slowly to get down to the town of Soelden, but then we were fine from there.

Details: Tree and scalloped accents are from a die cut set by My Mind's Eye.  "home" was written with Making Memories glitter alph stickers.  "Drive" was cut using the Lyrical Letters Cricut cartridge (Italic Monoline feature).

Layout design inspiration:  Paperclipping Video

Enjoy the view

On our drive down to Austria, we stopped at this viewpoint to see Germany's largest Alp.

Details:  Upper studded swirl is by Imaginisce.  Lower swirl is by My Mind's Eye.  Scalloped edge was made with the Fiskars Threading Water punch.  "Enjoy" was cut using the Calligraphy Cricut cartridge.  "the VIEW" was written with Making Memories glitter alphas.

Austria

The first of our Austria layouts!  These are pictures that Warren took as we drove down from my brother's place.  The journaling just explains a little bit about our travels.  I wanted to play around with larger photos, so I printed out the tree photo as an 8x12 at Costco.

Details:  Swirl overlay is from My Mind's Eye.  Car embellishment is by EK Success Getaways.  "Austria" was written with Thickers Cream Soda foam alphas.

When in Paris...

The last Paris layout!  Just some favorite photos from walking around the city and momentos from metro travel and a restaurant we visited.

Details: Patterned papers are all Making Memories.  Journaling block and leaves were cut using the Storybook Cricut cartridge.  "When in Paris..." was cut using Lyrical Letters (Loop de loo feature).  Thank you Jennifer for the title help!  ;)

A 3 Person Elevator

This elevator is located by Warren's Tante Rita's apartment.  It's  considered a "3" person elevator.  Yeah right!  After Warren and Rita squeezed in, I decided to take the stairs.  =)

Details:  Patterned papers are by Making Memories Passport line. "a" is a K&Company recycled chipboard letter.  "3" was cut using the Stamped Cricut cartridge.  "Person elevator" was cut using Lyrical Letters (Connected feature).