Melody's Sofa

Goodness Gracious!

Guess What!??? This is the week for choosing the giveaway winners! Courtney will be sending out all of the product and we'll be announcing the winners at the end of the week! Cross your fingers!!! Sorry it's taken so long! So many to sort through and over 430 people auditioned for the design team too! Courtney just got the big shipment of product at her house to ship it out to all of the winners...so BE PATIENT! :) I can't wait to see what you winners will do with your stash!

I am traveling for business and Courtney is on vacation til Wednesday, so soon as we are both back, we will make the big announcements and send out the goodies...this includes the winners from the book give-away too! SO FUN!!

Hope you are having a great week! I am really looking forward to getting back home and in a routine...after CHA, I am home for the rest of the summer....lots of blogging and GOOD TIMES!

BE BACK SOON

2 business trips this week...I will write tonight from my hotel.
HOPE EVERYONE IS DOING GREAT!!!
enjoy summer!

have the best day, ever.
Melody

ALL IS WELL

Madi keeps all 10 toes.........it is healing nicely, though they still won't stitch it up.....huge hole all the way thru that dad has to clean and dress twice a day...I can't do it yet.....but......I give lots of hugs....and she's doing great on her crutches.....THANK YOU THANK YOU for the well wishes and prayers...means more that you know....

I will write SOOOOON! I have lots to share!

THANKS AGAIN FOR THE KINDNESS AND PRAYERS!

melody

A recipe for disaster....

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And we had one.......a bad one....

I have some bad news....I can not make it to Idaho Falls for Express the Moment.....family emergency...

My daughter was running in the grass and stepped on a rake that was turned up and it went all the way through her foot......

...needless to say, she needs her mom. We've been to the hospital twice now....and there's some issues causing them to not be able to stitch it up yet...they're hoping she gets to keep her middle toe....she's on crutches, on heavy narcotics, and in lots of pain.

I AM SO SORRY to everyone that I was scheduled to meet and speak to this weekend....I am REALLY going to miss seeing you all and I will be posting my speech in bits on the blog over the next week....I did send you all some presents....and I know Kim will take good care of you!!! I am sure that you will understand...since this industry is all about family...that when child needs their mommy...there's nothing more important.

SO MUCH LOVE TO YOU ALL...I hope to make it there later this summer...maybe we can schedule a class or something.....

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!!!
Melody
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Catching UP!

So....I'm back from my business trip....first thing I gotta tell you....PREPARE to be stuck in an airport for days on end...I mean, I've had it happen my last 2 times....and, sheesh, I WAS NOT PREPARED....I wore THESE BOOTS
....of course...it was worth it...because I also had THE HANDBAG.....BUT STILL......36 hours in these boots...which ended up turning into 48 hours by the time I got home....lots of walking, running, kneeling in prayer for a flight, AND....twisting my ankle...which I will tell you about in a second...means that I SHOULD have had a pair of shoes in my bag that were more slipper-like....maybe cow slippers or bunny slippers....but NO...I had nothing but these...oh, and a pair of faux crocodile stilettos that I couldn't fit in my other bag...that were even worse.....I should know better.

An aside....I bought these boots on Ebay....they were $15....I got the bag at Ross for $18......that's how I roll with my shopping folks...cheap...that way, if I get mad enough on my 27th hour of running through the airport, I can almost guiltlessly throw them in the dumpster by the ladies room and fly home in my socks. But...I didn't....I brought them home....and my feet ache. But I still wore them to church yesterday. I am a slave to my boot collection.

One of the heels is loose, hence the twisted ankle...well...maybe the twisted ankle hence the loose heel?.....let me tell you why. I had dinner on Wednesday night in Minneapolis at a REALLY great Indian restaurant...it was nice, quiet, classy...full of business people who were super sophisticated. I ate my pot of something spicy and when it was time to go.....I got up and tried to walk out...oh...did I tell you it was a very SMALL restaurant....and I was in the MIDDLE of the room...and I was one of the only people NOT of Indian descent? Well....I got up after dinner and TRIED to walk out...my heel turned under....my foot was asleep...no matter how hard I tried...my foot just kept turning under....I almost fell....a table caught me...I tried again....my leg stopped working....my boots looked good...I looked like an idiot....OH THE STORIES I COULD TELL YOU THAT RIVAL THIS ONE!!!! I kept trying...people were staring...I looked drunk. I finally sat down at an empty table and massaged my ankle like it was an old war wound, trying not to make eye contact with anyone......I kept trying.....and then...I finally made it out of there, limping....and...I put the boots on again the next day....that's when the airport fun started and I did not get home until Friday night....in my boots.

My feet hurt today.....I am tempted to wear them...but I will be in the studio all day so I will probably just wear flip flops...we will see. I just thought I would share BECAUSE I KNOW someone out there has enslaved themselves for the sake of the perfect boot or shoe and handbag match.....DON"T TRY TO HIDE!!!

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Finally...I am going to share a TO-DO list with you today...because somehow blogging it makes me more accountable.

I am going to make something FABULOUS this week with Artsy.licious....really fabulous...and post it here

I am going to make something with paint...I don't know what yet...but, it's gonna be good.

I am going to get back on the wagon after Trail Mix from Costco was the death of my diet

I am going to drink a whole ton of water this week.......I have a dr. appt. on Wed. that I have to get myself in peak condition for to avoid the YOU NEED TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF lecture.

I am going to choose the winners for teh Artsy.licious giveaway and have that all done and ready by THURSDAY

Ok...that's enough.
I have other stuff that I HAVE to do...that's the stuff I'm gonna put on top of it.
I will post again later....for sure...I have more adventures to tell you about......it's been a killer few weeks.

WISHING YOU THE HAPPIEST OF MONDAYS!
Melody

Can you come and hang out with me?

GOOD MORNING!!!
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Wanted to let you know I will be in Idaho Falls, Idaho for the EXPRESS THE MOMENT SCRAPBOOK EXPO

here's the link EXPRESS THE MOMEMT

I am really excited about this! I will be the keynote speaker on Saturday morning and I will also be hanging out there at different times during the event....

Express the Moment Scrapbook Expo
Friday, June 20th 1:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Saturday, June 21st 1:00 am - 7:00 pm
SHILO INN in Idaho Falls

I will be speaking for all registered attendees on Saturday morning around 10am, and then I'll have a meet and greet on Satruday from 1-3ish.....so come and sit on my sofa and chat...I WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU AND MEET YOU THERE!!!

HERE'S THE COOL PART...if you post here, in the comments, that you will be there.....Kim from Express the Moments will draw a name for FREE ENTRY into the show....we will announce the winner next Thursday.....

If you have questions about any of this...email Kim Rose at kim@expressthemoment.com

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!
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Have a great day!
Melody

Something to Cheer About...

The Chatterbox Design Team Auditions are UP AND RUNNING!!! Can't wait to see what happens now! Go to THE OFFICIAL CHATTERBOX BLOG and Courtney Walsh, official Chatterbox Design Team Coordinator will walk you through it...IF YOU"VE EVER WANTED TO DO THIS...do it now....it's fun and wonderful and you'll remember why you started scrapbooking in the first place....

OKAY..........
And I am cheering too....because, by the Grace of God....and that is truly the truth....I was able to complete my UNBELIEVABLE amount of deadlines...and now I fly out first thing this morning for a round of really huge presentations....I will let you know how it goes.......big, exciting, wonderful things.

AND....Courtney chose her winners for the WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH ARTSY.LICIOUS contest...and now i have to choose mine (so hard!!!) and I think I'm gonna have Carrie choose too...when I get back on Monday....we'll work on announcing the winners and finally get all of these SUPER YUMMY packages sent out to you all.....

OK.....I gotta go pack....make sure you check out the Chatterblog to see if it's something that makes your heart sing...

LOVE TO ALL,
Melody

P.S. in case my link above doesn't work...the chatterblog URL is www.chatterboxinc.typepad.com

Wow...WOW!!!

ARE YOU HAVING A WONDERFUL DAY? I hope so!

I am sneaking in a blog post amidst much chaos...just had to....

I took this photo right out my back door a few nights ago....the dust was kicked up from a tractor.....and when the sun was going down....the light illuminated the dust...yes, you do see an old rundown car in the field....adds to the ambience, right? I didn't touch this photo up at all...and just had to share. I love when you download photos that you forgot you even took and then they take your breath away....

anyway...I'm in the middle of the world's most outrageous project deadlines................so........I have to go........I have so much I want to write about...but I must be disciplined and finish my work first....just wanted to share this wonderful photo...I have more too...but I will post them later.

HOPE YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY!!!
lots of love
melody

This Time Around....

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This has been a weekend of deep contemplation....always a good thing, I believe....sometimes painful, sometimes joyful...lots of times there's lots of both. Mine has been very similar to the feelings I've had when I have had the opportunity to be at the top of a mountain, or even in a plane...and I can see things from a different view point. I will never forget the view from the top of Table Mountain in Capetown, South Africa. It was at a turning point in my life.

I guess what I would like to share is what I've learned about THIS TIME AROUND....that we all have one, EVERY DAY...we all get second and third and fourth chances at living out our dreams, at being more of who we are...at getting it 'right'....at learning.....I am in a place where I can look back and see so much...there's so much to learn from...so much of "I will __________this time around... because of where I've been and what I can see now. There are lots of things that I would never go back and change, because they brought me a lot of experience, and wisdom and skill for the next time.....but now....given this chance...THIS SAME CHANCE that we all have every single day, upon waking.......I will do it things differently this time around....

What will you do differently this time around? What have you learned that you did not know last year, about yourself? About life? About the world? About what God wants for you? About what your GUT is saying?

I know this...just like I've known this every time the big bully of life came around and threw me on my tush...and smeared my face into the ground.....I've learned once again....that there's was so much that I knew...that I didn't listen to. My gut tells me so much. YOUR gut tells you so much.

The biggest thing I will do this time around:

I will listen to my gut. I will trust it. I know it comes from a place that is not so human....but a place that is full of light and wisdom and truth. I believe our gut feelings are one of our greatest gifts from God, one of His ways of speaking directly to us in a very confidential, very trusted and trusting way.

One of the things that happened this weekend, is that I came across a long list of perceived "failures"....and these weren't failures by just your ordinary folks...people like Walt Disney and Donald Trump...people who are mostly known as the greatest successes of all time............but what made their big failures different was that they GOT BACK UP....they DUSTED OFF THEIR KNEES....they WIPED THE BLOOD from their elbows and they learned from it...and went on to be massive successes.......I read story after story after story.

And....that is my challenge for you today......think hard about your life......and remember that today is a day to start over on ANYTHING that needs starting over....and really ask yourself....WHAT WILL I DO DIFFERENTLY THIS TIME AROUND?

ALL YOU WISE PEOPLE OUT THERE....if you could give your BEST ADVICE....what have you learned to do differently when you had a "THIS TIME AROUND" turning point in your life?

Have the best week, ever.
Melody
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if you are up to it....

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I have had so many questions about the diet I am on...I thought I'd stop by for a second and tell you....I really do only have a second because I locked my keys in my car and I'm waiting for Marq to come and rescue me!!! :)

this is the diet I have been on lab
IT'S CALLED IDEAL PROTEIN....I am not sure if you have to get it through your doc...that's what I did.

Here's the deal....it really works...but it's NO FUN....it really does work though....but man it makes you grouchy for the first week. My doctor put me on it because my blood pressure and blood sugar have both been high....diabetes runs in my family....and I have not been exercising...and I've been a stress case........

BUT...

I must also say...I FEEL THOUSANDS OF TIMES BETTER. I seriously think I am allergic to sugar and bread...because whenever I cut it out of my diet....I look different, I feel different.....but it's SO HARD TO CUT IT OUT!!!

Anyway...I just wanted to share.

You have to mix a packet with water for breakfast and lunch...then you get to eat vegetables and fish for dinner......you seriously lose weight fast...but then after that...you have to commit to sticking to no sugar...no white carbs......not a lot of calories....

THE STUFF THAT WORKS....I wish there were OTHER easier ways...but there aren't are there? IT's all about burning more calories that you consume.....

I hope you are having a great weekend! I am enjoying a delicious diet cherry limeade from Sonic as we speak.....or as I type....getting ready to have some R&R...

I will write more later....on Sunday.
gotta go!!! My rescuer is here!!!

PUT DOWN THE CHEESECAKE!!!! EAT A PIECE OF LETTUCE AND A FILET OF TALAPIA...YUM YUM YUM!!! are you convinced!????
me either.
still gonna keep on keepin on though.......summer is here babies.
xoxox
melody
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