I was having trouble with the toolbar and couldn’t upload photos to my post at Typepad, so I have yet another new blog address:

www.juliemcguffee.blogspot.com.

Everything seems to be working so far. My first post is all about CHA – with lots of photos – and I’m now working on the Scrapbook Memories post. Hopefully I’ll be finished by Tuesday, August 4th. See you there!

Yours truly,
Julie

I did it! My new blog is at: juliemcguffee.typepad.com It’s still on a “free trial” basis, so if I haven’t figured out all the ins and outs by August 15th, I’ll be blogging back here. I’m hoping typepad will allow me to upload lots and lots of photos, something I haven’t figured out how to do here……. Wish me luck!

Yours truly,
Julie

Not really, but it makes for a catchy title…….. Just back from CHA. We filmed on the show floor yesterday and, drum roll please, I took lots of photos for you. Now I just need to figure out how to get them on this blog.

http://juliemcguffee.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/CHA.thumbnail.jpg

Wondering if this worked. This photo was taken while we were setting up in the Flower Soft booth. This is such a great product. It’s totally unique – nothing else like it anywhere. It’s a British company (not that I’m biased or anything) founded by Susan Balfour. http://flower-soft.co.uk/ Noreen McKee (hope I spelled your last name right Noreen) did the presentation. They’re from Newcastle, which is even further North from where I was born, so when you see the segment you’ll notice her accent is a lot thicker than mine. I’ll add more photos later, but I have to publish to see whether this one is working out or not. If not, I’ll move over to typepad and post the link this weekend.

Have a good one!

Yours truly,
Julie

I’d forgotten how much fun going to the beach could be. Sand between your toes, splashing through the waves and just sitting in a deckchair listening to the ocean with a soft breeze on your face. I’d also forgotten how itchy a sunburn can be – in spite of SPF60. Fortunately it’s in places that aren’t likely to see the light of day again any time soon – doesn’t make it any less itchy though……. The grandkids had a blast. Jovie toddled right up to those waves waving her spade in one hand and a bucket in the other. I think she’s at the age where the ocean is just a big bath tub, whereas Dylan got right into wave jumping and body surfing. The latter was probably quite unintentional, but he had lots of fun.

My family always made an annual pilgrimage to the “seaside” at least once per year. We usually went to Bridlington on the East coast of Yorkshire and I remember the weather being nice and warm – 70 deg at least! We built sand castles, cottages decorated with shells and white stones and motor boats that I could sit in. Memories are wonderful things to keep in your heart. Yes, I even have photos. We visited Sowerby Park, Danes Dyke (to pick primroses), the lighthouse at Flamborough Head, and Thornwick Bay where the lifeboat was kept. I went back there to visit just over a year ago and it was like walking back in time. Some places really don’t change over the years thank goodness.

I’m heading to Florida at the end of this month to the CHA Summer trade show. We’re going to be taping some segments in manufacturers booths during the show, so you’ll be able to see a little bit of what a trade show is all about.

Have a sunny day!

Yours truly,
Julie

Hope you all had a a fabulous fourth! I’ve found that most folks are unaware that we have a 4th of July in England too – we just don’t celebrate…… My hubby and I live outside city limits so we celebrate with fireworks at home and have a great time. We have a tall flagpole in our front yard, so this year my husband flew the Stars & Stripes at the top and the Union Jack (the British flag) at half mast. I’m not really sure how I felt about that, but I was a good sport and offered to have a tea party on the front lawn complete with scones and jam butties. It certainly amused the neighbours……….. the flag part, I didn’t go through with the tea party – way too hot. In case you’re wondering, I still drink hot tea in hot weather, it’s amazingly refreshing apart from the fact that I wouldn’t know how to start a day without my morning cuppa.

I’m off to Orlando at the end of this month to the CHA Trade Show. This is the first time the summer show is not being held in Chicago. It’s also the first time the trade show will be followed by a consumer show, so if you live in the area I’d definitely encourage you to stop by. It will be at the Orange County Convention Center on Friday & Saturday (July 31st and August 1st). Wish I could tell you I’d see you there, but I head back home Thursday evening. Barb Bosler, the glass etching lady will be there though, so please stop by and say hello. You really need to see her demo – she’s awesome.

We’re off to the beach tomorrow for a few days R&R. It’s been years since I dipped my toes in the ocean. I love the beach. It brings back many fond childhood memories of sand castles, sea shells and sailing. There were always donkeys on the beach where we used to go and Punch & Judy shows. The donkeys are still there, but I’m not sure about Punch & Judy; maybe they were censored for being too violent……

Well I must pack, or I’ll be going nowhere fast…………. have a great day!

Yours truly,
Julie

It’s 7am when I stretch and roll out of bed. I don’t need an alarm in Summer because floor to ceiling windows face East and that’s the time when the sun starts to stream thru the blinds. First job is to put the kettle on for a cup of tea then let the dog out and make a pot of coffee. I watch the news on GMA, check e-mail and am usually in my body by 8:15 when my daughter drops off my one year old granddaughter. Jovie’s walking now, so we play outside for about an hour then have a second round of breakfast. Nap time rolls around shortly thereafter, so I have about 2 hours to re-check e-mail, make/return phone calls, put in a load of laundry and jump in the shower.

Nap time is usually over about noon, so now we have lunch, then run errands, or go to the park all depending on the weather. It’s been too hot this past week to be outside a lot in the afternoon. 100 deg weather is like living in an oven when you’re outside and there’s no pool….. not for me at least. I do have a baby one, but Jovie has a cold this week, so the dr said to keep her out of the water. Way too soon, it’s time to take Jovie home. Mommy has already picked up her brother from school, so they’re both waiting for us when we get there. Now it’s time to play with Dylan. Speedracer is the name of the game and we spend 30 mins racing cars up and down the hallway – rest assured, by this time Dylan is doing all the racing. 5pm rolls around and it’s time to head home to make dinner. My husband is retired and makes his own lunch, but 95% of the time I cook dinner each evening for us both – the Food Network has become very inspiring. I even have 3 barrels of herbs in the back yard. I tried growing tomatoes last year, but it was too hot or something and they died. After dinner I clean up the kitchen, finish up the laundry I started earlier, pick up toys then relax on the back porch for a few minutes. It’s about 10pm before I get to check my e-mail again and there it is……… an invitation from Ellen to join a mom’s group on Twitter. Since I’m a “grandmom” I’m flattered that she thought of me, but when would I have time? Today wasn’t very busy, but there was still no time for even a lonesome tweet, never mind log on to the Twitter site. How do these folks do it…… it’s hard enough for me to find time to blog, let alone twitter.

The internet is a wonderful thing and I can’t imagine a life without my computer, but there is so much going on out there in the world wide web, I wonder if anybody does anything in the real world any more. So, no “tweets” from me I’m afraid. I think if you’ve read thru this blog entry, you’ll realize there isn’t very much for me to tweet about any way.

Have a fun and fabulous day!

Yours truly,
Julie

Romeo passed away at the vet’s office on Saturday evening. He was 12 years old. For those of you who have watched the show over the past 12 years, you’ll know that Romeo was my daughter’s husky – 100lb of lovable fur and the subject of a plethora of projects for Scrapbook Memories and magazine features. One of my favorite photos is of Romeo as a puppy, sitting on the top step of our pool, literally “cooling his buns”. He was a big part of our lives for a long time and we will miss him very, very much.

Yours truly,
Julie

I’ve been so busy it’s hard to believe I got home from taping the new series of Scrapbook Memories two weeks ago! It was a blast as always. We have so much fun taping the show, but the days are so fast and furious we don’t always realize how much fun till later. We had great guests as always and I got to present some projects too. You’ll have to watch out for my Photo Block holiday ornament. I need to work on my tassel making skills…… they’re really very easy, but for some reason I was all thumbs that afternoon and couldn’t even tie a knot! I’ll refer to that segment as the hassle with the tassel.

We had some new and returning guests for this series. Julie Stephani was back and Julie Fei Fan Balzer, so every time someone said “Julie” they got 3 responses – in the end I went back to my nickname and said to “just call me Jules”………. now everyone is wondering who “Jules” is. I wish you could take a peek into the Green room some time. It really is green. Each time I’m there, I intend to take photos to post, but Beth and I are flying in and out changing clothes, collecting projects, helping guests, etc. that I just forget. BUT, this time I have a treat for you…. Julie #3 (Balzer) is a great blogger and has photos of it all… so if you want a sneak peek behind the scenes of the show, visit her blog @ www.balzerdesigns.typepad.com.

Most of our guests are in and out in one day, but Julie #3 didn’t leave until the next day, so after we wrapped the show (and Julie helped us pack up) we went for a quick trip to Chagrin Falls. It was great to be able to spend time with a guest and chit chat – so, if you see that my blog has moved over to typepad, you’ll know why – Julie has inspired me to do more on the internet. For some reason photos won’t load at this blog site so even if I did have photos to share, you wouldn’t be able to see them anyway… duh…. I can even load short videos at typepad, so I may do one on “How to Make a Tassel”.

Series 1500 will start to air in September, so check your local PBS listings. I always watch on BYU on #374 on Direct TV, so you’ll probably see the new shows before I do. It airs every day at 1pm CST and on Saturdays. The show has been on the air for 12 years now and, of course, there’s more to come. 12 years is a long time – it means I’ve taped 299 half hour shows! That’s a lot of shows in TV Land. Each series has been different and the next series will be different again. Creativity is always changing; that’s what makes it fun and inspiring. On the down side, it means I’m 12 years older too, which isn’t always quite as much fun, or as inspiring. I still love what I do however. I’ve been a “crafter” ever since I can remember – I am always making something. Creativity has always been a part of who I am and, I hope, always will be.

Yours truly,
Julie

Wow, this month has turned out to be a little overwhelming. I had a birthday with a surprise visit from my sister, it was Mothers’ day last Sunday and I’m prepping for the new series of Scrapbook Memories which we’ll be taping next week, which also means I’ll be out of town. I’ll be back the 23rd and immediately have to start work on a booklet that has to be at the printers by the end of the month; that means projects, instructions, layout and design……..whew! So this is it for now – sorry. There’s so much about May memories to share – May Day parades, Maypole dancing, etcetera, etcetera, but that will have to wait for later. You’ll survive and I hope I will too!!! Have a gloriously, fabulously, brilliant day!

Yours truly,
Julie

Spring is always a good time to sort out, re-arrange and go through umpteen thousand things that have accumulated over the past year. I think I’m supposed to throw things away too, to make room for things I will no doubt collect this year, but “re-arranging” works for me. It’s my way of being “green”.

When I was sorting though my piles of scrapbook paper I found a package of “Thomas the Tank Engine” paper and embellishments. My grandson is a big fan and I wondered why I had never used it to scrapbook the adorable photos I have of him on his visit to “Thomas” and riding his own Thomas train. I could do so much with this!! In fact I could do so much with most of the supplies I had. Herein lies the problem. I have so many ideas I never know what to do first. My mum had a saying for this, she called it being “spoiled for choice” – when a person has too many choices they end up not making a decision at all. This is me all over. I’m working on projects right now for the new series of Scrapbook Memories. I start with one idea, which blossoms into another, then another and another until my final project ends up being nothing like the idea I started with. There are so many things I can do with a certain tool, paper, embellishment, etc. it becomes overwhelming. I’m sure this is true for so many scrapbookers. They are so overwhelmed with a plethora of supplies and ideas it’s hard to know where to start. I looked at my wedding album a few weeks ago. It was so simple and so easy to put together. Even back then I was creative in the way I added photos. The photos were matted and I embellished the pages with pressed flowers from my bouquet and even used the sixpence that I wore in my shoe. It was probably finished in one evening, bearing in mind I only had about 24 photos to work with. Just to compare, I probably have over 300 photos of my daughters wedding – and don’t you know – they’re all fabulous…… And, those that might not be quite up to snuff can easily be “photo shopped” into shape. Well, I had better get back to Spring “re-arranging”. At the rate I’m going, it’ll be next Spring before I’m finished.

Yours truly,
Julie