First, the pretty stuff. More layouts created with contents from my school expansion kit. The scrapbook artist is Nichol Magouirk.

Alrighty. Our randomly chosen winners of the new “Mini Albums in an Evening” special issue are:

1. Crystal in Fountain, Minnesota
2. Debbie in Clackamas, Oregon
3. Kim in Mantua, New Jersey
4. Melissa in Amherst Junction, Wisconsin

Congratulations! Ladies, e-mail me (bhiggins@ckmedia.com) with shipping address & phone number and I’ll get those out to you.

One more thing for today: I am a “celebrity guest” at The Sketch Book, which is based in New Zealand, and I posted a challenge in their forum today. Thought I’d share in case you were interested in a creative end-of-summer challenge. Just sign in here … and this is the direct link to my challenge.

So you know how you go to pull some plastic wrap or tin foil out of its box and the whole roll sometimes comes out? I hate it when that happens. Did you know that on the sides of those boxes you can punch in the packaging and that actually secures the roll in place?

Learn something new every day.

Many of you know about Ali Edwards, so I hardly need to explain her talent. I just wanted to say “Yay for a new book from Ali!” because she has one coming out in this coming month. It looks like this and you can pre-order it here. Congratulations, Ali! I can’t wait to check it out.

Simple Scrapbooks is also releasing a new special issue all about mini albums. It has great ideas from various artists … and it’s only $6.99 too! Check out the details here. And, of course, I have some of these to give away (along with these sweet little pins).

Want one? Leave your first name and where you live so I can randomly choose 4 winners to receive a special issue & pin. Here’s one of the projects from the book.

Speaking of first grade … we’re getting to the last of the school expansion kits, so if you haven’t ordered, check that off your list before it’s too late. A new school year starts here in just a couple weeks and I’m getting more motivated to get some scrapbooking done. I can tell many of you are, too. That’s awesome.

The talented Maggie Holmes put together this birthday mini album for her son, using stuff from the school expansion kit. There are a lot more pages, but I’m sharing just some of them so you get the idea.

You’ll want to click on this image to see it larger. By the way, good for Maggie getting this party scrapbooked so soon after it happened. : )

I love hearing all your comments about how much you’re enjoying the school expansion kit; that’s awesome! If you’re one that’s been on the fence about ordering, it’s not too late. Go here.

Of course there is more to share. Today I want you to check out some of what Wendy Anderson has whipped up with stuff from the kit. Notice how she used those library-style journaling cards for more pictures instead.

And here they are, labeled and tucked in the pocket:

I love Wendy’s use of every little product on this page. The paper, letter stickers, torn-out decorative paper (behind the small picture), photo turn, metal clip, ribbon … all of it. And the date stamp! I love how this becomes a decorative element on your page, while still being totally functional, since dating your memories is a great idea.

Maggie Holmes did a fun mini album with the stuff too … I’ll show you that tomorrow.

Getting right down to business …

These are the 4 winners of the school expansion kit:
1. Mary Beth in Louisville, Kentucky
2. Lauren in Altamonte Springs, Florida
3. MaryRuth Francks in Denison, Texas
4. Sarah in Wenonah, New Jersey

These are the 4 winners of the original school years kit:
1. Cris Stone in Texas
2. Jamie in Tulsa, Oklaholma
3. Holly C. in Parker, Colorado
4. Julie in Montreal, Canada

Winners: E-mail your name, mailing address, and phone number to vgrothe@ckmedia.com and she’ll take care of you. Congratulations! Enjoy your goodies.

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This expansion kit is going a LONG way. I’ve been using the elements for mostly non-school-related projects, actually. While everything in the expansion kit coordinates beautifully with the original school years kit, it’s a great stand-alone grouping of stuff for all sorts of topics & projects. Have a look.

I created this Disney World layout for Porter’s album, using Bazzill cardstock and American Crafts foam letter stickers. You’ll notice how the left page is sprinkled with elements from the expansion kit that helped me quickly & “cutely” finish this layout. The library-style cards were the perfect place for journaling, the chipboard photo corners brought more focus to the main photo, and the metal clip & epoxy sticker are a fun addition for the top of the page (I tied a piece of ribbon from the kit, too).

Remember: You can click on any image to see it larger.

This single-page layout is in one of our family chronological albums from 2005. You may know that I’m totally a two-page-layout-kind-of-girl. This just happens to be the LAST page of that particular album, hence the single page. From the expansion kit, I used the letter stickers for the title, tore a piece of the ruled paper for the journaling, placed one of the border stickers across the top, and used a couple of self-adhesive photo turns for a finishing touch.

For those of you who got the original school years kit, you may already be finding out for yourself how handy those memorabilia pockets are for each grade! That’s why we wanted to put a few more in the expansion kit. I can find many uses for them, and here’s one: In an effort to catch up on some scrapbooking, I came across some memorabilia from our time living in Cleveland. Stuff that would go well within the family chronological album (2006), but too bulky for sewing a pocket page or something. This was my solution! And those little pockets in front come in handy for smaller stuff. Love that.

In my July 1 post, I shared a summer sum-up layout I did using more from the expansion kit. I just wanted to show a closer look at these file tabs. There are a bunch in the kit; they’re oversized and so fun. We included the plastic tab holders AND the chipboard labels that fit perfectly. So easy to use and such a fun touch:

Head over here for more information on the expansion kit … and don’t miss out on another one selling out.

I’m pretty sure you would say it’s time. It’s always a good time to give stuff away.

And this time, I want to give away a few of my new school expansion kits … AND … a few of the SOLD OUT original school album kits (we’ve got a few just for my blog readers)! We still have some of the school expansion kits left (go here to order), but hey – why not take a shot at getting one for free, right?

By the way, I’m having a lot of fun playing with the stuff in the expansion kit. I’ll be posting some stuff I’m working on soon. In the meantime, I understand many of you are receiving YOUR expansion kits. Yes? True? Have you played yet? Post a comment and tell me your favorite thing(s) about the kit. Remember – I learn from you guys. And as I work on future kits, I’ll remember what works for you. : )

So here’s the deal. Back to the winning-free-stuff talk. You post a comment with your first name and where you live. And you tell me WHAT you want. Do you want the original school years kit? Or do you want the new school expansion kit? And in a couple days, I’ll randomly choose a bunch of you to win.

Sound good? Great.

For those interested, Maggie (fellow blog reader here) has started a flickr group where you can see & share layouts created with my school kit. Check it out here.

1. For the sake of including a picture, so this post is prettier and not so text heavy …

We’re flashing back 4 summers ago, when my now almost-Kindergartener was just a toddler. Getting a little sappy over here.

2. I just got word that the expansion kits will likely start shipping today, so WOO HOO for that, for those of you who have ordered. And if you haven’t … and you’re thinking about it … be sure to check out my video clip below (July 2) where I walk you through everything that comes in the kit.

3. I’m suddenly hit with a feeling of urgency to get “caught up” in our kids’ albums before baby #3 comes in a couple of months. You know those divided page protectors? Yeah. Those are sounding really good right now. Just what I need to save time and get some “pages” done. Looking forward to some not-so-creative scrapbooking here soon. Sometimes it feels great to be creative and sometimes it feels great to just get the pictures in the albums (accompanied by journaling, of course). I think that’s the only way it’s going to happen for me in these next several weeks if I really do want to get a lot done. I think I’ll hit a couple stores in search for those divided page protectors later today.

4. Have you considered submitting your work to my “Becky’s Sketch” column in CK? I’d love to see how you use my sketches for layouts, cards, home decor, anything! Click here to see the newest sketches that I’ve posted … and show us what you’ve got!

5. Isabel, one of your fellow blog readers here, has made the suggestion of someone possibly starting a Yahoo group for people to post layouts that they’re creating with the school kit (including this new school expansion kit, which is still available to buy here). If anyone wants to head that up, I think it’s a great idea. If you do it, shoot me an e-mail (bhiggins@ckmedia.com) and I’ll let everyone here know. This is a great way to share ideas and layouts and to gain inspiration from each other.

6. A reminder to anyone with customer service issues regarding KOTM products: Please e-mail Vivian (vgrothe@ckmedia.com) with your questions.

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July and I wish to all who celebrate, a wonderful & safe weekend! Share your favorite 4th of July traditions, or what you’re doing different this year, in the comments section. I’d love to hear.

Before the long weekend, a few notes:

1. If you haven’t checked my Recipes section lately, there are a couple of new ones.

2. Some of you wanted to know what sheet protectors I recommend, that go well with those that I included in the original School Years kit. I love these from C-Line. If anyone knows of a great online resource to buy these, post a comment for others to know about.

3. Some of you have asked about the albums I recommend. Lots of great ones out there, like the 3-ring albums from American Crafts. I personally use the ones from We R Memory Keepers for our family albums and our kids’ albums (which contain pages and memorabilia pockets from my school kit). If anyone wants to post a comment about the 3-ring album they recommend, or where online to buy them, go for it.

4. This is what the stamped image (on both sides, since it’s double-sided) looks like. It’s a cute little caption, really. One allows you to fill in the date (don’t forget the circle the day of the month!) and the other one is perfect for stamping on artwork or papers that you want to note the student’s name & date. It’s so easy to forget who did what and when!

5. The page examples on the KOTM site will not be included in the school expansion pack. But we’ll leave them up on the site, so refer to that for ideas. There will be a little pamphlet included in the kit, showing a few of my own examples.

I was feeling very pregnant today, so I’m not super fun in this video, but you’ll get a good overview of what comes in the school expansion pack.

And the self-adhesive growth chart …

If you wanted to keep it in the pocket over the years, just adhere paper to the back and fold it up. Or you can have it displayed all the time as you track your child’s growth. Ours is in the play room.