Traveler’s Inspiration Challenge:{one}

July 3rd, 2009 § 0 comments

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There is something about a new thing that just makes my heart go aflutter!  The smell of a new baby is on the top of my list… what is it about new life that smells so sweet?  Oh, and I love the smell of a new pack of crayons and the smell of a new car?  Divine!

I love new adventures too, as you might have already guessed.  Trying new foods… seeing new sights… hearing another language for the first time…It makes me all giddy inside as the world comes alive and I sense that I am on the verge of a very good thing!

I’ve been contemplating for a while how I could connect our love here at Travelingmama of travel and creativity.  You all have been sending me your wonderful travel photos and I thought it was just too selfish of me to keep them all for myself.  There is a whole world out there waiting to be discovered and I don’t know about you, but I am ridiculously excited about exploring it and being inspired by it!  Since summer is when many of us travel, I thought it would be fun to do a little travel inspiration challenge so we could enjoy each others adventures!

This challenge is dependent on you all submitting your photos as inspiration.  Whether your photos are from your college trip to the Great Wall of China, your family vacation to the Taj Mahal, or even your latest trip to the Atlantic we all would love to see them!  Consider this challenge almost like a little scrapbook of our photos!  Maybe I could get a little map that we could fill with all the countries and cities represented in the challenge?  Hmmm…

Okay, I don’t know about you all, but I am totally pumped about getting started! Here is the card I made from the inspiration photo:

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I couldn’t resist using my travel Bella for our first Travel Inspiration Challenge!  Isn’t she so cute?  I paper pierced all of her clothes and accessories, which took a while but was so worth it!  I love how she looks a little bohemian but she is still very chic with her little heels.  My kind of girl!  This week I used the bright colors as inspiration.  Next week it might be something completely different that inspires my project!

Are you ready to learn how you can participate too?

Here are the details:

Who: Anyone with the slightest hankering for creativity can participate.  You also must have a blog or online gallery, such as Splitcoaststampers, Flickr, or Twopeasinabucket where you can post your projects.

What: It is totally up to you how you interpret the inspiration photo.  Whether it’s a card, a scrapbook page, a photo, a sewing project, a painting… even just sitting on the floor with your kids and playing with clay or paints!  Just post a photo of your project with a description of what inspired you from the photo!

Today’s inspiration is one of my personal favorites that Jack took of the Moroccan slippers my Mother-in-law bought while visiting us.  I love to send these home as gifts, especially to little girls because they are like little princess shoes!

When: I will post a photo every Friday through the end of summer here at Travelingmama.  You will have one week to complete the challenge!  Yeah!

Where: After completing your project post a photo of it to your blog.  You are welcome to use the photo above on your site to show your inspiration!  Then come back here to Travelingmama and submit a direct link to your post on Mr. Linky.

OH, and did I mention that I have some goodies to send to the first five to link their projects on Mr.Linky?  Yeah!  I have some photos, some postcards, and a sneak peek will go in there of a little project I have been working on!

*Please e-mail your photos, which should be no larger than 500k, to me at travelingmama@pobox.com

going {bohemian}

July 2nd, 2009 § 9 comments

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A very funny thing has happened to me since we arrived in Morocco.  I have found my personal style and taste in decor evolving.  It must be something about all the bohemian inspiration all around me here!  No worries- there will be no bongs or lava lamps sneaking into my house any time soon.  Oddly enough I find my two favorite styles are almost at opposite sides of the spectrum.  On one hand I love the loose and free feel of bohemian fabrics while at the same time I long for clean and crisp white Swedish style.

My card today is for Dawn’s Raspberry Suite Challenge.  I loved the colors and went with a muted bohemian feel.

Don’t forget to stop by tomorrow for our very first Traveler’s Inspiration Challenge!  Now if I can just narrow down which photo I want to use…  Do you have a favorite that has inspired you from our travels?  Check the travel catagories on my side bar, or Spain and Morocco too!  Let me know what you think!

{nine} months

July 2nd, 2009 § 9 comments

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His little personality is really coming alive.  He lets us know that he does NOT like to be in a room alone, but if someone is nearby he will play contentedly for as long as we are willing to sit!  He just learned how to pull up to standing, started waving “hi”, and puts his hand to his mouth when we tell him to blow us a kiss.

He keeps us all on our toes- he has a cord and shoe fetish apparently!  The kid can spot them from across the room and will crawl a mile a minute to get to either of them!   He loves to go out in the stroller, though wearing a hat is not his thing (It’s just about considered child abuse here to not put a hat on a child… did you see my heat exhuastion post?) His favorite foods are bananas, green beans, oatmeal, and Cheerios.  Oh, and did I mention that he has six, yes SIX, teeth with two more coming in!

And of course my favorite thing is that he adores his Mommy.  All I have to do is walk in the room and his whole face lights up.  I love that!

Corner View: food staples

July 1st, 2009 § 28 comments

Well, I don’t think I will be hearing from my agent in Hollywood over this video but I thought it would be a fun way of showing you our pantry and the items that we like to keep on hand.  This wasn’t meant to be a comedy, but as I listened to myself babbling a million miles a second about NOT wanting to show you all my ketchup, mustard, and butter… well, thankfully I slowed down after that!  Below you will find our personal shopping list we used when we moved to Morocco (and the list that we send to family and friends who are kind enough to send packages!)

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What about you all?  Are there items that you would add to the list as an expat?  If you still live in your home country imagine with us for just a moment… what would you HAVE to take with you if you were to move to another country?

I’m really looking forward to reading your comments!  I always like to ask our expat friends about their shopping lists.  It’s always fun to compare and I usually end up with more great ideas!

Don’t forget to check back on Friday for the new Traveler’s Inspiration challenge.  I am so excited to get to know you all better through our little creative challenge!

*Edited to add:  I should have mentioned that if you would like a view into Moroccan staple foods check out the cookbook Jack and I made with our Chef friend, Chris.  Go here to check out the cookbook and here for a sneak peek and a free recipe!

For more Corner Views go to Spain Daily!

road less {traveled}

June 30th, 2009 § 18 comments

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“Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took the one less traveled by.”  Robert Frost

I remember the first time I read this poem by Robert Frost.  There I was among all my hormonal, pimple faced peers in seventh grade literature class.  The nameless substitute teacher was ridiculously nerdy with pants pulled to his armpits and sounding suspiciously nasally, as if he had practiced his role as head nerd teacher for weeks.  The boys mercilessly teased him, throwing spitballs at the back of his head and trying their best to invent new nerdy names to call him. He told us to open our textbooks and there was an audible groan from the entire class.  Uuuuugh!  There was a silent chant “No MORE boring poems!” that could be felt in the room but no one dared risk detention by mounting on their desks and shouting it with vigor.  Instead we all obediently turned to the page with the photo of a cool, crisp fall scene in the woods where a dirt path forked in the road.  The once nasal voice of Mr. Nameless filled with passion as he read, “I took the one less traveled.”  My heart was racing in my chest because in that moment I had found a co-conspirator, a comrade, if you will, that understood what my little seventh grade heart had tried so desperately to put into words.  I wanted to be that person, the one that took the rode less traveled, that stood in the face of status quo and shouted, “Not ME!”

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I like to think that I have become that person, willingly blazing a trail in the hopes of living out my deepest convictions and not settling for what is easy or what has always been.  I do not think Frost was referring only to one’s ability to choose a physical path, but I like to think that it was part of his thoughts as he penned those lovely words.  I cannot remember a day in my life when I did not dream of traveling and seeing the world.  While other girls were pinning up photos of  The New Kids on the Block, I was tearing out pages of National Geographic and dreaming of where I wanted to travel when I grew up!

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This love for travel and seeking the road less traveled seemed to be in direct opposition to my creative side.  I spent many days dancing on my point shoes, dreaming of being a professional ballerina.  I would also lock myself in my room and spend hours, not on the phone gossiping with my girlfriends, but passing the hours writing poetry and short stories.  As I looked into my future I couldn’t grasp how to combine the two: travel and creativity.

Somehow here at Travelingmama we have done that very thing.  We have found a way to unite the opposition and in some crazy way it has made me feel alive in a whole new way.  I have loved hearing your stories and adventures!  Over the last couple months I have been mulling over how to share more of your photos and creative adventures but I wasn’t sure if I could make it all happen.  I began dreaming of a creative inspiration challenge that would utilize all of our travel adventures as a springboard into creativity.  On Friday I will be launching our very first challenge, so please be sure to stop back by on Friday!  I cannot wait!  I promise more details will come on Friday, but until then start thinking about some of the places you have traveled.  Do you have a favorite photo that reminds you of your favorite moment or place?

Tomorrow I will also be sharing my “Corner View” with the theme being “food staples” this week.  I convinced Jack to help me make a video of our pantry, which should offer plenty comic relief to you all (though that was not it’s original intention!)  Ha!  Just stop by tomorrow if you want to sneak a peek into our pantry!

Monday is a {star}

June 29th, 2009 § 6 comments

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I love Mondays that feel like the week is starting right, don’t you?  As if setting the stage for the entire week, Monday gets the show going in the right direction while Tuesday stands in the wings, waiting breathlessly for it’s chance to prove that this week is going to be a hit!

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So, what does Monday have for us?  I popped over to one of my daily reads, Creature Comforts, to find this delightful free printable paper waiting to be found.  Ez has the most amazing style and she constantly amazes me with her own talent and her eye for design.

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Actually, you may have noticed one of her beautiful photos on my side table in this post.  It came wrapped like a gift in a glassine bag tied elegantly with a piece of ruby baking twine.  We audibly gasped when we pulled it from the envelope.  Her Etsy shop is closed at the moment because she is moving, but I highly recommend signing up for an e-mail notice so you can be alerted just as soon as she is up and running!  (and I promise more photos of the other prints I ordered as well!)  Just to tempt you, of course!

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The little notecard set I created here with her printable paper was so simple and fun to make.  I think it will be the perfect gift for my girlfriend’s birthday!  The coffee stamp is from PaperTrey Ink, the sentiments by SU!, and the ribbon was a find from the medina here.  I printed up extra sheets of the paper and prefolded them into little cards.  It’s like giving myself a gift- just having them waiting for the next project!

For more of Ez’s printables go here!

Hope you have a showstopping Monday!

Card details: Created by Card Positioning System sketch 122.

on moving overseas: furniture

June 27th, 2009 § 15 comments

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If you have stopped by Travelingmama lately then you know that I have a major case of Packingitis.  I have been following along with many of you as you pack up everything and get ready to head to greener pastures.  All of this packing talk has me thinking about our crazy packing adventures and after three continents, three countries, and 13 houses/apartments… well, I may not be an expert, but I do have a bit of experience.  I get asked pretty frequently on what to pack when moving overseas, so I think now is the perfect time to share!

Holly, over at Decor8, asked if we could only bring a few furniture items with us from the States what would they be?  When we first decided to move back overseas and were contemplating what items to sell in our tag sale I was adamant that I didn’t care what we sold as long as I could bring my couch and my bed.

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Unfortunately we were misinformed and I was told that my couch was too big to crate.  I was heartbroken!  My Mom bought my slip covered couch with it’s fluffy but firm down pillows in deep cherry red.  Man, I miss that couch!  Instead we decided to bring our leather recliner, which is pretty much everyone’s favorite place to sit in the entire house.  It’s the best!  We also brought our side table with our favorite Eiffel Tower lamp.  If you have a favorite lamp or decorative item I highly recommend you bring it with you.  There is nothing better in the world than a new house in a new country feeling like home.  What better way is there to make your home feel personal than including some of those items that you feel a deep personal attachment to?  I also made my art work and family photos a priority.  I didn’t want our framed antique map of Barcelona to sit in storage with our family photos.  There are some things that just need to be with us, being loved and cherished!

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It doesn’t matter if someone else thinks the item is silly or unnecessary.  What matters is you!  If you cannot stand the thought of parting with something and you have the space to bring it- pack it!  My only recommendation regarding lamps is that you have them rewired by an electrician when you arrive in your new country.  Also, consider packing the lamp shade.  It might sound silly, but the lamps we have found here and in Europe do not use the same system and no amount of “rigging” seems to get the shade to stay straight!  It is next to impossible to find decent lighting here in Morocco so we waited until we went to Spain to buy almost all of our lights.  Crazy, huh?

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Another item that I absolutely could not part with was my pine table, which was a gift from my Mother-in-law.  It is, without a doubt, my most precious and sentimental piece of furniture.  We’ve had it since we were married and I hope I never have to go a day without it!  As you can see, it has become my work table, which really only makes it more valuable to me because I sit here more than I eat!

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Another item I highly recommend you pack is books!  English books are like gold to us!  We packed nearly every crevice of our crate with English books for ourselves and our kids.  It’s the one thing that we cannot find here or almost anywhere else.  Since we are a family of avid readers it is always a joy to have something to read in our heart language!  I also brought tons of decor magazines with me.  I went through my collection and pulled out the pages with my favorite inspiration, but there were some magazines that I loved so much that I would have been tearing out the whole magazine!  Those are the ones that are still on my shelf!

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Of course we brought our beloved bed.  You think I’m kidding, but we lived for two years in Spain on hard and uncomfortable beds.  We didn’t sleep well those two whole years and had constant back aches.  I still remember the first time we set up our bed after we returned to the States.  I literally ran and jumped onto MY bed.   There is no price to put on the luxury of sleeping well!  Some may say that there is no place like home, but I say there is no place like my OWN bed!

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I also brought all of my bed linens for ourselves and the kids.  This is another thing that is hard to come by in Morocco.  They just do not make quality linens here…well, I’m sure everything is available for a price and if you are willing to travel to a major city like Rabat or Marrakesh.  This was such a high priority for us that we actually brought our linens, including towels, in our suitcases.  BTW- I haven’t done much with my bedroom as you can probably tell.  I am dying to buy one of these vintage Berber wedding blankets from Maryam in Marrakesh for my bed!

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Last, but not least, is our tv cabinet.  It wasn’t so much that I was sentimentally attached to this cabinet, but more the knowledge that I would have a hard time replacing a good quality cabinet made of REAL wood.  We also packed our dvd player, vcr, and tv.  The tv did not survive the ride over and we ended up buying a multi-region system.  I am SO glad that we packed all of our movies, though!  We spent a few months recording our favorite shows off HGTV, Food Network, and Disney Channel prior to leaving the States .  Those dvd’s were like a priceless gem those first few months as we transitioned into our new culture.  It’s not that we really watch that much tv, but more the comfort of occassionally having it playing in the background.  Just having something familiar to listen to in the midst of countless new sounds was such a guilty pleasure.

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Of course, now between satellite, Sling Box and the many ways to download shows, you can pretty much keep up with all your favorite shows!  I still miss HGTV and Food Network, though!

I hope you enjoyed the little tour!  I’ll be back with our food must-haves on Wednesday since the theme this week for Corner View is Food staples!  I’m trying to convince Jack to help me do a video of our “stash.”  (I’m SO technologically challenged!)  Maybe if we all butter him up and tell him how COOL it woud be to show you all in person?

on {saturdays}

June 27th, 2009 § 8 comments

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Saturdays are for staying in our pj’s and watching tv until noon.  Saturdays are for catching up on all the things we couldn’t get to during the week, but only if they are fun.  Saturdays are NOT for school or work.  They tend to be full of baking and card making and laying on the floor, racing our favorite matchbox cars, and baking in the real kitchen and the pretend one!  I love Saturdays!  They are my favorite day of the week!

On our agenda today: Watch Herbie (our favorite part is when the 100 Herbies come to the rescue!), build a race track, bake cheese crackers, bake cupcakes, play “Top Chef”, and take lots of photos!

Card recipe: Made for CPS;  Ribbon and cardstock by PTI, DP by Sassafras Lass and American Crafts, all other supplies by SU!

packingitis: it’s a disease

June 26th, 2009 § 13 comments

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Packingitis.  It’s a disease.  What can I say?  I love packing!  I love moving too!  Really, I get jealous when I am not invited to a packing party.  I don’t know what it is about the sound of packing tape against a cardboard box… it’s one of the best sounds in the world!  Maybe I associate the sound with moving on and moving forward?  Perhaps it’s the sound of adventure, new places, new things?  I don’t know!  I just know that I love wrapping each item like it’s a gift, placing it gingerly in it’s moving position, and then taping it all up with the wild expectation of unwrapping it in a new place.  It’s like one big Christmas and you know that all the hard work is going to pay off when you get to unwrap your whole house and begin a new phase, a new life, a new home.

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I’ve been thinking about moving a lot lately.  It seems like the thing to do right now, or at least among my friends!  I helped my friend pack yesterday and today and I’m afraid I’ve caught a bit of the packing bug.  Maybe I should pick up one of these cardboard pieces of furniture?  Or better yet perhaps I will use this tutorial to transform all my cardboard boxes from the 16 times we’ve moved into one of these beauties!  (Can you believe these are all made from cardboard??)

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What about you?  Do you have “packingitis?”  If money and opportunity were no issue, where would you move if you could go anywhere in the world?

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Hailey says she would like to move to Cupcake Land where they ride bicycles to their cupcake school and eat cupcakes of every kind all day long, every day.  Hmmm… perhaps we should do some baking over the weekend?

Photos: 1- Apartment Therapy; 2-Furniture Store Blog; 3-Mocoloco

Corner View: Music

June 24th, 2009 § 12 comments

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The music of Morocco truly represents the country itself.  The rhythms are complex…not typical…the sounds exotic and passionate.

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Much of the music is like the land itself…colorful…ancient…warm….and it serves as a reminder in this everchanging land of wifi, cell-phones,  and western dress that Morocco is an ancient land.  It serves as a reminder that although the outward appearances may change the heart is still the same…they are Berbers…they are Arabs… they are people of the land with a rich and deep history.

For more Corner Views from around the world go to Spain Daily!