give us some details about the crops!

[DebbieHodge]

who did you sit with?
who did you immediately recognize?
who was as you expected and who surprised you?
what was your favorite challenge?
who did you hang out with?

[Blesus]

did everyone bring their laptop?
how many challenges were there?
did you have snacks while you cropped?
what did you eat?
what did you learn? (ok, so I learn best while eating ....)
when is the next one?

[Steph]

Yes, please!!!!!!!!!!

[dorah]

Yes, tell all.

[blkcow]

Oh yes...please spill it!!

[digigrandma]

Great questions! I've been waiting for details, too.

[hguenthe]

who did you sit with? Terry (mida...), Tatiana (that-girl), Kelly (mugsbigsis), Patricia (phfphd), Phyllis (whatnext), Robin (robin52) & Robin's friend.

who did you immediately recognize? Kristin, Terry, Tatiana, Kelly, Patricia, Cassie, Sarah, Sara and Sarah and and... very easy to recognize & know immediately from their avatars.. I recognized most everyone from 3 1/2 of the 5 tables.

who was as you expected and who surprised you? almost everyone - Kristin was the first one I met and she & Dani looked & were as friendly & nice exactly as I expected & Jazzmatazz (Tracy) looked nothing like her doggie avatar but was a hoot & so much fun to meet & Randy is taller than I expected

what was your favorite challenge? 30MM... she made it hard having to do it with a photo & about something we learned in the last 24 hours but I love me a 30MM anyday! no time to think, just time to do, do, do & post quickly

who did you hang out with? At the crop, mostly my table & popping over to Kristin & Sarah Danyelle's table. Saturday, the photowalk ladies for most of the day as when Katrina takes you on a photowalk, she takes you on a walk! It was fabulous! Later in the evening, they let us tag along with them as well to go back to the Alamo for evening photos and then off for dinner where I got to witness Katrina drinking a beer! and Cassie getting her cool "I've got a cool drink" shot taken.. and learning about all the cool iphone apps she has. She had the Amazon gurus find her particular shade of makeup and send her a link to it on Amazon for when she wants to buy more just to show us how cool an app it is and how quick they are.

did everyone bring their laptop? If everyone didn't, I think the hotel was happy they didn't as it was a minefield of power strips under each table & took them a bit to make sure we had enough for everyone. There were lots of both Macs and Windows machines but our table was the only 100% Mac table.

how many challenges were there? Think officially 5 but after 4, we were getting tired and more into the chatting than scrapping part of the evening.

did you have snacks while you cropped? Chips and a few M&Ms and really good lemonade - not too sweet, not too tart. Got a pizza & caffeine injection of Dt. Coke for dinner from the hotel restaurant.

what did you eat? above

what did you learn? that meeting a bunch of ladies that you know from their LOs and the forums is like meeting a bunch of long lost friends & nothing to be nervous aboout. They were all as friendly and nice and encouraging and non-judgemental as they are online. Tatiana knows so much more than she lets on and is so much fun to be around. Kristin and I are so similar in so many ways that unknowingly, we even ordered the same thing for dinner on Saturday night. Learned that Cassie's Jack is not allergic to bee bits THANKFULLY! and that Cassie is on protective mom & made sure that bee paid for biting her son with its life!! oh and Jack and Dani were so darn adorable together. Dani wrapped all of us around her cute little finger and she got Jack just as well. Patricia is notorious for popping OUT of photos and taking photos so to have her in a group photo I think is amazing. Sarah Danyelle is SOOOO right that her dh, Ditz, will run from the camera to avoid having his photo taken but I think with the number of cameras around, he may have given up a little bit by later in the day.. wearing him down little by little... Sarah, it only took me 5 years to wear Mike down, so you are 20% there. Learned a little from each wonderful lady I met. I could go on about each one of them that I got to spend some time talking to. The weekend went by so quickly but is jam packed of memories and smiles.

when is the next one? the million dollar question and hoping that Katie & Randy judge these crops as big a success as I think all of us ladies who attended do

[katrinak]

who did you sit with?
Well, I didn't sit all of that much I brought my laptop and sat between Tracy (Jazzmataz) and Mollie (Readstoomuch). I spent so much of the day just looking at Tracy's pages and critiquing her choices (and yes, it was unsolicitated ) Loved meeting Tracy and having fun laughing with her!

Sara Horton (not to be confused as Sarah Orton) was at my table too and well...she is a hoot! She is just like the Sara you've met in chats! I did see her scrap with purple paper a time or two

Jodi (justmp) is a scrapping machine! I finished one page in the time I think she did 10?! lol

Who did you immediately recognize?
I immediately recognized Terry (mida) who looks EXACTLY like her avatar and has an amazing smile and laugh! She was a little shocked that I'm not 5'9"!!

It was a great time! I wish I had written down all of the funny things that were said.

The photo walk was A BLAST! We walked for 5 and a half hours! We lost Tatiana (thatgirl) several times...thatgirl likes to shoot! (and stick out her tongue for her own photos!)

I could go on and on it was such a great time! Mollie, Myra and I are enjoying a girl's weekend in San Antonio until Monday because we just needed to continue the fun!

Oh and I did mention the Muggles? OH MY! I love them! Cassie kept me up until 330AM. I could talk to her for HOURS! And the more I type the more I realize I've left pieces and people out...Patricia and Sarah and Sara and Terry and Tina and....so much goodness!

[anke]

Oh I can't wait to hear more!!! What a fun experience. I hope you will all come to the east coast one when they have it, I so want to meet you all

[justmp]

It was so much fun!!!! I felt kind of lost when I first walked in the room because I didn't see anybody that I recognized immediately...and then I saw RANDY!! He was the first person I hugged and the evening was off to an amazing start!

I was privileged to sit at a table with Cassie and her sister in law, Paige, Mollie, Katrina, Tracy (jazzmatazz), Sara H., Sarah B., and my best girlfriend, Tina, that I drug along for the fun!

They had the yummiest chips and salsa for us to munch on and there were MnM's at our tables...what more could a scrapper ask for?!!

We took a break about 8:00 for dinner and groups divided up and headed out for some yummy food. My girlfriend and I headed for Mexican! Yum!

My favorite challenge was probably the 30MM challenge.

It was such a wonderful time seeing old friends, meeting new ones, and feeling the creative vibe in the room!

And a special shout out to Heather G! Thank you sooo much for the camera strap. I will think of your generosity and smile every time I pick up my camera!

Katie and Randy...THANK YOU SO MUCH for hosting this amazing event! I can't wait for the next one!!

[MIDA78466]

who did you sit with? At the SA crop there were 5 tables of 8 women. I sat between Heather and Tatiana. Phyllis (whatnext), Patricia (pfphd ? don't know the order of the letters), Robin (Robin52) and hmmmmm can't remember he name of the other, Rhonda maybe--she is from NY and is an OR nurse.

who did you immediately recognize? Gee--Kristen, of course Randy and Katie, Katrina, Heather, Tatiana, Kelly, Patricia, Phyllis, Linda Farabee, Cassie, Sara Horton, Justmp, Mollie, SarahDanelle, Myra, Donita,--probably missing some. Oh--recognized Cassie's little ones. We got to see them in real life!!

who was as you expected and who surprised you? Most everyone was as I expected except for Tracy--she looks nothing like her avatar --I think I'll still call her Jazzmatazz, Katrina is not 5'9" like I thought--in fact she is just a few inches taller than me.

what was your favorite challenge? probably the challenge where we had to do some kind of graphic design thing. I'm not too good at this and it really made me think outside of the box. Thanks to Tatiana for giving me lessons on making the text fit in an angle. That girl knows her stuff and she is probably the shortcut princess, next to Cassie the shortcut Queen.

who did you hang out with? Pretty much hung out with the folks at my table and would wander around the room and chit chat with others. Did lots of talking!!!

did everyone bring their laptop? I think most everyone brought their laptop. There were electrical strips at each table so everyone could plug in. also had internet access. Amazing--everyone at our table had a Mac!

how many challenges were there?maybe four, could have been more but I only managed to complete two. I was too busy learning how to organize in Bridge from Heather and too busy talking. Just call me chatterbox.

did you have snacks while you cropped?Food, oh yes. Randy and Katie know how to throw a party. There was food, and food and chocolate!! We had the best lemonade too---fit in with those chips and salsa. We just pretended the lemondade was a margarita!!

what did you eat? Most of us went out and picked up some food and brought it back around 8PM. I had a burger and fries. Clog those arteries!

what did you learn? Katrina is not 5'9". Myra is shorter than me by one inch and has an unbelievably small foot compared to mine. Heather is a genius. Mike (Heather's hubby) is the nicest guy, a wonderful resident photographer (thanks for taking the group photos) and is a genius too. Linda (Farabee) is a retired journalism teacher and does not like to journal on her LO's--just the facts ma'm. Donita has a lens I want and a daughter the same age as my youngest son. If you ask Patricia what she thinks she says "You'll have to pay me to tell you." LOL. Phyllis did not enjoy the scenery driving down to SA. Cassie was a teacher and can throw her voice. Kelly lives in SD and loves it. Tatiana is a hoot--likes to stick her tongue out at you! Katrina lost her name tag and I found it on her leg----don't ask me why she put it on her leg! SarahDanelle was celebrating her 1 year anniversary at the crop. Kristen's daughter Dani is a ham and just the cutest little thing you ever saw. Randy and katie met at match.com. oh---and I did learn some scrapbooking stuff too!! The one thing that sticks out the most: I learned I want to attend crops in other areas so i can meet the rest of the DD family.

There is so much more, I just can't think of it right now. It was just a blast and am so glad I went.

[earlofoxford]

It's so much fun reading your debriefings from the crop! Just confirms that I definitely want to be at the next one!

[geekgirl415]

Wow, i feel like i was there- great summaries!! Oh, the West Coast is an EXCELLENT choice for a crop...

[Mozer]

Oh sounds like you all had so much fun!

[echogirl]

Originally Posted by geekgirl415

Wow, i feel like i was there- great summaries!! Oh, the West Coast is an EXCELLENT choice for a crop...

I agree!
So so very jealous of you guys!!

[farabee]

Randy is a tall man! That was my biggest surprise. Katie is a dear.

Such nice women....that was not a surprise. (Myra, I'm struggling!) Most all have been mentioned already. Now when I read the comments of those who I've met, I will "know" them.

Cassie talks faster than a freight train! She's an ex-high school newspaper editor....does that surprise you?

Laughing about what you think in your mind when you see a screen name and what it really stands for was a hoot. You all say donnie-tab in your mind, right? It's Donita B. :-) Never did get around to asking Terry about hers, tho.

Meridith of Moriginals was there and brought her sister....delightful.

We laughed and laughed and learned. Thanks DD for the event, the food, the freebies and the opportunity to meet these great women.

About 40 total attended, I think. we like to be bigger in Texas.....how many were at SLC crop?

[Cassie Jones (1gr8muggle)]

Before I address these questions, I just have to say that I had a WONDERFUL time in San Antonio. It was such a great idea to organize these get togethers.

To those of you who came to San Antonio . . . thank you! I had a great time visiting with you and just wish I could have had more time with some of you. It was tricky balancing my family vacation time with my scrapbooking peeps time. That is why Katrina and I (and others) were still talking at 3:00 a.m.!

On the way home today, Jack was telling me where our next family vacation was going to be. I (of course) interrupted him and asked, "can my scrapbooking friends come?" and he replied, "yes" without hesitation. Then he proceeded to tell me that we were going to Lost Vegas. That was good for a giggle!

Okay . . .


who did you sit with?
I didn't sit much. Surprised?

who did you immediately recognize?
Pretty much everyone that has a presence in the forums was instantly recognizable. Well, Tracy doesn't walk on all fours, and she had a bit less hair.

who was as you expected and who surprised you?
I am ALWAYS surprised when I meet online friends in real life. Not really surprised by how they are, but by how they already feel like old friends. It really is so easy to hang out with these ladies!

what was your favorite challenge?
My favorite challenge was the one where I tried to let someone ELSE finish a sentence.

did everyone bring their laptop?
Kelly & I don't have laptops, so we shared my DH's. Of course, I barely touched the thing. How could I with so much talking to do?

how many challenges were there?
Let me think . . . a 30MM challenge, a template challenge, a label challenge, a web challenge, and a cover-up challenge. I think that's right. Remember . . . I didn't scrap.

did you have snacks while you cropped?
We did! We had goodies to keep our juices flowing and then took a break for dinner.

what did you eat?
My little crew called in a Fuddrucker's order and went to pick it up then ate it in the crop room. I loved exposing some women to Fuddrucker's for the first time (even if the malt was just TOOOOO sweet )

what did you learn?
I learned that as awesome as it is to have my online friends, nothing beats hanging out with them in person!

when is the next one?
I have no idea, but I'd love to find out!

[Crissy]

who did you sit with? Janet Long(JALong) and her 4 daughters, Katie the scrapbooklady, and Laura (Sabine2598)
who did you immediately recognize? Katie and Randy
who was as you expected and who surprised you? Everyone pretty much surprised me with all their fun and personable personalities. I felt like I was amongst old friends that I haven't seen in so long.
what was your favorite challenge? They were all fun! Did I finish any of them?? Ummm, I think I talked too much and didn't do much scrapping.
who did you hang out with? Janet and her girls, Katie, Randy, Ktscrapbooklady, Deanie, Carol (cstaff), a few more here and there. My memory is bad when it comes to names.
did everyone bring their laptop? Almost. Someone brought a very nice desktop.
how many challenges were there? 5?!! I lost count, I wasn't paying attention to that. Talking too much.
did you have snacks while you cropped? Mmmm, Lots of them. M&M's, chex mix, elcairs, cheesecake, fruit with chocolate on top, veggies. Good Food!!
what did you learn? Lots of interesting stuff, LOL!!
when is the next one? ????

Katie and Randy are so Awesome!! I had an awesome time. There were lots of smiles and laughs. Great times!! I would recommend this fun crop to everyone! So many great people out there. I wish I could meet everyone here at DD in person

[kathie02]

Oh, it sounds like you all just had a fabulous time!!! It was so fun reading all about it!!

[Starlite9711]

Thanks for the summaries!! Sounds like you all had a WONDERFUL time! I cannot wait till the next one, and no matter WHAT, I will be there.

[whatnext]

i'm BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!! after two 12 hour+ days in the car, i'm finally back home. the drive was so worth it. it was wonderful meeting people, though, honestly, i felt as if i were continuing a conversation that had already begun. funny how you can get to feel like you KNOW people after talking with them here for a few years.

i was at a table with Kelly, Patricia, Robin and her friend, Tatiana, Heather and Terry. i didn't bring my laptop, because i can't scrap "under the gun." i would have just sat there during the challenges and stared at the screen....

i missed the photo walk because we left for home on Saturday. the Riverwalk is lovely, though i kept wondering home many people have fallen in or have had to jump in after their kids. no railings! but the river is pretty much a creek, so i guess they figured railings would be overkill.

i immediately recognized pretty much everyone, except Katrina, who i also thought would be taller. (this preconceived notion of her height must have something to do with her extra-tall talent.) I was also surprised that Myra was so tiny. (also the extra-tall talent thing....) and i expected Jazz to be a readhead, for some reason.

thankyouthankyouTHANKYOU Katie and Randy for getting the crop together. oh, what fun to see everyone face to face.

[farabee]

It was such a pleasure to meet you, Phyllis. Sorry your trip was so miserable, but hopefully the next one will have better scenery!

[Cassie Jones (1gr8muggle)]

I still can't believe you made such a long journey, Phyllis, but I have to say that I'm SO GLAD you did!

[Kathie]

Wow! Phyllis you make me feel guilty for not wanting to drive from here!!

You ladies all sound like you had such a wonderful time!! Love hearing that it was such a success.

[Aino]

So much fun to read your summaries ladies!!!

I can *aaaaalmost* feel like I was there.

What a blast it must have been!

[katrinak]

Oh Phyllis you've made my day Thank you

It was great meeting you! (and everyone!!)

[mugsbigsis]

who did you sit with? As it turns out my table was the MAC table. Yes, I got a picture of the MacBooks all lined up.
what did you eat? TEX MEX! :O) Can't get it in SD you know.
who did you immediately recognize? Well, it's hard to recognize the people who are behind the camera in their avatar, but once Robin52 told me who she was I recognized her immediately. I was talking to Cassie on the phone and she asked who I was with. I told her Tracy, Linda and Donita and she said. . . "I need screen names, honey." I rattled off jazzmatazz, donitab (yes, I said doni-tab) and farabee and I felt like my husband doing a roll call of pilot call signs.
who was as you expected and who surprised you? Randy is definitely a tall man, Katrina was not shorter than I expected (I must be looking at the wrong avatar or something), but Sarah Horton was and Cassie wasn't in t shirts and jeans all weekend, but I recognized her when she was with Jack.
what was your favorite challenge? I barely got the 30MM done in time (typical) and then my brother in laws computer froze and oops. . . forgot to save. I found myself going table to table actually.
who did you hang out with? I hope I got to hang out with everyone there at one time or another. I tried to anyway. It will be so much fun to have a voice to go with the text in the chats now. I loved meeting everyone there! To get to meet so many and feel like I was "reuniting" with them was amazing. I think I could write a full page personal thank you to each and every person that I met. What a fun, eclectic, fantastic, amazing, wonderful, loving, beautiful, classy group of people!
(I'm making myself stop here) :O\

[SarahDanyelle]

I loved meeting all of you wonderful ladies!!

who did you sit with? I was lucky enough to get to sit at the big table (with Katie and Randy) with Kristen (Krutten). When we first all got situated there wasn't enough space on the tables for all the laptops and my bag just ended up at the new table which Katie and Randy adopted and then Kristen came over as well. So it was just the four of us....

who did you immediately recognize? Kristin, Heather, Tatiana, Katie, Randy, Cassie, Sara Horton... Almost everyone else I recognized when they said their screen name!

who was as you expected and who surprised you? I really had no expectations, but I was surprised at how awesome Kristen's daughter Danica is. She is like the best baby on the planet.

what was your favorite challenge? 30MMP, always is and always will be!

who did you hang out with? I hope a little bit of everyone, but mainly Kristen & Heather

did everyone bring their laptop? See above about having to add a table due to all the laptops! It was crazy.

how many challenges were there? four? That's how many I did. I think there were two more that we never got to.

did you have snacks while you cropped? So, there were these M&M's on the table..... I think Kristen and I might have had one or two. Don't listen to her if she says we ate close to the entire bowl, just the two of us. : )

what did you eat? On the break around eight a small group of us went down to the restaurant at the hotel. I had tortilla soup, it was good, but a little on the high side for me!

what did you learn? I learned a few other people's processes. Funny how they cane be so different!

when is the next one? Soon I hope!

[Cassie Jones (1gr8muggle)]

Oh! I learned that Sarah (Sarah Danyelle) uses software I'd never even heard of to do her pages . . . and they rock! I was very intrigued and only wish I could have landed in one spot long enough to have watched her use it to create a page. Thanks for showing it to me, Sarah!

[hguenthe]

Talking of Sarah's soup & being "a little on the high side"... Mike learned that coffee down in the restaurant for breakfast is $4 a cup and the coffee in the hotel lobby where met up one floor for the photowalk is free... Mike is pretty easy going but that got under his skin to see that with cup from downstairs still in hand.

Mike knew Sarah's program right away! He has been looking at it and thinking of trying it out... we know where to send him for help with it when he does.