NSD around the corner...

[Tronesia]

...what do you do to prepare for the festivities? Do you make space on your EHD, start/finish wish lists, or maybe you are like me drinking coffee and ready to go on a scrapping binge?

I remember my first NSD. I stayed up the entire night. I let my nieces (they were 7 and 9 years old at the time) come over for the day and play with the baby while I sat scrapping and hitting up all the sales. lol! I am sure now that was a crazy thing to do...but surely I am not alone. I even remember hitting up all the chats and following every twitter/FB account I could to try to win prizes.

This year I have a pot of coffee made tonight along with hershey bars and chips (yes..this is bad I know) on hand...and I am ready to scrap some pages. So...tell me what you are doing....

[Traci Reed]

I work. A lot.

[Trista]

I remember my first iNSD. It was similar to your's Tronesia. LOL! I sent DH and the kids away for the weekend. I had wish lists a mile long and joined every challenge possible to win prizes.
I feel like a true veteran now, with things streamlined and ready for the big weekend. Everyone in my family knows it's a "me" weekend.
I also cleared a ton of stuff off the computer to make room for the unzipping festivities.

[carriesmom]

When I used to shop everywhere, I went a little crazy but I really only shop 3 big stores and 1 designer store, so I scoped them out and do my wishlists ahead of time. And mostly I have fun doing challenges, games, and what not. I try not to stress too much about getting every deal.

[Nixenkind]

Honestly, I have no idea... it's my first NSD, and since I'm not really "N" (but far away in Germany) and only started digital scrapbooking in November, I only begin to find out what will be happening... it sounds like fun, and I will try to play along next weekend as good as I can!

[jessica31876]

I have a wishlist. My daughter said she is getting me a giftcard here for Mother's Day...sad she has to work on her very first Mother's Day as a mom so we are going to do it the weekend before Mother's Day so I will get the gift card this week. I plan on shopping & scrapping. Possibly doing some contests. We will see. I should be here for most of the weekend though

[Tronesia]

Originally Posted by Trista

I remember my first iNSD. It was similar to your's Tronesia. LOL! I sent DH and the kids away for the weekend. I had wish lists a mile long and joined every challenge possible to win prizes.
I feel like a true veteran now, with things streamlined and ready for the big weekend. Everyone in my family knows it's a "me" weekend.
I also cleared a ton of stuff off the computer to make room for the unzipping festivities.

Originally Posted by carriesmom

When I used to shop everywhere, I went a little crazy but I really only shop 3 big stores and 1 designer store, so I scoped them out and do my wishlists ahead of time. And mostly I have fun doing challenges, games, and what not. I try not to stress too much about getting every deal.

Oh yes- it definitely helps to know your favorites so that you have an idea where to hang out.

Originally Posted by Nixenkind

Honestly, I have no idea... it's my first NSD, and since I'm not really "N" (but far away in Germany) and only started digital scrapbooking in November, I only begin to find out what will be happening... it sounds like fun, and I will try to play along next weekend as good as I can!

I hope you enjoy it. I know there will be lots of fun things going on around SSD for the weekend. I actually spent most of my NSD on the forums here last year doing the challenges.

Originally Posted by jessica31876

I have a wishlist. My daughter said she is getting me a giftcard here for Mother's Day...sad she has to work on her very first Mother's Day as a mom so we are going to do it the weekend before Mother's Day so I will get the gift card this week. I plan on shopping & scrapping. Possibly doing some contests. We will see. I should be here for most of the weekend though

Well that sucks she has to work on her first one but it's pretty cool that you will be celebrating early. You both get to enjoy your gifts early too

Originally Posted by Traci Reed

I work. A lot.

I bet you do! I cannot even begin to imagine with all the planning and designing.

I just hope everyone enjoys the weekend and get time in to scrap and enjoy some contests/challenges. This is probably the one weekend I sit down and just scrap and let the guy worry with the child. It's like my holiday...lol!

[jumbbumble]

for me it is double i need to work a lot host some chats etc and then i am a custamor and my 3 favoriete stores will have fun games so i think i need lot's of tea and try to stay on late because i am from the netherlands and other wise will miss a lot of the fun lol

[adrianka]

Normally I don't have the weekend completely to myself, but in November I did and this coming weekend is the same! Hooray.

No special preparations, I have my wishlists sorted on Clipboard, so that's taken care of in the long run, and I kinda sorted my downloads yesterday to make way for the new ones. Other than that, I'm just patiently waiting.

Can't wait to do some challenges and contests on the weekend! :-)

[joelsgirl]

I have the worst news ever. I have to be gone ALL. WEEKEND. LONG. {sob}

I have a women's retreat, which I'd be looking forward to if it wasn't so poorly timed.

I've been saving my money, and hopefully (ha) I'll have time to shop before I leave.

Though last year I spent like seven hours trying to find something for a scavenger hunt, and my husband said, "I'll GIVE YOU ten dollars if you'll just turn that thing off and go to bed." LOL

[mrshobbes]

I'll be gone the weekend too! The hubs had the audacity to schedule our vacation on NSD weekend We'll be leaving on Thursday and be back on the 8th. *sigh* I am hoping to do some shopping come Saturday IF our hotel's wifi is reliable.

I've got my central wishlist ready (on Pinterest) but no budget yet I do have some gift certificates I'm itching to use!

As for my first NSD...wow, it was in 2007, and um, we had no internet. We didn't really "need" it as we were both working full-time in offices with powerful connections. Sooooo when NSD festivities kicked in on Saturday morning (it was Saturday 10PM-ish) for me, I was huddled in front of a computer in an internet cafe, surrounded by noisy network gamers yelling all around me The hubs patiently sat by me and waited for me to finish shopping! I remember at the time I had a budget of... $20 I stayed up and played games until around 1AM.

[catgoddess]

Every year I am a total spaz. I clean my laptop and organize my EHD if it's looking a bit rough. I keep wishlists as newsletters come in, so I just add anything new that comes out that weekend and shop.

I always try to plays games and do activities where I shop and CT so I can see old and new friends and just have fun. I always have my IM open so me and my scrappy buddies can let each other know where all the action is. hehe

[laceybittner]

It is my first year doing all digital, so I am excited for all the festivities! I do have to work but thankfully I work at home doing transcription so in between files uploading, I can peek at all the fun & do some shopping! Yay!

[dbkat]

I'm so out of it I don't know when it is??

[MommaTrish]

I sit around and wait for Traci, Julie, Darcy, and Krystal to tell me what to do. Then I rush around at the last minute to get it all done. That is how I prepare. lol

[MamaBee]

Kat - it this coming weekend... May 4th!

Another who isn't going to be around much either... it is always the weekend of my state's local homeschool convention... however in the past... I would have so many pages to scrap for my CTs that when it came to the actual day, I was exhausted... haha!!!

[taracotta7]

Originally Posted by MommaTrish

I sit around and wait for Traci, Julie, Darcy, and Krystal to tell me what to do. Then I rush around at the last minute to get it all done. That is how I prepare. lol

Pretty much this. LOL I do also take a look at my wish lists and get a little organized. And I make sure to note when sales are starting so I can attack that store and get my wl items and a few new things. That is about it. I really need to have a clean out of my supplies on my EHD but probably won't get that far this week. It may have to be after the madness.

[Lyd]

I'm definitely trying to do some hard drive clean up this week. It seems every time I start, some little person around here needs something and I get distracted. Then it takes me a day and a half to remember that that's what I was doing in the first place. Lol.

[Nettio]

Originally Posted by Traci Reed

I work. A lot.

Word. The last two years by the time NSD rolled around, the last thing I wanted to do was be on the computer.

[marlathrall]

I'm going to be busy making pages all week. Yay.

Then I will shop a little here (yay yay) and I'm hosting a fun game at ScrapStacks. It should be a fun weekend and I have no real work planned right now.

[k23m]

Well I stupidly planned my girls 6th birthday party on Saturday, but at least that is only for a few hours.

Good idea to pre-clean up the hard drive and organize my kits. That seems to be my barrier for scrapping these days...I get caught up in unzipping and organizing, and I never get around to actually scrapbooking anything.

[Sherri Tierney]

NSD is like the worst timing EVER for me. Even back in my paper scrapping days I got bummed because the timing was wrong. May just doesn't do it for me. Not the first weekend anyway... I officially request we celebrate it after May 21st. LOL

Anyway, for years I worked my butt off leading up to NSD. Now I just chill out. It is so much easier approaching it as a scrapper than a designer. I will check out the sales, scope out some of my favorite designers for freebies or giveaways and that's about it. Too much going on at home to spend time hanging out and scrapping, unfortunately.

[maryinaz]

It's prom this weekend, so who knows how much time I'll have. I only shop here though, so I don't have to chase all over the place.

[nun69]

I only shop here and 1 other store and I have my Wl's ready other than that I will scrap my butt off this week for my designers and I really like the fun that goes on in the forum so I usually hang out here and 1 other place cause that is all I can keep up with anything more than that and I can't function LOL ....but I do like to have a scratch piece of paper and put down the challenges/times/ due dates of the things I want to do and I list them in the order I want to do them...like my most favorite is 1st and so on....and if I don't get them all done, doesn't matter, it's stil pages in my book

[origami]

Originally Posted by Sherri Tierney

NSD is like the worst timing EVER for me. Even back in my paper scrapping days I got bummed because the timing was wrong. May just doesn't do it for me. Not the first weekend anyway... I officially request we celebrate it after May 21st. LOL

Anyway, for years I worked my butt off leading up to NSD. Now I just chill out. It is so much easier approaching it as a scrapper than a designer. I will check out the sales, scope out some of my favorite designers for freebies or giveaways and that's about it. Too much going on at home to spend time hanging out and scrapping, unfortunately.

First week of June would be awesme, but I am sure it is timed before Mother's Day. It is just that we have a crazy schedule as the school year winds down. All the schools have finished with the standardized tests, so now it is a full agenda of school picnics, celebrations, field days, etc!

[Sherri Tierney]

Originally Posted by origami

First week of June would be awesme, but I am sure it is timed before Mother's Day. It is just that we have a crazy schedule as the school year winds down. All the schools have finished with the standardized tests, so now it is a full agenda of school picnics, celebrations, field days, etc!

I hear you! It is the same here! We also have birthdays, anniversaries, etc. that we celebrate in early May too so we are bombarded with school activities, scouting activities, spring sports and family celebrations.

[LJSDesigns]

I am an NSD nerd. I even take the day before off work so that I can get everything I need to done and have plenty of time to play games and shop, and I still never manage to do everything on my list. Yes, I write a list of the games I want to play, the challenges I want to do, etc... I am still pulling my WLs together, but I made sure that I have my budgeted spending amount in my pay pal account already.

[thompsonc2007]

I always update my wish list in advance and get ready to shop! Last year I only shopped here and this year the plan is to hit one other place and that is it. Then I like to keep an eye on any games or special threads going.

[Tronesia]

Originally Posted by Loriebug66

I am an NSD nerd. I even take the day before off work so that I can get everything I need to done and have plenty of time to play games and shop, and I still never manage to do everything on my list. Yes, I write a list of the games I want to play, the challenges I want to do, etc... I am still pulling my WLs together, but I made sure that I have my budgeted spending amount in my pay pal account already.

I used to do the same thing. I always wondered did my boss find it odd that in May and November I took off those first Fridays for the past 5 years.