A Few Homemade Gifts

I needed to make a few gifts this year and here is what I came up with for D's side of the family. For his grandmother I made an 6x6 accordian album. Here's the overall picture:



Here's a few close-ups:

Okay and I'm not trying to brag, but I loved it so much that I didn't want to give it away. Next up I made a little coaster frame for D's great aunt. Front:


And back:




And lastly I made microwave peanut brittle for D's grandfather.


He loves peanut brittle, so this is my traditional gift to him. I hope he likes it, otherwise he's been getting a crappy gift for the last seven years. (Except the one year I burned it and as I was dumping it out, stupidly gave myself a third degree burn on my thumb. I wound up in the after hours clinic.) I'll have to post the recipe sometime-it's easy and good.


Okay--as usual all supplies are Close To My Heart.

O Christmas Tree

So here's our tree this year. I had wanted to do a candy theme and a few years ago I bought all new ornaments and told my husband that would be my present that year. I love the way it turned out. This year (since a great deal of the ornaments are choking hazards) we didn't put everything on.

I realize now that you can't tell anything from this picture. Oh well. Now for some fun family Christmas pictures... The first one will be in our cards. Three out of four people are facing the camera and smiling. It's a keeper.

The shot that encapsulates how most of the shots turned out.

I beautiful shot of Little m's eyelashes...I really love this picture.

And Little d posing alone. I couldn't get them to take a picture together.

I lied. Here's a picture of them together.

Well there you go. D is mad that I didn't let him shave before the pictures. I told him I just wanted the family shot for our house and I would only send pictures of the kids out in the cards. Now though, we don't have a picture of the kiddos together, so we have to do the family shot in the cards. I think he looks cute scruffy tho!

Therapy Thursday

Today's gripe--Christmas Crunch. I don't do New Year's Resolutions usually, but this year I may start with this one "simplify!" I feel like I am so far behind. The main reason is because I'm trying to be all 'Martha Stewart' about Christmas. I feel compelled to make these detailed cards to send out. Our Christmas picture must be all matchy-matchy. I have to do a ton of handmade gifts. I am trying to keep the house somewhat clean. It's all piling up because apparently I didn't do enough early enough. Uhg.

I used to have all of my presents bought/made/whatever by early October. I would shop and plan all year. It was easy-peasy. Now I am scrambling last minute to get gifts together for D's family's Christmas on Saturday. (Okay part of that is not my fault because he just made the decision to go this morning. He's working nights and has no vacation left, so we weren't going to go this weekend. But now he's decided that he and I can go for one hour and then turn around and come back in time for him to go to work.) ANYway...

About those Christmas cards. I had this great concept in my mind of a card that would have a vellum panel and if you put a candle behind it, it would look like a stained glass window. Yeah. I have it all stamped, embossed, and colored, let's see if I can get them assembled. PS next year cards will be a little simpler!

The picture. Since D and I have been married we have taken a picture together every year in front of the tree. Matching clothes and all. Last year after Little m was born, I never got outfits for D and me. So the picture was just Little d and Little m. This year I have coordinated clothes for us all. Now today we are going to try to get everyone in front of the tree, dressed and facing the camera sitting on a tripod with a timer for a shot. We'll see how that goes!

Okay. Off to make an accordian album, peanut brittle, and get my hair ready for the picture. Did I mention Uhg?

Little d

Today I had a moment. One of those "mom" moments. The kind you didn't know existed until you had a child. It was about little d. I saw her at 18. I mean not really, obviously, she's 4. But she had just tried on this new outfit and when she turned to walk away, she tossed her long hair over her shoulder and I just saw her as 18. And I caught my breath and got tears in my eyes. I realize in a few blinks she really will be 18 and I will wonder where the years went.

Sceaming Out Loud

Can you sing? I cannot. But I love to pretend I can. In the car. By myself. Loudly. I refuse to sing in front of anyone. I don't sing in church. I don't sing Happy Birthday at parties. If I am speaking about a song and someone says, "sing part of it" or "just hum that line," I won't.

I've gotten better in my old age. I will hum and sing to the kiddos and if someone happens to be around, like D, well they just have to listen. (On a side note, he says I hum beautifully, but alas he is tone deaf.)

But in the car I am a song diva. I will scream right along with the CD way too loud (and I'm sure out of tune), probably much to the delight of other motorists. So what's on my rotation right now? On my last road trip (to a card workshop 30 minutes away) it was Beth Hart, and the Jonas Brothers. Go ahead google her, I'll wait. I don't think she had anything out in years, which is the last time I listened to regular radio stations. Are you back? Here's another you probably don't know, but should definitely listen to...Shannon Curfman. She was 14 when she did her bluesy CD and I LOVE IT! In fact I'm going to google her to see if she ever did another CD. (Oh my gosh, she has a ton of stuff...will need to check that out. Okay I decided to check out Beth Hart and she has new stuff too. When I have more time I will need to listen to some...)

Oh here's something funny. I get annoyed with people who only sing the chorus. I won't sing along to a song until I know all the words. Cuz I'm a diva like that.

Some Cards

It's a slow news day, so I thought I would post some Close to My Heart stuff. This is a card I made for a wedding in November. It is super simple and I made it really fast, because I was running late.

Here's another. This one was a birthday/first year of school card. It's one of my favorites.

Here's a sympathy card. It's one from one of my workshops. The technique is called soot stamping. Everyone loved making this one.

These are some baby cards I made. We've had lots of babies in my extended family this year. And mostly girls it seems.

Okay well, I'm done for now. Pretty much all of the products are Close To My Heart, and there are too many to list. So if you have a specific question, leave it in the comments and I'll answer it.

CTMH: Sneak Peek

Here's a look at some new products coming out in 2009!! This is one of the new paper packs and on the card you can catch a glimpse of the new cupcake stamp!


As a true scrapbook freak, this is the kind of stuff I get all excited about. I am scheduled to receive my new Spring 2009 Idea Books (catalogs) on Tuesday and I can hardly wait!

Things that have come out of my mouth recently...

"Get out from between my legs, I can't cook." (to little m)

"I found an ant."

"So the toilet actually burns sh!t??" (See this post.)


"If you keep eating big girl toothpaste, I'm going to make you use the baby toothpaste!" (to little d)

"I just killed an ant."

"Hello sleeping bag, how are you?" (prompted by little d)


"Little m, stop pulling hair."


"Let me see you tongue." (to little m)


"Little m, stop pulling hair."


"Is that an ant over there?"


"Little m, stop pulling hair!"

Good House News

Our contractor gave us the bid for the materials list from the second lumber yard and WOO HOO it's $13,000 less than the first yard's bid!! We are beyond thrilled about this! This may not be blogworthy, but I'm using this blog as a place to record events and keep a timeline for when I get around to scrapping stuff. PS this weekend we are digging the water well. I will try to post pictures soon.

Irony Defined

I can not eat cheese. Or any dairy for that matter. It DOES NOT like me, and I have very luke-warm feelings towards it. I eat soy cheese. Soy milk (occasionally). I have even eaten soy ice cream. Yes they sell that in my little neck of the woods.

We sometimes (ok-way more than we should) order takeout. There are two places we order from that require specific instructions; Casa Ole and Papa John's. No cheese, no cheese, no cheese. About half of the time, there will be cheese on my order. It's a chance you take.

On one particular night, I made the decision to order pizza. When it arrived, my pepperoni had cheese on it. wow, shocking. So I called Papa back. I sat on hold for about ten minutes, and then the guy hung up on me. wow, dissappointing. My calm and rational husband took the phone and called back, while I made a grilled soy cheese sandwich.

I ate my sandwich feeling all sorry for myself and waited for my cheeseless pizza to arrive. BTW we are rolling up on two hours past me ordering the first pizza. Ten minutes after consuming, my stomach begin to ache. Like I had eaten cheese. I thought back over what I had eaten that afternoon. No, nothing suspect. Then I went to the fridge. Yes, I had accidentally made my sandwich with REAL cheese. wow, ironic defined.

Did I mention I had an early appointment the next morning?

Therapy Thursday

I can't think of a gripe for today, how cool is that?!? We got good news on the house stuff, my card workshop went well. The kiddos slept ALL night. Seriously, happy day today.

How about if I speak for Little m, since I know she has this one particular gripe today. Here goes...

• Why can't I have the remotes? I know that the remotes you let me have are the kind without the batteries in them that don't really work. Oh yes, they look like your remotes, but the weight of them is different AND nothing happens when I point them at the TV. So, my question to you is why? What's the big deal with your remotes? What secret do they possess? You are all constantly playing with them. You constantly are searching for them. I have even seen one of you do a happy dance when you finally found them! Now, I may be only one year old, but I think I deserve to be in on whatever it is. By the way, can we change the channel to Disney? I think Higgly Town is on.

A Card Workshop

As I mentioned, I am a Close to My Heart consultant. Which means I sell scrapbooking and stamping supplies. I mainly do monthly workshops, where I "teach" people how to do two 12x12 layouts, a card, and an altered item. I try to incorporate a new stamp technique or new product into each workshop. I have also done two Christmas card workshops.


These are the cards from my latest one...











Each participant receives a packet of pre-cut supplies, enough to make six of each design. When they leave they will have 24 handmade cards with envelopes for $14. The designs were fairly simple since this group has never stamped before. (CTMH supplies: Aspen and Evensong Level II papers, Liquid Glass, clear embossing detail powder, Liquid Applique and Prisma Glitter. CTMH MyAcrylix stamps: Christmas Melodies, Bethlehem, and November Stamp of the Month-All Decked Out.)

A Wedding Story

We got married on December first. A great time of year. It was the one year anniversary of our engagement. We were married in the same Catholic church that my parents were married in thirty years earlier. I walked down the aisle in a white gown that had the same lace pattern as my Mom's wedding dress to a song that my Dad composed on the piano. He recorded it for me to use as a processional. I carried a bouquet of gorgeous peonies and roses made by my Mom. Our flower girl had tossed white, silver and lavender snowflakes crocheted by Mom. The alter was decorated with two large Christmas trees covered in tiny white lights and six candle stands (made by Dad) that were draped with beautiful cascading grapevines and berries. Our glass oil lamp unity candle, was atop a white cross crafted by my Dad. In fact almost everything in our wedding was hand made by one of us. We walked back down the aisle as husband and wife to 'Sleigh Ride'.

At our reception we had a catered Thanksgiving-style dinner. My favorite food. Everyone ate at tables decorated with white crocheted Christmas trees in little white clay pots stamped with silver snowflakes. My Mom and I had so much fun planning and handcrafting things for the wedding. After dinner we had planned a dance. D and I selected four full CDs of all our favorites in a mix of fast and slow music in several different genres. My Dad and I danced to Bette Midler's 'The Rose', D and I danced to 'No Place That Far' by Sara Evans.




Then D and I changed into our 'going away' outfits. And we had so much fun dancing until it was time to leave. From the pre-wedding music to the guests ringing jingle bells and singing 'Sleigh Ride' as we left it was the perfect day. (Okay it was perfect after that too, but this is NOT that type of blog!!)

Everyone who gets married should have such a wonderful time!


ETA: My mom said I need to mention that the ring bearer's pillow was handmade by me with the top of it being cross-stiched with our last names, the date and snowflakes.

Candy Mouth

Little d is hooked on candy. It is a monkey on her back and I blame Halloween. She asks for it all day long. In fact, sometimes I ban the word candy. She will say "Mom can I have a piece of ..." and then throw her hand over her mouth and grin.

I fear for her teeth. I know they are only baby teeth now, but still. I have this fear because I have horrid teeth. I brush and floss and still. I'm so close to my dentist she's on my Christmas card list. For example, I'm going to see her tomorrow. I just was there three months ago for a large filling and now I have another tooth ache. In the same area that was x-rayed then.

And because having soft enamel is not enough, my gums are thin. That's right, you can be too thin if it's in your gums!! I am scheduled for gum surgery in February. GUM *BEEPING* SURGERY!!! As in they will be cutting a swath of tissue from the roof of my (holy crap) mouth and grafting it to the front of my thin gums. Shudder. Guess how long the recovery period is? Go on, guess. Two weeks!!

Okay I have hijacked this post enough, back to my little candy mouth girl. She also asks after every meal, "Did I eat enough to have a piece of candy?" I think the time has come to wean her off a little. And next Halloween we will be handing out stickers or some other such nonsense!

Seven Years

I didn't think you could love someone more after being married to them for seven years than you did on the day you married them, but apparently you can. I met D nine years ago while celebrating my birthday in a bar. Wow. That is SO not like me. I was working as a police officer and my patrol partner and his wife decided to take me out for my birthday. We went to a local club, where we sat around and talked. I don't drink. A pretty tame party. My co-worker's wife said "I think that guy is checking you out." Meaning D.

I was surprised. I never really get 'checked out'. But then looking back, I was wearing leather pants. Hah! Anyway he asked me to dance and I said yes. In the parking lot at the end of the evening we exchanged numbers and a few days later he called.

I truly believe that you find your soul mate only after you are happy with yourself. I had been in a bad relationship a year before meeting D and during that year I dated two other men, but wasn't ready to move on. Then one morning in early November I woke up with the realization that if I find love fine, and if not that's okay too. I was perfectly content to focus on my career and be happy in my own skin. Two weeks later I met D.

After that first phone call, we talked for countless hours, both working the night shift. When we had our first date he brought a single bright pink rose to my door which I thought was so sweet. When he said goodnight, I kissed him on the cheek. We dated for a year and he completely surprised me with a proposal at a family dinner celebrating my birthday. We were engaged for a year after that and got married in the same hometown Catholic church where my parents were married 30 years earlier. It was a beautiful wedding--but I'll save that for another post.

I've heard the thing most married couples argue about is finances. We don't argue about money...that's not to say we don't argue. Just not about money. Having a baby was an adjustment-as we learned how to be parents. But we are pros at that now. Hell, we're even planning on having another someday.

When people asked me what makes me love D, I say his cute butt....HA just seeing if you were still paying attention!! Okay really I love that I have always been comfortable enough around him to just be myself and that he accepts me as I am and never tries to change me. I think that is the greatest feeling in the world. I never understood why someone would get married thinking they can change a person. Anyway, it's been a great seven (nine) years and we've both grown as a couple and as a family. I am so thankful that God sent someone for me and that I was at the right place to accept such a gift.