Jewelry Color Inspiration #30

HERE's Stacey's new color inspiration. I thought the colors were very modern and fun to work with. I think I pulled about twenty stamp sets out to play with and finally settled on Adorable.





I seem to be headed in the 'keep it simple stupid' direction with my cards lately. Wonder how long that trend will last?

I'm up to four comments on my First Five to Comment Win post. Check it out if you want to be the final winner!

A video of Poppy

As I mentioned earlier, my grandfather turned 90 this month. The local paper interviewed him. You can view a video of part of the interview HERE. I was so excited to see this interview that I wanted to share! There is also a link on that page to read the article.

Check it out if you have the time. It's short, about a minute and a half. Notice that he always has a sparkle in those eyes!

Just Some Randomness (is that a word?)

If you find some acorns hidden in a box in your garage, don't think it's cute, because it was probably a scurvy mouse that did it.


It is cute for a sixteen month old climb on the table all by herself and just sit there like she's been doing it for years.


Pulling a red wagon with 62 pounds of kidlets is a great workout for your calves.


Having all the nice comments on my cards/blog make me giddy like a schoolgirl.


I've started taking prenatal vitamins again. (No I'm not pregnant...yet.)


I need a haircut like you would not believe. I also need to make an OB/GYN appointment for the yearly exam-o-fun.


Fighting over the laptop with my four year old makes me feel young at heart...or ridiculous, I haven't decided yet.


Today is my Dad's 65th birthday. I will devote a post to that when we get to celebrate it and I have some pictures to show you. Now for some random cute kid pictures.



Here's what the girls think is fun...comparing baby bumps. I think it's cute too. At this age! If they were teenagers...not so much!
I told you this was cute. Here is the scowl she gives us every time we say. "Little m, we don't climb on the table!" I think loosely translated, the scowl means, "maybe you don't, but I clearly do."

"As long as I have my sister, all is right with the world."

Not To Brag...

But for once I ROCKED OUT A COLOR CHALLENGE. Okay I only say that because of all the color challenges I have done, this is the only...ONLY...card I love. And the bow? My Gosh the bow!! I actually tied a perfect bow. You don't understand people, I can't tie a bow to save my life!! Enough, here's the challenge...

And heeeere's the card:

I completed this card while on the phone with my loony Mom. I can call her loony and get away with it because we are bestest friends AND because she is all hopped up on cold meds right now! Oh and also because it will make her laugh when she reads this.

Supplies:

Paper: CTMH chocolate cs, white daisy cs, Emporium B&T

Other: CTMH chocolate rub-ons, teal ribbon from a garage sale...Score!

Another Survey

Here's a new survey from one of the Blogs of Note. Looked fun, so I am playing along..

1. When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? An astronaut

2. What have you done in the past week to help someone else? Helped some women do scrapbooking projects last night. And helped the kiddos all week.

3. Who is the best-dressed person you know? my BFF

4. What is on your nightstand? alarm clock, lamp, kleenex box, baby moniter

5. If you were a cat, what kind of a cat would you be? A sad one. I hate cats.

6. If you lived in a house surrounded by acres of trees, what particular type of tree would you want flourishing on your land? fruit! I am planning on planting a fruit orchard.

7. What do you find to be very overrated? eating

8. How many email addresses do you have? two

9. Have you ever felt replaced? yes

10. Would you rather watch football or baseball? football!

11. What is the wallpaper on your phone?a beach

12. Name a lyric from the song you're listening to. Not listening to music right now.

13. Do you use a feed reader? no

14. What chocolate do you always leave in the box?dark

15. What would you do if you found out your ex is engaged? Pray for the girl he is marrying!

16. Do words hurt you? sure sometimes

17. Are you a talker or a listener? listener

18. Have you ever walked on the beach at night? yep

19. Who is your favorite professional athlete? Troy Aikman

20. Which TV show have you seen pretty much every episode of? Friends and Top Chef

Kristina Werner Color Challenge #47

I loved these colors. Very earthy and warm. I made this card with very little supplies since most of my stuff (including cutter and adhesive tape) is at tonight's workshop location. Eek! I even used a plastic picture frame as a "block" for my stamps. I'm nothing if not determined! Ha.

Color Throwdown #35

I think I practiced great self restraint when making this card. I saw the colors and tried to pick the CTMH colors to match. A little tricky. I'm not sure CTMH really has these colors. But then when I glanced though my non-CTMH paper stash I found this great stripe paper. Perfect!


I paired it with Goldrush cardstock and Vineyard Berry ink and then...stopped. No, I didn't add ribbon, or bling, or brads even though it was tempting. I thought, 'this would be a quick card to mass produce for Thank You notes.' So I left it as is.





ETA: I got so excited that my handy dandy husband got the pics off my camera I almost forgot to link the challenge. HERE it is.

Waiting in the wings

I have two cards for two seperate challenges ready to be posted. Oh that's right I can't take a picture because I can't find the card to my camera. I guess Koday EasyShareMyAss is a little miffed at my nickname for her and has decided to hide the card. Either that or my little monkey (a) ate (b) hid (c) knows nothing of it.

Anywho...I have three comments so far from yesterday's post. I need Leslie's email or blog address so I can contact you to get your mailing info. And Morningstar...don't let on to my secret. I really need your retirement fund, okay?

Also in the spirit of "trying to kiss up to EasyShare": I love how easy it is to take red eye out of pictures and change pictures to sepia using EasyShare. Hear that? Now give me my card back...please?

First Five to Comment Win!

A blog I check recently posted a kind of Pay It Forward challenge. You had to be one of the first five to comment and you receive something from her. And I did! Yeah Me! The rules are you have to do the same on your blog.



So here it is: Be one of the first five to comment on this post and receive a handmade something from me. I do papercrafting and crochet, so it will be something along those lines. And then you have to do the same on your blog. Pay it forward!!

Thanks to Sarah! Click on her name to see her awesome blog. She does some cute papercrafting over there. Can't wait to see what she sends me. I'll be sure to post about it when I get it!

Three cards...Easter, Birthday, and Thank You.

For starters, I hate my camera. Or maybe it's the SD card. Or maybe, for definitely sure it's the bleeping software. It hoses up the computer 9 out of 10 times I open it. I lu-hu-huv that it's called EasyShare. It makes it so easy for me to affectionately call it EasyShareMyAss. One word, lotsa syllables.

Onto the cards. The first one is that Easter card I mentioned before. In this one I think the faux grass I colored with markers turned out well. Not so much in that one from the other day.

On the inside I stamped an egg that looks like one of those speckled eggs. What is it, a robin's egg, or maybe a quail?
Next up, my dad's 65th birthday card. I used paper piecing again on this one. I thought the little golfer was so cute. I made the flag and hole freehand.

And lastly. This blog is where good color challenges go to die. I was trying a new color challenge out and it was failing miserably, so I salvaged the chocolate cardstock and decided to do my own thing completely. I am pretty happy with this little card.

If you want to see the original color challenge click HERE. It really is a shame I couldn't get it together. The colors are so pretty.

PS why does the spacing on blogger hate me so much?

All the supplies used here were CTMH.

She's a climber all right.

Little m started climbing before she could walk. Into chairs, up the stairs, everywhere. My mom informs me that I was also a climber as a baby. She said one day she walked into the living room and I was sitting on top of the piano.

Little m hasn't climbed onto the top of the piano, but that's probably because it has picture frames all over it. She does climb onto the piano bench. For months now we have had our dining room chairs laying (or is it lying?) on the floor because she climbs up into them instantly if they are upright. Well today the little monkey learned how to upright the chair on her own and of course climb into it. Huh.

So now all the chairs are back at the table properly. That makes me happy because somehow it makes the house look cleaner. It makes her happy because she can spend quality time climbing in and out of all the chairs in rapid succession, testing to see which one sits the best. Now I just have to keep the table cleared of choking hazards.

"Sweet Niblets"

Hannah Montana quote for those of you not in the know.

You are not gonna believe this. Well yes you probably will. Remember THIS? Well guess who called back? Yes but this time instead of speaking I just got an open line. Purrrfect. So I again looked up their number from the Better Business Bureau and called it. This time I talked to Alex, who was also incredulous when I told him my tale. He asked when this last call happened and I said about 5 minutes ago. He got off the phone to investigate.

He called back in a few minutes and informed me that it was a computer that had called my number, and apparently no operator picked it up. He said..."I guess I should take this number off of our list?"

And I very politely said, "Thanks, I'd appreciate it."

Granny's 90th Birthday Card

My husband's Granny turns 90 and her surprise party is tomorrow. I laid in bed last night and and decided on how to make her birthday card. If it looks familiar, it's because I used a very SIMILAR DESIGN for a sympathy card recently. The only thing I hadn't nailed down is what colors to use. Apparently no one knows Granny's favorite color.

Well lo and behold, along comes Kristina's Color Challenge! Perfect! So here's the card. I used cardstock in the colors and some pattened paper from Unforgettable. (which I totally forgot the name to and had to look up.) The butterfly is stamped in Crystal Blue on vellum and embossed with clear EP.

For once a concept and a challenge actually came together for me. Cool!

Supplies all CTMH.

Stamps: Treasure Life, Butterflies, Happy Birthday

Inks: Blush, Crystal Blue, Tulip

Paper: cardstock and Unforgettable

Other: Crystal Blue ribbon, edge distressor, clear detail embossing powder

I've forgotten how to read

Books, anyway.

My reading habit used to rival my scrapbooking habit. In fact there was a time where I belonged to a book of the month club, where every trip to the store resulted in me coming home with new books, and I even read books from the Oprah book club.

Then I had a baby. Instead of reading books, I replaced my habit with short bursts of reading. All I had stamina for was magazine articles, blog posts and the monthly electric co-op newsletter. While we're on the subject, this was the time I also gave up must see TV. I currently watch NO prime time TV. The only TV I watch is news, Top Chef (if the stars align and I can sit for an hour), and Disney channel. The latter I don't so much watch as hear.

After Little d got a little older, and slept through the night, I became human again. I worked on her baby scrapbook, I picked up watching TV again and even, gasp, began reading books again. I think it was during this time that I read "The Lovely Bones" and "The Dogs of Babel." Two of my favorite books. Then Little d got even older, and suddenly I realized that much of must see TV, she must NOT see. Sheesh. Have times changed! I used to watch soap operas as a kid with my mom, but now, even commercials are risky!

Anyway, then I had another baby. And well, the reading, she's a-missing again. So a few weeks ago when I had my gum surgery, I looked around WalMart for some reading material. I didn't even know how to look for a good book. I don't usually care for westerns, romance, or mystery. There was a time I liked mystery, but after working as a cop, hmmm, the Mystery is gone. And in high school and college I read Danielle Steele, but wow, those books follow the SAME formula every single time! I tried to pick one of her new ones up as an adult, and literally could not get through it.

I usually read the back and if it sounds ORIGINAL or funny I'll read the first page. If I'm hooked or intrigued by the first sentence, it's a keeper. Anyway, on that day I couldn't seem to find one for whatever reason so I grabbed two that didn't look completely heinous. The day after my surgery I tried to read them. And I Couldn't.

At first I thought, 'Oh they are just bad books.' But then two days ago I picked one up again and realize it's not that bad. I needed to give it a chance. And that's when I realized books are not like the short bursts of reading I usually do. They develop and grow. They take longer to read than two minutes.

I need to learn how to read all over again.

Kid Questionnaire

Kid Questionnaire

Ask your child(ren) to answer the questions and type their answers in.Tag other moms with older kids who might have fun with this. :)

Little d is 4

1. What is something mom always says to you?no
2. What makes mom happy?when I play for her and make her happy
3. What makes mom sad?when I don’t do stuff what you want me to do
4. How does your mom make you laugh?by doing silly stuff
5. What was your mom like as a child?having a big sister for me
6. How old is your mom?I don’t know
7. How tall is your mom?you are tall as a whole big family of hearts
8. What is her favorite thing to watch on TV?Fox news
9. What does your mom do when you're not around?shop
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?if you ride a pony with me and have a race
11. What is your mom really good at?being the best mom
12. What is your mom not very good at?doing pathetic stuff
13. What does your mom do for her job?scrapbook with me
14. What is your mom's favorite food?same thing that I like something like sandwiches
15. What makes you proud of your mom?shopping for new clothes
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?Lilly (from Hannah Montana)
17. What do you and your mom do together?watch shows I mean scrapbook and watch TV
18. How are you and your mom the same?wearing the same outfits, you know Daddy bought us all the same shirts except Little m
19. How are you and your mom different?because our hair is different
20. How do you know your mom loves you?because I’m the best Little d
21. What does your mom like most about your dad?that he’s the best D in the whole entire town
22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?shopping for Little d and Little m and lots of groceries for them to eat.

The only thing I changed was when she said a name. It was so funny. And I like how she said I was not good at doing "pathetic" stuff. Ha. Also D is the best D in the WHOLE TOWN. He'll be happy to hear that!

Put down the markers, step away from the table...

That's what I should have done before I added the "grass" under the eggs on this card, but I didn't. Oh well. I am still mostly happy with it.

I made this card for (yet another) color challenge. But I couldn't pass it up because the colors were so beautiful together and they were screaming Easter to me. (Yes colors talk to me, duh!)

HERE is the link to the challenge. I thought it was so fun that she chose a piece of jewelry for her inspiration.

Later I'll post the Easter card I'm sending out, and the reason why I thought I could draw grass on this card. But for now I need to clean my scrap table. Scary. Very Scary.

Products used: all CTMH

Stamps: Easter Eggs, March Word Puzzle, Key to my Heart

Inks: in the picture

Paper: Sweet Leaf and White Daisy cardstock

Other: edge distressor and foam squares

My First Color Throwdown

I stumbled across yet another color challenge and HERE is the link. It's called Color Throwdown, which is quite appropriate because the colors were tricky. The CTMH equivalent colors (as near as I can figure) are Moonstruck, Key Lime and Baby Pink. Yikes!

For starters, I don't even have those colors of cardstock. So I pulled out my ink pads and stared at them. I thought of stamping patterns to create paper and that's how I came up with the idea to make preggo's dress using paper piecing. First I brayered Key Lime onto white cardstock and then stamped the Moonstruck dots. Then I stamped the figure in black and cut out the dress.

I colored the face with pencils and the shoes and earrings and hands with markers. And let's talk about the surgery I performed to get those hands in place. It was me, tweezers, pokey tool, and glue. "Scapel....clamp...STAT!" But I did it. I cut those teeny tiny hands out and glued them over the dress.

For accessories I inked the edges of white Prima flowers with Moonstruck. The patterned paper is not CTMH. And who knows where I got the little flower brad centers.

Anyway I think I have had the most fun with this challenge of all the ones I've been doing.

Coupon Organizer! Finished!

Here's what I've been holed up in the scrap room doing all day, and part of yesterday evening. Oh the math and measurements and stress!! I even had to get my husband to interpret the instructions for my pea brain! (The fabulous original and the inventor of this gem can be found HERE.)

It's a coupon/list organizer you could throw in your purse and take to the store with you. All made from a plain ol' manila file folder. Here's the front cover:

Here's a close up of the monogram:

This is what the inside looks like opened up. The center two pockets open on the side and are attached at the center.

Here's a couple of details of the inside.

In the original she added a post it note pad on this section.

Here's the back cover opened up.
And the back closed. I used CTMH black hemp for the string.

Okay I need to go do something domestic before my husband trades me in for a REAL housewife!!

Obamanation

Warning: political post.



I hate a hypocrite more than a thief, and that's saying alot.



This just in:



Obama said sometimes we (I guess he meant politicians) say things are worse than they are and sometimes say things are better than they are. Huh? No shit? He actually said (I'm paraphrasing) that a few years ago we said things were better than they actually were and now we are saying things are worse than they probably are. Deep breath Meredith.



So when he was preaching doom and gloom and catastrophe a few weeks ago to sell his Bill on the campaign trail...wait no, he wasn't still on the campaign trail it just seemed like he was. Anyway, he was doing what? Embellishing? Exaggerating? Lying? No...you're kidding.



Okay off the soapbox, it's safe to come in now. BTW, I am sooo impressed with myself for coming up with the title of this post. (toot, toot)<---that's my own horn.

If I won me the lottery...

Anyone know that song by Beth Hart?



The other night while I was laying down with Little d she says "Mom, remember that game Mimi was checking online...those numbers?"



I thought and must have had a puzzled look on my face.



"Those numbers...with that ticket?"



"Oh, the lottery?" I finally caught on.



"Yes, the yah-tery." We're still having trouble pronouncing "L" at the beginning of a word. "I think if we get all that money, I was thinking...Dad...could..."and here her eyes got very big and she sat up in bed"...Dad...could...get FIRED FROM HIS JOB!!!"

I busted out laughing. I just thought that was the cutest way to say that she wanted Dad to stay home. "Sweety, the reason there is so much money is because A LOT of people play the game, but very few actually win. So the chance of us winning would be very small." I failed to add that if we did actually win, D would have to keep working just to pay taxes. tee-hee.

"Well." She said with all the determination of a four year old, "Tomorrow, I am going to get on the computer and I am going to beat all those other people!"

I won't lie, I have thought about winning that much money. (I don't even play, so the chances of me winning...slim.) But here's a funny. My first order of business would not be to build the dream home. My first order of business would be to track down our former family doctor and lure him back to our city. He left here because he wanted to build a low cost clinic and there was not enough support in this community for that. So I would track him down, and offer to build him a free clinic if he would be our on call physician.

He was the type of doctor who called you the next day to see how things were going after a doctor visit. He returned many of his own calls, not relegating them to his nurse. Although God bless her; we also loved Nurse Margaret. The day he had his going away party I made up a basket of snack packs and bottled water for the road. (He was travelling to Amarillo.) We also sent a bouquet of flowers to Margaret. In his thank you note he said that she had been having a rough day and those flowers 'made her day'. In conclusion...he is missed. I trusted him to be knowledgeable and here's a shocker...actually tell us when he didn't know the answer. There are too few doctors who genuinely care for patients, at least here.

Second order of business. Fun! And get that house built. The tricked out version of course!

Is it Thursday? Because I have a gripe!

In case you don't know how I feel about telemarketers, read THIS. This morning I get a call from the Better Home Products of Texas Corp. I have been receiving calls for several years from this company. They employ handicapped workers and I'm sure are generally a good cause. I have ordered light bulbs (no they don't last five years) and dish towels (the most expensive set I've ever owned) in the past. But they call pretty frequently and I usually don't answer the call.

Today I chose not to answer it. Little d, however, made the opposite choice. As soon as she said hello, her face turned red. She realized it was a stranger. "Just hang up, baby," was my solution. And I guess that was my mistake. I should have taken the phone and said not interested and hung up myself. BUT, I was fixing milk for Little m and in a rush, so I didn't.

The woman (and she is the same lady who has been calling me for years-very distinct voice) proceeds to call back. I don't answer and the machine picks up. She leaves this message in a nasty voice (I wrote it down word for word):

"If you had any home training you wouldn't hang up in peoples face. That's very rude. Whoever you are. And if your parents knew any better or they taught you that they didn't have any sense either. Losers."

Straight up. Where to start. I think this pi$$ed me off for several reasons. I hate being called back from a telemarketer. Yes it's happened before. Although usually the salespeople hang back up on me. Real mature. Anyway, the fact that she was berating my FOUR year old daughter just set me off. And then the name calling "Losers". Sheesh.

So I call the number back. Busy signal. Surprise. Keep in mind, I never complain about service. Bad food, bad waitress, bad cashier, bad haircut. Nope. Don't complain. But this was different. This time they invaded The Lair. And that is NOT ALLOWED!

So I googled them. They don't have a webpage, which I already knew. But the Better Business Bureau had their info. Even--get this--an 800 number!! Sweet! So I dial the toll free number and get this as soon as the phone picks up "Hot singles are waiting for your call, dial blah blah blah" Shit.

Fast forward to me dialing the regular listed number. A woman answers and could not be more apologetic. She says she will call me with the results. And because I had cooled off immensely I told her that I understand that some of their employees have mental illness and that...but she cut me off and said that it shouldn't have happened. And I couldn't agree more.

Another challenge?

Okay well, I know it seems like I just did a color challenge, but I was late in the week on the last one and this time I am getting to it a little earlier. These colors (CTMH-black, grey wool and white daisy) were hard for me. I wanted to do something that didn't look too somber. I usually don't even use black for a sympathy card-too depressing. So I struggled to use them. This is what I came up with:

I probably personally wouldn't use it, but I am going to add it too my Market Days stack. Okay let's be truthful, that stack is pretty small right now. I truly need to get on it!!

I've decided to add the card details to the bottom of my posts for those of you who are interested.

A few words about other stuff. I haven't posted a personal entry in a while mainly because I am low on funny stories. The post yesterday was written while I was laying in bed recovering from surgery last month. I didn't even edit it enough, it was disjointed and without a clear ending, but I just haven't had alot of time. I did a workshop yesterday out of town and came home to a surprise visit from my inlaws. (A story for another day). And right now while trying to type this post I am interrupted to wipe a booty (not my own) and write a grocery list. Whew! And where the hell is spring? Darn groundhog! OK. I need to go shopping for groceries so must. get. off. of. HERE!

Card details: all CTMH

Paper....Grey Wool CS, Black CS, Glossy White CS

Stamps.... Intrinsic Backgrounds, Faith, and Treasure Life

Ink.....Grey Wool, Black, Versamark

Other.....White Daisy embossing powder.

Things She Doesn't Yet Know

She goes about her day dancing to music in her head. She loves to make us laugh and smile. She dreams of princesses and fairies and weddings! Her vivid imagination creates a play land of friends and dolls from inanimate objects such as crayons or bits of string. Her heart feels genuine care for her little sister as she takes great care to make her happy.

She becomes engulfed in movies or television programs and then just as quickly turns away and finds something new to imagine. Her world is quite small and protected now.

She doesn't realize that her mother loves her more than life itself. That her mother's heart will forever be changed simply because she was born. Her four year old mind can't comprehend that there is someone who watches almost everything she does in complete fascination. Whose heart aches with fear at the thought of her starting kindergarten. With just the thought of entrusting her care to a practical stranger. She doesn't yet know that her mother loves to watch her peaceful still form in sleep, sweetly curled up in a fuzzy Hannah Montana blanket.

Our Little d. We love her so much.

Do Over

I couldn't stand that card from yesterday the more I looked at it. Sooo. Here's the do over. I didn't follow the sketch quite so literally this time. And I forgot to link the Card Positioning Systems webpage yesterday, so now you can click HERE to see it.

Card Positioning Sketch Challenge 106

Hello my name is Meredith and I am addicted to online card making challenges. Three in three days. Hmmmm. Here's the sketch:


I am not as thrilled with this card as some of my others. I think I like the concept, but I should have played with the layout a little more. I don't know. I was in a hurry. Maybe I'll try doing another version some other time.

All products CTMH: Footprints and Playful Flourishes stamps, colors, Twilight, Desert Sand, Taffy, Creme Brulee and Chocolate. The last three colors were used on the sponging. Also the star fish are second generation Desert Sand.

Another thing...this time change has screwed me up royally.

Feelin' Bearied?

I joined another challenge. The House Mouse Monday Challenge. This week the challenge was to use chipboard. On this card I stamped the image several times and layered some of the paper pile. I colored the image with EK Success pencils, and stamped the sentiment with Tiny Typewriter in Brown Bag. (When they titled that set tiny, they were NOT kidding! It is a trick to work with it.) The swirls are Playful Flourishes.

Here's a detail of the chipboard. Again the new camera is STILL on backorder. :(

It seems that when I concentrate so hard on incorporating a challenge's parameters in a card I have great difficulty with the layout of the pieces. How weird.

My first ever challange!!

I've decided to play along with my first ever online card making challange. I have been watching the challenges at KWernerDesign.com and never seem to have the time to make a card. But today I couldn't pass it up since it used one of my favorite all time color combos...pink and brown.

She used Stampin' Up colors, but allows substitutions for other brands, so I chose Chocolate, Desert Sand, Blush and White Daisy. I also used DaisyD patterned paper. Here's the color challenge:


And here's my card. I used the stamp sets, Annotations and Spot On Backgrounds.


It was fun, but you would have thought I was building the shuttle as long as it took to create this card! (What is up with the spacing on blogger...uuggghhh!)

A blog award!

I am so honored that Lindsay of Southern Girl Florals chose me for this award. I've seen it on other blogs that I follow, so I am thrilled to be able to put it on my blog!

Now I'm supposed to list 7 things I love and then tag seven people with this award.

1. I love my family first and foremost. They keep me sane in an insane world!

2. I love my faith. It has seen me through tough times and helps me realize the adage "every cloud has a silver lining."

3. I love to be creative. This usually means papercrafting, but I also love decoration and crocheting.

4. I love to read. I could literally spend hours lost in a good book or a pile of magazines.

5. I love to laugh! I find such stress relief in laughter. Thankfully I am surrounded by funny people.

6. I love music. I can't really sing, but I love to pretend I can. In the car. Loudly. Alone.

7. I love being hugged by my husband. Of course I love being hugged by others too including the girls, but when D hugs me I feel safe from the whole world, and it's a great feeling. Sometimes when he pulls away I say, "I'm not done yet." So that's kind of joke with us now, and one of us usually says it when we hug.

Now to tag other bloggers I think deserve the Kreativ Blogger Award. This is hard because I have a HUGE list of blogs that are in a file I call "More Blogs, Crafty". So to narrow it down is tough!

1. Deep Fried Kudzu

2. Booth #32

3. Wizard's Hangout

4. Sparkle Creations

5. Just Give Me Stamps

6. Traveling Mama

7. Crafting the Web

All those sites are hyperlinked so check them out. They really are inspiring in so many ways! Thanks again Lindsay!!

Poppy is 90 years old!

Today my grandfather turns 90 years old. I can hardly believe it. I have such fond memories of his storytelling and spunky personality. He always has a story and a smile. His life has not always been easy that's for sure. He fought in WWII and raised a family on a barber's income. He became a fishing guide and was very good at what he did. Both fishing and cutting hair. He is a very loving person. Always having a hug for someone he sees.

He grew up in New Hampshire and only spoke French until about the 7th grade. A devout Catholic, his faith has seen him through much. He married my grandmother and together they had three children.

I never tire of hearing his tales. Some old people (you know this is true) tell the same old stories over and over until you could repeat them verbatim. Not Poppy. I seem to learn something new about him every time I am around him. And lately, I'm not around him often enough. Hopefully we can get to go see him soon. Until then, I am sending this card to wish him a Happy Birthday!

Products used: CTMH It's a Guy Thing Paper, Catch of the Day stamp set, colors: cocoa, new england ivy, barn red, colonial white.

Cabin Fever Layouts

I decided to use Cabin Fever as my theme for my March workshop. I know I'm ready for spring! I used all the silly pictures of the girls to illustrate the stuff that keeps us occupied!

Here are the photo details since there are some of you that might want to know. (Left to Right, Top to Bottom) Little m with marker on her face. Little d a few years ago with marker on her face. D dragging the girls around on a Dora blanket. Little m playing in the pantry and sitting in a plastic container. D being tackled by both girls. Little d posing in a wedding dress with a beach ball. Little d tackling Little m on their toy Dora couch. Little d standing on a Fisher Price dollhouse looking out her bedroom window. Little m looking out the back window.

And here's a close up of the banner.

Products used are CTMH Emporium paper, Boutique Borders stamp set, Friendship Alphas, small and large stamp sets, Bamboo, Buttercup, Crystal Blue, and White Daisy cardstock. I also used Spot-on Backgrounds on the pennants to make them look like patterned paper. The journaling reads: "The crazy things we do to keep ourselves amused in these four walls we call Home."

Butterfly Soot Stamping Card {and crazy hair}

First up a card. My workshop group in MV wanted to try the soot stamping technique and they wanted to use spring colors (CTMH-Paper Garden Level II) so this is what I came up with. I probably wouldn't have chosen these colors on my own with this technique. I'm not a fan of mixing the dark grey tones with the spring colors, but I aim to please! This group is really sweet and are so enthusiastic!

You can find the technique instructions for soot stamping HERE. It's very easy and makes a dramatic impression in person.

And next. Little m right out of the bath with...CRAZY HAIR!

Have a great day!!

It's Official!

I'm neurotic!!

First let me tell you plans for a relaxing week with hubby and kiddos is shattered. He has been called on to work all week. This is good because they are practically begging him to be technical advisor while the actual TA is on a job in Russia which means (say it with me now) JOB SECURITY! And it means overtime! This is sad because well, he's going to be working.

In light of this he has been doing his Great Garage Cleanout of '09 this weekend. Well yesterday anyway. So on to why I am neurotic...

Shortly after he came in yesterday from the garage someone started pounding on our door. Now, you all know how I feel about unannounced visitors. Anyway. I put on hold finding something to eat and went to answer the door. It's the next door neighbor and he is telling me that the field behind our house is on fire.

{Let me pause to tell you that we live in the city limits, but our back fence is the city limit line. So right behind our back fence in unimproved pastureland. Recently the land has been sold and there were plans to make a subdivision out of it. The brush has been cleared about 10-20 feet behind our fence.}

Okay so you know what my first thought was? No, not let's get the kids out of the house. It was, 'crap my house is a mess, and if it catches on fire it will be a disaster'. Then my second thought (as I'm going to the back door to check the status of the fire) is 'and the laundry isn't done, I don't even know if we have enough clean clothes to flee the house in.' To be fair, we leave the back door window open all day and I hadn't seen anything back there that would warrant me panicking and D had just come in from outside and he didn't notice anything amiss. So no there was not a fire knocking at our back door, and no the smoke was not even that heavy, I think our neighbor was just a little panicked. But still, I do seem a little neurotic for thinking about the cleanliness of our house before thinking "Oh my gosh a fire! Let's get out of the house!"

So today I have been doing laundry and cleaning most of the day. You know, in case of a fire!

Some feel good music...

I still don't know how to upload a video clip. So the best I can do is copy and paste this YouTube video. If you are in the mood for a little Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay take a listen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If_BpSJehSw&eurl

A blog I frequent posted the video. I love this song. I must admit, I like the old school version better, but this will do in a pinch. ;)