935 Showing of Breaking Dawn

I haven't been to a movie at any time in a very long time.  But the last time I went to a 9:30 showing I was dating someone. And it wasn't even D.

But my mom really wanted to go see Breaking Dawn and hey, who am I to stop her?  tee hee

It was a great show.  And L got to come along (we also went to the last one together--during the day).  It was so fun.  Our theater is really comfy too.  The chairs lean a little back with really nice cushy seat and head rests and there's plenty of legroom.  Plus the way it's set up you never get stuck not being able to see over someone's head.  Definitely not like the theater I grew up using.  Anyway--it was a fun time!

The movie was good too.  Except now I have to wait for part two to come out.  Boo.

Tonight is New Year's Eve.  D and I have no party plans.  I'm hoping the kids go to bed at a decent hour so Little d gets back to her school routine.  She has to start back Tuesday.  Not looking forward to that!

Hmm.  I guess I could have some resolutions this year....get in shape?  Sure.  Hopefully lose that last 15 pounds that drives me nuts!  Hmmm.  Relax more and enjoy life.  Uh.  Have more patience!!  NOW!  ha.

I definitely have a to-do list.  (But I'm not sure it qualifies as a resolution.)  It goes a little something like this:

• get scrap room organized 
• decorate the house (this is dependent upon us selling the old house and getting some moolah to buy new furniture.)
• get the tile work done in kitchen and bathroom
• get vent hood installed in kitchen
• get pot filler faucet installed in sink
• turn Little md's room into Little md's room
• do some landscaping
• plant a successful garden
• do some meal planning, freezer dinners
• build a couple of bunk beds
• re-wax the floors
• get bookshelves finished in hallway and living room
• get glass front installed in kitchen cabinets
• do all the touch up paint
• paint the front door
• new wardrobe  (this is dependent on me getting back to at least 115)
• be a successful CTMH consultant...

I'm sure there's more.  I'm going to revisit this whole list in the future--at least that's the plan.

Shabby Tea Room Week #4

I missed the last one, but this week--after two sittings--I finally made a card for this week's Shabby Tea Room challenge..."Embrace the White"



Here's what I came up with. This silhouette stamp reminds me so much of me and my brother when we were little. I swear this could have been us from the shape of his head to my pigtails.

To stamp the main image I sponged the colors on the stamp to give a soft, aged look. And that little bow/tie thing I've seen all over the internet and surprisingly--it's not hard to do. Especially if my assistant (Little d) holds the ribbon for me!



I really want to do something along these lines for the baby's announcement, but I will have to keep it simple since I need 50 of them. I love the idea of a vintage cream card with a little hint of blue and a baby boy silhouette.

By the way, CTMH's Veranda paper is one of my favorites ever. So beautiful! Thanks for stopping by!



Details: all CTMH unless noted
Paper: vanilla cream cs, Veranda B&T
Ink: Juniper, Desert Sand, Creme Brulee
Stamps: Buttoned Together, November Word Puzzle, silhouette (from HL)
Other: creme brulee ribbon, white hemp, sponge dauber, edge distressor, button(stash)

Easter Joy

Do you realize it's almost Easter? We survived a nasty cold wet winter and our reward is SPRING! The Shabby Tea Room has another challenge this week to use spring for inspiration, and I immediately thought of Easter eggs. It also challenged us to use stitching on our project.

I hope you can see the white stitched border. I thought about coloring it with a marker, but I had worked so long to get this card just right that I hated to screw it up at the last minute.

Here's something else I just learned. You can use the landscape setting on your camera to make the background look fuzzy while the foreground is crisp. Love that!!

I also incorporated the Mojo Sketch this week.

In case you were interested in how I did the eggs; I stamped the solid background in second generating ink. I stamped the pattern on top in second generation Desert Sand. Then I used a sponge dauber to ink a shaded area in the colored ink and then used another dauber to make a slight shadow with the Desert Sand. Oh and the ribbon slide has another egg pattern stamped on it to create that faux wood grain.

Thanks for stopping by!

Details: All CTMH unless noted

Paper: colonial white cs, vanilla cream cs, bamboo textured cs

Ink: sorbet, sweet leaf, creme brulee, desert sand

Stamps: Easter Eggs, Soul Mates---for sentiment

Other: ribbon, ribbon slide, finishing files, sanding block, sponge dauber, sewing machine and thread.

Dad's Birthday card plus one

This first one is the "plus one". Soft and Simple. I wanted to make it into a thinking of you card, but the image was so big I didn't know where to put the sentiment! I random stamped the damask image on pink pattern paper.







Here's what I decided to do for my dad's bday card. I wanted something different and my acetate sheets fell off the shelf when I was looking for a stamp set. Voila!

It's kinda cute, not sure it really sure fits my dad, but I didn't want to do another golf card. {wink}

Thanks for stopping by!
Details: all CTMH unless noted

Flower card:
Paper: pink pattern (K&Co) desert sand cs, colonial white cs
Ink: desert sand
Stamps: flower w/bee (Anna Griffin), You've Got Flair
Other: ivory ribbon (HL), edge distresser

Dad's Bday:
Paper: white daisy cs, acetate (office supply store)
Ink: ocean, clover meadow, cranberry, sunny yellow, black
Stamps: It's Your Day (I think...too lazy to go upstairs and find out)
Other: yellow brads from stash

A brand new challenge! (second post today)

I recently stumbled across a new challenge called The Shabby Tea Room. I am so excited about this challenge. It uses photo inspiration. This week it's "Elegant Shabby" and the colors are pink, red, cream, brown and green. Tricky--but just look at the photo!



I couldn't wait to get started on this one. Gingham and crackled wood? Love it! In fact I would love to try the faux wood technique with cream ink if I can just remember where I saw that technique... {ETA: Here's Diana Gibb's Faux Wood Technique}

Anyway here's my card.



And I guess Little d could sense my excitement because she really wanted to play along today. We worked together. She used my stack of inks to choose the colors and materials for her card. I love that we can share this hobby!



Now go stop by that blog and check it out!

Details: CTMH unless noted
Paper: all from my stash!
Ink: garden green, desert sand
Stamps: Puns from the Past (SU!), Fringed Phrases
Other: edge distresser, sponge daubers, gingham ribbon (HL) vintage button (estate sale) hemp cord, stipple brush, foam squares (HL)

Want another circus card?

Sure you do!

I made this card in about 10 minutes...and I'm pretty sure you can tell.

The sequin ribbon matches the blue better in real life. Again I hate coordinating different brands...especially paper. Thanks for stopping by!

Details: CTMH unless noted

Paper: polka dot (DCWV), clover meadow cs, sunny yellow cs, white daisy cs

Ink: cranberry

Stamps: Laughter

Other: ribbon (HL)--from their Christmas ribbon--I've had it awhile.

Good Times, good times.

Here's a funky little card. Since I'm over my anger. Oh? You want to hear that story? Okay, twist my arm...

As of Friday our house was dried in. That means doors and windows, and a roof with tar paper--not shingles. Basically the house is weathered in. So at this point we should get our next draw on the construction loan. {Here's something I think is the most ridiculous part of having a construction loan. You get your money after the work is done. For example; our framer had to wait a week to get his money. Instead of us getting draws ahead of time and paying the workers when they complete the work.}

But okay so that's the process. However, our ICF walls cost way more than conventional walls. In fact they cost more than the foundation. This threw the bank off. Way off. So this last draw they wanted to approve only $10,000. Guess what? That doesn't cover the framers. Or the $12,000 in materials from the local lumber yard we just got the bill for. And we have a construction account with this lumber yard so they let us 'charge' for a month and then get billed.

So when the $10,000 arrived in our account yesterday we were floored. We were expecting something more like $40,000. Or at least $30,000. Because we are about to pay the lumber yard, the framers, and the A/C guy. {guess what? our A/C is going to have zones...how cool is that?} Anyway.

D spent much time and stress getting things cleared up. The bank guy actually said "hmmm, maybe these are pictures of Hugh's house not yours..." at one point. And you know, it wouldn't even be the first time they mixed up our houses. D had to threaten to stop everything right now and look for a new bank and then finally the loan officer starting trying to work things out. Sheesh. It's like dealing with five year olds. Wait, I take that back. Little d is way more reasonable.

But after I simmered down I made a card. A bright, cheerful card. But you may notice...it does include a clown.

Details: CTMH unless noted

Paper: polka dot from stash (I think DCWV), clover meadow cs, white daisy cs

Ink: clover meadow, holiday red, star spangled blue, black, sunny yellow, orange (including markers)

Stamps: Laughter, Good Times

Other: zebra ribbon (HL), foam dots (HL)

This and that

Here's one of those random posts...fasten your seatbelt!

We spent all day yesterday at the land. On the way out I told the girls I had forgotten my camera and Little d said "I guess you'll just have to take pictures in your mind." How precious is that!?! The girls had so much fun running around in the house and 'cleaning' up the sawdust and nails.

We have the exterior doors and windows in now. And it's officially dried in. Next comes the trim and siding, A/C installation, and shingles. Oh and electrical.

I've chosen the exterior colors for the house. I don't know where we are getting the paint yet, but the colors will look like the following from Sherwin Williams, ((I'll try to change the words to reflect what the color looks like))

• the siding will be Baguette.
• the front door Redwing.
• the trim Navajo White.

Okay so the white is actually more cream than what Blogger offers, but anyway. If you do go to the site and launch the color visualizer, you can choose a house style and plug in the colors to see what it looks like. I thought it was fun to play with.

Speaking of houses...I feel as big as one. I am huffing and puffing and at night I have to sit up just to turn over. I am running out of clothes that fit and I waddle like a duck when I walk. And my gosh I hate it when some thing or some one touches my belly button! But the good news is that at my last appointment (Tuesday) everything looked fantastic! BP, urine, sugar, heartbeat. I weighed in at 152. And I'm okay with that.

I made lemon poppy seed muffins today. Mom and Dad and Poppy came up to visit. Poppy really enjoys the girls. Today he brought them some of Memaw's beads. Memaw used to have a ton of beads, and she wore them with everything. Tomorrow is Poppy's birthday. Ninety-one years old!

The bank has yet again screwed up stuff with our loan. As soon as we are done with this I told D we are yanking everything we have involved with them out!! I am SO INCREDIBLY FED UP WITH IT!

I got an email from CTMH today saying if I didn't place $300 in orders by end of March I will be dropped to junior consultant. And loose my downline. I have two downline and one is already a junior, the other just had a baby, and is closing on her new house. Not sure either is into making much money with the hobby. Both work full time. And I sure have better things to do than support CTMH in this economy. Although I went online last weekend to drop my autoship from 100 catalogs and saw that it was already submitted. So there's almost $200 I won't be getting back. Oh well. Hehehe too bad autoship doesn't count toward consultant status...

So this week I've just been marinating. Thanks for stopping by! Maybe tomorrow I'll have something creative...

All that we love deeply...

Yesterday I pulled out the Tickled Pink paper pack that I've never used. It seemed light and fresh for spring...which I am so ready for right now. And when I searched and found the stamp set to match I saw the sentiment...seemed appropriate right now too.

I really like the little bit of glitter that this paper has...



After stamping the flowers I used markers to add some dimension. I kind of like the effect--it distracts from the bad stamping job!

Details: all CTMH
Paper: Tickled Pink promotion, white daisy cs
Ink: twilight, blush, crystal blue, sweet leaf
Stamps: Tickled Pink promotion
Other: edge distressor, foam squares, markers

A new technique

First of all, thank for the well wishes regarding my grandma. Your comments warm my heart!


I've been working on this card all week. No particular reason, it just came together as it did. The OCC challenge this week is to try a new technique and after seeing the tutorial on Diana Gibb's blog about faux tin tiles and knew I had to try it! Check out that link to see the video.


I also got my order in from i{heart}papers. I won a gift certificate from Tracy Shultz and took forever trying to decide how to spend it!! I ended up choosing one of Tracy's stamps, some burlap ribbon and some Basic Grey brads. Here's the card...



Here's a close up of the faux tiles. Something I discovered...they became a little brittle. I actually broke a couple right along the texture lines.

Thanks for stopping by!

ETA: I decided to add this to Sparkle's challenge even though I don't think sleigh riding is a winter sport....well maybe if done properly... wink) See her link on my sidebar.

Details: all CTMH unless noted

Paper: kraft card base (HL), grey wool cs, twilight cs, colonial white cs

Ink: black, versamark, olive marker, sweet leaf marker

Stamps: Sleigh Ride (The Petal Press)

Other: plaid ribbon (HL), silver ep (HL), watercolor pencils, water brush, silver pen (Pentel) cuttlebug embossing folder

D's Birthday

So today is my husband's birthday and we are not spending it together. Which may be a good thing considering I seem to be a little bitchy right now... At least I already made his card last month.


And that's good considering these are the two things I came up with today when I sat at the old scrap table...


First a little 3x3 using another one of those glitter chipboard embellishments I did the other day.

And a thank you card. I went for one of CTMH's card set promotions from last year that I've rarely used.

Blah! But that kind of matches my mood today. D is working out at the land, but the weather is crappy and I don't want to be out in it so I'm staying home with the girls.


Memaw isn't making improvements. Hospice has been called in. She's been taken off of the nutritional IV and they have started her back on narcotic pain relief instead of Tylenol. They were trying to keep her off of the narcotics to see if see would wake up enough to want to eat more, but she never has stayed awake for long and has very little desire to eat. It seemed that she was even in pain when she was sleeping, so that's why they made the decision to go back with a stronger pain relief and now she does sleep more peacefully.


This has been so stressful. I worry not only for Memaw, but for my mom who spends all day at the hospital from 7a-9p (or longer). She comes here, showers and sleeps and then leaves again. I worry about the toll it's taking on her. Mom, along with my brother and I, have accepted that Memaw is near the end. But the stress of wanting her to be comfortable is the hard part.


I also realize the importance of taking care of myself and this little one I'm carrying. But I recognize the signs of stress in my exhaustion and my low tolerance for noise levels right now.

Sorry this is a downer post, let me leave you with something happy. My wonderful husband has been so incredibly supportive and understanding. I am so blessed that God sent him my way. And that he didn't run screaming!!

Oh and something funny...I am eating Fritos and bean dip...aaaaand Elfin Fudge Cookies. I only wish I could blame that on preggo cravings!

Glitter Time

This week at OCC Challenge they have chosen the theme 'old is new again'. You are to use something that you've had for a long time but never used. Well, it is shameful how much I had to choose from. I had this box of chipboard shapes from DCWV that I got on sale when the Joanne's here was going out of business--probably four years ago.

They were a little outdated, but I have been itching to glitter something, anything standing still...so I grabbed several out of the box and hit them with the Prisma...

I then spent no less than five hours making this card. Now to be fair my mind has been elsewhere. BUT it took forever to finish this! And that white frame image I stamped about 50 times. Different inks, different sentiments...blah blah blah. The moral of the story: when I'm using different product lines it takes me lots of time to coordinate!

The good news? I'm happy with the results. That may be just because I have glitter stuck in my eye...

Details: all CTMH unless noted

Paper: white daisy cs, kraft card base (HL)

Ink: bubblegum, versamark

Stamps: Party Invitation, Frame of Mind, Dot Flourishes (Inkadinkado)

Other: chipboard (DCWV), white ep, bonding memories glue, prisma glitter

March CTMH Workshop

Well I forced myself to sit at my scrap table and work on my next workshop project. I have decided that from now on (however long or short that is) my workshops will be one project. This is the old favorite whiteboard project. I found the plain frames from Dollar Tree Direct. It's a case of 24 for $24. They are 8.5x11 inches.

I spent way longer than I thought I would making this project, but I am pretty satisfied with the end result. Did it lessen any stress? No. Do I get to cross one more thing off of my to-do list? Yes.




Here's a picture of the board in action...



Thanks for stopping by!
Details: all CTMH unless noted
Paper: Veranda Creative Basics, Veranda Level II
Ink: Garden Green, Cocoa, Creme Brulee marker
Stamps: Adorning Corners
Other: Creme Brulee ribbon, edge distresser, sponge dauber

Second verse, same as the first...

I know this card is really similar to the one I did the other day, but I couldn't help myself. In fact I even did another watercolor rose in peach for use on a future card. I like the addition of the inked edges on this version too.

I thought briefly of adding some pearls, but if this goes through the mail it just makes it easier if it's really flat.

On the CTMH front: I had one attendee at my clothespin workshop last Friday. And she was my downline. I had three others respond that they wanted to come, but had conflicts on the night. And of course I haven't had anyone order anything in months. I told my husband that I'm not making the purchases to stay active this quarter. If I get enough orders, okay, but if not I'll just drop to junior consultant. And I really think I may stop doing the workshops then too. Depending on what happens. I mean after all I will have a newborn in a few months and then we'll be moving, so I'll probably be on hiatus from workshops during that time anyway.

What's funny is that I'm not even upset about it. My life is so full and fulfilling right now. I have plenty of crafting to keep me busy on my own schedule. And a husband who lets me indulge in such a frivolous hobby! ;)

Our Creative Corner Challenge (second post today)

Tomorrow I will probably not get around to posting, so I thought I would go ahead and do this one now. The challenge from Our Creative Corner was to use music as your inspiration. Well I was just talking about some sheet music I got at an estate sale. I've never used it, so I thought now would be a good time to start.

I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I am actually ecstatic with how this card turned out. I have a couple of stamp sets from SU! and this rose is from one of them. It lends itself extremely well to watercolor pencils. And Little d (apparently my new harshest critic) said "why don't you add some pollen to it?"

My mom needs a condolence card and I'm thinking of asking her if she would like this one with a "Thinking of You" sentiment.

On a completely unrelated note: If you've never checked in with the blog The Noble Pig you really should. Especially today. She posted a recipe for Cinnamon Donut Muffins....ugh...the picture alone will make you run to check your pantry for the ingredients!!

Details: CTMH unless noted

Paper: patterns (K&Co) sheet music (estate sale) vanilla cream cs

Ink: chocolate, black

Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral (SU!) Thank You

Other: cranberry watercolor pencil and water brush pen

Christmas Card Challenge #9

I haven't yet decided if this year I will send out different cards to everyone or use my new digi image from Karen's Doodles to create a family Christmas card, but either way, I'm going to play along with Sparkle's weekly Christmas Card Challenge when I get the chance.

This week is an inspiration challenge--to gather inspiration from this photo which is utterly beautiful.

I not only love the colors, but I love the sparkle and composition as well. Here's my interpretation. My daughter pointed out "you left off the strings."

Here's a crappy photo of the detail so you can see the silver ep. I stamped the decoration in versamark and then sprinkled on the silver EP---forgetting that the colored ink wasn't dry enough so of course a light coating of silver stuck to the whole ornament. I decided to try it and thought the results turned out kind of neat.

And as for the strings? I haven't decided if I'm going to go back and add them or not...

Details: all CTMH unless noted

Paper: cream card base (HL)

Ink: Sorbet, Tulip, Creme Brulee, Versamark

Stamps: Holiday Trinkets

Other: Silver Embossing Powder (HL)

Penny's Inchie Challenge (second post today-egads!)

I think I've done one other inchie card in my whole card-making career. Penny's challenge this week inspired me to try my hand at these little bitties again. It was a little work, but fun! I wanted the main inchie (the flower) to be finished using the cracked glass technique, but alas, Liquid Glass does horrible things to the Cranberry ink. Here's the finished card...

I changed the rotation of the card at the last minute, so really I should have spaced the stripes a little differently, but I'm okay with it...

Details: all CTMH unless noted

Paper: Moon Doggie B&T, colonial white cs

Ink: desert sand, cranberry, honey, garden green

Stamps: Extreme Happiness, It's Your Day

Other: antique copper bitty brads, sponge dauber, deckle edge punch (MarvyUchida)

Mojo Monday #123

I started to say something stupid like "it's been a long time since I played along with the Mojo Monday sketch" when clearly it's been a long time since I've been playing along with any challenges!

I don't think I've ever made a round card, so for this one I just incorporated a circle with the CD envelope and left the card square. I thought it worked for the more masculine theme I was going for. D's birthday is next month, and I really wanted to break out that diamond plate embossing folder!

You Rock is embossed in black, but it doesn't show in the picture. D's not into rock music at all, but he is my rock so I thought it was okay to use this sentiment. Now let's see if he checks in here and sees this before his birthday...

Details: all CTMH unless noted
Paper: grey wool cs, white daisy cs, black cs
Ink: versamark, grey wool
Stamps: You Rock, Weathered Backgrounds
Other: sanding block, brads (stash) diamond plate embossing folder (provocraft) black ep, foam squares

Pink and Brown Cake

I really love the CTMH February Stamp of the Month "Piece of Cake". Today I decided to use it to make a chocolate cake. Mmmmm, chocolate cake sounds good, doesn't it?


Anyway, one of my favorite color combos is brown and pink. So that's where this card came from.

ETA: Just found out this card qualifies for The Pink Elephant challenge this week!!

Hope you all are having a fabulous day! I am in such a good mood because we hired a framer at a really reasonable price and we ordered the rest of our windows...it's starting to feel like we might have a new house some time soon!

Details: all CTMH unless noted

Paper: colonial white cs, chocolate cs, hollyhock cs, blush cs

Ink: chocolate, hollyhock marker, creme brulee marker

Stamps: Piece of Cake

Other: chocolate grosgrain, pearl

Mom's Birthday Card

This was my second attempt...the first one ended up with not one but two smudges. My inspiration was the ribbon. (I'm a little worn out today--I actually cooked supper. And just washed the kiddos, they are playing in the tub now. So that's why I am keeping it short and sweet.)

I will add that I have the best Mom on the planet, hands down! Happy Birthday Woman!

Details: All CTMH unless noted

Paper: white daisy cs, cranberry cs

Ink: black, cranberry, cranberry marker

Stamps: Piece of Cake, A Little Everything

Other: ribbon (HL) black brads (HL)