Elzybells Have Arrived

Arghh, ye matey's! LOL! Not sure what that is all about? Check my post below!

I have seen these cute, cute, cute images just about everywhere around the Internet. I finally decided I needed a couple and this is the result of my first try with Moon Girl. I've linked you up to my SCS gallery so that you can see what I used to make this card. Also, this layout is from SCS's sketch challenge #165. If you are ever in need of a sketch just go to the sketch challenge forum at SCS and you will be all set to go. There is even a post that lists all the previous sketches and the sample card that goes with it. Anyway, I have a person in mind for this card so it will probably be going out in the mail soon!

<----------- Did you see the new addition on the left hand side? It is a link to World Vision's sponsorship information. Please feel free to go and peruse that site and if you feel that you'd like to sponsor a child please let me know first so that I can give you a special code to use. (If it isn't there yet...it will be shortly!) May I challenge you today? While you are out and about do something nice for someone else...pay for the coffee of the person behind you, open the door for someone, carry an elderly person's bags for them, just go out of your way to do something good for someone today. If you report it back here maybe I'll have a drawing for a little Glory from Lorie. You have the whole weekend to do this little act of kindness and really, you can post on here once a day 'til Monday. I'll post the winner on Monday morning! Now GO have fun and make someones day!

Facing Your Giants

Some of you may know that the title of today's blog is a title of a Mac Lucado book as well. Facing Your Giants is the book that my evening Bible study group has taken the last 5 weeks to work through and it's been great! In the last chapter of the book Max talks about why David took five stones into battle against Goliath and how our five fingers can help us when we face down our Goliath (figuratively or literally).

The five stones are: The stone of the past...write today's worries in the sand. Chisel yesterday's victories in stone. The stone of prayer...peace is promised to the on who fixes thoughts and desires on the king. The stone of priority...See your struggle as God's canvas. On it he will paint his multicolored supremacy. The stone of passion...David lobotomized the giant because he emphasized the Lord (put Him first). And finally, The stone of persistence...Never give up. David took five stones. He made five decisions. Do likewise. Past. Prayer. Priority. Passion. And Persistence. Next time your Goliath wakes you up, reach for a stone. Odds are he'll be out of the room before you can load your sling (The proceeding is directly from the book).

So I put rub-ons, ribbon, and a little title on these little jars (the come in a package of 20 at Michaels for $20 but I used a 40% off coupon for it!), wrote the five stone names on some brown tinted "stones" (from the dollar store) and will give them to the participants of the study. I think they are a unique reminder of how to take God into every battle that we have.

I'd like to thank you all for your kind words on my post yesterday. I think Jon had a good day yesterday. He got lots of moolah from out of town family and we got him new golf shoes, a game for his PSP, and a personalized key chain thingie plus a couple of weeks ago he and a couple of friends went to a movie together. I thought about my mom a lot yesterday. One of the things that has always bothered me about loss is how life for other people just goes on (naturally) and it feels as if our loved ones are forgotten. I received a couple of e-mails yesterday from people I hadn't talked to in a long time who definitely miss my mom too and it was really nice to know that I'm not alone in missing her.

I hope you will all make today a wonderful Thursday! The group from Kids in Christ will be going to see the new Veggie Tales movie tonight so I'm really looking forward to that! I'll be talking in pirate all day tomorrow! LOL!

A Celebration of Life!

What an exciting day today is! Today is the day my middle son, Jon, turns 16. I remember the day he was born and offered to let him stay up all night last night to experience how tired I was but he declined...I don't get it!? I'm amazed at how much he's changed yet he's still my little boy in so many ways. I'm so proud of him and love him with more than I ever thought I had.

Happy 16th birthday, Jon!

Jon at 6 months old....

Jon's golf picture...

Today is also the 10th anniversary of my mom's death. The following will appear in my hometown paper in memory of her life. Please take the time to make sure you love your family with everything you've got as you never know when they won't be here. I love you and miss you everyday mom.

Life IS Good

I went back to my roots while making this card last night...it is all Stampin' Up! products. Woohoo for me! This is a set called She's All That. It will be coming out March 1st in the Occasions Mini catalog and I love it...go figure! I think it has the essence of why I love the Bella's...simple yet fun. I also used new paper coming out in that mini catalog called Summer Picnic. While I think the paper is designed to go with a different set I do believe that the "life is like a bowl full of cherry's" theme of the paper goes with the "life is good" theme. Yes? The colors in this paper are Old Olive, Real Red, and Bashful Blue. I added some ribbon and a couple of brads and waalah...Life is Good!

Did you know that if you have money in your pocket you have more money than something like 90% of the world? We are very blessed here in the US so just remember when you start feeling down that having a roof over your head, food on your table, and clothes on your back is WAY more than what most of the rest of the world has. Want to help out those less fortunate than you? Go see what World Vision has to say HERE. You can, quite literally, change a child's life including their life span by donating to World Vision. Child Sponsorship is one of the best things I have ever done. Please let me know if you have any questions about it at all!

Just want you to know that tomorrow there will be no card/artwork for you. Tomorrow is Jon 16th birthday so I will post a little about him. It is also the 10th anniversary of the day my mom went to be with Jesus so I will be posting the memorial that I'm putting in my hometown paper tomorrow.

I wish for you today to take some time to see all the blessings that you have in your life!

Is it time to grill yet?

I've been having so much fun with my Bella's recently! It was time to make my boss/pastor a birthday card yesterday so I decided another Bella...well not Bella but her Fella. Thinking that Beerfella might not be the most appropriate I went with Grillafella. The layout is from Bella sketch challenge #07 and worked perfectly with this particular stamp.

I used some paper I got from my LSS that is brown/celery in color and went with that color scheme. I did use Old Olive underneath for the final layer on the image though as to not make it blend in so much with the card stock strip on the right. The sentiment is from PTI.

Remember...the free shipping and new releases end today at stampingbella.com so go check it out today! There are links to the info you need to know in the post below this one!

I have faith that you will all go out and make today a wonderful Monday!

Good Luck!

The last time that Emily (the queen Bella) had a new Bella release she released this cute Bella named Goodluckabella. At first I was thinking...I'm not Irish why do I need to buy a stamp for St. Patrick's Day for? I had totally talked myself out of owning this stamp but then I looked at it, saw the accompanying sentiment (Good Luck with a cute 4-leaf clover) and knew I could use it for more than just St. Patty's day....that sold it for me! This is the first I've gotten to use her but I think she is just adorable and so easy to color! I decided to show you both of the cards I made because it is amazing to me how you take an image that is colored the same way and place it on two different layouts how different they can look.

The bottom card is for made with the Bella Sketch Challenge for this week on SCS. While in my LSS to find some St Patty's paper the owner told me that if I brought in some samples using her paper that she would trade me for some new paper. I thought...heck ya...I can make two cards at a time instead of one when I use her paper! She has some cute Daisy D's paper in her shop, too!

Did you know that there are new releases on stampingbella.com this weekend? Oh, yes! Did you know that you can get free shipping with a $35 order this weekend...oh, yes you can! HERE is the link to the free shipping code you need during check out. The page with the new stuff is HERE. I would suggest that you wait to checkout until Monday though as Em has said there will be new releases all weekend to include Monday. There! Have I enabled you enough? LOL!

Go out and make today a super day today!

Another RAK

I have been on the SCS RAK list for a long time but haven't been active for awhile. Guess what I got yesterday? Yep, a card from the Vera Schoeters of the SCS RAK list. Isn't this card neat? The bicycle is from the a new set coming out on March 1st in the SU! Occasions Mini called Time For You. What a neat technique she used by embossing parts of the bike and then I believe she used a gel pen or the like to highlight the white areas. All around it is a great card! If you'd like a preview of the brochure just e-mail me and I can help you out with that!

This is a short one today as I slept 'til 7:45 this morning (holy cow!) and I feel like half my day is gone already!

Make today a super fantastic Saturday!

Everyday Blessings

First...I need to tell you guys that in the past I had decided to separate my faith from my crafting. I am finding that I just can't do that. My faith is too important to separate from the craft that I love and I sometimes use for a ministry of sorts. Please know that I will be posting things that touch me from time to time. Also, I am happy to answer any questions that you have regarding those posts just feel free to e-mail me, k?

When PaperTrey Ink has a birthday boy do they have a birthday! On the 15th of this month PTI introduced five new stamp sets. But that wasn't all they released they also released two new colors of their fabulous card stock along with the ink and three different types of ribbon to match it. They are calling it their Perfect Match Collection and ladies...it is gorgeous! If you know me at all you know that the Everyday Blessings set was the first one into my cart and also the first one that saw ink. The sentiments and scriptures in the set are so perfect for so many different occasions. I'm not sure what to say other than wow when it comes to this set and honestly, this card. I love the simplicity of this card with the Spring Moss color and the simple lines. This card is headed to a friend of mine that moved away and I miss so much but haven't really told her that. I hope that she just loves it.

You guys are so smart! I got a new Favicon for my blog. A Favicon is a personalized icon that shows up in the address/tab area of your blog. Mine is a pink swirl/leaf and I must say fits me quite well. The winner of the Glory from Lorie is Cristina a blogging friend from We3Ski. Congrats Cristina! I'll put something in the mail to you hopefully today but probably tomorrow.

Would you like your own personalized Favicon? Go to Sara's blog at Tweaks and Designs by Sara and check it out! I'm sure she is a little busy now that Jen D has had her on her blog so please be patient if you don't hear back from her right away.

I hope that you make today the best Friday that you've had thus far in 2008!

Oh, and I forgot to tell you...I went to the Women of Vision meeting last night and it was amazing. I don't know how I haven't been more involved in something like this in the past. Here is a little bit about what WOV is and what they do...

Women of Vision is a volunteer ministry of World Vision that unites Christian women called to invest their time, intellect, compassion, creativity, and finances so that impoverished women and children might find hope and a tangible expression of God's love.

The Kittitas County chapter has taken on a project in Zambia to bring fresh water to Sinazongwe where the life expectancy is only 35 years due to Aids and 1 in 4 children are orphaned because of Aids. WOV seeks to reach out to the people that Jesus reached out to through projects such as those at Sinazongwe. As a matter of fact Princess Zulu from Zambia will be the speaker at their fund raising dinner in April! There is an easy way to help out the children of Zambia and that is through child sponsorship. Your monthly commitment is only $35 a month (so you take coffee two times a week instead of buying a latte'...no big deal...right?) and you will not believe what you receive in return....the amazing feeling of helping a child and his/her family LIVE. We have received pictures and letters from our sponsored child's family and it has been neat to see him grow and learn. They are so grateful for the little they have.

After you read the information I have provided above how can you heart not cry out to these women and children? If you live in my area or will be in my area in April and would like to attend the dinner please let me know and I'll make sure you are able to attend!

As Promised

Here are the RAK's I received the other day. The first one is from Rhonda at Quilt Nut Creations. If you didn't see what I have to say about her fun blog yesterday please check out the post below this one to be in the know. I have made her blog name active so that you can go visit her either for the first time or for the second, third or...well, you get it! I just love that little plate of hearts...so cute and fun! I even remember that I commented on it. Thank you so much Rhonda! I love it!

Speaking of love...I said I got two RAK's but what I really got was Rhonda's fun RAK and Courtney's holiday card. Over Christmas Courtney and her family were really busy with lots of stuff so she decided that rather than stressing herself out with making holiday cards and sending them out at that time she would do it for Valentine's Day from this year on. True to her word the cute card you see is her 1st Annual Valentine's Day card from her family! I love the style of the card so sweet and soft. Thanks for including me on your mailing list! Oh, and Courtney, if you are reading this...you'd better be resting!

I had a question on my Z-Fold post. Okay, I think a couple of people asked me the same question. They wanted to know where to score for this type of card. Well...the fabulous Beate has done a tutorial on her blog for visual learners...HERE it is! Have fun with it and feel free to link your card to my blog so I can see, too!

So, I'm wondering...when you clicked into my blog today did you notice anything new 'cuz I have something new on my blog! How about some Glory From Lorie if you notice what is new? I'll pick a name out of all who leave a comment with the correct new addition. If you haven't noticed go ahead and leave my blog and come back. Do it as many times as you need be in order to see the new accent to my blog! You have until I post again tomorrow to find it!

I hope that you all make today a fantastic Thursday! I'm going to a Women of Vision "meeting" tonight and I'm very excited about it! HERE is their blog...you can click on Calendar to see what the speaker will be talking about tonight.

Bella ATC Swap

Whew! After much deliberation and many attempts in the trash I have a final ATC that I'm going to send in for the swap that I signed up for. This is Mwahbella. I'm so happy I got her! The entire stamp is super cute and comes with five sassy sentiments...sassy being one of them! I have used SU!'s Purely Pomegranate for the base, the scallop circle, and the ribbon. The white is PaperTrey's Stamper Select and then there is Chocolate Chip. I'm not sure you can see it but the trio of flowers from the SAB set Friendship Blooms have been stamped on the belly band. I don't recall who the designer paper is from but it has dots, flowers, and dragonflies on it. I couldn't decide if I liked the Purely Pomegranate closes and hair band on Bella or Chocolate Chip so I am sending five of each.

I was very excited to get my mail yesterday as I received two wonderful cards, my passport holder for the Israel trip, and my PaperTrey order! What an amazing mail day! I will be putting up the cards I got yesterday either later today or tomorrow. I can tell you one is from Rhonda who is also known as Quilt Nut Creations. Her blog is very fun as she has Wordless Wednesday where she just posts a picture and Snack Saturday where she posts a YUMMY looking snack. You should really go check her out! The other card is from my friend Courtney. I'll tell you more about them later!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Z-Fold Card

Good morning friends! I just have to show you this cute little Z-fold Giddyupabella card that I made for my swap partner in the kiddo swap that I signed up for on Sari's blog. Basically we are swapping for our kiddos. This is also an international swap so I'll be sending my little box to Finland. My little partner is 4 years old and is a girl who loves pink. Now isn't she a girl after my own heart? LOL! I saw Kristine's card on her blog Cafe Ink and thought it would be perfect for a little girl. Okay, that and I am sending her a My Little Pony too. This is s super simple card with 5 pieces of card stock and a little ribbon. The "smile" stamp is from my Kim Hughes set of sentiments that I got at Cornish Heritage Farms. So, do you guys think I'll make my little swap partner happy?

Oh, and guess what? I finally got my prototype done of my ATC for the swap I signed up for! I was really struggling with it so I Googled ATC layouts and a fun and unique layout came up that I went with. I will be posting that picture tomorrow!

I hope Tuesday treats you well today!

I haven't shown you yet...

I haven't shown you guys two cards that I received for Valentine's Day. The first card is from my friend and very talented stamper Janel. She has been a very loyal friend and SU! customer for several years now. Isn't that the cutest card? I love the designer paper and the xoxo wheel! And isn't the red stitched ribbon fabulous? Thanks so much Janel!





The other card is the card Todd made for me. It is funny because he used the bubble Cuttlebug folder before I got the chance too! LOL! He said the card took him a 1/2 hour to make because he had a hard time finding everything. Well, that is what happens when he buys me new organizational tools for Christmas! Personally...I love this card! What did he get me for a gift this Valentine's Day you may ask? I got my very first set of Nestabilites dies. I got the circle set of four. I'm very excited to get to the point where I can use them! I am hoping that Spellbinders will quickly release their new Xcalibur machine so I can get one of those to make the die cutting process that much easier!

Remember that recipe page I showed you a couple of days ago? Well, I got all 14 of them done for the swap! Yay! So I'll get those out to Courtney today and start working on the Bella ATC swap that I signed up for which is also due March 1st! I'm struggling with the ATC swap a little but while laying in bed last night I had an idea I have to see if I can make work. Send me creative vibes...k?

I hope you all have a great Monday!

Two More Swaps

Here are two more cards that I received in the last swap I participated in. The first card was made by Patty Jones. She used the Cause for Celebration and Celebrate Everything sets. The Gable Green and Rose Red go so well together that I may have to try that color combo. It is so cheery! This one has some of the Fine Cosmo Glitter in the center of the flower, too! Very fun!





The second card was made by Pam Miller. She also used the Celebrate everything set for this card. I love the combination of the the Bali Breeze DP with the Taken with Teal and Apricot Appeal card stock. Don't you love how she died her Twill Tape to match the card? The large Oval and Tag Punch finish off the card with the cute little "friendship" stamp.

Both girls did such a nice job!

I hope your Sunday is laid back yet productive and that you get lots of stamping done! Tomorrow is a day off school for us so I'm thrilled that I get two days this week to sleep in!

Here it is...

Isn't it beautiful? I know, I know...I'm weird for wanting a wagon but it has sooo much room without being huge and using lots of gas. It drives really nice too!

Who wants a ride?

Something I've Never Done Before

After all this time paper crafting I've never done a recipe swap. Don't get me wrong...I like recipes, I just don't think I'm 1. a very good cook and 2. able to put something cute together. Well, my friend Courtney asked me to join her 6x6 recipe swap I couldn't say no. As a matter of fact she could hear my foot stomping through the miles when I said FINE...I'll do it. You see...I only join swaps with 10 or less players. For some reason that is about the most of on thing I can make without getting frustrated. Also, it's 6x6...I mean really...what do you do with the extra room if you have a 3x5 recipe?! BUT, I said yes so I needed to get to work on it. So.....there it is------->

What do you think? I went to my LSS and got the veggie designer paper. Used my Chefabella, GinaK's Scalloped Frames & Doodles, and my word set from the Kim Hughes Collection at CHFs. The recipe has a brad on the left top because there are two pages and you can move the top 3x5 card up and around so it is out of the way to read the directions on the 2nd page. Would you be pleased if you received this page in a swap? I hope so 'cuz this is what I'm going with!

A little later today Todd and I are going to get my new car. I won't keep you in suspense...it is a VW Passat Wagon. It has everything on it that a person could want...leather interior, heated seats, 6 disc CD changer, lots of room, and the best part is that it is WHITE!!! I have always wanted a white vehicle (don't ask me why...I don't know) and now I have one...woohoo! If you click on the link ignore the price in the left corner as it isn't what we paid and I'm not gonna tell ya! LOL! I will take a picture when we get it home and post it. I'm sure I'll have a huge smile! Oh...if I have your cell phone number and you can get a text you'll probably see it that way first! LOL!!!

Alright...have a super Saturday and I'll see you back here later!

Well....

Sorry, guys. Todd and I left earlyish this morning to try and buy a new vehicle. It looks like we've found something BUT the dealership was HORRIBLE!!! If you live in my area I will tell you who it is and MY experience but I don't wish to slander their name by putting it on the internet. I should tell you that we almost have to go there because it is the only VW place within about 2 hours.

I promise I'll post something really good tomorrow (I hope) before we go pick up the vehicle. Then when we get home I'll have Todd take a pic of me with new new car.

Have a great Friday night everyone!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

Good morning everyone! Are you all set for today? I want to show you some blog candy that I received. Kathea had some blog candy up for grabs on her blog Say It With Ink awhile back and I was the winner! Woohoo baby! She sent me the cutest Bella card (Cakeabella), a great clear stamp set and a COPIC marker! Can you believe it?! Woohoo. Thanks so much Kathea!

I hope you all have a fantastic day!

Received Swaps

I thought I'd share with you a couple of the swaps that I received through a swap on one of my yahoo groups...SUAngels. The first card was made by Darla Roberts an is made with the set A Beautiful Thing. Her gorgeous color combination of Regal Rose and Apricot Appeal makes this such a happy card! I had never thought of putting those two colors together before but I really like it!







The second card was made by Alice Hartlaub. I wasn't too sure about this set until I received this card. How cute are the big candles? The color combination just screams happy birthday. She used some of SU!'s new chunky glitter on the flame and I'm telling you ladies it is so cool looking in real life!



I hope you guys like these samples as much as I do! Is everyone ready for Valentine's Day? I'm not! I haven't even made Todd's card yet so guess what I'll be doing today? Now to decide which set to use...tough one! Have a great Wednesday!

A New Hanna In Town

I got my new Hanna Stamps set, Domestic Goddess, in the mail last week and I just had to make a card with her. I've actually used a layout from the Bella sketch challenge this week but I thought it was a great layout. 'Spose I should go back and do it with a Bella now, huh? The circle paper is the back side of a really cute paper I got last week that has polka dots and dragon flies. I wanted to use the other size but it didn't look as nice as this side does. I love the splash of black with the ribbon. And is that sentiment not funny? It is part of the Things Hanna Would Say set. All the sayings (28 of them!) in that set fit into the Word Window punch by SU! So convenient!

So, today is the first time to use a little bit smaller picture on my blog. Please let me know if you think it is too small so I can adjust according to your needs. I finally figured out how to make my picture bigger in Adobe Photoshop Elements after I've cropped it so that I can see where the watermark is going. Silly little thing but it was bugging me! LOL!

So...this card goes out today to a Glory from Lorie winner that I've been behind in getting her loot out! Speaking of winners...four people guessed correctly on the heart tins. The correct order is...Lion, Kyler...Boxers, Jon...and Mailbox, Scott. So...the winner is...Jennifer K! Can I get a woohoo?! I already have Jennifer's address so I'll get something out to you this week!

I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday!

Two New Awards

I have been very blessed to receive two new blogging awards. First, from my friend Courtney...the Spread The Love Award. Thank you so much Courtney! :o)









The other is the Excellent award. This one I was awarded by Charmaine. I feel so special that she would choose me! For this one I am supposed to choose 10 people to pass it on to. Hard to do but here I go...

Courtney
Diane
Kathea
Heidi
Amber
Katie
Dawn
Joan
Cristina
Karen
Shannon

Go visit all these ladies and you will get a treat! :o)

Oops!

This just proves it! If I don't post in the morning I totally forget. I was sitting there last night and thought...crud...I forgot to post! You see...Sunday morning we decided to wake the kids early and go get breakfast at Perkins before church. This require me to get up, shower, and dress right away instead of coming here and posting before getting on with my day. So, sorry...no post but breakfast was good!

Alright...my project for you guys today. Do you remember THIS post? Well, I got THESE tins from PaperTrey Ink when they were released last month and I spent a little time covering them and getting them ready for the boys. It was much easier than I had anticipated as Sharon has instruction on how to cut the paper for the top window. Once again I used my paper from the Target $ spot. I colored the images that Bela gave me with my COPIC markers, cut them out and placed them on the tins. I added some flocking on the frog's boxers but no glitter or anything like that as they are boys ya know! The images are kind of 3-d though as I used dimensionals on part of the image. Like the lion's head is popped up from the tin. I think the striped (is it two "p"'s or one?) tin may be too girlie but I didn't have any other boyish Valentine paper so I had to make do.

So...lets have a little Glory from Lorie. Think you can guess correctly which tin is for which of my boys? From the correct guesses I'll choose a winner for a card with a surprise from me! Remember you have to have all three correct in order to go into the drawing.

Also, a random note just so you all know. I think I'm going to start sizing my pictures a little bit smaller. It will save a little room on my computer and on my blogger account. You can always click on them to make them larger.

I hope you all had a great weekend! Make today a great day!

*The spell check still isn't working so forgive my mistakes.*

Birthday Wishes

Some of you may know that my grandpa is very special to me. As a child my parents were very good about making sure that my brother and I got to see my grandparents on a regular basis. Sometimes we made the four hour drive twice a month. Oh, geeze...I don't want to bore you with the memories of that time but just typing this little but has brought that time right back...I love it! My grandma died about 11 1/2 years ago now (wow!) and my grandpa remarried a wonderful lady who loves him and takes care of him. Anyway, this coming Wednesday is his birthday and I send him a card every year. Grandpa and Fern have a little room in their house that they have their two chairs and a t.v in. Knowing I had this MFT's set called This One's for the Boy I knew I had to make his card with it. I struggled and struggled and I'm still not "in love" with it but I think it suits him well. Speaking of that side of the family if you would all please pray for my aunt Cindy. Something is going on that has her in ICU. Not sure what it is but I know it is tearing my grandpa up inside (he's already lost one wife and a daughter). So please prayers for her.

I also wanted to show you how I'll be signing the back of my cards this year. Grandpa's card was the first one to receive this signature (because I just mounted the stamp...lazy Lorie!). I really think it suits me well.

Anyway, I hope you all have a fantastic Saturday! I'm going to try and photograph my heart tins so you guys can see them tomorrow!

Finally!

Whew! I've been saving this card to show you guys until the intended receiver got it. Well, she got it the other day and let me know yesterday so I get to share it with you! This is Mwahbella and I love her! She comes with four different sentiments (I believe it is four) that just suit her to a "t"! If you'd like to know what I used to make this card you can go HERE. You could also leave a comment if you are so inclined. I sent this card to Charmaine at Oodabug Alley because she is just so sweet and encouraging. Go check out her blog...she is very talented!

The other picture I'm sharing today is the Valentine mailbox that I made for Kyler's teacher. We are going to place some shredded paper, candy and a Valentine inside for her. I hope she likes it and doesn't think it is a silly, unneeded thing. I like to give teachers things they can use up or store easily and the mailbox is neither. Oh, well..it is all good, right? I'm thrilled about the patterned paper as I got it at the dollar spot at Target. I don't get to Target often but when I do...fun stuff! I used the SU! set Happy Heart Day for the mouse on the front and although he isn't flocked yet I think I will flock the mouse in brown. I just think flocking adds so much fun and texture!

On a personal note...Todd is sick with the head cold that everyone has been getting around here. Poor guy!

I hope you all have a fantastic and fun Friday! See you tomorrow!

Guess what I got yesterday...

Well, I actually have two exciting things to share! Okay, three if you count each card separately. I got both of these super cute cards in one envelope yesterday and they brought such a smile to my face! They are both from Diane a blogging friend of mine and I know that she makes the rounds to other blogs too so you may have seen her name before. Anyway, I sent Diane a copy of my favorite devotional book and she sent me this lovely thank you note. I love the paisley in the corner. The paper piercing makes it so neat! The other card that she sent is a Valentine's card from her family to mine. Isn't it just adorable?! She sent me some of those images a while ago and I'm going to use it for Todd's Valentine's card so I suppose I should get off my behind and do it, huh? Diane has a new blog so you should go check it out HERE.

The other fun thing(s) I received yesterday is my pre-order for the Occasions mini catalog. Oh, Lordy ladies...this mini catalog is amazing! You guys are all going to love it! I will take a picture of my goodies later today and come back and post them.

For those who are wondering (and yes there were a couple of you!). I went to the doctor yesterday and my ears are just full of fluid (annoying) and she believes my stomach hurts again because of the acid. Long story short...it sounds like I'll have to be on an acid inhibitor for basically the rest of my life. Fun! Anyone care to join me? She painted an interesting picture for me though that you guys might get a kick out of. She likened my stomach to a skinned knee. The more acid the more it is going to hurt and apparently I produce lots of acid. So...there it is. I'm fine, started the meds yesterday and we'll see what happens! Thanks everyone for your concern!

Have a super Thursday!

Another RAK

Look at this lovely RAK I got from Cathy! Cathy won one of my Glory from Lorie contests and sent me this lovely card as a thank you. I believe she used Baroque Motif's and added some really neat accents with the scallops at the bottom. Thank you Cathy your RAK made my day!

I also received some card fronts from a new stamp set swap that I participated in. I'll be sharing those with you over the next couple of days too. Everyone did a great job.

Today is a half day for my kiddos so I actually think I will get some stamping done which is good because I haven't done anything in the last couple of days. Yesterday I sat down to stamp but ended up putting card stock scraps away and then had to leave for Bible study. Disappointing!

Anyway, I hope you all have a fantastic Wednesday!

An RAK

I received my RAK from Bela for our RAK swap on Courtney's blog for the month of January a couple of days ago and I was just blown away! We had chatted a little bit before she sent her envelope about paper and images and such. When I got the envelope. Wow! There is beautiful designer paper, images perfect for my boys for their Valentine's Day projects. The sweetest Magnolia card, and some accessories. Thank you so much Bela! Please make sure that you visit her blog...I put the link in the first sentence. Oh, and I decided that rather than use the images for cards...I'm going to use them to help decorate their heart tins. I am VERY excited about this because I wasn't sure how I was going to make my boys heart tins boy tins (do you all understand that?). How generous, huh?

Do you guys have any Valentine's Projects that you are working on? Just link it to this post so I can see too!

I hope you guys all have a fantastic Tuesday and if you are able be sure to vote in a caucus today!

Monday

Hi all. Just want you to know that I am here. My day started out well...I got a work out in and everything but then while doing my hair I got an ocular migraine that turned into an almost day long headache. The visual portion of the migraine lasted about 20 minutes today so I guess that wasn't too bad. Add that to my tummy bothering me and my ears hurting and well...it hasn't been a wonderful day. I think a trip to the doctor will be in store tomorrow but I think I'll be able to post anyway.

I hope you have all had a great Monday!

A Cupcake Day

When Eclectic Paperie sent out their e-mail saying they had an exclusive Stampendous set just for them I knew I had to have it! It is called Hey There Cupcake. There are six different tops and bottoms to the cupcakes along with sentiments you can put together, candles, and other fun toppers. I just had to ink it up and play with the set a little. I made this for a friend who was feeling under the weather. Just wanted her to know that I was thinking of her. I used Bazzil brown paper, designer paper I got the other day, So Saffron, and PaperTrey Ink White card stock. Throw some satin ribbon on the top and you've got a cute thinking of you card!

Today is the super bowl and while my choice of teams in not playing today...although they sooo should be...we will be going to a super bowl get together. We have a split decision on who the winner of the game will be. Jon and I are being realists and are saying that the Patriots will win. I just don't think that Giants defense can stop the Pats offense. Todd and Kyler say the Giants will win. While I think it would be better if the Packers could say we lost the playoff game to the super bowl winners...I don't think that is going to happen. I hope you all has a super fun time if you are going to some parties! Eat some food for me!

*Just a little note...blogger's spell check isn't working so if you see some errors please forgive me!*

I Chose A Name

Wow! You guys are so smart and creative! I loved all the suggestions that you guys had for me but in the end I went with one that I thought of. My Bella name is...Myfellasbella. What do you all think? But...because I still want to give away a little Glory from Lorie I had Todd pick a number and he picked lucky number 13! #13 is...

Cristina said...

MamaBella ~ because you're such a great mom and like to share your family with us. :)

Yay, Cristina! Just e-mail me your address and I'll get a little something out to you this week!

My card for you guys today is an easy one but I just love it. I love the saying and the way the card looks in real life. I used my chalk ink for the fish and the sentiment so even though the colors are bright it is very soft looking. I honestly didn't think this card needed anything other than the fish and the saying but I love ribbon so I added a little. I made this card for a fellow blogger and it will be going out in the mail today. Don't want to give it up who it is right now just in case she will still be surprised. The stamps are from Biblical Impressions. All card stock and ribbon is Stampin' Up!

I have a ton of things to do today so I must get off my butt and get moving! Have a great Saturday!

A Card and A Question

Okay, all I can say is...isn't he C-U-T-E? My friend Debby gave me a couple of images of Elmer and challenged me to make something with him. It took me almost a week but I finally did it and this is what I came up with. Please try to ignore the glaring mistakes and take in the cuteness of this card (I really like myself today..don't I? LOL!). I used the Bella sketch challenge for this week and designer paper from the Jersey Shore DP and voila! Now...to find a little boy to give a birthday card too! LOL!

Anybody want some Glory from Lorie? I know I'm full of it recently, huh? (be nice, now!) As you guys may or may not know I am a moderator of the Bellaholics group on Yahoo. Everyone seems to have a bella name (like Katiebella) but me. Ahhh...that statement reminded me of my kids for a moment...but, mom...everyone is doing it! Anyway...I don't like Lorabella as my name is Lorie not Laura. Nothing against the Laura's of the world it just isn't my name. So...help me find a name. Just comment here with the name you think I should use, I'll choose one, and you'll get a little something from me if I choose yours! You may use both my blogs to find out things about me to make the name just perfect if you'd like.

And guess what? I just placed my first SAB order today! Woohoo...so excited! I also placed my Occasions Mini pre-order. I've got some fun coming my way next week. So excited!

I hope you all have a super fantastic Friday! I'll see you tomorrow!