beate's back!

Good Sunday morning everyone! Sometimes it is the easiest cards that say the most. I got the main image from Unity Stamps (when Sarah talked me into it!). I saw that Beate is back with her weekend sketch challenge and just knew I had to participate with this sentiment today.

The main image is large at 2 1/2" x 4" but I knew it would work well with a 3" X 6" layout and I was right...yay! I used some 29th Street Market (by My Mind's Eye) patterned paper and then turned it over for the complimentary bluish color. I added some Purely Pomegranate cardstock and ribbon along with an additional Verve Stamps complimentary sentiment and there it is! Easy schmesy lemon squeezy!

Thank you for the well wishes about the parade yesterday. Kyler and I had a great time! He rode on the float and I walked along side helping the walking kids pass out candy and handing out book marks and saying hi to everyone. It was much fun!

Oh, and please forgive me if I don't make sense sometime from here forward (I guess things would really be the same then huh? lol!) as I'll be scheduling my posts the night before they post due to school starting and that type of thing. Please be patient as I get used to my new schedule. Thanks guys!

I hope you all have a nice and relaxing Sunday! I'll see you tomorrow!

billy the hoppin' kid

Good Saturday morning everyone! I made this card some time ago, with Dani's second sketch challenge, and I forgot to show it to you.

Everyone...meet Billy. I just think Billy is the cutest thing! I got this image in an image swap that I did on my blog awhile back and Billy has been looking up at me all cute like since I got it. His cuteness deserves a clean and cute card so that is what I did. There really isn't much to say about the card as it is self explanatory but if you have any questions just send me an e-mail. Please I'll put the card deets at the bottom of the post.

I made something really neat last night but I can't show you until Wednesday...at least I think I'll wait until Wednesday (which is Belli Challenge day). If I can't wait that long 'cuz I'm too excited to show you then I'll just have to make something else and that wouldn't be so bad would it?

Alright, I'm off to gets from blurfing and commenting done before Kyler and I leave for the parade. Have a super Saturday everyone! Oh, and go check out my friend Cristina's blog candy. It is great candy for a great cause!

Card deets:
Stamps: Billy (Pink Cat Studios)
Ink: ??? but it worked well with my COPICS
Cardstock: PTI White, Pacific Point, Basic Grey Cupcake, Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red
Accessories: Basic Grey Cupcake Brads, Distresser Tool (for edges), Dimensionals, Cuttlebug w/Frills embossing strip, COPICS

top note

Good morning stampers! Want to know what a top note is? Well, it is the die shape that I used on this card. Isn't it neat? Have I said that I love my Big Shot? I really like that it is wider than my Cuttlebug and therefore can use dies and paper wider too. Kinda neato!

This card came about because of this week's CPS sketch. I like the sketch a lot and thought I'd try it. I started off by stamping the flowers you see on a different piece of paper and using the paper that came on the sticky side of the foam to shade the background of the flower a little and then cut them out. I liked it but didn't love it. So...I added some flowers on the white cardstock and then tried to place the cut out flowers on top...yeah, no...that didn't work either so I just added a couple of more to what I had already stamped on the cardstock and...this is what you get. The white seemed too white so I used my air thingy (great technical term) and my Chocolate Chip marker to splatter the background a little. You can enlarge the photo's now to see more detail if you'd like...just don't look to close, k?! This stamp set is one of Stampin' Up!'s new level one hostess sets called (crazy enough...lol) "Live Like You Mean It." I do really like the sentiment as it says the same to me as living intentionally which is something I try to do.

Thank you for the well wishes for fun at the fair. Kyler did have a great time and for Todd and I it is like a friend reunion as you see so many people you know! I met the new police officer for the high school last night. It was nice to put a face with a name and he seems like a really nice guy (and good police officer) so hopefully that arrangement will go well for everyone!

This morning Kyler and I are heading off to help decorate the float that the Christian school will have in the parade this year. I think Kyler will be walking along with the float too so that will be fun too and if they ask I will probably walk with it too. The parade is tomorrow so we'll see how much work there is to be done.

Alright...enough chatter from me! Have a super

birthday...box in a bag gift

You have seen them around blogland and I have jumped on the band wagon and made a box in a bag. Todd and I are going to my friend's 40th birthday party tomorrow night and although the invitation said no gifts I just couldn't go empty handed so...a handmade gift.

For this Birthday...Box in a Bag gift I, again, used the Bella Rose DSP from Stampin' Up! along with the Dreams du Jour stamp set. I got the box in a bag template from HERE. I made the cards really simply so it didn't take me too long. I also got to use my Big Shot for the envelope and flowers on the front. I still love that Big Shot! I think everything is pretty self explanatory but if you have any questions just shoot me an e-mail!

Today is a busy day for us as we'll be at the fair most of the day today. Oh, and guess what? Kyler and I went to get our exhibitor bracelets at the fairgrounds today and decided to check in on our entries...we both got blue ribbons on BOTH of the things we entered. Go, us! LOL!! Kyler was SO excited though. One thing we've learned about going to the fair with Kyler is that we take a friend for him to ride the rides with and have fun with so...Chris is on his way! Woohoo! Watch out fair food...here I come!

Oh, and girls...do you like blog candy? Do you like blog candy to the tune of $200? Well, go HERE and check it out!

I hope that you have a super Thursday and get lots of stamping done! See you tomorrow!

belli challenge 31

Good morning everyone! Today is Belli Challenge day and I've skated in just under the rule guidelines for my submission. What is normally something very easy for me to do became more difficult when I chose the boy in this set to use for the challenge today. Today's challenge is baubles and bling and as a special treat we got to use an image from our very own Chris Dickinson's newly design stamp set called Child of God. This set is SO cute (from what I can tell from the few images that I received )! Can you see why I had a little bit of a problem with baubles and bling on this card? Well, I did find some rhinestones in just the right color and used them in the corner of my patterned paper. Yay, me! LOL! I have also heard through the grapevine (okay Chris herself! LOL!) that Chris has a second set that she will be debuting on Sept 1 through Sweet N Sassy Stamps as well. Exciting!

Onto the deets of the Belli Challenge. Each week, Chris tries to give us a challenge that will get us using things we have lying around our stamp rooms! With a constant flow of new things coming out, we tend to forget about the other things we have and they quickly become clutter! Come join us in the Belli Challenge and be sure to post your link to Chris's website!

This Weeks Belli Challenge is baubles and bling! You don't have to think just sparkle. Think hardware, clips, or anything that gives your card/project a little extra zing! Don't forget to link your card to Chris's blog (see above or below links) for a chance to win a pack of patterned paper from her! And here are the rest of the players for this week...

Rochelle Wick
Holly Brown
Chris Dickinson
Christi Thorsen
Ceal Pritchett
Shelly Koskinen
Laurie Serino

Have fun perusing those blogs...there is some great stuff that these ladies have designed! Tomorrow or Friday I'll be able to share with you the birthday gift I am making for my friend's party on Friday night. It is coming along well so far and I've gotten to use my Big Shot with it so that has been fun too!

See you tomorrow everyone!

Card Deets:
Stamps: Child of God
Ink: Stazon, Distress Ink in Antique Linen
Cardstock: Pacific Point, Wild Wasabi, Lemon Tart, Real Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Grosgrain Ribbon, Rhinestones, Pop Dots, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Aquapainter, COPICS (which I shouldn't have used as I smudged the black darn it!)

created by courtney challenge

Good morning stampers! Today is Created by Courtney Challenge #2 day. We have decided to do these challenges on Tuesdays rather than Fridays to give you guys the optimum time to participate as we all know how busy the weekends are!

This week's challenge is to make a 3"x6" card. Any stamps, any layout as long as it fits within the guidelines of the 3"x6" card. Remember to make a card and post a link to Courtney's blog HERE so you can be in the running for a prize from her! Want to see what the other challenge chicks have made? They are linked up below...

Courtney
Sparkle
Sarah
Dani

I have to say that I really enjoyed making this card and it just sort of fell together. It is happy, bright, and just perfect for my friend's birthday on Friday! Woohoo!

I did get my Big Shot yesterday and it is a wonderful tool! I have a Cuttlebug too but I do have to say that the Big Shot will be all that I use from now on. It is easy to use, has a more even "smooshing" ability which means my embossing is much more even. I will be letting my Cuttlebug go.

Tomorrow is Belli Challenge day! I will be posting the card that I made for the Belli Challenge but at this point it doesn't really fit all the requirements...darn it! It is a cute card though and I think you guys will like it.

Have a super day...I get to go to Yakima today to the "real" scrapbook store! Woohoo!

Card Deets:
Stamps: Unity Cupcake
Ink: Palette Burnt Umber, Tangerine Tango, White Craft
Cardstock: PTI White, Chocolate Chip, DSP Hawaii Papaya, Kiwi Kiss
Accessories: White Taffeta Ribbon, Spica Green Pen, A Perfect Day rub-ons, Close To Cocoa Marker, Aqua painter (frosting), Nestibilities

remember

Good morning my stamping friends! Yep, that is what I look like in the morning 'til I've had my coffee. Poor Todd, huh? LOL!

The card today is the one that I told you about yesterday that I made and it turned out too feminine. I love the sentiment on this card (true strength is delicate) and thought it would be perfect for the person I was sending it to. Anyway, this is a Mojo Monday sketch again. Julee sure has had some great sketches! The stamp set is Lisa Johnson's newest set from PTI called Remember. I bought it not knowing if I would really use it as sometimes those sets are overwhelming for me but I like this card. I fell back on the Bella Rose DSP for this card. The colors lend themselves perfectly to the poppy's in this stamp set. I hope you like it too!

Busy week ahead for me. Monday's are always busy and today is no exception. Tomorrow, stamping wise, is the Created by Courtney Challenge so stay tuned for that. Wednesday is Belli Challenge day and Thursday...well I don't know about my blog but Thursday is our big day to go and play at the fair. Soooo....busy week!

Coming up...back to school as school starts here Sept 4th and we have "orientation" for Kyler's school Sept 3rd. I've been reading about everyone's thoughts and feelings about sending their kids back to school with the knowledge that I had at least a couple of weeks to still have my kids home and now...it is coming up quick. I'm not excited for them to go back to school but it is that time and both Jon and Kyler are exactly where they should be so...back to school they go! Oh, I just found the most ADORABLE pattern for a back to school cutie for teachers, kids, or other parents that I hope to show you soon!

Oh, and look at THIS great award that Chris gave me! I'm just so honored!

Okay, sorry...once I get going...I just can't stop talking...sad but true! I hope you have a super Monday! Make it a great one and do some crafting!

light of the world

Okay, so this is the card I almost quit stamping over. Yep, that is right...almost quit. So here is what I'm going to suggest...tell me you like it whether or not you do. No...I'm just kidding tell me you like it if you do. It is aways okay to be honest. But, wow! I struggled with this one! I was making a card for a guy and the first one turned out to feminine...annoying, right? Then this one...this one kept alluding me as to what I should do with it. I used a Mojo Monday challenge for the layout. It is hard to see in this photo but there is blue in the patterned paper. Ack! Do you feel my frustration coming through the post? So, should I go back to the drawing board? ***I totally forgot to tell you that the light house is from the Light of the World set from Our Daily Bread Designs***

Tomorrow I get my 2nd Stampin' Up! order and with it I will be receiving the new Big Shot. The Big Shot is a embossing/cutting machine similar to but larger than the Cuttlebug. It will be available for purchase Sept 2nd and you can see a brochure about the Big Shot and accessories HERE. I had been considering a bigger embossing cutting machine for sometime before this came out so I knew I had to have it when SU! announced at convention that they would be carrying their own SU! branded version of the Big Shot (which is the same a the others on the market only with the SU! logo). Cool thing is that SU! will have dies that are exclusive to SU! Yep, you'll only be able to get some dies from SU! so keep your eyes open! More about this machine later...I'm sure!

Alright, ladies. I hope you have a super Sunday! Get lots of stamping done...I know I have about three birthday cards to make!

sugar nellie

Good Saturday morning everyone! I hope your weekend is going well.I have some fun stuff for you today that I'm excited to share about. Do you like my sweet Sugar Nellie Card? I got a super sweet RAK from my blogging friend Kristine and inside she sent me SIX Sugar Nellie images. I've seen these around and thought they were absolutely adorable but thought they would be really difficult to color. Well, guess what? It isn't too bad! Yay! I used this weeks CPS sketch (my first time using their sketches). I went back and forth trying to decide if I was going to add a sentiment on the bottom and ultimately decided not to due to staying true to the sketch. I could, at the time of sending, add a hanging sentiment from the ribbon. I know it is kind of a strange combination of (in SU! terms) rich regal and soft subtle colors but in real life...it is very pretty.

And, here is the super cute card that Kristine sent with the Sugar Nellie images. This is seriously a horrible picture of it as it is such a cute card with the brown and soft sky colors...really lovely! Don't you just love the bow on the top? That is a great way to make sure that you get a perfect bow every time! Thank you so much Kristine! I can't wait to use the rest of the images!

Oh, and I have to tell you that it is official. I'm a Created by Courtney Challenge Chick. What is that you ask? Well, check it out HERE (why retype the explanation when Courtney does such a great job of explaining it?). I do love challenges so... woohoo!

Thanks to those of you who have asked how yesterday went. The funeral was an amazing community celebration of Officer Ng's life. I did really well with the not crying thing except for when his friend was giving his eulogy and would start to cry. It is hard for me to see guys cry...you know they are in true pain at that point. Also, Amazing Grace on the bagpipes and then the final call out was my undoing. If you don't know...police officers (and fire fighters?) are called on the radio hourly for their status. Typically the officer just responds with his badge number and then in another hour the process happens again. They call out every 5 minutes when they are on a call. This is a way to keep track of an officer's safety. Anyway, in this case a dispatcher called his number (twice) and then had a response of 113 is out of service. The dispatcher responded 113 out of service 08/15/08 at 1400. My goodness, as a wife of a police officer that is an emotional thing to hear and I cry as I type this. I do have to say that his wife did great, as I expected she would. I'm looking forward to getting to talk with her and give her a hug. Please continue to pray for this family.

Alright this is really long so if you've made it this far...thank you! I hope you have a super Saturday and I'll see you tomorrow!

Romans 8:28

Good morning stampers! Yesterday I told you about Courtney's Challenge so I wanted to post my card for it and link you to the other girls but it looks like there has been some mis-communication of some sort and only Sparkle posted a card sooo...HERE is Sparkles card.

I have felt the need to be in God's word more since Officer Ng died so I decided to use some scripture on this card and what is more beautiful than the Bella Rose DP from SU!? My goodness this designer paper makes your card making look so beautiful...don't you think? The scripture is from Sweet N Sassy Stamps and is in their Encouragement set. The scripture reads...

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

***Oh my goodness girls! Susanna has chosen this card to be in her Best of the Blogosphere list! You can check it out HERE. Very cool! Thanks Susanna!***

This morning should be a fun morning. Kyler and I are going to the fairgrounds to drop off our entries for the fair next week. Kyler is putting a card and Lego creation into the fair and I have a card and gift bag that I'm putting in. Then this afternoon is Officer Ng's funeral. His death has been found to be in the line of duty so it will be quite the solemn event full of respect and honor for this police officer. I was told by a veteran police officer's wife that I should take lots of tissues. The boys will be going with though so maybe I'll be able to hold it together...we'll see.

So...I hope you have some fun plans today! Tomorrow I have my first Sugar Nellie card using my first CPS layout to show you so I hope to see you back here! Have a super Friday!

john 3:16

My Bible study group wanted to continue to meet over the summer but didn't want to meet every month so I choose a book to read and then discuss. We met twice a month in June, July, and August. The book was Max Lucado's book 3:16. The book takes one of the most recognizable verses in the Bible and breaks it down by section talking about why each section, and then the entire verse, is so paramount to a Christian's belief. I enjoyed the study of the verse immensely and had a couple of wonderful aha moments.

On the afternoon of the last day of the study I decided to make the participants a little something so that they will have a reminder of this study. It seemed obvious to me that it should be a bookmark. I used both PTI's Everyday Blessings set and a stamp that I have of John 3:16, stamped them on white cardstock, layered them on a background, added some ribbon and taadaa...a bookmark. They are pretty small at 1 7/8" x 3 1/4" but everyone seemed to like them so...

Tomorrow my friend, Courtney, will start having Friday challenges on her blog. She has asked me if I will participate by having a sample ready for you guys to see of the challenge on Friday. How do you say no to a friend so...on Friday's it will be Created by Courtney Challenges! Much like the 3LD challenges we will encourage you to make something and post it somewhere on the web then link to it on Courtney's blog. Of course there is winnin' goin' on too so you must come back tomorrow and see what it is all about!

I hope you all have a super Thursday! See you tomorrow!

Bookmark deets:

Stamps: PTI Everyday Blessings, John 3:16 by SonLight Impressions (CHF)
Ink: PTI Aqua Mist
Cardstock: PTI White and Aqua Mist
Accessories: PTI Aqua Mist Satin Ribbon

belli challenge #30

Here it is Wednesday again! Wednesday is, of course, Belli Challenge day here on my blog. This week's challenge is Coasters. There are so many things that can be done with a coaster but one thing I've never done is what you see here. This coaster has been decorated with paper from my Sept 3LD kit and images from the SNSS My Little Chickadee set. I think this type of thing is perfect for a little gift of encouragement when a friend needs a little pick me up and it was pretty quick to put together.

Onto the deets of the Belli Challenge. Each week, Chris tries to give us a challenge that will get us using things we have lying around our stamp rooms! With a constant flow of new things coming out, we tend to forget about the other things we have and they quickly become clutter! Come join us in the Belli Challenge and be sure to post your link to Chris's website!

This Weeks Belli Challenge is Coasters! You can do many things with a coaster...a box, a post it holder, a photo album, luggage tags, a Christmas ornament, or even a decoration piece like mine. Think outside the square!


The other players this week are below...

Holly Brown
Rochelle Wick
Debby McGillivary
Shelly Koskinen
Jennifer Greco
Chris Dickinson
Christi Thorsen
Ceal Pritchett
Danita Hollinder

If you go to visit one of these blogs and they don't have their piece up yet please check back. These ladies do such a great job each week!

I have some fun posts planned for the next couple of days so I hope you will come back and see me tomorrow!

teacher gift

Good morning stampers! I wanted to make Kyler's teacher for this year a little back to school gift for a couple of reasons. One...it is the beginning of a new school year you know. And, two...she is a new teacher, both to the school and teaching (although she is a mom of 3) so she needs something neato to start the year right? So, this little comp book was born.

I got this book (blank pages...4x6 size) in my Sept 3LD kit but didn't want to use the Chickadee on it so I decided to pull out one of the several scripture sets that I have from SNSS. The scripture reads..."Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Philippians 4:6 I really like this verse because it says to me...just do it...do it with God but just do it! I know this is a little plain but I don't know the new teacher so I thought I'd go plain. While you probably can't see it I did use my Nestabilities to emboss the scripture layer and then, as you can see, added several more layers to the main image. I'm just sitting here thinking about it and wonder if I added some doodling to the orange scallop that I'd like it better. I may have to try that!

Anyway, that is it for today girls! Tomorrow is the Belli Challenge. I'm all set and ready to share with you. Okay, actually...I'm a dork because I thought this weeks challenge was for last week so had it ready to go but then realized my mistake and didn't have anything for last week. Anyway, stay tuned tomorrow!

I hope you all have a super Tuesday!

call me

So...here is one of the MFT sets that was saying use me! It is a mini set appropriately named Call Me. This card is pretty straight forward and the layout one that you see me fall back on regularly. The patterned paper is by Imaginisce and is called Drapin' Daisies and has some shimmer built into it so there was no need to add any.

I made this because there is a friend of mine that I used to talk with or hang out with almost every day that I just haven't heard from in awhile. I hope that I haven't done anything to offend her so I thought I'd throw this card in the mail and let her know I've been thinking of her a lot recently.

On a side note. Katie, the owner of 3 Little Dreams let us know this weekend that she will be discontinuing her business as of Sept 1st so you'll not be seeing anymore design team things from me. I hope this gives her the break that she needs for her family and wish her the best.

So, yeah, guys...that is about it today. As always Monday is a busy day for me so I need to be moving along onto other things. Have a super day!

flip book

Amy Celona at uStamp4Fun has this neat tutorial for a Flip Book available on her blog. This book is rather large at 6"X6". Todd's dad's birthday is coming up soon and I wanted to make him something special...you know something that most grandpa's don't get for their birthday's. This is what I made!

It is made with the retired SU! Simply Scrappin' Kit called He's Cool. I know that the cover looks a little big and over the top but trust me both grandpa and grandma Ames will love this book! I made the cover in publisher and it was actually really fun picking out different words to use! I'll throw a couple of pictures of my kids in there and then they can finish it by adding photos of the rest of the grandkids as they see fit.

So...Whatcha think? Kinda a neato idea, huh? I hope see lots of these out there and what you incredibly talented readers of mine can do with this fun idea.

I've had a couple of my MFT sets shouting at me to use them recently so you just may be seeing something super fantastic coming up! HA!! Probably not super fantastic but you get the idea...right?

Today is my favorite day of the week! I get to get to church and while it is a work day for me too I also get to renew and refresh my soul in the Lord and I always look forward to that! We also have the all church picnic today that I'm really looking forward to. It is going to be hot (99 degrees) today but sunscreen and a sleeveless shirt will do me just fine! Oh, and lots of water too!

Have a super !