CBCC #??

Okay, you guys...I'm so sorry...I don't remember what number we are on for the Created by Courtney Challenges. What I can tell you is that today's challenge is to CASE another person's card changing at least two things about it. When you make a card go head and post the card to your blog, tell us the changes and then link back to Courtney's blog with it for a chance to win some goodies from her.

I chose to CASE an adorable card from Sarah...HERE. What I used of Sarah's card is the layout. I changed the papers (mine are SU! and Basic Grey) and stamps (House Mouse). My friend, Lori, sent me some adorable House Mouse images and I just had to use one for my card. Lori is a design team member for the House Mouse and Friend Monday Challenge Blog and she makes some CaUTE cards...check it out! This is such a plain and simple card but I truly LOVE it! I can't wait to use some more of the House Mouse images.

I know you want to see what the other Challenge Chicks have done so go check out Sarah, Dani, Sparkle, Heidi, and Courtney!.

So tomorrow is the Belli Challenge...also is the first of October. I can hardly believe that September is gone already. Wow...it went fast! So, I'll see you tomorrow!

feels so good!

Oh, my goodness...it felt so good to stamp yesterday afternoon! I made THREE, yes three cards in one afternoon. Yes, they were pretty simple but they are, in my opinion, very cute. You are getting to see the first one today!

I was asked by the PA (parent association) at Kyler's school to make a card for a family that just had a baby and I was happy to oblige. I thought simple yet pretty would be perfect so here is what I came up with. The stamp is from Baby Love, a set by Kim Hughes that you can get over at Cornish Heritage Farms. First I chose the Pacific Point cardstock for my blue, then embossed the PTI white with Cuttlebug's Baby Words embossing folder. A scallop square, some white ribbon, and it was all set. I think it will be a hit...how about you?

Tomorrow is the Created By Courtney Challenge and I finally get to participate! I'm so excited about the challenge and can't wait to show you my card! Wednesday is the Belli Challenge and also October 1st...can you believe we will be in October...holy schmoley! Next thing you know....it will be my birthday and then a few weeks after that...Hawaii baby! Woohoo! It is definitely going to be a fun month for me!

I've really missed stamping and sharing my creations with you and although I have to work Monday and Tuesday this week I think I'm ahead enough in my crafting to keep up with everything...yay!

So...have a super Monday and I'll see you for CBCC Tuesday!

winner?

Chosen by random.kyler we have a winner for the sketch challenge I issued on Wednesday! And the winner is....Christi! You can see her card HERE. Christi...e-mail me your address and I'll get your Glory from Lorie out on Monday!

Want to see all the entries? I thought I'd make it easy for you by listing them below.

Laurel
Melissa
Martha
Berenice
Sarah
Jen
Cyndi
There is one more from Debby but she doesn't have a blog. Trust me...it is cute!!

Aren't they all great! Thank you, everyone, for participating! Okay, I've been tagged several times this week for the new round of blog tags so I thought I'd go ahead and try to list 7 things about myself...

1. After working full time this week...I'm not sure I could do it all the time. My goodness I was tired by the time I got home. Remember I was getting up at 5:30 a.m. to exercise before the kids got up, getting Kyler to school, then to work from 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. I was on my feet almost all day. Very tiring! I have had fun at it though and have two more days this next week then I'll be done for the quarter.
2. I have a tattoo. It is a rose vine kind of thing around my left ankle. I got it during what I'm calling my mid-life crisis (when I turned 30). I still love it though and I'm glad I got it.
3. Growing up I lived in 4 different cities between being born and 3rd grade. We did move more after that but just from house to house...not school, city or states.
4. My trip to Hawaii will be the first time I've flown over a major body of water...now that is a little scary to me!
5. I played clarinet from 5th grade all the way through a senior in high school. I haven't picked it up since then though.
6. In case you didn't know...my favorite color is pink!
7. I have way to many stamps that I don't use and really need to put some up for sale but haven't because it will be a very LARGE project to attack!

I am supposed to tag some more people but I'm just not going to do it. If you'd like to play though...go ahead. Also my blogging friend Kristine gave me a One Sweet Blog award this week. You can go HERE and see what that is all about. I would like to tag all my wonderful readers on this fun award as I really appreciate everyone that visits and participates in my little contests!

Today should bring me some time to stamp and that is good as I have a couple of cards that I need to make. I hope you all have a super Saturday and I'll see you tomorrow!

a challenge

I am SO happy that it is Wednesday! Yesterday I told you that I'd have a little challenge for you and here it is! I would love for you all to try this CPS sketch. It is the same sketch I used for my Whiff of Joy card HERE.

So, make a card with this sketch, link it to my b log (and CPS, too!), and then on Saturday morning I will choose a random winner for a little Glory from Lorie. So...who is in? Come on...you know you wanna! LOL!

Work is going well. It has been many years since I've worked full time so I am quite tired but it has been fun!

I hope you have a !!!

you guys are great

I just want to all for your wonderful support! I appreciate you all understanding about my being gone the next few days. I hope to have a fun challenge for you guys tomorrow and what do you get out of it? Oh, yeah...Glory from Lorie!

Okay, and I have a video for you. This is a tough video (especially for some) to watch and listen to but I think the message is an excellent one!



See you tomorrow!

whiff of joy

Happy Monday!

I'm so thrilled to have a card for you today! I got some new stamps last week and just now have had a chance to try them out. They are from Whiff of Joy and, I think, are super cute. I, of course, got all boy images but they do have some super cute girl images too! This cute guy is named Charlie and there are several fun winter scenes with him. I love how happy the dog looks!

Anyway, I used this week's layout from CPS. I'm not sure I love the angle of this shot as sentiment circle looks funky but in real life it is kinda cute. I do really like the snow with fun flock but would love to try some of the 'faux snow' from CHF. I think that would look really neat. The patterned paper is from previous years winter paper from Basic Grey. The sentiment is from PTI. Oh, and the size is 5" x 5" so you can tell how large the image really is.

I hope you like this little glimpse into how much fun winter can be...minus the cold weather and tons of snow that can come with it, of course! LOL!

I'm not sure how the rest of the week will be when it comes to posting so, again please be patient with me! I'm actually thinking that tomorrow there may not be a post as I have to work at church in the morning and then work at the Wildcat shop until 6:30 p.m. and then back to the church at 7:00 p.m. for a meeting. Yeah...wish me luck for staying awake until that meeting is over! LOL!

Catch ya later!

very first card...

I thought it would be fun to flashback to the beginning (well almost the beginning) of my stamping career. This is the very first card that I uploaded to SCS. It is from September 14, 2004. I used to have an obsession with Passion Pink. Today, I haven't used Passion Pink in ages! Anyway, I hope you get a little laugh and enjoy my blast to the past!

I have been stamping cards but I can't show them to you as I have submitted them for a card layout design team...something I said I wasn't going to do. Submit to a design team that it. I did get my entry at the very last moment and that will probably be looked at in a not favorable light. I don't blame them a bit if that is the case. The submission is at Page Plans. I love their sketches, and their designers are fantastic! You should really go check them out and add their blog to your reader (or subscribe to the feed in a different way). I just got a look at this week's sketch and it is SO cute!

Anyway, I know I will have something for you for sure tomorrow and depending on how my stamping goes today for a least a couple of more days this week. I am working all week this week at the Wildcat Shop on campus from 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. so you can see that I will have to pre-post most of the week. If I don't have something new for you each day please keep checking back!

I have a little sale for you guys to go check out! Amuse is currently selling downloadable 2009 calendars in three different sizes for your holiday crafting needs. I bought two sizes...both square (to use on altered coasters) and 4-bar. The best part about these calendars would be that the proceeds from the "sale" of these calendars will all be donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. There are actually 3 different donation levels, $4, $10, and $20 per calendar. Now, I'm sure you are wondering why I would be mentioning this and besides the fact that the calendars are way cool and it is a great cause...both my grandmother and my mom died of Non-Hodkins Lymphoma. They both valiantly fought their diseases for over a year but ultimately were overcome by them. My grandmother was 69 when she died and a year and a half after grandma died my mom died at 49. I know they are both waiting for me in Glory but I still miss them both...a lot. Why not take a moment to check out the links I gave you above and and donate to the LLS by purchasing a 2009 calendar or two!

I hope you have a super Sunday!

another upsy daisy

Good Saturday morning! Yesterday was such a nice relaxed day for me! Only one meeting...yay!

Yes, this is another Upsy Daisy, yes it is the same layout as yesterday's card but updated colors, some highlighting, and a different sentiment. I made this card for my two oldest boys to send to their dad.

The colors are Night Quite Navy and Kiwi Kiss. Nice masculine colors I think. I used a little of the NQN DSP that is from the SU!'s level one hostess paper pack.

Today we are going to Central's football game and having friends over for a BBQ tonight...should be fun! I'm also in the middle of another, what I think is pretty, card that I hope to show you tomorrow.

I hope you have a wonderful day and get lots of stuff done if that is what you so desire or just sit back and relax!

upsy daisy

So...is anyone else extremely happy that it is Friday? I am! It has been a very busy week but not as busy as next week will be! Hopefully I'll get some stamping done this weekend so I can keep up with my posts next week!

Here is the last card that we made at my stamp club last night. It is a lovely, yet simple card that is one of those that makes you feel so accomplished when you are done! This card is a wonderful idea from my SU! demo magazine called Stampin' Success. I love the Baja Blue color with the chocolate chip ribbon. Very classic looking. The Upsy Daisy set is perfect for lots of cards because it has birthday, thinking of you, and friendship sentiments. I made this same card with the thinking of you sentiment for my two oldest to send to their dad and grandmother as the beloved matriarch of the family died on Monday night. They are both very sad at the loss of the great-grandma and wanted to send a card of support. Aren't they just the sweetest?!

Today brings not quite so much to do so hopefully I'll get some great stamping time in. In the meantime you all have a super wonderful Friday!

***Edit...okay, you guys our friend needs us! Not only is Courtney displaced by the hurricane at the moment but she took her son to the ER last night and he has strep. I know she is so overloaded with stress right now and I think we need to shower her with cards. Please contact me ASAP for her address so you can send her, and the kids, a card! Thanks!***

pocket silhouettes

Morning stampers! I hope you've had a super week so far! Last night was our first stamp club. I have one "old timer" in the group (just meaning she's stamped with me for some time now...hi Janel!), two new to the group (but not to stamping) girls, two new to stamping girls, and one out of towner. What a fun mix of ladies!

Here is one of the cards that we made last night night. It is a mix of Pocket Silhouette's, Hawaiian Papaya DSP, and nice fall colors.

I have another super busy day today but at least the week is going fast right? Yeah...that's it! Oh, and I think I'm feeling like stamping again so hopefully I'll come up with some really wonderful stuff soon!

So that is it for today! I hope you have a super day!

FINALLY!

Good Wednesday morning! Yay...it is hump day...we are almost there! Friday will be here before we know it!

Anyway, guess what? Yep! I stamped! I wish I could say this is my original idea but it is not (got the idea from the SU! demo website) but I love it and I think it is so cute! How about a yummy vanilla cupcake with thick orange butter cream frosting (it is popped up on dimensionals) ...oh, yah...who wouldn't like that?! Yep, they are bright colors but this can still be for a girl's birthday right? I hope so! The intended recipient's favorite color is royal blue so...yes? This is so seriously an easy card...a couple of punches, some paper and you are all set!

I should have made this on Tuesday for Courtney's Challenge and something else for today as it is Belli Challenge (anything square) day and I was supposed to use squares and have been told that a square card counts. Woot! So, go ahead and check out my fellow Belli Challenge girl's blogs and see what they have done AND if you make a card that has a square be sure to go to Chris's blog and link your card up to win a prize from her! Oh, and she currently has some blog candy that you may want to check out! So...find some squares and get crafting!

I'll put the details at the bottom of the post for you in case you'd like to make your own.

Tonight is the first night of stamp club. This is my first stamp club in two years and I'm so nervous as to whether or not everyone will like my projects so wish me skill (not luck...gotta have skill to stamp you know!).

Thank you for being so patient with me the last couple of days. I'm so glad to be back stamping again!

Have a great Wednesday!

again...

Hi everyone! I can hardly believe what yesterday turned into! I started out only have to get my teeth cleaned then ended up spending quite some time on my Bible study (a good thing!), took Kyler to the doctor, and then when I talked with Courtney on the phone tonight (she and her family are safe...thankfully!) she said that where Todd and I were planning on vacationing has been almost completely destroyed. Todd found that 300 ft of the boardwalk splintered into the downtown and the B&B we were going to stay at is completely destroyed. How sad! I just feel for everyone!

So Todd and I decided that we should make a new plan (which is plan "c") and got to work figuring out what to do. What we decided on is...Hawaii. The military has a hotel right on the beach in Honolulu that we were, amazingly enough, able to get a room for the time in which we'll be there! I wish I were going to go to Texas and getting to see Courtney while I'm there but I am excited to be going to Hawaii!

I'm sorry about not having a Created by Courtney Challenge card for you but I promise I'll have something to show you soon!

Have a great Tuesday!

thomas kinkade papers

Good Monday Morning Stampers! How was everyone's weekend? Did you get lots of stuff done? Well, I got the laundry done today, got the Sunday school year off to a good start at church, and made something.

There isn't much stamping involved but I used the fabulous new Thomas Kindkade papers from Cornish Heritage Farms. The papers have 8x8, 4x4, and 2x2 sizes of images such as the Lighthouses, Cobblestone Cottage, and many others. Anyway, I wanted to dress up a wine bottle gift bag so I grabbed out the paper, cut it to the size I needed, and there it is. Just a little bit nicer than before. Oh, and I used a Lisa Strahl set called Script Essential Expressions,also from CHF, on the tag. It says "thankful for you." Inside the bag is a wonderful bottle of Icicle Ridge Chardonnay. I'm hoping the recipient will like this!

So today I get to go to the dentist for a cleaning...woohoo...NOT! I would prefer to do many things other than go to the dentist even though I don't really have to many problems. But, happily, after that I'll come home and get to do some stamping...can I get a big WOOHOO for that??!!

Please keep everyone that was in the path of Hurricane Ike in your prayers especially our Courtney. She is safe and so is her family but her house isn't in great shape and she hasn't seen her husband so please pray, pray, pray!

where has it gone?

So, if someone finds my will to craft...will you please return it...QUICKLY!!! I have a couple of ideas floating around in my head but I just can't seem to find the will to sit down and do it. So...I have nothing for you today. I'm sorry! I will, hopefully, have some time to craft today and will have something for you tomorrow.

In the meantime...Todd and I had an overnight away the other night and I had mentioned to him that I'd like to start collecting the Dept. 56 Dickens Village houses and accessories...not like obsessive collecting but a piece here and there. Where we went they have a Christmas store that we checked out the village pieces at and guess what? Yep, Todd got me one. He got me the newly retired Victorian University (at 40% off...woohoo!) which fits well for us since we live in a university town and since we have a son in college. Neato, huh?

I hope that you all have a super Sunday! See you tomorrow!

an rak

Yay! It is Saturday! I don't know about you but I don't have a whole bunch planned and I like it that way...okay, I like it when it is all easy stuff! Ha!

Guess what I got at the beginning of the week? Yep, I got a pretty RAK from Gerriane. Isn't it just lovely? You can actually see the pretty sparkle on this card and hmmm...don't you love the sentiment on the card?! I sure do!

Anyway, I'm off to do laundry, get some stamping done, and go to a house warming party. I hope you all have a great day too!

the rose garden

Happy Friday! I've got a ton of things planned for today so this will be a short post and then I'm off.

I made this card with a stamp that I got in a trade. It is a Thomas Kinkade from Cornish Heritage Farms and is called The Rose Garden. While the colors in this picture are quite bright I did want to tell you that the card, in real life, is quite soft and lovely.

As you can see inside I made this one as a birthday card. It was easy to make this card with a new clear card product that you can see HERE. I got one clear and one frosted base to try as a former purchaser from Shortcuts. The thing that I liked best about this clear base is that it was scored and easy to fold but I just read that they are not going to be coming scored but we have been assured it will be easy to fold them successfully.

Anyway, I don't want to sound like a commercial for these card bases...just wanted you to know what they are all about!

I hope you have a great Friday! I may or may not have a post for you tomorrow...depend on my day today and if I get time to craft or not. See ya later!

mr. twigster

Good morning everyone! I'm so excited to show you a brand new stamp set coming out in the SU! Holiday Mini. This stamp set and all the rest of the wonderful products (i.e. the beautiful DSP from yesterday and today) will be available Oct 1st - Jan 18th.

Anywho, I got the set, Mr. Twigster, in my pre order and I think he is so cute! This picture does this card absolutely no justice. There is glitter and bling everywhere. The hat, boots, lights, and the red cardstock are all giltter and the snowflake has a very pretty Swarovski crystal in the middle. Oh, and the snowflake is just cut out from the DSP that you see in the background and popped up on dimensionals. The card size is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4".

I hope you like this little preview of the new Holiday Mini! There will be more to come!

Have a super Thursday everyone! Go craft something fun and take a moment or two to remember not only the tragedy of 9-11 but what it did for our country for awhile. It brought us together, made us appreciate each other, and for me it made me appreciate not only the military all that much more but fire fighters and police as well. Remember to put your flag out today!

belli challenge #33

Oh, my goodness! Can you believe it is Wednesday? Wednesday means Belli Challenge Day! Guess what this week Belli is? Can you see it? Yep, it is fibers. I don't love fibers but this week I thought I could use some linen thread and it would work...right?

So, here is my card. It is with the new Sweet N Sassy stamp set that was released on Sept 1st called Happy Harvest. I do love this set and wish I would have had more time to do fun things with it but still...isn't this scarecrow adorable?! I'm not sure you can see it but I used the linen thread to make the straw that is his hands and feet. I wanted to do it around his face too but ran out of thread...darn it! Do you love the patterned paper? Yeah...me too! It is SU!'s Autumn Vine that will be available to purchase in the upcoming Holiday Mini. Bet you wish you could see it, huh? Soon, grasshopper, soon! IRL the edges of the main image are sponged with Sage Shadow and is very soft.

So, are you wondering what the Belli Challenge is? Well, it is where our fearless leader, Chris, challenges us to use items we may have around our stamping area but not use often. Smart girl isn't she? So, this week...make something fabulous with Fibers. It can be sweet and girlie or fallish like my card...it is up to you! Post a link to your card at Chris's blog and you'll be signed up to win a fun prize from Chris!

Okay, because I'm not totally sure who will and will not be participating in this weeks challenge I'm going to refer you to my sidebar to the links of the other Belli Challenge girls and go visit them...they have great stuff!

Oh, and those of you that follow my blog regularly...you should be proud of Kyler for me as he has his scripture verse memorized already! Now...to see if it is short term memory or long term memory...we shall see in the morning...either way...he is doing a GREAT job with it!

Oh, and it is Wednesday so which smiley do you get? Yep....

created by courtney challenge #4

Happy Tuesday! I'm excited to show you my Created by Courtney Challenge for this week! The challenge is to think "inside the box" and either make a box or alter a box. So...

Here is my box. This super cute idea came from Jane at Whoopsie Daisy! and is made with four Big Shot cut scalloped envelopes. Isn't it just a fantastic idea? I LOVE it! These would be great gifts for your kids' teachers, day care providers or even grandparents.

As with the CD holder I made HERE I again used Chocolate Chip card stock and Hawaiian Papaya designer series paper from SU!. I added a couple of flowers I had in my stash and a thinking of you sentiment, filled the box with dark chocolate candy and the gift was all set to go! This was so, so, so easy to make! Thank you, Jane, for your excellent idea!

So...for week four create a box or alter a box and link it up to Courtney's blog HERE. Courtney will choose a winner and send them a little goodie and who doesn't like goodies? Wanna see what the other challenge chicks have for ya? Well, here are the links...

Dani
Sarah
Heidi
Sparkle

So...go, have fun! Play inside the box! I'll be over to Courtney's blog to see what you make!

upsy daisy

Good Monday morning everyone! This is the first full week of school for us so it should be interesting especially by the end of the week! The boys will be tired I bet. I have an incredibly full week this week too so expect my posts to be short and sweet for now.

On to the card...thought I'd show you a really simple card that I made with the new Upsy Daisy set from SU! I also used some of the new paper from the Level One hostess paper pack. The butterfly is from the Dreams du Jour set and adds just a little touch of cuteness (right?).

***edit...I am excited to announce that Susanna has listed this card in Great Ideas Using Stampin' Up! Products list for 9/9/08...exciting!***

Tomorrow is Created by Courtney Challenge day. I've told you previously that I'm excited to show you my project so I hope you'll stop back tomorrow!

Make today the best Monday possible and I'll see you tomorrow! Oh, oh, oh...the Packers play tonight (of which I'll have to miss the last quarter or so) so...GO PACK!!!

Card Deets:
Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Dreams du Jour
Ink: Always Artichoke, Not Quite Navy
Paper: PTI White, Bashful Blue, Always Artichoke, Hostess Paper Pack-Level One
Accessories: White Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals, Air Art Gun w/Always Artichoke Marker

hawaiian papaya cd holder

Good morning everyone! It is going to be a lovely day here today...yay!

I decided to burn some CD's that I downloaded from iTunes and wanted a nice holder to present them in. So, off to SCS I went to find a CD Case and found this one HERE. I did make a little change to the pattern 'cuz I didn't like the way it worked in one spot (e-mail me if you want to know what I did differently). Because I wanted it to match with the box (you'll see the box on Tuesday!) that I presented with this holder I used the Hawaiian Papaya designer series paper to decorate the outside along with a beautiful length of SU!'s retired chocolate chip satin ribbon. I am absolutely thrilled with how beautiful this looks and how simple it was to make! It quite literally took me about 20 minutes from start to finish.

Alright, I'm off to enjoy my day and I hope you all do too! See you all tomorrow!

Deets:
Stamps: None
Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango, Hawaiian Papaya
Accessories: Velcro dots, Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon
Downloads: That's My King (SM Lockridge) and Natalie Grant Relentless