Feb 16

For my Diva:

I wanted to make something but didn't have any idea what.  So I hit the challenge blogs list.  Bingo!  Just Us Girls Challenge is "Sparkle".  I immediately thought of something for Diva.  She sparkles.  She's also a teen who sometimes needs to be reminded that she's wonderful.

I think I got 'sparkle' covered.  That's bounce back on the table from the light.

Thanks for looking! 

Today I'm grateful for:  the amazing young woman who calls me Mom, a friend's dad got a good health update, my kids hugging randomly, surprise gifts from friends who knew I needed a pick me up, and mango tea

Stamps: The Stamps of Life

Paper: gold is from Target, orange/fuschia is DCWV

Extras: flower and button have been here forever

Jan 25

Christmas is only 11 months away...

Thanks for looking! 

Today I'm grateful for: Cat snuggles, fuzzy socks, good books, pretty snow outside, night off from evening activities

Stamps: The Stamps of Life Holly4Christmas

March 28

Easter card for my nephews:

Little dudes are ALL boy, but bunnies have pink on them.  I didn't make them that way.  This bun's sign has gold glitter on the letters, but I couldn't get the camera to show you.  He also has fluff on his tail.  Because BUNNY! 

Bonus point if you know why 'bunny' always make me think of the Disney movie Hercules.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: asparagus on sale, time to play with old supplies, my old van keeps ticking along, buds on the trees, and IT'S NOT RAINING!

Stamps: The Stamps of Life

March 15th

For a friend's St. Pat's Bday:

Why, yes, she IS wearing a crown!  She's a diva frog on her birthday!

Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for:  date with my handsome husband, Em going to 'big girl' card class with Grandma and having a blast, boys acting interested in the cards she made, pink glittery toes, buds on trees

 Stamps: The Stamps of Life froggy2love and crown from extras4kids, Shamrock cupcake from Studio G
 Paper: Recollections
 Extras: Koh-i-noor, Bic markers, Spicas, rhinestone from stash

January 18th

This Fabulous Friend Friday card is actually for Em's super sweet best friend, who is turning six.  Her rainbow themed birthday party is tomorrow.  I thought this fit the bill.

 Glitter on the stars because this is a Glitter Girl!

Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for: warm breeze, sunshine, my husband, triple coupons, sweet tea

Stamps: The Stamps of Life HappyBday2You
Paper: scraps
Extras:  ColorBox inks, Stardust pen

March SFYTT2012

The Sketch for You to Try for March is a fun one!


Here's my take on it

Don't tell my kids, but *I* am as ready for the end of school as they are! haha

Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for: a quick visit with my brother, Twizzlers, easy math lesson, the 'problem' that Devon reads quickly and I struggle to keep him in books, Em's crazy corkscrew curls

 Stamps: The Stamps of Life
Paper: Scrap pile!
Extras:  button from bin of ancient buttons

Happy Valentine's Day!

I am blessed with four amazing Valentine's.  Here are their cards:

Ty's....because his iTouch is an appendage.

Devon's...he loves puns.

Em's...she also enjoys word play and sparkle.

Scott's first card was about loving him more than coffee.  If you know me, that's a LOT!  I left it by the coffee pot and never saw it again.  I didn't shoot it before it ran away, my bad.

This is the card I gave him at dinner.

 Open

Why is food with a face so cute in a stamp?

 The cup matches his 'Mr' cup.

All together.....awwwww

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for my grandfather.  He passed away this evening.  As a human, I am sad.  As a Christian, I know I will see him again.  Grandpa was surrounded by his four children and two children-in-law, holding my grandma's hand.  They were married 65 years last summer.  That's a love story.

Stamps: lots of mixing and matching
Eye Pod, WTG Let's Chat, Recollections set for XOXO, To The Core, hearts2love, owls2love, You & Me
Extras:  Echo Park, Spica, Prismas, Copics, ScorPal, corner chomper

Happy Birthday, Hannah!

A not-so-young anymore friend is turning...gulp...15!  I remember being so excited when her mom told me she was on the way and now she's a young lady. sigh

Here's the card we sent her:

And a pocket inside for the iTunes card.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for:  cold enough to wear a sweater, cat sleeping in sun patch, Diva's joy when she remembered it was dance day, brothers both proud of her counting by 2s to 100, and mail carrier leaving dog treat in mailbox for Soph

Stamps: The Stamps of Life HappyBday2You
Extras:  CB Happy Birthday folder

Toadally Frogtastic

Busy day for me!  We spent the day at the History Museum and tonight I had a mommy date.  My friend from WAAAAAAAAAAAAY back (30+ years) and I finally got our schedules to coordinate and had dinner together.  Her birthday is in a few weeks, so a gift and card were in order.

Gah even frogs are cute in polka dots!

He is popped up with flat backs for eyes.  Nothing boring about this froggy. The balloon was one of Em's quarter machine necklaces that broke.  See, never throw anything away! haha  I tied the string to his foot because well that's what you do for a frog with a balloon.

Denise is 7 months older than me, a fact she loved when she drove first and I delight in pointing out now.  Paybacks, right?

 Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for:  kids who love history, old friends to laugh with, husbands who say 'go, have fun, see you tomorrow' and mean it, warm brownies, waiter who says 'take your time, catch up, we're slow, I don't need the table' and means it  (yes, we doubled his tip)

Stamps: The Stamps of Life froggy2love and HappyBday2You
Paper: Cosmo Cricket Circa 1934
Extras:  ColorBox chalk inks Copics, flat back black pearls, broken necklace ;-)

Feel better

A friend of mine was thrown from her horse yesterday.  She's okay, nothing broken, just bruised...her hip and her pride. lol

I decided she needed a little chocolate, because it makes everything better.

Directions for cute little Ghiradelli square holder found HERE.  Thanks, Angie!

Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for: only injured pride, Ghiradelli stash (shhh, don't tell the kids it's here), just rain not freezing rain, Nook, kid laughter

Stamps: PTI Simple Little Things on front, inside sentiment from The Stamps of Life candy2share
Extras: chalk ink, Spica, ribbon from Michaels

Fabulous Friend Friday

Happy Friday the 13th!

This card is for a young friend who is turning 12 next week.  She is fabulous!  And fun!  And cool enough to dig wonky-eyed, tooth-challenged monsters.

I sort of followed Tracy's Sketchy Thursday #156.

My second panel is a bit small and they don't overlap as much, so it's not quite the sketch.  That's what I get for running the laptop battery down and going off my not so good memory. lol

And the inside has a slot for the all important iTunes GC.
 

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for:  Rachel, fireplace, great books, hot cocoa during spelling, all 3 kids reading together on the couches

 Stamps: The Stamps of Life list2write and trees2build
Paper: Cosmo Cricket Circa 1934
Extras: EAD Designs monster sticker

Teacher gifts

Although we homeschool we have a lot of teachers.  These are the gifts the kids made for their Logos teachers.  We made bag-a-lopes that had yummy B&BW anti-bac and Kisses.  Emily chose and stamped penguins.  She loves penguins.  All the girl teachers received penguins with bows on their heads, her one boy teacher got a penguin with a bow tie.  Devon didn't want to stamp, so he used Christmas dp of his choices for each teacher.

 While the younger two were working on the bag-a-lopes, Tyler was making ornaments for their choir teachers.  I printed Ode to Joy and he drew the template, then got busy making birds.

Thanks for looking!

 Today I'm grateful for:  out of the blue 'I miss you' text from husband, craft time with my favorite kids, seeing the faces of grownups surprised with chocolate (they turn into little kids, I tell ya!), cold beer with my man after dinner talking just us two, and listening to Bible study kids and their big thoughts

 Stamps: The Stamps of Life
 Paper: DCWV
Extras:  printed sheet music

Scrap Stack Diving

Happy 3rd birthday to my youngest nephew!

I traced all the 3's with gold Spica. You can't see it in the photo, but it's obvious in real life. My nephew's learning his numbers and I know he'll pick them out.

Jake likes tractors right now. I am not a country girl and I had to go searching. This is the big scooper from Wee Tees. Colored in green it looks sort of John Deere-ish, so I went with it. On a dirt brown cake it works, right?

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: time with my family, brief cooling rain, white wine, dark chocolate, my sweet nephew

Stamps: tractor from Wee Tees, Studio G numbers, TSOL cake2build

Paper: all scraps

Extras: Copic, Koh-i-Noor, Spica

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! I love a day devoted to telling people how much I love them.

Last week, Scott looked at our credit card bill and said 'honey, do you realize you've spent over $80 on stamps this month?' 'ummm, did I?' ~whistling innocently~ Anyway, all of the cards I made for the family for today used new stamps. Since the big H-card store charges $4-5 each....I made QUITE a dent in that $80 on the CC in January, right? Right??? lol 'take up card making and you'll never have to buy a card again...think of the money you'll save' BAHAHAHA

Unfortunately, Scott had to work today. This was waiting in his truck to start his morning.

One of Emily's nicknames is SweetPea, making this stamp perfect for her. The card is purple, of course, and the little pea has glittery lip gloss (because my little pea always does).

Devon loves puns and witty sayings and his favorite salad is fresh spinach and mushrooms aka Popeye's a Fun-gi Salad around here, so Fun-gi for him.

Ty warned me not to put too many hearts on Scott's card....some nonsense about 'not manly', so for my rocker M.I.T. (man in training which is house-speak for 'you might be looking me in the eye, but you're not grown yet'):

Yes, I had to put a heart on it! He said one wasn't too bad. ;-D

And for the love of my life:

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: all of my darling Valentines, loads of chocolate, deep red roses from my husband, the single white rose Em's daddy gave her, her look of joy when she realized the rose was for HER, and chocolate covered strawberries from MY daddy

Stamps: Punny Fruits & Veggies from Sweet n Sassy Stamps, I Dig You, You're a Real Fun-gi and Shine On! from Unity, Live Loud guitar from Imaginisce, heart and 'you rock' from The Stamps of Life

New week, Newly inked

Actually, today's a two-fer. I have waaaaaaaaaaaay too many stamps that have never seen ink. I need to use them or lose them, so you'll be seeing a lot of new stuff....and not just on Mondays.

I am a coffee addict, so when I saw TCP's Coffee Chat on sale I snapped it up. Finally I used it. We won't talk about how long ago I brought it home, okay?

This little cutie was sitting on my husband's travel cup this morning. I pieced the cup and wish I could find one this cute! The colors are wonky, but the cup is lime green with blue, white, and orange circles.

The inside sentiment was a big factor in my decision to buy the set.

I say this to my husband. I drink coffee with cream. I will drink it black if that's my only option, but it's not my preferred way. My husband is absolutely the cream in my coffee. I *could* go through life solo, but it's much better with him in it.

We're back to school work today after a long break. While the break is nice, it's always an adjustment to get back to our routine. Tyler really struggled with his math today. Tonight I snuck this little guy into his book.

The inside says 'Algebra gets easier. Even if it doesn't, the year is half over.' I think (hope!) he'll laugh. Yes, Changito's hair is green. Ty spikes his hair and often sprays it with colors. His current favorite is green. It's the little details that my young artist will pick up on.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: getting back to our regular routine, gorgeous frost in the morning sun, Scrabble Slam, red tea, and holding hands with Scott while watching the news

Stamps: Changito!, TSOL banners4all

Paper: more scraps

Extras: EK Success punch, Copics

Scrap Stack Diving

Penguins in board shorts and hula skirts just make me happy.

Party Time Tuesdays Challenge #10 is Summer Birthday Card. I think the tropical penguins work for that. Normally he's holding a popsicle, but I gave him a cupcake this time. Doesn't he look like he's stiff-arming (finning?) her so she'll stay away from his cupcake? I guess he doesn't want to share. lol

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: tiny ballerinas at their first dance recital, ice cream after to celebrate, a break in the stifling heat, family movie night, sweet sun tea



Stamps: Imaginisce penguins, TSOL banners4all cupcake, Studio G sentiment and border doodles
Paper: scraps from the heap
Extras: unknown flowers from the stash from a loooooong time ago

Scrap Stack Diving

The challenge at Party Time Tuesdays this week is 'Anything Goes Birthday'. I dug in the scrap stack and the scraps from Color Throwdown 102 were right on top.
I didn't like this color combo at first, but it definitely grew on me.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: family fun day, s'mores, kid giggles, bubbles, Michaels coupons

Stamps: TSOL HappyBday2You and Banners4All

Paper: Bazzill

A Triple Play!

I can never do Party Time Tuesday actually ON Tuesday. Good thing my friend, Kristie, isn't a stickler on that *Tuesday* part. This week's challenge is a pocket card. I combined it with Color Throwdown 102 and Whimsie Wednesday Challenge 41 for a Triple Play. Nothing like my friend, Terry aka Challenge Queen ;-) but three in one is pretty good for me!

'Got cupcakes?' makes me giggle every time I use it. I know, it's a little thing, but it makes me happy.

I *love* Flopsey! I pieced the cupcake with the same green cs at the top of the card.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: seeing a friend who has been out of town for a while, Smencils, bubbles, clean drinking water, and, of course, cupcakes

Stamps: MFT Cupcake Flopsey, TSOL HappyBday2You, Unity Cupcakes a la Yummy

Paper: Bazzill

Extras: Threading Water punch, Corner punch, Rhinestones

Hippo Hooray!

Party Time Tuesdays Challenge #3 is 'Anything Goes Birthday'...I think this fits.
Very bright and a little silly. What's not to love about a pink hippo with shiny black nails and a flower behind her ear?

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: sunshine, fresh popcorn, playing fetch with the dog, picnic, bubble bath

Stamps: The Stamps of Life Banners 4 All, Penny Black Lil' Hippo

Extras: MM alphas

Happy 10th Birthday

My friend, Kristie, started a new challenge blog, Party Time Tuesdays. Isn't that a fun name? The goal is to make a birthday card each week. Here's my card for Party Time Tuesdays Challenge #1
The card is for my niece who turns 10 tomorrow. Double digits are a BIG deal, so I made her a big card. It's 5x7 and the entire front panel is on pop dots. It's big and very shiny. The sparkly details are hard to pick up, but....I colored the '10' with pink and Stardust and stamped the round greeting around it to highlight that important number, the cupcake liners are silver, the pink cupcakes are highlighted with Stardust. After coloring 10 cupcakes, man did I have a craving!

My niece has a silly sense of humor, so Flopsey on the inside was the perfect finishing touch.

Thanks for looking!

Today I'm grateful for: being able to take the kids to a surprise movie this morning, blowing bubbles in the wind, preschooler jokes that are funny because they make absolutely no sense, reading in the sun, my amazing husband

Stamps: Unity cupcakes and numbers, The Stamps of Life circle from HappyBday2You, MFT Flopsey

Paper: MM Raspberry Dots

Extras: Koh-i-noor, Copics, Stardust