Sweet Somethings

Cards for Cancer

2009-03-10T09:01:00.006-05:00

Hey everyone! I hope you all are having a nice day so far! It's a nice temperature here, but rainy (bleh!). I don't know if I have ever wanted Spring to come more than this year. I have a serious itch to get my garden started and move some more of our chickies outside. I'm also ready to get a stinkin' tan! I am so Casper right now it's not even funny. Okay, so here is where the weather complaining stops. I'm just glad there's no snow!

So, today's card has a special significance because next Thursday I will be visiting the Foster J Boyd Cancer Center here in Ohio to do a card making class. The staff (including my sweet sweet sister!) at the Center have a wonderful relationship with their patients and want to make every little thing extra special and personal. So, my sister talked to me about the idea of the staff making their cards personally. I jumped at the chance to help out and am now coming up with ideas for several cards that they can put together and assemble next week, along with ideas for future cards to make when I'm not around. Now I know most of you out there have a ginormous card making stash and have trouble choosing what stamp set, paper, ink, embellies, and whatnot to use. I was given $100 and asked if I could get the basics. Huh!? My idea of 'the basics' are so twisted that to me, a 'basic' need is my Sizzix, embossing folders, my Nestabilities dies, and my pricey Copic markers! So, I had to get back to real basics. Paper, ink, brads, adhesive, some stamps, ribbon, and a few other 'fancy' things. It was tough, but I did it!

Now onto my first and super simple Thinking of You card.

Stamps: Inkadinkado Paper: kraft, white, My Minds Eye Ink: Colorbox Chestnut Roan Other: corner rounder, Nestabilities Labels 1 dies, Fiskars scallop edge punch, pop dots

I have to come up with several more that they can just cut and put together for mass making. I'm going to be pulling out some of my Stampin' Up sets that haven't seen the light of day for years! It should be fun!

I just had to share a pic of the new addition to our family! Her name is Katie and we got her last week from friends of ours. She is just the sweetest goat! She loves playing outside with the kids but when she is in the barn seems kind of lonely. That of course means we'll probably be getting a buddy for her! Heaven help me!

Oh, and I took the kids to the circus last night! They had a blast! It was Clinton's first time so he was completely amazed! I think we'll make this an annual trip!

Well, hope all of you have a wonderful day! Thanks for stopping in!

2sketches4you

2009-03-09T08:14:00.004-05:00

Morning all! Today on 2sketches4you Starving Artistamps is sponsoring, so if you try your hand at the sketch (which is super cute!) then you have a chance to win the new Doodle Factory Easter set!

Here is my take on the sketch. I have been wanting to use this knight for such a long time! I thought he fit perfectly for the sketch.

Stamps: Sir Silimus (DF Fairytale) Paper: kraft, Mellow Moss, white Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, Cuttlebug embossing folder, pop dots

Make sure you get over to the SA blog so you can check out all of the other designers cards! Just a reminder, if you'd like to save 10% on your SA order just use the code savetenhk . Have a fantastic day!

Sweet and Simple

2009-03-02T09:30:00.004-06:00

Good morning all! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! Mine was packed full of fun stuff for my sweet Ava who's birthday was yesterday. I did dit down and make this 5 minute card for her. I just got my new Nestabilities dies in the mail on Saturday so I had to use them immediately! Then I ran that piece through the swiss dots embossing folder and slapped it on with pop dots. The glitter heart is from the clearance Valentine's section and Walmart along with the 'just for you' sticker. She loved it!

Stamps: none! Paper: DCWV pink, Marcella paper stack (Target) Ink: none! Other: Nestabilities dies, Cuttlebug emossing folder, button, K&Co sticker, glitter heart

An here is my pretty birthday girl! She turned 5 yesterday. This was the dress she picked out the day before while shopping with mamaw, so of course she waned to wear it to church the next morning! We went out to eat afterward and then she got to open her presents when daddy got home from work (7:30pm). It almost killed her! She did get a pink DS along with a few games and a DS case. She said it was better than the best present ever. I guess we did good. :0)

Hope everyone has a delightful day!

Hair Clip Tutorial

2009-02-25T09:55:00.008-06:00

Good day! I hope all of you are having a great week so far! Mine has been busy and is going to be that way at least for another 5 days! Ava's birthday is on Sunday and hubby and I kept asking her what she wanted. The only thing she could come up with was a horse...a real horse. LOL

"Mom, we had pigs, why can't we have a horse?"

Leave it to a 4 year old (almost 5) to rationalize getting a large animal! Anyway, I ended up deciding to get her a pink DS. When Jolee got her red DS last year she passed her pink Gameboy Advance on to Ava. She was thrilled! She plays it regularly but since there is no light in it she strains to see what she is playing. We decided that it was time to move her up in the gaming world. She is going to flip out! I'm so excited to give it to her!

Now moving on to the hair clip/bow/barrette tutorial. I'm sure there are many acceptable ways to make these clips but this is the way I choose to make mine. This would be a great idea to do if you are giving an outfit or dress as a gift and made matching bows to go with it.

I am a very visual learner so I took photos of every step.

28 Gauge wire (30 or 26 gauge would work too) and a 2" barrette

Choose the ribbon you want and cut about 6" of wire off

Open the barrette

Remove the piece from the middle

Fold your ribbon under

Take the other end and fold it under as well

Place your ribbon on top of the clip and make sure it is the length you want it

Cut your ribbon

Place it on top of your clip

Wrap the wire around the ribbon and the clip

This is what it will look like

Next do the same steps with a smaller piece of ribbon

Place the ribbon on top

Wrap the wire around to attach both pieces together

Wrap the wire around for the last time and twist it a few times to hold tight

Snip off the ends of the wire and place the piece you removed back into the clip

Glue whatever piece you want in the center (I chose a button this time)

Ta dah! Your finished piece

Hubby is going to pick up his bike from the shop today (it's been there for months because of winter). I cannot wait to go riding this spring! Anyway, I need to go clean out a spot in the garage to put his bike. Hope my tutorial was good enough for you all!

If you decide to make any of these I'd love you to put your links here in the comment box!

Have a great day!!

A little birdie told me...

2009-02-20T09:22:00.004-06:00

I just have to say that I am soooo ready for spring! Come on, come on already! I am ready to till and plant and see beautiful flowers! Anyone with me?!

I wanted to do a simple card last night that required no coloring (I wasn't in the mood) and this is what I came up with. I love the kraft color paper! It will go with any color and it just looks nice. I stamped off the star before I stamped it onto the kraft.

Stamps: Twee from DF Country, Star from Santa's Sweet Shoppe, Bird Words Paper: Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip, kraft Ink: Colorbox Chestnut Roan Other: Fiskars border punch, ribbon, pop dots

I really need to get another natural light light bulb. My other one broke and I haven't been able to bring myself to pay for another one. I need to get my behind in gear though.

Well, I am going to go make a few calls and see if I can't take my van in to get the brakes fixed. Joe got the parts like 6 months ago but they are still sitting in the garage so now I am going to pay someone to do it. Men sometimes.

Hope all of you have an exceptional day!

I Spy...

2009-02-19T10:06:00.004-06:00

What's up peeps?! Hope everyone has had an enjoyable week so far! Things have been pretty mellow around here so that's always good!

Today I don't have any stamping but I wanted to share something the kids and I made last night. I know a lot of you that read my blog have youngins', as my brother in law from Mississippi would say, so I think they would really like this. I have seen the idea for it several times but just never got around to trying it. Here is what you need:

An empty jar (I washed out the one we finished up a few days ago):

Rice or sand or anything smaller grained:

Things to 'spy':

This is the smallest piece in the jar. It's a blue sprinkle in my son's hand.

Put them all together and you get this:

It's nice because you can give it a good shake and things end up in a different spot and you can start all over again.

The kids had loads of fun finding things to put in the jar. You could make it more educational and find things that are a certain color, that start with a certain letter, or that even have a long vowel sound in them. You could make it really fun.

I just wanted to let you guys know that I decided to start a family/homeschool blog as well. That way I could keep all of the kid stuff to that one and the craft stuff to this one. If you'd like to check it out here is the link. I made my first post today.

Well, I shall return tomorrow with some Doodle Factory magic! See you then!

{Happy Heart Day}

2009-02-14T09:07:00.005-06:00

Okay, well Happy Heart Day late! I hope everyone had a special {sweet} day! I went and visited my husband's grandparents yesterday and had all intentions of posting this before I left but it just didn't happen. I had to take care of our animals (minus our 3 piggies because we took them to the butcher last week, YAY!) and then you all know how time just gets away from ya! Anyhoo, I made this adorable little Valentine's for my kiddos! I just used the Necco Sweethearts candies and covered them with paper. I also used my new Fiskars edge punch that I bought last week {shh, don't tell hubby!} I love that thing!

Before:

As always, I used my fave stamps...Doodle Factory for my creations. This first one was for Jolee, my oldest...

Stamps: Coco from Santa's Sweet Shoppe Paper: DCWV pink, black CS, white CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, Nestabilities, Fiskars border punch, ribbon, pop dots

This one was for my little man...

Stamps: DF Urban Paper: DCWV red, white CS, black CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, Fiskars border punch, K&Co heart stickers, Cuttlebug folder, pop dots

And lastly, a sweet ladybug for my sweet princess Ava...

Stamps: Gus from DF Animals Paper: DCWV red, white CS, black CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, Nestabilities, Fiskars border punch, ribbon, black brad, rhinestones, pop dots

So, I hope you like them! I ran to Target today after church because I needed to stock back up on my Ghiradelli and Lindt chocolates! I can never bring myself to pay full price for those things but thankfully Target comes to my rescue when they put everything Valentine on sale the day after. I got a huge (okay, 2) bag of Ghiradelli's for $3.49. I also thought that it would encourage me to try some of those cute candy things everyone keeps making.

Oh, and just to amuse some of you out there, I am teaching myself to crochet. I finally decided I had to learn because I want to make my own cute little rosettes and flowers {eventually}. Wish me luck!

Have a wonderful Sunday evening!

P.S. Hubby and I watched Fireproof staring Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains, Left Behind series) last night and I wanted to recommend it to everyone. It was awesome and a real eye opener for anyone in a relationship. I cried, hubby cried, it was really nice.

My creepy Valentine

2009-02-11T10:35:00.004-06:00

Hey! Hey! Hey! I really wanted to get a post in this morning but the card that creeped into my head last night didn't get worked on until this morning. Don't ask me where it came from but I'm going to say that Tracey's personality has rubbed off on me a little too much perhaps! LOL! So, without further ado, here is my creepy Valentine's card!

Stamps: (All stamps Starving Artistamps) Doodle Factory Graveyard Shift, All about Love, various sentiments cut apart for letters Paper: black CS, white CS, Cosmo Cricket Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Staples, Cuttlebug embossing folder strip, Word Window punch, pop dots

I wanted to keep the card pretty simple so I just stamped Fredo in black in and mounted him on a scrap piece of Cosmo Cricket paper. I then used staples to 'creep' it up a bit! I would have loved to have used my edge distresser but couldn't find it anywhere. I then stamped out the 'I love you' with my word window punch and searched my gigantic pile of sentiments to look for the loose letters to spell 'to death' One I found them I cut them out and arranged them on the card. Before that though I took my Cuttlebug 'stitches' embossing folder and just pressed it together with my fingers, adding a little bit more 'creep'. Then I threw the card together and viola!

I also wanted to share this picture of my poor kiddos. This is where they have been the past 2 1/2 days because they have been sick. I have either been right there with them or on the couch beside. I'm.....so.....tired..... I guess I'll just have to catch up on sleep when I'm 60. No time for it now!

They are feeling better this morning though and Jolee has a 'Mad Scientist' class at our Community Center tonight. She is looking forward to it!

I'll see you all later! Have a happy day!

Blog Hop New Doodle Factory Releases!

2009-02-07T09:30:00.000-06:00

Good morning you pretty people you! I know you all are just dying to see some new Doodle Factory!!! Can I get a woop woop! First off I am going to share my super cool cards with y'all and then I am going to send you to the next awesome person on the list! If you started with me then be sure to go back to the beginning of he list and check out everyone's fantastic work! You are so gonna want these stamps! Seriously!

Stamps: Set the Scene Rooftops (Starving Artistamps), Quirky Sentiments (SA) Paper: Cosmo Cricket, white CS, black CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, Nestabilities, SU slit punch, hole punch, ribbon, button, pop dots

Stamps: Set the Scene Pidgeons (SA), All About Love (SA) Paper: PaperTrey white Ink: Palette Hybrid black, Colorbox Rouge Other: Cuttlebug folder, Nestabilities, Copic markers, ribbon, pop dots

Stamps: Set the Scene Countryside (SA), Bird Words (SA) Paper: Cool Caribbean (SU), black CS, white CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Prismacolors, odorless mineral spirits, Copic markers, Word Window punch (SU), pop dots

The direct link to these new 'Set the Scene' stamps are here{1 and 2} and here{3 and 4}. Now go hop and shop!

Check out Leigh's blog for the next stop in our blog hop. Make sure you visit all the other blogs because one of us has some great blog candy to give away!

Here is the complete list in case you just started hopping from here:

Juliana Swanson http://stampinwinkyfingers.blogspot.com/

Lisa Somerville http://www.lisasomerville.com/

Donna Baker http://stampamaniac.blogspot.com/

Donna Duquette http://www.deesstudio.blogspot.com/

Kathy Daume' http://www.kathy-prettyinink.blogspot.com/

Lori Tecler http://www.inkingaloud.blogspot.com/

Lydia Fiedler http://www.understandblue.blogspot.com/

Andrea Cloutier http://andreasscraps.com/

Natasha Trupp http://palmtreesandpogosticks.blogspot.com/

Heidi Kingery http://www.sweetheidijo.blogspot.com/

Leigh O'Brien http://sunflowerstudio.typepad.com/sunflower_studio/

Irene Silva http://doodlefactory.blogspot.com/

www.starvingartistamps.com

Have fun and don't forget...if you would like to put an order in with Tracey then get 10% off with the code savetenHK

Have a fantastic day!!!

Princess hair clip!

2009-02-04T08:11:00.004-06:00

Good morning all! I hope the beginning of your week as been good so far! I'm still truckin' along! I had a long list of things to do yesterday and the kids begged me to 'skip school'. The funny thing about that is, when you homeschool, it's okay to skip! I told them we'd be having Sunday school then, but they were just fine with that! We ended up playing tic tac toe and Chinese checkers for a while. Joe had his First Responder class last night. He'll be having class 2 days a week for the next 5 weeks. I'm happy because once he's finished he will know exactly what to do in any emergency until paramedics get there. There's a nice comfort in knowing that.

Moving on to cute things! I have made hair bows for my girls before and it's so easy to do and you can make them to match a specific outfit. Well, I really wanted to try one adding a shrinky dink to them. For this one of course I pulled out one from my Doodle Factory stash {gotta love 'em}! The princess was my first choice since it was for a little girls hair bow. I sanded down the plastic and colored her with my Prismacolors. Then I shrunk her down and attached her to the hair bow I had just made up. I used E6000 to attach her instead of my hot glue gun because a. I have no idea where my glue gun is and b. I know the E6000 is gonna keep it there!

Stamps: Doodle Factory Fairytale Ink: Stazon jet black Other: shrink plastic white, 1/2 inch ribbon, barrette, wire

If anyone would like to know the details on how to make the hair bow then just leave a comment and I can make up a tutorial.

Make sure you stop by the Starving Artistamps company blog on Saturday! Starting at 11:00am we are dong a blog hop to show the new releases coming for Doodle Factory! You're gonna love them!!!!

Have a great sun-shiny day!

Out of Hybernation!

2009-02-01T07:22:00.008-06:00

Hellllllllllllooooooooooooooooooo! Oh how I missed you guys (if there are any of you left that is, lol)! Every once in a while life has a way of telling you to slow down and focus on the things that are really important in life. That is what has been keeping me from hanging out with you for the 5 or so months. Now though I am back and better than ever! Well, maybe that's an exaggeration. I am back though!

I stamped for the first time in that 5 months on Friday {yes, you can feel sorry for me} and it felt soooo good! I stamped yesterday too and will be stamping today as well after I get home from church!

One of the cards I made yesterday was for my hubby who is turning 29 today {Happy Birthday Honey} and I wanted to make him something funny. Simple cards are always best for him because even though he appreciates my craftyness, a 5 minute card is not much different than a 50 minute card, ergo, he gets the 5 minute one! I'm pretty positive that was just a run on sentence. Anyway, here is my quick no layer card for my humorous hubby...

inside...

I had to handwrite the jackass part, lol. Mabe I should suggest it to Tracey to add to the next sentiment set! LOL

I really ended up liking the sky that I was just trying to fill in as a quick fix. I just took my blue Copic marker and made several lines across the paper letting it dry a minute or two and then added some more, and even more still. I like the streaky look of it. It would be great for water too.

Stamps: Doodle Factory Fairytale, DF Fairytale Sentiments Paper: white CS Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Copic markers, black pen

This was the first of my latest Starving Artistamps cards. Can you tell I was thinking of cupcakes? Well, day dreaming actually. {grin} The 'dreaming of' piece is popped up and I paper pieced the cupcake. Those adorable little hearts went perfectly as sprinkles. I picked them up at Wal-mart last week. I think I might go buy like 5 more packs because they are too cute!

Stamps: Simple Birthday (large) Starving Artistamps Paper: Cosmo Cricket Honey Pie, DCWV dark brown Ink: Palette Hybrid black Other: Sakura white gel pen, K&Co heart stickers

I have a super cute project to show you tomorrow! Hope to see you then! Thanks for stopping!

The wait is over...we have a winner!

2008-08-07T07:48:00.002-05:00

I know most of you want to strangle me since I haven't gotten back in a timely manner and I don't blame you. So, I will let the suspense cease! The winner of the 3 sentiment sets from Starving Artistamps is...........

Lucky # 21!!

Dawn Mercedes!!!

Congrats Dawn! Shoot me an email and I will get your addy to Tracey over at SA to send your goodies out!

Thanks everyone for playing along!!

I hope you missed me, cause I have candy!

2008-07-23T08:11:00.007-05:00

Well hello everyone! Long time no see! First off, I just want to say how much I missed all of you and missed posting this past month or so. However, my family needed it, and I think I did too.

Joe took some vacation time and ended up working it to get 18 days straight off. The first week we did yard work and re-did our chicken pen. The rest of the time we went to his mom and dad's camper at a lake about n hour away. We all fished and swam and ate out. It was nice. However, I was ready to come home.

Once we came home it was time for Joe to go back to work (for 3 days), and he did. Then he decided he wanted to take the rest of his vacation he had left and we ended up turning around and going back to the camper again. We fished, swam, and tried not to eat out. It was nice. We got home the day before yesterday and I am so glad to be back. The only internet we could get was on our phones and that tiny screen just doesn't fill in for the real thing!

So, in celebration of me being back to 'real life' I am offering up some yummy blog candy!!!

3 Sets of Starving Artistamps Sentiments!!

If you win, you will get the Boopie, Tropics #2, and Faith sentiment sets.

All you have to do is leave a comment here telling me why you love Doodle Factory! That's not so hard, huh? I will draw a random name on Monday morning (the 28th) and announce the winner.

Now I will leave you with some samples I made using the Tropics #2 sentiment set and the Tropics image set.

STAMPS- Happy Birthday (Tropics #2), Moki (Tropics) - Starving Artistamps
PAPER- Basic Grey Cupcake
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic markers, Marvy scallop punch, zig zag scissors, push pin, pop dots

STAMPS- Buck-eye Bob, Treasure Chest (Tropics), Best Booty (Tropics #2 sentiments) - Starving Artistamps
PAPER- Basic Grey Cupcake
INK- Brilliance Black
OTHER- Copic markers, Spica glitter pen, zig zag scissors, ribbon, pop dots

A close up of the shining treasure!

Well, hope you all have had a great summer so far! Have a great rest of the day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

Last Tea Party

2008-06-18T11:45:00.004-05:00

Hey all! Today will be the last smARTworks Tea Party for the summer. It seems like everything is harder to keep up with when you just wanna be outside or are going on vacation. So, for our last party Trish told us to make a card using brown, white, and one other color. Oh yeah, and some sparkle too! I decided to add in pink. Here is my finished product...

STAMPS- WD-36, Daisy Trio #1 (smARTworks)
PAPER- Basic Grey
INK- Versamagic Wheat, Colorbox Dark Brown
OTHER- ribbon, sparkle brad, edge distresser, pop dot

Make sure you stop by and get your fill of the last round of everyone else's cards!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!

I'll be back tomorrow with hopefully some new Doodle Factory stuff! I am on DF overload {in a good way of course} lately so that's probably all you will be seeing from me as far as Starving Artistamps is concerned. Tracey and I just finished up sentiments for the new Tropics set so she will probably be putting those in the store shortly. Keep your eye out for them! Hope you guys have a great day!!

You MUST check this out!

2008-06-13T05:00:00.000-05:00

I want to say that I am so giddy right now! Tracey from Starving Artistamps just uploaded several new sets of sentiments onto the website.......and I helped create some!! Those of us on the Design Team kept asking for more sentiments so when she offered for us to make our own up I jumped at the chance! I racked my brain for about a month thinking of all of the phrases and words I'd like to be able to use and ended up spending about 6-8 hours on the phone with Tracey going over everything and choosing the fonts and editing the sheets. It was a long process but she is wonderful to work with (and for) and she has made me soooo happy!

I brainstormed all of the following sets and some words or phrases scattered about too!
Faith Sentiments
Urban Set #2
Most of Trick or Treat
Some of Holiday Greetings
Most of Casual Holiday Greetings
All About Easter
St. Patty's
4th of July
Some of All About Love
Most of Fairytale
Most of Country
Some of Bird Words
A couple of the Fresh and Funky Farm
Quirky {my fave set because it works perfectly with the Doodle Factory Creatures!}

Please just go take a peek if just to thrill me for a minute! If you decide you like anything then don't forget that you can use my code: heidis to get 10% off your whole order!!

Now, to share a few more of my Doodle Factory cards! This first one is one I made with the Fairytale set. I stamped the carriage and then masked it so I could have Princess Winifred riding along with her horse Favius. I brayered the BG with blue and purple to give it a sunset look. I also used my Copic Spica glitter marker on Favius' saddle and the accents on the carriage. I wanted to make it a 'thinking of you' card but didn't want to put a big sentiment across the top so I just cut out a thought bubble and had her thinking of 'you'!

STAMPS- Favius, Princess Winifred, Carriage (DF Fairytale), tufts of grass (DF Country) (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- glossy white, Mellow Moss, Paper Trey white
INK- Versamark, Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic markers, Spica glitter marker, pop dots

STAMPS- Doodle Factory Winter (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- blue, white
INK- Brilliance black, Night of Navy, Versamagic Cloud White
OTHER- Copic markers, ribbon, pop dots

Thanks for stopping by today! I will be running off hopefully today and finding a nice old dresser at a yard sale for the girls. I want an old one because they are usually made of REAL WOOD and not cheap sawdust. Wish me luck!! Have a great day and don't dwell on it being Friday the 13th!

P.S. My article on storage ran on Craft Critique ran a few days ago. Check it out and maybe it will help you solve a few ribbon or embellishment dilemmas!

P.P.S. THE NEW DOODLE FACTORY SET WAS JUST REVEALED ON THE SA BLOG! GO LOOK!!!!!!!

Super Samples!

2008-06-12T12:24:00.004-05:00

Hello! Hello! Hello!!!!! I hope everyone is having a good summer so far! Anyone ready to send their kids back to school yet? {giggle} We have been soaking up the sun and taking care of business around here. We (and by we I mean me, lol) got our pool set up and the kids have been swimming in it just about every day since. It's just one of those vinyl ones that is about 4 ft tall and 16 ft across. It suits our needs! Anyway, I have also been purging lots of the stuff in our house. I just broke down our dining room table and reclining chair the day before yesterday and it's sitting in the back of Joe's truck ready to take in to the incinerator. Before that I took in one of our desks, our old grill, our old trash can, and Franklin's (may he rest in peace) cage. I also send a big load of yard sale stuff with my sister this past weekend when she came up with my mom. I told her just to keep the money made from it because all of it would be going to the Salvation Army anyway and she could really use it being a single mom of 3! We went to the Strawberry festival this past Saturday and we had a nice time. There weren't too many people there (normally you can't even squeeze through the crowds!) because we went immediately after we got a big storm. It was a little muddy but I'd way prefer having dirty feet then huge crowds!

On another note, I got my hair done last week and am now a semi-blonde instead of redhead. I like changing my hair every year or so because I get bored with it. It's still long but I'll probably chop it all off in the fall. Who knows! I am getting really tan too from working outside a lot with the garden and chickens. I mowed the grass today so that should help out too.

Okay, I think I've bored you enough with my silly details! Family does read this so I try to keep them a little up to date with the family stuff!

The following cards are all Queen Kat Designs! This past month I got to work with the Harlequin stamp set. Love It! It's now available for purchase and you can find it here. I also love the new sets that have been released this month! Be sure to check them out! I really loved the samples I made this month! Here they are.....

STAMPS- Harlequin BG, Just Whalin' Around (QKD)
PAPER- Certainly Celery, black
INK- Brilliance black, Versamark
OTHER- Copic markers, Cosmo Cricket rub ons, white Souffle pen, Nestabilities, scalloped edge scissors

STAMPS- Harlequin BG (QKD)
PAPER- pink, Chocolate Chip, white
INK- Versamark
OTHER- Cosmo Cricket rub ons, ribbon, button, rhinestones (the fab Lindsay sent me the button and some of the ribbon in a RAK package! Thanks girl!)

STAMPS- Harlequin BG, Mini Circles set {retired} (QKD)
PAPER- Paper Trey white, Cosmo Cricket
INK- Versamagic Sage and Wheat, Cranberry Crisp
OTHER- Chipboard heart and arrow, Cosmo Cricket rub ons (the word was BELIEVE but I cut it apart to make the word LIVE)

I really love the ribbon flower but I love the 'Live' one too! I was really happy with these!

Here are the new 'Take 3 Club' sets! Aren't they adorable! I love the bikini, flip flops, and Hula girl! Remember you can get a 10% discount on your order by using the code HK10 at checkout!

Want some more good news? YOU could be the net Design Team member for Queen Kat Designs!!! Vicki is looking for 3 new members for the next DT session! For all of the details check it out here on the QKD blog! The deadline is June 15th so hurry and apply!!

Well, I'm off to hopefully put our new grill together that Joe got for Father's day! We have had it for almost a week now and it's still in the box. I'm hoping it's not too complicated and I can get it together without his help! Wish me luck! Have a fantastic day everyone!!!!!

A Little non-Wednesday Tea

2008-06-05T07:33:00.005-05:00

Alright so apparently I am on a roll of being late this week. I was all set to do my post for the smARTworks Tea Party yesterday but after the awful (and I mean awful) storms we had the night before last and yesterday morning, it left me without a dial tone on my phone which meant no internet too. So, even though I wanted to be here yesterday, I had to sit back and go an entire day without surfing anything! I'm surprised I'm alive today! {grin} Anyway, here I am!

It was my turn to do the challenge this time and I chose these colors for inspiration:

Here is my final take. The colors are a little bit brighter in my card but I think it's pretty cool.

STAMPS- Sunshine Sayings (smARTworks)
PAPER- Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, pink, white CS
INK- Colorbox Dark Brown
OTHER- buttons, flowers, Souffle white pen, push pin, Cuttlebug embossing folder, pop dots

Well, I'm off to finish painting the chicken coup! Hope you guys have a wonderful day!

A day late...anyone have a dollar?

2008-06-03T05:59:00.004-05:00

Can't be a day late and a dollar short if you don't have any dollars right? lol Maybe I have some change in my purse. Anyway, yesterday was the QKD challenge and I had my project done and I was all ready to go until Blogger was acting wonky and wouldn't even load. I had lots to do yesterday and didn't get done with everything till late last night. Painting a chicken coup is not as easy as I thought it might be. So, here I am right now with yesterday's challenge. We were challenged to make something that wasn't a card! I stamped the skull from Happy Skullz set 5 times onto white shrink plastic, cut them out, colored the heart eyes (each one is a different color), and used my heat gun to shrink. I attached them to one of her bracelets with jump rings. The whole thing only took me about 25 minutes to do. She loves it too!

STAMPS- Happy Skullz (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- white shrink plastic
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- heat gun, Sharpie markers

Be sure to check out what the other gals posted yesterday! Click the links!
Juliet
Lindsay
Tanis
Penny
Toni

Thanks for stopping today and I hope you have a great day!!

My body hurts...

2008-05-27T12:04:00.004-05:00

These past few weeks have been the most physically challenging ones I've had in a loooong time! But, they are almost over! Whew! My body hurts though and I have a serious sun burn from planting my watermelons, cantaloupe, and pumpkins. Everything is planted though so that is a relief. Now we just have to finish the chicken coup. Yes, we got chickens! Thirty 3 week old chicks and two 3 week old roosters. We are building a movable coup they won't make a big dirt pile where they will eat the grass. Every day or every other day we will be able to move it (it will be on wheels) so they can have fresh grass and we aren't left with any bare spots! It's like a big triangle and at the top will be there nests and roosts and at the bottom will be a fenced area that is directly on top of the grass. Once they get big enough to free range we will just let them out during the day and put them back in their coup at night to keep them away from predators. So far and quite surprisingly, the boys are my favorite. They actually let me pet them and hold them without freaking out. And before I tell you their names please take no offense as my kids helped name them. Little Bill and Pecker. I said Pecker to Joe jokingly and the kids loved it. It's so nice how kids can be so untainted by the world! Anyway, I will have a few pictures to share later this week, just haven't had time to edit them. We will have to thin our group down by about 20 by the time late fall gets here. Hopefully the kids get attached to the ones we are keeping!

Moving on to crafting now, I wanted to share a few more Doodle Factory cards I got done last week. Drumroll please....

I wanted to keep this one simple and obvious...

STAMPS- House from DF Country, Alphabet, Stitches (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Mellow Moss, white
INK- Brilliance Black
OTHER- Copic Markers

For this one I was channeling my inner layer-er. LOL

STAMPS- Drake from DF Fairytale, Miss You from SSS Thanks (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Basic Grey Archaic, white CS
INK- Tim Holtz Tea Stain distress ink, Brilliance black
OTHER- Nestabilities, Copic Markers, pop dots, sponge

I have some super cute QKD cards to share tomorrow! Be sure to stop back by to see them and get a glimpse at our chicks! Thanks for coming by today! Have a great day!

smARTworks is here for tea!

2008-05-21T11:35:00.002-05:00

Today is another day for our smARTworks Tea Party! The big boss herself Susan gave us a sketch to try today....

This is my take on it. I know I extended the circles a little farther than the sketch but that's the beauty of a 'guideline' right?

STAMPS- Sunny Smiles, Combo Sentiments (smARTworks)
PAPER- The Slab
INK- Brilliance black ink
OTHER- Copic markers, buttons, pop dots

Be sure to check out the other Smart Cookies throughout the day!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!

Well, as much as I'd love to stay and chat, I have to finish planting our sugar snap peas, green beans, carrots, and onions!! Oh, and did I mention we are thinking of getting chickens???? I think I'm gonna lose my mind! {grin}

I think I'm still alive!

2008-05-19T08:16:00.010-05:00

Give me a second to check my pulse...... Yep, I'm still here. Not going into too great detail, I have been very busy with lots of different things lately. We have been starting a garden which means we had to dig it, till it, fertilize it, and today I have to plant everything. By the way, the tiller must hate me because my arms and hands are so sore! The kids and I have been doing more homeschool subjects too which has added to the lack of time during the day. We are getting rid of our extra couch, chair, end table, dining room table, chairs, and a few other stands so I have been trying to take those things apart and get them ready to go to the incinerator. All of the things we are getting rid of are older and not so sturdy anyway. The only thing we do at the dining room table is school anyway. And we are also building me a super cool desk that I designed! I am so excited about it! Hopefully it actually gets done and in a timely manner! It's got everything I need on it! Anyway, the girls started gymnastics too (which they love) so I'm stuck trying to get everything I need to do done on the day of their class since gas is so high!

So, other than a few things I left out, you can tell how busy I have been the last few weeks. However, I have gotten a lot of DT cards done in the process! Mother's Day cards too! I'm gonna share a card from each company today that I have been working on.....

STAMPS- Blip of Doodle Factory Urban, Lil' Squares BG (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- black, white, gray, metallic adhesive back paper
INK- Brilliance black ink
OTHER- Copic markers, Nestabilities, ribbon, pop dots

STAMPS- Harlequin BG (Queen Kat Designs)-soon to be released
PAPER- Basic Grey Sultry
INK- Versamark
OTHER- buttons, chipboard

STAMPS- Daisy Trio #1, Proverbs 31:28 (smARTworks)
PAPER- MME, brown CS
INK- Versamagic Agean Blue, Colorbox Chestnut Roan
OTHER- Nestabilities, pop dots

STAMPS- Beautiful, French Quarter (Inque Botique)
PAPER- Cool Caribbean, Certainly Celery, black
INK- Palette Hybrid black, Versamark
OTHER- Marvy punches, edge distresser, sewing machine, ribbon, pop dots, Stickles

Thanks for stopping in today and I'll probably be back on Wednesday to share some more Doodle Factory goodies!

I scream for Ice Cream!

2008-05-09T07:50:00.003-05:00

Good morning all! I hope everyone is enjoying their Friday morning and looking forward to the weekend! I know I am! I will be visiting my momma and sisters tomorrow! My mom is making my favorite food......macaroni in a tomato/bacon/onion sauce. It's poor people food, but I grew up with it and I will eat it until I feel sick! I am sooooo looking forward to eating that tomorrow! Then on Sunday the kids and I are going to Ruby Tuesday's (I am in love with their garlic mashed potatoes!!!!!) and his mom is going to come and take them to their camper (more like a second home!) for the night so Joe and I can have an evening at home (he works 12 hours on the weekend) together. THEN! On Monday I am hoping to get in to the salon to get a facial and a hair trim. It will be a most wonderful Mother's Day weekend! Yahoo!

Now, moving on to the card. This is one of my favorite cards using the Queen Kat Designs 'Sweets' set (which is now available in the store). I wanted to keep it really simple with the kraft paper and the ice cream, although it is hard to see, is shimmer paper. I attached a button for the cherry and viola!

STAMPS- Sweets, Mrs. Piggie (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- kraft CS, shimmer
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, ribbon, button, pop dots

Because I am a big dope, I completely forgot to announce Queen Kat Designs Big News! Starting May 1st they are offering a stamp kit called "TAKE 3" Here are the details:

Each month we will have 3 large stamp sets exclusive to the club. If you don't subscribe to the club, you won't be able to get ALL of the images ever again! Sure, we MAY release 1-2 of them... But you won't EVER get these sets in their entirety ever again! Tanis, SJ and QK have been working hard to bring you the best sets possible and man, you don't want to miss out on this Take 3 club!!!! Here's the film strip for May's stamps..

There are bunch of cards in the gallery that use these stamps. Click here to go see. Retail value of the stamps will always be $27.00 or more.

Prices are as follows: (free shipping included)
1 month: $22
6 Months: $21/month
12 months: $20/month

You can add this club onto an existing club from Queen Kat Designs. Just check out in the store and let us know it's to be added to your kits club. You can send this as a gift to someone. A handmade card will be sent with the first month's subscription.

Get your subscription today!! Kits will ship on the 15th of each month.

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If I'm not back on here before Mother's Day (I hope to share some MD cards tonight that I plan on making today) then I hope all of you beautiful ladies have wonderful days/weekends! We have the best job in the world!!! God bless and thanks for stopping by!

Sunshine Filled Tea Party

2008-05-07T08:49:00.006-05:00

I am a little sore this morning. Yesterday was a non-stop day. We started at 9am and didn't stop till around 8pm. We had to do a lot of regular things (grocery and such) and then we had to get Jolee's hair cut (she looks so grown up!), I went to Big Lots hoping I could find some thick CD cases because my stamps are overflowing and I need some more to store them in. Nope! So now I guess I am going to have to order online which is what I was trying to avoid. Anyway, we had to pick up the rest of our veggie seeds and plants for our garden too. After that the girls had their first gymnastics class. They loved it and it was fun to watch them through the plexi-glass. After that was home and unload everything. Then the fun part came.....digging up more of our garden! Yee-haw! We bought a tiller a few days ago but you still need to work the ground a little to make the tiller easier to use. We did that will about 8:30 and then I had to put the groceries away. I was super tired by the end of the day! We are planting all kinds of stuff for our garden so I am really excited!! Corn, tomatoes, all kinds of peppers, cucumber, lettuce, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, watermelon, strawberries, pumpkins, and I'm sure I'm missing a few. Now we just get to play the waiting game!!

This morning is another smARTworks Tea Party! We all got our new batches of rubber so I think all of us were excited for this challenge. Well, another reason could be that Dina challenged us to make a card with NO ADHESIVE OR GLUE. It's so funny how there are so many little things you don't think of! When I was done with the card I almost glued on some baubles not even thinking! I caught myself though! Here is my card and I challenge all of you to make a no glue card too!

STAMPS- Sunny Smiles, Sunny Smile Sayings (smARTworks)
PAPER- MME, American Crafts
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- edge distresser, large brad, Word Window punch, Sewing Machine, Stickles

Be sure to check out the other Cookie's creations throughout the day!!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
Dee's Studio

Hopefully all of you have had a great start to your weeks so far! I have to really get busy and make some Mother's Day cards! We have just had so much to do around here that it's been crazy! Maybe I'll make it to them tonight. Have a super sunshine filled day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

Doodle Factory Princess!

2008-05-04T10:38:00.006-05:00

Hey guys! Glad to be back today! My allergies have really done me in this week. I feel better but still woke up stuffed up this morning. Anyway! I got my new Doodle Factory stamps yesterday and finished this one this morning! I just absolutely love it! I really went out of my creative boundaries for this card. I did masking, brayer on glossy CS, crayon resist, and I tried layering the same color Copic markers. It's rare for me to even do a 'technique', let alone 4 one one! Hope you like it! And hope it makes you wanna buy this set! Then we can swap ideas! You can use my 10% discount code on my sidebar too!

STAMPS- Castle, Princess Winifred, Tufts of Grass, Banner, I love you madly (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- glossy CS, Paper Trey white, Metallic white (for castle) from Staples
INK- Brilliance black, Palette Hybrid black, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue
OTHER- Copic markers, brayer, white crayon, post its (for masking), pop dots

Here is a close up of the castle so you can see the shimmer in the paper.

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I did want to share a picture of Clinton's first fish he caught a few days ago. I just love this pic!

Well, I hope you all have a great rest of your Sunday! We'll see ya tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by!

A fishing we will go.....

2008-05-01T08:56:00.004-05:00

Good morning everyone! Sorry I have been absent the past few days, my allergies have been getting the better of me.....and still are. My eyes are bloodshot, my nose is stuffed up and red, I can't stop sneezing, and now my muscles hurt from the sneezes and such. I can't taste my food and sleep has been quite a challenge since I can't breathe through my nose. Okay, there, I'm done complaining. I'm gonna switch to my happy face now.

Last week, I promised the kids I would take them fishing on the first warm day this week (unfortunately something I wish I didn't promise) which just so happens to be today. After lunch they are going to dig in the yard for worms for us to fish with and then out we'll go. I'm sure my nose and throat will just love that! Okay, so I lied about being done complaining. Now I'm really done. I'm taking my camera so hopefully I get a few good pics. The wind is pretty bad here now so hopefully it dies down by this afternoon so they can see what they are doing.

I'm gonna share a very simple Thank You card I made for our landlord. She is just the sweetest person to us and always makes sure we have everything we need out here. We get all the annual check ups and even get our driveway re-graveled in the spring because of the snowplows that go up our lane to make sure we can get out in bad weather if need be. In my opinion she goes above and beyond. So, I wanted to offer a small token of thanks to her. I took a few flower and sewed the button in the middle and adhered to the card with heavy duty tape. Of course I stamped the swirl and thank you first, then outlining with a gray Copic marker. I really think that gives it depth. Then I sponged the edges and a little of the flower.

STAMPS- Mini Birdi, Petals (Inque Botique)
PAPER- white CS
INK- Colorbox Olive Pastel, Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- flowers, button, sponge, gray Copic marker

Well, I'm off to make lunch and then supervise a hunt for worms! Wish us luck! This will be Clinton's first time fishing and I know if he catches his first fish and Joe isn't there to see it, he will be bummed. Fishing is all they have been talking about for months though so I didn't want to let them down. Hopefully I'll have pictures to share tomorrow! Until then, have a great day!! And as always, thanks for stopping by!

Cupcake Spinner Card!

2008-04-28T13:09:00.003-05:00

Afternoon all! Hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Today is another Queen Kat Designs challenge! Nancy hosted this time and asked us to make a spinner card. I think I have made one other spinner card before years ago, and that's it. So, this really was a challenge for me! I still feel like something is missing or it's lacking something. Plus, it was hard to take a picture of!

STAMPS- Sweets (Queen Kat Designs), Snap Stamps (Karen Foster)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Cupcake', pink
INK- Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- Copic markers, ric rac, metal flower, Word Window punch, Slit punch, foam, penny

Be sure to check out what the other girls created this time!
Jules
Lindsay
Nancy
Penny
Tanis
Toni

I posted my article on Craft Critique today too. It's on the Provo Craft 'Sew Crafty Mini'. Check it out and leave you opinion if you get a chance.

Hope you have a pleasant day! I'll be back tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

Pretty, pretty flowers

2008-04-25T06:14:00.004-05:00

Hello! What's shakin' with you peeps today?? I don't have much on my list other than to:
A. Watch online episodes of the new Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy that I missed last night.
B. Take a visit with the Grams.
C. Finish up a few cards.

So, without wasting too much time, I'm gonna share my smARTworks cards with you all today!

STAMPS- I love you (smARTworks)
PAPER- KI Memories
INK- Versamagic Aloe Vera
OTHER- random flowers, rhinestones, buttons, Stickles

You guys know how much I love these birds! I really liked the blue, red, and black together.

STAMPS- Birdie Fun, DK-01 Combo Sentiments (smARTworks)
PAPER- SEI (I think), black CS
INK- Cool Caribbean, Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- Primas, Stickles, brads, black marker for doodles, Nestabilities, pop dots

I have a feeling that for a while there will be lots of flowers on my cards. I am so ready to go buy some flats and plant them! I need to wait till at least this weekend though. Most likely it won't be for another few weeks. We are still trying to decide what we want to put in our veggie garden too. In the words of Little Bill..... "Spring is here, spring is here! It's the best time of the year!"

Have a super duper day! Thanks for stopping by!

Olivia the Owl!

2008-04-24T10:31:00.000-05:00

Good morning! I got my new Basic Grey paper pads yesterday along with my new Sassafras Lass Olivia and Pals set! And just so you know, I had these on hold a long while back (before my spending freeze!). I got the Archaic, Sultry, and Cupcake pads. They rock! I was so excited to get them yesterday that I HAD to make a card with them this morning. Here is my first one! I stamped Olivia onto the green paper, stamped her on a scrap piece, cut her out and popped her up onto the first piece.

STAMPS- Olivia and Pals (Sassafras Lass)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Archaic'
INK- Colorbox Chestnut Roan
OTHER- Paper Studio chipboard, Doodlebug Designs Bon Bon glitter, sewing machine, pop dots

I finally got my grass mowed yesterday after having to go and get a new battery for the lawn mower. Unfortunately, that sweet smell of grass wasn't very strong to me since I was already stuffed up from my other allergies. No worries though, I have alllllllll summer to smell the grass!

Well, I'm off to enjoy the 79 degree weather in store for us today!! I think the kids and I are going to decide what we want to put in our garden this year! Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

Canadian Candy Winner!

2008-04-24T08:58:00.002-05:00

I'm so sorry that I didn't get back last night guys! We ended up playing outside till dark and then the kids had to get a bath. Yadda, yadda, yadda. So, without further ado, the winner of the Rummage Bin 'Great Canadian Stamp Set' is..........{drumroll}..............

Comment #13

COLLEEN!

"Well, how much fun is this?! So many things I love about living here, but probably the most important would be the social welfare system that provides universal medical and education. And the scenery isn't too bad either - beach on one side and mountains on the other for us BCers!

Love your card!
Cheers,
Colleen"

Thanks so much everyone for entering to win! I enjoyed reading all of your responses and although I haven't been to Canada yet, hubby has been several times and vows he will take me there soon! Hope you guys have a great day!

Circle Tea Party

2008-04-23T14:16:00.004-05:00

Hi all! I am running a little later than usual today but I have plenty for reasons for that! So, I am just going to make this post quick and move on to more chores around the house!

Dina challenged us to do a circle card this time around for the smARTworks Tea Party and I knew I wanted to keep it really simple. Here is my design!

STAMPS- DK-01 Combo Sentiments (smARTworks)
PAPER- SEI old school I think
INK- Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- scalloped edge scissors, ribbon, flower, Coluzzle

For more circular inspirations check out what the other girls did!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
Dee's Studio

And trust me, I didn't forget about the blog candy!! I will be announcing the winner in a post later today!!!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great day!

Smells and a Doodle Dude

2008-04-22T07:33:00.006-05:00

Good morning!! Today is going to be another beautiful day! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to mow the grass yesterday {insert pouty face} due to a dead battery from sitting over winter. I juiced it up though so I should be good to go today. When I mentioned the smell of fresh cut grass yesterday I got a few similar responses. So, since we were talking about smells we like, I thought I'd mention a few more that woo me!

1. Stazon black ink pads. I don't know if all of the colors smell that way, but I love it!
2. The rubber matt that you can buy to emboss the Nestabilities. It has such a strong smell but I even find myself picking it up just to smell it!
3. Lilacs! Need I say more?! My favorite flower in the world! Too bad they don't last too long off the bush!
4. Coffee grounds. I'm not too much of a coffee drinker but when Joe and I were first together I bought a can of coffee just to smell it every few days. I guess it reminded me of home.

Well, I guess that's it for me for the smells. And since I made a goof of myself, please don't hesitate to do the same!

Here is a card I made last night when everyone was asleep! It just came to me. All of the colors and layout and everything. It came together surprisingly smooth!

STAMPS- Twinx (Doodle Factory via Starving Artistamps), Thank you (SSS Thanks via Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Gypsy', green CS
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic Markers, Nestabilities, Word Window punch, Slit punch, Stamping Bella Baubles, push pin (for paper piercing), pop dots

I am getting ready to put in my batch order for Starving Artistamps and it is killing me to have to decide on which Doodle Factory to get! I don't have Urban, Country, or Fairytale! I have to get a little of each I guess!

Oh, by the way, Susan L was the winner of the Fairytale blog candy from Tracey! Congrats! But, if you didn't win, she is offering up a 20% discount on anything Doodle Factory in the store until April 27th on her blog!!!!! So, if you can't live without this set, here is your chance to get a discount! All you have to do is put iloveDF in the discount code box and then hit recalculate. Viola!

Oh, don't forget to sign up for my blog candy if you're Canadian!!! It ends tomorrow!

Hope all of you have a super fantastical day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

Been organizing

2008-04-21T08:44:00.009-05:00

Hello all! Hope everyone is having a good morning so far! Once it warms up a little more I get to go mow grass. Woo-Hoo! Okay, there was a little bit of sarcasm there but I really am looking forward to the smell of that fresh cut grass! That's one of my favorite smells in the world!!! Ahhh, I can smell it now! Anyway! I have been organizing my stuff and the kids' bookshelf/homeschool shelf this weekend. I went to a local library book sale on Friday morning and walked out with LOTS of books! The great thing? I spent less than $20! We got a lot of books to supplement with homeschooling too! I have come to the conclusion lately that I love buying books. None for myself really, but for the kids and for us as a family. I get a thrill of knowing that we will all be learning together or planning little trips. Joe and I picked up 3 new Ohio books about 3 weeks ago. They are awesome and are all about places you can go and day trips you can take. They're cool because they tell you about the history of the place before you even go to it! There is a lot of underground railroad stuff in one and of course the Indian mounds that we have quite a few of. Really cool things like that.

Okay, so I am really rambling this morning! I just wanted to share a picture with you of how I am storing my loose ribbon. I love the ideas of the clipping organizers but didn't really wanna pay for stuff like that when I could find some other way to spend my money (gee, how hard that would be!). So, this is what I came up with!

I picked up the clips at Office Max for around $2.50 (it doesn't day on the box but I'm guessing about 100 clips) and the rings I found at Walmart a while back. I don't remember how much they were but I believe it was around $2 for a 10 or 8 pack. Either way, you can't really go wrong with $5 for a ribbon organizer! If you decide to give this a try, let me know how it works for you! Hope everyone has a fantastic day! Enjoy the sunshine!

I will leave you with a pic I took this morning.

Canadian Blog Candy.....and a card, eh!

2008-04-19T09:07:00.005-05:00

Good Morning Canadians!!!!! And non Canadians too! I have some goodies for you guys today!
A while back I entered to win blog candy from Cornish Heritage Farms for their new Rummage Bin releases. Well, one of the ones I signed up for (and didn't even realize this was the set I was entering for) was The Great Canadian Stamp Set. I felt that I jipped some cool Canadian out there out of a great set so I decided to pass it along, although I really love the seasons stamps and that stinkin' Moose! Ah well! So, here it is! And here are the rules:

1. You must currently live in Canada!
2. You must leave a comment saying what your favorite thing about living there is!
3. You must leave your comment by Wednesday, April 23rd.

Please pass the word around!!! I'll pick a random number and announce the winner on Thursday morning! Good Luck!

Oh, and before I go, I wanted to share a card I did this morning. The tree branch is going to be awesome for some spooky Halloween cards, but I thought it would be a cool card for a dad too!

STAMPS- Tree Branch (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Basic Grey
INK- Colorbox Dark Brown
OTHER- Making Memories metal word, brads

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you have a great day!!

My first ATCs!

2008-04-17T10:04:00.002-05:00

Good afternoon all!! I hope everyone will be outside enjoying this beautiful day today! Unless that is, you won't be having 72 degree weather. And if that's the case, I'm sorry and I hope better weather gets to you soon!!!! After I post this, we will eat some lunch and then head over to the park! The kids are practically foaming at the mouth!!

I had the pleasure of grabbing a slot in Group 3 of Tracy Durcan's ATC swap last month and for the first time ever, I made an ATC! They were really fun to make and I have a feeling that I will be making more in the near future! I ended up using stamps from 3 different companies! I haven't done that in a loooong time! I love them though! I think they are very 'me' and what I'm all about! Whadda ya think?

STAMPS- Love Grows Mini (Inque Botique), Live, Love, Laugh (Inkadinado), Harlequin BG (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Cool Caribbean, Certainly Celery
INK- Palette hybrid black, Versamagic Sea Breeze
OTHER- Nestabilities, rhinestones, pop dots

I have to pass on some more news that smARTworks just released 29 pages of new stamps!!! That's twenty-nine!!! Lots of Angi-B and some of my new favorites designed by Dina (who is giving away a Trio set as blog candy right now!) called 'Trios'. Here is a direct link to my favorite Trio she did! I love the Daisy set!

Well, off to eat lunch! Hope everyone has a fantastic day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

New Doodle Factory!

2008-04-16T08:23:00.003-05:00

Oh My Gosh! I am just soooo excited to show you guys the next release from Starving Artistamps! It's Doodle Factory (created from the fantastic brain of Irene) Fairytale! It has all of the characters you would ever need for a prince or princess card along with dragons and even a wizard!! As much as I love the other DF images, this set has to be my new favorite! And guess what?! You guys have the chance to win it!! Tracey over at the Starving Artistamps blog is giving away the whole sheet!! All you have to do is leave a comment telling her who your favorite DF character is! Easy peasy lemon squeezey!!!! So run!

Dandelion Thanks

2008-04-15T10:36:00.004-05:00

Hello there! Hope everyone is having a good day so far! It has warmed up pretty quickly here in Ohio so I can't complain. It's only supposed to get warmer this week too!

I made this card a few days ago and at first I thought it was way too 'frilly' for me. Then I started to like it. Now, days later, I really like it! I clear embossed the dandelion and sponged over it with Versamagic Pixie Dust and then stippled just a little of the Pearl Orchid around the embossed part. I added 4 eyelets and tied the ribbon through.

STAMPS- Dandelion FS-1, SSS Thanks (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Two Scoops', yelloew CS
INK- Versamagic Pixie Dust and Pearl Orchid, Versamark
OTHER- clear embossing powder, eyelets, ribbon, pop dots

I just bought the April issue of Cards magazine and am excited to sit down and look through it! I also just posted my article on Craft Critique on the magazine Home and Heart. The gal who started the magazine, Stephanie Tafoya has a blog that is just too adorable! If you get a chance you should take the time to stop by and check it out!

Well, hope you all have a fab day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

Time for Cupcakes!

2008-04-14T07:58:00.005-05:00

Good morning everyone! I hope you all had a pleasant weekend! We hung around here, cleaned a little, and then went to a birthday party that the girls (and myself) had a great time at! Today though we need to get some more things done around the house so the rest of the week will be laid back other than school (which is pretty laid back anyway) and a trip to the grocery and library so we can play outside. The temps are supposed to get back up to the 60's and 70's this week. Woo-Hoo!

I was so excited to play with my new stamps from Queen Kat Designs this weekend!!! The set is called Sweets and I will be giving sneak peeks of it all month until it is released on May 1st! I know that it stinks that you'll have to wait till then cause it's so darn cute, but that's life, right?

Before I show the first one I just wanted to point out that the rub on from Cosmo Cricket (which I love!) is spelled wrong. LOL When I first pulled it out I went "That's spelled wrong", and then of course I thought maybe I was crazy. Surely a large company wouldn't produce rub ons that are misspelled, right? I guess they do because after I was questioning myself the rest of the night, I looked it up. Sparkle is spelled 'le' not 'el'. Well, at least I know I'm not crazy!

STAMPS- Sweets (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- yellow, pink, and red CS, Marcella DP
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Cosmo Cricket rub ons, scalloped edge scissors, Cuttlebug embossing folder, chunky glitter, pop dots

This next one is the one I made for the little girl's birthday party we went to on Sunday.

STAMPS- Sweets (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- DCWV Nursery DP
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- ribbon, Stickles, pink Copic marker, pop dots

Well, that's all for today! Tomorrow I will have a Starving Artistamps flower silhouette card. I really wanted to share it today but figured I should save something for tomorrow! Hope everyone has a blessed day! Thanks for stopping by!

Loving flowers

2008-04-11T07:08:00.003-05:00

Good morning!! I had all intentions of blogging yesterday until my hubby sent me on a wild goose chase to find a ginormous dry erase board! After spending 45 minutes calling everywhere around here (and not around here) I finally found one at Office Max. After that, I ran to Crafts2000 (I LOVE that place) and found some more school stuff and a few acrylic stamps for $1.47 for a 2 pack. I'm hoping to use one or two this weekend because they are really cool! After we got home I picked up the house a little and then as soon as Joe got home he wanted to hang up the dry erase board, which started us doing math problems on it with the kids. It was just one thing after another. You all know how that is!

I made this card a few days ago when the sun was brightly shining! Too bad it isn't now! Ah well, I won't complain about the beautiful weather this past week!

I just embossed with white EP and added some Stickles to the centers.

STAMPS- Flower Bunch, SSS Greetings (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Gypsy', white CS
INK- Versamark
OTHER- white embossing powder, scalloped edge scissors, Stickles, ribbon

To give you guys a heads up I'll be giving away some Canadian blog candy next week! Only Canadians can play. Sounds like fun, eh? Spread the word! I hope all of you have a great Friday!!

Tea Party #12!

2008-04-09T11:52:00.008-05:00

Good afternoon all! I can't believe that we have done 12 smARTworks Tea Parties so far! I have had so much fun with these! This week Trish challenged us with an inspiration piece! We could take whatever inspired us from this picture.

Pretty huh? Wouldn't mind having that hanging up in my living room! So, I decided to take the colors from the picture and work from there. This weekend we had a slew of ladybugs come out and my kids were so happy to see them and catch them! I felt like I just had to do a ladybug card! Here is my end result.

STAMPS- Ladybugs Lg., Combo Companion (smARTworks)
PAPER- Chocolate Chip, kraft
INK- Colorbox Dark Brown, Versamagic Cloud White
OTHER- Copic red marker, white brads, edge distresser, ribbon

Be sure to check out the rest of the Smart Cookies this week! I'm sure you'll get a big variety this time around!
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

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I took the kids out to a local place yesterday that has houses and barns like the 1800's (we go there quite a bit in the summer) and I just have to share this pic of Clinton chasing a chicken! I thought it was just too cute!

Well, I'll have some cards to share with you guys tomorrow, so see you then! Have a great day!

Ahhh, my head is back!

2008-04-07T08:13:00.006-05:00

Since I have been posting so much lately, I hadn't realized how weird it would feel to go a whole week without posting. Although, if it would have been any week, this last one was it! I had lots to do and in the end it paid off because the girls had such a great time at their party!!! Here are a few pics of them all dressed up. I even dressed up! However, although I wanted one, didn't end up getting a picture of myself with my girlies. You guys know how that is!

And here is the new go kart! I just love Ava's face in this pic! And Jolee is concentrating so hard!

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I haven't had much time to stamp this past week but trust me, I will make up for it this week! This morning I made my card for the bi weekly QKD challenge! Tanis gave us this sketch.

And here is my final product!

STAMPS- Happy Skullz (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Gypsy'
INK- Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- chipboard star, Coluzzle, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, Stamping Bella baubles

Check out the other creations from these talented gals too!!
Nancy
Tanis
Penny
Lindsay
Toni

Well, now I have to go clean the mess from what looks like a tornado that ripped through my house! Hope you all have a happy Monday!

Now I know how headless chicken feel.

2008-03-31T07:21:00.005-05:00

**If you don't want to read a little rant then skip down to the card! {grin}**

I am anticipating and fearing the week ahead. I know at several points I will probably scream, or at least want to. I have to clean my house from top to bottom. I've got to get all the crevices in between and my goal is to also steam clean the carpet. We'll see if the latter happens. The big reason I have to do this is because I will be having a house full of people on Saturday. Another reason is, it just needs to be done. The dust bunnies have been comfy too long and need to be evicted! I guarantee I will try to think of a reason NOT to do several things, but in the end I will realize that I have to do it.

On top of cleaning, I have to but the food for Jolee and Ava's party, get a few other small things for their party, and decorate the house like a princess castle in an extremely cool way. BTW, if you have done a princess party and have a few ideas, I'd love to hear! We are having everyone come in a princess dress and we are doing hair, make-up, and nails along with lots of games and prizes. I have the food and snack planned out pretty well but could always use some good ideas for decorations!

Other than those two things, the Go Kart should be coming tomorrow (don't ask!) which means I have to be here when it comes. If any of you read my blog often, you know Tuesday is my 'out' day. We go to Blockbuster, Kroger, Hobby Lobby, etc.... and usually play at Burger King or MD's. I have things I need to get done tomorrow and I have a big feeling that like every other delivery person or cable person in history, if they say they will be here at 11am then they will most likely be here at 2.

Wednesday is Jolee's actual birthday, therefore we do whatever she wants to do the whole day. She chose Chuckie Cheese's this year. I'm excited for her and the kids to have fun but I have a feeling I'm going to be thinking about things I need to get done before Saturday. Well, actually before Friday because my mom and sis are coming up a day early so they can stay 2 nights to spend extra time with us. They will be happy to help me decorate and such though, so I'm not stressed at all about them coming up early. I'll have to have my house clean by Friday though.

Joe has to replace the brake pads and front rotors on my van. It's supposed to rain all week. I can't go (and don't wanna with the way my brakes are now) to Dayton to get a few of the party favors at Michael's like I need to if my brakes aren't fixed. And just so you know, I'll have most likely screamed a few times at this point of the week.

I also have a few deadlines that I need to get done. I am so very excited to have a super cool birthday party for the girls and I am going to be so happy to have my house clean clean, it's just getting there that sometimes stinks! If any of you read this whole rant then God bless you and thank you! You are a true friend!

I need something cute to make me smile! Here she is! I made this last week and my sister gave me the idea for the stage. Thanks sis!

STAMPS- Mrs. Piggie (available April 1st via Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- black, kraft
INK- Stazon jet black
OTHER- fabric, ribbon, flower, rhinestones, white Souffle pen, Stardust glitter pen, pop dots

On another note, Joe and I finally agreed on the rest of our Homeschool curriculum! We are going with Explode the Code for reading/phonics, Math U See for math, BJU Press for Science, Bible Study, and Heritage (which is like geography, history, etc..) and we will supplement here and there with little things. I got some really great Sight Words work books at B Dalton too. We are really excited to get more of a structure than we had before. Joe will be switching shifts net week so we will be switching off teaching during the week too. Yay! Alright, I think I have blabbed enough for today! I hope all of you have a wonderful day!!! Thanks for stopping by!

Oh, just one more thing. I took this pic last week. It is the first flower of spring that we have seen!

Walkin' on Sunshine

2008-03-27T08:17:00.003-05:00

Good Morning! Even though it is raining outside and looks yucky, I am in a surprisingly good mood! I don't have any reason not to be in a good mood, I just feel more gleeful than usual! I had lots of things I was going to do out and about today but I decided everything can wait until tomorrow. I really don't want to go out in the rain today and the kids say they just don't wanna go anywhere. I think we might cuddle up and watch a good movie like Labyrinth or Narnia or maybe even Monster House. I love watching movies that have a bit of 'spook' to them on rainy days!

Before I ramble even more, I am going to share my card with you. I have to say that I absolutely love this card!!!!! I started to stamp this sunflower on white so I could color it in but as I was taking the stamp off the ink pad I noticed a scrap of More Mustard peeking out from under my scrap tray. Hmmmm, maybe I should paper piece it! So, I did. Doesn't it look great?! I think it does. Sometimes you are so proud of a card it makes you sound so vein! But you don't really care because the card rocks and you know it! LOL

STAMPS- Happy Sunflower, Fern Leaf Tooled Leather BG (Starving Artistamps), Greetings (SunSpirit Studios)
PAPER- Basic Grey 'Mellow', Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, More Mustard
INK- Palette Hybrid black, Colorbox Dark Brown
OTHER- Versamarker, Word Window punch, Slit punch, Crop-a-dile, edge distresser, pop dots

I am also trying to get Joe and I's schedule planned out for Saturday. We are going to the Cincinnati homeschool convention. We went last year (the first year) and it was great! We got to hear some great speakers and check out all of the curriculum. It was really nice to be able to look through the books and see everything. Last year we didn't buy but this year we know what we are going to get. We have purchased things online through the year but we are going to get a few 'biggies' this weekend. I am really looking forward to it!

Well, I hope everyone has a good Thursday! Oh, speaking of Thursday, Grey's Anatomy will finally be coming back next month!!!! I can't wait!!!!!

Springtime Tea Party

2008-03-25T08:11:00.000-05:00

Flowers, flowers, flowers!! I took charge of the challenge this week for the smARTworks Tea Party. I decided that we needed to coax spring out with some flowerage! In my mind, I had a completely different card, but once I sat down to make it, this came out! I have been wanting to use my pretty ladybug for a while now so this was a great opportunity! Ain't she beautiful?!

STAMPS- Ladybugs Lg., WD-101 (smARTworks)
PAPER- Marcella (Target)
INK- Brilliance Black
OTHER- edge distresser, sewing machine, chipboard leaf, ZIG and Copic markers, pop dots

Make sure you check out the other ladies' creations too! And please play along if you'd like! Who doesn't wanna pump out a pretty flower card anyway?!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

So, high of 54 today! Yee-haw! The Go Kart should be delivered sometime today and I think Joe is going to end up giving to them before their birthday party. He is way too impatient for something like that! Although, he does have to wait till they get their helmets, which I am ordering today. One pink and one purple. They are just going to flip!

Well, I hope you guys have a great Wednesday! Enjoy the nice weather (that is, if you are having nice weather)!

QKD Challenge

2008-03-24T16:13:00.005-05:00

Hey all! I hope everyone had a blessed Easter!! We spent time with each other and with my family so I had a very nice time!

Today is round 2 of the Queen Kat Designs bi-weekly challenge and this week I was hosting. I am posting a little late today because I went to Target today to pick up a few bags of jelly beans for the jelly bean jar guessing game Jolee wants to play at their party. Well, I didn't find many jelly beans but I found almost every single thing for Jolee and Ava's birthday party! I was so happy! It was flowery spring stuff that was 50% off because it was considered Easter! We really made out nicely!

Anyway! The rest of this post will be short and sweet!

It was my turn to challenge and I dared them to make a one layer or no layer card! Here is my take!

STAMPS- Mrs. Piggie (QKD)
PAPER- Bazzil pink
INK- Chocolate Chip (SU)
OTHER- Nestabilities, white Souffle pen, ribbon, sponge

Don't forget to check out the rest of the gals' creations!!!!
Nancy
Tanis
Penny
Lindsay
Toni

I'll be back tomorrow!! Have a great night!

The birds are chirping

2008-03-21T07:41:00.004-05:00

I have noticed this past week that even though it may not be warm yet, I am hearing the birds more than ever! Jolee and I saw a caterpillar on the porch yesterday and my Tiger Lilies are starting to sprout! Come on spring!!!! We are waiting for you!

Remember when I told you guys a week or two ago that I got two 3 packs of Inkadinkado stamps at Joann's? Well, I got on their site to try and find the name of the sets so I could list them but they were nowhere to be found {side note, they are coming out with the cutest 1.99 sets that I can't wait to get my hands on!! They are the first stamps shown in the clear section of their website}. I don't know if they are just a promo for Joann's or what but I wish I could give more detail than just they they are Inkadinkado. Alas, I can't, so my appologies. One of the stamps that made me buy this set was the beautiful bird that looks similar to one of the birds in the Birds Galore set. He was just calling to be used......simply.

STAMPS- Inkadinkado
PAPER- The Slab (Michael's)
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Nestabilities, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, Copic marker (B21), pop dots

I'm finally going to get my van inspected today. The last time I had it scheduled the weather was awful and I had to cancel. I know my brakes are worse for the wear but I hope that's all they say! We have had work done with this guy before and they seem really honest so I'm not worried about getting ripped off or anything. Plus, I'm not the 'typical' female they try to talk into things they don't really need! Thanks heavens hubby knows all about that kind of stuff!

Well, I am going to make up a list of things I need to get at the grocery before I head into town. I am bringing a fruit tray to my mom's for Easter and I decided I'm gonna add a bug tub of yogurt and granola too. I have been hooked on that lately and I never even really cared for yogurt. Go figure!

I hope you guys have an great day! Thanks for stopping by!

P.S. If you want to know a little more about editing and having actions for your photos then check out Nicole's article today over at Craft Critique!

Easter is creeping.....

2008-03-20T08:33:00.000-05:00

When I was at the store with the kids last week there was Easter stuff everywhere! Jolee says, "Mom, it's almost Easter". "Not really" I say. Then I think about it. Holy crap! It really is almost Easter! It has completely snuck up on me! I haven't gotten anything for their baskets yet. They are with me all of the time, therefore I can't shop them. I'm going to have to have Joe watch them one night this week while I run in and get some things. I have been so caught up with their birthday party that I have been distracted! We finally decided we are going to get them a Go Kart. It took a lot of thinking but we decided that it would be the safest and something they could both ride in at the same time. I just can't wait to see the look on their face!!! I even bought a huge pink bow to put on it yesterday!

Anyway, I need to really catch up on my QKD stuff. I have been in a stamping slump the last 3 days. I have had no inspiration and no desire really. Bleh! I even BOUGHT the birthday party invites! How sad is that?! First time I have purchased a card of any kind in years! They are super cute though so no biggie! Alright, back to what I was saying. I actually wanted to stamp and was inspired this morning! Although this card looks a little Valentine-y, I just thought I had to make her in pink and red! She is so cute! And she will be available at the first of the month from QKD. Tanis has made a wonderful little monster family! This gals name is Mrs. Piggie!

STAMPS- Mrs. Piggie (QKD April release)
PAPER- Marcella (Target brand), red CS, pink CS
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Nestabilities dies, Cuttlebug embossing folder, rhinestones, glitter, pop dots

I hope all of you are more prepared for Easter than I am! Have a great Thursday! Thanks for stopping by!

Quick and Simple

2008-03-14T21:27:00.003-05:00

Good morning and happy Monday to everyone! Hope you all had a good weekend! My sister, hubby, and I took a quick trip to the casino again this weekend. We had so much fun! I actually played the slots this time too. I always said 'never' because I felt like I didn't have any control over anything like in video poker, but I had a blast. Plus, we were playing nickel slots. I got Angel hooked on Roulette too! She was nervous at first but ended up winning like $200 in the end. I wanted to share a pic that I took of us in the hotel before we went to spend our money. Ain't she pretty?! And yes, I wore my hair in braids. My name is Heidi after all!

Anyhoo, these are just a few cards I had to do quickly last week. Trish D'Antonio's father in law passed away unexpectedly so I wanted to get my card sent out as soon as possible.

STAMPS- Queen Anne's Lace (Starving Artistamps), Sympathy (Sun Spirit Studios)
PAPER- Old Olive, kraft
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- edge distresser, pop dots

My MIL needed a card for someone at work too and I didn't have a thinking of you laying around. I had like 10 minutes to make this one so it's nothing fantastic, but she was pleased. Can you tell I've been reaching for my edge distresser lately?

STAMPS- Inkadinkado
PAPER- Perfect Plum, DCWV glitter flower stack
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- Cuttlebug embossing folder, Nestabilities, ribbon, edge distresser, pop dots

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In other news, the new crew for Craft Critique was announced! Craft Critique is going in such a great direction! There are big things in store for us! Head over and check out the fresh faces of CC!!!

I hope all of you have a fantastical day! Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Friday!

2008-03-14T07:23:00.004-05:00

Ahhhh, Friday. I love you. You are my second favorite day of the week. You bring the hope of a fun and possibly eventful weekend, or even a lazy weekend. I am so glad you are here.

So, how are you peeps this morning? Wonderful I hope!

I'm finally getting a chance to share my first card made with my new batch of Starving Artistamps! I really like these silhouette flowers! I really really dislike the Palette glue pad though. I am about ready to throw that thing in the trash! I need to get the Tsuneiko one but I haven't been able to let myself spend that kind of money for it yet.

STAMPS- FS-9 Daisy, lil squares BG (Starving Artistamps), Greetings (SunSpiritStudios)
PAPER- Bazzil CS (courtesy of Tracy via her blog candy I won! Thanks Tracy!)
INK- Stazon jet black, Palette glue pad
OTHER- Nestabilities, glitter, ribbon, pop dots

This is a 5x5 card that I really ended up liking in the end. When I was covering the chipboard letters with the BasicGrey paper I was wondering if it would turn out well or not. I think it worked out pretty well! I like the soft butterflies.

STAMPS- butterflies p5.5 and p5.6 (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- BasicGrey Two Scoops
INK- Pretty in Pink (SU)
OTHER- chipboard alphas, brads

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I was tagged by Tina to do a *5* list last week. I had to think about it for a while but this is what I came up with.

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was a Sophomore in High School and cheerleading for our football team. I was also getting my very first kiss.

What was I doing 1 year ago?
Pretty much the same thing I am doing right now. Only I am priveledged to be on some awesome design teams!

5 favorite snacks?
*Forget the snacks! Gimme real food! JK
Bowl of cereal
Doritos with melted cheddar cheese on top
Fruit and yogurt
Oatmeal creme pies
Whatever is in the cupboard or fridge!

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire?
Tithe
Invest properly
Move to Tenn. into a house on a lake
Make my mom move in with me! lol
Make hubby quit his job so he could pursue his dream job of professional fisherman!

5 things I like doing?
Making cards
Taking Pictures
Watching movies
Playing with my babies
Playing games

5 things I will never wear again?
Bikini {sniff sniff}
Red lipstick
Non underwire bra
Big sole shoes
Gold jewelry (I'm a silver kinda gal)

5 favorite toys?
Canon Rebel XTi
Laptop
Sizzix
Smartphone (it now has GPS! yay!)
Wii

Well, there ya go! I'm not going to tag anyone this time around but if you wanna play along, consider yourself tagged!

Hope all of you have a super-fantastic day! Thanks for stopping by!

New banner

2008-03-12T16:54:00.003-05:00

I finally decided on a banner! I started to make about 8 different ones. Ended up with this one. Like it? I am so ready for spring! Can you tell?!

All elements were provided in a free digi kit by Nanine. I have no idea where I picked it up from and the rest of the description is in German.....I think!

It's Tea for Two and Two for Tea

2008-03-12T05:49:00.006-05:00

Are you guys getting sick of me trying to do quirky titles for the smARTworks Tea Party? Yeah, me too. However, I have to keep doing them because the alternative is boring......and I am so far from boring!!! Thank heavens!

I had an entry in mind yesterday and wanted to make a post, but, I slept in!! Yes, you hear me right. I Slept In. The kids didn't get up till like 8:30! And then they all came in and we laid in bed together till about 9. It was fantastic! There are some things I love about that time change! Too bad this morning I'm not letting myself lay back down. I always get up at 6 to help Joe get off to work okay, so once he leaves at 6:30 I have the option to lay back down (which I did yesterday) but I have an extremely full craft day today so I don't have extra time to dilly dally. It really is weird how much sleeping in throws me off! We took our regular Tuesday trip into town and we started that about an hour later than usual and we got home later than usual too (trust me, it had nothing to do with me being in Target!).

We watched Nancy Drew last night too and it was really cute! All of the kids watched it and really enjoyed it. It was nice to see a female teenage character with morals and respect for a change! Joe and I are gonna watch No Country for Old Men tonight. We really wanted to last night but we spent a while updating our Smart Phones for faster internet and GPS (yes!!!) so that took longer than we expected. We were both too tired to watch it after that.

So, I think I am done rambling for the time being! Oh WAIT! One last thing........quite a BIG thing for me though!! So, I will shout it. Okay? You ready? I AM THE NEW DT COORDINATOR FOR CRAFT CRITIQUE!!!!!!! I am so excited! This comes along with different responsibilities for me but I will still be writing articles and such. I have been so blessed lately that I can't even bear it! So, this is a thank you to all of my fabulous stamp companies that let me design for them and to Sarah at Craft Critique for giving me a chance 6 months ago and now for this wonderful chance! I love all of you! {tear}

Alright, now I really am done rambling! This week we were challenged my Susan Liles to make something that wasn't a card! What? Not a card? How can I do that?! Oh, that's right, I am so freakin' talented I can do anything! {LMAO} Truly though I was really excited about this one! Sometimes you get so into making cards that other things fall way past the back burner! So, I decided to make a little princess tin! These are Wilton favor tins that I found at Michael's (and got with a coupon) and they come in like a big plastic round pail. I used these a lot last year around Christmas time for ornaments and such. They are like the watchmaker tins only they aren't as strong or as expensive.

I popped out the plastic from the top of the tin and stamped the crown in black Stazon and let it dry. While it was drying, I punched a circle (Marvy Super Jumbo circle fir perfectly!) out of pink vellum. Then I popped the plastic back in and glued the edges of the pink vellum down. I added a rhinestone to the top and then tied a ribbon around. I know it's super simple, but I really like it! I think I will make more of these for the party favors for the girls' birthday!

STAMPS- WD-29 Kings (smARTworks)
PAPER- pink vellum
INK- Stazon jet black
OTHER- Wilton favor tin, American Crafts ribbon, Marvy Super Jumbo circle punch, rhinestone

Be sure to check out the creations by the other gals. Trish will not be playing this week because her Father in law just passed unexpectedly. Please say a prayer for her and her family today!! Love you Trish!

In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

Don't forget that you have till the end of the month to get 35% off any of the smARTworks stamps in stock!!!

Well, that's all from me today! I hope you have a wonderful day filled with lots of sunshine!! Thanks for stopping by!

Queen Kat Challenge

2008-03-10T09:50:00.007-05:00

Hey all! I'm adjusting to the time change so I'm posting kind of late this morning. Sorry! I decided to organize a bi-weekly challenge for some of us girls over at Queen Kat Designs. I love being able to have a challenge every other week at smARTworks so I thought it would be cool to start one with QKD too using only QKD stamps!

So, here is our very first round was provided by Penny and her challenge was to use tan, white, gray, black, and red. Love the colors! However, I had no gray (hmmmm, I guess I need to take a trip to HL to fix that!) so I just stuck with tan, white, black, and red. Here is my take! I stamped the paisley in black and then added some dots and stripes with my white Souffle pen.

STAMPS- Paisley, Happy Skullz (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- kraft
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- white Souffle pen, ribbon, rhinestones, pop dots

Make sure to check out the other QKD gals creations throughout the day!
Nancy
Tanis
Penny
Lindsay
Toni

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On another note, I have to get some ideas today for the girls' birthday party invitations. It's a princess-tea party-sleepover party. I don't have any princess stamps so I was trying to come up with something sweet but not babyish. Plus I have a million other deadlines I have to get done this week also. I am excited about getting them done though because I am really looking forward to using the stamps and hopefully finding some untouched creative genius! We'll see about that though!!

On another other note, {grin} I am working on a new banner. I ended up having a lot of Joe time this weekend, which was nice. We played the Wii and looked at truck bed campers and just plain snuggled. He is really looking forward to switching shifts at the end of the month. When he does, he will have Monday-Thursday off and work Friday-Sunday on 12 hour shifts. It will be awesome to have 4 days off so we can go wherever we want and have mini vacations here and there. But, our social life will come to a dead hault (which was never really going anywhere anyway, lol) and I will have to do a lot of weekend things (birthday parties, holidays, etc..) by myself with the kids. It's definitely more of a positive thing though. I know it will be a lot better for his stress level too!

Well, I am off to make the kids lunch and get a few deadlines finished. Hope you all have a fantastic day!

P.S. This is what the girls and I did yesterday!

Need a Change

2008-03-07T09:11:00.008-06:00

Hopefully, with all of the snow we are supposed to get this weekend (5-10 inches, so vague aren't they?!) it will give me time to revamp my blog. I have been tired of my banner for a while now, just no time to change it. I also need to remove some links and add some different ones. Maybe change up my background too. I need FRESH!

This is also a reason I need something fresh! I am so done with winter! This is a pretty cool picture though, I have to admit. I took it with my Macro lens.

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A friend of mine is got some bad news recently and I wanted to send her a card to let her know I am thinking of her. I thought the Queen Kat Designs 'Huggy Monster' was perfect for what I wanted. Plus, I had to dig into my Gretel paper I got awhile back.

STAMPS- Huggy Monster (QKD), Need a hug? (Inkadinkado)
PAPER- Cosmo Cricket 'Gretel'
INK- Stazon jet black, Colorbo Chestnut Roan
OTHER- Nestabilities dies, Prismacolors and OMS, Copic gray marker, ribbon, brad

Check this out! The code in this blinkie will give you 10% off your order at Queen Kat Designs! http://www.katstamps.com

If you add this blinkie to your blog (make sure it links to www.katstamps.com, if you need any help doing so, just ask me!) and then leave a comment on this post letting me know you did, you will be entered into a drawing for a prize given on April 1st!

I can't tell you what the prize is, but I know you won't be disappointed! AND, the more people who get entered into the contest, the bigger the prize will get!

So........SCREAM IT! Let everyone know how much QKD stamps rock and have a chance of winning at the same time!!!

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I hope everyone has a good day!! Stay warm and make a great creation!

Too funny for words!

2008-03-06T06:06:00.003-06:00

Okay, so I cannot remember who's blog I visited the other day that made me find this video, but whoever it was....thank you. I laughed sooo hard at this clip! I watched it over and over again and it never stopped getting funny.
Talking Cat

Plus, I wanted to share one of my favorite commercials recently. What the French........toast?
Orbitz Dirty Mouth

I'll be back later, just wanted to share these with you this morning!! Hope they make you smile!

The cat has pajamas?

2008-03-03T06:36:00.000-06:00

Who woulda thunk it? Cats in pajamas. Well, I think it was a fantastic idea because it started a stamp company that is just too cute for words! The Cat's Pajamas is a company that not only offers acrylic (high quality acrylic that is) but they also offer wood mounted. I'm an acrylic kind of gal myself so that is what I went with. I got the Valentine-y sets last month but wanted to show how they don't have to be used that way.

For my first one I used the Loving Mew Clearly Swanky Set. I just adore that little muffin/cupcake!

STAMPS- Loving Mew (TCPJ)
PAPER- BasicGrey Two Scoops
INK- Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- Copic markers, Nestabilities, Stickles, ribbon, pop dots

This next one I just think is so cute! I love these colors together! Those birdies are so sweet too!

STAMPS- Puppy Love (TCPJ)
PAPER- Tempting Turquoise, Marcella
INK- Palette Hybrid black
OTHER- Copic markers, Nestabilities, Stickles, Cuttlebug embossing folder, ribbon, mulberry Prima, rhinestone, pop dots

I have a confession to make. I'm a bad girl! I had to go to town yesterday so I figured I would go to the next town over and peek at JoAnn's. The JoAnn's closer to me is tiny and doesn't have much so I have to go to the next town over to visit the 'good one'. I really didn't plan on buying anything since today I am going to Hobby Lobby to load up on adhesive (they have it half off!) and will probably get a few new embossing folders if they have any of the new ones yet. But, I couldn't resist the Inkadinkado 3 pack of acrylic stamps for $11.99. I got 2 different ones. Please smack me on the hand! I just couldn't help it though, they are really cute! BUT they aren't the high quality so I can't use them with my dye inks. That's alright though because I also bought two 4 packs of the Versafine Dew Drops. Shame, shame, shame. I really did need them though. LMOA Like I NEED anything! One of the packs I got was the Brilliance (which I only have black) so now I have sparkly bright colored inks too. Go me! I did however, walk out without buying one single sheet of paper!!! That is an accomplishment. Hopefully, I don't stray too far from the adhesive today at HL. Say a prayer for me. lol

I also want to let you guys know that my article on the Creative Hot Marks tool posted on Craft Critique yesterday just in case you are interested.

Hope everyone has a delightful day!!!!

First of all....

2008-03-01T09:22:00.007-06:00

Happy birthday to my sweet Ava! She is 4 years old today! I took this pic this morning (8am to be exact) before she opened her presents. She just woke up and had to put her Princess dress on over her Hannah Montana pjs! She is a Princess after all! I love you Ava!

I have a few cool things to announce this morning but I will wait until I share my creations! This set is a 3x3 card with a paper bead bracelet. I did it showcasing the Ornate Tooled Leather BG from Starving Artistamps (as well as a few other people) and we are hoping it gets picked up and put in a mag. If it does happen, it would be my first time being published! Say a prayer!

STAMPS- Ornate Tooled Leather BG, Alpha (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- DCWV blue, black CS
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic blue marker, black ribbon, Word Window punch

All of the ingredients are the same for the bracelet but I also used a Mulberry Prima (2 coats of Modge Podge) and a blue bead.

If anyone would like the directions on how to make paper beads or a paper bead bracelet then just leave a comment here saying so and I will do a tutorial for you! And I promise I won't make you wait forever! I'll get to it early next week.

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Now for the ENABLING!! Yes, you heard me right!!! Right now smARTworks is having 35% off ALL of their stamps in stock!!! At the moment, every stamp they have is in stock but some are in limited quantities, so if you want it, you better get it now! If any of you have waited to get Dina's Birdie Fun birds, order then NOW!!!!! Sorry, am I being to pushy? Really though, at that price and with how awesome they are, you can't avoid them. Just go with the flow. Just go with the flow. Here is a link directly to the darling birdies! You also need to check out the rest of the sets that Susan has in her Catty! A-MA-ZING!

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I wanted to thank you all for the well wishes you left! I feel much better today but even yesterday I was still feeling pretty crummy. Glad to be better though for my baby's birthday! Hope all of you have an wonderful weekend! Spring is near, I can feel it!

Party of Tea!

2008-02-27T07:37:00.005-06:00

Good morning ladies! I trust everyone is having a wonderful morning! I however, am not so much. I started getting a sore throat last night and now this morning my whole body hurts. I just want to crawl into bed and go back to sleep. However, apparently when you have small children it's frowned upon to tell them to make their own lunch and answer the phone if it rings while you pull the covers over your head and stay there all day. {grin} Nah, they have been taking it easy on me so far this morning. Hopefully, Clinton takes an early nap so I can make the girls snuggle on the couch with me for a movie so I can catch a few Zzzzs. Once you have a kid, you don't actually 'sleep', you just kinda rest your eyes occasionally. Honestly though, all the kids have to do is whimper and I'm awake and listening. Anyhoo, hope the cold weather isn't making any of you sick!

Oh, and before I continue, Joe and I went to the cheapo movies last night ($3.50 for both tickets) and saw I am Legend. I had a headache from clenching my teeth so hard! Very tense moments! And for those of you who might not know, this is a horror movie. But, if you love Will Smith and not scary movies, it was still worth it to see him doing sweaty, shirtless pull ups! He is one fine man!

Okay, so enough about Will Smith {pauses for one last mental picture} it's Tea Party time!! This week our head honcho Susan Trask gave us a color challenge. It was so funny because I had just had these colors sitting in a pile with the hopes of using them soon! The colors are chocolate, lime, and aqua! Although, I didn't really have any lime, I replaced with with celery. Here is my creation!

STAMPS- flower FL-19, WD-142 Lilac Blessing
PAPER- DCWV aqua, Chocolate Chip
INK- none
OTHER- ZIG markers, Nestabilities, Word Window punch, Cuttlebug embossing folder, pop dots

Now you guys have to jump in on this Tea Party challenge! Who can resist those fab colors?! So jump in and join the fun! And while your imagining what you can create, take a look at the other smART Cookies creations!!!

In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
Dee's Studio

Don't forget to stop over at the Overstock Central at smARTworks for some really great deals! And while you're at it browse the online catty and narrow your list down to only the stamps you HAVE to have! You might be able to count them on 2 hands.

Hope you have a better day than me!!! Sending (no germ) kisses to all of you!

Across the Universe, with a pear and some flowers

2008-02-25T09:20:00.003-06:00

I bet the title got you curious right? I have a few cards to share, but first I wanted to say how lately Joe and I have been enjoying movies that a few years ago we probably would have turned off 20 minutes into or just avoided renting. Across the Universe is one of them. They played the previews over and over again and although I do enjoy a Beatles song now and again, I certainly didn't have a strong desire to watch a musical full of them! However, my curiosity got the better of me and on the day it came out I rented it (I always go to Blockbuster on Tuesday so I can rent the new movies as soon as they come out. We are a very movie watching family!). Joe and I put it in at around 11pm on a Friday night and within an hour he was asleep, leaving me to watch the other 2 hours by myself. I thoroughly enjoyed the music but was a little distracted by a few of the parts that would probably been more enjoyable if you were on the acid trip with them. In no way am I encouraging an acid trip though, so don't take that wrong! {grin} But then again, it was the 60's and 70's. That's what that era was about, war, drugs, and rock and roll. It was pretty accurate. Anyway, Joe watched it again the next day and what is really funny is it was way better the second time. Don't ask me why. I also heard from several other people that you have to watch it a second time to really appreciate it. Maybe I was distracted by a few outlandish moments or the fact that I was up way too late watching. I definitely think it was worth watching and as soon as Blockbuster has a used copy for sale, I'll be buying, if nothing else but to listen to the songs that didn't come on the soundtrack that I HAD to run out and buy!! Seriously, you have to check out the soundtrack! It rocks.

Side note, I rented Young Frankenstein last a few weeks ago and the kids loved it so much they made me buy it! Can you believe that!? An old movie like that grabbed ALL THREE of their attentions enough to want to watch it over and over again. Clinton is 2! Just cracks me up! Jolee (6 next month) says it's her new favorite movie.

Okay, back to reality now! Ava's birthday is on Saturday and Jolee's is in a month and I have been bothering Joe for over a month now to help me decide what to get them for their birthday. Before, he wanted to get Jolee a dirt bike. I'm fine with that because I know he will teach them well and it doesn't scare me that she would be doing that. But, I told him that we can't get Jolee that and buy Ava a few Barbie's. Not fair. My suggestion is to get a 4 wheeler (in their size) so they can both enjoy it and we give it to both of them. Last night Joe tells me he wants to get Ava a 4 wheeler and Jolee a dirt bike. Ugh! My response "That's a lot of money!" BUT! He works hard for the money and if he wants to spoil them for the first time (we have never gotten them anything big like this and they aren't spoiled by us, other than the money we put in their savings every month) who am I to stop him? It won't put us in debt and we wouldn't be digging in the couch for change. Let's just see if it's going to pan out or not. He is worse than a woman when it comes to changing his mind!

Now that I have bored you with my life lately, I'll share some cards!

Both of these are Starving Artistamps stamps today. I just finished up my batch so I could get the new silhouette flowers and regular flowers Tracey has put in the store! She has even more stuff in the works!! I am so excited! You guys are gonna love the new stuff! You can get the stamps used on these cards right now though! Just skip on over to Starving Artistamps and remember to use my heidis code to get 10% off!

STAMPS- tooled leather roses, fern leaf tooled leather BG (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Tempting Turquoise, Chocolate Chip, Mellow Moss
INK- Chocolate Chip, Versamark
OTHER- Versamark pen (to darken parts of petals), brads, edge distresser, pop dots

I had an idea to use this pear for a Valentine card with a heart in the middle, but it just didn't work out the way I planned. I cannot do the kissing technique to save my life! Not well anyway. The pear is coated with Crystal Effects to give it shine.

STAMPS- pear (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- BasicGrey 'Gypsy'
INK- Colorbox Lime Pastel
OTHER- Nestabilities, scalloped edge scissors, Crystal Effects, pop dots

Soooooo, I guess I'll see all of you later!! Hope you have a wonderful Monday!!

Rockstars welcome!

2008-02-22T07:00:00.007-06:00

So, the Hannah Montana 3D movie was awesome! I think I might have enjoyed it more than the girls! My only complaint........$15 a ticket, no matter what the age! I paid for all of us so it was $60. Ouch! We did have a fun time though and there were only a few other people in the theater so we were singing along and dancing in our seats. I'm one of those people who has a hard time sitting still when there is music playing. If you get a chance to take your little girl (or not so little girl) to go see it, then you should! Make it a mommy daughter day!

I have been really inspired by my Queen Kat Designs stamps since I got them so here are a few more! I picked up the Nursery stack from DCWV the other day. I have no need for baby paper but more than half of it is really cute glittery paper that can be used for anything. Plus, it was half off. And, I'm a a paper addict. Now that we have THAT out in the open. {grin}

STAMPS- Let's Party (QKD)
PAPER- DCWV Nana's Nursery *baby girl*
INK- Stazon jet black
OTHER- ribbon, white brads, Primas

Okay, so I did another glittery skull. I know! But doesn't it just rock?! This time I mixed the 'Let's Party' sentiments to make the phrase You're a Rockstar. Clever huh? Man, I am so smart! {rolling eyes} The card size is also pretty different.....3x6.

STAMPS- Happy Skullz, Let's Party (QKD)
PAPER- Marcella (Target brand)
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- rhinestones, pop dots, glitter, Marvy Mega scalloped circle and Super Jumbo circle punches

There is also a little contest going on right now over at Queen Kat Designs! If you love their stamps then shout it! Post the blinkie below onto your blog and if a member of the Royal Court sees you with it, you will be entered to win a stamp set! She will be drawing every month! How easy is that!? You can also leave a post on this blog letting me know that you added your blinkie! Be sure to link it to www.katstamps.com though!

Well, I'm off to get ready to take my van in to get inspected! Wish me luck! Have a great day!

"Nobody's perfect, I gotta work it....."

2008-02-18T11:57:00.005-06:00

"...again and again till I get it right." Boy, ain't that the truth! I thought the title was fitting today since MIL, Jolee, Ava, and I are finally going to see the Hannah Montana movie tonight! And, it's also fitting since I haven't posted in 5 days! Shame on me! I was doing so well too! Well, my sister and niece came up and spent the weekend (Friday through Sunday) and we were all having a great time, so crafty stuff and blogging was put on the back burner. Well, other than the card I had to make to send with sis for my other niece's birthday. Oh, and I loved it too! You'll see it in a second.

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day! Ours was kind of hectic! Wednesday, Joe left for work in the morning and came home a few minutes later telling me his tire blew. He takes it off and I take it into town in my van to have them replace it. $90. Thursday morning he leaves for work and comes home again a few minutes later telling me the brand new one just blew too! Off to the store I go....again....to buy another new tire, only this time I go to a different place. Only $65 this time. When I get home, Joe figures out that it's a broken coil on the strut so he cuts it off so he can drive it in to have it fixed. He had to take off work both days. Bleh! It will be a little under $400 to replace the coils. Bleh again! Ah, well. We are blessed to have what we do!

So, here is the birthday card I made this weekend. I used Queen Kat Designs 'Happy Skullz' set. I love that set!!

STAMPS- Happy Skullz (QKD)
PAPER- Marcella (Target brand)
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- Marvy Super Jumbo circle punch and Mega scalloped circle punch, iridescent and red glitter, glue pen, ribbon, pop dots

This one is from the Doodle Factory Valentine's set. I just love this bee!! I glittered up his wings and heart with Stickles.

STAMPS- Doodle Factory Valentine, Medium stitch set (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER-DCWV
INK- Brilliance black ink
OTHER- Copic markers, stickles, artificial flower, pop dots

Here is my last one for the day!

STAMPS- flower P20.14, thanks a bunch (only inked up thanks)46.04 (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Brocade Blue
INK- Versafine black ink
OTHER- Nestabilities dies, Copic markers

Hopefully, if all goes well, I will be back tomorrow to share a few more that have been sitting on my desk!! Have a great night everyone!

P.S. Starving Artistamps is having a sale that if you buy ANY full sheet of stamps, you get the foam cling for free! The offer goes until Saturday the 23rd and all you need to do is put the rubber sheet you want in and the sheet of cling and you will not be charged for the cling! You can also use my 10% off code with the offer! To remind you, my code is heidis Go shop!

Lovey dovey Tea Party!

2008-02-13T09:37:00.001-06:00

It's Wednesday again! And that means it's smARTworks Tea Party time! This week Donna challenged us to make a Valentine's Day card. That was pretty simple for me since A. I needed to make Valentine's anyway and 2. I just got a few lovey dovey sets in my new smARTworks batch. Then again, who says you have to actually have a 'love' set for those kind of cards? For this first one I used my so well loved 'Birdie Fun' birds. I also used my Alpha-02 for the x's and o's (this set just so happens to be half off along with several others you can find here) and stamped them onto my red ribbon. Topped it off with pink rhinestones for the eyes.

STAMPS- Birdie Fun DK-04, Alpha-02 (smARTworks)
PAPER- scraps
INK- Brilliance black, Stazon
OTHER- ribbon, rhinestones

Although it's hard to see on this one, I used black stickles on the ladybug.

STAMPS- Ladybug Lg., WD-108 I love you (smARTworks)
PAPER- KI memories (I think)
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic red marker, Nestabilities dies, slit punch, black stickles, pop dots

Make sure you check out the rest of the gals through the day! Can't wait to see what they've come up with!!!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

Have a great day!

Love is in the air!

2008-02-12T09:58:00.000-06:00

Good afternoon! There might be a few of you reading this that are snowed in today. We are supposed to have 4-6 inches accumulated by tonight but I don't know how much I believe that. MIL and I are planning on taking Jolee and Ava to see the Hannah Montana concert movie tonight and get some dinner afterwards. It's the first time just 'the girls' have gone out together. Usually, it's his mom that watches Clinton if I want to do something with the girls. It should be fun!

So, now onto showing some of my new cards I've done the past few days. First, my first 3 Queen Kat Designs cards! Yes, I wanna share all 3 at once! I am having so much fun with these! 2 out of the 3 are no layer cards because these stamps are sooooo easy to use! Love the designs! Without further ado.....

STAMPS- Let's Party (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- white CS
INK- Brilliance black
OTHER- Copic markers, push pin, stickles

STAMPS- Huggy Monster (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- white CS, red CS
INK- Pretty in Pink, Positively Pink, Brilliance black
OTHER- Prismacolor brown pencil, OMS, pop dots

STAMPS- Let's Party (Queen Kat Designs)
PAPER- Rock Star Stack (DCWV)
INK- Stazon jet black, Cool Caribbean
OTHER- ribbon

Well, there you have it! I'll be back tomorrow with some Tea Party Valentines!! Hope you enjoyed these cards!

Stay Warm!!!!

Queen Kat Candy!

2008-02-09T09:49:00.001-06:00

Just wanted to pop in and let you guys know that Vicki over at the Queen Kat Designs blog is doing a Valentine set give away! All you have to do is leave a comment telling her who sent you over {me}. Plus, you'll wanna see the tease for her last minute CHA set she will be selling! Run! Go leave a comment here!!

Oh, and I will have *at least* one Queen Kat Designs card to show tomorrow! I finally got my stamps and I am super excited!!!

Starving Artistamps Thursday

2008-02-07T08:06:00.000-06:00

I am a Zombie right now. The kids are coughing and Clinton keeps waking up crying. I think on top of his cough he has an ear infection so I'll need to take him to the doc. So, I am going to keep this short and sweet.I got my new batch of Starving Artistamps rubber a few days ago so I have been having fun with those! Here are a few....

For this one I stamped the tree in Chestnut Roan and then took my pink Souffle pen and added the flower buds.

STAMPS- Tree P14.11, Grass P14.09, Ornate Tooled Leather BG (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip, Pretty in Pink
INK- Colorbox Chestnut Roan, Certainly Celery, Versamark
OTHER- Word Window punch, pink Souffle pen, brads, pop dots

I love the heart from the scalloped ornamentals set! It's so easy to use!

STAMPS- Scalloped Ornamentals (set of 3), I love you madly 42.16, Medium stitch set (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Cool Caribbean, red
INK- Stazon Jet Black, Versamark
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, ribbon, pop dots

I'll have a few more to share tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by today!! Don't forget to check this post for your 10% off code for Starving Artistamps!!

A little of this, a little of that!

2008-02-05T09:37:00.000-06:00

I know you all are dying to know how my weekend went!! Even if you weren't, I'm gonna tell you anyway! We had such a good time!!!!! I am really looking forward to going back in the future. Maybe by then we'll have friends, so we can go with other people {grin}. Anyway, we got there and went straight to the room and ordered room service. Wow! It was fantastic! That was some of the best Fettuccine Alfredo I've ever had! Then we went downstairs and lost some money on the Video Poker slots (I hate slots but agreed to play because at least I felt I had some control of the outcome). After that I played some Black Jack but lost on that too. So, by the end of the night I had lost about *don't freak* $200. However, the second day was way better for me!! I won $200 on the Video Poker slots and IMMEDIATELY walked away! Went over to the Roulette table cause Joe said "Go to the Roulette table." {now mind you he played live poker tables 90% of the time} So, I go to the Roulette table and play the same # over and over again until I lose $100. Yep, that stunk, so I walked around a while and decided to try again, only my way and not the way Joe said I should. I took my $60 I had left and wished on a star! It had went up to $10 minimum from $5 so I picked 5 numbers and put $2 on each, and won. Over and over again. I ended up cashing out at almost $300 I think. Then the next day I did Roulette again and played for about 3 hours and turned $100 into $500, however I lost about $160 before I cashed out. Gotta know when to quit I guess. My thoughts were, Joe will be playing poker for 4 hours so I might as well sit here and keep playing.

So, all in all I was $250 up from what I started with. Joe on the other hand, well, didn't do as well as I did. We had lots of fun though and that was the point of the weekend. Thanks for listening to me ramble!!

Now I need to address the Queen Kat Designs blog party I *started* to host. I found out that Pooka wasn't so sick and she was actually doing the party so I decided not to double up especially since we were going to be gone for the weekend. However, I was a bad bad blogger and didn't say that before I left. So, my apologies! Nicole, from Collections from My Journey, you will be getting something from me for playing along so expect an email from me!

Now, last and most exciting!!!! Lookie Lookie, I got Hookie! Okay, maybe not. Just happened to have a 90's flashback to Robin William's 'Hook'. BUT! Lookie what Starving Artistamps just released! The first is this rockin' Large Silhouette Flowers sheet

And also the Tulips and Orchids!!

You can get them by the sheet or individually.

And even better!!! If you use my code heidis you get 10% off any order you place!!! Can't beat that can ya!? I will be making another mini post with this code in it along with the details so I can link it to a button on the side so you can always check back if you forget the code!!

Well, I got new rubber and it just can't sit there all by it's lonesome! Have a fantastic day!!

Starving Artistamps 10% discount

2008-02-05T09:36:00.000-06:00

So you wanna get a Starving Artistamps 10% discount huh? Just make sure you follow the directions below!

Heidis <======code Enter this code in the discount code box in the shopping cart to get 10% off your next new website order. Once you enter the code, click recalculate. You should see the discount come up. If you do not see the discount applied immediately, stop and contact us at strvingartistmp@aol.com Do not finalize your order or your card will be charged the amount shown. This discount can not be combined with any other offer.

Shop away!!!!!!

QKD Blog Party! Wow!

2008-01-31T10:21:00.000-06:00

Okay, so if I am a bit skitzy please forgive me but Vicki from Queen Kat Designs JUST emailed me and asked if I could fill in for a sick DT member (feel better Pooka) for the last leg of their blog party that has been going on for a month now. Each DT member has taken a 3 day turn at posting 1 challenge each day and then choosing a winner at the very end of the 3 days that will get an limited edition QKD stamp set! Would you like to see what you could play to win?!

How sweet is that!? Alright, so for those of you that have been following the QKD crew all month, you know the rules. For those of you that are just joining and would like to play along, here is what you need to know:

1} I will host a challenge for today, Friday, and Saturday with one entry allowed from each reader per day. You will need to leave a comment here with a link to you creation or if you don't have an album or blog to upload to, you may email me at pea_pods_mom@yahoo.com

2} For each challenge you complete, you will get one entry. The party will end on Saturday night at 11:59 EST so make sure you have all of your entries in and have left a post here for me by then. On Sunday I will put all of the entries in and draw a name to win the rockin' Valentine set!

3} You DO NOT have to use Queen Kat Designs stamps. Of course it is encouraged, but even I myself don't have my sets yet!

4} Have fun and be creative! I can't wait to see what you have to share!

So, I decided for today to go with a sketch challenge I whipped up myself in like 10.5 seconds so I decided to make a sample to go along with it. Now, show me what you've got!!

Thanks for stopping by and make sure to stop back tomorrow for a different challenge!!

We have a winner!

2008-01-31T09:41:00.000-06:00

Dum-da-da-dum-da-dum!!!! The winner of the uber cool stamps sets from Queen Kat Designs shown here is.........

AMY S!!!! {post #12}

Congrats! Email me {pea_pods_mom@yahoo.com} with your snail mail so I can get everything in order to get your sets to you!

Last week I got a package from Tracey at Starving Artistamps that has different Red Castle images inside along with textured paper and new Prima mulberry flowers. I was pretty excited to say the least and this was one of the first of 6 so far that I have done. The bird is from the Canary sheet. I did an article on the Stacy and Friends: 40 Techniques for Card Making for Craft Critique and I had forgotten (and always seem to forget) about the bleach technique. So, that's what I did with this one. Hope you like it!!!

STAMPS- Canary (Red Castle), 42-02 The Best Thing (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- kraft, textured green
INK- Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- bleach, sewing machine, Prima mulberry flowers, black brad

Thank you kindly for stopping by today!

Tea Par-tay! Hey! Hey!

2008-01-30T11:16:00.001-06:00

Okay, so don't ask why I chose that title for today's post. I guess I'm just in a goofy mood. Plus, I haven't eaten yet so I could be a bit delirious.

Since all of the Smart Cookies (smARTworks DT members) have all taken a turn with the sketches, we decided to change things up a bit this time around. It will be kind of a free for all for who ever's week it is. This week Dina from Mama Dini's Stamperia challenged us to do a Matchbook card. This was a first for me. I think all of the different card shapes are neat but I never seem to actually try them. I am so glad I did though! I really love how this turned out! Thanks for the kick in the pants Dina!

STAMPS- Dk-04 Birdie Fun (smARTworks)
PAPER- MME
INK- Pumpkin Pie
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, slit punch, Cropadile, eyelets, ribbon, Primas, white brads

Make sure you check the rest of the Smart Cookie blogs throughout the day to see what they came up with. You're welcome to play along too! I dare ya!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

Also, don't forget to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win 2 Queen Kat Designs sets! I'll be drawing tomorrow at noon! See ya then!

Sweet Baby

2008-01-29T07:30:00.000-06:00

First off, I want to say thanks to all of those who have left comments to far!! It's great to hear about the designs to wanna see out there!!

Secondly, only 3 more days till my mini vacay!!! Yay me!

Thirdly, I have a card to share! One of Joe's friends at work asked if we had any baby stuff to give his niece because she is close to delivering and they don't have anything. Her mom just recently died and it has been really hard on her (the girl is my age) plus she and her husband don't have the most *ideal* jobs. I was so happy to help! I sent a Pack and Play, bouncy seat, johnny jump up, high chair, and tons of clothes (thank goodness she is having a boy!) along with him. My sisters and friends have helped me out so much with passing clothes and toys down that it was nice to be able to do the same for someone else!

Anyhoo, I made her this card to send with the stuff and just told her a few things about what I sent. I swear, every time I need a baby card I ALWAYS reach for the Special Delivery TAC set! It is the cutest baby set I have ever seen! I just love this tiny baby in a pod! So, here is my easy peasy 4 1/4 x 4 1/4 card.

STAMPS- Special Delivery (TAC), 1/8 inch Snap Stamps (Karen Foster)
PAPER- Bashful Blue CS, I *think* this is Paper Studio paper. Somehow I always cut off the piece that has the name on it!
INK- Palette Hybrid Noir
OTHER- Nestabilities oval and scalloped oval dies, Word Window punch, Copic markers, Prismacolors and OMS, ribbon, pop dots

If you haven't already, be sure to comment on this post to win 2 free Queen Kat Designs stamp sets!!

Thanks for stopping and have a great day! Don't forget to come back tomorrow for the bi weekly Tea Party smARTworks challenge!

Big News! And Blog Candy too!!

2008-01-27T19:47:00.000-06:00

I have some exciting news in my neck of the woods!! I am now a proud member of the Queen Kat Designs design team! I am so excited to be working with Vicki and the rest of the QKD team! They have welcomed me so nicely too! Thanks guys! You need to stop in and see the awesome sets she has and she also sells *super cute* monthly kits too!

So, in celebration, I want to put a few of their sets up for grabs!! All you have to do is leave a comment telling me what stamp(s) you'd like to see on the market that you can't seem to find. Like for instance, I'd like to see a guitar! Not a real looking guitar but maybe a simple line guitar or maybe a few different styles of guitars. I mean really, how popular is rock star stuff right now?! It's as simple as that! Fill me in and you could win TWO free sets!! I will draw a random name on Thursday at Noon so make sure you come back to see if you won!

**If you are not a regular to my blog (are you crazy!? lol) and you sign up for the blog candy it's a good idea to either make a note to yourself for the day I will draw or bookmark my page to check back! There have been times in the past where I had to re-draw because I did not hear back from the winner! I want you guys to get your goods!**

You must be a US or Canada resident to be able to be entered. Sorry international readers!

Well, don't you wanna see what you will win!?!

Happy Skullz and

Paisley

Too cute huh?! I can't wait to get mine! Well, good luck and please post a link to here on your blog if you'd like! The more the merrier!

Have a great Monday!

Inque-ing it up!

2008-01-27T10:45:00.000-06:00

I am in love with my Inque Botique stamps and I had been so busy lately that it had been awhile since I had gotten to use them. Last week I made sure I did though and this is what came out of it. I really really love this card!!! I have no clue who I am going to send it to or maybe I won't. Maybe it will be one of those cards you like so much that you keep it on your scrap shelf or in your card basket just to look at it every once in a while to remind yourself that you can make really cool cards.

STAMPS- Mini Birdi, Petals (Inque Botique)
PAPER- Dasher DP (Basic Grey), kraft CS
INK- Chocolate Chip, Walnut Distress Ink
OTHER- PearlEx (for bird), Cuttlebug square dot embossing folder, scalloped edge scissors, pop dots

I am soooo excited! Joe and I are getting to go away for the weekend! Its his birthday on Friday and for the past 2 years I have had a party for him at our house with his friends and a few of my sisters, but this year I wanted to take him somewhere. I really wanted to take him to Vegas but tickets alone were close to $500! Whew, maybe for our 10 year anniversary or something. So, I figured I would take him to a casino that's over on the Ohio river about an hour and a half away. He was happy that I had planned it and decided what we were doing. I am just looking forward to 1 on 1 time with him. We are leaving Friday evening and coming back Sunday evening so we won't be gone long but it will be fun!

Well, I'll be back tomorrow, hopefully with an exciting announcement!!! No, I'm not pregnant, lol.

My Funny Valentine

2008-01-25T07:52:00.000-06:00

Hello there! Hope everyone is doing well! I swear I really need to get better at posting regularly! Sometimes I just don't have the time to type it up. That's my biggest problem. I think I need a program that will type what I say. I'm sure they are out there and I know how lazy that sounds on my part, but I can fold laundry and talk at the same time.

Joe had to go to the dentist to have 2 teeth pulled on Monday and he was alright when he got home. However, that quickly changed. He started feeling dizzy and sick to his stomach so I started him a bath and told him to go relax. He was in there for almost 2 hours and I was just walking out of the kids' room from putting them to bed when he called my name. He was sitting in the middle of the stairs (our bathroom is right at the top of the stairs) telling me he thought he was going to get sick. So, in true mom fashion I ran and got a cold washcloth and a bag so I wouldn't have to clean puke off my stairs. I held the washcloth on his head for a minute or two and he said he just wanted to make it to the couch to lay down. "Take it slow" I say as he is sliding down the stairs on his butt so he doesn't have to get up. Well, he makes it a few steps until he PASSES OUT! Yep, falls straight forward onto me, trying to catch him. He is twice my size but somehow I managed to catch him and avoid him hitting his head on the doorway. He was only out about 5 seconds but that was long enough to scare the crap out of me. I laid with him on the floor for a while until he got enough energy to get to the couch. When he got to the couch, I slept on the coffee table pushed up against the couch so he could be close to me. Although I would do anything for him, my left hip was screaming never again! LOL Anyway, his mom had told me before he never did well with loosing blood and he would always pass out which made me realize that up until now I had never seen him loose any! He really didn't bleed all that much but it was enough for him! He is doing just fine now and feels a lot better now that his wisdom tooth is pulled. Well, that is until he has to get the other 2 cut out by an oral surgeon. Yow!

I would like to move on now and get to my Valentine's that I have been making lately. I am going to share them all right now because I have several other cards that I haven't even shared yet so I really need to catch up. Plus, I just got some new stamps to play with from Starving Artistamps so I will be working on those too.

My first 2 are Doodle Factory ones {which I completely *love*}.

I used Blox the piggy to make this non traditional colored Valentine. I was trying to think of a cute sentiment when this popped into my head. I love it! Valenswine, LOL.

STAMPS- Blox (Doodle Factory), Small Alpha (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- It's old paper but I think it's Chatterbox, possibly Making Memories
INK- Palette Hybrid Noir, Colorbox Chestnut Roan
OTHER- Sakura white Souffle pen (for dots on brads), Copic markers, ribbon, scalloped edge scissors, brads, push pin, pop dots

This one was done using the DF Valentine set. It's hard to tell by the picture but I have a black mat under the white card and it's even all the way around.

STAMPS- Doodle Factory Valentine set (found at Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- black CS
INK- Stazon jet black, Colorbox Warm Red
OTHER- pink Copic marker, ribbon, sponge, stickles

When Nicole Heady released her new set called 'Out on a Limb' I fell in love with it but thought I should try to do more with the Take a Bough one that I already have. This is what I came up with. I had to look through my whole stamp collection to find a heart that fit well with it and finally ended up using one from my Inque Botique stash.

STAMPS- Take a Bough and Paper Tray (Paper Trey Ink), Mini Calendar *heart* (Inque Botique)
PAPER- Paper Trey white
INK- Colorbox Chestnut Roan and Warm Red
OTHER- ribbon

And lastly (and least impressive), my take on Julee Tillman's Mojo Monday sketch from last week. Never got a chance to enter it though. I'm pretty iffy on this card. I don't think I should have added the stickles to the black CS.

STAMPS- Awesome (Inque Botique)
PAPER- Only Orange CS, black CS, KI Memories DP
INK- Versamark
OTHER- pink chalk, rhinestones, eyelets, stickles, Cuttlebug embossing folder

Well, I'm off to the grocery now! I don't really want to go out in this cold but I avoided it yesterday because of the 12 degree temp, but how long can you last without bread and milk, really? Hmmmm, I just checked the temp right now and it's 8. Maybe I'll wait a few more hours! Have a great day!

Tea Party Wednesday!

2008-01-16T17:38:00.000-06:00

So, for the second week in a row I am a day late for the Tea Party! This time though I was sparing you from the hideous picture I had to take of this weeks card! I had my card made on Tuesday and was all ready to take pics and post on Wednesday morning but hubby ended up taking the day off and had to have an emergency visit to the Dentist so that threw off my day a tad. Ended up taking care of him most of the day and then last night when I went to take the picture and post I realized my battery was dead on my camera. AAAAGGHH! So, I tried to take a picture with my small Sony, which normally takes perfectly fine pictures, but not so much at night, with a close up, using flash. Anyhow, I couldn't bear to share the hideous picture so I waited till this morning when my battery was fully charged. So, here it is.

Trish provided the sketch this week and I figured out that I need more smARTworks stamps! LOL I didn't have a whole lot of stamps that fit this sketch except for Christmas ones. Therefore, I decided that I need to order a few more sets! Now, I just have to decide which ones to get!

STAMPS- Spring #1, Middie Messages #2 (smARTworks)
PAPER- MME Wild Asparagus DP, Baroque Burgundy CS
INK- Palette Hybrid Noir, Tim Holtz Walnut ink (with sponge)
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, Word Window punch, Copic markers, sponge, pop dots

If you want to check out what everyone else did for the sketch then just hop on over to their blogs and see! We have something different in store for you for our next Tea Party so be looking forward to that!!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

I'm getting ready to make a post over on my Photography blog as soon as I get off here so if you have a minute, go check it out here! Have a great day!!

Happy Monday!

2008-01-07T08:46:00.001-06:00

Well hello everyone and happy Monday! I know Monday isn't always the most looked forward to day of the week but it's a nice day here in Ohio! It's 60 right now with a high of 64! It will be 60 again tomorrow too. Now, if it would only stay that way! At least the kids will be able to play out a bit.

So, I have a question for you guys. What die cut machine do you have and how well do you like them? I have my article running on Craft Critique today about the love for my Sizzix. It got me thinking though if everyone else is as passionate about their own machine like I am. So, leave a comment and tell me what you think.

Also, I am trying to get things lined up for specific days of the week on here. I enjoyed doing it before but things just got so hectic around here. I think that I am in a good position now to do that. I have my own laptop now so I don't have to keep running back and forth between computers. That is such a help! Anyway, I am thinking a Nestabilities day, a Super Simple Day, a smARTworks day, possibly a Starving Artistamps day, or maybe sketch day. I don't want to fill the whole week up, just 2-3 days so I can challenge myself and possibly others. So, if you have any input please share!

Both of these next cards are made with Nestabilities. I was having a hard time thinking of what I could use the tiny rectangles for but once I pulled these ornaments out they worked perfectlt. And yes, I know Christmas is over but I didn't get the dies till after Christmas so I had to try them out with whatever I had on my desk!

STAMPS- Ornate tooled leather background, Ornaments 45.08 (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- Real Red, green CS
INK- Palette Hybrid Nior, Versamagic Cloud White
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, Cuttlebug Swirls embossing folder, ZIG markers, Sakura Stardust pen, pop dots

This one is a set of 8 I made for my momma. As soon as I saw this stamp I thought of her. She is always joking about being a queen. But the truth is, I think she is! Size is 4 1/4 x 4 1/4.

STAMPS- Just the Queen (American Art Stamp)
PAPER- pink CS, black CS
INK- Palette Hybrid Nior
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, Cuttlebug Circles embossing folder, Copic markers, Sakura Stardust pen

Well, thanks for stopping by and everyone enjoy their Monday!!!!

New Nestabilities

2008-01-04T08:09:00.000-06:00

So, as I mentioned on Wednesday, I got new Nestabilities from my In-Laws. Woo-Hoo! The cards I have to share for the next few posts will most likely have scalloped edges with some embossing! Those things are so amazing though, really! I was telling hubby how I'd like to have the circle and square set too. We'll see! By the way, we are going to look at a house tomorrow. First one ever. I am nervous and excited all at the same time. We all would love a place of our own but I just get scared to death of being in debt like that. It's bad enough that we are still paying on Joe's school and will be for a long while still. But, at least when we pay monthly it would actually be going towards something if we got a house. Anyway, if it's meant to be right now then it's meant to be!

Well, onto the cards. I made this one in the Perfect Plum and liked it to much that I wanted to do it in different colors. In the end the Brocade Blue ended up being my favorite.

STAMPS- Blossoms Abound (SU), Paper Tray (Paper Trey Ink)
PAPER- Perfect Plum, Brocade Blue, Positively Pink (yes, I still have this color!)
INK- Perfect Plum, Brocade Blue, Positively Pink, Stazon Jet Black
OTHER- Nestabilities rectangle and scalloped rectangle dies, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Pearl Ex

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope everyone has a good weekend! It's like 20 degrees out right now but I hear it's supposed to be 50 next week. Let's see how that goes!

Late for Tea!!!

2008-01-02T09:04:00.000-06:00

How was everyone's Christmas? Ours was great!! We had lots of family time together and enjoyed every minute of it! Joe only got Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off so the time we did have was precious. It was a blast watching the kids open their gifts and this year I actually got to open some!! Joe is not a gift giver. He is the kind of guy that says "Get what you want." Which is okay with me sometimes. Sometimes being the key word. The last time be bought be something for Christmas was right after we got married and I'm not sure if he has ever wrapped anything. Well, this year I was out shopping with his mom when he called me and told me he had to work over. We continued shopping for what we needed and I got home and was cleaning and whatnot when he got home an hour early. He works in a shop so when he works over he has to work over 4 hours. Anyway, he brought bags into the house, grabbed the wrapping paper and tape, went into the kids' room and spent 2 hours wrapping everything up (granted, it took him that long because the kids helped!). You should have seen the smile on my face!!!! He even went upstairs into the Christmas tote, got my stocking out, and hung it up by everyone else's. He did a great job with the presents too! I got new pink Cutterbee scissors, a Hot Marks kit (which I am still trying to figure out, so if anyone has any tips!), new paint brushes, the Photoshop CS Bible (this book is huge!), along with lots of other goodies! I almost cried! I told him that now I am going to expect it every year! He is a good hubby and I love him no matter what he buys or doesn't buy me but this was a really special Christmas!

Sorry I got so long winded! I was just excited! I also got Nestabilities from my fabulous in laws!!! Wow, they love me! I got the complete oval and rectangle sets. She got them from www.ucutathome.com with the 40% off coupon for each. I haven't stopped using them since!! All the cards you will see tomorrow will have a Nestability die on them!

Clinton turned 2 on the 26th! He is so precious! Mamaw and Papaw got him the big Imaginext Dinosaur and the two smaller ones that stomp. He freaked out! In a bad way. He always plays with them at the store but once they were stomping towards him and getting so close he was not happy! Trink (MIL) got it on video and if it's good enough I might actually send it to America's Funniest Videos.

Okay, onto the Tea Party. I am a day late but yesterday got way more hectic than I had planned. But I'm here now and that's what matters, right? It was my turn to do the sketch this time around. I think I will make some more cards with this one too. This one came together very quickly and I finally got a chance to use my Rock Star paper again!! Yay me!

Here was my sketch:

And here is my card:

STAMPS- WD-89 Kings, DK-01 Combo Sentiments (smARTworks)
PAPER- DCWV Rock Star stack, Positively Pink CS
INK- Tim Holtz Walnut Ink
OTHER- Sakura Stardust gel pen, rhinestones, sponge

If you'd like to play along just post a link here and show us what you've got! Also, check out what the other ladies did with my sketch!
In the Works.....smARTworks
Mama Dini's Stamperia
Tah Dah!
SusieStampsAlot
Dee's Studio

By the way, I will be updating my Sweet Life photography blog today or tomorrow too. I have gotten requests to share more things and it's about time I did! Be sure to check in!

Have a great day! Stay warm!

About me....

2007-12-18T10:13:00.000-06:00

Carole Burrage tagged me on her blog to share 7 things about myself. I have done this before but it's been a while ago so I will do it again.

1. I love my steak Medium Rare. I used to eat it Rare but I have found it tastes better at least warm!
2. I have a mole on my eyelid exactly where my dad had one and one of my sisters has one in the same spot too.
3. I tend to procrastinate. Then again, you guys might already know that about me!
4. I can't have Christmas without listening to Roger Whittaker. I'm serious. I had to have my sister burn me both his Christmas CD's and send them to me because my originals got damaged.
5. I just bought 'The Best of Air Supply' and I haven't taken it out of my van since. Love them!
6. I took 3 years of Spanish in school and can still hold a small conversation in Spanish.
7. My favorite sandwich is Bologna on soft wheat bread with Miracle Whip, American cheese, lettuce, and Doritos.

So, there you go. A peek into what makes me, well, me!

I am the master........of disaster.

2007-12-18T08:01:00.000-06:00

Hey guys! When coming up with my post title all I had to do was look at my stamp area. What a mess! I have been stamping and stacking and scooting and pushing things around to finish up all of the Christmas stuff I have needed to get done. And by the way, I'm still not done with tags for my hot chocolate bags or the labels for the cookies and muffins I haven't made yet. No worries! I work better under pressure! Who needs sleep anyway!

I wrote up my top 5 favorite blogs over on Craft Critique yesterday and let me tell you, it was REALLY hard to choose! I think I did a good job though at showcasing the ones I really love and if I was able to do a top 15 that would have been even better! Heather shared a link that I wanted to post here that I thought was pretty cool. SheetLoad of Cards is a blog that has a monthly free ezine for card layouts. Their motto is 'Our goal is to increase your card stash using one layout, a few sheets of paper, and a short amount of time.' Sounds good to me! Anyway, it's definitely worth checking out!

Okay, so I have finished quite a few cards since I posted last and they are all Christmas ones soooooo I am going to post quite a few today. I will save a few for a few days from now but since it's so close to Christmas I'm probably going to pack them all into a few posts. We'll start with the penguin ones. These guys are just so cute! I colored them all with Prismacolors and OMS and then outlined them with my Copic B21 Baby Blue marker. Then of course you've gotta add glitter and rhinestones!

STAMPS- Penguin Games (Stampendous), Merry Christmas (Studio G)
PAPER- Rob and Bob Studios Christmas Stack (last years), black CS, Certainly Celery CS
INK- Palette Hybrid Nior
OTHER- Snowflake brads (JoAnn's), rhinestones, glitter, snowflake button, ribbon

Well, I need to get back to the Photo Story (slideshow with music) I'm making for hubby's grandparents. Still have quite a bit to do. If any of you guys are interested you can go to the Microsoft website and search 'Photo Story 3' and it will bring up a post to let you download it for free. I used it 2 years ago when I did one for my dad's memorial and I had to pay $30 for it but now it is free. I like it and it really does make a special gift. If you decide to try it out and have any questions then feel free to email me and I can help you out as best I can.

Hope you all have a great day! I'll be back tomorrow (trust me, I'm gonna type my entry up tonight while I'm snuggling on the couch with Joe!).

Super Simple Friday

2007-12-07T09:03:00.000-06:00

Good morning all! I got a few minutes to make a few cards yesterday for my own Christmas card stash! Woo-Hoo! Now, only 50 more to go! LOL I'm not panicking yet. Yet is the key word though! I have a feeling the majority of them will be 'super simple' which is fine with me because I really like simple designs. AND with the fabu stamps I have it makes cards like that easy peasy! So, without further ado, here are my super simple cards for today.

The birdies are back! These guys don't want me to put them down and that is fine by me! I love these guys! This card seems so Mod to me but I think it totally rocks if I do say so myself! I stamped the birdies and sentiment with Colorbox chalk ink and then outlined it all with my *must have* gray Copic marker. Glue on some rhinestones and Viola! Done! Took me all of about 3 minutes to do!

STAMPS- DK-04 Birdie Fun (smARTworks), Happy Holidays ($1 stamp from Michael's)
PAPER- Paper Trey white CS
INK- Colorbox chalk Warm Red and Olive Pastel
OTHER- Copic gray marker; rhinestones

You also can't go wrong with Paper Trey for a classy card! These ornaments from the Take a Bough set are soooooo easy to work with! Nichole Heady is pure genius! Plus my shipments always come super fast cause the warehouse is only about an hour away. Hmmmm, I wonder if they give tours.......

STAMPS- Take a Bough (Paper Trey)
PAPER- Paper Trey white CS
INK- Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Positively Pink, Going Gray classic inks (SU)
OTHER- ribbon

Oh, and I HAVE to share is extra cool-super proud-amazingly awesome picture with you that I took yesterday. I LOVE my macro lens!!!!! Here are snowflakes.....

Keep warm everyone!!

Tea to warm you up!

2007-12-05T09:56:00.000-06:00

So, it's smARTworks Tea Party time again! Time to share all of our cards we made using a sketch that is provided by one of the team members. This time around Susan Liles gave us the sketch. When I first looked at it nothing struck me, but in true Heidi style (waiting till the last minute that is!) I was able to use my brand new rubber from smARTworks that came in the mail yesterday. Everything I ordered was from the supplement that just came out and I was so happy with what I got! I started cutting out this morning and putting my Tombow glue on the back to make them tacky. I know I am on the DT so it's kinda my job to persuade you to want to buy them but I don't think these really need much persuading!!! For the Combo Sentiments set (designed by the great Dina Kowal of Mama Dini's Stamperia herself!) you cannot beat the price at 25 stamps for $13.50. Then you have the Combo Companion set that goes perfectly with it for $7.50. Here and here are the links that you just have to check out!!!

Anyway, rambling done. Here is the sketch:

And here is my fantabulous card! And bling-y too!

STAMPS- DK-01 Combo Sentiments (brackets), DK-02 Combo Companion(merry), DK-04 Birdie Fun (smARTworks)
PAPER- Cranberry Crisp CS, BasicGrey 'Fruitcake' DP
INK- Old Olive, Cranberry Crisp
OTHER- Crop-a-dile, large eyelets, Slit punch, rhinestones, ribbon, Stickles, pop dots

If you wanna check out everyone else's version of this sketch just click their links:
Donna
Susan L
Dina
Trish
Susan T

Well, we got our first official snow of the winter last night and it's still going this morning. I might try and get a few pics when it slows down later. Hope all of you stay warm and comfy!!! Be back tomorrow!

Christmas is Creeping

2007-12-03T11:10:00.001-06:00

Wow! December 3rd already! Christmas is creeping up and before you know it we'll be opening presents by the tree, or at least the kids will! I better get my booty in gear! I have soooo much to do and not a whole lot of time to do it in! Thank goodness I have been done shopping for the kids for over a week already! It's weird though. I don't feel super Christmas-y yet. Maybe it's because I have already done all of the shopping. Maybe wrapping will get me in the mood!

Anyway, I want to share some holiday cards with you done with Starving Artistamps rubber. When I got this holly berry and leaf I was really excited to use it and I must say that I am very happy with my creations!

First is my super simple one layer card. I made a mask for the holly leaf and stamped each 'stem' with 2 leaves and 3 berries all over the front, distressed the edges, added a ribbon, and used my alphabet stamps for 'comfort and joy'. Easy peasy lemon squeezey!

STAMPS- holly leaf and berry 45.11, alphabet 41.02 (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- kraft CS
INK- Versamagic Cloud White, Colorbox Chestnut Roan
OTHER- ribbon, edge distresser

Now I am quite particular, but I love this one! The idea for the ribbon just kind of slapped me in the face as I was cutting out the holly leaves. I wasn't even planning on doing it. Don't ya just love surprises!? All I did was take a longer piece of red ribbon, fold it in half, and tie a normal knot in the middle. Then, I cut 2 small slits in the kraft CS (big enough for the ribbon to go through) and then slipped the ribbon through the slits and taped it on the back side so it wouldn't budge. Cool huh?

STAMPS- holly leaf and berry 45.11 (Starving Artistamps)
PAPER- red, kraft CS
INK- Colorbox Olive Pastel
OTHER- ribbon, scoring blade, craft knife, pop dots

Well, thanks for stopping by today! Stay warm! It's super chilly here!

P.S. No one guessed the sister-in-law right on my last entry. It was Mandy. Thanks for trying though!!

Horse Crazy

2007-11-28T07:28:00.000-06:00

Well, my Thanksgiving was nice! And I only picked up a few things on Black Friday because a. I was mostly done and b. Joe ended up working so I couldn't go early like I usually do. So, that meant that pretty much everything that was on my list was gone by the time I got there. Oh well, I'm not too upset about it, everyone will be having pretty good sales up until Christmas anyway. Saturday I tried to organize the house a little and finish putting together my gifts for the annual Sister Dinner my mom, sisters, and I have. I bought everything but the hot cocoa cone that I put in their box. Those were really fun to make (I absolutely LOVE the tag I made for it!) but man, that stuff is not cheap! I used a recipe that called for powdered milk, flavored creamer, Nesquick, powdered sugar, and a few other things. Maybe next time I should just go to Sam's and buy a big can of regular hot chocolate, LOL. Nah, I tried it and it tasted pretty darn good! I will be making those to put in the baskets for Christmas gifts this year. Anyway, Sunday morning came and I had to be up, ready, and out of here by 9:15 because my mom and sister went together this year to buy us all tickets for 'White Christmas' at a local theatre. I really enjoyed it. It wasn't a lot like the movie, which is normal for stage productions but there was a lot of dancing and singing and it was very fun to watch! Plus we were right next to the stage so that was fun! It made me miss the plays I was always in in High School. My Senior year I played Lily in Annie. Remember her? Dumb blonde that only wants money? For some reason my teacher thought I fit that part perfectly. LOL! So, we got out of there, exchanged our gifts, and then I had to drive home in the rain while it was dark. Not fun. I am not a fan of driving at night. My throat started hurting that night and the next morning I felt like a big pile of poo. My whole body hurt, I was tired, had a headache, you know, all the fun stuff! I felt a little better yesterday but still had a sore throat and was tired. I woke up this morning feeling much better and ready to get back on the bloggin wagon!

Ange, Ape, Mis, Nik, Me, Hol, and Mandy (mom took the pic so she isn't in it)

*Little Challenge, if you can pick out which gal is the sister-in-law, I will send you some happy mail!* Family members can't play this one! lol

Singing "Which one of these things is not like the other? Which one of these things is not the same?"

I made some cards with Starving Artistamps rubber that was a bit of a challenge for me. She asked us to do rush batches for a show and I recieved horse stamps. At firt I kind of panicked but once I started playing with them I kind of let the stamps do the talking. Not being that much of a horse person, its really hard to get into that mental state. My niece and cousin's lives revolve a lot around horses which is awesome but it seems like you are either really into them or not at all. That being said I will share my favorite creation from all the horse cards I made. And go figure, the horses are PINK!

{THIS PHOTO HAD TO BE REMOVED}

6012-B, 6012-C (horses), Medium stitch set, 6012 (sentiment), ornate tooled leather background stamp sets (Starving Artistamps)
Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa CS
Versamark, Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink inks
Cuttlebug flower die
brown felt
rhinestone brad

I tried and tried to find a glue pad to use with my flocking but nada! The essential glue pad wouldn't have gotten here in time (not that it mattered in the end because I mixed up labels on packages and she didn't get it in time anyway! I'm such an idiot!) and the Pallete glue pad just sucks the whole way around! I cannot get that thing to work any way I try it. Heat, no heat, extra glue from their re-inker bottle. I just want to throw it away for taking up space. Can anyone tell me what I might be doing wrong? Maybe I am too late for help. That is very likely!

Well, I should be back tomorrow with a card made with the new pregnant lady image from Artful Inkables (via SA). She is so pretty! I really like this one!

So, hope all of you had a great Thansgiving!!! Now, go put up your Christmas tree!

Yet another Tea Party

2007-11-21T11:54:00.000-06:00

I am going to ignore the fact that I haven't posted in a while and just act like I posted yesterday!!

It's the smARTworks Tea Party Wednesday again! I really enjoy doing these sketches and the sketch today was provided by the smARTworks owner, Susan Trask.

Birthday Dreams WD-180 stamp (smARTworks)
Cosmo Cricket 'Dutch Girl' DP
black, white CS
Palette Nior ink
Cuttlebug flowers die
red felt
brads, ribbon, pop dots

Make sure you check out what the other Cookies did with this sketch! And if you'd like to play along, we'd love to see!
Donna
Susan L
Dina
Trish
Susan T

I have lots of cards to share so hopefully I will be able to share a few a day for a week or so. I'm planning on that!!

Now, I am off to clean up the rest of our computer/stamp room because it just might become our bedroom as well! Right now we have the kids in a bedroom upstairs but we might move them downstairs for the winter since fuel oil is going to be 40% higher this year than last. Just don't know if we can swing a $1,600 heating bill for the winter (electric bill not included). I think we are going to move my big metal rack out along with a few small things and put our bed in the corner. If we do that then the kids will move into our bedroom which stays warmer than any other room in the house. We are getting Clinton a race car bed for Christmas (used of course, those things are $400 new!) and hopefully everything will fit in that room okay. We're keeping our fingers crossed!

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful Turkey day!!! Oh, and don't get trampled shopping for those deals on Friday!! Stay safe!!!!!

*One more thing to add. My article on glitter re-inker ornaments ran on Craft Critique yesterday so check it out if you want the tutorial!*

Tea Party, smARTworks style!

2007-11-07T09:09:00.000-06:00

Well, it's Wednesday and we all know what that means! No, I'm not talking about America's Next Top Model. It's Tea Party time!! I can't believe it's been two weeks since our last party! Time is flying!! This week Donna provided the sketch for us!

We were supposed to do something 'different' with the strips in the background. I do realize that ribbon isn't that creative but I thought it went nicely with the paper and image. Kind of 'lightened' up the card.

CMS-11 Old St. Nick stamp set (smARTworks)
Make it Possible 'Holiday Wishes' paper stack
Colorbox Warm Red, Olive Pastel chalk inks
ribbon
pop dots

If you'd like to play along we'd love to see your work! Put a link to your card here or on any of the other DT members' blogs! If you need some inspiration, just check out theirs sometime today!
Donna
Susan L
Dina
Trish
Susan T

Thanks for stopping in!! I made a few more cards with my Take a Bough set from Paper Trey! I'll share those tomorrow!! Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Candy Winner!

2007-11-07T09:00:00.000-06:00

Sorry I didn't get back to you guys yesterday! I put the numbers 1-38 into the random number generator at 12:30 yesterday and it gave me #30! Starqueen, you are the wiener, I mean winner. {wink} Get me your snail mail addy and I will get your goodies sent out to you this week! Thanks for playing everyone!

Real winter weather

2007-11-06T07:35:00.000-06:00

Well, today I don't have to worry about getting in that 'holiday feel' with the weather as cold as it is outside! High of 42 today which will probably feel like 32 with the wind blowing as hard as it is!

I finished some cards on Sunday but have been busy running here and there picking jeans up for Joe for his trip to Chicago next week and doing some Christmas shopping while I am out. And trust me, Christmas shopping while your kids are with you is no easy task! But when I was in Kohl's yesterday I hit the jackpot with tops for the girls. They had a lot of adorable (I got 6) long sleeved tops in Ava's size for $4.80 each and they also had a lot of short sleeved 'girl power' like shirts (I got 7) for Jolee. I figured she could wear a long sleeved shirt underneath of them. That is still in, right? LOL Those were only $3.40. She will love them! Anyway, sorry for my rant!

Here is one of the cards I made on Sunday. I used Beate's weekend sketch challenge #26. I really liked the layout of this one and it came together pretty quick. I used that chunky glitter again for the snow and to be honest, I will probably use it again soon!

ABC-Sweater Teddy stamp set (smARTworks)
Make it Possible 'Holiday Wishes' stack paper
Stazon jet black ink
Chalk ink and blender pen
Copic grey marker
light blue crayon and OMS for sky
ribbon
pop dots

And HOORAY! I got my Paper Trey Ink sets yesterday!!! And the paper and labels! Well, come on, I had to see what all the fuss was about the paper! It's awesome! Very thick and white. What more could you ask for? This is my first card with the Take a Bough set. I literally made this card in about 3 minutes. It only took that long because I was trying to choose which ornament stamps I wanted to use since there is such a selection! Now I know that if it gets down to the wire for my Christmas cards I can always pull this set out and have a very sophisticated quick card!!!

Take a Bough stamp set (PaperTreyInk)
Colorbox Olive Pastel, Lime Pastel, and Warm Red, Chestnut Roan chalk inks
Prismacolor silver pencil (for the strings)

Well, you guys still have a few hours to leave a comment on this post to win my blog candy! I have gotten so much enjoyment out of reading all of the wonderful gifts you have given that have meant so much to others! Keep on giving! Until later, see ya!

Old St. Nick

2007-11-03T08:45:00.000-05:00

Happy Saturday everyone! Hope everyone has had a good morning so far! I have been searching Ebay looking for a large LEGO lot for Jolee for Christmas. She loves building things so I think now is a really good time to get her some. However, I don't want to pay $60 for a new set that is very boyish and only has 100 pieces or so. Which is why I have a 23 lb. lot on my watchlist! If any of you have tons of regular (or girly) legos you'd like to sell, EMAIL ME!! {grin} Anyway, here is my card for today. I tried him simple at first (since stamping with this guy is waaaaay out of my normal boundaries!) but I will try another card in black and color him too. I think I am going to mass produce about 10 of these for family since I only have about 3 Christmas cards done so far! Normally most of my 60 cards are different, but I don't think I'll have a lot of time for that this year!

CMS-11 St. Nick, FL-31 Bough and Cone (background) stamp sets (smARTworks)
Cranberry Crisp, Going Gray CS
Cranberry Crisp ink
Copic gray marker
glitter
ribbon
pop dots, sponge

I just love how this looks like sugar! I need to use this on some Christmas treat cards! Speaking of which, I ordered my Paper Trey 'Holiday Treats' and 'Take a Bough' sets the other day. I also got their CS since I heard such wonderful things about it!

Don't forget to leave a comment on this post to win some Christmas blog candy!! Have a great weekend everyone!!

Happy Fall and Candy! Finally!

2007-11-02T08:53:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone had a great Halloween with their kiddos! My kids made out like bandits! Before they dumped all of their candy though we did the yearly 'clean out the bowl' ritual. Dumped candy out from last Halloween and most of this years Easter. This candy will last them until next Halloween when we will do the ritual once again!

Before we get to the 'good stuff' AKA blog candy, I want to share a card that I am super proud of! This is a wintery type bear but I wanted to step outside the box cause he is just too cute in his sweater! And yes, I know people (or bears) don't drag a sled when it's not snowing, but come on, if a bear is pulling a sled then anything is possible. Right? The pumpkin is from a different set but both are still smARTworks. Speaking of which, Susan just released the new supplement on November 1st and it has some AWESOME sets in it! Some adorable birdie sets!!! Here is a link to my favorite page and here is a link to the supplement. It starts on the bottom right but make sure you click 'next' because there are some more pages to check out!

ABC-Sweater Teddy, Autumn #1 stamp sets (smARTworks)
BasicGrey Mellow DP
Pumpkin Pie CS
Stazon jet black, Chocolate Chip ink
Prismacolors, crayons, and OMS
corner rounder
velvet ribbon
pop dots

So, here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for! Blog candy! I decided to go with a wintery/Christmas feel this time around. Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I get my snowmen out, spray my holiday scents, and wrap presents! I love wrapping presents! I also love shopping for them! I'm sure there are a lot of you out there like me who enjoy shopping for others more than yourself! So, what I want you to post for a chance to win this candy is what is the best gift you have ever GIVEN? I have asked before what the best present you have recieved was but I am twisting it this time. Other than giving my hubby the gift of delivering his beautiful children, it would have to be the time I found an autographed picture of Judy Garland by chance in a tiny shop. My sister collects Wizard of Oz anything and although in the picture she wasn't dressed up like Dorothy, I knew it would be a great piece for her collection! It's those once in a lifetime little finds that excite me the most!!! So, what is yours? Leave me a comment and I will draw a random # to see who wins! Open to US and Canada residents only. Sorry guys! You have until Tuesday the 6th at noon! Good luck!

Blog candy includes:

Real candy! Russell Stover Vanilla Bean Brulee chocolate!
Daisy D's Winter Fun pad. 24 8x8 sheets plus 4 die cut sheets
Various 6x6 Christmas paper (some more Daisy D's to coordinate)
8 1/2 x 11 Christmas paper from The Paper Studio
American Crafts felt flowers in Christmas colors
Pot of untrafine green glitter
Lots of stamped Christmas images (not shown) from my collection