Happy Birthday B!

One of the fun things I get to do with my time is help as a youth leader in the high school youth group at my church. It is a fun "job" because the youth pastor and other leaders are a blast to work with and we have such a great group of high schoolers! I have a small group of about 5 girls that I mentor and one of them is having a birthday tomorrow. This is a card I made for her.

I used the Island Blossoms Simply Scrappin' kit and the stamp set to make this card. I wish I had gotten more of the kits when they were a hostess benefit because I absolutely love this patterned paper.

stamps: It's Your Birthday, Island Blossoms

ink: Tempting Turquoise, Pretty in Pink

paper: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White

other: Island Blossoms scrappin' kit

Back again

I hope all of you had a merry and blessed Christmas! I didn't get to enjoy my own family this Christmas, but I am so thankful for the friends that welcomed me in to their celebration and made me feel at home. I love my family so much, but the longer I live far away the more I realize how the word "family" can mean so many different things and can be so much bigger than the group of people I grew up with.




Here is a card I made a while back. I don't think I shared it yet, but if I did you can enjoy it again!


The patterned paper for this card is from Scenic Route Paper Co. It is called Broadway and is from the Rockland line.

Calvin and Hobbes--snow creations

No creations today, just another couple of funny winter/holiday comics. My brother (a big kid at heart) loves going out in the snow and making snowmen, taking his daughter around in the sled, snowball fights etc. So these comics are for him.

Fun Vacation Pictures

Here are a few fun pictures from when my parents were in town.

This one is Laguna Beach, I think.

trivia question: Why are flamingos pink?

answer--Flamingos are pink because of the carotene in the brine shrimp they eat. (kind of like when people eat too many carrots and our skins turns that weird shade of orange.)

Guess where we went?!?!?!

And what would Sea World be without a fishy face picture???

Christmas funny...well a little too close to truth to be funny...

I will leave you with this comic for the day. It pretty much says it all.


click on comic to get a more readable version.


Life is good, just extremely busy.

Card cheer tin

When card tins first became popular I bought a bunch and made a few to give them out as gifts. Of course then I never got around to making one for myself. When I saw this K&Company paper at my local Scrapbooking store I knew it was exactly what I wanted for a tin for me! (I actually wanted the striped paper that matches it also, but the store didn't carry it and I can't find a local store that does) The paper is from the Wild Saffron line.

I used Mod Podge to adhere the paper and I also put a layer on top of the paper. I inked the lid up with Mango Madness VersaMagic Dew Drop . I put two flowers with a brad in the middle on the lid. I love the vibrance and color of these flowers, but they didn't look right on the side. The lid is the perfect place!

This tin is going to be a great place to put all the lovely cards and notes I get and want to cherish. I am one of those people that takes out old notes on a bad day just to cheer me up.

Now if only I could find cloth in the same cool pattern as this paper. I would love throw pillows in that pattern!

Movie Monday--Will it Blend

I found this really fun site called "Will it blend?" This guy blends up the craziest things in a blender to see if they will blend. I think the site is actually trying to promote and sell their blenders by showing how tough they are, but it is still fun to watch. In the first video I watched the guy ground up an iPhone--I wanted to jump through my screen and grab it and save it--I would love an iPhone ;). Here is another funny one that I think crafters will enjoy "Will it blend--Cricut" Enjoy!

I originally found the blending site of off this blog--Adventures in Carpooling.

Merry Christmas juggling penguin

Here is one of the first Christmas cards I made this season. I always plan on making Christmas cards throughout the year, but the truth is I have way more fun doing it when I am in the Christmas mood...and well I like to procrastinate. ;) I am getting together with a few friends today to work on Christmas cards--good thing because I only have 6 finished and I wanted to get them out in the beginning of December!

The stamps on this card are from Elzybells. I just love this cute little juggling penguin and his igloo! The designer paper is from SU's Christmas line last year--I am still trying to use it all up. The ric rac is tied together with DMC floss thread. Come back later in the week to see a card with these stamps and a lot more of that DMC floss (think sewing).

Random

Today is going to be a post of random things...

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! I for sure did. I got the opportunity to hang out with a few families from my church for the day and we had a blast. Have you ever played the game Cranium Hoopla? If you haven't you definitely need to, it is so much fun! The whole group works as a team so everyone wins or everyone loses.

I am busting with excitement today. My parents are flying out to visit for a few days. I get to pick them up from the airport tonight--I have been counting down days. There is nothing like having family around during the holiday season. I will be sure to share a few pics of their visit.

Things I am thankful for...

*Family--the kind that are blood and the kind that aren't.

*The experience of living in California

*A car, even on that has cost me a lot to repair in the past few months. I don't have to walk everywhere or take the bus.

*Forgiveness and Grace

*...I could go on and on. I have so much to be thankful for!

And a card...

altered lip gloss box

Here is another project from this past weekend. This window box is one I got with a free lip gloss sampler. (What is better than free product that comes in a cool box to alter?!?!?!) I covered the outside of the lid and the bottom inside with paper from My Mind's Eye. Each panel of the box has its own separate piece of paper. I used mod podge to glue the paper down and then also on top of the paper to give the box a smooth and shiny look. If I did this again I would sand the box before covering it because the shiny covering on the box wasn't good for making my designer paper stick.

I haven't decided what gift I will put in this box yet--I want to give it to someone who will appreciate it ;) My friend Jami also suggested making it into a shadow box...so who knows?

The Night Before Christmas (mad lib style)

You all did such a good job coming up with creative responses!
I compiled all the answers and here is what we have...

The Night before Christmas

'Twas the eon before Christmas, and all throught the hobbit hole,
Not a creature was stirring, not even a shark.
The mittens were hung by the armoire with care,
In hopes that St. Georgia soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their chairs,
While visions of sugar-noodles danced in their toes.
And third cousin's brother-in-law in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang to the dishwasher to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
kicked open the shutters, and jumped up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,
Gave the luster of mid-Renaissance to objects below.
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear?
But a pretty McDonalds, and eight tiny dogs.

With a little old driver, so lively and bumpy,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Georgia.
More rapid than hyenas his dogs they came,
And he whistled, and ran, and called them by name;

"Now, Dasher! Now, Abraham! Now castle and Vixen!
On, Johnny Appleseed! On Duck Billed Platypus! On shirt and Blitzen
To the top of the Porch! To the top of the scrapbook room!
Now sneeze away! sneeze away! sneeze away all!

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof,
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the armoire St. Georgia came with a bound.

His eyes--how they decided! His dimples, how crunchy!
His ears were like flowers, his spleen like cream of wheat!

He spoke not a word but went straight to his work,
And filled all the mittens, then turned with a jerk.
And laying his rib aside of his patella,
And giving a nod, up the armoire he rose.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whisper,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exlaim, as he drove out of sight,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good eon!"


to see this or other crazy libs, check out http://www.rinkworks.com/crazylibs/

Scrapbook Diva Designer Challenge

This weekend has been a great creative weekend for me. There is nothing like stamping/scrapbooking/just being crafty to put me in a good mood! This scrapbook page is for the Scrapbook Diva Designer Challenge on Splitcoaststampers. It is SBDD01TAYLOR--Taylor's challenge. The challenge was to take one of the sketch challenges (meant for cards) and use it as inspiration for a page. My inspiration was sketch #18, but it after I had the pictures I knew I couldn't cut them down any smaller to fit the challenge so I switched to sketch #111--so I was inspired by both really. Size of page is 12 x 12

These are not my kids, but they are both very near and dear to my heart.

Here is a close up of the corner so you can read the journalling and see the flowers (they are from a punch).

I need some participation!

This post is going to stay at the top for a few days so people see it.

So I am in the mood for a little fun so I am taking this idea from my friend Stina's blog. See my side bar for a link to her blog.
We are going to do a mad lib together (actually the website I took this one from calls it a crazy lib) If you would like to join in the mad lib fun, please leave a comment with the number of the blank you are filling, and your choice of any word that fits that description... please, if you don't know what an adjective is, don't try and guess. :) Feel free to fill in multiple spots (I don't know that there are 36 people that actually read my blog), but don't hog all the words. And please try to keep it clean. I will try my best to update the ones that are taken...

1. noun--McDonalds
2. noun--castle
3. noun --scrapbook room
4. noun, plural--flowers
5. adjective--pretty
6. Adjective--bumpy
7. Adjective --crunchy
8. Verb, Intransitive, Past Tense--ran
9. Verb, Transitive, Past Tense--kicked
10. Verb, Transitive, Past Tense-- jumped
11. Verb, Intransitive, Past Tense--decided
12. Verb, Intransitive, Past Tense--sneezed
13. Animal --Shark
14. Animal--duck billed platypus
15 Animal, Plural --dogs
16 Animal, Plural --hyenas
17. dwelling --Hobbit hole
18. Body Part--spleen
19. Body Part--rib
20. Body Part --patella
21. Body Part, Plural --toes
22. Body Part, Plural--ears
23. Time Period --eon
24. Time Period --Renaissance
25. Sound--whisper
26 Relationship--third cousin's brother in law
27. Person --Johnny Appleseed
28. First Name--Georgia
29. First Name --Abraham
30. Food, singular --cream of wheat
31. Food, Plural --noodles
32. Article of Clothing, Plural--mittens
33. Furniture --armoire
34. Furniture --dishwasher
35. Furniture, Plural--chairs

quotes and a card

Here are a few quotes for you to ponder today.

"If you haven't got all the things you want, be grateful for the things you don't have that you don't want." Unknown

"The most flammable kind of wood is the chip on the shoulder." E. Joseph Cossman

"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." Thomas Edison


And a card...

stamps: Close To My Heart (Rustic Flowers) and Stampin' Up
paper: Rose Red, So Saffron
ink: Cool Caribbean, So Saffron, Close to Cocoa, Rose Red, Certainly Celery
other: brads

In My PJs

When I first saw the My Friend Ronnie-In my PJs stamp by Inky Antics I knew they would be perfect for paper piecing the pajamas with different patterned paper. So when I headed to Jami's to try out her new stamps I brought along a whole container full of patterned paper and spent a while just stamping images on cardstock and patterned paper.

The first card is all about what the sentiment says "Just one of those days?" I was thinking about one of those bad days when you don't feel like getting out of your pajamas or maybe it is one of those days where things keep going wrong and you wish you were still in your pajamas! This card is another sewing machine card. I picked the craziest bad day kind of stitch for around the image--I don't even know what it is called!

The background was too plain at first so I thought about what would make--just one of those days--for me. Ever have a card all made and then you drop it on an ink pad? That is the effect I was going for!

After I made my card I was on Jami's blog and saw what she did with this same stamp in this post. After I saw it I knew I needed to try out that layout--it is so fun! Here is my version.

Pictures of me

A few people have asked for pics of my curly short hair. So I decided to do a fun little photo shoot with myself. Please keep in mind that I was holding the camera in my hand for all of these.

Cowgirl Carrie and a tutorial

A few weekends ago I went out with a group of friends and did some country line dancing...well I attempted to anyways. I think that the only dance I am good at is the electric slide, which actually goes well with quite a few country songs! I don't know what part of the brain makes a person able to pick up dance moves, but mine is underdeveloped whatever it is. I can follow along if I watch long enough, but if I am next to a person who is dancing fancy moves it messes me up for the whole song--so I spent quite a few songs on the sidelines trying to figure out the moves. It was a blast though!

When looking through the Rubber Romance stamps at eP I saw a great cowgirl named "Carrie" that I knew would be perfect for cards for my country loving friends. So here is what I came up with.

This card was pretty easy to make, but took quite a bit of time. I know the picture really doesn't show it, but the shirt, arm, cowboy hat, and boots are all paper pieced on. To make the wall I masked Carrie,sponged So Saffron and stamped Weathered. I sponged the floor and drew in hard wood flooring.

The photo corners are a fun little addition and very easy to make. Since I am borrowing a friend's camera for the day I thought I would do my first tutorial to show you how to make them. (click on any "how to" picture to enlarge)

Photo Corner Tutorial

Step 1: Cut a piece of cardstock 2" x 2"

Step 2: Cut the square piece in half from corner to corner. This gives you the two pieces that will be your two photo corners.

Step 3: Take corner A and fold it to meet corner C.

Step 4: Take corner B and fold it to meet corner C.

Step 5: Take your scissors to cut across from corner to corner (you will cut off corners A, B, and C by doing this)

Step 6: Flip pieces over and wrap around any corner.

Things that make me smile

Random things that have made me happy in the past week...

-mail--I got a letter from a friend who is teaching in Pohnei.
-big smiles from my 7 month old pal and hugs from his 6 year old sister.
-phone call from my cousin after I called and left her a message wishing her a happy birthday 9 days early (oops ;) ).
-stamping time--I have been pretty busy, but I have had some extra creative stamping time.
-good friends that take the time to just listen.
-getting to visit the eP warehouse--that place is so cool!

What has made you happy lately?

wavy sewing fun

Here is a quick post before I head for work. I am sharing another card that benefited from my sewing machine sitting out. I literally just stuck the paper in an free-sewed wavy lines (free sewed is kinda like free-hand drawing ;) ) The flowers are on shimmery paper, adding just a touch of sparkle.

stamps: Pollen Dust (Fancy Pants) Petal Prints (Stampin' Up!)

paper: So Saffron, Regal Rose, Certainly Celery

ink: So Saffron, Regal Rose, Certainly Celery

other: brads, ticket corner punch

technique: sewing

Weekend question

Today I had the theme song from "Friends" running through my head... You know where it says.. "So no one told you life was gonna be this way. Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love life's D.O.A. It's like you're always stuck in second gear When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year" Some days I think that part of the song was written about my life...why doesn't anyone tell you that life in your 20s is hard??? (please don't berate me with comments about how all of life IS hard) I won't admit that people tried to tell me life after college wasn't a piece of cake, but I wouldn't hear any of it. You go through college so excited to get out into the real world. I thought life had to get easier than paying $20,000 a year to write pointless papers, do busy-work assignments and work my butt off for unpaid internships. hahaha. No one told me I would still be broke after college because even if I was making money I would spend years paying off college debts. No one told me my dream job might also be the dream of seventy-five other people and that there would always be at least one person applying who is related to someone in the company and has a fast-track pass to the job. No one told me that I might not like the career I chose with my major in college or that I might spend years trying to find "my place" in this big world.....oops I didn't mean to rant, can you tell I have been having a bad couple of weeks? I forgot I was supposed to ask my weekend question! My question for you is--What do you do to cheer yourself up when you are having a bad day, week, month...?

Elzybells

If you haven't checked out Elzybells stamps yet, check them out Elzybells. They are all the newest rage and they are soooooo cute! My friend Jami was kind enough to let me check out her Elzybells order when she got it and even try them out! The stamp I used for this card is called "A Winter Song."



I took my sewing machine out last week to make a few Barbie outfits for a little friend of mine. Since it is sitting on my desk I have been using it on cards also. You have to look closely in the picture, but I used the machine needle without thread to go around the outside of the Chocolate Chip layer and then I did a waved line at the top and bottom of the same layer.

stamps: A winter song (Elzybells)
paper: My Minds eye, Chocolate chip, Whisper white
ink: Basic Black, various SU! markers
technique: paper piecing, sewing

Vacation pictures

I have been working hard making cards the last few days. I have to scan/take pictures so I will show them later. For now here are a few pictures from my trip to share. My vacation was packed with seeing friends/family and hanging out with them.


I got to take my niece to the zoo. We went with my parents. She is at such a fun age! I love talking to her. I think her favorite animals that day were the elephants and the giraffes.
Meeting my SCS friend Debra is an experience I have waited a long time for! This lady is so sweet online and even more so in real life. We decided to meet up at an apple orchard since I was going to one with my family that was halfway between my parents house and her house. She helped my family pick 550 lbs of apples! (My family makes their own applesauce)

And here is a pic of 2 of my cousins and me. Can you see the family resemblance?

California Fires

I am sure that most of you have heard about all of the fires going on in Southern California. You can't turn the tv on here without hearing the newest updates or about another fire that has started somewhere else. I think everyone who lives out here has been affected or knows someone who has been affected by these fires. So many lives have been altered. I don't live super close to any of the fires, but when I walk out my door I smell the burning smell and see the ash floating in the air and on my car. It is a reminder to me of how in the blink of an eye everything that people have worked so hard for can be gone. This makes me look at my priorities and think about what is really important in life.
As I have been thinking about this a song I learned a few years back keeps coming to mind. It is called Knowing You.

All I once held dear built my life upon
All this world reveres and wars to own
All I once thought gain I have counted loss
Spent and worthless now compared to this

Knowing you, Jesus, knowing you
There is no greater thing
You're my all, you're the best
You're my joy my righteousness
And I love you Lord.

Now my heart's desire is to know you more
To be found in you and known as yours
To possess by faith what I could not earn
All-surpassing gift of righteousness

Oh, to know the power of your risen life
And to know You in Your sufferings
To become like you in your death, my Lord
So with you to live and never die

(I think the song is by Graham Kendrick)

So take the time to hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight (or give them a call if they live far away), be thankful for what you have, and remember to build your life on what (who) really matters.

Cookie Lee

Sorry I am not sharing a card today. I am too busy cleaning and scrubbing my house. I am hostessing a Cookie Lee jewelry party tonight. When I was a Stampin' Up demo I had people over for classes, but I have never been a hostess for anything. I am a little nervous--what if people don't come? What if nobody buys anything? Why did I agree to this again? I am sure it will all be fine, but today will be a long day!
I know that some people dread going to parties for different things (pampered chef, tupperware, cookie lee), but I love going to them. I have to admit I am not usually a big buyer, but I love looking at all the new stuff and I usually end up finding something I can't live without. I am one of those dorks that thinks tupperware is cool.
Any local friends that are reading this--if I didn't invite you it wasn't on purpose. So come on by if you are free tonight! ;)

www.cookielee.com

Movie Monday--The Mom Song Sung to William Tell Overture with Lyrics

A couple of months ago I got to go to a Women of Faith conference. I only went to the Friday session, but it was so relaxing and uplifting! I didn't get to hear Anita Renfroe's Saturday talk, but this lady is hilarious! Here is a song she sings about all the things moms say in a 24 hour period. Make sure there you aren't drinking anything when you watch it or you will spew it out.

Can't get enough Pollen Dust

I have these 2 cards to share today. Problem is I can't remember all the details for them. I think that both of these layouts are from challenges (Not sure if they were splitcoast challenges, blog challenges or what). I made them over a month ago and I didn't have a chance to take pictures and post them at the time. So please forgive me for my lack of details.

Both of these cards use Pollen Dust by Fancy Pants (the sentiment is not from that set.) Fancy Pants has two relatively new 12 x 12 sets that you have to check out if you haven't seen them yet. They are called "In my words" and "From the Garden"

Hey Cubs!

I am posting this song in honor of my Cubbies. So sad that they are out of the playoffs. Being the true fan that I am I have to say next year will be the year! Actually next year will be 100 years since they last won the World Series in 1908--that would be cool! Although part of being a Cubs fan and part of their charm is that they always lose...

Sneaking back into my blog

So I kind of just stopped posting on my blog for a few weeks. I actually went on vacation to visit family. I didn't bring my laptop, rarely checked my e-mail, didn't look on facebook, didn't update my blog--a true vacation ;) It was nice to just forget about life for a week and enjoy the people I love. When I got back life was crazy. I have tried to keep up a little of the simple life of not being on my computer all the time--such a freeing feeling!

Here is a card I made before vacation. The cupcakes are from the SU! set called Figures of speech. It is a set with small images with words formed around the image in either a circle or square shape. I was having trouble inking just the cupcake so I tried something a little different with this set. I cut the images out and made them into unmounted images that I can use with my acryllic blocks. I left the word circles/squares on the blocks to use them mounted. I should take pictures--it actually worked quite well and I like how it all turned out.



sets: figures of speech and paisley (Stampin' Up), snap stamps (Karen Foster)
ink: rose red, basic black ink pads and pretty in pink, so saffron markers.
paper: whisper white, pretty in ink, rose red

What I like about me

As I write this post I can hear the rain pelt my windows and thunder in the distance. I love it! I love the sounds, I love the smell, I even went outside for a few minutes to enjoy the feel of raindrops on my skin.


I often hear people talk about what they would change about themselves whether it is their physical appearance or other characteristics. Some of us put a lot of time and effort into changing how we look or how we act. I am not saying there is anything wrong with trying to change for the better. But my weekend question for you is what is one characteristic you have (not physical) that you would not change about yourself. What is something you like about you?

Crayon Resist

This card is a CASE of one that my friend Taylor made a while back for one of her classes. See her version here--Taylor's crayon resist.

1. I started off by stamping the flowers (Fancy Pants) in Staz-On black ink on glossy paper.

2. I used a yellow crayon to highlight parts of each flower.

3. Then I used a sponge to ink the glossy cardstock with Regal Rose (I applied the ink and then gently smeared/smushed the color around with my sponge to give the glossy cardstock a smooth look.)

4. The last step was to use a tissue to wipe the yellow crayon off of the glossy cardstock. What is left is white where the crayon was.

I made 2 of the bigger flowers on another piece of glossy cardstock and cut them out and layered them on the strip of black cardstock with the sentiment on it.

quick share

Just a quick post this morning because I need to get to work in about 5 minutes...



I thought I would share a few more simple cards today. I got the idea for the one of the right hand side from a papercrafts magazine. I made the one on the left to match it. I think this paper would be really cute to make a whole set of matching cards with. I used up the whole sheet making cards and I was actually sad to see it go!

• Paper: My Mind's Eye, Close to Cocoa and Whisper White-Stampin' Up
• Ink: Close to Cocoa
• Stamp: It's Your Birthday
• other: Primas, brads (Bashful Blue, Stampin' Up)
  
  

On another note...only a few more days until I get to see this smiling face!

cleaning (still)

This week's Movie Monday will have to be on a different day. I switched computers and I need to change a few things. I am also trying to figure out an easier way to get YouTube movies on my blog. The way I do it now I can't edit my post later on or it deletes my video. (if anyone knows how to do it better, please let me know!)

On to my topic for today though...Today my friend Jami stepped up to the daunting challenge of cleaning out one of her closets that really needed a lot of work. Check out her blog to read about her day and make sure you read the quote she shared! While encouraging Jami that she could do it I was inspired to do some cleaning of my own. As I have shared before I don't have a lot of storage in my house. The place where I have the most is actually under my bed. My bed is a loft of sorts, about 4 feet off the ground. Under my bed I have my Christmas decorations, luggage, tools, a space heater, out of season clothes, a box of children's books, a sewing machine, a 3 drawer unit for extra office supplies, stamping stuff, and sewing stuff....and a few more items. I also have a box of junk with items that I just don't know where to put.
I decided to reorganize the space under my bed today. It wasn't necessarily messy, but it was VERY dusty under there. I took everything out and dusted each item, vacuumed underneath, combined a few boxes and put everything back. It looks so neat and organized now. And for those of you that read my blog regularly I know I promised pictures after my "clean sweep"...well I am not quite finished yet...soon though, very soon!

Weekend Question--all about hair

I got a really good haircut at the beginning of summer and realized how much fun and how cute it looked to straighten my hair. I bought a nice straightener and have really enjoyed finally having hair that I can do something with. My hair grows very fast so this week I decided I needed my hair trimmed because the back of my hair was having trouble staying straight and wanted to flip at the bottom of my neck. I told the stylist I wanted the same haircut as last time only a little shorter in the back (so that wouldn't grow out so fast). Well she took a little creative license and gave me a ton more layers (and shorter ones) than last time and gave me a very choppy cut. My hair that had body before...yeah well it is now CURLY!!!! It won't straighten with all the layers in my hair. Grrrrr! I am told it looks cute (although everyone is shocked with the natural curl I suddenly have), but I am not sure how I feel about it.

So my question is more of a "tell me a story" kind of thing. Do you have a bad haircut experience? I will tell you about my worst one on Monday.

Monday Update: Now when I tell you this picture it through the eyes of a young teenager (everything is a little more traumatic then ;) ). My mom and I tried out this new place to get our hair cut that was pretty inexpensive. I had just recently gone from long hair down to my butt to shorter hair, maybe shoulder length. So I had never had anything other than straight cuts pretty much--so no layers, no fancy stuff. Okay, so the lady cut my hair regular and then took out one of those scissors that thins your hair (at least I think that is what it is supposed to do. It cuts some of the hair, but not all of it) and without asking if I wanted that started using it. Only she didn't do it at the bottom of my hair she did it about an inch from my scalp. I don't know if this technique works on some people's hair, but what I ended up with was a grouping of hair at the top of my head that was about an inch long and liked to spike up out of the rest of my hair. So I had shoulder length hair and then some spikey hair that stuck straight up. I think I cried. Needless to say we never tried that place again ;)

My baby buddy and a few birthday cards

I have been watching a friend's 5 month old baby 2 days a week while she works. I am so tired at the end of those two days each week! I don't know how you moms do it 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Today my buddy M. and I had a fun day. I learned how convenient a Baby Bjorn is. The Baby Bjorn is a baby carrier that carries the baby against your front and has straps around the back (think a backpack on backwards)--he absolutely loves being in the thing. We went to Target and just walked around. The boy was kicking (he was facing out) and squealing and just having a great time looking around at Target. He was content for about an hour there and would have been for longer, but it was naptime. While at Target I grabbed these really fun brads in the $1 spot. I hope to make a few cards to showcase them soon.

Here are two more simple birthday cards that I had made. The paper is still from the My Mind's Eye pack I got from Costco (I don't know that I will ever run out and I split the pack with a friend!).

stamps: It's Your Birthday, Tags and More

Busy

This week is a very busy week for me. Everything is starting back up and I don't have a free night all week! I have one card to share with just a quick description.

This was a fun card to make. The patterned and green paper are both from My Mind's Eye. I stamped Paisley (SU!) on the green paper with versamark and clear embossed it. I love the texture of it. The brown/rose red strips are from the Simply Scrappin' kit called Friends and Flowers.

Movie Monday--Brandon Heath--I'm Not Who I was

This song is called "I'm Not Who I was."
I saw an interview with Brandon Heath who was talking about how he wrote the song. He said he was looking at a box of old photos and a memory came back of a person who had hurt him in the past. So he wrote the song as if it were a letter to that person.

I think we all have people in our past who have wounded us deeply. (And if we think about it we probably can think of a time when we were the ones that caused someone else pain) Forgiveness isn't easy. And even when we forgive we sometimes still feel the sting of the hurt.
My favorite line is "The thing I find most amazing about amazing grace is the chance to give it out, maybe that's what love is all about."
Is there someone you need to extend grace to?

Random thoughts by Jen

I am in my mid 20s, but twice this past week I have been mistaken for a 17 year old. People say "Oh honey, some day you will appreciate that." You know what? I don't care if I will someday love looking younger than I am...having people think I am 10 years younger than I am (and a teenager at that) is NOT fun! When the door to door salesman comes to my door and asks if my parents are home...I am not amused.

So when will I start appreciating looking younger?!?!?!?!

Petey the Penguin and two love birds

Card #3 for my image hoarder challenge. This image is called "Sittin' Petey" by Inky Antics. I just love Inky's images--they are so cute and fun! I don't know if you can tell, but the ice has crystal effects on it to make it smooth and shiny like ice and Petey's stomach has stickles to make it glittery. The words are from "Amazing to Zany" by Stampin' Up!



Here is Card #4. I saw a layout like this on a blog and even e-mailed the author to see if it was their layout and now I can't find the e-mail or the blog...grrrr. So if it is yours please tell me so I can give you credit.
I made all the circles for this card using my circle coluzzle--it makes cutting circles so easy!

Labor Day

Those of you that live far away from family probably know what it is like to be homesick at odd times--times that are special for you and your family. I mean it is normal to miss family on big holidays: Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, birthdays... Well, I always miss my family on Labor Day. You see my family gets together for a BBQ or a backyard picnic every year. My mom brings out her famous potato salad, 24 hour salad and other favorites and the family just hangs out. I miss that. I wondered this year what I was going to do on Labor Day to forget what I was missing (funny how the family doesn't stop hanging out without me there ;) ).
I had friends that invited me to hang out on their boat with them for the day. If I was a boat person I could tell you what kind of boat they have, but I am so not interested in that kind of stuff. All I can tell you is that it was so much fun! We hung out on the boat, swam in the water near the boat and kayaked. Then when it was time for dinner we took the boat up the coast to Long Beach for dinner. I walked up to the front of the boat and stood with the wind in my hair while we were going. What a free feeling! I had the "perfect" California day.

Can I just say how thankful I am for my friends out here? I am thankful for the families that have taken me in and embraced me as their own. It is kind of like I have a California extended family. It means the world to me to have people who care about me like that. Please don't underestimate the magnitude of acts of kindness like that.

Weekend Question--weddings

I have a wedding to go to tomorrow (my 4th one this year and all with no date to go with me...but that is another story ;) ). I was told that the registry was pretty picked over a few weeks ago already so I need to get creative on the gift.

So my question to you is:

What is your favorite wedding gift to give?
Do you always go off the registry? Do you give money or gift cards? Or do you get creative? Help me out!

Monday Update:
Thank you to everyone who helped me out with wedding gift ideas. I always love hearing other people's opinions and thought processes behind those opinions so THANKS! I decided to go with a gift card. I know how much other friends of mine appreciated all the gift cards they got and how fun it is to have "fun money" to spend on something special.

Fixing mistakes to salvage a card.

Ever have those cards that just give you a lot of trouble, and then you try to fix it, but mess something else up? This card was one of those cards! I had two stamped images of "tiers of treats" by Stampendous. They were both on Whisper White, but I really wanted to use my watercolor crayons. I knew that watercoloring and whisper white don't mix...but I tried it out. The image looked really cute colored in...until I accidently smeared it. So on to image #2...I decided to carefully use watercolor crayons again, but then clear emboss over the entire image so it wouldn't smear. This worked really well...until I realized that my Pretty in Pink frosting turned into Cameo Coral when heated...GRRRRR! Cameo Coral totally didn't match the paper I planned to use with the image! So then I got a genius idea. I used Crystal Effects over the frostings on image #1, let it dry and then cut just the frosting part of each cupcake/piece of cake out and adhered them on image #2. What a lot of work!



I got the patterned paper for this card from Joy and Daisy and it is soooooo rich and shimmery and nice. The picture totally doesn't show how cool it really looks. It is called Cute Cakes-Shimmery-striped Decor by Heidi Grace. The paper itself is shimmery and then some of the lines and dots are embossed clear and glittery--you definitely have to see it in person!

Treasure Hunt

Every once in a while I play this little "game" to make sure I comment on the less well known blogs and just to find fun stampin' blogs that I didn't know about. I call it "Treasure Hunt" I go to the comments section of one of my blog posts and pick a person that commented and go comment on their blog. Then I pick someone that commented on that person's blog and visit that blog and make a comment and on down the line. I did it today and kept track of the blogs I visited. Here is a list of the first 6. I challenge you to try this out sometime also. It is fun and it passes on the love.

http://starcreations.blogspot.com/ Esther

http://andreabrownjohn.blogspot.com/ Andrea

http://stashstashandmorestash.blogspot.com/ Sarah

http://thecraftinggarden.blogspot.com/ Sam

http://comestampwithme.blogspot.com/ Michelle

http://stampinonthemountain.blogspot.com/ Stampingranny

Cards for Sale

So I have been debating for a while, but have decided to start selling my cards. Yesterday I sold the first group--what a great feeling!!! For a while I have given sets of cards as gifts for family. My family loves my cards, but I just assumed that people wouldn't want to buy cards from me, I feared my cards weren't good enough to sell. After seeing the reactions of the ladies that looked at my cards tonight I don't have that fear anymore ;) I brought a stack of cards thinking the person I was bringing them for could pick the ones she liked. Well, she wanted them all!

So to all my non-stamping friends or family let me know if you are interested in purchasing handmade cards from me.

"Kewl" birthday

When I make cards I usually only make one of each design. I don't have the patience to sit and make the same card, I would rather create something different. So unless it is a design I really like, there is only one of each card. That being said, I liked today's card so much that I made a second one after I finished the first one. It was just a fun card to make and I love this Fancy Pants patterned paper.

paper: Fancy Pants--Kewl-Sublime, Stampin' Up--Pale Plum, Real Red, Confetti White
stamps: Stampin' Up!-- Tags and More, It's Your Birthday
other: brads, Mat pack, white gel pen, aqua painter and SU! markers, ticket corner punch