The Craft Studio

Annual post? Lol!

2011-10-19T16:49:00.000-04:00

Let's see if I can still do this. I can't believe it's been a year since I posted something. I still do my crafts but not as much as I used to. I have been super busy with life and with the boys in grades 2 and 3, I am even more busy with them and their activities. I jokingly said to my husband the other day "I don't know how I could possibly fit a job in". Lol.

It's that time of year again for me to start my Christmas Cards so that I can get my American ones done before Thanksgiving. Sadly, I am feeling quite unmotivated. And after reviewing my pictures file I see that I didn't even take pictures of the ones I made last year. I really thought I had. Apparently the last photos of cards I took are on the previous post. hmmm. I will have to rectify that. So for those following me, I think I may try to start posting a little more. We'll see...

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.......

2010-09-07T18:18:00.000-04:00

That is the BEST commercial for back to school.....I can totally relate. Today was the first day back for my boys. One in 1st Grade and one in 2nd Grade and that means they are both in school a full day. Bye-bye on the bus at 8:00 and hello again at 3:20. I have all that wonderful time to myself...I actually sat there for a few moments this morning asking: "what the heck am I going to do with myself?"

During the summer I didn't find too much time to sit down and get busy at the craft table. I was able to bust out a couple of cards so here they are.

The first was for Father's Day. The image is Whipper Snapper that I colored with copics. I'll have to dig out the paper to let you know who that is.

This card was for my niece who obviously had a girl. The flowers are done with the new Cuttlebug Quilling dies. They are really cool!!

This card uses Hero Arts Cling Stamp Butterfly that I colored with copics, Basic Grey paper, and Martha punches

Here's another Hero Arts Butterfly Cling stamp from the same set as above. Colored with copics, Basic Grey DP.

This was done for a birthday party my son was going to. It was for one of his little 'girlfriends'. He's kissed 4 girls already ya know!!

This one was for a birthday party my other son went to. One of his buddies, thus the more boyish colors.

This was for my DH for his birthday. I have to run for the details. If you want them, email me.

Boredom

2010-05-07T15:26:00.000-04:00

"I'm bored." If the kids came to me and said that, I would come up with a million things to occupy them such as vacuuming, dusting, cleaning up the infinite amount of legos littering the floor.......You get the picture. Of course I could be doing the laundry, scrubbing the bathroom....... But I'm not in the mood. It's rainy and cold and I feel like taking a nap, so instead I am procrastinating. It's like I have this unwritten rule about no fun stuff until the work is done. Oh screw it, when I'm done here I'm going to take a nap.

My youngest, Leo, got invited to one of his (many) girlfriend's birthday party. I was so excited to be able to make something GIRLY!!!! I had picked up this paper a long time ago because of the outstanding bright colors. This picture does not do it justice. Of course the butterflies are not for the boys so when he got his invite I jumped all over this paper and got to work. It's from Pinecone Press "Flutter By". I used my nesties for the oval and cut out one of the butterflies, traced in on the hot pink cs, and cut both out....the pink being a bit larger than the butterfly itself to make a "shadow". I only glued down the center of the butterfly so it looks like it's wings can move. I think my bow turned out pretty good too as I don't have an easy bow maker so I freehand it all.

Now, about Leo and his girlfriends. I keep hearing about how he likes to kiss his girlfriends at school and on the bus. With him only in kindergarten I don't get all bent out of shape about this, except his list is up to three girls! I guess I shouldn't worry because in about 4 years he's gonna think girls are "icky". Ten years from now is too far away to worry about, so I just remind him that if he's gonna kiss them, do it on the cheek. So far he hasn't listened. He likes the "big slobby ones" on the lips......whatever!!

Maybe if I'm 'bored' tomorrow I will post another card.......now off to take my nap..... :)

Basic Grey Challenge

2010-01-19T13:10:00.000-05:00

Hello! I am a total fan of Basic Grey!! I love all their patterned papers. The only problem is there are not any stores near me that carry the line. So I am limited to what I have. I made this card for the Basic Grey Challenges Blog #11. It was a photo inspiration challenge and I love blues, greys and browns together.

The paper is from K&Company, the punch is Martha Stewart. I cut the brown flourishes on the Slice. The flower in the center is from CTMH. Ribbon is from Michaels. I based the layout on a sketch from the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge blog - which of course I missed the deadline for. What's new? I am quite pleased with the result.

another challenge I missed for TESC97!!

2010-01-15T10:31:00.000-05:00

Good morning! Here's another card I made for a challenge on Taylored Expressions #97. At least I'm pretty sure I missed it. Anyhow, the stamp is another Whipper Snapper colored with copics. The dp is from K&Company that I've had in my stash for a while. The colors are much more vibrant than the picture shows.

Last night I pulled out my box of pictures and decided I'm going to doing some scrapbooking. I really should get going as I only have about 5 pages done for Leo and he is 5 1/2 years old!! I'm sure you can imagine how large this box of photos is!! lol! While I scrapbook I will be waiting for the doctors office to call me back. I'm waiting to hear the results of some bloodwork for Erik (my six year old). He has been complaining/crying about severe leg pain so I took him to see the Dr. on Wednesday who sent us for bloodwork. That in itself was a treat. He cried the whole time. It was like trying to hold a greased pig. When we walked out thru the waiting room everyone was telling him how well he did. Since he wasn't feeling well he really couldn't care less but I thought it was sweet of the other people to lend their support for such a little boy dealing with the traumatic experience of having blood drawn with that harpoon they used. Anyhow this whole ordeal really has me quite concerned.....

Check this out!

2010-01-14T12:24:00.001-05:00

Hi all! Just posting something I want to share with y'all. There is a cute new release called Aurora Collection by Victoria Case! It represents all the good things in life like kindness, caring and someone to remind all of us to stay in the moment and enjoy life. Not to mention that it is totally cute!! Check out the blog here to see Victoria's Aurora Collection for Susana's Custom Art & Card Design. The release is the 15th but you can see them!!

Another challenge - Mojo Monday 120 - in under the wire!!

2010-01-10T10:18:00.001-05:00

Good Morning! What a bright sunny, snow covered, 10 degree (farenheit) day!! I think I will be staying inside today to keep warm. I can't speak for my kids though. It amazes me that they are able to go out and play and still come in stating they are hot in their snowsuits.

Here is a card I made for the Mojo Monday sketch challenge. I enjoy the challenges but never have my cards completed, photographed and uploaded by the deadline. I think I've squeaked in under the wire here for this one!!

I used a Whipper Snapper stamp which I think is just adorable. Colored it with copics. DP is Bo Bunny, another one of my favorites, cs is ctmh, with a Martha punch and nesties. After all the Christmas cards, I am liking the color scheme which is more springy! :)

This second card also uses a Whipper Snapper stamp colored with copics. The dp is Basic Grey that I've had in my stash for a long time. Another Martha punch with some nesties. Again I like the color combination of the cranberry and brown.

This one was for the 2S4Y challenge but I didn't make the midnight deadline last night. Oh well. I guess it pays to have the battery in the camera charged.

Since I am staying in today I think I will spend some time at the craft table. Maybe I'll be able to make a couple more challenges this week. Check out the right side of my blog to see the challenges I enjoy and maybe you can join in too!!

Merry Christmas to all......

2009-12-28T18:00:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas to all! The weeks leading up to the holiday were hectic to say the least. I'm amazed I'm still standing. The kids were off school and it was c-o-l-d!!! They couldn't play outside so they ran around the house yelling and shouting. We baked some cookies together for three days - didn't turn out too bad mess-wise. We went ice-skating. Well I should say Erik went skating. Leo had no interest so he and I sat on the side and watched....and froze.

Santa paid a visit and again I have to say I think he has gone insane. I don't think Santa is going to appreciate that visa bill come January...... The boys got a new basketball hoop and as soon it was opened it started to snow. We haven't had any snow til this point until we want to go outside. Figures.

This card uses Debbie Mumm paper from Joanne's. The stamp is Magnolia and colored with copics. Also includes nestabilities. A simple card.

BRRRRR!

2009-12-11T14:54:00.000-05:00

Afternoon! Did y'all hear the Browns beat the Steelers last night? WoooHoooo! The Steelers have beaten the Browns for the last 12 games. Until last night!! My dh is a die-hard Steelers fan and I am a Browns fan. Needless to say, he was a little grumpy....and told me he better not hear about it for the next year.

We're inside today. It's a whopping 18 degrees out (Farenheit) and the wind is a-blowin'. Brrrrr! The kids and I did a snowflake craft to keep busy, but now they are bouncin' off the walls a bit. It's going to make for a long night.

Here's a card I made using Bo Bunny dp and an Inkadinkadoo stamp. This is one of my favorite Martha punches (lace doily).

The second card uses Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses dp and a stamp from Impression Obsession that I colored with copics. I must have been into red ribbon that day?

A sketch

2009-12-09T11:53:00.000-05:00

Hi. This card I made for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #109. The dp is K&Company "secret santa", stamp is Magnolia which I colored with copics. (what else?) The snowflakes are cuttlebug on pink paper and glimmer misted with "marshmallow" which you can't see in the picture, but are sparkly. I'm not usually a pink christmas fan but I really like this one.

A House and a Card

2009-12-09T11:46:00.000-05:00

Hi all, I've got a few spare minutes here. I just returned home from the Kindergarten Christmas Concert at school. They are way too cute. And they still like to sing and do the hand motions that go along with the songs. I got a few pictures. Not sure how they turned out without great lighting.

Yesterday the boys and I tried a new project. We made a gingerbread house. I don't get the frosting thing though. I must have made it too runny even though it was the consistency of "toothpaste" like the directions said. It kept sliding off the house. We would put a candy on and it would just slowly slide off. Next year I'm going to hot glue it together and just cover the glue with the frosting. Its not like we're gonna eat the thing after it sits out for 3 weeks.

Okay onto the card. This one I made for my step-daughters sixteenth birthday. The colors are much more vibrant in person. I don't remember where the dp is from. DCWV I think. I used my nesties for the tag and the stamp is from CTMH. I did the inside of this one too but forgot to take a picture.

Well my free-time is almost over. Off to the bus-stop to get Leo.

Ah, the Joys of Christmas....

2009-12-06T09:21:00.003-05:00

Good Morning and Happy Sunday. I think we have all of our Christmas decorations up now with the exception of a few strays I need to finish. But the empty boxes are back up in the attic until January. Phew! I don't know about anyone else, but I love to make Christmas cards, but yesterday I couldn't put anything together to save my life. I couldn't match two pieces of paper. It was awful. I did manage to make two, but it took all day!! I will post those later since I haven't photographed them yet. Here's a couple I made the other day. The first uses a snowman stamp from CTMH (All Decked Out D1308), my nesties, and dp from Bo Bunny 'Tis the Season - Snowflakes'. The second card uses a stamp from Hampton Arts 'Santa Pulling Sleigh' and dp from DCWV. I think the ribbon is from Michael's. I'll try and post the cards I made yesterday after I go find the camera. And hopefully this week I will find some creative inpiration or there will be alot of people not getting cards this year!

P.S. Is anyone else having trouble with the new blogger format?

Another Challenge

2009-12-03T15:56:00.003-05:00

Hi again! Here's another card I made for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge 50. The image is from My Favorite Things colored with copics. I used my cuttlebug embossing folders for texture with a circle pattern in mind, and nesties for the ovals.

This card can also be used for the Copic Colour Challenge 42. The parameters were to use RV06, YG03, and YR04.

In about 20 minutes I have to take my son to a birthday party - so I'll have a couple of hours to myself til I have to go back and pick him up. Then later I need to get back to a really fun and fabulous job of finding which light is out on our pre-lit Christmas tree. I've already made one trip to Wallyworld for new light bulbs......pretty soon I'm going to give up and just buy a new tree. I feel like that guy in the "12 Days of Christmas" song who is "rigging up the lights..."

A new challenge SSSC46

2009-12-03T15:40:00.003-05:00

Hi all, I hope everyone is full of turkey. We we're out of town for the holiday and I did take my computer but it wouldn't allow me to link up to the internet for some reason. A bit annoying.

Anyhow, I made this card for the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 46. The dp is American Traditional Designs "Holiday Cheer" (red) and Basic Grey "Eskimo Kisses" (green). The wreath is pieced together with the punches from Martha Stewart. I added a couple of red sparkly thingys and a bow. Super Easy!!

A couple of new cards

2009-11-22T19:27:00.005-05:00

Hi there! Here's a couple of new cards I did. The colors are anything but traditional with the pinks, aquas, and oranges but I kinda liked the change from the norm. The stamps are from Magenta which I colored with copics, cs is dcwv, and dp is Fancy Pants "Happy Holidays" that I picked up at the cutest little store outside Chicago called Hannah's Home Accents".

Hannah's is in Antioch, IL about 4 miles south of the Wisconsin border. It is a total girlie store with all the homey knick-knacks anyone would love, a purse section, scrapbooking section, jewelry section (they carry Pandora which I'm totally into) and more. If you're ever up that way check it out. My friend Shelly and I spent about 2 1/2 hours in there when we just planned to 'pop in'. And about 25 minutes from there is an Archiver's store. Needless to say, that was one great day. And if you check out my sidebar, I've added links to the weekly challenges I've found and like.

More Sketches :)

2009-11-18T12:48:00.004-05:00

Hi, I am definitely addicted to sketches. One of these days I will get around to listing the sketches I've tried by blog so you can join in too! But that will be for another day as my son, Leo, just home from kindergarten, wants to go get lunch and head to the park. It's a beautiful sunny 60 degree day here in Canada....in November!! Can't ask for better!

This card is for Mercy's Tuesday sketch challenge 48. The dp is from Basic Grey. The stamp is from Whipper Snapper, one of my favorite companies, and colored with copics. I used a cuttlebug embossing folder for the background. I'm not sure if it's a little busy or not. Anyhow, I'm happy with it.

2009-11-18T12:45:00.003-05:00

This card is for Unscripted Sketches 31. I used dp from Magenta because it is so cute. I like blue for winter. The stamps are from Stampendous and colored with copics. I love snowmen!! My dh finds an interesting snowman each year and gives it to me for Christmas. This is year 11 so I should have quite the collection started......

I think it's time to start pulling out the decorations..........

2009-11-18T12:28:00.005-05:00

This card is for the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #44. I used dp from Magenta. The stamp is CTMH and colored with copics. The original sketch is a square card, but I don't have envelopes for square cards which is why my card is your typical A2.

Well that's it for today. Time to go get lunch!!

SFYYT again! I might be addicted!

2009-11-16T17:07:00.003-05:00

Hi again! I decided to try another of Jen Del Muro's Sketch for you to Try from Saturday. I really thought I could do it but the whole diagonal thing just threw me for a loop. I am such a perfectionist that I just couldn't put something on there diagonally! I really struggled. It must have taken me three hours to change things around before I just said to myself "why am I driving myself nuts with this?" So I did my loose (very loose) interpretation of Jen's sketch.

The dp is from Basic Grey 'eskimo kisses', the cs is bazill, the stamp is CTMH 'Just for the Holidays' (D1380), ribbon from American Crafts, and nesties for the circles. I like it even without the diagonal thingy.

My older son, Erik, (in grade one) comes home everyday from school with a new 'boo-boo'......usually on his face. It's been six straight days. When do I go to the school and question what's going on? I have not received a note nor a phone call from the teacher. The scrapes are usually minor. I'm not one to get overly worked up over a couple of scrapes, but six days in a row is a little ridiculous. I think I'll just write the teacher a note to see what she has to say. I think he is just clumsy. But there also may be a bigger problem of a bully........I'll keep you posted.......

Another sketch challenge.

2009-11-12T19:32:00.003-05:00

Hi all! Here's a card I did using Mercy Kerin's Tuesday sketch. So this is my second attempt at using sketches. I like the way this turned out with the brown and cranberry colors. The stamp is from Inkadinkadoo and the dp is Imaginisce "Polar Expressions - Frosted Forest". I used a Martha edge punch and oval nestabilities.

The boys are off school tomorrow so I think I'm going to drag them shopping 'over the river' with a stop at one of my favorite stores; Buffalo Stamps and Stuff . I see they've got a new shipment of goodies in. I guess the Nintendo DS will be accompany us on our day. It's the only way to have a little peace while I shop. That and a bribe with McDonalds for lunch....including toys and chocolate milk. I might even have to break down and make a run through Toys R Us. We'll see how the day goes!

2009-11-09T18:17:00.002-05:00

Hi there! Twice in one week! I did the Sketch for You to Try (SFYTT) on Jen's I(heart)2stamp blog. Here is my card based on her sketch:

The dp is all dcwv and the stamp is a clear stamp from House Mouse! I colored it with copics. This is my first attempt with following sketches. It was easy and I think I'll do it more often. Now I just need to figure out how to add it to Jen's "Mr. Linky" thingy so I can participate :).

As I type, my son Erik is digging through the chocolate bucket from Halloween. It takes five minutes for him to choose a treat. Seriously, it's all gonna be eaten sooner or later. I think the problem is that there is sooooo much candy in the bucket that he is overwhelmed with choices. Me? I don't have a problem. I just stick my hand in and eat whatever I grab! Or maybe that is a problem?

My other son, Leo, (at five years old) had a baggie full of gummy bears from school today. For some reason they disappeared from the kitchen this afternoon while I was in the laundry room. He says he didn't eat them, but that a ghost probably came and took them. He refuses to admit what actually happened to them. Now what? I can't prove he actually ate them because I didn't actually witness it. I just know they are gone and Erik is saying that Leo ate them. As my dad says which puts everything into perspective: "Leo, you are acting just like a five year old..."..

Hi there! Again

2009-11-05T10:15:00.003-05:00

I feel as though I need to reintroduce myself. Again! Seriously! Has it been since August I haven't posted? Wow! My time management skills have really gone in the pooper. I always thought that being a sahm would allow for lots of time to get things done and then some. But it doesn't seem to be working out that way. This school year my day is broken into bits of time. The boys get on the bus at 8 am, I catch the gossip at the local coffee shop and then head to the gym, come home, shower and then it's time to get Leo off the kindergarten bus at noon. Fix lunch, run errands and be home for 3:15 to get Erik off the bus. Then it's snacks and start dinner. Then somehow the day is over and then it all starts over again the next day. Kinda like "Groundhog Day".

Here's a card I made for my friends 40th birthday. The colors are a little more vibrant in real life. The package is actually bright orange, not red like in the picture. I started quilling last year and really enjoy it. I find it theraputic. I used an EK success edge punch for the fleur de lis. Can't tell you what kind of paper cuz I can 't find the scraps. I'm into edge punches now. I'll show you another card later.

Gotta take a shower before the bus comes!

Busy Busy Busy

2009-08-10T22:00:00.004-04:00

Hi all!
We just got back from a day trip to Toronto. We went up yesterday afternoon, got there just after lunchtime so had to feed the boys right away. What better way than with a hot dog from a street vendor? They thought that was kinda neat. Then we bought a transit day pass and rode the subway and the trolley/streetcar. Who needs an amusement park? Since we weren't pressed for time we took many trips around the city on the subway and trolley.

We stayed in Chinatown. What an awesome section of the city. The markets are spilling out onto the sidewalk with the fruits and veggies. The bakeries were awesome too! The people were super friendly. We checked out a bunch of stores and markets. After dinner we went for another ride on the subway. When we got off it was blowing like crazy. It was an incredible wind tunnel! So up the stairs of the subway and whoa! It's pouring....and I mean pouring!! Ten minutes earlier was clear skies. We got absolutely soaked! But since it was about 150 degrees it was okay - actually rather welcoming on such a hot, humid day. Anyhow, it poured the rest of the evening so we had to cut our expedition short. The boys were rather dragged out anyway, and it was 9 p.m.

The card above was made for my in-laws 61st anniversary. My mil loves the color purple. The flowers are cut with nesties and layered. The background is embossed with the cuttlebug folder. Easy and pretty.

I'll try to keep this updated.....oh never mind......I'll get on here when I can!!

Caio!

Where's Waldo...new name....Where's Susan?

2009-07-21T09:46:00.003-04:00

Where have I been? That is the million dollar question, eh? In the last month we have been busy and I have to apologize to all my billions of peeps who follow my blog. School let out on June 26th. I'm not sure why they need to go that long since the only thing they do for the last couple of weeks is play and have field day, go on field trips, etc. (at least in the lower grades).

After school was out we took a trip to Pittsburgh for a fourth of July pig roast with family and friends, a quick jaunt to Cleveland to visit and then back home. My in-laws came to visit from British Columbia the day after we arrived home and just left Sunday. My sis-in-law arrived Friday and is staying until Aug 19th. We are in for a busy summer. Which I must say seems more like a summer from my youth. We haven't even put the A/C on yet. I'm sure some of you think why would I need A/C if I live in Canada? Well it actually gets to the mid 90's during the summer here and is very humid and muggy. This year is the unusual one.

On to the card. I made this for my son's friend. The monsters are stamps from October Afternoon, dp is from CTMH. I colored with prismacolor pencils and popped the monsters. Quick and simple. I hate to say it but I had made a bunch of other cards that I sent out without taking pictures! After I sent them I coulda kicked myself. It's part of the reason I haven't posted in a while...... I promise to try and do better...... Happy Summer!!

2009-06-15T12:11:00.002-04:00

While I'm typing this I am awaiting the pretty little card to upload. It's probably going to be sideways. Again.....don't know how to fix it...... I just love this little stamp from Sarah Kay, called "Spring Blossoms". OMG it loaded straight!!! I colored with my copics. The dp is "Que sera sera" from K&Company that I picked up at Michael's for a discount. I used a Martha doily punch, one of my favs.

The weekend was uneventful, as in no real kid mishaps. The boys had track and field at school Friday afternoon. Erik won the long jump (or as he puts it, "running and jumping in the sand"), and came in second in both "throwing the heavy ball", and the speed race. He looked behind him to see where 'Logan' was and 'Logan' was apparently passing him to come in first in the race. Duh! Run fast, cross the finish line and then look to see where the other guy is!

Leo chose not to participate in the track and field events and wandered off back into the classroom where the teacher found him later and put him on a time out for, can you guess?...........Wandering off without telling someone. I just don't know where these boys get their independent streaks from.

Saturday saw the dragon boat races for a little while, Sunday went to Marineland which was ridiculously busy, then to Queenston Hts park, where the splash-pad was NOT running. Came home and swam in the neighbors pool. Like I said, quite uneventful........

I'll try to have better stories for you later......guess I'll have to feed the kids a couple spoonfuls of sugar before school........(which, for you americans, is out June 26th).

Seriously!.....

2009-06-12T10:33:00.004-04:00

I made these cards for Father's day. One is for my daddy and one for the FIL. I used paper from Scenic Route "Providence/Richmond St". The stamps are CTMH "Worlds Best Dad" and "I am" from the Tickled Pink collection. I popped the flowers with pop dots. I really like em!!

Now, seriously.....I get a note from the teacher today about my younger son in junior kindergarten. It seems he decided to be stubborn and not participate in the Daily Physical Activity (DPA) session. The teaching assistant tried to redirect him to participate and he tried to spit on her and since he missed and dribbled on himself, he stuck out his tongue instead. Seriously, where do they learn this stuff????? It's not like I'm going around spitting on their dad or sticking my tongue out at people........ Is it the TV? Scooby Doo isn't doing it either.

Well I'm back to suffering, I mean he is grounded again. No DS for two days. Then I wonder why I'm putting Bailey's in my coffee.......

Okay, I found time...

2009-06-10T15:48:00.005-04:00

Howdy all! The week is finally over and I was able to find some time to sit at the craft table and work on a couple of projects. It was usually after I put the kids to bed. Bedtime was on time this week too. I guess all the whining wore them out. I am thankful the week of grounding is over. I suffered more than they did. Though, I have come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter what I ground them from, they will whine about it. "It's so unfair." "This is the worst day ever." "Why can't I do/get/have....?" If I had grounded them from eating lemons for a week they would have complained about their lack of lemon intake all day.... Puuulleeease!!!!

This is a layout I did using the CTMH Workshops on the Go template. I tried to show pictures of each page individually, however, everytime I upload the picture it comes out sideways. So I give up. Anyhow, this paper pack is called "Bella" and that it is. I love the colors and who says you can't use pink and purple for boys?? I had to alter the layout to accomodate my picture sizes, but it was relatively easy to do.

I'm trying to put together a workshop for my 'peeps', so if you're in the area, let me know if you want to join!!

Got a couple more projects, so stay tuned in the next couple days and I'll post them!!

Grounded!!

2009-06-03T14:45:00.002-04:00

I just had to share....my boys are grounded! They acted up on the bus so the driver took them back to the school and I had to pick them up from the principals office. That was lots of fun considering my van was up on the jack in the garage while my dad changed the brakes. Had to borrow a car, switch car seats, etc.....so the boys are now grounded from friends, TV and the DS for one week!

My question is: Who is actually being grounded? The boys or me? It's a constant "mom, can I watch TV, I'm going to watch it anyway.....can I play the DS? (insert whining here) Why?????, but mooooommmmmm!!!!" So I ask, who is the one actually suffering???

As for sitting at the craft table to work on a project, well might as well just forget that......

Incidentally it took 22 minutes to type this.........

another card and another excuse

2009-05-26T20:44:00.004-04:00

Do you want me to start with the card or the excuse?

Okay, the excuse first. After we got back from Florida, we were home for a week only to find out my grandma died. So back to Cleveland we went for her funeral. I am sad that she died but at the same time I am happy for her. She was going to be 101 in September. She was miserable and begged daily for someone to "Dr. Kevorkian" her. I told her I couldn't help her as they frown upon that kind of thing...... Anyhow, she died in her sleep on May 18th. I am sad because I am remembering her when I was growing up and all the things we did together. But she hasn't been that person for a long time. Sometimes I wish I could go back to being a kid when things were easy.......

On to the card.....I made this for my dad's birthday. It's similar to the sunflower card I made for my husband. (see two posts back) The stamp is Stampendous "Sunny Flowers". The paper is Pinecone Press "ribbon weave and candy dots". It's a double sided cardstock. Used the nesties for the circle. I colored the image in with copics. For the inside I used my prismacolor pencils. I love the way the colors blend. I gave the card to my dad blank. That way, if he has to send a card he has one to use instead of having to run out and buy one. Is that cheap? I think I'm being "green". Reduse, reuse, recycle. Especially since my dad is not a pack rat. He's not one to save a bunch of stuff for sentimental reasons. Too practical.

A big "Hi" to my cousin, Al. He likes to check out my blog on occasion, or so he tells me. I think that brings the total of followers to three.....

The New Summer Idea Book!!!

2009-05-13T18:44:00.001-04:00

Hey, remember me?

2009-05-13T11:25:00.008-04:00

As usual I've been keeping up to date on this blog. Hey, once a month ain't bad? Okay, we were in Florida for 11 days. It was awesome!!! Hot around 95 degrees daily and sun, sun, sun! My dad said he felt like he was in a frying pan. Love this view from my pool lounger (left).

At least there was a bit of a breeze during the day and the pool was right there. So refreshing. Then we came back to 50 degree weather. Wow, did it ever feel cold! I'm thinking I could become a "snow bird" when the kids are out of University. So what's that? Another 18 -20 years from now?

Here's an anniversary card I made for my husband. I colored the image with copics using the blend/feather technique that Marianne showed us at the certification workshop. If you use two different colors ending in a 1, 2 or 3 and feather towards the center they seem to blend really well. The paper is sassafras lass. Used the nesties for the sentiment. The stamp set is Stampendous "sunny flowers".

Here's the inside. I colored the image with my prismacolor pencils trying to match the outside as best I could. I think it turned out well!

I'm really proud of this card. It's one of my favorites.

five boys and a card.....

2009-04-15T15:47:00.003-04:00

Here's a card that I made for a little girl's birthday last week. And yes, I managed to remember to take a picture. The stamp is from Hero Arts which I colored with copic markers. The frog turned out a little too dark for me which means I probably need to acquire some new greens. Yes, I "need" some new ones. I can't be having a dark green frog. It's just wrong.

The paper is from CTMH "Daydream" pack. I finally had a reason to use some of the more girly choices. I find it hard to make pink cards for boys.

Well, my friend from Cleveland has come to visit with her three boys over spring break. That means there are five boys between four and ten years old in the house right now. I cannot believe the energy and testosterone level!! Of course they all went to bed late last night and were up at 6 o'clock this morning! So they are whining with just as much exhuberance as they are playing! We set up the Playstation so they are occupied for a few minutes. I'm sure they'll be fighting over it soon.

I'm really feeling like a nap........can't imagine why.........

I hate cars

2009-04-09T14:13:00.003-04:00

Got a crack in the van windshield recently, and now there's a leak. Took the van in to get the windshield replaced only to find out that the roof of my van is rusting away. I guess this is a big problem with Pontiac Montanas. Something like 60% will rust out and you'll either have leaky windshields or need to replace the roof. Certainly made my day. Anyhow, got the rust cleaned out, gooped up, new windshield, gooped up some more.....and the result is Mastercard loves me right along with Jesus!

My boys have a couple of neighborhood girls over. There's a 3 yr old, 4 yr old and two 6 yr olds. The big discussion is do they want to play princesses or superheroes. A little while back there was no discussion. They just all played together. Pretty soon they won't even play together because one will be a girl and the other will be a boy, eew yuck, cooties.....

Here's a card using an Asela Hopkins stamp. I colored with copic markers. There's a Martha punch for the stars, nestabilities dies, flowers, and paper from Basic Grey "infuse" collection. I made it to enter a contest and finished it on the day the contest was ending. I went to upload it to the site and realized the site was from the U.K. who are 8 hours ahead of us....so the contest was already closed...duh! So now I have this pretty little card......

Happy Easter to all. My guess is I will show you my easter cards in May as I am so prompt in getting things on this site.

Where I've been...

2009-04-06T11:15:00.003-04:00

Howdy all my party peeps! I can't believe I haven't posted since February. That is disgraceful. I guess my real reason is because I haven't been very crafty lately. The weather here broke a little and we have been outside. My boys are bouncing off the walls and if they don't get out to burn off that energy I'm afraid my furniture won't last another six months. My friend thinks I'm raising jackrabbits for all the jumping around they do.

I took the Copic Certification class at the end of March which was taught by Marianne Walker, the Copic guru. The class was quite informative. I have been practicing my coloring and haven't done anything with the images. One of these days I'll start putting those images on cards and continue posting them here.

Okay, I found one that I haven't posted before. The stamp is one of those little mini 'snag ems' for like a buck...it's "Wildflowers" by Imaginisce. The paper that goes with it is really cute too. I did not however use it with this card. This paper is from EK Success "Seashore" line. It's lots of blues and greens and creams and yellows. I colored with the copics (pre-class) and popped the image. I love the nestabilities shapes. Sorry the picture is so dark.

Well, I guess I'm going to have to start again. I'm feeling that urge to create more often.....

Better late than not at all

2009-02-28T12:24:00.003-05:00

Howdy fellow surfers! I have been MIA for quite some time now. I really need to get back on the wagon and start blogging. The sad part is I've done some projects but have not taken pictures of them before I sent them or gave them away. How dumb is that? I guess I will have to entertain you with my wit extraordinaire. Now that I've said that I've completely drawn a blank and have nothing to talk about.

My eldest son will be six next weekend. He is having his party at the local gymnastics center. I learned my lesson last year having a houseful of boys making a mess. This year they can run around to their hearts content and I don't have to clean up. ...aside...my dh just popped in here reading over my shoulder so I asked him if he had anything to say. His response was he doesn't have anything to say to people he doesn't know. I'm certainly glad he doesn't have a job in public relations.....

Okay I found a project for you...this is a wooden box I got at Michael's and covered with patterned paper from CTMH. I made dividers for the inside also but apparently didn't take a picture of them (that I can find). I could do that later to show you, but then again, I just cut out 4x6 rectangles from cardstock and covered them with patterned paper and added a tab. easy peasy. I sponged the edges using a brown adirondack paint dauber. Those things are really cool and don't make a mess.

Until I decide to post again.....

Workshop projects

2009-02-03T09:46:00.002-05:00

I tried the other day to upload these images of the projects we did at the workshop last week, but they wouldn't upload for me. Today it works. So anyhow, here are the projects. The first is a card using CTMH stamps, Reach for the Stars. I used nestabilities to cut the card shapes and the swiss dot embossing folder in the cuttlebug. The cards we did at the workshop had green backgrounds instead of pink. The inside of the card says "to the moon and back".

The second card is using CTMH "That's Amore patterned paper and big blooms flowers. The inside says "Love You". I got the idea for it on
someone's blog. I'm sorry I don't remember who.

The third project is a little tag box that I got the template from here. The paper is CTMH Emporium Creative Basics, stamps are Sensational Seals.

The last project I got the idea from Kathi's blog. Thanks, Kathi! We all had a great evening at the "hen party" as my dh calls it. Though I am disappointed that Heather couldn't make it cuz of all the snow. I just think she was being lazy and I don't really think she spent an hour trying to park her car.....though I'm sure she'll disagree. Now why is this doing this? Why can't all the projects line up along the left side? This drives me nuts!!

The paper for this last project is CTMH Whoops a Daisy. Now why is this underlining?????? Stop it!!!

Okay, the real reason I don't post everyday is because this just frustrates the poop out of me because I am a perfectionist and I can't be having this underlining stuff going on. I have no idea where it came from or how to stop it.

I hope you like the box and the rest of the projects! Have a nice day.

so much for a resolution

2009-01-30T21:34:00.002-05:00

Why I bother to make a new year's resolution is beyond me. Didn't I say I was going to try to be on here at least three times a week? I think I got that confused with once every three weeks. Okay, now for the excuses....I thought the kids had chicken pox so they were home from school and then to the doctor only to find out they didn't have chicken pox but a staph infection that popped out with these little pimple things. Not contagious, just there. If anyone has kids with the chicken pox, give me a call so I can bring my kids over. I want them to get them the old fashioned way to become immune. I don't want to give them the varicella vaccination. It's only been on the market a few years with little history. I don't want my kids being the 'guinea pigs if you gwim.

After the kids were sick, Of course I had to join them... and then I decided to host a workshop at my house which ten people signed up for. However, I didn't have any projects in mind when I sent out the bulletin for the workshop. Usually I can just whip up a few projects while in my creative mojo...but....MY CREATIVE MOJO LEFT!!!! I tried for like a week to come up with some projects for the workshop and as the day got closer I got more in a slump. I made a few things and my dh was like "nope, uh, uh..." I did finally come up with four great projects for the workshop but at the last minute. I will post them here soon, right after I photograph them and download, etc, etc, etc,......

I really like blogging but it is really a pita to have to take pictures and download and then download, like everyday.....not my thing. I wish my dh was computer savvy and he could do it for me. But alas, that'll never happen, I have to show him how to turn the stupid thing on......
Hasta manana!

Lily and growing up

2009-01-12T15:14:00.004-05:00

This little card is made using the "Lily the Fairy" free download from Pink Cat Studio. They are running a contest right now thru the 13th using this image so check it out. I colored the image with prismacolor pencils. I tried to match the colors to the colors in the Karen Foster Designs patterned paper. The pink strip is embossed on the cuttlebug and cut out along the bottom. I then inked the embossed image with blush ink from CTMH. The ribbon is from Michaels'.

For those of you with kids, you will certainly recognize this story.....I'm sure we all have our turn going thru it in one form or another. The boys have the little girl from around the corner over for a play date today. She's in Erik's class at school. -You know where I'm going with this don't you? - Anyhow, I'm upstairs and I can hear the toilet flushing downstairs so of course I go down to see what they are doing and why they keep flushing the toilet. Their story is that they all went pee at the same time and they all saw each other's "privates". Lovely, I was kinda hoping they would do this at someone else's house, but alas, it's for me to explain to the little girls mom......... Of course I laid down the law that only one person goes pee at at time, with the door closed. No exceptions!! Oh, to be a child again.......

time flies..

2009-01-07T21:08:00.005-05:00

Howdy all my party peeps! I can be as corny as I want since nobody reads my blog anyhow. Today I had to drive the kids to school again as there was no bus transportation. If I didn't have to go to the dentist I would have let them stay home. I'm not sure why there was no bus service. There was some freezing rain which really wasn't frozen if you ask me. I think the weatherman predicted some worse weather than what we really got and the head dude at the school board had to make a decision about the buses way early. That's my best guess anyhow.

Speaking of the dentist, I had to get a tooth filled and if it wasn't between two teeth I would have had him do it without the novacaine. I asked him to go easy on it since he had to use it. Did he? Nope! I was numb from my eyebrows to my chin. I couldn't even feel my ear or my tongue. Made for a great morning. So much for my caffeine buzz I rely on daily. I can be a bit lethargic if I don't get my pot o'coffee....

This card is made using a Hannah Stamps stamp called Riley Moose. I'm still into pink as you can see. The paper is Bo Bunny and the cardstock is CTMH. I had some misc tiny flowers and some sparkly thingys around so I added those too. The ribbon is pink ric rac from Joann's. The corner is punched with SU ticket punch. I colored the image using my prismacolor pencils. Here's a close-up....It's terrible that my last post was Sunday and here it is Wednesday already. Where does the time go? It sure flies when you're having fun. I'll try to post more often....note the key word "try"!! LOL Okay peeps, have a great one. I'm getting in my pink jammies and going to bed!

I love pink...

2009-01-04T20:00:00.002-05:00

So how was everyone's weekend? Mine is getting better because the kidlets go back to school tomorrow! I think this is every mother's dream after an extended time having the kids at home. I don't know about anyone else but my boys are nuts. They do nothing but antagonize each other ending in one or the other crying or whining about the other one's meanness. Then ten minutes later the roles are reversed and the other one is crying and whining about it....go figure. Must be a boy thing. That and the fact they just beat the crap out of each other......Gotta love em.

Here's a sweet little card that I have made for my SIL birthday. The stamp is House Mouse colored with copic markers. The patterned paper is Bo Bunny. Totally cute and totally pink, which is a color I don't use much since I have nothing but boys.... I used the cuttlebug embossing folder for the embossed circles on a metallic type cardstock. I love the way the metallic paper holds the embossing!

here's a close-up....It's back to the regular schedule of real life now.......not sure if that's good or bad......later!

Cute is in!!

2009-01-02T17:41:00.003-05:00

I guess with the new year I can't be posting Christmas cards anymore. Kinda sad since I picked up a few clearance christmas stamps at Stamplicity in Pt. Colborne. They are having 25% off all christmas stuff.

This card was made with a House Mouse stamp. They are so cute. I colored the image with my copic markers. I have to say I am starting to get the hang of these things and may try blending with my prismacolor pencils that my dh gave me for christmas!! I matted the image on CTMH cardstock that I cut with a nestability scallop square. The patterned paper is dcwv. The little pink rhinestones are also CTMH.
Here's a close-up of the image:
Speaking of Close to My Heart, the new Idea Book is out!!! The new spring patterns are so cute! Here's a sneak peek of That's Amore!! The colors are chocolate, tulip, blush and garden green. Very elegant and very Valentine's Day!!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T21:52:00.001-05:00

I know Christmas is past us already but I just wanted to post the last few cards I had made. The top card is made with a stamp by Penny Black "Poinsettia & Pine". I colored the stamp with marvy uchida markers and spritzed it with a mist of water before stamping. It creates a really pretty watercolor look.

The second card I made for my in-laws using The Cats Pajamas stamp set. I colored with copic markers and matted on DCWV paper. I don't have a scalloped rectangle nestabilities die so I cut two squares and matched them up to make the rectangle.

The third project is two little birdhouse ornaments. I got the pattern off Nichole Heady's blog a few months back. I made them for the boy's teachers to attach to their teacher gifts at Christmas.

To those of you who follow my blog, I have to apologize for being MIA for the last week plus. Last night we had a great new year's eve. We went to a neighbor's house with two other couples and all our kids. We got home at 1:30 a.m. and Erik was still awake. Leo had previously passed out from exhaustion around 12:30 in the middle of the family room floor........ the other kids just ran around him until I moved him to one of the bedrooms.

Today we went to another neighbor's house to go sledding and for a bonfire. He has a tobbagan run off his deck which kept the kids occupied for about three hours. My dh and a couple buddies went trolling the neighborhood for christmas trees people were throwing away so we had some wood for the bonfire. I guess at one house there was an exercise bike and a tree out front and that the owner was excited thinking he was finally getting the bike off his yard, but alas, the guys took the christmas tree. What a letdown!! Here's a couple of pictures of the day! Happy New Year!!!

After a week off...

2008-12-28T21:41:00.002-05:00

Hi all! Merry Christmas to everyone! We just got home from our trip to Dad's. The kids enjoyed their visit from Santa on the 24th. Of course the next morning looked like a Toys R Us truck exploded in the living room.....the boys loved all their new stuff and of course wanted more when we went out shopping later in our trip.

We did a little shopping the day after Christmas. We didn't find any fabulous deals. The research groups and economists seem to think we're in a big recession and are projecting sales to be down by 2 - 4% from last year. That's it? While I was at the stores there were tons and tons of people buying stuff. I could understand if the projections are 20 - 30% down from last year. I don't get it. Then again I'm not an economist.

Did anyone else have some wild weather lately? We left 3 feet of snow behind when we left and came home five days later to 60 degree weather. Thank god the sump pump worked!! We drove thru some water over the streets in a few places. Kinda scary in the dark! Today there was crazy wind. A few neighbor's lost some shingles from their roofs. Global warming I tell ya!

Oh, for all you Calgarians, one of your puzzles showed up in the Cleveland Plain Dealer on Christmas day. It was this GIGANTIC crossword puzzle with something like 660 clues both across and down. My dh started it, I took a couple tries and so did my brother and we're still not done!!! Guess I need to go give it another shot!

Hopefully I can post a project a little later. The same thing that was plaguing me downloading pictures is happening again....

Snow, Snow and more Snow!!

2008-12-21T12:23:00.003-05:00

This little guy is stamped with a Cat's Pajamas stamp set "Deck the Hall" and colored with copic markers. Patterned paper is dcwv. I used nestabilities to cut the scalloped squares and the cuttlebug swiss dots embossing folder. The little clip is from CTMH and dollar store ribbon. I liked the color combination. It looks better in person.
Well, starting Friday we got a huge snowstorm, like the kind you can't see 50 yards up the street through the blowing snow kind......the buses for school were cancelled which I found out after I had bundled everyone up and stood at the busstop until a nice lady decided to stop and roll down her window to tell us there were no buses.....school is optional at that time. However, I need my four hours without kids to keep my sanity so I drove them to school. That was after we came back to the house and brushed everyone off because we all looked like snowmen.

Driving wasn't bad out. You just couldn't see......

Yesterday (saturday) was our big family christmas on my dh side. Of course I had offered a while back to host at our house....busy, busy, busy- what was I thinking? It was a beautiful day outside. Bright and sunny and a clear blue sky..........the party was nice too....

Today we have another snow blizzard like Friday. How am I supposed to finish my christmas shopping with this blizzard? I need a dog sled.....

Happy Birthday Andrea

2008-12-17T20:00:00.004-05:00

Well, I'm trying to upload a picture but it's not letting me. There is still so much to learn when doing this blog. It takes some time to get to know the ins and outs but I'd rather go craft something than have the perfect blog page. Maybe one of these days I'll get around to having a pretty banner. For now I'll just stick with the basics which is working just fine.

Tonight was the kindergarten Christmas concert at school. It was so cute to see all the girls in their little poofy Christmas finest and the boys in their fancy red and green sweaters. It's wonderful to see the junior kindergarten kids sing with such enthusiasm while the senior kindergarten kids - not so much......what changes from one year to the next?

I didn't get much response to the teacher losing the toy debate on Monday. One of my peeps wanted to know why the kid that got the toy didn't tell the teacher it wasn't his?

I haven't been receiving comments on this blog. I'm thinking that I have to turn on some button in order for people to leave me comments. I'm guessing that's the case and not that there is noone interested in my blog. Yeah, I'll keep on believing that.......

Let's try the picture again...
Hey, it worked! This is a card I made for my niece, Chatty Andrea, for her birthday. The stamps are Pink Cat Studio Farm Animals. I colored in with copic markers. The paper is from We R Memory Keepers White Out Collection . I used nestabilities for the circles, prima flowers, and Kaiser pearl thingys for the centers. I love the way this turned out, so bright and cheerful.

Until later, peeps!

A Couple of Birthday Cards

2008-12-15T17:48:00.003-05:00

Hey Peeps! Here are a couple of cards I made for my "peeps" birthdays. I give them these cards but I don't write anything in them so they can use them again. They think I'm weird for doing that, but that's just me.

These cards are a little different from what I do as there is no stamping. The first card is using a CTMH Big Blooms flower in colonial white with chocolate grosgrain ribbon. I don't know what brand the patterned paper is.
The second card is using a whole bunch of misc. flowers from prima with misc brads as the centers. The pink stripe paper is from CTMH "Best Friends Forever" paper pack which is retiring at the end of the year. It is one of my favorites. The vase is stamped in Indian Corn Blue ink and popped on dimensionals.
Well the school drama starts. Last Thursday I took the boys to McD's and they both got a happy meal with a high quality plastic toy - Lego Bionicle robots. Erik took his to school on , wait, let me amend that - Erik took Leo's to school on Friday and got it taken away by the teacher for playing with it at an inappropriate time. I agree with that and E and I talked about it. However, I feel that at the end of the day the teacher should return the toy so the child can bring it home. Well the teacher forgot so I wrote her a note to remind her to send it Monday. Somehow over the weekend it found it's way to some other child and the teacher called me explaining she forgot whose toy it was and mistakenly gave it to another child. I told her she didn't have to replace it after she offered but I'm still a little miffed because I buy my kids stuff, I'd like it back. I think this whole thing has blown way out of proportion and I don't want to be a pain in the butt for the teacher. Any thoughts?

2008-12-13T22:04:00.003-05:00

This is another card I made using CTMH products. The stamp set is Merry Pursuits, the paper is Everlasting Creative Basics, and finally cranberry ribbon. I colored the elf with my copics and found I like the result better than a previous elf I had colored with Crayola colored pencils. The scallop square is cut with nestabilities and popped on dimensionals.
Sorry I didn't post last night. I was out with my friends. My friend Lisa was in town from Calgary so we had a girls dinner out. Heather (from Heather and her peeps) joined us as well as my neice, chatty Andrea. We had some excellent thai food but I made the mistake of ordering an extra spicy 'cold beverage' as well as a spicy pad thai. Boy, I PAID for that. I think the doctor's diagnosis of "moderate reflux" was quite the understatement..... I was even feeling the after effects this morning. Yuck.

Today me and the gals took a trip "over the river" to Buffalo and Niagara Falls, NY to do a little shopping. We spent all day hitting all the good stores. I haven't done that in a while. Usually I have two little boys tagging along and the shopping trip lasts about two hours just as my sanity is waning. Today, however, I think my feet gave out before my credit card. Serves me right for wearing my goin' out shoes. I need to stick with my "bus-stop" slip-ons. Ya know, the ones I throw on to run out to the bus stop to send-off or retreive the kids..... the ones for the grocery store..... the comfy ones!

Despite the shoes we had a great time and picked up a couple of last minute bargains before Christmas. Now I really need to focus on finishing up my Christmas cards as I am seriously running out of time...... Better get crackin.....

bummer of a day

2008-12-11T17:04:00.003-05:00

This card is made using my new stamps from Pink Cat Studio and colored in with copics. The set is called "Lily and Billy Winter". The patterned paper is dcwv, with a martha stewart snowflake punch, and ribbon from Michael's. I just love the cuteness of this set!
Here's a close-up
I submitted this for a design team call but didn't get called so I'm a little bummed. So then I decided to check the gallery to see what they are looking for and see that there is a card really similar to mine. Oh well. I'm still fairly new to blogging and I'm still trying to find my own style in cardmaking. I'll have to try again.

O happy Day!

2008-12-10T16:51:00.004-05:00

I found out last night that I was the winner of Asela Hopkins blog candy!! I never win anything! I am so excited. Asela designs for Gina K Designs and they are having a new release on the 11th! Check it out.

This card is one I'm rather fond of. The stamp is from The Cat's Pajamas set "Deck the Hall". I colored it with copics and I'm really happy with the way it turned out. The patterned paper is dcwv, with Kaiser pearl dots, Michael's ribbon, and SU ticket punch. While I was making a few Christmas cards I stamped some images for the boys to color in and paste to some cardstock. I stamped three for each of them thinking that they would each make three cards. I guess when you are 4 and 5 years old you need more detailed instruction.....Here are their creations. (I can't get these to rotate straight, I'm uploading them straight?)

Erik's the inside of Erik's
Leo's
the inside of Leo's Well that's all folks! See ya soon!

happy birthday, Riley...

2008-12-09T16:46:00.004-05:00

I made this card for my step-daughters 15th birthday. The paper is not dcwv!! Can you believe it? It is actually a CTMH paper pack, "Best Friends Forever", which is being retired on December 31st. The colors are awesome and it is one of my favorites including twilight, hollyhock, garden green and goldrush. The mouse stamp is from Whipper Snapper, which I colored with my copics. I'm starting to get the hang of shading..... The sentiment is from Pink Cat Studio Farm Animals cut out with the cuttlebug and nestabilities circle/scallops. The ribbon is from Michaels.
Today the boys went on a field trip to the theatre to see Beauty and the Beast. They were gone from 8 a.m. until 2:30 when I had to pick them up. It gave me an extra 2 1/2 hours free time to myself. Normally they get home at noon. Wouldn't ya know that today I woke up with a pounding headache so bad it made me sick to my stomach so I didn't end up doing anything all morning. What a waste of a day. I finally ran to the mall at noon to run a couple of errands and then had to hurry back to pick up the boys. My only day I could have done something without having to rush to be back at noon. ooh I am soo mad! Of course now my headache is gone.....

TGIF

2008-12-05T20:23:00.004-05:00

These two cards were made using the Inkadinkadoo stamp set. Used dcwv paper, nestabilities, cuttlebug tag, ctmh safety pin. I colored with the copics (love those things), and obviously thought long and hard how to piece these two cards together. haha.

My niece Andrea is sitting here watching me type this blog and chatting away. We tease her that she has a quota to fill so she should be up talking until at least 2 a.m. I have to apologize to those few followers of this blog why I didn't blog last night. I put the boys to bed at 8:30 and I was in bed by 8:45. I'm pretty sure I was asleep by 8:46. I slept to 7 a.m. this morning. I can't remember the last time I did that. I think it's the weather. It is really cold and gray these days. I just want to sleep. In fact, that is where I'm going now. Maybe Andrea won't notice I'm not listening anymore.......

Miss me?

2008-12-03T22:36:00.003-05:00

Hi y'all, We were away for Thanksgiving and I was a bad girl. I promised I'd post on this blog but never did. Might be because we were part of the population that got up at 4 a.m. on Black Friday to go shopping. It's become a bit a of a tradition after my younger son was born. It's kind of refreshing (and nutty) to shop in the middle of the night in your pajamas...... Of course, that threw my internal clock off for the rest of the weekend. Anyhow, the shopping was good at some places and not so good at others. More about the shopping later....

This little card was made with a cute stamp from the same set by Inkadinkadoo. I colored with my copics and stamped the sentiment with a stamp from Hero Arts. The cutouts are with the cuttlebug, nestabilities. The ribbon is actually navy blue but this picture makes it look black.

I hosted another card workshop tonight. My friend Heather called me last week and told me she was bringing some friends over to make cards and wanted to know what day was best for me...... I wasn't planning on another workshop this week but apparently she was....sooooo we had one. It's always alot of fun with her 'peeps'. Hi peeps!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2008-11-27T20:27:00.002-05:00

Wishing all of you out there a very Happy Thanksgiving. We just finished stuffing ourselves with turkey and all the fixin's!

Check out the great dessert - I mean candy that Bev has for the holiday! The next holiday is Christmas and it's gonna be pink!

Gotta go have a turkey induced snooze.......cheers!

2008-11-25T21:25:00.002-05:00

I found the jolliest clear stamp set at one of my fav stores, Stamplicity. The set is called "Christmas Characters" by Inkadinkadoo. I colored the santa with my copics, used the swiss dot embossing folder in the cuttlebug, nestabilities for the circles and scallop, dcwv paper (what else?), and I added a sparkle to his puff on his hat after I took the picture.

I wish I was better with my camera so I could get a clearer shot.

We're headed to my dad's for the Thanksgiving holiday. I'm dragging the ol' laptop along so hopefully I'll have time to check in on my blog. Speaking of family, my son Erik comes home from school today in his "emergency clothes". These are the ones we leave in his cubby in the unfortunate event the child has an "accident". Well, when he gets off the bus today he says, "mom, I had an accident at school". Well, I'm thinking he filled his pants or something. So I question him only to find out that he decided to go swimming in a mud puddle on the playground (he actually tripped and fell into a mud puddle). He was soaked thru from head to toe including his winter jacket, the snowpants, shirt, jeans, underwear, socks. And of course he left all the wet clothes at school in his cubby......soooooo we had to go back up to the school to retrieve them. Though he did manage to remember to shove his wet, muddy, soggy snowpants in the bottom of his backpack. As my dad would say, "Erik, you act just like a five year old"!

Biker Babes Rule

2008-11-24T19:40:00.003-05:00

I'm a total biker babe. My ten-speed is awesome. I've had it for years....

I know this isn't a Christmas card, but I really thought the stamp was cute. It gives me a sense of a high-powered woman taking charge of her life....... okay, too much philosophizing here... I saw the stamp on a card on someone else's blog and just fell in love with it. When I was "over the river" in Buffalo at my new favorite store, Buffalo Stamps, I picked it up.

The stamp is "Bikeababeabella" from Stamping Bella. Paper is dcwv (I have all of their "stacks" so I've got dcwv coming out of my ears), and I colored the image with Prismacolor watercolor pencils. It's a nice medium to work with besides my copics.

The boys were back to school today being a Monday and all. Leo had a pajama party so he wore some pajamas to school. I guess being four years old you can do that sort of thing. He almost fell asleep on the bus (again) coming home at noon. You would think he'd take a nap then, but nope! Off and running with big brother Erik. I finally calmed them down with some "pearler beads". Those are those plastic tubes you put on a pegboard and then iron so the little pegs melt together and make a shape. We're making ornaments for our loved ones. So if you are a loved one reading this be surprised when you get it. The boys made them with lots of love.

I just heard that my friend from Calgary is coming back to visit in a couple of weeks. I'm looking forward to it. Dinner with the girls, shopping and more food......and the kids staying home with my DH. All grown-ups all the time.... Well off to get my little ones in bed!

Candy and a snowman....

2008-11-23T17:03:00.003-05:00

Check out Debbie's blog candy and the cute cards here.

This is a new card I did using a new Penny Black stamp. The stamp actually has three snowmen and I'll probably do a card with the whole stamp soon so check back later for more. The paper is dcwv and the cs is ctmh. I used a Martha punch for the snowflakes and added some christmas red stickles and colored the image with my copics. Not one of my favorites, but simple and cute.

I decided to do a little christmas shopping this afternoon so I headed out alone (read: no kids tagging along). When I got home, my dh had a couple of friends over having a couple of "cold beverages" and watching the game. Which game? Doesn't matter, as long as there is a game on the TV will be on also. I guess that old saying "when the cat's away, the mice will play..." rings true in my household!

Busy, busy, busy....

2008-11-22T16:49:00.004-05:00

This week has been reeeaaaaalllllyyyy busy and I've been super tired. Okay, just excuses as to why I haven't posted since Monday. My goal is to post daily, however, I also need some material to post. This requires me to have a sit down at the craft table which is not always possible. I keep trying though.

These little tags are what's leftover when I cut the oval out of the "Wishing You..." christmas card we did in my card workshop. (see below). I stamped the snowmen images using a set from Stampendous and colored them in using markers, added an eyelet and some ribbon and 'tada!' little tags ready to go whenever I get around to wrapping gifts. I guess I have to go buy the gifts first if I want to have something to wrap....

How sweet it is....

2008-11-17T21:51:00.003-05:00

This is a cute little stamp from Elsybells that I picked up at a great store in Buffalo, NY called Buffalo Stamps. This is my new favorite stamping store. They carry everything and more. It's an hour from my house and includes crossing the Canadian/American border with a passport and birth certificates for the boys. Hey, a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do to get her fix kwim?

I used my cuttlebug to emboss the background, patterned paper is DCWV, cs is CTMH, and I used my copics to color the stamped image. I'm sorta kinda startin to get the hang of blending and shading. Kinda sorta.......

A moosey Christmas...

2008-11-13T20:20:00.006-05:00

Here's another card for those of you not following my blog. I really think I am the only one who looks at this...... This is a card I made using the Hanna Stamps Moose. He is so stinkin' adorable. I colored him with my copics but didn't let the stamped image dry enough before I started coloring and the result was....he bled. But then again, it kinda looks like his fur is fuzzy. I'm still trying to get the hang of these copics with the blending and all that. I've been following a couple of cute blogs like Jenn's and Marianne's that give some instruction. Without them, I'd be totally lost. I used CTMH cardstock in topiary and heavenly blue. A bit of a strange combination but I like it. Obviously I used the cuttlebug for the background and a new Martha Stewart snowflake punch that I covered in stickles.

TFL or not,
Susan

Offerings from a recent card workshop

2008-11-10T15:45:00.011-05:00

These are cards that I offered at my Christmas Card workshop last week. They are all Close to My Heart as I am a consultant. The first card used Snow Friends stamps, cuttlebug snowflakes covered in glitter glue, Aspen paper, the image was colored in with markers (twilight, orange, black, cranberry). I saw the design on the iheart2stamp blog and scraplifted the design to acommodate the CTMH product. Thank you kindly for the inspiration, Jen!
This second card used Deck the Halls paper with O Christmas Tree stamps. I used my cricut to cut the circle/scallops as it had to be done in bulk. The christmas tree is origami folded from three squares of paper. Totally easy peasy (as my kids would say). The star is 'popped'.
The third card used paper from Everlasting Creative Basics, cranberry ribbon. I heat embossed the design on the ornament with gold embossing powder.
The fourth card used Evensong Creative Basics paper and Winter Memories stamps. The sentiment is from Wonderful Season stamps. I cut the oval with a coluzzle.

This fifth card used Evensong paper with the tree stamps from The Beauty of Christmas set and sentiment from Winter Memories set. The snowflake is cut and embossed on the cuttlebug.

This last card was not part of the workshop as my DH insisted that pink and green were not Christmas colors and that I should stick with traditional cards. I kinda like it though and it could probably be used for a birthday card because of the design and colors. Well maybe the snowflakes on the background wouldn't so well work for a birthday unless it's Dec., Jan. or Feb?
After all that, I wanted to do something for me so I created the following card for something other than Christmas. The stamp is totally cute from Whipper Snapper Designs. I colored it using my copics and cuttlebugged the paper behind. For some reason I really had trouble making the scallop edging with my corner rounder. Must be losing my touch!

Anyhow, I'm off to see what my boys are up to. They have the little girls from around the corner over to play so I have in my house two 5 year olds, one 4 year old, and a 2 year old. I can hear they are currently playing house and they go to work to be superheroes (we have a whack of costumes). I keep seeing a batman or a supergirl running past the room here....... TFL!

Susan
P.S. check out the blog candy at http://bevscrafts.blogspot.com/2008/11/whiff-of-joy-blog-candy.html

A Little Late for Halloween, but...

2008-11-08T21:15:00.003-05:00

Okay, here are two cards I made for my sons' teachers for Halloween. I have been trying to figure out how to upload pictures, so let's see if this worked or not. The pumpkins and spiders I cut from my cricut and I used DCWV patterned paper. The background papers are embossed with the cuttlebug too. For someone who is a Close to my Heart consultant, I certainly used very little product on these! The sentiment is CTMH as well as the ink. Okay so there is a little there. Whew! That's about all I can tell you now. I'm still getting the hang of this blogging thing.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

2008-11-06T21:40:00.000-05:00

Hello all!
This is my first attempt at a blog and for those of you that know me I am computer literate to the point that I can turn the computer on. For me to get this far is quite the miracle! Okay, maybe I'm not that bad but I haven't tried to post a picture yet. I guess we'll see how this goes.