Stamp with Carrie

New Blog!

2011-09-16T08:02:00.001-04:00

Guess what! I started a new family blog! I'll still post here occasionally if I EVER ink up another stamp, but for now since most of my blogging has been family or sewing related, I figured I needed a place for that, too. Check it out at http://www.lifeofthecrazybakers.blogspot.com/ Until next time.......

Publix and Bi Lo 8/26/11

2011-08-26T16:35:00.000-04:00

I did better on coupons today! Here's the breakdown:

Publix:

Tropicana orange juice
2 boxes Ritz crackers
4 boxes Nature Valley granola bars
2 boxes Kraft mac & cheese
4 bottles 50 count Advil

total before sales and coupons: $52.73
out of pocket: $12.79

Bi Lo:

4 Velveeta Skillet dinners
1 Lawry's marinade
1 case DeerPark water3 boxes toaster pastries
2 X-14 automatic toilet bowl cleaners
3 boxes freezer/storage bags
1 1lb bag shredded cheese
1 sour cream
1 gallon milk
2 1/2 gallons Pet ice cream
9.82 lbs of Boston Butt roast
2 whole fryer chickens (10.81 lbs)
2 london broil roasts
5 packs Eckrich smoked sausage
2 packs Carolina Pride hotdogs
4 10 oz packs Carolina Pride lunchmeat
2 bags Armour meatballs
2 bunches broccoli
1 3lb bag yellow onions
2.5 lbs bananas
3.5 lbs Gala apples
1.4 lbs peaches

total before sales and coupons: $194.00
out of pocket: $96.57

That makes a combined savings of 66%. Not too shabby!

Shopping Trip 7-28-11

2011-07-28T12:15:00.000-04:00

Today is payday, and that means my envelope for grocery money got refilled! Isn't that exciting?! So I headed out to the stores and here's the breakdown.

Here's what I got at Publix:   4 packs Gogurt, 4 boxes Post cereal, 5 boxes Kellogs cereal, 2 boxes Poptarts, 2 bottles Coffee Mate creamer, 1 Aussie conditioner, 4 cans Green Giant corn, 12 cans Green Giant green beans.                  Publix: actual cost $80.41 out of pocket $31.03

Here's what I got at Bi Lo:   2 bags Wise Cheese Doodles, 3 boxes Nabisco Fruit Crisps, 1 bottle Sun laundry detergent, 1 book, 5 lb. ground beef, 3.7 lb. pork roast, 6 packs boneless skinless chicken breast, 2 packs Bar-S hotdogs, 2 packs Hillshire Farms link sausage, 1 pack Smithfiels bacon, 1 pack Carolina Pride lunchmeat, 1 bag carrots, 2.52 lb. bananas, 2.52 lb grapes.      Bi Lo: actual cost $138.14 out of pocket $75.03

Here's what I got at CVS: 1 8ct pack pens, 1 small bottle Crest mouthwash, 1 50ct box Kotex pantiliners, 1 Oral-B toothbrush, 1 bottle Renu contact solution.         CVS: actual cost $24.56 out of pocket $6.30

This makes my overall trip a savings of 53.7%. I would love to get to the 60% mark, but haven't figured out how to do that yet. Anyone have any tips to do better? I have $12.34 left for the week, which will be spent on milk, I'm sure. Have you done any couponing lately?

CVS and Piggly Wiggly Shopping Trip

2011-07-20T16:01:00.001-04:00

Our family is trying to make a budget and stick to it. The goal is to be debt free as soon as possible. We've never really tried to live on a budget before, but it's the only way possible to pay off our debt and stay that way. We're using Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. We've decided to budget $125 a week for shopping money,and if possible knock that number down as much as possible. This includes groceries, toiletries, medicines, basically everything except clothing. I've been couponing for almost a year now and do pretty good.

Here's what I got at CVS today: (5) bags of M&M's, 9.9 ounce
                                                   (3) boxes Chocolate Cheerios, 11.2 ounce
                                                   (3) boxes Honey Nut Cheerios, 12.2 ounce
                                                   (1) box Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal bars, 6 count

Coupons used: (5) $1 off M&M's
                        (3) $1 off 2 General Mills Cereal
                         (1) $.50 off General Mills Cereal bars
                         $10 Extra Care Bucks from last week

So I got $49.86 worth for $14, plus a free $10 gas card for spending $30 on certain items. Not too shabby!

At Piggly Wiggly I got (2) 5 lb bags of Dixie Crystal Sugar and a bag of Fritos. I didn't use any coupons, but redeemed 4.50 Greenbax to get the sugar free. So I paid $2 for $10.47 worth of stuff.

All total, I paid $16 for $70.15 worth of stuff, which means 77% savings! I love it when that happens!

A Trip to the Zoo

2011-07-18T15:20:00.002-04:00

Last Friday I met with some friends from Beaufort at the zoo here in Columbia. The weather here has been incredibily hot here lately, but it was overcast the cooler that day, and it ended up being the perfect weather. The Flamingoes are the first animals you see when you enter, and I always love to stop and take a picture. They say the flamingoes get their pink color from eating shrimp.

We ate our lunch at the picnic area along the river. We climbed these huge rocks and had a nice rest. The kids loved hopping from rock to rock. I enjoyed watching them have a blast.

This is me with my sister-in-law Cathy.

And these are our tired little feet taking a break!

Don't the bears look like they're kissing?

Amanda fed the giraffe at the look-out. She loved it!

We finished the day at the botanical garden. The flowers were beautiful!

They had this chair in the garden. How could you walk by and not sit in it?

In the Trenches!

2011-07-14T09:27:00.001-04:00

Literally, in the trenches! This is what I did yesterday morning.

Me and my two boys spent the morning digging up the water lines in our yard. When the water company read our meter the other day, they left a note on the door that said we had excessive water usage and should check for a leak. The house has an irrigation system that we had been using since we moved in. Our first bill said we used 17,000 gallons. We thought the bill was kind of high, so we turned off the sprinkler system and I just watered my flowers by hand and we didn't worry about the grass. So when they came back and said we used 36,000 gallons, we knew there was a problem.

Since we knew there was no leak in the house, we figured it had to be outside, but couldn't figure out why there are no wet, soggy spots in the yard? But there must be a leak somewhere, so we began to dig.....and dig.... and dig. It was so hot, sweat was literally dripping off the end of my nose and my clothes were soaking wet. Not very ladylike, I know.

So after all that digging, we found nothing. Not a drop of water leaking from the pipes. So this morning what did I do? I went outside and put all that dirt back in the trenches. Turns out there was a small leak in one of the junction boxes for the irrigation system in the flower bed, but there must be another problem. So we'll have to keep looking for it. I kept hoping to find water gushing out while we were digging. Then we could fix it and be done. Oh well, I burned some extra calories, right?

Now we have to wait for the grass to grow back in this area and it will be good as new.

Since I showed you all that dirt, it's only fair that I show off the flowers I planted this spring. This is around my mailbox post. When we moved in I dug out the grass, put in the border and planted these flowers. They were just little bitty things then, but they have tripled or more in size and I love them!

I have the same flowers in an old beat up wheelbarrel in the front yard. I don't know what the neighbors think about it, but I love my wheelbarrel.

And finally, my potted plant I got on clearance at Piggly Wiggly for just $2.99! They were also giving away mini flags because it was the 4th of July weekend, so I stuck it in my new plant. The stand looks like a bike. Can you tell? My mom-in-law got that for my birthday several years ago and I love it!

So, those of you who have city water, what is your average usage? I called my sister who also has 3 kids and does lots of laundry. She said hers is between 6,000 - 8,000 gallons a month. I wonder if we have a bad meter?

Jean Skirt Pillow

2011-07-11T09:07:00.001-04:00

What do you do when this happens to your most comfortable jean skirt?

I actually wore this skirt with a rip up the split a few times. "Ma Ma, do you know there's a hole in your skirt?"

"Yes, I do, but I like this skirt." Well, as you can see, that hole traveled and I really couldn't get away with that anymore without indecent exposure!

I'm redoing my daughter's room on a shoestring budget, and I figured I could make a cute pillow out of this skirt. I bought it a few years ago at the Goodwill Store for probably 2 bucks, wore it to death, and now it has been repurposed for my Baby Girl's room.

Remember the pillow that I promised no one was going to use in my previous post? I cut it open, fluffed up the filling, and used in to stuff my new pillow. The flowers were picked up at Wal-Mart for about $5.

Then I cut off the bottom of the skirt just above the top of the rip and ironed on the flowers. Then you turn the skirt inside out and sew up the bottom. Flip it back right side out, sew up one side of the top, stuff, and sew up the other side. It was at this point I realized that one of those sparkly belts from my last post would coordinate well with the color scheme going on in the room, and those belt loops needed a belt. I may swith it out with some wide ribbon later, but for now I'm calling it done!

When her room is completely done you'll get to see the whole thing. I'm still working on projects and collecting items as I find them. I'm just glad I get to do a "girlie" room. Her last one was cowboys!

Thanks for stopping by!

I'm linking up to Met Monday and Frugal Friday!

Thrifty Finds

2011-07-08T10:51:00.001-04:00

I decided to hit some thrift stores yesterday. I just felt like shopping, and thrift store shopping is 1. Something I can afford, and 2. Fun, because you never know what you might find!

I'm also beginning to get the itch to create or change something, so I get rid of all the kids and headed out to see what I could find! I think I did pretty good. I spent $30 and ended up with 28 items. Not too shabby!

Here's everything all laid out. As you can see, it covers my entire table!

Here is the breakdown. For Amanda I got the cute little hat. Anyone that knows us knows how much Amanda loves hats!

I scored this beauty of a dress for $1. Can't beat that!

She also got 5 shirts. The one on bottom says Baby Girl. We always call her Baby Girl, so I couldn't pass it up!

And every little girl needs some sparkly belts!

I found these adorable flats in just the right size for guess who? ME!

I didn't really have any long sleeve shirts for winter, but now I have 4! I also needed a white casual t-shirt, mine were looking kind of yellowish. That blue and gray striped number is a lightweight hoodie. Can't wait to wear it!

Also in my pile is a pair of khaki capris. Who doesn't need more khaki?

For the men/boys in my life I picked up a dress shirt, a t-shirt, khaki shorts, a pair of jeans and a nice tie for church. Yay!

These are for projects I'll be working on. See that pillow? No one will be using it, I promise. That would be kind of gross. It will have another life, and I'll show you when I get it done.

I thought his litle mail holder was adorable. I love the swirls. It will get a facelift also before it gets placed in it's new home.

This is a flat sheet (full size, I think). I'm thinking this will turn into a jumper for Amanda, or maybe a wreath for the summer. Maybe both! We'll see.

And last, these baskets to help organize all the stuff in my bathroom.

What do you think of my shopping spree? 4 stores, 30 dollars and 28 items. I'd say it was a success!

I'm linking up to The Shabby Nest Frugal Friday.

Is anybody still reading this?

2011-03-24T21:45:00.000-04:00

Hello! I am here, and I am still alive. I don't even want to look to see how long since my last post. There have been some major changes in our family life in the past year, and more coming in the near future. As most of you already know, my husband has been unemployed for a very long time. We filled out applications, resumes, searched Craigslist, the classifieds, but nothing ever panned out. That has finally changed! He got a job in Columbia, SC as a service writer at a truck and trailer repair company. This has meant he stays in Columbia all week long and comes home on the weekends. This has been going on for almost 2 months now. That will soon change though! We are moving there to be with him. I'm so ready for our family to be together again. Sometimes I feel lost without him here. For so long he was here all the time, to go to gone all the time. Moving day is in 1 week exactly, and I'm so ready for this to be over. The house is just about all packed up, except for the stuff we use daily. It's been quite a challenge to keep up with school and house work while going through and packing all our belongings, but I have been able to get rid of alot of stuff! I just can't wait to be settled again, with a normal job and normal, routine life!

On another note, I'm thinking about changing the name of this blog to make it more family oriented. Of course if I ever pick up anything crafty again, I'll be sure to share it, but for now there's no craftiness happening around here and probably won't for a while. So are there any suggestions for a new name? I'd like something catchy, but I don't know what. Please leave a comment if you are out there reading this, and if you think of a good name for my blog let me know what it is. Thanks a million!

Only 92 Cents!!

2010-09-09T14:59:00.000-04:00

Would you believe I came home with all this for 92 cents? Well, I did! I went to Rite Aid today, armed with my sale paper and coupons. The Right Guard Deodorant is normally $4.49 each. They were on sale buy one get one free. I also had (2) coupons for $3 off 2 Right Guards. I also had (1) coupon for $1 off Right Guard. The Finish Dishwasher Kit is normally $10.99 each, on sale buy one get one free, so they ring up at 1/2 price. Then I had a $3 off coupon for that. I also had a coupon for $4 off a $20 purchase. Using all this, I paid just 92 cents, plus I got $2 UP Rewards good toward my next purchase. So really, I got paid $1.08 to buy all this stuff. Isn't that great!?

My New, Old Hope Chest

2010-09-08T08:54:00.002-04:00

My mom gave me this hope chest when I got married. It was hers before she got married. It is great for extra storage, but as you can see, it was needing a facelift.

The top was the worst, you can see the finish is so worn. At one point a couple years ago, one of my kids (I don't remember which one) had gotten a green marker and traced their handprint on the top. Of course when I first saw it, I was upset, but I never washed it off, thinking that one day I would see it and remember how small the kids once were. Sadly, it has worn away and no longer there. So now I was free to paint or recover it without regret of that little memory.

First I called my mom to make sure she would not be upset it I painted her hope chest. She said of course not, it was not hers anyway. So I got down to business. First I picked up some fabric I loved, and found some paint to match. I took off the top and all the hardware. This was my first attempt at upholstering anything, and I must say it really was easy and I love the way it turned out. Then I primed and painted the whole thing and gave the hardware a coat of Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. That stuff is beautiful!

It is black, but has specks of metallic in it, almost like a hammered look. It looks better in real life. And please forgive the quality of these photos. They were taken with my phone, because I couldn't find any batteries for my camera.

Isn't that a huge difference? I love the way it turned out. It is now sitting at the foot of my bed. It was supposed to function as a bench for putting on shoes or whatever, but mostly it just holds laundry baskets full of clothes waiting to be put away. But at least it looks pretty while doing it!

I have some of this fabric left over, so I'm thinking about making some pillows with it and freshening up my room a bit. If I ever get around to that I'll let you know. And if I ever get batteries I'll take some real pictures so you can see what it really looks like.

My next post is going to be my new Fall Wreath I made. I'm in love with it. But first I need batteries. Thanks for stopping by!

Linking up to Transformation Thusdays @ The Shabby Chic Cottage and Miss Mustard Seed's Featured Furniture Friday.

Coupons, coupons and more coupons!

2010-09-03T09:25:00.002-04:00

So lately I have become slightly obssessed with coupons. At any given time you might walk into my kitchen to find the table top covered with clipped coupons, sale papers and shopping lists for individual stores. I scour the sale papers for all the local drug stores, compare my coupons to the sales going on and then hop from store to store. With all the reward programs going on and the coupons and sales combined, it's really quite amazing how much money you can save!

I've started keeping a list of where I went shopping, how much I saved on sales and coupons and how much I actually spent. Now I wouldn't have necessarily bought all the things I did if they weren't on sale combined with the coupons, but when I do need that particular product, I already have it, and won't have to go pay full price!

For example, yesterday I went to Publix. Did you know they take competitor coupons? And, you can "stack" coupons, meaning you can have on manufacturer and one store coupon for the same item. So back to my shopping trip. I only bought what was on sale and for 95% of those items I also had coupons. My total trip would have cost $128.28 but with the regular sales I saved $47.58 then my coupons saved me another $33.79 for a total of $81.37 saved! I only paid $46.91 for $128.28 worth of groceries!

I also went to Rite Aid the other day. The regular sales saved me $6, the coupons saved me $26.10 for a total of $32.10 in savings. I spent $19.65 on what would have cost $51.71!

I only wish I had discovered this sooner. There is a coupon class in Savannah they hold about once a month and I'm going to go to it so I can learn even more ways to save money. Do you coupon? I don't think I can ever shop the same way again!

Plugging Away

2010-08-27T12:22:00.000-04:00

I love to read blogs when it gives a glimpse into someone's personal life. It's like reading a good book, only you know that person is real, and you can relate on some level. There have been some major changes in our lives in the past year, but the Lord has been good. I have thought about blogging, but hesitate because I want to be "real," but at the same time, how much about my personal life do I want to reveal? I realize most of the people who read this don't know me, and it really wouldn't make a difference, would it? For those that do know our family, they probably already know some of the details. I want to get back to my blog, I really do enjoy posting pictures and telling about what's going on. I just have to decide how honest am I going to be? Am I going to post only the good times or really tell it all? I'm going to think about these things and get back to you real soon. I also have some projects I've worked on, and want to post those things as well.

Adorable Hand Bags

2010-05-13T14:46:00.005-04:00

A lady in our church has started having a Lady's Bible Study and Craft Time once a month. I went this past Friday, and it was so nice to get together with all the Lady's and have some adult time and a small Bible Study. The craft we made was this adorable tote bag. If you are interested, the tutorial is here. The only thing I did differently was I made the handles 11 inches. This left enough ribbon to make a nice bow. I also just stitched down the side seam allowances. I felt like it gave it more of a finished look. After I made the first one, I just had to go get more supplies to make my daughter, nieces and sister one. I need to make 3 more, but they are so easy and cute I can't wait to get them done. Plus they only take about 15 to 20 minutes to complete! This green polka-dot bag was the first one I made.

I decided to go with the loepoard print for my sister. The black shiny button really dresses things up, doesn't it? I may need to duplicate this one for my mom. I still haven't decided what to make for my other sister, but she's in boot camp right now, so I have a few weeks to get it done!

And of course, since my daughter's favorite colors are yellow and blue, this little cutie is just for her. I just love the flower buttons on the bow!

I'm linking up to Kimba's DIY Day and Becca's Show and Tell

Let It Snow!!

2010-02-13T11:21:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone! I have some fun pictures to share with you today. I'm sure you have all heard about all the snow everyone is getting. Well, we were eagerly awaiting the moment the snow would arrive here in our neck of the woods. We don't get to see snow very often. In fact, we haven't had enough of the stuff to build a snowman since 1999 or 2000. So when the flakes started falling around 7pm last night, the kids were out the door like a shot! It's usually not exytremely cold here, so we weren't prepared with gloves and scarves and things of that nature. So they got socks for their hands and every few minutes came in and used the dryer for their wet socks or else just got new ones. This morning they better not say they can't find any clean socks! Anyway, when Hubby and I got finished laying the tile in our bathroom, we decided to go and join them!

Even Lilly Dog got in on the action!

After we completed our own little snowman, we sent Amanda to the neighbors to see if they could come out and play with us. A great snowball fight followed, and then we got right down to business working on the best snowman in Beaufort!

It really was fun! Of course we then came insided and warmed by the fire with nice Hot Chocolate. Finally we ended the night with a game of Farkle until almost 3am! What are friends for?

Pretty Key Hanger

2010-02-03T13:38:00.002-05:00

When we first moved in this house about 4 months ago, Sam put a nail in the wall to hang keys on. That nail has been botherin me ever since. So I picked up this little key hanger from Wally World the other day. Bubba informed me that Daddy could make it, but I told him I'd rather pay $5 for it now than wait 6 months to get it! So anyway, I knew I wanted to pretty it up with some of my favorite paper from Stampin' Up! Can you guess what paper I went with?

First I used my Always Artichoke marker to color all the edges, so that if you looked from the side, it wouldn't be plain wood. Then I traced the shape into my paper, then cut it out and used Mod Podge to attach. I then used my nail file to get all the edges just right. Then I sponged some Always Artichoke on the edges and applied another coat of Mod Podge on top.

I dug out my Pretties Kit and applied some halfback pearls along the bottom and tied Very Vanilla Ribbon on each hook. It still looked like it was missing something, so I decorated a hat pin and stuck that through the ribbon.

It really looks alot better than just a nail in the wall, don't you think? And yes, I shoved everything that was on the counter over to the side so you can't see all my mess!

I was working on this while the kids were doing schoolwork, and in typical "man" fashion, Bubba couldn't understand why in the world I was taking the time and energy to decorate it when I could have just hung it up plain and would have worked fine! Such a typical man!

A Few Changes

2010-01-19T12:57:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, I have had to make a few changes here on my blog. Your comments will no longer be visible immediately, I have changed the settings for moderator approval. You will also now have to fill out the word verification. I have had several comments left recently that were not appropriate and had to remove those comments. Hopefully this will deter whoever is leaving this spam. I think it's very sad when a stamping blog gets the kind of comments that I would have to remove, but in this day and age, I guess it's to be expected. Anyway, I hope this takes care of it, and if any of you saw those comments, I apologize.

Calendar Bookmark

2010-01-19T06:15:00.001-05:00

I have here an adorable little bookmark calendar. Isn't it cute? I really like the frayed ribbon on the top. I was browsing Split Coast Stampers for some ideas for my club on Friday night, and came across the template for these little calendars. I figured since we're still in Jan. it's not too late for this little project.

There's not really any explaining that needs to be done, except I used Brocade Blue Paper and Ink. For the solid butterfly image I stamped off once, then the outline was applied with the second stamp. For the frayed ribbon, you have to use grosgrain. All you do is cut off one edge of the ribbon, then pull out all the fibers. Make sense? If not let me know and I'll take some pictures and do a mini tutorial. Thank!

I Made a Card!

2010-01-18T13:32:00.001-05:00

I can't tell you the last time I sat down and made a card. Well, today the kids were off school, so Sam took the boys with him to work on a roof he's doing. As soon as he left I got right down to business. Because last week I took the time to organize my stuff, I actually knew where my supplies were. So I browsed Split Coast Stampers and got some inspiration. I've been wanting to use the Sticky Cuts at Stamp Club for quite some time, so this is what I came up with.

I used Stampin' Up!'s Sticky Cuts Letters with their ultra fine glitter. The stamp set is Define Your Life and card stock isTempting Turquoise and Elegant Eggplant. The ribbon is something I picked up at Michael's a while back. I also used the Eyelet Border Punch along the bottom.

I know this isn't the greatest picture, but I wanted to show you eyelet border letting the Turquoise show through. I also have another little project planned, so if I get it done I'll show you tomorrow. These are both what we'll be working on this Friday for our Stamp Club.

Still Unmounting!

2010-01-14T16:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I couldn't resist showing you the progress I made today with my stamps. I used up all the CD cases I bought. So now I can do other things, like wash the dishes and fold the laundry! Sounds fun, doesn't it?

Here are all the empty stamp cases so far. I have to figure out what to do with these now.

Now, look at how much space they use compared to what they used before unmounting! Plus I think it will be much easier to use what I have because I won't have to worry about dragging all those boxes out to find what I want then put them away again. I never can find the set I want. Now at least they will be much easier to get to then put back up!

I also need to figure out what to do with all these wooden blocks. I have one idea for a few of them, but this many is ridiculous. Imagine how many I'll have when I'm all done! I gotta go now. Let me know any ideas you may have about those cases or wooden blocks. See you later!

Unmounting Stamps!!

2010-01-14T13:21:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm back! I have organized all my paper, and believe me, that was a job. But now it's all done, and if (when) I decide to stamp something, at least I can find the color I want. I also have started a whole new project. I had been thinking about unmounting my stamps to save room on storage, but I was always hesitant. But now, with Stampin' Up! deciding to go with clear mount stamps, I decided I'd buy the acrylic blocks and take the plunge. I'm now in the process of unmounting all my stamps. It's really easy, and as you can see, it will save a ton of room.

This is the pile of stamps I did this morning. Before I started, it was as tall as my ruler. When I was done, it was only about 5 inches tall! How cool is that?! Plus, now all the boxes are the same size, so much easier to stack neatly. You can see the original Stampin' Up! labels on some of them, what I did was peel the label off the original plastic container, then I stuck that to some white paper and stuck it inside the case. Some of my labels ripped while peeling, so I just started handwriting the names and attaching those instead.

I have four of these neat little crate looking boxes that are the perfect size for CD cases. I'm sure that will be enough room for all my stamps when I get them done. Right now I have two of those under the bed boxes full of stamps. I'll let you know how small it gets down to.

This is one of the cases that's done. I just cut some whisper white CS to size and stamped all the images onto it before I unmounted them. I found the tutorial here. It's a great video, and I pretty much followed her instructions. The only thing I did differently was I stamped my images before I unmounted them because I don't have any acrylic blocks yet. Super easy, and I think it will be worth the time when I can keep all my stamps on my desk!

Life Got in the Way!

2009-12-08T12:44:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone!! I know, I know, it has been way, way too long since I posted last. What can I say, life happens! We have moved into a much smaller house, and that meant alot of going through closets, and we still are not done with that. Add in all the work that had to be done to the house before we could move in, plus the packing, moving, unpacking, etc....... Plus we have had to keep up with our schoolwork, which in itself is a full time job! Things are starting to get back to somewhat normal as we settle into a daily routine, and I'm thinking about Stamping again. That has really taken a back seat for the past two months. Way, way in the back! But we are having our meeting this coming Thursday, so I'm getting back into the swing of things, I think. If there's anyone left out there who checks on me anymore, I'll try to be a good girl and post at least once in a while. I still don't have all my stamp supplies here at the new house, because I just don't know where to put it all. So I can't promise anything grand, but I'll try. For now, though, I have to finish school with the kids, do my chores, then a friend is coming over later for a perm and haircut. So I'll see you folks later. Bye!

School Drawings

2009-09-15T16:09:00.002-04:00

I thought these drawings were so cute. Amanda has SC History in school this year, and she's learning about Native American tribes that lived in the area. Here is her picture of the Yap Ye Iswa Festival. It is a festival held every year by the Catawba People. Her explanation is pretty simple, don't you think?
The next one is her "Poster" to help raise awareness of things you can do to help the environment. I love the way she labels all her drawings!

That's it for now. School is keeping me very busy this year. Now I have to go figure out what's for dinner. See you later!

Mini Albums

2009-09-12T16:35:00.005-04:00

Hello!! It's been so long since I last posted. We have been busy with school and this past month has just flown by. I can't believe we've finished 4 weeks of school already!! Last night was our Stamp Club and we had a really good time. It was nice to get some adult time and visit with my friends and family. Thanks for a great time, ladies! Now, on to the projects: We made these cute little mini albums. They're made from a sheet of 12 x 12 card stock, and very easy to do.

I don't really remember who's is who's, and I know they are not all here, but some of my pictures were really blurry. Sometimes my camera just doesn't cooperate.

We used up what I had left of a Simply Scrappin Kit from a few years ago. Sometimes those kits just last forever!!

Look at that cute page withe plaid flowers!! Dee and Kelly came up with that one, and I think it's just too cute!

I also have to thank Lisa for helping my newbie out lately. Sometimes it's hard to give one on one attention when trying to show a whole group what to do. You were a big help, Lisa!

Here's my whole group of Ladies. We had a really good time and I'm looking forward to our next meeting. Until next time.......

A Dress for Amanda

2009-08-24T09:46:00.004-04:00

I know this isn't stamping related, but it is crafty. Amanda has been needing some new dresses, and when I saw the dresses Aubrey made for her daughter, I figured I'd break out my sewing machine too. Except I used a pattern. I'm not that brave to make a dress with no pattern. I got this nice jean fabric at the Goodwill store several months ago for $1. I already had the pattern from a dress I made for a friend's daughter about a year ago. So this dress was made for the cost of the ric rac and zipper plus $1 for fabric. About $4 total.

It was very easy to put together. It took no time at all until I got to the zipper. I HATE ZIPPERS!! It took me as long to put in the zipper as it did to make the whole dress, and it's still not right! As you can see, the top didn't come out even,

Which made the ric rac in the back not even!! Plus there is a pucker right below the ric rac on the left side. I may take the whole zipper out and redo it, or I may take the whole dress to my mom who can sew anything that needs to be sewn. See this post to see what I mean.

Well that's all I have time for today. Come back soon and see what I've been up to!

Homemade Butter

2009-08-22T13:38:00.006-04:00

Happy Saturday to you!! I'm so glad today is Sat. because that means no schoolwork! We completed our first week. It's always hard to get back in the routine of school after summer vacation. Anyway, today Sam took the boys to mow the lawn at church, so I stayed home and folded some laundry and made some homemade butter with Amanda. You start out with heavy whipping cream. You pour it into a bowl that is bigger than what you think you need, because it gets pretty puffy when you are whipping it. I should have used a bigger bowl but didn't want to dirty another one after I realized it. Now that's lazy. Amanda started out with the whipping, but pretty soon her arms were tired and I took over. You just whip and whip. It usually takes about 10 - 15 minutes with the mixer on high.

See here how it has gotten fluffy? It's starting to thicken....

Here you can see its still getting thicker and has more texture to it.....If you stop here and add sugar you have some great whipped cream for your desserts.....

Then the fluffiness goes down and it still gets thicker.....

It begins to resemble cottage cheese, and you know you're getting close. Once it starts to change, it goes fast!

Suddenly, you have butter and buttermilk. All you have to do is kind of mush the butter together into a clump and pour off the milk.

I always save the buttermilk. It makes great biscuits and pancakes. If you use regular pancake mix, except use buttermilk instead of water, they get really fluffly. Bubba loves his pancakes that way!

Next, you have to rinse the butter with some ice water. Make sure the water is really cold. This helps the butter to clump together.

You just kind on knead the water into the butter, then pour the water down the drain. I usually do about 3 rinses. If you don't wash the milk out of your butter, it may cause it to spoil.

After you're done rinsing, form your butter into a ball and squeeze out all the liquid you can. Now you're done!! This homemade butter is really good on some fluffly homemade buttermilk biscuits! I've also used my butter to make chocolate chip cookies. That's Sam's favorite dessert!

If you want to see a video of making butter, just go to Youtube. That's where I learned how to make it. Thanks for stopping by today. Please be patient with me until I have time to stamp again. I'll get in the groove soon, I promise!

School is in Session

2009-08-18T16:48:00.002-04:00

Wow!! Where did the summer go? It seems like we just finished up last year's school work. It has been a hectic couple of days around here, trying to get back in the routine of school. We are doing online school this year through Connections Academy. There's alot to learn and figure out. I think after we get familiar with it, things will go smoother. I thought we would just flow into the new system effortlessly, but that not how it's worked out so far. I'm seriously thinking we need another computer. We have 2, but with 3 kids trying to do work at the same time, it would make things alot easier around here. So I said all that to say this: I probably won't be posting anything this week. I haven't had time to do any stamping, plus my computer time is way down since the kids are using both computers for school all day long. I'll check in on you guys when I find some free time. I hope to be back to stamping next week. See you then!

The Park!!

2009-08-12T06:00:00.004-04:00

Monday afternoon the kids were so rowdy and rambunctious I had to get them out of the house for a while. Our park has this fountain that the kids can play in, and they think it's so much fun. While I got to read a couple chapters of my book in peace, they had a blast in the water.

And the following pictures should have some sort of warning. In the true spirit of "boys will be boys," may I present two gross pictures of "my boys being boys!"

Bubba sits on a sprinkler head and says, "Take my picture!!" So I did. Then Sammy comes along and does this. So I took another picture.

And with that, I'll say goodbye.

Amanda's Apron

2009-08-11T13:58:00.004-04:00

Yesterday Amanda was telling me she wanted an apron. I'm not sure what put the idea in her head, because I don't wear aprons, but I knew we could whip one up pretty easily. So I told her if she did her chores, we would make one. Nothing works better than a bribe! So, when she was done, I let her choose fabric from my pile, and this is what she chose. (I think I may have stolen this fabric from my mom when she wasn't looking!)

She also said, she wanted it to have pockets on the bottom, like my Stampin' Up! Apron does. So, luckily I also had some solid black fabric to make the pocket out of. (Also stolen from my mother.) I just so happened to have in my sewing drawer some multi-colored rick-rack that matched perfectly.

I told her she could pick some ribbon for the neck and ties, and she chose this black grosgrain with white flowers. Then the bottom looked too plain, so we hot glued some felt flowers from Flower Fusion on there. They are stuck together with black brads.

We took this picture before we added the felt flowers. She's so proud of her apron she helped me sew! Now maybe she'll clean the kitchen if I tell her she can wear her apron! Think so? Nope, probably not. Oh well, it was worth a shot!

Trying to be Organized!

2009-08-10T07:43:00.004-04:00

Hey there! Last week I decided to hang my punches and ribbon on the wall like I had them before my DH installed my countertop and shelves. I found my towel rods and curtain rods that had been tossed into the junk closet, dug around in Sam's toolbox for a drill bit and some screws and went to town. It's much easier to remember to use what you have if you can actually see it right in front of you. Plus, it frees up more drawer space so I can try to be more organized. I'm not very good at being organized. That's why I only show pictures of my room after it's been cleaned up!

When he built the cabinets and shelves, he said he was going to make some nice brackets and use a dowel rod for a puch holder, but I got tired of waiting and decided my old way worked just fine. Here is the original post when he redid my room. It was back in February. I really need to paint those shelves, but stamping is much more fun.

Here's the close up of all my punches. If I get any more, I'm gonna need another towel rod! It's a good thing those rods are pretty cheap, cause I know I'm gonna need more punches from the new catty!

And here's the close up of my ribbon.. The top shelf is all Stampin' Up! and the bottom is everything else. I'm gonna need another ribbon rack soon, too!

Now I also have a computer in my stamp room. That should make it easier when I'm trying to follow a sketch or tutorial, so I don't have to print everything out. I can just follow off the screen! Right now that computer is out for repairs, but I hope to have it back this week. Well, that's all there is, talk to you later!

Stamp Club Projects

2009-08-08T06:00:00.000-04:00

Last night was our Stamp Club night. I think everyone did a great job on their brag books. Here are all the different variations they came up with. I didn't get a picture of Kelly's.

Made by Dee

Made by Prissy

Made by Tiffany

Made by Barb

Made by Lisa

Made by Sharon

While all the ladies were hard at work, This is what Sam came up with. Isn't it cute?

Thankful

2009-08-07T09:21:00.003-04:00

"I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.... I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby." ~Nancie J. Carmody

I came across this quote this morning, and thought this is so true! How often do I complain about the fact that the laundry is never ending? Or every time I think I have ALL the dishes done, someone is hungry? The grass seems to grow right before your very eyes, but yes, I do have a home, and I'm so very thankful for it. But I'm really thankful that I'm not usually the one who has to mow it. It takes a long time to mow and weed eat 2 1/2 acres. I'm going to try to remember this quote next time I want to moan about the fact that there seems to be so much to do. My loved ones are nearby and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Brag Book

2009-08-03T08:55:00.004-04:00

Here is a cute little Brag Book I made yesterday. It was really quick and easy. This isn't my original idea for the front cover, but 2 different times I was stamping a little boy from "All in the Family" and I stamped his arm backwards. His fingers were growing out of his shoulder. So, I changed it up to something a little faster and easier. Anyway, this little book could easily be personalized to fit any occasion or person. We'll be making this at my club meeting this Friday.

The pages are made with clear envelopes from Stampin' Up!

You just slide your pictures right in!

If you plan on coming to class, make sure to bring your paper trimmer, adhesive and paper snips. Thanks!!

Marshmallow Meal

2009-08-01T15:22:00.003-04:00

Amanda came home yesterday, adn as I was unpacking her suitcase, this is what I found. It's all made of Marshmallows. Looks pretty interesting, right? Well, let me tell you it doesn't taste good. I like marshmallows. The regular white fluffy kind. But these are not your everyday marshmallows. It's really gross. But since it was cute, and I didn't have anything else to talk about, I figured I'd post it here. It kind of reminds me of the Astronaut Ice Cream I got one time when I went on a field trip with school. It was kind of gross, too. I guess there's nothing like the real thing.

Thanks for stopping by today. See you later!!

Happy Day!!

2009-07-31T06:34:00.003-04:00

Hello all! I'm up bright and early today. Do you want to know why? Because Sam had to get up and go to work! He left about 15 minutes ago, so it's very quiet here. All the kids are still sleeping, so I have a little time to myself before I get everyone up and we head out the door to Columbia. The reason I'm going to Columbia is very important. She's 7 years old, with freckles and reddish hair. She talks alot and ends most sentences with "Right, Mama?" or "Right, Daddy?" Anyway, she's been gone 3 weeks now and it's time to bring her home. The plane comes in at 10:30 AM so I'm leaving at 8. So this is really just an update about what's going on here. I'm not sure what I'll be doing later, but I'm sure Amanda will be telling me all about her trip to New York. But for now, I'm heading to the shower before the kiddos get up, so I'll talk to you later. Bye!!

Last of the Pages

2009-07-30T12:05:00.004-04:00

Well, Blogger is still not cooperating with me. As I'm typing, I can't see the pictures I've added, because they are in code, so I don't know what's what. I reposted Sammy and Amanda's pages because I added a journaling box with their name. For Bubba's page, I didn't have any more individual shots of him, so I'm going to have to get one or two more printed and add them later.

On the collage page I printed out the poem "How Do I Love you?"

How do I love you?
Let me count the ways.
I love you on your very best:
and very worst of days.

I love to see you laughing
And dancing in the rain;
And even when you lose your shoes,
I love you just the same.

I love to hear you singing.
I love to see you smile.
I love the way you take each day
In your own unhurried style.

I'm happy when you're happy,
And I'm sorry when you're sad.
And even though it may not show,
I love you when you're bad.

How do I love you?
Well, now let me see....
I love the way you act so brave
When you fall and hurt your knee.

I love to watch you sleeping,
Tucked away in dreams,
I love to hear you whisper
All your giant plans and schemes.

I love the way you wear your pants
With the front part in the back.
And the way you walk around sometimes
With your head inside a sack.

I love to see you deep in thought.
I love to watch you play.
And though I'm sure you'll never know it,
I love you more each day.

How do I love you?
It's impossible to say.
for if I had a million days and
Time enough for all the praise,
I couldn't tell you all the ways...
I LOVE YOU!

We just got THE CALL!! Sam is to start his new job tomorrow morning at 7:30! It is such a relief to have an answer to prayer. Praise the Lord!

More Scrapbook Pages

2009-07-29T10:08:00.005-04:00

Here are some more of the pages I've been working on. I have 2 more that aren't quite finished yet, then I'll post those also. I'm not sure what the deal is with Blogger, but the pictures show up in the text as a code, so I can't tell what is what to arrange and tell about the pics. So again, there are no explanations about the pages. Is anyone else having this problem?

Scrapbook Pages!!

2009-07-27T11:58:00.003-04:00

I was able to spend most of the day Saturday working on my scrapbook pages. It was so nice to sit and get back into it. It's been way too long since I have scrapped anything. Most of the time my pages tend to be more cute than anything else. I really wanted these to have more of a pretty elegant feel, because I think these pictures have such a timeless quality about them. I kind of based my pages on those that were in the SmileBox in the next post down. Of course, I had to change things up based on the embellishments I had and the sizes of pictures and stuff like that. I'm really happy with how they turned out. So far I have 6 done, and have 2 or 3 more to go. I'm having a problem rearranging the pics, so if they are in a weird order I apologize.

On another note, at church yesterday we had a huge blessing from all of our friends and family there. I want to say thank you to everyone for helping us out during a really difficult time. You have no idea what your help and support mean to us. We have been praying that Sam would find work, or that the Lord would show His will to us. Hopefully we will find out very soon if he got the job from the interview he went to.

2009-07-25T11:46:00.002-04:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

I was fooling around with my pictures and tried my hand at digital scrapbooking. I think I may be hooked!! It was so easy!! If you don't like something, you just fix it, change the picture, whatever. Let me know what you think. Now I need to figure out how to print these pages as 12 x 12 so they can actually go into a book!

2009-07-16T17:53:00.002-04:00

Hello, everyone!! There are no new pictures to show you today. We've been up in Columbia at my Sis-in-Law's house for a few days. Sam is building a new swing set for their kids, and then we'll be heading home tomorrow. He has a job interview tomorrow afternoon. Please pray that it goes well. It would be such a blessing if he got this job. Things have been a real struggle financially lately, but the Lord had been good to us through family and friends.

As most of you know, Amanda went to New York to visit her cousins for 3 weeks. She's been gone for almost a week, and things are so quiet around the house. I knew she talked alot, but now it is SO QUIET!! What I miss most is her hugs in the morning. She usually wants to cuddle on the couch when she wakes up. She' such a sweetie pie!!

Well, there's not much else to tell you, so I'll talk to you later when I get home. Happy Stampin', everyone!!

Kids Pictures

2009-07-13T19:38:00.006-04:00

Hi!! I just have a quick post today to show you some of my favorite pictures from Friday's photo shoot. If you'd like contact info for my photographer, just let me know and I'd be glad to get that to you.

You Make Me Happy

2009-07-09T11:49:00.003-04:00

I'm trying to get back into creative mode, and having a hard time coming up with anything, so I decided to case something from Stampin' Up!'s catty. I got the layout from page 118 of the Fall-Winter 2008 Catalog. I just changed out the colors according to what I had on hand. The circle and flower are chipboard pieces I colored with Craft ink. This is what it started out looking like, and I thought it was just too plain, so I decided to jazz it up some.

I decided to add Crystal Effects to the chipboard, that added a little bit more texture, but then I sprinkled Dazzling Diamonds over the Crystal Effects. I love the way it turned out. It's so pretty and sparkly.

The sentiment is a rub on left over from Sale a Bration 2 years ago!! I really need to use those things up!!

I thought this angle gave a better view of the full affect. What do you think?

Tomorrow I'm getting the kids pictures taken by a friend who does photography for a hobby, so I probably won't get back to you till the weekend. Then I hope to have some great scrapbook pages on the way!! See you later!!

Mojo Monday on Wednesday!!

2009-07-08T14:20:00.002-04:00

As promised, here is my take on the Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge. I'm not in love with this card, but I do think it is OK.

The sentiment is a clear sticker from Cloud 9 Design. There are no stamps at all on this card.

Here is a close up of the quote and flowers from the Pretties Kit. I colored them with my Stampin' Write Markers, then used the Aquapainter to soften up the ink. Then they were layered and a half back pearl added.

It took me a while to get going on this one, but it has been almost a month since I stamped at all, so I guess it will take a while to get back in the groove. I already have one more card done for tomorrow's post, so I'll definitely be back tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday, Allison!!

2009-07-07T20:20:00.003-04:00

Well, hello there!! Long time no see, huh? I'm sorry it's been so long since I last posted, but I just haven't had any Stampin' Mojo lately. But now I'm feeling the urge to get to my stamp room, which I cleaned today, by the way. I've checked out the Mojo Monday Challenge, and I'll be working on that tonight. In the meantime, I have this little birthday card to show you. Amanda went to her cousin's party a few weeks ago, which was a Build a Bear Workshop. When I went to make her card, I remembered this bear I stamped and colored way back when I was working on this scrapbook. I had him all cut out and ready to go on a page, and then decided he didn't belong there. So he was just laying around, feeling lonely. Anyway, as I was thinking about a party at Build a Bear, I remembered him and thought how perfect a bear card would be. So I stamped him a hat and present and this card was very quickly put together.

As I was editing this photo, I realized my watercoloring leaves much to be desired, but I'm sure Allison really didn't mind.

I used dimensionals to attach the hat and present, to give it more depth, tied a ribbon on, and voila!!

Now, I'm off to watch America's Got Talent, and then off to my Stamp Room!! See you tomorrow!

Bunny Update

2009-06-11T12:24:00.004-04:00

Sadly, we lost 2 of our bunnies. One sometime Tuesday night, and the other just this morning. The other 2 were doing ok, but not eating a whole lot, and I was afraid I might lose them too. We decided it would be best to take them to the animal shelter. They got in contact with a lady who takes in all sorts of animal babies. She rehabilitates them, and has 50 acres to release them on when they are ready. I left them with the formula I made, and Amanda left a yellow stuffed bunny for them to cuddle with. The kids wanted to keep them for pets, but they said wild rabbits almost always die in captivity, so I think we did the best thing letting them go.

After we left the shelter, we went to the library to do schoolwork, but there was a magic show going on, so we watched that instead. Now we are back home for lunch and to do a little school and house work before we head over to my in-laws for dinner. Some cousins of Sam's are down from California, and I've never met them. So, not exactly what I had planned for the day, but life happens. I'll see you later!

Baby Bunnies

2009-06-09T15:45:00.004-04:00

The kids were outside playing last night around dusk, and guess what they brought in from the field? Four adorable baby bunnies!! Our dog Popeye had found their nest, and the kids rescued the bunnies from certain death. They said they could hear something squeaking, and Popeye actually had them in his mouth. Our dogs have no mercy on the rabbits they find around here. Look how cute they are all snuggled together.

They are so tiny, smaller than the palm of my hand. And so very soft and cuddly.

Sam looked up some information last night, and it said that the Momma Rabbits only come back to their nest at night to feed the babies. So Popeye found them before Momma Rabbit came home for the night. I couldn't get them to eat anything last night, but a little while ago I was able to get a dropperful of milk down each one of them. They are kind of feisty for their little size. I had to wrap them in a hand towel to hold their legs down so they would be still enough to get the dropper in their mouths. Look at that little guy standing on top of his siblings! He wanted to squeeze right into the middle!

For reference, I took a shot of the pan they are in on a 12 x 12 piece of paper. That should really give you a good idea of their size. Please don't pay attention to my mess in the background.

Does anyone have any advice on what I should do for them besides feed them with a dropper? I'm notsure what else to do. I hope they survive, but I'm not really sure I want 4 pet rabbits!! Maybe when they are big enough I can give them away as pets. Or should I try to release them back to the wild? But then Popeye and Lily would probably eat them. I guess I won't do that. Who wants a pet rabbit?

I'm still here!

2009-05-28T14:16:00.005-04:00

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last post. I haven't really done any crafting whatsoever. I made one name frame for a friend, but forgot to take a picture before I gave it away. I just haven't felt like doing much lately.

We have done a few fun things with the kids the last couple of days, but no pictures to show. We have made homemade butter, cheese and mayonnaise. I found some really great tutorials on YouTube. All you have to do is search their web site for "how to make......" It was really fun, and you probably have most of the ingredients already sitting in your fridge or pantry. When we do it again, I'll try to take pictures. We are going to make Chicken Salad Sandwiches for dinner tonight using our homemade mayo. Mmmmmm, good. And last night I made Chocolate Chip Cookies using our homemade butter. They were so good. Anyway, on to another subject.

I recently got a blog award from Twila. You should go check out her blog. She has some really neat projects. The rules of the award (To pick up the Lemonade Stand Award):- Comment on this blog.- Cut and paste the award logo and use it in your own blog.- Nominate 5 to 10 blogs you feel show great attitude and gratitude.- Link to your nominees within your blog post.- Comment on their blogs to let them know they've received the award.- Link back to the person who gave you the award to show your appreciation. So, here are the nominees (drum roll, please)....... Aubrey, Nancy, and Hope. Now, I know I don't have 5 blogs listed, but I think I'll just stick with these 3.

I'll try to have something crafty to show you soon. I'm kind of in a creative slump right now, so I'm not promising anything great! Do you have any ideas or suggestions? Maybe you could help me out.

Later today I'm hoping to go weed my flowerbeds. The grass and weeds have taken over. It's like a jungle out there! I'll take some before and after photos to share with you. Well, I think that's all the news for today. Talk to you later!

Fishing Rodeo

2009-05-20T15:47:00.005-04:00

Hello everyone! I haven't done any stamping since my frame class last Friday, so I don't have anything to show you :( But, we took the kids to a fishing rodeo last Saturday, and have some pictures of that! I hope to get them printed and onto a scrapbook page soon. This is Bubba and Amanda at the start of the day getting ready to catch some fish.

Bubba caught 3 catfish within the first 10 minutes. Here he's trying to get one off the hook. He used a rag to hold it because they are really slimy and they can sting you with their fins.

Here's Amanda with her one and only catch. She had at least 3 get away though. She did a pretty good job of baiting her hook and casting. She loves to do everything the boys do. In fact, last week I put a little sample bottle of lotion in her room, thinking she'd like some lotion. After all, don't all girls like lotion? Well, when she found it, she asked me what it was. When I told her it was lotion for her hands or legs, she told me, and I quote, "I don't want any lotion, cuz I'm a tomboy and boys don't wear lotion."

Here's Bubba,

and here's Sammy...

Here we are all fishing.

Sam has an old 1955 Willys Jeep, which we drove to the fishing rodeo. It was only about 5 miles from our house. On the way home, it started giving us trouble. It would shut off, and Sam would let it roll to a stop, crank it again, roll again, crank again, roll again, etc... (No, we're not Rednecks, what ever gave you that idea?) Sam thought it was the fuel pump having a bad connection or something. It turns out we were just out of gas. We were only about 2 miles from the house, so we all jumped out and had a nice (hot) walk home. This is Sammy. What a cutie pie.

Of couse, this is my other half, Sam. He looks all cool in his hat and sunglasses.

Here's a great shot of Sam and Amanda. She's affectionately known as "Baby Girl." Bet you can't guess why.

And that's my tale of the Fishing Rodeo. See you next time!

Frame Class

2009-05-18T10:52:00.003-04:00

On Friday night I held the first sessionof the Name Frame Class. I was planning on taking pictures of everyone working, but I got busy and forgot!! Oh well, I only got one of Dee working on her frame. Here she's almost done, trying to see what it would look like in the frame.

These ladies are my Mom (on the left) and Kelly (on the right). Hi Kelly!! How do you like seeing your picture on the web? I'm sorry the picture has a glare on it, but you can get an idea of what they look like. Everyone's frames turned out so pretty. They all had their own little differences so they were similar, but different.

Here's Dee with her finished frame. I was impressed with how well everyone did. Lisa managed to sneak out without her picture being taken. She's the sneaky one.

I have one more session for this class on May 29. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks for stopping by!

2009-05-16T06:00:00.001-04:00

This is the Name Frame I made for myself. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you should probably remember this frame I made as a gift. Well, I had a couple requests for a class on this, so I decided to go ahead and make myself one and hold a class. My husband said I should take step by step pictures and do a tutorial, so I'm taking his advice. Here is my first tutorial.

First, you will need to collect some supplies. You'll need the following items:

Picture frame with (3) openings for 4 x 6 photos

Designer Series Paper of you choice. I used Le Jardin

coordinating card stock

vellum

vellum runner

Snail

temporary adhesive

foam mounting tape

craft knife

paper trimmer

assorted embellishments of your choice

The first step is to take out the matting of your frame and cut out the dividers with your craft knife. This will make one large opening for your name.

I sponged ink around the inside edges of my mat, but that is up to you. The opening is now wider than 12", so you must cut a 12 x 12 paper in 1/2 and match up the pattern to hide the seam.

Stripes work best for this because you can match up the stripes. They'll be camaflouged and therefore hide the seam better. Make sure you cut your paper so the stripes will run up and down.

Adhere your 12 x 12 strips together, matching up the stripes. Now your paper is wider than your opening.

Trim off the paper so it's about 1" wider than your opening.

Next, print your name onto vellum paper. I used the Monotype Corsiva font with italics. The size was about 80. If your going to put the first names or anything else, print that onto a neutral card stock.

Cut out each individual letter, and cut out different patterns of DSP the same size to put behind the vellum. Now your beautiful DSP shows through the vellum.

To attach your vellum to the DSP, use Vellum Runner. It's the only adhesive I've found that doesn't show through the vellum. Put the adhesive onto the DSP then attach your vellum letter.

Layer those squares onto coordinating card stock. I made each layer 1/4" bigger than the last.

Now, to get your letters on there straight, lay your paper on grid paper nice and square. Lay a ruler on a line, and and bump all your letters up to the bottom of the ruler. To make sure they're centered, find the center of the paper, and lay down your middle letter first. Make sense?

Now you want to start to embellish it. I chose a coordinating card stock, and used my new eyelet edge punch. Now remember, your opening is wider than 12". So you'll have to cut another piece of card stock and match up the punches to make a seam. Make a note that the card stock is about one inch lower than your bottom edge, to make extra room to attach it at top and bottom of the mat.

You can barely see the seam in the Always Artichoke. Make sure your seam is on the right hand side, because we're going to hide it later.

I chose these flowers from the Pretties Kit to embellish with. I colored the big one with my Bashful Blue marker on the petals and left the center white.

I used my So Saffron marker on the medium flower. I didn't end up using the smallest one, but it was Always Arthichoke. Sorry this picture is so blurry.

I used my blender pen to soften and blur the lines, adding and removing color until I liked how they looked. It was very easy and I love the results on the flowers. I then layered them and added a halfback pearl to the center of my flower.
I used my *gasp* Creative Memories cutter to cut out the oval for the first names and Bible verse. I really like how this tool works, and I haven't ever bought the Coluzzle. I layered Very Vanilla onto Bashful Blue, then onto Always Arthichoke. Once I had all my main pieces, I just started laying stuff out and moving it around until I like how it looked. I used the ovals to cover up the seam in the Always Arthichoke.

Once you know the placement of all the "Stuff", it's time to attach it to your mat. I used Foam Mounting Tape, folded in half to make it thicker. Attach it all the way around the inside of your mat. Then just attach your finished piece, making sure it's straight.

The Pretties Kit flowers were attached with glue dots after my main panel was attached to the mat. So were my ovals. I put Snail on the area where the ovals came in contact with the mat, and I put some mounting tape where they were supposed to be raised off the main image. Then you just pop the whole thing into your frame and you have a beautiful work of art.

If you decide to try one, let me know!! Send me a link and I'll be sure to check it out. Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!!

Boys Can Stamp, too!

2009-05-12T11:08:00.002-04:00

Here are the cards my boys made for me on Sunday. The first one is from Bubba. He asked me for help to cut and score it straight. Isn't that cute? Then he used the ink and stamps I already had out from making my own cards the day before.

The inside says "hope your day is blooming with love." I think it's so sweet and I'll keep it forever!!

This one is from Sammy. He didn't use any stamps, just wrote what he wanted to say! Sammy didn't ask for any help, of course if you're 12 years old, you should be able to cut and score straight! Oh, he's standing here reading over my shoulder, and he said he didn't score it!! Now I'll have to go make sure he just folded it straight. LOL.

I love the drawing of the heart inside. So sweet.

On another note, this Friday is the first Name Frame Class. If you are coming, please be sure to bring the following items:

paper trimmer
scissors
vellum runner
picture frame
adhesive

The vellum runner can be purchased at Carolina Stamper for $5 or $6. If you don't bring the required supplies, I will have some available for use for a fee. I'll be calling everyone to see which date you plan to attend and remind you of supplies.

I plan on posting a tutorial for the Name Frame on here soon. That will be interesting!! I've never done a tutorial before, but I took pictures of every step while making my frame, so it might take me a while, but it will get done!!

Thanks for stopping by today. I'll see you later!

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T12:25:00.003-04:00

Hello, everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day!! Mine was pretty good. We went to church, and then out to eat at a Japanese Hibachi Grill with my Mom and sisters. We always have a good time watching the chef prepare the food and throw food at people!! After dinner, we went over to my Mother in Law's to visit for a little while before evening service. I actually took a little nap on the couch.

Anyway, I finally did a little crafting last week, and this is what I created. I made 2 of each layout, but I figured you didn't need to see every one of them. I know, my pictures are pretty blurry, but when I took them Saturday afternoon, the kids were begging me to take them fishing. So I was just taking pictures as fast as I could so we could get out the door!!

For the first card I used sketch # 125 from Diva Coffee Break Design Challenge.

The next 2 cards started with a sketch also, but didn't end up looking anything like it!! That happens to me alot. I really like the Flower Fusion felt flowers on these. It adds just the right amount of punch!

This last card is one of my favorites. To find out how to get the diagonal strips of DSP, click here.

I needed a nice way to package up these cards, so I made a matching box using this tutorial over on Split Coast Stampers. It was really very easy!

Then I just wrapped it with some matching ribbon and made a tag. Easy and so cute!! This one went to my Mother in Law.

For my Mom, I picked out some of my favorite cards I had in my stash, and put them in one of those nice card boxes you can get at Papertrey Ink, wrapped it with a ribbon and made a tag.

That's about it for now. Next time I'll show you the cards my boys made for me. It's so cute to have your 11 yo DS ask for help to score a straight line for your own card!! See you next time.

Just Playing Around

2009-04-30T15:25:00.003-04:00

I was outside hanging my laundry to dry and realized what a beautiful day it is. I took my camera out, hoping to get a picture of the birds on the feeders. I must have scared them all off, but I did get a picture of this little guy on the gutter. We see these little lizards all the time. I have a funny story about lizards. When Sammy was about a year old, Sam caught one to show him. Well, the lizard had his mouth wide open, and Sam stuck the lizard right on Sammy's ear. The thing latched on, and was hanging off his ear and wouldn't let go!! When we got him off, there were little specks on blood where the teeth had sunk right in. It was the funniest thing!

Last year, when this wheel barrrel gave up the ghost, I turned it into a planter. These flowers were actually planted in Nov. last year, and are now blooming like crazy!! I love it! I've never really been much of gardener or bird watcher, but lately I've realized how nice it is to go out and see the birds eating the seeds you put out for them, and admire the flowers you planted yourself.

This is my front porch. Sam built this planter for me, and I love how the flowers are so cheery and inviting. On the porch I have a little "garden" in some flower pots, because the soil here doesn't do well at all for a real garden. I have a couple crookneck squash plants, a red bell pepper and a yellow bell pepper plant, and a couple cayenne pepper plants. I can't wait till we get some vegetables from them.

Every year we have hummingbirds come visit us. Our house is about 10 feet above the ground, so I think we see alot more birds, because we're on their level. We have counted as many as 10 hummingbirds at once, zooming around our porch like little kamakaze pilots!! They fly so close to our heads I think we might be in danger of having our eyes poked out!! I just hung out our feeder yesterday, so we haven't seen any yet, but I'll make sure to post pictures when they get here!

While I was out there the boys were in the yard having some type of war game with hula-hoops and sticks. It's so nice to walk outside and see them out having fun rather than glued to the TV or computer. So, now I must get off the computer so I can get dinner going, then go play outside with them for a while.
Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you have a wonderful day!

Ladies Luncheon

2009-04-30T12:34:00.002-04:00

I still haven't stamped anything new, but I do have something to share. On April 11 we had our annual ladies' luncheon at church. Every year has a specific theme, and this year was "Happy Homemaker." One of the ladies, Hope, is a friend of mine. She always does a beautiful job planning and decorating for the entire thing. Since I forgot to take my camera with me, you'll have to read all about it and view the picutures over here on this post. For the past couple of years, I have helped with some of the paper projects. I'm sure you'll recognize some of my work if you go visit her.

Flying Squirrels

2009-04-28T08:33:00.003-04:00

Good morning, everyone! Today's post is not stamping related, but I thought I'd share some pictures with you. Most nights if you walk out our back door, this little critter and his friend will be there to greet you. He's sitting on top of trim around our sliding glass door and he's eating dog food. We first realized we had a flying squirrel 2 years ago, when we caught him eating all the bird seed out of the feeders. So we put up a squirrel feeder. He has come back for 2 years in a row, but he's gotten braver. Now he gets dog food from the dish on the porch and takes it up above the door. He even leaves some there for when he comes back later!!

Here's a shot of his friend he brings with him. He usually sits right there on the wall with dog food in his hands, just munching away! It really is the cutest thing. It's amazing how close they let us get to take pictures. It's like they're not even scared of us. Sam says it's because when we turn on the lights they can't see. Anyway, as you can see, they're at the top of the wall near the ceiling. And you see all those yucky drips on the trim and wall? That's the proof they leave that they've been there!!

This is such a cute picture. He looks like you could just scoop' em up and cuddle him like a stuffed animal!

I guess they got tired of posing for the camera and decided to go home. We haven't figured out where their nest is yet, but I think it's a whole family of flying squirrels. We've had three at a time eating our dog food. I hope they always come around, because they're just so cute to watch!

That's all for today, folks. I hope to get a little stampin' time in after we finish school work for the day. Catch you later!

Western Wedding

2009-04-24T12:03:00.008-04:00

My mom asked me to make a western card for her Line Dancing Instructor who's getting married in a couple weeks. I knew I wanted to make a Joy Fold card, but wasn't sure what my focal point should be. So I was browsing Split Coast Stampers and happened upon this card. This is what I came up with.

This is what it looks like opened. I printed the sentiment (which was provided by Calgramma on SplitCoast Stampers) on Very Vanilla Cardstock, then distressed and sponged the edges and stamped the stars.

The flap tucks behind the scallop circle to keep the card closed.

What would I do without all those talented stamper's out there who give me so many ideas?

I used Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel and Outlaw Designer Series Paper. Ink is Chocolate Chip. Once again, I turned to the Wanted stamp set. The lassoes (is that spelled right?) are made with packaging twine and attached with Crystal Effects. I think it is just adorable.

Then we needed to make the gift. I had a plain picture frame that I needed to use up, so we went with that.

I used a retired Simply Scrappin' Kit, and again put the entwined lassoes on it. We attached more packaging twind around the outside edge because it seemed like the logical thing to do.

After we had it just right, we used Chocolate Chip ink on a sponge to "dirty it up" a little bit. It looked too new to be a Western frame.

My mom was thrilled with how they turned out. I hope her instructor likes them.

I came acoss Michelle's Blog, she has a card a thon going on and some great card candy as well. You should go check it out!! Thanks for checking in with me today!!

Voila!

2009-04-22T08:40:00.002-04:00

Today we have a cute little coaster I made with the stamp set Voila! I think this little man is so cute. Actually this is my mom's set, but because she's not a stamper, she lets me hold on to it for her. She's decorating her kitchen with this little guy, and I'm going to be stamping some tiles for a backsplash for her. I think I'll just put different stuff on the tray each time, so it's kind of a random pattern.

I made a set of 4 coasters and bundled them together with twine and a gift tag, but didn't think to take a picture of the finished package. Oh well, maybe I can add that in here later. Do you guys have any suggestions about stamping on tile for a backsplash in a kitchen? I plan to seal the tiles with a clear spray sealer. Do you think I should bake them first to set the ink better? I'd hate to get them up there and then when she cleans the ink rub off or smudge, kwim? Guess that's all for now. Have a great day!

Another One Sheet Wonder

2009-04-19T19:13:00.002-04:00

Hello everyone!! For today's project I have another One Sheet Wonder. These sets were so easy and fun to do, I think I'm going to have to download some more templates for these. They make a great gift, and you can decorate the gift bag to coordinate with the card set. I used some retired Cutie Pie Designer Series Paper, along with lots of So Saffron Ribbon, brads, buttons and misc. stamp sets.

There's not a whole lot to tell you about these, they are pretty straight forward.

The Five Petal Flower Punch really came in handy since it coordinated so well with my paper. I also used up some of my Button Bouquet.

I don't think I could do anything without using my Scallop Circle Punch. I use it on everything!

Here's the group shot since I didn't post individual pix of every card. Hope you can see them all.

Hopefully I can get in some stamping time this week. I haven't had time to create anything new for the past 2 weeks. I'm running out of stuff to show you!! Anyway, thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

One Sheet Wonder

2009-04-17T09:44:00.000-04:00

Hello!! It's been a long time, hasn't it? I've thought about you guys, but I just haven't had the time to post this week. There's been a lot going on. After we got back from camping on Friday night, there was the Lady's Luncheon at church on Saturday, and then Sunday started a week of revival at church. That means being ready and out the door by 5:30 every night. Plus the boys had their testing for school this week also. I finally got my suitcase unpacked yesterday!! There just aren't enough hours in a day. Anyway, on to the project. This is a set of cards I made using a One Sheet Wonder I found on Split Coast Stampers. I didn't post individual pictures of all of them, so there's a group shot at the bottom.

I love the way this whole set turned out, but these are my favorites. I pretty much used up my entire stash of Old Olive brads. I couldn't resist. They were the perfect touch.

Isn't that cherry paper so cheerful? These are all very "Happy" cards. They are all blank inside, because I wanted them to be used for any occasion. Well, except for the Happy Birthday card. That one has to be used for a birthday.

I'm trying to decide if I want to sell this set on Etsy or give it away as a gift. I think I'm leaning towards gift, but I don't know if I could bear to part with it!

I have another set of cards with the same One Sheet Wonder. I'll try to post those tomorrow. I can't wait for tomorrow to come!! It's my first day in 2 weeks that doesn't have any plans!! I can do whatever happens and not be rushed out the door. That will be nice. I think I'll just stay home and do absolutely nothing. Doesn't that sound good? Better yet, I can stay home and do absolutely nothing but stamp!! Yeah, right. But it was a nice thought.

I hope you've enjoyed looking at these cards as much as I enjoyed making them. Until next time, happy stamping!

More Masculine Cards

2009-04-07T11:05:00.004-04:00

Here are the rest of the Masculine cards I made last week. Again, they are with Outlaw DSP and Wanted stamp set. I checked my sketches I used when I went back in my stamp room, and they are all previous sketch challenges from Taylored Expressions.

They are all pretty straight forward cards, nothing too complicated.

I really like this one. It could be for anyone, for any occasion. I think it's cute!

I won't be posting for the rest of the week. My DH and I are taking the teenagers from our church on a 3 day camping trip up to Table Rock, SC. We'll be hiking and fishing and doing whatever it is teenagers do! Wish me luck!

Oh, and I can't forget this!! I started an Etsy store!! You can see it here. I'll be adding more stuff as I get time. Let me know what you think!! Thanks for stopping by!

Masculine Birthday Cards

2009-04-03T10:32:00.002-04:00

I don't know about you guys, but I have a harder time with cards for boys/men tha anything else. It's probably because I tend to buy the "Pretty or Cute" paper and stamps, along with the ribbon and frills. I had some Outlaw Designer Series Paper out the other day, and I had borrowed the Wanted stamp set from a friend to make Haleigh's notebook seen at the bottom of this post. So I just pulled out some card sketches I had laying around and got to work. Cardstock is Very Vanilla, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip and Creamy Caramel. Ink is Chocolate Chip.

These cards went pretty fast once I had all my paper and ink out, I just went to town, because I didn't have to look for anything except the brads.

I like how they all turned out, and I have 3 more to show you next time.

I hope you all have a great weekend. I probably won't post again until Monday, our weekend is pretty full. So I'll see you next time.

P.S. If you read my post about "soap" you might want to check it out again. I've edited some of my stuff.

Soap

2009-04-01T15:26:00.006-04:00

Lately I've been making my own soap. Laundry detergent, fabric softener, dishwashing gel, dishwasher detergent, and body wash. It all started when a friend of mine told me about a recipe for laundry detergent online and I decided to try it out since all that stuff is getting so expensive. I did a google search for homemade laundry soap and found a great wesite called tipnut and she has 10 recipes for laundry soap. The first one I tried was recipe #4. I found Fels Naptha Soap and Borax at my local grocery store in the laundry aisle, but had to get Washing Soda at Kroger. It worked really well and was very easy. I grated the bar of soap in my coffee grinder since I don't have a food processor. I figured up the price per load of laundry was about 10 cents. Compared to what I was paying for soap, that wasn't saving me any money. So, when that was gone, I tried recipe #1 using 2 bars of Ivory Soap. You can get the big pack at Wal Mart for a little over $4, and it works out to about 40 cents a bar. It made 3 gallons, and I figured the cost to be less than 2 cents a load. Quite a substantial savings. I was pretty easy to make, too. I mixed it up in a 5 gallon bucket, and then put it in some empty detergent bottles I had saved for my husband. He likes them when he changes the oil in the cars.

So, that led to me thinking "What else can I make?" Dishwasher Detergent!! I already have all the ingredients anyway! Here's the recipe I like best for the dishwasher: 1 cup Borax, 1 cup Baking Soda or Washing Soda, 1/4 cup salt, and 1/4 cup Lemi-Shine (you can find at Wal Mart with the dish soap). Use 1 tablespoon per load. It fizzes when it gets wet, because of the citric acid in the Lemi-Shine.

Well, today I ran out of body wash, and I had bought the 10 pack of Ivory for my laundry soap, so I grated up the Ivory and melted it in a pot of boiling water. I found a recipe that said to combine the melted Ivory with 1/2 gallon of water. It is really runny at first, but as it cools, it thickens up just like real body wash. So, for about 40 cents for the bar of Ivory Soap, I have 1/2 gallon of Body Wash! I just refilled all the empty or 1/2 empty bottles in the showers.
Edit: The body wash didn't turn out so well. It thickened up too much so it wouldn't squeeze out of the bottle, so I reheated it and added more water, but it still got too thick. I'm going to do some more research and see what went wrong and get back to you. Everything else had turned out wonderfully, though!

Yesterday I had to go to the grocery store, and I saw Colgate All-Purpose Soap. It was by the dish soap. On the back of the wrapper it says, "For removing hard to get out spots from the family wash, and makes dishwashing quick and easy... because it dissolves grease fast. You'll like it, also, to help you keep your stove, cabinets and woodwork sparkling clean." I thought that sounded interesting, so I got the bar for about 60 cents. I did a search for liquid dish soap and this is the one I came up with. I halved the recipe since I only had one bar. In place of the lemon juice, I used the Lemi-Shine from the dishwasher version. It was neat, because the citric acid in the Lemi-Shine causes the mix to foam and expand when it gets wet. The kids thought that part was pretty neat. I washed a load of dishes by hand just to test it out, and they were clean, no greasy feeling, and it made alot of soap! The only thing is that it doesn't make suds, but then again, neither does the laundry soap. That was the hardest part to get past. But I wiped the countertops and cleaned the kitchen like normal with it, and everything was spic n span. So much cheaper than even the cheap dish soap.

So here you have my novel on making soap. I think it's fun to do, and I'm saving money in the process. Let me know if you try any of this stuff out, and what you think about it!

Faith Hope Joy

2009-03-31T11:39:00.004-04:00

Here's another decorative frame I did. I definitely got all the inspiration from this frame on Split Coast. I used my usual method of printing on vellum and then layering onto DSP. Once again, I turned to Le Jardin Designer Series Paper from Stampin' Up!

I didn't have any Always Artichoke Grosgrain ribbon, so I colored white ribbon with my Always Artichoke Marker. Here are close ups of all three verses. I'm not sure what I'll do with this frame, maybe sell it on Etsy or give as a gift someday. Either way I love how it turned out, and I'll definitely be making more, especially since the frame itself was only $3 at Wal Mart. You can't beat that!

That's all for now. Thanks for looking, I hope you have a great day!

A Couple Cards

2009-03-30T09:56:00.002-04:00

This is the card I made for my sister's 30th birthday. I think Sassy Suzie is just too cute. Inside the card it says "It's a good thing wrinkles don't hurt!" Sorry this picture is kind of blurry. I didn't notice till it was too late. I kind of cased this card over on Split Coast Stampers.

I paper pieced Suzie's clothes to make her more stylish like my sister, and of course put Dazzling Diamonds on her jewelry. I had to do that because my sister sells Premiere Designs Jewelry and is never without some "Bling Bling!"

My finished card was 5 x 5 and I don't have any envelopes that size, so I used the envelope tutorial by Lauren Meader found here. She is so talented and I check her blog daily.

And finally this is the card I made for Emily to match the name frame I made for her. You can see it here. I can't remember where I saw this layout, so please know it's almost a complete copy. The way you get the stripes is cut a piece of scrap card stock the size you want your stripe image. Then cut your strips of pattern paper and paste them onto your piece of scrap. Then just trim the edges off to the size of your scrap. All done and perfect!
That's it for today! It's time for me to get the kids going on their schoolwork, so I'll talk to you later!

Homemade Bath Salts

2009-03-29T09:47:00.004-04:00

Here are some Bath Salts I made. It was so much fun to make these. I just googled for bath salts recipes and found a bunch. Another thing I'm having fun with is learning how to use my computer and printer to help with my stamping. Over on Split Coast I found a sheet with the codes for your printer so you can print in "Stampin' Up!" colors. I was so excited that my lids matched the cardstock beautifully. I just printed out my labels on Whisper White, then punched them out and layered onto a scallop circle.For the Chocolate Bath Salts I used some retired DSP I had left over, along with Pretty in Pink CS. I used the Chocolate Chip rub-ons from last Sale a Bration on the jars. By the way, the jars are Frappucino jars from Starbucks. Love that stuff! If you love chocolate, you've got to try the recipe for the bath salts. It has real cocoa powder and vanilla extract in it, and smells so yummy. I gave a sample to a chocoholic friend of mine, and she said it smelled soooooo good in the tub!

The orange smells so good, too. Well, they all smell good. You get the scent from adding essential oils, and you get the color from food coloring. You can make any combination you want! Most of the food coloring packages give you a chart on the back for how to mix different colors. That came in handy!This is also retired DSP. I've used up alot of my retired paper lately!! It's almost time to order some new stuff, but it's so close to the new catty, I think I'll hold off till then so I know all my paper will be current for a while, especially since we are going back to one catty a year!!!

And finally, Peppermint Bath Salts. I'm not sure if I like these or the chocolate better. I just walk by and sniff them sometimes. I really like how they are striped pink and white. I really wanted them to be red and white, but no matter how much red food coloring I put in, it just stayed pink. So I worked with it and made everything pink. You can't really tell in the picture, but even the ribbon is pink and white stripes. It's perfect!

Here's the group shot. Oh, I almost forgot, I spray painted the lids so they wouldn't clash with the paper. Just a nice finishing touch. I stayed home from church this morning, because both boys are sick. Sam took Amanda to church, so he'll probably stay home tonight so I can go. I hope it ends with the boys and the rest of us don't get it. I have to go check on the kiddos and catch up on house work that was neglected all week. I was in my stamp room constantly trying to finish up "just one more thing" for the craft fair. So, I'll see you later.

A Total Flop

2009-03-28T21:48:00.003-04:00

Sorry I've been gone so long, there has been so much going on here. I've been helping my mom get her house ready for her sister to move in. She and her husband have lost their house in Illinois, so they are coming here. Bubba has been sick with a fever for 3 days and now Sammy has it. And I've been trying to finish up all my projects for the craft fair. Well, today was the big day. I stayed up till 1:00 am last night doing last minute things like typing up my price list and stuff, then got up at 6:00 so I could leave the house by 7. It was calling for rain today, and it was very cloudy, but I thought we were going to be in a gymnasium at a local school. When I showed up, they were setting up outside. I was a little apprehensive, but went ahead and set everything up, got it all nice and neat and snapped a few pictures. I was also kind of disappointed by the fact that the majority of tables were rented by yardsalers. I have nothing against going yardsaling, I do it myself on occasion. But people who are looking for yardsale deals aren't looking to pay for handmade crafts. So, anyway, I had everything set up, then it began to drizzle. Now, mind you, all my stuff is PAPER AND INK!! This does not mix well with rain. So, as fast as I could, I threw everything into my plastic crate with a lid, and made sure it was all safe. I have way, way too much time invested in this stuff to let it get ruined by rain. Since it didn't look like anyone was moving inside, I decided to leave. So, I sold nothing. If we had been inside, I would have stayed, but that was not the case. Anyway, I have 3 pictures of what my table looked like for about 10 minutes. I'm pretty bummed about it, but I'm in the process of setting up an Etsy store since I now have all this stuff I need to sell. Maybe I'll have some success that way.

The good news for the day is that I have lots of pictues taken of projects that I can post over the next several days! So check back later.

Just One More Stamp...

2009-03-23T12:49:00.001-04:00

Someone emailed me this poem, and I thought
it was so cute I would post it here...

THE STAMPER

I started out with just one stamp
and when I bought some more
I decided that a shoebox
would make an ideal store.

Then as I added inks and pens
My stamping collection grew
So I bought a roomy plastic crate
It would last for years, I knew.

Embossing then became my thing
with powders and heat gun,
metallics, tinsels, pearls and clear,
I soon had every one.

By now my lovely plastic crate
was spilling everywhere
And my glitter glue collection
lay scattered on a chair

My husband started muttering
and said things had to stop
So I bought a huge old wardrobe
at the local charity shop.

But after just a little while,
I couldn't shut the door
and I put shelves up in the spare room
To accommodate yet more.

Our house is now for sale,
something larger being sought,
By the way, did I show you
the latest stamp i bought......

........(Sounds familiar anyone????)

Emily's Name Frame

2009-03-20T14:56:00.000-04:00

My niece Emily is turning 6 years old next week. This is the name frame I made for her. I used Georgia Peach DSP that I had left from the scrapbook I did a few weeks ago. As I was working on the name, I was wondering what I could use to dress it up a bit, and it hit me! My latest order arrived 2 days ago, and it contained a tin of beautiful felt flowers from Flower Fusion!! They match perfectly. I layered them up put a So Saffron brad in the center of each one. As I was browsing my stash for the brads, I found some buttons that just happened to be Old Olive. Perfect!! Now some Old Olive ribbon and we are in business!! This is why I love, love, love Stampin' Up! Everything matches perfectly!!

Here's a close up of the felt flowers. Aren't they gorgeous? The colors are so vibrant. I love how well they coordinate with the paper.

This one shows the letter close up of the letters. I printed her name on vellum, then cut out each letter and mounted them of different patterns of DSP. After I mounted the vellum on my DSP, I mounted that on Old Olive CS.

I really love how this turned out. I told my sister it was done, and she could only have it on one condition, that I could borrow it to take with me to the craft fair and hopefully get some orders.

There's another frame I made as a wedding gift back in November. You can view it here . I hope you have liked my name frame, and that you are inspired to try your own. Until next time, happy stampin!!

More Bookmarks!!

2009-03-19T11:46:00.001-04:00

Hello everyone!! Today I have some more bookmarks I made. They hook on the corner of your book pages. They are so easy to make, and I don't know who I should give credit to, because I've seen them in several different places. I decided to put worms on mine, because they are "bookworms".

Sorry this picture is fuzzy, but you get the idea. I really like these, because your book still lays nice and flat, and nothing will get broken off or smooshed if you throw your book in a backpack or something. Great for kids.

All of these little projects have been using up a great deal of my retired papers, which I'm glad for, because I want to get some new stuff, but I told myself I couldn't buy anymore DSP until I used up my retires stash. I still have a little ways to go, but I'm almost there. When it comes time to order, I might just wait till the new catalog in July, so I don't order something that retires right away. Unless there's something I just can't live without. We'll see. Anyway, I need to go so I can clean up the house a bit, and then I'm heading off to Beaufort to go to see some A Beka Book Curriculum and find out if I want to use it for the next school year. Sounds fun, huh? Hopefully later this evening I can get some more stuff done for the Craft fair coming up. Until then...

Paperclip Bookmarks

2009-03-17T17:19:00.001-04:00

Here are some bookmarks I've been working on. They're pretty easy, so here's how I do it. Using the cardboard that comes in the back of a new pack of DSP, I punch out whatever shape I'm using. Punch the same shape out of your desired cardstock and Adhere to cardboard. This makes it sturdier. (If using DSP, you can adhere it first, then only punch once.) Punch a smaller shape using the same method. On the back on the smaller punch, stick a square of mounting tape. Stick your Jumbo Paperclip to that, and then stick on your larger shape. There you have a neat little bookmark.

I've been making a bunch of these in different color and paper combos to sell at the craft fair. I figured since it was being held at a local school bookmarks might be a nice little item that would sell well.

Here's one clipped on a book so you can get a better idea. I think they're pretty cute, and I would buy one if I didn't know how to make one!

It's less then 2 weeks to craft fair time, so I'm going to be busy trying to finish up all the ideas I have. I wish I knew what would be good and what wouldn't, and how many to make, etc... But I guess that will come with experience. Plus whatever doesn't sell I can always use as little gifts for later when I need them. That's all I have for now, so I'll see you later!!

Ski Pictures, and Altered Notebook

2009-03-13T11:19:00.000-04:00

Sorry I've been missing all week. I just couldn't find the time to get my pictures on the computer and blog. It's been a busy week. Here are some of the ski pictures I promised. We arrived at the condo about midnight, so we didn't really get to see much till morning. We woke to a Winter Wonderland. All the snow was untouched until the kids woke up. Here's Amanda clearing off the handrails for us.

The icicles were huge on our balcony. It was so beautiful. We tried to tell the kids to leave them alone, but...

they were irresistable. The icicles had to be broken off and used as swords. This on was taller, but got broken before I could get a picture. That's Bubba, he's almost 11 years old, just to give you an idea of how tall he is.

Finally it was time to go ski down Sugar Mountain. We loaded all the kids into the back of the truck to drive to the resort, which was only about 1/4 mile away. This is the only picture I got of all the kids together. I'm glad it turned out!!

The first day there it was so cold. Here's Bubba all bundled up. Not a bit of skin showing!!

Amanda was fearless going down the mountain after the initial apprehension wore off. I couldn't keep up with her, I was too scared!! I like to keep my arms and legs attached to my body, thank you very much!

Now Sammy was pretty much with the other boys the whole time, so I don't have many pictures of him, but I did manage to get on the ski lift with him a few times, so I took the opportunity to get a self portrait. We had a really great time, and I'm glad we made it back home with no major injuries, just a few bumps and bruises. That's almost amazing, considering the kids have no fear, and just zoom on down, full speed ahead!!
Now, what you really came here to see. Amanda's going to Haleigh's birthday party this afternoon, and she's big into horses, in fact, it's a horse party!! I didn't have any horse stamps, so I called one of my very good customers who I knew had bought "Wanted" and borrowed it from her. This is what I started off with. I read on someone's blog the other day (I'm sorry I don't remember who) that she had taken out the wire of a notebook, decorated the front and back, then put the wire back in. I never did like a strip of whatever color the notebook was on the wire side, so I never attempted to alter a spiral notebook. So when I saw that someone else had taken one apart, I thought "Why not give it a try?"And here is the finished product. I think it's just adorable. I beaded a pen to match, and tied ribbon and packaging twine on the wire to dress it up, without being too frilly. The bigger hole punch on my Crop a Dile was just the right size to punch the holes out after I had covered the front. The DSP is retired from Stampin' Up!, it's called Outlaw. I also covered the back with Chocolate Chip CS. Anyway, I hope she likes it. I think I'll have my girls do one of these tonight for stamp night.

Baby Girl Frame

2009-03-09T10:38:00.001-04:00

Hello everyone! I'm back! Last week my kids and I joined my sis-in-law and her family for a week of snow skiing up in Sugar Mountain, NC. It was so much fun, and I can't believe how fast kids and fearless kids are on the mountain. I have to recharge my camera batteries before I can upload my pictures, so I'll tell you all about it later.

Here is yet one more frame I've decorated. There's also a matching bank. The bank actually came from my electric co-op. They sent everyone 2 sample light bulbs to try, and that's what they were packaged in. I put it away, because I knew I would alter it someday. The stamp set is Enjoy Every Moment, and the sentiment is embossed with Crystal Clear EP. There's a Pink Pirouette button in the O. The Celery ribbon is from current Sale a Bration Ribbon Bundle. I just love it. It's a little bit stiffer than the other ribbons, and it stands up nicely. On the bank, the stamp set is Cuddles and Tickles. It's been retired for a long time, but I just love those little feet. Well, I guess that's about all for now. See you later!

Thank You

2009-03-02T13:36:00.000-05:00

I can't remember where I saw this, but it's almost a complete CASE. If it's your idea, please let me know, and I'll give proper credit. This is the Pick a Petal stamp set, used to make an exclamation point! Isn't it adorable? The little flower in the background is from Time Well Spent. I stamped the same card in 8 different colors to sell as a set. They fit in the Small Open End Envelopes. I'm hoping these will be a hit at the craft fair. I made 4 sets. It didn't really take that long, doing them assembly line style.

I'm going out of town for the week, so you won't see another post till next Monday, probably. Until then.....

Happiness Always

2009-02-27T09:46:00.000-05:00

This is another picture frame I decorated. I decided to go pretty simple to let the beautiful paper speak for itself. The stamp set is from Sale a Bration last year, and paper is Le Jardin. There's also a little matching votive candle holder. I put micro beads around the top of the votive using Sticky Strip.

Here's a close up of the stamped image. The lines were made using a washcloth rather than a sponge around the edges. I think the effect is pretty neat.

This is the close up of the votive. I really like the beads around the rim. Other than that, it's pretty simple, really.

On the edges of the frame I tried to color with my Always Artichoke marker, but the ink kept smearing and wouldn't dry. I figured I'd cover it up with some sticky strip and micro beads as well. I also put beads right around the opening for the photo on the frame, but you can't really see those. It's very subtle, but still kind of elegant looking.

I really like how this set turned out. Hopefully others will like it, and it will sell at the craft fair. Thanks for looking, and I'll see you later!

Mojo Monday on Thursday!

2009-02-26T15:49:00.002-05:00

Here is the card I created with the Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge. I've been wanting to use this Sassy Suzie set for a while now, and thought it went well with the sketch. I like how it turned out. Sorry the pictures kind of fuzzy. I couldn't get a clear shot for some reason. I gotta run. School work isn't quite done yet, and of course, there's house work calling my name. Don't you hear it now?

My Space

2009-02-25T13:49:00.001-05:00

Well, here is My Space. Sam salvaged these cabinets and built a new countertop for them. Isn't he the greatest? Then he built the shelves above that wrap around both walls. Notice the lights underneath the shelf? I think that is the best part. The lighting was always so bad in my room. I even had a desk lamp on the wall above me, but then my own head made shadows on my work, and I couldn't see! Anyway, I have ribbon racks to hang on the wall, and also plan to have my punches on the wall, similar to the towel bars I used to have. Then I just need to caulk the nail holes and paint everything. When everything is all finished I'll post the final pix.

This is my desk, which I decided to keep, even with my new work area so that friends could come over and play. I could easily have 3 people working and not be crowded. I've started a new paper storage and so far I love it. I got these 12 x 12 paper drawers, they are 3 drawers in a unit. Mine are in stacks of 2. Each color has it's own drawer, and all my scraps of each color go in there, as well as my stamp pads and craft spots. It's so easy to get exactly what I want, rather than dig through my pile of scraps. I only need 5 more units and I'll have a spot for every color, even neutrals!

I also have these nice clear shoebox containers labeled with the contents inside. I may tweak this system a bit, but for now there's a place for everything, and everything in it's place. Until my next project. Then who knows what it will look like.

I haven't gotten to work on that sketch yet, I was cleaning my room so I could show it off to you! Now, if I can get the kids to finish school work, maybe I'll have time to play before we head off to church tonight. Until then.......

I'm still here!

2009-02-25T11:02:00.004-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted anything. I have been busy, but haven't taken the time to photograph and post stuff. I guess I'm just lazy. Well, I've been making stuff to sell at the craft fair coming up in March. I need to charge my camera batteries and post those, hopefully later today. In the meantime, I was blurfing and found this sketch. I really like it, so I'm gonna go into my stamp room when I have a few minutes and see what I can come up with. Speaking of my stamp room, I have some new pictures of my room. My wonderful husband built me a wall length countertop with cabinets and underneath, and a wall to wall shelf above so I have room to put all my stuff! I love it, and I'm sure you will, too. Check back later and you'll see what I mean. So I'll see you guys later!!

Georgie Peach DSP: Day 4

2009-02-12T12:22:00.002-05:00

This is what I did with the cover of Katie's book. I covered my chipboard with Old Olive and Regal Rose craft ink, then heat embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. The Regal Rose ribbon is just tied around the whole cover.

And here is the very last layout, I promise. I paper pieced the truck and added a load of hearts. The tires are colored Regal Rose with my Water Color Wonder Crayons, and the hubcaps are Old Olive. Really, what girl wouldn't want a truck covered with flowers, and pink tires?

Day at the Races!!

2009-02-11T08:30:00.001-05:00

I was browsing through some photos that have been laying around for a while, and decided to make a couple pages. Here's what I came up with using a page map from Got Sketch. I did rearrange the photos a bit so mine would all fit on the page. I printed the title on my computer, making it look like the word turtle was an after thought. I sponged the edges, then mounted it on Basic Black to make it stand out more.

I also printed the journaling on the computer, cut it out and sponged the edges. Then I mounted it on black to stand out more. I chose my favorite photo of each child and matted those on black, as well. The DSP is a combination of Summer Picnic and East Coast Prep. Both of those are retired, but I have to use up some retired papers before I can buy any new, know what I mean?

I got the idea for the punch art turtles here. Aren't they cute? They use all Stampin' Up! punches. It was my son Sammy's idea to use the googly eyes. I just happened to have some nearby!

Well, that's it for now. Enjoy your day and Happy Stampin'!

Georgia Peach DSP: day three

2009-02-10T16:12:00.003-05:00

The album is finally finished and in the mail!! It was a bit more work than I anticipated, but I think it turned out to be so adorable. I'm glad it's done though, so I can move on to other things.

This is the very first page. Of course, her name is Katie Louise. The color isn't quite right in this photo, it's not as dark in real life. Sorry about the glare on the pages protector!

In case you can't read the words on the right side, they say "Dream, Cherish, Giggle and Play"

There's just something about this checked paper that I love. I think this is my favorite pattern in this package of DSP.

I'm lovin' this friends page. How cute are all those little kids playing their sports?

Tomorrow I'll show you the last layout and cover of the book. Then that will be the last of it. I promise!! Hope you like it and have a great day!!

Finally got a Watermark!!

2009-02-06T13:58:00.001-05:00

Well here I am in fron of the computer when I should be preparing for my class tonight, but I wanted to see if I could get a watermark on a picture. So here it is!! Is it too light? Too small? Hard to read? It was actually very easy to add to my photo using Picasa on my computer. I love it. Where have I been? I gotta run, so let me know what you think!

A Day at the Beach

2009-02-06T09:02:00.001-05:00

We went to Hunting Island with my friend Aubrey this past Tuesday. It was pretty chilly, but so pretty outside. This is a picture of the Hunting Island Lighthouse, which has 170 steps (if I remember correctly) inside.

It was a pretty good climb to the top, but it's a really nice view from up there. Here are all 7 of the kids.

We went down to the beach and snapped a few pictures. The kids all had fun drawing in the sand with sticks and climbing all over the dead trees laying around. This is me and my kids Bubba, Amanda and Sammy.

Of course, this is Aubrey with Austin, Haleigh, Genavieve and Avery.

After we got back home and thawed out we made little personal pizzas for dinner and had a nice visit for the evening.

Aubrey also showed me how to use Picasa to edit and crop my photos, so hopefully you'll notice a difference when I get to post my next project. I hope so! I've been wanting to figure out how to crop out all the unwanted stuff in the back ground, so we'll see. Well, I have a busy day ahead of me, so I gotta run. See you later!

Butterfly Blog Award

2009-02-03T09:23:00.001-05:00

Almost 2 weeks ago, Twila Davis gave me a blog award!! How sweet was that? I'm really very flattered, it's my first blog award! It took me a while to pick my 10 people to pass on the award, but here it is.

Here are the rules:

1. Pick 10 people and pass the award on to them.
2. Contact them and let them know you have chosen them and their blog for an award.
3. Link back to the person who gave you the award.

So here are the 10 blogs I chose...

1. Stephanie

2. Stampin' Mama

3. Liz

4. Andrea

5. Tanya

6. Super Chick

7. Tamarra

8. Silke

9. Jamie

10. June

Today I'm meeting with an old friend from high school. We're going out with all the kiddos, then heading back to the house to have a slumber party!! I'm not sure who will have more fun, the kids or us, lol! I'll have another project to post soon, I promise.

Georgia Peach DSP: Day Two

2009-01-30T12:02:00.004-05:00

As promised, here are the next 5 spreads for the scrapbook I'm working on. Most of you will probably recognize this first page on the left. It is a CASE out of the new Stampin' Success Magazine for Stampin' Up! Demonstrators. I just loved the simplicity of it, and how one photo was the main focal point. The page on the right says "10 things we love about Katie." I used the journaling font CD and printed it off on my computer. I then stamped a bunch of words from the Amazing to Zany stamp set in Old Olive on Pretty in Pink cs and cut them out and ran them through my Xyron to make stickers so when her parents fill out the page, they can use one as an accent on every line. I think when it's filled in it will be adorable!

This is the family page. The definition is from Define Your Life, and it's the "together" stamp.

I think this is one of my favorite pages so far. Every little girl needs a "Mommy and Me" page!

This one, I'm not so sure about. I plan on going back to it and adding something, but I don't know what. When I'm done with the book I'll see what supplies are left and go from there.

After the Mommy page, this is my next favorite. "Daddy's Girl."

And that's all for now. I need to get this sent off within the next week, so I need to get a move on!! Maybe while Sam's at school tonight I can work on it. I've been distracted by picture frames lately!! Talk to you later!

Technique Class

2009-01-29T14:51:00.003-05:00

Well I have finally decided on our projects and have my samples done. The first one is a cute little set of 10 gift tags with a coordinating bag. I got the idea from Andrea Walford. They were really quick to put together and it's such a cute presentation, don't you think?

Here's a closeup of all the tags. I just used some of my retired DSP with coordinating card stock and ribbon.

The next project is one I've been wanting to try for quite a while. I finally got around to buying these 4 x 4 tiles from Lowe's the other day. Now they aren't just plain tiles, they're pretty coasters!

Here's another coaster in the set. I think the bunny in the basket is just adorable. Warning: If you try to do this project at home, your kids will beg and plead till you give them their own tiles, so buy an extra box!!

And here is the set of 4, all done up and ready to go! As usual, all supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted.

Class will be on Feb. 6 at 6:30 pm as usual. Please be sure to bring your own adhesive and paper trimmer. The fee for this class is $12 and you'll take home a set of 4 coasters and set of 10 gift tags with a cute little holder. Thanks for checking up one me!! Have a great day.

My First Craft Fair!!

2009-01-28T11:52:00.005-05:00

Hello, everyone! A while back my husband asked me to make some pretty envelopes for the tellers at our bank, something to put cancelled checks in that they could hang in their station. I ended up making a bunch out of the leftovers of my Summer Days Scrappin' Kit, and I figured every teller needs their own pen, so I also made matching beaded pens for each. Well, I didn't think to snap a picture before he took them to the bank, but he said they all loved them and thought they were so cute! Well, one of the ladies is on the PTA at her daughter's school, which is having a craft fair in March, and she asked me if I would like to have a table! Of course I would!! I've been trying to find something like that, so I said I'd love to. Well, here is the first of hopefully many items I'll be busy making. I bought unfinished frames from Michael's and spiffed them up with remnants of some Simply Scrappin' Kits.

I added some coordinating ribbon and brads to each. I really like how they turned out. This one is from the boy kit.

This is using a retired Sell-a-Bration kit from a few years ago. Aren't the colors just beautiful?

Well, that's all I have time for now. I have to run and take lunch to Sam and the guys who are setting another house today. If you'd like more info on that, click here . See you later!!

Georgia Peach DSP: Day One

2009-01-21T11:00:00.005-05:00

I'm working on a scrapbook for my DH's aunt. She lives in California, and when they were here for Thanksgiving, she asked me if I could make a book for her granddaughter's birthday. I originally wanted to use a Simply Scrappin' Kit, but didn't like the selection for a toddler girl. So, instead I used Georgia Peach DSP with the coordinating cardstock, ink and ribbon with my stamps. All supplies are Stampin' Up! I really like it so far. Some of the layouts were inspired by Split Coast Stampers, and some are my own. I think this book will have 30 pages, so I'll show you (5) 2-page spreads a day, and that should be 3 days worth, right? This is the "Bloomin' Beauty" page.

"Too Cute for Words"

"Cuddlebug"

"So Very Sweet"

"Love U"

Hope you like!!

It's Snowing!!!

2009-01-20T16:56:00.004-05:00

Guess What!?! It's snowing at my house!! I can't tell you how many years it's been since we've seen snow here in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. Of course, I know it won't stick, but still, the kids are excited about the teeny tinny little snowflakes falling down! I had to take pictures as proof, so here are the boys watching the flakes fly (or drift, however you look at it)!

Here they are on the phone, which you can't see cuz it's on the trampoline. They called their counsins who live up in New York to let them know the good news. Needless to say, it wasn't that exciting for them, and in their own words, they have "buckets and buckets of snow!"

There it is!! You can see a few flakes right there in the picture! Isn't that exciting!

This is the wreath I've had hanging by my front door since the beginning of December. It says "Flakes Welcome." People would look at that and laugh, because except for the last few days, it's been in the 60's and 70's for most of the winter. I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, and I love the snow. Even though it probably won't, I hope it sticks around for a few days!

Finally, A Card!!

2009-01-20T08:50:00.003-05:00

Good Morning, everyone!! I finally have a stamped project to show you!! I made this card for my sister in law who got married about 2 weeks ago. I looked through my stash of cards and couldn't find anything for a wedding so I whipped this one together. It's pretty much a CASE of myself from this post. I used retired paper from SU! called Le Jardin. This is my all time favorite paper. I also used the retired set Lexicon of Love. Paper is So Saffron, Always Artichoke and Bashful Blue. The ribbon is the 5/8" Old Olive, which I colored with my Always Artichoke marker so it would match my paper, and I used Always Artichoke ink. Really very simple, but still elegant enough for a wedding card.

I've been working on a scrapbook order for my DH's aunt, so I'll have some new stuff to show you soon. I'm very happy with the way it's turning out. My usual style is to gain inspiration from my pictures, so trying to design a scrapbook without any pictures is a little challenging, but fun.

Well, I suppose I should cut this short. We have to get started on schoolwork and housework, which I'm sure you all know is never ending. For History today, the kids are going to watch Obama's inauguration. They learned about the different branches of government last year, so this should be interesting for them. (And I can watch it and say we actually did some work!)

Camping at Table Rock, SC

2009-01-16T13:54:00.006-05:00

Finally!! Here are some of the camping pictures I promised you. We had a great time camping up at Table Rock State Park, which is near Greenville, SC. It was so nice to get away from the phones, TV, video games and just life in general for a few days!! This is the view of Table Rock Mountain if you are driving on Hwy 11. We have hiked all the way to the top before!! The view is amazing!!
Sam and I have been married for 13 years, and we go camping 2 to 3 times a year. We have always used a tent. Until this time!! We got this neat little camper that goes in the bed of a pickup truck. It's really small, but has a little stove, microwave, bathroom (great for at night), and sleeps 5 people. It was so nice to have hot water, and be able to use the stove to help in meal preparations.
Here are Sammy, Bubba and Amanda posing in front of a waterfall while we were on our hike. You can't go camping in the mountains and not go hiking. It's hard, but so much fun!! I never get tired of looking at the mountains.

Now, I know this is not a flattering picture, but here is a self portrait of me and my hubby. He set the camera up, and then ran and sat down real quick!

Every time we go to Table Rock, we take this picture. It's on the hiking trail, not too far into the hike. My favorite one is from when we went a couple years ago in October. The leaves were all red, orange, purple and yellow. It was so pretty.

You also have to go trout fishing when you go camping. So here are some fishing pictures. Here, Sam is giving Sammy a few pointers.

Amanda fished more then the boys did!! She wanted to do everything by herself. I was surprised by the patience she had trying to untangle her hook and put the bait on. It's so funny that she can go from being Princess Amanda one minute, and be such a tomboy the next.

Here she is in another spot under a bridge. You can see the sun rays in this one, but I kind of like it that way.

We drove on down to Hagood Mill while we were there. They were closed, but you can still walk around and go on the nature trails they have. I'm not sure what this is called, but this is how the water gets to the wheel that grinds the corn.

Sam, Amanda and Bubba walking up a hill on the trail.

This is a little bridge that's on the nature trail at the Hagood Mill. I thought it would make a quaint picture.

Sam showed the kids that this old water pump still worked. You just have to put water in it to create suction, then it just keeps going and going and going......

This is just a shot of the kids in front of an old building at the mill. It's so old and rustic looking, I couldn't resist taking a picture.

After we left Hagood Mill, we came across a field of bamboo. The kids have always wanted to grow bamboo, so we stopped and got a piece. Sam heard that if you plant the whole stalk, it will take root, and grow new bamboo. Well, when we got back to camp, we took out the bamboo so we could go get some firewood. When we left, we forgot our stalk of bamboo. Oh well, maybe next time!!

That's it for now. Hope you enjoyed our camping pictures. Camping is one of the best things we do as a family. Hopefully in the not too far future, you'll see some of these pictures on some scrapbook pages!

Happy New Year!!

2009-01-04T15:09:00.003-05:00

I know I'm late, but Happy New Year!! I don't have anything new show you right now, just wanted to make a quick post to let you know I'm still here!! After Christmas, our family went camping up at Table Rock Mountain here in SC. We go there about twice a year. It's a beautiful place to go hiking and fishing for trout. I don't have my pictures on the computer yet cause my camera batteries are dead. I'll see if I can post some of them tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

Gift Card Holders

2008-12-18T12:30:00.010-05:00

Here are the gift card holders we'll be making tomorrow night. They all are a bit different from each other, but they were so quick and easy!! Plus I think they are really cute. I didn't have a gift card handy, so I just stuck my Sam's Club membership card in there so you can get the idea. I got the inspiration for this holder from Jamie Sears. I love her work.

This next one I found on this blog . I like how the gift card is actually attached to a tag inside the holder.

I just attached my card using glue dots. Don't worry, that's an expired card on there!!

Now for this one, I don't know who to give credit for because I've seen in on a couple different blogs. I think this one is neat because it's more like a card and you can put a greeting inside and sign your name.

The gift card goes inside the little slot you make on the inside of the card. Isn't that cool? Then you tie it shut with the ribbon.

Using my scallop punch for tags, these all came together very quickly. Perfect to a quick little something when you don't know what to get!!

6 x 6 layouts

2008-12-15T10:07:00.004-05:00

Hello stampers!! Here are a few of the layouts from the girl scrapbook I finished last week. It's for a lady my mom works with, and she called to say she loves it. I think I may have a workshop to book from the ladies at mom's work now! That would be nice. Anyway, this book is made using the current Simply Scrappin' Kit from Stampin' Up! I can't think of the name of it right now, and I'm too lazy to go get my catalog to look. I didn't use any stamps at all. The extra embellishments are the Button Bouquet and striped ribbon in Pink Pirouette and Kiwi Kiss. Every month of baby's first year has a 6 x 6 two page spread.

On a different note, this Friday I'm having stampin' night at my house. There's no fee for this class. We'll be making a couple different versions of gift card holders. I think it will be fun, and who doesn't at some point give a gift card? We'll start at 6 pm. Please remember to bring your own adhesive and paper trimmer. Also, please let me know by Thursday if you plan to attend. Thank You!!

Summer Fun scrapbook page

2008-12-11T13:37:00.003-05:00

Here is another scrapbook page I made using a sketch from Got Sketch? It has really been alot of fun working with these sketches. My pages tend to look very much the same after a while, so these really got me thinking outside the box. I've had these pictures for 2 years, and I just knew that someday I would know what to do with them. When I saw this sketch, I knew. I really like how it turned out.

The title is chipboard letters from Stampin' Up! I colored them with Real Red craft ink, then covered them with Crystal Effects to make them look wet. The journaling is done with my label maker. It says 1. Take my picture underwater! 2. Oops! Lets try again! 3. I think I got it!Today I've been finishing up the Baby Girl scrapbook for my mom's friend, so I'll try to post some of those tomorrow. Mom's coming over to pick it up in a while, so I finished just in the knick of time!

Retired List and a Promotion

2008-12-10T09:24:00.003-05:00

It's almost time for a new catalog, and we all know that means retiring stamps! Stampin' Up! is offering 10% off all the retiring sets until Dec. 23. Plus, any order of $70 or more gets free shipping until Dec. 23. Take advantage of both promos at once and save on all those stamps you must have before they are gone forever!

Retired List Pricing
10% Off Dates: December 9‐23, 2008
Item # Description
US Regular
Price 10% OFF
107027 Ahoy, Matey $ 23.95 $ 21.56
109401 Baby Jesus Is Born $ 15.95 $ 14.36
109552 Beautiful Life $ 20.95 $ 18.86
111169 Big Birthday Candle $ 22.95 $ 20.66
109411 Brocade Basics $ 23.95 $ 21.56
109529 Bronc Buster $ 18.95 $ 17.06
109288 Bundled in Love $ 27.95 $ 25.16
110999 Bursting with Joy $ 18.95 $ 17.06
109527 Calendar Cues $ 10.95 $ 9.86
104421 Canvas $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111074 Classic Backgrounds $ 15.95 $ 14.36
108559 Crab & Company $ 27.95 $ 25.16
111076 Dad's Day $ 22.95 $ 20.66
109250 Dots Are Hot $ 23.95 $ 21.56
109365 Elegant Notes $ 20.95 $ 18.86
104383 Everyday Flexible Phrases $ 41.95 $ 37.76
109519 Everything Baby $ 17.95 $ 16.16
109343 Fabulous Flowers $ 22.95 $ 20.66
104769 Floral $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111085 Form & Function $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111339 Fruit Stand $ 18.95 $ 17.06
109240 Ginormous Flowers $ 28.95 $ 26.06
109262 Happiness $ 17.95 $ 16.16
110969 Hattitude $ 24.95 $ 22.46
109284 Haunting Halloween $ 18.95 $ 17.06
111001 Hi & Hello $ 15.95 $ 14.36
109308 It's All Good $ 12.95 $ 11.66
109453 Just Golf $ 12.95 $ 11.66
109451 Just Hockey $ 12.95 $ 11.66
109505 Keep Christmas $ 19.95 $ 17.96
111095 Kind Thoughts $ 25.95 $ 23.36
111341 Light unto My Path, A $ 18.95 $ 17.06
110376 Merry & Bright $ 14.95 $ 13.46
109345 Moose You $ 17.95 $ 16.16
109320 On the Fly $ 19.95 $ 17.96
107192 Paisley $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111103 Perfect Timing $ 12.95 $ 11.66
109393 Pictograms $ 13.95 $ 12.56
109491 Posy $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111119 Pretty Peony $ 36.95 $ 33.26
110972 Riot of Petals $ 17.95 $ 16.16
109292 Seasonal Whimsy $ 23.95 $ 21.56
111056 Seriously Sassy $ 23.95 $ 21.56
109483 Sleigh Bells Ring $ 15.95 $ 14.36
111123 So Cool $ 18.95 $ 17.06
111125 Spring Pictograms $ 13.95 $ 12.56
107173 Starstruck $ 10.95 $ 9.86
111022 Stemming From $ 15.95 $ 14.36
110998 Stitched $ 17.95 $ 16.16
104243 Summer by the Sea $ 28.95 $ 26.06
107133 Take Three $ 17.95 $ 16.16
111060 Text & Texture $ 25.95 $ 23.36
109475 Thanks for Everything $ 17.95 $ 16.16
107383 Thoroughly Thankful $ 22.95 $ 20.66
102744 Tree for All Seasons, A $ 12.95 $ 11.66
111179 Twill $ 17.95 $ 16.16
107123 Warm Words $ 20.95 $ 18.86
107159 Well-Worn Alphabet $ 41.95 $ 37.76
107157 Well-Worn Numbers $ 22.95 $ 20.66
109232 Winds of Grace $ 19.95 $ 17.96
109469 Wishing You Cheer $ 13.95 $ 12.56
109300 With Gratitude $ 22.95 $ 20.66
103875 Wonderful Words $ 20.95 $ 18.86
109467 Wondrous Gift $ 22.95 $ 20.66

Call me to place your order, or shop whenever you want, right from my website, http://www.stampwithcarrie.stampinup.net/ . Orders will be shipped right to your door.

This is just a simple little card I made a while back. I think the flower stamp is from Year After Year, and of course the sentiment is from Define Your Life. It's pretty straightforward, nothing complicated or fancy.That's all for now, I'll see you later.

A Sad Day

2008-12-09T09:43:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a pretty stressful day for us. I'll start from the beginning. On Friday afternoon our whole family was out in the yard along w friends of ours. We were all standing around talking, the dogs and kids were playing, and everything was fine. The dogs ran off barking into the woods, which they do quite often to chase a rabbit or whatever. We live on 5 acres of land, so they have alot of freedom. All of a sudden, we heard this very loud gun, sounded like a canon go off. Well, around here, it's not uncommon to hear guns, people go hunting in the evenings, so I really didn't think a whole lot of it. The next day (Saturday), my son Bubba comes in the house and says Bluto is missing a big hunk of skin. We thought he must have gotten in a fight with another dog. So my DH went to check on him, and he had been shot. The bullet went in near his right back leg and come out through his back. We did what we could to make him comfortable, thinking he would die of his injuries, he didn't seem to be in pain, but was laying down. Well, he kept on living like that all weekend, and we thought his back was broken, plus with a wide open wound we knew it would get infected, so I loaded up the dog and the kids and headed to the vet. The Dr. said he thought he had some damaged vertebrae because he didn't respond much to pain in his back legs, and couldn't walk. He said the best thing would be to put him to sleep, which I was pretty sure already that's what would happen. We had explained this to the kids already, so they said goodbye, and of course we were all crying. Amanda and I stayed with Bluto, but Sammy and Bubba didn't want to, so they went to the waiting room. Afterwards, they wrapped him up and put him in the van for us. We went home to bury him. After we had dug the hole, I backed up the van, because Bluto was probably at least 80 pounds, and I wanted to get close. So when I went to pull the van up, I was stuck in the mud. Sam came home to get the van out, because I had a workshop to go to. I wasn't really in the mood for it, but this workshop had already been rescheduled 3 times, so I didn't want to cancel. Once I got there I was fine, though. The kids seem to be handling it pretty well, Amanda took it the hardest, because he was "her" dog.

This picture was taken last September. Bluto is the one in front. And that's his brother Popeye. Obviously they didn't like the bath very much, and were sitting on the edge of the tub. They are both much bigger than that now. I couldn't find a good recent picture to post.

Here are two of the cards I demonstrated last night. I got inspiration for them off of Splitcoast Stampers. There was one more, but it's not in my bag, I must have left it at the lady's house.

All 3 of my cards last night used the set Snow Burst, so I could show you don't have to have alot of different stamps to get different looks.

This post is really long, so I'm going to go now. Thanks for checking in on us, and I'll talk to you later.

Sugar Cookies

2008-12-05T17:34:00.002-05:00

I did this scrapbook page as part of a challenge from Got Sketch? It was so much fun and made me think outside my comfort zone. You may recognize these pictures from a previous post this week. I just had to print them out when I saw the challenge, cause I knew they'd be perfect.

I love how sparkly the title came out. I used chipboard letters and covered them with red chunky glitter and green fine glitter. Isn't it beautiful?

I had too many pitcures for just one page, so I put all the girls on one page with some heart embellishments and ribbon, then put all the boys on the other. I'm not sure about the boy page. What do you think it's missing? I didn't want it to get too "girly" with sparkles, so I'm kind of at a loss as to how to match it up with the first one. Any suggestions?

This is just the title for the second page. What do you think? Is is too much for boys? The whole idea of the glitter was to resemble the sprinkles used on the cookies.

Christmas Cards and Wedding Pictures

2008-12-03T15:48:00.005-05:00

Here is the card that my SIL plans on sending out this year. We cased it from page 53 of the catty. I think the colors are different, and we added Dazzling Diamonds on the trees, and as snow on the ground. It's very sparkly in real life. The glitter adds that extra pizzaz. The snow is embossed with white ep. The stamp is from a retired set from last year. The name escapes me now.

Yes, I know the color in this photo is way off, but I couldn't get it right. I don't know what the deal is with my camera. Anyway, here is a shaker card we put together, it's basically the same as this card we did at Technique Class last month. I had some extra pieces laying around, so I just used a snowflake insead of the birds, and Microbeads and Dazzling Diamonds instead of birdseed. The window for the frame is my Scallop Circle Punch. Snowflakes are from Snowburst, which a fellow demo was kind enough to let me borrow. They are stamped in Whisper White Craft ink.
I plan on showing off these 2 cards at my workshop next week. She requested Christmas cards, so this is what I have so far. I still have to plan my demo cards and the make 'n take, but that shouldn't be too hard.

Now if any of my regular readers were wondering how the wedding went last month, here are a couple pictures just for you. My mom made Amanda's dress. I did a few minor things like sew on the trim. That's about it. My mom can sew anything. I'm serious. Here's my mom and Amanda.
Of course, this is me and Amanda.

The little princess herself. Here's a funny story. When I was rolling her hair the night before and the day of the wedding, she was so fidgety and kept asking "are you almost done?" But then when the fun stuff came like her dress, special necklace and earrings, the crown, etc... She said very excitedly, "This is fun!" Later that night as we were relaxing at home, she said, "Momma, I didn't like Sheila's wedding, I LOVED Sheila's wedding!"

Don't they make an adorable little couple? That's exactly what I thought!!

I'm back!!

2008-12-02T09:55:00.005-05:00

Well, here it is December. Where has the year gone?? We had a wonderful Thanksgiving, with lots and lots of food and family. We had 26 family members stay with us this week, plus the extras who just came during the days to visit. On Thanksgiving Day we served 18 adults and 17 children. It was pretty hectic, but a ton of fun. A week before Thanksgiving, I promised Amanda that when all the cousins were here we would do a craft. So, we mixed up some sugar cookies and let them cut out and decorate sugar cookies. They all loved it and we got some great pictures.

This is also one of those rare times that cousins from all over the country are together, so here is the picture of all 18 Baker Grandchildren!! They range in age from 18 years to 3 weeks. I must say they are quite a group of kids, and I love every one of them! I was so proud of them this week, there were only very minor moments of tattle tales and bickering. Not too bad with this crew!
Well, I suppose I should go for now. It's time to get back to school work-not that I'm really that anxious to get started, but we've had 2 entire weeks off and I really don't want to fall too far behind! And I'm still catching up on laundry and other stuff from the last week. I do have a couple cards to show you that I managed to sneak in this week before it got too hectic. I'll save them for tomorrow. I hope all of you had as wonderful a time as we did this last week. It's nice to have the house to ourselves, though!

I Haven't Been Stamping!

2008-11-06T09:55:00.002-05:00

I must confess, I haven't stamped anything all week long! Not a thing since Technique Class last Friday. I have been working in bits and pieces on a baby girl scrapbook for my mom. No, my mom is not having a baby, her friend at work is. So I need to finish that. I'm not sure how good about posting through the month of November I'll be. Amanda is in a wedding on the 15th, so I need to put the finishing touches on her dress that my mom made (I helped a little) and figure out what to do with her hair, etc..... then we have a missions conference at church from the 16th through 20th. Thanksgiving comes not far after that, and we'll have all kinds of family down visiting from all over the country. So I'm gonna be busy. Hopefully I'll have time to stamp some, but we'll see.

If any of you were wondering about the Farmer's Market, I didn't do so hot. I made a whole $12. That's it. There were more people there than I've seen before, but not the crowd I was expecting. I think everyone is just being so frugal with their money. I'm not sure if I'll try again or not. I'll let you know. While I was working on some Thanksgiving cards, Amanda wanted to make her own to sell at the market. She wanted to take pictures of them like I do mine, so here are some of Amanda's creations. I gave her some scraps from what I was using, and she put them all together. She walked all over the market, letting everyone know she made them by herself and did they want to buy any? Do you know that kid sold every card she made?!

She had to have an apple, because she was starving to death!! I'm so glad my kids like to eat fruits and vegetables. There was a guy there selling bean sprouts, and he gave us a sample. The boys went and bought their own bags of bean sprouts! I think that is so funny. Some parents can't get their kids to eat anything healthy, and mine are snacking on bean sprouts! I think if you set the example of trying new and healthy things, they just want to follow suit.About a month ago, my in-laws went to NC to get apples from an orchard. Well, I got a bushel of apples and we ate apples for weeks. I ended up making 4 apple pies, and boy were they good. This is a picture of the first apple pie I ever made. I cheated a bit and used a frozen crust, but I made the crumb topping! Usually I don't do a whole lot of baking, but every now and then it's fun, especially when the kids want to help.

Well, that's all I have for now. Please don't expect a whole lot of blogging for the next couple of weeks, but I'll try. Thanks for looking, and I'll see you later!