Scattered Stamper

Poppy in the winter

2012-01-31T06:50:00.000-08:00

I love this stamp from Penny Black, the image was colored with copics. The butterflies are from Memory box, and the ribbon is from PTI.

I can hardly believe it is the last day of January, I am just finishing up year-end reports, and getting all all our stuff together for tax time. It amazes me how quickly time goes by. We have been experiencing unusually mild weather here, tomorrow it is suppose to be in the 70’s. I am looking forward to taking the two little ones outside and enjoying the weather. Pixie love being outside and wants to be let free to explore. She still is learning her balance so she mostly has to view the outside from our arms or her stroller. February will be a fun month, I love Valentines Day, then my Oldest will turn 9 on the 16th. My in-laws are buying a vacation home here and we will be helping them set up the new place the week of Owen’s birthday. Owen and Wyatt are super excited since the place is by the river and the best thing about it is it has concrete! This is very exciting to the boys since, where we live there is only dirt roads, so skateboards, scooters, and all kinds of other fun (dangerous) toys. So first on my list is to outfit my boys with some safety equipment!

Have a wonderful day and thank you for stopping by!

A step toward my resolution…

2012-01-27T08:09:00.001-08:00

At the beginning of the year I decided I wanted to work on my art. I love making cards and different papercrafts but I would love to become more confident with my work. This is a difficult thing as I spent a lot of my time entering challenge after challenge with not much success. There are so many talented crafters out there, so the competition is steep. I would love one day to be on a design team and recognized in publications for my work. It becomes discouraging week after week come up empty on these challenges and for me has really thrown my creative side off. For those who enter and say they don’t care about winning, I find that hard to believe. If that were the case then why would you bother entering? Do you buy a lottery ticket because you felt like throwing a dollar away? No, even though you know the chances are slim, you wanted to win. Beyond winning, it’s so wonderful to be recognized for your work, and I want to get there!

I found a wonderful online class opportunity by Joanne Sharpe here and decided this would be fun! I love her style and am looking forward to learning some new techniques. I have always disliked my handwriting, and am hoping this changes how I look at it. Can’t wait to start and post my progress here!

Card uses all Hero art stamps, colored with copics, distressed edges.

Looking forward to a wonderful weekend, Pixie is better, slept all night last night! Can’t wait to start seeing all the peeks of the new products at CHA! So far I am very excited about the Ranger distressed markers, I can’t wait to have these! I love the distress inks and these will open up some much possibility! Have a great weekend! Thanks for stopping by.

Sick day :(

2012-01-26T06:57:00.001-08:00

Card uses the new floral background from Hero Arts. The Floral pot is from Outlines, used distressed stains to color the images.

Yesterday poor Pixie came down with a cold, Owen had one on Sunday, and now it has moved on to it’s next victim. We were up all last night, the only times she was able to sleep where when I was holding her. She has a fever and a very stuffy head, this morning she did eat some, and seems to feel a little better since she is no longer clinging to me. I feel terrible when they are sick, they don’t understand why they feel bad. The bright side is Owen blew through it very quickly and was better by Tuesday, so I am hoping Pixie springs back just as quick. Now I am off to pump up my vitamins intake, I do not want to be sick! Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!

Lovely flower

2012-01-24T11:51:00.001-08:00

I stamped the background a Impression Obsession stamp with lime pastel chalk ink. The edges were distressed and rubbed with tea dye. The Flower stamp is from Hero Arts, and colored with copics the edges also distressed with ink.

I am still experiencing terrible problems uploading on my blog and flickr as well. My computer is not even two years old, and besides this issue everything else works perfectly. I can only conclude that it is my internet service. One of the down sides of living out in the woods for sure. I usually can at least function with it, but now am finding it necessary to find wi-fi spot to update my programs. I was hit with a $200 overage a few months back and still have not figured out what could have happened. The cell phone company who I use as my internet only credited me $50, not real helpful, so I have been extremely careful to not do much on the internet. It may help me get out of my creative rut though! I will be spending more time working on stuff. So I will post as I can, thanks so much for listening to my rant! Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Floral Panel

2012-01-16T12:14:00.000-08:00

I love all of the beautiful cards I have seen using this background stamp. I was totally inspired when I saw Debbie's card, I love how soft the colors are all the beautiful details: the pearls, ribbon and butterflies. I stamped my card with white ink and embossed it on watercolor paper. I then used my very lonely distressed inks to add color to the stamped panel. I added dimension by stamping the larger flower again and using dimensional tape. I added extra color with a nib to certain areas after the first application dried.

This week my little pixie is entering the new world of toddlerhood. She started taking steps the week after Christmas, but since then has really come a long way. I love watching her wide legged wobble with her whole body working toward the direction she is going. She is a determined little thing, and will try quite a few time to successfully make her way to where she was going. She even carries things with her, I caught her Saturday carrying a stool. She is a smart little one, taking her stool over to the dining room chairs. From there she was able to climb on the chair to get something she wanted from the table. I am sure you can imagine how busy she is keeping me now! LOL! It is truly a incredible thing to watch them figure out things. Have a wonderful beginning of the week, thank you for stopping by!

Monday’s Poppy Poem

2012-01-09T06:40:00.001-08:00

Happy Monday everyone! This is one of my favorite stamps from Penny Black, Poppy Poem. It was stamped and colored with copics, the background paper is from Memory box, as well as the die cut on the side.

Hope everyone had a great weekend, Owen finally got to do some fishing with his Daddy and use his new fishing gear he got from Santa. He would stay out in the boat all day if we would let him. While Pixie napped this weekend, Wyatt and I spent some time in the office crafting and playing. It felt good to spend some time working on cards again. Pixie is starting to walk, she just turned 14 months which is when Owen started walking too! I wish I could keep them small forever, I love these milestones but they are bittersweet to me. We took the kids to eat at a favorite restaurant yesterday, and the owner is from China. He is so sweet to the kids there and he was telling us how in China they were allowed one child. They had a girl, and even though they would have loved more that was it for them. It really makes me appreciate that we live in a place where we are free to make our own choices. I can only pray that in the future our children have the same freedom we have enjoyed.

Have a wonderful day, thank you for visiting!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-05T05:57:00.000-08:00

If anyone is checking I am still alive! It has been a crazy last few months with birthdays, holidays and family. I love the holidays, but I think I put such high expectations on what I want them to be that I stress myself out. I am relieved that now things can get back to somewhat normal (if that is possible) routine. Owen returned to school today and Wyatt, Pixie and I are trying to catch up on some chores we have been slacking on. The kids had a wonderful Christmas, we had my Mom visiting for Christmas and then my in-laws came down for a few days after that. The kids enjoyed having them all and it was nice to have some time to get last minute things done.

I have been thinking of a lot about goals I want to accomplish in 2012, and have decided to share them in hopes that I may meet some of them if I put them out there! So here is my list in no particular order:

1. To become better organized in my life, parenting, household and crafting. I find things are so much easier when things are as they should be.

2. To eat healthier and cook more healthy meals for my family. We do a pretty good job of eating homecooked meals, but I want to do better.

3. To live more in the moments, treasure the time I have with my husband and children, as it slips by so quickly.

4. To make more time to create art, I have been dabbling in zentangles, and other forms of art journaling, and I want to do more of this. It is something I can do anywhere with very limited supplies.

5. To step up my card making, I want to become a better artist. I need to dedicate more time working on my cards, and other papercrafts.

6. For my blog: I want to post more projects, cards and increase my traffic.

7. To do something with the thousands of photo I have stored on my computer. Realistically I know I will never scrapbook them, but putting them into an album online and printing just may be the best solution.

I have also seen where others chose one word for the new year: my is going to be patience, I am a high speed person, but I need to realize many are not and that has to be okay. Mostly because it doesn't bother them only me! LOL!

So these are my goals, if I can do even a few I will consider it a success! Now if I can get my blog to work with Internet explorer I will be a happy girl! It works fine in Mozilla, but posting photo's takes forever. Wish me luck!

Finally!

2011-12-02T06:03:00.001-08:00

Card is stamped with distressed inks, and colored with colored pencils. All stamps are Hero Arts.

I have no idea why but I have been trying for the entire week to load a picture on my blog! It is so frustrating it just kept coming up with an error on the photo! It may very well be my slow Internet connection I use my phone for a hot spot, or maybe the files I am trying to load. The other issue I have is for whatever reason my blog on explorer has all these strange lines of bright colors, you cannot see anything except the photo, but it seems to just be on my computer, maybe it's my computer? Anyway technology can sure be frustrating at times.

So I am in the mist of what is one of my favorite times of year, I love the holidays. DH has decorated the outside with lights, a deer and a snowman. It looks wonderful, and if my middle child would stop messing with the timer it would work perfectly. Apparently all those tiny buttons are just too enticing for a almost 4 year old. In just a few short weeks my little boy is going to be 4 years old. Everyday he makes me laugh with his crazy stories and antics. He is very passionate about what he wants and his strong will sometimes makes me crazy. The other day I was telling him he needs to be on his best behavior or Santa will be bringing coal to him instead of gifts. A few days later I heard him talking about coal as he was playing with his trains. Then he says to me " I can't wait for Santa to bring me coal, I need it for my Thomas Trains". I had to laugh, of course my attempt to encourage good behavior would backfire, I am talking about Wyatt. So now I am going to try the elf. I bought a little elf, not the elf on a shelf though. I find it creepy looking. This one is a little smaller and cuter, and in a few days he is going to come stay at our house until Christmas. I have been telling the boys that elves have been sighted around and some even come and stay. I am planning a grand arrival and am hoping this will be a fun new tradition with the kids. I am not sure how much crafting time I will be doing. My craft room is where I am stashing the gifts, and my boys are always poking around. Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your weekend!

Halloween and more!

2011-11-13T08:26:00.000-08:00

It's been rather crazy the past few weeks and I have finally had some time to post some pictures of the last few weeks festivities! First up is Halloween, we went up to Debbie's house to take the kids trick or treating, and had hoped the rain would hold off. That was not the case, but my awesome DH was a trooper and took the kids out in the rain. It did not damper their spirits one bit, and thankfully Debbie's husband supplied them with raincoats and umbrellas (we were obviously not very prepared)! LOL! While DH was out with the boys, Pixie and I stayed back at Debbie's house. We dressed her up and Debbie took pictures of her. She takes such beautiful photo's I love them.

Wyatt as James, and Owen as Troy Landry (swamp people show)

Isn't she the most adorable bunny!

Now to Pixie's birthday... I felt much more apprehensive with her first birthday than the other two. My DH and I both talk about having another little one, but as the time goes by it's hard to say if we will or not. The thought of the baby years being in the past makes me very sad. Even though there are tough moments, there are more wonderful things than I can ever list. The saddest thing to me is how quick all of these moments go, and with that I had a hard time accepting my little pixie is now one! My Mother-in-law came to celebrate her 1st birthday as she has done with all of my children. We all love when she visits, she is so good with the kids and they all adore her. On each of my babies first birthday I have made them their own cake, a carrot/raisin cake with cream cheese icing. We also have a cake for everyone else, but the one I make them they get to squish, poke, and smear all over themselves if they desire. The cake was Owen's absolute favorite as a baby and I would make them all the time without the icing.

The boys were wild about her birthday, you would have thought it was their day! They helped her open her gifts, she got books, puzzles, a little play kitchen and her first baby doll. It was so adorable, when I gave it to her she held it close and started rocking back and forth with it. It was the cutest thing, I found it amazing that she knew what to do with it. The picture aren't the best I struggle with low light photos and it drives me crazy! We had a great day for her, and I look forward to all the new things she will learn as she grows. Although these milestones can sometimes be a little sad, it is truly a beautiful thing to watch your children grow and learn.

Peace and Joy

2011-11-11T05:03:00.000-08:00

Well life has switched to high gear lately for me, which is the main reason why it's been awhile since I have posted. Pixie celebrated her 1st birthday, my Mother-in-law visited and we have been dealing with a mystery back leg problem with my sweet kitty. All of these things have put me in a super drive and have left little time or desire to create anything. I have so many things I want to do, but just not enough time. So I am just going to take it one day at a time and see what I can accomplish. I hope to get some pictures posted this weekend of Pixie's big day. For now I have a card with a new Memory box stamp and die. It was colored with copics and die cut, I love their dies they are awesome. The sentiment is from PTI, love the font on this one. Thanks for stopping by, have a wonderful day!

Window collage

2011-10-28T05:39:00.000-07:00

I love this window die, and it works perfectly with the Penny Black sketch for this week. I stamped the Penny Black collage and colored it with copics, then I cut the image and attached to the back of the window. The background is the Majestic Composition stamped in brown ink and the colored with crushed olive distressed ink.

This morning Owen is off school and Wyatt is sleeping in. I have really enjoyed watching just Owen and pixie playing together. Owen is so good with her and she adore him. A few minutes ago she pulled up to him and just hugged him, it was the sweetest thing. It is so interesting seeing the dynamics of each of their relationships take shape. Today I am especially grateful for my children they bring me the greatest joy in life.

I have decided that 2 out of 3 looking at the camera is as good as it's going to get!

let it snow

2011-10-26T05:25:00.000-07:00

I love snow, but only in small doses. We most likely won't see much snow here, but when we do it's a huge event. Where I grew up in MD, if we had a good amount of snow we were usually snowed in and unable to get out of our driveway. That could mean days of being stuck, which as I got older became not so fun. Here if we get snow it most likely will melt by mid-day and there is usually no shoveling involved.

I stamped the tree from Penny Black with brown memento ink, then used broken china, tumbled glass and faded jean distressed inks on the panel. I then overstamped a snow design block from Hero arts in white onto the panel. The Window die is from Memory box, isn't it fabulous! I love it. I have lots of ideas for this one! They have two sizes and their dies cut perfectly and are in so many great shapes. The snowflakes were embossed and sanded to create the rustic background. Here is a close up on the die and tree. Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful day!

PB sketch take one...

2011-10-25T05:40:00.000-07:00

This week the PB blog is using sketches to showcase their cards. The cards they have shown yesterday and today are gorgeous! I know I have a file somewhere on my computer full of sketches and books too, I really should use them more often to get ideas for cards. I stamped a writing stamp on Memory box PP, and then the a portion of the flower on two additional squares and colored with copics.

Yesterday I had a parent-teacher conference with Owen's 3rd grade teachers. I had the two little ones in tow. Those of you who have seen the pictures I post of my children know Wyatt has the most beautiful wild curls. Everyone that see's him just wants to get ahold of him. However he is quite ornery and a little anti-social until he gets to know you. When we walked in they were going on about his curls and how cute he was, as I was sitting down I hear him tell the teachers "your fat" not once but twice. I wanted to die, and I know the one saving thing is they were not! I scolded him, and apologized, Owen's teacher smiled and told me she had 4 children and she totally understood. I still have no idea where he gets this stuff. At the dentist a few weeks ago he told the technician she was hideous, really! I can only imagine what school is going to be like with my him. He has such a strong personality and doesn't hold back on his feelings. Owen's conference went well, he is not performing up to the expectations in reading. That teacher is constantly sending notes home. He actually does well on the grade test, but the state test on the computer it almost seems like he didn't try. Otherwise he is doing great in math, so just going to keep up with it and see how he does.

Purple floral

2011-10-24T07:24:00.000-07:00

CL109-Damask Floral

The stamps in this card are from Impression Obsession and I am entering in for this challenge to use purple. I discovered these set in a magazine years ago, and loved them, they are so whimsical and pretty.

I miss leafing through magazines to see all the latest and greatest stuff. I know the Internet has totally transformed the avenues in which advertisers have to find new customers. Though there was just something fun about getting cozy in a chair and marking pages that inspired me or products I wanted to check out. Now I can waste way too much time browsing the web, and spend way too much money in just a few clicks of a mouse! The only thing that is missing is really the instant gratification, but I love mail days too! Have a wonderful Monday!

With love tag

2011-10-22T06:57:00.000-07:00

I made another tag for the Penny black week, I forgot how much fun tags are to make. I stamped the image in memento black, and then colored with copics directly on the manilla tag. I used antique linen and walnut stain to distress the tag. The sentiment is from PTI, and was distressed as well.

Owen is playing at a friends house all day, and DH is working so it's just me and the little ones for most of today. It is nice and chilly this a.m., think it would be a good day to bake something! Have a wonderful weekend.

Autumn foliage

2011-10-20T05:46:00.000-07:00

Memory Box has some of the best collage type stamps. I love the ones they design. The background of the collage was colored with various orange tones of distressed inks, then edged with soot. Then I colored the leaves with copics, the background leaves is from a set by Flourishes. We have some cool crisp fall weather today, I am loving it. We don't get a traditional fall here in Eastern NC, I miss the piles of gorgeous tones of color that would fall from the trees in MD. We use to pile them up and jump off our swing into them, so fun! Raking up pinestraw into piles just isn't the same! LOL! Have a great day!

Cheerful tag

2011-10-18T14:03:00.000-07:00

This week on the Penny Black Blog they are showcasing tags. I started by stamping the background with tumbled glass distressed ink and then distressing over the stamped image. It did not turn out quite as vibrant as I was looking for since I was going for the Jill Foster look! Oh well, I will give it another go next time, LOL! Anyways the flower was colored with copics and the flower pot is from the amaryllis stamp.

Pumpkins and Mums

2011-10-17T04:59:00.000-07:00

I tried something new with this card, sometime ago I saw a tutorial on using copics and coloring in a grid on the Classroom. After you color the grid you use blending solution to create splotches and interest in the background. The stamped image is from Northwood, and I love all the beautifully detailed images.While playing around I decided to try the background using YR12, 15, 16, 18. After the background was done I overstamped the image. Then I decided it needed a bit more so I went back and colored in some of the objects with copics. The background paper is from Memory Box.

It was a great weekend here, went by way to fast though. The boys spend Saturday night at the beach with a friend surf fishing and having an all around awesome time. Pixie and I had a quiet night with just the two of us, it was nice. Then on Sunday, Pixie and I went to visit our friend Debbie, for the afternoon. We had a great time with good food, and lots to catch up on. The pumpkin pie she made was so good, I have to pace myself because I would eat the entire thing! We both even got to stamp a little, Lainey discovered Debbie's craft room and had fun getting into stuff. One day she will hopefully be my sidekick and enjoy crafting as much as I do. Hope everyone has a beautiful week.

Shades of Green

2011-10-14T05:32:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I had stamped the silhouette image and then moved on to another idea. My desk is full of these type of pieces. I start off in one direction and then go in a totally different one. I found the stamped piece again and this card grew from there. The stamp images are Hero arts, and the sentiment is from PTI. The band and sentiment die are PTI also, and the beautiful leaf flourish die is from Memory box.

I spent a good part of yesterday organizing my work, as much as I don't want to admit that I can't do it all, it is become increasingly difficult to find time to do my "other" job! By the time the kids go to bed, I am exhaused and don't want to do any paperwork. I am finding I am forgetting stuff and missing things so I must get a better system going. I hate making mistakes and I am really hard on myself, I just need to spend a little extra time making sure I have everything done each day. Although I would rather just play with my kids! Have a great weekend!

christmas JOY

2011-10-12T06:51:00.000-07:00

I love these stamps from Hero Arts/Basic grey. The flowers in this set are gorgeous! I stamped on linen cardstock in black, and colored with Faber-Castell markers. Then I masked the flowers and over stamped the dictionary def. and a swirly background on the panel. The sentiment was stamped in black and embossed, and the image was distressed with shabby shutter.

The holidays are approaching at a rapid rate, as much as I love the holidays it makes me sad to think another year has gone by. Once Halloween gets here, pixie's birthday is just a few days later. In December Wyatt will be 4, as much as I try to enjoy and soak in the moments the faster I think they go by. Sweet little girl has another new trick as of yesterday, she was eating dinner and I had to get the phone. After I was done I noticed her holding her hand to her ear, she was talking on her hand phone! LOL. Now when I say ring, ring she hold her hand to her ear, I love that I get to experience these first with her.

You're too kind

2011-10-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

This is another version of the new hero art/embossing folder combo. It is stamped with brown memento ink, colored with Faber-Castell markers and then adorned with pearls. Then I distressed the edge and added distressed ink to the image.

Yesterday Lainey figured out waving, it was so cute! She happen to see the people on the Today show waving and started waving back. Now she does a frantic, flopping hand wave and I love it! Hard to believe little pixie will be one in less than a month, it's just not fair!

Fall fun with the kids!

2011-10-09T07:12:00.000-07:00

I am always on the lookout for fun things to do with the kids. I found a Hubbs Corn Maze right outside of Clinton and the kids had a blast. With the first two I was so strict in my schedules that we didn't stray far when they were tiny. Having a 3rd has totally changed my mind on this! With two active boys, we need to go, go, go! Although it also helps that pixie is always up for anything and such an easy baby! It took about an hour to get there, and since we arrived early it was not very crowded. We went through one of the easy corn mazes, and decided at night it would be much more fun, so maybe next time. We had a super dry summer and the corn was not near as tall as it should of been, but still fun none the less. Owen loved the slides they had made out of pipes, I told DH we needed him to make us one of these! They also had a sand box full of diggers and trucks. They were a hit with the kids, especially Wyatt. He is so funny, he has absolutely no interest in playing with or being around other kids besides his brother and sister. He would move his stuff to either be by himself or by Owen.

They also had a huge bouncy pillow that was awesome! My legs hurt so bad last night from all the jumping Wyatt and I did. Wyatt was a little unsure of it at first, but my moon monkey was soon flying up in the air. I want one of these also! LOL! Owen is looking tired here!

This was my attempt of getting a photo of all three. Wyatt wanted to sit on the pumpkins, and was not happy when I would not let him. He then decided to sit down, but was way over on the left out of the picture. No amount of coaxing was going to get him to move from his spot, so I went with Owen and Lainey to get a picture. Trying to get the sun behind me also meant the sun was directly in their eyes, so I just snapped a quick photo and let it go. In the next few weeks we will take the kids out to get pumpkins, preferably in the evening and hopefully succeed in getting one good picture of all three.

Pixie was awesome here, she enjoyed watching the boys have fun, and people watching. It wasn't long before she quietly drifted off to sleep, she is such a sweet baby!

They all were so good and had a great time, we would definitely go back. The boys were exhausted, especially Wyatt who slept past 9 a.m. this morning! Have a wonderful Sunday. Thanks for stopping by.

Christmas wreath

2011-10-05T09:26:00.000-07:00

One of the challenges at hero arts this month is to use non-traditional stamps to make a holiday card. I bought this floral wreath recently with the embossing folder and thought it would make a pretty Christmas card. It was embossed with white ink, colored with markers and then ran thru the machine with the folder. I die cut it then attached it to the red and green panels. The bow is something I added, after much fiddling and adjusting I decided it was as good as it was going to get. I rarely use ribbons, mainly because I have such a hard time making the bows look pretty. It's still beautiful here, Wyatt and I have enjoyed playing outside everyday while Owen is at school, and pixie is napping. Love not dying from the heat or being carried off by the bugs!

Purple roses

2011-10-03T06:35:00.000-07:00

I found this image stamped from one of my crafting days at Debbie's house. It is amazing the things you find when you clean. I was so proud of my craft room and the order I had restored to it. That is until my little Tasmanian devil came through. Now all the hard work I did is no more! Oh well, I can't say I am the neatest person either. Although I usually can find whatever anyone needs. There may not look like order to my madness but there is! The image was colored with copics, and die cut with spellbinders. Thanks for stopping the comments are so appreciated!

WCMD

2011-10-02T05:15:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone enjoyed WCMD, what fun! There were so many challenges, and I love that some have extended them thru the upcoming week. I am entering this into the EHWCMD2 at the Classroom for the holiday challenge and also for the Penny Black Guest Challenge. I stamped the PB image in memento and colored with copics, then I distressed with ink to create a vintage look. The background is Hero arts wooden design block, stamped and distressed as well. The embossed background is from PTI, and I believe the sentiment is as well. Thanks for stopping by have a wonderful Sunday, it's cool here, so I am off to make a pot of chili!

Blessings

2011-09-29T09:41:00.000-07:00

Created card by using markers and spritzing with Tattered angels mist. Stamped on watercolor, then die cut and distressed with green ink, and walnut stain. Then embossed, floral stamp, hero arts, and sentiment is from PTI.

I know I am guilty of letting daily life keep me from being grateful for life's blessings. The pain and heartache we experience makes the blessing seem so much more important. I love the idea of a gratitude journal to take note of positive things in our lives. I am a pretty optimistic person, but sometimes life gets the better of me.

I received a call from my Dr. today to tell me why he thinks my test results were elevated. I couldn't explain it if I wanted to, but after my second blood test they have come down slightly and he believes it has to do with my gallbladder and toxins piling up. Long story short I am going to follow his instructions, and re-test in another month and all should be good. Now to convince the insurance company that I am not an alcoholic and to allow me to retest and clear my record. Not real optimistic on that part, as they have been less than helpful on their end. But in the end, at least I have an explanation, and steps to take to fix it. Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your day!

Fall colors

2011-09-28T08:30:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have been MIA for a little while, we lost our sweet dog Midas last Wednesday and I am still having a tough time with things. I have been working on a blog post about him, but just can't finish it yet. Yesterday Wyatt and I spent a little time in the craft room, and this is what I came up with, not exactly how I am feeling right now but how I want to feel. I really love this new hero arts set, I am looking forward to them coming up with some new designs for the embossing-stamping combo. We are getting some much cooler weather this weekend, so the next few days I am going to find where I hid all my pre-pregnancy fall clothes. I have no idea where they are, my organization skills leave a lot to be desired!

Flowers and butterfly

2011-09-19T05:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday, this is a stamp from Serendipity it was hiding somewhere on my shelf and lonely so I stamped and colored it. It was colored with copics, and cut with a spellbinder die cut.

We had a great weekend, Owen and DH were finally able to go fishing on Saturday. There has been a terrible fish kill in the Northeast Cape Fear here due to Hurricane Irene. This has put quite a damper on fishing here, the boys finally got the boat running great and now there is hardly anywhere to fish. The tried Sutton Lake on Saturday, and so did everyone one else! They had a great time though, caught a few fish and had a friendly visit from an Alligator as well. We also took advantage of the wonderful weather and did some yard work. I love this type of weather, its so nice!

Feels like Fall!

2011-09-16T05:35:00.000-07:00

This card is for the Penny Black weekly challenge and Our Creative Corner Wonderful Window challenge. The PB image is colored with markers and stamped on the card. The flourish stamp (hero arts) is stamped with shabby shutter and the sentiment is from PB as well.

Things usually don't go smoothly when the weather changes quickly. Yesterday it was 91, and today we are due to have temperatures in the low to mid 70's. This morning my sweet boy found out he left his shoes outside and it rained, not a good way to start the day. Everyone was scraping to find jackets, and running out the door mumbling about being late to work and school. I hope my DH and Owen have a better rest of the day! I am still waiting on the life insurance company to send me my results, I am running out of patience with them. They sure had no trouble sending me a questionnaire to fill out regarding drug/alcohol use in the past 5 years thought. I feel pretty sure the test is an error. However, I need this fixed for my records as it all goes into a data bank and will forever cause me issues if I don't get it corrected. I have a head cold now and am totally paranoid to get the blood work done until after I feel better as I don't want anything to effect my results.

I wanted to share a sweet photo my Friend Debbie took last month. All of the photo's she took are gorgeous, but this one is special to me. Ever since I stopped swaddling pixie, I put her in a sleep sack every time she goes down for a nap. Once she was able to crawl and grab things she started grabbing her sleep sack and snuggling up with them when she got tired. She hugs it close and sucks on her two fingers and it is the sweetest thing I have ever seen. My DH says we should send a picture/video of this to the makers of these sacks as it is a true testimonial to how much she love them. Happy Friday everyone, have a wonderful weekend!

Thinking of you

2011-09-14T04:46:00.000-07:00

This is another Penny Black stamp from the new release. It is colored with copics, and the edges were distressed with ink. I am so ready for the cooler weather we will get in another day or so here! I love summer, but as the days get hotter I long for the crisp cool days that we get too few of here. The kids are all dealing with allergies or a cold of some sort. Nothing too bad, just more of a nuisance than anything. Wyatt is the worst of the three, he sounds so cute stuffed up though. My little guy is becoming quite the singer lately, he know the words to a few Colt Ford songs that his Daddy listens to in his truck and its so cute. I need to record it but every time I start to do it he stops. He love the chicken and biscuits song, it makes me laugh every time I hear those lyrics. Have a wonderful day! Thanks for stopping by!

One of my favorite photo's from Grandfather Mountain in June

CFC #19

2011-09-12T07:31:00.000-07:00

I made this card for the CAS-ual Friday CFC19 challenge. I don't want to fool you into thinking this was really a clean and simple card for me. I struggle making simple cards, but love the look of them. I first stamped the leaves from a Hero Arts clear set on PP from PTI. They were cut out and tied together with some twine. The twig wreath die is from Memory Box, I love the die but did not love removing all the bits that remained. I shimmed it as much as I could with paper but it still had quite a few spots that needed to be cut with an exacto knife. I have seen people use thin sheets of metal to help with these type of dies so I am going to try that next time. I think this die will be very versatile and really want to use it more often if I can get a cleaner cut.

I don't quite know exactly when it happened but my little boy is turning into a big boy! We can now have conversations and he is starting to ask all kinds of questions. His latest one is about babies, he wants to know when Lainey was in my belly, how she got out, was he in there with her, where was she when he was in my belly, and so on. I try to keep things very simple for him, we wanted another baby and God gave us one, then when it was time we went to the hospital to have Lainey. I can see his wheels turning in his head as he tries to process this. Then he wanted to know where and what Lainey was doing before God gave her to us, now I am stumped! The birds and the bees talk is not something I think a 3 year old needs, but he does ask some very good questions! Thank goodness he moved right on from there to asking what trains he was playing with! Owen had a big weekend, playing at a friends house, and then he finally conquered the diving board! We were so proud of him, it took a few jumps with Daddy, a few gentle nudges at his request, and then he started doing it all by himself. He has come so far this summer swimming I am thrilled. Since he was very little he hated having water near his ears, even in the bath. We took 3 or 4 swim classes, and got nowhere. I decided to just let him be and go at his own rate and this year he has learned to swim, go underwater, and now he is jumping off the diving board, I am a proud momma! I am so glad we chose to not push the issue and let him go at his own pace.

Watercolor in orange

2011-09-08T05:17:00.000-07:00

How can it be Thursday already? The past few days I feel like I have been running around in circles, not accomplishing a whole lot! On the card above I used watercolor pencils on watercolor paper, I added twinkling h20's to the background. The image was torn and distressed and added to the PP and background sheet.

Yesterday I got a call from the insurance company I am applying for life insurance. He told me I was did not qualify for the preferred rate instead the rate would be 4 times more than originally thought. He said my blood work showed elevated liver enzymes where normal was under 65 mine was 165. When I asked what could cause that he got quiet and said well let me read you what it says. He went on to say that the most probable cause was someone who was heavy drinker and had caused significant damage to their liver. I was driving so I pulled over and calmly explained that I do not drink, at this point I had the feeling he has heard that line before. I have pretty much been pregnant and/or breastfeeding for the last 4+ years, and I am not a drinker. My mind immediately goes to the worst, I have liver damage, I am dying. You can imagine how much my husband love my dramatic self right now. I called our Family Doctor and he is going to test me again once they send me my entire results, he said the insurance guy thinks I am a closet alcoholic, great! There are other reasons why it could be that high, but I am really hoping it was just an error. Not something I need, or wanted to worry about. I was just trying to plan for my DH to have money for childcare if something did happen. I am not a very patient person, so I am just going to try to put it out of my mind until I get the new result.

Watercolor Cosmos

2011-09-06T04:28:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to see that I love mementos is carrying Northwood Rubber stamps. The Enchanted Cottage in Lewisville had these stamps when Debbie and I would visit. The only problem was they never had the ones we wanted. They have beautiful nature inspired stamps that are so much fun to color. After watching Jill's video I decided to color mine with watercolor pencils. After I finished the coloring I remembered an Ikea frame I had painted last week, just messing around. I the added a memory box catalina border to the bottom to help balance it out. I have decided I need to make more frames like these to put around the house. I spent a good part of the holiday trying to clean out my craft room. There are so many cards, and stuff I don't use! Any ideas of what to do with stuff like that? I want to make more room in the office to make a bigger play area for the kids, so in theory I can craft while they play. Probably not how it will turn out, but it still would be nice for them to have some more space. I still have lots of work to do in there, but it is looking much better. I will post a picture soon when it gets all done, because it will not look like that after I start creating! Enjoy your day!

Floral story

2011-09-02T05:00:00.000-07:00

I have a new favorite stamp! I love this Floral Story from Penny Black! When I was younger my Mom would grow Amaryllis inside and have them blooming for the holidays. I have tried several times and just can't seem to get mine to grow well inside. I stamped the image in black ink and colored with copics, R24,27 &29, and YG25, 23 & 21. I tore the image and inked the edges with walnut stain, the PP is from PTI which I also inked with walnut stain. Any big plans for the Holiday? We probably grill some food outside and hopefully get to the pool. Owen was invited to his first official "playdate" (it's probably already not cool to call it that not at the age of 8). He is so excited, it would be nice for him to have some friends to spend time with. We live out in the country and all girls live around us. He doesn' t mind hanging with them, but they aren't into fishing, playing swamp loggers or talking about go karts. Hope everyone has a fun, safe Holiday.

Magnets

2011-09-01T06:18:00.000-07:00

I love making magnets for the fridge and these Lockhart images are perfect for this. I stamped the images with Memento ink, and colored with various copics, then I cut and matted the images, very simple but they look so cute.

Yesterday we had an overall party! After Wyatt saw Pixie's overalls he had to find his and put them on. He loves them because his favorite character Max, from Max and Ruby wears overalls. I love this picture of the two of them checking each other out, so funny. As mush as I love having all three kids home it is a totally different atmosphere when Owen is in school. The house is much quieter, Wyatt fusses a lot less and he and Lainey get to spend time playing together. The age difference between Owen and Watt makes for some problems. There are many disputes that a 3 year old is not able to settle on his own, even an 8 year old has trouble understanding why things can't be a certain way. When they play together lately it usually ends up in someone upset. So for a few hours each day I am enjoying not being the arbitrator.

Shades of mustard

2011-08-31T06:26:00.000-07:00

I believe this is a hero arts stamp, I colored with copics and distressed the edges with distressed inks. I had colored it some time ago, but didn't have any idea what I wanted to do with it. While organizing some of my stuff I came across this PP and I loved the combo.

We are having a taste of some cooler weather this week, and I am eager for Fall. I am looking forward to making soups, casseroles, and breads. Decorating the house inside and out with pumpkins, and beautiful earth colors. I have even started scouring the web for halloween costumes. I have decided my little pixie must be a pixie, and am in search for the perfect fairy costume. This year is going to be such fun for the holidays! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your day!

Goodbye Irene

2011-08-29T06:44:00.000-07:00

Just a quick card for today: not a favorite, but one I had done for a challenge and never had time to post. I stamped the magical background in green, and then used versamark to stamp the reverse image and the I embossed it. The image was colored with markers, and then attached to background colors that complimented the image.

Well the hurricane is gone and thankfully it wasn't too bad. We were well prepared, generator, gasoline, water and tons of food. She seem to stay in our area forever, we had a lot of rain and some pretty kicking winds especially in the early morning hours of Saturday. I fell asleep and was dreaming about being in a house on stilts, the wind knocked the house over and I woke up. That was when I realized the wind in my dream was actually outside our house. After that I could not sleep, and spent the rest of the night pacing the house trying to listen for trees breaking. Unbelievable we did not lose power except for moments of flickering thought the night. We usually lose it during a thunderstorm so I don't know why we didn't have any problems. Many others were not so lucky, and even school is closed today because some schools were still without power last night. Once we went outside we were surprised that we only lost a few older trees in the field, lots of branches and debris but that is all. We were so blessed that we were spared the worst as she was a massive storm and it could have turned out very different.

The boys enjoyed playing in the rain before the winds kicked in, I call them my storm chasers, you could hardly keep them in during the early rain showers, before the winds started. Owen finally got tired of getting soaked and decided to go out in his swimsuit. I wish I could of gotten good pictures but my little pixie was very sick. She had been running a high fever since Wed. luckily we had her check up the next day and they thought she might have roseola. She felt so bad, all she wanted to do was lay on me it's scary when they are not their usually perky self. Her fever finally broke Sunday, and then the rash developed so they were right. Today she is definitely feeling better, still tired but much more herself. Not sure what we will do today, have lots of things to get done, just no energy. Hope everyone has a wonderful Monday!

Last day of summer vacation : (

2011-08-24T05:03:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow Owen starts school at a new school. We went to the open house on Monday, to meet his new teacher. She seems very nice, and I hope he has a good year. They have a all new administration this year and I was not comforted by the fact that they still did not have definite plans on how the day would go. He will most likely switch classes, but they had no idea for what subject or how it would be selected who would go where. Not very reassuring to say the least hopefully they will get it together. I struggle so much with Owen and school. He is such a sweet boy, and just wants to have friends. Children can be so mean, and last year he had problems with a group of boys in his class. It breaks a parents heart for someone to be that way to your child. This year we did not recognize any kids in his class by name. I know he is the only one from his 2nd grade class in the new class. I am hoping that there are some nice children in his class that he can make friends with. So tomorrow we begin our new routine of making lunches, getting backpacks ready and drives to school. Hope everyone has a great day, and stay safe.

Delicate flowers

2011-08-22T05:06:00.000-07:00

I stamped the card in grey Mementos, and colored with copics. The flower centers are using pearl enamel, All stamps are from Hero Arts. Every time I say I am taking a break from challenges, I find one that interest me. I love dry embossing, I use it in so many cards. This card is for the CFC16.

Lainey and I had a wonderful girls weekend, I didn't cook at all and actually watched a few movies. Then on Sunday we went to visit my good friend Debbie for her Birthday! We spent the day playing with pixie, and having a photo shoot! Little girl is definitely a ham, she had a blast showing off all her tricks. The boys had a wonderful time at the farm, but really missed their baby sister. It makes me so happy to hear them both tell Lainey how much they missed her and are glad to be home. Later today we get to meet Owen's new teacher and then school starts Thursday. The summer has just flown by! Have a wonderful Monday.

Clarity

2011-08-20T05:00:00.000-07:00

Do you ever have those moments of clarity that allow you to see things just as they are? I usually get them while I am driving, I see things as they should be, feel the complete and utter appreciation of how they are. Good or bad I am calmed by the truth. I wish I could live life with these brief moments all day, but it seems that they go as quickly as they come. I am sure its the craziness of life, its constant chatter that keep them from staying, but I try to learn from them when they occur. Life goes so quickly, each day has it's own agenda most of which you probably don't have much of a say on how it goes. I usually start out in one direction to only find I am in a totally differnet one. I constantly try to be a better Mother, Wife, and Friend, and each day vowell to try better. Somedays I feel that I have done a good job, others I know I fall short. I have learned to be okay with that as tomorrow is another day. Things in my life our not as I had thought they would be, some expectations have fallen short. I am learning that I have to be okay with that too, you see these things are nothing that I have control over. I can only control my actions and decisons, and with that I have to create the picture of my life I want. My husband and my children are my everything, I am so incredible blessed to have a wonderful husband who would do anyhing for me. He is the most hardworking man I know, an incredible father whom the children adore, and a truly caring person. I was only 17 when I met him and Thank God that even at my inmature age I found a genuine person to spend my life with. Together we have built a life that I absolutely would not change. As my children grow into adults and begin their lives I hope they remain close. My vision for my family is Sunday dinner at our house, where we can all catch up on each others lives. However I am not naive in the fact that this may just be a fantasy, they may move away, make choices I may not like, they will meet other people and fall in love. I know this, but I know I am in control of my choices, my reactions, and if I am okay with that then things will be as they should be, either way.

For my crafty friends, I will be back Monday with a card, I have been super busy with the kids, school is starting Thursday for Owen. Then we have the new Cleaning business we are trying to start, lots going on! DH took the boys to the mountains yesterday, so I am hoping to have some time to craft while baby girl is napping. Lainey and I are eating take out food and watching girly movies all weekend!

PDCC # 93

2011-08-09T18:19:00.000-07:00

The colors for this weeks Play Date Cafe are so gorgeous, I had to play. I found these flower stamps from Serendipity Stamps in my stash. I remember buying them years ago, because they could be used with McGill flower punches. I never got around to purchasing the punches and the stamps got lost in my mix of stamps. I stamped the flowers and colored with copics, the leaves are from two different hero arts collections. The PP is from Basic grey, and the sentiment is PTI.

Pink florals

2011-08-09T05:18:00.000-07:00

Just a simple card with a favorite Hero Art flower. I colored with copics, and overstamped the Thank you definition. The edges were distressed and the sentiment is from PTI.

Baby girl has two new tricks as of last week! She is now pulling up to a stand anywhere she can. She is still figuring out how to get down from this positon gracefully. Sometimes she just lets go which requires some TLC on our part to soothe her. Her other trick is clapping, not the best picture, but its so cute watching her clap. Owen has been practicing with her and was tickled when she finally figured out it out. She makes herself laugh and squishes her face up it's the cutest thing. Thanks for stopping by, wishing everyone a great day!

Shades of sunset

2011-08-08T07:06:00.000-07:00

Hello Monday! This card is for the Flourishes challenge. I made the card using glimmer mist to create the background. Then I stamped the sunflower image and colored with copics Y00,Y02,Y04, Y06 & Y08, and YG21, 23 & 25 for the leaves. I used flower soft in earth for the center of the image and cut it out. The white background is a impress plate from PTI.

Last week was super busy, we had my birthday, in-laws visit and a new business venture beginning. Not something we were expecting but with us that is usually how things happen. Sometimes things don't go in the avenue you plan, but that can be a good thing. We are still primarily landscaping, but soon we will be cleaning construction house prior to move in. I am so extremely proud of my DH, with many years of hard work he has earned himself a stellar reputation. We do not know what the future holds with the state of our country, but for now I am so very grateful for the work.

Summer pictures

2011-08-02T07:49:00.000-07:00

My dear sweet little pixie girl, I could just eat her up! Lainey is learning so big, and to clap her hands, and crawling. She is still very petite, but don't let her size full you. She can scurry after the kitty cat and has even learned to sneak attack my poor thing. She is now pulling herself up on everything, so nothing is safe. The boys have taken to entertaining her with remote control vehicles and think its a riot as she chases them across the room. She is has a very mild temperment, very happy to explore and play as long as I am within site. She is my girl for now, Daddy watches her and as long as he keeps her moving she is good. I would love to have a camera set up to see how things go when I leave them. I know it won't be long before she is put under the spell that takes all my sweet babies to "the dark side" as I jokingly call it! Each of the boys were all about me until they became Daddy's boys. For now I will enjoy me sweet, beautiful baby girl, oh how I wish time could stop and keep her this way.

You should see the sequence of photo's it took to get one good shot, it is hilarous! These three keep me on my toes, and busy all day! It is by far the toughest job I have ever had, but for sure the most rewarding. My wish for the three of them is to be happy and healthy and always stay close to one another. I love seeing families that have a bond that cannot be broken, and I want that.

This is my child who keeps me constantly questioning what am I doing wrong! LOL! He is too smart and quick witted for me and knows how to drive me mad! I am aware that some of our issues has to do with his age and testing limits, but it is still so difficult. He is an awesome kid, so sweet and caring to his baby sister. He loves to help me cook, and clean, and enjoys watching cooking shows with me. He is becoming quite the fisherman, and he really knows his stuff. We have lures, worms, and all kinds of other fishing stuff all over.

Wyatt, my curly headed crazy child. He was put here I do believe to make sure I know I am not in controll! He has always done things in his own time, when he was ready not when I thought i should be done. He was delayed walking and talking, but has definelty made up for lost time. He is very athletic, swinging a golf club and bat like a pro. He can throw a ball and accurateley hit a target almost every time. It is funny how night and day the boys are. For example, when Owen would get hurt I would say let Mommy kiss it and make it better. He would accept that kisses help, and be consoled by it. Wyatt will get hurt and I will kiss the the spot and he will look at me and say "it doesn't make it feel better". It makes me laugh, because he is right even though I wish I had a magical cure to fix a boo-boo, I don't! He loves popsicles, milkshakes, but he also loves carrots, celery and apples. I love that! Then there are the days that Wyatt ask's if he is big yet? Big enough to go fishing with Daddy and Owen, Oh sweet boy it will happen soon enough.

Owen loves the water

Love those curls

Owen fishing in Greenfield lake

Coloring Green with copics

2011-08-01T07:10:00.000-07:00

I have been spending some time working thru the class as Color Me Creative. I used the above image from Mo's digital Pencil and used copics to color the clothing. It really takes practice and time to learn to shade and color in order to make images look life like. I still have tons of work to do, but I feel like I am heading in the right direction and definitley understand light and shading much better now. If you are intrested in taking an online class check out Color me Creative. I am hoping to have more time to work on some more later this week.
Summer is in full swing here, it is hot so we try to spend as much time as possible at the pool. Otherwise it is quite miserable to be outside. Yesterday I took the boys to the beach and DH watch baby girl for the morning. We haven't been this summer yet, and I miss going so much. They had a blast, tomorrow I will post some updated pictures of the kids. Have a great monday!

Stamp Camp Week 4

2011-07-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

I hope wherever you are you are staying cool, it is suppose to be 105 heat index today and tomorrow Yuck! I love this stamp from Penny Black, I colored it with copics, BG45, 49, and B0000, then the leaves are colored with YG03 & YG05. I was practicing my feathering and blending techniques and love how it turned out. The Background is a Hero arts cling, that I stamped with broken china and then distressed with the same color. The sentiment and script are from PTI, and PP Is from Bo Bunny. I was going for the look of the Penny Black stamp Poppy Poem, that I "need" LOL! Stay cool and enjoy your day!

Pears, poires...

2011-07-19T06:32:00.000-07:00

I love pear images, I have collected quite a few, I just ordered a new one from Memory Boxes 2011 release then realized I had a similar one from Magenta. Oh well, I am sure it will get used, and I do have a undisclosed amount of butterfly stamps! This image was colored with copics, the edges were distressed with walnut stain, and the PP is from Cosmo Cricket. The die and sentiment are from PTI.

On the farm front, I have two crazy bantam hens that have been sitting on a pretend nest for months. They share the nesting box and at least once a day I have to chase them out to get food and water. One of them is my bella, who I raised from a chick. A few weeks ago I realized when they were out of the box a Rhode Island Red was laying an egg in there. I didn't think much of it, but the other day Wyatt came running inside to tell me a baby chick hatched. Well it was a Red baby chick and the two crazy hens kicked it out of the nesting box and just stared at it from above. Once I realized they had no intention of caring for it I brought it up to the house. It is the cutest little thing, he love attention practically jumps in your hand to be held. So I guess I am raising this one too! I am hoping another one or two hatch as its quite lonely and would love some company. Will post pictures of him or her soon.

Summer Camp week 4

2011-07-18T09:03:00.000-07:00

This is the last week for Summer Camp, and I have loved all the color combo's and techniques they have shown. I enjoy the challenge of trying new colors that I would not normally use, but this week is definitely my colors! I stamped the butterfly image in versamark and embossed in white. Then I colored the images with the Faber Castell big brush markers. The images were cut out and then attached to embossed white paper. The sentiment is from PTI, and the butterfly is Hero arts.

Today Lainey finally cut her first tooth, she has been teething hard. Trying to gum anything and everything she can get her mouth on. I know she feel some relief, so today is a happy baby day for her!

Blue butterflies

2011-07-17T07:31:00.000-07:00

This weeks Outlines Challenge is polka dots, I had another idea planned but ran started coloring and ended up with this. The image is colored with copics, B28, 26, 24 & 21 and Y00. Then I ran it thru with the embossing folder and attached to dotted memory box PP. The ribbon was a last minute additon, not sure if I totally like it, but I colored the butterflies on it with Y00 to coordinate with the stamped image. We are off to have lunch with friends, we have been trying to catch up forever but seems we are both always doing something. Have a wonderful Sunday!

Distressed flowers

2011-07-14T07:05:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was terribly hot, my DH texted me lets go swimming when he was on his way home. Perfect idea for temps. over 100 degrees. We changed into our swim clothes and were ready to go when DH arrived. On our way up to the pool, it started looking like rain. Not something we have seen her much, its so dry, nothing is thriving. We laughed and though what are the chances, well apparantly they were good, we got a much needed rain, with thunder, lightening, and steady rain. We did get to swim for 45 min. before it started and we definitley cooled off. So it was a win-win! The card is another distressed card for the Stamp Camp, and for Penny Black's distressed challenge.

Watercolor flower

2011-07-13T05:08:00.000-07:00

This card is for this weeks challenge at Penny Black which is using distress ink. I love these inks, but right now my coloring medium of choice is my copics. They feel sad and neglected when I don't use them! LOL! Watercoloring with distressed ink is so easy and creates a very pretty effect.

Summer Camp Week 3

2011-07-12T11:10:00.000-07:00

This is my first card for the Summer Camp week 3 I used the technique on the video today to add color to the image. It was first embossed in clear on watercolor paper, the image is from Outlines. I used pumice stone, antique linen, walnut stain and barn door on the image panel.

This week Wyatt and I are battling a little head cold I can't decide if it a cold or the result of all the smoke we have been dealing with due to the Holly Shelter fire. It's been about 3 weeks and although last I heard it was 80% contained finally it has burned 30,000 + acres. As a result depending on the winds we have experienced very heavy smoke on a number of days and ash. The dogs smell like smoke and the house does as well. Yuck! We have tried to keep the kids inside on the worst days, but it's been a challenge for Wyatt who loves to play outside. We went yesterday to get Lainey weighed and were excited to see that she has gained 12 ounces in 2 weeks! She is now 14.14lbs, so we have the all clear from the doctor to keep doing what we are doing! Check back tomorrow for another distressed card, my fingers are still inky!

Outlines Red

2011-07-10T04:38:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for the Outlines Red Hot Challenge, I just got some new Outlines stamps in the mail and couldn't wait to use them! I stamped the butterfly 3 times on different Cosmo Cricket papers in various red patterns. The kraft background is from PTI and embossed. Thanks for stopping by have a great Sunday! If the weather is nice we are heading to the pool!

Watercolor pinstriped flower

2011-07-08T05:35:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite designers Jill Foster has tutorials and videos over at http://www.ilovemementos.blogspot.com/. She has been featuring the new Faber-Castell's new line of products. I couldn't wait to get these and I love them. Jill does such a wonderful job explaining and demonstrating different techniques to use with this product line. She is truly inspiring, and I couldn't wait to work with the watercolor pencils to create a piece like this one: here. I used the summer camp colors again, since I had most of the colors still out. I have one more card to share tomorrow from the same color combo, which did I tell you I love?

Today I am off to get Lainey weighed again, I am hoping she has gained a little weight since last Monday. She is still having issues nursing, I cannot figure out what is going on, after I get her weighed again I will try to figure out the best plan for both of us. It is hard for me since she is my last baby (according to DH! LOL!) so there are a lot of emotions wrapped up with it. I just have to remember that regardless of what I have to do I have tried to work through this phase and the ultimate goal is a happy healthy baby and mommy! Have a great Friday everyone!.

Sweet blooms

2011-07-07T05:00:00.000-07:00

This is another card I made with the Stamp Camp colors this week. I love these flower stamps from Hero Arts. I used chalk ink in the Hero Hues colors and a few different background stamps. This week has flown by, guess it has to do with the 4th being on Monday.

We have been having problems with rat snakes during the last week here. They are suppose to be a "good" snake to have around, however we have chickens and purple martins that we try to keep safe. The dogs had one pinned under the porch over the weekend about 5 feet long. Chris caught it and relocated the snake. Then the other night I went to put the chickens up and couldn't close the door. I apparently had shut the door right on a rat snake going into the chicken house. I screamed and ran and got my DH, I do not like snakes. We were unsure since it was getting dark what kind of snake it was so armed with a flashlight and a shovel he went in to investigate. It was another rat snake this one around 6 feet. We decided to get rid of this one since he was too close to all of our birds. Last year we had 2 snakes climb up our Martin house and eat all the babies it was horrible. They even found their way around the snake guard we bought. We try to check the house often, so hopefully with this snake gone, it will be one less snake to get our birds!

Summer camp Week 2 Poppy

2011-07-05T07:37:00.000-07:00

The colors this week are so luscious! The cards I have seen for this color combo in the student gallery are beautiful! I stamped the poppy image, from Artful Legacy, and colored with copics. Then I ran it thru to emboss the image. The PP is from Bo Bunny, and the border punch is a favorite of mine from Martha Stewart.

We had a nice weekend, the boys washed all the vehicles, we got the grass mowed finally, and even had a great firework show! Thanks to our neighbors who put our little display to shame! DH was a little disappointed when Wyatt told him he liked the ones that went way up in the sky versus our $30 pack! LOL! Owen was sure to tell DH that he loved the ones he did, which was sweet. Lainey had learned a new trick as of yesterday and is shaking her head up and down. The boys have had a blast asking her questions and her shaking her head yes, it really is cute!

Pink dogwood

2011-07-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

This card is for the Lily Pads Inpirational Challenge #3, my inspiration is Lin, she has made so many versions of this dogwood stamp and it inspired me to get mine out and color. The image was stamped with memento and colored with copic.

Lainey and I finally got to visit with Debbie yesterday, it has been so long I know I talked her ear off! We didn't get much crafting done, but a lot of catching up and she did show me some hints for the silhouette that she is a master at! I had no idea the machine was capable of the things she does. I am excited to start practing with mine instead of letting it collect dust! Be sure to check her blog for her tutorials and beautiful creations. Hope everyone has a safe and wonderful 4th of July! Thanks for stopping by.

Penny Black inside

2011-06-29T07:33:00.000-07:00

The challenge at the Penny Black Blog this week is to create a card with a inside. Usually I leave them blank to hand write my note, but really there is a whole area begging to be stamped! I think this flower stamp from PB is one of my favorite images to color right now. I used copics in YR15, 17 and 18 and YG03,05 & 07 for the leaves. The little creature ( I think its a bunny?) is colored with Y12, 15 & 17. The inside of the flower has flower soft in earth.Now for the inside:

I stamped and colored with the same copics as above and add the sentiment. This little guy is so cute, I can think of some other cute saying like "hang in there", "or thanks for stopping by". I find that I have tons of sentiments, mostly in clear stamps, but can never find the one I am looking for until after I have the card done. I so need a good organizational system to find my stuff. I have been keeping my desk cleaner, and less cluttered. So I guess one step at a time right?

I have been struggling with nursing my almost 8 month old baby girl. It is so discouraging since although I had issues with the boys they were with me not the baby. I have been concerned that she has not been gaining weight and when I took her back to the Dr. Monday she actually lost an ounce. So she has weighed the same at almost 5 months that she does at 8 months. She is growing slightly on her length and head circumference. The odd thing is she appears hydrated, with enough wet diapers, happy, meeting her milestone, already crawling, sitting up, etc. The only time she fusses is during nursing, I am starting to suspect I may not have enough supply, so today I am off to find the herbs I read about online. I am so frustrated and driving my DH crazy with my worry and neurotic behavior. I have always been determined to nurse the babies and believe absolutely it is the best thing I can do for them. So before I give up, I have to exhaust all my option. Thanks for listening : ) Hope you have a great day!

Summer Camp butterflies

2011-06-28T08:26:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to win a spot at Summer Camp 2011 from Mariana Grigsby's Blog! This week we are working with the above colors. I love seeing what everyone creates using these colors but find when I have more than three colors I freeze up. I decided to just see what I came up with. I stared watching Jennifer's video that had white embossed flowers which gave me a starting point. I white embossed the butterfly panel, by Magenta and then colored with Memento markers. Next I embossed the butterflies with clear powder then I used tumbled glass distressed ink over the panel. The background was stamped with Hero Arts chalk ink in Poppy, and the PP is from my stash. I still find it difficult to take photo's when there is embossed images. Have a great Tuesday!

Keep it krafty

2011-06-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

This is my card for the Outlines Keep it Krafty Challenge. I love kraft paper, you can use it to create many different looks. I stamped the blossom on the kraft and then on Bo Bunny dot paper and cut out the pieces to attach to the panel. The background is part of a bits and pieces set, that has lots of different designs that help fill in a background. All stamps are Outlines, be sure to check out the blog, as a $25 gift certificate is up for grabs! Have a great Saturday!

Pin-striped flower

2011-06-24T08:04:00.000-07:00

I am entering this card for the Penny Black Triangle challenge. This is not the most creative use of triangles, but I thought the triangle shaped PP fit the card well. The PP is from Basic Grey, one of the many packs that I have accumulated. The card is colored with copics, using the better blending technique I have learned recently. I have been blending way too much on my images, and now I finally think I have figured it out!

Now my oldest Owen has caught the bug the two little ones had, I must say a entire week of playing nurse is getting old. I want everyone to be healthy, I so hope that DH or I don't catch it as well, ugh! On good news: we finally got rain!!!! After 3 or so wicked storms passing thru in the last week or so only to spit on us, yesterday we got two nice rains. So I can finally take a break watering for today! Happy Weekend to everyone!

Copic coloring

2011-06-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

This summer with 3 little ones home all day, I am finding less time to be creative! No surprise right? However I really miss taking classes and decided to look online to see what I could find. I found this site by Suzanne Dean and thought I would try a class. I am starting with the Level 2 copic class, since I took the certification I figured I didn't need all the review. I have only watched a few videos, but I am already learning a lot. Shading and highlighting is something I really want to master, and she presents everything in a very easy to understand format. I am looking forward to having more time to sit and practice. The card above is one I am entering into the Lily pads" Lucy's lovely lines" challenge. The flower stamp is from Penny black, and the stem is also, sentiment is PTI. Copics used are B21, 24, 26 & 28.

On the home front, Wyatt is better, Lainey was sick Tues, & Wed. but now much better. We are just all sleep deprived as sick babies need a lot of TLC. This weekend is my DH birthday, so we are hopefully going to enjoy a fun day at the pool, and a nice dinner on the grill! Thanks for stopping by!

Color blocking

2011-06-20T09:01:00.000-07:00

It's funny how long CAS cards take me! This is my card for the CAS-ual Fridays challenge which is color blocking. The stamps are from PTI, and the ink colors are Memento in various blues. I think I stamped this 4 time before I had a "clean" card! LOL! I had ink everywhere, even though I kept trying to be neat. Anyway hoping to have a more productive week. Although yesterday poor Wyatt came down with a fever and is not feeling well. So this week is not starting out so productive thus far. Thanks for stopping by.

Tiffany's doodles

2011-06-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

I love this image from Tiffany's Doodles, there are so many cute images, and I love that you can use them as soon as you download them! They are so easy to resize and and they color wonderfully with my copics. I printed the image, and colored with copics YG23 & 25, and R24, &27. The background was made with distrssed inks, and then overstamped with a hero arts background stamp. If I can find my energy soon I will be posting some pictures of our vacation to Boone last weekend. Not sleeping has really caught up with me the last few days! Thanks for stopping by!

Outlines Challenge # 3

2011-06-10T13:28:00.000-07:00

This card is my entry for the Outlines Blog, they have a weekly challenges and this week is Aqua, brown and white. I love those colors together so pretty. The present was stamped with memento chocolate ink, and colored with copics, and glossy accents were applied to the center of the flowers. The PP is Bo bunny, all stamps are Outlines. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Teacher's Gifts

2011-06-08T19:04:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I got these done with even a few days to spare. The other day I saw a tweet regarding these cards by Kelly, they are so cute and I knew they would be perfect for teachers gifts. I definitely wanted to give credit to her, as I used her design minus the twine and buttons. Since these were going to be in a set I wanted them to be as flat as possible. I love these silhouette images, but sometimes I totally over think the design. I love the simplicity of just using one color and distressing the image. I used two different images, and made two sets of 8 cards for his teacher and the assistant. I stamped a variety of sentiments to give them options when sending them.

This was Owen's teacher's first year teaching, and she was awesome. She was energetic, sweet, and full of excitement, and Owen just loved her. How I wish every teacher was like her! He has been so lucky the past 3 years to be blessed with wonderful Teacher's. Owen is a sensitive, sweet, caring child and I am so pleased with the care and attention he has received at his current school. Next year he is to attend a different school as the current one is only K-2nd grade. We went to orientation a month or so ago, and I was so disheartened by what I heard. I want by children to grow into a confident, educated, happy person, and I worry about the atmosphere and education they are receiving. My husband and I have always talked about homeschooling our children, but Owen and I butt heads and I worry about how well it would work. This summer thought, we plan on trying a trial run so if we do choose to pull him out of school I will be confident that we will be successful. I do not take this decision lightly, I always try to do the right thing and I so want to give my children the best opportunities.

Inspiration challenge

2011-06-06T15:52:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for the Lily pads Inspirations Challenge #2, I am inspired by the way Kathy uses her white pen to add details to her images. I love how she creates a totally different look with the white pen. I don't think I quite achieved the same look, but I plan on using it more often. I had a few different brands, and found that either they were dried up, or just did not run smoothly on the images. Do any of you have any favorite brands? I think I need to get a new one! The floral image is from Magenta, the dotted background is from Hero Arts, and the image is colored with copic markers. Hope you had a great Monday!

Distressed frame

2011-06-03T05:43:00.000-07:00

This is another card for the frame Challenge at the Penny Black blog. I used the negative of the spellbinder die and stamped the Hero Arts woodgrain stamp then I rubbed distressed ink over the cardstock. The Flower is colored with copics and cut out attached to a panel stamped with a old club scrap stamp and the Hero Arts envelope pattern. The twine is Hero arts, and the button is from PTI. I also distressed the edges of the frame inside and out to give it a more rustic feel.

We are in need up rain here very badly, last I heard we were 7 inches below what is the norm. It is so hot and dry that I am watering the gardens twice a day and they are still not looking great. Yesterday, DH left me some extra hoses and a sprinkler( Of which I did not see at first) to help with my vegetable gardens. Thinking I needed to use the old sprinkler I attached everything only to find it did not work of course! After a long struggle, both Wyatt and I were soaked, he was crying, and I still could not get the old sprinkler to come off. It was hot and I was beat, frustrated and soaked, I made do by manually turning it for awhile, but then just gave up. I am so hoping my DH remember to use his big muscles to take it apart for me, or this morning is not going start off well! So for now I am praying for some rain, to help me! Hope you have a stress free weekend!

framed coneflower

2011-06-01T04:41:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking of having someone come in and help me with organizing/cleaning our house. We live in a 1400 sq. foot house and with 3 kids, all their stuff and all our stuff it is getting quite crowded! Honestly there are days that I know I pick up/put away the same toy 10 times! It can drive someone mad! I know I probably will never have someone really come in and help, but it sure would be nice! Knowing me, I would drive myself mad cleaning and putting things up so the person did not think "My god these people are pigs", then there would be nothing left for her to do! LOL! Really I think I need someone to help me train my boys to pick up and put stuff away, that sounds like it would end up being much more useful in the end!

The card today is for the Penny Black Blog challenge using a frame. The floral image is a favorite of mine, is colored with the big brush markers from Faber-Castell. The Thank you background stamp was stamped over the flower and then I distressed the panel with antique linen. The frame was cut out using a spellbinder die. Thanks for stopping by!

Outlines floral

2011-05-31T05:20:00.000-07:00

I still remember when I first found Outlines rubber stamps, I took a class at the local stamp store and loved the concept of them. I have always enjoyed cutting things out and the possibilities with these stamps are endless. You can stamp on various papers, colored, patterned, vellum, etc. You can just stamp and color with any color medium you choose and they have the best designs. I miss our local stamp store, seeing all the new stuff in person! It is just not the same shopping online, I miss the instant gratification! This card is for the Outlines black and white challenge on their blog. All stamps are Outlines, the pot and the dots are colored with scattered straw distressed inks. Thanks for stopping by, your comments make my day.

PDCC#83

2011-05-30T12:43:00.000-07:00

This weeks Play Date Cafe challenge is black and white with a splash of green. I love colorsplash challenges and green is one of my favorite colors. I chose the Tea set and additons from PTI and stamped with memento ink and colored the leaves with a copic YG93. I am going to have to order reinkers of my favorite copic colors this week as I have quite a few that are dry. I have heard the price will increase on these in August, so now seems like a good time!

I hope everyone is enjoying Memorial Day, I wanted to Thank all of those who have or are serving in our military. One day to honor them is not enough!

We have actually had my DH home most of the weekend, which has been so nice since he has been crazy busy the last month or so! He and Owen went fishing, golfing and yesterday we took the kids to the pool at the Golf course. Owen was in the pool the entire time of course! Wyatt sat on the edge and played catch with my DH, only getting dipped once and deciding it was too cold for him. Lainey and I spent the day in the shade, the water was a little too cold for her too! She is in the stage of only wanting me, and DH does not like to hear her cry, so I spent the day holding her. Can't say that I mind it though, both the boys were like this with me, and now they are all about DH. I will enjoy it while it last! This is a picture of her crashed out!

Nothing beats relaxing by the pool!

Flower panel

2011-05-25T12:33:00.000-07:00

I have had this stamps for awhile, but couldn't figure out what I wanted to do with it. Yesterday I stamped it on white, and colored with copics. The butterfly was colored and cut out and attached to create a little dimension.

It is already dreadfully hot here, in the 90's my car said 100 when we were in town UGH! Yesterday was Lainey's 6 month check up. I was aggravated though because last time they must have weighed her wrong, as she weighed exactly the same as she did 2 months ago. I can't imagine she hasn't gained anything in that amount of time. She looks healthy, not skinny, but now I worry. Is she not getting enough milk?, it's hard to tell when you breastfeed how much she is getting. She is 25" long from 24.5" 2 months ago, but was that wrong also? Otherwise she is doing great, very alert, very active, and so laid back! She is in the rocking stage where she gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth, it is so cute. Wyatt says" Momma she is a horse", that is fine as long as Wyatt doesn't try to ride on her!

Happy birthday blossom

2011-05-23T05:31:00.000-07:00

I am still loving playint with the flower set from basic grey/hero arts! I stamped the bottom of another flower from hero arts in chalk ink: Lime pastel. Then cut out the pink blossom and attached to the panel. Then I ran it thru the cuttlebug to give it texture. The sentiment is from PTI and the tiny dragonflies are from Rubber Stamp Tapestry.

Looks like it is summertime here in Eastern NC! We have been fortunate to have nice weather for most of May, but tempertures are suppose to be in the 90's for the week! Yuck! Now we will see how well I keep up watering my gardens! LOL! Thanks for stopping by!

Pink trio

2011-05-20T05:31:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday everyone! This is a card made from the Hero Arts blooms, stamped and cut out. All other stamps are hero arts except the butterflies are from PTI. They were an afterthought, wanted to add something else, once they were there I wish they were dimensional, but decided to move on, you know how it is!

Now for a few quick pictures of my babies:

Lainey (6 months) she is just starting solid foods, always a difficult milestone for me. I wish they would stay little forever!

I love the loving moment when my boys are sweet to one another!

Wyatt found his costume from when he was 2, and has been playing "dress" he is so cute!

Purple blooms

2011-05-18T04:58:00.000-07:00

I have been struggling with feeling inspired lately, I end up stamping a bunch of stuff to find nothing working and then putting it all down to come back later. The other day while checking in on some of my favorite blogs I came across a card done by Lin (quilterlin) and felt totally inspired. I love how she used the viney, fern stamp from Hero Arts and that totally sparked my creativity! I had bought the flowers (Hero Arts) a while back but had yet to use them and I now LOVE them! I am entering this card into the Hero Arts, floral challenge for this month. The sentiment is from PTI, all other stamps are Hero Arts.

As I type this it is almost 8 a.m. and baby girl is still asleep! She was up at 5, and then back up at 6, but I put some music on for her and back to sleep she went! Now if I could have only had Wyatt sleep-in instead of crawling in bed with me at 6 to ask me to make him breakfast! LOL! He is so sweet though, he will hug and kiss me and tell me "I wuv you" it is totally worth it! I am seeking any advice for Potty training with my hard headed sweet boy! Owen was so easy, trained well before he was 3! Wyatt will be 3 1/2 and will just fuss and cry everytime I ask him to go potty. Once he is there he will usually go, but has no care to go on his own! I am totally frustrated, and don't know how to handle this, leave him be for awhile? Or keep trying to get him to go? Any advice? My DH asked if I was surprised he was so difficult, he did not walk until he was almost 2, or talk until then either. No reason for it, just because he didn't want to! Anyway, have a wonderful day!

PDCC #81

2011-05-17T04:48:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for the Play Date Cafe color challenge. I stamped the Hero Arts image with memento and colored with BB pens from Faber-Castell. The sentiment and background are from PTI and the background on the green is a Hero Arts background stamp. Woke up this a.m. to thunder and some rain, I love it. We need it, especially for my vegetable gardens. Until I get my DH to set up my watering system I spend a good bit of Lainey's nap time lugging watering cans to the back field. So far so good, but mother nature does a much better job!

Justrite flower

2011-05-16T05:51:00.000-07:00

This card is made using justrite flower stamp, I stamped these when I went to visit my friend Debbie and decided this one would be perfect for the challenge. It is colored with copic and then I used diamond glaze around the frame to give it some dimension. The embossed background is from cuttlebug, and the twine is hero arts. I am also going to enter this in the new CAS-ual Fridays and the Lily pads embossing challenge as it happened to fit these criteria as well. Funny how I ended up making a clean and simple card without even trying, but when I intended on it, I made it impossible!

PB Tall Card Challenge

2011-05-14T13:38:00.000-07:00

I am loving the challenges on the Penny Black blog, they have an wonderful DT and so many inpirational cards. The challenge this week was to make a tall card using Penny Black stamps. I stamped the floral and butterfly images in black ink and used my copic to color on the kraft paper. Then I went back with my spica gel pen to highlight the centers and the butterfly. So glad that blogger is back up and running although it did delete my last post! We are just enjoying a relaxing weekend, work has been crazy busy with the Parade of Homes. We are hoping things get back to normal so we can see my DH before 9 pm every night! Have a great rest of your weekend! Thanks for stopping by!

Floral thank you

2011-05-09T08:26:00.000-07:00

Card: Penny black flower stamp, and sentiment, leaves and background are hero arts.Image is colored with copics.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! Owen was so excited to give me his presents. In school he made beautiful paper flowers, two cards, a piece of pottery, they even grew a marigold in a pot for us! My favorite gift of all was a sweet letter. It was so nice of the Teacher to have the kids do this, I will treasure it for sure! Owen is such a wonderful child, I am so blessed with him, he is the best big brother. He is also so compassionate about others and smart! I love being a Mom, my kids bring me such joy and laughter each and every day. Even on the toughest days, I can find something that makes me smile. I am so thankful for my three beautiful blessings!

Amongst flowers in red

2011-05-06T04:36:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been a crazy busy week! This weekend seems to be following the same crazy path, so I am hoping for some peace coming in the next few weeks! The card was stamped using the faber-castell big brush pens, the background script was stamped in antique linen. The impressed background is from PTI, and all stamps are from Penny Black. Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's out there, hope you have a wonderful day!

PDCC # 79

2011-05-02T04:51:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for the PDCC #79 I had to get this stamp and a few others after I saw my friend Debbie's gorgeous cards she made with it. I love Magenta, and especially like that now they make their stamps in cling. I stamped the image and colored with copics, matted the image on a spellbinder die cut. The background paper is from basic grey, and the green paper is actually an envelope that had the perfect green I needed from Lasting Impressions. Another busy week here, can you believe Mother's Day is this Sunday! It seems way too early, maybe since Easter was so late!

We went to a birthday party for a friend Sunday, it was at Moore's Creek Battlegrounds and the boys had a blast playing. Lainey was so good, she loves riding in the stroller taking in all the sites! She will be 6 months old on Wednesday, will be posting pictures this week of her. Have a wonderful Monday!

Wyatt popping bubbles

Happy Friday!

2011-04-29T05:16:00.000-07:00

Wow! Another weekend is upon us, we have soccer, a birthday party, and I am sure the boys are going to squeeze in some fishing and golfing! The flower stamp is from Penny black, it is stamped and colored with copics. The Background is stamped with hero arts definition stamped in shabby shutter and distressed with it as well. The butterfly and ribbon is from PTI, the background dot is another background from hero arts.

We had baby chicks hatch on Wed., I thought surely they would hatch on Easter! We have 8 as of yesterday, mostly yellow, one black, one grey and one yellow with brown stripes. I love the mixtures we get from our bantam cochins. I will try to get some pictures to post next week. Right now they spend most of their time cozy under momma! Have a great weekend! Thanks for stopping by!

Amongst flowers

2011-04-27T05:14:00.000-07:00

I fell in love with the stamp when I saw it on Jill Fosters blog, then I saw Kathy's work and could not wait to play with this stamp! Both of these super talented ladies are so inspiring, I love their work. On this card I cut out two cloud dies by PTI and used them to mask the white cardstock. Then I masked the grass area and sprayed turquoise glimmer mist. Next I masked the sky area and sprayed honey dew on the bottom portion. The grass is a stamp I think it is from Outlines Rubber stamps, I stamped in the hero hues chalk ink in green. The flowers were colored using the faber-castell big brush pens and then I spritzed with a little glimmer mist to get a good impression. Inside the flower centers I used dimensional pearls. Thanks for your all of your comments, I so appreciate them! Happy Wednesday!

Easter 2011 recap

2011-04-26T10:18:00.000-07:00

Owen tells me Easter is his favorite holiday, although I am pretty sure he says that about Christmas too! It may have something to do with the Easter Bunny gets a little crazy with the baskets, I love spoiling my kids ( I know many say that it is bad, but it's so fun!) Easter bunny tries not to give too much candy, he fills the eggs that we use for the hunt, my husband makes sure there is a Chocolate bunny, apparently that is a Easter must. The bunny was shunned the first time candy went into Owen's Easter basket and a terrible crime was committed, no chocolate bunny! It was duly noted and now each basket contains one chocolate bunny for those who are of age. The baskets also always contain a Pez dispenser. My kids can already have a huge collection, as I adore these cute little candy dispensers. The rest of the basket usually contains a book, a stuffed animal, a few toys, etc. This year it was so neat to have three baskets lining the table. Owen always snoops, I know because I take a picture after I finish the baskets. When I get up in the morning everything is rearranged, I find it funny as I was the same way! He always tries to act surprised as he goes thru his basket, but in the wee hours I know he already went through his loot! The Easter Bunny also hides tons of eggs, my DH said he had never hid so many! He creates a path that the bunny takes to get to our house. The only problem is our outside dog Kane likes to eat them so we have to start outside of the electric dog fence. He places them down the road, out in the field and in the woods. Only this year something got into some of them! They were cracked open and the candy was missing, it was pretty funny! After the hunt the boys checked out their stash and played. We had a non-traditional dinner of pork bbq, mashed potatoes, baked beans and chocolate cake for dessert! I even had time to craft while Lainey napped! It was a perfect holiday, I love these moments!


Owen decorating eggs

I love his expression


I Love my sweet boys!


The small ones are eggs from our Bantam Cochins, they make the best eggs for coloring

The boys are on the hunt!

Won't be long before she will be joining in on the fun!

Only had a second to snap a picture of all three, Wyatt was on the move!

Baby girl with her Easter loot.

Lucy's lovely lines challenge

2011-04-25T04:54:00.000-07:00

I just received my new order of Penny Black stamps from Simon says stamps, and just in time for a new challenge over at Lilypad ! I love the floral images, and have spent most of my free time yesterday coloring and stamping! I stamped the flower with black Memento, then colored with copics RV14, 17 & 19, and YG21 & 23. Then I added a bit of BG000 to the background. I stamped a script stamp from Judikin with Memento london fog and cut out using a spellbinder die. The twine is new from Hero arts, I really like the natural colors and the thickness. Tomorrow I will be doing an Easter post with pictures from the weekend! Hope you had a great holiday!

Lilypads Frames, dies or dimension challenge

2011-04-20T05:32:00.000-07:00

I began by stamping the image 3 times on cardstock. I cut out the images to layer and colored with copics. The image is from Magenta, and layered using dimensional tape. TFL! I can't believe it is already Wed, Owen had Spring break a few weeks ago, so it is strange having Easter so late this year. I still need to plan my Easter Menu, hoping to figure that out today!

PDCC # 77

2011-04-18T05:38:00.000-07:00

This is my card for the PDCC challenge, the label is from PTI, the bird stamp is from Memory box and the background is a hero arts stamp. Edited: I just realized I forgot to use white, will have to see if I have time to make another entry! That is what happens when I forget to write the challenges down!

Well, Easter is right around the corner, I actually had a chance to run errands Sunday without kids in tow. While it was nice, I was able to run in and out of the stores quickly. Although I was in too much of a hurry to really enjoy it! DH did awesome watching the crew, Lainey even took 1.5 hour nap for him! Here are some quick pictures of my little bunny girl! TFL!

Flourishes Spring has Sprung

2011-04-14T09:54:00.000-07:00

This is my entry for the flourishes challenge, I love these colors! I stamped with memento black ink and colored with copics, I used B00,B02 & B04 for the flower and YG13 & YG17 for the leaves. The yellow is Y02, & Y04. Then I used coordinating colors of the spica gel pens to add some sparkle, which is difficult to pick up using the camera. Thanks for stopping by.

Layered Birthday

2011-04-13T05:03:00.000-07:00

Stamp is from set of 4 wooden cupcakes (hero arts). I used Memory Box PP. The sentiment is also from hero arts. I used a little spica glitter pen to highlight the rose (it is hard to see on the photo) TFL! The rest of the post is just a little venting therapy : ) !

What a week it has already been! Poor Owen's hermit crab Hermie died, it was his first pet (that he was responsible for). He was so sad, it broke my heart. We buried him under a pretty plum tree in the garden. Wyatt (who is 3) kept asking why we put Hermie in the dirt, please get him out. Owen took a stick and wrote "He was my best friend, I will miss you Hermie", and then picked out some nice rocks for the area. It was hard for me because I know how difficult losing pets is. We have a 11 year old lab, who was our first child, and he is the best dog. He has severe hip dysplasia in both hips and arthritis in all legs, it is amazing he is still getting along, but I know one day we will be dealing with this. It is so difficult with children, explaining what happens and why, I am not looking forward to that.

Then yesterday, Wyatt, Lainey and I spent almost 4 hours at Urgent care with DH, we think he has kidney stones, but chose not to have the CT scans to verify. Two years ago, he had to have these scans and we just finished paying off our portion of the cost. This time we asked how much prior and to see if they would work with us. We have BCBS of NC, but a large deductible, crazy for how much we still spend each year. Our portion of the CT scans was going to be $4,100.00!!! I cannot begin to tell you have crazy this is, especially for paying almost $10K a year for insurance to begin with. While I am sure if he doesn't feel better in a few days, we may have to do this, it is insane! After the pain shots yesterday, he does feel better today, just worn out. Thank goodness the kids were super good, everyone commented on them. I am just emotionally wore our, I love my DH, but sometimes I don't think I will be able to handle the "in sickness" vowels I took. No matter what he has it is always the worst pain in the world. Now, I have never had kidney stones, and I have heard they are very painful. But the way he was I was sure they were going to call an ambulance and take him straight to the ER. I know everyone has different pain thresholds, but I wanted to put him out of his misery myself! I am sure the Doctors thought I was cold, but I have been through lots of health issues with him and I know how he is , it just drives me crazy. I just am glad he could never give birth to kids, or we would have only had one! Thanks for letting me vent, if you are still here!

Pink rose

2011-04-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

This card is for the challenge at hero arts. I stamped the rose two times on Memory box PP, then cut out. The music background was stamped with Hero Chalk ink, and I used copics to highlight some of the flower and leaves. The background embossed is from PTI as well as the sentiment.

Just a quick pict. of baby girl, we can finally wear some spring clothes, and this pink cherry outfit is so cute!

Have a great weekend!

Hummingbirds are here again!

2011-04-07T07:40:00.000-07:00

In honor of our first hummingbird! It has been such strange weather here, cold and rainy last week, warmer but WINDY this week. So I was surprised to see a returning friend yesterday, my hummingbird. We have 2 sometimes 3 hummingbirds that feed here. Now it is time for me to make them their food, so we can enjoy watching them up close!

The stamp is from Magenta, and I paper pieced the image with Memory box PP. Thanks for stopping by!

Magenta dragonfly

2011-04-04T05:51:00.000-07:00

I love paper piecing, especially with the wonderful papers that Memory Box designs, this week I am using the Minuet paper pack. It has some gorgeous blues, greens and butterfly patterns. The stamp and sentiment are both from Magenta.

Today, we are back to School, and the routine again, it has been nice not having to alter Lainey's sleeping to pick up Owen from school. Although it is hard to believe just two full months left of the school year, and summer will be here before we know it! Have a great Monday!

Lenten Rose

2011-04-01T06:58:00.000-07:00

So it's Friday, and we finally have some sun peeking out of the clouds that have been around all week. Today, I am taking the kids out to lunch, and run some errands. Wish it was dry and warm enough to take them to the park. Owen has a soccer game tomorrow, then hopefully they can get in some golfing and fishing after that. Monday is back to school, making lunches and homework again. Have a great weekend!

Flourishes blue bird

2011-03-30T05:54:00.000-07:00

This is the new set from Flourishes, Spring has sprung. It has some great images to color, and I could not wait to get these! I stamped the bird in memento ink, then colored with the Faber Castell watercolor pencils. I decided to offset the oval to angle the bird a little better, paper is brazill and bo bunny (the green dot). It has been a yucky Spring break so far. Poor Owen, he was so looking forward to doing outdoor stuff, ie. fishing, golfing and it is just not cooperating. I need to come up with something fun we can do. Hope where you are the weather is better!

Memory box adore

2011-03-28T11:17:00.000-07:00

I stamped this card with Memento ink on watercolor paper. Then I colored the image with the new watercolor pencils from Faber Castell. I love how nice these markers blend so pretty. The background purple is a impression plate from PTI, and the stamp is from Memory box. Some fun news in the crafting circuit: There’s a new challenge blog in town with articles, swaps, interviews, videos, challenges, great prizes and MORE! Check out Lily Pad Cards! Looking forward to seeing what they come up with.

Today Lainey had her 4 month check-up, a few weeks late, since she is now almost 21 weeks. She is 14lbs, 3 oz & 24.5" long, in the 50% for both height and weight. I had an older Dr. for her check-up and when he asked how she was sleeping, I told him she still wakes a few times a night. He was funny he said " I know many won't listen but I have always believed that the kitchen closes at 7 and doesn't open again until the morning". I know everyone will sleep better in the end when she learns to sleep through the night! It's just getting there that is going to be hard!

PDCC #74

2011-03-24T12:02:00.000-07:00

This is my card for the Play Date challenge. I love the colors they have for this challenge and already have a few other cards in the works for this. I stamped the Hero Arts Thank you definition in grey, Then I stamped the dragonfly from Lockhart stamps in black and colored with copics BV02, & 04. The flowers are from a clear set from Hero arts are colored with B002 and B04. The image was cut with a spellbinders die and the blue panel was embossed with a PTI die. TFL!

It has been beautiful here, we have a friend coming from MD to visit and I should be cleaning my house! I just want to play outside and stamp! Owen's last day of school is Friday, then he has a week off for Spring Break. He is looking forward to lots of fishing and golfing with his Daddy! Wyatt spent his first day golfing with the boys last week and did really well. After the initial meltdown, he figured out what was going on and now says he needs clubs to go golfing too! His favorite thing about it was the "candle" he got to play with.... the golf tee! Lainey is now on the move, well sort of, she has perfected rolling over. So much so that now when you put her down on the floor she rolls away! I am so not ready for this!

Cherry blossoms

2011-03-23T04:40:00.000-07:00

I love cherry blossoms, this is the first set from flourish that I had to order last year. All of their flower images are gorgeous, but this one I love! When I lived in MD, the cherry blossoms blooming in DC were always a big deal. The row of gorgeous trees all pink and fluffy, signaling that the long cold winter was gone and Spring was indeed here. The image is colored with copic on the x-press blend copic paper. TFL

Green foliage

2011-03-21T13:50:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend getting our garden ready for planting. My DH tilled and tilled and is still tilling today! The boys love helping him break up the roots, and clumps of dirt. They come in dirty from head to toe and tired! I love it! I can't wait to once again be picking tomatoes, peppers and squash! This weekend I will be purchasing my herbs at the annual Herb and Garden Festival, I am so excited! Owen loves helping me pick out the plants, so I am looking forward to some one on one time with him. DH will be watching the two little ones unless he decides to brave the festival with all three kids in tow. Have a great Monday!

distressed carnation

2011-03-18T05:32:00.000-07:00

I had planned to submit this to PTI make it Monday last week when they had the distressed challenge, but things got crazy so it never got there! I stamped the image and colored with my new copic colors. I was very proud of myself and actually did not order a thing for the PTI release this month. I was surprised that there was not a thing I "had to have". However I caught a glimpse of the new Flourishes Lenten Rose set, and that was it, they also have a beautiful spring set. Can't wait to get these to play with! Saturday Owen has his first soccer game, he missed the actual first one since he was sick. It should be a beautiful weekend, we are all looking forward to a fun weekend!

19 Weeks today!

2011-03-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

This card is made using the new big brush pens from Faber-Castill, have I told you how much I love them. I have had marvy markers and used stampin-up ones, but these blow them away. The tip is so nice, flexible, and doesn't seem to show any wear on them. There is a nice array of colors, and I am sure as they become more popular they will create even more color options.

Today, Miss Lainey is 19 weeks old, she is growing so fast! Her new trick is rolling over from back to belly, and she is really good at it now. The only problem is she cannot get herself back, so then she gets really mad. The boys all run to her rescue, the minute she starts to fuss, it is so cute. Wyatt enjoys showing her new toys to discover right now she is obsessed with the tv switcher, and so much so that she doesn't know if she wants to squeal or cry. We still are not right from the time change, I love having extra daylight, but it is tough getting the little ones adjusted. Hoping for some sleep this week : ) Have a wonderful week!

Love this one, she is checking out Owen's face.

Our big girl!