Happy Thanksgiving!

For those that are not celebrating the American tradition - Happy Thursday! I hope that your week has been worry free and you're heading into a spectacular weekend. I personally think that there's always something to be thankful for, even on your worst of days.

Anyway, I'm as fat as a tick right now from all the yummy food that we fixed. We had turkey, green bean casserole, mashed sweet potatoes, cornbread stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin muffins, turtle brownies, and various other goodies. Not a big gathering, as in most houses today - it was me, DH, and our three boys. That's just the right number for me! In spite of my tummy issues, and being busy making a scrumptious meal, I managed to get some crafting in. Thought I'd share one more of the sundae kits...

I've got three more lined up to work on tomorrow...might start on them tonight if I don't feel too lazy. Right now, though, that couch & a small quilt is sounding mighty nice! (LOL) Thanks for stopping in for a peek. Hope you have a great rest of your day!

Sundae Kits

Well, I haven't been feeling well the last couple of days, but I managed to make two out of the fifteen sundae kits that are part of my big Christmas order. I have an abdominal ultrasound scheduled for this afternoon and after that I hope to get two or three more made. The boys are home the rest of the week, and I'm thinking that I can get back into my crafting hard and heavy again by Friday, since Dad will be home to help keep these wild hooligans in line! (ROFL)

Thanks for looking & have a great rest of your day!!

Five down FIFTEEN to go!!

(ROFL) At least I got the tough ones out of the way. Yup, the spa kits are hardest ones to do...it has to do with all the laminating - box, jars, lids. Punches and scissors do NOT like laminate adhesive! OY! But, boy, don't they turn out pretty when they're done?!? These five are going to a sweet lady that works with DH. I'm off to work on her ice cream sundae kits now - pix will post just as soon as I get 'em done.

Thanks for looking & have a great rest of your day!

Who wants blog candy?!?

This has got to be some of the yummiest blog candy that I've ever seen in my life! So much so, that for the first time in my blog surfing history, I actually entered my name & am now singing "I Want Candy!". (ROFL) You've got to go by and check out Passion for Crafts. Don't just grovel for the candy, either - take some time to look around - she's got some great ideas there (the heart out of roses is so elegant & the Christmas tree out of punched hearts is whimsical & cool). Fun stuff there...who knows, if you don't walk away with her blog candy, maybe you'll grab some great ideas for making this year's Christmas cards.

Have a great rest of your day!!

Another recipe swap

These three were for a digital recipe swap that I completed last weekend. All graphics are from Design Queenie, who will soon be a featured artist at PC Crafter (tonight's sketti over there, so I'm hoping....).

This one was for a Christmas cookie/candy swap that we just did at PC Crafter (I should be getting my pretty cards from all the other ladies soon - can't wait!). I used Design Queenie's graphics, cut out & placed on 1/2 sheet (8.5"x5.5") heavy red cardstock, my trusty Xyron, some pop dots (for the oven mitt) and my Sakura Stardust Glitter gel pen (around the oven mitt for some pizzazz).

It was a lot of fun, but it may be my last swap for a little while. I've REALLY got to get this order for the 20 spa & sundae kits filled!

Thanks for looking & have a great rest of your day!!

I WANT this room!!!

If the National economy wasn't totally in the tank right now, I'd be saving up for this, instead of saving for those "no commission days" that DH is currently anticipating right around the corner. THIS is what I want my crafting room (aka the She-cave) to look like. I love how well organized this space is! I love the undercabinet task lights so you can see what you're doing! The worktable space {sigh}! I would make the yellow a bit lighter on the walls, or maybe go with a soft denim/periwinkle blue instead, but...oh, WOW! This room is totally ME!!! I even love that little blue lamp by the window!

(LOL) Actually, the room belongs to this lady, Cindy, co-owner of ScrapnCube. I'm SO jealous of her!

But, hey, I can still dream & make my wish list! Maybe next year I'll buy from Cindy so I have that perfect space to craft...for now, I'll just have to be content with the basics of my relocation project (I'm going back downstairs to my original cave, now that the little one isn't so needy). I miss my 13'x13' space with my white lilac bush right outside the window -- I've been in this 8.5'x10' room upstairs for 6yrs now & everything is so cramped and cluttered (no pix of it...EVER...it's too embarrassing!). I'm ready to take the old room back. My middle son will move up here after I get rid of the "light butter" color on the walls, of course ("Mom, it's too girly!"), my oldest son will stay downstairs in another room (he's in MY room right now), and once I repaint (the tan & green HAVE to go!) and put in a few "get me by" cubbies, that space will be mine again. No more tripping over things stored in the floor...no more packed worktops. No more working in the kitchen at the table (I remember the deal, Babe). I can't wait!!!

The work starts after Thanksgiving, according to DH (now that it's colder and he can't ride the Harley all day, every day, there's time to do stuff around the house - it's the one of the biggest reasons I love winter in Utah). I'll show some before and after pix of the new space...promise!

Have a great rest of your day!!

I'm a Whipper Snapper!

(LOL) Seriously. I got turned onto these by Di the other day. I was looking through one of her posts & saw this darling little snowman (he looked SO familiar to me). I couldn't put my finger on it till I went wandering through the link she provided...it's Shelly Comiskey!! One of my favorite artists over at PC Crafter. I had NO IDEA that they were turning her art into stamps. Check it out!

Here's the stamped image:

And here's the PC Crafter graphic:

How cute is that?!? If you're interested in Shelly's work, check out PC Crafter for the clip art graphics or Whipper Snapper Designs for the stamps.

I also found a stamp designer that fills my love of Holly Hobbie (remember her?). I ADORE Holly! I had her rag dolls, a lunchbox, a tea set...Heck, my first sewing machine was a Holly Hobbie when I was 8 (that sucker really worked, too. I used to make my Barbie's clothes on that thing!). My sister had Heather, so we were always having parties in the backyard on the quilt my great gramma stitched for me with those dolls. Until my sister realized that Mother wanted her to be a girl & not a tomboy...at that point she went to the Ken dolls while I played with Barbie. I got Fashion Plates for Christmas & she got the Monster Makers version (thanks to our late Aunt Paula - Mother wasn't about to spend her money on "something so stupid" for us girls).

Sorry about that...went off on a small tangent there...anyway, I was reading a Craft Critique newsletter that discussed the European stamp makers & their increasing popularity in the States. The stamp designer is Sarah Kay and I'm sure that some of you have heard of her, but she's new to me & I adore her work. You can find her at Stampavie. They're also bringing another PC Crafter artist, Leere' Aldrich, to their stamping collection - I think her Ooh La La graphics line would translate well into stamped images. A bit too contemporary for my tastes, but for those that love the Hanna Stamps, they will adore Leere's work.

That's it for me. I have my youngest son's head cold (thank you, Sweetie) so I'm headin back to bed -- no voice, stuffy noggin, my raw, red nose could rival Rudolph's, & a sore throat that feels like I swallowed sandpaper. Off to make some more hot apple cider & toast! Have a great rest of your day!!

My 7 picks for....

the award that Kat gave me yesterday. The rules were to name 7 things that I love. Check! Did that part yesterday. AND name 7 blogs that I love to visit & post links to them. Geez, there are so many out there that I really enjoy reading & gaining knowledge from on a daily basis. I love the tutorials, and inspiration that so many freely share. (I hope that I've been inspirational to someone...boy, wouldn't that be a blessing?!?) Seven of 'em, huh? All righty, let's do this:

1. Ree at Confessions of a Pioneer Woman - she is my daily "Okie fix" &, man oh man, can this gal tell a story! If you haven't read her "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story," you need to hurry up and fix yourself a cuppa then settle in for a bit. Totally worth your time! Also make sure to check out her cookin section for some killer recipes and tips.

2. AJ at Audrey Jeanne's Expressions - I've been following this lady since she was an artist at DAISIE Company. She's moved over to Aimee Asher Elite during the summer, but her blog...OMGosh, talk about inspiration! She never has an unkind thing to say about anyone or anything, and her unyielding faith has been graciously uplifting to so many of my friends. You've got to check her out!

3. My GF, Jenn, at Just Jenn Designz - she's not a prolific blogger, but when she posts something, it knocks your socks completely off. She has so much talent, that I'm amazed the girl hasn't exploded! (ROFL)

4. Calv at Mishaps in the Making - gotta love his Brittish sense of humour! I came across his blog very recently, but I've been going through his old posts, and all I can say is...WOW!! He definitely qualifies for inspirational. His "fruit inkings" & posted results are an absolute riot!

5. Kristine at Wenchd Grafix - can't leave out the gal that has been my Dork Dancin fix for the last year, now can I? Without her good-natured guidance, I wouldn't be "Da Pimp" and able to do hyperlinks, not to mention that wicked sense of humor that has me hidin my Pepsi to keep from sprayin my monitor when I read her day-to-days!

6. Diana of Stampin with Di - it's because of Di & her quirky sense of humor that I sought out & started purchasing Stampin Up! products. She really can make the most of a simple stamp and you can tell in her posts that she really has FUN doing what she does. She's also turned me into a Whipper Snapper (ROFL) & I'll explain THAT in tomorrow's post!

7. Angie of Chic n' Scratch - the OTHER reason I started purchasing Stampin Up! This lady has to have some of THE BEST video tutorials for papercrafting in the blogging community. I'm constantly amazed and in awe after watching her. She definitely inspires you to grab your supplies & get craftin!

Well, those are my 7. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
Have a great rest of your day!

I've been given an award

Thanks to Kat for this award. I'm supposed to name 7 things that I love...lemme see...
1. My Saviour without whom I couldn't do anything!
2. My Hubby, who works so hard to allow me to stay home (thank you, Hon!)
3. My 3 boys ~ you drive me to distraction some days, but I wouldn't trade a minute of it
4. Friends ~~ my cup runneth over
5. My soon-to-be-relocated She-cave (bwah-ha-ha-ha!)
6. My ability to create in so many different ways (thank You Lord)
7. Having time to create for friends and family

Now I'm supposed to give this to 7 bloggers that I feel are worthy. I have so many that I get a kick out of reading on a daily basis. This may require some thought...I'll have to come back & post this part later.

Have a great rest of your day!

Monday wasn't much better!

OY! I don't dare ask "What's next?"...I may not like the answer! (ROFL) Good grief! I left my middle son at home yesterday afternoon, so I could take my youngest to Kindergarten. Probably should have just stayed home!

I get my little guy settled into class, walk out to my car in the frog-floating rain, get into my car...nothing. No indicator lights, no interior lights, no battery signal. Everything's gone, except for this weird scrolling thing that the odometer's doing. I call AAA (thank goodness for RV Plus, right?) - can't get to me for at least 2hrs. So I call DH & tell him what's going on. He leaves work to come give me a jump (he's comission sales & with the way the economy is right now, leaving is like walking away from money).

While I'm waiting for him to show up, my cell phone rings - it's the furnace guy, he's sitting out in front of my house & wondering if I can let him in. I call my son & tell him to show the guy where the furnace is so he can get started...just as I lose the juice to my phone. DH shows up, we wrestle the cables onto the battery posts (who puts batteries in these cars anyway? Japanese contortionists?!?), get it jumped off, let it run for a bit, then go home. DH drops me to deal with the furnace guy while he runs over to Checker Auto to make sure it's not something hugely expensive, like the alternator or worse.

Furnace guy says system may be on its last leg, but he's got a few things we can try to get us one or two yrs down the road. OK, Skippy, give it a whirl! DH comes home with a new battery & starts replacing it, while furnace guy tries out a relay control box & a gas valve with no success. He thinks that it might be a ceramic-covered pilot switch, but he doesn't have one to put in & test, so he's gonna go pick one up, go to an appointment in Brigham City (1hr north of me), then come back. He says that we'll have heat for the night & he won't leave till we do. Okaaay...well, we still don't have the battery seated in the truck, but the cables are on & the truck runs AND it's time to pick up the kids from school. So I go get them, furnace guy leaves, and DH returns old battery for credit. Get back home & spend an hour standing upside down under the hood of my truck with DH trying to get these anchor posts to hook down the sides of the battery, inside this thermal covering, and UNDER the platform the battery sits on. Every time we get one side locked down, the other side comes up! (grrr!) Finally get it locked down, come inside, get the kids settled with homework, and start supper.

Furnace guy shows up around 615p with the part that he thinks might be the trouble. Spends 2hrs to find out that, no, it's just a 15yr old crappy furnace that's finally died a painful death. So he leaves us with 2 heavy duty space heaters to keep us warm overnight, and today, since 10am, I've had 2 gents here ripping out the old unit and working on installing the new one. They're about 1/3 of the way through the project...it's gonna be a long afternoon. Guess I'm gonna make me & the little one some lunch and try to get a bit of crafting done. When DH gets home, I need to go in search of a new car charger for my cell phone - seems that replacing the battery killed the poor thing. {sigh} Oh, well!

Have a great rest of your day!

What a week!

Sorry I've not been able to pop in like I'd hoped, but this last week has been insane & it doesn't seem to be letting up any time soon.

I finished & mailed off my recipe cards for the swap at PC Crafter (pic to follow sometime this week). Now to work on my digital recipe swap, sock swap, Christmas cards, Christmas gifts, neighbor goodies, Christmas sales order, and a new project that I'm dying to get YOU involved in (it'll be further down the post).

I had my oldest son down sick with a tummy bug on Saturday (UP side - got in a great workout running up & down the stairs all day! LOL) - happy to say that his tummy was calm while I took in my season finale & season premiere of The Doctor (I can't imagine anyone but David Tennant as Doctor Who now, honestly...he's Da Bomb! I heard a rumor recently and now I'm jonesing for the return of Rose!!!); woke up Sunday morning to the furnace blowing cold air (OY!); later in the day my washing machine started making this gawd-awful noise that, I kid you not, sounded like I'd tossed in DH's tool box to clean -- thank goodness for extended warranties! -- I called Sears & the soonest they can come look at it is 21November, so I get to live with it trying to dance out of my wash closet till then; and FINALLY...just as I was getting everything shut down for bed, my middle son decides to start tossing his cookies - he couldn't let his big brother have ALL the attention this weekend, now could he? He was up till 2am & is now laying in his bed waiting for the "fever phase" to pass. He hates apple juice, but it's the only thing they can keep down...we'll try toast later, if he feels brave enough. He keeps fighting me on it, though, and I'm breaking out great-gramma's recipe for honey & vinegar water! (Bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!)

Now for something that I'd like YOU to get involved in. It won't take long, it'll be good for your SOUL, good for your creative side, you've got plenty of time to complete it, AND you'll have the braggin rights to say that you were part of a huge world-wide project. I was "blurfing" (blog+surfing) this morning & after following a link, attached to a link, attached to a link (you know how THAT goes), stumbled into a blog by Dan & came straight here to tell you all about it.

This event is called The Butterfly Project and it's being hosted by the Holocaust Museum in Houston, TX - they're doing an exhibit in 2012 to pay tribute to the 1.5 MILLION children that lost their lives (their latest posting shows that at the end of this summer they have 400,000 butterflies - that's just under 1/3). They do have a few rules: No larger than 8"x 10"; NO GLITTER; two dimensional is preferred; and NO FOOD mediums. Other than that, you're free to do whatever you'd like - stamp, paint, inks, draw, papers, fimo clay, wire, beads, embossing, hand-written poetry...whatever strikes your fancy.

Draw & cut your own butterflies...or if your template-challenged (come on...it's okay to own it...really!), Dan was a darling and has provided TWO butterfly shapes in three different template options -- print & hand-cut, a SVG file for using on the Cricut, & a DXF file for CraftRobo users (I think you Wishbladers can use this one, too...right?). I've included his link (above) so you can grab 'em if you need 'em. Thanks Dan!!

If you're a school teacher, they have a section where you can involve your class and make a wonderful learning experience out of this project (just click the link to the Museum that I've included above for all the information you need).

My grandfather fought in WWII (according to his military papers, he was toe-tagged FIVE DIFFERENT TIMES - guess he wasn't ready to go). This project will be a nice way for me to share his experiences with my boys - he died from Alzheimer's & lung cancer 5 yrs ago - they never got to know him the way I did. It's also reminded me that I need to call Granny & ask her about the book they wrote on the Rainbow Battalion (PaPa's troop) - he had a copy of it that he showed me years ago when I was in High School & I'd love to have a copy of my own...

I have a feeling that until I see the HVAC man later today, I'll be cutting butterflies for this wonderful project. I'll share what I make, and humbly ask that if you decide to participate & own a blog or store website, please post your creations (I'll be happy to post your links if you send 'em to me!) & tell the world about this exhibit.

I'm off to brave a load of blue jeans...better grab my ear plugs! (LOL)
Have a great rest of your Monday!