Blessed Our We...

Who have great friends indeed!

Happy Monday everyone!!!!

I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. Ours was hectic but hectic at home so that made it really nice! I had such a great spa day on Friday and was treated to a facial and dinner and then lots of girl talk time! Awesome!!!! Then the rest of the weekend was spent working on the house. I am happy to report that both of our bathrooms are near completion and the fence is about 75 percent power washed! I am so so happy to have those tasks done!

Izzy was ecstatic this weekend that Jason was home. She kept running around the house and giving tons of hugs to Jason. Last night she was doing her swimming dance (which by the way is very close to her pee pee dance) when Jason mentioned he was going outside to swim. It was so cute!!! She loves the water, but she is pretty smart seeing as how she only got her lower legs wet. (The pool was freezing!!!!)

Well today is Monday and that means it is Little Paper Shop Sketch Monday!!!! We have another great sketch for you this week drawn up by the lovely Allison!!! And if that weren't enough, one lucky winner will be selected from those who participate to win TWO FREE DIGITAL IMAGES!!!!!!!! Too Too fun!!!

Sketch

Card

I don't know what my deal is lately but I am really trying to step out of the box and create more sentiment cards. I have always been so afraid to do that (seeing as how I love to color) but I think I am slowly getting better and better at it! I think it has to do with the fact that I have had some amazing sentiment sets to work with!!!!! Anywhoo, I started this card by first layering on green and pink card stock along with DP from Stampin' Up and placed them according to the sketch. I then cut out the vines and flowers from my DP and adhered them onto my card face with pop dots. For the sentiment I stamped this beautiful phrase from {Garden Gate} by Little Paper Shop on pink paper and cut it out. I placed it in the corner and added my two brads to the side, letting my flower hang over the top. I just love this set for thank you notes and thinking of you cards! The phrases are so beautiful and sentimental!

Now it is time to check out the rest of the amazing DT's creations and don't forget that if you would like to participate, simply leave a comment on the LPS blog linking your creation and add the keyword LPSC23 when uploading to SCS or PCP

• Julia Betemps
• Allison Fillo
• Bonnie Sharp
• Cindy Haffner
• Heather Lee-Reppen
• Jennifer Greco
• Jessica Diedrich
  
• Julie Lacey
• Mel McCarthy
• Sarah Green
• Silvia Mabie

Thanks everyone for stopping by! Smiles!

Some Whimsical Dreams and Some Congratulations!

Happy Friday everyone!

Well today Jason has off and we are probably going to be working on some stuff around the house. This evening though I get to have a facial and get taken out to dinner by my wonderful friend Tracy!!! I am so, so excited! I can hardly wait!

Tracy actually came over yesterday and of course Izzy was uber excited! She just loves hanging out with her and making her read books. In fact she enjoyed it so much that she wouldn't even say goodnight to me! She just went right up to Tracy, kissed and hugged her and than ran off to bed! Man I couldn't believe it! Talk about making me feel like second choice! LOL!

Today is going to be all about The Greeting Farm I have decided! Why you ask, because this Sunday is Marie's big day!!!!!! I am so, so excited for her! She is such an amazing person and I can hardly wait to see her pictures! That being said, the Club Anya girls and The Greeting Farm Horticulturalists decided to give her some warm wishes. You can check them all out on the Club Anya Blog. But here is mine to tied you over until you get there!


I have to say this was my first attempt at the whole black and white thing and I definitely have a long way to go, but I was pretty pleased with the results. I mean how could you not be when you have the absolutely adorable Cake Topper set to work with!!!!! Anywhoo, I started this card by first stamping the bride and groom from Cake Topper by The Greeting Farm on white card stock and colored them in using my copics. Following last week's Friday Sketchers challenge, I layered on black and white card stock along with paper from GCD. I finished off my card by cutting out some hearts using my nestabilites, embossed it with my damask embossing folder and added some flowers! I hope she likes it!!!

Now for my second project for today, I wanted to create a little gift to go with my Whimsical Wishes card I created the other day. From the moment I saw the set I thought it would be fun to create a little jar that you could drop your wishes into. And here it is!



I hope Jess likes it!!! I simply took a dollar jar from Michaels and layered on brown and pink card stock along with some DP from SEI. I stamped the sentiment from Butterfly Wishes by the Greeting Farm on white card stock and cut it out using my nesties. To complete the jar, I added some ghost butterflies, bella baubles and some butterflies I punched out with my Martha Stewart punches. So fun and feminine!

Thanks for stopping by today! I would like to leave you today with one of my favorite toasts! Here's to you Marie!

May the most that you wish for,
Be the least that you receive!

Cheers!!!!!

Kick Me With Your Best Shot!

Happy Wednesday everyone!!!

Hope your week is going well! Izzy and I had another day of relaxing around the house. Izzy played with her toys while I crafted! It was so much fun! And she was too, too cute with her phone yesterday. All day long she was pretending to make phone calls and I would hear, "Hello, yadda yadda, yadda, blah, blah, blah!" It was too funny! And one time she actually picked up the phone and said, "Hello Tracy! How bout that Tracy?" It was so funny!

Well I won't keep you in suspense any longer! As you can tell by my title, Today is the day for Soccer Ian to be released over at The Greeting Farm!!!! I am so so excited! I am in love with his hair!!! So I tried something new with him and am somewhat pleased with the results! I present to you, Soccer Ian!


Seriously, this is exactly what my hair looked like when I was in Kindergarten!!!! LOL! Maybe I should try to dig out an old picture to show you! Anywhoo, but don't you love, love, love him! He is too cute for words!!! I started my card out by first printing off Soccer Ian (That's right he is digital!!!!) from The Greeting Farm on white card stock and colored him in using my copics. I tried to do African American skin tones, but I am not completely satisfied with the results. Oh well, the best thing is to practice, practice, practice! Following a Mojo Monday sketch, I layered on green, brown and orange card stock along with DP from Little Yellow Bicycle and The Paper Company. I used my nesties to cut out the squares and the ovals and finished my card off by adding some ribbon and three brads in the corner.

Now it is time to go and check out the rest of the amazing DT's creations!

• Jacquie Peifer
• Jessica Diedrich, Club VP/DT Coordinator
• Joni Wilson, Guest Designer
• Kristine Moldenhauer Biseth
• Traci Porter

And don't forget the amazing Blog Hop starting at 9 a.m. CST today over at The Greeting Farm Blog!!!! There is going to be lots of prizes and tons of fun!!!! And definitely make sure you pick up the brand new Butterfly Wishes set which was designed by our amazing leader Jessica!!!!!

Smiles everyone!

Butterfly Wishes Do Come True!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

My Twinkling Tuesday post is up and can be found here.

Well, yesterday, I officially did a whole bunch of nothing and it felt amazing! It was so good to just sit and read and relax. I haven't done that in ages! And the best part is Jason has Friday off so we will get to see him and have him for an extra long weekend.

Izzy has been glad to be at home as well. I laid her down for her nap this afternoon and she sang to herself for at least 45 minutes. I think she is just enjoying being in her own bed again. She has also been picking on Tuxy. Basically making up for all the time she was gone. Poor Tuxy, he is never safe! LOL!

Today I have some very, very exciting news to share with you. I have been truly blessed in my life to have such a great family and wonderful friendships. They are always so supportive of all that I do and encourage me along the way. That is why it is so exciting to be able to do the same in return. My amazing friend Jessica has a brand new stamp set coming out tomorrow at The Greeting Farm! I can hardly contain my excitement for her! I know this has been a dream of hers for a long time and I am so honored to have even a slight part in this! Without further ado I would like to show you Butterfly Wishes!


Is this set not incredible!!!! I love the beautiful sayings and the filigrees with butterflies that are included! I know I will definitely be using this set a ton! Anywhoo, I started this card by first stamping the sentiment and filigrees from Butterfly Wishes by The Greeting Farm on white card stock in pink and brown ink. Using my nesties, I cut out the sentiments and layered on brown and pink card stock along with DP from SEI. (I mean if you know Jessica you know that she adores pink and brown!) I then added some ghost butterflies and some pink bella baubles to finish the look off. An amazing sentiment for a great friend!

Want to WIN this set? Leave a comment on Jessica's blog telling her what you like best about the set or what the first thing that came to your mind was when you saw it! She'd love to hear from you!

Want another chance to win? Multiple entries will be accepted for this Blog Candy contest! All you have to do is post to your own blog about Jessica's brand new set through The Greeting Farm, come back to Jessica's blog and leave her another comment letting her know you did, and you'll get another entry into the contest!

There will be lots of ways to WIN THIS SET throughout the week, both on Jessica's blog and The Greeting Farm, so good luck and have a whimsical day!

Lots of Smiles and I am so proud of you Jessica!!!!!!!!!

It's Always a Good Time To Read a Book!

Happy Monday everyone!

Well I am officially exhausted! We just got back from Jason's family reunion yesterday. It was such a great trip hanging out with family and kicking back! We did lots of great things with the kids, but boy was it hot!!!!! The temps were close to 100 everyday and the humidity had to be in the 1000% range! LOL! But it was worth it all to see everyone!

That being said, I have a quick post for you today. Since it is Monday, that means it is Little Paper Shop Monday! I have a fun little gift idea to share with you and a sketch challenge I will be posting later today!

First up is my gift idea which is a simple paperback book cover. I have to admit, I love to read romance novels but sometimes the covers are a little risque, so what better way to hide it than a book cover!


Don't you just love Jena sitting on this book! She is so sweet and cute!!! The apple though sends me over the edge!!! Any hoo, I started this project by making a book cover out of card stock, cardboard and ribbon. If you would like to know the instructions, simply e-mail me and I will forward them. For the cover, I started off by printing {Jena Book} by Little Paper Shop on white card stock and colored her in using my copics. Next I layered on brown, pink and orange card stock along with DP from American crafts. To finish my card off, I added a brown ribbon and three buttons to the top. I actually gave this to my mother-in-law and she loved it! I am so happy!

And for our contest this week we have another great sketch....and we'd love for you to play along! Remember to leave a comment on today's post at the LPS Blog and also use keyword LPSC22 if you're uploading to SCS or PCP :)

The prize this week? Well, since we are ALL about the cupcakes this week at LPS, you can WIN Katie Cupcake! One random winner will be selected from the entries of this week's challenge....good luck!

Thanks everyone for stopping by! Lots of Smiles!

Stamps For a Cause

Happy Monday everyone!

I have some very special yet sad news to share with you today. Some of you may know Alica Weiman from our stamping community and her blog Happy Stampin! Over a week ago, her sweet little boy, Ethan, lost his battle with cancer. I can't imagine the emotional tole this family must be going through. To lose a child is one of the hardest things a family would ever have to go through and I pray for them daily. The only comfort is that I know that God has welcomed this sweet little boy into his loving arms. If you would like to find out more about this remarkable little boy, you can visit his website here and his mother's site here.

To honor Ethan and to help out in this difficult time, Melissa from Pink Cat Studio has created a set of digital stamps inorder to help raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This donation will be made in honor of little Ethan. Here is the set that you will be purchasing.

Pink Cat Studio is releasing these new digital stamps today to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation in honor of Ethan Weiman. Little Ethan passed away on July 12th from Neuroblastoma cancer. Ethan was a true cowboy and loved horses, balloons and Knock Knock jokes. By purchasing these digital stamps you will help brighten the day of a sick child as the money we raise will go toward making one of their dreams come true.

Please visit http://www.pinkcatstudio.com/Stamps/WeimanWranglers/WeimanWranglers.htm to purchase these digital stamps and help the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Thanks for stopping by today! Lots of smiles and hugs!

We Honor Fathers at Little Paper Shop!

Happy Monday everyone!!!

...PLEASE scroll down for my second post today, as we have a very special donation drive going on over at Pink Cat Studio...

Well this week has been incredibly busy! Not only did my wonderful friend Jess come to visit me with her sweet daughters, but we also went into town this past weekend for my nephew's birthday, father-in-law's birthday and for father's day! Wow, try saying that three times real fast! It was a crazy weekend but a good one. Izzy had the best time. She got to play outside at the park and visit with all her grandparents. But I think we are raising a little southern belle! On Saturday, Jason told her that he had to go to the park with Uncle Ryan and Papa to set up the party. His exact words were, "I'm going to help set up the park, honey. I will see you later!" Well that was all it took. Now she ends all sentences with the word honey. She told Jason last night, "Daddy, I want to ride in the silver car, honey!" And earlier in the day she said, "I want milk, honey!" Completely ridiculous!

Since today is Monday that means it is Little Paper Shop Monday and boy do we have an exciting challenge for you today! It is a sketch challenge and you know how much I like my sketches! And since yesterday was Father's Day, I decided to use the sketch to create a father's day card.


Isn't this an amazing sketch! Gotta love the three brads and the criss crossing shapes! And how amazing is this sentiment! As soon as I saw it I knew I had to have it! It is just so sweet and moving! Anywhoo, I started this card by first stamping the sentiment and the word "Father" from {Bound By The Heart} by Little Paper Shop on white card stock in brown tuxedo ink and bordering blue. Following this week's sketch, I flipped it on it's side, I layered on blue, orange and brown card stock along with DP from We R Memory Keepers. I created the texture on my blue card stock using by argyle embossing folder and my nesties to give my text some shape. I then added my brown ribbon, a bow and the three brads to complete the look. I gave this card to my father-in-law yesterday and he seemed to really enjoy it!

Now it is time to go off and check out the rest of the DT's amazing creations!

• Julia Betemps
• Allison Fillo
• Bonnie Sharp
• Cindy Haffner
• Heather Lee-Reppen
• Jennifer Greco
• Jessica Diedrich
  
• Jessie Rone-Guest Designer April-June
• Julie Lacey
• Mel McCarthy
• Sarah Green
• Silvia Mabie

Ready to play along?!! You'll have all week to play and the chance to WIN TWO FREE DIGITAL IMAGES from Little Paper Shop! Just leave a comment over on the LPS blog linking your creation and when you upload to SCS or PCP, use keyword LPSC22.

And don't forget Katie Cupcake and Garden Gate are on sale for ONE MORE DAY! Through today ONLY, Katie Cupcake and Garden Gate are 10% off, so if you haven't had the chance yet, head over to the website and pick them up!

Thanks everyone for stopping by today! Don't forget to scroll down! Smiles!