Little Paper Houses

Well, are you all ready for this week? I am slowly getting there. The last big project that I actually felt like I had a deadline for, the kids' teacher gifts, is done. I made 4 houses from the Home Made template. I love these little paper houses. There are some really fun, over-the-top, awesome houses I've seen out there. I definitely kept my decorating to a minimum since I was doing four [And don't mind the off-kilter bows. I was trying to tie the bows by myself while my bow-tying helper was at school.] I think these are such a fun way to package a little goody up. I ran into a major road block this morning on the way to finishing these. The 2 main things in the houses were going to be Denise's lotion (scroll down about 8 posts to #1172) and homemade caramels. I had made my caramels in advance, so they would be perfectly set up by today, so I could wrap them up. This morning I could not find my wax paper anywhere!!! And driving to town from where we live takes too long when you're racing with the clock. I switched gears and went with caramel popcorn, and filled the extra space with hot chocolate mix, peppermint candies, butterscotch candies, andtootsie rolls [the open picture was before I found all the extra candy, so the house looks pretty empty]. The little poem, I include with the lotion, just so they will realize it is definitely not an edible goody! I will definitely be making more of these houses next year! And I hope to be back later in the week with my caramel recipe and caramel popcorn recipe.

Winter Wedding Congratulations

Well, it feels like forever since I sat down to make a card. We were going to my niece's wedding last night and I felt like making a girly wedding card for her. This is what I came up with. I love this big leaf image from Papertrey's Turning A New Leaf. I love that the big leaves can take the stage all by themselves, or share their space with pink flowers, and look terrific either way! The wedding was gorgeous, and my niece and her new husband looked so happy together. I love to see the bride and groom so happy at weddings. It was freezing cold, though. I don't know how people do winter weddings. I was very happy in the heat of June!

Stamps: PTI Turning A New Leaf, SU Botanical Blooms, Congratulations
Ink: PTI Hibiscus Burst, Raspberry Fizz, Spring Moss, True Black
CS: PTI Rustic White, SU Rose Red
Accessories: Martha Stewart Lace Doily Punch, Dew Drops

Corn Flake Cookies

Well, as you can probably tell from my lack of posting, we've hit the really busy time of year. Today I have a recipe card to share with you. Kara, at Kara's Kitchen Creations, is getting ready for the holidays by having a Christmas cookie recipe swap. I have lots of treats that I love to make and to eat around the holidays. I picked this recipe to share, because these cookies bring back so many memories for me. When we were little kids, we lived in the same town as one Grandma but the other one lived out of state. We would go visit at spring break, Thanksgiving and other times throughout the year. But every Christmas, without fail, we would get a box in the mail from my Grandma, filled with treasures and treats. And my favorite thing ever was her corn flake cookies. Just thinking about getting home from school, and seeing the package that my dad picked up from the post office and slid under the tree, makes me smile.

Milk and "Cookies"

December first already! Wow, I can't believe it. I love this time of year and seeing the Christmas lights start to glow, listening to the festive music, and spending time with my family. This is a layout using pictures from Christmas 2007. I love these pictures of the kiddos from that Christmas Eve, and have been trying to make a layout for ages (2 years, to be exact). Finally today, I just sat down, continued to ignore my messy desk, and made this layout. I'm really happy with how it turned out. The story is that we were getting ready to make cookies for Santa. Everyone started talking about all the cookies Santa gets on Christmas Eve, and we decided to leave donuts that year, instead of cookies. It is a really fun memory for me.

Cookie Exchange Party

Maybe it has something to do with the time of year, but it seems like I've read a lot of posts lately about messy desks/craft areas. Mine is worse than it's ever been I think! I wanted to make some little treat boxes for a cookie exchange party I was going to Saturday, but had to keep the stamping extremely minimal, since I was working with a super small area of my desk! My goal has been to clean off my desk for the last week; maybe after laundry and dishes I will finally start on it today.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I don't have any paper project to share. Just a picture of yummy rolls. My mom is such a wonderful baker, and made rolls not just for Thanksgiving, but pretty much any special occasion. I think I was probably 12 years old before I realized that there was such a thing as store bought rolls. I love to make these rolls now for my family, and they love eating them as much as I did as a kid! The rolls, more than turkey or even pumpkin pie, make my Thanksgiving feast complete!

Wherever you are today, I hope you have a wonderful one, and hopefully a chance to spend it with family and/or friends. And spend a few minutes to count your blessings!

Papertrey Ink Blog Hop

Well, it's time for another fun Papertrey Ink blog hop! The challenge this month was to create a quick and inexpensive wrap or tag that could be used for "grab and go" gifts for the holidays. Well, the other night I was quickly trying to make my kids' teacher and bus driver gifts. I thought, "Oh, these will be perfect for the blog hop, too!" Well, I think most people were thinking of Christmas, while I have a Thanksgiving project to share. Oh, well, it's all for fun, right!

These templates go together quickly. And using just a few sheets of cardstock, and part of a sheet of designer paper, these are cheaper than any packaging from the dollar store [my other source for last minute wrapping]. I stamped the "I am thankful for you" stamp, adhered it to a scalloped circle, and was going to find a way to attach it to the outside of the package. The pattern seemed too busy to me, and was competing with the stamped image. So I was just going to save them for another project, when my mom said, "Why don't you glue them on the inside of the package?" She saved the day! I didn't get the greatest picture of these the other night. Then today I found out that my son forgot to give his two teachers their boxes. I was bummed they didn't get their goodies, but excited to at least get a better picture. He brought them to me from his backpack.....totally smashed! Oh, well.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving! I've got my pie ready, hot wings dip ready, deviled eggs cooked but not smashed. I'm ready to put my feet up and get some inspiration. The eggs can wait!

Stamps: PTI Fall Elegance
Ink: PTI Chai, Pure Poppy, True Black
CS: PTI Kraft, Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise
DP: Basic Grey
Accessories: Circle and Scallop Circle Punches

Butterflies for you

Good morning! It's Monday, but it doesn't really feel like it to me. Maybe it's just knowing that there's a holiday this week helps it feel less "Monday-ish." Here is a card I made for a friend, but didn't want to post until I was sure she'd gotten it. I was inspired by this card here. I ordered this butterfly set because I loved the shape of the butterfly, and I haven't used it nearly as much as I thought I would. When I saw that card, I knew I wanted to case it. Using the butterfly 3 times on one card makes me feel better about not using it as often as I thought I would!

Stamps: PTI Life, SU Great Friend
Ink: PTI Hibiscus Burst, Plum Pudding, Summer Sunrise, True Black, Versamark
CS: PTI Plum Pudding, Ripe Avocado
Accessories: PTI Raspberry Fizz Ribbon, Martha Stewart Doily Lace Punch

A notebook and Cinnamon Swirled Apple Bread

Maybe you've noticed lots of cool notebooks popping up in blog-land. Papertrey Ink has a great set to make these little notebooks, and while that set is on my "someday" list, I don't have it yet. But when I saw this great notebook made by Betsy Veldman, I knew I had to make a notebook for my daughter. Well, my next problem, besides not having that stamp set, is that I can't sew. Not at all. It is not on my list of skills. So, I used my digital scrapbooking supplies to get as close as I'm going to get to real stitching. My daughter loved the notebook, and so I considered it a success.

I also have a quick recipe card to share with you today. I love this cinnamon swirled apple bread. I made some for a friend from church the other day, and she requested the recipe. I made a quick recipe card for her. The recipe and instructions are quite long, so it didn't leave much room for any added pizazz. But I like that the background paper makes me think of cinnamon! Also, my recipe is changed somewhat from the original. The original calls for apples not applesauce. When I'm in the mood to make this, I never seem to have apples, so I fiddled to see how I could make it with applesauce instead, which I always have on hand. And the original recipe called for walnuts or pecans, which people in our house are allergic to. So if you'd like the original recipe, visit the link above. I always mix this in my kitchenaid mixer, and it goes together quickly. Even though the instructions are long, it's not a complicated bread to make. If you make it, I hope you like it as much as we do!

Fun news

Well, here is the card to go with my good news. I submitted this card as a Guest Star Stamper entry at Papertrey Ink, and I won for "Best Use of Previous Set." I cannot even tell you how excited I was to find out!!! My family thought I was acting a little crazy, but I was in heaven. Finding out that I won made my whole day. I could not wipe the smile off of my face! So, that is my good news that I was very excited to share!!!

Stamps: PTI Background Basics: Text Style, Friends 'Til The End, Life
Ink: PTI Chai, Dark Chocolate, Enchanted Evening, Plum Pudding, and Ripe Avocado
CS: Rustic Cream, Spring Moss
Accessories: Top Note Die, Scrapper's Floss, Dimensionals

Loving life today

Can I just say that I am loving life today!!! I found out something super fun that I can't wait to post about. But we're headed out the door so I need to keep this short. So I have my fun stamping thing to talk about later; and then to make my day even better, my Bengals beat the Steelers just moments ago. My brother is a huge Steelers fan and has been talking junk all week. Well, last night I made my yummy hot wings dip. This stuff is awesome all year round, but I especially love it during football season. I made this recipe card last year in a recipe swap I was in. I've posted it before, but like I said, it was last year, so most of you have probably not seen it. And I'm loving that my Bengals won, so in honor of my team beating my brother's team, here's a yummy football recipe for you to enjoy (doesn't that little Bengals flag just look great in the back of the truck!!!).

Season of Giving

Well, I woke up to snow in the mountains. I'll admit that I hate the cold that comes in winter, and I'm not very fond of snow....especially driving in it. But it makes everything gorgeous! If I could just stay home every day all winter I'd be okay with snow. I know I've been sharing some Christmas cards lately, and that it's still November, but this is prep-time for Christmas! Today's card is made using one of the Digiments that will be released tomorrow. And, if you're curious as to why I titled my post season of giving...here's why: You can get all 24 Digiments for $8.00. And, if you buy one set, you can receive a second for half-price, to give to a friend! {Now I feel like Bob Barker, but I'm continuing on.} And if that's not enough to entice you, go visit the Digiments blog, leave a comment on any and all of the release posts this week, and you will be entered to win the entire release for free!!! I told you it was the season of giving. If you're looking for more inspiration, visit any of the Design Team members' blogs. They are some talented ladies! You can find links on my left sidebar, or on the Digiments site. But, don't forget that the release is tomorrow, so for a chance to win the goodies, visit today! And if you are a digiment user, I'd love to see what you make with your stuff. It's always fun to see how other people use the same supplies, in different ways. So if you do, visit and leave me a link, I'd love to see what you make!

Stamps: PTI Tree Trimming Trio
Digiment: All The Best (November 2009)

Happy Birthday to my VIP!

I've fallen a little out of the stamping groove, again. I have had ideas for several projects, but they haven't all been turning out how I pictured. So I sat the stamps aside, and I have been working on my scrapbook pages again. This week my daughter is the "VIP" in her class. That means she gets to have the class' stuffed dog Patch come home for the week, she gets to take the Incredible Edible Estimation Jar to school, and she gets to have a little scrapbook page all about her on display all week. Well, today is also her birthday! She's so excited that she is the VIP and birthday girl in the same week! I can't believe that my baby is six! So here is the scrapbook page I made for her to send to school. She loved it, even though she informed me that yellow is really her favorite color now, not pink!

Thank You!

When my son's church teacher found out that our whole family had been sick, she brought us over a huge basket full of goodies. She had stuffed a basket full: soup, goldfish crackers, chex mix, cookies, more cookies, orange juice, oranges, grapefruit, and a card and book for my son. In addition, she gave my daughter a big stuffed dog that is now named "Wolfy." Wolfy has blue eyes just like my daughter and she thought that was so cool. So this is the thank you card I made for his teacher. I really wanted to do something spectacular, so I kept trying to think of some idea that would just be an over-the-top kind of card! I was thinking and thinking about what to do, and finally just went with one of my favorite layouts of all time. I guess CAS is my comfort zone, so instead of trying to make an over-the-top kind of card that would turn out blah, I just did what I felt comfortable with. Yes, I have used this layout a lot, but I've always liked how it turned out. I hope she likes it, because I really want her to know how much our family appreciated her thoughtfulness.

Stamps: SU Botanical Blooms, River City Rubber Works, PTI Background Basics: Text Style
Ink: PTI Hibiscus Burst, Raspberry Fizz, Ripe Avocado, True Black, & Versamark
CS: PTI Spring Moss, Ripe Avocado, Rustic Cream
Accessories: Top Note Die, PTI Sweet Blush Ribbon, Glitter Glue

A Merry Little Christmas

Today's card is made using a Studio G sketch challenge posted on Paper Craft Planet. My son's school class has been practicing for their Christmas program, and he comes home singing Christmas songs almost every day. I am not intentionally trying to skip over Thanksgiving, but I was definitely feeling festive yesterday, so I went with a Christmas card for this sketch. I love the song "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." It's one of my favorite Christmas songs. It's a gorgeous sunny day here, but I guess Christmas will be here in no time, so it's not a bad thing to be getting a little stash of Christmas cards built up.

Stamps: Studio G
Ink: PTI Chamomile, Pure Poppy
CS: PTI Rustic Cream
DP: DCWV
Accessories: Corner Rounder, Ripe Avocado Satin Ribbon