Oh I am SO in love with this stamp line! I oogle their site all the time - peek here! http://www.elzybells.co.uk/ They are beyond adorable and I have a wishlist a mile long! This weekend, I made this adorable tin for my little Victoria (I added her name to the top, but of course, my camera battery stopped working! Update photo soon!) with this beautiful Elzybell on the front - which looks A LOT like my Victoria ;) I simply covered a lunch tin with vintage Valentine's paper (I chose this since she's my honey bunny!) added ribbon to match, stamped image of Elzybells and a TON of ribbon. She is so happy! And I love how it turned out as well :) These altered tins are so much fun to make - and now dd1 and dd2 are waiting in line for one as well, tee hee! TFL!

It's all about the "K!"

Our lovely Karen, that is! You can check out here talent here! http://loveink.blogspot/com This has been a week of trial, for sure, and I was able to get thru it by putting my mind busy creating and crafting. It sure helped to have her Bad Funny Bunny swap - this sentiment cracks me up! But I do feel sorry for whoever lands this card in her swap - it has 8 layers of cardstock and it's quite heavy (definitely not a 42 center!) Thanks for the chuckles, Kar-bear - love ya!

Photo #2 is a card kit she mailed me - how cool are these! You just grab some adhesive and a stamp of your choice and there you have it! I was in a crunch for a card & this is what I came up with in under 5 minutes. I can see why these are the catchy, new way to go trend in card making!

And last - how bad am I - but hey, it's KAREN Day on my blog! It's her birthday card, lol! (yes, it was October, but I wasn't blogging then, so can I please be excused for my late post? Tee hee!)

So big hugs to Karen & the gals at the sistahood - you make me smile, you make me feel all warm and fuzzy and I'm so blessed to have you lovely gals in my life! ******* Hugs! **********

The "Bad" Guy ;)

And so the obsession continues :) Teehee!

This was my 2nd attempt at a card for the fabulous Ms Gabby's Twilight swap. It's simpler, cleaner, and still personifies TEAM EDWARD!!!!!

I'm okay .... really. LOL! I kept the lace for Bella's wedding dress, and used sparkly paper ;) I couldn't decide what my favorite quote from the book/movie is since there are quite a few, so I chose this one to match the fangs ;)

After this saga, I think we'd all be willing to stick our necks out! Ha ha! TFL - I had a blast with this one :) (and nice to see my book here since I currently have no idea where any of them are - doh!) :)

I've been tagged!

Remember tag in preschool & elementary days? This is the grown-up, fun cyber version! I was tagged by Kadie who was tagged by Lauri and if I read it right, the idea is to find the 6th picture on your computer and tag 6 more people to do the same. I am a newborn blogger ;) so I am sure I won't have 6 bloggers to tag, but here is my best shot. My photo is surprisingly NOT of my kids! We had just returned from a vacation in Europe and I guess all the first pictures are all 2000 from there! BOY, what a shock to look back and see this - it brought me back to such a wonderful place :) (that's my little Chrissy satnding on the bridge in the foreground!) Look at this outskirts of this quaint little village - couldn't you just live here! This was on the way to Cochem and the next 100 pictures or so ARE the castle, etc ...... but this is officially #6. So, Lin and Sarah - tag - you're it!

Goodbye, sweet Lady :(

It is a very difficult time for us as we said goodbye to our precious doggy, Lady, yesterday. She lost her battle to go on and we pray she is now at peace in doggy heaven. We barely made it to the vet and they gave us a small private room to say goodbye as we knew in our hearts there wasn't anything else that could be done for her. My husband and I held her as she took her last breath. I whispered in her ear how much she has been loved and she could go home now - Grampy (my dad) was waiting for her there to welcome her home. He was always so crazy about her - they became fast friends in his time with us. She's such a special dog and was an important part of the family as well ~ we brought her home when our firstborn daughter was just months old so she would have a doggy to grow up with. We would have never imagined that we'd have a few more kids that would grow up with her as well. They are taking it so very, very hard - especially our 4 year old son. I don't know which one of us spent more time crying yesterday and I know this will be a rough week ahead. Our hearts are heavy. My friend Sandy shared with me last night the uplifting thought not to let my heart be heavy with undue grief - lift it up and be with her because God wanted her and set her free. I pray I can use that message to ease the pain and hurt I see when I look into my children's eyes as they know that the journey ahead will be one without her.
Rest is thine, sweet Lady -- you will be forever loved, sweetie!


This was always my favorite picture of her - she looks like she is smiling :*) Last night I was drawn to Psalm 91:1-2 ~ "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust."

Happy SONday :)

Hi friends ~ Happy SONday to you all :) Although my heart is heavy with thoughts of our very sick doggy, I tried to get creative to keep my mind occupied. I thought it would be the perfect time to work on Vee's Christian swap. I used some PP from the giganormous paper pack from DCWV and jazzed it up with some flowers - first run thru the CB and then thru the cricut to shape them. So much work! You'd hardly believe it took hours and hours to make these 7 cards! The extra one I held back to send to my chemo buddy. The flowers and sentiment are 3D raised for added effect.

Now that I see these done, I probably should have sent this to the lovely Ms Kadie for January's swap! :P TFL - blessings to all!

~*~ For a Friend ~*~

Today's card is dedicated to a friend who needs much uplifting and prayer as she's going through an incredibly difficult time. My thoughts and prayers have been with her all along but yesterday my heart was very heavy and saddened. I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve and have a very hard time turning "off" what I feel and knowing someone else that I care about is in pain cuts right through me, too. Card making is incredibly therapeutic! :) So I hope she knows that He will not forsake her and to just hang on with all she's got! ((((( 's )))))) This was a wonderful awakening as well as to how special you all are to me and how I think we were all destined to meet. I think you have all been placed in my life for a very special reason and for that, I'm soo very thankful! *hugs!*

I made this card for a christian swap and tweaked it here a bit for her card ~

I am in love with this DSP and it's my 2nd fave of all SU! papers - at first I wasn't too sure with the blue bayou/navy/kiwi kiss combo but I played off the PP and I think it worked :) Stamp is by Stampendous - Numbers 6:24

Thanks for peekin'!

Mojo {Twilighty!} Monday!

It's Mojo Monday!

This weekend was so fun -- I managed to crank out 19 cards! I was quite a happy stampin', cuttlebuggin', inkin' gal! I'm still rather a "toddler" at card making, lol, and gave it my best shot to make a Twilight card for a card swap. I showed it to the fam and they looked at it and said "hhhmmm", so back to the drawing board! I was really stumped and the deer came to me {vegan vampires, lol!} but they all agreed it looks more Christmasy than Twilighty. The forest scene is all shiny with glitter - though it doesn't show up too well! I'm already in the works for the second one ........ posting soon (tiny hint - think FANGS!) I used one of my favorite movie quotes (have seen it 5 times!) which is "You are my life now." You'd think for a Twi-hard this card would have been a shoe-in, but it's giving me the most trouble ..... well, after Mary's Mardi Gras, ha ha! (loves ya!)

*~* Achieve! *~*

It's 2009! I like to visit OLW website where they encourage you to find the word that describes you and this year I've chosen ACHIEVE! This page was created using PP from Brenda Walton - it's so dreamy! I used these fabulous glittery chipboard letters, sent to me from my lovely pal Jeanette! They are divine and oh so sparkly and were a perfect match! I used my Cricut to cut out 2 types of flowers in various colors & added buttons - the journaling card was added after, but not visible here ;)

There are many words that describe me, or what I hope to do this year, but this one seems to be the most fitting when I think of where I am in my life and what I hope to accomplish ..... weight loss, a healthier happy inner and outer being, a way to manage the obstacles placed in my path, and a blissful year ahead! *** Happy 2009!! ***

Mama's Got a brand new bag!

Hello! Sending tropical, sunshine greetings from me to you from my brand new blog! Not a clue what I'm doing, but here we go! ;) This beautiful photo is from the beach very near to our home. I have been blessed to meet so many creative, crafting and incredibly talented friends along this journey and after oooohing and ahhhing over their fantastic blogs, I decided to take the plunge, too! Grab some Starbucks, put down your ink, grab a chair and hang on for the ride! :) (and hold my hand, please? LOLOL!) Love ya!

I have to give a shout-out to dh: my very best friend, my soul mate and my inspiration to open my eyes to all the beauty this world has to give. He reminds me that every day is a new chance, a new beginning and to laugh! I'm also so very lucky that he supports my habit, I mean, hobby of crafting! Tee hee!

I hope to post often & keep you updated on the things I attempt to make - in between schools, the kid's activities, mountains of homework and school projects, *gourmet* dinners to prepare, haha, and chit-chatting on the phone & computer with my lovely friends & family. Thanks for stopping by and remember: Make every day a memory! Live each day to the absolute fullest and do it with a smile! Hugs!