CYS: Superheroes!

Shazam!  Kapow!  Bam! 

Hi friends!

Today is a very special day on my blog ~

It's National Superhero Day!

It's also the day the SCS group Challenge Your Stash (CYS) groupies

post our cards with a theme chosen by the hostess.

This month - it's me!

In January of this year, I chose a "Superhero" theme,

long before I made the connection of the superhero day.

According to some, like Marvel comics, superheroes are fictional ...

but I think there are {super}heroes all around us all the time ♥

They protect, they serve, they teach, they are role models.

I chose this challenge based on a call I heard on the christian radio station

and it just tugged at my heartstrings.

In the call, a dad shared that his wife and mom to their young children

 was in the hospital receiving chemotherapy for an aggressive form of cancer.

Whenever he and their children would visit,

they all wore superhero capes!

 The CYS group is exactly that ~ we have to look into our own stash

of stamps and papers and challenge ourselves to make a card

 with whatever we have on hand.  No new purchases!

I knew instantly that I wanted to use Super Hero Henry from CC Designs ~

bless him, he's been waiting to get inked up and onto a card!

Since my favorite color combo is green/teal,

I kept the colors similar to the package insert.

I also used their sketch from the challenge archives to create the card base.

And SHAZAM!

My superhero card is complete and I absolutely adore it!

Go out into the world today and be a superhero to someone,

in some way ... big or small!

Just put your proverbial (or real!) cape on and make a difference.

Your heart will smile ♥ 

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

Hey Friend!

Hi there, friends!  

Oh, what a week this has been so far and it's only Thursday!

Today is an exciting day ~

 my daughter's last chorus show as she's about to graduate (sniff, sniff!)

Then we zip across town to the Boy Scouts Court of Honor/dinner .... busy day!

Today's card is the fun Progressive Challenge from Gerda Steiner Designs.

Her images are so whimsical and darling, including this cute little bear ♥

Her stamps always make me smile :)

They are so sweet and whimsical! 

Seriously - if there comes a day and time when you can't stamp,

just peek at her store

(or like me, I take mine out and pet them!)

and I guarantee you'll feel better!

We grew up in the military and moved around so often ~

keeping in touch via cards and letters WAS the way to do it 'back then' :)

I loved writing - even as a child - and had my first pen pal in Kindergarten.
A company that sponsored military children, such as myself, with pen pals paired me up with a friend in Malta.  

I remember asking my dad "What's Malta?"  

Out came the globe and then the Encyclopedia Britannica :)

Wow, I'm really dating myself, right?! 

LOL!

Here is my card for the challenge:

Big hugs, Bigger Blessings!
~Kelly

 

Mondays with The Project Bin ~ I'm Home ♥

Happy Monday, friends!

Our weekend was jam-packed with Boy Scout events
 and we spent the entire weekend outdoors at different area happenings.  

  We cleaned up the environment at Miami's Baynanza 2017

 and assisted the South Florida Bromeliad Society's annual show 
at the famous Fairchild Gardens .... which is exquisite! 

But the shocking and exciting news of the weekend was this!

Pick.  my.  jaw.  up.  off.  the.  floor!!! 

I can't tell you the level of surprise I felt seeing that ♥

I am over the moon excited and giggly and humbled and honored and ....
So many of my friends have had the honor and I am overjoyed to join the club!

It's a beautiful thing to see that on my sidebar :)

Today's card is featuring the stamp set Fun is Good

from The Project Bin Stamps. 

I used the When I look at You, I'm Home stamp from the set.

I kept the card more on the CAS side

with the bold sentiment stamped onto the dsp.
  The heart shaped is using the die from the In My Heart stamp set,
and I just love how you can mix and match TPB stamps. 

I decorated the inside as well: 

  

Here are the stamp sets in their entirety:

 

 Thanks for stopping by today!
Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

Mondays with The Project Bin - Love Everybody!

Good Morning!

I hope everyone had a blessed Easter

 and a wonderful celebration of the holy day ♥

 Mondays are Fundays on my blog

as it's Kelly² Monday! :)

Both Kelly's on The Project Bin design team 

have cards to show you today so double the fun!

You may remember this card using the stamp in the Bazinga! set.

I actually made two!

(Due to a hectic week and Easter,

I'm showcasing the second card I made back then.)

Did I mention I LOVE this card!

I do, I do!

The bright colors are just my style,

the hearts are die-cut from a watercolor panel that I'd made,

but what warms my heart the most is the lovely message.

Yes.

Everybody should like everybody.

Thank you, Andy Warhol, for those wise words!

Here is the stamp set and it's available in the store,
as well as many other sentiment stamps for your stamping needs!

 Thanks for stopping by today!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥
~Kelly

DDD: You are my sunshine!

Hello my little rays of sunshine!

I have missed you and blogging/visiting this week ....

I have been enjoying the week long holiday break from schools

and taking some time to tackle things without the school drop offs/pick up interuptions :)

 

Today's card is the first of the new round of the Dueling Darlings Duel ♥

The DDD (Dueling Darling Divas/Dazzlers) is near and dear to my heart

and truly bring sunshine to my life!

I could never have imagined that a simple thought I had

 while laying in bed in the middle of the night - literally!  I jumped up and jotted it down in a notebook so I would not forget it! - would lead to the group

growing in friendships and creations.

And here we are - 7, maybe 8 years later, going strong!

It makes this 'mama' proud! :)

 This month, Jeanette and I are the hostesses 

and our theme is super bright:  You are my sunshine!

I sent team Divas their card kits and included a sweet image

from CC Designs ~ Sunshine little pixie

and a cheerful selection of papers, ribbons and shiny gems.

I'm naturally drawn to really pretty, vivid and bright colors

so the Divas definitely had to squint this month making their cards,

but it just beamed sunshine to me with the color palette and pretty stamp :)

And here is the inside of my card:

You can see what the other Divas created with this same card kit

by peeking on their blogs, listed over on my blog bar to the right →

And to see what the Dazzlers made with the kit Jeanette mailed out,

you can find them there, too!

I wish you a bright, sunshine kind of day!

Big hugs, bigger blessings ♥

~Kelly

DoubleD Challenge - Neon brights!

Mondays with the Project Bin: Simply Pawsome ♥

Happy Monday!

It's Spring Break here and the kids are on a 1 week holiday ....

 wooooooohoooooo!

 Not only do I get to see 'the babies' a little more this week,

but I won't be on the road as much,

 driving to the schools and here and there and everywhere :)

I. am.  one.  happy.  mama!

Mondays are always a fun day on my blog because it's the day

 I post my card for The Project Bin stamps on the DT inspiration blog ♥

I needed a quick and easy thank you card

so I grabbed my Kinda Pawsome stamp and die set.

This stamp set is so fun and so versatile! 

One of my crafty goals this year has been to use up my scraps of dsp ~

so this little piece of plaid paper got to be center stage!

I stamped out the puppy in Stazon black ink 

and then ran it through the Cuttlebug with the matching puppy die.

Propped up on some 3d foam, and a little banner with the matching sentiment 

and some enamel dots and this cheerful thank you card is done √

Here is the stamp/die set that I used:

 

And just a reminder: April is autism awareness month!

 Denise has made a special stamp set, Spencer's Set, 

and it's on sale this month. 

 You can read all about Spencer and the stamp set here :)

Thanks for stopping by!
Big hugs, bigger blessings! 

~Kelly

3M: Grey Skies happy

Hi friends!

Happy National Library Week!

I'm sure you know by now how much I adore books and reading ~

so it's a great joy to celebrate the start of a week that celebrates both ♥

Today's card has an image on it that is new to me ...
 I love the soft, storybook look this has to it :)

It's an image called Grey Skies Happy by Phyllis Harris for Unity Stamp Co.

It was sent to me by Jeanette, 

as she is the hostess of this round of the 3 Musketeers (3M)

 stamped image exchange.

The 3 Musketeers = Barb, Jeanette and I and we take turns each month,

sending out a surprise image and then we all make a card with it.

Jeanette sure sent us a beauty!

This is my take and the card I came up with using

a few scraps of dsp from my bin and cardstock:

Jeanette also sent a sentiment to go along with the image,

but I just couldn't get it to work on the front of the card :/

I'll leave this blank for now and come up with something 

that works with it when the time is right :)

Thank you, Jeanette, for this super sweet image to work with this month.
Barb is up next,
and I have no doubt it will be something wonderful ♥

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly  

I'll enter this to: 
Crafting when we can - animals
Great Impressions - April Showers 
cupcake Inspirations:  #402 ~ photo inspiration

COF: My children are my joy ♥

 

Hello friends!

Wow, blogger has been feeling a little sluggish today!

Me, too ... and after the last bell rings today at school,

it's officially the start of Spring Break! 

*Yay!*

 My card today is a reflection of joy ~

the theme of this month's Crafters of Faith group on Splitcoaststampers.

Our hostess, Jeanette, asked us to create a card 

based on joy, and in whatever way we interpret that:

 Joy is not based on circumstances, but rather comes from within. No matter what is happening in our lives we can have Joy because of our love for the Lord and our hope in Him.

Joy is also one of the fruits of the Spirit…

Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

I have many things that make me happy ...

but there is no greater joy that what I feel for my children ♥

My card is a simple reflection of the love that I have for all of them ~

I was blessed to have 4 beautiful babies 

and they are truly my heart.

 

For those of us that are moms, grandmas, aunties, older siblings, etc ...

 Another thing that brings me joy 

is that I was very blessed to win this mama elephant stamp set

from my new friend, Julianne!

I have swooned over it for a long time and I was alternatively

shocked/excited/humbled to be her chosen winner ♥

I think you'll appreciate one of my favorite sayings ♥♥

 

 

Thank you, Jeanette, for a wonderful joy-filled theme this month.

Sue is up next month to guide us with a challenge theme

and scripture ..... stay tuned!

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

 

Mondays with The Project Bin - Autism Awareness ♥

Good Morning, friends!

April is the start of Autism Awareness Month

and it's my great honor to introduce you to a brand new stamp set

from The Project Bin called Spencer's Set.

Did you know that 1 in 68 children are born with a variation of autism?

And according to the autism society,

 more than 3.5 million Americans currently live with ASD, 

so chances are you are close to someone on the autism spectrum.

This stamp set is lovingly named after sweet Spencer,

the son of Denise (owner/designer for The Project Bin stamps).

It's on sale right now for $8 ~ after April 2017, it will go up to $10.

However,  Denise is generously donating a portion of each sale 

to the Autism Research Institute. 

Here are the two cards I made with Spencer's Set and the In My Heart die,

which matches the heart from Spencer's set perfectly!

Here they are together:

 

Here is another autism awareness fact ~

The puzzle pattern reflects the complexity of the autism spectrum.

 The different colors and shapes represent the diversity of the people

 and families living with the condition.

 The brightness of the ribbon signals hope — hope that through increased awareness of autism, and through early intervention and access to appropriate services/supports, people with autism will lead full lives able to interact with the world on the own terms.

You can meet Spencer here, on TPB inspiration blog

and see other card samples made with this stamp set AND

the In My Heart stamp/die set.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! 

Big hugs, bigger blessings!
~Kelly

CYS: I prayed for you ♥

Hi friends!  

Happy Saturday!

I got in earlier from trail walking with our pups .... 

it's SO hot here in South Florida :(

We didn't last as long as I thought we would - the heat was just unbearable.

  And it's only April!

  

Today's card is one that I made a couple of days ago

for the Challenge Your Stash (CYS) March card.

It's a group of friends on Splitcoaststampers 

where you use everything in your existing stash to create cards with a theme!

No new products are allowed, hence, pulling from what you own :)

Shelly is the hostess this month and 

challenged us to make a card using this theme:

A sympathy theme in honor of her father, the color green, 

and 3 embellishments of our choice.

 

I went with a nontraditional sympathy card,

using this sweet little praying boy Chase from Whipper Snapper Designs. 

I can't remember where the sentiment is from -

it's a small acrylic stamp that fell out of it's set, but it was a perfect fit!

Thanks for stopping by today!
~Kelly