For my sweet dd :*)

A few weeks ago, my dd1 tried out for a magnet high school for voice ~ I slipped this little card into her portfolio. It was a grueling audition, and the fact that she had a raging fever & was sicker than a dog didn't help, but they had a terrible policy of no cancellations, period! She did her best, and I am so very proud of her. We won't find out if she's accepted or not til mid-March, but she said as she sat in the auditorium, leafing through her file book, she smiled huge when she saw this card I snuck in :) She's always going to be a star to be and superbly egg-stra special! :)

Good Luck!

My dd wanted to stamp with me, and being a hands-on, jump on in kinda mom, I scooted on over and let her make a card for her friend who is moving away. I know her heart is heavy as I moved often as a child/teen & saw her working hard to make it just right - I love how she chose the 6 rainbow colors, matching rainbow PP & we were laughing through-out my renditions of who Roy-G-Biv is, LOL!! At least she didn't attempt to hand sew each button on - oye! :)

Miss Anya Birthday :)

For a dear friend's birthday, I created this card using lots of greens and aquas and was so excited at the arrival of my new Miss Anyas - of course she had to grace the front of the card! I LOVE these stamps!! I chose this Miss Anya since the tulips in her basket reminded me of the rows and rows of tulip's in my lovely friend's avi ;) So Happy Birthday to the wonderful, Kadie!

*For a Friend* :)

I just love this stamp love - and any chance I get to make a special card with one is a good day! :) On the Skinny Bop, Mary asked us to make a motivational card for our "buddy" and I chose this one - she just seems so happy and cheerful, right down to her lil cherry boots! The DSP is from a glitter stack called Citrus which has the yummiest glitter papers ... I chose the ones that looked summery, cheerful, happy (do dsp's look happy?! LOL!) I hope she likes it! One day I hope to sit down with her and she can teach me how to make her wonderful bows - she's phenomenal at it! This was a real joy to make it for her! *Hugs!*

<3 ** I'm giving away BLOG CANDY!!! ** <3

It's my 1 month Blog-a-versary!! YAY!! Hard to believe I jumped into this whole 'nother world of blogging a month ago! I have been blessed by new friendships and strengthened the old!

So here's the catch!!! Up for ONE LUCKY WINNER will win this plethora of goodies, including a brand new SOTM Paper Pretties stamp! Glitter mat stack, lovely ribbons, brads & more!

What do you have to do to WIN?! Just guess! That's right - guess HOW MANY JELLY BEANS are in that jar! And I know - tee hee - my dd and I counted EACH BEAN! (Skinny Boppers will be pleased to know I didn't sneak a single one!)

Post a comment to my blog on your # guess and if you post a link to your own blog to help spread the word, you will be entered a 2nd time for a chance to win! (please note: JellyBeans are not part of the blog candy - no pun intended! - I fear they wouldn't survive the trip!)

Let the guessing begin!!

One lucky winner will be chosen at random on February 28th, PM.

GOOD LUCK!!!

Cheer up, sunshine :)

I sooo love Magnolia and the Tildas but they hardly ever get the chance to come out and play.

This card I made for Karen - OH HOW SHE LOVES SUNFLOWERS!!! LOL! Just kidding! (small joke - she actually strongly dislikes them!)

I made this as a cheer up card for a buddy going through chemo and having a rough time. It's simple, plain, but the inside sentiment is strong and faith-filled. Give Him your troubles, He will lift your burdens!

Made with my treasured Kiwi Kiss & Pink Piro from SU - ran thru the Cuttlebug and the dsp is also from SU - Ribbon is PTI's Sweet Blush. TFL and remember, stay strong & keep the faith!

My first Anya!

Another stamp line that I'm going gaga over! I ordered this lovely Rock Star Anya for a card swap and fell instantly in love - the way they look, they way they stamp, how versatile she is! I made this card for a friend's birthday and couldn't figure out where the sentiment was going to go ~ I used SU! Chocolate chip, Bazzill teal & some yummy dsp from DCWV. The bling doesn't show very well but it's adorned on the card and in her hair ;)

I hope my friend likes her card as much as I did making it for her - *muah!* TFL!

Dog Gone 'it! ;)

Meet Max! These are the cutest new stamps from Dog Gone Stamps (you can see them here: http://www.doggonestamps.com/ ). I had a hard time chosing just one, but I wanted to give one a try as I adore puppy stamps! I chose Max and I see a lot of cards in the future. Today's card made from Bazzill CS and PTI white CS is for the DGStamps Sketch for this week at PaperCraftPlanet. Instead of a trio of flowers, I added a trio of hand-sketched bones, which seeing them here now I realize they are too big - but it was fun coloring & playing with Max! TFL!

<3 Happy Valentine's Day! <3

Happy Valentine's Day! This gorgeous assortment of roses landed at my door not too long ago while dh & I were busy cleaning up and fixing up the construction disaster - I mean work!! - in room #2! There I was, dust all in my hair, mask on my face, expecting it to be a friend or family and a delivery man looking quite bewildered at my attire ...... he says "you must be Kelly?!" (LOL, Nope, I only work here! ::: grin :::) Such a surprise! My dh was chuckling knowing they'd be arriving when he could have easily delivered them to me himself! I guess that was the *surprise!* part :) He's such a splendid man in so many ways and this was just a wonderful example of how our crazy life is -- kids all super sick, major construction going on, job woes yet he still takes the time to tell me how much he loves me! And the colors of this bouquet are amazing! The brightest of yellows and red and pink - like my very own sunset bursting out at me. *Muah!* (won't share his "joke" on the card, lol - something about christening the new rooms - doh!!) And hopefully no one from the SCS Skinny Bop will notice the box of chocolates that came with it - ooops! I'm sure my kids will take it out in no time, so I'm safe, lol!

Take the time today to remind those around you that you love them -- each day is a special one and whether it be just a hug, a handmade card, or a phone call to say hello ..... today's the perfect day! *HUGS!*

My poor Chrissy :(

No official cards to post for today -- my stamps & DSPs are collecting dust! My house has been completely under siege from that super flu. One kid after the other, dropping like bowling pins! I so appreciate all the prayers for my darling, Christina. She has been thru the wringer - all my kids have. In my 14 years of being a mom, I have NEVER seen it this bad - no matter how much I clean, wash, scrub, lysol and bleach every single thing, it just attacked with a vengeance! But this lil girl took it the hardest and sitting in the ER, I realized how absolutely terrifying life can be in just a blink of a an eye. Let's hope it goes away and stays away - we are SO DONE, lol. Here is my sweet babe so you can see who you have been praying for and we thank you for thinking good thoughts for my Chrissy! (btw, no make up allowed in this house! She was 11 and on her way to her 5th grade dance, so it was the rare exception from a watchful daddy! LOL!)

And with 3 nearly teenage daughters to be ....... who is he kidding?!! :)~

** How lucky am I! **

Imagine my utmost surprise to receive THIS amazing memorial memory box from the most wonderful & kind and treasured friend, Lauri from Paperville (http://chickenicity.blogspot.com/ ) I had no idea what the box was when I saw it on my doorstep and opened it to find the sweetest memorial dedicated to our doggy, Lady - sniff, sniff! ** crying happy tears! ** It was the kindest gesture and soo very unexpected - and I am blown away that a friend would take the time to create such a piece of Heart/art for me in her busy schedule, working, being a Dt, etc! How sweet the world is when one hand reaches out in kindness to another and I would love nothing more than to meet her IRL (we met on SCS in her fabulous swap!) Be blessed today by those around you and I am blessed tenfold and feel so very lucky to have a friend like Lauri :*) Now look at this wonderful memory to Lady! I know just the spot (no pun intened, sweet Lady!) that it will go in so we'll see her every day. Thank you, Lauri! Your kindness knows no bounds and I will keep this close to heart forever and ever and ever! Love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Comedy Hour! ;)

Here are some tickle the funny bones cards that I whipped up for a humor card swap ;) I was happy that I got to ink up two stamps that, um, had never seen ink before Poor Hanna was looking too "Cullen" here, and will be colored in with a nice shade of peach very soon ~ waiting on my order of replacement prisma markers to arrive that apparently got lost in the shuffle of packing up the craft room! Doh!
I was thinking - I have one Hanna, one Bella ........ would this be a Hannabelle? Or a Bellhan?
HAHA!
Not so funny, I bought a stamp from RCRW that says "we have been through a lot together ... and most of it was your fault!" and it turned out to be HUGE - nearly the size of a bella, so rather than add it to the inside, I ended up computer imaging the same stamp. Totally no fair, but the bella worked out so 1 out of 2 it is. Bella says "My husband told me if I'm gone one more night stamping, he'd leave me. I'll miss him!" Is she sassy or what?! :) TFL!

No card today but snazzy bookmark! :)

Today is manic Monday for sure! Although I stamped my heart out this weekend, no actual card today. Dh insisted I see the construction and demo every 10 minutes with a "Come look at this!" and having one crew guy staring at me strangely every time he passed my craft table {turns out he thought I was a cartoonist, lol! I blame THAT on the Bellas - they do look, well, odd if you don't know who/what they are - yeah? Amen anyone?!}

So ..... in honor of February being my turn to chose/host the BOTM for my book club, this is the one I'm pouring through. After the kidnapping and murder of his young daughter :(, a man sets out to meet God in a log cabin - a shack - and rebuild his shattered life through encouraging leaps of faith and personal challenges. It's a tough read with a sensitive subject matter, one that I usually shy away from, but I was drawn to this book ~ It's also a man's journey into triumph after tradedy, healing after the hurt. As the Internet Monk's review states: "he is wonderfully passionate about the love of God". No debates from me. I like the book, plain and simple and it's a FICTION novel -- not the bible, but a book that is simply inspiring and brings you closer to Him through such a unique perspective.

And of course, my really cool bookmark from the lovely Miss Mary from the Skinny Bop Swap to mark my pages along the way - how cute is this!!!!! I wanna cupcake. :)

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'!