Happy Memorial Day!

I don’t care what the calendar says, for me, today marks the first day of summer!
I love the summer: the blue skies, the gentle breezes, the smell of chlorine from the pools (I know…I have issues), the cook-outs, the late nights, and – well, you get the idea. What does summertime mean to me? One word: outside!

So, I made this card at a Technique Tuesdays class a little while ago with a friend of mine in mind, but I never really got around to getting it to her. I had it out on my work table with the sole idea that if I kept looking at it, then I will be motivated to write something and send it off to her. No luck (sorry – you know who you are – the time has passed for me to send this off to you, so you will just have to enjoy it this way). But, the more I saw it the more I realized that summer was coming and, hence, the thoughts I already mentioned.

Anyway…so, Happy (unofficial) Summer to everyone…have a blast!

Recipe: (all Technique Tuesdays products; I don’t know the fancy names for everything…sorry) Craft, Green, Brown, and White cardstock, craft blue ink, classic brown and green ink, cloud template, owl/branch/leaves clear stamps, and copic markers (several colors).

Just because I care!

Four words with tremendous meaning. I don’t remember from where I got this card (a swap, or my sister, or a friend…it is blank inside), but I came across it as I was doing some spring cleaning and that sentiment hit me pretty hard: just because I care.

I suppose I am not the greatest when it comes to accepting sentiment or support, but I know that there have been several people who have tried to offer it to me lately and have not been received as well as they deserve. To them, I deeply apologize and am truly sorry. It is difficult sometimes to see weakness in yourself; if you are like me, then you try to ignore it (or revert to the little boy mentality, “rub some dirt on it and it will be fine”) for as long as you can until it become impossible to do so and then you are left in a place even worse than before.

Just because I care.
Not because I am going to want something from you later; not because I think I owe it to you; not because I feel sorry for you; not because I am nosy; not because I feel like others need to see me making an effort; not because I think that I am “supposed to”; not because I am trying to “fix it”; not because I think I know what you mean; not because I (fill in the blank)…. Just because I care.

Thanks to all of you (you know who you are).

A little of this and a little of that…

I made this card in my stamp club a little ways back (and then left it in my folder so I forgot all about it until I looked in there again) and think it is just adorable. It has a little bit of everything in it, but they all work so well together.

The pattern paper helps to tie in all the colors, the saffron adds a bit of pop, the glitter on the flower tag brings some sparkle and the matting helps to make it all polished. I think it is great and super fun (both to make and to admire afterwards).

Thanks Sharon!

A package for me

I recently got another package from my sister, Rachel, in the mail filled with various goodies. When I got home one day my husband said, “You got something from your sister – it feels like she sent you a brick.” And he was right; it weighed a ton (thanks goodness for those flat-rate boxes).

She made me a set of four coasters; they had the medallion motif on them in brown. I thought they turn out great…what a neat way to customize coasters (made from inexpensive tiles). She also included a card holder (recipe card, note card, or…in this case…greeting card) using a flower motif in brown and a clothes pin. How creative. She also included two different thank you cards…you can never have enough thank you cards.

I have to veere off course for a moment…I kind of hooked my sister on this amazing tree stamp. So much so that she just had to get it herself. I love it, but I am not taking full responsibility for this…I am partially blaming it on Sharon (yup…you, Sharon) who was instrumental in getting me hooked on it in the first place. We made a card at our stamp club using it and I was hooked. So, I suppose it Rachel’s turn to “pass along the hooking” to someone new…I think she is up to it.

I love getting packages in the mail (well, honestly I love getting anything in the mail that is not junk mail), especially when they are so much fun….

Thanks Rach.

Happy Mother’s Day!

...just two weeks late.

I am going to be serious for a moment (I know, it is a little out of the ordinary for me).
This day helps me to realize that I have been so blessed in my life: I have a wonderful mother, an amazing mother-in-law, and so many other women willing to lend a mother’s ear, shoulder, or smile to help me out. I hope all of you know how much you mean to me and how much I treasure you.

Thank you all for everything.



Recipe: Echoes of Kindness, Well Scripted, and Watercolor Mini stamp sets, Soft Suede, Craft, and Whisper White cardstock, Certainly Celery Designer Series Paper, Soft Suede, Certainly Celery, Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, and Rose Red classic ink, Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink, and Rose Red Stampin’ Write Markers, Elegant Bouquet embossing folder, ½” circle, corner rounder, and wide oval punches, ½” double-sided Soft Suede and ¼” Grosgrain Certainly Celery ribbon, large white grommet, sponges, dimensional spots, sticky strip, my own fingers (for tearing), and lots of patience.