Circle Journal-Travel

This Circle Journal is on travel. I decided to do mine on the South West. The caption reads:

"So many people want to travel to distant lands to see something new. But, they don't have to go that far. We have it all here in our own country. Here are some pictures of places that I have visited in the South West. They are: The Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Mesa Verde, Sedona, Santa Fe, and Durango"

The paper is from CTMH and is called "Rustic Trail". I wanted to do a quick and easy layout so that I could get it done as quickly as possible. So I did the exact same layout as in the Imagine Book.

Childrens Birthday Cards

Lexi seems to have a birthday party to go to every weekend. The thing that parents are doing now, is inviting the whole class. That's why there are so many parties to go to. Here are a couple of cards that I made.

This one is made using a transparent "Penny Black" stamp. The balloons have "Diamond Glaze" on them to give them a shiny look. The pink balloon has a pop dot behind it. I used scalloped scissors to cut out the white mat. And, I used the "Swiss Dot" folder from Cuttlebug on the pink cardstock. The patterned paper is from DCWV and the Cardstock is from CTMH.
This card is made from all CTMH products. I made a little pocket behind the car for the tab to pull out. The stamp set is "Flyin High" and the paper is "Rough and Tumble".

Cosmobella Birthday Card

Jennifer asked me if I would make a card for her friend Jessica whose birthday is today. The stamp and sentiment are both from Stampingbella. She was colored with Copic Markers. The paper and button are CTMH and the flower is from Prima flowers.

Thank you card for Jackie

I am so behind in my postings, but here is what I have worked on this week. This is a Thank-You card that I made for Jackie and Steve. They had us over for a BBQ last Sunday, and totally out did themselves. We had the best time and did not want to go home. Jackie loves fairies, and I knew that she would love this card. The fairy is "Eloise" and she is from Stampingbella. I used my Copic Markers to color her. The paper and charm are CTMH. And the scallop was made using my Nestabilities.

Babies Circle Journal

These pages for the Circle Journal were very emotional for me to complete. The caption on the lower left page reads:
Time goes by so quickly. I sit here looking at these pictures and wondering where the time went. The best things in life cannot be seen or heard, but felt. My life was made complete by my children’s love. And, life got even better with a grandaughter. There is nothing more wonderful than watching your baby’s baby be born. And, holding that beautiful new life.

The caption on the top right page reads:

There is a garden in every childhood. An enchanted place where colors are brighter. The air softer. And the morning more fragant than ever again.

The paper and stamps are all CTMH.

Bella Sketch Challenge #30

What a lazy day this is for me. The weather is kind of grey outside and I don't feel much like doing anything except for playing. This is my fourth day off in a row and I think I'm ready to go back to work. Here is a card that I made for the Bella sketch challenge. This is Scissorbella. The paper is a retired pack from CTMH. The stamp is Total Chic and is also CTMH. I am going to give this card to my hair dresser when I see her on Friday. I bought this stamp set months ago to make her a card and just never got a round to it.

Yosemite

Sorry I haven't posted anything all weekend. Bill and I went to Yosemite. We drove up early Friday morning and came home Saturday night. We had the best time. The weather was a little cool and drizzly, but with the right clothes it was just perfect. On Saturday we hiked to Yosemite Falls. There is an upper and a lower fall. The word that I used to describe them was Majestic". The falls were so lound that your couldn't hear anything else around. On Saturday morning, I got up very early and went on a two mile hike to Mirror Lake. There was nobody around. Just me and the sweet sounds of the birds singing. It was so peaceful. When I got there, I sat on a rock and enjoyed the beauty around me. I was able to call Bill on his cell phone and he came to meet me. We and saw a young buck and he was not afraid of us.Afterwards we walked along the raging creek and it started to rain. So we headed back to our Cottage at the Ahwanee Hotel. Once, in our room, it felt so good to dry off in front of the fire that we got going in our fireplace.

We later visited Bridal Veil Falls and then headed home.

Baby Kitties

I just got my new Cat's Pajamas Stamps in the mail and couldn't wait to try them out. It so happens that my friend Angie just got two black baby kitties. They are so little, that she has to go home on her lunch break and feed them with a bottle. She also has to get up in the middle of the night to feed them. She is getting tired of it, but I told her that it won't last for long. So enjoy it. I decided to make this card with two kitties and give it to her. Her kitties are boys, and I like pink. I don't think they will know the difference. I used to put bows in Sandy's and Jessie's hair and they are boys. The only one who cared was Bill. The dogs loved it, because they got lot's of attention.

Favorite Animals Circle Journal

I belong to a Circle Journal Group at work. If you don't know what that is, I will tell you. In this group, each member has her own scrapbook and decides on a theme for it. This one is of your favorite animals. Each book gets passed around to all 12 members of the group. At the end of the year you get your book back and get to look at the pages that each person has created. I can't wait to see mine. My theme is called "Lazy Days of Summer". I have to remember which ones that I have left to do. Here is the list: Ten Favorite Things(done), Flowers of the Heart, My Favorite Things(done), Art,Where do you find it in your life?, Babies, Travel, Pets/Animals(done), How do you spend your free time?(done), Favorite Recipies(done), Faith (done)

Another Graduation Card

It is definitely the season. I have to get this card out quickly because the Graduation is this weekend. This was a pretty simple card to make. Not as fancy as I would have liked it to be, but then do guys really care about fancy??? I think it's more about what's inside.

Bella Sketch Challenge 29

I just love these sketches over at SCS's because they give me inspiration to design a card. And they are always available at just a click of the mouse. I am planning to give this card to my dear friend Jackie's lovely daughter, Katie. Her school colors are Black and Gold. I made the tassel using Emboidery Floss and attached it with a brad. The stamps used are from Stampingbella-Diplomabella and Great Impressions. The paper is all from DCCWV: The Summer Matstack, The High School Mat, The Grade School Mat.

Fabby Card

Isn't she just the cutest!!! I made this card using Fabby for a friend of mine who is a school teacher. She is getting burned out and this is probably how she is going to feel on the last day of school. Fabby is from Stampingbella, the paper is DCWV Grade School Stack.

Gift Basket

My friend Leslie is trying to raise money for a walk that she plans to do with "Relay for Life". She asked some friends from work if they would help her out by donating a gift basket to be raffeled off. I put together a Close to my Heart Scrapbook Basket. I had so much fun putting this together. Inside is a package of Level 2 Boom-Di-Ada Paper, and the coordinating stickers, a Cottage Floral stamp set, a 2.5 x 2.5 acrylic block, a garden green stamp pad, a hollyhock stamp pad, craft buttons, brads, ricrac ribbon, tombo adhesive and an idea book. Hope the raffle goes well for her.

Sunday's workshop

Today turned out to be a very relaxing and enjoyable day for me. I had Amy and her mother over for my Boom-Di-Ada workshop. They are both seasoned scrapbookers and were able to do the layouts with very little assistance. For the first time at a workshop, I was able to do a layout. And, be a part of the fun. I saw this layout on Sparkle's blog and fell in love with it. This paper is also from the Boom-Di-Ada paper pack. I hadn't scrapbooked Lexi's pumpkin patch pictures and this layout worked so well for them. This is how I like to scrapbook. I cannot go in chronological order. It takes all of the fun out of it. I love to create a layout and then find the pictures to go with it. Thanks for the idea Sparks.

My Boom-di-ada Worshop

Today was my Boom-Di-Ada Workshop. Fran and Jackie came over. I don't know what happened to Nikki and Yvette. Tomorrow I have Amy and her mother coming over. It worked out to have a small group, because Fran had to bring two year old Melanie. And, you know toddlers, they can only last so long. I did half of Fran's layouts and she did the other half. She was very greatful. Jackie brought the pictures from her daughter's Senior Ball and put them into her layouts. I wish that I had taken pictures, because they turned out so beautiful. Here is a picture of Fran and Jackie in my "scrap room" AKA "Dining Room". And, then a picture of me and Jackie (my BFF) :)

Lexi and Pappa

Here is a picture of Lexi and her Pappa in the pool yesterday trying to keep cool. And, trying to keep me cool...notice the squirt guns???

The Heat is On

This week has been a hot one. Each day has gotten hotter than the last. And, guess what? Next week it's suppose to get cool. I just can't figure this weather out. Here are some pictures of Jennifer, Ryan and Lexi enjoying the "hot" weather. Or should I say, trying to.

Look what my Bella Sister sent me

I just love my Bella Sister. Her name is Rhonda and she lives all the way on the other side of the Country in West Virginia. She is a school teacher and a Stampin Up Consultant. We talk almost every day and she sends me the prettiest cards with the nicest notes in them. Today I came home to a package with my name on it. And, you know how much I love packages. Inside, was an assortment of brads, photo clips, flowers and ribbon. All in my favorite colors. And, as usual she made me one of her beautiful cards. She is so talented. Thank you Rhonda.

Take Flight Birthday Card

My father's birthday is coming up this weekend and I made this card for him. It is always so difficult to "buy" cards for him because we don't have one of those relationships that are described in all of the Hallmark cards. You know the ones that I am talking about. The ones that say "you were such a wonderful father...always there for me, etc." My card says Happy Birthday on the inside. He loves those mushy cards, but I just can't do it. In my opinion, what better card can you give a parent than a "home made" one? This card is made with the CTMH stamp set "Take Flight". The paper is "A guy thing". And the colors are Barn Red, Desert Sand, Cocoa, and New England Ivy. I colored in the image with Prisma Colored Pencils and went over it with mineral spirits.

Bella Sketch Challenge #28

Surprisingly, today wasn't so bad for a Monday. I have been forcing myself to go to bed by 10:00 on Sunday nights so that I can survive Monday. It is so hard for me to go to bed early, because I just want the weekend to last a little bit longer. The benefit of going to bed early is that I am not too tired to make a Bella card. And today is Bella Sketch Monday. Yippee!!! I decided to make a card for my friend Leslie for her birthday. She loves Hawaii. So, I had to make a card using Hulabella. The paper is from Stamping Up. A friend of mine gave it to me about a year ago, and as I was digging through my stash of paper I came across it. The colors are so perfect. As I was making this card, mentally, I took myself to Maui and remembered the colors that I saw. Hawaii is one of the most beautiful places on earth. I hope you can all see it some day. And here is a little bit of the Aloha spirit.

Happy Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day to all of you mom's out there. Whether you are with family, friends or by yourself, I hope you are all having a wonderful and blessed day. Today Bill, Jennifer, Lexi and I went to Carmel-by-the-Sea for the day. We had a delicious lunch at my favorite restaurant Casanovas. After lunch we went down to the beach and Lexi played in the sand with her sand toys. The weather was a little chilly, but fortunately we brought our jackets. One of my favorite things to do is to walk up and down the tree lined streets and look at all of the charming homes. None of them have addresses. They all have names. Jennifer had fun shopping and once Lexi conked out, we went over to the Hogs Breath Inn where we kicked back and had a crisp glass of white wine. Now that I am home I am ready to go to bed.

Bella Sketch Challenge #27

I am running a little behind on my Bella Sketch Challenge. Come Monday morning there will be a new one. This one uses "Huggy Bellas". The paper, flower, ribbon and button are all CTMH. The sentiment is from Stampingbella. I have reconnected with another friend from high school and I am going to send her this card.

Boom-Di-Ada Layouts

I have finally finished the layouts that we will be doing for the May 17/18 workshop using the Boom-Di-Ada paper pack. The stamp sets are Cottage Floral and Be True. The layout on the top left uses a 5x7 and the one to the right of it uses an 8x10 that has been cut down. The two on the bottom both use 5x7's. Smaller pictures may be sustituted if you prefer to use more pictures on your layout. Click on the picture to see a larger view.

Mother's Day Card from Lexi

With Mother's Day fastly approaching, Lexi needed the perfect card for Momma. She woke up early this morning, and we went downstairs and made it. Lexi was able to do most of the work. She needed a little help cutting around the flowers. I held the card, and with the tip of the scissors she was able to cut little notches around the flowers. She couldn't wait to give it to Momma. So, she ran up stairs, flung open the floor and yelled "wake up, wake up." The stamp sets used are Cottage Floral and Simple Beauty. The paper is Boom-Di-Ada.

More to Adore Layout

I haven't posted anything in a couple of days and have lots of layouts that I would love to share. Since it is almost Mother's Day, here is the layout that I did last year. This one was done with the "More to Adore" paper pack and stickers. We celebrated Mother's Day in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Since it was so wonderful, I have decided that this must become a tradition. If you have never been to Carmel, you must go. The town is charming, the sea is dark blue and the sand is white. I will share pictures when we go this Sunday. But, for now here is a little glimpse of Carmel. We had lunch at an adorable restaurant called "Casanovas".

Boom-Di-Ada Layout

I finally finished the layout that we will be doing at my upcoming workshop. I am really enjoying making layouts using large pictures. This layout is from Imagine and is called "Role Play". I love this paper so much and really wanted to do this layout. I was thinking to myself, "Hmm. I don't have any pictures that will work". Then I remembered these pictures that were taken last month. I was telling my son-in-law that I didn't think that I have any pictures for this layout. And, with rather large eyes, he looked at me and said, "Your computer says that you have 21,000 pictures ". Too funny.

It's one of those "Brown Paper Packages" days

I just love it when I come home from a long day at work to find packages waiting for me. Today I had three waiting for me!!!! The first one that I opened was from Gina K Designs. She sends me my Copic Markers. If you have never tried these markers and love to color, they are a must have. I love them because they go on like paint. Each month she sends me six different markers. The reason that she does this is, because of the price. I originally signed up with her to receive six markers a month for six months, but couldn't wait. So I ordered another set. The nice thing about Copic Markers is that they come in different shades. I purchased the full set of A Ciao Markers and she sends me the D set of Ciao markers. I will use them tonight when I do my Bella Challenge at Splitcoast Stampers. The second package that I opened was from Cut At Home. They sent me my Nestabilities. These are so hard to find, because they are in high demand. I had to wait two months to get the scalloped circles! Now I have the scalloped rectangles. Scallops are really in now, and they make the best designs on cards. I can put the die cut stencil through my Cuttlebug with paper and it will come out cut in a scalloped shape and with an embossed scallop edge. The third package was, of course, from Close to My Heart. I ordered some things from older catalogs that I had been putting off ordering. I ordered the "Route 66" Paper pack. I think I am going to use it with Bella in her Corvette. My original plans with it are to scrapbook Lexi's school picture with the Primary colors in the pack. I also ordered the "School Zone" stickers to use on my layout. A few other things in my box were a sentiment stamp to use with my cards and a font CD and lastly some Summer Craft Buttons. I have a lot to keep me busy for a while. At least until my next purchase.

Look what Sparkle sent me

I received this adorable card from Sparkle last week. I just haven't had time to post it. This is Eloise and she is from the stampingbella line of stamps. Not only is Sparkle a bellaholic like me but she is a CTMH Consultant and is one of the most talented artists on the boards. Check out her blog. It is listed under "blogs that inspire me". Thank you so much Sparkle.

Accordian Album

On April 13, I had a group of friends over to make this adorable accordion style photo album. It was time consuming but not difficult to make. My 12 year old niece Nikki had so much fun making hers. Each of the little pockets have tags with pictures attached to them.