Happy St. Patrick's Day

Being an from an Irish family, St. Patrick's Day is a very special day in our house. We even get presents!! My father created a character similar to the Easter Bunny and Santa Clause that comes on St. Patrick's Day, Michael the Leprechaun. Michael comes and hides little treats around us the house for us to find. Even as adults my brother, sister and I go to my parents house to look for goodies from Michael. That being said, I could let a holiday as important as St. Patrick's Day go by without sending cards to family members. Of course that card had to be hand stamped, I don't really like any of the St. Patrick's Day sets in the catalog so I had to take matters into my own hands.



Wishing everyone a happy St. Patrick's Day!!
Cead Mile Failte

Don't you just love a bargain?

JOIN Stampin' UP! - NEW 3 Easy Payment Plan!


Three Easy Payments Option for the Starter Kit is Here!


Is your Stampin' Up! wish list too long or too expensive? Here is the simple solution to that problem, sign up to be a demonstrator with the 100% customizable starter kit and get up to 40% off all your future orders!!

This economy has everyone thinking about how they can earn extra money for the families. Now is the perfect time to start your own business and Stampin' Up! has just made it affordable. Join my team today and take advantage of this super offer. You will have the freedom to run your own business, create your own hours, and earn money all while doing what you love - Rubber Stamping. It is a great opportunity to share what you love with others and help your family out financially. Did you know you can be a demonstrator and NEVER host a workshop, that's right, you can be your own best customer if you want. Heck, you can be even be your ownly cusotmer if you want.


From today through April 30, 2009, new recruits can take advantage of our Three Easy Payments option for their Starter Kit. If you have considered becoming a demonstrator, but are concerned about being able to pay for the Starter Kit in one up-front payment, worry no more! The Three Easy Payments option is the ideal solution! With just an initial partial payment, you can get your Starter Kit right away and start building your business. Two subsequent monthly payments will take care of the rest.

Now is the time to sign up! With the discounted Sale-A-Bration Starter Kit price and the Three Easy Payments option, you'll have the opportunity to take advantage of two great financial benefits at once. Once Sale-A-Bration is over, you'll still have through April 30 to get the Three Easy Payments option, but why wait?

Please note that this promotion for the Three Easy Payments option is only available to new recruits when the Starter Kit form and other paperwork is mailed to Stampin' Up!. This special offer is NOT available online.If you'd like to take advantage of this special offer of Three Easy Payments for the Starter Kit, please Email me and I'll send the contract and other forms directly to your email.


Payments Breakdown for the Sale-A-Bration Starter Kit Price (March 13-31, 2009)
Starter Kit Payment (Payment Charged*)

Payment 1 (charged at time kit is entered)
$56.34 (+ sales tax)
Payment 2 (charged around April 15th)
$56.33
Payment 3 (charged around May 15th)
$56.33
Total Payment
$169.00 (not bad considering you are getting over $300 worth of merchandise)

*Payments indicated are for the cost of the Starter Kit. They do not include and any applicable state taxes. (Please note that any applicable taxes for the total amount of the Starter Kit, price will be added to the first payment.)

Payments Breakdown for the Regular Starter Kit Price (April 1-30, 2009)
Starter Kit Payment (Payment Charged*)

Payment 1 (charged at time kit is entered)
$66.34 (+ sales tax)

Payment 2 (charged around May 15th)
$66.33

Payment 3 (charged around June 15th)
$66.33

Total Payment
$199.00 (still a great value considering it is over $300 worth of Stampin' Up! merchandise)

*Payments indicated are for the cost of the Starter Kit including shipping. They do not include any applicable state taxes. (Please note that any applicable taxes for the total amount of the Starter Kit price will be added to the first payment.)

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions you might have I will be happy to answer any of your questions or concerns. Stampin' Up! has an amazing support system and training program that can help you to build your business.

I can't wait to hear from you.

In Full Floom

If only Spring weather would come and stay I would be a much happier person. This weather has been a real tease, I am done with winter and over the snow!!

One of the projects we created at card club this month used a stamp set that I would never think about buying, yet every time I see something created with it I admire it. This card is no different.

The scan really doesn't do this card justice, I put dazzling diamonds in the center of several of the flowers. The sentiment on the white oval says "Because Nice Matters"

Now if only the flowers outside would start blooming and the snow melting....

Stampin' Up! a Storm

I have had some catching up to do when it comes to stamping and creating, as a matter of fact I was 3 months behind in my card club swaps. The ladies in the club are so sweet they didn't even care.

I am an avid blog reader and always get great inspiration from other's blogs. My swap card is a direct result of someones blog, I just wish I remember whose so I could give proper credit.

One of the reasons I love this card is there is very little stamping, just tons of Big Shot fun!!

I promise it won't be too long before my next post, I have tons of other swaps and cards to share.

Happy Valentine's Day

Because of the generosity of my friend and upline dawn, i am not the proud owner of the "Define Your Life" stamp set from Stampin' Up! since this stamp set has been on my wish list for awhile, I mounted it and inked it up as soon as I could- on a side note, I am so glad Stampin' Up! has decided to make all stamps die cut, because I had quite a time cutting out all of those great definitions! OK, now back to the original post, I couldn't wait to ink up that set that I decided to make my husband's Valentine's day card with it.

I realize the scan is a little unclear, the words read:
Together: You and Me; lonely no more. With another; inseparable. In harmony; in sync.

While this card looks very simple and creating it was, it has so many elements that are not part of my typical creating comfort zone- ribbons, and brads plus I used a texture plate. I have a feeling I will be creating similar cards in the future, this stamps set has so many different definitions in it, I can't wait to use them all!!

Finally Posting

I know I promised I was going to be a better blogger and I started off the year on fire; however, I have not been able to keep up that pace, not sure why. I have however been on a creative roll, I have gotten more scrapping and card making done in the past few weeks than I think I did all last year. Only maybe not that much, but lots has been accomplished. I realize I haven't posted any of the projects I worked on when I went away with Kimmie last month and I will, I just need to get them photographed.

The other day my sister came over to scrap, she worked on a project she has been working on forever and I got to play a little. She and her husband received this beautiful wedding invitation from her husband's cousin. Kimberly wanted frame the wedding invitation and give it to the bride to be at her shower. I took one look at the amazing invite and knew we had to do more than just frame it. Pulled out some Real Rust and Chocolate Chip card stock along with some Stampin' Up! rub ons and started to play. I am so please with the finished project and hope the bride and groom are too. (Even though the awful picture I took doesn't do it justice)

I have to finish my Valentine's Day cards so I can get those in the mail on time. Once those are completed (by bedtime tomorrow) I will take pictures of all the other stuff I have worked on over the past few weeks and get those posted.

Until then.........

Midnight Madness

Not sure what got in to me today but long about 10:30 I sat down at my craft table (that should read, folding table in between the "dining room" and "living room") and started making stuff. I started with

this cute little bookmark. I saw it on my friend
Stephanie's blog who got it from the super talented Mathilda Making these bookmarks is so easy and quick, it is a great way to turn scraps into a cute little project. Since that project took less than 10 minutes I decided to keep on going. I made a birthday card for my brother, not that the card is going to matter half as much to him as what is in it but that is okay. Since I know he will pay close attention to the inside of the card (of course looking for cold hard cash) I wanted to do something more to the inside of the card that I usually do, so I grabbed my spiral punch to dress it up just a little.... I love the spiral punch and use it every chance I get. Finally I made a card to include in a catalog pack I am sending to a new customer. My favorite thing about this card.... no stamping!! I love to stamp; however, sometimes I enjoy making cards without stamping and this is one of those cards. Of course I used my spiral punch on this card too, because as I said, I love it!!

I had fun creating today, when I sat down at the table I had no idea what I was going to work on or create which is usually very frustrating for me.... not tonight though, I just enjoyed the process and had some fun.

Historical Recap

Watching the historic Inauguration of Barack Obama today made me think about history and all of the things I have been witnessed in my life time. Not all of the events have been good ones, many tragic; however, all of them have impacted our country and world so dramatically making us better people and a stronger nation.

In no particular order, the historic events that happened during my life time…..

1. The Challenger explosion
2. Terrorist Attack on 9-11
3. The Berlin Wall came down
4. Operation Desert Storm
5. Operation Iraqi Freedom
6. Barack Obama became the 44th President
7. Michael Phelps won 8 Gold Medals in the 2008 Olympics
8. Nelson Mandela was freed from Prison
9. OJ Simpson got away with murder (since this is my list, I am entitled to my own opinions)
10. Attack on the USS Cole
11. Death of Pope John Paul II

I am sure there are some I am forgetting, and I can only hope and pray their will be more to come.

Regardless of party affiliation or political beliefs I hope you have found some renewed faith in the country I am proud to call home, the UNITED States of America.

Week 2 already?

Wow I have have been a blogging fool lately, I am very proud of myself. So week 2 of the new year is over and continue to take a photo a day (sometimes I take more than 1- how exciting is that) I have not created any of the layouts that go with those pictures yet but I have created the collages that I am going to scrap-that has to count for something!

Day 4 is the crockpot- D and I have been cooking fools lately, loving the crockpot!!

Day 5 shows how ridiculously warm it was for the beginning of January.


I love being an American and the American Flag and all it represents, I can't begin to tell you how many pictures of the American Flag I have, day 6 is the latest addition to my collection.

Since D and I have been cooking more than ever before, our refigerator has tons of "real food" in it. I don't think it has ever been this full, of course I had to take a picture of it for day 7.

The warm weather on day 5 didn't last long, which is why I had to make that over size cup of hot cocoa with extra marshmallows on day 8.

My boyfriend in brown came on day 9 I just had to take a picture of all the goodies he brought me.

Day 10 found me at the movies seeing "Bride Wars" twice in the past 2 weeks I have gone to the movies and brought snakes home with me- most people sneak food into the theater with them, not me I bring it home and take pictures of it!

Feeling Creative

I have been feeling kind of crafty lately, hope that feeling stays around for awhile, especially since next weekend Kimmie and I are getting together to scrap. Regardless I decided to participate in Kristina Werner's Color Inspiration for the first time. What Kristina does is post a picture weekly, she translates the colors in the photo to Stampin' Up! colors and gives you a few days to create something using those colors. I am not one who likes to be told what to do, nor am I someone who usually participates in challenges; however, in an effort to balance myself a little better, I am trying new things. This is what we were given,


As someone who reads tons of blogs stalks the Splitcoast Gallery, I had a design layout in mind but had no idea what I was actually going to do. I knew I wanted to use some of the new goodies my boyfriend in brown delivered yesterday and that is about all I knew. After playing around for a little while, this is what I came up with.

As usual the scan is not the best, a little crooked but you get the idea. I used the new Rub-ons called Loop-to-Loop for the birthday greeting some DSP from the Holiday Mini- Frosty Day. The layout was a total CASE from The Splitcoast Gallery of course I had to change the colors to comply with the challenge.

This is color inspiration challenge #37 and yet it is the first one I am doing, off to go see what other creations I can come up with based on the other challenges.

1 done 51 more to go.....

Project 365 contines to be in full swing, I am impressed I have kept up with it thus far, afterall it is Jan 7th, usually I lose interest in things like this by now. Again I am not going to say my pictures are impressive but they do document my everyday life.

 

This collage is pictures from Jan 1- Jan 3 (Thursday-Saturday) of course I had to include a picture of the scale to remind myself 2009 is all about Balance. The picture of my laptop and the Facebook game "Fashion Wars" is just because I play the game far too much and spend way too much time on the computer when I should be doing other things. The rest of the pictures were taken at the annual holiday party hosted by my former DM; being at the party and surrounded by people friends reminded me how important work/life balance is. However, getting up and going to work the next day reminded me how of my age, I swear I just can't hang like I used to!

Balance.....

So it has been almost 2 months since I last blogged, not sure it really matters because my blog is not one of those blogs that has millions of followers, afterall I am not the Pioneer Woman! Even though I have not blogged in forever, I am still reading blogs at a great rate most of the blogs I read are scrap related and I forget if it is Ali Edwards or Donna Downey that talks about "having a word" and letting that word become your mantra. Kimmie and I were chatting online the other day and she asked me what my word was, without giving it much thought, I said "balance." I have come to realize how little balance I have in my life. This year I am really going to work on changing that, I am not saying it is my New Year's Resolution because that puts too much pressure on it. Instead I am going to stay it is my focus or 2009. I need to create more balance in my life (work/life balance, more time for friends/family, taking time to do things for me, etc....) one of the ways I am doing that is through Project 365, it is a year commitment to take a picture a day and scrap it. Now the pictures don't have to be anything major and I promise the layouts won't be over the top but it is something that I WILL do. Taking that time every day to snap a quick picture will help me create the balance I am looking for, it will force me to do something I enjoy and take the time for me- not to mention it will help me with my blogging because what better place to track the project than here? I have vowed to keep the entire process simple and today's picture is exactly that simple.... when I think about the word balance I always think of a scale, actually I think of the big scale that is in court rooms to represent the judical system because I don't have one of those in my house and didn't have plans to go to court today (or ever if I can help it) the best I could do was take a picture of my household scale (of course I made sure there were no numbers on it, the last thing I want documented in a photo is my weight) I think when I scrap the photo I may incorporate this blog post.....