Shellebrate the Season!

Being the beach lover that I am......I knew I had to have this set when I saw it in the new catalog. Just ADORABLE!

I am always behind on the latest things too. So for inspiration I FINALLY tried Kristina Werner's inspiration #20. (I am wayyyyy behind!)http://kwernerdesign.com/blog/2008/08/color-inspiration-20.html

I love this color combo and immediately pulled out my Shellebrate set! Here is what I came up with! I used all the colors and added some Creamy Caramel for the sand (Chocolate Chip was tooooo dark!) I used my new Big Shot and the Top Note Big Bigz die from Stampin Up!

They are in the Holiday Mini Catalog. It starts on October 1st, but customers can start to order the Big Shot and dies on September 2nd!

ps.....sorry for the horrible photos! Had to take them at night!

Rock on!

First off, I did not come up with this idea by on my own! I went on SCS and did a search for masculine cards. I needed to make a b-day card for my BIL. This idea came up and I flipped!!! He plays guitar in a band so I knew it was perfect! Now mind you, the wood grain paper I used isn't quite what you'd find on a guitar but it was what I had on hand. So I free handed the card while looking at the one online. Not perfect, but the idea is there. The hole in the center is gold and black CS punched with circle punches. The strip is black with gold brads and SU's old gold cord. The pick was just free handed after printing the words out onto CS. I sure hope he likes it!

Godzilla the Moth

Ok....first off....let me say that YES, I am a night owl. I like to stay up late and sleep in. This is why this post is after 2am!

I went upstairs to wash my face and brush my teeth. Washed my face, and turned around to grab the towel to dry my face. Thank God my eyes were open!!! Godzilla the Moth was on my towel!!!! First and foremost, I DON'T LIKE BUGS! Well, maybe a dragonfly or ladybug, but that's about it. So I scream when I see Godzilla and jump back. Grab some TP (that's toilet paper for those of you who don't know), and very very gently, pull back the folds of the towel where I know Godzilla is. He/She sees the TP and flies away. Where did Godzilla go? I slam the bathroom door as I see it fly around. Don't want it to escape to the bedroom to attack me while I sleep!!! Now I can't find Godzilla. I turn my make up mirror on and turn off the bathroom light. I know moths are drawn to light and I am set with my TP and ready to pounce! No Godzilla.....turn bathroom light back on. Start to scan the room in search of the elusive Godzilla. AHA! There it is on my towel again! Seems to be drawn to my green bath towel. Make a grab for it. It escapes and flies up to my vanity light fixture. Soooooooooo.....I stand up on my vanity stool. Now mind you, this is a round stool that spins......do you see where this is going?????? As I try to grab Godzilla, I spin around and miss! Missing falling and breaking my neck I get down off the stool. Godzilla has eluded me again! I scan the room again.........don't see it. Then all of a sudden it is IN MY FACE!

It is taunting me! Knows I don't like it, and it's taunting me! So now I am flailing my arms and spinning around as it makes several passes at me. (Glad my blinds are closed cause I know my neighbors will think I have surely lost my mind!) In my swatting efforts I think I have wounded Godzilla. He/she is now crawling up my hair dryer cord. I grab it and try to get it in the toilet. It escapes once more, but not for long! Down in the toilet finally!!! I don't like bugs! And I especially don't want a moth in my room where my yarn stash is! I should have taken a picture of Godzilla before I flushed...................but he/she was huge!

Bali Breeze Stamp Camp

I am finally showing what the girls made at my Bali Breeze Stamp Camp on the 17th! (this project was designed by Andrea Walford) I hope the girls had fun!

Mother Nature

I don't have what you would call a garden, but I do have some plants and bushes here and there. One of my favorites is the Butterfly Bush. I could sit on my patio all day and watch the butterflies and bees come in to find their nectar. The flowers on the bush aren't huge but look at this close up! I am amazed at God's hand in creating these works of art! Close up of the Butterfly Bush flower. Feeding time! Such a beautiful color! This is a Hyacinth Bean vine. We planted a few seeds along the fence and they go crazy! They will bloom with flowers, that turn to pods and we will then have more seeds to harvest!

Mike & Ike

This is the size of the tank I got. The black thing on the back of the tank is the snail.

This is Mike. He loves to float and sometimes I have to tap the tank to see if he's alive!

Ike is on the bottom of the tank, while Mike is posing for the photo shoot!

I got these little frogs for Connor back in May. They are Dwarf African Clawed Frogs. What I love about them is I have yet had to clean the tank!!! The tank came with two frogs and a snail, and the snail is what keeps the tank clean. They are fun to watch and no maintenance other than feeding and adding some bottled water from time to time. Highly recommend them! (no affiliation!)

Here is a link where you can read about them. http://www.aquababies.com/aquababies_aquaruim_care.htm

Pedi-Toes

A new item in my Etsy Shop! Can make any size or color for your custom pair!

Pretty Little Dress

I can't remember where I got the template for this, so if it was you, please let me know! I printed it out onto cardstock and forgot to save the template!

No stamping on this at all. Just Bella Rose DSP, Pirouette Pink CS, Crystal Effects, and Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Glue Dots, and one of the new buttons! The stitch in the middle of the button is done with the White Gel pen!

Fun in the Sun!

Just wanted to share a few photos of our time at the beach. We rent a small cottage every year, for Mike, Connor and I. Well this year, quite a bit of my family ended up coming down and stayed at various places. But everyone ended up on our beach. (sorry Fern!) Connor, and his cousin Garrett having a blast in the ocean! Cousins, cousins, everywhere!!!!! Landon loves the sand! The view down the beach in Fenwick Island. The end of a wonderful week at the beach! Connor & cousins Garrett & Meghan

Never Before Seen Stamp Promotion!

From August 11 through September 30, Stampin’ Up! is providing never-before-seen savings on brand-new stamp sets: 15% off select new, die-cut stamp sets from the Fall-Winter 2008 Idea Book & Catalog--no additional purchase necessary. You will be able to view the new catalog online! http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Never_Before_Seen_US.pdf

Back from Vacation!

We went to Fenwick Island, DE for our vacation and are home now. I will post some photos as soon as I can get the wash done!!!! Jeez! So much prep before you go away, and then all the mess to put away when you get home! I need a butler and a maid! Got some great news while away too! As a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, we can enter monthly contests and win stamp sets. So I submitted a card for SU's 20th birthday and won! Can you believe it!!!! I get to pick any three stamp sets! So I am planning on sitting down with the new catalog and try to decide! I will submit a photo here as soon as I can. Silly me forgot to take a picture of it before I mailed it, but was told they would email me a photo. If you go down my blog some, it is very similar to the one I made for my niece!

Coming soon ....from Stampin' Up!

I am sooooo excited about this! I am a big fan of die cuts and embossing folders and am happy to share that Stampin' Up! will be coming out with a Big Shot and exclusive die cuts! Click HERE to see a Sneak Peek! Get ready for a great new catalog! Or book a workshop now so I can demo this great product to you and your friends!!!

The Ants go marching one by one......

The ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah The ants go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah The ants go marching one by one, ...and the traps get each and everyone! HURRAH, HURRAH!!!!! This last month we have had ant issues. And talking to others in my stamping world, it is a problem everywhere. A few ants here and there would never bother me before. Then the other day I went to the cabinet to get the Pam to make Connor's french toast......and I saw this!!!!! This is my powdered sugar shaker. I took off the top and was sooo grossed out! And as I poured the sugar in the sink, I could see that this was their little home! They had burrowed all the way through!!!!! Can you say GROSSSSSSSSS! So off I went to my knitting group and then to Walmart for some supplies! I bought a few different traps to see what would work the best! These worked the best!!!! They crawl up into the little slit you cut to get to the bait! And they either die in there or when they come out! This is inside my cabinet! I had to take everything out and then put a few traps in there. Will be cleaning this up and then putting a few more down to see how many more there are!