Happy New Year Eve!!

I hope everyone is truly enjoying this time of year.
I've been busy with family.
I had the pleasure of going shopping w/the girls & William.
NOT that William truly enjoyed himself,
but I always enjoy his company when shopping.
We managed to get "most" of my living room decor.
We've been in our new house 5-years
& I still don't have it decorated the way I want.
So, I got a gorgeous art piece as a gift
& used that to encourage myself to get things done.
I still have a long way to go,
as our bedroom & the girls rooms are not done,
but at least the main part of the house is complete
& that makes me happy!!

And it seems I'm finding myself doing LOTS of last minute planning.
We decided to "throw" together a Bunko party for tonight,
so I've been cleaning, shopping & prepping food for the gathering.
I wasn't excited at first, but now that I'm finished
& waiting for guests to arrive.........I am!!

I haven't done the first thing scrappy in a couple of weeks,
but I imagine once the girls are back in school,
I'll get back into the swing of things:)

I hope you will reflect on the blessings of this past year
& the blessings of the year to come.
I know I am & will be documenting them in a layout soon.
Happy New Year to you & your family!!

a very Merry Christmas to you!!

To everyone out there in blog-land
to you & your families
I wish you all a very Merry & Blessed Christmas
Enjoy this time with your family
& reflect on the meaning of this wonderful season!!

On the eve of the eve of Christmas Eve?

Huh?
Say what?
Ya............I really don't know either:)
So, I have nothing scrappy to show,
but I have been busy.
This weekend was dear hubby's birthday,
so we celebrated at a local fav restaurant with family.
It was nice & afterwards his family came over for cake.
Sunday we went to church & then out to eat w/my sister.
Afterwards, we took the girls to Krispy Kreme!!
Our local Krispy Kreme was remodeled this past summer
& you can stand & watch the donuts be made.
It is such a treat for them & I continue to forget my camera:(
They also have these new "mini" donuts.........
my advice,
DO NOT get them!!
These little devils are so addicting
& I firmly believe pack more calories then the big ones.
At least you might (notice I said might) stop at 1 big donut,
but the minis......................I'm just saying!!!

Today I finished wrapping gifts!!
We've only 1 more to get
& I'm leaving that for hubby to pick up?
I also baked today, since the girls are w/my parents.
I baked a scrumptious loaf of banana nut bread.
I had to find a new recipe, as the one I had just wasn't good.
LOVE this one & will definitely be making it again soon.
I also baked some chocolate chip walnut cookies.
These are hubby's favorite..............
hoping to brighten his long day:)
And, I have some peanut butter fudge in the fridge.
I'm anxious to try this, as this is a new recipe also.
We're going to attempt fudge also,
but I need to buy a candy thermometer first.
I don't want any reasons for why it didn't turn out!!

Not much else happenin'.
The girls & I will hang at the house this week
& then off to celebrate Christmas with family.
I hope this week finds you in the best of Christmas spirits!!
I'm remembering the miracle of this season
& hoping you are too!!

2Sketches 4 U & a *TOOT*

Hello outside world:)
I hope everyone is truly enjoying this time of year!!
I've been so busy finishing up teacher gifts
& just Christmasy things in general.
I'm feeling pretty tired,
but after school tomorrow,
I'm home-free for a couple of weeks!!

I do have some exciting *TOOTS* to share;
I got a card picked up by Scrapbook Trends,
AND, I got several cards picked up by PaperCrafts
for their Card Creations Volume 7.
Pretty excited about both of these:)

So, here are my final teacher projects.
Another container filled w/my homemade hot chocolate
& a tin of chocolates.

All the gifts have been neatly wrapped,
with other items, in a giftbasket for school tomorrow!

I also had a chance to play with the 2Sketches 4 U Laura sketch.
I love these Basic Grey papers
& wish I had more, but I'm down to scraps!!

Look for this card in the June 2009 issue of CARDS magazine.

I've got Christmas parties for both girls tomorrow
& then nothing planned afterwards,
except maybe a nap:)
I hope you all have a very blessed Thursday!!

Scrapscene Card of the Day

I have another Christmas card posted at Scrapscene.
Here's the link, if you're interested in the full directions.
Otherwise, here's a peak at the card:

I've loved using these MME papers
& realized I don't think I have enough for any layouts now:(
I did get a couple of layouts completed last night.
I'm real happy with them &
will try to get them posted later today.
In the meantime, I've got girls to get dolled-up
for a Christmas photo shoot they don't want to do:)
Have a fabulous weekend everyone &
thanks for stopping by!!

It's Friday!!

Happy Friday everyone:)
I kept my littlest baby home with me all week:)
She was actually well enough for school today,
but how can I resist when she asks to stay home?
She's only in PreK4, so there's plenty of years ahead for school.

Here's a card I made using a December card sketch from So Sketchy.
I've had these papers FOREVER!!
I honestly cannot remember where or when I purchased them,
but finally found the stickers @ HL a couple of weeks ago.
So, I pulled everything together for this card
and love how it turned out.

So what's on your agenda for the weekend?
I'm hoping to get the girls Christmas picture taken.
I've got Christmas cards all made & ready to mail,
but I can't decide if I want to this year?
I hope your weekend is wonderful, whatever your plans!!

another So Sketchy & gift

I'm feeling rather productive lately.
I've been widdling away at making Christmas gifts,
but I honestly have no idea who the recipients will be.
I have 3 school & 2 dance teachers to buy/make for,
but I like to give gifts that I know will be used.
I've just been enjoying making handmade items,
so someone WILL get these:)

Here's a layout I finished a couple days ago.
I used a So Sketchy December layout sketch.
I still feel like it needs something,
but not sure what or where......
maybe I need the journaling:)

Here's another gift.
It's a Maya Road tin filled with Hershey's dark chocolate.
I wrapped each individual piece of chocolate
in the same paper that's wrapped around the tin.
Sorry about the lighting being awful,
but the weather is still yucky.
The paper is a beautiful deep red.

I still have another layout to post
& I'm gonna widdle away at more stuff today,
but I also want to do some more Christmas shopping!!
Decisions, decisions!!

So Sketchy card & a gift

I've been at home with 2 sick kiddos:(
That's not fun, but they've been pretty good,
probably because they're sick!!
The weather has also been ugly,
forcing us to stay indoors,
which is good since everyone is sick!!
So, I've been working on sketches & projects.
This card is using a card sketch from So Sketchy.

First, I used some great Bo Bunny papers
that the wonderful Kristen Swain sent me, as a RAK!!
I also used my Expression & new Graphically Speaking cartridge.
Had a bit of a prob cutting "catch-a-wave,"
but I like how it turned out.
Then, I finally altered a container for some homemade hot chocolate.
I LOVE how this turned out,
but that's because of the colors.

I've also managed to do a couple of layouts,
but with the weather being drab,
I can't get good pics, so they will wait til another day.
Off to wrap some chocolates for a decorative tin:)

2Sketches 4 U - Kazan 15 + bonus sketch

I am honored to have one of my Christmas cards on Scrapscene's blog today.
If you've never visited their blog, well...........you should.
Not just because of my card,
but because they are chock-full-o-information pertaining to the crafty world!!
So, my card is for Day #39 of their "Christmas Card A Day" series,
and here it is:

I used the bonus sketch, at 2Sketches 4 U, by Heidi Van Laar.
It's a simple card, that took approximately 15 mins to make.
I'm simply posting a picture of the card,
but if you want the full instruction, go here.
I also did the current Kazan #15 sketch.
I hope you're not too tired of seeing me use gray.
I love it with just a splash of color.

You can see this card in PaperCrafts Card Creations Volume 7 in 2009

That's all I have for today.
I am hoping to get some layouts done though,
so I might be posting later.

How's your Christmas shopping coming?

CPS 93 & 94

Since I'm feeling more caught-up then ever,
I've been tackling this week's & last week's sketches.
I love doing sketches, I get so much done quicker.
This first card is using last week's CPS 93.
I really love Basic Grey's new chipboard shapes
& the colors in the Urban Prairie are so fun.

And here's my take on the current CPS 94.
Gray is the "in" color this year &I'm lovin' it.
I enjoyed pulling all my gray out from last year
& I can't seem to stop buying gray for my girls' clothing.
Anyway, a simple enough card

That's all I have for now.
I'm pooped..........
2 little girls found their way into our queen-sized bed last night:)
In case you're wondering..................
4 people don't fit in queen-bed very well,
even if 3 of them are little:)

Getting it done........................

Happy Monday everyone:)
I hope your weekend was good?
Mine was & I'm feeling like I can see the end in sight!!
End of what..............you might ask.
You know, all the Christmas rush of
buying, wrapping & making presents,
Christmas pictures & cards,
baking, parties & all that stuff!!
Though I still have some baking,
presents for teachers to finalize,
the girls Christmas photo shoot,
& Christmas cards to mail,
I DO actually feel like I got a lot accomplished this weekend.
Here is another Mr. Jingles I made,
which is a smaller version,
as Ashlyn decided she was keeping my first one.
This one WILL go to my sis in KS & is already shipped!!

These little ornaments are a continuation
of the ones Jenni Bowlin debuted 2-years ago.
I've continued to make some every year for our tree,
and these 2 will go to my sister & sil.

So I'm hoping to get some sketches done this week.
I haven't done any in a couple of weeks & I'm itching to scrap.
I hope your Monday goes well & thanks for stopping by!!

my version of Mr. Jingles

Are you like me & extremely busy right now?
I can't seem to breathe
& I'm starting to stress with everything I want to do.
We still don't have our decorations up yet,
though we do have our tree up:)

So who has seen the lovely Mr. Jingles
the ever-so-talented Mrs. Lisa Pace made?
Isn't it the cutest thing you've ever seen?
I absolutely fell in love with it,
the very moment I saw him.
To have an ounce of her creativity *sigh*
So, I was determined to make one for myself
and I did just that, but I made 2 & plan on more:)
Since I didn't have her paid-for instructions,
I had to "wing-it," but I think it turned out darned cute.
We're calling him Mr. B (for blue) & he's going to my sister in KS.
The last pic shows a beautiful ornament
I picked up 50% off from HL.
I'm thinking I can jazz his collar up a tad more too?

This second one is staying home with me
& we've dubbed HER, Mrs. G, for garnet.
I still have to find a hanging ornament for the bottom
& she'll be complete.

I'm thinking I'll make a couple more, as gifts.
It really doesn't take a long time,
once you figure out how to do everything,
and it's a relatively inexpensive gift
that looks like it cost more than it did:)

Welp, off to bible study
& hopefully get more things accomplished!!