"Where's Michele??..."

Hi, my loyal friends and readers... I have been contemplating writing this post for some time but have put it off for so long because, quite simply, I don't want to write it! You have all seen my posts dwindle down to almost nothing. I feel a tremendous amount of guilt for that because I WANT to give you more. I WANT to continue to inspire you. I WANT to share with you how fabulous I think the Stampin' Up! products are... (and they really ARE fabulous - just wait til you see the Holiday Mini that goes live on September 1st!) ...and quite honestly, I thrive on all the wonderful compliments you shower me with!!

...but the bittersweet truth is that I just can't. I can't keep up the pace I set while I was in Texas. I love it here in Colorado and we're enjoying more family time together than we EVER have. Just LOOK at this beauty!! I made my own postcard from a photo I took a week ago on our way up to Mt. Evans.

In addition, I no longer have a room dedicated solely to stamping and paper crafting like I used to. I have a corner downstairs for all of my precious supplies, and I get down there to drool over them every chance I get, but those chances are fewer and farther between.

Many of you also know that tomorrow, August 24th, I will begin homeschooling our boys. It is my full intention to shower them with every ounce of energy I have in order to make their remaining school years the best that they can possibly be. In the evenings when I do have time for me, I plan to stamp some and I will always show you what I have made. But I won't (and haven't for awhile) stamp every day... I also like to sew, quilt, read, and spend time with my incredibly handsome husband. Therefore, stamping will have to take its rightful place among this list.

I just wanted to give all of you an explanation as to why I've been scarce these days. Please note that I will not be giving up my demonstratorship - I love it too much! So please continue to ask me questions, place orders through me or my website, and share your love of stamping with me... the best way to reach me is through e-mail.

In closing, let me just reiterate that I'm LOVING it here in Colorado - there's no place I'd rather be. Life is good, we're all healthy, and I hope that you are too. I'll catch you when I can... and I do so hope you understand.

I'm Getting Close...

Oh, wow... I'm exhausted! Moving is such hard work. The last update I gave you was a week ago... and that was BEFORE we lost power and BEFORE we had to start melting snow in order to flush the toilets. It was BEFORE we had to cart our air mattresses up to the living room and cozy up all together by the fire. It was BEFORE we had to tape grocery bags over our sneakers just to walk outside. And it was BEFORE we were buried in over 3 feet of snow and BEFORE we had to hire not one, but two plows to come dig us out. Alas, we kept a cheerful attitude through it all and consider ourselves very well prepared for whatever weather comes our way next! Here are a couple photos of what we experienced... this first one was our driveway.

And this next one is my truck... somewhere!

But the real reason I've signed on tonight is to let you know that I'm getting close to having my stamping supplies ready again! I've been working hard at it... because I have a lot of thank you cards to send out and I just REFUSE to buy them!

But... first things first... and playing in the snow with these three boys will always come first!

Snowed In at Home!

We arrived at our new home yesterday just in time... because as you can see, we won't be going anywhere for quite a while! Sorry the picture is so small - I don't have my full computer setup yet... I just wanted to give you all an idea of the welcome we received here in Evergreen yesterday! It has been snowing non-stop and we've got well over 2 feet by now. The truck you see here is my Toyota Sequoia - and it is NOT 4 wheel drive. Eeek! We thought we'd be okay with it until next winter. Wrong! I did manage to make it to the grocery store shortly after we arrived so I could stock up, but it was one of those toss-whatever-you-see-in-the-cart types of trips because I was afraid of getting stuck out there! But, alas, I made it home and we've been cozied up in here ever since.

We love our new place - and can't wait to explore some more. Unfortunately, this snow isn't scheduled to let up for another 24 hours or so... and that means that our moving truck will not arrive tomorrow as planned. Ouch. Looks like we'll have to make do with what we have until Monday! Nothing like being snowed in at home!

Home Sweet Home... Almost

You've all been so sweet sending me notes of encouragement and such... and I've had to neglect you by not showing you anything new! Well, since I still can't stamp anything (and won't see my stamping supplies for another few weeks *sob*), I thought of something else new I could show you... our new house!

Doesn't it look peaceful? We're on 4 acres out in the woods, but we still have neighbors. I will never forget the feeling I had when I looked out the windows of this house the first time I was in it. Simple, quiet, peaceful... of course, I didn't have my three kiddos with me that time either, but still... it's amazing. And check out this next one...

No, that's not the road, that's our DRIVEWAY! It's longer than two football fields! My exercise will consist of walking down to get the mail each day! Sweet!

Anyway, I just wanted to pop in and say hello. The movers come a week from today, so I'm on the final push to get things packed up. I'm down to the things we either don't know what to do with or we don't have the right size box. It'll all come together, though. I know it will. Those trees are calling me... calling me home!

Packing Up My Stamp Room

Oh gosh, it feels so good to sign on and say hello to all of you... my loyal friends. I am so sorry that I am having to neglect you so much! But if you're keeping up with me, you know that I am in the throes of moving from Dallas to Denver. And it's getting very close... we will most likely have a moving truck here on April 13th. This is sooner than we anticipated, but we cannot complain one bit... I don't know if I told you the whole story:

When I sent an e-mail out to some of our friends a couple months ago that we were moving, one of them responded back with, "We gotta talk!"... as it turns out, they wanted to move into our neighborhood and have always liked our house. We ended up selling our home to them without even listing it! How's THAT for an easy sale?! To make the story even sweeter, this particular friend is one of the Stampin' Up! demonstrators on my team!! Of course, I told her that she'll have to carry on my legacy of having workshops in the dining room... :) They were just about as fortunate as we were in selling their home - they sold it in only 4 days. Obviously, this whole move was just meant to be, don't you think?

Well, needless to say, Michael and I have had to make some quick trips out to Denver to find a home. We have done just that, and the inspection last week went very well. We now hope that the chain of closings will go smoothly and everyone involved will find themselves comfortable in their new homes.

As for my posts, just as I warned you before, they will be scarce to non-existent over the next couple months. As the title says, I have to begin packing up my stamp room, and I will not see any of it again for several weeks... Can you say OUCH!!? Don't forget, though, that I am selling all of my retired items for 20% off the prices shown! The less I have to pack, the better!

I do hope you'll continue to be a follower of my blog... I'm so afraid that by the time I get settled in Denver, all of you will have moved on and forgotten about me!!

Signing out with lots of Stampin' Hugs,

The Forces are Moving

I need to take a moment today and let you all know about some exciting things going on in the Force household...

As the title states, the Force family will be making a major move in early June. We will no longer be Texans... but will make our new home near Denver, Colorado! As if this weren't enough of a change, we are also going to be a homeschool family when we get there! Nothing like shakin' things up a bit, huh?! If you are a regular reader of my blog, you have probably caught on to the fact that we are a pretty tight family... and we are all very excited about the new adventures that these changes will bring our way!

I am making this news public now for two main reasons:

#1- I needed to let you know that my blog will, unfortunately, have a much lower priority level as we embark on this exciting journey. I have a LOT to do over the next few months, and unfortunately stamping does not rank very high in the "must get done" category! (The horror!!) However, stamping is my creative outlet, and therefore very important when it comes to keeping me happy (happy mom = happy family, right?!). For this reason, I am confident that this cut-back will only be temporary. Just know that you can count on seeing my creations as often as I am able to make them. That's about all I can promise.

#2 - I am hoping that by making this public I will find some new fast friends in Denver! Certainly a few of my readers live in that area?? If you do - or if you have in the past - I would love to hear from you! As we are looking into the different areas surrounding Denver, your input would be very valuable to us. (and if you sell it well enough, maybe we'll move in next door :)

This may be new news to my local readers - I'll be SO sad to say goodbye to all of you. I will be having a couple final events here at my house in the next couple of months - one of which will be my annual free Valentine card workshop this coming Wednesday evening! I will also hold a final goodbye hoop-lah at some point where I'll have lots of Make & Takes, goodies to eat, give aways... oh, and some bargain prices on my retired sets so I don't have to take them with me! I'll keep you posted via e-mail, as I do hope you'll come by and visit one last time. With that said, I would be honored to remain your Stampin' Up! demonstrator even from Colorado. As always, I will be just a phone call or e-mail away, and I can always have your orders shipped directly to you... and with our 24-hour online catalog, you really don't even need me at all!! ...okay, let's not go that far.

So there it is. Nuthin' but the cold, hard facts. I'm not sure when my next post will be, as I must begin packing, searching for a new home, and continuing my heavy research on homeschooling, but I do hope you'll continue to check in on me!! ...and let me hear from you!!

Stampin' Hugs...

A Homemade Christmas

As I told you in an earlier post, my family decided to draw names and make homemade gifts this Christmas. It was our first time attempting something like this, and it went over so well that I think it will become a yearly tradition. I am happy to show you what each of us made...

This first gift is what my son, Morgan, made for me. It is a mosaic, and if you look closely, you can see the image of the dolphin in the blue tiles. Didn't he do a fabulous job?

This next one is what my oldest son, Mason, made for Morgan. He decorated Morgan's initials using this abstract way of coloring that he learned in his school art class, then he put it in a nice frame. Mason spent a long, long time on this, and Morgan was thrilled with the result!



This next one is what I made for Mason. I remember having a huge string art ship that my grandfather made hanging above our couch when I was a little girl. I thought it might be neat to introduce my kids to this old art by doing Mason's name the same way. As I had hoped, Mason loved it and can't wait to hang it above his bed.


I was tickled that Michael was as excited about this idea as I was, and he knew immediately what he wanted to make. When we were getting ready to draw names, he announced that he wanted to make Maddox's gift. We told him that he can't just CHOOSE who he wants, that he has to draw like everyone else! To this, he said, "Well, whoever I draw is going to get a wooden tractor!" ...so we let him have Maddox. :) Michael's becoming quite handy with wood and tools! (some of you may even remember the ink pad cabinet he made me?)


And finally, because I was going to have to assist Maddox in this project, we let him "choose" Daddy. Together, Maddox and I made this little keepsake box that Michael can keep in his briefcase so he can always have a piece of his little boy with him... it's an Altoid tin with Maddox's handprint wrapped around it. When you press on the "Love You Dad" circle, you will hear Maddox saying in his cute little voice, "Hi Daddy! I yuv you Daddy!".

On the inside is a picture of Maddox, along with the sound recording box that I got from Build-a-Bear workshop... little 2-year old voices are so precious, and I wanted Michael to be able to take Maddox's message with him on business trips. In the empty space above the recording box, I will be placing a piece of Maddox's favorite blanket - but I'll need to get some scrap fabric from my step-mother-in-law (who made the blanket) so I don't have to ruin the actual blanket.

So there you have it... our own little homemade Christmas! Thank you for allowing me to share it with you. It was a pure joy to watch each of our kids take this idea and make it special. I look forward to many more years of beautiful, *priceless*, homemade gifts.

Deck the Halls...

I mentioned earlier that we spent an evening trimming the tree, and I wanted to show you the result. We used our very small tree this year because we will be spending the holiday with my brother's family and my parents out in the country. This tree is nice because it fits on our foyer table. We made all the ornaments from the On Board Trinkets Ornaments kit that is on page 14 of the current Mini Catalog, some of which are shown below:

They are so easy to make, that my boys did most of them by themselves! This is Mason...

and this is Morgan.

Oh, and even little Maddox got in on the action. He watched how Daddy "fixed" the lights, and that became his job.

I was really excited that the boys took such an interest in this project, and how they wanted to make the ornaments themselves.

Needless to say, we had a great time, and the tree turned out super cute!

Mason got very ingenious with the star topper... he made two of the paper stars that come in the kit and then attached them together with eyelets (he loves using the Crop-a-Dile!). When we placed it over the top of the tree, it was beautiful how the lights glow through it! You can see the glowing effect in the first picture above, but here's a close-up of Mason's handi-work:

We scattered several of the stars on the table at the base of the tree for a finishing touch.

Now, when you visit our house, Mason will be the first to say to you, "Come over here - you have to see our Stampin' Up! tree!!" Gotta love that!

Decision Made...

Thanks everyone for your great comments! I love to get your advice.

Just to clarify, though, the first card is intended to have the same family photo on it... it will go on the back of the postcard. I think some of you missed that part. In any case, last night, while the boys were busy trimming the tree (I can't wait to show you photos of that cuz it's a Stampin' Up! tree this year!), I was busy making OUR Christmas cards... and I'm going with the FIRST one! I've got 96 of them prepped and half-way made already! I opted to use brads instead of the linen thread to save time. I will show you the final result when I get one entirely finished.

Thanks again!!

New Family Photo

I'm back in town now, and back to publishing on my own computer - thank goodness! But I am sad to say that I have a sick two year old that I will be tending to for the next few days. We knew it would happen, because my niece and nephew have been sick, and we stayed with them over Thanksgiving. I, myself, drank about a gallon of Airborne... and the jury is still out on whether I will be spared the same fate or not. Let's hope for the best, because you all know as well as I do that it's no fun to nurse a sick child... but it's far worse when you feel like crud yourself!

So, needless to say, I don't know how much stamping I'll be able to squeeze in. In the meantime, here's a new family photo that was taken over the weekend out in the country where we spend the holiday each year. This is what we will include with our Christmas cards. As you can tell, I updated my banner with it as well.

I just love this photo... me surrounded by all my handsome boys. My older two sure do need haircuts... but they're at that age where they like it longer. Ah well, what's a mom to do? I guess their "smart sweaters" (nicknamed that by the boys themselves) make up for the shaggy do-s. Thanks, Auntie Audrey! :)

I do hope that all of you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday!

Cowboys, Aliens, and a Bumblebee

I promised to share with you our Halloween costumes, since so many of you gave me such great ideas when you commented on this post. I decided to take the easy way out, however, and went by myself to Target just a couple days before Halloween... all the costumes were 30% off - SCORE! I just chose my favorite ones, and it couldn't have turned out better! The boys were very pleased with what I chose (imagine that?!)... and here's how they looked:

Michael and I even dressed up this year... We're the "Armed Forces". Get it? I'll let that one sink in a bit. Take particular note of Michael's "intimidating" expression. *giggle*

And, to make the evening even more fun, we stationed Morgan, our resident Alien, on a bench on our front porch with a bowl of treats.

Recognize those treats? They're the ones from this post! Anyway, when Morgan would hold completely still, he looked like a prop. So when an unsuspecting Trick-or-Treater would approach, we'd say, "Just help yourself" and when they'd reach for a treat, the alien would flinch and SPOOK 'em! Oh, it was so much fun!

I hope you all had a great Halloween... and I trust that you're all eating as much chocolate as I am?

PS: ...for those of you who still didn't get it, here's a clue:

Get it now?

Takin' a Little Break...

Hi folks, I hope you had a glorious weekend - I sure did! We went camping and had some fabulous family time. That's so important to me... here's a couple shots of our weekend, along with the beautiful fall colors we're experiencing here in Texas.

I wanted to pop in and let you know that I need to take a little break (only a few days) from blogging. Nothing is wrong - just need to get caught up on some household stuff, including finding my stamping table again! It's gotten burried! You only think it always looks like this. *giggle* Who can relate?!

Catch ya real soon!

Girl Time

Hi everyone! Happy Monday to you... I'm feeling refreshed and, if it's possible, all shopped out! As I mentioned on Friday, my girlfriends and I took our annual girls retreat to an outdoor market just east of us called Canton First Monday Trade Days. There are acres and acres of vendors selling all sorts of goodies... and you would not believe how much we bought this year! I'm surprised we got it all home in my husband's truck (I drove) without having to strap one of us to the roof! Aside from all the great shopping, we also stayed in our usual cabin and talked the night away... girl stuff... you know how it goes. Here's a photo of 5 of us - the 6th one had to leave early.

I know, I don't normally post stuff about my personal life, and I regret to inform you that because of my fantastic weekend, I did not do any stamping! I do have a fabulous card that my friend Marelle sent me, though, and I will show that to you instead. As you all know, Marelle is an incredibly talented stamper in Australia. She and I met about a year and a half ago and became fast friends. I am always honored to receive one of her beautiful cards!

Here is a close-up of the gorgeous flowers:

Thank you, Marelle, for brightening my day!

And thank you WISDOM, for another unforgettable weekend!!

Blisters Don't Need Chemo

I usually keep this all "business", but I want to mention why I've been away. I spent this last weekend completing the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk with my team, Footprints of Faith. Together, we walked a total of 60 miles over the course of 3 days. What an incredible journey it has been - one of emotional tears, muscle pain, and a fair dose of blisters... but not without complete admiration for the wonderful women who persevere through this horrible disease, and those that have lost their fight. We were honored to walk in their memory. This photo is of all of us just after we crossed the finish line!!

I encourage you to check out the 3 Day website for information on how you can get involved in a city near you. It is a well run event for a very worthy cause.

Pink Thanks

In the spirit of Breast Cancer Awareness month, I want to take this opportunity to thank some wonderful people in my life.

Some of you may know that I am participating in the Breast Cancer 3-Day walk, benefiting Susan G. Komen for the cure. This event will take place here in Dallas a week from today, during which, I will walk (or attempt to walk!) 20 miles each day, 3 days in a row. My mother-in-law, Sara Rostanzo, is a breast cancer survivor, and I am happy to be walking in her honor. I have never taken on such a strenuous challenge, but I have also never had the opportunity to raise this much money for such a worthwhile cause. I have worked for the last several months at raising the necessary funds to participate, and I am happy to report that I have surpassed the minimum requirement. To date, I have raised over $3,000. I could not have done this alone, so for all of you who have supported me, this card is for you:

More specifically, I would like to recognize the following people:

I want to thank my 3-Day walking team. Jazen, Angie, Barb, Jess, Lluvia, Jamie, Stacey I., and Stacey K... together we are called the "Footprints of Faith". We have had some great times together preparing for this event by doing training walks, fundraising events, and just generally supporting each other. Jazen has been a fantastic team leader by keeping us all on our toes. I can't wait until next weekend when we get to do this for REAL!

I also want to thank my AMAZING family - the Guvernators, Obermarks, and Muenks families. At a recent family reunion, they surprised me by taking up a large collection to put me over the top. I am blessed beyond belief to share life with these incredible people. Thank you for your love and support.

And to everyone else who has supported me with a donation, thank you.

If you would like to make a donation
in memory or in honor of someone, please visit
my official 3-Day donation page.
Every little bit helps!

Card Recipe:
Stamp sets: Baroque Motifs and All Holidays
Cardstock: Naturals White and Blush Blossom
Ink: Pretty in Pink and Regal Rose
Accessories: Hodgepodge Hardware, Ticket Corner punch, Satin Ribbon, 2-way Glue, Glitter, Gel Pen