Monday, July 27, 2009

Hey there, chickadee!

I just received my new stamp set from Paper Trey! I got the Everyday Button Bits.

They are so adorable! It's an awesome set because not only does it come with wonderful images in which to fit a button, but there are a TON of sentiments, too. So, I had to play around and somehow make it apply to this week's CPS Challenge. Here's the sketch:

And here's what I came up with:

Zoom in to see the little chickadees. I used a Lemon Tart button for each chick. The polka dotted paper is from my local stamp shop and I used some old, OLD, yellow patterned paper as well. Sorry the picture is a little washed out....but note the gorgeous sunflower that bloomed while we were away this weekend!

We had a fun filled weekend of camping. The girls and I built a "Forest Fairy Fort" and low and behold, Fairies visited each night! It was magical! I love experiencing this magic through my kids.

Have a great one, chickadee!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

I found time and nothing suffered

I found time to get crafty for a CPS challenge today! I honestly never woulda thought it could happen. We're packing for a long weekend camping trip, Daddy's been on duty for 24 hours, girls are a little fidgety, and we're tending to an injured dog.

Here's the sketch, sponsored by JustRite Stampers.

Here's my take:

I already had the little mushroom colored and waiting for its place on a card. This sketch was perfect for what I had on hand! It took all of 30 minutes to make a plan and execute! And how exciting that this week is sponsored by Just Rite since I just today received THIS new set in the mail!

And like I said, nothing suffered at the hands of my craftiness!

The camper is packed....
Our poor dog with a dislocated hip was happily basking in the sun....

And my kids decided to get crafty with their easel outdoors...


Plus...we made Shrinky Dinks today! They rock!

Thanks for stopping by!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Sympathy card for 2 Red Bananas Challenge

Unfortunately I know I'm going to need some sympathy cards in the very near future. I took this challenge as an opportunity to make a few.

This challenge is from 2 Red Bananas. Here's the sketch:
Here's my take:

I used new paper I bought on clearance! It's from K & Co. The sentiment is from my local stamp shop. I cut some extra butterflies and used Glossy Accent to make them shiny and then put them on the side with pop- dots for a little dimension. Click on the image to zoom in.

Pretty and nice.

CPS #124


It's been a few weeks since I've done a CPS challenge. Summer time!! Too busy taking the kids to beaches and lakes and pools and parks. I'll say it again, this is the most beautiful summer I can ever remember. But, slacking on my card making is making my stash dwindle considerably, so I used this chance to make a couple birthday cards.


The image is from Stamping Bella. I colored her with Copics, added some Paper Trey buttons, and topped her off with ribbon from my stash. It was a big step for me to rotate the sketch! I usually don't stray far from the original sketch!

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Patriotic Birthday Card

My Uncle's Birthday is on the 4th of July, so we put this card together for him. I remember my grandmother telling me about lying in a hospital on the 4th, and my dad (his brother) not being able to visit in those days. Instead, he'd have to stand outside on the sidewalk and wave up to his mommy. Also, my Uncle was nameless for a week! Crazy, huh?

Anyway, I used my little crafting sewing machine on this card. Ummmmm, not pretty! I guess if you're going for the messy look, it's fine. It was very hard to keep it going in a straight line. It was very hard to make it STOP. And you should see the stitches on the back side of the card.....a MESS! There's no bobbin on it at all, so I have no idea how it even makes stitches....what do you want for $6.00?

All in all it turned out cute. The patriotic birthday cake was just a sticker from an old pack I had. The stamp is from Target. Buttons and ribbon are from Michael's.

Have a great summer day! I think this is THE MOST beautiful summer I can ever remember....the weather has something to do with it, but also my kids being at this tender age of 4 and being so cool is the biggest part of it :-)

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Blueberry Jam


I've always wanted to can and preserve my own jam and tomatoes. But, I've always been very intimidated by the process. Last year we took the girls blueberry picking for the first time, but I chickened out on the jam making process (plus, we barely had enough berries!) and we just made a Blueberry Buckle cake instead.

Well, this year, I dove right in! We went back to the same organic berry farm as last year, but we were earlier and all the rain we've had yielded a very bountiful crop, so we were set with a ton of berries.

I went on a search for all the supplies I would need; jars, big pots, jar lifter, lid lifter, and pectin. HA! I guess canning is not what it use to be because after visiting 5 stores, all I came home with was pectin and 4 oz. jars! For everything else, I improvised.

I didn't take pictures during the whole process because I was very high strung and nervous that I'd mess it up. But, let me say, it was easy...concise...to the point....and worked perfectly! I ended up with 24 jars of jam and a big jar of extras that went right into the frig.


When I took the jars out of the boiling pot of water and set them on the counter, the lids immediately began to "pop" . And I immediately started to cry! First, because it reminded me of my grandmother telling me about all the jars of stewed tomatoes she'd preserved and listened to. And second, because it meant it WORKED! Whhoohoooo! I'm hereby a canning fool!

Up next: PEACHES!