Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! What a great day that I had on New Year's Eve. It began with breakfast with my 79 year old Dad who suffered a serious heart attack and subsequent health problems this past February. He has had a tough year health-wise and it was wonderful to hear him say, "I feel good today" and get to spend time with him. What a blessing!

The afternoon was "girl's day out" with my son's fiancee, and my sister-in-law and nieces who live in Arkansas. We had a nice lunch and an afternoon of "girl stuff", including manicures for the teens and shopping for all. (What a great opportunity for sweet fellowship and memory making!) Another blessing!

Tonight my husband's brother and his family joined us for our Church's New Year's Service where they heard my son preach the opening service and then stayed for refreshments and met our church family. Another Blessing! All of this following a wonderful belated Christmas celebration yesterday at my Mother-in-law's home. I am feeling very thankful and extremely....BLESSED!

May this New Year find you equally so!

Spring ??? Is In The Air

Well, here in Eastern Kentucky, it is a balmy 73 degrees today and sunny! Spring...before the New Year? I am certainly not complaining, being a warm weather gal ;) The Christmas Holiday has passed and I am cleaning up from the celebrations, (actually we still have one more 'Christmas' next Tuesday with family traveling in from Arkansas.) Today, I took a moment to sit down at my work space and create. It felt wonderful....and even slightly therapeutic!

I saw these resin angel wings on clearance yesterday and thought that they would look nice on a Valentine card. I love the result....with the scripture quote, they are a perfect fit. I am still having some lighting issues with the new camera, so bear with me while I figure it out. I am longing for deep, true colors in my posts....I just have to find the right settings before snapping those shots. (I guess that I will have to break down and read the owner's manuel ;) Hope everyone is well and having a wonderful day.

Frosty the Snowman

I have certainly been a negligent blogger lately! Thankfully, I got my laptop back from the manufacturer today repaired and evidently in proper working order! I am soooo glad to have it home where it belongs :) I found the cute glittery snowmen pictured above at my local Walmart this weekend. Loving snowmen the way that I do.....it was a no brainer to make this card. I think that this will be my final Christmas card for this year....on to valentine's day and spring...warmer thoughts of the months to come.

Big news at our home this weekend....our 21 year old son became engaged! As they are both in college, no date for the wedding has been set, but each declares with certainty that they have found their soulmate. (With him being an ordained minister, THAT is very important for them to recognize.) We wish them a blessed life together and couldn't be happier with their decision.

I am looking forward to gathering with my family and friends for the holiday....can't wait to see what sort of 'crafting' gifts I might have hinted for ;)

Friday Already?

Can it possibly be Friday again, already? For someone who vowed that this Christmas would be simpler....I have certainly been feeling the Holiday hustle and bustle! But even with all of the running and preparing...I have found time to create. This picture was inspired by a photo on Elizabeth Kartchner's Blog (She was Scrapbooker of the Year a couple of years ago and has a great blog...visit if you haven't.) I just loved the idea of a "picture within a picture" and hubby was willing to go along with me and pose countless times for just the right shot. (actually he declared that the first one was good enough, but with a little coaxing, he played along.) Having a 21 year old son makes it difficult to get a true family shot....we only catch glimpses of him with his busy schedule.

I happened upon this sweet little ornament yesterday and it was forlorn, lying in a markdown box, all alone...since I love, love, love the antique look of the metal, I gave it a home and early this morning, I also gave it a card. I like the "paper bag" look of the cardstock and after using distressing ink on the edges, it looked properly aged. " The ragged ribbon actually came on the tree as a hanger. I love a good deal!

Have you ever seen a cuter mug? I have collected snowmen for years and when I found this little guy, I knew just what to do with him. This one is actually for my niece, Amber. (I know, Ber, you never get surprised anymore, thanks to blogging ;) I filled with my holiday hot chocolate mix and viola! A tasty treat for the palate and the eye.

Hubby is a chocolate addict! He has never met a chocolate that he hasn't loved, so I got him this GIANT Hershey bar and fancied it up a bit for him. He will find it in his stocking on Christmas. The tag reads "believe in miracles".....and on the inside, "your love has made a believer out of me!" Just a little something to make him smile. Aren't the holidays a perfect time to do just that for those who enrich our lives?

I just adore the little golden reindeer magnet (on clearance at Michael's) that matched my paper perfectly. Since my shopping is complete....now I am on a crafting rampage....you never know what I might create next... and actually, neither do I! Happy Scrapping!

Enjoying The Process

Whew...have had a bit of "crafter's block" lately. I was telling my sister today that I do not know if it is due to the bustle of the season, or simply running out of creativity...scared me for a few days! But today....I have felt the need to "craft" and here are the results!

This is a simple card made from Miss Elizabeth papers, The Beadery embellishments and jute...you can't get much simpler than that. I especially liked the torn paper bag element...wishing that I had time to use my new Singer Pixie Craft Sewing Machine, but alas, since I have not read all of the instructions yet...that will be used another day.

I found these cute cheese shakers at a local discount store and they were VERY discounted, so I bought them with this in mind. I plan to use mine for a bead jar, but they would serve just as well for any small crafting items. (Lookout sister, one is for you ;)

Here is an update on Packer the puppy especially for Amber....this was taken today following a bath and blowdry. He is, as you can see, outgrowing my old socks as a makeshift shirt. (As of now, we cannot find any real doggie clothes small enough for him.) He was a bit of a premie and has taken MUCH tender loving care! He was 10 weeks old yesterday and is probably up to about 2 1/2 pounds now with hair growing back! Yeah! As of now, he is growing like a weed and chewing like a Piranah! All systems GO!

I have been MIA for a few days...just busy with the season! I am so tired of Christmas cards, so I jumped ahead to Valentine's Day. (If retailers can put up Christmas decoration at Halloween, I can craft ahead ;) This heart was a clearance ornament at Michael's and I pictured it on a LOVE card. My niece got me the "love" stamp and I love it.

These pringle cans are decorated to hold my white chocolate gourmet popcorn as small goodies for friends and family for the holidays. I love to recycle/repurpose when I craft. You could call me the "frugal crafter." I have stated my motto before, "never pay full price." My son was doing some Christmas shopping this week and found a couple of great deals.......he told me about them and used my motto in the telling. I was so proud ;) Have a blessed day.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

With snow on the ground and flurries in the air....it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I had decided that I had made all of the Christmas cards I was making for this year...until my niece, Amber, inspired me to try the flower folding. I love this technique and will probably use it again and again. (I can already see it in pretty pastels for springtime cards :) It is difficult to see that these flowers are snowflake paper, but they worked perfectly with my pine tree paper and tree button. This was a quick and cute project...thanks Ber...keep inspiring me!

Playing Around

Good Monday evening! We are getting the weatherman's promised "snow showers" this evening and I cannot help but feel a twinge of Christmas Spirit. Thankfully, I have nearly completed my shopping and today I have done most of my wrapping...whew....now I have time to play :) My mother-in-law reminded me a couple of times of the "thanks a latte" phrase and when I found this cute magnet, I knew just what I would use it for. After so many Christmas-y cards, this was a simple and refreshing card to make.

An hour or so ago, I sat down at my computer and noticed an empty Coca-cola bottle sitting there (left by my son :) I was inspired to make a "classic button bottle from a classic coke bottle" for a member of my family who LOVES her coke to drink. Viola! With a few scraps of paper, ribbon and jute, Amber, a button bottle for you was born! Hope you like it. It was a pleasure to make.