Daisy Puddle Jumper

Hey everyone! I'm not usually much for Mondays since it means back to work for me, but today is an exception because GUESS WHAT!!!! Guess who gets to be Guest Designer on The Pink Elephant for the month of March! Go on, guess!!! Yep, it's LUCKY ME!!! I am so excited and so thankful to Lori for allowing me this privilege, not to mention fun!!

And what better way to start out than by showing off one of the three new Puddle Jumpers stamps released today at Die Cuts R Us! DCRU is this week's challenge sponsor at The Pink Elephant... trust me, you won't want to miss out on the fun! Lori Boyd, artist extraordinaire, has designed these CUTIES for Claudia & Company, offered through DCRU. The first three (Daisy, Emma and Noah) are now up for grabs. All I can say is get 'em while the gettin's good!


My card features Daisy... and her sweet little kitty. Aren't they ADORABLE? The challenge this week at The Pink Elephant is to use the color GREEN in your card. Green happens to be my favorite color, and there's lots of lovely shades of green in the new Material Girl collection by Cosmo Cricket. I paper pieced Daisy's pants (aka "trousers" for the UK folks) and colored the rest with Copics. Okay, I promise to stop making those flowers. No, I can't lie. I love making those flowers!

I followed this terrific sketch by Linda Coughlin for the Our Creative Corner Sketch Challenge. Ijust flipped it upside down since the flower element fit better in the upper right.

So this is a happy Monday after all. It's about to get even better. Coming up at 11:00 am Pacific is the new release blog hop for Waltzingmouse Stamps, so be sure to stop back by!

Live the life you've dreamed...

A blessed Second Sunday in Lent to you! Today begins another awesome scripture inspired challenge at Stampin' Sisters in Christ. Our challenge hostess is Pamela Young (who, by the way, is an amazing scrapbooker and offers weekly sketches on her blog). Pamela chose as the scripture Colossians 3:17, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

The challenge is, in Pamela's own words: You have free reign of what you want to do this week. But here's the deal: I want you to actively do this as an act of worship to our God. Before starting, pray. Thank God for your gift. While working, feel free to pray more, or perhaps sing out to Him. Put your focus on Him and remember that it is He who gave you your gift (however good or bad you think you are at this) and remember that it makes Him happy to see you at work. Do this challenge, as if you were doing it for Christ himself!

I am very thankful to God for the joy this awesome hobby brings to me; a creative outlet, a stress reliever, a source of pride, a ton of fun, and most especially for all the wonderful friendships I've made.

I've been facing some real trials lately, but I'm absolutely certain that God is leading me in a new and better direction. Because of this (and with a little help from my friends, who shower me with love and support and prayers), I am able to get through these hardships with more peace than would be possible without my trust in the Lord. With God's help, I will soon live the life I've dreamed...no doubt about it!

My card follows Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge #62 and GinaK's Illustrator/Designer Blog Hop Challenge, which is to use two of the new Spring Assortment Pure Luxury Cardstock colors and any of the new stamp sets from the February release.

My card features Creme de Menthe and Ocean Mist Pure Luxury Cardstock paired with my dear friend Nina Brackett's Swing Into Spring digi papers. The image and greeting are from the Dream Birds stamp set by Asela Hopkins. A sweet and simple card. I think I'm going to keep it on my desk at work.

By the way, I think Gina K is one woman who is definitely living her dream. She is truly an inspiration to me!

I have a wonderful announcement to make tomorrow AND another amazing new release blog hop for Waltzingmouse Stamps that you won't want to miss. 'til then, have a wonderful day!

Hello!

This is my second post for today. Please scroll down or click here to see this week's Oh, Alice! challenge card. So fun!

Time for another fabulous sketch at The Sweet Stop! I love Korin's sketches, and this one is especially sweet... there are lots of fun ways to interpret it.

I guess you could say I'm going hybrid with this sweet card... all of the paper elements are from the Summer Conversations digi kit by Holly Brooke Jones for My Cute Stamps. I really should stop visiting my friend Alice's blog... every time I do, I end up buying something! lol She's got me turned on to digi kits now. Let's face it, who has time to sleep?

The SWEET image is Joy Bugg Girl Fairy, a digi image by Tiddlyinks. I have a few more of these darlings to play with, so stay tuned!

I'm laughing to myself right now because I just realized that those are a cap and WINGS, not a straw hat, like I thought! LOL!!!!!!! Oh well...fairies can have yellow wings, can't they? Or just cross your eyes and pretend it's a straw hat! hahahahaha!

I sure hope you'll come and play with us this week at The Sweet Stop. Be sure to stop by and check out the amazing works of art by the rest of the Sugar Babies. Those girls ROCK!

Have a magical day, my friends!

I'm Late, I'm Late for a Very Important Date!

It's Saturday, which means it's time for another WONDERFUL trip down the rabbit hole with us at Oh, Alice! Yay!

CHAPTER TWO: Running in a SKETCHY circle...

"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don’t much care where--" said Alice.
"Then it doesn’t matter which way you go," said the Cat.

We have a fabulous sketch challenge today designed by our own TWISTED Tea Party member, Mary Giles! Here is the sketch:

We are VERY honored to be introducing our first sponsor to you today. Kathy from Pixie Dust Studios has VERY generously let us work with her new Digis from her "Down the Rabbit Hole" collection debuting March 1st! What's more? ONE LUCKY WINNER will be chosen at random from this week's participants to choose THREE FREE DIGIS of their choice from Pixie Dust Studios! Thank you Kathy!

My card features "White Rabbit" from Pixie Dust Studios. Isn't it he cutest?! I love him! The greeting is by Sassy Studios.

I've been wanting to use my new Taylored Expressions February Key Ingredients Kit with all the fabulous black and white paper, and this was the perfect opportunity. I think I should make lots of these cards because I'm generally running hopelessly behind these days when it comes to getting cards in the mail.

You have until FRIDAY, March 5, 2010 at 10pm CST to upload your card or project using the above sketch as your muse! Upload to your blog or public gallery (please use keyword OAC2) and LINK your name using Mr. Linky on the Oh, Alice blog! We can't WAIT to see your creations!

Check out what the rest of the Twisted 13 and our Mad Hatter have come up with!

• Jessica -The Whimsical Butterfly
  
• Betty - The Scrap Happy Witch
  
• Catherine - PaperAddict
  
• Jen - Deconstructing Jen
  
• Jimmi - Stamping & Shopping
  
• Kristy - Delicious Papercrafting
  
• Ky - Bunny Nest Rescue
  
• Margie - Oh Bumble Is Me
  
• Mary - A Latte Inkin' Fun
  
• Pam - The Stamping Addict
  
• Peggy - Artfull Journey
  
• Sammi - Stuff by Sammi
  
• Tasha - Millie's Magical Moments

And may I say, I'm having a BLAST being on this DT!!!

Norma Jean?

TGIF times 1000! Hello everyone! Am I ever glad today is Friday. It's been a pretty stressful week, so I'm relieved that it's finally over. Thank you so much for all the prayers and good wishes that you've poured on me. You have no idea how much it means.

Hey, did you happen to know that stamping is a great way to relieve stress? Betcha didn't know that did you? {LOL} Yep, it's right up there with bubble baths, spa days and buying new stamps!

What better way to get your mojo going than with an awesome sketch challenge, which is exactly what we have today and every Friday courtesy of the Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge!

Cheeky Glamour is one of my newest and most favorite stamps from The Greeting Farm. Okay, what isn't my most favorite stamp from The Greeting Farm? But these new "Cheeky" girls are especially fun because I'm such a huge fan of the 40's.

If you haven't already guessed, I'm going for Norma Jean aka Marilyn Monroe look. The wonderful DP is from the Will He B the 1? collection by Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker. (Both eclectic Paperie and A Cherry On Top carry Nikki Sivils paper, which I LOVE.) And what self-respecting glamour girl wouldn't have a fluffy boa? A bit of White Sparkly Fluff took care of that!

Come on and play with us this week! You'll definitely want to when you see what the rest of the Sketch Crew has created for your viewing pleasure:

Jami Sibley: More is More
Lynn Mercurio: Stamperosity
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme

Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode
Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gallery
Alice Lihsuan-Wertz: Alice's Little Wonderland
Lori Craig: Make a Difference
and of course Taylor herself: Taylored Expressions

I'm so glad you dropped by for a visit. Stay tuned for a double feature tomorrow. I'm so excited about what's ahead for the next several days!!!

Have a GLAM day my friends! Mwah!

You Are a Rose...

"You are a rose in life's garden." Isn't that just the sweetest sentiment? Claire has done it again!

Welcome to Day One of previews of the new releases coming March 1st to Waltzingmouse Stamps! Three amazing new stamp sets will be released on Monday, and we'll be showing you previews over the next few days. Be sure to check the Waltzingmouse Stamps blog every day through Sunday for Claire's features and for links to the Design Team members showcasing their creations each day. Then join us on Monday for a Blog Hop and two chances to win one of the new stamp sets!!

My card features Roses in Bloom. Isn't it gorgeous? I adore the images and all the wonderful greetings that come with this set. I've paired mine with DP by Websters Pages, which I roughed up around the edges with an edge tool. The rose and leaves are colored with Copics and popped up for a bit of dimension. I followed the sketch from The Pink Elephant Challenge #55, which I love love love!

Now off you go to see what treats Julia and Claire have in store. And Bonnie has sneaked in a wonderful peek for you, too!

Oh, and for all you Waltzingmouse Stamps fans, check out this new blog: Waltzingmouse Makers. How great is that!

Waltzingmouse Stamps Customer Blog Hop!

Woo Hoo! Welcome to our very first Waltzingmouse Stamps Customer Blog Hop!!! Hold onto your hats because you are in for a treat! If you haven't already, be sure to start the hop at the Waltzingmouse Stamps blog. If there are any broken links along the way, just return to the Waltzingmouse Stamps blog to find your way to the next stop.


The theme of our hop is SPRING, so I naturally grabbed the newly released Spring Baskets stamp set. It was a natural to pair up with this fabulous new paper I just bought by Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker. I found Nikki Sivils in the New Exhibitor area at CHA and fell in LOVE! Eclectic Paperie just started carrying some of the 6 x 6 paper pads (and a few stamp sets), and I understand A Cherry On Top will soon carry the entire line.

I followed the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #57. I adore Karen's sketches, and this one is no exception. I love combining strips of coordinating paper! I almost left off the ribbon and bow because the patterns are so pretty, but finally settled on a narrow ribbon that doesn't detract from the paper.

Now, on you go to Belinda's blog to see what she's cooked up for you. Thanks for joining us! Happy Hopping!!!

Life Changes... Have Faith

A blessed Sunday to you... the first Sunday in Lent! I love this Holy Season. I love going to the special church services on Wednesdays. I used to leave work go to the noon services... there weren't very many of us there, and most were older retired folks, but I loved it! It was a "pause that refreshes" right in the middle of the busy week. But now Avery wants to go to the Lenten services, too, so that means 7:00 pm. That's just fine with me. I'm glad he wants to go!

Today's scripture inspired challenge at Stampin' Sisters in Christ is from lovely Laurie Gatton, who chose Esther 4:14 “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” The challenge is to make a card or project using a time piece or in some way denoting time or the passage of time.

As a Christian, I no longer believe in coincidences. I truly believe God has a hand in everything, and that in His perfect time, things happen as they should. I look back on all the major changes in my life... lots of them were precipitated by really difficult circumstances... but in the fullness of time, I could see that they took me in new and better directions.

Change is hard because it's scary. Even when we're not particularly happy, "it's the devil we know." But life is full of changes. Rest in the knowledge that change happens for a reason, and it's a good reason. Listen with your heart to what God is telling you and keep your eyes open to where He's leading you. Life changes... have faith!

My card follows the Crazy 4 Challenges 25 sketch. I couldn't resist using the Penelope SEI paper again... it's perfect for the cuckoo clock stamp from the Folk Inspired stamp set by Unity. I have a particular fondness for Scandinavian cuckoo clocks since my husband and I spent part of our honeymoon in Solvang, a Danish village located in Central California.

I hope you'll pop over to the Stampin' Sisters in Christ blog and read what Laurie has to share about today's scripture... and to see the truly wonderful cards the Design Team has created. While you're at it, why not play along in the challenge? We'd love to have you!

Have a blessed day!

Love You!

This is my second post for today. Please scroll down for Oh, Alice!

Happy Saturday my friends! Woo hoo! I'm especially happy because it's raining. Yep, my favorite thing. Who knows, I might just go outside and jump in a puddle. My luck, I'd fall and break my leg, so maybe I'd better stay in and craft. And do laundry, of course.

It's time for another wonderful sketch challenge at The Sweet Stop. I think Korin comes up with some of the best sketches around... and this week is no exception! There's also a spin this week... flowers! And I do believe there's a prize up for grabs, so be sure to play with us! Visit The Sweet Stop to see all the amazing cards created by the Sugar Babies. Talk about SWEET!

I've used three different Papertrey Ink stamp sets for my card: Blooming Button Bits, Say It With Style and Background Basics Text Style. The DP is from a special edition Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients kit that is no longer available. I could swear the paper is an old SEI pattern, but I can't find it on line to confirm. Whatever, I love it's folksy style and colors. Edited to add: Yep, it's the Penelope Collection by SEI... which it appears is now retired.

Before I go, I just have to say that I think it's highly unfair that you can still get pimples at age 50, and that people who do the luge or skeleton are nuts!

Love You!!

Oh, Alice! Let the Adventure Begin!

CHAPTER ONE: DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE: THE BEGINNING...

"The White Rabbit put on his spectacles. "Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?" he asked. "Begin at the beginning," the King said gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop."

ALICE GETS GLAM: INSPIRATION CHALLENGE

In anticipation of the upcoming Tim Burton remake of Alice in Wonderland, let's GET GLAM with Alice! Jessica (the Mad Hatter) recently scored this UBER fab makeup palette by Urban Decay and fell in love with the awesome colors, the NAMES of the eyeshadows (all after Alice, of course ;) and the pop-up mushroom mirror!

We wanna see how YOU get Glam using this amazing little piece as your inspiration! Show us your style, put on the glitz, and GET GLAM!

For my card, I focused on the caterpillar and some of the colors in the diorama of the make-up case. It's hard to tell unless you enlarge the photo, but the "drink me" bottle is discarded off to the bottom right, and the caterpillar smoking the hooka pipe is on top of the upper left mushroom.

This amazing image is by Sassy Studio Designs from the Adventures in Sassyland collection... a must have for all Alice fans! I, of course, had to get the entire set, so you'll be seeing lots of these fun images in future cards! The DP is from Basic Grey's Indian Summer collection, which was part of the Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients kit for November 2009, and included those colorful skeleton leaves and rhinestones. Have I mentioned lately how wonderful TE Key Ingredients kits are? (*grin*)

The sketch is Mercy's Tuesday Sketch Challenge #61, made square to accommodate the size of the image. I meant to do so much more with this card, but I ran out of time. I've truly been the white rabbit for the past week... running late, late, late! Pretend it's 10:01 pm Pacific, okay? {LOL}

I sure hope you'll come and play with us at Oh, Alice! WHAT would our first Challenge be without a PRIZE?! Normally we'll (hopefully) be sponsored on the 1st Saturday of each month, but for today's FIRST Fall Down the Rabbit Hole, we thought we'd give away a little something! ONE LUCKY WINNER will be chosen at Random to WIN a single stamp of their choice from THE GREETING FARM (in stock items only). So, GOOD LUCK and here's how to play:

You have until FRIDAY, February 26, 2010 at 10pm CST to upload your card or project using the above inspiration photo as your muse! Upload to your blog or public gallery (please use keyword OAC1) and LINK your name in Mr. Linky on the Oh, Alice! Challenge Blog! We can't WAIT to see your creations and THANK YOU for your support of this CURIOUS new venture!

Be sure to visit the rest of the Twisted 13 (and our Mad Hatter Jessica) to see what delights they have in store for you!

• Jessica -The Whimsical Butterfly
  
• Betty - The Scrap Happy Witch
  
• Catherine - PaperAddict
  
• Jen - Deconstructing Jen
  
• Jimmi - Stamping & Shopping
  
• Kristy - Delicious Papercrafting
  
• Ky - Bunny Nest Rescue
  
• Margie - Oh Bumble Is Me
  
• Mary - A Latte Inkin' Fun
  
• Pam - The Stamping Addict
  
• Peggy - Artfull Journey
  
• Sammi - Stuff by Sammi
  
• Tasha - Millie's Magical Moments

Have a WONDROUS day!

I'm Positive It's Friday... TGIF!

Happy Friday everyone! Today we have a very special challenge for the Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #101.

Taylor is kicking off a card drive today to benefit the Neo-natal Unit at Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls SD. Taylor has both a friend and a sister-in-law who work as labor and delivery nurses at SMC where they use the dragonfly as a symbol of hope for families who have lost a child during delivery or in the early stages of life, and they have requested hand-made cards featuring dragonfly images. This was one of the driving forces behind the design of Taylored Expressions Discover Your Wings stamp set.

And now we need your help. Would you consider making and donating some cards that feature a dragonfly? You may use stamps from any company - they do not need to be from TE. As a thank you for participating Taylor will enter your name into a drawing for a $50 gift certificate to the TE Store. For details, click on over to Taylor's blog.


I personally own and LOVE Discover Your Wings, but Taylor asked some of us to use a variety of stamp brands so that no one would think it necessary to use that particular set to create a card for this wonderful cause. I plan to make more cards for SMC... and will no doubt use Discover Your Wings.

This was the only other dragonfly I could find in my collection... it's from Unity... part of a KOTM... and the greeting is by Verve. I figure in such a terrible circumstance, the only real comfort would come from the Prince of Peace Himself, who said, "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest." AMEN! (Matt 11:28) The DP is from the Bloom & Grow collection by My Minds Eye.

I hope you'll consider donating a card for this worthy cause. Before you run off to your craft room, be sure to stop by and see what the rest of the Sketch Crew has created:

Jami Sibley: More is More
Lynn Mercurio: Stamperosity
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme

Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode
Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gallery
Alice Lihsuan-Wertz: Alice's Little Wonderland
Lori Craig: Make a Difference
and of course Taylor herself: Taylored Expressions

I can't wait to see you back here tomorrow for some fun fun fun!!! Have a wonderful day!

Okay, Now It's Really Wednesday

Yay, I'm finally caught up!!! Happy Wednesday everyone! It's time for more fun at La-La's Weekly Wednesday Challenge! The sweet and ultra talented Jane Matsumoto is our challenge hostess this week, and she challenges us to use RED as the predominant color in our cards/projects in honor of the Chinese New Year. That's no problem for me 'cause I LOVE red!

Lately I've been longing to come up with some new words to describe my feelings about craft related things. I feel like the words "love, awesome, so cool, you rock, wonderful, beautiful, adorable, etc." may be losing impact from being overused. So what's a girl to do? Whip out the thesaurus, of course!

Hilarious! The example I read for the use of the word "love," is... get this... "She loves her material possessions all too dearly." Must be a paper crafter!

So, anyway, here goes my attempt to freshen up my sentiments...

I cherish the new Material Girl DP by Cosmo Cricket. The colors are so cheerful! And I venerate this darling image of Whiskers Sleeping. Hopefully you're not tired of seeing my paper flowers... it's my "fall to" embellishment when nothing else seems to do. I know just who I'm sending this card to.

I hope you'll join us for our challenge this week! As always, there's a prize up for grabs. And how can you resist RED? Be sure to stop by the La-La Land Crafts blog to see all the wonderful inspiration cooked up by the design team.

Have a stupendous day, my friends! And why not try out a few new synonyms when you leave comments on your friends' blogs today? It might be amusing!

Edited to add: I just realized this card qualifies for the Crazy 4 Challenges 24 challenge, which is also to use RED as the predominant color.

Now Pretend Like It's Sunday

Am I thoroughly confusing you yet? Oh, if only it really were Sunday... then I'd still have two days before going back to work. (sigh)

If it's Sunday, then it's time for another scripture inspired challenge at Stampin' Sisters in Christ. Our challenge hostess this week is the wonderful Ceal Pritchett. She chose as the the inspiration scripture 1 John 4:10 "This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins." She challenges us to make a card or project for someone we love letting them know how much God loves them.

God's love is hard to fathom, isn't it? It's unconditional. We have it always, no matter what we do, whether we deserve it or not. When bad things are happening to us, we might think God doesn't love us, that we are somehow being punished. But that couldn't be further from the truth. Our happiness, our eternal life in Christ is what God truly wants for us, and if we have faith and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we WILL truly know peace and happiness. It's God's promise to us because He loves us! You can count on it!

I have someone who I love who probably wonders right now whether God loves her. She's fighting a losing battle with inflammatory breast cancer. It'll all be over when she finally decides to stop clinical trials. Of course she's scared and worried and sad and angry, and her family won't let her give up. She's in my daily prayers. I pray she finds the peace that passes all understanding that is only found in Jesus Christ.

For my card, I used Kraft, Ocean Mist and Spring Moss cardstock from Papertrey Ink. I stamped Amazing Grace Hymn by Our Daily Bread on Vintage Vanilla cardstock with Spring Moss ink, and then stamped the leaf image from Papertrey Ink's Blooming Button Bits in Ocean Mist. I created the "Yes, Jesus Loves You!" greeting on my computer and printed it onto the panel. The butterflies were made with the SU Beautiful Wings embosslits die. (Love it!)

I'm going to sign off now and watch the Pairs Skating. Are you enjoying the Olympics? I LOVE Vancouver... it is truly a bit of heaven on earth... so I'm enjoying the scenery as much as the events. I'm partial to the skiiing and skating, of which I can do neither. Ha!

Thanks for stopping by for a visit. I'm pretty sure tomorrow is Tuesday...lol!

Pretend It's Early Monday Morning

I'm going to be pretending a lot from now on, it seems. My oh my. I am SOOOO Happy to announce that I'm one of the Twisted Thirteen...the Design Team for the new challenge blog Oh, Alice! Our fearless leader is none other than Jessica Diedrich, the Mad Hatter herself!! I'm so excited! This will be a challenge blog like no other, which is what I love about it. I think it will really stretch me creatively. Plus, look at all the stars I get to play with every week!

Natasha Beasley

Samantha Betbeder

Catherine

Margie Cortina
Jessica Diedrich - Mad Hatter

Mary Giles
Jimmi Mayo

Peggy McCurry

Betty Roberts

Kyra Sanders

Jen Shults

Pam Varnell

Kristy Young

So what exactly IS this Oh, Alice! Challenge Blog???

We will be a WEEKLY Challenge blog posted EVERY SATURDAY. We will be featuring inspiration challenges from Alice-inspired memorabilia, jewelry, and other handmade items from places like Etsy shoppes and vintage collectibles. We will also incorporate Color-inspired challenges from certain scenes from the movie, inspiration from items like teacups, teapots, flowers, and hearts (a few of the major components of the movie!), and even some sketches along the way! It's going to be FUN FUN FUN! (quoted from the Oh Alice! blog)

Fun Fun Fun is right, don't you think? Be sure to jump over to Oh, Alice! and join as a Follower, and our blinkie to your blogs, and stay tuned for our first challenge this coming Saturday. It's such a great one, I can hardly wait!!! You'll love it!

Okay, so this is me... the rabbit, running late late late for a very important date... with my craft room! Back later for my "Sunday" post! LOL

Love to you all!

Pretend It's Saturday

Hello my friends. I'm running waaaay behind schedule. It all started with my two middle boys having surgery Friday afternoon to have their wisdom teeth removed. I didn't expect it to affect ME as much as it did! LOL! Yes, I found myself worried and feeling a bit shaky at the dentist's office when the boys were under the knife, and then nearly cried when I saw the first one post-surgery. I guess it shows that no matter how old they get (these two are [almost] 22 and 16), they are still your babies and you'd do anything to keep them from suffering.

I was by myself because Paul had a golf team event he couldn't miss. I got them home okay, but then began the post-op nursing... changing gauze and cold packs... trying to get them to sip something and eat a bit so that they could take pain meds. By the time they got reasonably settled, I was wiped out! Some nurse I make!

I'm happy to report that they are both doing well. The 16 y/0 was back to his sassy self by yesterday morning... even went to the Club to play some golf yesterday afternoon. But my 22 y/0 is still struggling. His teeth were the most impacted. He's doing better, but is very swollen today. He looks like he's gained a bunch of weight... he's very thin, so it's funny. He says he thinks he looks like Marlon Brando in The Godfather...and does a pretty good imitation of him. At least he has a sense of humor!

I'm trying to remember what I did yesterday. It's all a blur, but it sums up to not much at all in terms of crafting. I finally got to my craft room late afternoon, and after messing up the coloring of this adorable image TWICE, I finally threw in the towel and went to bed.

Which, of course, means I didn't get my card done for Stampin' Sisters in Christ. It's the snowball effect.

So pretend it's Saturday, okay? And time for a new sketch at The Sweet Stop! This week's sketch is awesome, although I did have to eliminate the band and embellishment along the bottom because I didn't want to cover up the DP. That paper is from the Report Card collection by October Afternoon... a perfect companion for this sweet image, don't you think? That's Betty The Bookworm from Stamping Bella.

I used to be a bookworm... before I became a paper crafting junkie!

I hope you'll join us at The Sweet Stop this week! It's an awesome sketch, don't you think? To give you some inspiration, check out what the rest of The Sugar Babies have come up with:

• Andrea Vernagus
• Ann Clack
• Audrey Gonzales
• Candace Mitchell
• Jodi Collins
• Julie Masse
• Korin Sutherland - Sugar Mama
• Nancy Brown
• Nicole Anderson
• Renata Elenbaas

Since today is "Saturday," that means tomorrow is "Sunday." I'll be back then with my card for Stampin' Sisters in Christ.

Before I go, I want to give you a glimpse of what it's like to live with all males:


Have a great day!

I've Never Met a Cupcake [Challenge] I Didn't Like!

This is my second post for today. If you're looking for Kristine's Birthday Blog Hop, please scroll down.

Happy Friday my friends! Today is a very special day... Taylored Expressions is celebrating its 100th Sketch Challenge!!! Woo Hoo!!! And, what kind of celebration would it be without prizes? Yep, that's right...Taylor is going to give away a $25 Taylored Expressions gift certificate to one random winner chosen from among all those who help us spread the word about the Sketch 100 Celebration by posting the badge on their blog. Pop over to Taylor's blog to grab the code!

Not only that, but Taylor is also going to give a $25 gift certificate to each of the Top 5 creations using Sketch 100 (judged by the Taylored Expression Sketch Crew). You may enter as many times as you want, but each creation must be linked separately in Mr. Linky on Taylor's blog.

So what are you waiting for? The sketch is fantastic!

Since Taylor started these sketch challenges as the Friday Cupcake Challenge, I thought it only right that I feature cupcakes in my card today, so I inked up the new Taylored Expressions Bakery Business stamp set. I'm in love love love with these images!!! I paired them with the new Material Girl DP by Cosmo Cricket (mini deck), which I'm also smitten with. Cosmo Cricket just gets better and better, don't you think?

Before you run off to start your card, be sure to check out what the rest of the Taylored Expressions Sketch Crew have created for your inspiration and pleasure... and help us welcome Lori Craig to the Sketch Crew! We also have a special guest on the Stamp a Sweet Impressions blog featuring the incredible Beate Johns as our Friday Friend, so be sure to stop there, too!

Jami Sibley: More is More
Lynn Mercurio: Stamperosity
Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper
Sherrie Siemens: Card Creme

Melissa Sauls: In Stamping Mode
Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gallery
Alice Lihsuan-Wertz: Alice's Little Wonderland
Lori Craig: Make a Difference
and of course Taylor herself: Taylored Expressions

Thanks for stopping by! Let the PAR-Tay begin!!!