Mojo116- Welcome, Baby

Good evening from snowy Iowa! We are just coming out of one heck of a blizzard. We were pretty much snowed in for two days, so I have gotten ALOT done! I finished an order of 15 cards (started on Monday) because we couldn't go anywhere! This is one of the last ones, and it also follows the sketch for this week's Mojo Monday (#116).

There is absolutely no stamping on this card, it's all paper from the same stack. It's called Nana's Nursery Baby Boy Matstack. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. It's glittery, it can be boy or girl, it's darling!
I drew some faux stitching around each of the circles for interest, and then cut the giraffe out by hand and popped him up on dimensionals. The "welcome, baby" is my own handwriting. Thanks for stopping! We actually get to leave the house tomorrow, so things will start picking up again!

**supplies**
Paper: Nana's Nursery Baby Boy matstack (from Hobby Lobby), unknown dark blue
Other: ribbon, blue pen, dimensionals
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Kayla

My first crocheted blanket!

Hey, everyone! Just popping in quick this morning to show you the blanket that I finally got done! My friend Becky asked me to crochet around some fabric for her daughter's (1) "comforter" for her crib bed. I chose to use some dark brown thread. I kind of made up the pattern because I didn't know what I was doing, and close up, it looks a lot more like scallops than in this picture, but you get the idea!
Pattern:
Rnd 1: Foundation stitch
Rnd 2: Dc in every sc
Rnd 3 (scallop): (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc) in first sp, sk 4 dc, * (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc) in next sp, sk 4 dc*, repeat from * around.
**in corners: ch 1, 4-5 dc, ch 3, 4-5 dc, sk 4 dc, resume Rnd 3

Happy Friday!

Verve Release Party Challenge

Happy Monday! Here's a card I made yesterday for Verve's November release party challenge. The challenge was to use their sketch, and make it a thankful card. I embossed the snowflakes on the background with sparkly ep, and added stickles everywhere (kind of hard to see--hopefully getting a new camera for Christmas, right mom?! :) ) I cut out the snowflake and popped it out on dimensionals (the big snowflake is on dimensionals, too). Thanks for looking!

Kayla

**supplies**
Paper: dark blue, SU! bashful blue, SU! Lavender Lace
Ink: versamark
Stamps: Serene Snowflakes
Other: sparkly ep, stickles, dark blue cm pen, pastels
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Cards and Kids

Good evening, everyone! I've come with some cards that I made today, and also a few pictures...
First, the cards. These are going to my mom--the first one is for my grandma's birthday.

I love how this turned out. It's for Viva La Verve, November Week 1. The twist was to use a 1,2, 3 challenge (1 embellishment, 2 colors, 3 stamps). I think I hit the mark. I embossed the flowers and the flower spray...it's really pretty IRL (as always! :) )
**Supplies**
Paper: Unknown dark pink, light pink, red
Stamps: Verve Because of You
Ink: positively pink, versamark
Other: pearls, clear ep, scallop circles from cricut, sponges
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This one is for an anniversary that's coming up (I won't say who in case they read it!). Its also for Viva La Verve, November Week 2. The twist this week was to use the cracked glass technique (really fun, you can find it on SCS). The flowers are done with this technique...it takes time, but it turns out really neat. I just hope they don't think I wish them a broken marriage! :) LOL I forgot I had this paper; it was hidden on a bottom rack on my paper holder. It's SU!...I don't even remember the name. Parisian Breeze? ha
**Supplies**
Paper: Parisian Breeze
Stamps: Happy Harmony
Ink: Positively Pink
Other: pearls, clear ep for cracked glass

And now for some fun family pictures...

Here's Micah! He's walking EVERYWHERE now---all over the house practically!

Michelle got these fun glasses from a friend of mine because she went potty at Becky's house. This was taken right after she took a bath...I thought it turned out darling.

Have a nice night!

Kayla

Potty Training

This is going to be a mostly family post, no cards today. Although, I have about five million cards to show you...but, as I am taking care of five children today AND I am preparing for a stamp a stack party at my house tonight, I don't have any time.

Michelle is doing so well learning to go potty! We started last Thursday (I just set my mind to it because I believed she was ready, just lazy). She went in her panties about 7 times, each time more agitating than the last. She did pee in the potty a few times that day. On Friday, she went in her panties only twice, and on Saturday, Sunday, and yesterday, she didn't pee in her panties at all; she only pooped (we're still working on that...where to start?!). Now, today, she has gone potty immediately after I put her on (we've had to read books and "relax" so she could go...we could easily sit there for five minutes before she did anything)...big improvement! She's been wearing a panty all day, and hasn't wet through! Plus, she is willingly going when I ask. Now, to get her to tell me! I'm sure that will come, though.

I was just so excited that she is actually being potty trained that I had to post! I've waited and waited for this...plus she is getting harder to change (saying she doesn't like to be wiped because it hurts), so I knew it was time.

Keep up the good work, Michelle!

Welcome Back!

Hey, everyone. Sorry it's been so long...I had a long, long, messy October! But, I'm busy getting ready for the Alcester craft fair on Saturday...here's some stuff I've done...

Love, love, love this quote and how this sign turned out! Very basic--black paint, red flourish, white letters. Simple, yet powerful.

Love this, too. Perfect for a child's room. Again, yellow paint (over underlaiment), with white and black letters and stars.

A little more complicated--this one took awhile!

It's hard to tell in this picture, but the outer blue layer and the outer matting of each snowflake is cut with a glittery blue paper. It's gorgeous in real life! Gotta go--kids are crying!

Kayla

Long Time No See

Hey. Sorry it's been forever. We've had a busy few weeks!

The craft fair was a few weeks ago, but I didn't do so well. Sold a few things, but nothing really awesome. Somewhat depressing, but trying to keep my chin up. Going to try again at the Alcester fair in November and the Beresford fair in December. No sense dwelling, though...

The week of the craft fair Micah was very, very sick. I took him to the dr. after he ran a 102/103 fever for a couple days, and he was diagnosed (but not tested for) with strep. He continued to run a high fever, hitting 105 several times during the next three days. When I left him on Saturday morning for the craft fair, his temp was 104.6 and climbing. I felt so guilty. It was so scary to watch his temp just keep climbing while he was always dosed with Tylenol and Motrin continuously. I called the ER once in the middle of the night when it was 105 and once in the evening when it was 104.6. They said there was nothing much they could do for him, just give him a cool bath and make sure he drinks. He never got dehydrated, which was a blessing. My husband was gone that entire week, and I was so scared by myself. On the night I called the ER, I told myself if his temp gets to 106, I was just going in, whether they said to or not. And on Saturday, I told my sister-in-law to call me by noon if his temp was still above 103, and I would come back and go to the ER. At that point (Sat. morning), he had been on medicine for 2 1/2 days. He didn't sleep during the day, he certainly didn't sleep at night---the only person not exhausted was Michelle. Thankfully, his fever broke about 10 am on Saturday, and he slept for about 4 hours. My sister-in-law (a practicing nurse) spoke with a dr. at her hospital, and they both agreed that he probably had the H1N1 flu....we stayed home from church with him the next day. Thankfully, no one else in the family got it. That was so scary.

Here's a card for you...I'm slowly getting some inspiration and motivation back. My sister-in-law (on my side) ordered some cards, and this is the first one. It's a wedding card.

I love how this turned out. It's even better in real life. I used the sketch from Viva la Verve September Week 5. The twist this week was to use specialty paper. I found this loves me/loves me not vellum in my stash, and ran with it. I love how it looks silvery gray in front of the purple. Alot of stamping and cutting involved here, but it was kind of fun and very enjoyable!

Alright, I have to go get started on a blanket I'm crocheting an edge for. Bye!

***Ingredients***

Stamps: SU! Wild Rose, Verve Beautiful You

Paper: PTI Plum Pudding, SU! Certainly Celery, metallic silver, loves me by over the moon press

Ink: Lovely Lilac and Certainly Celery (SU!)

Other: rhinestone brads, sponges

Bookmarks and Card Sets

Well, surprise. Five minutes later I have another post! Here are a few things I made last week that I'm super excited about!

I remembered that I had a whole package of these jumbo bookmarks. I decorated them (they are the same on both sides), and adhered them to the clip with hot glue. They aren't ever going anywhere!

I found the animal set (SU! Zoofari) off a rummage in Hull for $4.00. What a steal! I thought they turned out so cute! The other animal didn't really fit in the circle, so I just used some patterened paper. I'm going to sell these for $.50 each.
***ingredients***
Paper: BG Lollipop Shoppe
Stamps: Zoofari
Ink: varied, all SU!
Other: jumbo clips, scallop circle punch, circle punch, colored pencils, hot glue
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Here's another little card set I created. These are thank yous for teachers to give out. They are 3x3 cards, and I made six identical ones. The apple pattern does vary, though.
I found the card box in the Resources section of SCS- super simple to make! I used my last sheet :( of PTI Pure Poppy and decorated it almost the same as the cards. I think it is just darling! It's hard to tell, but I made the handle a little more decorative by using my CM wavy trimmer and attached it with brads on each side. I also cut a notch in the top of the bo with my circle punch to allow the cards to peek through. I cut the envelopes by hand; I found that template on SCS as well a long time ago.
This is also my entry for last week's Viva La Verve. The twist was to go tiny!
***ingredients***
Paper: PTI Pure Poppy, white, unknown green, wal-mart dsp
Stamps: PTI Teacher's Apple, unknown "thank you"
Ink: real red, certainly celery
Other: top note die shape from cricut, scallop from corner rounder, 3x3 card box from SCS, 3x3 envelope from SCS
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Thanks for stopping (again!). Have a great Monday!

Some gifts...

Good morning! I made a few things over the weekend to share with you. The first are some blocks for my niece and nephew's birthday. They turned 5 (boy), and 3 (girl). Happy birthday, kids!!

I used a girly, butterfly theme for Hannah's. She loves butterflies, and I thought "Sweet Dreams" was appropriate!

***ingredients***
Paper:SEI Chocolat
Stamps: n/a
Ink:n/a
Other:cricut; free font (pavane),

mod podge, wood blocks

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I used some western paper and embellishments for Cole's. He's a true cowboy (in the making!). I got these blocks from my husband after they finished building something; he sawed them down for me and I sanded them. Cheap!

***ingredients***
Paper:Carolee Adornit!
Stamps:n/a
Ink:n/a
Other:cricut, free font (Boyzrgross),

start sticker embellishments, mod podge

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Can you guess who this is for? I thought it would be cute to have a mailman appreciation gift for the upcoming holiday season. My dad is a letter carrier, and his job is HARD! During the hot summer months and the freezing cold winter months, and the rainy spring months, I'm not sure I would look forward to being outside in the elements all day long! He works hard to get mail to all the postal patrons, and I know I appreciate his job. Where else can you mail a letter to anywhere in the world and have it arrive safe and sound in (most of the time) under a week? They deserve more credit than we give them.

So, in light of that, I created this gift. It would be perfect to put in the mailbox during Christmastime to say "thanks" to your mail carrier.

My mom bought these stamps off a rummage for me in Sioux Falls (it's a set of three; the other stamp is a post office). I cut the top notes from my cricut, and colored the pictures with colored pencils. I used a total of 8 dimensionals to adhere the top note to the blue paper.

***ingredients***
Paper: Cloud 9 Designs; Pure Poppy (PTI), white
Stamps: Simply Stamped mail set, PTI Teacher's Apple (sentiment)
Ink: Basic Black
Other: cricut, free top note die shape from internet,

1 1/4" and 1 1/2" circle punches, dimensionals, red marker, colored pencils

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Well, thanks for stopping! I do really have lots to post, but the craft fair in Akron is on Saturday, and I'm not sure I'm going to have any free time this week to blog. I'll try to chip away at it, though. I have some cute stuff to share!

Our Little Family

Just wanted to share our family picture that we just had taken for our church directory. It turned out really well, and it gives you a chance to see the people I talk about all the time. Have a great night!

Kayla

A Sad Sunday

The kids are keeping busy, so I wanted to use a few minutes to share some sad news.
Yesterday, our (almost) brand new puppy, Tajar, got hit. He was chasing the van, and we hit him in our own driveway. He died shortly after that.

I was pretty sad yesterday...the first dog we had that I really, really loved and he's dead after only a month. I'm beginning to wonder if we are supposed to actually have a dog. This was our third- the first two ran away. Tajar was just such a good dog; he had so much potential. I really thought he was going to be the dog that stayed with us....well, forever. Hopefully, this means something is going to happen soon that will make us unable to have a dog.

Michelle is struggling to understand what "death" means. She's not really sad, but she is a little confused as to where Tajar is. She watched us bury him this morning (I told Myron I didn't think I could handle it if he fed him to the sheep :) ), and now tells people (when they ask about Taj) that "Tajar's dead," "sleeping very tight," or "Daddy covered him up." See what I mean about a little confused. When we were going home, she said, "Tajar's going to chase," and she just wanted to go outside and play with him a little while. Bums me out.

Just a dark spot in our week, I guess. It's lonely around here now without him.

Kayla

MOJO Monday 103

Happy Monday, and Happy Labor Day (for those of you lucky enough to get the day off!). My husband is gone golfing, and I am home waiting for the kids to wake up (okay, I'm cherishing every second they are asleep!).

My task for today was complete this week's Mojo Monday challenge because it's a contest week! They choose 7 winners, and those winners get to choose a Verve set of their choice!

Hard sketch this week: go to http://mojomonday.blogspot.com to see the sketch. I wanted to make a few accordian books for the craft fair, so I wanted to incorporate that into my sketch. This is what I came up with:

Beautiful, no? I LOVE LOVE LOVE this SEI paper. So gorgeous. This panel is 6 1/4 x 6 1/4 (the book base is 6 1/2 square). I like how this turned out. I was going to make a baby girl book (hence, the pink), but I just left it up to the buyer's imagination!

The butterfly is stamped first onto the white c/s in pixie pink, and then also stamped onto some patterened paper from the collection and cut out. I added a few tiny, tiny pearls to the antenae.

Here's a view of the inside-front. I used lots of different paper from the SEI Chocolat collection and just varied where I put them. I was going to cover every single square, but then I decided that was overkill.

Here's the inside- back. Again, different paper. The two papers on the full squares are my favorite papers from this collection- glittery pinks and browns...yum!

Thanks for stopping. I hopefully will be able to post what I've been up to in the next few days!

***ingredients***
Paper: SEI Chocolat, white c/s
Stamps: Verve- Fluttering by, Beautiful You
Ink: Ranger Distress Walnut Stain, Pixie Pink
Other: pearls, heavy heavy cardboard from who knows where, mod podge

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Teacher Candy Jar

Happy Tuesday! The kids are still sleeping, and I've got my flu-sick husband off for the day. He woke up puking, but his parents are gone on vacation, so he must go help do chores with his brother. Plus, he has to go pick up 16 new calves this morning--he'll be busy. Poor guy. I told him to rest, rest, rest today! I also sent him off with a mug full of warm coke (it helps!) and $4 for a bottle of Pepto. Hopefully he'll survive.

I finished a project I've been wanting to do for awhile. I went rummaging a few weekends ago in a town close to where we live. I found four clean, empty Yankee Candle jars in a Free box at the last rummage I stopped it. What a treasure! I thought, "Surely I can make these into something!"

I created a Teacher Candy Jar with the first one (and probably the other two big ones).

Here it is from the front. I made an apple svg file in Inkscape for my cricut, and then used the Blackout feature to get rid of the lines before cutting it in red. To cut the mat, I just used the Shadow Blackout feature and cut it in green. I "stitched" around both layers with a white gel pen. I added a button with some ribbon (a last minute adjustment), and stamped the sentiment from PTI's Teacher's Apple. I embossed the TEACHERS in black ep. I used pop dots to adhere it to the jar.

Too close! Oh well, you get the idea. This was mainly to cover up the ugly sticker on the bottom...just some stamping and sponging. The circle was cut with the George cartridge (it's 2 1/2").

And some yummy treats to go inside! If you know who my daughter is, it won't surprise you to know that we have a whole 5 lb. bag of peppermints in our house, so the candy didn't cost me a dime!

I'll post the rest of the jars once I get them made. Thanks for stopping!

***ingredients***
Paper: red, Old Olive
Stamps: PTI Teacher's Apple
Ink: versamark, basic black, real red
Other: black ep, heating gun, cricut, inkscape, George cart, free apple clipart, white gel pen, button from stash, ribbon, pop dots, sponges, empty Yankee Candle jar

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Choo Choo!

Good morning! I stole a few minutes this morning to finish a card I started on Saturday morning. I spent the day yesterday sick with the flu (Michelle was sick the night before), so I didn't even feel like making cards! But, everyone is feeling much better today (in fact, the kids have now been sleeping for 12 hours), and I'm on the papercrafting scene once again!

One of my friends from high school that I have reconnected with through Facebook is having her fourth baby this week via cesarean. I wanted to make her a gift (more coming later once I know the baby's name), and knowing that she's having a boy made it easy to make a card!

I used the recent sketch from the Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge (it's #16), which you can find here on Priscilla's blog. I saw someone's entry on SCS, and loved the sketch.

I turned it on its side to better fit my card theme. I struggled with the flourishes in the corners, so instead, I omitted them and stuck a few trains at the bottom.

It's really hard to tell (I don't know if my Versamark is drying up or what), but I used the print pattern background stamp on the blue layer, and used crosshatch on the yellow and red layers. All very hard to tell. Thanks for stopping, and Happy Monday!

***ingredients***
Paper: CM paper stack-blue, yellow, red, generic white, generic black
Stamps: Gina K-Wee Tees, SU! Crosshatch, SU! Print pattern
Ink: real red, only orange, brilliant blue, versamark
Other: ribbon (offray), sponges, colored pencils

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Card for Grama Ann

Good evening! Just a quick card I made last night.

My great-grandma ("Grama") was in the hospital recently and we weren't sure how things were going to turn out. She's doing better now, but I am unable to go see her (she's in TN). So, I thought I would send her some paper flowers instead!

This sketch is for Viva La Verve September Week One. The twist was little round things. I used three pearls in the top left hand corner. I love my patterned paper and the waves---it was done with my long forgotten creative memories wavy trimmer. I embossed the sentiment with white ep. I never really was a fan of this set (Floral Whimsy), but it's really growing on my after this card! Thanks for stopping!



***ingredients***
Paper: SU! Bella Rose, PTI Dark Chocolate
Stamps: Verve- Floral Whimsy
Ink: versamark, certainly celery, real red
Other: white ep, sponges, cm wavy trimmer, ribbon (offray)
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Husband Emergency Card Stash

Hello! I finished my project!! Check it out:



This is the box that will hold the emergency card stash (obviously). I used the tutorial for an A2 Card Box from Splitcoaststampers (under "Resources"). I first used a pizza box tutorial that I found online, but once I got it all made and decorated, it didn't hold all the cards! Doh! So, I cut the decorated top off, whipped up an A2 card box, and stuck the top along with some scallops onto the top of the new card box. Clear as mud, huh?
Here is the list of what will be in the card stash. You can find most of them on my blog in the past few days.
1. One birthday card- for wife
2. One Valentine's Day card- for wife
3. One Anniversary card- for wife
4 and 5. TWO Just Because card- for wife
6. One "It's okay"/Sympathy/Empathy card- for wife
7 and 8. TWO Mother's Day cards- for wife and mother/mother-in-law

There is a total of eight cards in the box. The challenge with the box (other than the dimensions) was to make it masculine. I love how the words turned out (they are from SCAL and my cricut), and the background pattern from Technique Tuesday is one of my favorite stamp sets! Thanks for looking- hope to post something more tonight!

Kayla

***Ingredients***
Paper: SU! Bashful Blue, basic black, white
Stamps: Technique Tuesday "Irony"
Ink: versamark
Other: ribbon (offray), cricut, scal, free font: cooper black and comic sans, corner rounder for scallops
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Husband Emergency Cards

Hello! I've finished all the cards for my husband emergency card stash...I'll get the packaging made soon and put it all on here.
But, in the mean time, here's the last two with details:

This card is the Valentine's Day card. I used the sketch from SCS's sketch challenge 243. It was a little intimidating at first, but once I chose the bella rose paper, it was easy!

***ingredients***
Paper: Bella Rose DSP, PTI Dark Chocolate
Stamps: Wild Rose DD
Ink: positively pink, green galore, ranger distress walnut stain
Other: sponges, corner rounder for scallops

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This is the last of them; it's another Just Because card. I used a sketch from Markie's Mom's blog (see card here)--I saw it this morning and love it!! I also used the color combo challenge from Dawn McVey's Raspberry Suite blog. I've never played this challenge before, but it was fun! You can see the colors here: Color Challenge
I used Spring Moss and Razzberry Fizz (instead of Hibiscus burst) from PTI, SU!'s Flowers for You DSP instead of Melon Berry, and a generic cream. I love these colors together!!
With the sketch and the colors, it was relatively easy to put together! Thanks for stopping!

***ingredients***
Paper: PTI Spring Moss, Razzberry Fizz; SU! Flowers for You, unknown cream
Stamps: Happy Harmony, Verve- Flutterby
Ink: positively pink
Other: pastels, ribbon, fiskars heart punch, dimensionals

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Viva La Cards!!!

Made quite a few cards this weekend. I decided to make a Husband Emergency Card Stash card set for the craft fair. Basically, it has all kinds of cards for the man of the house to give to his wife and mother and mother in law for various occasions. I'm not going to post them all here, but when it's complete, I'll give you the full list. I'm about 3/4 of the way done, so expect it soon!

Mojo Monday sketch. This is an anniversary card. The quote says, "If you live to be 100, I hope I live to be 100 minus one day so I NEVER have to live without you. -Winnie the Pooh". So cute!

***ingredients***
Paper: SEI Chocolat
Stamps: Verve- Beautiful You
Ink: positively pink
Other: ribbon, dimensionals

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Another husband card. This is for his mother or mother in law for mother's day. Got the top note die from a site online (can't remember, though--I'll hunt).

***ingredients***
Paper: unknown brown, taken with teal, PTI Razzberry Fizz, Lemon Tart
Stamps: Verve Because of You
Ink:versamark, tempting turquoise
Other: white gel pen, top note die from internet, corner rounder for scallops, gold ep

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The other mother's day card for husband stash. Love this top note die shape!! I used the negative image from the previous card and just matted some PTI Razzberry Fizz Remix paper inside.

***ingredients***
Paper: unknown brown, taken with teal, PTI Razzberry

fizz remix, lemon tart
Stamps: verve- because of you
Ink: versamark
Other: pastels, top note die, ribbon

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Viva La Verve August Week 4: twist was to use favorite color combo. I love black and pink and teal. They look so bold!! It's hard to tell in the picture, but I stamped the dots from Delight in Life and emobssed them with clear ep.

***ingredients***
Paper: Basic Black, taken with teal, razzberry fizz remix
Stamps: delight in life, both ways blossoms
Ink: versamark
Other: clear ep, ribbon, pastels, dimensionals

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Thanks for stopping! Good night!

Welcome Signs #3 and #4

Good evening. Two posts today--I've been crafting, but too busy to blog. My sister in law and I just put up another 94 quarts of sweet corn today (we did 74 last week), so I have hardly been home!

I finished my signs for the craft fair. I LOVE how they turned out. I can't wait to get more.

Another welcome sign. The "welcome" was a bear to cut on my cricut. I think my mat is old, my blade is shot, and I'm a dummy. LOL I had some trouble! Again, got the flourish free from a My Cricut Scrapbooking online. I think this turned out very tastefully!

I chose to make the last one a thanksgiving/fall sign. I love the font that Thanks is written in (Liorah BT), and it cuts beautifully! I stamped the pumpkins on Only Orange, stamped the leaves on Green Galore, and then cut them all out. I used a gel pen to create the white "stitching". I also "stitched" around almost all the other pieces--I think it gives it such a homespun feel.

Thanks for stopping!! Have a great night!

Welcome sign

***ingredients***
Paper: SU! flowers for you, unknown cream, unknown brown,

unknown green, PTI Spring Moss, SEI Chocolat
Stamps: n/a
Ink: n/a
Other: cricut, scal, free font: Liorah BT, arial; flourish free from

My Cricut Scrapbooking, sign from dollar store

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Give Thanks sign

***ingredients***
Paper: PTI Summer Sunrise, SU! real red, dsp from flowers for you,

unknown brown, only orange, green galore
Stamps: Autumn Harvest
Ink: Only orange, green galore
Other: cricut, scal, free font: liorah bt, arial, white gel pen, s

ign from dollar store

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