Stampin' Up! Zoo Babies

I needed another baby card, so I decided to play around with the sketch at CAS(E) this Sketch and see if I could come up with a cute boy card.  I only have 2 colors of distress inks, so I went with green since it paired well with my alligator.  It's a super simple card, but I used my neglected stencil and Zoo Babies, a favorite set.  

This month has been a huge mental struggle for me and I can tell in my stamping.  I'm avoiding my room and not liking the cards I make when I do go in there.   I'm hoping June brings some fresh mojo and some uplifted spirits.   

One of my customers (who is now a good friend) came by yesterday and brought Laila a giant Elmo.  She loves it!   Maybe too much!   Jason rocked her and Elmo to sleep for her nap yesterday, so he had to go hide before bedtime came.  ;)   We already have 2 loveys and a sock monkey to rock, so any extras make it even more challenging! 

Freshly Made Dinosaur

Okay!  It's Wednesday and that means Freshly Made Sketches!   Monday really threw me off and I almost forgot to make my card on time.   Not good!    I did remember while Laila was napping and managed to complete it before she woke up.  Those naps are a lifesaver!   :-)   Anyway, I think you'll have a lot of fun with this sketch that our awesome Artisan Jen T. created.  

Now... in an attempt to chase off some of my cardmaking blues I'm starting a new strategy.  Instead of just making random cards, I'm going to try making them with a person in mind to send them to!   Or at least most of them.   I have two friends who are having babies soon, so I picked one of them to stamp for this time.   Brandi is my best friend from graduate school and is having a little girl after two boys.   She's like me and not super girly, so I went with a dinosaur.  I did make it pink, but I think that's fun.   I used Pirouette Pink for all the pinks, but they sure don't look the same in my picture.  Strange!  I do wish I'd used Pear Pizzazz instead of Wild Wasabi now that I look at it, but it's fine.    

Stamps:  Positively Chevron, Itty Bitty Banners, Lawn Fawn Critters of the Past
Ink:  Wild Wasabi, Pool Party
Paper:  Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Wild Wasabi
Tools:  Bitty Banner framelits, The Cat's Pajamas grass die

We took flowers out to Eli and the rest of Jason's family on Monday.  Laila doesn't understand the cemetery of course, but she does recognize Eli's picture.  

Merry Monday Cocoa

It's Monday, so I have one more card to share for Merry Monday before my month with them is over.  (Sad face)   It's been fun getting to play in some Christmas challenges when it's super hot outside.  :)   This week Debbie challenged us to use food on our cards.  I couldn't find anything on my stamp shelf that would work, so I went back to my Cameo again.   I hope hot cocoa counts as a food. Maybe if we pretend there's marshmallows in it?  I know I love it around the holidays!  

Jason made a face at my card, so I know it's not quite my usual work.  I had a rough morning running out of adhesive and dealing with a hurting shoulder.  I thought life would be easier to let my Cameo do all the work.  Easier yes, but the results...   Cards definitely need stamping to be liked in our house I guess. 

I hope you'll join us this week and whip up a yummy card! 

Here's Laila cooking some yummy lunch this week. 

Sunflower Bloom

A night of firsts!  I finally opened my new Copics and tried to color something with them.  It is definitely going to take a lot of learning, but it was fun.  I can't wait for my class in two weeks!   It was also my first time coloring a digital stamp.   I loved the Inky Paws challenge that Newton's Nook has going and wanted to play along.  I used wood both on my background and my button is also wood.  :)

Just a simple card before I go crash for the night with some ice cream and The Good Wife.  I'm hoping to catch up and watch the season finale before it gets spoiled.  :)  I hope you had a great weekend!

LOL   Is Jason wrapped around her finger or what?!   He's such a good daddy.   

Stampin' Up! Endless Birthday Wishes

Did you see the new photopolymer set that SU released last week, Endless Birthday Wishes?  It is SOOO adorable!   I finally got mine in the other night (and yes, night! UPS came at 8:54pm!) and wanted to play with it.   I saw the cute colors over at Colour Me and decided to use those.  I didn't have the exact ones, but I picked ones that were close...I hope.

I don't know why I added that other happy at the top.  I was thinking that space was bothering me, but now that happy is...  I probably would have remade it and left that off, but I ran out of adhesive.  Can you even believe that?!  I guess I'll be making an emergency shopping run and order tomorrow.   Yikes!

Laila had fun in her pool today. She even talked her daddy into getting in with her.  lol   Talk about spoiled!

Stampin' Up! Perfect Blend

After a stressful week, I decided to try a bit of stamping tonight.   I wanted to play along with the new Wednesday sketch at MFT.  It looked a bit challenging, so I figured it would be a good mental exercise.   It's been a coffee kind of week, so I just continued that on my card.  I hope my card is close enough to the sketch.  I took a bit of liberty to get it to work.

I am really loving the Epic Day DSP these days.  It will retire soon, so it's good that I'm starting to use it up.   I was almost tempted to buy another pack when I saw it was on sale today, but I need to chill out on the paper.  I have more than enough to last a lifetime already!

Laila has never really taken to anything that is made to help with teething, but ice seems to make her happy right now as her molars come in.   I think I need to treat her to some ice from Sonic this weekend.   That's the good stuff!

Freshly Made Hello for a Friend

It's Wednesday, so time for a new Freshly Made Sketch!   Jen Mitchell is our hostess this week and she has a most challenging sketch for everyone.   I totally didn't do it justice, but I know there are a ton of ideas that would look fabulous!  You can check out the other design team cards and see that.   Someone has to be the caboose, right?!  lol   I did make this in about 20 minutes after a horrible day with my girl, so I'm cutting myself some slack this week.  

I actually meant to flip it and make some banners and something else, but in all the chaos of yesterday my idea flew right out of my head.   I still don't remember what it was but maybe it will come back to me?  Yeah right! ;)  

This was my little diva yesterday.   She woke up and was difficult from the very first minute.   She didn't want to wear anything I tried to put on her, wouldn't eat anything I made her, and was just downright a pain in the butt all day!   I called Jason crying at one point because I was just so overwhelmed.   We had a great day on Monday, so I don't know what was up.   Anyway, this was her picking out her pajamas.  If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself I guess.  lol   Here's hoping for a better day today.  Jason is working an extra day this week, so I hope I don't lose my mind.  Toddlers!  Sigh.  

Merry Monday Flourished Poinsettia

Merry Monday!!!!!   I know, I know.  Mondays are usually blah, but starting the week off with a festive Christmas card can be a good pick-me-up.   The Merry Monday Challenge is perfect for that.  Bonnie has a great challenge this week to use flowers on your holiday project.   It was a bit of a challenge for me in that I don't really have any stamps that would work.   Thankfully my Cameo came to the rescue and I managed to whip up a card.  (It's design #36525 at the Silhouette Online Store in case you need that info.)   I went super simple and let the flourishes of the flower and sentiment shine.

Gorgeous inspiration photo, right?!    I hope you'll be inspired to play along this week! 

We recently started buying produce from a local farm and I think Laila really likes it.  :)   

Stamp Review Crew Wetlands Edition

It's time for a new hop of the Stamp Review Crew!  This time we are featuring an awesome set called Wetlands.  It's a great set for techniques, so I'm betting you'll see lots of fun cards as you make the rounds.  Remember if you get lost, you can always go to the main landing page to get yourself straightened back out.   

For my card I decided to create a scene with a bit of masking and continue my addiction with watercoloring. :)   I am not artistic in the least, but I do enjoy the relaxation that comes with coloring.  Well, with water anyway.  I used a lot of greens, Pool Party, and a few grays.  If you don't yet own the Aquapainters, get some.  They are so fun to play with and I keep mine on my stamp paper these days.   

Make It Monday (or Saturday)

I had just a bit of time to play around a bit this week so I decided to try a new technique.  I saw this on PTI Make It Monday and decided to have a go of it.   I love emboss resist, so I'm all for a new way to do it!  :)   If you have any little small stamps, it's a great way to use them!   I used all my yellows including So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry, and even revived More Mustard!  The sentiment is from PTI and the circles from MFT.

Laila got this horse for her birthday LAST year but never really cared much for it.  I had put it away and decided to try it one last time before finding it a new home.  Well, she LOVES it now.   She's tried to take it to bed with her and the other day she even had to ride it outside.  It's too small for her now, so I need to look for a little ride on toy that's more her size and that has the ability to steer!

Stampin' Up! Blue Ribbon

I needed the mental break of stamping last night, so I started this card.  It wasn't working out so great, but I finally gave up today and put it together.  It might be a good guy card because I don't think they really pay attention to them anyway!  Ha!  I used a color combination from the awesome Color Coach, Bermuda Bay, Basic Black, and Smoky Slate.

I received an email this morning that my blog posts weren't working for those of you who subscribe by email.  I had no idea, but I did try to fix that.  I hope you'll let me know if the new subscription service is working.  I apologize for that.  I knew some bloggers were having issues with Feedburner, but I didn't really think I had anyone subscribing.  Oops!

Love this girl.  She seems to have grown up over the past few weeks.  She understands so much more lately and is becoming a bit more helpful by throwing things away and picking up *some* of her things.  I can't believe she'll be 2 next month.  Time is just flying by too fast.

Stampin' Up! Starburst Sayings

Welcome to the newest sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!   Amy, who is so crazy talented that it's almost unreal, is our hostess this week and has a super awesome sketch.   I had such a blast making my card.  Laila actually took a nap long enough for me to finish on Monday, so that was great!  I do think I'll go back and change the button thread to linen thread instead of baker's twine.

Isn't that fun?!  You don't have to use a circular element of course.  There are so many possibilities that aren't circles.  That's why I just love sketches and sketch challenges.  You can do just about anything!

It was a rainy day here yesterday, so Laila and I piled up on my bed with a bunch of books!  It was so nice to relax and read.  :)   

Merry Monday Star Shaker

It's Monday and time for a new challenge at Merry Monday!    We really hit the hot, humid days in Texas this week, so I had to go for a nice clean-and-simple card.   Lori is the hostess this week and asked us to use stars.  I think I got that covered!  :)  There's a ton of different ways to use them and I can't wait to see the gallery this week.  I love stars!

Doesn't this picture make you want to create some of those 3-D stars?!  I don't have a clue how, but now I'm in the mood in to make them!  :)

One of my dear friends brought by a tricycle (or as Laila says, a motorcycle) and helmet last week.  She likes it, but she isn't so good at pedaling just yet.   After two major meltdowns, the motorcycle is put up for safe keeping.  I hope we are finally in the last stages of teething as her molars are coming in right now.  Oh my.  She's grumpy and so are we!  lol   I did have a great Mother's Day though and got lots of love and snuggles.  (and a set of Copics!)

Stampin Up Bloomin' Beautiful and Blendabilities

Just another bit of fun stamping. I made this for the Wednesday challenge at Simon Says Stamp.  I wanted to try out the new Blendabilities markers, but I didn't really have any current stamps that I wanted to color.  I went through the box of stamps I had marked to sell and found this old set.  I think it was one of, if not THE, first set I ever bought.  I always sucked at coloring, so it was also pretty neglected.  I'm thinking maybe I'll put it back on my shelf and practice more with it.  I did keep the rest of the card clean as I'm in a simple mood lately.  

My two sweeties.  I hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day!   

Just a fun card!

Finally a card that I DIDN'T have to make!  Yay!   I have really been in the dumps for the past few weeks and haven't wanted to stamp at all.  I decided to try to make something last night and this was my end result.  I made a ton of mistakes and have a trashcan full of messed up paper, but I finally got something I was happy with on attempt #123,255.  ;-)     I used the Wednesday sketch at MFT and their Bokeh Builder set.  

I feel like I'm in a weird place with my hobby.  I am branching out into some "contraband", but I still love Stampin' Up! and all my demo friends.  You'll probably see a mix of products on my blog for a while as I figure out what my future holds.  I think there's a happy medium that includes the best of all worlds, so that's where I hope to be. 

We actually used our recently purchased zoo membership again yesterday!   It seems like a good place for Laila to enjoy, so we are trying to go before the temperatures get too crazy.  It was still pretty warm yesterday and humid.  Sigh.   I hate Texas summers!   Anyway....  Laila LOVES the carousel and had a bit of a meltdown when we couldn't ride it a million times in a row.   We distracted her by going to feed the giraffes (that's MY favorite part!).   I have a love/hate relationship with zoos, but I love seeing the animals. 

Freshly Made Hello

It's Wednesday and time for a new sketch from Freshly Made Sketches! Narelle is our sketch designer this week, so I hope I used enough layers!  I have been having a pretty down month, so I decided to go to my happy place and use a favorite combo of yellow and black.   I just got some new stamps and dies from Avery Elle and decided to put those to use.   Fun stuff!

Isn't that a fun sketch?!  It isn't anything close to one I've done before so I really enjoyed it.  I love the tag topper punches and am so glad I took the plunge and got one!  Totally recommend those! 

I found this old rocking horse back when I was pregnant with Eli and just had to get it.  I never did get rid of it after he passed away, so it has been in Laila's room just waiting for her.  She is finally big enough to hop on it and rock.   She has a blast!    

Just a note, I know I owe a few of you guys some thank you cards for recent orders.  I'm way behind.  Things have been so crazy since we got back from our trip and I can't seem to catch up.   I hope to get those out this week, so forgive me.  My motto for May is Just Keep Swimming!  

Merry Monday Peaceful Season

I have the great pleasure of being the Featured Designer at Merry Monday this month!  We just started hitting ninety degree temperatures, so it feels a bit strange to be making Christmas cards.  :-)   For the first challenge, Katie has created a fun sketch:

I pulled out an old favorite set of mine that I just love.  My former upline gifted it to me a while back and I was oh so thankful.   I love the sentiments so much.   I love blue and silver for Christmas, so here I used Midnight Muse and Smokey Slate.  

Laila has been having a great time outside.  It seems to keep her from fussing too much.  Her 2 year molars are starting to come in and oh boy!   She's not been very pleasant to be around sometimes.  I treasure the sweet snuggles and reading time because she's so sweet and calm then.  :-)