Stampin' Up! Apple Blossoms

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches.  Woo hoo!  When I saw the sketch, I was a bit afraid.  I started looking over my stamps, saw this cute retired set, and knew it was PERFECT!    I used another color combination from the Color Coach, Pool Party, Crushed Curry, and Old Olive.

Now my first thought was a window.   Then I thought I might stamp a scene and cut it up.   Then I realized I don't have very much mojo this week, so I went for easy and just stamped the simple stems and called it good.  Sometimes easy is best, especially when we are struggling.  

Laila decided to send her daddy a text she typed all by herself.   I'm not sure what she was meaning with the beer and ice cream, but she was a bit out of luck on both counts.   lol   

Hooray for Stamping

Happy Monday!  (Is there such a thing?)   I actually don't mind Monday; Sunday and Tuesday seem to be Laila's most terrible Terrible 2's days, so Mondays are usually a nice break between them.  lol   I ran off to my stamp room today while she napped and this was what I came up with.  I had started it last night but couldn't get it to come together.  It seemed easy today and I do like the result.   It is for the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club sketch and uses their Bokeh Builder and LJD Birthday Greetings stamps.

I can't resist sketches with banners.  I figure banners, sequins, and chevrons have to be over soon, but I am so in love with them all that I will just have to be off trend and keep on using them.   I love the slightly retro feel to the colors.  

We braved dinner out on Friday night and Laila was so good.  I was happy because she's not been the best to take anywhere lately and we stay in most of the time.  She was also well-behaved at Costco on Saturday, so I hope she's learning that the better she is, the more we get to go do!   Being home all the time is ZERO fun for any of us.   Don't you love the big cup they brought her water in?   lol 

I Heart Sunshine

Avery Elle has another great challenge at the AEIHeartU challenge blog this week.   Since I've been feeling a little blue, I decided that sunshine was just what I needed today.   I used a stencil to make some sun rays, die cut the hello like a rainbow, and added some sequins and baker's twine for a fun element.   It makes me happy to look at, so I'm saying this card is for me.  Maybe I'll mail it to myself since next Saturday is the most difficult day of the year for me.

I hope you are stamping a bit this weekend  as well.   I know I haven't been doing it nearly enough myself.   I want to try to do better, so maybe you'll see a few more cards from me next month.   The Dare to Get Dirty challenges are coming up soon at Splitcoast and those are on my list to work on when they start up next week.

Laila needed her picture taken after her bath the other night.  lol   She's so silly sometimes.  

Stampin' Up! Kinda Eclectic

It's time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!   The oh-so-amazing Amy is our hostess this week and she has a fabulous sketch.   She also happened to use the die I was going to, so be sure you go check out the design team blog to see her awesome card.  :)  

My card is a bit busy for using such a simple sketch.  I was just adding and adding and finally had to just STOP before it got any more out of control.   Kinda Eclectic seems to have that effect on me.   lol  I used a new color combination for me, Lost Lagoon, Pool Party, and Pear Pizzazz.    They are so lovely together!  

Swinging is SO fun! 

AEIHeartU Hello

A while back I had purchased some Faber-Castell Gelatos and they got put up and never opened.  I decided to try them out and here's what I came up with.  I knew I wanted to use my hello die from Avery Elle for a second AEIHeartU challenge card.   I thought it would be awesome in black against the backgroud.   I added some shimmer with a Wink of Stella glitter brush pen because glitter makes everything better, right?!  lol

I really love playing around with some different mediums.  I am not artistic at all, but it can be fun to just try things.  I'm usually pretty scared to do that, but I'm trying to push myself a bit.  If we just do the same things over and over, a hobby can start to get boring.   Spicing things up with new products can make it almost new again.  :o)

Someone was sad that they missed the card photos, but she still posed anyway.   lol  She slept great last night without any medicine, so fingers crossed that the cough is gone for good!

MFT Wednesday Stamp Club

I managed to make a second card yesterday in addition to the one for my event.   I really wanted to play along with the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club sketch, so I pulled out my new MFT set, LJD Birthday Greetings.  I love birthday stamps!  I added a few glittery stars, but kept the card pretty simple to make it masculine.  I had to include some "spots and dots" to enter the Simon Says Stamp challenge this week too.

Great sketch, huh?  I had so many ideas, but went with the simple one because of time.   I was just happy to find time to stamp!  :) 

Sigh.   The never-ending mess of a toddler.   

Stampin' Up! Endless Birthday Wishes

Hello!!!!!   I finally got to stamp today!   Well, I HAD to stamp today because I'm not ready for my event tomorrow, but still...  It's been a long week with a sick toddler and not enough sleep.   I haven't made anything since Sunday.   Almost a week!  Yikes.   I was feeling a bit out of sorts, so I sorta CASEd myself with some new colors and embellishments.   We'll be making this at my class tomorrow.   Thanks to my buddies at Fab Friday for hte wonderful bright colors! 

It's a pretty simple card, just lots of stuff going on.  I love the new decorative masks and thought it would be fun to add some stars to my card base.   And SEQUINS!  LOVE sequins, especially in the In Colors.   I also used my Blendabilities to color the button to match my card.  Good stuff there! 

I seem to have a helper every time I try to take pictures now.  She did ohhh and ahh over my card, so I can't be mad at her.  She's had an awful cough all week.   She seems fine otherwise, but it gets worse at night and has been affecting her (and our) sleep.   She finally slept 13 hours last night, so I'm hoping she's a not-so-terrible-two toddler today.   Yesterday was just way too much and Jason and I were both at our wit's end.  I don't think toddler is going to be our shining parenting age for sure! 

Stampin' Up! Zoo Babies

It's Wednesday, so time for a new Freshly Made Sketches challenge!  The queen of layers and fussy cutting, Narelle, is our hostess is week.   She has a fabulous sketch with banners.    I am a bit short on time lately, so I whipped up this card for both the sketch and my stamping event this weekend.  It's nice when you can do that, right?   I might change out the designer paper (DSP) for my event so that the sentiment shows up a bit better.  I love the new set called And Many More.  Do you have it yet?!

Isn't that a fun sketch?   I love it and might even do a second card for my event with it.  :)   Our theme is kids birthday cards and I think that fits perfectly with the banners.  

We took Laila to the park last week and as always, I had to take my camera along.   I was so happy when I looked at my pictures and saw this one.   She's in motion so much now that it's hard to snap a lot of really good shots.  When I do get one, it makes me super happy.  :)    Unfortunately, she's feeling worse now.  I think she might have a summer cold.  Saturday night was rough with coughing and everyone waking up all night.   Yesterday brought sneezing and a runny nose along with no nap.    We are going to be worn out if this is a long lasting thing.  Blah.  It's times like this when I wish my mom was close.    Not having anyone nearby to help gets rough doesn't it? 

AEIHeartU Baby

Sorry for the not so great picture.  I finished too late for the good lighting and wanted to get it posted while I had a minute to sit down.   I just got in some new stamps and wanted to play along with the AEIHeartU challenge using one of them.   I also need more baby cards, so the theme was a pretty easy choice.  ;)   The challenge this week was to use just one word on your card.  Fun, right?!

I might sneak and take a better picture tomorrow once there's better light, but we'll see how that plays out.   We have company coming for breakfast and I know it will be a busy morning.   Quiche and company are totally worth it though.  

Here's another picture from Laila's birthday.  Jason says it is her "Toddlers & Tiaras" picture.  lol   This week has been much better than last week.   I think Jason and I were both about to run away last week and I knew we had to figure out something.   My friend recommended the 1-2-3 Magic book and so far it seems to have helped.  Toddlers are just crazy little humans aren't they?   Right now she has a cough and it has me wondering what's going on.   I feel like the worry that comes with a sick child is so magnified after you lose a little one.   I had awful dreams last night because I was worried about her.    I just have to keep telling myself that it's just a cough and she will be fine.  I just hope it's not a summer cold coming on because those are the worst!  Fingers crossed for some sleep tonight...  

Stampin' Up! You're My Type

Hello!  It's been a while, but you can usually count on me to show up on Wednesdays at least.   It's Freshly Made Sketches day and we have a great new sketch from Karren.   If you check out the cards from the design team, you'll see how versatile it is!  I love how we all have such different takes every week.

When I went to upload my card I discovered that I forgot to put my little clip on where the button is.  It's been a rough few days with Miss Laila, so my mind is a bit tired and forgetful. I did get it out and put it on my desk, but it must have been lost in the mess and I didn't see it.  I hope the punched edge and number on the ledger make up for it.   It's a pretty simple card, but I love the black and vanilla together.  They pair so well with the old school typewriter!   

Laila got to have her first s'more on the 4th and she LOVED it.  :)    She was a complete mess afterwards, but she enjoyed it.   Our neighborhood is supposed to be firework free, but that never happens.  Thankfully she's a good sleeper and didn't wake up with all the noise.  

Hello!

Hello!  :-)   This tired momma finally ran off to the stamp room today to make something.   I have been fighting off headaches and exhaustion for a while now, but today I decided to take some Excedrin and go stamp anyway.    I saw the fun challenge at AEIHeartU to use gold and gave it a shot.   I am not a big fan of gold, but I had fun with this card.  

I used the Avery Elle Simply Said Hello stamp set with the coordinating die, plus I threw in a few stars from my favorite, Party Animal.   Fun stuff.  I paired the gold with navy, a sponged ombre strip, and a cute tag.   Can't forget the sequins either, so I threw in a few of those as well.  

 I cut out a few layers of the hello die and glued them all together to make it a bit more sturdy and give it dimension.  

 My assistant for card photography helped out.   She said it was a cute card, so it is officially Laila approved!

Freshly Made 4th of July

It's Wednesday, which means a fun new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!  Cindy L is our hostess and she has a great sketch this week.  I really enjoyed it and have another idea that I need to work on tomorrow before my brain loses it.  :)    I went patriotic since we are so close to July 4th.   I used a bit of the stuff from June's My Paper Pumpkin Kit.   It's a very simple card, but still fun and festive for the holiday.

See?  Fun sketch!   If you don't like circles, you can change it up like I did.  I do like circles, but I like stars a bit better.   Banners and strips of pretty paper are also a favorite of mine.   Be sure to check out what the rest of the design team made as there are some amazing samples over on the blog!

We were all lazy yesterday and had a pajama day.  I think Laila and I took super long naps.  I guess we are still trying to catch up from the birthday excitement.  

Fluffles Birthday

Just playing around a little tonight before bed.  I really need the break that stamping gives me, so I'm trying to do it as much as I have to chance to now.  I have been napping more than usual because of some sleep issues at night, but I'm hoping to kick that habit and start stamping again while Laila naps.   Jason is off this week, so I'm getting a little time after dinner to play at least.   :)    I was playing around with my Copics and some old stamps I found while trying to clean my room.  Before I signed up with Stampin' Up! I was totally in love with Fluffles and have a few of the stamps.  I enjoyed coloring him tonight, so you might end up seeing more of him.   I am such a sucker animals, coffee, and sunshine stamps!  I am on the lookout for some pretty sunflower stamps too, so let me know if you are aware of any.  There's some out there, but I haven't found just the right one for me yet.

Bermuda Bay, Pumpkin Pie, and Daffodil Delight are a super fun color combination for birthdays!   Try it!

We took Laila out for Mexican food for her birthday dinner and at the end they came and sang to her.  She got to wear the hat too.  lol  She LOVED it.  Our server thought she might cry and be upset, but she was clapping along with them and having a great time!    She seems to love the blowing out the candles part of birthdays.  Every day she's been clapping and saying Yay!  Blow out the candle!   Hilarious!