Birthday Balloons

I hope everyone survived Thanksgiving!   We had a small dinner with just the three of us and it was nice.  I miss having family to cook for, but we made it work.  :)   Laila has stopped taking naps and is going to bed earlier, so I have been getting in some stamping time in the evenings.  I was thinking it would be awful once she stopped napping, but we now have quiet time and she goes to bed earlier and easier, so it's been good!

This Mama Elephant set is one of my current favorites.  I love the little animals so much!

She is so in love with the tree this year!   She also has a small one in her room and loves it just as much.  :)  She's been rearranging the ornaments, so it might look a bit crazy by the time we make it to Christmas.  lol

FMS Warm Winter Wishes

Wednesday and time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches!   Jen B, is our hostess this week and she has a sketch that was super fun to work with!    She makes the most amazing cards that always wow me, so no surprise that her sketch did the same.  :)    I recently got an order from Winnie & Walter that included an awesome birch tree background and a stencil that reminded me of falling snow.  I paired those with the cute little deer from Avery Elle and a lovely sentiment from MFT.    I think they all work together beautifully!  :)

I can't believe it's the day before Thanksgiving!   Where has the year gone?!   Tomorrow we'll eat our wonderful food and then enjoy some time decorating the house and putting up the tree.  I'm not a big fan of Christmas, but I'm trying to get in the spirit for Laila.   She keeps asking for a Christmas tree, so we'll put hers up in her bedroom Thursday as well.  I think she will be super excited about it this year!  

Someone cleaned their plate at dinner last night!  She didn't eat very well on Monday, but she made up for it yesterday.  :) 

Stampin' Up! Celebrate Baby

A bit of Stampin' Up! inspiration for you today.   I love the Celebrate Baby set so much.   The font on the baby stamp is just gorgeous!    I kept my card very simple to focus on that.   :)

We still needed a turkey breast for Thanksgiving, so Laila and I went to Target yesterday to pick one up.  We took a little stroll through the holiday section and she had a blast checking out all the decorations.  She seems to be super excited about Christmas this year, so it's fun.  I can't wait to put up the tree on Thursday!  

Monday Inspiration from Prickley Pear

It's Monday and time for some Prickley Pear inspiration!   I just love my card this week.   Isn't that stamp gorgeous?  I had so much fun coloring it!   I also hit my stash of textured blue Bazzil because I really wanted to use a variety of blues.   Textured cardstock is one thing I tend to hoard as I LOVE it so much.  I need to start using it way more; there's always more available if I use my 3,456,432 sheets!  lol

Be sure you go check out the blog for all the other wonderful inspiration this week.

Laila had Santa pictures yesterday and they didn't go so well this year. :(   If we get any picture, it will be a screaming toddler one.   Poor dear.  She seems very shy and scared of people again.  Santa said most two year olds react this way, so I guess we move on and hope for better next year.

Sketched Coffee

You know me and my coffee...  When I saw the sketch at Sketch Saturday and the Simon Says Stamp Flickr challenge, I just knew they'd be happy together.   :)    I used some of the rich designer papers that came with the coffee-themed SSS card kit a few months ago.   I love the orange with the espresso!

My week is flying by and I have so much to do!   I have cards to mail off, cards to make, a class to prep...  We are taking a break tonight and taking Laila to see the lights at the Houston Zoo.    It was a discounted members-only night and we thought we'd try it.   

The Little People are a huge hit these days and yesterday she decided that her Minnie Mouse figures should go to school as well.   lol

Freshly Made Christmas Trees

It's Wednesday and time for a new sketch at Freshly Made Sketches.  Cindy H. is our hostess this week and she has a fun sketch.   I love the different ways it can be flipped and interpreted. :)   I pulled out my Simon Says Stamp card kit for Freshly Made Sketches again this week.  This time I used some of lovely papers from Lawn Fawn that were included with the kit.   I just love this tree image and it looks great in tradition or non-traditonal colors.  

See?  Isn't that a great sketch?   You can flip it all kinds of ways!  I kept it pretty close to the sketch this time.   I can't wait to see the gallery this week.  I know the design team knocked it out of the park!

That long nap she took yesterday really did some work on her hair!  lol 

MFT Birthday

Laila skipped her nap yesterday and went to bed early, so I had a little time to stamp before Jason got home from work last night.  I decided to play along with the MFT Wednesday Stamp Club sketch.   My card is super simple, but it does have some fun layers.

I used two MFT sets, the Bokeh Builder set and Birthday Greetings set.

Laila and I had a bit of stamping time yesterday when she didn't want to nap.  :)   We are hopefully going to Michael's shopping today to get more storage for my craft room reorganization.    It's so cold, so we are waiting on it to warm up.  

Post by Rita A. Wright.

Prickley Pear Monday Inspiration

It's Monday and time for some Prickley Pear inspiration!   I had this adorable little wreath image and was so happy to ink it up.   It is just the sweetest.  There's a larger version that is on my wishlist, so you might see it soon.  ;)    You know I love kraft and red, so I decided to go that route with it.   A bit of designer paper, pretty ribbon, and a few candy dots finish it off.  

I meant to take some other pictures in my normal spot, but I had already packed it up to mail off before I grabbed my camera. It's so much prettier in real life but looks a bit washed out in my light tent.

Stamps: CC0128 Bluebirds Wreath, Sm, CLR013C Scallop Circle & Oval 4 Floral

Be sure to go check out the other beautiful cards by the rest of the team!

Laila has been wearing Jason out wanting to jump, so we got her a trampoline!   Since it has turned cold (Hello, this is Texas!  What's up with that?!), she needed something to tire her out anyway.   She's been having fun and we love watching her jump.   She keeps wanting us to count as she jumps, so it's educational as well.  lol