Win 500 FREE Business Cards from UPrinting! 2 Winners!!!

Do you want a great way to promote you blog?

How about some gorgeous new cards to get the word out about your Etsy shop or website?

Think of it...your name on slick, shiny, gorgeous Die Cut Business Cards!

Uprinting offers a variety of excellent quality business cards and you can do SO much with them! They have a selection of Business Card Sizes to choose from, including the new slim cards at 1.5 x 3.5 inches! How cool would THAT be? I think it is so important for a business card to stand out and these slim cards would certainly catch the eye!

Do you not have a business? How about making some contact cards!?! It's always nice to be able to give your information to friend in a nice, easy to find and easy to read format. And, let's face it, it certainly can't help to Cute-ify it! LOL!

UPrinting has offered not just one, but TWO of my readers a set of 500 (yes, you read that right, FIVE HUNDRED) free business cards! Shipping must be paid by the winner and Uprinting only ships to United States adresses.

(2) Winners will receive:

500 Business Cards

Choose size: 2x3.5”, 2x3”, 2x2";

Choose paper: 14pt cardstock (matte or gloss coating) & 13 pt cardstock uncoated

Choose Color: (4/4) Color both sides; (4/1) Color 1 side , B/W backside; (4/0) Color 1 side, black backside

So, do you want to win? (I do!!! LOL!) Just leave a comment telling me how you might use the cards if you win! That's it! It's super easy!!!! You don't have to be a blogger to enter, just be sure to leave your email address so that I can reach you if you win. When you enter your email into the comments field, it will be hidden, however, it will allow me to contact you if you win!!!

Optional extra entries:

*Follow my blog and leave a separate comment letting me know you follow.

*Follow me on Twitter and Tweet about this giveaway. Leave a separate comment with a direct link to your tweet!

You can cut and paste the following if you would like!:

Enter to win 500 FREE business cards from @uprinting and @JustJingle! TWO winners! http://tinyurl.com/n3txgk Please RT!

This giveaway closes Tuesday, September 8, 2009.


******DON'T FORGET!!! Today is the LAST day of my month-long blogiversary celebration!!!!!*****

Bananas Foster & Spice Cupcakes with Caramel Pan Frosting

Hee-Hee.

If a title like that doesn't draw you in, really, I apologize, there is nothing that I can do for you here.

Seriously. These are A*MA*ZING!



So, here's the deal....I LOVE this book: Cupcakes from the Cake Doctor.

The thing is, the reason that I love this book is because I love cake mixes. For some reason they make my life THAT much easier and that makes me happy. However, I don't like boring cupcakes, so I like to do a little of this and a little of that to make them spectacular and stuff. SO...that's what I do. Here's the funny part - I doctor the doctored recipes! HA!

So, here is what I did. On page 112 there is a recipe for Cinnamon Toast Cupcakes. In my cabinet, I had a white cake mix (it calls for yellow) and banana pudding mix (it calls for vanilla), and in the fridge I had two eggs (it calls for three). Hmmmm.....I can make it work. So....this is what I pulled from the cabinets:



I knew that with these ingredients I could make something that might taste decent, so I decided to give it a shot. Here is what I used:

24 paper cupcake liners
1 package white cake mix
1 package banana instant pudding
1 cup skim milk
1/4 whipping cream (the recipe called for 1 1/4 cups of whole milk, so I used what I had to make it work)
3/4 cups vegetable oil (I actually used oil! I hardly EVER do that, but it was worth it this time!)
2 large eggs
1/4 cup applesauce (to make up for the third egg)
1 tsp. almond extract
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice (I don't know why - it smelled good, so I tossed some in there.)

1/2 Recipe of Caramel Pan Frosting from page 345 (I actually follwed this one exactly, believe it or not!)



1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line your cupcake pan with the paper liners. Set aside.
2. Combine the cake mix, pudding ix, milk, oil, eggs, applesauce, spices, and extract in a mixing bowl. Blend on low for 30 seconds, scrap sides, and then blend on medium for about a minute and a half or so, until everything is mixed together really well.



3. Spoon batter into cupcake liners. I like to use an ice cream scoop to put the batter into the cupcake liners - it's a good size to get the right amount into each liner and have fairly even cupcakes.

4. Disregard all you know about sanitation and food safety and lick the spoon before putting it into the dishwasher. Holy cupcake batter goodness! (I am in no way responsible for the effects this may have have on your health or safety. Just say'n. The choice is yours.)

5. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes. Check at 20 minutes, to be sure, but I noticed that these took just a bit longer than my usual cupcakes do. You should be able to insert a toothpick and have it come out mostly clean when they are done.

6. Remove from oven and allow to cool.



6. Prepare the frosting. (From Cupcakes from the Cake Doctor) - I only used 1/2 of this recipe
8 tablespoons butter (that's one stick)
2/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream and a bit more just in case you need it
3 cups confectionery sugar - sifted (yes, you do want to sift it. I didn't. Sad story.)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1. In a heavy saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar and butter melt together and get all bubbly and smell yummy. (a couple of minutes)

2. Cook, stirring for about a minute. Add the cream and stir for another minute or so until it gets thicker and shiny.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients (sugar and extract) until smooth. If you need to add a bit more cream to make it spreadable, do that here. (I didn't need to.)

Okay....so, you have your cupcakes out of the oven and cooled or mostly cooled and now you have this fabulous frosting - seriously - it's amazing!

So, immediately spread the frosting onto the cupcakes. I added a garnish with a sugar free caramel topping that I had in the fridge. HA! Sugar Free! I suppose it was best not to add any more evil to these cupcakes!!! LOL!



See those little whitish lumps? Yeah, that's what happens when you DON'T sift your confectionery sugar, so I do suggest sifting. Just say'n is all.

And the last step...ENJOY!!!! These are SOOOO good!!!!!



The only thing I would do differently next time is to perhaps create a filling from another package of banana pudding. Actually, thinking about it, a nice liquor filling would be fabulous in these, too, if you wanted to make 'big kid' cupcakes. Hmmm...the possibilities!

I hope you decide to make these Bananas Foster Spice Cupcakes with Caramel Pan Frosting! (I called them that because they sort of remind me of bananas foster....just seemed to fit...)

Have you made any sweet treats lately? I'd love to see your recipes!!!

Vintage Thingies Thursday - My Vintage Paper Struggle

Click the link above for more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts!

I have a dilemma.

Do you see that photo above? Does it make YOUR heart go pitter patter? Because it SOOOO makes my heart go pitter patter!

I love paper. Seriously. I love it a lot.

Yes, I, of course, love fresh, new, crisp, just off the presses beautiful colored papers that I use for crafting, but that's not all.

Walk into a library and inhale. THAT, my friends, is one of the most beautiful smells in the whole world. Pure, old paper. Paper that is discolored from lignin and has been in contact the oils of many hands. It's fabulous. Simply fabulous.

The thing is... I don't JUST love paper, you see, I also LOVE books! And I love to paper craft.

Herein lies my dilemma.

Vintage papers from old books in all kinds of fabulous languages, old maps, and various ephemera from times gone by are wonderful for crafting, but in order to use these treasures you must remove them from the tomes in which they reside.

Problem.

I can't do it. I simply CANNOT destroy a perfectly good book just so I can use the paper. It doesn't matter what is in the book, whether I like the content or not is not an issue, the point is simply that it is a book and that it is printed matter and it needs to live on forever. Period. Really.

I told you that I love books.

They serve such an amazing role in society and culture and to destroy even one is to in essence remove a piece of the history of which that volume is a part.

Not. Okay.

But just look at these! Seriously. Aren't they just fabulous? I really do love the paper. I love that thin, fragile, delicate feel to it. I adore the smell! And it looks...well....it just is perfect. Aged perfection. All ready for crafting.

I cheated. I ordered this stash on Etsy. I am going to tell myself that the books that these beautiful pages were taken from were already torn and even partially burnt, so in actuality, I am helping to save at least a portion of them by incorporating them into my art.

That's my story. And I'm stick'n to it.

I thought it would be easier, since I didn't have to pull them from books, but, alas, the guilt is still pressing in on me in quite an oppressive manner. Not sure what to do about that. I should probably make something. That's bound to make me feel better!

But just LOOK at those! Don't they make you happy? Those thin, fragile pages? They make me happy. They really do.

I think I may officially be an evil person. What do you think? What are your thoughts on vintage book pages and such used for other stuff? Tell me your thoughts.


Don't forget that we still have a little less than a week left in the month long giveaway event!!!

Wordless Wednesday - The Well Wrapped Brownie Pan

Just a note before my WW post today:
Today we mourn the loss of possibly the greatest United States Senator in our history. Please keep the family, friends, and the many lives touched by Sen. Ted Kennedy in your prayers today.

Also, I saw an absolutely horrifying car accident this morning. One person has already lost their life (at the scene) and several others were severely injured. I don't know the details, and I just drove by after sitting in the traffic caused by the incident, but I know that these people have friends and family, too. Please pray for them today, as well.

Sorry for the sad. It all sort of just hit me this morning.

However, my Wordless Wednesday photos for today, ought to lighten things up a bit.





I came home to this pan the other day JUST LIKE THIS! Yup! Folks, there are most definitely NO brownies left in there. Yet....for some odd reason, unbeknownst to me, it sits there, on the counter top, neatly covered with the plastic wrap.

Hmmmm....Effort was made to put the plastic wrap on....but..... well....you see where the confusion may enter, no?! LOL! *Insert eye roll here!* Seriously. LOL! This cracked me up! I suppose I should be glad that it wasn't in the fridge! HA!

Find more Wordless Wednesday posts Here, Here, and Here!

Cards For Kate - A Card Drive

Hi, guys! So, you know that cute little adorable puppy on the page that I showed you in yesterdays post? Yeah, that cute little adorable puppy. She woke up with some tummy troubles this morning and so my morning got a little hectic and now I am very sleepy. It's really sad that I can't handle ANY changes in my routine without it wreaking havoc on me. Really. It is. But, I do have something fun to share with you today.

I came across this info on Jana Millen's blog and Jennifer McGuire's blog, so if you are a scrapbooker or a cardmaker, chances are - you have already seen it. If not, I am excited to share the info with you here, because even if this is the only card you ever make in your life - I would love to have you join! I did not start this drive, it is being run by Jennifer and Jana and Kristina - I simply wanted to participate so here is the info from Jana's blog:

Here is some info about Kate:

About 6 weeks ago the life of the McRae family changed forever when their precious 5 year old daughter, Kate, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. Dad (Aaron) is a pastor in Arizona and he and his wife, Holly have two other children, Will and Olivia. Of course this is devastating for the whole family and many are praying for them. (Go to www.prayforkate.com to learn more about this family and their struggle). Kate has a rough road ahead of her for quite awhile. When you hear their story you will want to do anything you can to help.

And one thing we can do to help is to send cards to Kate and her family to encourage them, give them strength, and let them know how many people are thinking about and praying for them. And the most generous and kind people in the world are crafters so we thought we’d have a Cards for Kate Card Drive. Jennifer, Kristina Proffitt, and Jana have teamed up on this drive. We have all been following Kate's story and have been so touched by this family. Be sure to watch our blogs for more info, etc.

Think of how much it would encourage this family to receive cards from all over the world. You can simply send the cards to me. We will then box them up and pay to send them to Kate's parents. (We have already gotten the ok from them.)

The details:

• Cards can be for any member of Kate's family:

- Kate (age 5) - The sweet girl who is battling cancer.
- Little brother Will.
- Bigger sister Olivia.
- Mom and Dad, Aaron and Holly.

• Cards can be anything cheery, encouraging, supportive, etc. (This family is a family of God, so for all you Christians out there, feel free to share messages of Faith.) Anyone can send a card - even your children!

• Please write a message in the card and sign your name and where you are from. On the card envelope, please write the name of who the card is for (Kate, Will, Olivia, Aaron and/or Kate). Also, please don't seal the envelope, as Kate's parents might want to preview cards before the kids see them.

• With your cards, please include a piece of paper with your name, address, email address and number of cards. We will keep these for picking out prizes. (See below.)

• The cards should be sent to:

Jennifer McGuire
Card Drive for Kate
PO Box 428612
Cincinnati, Ohio 45242

• Please send the cards to arrive by October 1. This should give enough time for those overseas to play along. As we get enough to fill a box to send to Kate's family, we will send them. This way they don't get them all at once. And since they are having some struggles lately, the sooner we get some cards, the better.

• If you want to send more than just a card (such as a gift), please just send directly to the address given HERE.

• If you want to donate money to Kate's family, please click HERE. If you want to help cover the costs of shipping, feel free to include some money in with your cards. Any money leftover will be donated to the family. (But there is NO need to include money.)

(All of the above information was taken from Jana Millen with her permission per her post.)

Here is the card that I made for Kate. I chose to just make the one card for this drive. I don't usually even do drives. I don't know why, but for some reason they often rub me the wrong way, but I totally felt like I was supposed to send a card to this little girl, SO....it went in the mail this morning. I am excited about it, actually! I know the big pink bow and the sparkly, glittery cupcakes are bound to make her smile!!!!







I told my husband that I am officially on the look out for wide ribbon! He even agreed to grab it if he was out and saw some! LOL! I am LOVING the wider ribbon look on both cards and scrapbook pages, but I have found that I don't have much AT ALL in my stash! *SHOCK!* How could I possibly be missing something so fun???!!!! Anyway.... it's totally on my wishlist now!

So...are you going to do it? I know a lot of you don't usually make cards and stuff, but these don't have to be fancy schmancy! You can even do it with your kids and make cards for Kate's whole family! Please consider it! (Oh...and if you send them in you can win prizes...check out Jennifer and Jana's blogs for more info!)

Have a super Happy Tuesday!!!

***Don't forget to check out my month long blogiversary celebration!!!! Those comments are adding up!!!! I added a piece of jewelry to the stash last night!!!***

I Love This Face - A layout about my Thatcher Baby

How could you NOT love this face? Seriously? I love these photos of my Dragon Baby! (Her real name is Thatcher, but she gets lots of other fun names, too!)



It's Monday which means it's time to check out the latest challenge over at Use Your Stash! This week we are matting a photo with a contrasting color (note the red mat on the green background here) and we are also using a chipboard title! (Unless, of course, you are dumb like me and totalyl space that part of the challenge and not even notice that until this morning because Corey and Kimmie are too nice to yell at you for it and make you start over! HA! Love you guys!!!)

So pull out your stash and get creating! Don't forget to link up a picture of your post over at Use Your Stash for a chance to be a Guest Design Team Member!



I have been having TONS of fun playing with ribbon lately! It is fun to add it in all kinds of funky ways!





AND....I wanted to say a HUGE THANK YOU to the Green Tangerines Kit Club for the amazing kit that arrived in the mail this weekend!!! Seriously! Check out all of this fun stuff!



First of all...LOVE that bundled look! That alone makes me happy! LOL! How sad is that? What can I say? If you put it in a great package you will TOTALLY sell me! LOL!



*Swoon!* Love this kit! So many fun things to play with! Do you see that tape? Yes, that is totally Prima tape with the alphabet on it!!! That makes me SOOOO happy!

I actually have a surprisingly lot to share with you guys this week, but something tells me that it really isn't as much as it seems. Although...I think I may have a 'Stuff that annoys the crap out of me' post brewing, so be prepared! HA! So what are you up to this week? Anything totally fun? Anything totally miserable? My car is STILL in the stinking shop, so I am hoping against all hope that I will FINALLY get it back today or tomorrow. (Yes...from that accident that I had over a month ago....yup....same incident...yup....long time in the shop....yup....annoying insurance people and a now HATED rental car company....perhaps more on that later.

Anyway....what are you up to?

On the Most Miserable Words In the English Language

***Don't forget to check out my post HERE to join in my month long Blogiversary Celebration!***

NO, seriously, folks. There are some SERIOUSLY nasty words out there. For real! You know...the ones that make you cringe just a bit ev-er-y sin-gle time you hear them spo-ken. It's frightening! I hate them! I really and truly hate them!

What are these words, you ask? Well...I suppose they would be different for everyone. I mean, one man's horrible cringe-inducing word, may just be music in the ears of another.

Another seriously psychotic serial killer, perhaps.

No, really. I mean that. There is NO WAY that any normal, well adjusted person could actually like these words. I can understand not hating them, but liking them is simply not an option. For reals.

Thus we begin with one of the worst.

MOIST

BLECH!!!! It's hard to even TYPE that horrible, yucky, icky, terrible word! Just LOOK at it! No...I mean REALLY LOOK at it. It's ugly. Hideous even.

Understand that I am actually a HUGE FAN of the printed word. My home is filled with stacks and stacks of books, magazines, interesting packaging, fascinating little things that have great fonts, lettering, and interesting print. I love it. HOWEVER...this word simply does NOT count! It's hideous. Plain and simple.

Where does it even COME from? Actually.... let's answer that question:

moist

c.1374, from O.Fr. moiste "damp," from V.L. *muscidus "moldy," also "wet," from L. mucidus "slimy, moldy, musty," from mucus "slime" (see mucus). Alternate etymology is from L. musteus "fresh, green, new," lit. "like new wine," from musteum "new wine" (see must (n.1)). If this wasn't the source, it influenced the form of the other word in O.Fr. Moisture is attested from 1366. (from Online Etymology Dictionary)

Okay. So are you with me now?! Seriously, guys. That is the most disgusting description of a word and it's source I have ever read! "MUSTEUS!!!" WHAT???? Yuck! Pure, unadulterated YUCK!!! Moist is a horrible word.

Actually, I recently found out that I am not alone in this. Apparently 'moist' is one of the most hated words in the English language! HA! Who knew?! I'm either not all that crazy or there are enough equally crazy people out there to negate the insanity and make us all 'normal.'

But this one.... I may be alone on this one.

NUGGET

Ewwwwww!!!! There is just something simply horrifying about this word. Yes, it has a source, but it's not nearly as glamorous as the source for moist. Here you go:

nugget

1852, "lump of gold," probably from southwestern England dialectal nug "lump," of unknown origin. Another theory is that it is a misdivision of an ingot. Transf. sense is from 1859. (From the Online Etymology Dictionary)

Lump. Seriously? That's where this grotesque word is derived? Okay! That settles it. I am TOTALLY right on this one! It's a nasty word and nobody should ever use it again! Especially to describe FOOD!!! (Which, as you know, is it's most common usage thanks to McDonald's.) Do you want a LUMP of meat on your plate?

Yeah. I didn't think so. So WHY do we continue to employ usage of this word? Stop. Just stop. Please.

I could go on for days on these! Seriously! The thing is, there is one more that I have to mention because, if I'm honest it is the SINGLE word in the English language that I am actually offended by.

Mind you, I am not an easily offended person. I don't often use the real exclamatory remarks rather than the ridiculous substitutions like "Freaking, Shoot, and Darn!" (Sorry, Mom.) But. The fact is that, as stated above, I love language! Why on EARTH would we want to limit ourselves when the language is already so limited on it's own? I think that words are useful and to use impostors is quite simply NOT making use of this glorious language! So, I use it. I'm not offended by 'swears,' cusses,' or whatever it is that your grandmother calls them. Nope. Use 'em. I'm fine with that. In fact...I actually ENCOURAGE you to use them. Now...I feel as though they should not be used in excess and they should only be used in proper context, but that's another post. The thing is... there is one of those words ....
....a single 'curse word.'

... just one.

That I must ask you never to use EVER IN YOUR WHOLE LIFE!!!! Why? Because I hate it. Even though I'm not easily offended, I find that this is the single most disgusting word in our language. (Did I say that about Moist already? Hmmm... Well... if you use these two together you will CERTAINLY have the single most disgusting PHRASE in the English language!!! That, my friends, is FOR SURE!!!)

What is that word? Well, you see, it's easy for me to talk about it, but not so easy for me to actually TYPE it! I can't do it.

So, I leave you with this: C**T

There might be the first two letters of my previously mentioned yucky word in the middle. Just say'n.

AAAAAAAACCCKKKK!!!!!! GAH! I HATE HATE HATE that word! With a passion! At least this one gets credit for being horrible in the dictionary, as it is usually immediately followed by the words: "Sometimes considered vulgar."

SOMETIMES??????

ALL THE TIME, folks.... ALL. OF. THE. TIME!

Do you want to know the source? Okay....here it is....edited slightly for the sake of my stomach:

c**t

"female intercrural foramen," or, as some 18c. writers refer to it, "the monosyllable," M.E. c**te "female genitalia," akin to O.N. k**ta, from P.Gmc. *k**ton, of uncertain origin. Some suggest a link with L. cuneus "wedge," others to PIE base *geu- "hollow place," still others to PIE *gwen-, root of queen and Gk. gyne "woman." The form is similar to L. c**nus "female pudenda," which is likewise of disputed origin, perhaps lit. "gash, slit," from PIE *sker- "to cut," or lit. "sheath," from PIE *kut-no-, from base *(s)keu- "to conceal, hide." First known reference in Eng. is said to be c.1230 Oxford or London street name Gropec**tlane, presumably a haunt of prostitutes. Avoided in public speech since 15c.; considered obscene since 17c. Du. cognate de kont means "a bottom, an arse." Du. also has attractive poetic slang ways of expressing this part, such as liefdesgrot, lit. "cave of love," and vleesroos "rose of flesh." Alternate form cunny is attested from c.1720 but is certainly much earlier and forced a change in the pronunciation of coney (q.v.), but it was good for a pun while coney was still the common word for "rabbit": "A pox upon your Christian cockatrices! They cry, like poulterers' wives, 'No money, no coney.' " [Massinger, 1622] (from the Online Etymology Dictionary - replace ** with "un")

Okay. So, I have to admit, that it DOES have a pretty fascinating origin, but STILL! I hate it. I always will. It should be slashed for the tomes of all written word. Yuck. Although....the part about the 'cave of love' is down right hilarious!!! LOL!

So, there you have it. The three WORST words in the English language according to Jingle. Someday, I will have to compose a post about the most WONDERFUL words in the English language. Although...this one is pretty long and it is about only three words! There are lots of fun words out there!!!!

So tell me...what word to YOU simply despise? What word do you LOVE? Tell me about it!

P.S. Don't go to Google Images and type in the word Moist. Just say'n. You've been warned!

Vintage Thingies Thursday : Rex Ray Fan

Click on the button for more Vintage Thingies Thursday Posts! They are way fun!

Well, I don't know what it is like in your part of the world, but here in New England we are finally getting some heat! Actually, we had an 'official' heat wave this week! Around here that means three days in a row of 90+ temps. I know some of you are laughing because that would pretty much mean your entire summer is a heat wave, but you know how it goes....LOL! I can say, the humidity has also been at a fabulous 90+ level, pretty much giving you the urge to break into your breast stroke as soon as you walk outside.

I love it.

No, seriously...I really do love hot hot weather! It makes me a happy girl! I've been really enjoying it! I absolutely DESPISE the cold and the older I get, the more I hate it, so I am LOVIN' the heat!

But, that brings me to today's Vintage Thingies Thursday item - this WAY FUN Rex Ray fan. Seriously, is this not the coolest fan EVER?! Yes, it does work. No, we don't actually use it. That's why God invented central air. Moving on.



This is the fan. It is fabulous. Admit it. You love it. You can't even help it! That's because it's wicked freaking awesome, folks! I'm talking crazy cool! HA! "Cool!" It's a FAN!!! LMAO! I crack myself up. No, really. I do.



And CHECK THIS OUT! Did you see that? It looks like this fan was totally distributed by a pharmaceutical company! How cool is THAT?! What I can't quite tell is if it was sold, like at a drug store (think Woolworths or something) or if it was a 'freebie' kind of thing for doctors from back in the day. The funny thing is that I've had this for years and I just now noticed the drug company piece. My father in law is a pharmacist. He would TOTALLY love that!



This is the back of the fan. As you can see it does have a little wear and there is a random drop of red paint on it. I love that drop. It sort of drives me nuts and I want to clean it off, but it adds so much character. I sort of love it. Even if it does make me twitch a little.



And do you see that tiny word toward the top of this photo? The one next to that tiny hole? It says "Oil." I guess that must be how you motor or something. I've never opened up the fan to look inside, so I'm not really sure. Now I want to. Hmmm.....



This is just the base of the fan. Such a fun color and such a fun shape to it!



So...do you have your fans running? How's the weather where you are? For that matter...where ARE you? LOL! Don't forget to check out the post below! I did two today! (Okay...so I did the other one late last night, but still....read it. And comment. You know that makes me happy.)

Later, folks!

Teaching Me To Be. And a Call to Share Your Passion!!!

***Don't forget to check out my post HERE to join in my month long Blogiversary Celebration!***

I finally managed to do a layout on time for Diana's way fun sketch challenge! I really loved the sketch this time around, but, as per usual when I work with sketches, I ended up really making it my own. Due to the position of The Hubbums in the photograph, I flipped the sketch and I placed my circles a bit differently. Instead of using the strips in the sketch for journaling, I decided to create glitter dots, a glitter stripe, and a twill that coordinated with my layout idea.

Here is my layout.

Now that I am looking at it, I can't decide if I like the fire embellishment on there or not. It is there because I feel like it has meaning that relates to the idea of the layout. Hmmm.....that's a tough one. I'll have to think on it.

BUT....even with that thinking going on and such, I still TOTALLY love this layout and I am so excited to have had the chance to participate in the Sketch Challenge this week! The sketch inspired such a wonderful outcome for me! I love it when that happens!!!!

No. Seriously, folks. That is just wicked crazy cool. You know...when something just JUMPSTARTS you and totally gets you going in a direction that only could have been led by that single catalyst?! Does that ever happen to you? I mean at all in life...not just in making stuff. I know lots of my readers aren't scrapbookers, but we all have a passion for something.

A passion for art, for cooking, for fashion, for teaching, for learning, for writing, for caring for others, for ANYTHING! NO matter what your passion is, it is just the COOLEST THING EVER when you are inspired. I mean really INSPIRED!

Tell me about it! Or...better yet...write a blog post about it and then come back and link to your post here so we can all read about your passion and what inspires you!!!!

Oooooo!!!! I am so stinking excited right now! I really hope you take the time to share your stories! Thanks, Diana, for inspiring me, not only to create this awesome layout, but also to encourage others to share their passion! This is GREAT STUFF, folks!!! Okay. I'm just happy now. I'm typing at like super sonic speed, so you totally better not let me down! I want to see your passion! Blog about it! If you don't have a blog, just leave a really long comment if you need to! LOL! I want to know!!!

Wordless Wednesday - My Baby Girls

***Don't forget to check out my post HERE to join in my month long Blogiversary Celebration!***

My Baby Girls.

For More Wordless Wednesday posts check out these blogs:
Wordless Wednesday Mom Dot 5 Minutes for Mom

Just a Pretty Little Close To My Heart Card

***Don't forget to check out my post HERE to join in my month long Blogiversary Celebration!***

I don't have a ton for you today, and for that I do apologize. No witty diatribes, no amusing musings, not even a good old fashioned rant. I'm tired. I was out too late last night. I am totally one of those people who actually needs sleep! However, I do have a cute little card to share with you. I used all Close To My Heart stuff, which is odd for me. I was (actually...I think, officially, I still am) a consultant, so I have a lot of it and for some reason I often found it hard to use my papers in my regular crafting. I don't know why because I love them! The cardstock is seriously awesome and the patterns are fun! I think it was more a matter of over exposure that made it hard for me to use. You know...you see it so much you don't want to actually use it because it feels old and stayed by that point. Well, since I haven't been doing shows or selling at all, I haven't been forced to look at it tons and tons and so I pulled out some CTMH stuff to make this card and I LOVE it! I think it came out really cute! I really like the second generation background stamping because I feel like it adds a lot of texture to the card. Just fun! Oh...and that cute little acrylic tag - I always find those hard to use, so I was excited to find a perfect home for one of them on my card! It was just the right finishing touch!





Do you ever have a hard time using stuff you love? Not because you love it so much you don't want to 'mess it up,' but rather because you've looked at it too many times and it is almost boring? My suggestion - put it out of sight for a few months and then revisit it. It's like a new stash sort of!

I'll be back to my usual self shortly. I have a post brewing and I am really interested to get your thoughts on the matter. Don't forget about my month-long Blogiversary celebration!!! So far I have a b**k, s****s, and c*****s in the package. I'm working on getting a g**t c**d for it, too, but we shall see! LOL!

Boojiboo!, Japaneses Dolls, Paper Piecing, and a Winner!!!

***Don't forget to check out my post HERE to join in my month long Blogiversary Celebration!***

Yeah, that's a pretty boring title. Sorry about that. It is, afterall, Monday morning, though, so you can't be too hard on me, now can you!

Do you remember THIS post where I showed you my adorable apron being worn by my adorable Hubbums?

Yeah. That was a fun post. *sigh.*

Oh....sorry....yes, I was, indeed, going somewhere with that! HA!

This week's Use Your Stash challenge was to incorporate paper piecing into you artwork. How much fun is THAT?! If you read the scrapbook magazines (CK, SBE, etc.) you know that Paper Piecing is returning in a big way and it is SO cute! I love seeing the different designs people come up with to use on their pages and cards! I have dabbled a bit with it here and there, as you can see on THIS card and THIS layout. I'm not one to use patterns and such and I can't draw, so basically I just grab a pair of scissors and go to it when I decide to do a paper piecing. It works for me and I enjoy the process. This layout was no different.

I was inspired by the Boojiboo! apron that The Hubbums is wearing in the photos. The journaling actually explains the whole thing! LOL!



Here are some close up shots of the paper piecings. They were SO much fun to create!




Tee-Hee! Aren't they just adorable! I want to hug them! They are totally my friends now! Just say'n.


This is the journaling at the top of the page.



And finally, a photo of the layout with the apron that inspired the design! I love it! I really do! This is one of those layouts that keeps making me smile every time I look at it. I won't be able to put it into an album for awhile! LOL!

I am also excited because I tend to not be great at putting down the stories that go with my photos and I did it on this layout and it isn't super long or anything, but the story is there and I love that!

Paper piecing is one of those things that I think many of us forget we have as an option for our work. It's not hard and you can create ANYTHING with just paper and pens and chalk and stuff! It really is a great, economical way to create your own embellishments that coordinate PERFECTLY with your photos! So head on over to Use Your Stash and participate in this week's challenge!

If you love the apron you should totally check out Boojiboo! on Etsy!

Oh! And I mentioned something about a winner, too, didn't I? LOL! Yes, we have a winner for the A Forest Frolic giveaway!!! And the winner is........


....... MIMI!!!! Congratulations, Mimi!!! Please email me with your name, address, and your choices (see HERE to see the giveaway post) within 48 hours!