Would You Like To Buy a Goat?

....Or perhaps a few chickens? Ducks, maybe? Personally, I have my eye on an alpaca!



Okay, so why would I be asking if you would like to buy farm animals? It's simple, really.

One Goat nourishes a family with protein-rich milk, cheese, and yogurt, and can offer a much-needed income boost by providing offspring and extra dairy products for sale at the market. It even provides fertilizer that can dramatically increase crop yields!

A chicken will provide a family with a lasting source of nutrition and income. Fresh eggs raise the levels of protein and other nutrients in a family’s diet, and the sale of extra eggs provides money for other household needs.

Give two ducks to a hungry family today and they’ll benefit from hundreds of large, protein-rich eggs throughout the year. Extra eggs and hatched ducklings can be sold to buy medicine or help pay for children’s school tuition.

With a lifespan of up to 25 years, alpacas are hardy animals. Their soft, highly prized wool — up to 12 pounds a year per animal — fetches high prices and can be woven into essential items like blankets and rugs. Plus, they help combat deforestation — while grazing, these gentle animals "mow" grass rather than uprooting it, and their soft, padded feet protect pastures rather than trampling them.

All of this information came directly from World Vision. And do you know what? I'm really excited! I want to help! My Kindergarten Sunday school class has committed to collecting enough to buy 5 ducks! Our youth group will be working together to buy a farm, and I haven't even decided yet what we are going to do personally. However, we have come to the realization that the world is in need. Our neighbors are in need. And it is our responsibility, as those who are, indeed, not in need (or at least not as much as they are) to take care of them. I want to encourage you to take a look at the World Vision
Gift Catalog and choose something to give. The way I see it....I don't really NEED that new Cuttlebug, but they do need food and clean water. Check it out! Discuss it with your families! What holiday gift are you willing to give up so that someone else can live another day? It's so simple! Together, we can make a difference.

I am so excited about this and I really wanted to share it with all of you! Please, let me know what your thoughts are. I even considered adding a Paypal button to my blog so that we could contribute together. If you think you'd be interested in this let me know, as I'd be happy to set it up! Thanks for taking the time to read this post! It means the world to me and to the world!

Matthew 22:27-29

"He said to him, "You should love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all of your soul, and with all of your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it. "Love Your Neighbor As Yourself."

Have a wonderful day!

A Creative Evening with Butterflies!

First off, this is a layout I did for the Method Playground Paper Pleating Challenge! It also fits in really well with Heather's challenge over at AMR to use decorative borders! I love that!

And best of all...it shows off my wonderful husband! I love that man!



This is the other project I have to share with you! I am so excited about it!!! I got this Martha Stewart specimen box on clearance several months ago and I've had this vision for it ever since. Well, tonight the pieces came together and my vision has come to fruition! I used Pink Paislee for the background paper, Cosmo Cricket for the butterflies misted with Glimmer mist for a gorgeous shimmer, and American Crafts Thickers for the title! Popped up the butterflies (Martha Stewart punch that I just got this weekend!) with some foam dots and VOILA! It is PERFECT! I love it!




I have projects to share with you! I'm pretty excited about that! LOL!


Now...the confession. I was so supposed to be working on my Christmas cards tonight and I SO didn't do that at all! But this is where the inspiration led me, so that is where I went! Hmmm....I'm looking at this specimen box wondering if I could find a really pretty 1.5 inch satin ribbon in a deep orange rust color like the one in the paper to go around the outside of the box....hmmmm....that might be REALLY pretty!

Well, that's all for now, folks! We can chat more later! Have an awesome Friday!!!

Etsy Love Day! - Haute Boutique for Today's Mom

First of all, isn't that just a fun shop name? I love it! Haute Bouique for Today's Mom! So fun! And....it gets even more fun! You should just SEE the adorable stuff that is in this shop. Now, I don't have any children, but I can live vicariously through all of you who do and dress all of YOUR kids in adorable tutus can't I? LOL!

Well, Let me tell you what caught my eye at HBTM first! It was these absolutely stinking fantastic knit cupcakes!!!! Seriously, though, folks....are these not the CUTEST? I want all of my gifts to come in knit cupcakes! LOL!



But... the shop isn't filled with just cupcakes, mind you! It is loaded with wonderful holiday gift ideas, fun everyday items, and just plain goodness! Check out the gorgeous tutus! I don't know of many little girls who wouldn't just LOVE twittering around the house in these!



There is a lot more to look at, too! You should totally go check it out! Come back and tell me what you think! I love to hear your thoughts!

Melody Ross is my Hero!

At least for this week. As we all know that my heroes change often! LOL!

Just in case you don't know who Melody is....go here. Melody truly is a remarkable woman who has been through challenges that most of us never even come close to experiencing. She has shown ever growing strength, incredible loyalty, and an unarguable genuine, unconditional love for her family. She has been put up against challenges that most of us could not handle and she has walked through them with grace. She is truly amazing. Not only has Melody done all of this, but she, even after suffering the loss of one dream, has lived another. She has stepped up as a fantastic designer in the scrapbook community doing design work for Chatterbox.

And now...she has done it again. She has made a dream come alive and I got to be one of the first to see it in person!

Melody designed this amazing kit for Sam's club. It has SO many awesome elements to it and the price is simply amazing for all that you get! The papers are great quality "real" scrapbook papers. The ribbons are satin and, again, excellent quality with wonderful designs! The die cuts, chipboard pieces, and embellishments are all top notch and so amazingly versatile! The stamp designs are amazing!!! There is even a chandelier in there and a wonderful bird stamp! I can't wait to use them!

I was fortunate enough, with the help of many of my readers, to win this kit and Melody went WAY above and beyond! She was not only kind enough to send me the kit, but she also included an extra collection of Chatterbox papers, a TON of Artsy.Liscious papers and embellishments, and just so much more! I was amazed when I dove into this box of goodies! Creating my Christmas cards is going to be SO much fun this year! Now, if only time had come in those beautiful flocked boxes! LOL!

Check it out!

Melody, thank you so very much!





















Have a Great Day!

Two New Cards and 1/2 a Layout!

I got to play a little on Friday night! I made two new cards and 1/2 a layout. I won't share the layout quite yet, but I hope to get it finished up soon so I can share it with you! Here are my cards!

This one is a thank you card for a wonderful person who did a wonderful thing! It hasn't left my hands yet, so I'm not tell'n who! LOL!



And this one is an over the top Thanksgiving card for a challenge over at AMR! It will be going out to my Nana, I think. Mostly because she will love it!



Beneath the cards...you see a wonderful background! That is a big of a sneak peak at my next post! Here is another sneak in case you are really curious!!!



More to come!!!!

Etsy Love and some Pay It Forward Fun!

Hello! This has been an exciting week! Lots going on!

I want to share with you an Etsy Shop that I just pounced on and discovered today!

Moon Of Glass is a very cool shop that uses fused glass to create pendants and other jewelry. This shop just opened on October 30th, so we need to help get the ball rolling!

Here is one of the pendants in the shop that I just LOVED! It is called "Ocean On a Chain" and I think that name captures the spirit of this piece brilliantly! I love the ocean and this necklace brings me there just looking at it! I also really loved the "Surface of Mars" pendant, as well. With reasonable prices and wonderful shipping rates, these would make great gifts for friends and family who love unique jewelry! Just beautiful! Check out Moon Of Glass and let me know which piece you love!




Also! I wanted to share something a little fun with you! Harley over at Koala Fuzz
posted this great Pay It Forward post! I jumped in and now I would like to pass it on to all of you! Here is the deal - I will send something handmade (just a small gift) to the first three people who tell me that they are interested. The catch is that you then have to grab this picture and Pay It Forward on your blog! You can send anything you wish, I just think handmade is fun, so that's what I want to do! If you are not interested you can still comment on this post, as I will only choose the first three people who express interest in Paying It Forward! Let's spread the love through blogland!




Have a Great Day!!! I'm wearing cute boots today so that just makes me feel good!

Randomness For Today

First of all, HAPPY ELECTION DAY!!!!! I am so stinking excited, I can't even tell you! Go vote! Have fun! You even get a sticker!!!

Okay...so, now that I have done that....

Here is some randomness for you today:

This Cupcake Punch is eluding me and it is driving me insane!



As you have probably figured out, I'm a cupcake fanatic and I still do not own this punch. Why, you ask? Well, because it seems this punch does not wish to be owned by me. For a portion of time after discovering the punch I lacked the spending money to go purchase the punch. The, due to a wonderful Close To My Heart gathering, I was able to make a few dollars and thusly, I grabbed my coupon and stopped at AC Moore on my way home from work to treat myself to this wonderful little cupcake! But...alas...despite the entire section of wall devoted to Martha Stewart products, ACM did not have my elusive little cupcake punch. Sad day. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that this punch must only be available at Mike's. Bummer. I have a really hard time getting to Mike's, as there just isn't one in a convenient location for me. Sad day, again! And just to make matters worse...the very day of the afore mentioned CTMH gathering I was near a Mike's, so I strolled and gazed longingly at my cupcake punch, but..alas...I had not yet made any money, therefore, I was not able to purchase it. SO....I still don't have my Martha Stewart Cupcake Punch. But I will, my friends....I assure you, I will own THAT punch!!!


In other news....

I am working on getting people together to be the dancers for the Christmas Musical at church. You have NO idea how many people appear to suffer from severe stage fright! Seriously, this is challenging!

Oh, and I thought I would share this random photo with you. It was taken a couple of months ago at a youth event, but there is just something about it that I love. It almost looks like we were photoshopped into it, but we totally weren't. Weird.



So, tell me about your randomness for today! I'd love to hear all about it! BUT...only after you vote!