Disney Adventures

We have been going non-stop since we arrived here on Tuesday.  I think Sonny and I have walked more in the past 3 days than we have in the last year!!  Sonny's hips are not liking it and he has been in some pain all week but he has been a trouper and kept on going.  Friday was our first free day.  Ashley was at her conference all day so Sonny and I took the opportunity to enjoy the buffet breakfast and to sit out by the pool most of the day - of course, me dozing in the sun and him under the umbrella table reading! 

We went to Magic Kingdom on Tuesday.  I have never seen so many baby strollers in one place in my life!  We had "fast passes" for 3 rides so the wait was not so bad.  We rode Space Mountain (roller coaster), Thunder Mountain, and It's a Small World and also saw the Country Bear Jubilee.  That evening we went over to Downtown Disney where we had reservations at Raglon Irish Restaurant which was wonderful.  There were Irish dancers and singers performing so after we ate, we moved up to the bar to enjoy the entertainment.  In fact, it was so good, we returned Friday night!

Wednesday we went to Hollywood Studios which was a lot of fun too.  Again, I was surprised that we did not have to wait too long for rides .... AS long as you had those precious Fast Passes!  We watched a great show demonstrating how Hollywood stunts are done and went on a couple of rides,  For dinner we had reservations at a 50s Diner and was it ever good as well as fun.  The waitress was super - she kept reprimanding me to take my elbows off the table and when Sonny went to the rest room, she asked him if he had washed his hands! 

Thursday, we went to Animal Kingdom - probably my favorite.  The Tree of Life there was just awesome!  It is a sculpted 145-foot tall (50 feet wide) artificial tree.  We took a safari ride and saw lots of animals - elephant, rhino, giraffe, crocs, etc.  Great fun!

Saturday we did Epcot at a slower pace.  Sunday will probably finding us relaxing pool side before heading to the airport to drop Ashley off and we'll start our trip home.

Shoebox Swap Cards

These are some of the Shoebox Cards we made at the NC Demo Quarterly.

NC Demo Swaps

Enjoy the swap cards from NC Demos Quarterly:

Quarterly Projects

We arrived in Orlando safely although it did rain on us the whole way!  Hope that rain is going away this week!  We had a little trouble finding a hotel room for the night.  Not knowing how far we would get, we didn't make reservations for tonight.  My cell phone quit working on the way down.  I only have a month left on my contract so I am hoping I can revive it tomorrow.  Sonny and I are joining Ashley in Orlando this week for our first time at Disney!  Ashley has been before but not Sonny and I.  I am looking forward to seeing what all the hype is about Disney World and I hope I have comfortable enough shoes because I understand a LOT of walking is involved!

I will be posting some of the Quarterly projects this week while I am gone.  Hope you enjoy them.

These are the projects we made at Quarterly.  This little birds nest is made using the Envelope Punch Board.  Luckily I took this picture when I first came home with it but I noticed Sunday night that there is only one chocolate egg left in the nest!  Hmmmm - wonder who????

And isn't this mushroom adorable??  It was made using the Curvy Box Template.  I haven't gotten that template and this cute project almost is putting me over the edge!  I have seen so many cute boxes made with the template.

3 D Swaps from Quarterly

Thought I'd share the 3D swaps from Quarterly with you.  Enjoy!

Amy's Post It Note Holder

Chaille's Easel Calendar Card

Denise's Note Pad Holder

Lynne's Candy Bar Holder

Marcia's chick (chocolate inside)

Marianne's scrapbook - opened

Marianne's mini scrapbook

My purse!

MDS Monday - Spring Challenge!

I am going to do layouts for MDS Monday for as long as they keep the site going.  I'm sad that I think they may shut it down after Stampin' Up quits supporting MDS.  I have gotten so much inspiration on their site.  I really hope they decide to keep it going for us die-hards!

So the challenge this week was to focus on spring.  The sketch itself is pretty simple - the challenge to have something that grows (like a flower or plant) on your page.  Well, I think these flowers from the Botanical Garden at Christchurch, New Zealand fits the bill, don't you?  The flowers in New Zealand were just gorgeous!

I did a lot of color matching on this page.  I matched the colors in the orange day lily and the pink circle flower.  The background flowers are an overlay from Bunch of Backgrounds.  The doily started out green and I recolored it and lowered the opacity.  This page just makes you think SPRING!

Here is the sketch to follow:

Check out the designer's pages HERE.

Paper Craft Crew Sketch

This is the card I made for the Paper Craft Crew Sketch this week.  I used My Digital Studio to make the card.

Did you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?  Sonny and I did.  I think we could be Irish!!  We were going to Mooresville to find a place serving Irish fare.  About half-way there, we decided to go to Galway Hooker in Cornelius - our favorite Irish restaurant.  It was packed!  But it didn't take us too long to snag a table.  I parked myself beside a table until the people paid their check while Sonny stood in line at the bar to get a couple of brews.  I ate corned beef and cabbage while Sonny stuck with his old stand.

Make sure you check out  what the rest of the designers did with the sketch HERE.

Club Projects

This is my Stamp Club week.  We had fun making these cards this week:

This first one uses the birthday stamp from Sale-A-Bration along with the birthday DSP and Chalk Paper from the Occasions catalog along with the popular Bow Punch.

This is our Easter card. Most of the pieces for the card are retired - Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery card stock, ribbon and DSP.  I don't want to tell you how many cards I made trying to come up with this one!  We stamped the flowers directly onto the DSP.

This card uses Washi Tape - something I don't use very much  Some of the tape is from Stampin' Up and some is from one of the big box stores but since it matched Coastal Cabana so well, I had to use it!  We also used one of the newer photopolymer stamps - Lovely Amazing You - and the Bitty Butterfly Punch.

.Another easy card using the Vellum from Sale-A-Bration.  I just love this DSP! You can color it with markers but I decided to go simple.  I just cut a square of In Color DSP and backed the square of vellum allowing the DSP to show through the vellum.

More new Sale-A-Bration items:



We are now at the end of Sale-A-Bration with only 2 weeks left.  It's been a rough ride over the last few months with crazy back orders.  The west coast port strike has done a number of back-logged products sitting in crates for too long.  Stampin' Up! is trying their best to keep on top of it but I'm not sure anyone could fully keep up.  The good news is SU has kept us abreast of the situation and even given us a few new options during this period of time.  (See the new items added to Sale-a-Bration above.)  It didn't help that the Blendabilties are now discontinued.  In a way, it is a good thing because of the constant issues we were having with them.  I will miss them but think in due time Stampin' Up! will come up with another option down the road.

Stampin' Up! did make an announcement today that has broken my heart though and that is the discontinuation of My Digital Studio.  Last year it was announced that they would not be putting much effort into the program.  I have adored MDS, as you know, and have created many beautiful albums, hundreds of layouts and have enjoyed teaching digital art to others.  But the writing was on the wall and I knew this was coming; just not sure when so I can't say I was too surprised today. 

If you have downloaded My Digital Studio, no worries.  You can still use the program.  Stampin' Up! will not support the program after May 31st.  All digital downloads will be discontinued.  If there is something that you want or need .... NOW is the time to grab it.  The BIGGEST thing is to back up your current digital downloads.  I recommend an external hard drive - that is what I am going to do.  You can copy your components folder and put it on the external hardIoptions for printing.  I am going to be checking into Persnickety Prints as well as Shutterfly.

I will continue to create layouts and scrapbooks using digital files.  Stampin' Up got me hooked on digital and I see no reason to quit!


This week's weekly deals - 

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

3x3 Quarterly Swaps

Marianne and I traveled to Raleigh this weekend for the NC Demos Quarterly Get-together.  It is so much fun to see old friends there and meet new ones.  I can't wait till our next one in September in Wilmington!  We did several swaps and although I told myself in advance I would only do one swap, I ended up doing all three - 3D swap, 3x3 card swap and full card swap.

Here are the 3x3 cards I received in the swap:  (Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of my own swap!)

I think these make cute little gift enclosure cards.

Happy Birthday to my little sister, Marianne.  Today (Monday) is her birthday!  She is catching up with me!!

Marianne getting started with her stampin'!

This was the "voting" table.  We voted on the best "WOW" card and the card that was the most demonstratable.  Can you guess which ones won?

If you guessed the purple flower card for a WOW!, you are correct.  Isn't it gorgeous?!  It was made by Denise James.

My card was voted as the most demonstratable (is that a word?).  It was also my swap card.  Here it is close up:

I love the colors in this card.  I used the Flower Patch stamp set along with the Feels Good sentiment.  I masked the center of the card while I stamped the flowers and when I finished with that stamping, I removed the mask and stamped the sentiment.

Butterfly Basics - MDS Style for Paper Craft Crew

This is my card for Paper Craft Crew challenge this week.  It uses the Butterfly Basics stamp set from the Occasions Catalog .... but in digital form!  Yes, I used My Digital Studio to create this card but it can just as easily be reproduced using the stamp and ink method!

Make sure to check out the other designers take on the sketch this week.  (http://www.papercraftcrew.com/)

I finally finished my projects for Quarterly this weekend.  Marianne and I are headed to Raleigh tomorrow.  She is going to leave work around noon and we will be on our way.  I don't usually wait till the last minute to do my projects but I ended up working most of the day finishing up my 3D swaps.  Luckily, I only had to do 8!  I needed 12x12 card stock to make them and I didn't get my order until Wednesday afternoon.  I scored them all Wednesday night and got them made today!  Whew!  I will be sharing them with you after I swap.

Have a great weekend!

MDS Monday Clown Sketch

This is my sketch for this week's MDS Monday.  I have had so much fun this week going through old pictures.  Monday I got a box full of slides from my mom that belonged to my aunt.  They were mostly from the early 60s and I have been posting a lot of them of my sisters and cousins on Facebook. 

This picture was taken when we lived in Birmingham in the early 80s.  Ashley and Jeffrey had gone to Clown School!  I don't remember what tricks they learned but this was the result of them applying their own clown make-up!!

Here is the sketch we were to use:

 Check out the design team pages HERE.

Blendabilities Issue

I am sad to tell you that Stampin' Up has discontinued the Blendabilities line.  This is a major announcement received today from Stampin' Up:

Due to the nature of the defect, we have concluded that difficulties, dissatisfaction, and product returns will only become more widespread. The manufacturer is unable to correct the problem in a manner that we are certain would meet our high quality standards and provide us with a stable, long-term solution. Therefore, after a great deal of deliberation and in order to prevent further disappointment, the Blendabilities product line has been discontinued. 

As you know I am a huge fan of Stampin' Up! product and the Blendabilities were no exception.  I think I have all the pens except a couple of colors.  While I am disappointed to lose this product line, I am pleased that Stampin' Up! is keeping its standards high and not trying to "make a buck" and sell you an inferior product.

Most of the markers that have already been sold have been absolutely fine, but there have been some packs with problems.  If you have bought these pens from me and have any concerns about them, please let me know.

Luckily there are other ways of coloring your images with colors that match Stampin' Up! paper and accessories.  Pull out those markers, blender pens and aqua pens!  They will work great!

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A friend sent me this today and, wow, it really hit home with me.  Don't know about you, but we had lots of burned biscuits when I was growing up and I was famous for burning the biscuits when my kids were growing up!

When I was a kid, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then.  And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work.  On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed!  Yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school.

 

I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget what he said: "Honey, I love burned biscuits."

 

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Your momma put in a long hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides a burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!"

 

You know, life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else. What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other’s faults and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences, is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

 

So please pass me a biscuit. And yes, the burned one will do just fine!  And please pass this along to someone who has enriched your life. I just did!

 

Life is too short to wake up with regrets! Love the people who treat you right and forgive the ones who don't, they could just be having a hard day.

Ain't that the truth?  There are a few people who I'd like to send this along to but, I'll just take another burned biscuit please!

Have a great day!

Big Day Sale-a-Bration

We had a beautiful weekend for a change!  I think the end of winter is in sight.

I was busy over the weekend trying to decide on my shoebox card for next weekend as well as my 3x3 card.  I was successful!!

Have you seen the Chalkboard Paper in the Occasions catalog and wondered what to do with it? Well, you can make a card like this one I made.  I stamped the (Sale-a-Bration) Big Day stamp onto chalkboard paper in White Craft Ink and heat embossed it (but you don't have to emboss it). Then I stamped the "celebrate" part of the stamp and the cake on a piece of Pink Pirouette, cut them out and added them to the card.  The DSP is the Back to Black in the big catalog.  I just love the look of this card.

And in other good news ....I won again this week with the MDS Monday page.  If you missed my page, here is the link to it.  I used pictures from a trip we took in 2005 to Tucson.  The cactus background is what makes the page, don't you think?

MDS Monday 103 - Saguaro National Park

I almost let the challenge for MDS Monday get away this week without doing a page using the sketch.  It is a fairly easy one this week.  I dug through some of my old photos and found these pictures from 2005.  We went to visit Jeff and his family and they took us to Saguaro National Park.  It was amazing!  Who knew cactus could be so beautiful?  I learned to identify the saguaro cactus from the yucca and the barrel cactus and the prickly pear cactus .... who knew there were so many different cacti?  The kids were pretty young at the time.  It's hard to believe looking at these pictures now that Torri is 6 months pregnant and Kennedy will be graduating from high school this year!

Hope you enjoy my scrapbook page and a look back at a happier time.

Check out the sketches by the design team and the sketch I used for this page HERE.

Lovely Amazing You

It's a beautiful day here today but just a tad on the cold side!!  As I'm writing this, it's 3:30 pm and it's only 38 degrees!  I played Hand and Foot today and a couple of the gals said they have put away their "Cuddle-Duds" and heavy coats.  I'm not there yet but hopefully in a week, I will be.  We play cards and Mahjong at the Mooresville Bowling Alley and it is always freezing in there as it is at the NY Deli where I play bridge on Mondays.  So I still wear my Cuddle-Dud under my shirt along with a sweater to stay warm at these places.  I need to get some fingerless gloves because my fingers get so cold.  (and it's not because I don't have enough meat on my body!!)

 These are two of the projects we made at Allison's house on Monday night.  The first one would hold a candy bar in it.  It uses the Photopolymer stamp set, Lovely Amazing You.  I just love this set.

The next card is a Shaker Card.  Allison said this was the first shaker she had done (and she has been a demonstrator for ten years!)

Well, short post today.  We are meeting the family for Angela's birthday dinner.  Her birthday was Feb. 1 but this is the first time we could all get together!