The Swap Nazi!

I used to be the Queen of Swaps!! I loved making cards and swapping them with fellow stampers - usually on Splitcoast. But, since I have hundreds of cards that I need to weed through, I have really cut back on my swaps. The only one I do anymore is with Jami Sipley from Splitcoast. She was a Dirty Dozen gal at one time and she is a strict swap hostess. I always hated it when there was a deadline and the hostess believed all the excused participants would give her and grant them a few days leeway. We refer to Jami as the Swap Nazi!! They are due when they are due and no doubt about it! Another good thing about Jami's swaps are that you don't have to make a whole bunch of cards - usually 8-10 which is not bad. Plus, she does not post the swap on Splitcoast before privately inviting swappers who are really good. I feel priviledged to be included in her group. She recently hosted a Christmas swap and these are the group of cards that I received.

Monday Mailer- Nov #1

This is the Monday Mailer I received from Lynn Griffith when I returned from my trip. Isn't it great!!

I got another one this week but haven't had time to take a picture.

Lynn used the stamp set "True Friend". Our theme this month is Thanksgiving or Thank You cards.

Touring Charlotte

Tuesday Sonny and I went to the Levine Museum of the New South in downtown Charlotte with our Newcomers & Golden Boys Groups. Sonny was not too thrilled to have to go to a museum but I think he changed his mind by the end of the day. I would highly recommend this museum!! You will find Charlotte's heart and soul in the museum's current program, New South for the New Southerner. Historian Dr. Tom Hanchett led a lively educational discussion on Charlotte's history and its future, covering topics as varied and colorful as why so many streets are named Sharon, what business was like in Charlotte before interstate banking, and what food and drinks were originated here (am I the only one who likes livermush???) This lighthearted lesson in local history is ideal for newcomers and natives (such as me). I feel like although I was born and raised in Charlotte, I really don't know her! I left for college in 1966 and basically, never returned except to visit. So, I get very lost in the city and don't recognize anything downtown!!

After the lecture and seeing some of the exhibits (hands on) in the museum, Dr. Hanchett led us on a walking tour of Charlotte. We went into the Bank of America building which houses an impressive traveling art exhibit which is open to the public. We visited the Mint Museum of Craft and Design where I had to fight back the tears. In my day, this building (Mint) housed Montaldo's department store. My grandmother and great-aunt, Love, both worked there. When I was young (12-13 years old probably), every Saturday, my girlfriend and I would take the bus downtown (today, it is referred to as UPtown). We would go to Montaldo's and visit my grandmother & aunt, go to Woolworth's to buy some Tangee lipstick (remember that???), down to Trade Street where my grandfather worked at Stein's Men's Clothing and he would always give me some money and take us to lunch (probably Tanner's hot dogs) and then we'd go to the Carolina Theatre to watch Elvis gyrate!! Such wonderful memories plus Montaldo's is where my wedding dress was purchased!! The walking tour was quite interesting though and we saw things that I wouldn't normally see and learned a little history about my hometown.

If you have guests visiting, I would highly recommend the Levine Museum!! Even if you don't have guests, go yourself! I know I will go back. And, perhaps take a little walking stroll myself to see what else I uncover down .... opps, UPtown!

SheetLoad's Blog Candy Blow Out

Want to win this stash????? If so, go to Sheetload of Cards website and check them out. Every month there is a free downloaded magazine with card samples and sketches. I'll be posting a card soon using one of their sketches.

Gift Giving Guide

Getting in the Christmas spirit yet? Stampin' Up! offers products that make great gifts, whether they're intricate projects for dearest family and friends, or smaller gifts such as party favors or gifts for neighbors. Our products offer you endless options--for any budget or recipient.

Here is a Gift Giving Guide for you. Contact me to order any of these items to make your gift giving easy!!

Use this list to find gifts in your budget, whether it's less than $10, $25, $50, or $100.

Happy Birthday Jeff

Today is my baby's birthday. I don't think he'd like for me to refer to him as my baby, but that is what he is to me even if he is 30 years old (or young) today. It doesn't seem like he should be 30 yet .... it just makes me that old + 30! But, indeed he is with a wife, 3 great step-daughters and a beautiful 2-year old son. He is a great dad and husband. When he married Darcie, he took on the responsibility of raising her 3 girls, Torri, Kennedy, and Cassidy, who has special needs. He never thought twice about it. That is the type of man he is and why I am proud of him. He and I have our difficulties at present, but I hope and pray, some day, we will get past our problems.

For his birthday, I put together a scrapbook of memories for him. I used the theme "Where has the time gone" because that is what I feel!! It seems only yesterday that I was holding him in my lap while he was sucking his thumb and holding fast to his tattered blanket.

Here are a few of the pages from the book.

This is a great quote that I got this summer from Quick Quotes and thought it was appropriate at the beginning of the memories.

I hope he will enjoy taking this walk with me through my memories and remember how much I love him. It was bittersweet making this album. I had tears and laughter all along the way - just like I did when he was growing up. Oh, the memories I have that are not in this book!!

Happy Birthday, sweet boy of mine!

Love, Mom

Joey's Name Frame

Well, I feel like I've been going non-stop for a long time & I'm ready to stop the train and slow down!!  We got back in town late Sunday afternoon and didn't even go straight home!  We stopped off at a local bar/restaurant to catch the Steelers game on tv.  At half-time, I called my sister who told me the game was on our local CBS station, so we headed home to finish watching them LOSE!!  But, I had unpacking, laundry and a lot of catching up to do on the DVR to do.  Monday was bridge day; Tuesday was a Newcomer's event in downtown Charlotte (details later) and Bunco that night.  Today .... was heaven!!  I didn't even get dressed until after noon and just vegged out .... well, actually I worked on a baby gift that I have been needing to get done. 

Our sweet neighbors in Gig Harbor had their first child the day of my birthday party.  Little Joey was born on early Saturday morning, Oct. 18th. 

Joe & Ramey have decorated his room with jungle animals so I thought that would be appropriate for his name frame.  I found some green striped paper in my stash and covered the cardboard backing of the WalMart frame.  Next, I used my Nestabilities and Cuttlebug to cut out the Always Artichoke & Vanilla cardstock ovals.  I stamped the letters in Chocolate Chip and embossed them with clear powder.  The animals are from 4 different SU stamp sets - Wild About You; Unfroggetable; Bugs & Kisses; and Sock Monkey.  The little saying (precious little one) is a SU rub-on.  I added a little ribbon on the side with a round clip from the Hodgepodge Hardware set and a brown plaid button that I found along with a little lady-bug button for accents.  I thought it turned out really cute!  Hope they do too.

Rub On Special

The sentiment featured in the card (above) is from Season of Cheer Rub-Ons (112843).

Get 20% off all Rub-Ons when you spend $20 on Stampin’ Up! products.For only $8.76 per package (regularly $10.95), you can get any of Stampin’ Up!’s fun and unique Rub-Ons that can be used on cards, scrapbook pages, crafting projects, and more!

Item # Rub-Ons Description

111416 - Chateau Bella

111417 - Word Flurries

111414 - Hidden Garden

111277 - A Perfect Day

110283 - Take Note

111806 - Chills & Thrills

111804 - Chit Chat

111415 - Greatest Moments

111805 - School Days

110282 - Anchored

112844 - Old Saint Nick*

112843 - Season of Cheer

112735 - Garden Blossoms**

*From Holiday 2008 Mini Catalog

**From Celebrando Creatividad

Why?

Why Is it?

Why is it that if someone tells you that there are a billion stars in the universe, you'll believe him, but if he tells you that a wall has wet paint, you'll have to touch it to be sure?

Why do we press harder on our remote control when we know the batteries are flat?

Deep in the jungle, why doesn't Tarzan have a beard?

If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?

Why isn't "phonetic" spelled the way it sounds?

If money doesn't grow on trees, then why do banks have branches?

Why is it that people who spend their day sitting down often earn more than people who spend their day working on their feet?

Ever notice that when you blow in a dog's face he doesn't like it, but when you take him for a ride in the car, he sticks his head out the window?

Why is it that people say they "slept like a baby" when babies wake up every two hours?

~Quick & Simple Magazine

5 state in 5 days!

This has been a busy week. I have been in 5 state in 5 days!! Feels like that movie .... if it's Monday, it must be Paris - or something like that!! Sunday we went to Harper's Ferry in West Virginia and then to Virginia to a few wineries. Monday, we were in Maryland for the football game; Tuesday, we had dinner in downtown DC; Wednesday we went to Pennsylvania!

Yesterday we drove to Gettysburg. I don't know what I was expecting but it was really neat. I thought it would be just a bunch of graves and markers but it was nothing like that. The neatest thing was that at the visitor center, you had your choice of getting a map and driving all around the battlefield (which as really huge); boarding a bus for a tour; OR what we did .... get a tour guide to drive our car and give us a personalized tour. Our tour guide was probably about 80 years old and quite knowledgeable. He has been doing this for 16 years - since he retired, so you can imagine! Before we left the Visitors Center, he asked us where we were from and if we had any kin that fought in the Civil War. I wish I had been prepared because I don't know. But Sonny knew he had a relative who was a Butcher and his last name was Gibson. So, John (our tour guide) looked up Gibson in the Pennsylvania book & we narrowed it down to 2-3 men. Then we were on our way to find the monument from the Regiment our relatives were in. All along the tour, John made the battle come alive for us. If you ever get a chance to go to Gettysburg, this is the best way to see it. It was $55 for the 3 of us, but if we'd done the bus tour, it was about $25-30 per person!

After we finished our tour (about 2+ hours), we drove over to York, Pa. That is the home of York Air Conditioning & Heating (now Johnson Controls) which was Sonny's employer until he retired. York was also the first capitol of the US and very historic also. We didn't get there until dark so we just drove by the plant and found a nice restaurant for dinner. We wanted to go to Lancaster and the Amish area, but Ashley had to get back. We'll save that for another time.

Tomorrow, we'll leave here & head to Virginia Beach. I'm looking forward to meeting some of my NC stampin' sisters and learning some new tricks at SU's convention. Ashley will join us later in the day after having to work.