American Idol .... week 2

So the judges make another grand entrance and Paula hugged all the judges before they sat down. I love that necklace Kara has on .... wonder if it's Paula's design? So, tonight is Classic Country. I love country music so it'll be a good night for me .... IF they do well! Randy Travis is the mentor tonight.

• Michael Sarver - Texas boy - Ain't Going Down Till the Sun Comes Up: Well, it's hard to be another Garth and Garth, he's not. He had the energy and country is definitely his genre.
• Allison Iraheta - She hit this one out of the park! Great job on the song - even Simon thought it was good! Simon thought it was verging on "precocious" and Randy thought it was "dope" .... whatever all that means!
• Kris Allen - another Garth song, a ballad this time. Singing without his guitar tonight. Randy said he is a ballad singer and I think he is right. I'm not familiar with the song but I like it a lot. Wow!! Simon said he thought it was terrific (Simon hates country!). I'll be voting for Kris tonight.
• Lil Rounds - Independence Day (by Martina McBride) - she's a R&B singer ... not country - should be interesting. It was ok. She's got too good a voice not to do justice to any song, but this just wasn't her forte. I thought it was kind of boring. The judges thought she could have picked a better song for her voice and I agree.
• Adam Lambert - Ring of Fire: Randy Travis was definitely taken aback by Adam and his nail polish. His version of this song was indescribable... think mid-Eastern style with sitars playing. I hated it! Doesn't his hair remind you of Liza Minnelli???? Simon was right - it was "indulgent rubbish!"
• Scott MacIntyre - Wild Angels (Martina McBride) - He surprised Randy Travis. He's one of my favorites and he didn't disappoint me tonight. His voice is just so pure. Paula thinks he should mix up his performances and connect more with the audience without his piano. The judges think he needs to "up" his game and pick better songs for his voice. Since he is blind, he is going to have a hard time moving around on stage.
• Alexis Grace doing a Dolly Parton song, Jolene: I think she did great with the song and hit the notes even if Randy didn't think so. The judges didn't agree with me (except Paula). They want her to be "down and dirty" every time. Simon thought she was forgettable and sounded too much like Dolly .... that ain't so bad!
• Danny Gokey doing Carrie Underwood, Jesus Take the Wheel. Danny is one of my favorites. He started out pretty slow but then got going and did great. Kara and Randy agree. I can see him winning this competition .... or have I said that before? The judges liked him. I do agree with Simon with his outfit - looked a little 80's.
• Anoop Desai - You're Always On My Mind (Willie Nelson) I thought Anoop would have a difficult time with country. But his version of Willie's classic was super!! As Paula said, "Anoop is back!" This song "fit him like a glove." As Simon said, he went from Zero to Hero and this was one of his favorites of the whole night. Simon actually ate his words from last week that Anoop didn't deserve to be in the competition. Randy thought the arrangement was "dope" - guess that's the new word this year.
• Megan Joy - I Go Walking After Midnight: Randy wasn't too sure about her choice at first but after hearing her, said her rendition was great. Well, she didn't do anything for me. She needs to quit doing her little twisty "Rockin Robin" moves. I think she's sick or has been sick. Her eyes look a little weird. Yep - Kara says she has the flu and has been to the hospital. Judges think she was fantastic. Simon wants her quirky dressing to come back.
• Matt Giraud - Love Is All That Matters - another Carrie Underwood song - I thought he did good. Kara says he is a true artist and is amazing. He pierced Paula's heart. Simon thought he out sang Danny!! Wow ... that's a great compliment. Randy & Simon both thought it was the best performance of the night.

I think Michael Sarver will get the boot tonight.

My votes are: Kris; Scott; Danny; Anoop and Matt!

Every year, one artist gets to benefit from the contestants demise. This year it is Carrie Underwood who gets to benefit from American Idol all over again. The name of the new song being used to say goodbye to the eliminated contestants on American Idol in 2009 is called Home Sweet Home by American Idol winner Carrie Underwood

American Idol .... week 2

Color Throwdown

I made this card this weekend for a "Color Throwdown Challenge!" Not exactly colors I would have picked, but there are some cute cards HERE.

• Recipe:
  Paper & Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, and Elegant Eggplant
  Stamps: Itty Bitty Buds and Great Friend
  Accessories: Dew Drops, Anna Griffin Butterfly Punch; Decorative Corner Punch;
  Cuttlebug Embossing Folder
  
  The Great Friend stamp set is actually a sneak peek of the new Occasions Mini Catalog. Isn't it great?
  
  

Happy St Patrick's Day

Happy St Patrick's Day to You!

Here's the card I sent to my Monday Mailer partner:

And here's a few Irish recipes you might want to fix today!

Corned-Beef Dinner, Irish Style
Ingredients :
3-4 lbs corned beef brisket
2 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
6 whole cloves
6 medium potatoes, pared
5 small carrots, pared
1 medium head of cabbage, cut in 6 wedges
Preparation :
Place corned beef in dutch oven, and barely cover with hot water; add onion, garlic, cloves, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer (do not let boil) 1 hour per pound of meat, or till fork tender. Remove meat from liquid; add potatoes and carrots. Cover; bring to boiling and cook 10 minutes. Then add cabbage wedges; continue cooking 20 minutes longer or till vegetables are done.

Spice Glaze:If you like, glaze the corned beef while vegetables cook. Spread fat side of meat lightly with prepared mustard. Then sprinkle with mixture of 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves. Place in shallow pan. Bake in moderate oven 350 degrees 15 to 20 minutes or till nicely glazed.

Reuben Casserole

Ingredients :
3/4 cup cubed rye bread
2 (10 1/2 ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
3/4 lb deli sliced corned beef, chopped or leftover corned beef brisket, sliced and chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
32 ounces sauerkraut, drained
2 medium baking potatoes, thinly sliced
2 cups shredded swiss cheese
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preparation :

Heat oven to 250⁰. Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until dry. Crush or process cubes in a food processor until you have medium crumbs; set aside.
Increase oven temperature to 350⁰. In large bowl, mix together cream of mushroom soup, milk, onion, corned beef, dry mustard and sugar. Set aside. Spread sauerkraut evenly in bottom of a lightly greased 9x13" baking dish. Place potatoes in single layer, slightly overlapping, over 'kraut. Spoon soup mixture over potatoes and top with cheese. In small bowl, combine melted butter with rye bread crumbs, and sprinkle mixture over cheese. Cover and bake 50 minutes. Remove cover and bake 10 minutes more.

Chocolate Potato Candy

Ingredients :
4 cups powdered sugar
4 cups flaked coconut
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup cold mashed potatoes (without added milk or butter)
1/2 salt
1 pound chocolate or candy coating

Preparation :

Combine sugar, potatoes, coconut, vanilla, and salt and mix well. Line a 9-inch pan with foil covered with a non-stick spray (or use butter or shortening on the foil). Spread the mixture evenly into the pan, cover and refrigerate overnight. Cut into rectangles. Cover and freeze. Melt the chocolate and dip the bars into the coating. Place on waxed paper to harden. Store in an airtight container.

Diva Challenge - Big Shot

I made this card for a swap and for the challenge HERE . I used the Big Shot with the Loopy Flowers die and the Little Leaves die. The flower is the Scallop Punch that I slit and rolled up with a bamboo stick.

Rainy Weekend Projects

What a dreary rainy weekend we had .... cold and rainy!  We took met some friends Friday night at a local fish camp.  Fish camps are big here in the south and our friends are .... Yankees who live here now.  It was their first trip to a fish camp and they loved it!!  Plus, the food was delicious - probably not on my Weight Watchers diet (fried and fried!), but oh so yummy!!

I took a class on Saturday at Stamper's Alley which was really fun.  Debbie taught the class and she is really talented and oh so organized!!  She is doing a series every couple of months of sketches and colors.  This month the colors were Turquoise; Kiwi and Yellow and the cards were very simple but so pretty.

Today is my sister, Marianne's birthday (Happy Birthday, sis!).  We went out to eat with her and her family on Saturday and I gave her some stamping goodies for her birthday.  It was also my nephew's girlfriends birthday.  Here is the little gift I made for Kelly:

 

This is a little Gift Card Folder that we did at convention last year.  It unties and opens to hold all the little gift cards seen below.  Here are the dimensions if you are interested:

Very Vanilla card stock (9 3/4" x 6") scored at 4 3/4" and 5".  Rotate 90 degrees & score at 2 1/2".  Fold on score lines to create card folder.  Wrap ribbon around folder and adhere to front of folder using Sticky Strip.  Decorate front of folder.

These are the little gift cards and envelopes I put inside the folder.  I used SU's Scallop Notes.  I put designer paper inside the envelope and stamped the outside of the envelope.  The stamp set I used was Pun Fun and the little birdie is from Best Wishes & More.

Last night, I cut apart a couple of my wheels.  I had never done this before (I know, a lot people do it!!) and was a little scared.  But, I had bought the Friendly Words wheel for $8.50 and ended up with 13 stamps from it!!  Then I took a retired wheel of baby clothes on a clothesline (don't remember the name) and cut it apart in one long piece.  I backed the stamps with Easy Mount and now, all I have to do is put them on one of my clear stamp holders.  Get brave and give it a try!!  Now, to find a use for the empty wheel!!  Any ideas?

Fifth Ave Floral

Well, I resisted for a while, but finally broke down and bought this stamp.  I love it!!!  It is just gorgeous.  I made a birthday card for Judy with it last week but forgot to take a picture of it!!  But, I did this card this week for a friend.  I found this floral paper that I have had for ages and the stamp matched it really well ... don't you think?

I watercolored the flower and cut it out.  Then, I used a gel pen to go around the edges.  I just love how it turned out!  Here's the flower close-up.

Thank You

As a parent of children who served their country in the US Army ... my daughter is still in the Army .... I found this to be wonderful.

Recently, a gentleman from Seattle created a gesture using an ASL (American Sign Language) sign of “Thank You” (which is then being gestured from the heart rather than from the mouth), and has started a movement to get the word out. A Thank You from the Heart.

Please everybody take just a moment to watch.... The Gratitude Campaign; .... and then forward it to your friends!

THEN START USING THE SIGN.

More Swaps

Here are a few more of those swaps.

The first card is by Maria Richie.  It uses Dream a Little; Gallery; and Sincere Salutations with vellum paper over the flowers softening the look.

The second card is by Beth Weinstein.  She used Hope Happens stamp; the Top Note Die and Sixxiz Flower Layers #3 die.  She used Crystal Effects in the center of the flowers.

The third card is mine!!  I used the stamp set from Garden Greeting and embossed the vellum.

The first card is by Mary Haugen.  She used Simple Friendship with the Simple Flower Embosslit.  I love this pink and gray!!

The second card is by Sabrina Beinlich.  She used Le Jardin Botanique,

The third card is by Maggie Haas.  She used the popular set, Cheep Talk with Good Morning Sunshine DSP.  She also used a sewing machine on the bottom .... something you won't see me doing!!

The first card is by Amber Hight.  She used Quilt Quips and the Eyelet Punch.

The second card is by Toni Sizemore.  She used Three Little Words stamp set with designer paper and ribbon from Saleabration.

Never Give Up .... Plus a little humor!

How do you find the motivation to ‘keep on keeping on’? Abraham Lincoln is an awesome example of NEVER GIVING UP. If you never thought you could succeed on this journey, ponder this:

Abraham Lincoln...

• Failed in business at age 21.
• Was defeated in a legislative race at age 22.
• Failed again in business at age 24.
• Overcame the death of his sweetheart at age 26.
• Had a nervous breakdown at age 27.
• Lost a congressional race at age 34.
• Lost a congressional race at age 36.
• Lost a senatorial race at age 45.
• Failed in an effort to become vice-president at age 47.
• Lost a senatorial race at age 47.
• Was elected PRESIDENT of the US at age 52!

NEVER, EVER GIVE UP!

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And here is a little humor for you today -

A very weird thing has happened. A strange old lady has moved into my house. I have no idea who she is, where she came from, or how she got in. I certainly didn't invite her. All I know is that one day she wasn't there and the next day she was. She's very clever. She manages to keep out of sight for the most part, but whenever I pass a mirror, I catch a glimpse of her there; and when I look into a mirror directly to check my appearance suddenly she's hogging the whole thing, completely obliterating my gorgeous face and body. It's very disconcerting. I've tried screaming at her to leave but she just screams back, grimacing horribly. She's really rather frightening. If she's going to hang around, the least she could do is offer to pay rent. But no. Every once in a while I do find a couple of dollar bills on the kitchen counter, or some loose change on my bureau or on the floor, but that certainly isn't enough. In fact, though I don't like to jump to conclusions, I think she steals money from me regularly. I go to the ATM and withdraw a hundred dollars, and a few days later, it's gone. I certainly don't go through it that fast, so I can only conclude that the old lady pilfers it. You'd think she'd spend some of it on wrinkle cream. God knows, she needs it.

And, the money isn't the only thing she's taking. Food seems to disappear at an alarming rate. Especially the good stuff - ice cream, cookies, candy - I just can't keep them in the house. She really has a sweet tooth. She should watch it; she's really putting on the pounds. I think she realizes that, and to make herself feel better I know she is tampering with my scale, so I'll think that I'm gaining weight, too. For an old lady she's really quite childish.

She also gets into my closets when I'm not home and alters all my clothes. They're getting tighter every day.

Another thing: I wish she'd stop messing with my files and papers on my desk. I can't find a thing any more. This is particularly hard to deal with because I'm extremely neat and organized; but she manages to jumble everything up so nothing is where it is supposed to be. Furthermore, when I program my VCR to tape something important, she fiddles with it after I leave the room so it records the wrong channel or shuts off completely. She finds innumerable imaginative ways to irritate me. She gets to my newspapers, magazines and mail before me—and blurs all the print; and she's done something sinister with the volume controls on my TV, radio and phone. Now all I hear are mumbles and whispers. She's also made my stairs steeper, my vacuum cleaner heavier, all my knobs and faucets hard to turn and my bed higher and a real challenge to climb into and out of. Furthermore, she gets to my groceries as soon as I shelve them and applies super glue to the tops of every jar and bottle so they're just about impossible to open. Is this any way to repay my hospitality?

I don't even get any respite at night. More than once her snoring has awakened me. I don't know why she can't do something about that. It's very unattractive.

As if all this isn't bad enough, she is no longer confining her malevolence to the house. She's now found a way to sneak into my car with me and follow me wherever I go. I see her reflection in store windows as I pass, and she's taken all the fun out of clothes shopping because her penchant for monopolizing mirrors has extended to dressing rooms. When I try something on, she dons an identical outfit, which looks ridiculous on her and then stands directly in front of me so I can't see how great it looks on me.

I thought she couldn't get any meaner than that, but yesterday, she proved me wrong. She had the nerve to come with me when I went to have some passport pictures taken.....

Don't you love it?? Rose Mula wrote this wonderful piece. Her page is at: http://www.seniorwomen.com/rosestranger.htm

(borrowed from Copyright © DWLZ, Inc. - 2009, all rights reserved.)