Quarterly Swaps - Thoughts and Prayers

Quarterly Swaps

I am flying to Texas tomorrow for 10 days so I will be posting some of the swaps I have been working on for the quarterly meeting.  I will be attending the NC Stampin' Up Quarterly the weekend after I return from Texas.

This one uses the de-embossing technique.  Run the cardstock through the Big Shot Embossing folder and run the ink on the reverse side of the paper.  I used Chunky Glitter on the butterflies.

Hats Off to Spring Tea

  My Newcomers's group had a "Hats Off to Spring" tea on Tuesday.  I had been making little hats and baskets for the centerpieces and was so glad to be done with that project!!  But, they really turned out cute and the tables really looked festive.  We got lots of favorable comments about the tea so all the hard work was worth it!

We had a barbershop quartet perform.  They were a group of professors from Davidson College and they were really good.  Plus .... they didn't charge us anything!!

I took several of my great-aunt Love's hats.  She was a milliner and had her own hat shop at one time.  I wore one of the hats!  Here are a few pictures.

Ginny made her hat with a tea cup on top!

Doesn't the guy on the end look like Barney Fife???

Another great Michael's find!

I went to Michael's yesterday and bought a craft table/organizer that I had seen last week.  I had written down the measurements but kept forgetting to see if it would fit in my room so decided to go ahead and get it and take my chances!  What a steal!!  It was marked Clearance $50 and they let me use my 40% coupon so I got it for just $30!  It weighed about 100 pounds!  I had to get someone to lift it into my car and Sonny used his dolly to get it upstairs.  Since he didn't offer to put it together for me, I decided to tackle it.  So, that is what I did most of the night last night while watching the hockey game (Pittsburgh WON!!). 

Here is the finished masterpiece table:

I haven't decided yet what I will put in the drawers (one of the drawers is a ribbon drawer and has a rod inside for ribbon) but the main thing I wanted it for is to put my cutters on the top.  I have a big Carl Cutter and the SU Tabletop Cutter.  I love both of them.  Right now, I have my Carl Cutter on a TV tray in the corner and my SU cutter on my table but it seems to travel around the room.  Now, they'll both have a home and I won't have to bend over the TV table to use them.

Now tomorrow I'll be rearranging my room to make everything fit!

88 Million votes for American Idol Final 3

Katy Perry performs on American Idol but first Danny Gokey says what we've all been thinking -- "there's been enough commercials, enough suspense -- I just want to get it over."
Then Katy comes out in some Vegas showgirl version of Elvis' getups, singing "Waking Up in Vegas." She looks totally ridiculous, like she's a cartoon character or something; also her outfit doesn't fit her that well.

Well, our final two are Kris and Adam. I can truthfully say I'm surprised! I really thought it would be Adam and Danny but was hoping it would be Danny and Kris. Danny was NEVER in the bottom 3 and should not be going home!! I hate to see Danny go. I was an early fan of his, although I admit my loyalty became divided between him, and Kris as the season progressed. For the first time ever, I didn’t have a strong preference between those two going into the semi-finals. But, I know this won't be the last we hear from him.

I'm sure Kris is totally living the dream, he was the dark horse coming in, and his fans really came through for him. And if what Ryan said is right, that less than a million votes separated Kris and Adam -- is "American Idol" setting the stage for an unbelievable upset next week?!

Now .... who will be the winner???? I'm afraid it will be Adam but I can hope for Kris, can't I?

American Idol .... Top Three

Tonight the top 3 guys - Adam, Danny and Kris - will sing 2 songs each. One of the songs will be chosen by the judges and the other song will be chosen by the guys.

First up is Danny singing a song chosen by Paula.

Danny - Dance Little Sister by Terrence somebody - I've never heard of this song or the artist who originally did it, but the judges thought he was great (except for Kara who didn't like his dancing.) "Dope" according to Randy! Simon disagreed with the song choice.

Kris - Apologize by One Republic - chosen by Kara and Randy. I love this song and am loving Kris' take on it. The judges weren't so blown away with his performance. Simon is right - he said that Kara & Randy shouldn't be criticizing Kris' arrangement of the song when they picked the song for him. Kara said he should have not been behind the piano, but done it acoustically .... well, they should have told him that! I agree with Simon for a change.

Adam - One by U2 chosen by Simon. Simon had to get permission from Bono for Adam to sing this song tonight. Pretty theatrical as usual. Standing ovation from the crowd. Kara told him he was a strategist and he was unbelievable and did his own version. The judges .... except for Randy .... are all over themselves drooling over Adam. He is very talented .... he's just not my choice.

Round Two --- the contestant's choices:

Danny - You Are So Beautiful (Joe Cocker) Great! As Randy says, he can really, really, really sing. Kara and Paula loved it. Simon called it a "vocal master class."

Kris - Heartless by Kanye West Well, the judges just loved it. Even Simon! He told Kris after the first performance he had written him off of the competition. But after this performance, he is back in the running. I am really surprised. I liked it but figured the judges wouldn't like this one.

Adam - Crying by Aerosmith To me, he's screaming and I don't like it. I don't think he's near as good as the other two on this round. Randy told him he was one of the best they've ever had in the competition. The judges have basically called him the winner. Good for Simon .... he says he's not going to suck up like the other judges. But, he made the point that America needs to not assume Adam will be in the final 2 but to vote for him because he deserves to be there.


This is going to be a tough one tonight. Simon was on Oprah this week and picked Adam to win. He might be right but sometimes that's the kiss of death for the contestants. I think Simon picked David Archeleta last year to win and he didn't. We'll see. I know Adam is talented, but something about him bugs me. I would much rather see Kris or Danny.

I think Kris won Round One and Danny won Round Two.

I'm afraid America will listen to the judges too much and Kris will be the one leaving though. Hope not!!

Monday Mailer

I want to share this great Monday Mailer I received last week.  Tammy used the stamp set, Branch Out (p 100).  I have seen so many cute cards with this set.  But, my favorite thing is how she used the twine and the punch!  Also, the tag (where she stamped "wonderful") is a Sizzix Die!  Isn't it cute?

 

Hope your Mothers Day was Happy!

I hope everyone enjoyed today and had a great Mothers Day.  Mine was very nice.  My family came over late in the afternoon and we went out on the lake for a couple of hours.  When we returned, we got the shish-kabobs ready and my dear hubby lit the grill.  While everything was heating up, we all enjoyed a nice visit out on the back deck.  It was a beautiful day .... not too hot and not rainy for a change. 

My mom opened her presents.  I wish I'd remembered to take a picture of the mini-album Marianne made for her.  It was so, so cute!  She put a few of the pictures from her 80th birthday (last July) in it.  Marianne and I are going to put together a big album for her with the rest of the pictures .... one of these days!  Angela gave her a big Starbucks coffee mug and I gave her a card!  My present will be given to her later.  I had a friend watercolor a picture for me of my grandmother's house in Charlotte where my mom grew up.  I gave it back to her last week to add a few more touches to it and it is not ready yet.  Oh well, what I wrote in my card to her brought a tear to her eye anyway!  My sisters told me I sure knew how to "kiss up"!  You know, I'm the favorite daughter, don't you???!!!  That's the joke with us anyway.

Marianne made all of us purses too.  She's been a busy beaver!!   She also has been working on her convention swaps plus made a gel card all by herself!  I'm so proud of her.

Ashley called me first thing this morning and I opened my gift from her while she was on the phone.  It is a beautiful Vera Bradley hipster bag.  I love it!

I'm still waiting on that call from my son.  He sent my mom a present and a card, so don't guess my call will be coming any time soon.  My mom feels so bad about it, but it is what it is and there's nothing I can do about it.

This is my Vera Bradley bag from my daughter.

This is the bag my sister made.

Here's Mom right after Harrison popped a shrimp in her mouth!

 

Marianne and Derek.

Our chef, Sonny

Happy Mothers Day

To all the mothers out there, I'm sending a big way to go and a reminder too to take a few deep breaths along the way.  However you choose to commemorate this day, with family or on your own, with big fete or quiet respite, at home or out on the town, I hope you have a glorious day and that you connect with yourself and your family and enjoy your celebration.

In this month’s Real Simple magazine, Judith Newman  lists  10 things she suggests we all ask our mothers this Sunday.  On her list: 

1. What’s the one thing you would have done differently as a mom?
2. Why did you choose to be with my father?
3. In what ways do you think I’m like you?
4. Which one of us kids did you like the best?
5. Is there anything you have always wanted to tell me but never have?
6. Do you think it’s easier or harder to be a mother now than when you were raising our family?
7. Is there anything you regret not having asked your parents?
8. What’s the best thing I can do for you right now?
9. Is there anything that you wish had been different between us — or that you would still like to change?
10. When did you realize you were no longer a child?

I don't agree with all the questions up there - especially Number 4 - but they are thought provoking.  And you ought to ask some of them before it's too late and your mother is not around for you to ask.   What would you want to ask your mother?   What would you want your children to ask you?   What do you think the answers might be?

My family will be coming over on Sunday and we will celebrate the mothers among us (my mom, my sister and myself) with a cook out.  I just wish my own children could be with us too.  But, I will be meeting Ashley in Texas next weekend.  She has already sent my Mother's Day present which I will open tomorrow.  I am holding out hope that I will get a call from my son.  I didn't receive a card so I doubt that I will receive a call, but I can still hope, can't I?  My wish for this Mother's Day is that by next Mother's Day, our relationship will be better. 

Here are a few cards I am sending to friends and family this Mother's Day.

I'm published!

I picked up the recent copy of Stampers Sampler Catch Up issue a few days ago.  I just had time to look through it tonight and wow was I surprised!   I found one of my cards in the book!!  If you have the issue, check on page 85 at the top of the page and you'll see my card and my name!!  Isn't that nice?  This is the third time I have had a card in their magazine and it is still such a thrill! 

Here's a copy of the card from the magazine.  I took pictures of the cards when I sent them away but that was at least six months ago and I think I have deleted them from my computer so I had to scan the magazine!  I sent in about 10 cards.

There's not a lot of stamping involved on this card - just the words, love and cherish.  I used some patterned paper that my friend, Judy, had given me.  I  cut the circle out with my Nesties and paper-pricked around the edges of the heart.  The white "X" stitching marks are made with some white twine.  It's hard to tell, but the base card is Elegant Eggplant.  This was a Sketch Challenge several months ago. 

I'm just sent in about 20 card to Take Ten last week.  So, maybe I'll have more good publishing news in a few months!