Volcano National Park

When we were in Hawaii this time, we took a flight over to the big island of Hawaii.  We were interested in seeing the volcano and the destruction left behind from the eruption.  Wow!  I didn't know what to expect but I know I don't ever want to live in an area near a volcano!  For sure, we didn't pack correctly for this part of our trip!  It was cold!!  Luckily we each had a jacket but none of us brought long pants.  Even Sonny was cold and that says it all!  The wind was the worse and blew right through us.  About the day we were leaving, it had gotten a little better and when we drove over to Kona on the other side of the island, it was much better!!

We stayed at the Kilauea Military Camp inside the Volcano National Park.  It was great - pretty rustic but suited our needs!  It was built in 1916 as a training ground for the National Guard and an Army vacation and health recruiting station.  At one time, General Dwight D. Eisenhower stayed here and during WWII, it served as a prisoner-of-war camp!  There was a restaurant with a small bar attached where we watched hula dancers one night and a bowling alley where we bowled one night as well as a fitness center, general store, post office, gas station and a game room where we hung out one night.  It reminded me of my days at Girl Scout camp!

Most of the National Park was open and there were a few park rangers in the Visitor Center whom I'm guessing were working for free with the government shut-down.  We got maps from them and took a few hikes in the areas that were open.  There was no active lava flowing from the volcano when we were there.  We saw a lot of Steam Vents where the ground water has seeped down to the hot volcanic rocks and returns to the surface as steam.  It was really hard to comprehend how huge Kilauea (Volcano) is from our viewing area but the crater is a mile long, 3,000 feet across and the floor is 400 feet below the overlook.

You can see one of the Steam Vents behind us and the volcano.

This is a part of the road that the recent volcano activity tore up.

Looks like dreadlocks, doesn't it?

We hiked out to this beach - all volcanic rocks.  That ocean water is about 8 feet down from where we are!  At one time, it was level with the water.

This used to be a neighborhood.  The lava has poured across the street and past it the lava has build about a 10 foot wall where there used to be houses!  This is where they were evacuating everyone last fall.

Plants are growing in the cracks of the lava!

Love Hawaii!

I have heard from a few of you that welcomed me back to my blog.  I really appreciate knowing that someone out there is reading my ramblings.  You make it worth it!  Feel free to leave a comment.  I actually heard from a good friend that said I should have ended the last blog post on a high note and gave me a couple of suggestions.  What I left out that was the big news for us in November that Ashley was one of only 16 chosen from the Army medical field to receive the 9A Designator recognition.   This designator is the highest recognition of professional excellence in the AMEDD.  It is an honor bestowed upon candidates approved by the Army Surgeon General for professional excellence, who have attained full professional status and have received national prominence in their field.  The candidates must be leaders in their specialty and have significant contributions to the advancement of knowledge in a particular field.  They must be a distinct asset to the AMEDD both as an officer as well as a professional specialist and they must have had at least 15 years of professional experience with at least 10 of those years being on active duty in the US Army.  Can I get a hip, hip, hooray!!

In other good news, Ashley applied for a position at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD and found out in early December that she got the job.  She had to interview while in VietNam on some phone app and was a bit nervous about how that would turn out.  She will be leaving Hawaii in June to start her new job as Associate Dean of Clinical Affairs.  So, this was probably our last trip to Hawaii although Ashley wants me to come back and help her get packed up in the spring - we'll see!  I am excited to have her closer to family!

We stayed in Hawaii for a month this time and sure enjoyed ourselves!  Here are a few pictures from our stay. 

Ashley always greets us with a lei!

The Bell Ringer was playing his ukelele and singing Hawaiian Christmas songs!

Ashley's birthday - she and I went to the beach!

Birthday glass (or 2 or 3) of wine!

Ashley with her Dad at a local brewery.

Beautiful sunset!

Beaching it!

Sonny at the Marine golf course!

My crazy life!

Well, it's been a while!  My life has been a whirlwind it seems like since I last posted on Inkie Fingers.  You have probably all given up on me!  Hope not!!

The last time I posted (October!) I mentioned that I was down in the dumps about some personal things going on.  Well that feeling stayed with me for a month or more.  My daughter (Ashley) had joined Stampin' Up in July so that she could go to Stampin' Up's 30th year convention in Florida with me.  We had big plans!  She was going to be in Orlando the week before convention and I made my reservations with that in mind, going a few days early to hang out with her.  Well, in October she got orders to deploy to VietNam for 8 weeks, leaving a week before convention.  I couldn't change my reservations so I just went and chilled for the extra days by myself!  My sister joined me a couple of days later and we enjoyed ourselves at convention.  We were able to talk to Ashley via an app of my phone so that made things a little better.  Convention was fun and we got to see some of the new items from the Occasions Catalog and Sale-a-Bration.  I came home with several new stamp sets but would you believe, I still haven't used them!  I used one new set yesterday but that's it!  

In November, I had the family for Thanksgiving as I have done for 12 years now.  It was nice but we all were missing Ashley.  We were able to all talk to her via the app.  She and another soldier prepared the Thanksgiving meal for the group - about 35 people.  It was a challenge since there was no oven, just a large toaster oven and several burners to cook green beans, deviled eggs, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, mushrooms .....  They deep fried the turkey.  Her mission was to recover a soldier who had been killed during the VietNam war.  Unfortunately, they never recovered any remains before returning home in December.  But that was a story in itself!  When they left VietNam, they had problems with the airplane and had to land on Wake Island in the Pacific.  There is very little civilization on Wake except for a small military base where they stayed for 3-4 days before they could get another plane to pick them up and return to Hawaii.  She was more than ready to come home!  Luckily she got home before we arrived for Christmas (by about 5 days!)

 After Convention and Thanksgiving was over, I gave a wedding shower for my nephew's (Derek) fiance.  Ashley again was supposed to help with the shower as well as be there for it, but .... things don't always work our, do they?!  But, the show must go on.  We had a nice time and I think Morgan enjoyed it as well.  Sonny made a giant Jenga game for them and we played it at the shower.

In December, we flew to Hawaii and spent a month enjoying ourselves.  We just returned home this past Tuesday and I brought a cold home with me.  I feel better today but I was sounding pretty bad Wednesday and Thursday!  I will share Hawaii pictures in my next post.

Halloween Paper Pumpkin Style

Remember me?  I can't believe it's been so long.  I've had a lot going on and dealing with some personal things that have gotten me a little down.  I'm usually a real optimist and pretty happy go lucky, but this last month I have been really down in the dumps.  I am not going into detail here but hoping things will work out and soon!!  I'm ready to be back to my old self.  So, say a little prayer for me!

This week I have been working on Halloween cards using September's Paper Pumpkin kit.  Halloween used to be one of my favorite holidays.  I loved dressing up and trick or treating when I was a kid and loved it even more when my kids were all dressed up and Sonny was taking them from house to house in the neighborhood.  Where I live now, we don't get any trick or treaters.  Our house has a really long driveway plus there are only 3 houses on our cul-de-sac so we don't bother turning the lights on.  Although last year, we had one person to ring the doorbell!  I didn't have any candy to give out so Sonny and I just didn't answer the door.

The Paper Pumpkin kit included enough supplies to make 24 of these little treat bags.

I didn't really need 24 bags so I proceeded to cut up some of the bags and use other items to make cards instead.

 I used the retired Spider Web embossing folder to this card below and colored the lines with Silver Wink of Stella.

 For the card below, I cut up one of the bags and adhered it over the Mango cardstock.

Love this candy corn look!  I ran it through the Subtle Embossing Folder to give it a little texture.

I still have lots of bags left over!!

Buffalo Check is a Must Have!

On my last post, I shared the background papers I had stamped using the Buffalo Check background stamp.  This stamp is in the Holiday catalog which you will be able to order from next week!  I just love this stamp.  Here is a Christmas card I made using the Buffalo Check as a background.

The stamps that I used for this card are:  Buffalo Check and Merry Christmas to All (which is also from the Holiday Catalog.)  The pinecones, bow and leaves are die cut with the Pretty Pines thinlits.  I love the rustic, country look of this card.  I used Call Me Clover for the card base and the check pattern is Lovely Lipstick.

I want to remind you that TODAY is the last day to take advantage of Stampin' Up! Bonus Days.  For every $50 you spend in August, you earn a $5 coupon that you can spend in September.  Think of it as an awesome 10% discount on every $50 you spend.

August also introduced us to the Blended Seasons promotion which also ends TODAY.  The limited-time bundle is called Color Your Season.  The stamp set is pretty spectacular and the framelits are a must-have.  This is a wonderful, all-year-round set!

You can check out the details on both of these offers on an earlier blog post of mine HERE,

I hope you have a safe and happy Labor Day.  It's hard to believe summer is almost over.  The kids in my neighborhood started back to school this week.  It doesn't affect me but Sonny is having to get up a little earlier to beat the school traffic on his way to play golf.  That means he falls asleep a little earlier in front of the TV every night and I have to wake him to hit the fast forward button on the remote!  (Heaven forbid that I have the remote - not that I want it anyway!)  We are going to drive up to Blowing Rock (in the mountains) on Monday to take a hike and wander around the town.  It should be a little cooler up there.  Blowing Rock is such a quaint little mountain village and it is fun just to wander in and out of the shops plus it is a pretty scenic drive up there on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Sneak Peek of the new Plaid Background Stamp!

As a demonstrator, we get our Stampin' Up catalogs a month early and can pre-order items.  Well, my goodies came Wednesday and I have been playing with them for a couple of days.  When you receive your Holiday Catalog next month, don't overlook the Buffalo Plaid stamp.  I think it is kind of hidden in the catalog so make sure you turn to page 38 and check it out towards the bottom of the page!  I haven't made a card with this stamp yet.  Instead I've been trying different colors for the checks on white card stock.  I haven't stamped it on colored paper yet but that will be next!!

Merry Merlot and Blueberry Bushel

Poppy Parade and Black

Bermuda Bay and Blackberry Bliss

Call Me Clover and Garden Green

Cajun Craze and Berry Burst

Gorgeous Grape and Lovely Lipstick

The background stamp fits great in the Stamparatus or by using Clear Block F (pg 206).  If you use the clear block, I have found the best way to get a good impression on theses large stamps is to put the stamp on your work table and put the card stock on top of the stamp.  Cover with a piece of scrap typing paper and rub it carefully.

Bonus Days + Blended Seasons Limited Time Set

A big shout out to my two new team members.  Ashley and Margaret joined my Inky Lake Stampers group and took advantage of the July special!  Welcome gals!!

Bonus Days are back!!  For every $50 you spend August 1 -31 (before shipping and tax), you earn a $5 Bonus Days Coupon Code that can be redeemed September 1 -30.  And .... don't forget - the Holiday Catalog goes live on September 5th!

• An email address is required to participate.  Bonus Days coupon codes can be delivered only via e-mail.
• If you earn multiple codes from a single order, you will receive one e-mail with multiple codes.
• If you earn multiple codes from multiple orders, you will receive separate e-mails for each code earned.

In addition to the Bonus Days, we also have the Color Your Season promotion.

You can order the BLENDED SEASONS BUNDLE and save 10%.

These limited time products are only available Aug 1 - 31 or while supplies last.

 The Watercolor Pencils (#149014) include ten new colors:

Balmy Blue
Cajun Craze
Cherry Cobbler
Coastal Cabana
Crushed Curry
Flirty Flamingo
Garden Green
Gorgeous Grape
Granny Apple Green
Night of Navy

 

I'm here with a few cards to share

No apologies - just haven't posted in a long time!!  What can I say????

I have been working on swaps for Quarterly and Convention so I'm not trying to do everything at the last minute.  Our NC Quarterly is the last weekend in September and I have signed up for two shoebox swaps (12 cards in each), a Fall card, Christmas card and Christmas package.  Don't know the numbers for the Christmas card and fall card but we only have to do 10 of the package.  I plan on using Stampin' Up's Pizza Box.  Plus I've been asked to do a project at quarterly (not sure what yet!) 

For Convention, which is in November, I have signed up for two organized swap (so far) - making a Christmas card and a Birthday card.  I have had to write everything down in a notebook so I don't forget what I am doing!  I would like to take at least 50 swaps to convention and am also working on them.  Wednesday was the day to sign up for convention at noon EST.  I had a luncheon I was in charge of at noon also but had to excuse myself and try to register.  I was in full panic mode because I couldn't get the website to cooperate plus I was on the phone with SU with a 15 minute wait.  In the meantime, Marianne and Debbie (2 of my downlines) were texting me that they had registered with no problem.  So, I ended up giving Marianne my password and info and she was finally able to get me registered.   Then I was stressing out that Ashley would not be able to get registered since she was waiting till she got to work to do it.  But it all worked out and we all got registered!!  As of this morning, registration is near capacity - and I understand that there will be 7,000 demonstrators there!!  Wow, I can't wait!!

Here are a few cards I've made that I haven't shared (I don't think!)

This card uses retired items - Eclectic Expressions (Sale-a-bration)

Love Dandelion Wishes!

The background is watercolored.  The stamp set is Enjoy Life - great sentiments!

Another Enjoy Life card with watercolor background.

This card is also Enjoy Life.  I used my square block for the background - inking it up and then spritzing with water before stamping.

Don't you love these colors - Highland Heather and Mango Medley!!  I sent this card to Ashley after she was recognized for excellent teaching in her job.  It uses the retired set, Crazy About You.

90 Candles!

I had fun making Mom's birthday card.  I had to have 90 candles on it and I did!!  It took me almost all day to make this card!!

Each panel is 6" x 6".  I used tape to adhere the panels to each other and accordian folded it.  I cut 1/2" candles out of Designer Paper and adhered them to the panels.  I stamped the flame using Broadway Birthday stamp set and stamped "happy birthday" on each panel.  

This is the card all tied up with pretty ribbon.

The front of the card.

We collected over $900 in donations for Camp Dogwood.  Camp Dogwood is a wonderful retreat for the visually impaired and blind sponsored by the North Carolina Lions Clubs.  The camp is located on Lake Norman so the campers get to go on boat rides, swim, tube, and fish.  Mom did not go to Dogwood this year because of her trip to Hawaii but she has gone the last two years and just loved it!

These are the thank you cards I made for Mom to send to her friends.

I used Share What You Love for these cards.

I used one of my favorites, Daisy Delight for these cards.