Sunshine Award

Imagine my surprise and delight to open my In Box this morning and discover I had been awarded with a Sunshine Award! Sunshine awards are given to other bloggers who help spread Sunshine and a positive, upbeat attitude while sharing what we love and do -- stamping, of course! Often my life gets busy and I don't have the time, or take the time, to express my appreciation to those of you who make my day with your comments, feedback, questions and with your inspiration! One of the things that I enjoy most about Stampin' Up! is the sharing community.  I've met so many great friends through Stampin' Up!  - both directly and through electronic communication.  We are all a creative community and I appreciate and value the friendships I've made and creativity that we share.

 A special thank you to my friend, Cathy Snipes, who is also a North Carolina Stampin' Up demonstrator.  Cathy was recently my Monday Mailer partner and I received some great cards and inspiration from her.  Check out her work HERE!! 

The rules for the reward are this:
1. Put the award on your blog
2. Pass the award to other bloggers who bring you sunshine.
3. List the Nominees in your post.
4. Let the Nominees know you nominated them by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person who gave you the award!

My nominees are as follows:

Mary Fish - http://www.stampinpretty.com/
Wendy Bell - http://wickedlywonderfulcreations.blogspot.com/
Tammy Howell - http://tarheelstamper.blogspot.com/
Paula Goff - http://inkingaddict.blogspot.com/
Deb Holland - http://debspapertrail.typepad.com/debbies_paper_trail/

Monday Mailers from this week

Didn't get much card making today.  Sonny and I went out to breakfast this morning.  I talked him into going to a restaurant I have recently discovered in Mooresville called Gail's Cafe.  I have been there a couple of times for lunch and it is delicious!  They serve home cooking - good veggies, biscuits, gravy, etc.  All those good Southern things.  Well, my husband being the Yankee that he is, doesn't like Southern cooking.  He's a meat & potatoes man and boy, does that get boring!!  Well, I figured he'd be ok with breakfast - eggs are eggs, etc.  Well, I wasn't as impressed with their breakfast as I am with their lunches.  It wasn't bad or anything but I like some of the other places we go better for breakfast.  My main complaint was that they used American cheese in my omelet instead of Cheddar!  But my biscuit was yummy!!  After breakfast, I even convinced him to go to Belk's with me .... shopping!!  I need to get something to wear to two weddings in Texas Memorial Day weekend.  One of them will be more casual.  It is an outside wedding with a carnaval theme!   Different, huh??  The other one will be dressy since it is an evening wedding.  I ended up buying a dressy pair of capris and a top, but now I'm not sure - it may be too casual!  I'm going to take pictures and send to my fashion expert, Ashley!!  After shopping, we went to the movies and saw Date Night.  It was a really cute show.  It's not going to win a Oscar but it was entertaining.  Then, we headed to BJ's and Target!  Whew - a long day! 

I don't think I shared my Monday Mailers from this week.  So without further ado .....

This is the card I made and sent.  I used the Vintage Vogue wheel (from the Occassions Mini Catalog).  I also used the Butterfly Embosslits die that I finally got (it was on backorder) and the Scallop Trim Corner Punch.  The paper is Rich Razzleberry and Pretty in Pin,

The Occasions Mini Catalog ends April 30, BUT the following items will be available for purchase after April 30!  Wippeee!!

Item # Description Price

116519 Charming stamp set $19.95
118598 Vintage Vogue  $17.95
118091 Tiny Tags  $22.95
117535 Decor Elements F IS FOR FOX CHOCOLATE $4.95
117536 DE G IS FOR GIRAFFE CHOC $4.95
117529 DE "IS FOR" BLACK $4.95
117541 DE L IS FOR LION CHOCOLATE $4.95
117542 DE M IS FOR MONKEY CHOC $4.95
117544 DE O IS FOR OWL CHOCOLATE $4.95
117528 DE SCALLOP FRAME BLACK $6.95
117549 DE T IS FOR TURTLE CHOCOLATE $4.95
117552 DE W IS FOR WHALE CHOCOLATE $4.95
118072 PINKING HEARTS Corner Punch $9.95
118870 SCALLOP TRIM Corner Punch $9.95
117191 LG 2 STEP BIRD Punch $15.95
118073 LG FANCY FLOWER Punch $15.95
117649 PINKING HEARTS Border Punch $15.95
117190 MED JEWELRY TAG Punch $10.95
117193 SMALL HEART Punch $5.95
117310 BIGZ L MINI MILK CARTON $32.95
118138 BEAUTIFUL WINGS Embosslit $11.95
117332 SCALLOPED HEART OF HEARTS Embosslit $11.95
117335 PERFECT POLKA DOTS Folder $7.95

Here is the card I received from my Monday Mailer partner:

She used the Awash With Flowers set.  This is a sneak preview stamp that will be available in the new catalog coming out this summer.  I love this stamp and need to get it out and stamp with it tomorrow!!

Hope your weekend is great!

Believe

A friend sent me this earlier in the week and it has really made me think.  I forwarded it to my son and daughter and thought all my friends out there in "blog land" would enjoy it also.

I Believe...
That just because two people argue,
It doesn't mean they don't love each other.
And just because they don't argue,
It doesn't mean they do love each other.


I Believe...
That we don't have to change friends if
We understand that friends change.


I Believe....
That no matter how good a friend is,
they're going to hurt you every once in a while
and you must forgive them for that.


I Believe...
That true friendship continues to grow,
even over the longest distance.

I Believe...
That you can do something in an instant
That will give you heartache for life.


I Believe....
That it's taking me a long time
To become the person I want to be.

I Believe...
That you should always leave loved ones with
Loving words. It may be the last time you see them.


I Believe....
That you can keep going long after you think you can't

I Believe ...
That we are responsible for what
We do, no matter how we feel.


I Believe...
That either you control your attitude or it controls you.n keep going long after you think you can't.
I Believe...
That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done,
regardless of the consequences


I Believe...
That my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.


I Believe....
That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be
the ones to help you get back up.


I Believe...
That sometimes when I'm angry - I have the right to be angry,
But that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.


I Believe....
That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had
And what you've learned from them and less to do with how many
birthdays you've celebrated.

I Believe....
That it isn't always enough, to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes, you have to learn to forgive yourself.


I Believe...
That no matter how bad your heart is broken
the world doesn't stop for your grief.


I Believe....
That our background and circumstances
may have influenced who we are,
But, we are responsible for who we become.


I Believe....
That you shouldn't be so eager to find
Out a secret. It could change your life Forever.


I Believe....
Two people can look at the exact same
Thing and see something totally different.


I Believe...
That your life can be changed in a matter of
Hours by people who don't even know you.


I Believe...
That even when you think you have no more to give,
When a friend cries out to you -
you will find the strength to help.

I Believe...
That credentials on the wall
do not make you a decent human being.


I Believe...
That the people you care about most in life
are taken from you too soon.

Cheers to you

I got this great card yesterday from my Monday Mailer partner.  It is so soft and pretty - this picture just does not do it justice.  Jana did the Two Step Stamping on this which is one of my favorite techniques and pretty unique to Stampin' Up.  That is what got me interested in Stampin' Up to begin with.

This card below is another one I received yesterday from Jana.  It is not another Monday Mailer but a card in response to my recent trip to the Outer Banks and THIS blog post!  Jana said that my post reminded her of her college days.  Yeah, Jana, I know what you mean!  I had some wild and wooly college adventures at ECU, OD Beach, Carolina Beach,White Lake, Lake Waccamaw  .....!!  Oh what good memories!! 

Anyway, I love this card!  It's scary how much she looks like me (ha - I wish!)  And, I did a little cocktail waitressing at Myrtle Beach back in the 60's!!  Cheers!

Idol Top 7

Here we are again ... Tuesday night.  We are going back and forth between American Idol and the Stanley Cup Hockey playoffs .... go Penguins!! 

Tonight is inspirational songs with Alisha Keys being the mentor.  She is one gorgeous girl!!  Guess she will sing tomorrow night during Idol Gives Back.

• Casey James sings "Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow" - Not so sure about the inspirational aspect to this song and it was a little boring to me.  Nothing memorable.  He might be in trouble tonight.
• Lee DeWyze sings "The Boxer" - Great performance!!  I love this song and I love Lee .
• Tim Urban sings "Better Days" - Not bad but not the best either.  He just doesn't have the range or the voice that Lee, Crystal, Mike and Siobahn have.  Will the teen votes save him again?
• Aaron Kelly sings "I Believe I Can Fly" - He has a big voice that's for sure.  Judges are split on him. He just doesn't have the stage presence for me. 
• Siobahn Magnus sings "When You Believe" - Her weirdness is getting old. I'm not laughing tonight.  It was hard to even pay attention to her singing for looking at what she was wearing.  Who dresses her - the Idol people or her???  It was just too distracting.  There's no question she has a super voice but that might not be enough.
• Mike Lynche sings "Hero" - I liked it but he's one of my favorites.  Simon said it was a song about Spiderman and not inspirational.  I disagree .... everyone needs a hero to inspire them.
• Crystal Bowersox sings "People Get Ready" WOW!  She is just so good and she looked gorgeous. She got really emotional at the end but that was ok - it made it real.  Her performance was the BEST!  Unfortunately, AGAIN, the show ran over and our DVR clicked off during Kara's critique so I didn't get to hear what Simon had to say.  I'm sure it was good though.  Wish they would stay within the time limit!!

My picks for bottom 3 - Casey, Tim and maybe Siobahn???  Not sure
Top 2 - Crystal and Lee

I've been a little worried about Crystal.  I heard this week that Ryan Seacrest gave her a little pep talk a couple of weeks ago and suposedly talked her out of quitting.  She was hating the attention the show was bringing to her and planned to go back home to her family and son.   But a few days later on Facebook, Crystal confirmed the rumor, writing: "We all have moments of doubt. As much as I miss my kid, the big picture is this: I'm doing this for him and my fans. I'm having the time of my life!"  Just hope the public doesn't interpret this to mean she doesn't want to be there and if she wins, she won't be able to handle the pressure. 

Another finalist will be sent home Wednesday on a special episode that will serve as the "Idol Gives Back" charity event, which benefits Children's Health Fund, Feeding America, Malaria No More, Save the Children's U.S. programs and the United Nations Foundation.  Black Eyed Peas, Jeff Beck, Joss Stone and Mary J. Blige are among those slated to perform.

Monday Mailer share

I'm loving this cool weather we are having here!  So far, we have not had to turn on our A/C although there were a few days before Easter when the temp's were in the high 80's, low 90's that it was pretty warm upstairs.  Today was really nice - just in the 70's!  Wonder how long it will last???  We're usually the last ones to turn on our A/C and it's usually my decision ... not Sonny's.  And that was his business before he retired - York Heating & Air!!  

We've been trying to catch up on all the tv shows we recorded (DVR) while we out of town and busy with our friends last week.  So last night, Sonny turned on the TV to catch the Penguins in the Stanley Cup play-offs and our DVR would not work!  Tragedy!!  We kept trying to reset it with no luck.  So, today the repair guy came and replaced our DVR.  But, as luck would have it, we lost everything that was on it.  Luckily, we had watched most of the shows that I was interested in.  We did lose Survivor, a few Criminal Minds, Saving Grace, Jeopardy and I don't know what else.  We tape Jeopardy every day and watch it while we are eating dinner.  It keeps my mind sharp (I think).

After the repair guy left today, we decided to go the the movies to see Date Night.  We'd both heard good reviews.  So, I popped my popcorn (yes, I take my own - much better for me than the movie kind), got my milk duds and Sonny stopped and bought himself some soft pretzels and got to the theatre to discover that what we thought was a 4:15 movies actually was a 5:35 movie!  Luckily, I didn't look up the times so I couldn't catch the blame if you know what I mean!!  We decided we didn't want to wait around that long so we ended up running into WalMart and going to Hooters for beer, wings and friend pickles!  (Not much better than the movie popcorn, huh?)

I think I finally came up with the card I am going to do for my swap at Quarterly.  I will be sharing it next week.  But, I don't think that I shared the card I sent out last week for my Monday Mailer.  It is really sparkly from the spray of Shimmer Mist.

I used the Hostess Level 2 stamp - Asian Artistry and the swirl from Baroque Motifs.  It is embossed in gold.  Again, I am trying to use up the retiring paper.  This time it is Pixie Pink.  I just love the pink and black!

Spring Two Step Sale

Don't forget - Stampin' Up has 4 2-Step stamp-set on sale this month.  Time is running out for you to get these great sets at a great price! 

Fifth Avenue Floral on sale for $19.96

Trendy Trees on sale for $14.36

Greenhouse Garden on sale for $20.76

Flower Fancy on sale for $29.56

If you want to order any of these sets, contact me or go to my website (look in the top left column of blog) and place your order.

Scrappin' Kits

Whew!  What a week!  Today I did pretty much nothing and it felt good.  As you know, we went to the Outer Banks last week.  When we returned, our Texas friends were waiting for us at the house.  We had a great visit with them last week.  The guys went on the boat and to the shooting range with a group while Margaret and I "carded" in my room all week.  Graham flew back to Texas on Wednesday, but I convinced Margaret to stay until Friday and we made the best of our remaining time together.  When I returned from taking Margaret to the airport, my sister, Marianne, came over and spent the night.  We were busy getting our projects lined up to take to the Kernersville SU Quarterly meeting in a couple of weeks.  She knows what she is going to do, but I'm still trying to decide on a couple of ideas.  Then we had a class on Saturday in Mooresville taught by my friend, Debbie Holland.  Her cards are always beautiful and she is one of the most organized stampers I know.  Plus, she stays so calm during class when people are demanding her attention one way and another.  I really enjoy her classes.  I'll be sharing the cards we made a little later.

So, by the time everyone left and I returned to my stamp room, I couldn't stand the mess any longer!  My friends didn't make all the mess - my floor was awful before they got here!  So, today, I pulled out Sonny's Super Duper Industrial Vacuum and cleaned my floor.  I couldn't believe how nice they looked when I finished!!  It's been a while, believe me. 

So .... on to my creations.  I recently ordered the Sunny Day Scrappin' Kit (pg 164 of SU catalog).  I don't usually use these kits but I wanted to show my Club ladies how many cards you could make easily with the kit.  So far, I have made 10 cards and I still have a lot left - probably enough to make another 10 cards at least.   And they are so cute!!  In the kit, you get 8 sheets of 12"x12" textured cardstock in 4 different colors; 6 sheets of DSP (2 double sided sheets of different patterns); 6 sheets of stickers (3 different patterns).

If you are interested in ordering one of the kits, click on over to my SU website and place your order!!

Stamp Club Day Projects

I held my Stamp Club today.  This was the second meeting for the ladies and they did really good.  I think they really enjoyed the things we made - 2 cards and a little post-it holder.  Margaret was still here so she was a big help to me in showing the ladies what to do.  This time I broke the group into two groups of four and had them each making a different card.  That way, there was not too much sharing and waiting for materials.  It worked well with Margaret being able to help one group but I don't know how well it will be without her.  I may just have to go back to doing one project for the group of 8.  We'll see. 

I had their orders ready that they had ordered last month and it was like Christmas to them, opening up their bags.  I made thank you cards with My Digital Studio and put in each bag.  That sure made it easy!!  Here is one of the digital cards I made:

Here are the projects that they made:

I'm trying to use up the retired colors and retired DSP.  This card uses Taken With Teal, Close to Cocoa  and Holiday Lounge DSP.  The stamp set is Fun & Fast Notes and I let them pick which one they wanted to use.  Everyone but one chose the bouquet of flowers!  The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes.  The brad is the Build A Brad.

This card uses Taken With Teal, Close to Cocoa, Apricot Appeal and Pick a Petal DSP.  The ribbon is the 1 1/4" Chocolate Chip Striped Grosgrain.  The stamp set is Define Your Life and again, I let them each choose which one to use.  It's hard to tell from the picture, but the Teal is paper pierced on the right side.

This is a Post It Note Holder.  The pen fits on the side in the little slot.  I got the little mini pens at Staples.  I used the French Background Stamp along with the flower from Fresh Cuts on this one.  Some of the ladies used the larger background stamp that is in the Fresh Cuts set instead of what is shown above.  The flower uses the Fancy Flower Punch in the Occasions Mini Catalog and the small flower in the middle is from the Boho Blossoms Punch.  We punched the flowers in Barely Banana and Crushed Curry.  Then we ran them through the Crimper several times to break down the fibers in the paper.  Next peel the layers of paper apart.  Then just crumble up the flowers and insert a brad through the center.

Here are the directions for the Post It Note Holder:

• Cut cardstock 3 1/4" x 7 3/8"
• Score at 3 1/8"  /  3 1/2"  /  3 7/8"
• The 3 1/8" side (shorter side) will be your FRONT
• Decorate as desired.
• Fold at 3 1/2" and mkae 2 slits about 1/2" apart for the pen.
• Accordian fold at the score lines.
• Attach sticky strip to the inside between the back and the small accordian fold.  (see picture below)
• Use sticky strip to hold your post-it note pad to the inside.

American Idol Results - Two More Gone

The top nine performed a medley of Elvis songs at the beginning.  I liked it!  Sometimes I don't always like the group performances but liked this one.  The Ford commercial was kinda cheesy this time. 

So on to the results - Casey. Aaron and Andrew are asked to stand.  They are the three I predicted in the Bottom Three!  Without much ado, Andrew is dumped. WOW.  That was quick. It’s his time or rather past his time!   Andrew and Casey are safe, by the way. 

Brooke White performs.  I really like her and enjoyed listening to her.  Her song is a FREE download on I-Tunes - gotta remember to do that!

The rest of the contestants are called to the stage.  Crystal. Lee and Siobahn are sent back to safety.  That leaves Aaron, Katie, and Big Mike.  Oh .... hope it's not Mike again!!

Adam Lambert performs while we are all wondering who is on the chopping block.  I like Adam's performance and his song.  The others in the room with me did not like him at all!  I just wish he would tone down the eye make-up .... hope he owns stock in Revlon!!

OK - back to the results!  Tim is safe and it's down to Mike and Katie.  Ryan announces that one is going home and the other one is not even in the Bottom Three.  So confusing ... why mess with us (and them) and have him out there if he is not in jeopardy???  Katie is going home.  Again, I think it is her time.  She is cute and I like her performances sometimes, but there are too many other really good ones.  This year is a tough one! 

I'm still predicting Crystal, Siobahn and Lee for the top three.  What do you think????