Free Shoes

Do you like NEW shoes? (If you're a girl the answer is probably yes!)
Head on over to Tales from the Scales and enter to win a pair of Ryka shoes! Go...hurry!

A Joke

The famous Olympic skier, Picabo Street (pronounced Peek-a-Boo), is not just an athlete; she is now a nurse currently working at the Intensive Care Unit of a large metropolitan hospital.

She is not permitted to answer the hospital telephones any longer.

It caused too much confusion when she would answer the phone and say. . .

"Picabo, I.C.U."

Memo Board

I love my memo board at home. I put all of the cards I am working on in any given week or so there before I send them out. I used to not want to send my cards out right away unless I had made 2 or another one like it. Because I may need the card there to use for inspiration you know? Not any more! I send them out practically right away. After all, I have a picture of it if I want to duplicate it. BUT, Now I rationalize that there will be another trend or idea right around the corner. And if I save my cards instead of sending them out, they aren't going to do any good and I will have worked on them for nothing.














So here is my memo board. Most of these cards are gone now. They've been sent out to be enjoyed. If you're a card hoarder, I encourage you to give them out and make someone smile today!
Blessings~
Angel

Two for Tuesday- RAKs

Here are a couple of RAKs I've received in the mail.... and it's been a little while, but I knew she wouldn't mind me sharing. You'll probably recognize the artist right away. It's my sweet friend Lori.
Thank you, Lori!

I had an amazing day yesterday. Peggy surprised me with a trip to the spa where we both were treated to amazing facials and relaxing pedicures and manicures! She is the best! I loved it.

I'm having a ball holding the babies and spending lots of time with my awesome 8 y/o godson Zach. He's the best kid in the world. Yes, I am a little prejudiced, but that is my honest opinion! I'll be putting pictures on here soon.

Thanks for checking in.
Have a great Tuesday!
Blessings, Angel

A Winner!

I'm having lots of fun with my godchildren.... especially my Godson ZACH!!
I had Zach pick the winner and he chose #8 which was
Rose Ann who said...
I have never been to Hobby Lobby, and I know I'm missing out...lol!I just started turning into a paper collector, so I will be curious to see what others are doing as well.
Congratulations to Rose Ann!!!!! Email me your address!
I am babysitting the twins and BOTH of them are now crying so I hafta go!
I'll check in soon!!
Blessings~
Angel

The Blog Candy

Here is the blog candy picture I promised. Remember you have until Sunday. And your comments must be on this post. I'd like to know how you suggest I organize my 12x12 designer papers and I am hoping to hear some categories that you have found that work. I've tried organizing by color and by manufacturer. Do you have a better idea? I want to hear it!
Blog candy goodies are: several types of blue ribbons (winner gets the blue ribbons) 5 small cellos, a Studio G clear stamp set, Crafter's buttons, mix & match die cut (Cuttlebug) flowers, a number of clips and several small charms... an envie full of new and fun stuff for you to play with.

ETA~ Blog candy will not be mailed until I return from my trip to DC.

Whimsy Wild

I fell in like with these DPs from We R Memory Keepers Urban Window Collection! They are so FUN! And they go along with SU's new Boho line as well, don't ya think? They are available here.

I played and played with this card last night and just couldn't seem to get it right. I left it alone and came back to it this morning and finished the card in 5 minutes. Isn't that the way it goes sometimes? If you haven't discovered that yourself, you probably will. Funny thing is, I personally don't usually feel creative until afternoon. I find it hard to start stamping before then. I know.... I said it was funny.

Details, details- Card base is naturals Ivory and is a larger than normal card. I used Canvas in Close to Cocoa and then Sanded in Choc Chip. (I LOVE this Sanded background!!!!!!) I cut and layered the blossom from the Boho Chic Whimsy Wild sheet of this collection, popping up each layer with a Stampin' Dimensional and adding a brad from Spare Parts. I mounted that onto a strip of the Fancy Free sheet. The corners are punched from a scrap of DP (unknown) and 3 Spare Parts brads are added on each one. So Kind is from Priceless stamped in Basic Brown on top of a stamp from Carte Postale which is stamped in Really Rust (2nd generation) on naturals Ivory which is then mounted onto unknown DP. Twill is tied off with a linen threaded knot. That's it!

I've got a ton to do today and then I catch my plane early in the morning. I'm off to DC for a week with Scott, Peggy and the kiddos. I'll post from there so you'll never know I was gone! have a Sweet Friday, friends and don't forget the blog candy here. I will try to sneak in a pic of that sometime today!

~Angel

Halloween Card

Today's Challenge on Splitcoast? Halloween cards. Do you know how many Halloween stamps I own? This little piece of candy corn and trick or treat stamp from the $1 bin at Michael's about covers it. I do have 2 "Happy Halloween" sentiments as well that came in other sets. I figured I could still participate in the challenge. It would just be...well...a challenge. :-)

Details, details- Card base is Summer Sun stamped with "Sanded" in Summer Sun ink. Striped paper is "Halloween Stripes" by Pebbles, Inc. (Just picked it up today!) I used it as the strip as well as the tab. Other items used: SU B&W gingham, Small stamps by Katie & Co, Dotted circle by 7 Gypsies, sentiment from SU, CS is Pumpkin, Sun and W White from SU, piercing kit and black brads, Pumpkin and Summer Sun markers to color in Candy Corn (YUM!) and black ink is Palette Noir Black.

That was fun!

~Angel

A Long Story (Ending with Blog Candy)

Today's been busy. It didn't start out that way. I was just relaxing this morning when the phone rang. It was my (very pregnant) friend Shelley on her way to the first day of Bible study. OOPS! I had completely forgotten that started today so I rushed around and in less than 45 minutes I was there. (And that has to be a record.) It sounds like it's going to be a great study and hopefully I won't miss more than one week. (I'll be in DC next week visiting Peggy and my godchildren. YEAH!)

I'm hoping and hoping that Shelley has her baby today so I won't miss that. She was having contractions all throughout this morning and then at lunch. I even dragged her around Hobby Lobby hoping they would get stronger. heehee I picked up some amazing autumn papers at H.L. I feel so sad for those who don't live near a H.L. That is one of the first things I worried about when I found out we were moving to Georgia. I called up my friend Lori who once lived around here and asked her (begged her) to tell me there was one close to Warner Robins, GA. She looked it up and happily told me they had just built one. Whew! I spent a few dollars today. The sad thing was I was just there yesterday. Paper is 50% off this week though, which means all of the 12x12 stock is 25 cents- even the double-sided papers! And don't forget my coupon for 40% off one item which I got here. Have you noticed the manufacturers know how to get our money? They make paper "collections" so you have to buy all of the matching pieces. And that brings me to my real dilemma... how to store my paper so I can find the piece I'm looking for... the perfect piece for the project I am working on. This is becoming more and more of an issue for me. I have nine 12x12 drawers. They are 3 units of 3 drawers each. At first I had my paper separated by color, but then at times I would be separating those "collections" that work so well together. Now, I have all of my solids still separated by color and then the rest by manufacturer. However, that may soon be a dilemma as there are more and more manufacturers coming out and I am not partial to any one. I buy what I like. And my paper does not fit in just those 9 drawers. I also have 4 pizza boxes full as well.
I know this is a long post, but if you're still with me and you have a storage suggestion, I really want to hear it! I know there has to be a better way than my way. What the heck...let's make it a drawing for some Butterfly kisses (blog candy- hubby calls me Butterfly, Kisses=candy...get it?). Whoever makes a suggestion will be in the drawing. I'll post a pic of the winnings later today or tomorrow and let my godson Zach draw a name for me on Sunday.
Good Luck! And thanks for helping!
Angel

ETA~ Blog candy pictured here.
Blog candy will not be mailed until I return from my trip to DC on September 1st.

Poor Neglected Stamps

Besides the "so grateful" sentiment, there's no stamping here. And lately I have found myself stamping less thanks to some amazing papers, ribbons and embellishments. I think I may try this sketch again however and actually STAMP! This week's Splitcoast sketch was really fun to work with and I felt a little like a quilter. I used all scraps for the small pieces so I can't even tell you for sure what DPs there are here. I know at least one is Basic Grey.

Details, details- Pretty much self-explanatory. DP- unknown, CS- River Rock, Artichoke, Choc Chip and Naturals Ivory. Brad is "Spare Parts", Cuttlebug folder is Fancy Corners.

Have a great day, friends~
Angel

Pretty Bird in Groovy Skies

I just couldn't resist today's Splitcoast color challenge of Groovy Guava and Soft Sky. Both are so pretty.

Details, details- Garden Collage and Cuttlebugged background (Whisper White CS) were both colored in using blender pens and ink pad lids with Groovy Guava, Soft Sky and River Rock. (Have I mentioned that it's a peeve of mine that SU doesn't make the markers for their in-colors? It is.)
I only have one un-inked cartridge for my jumbo wheels for an emergency but I can mostly use the ink pads for the wheels and that is what I did today. I believe this So Swirly wheel will stay in my collection for a long time. I love it! Sentiment comes from Simply Said and is stamped in Palette Noir black pad as is the bird image which is on Natural White CS. I also added a little sparkle with my Stardust Clear Jelly Roll pen and placed the image onto Brushed Silver as the last layer. Narrow white organdy and Pewter Hodge Podge hardware are also used. I think that covers it!

I've felt sluggish most of today so I will most likely be in bed early today. I need to watch the finale of America's Got Talent first. Who's gonna win? Hmmm...

See you tomorrow!
~Angel

Two on Tuesday- RAKs

This first adorable card came from Connie of Inkspired Treasures and even included a matching envelope. I love it. Thank you, Connie!

And from Rita I got this cool square card using a set I {heart}- "Doodle That". She also included an envelope. Thank you, Rita!





I spent last night playing with my Cuttlebug machine and a bunch of new embossing folders I hadn't had a chance to play with yet. I have SO much stuff I haven't ever played with. And after next week I hope to be working. Will I have time to stamp? I sure hope so!
Enough rattling on, I hope to be back later with some fun stuff to post.
Blessings~
Angel

Too Early?

I have to admit, my hubby was a little argumentative when I asked him to get my Autumn decorations from the attic. He said it was too early, but I insisted. I had to threaten to go up and get them myself. He let me get up to the top of the ladder and look around a bit and then he got to call my bluff as I really wasn't going to go all the way up. It's probably 120* up there easy!

You can see by my new blog banner, that I just love fall decor. I especially LOVE pumpkins and I have lots of 'em!

But is it too early for fall decorating? Not for me. :-)

I took a few pictures of the fireplace to share with you.
And here is a close-up of the mantle.

And my favorite new decor thing of this year is those bags of chunky potpourri! Have you seen them? They are so cool. My friend Shelly gave me some of her bag when we were in Wichita. I love it! I had to buy a bag at Hobby Lobby last weekend when I was there with my friend Paula. That one bag went a long way. I put some of it in my bathroom, and some in Katie's bathroom and then used some in this tin bucket/basket in front of the fireplace. And I still have half a bag left!

You can't see the potpourri here so much as the silk leaves and the pine cones and sticks I collected from my front yard. This was fun to make.

Today was picture day at Katie's school. I dropped her off. She was so pretty. I wish again that I would have taken pictures. Maybe when she gets home I will.
I've got a busy day and hope to get some stamping done as well, so I better get off of here and get my workout in.

Have a blessed day!
~Angel

BMI

Here is a link to find your BMI (Body Mass Index).
You don't have to look if you don't want to, but it was one thing that helped me get jumpstarted to work out this morning. And I needed the kick!
~Angel

I love Pumpkins!

See.... told you...I love Pumpkins!
I am a pumpkin!

You Are Pumpkin

Realistic and practical, you see the world for how it is. You know what it takes to succeed in life... And you're happy to help others reach their goals.

What Color Orange Are You?

Silly Blog Thing

Both of You Wear the Pants

You and your guy seem to have stuck the perfect power balance. It's not that you don't disagree - it's just that you've learned how to compromise well. You're both mature enough to know that you can't always get your way... And usually, you're both adult enough to reach an agreement - even if that sometimes means giving in a little.

Who Wears the Pants... You or Your Guy?

ETA- I have been feeling very convicted over this post from this morning. I was tempted to delete it, however I think it would be more appropriate to revise the post instead....

The Right Way

Ephesians 5:22-23

"You wives will submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of His body, the church; He gave His life to be her Savior."

He actually wears the pants but we do compromise and agree on most everything.
Have a blessed Day! ~Angel

Beate's Weekend Sketch

I played with Beate's weekend sketch yesterday and made an anniversary card for some dear friends celebrating their first anniversary soon. It looks very "springy", but I really like it. Lots of layers! I started with this La Petite 3-D sticker. I often admire these dimensional stickers at Michael's and HL, but rarely spend the money on them. This sticker came in a package of 2 and was in a recent blog candy package I was the lucky recipient of. I sat it on my desk because I knew I wanted to use it right away. I had planned to use the other sticker in the set, but instead this one ended up on my card.
Remember a few years ago when you ordered cardstock from Stampin Up and were never sure exactly what color you were going to get? The colors were off and the cardstock quality was sometimes quite inferior. I am happy to say those days are behind us. But this Blush Blossom was one of those colors. I have about 4 shades of this color in it's cubby. It actually comes in handy. And now that I am not a demonstrator, I really don't mind. :-) For this project I chose the lightest shade I had.

Details, details- Sticker colors determined the cardstock colors used which were Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Blush Blossom and Barely Banana. Card base is CC, next layer a very distressed and shaved WW (SU Cutter Kit), then Blush. The bottom DP is from Studio K- Meadow Breeze, green strip was from a giant block of 6x6 papers and I used the paper piercing template from SU to evenly space the brads. Barely Banana stamped with Paisley in So Saffron and punched with Wrought Iron corner punch is mounted onto Brushed Silver. Sticker mounted on vellum is inserted and sentiment from Stampendous is stamped in Silver (Stampamajig used) and embossed with detail clear EP.

This sketch was an easy one and was fun. Really jump starts your process to use a sketch and I appreciate those who provide them.
Hope you're having a great weekend!

God Bless~
Angel

Not Simple This Saturday

Today is Saturday and it's been pretty relaxing and calm. We had quite the storm go through here last night and we lost power for several hours. It was nice though. I am not one that enjoys watching TV all of the time, so playing Upwords by candlelight was a nice change.

Today DD and I soaked our feet and painted our toenails. Girly stuff. I just wish I would remember to take pictures of times like that so when I do eventually start banging out those scrapbook pages I AM going to make, I will have cool pictures to go in them. {smile}

Anyway, on to the card.... I was just playin' around yesterday and this card is what happened. I kinda like how it turned out. It certainly doesn't fill the bill for a simple card though. Way too many steps. I pulled out my Rhonna Farrer Autumn Leaves set "Nature Stamps" and looked at that pretty flower that hadn't seen ink yet. The other thing I wanted to use was this cool DP from We R Memory Keepers. This striped piece (have I mentioned how much I love striped DPs???) was called Boho Chic Fancy Free.

Details, details- card base is Kraft stamped w/ Linen in Sahara Sand and then Sanded in Choc Chip. It's a bit larger than a normal card as I was going to make a square card but then shifted gears. I scalloped the edge using the SU Slit punch and then adhered the DP onto the inside (so it is next to the inside sentiment). DP is lightly stamped with the Sanded background in Close to Cocoa. Image is stamped in Basic Brown and then I used my Signo White gel pen to outline inside the flowers and a copper colored gel pen on the leaves. Oval was cut out with my CM cutter and then distressed the edges with a SU Cutter Kit tool mounting that oval onto a Choc Chip oval. The next layer is Not Quite Navy and the corners are pierced with my Ornare paper piercing template from Ellen Hutson's store. I mounted that onto Really Rust. Sentiment is from Priceless and is stamped on Naturals White and hand cut and glued on. The edge was missing something and I was just playing around and having fun and came up with this. There are 3 different twines tied on. I left one end long and braided the 3 twines twisting it around along the side. It's kinda cool and really different.

Are you all waiting for a winner? It IS Saturday after all. Randomly chosen, the winner is Beth
who said...
"Congratulations on all of your hits. Your blog is wonderful! And what yummy candy! Thanks for the opportunity! "
Beth, please email me with your address so I can get these goodies in the mail to you!

Meanwhile, I posted my 100th post a couple of days ago and I say THAT needs celebrating. So, check back later this week and you won't be sorry!

And that about wraps it up for me today. Our grilled pork roasts and corn on the cob are about ready to come off the grill and I am starving! I hope you all are having a safe and relaxing weekend.

God Bless~
Angel

Very Grateful

I'm so very behind on my thank you cards. So, do I send the ones first that are already way late? Or do I send the ones first that are just now needing sent out and that way at least some of them are on time? Decisions, decisions. Actually I really want to send them all out right away and get caught up!

I have to admit, I CASEd this card. Which in the stamping world means I copied the concept from someone else. In this case, I borrowed the idea from Stefanie at Scrapped Silly.

Details, details- card base is Bashful Blue, DP is DCWV "Pocketful of Posies"; Stamps are Small Script and Swirls v.1 from Autumn Leaves- Rhonna Farrer; ink- the only black I use now- Palette hybrid ink; Punch is SU Spring Flower Bouquet; I added Stickles to flower middles for some sparkle; and ribbon is Offray. The card was hard to photograph because the front flap is shorter than the inside so the inside of the card shows just a bit.

Time for lunch... then I hope to be back so I can play with Beate's sketch.

Blessings~ Angel

Challenged & Blessed

I stamped!!! Yeah!!
Not only did I stamp, I did 2 of the challenges for this week! Yeah for me. I incorporated the Splitcoast Challenges WT126 (Ways to Use It- Pinned) and SC137 (Sketch Challenge) into this card.
I am WAY behind on my Thank You cards (again) so I am hoping to have time to work on those today too before DD gets home cuz then we are on our way to the Commissary (grocery store).

**Skip over this smaller font section if you don't want to know the hows and whys!**
Details, Details- Card base is Paper Trey Stamper's Select White- Don't forget to enter to win 10 entire card bases plus lots of other goodies. You have until Saturday. Click here. I started with a 12x12 sheet of Reminders Of Faith Vellum Scriptures. I punched this one with an oval punch and layered it onto a SU Brushed Gold CS scalloped oval. I wanted the colors to be rich so I chose Elegant Eggplant as the next layer and stamped the Print Pattern onto it with EE Craft ink and embossed it with Clear EP. Believe it of not, that is Purely Pomegranate under the EE. I used a corsage pin from Hobby Lobby and added beads from a rich jewel tone mix and a folded skinny gold ribbon. The sheer gold ribbon is crisscrossed and then tied in the center with gold cord. The gold cord is also crisscrossed along the strip on the side to mimic the print pattern. I added a little paper piercing to the middle section. And that's it!

Not my favorite card I've made, but it works.

Blessings to you~
Angel

Blog Scattergories

I saw this little Blog Scattergories thing on Tracy's blog and just had to play. I LOVE Scattergories even though I never win because I am usually playing with DH who is the Scattergories Champion. This one was a lot more fun since I didn't have that silly timer to scare me half to death and make me jump when I am deep in thought. Anyone else know the feeling??
Without further ado here is my game card:

Your Name: Angel
Famous Artist/Band/Musician: Aerosmith
4 letter word: Arch
Vehicle: Aerostar
TV SHOW: All in the Family
City/Town: Atlanta
Boy Name: Adam
Girl Name: April
Occupation: Actress
Something you wear: Apron
Celebrity: Ashley Judd
Food: Asparagus
Something found in a kitchen: Ants (not in mine- I would call the bug guy)
Reason for Being Late: Appointment Ran Late
Cartoon Character: Archie
Something You Shout: Abracadabra

Make sure you play too and come back here to let me know so I can check out your game card!
Have Fun~
Angel
ETA- To play use the first letter of your name for the answers. Sorry I forgot to explain that!

Type A?

Do You Have a Type A Personality?

I wondered if I was Type A.
Some of this is true, I guess.

Is Type A bad?

I guess I must be Type A... I fixed a spelling error in the blurb below. :-)

~Angel

You Have A Type A Personality

You are hyper, energetic, and always on the mood You tend to succeed at everything you attempt And if you don't succeed at first, you quickly climb your way to the top! You could be called a workaholic, but you also make time for fun As long as it's high energy and competitive, you're interested You have the perfect personality for business and athletic success

Do You Have a Type A Personality? {Click here to find out!}

Oh My!

Did you see this?
5 Minutes for Mom is doing it again. This time they are giving away a 37" Flat Screen LCD HDTV! You can register here.
However, I am not wishing you good luck.
Just kidding.... good luck.
~Angel

Nice Matters

I was nominated for the "Nice Matters" award by StampinGranny- Deb, who is SO nice and very kind which makes the nomination very special to me.

"This award is for those bloggers who are nice people; good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world. Once you've been awarded please pass it on to others who you feel are deserving of this award."

And now it is my turn to nominate a few nice people. Here they are:

RoseAnn at Paper Delightz

Tracy at Misplaced Texans

Debbi at Debbi's Dribble

Peggy at Webb Mania

Lori at Make a Difference

I could go on. These are just a few of the nice ladies who go out of their way to make me feel special!

Blessings~ Angel

Quote for today:
"To the world you might be one person, but to one person you might be the world."

Stamp Sets for Sale

I have Stamp sets for sale. Here is the list:

Framed Fun (light staining)
Festive Fall (well loved)
Beautiful Batik (some staining)
Simple Sketches (some Staining)
Christmas Foliage (well loved, used at a stamp camp)
Swirl Frame Fun (2 stamps UM, used star only)
Greetings Galore (Thank you stamp has worn label)
Sparkling Season (one little stain on tree stamp wood)
Itty Bitty Borders (like new)
Delightful Doodles (stained)
Bitty Bouquets (like new)
Basket of Blossoms (a little stained)
Little Hellos (barely used, like new)
Peace on Earth (a little stained)
Funky Flowers (Like New)
Holiday Wishes (some staining on wood)
Sweet Holidays (like new, used once)
Nice & Narrow (used the heart once- a little staining on this one stamp)
Happy Harmony (New, UM)
Spooktacular Greetings (New, UM)

All stamps are 50% off of the last catalog price plus shipping. OR make me an offer. I want these stamps to go to make me some more room so I will be getting rid of them. MAKE ME AN OFFER.
Have a great day!
~Angel
ETA- I have been asked and the answer is yes, I will consider a trade... make me an offer. No reasonable offer refused.

Butterfly Kisses- Wonderfully White

I've got candy for my 5,000 hits here! (BUT, add that to my prior blog hits of 9,903 and you have 15,000+! )
So, to celebrate and thank YOU, I have Butterfly Kisses in all white. No guessing game or challenge today. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered. Please leave only one comment on this post
What's the candy? Sorry for the bad pic, but the candy itself is sweet I think:

~Stamper's Select White Cardstock from PaperTrey. This is absolutely and by far the nicest white cardstock for making a card with a white base. If you haven't tried it yet, you simply must! I've cut 5 sheets in half and scored them making 10 cards.
~25 White "linen" envelopes (Perfect for a basic card and tied with 1 yd of white grosgrain ribbon.)
~Studio G Clear stamp set
~One spool (25 yd) of SU white organdy ribbon (3/8" wide)
~Magnetic Tin- 3" in diameter and filled with the following goodies----Buttons, beads, eyelets and my favorite punches in shimmery white.
I altered one of these tins a while back. It wasn't white, but black and it turned out to be a very cute gift container. You can see it here.

As is my custom I am taking down the names from the comments of the last 5 posts and entering their names into the drawing as well. Comments get special treatment here. :-)
Have a wonderful day! And thank you for coming to see me in my little spot in blog land!
~Angel

ETA- Random drawing will be held Saturday, August 18th!

Two on Tuesday- RAKs that is

I got such a cute little treat in the mail recently from Lisa who won my blog candy. This gorgeous card made with one of my favorite sets- Carte Postale and inside was this little envelope with some tags and clips and little primas. this was such a sweet treat for me and totally unexpected.... Thank you, Lisa!

This second card came quite a while back from my friend Kristin whom I was so thankful to be able to see when I went back to Kansas for the wedding. We met when I was a Stampin Up demonstrator. She enjoys stamp camps and classes and I enjoyed having them. We became great friends and I am so blessed to have this wonderful, thoughtful friend in my life.
She used "Simply Said" and a great color combo I am going to have to try!
I'll be back in a bit!
Have a blessed Tuesday!
~Angel

Wedding Invitations- Finally

I wanted to share these with you way back in May when I finished them, but couldn't get the technicalities figured out. Here they are now that the wedding is over and details can be seen. In total 150 wedding invitations were made for my son's wedding. I tried to make them able to be sent with a single first-class stamp, but with inserts it didn't come out as I'd hoped.

Details, details- The actual cardstock for the invitation measures 11" x 6" and scored and closed it is 4 and 5/8" x 6". I was able to get 2 invitations from a 12x12 sheet. CS used was Mellow Moss, Elegant Eggplant, Shimmery White and Vellum. Craft White ink was rubbed on Textile Cuttlebugged EE. Oval punches of vellum wheeled with Leaves a la Carte. The sentiment was custom made and stamped in EE onto the Shimmery white.

On the inside of the invitation, I used some Autumn Leaves Rhonna Farrer swirls and did some distressing with EE ink. The cuttlebugged corners are punched from Shimmery white. Invitation is printed on vellum and then wheeled with the Leaves a la Carte wheel in white ink and then layered onto the EE CS.

The pocket is simply the card scored and then folded up and held secure by a bow of sheer organdy ribbon. The swirl here was from Technique Tuesday's Whispy Gigs. A small rhinestone added a little glitz. The notch was made using my basic Grey Notch and Die Cutting tool bought specifically for this project.

The RSVP postcard was made from SU Whisper White. The stamp is from Technique Tuesday's Irony chosen by the bride.

My DH was a big help and did most of the oval punching and cuttlebugging for me. I took the cardstock to Office Max and spent pennies on getting it cut for me...... THIS was a HUGE timesaver. Although they did not do a perfect job even the small amount of fixing I had to do was worth the money spent there.

Thank you for stopping by today. I didn't get the lazy day I had hoped for and no stamping time today. I made some changes on my blog though and noticed my ticker was over 5,000. Cause for celebration wouldn't you say? Stay tuned for some blog candy aka Butterfly Kisses. That announcement should be some time tomorrow!!
Blessings to all~
Angel

Back to "Normal"

Oh, really....what is normal? :-)

So much has happened over the last couple of weeks that I would say is not "normal". So after several minutes of trying to figure out what to name this post, that is the best I could come up with.
We arrived home from Kansas last Tuesday. Sadly, DD had already missed the first 2 days of school, but the school was kind enough to re-enroll her so those days would not count against her. She officially started on Thursday as I worked on straightening and cleaning for company. Paula, one of my sweetest and dearest friends as well as my prayer partner, came to visit on Friday. I picked her up from the Atlanta airport and we went directly to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. Even though the thermometer read 108*, we thoroughly enjoyed the breathtaking scenery of the Botanical Gardens. Paula and I did a little shopping and a little crafting and a lot of eating. I had so many foods I wanted her to try and we only had 3 days to get it all in! Her time went by so quickly and we took her back to the airport yesterday evening.
Today DH went back to work from being on leave for 2 weeks. DD is at school and me.... I am home alone trying to catch up on my favorite blogs as well as my own. I've got errands to run, but I am definitely planning on stamping. My plan is to take this week and relax. I don't have any major projects on my plate at the moment so I'll be able to do some FUN stamping. Then next week it's time to find a job to help pay for our Kansas trip. That's life.... fairly normal.

Here is a picture of Paula and I in front of the orchids. Did you know Atlanta Botanical Gardens has the largest orchid exhibit in the country?

I'll be posting again today! I have way too much to share!

I've missed you!
Blessings~
Angel

Friends Forever

"Friendship without self interest is one of the rare and beautiful things in life."

"A friend is someone who reaches for your hand, but touches your heart."

"A friend will strengthen you with her prayers, bless you with her love, and encourage you with her hope."

"I'd like to be the sort of friend that you have been to me. . . I'd like to be the help you've always been glad to be; I'd like to mean as much to you each minute of the day, as you have meant, old friend of mine, to me along the way."

"A friend is like a rainbow. They brighten your life when you've been through a storm."

"Love doesn't make the world go round, it makes the ride worthwhile." -F.P. Jones
"You never lose by loving. You always lose by holding back." -Barbara DeAngelis

"True friends are never apart, maybe in distance, but not in heart"

"Most people come into our lives and quickly leave. It is the special few that come in and leave a footprint in our hearts. and we are forever changed."

I have a friend, a very good friend, named Lori. Can I just take a few minutes on my blog and tell you a story about my friend? Lori happens to live less than an hour from the town where my son was getting married. She is an amazingly gifted multi-talented queen and I have known her for over five years. We met as Stampin Up demos and bonded over stamping time at a teacher resource center in Wichita, Kansas- and not often enough!
I called her one day a few months ago to ask for her help in planning the rehearsal dinner that the parents of the groom are responsible for. Not being local to the wedding, my first thought was to have it catered by a local BBQ place. Lori asked me if I wanted her to ask her hubby if he would smoke the meat instead...something he does every now and then (and quite well I might add!) I said "sure!" and he agreed. Lori helped me plan the rest of the meal that I figured I would buy at the BBQ place. Nonchalantly, she asked if she could call me back in a few minutes. When she did I was overwhelmed with surprise when she said she and her mother would make practically the whole thing! From potato salad to a fruit tray to rolls and brownies and everything in between. Not only did Lori make the meal, her and her mom and dad (two more gracious and wonderful people you'll ever have the chance to meet) served and cleaned up after us! THAT is what I call a friend. A true blessing only God could create!
And the meal was amazing!!!!!
Thank you, Lori, Maxine and Jim!

One more

I can't resist.

The lighting is not that great....but here is our beautiful family. From left to Right: DD- Katie, DH- Kevin, DDIL- Megan, DS #1- Jake, Me, DS #2- Brian.

Home, Sweet Home

We're home! And glad to be here and not in the car. Bad backs and long car rides just don't go hand in hand.

But, we had a wonderful time. The wedding was absolutely and by far the most beautiful wedding I have ever been to. And I had a front row seat. :-) The bride was positively stunning (in the dress her mother made)!! And my son, the groom was SO incredibly handsome. (Yes, I am glowing with pride.) But, see for yourself....

I will have more pictures to post later and I will tell you all about the weekend soon. I've got to get a few things done first!
Thanks for stopping by!
~Angel

Friendly Stampin'

RoseAnn sent me and a few other bloggin buddies a cool little envelope with stamping items. I loved the stamps, but had the hardest time on my card. I had so many other things on my mind. I finished this one at 1:00 in the morning on Saturday while hubby was catching a few Zs before we got on the road.

(I wish... refers to the itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow polka dot bikini.)

I believe the other girls had theirs posted last Friday. You can see the other girls projects by clicking on their names: RoseAnn, Tracy, Lori, Bethany and Adelina.

Details, details, Stamp is from Hit the Beach (My Favorite Things), and Snap Stamps Cardstock- Shimmery White, Basic Black, Groovy Guava and Cosmo Cricket DPs, May Arts Polka Dot Ribbon, SU jumbo pewter eyelets, and Palette Noir Black ink. I used my CM cutting system to make the DPs wavy. It is much cooler in real life although I know the card itself is not that great.