The Ultimate Teachers Gift.....

Obviously, this isn't the whole calendar, but it is a few pages of it.

I started out w/ Mary Frances' kits, then added my own spin to them!

(and by spin I mean....lots and lots of bling! Read: Stickles!!!!

And since I came home from Manchester on Monday...sick, sick, sick.

I was very thankful to have all the precut pieces to throw 2 of these together in a few hours on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning! Thanks Mary Frances! You totally rock!!!!

CKC - Manchester, New Hampshire

I know, I know......

...it seems a bit silly to be blogging about my last "work trip" when I am currently gone on my next "work trip." But, since I have been so busy, that's exactly what I am doing!

To my delight, as I was flying into Manchester, I much enjoyed the scenery. It was beautiful, and to my surprise, I saw so much color. More like Fall, than like impending Summer. I snapped this at the airport while waiting for Tim to pick me up. Work was super busy, like always. Set up always takes longer than you wish it would, but it's just part of the gig. Really it's not too bad. It's kinda a challenge and sometimes like completing a giant 3-D puzzle. And it's exhausting.

So, we followed set-up with a bite to eat in the hotel bar and I calmed down w/ this.

A Stoli Vodka Martini. It was so fun. Fruity and it had a lighted ice cube in it!

Speaking of FUN....this is Kim's hubby, Tim. (Yep....Tim and Kim....aren't they just so cute!) Anyways, this is the first time I had met him and he is such a fantastic guy. The most fun about getting to know him was to see how much he loves my good friend (and boss) Kim. I have no doubt, he'd give her the moon! (and does!) He worships the ground she walks on....and it's just so sweet! I really enjoyed seeing them together and how they mesh together. They brought their cutie-pie daughter Jordan with them on this trip. She's such a sweetie. And, that girl can scrapbook!!! (more on this in a moment!)

Speaking of scrapbooking....I had my weekly WorldWin Papers deadline while I was gone, so on Thursday night....I created this beauty. It's WorldWin Cascata and Vellum and Zsiage patterned papers. I just loved the funky fold I came up with for this one!

Apparently, so did someone else.

Because I had the card in the booth to show it to Kim and someone STOLE IT!!!!
(I was kinda irritated at first, but have decided to take it as a compliment,
even though it's so frustrating!!)

Oh...and the funnest thing happened on Saturday! I was at my Bind-It-All demo table and a cute lady walked by. She looked familiar, but I don't know anyone up in NH. But, just as I was about to dismiss her as familiar...I saw her name badge.

Mary Frances F.

And then it hit me.....she's the owner of a scrapbooking message board I frequent...
www.scrapbookeronline.com !!

And sure enough, it was her!!!

I was so excited! I grabbed her and hugged her! I was so happy!

She was at the show teaching some classes using.....THE BIND-IT-ALL!!!!!
(and lucky for me her class was the "Ultimate Teachers' Gift" so I bought 2 of her
extra kits and took them home to put together for the boys' teachers! ----
look for pics of these in the next post!)

So, that was totally fun!

The rest of the week we were so busy. I didn't take a picture from Thursday night until Saturday. After breaking down the booth, we went to a fantastic Italian place down the street from our hotel. While we were waiting, we took some fun photos.

Jordan wanted to take some pics w/ my camera, so I let her. Here are Kim and I.
Thought this one was a really cute photo! Nice job, Jordan!!
Then, she wanted to take the "silly" pics! So, I played along....

...then, it was my turn to snap one of her! Then, I was telling Jordan about my boys saying "Peace Out Home Dog!" and teaching the saying and the silly motions that go with it to their little sister.

Jordan found this to be hilarious!

So...she took the pics of me doing it.


Peace.


Out. Home. Dog. And yes, I followed these pics with a fantastic dinner of Veal in a
sherry sauce with Asparagus. It was delicious!!!! (no wonder I came home 5lbs. heavier than when I left Kansas the week before!! Ha ha!)


All in all....it was a fantastic time.

And Jordan and I really bonded.
She shared so many of her purchases with me. (sweet little thing)

And best of all...she made me a scrapbook with the sweetest message ever! Jordan....you rock!!!! :D

Mother's Day

I know, I know....

I'm so behind on blogging.

But, I wanted to tell you about my Mother's Day.


The highlights:

...breakfast in bed, including pancakes and eggs made by my eldest
child and served w/ everything you could ever possibly need to eat!

...a card, hand-signed by each of my beautiful children. And check it out.....Marinne has signed U *heart* I on the left side.

Then, she wrote it again on the envelope.
(umm...is anyone as amazed by this as I am? You know she's only 3!)

Her dad tells me that when he asked her to sign the card, he told her to sign her name and she did it purposefully, then she told him she wrote I love you. Could be a coincidence, I suppose. But, she did it twice.
I just don't think it can be a coincidence, do you?


And my wonderful gifts included this: (for bad day mommy emergencies!!)


And I also go these: Logan picked them out. Aren't they just beautiful?!?! And for the bummer part of my Mother's Day.....

...my dad and Janet sent me a beautiful card the week before Mother's Day. Everyday, she kept asking if it had shown up. And everyday, it did not. Finally, about 13 days after Mother's Day...it showed up in a clear bag from the US Postal Service, apologizing for the condition of it.

I was so upset. Here's my card....what's left of it, anyway... ...and I suppose the postal service wants a cookie for actually figuring out the rest of my address and delivering it to me, anyway. Well, they won't be getting any awards from me. I think they suck.

Not only that, but I find it ironic that she sent it right before they raised the postal rates another 2 cents per piece of mail. Because, the service is so great.......

Anyway (stopping rant now)....
My Mother's Day was GREAT!!!!!!!

I took a nap and all in all...it was the perfect day!!

WANT A GOOD DEAL ON SCRAP STUFF?????

....then, cruise on over to my good friend Jamie's blog and check out the mega packs she has for sale at some cheap-o depot prices!!!!!

If you remember, she's my ex-boss from Savannah Scrapbooking and she's trying to move inventory that moved home with her when she closed the store. It's great product, just so has so much in her house.....some has GOT TO GO!!!!!!!

So...go check out what she has and see if any of it needs to come home with YOU!!

http://savannahscrapbooking.typepad.com

It's all about LOVE!

This was a sketch challenge card....

And here is the original sketch.

Janet's Mother's Day Card

I am completely in love with this card. It's made out of WorldWin Papers Cascata (which is a felted cardstock) and Inkjet Vellum, which I have inked w/ a Blue Iris ColorBox Cat's Eye Chalk Ink. And the leaves are inked in Moss.
(thanks alot Jamie, for my addiction...and now I can't find them anywhere near me! Between that and my Stickles addiction...I am poor!
Ha! Ha! Ha!)


Here's the flower close-up. This is really breathtaking IRL, but it's so hard to get good pictures of it. The flowers are made out of 2 of The Paper Studio scallop circle punches and the leaves are free-hand cut. Oh, and before I gave it to her, I changed the tag to say Janet.
(which is what I call her....her real name.)

But, she is my Mom. My BONUS Mom. She has such a good heart. She loves my children. We are very lucky to have her. And I love her....

Cherish card

This card was actually made for Mother's Day. But, then I made one I liked even better.
And I'll show you that one in the next post.....
I'm in love with this card!

It's WorldWin Ruche and Treasures. YUM!

Making up for being a bad blogger during MAY!!!

so...here go the marathon postings!

WorldWin Papers and Fiskars TV!!!

Isn't this box beautiful?!

It opens to reveal a mini-album!!

Go and check out our
WorldWin Papers Design Team Manager, Yvonne L. V. Busdeker and her version of the project on TV!


The base of this project is made with WorldWin Papersin the 12x12 size.

Yvonne's project also includes WorldWin Papers(These papers are so beautiful and definitely some of my favorite papers!
They are just so shimmery!! And very, very sophisticated!)


To purchase the WorldWin Crafty Board or the Petallics, go to the

And...they are giving away WorldWin Crafty Board and all the Fiskars products to make you version of this box!!!
So...go watch the episode and find out how you can WIN
these great WorldWin and Fiskars products!!!!!!

Yep, I suck....

Every single day I think......I'm gonna update my blog.
And every single day....I don't get to it!

And today is really just the same......
...I am just too stinkin' busy.

I've been working like a crazy person.
I'm getting ready to leave on a trip in one more day.
The kids get out of school next week, so we are trying to wrap up the year.

I'm exhausted.

I'll try to post something fun and exciting soon!

Feel free to leave me a comment and tell me how much I suck!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BIG DADDY!!!!!!!!! We love you so very much!!!!!

Some recent scrappin' stuff!!!

So...yesterday was May 1st, otherwise known as MAY DAY.
The tradition of May Day is to fill a basket full of flowers and then deliver them to the door of your neighbor. But, the fun part is, you hang the basket, ring the bell and RUN!!!
(and the fun part is to not get caught!!)

So, I made a few May Day Baskets...one traditional and one whimsical....(or dare I say, cute?!...right WWPDT girls?!?) Ha ha ha!

(sorry, inside joke...right, Kim?!)


Don't you wish you were my neighbor!?!? Ha ha!!


And in the Spirit of Spring....here's another little project.
Now, I know the actual "First Day of Spring" was several weeks ago...but you have to remember we are just now seeing blooming trees and the first flowers of the season here in Kansas.
(shoot...it snowed 2 weeks ago!!!)