next stamp camp january 16

i don't know what calendar i was looking at when i said the next stamp camp was january 12!!!!!  must have been chinese or something!!!!!  our NEXT stamp camp is the 3rd sunday of january, which by new calculations would be the 16th!!!!!!!   we'll be doing name frames & you'll need to bring all your supplies---frame, papers, embellishments, adhesives, etc----i'll supply the letters, you can use my stamps, inks................

PLEASE COMMENT IF YOU'RE COMING & ALSO IF YOU'RE SWAPPING----birthday cards.

have a blessed new year's eve --- 2011 is going to be FANTASTIC--i just know it!!!!!

what NOT to do on new year's eve............

............. lock yourself OUT of your office with no keys, no cell phone, no $, no id, & EVERYONE you work with has left town or won't answer their cell phones because they don't recognize the phone number from the dry cleaner's next door.................ask me how i know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   i could have left at 12, but wanted to finish up a project & then the mailman came at 12:30 & i thought i'd catch him & then the door shut & clicked----when i heard that click i knew i was doomed!!! 1 1/2 hrs later one of the guys got there & i grabbed my purse & LEFT!!!! the project can wait til next week!!!!!!!!! 

 

good bye 2010 !!!

 

have a blessed CHRISTmas y'all!!!

december stamp camp projects

here are the projects we did at the december stamp camp.  the theme was "simple".  that was our swap theme too, but i can't show you those cards because i included them in a package to a friend & she might look at this blog & see them  "before it's time"!!!!!  i use the cards i make AND i use the cards y'all make!!!!!!!!  (i take pictures 1st!)

 the card below shows how you can use the same layout & design & create an "everyday" card just like the christmas card above

 this is the same tree that had all the leaves on it at the fall stamp camp!  i love how you can put ANYTHING on that tree & it looks good!!

i have the rest of the week off!!!!!  i have tons of projects & things to do -- hope i use my time wisely!  i plan on meeting a couple friends for lunch too & i'm hoping to spend some time with suzanne while she's here...........

our next stamp camp is january 12 - name frames, FINALLY!!!!  get your frame, your scrapbook paper, embellishments together & think of what name or word(s) you want to do.  post a comment here if you're coming & if you're swapping -- swap theme is "birthday cards"

enjoy your week before Christmas & remember.....Jesus is the Reason....................

baby, it's cold outside!!!!!

so what did i do all evening?.......i canned snowmen!!!!!!!  over 4 dozen of them!!!

yesterday at lunch judy, sandy & i were talking about collections.....i "collect" stars, antiques, mason jars, nativities, snowmen, buttons, wrought iron stuff, cows, willow tree angels, door knobs, & rubber stamps!!!!!!   what do YOU collect?  leave a comment in this post by friday, dec. 10 at 5pm & i'll do a random drawing & the winner will get something from one of my collections!!!!! 

don't forget stamp camp on sunday at 2pm - have a blessed week & stay warm!!

it was the big one!!!

yes, today was my 2nd 25th birthday!!!!!  and it was a good one!!!  suzanne threw a surprise party for me with a few of my very special friends.  she drove back home just for the party & left this morning.  what a sweetheart!!  and this time she remembered to call me when she got back to dallas---only she called in the middle of church!!!!  i hurried & ran out of church to take her call (you never know if it's trouble or not when your kid calls!!) ----at least everyone knew our prayers had been answered & she was there safely!!!!!!!  good thing i sit near the back, but today i sat closer to the middle!!!!  well, it was good for a laugh after church!

back to the party----i am so blessed with such wonderful friends and i absolutely love having them here in my home.  we had so much fun.  and their gifts were perfect--i love them all!!!

this is from kevin, sarah, faith & jonathan--it will help me to remember to pray more

this journal & "stickles" are from sandy--my favorite color & i seem to love leaves & she knows that!! 

                                           cute inside.....

this is from judy--i LOVE these alphabet photography pictures!  i want to try one, but it's harder than it looks!!!  i need to practice looking at things...... 

this is from joyce & bruce--i hung it inside rather than outside so i could see it!!!!  it's sooooooooo cool & so "me" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

this was my present to me....   everytime i go to hobby lobby i look at this mirror.  it was on sale for  1/2 price & i thought it would be perfect in the dining room in the spot that used to hold suzanne's cactus picture.

 today after church i had lunch with judy & sandy & then came home & took a nap!!!   i wanted to do thank you cards - guess that's what i'll do tomorrow night!  tomorrow i'm having lunch with another friend - this has been a "friendly birthday"!!

don't forget - stamp camp is this coming sunday, dec. 12.  see y'all then!!!

christmas decorations

i don't have anything new stamped to show you but i did put up the tree & inside christmas decorations last night..............i usually put this garland on the fireplace, but decided to do something different this year--i put it on the buffet in the foyer.  i used to have over 80 nativities but over the years have given some away  or don't put some out.  i've gone for a more "minimalist" way of decorating & only put out my real favorites.  i love the way this turned out!

this is a special pewter set from my friend lynn--she lives 5 miles away from me but i haven't seen her in about 4 years.  some friends are in your life for a long time & others come & go.............i think of her often when i look at this set.

normally i have just the garland & stockings on the mantel.  i like this here, but i wish it had more height variety to it . 

i need to go to the craft room & prepare for stamp camp, but i'm tempted to curl up in bed with a book or a movie!!  yesterday it was in the 80's & today the 50's!!!   i refuse to turn on the air conditioner OR the heater!!!!!!  i love blankets!!

check back tomorrow for more.........decorations or stamped stuff ?-? !!

                  can you believe it's december?!?!?!?!?!!!!

december 12 stamp camp

don't forget to rsvp for the december 12 stamp camp.  the theme is "simple cards" - we'll be doing some simple christmas cards & some other simple cards & items!  the swap is  also "simple cards" & the swap number is 10.  there will be a special gift for all who attend, so be sure to rsvp so that i have enough gifts for everyone!

wasn't able to post pictures to my blog last week - hopefully all's working now..............

over the weekend i made some gifts for suzanne & her sorority big & twin sister.......made them some cute peacock cards (but forgot to take a picture of the cards!!!  you can see the peacocks on the box lids below), and made a decorated box to store cards in & i found some peacock ornaments at hobby lobby! (forgot to take pic of those too!)  here are the boxes:

after i took the picture of emily's box, i noticed that the i's dot was all wonky, so i fixed it but didn't retake the picture!

thanksgiving was nice - i loved having suzanne home & it was real hard to see her go this time.  you'd think it'd get easier..........wrong!   christmas is going to be hard......

speaking of which, i think i'll get the stuff out & decorate--we didn't get a chance to do it this weekend.

see y'all at stamp camp soon!

never too young................

i hope stampin' up!  has a 50% off the demo kit sale in 14 years when sami's old enough to become a demonstrator!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   isn't that just tooooooooooooo cute!!!??!!!!

 

i need to get back in the swing of things regarding blogging!

since i had the flu, i haven't been able to get all the things done that i'd like to do....especially keeping up with this blog.  i don't know how some of "those ladies" out there do it----they stamp, scrapbook, do 150 other things AND have time to blog about it!!!   oh well, i'm not trying to keep up with them.  i'm doing this to share some of the neat things we do in stamp camp or i do myself.  sure, i'd like you to check it out everyday because you never know when it'll be updated, but i don't promise to update it every day  - as much as i'd like to, sometimes it's just not feasible!  and i'm not going to stress over it, because then it won't be fun for any of us!  so you just check back in whenever you want & some days you'll be surprised with a new post!!!!

SU!'s having a huge sale - go to their website & check it out.  i've placed our nov. stamp camp order, so if you want any of the sale items, you can order them yourself online.   i don't have a demo website right now, so to order you'll have to select me as your demo & place the order.  there are some really neat items on sale!  my digital studio is 1/2 price!!!!   it's really neat & not just for scrapbooking - it can do lots of stuff!!!

i got a huge surprise last night----suzanne was supposed to come home for thanksgiving on wednesday evening, but she arrived last night!!!   she's spent most of the time with benita, but that's ok---it's nice having her "home".  i'm sure we'll get some time together sometime!

i was going to add some pictures, but "it's" not letting me right now............i hate technology!!! 

i'll be cooking tomorrow night, so not sure i'll be back on here before thanksgiving.  have a blessed one!!!

feeling better, but weak!

thanks everyone for all the get well wishes & prayers.  i was really sick with the flu; i'm feeling better, no fever since early yesterday, i'm eating, but very weak & tired.  it's funny how you can get tired just laying in bed for days!!  this afternoon i sat out in the back yard for a little while.  felt so nice to be out of bed!

everyone's got holiday plans most weekends this month, either craft shows or other events so there's not really a good time this month to reschedule the name frame stamp camp.  we have a stamp camp already planned for dec. 12 so let's reschedule the name frames to JANUARY 16, which will get us back on the "3rd sunday" schedule.

HOWEVER, we still need to submit our hostess club orders because bernie's the november hostess & she wants to use her hostess benefits for christmas gifts.  if you're in the hostess club, please email me your order by friday.  THANKS.

our december stamp camp theme is "clean & simple christmas cards" & our swap theme is also "clean & simple" (doesn't have to be a christmas card though!).  PLUS, i'll have a special gift for everyone who comes to the dec. 12 stamp camp!!  just a little thank you for being my friends & customers!!   (we'll rsvp for the camp & swap later this month....too early now!!!)

here are a couple of my favorite past stamp camp projects:

well, that's about enough info for now--maybe too much!!!  y'all take care & don't get the flu like i did!!!

november 7 stamp camp cancelled

i have the flu so we'll have to cancel tomorrow's stamp camp.  sorry for the inconvenience.  we reschedule.

name frame stamp camp this sunday!!!

hey everybody!  put your frames, adhesives, papers, etc IN YOUR CAR RIGHT NOW so you won't forget everything for sunday's stamp camp!!!!!!

(if you're doing an 8x20 frame, you'll need 2 pieces of 12x12 scrapbook paper for the background!)

SEE YOU SUNDAY @ 2pm - we're not swapping this time.  please RSVP just to give me an up-to-date head count on who's coming......i'll need to round up some chairs 'cuz we're gonna SIT for this stamp camp!!!

here are a couple of my favorite fall cards.............i love leaves!!!

have a blessed day - dontcha just love this cold weather?!?!

why i have paint in my hair......

so many people at church today said "do you know you have paint in your hair?" 
ha ha ha!!!

i'm so thankful that God has given me this home.  i love sharing it with friends, whether at stamp camp or get togethers like this past friday night.  i love having friends around my dining room table sharing & laughing!  i've lived in this house for almost 21 years & it was way past time to paint!!!!!  there was also a LOT of hard water deposits on the brick that NOTHING would take off.  the beginning of summer is usually too rainy, the summer is always too hot.....fall is the best time to paint.  a couple years ago we had a hurricane so i couldn't do it then & i just don't know why i didn't do it last year!!!!  but it's getting done now!!!!  here are some before & after pictures........

the front window---the "before" is on the left, the "after" on the right

and here it is completely done!

(the brick does have some white paint splotches on it naturally because it looks like old, re-used brick.)

a couple shots of the gutters -- you can tell which is the before & which is the after!!!!!!!

my pretty antique white  trim, soffit  & gutters---(well, if it were sherwin williams paint it would be antique white----this is "cooper melon" from lowes which is an EXACT match and about $30 cheaper per gallon!!!!!!!!)  it's lowes' highest quality paint & i highly recommend it.  it's got great one coat coverage.  i didn't paint the garage doors because they're just a couple years old & are in perfect condition.

this is the discolored brick-----

- 21 years of hard water deposits from watering the yard.  nothing would take this off...i tried clr, bleach, powerwashing, several other things.  it looks disgusting!!!!  (and the homeowner's association doesn't like it!!!!!)

well, after i was done staining the bench, i looked at the rag i was using & got a bright idea!!  i had seen on HGTV where they took several colors of paint & fixed this problem--that seemed like a lot of work though!  i rubbed the stain filled rag on an inconspicuous area of brick & it worked perfect!!!!  so i proceeded to stain the entire front & one side of the house!!!!!!  it turned out perfect!!!!  i just rubbed & rubbed until the rag was too dry, put a little more stain on the rag & rubbed each brick .........here are pictures of the "in progress"......  what a difference!!!!!

***********************

and here's the finished product!!!!!   the first thing i did this morning when i woke up was go outside & see if it still looked good----it did!!!!  it looks like a brand new house!!!! 

isn't this fantastic?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!

i'm so excited!!!!  i just want to stand in the front yard & look at the house!!!!

today after church i finished the one side & got 2/3 of the back side done.  it was so sunny & hot & there was no breeze or shade where i was working.  i was hot & tired & was starting to get sloppy & drip lots of paint so i quit for the day. 

the nice thing is....................the next time this house needs painting,

someone else can do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

last sunday's stamp camp "shoe box swap" projects

we had a great time at stamp camp & the projects that y'all did were great!!!!  everyone loved them & it was really fun for me to be able to stamp along with y'all for a change!!!!  here are the projects we did:

this was sandy's card--a pumpkin made with the wide oval punch

nicole had the leaves, pumpkins & even the little opening in the card all cut for us!!

bernie did this cute birthday card--great kid's card!!!!

this is renee's card--i forgot to put the glitter on the cupcakes though!!!  i'll have to go do that!!!!!  & i might put some crystal effects on the cherries!!

susie did this fantastic card ---there's a cut out on the front & the flower shows through & then when you open it, you've got a whole bouquet of flowers!!!!  such a cute idea!!!

this is courtney's card--i had to finish it later, gabbing too much i guess!!!  i had to use a different sentiment & i added some die cut leaves (a flower really!) behind the scrunched up flower because they were just laying there on my table!!!  

and finally, here's my card.  i love the die cut leaves & this makes a great "man card".

our next stamp camp is november 7th (moved up since the 3rd sunday is the week of thanksgiving) & we're doing the name frames!

our december stamp camp will be december 12th.  the theme is simple cards.  i've got some great simple christmas cards for us to make!  our swap will also be simple cards - renee's got hers done already & we all got to see them last sunday.........they are great!

so RSVP in the comments section here if you're coming & swapping.