Christmas Pajamas

Each year, beginning about three years ago, I've ordered new pajamas for my family to wear for Christmas Eve. I believe I got the idea while watching Rosie O'Donnell. It was either when she had her talk show orfrom when she was on the View. She mentioned how wearing the same pj's could really help with scrapbooking. So I decided to give it a try and she was right. It has made a huge difference with my scrapbooking. Here is a photo of us from Christmas morning. I will try to scrapbook a couple of pages tonight of us to share.

I hope you are enjoying this holiday season with your family. We are enjoying lots of lazt days until I go back to work on the 5th of January.

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More Cute Tags and Such!

Here are several more of the cute tags I stamped at Gail's Cookies and Tags class. She is my second level upline. Each year she offers this wonderful class. When time allows I join in on the festivities and am always so very happy that I did. Maybe one year I'll actually start giving them away. For now, I have a little collection going. One of the great parts about attending other people's classes, along with getting new ideas, inspiration and such, is getting to use stamp sets that I don't own! I get to see first hand whether or not it is something I would like to add to my collection...and usually it is:-)






This tag is stamped on both sides and features the Winter Post stamp set from the Holiday mini catalog. The coloring was done using the Watercolor Wonder crayons along with blender pens. We did a lot of sponging to create an aged look. I really like how this turned out.



















This very cute little tag was created using the Fresh-Cut Notes, the 5 Petal punch, and Filigree Designer brads. We stamped the card with the Tres Chic background stamp.


















For this fun gift card holder we used a retired stamp set. I'll have to look a bit and add the name later. We also used some of the ski slope designer series paper to create a cute belly band. I love what they add to a card and they are so easy to do!












This last one for today is probably my most favorite of them all. I really like the many layers, the bold colors, and the so very cute penguin from the Punch Pals stamp set. The striped ribbon adds a nice final touch. This tag gives me lots of ideas for a nice winter card.





Well, I still have decorating and wrapping to do so I've gotta go! I'll post pictures of our progress soon!


Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

Holiday Happenings

Life has been very busy in my household between family duties and work responsibilities. Although I could describe it as a stressful time I will instead describe it all as being blessed abundantly! With happy, healthy kids and a husband who does so much to help me keep it all together I really can't complain. December is probably the most busiest month for me that I have found little to no time for being crafty.

A few weeks ago I did get the opportunity to get a little stamping done at a Cookies and Tags class that I attended. Here are some pics of the fun things we stamped. All stamped items shown below were created by my second level upline, Gail.

I'll start with the molasses cookies that I made for the Cookies and Tags class. All attendees baked a dozen cookies and brought them along with enough recipes to share with everyone. There were so many yummy cookies! I skipped dinner just to have enough room to try LOTS of cookies and I was successful.


Enjoy! I will add details soon and hopefully some more fun stuff soon!





































































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Stampin' at Gail's

Gail is my second level upline. She hosts meetings for all of her downline and I am always an eager participant. It has been a little while since she has last hosted a meeting, so it was very nice to get together and stamp with friends that I have missed seeing. We had a wonderful time seeing her fabulous new stamp studio...It is amazing...I am pretty sure I heard, "hallelujah," playing in the background as I walked in...Yes, it really is a space any stamper would drool over. I told her I want to be her when I grow up:-)

Here are two of the projects we stamped. We stamped one more, but it was one that I prepared and well...you've already seen it:-)

I am also showing the cute bookmark that Gail gave me for bringing a project to share with everyone.This was a very nice and unexpected treat!











This special bagged gift contains 3 "cookmarks!" Cookmarks are just like bookmarks but are placed in a cookbook to keep the place of a special recipe. There is also a space on it where you might add your special ingredients, substitutions, or additions to a favorite recipe. They fold over the page and stay in place through the use of a magnet. These are so cute and would make the perfect hostess gift for a stamping event or a holiday party.

Notice the topper: I got to use the Big Shot for the first time. It was too much fun and super easy! I think I know just what I want for Christmas:-)










This is my special gift. A magnetic bookmark! The top portion is embossed in chocolate chip and reads I heart SU! This picture does not do it justice! It is gorgeous!

It is basically using the same concept as the cookmarks with the fold over and the magnets at the bottom. Notice the beautiful designer series paper. I just LOVE IT!


























This beautiful card was designed and prepared by Dee. She is a super creative stamper in our group. Several other creative ladies in our group shared ideas and projects with us. I will try to post some of them very soon. I love coming to these meetings. I feel that I always walk away full of stamping excitement and so many amazing ideas. These are great woman to be around. I am so glad they are in my life.













Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

A Super Easy Countdown to Christmas!

Each year my kids get so excited as we begin the 25 day countdown to Christmas. We have an Advent chest that begin on December 1st. Each day the children take turns opening the drawers and pulling out the holiday candy and special gifts. As a new add on this year, my good friend, Sam introduced "Christmas rings," a fun new excitement builder for my kids. Sam is so sweet, she cut out the strips of green and red construction paper needed for this activity. The kids used glue dots to connect 24 paper rings. Each night before bed they will tear off a new ring until Christmas Eve when they tear off the last ring before going to bed. The kids had so much fun gluing their rings and thinking about where in their rooms they wanted to hang them.









First, you need strips of construction paper or SU! cardstock cut at 1" X 6" in red and green or another holiday color of choice.
















Next, get your glue dots and let the kids create a string of connected rings. Glue dots work really well and attach better than a regular glue stick. Less messy too..in fact no mess at all. I would suggest supervising the use of the glue dots. We all know how quickly they can become unraveled.










The last and most fun step is having your child identify that special spot to attach their Christmas rings. Both children chose high spots. As the length shortens we will have to pick new locations. We will cross that bridge when we get to it. My kids enjoyed posing with their rings.


This was a great "Black Friday," activity for the kids. It was quick, easy, and lots of fun. My 2 year old slept while the older two made their rings. We will help my little one create his tomorrow. Thanks Sam for this wonderful new tradition!

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It's A Birthday!

Yesterday my step-son, Jason turned 15! He is with us on weekends only, so we didn't get to celebrated him until today. It is hard for me to wrap my hands around the fact that it has been 12 years and 10 months since I first met him. It was my second date with his father (my husband). We were on our way to a family party for a friend of my then new boyfriend. We stopped off to pick up his son. I was thinking...WOW... he wants me to meet his son already? He came back to the car with the cutest little boy who had the brightest eyes and a perfect smile! One of the major reasons that I fell in love with my husband was due to how attentive and affectionate he was with his son. I found it to be a big plus on my mental "future husband," checklist.



So, today, before my husband returned home from picking up Jason, my 7 year old daughter and four year old son helped me stamp a quick card for the birthday boy. I used one of my most recent and favorite layouts....one designed by Beate If I need a card in a hurry...this is the one I am pulling out of my little bag of "cases". I used a piece of the wrapping paper for the print paper piece. It is from Sally Foster. I bought it last year from a fundraiser through my work. I just love Sally Foster wrapping paper! All other materials and supplies are from Stampin' Up!.

Card Recipe:
Stamp sets: Wanted, Warmest Regards
Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel
Accessories: linen ribbon

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More Holiday Cards

I have a few more holiday cards that I wanted to share with you from previous stamping events.






This first card comes from a stamper, Sharon L. Johnson, over at No Time To Stamp. She has great ideas and boxed gifts over there. Go check out her work. This card features Ski Slope Designer series paper, old olive, Whisper White, and Real Red cardstock. It uses the snowman from the Merry & Bright stamp set and red grosgrain ribbon.
















This next card comes from a stamper, Amy Kennedy. I came across her work while surfing for card ideas. This card uses whisper white cardstock, Ski Slope designer series paper along with riding hood red striped ribbon and basic black ink. I used a blender pen coupled with various inks and markers to color in the image from the Holiday Lineup stamp set.


















My third card uses chocolate chip, Real Red, Whisper White, and Baja Breeze cardstock as well as a sheet from the Ski Slope designer series paper. I really like this paper. I used the chocolate grosgrain ribbon and the Punch Pals stamp set.

















This last card follows one of my previous layouts. You might call this layout a favorite of mine or one to fall back on when in the constraints of time. This card uses the Holiday Treasures designer series paper, Ruby Red, Chocolate Chip, and Whisper White cardstock along with vanilla grosgrain ribbon and the snowman from the Punch Pals stamp set.




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I'm At The Top Of The Hill

Isn't this card cute? I received this in the mail from one of my favorite stampers. Kim Mullin, a fellow demonstrator, who not only remembers my birthday every year but also makes me smile every time I see her and spend time with her. Thank you so much Kim! Your cards always make me smile. Hope to see you on the 20th at Gail's.



Well, it's my BIRTHDAY! Today at 5:45 pm I will officially be 41 years old. During my lifetime I have heard various sayings and references to growing older. My all time favorite which I think now applies to me is "The Top of the Hill. It's actually the name of a store! I saw this and I fell in awe of this phrasing instantly. I think it fits me and my life perfectly in many ways. It was a "Wow!" moment.I think top of the hill means being at the top of your game and I do believe that I am definitely at the top of my game. I absolutely love being in my forties. Who would've thought I would welcome it so freely. I feel so sure about so much in life. I know who I am, what I want, and know what I feel are the important things in life. I love positive energy and positive people. I am a Top of the Hill Woman and I am liking this view!

To make this day even better my mother will be coming over tonight to watch the kids so my hubby and I can go out and celebrate ME!

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Holiday Cards

Here are some of the cards from my Christmas Stamp-A-Stack and from a card class I did for one of my customers a week ago. When I planned this event I was counting on my husband's help with the kids but that just didn't happen. He was supposed to leave out on a Sunday and return that following Thursday but had to extend his stay until the next Monday. So, with this turn of events I had limited time to prepare so I needed to keep it simple. I needed it to be something I could do in an evening. I came to the conclusion that there are so many ideas out there that did not need to reinvent the wheel, so I used them for the benefit of my sanity. I decided to make this class one of "previous inspiration," meaning looking at all of the talented samples out there and then making very little changes for my class.





This layout is one that I've used before. It is one that I have seen on Beate's blog. Check out her stuff. For this card I used the Ski Slope designer series paper, chocolate chip, real red, whisper white, and baja breeze cardstock. I also used rub-ons for this card.






















This card also uses a layout that I've used in the past. I was trying to make one of the cards really simple. I used baja breeze, basic gray, and whisper white cardstock. The designer series paper I chose for this comes from the ski slope series. The snowman comes from the Punch Pals stamp set. I really like this one.










As you can see I really love this Ski Slope designer series paper. It really makes me think of snow and Christmas. I saw this layout on a blog. I am in an active search to find the artist. If it looks familiar to you please leave me a comment so I can credit the right person. I used baja breeze, whisper white, real red cardstock and designer series paper from the Ski Slope series. I used my photo corner punch for the tree, various circle punches,the window punch, and green grosgrain ribbon. The circle stamp comes from the Punch Pals stamp set. I used this set for many of my stamp-a-stack cards this year.


















After viewing this stamp set being used by so many stampers I decided to go ahead and get one for myself. I love the images and the wording. It is a very versatile set. I chose to use the thank you for this card. I went with Garden Green cardstock because it is color that I really like but seldom use. I also used certainly celery, naturals ivory, and the I Wish Simply Scrappin' kit, along with green grosgrain ribbon. I came across this layout straight out of the catalog on page 40.
















Another card inspired by Beate. I used this layout for a Christmas card and then for this one as a thank you card. I decided to go with the Kiwi Kiss incolor cardstock and ink. I also used the whisper white and Kraft cardstock and you guessed it the cute penguin came from the Punch Pals stamp set. I love the look of the Kraft ink with the Kiwi Kiss color.



Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

A Week Without My Husband

It has been awhile since my last post. Things have been very busy in my household. My husband was away for 8 days on business. Trying to get three young children up and out of the house by 7am all by myself is a huge feat. We made it through mainly because I put all of my home time energy into my children. I went to sleep at an honorable hour which is very unusual for me. I restrained from blogging and stamping and all things crafty so that I could be present for my children, relaxed, and well rested. I am happy to report that doing it by myself didn't stress me out as I thought it would. Things ran quite smoothly... we even got out of the house on time! The funny part for me about this story is that as soon as my husband returned home our morning departure time slowly moved from 7am to 7:30am. The rushing began again. I think when my husband isn't home I prepare more the night before where as when he is home I push a lot off until morning. Well, anyway I just thought I'd share where I've been in case you were wondering what ever happened to me. I am still here:-)

Holiday Place Settings

I don't have a fabulous card to share with you today so in its' place I have decided to share a fun little treat instead. I am posting this video I found from a local tv show. It features Stampin' Up CEO Shelli Gardner. She shares design tricks that give this template three terrific twists. Check it out.

To visit the actual site for still shots of the projects go to:


These are sooo cute!
Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something.

Halloween Treats Complete!

For the last couple of weeks my kids have been busy packaging and decorating little treat bags for their school friends. They have worked hard, stamping, coloring, and adhering their little works of art. This was a very simple and easy project that I could involve them in where they could have a bit of control on the final outcome.

First the kids stuffed their medium gusset bags with pretzels and pixie sticks. We then used the Ghostly dsp from Stampin' Up! to create bag toppers. My daughter stapled all of the toppers onto the bags for my son and herself. She really enjoyed being in charge of this part and she did a wonderful job of it too!

























Now to the most time consuming part. My daughter first, stamped her images, I helped my son steady the rubber to stamp his images and then they were busy with coloring using my daughters colored pencils. This coloring lasted a couple of evenings until completion.






































These are my daughters completed colored images, layered onto additional cardstock before adhering to the bag toppers.

















Once the coloring was done. I cut pumpkin pie and basic black cardstock for layering the images to be placed on the bag toppers. My daughter used adhesive to adhere her images to the bag toppers while my son used an anywhere glue stick to adhere his images.















Now the bags are all set and ready to be on their way to school.

A Holiday Swap

My wonderful upline, Jacki, hosted a Holiday swap for the members of our group. I made this card with the chocolate chip as the base of the card. I turned in my swaps in with the base chocolate chip. After looking at my card again I decided to add another layer and put the card onto an old olive card base. I like this look much better. If only I had decided to do this before I turned in my swaps. I really love the holiday treasures designer series paper. I need to play around a bit more with these beautiful sheets to come up with more cards and projects. I will be using these lovely sheets at my upcoming Christmas Card stamp-a-stack. I will add the card recipe tomorrow. I am super tired and heading off to bed now.

Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

My Spooky Jar

Here is my Spooky Jar. I just love this Spooky Spider Décor Elements™ from Stampin' Up! It is super easy to adhere to any glass jar. I bought this generously sized one from Target for $19.99. I was so proud of myself, and still am for getting this jar and our Halloween candy so far in advance. It is great and feels wonderful to get a head start on this kind of stuff. Although by purchasing candy so far in advance and then putting it in this beautiful jar there was one glitch to my eager beager plan. I ran into one little yet really big problem that I should have foreseen. It all started when I decided to purchase all of my favorite candies as the treats for our Halloween tricksters. Well what was I thinking???? I am sure you know where I am going with this. Yes...it is true, I have started eating up the yummy candies and my hubby has followed suit! To rectify this my husband came up with a great solution. We took all of the candy out of the jar, put it into a bag where it will remain until Halloween night. The situation is better although I have been in the bag twice. This is so hard!

Well, thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

More Stamp Camp Cards

Here are the last cards from my stamp camp buffet. This first card turned out to be my favorite card in the group. It uses the Wanted stamp set. It is a rarity that I stamp a masculine card and actually like it. I stamped a few of these for personal usage and I even got to use one already.
Card Recipe:
stamp set: Wanted and Wild About You
cardstock: garden green, basic gray, sage shadow, and whisper white
ink: garden green and sage shadow
accessories: silver brads
















This next floral birthday card was the simplest of them all to complete. My daughter and niece even had success making this card. I love the Fall colors and this designer series paper too!

Card Recipe:
stamp set: hearty party
cardstock: tango tangerine, whisper white, chocolate chip, and Hawaii Papaya dsp
ink: tango tangerine, chocolate chip, and old olive
accessories: chocolate chip ribbon












This last card was inspired by a card I saw on the cover of Cardmaker magazine. I changed the stamp set from the original card along with a few other things. This card was probably the most involved of the bunch.
Card Recipe:
stamp set: Fun & Fast Notes
cardstock: whisper white, pink pirouette, bravo burgundy
ink: basic black, pink pirouette, bravo burgundy, versa mark, and so saffron
accessories: pink brads and sheer ribbon


Well, thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

Stippled Fun

Another card from last weeks' stamp camp buffet. This card has a country feel to it and was a favorite by most of the stampers. This card was inspired by Beate. I guess one might call me a stalker....I mean a big fan of her work:-) She did a fabulous tutorial on stipple basics. This card was a lot of fun to assemble. I love using the paper piercer on cards. It adds a polished look to any card. For this card I used the stipple effect on the focal point of my card. I never realized the intensity of color that can be created from the use of a stipple brush. I've always used it to slightly add color to a card so this is a new turn of events for me!








Card Recipe:
stamp set:Eastern Blooms and (retired) Warmest Regards
cardstock: Bella Rose dsp, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White, and Kraft
ink: Old Olive, Kiwi Kiss, and Versa mark
Ribbon: striped Riding Hood Red

Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

More Halloween Fun

Here is another card from my stamp camp buffet. My inspiration for these cards came from Beate's tutorial on splitcoast stampers. She has great cards and projects on her blog. Check her out when you can. You'll be glad you did. I tried the same layout using different stamp sets. I can see using this layout for a variety of occasions with many of the beautiful designer series papers that Stampin' Up! has to offer.













Card Recipe:
stamp set: Booglie Eyes
Cardstock: Ghostly Greetings dsp, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Grey,
and Whisper White
Ink: Old Olive, Basic Grey
Accessories: Olive Ribbon, Sheer White ribbon
Rub-Ons: Chills and Thrills
Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!

My Halloween Friends

I miss using this stamp set for workshops but I pulled it out over the weekend while my sister and her daughter were visiting. I love the images from this set and couldn't resist the temptation to use it. This card was not part of my Stamp buffet although I did stick it in the group shot I posted earlier this week since it was a card I stamped using left over pieces from the cards my customers stamped. I am sure this same card could be created with a current Stampin' Up! set. I also used my rub-ons that I have been hoarding. I have soooo many of them but never quite know where to use them. I think they went well with this image. This card was LOTS of fun to create.




Card Recipe:
stamp set: Booglie Eyes (retired SU set)
Cardstock: Tangerine Tango, Ghostly Greetings dsp, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss
Ribbon: Old Olive 5/8" Grosgrain ribbon
Chills & Thrills rub-ons

My Stamp Camp Buffet Style

Here are some cards that were choices from this weekends' Stamp Camp Buffet along with cards from a card class I did last weekend for a group of colleagues of mine. For my stamp camp buffet the cards were priced from $1.00 to $2.50. I will post close ups of the cards along with the recipe for each card during the next few days. I will also post and give credit for the cards where credit is due for the cards that were inspired by some creative stampers on Splitcoast.

Thanks for stopping by...now go stamp something!
Maureen

Halloween Treats

Sorry I've been away for so long! It has been a super busy week in our household. I had two stamping events this weekend and am very happy to post a little treat I made for all of the participants of both events. I found these cute favors on another blog and then tried my hand at them. I stuffed mine with my favorite candy bar...a Twix..yum yum. I used the fun new Ghostly Greetings designer series paper, and the Eat, Drink & Be Scary stamp set from the Holiday mini catalog.

World Card Day - Family Stamp Day

In honor of World Card my plan was to gather my family around a table to stamp a card. I thought it would be a fun creative outlet for both the adults and the kids. The tricky part was that we were going to be in Maryland at my mother's second home and I would have to pack materials to bring with us. My mother, sister, sister in-law and all of our kids along with another cousin made the trip. We were a total of 12. At the end of our busy Saturday, I placed all of my supplies on the table. They were very limited. I didn't want to carry too much with three of my kids and me, we can fill an automobile super easily...not to mention my sister in-law and her three kiddos who were also in the van. I offered a few ideas and then just let everyone try their hand at stamping. While there, I forgot to take pictures of all of the action... but I took these few photos of my seven year old daughter's card and my four year old's card along with my card. See if you can guess whose is whose.















































I packed all of my supplies in my Convention Project Tote. I just love this bag, it brings back fond Utah memories from last summer. I can't wait until it's time to pack and return to Utah for another Stampin' Up! Convention.












While in Maryland we went to the beach near my mom's home. I love being by the waters edge. I love the sounds and smells of the water. My sister took this picture of me.















The kids were busy collecting rocks. Some they kept while others they threw back. It's always so much fun watching the first cousins all play together.













They get along very well. Reminds me of being young and free.

Thanks for looking...now go stamp something!