Happy Birthday!

    

                                                               That was then....
                                                                            

                                                                  This is now........

How is it possible that 10 years have gone by? As you can see, we have not been inside too much lately...been outside, capturing these moments while we can. The sunshine is fleeting here in Chicago and kids....well, you know what happens to them. They grow so fast. Katelyn will be a Junior in college next year and Logan and Brandon are celebrating their 10th birthday today. I love you guys..... I am so very lucky to be a Mom and have a job that allows me to share these moments with you.

Mother's Day Surprise!

I feel so blessed to be a Mom. Love this, Don't you! Made me smile, and of course hugs all around. I hope all you Mom's out there had a Happy Mother's Day. P.S. In case you might be wondering...the eye's are mini muffins, and that is bacon as eyebrows:)

CTMH Celebrates Scrapbooking 2011

May is National Scrapbooking Month.   Check out the latest artwork! Close to my Heart makes it so easy for anyone to create these amazing pages with step by step directions and embellishments all included in one kit. What do you think?





Has the thought of becoming a consultant ever crossed your mind? Now is the perfect time to "Get off the Fence" and say "Why Not".  Did you like the artwork in the video? Guess what? The You and Me kit can be yours free when you signup in May, 2011. How exciting is that!!! What a great time to get the "stuff" and future discounts too.

Tower of Paper

What  is it about Spring that seems to initiate the almost uncontrollable urge to fluff and clean our nests?  I love Scrapbooking, Stamping and paper of all colors, shapes and sizes...however, I can't bring myself to throw anything away....even all those little pieces of paper, that  for the average person, would be shhhhh....trash.  Only a paper crafter would save these little strips and squares because, "this would be perfect for a card etc"...so it gets put in a pile.  Well, not anymore.  Since I can't throw away, I throw in the drawer.   I have been using this system for a couple of years now and I LOVE it, so I thought I would share.

  Not only has this been an awesome solution for me to help clear the flat surfaces in my office...lol....but my daughter is excited because she has her own "Tower of Paper".   I have a 6 drawer Iris Cart (minus the wheels) that  helps paper find a new home.   This one is the original size...the drawers measure   10 1/2 x 14.   They also make a larger  cart with drawer sizes that can hold 12x12 size paper.   I wanted the smaller size because this is for "scraps" only...lol.  The drawers are arranged in "Rainbow" order with black and white in the top drawer.  Each drawer has a 9x3 piece of paper attached to the inside front of the drawer so you can easily tell what color family is in that drawer.  

I had to add some stars.....

Here's a peek inside!

 This has been great because everyone who comes over to crop knows about the scrap cart.  It's super easy to find paper for any project without having to cut into a new piece of cardstock.  Logan is happy as a clam because she doesn't need to "ask" to use anything in her tower.   Sometimes I also put left over stickers and other embellishments in the drawer.  A little surprise for her and helping me to "let go" at the same time.    Needless to say...she loves it!    Please feel welcome to ask any questions.   I hope you enjoy.  

Sunshine in Chicago!

It was so nice waking up to Blue Sky this morning, and there was another surprise waiting for me in Dusty's Garden today.   I received a beautiful spring basket a couple of years ago that had blooming bulbs of different kinds.  One of them was miniature daffodils.  I loved them...they were Oh so cute,  and I had never seen a daffodil that small.   I wondered if they would come up again if I planted them outside in the garden.   Well, I am happy to say that the dark skies and rain this week helped these adorable little flowers bloom.   I placed a regular size daffodil next to them in the picture so that you could see the size difference.  I hope you enjoy.  Welcome Spring!

Eggs and CTMH Stamps

A good friend of mine is constantly telling me to post more stuff....lol.   Most of the time I do not take pictures of things I give away......... So here goes.   I am trying to get out of the ole comfort zone here and  share because this probably seems a little crazy.  Stamping on eggs..... You see, my oldest daughter loves frogs and she was home from college for Easter.   Anyway,  I wanted to see if the resist technique could work on eggs. Guess what, it did, and how fun watching the image appear right before our eyes when we dipped the eggs in the dye.   I used Versamark ink and  stamped one of the frogs from the Fun Times stamp set on a white hard boiled egg, then colored them.   It was a little tricky stamping on the curved surface......But how exciting.  We did it!!  So fun, and a great Let's Get Inky project for kids( because the ink is clear...lol).......Hope you like it.....and maybe give it a try.....

Sunday Blessings!

 What a blessing to be together as a family and share the day.  I am so grateful.  I hope you have a Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!

We have had so much fun using this little Hen that cooks up to 7 hard boiled eggs, or 4 poached eggs.  My Mom gave this to us a few years ago.  Henrietta has become part of our Easter tradition...she even chirps when the eggs are ready.   So fun!   Thanks Mom.

CTMH Lucky Chipboard Accents

When I got home this evening, I had a CTMH delivery waiting  for me on the porch.   I was dying to open it up and see the goodies inside.   It's 9:00...Kids are in  bed....hubby is watching his favorite show, and so now it is time.  Who Hoooo!!!!    One of my favorite items  is the Lucky Chipboard Accents on page 116 of the catalog.  What a surprise they were.  Not sure what I was expecting, but the generous size of the pieces  and so many per bag.  Wow!   

                                                      There are 48 pieces!

              Check out the detail and to give you an idea on size,
                                       this one is 4 inches wide.

                                                           Each piece is embossed!

        This is a great value @ $4.95 and I think this rustic look will be amazing with our Lucky papers, don't you?

Daffodils!

They are almost ready.........can hardly wait!

Who Hooo....They're here!!!!!

I took these pictures just a few minutes ago....

                 Just seeing them makes my heart sing:)    They are leaning over a bit because of the rain and can you believe it just started snowing?  No worries, a very good friend alway's says...when you have snow on your daffodils, it's a sign winter is really over.  Yippee!!!!