Busy Holiday Schedule

It's that time of year with concerts, plays, and so much more.  Sometimes time slips away from each of us.  After Thanksgiving feast with my close family, we have been in full swing for the Christmas holiday.  My children continually count down the days till their holiday break.  Also we are crafting goodies for their friends and our close friends.  Making items are so much more personal as they are unique to each person they are made for.  Currently I am gathering recipes to make my children books with recipes and photographs.  This is a surprise and since they do not look at my blog I can share this private gift I am making for them.  I am also wanting to replace and update my family history book that my great grandmother who toiled over and completed after she died.  Since that publishing in the 1970's, it has not been updated.  Since the loss of many dear aunts and uncles recently gave me the incentive to try and update it.  But that is another story.  Back to the busy holidays, may everyone survive with a smile in their heart and family close by. Thanks for stopping by and keep checking in as more will come later.

Back from the Grave

After being so busy with the end of year warranty work and Halloween, I can finally blog once again.  I realize it is hard when I have no pictures posted and since I have not posted in a while so thank you for stopping by.  I have not been idle.  My daughter and I made treats for her friends at school and a really wicked Skull Cake for one of her classes.  Also my middle daughter has been given a part in a play.  With all of their clubs at school and Halloween decorating, it is difficult to get to the computer to type and post.  The decorations this year went up and down in one day.  Now to start planning for next year.  Because of all the decorations we have, we did not plan out very well how to position it in our new two car garage.  We have a huge amount of items but no shelves to display it for our themes.  It is always a learning experience when you go through life and sometimes it happens to be fun.  The children had a great time.  Our visitors this year gave us compliments so we were "glowing" like our pumpkins.  Have a great day!

WE love Halloween

The kids are getting excited about our decorations for Halloween.  I have been following a huge list of creative people on websites with How-To ideas for a home haunt.  I am coloring bottles and dripping hot wax on PVC pipes to look like candles.  I am also painting and updating cheap decor to look more realistic.  It is fun.  One thing that is not fun is trying to get the layout right and the lighting.  I do have a ladder to climb on a ladder to reach the second floor on the house.  This weekend we are painting the faux pumpkins and tearing apart pallets for fencing.  Wish us luck!!!  Some of the neighbors have asked when we are putting up the decorations because they are looking forward to it.  I really do not want to let anyone down especially my kids.  Check back later for more and have a great day.

Halloween Prep

The kids have decided that apparently "we" are having a spooktacular Halloween party at our home.  I have been searching for food that isn't all candy but will look really cool but creepy.  Especially since we have a crafty family, no ordinary printed Halloween invitation will do either. They want it to be three dimensional and mind-blowing for their friends to see.  What have I got myself into?  I am sure I will be a crazy old lady by Halloween this year so I will not need a costume.  Back to party prep- I have researched on different websites and am creating a truely gory Halloween party food menu.  One item is earwax covered cotton swabs.  I know, EWWWW, right?  But it will look gross but will be tasty.  I am having a hard time finding heathly food for the party.  I will keep researching and let you know.

By the way, I am not perfect.  I struggle everyday with being a good soul and not allowing the world to change me.  I am not an English major so mistakes might be here in this blog but it is from a blogger who wants to share my life, crafts, family fun and more with the world.  Tomorrow is always a new beginning to any adventure.  Have a great day!

Crafty days

Our family is in full crafting frenzy for Halloween decor for outside.  The children now have the daunting task of deciding on a costume as well.  They want me to throw a Hallloween Party at our home.  Not quite sure about this one yet.  Maybe an outdoor one to save me from going insane. I party better at other people's houses more easily because I worry about the decor that I lack and furniture too for entertaining in a large group.  I love my new bigger house yet we have not the funding to fill the home just yet.  It is a work in process. I am learning to refurbish items for our home as well.  Craft on and continue though the storms placed in front of you. Happy day to all.

Crafting for Business

I love to research online crafts that I want to make.  Right now the kids and I are focused on Halloween so I am looking for inexpensive ideas.  I look at Pinterest alot.  More than I probably should.  Okay, I admit I am addicted to Pinterest, and Stampin' Connection.  Stampin' Connection is a Demonstrator only website for demonstrators to share ideas and discuss our business.  Some even share their struggles and trials with their business.  For example: One girl just had an Open House for her Holiday catalogue and no one showed up.  I have had this happen too and it is time and money that we cannot get back.  As we have just moved again I have to restart my business from almost beginning.  I do have some faithful customers who order from me and I miss stamping with them.  But being a military family we move alot.  I now have a craft room all to myself.  Well, except when the kids come in and try to take over.  I am working on display boards, crafting items for craft fairs and so much more.  Fingers crossed that my business picks up soon.  Thanks for visiting and keep crafting.

Challeges

I have set challenges for myself to craft everyday and workout everyday but it is not going as planned.  I have to definitely plan my time better and start putting in my time.  My focus is usually, actually ALWAYS surrounding my children and to make their lives better.  As a mother, most of us neglect to take care of ourselves.  I am learning to plan some time for me though.  My personal plan is to schedule me time at a gym that I am looking into joining soon.  But currently my mind is swarming with the kid's schedules and things going on in their school year.  We have one graduating this year and college is right around the corner.  I really appreciate everyone who supports me and I truly want to thank everyone in my life who I can call friends.  I am epecially thankful for my family who happen to be some of my best friends too.  Have a blessed day.

Family & Crafting for Halloween

The past few days have been chaotic with it being Homecoming week for our kids at school.  Crazy outfits and fun times but busy baking goods for Friday's Homecoming game for National Honor Society for my daughter.  Volunteering is fun for my kids and they enjoy it so they are looking forward to the sale at the game this week.  We are looking for more volunteering opportunities in the area to include the Animal Shelters hopefully.  But back to the topic of my post, I have been trying to CASE(Copy and share everything) from some other ladies who have been so kind to post online and share their work but it did not work.  I started to copy one design and came out with eight to ten different Halloween cards.  They are not my favorites but I did like them.  I have not taken pictures yet but will this weekend.  I still need to learn to link and post my websites and put my copyrights on the pictures.  Keep up with me and my busy lifestyle and my rebooting my business.  More to come....

Back to School Idea

Gifts for teachers are a great way to start off the new year and to advertise business.  I hope it gets my children brownie points with their new teachers.  You can stamp cute pencil packs, note cards, or create a cute survival bag for the teachers first day back at school.  For your children you can personalize their backpack by making luggage tags that show school spirit or a child's personality.  This will make it easy for a child to identify their backpack out of a sea of bags at school.  Make a note and place in your child's lunch to help them get through the day knowing you care. So many ideas and so little time.  Try one of these ideas today to make your child's day special.

A Mother's Life

I am really trying to get all of my websites updated, stamp, clean, cook, shop, pay bills, etc.  Moving to a new area and rebooting your business is very hard.  It seems I spend more money and time to get new customers and bookings for my calendar than anything else but as a mother I am busy with all the school preparations currently.  I am also busy with the house now as it is time for our one year warranty work to be complete on my home then I have to pay for the repairs myself. Yikes! I have to save up money for this too instead of spending on my beloved crafting. Boo hisss...  I am truly trying to do it all and I have to say bless you to all the moms that can complete it all.  I am not scheduling my time well right now and need better time management.  Please let me keep my sanity while trying to blog, email, and do everything else in the world too.  So silly but I will have more crafts and papercrafts soon..stay tuned for more fun stuff.

Retired Cardstock and New Swap

I just received a package from another demonstrator who luckily had some of the old Blush Blossom cardstock left and I jumped on it.  I love the color for flesh tones with our stamping inks and papers but I am lacking in some skin coloring skills.  I stunk the last time I tried to use the Blush Blossom marker and Blender pens.  Most of my samples ended up in the trash because I thought they were awful.  I am a bit hard on myself but it was truly awful.  So I bought all the girl had so I have a slight reprieve before I have to try again.  Yeah, ME!  Current news as well is that I was looking on our demonstrator website and saw a cute holiday gift tag swap and signed up for it and I am excited to do this.  I love to swap and get new ideas. With these swaps though I could also put them together in groups and give away as gifts.  I will take pictures and post soon so you can all share in my ups and downs in the creative department in my head. I love the fact that if I love it,then it worked out and if I do not like it, I can always start over. More to come.....

Busy With Kids

I am really busy currently getting the children ready for school this weekend and week.  This is their last week of freedom and I get some me time in a week! Yeah, me! But they are excited to go back to school too.  Well, my girls are but my son is not.  He loves to learn but hates sitting still all day.  I will get back to stamping hopefully tomorrow afternoon.  After doctor's office and school clothes shopping for the little two.  Hope you had a great weekend and keep creating wonderful things. Keep checking for new updates. Thanks for stopping by.

New Product Arrives

For the last couple of days I have received boxes of new products to try out.  Now where to begin- Halloween, Christmas or make items for back to school....so many choices.  I did make a couple that my daughter has started babysitting for an anniversary card for her to give to them.  I will upload the picture shortly and more.  Learning how to resize photographs and touch up along with watermarks is fairly new to me.  It is almost like as my children go back to school so am I.  And I thought I was done with school. I am also learning to link my websites too.  This is like learning a new language.  Slowly and surely I can master this- atleast I hope I can.  If all else fails, I will call on my teenager for help.  Have a great day and come back soon as construction is still in progress.

Pictures Soon

I am buying a computer program for my watermark in the next couple of days to be able to edit and add watermarks to protect my work.  I have been organizing my stamping room and researching online craft room ideas.  But sadly, I have been in a stamping block and getting frustrated so much so that I give up and leave my craft room without making a single item.  I have been using my new framelits that match my stamp sets.  I do love them and like the fact that I can run many through the die at one time.  So I have been working but just not completing any one project.  I now have a need to find some way to organize the items that I have stamped and punched out.   Please keep checking back and soon you will be rewarded.  Thank you for stopping by.

Stamping and Yard sale prep

I have not been able to get to my stamp room as often as I would like to since this week we are Yard Sale-ing crazy.  I will have numerous items from my craft room available for purchase soon on our demonstrator only website and then I will send along the list to anyone else interested.  I am learning to copyright my pictures so no one can take and use without my permission.  I hate doing this yet if I post a picture with my kids on it I want them protected too. I am also going to try to make a video in the next week of a technique.  I hate my voice on the camera too.  I sound goofy like I am still in puberty.  Not a pretty thing to hear so maybe I will just use music and a powerpoint presentation for it.  I am really scared about all this.  Thank you to my supportive children and stamping friends from Missouri that are cheering me on.  Happy stamping everyone.  I will post a picture up soon of some of my swaps- I PROMISE. 

Stamping Today

I am in the process of remaking the Make & Take items from convention.  I have seen pictures floating around the web already but I know everyone will be excited to see them even if they are the same.  The main thing with handmade items are that no two are alike.  That is the same with all stampers.  I am personally working on the scrapbook item we made using our new divided page protectors.  I was working with the colors a bit as some were not to my personal taste.  My daughter was stamping at the table beside me making punch art pumpkins of all sizes and Halloween cards.  Atleast one of us will be ready for the holidays that are coming.  Thanks for everyone who has stopped by my new blog.  Come back soon for more updates with more extras to come.

Convention Excitement

Back from our yearly convention, I am so excited to stamp and share the techniques learned.  The new things to show are so chic and in-style.  In the next few days I will be posting pictures of my swaps that I made.  I enjoyed the Prize Patrol especially this year since.... I WON!!!! I received an My Digital Studio CD of Patio Party, Glitter Glue and Summer Starfruit Ribbon.  This was the first time that I have won going to convention.  I was shocked at first.  Then I jumped up and started dancing as the prize patrol came around to give us our prizes.  I have been sorting my swaps, putting new stamp sets together, trying to get some sleep(those of you who have gone to convention will completely understand), and more.  Get ready for updates to my blog and links to my websites.  Too much to share now.  Come back soon to check out my work in progress.

Busy Busy Busy for Convention

I have been working on creating chaos in my crafting room.  Or a tornado has hit that room in the house.  All kidding aside- I am a messy crafter.  I cleaned up a little this week yet then proceeded to make an even bigger mess.  I am making swaps still.  I have been stuck on these beautiful Elegant Eggplant butterflies I stamped and cut out by hand all 125.  I loved the butterflies yet could not get a layout for them till yesterday.  I will post pictures right before I leave for convention or right after I return.   Keep stamping and keep checking back for more as my blog grows along with my business.

Creating Swaps For Convention 2012

I am stamping my days away creating swaps for convention 2012.  I have joined three organised swaps - one for Halloween cards, Halloween 3-D items and one large punch art swap.  I have never done an organized swap before and am very excited to see how this goes.   I have my Halloween cards almost complete.  But I cannot decide what to make for my 3-D item.  A gift bag, Candy bag, Witches hat, etc.... So many items to make but which one do I choose.  It has to be cool and cute.  My last swap is a large punch swap and I have to make 51 pages of an Uncle Sam using only our current punches.  This one is going to take awhile.  I am also making other card fronts to swap with other demonstrators.  For those that do not know what a swap is- It is an item or card front that helps demonstrators share more without having to create all the ideas ourselves.  We swap card fronts or other items and then use them in our displays or classes to showcase different colors or techniques that we may not have thought of ourselves.  On the back we usually share our "recipe" on the back with all supplies and our information.   Thanks for looking and check back soon for pictures of my swaps too.

Welcome

New stamping and creative website for me to blog on.  This is all new to me and will take some time for me to get comfortable with all of this new technology.  Reaching the world through the wonderful web is great but I still enjoy meeting new people and talking in person.  This site is for fun and for business. Please be kind and courteous to all posts and do not share items without express permission from me as this is my site and my creative work.  Thank you for looking and please come back often for new updates and new posts.