April Showers....

What do they say, March is in like a lion and out like a lamb? This year- not so much. We had some beautiful Spring-like days in the first part of the month but the end of the month has been chilly with some pretty strong winds. As for April Showers bring May Flowers, well, that remains to be seen as rain has not been too forth coming in the past couple of years. I spent some time this afternoon working on weeding and trimming the landscape bed in the front of the house (bribed my daughter and 2 of her friends to help bag and haul trimmings.) It was so... great to see the new growth on the shrubs. I could even see some new shoots coming up from my peonies- total bliss! I love to get out and work in the beds in front of the house- if I have the right tools. We planted everything about 4 years ago and I am definitely in need in some lawn tool upgrades! My shoulders and back are screaming at me right now! Anyway, Spring is here and that makes me happy! In honor of this season, Spring is the theme for the April Home Page contest for the A Muse Addicts Forum. I love this little Seattle girl stamp by A Muse and wanted to use it in my entry. Granted, she is cute but I think the reason that I like this image is it reminds me of a Colorforms set I had as a very small girl- Wendy the Weather Girl. I can't for the life of me remember what Wendy looked like, but she did have some nifty rain gear for you to cling on to her. I love the saying that was inspiration for the sentiment. To me, it is a promise of better times ahead when life becomes stormy. Since I didn't have room for the entire saying on the front of this darling 4 1/4 x 4 1/4 a muse notecard, I decided to add a little tag to place inside my focal point. I figured the little gal would look funny walking around with that giddup without some form of precipitation so I added some Cloud 9 acrylic drops and splats (the splats are cut in half to try to keep the puddles from looking like they were floating in mid air, not sure it worked but, oh well.) The voting for the Home Page Contest ends today. There were some really awesome cards entered this month so I am not exactly hopeful but your always a winner if you get to do something that you love to do! It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

April Showers card recipe:

Stamps: a muse- Seattle girl, Karen Foster Snap-Stamps (small formal)

Paper: a muse notecard, Bashful Blue, Summer Sun, white shimmer from lss

Ink: Brillance Black, Stampin' Write markers in Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Always Artichoke, Bashful Blue

Accessories: ribbon- a muse, Copic markers, Cuttlebug, Nestabilities, acrylic "splats" and raindrops-Cloud 9 Design

A Sneak Peak...

Just a quick post this evening. I am completely tuckered! I can usually just go, go, go but then all of a sudden it will hit me and I have to crash. Down time becomes mandatory (well, as mandatory as it can be with 2 kids.) I was up pretty late last night working on these SWAPs for the a muse addicts discussion forum. The theme for the month of March was to use the color green. I didn't have very many green supplies from a muse so I had to improvise a bit but I felt the card was pretty cheerful, anywho. Since tomorrow doesn't slow down very much, I'd better take advantage of Rachel being in bed and get some rest. So I'll leave you with the card recipe. It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

March SWAP recipe:

Stamps: Elzybells Spring chick, and sentiment

Paper: a muse notecard, PP Making Memories, Stamper's Select white cs

Ink: Andirondack Pitch Black

Accessories: Marvy circle punch & scallop circle punch, Copic markers, ribbon- a muse, American Craft acrylic flower, small scallop punch, Junkitz chipboard photo corners, Jesse James glitter dots

I Should Have Been Stamping...

this morning while my oldest DD was working on her school work, but what was I doing instead...
stalking the Jonas Brothers Fan Club site to get my code word to buy pre-sale tickets for their summer concert tour! Much to my almost 11-year-olds excitement, I was able to purchase 2 for me and her and 2 for her bff and her mom (did you hear her squeal) for the Atlanta show! Although, I am only paying for 2 of the tickets believe me they weren't cheap but this will count as her 11th birthday- party and presents. And when you think about it, the concert is not until August 20th so I have a tool to keep the pre-teen hormones in check for the entire summer (insert evil snicker)! Hopefully, I will have a card to post tomorrow! It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!

My Final Week in "Simply Great Card Design"

Yes, I am still here! My house is full of company this weekend (picture hubby, me, our 2 daughters, my mom and my in-laws all in around 2300 sq. ft and you get the picture)! I have had no time to myself (heck, we're taking numbers for the bathrooms around here-lol)! Anyway, I hope to have a chance to create soon and "show off" some of the wonderful lessons I have learned from Julie Ebersole and her on-line class "Simple Great Card Design" at My Creative Classroom. And guess what? For those who missed this class the first time around, Julie will be offering it again! For the deets click here. What tidbits of knowledge, magic no less, did Julie share with us during this 5 segment (1 segment/week) class? Inspiration, design concept and components, composition and craftsmanship to point out some fancy words. Sound technical, sound tricky- not at all the way Julie presents it. Believe me, I had several "Duh" moments when a simple concept (and remember "simple does NOT mean easy") became crystal clear to me- a light bulb came on, I shouted "YES!" and I heard a Sousa marching tune in the background- lol. Seriously, IMHO, this course was well worth its cost. The information is presented via an A/V slide show with Julie narrating (for you audio learners), a PDF format (for you visual learners) and there is a discussion forum for Julie to answer questions while you are actually trying your hands on what you learned (for you kinesthetic learners.) The course even has its own gallery where you share your projects with the class- a show & tell, of sorts. Julie's comments in the gallery are so positive and helpful, and my classmates' were kind. Okay, disclaimer- I have received no personal compensation for sharing this information on my blog. This is only my opinion. I'm simply excited because living in a somewhat small town, I have not had an opportunity for an actual class on design and certainly count myself lucky for being instructed by a gal that is so well known in the craft for her talent and fun personality! Let's hear it for computer technology!

Wishing each of you and your families a Blessed Easter! Take care!

Whopee!!!

Be sure to check out my sweet bloggin' friend Jill's blog for some exciting news and some wonderful blog goodies! Way to go, Jill!

And the winner is...

Congratulations to random.org generated number

18
Becky Sorenson

Becky if you will please e-mail me with your postal address I'll get the goodies out to you!
Thanks to everyone for playing!

Working Tonight

Hi, All! I signed up to work tonight from 7pm-1am so I will not be drawing for the blog candy until around 1:30 am (CT.) So if you are not awake at the hour be sure to check back here in the morning for the winner! It's ALWAYS a Stampin' Good Time! Take care!