Show and Tell

2 Sketches 4 You, Try #2

I'm back with my second post of the day. And, here is the second card that I finished for Laura's Sketch 56 on 2S4Y.

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I love sheer ribbon. I can't help it. It doesn't seem to be too popular in cardmaking these days — you just don't see it all that often — but that's not going to stop me. I just love the soft look it adds to a card. Mmm. So lovely. It makes me smile. :)

AND TELL:  stamp is from Papertrey Ink (Mega Mixed Messages, Background Basics: Petal Power); cardstock is PTI (Spring Rain); ink is Stazon (Jet Black), Versamark, and PTI (Fresh Snow); ribbon is from Michael's; rhinestones are from Kaisercraft (Raspberry, Clear); round sticker is from Simply Luxe (Simple Labels Lime); butterfly was punched from a scrap with a Martha Stewart punch; also used PTI's Woodgrain Impression Plate.

I know I finished Flylady's 31 Day Beginner BabySteps, but — sorry — you're going to have to endure a bit more Flylady talk from me...

And, I wanted to show you something...

 
See? I do own "lace-up shoes" — and every once in awhile I actually put them on for around the house stuff. Like the "weekly home blessing hour" that I'm now trying to do on Saturdays. Well, I was planning to go to Curves today, too, which is the real reason I put them on. I've just been vegging at the house on Fridays the past couple of weeks — haven't so much as walked to the mailbox — so I've felt compelled to do my Friday workout on Saturday morning. And, I'm a get dressed once a day kind of girl, if I can get away with it. So up and into sweats and lace-up shoes it was. And, maybe Flylady is right. It does kind of put you into an "I can do anything including clean this house" kind of mood. (Of course, I do still have quite a few tasks to do as I've only done about 20 minutes of the hour and it's already 3:00 in the afternoon... something about going to Curves, having a workman at the house for awhile, and getting distracted by making a card, posting, etc.)

Anyway, these are my brand new shoes. I'm not a runner, but I do know the value of a really good pair of shoes for walking/running/working out. One of our preschool families just took over ownership of one of the local Charlotte Running Co. stores — and as the dad and I were chatting when he brought his son to summer school this week, I told him that I was long overdue for a new pair of shoes. Long story short, I showed him my older shoes, which happened to be in the car (ready for my daily trip to Curves), he told me that Asics is on their third update of my style since I purchased mine (yikes — I knew it had been awhile!), he wrote down my size and two days later his wife brought in my new shoes. I gave her my old shoes (which they send somewhere to be refurbished before sending them to a Third World country), wrote them a check, and it was the easiest thing ever. Love shopping that way (locally, with someone I know, and — most especially — without having to go to the store)! And love my new shoes, too. So — now if I decide to get back into early morning walks (I used to walk 3 miles before work everyday — twice that on some of the days that I didn't have school), I'll be all set with my favorite shoes for walking. :) But right now, I guess I'm all set to get that vacuuming done (among other things). {sigh} 

Thanks so much for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your weekend!  

Lotsa Scraps

I made this card using this week's Card Patterns sketch as inspiration. And, I guess I can say "inspiration" because I've developed a bad habit of glancing at a sketch, turning my back on it, creating, and then turning back to find that I left an integral part of the sketch out. Oh, well. Sketches are pretty much just a starting point anyway, right?

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The "Thank You" sentiment is from one of my very oldest Stampin' Up sets. I'm thinking it was a hostess reward that I chose after my first party. And, I still like it and the three images that came with it. So — back in the drawer it goes. I'm not doing so well at culling out my old sets, am I? Maybe that means that I just have extraordinarily good taste that hasn't changed over the years. :)

So, since I forgot to add any twine or ribbon or even a strip of paper to create some vertical interest, I may have to try this sketch again. We'll see. If I get a chance, that might mean tomorrow will be a two post day. Wow. Haven't done that for awhile!

AND TELL:  stamp is from Stampin' Up (Thank You Blocks); cardstock is Papertrey Ink (Rustic White) and SU (vellum); patterned paper is a bunch of scraps trimmed into 1" squares; ink is StazOn (Jet Black); rhinestone is from my stash.

Now I feel like there should be a trumpet fanfare playing... or a parade marching by... or cheerleaders shouting a victory chant... or something. Today marks Day 31 of the Flylady Beginner BabySteps. Day 31 of 31 days. I did it. Woohoo and yea, me!

Before I tell you what Day 31 says, let me just report that my house is not perfect. My life is not perfect. But — surprise, suprise — I'm not perfect either. And, this side of heaven, I won't be. So, this isn't about perfection. It's about gaining a measure of control (over myself) and doing a little something each and everyday. It's about establishing enough of a routine, that many things become automatic. I buck a routine with just about every fiber of my being, yet — I know that when I keep to one (with some flexibility, of course!) I am a much happier person... and, hopefully, more fun to be around.

So — as I write this, my sink is full of breakfast and lunch dishes because I didn't get the dishwasher unloaded this morning. A couple of the things that I bought while out running errands are sitting on the counter still. There's a hot spot building on the kitchen island. The dog's bed cover is in the dryer and I haven't done a load of clothes today. Only one bathroom got a swish & swipe this morning. But most of that can be taken care of in short order. And will be. And, I know that it's only going to take me a matter of minutes to do it. And, just as importantly, I know how it all got to be this way — last night I stayed up too late (drat that monthly PTI release party!), didn't complete my before bed routine, and got up too late to finish my morning routine before leaving for work. There truly is something to this routine stuff, you see. And it's been good for me to have my eyes opened to it (again). 

Day 31 — it's really like a pep talk. Or a big hug. A gentle reminder to keep looking at your control journal morning, afternoon, and evening — and another reminder that you don't have to do everything Flylady suggests all at once. The more you do (regularly), the easier it gets and the more you can do. And the more you want to do. As she says, "You don't have to see the top of the staircase to take the first step. Or the 30th. Just keep FLYing (Finally Loving Yourself)." [That was the Janelle paraphrase. :) ]

Hope you've had a wonderful day! Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Caught Up!

This week I caught up with Natasha's Clean and Simple Stamping sketches. Yea, me! I started on her 50th sketch nearly a year ago and this week I did cards for numbers 98 and 49. Woohoo! First let me know you FTL 98. 

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The open hearts are from the same stamp set that I used on yesterday's card. In fact, yesterday's card was supposed to be for this sketch — but after I finished the card and compared it to the sketch, well, I thought maybe I had strayed a little far, so I decided to give it another try.

Since my color options of Copic markers are very limited, this time I watercolored the image by brushing on some Pink Passion ink mixed with a little water.  

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Sage Advice, Short & Sweet); cardstock is SU (Pink Passion) and Papertrey Ink (Orange Zest, Rustic White); patterned cardstock is Heidi Swapp; ink is SU (Pink Passion) and Memento (Tuxedo Black); also used SU's Word Window punch.

And here's my I'm-all-caught-up card for FTL 49.

 

 

 

 

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Well, I probably should have made it a "congratulations" or "way to go" card in celebration of being caught up, but I didn't think of that until right now. Instead, it's a simple little birthday card for my stash. Once again, it uses one of my older Stampin' Up sets that was sitting in the center of my floor — living in limbo; will it go back in the drawer or into the get-rid-of pile? And (drumroll, please)... it's... going... back in the drawer. Both of them are, actually. Although the sentiment set was never in question. It's just too classic to get rid of. And the flowers and frame. Too cute. Can't let them go. Hmmm. This purging of my stamp sets is not going too well. Since Monday I've used 6 of these older sets (you haven't seen all the cards yet, though) and so far each set is back in the drawer. haha

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Sweet Dreams, Sincere Salutations); cardstock is Papertrey Ink (Rustic White); patterned paper is a scrap from my stash; ink is SU (Basic Black, Pink Passion); also used SU's Stampin' Write markers (Pink Passion, Only Orange, Green Galore) and a piece of hot pink raffia saved from a gift received at the end of the school year.

OK — now for Day 30 of Flylady's Beginner BabySteps. The task is to look at your calendar for the next month and determine what needs to be done, what birthday cards to buy (haha — make), what needs to be mailed when, etc. Oh, my. I came up with a lengthy list of things to do (make) over the next month. I have three trips planned over the next four weeks and have many little things to make and details to take care of. Plus, I'm co-hosting a baby shower for a neighbor next month. And then, of course, the teachers will be coming back to school and there will be meetings to plan, pep talks to give, paperwork to prepare. Yikes! I'm exhausted just thinking of it. Who has time for a blog? I've too much to do!! (Just kidding — the blog may suffer some, but not too much. I'll just have to learn to be more concise. haha) Oh — Flylady also talked about creating a Basic Weekly Plan. Hmm. Thought we already did that. Did I actually get ahead somehow? That would be crazy — and so unlike me!

One more Flylady thing... well, maybe two — just because I'm oh-so-proud of myself. Flylady bills every Wednesday as "Anti-Procrastination Day". So — one of my big things I've been procrastinating on is making doctor appointments. I do not know why I hate to call and make appointments. I just do. If I could make appointments for a year out, while I'm standing in the doctor's office taking care of my co-pay, I would have no problem. They usually don't do that, though, so my appointments end up being, um... I don't know... two years apart? Three? Not sure. Just longer than is recommended. So — today I picked up the phone and made an appointment for my yearly (ahem!) girl exam and, after doing that, immediately called and made an appointment for a full physical (minus the girl-y part). So — this afternoon I'm patting myself on the back for finally taking care of something that I should have done long ago. Do you have anything you're procrastinating on? Maybe you can do it now and start patting yourself on the back, too. I'd love to hear about what kind of things you put off... if for no other reason than to know I'm not the only one who does crazy stuff like this! :)

And, as far as my other Flylady accomplisment goes, I'll keep you in suspense. Gotta have something to talk about next time, you know! 

Thanks so much for coming by. I hope you're having a great week and that I'll see you again tomorrow!

I get by with a little help from my friends

How true is that? Before I get to today's card, I just want to thank you for visiting — and for commenting, whether it's just once-in-awhile or regularly. I sort of think of this blog as a conversation and when you leave me comments in response to something I've written — like how you declutter your stamp sets... or that you don't...  :) — well, it just makes my day. Sometimes I have the time to respond to comments and sometimes I don't — but I do read every single one and smile and think warm thoughts of you, my friend. So — thank you very much for taking the time to come visit. You're one of the friends who helps me get by!

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You may see a lot of old Stampin' Up sets making appearances here for awhile since they're all still in the middle of the floor while I decide what to do with them. I think this is the first time I inked up either of these stamps — and I like them. I think this set is a keeper. There's a simple open heart image in the set, too, and I used it on a card that I'll post later this week. Is it possible to have too many hearts or flowers?  

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Sage Advice); cardstock is SU (Rich Razzleberry) and Papertrey Ink (Lavender Moon, Rustic White); ink is Memento (Tuxedo Black); ribbon is from Michael's; colored with Copic markers(PTI's Lavender Moon trio plus YG03, G24, and the colorless blender).

I'm almost done with the Flylady 31 Day Beginner BabySteps. Yesterday was Day 29. Things really seem to be winding down, as it is looking like the tasks lately have to do with becoming familiar with the website. I guess that makes sense. There has been a lot of information and stuff to do over the past month. Stuff that has to keep being done, like, everyday — so I think I'm glad that she's not still throwing things to do at me! :)

Anyway, on Day 29 you're supposed to set a time to do the weekly pampering mission. I'm actually pretty good at pampering myself, so I probably don't need to be encouraged to do so more — but I thought I should take a look anyway. :)  This week's mission involves "pampering your ears" by listening to music you like with the purpose of just relaxing and enjoying it. I often have my iTunes songs or one of my Pandora stations playing while I'm doing other things (cleaning, creating, reading blogs...) — but it's more than just background noise to me. My playlists are filled with Praise & Worship songs, so I often find myself pausing to have my own little worship session. I gain so much peace and comfort from Christian songs that I rarely listen to secular music. To me it's an application of Philippians 4:8:  "...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things." 

I think that's it for today. I plan to be back tomorrow with more cards. Thanks again for taking the time to stop by!

Ready for some weirdness?

I thought I'd share a couple One Layer Wednesday challenge cards before I start showing you photos from yesterday's stamp club meeting and maybe some other random stuff. This week's challenge on Susan Raihala's blog is to be funny. Boy, did I have trouble with this one. I don't do funny on command. Most of my funny comes at my own expense — you know, when I do or say something ridiculous. Often. Yes, that happens often. But — here goes.

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You know how people always eat the chocolate bunny ears first, right? So — guess this could be an Easter card. Or a will you share your chocolate with me card. Or an I need a friend can you listen to me card. Or maybe you have another idea.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Chocolate Bunny, Straight Up Alphabet & Numbers); cardstock is Papertrey Ink (Kraft); ink is SU (Chocolate Chip, Real Red); also use a SU Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write marker.

So — I don't know that the card is funny, but it's what I came up with. I probably wouldn't have thought of it if I hadn't done this today. (Ken, shut your eyes.)

I pulled all my Stampin' Up stamps sets (and my Verve, Unity, Technique Tuesday, and some random clear sets) out of the drawer they've been living in. That's the open drawer on the left. The drawer on the right is partially open because an empty PTI stamp box fell behind it and I haven't taken the time to figure out how to get it out yet... that's so me. Now — back to the SU, etc. sets — I know I need to let some of these go. Some are so, so old. And I obviously don't use all of these. And, there are so many newer sets I'd like. And, really, I'm about out of space. But — I do have a hard time letting go of the old. I guess it's time to get ruthless. I'll let you know if I'm successful at that or not. (Don't count on it.) But — for curiousity's sake, if you're a stamper, how do you decide which of your old stamp sets to get rid of?

Well, back to One Layer Wednesday cards. (Ken, you can open your eyes now.) I mentioned before that I have a compulsion to catch up with some blog's challenges. Because of that, here is a card for OLW challenge #3. That challenge was to use your punctuation mark stamps. Susan made some really great cards here. Seriously, they're worth taking a look at. I especially love the last one with the caret used to insert a missing comma into a sentiment. I think that I have a latent proofreader living inside me. I'm forever noticing misspellings, left-out words, bad punctuation, etc. in books, newspapers, mail, and so forth. I know. You can't tell that by the way I write here. As in much of my real life, I follow rules selectively. If I like them. I'm quietly rebellious. :)

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I really should've used my Stamp-a-majig on this one so that I could've spaced the exclamation point/sunrays a little more evenly, but — oh, well. No do-overs today. At the last minute, I decided it needed a little something and I added the gemstone to the center of the "O". Bad idea. When I looked at the pictures on the computer screen my sunshine started looking like a big bloodshot eyeball with crazy eyelashes. haha. Maybe this one is the funny card, after all.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Collage Alphabet) and Papertrey Ink (Daily Designs Sentiments); cardstock is PTI (Rustic White); ink is PTI (Terra Cotta Tile, Summer Sunrise, Orange Zest); gemstone is from K&Company. 

Now for some pictures and narrative on yesterday. This may get a bit lengthy. If you want to duck out now, I don't blame you.

I got up and did my morning routine and most of my Weekly Home Blessing Hour (Flylady is alive and well here) and then I went to Curves. Good thing, too. Because after that I had a baby shower/luncheon to go to. The food was yummy, but — as always — it's the sweet stuff that has my heart.

Kathy, whose home I was at, makes beautiful and tasty decorated cakes. And she knows that I like a corner piece. With lots of icing. Yum. And I ate a corner piece. A huge corner piece. I don't often get that too much sugar feeling, but — boy — did I have it after cleaning my plate.

So, Kathy makes gorgeous cakes. I make ugly cakes. Here's a photo of the lemon cake that I took to stamp club (read yesterday's post for the details and recipe).

I know. I didn't warn you about how ugly it truly is. I promise, though, it's really tasty. And, if you take it somewhere, chances are you'll be bringing a lot of leftovers home. It's so ugly that it tricks people into thinking that it's not worth trying. Those poor souls don't know what they're missing. But — if you're worried about appearances (or about bringing too much of a delicious cake back home with you), either serve it with berries or spread fresh berries all over the top. And maybe have some whipped cream available. Then they're sure to eat it. :)

So, before I go on to pictures of the food brought to stamp club, I better share a photo of the favors that I brought home from the baby shower. Cute, huh? This group of ladies puts on some really great get-togethers to honor brides and new moms. There is always great food. Games. Prizes. Favors. And generous gifts for the guest of honor. Thanks to Kathy, Sheri, and all for including me again!

Now for Stamp Club. We met at our fearless leader's house, which is in the opposite direction of our usual meeting spot. But it's always so fun to be in her historical home. Of course, I didn't get good pictures of the house like I should have — but I did take food pictures. You know me. It's always about the food. :) Apparently I'm not the only one, though.

See? Others take pictures of food, too. (Gorgeous kitchen, isn't it?)

And, look here.

This is Kelley putting the finishing touches on her Baby Carrot Soup. In martini glasses. How fun is that?

Yummy, too!

Yep —

there's that ugly cake again.

And, speaking of ugly —

This is one of those try it to be polite kind of dishes, isn't it. It's OK — you can be truthful. Lynn can take it. :) But, I'm here to tell you it was so, so tasty! She didn't have her recipe cards made, but she'll get them to us later. Oh — what is it, you ask? Cornbread Salad. I know. Strange sounding. But really good, nonetheless.

Now, tired of ugly and wanna see some cute?

Check out that casserole dish! Can it get any cuter than red with white polka dots? Oh — the pasta dish was good, too. Kathy didn't have her recipe cards finished either. I forgive her, though. She's the one who made the wonderful train cake that sent me into sugar overload earlier in the day. :)

What else did we eat, you ask?

How about Sheri's contribution — a delish pasta salad with the cutest little slices of pepperoni.

Or —

Judy's shrimp salad.

Or another dessert maybe? This time a pretty one?

A little cookie, fresh peaches, a mini-scoop of sorbet, and a dollop of mascarpone cheese. Oh, so refreshing — but no recipe cards from Cherie yet either. Not to worry — my stamp club buddies always come through. :)

I think that's enough for today. More than enough. Tomorrow we'll talk about Flylady Day 29. And whatever else comes up. Thanks for stopping by!

  

  

Luscious Lemon Cake

 
Today's stamp club swap was recipe cards (5"x7"). In the past we've done this only at Christmas. This year we decided to do one during the summer, too.

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I really try to use all Stampin' Up products when I'm going to card club — at least for the stamps, inks, and colored cardstocks. And major decorative elements. But, somehow those Martha Stewart doily tags snuck their way onto my recipe cards. I bought them quite awhile ago and this seemed the perfect opportunity to use them.

As is usual for stamp club, I stamped and signed the back of my cards.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Tart & Tangy, Nice & Narrow, Yummy); cardstock is SU (Ruby Red, So Saffron) and Papertrey Ink (Rustic White); ink is SU (So Saffron, Summer Sun, Ruby Red), PTI (Tea Dye Duo), and VersaMark; also used SU's Lattice embossing folder, 1-3/4" and 1-3/8" circle punches, and Martha Stewart's doily tags. The fonts I used are the same ones that Michelle Wooderson uses on her recipe cards. I'm such a copycat sometimes.

I thought I'd show you my original copy of this recipe in my very own senior year of high school handwriting. The assignment was to start a file of recipes that we enjoyed from our home ec class(es), supplementing them with favorite recipes from home. The Lemon Cake recipe was one that I copied from my mom's extensive collection.

Thought you also might like to see the grade I received on my recipe project. Written in my mom's very own handwriting. Yep. My mom was my high school home ec teacher. haha. She mentioned organizing my recipe cards better in her note. Ummm. Sorry, Mom. I'm quite sure every card is in the exact same place that it was in when you graded my book. Surely my 'A' grade is safe after over — yikes! — 30 years.

And for those of you have been asking, here's the recipe:

Luscious Lemon Cake

 

2 (3 ounce) packages of lemon jello

1 package yellow cake mix

4 eggs

¾ cup water

¾ cup canola oil

1-1/2 cups powdered sugar

Juice of two lemons (about 6 tablespoons)

 

Beat first 4 ingredients with mixer for 2 minutes. Add oil and beat 2 minutes more. Bake in a greased 9x13 pan at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes, then reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake until done, about 15-20 more minutes (may take longer). While cake is baking, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice. After cake is removed from oven, poke all over with a meat fork and pour lemon juice mixture over the top. The cake is tasty as is, or top it with fresh berries and maybe some whipped topping for an extra treat.

I have more pictures from today to show you, but think I'll save those for next time. It's getting rather late and Flylady would want me to get to bed — the Day 28 task is to eat good food, drink water, and get your rest. (How was that for a quick update on the Beginner BabySteps?)

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Sometimes you just need a reminder.

Here's my reminder for the day. You can let it be your reminder, too. I used Card Patterns Sketch 71 as my inspiration for this small card (4-1/4" x 4").

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Since my life doesn't always go as I plan, this is a good reminder for me. Some things are out of my control. Nothing is out of God's control. I just need to be still... and know... and trust.

AND TELL:  stamp is from Verve (Psalm 46:10); cardstock is Stampin' Up (Vintage Violet); patterned paper is Webster's Pages (petite papers triple pack: Seaside Retreat, Garden Gala, Nature's Storybook); ink is Papertrey Ink (Plum Pudding); rhinestone brads are SU (Fire Squares); also used circles punched from old church choir music. 

Yesterday after work I had lunch with a friend and that put me behind for the entire day — thus no post yesterday — and no Flylady update either. So — let's start here today... I did put a little thought into a basic weekly plan and penciled a bit into my Control Journal. I'll try this out for a few weeks and see if I can make it work. If not, I'll make adjustments. One kind of funny thing — when I was growing up, Saturday morning was always spent cleaning the house. My mom is great with routines and she had one down that worked for her. Now, I'll admit that I was not crazy about the fact that her routine involved me dusting and vacuuming every week. Guess I've been rebelling ever since (by only cleaning when absolutely necessary). Poor, Mom. You tried your best — I just happen to have this rebellious teen in me that hasn't grown up yet. :) In Flylady's plan, she spends an hour cleaning her house on Monday mornings. Since I work away from home, that day/time doesn't cut it for me. A few years ago I tried doing a different household chore every afternoon when I came home from work — you know, dust one day, vacuum another, change the sheets another, etc. That worked pretty well. Until I started a blog. haha. Now I'd rather spend my afternoons making things and blogging. But — Ken does a volunteer job every Saturday morning and is out of the house, so it finally occurred to me that Saturday morning would be the perfect time to do what Flylady calls the Weekly Home Blessing Hour. How funny that I'm back to what my mom tried to train me to do all those years ago!

Well, Day 26 of Flylady's Beginner BabySteps is to read the first line at the bottom of her e-mails. I think she's changed the way the e-mails are formatted since the baby steps were added to the website, but she was talking about how it may take a month to form a habit so she has chosen a different habit for her "flybabies" to focus on each month. July's habit is the Swish & Swipe. I think the e-mails used to have the habit of the month listed at the top of the bottom (got that?) — then she would have a few more lines underneath. Now the top of the bottom (haha, sorry, can't help myself...) says, "You are not behind! I don't want you to try to catch up; I just want you to jump in where we are. O.K.?" And that in itself is not a bad reminder for me either as I sometimes have a tendency to "throw out the baby with the bathwater." So — there you go. Day 26. Just five more to go and I'll have done (and reported on) each one.

Well, that was two reminders for today — 

1. Is your life a mess? Be still. Know God. Trust Him.

2. Is your house a mess? Just jump in and do something.

That's it for now. Thanks for stopping by today! I'll be back tomorrow with more. Hope to see you then!

  

Hmmmm...

Not sure if the mojo is back or not. I like the colors of the card that I made for this week's sketch on 2 Sketches 4 You (Kazan's 56), but... well... I'm not sure that I did that awesome butterfly tree from Unity's June Kit of the Month justice. Oh, well. Here it is anyway.

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The image seemed a little stark, so I used a sponge to add some additional color to the white cardstock.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Unity (June 2010 KOM:  fly...free, December 2009 KOM:  delightful moments); cardstock is Stampin' Up (Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise) and Papertrey Ink (Stampers Select White); ink is SU (Green Galore, Gable Green, Creamy Caramel, Cool Caribbean, Tempting Turquoise, Only Orange) and PTI (True Black); ribbon is PTI (Orange Zest); rhinestones are Kaiser (clear); also used PTI's rickrack die.

Now let's talk Flylady. When I left off over a week ago I was on Day 25 of the Beginner BabySteps. Day 25's task was to read her testimony on how she developed her routines over the course of a year. I've read it before, but I enjoyed reading it again. It's a good reminder that for people who were not born organized, it will probably take awhile to get positive actions to become habits. What I know that I need to do is one of the things that she did — and that's to develop a basic weekly plan. You know — clean on this day, run errands on this day, etc. The way I work my life now is a bit haphazard. Like... you know, I feel like going to the mall today —where I might wander around aimlessly for a couple hours and not buy anything. Talk about a waste of time! I need to bring some focus to my life and I think a weekly plan will help that. I'll give that some more thought tonight and let you know tomorrow — when I'll also tell you about Day 26.

I guess that's it for today. Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you again tomorrow!

Enjoy the ride

We have great neighbors. Over the past year I've shown several cards that I've made for occasions in the family of our neighbors to the left. And here's another. I used Kazan's Sketch 55 on 2 Sketches 4 You as a starting point for the layout. If you can't see the resemblance, stand on your head. I flipped the sketch. :)

 

 

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Molly, the first-born of our neighbor children, turned 17 years old today. One more year of high school and she'll be heading off to college. She will most likely end up at a big university, possibly Ivy League, and — I'm sure with that in mind — her parents bought her something that will help her get to class on time.

They called last night on the way home from the store to ask if they could store this special something in our garage until the time was right to give it to her. And — it provided me with some color and image inspiration for the birthday card. (Click on the far right picture to see the detail that I was inspired by.) I must say that when I saw it last night, I was awfully tempted to take it for a little spin around the block. It's a real beauty. Of course, I'd have been banking on the saying, "It's like riding a bike" since I haven't been on a bike in about 20 years. :)

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Everyday Button Bits, Turning a New Leaf, Floral Fusion); cardstock is Stampin' Up (Going Grey) and PTI (Stampers Select White, Plum Pudding); patterned paper is PTI (Bitty Dot Basics in Lavender Moon); ink is SU (Marvelous Magenta), PTI (Plum Pudding), and Versamark; buttons are PTI (True Black); ribbon is from Michael's; also used SU Lots of Tags Label 1 die, Black Detail embossing powder, and Basic Black Stampin' Write marker, Stampin' Stuff Detail White embossing powder, Creative Memories metallic silver pen, classic and scallop oval Nestabilities, and Copic markers.

{Sigh.} It's time for the Day 24 update on the Flylady Beginner BabySteps. The goal for Day 24 is to add "Swish & Swipe" to your morning routine. The idea is that if you do a little swish with a toilet brush every morning and a little wipe of the sink area at the same time that your bathroom will always be presentable should you have unexpected company drop in for a visit. Or — heaven forbid — if you or someone in your family ends up having to hug the toilet for an unpleasant emptying of the stomach.

No pictures as proof of my swishing & swiping. Aren't you glad? I mean — gazing at your own clean toilet can be a bit exciting, but who wants to look at someone else's? And, I certainly wasn't going to show a before and after either. Just believe me when I tell you that all three toilets are now gleaming and the bathroom sinks are clean, too. Now that I've done a thorough cleaning and added swishing and swiping to my morning routine, I should be able to give each bathroom a bit of attention every morning and have them stay clean. I'll have to time myself and see how long that takes. Surely it'll be less than 5 minutes — especially since we rarely use one of the bathrooms. (But, I have learned that just because you don't use a toilet doesn't mean you don't have to clean it — why would I think that a toilet bowl that hasn't been flushed for weeks would still be shiny with crystal clear water? I have no idea.)

I guess that's it for today. This is a very busy week. The church where I work is having Vacation Bible School and I was recruited to help out in the 5 year old class when one of the teachers had to back out at the last minute. The 80 year old (!) woman who I'm working with does a great job with the kids, but the way VBS is done these days we're shuttling these 18 kids here, there, and everywhere for crafts or music or the Bible story or playground or snack or worship rally... and just keeping track of the schedule (to say nothing of the kids!) is exhausting even for me. It helps that, out of the 18, I already was very familiar with 15 as they are recent "graduates" of our preschool. One of them gave me a gift today. Jak gave me one of his (kazillion) silly bands. A blue duck. I think I've been accepted as part of the group. :) Hmmm. Is that good or bad? Hahaha. Well, we've been having fun and it's great to be able to interact with them in a role that most of them haven't seen me in before.

Hope you're having a great week! Thanks so much for stopping by. Hopefully I'll find time to create something else for tomorrow. I'm going day to day around here now. :) See ya!

One Layer Cards

Well, when you don't have much time, one layer cards can be a Godsend. And, since I didn't have much time to create yesterday, I decided to attack the current One Layer Wednesday challenge on Simplicity. The twist this week was to use a flourish stamp on the card.

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My most recent Papertrey order arrived Saturday, so having to do a card with a flourish was the perfect opportunity to ink up one of the cute teacups in the new Tea for Two Additions. Flourishes make great steam.

Over 20 years ago, I had a backdoor neighbor who I had tea with nearly every day. Her children were about the same age as mine — so it was perfect. In fact, we were both a little artsy and for a short period of time designed and painted t-shirts that were sold in a local children's boutique. We called our little "business" Tea Time (a play on the t-shirt theme and our tea drinking habit) and painted a little tiny teacup on the hem of each shirt. I think I'll send this card to Terry — who now lives 3000 miles away. We sure had a great time during the years we were neighbors. 

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Tea for Two Additions, Fancy Flourishes); cardstock is PTI (Rustic White); ink is PTI (Simply Chartreuse) and Stampin' Up (Going Grey); also used my Scor-pal and bone folder to make score lines at the bottom.

There seems to be something in me that needs to have completed lists. Haha. I guess that's why I'm doing all 31 days of the Flylady Beginner BabySteps. And why I insist on catching up with every Clean and Simple Stamping card layout. And now, add to that the One Layer Wednesday Challenges. Since I started at week 8 it won't take me too long to catch up, I guess. But I do find this a little weird. I mean, I make lists all the time and hardly ever get everything checked off. Oh, I'm just a mass of contradictions... :)

So, I looked back to find the first One Layer Wednesday Challenge and it wasn't really so much of a challenge then — just Susan posting a one layer card and seeing if anyone else wanted to play along. The official challenges started with week 2. But — the completist in me has to do #1 before going to #2, so here is another one layer card that I made using more of my new stamps from PTI.

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This is funny. You know the complete set/list thing? I seem to be compelled to purchase each of PTI's Year of Flowers sets because there will be one for each month. And, in typical Janelle fashion, I'm a month behind. Haha. So this is made with the May set that I just purchased in June. :)

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Year of Flowers: Lily of the Valley); cardstock is PTI (Rustic White); ink is PTI (Spring Rain) and Stampin' Up (Ruby Red). 

Well, Flylady Day 23. Add an Afternoon Routine page to your control journal. Here it is at this point in time.

 
It will change. In fact, I already know that I need to add "Go to Curves" to it. Yesterday I read all of the Flylady information on creating a control journal. Get this — there were 19 steps. Haha. Don't run from the room screaming. I have no plans to obsess about this and post for 19 additional days with each control journal step! Haha. Although, that does appeal to me...  :)

I have some random things to write about, but this is a busy week for me so I think I should get this post "live" and move on to something else. You know. Something that really needs to be done.

Hope all is well with you and that your week has started out on a lovely note. Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope to be back tomorrow with... well, something. I'll figure it out. :) Have a great rest of your day!