Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, my friends!!  In just 3 hours, we'll be counting down the last minutes of 2010.  Well, here on the East Coast anyway!  I wish everyone a great night...have fun, but be careful!  Can't wait to see what we all create in 2011!  Here's to a GREAT year!  :-)

~Sharon C.

Christmas Treat Bags for My Students...and Other Crafty Goodness!

Hi everyone, it's snowing here in southeastern Massachusetts....looks like we might have a white Christmas after all!  The weather folks forecasted no more than 2 inches of snow for our area, but it's been snowing for 24 hours now with no end in sight.  I'd better look for my kids' winter boots before they get home from school.  I know they'll be itching to get outside with their sleds!  :-)  I posted a picture below....look at all that white stuff!

I wanted to share with you the treat bags I made up for my 3rd grade CCD students.  I love the toppers....all of the images are from Paper Doll Dress Up (one of my all-time favorite Cricut cartridges).



My children and I also made glittered ornaments and angel ornaments.  These will be given to friends, family and my children's CCD teachers.  This was the first year we attempted either of these projects...and I'm pleased to say that they were both quick and easy!  Yea!  The instructions for the glitter ornaments can be found HERE and those for the angel ornaments are HERE.  

This will most likely be my last post until after Christmas.  My to-do list is still quite long (yours too, I'd bet!) so I won't be crafting any more until Santa has come and gone.  But I wish you all the happiest of holidays....may they be merry and bright!

Hugs,

Sharon

2 in 1: A Gift Tag and An Ornament

I made these skates for my sister-in-law who loves handmade, crafty goodies.  She is extremely generous and thoughtful and always gives the most original gifts.  She skated quite a bit as a girl, so I thought these would be perfect for her.  I plan on using these as a gift tag on my gift for her, then she can hang them on her tree if she chooses.  I wrote 'To:' and 'From:' on the back in white gel pen.  I love the look of the glitter on the blades and the bow/laces. 



Recipe

Skates - cut from Winter Woodland; the base image was cut multiple times and layered to create a sturdy die cut

Patterned paper - scraps from my stash

Cardstock - DCWV Textured Neutrals; Recollections

Extra fine glitter

Black Creative Memories marker for stitching

White Gelly Roll pen (not shown; on flip side)

Cording from Michael's

I'm entering this project into a few challenges:

Cooking With Cricut: Challenge #8 - No Red and Green Together - Create a holiday project using red or green but not together...or use neither.

Fantabulous Cricut: Challenge Me Monday #39 - Gifts Galore - Create a handmade gift or gift package.

Gaby Abby Challenge with SEI Week #9: Glitter It Up! - "Create anything, just make sure you GLITTER IT UP!!"

Serenity Scrappers: Christmas Secret Prize Challenge - Create a holiday-themed layout, tag or card.  This FUN challenge is open until 12/17 - the winner will receive a wrapped gift to place under their tree...not to be opened until Christmas!!  :-)  Get your projects in!



An Ornament Shaped Card with a bonus...or two!

Yup, the two little bonuses are my 7 year-old twins.  This picture was taken on Thanksgiving Day...they were very (extremely, really!) happy to spend the day at their grandparents' house.  Nothing like a bit (a LOT, really!) of spoiling!  It didn't matter to them that dinner came with a boat load of vegetables...they were hanging out with their Nana...and nothing beats that! :-)  We're going to send this ornament card to Nana and Papa to thank them for a wonderful Thanksgiving and for inviting the twins to stay over for a few days by themselves to help decorate for Christmas.  I hear there was lots (tons, really! he he he) of chocolate involved!  ;-)

Recipe

Ornaments - from A Child's Year, welded to make the card

Circles - from George & Basic shapes

Patterned paper - DCWV Holiday stack

Cardstock - DCWV Textured Brights

Cuttlebug Snowflakes folder

Ribbon, button - from stash

Silver cord for hanging - Michael's

Pop dots

I'm entering this ornament card into a few challenges:
Always Crafting: Whimsical Wednesday Challenge with Jess - anything goes!
Cooking With Cricut: Challenge #7 - any project that has to do with decking your halls or commemorating the look of the season.
Fantabulous Cricut: Challenge Me Monday #38 - Ribbon Challenge - use ribbon somewhere on your Cricut project.
Getting Cricky with K. Andrew: Simply Charming Cricut Challenge -  anything goes as long as it's charming and cute.
More Than Favors: Wacky Wednesday #17 - anything Christmas-themed, include some embossing.

Have a great weekend!
~Sharon

Fa La La La La! Caroling Birdie from 3 Birds on Parade

I can't believe that it's been over a week since I posted my Thanksgiving card.  Where has the time gone??  I hope you all enjoyed Thanksgiving and found great bargains on Black Friday!!  And I don't want to say it...but...it's DECEMBER!!  Time to post another holiday card.  This one was inspired by this week's challenge at Paper Playtime - make any paper project that is 'Christmas Carol Inspired'. 



Well, that cute little bird from 3 Birds on Parade came to mind again.  So I cut the bird carrying the stack of gifts on page 45 of the handbook (all layers).  But I replaced the gifts with a book cut from Every Day Paper Dolls (page 67 of the handbook) and popped up the musical notes from 3 Birds (page 67 of the handbook).  Then I used one of the negative cuts from the musical notes to turn Miss Birdie's book into a songbook.  Ta da!  My dressed-for-the-weather birdie is now a singing sensation!  :-)  I can almost hear her tweeting, "Fa la la la la, la la la la"!

Recipe

Scalloped circle shaped card - from Mini Monograms, welded with my Gypsy

Circle layer - from George and Basic Shapes

Bird - from 3 Birds on Parade (p. 45), replaced stack of gifts with book from Every Day Paper Dolls (p. 67)

Musical notes - from 3 Birds on Parade (p. 67)

Patterned paper - DCWV Holiday Stack

Cardstock - Recollections

Glittered earmuffs

White Gelly Roll pen for doodling, stitching

Black Creative Memories marker for doodling, stitching

Pop dots to pop up bird and musical notes

I'm entering my card into two challenges:

Gaby Abby Challenge #8 with SEI: Anything Christmas - make any Christmas-themed project.
Paper Playtime Challenge #27:  Christmas Carol Inspired - make any paper project that is "Christmas Carol inspired".

3 Birds on Parade - Pilgrim Shape Card!

My 3 Birds on Parade cartridge arrived Wednesday from cricutmachine.com.  Whoo hoo!!  I bought my Gypsy there last November - a great deal - and I couldn't resist their super prices on Cricut carts last week and I caved.  Bet I'm not the only one!!  :-)  I had time to play this morning and couldn't help but cut this cute little pilgrim and turn him into a shaped card.  I'm really lovin' those right now! 

I think this card will be making it's way to our CCD coordinator for Thanksgiving.  She's such a lovely woman...with an incredible spirit and endless energy.  I need to let her know how grateful my kids and I are for her!  Then I may just make a few more of these...one for my mom, one for my mother-in-law...you know what I'll be doing this weekend!  Enjoy!

I'm entering my birdie into Paula's Wacky Wednesday challenge #16 at More Than Favors.  This challenge is to make any fall- or Thanksgiving-related project...check it out!

Recipe

Pilgrim birdie cut from 3 Birds on Parade cartridge, shaped card welded with my Gypsy

Patterned paper - Basic Grey 'Recess' 6x6 stack

Cardstock - Recollections

Distressed stripes folder for embossing

Skittles - handmade by a friend (thanks Nancy!)

Cat's Eye chalk ink

Brown & black Creative Memories markers for stitching, doodling and eyes

Gingerbread Girl Shaped Card - My 1st for the Holidays!

Doesn't she look good enough to eat?  I've been dying to make my little gingerbread girl since I saw Momo's adorable card here made using the cute little gingerbread man from Smiley Cards.  But I wanted to make mine pink and girly, which is strange since I have such a tough time making ANYTHING pink and girly.  Having 3 boys (I do have one daughter too) will do that to you!!  I'm sending this to my sister and her 2 1/2 year-old daughter for the holidays...my sister loves pink and brown and her daughter is often likely to be dressed in those colors!

I'm entering my card into the Holiday Project Challenge at Cooking With Cricut.  Did you hop with them over the weekend?  It was their first holiday blog hop and it was loaded with inspiration!!  The challenge is to make a holiday project using a Cricut or other die cut.  I think my gingerbread gal fits the bill!  :-)

Recipe

Gingerbread girl layer - cut from Smiley Cards in tan cardstock

Gingerbread girl shaped card layer - welded two together with my Gypsy, cut once in patterned paper, once again in tan cardstock for the inside of the card and to give extra support

Bow - enlarged the bow tie and made a shadow layer using my Gypsy

D'vine Swirls folder for embossing

Patterned paper - My Mind's Eye 'Bloom & Grow' stack

Cardstock - Recollections

Brown Creative Memories marker for faux stitching

Making Memories trim for pink pom poms (thanks Paula!)

Glitter

Enjoy the day!

~Sharon



Birthday Card for My Nephew - a Hamburger!

My nephew Alex's birthday is coming up in December and I thought I'd make him a birthday card before I began focusing on holiday crafts.  He'll be 14 this year...he's a star athlete, a big ol' teddy bear, a great cousin to my children and a lover of most foods (what 14 year-old isn't??).  So I thought I'd make him a card with food on it...something a teenager would like.  My 9 yr-old son is always suggesting I make cards with hamburgers on them (funny, huh??)....and I thought this would fit the bill for Alex.  Here's my card:

Recipe

Hamburger - cut from Locker Talk, all layers and shadow
Burger patty - embossed using CB distressed stripes folder

Rounded rectangle for sentiment - cut from George & Basic Shapes

Rectangular shaped card - George & Basic Shapes, welded with my Gypsy

Patterned paper - My Mind's Eye 'Everyday Tango' stack

Cardstock - Recollections
Cat's Eye chalk ink
Pop dots

Sentiment printed on my computer

I'm entering this card into My Creative Time with Emma's Throwback Thursday food challenge to make any project that has to do with food, using an older Cricut cartridge.  I used Locker Talk for my burger.  That cartridge also has images of french fries, a pizza slice and soda.  I'll be using it for more cards soon (I have quite a few teenaged nieces and nephews!!).  I inked it, popped it up with pop dots and used a simple rounded rectangle to write my sentiment.  The inside of the card says..."Hope your birthday is full of YUM!" 

I'm also entering the card into the Wacky Wednesday #15 - Color Challenge at More Than Favors by Paula.  Paula's challenge is to use the colors brown, green and blue on a project. 

Sarah's Room

My daughter Sarah turned 7 two weeks ago and pretty much threw her twin brother out of the bedroom they shared.  It was time for them to go their separate ways, but, as anyone with twins knows, it wasn't easy.  For me, anyway!  I thought they'd miss each other.... and those nights I could hear them laughing and whispering, the many times he begged her to stop her 'chit chatting' and the occasions she was all fired up that he wouldn't stay up to talk with her.  :-)  I was wrong.  I guess it really was time.  He's now bunking with his 9 year-old brother and, despite the fact that they are SO unlike each other, it has worked out well.  Both boys love to sleep...I think this is their common bond!!  No chit chatting in THAT room!

So, Sarah and I shopped for her new room and purple seems to be the flavor of the moment.  She chose pink, purple and green bedding with lots of flowers and butterflies.  I decided to make her a sign for her door...to declare the room as hers alone.  Of course, she loved the idea.  Lots of giggling.  And here's what we came up with:

Recipe

Patterned paper - from a RAK (thanks Nancy B.)

Cardstock - Recollections

Scalloped ovals - cut from A Child's Year

Base ovals - cut from George & Basic Shapes (these were cut from cereal boxes for support; the scalloped ovals lay on them)

'Sarah' - cut from Mickey Font, welded with my Gypsy & embossed with CB d'vine swirls folder

butterfly - cut from Create A Critter, antenae glittered and covered with Glossy Accents, wings embossed with d'vine swirls

American Crafts flowers

skittles made by a friend

Bic Mark-It markers

Purple ribbon from WalMart

I'm entering this project into Wacky Wednesday #14 at More than Favors.  This week Paula has an 'anything goes' theme....even I can do that!!  :-)  

I had intended on entering Christina's challenge at Card Creations & More by C but I ran out of time.  :-(   Christina's challenge was to try something you've never done before (cut cardboard with my Cricut) and use purple as the main color.  Thanks for the challenge, Christina...sorry I didn't make the deadline!

Have a great weekend everyone!





What a Difference A Day Can Make!

Here in southeastern Massachusetts, we can experience some gorgeous fall weather.  Although it's usually in the 50's about now, we had a few days of 70 degree weather last week.  (My kids pulled out the shorts I had packed away the previous weekend!!)  This is truly my favorite time of year.  I love pulling on warm sweaters and fuzzy socks, smelling stews cooking in the crockpot, watching football and soccer games in the crisp, fresh air and baking apple pies for my family. 

I also love to witness the change of the seasons in nature.  We have a beech tree in our backyard that produces the most beautifully colored leaves.  This year I decided to chronicle the change by taking a series of photographs, which I will, someday, scrapbook.  But I had to share these 2 photos....the change in colors over a 30-hour period is incredible in my eyes. 

Being able to experience autumn in New England certainly makes it easier to brave the winters!! 

Halloween Table Topper

I wish I were a crafty girl like my sister who can draw like a pro and just whip up an unbelievable craft at a moment's notice.  She got all the crafty genes.  But I did put together a table topper for my kids for Halloween...and I think it's pretty darn cute!  Thanks for the inspiration ladies...I've seen a few like this while blog hopping.  :-)

This was the centerpiece on the kids' table at the Halloween-themed birthday party I hosted for 3 of my children last weekend.  They were all born during the last days of October...maybe that's why they LOVE Halloween SO much!  The purple pail was from the Target Dollar Spot and all of the Halloween cuts, including the witch on the front of the pail, are from Cricut cartridges...except for the green and purple bats and the words 'boo' on the layered circles.  Those are from the Peachy Keen Stamps 'Nikkity Knack Cat Gang' set...aren't they cute?

I'm submitting my project into a few challenges (are you surprised??):

Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge Blog - Let's Face It Friday: Week #3 - Create a home decor item based on a harvest/fall theme using Peachy Keen stamps.

Fantabulous Cricut - Challenge Me Monday: Frighten Me...or Not! - Create a project using a Halloween idea...scary or not so scary.

Paper Playtime - Challenge #22: Halloween - Make any Halloween paper project.


Thanks for stopping by!

My First Blog Award!! :-)

I am THRILLED to receive the 'Sweet Blogger' award from Jen, the Purple Scrapbooker!!  I haven't been blogging for very long, just a few months, so this came as such a terrific surprise!!  Thank you Jen!!  Be sure to check out Jen's blog HERE....she makes some of the cutest cards!!  :-)

I'm so happy to know that my creations are enjoyed!  And I'm thrilled to have a few followers too!  :-)  I will be happy to pass this award along soon to 5 'sweet' bloggers.

I have a couple of projects to post too.  Just have to find a minute between the soccer, basketball and football practices, field trips, homework, school literary magazine, Halloween party planning and preparations for a birthday party for THREE of my children this weekend...oh my!  Fall is so busy at my house...and I KNOW I'm not the only one!!  :-)

One little, two little, three little pumpkins....

Well, there are only two in the picture, but page down and you'll see my third little pumpkin in a previous post.  To be fair, I guess I should scrap my fourth too!  But that's for another day.  I LOVE, LOVE this picture of my twins sitting in a pumpkin patch on a gorgeous fall day 6 years ago.  They hadn't yet turned one...and all they could do was SIT!!  Oh, those were the days.  Just plop 'em down and know that they couldn't go anywhere fast!  :-)  I laugh when I see how chunky they both were...they were each just over 4 pounds at birth.  How quickly they grew!



Recipe

Patterned papers - My Mind's Eye Bloom & Grow stack

Cardstock - Recollections

Tree, 'little' - Simply Charmed

'pumpkins' - Plantin Schoolbook, welded with my Gypsy

Martha Stewart pumpkin border punch

Cuttlebug d'vine swirls on tree

Cuttlebug distressed stripes on tree trunk

Orange peel Stickles on leaves

Cat's Eye chalk ink in chestnut roan

White Gelly Roll pen; black and brown Creative Memories markers for doodling & journaling

Button from stash to mimic hole in tree

Pop dots

I'm submitting this page to a couple of challenges:

Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge 38: October Inspiration - Create a layout or project (no cards) based on the season.

Got Scraps?: First Monday of the Month Challenge - Create an Autumn or Halloween scrapbook page or card.

The Paper Variety: Week #4 Challenge - Draw inspiration from one of their designers' pages.  I was inspired by Melissa's road trip page.  I loved that she used one old photo of the kids and the corrugated letters for her title.  I, like Melissa, scrapped one older photo (although mine wasn't quite as old as hers!) and I used a 'corrugated' effect on the tree trunk using the Cuttlebug to emboss with the distressed stripes folder.  Pretty cool, huh?  Thanks Melissa for your inspiration! 

The Scraproom Blog: Week #40 Challenge - POP-DOT something on a layout.  I chose to pop dot a few leaves on my tree and really liked the dimension they added.

Thanks for looking!!





The Pick of the Crop!

I just love this picture of my middle son....he was three at the time...we celebrated his 9th birthday last week  (yes, have I mentioned that I'm WAAAAYYYY behind in scrapping??).  The picture was taken in a local pumpkin patch.  My kids loved roaming through it....touching each and every of the hundreds of pumpkins on display.  I'm pretty sure my son touched every pumpkin twice....and he tried to carry one of the largest to the car.  :-)  We negotiated on the two he's holding....and he rode home with both on his lap...so proud to have chosen his own!

I was excited to use my new Cricut Simply Charmed cartridge to cut the pumpkins and the title.  I think this cartridge is going to be a favorite!  I also chose papers from the My Mind's Eye Bloom & Grow stack - perfect for fall!

Recipe

Trio of pumpkins and 'pick of the crop' - cut from Simply Charmed

Scalloped rectangle - sized with my Gypsy, cut from A Child's Year

Patterned paper - My Mind's Eye Bloom & Grow

Cardstock - Recollections

EK Success scalloped diamond border punch

Googly eyes

Pumpkin brads from Target's Dollar Spot

Black Creative Memories black and green markers & White Gelly Roll pen for faux-stitching, doodling

Pop dots

I'm submitting this scrapbook page to a few challenges:

Made by Momo - Tuesday Challenge #13 - use green, orange and yellow and add some faux-stitching or doodling.  All of these colors - perfect for scrapping my fall scene - are in the papers I chose from the My Mind's Eye Bloom & Grow stack.  I added faux-stitching around my yellow cardstock layer and around the scalloped rectangle used for my title and journaling.

Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog - Challenge Me Monday #29 - in honor of National Sewing Month, use some type of stitching- hand, machine or faux.  I added faux-stitching around my yellow cardstock layer and around the scalloped rectangle used for my title and journaling.

The Scraproom Blog - Week #39 Weekly Challenge - use a scalloped something on a layout.  My title sits on a scalloped rectangle and I used my scalloped diamond border punch to create the green strip near the bottom of the page.

More Than Favors - Wacky Wednesday #9 - make a card or layout using a circle and a scallop.  My Simply Charmed pumpkins are circles and I used a scalloped rectangle for my title.

Always Crafting - Whimsical Wednesday Challenge - share the inspiration for your project and how you come up with your creations.  My inspiration for the design of this page came from HERE.  Okie's blog is terrific - her projects are always fantastic and I adore her humor.  I really liked the layout of her cards in this post and decided it would work well for my scrapbook page.  Thanks Okie!  Ideas from other's blogs are often the inspiration for my projects. 

 

Happy Fall!!

"Race to Read" Bookmark

Happy Thursday!  I wanted to post this before I started 'party mode'.  My middle son is turning 9 years old next week and we're celebrating with family at our home on Sunday.  Lots to do before then!  I hope everyone has a good weekend...ours should be fun!  Now....

My youngest son just entered 1st grade and is required to read for at least 30 minutes every day.  This has been challenging.  He usually wants to stop after about 10-15 minutes, so I thought I'd make him a cute bookmark to excite him about reading.  He LOVES race cars, so I used one from the Everyday Paper Dolls cartridge (I can't tell you how often I turn to this cart!) to decorate his bookmark.  I hope it does it's job...and makes mine a bit easier!!

Here's the front:

And the back:

I wanted to make this simple and fun for him.  Since he'll be placing it in his books, I didn't want to use any embellishments that weren't flat....or glitter...that could damage the books.  That was hard!  But I did find the perfect button to mimic the smiley stars on the bookmark...it too has a star.  Whoo hoo!  On the back, I put his name...my kids love to see their names on their stuff!

I entered this project into both Fantabulous Cricut's "Button Up for School" Crawl challenge and Crafting with Cristina's "Back 2 School" challenge.  Both challenges are to make a back-to-school project and Fantabulous Cricut's also requires a button somewhere on it.  Two checks!

Recipe
'race' and 'read !' - Mickey Font, welded with my Gypsy
'Daniel' - Mickey Font
'to' - Alphalicious, welded with my Gypsy
Race car & flag - image & blackout, Everyday Paper Dolls
Stars - Create A Critter
Cardstock - Recollections
Patterned paper - from my stash
Black Creative Memories marker for stitching, doodling
White Gelly Roll pen for doodling

Are You a Scaredy Cat?

My kitty looks spooked!  Like the way my 6 year-old daughter does when I ask her to head upstairs at night...or to the basement anytime.  If there are creepy crawlers or mighty monsters there, I just haven't seen them!!  My husband and I thought it was her age, but her twin brother doesn't have this fear.  Neither do her two older brothers.  Hmmm...maybe it's a girl thing??? 

Stephanie at Always Crafting hosted a fall- or Halloween-themed challenge this week.  She posted a cute story and a Halloween card she made using Mini Monsters...be sure to check it out.  I haven't made any cards lately, so I decided to make one for this challenge using my new Peachy Keen Nikkity Knack Cat Gang stamp set (Thanks to Samantha from the PKS design team!).   Love that scaredy cat!  I think the creeping kitties on my patterned paper may have given her the spook....what do you think?

Recipe

Kitty stamp - PKS Nikkity Knack Cat Gang set

Lime green cardstock - DCWV 'Brights' cardstock stack

Black cardstock - Recollections

Circle - George and Basic Shapes

Scalloped circle - Mini Monograms

Patterned paper, ribbon - Target's Dollar Spot

White Gelly Roll pen for doodling

Pop dots to pop up Kitty

Workin' for a Livin' - Remember That Song?

Oh, the 80's...gotta love them!  Big hair, Madonna, valley girls, leg warmers, high school for me...I'm SO glad we can't go back!!  But they WERE fun.  At the time.  :-)  Do you remember the Huey Lewis and the News song?  Workin' for a Livin'.  Well, that's my take on the theme for this week's challenge at Fantabulous Cricut. 

The challenge, in honor of Labor Day, is to "create a project that has something to do with work or a job, congrats on promotion, retirement, etc."  I had a tough time thinking of something to scrap....then I came across a picture of my oldest son shoveling snow last winter.  We didn't have a lot of snow, but we did have a few big storms.  He took it upon himself to shovel our front walkway while his dad was at work, so dad didn't have to do it when he came home.  That was real work.  Don't you love it when your kids do something nice without being asked???  :-) 

I used the sketch and color combo from the current challenge at the Peachy Keen Stamps blog to layout my scrapbook page...I turned it upside down actually.

Now here's my page.  I glittered the snowflakes and the word 'snow', cuttlebugged the snowman with dots and spots, cuttlebugged the fallen snow with divine swirls, and used stickles on the snowman's nose and earmuffs.  I used my Gypsy to make the earmuffs by welding an oval to each side of a jumprope, sizing them to fit my snowman's head.  I clipped the jumpropes handles off after cutting the image on my Cricut.  Woo hoo!  Didn't want his ears to get cold!!  Oh, wait...do snowmen even have ears???  :-)

Recipe

Patterned paper - atd Year Book paper pack

Cardstock - Recollections

Snowman - from Doodlecharms, Cuttlebugged with spots and dots folder

Fallen snow - welded piles of straw (from Every Day Paper Dolls) together, Cuttlebugged with divine swirls folder

'snow much work' - from Mickey Font, welded with my Gypsy

earmuffs - 2 ovals from Every Day Paper Dolls welded together with 2 ovals from George and Basic Shapes

White Gelly Roll pen for stitching

fine glitter

orange peel Stickles

googly eyes
Pop dots - popped up the title and the snowman

"Gearin' Up" Football Page for Made by Momo and Always Crafting challenges

Hello again!  Hurricane Earl is slowly making his way towards New England and we're all hanging out, wondering whether this storm will sizzle or fizzle.  Just a lot of fog and drizzle (he he he) at the moment, but time will tell.  My kids created their own carnival in our basement today and they're keeping busy playing all the games.  :-) 

My kids went back to school on Tuesday, so this was a transition week for us.  So far, so good.  But my house has been unusually quiet - it's the first time in over 10 years that I haven't had a child home with me for at least part of the day.  And it's been unusually neat here at home too...hmm...I wonder why!  :-)  Anyway, since I had some free time this week, I decided to make a scrapbook page for two different challenges.  Mari aka Momo at Made by Momo has a challenge every other Tuesday.  The current challenge is to make a project using black & white and one color of your choice.  I chose green....for our school's colors.  And Stephanie at Always Crafting posted her Whimsical Wednesday challenge  - use bling, buttons and/or brads on a project.  I used two brads to mimic the snaps on my son's football helmet...hope that's enough!!  :-)

I must mention that the layout for this page was inspired by a scrapbook page created by Marie on Write. Click. Scrapbook.  You should check out this blog...such beautiful projects!

The pictures I scrapped are of my middle son who began playing football on a team this year.  He was so excited to get his practice uniform....and proudly modeled it for us.  I think he's looking pretty tough for an 8 yr-old!  What do you think?  :-)

Recipe

Football helmet - Cricut Sports Mania cartridge, used hide contour

"M" - Cricut Plantin Schoolbook cartridge

"gearin' up" - Cricut Plantin Schoolbook, welded with my Gypsy

Patterned paper - My Mind's Eye 'everyday tango'

Cardstock - DCWV and Recollections

Brads - Recollections

Black Creative Memories marker, white Gelly Roll pen for stitching, doodling, journaling

Cat's Eye chalk ink

Pop Dots

A New Challenge Blog - The Paper Variety

Do you love a good challenge?  Then check out the new challenge blog, The Paper Variety, launching on September 15.  They just revealed their design team and are doing a GREAT giveaway, Echo Park's 'Life is Good' paper kit (cute, cute, cute!), to help promote their blog.  I'll be following them!

Scrappin' Baseball: Wacky Wednesday #6 - Sports Theme

Paula at More than Favors is hosting a sports-themed challenge - any project, any size, any color as long as it's sports-related.  Easy, peasy!  I have LOADS of pictures of my kids playing sports that I need to scrap.  My middle son just wrapped up his baseball season - we've moved onto football (I'm really not so comfortable with this!!) - so I chose to scrap a page of him playing in the first of the two leagues he played in this summer.  Simple, but it gets the job done!

Recipe

Batter, 'Play Ball', bat border, clipboard - Cricut Sports Mania cartridge

All cardstock - Recollections

Black Creative Memories marker, white Gelly Roll pen for doodling, journaling

I'm on a Roll - Meet My Giraffe - Whimsical Wednesday Challenge

Well, I enjoyed making the scrapbook page of the zebra so much that I decided to stick with my pictures from the zoo and do a bit more creating.  That Create a Critter cartridge has some of the cutest images...and I have a few lined up to help me make more zoo pages. 

I tackled my giraffe pictures next.  The patterned paper is a new purchase...My Mind's Eye 'Bloom & Grow' stack.  180 pages, 60 different designs...simple, pretty papers...I couldn't leave it at A.C. Moore, especially with a 50% off coupon in hand.  :-)  So glad I bought it...I thought this paper would be perfect for my giraffe.  What do you think?  I think he'd love to munch on those leaves!

I'm entering this page into Stephanie's "Whimsical Wednesday" challenge.  It's her first challenge...just create a project using the Cricut Create A Critter cartridge and link it up to her blog.  All the details are HERE.

Let me know what you think of my giraffe!

Recipe

Patterned paper - My Mind's Eye 'Bloom & Grow' stack

Cardstock - Recollections

Giraffe - Create A Critter

'looong neck' title - Mickey Font, welded with my Gypsy
Half Circle for journaling spot - George & Basic Shapes

Brown Creative Memories marker for doodling, journaling
Cat's Eye Chalk Ink

Pop Dots

Critter Challenge at Card Creations by C.

Christina at Card Creations & More by C. is having her 1st ever challenge.  Want to join in the fun?  Just create a new project using a critter from the Cricut cartridge Create A Critter by end of day, Friday, August 27 and link it to her blog.  All the details are HERE.  Thanks for the challenge, Christina!

Well, since Create A Critter is one of my favorite cartridges of the moment (have you seen some of the new releases???), I was more than happy to scrap a page using the cute little zebra.  The pictures were taken during a trip last August to our favorite local (well, it's a 45-minute drive) zoo.  This is the first picture I've scrapped from that trip.  I have the cutest pictures of my kids feeding baby deer that I should scrap using the adorable little deer from CAC...and some of giraffes...and a humongous alligator...does CAC have a rhino?  Ok, ok, here's my page:

Recipe

Zebra, grass - Cricut Create A Critter cartridge

Word "zebra" & shadow - Cricut Mickey Font cartridge, embossed with Cuttlebug folder 'distressed stripes'

Patterned paper - DCWV paper pack 'Little Safari' ($3.99 at Tuesday Morning!!!)

Cardstock - Recollections

White Gelly Roll pen for journaling

Black Creative Memories marker, pink Bic Mark It marker for doodling

Cat's Eye chalk ink

Googly eyes

Win a new Fall Mini Cricut Cartridge!!

Joy from Obsessed With Scrapbooking is giving away the 3 new seasonal 'mini' Cricut cartridges - H2O, Pumpkin Carving and October 31st.  Don't miss this chance to win....see more at http://www.obsessedwithscrapbooking.com/2010/08/hello-thursday-august-cricut-cartridges.html .  She'll draw 3 winners on Wednesday, 8/25.  Which of the 3 is your fave?

Fantabulous Cricut: Challenge #22 - "Smile"

Phew!  Another close one.  This has been one busy summer...not much time for scrapping.  But the kids go back to school in 2 weeks, so I'll have lots more free time then to work on their albums.  During the week anyway.  :-)

The latest challenge at the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge blog is to create a project that incorporates the word "smile" and, of course, an image cut from a Cricut cartridge.    Did you know that last week was "National Smile Week"?  Me neither!  But it's never too late to share a smile...

Here's my submission.  The picture is of my sweet niece (and Goddaughter) and my son....it was taken almost three years ago when my son was 4 and my niece was 14.  She's now driving....yikes!  The two adore each other and I'm lucky to have taken quite a few lovely pictures of them together over the years.  I'll be scrapping those too!  :-)

Recipe

"Smile" and shadow - Gypsy Wanderings

"cousins" - Gypsy Font, welded and sized with my Gypsy

Small dragonfly - Camp Out, used hide contour

Patterned paper - DCWV The Stack 6

Cardstock - Recollections

Tiny flat-back pearls - Recollections

Skittle - handmade by a friend  :-)

White Gelly Roll pen for doodling

Thanks for looking!!

Peachy Keen Stamps - Challenge #34

I wasn't sure whether I'd complete this one in time...but I managed!  What a busy week!  We returned from vacation in Maine last weekend (think laundry, laundry, laundry) and we've been struggling ever since to find the cause of an injury to my oldest son's knee.  Two doctor's visits, an x-ray and a blood test later, we think it may be caused by Lyme disease.  Not the diagnosis I was expecting, for sure, but we live in southeastern Massachusetts and the woods here are infested with the disease-carrying ticks.  Although his blood test showed negative results for Lyme disease, my son will be retested in a few weeks per the advice of his orthopedic surgeon.  So, he's on a 4-week course of antibiotics...but we're still not sure why his knee is aching like it is.  Hopefully, time will tell.  But soon.

Anyway, enough of that.  :-)  As soon as I saw the sketch for the current challenge at the Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge blog, I knew I had to use it to create a scrapbook page of my middle son's First Communion, which we celebrated this past Spring.  The cross just stood right out and made my decision for me.  :-)  Here's the sketch:

And here's my scrapbook page:

It will be the first of a two-page layout of the celebration.  It's simple and straightforward...and the best part is that it didn't take me too long to do...a definite first for me...yea!

Recipe

Oval cut for picture - George and Basic Shapes

Scalloped oval - Mini Monograms

White cardstock - Recollections; embossed with the Divine Swirls folder

Patterned paper - from a RAK !!!

Blue cardstock - Recollections

Chalice - trophy from Every Day Paper Dolls, trimmed

Journaling - printed on my computer

White Gelly Roll pen for doodling

Saying Goodbye to Family Friends

Friends of ours just decided to move to Denver at the end of August.  We were really sad to hear this news...they are a great family...super parents, fun kids.  My oldest son was lucky enough to be coached in soccer last year by the dad and led by the mom in his cub scout troop.  We're really going to miss them!!  The cub scout den, self-titled the "Penguin Patrol", held a going away pool party in her honor last weekend complete with a homemade cake decorated with a penguin theme and a lovely gift.

Well, I'd like my son to send his leader a card before they leave, so I decided to try my hand at a shaped penguin card.  I used some leftover material from a Webelos neckerchief (from another project) to make a tiny neckerchief for this little guy, and used the fleur de lis from Gypsy Wanderings to create the neckerchief "slide".  What do you think?

Recipe

Penguin - Create A Critter, welded with my Gypsy

Fleur de lis - Gypsy Wanderings

Gold "slide" - beehive shadow (upside down) from Gypsy Wanderings

All cardstock - Recollections

Black, blue markers - Creative Memories

Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge #33 and Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Me Monday #20

Here we go....two challenges in one!!  When I saw the sketch at the Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge blog, I immediately thought of a photograph of my children from Easter that I had wanted to scrap.  Then I saw that this week's Challenge Me Monday at the Fantabulous Cricut Challenge blog  simply requested that the submitted projects include a Cricut cut animal.  So...what's a girl to do??  I created a scrapbook page that satisfies the requirements for both challenges...whoo hoo!!  Here's the PKS challenge sketch:

And here's my scrapbook page.  What do you think?  The picture was taken on Easter at my parent's home in New Hampshire.  My kids had eaten so much sugar (think jellybeans, chocolate eggs, malted milk balls and more jellybeans!!) that I didn't think they'd all stand still long enough for me to take the picture!  And my boys had removed their shoes!!

Recipe

Bunny & Chick - Create A Critter

'Easter' - Alphalicious, welded with my Gypsy

Frame for photograph -  Gypsy Wanderings, sized with my Gypsy

Paper flowers, ribbon - American Crafts

Skittles - handmade gift from a friend   :-)

Rhinestone - Recollections

Striped paper - ATD "All Through the Year" Yearbook stack 

Textured cardstock - DCWV Brights Textured Cardstock stack

Cardstock - Recollections

White Gelly Roll pen, brown Creative Memories marker for doodling

Fantabulous Cricut: Challenge #19 - Christmas in July

Christmas in July?  Sounds great!  Especially if it comes with some cooler weather!  Temperatures here in the Boston area have been HHH - hazy, hot and humid - for what seems like weeks.  I can't remember a summer that has been so hot...or one where I've run the air conditioning continuously.  So in an attempt to cool down a bit, I decided to take Fantabulous Cricut's  "Christmas in July" challenge. 

The challenge is to make a Christmas-themed project that incorporates a Cricut cut.  Well, since I use my Cricut on just about every project I make, this seemed easy peasy.  I knew right away that I wanted to make a scrapbook page of my 8 yr-old son and my father using a couple of pictures I took last Christmas Eve.  My dad is wearing a pair of holiday-themed socks for the occasion...as he and my husband do every year.  I thought I'd focus on the socks...and the tradition...and scrapping a picture of my dad with one of his grandsons (the one who I understand is very much like my dad was at his age...more about that later!!) is icing on the cake...or presents under the tree in this case!  Here's my page and the details:

Recipe

Socks - Paper Doll Dress Up (clipped the top off of the stockings/tights)
Reindeer - Doodlecharms

'Papa's Socks' - A Child's Year, welded with my Gypsy

Scalloped squares - tag (hid hole with my Gypsy) from A Child's Year

Patterned paper - DCWV Holiday stack

Cardstock - Recollections
White Gelly Roll pen for doodling
Cat's Eye chalk ink

Peachy Keen Stamps - Challenge #32

The latest Peachy Keen Stamp challenge (http://peachykeenstampschallenge.blogspot.com/) is to create a card or layout based on our favorite summer vacation destination. The only other requirement is to use buttons, brads or bling. Sounds easy enough for even me to do!!! :-)

Well, our family has a few favorite summer spots - the beach, the ice cream stand, the baseball field, Cape Cod, my parents' camp in Maine - but the one that my kids would never miss is our town's annual agricultural fair. Huge prize pumpkins, pig races, fried dough (my personal favorite!), a bounty of fresh vegetables, balloon darts, kids squealing on spinning rides, motorcross, 4-H competitions...the fair has it all and every August we soak it all in. I just checked the calendar...it's only 5 weeks away...this is the fair's 143rd year!

Here's the layout I created for the challenge. This picture of my Mom and kids sitting next to the HUGE bull just makes me laugh.  :-)

Recipe

Pig, dirt mound, pumpkin, straw/hay - Everyday Paper Dolls

Cow - Create A Critter

Grass - Plantin Schoolbook

Ribbons - Locker Talk, Plantin Schoolbook

'fun at the FAIR', ticket - Mickey Font

Cardstock - Recollections; Patterned papers, ribbon - from stash

Buttons/brads - Making Memories

White Gelly Roll pen, brown Creative Memories marker for doodling, journaling

Cat's Eye chalk ink

Throwback Thursday, Episode 60

Emma at My Creative Time http://www.creativetimeforme.com/ sponsors a challenge every Thursday which involves using an "older" Cricut cartridge. I was super glad to find her website (be sure to check it out if you haven't...she's incredibly talented) because her challenges should also help keep me focused on creating more pages for my kids' scrapbooks....yay! The inspiration there is overwhelming!

This week's challenge is to create a project using an animal from the cartridge "Zooballoo" or any other older cartridge if you don't have Zooballoo. Well, since I don't own that particular cartridge, I asked my daughter which cartridge I should use to scrap another picture of her I took last year at Cape Cod. This page is for her scrapbook, not mine. She, of course, chose Create A Critter...and a ladybug (is it an 'animal'?)...can you imagine??...so that's what we used...despite the fact that we're bending Emma's rules for this challenge. Sorry Emma, but I was overruled by a 6 year-old!! :-)

Recipe

'cute as a bug' - Plantin Schoolbook, welded with my Gypsy

ladybug - Create A Critter

patterned paper - from a friend :-)

cardstock and bling from Recollections

paper flowers from American Crafts

white Gelly Roll pen, black Creative Memories pen for doodling

Peachy Keen Stamps - Challenge #31

I recently discovered the Peachy Keen Stamps Challenge blog http://www.peachykeenstampschallenge.blogspot.com/ and found lots of fun, cute projects. Their stamps are adorable...and I think I need to buy some for my Cricut Paper Dolls and Critters - since I can't draw faces, these are perfect for me!

Anyway, every other Tuesday they post a challenge. This week's challenge is to follow the sketch shown above. I decided to continue scrapping summer pictures and found this one of my daughter from our vacation to Cape Cod last year. My kids love vacationing on the Cape...can't you tell by her smilin' face??

Recipe

Crab, flip-flops and shovel & pail charms (cut off the tags) - Life's A Beach

Waves -Life's A Beach; welded with my Gypsy

'beach babe' - Mickey Font, welded with my Gypsy

picture - used circle shape from George and centerpoint function on Expression

Sun - Create A Critter, cuttlebugged with divine swirls folder

Patterned paper - from stash, cardstock from Recollections

Markers, Gelly Roll pens, black CM marker for doodling & journaling

Thanks Tracy!!! I won!

I'm still finding it hard to believe, but I was chosen as a winner in Craft Junkie Too's "1st Week of Summer" challenge. Whoo hoo! Tracy picked two random post numbers and one had been assigned to me. Thanks to Tracy's generosity, I will soon be the proud owner of a Cricut Summer Vacation cartridge. A great way to kick off my blog!! To see Tracy's projects, check out her website at http://www.craftjunkietoo.com .

And be sure to check out the fun button that Tracy designed for the occasion....it's on the left....so cute!

Craft Junkie Too's Summer Challenge

OK, I've decided to try to actually keep up a blog...you know, update mine once in a while. So I'm going to post projects here that I enter in challenges. I find that challenges keep me moving forward...and that's a good thing! I have sooo many pictures to scrap and I need to just get going on those layouts! So, thanks to Tracy at craftjunkietoo.com for posting a "summer" challenge...any project that's summer-related...for example a vacation, party, bbq, road trip or pool time, for example.

I chose to scrap pictures I took last month at a fishing derby my kids entered. They've become quite fond of fishing and this derby kicked off the summer fishing season for us. It may have been late Spring here in New England, but it was HOT and HUMID and certainly felt like summer!

I used A Child's Year for the image of the child fishing, Everyday Paper Dolls for the fish and fishing pole, Camp Out for the wooden sign, and welded 'fishing derby' from Alphalicious with my Gypsy. The cardstock is from Recollections and the printed paper from my stash.

Enjoy!

Cricut Cake Giveaway!

The Cuttlebug Challenge Blogspot is giving away....oh my goodness!....a Cricut Cake machine!! Wow! Check it out at http://cuttlebugchallenge.blogspot.com/2010/04/what-is-red-velvet-and-silver-and-youve.html and see all the other great stuff they're giving away too!