Last Minute Gifts and a RAK

Allison sent me a nice RAK with fun holiday papers and stickers from Making Memories. She also sent this very pretty holiday card along. I love the greens she used. Thanks, Allison!

I turned a few sheets into these bookmarks for some members of my staff. The photo shows both sides. I typed up the Books to Read list on the computer and stamped the book stack from Hambo Stamps and cut them out. The ribbons are from my stash.

The other day I was inspired by all the cute things people were doing with York Peppermint Patties and I came up with these ornaments. My plan was to make this cute little box to present three of them in, but I ran into a roadblock while making a box lid. I just couldn't get the measurements right, and it was late. Since I was too tired to try again, the top is still not done. Maybe I'll try again later. I also learned the lesson that most of you probably already know - don't use your good cardstock for the template! Use the cheap copy paper first to get the measurements right :)

Well, the boys are on their way home and my day off is almost over. DS is going to be excited from the snow and the party they had at school today. Tomorrow, we are making cupcakes for his party and this whole weekend is going to whiz by. I hope you all enjoy it! Thanks for looking!

Some RAKs to Share

Look at this adorable Halloween card I received from Cindy at Creating with the Heart! She just opened a Heart Shoppe where you can buy some card kits and other goodies. And look out for her monthly SU! specials, too! I love the dp on this card, and her coloring is wonderful. Thanks, Cindy :)Last week I also received my package from my Aloha RAK buddy for October, Charlene. She has a great blog at Charly's Crazy Corner. Go give her a visit and enjoy her creations. She sent me a fabulous selection of images, including Whiff of Joy and Magnolias, along with some pretty ribbon and punched flowers. OH, and some great punched dragonflies. Look at this fantastic Tilda card she sent, too. I love it. Thanks, Charly!
I hope everyone had a great weekend. Thanks for looking!

Belated Birthday RAKS

I have been remiss about posting some of the birthday RAKS I received last month. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind, and I'm finally making the time to post them for you to see the generosity in blogland.

From Cindy, at Creating with the Heart:

From Linda, at Linanna Designs:

Filled with all kinds of gorgeous goodies:

And from Ilona, for a Garden Swap on First Swap Blog:Lucky, Lucky me. Thanks to all my blogger friends! Thanks for looking :)

Back From Vacation, Checking In...

Well, we are back from a very relaxing, completely unplugged vacation! It was great, and the campground was very nice and clean. Our cabin was cozy and across the road from the sandy lake beach. Perfect!! We sat on the porch in the evenings and listened to the quiet and watched the lake. During the day, the cousins all played together and we even took a hike on Sunday. Here is the view from the top (Lake Winnipesaukee is in the distance).

While I was away, I received some birthday cards from the Send a Birthday Card organized by Karin. They are from stampers overseas and are just gorgeous! The first is from Gonny and has a cute Minnie Mouse embossed image on the front. Next is from Canne in Scotland, and has a pretty swiss dots embossed panel and great swirly butterfly image. The third is from Ria in the Netherlands and features the MOST beautiful stitching I have ever seen. I hope the close-up image can show you the detail. The flowers are all popped up and it has a great 3-d effect. Thanks for the birthday wishes, Ladies!!

I'm getting some things ready for a vendor faire on July 19th. I'm doing it with my mom and am selling some items to raise funds for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer that I will be doing in October in NYC. Wish me luck! I hope I do well, and once I have stuff prepared for that, I will be back to stamping. My SIL gave me the A Little Bit of Happiness set as a gift and I'm itching to trim and ink it up!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July, everyone! I'll be back over the weekend with more photos and creations :) Thanks for looking!

A Christmas RAK and Birthday Cards

Allison, queen blogger herself, sent me a Christmas RAK! How sweet is this card? The beaded garland on the tree didn't make it through the post so well, but the card is still so cute! Thanks, Allison!We also have a few birthdays to celebrate this week. My DS turns 4 tomorrow. Yikes! And my nephew turns 1 on the 29th. It's hard to believe how fast they are growing! Both cards are similar since I'm short on time these days. The paper is from the DCWV Mini Stack 3. Stamps are Hambo (train) and SU! Toy Box (race car), Greetings 4 You (Happy Birthday), All Year Cheer II (Happy Happy Birthday) and The Cat's Pajamas (stack o' presents). The stack of presents is colored with metallic and regular gel pens. The trains are colored with markers and also with pencils blended with OMS. I like the pencil colored one better - the lines from markers drive me bananas becuse I like a smooth finish!Well, time to go so the camera batteries can charge and I can bake a birthday cake for tomorrow. He wants a Green Goblin cake, but I think he's getting a hamburger cake. I'll share photos if it's not too embarassing. I'm a stamper, not a cake decorator!

Don't forget to enter blog candy a few posts below!!

Happy Holidays to you all and Thanks for Looking :)

The Secret Elf Swap and a RAK

Robyn, who's wonderful blog is The Pink Stamper, coordinated a Secret Elf Swap just after Thanksgiving, and my Elf package arrived today. My Elf was Michelle, who's blog is Whimsical Creations. Check out the goodies she sent me! (Sorry about the glare on the photo - I can't seem to be home during daylight hours to get a good photo these days) Hanna Stamps, Studio G Series 6 stamps, Primas, eyelets, mini-glitter, brads, some diecuts, and a flower set for the Cuttlebug. What great fun it will be to create with these items - I can't wait for the weekend to get started... And she sent a card with an image of a woman looking behind her, with the best sentiment: "How did my mom's butt get back there?" ROFL!!!! I love it! I may just send it to my mom - she won't get offended.

Also, I have been remiss to not post this Thank You RAK from Allison that I received a few weeks ago. She won a round of blog candy from me and sent this cute note as thanks. I love the color scheme and the curvy sentiment.

But wait, there's more... Bobbie (Inspired by Ink) sent me this wonderful package of treats for winning her blog candy (way back). I should have enough supplies to keep me out of the craft store till Spring! Yeah, right, you know I'll sneak there on my lunch break after the Christmas rush dies away ;)Hopefully if you are in the midst of this newest round of winter storms, you are safe and warm in your stamping rooms! We are getting another horrid batch of weather Saturday into Sunday. DH is supposed to fly out Sunday for another business trip (really, honey the last of the year!), so let's hope he gets out safely.

Thanks for looking!

October Aloha RAK

If you haven't signed up for Jen's Aloha RAK club yet, get on over there! November should be opening soon. This is the second month I have participated and again I am awed at the generosity of all you fellow stamping bloggers, or blogging stampers, or blampers? Here is what I received from Laura.

Included are adorable little Boo pails, ribbons, stamps, and punched scalloped ovals in a bunch of great colors! And the card is absolutely beautiful. She used a Whipper Snapper image and the details are fantastic. Thanks, Laura!!

I'm off to sneak out for some alone time. I'll be back tomorrow with Angelosity Sketch #3. Maybe even later tonight. Thanks for looking!

RAK For A Cause

Here's my RAK to send to the family mentioned in yesterday's post. I started with a light blue base, which is watermarked with swirls if you look really closely. The floral panel is Sketchy Daisies by Stemma, mounted on a textured mustard panel. The same blue is used for the smaller panel across the bottom and the sentiment (All Year Cheer I) is clear embossed onto a Giga Scalloped Oval punched from the same mustard textured cardstock. I pierced around the scallops to add a little something. Ribbon is from SU! grosgrain collection. Simple, simple, but I hope it brings them a smile.

I also finished my swap cards today. But after they were all sealed and ready to be mailed, I realized I forgot one of the layers I was going to add. Oops. They still look nice without it, but that final layer really made them pop. I'm not tearing them all apart to add it in now, though!

After this week of relaxation, I am tired! How can that be? And is it horrible to say that I have not missed work? Tomorrow is my last day to myself, as my hubby and son will be home with me all weekend. I'm hoping to sneak away for some Card Making Day challenges - we'll see if Justin takes a nap Saturday...

Blog Candy for a Cause - check this out

Have you seen Andrea's request for RAKs? The story is heartbreaking and my thoughts are with the family as they go through this trial. I hope you can help, too! Read more here

My First RAK

I joined Jen's monthly RAK for September and oh, what fun! Liann sent me this very cute card and a great stash of dp to go along! Thanks, Liann!!

I have mentioned it before and will again - the generosity of the blog community amazes me and makes me happy to be among such great hearts. I learn something new from someone each blog entry I read. Sorry if I'm being mushy, but it's true!