Saturday, October 31, 2009

TGF Challenges

Today I have 2 cards to share that I created for The Greeting Farm challenges. The first one was a sketch challenge that you can see here - here is my take on it, using Matey Anya and a treasure map image by Rubber Stamp Ave:

And this one is for the "Home is Where the ______________ Is" challenge, I used Hope & Grace's Laundry, and the Wild Sprouts Megan. Home is where your dreams are! Laundry girl is dreaming about getting all dressed up and out of the house for a night on the town!

Thanks for stopping by. Gotta go get ready for those trick-or-treaters tonight! This is my first year not going trick-or-treating with my kids, so I do hope we get at least a few visitors. It's a beautiful day, so we are going to cook on the grill for what will most likely be the last time. Happy Halloween, everyone. Peace.

Monday, October 26, 2009

Get Well Cards

A friend at work asked me to make her a package of 10 "get-well" type cards. I had this adorable Elzybells image from SCS Wish RAK which was just begging to be used! I used Perfect Plum cardstock by Stampin' Up! - the background paper is a very old retired one from SU! as well:



This card below uses the vase/flower image from a Stampin' Up! set called "You Touch My Heart". I have this little keyring with samples of all of the designer series papers that Stampin' Up! carried from last year (so some are retired), and I have been using those square scraps on my cards, this one has 2 of them below, I just put a scrap piece of cardstock across the middle to hide the hole-punch! I love these colors!
Hope you all have a happy and safe week! Peace.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

A Couple of Challenges

First challenge card is for the Dare You to Digi Stamp Friday challenge. This week's challenge was to make a card and NOT use any squares. I had this sweet witch digi image from CC Designs, and this awesome spiderweb background paper, so I cut the card into a spiderweb shape. Pretty cool, eh?

Next is a card I made for the Crazy For Challenges blog, I used some Christmas digi images from CC Designs, and the challenge was to use at least 3 different shapes - so I have a square card that has an oval, a square, and a circle within it:
This was my first attempt at the "can't-use-a-square" challenge, but I liked the spider girl one better:
And last, but certainly not least, is a tall card I made using Whimsie Doodles new digi image Hope Fights:
Hope you enjoyed today's line-up! Peace.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Trevor

I know it's not Thanksgiving quite yet, but I just have the urge to share my thankfulness with you all. So I'm gonna. I'm so very thankful for my home, my family, my friends. I'm so thankful that I have the philosophy that "everything happens for a reason" because it really makes hard times easier to bear, and it gives me good ammunition later to be able to say, "See? I told you everything happens for a reason!"

Not sure if I ever shared this pic, but I love this one of Trev from Missy's house this past Summer:

OK, so anyway, I happened to stumble across an old keychain from 2004, a school picture of Trevor - beaming with a big, gorgeous smile. In 2004 at picture time, Trevor would have been 11, in the 6th grade. This was when times were really starting to get tough for him - kids picked on him relentlessly, they didn't like the way he talked, the things he talked about, etc. We had already had a couple of rough years by then, but the smile in that picture - it's genuine. Although he's 16 now and can sometimes be a typical sullen teenager, he still has that beaming, bright smile. You cannot keep this kid down, and I am so proud to be his mother. He has struggled to find his identity, we have had lots of heartache and tears, we've had arguments like any teens and their parents. But through it all, his spirit remains strong and sure. Whatever he ends up doing in life, I have no doubt that he will give it his all and be successful at it. Within a year, he went from refusing to speak about his future because "I'm only FIFTEEN - I'm too young to worry about that!" to having an almost completely mapped-out version of the next 20 years of his life by the time he was starting his junior year of high school, 16 years old. LOL Because he has Asperger's, this doesn't surprise me. I have to reassure him that small deviations to that plan are OK, so he doesn't feel locked into this plan simply because the plan exists. But he exudes confidence and intelligence and self-esteem, and I am just so proud of him.

One of my biggest fears was always that he would let "them" get to him, that he'd give up and become depressed and/or suicidal, that he'd start to believe the things the jerks said to him. Getting Trev into the school he attends now has made all the difference in the world, I believe. Although it is really a public school, it is not an available option to students/parents right up front - your child basically has to go through hell first in order to be told this school for teenagers with "social and emotional problems" even exists, never mind to have a chance to attend it.

The staff here are different. I understand that the sheer volume of students in the public schools sorely undermines a teacher's ability to give one-on-one attention to her pupils. However, I have to tell you after spending 11 years as a parent of a child in those schools, I almost NEVER felt like there was anyone who really and truly cared. There were a few, don't get me wrong - but I can count them on one hand. This is over an ELEVEN YEAR period! In less than ONE year at this new school, I can tell you that the it's the complete opposite. I can count on one hand the number of people who aren't completely devoted to my child's well-being. It's such a wonderful feeling to be able to go to work every day knowing that my child is at school being given the education he deserves, but also having his social and emotional needs addressed when necessary instead of being sent to the office or suspended.

At this great school, they work on "levels". The students on the lowest levels have constant supervision and very little independence. They have to earn these privileges. Students on the highest level are given much more independence, freedom, and are treated more like adults. In less than a year, Trevor has made the highest level and has consistently maintained his position there. I had a meeting at his school the other day and heard nothing but praise - about how much he's matured, how hard he works, what an all-around great kid he is. When I got home, I cried tears of joy. There was a time, a little over a year ago, when I could barely get through a day without crying in worry or sadness over something bad that happened to Trevor. 90% of it involved the school - moving him to this new school and seeing his success has reaffirmed that for me. Trevor and I, along with Jeremy and Cassidy, attended counseling sessions for about a year with a wonderful therapist. By the time Summer came around this year, I felt confident enough in Trevor's progress to take a break from those sessions. Trevor has a clinician at school who he can speak to anytime he has any issues, and this has just worked out so wonderfully. So that's what is up with my boy - things are going really well, and it is so great to be able to say that! So I can actually look back now and say that if we had not gone through those awful times in public school, Trev wouldn't have ended up at this wonderful school. So again, everything happens for a reason. Peace.


Thursday, October 22, 2009

Bridal Shower cards

Some bridal shower cards I made for a friend, using mini-Sposabella by Stamping Bella:



Peace.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Christmas in October

So last weekend, it SNOWED here in Massachusetts. Yup, gotta love mid-October snow... NOT! Although it was pretty, it's just too early! But it did get me motivated to make some Christmas cards, so that's a good thing. Here are a couple of them using a digital snowman image (the company name is escaping me right now, and I'm not at home to look it up, sorry! Will udpate that later!):


And here are 2 using one of my favorite Bella images, Wreathabella:

I don't have much planned for this weekend so I am hoping to ink up my new Christmas Sweeties, SANTA Anya and Ian images that I simply adore - and get a bunch more Christmas cards made. Have a great week! Peace.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

FOUR Challenges!

OK - here we go! Today was a busy day for me, I created cards for 4 different challenges AND finished a card order for a friend (3 bridal shower, 3 wedding, and 4 Christmas cards - will share those later in the week).

The first card is the one I created for the Greeting Farm's "Farm Fresh Sans Frills" challenge. The challenge was to use no frills on your card, to keep it as un-girly and un-frilly as possible. Here is what I came up with, using The Wild Sprouts Hugh image, Stampin' Up! cardstocks and inks in Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, and Whisper White:


Next, this one is for the Robyn's Fetish Challenge Blog, it was a theme challenge creating a Halloween card using 2 patterned papers and no ribbon. I used the Robyn's Fetish adorable bat image along with Stampin' Up! designer series background papers and black glitter for his wings:

Next, and this one actually turned out to be my favorite, is the card I made for the Crazy 4 Challenges blog sketch challenge, using CC Designs Sugarplums Halloween image Olivia the witch, Stampin' Up! cardstock and brads, Ruby Red glitter for her shoes and a large yellow circle cut from Yoyo Yellow cardstock for the moon. This card is not standard size, it's about 5.5 x 5.5 square. I went and saw the Wizard of Oz play at the Hanover Theater in Worcester, Massachusetts the other night and it was simply breath-taking. It was so much more incredible than the movie. So that was my inspiration for this card - this is the Wicked Witch of the East before Dorothy's house came crashing down on her and her ruby red slippers. :o)

This is the inside of the card:

And last - for the Sugar Bowl Tiets' Sketch Challenge, I used Sugar Nellies Maggie the Christmas Fairy as my image. Supplies are Stampin' Up! Dazzling Diamonds glitter, papers and inks in Taken with Teal, Ruby Red, Whisper White, and Basic Black. Brads in Ruby Red, assorted star eyelets in teal. I thought this sketch was going to be difficult, but it came out prettier than I thought. I did have to make my card be bigger than standard-size on this one, too, though, it's about 5.5 x 5.5:

Hope you enjoy! Stay warm - it's been S*N*O*W*I*N*G all day here in Massachusetts! Ridiculous, if you ask me - but Mother Nature did not ask. She does not care. LOL It was a great excuse to spend the day in my craft room making cards, though, so I really am not complaining! Peace.

Friday, October 16, 2009

I love the Greeting Farm!!!

I simply adore the Greeting Farm images, and every time I think I have a favorite they come out with something new that I like even more! That was the case with this one - first they came out with the Hope and Grace Peace girl, then Hippie Anya - and now 80's Anya. These 3 images are my all-time favorites, because they remind me of ME! LOL Here are 2 of the cards I created yesterday with this adorable little girl:

Don't you just expect her to bust out singing, "What a feeling, bein's believin' (never knew it said that - always thought it was "please believe it" - learn something new every day!)
I can't have it all, now I'm dancin' for my life
Take your passion, and make it happen
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life...."
hee hee
Peace!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

More Christmas cards...

Real quick as I am off to work now - here are some more of the Christmas cards I made the other day:





Peace!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

2nd post of the day! Tuesday Morning Sketch Challenge

I love doing sketch challenges and this week I am working on my Christmas cards. I decided to combine those two things for the Tuesday Morning Sketches challenge this week. I used this digital snowman image by Raggedy Scrappin, along with Stampin' Up! inks, cardstock, and Designer Series background paper. I used a square punch and cut them in half for the triangles:


Then just because I was having fun with this image and these colors, I made another one without following the sketch, and I added black glitter for his buttons:
My friend Linda came over and stamped with me all morning, which was such a nice change from card-making all alone! We made cards, ate lunch, and chatted for hours. I will post more of my creations tomorrow. Peace.

It's never too early to start thinking about Christmas...

Yup, I'm starting to get orders for Christmas cards - which is funny because I'll make everyone else's and then be scrambling at the last minute to make my own! hee hee Here are just a few of what I've done so far, this first one is my favorite. I used Stamping Bella's Kissie Face and cut out a piece of mistletoe by Stampin' Up! - I thought it was quite a clever way to turn this into a Christmas card:




More later - my friend Linda is coming over to stamp with me today, and I plan to spend the majority of the day making Christmas cards. I love to do challenges because they give me so much inspiration... but today I vow to work more on Christmas cards than challenges! hee hee Peace.

Monday, October 12, 2009

More Halloween Cards

I just love making Halloween cards. Here I used CC Designs digi image from the Sugarplums Halloween set along with Stampin' Up! papers, inks, glitter, brads, and oval punches (same paper, inks, etc. on all of my cards).


For the next two, I used Witchy Girl digital image by Whimsie Doodles, I LOVE this image!!!! For the first card, I stamped Witchy Girl on white paper - I had cut a black circle out for another card, and decided to use the reverse circle on this one, so I layered the black over the white. I used Stampin' Write markers and Stampin' Pastels to color her in, sticking with a black, red, and white theme:
This one uses Pumpkin Pie and Basic Black for the main colors:
Christmas cards to come tomorrow!!! Peace.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

TGF Sketch Challenge and Anya as... me!

The Anyone for Anya blog's challenge last week was "You're Anya" - you basically had to make a card with an Anya that represents you. I combined this with The Greeting Farm's sketch challenge, and here is what I came up with:

I used Hippie Anya - papers and inks by Stampin' Up! Peace charms by Stamping Bella.

And then just cuz I was having fun turning Anyas into zombies.... hee hee.... here is Rockstar Anya all zombied out for Halloween:
Enjoying my long weekend - will be back with more cards later. Peace.