Happy Birthday

One night last week, I had about 20 minutes in my stamping room. I decided to make up a quick and easy birthday card. There's not much to say about it other than it was so simple that I was able to make 8 of these cards in the brief time I was downstairs. The card size is 4x4 inches. In addition to my simple kick as of late, I'm also on a square card kick.

***Supplies***
Patterned Paper: CTMH Serendipity
Stamps: CTMH Happy Birthday
Other: PTI Button, Paper Shapers flower punch

I still haven't been able to make my Christmas card for the week yet. Unfortunately, I'm still feeling pretty sick. A summer cold is no fun. I mustered up enough energy to go to work today, only because I had an appointment with a client that I really couldn't break. Anyway, who knows when I will get back to my scrapbook room. However, I will be back tomorrow with my entry for the CTMH blog hop that I'm participating in.

I hope you have a great Tuesday.

Phase 2

So after Devin got done ripping out the tub and shower, there was a lot of work to do before we could put the new bathtub in. He had to cut all the copper piping because our new tub is a bit bigger. So, he turned off the water, cut the pipes, and saudered them back together. After we put the bathtub in, it was rocking a bit so Devin got online and found that many people will lay cement under the tub to sturdy it up a bit. So, yesterday, the cement mixture was made and poured. I'm happy to say that our tub is now in.

However, do you see the whole in the wall? Because the tub was a bit larger, we weren't able to fit it into the pre-existing spot. So out came the saw. The 2x4's were cut and ripped out. So, that will be a whole other project, to get that all replaced.

Anyway, I'm happy that progress is being made. The next step will to be to put up the boards that the tiles will go on. Oh, I cannot wait until it's all done. I'm excited to soak in my new tub. I wanted to go with a jetted tub but decided that our funds could be better spent elsewhere. But, as I mentioned earlier, this tub is a bit bigger and definitely quite a bit deeper, so yeah!



I seem to have come down with some sort of cold. My head is stuffy, my nose is plugged, and my throat is a bit sore. I'm hoping that it's just a very temporary illness, as I absolutely cannot afford to be sick at this time. I hope that all of you, my dear readers of this little blog, are doing well. Have a joyful Sunday and take care.

Presenting Irelynd

On Thursday night, I got a call that my very good friend, Andrea, had her water break. She wasn't due for another two weeks. I headed over to the hospital and stayed all night during Andrea's labor. What a wonderful experience it was. I was at the hospital for about 8 hours and got no sleep. Irelynd came into the world at 7:14 am yesterday morning. She weighed 8 pounds and 4 ounces and is 20 1/2 inches long. A pretty big baby. She is an absolute cutie pie. Last night, Devin and I took the kids to the hospital to see our "Auntie" Andrea and Irelynd. Here's a few pictures from our visit. I'll definitely be scrapbooking these very soon.







I met Andrea nearly 9 years ago when we were both working at Shopko, a retail store. Reynna was only 1 year old and Christopher hadn't even been thought about yet. Fast forward 3 years and Christopher was born. Andrea was with me in the delivery room, along with Devin, and was such a great support to have. She is known as Aunt Andrea by my kids, even though she isn't an aunt by marriage or blood. I'm so happy for her and her fiance Chris. I'm also happy to get a little baby to love but one that I can give back.

I came home after the delivery yesterday and slept for about 3 hours and then went to work in the afternoon. I'm still a bit tired today and need another good night's sleep to probably not be feeling the effects of losing a night's sleep. It was worth it, though.

I hope your Saturday is going well. I'm off to run some errands. I'm hoping to be able to work on my Christmas card for Sparkle's challenge later on today, to show you tomorrow. Have a great one.

Wishing you well

Can you handle another 10 minute card? I'm having a hard time doing anything but very simple for the time being. I used the weekly sketch from CPS as my starting off point. I substituted my flower for the star.

***Supplies***
Patterened Paper: PTI Friends til the End
Stamps: CTMH Say it in Style
Other: CTMH flower, button, and waxy flax



I hope everyone has a terrific Saturday. I of course a longer to-do list than there is time for. Thanks for the visit.

A card for Karen's sweet Sunday sketch

I hadn't intended to stamp last night but we couldn't run our air conditioner because Devin had shut the water off for awhile because of the bathroom remodel and it was just too hot to be anywhere besides the basement. I had Karen's sketch sitting on my table and I decided to go to work.

***Supplies***
Patterned paper: PTI Friends til the End
Other: CTMH organdy white ribbon and waxy flax, Paper Shapers punch, PTI button
I thought about stamping a sentiment somewhere on the right of the card but decided against it. The only thing that's not really visible in the picture is that the white flower has been punched out of textured cardstock.

Love is a gift

Here's just a real quick card I whipped up over the weekend. I was in the mood to use red and black together. Such a striking color combination, I think. Size of my card is 4x4 inches.


***Supplies***
Stamps: CTMH Love is a Gift
Other: Cuttlebug, flowers from Petaloo, Nesties, CTMH white grosgrain ribbon

Thanks for your visit. I hope your Wednesday is fabulous.

Sending my love Bella style

I used the sketch from Sunday Sketch & Stamp for this card. Card size is 6x6.

***Supplies***
Patterned Paper: CTMH retired background and texture paper
Stamps: Stamping Bella, CTMH Say it in Style
Other: White brads, CTMH Markers


I'll probably use this card to send to a long distance friend. Enjoy your day.

Christopher lost his first tooth

Christopher informed us Saturday that he had a really loose tooth. Sure enough, it was very wiggly. It fell out this morning while they were at a friend's house. Both of my kids were kind of late getting their first teeth in, which I wasn't complaining about as a breastfeeding mother. I feel like maybe Christopher is a bit late in losing his first tooth. I wonder if the two are related. Anyway, another milestone for my baby boy.

Happy birthday Heather!

This post is for my sister-in-law Heather. I just wanted to wish her a very happy 30th birthday and let her know that I love her. Now, I'm going to sing to her.

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Heather, happy birthday to you!!!!

I love you Heather.

Christmas card # 31 for this year

Oooh, I'm so excited about how many Christmas cards I have done already to be sent out for Christmas 2009. This week, Sparkle made a great sketch for participants to use, if they wish. My card size is 4x4.
***Supplies***
Patterened paper: BG Wassail
Stamps: CTMH
Other: Marvy snowflake punch, CTMH button and waxy flax

Is anyone ready for Monday? I could use another couple of days.

Fun with friends

Last night, I went out with 3 of my closest friends. I've been friends with these girls for almost as long as we've lived in Greeley, 5 years. Terra is leaving us and starting a new adventure in Canada and we'll miss her lots. These are the girls who I scrapbook with. Good, good friends. They are the ones I can call when I'm in a bind. They are the ones I trust my kids with. They are the ones that I am so grateful to have in my life. I snagged the photos from Shannon's blog. I knew she'd post them so hopefully she doesn't mind that I'm posting them here.

We started our night out at Carinos. We've been there a few times together. It seems like when a waiter sees a bunch of girls out, it is assumed that they are there to drink and live it up. Last night was no exception. Well, we drank alright. Italian sodas, that is. We then stopped by Target and loaded up on candy. We split everything up into ziploc bags and smuggled them into the theater where we saw "The Proposal" with Sandra Bullock. I laughed outloud, it was that funny and good. I highly recommend it.

How's your Sunday been? I've been lazy all afternoon. I haven't done a thing besides watch a Lifetime move that I recorded. Does anyone else do that? I'm hoping to maybe make it down to my basement and come up with a Christmas card for Sparkle's weekly challenge. We'll see if I have the ooomph to make it down there.

I also wanted to thank everyone for their well wishes about my test. It means a lot to read your comments. Have a great rest of the day.

Phase 1

Well, as I alluded to earlier, today's the day for ripping out our old bathtub. As you can see, it's not all the way out yet. First, Devin is working on getting out the shower part. This is definitely going to be a work in progress. Here's hoping for a happy outcome.

A collection of thank yous

I woke up at just after 5 yesterday morning and couldn't go back to sleep. I think I was still stewing about my news from Thursday. Anyway, I decided to make the most of my time and go to my craft area and make a few cards. All I knew is that I wanted to use my kraft cardstock again so that was my starting off point.

You can kind of tell in the pictures but I decided to scissor distress all the papers for my cards. Can you tell that I've been on a keep it simple kick as of late?

***Supplies***
Patterened Paper: PTI Friends til the End

Stamps: CTMH Say it in Style , Playful Flourishes

Other: CTMH white grosgrain ribbon, PTI buttons

So what do you have planned for this weekend? I'll be doing some studying along with probably helping Devin rip out our bathtub. It's got a crack in it and we need a new one. If we do start on the project today, I'll be posting pictures later. Until next time, take care.

One Lovely Blog Award

I received this lovely award from Iona, Janelle, and Carla in the last week. These ladies are all very talented and I'm happy that they thought of me.

Trimming the Tree

Here's my other layout that I got done last weekend. The pictures are from this past Christmas of our family trimming our Christmas tree.




***Supplies***
Patterned Paper: CTMH Traditional Holiday
Stamps: CTMH small Friendship set
Other: Cricut, CTMH buttons

Yeah for it being Friday.

Another disappointment and heartbreak

It's with a sad heart that I write this blog post. I checked my score today for the last part of the exam I took and I didn't pass. A 75 is needed and for the 2nd time on this test, I got a 73. I've taken this part a total of 4 times now and even come closer than the 73, which would be when the graders gave me a 74. How do they sleep at night, I wonder?

I found out at work so of course many of my colleagues saw me with tears streaming down my face. Many of them know the pain of struggling with this exam. They are all very supportive. Devin's been great. Reynna gave me a hug when I got home and said she was sorry. It's just so hard failing again and again. The time I spend studying and the money paid for the privilege of taking the exam are so much.

I sometimes wish that I had never decided that becoming a CPA was something that I wanted. I will persevere, however. I've invested too much and I won't let this defeat me. The people at NASBA are trying to defeat me but I'll pick myself up and keep on going. I suppose it's the only thing that I can do.

On a different note, Devin and the kids got home earlier this week. It was great to have some quiet time but I'm glad they're back.

Thanks for your visit and comments. I hope you have a great Thursday night.

Best wishes

Amy's sketch provided the framework for this card. In my head, my finished product was going to look better but I'll live with it. No time for do-overs in my life.

***Supplies***
Patterned Paper: CTMH Simple Pleasures
Stamps: CTMH Alfresco,
Other: CTMH Cocoa grosgrain ribbon

Happy birthday with a truck

My card today is one I made using the weekly sketch from CPS. As always, another great sketch from Tami. Also, 2RedBananas is sponsoring this week's CPS sketch and for its weekly challenge, they made it easy and just wanted participants to use the CPS sketch and then link it back to both sites. Did you know that both of these weekly challenges have prizes?

I pulled out more of those Cloud 9 papers that I had been working with earlier last week and went to town. I like the card a lot except that I stamped my sentiment a bit crooked.

I did pop dot the panel with the truck on it to give it a bit of dimension.

***Supplies***
Patterned Paper: Cloud 9
Stamps: CTMH Little Builder, Happy Birthday
Other: Cuttlebug

Thanks for your visit. You know it means the world.