Bells and Whistles

Hello from Arizona! I am at my parents house in Yuma, Arizona and the weather has been gorgeous in the 80's since I have arrived.  For those of you who do not know my father has the beginning of Alzheimer's and colon cancer and my mother has the beginning of dementia and pretty significant neuropathy in her feet which causes her to stumble a lot. My father will be 89 in a few weeks and my mother will turn 86.  They also will be celebrating their 68 wedding anniversary in July. Can you imagine being married 68 years. Oh my gosh, that just amazes me how lucky I really am and they are my best friends. When I get home I will tell you about my adventure in Mexico with my parents!! It's a story for one of the books! Any how they are doing remarkable good and still own and maintain their own home. Life is good! 

The twelve of March was started another  Belles 'n Whistles Challenge and sure hope you will play along with us! This is my second month as a guest designer and I am loving it!  The theme is butterflies which is one of my favorites. A large amount of my creations have a butterfly in one fashion or another so I was super happy!  My card was created using the image "Flowers" from the Sweet Art Ebony Collection.  Isn't she sweet!! I totally enjoy coloring any of Elisabeth Bell creations rather it be Belles 'n Whistles, SCACD collections, Whiff of Joy or the new collections at Whimsy Stamps. I would buy all of them if I could! Does this card not scream springtime!! I cannot complain about the winter though. Maryland literally had no snow this year except for 2 days under an inch. Awesome year!

Paper: Spring Feast by First Edition: I love First Edition paper pads for each one comes with 16 different designs, 4 sheets of each, 8 have glitter w/effects and 8 are double sided! Did you know that Oozak.com has the largest selection of paper pads at the most reasonable price, over 240 different paper pads to choose from.. The butterflies are a Martha Stewart punch. The grass was created using a memory box die. Love, love Memory Box which will be in Oozak's store real soon at the best prices ever!

Thank you for stopping by and don't forget to come play at the Belles 'n Whistles challenge!!

Because of You

Hello Everyone! I am in Arizona visiting my parents for the next few weeks! My father is 89 and my mother 86 and they still live in their own home. My mother is still driving (eeeks sometimes) and there are some health issues, but all in all they are doing fairly decent. It's hard living 2000 miles away from each other so I visit every 2 -3 months for usually 2 weeks. The weather is beautiful in the 80's and tomorrow we are going to a lettuce festival. I know, I know!! Lettuce??? Yep, they celebrate Lettuce out here in Yuma!

My postings will be really short until I get home with limited information. Sorry:( I downloaded the photo's to blogger and completing the posting from here. Needless to say I forget what paper pads, or anything else I used.  If you want to know anything you would like to know, write it in the comments  and when I return home I will be able to tell you the name of the products.

I like to make my DH cards before I leave and place them in different areas for him to find while I am gone. On this card I used the duo stamp set  "Because Of You"  a beautiful silhouette stamp and sentiment from Gina K. It is the first time I have ever used a silhouette stamp and I loved it. Ink, Stamp done!! I stamped it right on top of the music sheet paper and I think it gives it a dynamic look! Looking at the photo now I wished I would had left a little more space between the sentiment and the rectangle box. Oh well, we are our own worst critics! I can always find something to pick apart on my own cards! Do you do that?  

The Sketch is a sketch for the March and April issue of Through The Craftroom Door Magazine, an online crafting magazine. Stay tune for a great big announcement from ME in a few weeks concerning TTCRD! 

Sketch

I did my scroll by using an adhesive die cut and sprinkled red glitter over it.

Well ladies and gentlemen enjoy your weekend! 

Thank you for stopping by!! I will finally be able to do some blog hopping while I am at my parents!! So I will see you on your blogs starting later today!! God Bless and Hugz!

Irish Blessings

Happy Monday everyone! So many of us say "I hate Mondays"  I read somewhere if you hate Mondays then you hate 1/7 of your life. Makes you stop and think doesn't it? . I did a few calculations. Hating Mondays equals approx 52 days a year. I will be 60 in a few weeks so that would equal 3120 days or 8.5 years of your life. I don't hate Mondays!

Today is Greetings Challenge at The Outlawz and the theme is "I see green!"  March and green to me is St. Patrick's Day! Did you know that "Colleen" in Ireland means girl  yep, that's me! I am Irish and German, hmmmm Irish temper and German bullheadedness! what a combination.

Irish Blessing:

Paper: First Edition "New Leaf". I love First Edition paper pads! 16 design, 4 sheets each. 8 glitter with effects and 8 double-sided. The best and most economic place to buy paper pads is at Oozak.  I think I can honestly say Rusty/Oozak has the largest variety of paper pads and the best prices!! Check it out! 

TIP OF THE DAY:  So you want a particular image and you cannot find it in any of the digi stores. This is what I do next! I  do a Google search.  For the above card I entered "St Patrick Day coloring pages" and sure enough a slew of free coloring images pops up! Easy Peasy!