bday card for joey

here's the bday card that i made for Joey's 19th bday... he really liked all the pull-outs and extra "touches." hope you enjoy!

each pull out had a different reason why i love Joey... he's such a sweet brother :D

hope you enjoy, TFL!

my memorial day weekend

wow, it's started! a long weekend!

i went to breakfast with my brothers, washed dishes, finished a book, went shopping and bought a book, a cd, and a dvd, and went on an hour long walk with my brothers and dog Cookie.

the walk resulted in some hilarity. i told my brothers we'd be going to the beach to take some "goofy" pictures, but what we actually ended up with was so much more...

and i'll let you see for yourself. i hope you enjoy it as much as i did. i know it's a bit long, but i think it's totally worth watching :D




(or you can check over here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKMYqIntftU)

2sketches4you, Laura's #26

here's my card for Laura's fabulous sketch over at 2sketches4you. (also, you seriously need to check out Laura and Kazan's HUGE SURPRISE... the ultimate card showdown starting on June 1st! head on over to the blog for all the deets...)

i will seriously post more later... like Joey's twelve "page" accordion birthday card, and the other ones that i haven't had the time to photograph or edit... this should be the perfect weekend for it :)

2sketches4you, Kazan's #26

i loved Kazan's sketch this week, as well as the new Design Team's work. you totally need to check it out if you haven't already!

this sketch gave me a chance to use some scraps, try a new technique, and also to put one of my pretty butterflies to use!

so for this card, i borrowed the leftovers of the polka-dot ribbon from this set of cards. there was just enough to make this cute little bow :D

then, i had seen Kristina Werner's technique of masking an area, and then stamping around it. well, i didn't have any vinyl decals or anything like that, but i did recently get a Cricut, and in trying out some new things, had some extra flower outlines and shapes. so i took the border i cut with Cricut and placed some of the flowers in random order over the top. then i used an ink pad (yellow, to coordinate with my patterned paper) to go over the images... just dabbing it lightly all over until i had the color i wanted. anyway, the result was pretty sweet, no? (and i can totally see myself doing this as an easy complement for other projects that need something "special.")

and after all that, i was looking for some embellies for the flower, and didn't just want to use buttons. well, the other day at Michael's, i picked up a pack of butterfly picks (i think you add them to floral arrangements, etc) and thought that the yellow one would go perfectly in the center here. so i tried it, and YES! it looks good :D i love how the butterfly is pre-colored and glittered so it takes so much prep time out of making a card like this.

all in all, very pleased with my card. i think i'll be trying some new things pretty soon, especially with the upcoming stamp show that i'll be going to with my friend Paulina. she's actually working at it with her family, who owns DeNami Design, but i know that when i get there, all the concentration will go down hill :) i can't wait to see the FORTY-FIVE vendors that are scheduled to be at this event... it will be slightly overwhelming, i think. i'll have to set a budget limit before i leave the house, or who knows?!

also, in other exciting news: my brother Peter is graduating from college this weekend! my whole family has been praying frenetically about whether or not he'll graduate because he needed two B's or better in his history classes, but that had been a struggle for him. PRAISE THE LORD that he passed his finals (with flying colors) and got the grades he needed. i'm so proud of you Pete! my mom'll be at the ceremony, along with my 2nd youngest brother Lincoln, and my older sister, Cecelia. should be a great celebration. i'll post some pictures of that when they get home... and maybe i'll tell you about how i was commencement speaker at college :D

OH! and it's Joey's birthday this saturday... he'll be 19 years old! i can't believe it. he's grown up and matured so much lately. everything goes by so fast nowadays. it seems like i gauge a lot of what happens/ happened in my life by how old Joey is/ was. like when we got our dog, Cookie, Joey was just turning 8. we went to Disneyland around the time Joey was 6... it all goes by the baby, i guess :D

well, i think that's about it for now. i'm going to say goodbye to my mom before she flies off to PA to congratulate my brother (and i'll have to send a card with her for him... better get to making it!). hope you enjoyed looking, and if you read this far... thanks for sticking it out :D

XOXO

(oh, and if you haven't checked out my Dad's blog on gardening, or Cecelia's on everyday life, then you need to check it out, or just look at the previous post here. my family is so funny. i'm including myself, OF COURSE!)

i'm a maverick

my family has copied me. which means, i'm the trailblazer. the start-em-up. the maverick.

what prompts these claims, you might ask?

after seeing my cute blog and the fun of communicating via internet, my sister started a blog you can find here: http://ceceliabedelia.blogspot.com/

AND, as if that wasn't proof enough, my dad has a blog now. you can find it here: http://gardenhandyman.blogspot.com/

both are equally interesting in their own right, but i'd like to point out that *I* was the one to start this whole business (which i really owe to Paulina, who prompted me to get my cards online so she could see.)


so. here i am tonight without any cards, and a little bit of bragging, checking out heraldry items online because i'll be designing shields for my church's VBA (Vacation Bible Adventure) decorations. so check out some of the neat-O designs that i found:

from a Maxwell Society page

from a Blog Spoon graphics site

and then some more from a Montesol site

i think that i'll borrow some of these ideas and then tweak them (read = make them simpler) for the shield decorations. 'twill be fun.

i'll post some sweet cards later. XOXOX

2sketches4you, Laura's #25 "baby boy"

i love weekends, 2sketches4you, Cecelia's *hilarious* blog posts (and being her sister), having a job next year, and birthday parties!

i got this new whale punch from Martha Stewart, and i thought it was perfect for a little baby boy card. i also got a Cricut for my bday (May 1st!) and i used the Accents cart that comes with the machine to cut out the shape. i kept the whole card simple and elegant. i love the little whale... he adds the right amount of color!

as i mentioned before, i love my sister. she is utterly hilarious and maddening at the same time (aren't all sisters like that?) and she's got a blog... probably trying to copy me. anyway, she's hilarious, and even if you don't know her, i'd bet you'd love to read a little about her life because she's just. so. funny.

and in GREAT news: i am not jobless next school year. i had previously gotten a RIF notice (reduction in force. read = laid off) because of district budget cuts, but i got my call back letter (read = we cut too many teachers and desperately want and need you back, pretty please don't say no) today. so phew. and God is GREAT. He is so good to me. thanks for all the prayers. you know who you are.

plus, i love bday's. and parties for bday's. i'm going with my brother Joey to enjoy some Olive Garden and some bowling (i suck at it) tonight. well, really, right after i get off the computer. yay, i love birthdays. and p.s. happy birthday Helene! i had a lot of fun going out last night to enjoy a birthday dinner with school friends. girl time is so essential, yes?

okay, so Joey and i need to get going, but thanks for stopping by and checking things out!

XOXO

flower card & world's fastest post

i'm not feeling too well today, but i have a backlog of cards to post--so here's a card i made maybe a week ago... i had it prepped with the base and patterned paper even earlier than that... like a month ago, but never had the time (or the excitement) to finish it up.

turned out okay--i like the colors cause they're bright. hope your day is great and that you hear some encouraging words :D

2sketches4you, kazan's #25

kazan's sketch #25 over at 2sketches4you was the perfect starting point for me this week. when i saw the sketch on monday, i was like: i don't have any stars! what do i do? but then i recalled how i was going to get the most fabulous bday present from my family--a Cricut Expression!! can you say WOW?! :D i knew about a month ago that i'd receive the awesome gift, and the anticipation was just about killing me ...so since today was my bday, tonight was my night for creating a card for kazan's sketch. i already am in love with the Cricut--it's addicting, don't you think?

well, here's my card, in fun colors (of course!) and i just have to say, that i feel so blessed by absolutely EVERYONE in my life--family, friends--God is good!

i was surprised by a friend (Tabi, mentioned here) with a ridiculous display of affection [i think] in the form of 10 helium balloons, a bouquet of daisies, about 15 boxes of candy, a 2 L bottle of rootbeer, a HUGE card, and a box of pizza!

(you can see the cricut all wrapped up and the balloons from Tabi to the left)

all in front of my 6th period class of course. so i shared some candy with the kids, and took some pizza to my fellow teachers :D AWESOME PRESENT, TABI! <3

my grandmother, Nana, also had flowers delivered to my school, and the bouquet was gorgeous :) i can't believe how spoiled i am--now my house if full of color.

and my sister, Cecelia, totally outdid herself. not only did she shop AHEAD for my bday (scrapbook supplies), but she also bought be a subscription to Creating Keepsakes! she knew i'd asked for one via this blog post ...chalk a point up for the blog-o. *yikes* i'm so excited to get that subscription ...seriously i was smiling for ages after i heard the news. then Cecelia also made me tear up--she dedicated a post on her blog to me--if you wanna know a teeny bit (well, more than that) about me, then check it out HERE.

my brother Joey is so thoughtgful (i've said it before, i'll say it again) and he custom made me a sheet metal lunch box--i'll be taking pictures soon, because honestly, my description wouldn't do it justice. such an amazing piece of work, Joey!

aside from all that, i can't forget to mention all the lovely friends wishing me a felicitous day (even "Mark" called me!) ...and how could i not enjoy myself with such joyful encouragings? :) even the weather was divine... 75 and not a cloud. you can't beat that combined with a fabulous dinner at a fancy italian restaurant :D

now i am all psyched about spending a night crafting with Paulina and Helene (maybe Shawna) tomorrow... YAY, can't wait. seriously, this weekend has been amazing already.

thanks so much for stopping by and for your lovely comments. take care! :D

happy birthday to me!

WOOHOO! it's my birthday :)

it's birthday time, and i figured i'd share some of my latest birthday cards (in a simpler mode of card-making). i made a batch of these birthday cards using identical supplies and design idea a while back...

i used:

*buttons from my stash

*patterned paper from me & my big ideas

*twine

*chocolate fresh ink from impress

*happy birthday from jo-ann's (company... no clue)

*corner rounder punch

these are fun and easy cards to make... measure and slice, stick and tie. it's a cinch. these are easy to make, but often the simpler, the better. i think these could even work for some "man cards"if need be. i may be donating some cards to a neighborhood pool auction coming up, and who knows? maybe these will be included...

anyway, i'm so excited for my birthday today! i just know i'll be getting questions at school from my 8th graders who have no concept of age, "How old are you? 40? 32?" i keep telling them, "Thank you for thinking I'm so young. I have really young skin. You're so sweet for saying I'm only 32..." :D they honestly don't have a clue. i'm a perfect age, and God has blessed me mightily with every day up to this point (thank you Lord)! i am so blessed with so many things:

• generous and loving family (even loving enough to tell me the truth and correct me when it hurts)
• many talents (scrapping, teaching, storytelling... and did you know i threw shot put and won state in hs?)
• a job (that i take for granted and complain about too often--forgive me)
• FRIENDS! (you know who you are: Cecelia [double duty: family + friend], Paulina, Tabi, Helene, Maryke, Sara, Rochelle, Shawna, the list goes on and on...)
• a cute car :D
• a summer of serving (looking forward to 3 VBA's, 3 weeks of teaching, and a missions trip to Ecuador!)
• a great education--thanks GCC
• so much more... there's too much to post in one shot... i'll keep adding, don't worry. i'm also thankful for YOU (my blog reader) and your COMMENTS. they really encourage me and lift my spirits :D you bless me.

may you be blessed on your birthday and throughout the year, as i feel i am. thanks for stopping by! :) XOXO