New Artwork is Coming!

I know I haven't been doing a good job lately with posting.  Life and family have taken over these past couple weeks.  Here at home we are just getting over a lovely stomach bug.  We've almost all gotten it and I'm praying my hubby doesn't.  I decided to take a break from all the cleaning (I am determined to knock that bug right out of here!) to update you on something and let you know I'm still around.

My crop on January 9 went extremely well!  We had 21 ladies come, for all day or part of the day, to scrapbook and raise money for the medications my husband and I will be distributing in El Salvador when we go on the 13th of February.  We raised a grand total of $638!  Well beyond my goal of $500.  And I succeeded in raising more money than my husband.  Hee hee!

If you didn't make it this year, don't worry, I'll be putting this event on again.  I might even make it a twice-a-year thing.  We'll see.

As the title says, I will be posting new artwork soon, after I'm sure we're all healthy and things are a bit more stable around here.  I promise, it's coming!

In the meantime, Happy Creating!

January Stamp-of-the-Month Blog Hop

Happy New Year! Welcome to another blog hop featuring Close To My Heart's Stamp-of-the-Month.  If you came here from Tammy's blog, you're on the right track.  If you're starting here, don't worry this hop is one big circle, so you'll end up back here.  Curl up with a cup of tea or coffee and settle in to enjoy all the inspiration.  This month's set is called True Friends and it's beautiful.  It has lovely sentiments and frames, as well as the ever popular bracket and parenthesis.

I had fun working with this stamp set and some brand new products that are included in the Spring 2010 Idea Book.

This first card uses the new paper pack entitled Topstitch, our new Soft Suede Pinwheel flowers (that's real stitching on them), new Bitty Sparkles (there's now 100 of these cuties in their own package!) and chocolate  cardstock, ink and brad.  I inked the edges of all the paper, including the pinwheels.

For this card, I used the back of a piece of paper from Veranda, another new paper pack, as well as some juniper cardstock and cocoa cardstock, ink and ribbon .  This is a very simple card, but I think the paper adds so much to the design.  Both of these card patterns were taken from Wishes.

Now, you're off to see Shannon's beautiful work.

Happy Creating!

Blog Hop List

Here's the list for our next blog hop.  If you get lost along the way, you can click on these links to find your way back.  Stay tuned, the posts will be up soon!

Helen Onulak http://www.hookedonstamping.com/
Jena DeVries http://www.livelovelaughscrapbook.blogspot.com/
Jessica Booth http://jessicabooth.blogspot.com/
Carla Ironside http://www.carlacreates.blogspot.com/
Lori Miller http://www.clearlyfromtheheart.blogspot.com/
Misty Jackson http://www.misstscraps.blogspot.com/
Jen Patrick http://www.roxybonds-scrappin.blogspot.com/
Susan Brooks http://www.stampingintheopen.blogspot.com/
Kathleen Androlewicz http://bowlofstamps.blogspot.com/
Dawn Ross http://www.iamahappystamper.blogspot.com/
Amy McVey http://www.clearlystamping.blogspot.com/
Antoinette Herrin http://www.godblessyourart.blogspot.com/
Jill Lucas http://scrapwench.blogspot.com/
Barbra Otten http://barbraotten.blogspot.com/
Lori Brown http://www.savingmine.blogspot.com/
Brae Montgomery http://thebrae-er.blogspot.com/
Wanda Riley http://www.creatingwithwanda.blogspot.com/
Adeline E. Brill http://adeline-brill.blogspot.com/
Kami Welter http://www.scrappin4memories.blogspot.com/
Judy Burger http://makingtimeformemories.blogspot.com/
Pamela O'Connor http://www.cherishyourmemories.blogspot.com/
Cindy Leek http://www.paperspadsandpictures.blogspot.com/
Mary Eisen http://www.mestamp2.blogspot.com/
Sylvia Jacquot http://stampinsylvia.blogspot.com/
Laura Dame http://www.thecroppersconnection.blogspot.com/
Melissa Laverty http://www.fancymelissa.blogspot.com/
Haley Dyer http://www.inkyscrapper.blogspot.com/
Terrie Dodd http://www.my-life-in-real-time.blogspot.com/
Katy Donaldson http://www.scrappinkaty.blogspot.com/
Chris Shouse http://www.houseostamps.wordpress.com/
Tammy Lea Pinchard http://mycreativeclubhouse.blogspot.com/
Krista Ritskes http://kristaritskes-simplycreating.blogspot.com/  Here I am!
Shannon Pelletier http://www.mycolorfulworldinvt.blogspot.com/
Deb Young http://www.scrapbookczar.blogspot.com/
Amy Edwards http://paisleysplayhouse.blogspot.com/
Sheila Bennett http://sheila-bennett.blogspot.com/
Kristie Herdener http://www.goofyscrapper.blogspot.com/
Jen Rubio http://www.jenrubio.blogspot.com/
Jody Gustafson http://www.cre8nmemories.blogspot.com/
Sarita Schraeder http://www.blessedscrapper.blogspot.com/
Laurie Levnik http://www.creationsbylaurie.blogspot.com/
Debra Van Patten http://memoriesoftheheartbydeb.blogspot.com/
Kimberly Smith http://verykimberry.blogspot.com/
Michelle Nist http://michellenist.blogspot.com/
Karen Norman http://www.gettinscrappywithit.blogspot.com/
Traci Godbee http://createwithtraci.blogspot.com/
Nancy Brown http://www.creativelyartsygallery.blogspot.com/
Maricar Harris http://www.maricarharris.blogspot.com/
Nona Davenport http://www.nonapearl.blogspot.com/
Laurie Newton http://scrapsfromthebeach.blogspot.com/
Dawn Heuft http://www.stamptildawn.blogspot.com/
Melissa Burch http://melissaburch.blogspot.com/
Kim O'Rear http://kimorear.blogspot.com/
Michelle Bourlet http://michellescreativeconnections.blogspot.com/
Angela Tutton http://www.tuttonstreasures.blogspot.com/
Jenifer Benner http://www.jensmessystudio.com/
Shirley Ross http://www.momnmescrap.blogspot.com/
Latisha Haag http://domestichomefrontcoordinator.blogspot.com/

Happy Hopping!

My Advent Calendar

I saw the perfect advent calendar on Laurel Seabrook's blog and remembered seeing one like it in Creating Keepsakes last year.  So, when I saw the box at my local scrapbook store, Scrapbook Emporium, I knew I wanted to make one.  The little boxes are the perfect size for a couple of chocolate balls or bells, which is the perfect treat for my two little ones.

Laurel's was my inspiration for this one, down to which paper I used!  I used two papers from Jingle Level 2 and the two from Jingle Creative Basics, along with some old snowflake stickers I had, some punched with a Martha Stewart punch, and some from our glitter rub-ons as well as some white daisy rub-ons.  I also used our Twinkle brads and sparkles.  The numbers are clear stickers that come with the kit.  I do plan to cover the top and sides with paper as well, but we'll see when that happens.

It was so fun to watch the kids open each box and get so excited about the same treats.  I put a little note in #25 to tell them to go look in their boots for a bigger treat (a chocolate egg with smarties inside).  Christmas became so much more fun this year as our kids get older and can really enjoy it.  It's magical through their eyes!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I can hardly believe that Christmas is only four days away!  My daughter has started her first Christmas Break from school and we're having a relaxing day here at home.  My gifts are all bought, although not wrapped yet.  But I've got to get a move on that since we'll be opening them on Wednesday.  Why Wednesday? you ask.  It's a family tradition I grew up with.  My mom and dad are both from the Netherlands.  The Dutch celebrate Christmas, the gift-giving part of it, on December 5.  It's called Pakjies Dag, or Presents Day.  My dad immigrated to Canada when he was just 12 and his family adopted the Canadian tradition of opening gifts on Christmas morning.  My mom didn't come to Canada until she was in her 20s.  When they got married, they compromised.  They still wanted to keep Christmas Day about the real reason for celebrating, our Saviour's birth, so we always opened our gifts on the Saturday before Christmas.  My friends were actually jealous of me; I got my toys earlier than they did!
Fast forward to my first Christmas with my new husband.  Chris grew up with the traditional Christmas Day of opening gifts.  He liked the idea of keeping Christmas Day as a celebration of Jesus' birth.  We don't have a particular day; we just pick one that works for us and our schedules, making sure the kids have lots of time to enjoy their gifts.  The last couple of years we opened them on Boxing Day.  We don't do Christmas Eve because that is when our church celebrates with a special service.  So this year we decided on Wednesday, after nap and after Daddy gets home from work.  I guess we're just a little different.
My mom still likes to keep Christmas Day for Christ, but with my brother and I married and trying to arrange time, sometimes the only day we can get together with my family is on Christmas Day.  But Mom is trying to get us to the December 5th way of doing things.  I can pretty much guarantee we'll be doing things the dutch way next year.  I like it.  I love that I am dutch.  I'm proud of my heritage and would love to introduce my kids to Sinterklaas and Swarte Pete and the whole story of a wonderful, kind, giving man who put oranges and little gifts into the wooden shoes belonging to children all over Holland.  In fact, there's even some people in my home town who set it all up with people dressing as these characters and giving out little bags of peppernoten, ti-ties, little lolly-pops coated in sugar and yummy chocolate.  And of course, I'll be getting chocolate letters again this year.
So, to celebrate the Christmas season, here's the little bag I made for Arianna's teacher's gift card.

I used a sheet of Jingle Creative Basics, some Juniper ribbon that came with it, a gold eyelet, and the Thank You stamp set.  It was incredibly easy to make, which was what I needed since I made it the night before.  Nothing like the last minute!

Stay tuned to this blog on January 1st for another Stamp-of-the-Month blog hop and sneak peeks at brand new product from the Spring 2010 Idea Book!

Have a blessed Christmas and a wonderful New Year.

Happy Creating!

December SOTM Blog Hop! (using a club layout)

Welcome to another fabulous blog hop!  I can hardly believe it's time again.  We've had a very busy November, but thankfully for us December isn't going to be as crazy.

This month, we again have over 60 consultants participating.  We've all created projects using December's stamp-of-the-month, Notice the Details.  If you're new to blog hops, it's really quite simple.  Once you're finished here, just click on the link at the end of this post to hop to another blog.  If you continue doing so until you get back here, you'll have seen a plethora of inspiring work!  If you came from Traci's blog, then you're on the right track.  If you get lost, my previous post has links to everyone.

I decided to get two things accomplished with one project.  This layout is the one we'll be making at our First Fridays Club.  These ladies will get to play with this stamp set before they purchase it.  I love this stamp set.  It's perfect for adding some journaling touches to your layouts so that you don't feel overwhelmed about filling in a big space.  It's got some great images that add that little "office" look as well as some wonderful adjectives and other phrases to take your journaling up a notch, or add a little something to your cards.  This is what you receive in the set:

Here is my layout:

I did some random stamping around the outside with snowflakes from various stamp sets.  Then the title and punched snowflakes are sprayed with homemade glimmer mist.  The paper is from the Aspen paper pack.

Here are a couple photos of each page:

And some close-ups of the details.  Click on the first photo to see the glimmer!

These next two show the images from our SOTM:

Now head on over to Haley's blog to see more great artwork!

Please leave a comment.  I'd love to see what you think.

Happy Creating!

December SOTM Blog Hop List

A new month is almost upon us which means there are lots of consultants busy prepping for a new Stamp-of-the-Month Blog Hop.  Here is the list of participants this month:

Jena DeVries http://www.livelovelaughscrapbook.blogspot.com/
Helen Onulak http://www.hookedonstamping.com/
Nona Davenport http://www.nonapearl.blogspot.com/
Beth Naumann http://www.bethscreativeblock.blogspot.com/
Michelle Nist http://michellenist.blogspot.com/
Cibele Glazer http://www.flowerfoot.blogspot.com/
Dawn Heuft http://www.stamptildawn.blogspot.com/
Karen Norman http://www.gettinscrappywithit.blogspot.com/
Brae Montgomery http://thebrae-er.blogspot.com/
Adeline E. Brill http://adeline-brill.blogspot.com/
Jen Patrick http://www.roxybonds-scrappin.blogspot.com/
Tammy Lea Pinchard http://mycreativeclubhouse.blogspot.com/
Melissa Laverty http://www.fancymelissa.blogspot.com/
Chris Shouse http://www.houseostamps.wordpress.com/
Misty Jackson http://www.misstscraps.blogspot.com/
Amy McVey http://www.clearlystamping.blogspot.com/
Jessica Booth http://jessicabooth.blogspot.com/
Sylvia Jacquot http://stampinsylvia.blogspot.com/
Amy Edwards http://paisleysplayhouse.blogspot.com/
Deb Young http://www.scrapbookczar.blogspot.com/
Judy Burger http://makingtimeformemories.blogspot.com/
Jamia Bankhead http://www.papermadnessinc.blogspot.com/
Paige Dolecki http://www.paigespaperparadise.blogspot.com/
Shannon Pelletier http://www.mycolorfulworldinvt.blogspot.com/
Pamela O'Connor http://www.cherishyourmemories.blogspot.com/
Kathleen Androlewicz http://bowlofstamps.blogspot.com/
Debra Van Patten http://memoriesoftheheartbydeb.blogspot.com/
Wendy Kessler http://www.myscrapbookingblog.com/
Dawn Ross http://www.iamahappystamper.blogspot.com/
Caren Goldsein http://www.scrappycaren.blogspot.com/
Lori Brown http://www.savingmine.blogspot.com/
Lori Miller http://www.clearlyfromtheheart.blogspot.com/
Sarita Schraeder http://www.blessedscrapper.blogspot.com/
Tanya David http://www.scramperscorner.blogspot.com/
Barbra Otten http://barbraotten.blogspot.com/
Laurie Newton http://scrapsfromthebeach.blogspot.com/
Kristie Herdener http://www.goofyscrapper.blogspot.com/
Maricar Harris http://www.maricarharris.blogspot.com/
Laurie Levnik http://www.creationsbylaurie.blogspot.com/
Carla Ironside http://www.carlacreates.blogspot.com/
Cindy Leek http://www.paperspadsandpictures.blogspot.com/
Mary Eisen http://www.mestamp2.blogspot.com/
Sheila Bennett http://sheila-bennett.blogspot.com/
Lori Leng http://www.pinkcloudscrappers.blogspot.com/
Susan Brooks http://www.stampingintheopen.blogspot.com/
Jen Rubio http://www.jenrubio.blogspot.com/
Traci Godbee http://createwithtraci.blogspot.com/
Krista Ritskes http://kristaritskes-simplycreating.blogspot.com/ You are here!
Haley Dyer http://www.inkyscrapper.blogspot.com/
Terrie Dodd http://www.my-life-in-real-time.blogspot.com/
Wanda Riley http://www.creatingwithwanda.blogspot.com/
Antoinette Herrin http://www.godblessyourart.blogspot.com/
Laura Dame http://www.thecroppersconnection.blogspot.com/
Jill Lucas http://scrapwench.blogspot.com/
Katy Donaldson http://www.scrappinkaty.blogspot.com/
Jody Gustafson http://www.cre8nmemories.blogspot.com/
Kimberly Smith http://verykimberry.blogspot.com/
Melissa Burch http://melissaburch.blogspot.com/
Tracy Oleksak http://www.mamaolie.blogspot.com/
Shirley Ross http://www.momnmescrap.blogspot.com/

What a fabulous list of bloggers!  Be sure to come back here on December 1st to see all the fabulous work everyone has done.