New Project

I realize I haven't posted in many, many months. That would be because I've been busy working on my latest project--one that should be complete sometime in May.


Yep! Expecting! (Not twins, I just had to take two tests to be sure).

I spent many, many weeks feeling absolutely sicker than a dog. Then I started to feel better and it was time to try and catch up on family stuff and life in general. Then the kids got sick. Three rounds of strep throat this year. Not fun. (I'm honestly wondering if one of the munchkins is a carrier for strep.)

They also broke my laptop screen. One of the more rambunctious ones decided it was a great idea to shut my laptop while I was typing. My ring and knuckles did some serious damage to my screen. It was a while before I had a working laptop again.

I'm still playing catch up, (and part of that has been trying to get services for my children who are on the Autism spectrum), but the holidays are over, the decorations are put away (last week-finally), and I'm hoping I can begin posting again on a more regular basis.

One other piece of good news. We had planned on finishing the basement when we bought this house and have been saving accordingly. This new baby provides the impetus to get it done, and hopefully we'll be able to finish in the next month or two. The best part? One of the rooms we're finishing is a craft room for me! I can't tell you how excited I am. I haven't had a craft room in ages and ages! (I have just been hiding in nooks and cranny's wherever I can).

Look for posts regarding basement progress in the near future!

Baby Love

What can I say, I love babies. I love baby scrapbook pages, I love baby cards, announcements, clothes and blankets. I especially love that sweet baby smell of my own little ones. (Some of whom are not so little really anymore).

I was going through some boxes today (spring cleaning), and found this scrapbook page I had done for a swap. It's one of my simpler designs, but remember I like the simple stuff.

I hope you like it too.

(By the way the shiny centers are the flowers are microbeads I adhered with crystal effects).

A Bouncing Baby Boy!

I have a nephew! Well technically I have 10+ nephews, but the newest one made his appearance yesterday! He was a little over 8 1/2 lbs. & 21" long. Another nephew was born about a week ago. (He's adorable too!) He weighed just over 8 lbs and is 20" long.

So in honor of my two nephews, I thought I'd post a baby boy card.

Actually, I used this for my little boy’s birth announcement. I have to admit, I stole this fabulous idea from C. Tepa Farias. We swapped cards at a SU! convention, and I just knew I had to have this card. Her version was in pink, and used a different background stamp and ribbons, but it was just too cute not to "lift".

And speaking of babies, I'm really happy to report that my friend with the broken kneecap is doing so much better. It was tricky getting around with a newborn and a cast, thankfully that came off a little over a week after the baby was born. She then wore a brace for a while, but that is off now too. She's able to bend her knee & drive again and has regained most of the motion in her leg. She hasn't been able to do any running yet, but I'm sure that is coming. (The baby is only six-weeks-old after all).

Babies are so sweet aren't they? (Especially when they are napping :D ).

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The other day I mentioned the sweet new stamps I got from my friend, Meridith Anne of Lizzie Anne Designs? She gave me the brand-new pirate, pirate saying, and ballerina from their winter release. (Before they were available for purchase). I can't tell you how excited I was/am. I had planned on having a card posted with my cute new stamps already, but life has interfered with my plans. I'm hoping to finish the ballerina card tonight and post it tomorrow.

Baby on the Brain

In honor of my friend's new baby boy, I'm posting a picture of the block I made for her. I made it generic since she's not done having children, and may have another boy--so it can be used again in her nursery. (Also, I gave it to her before she had the little cutie and before they had decided on a name).

If she wants, I may change it so it says, "C is for Cameron". (That's the nice thing about vinyl--you can peel it off and start over if you want). :D

Another baby card!

So, I still haven't had time to finish assembling my latest stamped card (using Lizzie Anne Designs' High Hellos). But as I was clearing out my stamp room, I found another baby card. This one was my daughter’s birth announcement. I’ve got a tiny “she’s here” embossed in the corner. By Definition (Stampin' Up!) provides the background. I was careful to make sure love showed up in the top corner of all the announcements. It's a pretty simple color scheme, but it works for an announcement.

Do you have a favorite color combination for baby announcements/cards that is a little unusual, or do you stick with the basics too?

Baby Gifts

As I mentioned, I’ve had lots of friends having babies lately. My new favorite gift to give is our Bath Time tin filled with lots of baby bath supplies. The little hippo was designed by Meridith Anne of Lizzie Anne Designs, and licensed for a fee. He’s too cute! This vinyl project started off as wall art for a tub surround in a kid’s bathroom--(which was darling by the way).

One day last year I needed to make a baby shower gift, and I was playing around with different container ideas. I happened to have an empty paint can and voila! The Bath Time Tin was born.

A friend of mine had me make a few for her which she filled with things like bath crayons, colored bubble bath and other things older kids would like in the tub. Her son gave it away as a fun birthday present.

I'm always looking for cute containers to put gifts into, and I love that I can customize them now too.

Back to My Roots Baby!

I've had a lot of friends having babies lately, so I felt the urge to get back to my creative roots and create a simple card to go with their baby gifts. The stamp sets I used are Scrappin Stamps & Scrappin Stamps II from Lizzie Anne Designs. I also used Warmest Regards and I'm Here from Stampin' Up! Inks & paper are Stampin' Up!

I tend to like fairly simple, clean designs in stamping. I love little embellishments (like the flower eyelet) which add some interest and don't detract from the overall picture. I'm that way in decorating my home. Clean lines--no clutter.

Of course when are we ever clutter-free when we've got kids running around?

Still it's a dream I aspire to. :D

It's been a while since I've had time to sit down and stamp. I'm hoping now that school has started back up I might find the occasional 15 minutes to stamp here & there. I'm hoping I'll be able to post slightly more than once a week too.

If you have children, how do you make time for your creative pursuits? Leave a comment--maybe we can give each other some great ideas.