Preferred Lawn Santa?

In our house, we are very opinionated.
Shocking, I know.
And we like to "express" ourselves.
Again...you're shocked.

Well, the current debate is over holiday lawn decorations.
Whether the old school plastic Santa

Kicks the new school inflated Santa's ass!


And every time we see one or the other, the argument continues.
Good thing we have neither, not even lights or nuthin'.

And the kid says, "they're both stupid".
What do you think?

Only 10 days til Christmas?

Really?
Well, I guess I should think about buying a present, huh?
We haven't even begun.
Yep, we are major procrastinators.
And we're having Christmas dinner here, at our house.
At least I know what we're having, kinda.
And if the kid continues to change his Christmas list daily, he'll be getting cash.
It went from an Xbox to clothes to computer stuff to his latest request...a bar of gold.
Yep, it's what every teen wants for the holiday season...GOLD!
Apparently he saw something on the news about the value of gold.
Or maybe all those, "Send us your gold!" commercial have gone to his head.
Whatever the case, he better make a final decision.
It takes Best Buy elves a couple days to make an Xbox360.

On the home front, I am still playing house.
And besides the lack of a second income, I'm enjoying it immensely.
The kid tells me almost every day, "I am so happy you're here mom."
That makes me feel good.
It could just be all the baked goods I've been making lately, but it still puts a smile on my face.
And the man isn't complaining all that much either, which is good for my guilt.
He's been working extra jobs out in the freezing cold and tells me almost every day, "don't worry."
I'm a lucky girl.

And last week was pretty much a waste because when the man came back from New Mexico, he brought with him some nasty germs and succeeded in giving me a doozie of a cold.
Wiped me out for days.
Lucky though, it moved in very quick, was total misery for like 3 solid days and then gone.
I could have sent myself this card...



Hope everyone is remembering to wash those hands and staying healthy!
Have an awesome Tuesday.

Card details: Stamps by Cornish Heritage Farms, Colored with Copic Markers, Patterned Paper by October Afternoon, Stamped with Memento Ink, Cardstock by Bazzill. Card available for sale HERE.

Happy Friday

Well, the kid was off school today so we enjoyed sleeping in, followed by a big bowl of warm Cream of Wheat.
Yum.
Almost as good as when my mom would make it on cold morning for us but I think she used a lot more butter.

We have spent the day in our jammies, total bliss.
We watched some Survivor since the kid had a homework assignment that required it.
Can you believe that??
What if we were one of those families that didn't watch TV?
Then what?
How would he ever understand Lord of The Flies without Survivor?
Man, times have changed.

I am still keeping busy making stuff for my Etsy Shoppe and just for fun.
I even made a December 2009 mini album to document this holiday season.
The December Daily project is just too much pressure, but I thought this was a happy compromise.
When I get a few pages done, I'll post it.

Here's a sweet little card made with an image I got from my stamping group over a year ago!

Isn't it a cute stamp?

I may head over to the One of a Kind Show tomorrow, downtown while the kid is at the Nerd Academy.
Lord knows I don't have any money to spend but I love seeing what everyone else is making these days.
Have a great weekend.

And btw... I am not the only one who is a major blog slacker, I got half way thru my bloglines to find many, many bloggers with their last posts being in April or earlier! I am still catching up, so I will "see" many of you soon!

(Card Details: Stamps from Stampin' Up!, Colored with Copic Markers, Spica Glitter Pen, Ribbon from Creative Cafe, Patterned Paper from Cosmo Cricket and A muse, Stamped with Memento Ink on Neenah Cardstock)

Pick your Jaws off the Floor...

Yes, it's a post.
Yes, it's been a LONG time.
I know, I know, I know....
Apologies, now let's move past all that.

There's a lot going on in my world, most of which is still whirling and buzzing.
I don't even want to talk about anything just yet since the whirling and buzzing is still so new and fresh but it is giving me some free time that I haven't had in a LONG time.
And so I am playing full time mom to the kid.
And woman to the man, clean house and hot meals every day.
And catching up with my friends who were placed on the back burner.
And that all feels good, real good.

And I am making lots of stuff too, just for fun.
I have almost completely found the love of it all again and it makes me happy.

The kid is real good, he won his school's Science Fair and is now on to Regionals in January.
And for the most part, other than the nagging and help with the poster, he did it all on his own.

His project was on Using Bacteria to Speed Up Decomposition and for the most part, I understand it all but the crazy math equations had to be explained a few times.
He's still in the Nerd Academy on Saturdays, so we have a 6 day school week with all the homework that is involved with that and we are still getting straight A's but it has not been easy this year.
And we are still in the whole hellish High School Search, you would not believe the paperwork!
Entrance exams start in January and anxiety is really starting to set in, poor thing.

I am up and running in my Etsy Shoppe too.
Mama's gotta make money somehow, right?!
This little cutie is in the shoppe...


I have lots of projects to post, I swear I could use an assistant to just photograph and post these things.
And I have stamps to sell as well that will go up in the shoppe too.

I look forward to getting a look at everyone's blogs and catching up on what's been going on, I am sooooo outta the loop.
Off to catch up on my blog reader...


(Card Details: Stamps by My Favorite Things, Colored with Copic Markers, PP by A muse Art Stamps, Stamped with Memento Ink, Punches by Marvy)

Online Classes Available

In all my free time when I am not taking care of a new puppy, running a Scrapbook store and caring for my family...

Whether you live 5 minutes from me or a continent away, you can take my classes in your own home in your jammies!

I have two great upcoming classes coming up.

Begins September 29th
Digital Photography is an amazing tool if you know how to use the camera. There are so many buttons and sometimes it is hard to just figure out what to do just to get a good picture.

This course will cover all the basics you need to get started with your digital camera as well as some tips to get the best shots you can. We will cover all the automatic settings, what all those little symbols mean and when to use them. Also, we will discuss in detail how to use light to your advantage in terms of your camera settings as well as the placement of your subject. whether you have a simple digital point and shoot or a DSLR, this course will cover all you need to successfully operate without looking at your user manual.

Photography doesn't have to be difficult. I will explain in instructional slide shows or videos how to make your digital camera your best friend and get the pictures you want.

This class will include slide shows or videos, photo tutorials, sample projects, student art galleries, discussion forums, scheduled chats and a useful plain English glossary of all those confusing photo terms.
Begins October 20th
Copic Markers are one of the most popular tools in paper crafting these days. Why not incorporate them into your scrapbooking pages?

This class will cover how to use your markers in other ways than just coloring to create stunning, vibrant layouts. I will walk you through all the techniques and show you just how to use those markers in tons of new ways.

Join me for this 3 week class, where we will cover more than 5 techniques and I will walk you through it all step by step.

This class will include instructional slide shows or videos, photo tutorials, sample projects, student art galleries, discussion forums, scheduled chats, and informational links.

I can't wait to get started with this new gig.
I will get to meet even MORE people in the cyber world and make more crafty friends.