New toys!

I love that all of the newproducts from CHA are starting to hit the stores. :) I am slowly picking up a few items here and there. Stampin' Up! also has all of their new product out and I am stocking up. ;) If you need a catalog let me know. Here are a few projects I did yesterday and today. New stamps, punches and paper. Yippee!!! I have so many other projects I am working on. I hope to be able to share them soon.

This is absolutely my favorite time of year. Not just fall and all of it's beauty, but the possibilities and hopefulness at this time of year. Back-to-school, the kickoff of the holiday seasons and football, warm and yummy comfort foods, cozy blankets and sweaters.

Input please

I am starting back up my daily topics on my blog. I would like some input from all of you on what you like to see online.

Techniques, tutorials, card making, altered items, how to use tools, how to use certain products, challenges (colors, sketches, inspiration), swaps, how-to-build-a-kit, etc......

Here is another quick teacher gift idea. It is a circle coaster from the $1 bin at Michael's (pack of 6/$1) covered with Daisy D's & Fancy Pants paper. I used the Honey Pie rub-ons from Cosmo Cricket and the flourish stamp is from Fancy Pants Chic Alpha set. The cute post-it note apples I found at Walmart and couldn't resist. I punched a hole thru them and tied a ribbon thru the hole. Then I pressed them onto the coaster and pushed a Bazzill brad thru the notes and the coaster.

Last fruits of summer

These are some photos that I took this afternoon. Marissa was happy playing in the mud puddles left from the rain yesterday. :) Of course, when I brought out the camera she wanted to be right next to me, not 'posing' for some cute pictures. ;) I hope you are all having a great weekend so far. Enjoy!

Progress

I can hardly believe how quickly the crew is moving on building our addition. It is the middle of august and the weather is starting to turn to autumn. Cool, rainy and getting darker. The fireweed is almost to the top and it is in the low 40's at night. This is my favorite time of the year. Anyway, back to the addition. They raised the roof today. Literally. ;) And, we now have stairs connecting the old and new garages. Cody's window has been boarded up until his new one is installed and my new space is starting to take shape. There is going to be a half wall next to the stairs. But, it will be the last wall they put up. It will be so nice to have our motorhome at our house from now on. It is such a pain to pick it up, load it, unload it and return it to storage. It will be a real treat to drive it in the garage, plug it in and not have to empty the fridge every week. :)

The new stairs from the existing garage into the new garage.

I am standing in the far corner of my new space to take this shot. The half wall will be on the other side of this stack of wood. It will allow light from that huge window to come into the space. The room is 14 x 15. The existing window will be removed and an arched entryway will be installed. So my current 14 x 15 room will double. Perfect for teaching and designing. ;)

The new profile of the front of the house. We are adding faux rock to the bottom half of the walls on the front of the house and onto the columns on the front porch. Just a warmer look and to break up all the brown. ;)

The new profile from the back of the house. All the junk that doesn't fit in the current garage space we have. It will all have a new home soon. I think expanding the deck and fencing the backyard will be our next projects. ;) Shhhh.. don't tell Robert. ;)

Back to school in style

How fun are new school clothes, supplies and finding out who your new teacher(s) will be? I loved school. Here are a few projects that could make going back to school even more fun!

A special place to keep school information, for supplies or make a cute little album to put inside.

Back pack gift box for special notes of encouragement or goodies for the first day.

Apple Cider Pocket for a special teacher

Recipe for School Tin ~ Pink Paislee pattern paper, Daisy D postcard, Maya Road tin, KI Memories die cut numbers, Fancy Pants embellishments, Cosmo Cricket sticker, Glue Arts adhesive, CTMH ink, SU! cardstock and ribbon & Miscellaneous ribbon and buttons

Recipe for Backpack ~ Bazzill cardstock, Michael's $1 stamp, Xyron personal cutting system + basic shape book diecut, White gel pen, Ranger Stickles, Circle punch, Glue Arts adhesive & Miscellaneous ribbon & buttons.

Recipe for Apple Cider Pocket ~ Bazzill cardstock, Kim Hughes stamp, Copic Markers, SU" ink and cardstock, Glue Arts adhesive & misc. rub-on (I can't remember).

Sweet Serving Tray

I saw this serving tray on clearance at JoAnn's and just could not leave without it. I loved the dark wood and the size. I did not like the paper that was lining the bottom. ;) So I created my own design using some Honey Pie paper from Cosmo Cricket, Maya Road chipboard, miscellaneous buttons and some Fancy Pants felt. The ribbon around the edges of the tray is from May Arts (I think). I think it turned out really cute. A piece of glass cut to size will cover the design so it stays clean. Now I just need a sweet teapot and cups to complete the set. :) It gives me a good excuse to antique shop.

Believe

It is gorgeous and sunny here today, but I could not resist doing a snow scene with this window and this sweet little girl. :) I have been wanting to use this stamp set since it arrived a few weeks ago. It has just been too crazy to attend to the details until today. This is a new Level 3 hostess set from Stampin' Up! It has so many cute images and sayings. I used a $1 stamp from Michael's for the sentiment. The new Fall/Winter Stampin' Up! catalog came out today. YAHOO!! I will be receiving my box of catalogs soon so if you would like one please leave me a comment. I am also going to hostess an open house this fall. Just waiting for my room to be finished. :)

Oh and I forgot to post this photo on friday. This is what I saw coming down the stairs just before 7 a.m. A momma moose and her twin calves in our neighbors front yard. Soaking up the warm morning sun. Then they started eating his newly landscaped bushes. Why can't they eat the 'free', wild trees? ;) Hope you have a good evening!

Summer was here

For the past few days we had what felt like summer. Temperatures didn't rise above 65, but the sun was out, clear blue skies and no wind! It has been cold, cloudy and windy all summer. Marissa and I were outside most of the day.

A dear friend that I used to work with stopped by. It is always such a good time when she is around. She brought Marissa some super cute outfits that her daughter has outgrown. One of those is a bright pink dance leotard complete with a sparkly tutu. Marissa has been dancing around admiring herdelf in any reflective surface and saying 'ballet' with her arms up over her head. I'll try and take some photos. I have to be stealth or she will stop the performance. ;)

My mom had both of her knees replaced yesterday morning and is doing very well. I will be visiting with her today at the hospital. She will be home on monday or tuesday. Then I will be helping my dad with the 'nursing' duties. I spoke to her last night before my dad left for the night, she sounded really good. She will be up and walking today. WOW!! Hopefully pain free soon. She had bone spurs and bone on bone in her kneecaps. Ouch!

The progress on my new space, oh, and the garage, is moving along very well. However, it means that most of my 'stuff' is in boxes and baskets and stored in the basement. The guest room is overflowing and I have moved some to the wine room. So my posts may be limited on projects until my room is finished. I am so trying to stay focused and share as much as possible, but chaos is not very inspiring. :)

The upper floor is my new space. The existing window will be removed and an arched doorway installed.

Now for the winner of the blog candy: Tammi Lynn!!! Thank you so much to everyone who left birthday wishes. Tammi, make sure to leave me your mailing address or email and I will send your goodies to you. :)

39 today!

I want to share some of my birthday fun with all of you that visit my blog. I have some blog candy to giveaway. A cute Maya Road tin and matching chipboard book, Daisy D's & Basic Grey Rubons, miscellaneous embellishments, ribbons and a sweet Maya Road trinket (peridot, acrylic heart charm). Leave me a comment and I will draw a winner on friday (Aug. 8th). :)

It is really special that so many friends and family called me today. It was pretty uneventful. We signed Cody up for his junior year at Dimond High School. Then, during lunch, he reminded me that he needed his 'real' driver's license. The 6-month provisionals on his temp license had expired. :) Well, guess what, my license expired today also. So, off to the DMV we went. A very quick 30 minutes later we were done. We headed home late this afternoon after a few more errands and had a yummy chocolate cake with my parents. Marissa finished the icing on her piece and then tried to eat grandma's as well. :) My hubby surprised me with a pile of new clothes and a great Coach travel bag. We are heading to a resort in Arizona in October and he knows that I need hot weather clothes. He has great taste and only three items have to be exchanged. Not bad considering he bought six complete outfits. Plus, I received lots of other cool gifts and cards from friends and family. It has been a really great day! Thanks for stopping by and I hope to have a project up for you tomorrow. :)