I got my new china cabinet. :) It's been a busy weekend, I hope to have some time tomorrow to get back to blogging, have a great Labor Day!

Ok, so I didn't get EVERYTHING done yesterday...but I think I did alright...
marathon training...check
garbage out...check
grocery shopping...check
four loads of laundry...check
dishes...check
reading lots of bloggity goodness...check
scrapbook layout...check
work on new gallery...check
Chef Ruth custom stamp...check
TTV...check
work on new gallery...check (hope to have this up by Monday!)
being terribly sore due to running too much on my first day...check
make the bed...check
post office...check

anything I'm forgetting...ah yes...
make plans to go get my china cabinet Saturday...CHECK! :)

I didn't get my minibook done...and I haven't had any decent light to take pictures of my scrapbook layout, so instead, you get so see what Kadee has been up to! :)

I love my days off work becuse I get so much done....by the end of today (hopefully) I will have a clean apartment, some marathon training under my belt (heh), and at least 5 of 20 current projects finished. Sounds good, huh?

Wait, did she say marathon? Yes, that's right, Saturday night while watching the Olympics, I decided that I want to run a marathon. I am not a runner, I actually hate running, but those guys can run 26 miles in under 2 hours and 10 minutes, that means their average, OVER 26 MILES is less than 5 minutes per mile!! Does that seem nutty to anyone else??! Anyway, I found it inspiring, so at least for a couple of weeks I will entertain the notion that I could someday run a marathon! :)

Other than that the things I hope to accomplish today are: a wonderful little mini-book, a scrapbook layout inpired by a really great website, working on my TTV skills, working on designs for a stamp for a friend's catering business, and uploading the DT projects into the NEW gallery. :)

Beth sent me a photo of the cover of her new art journal, which is too stinkin cute, I love the deer, and OF COURSE...the scallops, I hardly make anything without them. :) She used the Hannah Banana stamp as part of her design, I think this turned out great, what a fun thing to do with the cover of an old book!

I didn't know if I would have time to make a layout for the last event, BUT...inspiration hit. This is my entry for the text event in Elise's olympics. It was pretty much inspired by the wordle.

This is my entry for the paint event in Elise's olympics. I used acrylic paint on bubble wrap to make my background. He he he...and just a funny picture of us as kids, I have to laugh whenever I see this picture because I have NO CLUE what we're watching, but it must be good...I don't even remember the last time when I was that into something I was watching, these days I always have 101 different things on my mind! Oh to be a kid again!

:) I can always remember Jenny and Nathan's Anniversary because it's two days before Jason and my "kissing anniversary." He he he, I had told Jason that I wasn't going to kiss him until we got married, but...that didn't happen! :) He drove down to Kansas for our "third date"...he stayed for like...a week. He got there about 6 in the morning on the 21st, he had driven all night. He pretty much went to bed as soon as he got there, cause that's the day Jenny was getting married! :) He was my date to the wedding, and I think we spent the next day in Topeka, went to church at SWTBC, went to the Wasso's house, went to Gage Park and the Gatekeeper and bought comic books.

Monday night we went out to "the farm" took the paddle boat out to the trampoline in the middle od Dad's pond and we layed out there and talked and watched the thunder in the distance. I remember, we talked about what superpowers we would have if we were superheroes. :) I wanted to kiss him so bad, heh, and I did. It was nice. :) Saturday will be four years since our first kiss, but we celebrated last weekend, since I have to work this weekend, and we actually took pictures! (it's been so long since we've taken pictured of the two of us...mostly cause my hair was getting bad for a while, but I finally got it cut about a month ago, and then my skin just wasn't doing very good...but after my cyst popped magically my face started clearing up, and voila, we have pictures! :)

Kadee made another card, this time a masculine birthday card. Making a masculine ANYTHING is always difficult for me, most of the time it just turns out ....ugly. (or I give up on the masculine part!) I think she did such a great job of making a good-looking masculine card, I'll definitely have to keep this inspiration in mind the next time I have to make a birthday card for a guy.

I am usually a really good sleeper....some people can only sleep 6-7 hours at night...I can go 9 or 10 no trouble......through the night. My problem is that if I sleep at all during the day, I have a really hard time falling asleep at night, and staying asleep. Sunday afternoon Jason and I took a short nap...maybe half an hour, so I told him to remind me to take a sleeping pill before we went to bed. At about 11pm as we were laying in bed talking and I wasn't the slightest bit tired I remembered and took a sleeping pill and all was good...except that it was the last one. Last night we watched a movie, during which, naturally, I dozed off for a few minutes several times, sleeping through movies is totally my MO.

Well, I had no sleeping pills and thought that maybe since it was just like 5 minutes here and there I would be fine. Fast forward to 3:15 this morning when I was laying in bed WIDE awake. All I wanted to do was scrapbook...weird. But...we have a one bedroom apartment, and that one bedroom shares my scrap desk, so that was out of the question. So I went online and looked at stuff and read stuff until 3:55 when my Sweetie came looking for me. So I stamped a little while he went potty and crawled back into bed only to lay there for another hour before finally falling asleep.

Ugh. So, I did this page this morning...heh, by the time I finished it was 9:10 and I had 10 minutes to get out of my PJs, fix my hair, brush my teeth and leave for work. Anyway...I used the Roller Coaster stamp for my background pattern...this is my entry for the pattern event in Elise's olympics.


....now to go work on the other ideas I was having at 3:15 this morning! :)

Elise sent me her first layout using Apple Blossom Studio stamps, and all I'm saying is THIS is why I need a design team. I've used the Blossom Badge stamp what...like...50 times or something....but never thought of using it like this. :) She's a clever one.


I was also lucky enough to be off work Friday so that I could stalk her etsy shop and got one of her "ooh la la" kits that I have "anniversary of our first kiss" plans for. :) And you should go check out Elise's blog, she is hosting a paper olympics, with medals and everything! :) I can't wait to see what everyone creates!

(or... The Wonders of the World Wide Web)
(or... Guess who has a new hobby!!?)

:) What is it...I think... melodramas that have alternate titles? why is that? I never quite understood...maybe the writers of melodramas are fickle.
Anyway...as I was bloghopping last night I came accross this wonderful thing known as TTV or "Through The Viewfinder." I was reading this article and was like "hey...I think we have one of those Kodak Duaflex cameras in our little collection!"
:) Thanks, Mom!

And...since I am married to the master of building things out of foamcore, we promptly put together the light-blocking contraption and were well on our way. :) So basically, if you're saying to yourself, "I don't get it." ...ttv is taking pictures with one camera "through the viewfinder" of another camera! It's actually really fun...and addictive! Here are a few more blurry shots...I have unsteady hands, I'll try some outdoor shots later hopefully! :) The above article also shows how to clean the dust and dirt out of the camera, so Jason is gonna help me with that sometime. :)

...and a scrapbook layout featuring a TTV shot of my Sweetie working on the website. :)

:) Kadee sent me her first card using ABS stamps today, and she did a video while making it. You should totally go over to Kadee's Blog and check it out!
So very fun. :)

I especially liked that she used heat embossing...I bought an embossing gun a couple of years ago...it is still in its original packaging to this day! (but I am now inspired to get some embossing powder and break it out!) AND...she totally used the stamp press. :) AND...she's very good and cleaned off her stamps right away...something I do not do....I am much more of the "use it until it won't stick anymore and THEN wash it" type...and they get all stained. Anyway, check out her video and see how a pro puts a card together! (I'm so bad at cards, I think sometimes they take me longer than layouts!)

Today I thought I would share a few of my favorite snacky things!

Fisrt of all, I'm pretty much always in the mood for a Toaster Strudel....and they have a new boston creme pie flavor that I LOVE! But...I only really eat these about once a week, cause lets face it, they're not great for you, but delicious nonetheless. ...and they're super fun cause you can write things with your frosting! :)

Second, I've told you about my love for these peach mango crisps by Flat Earth, they're super yummy and actually have fruit in them....I think something like half a serving in every ounce!

Probably what I snack on most often is baby carrots...they're cheap, easy, and have virtually no calories!

And lastly, Edy's Berry Rainbow Sherbet. I used to buy just a big tub of the store brand raspberry sherbet to use in our smoothies, and one day when I was shopping, they were all out, and this was on sale, so I tried it, and I've never gone back. This stuff is to die for!

Last time I did Friday Favorites I mentioned the Fiskars stamp press and lots of people had questions about it....well, I'm not so much the video-making type (I still have video of Timmy from Christmas on my camera cause iPhoto doesn't take the video off!) but I found this one on youtube...enjoy!


And a layout I did this morning, of course, using the stamp press! :)

First of all, this is really fun. Yup, that's our "swirly girly" stamp in the Work in Progress September kit. :) I think it's totally fun to see one of our stamps in there!

AND, I have a funny story...he he he, it's funny to me at least. I had totally forgotten about this story until this afternoon when I was leaving Walmart and saw a guy that looked like a guy I used to know. This guy was the older brother of my friends and next door neighbors, Mark and Angie. He he he...he was a senior in high school when I was in jr, high...so I'm guessing he's about 5 years older than I am...I don't even remember his name. Well, when I worked as a cashier at the hardware store when I was...what? I think 20 years old or so, guys would hit on me, heh. Well, one day when I was working this guy asked me for my phone number, he he he, and I didn't want to say "no" so I gave it to him.

I swear to you, I spent the next week on the internet... this was back when we had dial-up...I was on the internet CONSTANTLY for DAYS he he he, just cause I didn't want this guy to call. Hahaha, I am such a nerd. Well...a couple of weeks later he was at the hardware store again and told me he had lost my number and asked if I would give it to him again! Well, after I had agonized over his phonecall for so long, I just said, "No, I don't think so." He he he he, I think I'm probably the nerdiest person that ever lived, but oh well, at least I didn't have to go out with him!

End of random memory.
:)

Kelly Purkey did a homework planner class at 2 peas last week that was just too cute to pass up! I am not usually one to make "altered items" because although I love STUFF, I really despise clutter, but hey, if it's something USEFUL, why not glue paper and pretty things all over it!? :) Now, I don't go to school, so I didn't do a homework planner, but I am a major list-maker.....if I don't have a list to check things off on, I get nothing done! (...or I feel like I haven't got anything to show for it!) So, I made a to-do planner to keep my to-do list, a calendar, a shopping list...and whatever else I come up with!

One of my favorite things about Kelly's planner was the rub-ons on the clear dividers, I thought it looked really fun! So, when I ordered my supplies I picked out a set of rub-ons...the ones I used are Heidi Grace, and basically built my planner around them...with the different blues and a little red and pink in the rubs I decided on the blue boutique papers by Sassafras Lass, I just LOVE that paper line! And I just used various other scraps for the papers behind my dividers, and stamped the section names. (he he, all my fingertips are red today!)




:) This was a totally fun little project!
Thanks, Kelly!

*edited to add* The section titles are stampled with the Fontwerks Fling Alphabet my total all-time favorite alphabet stamp set, I LOVE them!

Anne sent me her first couple of cards using Apple Blossom Studio stamps, and I am just super impressed! I love all the layering she used here, and the fact that she used three different stamps on one card! :) When I see cards like this I get terribly jealous of others' card-making abilities!

I can't wait to start adding her work to the gallery! This weekend we will be working on making the gallery "dynamic." :) Heh, that means that you will be able to search the gallery for creations by designer, by stamp used, or by category (layout, card, or project.) And when I say "we" it really means my web-genius of a Sweetie-pie. :)

Wow....I never imagined how hard it would be to to choose a design team! I truly wish I could have asked every applicant to join us, and I appreciate the artwork that everyone sent me! I feel so honored that so many talented designers wanted to work with our stamps!

That being said, it was too difficult to narrow it down to just three or four, so I have asked five new designers to join Anne House on our new design team!

Kadee Morrison makes the most stunning cards, she knocked my socks off with her submissions, and she makes wonderful instructional videos for her blog that I find very helpful!

Beth Jarrett makes beautiful layouts with so much fun detail you could look at them for hours, and I love what she does in making her own embellishments!

Elise Blaha is truly a creative soul with a fun artsy style, and she does fantastic things with letterpress, many of which you can find in her Etsy Store. (I know I'll be stalking it for when she puts out a new mini-book kit!)

Anne-Marie Teo really has a knack for picking the perfect papers and embellishments to complete a page, and I have yet to see one of her creations that I don't adore...including her beautiful cupcakes!

Maria Burke impressed me with her cards, scrapbook layouts, AND wonderful mini-books...not to mention two of the most adorable little girls, I can't wait to have her work in our gallery!

I am so excited to get to work with these talented ladies! To learn more about them please visit our Design Team page!

Thanks so much to everyone who applied!

Sunday was our niece Marissa's second birthday. :) Jason volunteered us to make a cake, so we decided on an ice cream truck...it's the first cake ive decorated since moving to Wisconsin almost 3 years ago! ...but it's just like riding a bike. Jason helped a lot too, he worked on the outlines, the wheels, and the blue wave, pretty good for his first time, huh?! I thought so!

We got Marissa new sneakers for her birthday, and she was SO excited about them! She had her mommy help her put them on right away! That little stinker is already potty-trained, can you believe it!? It's hard for me to think of her as the same age as Hayley cause she's so much smaller, but they're only two weeks apart. We had a lot of fun at the party, I like having some weekends off work to be able to go to stuff like that. :)

I had my ultrasound this morning, which went fine, I think. I drank 32 ounces of water...and of course by the time I got there couldn't hold it any longer and had to go to the bathroom! ...but the technician said I had enough that my bladder filled right back up again, so...yeah, she said if I ever have to have an ultrasound again I don't have to drink so much that I think I will pop!

I'm still a little tired and sore, but nothing I can't handle...just taking it easy, I even took a nap today. I see the doctor on Friday to (hopefully!) find out what is going on with me! :)

Thanks, everyone, for praying for me, you guys are great!

I rode in an ambulance last night, and I spent several hours in the ER.

Crazy, huh?

Jason and I were just sitting in the living room watching TV and I got this sudden terrible pain in my abdomen on the right side...all the way from my pelvis up through my ribs. I tried to take a shower to see if it would help it to go away, but it just got worse and I threw up...I never throw up, it was terrible. Jason helped me get dressed and drove me to the nearest urgent care place...which was not open...ugh. By that time I was hurting so bad I thought I would die...or at least pass out, so he drove me back to the apartment and called 911. I threw up again in the parking lot waiting for the ambulance, but they got there and got me situated and took me to the hospital where they put me on an IV and gave me morphine and an anti-nausea medicine and examined me and stuff.

As it turns out, the Doc thinks I had an ovarian cyst that burst. I have to have an ultrasound and stuff, and I'm tired and sore, but that's about the extent of it. So we got home around one o'clock this morning and went to bed. Early this morning it was storming and at about 5:30 the fire alarm in our building was going off....I think the storm set it off, we just waited until it stopped and went back to bed. Crazy. Needless to say, I think we're going to bed early tonight.

I told myself I would take a couple of weeks off after scrapping every day for the "name that stamp" contest...but I couldn't do it. For one, I just got the beautiful August kit from Work In Progress Kits yesterday, and couldn't help but to break into it, this is the layout I made so far.....


And while I was blog surfing yesterday I found this color combo at the Color Combos Galore Blog and made this layout and a couple of cards...



But my desk is now so messy that I'll HAVE to take a couple of weeks off to get everything sorted and organized! :)

Joanne wanted us to share some of our favorite things...today I'm going to share some of my favorite products for stamping....

One thing I could not stamp without is this nifty thing called a stamp press, made by Fiskars. One can be purchased here. I feel like it gives me a lot more control with my stamping than a big old acrylic block does.


I also love these Colorbox cat's eyes chalk inks....they're small, cheap, and available in a multitude of colors!


I also recently heard a lot of great things about the new Autumn Leaves clear stamp inks.....and since 2peas had them on sale 50% off, I bought a bunch, and I LOVE them!


That's it for my favorites today...and here is a layout and a card for your entertainment...
I made this layout with the July Label Tulip kit. I've been wanting the Heather Bailey Freshcut fabric to make a quilt....I still don't have the fabric, but at least I got to "quilt" a little with her Freshcut paper! I loved playing with it!


And here is a card that I made for Jennifer McGuire's "Stamping on Clear" class going on over at 2peas right now. I was amazed at how much better the white ink looks when stamped on a transparency than on paper!