Tried a sketch

This was a few weeks ago and I forgot to post them to the blog Cardpatterns, but I want show them off. The challege was http://cardpatterns.blogspot.com/2010/09/sketch-83.html. And these are the cards that I came up with:

I used some stash paper, a floral, a brown, and a cream. I used the sentiment "Thinking of you" from papertrey ink borders & corners {circle} in chocolate chip from stampin' up!. The bows are Martha Stewart ombre bow stickers.

My second creation was done with my sister in law. Paper was from the stash, grey, floral, and cream. Same sentiment, but in tempting turquoise by stampin' up!. The butterfly was cut from the same floral paper with my Silhouette SD. The bow was hand tied from some ribbon in my stash.

I really like the second one better, but I guess I had some time to play with it after making the first one. It could also be because it's blue, my favorite color.

Crafted journal for class

I had to craft a journal for my class and I enjoyed personalizing it. All I used was printer paper about 6 pages. 3 were cut with a 1/2 inch wide slit down the middle vertically leaving about 1 inch at the top and bottom. The other 3 had 1/2 x 1 inch rectangles cut from the top and bottom. The pages with the notches were bent and placed into the slit of the other three. When put together they open to form a booklet.

I used elmer's and blue glitter for the name, prima flowers, random paper cut into butterflies with my Silhouette SD placed with dimensionals, and small confetti flowers glued with glitter glue in silver

Scrapping?

Tomorrow, I think, will be my first scrapping day here at the new place. Got everything set up Friday/Saturday and the husband has a day full of activities tomorrow. So that means that I will have him out of my way and nothing to do until about 5 pm. Whoooo hooooo! :)

The finished project!!!!

I know it has been awhile since I last posted about anything. But now we are pretty much settled and I have finally been able to empty my memory card off of my camera. So here are the pages of my brothers and I given to my Nana for her 80th birthday.

Today was a sad day in our household. One of our cats has been losing weight and we thought it was just a phase, however she could not stand or walk this morning. I rushed her to the nearest vet and after $35 office fee, $90 for the blood work, another $50 to redo one of the tests "to be sure" we know that she is seriously anemic. Her red and white blood cell count are so low she could die in the next 24 hours unless we do a blood trans fusion. As this is our first pet emergency, we chose to do the transfusion that costs us a boat load of money. That was at 1 pm and it is now 9 pm and still no word on how she is doing. The chunk of change is for the operation and two days at the clinic to be watched. We are seriously hoping that she gets better not only for our hearts but our wallet as well. She is our little lap cat. She loves to sit in our laps and just sleep. She is a licker; she loves to lick our fingers while we pet her. Here's to hoping...

Surgery... Yet again

Alot of my friends know that I had a knee surgery almost two years ago now. I had torn my left ACL in my knee in a high school sports class. I waited three years to have it fixed and in those three years what was left of my ACL became a ball of scar tissue that wreaked havoc on the inside of my knee. So I have permanent damage to my cartilage and meniscus, which leads to my current surgery. I had a meniscus tear repaired on 9 June. The surgery was only 45 minutes long compared to the 3 hours of the ACL reconstruction. Recovery is already going much better. I am out of my anesthesia coma already and can put a little weight on my leg. I am very thankful that one tear was all the orthopedic surgeon found. There was talk of multiple and that was going to intensify the recovery time. But I should be walking in about a week and swimming in three. Running and sports won't be for about 5-6 months. And I was just beginning to love tennis, thanks to my friend Amanda.

Lets see... right now my knee has a hole the size of my finger tip from the tube that was removed this morning by my wonderful and brave husband. The tube was a part of the drain which drained the fluid and blood out of my knee to help speed healing. I have an ACE bandage wrapped from about two inches above my knee to about 5 below. I have no idea what is underneath it. There is also four sticky pads that connect to a electrical device to supposedly help with the pain. It however looks and feels like the electrical device that was used to keep my muscles in good shape while I was incapable of walking last surgery. I am using it now and have been for most of the day. It hurts sometimes, but I either turn it off or lower the current. I want to recover fast for my sake as well as my husbands. Speaking of my husband, I woke up from surgery asking for him. All I can remember is calling for him over and over again. He says that when he walked in I said his name then took a deep breath and did this about 15 times.

Yesterday I tried to put some weight down on it since the nurse said that as long as there was no severe pain and that I could control it I could try weight bearing. With only one crutch was too much for the first day. So later I attempted it with both and trying to correctly walk heel to toe. That was how I was walking up until right before we decided it was time to pull out my drain. I had noticed this morning that the area right around the tube was no longer completely numb. Yikes, was my first thought. Then I went in to panic mode. I yelled at my husband to go get me some cold ice packs. However, there weren't any. Lovely! So he was awesome and made me one with fresh ice. The goal being to freeze the area so that I wouldn't feel the tube. I also called my mother so I would not be screaming at my husband for he was trying so hard. Out came the tube and no blood. What a relief! All I felt was something similar to a pinch and then a feeling I cannot describe. Weird. I don't really know how it felt. I have never felt it before. So we bandaged it up with some gauze and taped it down with band aids. We had no tape that would stick to the skin, so what was the next best thing-- band aids! Without the tube, my leg did not feel stable, so I chose not to walk on it for a few hours.

I also slept for about 2 hours total today. Big difference from yesterday. I slept most of the day, but I guess I was sleeping off the anesthesia. However doing more today and the smaller amount of nap time has me feeling tired right now at 8 pm. I think the percocet is causing a little bit of the sleepiness as well as the nausea. But I only feel the nausea right after I eat and when I move after sitting for a long time. I can hope that tomorrow all these things will happen less.

Very productive day!

Today was another free day for me! I am loving it. Yesterday I was bored. I worked on my cover for my scrapbook, but was having problems completing it, so I posted it on Splitcoast and got a reply that helped a lot. Thanks Jzig! I also baked 2 batches of cookies = 50+ cookies, that I took to my husbands shop. Those boys dug in and they were gone when I left 5 minutes later! Guess they were good.

1. So today I seemed to have so much time. I started the day with a bowl of cereal and got to crafting. I checked splitcoast and read my reply. I then got to work on it. I added a few things. I think its done. What do you think?

BEFORE:I used the brown and yellow paper from paper sets I got at Walmart. The circles are of the same yellow paper as it the backing of the bracket. The letters are stickers from Basic Grey and another paper set. The bracket was created with VersaMark ink and a stamp from a company whose name I cannot remember (because I threw away the packaging) and covered with embossing powder in mustard from American crafts Zing!. All of which is set upon a manila folder.

AFTER:I added the ribbon first. The color seemed to bring out the blue in the paper by DCWV. I then added the flowers. I used a red to add a pop of color to what seemed to be becoming a very brown & green cover. I used a brown square brad from The Paper Studio. And lastly I added the names of the grand-kids and two red flower brads from The Paper Studio to coordinate with the flower.

2. I also worked on the back of the book. Took a lot of time, but was fun to create.

The stamp is from Stampin' Up! in SU! chocolate chip ink. The flowers are from a set from SU! called Greenhouse garden and the leaves are from the same unknown set as before (Ugh, really annoying that I use it all the time and cannot reference it!). They are stamped on manila folder with VersaMark and covered in embossing powder from American Crafts Zing! in Denim, Apricot, Powder, Blush, and Cricket.

3. I also started a card which took two tries to get it here:

I messed up the stamp. Its a little crooked. Stamp from SU! On your Birthday set. Ink is basic black. I used a white gel pen to add shadow letters to try to offset the crooked stamp. White pen also used to add dots on edge. The stamps are once again from my unknown set. Stamped with VersaMark and covered with Zing! in Charcoal. Paper and buttons bought a while back. Buttons would be from Hobby Lobby in a large mixed pack and red paper is printer paper from Walmart. All based on premade card from Best Occasions from Walmart.

4. When I quit the first attempt at the card I went and watched a movie with time to spare! Its amazing how much time is in the day when your husband is working 12 hour shifts. Now I need to go cook dinner and get ready for cuddle time!

PS. I think I now have the hang of embossing!!

Here Comes the Bride pages

These are the last two pages I have finished. I don't even remember when I finished them. It was in April sometime.

Sad day :(

I knew that this day was coming and I thought I was prepared for this. But reality is harder than I thought it would be. My husband is leaving the Air Force.

Positives: No more deployments
Closer to family
Able to finish school at the school I wanted
Going to school with the husband again


Negatives: No more security- money, health, home
Loss of independence
Leaving the greatest friends I have met ever
No time for the break I need
Stress of having to pack our house and move it all
3 bedroom house to a one room living space with the in-laws (their okay)

I will say the same thing I said when we joined the military: I support him no matter what. I never thought 5 years ago that I would be a military wife. And I never thought 2 years ago that I wouldn't be a military wife anymore. I really do like this life (other than the horrible separations that are part of life in the military). However, he does not seem to feel the same.

With that said, looks like life is changing for us.

No more break for me...

Looks like all that time I was looking forward to just got cut in half.

I called my boss today to say that I don't think that I would be able to work due to Daniel and I moving, but she was so desperate. I was the best worker she had. I had the most experience and education and a love for the job. I saw a need and taught those children. I love two year olds. I look forward to working with them again, but I was so looking forward to the all day availability to work on my scrapbooking. The good news is that my schedule is allowing. I will have a good portion of the day to myself. And the boss lady and I have a deal that I can be out of there by the end of the month, just as soon as we get word.

Husband comes home Friday from a week of volunteering at the special olympics. I went up to see him Tuesday and eat at Eskimo Joe's. Good food, but nothing I haven't had before. Daniel bought me a shirt and a cup. This week end is going to be full of rest and crafting. Perhaps even a jog or two if the weather allows.

Look forward to posting more often again. See ya later gators!

Craftin' Soon

Finally classes ended today! This means a less stressed me, that is until I get word of our moving date. The Air Force is quite stubborn on giving us that information or approving it. However, until that date is given I do not have anything to do but scrap and craft!!

I am in desperate need to start and finish that 8x8 scrapbook that is to be given as a gift the end of June. Pictures are the motivation I need. Only 20+ photos to scrap individually. It will be great when its done, but until then... scrapbook room here I come.

I also put on a dress I made today and loved it, but need to alter it some since I made it in under 2 days. Sewing will be on my to do list as well.

I feel as though I should post the lovely blog I am loving. She is trying something new and doing great at it. It is my guru's site:http://inkedbutterflies.blogspot.com. You just have to go see it.

What's wrong with 3x5?

Whats wrong with a 3x5 inch picture? I thought it was a standard size. It has been awhile, but when I got some film printed there was still an option for 3x5. I have looked at several sites: Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Shutterfly, and others to try to get a picture printed to 3x5. None of these offer it anymore. I read a thread about this size and one person suggested that you size the photo down and add a border to make it 4x6. Good idea except that I don't know a program to use that wont degrade the quality. I just need one for a layout I am working on. Geez!

I am thinking up another project too. I will need to decide soon. What about a 8x8 scrapbook for my Nana's 80th birthday? Make a bunch of layouts and add some pictures, but leave some open so that she can add some more. June 30th is my deadline. I am going to do it. I want to make her something special. Time to work on it!

Wedding pages continued 3

These are the last pages I have done. I hope to work on some more this weekend and next week. I have had a class canceled for the next week so I may be able to get some scrappin' done.

I have to thank my guru for this one. I was having so much trouble deciding which paper to use and she saw that one had the curve to it and gave me the idea to do this. I love how the pink works with the brown. Got the idea for brown from the ribbon. One paper is Stampin' Up!, the flowers are silver wrapping paper with Prima flowers. The lettering on the flowers is a sticker set and the brown flowers and letter (which uses the brown paper and a patterned red/pink) were cut with my Silhouette SD. Love this one!
The paper was bothering me. It was just to pastel before I added the dark dotted paper and the darker sticker lettering. The lower part of the page was cut with my silhouette SD as was the candelabra shape. Two ribbons blend the two papers together. Had trouble with where to put my journaling, so I put it in the empty space between the pictures with a wonderful gel pen from the set my husband bought me. I love how he spoils me with my hobby!
This has to be the most elegant page I have made yet. I used the flowers from a wedding card as inspriation. I have seen a similar layout before and thought it would work well here. The papers are glitter papers and the test paper is random from my collection (paper ho here!- just a little inside joke). I decided to focus the page on our moms and wrote a definition of mom next to the sticker lettering. I made butterfly journaling block with my Silhouette SD.

Pages continued

So here are a few more additions to my wedding album. My layouts are so random.

I did these two with similar layouts because the content is similar. I used my Silhouette SD to cut the different size circles and a hole punch to create the picture borders. White craft ink stamped with a letter set.

I used some gold wrapping paper and some other papers for this page. I used chocolate chip ink with the letter set and cut out the tuxedo sets with my Silhouette SD. Those tuxedos were fun to put together and add a nice dimensional effect to the page. I used a silver pen to add accents to the suits. The gold dots are a gold glue bought at the dollar store.

Power of apology

The power of apology is amazing. I said something really hurtful about a person that means a lot to me. I regretted it as soon as it came out, but its what I was thinking. So as soon as I tried to retract it, I also apologized. It was too late she knew I had said it. I spent three days in agony of my stupidity. Finally she responded! I cannot believe my luck that she would still want to be my friend. The power of an apology is amazing.

My lesson: not all thoughts are meant to be broadcast. We do not always agree with the decisions of those we love, but if they are the ones we love we forgive and try to forget. I forgive her. I do not understand the decision or the strength I have to forgive, but I love this girl. I believe I need to stand by her as her best friend through this tough time.

Wedding pages 2

These are the second set of pages I did for my wedding album. I was inspired by the his and her chairs I cut of of one of my wedding cards. I tried to incorporate our favorite colors into our pages. Blue for me and green and black for him. I used my Silhouette SD to cut out "Bride" "Groom", the lace and circle cutouts, journaling blocks, and the picture frame.

New Project

I decided to start my wedding scrapbook this year. Make it a resolution of mine. We have been married over three years now and I have been collecting items to create this scrapbook since we got married. I didn't even scrapbook, but I knew that I wanted to. I met a woman here at Tinker through some funny circumstances. I didn't like her at first because I thought she was trying to steal my idea and job, but she just wanted the same things and luckily she was better suited for them. Once I got to know her, I realized how good of a friend I had found in her. She is what I like to call my "crafting guru". She introduced me to scrapbooking and Stampin Up! So all this is really thanks to her.

Lets get to my scrapbook. So I started in January. I have worked on it almost every free moment I have. So far I have 10/11 pages left. I got 5 of those done this past week. Spring break is a good time for hobbying. I say 10/ 11 because the 10th and 11th are a two page piece. My plan is to add pictures of these pages this week. Here are the first two I did:

I am using a Silhouette SD, Cuttlebug, Prima Flowers, assorted papers and ribbons, and items from my wedding cards and wrapping paper.

More cards

Here are some more cards that I have made.

This one is actually a postcard.
The one above was made at my first Stampin Up! party.
Those are all the ones that I have left or my husband brought back with him from Iraq.