TE September Key Ingredients Subscription

The September Key Ingredients Subscription is now available at Taylored Expressions!  You've probably heard me rave about the Key Ingredients Subscriptions before, but I'm telling you I LOVE them!  It is so nice to have a new kit delivered to my door each month and it has coordinating patterned paper, cardstock and embellishments!  It also keeps me "up to date" on what papers are "in".  I don't always go shopping for paper, so it's nice for papers that I've seen around blogland to appear at my door each month!  :) 

You can read all of the details HERE along with finding even more coordinating products!!  Today I have a scrapbook page to share with you using this month's kit.  It's a 6x6 page of my daughter Arwen.  I cut the "flags" out of one of the piece of patterned paper in the kit and framed her picture with them.  Her name was die cut using the Tall & Skinny Alpha Die Set.  I added some pearls and buttons from the kit as well as ruffling some of the ribbon for the top border of the picture. 

I don't know how well you can see it in the picture, but the yellow piece of cardstock was embossed using the Houndstooth/Damask Impression Plate.  Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope your Monday is off to a great start!

Happy Birthday, Isabelle!!

I wasn't able to post this yesterday on her actual birthday, but my baby turned 3 yesterday!!  Where does the time go?  Wasn't it just yesterday that I was telling you all that I was pregnant with her?  LOL  Today we are celebrating Isabelle's birthday.  She let me snap this quick picture before I went to set up my post. :) 

Happy Birthday, my sweet little lady!!  You have such a personality that makes me laugh every day!  No matter how old you get you'll still be my baby!  I love you, my sweet Isabelle!!

Happy Birthday, Arwen!!

Happy, Happy Birthday, Arwen!  I can't believe you are 6 already!!  Wishing you a wonderful birthday, my little love.  Mommy and Daddy are so proud of the little lady you've become!  Sending you special wishes on your special day!  Love you, Sweet Pea!!

Merry Christmas!!

Wishing you all a VERY Merry Christmas!!

Winter's Wonders

I have a card today that uses some different colors for a Christmas card.  I used the Snowflake Splendor set from Verve and created a background paper using different stamps in the set.  The sketch is this month's Dirty Dozen Sketch Challenge, and the colors I used are from the Inspiration Challenge this month. 

I haven't been around too much this last month due to regular holiday to-dos, but also because of THIS EXCITING NEWS!!!  I am beyond thrilled to join the Splitcoast Dirty Dozen!!  My "roomie" is my sweet friend and fellow DT member, Jen Shults!  If you get a chance, stop over to say hello and congratulate her!  If you're a Fan Club Member, you can view the newest gallery HERE.  If you're not a member, you can sign up. . .and I know you won't be disappointed!  The Dirty Dozen Gallery has always been an amazing source of inspiration for me.  I big, huge THANK YOU to those of you who have stopped by to say hello and say congrats. . .I really, really appreciate it!  You've made this even more special for me!

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you're having a wonderful Sunday!  SUPPLIES USED:  Stamps- Snowflake Splendor (Verve Stamps); Ink- Rhubarb Stalk, Bamboo Leaves, Cantaloupe, New Sprout (Memento); Paper- Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise, True Black (PTI);  Accessories- Curvy Bookplate Die (Verve Stamps), Stardust Stickles;  Finished card measures 5.5"x4.25"

Happy Birthday, Savannah!!

Today is Savannah's birthday.  Where did those 8 years go?  I still remember seeing her little face for the first time just like it was yesterday.  For as many pictures as I take of my kids, I couldn't find a recent one that was just of Savannah.  So, here's a favorite of mine from a month ago of Savannah and Arwen in the pool.

And here's one of her and daddy.  I think the look on my husband's face says it all. . .my little girl.  I'm going to have to make a point of taking a picture of her by herself today when she gets home from school! :) 

Happy Birthday, Sweet Savannah!  I am so proud of you and LOVE seeing the little lady you're becoming!  Wishing you the best birthday yet!  Love you!

First Day of School

Well, today was the start of school!  Savannah starts 2nd grade and Arwen starts Kindergarten!  I can't believe I now have two kids in school all day!  Arwen was so excited to start Kindergarten, but I could also see that she was a little nervous to be in school ALL DAY.  Hopefully once the day gets started and she's busy meeting new friends and learning, the day won't seem so long.  Savannah is an old pro now.  She knows what to expect and has friends already, so I'm not so worried about her.  :)  Hopefully she'll take care of her little sister when she sees her in school. . .like I kept reminding her all morning!  ;) 

Happy Birthday, Isabelle!!

Today my baby is 2 years old!!  I know I say this with all of my kids, but where does the time go?  It was seriously yesterday that I brought this little bundle home!  Now she's a big 2 year old! 

Happy Birthday, sweet baby girl!  We love you so much!!  You are such a joy and the perfect "baby" of a family! You make us smile and laugh regularly.  You are such a blessing!   May your day be as wonderful as you are!

Happy Birthday, Arwen!!

Today, my little girl is 5!!  How did this happen so fast?  She's catching right up to her older sister!  We are having "the big" party for her this coming weekend.  She wanted a swim party with a mermaid theme, so here is the invitation I came up with for her party. 

I used the Mermaid Anya stamp from The Greeting Farm.  I just ADORE this image.  I've had it forever and this is the first time it has seen ink!  I just love it, though, so it will see more ink soon!  :)  I created the waves with the Wave Border Die from Taylored Expressions.  The "party" sentiment and invitation information on the inside was stamped using a Studio G Clear Stamp set I bought at Michael's long ago. 

Happy, happy birthday, Arwen!  We love you SO MUCH and can't believe how big you're getting!  We hope your birthday is an awesome day filled with fun and all things that celebrate how special you are!  We love you bunches and bunches and more bunches, Sweet Pea!!

For Sale

I'm trying to clear out some of my stamps that haven't been seeing a lot of love lately.  So far, they are mostly Papertrey Ink, but I have a lot of Stampin' Up to sort through too!  If you're looking for any PTI, you can visit my FOR SALE page.  Thanks for looking!

Savannah's Talent Show

It's been a while since I've shared any personal stuff here on my blog.  For those of you who are long-time visitors, you know that I spent my life as a musical theater performer and used to do that full time before becoming a mom.  Our kids, as you could imagine, enjoy music and LOVE going to the theater.  Savannah, our oldest, has REALLY taken an interest in theater.  After she sees a musical, it's no time before she knows all of the songs and sings them constantly.  So, when it came time for the Talent Show at her school, she was jumping up and down asking me if she could participate.  :)  I just wanted to share her performance with you!  She sang "Good Morning, Baltimore" from the musical Hairspray.  As you could imagine, we are extremely proud of her!  I wish I had her "no fear" attitude when I was in first grade!  LOL  Enjoy, and thanks for letting me share! 

Happy Birthday, Jodi!

Today, a bunch of us are celebrating a very special friend's birthday!  Happy Birthday to Jodi!  Jodi is just the sweetest, most beautiful person.  She always leaves comments that make you feel like a million bucks. . . and have you seen her creations?  Oh my, every one is just gorgeous!  So please join us in wishing Jodi a very Happy Birthday today! 

For my card, I used the Season's Sweetings set from Taylored Expressions.  I combined sentiments from Tag Treats and Sweet Celebration to come up with my wintery birthday greeting!  :)  The papers are all from the December Key Ingredients. 

The next stop on this birthday blog hop is my sweet friend Jessica!  If you get lost along the hop, you can always start at the beginning with Karen!  Karen will have the whole list posted on her blog.  Thanks for visiting today and joining in the fun!  Have a wonderful day!

Christmas Picture

I know a lot of you ask about my kids and I haven't shared a picture of them in a while, so I thought I'd share our Christmas photo with you!  You wouldn't believe how many shots it took to get one where they were all looking and/or smiling.  Here are my two favorites from the bunch.  We ended up sending the first on our Christmas cards even though I thought a lot of people would get more of a kick out of seeing Isabelle's fingers in Isaac's hair ready to pull in the second picture!  LOL 

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas! Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday, Nancy!

Today, a bunch of us got together for a blog hop to celebrate Nancy McKinney's birthday!  The hop started with Karen, so if you didn't start there, you might want to hop on back.  :)  Nancy illustrates the stamps for the Whimsical Wishes line at Taylored Expressions, so I thought it appropriate to create a card with a set that she illustrated! 

 I used the Make a Wish set for my card.  If you think this card looks familiar, it's because I CASED it.  I LOVED Andrea Walford's gorgeous Christmas card here, so I created this birthday card using different papers and a different stamp set. 

Happy Birthday, Nancy!  I hope you have an absolutely wonderful day!  Sending you birthday hugs! 

Your next stop on the hop is the amazing Jodi!  I can't wait to see what Jodi created because everything she creates is amazing!  We hope you'll follow along on the hop and end up at Nancy's blog to give her birthday wishes!  Thanks for stopping by and hopping along!  Have a wonderful day!  SUPPLIES USED:  Stamps- Make a Wish (Taylored Expressions); Ink- Early Espresso (SU), Pear Tart (Memento); Paper- Make a Wish Project Pantry (Taylored Expressions), Kraft (PTI);  Accessories- Scalloped Eyelet Border die, Make a Wish Balloon dies (Taylored Expressions);  Finished card measures 5.5"x4.25"

Happy Birthday, Isaac!

I can't believe my little man is three today!  Wasn't it just yesterday that they brought me my first "blue" bundle to hug?  LOL  Time goes so fast. . .too fast.  Happy Birthday, Isaac!  I love you little buddy!

Swingin'

Just thought I'd share a digital scrapbook page today.  This was for the September Scrappy Sunday Challenge at Paper Craft Planet.  This uses the Girl Friday Paper Pack from Cosmo Cricket. 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend planned!  Thanks for stopping by!

In the Corn Box

A few weeks back, we took the kids to a local farm that has hayrides, pumpkin picking, corn mazes, etc.  They were so excited to get there.  We didn't even make it to the hayrides for a long while because we couldn't get them out of the corn box.  There was this giant box filled with corn, shovels, buckets and dump trucks.  They LOVED it.  It was the Fall version of a sand box.  (and a lot less messy. . .it's easier to get pieces of corn out of a diaper than grains of sand!)

I created this digital page for the September Scrappy Sunday challenge on Paper Craft Planet.  I used the Harvest Spice Collection from Shabby Princess Designs.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Have a great one!

Happy Birthday, Savannah!

Today is Savannah's birthday.  I know I say this with each child and with each birthday, but where does the time go?  They grow SO fast!  Savannah is 7 today!  I can't believe it's already seven years ago that I had her.  I still remember the night before going into the hospital so clearly.  I was having my first baby, my first surgery and my first hospital stay.  I was so nervous, but trying to stay focused on this beautiful blessing I would soon hold in my arms.  I can't believe that was seven years ago as it seems like just last week.  :) 

Happy Birthday, my sweet, beautiful girl!  You are growing so fast and I wish I could stop it, but I love seeing the beautiful little lady you're becoming!  I love you, Sweet Pea!

This is a digital layout for the September Scrappy Sunday Challenges over at Paper Craft Planet.  I didn't think I was going to be able to play along this month, but here I am on the last day with one more layout left to complete!  I just may do it!  :)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Sweet Little Guy

Here is the last of my digital scrapbook pages for the August Scrappy Sunday Challenge at Papercraft Planet.  For this page, I used the Little Boy Blue Kit from Karen Funk Designs.  I hope you've enjoyed the digital pages I've been sharing with you!  If you're interested in digital scrapbooking, it's lots of fun, but I warn you. . .it's ADDICTING!!  LOL 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a wonderful day!

Meeting Beate

I FINALLY met Beate!  After how many years of chatting through email or over the phone, I finally got to meet her!  As if it's even possible, she's even more beautiful in person.  She is so warm and friendly. . .she made me feel like I'd known her all my life.  Beate was demonstrating Copic markers at Dick Blick in Columbus this past Sunday.  Columbus is a 3 hour drive from Pittsburgh, but in my performing days I used to travel there and back in a day to do a show.  It seemed silly for Beate to be so close and not drive to meet her.  I am SO glad I did.  We had a great time and I'm SO looking forward to seeing her again!  Isabelle was so funny.  She takes so long to warm up to people.  She just stares them down.  LOL  She did that to Beate for a while and then she finally came around and made a new friend!  :) 

Thanks, Beate, for a wonderful time!  I can't wait to hang out again!  Sending you BIG HUGS!