Monday Montage #65

It's Monday Montage time again!!! And that means I have blogged for THREE WHOLE DAYS IN A ROW!!! What the HECK??!!?? Nothing like good ol' blog hops to get my rear in gear ... and now my craft room is a mess again!! Seems I can't ever keep on top of it lately!!

I have NEVER been accused of not having anything to say ... seriously ... and for those of you who have met me in person you will KNOW that it seems IMPOSSIBLE that I can be at a loss for words ... but after blogging for three days straight I just don't have anything FUN or INTERESTING to share (my life really is NOT that exciting ... except when I'm at Disneyland!)!! I am feeling lots of different muscles in my legs today after my VERY long run yesterday. I guess this is all GOOD kinda pain, right??? What doesn't kill ya makes ya stronger ... or so they say ...

This is a card I made for our most recent Control Freaks card swap. We were asked to create something "Flat and Fabulous" ... which just equates to "it can be easily mailed without jamming up the sorters at the post office!" I had originally done the "happy" in white, but it got lost, so I changed it to Wisteria Wonder.

Stamps: Number of Years, Timeless Textures (this is my new most FAVE set ... HOPING it makes it way into the big catalog!!)
Paper: Wisteria Wonder, Pool Party, Melon Mambo, Crushed Curry, Whisper White
Ink: Wisteria Wonder, Pool Party
Accessories: Hello You Thinlits Dies, Petite Petals Punch, Owl Builder Punch (for the flower centers), Chevron Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Project Life Corner Rounder Punch, Bermuda Bay 1/8" Stitched Ribbon

I really should go for a nice long walk around the neighborhood and see if I can't work out some of the kinks in my legs ... OR I could find a bowl of ice cream and watch Netflix ... hmmmm ... choices, choices!!

Click "Back" for Melissa Stout and "Next" for Amy O'Neill ... you will LOVE what they have to share!!

Freakin' SPRING!

Oh how happy I am that SPRING is really here!!! Our weather has been kind of unpredictable (because, you know, that's how spring IS). However, we have had a LOT of sunshine and blue skies (even if the temperatures are sometimes a bit nippy). I am seeing signs of spring EVERYwhere (flowers are even sneaking out!). SO much to be happy about!! Speaking of happy ... did you see Connie Babbert's awesome SPRING-y projects??? She always does so many wonderful things!!!

Thanks to my amazing and talented friend, Kaitlin Zumbach, I had some inspiration for the color combo on this one (thanks, girl!)!! Do any of the rest of ya feel like you use the SAME colors OVER and OVER???? I know that I DO!!! I actually challenged myself to do some things for my projects today ... FIRST, I wanted to use a color that had been long neglected in my stash (hence, the Rose Red ... SUCH a good color!)!!!

Stamps: Botanical Blooms, Honeycomb Happiness (SAB)
Paper: Whisper White, Mint Macaroon, Blushing Bride, Basic Black, Rose Red, Perfectly Artistic DSP (SAB)
Ink: Rose Red, Blushing Bride
Accessories: Bontanical Builder Thinlits Dies, Blushing Bride 1/4" Cotton Ribbon, Scalloped Tag Topper Punch, Linen Thread, Bitty Banners Thinlits Dies

I actually did a DOUBLE challenge for myself on this one. My SECOND challenge for these projects was to do a base layer that really was only ONE layer. You have NO IDEA how much I struggle doing this!!! (And you have NO IDEA how badly I wanted to add another layer before I started added the "cute" stuff!) But I did it!!! Still trying to decide how I feel about it ... My THIRD challenge was to use a stamp set that had been long-neglected for newer things ... which is why I used Flower Shop.  I seriously have ADORED this set since the day it came out!!! I really need to use my "older" stuff more (and I'm sure YOU do, too!!)

Stamps: Flower Shop, Sunburst Sayings, Timeless Textures
Paper: Whisper White, Pool Party, Crushed Curry, Basic Black, Sahara Sand
Ink: Basic Black, Pool Party, Crushed Curry, Black Sharpie
Accessories: Circle Framelits Dies, 2 3/8" Circle Punch, Pansy Punch, White Perfect Accents, 5/8" Chevron Ribbon, Decorative Dots Textured Impression Embossing Folder, Mini Stapler

Another update on my running stuffs (because, you know, you guys are just on the edge of your seats wanted to hear ALL about it!!)!!! Our trip to China has been BOOKED!!! Our flights have been RESERVED!!! And TODAY I ran over 18 miles!!! (Not gonna lie ... it kicked my booty ... and yeah, things are hurtin'!!)  TWO MONTHS TO GO!!! It's getting REAL!!

Next up??? The amazing and talented Deb Henderson!!! BEAUTIFUL things to see!!!

Fab Friday #83

I'm hot, I'm cold, I'm in between!!! The one thing for SURE about spring weather is that it is unpredictable!!1 (It's sunny and gorgeous this morning ... we've had snow about THREE TIMES this week as well!)! And Daylight Savings??? UGH!!! Don't EVEN get me started!!! WHY-OH-WHY do we even DO it??? Not only does it through off my sleep, but the light at different times of day is too unpredictable (I typically know when I "can" go outside and take a photo of what I've made ... but I'm SO off right now!)!!! Anyway, it IS Fab Friday, so I DO have something to share!!

The Botanical Builders dies are A-MAZ-ING!!! And I absolutely ADORE the color combos that you can make with the help of the Designer Series Paper and Washi Tape (I didn't use the paper here, but used the colors for inspiration). Makes such a PRETTY flower!!

Stamps: Botanical Blooms, Greatest Greetings
Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, Mint Macaroon, Hello Honey, Mossy Meadow, Basic Black
Ink: Mossy Meadow, Hello Honey, Cajun Craze
Accessories: Botanical Buildings FramelitsChalk Talk Framelits, 1" Square Punch, Botanical Gardens Designer Washi Tape, Mini Stapler

Here's the sketch we are working from ... SO much fun for me!!!








Here's a link to the Fab Friday Challenge Blog so you can play along:

Fab Friday Challenge Blog

Check out the Fab blogs of my fellow Fab Friends:

Mindy Backes
Cindy Beach
Heather Heroldt
Brian King
Justin Krieger
Amanda Mertz
Brenda Myers
Pam Steckman
Jan Tinklenberg

And OHMYGOSH!!! It's OFFICIALLY OFFICIAL!!! Not only have I actually REGISTERED for the Great Wall Marathon (yes, as in CHINA!!), but we booked our flights yesterday as well!!! I think I am literally in FREAKOUT mode!!! I want to FINISH this race SO badly (don't care HOW long it takes!) ... but ALL races DO have a time limit ... sigh ... Also, I hope I don't DIE in the process ...

Monday Montage #64

I have a sweet little grandniece named Lucy ... she is adorable and funny and happy!! And it's her 6th birthday!! HOORAY!!! I'm glad I had Monday Montage and my friends to get me in gear to make her a birthday card!

I had a hard time getting a photo of this one ... it's raining ... and raining ... and RAINING ... and the post on my porch where I always take my card and project photos was COVERED in WET!! So I ended up taking a photo in the windowsill on my porch! I hate when the weather doesn't cooperate and coincide with my craftiness!!

Stamps:  Number of Years
Paper: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Going Places DSP, Gold Foil
Ink:  Basic Black, Wink of Stella Pen
Accessories:  Large Numbers Framelits, Confetti Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Project Life Corner Rounder Punch, Gold Sequin Trim, Ovals Framelits, Cherry Cobbler 1" Edged Grosgrain Ribbon (retired), Itty Bitty Punch Set (Star)

Did a bunch of running this past week ... spent a few days at Disneyland (which should surprise NO ONE!) and took an AWESOME 8.5-mile run around the block of Disneyland and through the plaza between Disneyland and California Adventure. Such a happy place to run!!! And I am OFFICIALLY registered to run a marathon on the Great Wall of China on May 21. I'm hoping I don't die ...

Click "Back" for Melissa Stout and "Next" for Bree Renwick ... you will absolutely LOVE what they have created this week!