Brewers Win!!!

Last year we went to Wrigley Field to experience Chicago and the Cubs.... this year we went back 'home' to visit the Brewers at Miller Park. Notice we are all wearing Brewer's t-shirts. They had to close the dome, due to rain and only about 72 degrees on JULY 30!!!! Where is summer??? Thankfully the Brewers won!!!

I'm a sole Survivor

Bubba's birthday card from moi.

We like the tv show, outsmart, outplay, outlast

I try to create something all week long

then I take a picture of all my hard work

upload to the computer

each day I pick a card, any card

create a catchy title, if possible

and then check song lyrics or quotes of the day

hope to include something witty and fun

write about the card

and thank you for stopping by.

Hand drawn, image CASed, water color pencils

brads, ink on the edges

Oh, we oh we oh we oh.... have you survived another year? Is life a challenge and you're just searching for the immunity idol? The tribe has spoken.

Hello!

Is it me you're looking for?

This card has a lot of different elements to it! I drew the cherries with leaves, then with a gel pen I added a little white highlight. Also included, a round geo clip, matching? ribbon, faux stitching only on part of it?, layered scallops from Nestabilities. I like the rich red, and the funky green check together, but I always realize AFTER I create these, it's so difficult to see the note on the inside of the card if you were to just use a pen.... so now I think I have to go back and line the card with a light paper!

You had me at hello.

This one's for you!

Kim...... loved, loved your photo of the field that I felt I had to Zindorf it.... (to make like a Michelle Zindorf stamped image). This was my third try and I think I came very close... yet different with the stamps I had on hand. I especially like the field grass and flowers in the front of my picture.



Wow! can you believe, two original cards in so many days!!!!

You've achieved success in your field when you don't know whether what you're doing is work or play ~ Warren Beatty

Are we there yet?

I was put on challenge mode, so excited, someone (ST)made a request for a card!! Yippee! Here are the details she gave me, they are visiting a friend, three blond ladies in a blue van with a beautiful teenager, also blond, riding in a blue van on a ROAD TRIP to Michigan!

The ideas came real quick, my fingers were shaking with excitement! Searched out a few sites to see if anything else would pop out at me. Found an old Michigan map that I cut apart, with the city they are heading to, placed accordingly!! A few little road signs along the way!!!

I even lined the envelope with left over map!!!

Vacation is what you take when you can't take what you've been taking any longer

Birthday Boy and his cake

Sweet sixteen!
The cake:
12 ice cream sandwiches
layered, 6 & 6
then fudge & cool whip between layers
nuts on top
freeze
Yum

Birthday gift
Wii game
no car (are you kidding?)

Special dinner of crab legs
made at home!

Silly boy!
Man?

We love our Bubba

Flowers are like diamonds

Ooh, not planned but I like how these two cards match or contrast with each other. Totally unintentional, but I'm so happy they do and I could share them together!

I love the background paper on the birthday card. It's a very faint patterned paper that I came along and added the swirls... I think the color is SU real red... and it matches the paper so amazingly!!! The little flower stamps are Stamps by Judith... I just love those stubs I bought 6 years ago and wish I had bought more.... but I wasn't working then.... well I'm not working now...anywhoo! (Can you tell it's a big deal for me about working... it really is a big part of my identity that I have no control over currently.... like being a mom isn't enough!)

The other card, love the colors, I also just used a plain cardstock, mmm thinking.... is it river rock? And used the gel pen to add the dots to it.

Where flowers bloom so does hope.- Lady Bird Johnson

Woof!

Too cute for words! I just love how the black paper frames the images. Just love it!! Also just realized as I was wondering up and down the aisles at M's yesterday.... my black paper is just that ~ paper~ not cardstock! Duh! I think I was trying to buy black cardstock however many months ago !!! So now with the thinner weight paper, I'm using it for framing... I had a few very flimsy cards there and couldn't figure it out! Although I drew the too adorable for words puppy, he is not my own! A shout 'thanks' out to the incredible artist that share their work!

What does a dog do on his day off? He can't lie around - that's his job.
George Carlin

Peggy

Ketto Girls Variety Show

Hey there, although I've shown all the girls already individually... I grouped them all together and couldn't believe how many I had actually drawn. Well, now that I'm down with work, let's see what kind of magic I can create! Stay tuned!

Thank you

A little shout out of thanks to those of you who come out to read my blog and see what we're doing. It's been fun having a living diary to post pictures and words of creativity and fun that happens around me, and my familytoo! So, thank you for stopping by!!



Lately, I think all my cards are basic and simple designs, layering of cardstock and designer paper, with a sentiment and an embellishment.

The shortest way to do many things is to do only one thing at once.
Samuel Smiles

Bubba turns 16!!!

Help me take a stroll down memory lane as my oldest turns 16 today. How lucky parents are today with digital cameras, how easy it is to take literally hundreds of pictures of every event, every moment every milestone!!!


Oh yes, I did have a camera 16 years ago, but I didn't have that much money for film and devlopment costs! We were selective on picture taking (these are all digitial pictures of the original film picutres, that I cut out to put in his baby album)




How fun it would be to just snap away and then delete any picture that was blurry, off center or with a crazy person walking in front of the shot.


Tiny little cameras to that just pop into a diaper bag and you can see instantly if the shot works! Here's his first Easter basket!




And he loves his cookies!!!!

We knew he would be an athlete, got the big ball in hand here!


My sweet boy turns 16 today, thoughts of a car loom in his head!!

I just want him to be satisfied with a cookie!!!!!

National Ice Cream Month

I've been told that every day of the year, every week and every month has national days. Today is National Hug your kid day. I just went and did that. Although I do hug my kids, they thought I was kind of loopy!!!

Here's a cute little card to help celebrate this months ice cream celebration. What would you do for an ice cream cone?? Love the black and pink togther, makes the card kind of classy. Special designer paper I've been waiting to use, nestabilities punches for the scallops, dollar stamp for the cone. TAC sentiment.

So, today BE EXTRAORDINARY!!!

Can't have a week without Zindorf

Even when I look at this card, I feel proud. Ms. Zindorfs card is slightly different, she has an Asian woman where I have the Asian writing (stamp). Looking at the flower (hand drawn) I'm amazed how well it turned out. Yay me!!! The image cardstock is outlined with a gold paint pen. IRL (in real life) the golden ribbon looks like it matches much better. This is on the long cardstock to fit in a letter sized envelope approx 4" x 8".

How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being

Gus, the new dog in town

Charlie's mom has a sister, who recently adopted a 4 legged beagle dachshund mix named Gus. So, we wanted to create a new doggie card. I'm still working out the kinks, he isn't as cute as I hoped, so maybe next time, he'll be new and improved!

Hedge Hog I heart u

A fun little guy! I think hedge hogs are still pretty popular. Not sure who this guy is from. So that I'm not completely CASe-ing a card, I went through my image bin and found him all colored, then I was inspired by the the layout of some other card and combined the two. I think this card is still missing something, not sure what... if you have any ideas, I will consider it!! Thankyou in advance! I added embossing glue, crystal affects to the bubbles to make them pop a bit!

Work story: Not funny, just a frequent occurrence. The doctor is a one man office. He is a specialist in his field... it is his practice, he makes the hours. Having said that, good for him that we are booked out for complete eye appointments anywhere from 6 weeks to two months. I am amazed at how many people call and think they can come in tomorrow. (On a rare occasion we might have a cancellation) It does appear that some patients have learned to 'trick' the system and say they have an emergency and need to be seen right away. The doctor does have open appointments daily for emergencies. It's also amazing people who have had a medical condition for 3 years also can't believe it will take 6 weeks for them to be seen... for some reason their problem has just now become a priority for them. I am thankful to be healthy, and really never gave thought when calling for an appointment how far out I'd have to wait, or how soon I could get in! With health care plans to come, what will the waiting list be like?

More sweetness than is allowed

Here's a cute little gal! I don't recall at the moment who the originator is, but she is popping up all over the place on cardmakers blogs. I used markers and water color pencils to draw her in. I was at Hobby Lobby the other day, and wasn't greatly impressed by the card crafting area. Good thing!!! I guess I don't need anything.

Work story: "No other doctor I go to does it this way!" ALL doctors offices deal with their medical practice their own way. That's why it's their practice. I can't imagine being rude to the receptionist and saying this. I've had people tell me we should serve hot beverages in the waiting area, that we need to post better signs outside the location of the building, the doctor needs to work more convenient hours, and they shouldn't have to show their medicare card every first visit of the new year, BECAUSE ITS ALL THE SAME!!! I can't imagine what health care will be like if it's ALL the same!

Zindorf 7-12

This card is unique and different. I took my ink pads (with Michelle's help and the tutorial) and dragged the edge down my paper to create vertical lines. You could get a different effect depending how hard you pressed on the ink pad and if you just used part of the edge. Then I came back and did the swirls. Then drew in the flowers, coloring them in with a white gel pen. Added the ribbon and brads, and then did the assembly of the card.

Work story: When you go to the MEDICAL doctor and you have MEDICAL insurance, if the receptionist asks to see your MEDICAL card to make copies.... don't give her a hard time. She is copying the information down so that it is accurate and up-to-date and so that the insurance person bills the INSURANCE company and not YOU!!! I really don't care that EVERYTHING is the same as last year, or even for the last 50 years.... the office I work in, the office policy is to ask and confirm your personal mailing/phone information and to make copies of your INSURANCE cards, that's my job!!

What these patients don't realize is that we see up to 22 patients a day, I do not know EVERYONES medical issues, their insurance planes nor do I specifically know where they live or when their last visit was. (All of that can be checked in their MEDICAL chart, or on the computer) Thus the reason for me to ask, confirm and copy it. It's my job. Huffing and puffing about having to get your medical card out of your tight wad wallet does not allow you to whine and complain once a year to show the office proof of your insurance. Yes, if you are over 65 years old, your Medicare insurance probably NEVER changes, but supplements might, and I don't discriminate for age, we ask EVERYONE the same questions.

Me, I'm different, I make sure I have my card in hand when I check in. I hand it right over to the receptionist, because I know that it's a courtesy for me for them to actually bill my insurance, so then I don't have to submit claims!

Which is which?

Okay loyal followers... which card is the Zindorf card and which card is the Whipper Snapper Design card??? Easy to tell isn't it. Seems like I have a theme going in this weeks worth of cards. Summer and the beach, how can you not combine the two?

After I created the background paper, I realized I had already colored in the mouse's swim trunks a different color scheme... oh well !

Work story: So having started the first of October those few months seemed to zip by with the beginning of the holiday season just popping up. I really thought I'd be gone(outta there) by Christmas. But I was invited by the doctor to the annual Christmas dinner at a nice steak house restaurant. I was nervous and not sure if I wanted to go. As the time drew closer to the event, I decided it would be a fun night out. Remember there are 5 of us in the office, that includes the Doctor. One gal is vegetarian, and really doesn't go out with people from work, so that left us down to 4. The day of the 'party' we got the heaviest snowfall of the season. The kids were even off school... I'm talking 12" of heavy wet stuff. The party still went on. I made it through the piles of snow (actually by night time they had cleared the roads quite well... the snow was piled 3 feet on the side of the roads) and I show up 1 minute late. The doctor is the only one in the lobby when I get there! I find out that one of the other ladies had been not feeling well and would not be coming either. The doctor's girlfriend arrives and I thought I would be dinning alone with those two. But the other girl showed up about 15 minutes late. There's more to the evening... but I have to run. The reason I bring this story up, in today's paper the headlines read "Fire destroys FRG Eatery".

You're a blast!

This card was so fun!!! I've now realized my circle punches, although I have 4 (enough you'd think) I should be able to stack the circles to get that cool framed affect... but because of the sizes I have, I don't always have that stacked next size bigger look. Maybe I'll have to get ALL the Nestabilities to get that stepping stone affect. The amazing thing about this card is that behind the red half circle and the rocket is recycled acetate. (clear plastic from something) So this card is partially see through. The image is SU! but drawn... ribbon, star punch... a cool boy card.



So, I'll say something good about work (however, it's much more fun to talk about the crazy & insane patients)... during the holidays, a few regular patients felt in their heart to make cookies and bring in homeamde treats!! That was very nice, but there is only so much of that you can eat... and being a small office with the different diet restrictions some have, it was a sad waste, at times! I could never imagine bringing treats into my doctor's or dentist office! Salesman or pharmasutical reps bring in lunch sometimes for the entire office, a way to smooze the doctor, that's a nice treat!

A Zen Saying
Sit quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.