Holiday Gift Idea- Oh, the Joy!

This is such a simple gift for Christmas. I used a 6" piece of 2x4 and sanded it and painted it white. Then I mod podged a piece of scrapbook paper on the front of the block. Then I applied a vinyl sticker (you can also use a Cricut to cute your word or phrase). To finish it up, I wrapped a 3' piece of grosgrain ribbon around the block and added a stamped tag and a silver love, heart tag on a silver bead chain. I made 20 for gifts. I got my vinyl lettering from a good friend you makes the most adorable things!! You probably know someone that does that too!

Enjoy this holiday season! I will have more crafts to share later this month.

Meagan's Sweatshirt Quilt

Meagan chose to make a quilt for one of her ten-hour projects for Personal Progress. As we discussed what sort of quilt it would be, she settled on using old sweatshirts for the top. So we gathered up all the old sweatshirts from around the house and bought a couple at the thrift store and she got to cutting.

The process was more difficult than she had anticipated and she even contemplated giving up. But I assured her that she would love the end results and all the work and aggravation would be worth it. So she persevered. For the backing she chose a charcoal gray fleece. A nice solid to coordinate with the colorful top. Then she picked icy teal yarn to tie the quilt with.

Once it was done, she was thrilled with the quilt and so happy that she had finished. She has been curling up with it non-stop since. And it is really warm and cozy!

The finished quilt!

Off to College

Wow! Where in the world did the time go?? We took Jacob to college a couple of weeks ago. It seems like just yesterday that he was in Kindergarten with a broken arm, or playing the clarinet in the middle school band, or performing on stage at the high school's spring musical.

Well, now it's time for our first born to leave the nest and spread his wings. He is already loving the college life. He enjoys his classes and right now, he is sick with a cold. I so want to drive down there and make soup and medicate the poor thing. It's not easy mothering long distance. I hope he knows how much he is loved and that we are all cheering him on from the desert.

Jake's twin bed in the dorm room he shares with two other young men.

(Yes, that's his Star Wars pillowcase).

To-may-toe. To-mah-toe

I did some canning with my sweetie when tomatoes came into season. We canned so many!! We also made Salsa. Everyone says it's yummy. I don't eat it, of course. If you know me, you probably know that mexican food is not on my list of favorite foods. But I love to do a project with Chuck. Check out these beautiful Jars.
My favorite thing about canning: the pop as the lid seals... so satisfying!

Summer Update

Hey there! I can't believe it's been over three months since I posted here. I've had nothing crafty to share. Haven't made a card since the last post. Yikes. I used to freak out if I went a day with stamping!

We had a good, busy summer without going anywhere. We did make it to the beach once. Chuck and Matt and Beth spent most of the day out in the water.

The rest of the kids, including cousin Jessika and friend, Kenny just enjoyed soaking up the beach air.

The rest of the summer was just hanging out, keeping busy, getting ready for school which started mid August.

Now we're getting ready to take Jacob to AMDA in two weeks. We'll be starting a whole new chapter in our lives. One of our babies, out in the world and not protected in the family home. I'm excited for him, but I'll miss him!

Whoo loves you, Baby??

Is this adorable or what?? I love this little owl. I was inspired by a card I saw at Kimber's house. Kimber used to be my second level upline when I was with Stampin' Up! To make this card I used several punches. The head is the Round Tab Punch, the body and wings are the Scallop Circle Punch and the feet and beak are from a retired flower punch. Oh, and the eyes are from my 3/4" circle punch that died as I punched that last circle. The punch froze with the paper still in there! If you know how to fix this...let me know!

For the background paper I used the Chocolate Chip Patterned Designer Paper (which I love) and the owl is put together with Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun and Barely Banana. The circle in the background was cut with my old Coluzzle. But I hear the new Circle Scissors are fabulous! When I glued my little owl together I put stampin' dimensionals under the wings for a little bit of lift.

I gave this card to my mom for her birthday this year. She has been a big owl lover/collector for years. I think she liked it.

A day at Six Flags

Tuesday I took Matt and Beth and two of Beth's friends to the local Six Flags Park. Beth was celebrating her 1/2 birthday. Which we do since her birthday is so close to Christmas. And Matt had a free ticket from the reading program at school. We had a great day. The weather was great and the park wasn't very crowded at all. We even rode Scream (see pic above) four times. Beth and her two friends went off on their own while Matt and I on ours. We met up every few hours and rode several rides together.

Matt was so fun to hang out with. He is a fun kid and so very generous. He always wanted to make sure I was having fun throughout the day. We got wet on a couple of water rides and loved the many roller coasters. We only skipped the few with lines that took over an hour.

This is Matt's last week of school. The other kids are all out for the summer already. So I'll need to come up with some fun (but cheap) activities to do with the kids.

I hope you are planning a fun summer!

Gold Rush Fun

Matt was required to make a diorama for school recently.  He could choose between a mission or the gold rush.  I'm so glad he decided on the gold rush.  We had a good time putting the project together.  Even Meagan helped locate just the right legos for the job.  We did our research and learned several things about this time in history.  One interesting tid-bit: people rarely bathed. Yuck!  I'm happy to be around during the age of indoor bathrooms.

School is winding down.  Thank goodness.  I think.  It will only take about a week before the kids are whining, "I'm bored".  Every summer I threaten to make a chore list that the kids will have to choose from every time they say those dreaded words.  Maybe I'll actually do that this summer.  I wish the world was more like when I was a kid.  I would take off in the morning and not be home till dark.  My friends and I would explore nearby hills, teach ourselves to roller skate backwards, make up dance moves to "It's a Hard Knock Life" from Annie.  There was always something fun to do.  These days, the kids only know a few neighbors and they spend most of their time on the computer or playing video games.  How boring!

Feel free to share ideas on how to occupy the long days of summer!  I'd love to read them.

High School is History!

The whole family...so proud of Jacob!

Jacob walking at the graduation ceremony.

We attended Jacob's High School Graduation on Friday evening.  It was a nice ceremony... not too long.  Jacob, and the rest of the seniors in Show Choir sang the Star Spangled Banner and the school's Alma Mater.  One great thing about Jacob's singing voice is that you can always pick out his voice in the group.  

After the graduation we all (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins) came home for spaghetti dinner and visiting.  We even had a fire in the backyard to sit around.

The next day we had all the family over and a bunch of Jacob's friends for a party.  We had tons of Mexican food: Enchiladas, taquitos, tacos, rice, guacamole and chips, beans, etc.  Then there were the desserts: Hershey Cake, Banana Pudding, Lemon Squares, Brownies, and home made Ice Cream.  And to wash it all down: home made Root Beer!!  Needless to say, we were stuffed!

But the best part of the day, was talking Jacob into singing for us.  For his AMDA audition he had sung Stars from Les Miserables.  None of us had ever heard him sing this and so this was our request.   Can I just say, "Wow"?  I know he's my kid and I guess that makes me a bit prejudiced, but dang, that kid can sing!!  Of course, I had tears streaming down my face while he sang.  No surprise there, either.  After that we all wanted more so Jacob and Zoe sang their duet from Back to the 80's: Total Eclipse of the Heart.

We all had a fabulous day.  Thanks to all who came and enjoyed the day with us, and to everyone who brought yummy food to share.  And thanks to Berk for playing piano while Jacob sang.  You rock!

Only two years until Meagan graduates!  

Yikes.

Some Cards for a Change

Here is a birthday card I made for my Sis-in-Law, Laura.  I used the SU! Designer Paper called Tea Party.  In case you weren't aware, SU! is having a sale on Designer Patterned Paper: Buy 3, Get 1 Free!!  I just had to get in on this one and got four packs of beautiful two sided patterned paper.  This paper is similar to the stamp set Time Well Spent so I stamped the big flower on Shimmery White card stock and colored with SU! markers.  Then I cut out and attached to the flower with dimensionals.  I tied white organdy and pink satin ribbon.
I also made a Graduation for my Bro-in-Law.  He just earned hi Master's degree.  Go Chris!  This one is quite simple with just a piece of patterned paper from Michael's and one stamped sentiment from the SU! set: All Year Cheer 1.

Next week my oldest child will be graduating from High School.  Boy, do I feel old!  I'll be sharing photos from that and from his final Show Choir Concert soon.

Enjoy your three day weekend.  And please take a moment to remember the reason for the holiday.

"They fell, but o'er their glorious grave

Floats free the banner of the cause they died to save."

-Francis Marion Crawford

And a heartfelt thank you to all of the service men and women who are serving our country, sacrificing their time and their lives, being apart from their families, to bring peace to the world and keep us safe here at home.  In fact, my brother, Paul, is in Iraq right now.  We pray for his safety everyday.  Thanks Paul!

Family and Fun in Florida

I had such a fabulous time in Florida with my Mom last month.  We didn't get to stay very long, but there was lots to do while we were there.  The main event of our stay was the wedding of my cousin, Anna to Koko.  Koko is short for Konstantine.  We helped with details and attended the rehearsal and dinner on Friday, cleaning and the wedding on Saturday, a brunch and a quick visit to the beach on Sunday, and home again on Monday.  The wedding was just beautiful.  As was the bride!

Here are the newlyweds on the beach Sunday afternoon.

My sweet Aunt Jani, and her sister, my mom, Marcia at the wedding.

Koko and Anna preparing to share the cake.  They were both nice about it.

The weather was beautiful while we were there.  The only issue was a little smoke and ash from a  nearby fire.  It was not too hot, the humidity was not a problem, and the beaches were gorgeous.  We were in the South-Western part of the state, on the "Emerald Beaches".  Just lovely.  Mom and I picked up several shells to take home as souveniers and we were amazed at the lovely white sand,  the tropical vegetation, and the multi-million dollar homes that sat along the beach front.  

My Aunt Jani is encouraging me to plan a trip to Florida for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. She and Uncle Larry live in Orlando and would love to show us around the Magic Kingdom.  Sounds like a plan to me!!

The show is FABULOUS!!

Jacob and cast signing and dancing to Love Shack!  Jake sounded just like Fred from the B-52's!

Rebecca signing Walking on Sunshine.  This is one of my All Time Favorite songs.

Victoria and Jacob singing and dancing to The Time of My Life.  They were both fantastic!

Opening night was great!  The show is very high energy and the kids did a great job.  Jacob and Victoria sang their hearts out and sounded beautiful.  Rebecca Cross was adorable as "Eileen" and I loved when she sang my favorite song.  Then Jacob sang "Come On,  Eileen" to her.  Amazing!!  John Ercek stole the show as the class nerd!  Zoe and Katie were just perfect and Josh was the perfect cool kid.  

If you are in the area, take the time to see the show.  Times are posted on the previous post here.  You can't get more entertainment for the money!  You'll go home singing and smiling!

Be There or Be Square!

Come on a journey back in time...

You can enjoy this awesome musical...starring my son, 

JACOB TWEEDY,

Thursday, April 30th, 7 pm.

Friday, May 1st, 7 pm.

Saturday, May 2nd, 12 pm. and 7 pm.

all seats: $5.00

Easter "Milk" Carton

This is my favorite pattern to use for a small gift.  The carton is made from one 12 x 12 sheet of patterned paper by We R Memory Keepers.  You can find the pattern for this carton here.  Once I had the carton folded and taped at the sides and bottom I closed the top with ribbon so that it could be opened without tearing the paper.

I will be demonstrating how to put this together at craft club.  So if you will be attending make sure you bring the following:  12" paper trimmer with scoring blade, scissors, bone folder, sticky tape, extra paper and ribbon for embellishments.  See you there!!

Next time I'll be showing you pages from my recipe book.  The craft club is doing a recipe swap with adorable little books.  So much fun!!  I can't wait to see everyone else's books.  I think mine is just adorable.

I love to Circle Journal!!

The cover showing the theme: Simple Joys & Guilty Pleasures.

This is the first page in the book.  

This is my two page layout for the theme.

I think I've mentioned the Paper Crafts Club that I've been attending.  Six of us are participating in a circle journal.  I think they are so much fun!  I will be passing my book along tomorrow and getting another one to work on.  For my journal I used almost all Stampin' Up! products.  In fact, the only things that are not SU! is the flowers.  The book, paper and hardware are all SU!  The patterned paper is surely retired, it's been in my stash for quite a while and I love the bright colors.  I had plenty to be able to keep the coordinating paper throughout my book.

My friend, Martha asked for a quote from the Quote Book I shared last time.  So here is one of my favorites:

"It isn't the load that breaks you down; it's the way you carry it" -Anonymous

Quote Book

Some time ago I was introduced to the concept of a "Quote Book".  It had never occured to me to keep all of my favorite quotes in one place.  (at least not someplace other than a shoebox!) : )  I liked the idea, especially since I had been savings little quotes and such for years.  I found a 5x7 notebook at Target.  It came with three pocket dividers.  So I prettied it up with patterned paper and embellishments.  Meagan also has one started.  It's fun to look through and handy when you need a quote for something.  I hope you like!

Altered Manilla Folders

I mentioned a while back that I had started a project at craft club.  I have progressed this project enough to take some pics for you.  I will still be personalizing this with photos and journaling.  The project is made from two manilla folders cut and folded to make a three way holder of sorts.  I used paper from K & Company to cover all the visible folder pieces.  The chipboard accessories are from Oriental Trading Company.  I used acrylic paint on them and then adhered them to the folder.  The I applied Stampin' Up!s Crystal Effects to the chipboard which gives a great shiny look.  I embellished with some grosgrain ribbon and a liver heart charm.  Later I will add some photos of my kids to the photo inserts and journal a little of each of them on the back.  

I still haven't taken any photos of the Love Is... album, but I will get around to it eventually!

Jacob accepted to AMDA!!

My first child is very talented! No bias here.  : ) Last month he auditioned for a place at a performing arts school-AMDA.  (American Musical and Dramatic Academy)  We found out last week that he got in!!!  Just so you know about the competition, last year they auditioned 3,800 people and only 500 were accepted between their two campuses.  They have one in Los Angeles and one in New York.  Jake will be going local-Los Angeles.   But he will have an opportunity later to do one semester in NY.  We are very proud of our young man and look forward to one day attending a Broadway Musical starring Jacob Tweedy!!

Cub Scout Family Hike

We had a great family hike a few Saturdays ago.  I had never been to this particular State Park.  We took a three mile trial with nothing very exciting to look at and ended up back at the cars for lunch.  Even though the scenery was nothing special, the company was.  Here is a shot of all the kids up on a rocky hill.  My two are the highest of the group.  We had a fun day.  Next time we should go somewhere a bit more scenic!

love is...Chuck and Michelle

Walking hand in hand along the beach in Santa Monica. (January 2009)

Valentine's Day is almost here.  Chuck and I had our very first date on Valentine' Day in 1986.  But, in fact, we almost didn't go out.  I was planning on standing him up because when we made the date I hadn't realized that it was the super sappy love holiday and I didn't want him to get any crazy ideas about me.  But when he called to confirm on the 13th I just couldn't bring myself to stick with that plan.  So I went out with Chuck on a rainy Valentine's night in his leaky '72 Ford Bronco (which he still owns).  And the rest, as they say is history.

I worked for hours yesterday on a gift for my sweetie.  Since we were dating, Chuck has clipped the love is... cartoons and brought them to me often.  It all started on June 5, 1986 when we were in the midst of planning our wedding and the cartoon that day said "love is...getting married on nothing".  Which, of course, we were.  Over the years I have received dozens and dozens of these adorable cartoons.  And I've saved them too.  So yesterday I took about 45 of my favorites and put them in a photo album along with some journaling.  It has turned out so cute and I will get a few pics on here of it soon.

On a crafty note, I have been feeling so uncrafty lately.  But I did start a cute project the other day.  As soon as I finish that one, I will post pics.  It is a cool altering of manilla folders.  To see a beautiful sample you can do to Lisa's blog.  There is a link on my side bar.

Have a great Valentine's Day...I know I will! 

More of us are getting in on the biking act!

We don't usually tend to do things half-way.  And since the entire extended family is into dirt biking we're jumping in feet first.  Last week we bought two more bikes.  On is for Beth and I plan to share with her.  And one is for Chuck.  We are having a ball learning to ride.  Actually chuck is already a skilled rider so he is teaching the rest of us the ropes.  So far Jacob is the only one in our little family to not come out riding.  At 17, he'd rather sleep that get up at 7:00 a.m. to go out to the desert.

Beth looked awesome in her gear with her new bike.

Here is a better shot of Matt with his bike all made up in his Monster gear.

Chuck is loving his bike.  It's a 1987 Honda 600.

Here's me getting a lift from my sweetie.  

Next on our list of purchases is a helmet for me.  I did borrow a helmet and get acquainted with Beth's bike a bit though.  What fun!

Here's How We'll Be Spending Saturdays!

This past Saturday was our first of many to go out to the desert and ride.  Matt had a fabulous time on his new (used) Honda XR80.  He is getting better at shifting all the time. For years Matt has been saying that when he grows up he wants to be a dirt bike racer.  I would laugh since he didn't even have one.  But now that he does, I may have to start worrying!  We went out to the desert with Chuck's folks and his sister and her family.  Their four year old just got a dirt bike for Christmas so he was having a blast also.  Next Saturday we'll also be joined by Chuck's brother and his family.  

Once we had been out riding for a while on Saturday, Beth (age 13) decided that she would like to give it a try.  So Matt was generous enough to offer his bike for her to learn on and putt around for a while.  She was so excited and had a great time.  When she gave the bike bak to Matt, all she could say was, "can I have another turn?"  It certainly wasn't in our immediate plans to get her a bike of her own, but we did just that yesterday anyway.  So this Saturday she will have her own dirt bike to ride all day.  Hers is a 2004 Yamaha TTR125.

The first photo is a picture of her riding Matt's bike last Saturday. I got the photos on here in wrong order and couldn't figure out how to change it!  I'm a dork!

Happy New Year!!

Hello Friends!  I'm wishing you a Happy 2009!!  I'm full of hope for a great year.   I'm working on setting some realistic goals and making a plan to make them happen.  I've never been one to make those New Year resolutions.  They looked like a set up to fail to me.  But this year I'm going to set goals for my physical and spiritual well being.

Our family got a Wii system from Grama and Poppa for Christmas.  We are having tons of fun with it.   We also got the Wii Fit program. Today was day 8 for me.  I'm really enjoying the activities and can already see a difference in my posture and balance.  So one of my goals is to be more flexible and fit and lose some more pounds. (I lost 20 pounds in 2008).

My youngest son, Matt, got his first dirt bike yesterday.  His goal is to ride proficiently.  I'll post some pictures soon of him with his bike and in his gear.  He's a cutie.