Baking Carissa!

Happy Monday! Hope you had a great weekend and were able to smoothly get back into your groove today. This card is in the mail to my daughter Carissa. Middle Child extraordinaire, military wife and mother to Iyla, she is truly an amazingly gifted young woman and absolutely the best young mother I have EVER met. Iyla is 2 and can already spell her name. Carissa runs a tight ship in consistent disciple and structure and Iyla has just blossomed. She is a beautiful 2 year old and happy and well adjusted. Last year they were in Korea and it is now a blessing to have them in TX - alot closer!

Carissa is so creative and she and Iyla have so many art projects, cooking projects, outdoor projects. They are always busy and always learning something NEW. She has degrees in marketing/advertising and journalism. You should see HER blog - Domiciliary Artillery. http://domiciliary-artillery.blogspot.com/ It's amazing all she does!

Well, since Carissa makes everything from scratch and is baking DAILY and trying new recipes by the minute, when I saw this new image from My Favorite Things, I just had to get it. It even LOOKS like her - she wears YOGA pants for cryin' out loud! Her favorite color is purple so I used my Copics on the image, scraps of So Sophie and PTI button, Martha Stewart ribbon.

Thanks for looking! Have a great week!

Abby

Hello! I am so bummed that my 4 day break from work is over, so I have been pouring in the overtime on both fun things and needful projects this weekend to see if I can make it last. This card is one I just made this afternoon for my 5 year old granddaughter Abby. It looks JUST like her! I thought you might be skeptical so I added a photo of the Abster beneath it so you could vote!

She is a gem that Abby! A new big sister to Alivia too and a great help to her Mama. I am so far away that I am almost no help at all and things are a bit of a struggle right now; but I know I can count on Abs to be right there trying so hard to help!

The paper is Basic Grey's Jovial prints, the stamp is Stampendous' Cozy Cutie aka Abby, and the snow flake is a retired SU! stamp which I trimmed to go over a boo-boo the stamp left (don't you just hate that when it leaves an impression in the air space of the stamp? Shoot!) I colored "Abby" with copics (the hat is fuchsia and teal, and I swear the pink background paper matches in REAL LIFE!); ribbon is Martha Stewart. I used some "foaming" applique to make her "fur" collar and the tassel on her hat. This is going into the mail to surprise Abigael LeeAnn (the Ann is for ME) in her mailbox! Grammy loves you Abby!

The 3 little Divas

Happy Thanksgiving, friends! I hope your day was filled with things you love to do with people you love! My day was just about PERFECT! Jeff and I were on our own here at home in Oregon. Another plan was thwarted with bad weather and cancellation, but no matter. We were together and just hung out here at home, working on some projects. reading and finishing up the day with a homemade turkey dinner with all the trimmings - just a little on the smaller than usual side is all. The only thing that could have made it better was having family in, but alas, grown children have their own families and activities and our 3 grown children are spread all over the US. Of course, it would have been ABSOLUTELY PERFECT if I had the 3 little Divas in house. You may have read that I was MIA a couple of weeks ago when Alivia Grace was born in OK. What a blessing to see both my big girls and my three littles. Here are just 3 of my most precious blessings. Iyla (2 - belonging to Daughter #2 Carissa!) Abigael and Alivia (5 and just arriving belonging to Daughter #1 Andreanna!) I miss them so much, but I cannot thank God enough for His bountiful gifts to me.

Happy Thanksgiving! And blessings on you all!

Thanks for looking!

TTFN! Artha

Friendship Gratitude

Blessings on your Tuesday! This card is again the culmination of scraps, with a thankful sentiment for my very dear friend Monica! She is a treasure of huge report and I love her dearly. She prays for me, encourages my heart at every opportunity and is such a gifted stamper herself that she is an inspiration on all fronts. It is a joy to have a friend with whom I have so much in common. When we get together for coffee, we blab at each other nonstop for HOURS and always say to one another: "You GET IT!" when we share our hearts. She is beautiful from the inside out and a dear sister in the Lord.

Every year we try to get together to stamp for a few days with other dear friends. We stay in our jammies, share meals and stamp our brains out til all hours. It is the best time EVER!!!

Need-less-to-say, I am blest with dear friends by the bunch and I am grateful for each one. Monica, aka Toots is a jewel beyond compare.

Love you Toots!

The elements of this card are just a mix from the scrap bag!

Have a great day!

Artha

In Its Time.....

Hello friends! Hope your Sunday is just restful and full of things you like to do. Todays's card is primarily using up scraps and adding a focal imager from PTI along with a profound truth from Ecclesiastes for a sentiment. Hope you are enjoying the last days of Autumn. Our tree out front is the last to color and is a beautiful orange. Jeff raked all the rest up yesterday and gave the yard its last mow (I hope!) I have had the fire on every night this week. Autumn/Winter are down times for me for some reason - time to read, stamp, move the furniture around (which I did yesterday) clean out cupboards, sort through clutter and straighten things up. Today my focus will be my stampin' studio - it IS a wreck! But thank goodness there is a homemade apple pie in the oven for a great reward!

Enjoy your day! TTFN! Artha

Counting Blessings

Happy Friday. Stampin' Friends! What a week, but thankfully it was short for me - only 4 days since I returned from OK and TX. Next week I only have 2 work days and then a short business trip and THEN turkey! I have lots of projects scheduled for both weekends, but hopefully can get some stampin' time in. I like to get up really early and make a cup of tea and sit at my desk and start stampin' like a mad woman. This weekend, I have lots of catching up to do with laundry, shopping and meal planning, but I am also determined to clean out some cupboards and am starting on a pairing down campaign. Organizers, unite!

This card uses PTI stamps, SO SOPHIE paper, my usual Hero Arts background stamp. I love Autumn and I am thankful for the blessings of family and dear friends.

Gobble, Gobble!!

Hello friends! I apologize that I have been MIA for so long, but I have a brand new granddaughter, Alivia Grace and I have been rocking and trying to help out as much as possible back in OK. I got to see all my little sweeties - all 3 Divas - Abigael, aka Big Sister (5), Iyla (belongs to daughter #2 and is 2) and then Baby Alivia. I had a blast!

Anyway - here is Iyla's Thanksgiving card. I gave it to her while I was there. I try to send all my girls a card/week. Can't always get it, but truly believe they need to hear from me on something they can pick up again, read and know I was thinking of them and love them.

I am back on board, so hopefully you haven't given up on me.

Turkey and sentiment is from Verve, colored with Copic markers, buttons are from PTI's autumn collection, paper are scraps from this and that, Cuttlebug diamond design adds some texture, I added buckles to their pilgrim hats from my stash of SU! bronze metal embellishments set.

TTFN!

Artha