Time For Blog Candy Booty

WOW!!! I am only 21 hits away from 1,500 views. This just boggles my mind. I will post a pic this evening of the booty to be had by a lucky winner. All you have to do is answer one of two questions (or both if you like). What does back to school time mean for you, if it does, and/or do you do anything special for Labor Day weekend to mark the sad end to summer fun?

Back to school doesn't hold much for me anymore now that my son is grown (wow that's a hard pill to swallow). Even though he is still my boy, I am glad to no longer endure the morning struggle of waking him up and the additional challenge of getting him to school on time. For myself, now that I have completed the hundred year plan for college; I am contemplating graduate school. Not sure if I'm read for that commitment completely.

As for Labor Day, this weekend marks the sad end to my favorite weekly farmer's market. It will close until Memorial Day weekend next year. I really enjoy Friday evenings wandering around the different stands tasting all of the fresh fruit. Two weeks after Labor Day I go camping so I don't have to fight for a good site and I there aren't as many others in the campground so it feels like I have more of Mother Nature to myself. I am a total tent camper. No trailers for me. I do have an air mattress, but I just love my tent. I can't wait!

Once my blog hits 1,500 hits, I will close the entries and randomly draw from my official Starbucks cup and announce the winner. I can't wait to see who it is this time!

Thank You sincerely for visiting my little spot on the web.

The Return to Stamping

I haven't put rubber to paper in way too long of a time. Work has just exhausted me. So I joined a swap. I knew that would force me to sit down and start stamping again. I think the real reason I have been in a funk is not attending Stampin Up convention this year. I was not able to get a ticket to the coveted session I. I could not attend session II. Alas, I have been left to only read about the fun and excitement I missed this year. But mark my words, wild dogs will not be able to keep me away next year.

I received my inspiration for this card's design from a http://inkpad.typepad.com/from_my_ink_pad_to_yours/2007/07/not-quite-shady.html This is a blog I pop in on from time to time. She has a wonderful tutorial a technique I had not seen before, Not Quite Shady Layers. I adapted the basic idea for this card from her sample. I really love this Baroque Motifs stamp set there will be more creatons from this one. I am really happy with the way this card came out. For the swap I customized each person in the swap's card with their monogram.

For this card I used Sahara Sand, Always Artichoke, and Elegant Eggplant cardstock, for ink I used Elegant Eggplant, and Purely Pomegranate; stamp sets used were canvas background, Headline Alphabet, and Baroque Motifs. I used my cutter kit to rough up the edges of my layers and for a splash of bling, I added a rhinestone brad from the ice collection. I hope everyone liked their card.

It Should Be A Crime....

It should be a crime to let work get in the way of social activities. I have been so busy with my "other job" that I have not had the time nor energy to stamp and post to my blog. Please accept my apologies for my absence. I do have fun things to post over the next few days.

Weekend before last I took a one day bus trip with my cousin and our moms to San Francisco. The ladies at Lisa's church do this every year. I personally rarely travel to Northern CA, I usually go south to the Los Angeles area. I had a blast. I can't wait to go back again to see the things we just couldn't fit in.

Look at these yummy colorful peppers. I have never seen purple bell peppers before. The Farmer's Market had some really neat and unusual varieties of vegetables. I wish I could have bought more, but I didn't want to carry them all over town all day and risk mushing them in my bag.

This guy was performing on the street near Farmer's Market. I bet his mom is still wondering where her pots and pans went to. Seeing this guy reminded me of my son when he was little. He loved to serenade me with the pots and pans in the kitchen floor while I was cooking. To think he could turn this into a real performance. Seriously, this guy was pretty good to listen to.

We had so much fun wondering around the wharf area. Our feet barely survived. I have to applaud my mom, I thought she would pop out, but she was a trooper and never gave up. She slowed down a few times, but she kept plugging right on along.

Stay tuned, I will post tomorrow about China Town. I had never been there before. SO Cool!

My Circle Journal

Well I finally got a moment to upload the pictures of my Circle Journal. I have chosen the theme of my journal to be "Vacation and Travel". I love to go camping and take weekend getaways so i thought this would be a great way to chronicle my adventures. I am especially excited about a trip that is being planned to Egypt in December. Egypt is one of the places I wanted to see before I die. Yes I have one of those lists tucked in a safe place. That also happened to be the theme of one of the other Circle Journals in this swap.

These pages are for the ladies contributing to my Circle Journal. Each one will complete a tag to share a bit about themselves so I know a tid bit about the contributors to my journal.

These are my first two pages. I have recently discovered paper piecing, and really like it for those times when you can't find the right stamp to get the desired look you want. For these pages I sponged Blue Bayou and Wild Wasabi on the pages to give them a background. for my tags I used the new Purely Pomegranate. I love this new color. My bag is made from Creamy Caramel, with Basic Black for the handle and strap. The buckle is from the Hodge Podge hardware, and the metal edges of my bag are the Brushed Copper. So as you can see, my bags are packed, and I am ready for this adventure.

I want to thank Michelle Tweedy for putting this fabulous idea together. I can't wait to see what my journal looks like once everyone has made their individual mark on my journal. I am as excited to see the journals as they make their way across my table.

I've Been Tagged

This is my first time being tagged. Michelle Tweedy is one of my new blog friends. She is hostessing this totally cool Circle Journal. It's all Stampin Up and I can't wait. I have to admit I had a bit of creative block getting started, but now I can't wait to see all of the journals. I'll be posting pages from mine in the next couple of days.

Back to the tag. I need to post seven little known facts about me. Hmmm, that's tough, let's see
1. I just turned 41 and am the mother to a 20 year old son. Wow, that sounds so old; definitely not the me I think I am.
2. I am deathly afraid of the water. I do not like it in my face. I can tolerate water situations that do not include splashing or alot of witnesses, I mean people.
3. I'm taking one of my before I die trips this December to Egypt. I am so excited, and learning Arabic so I can haggle in the markets. I really can't wait. The only sad part is I'll be traveling alone. I do know the culture well though.
4. I recently added a wheaten Scottish Terrier to my family. His name is Duncan and he is the funniest thing. It took awhile to make the decision but it was truly a match made in heaven. He fits so well with my son and I.
5. I love Middle Eastern things. I have a Lebanese background and really identify with that part of myself.
6. My cousin calls me a Muslic. Half Catholic, half Muslim. I attend both the mosque and the church when the spirit directs me. Some may think me weird, but I am totally comfortable with it. I love that I understand both ways and receive such a gift from both.
7. And the last tid bit about me but maybe the most revealing... I am a very insecure person. I try to work on this but somehow can't seem to break through this one. I hate it sometimes. I do work hard to not others know how insecure I feel much of the time.

There you have it. More than you probably wanted to know. Ok now it is my turn to tag some others. Let's see who hasn't been tagged:

Mary Arima
Shauna
Brenda Taylor
Tammy

Everyone else has been tagged I think. If I missed someone, post and tell me about yourself. I'd love to read about you.

Have a Great Day!

Happy Sparks Day

I almost forgot to wish my friend Daisy over at Eclectic Paperie a Happy Sparks day. There is still a couple of hours left to get in on her special sale today. She is offering 15% off of your purchase.

Have a super special day my dear friend.

Happy Fire Cracker Day!

I hope everyone had a spectacular 4th of July. Here is a quick picture of some of the magical fireworks I was captivated by this evening.

I am such a big kid when it comes to fireworks. I get excited every time I see them. My favorites are the ones that twinkle in the big ring. It's fun to light the small ones in the street in front of the house, but the big aerial displays just bring out the little girl in me.

I also wanted to remember the service men and women who could not be here safe at home to watch fireworks with their families. My heart goes out to them that they will be home soon, and this mess will be over with. I love my country and being an American.

Happy Fire Cracker Day everyone!