Celebrate {the day that gave me you}

Also known as my Aunt's birthday, which was yesterday =) On Friday, I'll make my annual flight over to Saskatoon for my weekend of fun with my Aunt. In lieu of a gift, I fly over and we enjoy each other's company for a weekend. It usually involves some meals out and quite a few drinks (those SK women can handle their alcohol!)

Anyways, I'm excited and I used the "Anything Goes" challenge at the Sisterhood of Crafters to create this card for her birthday. I used the Mojo 175 sketch for the layout and started off at my friend Marisa's for a color challenge idea (the Inkspirations design team always has great creations!), but ended up deviating from the colors when I stamped on white instead of vanilla and didn't have the other three colors of paper so I made up my own version - pretty in pink, chocolate chip & mellow moss.

Hoping to get in the rest of the Viva la Verve challenges before Thursday so I can get my name in for the new Verve goodies in the next release. We'll see how that goes....at this rate, I likely won't even make it into my craft room tomorrow. LOL! Stop on by the Sisterhood of Crafters & show us your creation....because this week, anything goes!

Happy Birthday, Marisa!

Hopefully this little card has reached you by now! The Mojo 173 Sketch was ideal for this little birthday card and a chance to get my newest Nestabilities a little inky. I used my favorite birthday sentiment from Verve and a bit of inspiration from some my amazing BC friends - buttons, bling, ribbon & embossing (Marisa - it took a LOT to not swiss dot these panels all up because you always do it to perfection!)

Marisa's blog, Rosemary Reflections, is constantly updated with inspiring creations and fabulously executed challenges (like her dislike of skewed panels that often results in the most lovely cards!) If you haven't been there lately, check it out!

This fabulous Friday, I hope everyone is warm & safe, happily enjoying a little luxury in whatever form that may take (I suspect mine will be taking shape in a my little Starbucks cold cup in the form of a grande black tea lemonade - I know, I'm weird drinking cold drinks in the winter, but I even crave ice cream more in the winter than the summer)
Stamps: Verve Happy BirthdayPapers: Whisper White, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, SU! DPInk: Old OliveAccessories: PTI Buttons, black twine, rhinestones, Bashful Blue ribbon, Flower Bloom Dots EF

Taylored Expressions January Blog Hop

Everything is so much better sprinkled with Love - I couldn't agree more! This sketch is loosely based on Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 100. I changed it from a square to a traditional size for ease of popping it into an envelope and used some papers from an older Key Ingredients pack. I just love how the papers match up!

This card is for my friend Chelsey's daughter's birthday and I hope she'll like it. I'm sure she'll love the Triple Flip contents =)

Stamps: TE Sprinkled with Love
Papers: Key Ingredients kit
Accessories: Bisque Liquid Pearls, Ribbon from KI, Button

VLV Jan Week One (three more to go!)

Well this card should be arriving at it's recipient's home any day now (darn slow Canada Post and with this crazy amount of snow, it's almost expected that everything will be slower than a snail's pace).

I brought out my Happy Hello set and inked up the flower from Amazing Wishes and used the Viva La Verve January Week 1 sketch to pull together a card for a special friend who never ceases to amaze me with her Divalicious creations and amazing sense of style. She's truly an inspiration, both personally and creatively.

On a personal note, I'm about done with this stinking snow - another 5cm anticipated today and because it's so darn fluffy, every time I shovel it onto a pile, it creates a mini-landslide and just makes more of a mess it seems. ARGH! That, combined with my Patriot loss (Yay for Andrea, whose Jets won) made for a crummy Sunday. However in an attempt at positivity, I'm going to share my Friday discovery. I opened some mail on Friday I shouldn't have (not that I knew at the time), but I discovered my birthday gift - and for as frustrated as I was with MrP for not even wanting to discuss a road bike for me in December, I think I can stop complaining - pretty sure he bought me the one I was drooling over! We've agreed for me to 'forget' what I think I saw....but I have a feeling this summer's going to be wonderful! Now if only it would stop snowing.

Stamps: Verve Happy Hello, Amazing Wishes
Paper: Ginger Blossom DP, Cameo Coral, River Rock, Ruby Red, Groovy Guava
Ink: Ruby Red, Groovy Guava
Accessories: Green Pearls, Rhinestones, Button, Twine

Sisterhood Challenge is Back!

And I'm hosting this week's challenge - a birthday card! But not just any birthday card - a kids birthday card for my nephew's sixth birthday. I can't believe he's growing so quickly!

I've had this great SU! Designer Paper for quite and feel like in the new year, I need to use up my collection rather than just add to it, so this is my third card of the year using up some of my papers.

I used the Splitcoast Sketch Challenge 314 as inspiration for a starting point and never looked back!  See what the other Sisters created over at the Sisterhood of Crafters and show us your best kids birthday card!

Papers: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Ruby Red (Real Red because I have almost no Ruby Red left)

Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Ruby Red, Real Red, Barely Banana

Accessories: Button, Ribbon, Bling, Paper Piercer, Stickles, Liquid Pearls

It Really Is A Snow Day!

Cancelled our one appointent and we're staying in. I needed to get to the gym today, but after round one of Snowflake Shovelfest, I think I'll just take a ride on my bike on the trainer and call it good for muscle exhausting. It also shows no sign of slowing, so I suspect there will be more rounds of this today!

I told MrP that I would shovel in exchange for breakfast (He HATES shovelling snow - I like the workout factor). We also had the front walkway (thankfully the neighbor used his snow blower on the main sidewalk) and the 8' behind the garage to the alley. UGH! I think he got the better of this deal.

Check it out!

Before Shovelfest:

(these were all taken at the same time - I was playing with the camera to get some snow detail)

After Shovelfest

Out the front storm door:

Looks like a perfect day to clean up my craft area
(although going out for organization tools is pretty much unthinkable, I've decided).

Keep warm & be happy, friends!

Wordy Birds bring Mojo

I wanted to give the Mojo sketch a try this week and I pulled out the newest Verve that I ordered and got it inky! And then I found my new order of liquid pearls (this color is Bisque) and went to town. I blame (the super talented & inspiring) Sankari Wegman for every dab of pearly goodness on this card...and all that is to come! This Wordy Birds set is so cute....now I need to get some real branches so my cute birdie doesn't have leaves coming out of his butt!

Sadly, I created two cards in three hours so I was on no sort of role. I'm hoping I get some better mojo going this weekend when I'm hoping to blast Taylor Swift, which is what always seems to be on when I'm "on". MrP may just have to put up with the music if he wants to game in the home theatre area in the basement (which happens to be across the house/room from my craft area).

I also shocked myself today. After thinking about it since about September last year, I finally committed to a half marathon clinic in hopes of completing the BMO Okanagan Half Marathon in October. I had decided that if I was ever going to do one, that might be it and had discussed with MrP earlier. He agreed to come for support, but assured me there's no way on God's green earth that he would be running with me. LOL! That's all the support I can hope for =) I figure now that I've made it official, I'll be more likely to do it, so here goes nothing....the clinic starts in March!

More of this to come....

Long overdue...

Okay, this List of Fours was something my newly official Diva friend Maureen, tagged me on…so if you’re interested…

1. Four shows that you watch:
Glee
Grey’s Anatomy
Supernatural
True Blood

 2. Four things you are passionate about:
My husband
My kitty
Horses
Random acts of kindness

3. Four words/phrases you say a lot:
Basically
Buddy
SFA (every time MrP asks what’s for supper)
Sounds like a plan

4. Four things you've learned from the past:
Set your expectations low and you’ll often be pleasantly surprised
Always make promises you can keep
There’s a reason for the way things turn out
On occasion, cooking will not kill me =)

5. Four places you would like to go:
Boston (specifically, Foxboro to see my Patriots play at Gilette Stadium)
Switzerland (MrP doesn’t get this since I don’t ski. I just went to Capri Island in Italy when I was 18 and liked it and someone told me “if you like this beautiful, expensive island, you’d like Switzerland” and it’s always stuck with me. LOL)
Home – I hate being at work and seeing all the awesome crafts people are working on, being inspired and not being able to do something at that moment!
Chicago – we want to try Alinea restaurant


6. Four things you did yesterday:
Watched from the fourth row of Rexall while the Oilers lost to the Red Wings (but they gave it a good shot, so I’m not complaining)
Bought some household items at Costco
Had a blizzard with my buddy
Admired the new Verve sneak peaks

7. Four things you are looking forward to:
Annual Trip to Saskatoon for my aunt’s birthday
Planning my exercise regime for the spring/summer (10K run booked, 10K run decided and MS Bike Tour booked)
Discover Snowboarding lesson next week (MrP & I have been talking about it for a couple of years and we’re finally going to do it!)
My 30th birthday (April 24, baby!)

8. Four things you love about winter:
I think this is a trick question, but as a Canadian, I like the snow when I’m not having to drive in it
Christmas
Snowmobiling with my Aunt
Spring is closer

9. Four people I tag to play along (no worries if you pass :)!!)
Andrea at Work in Progress
Karin at With an I for Paper
Laural-Lee at Laural’s Passion for Paper
Chriss at Botanical Cafe