Advent TREE!!

Helllloooooo!
I am still here...if you are interested in my health and my recovery, check the bottom of this entry.
So two years ago I made some pretty awesome advent calendars...(check here for full entry)

and I still haven't made one for my boys...mostly because they love those crappy chocolate ones (because they get chocolate every day, Hello-o! They are getting the Trader Joe's chocolate advent every morning, yup - I send them to school high on chocolate. I am an awesome mom! Duh! ;)

So, I decided that I didn't really want to give them more stuff...I want to lean away from that kind of Christmas. I saw a flat version of this on Pinterest made with envelopes and foam core background. I wanted a paper calendar, one I could make, and useable for my lil' dudes. So I made a list of activities and borrowed some from  All Things Simple.

Here is what I came up with, an Advent Tree:

with important family activities that we can share together. And before some of you wise-guys ask (Leanna)...no, I didn't make the tree...it's from Target. What I did make, are the envelopes and filled them with an activity for each day.

For example:
 day one is: Read "Elf on the Shelf" together
day 2: Make teacher gifts
day 3: Pick mitten from mitten tree for foster kids
day 4: Watch "The Grinch"
day 5: can you believe it...I can't remember!

Luckily, I made a master list, with the dates all assigned and even some alternate days for the outdoor activities. I made each envelope out of a 4" square of scrapbook paper, scored on all 4 corner diagonals, folded in and rounded the upper corner. I then decorated the fronts and put numbers cut from my cricut. I can't fit them all on the little tree..so I'll pop them on as the others come off.

Hope you are enjoying the season of Advent!

and as for my health...
Here I am folks....recovering from my first treatment, which was both not as bad as I expected and much worse.
I didn't get as sick as everyone told me I would...bone aches for 2 days were actually endurable. However, the bone aches were like twinkling Christmas tree lights and would go on and off constantly...for 48 hours straight. And I couldn't sleep with the pain. And the worse part: I know I have to do this two more times. But, it could be worse and I could have to do more than 3 treatments...and there might not be hope for recovery. So I will take the aches and try not to complain about the pain...or groan out loud. Too often.
Thanks for the cards and love! I'll post more as I can...

More cards...and a class!

Hello!

After much thought, I'm feeling pretty happy to be able to do one more class before my chemo treatments start, so here are the two cards and one bag for my final 2011 class.

Both cards are 4.25" x 5.5". The bag is a commercially made 12"x12" sheet that includes 4 tags and the bag to assemble.
I have 12 sets available, $10 for each kit which includes all materials and instructions.

Hope to see you November 15th!

getting back into crafting

I've been gone a while...having a little problem getting healthy. I don't know how many more cards I'll be able to make or post. My medication keeps me from concentrating and feeling creative.

But I felt the need to make a thank you card to the people who have reached out and sent flowers and prayers for me.
I'm weighing the desire for one more class vs. my energy levels and ability to get things together. I certainly have the supplies! :) I'll let you know soon...

I'll try to post as much / often as I can.
Take Care and leave a comment! :)

Fry Box Gift

I made this small treat box...copied from a french fry box.

I bought the green embossed paper from Michael's and printed the pattern right onto the paper. Then I cut out the box and assembled the sides. Next I heat-embossed the owl with a very pretty Kaleidoscope embossing powder and popped that little guy right onto a fall colored medallion and added the "Happy Birthday" flag.

I filled the box with some cookies and left it for my friend to enjoy when she returned home from work.

I'll be making a similar treat box for Christmas and I'll include the pattern in a Pdf format for easy printing. Look for it in about 2 weeks!

-Enjoy your week!

Spooky Fun!

I love this time of year...don't you? The weather here is lovely and the trees haven't lost their leaves, so it's neither messy nor bare. And we have some really great holidays to look forward to! I made 3 fun Halloween cards this week...and I've got a few more festive ideas up my sleeve...so stay turned for more!

This card features fun glitter Halloween paper:

Don't you think this little frog is darling?

Card 2 has a pre-cut window...

and I stuck a fun, glow-in-the-dark ghostie sticker behind it. You can leave off the bling and it would mail flat, easy-peasy.
And finally card 3:

This is definitely NOT a flat card! I have some fantastic Halloween embellishments with skeletons and crows that look super on this medallion. All waiting for you to assemble!
Hope to see you October 11th!

3 All Occasion Cards

Loved the rain this weekend! Isn't crazy to have last Sunday near 100 degrees and just yesterday nearly get to 60? Although I'm not much for sun, I am glad it's coming right back tomorrow. I wasn't quite ready for our usual 5 months of rain and drizzle.

So this is what I made this weekend:

This card is bright..almost spring-like, but the colors complemented the other two cards so well...and I really wanted to use it. So I did!

The three images are stamped and embossed with clear embossing powder.

This card is RSVP sized (5 x 3.5) and has the cutest little clip!

Next up: Halloween and fall cards...and maybe a little Christmas treat!

Enjoy your week!

Back-2-School!

It's time for freshly sharpened pencils and clean, new spiral notebooks...and boxes of unused crayons and bottles of glossy white Elmer's glue!
While we adjust, here are the few items I put together for the next class:

"Hell-Owl" Card

Owl Coffee gift

Owl coffee gift: side view

Medallion Card

Hope you are enjoying our last few weeks of summer. I'm glad it waited for the 90s until September!