Rain and Sun

Today it was raining one minute and sun shiny the next. For this card I layered New England Ivy, Outdoor Denim and Autumn TerraCotta and Colonial White on tan cardstock.  The pumpkin is from PSX, the sentiment from CTMH SOTM for Sept.  The row of pumpkins is from Stampin' Up.  All were stamped in Autumn TerraCotta.   I used a brass photo hanger from CTMH with an orange ribbon from Jo-Ann's.

I finally got my clothes closet cleaned out today and I can even shut the doors.  LOL.  And my shoes are on the closet floor, not taking up space around our bedroom or living room or where ever I happen to take them off.  In between the rain, Jim and his buddy Phil went golfing and didn't get rained on.  Tomorrow is another all day in Petoskey.  So I am going to bed early.

Sunflower

It wasn't a nice day for going outside so I cleaned my craft area and made a couple of cards.  CS colors for this are Autumn TerraCotta, Barn Red, Olive and Colonial White.    The background paper is some old CTMH paper that I stamped the small flower from the Treasure Life SOTM in olive and autumn terracotta.  The pot of sunflowers is Stampin' Up's A Flower for All Seasons and I colored it with Prisma Colored pencils.  The sentiment is from Treasure Life.  The flowers are Spare Parts by Paper Studio and I used a bronze brad in the middle.  Smaller circle is a punch and the larger circle is a Nestability.

 

Tomorrow is bill paying and day and in light of the economy, I'm glad that I have money to pay the bills.  I bought a new bulletin board for my craft area.  The one I had was dark brown cork and the new one is very light colored, sure does brighten up my area.   The leaves are turning and should be at their peak this weekend.

I Got It Back

This afternoon I went to my spot to see what I could come up with.  I had an idea, looked at my pumpkin stamps to see what I had and saw this Penny Black stamp from a few years back. I stamped it with VersaMark and chalked it.  CS colors are Autumn TerraCotta, Barn Red and Olive from CTMH.  The piece I stamped on was just a scrap that I had in my stash.  Sentiment is from the Sept Stamp of the Month and was stamped with Olive.  Embellishments are CTMH.

Yesterday was extremely busy as we left here at 8:25 am and returned at 6:40 pm.  Our Living with Arthritis class was first on the agenda.  It is interesting but basically we already know the stuff.  Then it was lunch time, a quick trip to Wal-Mart and off to PT.  I think that tomorrow will be my last visit for a month.  Jeff asked how I was doing as far as getting better and I said 85%.  I have a bunch of exercises to do at home which take about 45-60 minutes to do.  I dropped Jim off at home and went into the Soo (Sault Ste. Marie) to pick up a prescription.  I go to PT in Petoskey which is 75 miles south.  Sam and Sam are here.  Samantha was sick last night so tonight Sam took her to our Urgent Care Clinic.  She had symptoms of kidney infection but doesn't have that.  She could have a touch of food poisoning from eating seafood.  It was 75 degrees here today.  Microwave just went off so will go and finish getting super.  It is almost time for Survivor. 

Where Did It Go?

After a nice walk in the woods I went to my little spot in the basement and I just didn't have it.  I made this card but just couldn't get it together for another one.  I am very tired.  This card uses CTMH's September stamp of the month.  I embossed it with Personal Stamp Exchange Verdigris.  The stripe paper I do believe is from Stampin' Up.  And for the ovals I used the Nestabilities.   It doesn't show up in the picture but the embossing has gold flecks in it.

This morning our former pastor called to chat and in the course of the conversation I mentioned to him that a senior lady was having a problem with skin cancer.  This afternoon that very same lady called me to tell me that I was an answer to prayer.  This morning at 4AM she prayed that she could talk to Pastor Steve.  He called her after he hung up from talking to us.  She was so excited to be able to talk to him.  And I feel very honored that I had a part in it. 

A Journey

I loved this set when I saw it in the Stampin' Up catalog.  The cardstock is Autumn Terracotta , Ponderosa Pine and Colonial White.  Ink color is Brillance Pearlescent  Crimson. The striped paper is Pixie Sticks by HallowWhimsy.  I think that I trimmed the photo a little too much as some of the autumn terracotta got cut off at the top. 

Tuesday I laid on the couch all day sleeping and reading.  Wednesday I felt like a human again and went to PT.  Today I have been going like a house afire, cleaning and rearranging books and video tapes in our bedroom.  I am getting a stack of books ready for the community library.  Sam's girlfriend, Samantha, is coming out for the weekend and another male student.  Samantha comes every weekend but Josh doesn't so even though both have been here before decided that I would make the house a little clean.  It usually has that very lived in look.  Tomorrow is another PT day.  I have been only going once a week but now and for through Oct 3, I'll be going twice a week.  I think it is helping as my back wasn't sore when I got done with the cleaning. 

A Leola Card

I bought this paper over weekend, because I thought it was so pretty.  And I was wishing I was into scrapbooking more.  When I was showing all my goodies to Sam and his girlfriend, he said "That looks like a Leola  (our granddaughter)card."  So I made a long card that fits in a #10 size envelope.  The paper is really prettier in person.  The background is white with grey lines.  For my card I took the left side (as you are looking at the paper) and made a long card that would fit into a # 10 envelope.  The paper is Basic Grey Sultry Uptown.

 

Again I couldn't get the card to photograph well.  I stamped the frog out of Citrus Leaf and used pop dots to make him stand out.  The water lily I colored with Watermelon.  And the dragonfly I used a blue Prismacolor pencil.  The stamped dragonfly is from CTMH and I used Watermelon and Black.  The sentiment (hello from the heart) is stamped with Watermelon and is one of the new $1 acrylic stamps I bought over the weekend.  On the flower at the top I used Stampin' Up's 2 way glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds glitter. 

 

Today we had nice sunny skies and we went for a walk in the woods.  The trees are just beginning to turn colors.  We live on one of the prettiest roads for color change.  We only had an inch of rain here while we were gone but where we were downstate got up to 10 inches.  And it rained until we got to the Mackinac Bridge.  One of the neat things I got was Glue Dots in dispenser like scotch tape.  I had never seen that before and it said new.  The dispenser will take up a lot less room than the dots on a roll.  Think that I will go make a cup of tea and curl up with a good book.  Feels like I am coming down with something.  Later

Weekend Adventure

Friday we left home for Saginaw and shopping. Saturday we had lunch with my cousins in Oxford an hour south of Saginaw. Our motel is right next to Hobby Lobby. After we checked in I said to Jim that I was going to Hobby Lobby and to expect me for two hours (I was back in 30 min). I went up and down all the scrapbooking isles and bought a few small items but the things that I wanted were out of stock i.e Cuttlebug folders and Nestabilities. Then I hit Joann's and decided to go back the next day as I had left my coupons in my purse in the motel room. Michael's scrapbooking department was pathetic. My next stop was Family Christian Bookstore to get a new Bible. Everytime we get a new pastor they seem to use a different version of the Bible. I have several versions but there is a new one out called English Standard Version and that it what our new pastor uses. After we got back from having lunch with my cousins we stopped at Joann's and I bought some of those $1 acrylic stamps and even a block for a buck and then I got some new chalk ink pads. After having a piece of pumking pie at Bob Evan's I wanted to stop at Hobby Lobby and look at their $1 acrylic stamps, didn't find them but they did have a supply of Cuttlebug folders and Nestabilities; so I got two of each. Now we are in our room for the night. Tomorrow we head for home. Hope I can do some stamping on Monday.

A Stamping Day

Saw a card on a blog and thought it was really neat but the only color I had that matched was Outdoor Denim.  Didn't have the wolf stamp either, or the navy stripe but I liked the card so this is what I came up with.  I used white cardstock for the base of my card, Outdoor Denim and the stripe is Backyard "My Journey" from Bohemia.  The striped paper is reversible so used the green side for backing behind the lighthouse stamp which is from Stamping Up.  I stamped the image in Outdoor Denim and distressed the edges.  There are three navy brads on the blue but they don't show up too well in the photo. 

Today we made 5 cards with our CTMH consultant and I spent a group of money getting cardstock and a couple of paper packets etc.  I really like the September Stamp of the Month.  We also made a snowman with the November SOTM.  Tonight the temp is dipping into the 30's.  I put our winter comforter on the bed and washed the summer one.   Tomorrow we are headed to Petoskey, 75 miles south of here for PT and the arthritis clinic.  And then of course shopping at Super Wal-Mart and checking out Ben Franklin Crafts.  In November Super Joann's is opening and they are supposed to have a really great scrapbooking/cardmaking section.

I Couldn't Resist

Last Friday a big order from Stampin Up arrived. A friend and I put our orders together and were able to get the Level 2 Hostess set which is Serene Spring. It has the bunny and a bird on a watering can I think. Anyway the bunny is stamped with CTMH Desert Sand and colored with Prismacolor pencils. It is layered on CTMH Chocolate that I ran through the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder. Then I mounted that on a Carousel Note Card from Stamping Up. The note cards come with chocolate envelopesI used a 1/16 punch to put in the holes. And to finish off the card I used an antique copper photo holder and some green ribbon that was in my stash.

We just got a call saying the interest rate on our home mortgage was going up. Very interesting since our house has been free and clear for many years. Last week the temps were in the 80's. This week they are in the 60's and rainy. Tomorrow our CTMH consultant is coming-she has us make 4 0r 5 cards using the newest stamps. I don't that many stamp sets I want besides the Stamp of the Month and the Cardinal ( I think it is called Serene Season) but I do want a bunch of cardstock and things like that.

The Pumpkin Patch

I Think I made this card at the tail end of last fall.  The stamp is from Serendipity Stamps.  I used some brown scraps, vellum and a cream color.  I wrapped the gold wire around the paper piercer.  All the pieces are mounted on white cardstock.

We got wakened up at 7:10 am with a distress call from a divorced lady whose car wouldn't start and she needed to get to work.  Could Jim come and give her a jump?  He jumped it three times but the car wouldn't keep a charge so not only did he take her 2o miles to work but he went out of his way to pick up her daughter and take to college in the opposite direction he needed to go.  The day did get better.  We went for our three mile walk and got it in before it started to rain.  We got sprinkled on a tad.  The weatherman said we could get up to three inches tonight. It was cold and damp in the house so I turned the furnace on low to take the dampness out of the air.  I took a nap, have my checkbook balanced.  The statement came today and after the trouble I had last time because I let it go for three months I wasn't doing that again.  Besides we are  helping our grandkids with college expenses so had to know that the finances were up to date.  I read some of the required reading for the arthritis class and did my exercises for my therapy session.  I have six exercises to do, three of them I did when I had my knees replaced so they were easy.  The two pelvic exercises are little tricky and I don't quite have them down.  The last one is called the piriformis stretch and it helps keep the hips in line, and I don't have any trouble doing that one.   Think I'll go work on the church bulletin.

It's My Back--Not My Butt

Today I'm doing things a little backward.  My card will be at the end of this post.

This morning we went to the arthritis class.  It was quite interesting and we have homework to do.  Some reading and then we had to do an action plan.  Our action plan was what we have been doing--walking 2-3 miles 3 times a week.  We had time for a quick lunch then it was to my therapy session.  After asking me a jillion questions and watching me walk and do a couple of other things Jeff, my therapist, determined that I have an inflamed sacroiliac.  He poked and proded and stretched and gave me some exercises to do and set up an appointment for next week.  I am pooped so after posting my card I'm going to go sit in my easy chair with moist heat and most likely fall asleep.

I made this card this past spring with CTMH Vintage Travel Level One paper packet.  The stamp is from Stamping Up and I stamped it with Pepperwood from CTMH.  The green cardstock is most likely from a fall pack of paper from Joann's.  The jute I used on the photo hangers is the real thing and I just pulled off a couple of strands.  Til next time.

Two New Toys

Last week I ordered a set of Prisma Colored Pencils and Oval Nestabilities from All That Scraps and they came today.  I used both on this card.  I can see that I need to order some plain oval Nestabilities.   I used Creative Memories cutting system but I'm sure it would be much easier with the Nestabilities.  Cardstock is New England Ivy, Barn Red, and Colonial White.  I popped up the oval with pop dots.  The navy ribbon was a scrap that I had in my drawer.  Stamp is from Stamping Up. Photo hangers are pewter from CTMH.

Today was another hot day.  But as it is going to be in the 60's tomorrow I am not complaining.   Jim did turn on the AC this evening so it will be cool for sleeping.  Tomorrow we are going to an Arthritis Seminar in the morning and in the afternoon I am going to therapy to see if I can get rid of this pain in my butt.  When I had my knee surgery my therapist said it was my glut muscle.  We shall see.  Happy Trails.

Inspired By a Sweater

This card was inspired by a design on a sweater that a lady had at church yesterday.  I came right home and stamped the image and colored it but couldn't come up with the other card colors.  This afternoon I went down to my spot and in a matter of a few minutes had the colors I wanted.  Cardstock colors are Hydrangea, Goldrush, and White.  I stamped the image with Indian Corn Blue and went over the petals with Smoky Plum and then used my water color crayons to color the center of the petals.  The stem is New England Ivy.  I went over the center of the flower with  a Indian Corn Blue marker and added some Diamond Stickle.  The ribbon brad is from Karen Foster and as you can see used the Swiss Dots embossing folder with my Cuttlebug. 

My day turned out different than I had planned last night.  I was going to get up this morning and clean the clutter in the living room and dining room.  And then get to work on my checkbook.  I did get the clutter cleaned and dusted the furniture but the checkbook went by the wayside.  On Wednesday it is only supposed to be in the 60's with rain.  Quite a change from our 80's and sun that we have been having.  So I was outside a lot today.  I deadheaded my flowers that needed it and then planted three small pots of morning glories that I bought two weeks ago and forgot about.  I have eggs boiling to make a potato salad tomorrow.  Wednesday we are going to a going away party in the evening but we will be gone all day on Wednesday.  I did this post with Live Writer.  Later.