Lauren's Christmas Gift Box

How do you usually express love? With a gift and what is a better way to give a gift than to give it in a gift box that you made yourself! I decided that it would be great if this gift box could go with the Mojo Monday theme this week (BTW, I really missed MOJO while you were on vacation).

The instructions for the box are SO simple to follow.  I found them on Splitcoasters (which happens to be a WONDERFUL site).  Here is the link to the website...  

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/2_5_7_10_box/   

You really need to peruse the site a bit and see all the fun things that you can learn to make. 

I used a 8.5x11 sheet of bazzil black card stock

Flourish stamp by Stampin UP! (Baroque Motifs)

Silver Embossing powder by Stampin UP!

All card stock on the front of the box  was from my scrapbin...

So was the ribbon 

Flowers are prima

This color theme goes with the CR84FN challenge.  I love the pink, black and gray combo so much I could not stand but to try and use it again.   LOVE LOVE the pink!!!  Thank you to both of you the challenge sites for tons of fun.  I love playing with you every week.  

Tickle me PINK!!!!

Pink is not one of my top 3 favorite colors, but it is exciting.  It can be pale and drab, or bold and fierceful.  It can be pastel and calming or scream at you "HEY NOTICE ME!"   Yes, there are many personas to the color pink. I actually think pink has tons of personalities, probably more than any other color because pink can be ANYTHING.  Add a little black for some classy, add some brown for some down at home, add some ornage for some sassy, add some blue for some relaxation.  Yes pink is the "IT" color. 

This week's color challenge was fun because I have actually been working on a pink and black card. 
This week's challenge made me finish it, but also because it was such a good color combo I added one more card and an album that I think turned out FABULOUS!!

It is again along the lines of THINK PINK from the movie "Funny Face" because I cannot get enough of that movie for one thing.  For two things I cannot stop singing the soundtrack in my head (or playing it in my car), and for three think it makes me happy. 

My pinwheel BE YOURSELF card

I am going to start with showing you  the card I was inspired to finish.   I made the first layer of this pinwheel in a class at CKC and made the second layer when I got home.  I stopped there.  When this challenge popped up I decided it was perfect...I just needed to do something with it.  Of course a card was the perfect choice....it's unique and people are unique so I made a self esteem card.
Going through my scrap bin I saw that I had this great peice of matboard in black.  I decided to make a THINK PINK album.  The cover features an "Audrey" like person with her balloons on the street of Paris.  Wearing pink everything including her hair.  Inside is a perfect place to document her (or your) travels to Paris or another fun destination (somthing PINK would be UBBER exciting).


Close up of my hand painted French lady



Album cover BEFORE

Finished Album cover



The bottom three photos are of a tiny little card that you could give to anyone you love.  I made a little cut out so I could put flowers all over the front and it would still close...also it left a flower on the inside of the card too. 





I love you card

I remember you

I was delivering breakfast to some toddlers in the 1-year-old room.  My cell phone rang. It was my husband. I said, "I only have a second, I have to feed these kids".  He said "something bad is happening. The World Trade Center was just bombed."  I got someone on the breakfast and ran to the tv.  No one really knew what was happening. We turned on the radio and still, no one was sure what was going on.

Feelings of what the heck is going on?  Feelings of "I can't believe this", and feelings of terror flowed through everyone. Then it happened....... we saw a PLANE fly into the second tower.  What in the world?  Is that really what happened?  Yes, it was.

Rumors began to fly, we were in the middle of an attack.  An attack on everything we knew.  I was 7 weeks pregnant and scared to death.  I grabbed my 4-year-old child from her classroom and kept her with me while I tried to help keep the children calm all the while feeling that life as I know it was ending.  Workers had to leave to get their own children, parents began flocking to be with their children.  There were tears, prayers...and then a third plane hit the Pentagon.  And a fourth crashes into a field.  A NIGHTMARE descended on our great nation! 

Panic began to take hold in Paducah, KY (not that it wasn't inside all the time), there were rumors they were coming for us (with all the uranium and TVA).  There were rumors about so many things.  Most of it fueled by our general terror and disbelief.

My how life can change in a span of 90 minutes.  NINETY MINUTES!  90 minutes that changed the life of every single American alive at that time, regardless of their age.  You may have known someone, you may have begun to look over your shoulder, you may have been scared to fly, you may have been scared of anything or anyone with different ideas than you...someway YOU were affected.

In the hours and subsequent days that followed we saw miracle upon miracle. Heroes were born over and over again. Our leaders stood together without party distinctions. We heard tales of survivors. We banded with our fellow citizens to assist those in need.  We gathered in churches and homes to pray for the lost, the survivors, the loss of life and prayed for America.  We all sported our RED, WHITE, and BLUE.  There were flags everywhere, praises of "God Bless America" graced our lips, and American united to rebuild our country.

It's so hard to comprehend that less than 20 people that morning changed ALL of our lives.  We all have our stories.  Some are stories that will send chills down your spine, some of us were there, some of us had relatives there.  Some of us lost loved ones.  Some of us had our lives destroyed by the events. The scenarios go on and on.

In the next few days, we will hear many of these stories.  Let us once again bond together for our citizens.

We are America!  We are strong!  We are powerful!  We are unbeatable!  We are the United States of America!!!!!!

God Bless the USA!!!!!

Rolodex

I am on a mission, I need some type of Rolodex....I am being overrun with post it notes.  Now, that would be fine, but space is limited.  When Michelle works, paper work EXPLODES everywhere.  Excuses, attendance, census, and most of all post it notes.  Post it notes contain numbers, tips, things I want to remember and maybe just a friendly one. 

Two days ago, I began a mission to find a "rolodex" to contain these little tiny pieces of paper. I am not buying something, if there's one thing I am its cheap (unless it concerns paper products and shoes).  It was a no brainer to make something, actually that is what I told Natalie Massa I was going to do.

TA...DA.....

Blue Moon

This week I am making cards for me to use next year that are a year on the life but more of a reflection on life and not typical events. I am using 3 events that everyone uses....Christmas, Father's Day and Mother's Day.  For Mother's Day, I really wanted to use this clip art that I found. 
I found this on a free site   http://www.freeretroclipart.com/, you can't use it for commercial use, but you can use it on your own.  You want to be careful with copyright, that is why usually I use my own drawings, but this one is too good to pass up.  There is also a blog on this site that is very worthy of your time.

http://americanwomendidntgetfat.blogspot.com/

Here is my creation:

To get the look:
You need lots of papers and junk in your craft bin. I had a ripped up doily, a page from an old Bible, a tag from my tagger that says "so easy to attach" an old Hugs label and a yucky old tag made new by Tim Holtz inks (spun sugar, broken china, old paper and walnut stain).  The Ali Edwards handwriting font on your computer and blue ribbon.  This was fun

Stacy Renee Isbell "Squirt" Robinson

Is a girl I have known since I was very very very young. Our parents introduced us to each other. She had hair that was so long, black and silky and I was jealous about that! She had a massive collection of teddy bears and a pool table (very fun) and my favorite part of her house was this little spiral staircase (I don't even remember if I even knew where it went---I never climbed it, but I did sit on it). She had some teen idol stuff in her room and a day bed in the corner.

Her mom was precious, but I really don't remember her dad too much (I think he was at work when I visited).

We rode the bus together for 8 years. We were friends but not close friends...then we went to high school. I think we might have ridden the bus together then, but I have blocked out all high school bus riding experiences! We did start hanging out more and more. When she got her license we began making a figure 8 around the little town of Mayfield. We would sing songs, chase boys, and continue making that circle. When I got my license we would take turns cruising in her very cool car (a red Barretta?) and my lovely long stylish wood-paneled station wagon (HEY). We were hip, young and cool. AND LOUD! Wait, maybe that was me!

She graduated from high school and went to Murray and left me. We both fell in love and married, she moved away, I moved away. Sad sad sad, but all these years later, we are still friends. I still think of her. Like today (August 27), the anniversary of her birth. Friend, may your day be full of happiness!

Happy 40th!!!!!!!

I can't fight this craving any longer

Let me tell you a story. A story of a lady that pulled into a McDonald's on Music Valley Drive in Nashville, TN on August 6, 2011.  She was starving to death and had just made some $$$$ working for a scrapbook vendor.  She ordered a double cheeseburger, fries, coke, and a ROLO McFlurry.  She had to devour the McFlurry quickly because she was driving and did not want to spill any on her lap.  It was YUMMY!!! So YUMMY she wished that she had ordered a large ROLO McFlurry.

She told her husband about the McFlurry and told him of her desire to have another one.  A week or so went by and she was still thinking of that McFlurry.  One day she was going to be driving by McDonald's during lunchtime.  She pulled into the drive through...ordered her #6 with a coke and a small ROLO McFlurry.  She was given a total and she pulled to the window.

Upon her arrival, the girl (with lovely nails) leaned out and said: "Honey, the ice cream machine is broken."  REALLY????   Feeling sad and extremely disappointed she ate her burger while longing for that ROLO McFlurry.

A week or so later her hubby went to McDonald's after football practice.  His mission to feed his son and bring the wifey a McFlurry.  He called a few minutes later, the line was out onto the street, there was NO way she was getting that ROLO on that night.

Days went by and the sweet husband decided to give it one more shot.  He pulled through the drive-through line, ordered and was told: "the credit card machine is broken."  He doesn't carry cash.  What is this a conspiracy?  Was the lovely lady ever going to have the ROLO McFlurry?  Would she be forever to just dream of the taste of the caramel and little chocolate candy pieces?  Would she forever be angry with the Lone Oak Road McDonald's for ruining her McFlurry experience?

No, that lovely little hubby would leave the McDonald's parking lot and go to the ATM, where he was reunited with greenbacks and the wife was very happy that the second ROLO McFlurry was just as good as the first one!

Thank you to McDonald's, John Champion and Abe Lincoln (ATM).