Wednesday, February 28, 2007

My Cute Little Hubby

Something weird is going on with my hubby. He has been super attentive to me (aka, listens to me and actually makes full eye contact so I know he is listening), he has been helping out lots to help the house run smoother, and he has been doing random things like this:

Want to hear the sweetest thing? My cute husband came home yesterday with a chocolate cake (round cake with chocolate icing and chocolate circles on top- YUM) and a single rose just for me for no reason at all. I had been saying how much I craved chocolate cake on the weekend (I think it was PMS), and so he thought, since he couldn't make me one -- because he totally does not have the time, he would pick me up one and he thought the rose just went with it well. How sweet is that? I'm pretty spoiled!

I would post a picture of the chocolate cake, but we ate half of it last night and it isn't pretty anymore . . . ya know?

So do you think that is just weird? I do. But for now, I am just gonna enjoy it because you never know when it will stop with men eh???

SC113 - Happy 4th/Bless the USA

Phew! I finally took some time to stamp today. Limited time, but time none the less. I am working on crocheting a blanket for my sister in law and I have to have it done by Friday, so I have been working furiously on that. M will be away this weekend at the blessing of her daughter and so he will be taking the gift to her (which is way cheaper than mailing it), so that is why it must be done. I promise to upload a photo or two of the finished blanket. I also made her a paint can (my first ever full size one) and I will post that as well soon. It is cute!

Todays card was inspired by the sun. When I think of sunshine, I think of playing on the 4th of July and I decided it is not that far away, so I would make a card for the 4th. I used the Hearts and Stars set by Autumn Leaves in the Rhonna Farrer collection (it has been awhile since I pulled that out). The colors are brilliant blue, real red and white (I know, very shocking). I got the idea for the sentiment tag from a card I saw in Jody's gallery -- I really liked how it looked, so I totally copied that idea. The little charm was something I picked up at Hobby Lobby for 5o cents I think. I think it worked well. All the little tiny stars are sequins, I had them lying around -- no idea where they came from or why I bought them (hate that). Anyway, I attached them with a little bit of crystal effects. I like how they make it shine! Ribbon was from Walmart. I got it on clearance about a month ago from last July 4th -- hehehe! Fun sketch!!! It was fun for me to doodle on it too. I suck at doodling, so any practice is good. Thanks for stopping by *waves* Off to blockbuster for us and back to crocheting that blanket . . .

Whats For Dinner Wednesday - Sweet & Sour Meatballs in the Crockpot

This recipe comes from the book "101 More Things to Do With a Slow Cooker" by Stephanie Ashcraft and Janet Eyring. It is yummy and super simple. I made my own meatballs (rolled ground turkey into balls and boiled them) and it turned out YUMMY! We don't eat beef, so that is why the exchange.

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

2 pkg's (18 0z each) frozen cooked meatballs (we used homemade ground turkey rolled into balls and boiled
1 can (14 0z) crushed pineapple (with juice)
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp water

DIRECTIONS: Place frozen meatballs in a greased 3.5 to 4 quart slow cooker. In a saucepan, combine pineapple, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Bring mixture to boil stirring frequently. In a small bowl combine cornstarch and water together, then add to simmering sauce to thicken. Pour sauce over meatballs. Cover and cook on low heat, 3-4 hours. Makes 10-15 servings.

Meatballs can be served on a platter with toothpicks as appetizers, or over hot cooked white rice as a main dish.

Monday, February 26, 2007

Laundry and Being Inkspired

There was not a spare second for stamping today. I had to do tons and tons of laundry and I am finally caught up on it for the time being. But now, of course, the kids want to go play in the park and really, who am I to deny that -- it is a gorgeous sunny day and they have been really good all day. So off to the park, but before I go . . .

I feel like I am being inkspired by everything lately . . . I got the new pottery barn kids catalog and it has some awesome ideas in it . . . and the other day I was watching an advil commercial and I fell in love with the colors they used on that . . .

Do you ever go through periods where you feel a creative overload happening? Hopefully I can get to all of these ideas soon . . . and if not . . . now you can be inkspired by them. Hope you are having a lovely Monday!

ETA: Blog winners -- sorry I have slacked so badly! I am working on stuff for you -- but also other stuff that I need to do has jumped up so I will get you some packages out this week . . . if it kills me!!!

Sunday, February 25, 2007

A Work in Progress

Look I did it! I created my own banner design. I am so proud of myself because I am seriously clueless sometimes when it comes to figuring out widgets and html and other such jibberish. So, what do you all think of the new banner? I love the colors! I think they are both girly and funky at the same time *grins*

Oh, and my current undertaking is to try to figure out how to make my profile image centered . . . if you can help with that, send me an email or post code on here and directions on how to make that happen! Thanks in advance . . .

Saturday, February 24, 2007

WT101 - Sponging

Spring has sprung . . . the birds are doing it on my balcony again (no really, I even showed my hubby when I glanced over out my window and they were going at it again -- he thinks it is funny) . . . it is raining a lot here in Phoenix, and I am totally into light pastel colors again!

Sponging is something I TOTALLY never use. Well, that is not entirely true -- I occasionally do the "dirty" sponging using chocolate chip or close to cocoa ink . . . but usually that is because I messed something up and I am trying to fix it *wink*

This challenge was cool to me. I had these little clothes pins sitting on my desk since my last trip to Scrapbooks Etc. and I knew I wanted to use them for something fun, but I was having difficulty being inkspired. Anyway, I started to cover them with paper, and this is what I came up with. At first I did the almost amythest plain, but I decided it needed some springtime oomph, so I added the little flowers in white craft in (flowers from Small Sayings set -SU!), then the gems just sort of happened (I love things with bling), and then Jody had given me a stack of coasters, so I started to alter one of those because I had seen it done this way by others, and I had it sitting straight - very square, but something did not look right, so I was surfing, waiting for the ink to dry and I went to Jody's blog, and was totally inkspired to turn the square slightly to make it more diamond looking, and then to add the stitching on the edge of the paper. Then it still was not quite balanced looking, so I added the ribbons on the chipboard coaster, and VOILA! Special thanks to Jody for inkspiring me. This project would not have been the same without that! Off to do some more stamping. Have a great day!

Friday, February 23, 2007

FS02 - sTickled Pink

I have to say I have just been 'tickled pink' with this new weekly challenge. Each week a stamper is featured and we are supposed to copy a layout or color combination they used, of course and give credit to them . . . thanks for the inkspiration Sharon! The challenge is called Featured Stamper.

Would you believe I had to look up the meaning of the phrase "tickled pink" before I used it here on my blog. Seriously, where has my brain gone? If you find it, send it home.

I love the amount of layers this card has. It was really simple stamping, but the lots of layers made it have great depth. I just loved this layout when I saw it first by Sharon (notimetostamp) on SCS.

It is hard to see, but pigs are stamped on the pink background, tone on tone. Also, on the white strip across -- "tickled pink" is stamped in pretty in pink. Stickles were added (diamond ones - sorry about the orangish color) to give him a little more glam! All in all, I am pleased with the results of this challenge.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Screaming of Summer - LSC103/SC112

I hope you have your sunglasses on. If not, fair warning to go get them on. I made this card for the limited supply challenge on splitcoast. I wanted it to be really summer. I just love this ribbon I used on it. It matches perfectly in real life.

I had so much fun making this! I love these colors together. I started off with the pink and green galore and needed another color and the cameo coral just came to me! True INKSPIRATION! I still have not mounted the whole set yet, but the sentiment is from Fancy Flexible Phrases (SU!). The flower and leaves are from All Through the Year (SU!) and that ribbon is the ribbon I posted yesterday that I got from Michaels. It is the stuff from the wooden spools. I love my scallop punches, I think I need to get the circle ones too! They are just FUN! Hope you are having a great Thursday!

ETA: If you look really closely in the brad in the center, you can see me taking the picture . . . LOL!!!

"Drowning on Dry Land"

IT'S THURSDAY!!!!!!


If you frequent my blog, you know I love Grey's Anatomy and that there would almost certainly be a comment on last Thursdays show, but I am going to dedicate this whole post to the show because it needs to be.

(If you haven't seen the episode, this is your official STOP READING SPOILER WARNING)

WOW! (Or as Mer says at the end Holy . . . )

Mer just cannot be dead. She can't! I am so frustrated about this.

At the end of the episode I sat there laughing. Laughing you say? Yep! My hubby thought I was nuts but I was laughing because Shonda knows the fans loved Denny and Dylanso much, she found a way to write them back into the show . . . she's a genius! But at what cost? Mer cannot be dead!

In the first two minutes of the show, the scene in the water -- the music is timed perfectly to the video -- Mer says "Theres more I have to say, so much more . . . but, I disappeared" and the music says "I feel better . . . I feel better." Made me so sad and almost made me cry.

The little girl . . . I was so glad when she was reunited with her mom at the hospital. It gave me hope some how. It made me think maybe, just maybe Mer will be okay . . . maybe. Her acting in this show was wonderful. She helped make it all so dramatic. AWESOME!

I love the way this show was shot. I love all the shots of Mer in the water before the commercial breaks and I love that the fade is to white "Greys Anatomy" title screens. So dramatic and cool.

Bizarre when "happy dr girl" offers Alex a hug. It was weird. Almost like she was hitting on him. She is so weird. I don't know what to think about that. I love how Addison is so hard on Alex. I also like how she talks about the interns to Dr. Burke . . . its cool. My fave part of this whole episode, besides the Denny/Dylan cameo -- is that Addison is fighting for Mer too! It gives me warm fuzzies for some reason.

I like George and Alex in the morgue. I love how George has to turn the dead person because they put them in the bag wrong. Love Bailey and how she is brutally honest to George. George and Callie -- what a complicated relationship they have. I really like them together though.

Was anyone else grossed out by Izzie drilling the holes in the dudes head? I had to look away and my kids were still awake so M had to run them out of the room. EW! I love how she dealt with the friend though. I think someone may have found her specialty *smiles* Ya think, Izzie the neurosurgeon? Oooh, and love how Izzie brags it up to Cristina about herself drilling the holes. Totally fun! She is a rockstar! Izzie really proved her strength during this episode.

Poor Cristina . . . that is her person in there *pouts*

So I am worried about who is going to die. Someone surely is. They can't make everything end all happy and pretty! I don't know if I can wait the few remaining hours to watch this show . . .

Oh, and for all you writers blog nerds, I never post comments on the Grey's Writers blog (link in sidebar), but I did in response to this episode:
You just can't kill Mer. You just can't. I have talked this over with my Grey's stalking friends and we all agree it would make us want to boycott the show. You just can't kill her *insert begging and whining here*

I just love how this episode was shot. I love all the mystery -- the long pauses, before commercial breaks, everything. Very well done.

You JUST CANNOT KILL MER!!!! *crying now* Pretty please with Denny, Dylan, McDreamy, and McSteamy on top -- Please don't kill her!

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

What's For Dinner Wednesday - Nacho Taco Casserole (Dorito Casserole)

It's 10 pm on Wednesday night, and everyone has probably already finished dinner -- OOPS, better late than never though . . . I got this one from a friend while I was living in VA (Thanks Stephanie)! Kinda junk food because of the chips, but we like it in our family and make it fairly often.

Nacho Taco Casserole

1 bag nacho cheese flavored taco chips
1 can diced green chilies
1 c. sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
4 chicken breasts, diced and cooked
Grated cheddar cheese.

DIRECTIONS: Mix together chilies, sour cream, cream of chicken and cream of mushroom in a bowl. In a 9X12 baking dish, layer chips, then chicken, then pour sauce over to cover chips and chicken. Next repeat layer, chips, chicken, and sauce to cover. Top with cheddar cheese. Bake in oven at 400F for about 30 minutes or until browned on top and bubbly. ENJOY!

YAY, I got SOME!

Not that way you sicko you! I meant, I got some ribbon from Michael's. I saw on Taylor's blog the other day that Michael's had some cool ribbon and so I made myself go there today and look. I looked around the whole store and could not find them anywhere! Defeated, I was about to check out, but I decided to ask the sales clerk if she knew of them . . . and she said they had them. She showed me where to find them in the store and left me to choose some! They were right by the ferns and other floral stuff in my Michaels store, on an end-cap, so if you don't find them in your store at first, be SURE to ask . . . *grins* I only ended up getting 11 of them, because I was trying to be frugal and at $1.99 each . . . it adds up fast -- but now I am wondering if I *needed* the other ones I put back? I will have to see how we are on our "budget" this month, and maybe make a repeat trip to Michaels if I can afford it! Isn't it PRETTY?


Oh, and I got the little tin that they are in for only $1.99 -- I thought it would be perfect to alter using alcohol inks and put some candy in to give to a friend, so I plan to do that sometime soon.

My Simple Swap for Jody

So due to the fact that Jody and I (her more than me) have been busy lately, we have decided to go down to one item a month. I was seriously having stampers block, but I did manage to make this simple frame for Jody using some fun paper I got at my LSS and my Simon chipboard alphas that I got from my DDSS last round.

The frame was one that my friend gave to me to "do something with." The ribbon is celery and chocolate grosgrain and some pink stitched with chocolate ribbon by American Crafts. On the letter "J" I stamped a flower from SU "Polka Dots and Petals" from the new spring mini catalog (you can't see it in the picture but you can in real life) and then in the center of each flower I put a white dot using my gelly roll pen. Really simple, but I still think Jody will like it! *smiles*

Jody sent me the most gorgeous item which you can view HERE.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

CC102 - I'm Becoming a Challenge Stalker

This card was for CC102 - a color challenge on the splitcoaststampers website. I have become a little bit of a challenge stalker as they are totally inspiring and they push you to work outside your comfort zone.

Todays colors were real red, basic black, and gold, in honor of the Chinese new year. I decided right away that I did not want my card to be really "Asian" in its theme, but just use those colors. The stamps are from Mixed Bouquet by SU. I decided to try and use anything other than the rose in that set, since I ALWAYS seem to use that one. The leaves were stamped in Staz on black (yep, I cheated and did not use basic black because I like how solid staz on is.) After I stamped them, I stamped the "inner leaf part" with versamark and used gold embossing powder over the top. I then stuck the mailing label panels on the basic black cardstock and where it went over the edge, I folded in to the inside. Next, I punched holes and inserted the brads in the centers of the flowers. Then I punched the hole for the sentiment and tied ribbon, and my final touch was the stamp the sentiment on the inside of the card in basic black using my Karen Foster Snap Stamps. Really, it is a simple card, but kind of pretty. Thanks for visiting, hope you will come back again soon!

Monday, February 19, 2007

WT100 - The Second

This looks so much cooler in person.
I guess the best way to describe it is layer by layer. Layer 1 is basic black -- the main card. Inside it is lined with whisper white and says "Whatever happens, God is there to keep you safe within his care." The second layer is whisper white. It is also folded just like the first card, but has the front cut out. I stamped a mosaic from StarvingArtistamps and then stamped the rose from SU Mixed Bouquet on top. I then colored random "tiles" in the mosaic using my watercolor wonder crayons (you could use markers here, or whatever - it would still work fine). I left some of the pieces blank because I liked the look of it and I am lazy and that is a heck of a lot of coloring as it is! *smiles* Layer 3 is really a half layer. It is on the top part, over the window. I stamped a mosaic on an acetate sheet and after layering it to match up, I adhered it to the top part on the inside *clear as mud* Inside the window. Then I put the black grosgrain around the white and black cards that had been adhered together. SO, now it only opens on one part (the way a normal card should), but it still has a cool stained glass window effect because the acetate is not stuck down so to speak, get what I mean here at all? In hindsight, I decided it would look cool to add black brads on the corners, so I added those in too. I think this is a neat sympathy card and I am so glad I tried this technique!

Saturday, February 17, 2007

A Day at the Museum

Today we went to a fun museum in Phoenix. We went to Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum for Prospector Day. It was just me and the kids. We got lost on the way, but after we figured our way around one way streets and road construction we made it there.

The kids had a lot of fun playing on the old train outside in the museum yard. They got to make wire bracelets with some free gemstones (little ones that were drilled) and make a pet rock too.

In the pictures, the children cleaned some rocks. They got to touch a big rock that had all sorts of interesting mineral deposits on it. It was 81 degrees F today!




Friday, February 16, 2007

Your Questions -- ANSWERED

Stamperosity said...

Beautiful Amanda. Tell me, are your butterflies stamped on top of your background, or are they embossed prior to doing your alcohol ink background? TIA
Lynn

Amanda said...

They are stamped and embossed on the already alcohol inked background. I like doing it this way because if you have a background turn out not the way you want with the inks, you can just save it for another project, and try again.

Anonymous said...

Amanda love both cards. Can you tell us what colors you used for the alcohol background on the first card? Makes me want to try faux stitching. Is there a trick to keeping it straight and uniform? Think I would be all over the place.

Amanda said...

I have been using Tim Holtz inks and you can buy them here. The two colors I used on these particular cards are "currant"from the collection called "Cottage Path" and "denim" from the collection called "Rustic Lodge."

I usually do my faux stitching with a ruler -- I take my white pen and draw a straight line using the ruler. Then I use a paper piercing guide, or just sometimes use my eye, and pierce along the line. Then I usually go over the stitches with my white gel pen. I find it helps to make them pop more.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

WT100 - Faux Dichroic Butterfly

So I decided to stalk the challenge this morning. Had a blast talking on the stalker thread -- lots of SCS royalty there this morning. The challenge for today was marvelous and so wide open. So many options . . . I might have to do another one later using some other techniques/ideas.

The original idea for this came from Michaels.com but, since I did not have all the supplies I needed, I had to ad lib (quite a bit). I think the final result is neat.

I used regular kitchen tin foil, but to get the colored look, I used my heat and stick powder and brushed pearl ex over it (extremely messy, but cool). Then I stamped the image (butterfly) from Autumn Leaves by Rhonna Farrer - in the center in staz on and gave it a couple of layers of clear embossing powder for shine. It looks so shimmery and pretty in real life. Who would have thought tin foil could make such a neat embellishment?

The layout is FS01, which is a cool new thing on splitcoast on Sunday's -- every Sunday a different stamper will be featured and everyone is supposed to copy one of their layouts from their gallery -- I used this layout by Kurtis. This is the first time I have used scallop punches on a card here -- so that is fun! Oh, and the sentiment, "Smile' is handwritten by me using my versamarker and then I used whisper white embossing powder over it. I really need to get some detail white EP -- it would help! So if you have some laying around you aren't using, send it my way -- lol. All in all, fun and cool card I think.

Now off to work on a card for my dear hubby. It is his birthday today and I need to do something nice for him, besides dinner and yummy cupcakes *grins*

Playing With Alcohol Inks

I decided to work with alcohol inks some more because I really love them. This card was made using the currant color in the Tim Holtz collection. It matched super well with my ribbon. I was excited. The flowers were colored with my watercolor wonder crayons and then spritzed with water and stamped. They are actually more mustard and they look much more mustard in real life. As per usual, I just had to faux stitch on the card somewhere, but I really liked how these little tiny stitches turned out. Really sweet. Oh, and the stamp set is Happy Harmony (Stampin' Up!), a sellabration set. I need to get into spring mode soon though, this card still looks really wintry to me. Oh, and the corners -- they are a fabulous punch that I picked up on my birthday for only $10 (I had a discount). It is Nostalgiques, the attic collection by Rebecca Sower designs, made by EK Success. I love it because not only can I punch the solid color corners like this, but I can punch out of any of my fun scrap papers and create cool and matching corners *smiles* I know, it is the simple things with me -- lol!




This second card is my effort to be more spring like. The stamps are the Autumn Leaves Second Nature set by Rhonna Farrer, and a sentiment I picked up at JoAnn's -- jgdeni Studio G, Thinking of You. The background is done using Tim Holtz alcohol inks in denim. I am trying to not mix my alcohol inks because I wanted to see what look I can achieve without. I really like the purified alcohol ink look. I added the diamond stickles to the butterflies to add a little umph! Also, you can hardly see it, but the popped up butterfly at the bottom has wire antennae. Oh, and each of the butterflies are embossed on the alcohol ink paper. I really like this one. I had lots of fun making it, but honestly, with the night of navy, it is still pretty dark. I will work on a springier card soon. NOTE: This card published in the July/August Rubber Stamper Magazine.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

SC111 - Easter Wishes

Why can't I sleep? I hate colds. They seriously suck! Both my kids have a cold right now as do I. The kids are coughing and so I worry, so I can't sleep right now. I am just sitting here, nose drippy, and listening to them cough while I stamp. I gave them medicine already, but it does not seem to be helping. *sad*

SO, to pass the time, I decided to be a sketch challenge stalker and get my card in real nice and early today! This card uses a set called "Bunny Hugs" by Stampin' Up! It is in the Spring Mini catalog. I absolutely fell in love with this little guy and just had to get this set. I watercolor glazed the eggs and ears and noses. By this, I mean, I colored with my watercolor wonder crayons and then I used my gelly roll glaze pen to blend the color. The aforementioned parts are shiny like they are embossed, in real life. I paper pierced the sides and then decided it would look cool with brads, so I threw in a brad every other hole and I love how that works. On the right side, it is pierced just the same as the left, even though you cannot really see it right. The little pom pom tails were an afterthought, but I think they work! This is the first time I have done the sketch challenge in a long time and I had lots of fun!!!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

February is such a crazy month of birthdays for us here that sometimes Valentines Day gets a little neglected. I decided since I was awake that I would make M a valentine card. I started off using a piece of 8 1/2 x11 printed paper (The Paper Studio) that I got at Hobby Lobby (be proud, it is Wednesday and I have not been there this week *wink*). I chose the paper because the caramel and red said male to me. I wanted a male card. I liked the faux stitching on it, but I decided to make it more real looking by piercing it for real. It helped a lot. I stamped the "be mine" circles from SU's Tag Time set. The ink color did not come out quite the color I wanted, so I punched some hearts (with a punch I got in the Target $1 spot), and covered up the darker ink color to make it match better. Then it was just a matter of layering it on the cardstock and adding ribbons. The caramel ribbon as well as the wine color are both from one of texasjodylynn's swaps and the caramel gingham is of course by Stampin' Up! Now I just have to think of something really cute to write inside and then figure out what to make him for breakfast! Hope you and your valentine have a special day!!! *smooches*

Oh, and don't miss my other post of today with What's for Dinner -- it is SO YUMMY looking, I know you won't be able to resist it!!!!

What's For Dinner Wednesday - Hawaiian Chicken

This recipe came from one of my good friends on SCS, Dorinda. You can see her blog here: Inky Paper Menagerie. I thought this sounded yummy to try. M loves pineapple so I thought it would be yummy for Valentines day!

What's For Dinner - Hawaiian Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2/3 c hot water
2 T butter buds
2 c stove top stuffing...chicken flavor
1- 8oz can crushed pineapple undrained
2 T brown sugar
2 T vinegar
1/4 tsp ground ginger
chopped green pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400F, lay chicken on flat surface pound flat with a rolling pin or meat mallet to 1/4 inch thick. Mix Hot water and butter buds in a bowl, stir in stuffing mix, green pepper & 1/2 the pineapple w/juice. Spoon stuffing mixture evenly over chicken. Roll-up tightly, starting with the long end. secure with toothpicks....place seem side down in square oiled or sprayed bake dish. Put left over stuffing in middle. Mix remaining pineapple with brown sugar and vinegar and ginger and spoon over chicken. Bake uncovered without turning for 30-40 minutes or until tender.

And for dessert: (straight from the Martha Stewart Show yesterday)

White Chocolate Sherbet

Makes about 1 quart

1 1/2 c. whole milk
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, or 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1 tbsp sugar
8 oz white chocolate, chopped

DIRECTIONS:
Prepare a large ice water bath, set aside. In a medium saucepan, bring milk, 2/3 cup water, vanilla bean, and sugar almost to a boil. Remove from heat and whisk in white chocolate until melted. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl set over the ice-water bath. Stir occasionally until mixture has chilled, about 10 minutes. Pour mixture into the bowl of an ice cream maker and freeze sherbet according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a covered container and freeze at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Let sherbet soften slightly at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving if it seems too hard. Serve topped with strawberry mash, if desired.


Recipe from "Chocolate and Vanilla," by Gale Gand

Strawberry Mash Topping
Makes enough for one quart of sherbet

1 pint strawberries, hulled
2 T of sugar

DIRECTIONS:
Place strawberries and sugar in a large bowl; mash together using a potato masher or fork. Let sit and combine. Serve over sherbet.


H A P P Y
V
A L E N T I N E S
D
A Y !


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Terri Digness

Terri Digness - (Buglady)



Last but certainly not least, is this amazing card by Terri. WOW! This card is just outstanding. The chipboard is awesome, and the ribbons punched though is AWESOME. The stitching and the brads are so pretty. I love the background papers and you can never go wrong with pink and brown, but the silver was just gorgeous with this. Oh, and the little heart at the bottom is covered in microbeads. I just love this.

Stamps: Loving Hearts, Wild Hearts background stamp, Fancy Flexible phrases. Paper: Loves Me Double Sided Designer paper, Pretty in pink, regal rose, shimmery white, silver metallic. Ink: Close to cocoa, pretty in pink, white craft, taken with teal. Accessories: chipboard hearts, cropodile, rose grosgrain ribbon, microbeads, silver brads, silver EP, silver cord, stampin' dimensionals.

Monday, February 12, 2007

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Sarah Moore

Sarah Moore (staramaze)



I just loved this little pocket note card by Sarah Moore. She hosted this wonderful swap for us. It was so well done. Inside this little book is a couple of shimmery white paper pages which are also stamped. Oh, and as if that was not enough, Sarah sent each of us participants a book mark, which is just too cute! Thank you Sarah -- cannot wait to participate again when you host another blogger swap.

POCKET CARD -- Stamps: Hampton Arts Ink: Black Stazon, Pretty in Pink, Versamark, SU! markers Paper: Loves Me DP, Pretty in Pink, Shimmery White, Pretty in Pink Pocket notes Accessories: Metal Edged Tags, Silver cord, Creative Candy Pink "bling" by Amuse, Die cut heart, letters & embossed swirls by Cuttlebug, Silver EP



BOOKMARK -- Cuttlebug Die Cut Bookmark and heart, chipboard is packing cardboard from SU! Paper: Love Me Designer Series papers, taken with teal Ink: Chocolate Chip Accessories: Flirty ribbon originals, silver cord, silver gel pen, pink grosgrain.

My middle name is . . . (*WINNERS INSIDE*)

LEE -- yep, I am an Amanda Lee (my mom wanted to make my middle name Lynn originally but my Grandma convinced her she could not name me after an instrument - a mandolin).

Thank you to all of you who participated in this 50K visitors celebration. Happy Monday! We are now at 51K! WOOHOO! The people who guessed right were: StampHappyInkyMomma, Peggy Maier, Lisa, Jen Marie, mishkismom, Dorinda, Sharon, gowens, and Amy H.

And the winner is *insert drumroll here* (P.S. I made M wake up to pick a piece of paper so this drawing would be official - LOL) . . . JenMarie. JenMarie, please email me your snail mail address so I can send you your prize.

A special honorable mention goes to Melissa (first poster) who guessed Iphigenia! You made me laugh out loud, so you will be getting something in the mail too! Please email me your snail mail address! You crack me up girlie!!! Gotta love Greys (P.S. Is it Thursday yet, I am dying here -- Mer better live).

For the second part, a drawing from my subscribers . . . we are up to 329 of you now! WOOHOO! I asked M to choose a number between 1 and 329 and he said (very tired and sleepy I might add) . . . Subscriber #217! SO, I counted down on the list and the winner is *insert drumroll again* . . . jmazur01 at bellsouth.net -- please email me your snail mail address to claim your prize! YAY! Thank you all again for participating and helping my blog to grow. Please tell your friends, and I will post the prizes I am sending off to them before I send them, but they are not quite done yet . . .

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Playing with UHU Glue

Awhile ago I signed up to receive some free samples of UHU glue products. I got two products in the mail. One was a colored glue stick (which I have used before - pretty normal except you can see where the glue is on your page), and the second was something I had not seen before, UHU Creativ Scrapbookers Pen. I admit, I was completely skeptical because usually liquid glues do all sorts of horrid stuff, like bubble your paper, or make them rip easily, still I gave this one a chance because as part of receiving the samples, I was supposed to include a review here on my blog. Also, I wanted to include a link to Maria Filosa's Project Blog -- I think you might like it!



This is a name frame I made. If you click on it, you can see it in better detail. I am really pleased with how it turned out. I used the UHU Creativ Scrapbookers Pen on the letters to adhere the paper to them. The letters are made of cardboard (thin cardboard). They are raised on popdots. I sponged the outside of each letter with pixie pink ink. The pink letters have white faux stitching on the edges. Everything else is pretty self explanatory! Oh, and the space at the bottom where it looks like it needs something, I am going to put her name definition in (as soon as I can get my stupid Microsoft word to stop crashing and work again -- GRRR!).

Can I just tell you I am amazed with this product. It is just the right consistency so that it is not too watery and holds well. I used it to adhere paper to cardboard (thin stuff) and had no problems with bubbling or any other weirdness. I used it on another project to adhere paper to wood, and chipboard and no problems there either.

My only concerns are that I don't prefer the dispenser tip -- I wish there was a better way to make the glue smooth on, rather than trying to paint it around so much with the tip -- not sure how though. Also, I find that there are stings when you let it sit for a couple of minutes (strings of glue that dried), and that is a little annoying to pick off the dispenser. All in all, AWESOME product though, I would buy it again if I saw it somewhere and needed some glue. It is comparable to mono-multi to me *smiles*

Review of Best Friends - Martha Moody

This was an interesting read. The story was not at all what I expected, as in, it had more depth than I was thinking it would. The characters are interesting and it really does show well how women can remain friends through it all -- sometimes we get mad at each other, sometimes we disagree with each other, but in the end, we still really care about each other and will be there for each other. I enjoyed it. The topics discussed in it are murder, drugs, sex/AIDS/HIV, pornography. Basically not for a younger reader.

Friday, February 09, 2007

Happy Birthday to Me!

I took the day off yesterday! I just did not feel like stamping much *I know shock* and I decided to go get some other stuff done that needed to be done -- like getting new glass for my DS's picture. I also got some paper for DD's name frame.

But, on to more important things! TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY! I plan to head to Mesa today, to one of my fave scrap stores to do a little birthday present shopping (they sent me a 20% off your entire purchase coupon), and eat at Cafe Rio (one of my mostest favorite restaurants). DH said he would make or buy me a cake tonight (pfffffft -- like I even want a cake -- I am trying to lose weight).

So today, you get no pictures of stamping from me, but I am going to post a couple of the birthday cards I have gotten in the mail the past couple days! Hope you like them!

Deb Moody - (JacobsMeeMaw)





Wednesday, February 07, 2007

What's For Dinner Wednesday - White Chili

Look, I remembered to post this first thing in the morning! AMAZING! I had this one first at a gathering for woman in my church called Super Saturday. It was just DIVINE! Thought I would share it with you all, since we are still in February and most of you don't get to live in sunny AZ (it was 84 degrees here yesterday) and are probably freezing your butts off. ENJOY!

What's for Dinner Wednesday - White Chili

1 lb boneless chicken (cubed)
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp veggie oil
3 cans Great Northern Beans (rinsed and drained)
1 can chicken broth
2 4 oz cans diced green chiles
tsp salt
tsp cumin
tsp oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

DIRECTIONS: Saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil. Add beans, broth, chiles and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 30 minutes. Remove from heat and add sour cream and whipping cream.

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Michelle Laycock


I have always loved Michelle's stuff, so this card was no exception at all to that. I love it. I love all the different things -- love the tag, love the background stamped with multiple patterns and colors, love the eyelets, love the hemp and beads, I LOVE THE LOVE CARD! Thanks so much Michelle for rocking, as usual!

Here is her recipe info:

Stamps: Much Love, Print Pattern, Classic Alpha, Simply Said Paper: WW, Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Pixie Pink Ink: Close to Cocoa, Pixie Pink, Orchid Opulence, Chocolate Chip, White Craft Accessories: Gold eyelets, small and regular tag punches, natural hemp, 1/8 circle punch, antique glass beads, dimensionals

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

ALMOST TO 50K

EDITED TO ADD: I go by my first name, not my middle. My first name is Amanda. *smiles* Also, I am going to keep this post bumped up to the top so people can find it, but I will be posting more, so please take a moment to scroll down to find the latest stuff -- this will stay up until 50K is reached.
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I am so amazed that so many people have been interested in little old stamping me. Okay, well, not me actually, probably mostly my work, but either way, I'm SUPER FLATTERED! I appreciate all the comments you leave me. They really do validate me and make me feel like I should keep on going with this blog. You all ROCK!

So, I have decided to do a small giveaway to show my appreciation to you. I will have two separate contests. Both of these contests will win you blog candy (yummy embellishments, and other such fun stuff).

The first one is to guess my middle name. You can post your guess as a comment to this post and then I will do a drawing of everyone who has guessed right. It will be fun to read your guesses I am sure. You may guess as many times as you like.

The second contest is just a drawing from my current subscribers. On the day I reach 50K posts, I will do a drawing from those already subscribed, so if you are not, this is your fair warning to do so. Thank you for your continued support and don't forget to check back and see what's new and who the winners are. *hugs*

Oh, and don't forget to check out the links on the side. I have updated them and added some fun new sites that I like, as well as some totally kick butt blogs that you will love!

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Lynn Mercurio


Paper: Pretty in pink, close to cocoa, glossy white cardstock, tempting turquoise, designer series patterned paper: Loves Me. Ink: Craft Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Real Red reinker, Pink Passion reinker, Petite Rose Reinker. Stamps: Noteworthy, Double Line Doodle, Floral. Accessories: rubbing alcohol, Winter White embossing powder, blue stickles, turquoise grosgrain, flirty velvet turquoise ribbon, dimensionals.

Lynn's card ROCKS! I just love the floral background! It is so subtle but so packs a punch. The stickles around the circle are fun too! (Now that I am not a stickles virgin, I love them lots). I love how everything on this card matches so well. The polished stone look in the background is pretty snazzy too!!!

Monday, February 05, 2007

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Keri Lee Sereika


Paper: Very Vanilla, Pixie Pink, Certainly Celery. Stamps: Inky Antics Accessories: Cuttlebug Hearts Folder, SU Ticket Corner punch, SU Small corner rounder, Prismacolor pencils, baby oil and blending stumps, SU cream ribbon.

How can you not love this little pup? (probably when he pees on your carpet, but he is good right now with that cute Valentine in his mouth for you). I really love this. It makes me feel like I need a Cuttlebug. I am trying so hard to resist because it is mucho dinero for poor little stamping stay at home me, but this card makes it awful hard on me.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Have You Heard the News?

Jody (texasjodylynn) is doing another ribbon share. She is so silly and I am sure her hands are raw from cutting ribbon, but she is doing one again. The ribbon is quality and cost is awesome for what you are getting. I don't know if you readers out in blog land have ordered from her before, but she is a friend of mine (aka, I have been to her house) and it is a totally awesome share to do if you have not done it before. You can find out the details on her blog:

http://confessionsofaribbonaddict.blogspot.com/2007/02/february-ribbon-share.html

There, that is all my enabling for the weekend. I seriously try to avoid enabling, but this is one sweet deal that you should not miss!

Saturday, February 03, 2007

7 Giggling Three and Four Year Old Girls


Okay, only six are pictured but that is cause one of them was late . . . So E turned 4 on Friday and we had a party for her today. She chose the theme of Disney Princesses so we went with that. I had never had a party for her, I am new at it. Everyone except one person we invited ended up coming. It was a lot of fun. I gave the parents the option to stay or leave (and would it surprise you to know that all but one left -- and that one lived far so it was easier to stay). The girls made necklaces, watched the Disney Princess movie, made crowns, colored princess pictures, and ate cake. I think they had fun! I certainly enjoyed it. It was a blast!



Picture Details: Girls stringing beads, girls watching princess movie, E doing her happy party dance (take a good look at that face on her -- LMBO). The picture below is of E blowing out her candles on her cake. She was pretty excited.



Friday, February 02, 2007

Bloggers Only Valentine Swap - Erika Martin


Paper: Sahara sand, cameo coral, glossy white Ink: Sahara Sand, cameo coral, rose red, versamark. Accessories: black gingham ribbon, clear embossing powder, stamping sponges, chipboard, glue dots, dimensionals. Technique: Double Resist.

This is one of those cards that when I saw it I was like "Why don't I ever remember to do cool techniques on a swap?" I love the embossing/ghosting on this card. The colors are fabulous also, I am so always stuck in the rut with theme colors, know what I mean? Awesome job Erika!

Grey's Anatomy and other such mumblings . . .

Oh my gosh! The show was so amazing tonight. I thought it was so cool that they all pulled together to work on that patient. And how cool is it that Bailey got her clinic? Does anyone else think that Bailey is going to be named new Chief?(*raise your hand*) I keep getting that vibe. Oh, and George and Callie with her insane middle name (way to go on that one writers) made me laugh out loud. I am so glad that they are married. Oh, and I am glad that Kristina said yes! YAY! Addison Montgomery -- SHAME SHAME SHAME! I could not even believe it! Such a BAD girl! Not a lot of McDreamy moments in this episode, but I suppose it is good that they develop the other characters -- right? I also wanted to comment on Meredith and her acting on this episode. I am so used to seeing her as weak, la di da Mer, that it was so cool to see her act. She did awesome. I love that they made her character more tonight! I absolutely LOVE this show! They previews for the next three episodes look AMAZING and I am not sure I can wait till next week *stomps foot impatiently*

Oh, and thanks for the comments the other day. Someone asked for a potty training update, so here it is. E is doing really well. She has no daytime accidents. She goes potty before naptime and is usually fine until she wakes up. She is still wearing diapers at night but that is because I need to remember to buy a plastic sheet for her bed. I will get that soon though and then I think she will be good to go. The bad news is that J is 2.5 and wants to learn to go "big boy" and so it looks like as soon as I get E trained and the puppy monster trained, he will want to be next. *Phews* That is a lot of training . . . let me just tell you!

Today is my little girls 4th birthday! Time just flies by! I cannot believe she has grown up so fast into a 4 year old! YIKES! I am so excited though, this is the first year we have had a "friend" birthday party. We will be having a party on Saturday. The theme is Disney Princesses and there will be 5 little 3-4 year olds there! How fun!!! E is so excited!

Last item on my mind tonight. I decided I wanted a label maker so I can get more organized, so, I bought one, I got the DYMO personal labelmaker because it was the cheaper one and I thought, "they're all the same right?" WRONG! It is going back tomorrow. Reason 1 is because it kept getting jammed inside the machine when it went to print and then looked bad. Reason 2 is because the ink printed unevenly and there are some tags that look awful, and Reason 3 is because the tags are IMPOSSIBLE to peel the backing off of. RIDICULOUS! Basically, I tried on one strip to peel it for like 5 minutes and then decided that was enough. This little hunk of junk will be headed back to Tarjay tomorrow. I think I am going to try the P-Touch. Oh and Target better take it back. I used all the tape up, but I am bringing it in with all the tape I printed and the messed up ones too, and all the original packaging and the receipt. They will take that back right? Hope so!

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Overwhelmed by Generosity - INKY MOMMY ROCKS!

WOW! I ran out in the rain today to see if my box from the PRIMA share had come yet. It had not, I just found Papercrafts, and a card from my LSS for 20% my whole purchase anytime during my birthday month, and I found a different box instead. It was from my DDSS, whom I might add, already has sent me a ton of awesome stuff, and I thought that the round was over in Dec, but apparently my DDSS decided to spoil me stupid! I am dumbfounded. I don't even know what to say besides, THANK YOU! She said in her last package that she would reveal who she was soon, so I thought, fine, that is cool, she is gonna send another card and reveal! Sweet! The package I got today left me in tears. It included:


A gorgeous card (so pretty), 4 packages of metal edge tags (which I have wanted forever but never have bought for myself), a target mailbox (all finished and decorated with a simply scrappin' kit) and and extra blank one to play with, an address book, a box of Lindor truffles (which are totally one of my favorite indulgences and I have already eaten two -- I could not even wait), a magnet board, a pair of cute Valentine socks, and the grand finale -- two packs of chipboard (simon lower alphas and Tableau accents).

Thank you so much INKY MOMMY! I am so excited to play with all this fabulous stuff! You're amazing!