where did Jenn go???

I have a confession to make... I am not Superwoman. Oh, how I have tried! But for the past 18 months, my life has been beyond crazy, and it's taking all my strength and sanity to keep everything together.
I feel bad complaining, since I know there are so many other families with more troubles than I have. But I need to let a little bit out... so here goes.
In February 2011, my husband was laid off from his job as a research scientist. Since his job paid the mortgage (among other things), and we have no family even remotely close by, we were pretty stressed. I took a part-time job in retail while he searched high and low for work. (The word "overqualified" has become a swear word in our home.)
To make things extra fun, one week in November, my furnace broke, the radiator in our car died, and my dryer quit. (Hmmmm, almost sounds like a country song...) Thank goodness I have an awesome neighbor who let me use her dryer for several months until we saved enough to repair ours. I'm sure my other neighbors were wondering why I was dragging all of our wet clothes next door! Luckily, in December, Chris did find a job... out of state. So, since then, he has been working in central Illinois, while I stayed in Wisconsin with our boys.
Hats off to all you single Moms out there; I am not cut out to be a single parent! I had to quit my part-time job, which I was really enjoying, since I had no one to watch my 4-year-old in the afternoon. And there were some days I wish I could erase from the books. Getting the kids ready for school and to their buses on time... PTO meetings... teacher conferences... field trips... playdates... Cub Scouts... my stamping business... cooking... cleaning... it's just too much for this one person. Especially while trying not to cry when your boys are crying because they miss their Dad so much.
For the past two months, I have been getting my house ready to sell. I rented a storage place, and started packing up non-essential items. And boy, oh boy, do my children have a different opinion on "non-essential" than I do! My husband has been driving home on Friday evenings, through Chicago-land traffic, to help me work on home improvement projects. He then got up at 3:30 on Monday mornings to drive to work. I'll be honest with you - it's been hell.
Luckily, I had Stampin' Up!'s annual Convention to look forward to. So, after working like crazy the weekend before Convention, I listed my house.

This is a sickening experience for me. We bought our house as a foreclosure 9-1/2 years ago. And we worked very hard to make it a nice home, putting in a lot of hard work and money. I hate to leave it. And I am just awestruck at the negative comments from those who have viewed our home... "confusing layout"... "needs to be move-in ready"... "don't like the decor"... "it's too blue"... and the list goes on... I think HGTV has ruined people's perspective on what they actually think they should be getting in a home. Other than redoing the interior of my home, I'm open to any suggestions you have to offer...
Stamping has always been my "therapy," and having so many of my pretties packed up is driving me insane. I miss stamping with my friends and teaching classes. I'm nervous about starting my business all over. And I just plain hate moving.
As I said, I was lucky enough to be able to attend Convention this year :}  And I promise I will share that experience with you as soon as I can. I already started working on my digital scrapbook- yay!!
So for those of you who have stuck around and managed to make it to the end of this novel, I thank you. I will be sharing more projects sporadically as I get a few minutes here and there throughout the next month or so. Wish me luck, include my family in your prayers, and think happy thoughts!  :}

happy birthday, Mom!

Happy birthday to my sweet mother, who is celebrating her 24th birthday... again  ;) 

stamp sets: Mixed Bunch, Petite Pairs

ink: Midnight Muse, Summer Starfruit, Soft Suede

card stock: Soft Suede, Summer Starfruit, Very Vanilla

Designer Series Paper: Comfort Cafe

punches: 2-1/2" Circle, Blossom 

Happy 4th of July

As soon as I saw this week's Mojo Monday sketch, I knew I had to make a happy little card for my grandmother for the 4th of July. I love sending her something pretty in the mail to brighten her day :} 

stamp sets: Perfectly Penned, Sweets for the Sweet

ink: Midnight Muse, Real Red

card stock: Midnight Muse, Real Red, Whisper White

Designer Series Paper: Summer Smooches

ribbon: Midnight Muse 3/8" Stitched Satin

punch: Scallop Trim Border

Embossing Folder: Stripes

Framelit: Apothecary Accents

Have a safe and happy Independence Day with your family and friends!

hot day... cool card

Today is going to be a scorcher! The forecast is predicting 99 degrees - yikes! In Wisconsin, we don't get that many days over 90 degrees, but this summer has been quite the exception. So when I stumbled across this blog challenge for a "Christmas in July" project, I thought today would be the perfect day to share it  :}

stamp set: Pennant Parade

ink: Gumball Green, Early Espresso

card stock: Gumball Green, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White

Designer Series Paper: Regals Collection - Cherry Cobbler

punches: Petite Pennants Builder, Scallop Edge Border

ribbon: Gumball Green 3/8" Stitched Satin

Maybe if we all stamp a Christmas card today, and think "cool" thoughts, we can get the temperature to drop a few degrees??? Probably not, but it's a good reason to stay inside the air conditioning and stamp all day, right???  ;)  Thanks for stopping by - enjoy your day, and keep cool!

a clean and simple card for a busy day

I am so exhausted from this past week! And this week is going to be just as crazy, so my posts are going to be short and sweet  :} 

For today's project, I turned to this clean and simple sketch- 

I used the 1-1/4" Square punch and Summer Smooches DSP to add a quick and bright background to a pre-cut, pre-scored Note Card. I really like how the bright colors liven up such a simple card  :} 

Thanks for dropping by... have a great day!!

stamping with friends

We all know how fun it is to spend time stamping with our friends. I'm not sure which is more therapeutic - the stamping or the conversation. It's been a while, but the last time my friend Dawn and I got a chance to stamp together, she inspired me to make this card: 

The focal point and the ribbon have tons of detail, so I wanted to keep the rest of the card pretty simple. I love using the Simply Scored to create fun and interesting backgrounds, that don't overpower my project.

The ribbon took care of the vertical "lines," so I used the Diagonal Plate and scored every half-inch for this background. I scored the inside of the card so that the diagonal lines would be raised (rather than dented in) on the card-front.

And here's a look at the card my talented friend Dawn created: 

She scored her card on the front, creating a more subtle texture, which is a perfect compliment to these subtle colors.
I hope you can find time this week to stamp with one of your good friends. It's usually difficult to find the time for fun with friends, but it's always well worth it!

10 Year Anniversary

Today I celebrate ten years of marriage with my wonderful hubby! Here's the card I made for him: 

Stamps: World Treasures stamp set, In Stitches jumbo wheel

Card Stock: Basic Gray, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight

Designer Series Paper: Floral District

Ink: Basic Gray, Daffodil Delight

Accessories: Paper Daisies, Summer Starfruit Dahlia

Punches: Scallop Trim Border, Scallop Trim Corner

I got a little help from this week's Mojo Monday sketch... which I really needed since it has been so hectic at my house. Nothing like a good sketch to get the creativity flowing!

For the "circle" part of the sketch, I used three Paper Daisies, each separated with Dimensionals. The Summer Starfruit Dahlia makes a perfect flower center. Daisies are my favorite flower, and they were a big part of the overall theme of my wedding.

I whipped up this little page in My Digital Studio so you could see what a good-lookin' group we were  :}  Well, time to run and have dinner with my guy! Enjoy your weekend!!

my new friend, Eleanor

I might just have a new best friend. Her name is Eleanor. I have barely had any time to get to know her, but the time we've spent together stamping has been wonderful. Want to meet her???

I'm sure you think she's as pretty as I do! Today I'm sharing the first card I made using my new stamp set called Everything Eleanor  :}  I used three stamps from this set on my card - the "label" shape, a flower, and the bird - all of which I fussy-cut with my Snips.

I started with a 4-1/4" square More Mustard card base. Then I added a 4" square of Fan Fair DSP, which I dry embossed using the new Chevron Embossing Folder and lightly sanded the raised surfaces. The sentiment, from the Loving Thoughts stamp set, is stamped in Island Indigo ink onto Island Indigo card stock. 

Isn't the layered flower pretty??? I used 4 layers of Fan Fair DSP, which I die cut using the Floral Frames Framelits, and then sponged the edges with Riding Hood Red ink. An Antique Brad holds the flower together and makes a lovely flower-center.

I'll bet you would like more details on that flower, wouldn't you... Surprise! I have a video for you today!!  :} 

Easy, right?!! I can't wait to make more  :}  Thanks for dropping by today!

I'm still here...

Isn't it "funny" how every time you get really good plans into place, with all the details worked out, that something throws every plan out the window??? At least that what happens to me... a lot. I guess that's why I'm not much of a "planner."
Everything started out fine... I loaded up the mini-van and drove to Illinois. It was hot, and there was plenty of construction, but that's to be expected, so no biggie. My hubby and I were helping my brother and sister-in-law throw a party to celebrate my parents' 40th anniversary. While I watched the three kiddos, my hubby worked his magic on the mountain of kabobs, and my brother and sister-in-law prepared the most amazing and beautiful spread of food. My brother works in catering for Illinois State University, so he knows how to make all the pretty little extras and arrange everything so it looks sooooo fancy  :}

We even managed to get a "not too bad" family photo! I'm amazed that both of my boys were looking at the camera! I only wish I had asked one of the dozens of guests to take a photo of the whole family. I'll have to remember that for their 50th!  :}
I was planning on driving back home Monday, but my youngest son's asthma flared up, big time. As it was nearing bedtime, hubby and I decided we needed to head to the ER. The extra meds in the ER weren't working very quickly, so he was admitted. We ending up spending two nights in the hospital with him  :( 
Aaron is doing much better now. He's running around and playing with all his favorite toys. If you saw him today, you would never guess he had been in the hospital this week. Thank goodness kids bounce back so quickly!
So now I'm not only behind on all of my housework and home improvement plans, I'm behind on posting projects, too. I have lots of projects to share, so in between laundry, mopping, painting, etc. I'll be getting those photos ready to share with you. Thanks for sticking around!  :}

Special Offers

I am soooo looking forward to Friday evening - my "NEW CATALOG" PARTY!!

A good hostess always has something special for her guests, right??? Well, here it is! I'm offering the following specials for one week only: 

We are going to have so much fun at the party! Food, friends, and stamping... life is good  :}
While there will be extra perks for joining me in my home, I understand that some people have bosses who don't understand why "but there's a stamping party" is a reason to get the night off (what's up with that?). Plus, I know some of you would have to purchase a plane ticket to physically be here. And, we want to save that moohlah for stamps, right?? 
**GOOD NEWS!! If you order any of these bundles from my online store, you will get the special offers too! But don't wait - the last day for this offer is next Tuesday (June 12, 2012).

Notes:
These special offers are only available through me.
Online orders will earn "stamps" on your Rewards Card.
If you order these bundles in person, your freebies will be in your bag when I deliver your order.
If you order these bundles online, I will mail your freebies with your Thank-You card.
Click here to view the Stitched Satin Ribbon.
The embellishment "grab bag" contents will be a surprise... but will make you very happy!
Click here to view the Framelits storage cases - they are shown in the video.

If you have any questions, you can email me (stamp_pad@wi.rr.com) and I will answer right away  :}  Happy shopping!