Newest Card Creation...

This little creation came from a little playdate I had with my buddy Kathy last night...

Isn't it adorable?? Kathy's patiently awaiting to see it finished 'cuz we had to cut our fun short - she was getting sleepy and her mornings start very early!! So without further ah-dooooooooo...

Where do the days go??

O.K. - I've been told that I seem to be missing in action... The truth of the matter is this - my whole house is torn up. We're installing wood floors, closet organizers, floor trim, ceiling trim...etc., etc., etc. My bed has been (and still is) in the middle of the dining room, for what feel like forever. But we're starting to see what it's going to be like completely finished. This past Christmas we removed the boys' from their rooms and moved them to a mattress on the front room floor and we completely gutted their playroom, too. We went to Arizona for a race for a few days in late December and came home to brand new hickory floors in those rooms and the hallway that leads to them. Man, are those new floors GORGEOUS!! The boys' rooms were completely put back in order in time for them to head back to school after their holiday break. WHEW! The flooring in our master bedroom is South African teak and is naturally dark without stain. It looks so yummy I can't wait to actually "hole up" in my room and ignore the world...I may just hibernate in there for a month just enjoying it. The closet organizer is literally indescribable!! I've never had ANYTHING like it and I can't wait to put all of our things in the neat little cubbies and hang up the clothes - I have things piled up everywhere!! The laundry room looks like a Goodwill donation station full of clothes and bedding and towels. UGH!!
This is what my bedroom floor looks like - only it's finished and clean...need to take a few more current photos -


This is the hickory flooring before it was installed. It filled up the kitchen eating area for a few weeks so that the wood would acclimate to our home...


Well, enough about all of that...I have photos of the boys' race in Arizona and Nevada and Christmas still on the camera. I'll download and edit and post a few of them tomorrow. Also, I've been tagged and I need to go and figure out what needs to be done for that.

I have to call you, Erin...but it is currently 2:30 a.m. so I won't do it right now.

Now in response to Pammie the Great...

The rules...
The game includes ten questions for me to answer and an eleventh question, which I will add, before tagging two more bloggers. Here goes:

1. Name your two favorite scrapbooking topics: My family stuff (kids, dogs, Mike, etc. and the second one would have to be about my friends and the many retreats I've gotten to go to - this reminds me how far behind I truly am...YIKES!!

2. Where are the two best places you've been to? London, England and Washington D.C. - I've absolutely NO photos of either trip so I will be returning with my camera to take photos and to remember the sites that I visited. (SOMEDAY!!)

3. Name two things you do every day: laundry and dishes

4. Tell us two things that pretty much everyone knows about you: I love the color green and my family spends a lot of time traveling from place to place to race.

5. Tell us two things that everyone DOESN'T know about you: I'm extremely afraid of my boys' not "turning out right", and I am sooooooo tired right now that I can't think of a second thing!

6. Tell us two things that got you into the hobby of scrapping: We moved to this small town of Bennett and I had asked a MOPS group what the ladies did for fun... the rest is history!! I attended a crop at a CM consultant's house and spent too much money on the things I needed to get started.

7. Tell us two things that you want to accomplish in the next six months: Organize my room and just get back to feeling creative and comfortable in my own skin.

8. Name your two favorite scrapping tools: Crop-A-Dile and all the various papers and textures.

9. Name your two favorite sources of scrapping inspiration: My friends' creations and all the internet sites that I frequent.

10. Pam's addition - What two paper companys are your favorites: CTMH and DCWV and CherryArte and Cosmo Cricket and Luxe...O.K. I'm addicted to paper and can't just pick two!! SHEESH!!

11. My additional question - Have you looked back on your first scrapbook pages and felt the absolute URGE to redo them or can you leave them alone and keep going forward and accept those "early" creations as learning the craft and appreciate how far you've come??: I must be truthful - if I were caught up with all of my photos, there are a few pages that I would take apart and "redo" but I really enjoy all the NEW products available to us and can appreciate the "vintage" look and feel of the original supplies I used "back in the day".

O.K. so that took an HOUR!! I'll be tagging Terri (surprise!!) and Jeanne - I look forward to seeing your responses!!

By the way...has anyone SEEN Terri's latest "masterpiece" on her blog - WOW!

Well, I should get some sleep. I have a lot on my "to do" list for later today.

I'll be back!!

Dang it Erin!! You got me again... I LOVE the stuff you find and can't help
myself!!

You guys gotta watch these clips... THEY ARE HILARIOUS!!!

Elf Yourself

and...

Scrooge Yourself

I think that the Scrooge is most fitting...

I'm currently working on a slide show of Primm, Nevada. I didn't take a ton of photos this time but the ones I took are pretty special. Will post VERY soon!

Hang in...

Mike's made it to Primm...

So, the cars are there...now it's up to me to get the drivers to their cars!! I have a few last minute items to pack and then one last set of eight measley hours (while Nick and A.J. are at school tomorrow) of real PEACE and QUIET - time to myself, doing last minute stuff before we get on a plane tomorrow afternoon.
I took a little time today to finish up on a few items that I've started. I received a package of stamps from Stamping Bella and I have to confess that I immediately thought of Terri when I saw the Cosmobella...had to do a little gift set for her. Wanna see?

Then...I needed a little Thank You for our vet for all the things that she does for us... Wanna see?

So...I finished these a little while ago but did I get any of them mailed - NOPE!! But they're DONE for next year!! AH-HA!!

AND lastly...but my least favorite - - not sure why, but the card in my brain didn't translate so well in reality!! Oh dear!!

(I didn't realize how BLURRY that photo was...it looks a little better that way!!)
Well...the two FINAL pairs of dancers are on the Dancing With The Stars. I'm looking forward to the end of this show - I have a "love/hate" relationship with it...I love the last few shows but the getting up to that point seems to take FOREVER and I don't invest that kind of time into a t.v. show - unless it's ER!! Will post from Nevada! Keep those fingers crossed for the boys to have a great weekend!!
~ Susan

I'm finally getting around to sharing on my blog today!!

I've been shampooing carpets and getting back into creating things for friends and family - call it a hiatus, took some time off, just plain busy, busy. Mike's been out of town for over a week now...he's in Arizona working - (or so he wants us to believe!!) He worked for a couple of hours on Saturday before calling it a day and going to a big boat race!! Man, heavy intensive labor!! He's expected home for Thanksgiving and then it's off to Primm, Nevada for the boys' final race of the year. I'm supposed to be getting a bunch of stuff done for that but I uh...just can't find the motivation today!!

We've attended a couple of birthday parties in the past two weekends and I have a few photos to share... November 10th - Justin Francis' birthday party:


Then on the 17th - Keaton Westhoff's birthday party at the Family Fun Plex in Longmont.

Nothing like a day of swimming in the middle of NOVEMBER!!
So on to Thanksgiving!! Mike finally comes home only to share that he has to go back and finish the job! UGH!
We leave for Primm, Nevada in just a few days for the boys final race of the season.
AND - - - we get to hang out with the Stanley's again!! The Stanley's make our boys' race cars. Wish us luck!!

More to come!! We'll keep you posted!!

OOPS...I forgot to post the "INSPIRATION" boots - sorry!!

Pammie - Yes!! We made those boot from Sculpey - but the "base" was a product called Rigid Wrap - way cool stuff. It's basically gauze with dry plaster and you dip pre-cut strips into warm water and layer it - allow to dry and you end up with a cast!! I decided that this is going to be HUGE for me in the future...lots of craft ideas ran through my brain when I was working with it. I need to add, in reading the instructions for the Rigid Wrap I gotta tell you...they've totally covered any possible law suit - their directions for making a mask for someone's face is so HILARIOUS!! SO...here's the "original" boots I replicated for the costume - - >>

LOTS!! To share...

I've got a few requests so let's see if we can cover them ALL!! First, I've had a request to share just how I made the "Dragon" boots for Nick's Gene Simmons' costume - I just gotta add here that I. HAVE. NO. IDEA. HOW. I'LL. TOP. THIS. COSTUME. EVER!! But we have these photos for the memories and well...who knows what "our" imagination will come up with...
Step-by-step boots in the making:


Secondly, my calendar for this year - it's time to get on the next one - - hope this inspires someone!!


...the photos on the December page are totally blowing my mind!! We're going back to that exact same place in just a few weeks for the Primm, Nevada race!! I can hardly believe that since the photos posted in last year's calendar...these two spoiled boys are in not just TWO brand new cars BUT FOUR!! OYE!! I need sleep. I'm overwhelmed from looking at this little blast from our past...we've had one heckuva great year!!