Jesus is the Reason--Challenge!

Hey, everyone...this will be interesting.  I have been feeling very much a need to craft my love for my Saviour and to share this love with others.  I had an idea for a book I wanted to make using my Bind-It-All and some old CD's that always come to me with sample curricula.  I covered the CD's in DCWV and Coredinations paper, then added some glitter paint to make it sparkle.  I wanted to tell the story of Jesus' birth through scripture, so I added Bible verses from the New King James Version.  For each verse, I cut an accompanying vignette from the Nativity section of Paper Doll Dress Up.  Added some ribbon and a few stickers to the front, and voila!  I love how it turned out.  It is simple, but I think it is neat!

So, I have decided to make this a challenge--create something that showcases Jesus as the Reason for the Season and leave a comment with a link to your project.  I won't promise a fabulous scrappy prize, but I can guarantee the gift of grace that will surround you as you work to bring glory to Him.  I don't have many followers, so don't know how many people will do this.  If you do participate, it would be great if you would share on your blog so others could join in...and get the blessing of creating something for their Creator too!

My FIRST award!!!

I'm so excited, I can't stand it!  Beth over at Scrappy Java Girl has given me my first award!  How cool is that?!  I am posting it here.  And I am passing it along to 8 bloggers who are much more stylish than I!  The  award conditions:  1.  Create a post featuring your award  2.  Link back to me  3. Tell 8 things about yourself that others might not know  4. Pass the award along to 8 other bloggers by setting up links to their blogs...then comment on their latest posts and let them know they have received the award!

8 things about me.

1.  I am wife and mom, and daughter of a Heavenly King
2.  I am certified as a K-12 School Principal in 4 states
3.  I am completely in love with my Cricut, and love the deals I find online
4.  I never pay full price for anything craft-related.  If  it isn't at least 50% off, it doesn't find its way into my scrap space
5.  I love, love, love purses.  When I travel, I buy myself a new one in every city.  :)  Good thing I'm saving  $ on my crafting supplies.
6.  I love, love, love shoes!  Steve Madden is my favorite designer.
7.  I have been a teacher in the same school district for 17 years.
8.  I have been married to my awesome husband, Bob, for 21 years, since I was 19 years old!

8 Mighty Stylish Bloggers Who Deserve This Award

1.  Emma @ My Creative Time

2.  Sarah @ Pink Cricut

3.  Sherri @ Love, Laughter, and Creations

4.  Donna @ Popsicle Toes

5. Margie @ Bella Bug Creations

6.  Chris @ Just a Girl

7. Susan @ Busy with the Cricky

8.  Sachiko @ Tea Rose Home

Check out their blogs and get TOTALLY inspired!

Owl Love You--To Catalina from Nina

My baby girl (who is 8) has a good friend whose birthday just passed.  Of course, we had to have a spectacular crafty gift to take to the party.  So, we used a large can I had saved to recycle, and we made a manicure kit...it had nail polish in three colors, polish remover, hand lotion, nail clippers, a nail file, nail decor stickers...the whole bit.  Nina's friend, Catalina, loves owls, so they had to be a major part of the decor.  I covered the can with Mod Podge and blue tissue paper, then cut the owls from Paper Doll Dress Up, and the letters from Plantin Schoolbook.  The paper for the letters is from the DCWV Glitter Stack.  The paper I used for the owls is from the scrap drawer.  Added some gel pen lines, some stickles, and some googly eyes.  It turned out cute, I think.  And Catalina loved it!

No new projects, but too EXCITED to keep it!!!!

Check out the ScrapbookToolkit.com site!  Incredible deals on FULL-SIZE Cricut Cartridges!  Over 100 to choose from!  Hello Kitty Greetings--22.80!  NO KIDDING!

Links for Wordle

So, I ran across this great tool for student engagement--it is called Wordle.  I have created some to use with my students this week, as we begin reading Black Ships Before Troy, which is a 6th grade level retelling of the Iliad.  So excited.  Check out the links if you want...nothing crafty, but intriguing just the same.

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

And a Pregnant Lady!

Lol!  My good, good friend called me about a month ago with the news that she and her husband are expecting their first baby in the spring.  They are soooooo excited.  She moved to Lubbock, TX when she got engaged a little over a year ago, and sometimes the busy-ness of life gets in the way of keeping in touch.  In my cardmaking frenzy this weekend, I decided she needed a little somethin' somethin'.  I started with some plain white cardstock, layered it with Cordinations, then some DCWV from the Glitter Stack.  I cut the Mom to Be from Everyday Paper Dolls on DCWV textured, white core cardstock, which I sanded. Clothes too.  The purse is cut from a scrap of SU patterned paper.  I added a bit of faux stitching, and a face with my trusty white gelly roll and colored G2's.  Adhered the pieces to the doll with Zig two-way, then popped the Mama off the card with Elmer's dimensional tape.  Added a few ribbon pieces and a handwritten sentiment:  "Hope all goes well... ...until you can see your feet again."  I love it...so cute, and I know she will love it too!

Birthday Number Three

A dear friend of mine and my husband's has a birthday in a few days.  This card is a simple one for him.

Recipe:
Coredinations Cardstock
Camping Solutions Cartridge
Brown Embroidery Floss
Cuttlebug Embossing folder
SU Metal embellishment

Easiest card I have made in a long time.  Bear cut at 3"  Used my SU Color Coach to pair the colors.  Attached metal embelli with floss and taped it on the back of the coordinating cardstock.  Done!  Love how it turned out though!

Another Birthday

So, the first card was for my DH's sister; this one is for mine.  She turns 40 in a few days.  I've been checking out Robyn's punnylicious stamps, and for some reason, when I was looking at images from one of my cartridges, it hit me..."Just chicken in..."  I thought it was funny.  Don't know if Robyn thought of it already, but I thought I would use it.  My sister lives about 1200 miles away, and due to financial constraints, we go LOOOOOOONNNNNGGGGG periods of time without seeing each other.  So I made her this cute card.

Recipe:
DCWV Neutrals Stack
Coredinations Brights Stack
Animal Kingdom cartridge
Everyday Paper Dolls Cartridge
White Gelly Roll pen
MS Gold Paint marker
MS dye ink marker in Brick
MS blending pen
SU Yoyo yellow marker
SU Crystal Effects
G2 black gel pen

Barn cut at 2"; Tractor cut at 3/4"; Chicken and Rooster cut at 3"
Coloring, gluing with zig two-way; Rooster adhered with Elmer's dimensional tape
Crystal Effects added to feathers, combs, wings of birds.

Thanks for looking!  Followers and comments are always welcome!

Birthdays Galore!

So, we have three birthdays coming up in our family this week, so I got out my E and got busy.  Because, you know, making cards is much more fun than grading and writing curriculum.  Teehee!  My DH's sister is having a birthday soon, so I decided to use Emma's Throwback Thursday Challenge theme of food for her card.  I used Accent Essentials and Everyday Paper Dolls for this card.  I cut the frame at 3" from the backing chipboard from a cardstack I had finished off.  I have found that if I use my blades that are too dull to cut paper, they will cut chipboard easily, so I just keep them in a separate blade container that says "chipboard only."  Anyway, when I had that cut out, I ran the frame through my Xyron machine and coated it with MS glitter.  I added some coordinating SU brads to the corners.  The cupcake was first cut from Paper Studio paper, then I recut it on Coredinations Cardstock, cut off the bottom, and used the top to layer over the paper.  I used my zip dry to add a few pearls for embellishment along with some white faux stitcing.  Then I free-handed a face using my gelly roll and some G2 gel pens.  To make the card, I used an insert from a 12x12 album page and cut it to size for a 5x7 card.  I covered the front with patterned cardstock from the DCWV Nana's Kids stack.  I used a Hobby Lobby stamp colored with SU markers on the cut out square from the frame.  Adhered the square to the card.  Added Elmer's foam tape to the frame and the cupcake and adhered them. The finishing touch was a strip of matching cardstock on the inside.  I accented with a bit of ribbon purchased in the dollar bin at Target.  I wrote the message myself, using my MS paint pens.  I love how this turned out!  And my SIL will love it too!