Friday, February 29, 2008

Friday's Freebie....

Thanks to everyone who has left a comment on my blog during my giveaway days.... it has helped me get rid of items I haven't used and I'd much rather have someone else play with them than have them here sitting & collecting dust :) I'm hoping once a month I'll have a giveaway has I continue to go through my space, but it will be sporadic -- I hope you still pop in & visit me and leave me comments :)

If you'd like a chance to win a package of silver dragon flies, please leave a comment on this post. :) Thanks again.
Enjoy your weekend.
.j.

Thursday, February 28, 2008

It's a party..... soon.

It's party time at our house... time to plan the parties that is. Birthday parties have been on *hold* while our floor gets installed. What a process! So it's nearly time to get going on the first batch of invites! :) My oldest (age 11) always likes me to make a "few" so she can select the PERFECT one. Here's one of my attempts. I love this cow! LOL.


Stamps - birthday banter, dot invitation
Paper - Basic Grey, positively pink, whisper white, lavender lace
Ink - graphite black - Brilliance
Extras - Prismacolors & mineral spirits, cuttlebug & embossing folders, SU ribbon snippets, liquid pearls, stampin' dimensionals, sewing machine.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Challenge time....

No stamping last night. My nephew is working on a school project where they have to create an item with a $100 budget & then sell their item at a school "store" that they are "opening" tomorrow. He chose cards! :) How cool is that! So he came to Auntie Jen!!! He's 11 and he was so totally into it, very neat. His mom fell in love with the process too... kept saying THIS IS SO FUN. I would smile -- and nod with an "i know". :) So he was busy playing in my space, so this morning I decided not to run ( I know!) and stamp instead. Just needed some stamping time. I wanted to make a card for the owner of a scrap/stamp store that I love... .She Runs With Scissors! It's fabulous. A bit out of town, but she ships for free! She's incredible, friendly & soooo helpful. Thought I'd send her a little YOU ROCK kinda card :) Needing a wee bit of inspiration, I thought I'd play along with the splitcoast challenge this week. So... here's my take:

Stamps: billboardabella
Paper: Positively Pink, Basic Grey DS ( blush series), whisper white, chocolate chip, vellum (behind heart)
Ink: Brilliance graphite black
Accessories: SU Chipboard, ribbon, sage shadow eyelets, cuttlebug & embossing folder
Techniques: paper piecing
Hope you find time to accomplish a mid-week challenge. Could be stamping could be the laundry challenge :) haha.... enjoy your day.
.j.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Wish Big...

Do you wish big? :) As the flooring gets laid our living "area" shrinks and I feel as if I'm surrounded by STUFF. Ack. Drives me insane (I think I'm nearly there!!) Half opened boxes, sorting of papers on precious floor space, dust... oh the dust. (NOTE TO SELF, DO NOT MOVE INTO AN UNFINISHED HOUSE!!) LOL. Trying to find the humor in it all -- I'm sure it'll come.... might be in about 10 years when I'm rocking in my chair and having the 'ol "... remember when...." conversation. :) I desperately need some therapeutic stamping time.... crossing my fingers for tonight. We'll see if I have something new to show you tomorrow -
I tried something new (to me) in the card below. When I sew, I usually just go steady & straight. For this card, I decided to do more of a *freestyle*. I just slowly moved the card up & down while I sewed. Take a peek:

everything on this card (minus the cuttlebug, is Stampin' Up!)
Stamps - GOOD Things Grow, Short & Sweet
Ink - So Saffron, Regal Rose, Brocade Blue Craft Inks
Paper - Certainly Celery, Regal Rose, Pale plum, Whisper White
Extras - Cuttlebug & embossing folder, ribbon originals, square punches, Square Scallop Punch (marvy ?), gold brads, stampin' dimensionals, sewing machine.
I hope your day finds you smiling :)
.j.

Monday, February 25, 2008

I'm Back.

The last few days have been a whirlwind. Nothing major, but simply life. The kids had Friday off of school and the weekend got filled up to the brim.... which left me little to no time to get on the computer much less blog my day :) So I apologize for not setting up a Friday Giveaway. I think I'll do a giveaway on the first Friday of each month.... I will have one during THIS week though to make up for the couple I missed & then I'll be going once a month. So stay tuned (especially if you like EMBELLISHMENTS :))) ).
Blogger is having some difficulties as well, so I'm unable to post my card this morning :(. I also got some new SU stamps a few days ago that I'm excited to INK UP! So hopefully some more new creations to share with you. Guess if blogger won't work I'll give you a recipe :)
This is another family favorite. Perfect for the lunchbox, yummy with peanut butter, and if you have wrinkled apples in your fridge you can whip up your own applesauce to use in this recipe! :) Enjoy! I double pretty much everything I make (make the mess once, have twice the goods! sounds good to me! -- so these also freeze great & double well!)

AppleSauce Muffins
1/2cup Margarine
3/4cup Brown sugar
***Blend together well in your mixer***
ADD:
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1/3 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1/2 cup raisins
**mix all together**
BAKE at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Happy Monday.
.j.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Wheels are turnin'...

I don't use wheels too much -- have a ton of 'em... but rarely pull them out. It could be because they're in a box and "out of sight" so not as easy to access, but I bought Matey's Map awhile back and finally got the urge to use it in this boys' birthday card. I used the gifts from Loads of Love accessories to cover up the Treasure Box and put the focus on birthday. It was a very fun card to create. To draw attention to the gifts I used the two circle punches to create a "rim" to circle the gifts with.
Stamps - Matey's Map Jumbo Wheel & Loads of Love Accessories
Paper - More Mustard, Real red, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip
Ink - Brilliance Graphite Black
Extras - Copic Markers, Circle Punches, Ribbon bits (SU), Cuttlebug & emobossing folder, sewing machine.
My posts have been a little delayed these days as we've been getting our flooring put in... yeah! and birthday week. We're in a real mess here too ... so finding quiet moments has proved challenging :)
.j.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

She turns 11.

My frist baby turns 11 today. WOW. Where does the time go? She loves polka dots & purple. :) So.... this is what I came up with last night :)

Stamps - Cakeabella
Paper - Mauve Mist (miss that color!), Perfect Plum, Whisper White, DS (stash)
Ink - Brilliance Graphite Black
Other - Daja Views Birthday rubons, assorted ribbons, prima flowers, rhinestome gems, liquid pearls, copic markers, cuttlebug and embossing folers (anything I had with DOTS! LOL)
She's off to school today (she LOVES school!!!) and then typically they get to pick their FAVORITE dinner that I cook up to perfection. Today is soccer day though, so it's pizza night and then tomorrow will be her FAVORITE dinner - GINGER BEEF. And, if I do say so myself it's DELISH... time consuming... oh so time consuming... messy to make... oh so messy to make -- but tastes BETTER than anything you could buy at a chinese restaurant - seriously. (Not boasting, it's not me, it's the recipe!) ;-)
I took a couple morning shots of her -- she got to choose ONE gift to open & she decided to open Grandma's :) Megan plays the flute, so this was a lovely gift :)


Off to enjoy a special day -- I bet it doesn't matter how old your "babies" get you still remember that special day & all those details!! I do believe I was sent back HOME around this time while we waited for the induction to START :) ....
happy birthday sweetheart!
.j.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Looks like a busy day ahead so I thought I'd try to get on earlier today and post a card for you. My oldest daughter's birthday tomorrow (she turns 11) so we're going to be busy getting ready for her special day tomorrow. What fun! (this isn't her card by the way.... LOL)

Stamps - Rivetting & Double Lined wheel
Paper - Real Red, Night of Navy, True Thyme, Summer Sun, Whisper White
Ink - Real Red, Summer Sun, Night of Navy
Accessories - True Thyme stitched ribbon, Circle punches, folk star punch, cuttlebug & embossing folder
I'm selling over 50 single stamps of assorted companies (PSX, Hero Arts, Pennyblack...) if you're interested click HERE or copy & paste the link below,
http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=19017388&uid=10659216&members=1
email me at jdgray94@shaw.ca with STAMP SALE in the subject if you'd like any or have any questions....
.j.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Sunny Day.

What a fabulous morning! The air was crisp, the sky was blue and the sun IS shining. Got out for a great run which is the best way to start the day. All fresh and ready to go :). Still working on my birthday boy card stash! :) Seems to be the hardest for me. I made one the other night that I'm excited to share with you, but I'll save it for a bit yet. My son LOVES soccer (although I'm seeing hockey creep in there now too!!)... I thought it fitting to make one with soccer balls. This was an attempt at the challenge last week on SCS, but I couldn't get the sketch to work for me. Not sure if it's because I RARELY work with a square card (which this is) or what... so after putting it aside for awhile, I pushed the sketch aside & figured I'd use it up on a boy birthday card. Here it is...

Question for you... do you like it when I include a recipe for my cards? I know I do sometimes, other times I don't..... drop me a comment & let me know :)
Enjoy your Monday -- I hope it's sunny too!
.j.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Hello Sunshine.

What a beautiful day it is out there! Sun is shining and kids are outside playing. We just finished roasting hot dogs and s'mores.... perfect! It seemed fitting to share a *bright* card with you on such a *bright* day.

Orange & Red.... some favorite colors at our house! :) I used an older DS paper from SU, as well as some vellum cardstock (tried to tone down the business of the background with the vellum)... scallop punch works so great with SU's circle punches -- love that! I'm trying to use up a bunch of my scraps and bits & pieces of DS paper.... do you hoard as much as I do?! LOL.
.j.

Saturday, February 16, 2008

The morning rush....

....the rush to get out the door to soccer this morning (is it bad that I'm so excited we only have a few more weeks of soccer! LOL)....
Here's another quick boy card to share with you this morning. Hope to get some stamping time in this afternoon :) Enjoy your day!

.j.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Week's End.

Ahhh.... it's friday :) I think I have caught up with all the giveaways and everything has been mailed out :) Today's *Freebie* is for everyone :) Need to get some goodies prepared for next week, so today I'm going to give you an amazing recipe. This Cream Cheese Icing is truly *PERFECT* for cinnamon buns. Now I do have the perfect cinnamon bun recipe (a family tried & true recipe) so if you want it, leave me a comment & I'll email it to you :) How does that sound? :)

This isn't the type of icing you'd put on a cake as it's not the THICK icing you think of when you think "carrot cake"... but it's light & fluffy & AMAZING. Oh I bet it would be good on a cake ;-) It's perfect all by itself on a spoon even! LOL.
IF you have a stand-up mixer you'll be very happy as there's some mixing involved. If you have the hand-held mixer, you'll be standing awhile, but it'll be worth the effort -- do some squats while your mixing -- burn off what you're about to consume! LOL.

INGREDIENTS:
1 CUP of Margarine
1 CUP of cream cheese
2 CUPS of powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
PREP:
Allow the margarine & cream cheese to reach room temperature. (you don't want condensation on anything as it will spoil the consistency of the icing). Beat cream cheese & margarine together in a bowl with a mixer. Get it really well mixed. Slowly add in all the powdered sugar. Once all the sugar is in the bowl, mix for AT LEAST AN ADDITIONALY 12 MINUTES. This is not a typo, 12 minutes. See what the stand-free mixer is handy at this point! :) When it's almost done, add in the extracts. ENJOY!!!

Enjoy your weekend, I'll have some more cards to share with you .....
.j.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

The Morning After...

Missed posting yesterday as it was my birthday! :) I took the whole entire day off as Hubby had it planned out & it was completely wonderful. It was full & relaxing all at the same time.... I even had uninterupted stamp time in the morning. Life Is Good.
...and guess what.... I got MY REBEL XTi camera!
OH MY GOODNESS.... I still cannot believe it. *sigh* Not ONLY the camera, but the zoom lens, lens protectors, a 4GB card.... I'm SO EXCITED!!! The next few photos are still taken with my *old* camera (LOL), but soon.... I'll be able to post numerous photos! HAHA.... told my kids they better get ready for some photo shoots! Mama's gotta try out her new camera! Too excited to even tell ya! Been reading through the manual and memorizing all I can so I can play, play, play today.

I did get some boy birthday cards made too which I will post over the next while. Simple ones. My son usually says "got any sport ones" when I tell him he needs to pick out a card for a birthday party... so *sports* was my "theme" :)


Happy Valentine's everyone! I'm making the ultimate cinnimon buns this morning. I'll run HARD tomorrow :)))) Anyone want the most amazing cream cheese icing you ever did eat? Think 'Cinnibon' only fresher! AMAZING -- I'll post it in the next day or two. Guess tomorrow is Friday already -- wow, weeks are going fast aren't they.
Enjoy your day -- hug your sweetie -
.j.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

A simple thanks.

This was a nice & easy card that came together quite quickly. I've really been liking dimension on cards, having areas popped up with foam tape (stampin' dimensionals, foam dots....) It's one of the cards you can't mess up on, seriously! Ink up your stamp and stamp away without reinking to get that faded out effect. Once you're done with the green, grab a light brown and add a few more. :) I used a marker to color the one stamp with the flower heads and tried to position it in the center.... here's a peek:

Stamps: The Art of Life, Short & Sweet
Paper: Bashful Blue, whisper white, creamy caramel, DS Fall Flowers
Ink: Old Olive, Always artichoke, Creamy Caramel, bashful blue marker
Accessories: taffeta ribbon (SU), hodgepodge frame, stampin' dimensionals, cuttlebug & folder
I'm in need of boy birthday cards... so I'll be trying to play with that a bit today -- after I'm done my chores! LOL.
.j.

Monday, February 11, 2008

We've got a winner!!

Timestamp: 2008-02-11 21:20:38 UTC
Here are your random numbers: #7

...AND THE WINNER IS.....

MARY!!! Congrats to you.....
mary said,
"The next item on my list is copic markers! Count me in on the candy!"
Mary Puskar

COPIC Markers.... yes, they are very fun to play with :)
Thanks to everyone for *playing*....
.j.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

My Birthday Week....

I'm actually a PRE-Valentine Baby :) the 13th -- so hubby gets to combine the two occassions. It's a week of celebration as the following week is my oldest's birthday. She was actually due ON my birthday, but arrived one week later -- guess she wanted her *own* special day :)
Another Valentine card to get you inspired to create yours. Have you all gotten your cards done & ready to go? Only a few more days to go....

I hope you're enjoying your Sunday. It was pouring here so no bonfire & roast this afternoon, but now that we've finished lunch indoors, the skies have opened and the sun is shining! :) Looks lovely out!
.j.

Saturday, February 09, 2008

Wet Day.

Looks like it will be a ceiling of umbrellas at soccer today :)
Here's a card I made the other day to share with you. A very basic card with a few tidbits. Popped up the ear on the elephant, found a rimmed tag on my desk, gobbled up some of my blue eyelet stash.... :) I masked the croc. so that the giraffe was able to stand behind him....

Stamps: Wild About You, Tiny Talk
Paper: Pale Plum, Whisper White, Old Olive, Blue Bliss
Ink: Colorbox Chalk Inks, mauve mist, brilliant blue
Accessories: brilliant blue eyelets, ribbons (SU), linen trhead, metal rimmed tag, stampin' dimensionals
stay warm....
.j.

Friday, February 08, 2008

LOVEly Giveaway :)

Sorry I'm a little late posting this morning (and the giveaway day of ALL days! LOL). Hubby went to emergency this morning -- hurt his knee and he's suppose to fly out to work on Sunday -- yeah, ONE OF THOSE DAYS! Poor guy, he's in major pain. :( He's not even sure what happened.... hopefully the Dr's will be able to put him all back together again :)
I thought with Valentine's Day around the corner I'd make my giveaway friday useful for that occassion. SO... a couple of inspiration sheets with hearts & V'day themes as well as some scallop punched pieces in lovey-dovey colors & a heart brass template. :)

To enter, you just need to leave me a comment - let me know what your next item on your wish list is :) Mine is a rather BIG ONE... been saving my pennies for a Canon Rebel XTi.... *sigh*.... one day. :) I'm also really wanting the set "sweet celebration" from Stampin' Up!...with Sale-a-bration here it's the *perfect* time :)
Enjoy your weekend!
.j.

Thursday, February 07, 2008

White Avoidance.

I tend to avoid white cardstock as a base. Not sure why... it's just so WHITE! LOL. I love layers & embellishments, 3D effects & sparkle :) HOWEVER... sometimes it's nice to stamp something so simple, it's beautiful. This is a QUICK card, seriously... a couple of punches, ONE ink, and some stamps. :) With the fresh snow this morning, I thought I'd step outside my own box and try to use WHITE as a base.... what do you think?

Stamps: Wishing you the Best & The Art of Life
Paper: Whisper Shite & Chocolate Chip
Ink: Old Olive
Accessories: ribbon(stash), scallop punch, circle punch.
Weekend is almost here! Guess I better start thinking about the giveaway for tomorrow :) hmmmmm...... ;-)
.j.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Wednesday = Challenge!

I thought with Valentine's Day around the corner I'd use the challenge today that could be used as a love card :) Here is the sketch for today's challenge:

A great layering card. If you participated in this challenge leave a link in your comments, I'd love to "see" what you created :)
Here's my card:

Stamps: Whether Or Not, Short & Sweet
Paper: Real Red, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Regal Rose, DS retired SU
Ink: regal rose craft, real red marker, chocolate chip
Accessories: ribbon, stampin dimensionals, cuttlebug & embossing folder

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Seriously The BEST EVER Banana Bread

Well, no stamping for me the last couple of days.... need to change that don't we! :) So today I will share with you our families favorite banana bread. I'm serious when I say YOU MUST TRY THIS... it will become your favorite. DELISH!

Here's what you need:
1 CUP Butter
2 CUPS Sugar
3 CUPS Mashed Ripe Bananas (about 6 of 'em)
4 eggs, well beaten
2-1/2 CUPS Flour
2 TSP. Baking Soda
1 TSP. Salt
1 TSP Nutmeg
1-1/2 CUPS Frozen Blueberries (it says optional, but don't listen -- put 'em in there - LOL)

Here's what you do:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add bananas and eggs and beat until well mixed. Mix dry ingredients and blend with banana mixture, but do not overmis. Fold in blueberries. Pour into 2 lightly greased loaf pans or a bundt pan. Bake 55 minutes to an hour (it's usually more for with my oven).... test for doneness by using a toothpick inserted in the middle -- if it comes out clean - it's done :). Cool on rack for 10 minutes before removing from pans (this is important as you don't want your loaf to fall apart). FREEZES BEAUTIFULLY. You'll probably eat it all though -- we do!

Enjoy.
.j.

Monday, February 04, 2008

Monday.... again?

Are the days ever melting into each other -- I think the older we get the fast time travels. Maybe that's because we want to savor moments & realize that our babies grow up. Valentine's Day is JUST around the corner (10 minutes in adult time! LOL) so I thought I'd better dust off those stamps and get busy :) I once saw this hilarious card made with the hippo stamp here (zoofari, stampin' up!) and the caption was "you horny?" LOL -- so funny. Anyway, no "caption" on this card, but I did want those lovey-dovey hippos to FACE EACH OTHER. I decided to use a piece of transparency and stamp one on one side and one on the other. Worked. :) The only trouble was taking the photo without getting a glare off the transparency. I popped out the little heart above them as well. A simple card.

Happy Monday.
.j.

We've got a winner....

Here are your random numbers:
# 3 Timestamp: 2008-02-04 16:34:32 UTC

CONGRATULATIONS SHANNON!!!!
Shannon said...
I like Friday Freebies. I hope I win!

February 1, 2008 11:50:00 AM PST

For some reason I'm still "blog-challenged" and can't quite figure out how to put EMAIL ME on my sidebar -- I know, I know... shaking my head at myself. :) SO... if you click on view my complete profile, you'll find it there -- eventually I'll figure it out! LOL.

So Shannon, email me at jdgray94@shaw.ca with your snail mail and I'll get some inspiration to you :))))

.j.

Sunday, February 03, 2008

Sale-a-brate Time.

Late post here as it's been a busy day. Haven't been home too much and while I have, I've been working on a essay with my daughter that's due tomorrow. It's printed off & DONE! :) WHEW. I'll post a card tomorrow (along with the winner of the Friday Freebie) so stay tuned for that. I'm happy to report I've heard from BOTH of the previous winners so I'm delighted to mail out everyone their goodies. Don't you just {love} fridays!

It's also time to Sale-a-brate. Stampin' Up!'s yearly event is ON NOW. I'm already working on my list.... hmmm... what'll I get to play with :) Very exciting. Who doesn't enjoy free stamps! :)

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend, work-week begins tomorrow.... smile....
.j.

Saturday, February 02, 2008

Chicken.

I've slowly started to get some Copic markers. Biggest thing I've learned -- I need more! LOL. Isn't that the way it goes. It's been fun playing & experimenting though. Here's one of my first cards. Pretty simple I know :) I needed a nice LARGE image to start :)

Stamps - Walk this Way, Flannel Background
Paper - Basic Grey, Whisper White, Basic Black, More Mustard
Ink - Basic Grey, Brilliance Graphite Black
Other - Ribbon & Eyelets (SU)
I hope you all enjoy your weekend -- I think we're going to bundle up and go skating. This nasty cold is still CLINGING to me, but... still gotta play ;-)
.j.

Friday, February 01, 2008

Friday's Freebie :)

So far I have had no luck in giving out my prizes.... so please remember to check back on MONDAY to see if you've WON :)! If prizes aren't claimed in two weeks from drawn date, I'll put them back in the basket for a prize later on :) Sound good? :) The weekend has arrived and with the snow still on the ground I'm thinking soccer games will be cancelled tomorrow (inside I'm screaming yahoooooo-- a REAL day off! LOL). Flooring is due to go down TODAY. Yesterday it was suppose to start but our installer got stuck in the snow :( .... everyone east of BC must laugh at us. A few measely inches on the ground and the whole island is a mess -- !

I know my blog is a mish-mash of this & that - cards, challenges, scrapbooking, house jargen, recipes, babbling.... so my question for this giveaway is... do you like blogs that have specific things on a particular day (example - friday freebies, wednesday's challenge, thursday a recipe....) or are you all about the stamping and could care less about the other stuff :) LOL. ONTO the *freebie* -- this week I thought I'd offer up 20 inspiration sheets. Yes, some of them are retired sets that are used, but they're still excellent in providing a sketch for you to follow and create. I've even done inspiration nights where you have to follow a sheet, make the cards shown USING a DIFFERENT stamp set than the one given. It's amazing how the cards come out. Look forward to chatting with you :)

remember to check back and see if you've won on Monday. I'll post some cards I made the other day saturday and sunday so you can pop in and visit then too :)
.j.