Candy anyone?

Samantha at Scrapmaster's Paradise has some fab candy up until Christmas Day! Go check it out. For each increment of followers there is an addition to the candy: If she reaches 100 THOUSAND VISITORS by the time the blog candy closes she will add 90 more things; each 500 followers by the time the blog candy closes will add a brand new stamp set from the Stampin Up Mini coming out in January; and every 100 followers after 300 (so at 400, 500, etc), will add on an additional mini blog candy. Now go check her out at here .

Stamp Scrap & Doodle Saturday is here

and boy, was I late in posting! Sorry everyone, especially those who check blogs early in the day! I get messed up on Holiday weeks, and I thought this was Friday and I had plenty of time left to get it posted! Go figure.

Anyway, here is my Christmas Themed card for this week. This is actually a card I've made for my doctor, as I've mentioned making cards and have meant to take him one before so he knows what I mean. Anyway, I gave it to him and he was thrilled. That always makes me feel so good when someone really, really likes what I've made, and that I've thought of them.

This week's challenge is so easy, come on and join us (links are on the right).

We have a fabulous returning sponsor, The Cutting Cafe! Be sure to stop by The Cutting Cafe and check out all the new and fabulous cut files that Regina has been adding! The winner this week with receive 3 cut files of their choice! And you know you are busy making Christmas cards anyway, so join us! Let's see how high we can get Mr. Linky this week.

Seasonal Greetings to all visitors & fellow bloggers...

I hope you all enjoyed a Wonderful Thanksgiving, and I am wishing you an early Christmas filled with Joy!

I visits lots and lots (nearly a thousand now) of blogs, and I often forget to leave comments, and only as I am waiting on the next page/blog to load up do I remember that I didn't write anything. Sometimes I go back and do so, but a lot of times I do not.
So please be assured that I do enjoy them all and re-visit many times (maybe you have noticed that I do return, even when I'm bad and don't comment!) I have only ever quit following about 3 blogs, and those were mostly I just didn't like the genre of the cards I was seeing.
So I tend to hang around and come back and see what you are up to! And almost every single one has something new to catch my eye! Seeing all the wonderful talent and new ideas is something I really do enjoy a lot.

This past year has been good to me, and I hope to you also! I hope to find a job this year (please, economy, RAISE UP!!) and to continue with this hobby that brings me joy and hopefully does the same to the people who receive my cards. I've been able to work with an amazing group of ladies on the Design Team for Stamp, Scrap & Doodle Saturday Challenge (and they do enjoy challenging me!) and in our emails back and forth they provide a lot of laughs and fun too!

My advice to everyone this season is to enjoy the season. You never know how many more you'll have and you can never recapture it once it's gone. Celebrate every chance you get. No matter how slight a reason. Make new friends (like blogging friends!) and definitely cherish the old ones you have!
Merry Christmas!

Happy Saturday, and another SSDS Challenge

I am so proud of this card! I can hardly stand it!

You see, I do basic simple cards mostly, and to the people I send them to - that's fine. But now and then I get pushed (or pulled) into trying something different by the DT and their choices of challenges!

And that's the case with this Flower Pot card Challenge today. I had never tried this before, and was a little anxious. But boy, do I like it!

I didn't want to do flowers specifically because of the season, and I thought the leaves and such would work out OK. The pot itself is covered with wallpaper - turned out really nice and it's textured and I love it!

When you pull out the card it says Happy Thanksgiving!
The sponsor for this week at SSDS is Dustin Pike. The winner will get their choice of I believe it's 3 images! Now that's a cool prize!

So come on and join us. You have a whole week (and you know you don't really want to go shopping on Black Friday with all the crowds and such! - and that's assuming you don't get it done today!)
This was such fun I think I'll make another to get in the mail on Monday!

And when my husband saw it tonight, he asked who I was sending it to, as it was Extra Nice! How's that for a compliment!

I have some Surprise Blog Candy for someone

I made my 300th post earlier tonight,
and on the spur of the moment decided that I would give a little surprise blog candy to the first person who left a comment on my blog after this.

So.... a little while ago, my friend Anita left me a comment (and after reading again about my cousin Don and his health issue, she left a promise to send a card too!)!
So I'll get a some small goodies sent off to her on Monday!
Congrats Anita. Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment, and for the card too! I've sent you an email.


You never know when I will do something like this. I'd been thinking I needed to do something for some time, and this just occurred to me when I realized I had made that 300th post.
Who knows when the next one will happen, or for what reason I'll do it, but I have a few other goodies in my stash that I think might be loved by someone! They may be small at this time as I'm still not working, but I hope it will be some little things that someone will like.
Keep checking back to see what I'll do. It just may be something for followers next time, you never know!

Have your heard about the Gypsy?

WOW. It's awesome. . . and you could win a one!! A new challenge blog called The Gypsy Spot is GIVING ONE AWAY!!!!! Check it out by clicking here . Til December 1!

Squigglefly - part 2

Here's another card for the Squigglefly challenge #28! I forgot I had this image, it was a blog candy win and I just love it. And I thought this was something I could really see someone doing - if they didn't have to prepare all the food for the upcoming feast!!

Squigglefly Challenge #28

Now this may seem strange, but I personally don't like pumpkin pie, and hate the smell too, so I'm grateful/thankful to whomever makes it so that my husband and the boys can enjoy it without me being involved. So this time, I'm sending this card to my Mom who will do the honors!

This gives me a Bonus count in the Squigglefly Challenge #28, as I'll be sending this card tomorrow so it arrives early!

I also believe this works for the Simon Says Challenge this week, animal antics! I think that aptly describes what this little mouse is getting ready to do!

I think this also works for La-La Land's Challenge LLWWC13.

All these challenges have some lovely candy available, so I hope I get chosen!

Just sharing some news

One of the ladies sites I love to visit is Angie Kennedy Juda/Chick'N Scratch . Love her videos (see the top of her site). Anyway, she's excited as she is NOT moving (I think she was dreading that a lot!) and she wants to get the word out. Also, she's updated her email and wants people to know that too!

SSDS Challenge

Here's my image for the sketch challenge this week, and I've used a cute image from Heather's Fresh Brewed Designs.

I'm not into coffee, but doesn't this look like a great idea to sit back after the HUGE Thanksgiving dinner we all have, to have a nice warm drink and some simple dessert? Love it!

My family are all on a kick to lose some weight, and make an attempt at getting a little healthier this year, so I don't think this will be on our list this Thanksgiving. I do intend to cut WAAY back on items on the menu! And we also have an annual Christmas party in early December, and usually I have a fully loaded table, counter, and stovetop covered with food items, but this time there will be much leaner party fare! I think I need to forwarn people in my invite. What do you think? Should I tell them, or just wait and see? It's an open house thing, so that's partly why so much food usually, but I absolutely am cutting out some of the food items I don't or cannot eat any more.

Well, enough chatting. You need to head over to the blog and check the sketch out, and then get busy and get a card made! We have wonderful prizes and it's not so crowded, so the chances of winning is much higher than at some other challenges! Come join in!

Annabelle's Candy

YUM! Here is a picture of some of the candy

that can be won at Annabelle Stamps through Nov. 22!

They are very releasing their Christmas sets and new Sprinkles. And to celebrate both they are asking for help spreading the word, and offering this candy as an incentive! So yea, I'll let you all know they are out there with some cute designs!
Love these Christmas images. Cute camels!

A SPECIAL REQUEST - and the address is provided

My cousin's husband is a veteran, who is going to be in desperate need of cards this coming week and for the next several months. He has been in treatments for a long time at the Veterans Center, and it's not been good. In fact, he's recently been transferred to another hospital in the area because of the failed treatments at the VA hospital.
Don is being admitted to the hospital again on Monday to remove his foot.
He has diabetes, and has some complications from it and he's been resisting them taking his foot for some time, but the infections has now pretty much taken half of it anyway, and now the physicians have decided there is no choice, it's either his foot or his life.

So.... now to the special request part:
I am asking each and every one of you who come to my blog (and all others if you'd care to share this on your blog too!!) to send a card to him to help cheer him up and wish him a good recovery from this surgery.

MAILING INFO:
Don Wilson
130 East Northfield Drive PMB 285
Brownsburg IN 46112

It's just the cost of a stamp, and whatever card you might be making for a challenge or even just one that didn't quite turn out exactly as you wanted, but I'm sure it could make all the difference to him! Please help this vet to stay encouraged and heal!

This is an ongoing request as well, as they have advised my cousin that it will take many many months to recover from this -- so if you could mark your calendar in some way, and send an additional card in a few months, that would be Fantastic. I asked my cousin how she would feel about me making this request to all my cardmaking and blogger friends, and she's up for anything that might help Don in his recovery!

So please think about how you would feel if Don were related to you, and especially with him being a veteran (Veteran's Day is coming soon!) and having to recover from something like this. Please send him a card of any type and then also mark your calendar to do it again in a few months.

Doesn't have to be a get well card; can be a thinking of you card, Thank you for your service as a Vet card, Holiday card, whatever. You don't have to sign it even.

Just please do send a card. (I'd love it to hear back when you have mailed one!)

And thanks for doing this! I'm positive it will make a difference to Don.

Happy Saturday!

Well, it's time again for another SSDS Challenge card.

This time it's a special fold card. And I made this Sympathy card. I've been needing too many of these recently, so maybe if I have a few in my stash I won't need as many? Well, it's worth a try.

I'm not a good photographer, but I wish I were. I just love this plaid paper with a tiny shot of glimmer in it. And I don't have much of it left either.

Come on over to the SSDS site and check out all the other cards by the DT, you'll find they are very good at doing these challenges, and there's a chance for a prize. Click on the link on the right and join in.

Passionately Pink for a Cure...

If you've read my blog before, you know I support this type of event:

Pink mini's blog candy
Laura Denison is hosting a silent auction to benefit the cure of breast cancer reseach starting this October 31 to November 7th she is posting 16 mini albums created for talented woman and everyone can bid on them , High bidders will be notified. They will go to the event web page set up at the Susan G. Komen Foundation "Passionately Pink for a Cure" site to make a donation in the amount of their bid. High bidders will receive the mini from the creator as a thank you for their donation!
If you want to make a donation you can also do that at the website.
The website address is: http://www.info-komen.org/goto/pink-minis

SweetNSassy Challenge today

Here's a card I made for the Sweet N Sassy Challenge SNSDD1 today at SNR Card Universe. It was to use HOLLY in a card, and I used the new stamp snowman I just won from Peachy Keen! The ornament with holly image was just a coloring page I found. All were colored with pencils only.

Because I completed this card today, I am supposed to get two new freebie images from Sweet N Sassy!
My husband works with a lady named Holly, so guess which card she'll get this holiday season!

More Candy, YUMMMMMM!

ABC Toys & Crafts Blog has some blog candy, and boy does it look YUMMY! It's Martha's cupcake stamp and punch and it runs through November 13th. Now I'm only telling 'cause I had to, in order to enter, otherwise I'd keep this info to myself!

ODBD Challenge entry

This is my entry into the November ODBD challenge to "shimmer". Both of the papers used are shimmery and I hope the pictures show that a little. Of course, I'm not a photographer, and so that's a challenge in itself!

I love the simple theme of the sentiment, which is just off my computer.

I punched the lower edge of the card and the sentiment both and added the gemstones.

This second photo hopefully shows the shimmery paper a little better.
I'd love to win the funds to go shopping at this site!