Happy Holidays!

I wanted to post and wish all my friends in blog world "Happy Holidays" and a fantastic 2011!! Unfortunately, 2010 has not been a good year at all for me, but I am hopeful that 2011 will bring a fresh start, a clear outlook and a year of putting me and my kiddos nothing less than first. I will be lighting that creative spark once again and will be back to blogging more regularly! Thank you to everyone who has supported me and stuck with me this past year; I am one lucky girl!

TCP Tuesday - nice and easy for the holidays!

Susan is our hostess this week...and she's making it nice and easy for us by asking us simply to use any TCP holiday stamp! I used "Round the Chimney", one of the new holiday sets just released...and also some of TCP's awesome twine! Happy creating!

Your Gift

Here's another card made with a brand new stamp set from The Cat's Pajamas. This one is called "Your Gift"; I paper-pieced the tree and stamped the stars (also part of the set) around in silver. A little matting, a little ribbon, and voila! Have a super Sunday :)

It's a Holiday Hop!

Hello everyone - welcome to The Cat's Pajamas' blog hop showcasing TCP's brand new stamps and dies! I have the pleasure of using the "Big Bear" set - isn't this guy just perfect?? You should be joining me from Carole's blog; if you'd like to start from the beginning of the hop (and I highly recommend it!), jump over to Jen's blog to see all the creative goodness :) And don't forget it's also TCP Tuesday! We were challenged by Jen to use our TCP dies to make an embellishment, so I used the brand new Snowflake die to embellish my border - and I added some silver Stickles for extra sparkle :)

Now it's time for you to visit Tracy...happy hopping!

Sneak Peek Week...

All week long, the Cat Pack will be showing sneak peeks of upcoming stamp sets...today we're showing this beautiful "Snowflake Girl". This set comes with the image of the little girl, and 3 adorable sayings including the one I used: "There Are No Small Miracles". You might also recognize The Cat's Pajamas' Pennant Dies that I used to make the Christmas tree in the background!

Don't forget to head over to Alma's blog to find out more about Sneak Peek Week :)

Sketch Challenge - TCPTUES134

Hello all, this week the fabulous Alma is hosting a Sketch Challenge for us! And it's a fun one :) I'm taking the opportunity to show you another brand new stamp that will be released in the next couple of weeks - this one is called "Merry Wishes"... I found my Liquid Applique and was able to add "fur trim" to the little girl's hat. Lots of paper piecing possibilities with this set, too!! Have fun playing along!

Beary Merry :)

The bear is back...here's a card to wish someone a "Beary Merry Christmas" using the new "Beary Good Year" set coming on Tuesday from The Cat's Pajamas :) The Cat Pack will have a blog hop this Tuesday to show off even more of what this set includes - you're going to love it!

TCP Tuesday Sketch Challenge Card :)

I am so sorry it took me this long to get my TCP Tuesday card posted! I have a new laptop and had to figure out some new photo software...I will have to play around with it over the break to get used to it :) Anyway, my card uses one of the new TCP sets - "Give a Little" - check out Sprinkle on her candy cane!

TCP Tuesday - Stamp Challenge :)

Hi all...TCP Tuesday has rolled around again, and this week Susan is challenging us to make a wintery card :) I decided to post this card as I don't think I showed you a card with this particular image - check out Poochie with his head deep inside the present box (from TCP's "Give A Little" set)! I'm also happy to be able to post a card with warm colors on it - considering that right now the temperature outside is -11! The kids at school haven't had outdoor recess for the past 2 days, since we can't take them out if the temperature is under 20 degrees. Fingers crossed for at least 20 degrees tomorrow...

Favorite tree ornaments

TCP Tuesday - Color Challenge!

Hi everyone - we have another TCP Tuesday Color Challenge for you - hosted this week by Joanne :) Jump over to her blog right here to get all the details on playing along. For my card I decided to make a holiday card - I used TCP's "Give A Little" set (I love the bear!). I paper-pieced the bear using some patterned kraft paper by Jillibean Soup. The word "honey" is spelled out using a new alphabet set from TCP - it's called "Coolvetica" and the letters are the perfect size for cards :)

Better Late Than Never...

Here's my card for this week's TCP Tuesday challenge - I'm sorry it's late! I used TCP's "Make Merry" set and some tone-on-tone snowflake paper with lots of holiday shine :) For the layout, I used a sketch from the Unscripted Sketches blog.

It's back to work for me and the kids tomorrow. It was nice having a week-long break - and we only have to go for 3 more weeks before our 2-week holiday break!

Busy, busy....

Thought I'd post an update along with another TCP card - this card uses TCP's new "Penguin Christmas" set. I also used the German Glass Glitter to cover some felt snowflakes before I attached them to the card front.

It's been quite a week here so far...I'm in my last week of school (YEAH!) - my last official day of class is Monday November 16th - and then I'll have my degree! It's been a long few years, but I am very, very proud of myself :)

Things at school are going really well. The kids from 2nd, 4th and 5th grade that I work with every day are fantastic - they are so open and honest, and I have grown attached to every single one of them. Although I am excited to start my new job on December 10th, I will miss the kids a lot - but they have assured me that they will be stopping by to say hello (or to get bus passes, to be excused for a dental appointment, or anything else I can help them with). Change is good, right?

Nattie and Jamie are both working very hard at school. They are both turning into really nice, fun people which is cool to watch :) All the animals are well, although Sally (our diabetic cat) has to go to the vet on Friday to have her blood monitored for a day so that we can find out if her insulin dose needs to be adjusted. She's back to drinking a lot of water again, so I'm thinking there must be something going on...

After school finishes, I will have my evenings and weekends back! I am very much looking forward to catching up with all my blogging friends (I am very sorry that I've been a bad blog visitor this past month), participating in all my favorite card sketch challenges again, and generally just being able to have some "me" time :) Take care everyone - and thanks, as always, for stopping by.

Holiday Hop!

We're back with another TCP Blog Hop - this time we're showing off 5 new sets that Alma is releasing tomorrow (Tuesday, November 10). There will be a special offer for the set of 3 stamps included in the Kitty Kat Pack. For now, sit back and enjoy the hop! If you're joining me from Susan's blog (she's our hostess this week for TCP Tuesday), then you're in the right place since that's where the fun begins :) For my card, I used the brand new "Make Merry" set along with some patterned paper from Making Memories' "Mistletoe" collection.

Thank you so much for stopping by!! Your next stop is Ana's blog - tell her I sent you!

Another peek...and some news!

Here's another holiday card made with the brand new stamp sets coming this Tuesday from The Cat's Pajamas :) We'll be doing another blog hop starting on Monday evening at 9pm EST, so stop by and see what we have to show you!!

In other news, I have a new job! Our school secretary is retiring next month, and I applied for the position, went through an interview and got the job :) It's full-time, although I'm working pretty much full-time already anyway. With this job I'll get benefits and almost as much time off as the kiddos (I'll work a couple of weeks at each end of summer break). My first day is December 10th, so I'll get 7 full days of training with the current secretary before she leaves. I will really miss working so closely with the students (and they have told me they'll miss me a lot, too!), but I've told them I'll still see them a lot :)

Whipper Snapper Reindeer

Hi everyone - I hope your weekend is going well! Today's card was made using a layout from the Sweet Stop Sketches blog, and a stamp from Whipper Snapper Designs called "Chris Moose."

The patterned paper is from SEI, and I added some Stickles to the ornaments and the scarf to give the design more shine for the holidays :)

I'm going to get some stamping done today, and then tomorrow Jamie and I are going shopping for some birthday gifts for Nattie. Enjoy your Saturday!

A Crafty Weekend

The kids and I spent the day indoors yesterday keeping warm - we were in the 20s all day!! It looked so pretty outside; we hardly got any snow, but what we did get had frozen on to the branches of the trees - they were beautiful! I got several cards stamped, including my cards for the next 2 TCP Tuesdays!! I also wanted to let you know that the release date for TCP's "Gobble It All Up" Thanksgiving set has been changed to Tuesday, October 20th - and there will be another blog hop to show off this super set.

For today's card I used Tracy's sketch for the week. What a versatile card layout this one is - thanks, Tracy! And the sweet reindeer is by Impression Obsession - you can check out the stamp here :) The patterned paper is an older line by Sassafras Lass. Enjoy the rest of your weekend - and thanks for stopping by!

Christmas in August

I made this card for the last challenge over at Our Creative Corner - to come up with any holiday card. It was pretty easy since I had just received this sweet set of stamps by Whipper Snapper Designs - it's called "Cozy Critters" :) The layout is from Card Positioning Systems' sketch, and the patterned paper is by Die Cuts With A View.

Feeling very lucky :)

I am feeling very, very lucky this weekend. Friday was the last day of school, so I knew that a chaotic day was in store :) First we had a staff breakfast where we all revealed whose "Secret Santa" we were - it was hilarious listening to some of the reasoning behind the guesses!!

Next came the kindergarten class party; we had about 8 parents helping out who had organized lots of crafts and food for the kids; they had a blast - what's not to like about anything involving glitter or frosting?? I was overwhelmed by the kind words from parents who came and spoke to me. One of them said, "In case you ever wonder if your job is worthwhile, don't ever doubt it. These kids love you!". Wow. Of course, as a mom I am always been very appreciative of my kids' teachers and I help out in whatever ways I can, but it was different this year hearing it from the other side since I'm now working at the school as a para.

The class also sang "Happy Birthday" to me and gave me some flowers and a beautiful leather journal. My birthday isn't until the 28th, but they somehow found out that it was during winter break and still celebrated anyway :)

I am a lucky, lucky girl! Happy holidays, everyone!

(Details for today's "Holiday Thanks" card: "Snow Bunny Flopsey" stamp by My Favorite Things; sentiment by Stampin' Up!; Copic markers)

Elzybells Holiday Card

Well, I'm home from work today - Jamie has a really bad cold and so I'm keeping him home; Iain will be here tomorrow so I'll be able to go to school for work for the last day if Jamie is still sick. So today I think I'll get some house cleaning done, do some reading for school, watch a movie snuggled up on the couch with Jamie, and finish up the little holiday gifts I've made for the kindergarten class I work in.

Today's card was made with a stamp by Elzybells. I love the little boy and girl images; they are lots of fun for coloring! I believe the patterned paper is by My Mind's Eye. Happy Thursday, everyone!