I'm here...briefly...

So, on Wednesday my eyes suddenly got all bloodshot. I went to the doctor straight from school and he thought I had pinkeye and gave me some eyedrops. To cut a very long story short, I had a severe allergic reaction to the drops and have seen 3 doctors in the past 2 days - ugh! They're also not even sure it was pinkeye; it might have been a viral infection left from when I had a sinus problem a week ago. My corneas were pretty badly damaged and it'll take 2-3 days for my vision to return. I'll be back early next week; just wanted to check in here and say hi!

Dare to be Different!

This is another Stamping Bella image that reminded me of Nattie when I saw it on their website - not just the image, but also the sentiment :) Nattie is very much an individual in the way that she dresses, which I think is pretty cool! She isn't afraid to wear exactly what she thinks looks fun, and doesn't bother what others think. Long may that confidence continue! :)

My week is going well so far back at school. I was wiped out on Monday after my first day back; I should probably have taken one more day, but I was ready to get back to the classroom! Today I'm working all day; I usually finish at 1.30pm, but I'm covering for another para in the Music class until the end of the day. Jamie's class will be one of the groups, so it'll be fun to see what he's working on in Music! Iain was in San Francisco yesterday, then flew last night to Chicago for a meeting today. He'll be back tonight.

We're starting to think about a few days away for the 4 of us over Spring Break - possibly San Francisco for a long weekend :) We lived in the Bay Area from 1997 - 2002, so it has a special place in our hearts :)

What's in a name?

Here are some fun questions that you can answer and share about your name :) Let me know if you play along!

1. What's your full name? Toni Armstrong
2. What do your parents call you? Mum used to call me Toni, Dad called me "Tone" or "Bones" :)
3. What do your grandparents call you? Toni
4. What do your friends call you? Toni, Tone, Toners
5. Do you like your name? I didn't like it when I was a kid, because I got teased for having a "boy" name (they didn't care that it was spelled differently!). But now I like it because it is so different!
6. If you could change your name, would you? I would have probably changed it if I could have before the age of 15, but since that age I've been happy with my name :)
7. What would you change it to? N/A
8. Do you like pet names (sweetie, honey, babe, etc.)? Iain calls me Beeb, but that's it.
9. Does it bother you when people use your middle name? Nope! I don't have a middle name :)
10. Who named you? I believe it was mainly my dad's idea...read on...
11. Are you named after someone? Well....here's a good one :) Dad got the idea for my name from a Playboy magazine (I guess it must have been right in the middle of one of those articles....). If Dad was around now, I'd ask him what he was thinking??? And I wonder when my mum found out where the idea came from....

Any occasion card :)

Last weekend I played with this little guy and the set of stamps he came with. The set is called "Framed Friends" and is available from Gina K. Designs. The patterned paper for this one is by October Afternoon. I colored the owl with my Copics; I am slowly but surely getting better with my blending technique, I think! :)

As you'll see on the left, I also used the small owl stamp to decorate the inside of the card....

TCP Tuesday Sketch Challenge

Hi all!! This week our TCP Tuesday Hostess is Leigh - she has a great sketch for you to play with! For my version, I turned the sketch on its side :) The stamp I used is "Mod, Mod Wedding Cake". The patterned paper (hopefully you can see the sparkle!) is by My Mind's Eye. Be sure to stop by Leigh's blog today to get the scoop on how you can become this month's "Swanky Stamper"!

Peace :)

Happy Monday, everyone! I'm going back to work this morning after being out sick all last week. Hopefully it'll be a nice smooth day :)

It's very pretty outside this morning; the sun is shining and there's a fresh coat of snow on the ground. There's more forecast for this afternoon, so after that perhaps I'll get a few photos. It's been a while since I posted snow photos on here; it's been such a mild winter!

Isn't this stamp image fun? When I spotted it on Stamping Bella's website, I knew it was for me :) Nattie (DD, age 12) is into everything peace-sign related right now, so the image made me think of her immediately! The patterned paper is an older line by SEI that I found in my stash.

Have a fantastic day; I'll be back tomorrow for TCP Tuesday!

Day 5 Blog Candy Winner

I knew I'd find it far too difficult to choose my favorite from the cards that would be submitted - and I was right! That's why I decided that I would let Nattie choose the winning card for Day 5 of the Blog Candy. So, without further delay.....the winner is.....

SHELLEY!!

Here's Shelley's card. Nattie loved the colors and the bling on the card (what 12-year-old wouldn't?) and (in Nattie's words) "the pouffy stuff on top of the cupcake and the wavy edge" :) CONGRATS, Shelley! E-mail me at toners@wispertel.net and I'll mail your Blog Candy goodies out to you early this week! And once again - THANK YOU to everyone who played along!

Thank You!

I want to thank everyone who has participated in the Blogoversary Blog Candy this week - and congratulations to all the winners so far! I'll be announcing Day 5's winner later tonight :)

Here's a pretty celebration card made with one of the Stamping Bella stamps I got with my gift certificate that Sue gave me for my birthday! Isn't this image fun??? It's called the "Leaning Tower of Stella" :) The patterned paper is the new "Bittersweet" collection by Basic Grey.

I feel so very lucky to have met so many friends through blogging! I appreciate each and every one of you and enjoy checking in with you through your blogs :) Thank you!

The Day 4 Winner....

...is SueB!! Congratulations, Sue!! You're the winner of the "Serenity Now" stamp set and the white gel pen :) Email me your info at toners@wispertel.net and I'll mail your goodies out early in the week!

The final blog candy offering is still up for grabs!! Pull out your cardmaking supplies and play along with Day 5!

The Day 3 Winner.....

is StampinCathy!! CONGRATS! Your comment was chosen by the random integer generator this morning :)

Here are your random numbers: 31
Timestamp: 2009-01-24 16:38:21 UTC

Email me at toners@wispertel.net with your mailing info and I'll get your candy out to you early next week! Yahoooo!

There are still 2 more chances to win - see Day 4 and Day 5 below :) Good luck!!