The beauty of Iowa

Our second day on the road was fairly uneventful except for the smell of cows!  I have seen more cows than I have ever wanted.  The good news is that Russ and I can calculate very well how much gas we have left in the tank.  <sigh>  The weather has been beautiful and the kids are doing exceptional.  We stayed a day in Iowa at Russ' parents house to relax.  It was a GREAT day filled with the kids riding the golf cart (aka Gator), fishing and of course I had to get in a little shopping.  Life is good. 

Fishing is not my idea of fun.  I never liked it as a kid and nothing has changed today.  Mostly because I am extremely impatient.  I also do not like putting a live WORM on a hook.  It's nasty and I feel like I am hurting the worm.  I know, silly!

The kids on the other hand love to fish.  Anything outdoors they are game. Alexis still holds a fishing pole with a little fashion:

Brandon had dirt from head to toe at the end of the day.  You can tell from his picture that he is just happy to be out of the car and not stranded on the side of the road!

…and then there is Russ! This pic speaks volumes!  This is why I love this crazy guy! We have laughed at each other over and over again!

You might be wondering if we caught a fish… the answer would be NO! Russ scared them all off. 

We are actually sitting in West Virginia tonight.  The last leg of our trip is tomorrow.  It will take about 5 hours. Thank you to each of you for sharing your fun stories with me. Russ and I have enjoyed them and laughed together.  While moving is never easy it's been much easier when I can share it with you. 

While I've been on the road my little brother had a birthday.  Here is a card I made for him. It's not in the mail yet but will be in just a few short days.    He's also in the Navy so I thought this would be a fun card done in Red, White and Blue.  The stamp set comes from the Level 3 Hostess set called Playful Pieces. WOW this is a great set.  There are tons of pieces in it.  

I stamped each of these boxes in Craft ink onto Crumb Cake.  I really love Craft ink and love it even more on Crumb Cake.  I cut each image out and popped them up with dimensionals.  It's a super easy card including the cutting.   

I hope your weekend is fantastic!  Again, many thanks to each of you for your continued prayers, thoughts and laughs.  If you only knew what it does to a girl's spirit.  <wink>

XOXOXO

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A Thelma & Louise adventure!

If you remember a few weeks back I stated that our trip across the country may not be a Thelma & Louise scene, however Russ and I never do anything half a$$!  HERE is the link to refresh your memory!  We started our trip across the United States last night.  Boy did we make memories!  We didn't get on the road until late as we finished up last minute things around the house getting it ready for our lovely renter.  Once we were on the road it was a great feeling of accomplishment from the last week.  Dealing with movers is never easy.  Especially when they show up and they're fighting.  That's always a nice start.  We stopped for dinner and the kids were so happy.  About an hour later we passed the exit where we had first planned on staying.  Not TWO seconds after passing the exit the gas low light came on.  Russ said in his calm voice, "Can you check the GPS for the next gas station?"  Once I checked I told him we had about 13 miles until the next gas station.  About 5 minutes later I noticed Russ (aka Thelma) had a funny look on his face and the Van was slowing down on an interstate that you can go 75mph on.  NOT good.  We just ran out of GAS!  Now it's about 1030pm and the kids are a little freaked out.  I immediately start laughing hysterically because I couldn't believe this was actually happening.  WE ran out of GAS?  We pulled over and called for help.  Brandon tells us this has to be the worst day in the car ever.  I calmly told him that the day could only get worse if a storm came.  Guess what?  YEP! A big storm came with lightning, hail and HUGE rain.  Brandon was right.  This was turning out to be a crazy car ride.  It took 45 minutes for the tow truck to come save us with gas.  He brought us 6 gallons to the tune of $45!  OUCH!  We got to the gas station and filled the van quickly still in disbelief that we actually ran out of gas.  Remember, typically my husband co-pilots a plane.  <insert scary face>  He will never live this one down! We ended our night at 1230am in a fine hotel still laughing.

Today, my co-pilot husband redeemed his manhood.  We noticed that the gas gauge was not moving at ALL after traveling about 150 miles.  The gas gauge is officially BROKEN!  He did mention last night that after he put the 6 gallons of gas in the tank the gauge said we had a half tank which just wasn't right.  Anyways, this means we have to do a little math along the way so we know when we're running out of gas.  So much for relaxing. The rest of our trip has been uneventful.  Kids are doing great and we are in Iowa for a few days chillin'.  Friday we start the journey again. 

After reading this novel story I better leave you with something fun.    More new stuff.  This time it's a new Hostess set coming.  Customers, you will want to host a workshop to receive this amazing hostess set. It's a Level 2 set called Apple Blossoms.  Such a FUN stamp set. 

I love how White Craft ink looks on Crumb Cake cardstock. It's so pretty.  It won't be long and this set could be yours for any workshop over $300.  Whoo Hoo!

Don't forget, just a week left of the Last Chance list.  Also check out the Clearance Rack in my Online Store.  GREAT savings up to 70% off.  WOW. 

I'll keep you updated on more of Thelma's antics as the adventure continues. Thank you for all the sweet comments you have been leaving.  You are giving me warm fuzzies during this entire process….AGAIN. 

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Happy Little Birds

Just a quick post tonight.  I'm emotionally drained from the day.  The good: All the stuff is packed up and on it's way to the new house! The bad: Saying good bye!  Heart wrenching.  I watched my little girl say good bye to her best friend today and I cried.  Then tonight it was back to back good byes that just SUCKED.  Again, I know I will see many of these friends again.  I just won't have these great friends around all the time like I've had.  Sigh! 

Tonight's card doesn't have new stuff actually.  I was going through pics of cards I had made and wanted to share this one because I think it's fitting for how I feel today.  Honestly, I made this card for my dad's birthday which is at the end of the month. The birds however look like our little family today.  Big Birdie Dad and the rest of his flock following him.  That pretty much sums it up!

At the end of the day… this is how I really FEEL:

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Pirate Land

We took a break this weekend and decided to go to the Renaissance Festival on Saturday after a long week of packers in our house.  It was a great time for the kids to get away from the mundane moving process that I so dislike.  The Ren Fest is one of my FAV places to go because there is so much creativity that surrounds you.  People are free and use their imaginations!  I truly love this place.  We have gone every year since we've lived here.  I really wanted to dress the part this year but it just wasn't in the cards.  Next year for sure. 

First, the packers…. they were great but took forever.  Imagine that.  Those of you that have been in my home know that we have a ton of stuff.  Friday the packers were here until 9pm.  I was a little miffed to say the least.  We were all WIPED!  My house obviously looks like a chaotic mess.  The stamp room…

Just not a pretty site.  In just a few short weeks it will look back to normal.  I feel pretty confident. 

Now, back to the fun at the fair and then I promise a pretty card that will give you warm fuzzies. 

Besides the Pirates I love the fairy's.  They always look amazing. 

Loved seeing this family of fairy's.  That little one was just PRECIOUS.  My kids received beautiful dragon tears from them.

OF course a little face painting.  I thought this was the best painting Alexis has ever had.  The lady was amazing.

What's a Ren Fair without a little Bad Girl action?  Cathy and I had to get a Henna Tat! I get one every year.  I love them.  I love the artists.  The lady that did mine actually stamps on Domino's.  We had a great conversation and she was a lovely gypsy! 

Time for my own artwork.  It's time to start showing you what I have been working on the last two weeks.  It really was non stop stamping.  I have many things to share over the next two weeks during the move.  All NEW stuff to get you excited with the upcoming catalog.  I think you will likey!

This card uses both Old and New.  I used the new Newsprint Designer Series Paper with the Perfect Punches stamp set.  I love how this card is elegant and fluffy.  The ribbon will carry over into the new catalog.  SO thankful. I did a little sewing with this card.  Then I got really crazy.  I actually took the Itty Bitty Buttons and sewn those onto the ribbon.  They are the little heart buttons.  I love how these are clear and can go with just about any card.  The center Fleurette will also be in the new catalog.  I love these little flowers because you can dye them any color you need.  Great embellishment. 

Well, Monday is loading day.  I am sure they will be here ALL day but it will all be GREAT. 

XOXOXO

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Every Cake Should have a Few Layers

Today's card was completely inspired by a sample I had seen in the new catalog.  It's one of the great things about a Stampin' Up! catalog.  It's called and Idea Book for a reason.  This years catalog will impress you 1000x with the amazing samples inside.  Today, I used a stamp set that is in the current catalog and staying put! Along with that I used a few NEW colors along with some accessories that are retiring. 

This stamp set is called On a Pedestal (113814).  Great set with many ways to use it.  I decided to get scissor happy and cut a lot of the layers out.  This gave the card lots of dimension.  I also used buttons and white linen thread to add accents.  The layered cake was matted and then placed on a Pink Pirouette cardstock layer that was run through my Big Shot using the Polka Dot embossing folder.  These add perfect texture to any project.  Lastly, I added a bit of Shimmer Mist to the card.  Lately, there isn't a card that doesn't get a little shimmer added. 

Now, for a move update.  Packers came yesterday.  The stamp room is officially packed.  However the lazy bums decided that TODAY they would not come and they would finish on Friday.  I think they made a big mistake.  I cannot see how they will finish packing this house tomorrow.  I will simply keep my big nose out of it and let them figure it all out themselves.  I hate not being in control.  My only concern is actually leaving when we originally wanted and not prolonging the pain of leaving this great place any more than I have to.  The kids think the whole process is great.  Thankfully I've had awesome friends take them for play dates and my kids think this is ONE heck of a summer vacation.   

I'll keep you updated.  I hope your FRIDAY is filled with stamping.  I think mine will be all about supervising.  I'm pretty good at that.  <sigh>

XOXOXO

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