My Christmas Fun...So Far

All I can say is thank goodness  I am a Fiskateer! Otherwise, I don't know if I would have had any Christmas cards made or if the bug for creating anything would have hit me yet. Today was the first day I felt like making it "look a lot like Christmas." I didn't get a whole lot done in that direction. However, everything from fall is now put away and there are a couple of things in their place to indicate that Christmas is fast approaching!

My goal is to share a few crafty Christmas items I have made in the last couple of months here on my blog over the next couple of weeks.



 Gail #6870, Lynn #7182 and Mary # 6811

In this post, I  want  to share are the great cards from the Snowmen Card Swap I hosted for the Fiskateers. First of all, I want to apologize to Ruby, who made some beautiful cards. Because I was so excited doing my first swap, I don't have a picture of either of the two designs she sent in. Ruby hosted her first card swap right before I did this one, so with that in mind, I am hoping she will know the excitement involved for me. This was a swap where you received the same number of cards you sent in. The choice was six or 12. Because I made 12 cards, I have pictures of 12 cards - somehow, one of them being my own. I was very careful to try not to give anyone else one of their own (unless they requested it)  and tried not to give anyone two cards from the same person. And, since I just took the picture today, and I did not wind up with one of Ruby's beautiful cards, I don't have one to show you. The caption under each card is the first name and Fiskateer number of each of the designers. I think all of the participants did a great job! Now I face a delema...do I actually use the cards, or do I hold on to them because they are special to me?



Tracy # 6773, Deb #7092 and Brenda #5151











Julie #5102, MaryAnn#5271 and Marianne #6701



Laura #7326, Teresa #6857 and Brandy # 6307



I hope you enjoyed seeing the cards, and if you are not a Fiskateer, and would like to know more about this great on-line crafting community, go to http://www.fiskateers.com/ and find out how you can join in all of the fun!

 







Home of the Free, Because of the Brave - few thoughts about the blog hop and my WINNER

I absolutely had a great time hopping from blog to blog yesterday! I loved all of the different stories about veterans old and young and the women and men who are now actively serving our country.  I read every word of every post and loved every minute of it.  I was so into it, I completely forgot to post anything about it to "advertise" on the Fiskateer message board where I can usually be found chatting about something most every day.  Thankfully, Cheryl, one of our fantastic leads and also the focus of Groovy Deb's blog post, was on it! She posted about it on the main blog and told how honored she was by Deb asking her to be the one she interviewed. 

Now, what you are all wondering about...

According to Random.org the winner for the candy from my blog is comment #41. 

Gina Thornton said...



I love your project! I wouldn't have thought to use newspaper on a LO. Did you have to do something special to it? I mean, to prevent it from yellowing?

Thanks for hopping along with us!


Gina


Congratulations Gina!

Now to answer her question, which I was going to do in an email...I was so bad! I know I should have done something to preserve the newspaper article, but since I was in my procrastination mode, I simply cut it out and attached it to the background paper (did use acid free tape runner though!).  I wasn't really sure what to do with it to preserve it.  I think the only real way to keep it preserved it to copy it. I guess I could do that in two pieces. But, then what about those other 1,528 pieces of newspaper I have tucked away?!

I loved it that I had the newspaper article to add to my page, but because of the size, I wasn't able to do anything to jazz the page up at all.  Why is it as a scrapbooker I feel I must add to everything?

Land of the Free, Because of the Brave

Welcome to my little part of the Land of the Free, Because of the Brave Blog Hop. I hope you find a way to thank a veteran or many veterans today!

You should have arrived from  Judy's blog and you will go to Groovy Deb's blog next.

John M. Ferguson - Marine Corps Raider

The project I picked to do for this blog hop is a double page scrapbook layout about a man who served our country in the first elite fighting force of the United States Armed Forces - the Marine Corps Raiders. John Ferguson and his wife Avis were our dear neighbors at our last house.  They moved in behind us a year after we moved there and were our neighbors for eleven years. During those years they became our adopted parents.

Until I met John, I had never known about the Marine Raiders. They were only in force for two years during WWII, from 1942 until 1944.  There was controversy about having a group considered the "elite of the elite." In the article I used for my scrapbook page, it says there were about 5,000 Marine Raiders. In an article I found when I Googled Marine Raiders, it said around 8,000.  Either way, when you think of the millions of men who fought in that war, the Raiders were a small group.  Another reason for controversy, many of the men who were trained for this special force were found fighting right along the side Marines they would have fought along side, with or without the special training. So there were those who thought there was not a need to train special forces. That would not be true for John, he saw a lot of action where they sent Raiders in ahead of the rest. He was in a 3-man shooting group with  two men he trained with from the beginning. He spent most of his time with these two men during the war and on the wrong side of enemy lines more often than not. He did missions where just a handful of Marine Raiders would go in, get the information about where Japanese camps were set up, etc. and relay that information back. Then the Marines Corps troops came in with full force.

John is now one of just a hand full of Raiders still living. He is a part of what is called the Last Man Committee, which was formed by younger Marine. Since they were the youngest, they figured they would be ones to outlive the others.  John is 84 now and going stronger than we ever dreamed possible just four years ago, when his doctors gave him 2 to 3 days to live.  What the doctors did not know is they do not tell John when he is ready to die! He will decide that for himself!  He, "still had things at home that needed to be finished."  As he started doing better, a doctor came to talk to him about spending 30-45 days in the rehabilitation unit.  John told him he would stay 30 days. Then he needed to be home.  By staying that long, he would be home just in time for his and Avis' 60th wedding anniversary. They celebrated that anniversary, and on June 1, 2010, celebrated their 64th anniversary.

I am proud to call John my friend and my "other dad!"

Operation Comfort

The other night my husband told me he saved an episode of "Two Guys' Garage" for me to watch with him, because they were showing something he knew I would like.  He was right! They were showing a program that is part of "Operation Comfort" called "Automotivation." The Automotivation program provides a place for wounded veterans to learn about working on vehicles.  In the part they showed the other night, they were learning different welding techniques and making welding tables that would move up and down to be accessible from a wheelchair. It was the kind of show that made you count your blessings and not want to ever complain again. I had tears in my eyes for a lot of it. They were good tears though. I was happy for those veterans for not giving up hope and proud of the attitudes they had. I had written down the web site so I could look at it myself, and later thought of it again when I started to do this blog post.

Blog Hop Order

KarelJ at One By One The Flamingos Are Stealing My Sanity
Celeste at Touched By a Butterfly
Deb at Tidbit’s Place
Michelle at Peanut Butter and Jelly Designs
Jennifer at ScrappingYoung’s
Diane at Crafting This Moment
Judy at Be Present Be Real
Marianne at Life From Marianne’s Table        YOU ARE HERE
Deb at If It’s Groovy
Christel at One Scrappin’ Sista
Belinda at Queen Bee’s Musings
Colleen at Col’s Creative Corner
Summer and Jennifer at Cricut Diaries
Rachel at Suburban Crafter
Gina at Gina Thornton Stamping
Becky at Sew in Stitches
Rebecca at Creations With Becca
Bobbi Jo at Sweet Sassy Diva
Angie at Gypsy Paperie
Linda at The Tulip Collector

Lots of Blog Candy!

You have two chances to win prizes for completing the whole blog! The prizes have been donated just for this special cause, and come from the generous Marlo, who has donated a Scrap’NTote and Anne, from Paper Patch Craft, who has donated a  Spellbinders Nesties in the Crown Circle Shape.  We all thank them both so much! Without their participation this blog hop would not nearly as much for for the bloggers as it will be thanks to them!
The rules for entering are the same for both prizes: Hop along our path and leave a comment AND a way to contact you on each and every stop. On Friday, November 12, KarelJ will use random.org to choose the winners. She will email the winner and then tt is up to the winner to contact KarelJ at ksjennings(at)gmail(dot)com. If she has not been contacted by Monday, November 15, another winner will be chosen.

My Project


Here are the pages I did featuring John:



You can see I cut out the middle of the papers that were being used as frames, to be saved to use in other places in the project



Double Page Layout

Closer look at left page

Another Chance to Win

I will draw a number from random.org on Friday from the comments left on my blog You do not have to become a follower to win this candy. The winner will receive a little bit of red, white and blue blog candy as a part of their prize from me.


A peak at the Candy from my Blog - There will be something added to this.

 



















In Closing
Now, before you go, please leave a comment to let me know you were here, and then you can go check out what Groovy Deb has for you on her blog!


Thank you again for stopping by my blog!  Good luck as you hop around!  Above all today, REMEMBER, THANK, AND PRAY FOR THOSE SERVICE MEMBERS WHO HAVE MADE IT THE LAND OF THE FREE!!

A Chance to Win Bo Bunny...

Stacy at Scrapbooking Cottage is giving away a the Noel papers by Bo Bunny.  She will be posting her winner on Nov. 11th.

You will want to check out Barbara's blog birthday celebration giveaway! She is really celebrating in grand style!

Land of the Free, Because of the Brave - Bloghop

On November 11, I will be participating in another bloghop! The Land of the Free, Because of the Brave is a bloghop to honor U.S. Veterans. During the hop you will see a lot of red, white and blue craft projects as you also get to read about veterans and their families.

This will be three hops in three months for me!  This hop is being organized by Karel, at One by One the Flamingos are Stealing My Sanity, who also organized the one for Breast Cancer Awareness. She did such a great job with that one, it made me want to join in again.  She has arranged sponsorship from Marlo's who is contributing a Scrap"NTote and Anne, from Paper Patch crafts has donated a set of Spellbinders Nesties...the Crown Circle set. These will be the prizes those who leave a comment on every blog will be eligible to win.  There will be individual prizes offered by some of the bloggers for the comments on their own blogs. I hope you will join in the fun and honor our veterans at the same time.

Passing the Love for Paper!

My niece, Hannah, was spending the night.  We always read before we go to bed and instead of reading the book she had picked out, she decided to look at my Scrapbooks Etc. magazine with me.  When we turned to the page with crafts for kids, she knew what she wanted to do the next day.  There were pictures of three Halloween-themed treat boxes - a pumpkin, a mummy and Frankenstien.  She thought about it and said she wanted to make one for herself and her cousin, Nicholas. The next day we gathered the supplies to make the mummy and Frankenstien.  I scored the paper for her and showed her what lines to use to fold on and which lines to cut. Since it was almost time for her to go home, we put all of the supplies in a bag and she headed home, ready to do some crafting.  All we were missing were the Rolos for Frankenstien's bolts.  When I was visiting a couple of days later, I saw she had the boxes all done. Funny Thing - I bought the Rolos and gave them to Hannah, but apparently they didn't get all the way to the project. (LOL)  I only had my phone with me to take the pictures, but I wanted to share them.  Here is what Hannah came up with for her crafty Halloween project.

A Chance to Help Fight Breast Cancer and Win...

Here is a win, win situation!  Melinda at Min's Moments and her friend Felicity have teamed up to make a donation during Breast Cancer Awareness month. They are doing this in memory of the grandmothers they each lost to breast cancer. You can go to this post on Melinda's blog , where they are giving $1 for each comment left.  Not only will you be making the amount of their contribution go up, but you will have a chance to win one of six great pink prize kits they have put together.  They will be drawing the winners at the end of the month.  It will take less than a minute to do this and it really is a WIN, WIN situation!

We Have Winners!

I am hoping everyone who participated in the Think Pink Blog Hop had a great time. There were so many great projects with such a variety.  It was exciting for me as I looked at my blog and read through the new comments I had each day, with a total of 81 for the entire hop!  To top it off, I now have 53 followers! Amazing!  I didn't ask anyone to follow my blog.  I would rather just have it be your own idea.

Now, for the reason you all really looked at this post...

I used Random.org to determine the winner. My first prize, which includes the dishcloth I made, a Fiskars Tool Taxi and some other pink goodies, goes to the person who left comment # 7 and said "This is so beautiful. I wouldn't use it as a dishcloth!"  Who would it be that be?  It was Karel J! Congratulations Karel!  Well, we will have to see what she really does with it. A couple of years ago, I made several dishcloths for my niece just before I went to see her in NY.  She will not use them as a dishcloth. She uses a couple of them like doilies under something and keeps the others in the kitchen drawer with her other dishcloths, but as of April of this year when I was there last, they were still not being used.  My suggestion, Karel, is go ahead and use it! They work great!   Thanks for being a part of this!

The second prize I have is a bag of pink goodies and it goes to the person who left comment #3 and said, "Great project... I love it... Thank you so much for the hop and the special goodies....Celeste." 

Thank you to everyone for participating in the blog hop! I hope it will remind you not only to do your on self breast exam and mammograms, but also you will encourage others in your life as well.

I apologize for the lateness of choosing my winner.  I started it this morning and then was not able to sign back on to the internet until now.

Until next time, happy blogging!

Welcome to the Think Pink Blog Hop!

It is good to have you here! Welcome to my blog as you participate in the Think Pink Blog Hop! 

You should have arrived here from Gypsy Paperie.  If you just happened upon my blog and would like to start at the beginning, see the list below.

After I decided to be a participate in this blog hop, I had to decide on the crafty item I would create for my post.  When I was in the craft store looking at their special display of pink items for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the yarn caught my eye. So, I picked up some 100% cotton yarn and decided I would make a pink dishcloth for my project and as a prize for one of you who comments on my blog. Here is what I came up with.  It was a new pattern to me and I hope you enjoy it.

For the random winner of the dishcloth will also go some a Fiskateer's Scrapbooking Tool Taxi.  I will pick a second winner and will send them a surprise package of goodies (yes you are right, I haven't finished my shopping!).

So, be sure to leave a comment to be entered in the drawing.  Leave a way for me to contact you. I will post my winners on Tuesday.  Good luck and have fun, fun, FUN as you hop along.

Here is that list again, just in case you have become lost!


1. One By One The Flamingos Are Stealing My Sanity – http://karelj.blogspot.com/

2. Gina’s Stamping Creations -- http://ginathorntonstamping.blogspot.com/

3. Crafting This Moment -- http://craftingthismoment.blogspot.com/

4. The Cricut Diaries – http://cricutdiaries.blogspot.com/

5. Sweet Sassy Diva -- http://sweetsassydiva-gspot.blogspot.com/

6. Scrappin’ Sista -- http://www.onescrappinsista.blogspot.com/

7. If It’s Groovy -- http://ifitsgroovy.blogspot.com/

8. Oh, Snap! -- http://ohsnaplizzie.blogspot.com/

9. Crazy About Cricut – http://crazyaboutcricut.blogspot.com/

10. Gen’s Den -- http://www.gensden.com/

11. Peanut Butter and Jelly Designs -- http://peanutbutterandjellydesigns.blogspot.com/

12. Heartfelt Creations -- http://tlbheartfeltcreations.blogspot.com/

13. Creations With Becka – http://creationswithbecka.blogspot.com/

14. Calie’s Creative Corner – http://caliescreativecorner.blogspot.com/

15. Tidbit’s Place – http://tidbitsplace.blogspot.com/

16. Gypsy Paperie -- http://gypsypaperie.blogspot.com/

17. Life From Marianne’s Table – http://number1aunt.blogspot.com/   YOU ARE HERE

18.The Suburban Crafter-- http://www.rachelstampshappy.blogspot.com/

End Here: One By One The Flamingos Are Stealing My Sanity -- http://karelj.blogspot.com/

More About Think Pink and A Few Other Thoughts

Tomorrow is the first day of the three-day Think Pink Blog Hop.  I am excited to see what pink ideas the other bloggers have come up with to share with all of us!  As for my project, I am almost finished with it and it will be one of the prizes I offer to someone who stops by and leaves a comment.

When I signed on to my blog today, I saw I have twenty-one followers! Before last month's Orange Blog Hop with the Fiskateers, I think I had only three followers. Most of the new followers are as a result of that blog hop.  I did not require anyone follow my blog to win a prize, and don't ever plan to.  I would ratherthey because they want to, not because they might win something by doing it. The last few who decided to follow probably did so as a result of the Q and A I did with Karel, the organizer of Think Pink.  Thank you to all of you who are giving me a chance to share my love of crafting with you. Each time I see a new follower, it makes me want to improve my blog.

I thought I would share the Q and A Karel did when she featured me on her blog a couple of days ago for those of you who haven't seen it.  Obviously,  since this was on her blog, Karel is the "me" in the following:

It's almost here! The 1st annual THINK PINK Breast Cancer Awareness Blog Hop! I'm so excited and pleased with the wonderful bloggers who are sharing their creativity and talent! I'm featuring a couple of them every day between now and the Hop--it starts October 9 and runs all the way through October 11--three whole days to hop, hop, hop and help raise awareness.

My featured blogger today is Marianne. I first met her on the Cricut Boards, and now we are also together on the Fiskateers Boards. Both are great communities for crafters, and Marianne is one of the best! She told me a few things about herself...here's what she shared:

Me: When did you start crafting, and what are your favorite things to make?

Marianne: I have tried crafts from embroidery to macramé to weaving old chair frames starting around the time I was in 6th grade. "Modern" scrapbooking started for me about 15 years ago when a friend showed me pages she had made in a class at our local craft store. That is when my paper collection began! Like so many others, scrapbooking has led to card making. I also enjoy knitting.

Me: You're a versatile crafter! Why did you want to be a part of the THINK PINK Blog Hop for Breast Cancer Awareness?

Marianne: After being a 13-year survivor of breast cancer, we lost my mother-in-law five years ago. The cancer came back and spread to her bones. I still miss her every day. Last year her sister, my husband's wonderful Aunt Lois, was diagnosed and went through treatment. Aunt Lois is now faced with the fact that one of her three daughters, more than likely, will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Participating in the blog hop seemed like a good way spread awareness of the importance of early detection and to provide support to breast cancer patients and survivors.

Me: I'm so sorry about your Mother-In-Law, and your Aunt is in my prayers. Are there other Charities or Causes that you're involved with? You can give them a plug here!

Marianne: I am a supporter and beneficiary of Chronic Disease Fund (CDF). Without CDF, I would not be able to afford Copaxone, my once-a-day injection for Multiple Sclerosis, which costs $48,000 a year. CDF helps me by paying what my insurance does not cover. They are a non-profit organization which also supports breast cancer patients and patients with other types of cancer and other diseases. You can learn more about them at http://cdfund.org/

Me: One of my niece's takes that for MS as well..I had no idea it was so expensive. Is there anything else you'd like the hoppers to know about you before the Day of The Hop?

Marianne: My project is not going to be a paper crafting project and I will be offering more than one prize on just my blog! So, hop for a good cause while you have fun, fun, FUN!

And I know she's right! You can find her blog here: http://number1aunt.blogspot.com/

It is worth your  time to check out Karel's blog. She is sharing places you can find more information about breast cancer all month long, as October is Breast Cancer Awareness month.  Thank you so much, Karel!

Think Pink Blog Hop Sponsor

I don't want to forget Sarah at Pink Cricut who has generously donated a $25 gift certificate and is the official sponsor of the Think Pink Blog Hop.  Thank you so much, Sarah!

Now, just remember to come back tomorrow and have fun hopping!

Think PINK Blog Hop



THINK PINK Blog Hop October 9-11, 2010

 To raise the awareness of breast cancer, Karel, at One by One the Flamingos are Stealing My Sanity, has organized the Think Pink Blog Hop.  I had a good time doing my first blog hop last month, and thought I would do it again for this very good cause.

Karel is a true supporter of breast cancer survivors.  It is not something she only does in October.  I first knew Karel from when I was active on the Cricut Message Board. I became reacquainted with her when she recently became a Fiskateer. Be sure to check out her blog, or for just a quick run down about her efforts to support Breast Cancer Awareness, you can check out this post on the Fiskateer Message Board.

I hoping the donation I am working on for a prize for my blog comes through. Either way, there will be a hopping prize!

Just for Fun...use your imagination!

The night I made the treat boxes for the boys (see below), my sister said she wanted a book marker with her name on it. I wanted to do something a little better. Awhile back Patricia had been telling me she really needs to get organized (who doesn't?). I told her just having my calendar in my purse and writing things down has always helped me so much. While searching for something else a day or so earlier, I found a 2010-2011 planner I had bought months ago with the intention of altering it. So, I altered that first and decided it needed a matching note pad and pen.



I spent less than $2 making this. The planner and note pad were each on clearance at Michael's for 50 cents when I bought them, and the pen is from a multi-pack I bought a couple of years ago. The paper was from the first RAK I ever won - a box of scrap paper that weighed over seven pounds! I was in crafty heaven! At the time I probably owned about 100 sheets of crafting paper. (How much do I have now? Uh...I don't think I'd better go there!)


After a rough work day, Patricia told me she was happy to see this on her table when she came home. It was a fun little project and it felt good that I happened to make it just when my sister needed a little lift! It just shows gifts don't have to cost a lot of money. Most people love things that come from the heart the most.

THIS IS WHERE YOUR IMAGINATION COMES IN...
I forgot to take a picture, or if I did take one, it did not get saved correctly.

I used a pretty shimmering pink paper that had thin black stripes and stripes of small flowers. The calendar was in a plastic cover. I just added my paper over the paper cover, cut out a scalloped circle, put a white letter "P" with pink stickles on it and put some white ric-rak under the monogram and put it back in the plastic. I changed the orientation from landscape to portrait. The paper pad was one that has a cover with little magnet to hold it closed. It was done to match the calendar. The pen was a Pentel. The outer case is clear plastic. The end unscrews, so I took it off and wrapped the pen itself in the same shimmering pink paper and put the end back. There you have it...a quick, easy gift to help my little sister stay organized.

I hope you were able to look in your mind's eye and see what I have described! I had everything except the description written up when I realized I did not have the picture as I thought I did! Thanks for playing along!

Just a Little Treat

My sister, Patricia, lives right behind me in my mom's old house. She has a normal life where she goes places every day! I often call on her for a quick stop at the store - usually for milk. That was the story for yesterday. She told me she would send my nephew, Nicholas, and his good friend, Levi, over with the milk. We were both starting dinner, so I told her to wait until after dinner and I would give them a little treat for delivering it.



Well, when dinner was over, I went into my pantry, that is well stocked with little treats, since I am a Costco shopper. I thought about what to give the boys as a delivery treat. Then I thought about of putting a couple of things in a brown bag and putting a fun little tag on it or something. Well, if I put it in a paper bag, I had to put more than two things, because it would look pretty empty. So, I picked out six things for each of them. Then went into my craft room to make a tag. Then I thought maybe I would find different little bags that I could decorate and make it more fun. My thinking kept growing until finally...I could make something on my Cricut with Tags, Bags, Boxes and More! I had wanted that cartridge for so long when I finally bought it, and had hardly used it (as is the case with a few of them). Quick, I sent Patricia a message, "don't send the boys over yet." Then to explain a little more, "I am making them a surprise."

Finally, I decided on that cute little popcorn box. Why put all of that work into a name tag? Make a bookmark!

About an hour and a half later...here are their surprise boxes!

And, here they are enjoying their treats!

As if seeing their smiling faces was not joy enough for me, as they were looking at their goodies, Nicholas said to Levi, "See? I told you she always comes up with something good!" I asked Levi,"Did he really say that to to you?" Levi said, "Yes. He said you always give the best treats." Now my goal in life is not to spoil my nieces and nephews with stuff. I will be honest, this comment made my heart happy and made every second of the time I spent going overboard worth it!

Surprisingly, they did seem to enjoy their bookmarks as well as the candy and goodies. Most kids seem to enjoy having anything with their names on it. This just reminded me of it!

Thanks for stopping by and happy crafting!

A Great Blog to Follow and Tim Holtz Giveaway

If you do not already follow Pinky's blog Much Ado About Nothing, then you are missing out. Pinky is a great blogger. She posts something creative almost every day. She is having a giveaway on today's post and she is trying to get to 1000 followers by Christmas. Take a look at her blog and sign up to follow, you will be glad you did!

Orange Blog Hop Winner

Thank you to everyone who participated! It was so nice to read all of the kind comments from each person. This was fun and I hope to do it again. My blog was pretty far down the list and for so many people to have made it to that point in the hop to comment is dedication to the love of crafting!

Thanks to the nice people at Random.org, I have chosen a winner for the "What A Nut" LE Fall punch from last year. Drum roll, please, for my first blog giveaway.......it is number 36... Nana Beth said, "The lace is to die for. I love lace and flowers and pretty and soft and you nailed them all!"



If you send me your address, I will send you your punch!

Welcome to the Orange Blog Hop

If you are participating in the Orange Blog Hop and came here from Betsy's blog, you are in the right place! If you just happened upon my blog, the blog hop starts at the Fiskateers Blog.

For my orange project, I chose to do a chipboard mini book. Two of my favorite things are flowers and sparkle.And, I used both! On the cover I used some white lace and tulle and sprayed it with my homemade "glimmer mist"(water, colored with food color to make orange and about 1/4 teaspoon gold Perfect Pearls). The butterfly is chipboard covered with paper. The edge is punched with Fiskars Effervescence Border Punch and is laced with green fiber.

I do wish the photographs were better. If I had finished while I still had daylight, it would have helped! I apologize for that!

Other Fiskars tools I used during this project were:

Read Between the Vine Corner and Border Punch

Sure Cut Trimmer

Extra Large Seal of Approval Squeeze Punch

Wishes All Around Clear Stamps

Compact Stamp Press

3 in 1 Corner Punch - Flowers

You can find these tools and many more at the Fiskars Web Site.

Thank you so much for coming by! This is my first-ever blog-hop and I have had fun getting this far! Leave a comment here and be entered in a random drawing for the Fiskars Fall 2009 LE "What a Nut" squeeze punch that I will send to one lucky blogger! (see post below)

Next in the bloghop is Crafy Suz blog.

Hosting My First Swap

I love snowmen! They are so cute and festive at Christmastime! Last year I bought the cutest little snowman stamp and made a few cards with it and decided I would like to make some more. So, I announced on the Fiskateer message board that I will be hosting a swap. This is something new for me and I am pretty excited to be doing it! How about you? Would you like to play along? Go here to see the post.

Big Orange Blog Hop

I will be participating in my first blog hop. The list from Debby, who is organizing the hop, showed up in my email. It is unbelievable! There will be 42 blogs to hop! The place to start is fiskateers.com. So, grab a snack, get comfortable and get ready to see some exciting projects from Fiskateers near and far! They love their orange and when this is finished you will too!



Leave a comment during the blog hop and you will be put in the drawing for this Fiskars 2009 LE "What A Nut" squeeze punch.

Win a Big Give Away from T-Bear Touch!

Trisha is celebrating her 200th follower and a new DT position. Help her celebrate! Check it out on her blog!

1000 Sheets of Paper

You can enter to win one of five really great prizes being given away on this blog.

My First Knitted Baby Cap

My husband's dear aunt loves to knit. She knits 9 sets of baby caps and booties a month to give to a local hospital. When I first knitted, I only knew the knit stitch. She was determined that I was going to know how to make something more than dishcloths! She started out by letting me pick another dishcloth pattern, but showed me how to purl. She gave me awhile to practice. I made one scarf that was made out of chenille and is oh, so soft! When we were visiting, Aunt Beulah a few months ago, she went to the yarn shop that she loves so dearly, and bought me some circular needles. She gave me the pattern she uses and I couldn't believe the next day I was making something besides a dishcloth! My niece was getting ready to have her second little girl, so I got busy! The cap was ready on time, but I still have not mastered the booties. I started them about six times when I was on an airplaine, but didn't have the concentration I needed to do something new.

Getting Back to Blogging

I haven't been to my blog for quite some time. I was looking at a blog today that I want to follow. When I put in my information, I thought it was time to actually look at all of those blogs I follow - and maybe even think about posting a couple of things I have been doing myself. I went through my pictures and found a couple of things I don't mind showing.