Weekend Plans

This weekend, I am going to Graceland! Well, I am going to Memphis, Tennessee and will be visiting Graceland. I'm taking my Mother there for her birthday, and it will be just a quick little weekend trip.

The other "must do" on my list, will be Sun Studio.

I hear that this is a must see, and I will be staying down on Beale Street, so it won't be too far out of the way. I believe that this is the recording studio where Elvis got his big break. I'm sure I will know much more about it real soon!

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful (and speedy) week! Weekend here we come!

Blog Candy Alert!

Over at Kath's Blog, she is celebrating moving into her new crafting cubbyhole, by having a wonderful giveaway! Hop on over there and take some time to poke around, because she is one crafty lady. Here is just part of what is up for grabs...

Happy Labor Day!

Happy Labor Day! I am lucky enough to work for a business that actually closes for this holiday! It's the first time in my adult life that I have actually gotten a paid day off on Labor Day! Usually, I've always worked for a business that does not close (retail and medical services).

I hope that everyone is enjoying their weekend so far. And...I hope that if you are off of work today, you are not busy with household chores. Truly take the day off! And for all of my stay-at-home Mom friends.... no bill paying, meal planning, grocery shopping, appointment making, dishes, laundry, or even cooking if you can escape it (and the thousand other things that are way too long to list)!

August?

I think that Fall is sneaking up on us very early this year! It's freezing cold here today. Okay, well it's maybe upper 60's, but it FEELS very cold! I'm alright with it though, because I am done, done, done with Summer, and ready for Fall! Before you know it, we will all be feeling these blues....

I made a Halloween card and tag today. The tag turned out more black than the card, and the orange scanned ALOT brighter than it really is, but oh well! I think even if the camera was behaving itself, I would not have had enough sunlight today to take a decent photo.




I think that next weekend, I am going to take a little shopping trip (will have to go further than Walmart), and look at new cameras. Also, I think that I need to get some stamps. All of my cards and tags are starting to look the same! Plus, I need some new papers! Woo Hoo! Now I can't wait! I had better read up on stamping a little bit to see what all I should get.

Update on my job for those of you who know that I kind of loathed it awhile back...I tried to quit a few weeks ago (I can't remember if I put that on here or not). They talked me into staying. I moved to a different department...and well...I kind of like it a lot better now. I'm stubborn, and I hate to admit it, but yes, I do like it now. Don't get me wrong....I don't LoVe it! I like it. I mean, you know, I can live it with it!

I hope that you all had a great weekend. It ended way too fast!

The Good Mail!

I received this fantastic, super cute shaker card from the super cool Jeannie from Jeannie's Happy World! Even during my loooooong break from blogging, Jeannie stayed right there, sending me the Good Mail, and emails. I couldn't get my camera to see things my way today, so this scan is the best that I could come up with. No way does it do the card the justice it deserves! Thank you so much Jeannie!



She has inquired about any craftiness that has been going on around here, and really the only thing that I have FINISHED lately is these little Halloween tags. Again, the scanner!

The Plan Was....

...to stick to the plan! The Walmart plan that is. Yep. I did it again yesterday. I went to Walmart, and here is how it went down (imagine the theme song to "Mission Impossible" while reading) and I will warn you now, it is a long story...

Time: 5:30am, Saturday morning, I shot straight up in bed and said out loud, "I'm going to Walmart to get a Cricut". I had a couple of cups of Java and then got ready. On the way over there, (it is about a 20 minute drive), I reviewed the plan in my mind. For those of you thinking..."wow, she makes a really big deal out of going to Walmart"... you are right. I do. I completely l-0-a-t-h going to Walmart!

Where was I? Oh yeah, I drove into town, and BAM! obstacle number one - a farmers market in the church parking lot. keep driving, keep driving, not part of the plan.... I continued on. I pulled into the parking lot, and as planned, I parked very, very, far away. Why? Because when I come out to leave, and the parking lot has become a crowded mess, I won't have anybody pressuring me to hurry up by rudely honking their horn and sitting behind me with their blinker on so that I will leave my nice up-close spot sooner. I will have time to open my soda, open my gum, find the radio station that I want to listen to, put some chapstick on, see how much cash I have for any other stops on the way home, etc, and etc.

Where was I? Oh yeah, I get out of the car and head on inside. The plan is to 1) grab a cart (working wheels or not), 2) take a right and cut through the clothing department, 3) skip across an aisle and cut through electronics, 4) RUN across another aisle and cut across the hunting/fishing mess, 5) make myself temporarily blind and sprint to the dismal craft department. BAM! Vaseline Advanced Healing Lotion-30% free! BAM! Breakthrough technology in colorstay lipstick! BAM! DVD's 2/$10.00! BAM! Candles..pretty smelly Candles! I suck at Walmart! The trick to Walmart is to stay away from the main aisles! That is where they suck you in, and make you pay.

So, after an hour or so, I make it back to the craft department to find the Cricuts. Oh they have 'em all right. They have them all wrapped up in cord, with an alarm on it, and is ticking with a flashy little light. I mean seriously, It's a big butt box. How in the WORLD would you even begin to think about stealing it! So I heave it into the cart, throw in a spatula (because they say you need a spatula), and try to scope out the cartridges. TRY. They are hanging on those long peg things, and they are locked on there somehow. You can't get them off of there to look at the backs of the boxes to see what the biz is all about. So after some impressive Yoga style moves, I was able to twist my head around and check the backs out, and picked out the one that I wanted to buy. Off to the fabric cutting table to ring the bell, as I have not seen a worker since I set foot into the store! The tween that responded to the bell, had no idea how to get the cartridges off of the wall. She said that she would go get the camera lady, she might know. In the meantime, a couple of scruffy looking worker guys (I believe from automotives) came to check the situation out. They stood there contemplating all of the possibilities. Eventually the photo lady arrived. She held in her hand, this thingy. Apparently the thing that would free the cartridge, and let me be on my way. "This one, right here" I said. Did she jump into action? NO! Her, automotive dudes, and tween began discussing what the cartridges are for, and why they were under lock and key. Then they began pointing out other things that were nearby that were more expensive and were NOT under lock and key! "This one, right here" I said again. Two seconds. No lie, that is how long it took photo lady to release me from the hell that lies in the craft aisle at Walmart!

Away I went. I had wanted to get something else, but at that point, I couldn't remember what it was! I was heading to the checkout and BAM! I smell food! I went over and checked out the hot food counter, and it looked good (saucy chicken things) but it was only 8:30 in the morning. I skipped it. I had to get out of there! BAM! Country Sampler, Get Set for Fall edition!

Back to the checkout. And when I say checkout, I mean the one and only checkout out of what, like 20 that was open. A Harley Davidson couple was in front of me. Buying roughly a 1/2 dozen cases, of each liquid, sold by the case, that Walmart has to offer. In the speedy lane, or whatever it's called...the 6 items or less lane. Wait. Wait. Price check on a case of water. Wait. OOh, my turn. Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep. I'm done. Heading for the finish line..... "Please stop, and return to the store. You have stolen something. You are a criminal". Okay, the alarm thing may not say that, actually I have no idea what it was saying, but I knew that it was saying it to me. Greeter lady meandered over, and by the time she got there, I had the cartridge out. As she approached, I said "it's either this (pointing to the Cricut), or this (jabbing the cartridge at her)". At this point, I would write...to make a long story short....but if you are still reading this, I'm guessing trying to shorten this now will not make one bit of difference!

Where was I? Oh yeah. She shuffled over to the wall and picked up this scanner type of gun. I'm guessing to demagnetize whatever set the alarm off. She waved it over the bar code on the Cricut, then waved it over the bar code on the cartridge. Each time, saying it's not that. I asked her if she needed my receipt. Okay, she said. (WTH!, Wouldn't you have asked me that immediately if you were "head security" at WalFART!) So I gave it to her. She looked it over. And she pointed to the figure that represents last weeks paycheck and said is that for this thing? Yes, that is the big electronic gadget that is taking up the whole inside of the cart. And this (pointing to the $60.00 that was listed next to the cartridge)? I waved the cartridge in her face again. Then, she opened my bag, took out the $2.00 stickers that I had bought, and waved the magic wand over it. I kid you not. She looked at me and said that she didn't know what was going on, but I could go ahead and leave. "Are you sure, I don't want this thing to be broke or something and me try to return it, and not be able to because the stupid alarm goes off! Write it down! Write these two things down, on your clipboard". I told her. I told her good! She wrote it down. And I left. Two blocks later, I remembered: Tamales. I wanted to get some Tamales. Crap.

I have no little crafty thing to show yet, because I spent the whole day and night cutting stuff out! I haven't assembled anything yet, because I love cutting the stuff out! I'm happy that I got it. I'm pretty sure that I will have alot of fun with it!

I have no style!

Well...not just one style anyway! That has always been my decorating problem, I like too many different things!

I really love this dish set! I like the theme, because well, I like just about anything that relates to the ocean, but I LOVE the colors too!

Problem is...... I love these too! And why?....because I love the colors! I think that I am done, done, done with Summer. I am ready for Fall!

And let's not leave these out! Now, I am not a big "rooster" person. However, I am a "Fat Chef" kind of person. Who knew that this kind of goodness could come out of combining the two! I love these dishes (again, could be the color....)!

A Day Off of Work And Nothing To Show For It!

Well, today I am off of work. I work this coming Saturday, and when that happens, I get a day off during the week. I got up bright and early and was dead set on going to Walmart (a.k.a. the Devil) to purchase a Cricut or whatever they had. Unfortunately to go Satan's Store, I have to drive over to the neighboring town (7 miles one way) which is where I drive everyday to go to work. I thought long and hard about it this weekend, and I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I had to have a Cricut. I drove the seven miles in a thunderstorm (because I had to have a Cricut). I circled the parking lot 3 times (because I had to have a Cricut) looking for a space up close so I wouldn't have a long walk back to the car with my new purchase in the pouring down rain, and deadly lightening. I dodged the "greeter", grabbed a broken, germ infested cart, and made a mad dash to the dismal crafting section (because I HAD TO HAVE A CRICUT).

There they were. Two different sizes (each with two very different prices). There were two of the BIG boxes (with the BIG price) sitting there. Only one of the smaller sized contraptions were left, and it had most definitely been returned. It was all beaten up, and it had this anti-theft thingy all wrapped around it. I lugged one of each out to the middle of the aisle and began reading what little there was to read on the outside of the boxes. I stood back up and saw that they had about 10 different "cartridges" that you could purchase (maybe not even 10). You could not take them off of the thing-a-ma-bobs that they were hanging on without some super secret Walmart key or some crap. As I stood there looking down at the Cricut machines, then up to the cartridges, I realized...I have no idea what the hell these things really do! If I buy one, will it do anything at all without the million dollar cartridge? Will I plug the thing in, just to have it say "insert _______ now to begin enjoying last weeks paycheck"?

So I stood there, thinking....surely some fabulous crafty person will come along and tell me everything that I need to know about this thing. I waited. I waited. I lugged the two machines off of the floor. Put them back on the shelf. Threw some Martha Stewart corner punch thing in the cart. Grabbed 3 little things of ribbon that were on sale, and headed for the checkout.

So...I still do not have a Cricut or anything else. I would have gladly gotten something else, but the Cricuts are all that they had. What to do, What to do! What DO they DO!? Anybody out there have this thing? Do you like it? If I get one, will I need to drop another couple hundred bucks just to get a circle or a star out of the dumb thing? GRRRR!

Hello Everyone!

It's been so long since I've posted, I have almost forgotten how to do it! Same thing, different day....so not much to talk about! Let's see, what is new.... Well, I quit my job last week...but they talked me into staying. It really has turned out to be a miserable place to work. Everyone is in a really bad mood because we are apparently busier than ever before, and it is not letting up. The moment that you walk in the door, you are defeated. It's a bummer, but the owner does seem to be trying to help the situation. We seem to be the only gig in town that is hiring right now, and believe it or not, we do not get many applicants! If it wasn't for our ads in the "help wanted" sections, there would not be a "help wanted" section!

I was going to to set sail down the Mississippi River at the end of September with my Aunt on her sailboat. We were going to take a couple of months and work our way down to the Florida Keys. Plans have changed though. We have decided that we are not giving ourselves enough time to prepare for that kind of journey, so we are going to re-evaluate the situation in one year. It makes sense to wait, but it was a cool idea while it lasted. There is a lot of preparation and planning for a trip like that, and we were only giving ourselves 6 weeks to get ready. Most people take at least 1 year to plan this sort of thing!

I am looking at Cricuts and Cuttlebugs online, and thinking about heading out to Walmart today to get one. Any suggestions? I don't have a clue how to use either one of them, or which one is better...Or what they even really do! The weather here has seemed very "fall like" lately, and it has me back in a crafty mood! I woke up today with a touch of the Halloween Bug. I have vowed to not buy a single scrap of new paper until I use up what I already have, but I need new inspiration! I think I need one of these machines...I think...Do I need it?

Anywho...thank you to everyone that has sent me emails during my very long absence. Although I have been gone, you all have not been forgotten! I am trying to get some catching up done today as far as blogs go. I have missed out on so much!

Rainbow Bridge

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...

I had to have JJ put to sleep on Friday April 23, 2009. He's been with my family for 13 years, and the Vet believes that he was probably 2 or 3 years old when he came to live with us. About a week and a half ago, he had a minor stroke. He bounced back from it literally within 15 minutes. Then last Wednesday, he had another one, but that one was major. When I got home from work, he was lying in the back room, and would not get up on his own to walk. I finally got him to stand, but he couldn't make his left side do what he wanted it to do. We made an appointment at the Vet for him, but they couldn't see him until the next morning. We decided if he wasn't any better, that he would have to be put to sleep. The next morning he hadn't improved. He still bit at his favorite ball, and wagged his tail, but there was no will to get up, eat or drink any water. We kept the appointment, and my Mom said the Vet was really great with him. I couldn't stand to be there, so I went on to work. We had a little "ceremony" for him that evening, and he's resting beside the creek on my brothers property.

It's amazing how a pet can altar your life without even knowing it. It has been a very boring weekend. The house is quiet, and I have stopped what I'm doing a million times to glance down to see if JJ is under my feet! I know that we did the right thing for him, as I would never want him to spend one more second than he had to being scared, or hurting. He will be missed though.

A Looonnggggg Winters Nap!

I have been absent. For a LONG time! I want to officially and publicly say "thank you" to those of you who have emailed me, wondering where the heck I have been! I took a break from blogging and just the internet in general. My not so new job is super hectic right now. It seems that I started during our "busy season". I am on the internet all day at work, and I was finding it really hard to come home and even think about turning the computer on! I'm back now though. Sadly, I have forgotten how to change my banner, add hyper links etc. I'll get the hang of it again though.

I hope that everyone is well. I am going to a baseball game this weekend, and hopefully Sunday evening I will have some time to stop by and visit everyone. I really need to catch up!

By the way, I finished the Twilight series. It seems like forever ago now, but I read all four books in about 5 days. I L♥ved them!

Two Books And A Movie Review!

I have the day off from work! No, I didn't call off, it's my scheduled day. I have some serious house cleaning that I want to get done. I also want to find some new tunes for my IPOD. And I want to spend a couple of hours reading. I am reading two books right now, and I thought I would share a little bit of my opinion of them with you all. Now remember everyone, I am BEHIND the times! Let me just go ahead and get this one out of the way!

I am so Behind the times, that I think this is some kind of generic book cover or something. It took me forever to find a picture of it! I found tons of sites that had the hands holding the apple. It made me wonder if I was reading the right book! I was at Walmart last weekend, and finally remembered to look for it. There it was, in paperback for $5.95. Well, I couldn't pass it up. Normally I would buy the hardback, as I just prefer the "feel" of a hardback book over a paperback. If I really get into it, I will go back and spring for the good one. I'm only on page 32 right now, but I think that I am going to like it. I'll keep you posted.

This next one, I started about two weeks ago, and I am having a hard time with it! It started off weird, and it keeps getting weirder. I don't really like it, but I have to know how it ends. Again, behind the times. I would LOVE to go see the Broadway Production, but for now I will struggle through the book. I actually prefer to read a book before seeing the movie or stage performance. So here it is...

I am about half way done with it, and it's my goal to finish it before the end of the week. I keep hoping that there will be that "Ah-Ha" moment where it all comes together, and the weirdness of it all makes so much sense. We'll see!

And I am throwing this review in here as a treat just for you. Go ahead, yell at me.....blow off some steam...throw something at the monitor...kick me out of the chick flick club...question my judgment for what I am about to write...I watched this the other night...

...and I don't like it. There, I said it. I didn't hate it (not like I hate "Fargo"!), but I didn't like it.

The first time I watched it, I got into my favorite PJ's, I sat down with my supper and my favorite blanket, and pushed the play button expecting great things! .......hmmm.......

The second time I watched it (same night), I turned on the sing-a-long feature, turned the surround sound on, and sang along to the great ABBA songs!......hmmmmm........

The third time I watched it, (next night), I had been out to dinner and had a couple of drinks. I came home and poured one more glass of wine, scooted the foot stool out of the way, turned on the surround sound, turned on the sing-a-long feature, and danced and sang while I watched it!

Still. Nothing. I must be doing something wrong, because people LOVE this movie! I love musicals. I even liked "Moulin Rouge" for crying out loud.

What movies did you have high expectations for, that left you feeling like the odd one out?

My Favorite Picture

Jeannie over at Jeannie's Happy World is having a celebration this week, as it's her Blogiversary!! She has started off this sure to be fun week with a challenge. It is to post our favorite picture, and go back and leave a link to it in her comments. Why, you ask! Well, for one Jeannie's super cool and alot of fun, and I like blogging with her, and two...there's a prize! Of course there is a prize!

So here is my favorite picture. It is from the first full day of a vacation that I took a couple of years ago. And yes the time is correct....I was up at 5:00am, because I was not going to miss my first sunrise in the islands! I have many pictures from this trip that I think are very pretty, but this one just says it all to me. So, it's my fave!

Trash to Treasure??

Hi everyone! Later on today, I will be posting a new tag, but I had to throw an extra one in here to tell you a little bit about my new project. And this will be a long post, as I feel that you need a little background information to truly appreciate this story! Many bloggers post pictures of things that they found in thrift stores, and make them over to be cute as heck. Well....My Aunt stopped by yesterday morning all excited. Her exact words were, "Wait 'til I tell you about the stupid thing that I have done"! Translation: "I bought something that I don't need...yes another thing, that could potentially be alot of fun, but I will need your help with it....ALOT of help with it, and we will probably never use it". It's been a while since I've heard these words.

The last time, it ended up being a peddle boat (paddle boat, I'm not sure which one it's called). She agreed to buy it from a guy (man child) through an email based on a picture that she saw on Craig's List. The guy lived in the boondocks of Missouri, and we had to go NOW to snag it before someone else got it. We headed out in one of her 3 vehicles (the one that we might possibly be able to squeeze a boat into the back of), to what ended up being a scene right out of the movie Deliverance. To top it off, she had Obama stickers all over her vehicle (that she had put on), AND Confederate Flag stickers, that the PREVIOUS owner had put on, that she had never taken off. We got alot of confused and sometimes nasty looks. After stopping and asking for directions from a young couple and their 3 kids (none of which were wearing shoes, walking along side the road), we wound our way deeper into the woods passing shanty after shanty, while keeping to the main road as we were instructed to do. I'm not judging...any one of these folks could have been related to me, I'm just sayin'! We finally came to a lake and found the house.

The guy came out to greet us, and his Mother yelled from inside their home "Don't you bring those people in here"! Uh yeah, no problem at all with that lady! We walked down the hill to what they called a dock and there was the boat. Of course my Aunt wanted to take it for a spin in the freezing cold weather. I declined and suggested the owner go out with her. He admitted that he couldn't swim, and kept standing up and almost falling out of the boat. Fiinally, they finished their business, money was handed over, and the boat was all hers! We left without it, and she had to go pick it up with a vehicle more suited to stow a boat in the back. We've used it once since she's had it.

Why did she need a peddle boat in the first place you ask....You see, my family are boaters. Not ski boaters, but live onboard boaters. My Brother has a houseboat (we call it the floating camper, as it's one of the smallest boats at the yacht club where it is docked). My Aunt has a sailboat (a pretty respectable one), and it's docked at the same place. There is about 1/2 a football fields length by water between them. When we head down for the weekend, we need a boat to go back and forth, because it is too long of a walk to take the road back and forth. Now, we had went to the bowels of Missouri the year before the peddle boat era, and picked up a dinghy for this very purpose, but it still has never made it to the yacht club. Neither has the peddle boat. We use the peddle boat at the small lake here in town (once), that also is home to the 2 other smaller sailboats that she owns, which we have each been out on the lake only once. My brother took it to his lake lot (once) and let the kids use it, so he wouldn't have to take them for rides in his fishing boat.

When she got the larger sailboat (it's large enough to have comfortable living quarters), she wanted to sell the pop-up camper that she owned, after all, it had been years since she had used it. I told her not to sell it, I would probably use it. All I needed to do was have the zipper repaired, get it painted, and it would be good to go. It's mine, but I haven't seen it yet, because she hasn't hauled it up here from Missouri. So, technically it is still hers, since it is not in my possesion and it was coming to me free of charge.

So that brings us back to her visit yesterday. And all I will say is...do you remember these famous lines from National Lampoons Christmas Vacation...."Shi##ers Full"!


Yep. She bought another camper. AND....the seller threw the truck in! Yep, they both came with the deal, and she found them on Craig's List! She has a truck already that she bought off of Craig's List, last year. This latest one is a late 1990's model, and honestly isn't that bad. The interior is practically brand new looking. The camper is a 1970's model. My whole family likes to camp, and stay the weekend on the boats, but ANOTHER camper? Don't get me wrong, it could be fixed up inside and be alot of fun, but I would bet my bottom dollar that it won't get used anymore than the boats or the lake lot or the cabin. So anyway, it's my job to get it cleaned up and decorated. It has a kitchen, 3 sleeping areas (including the table/sitting area that lays out into a bed), a bathroom with a sink, toilet and shower, a furnace, and an air conditioner. Here is what I have to work with...

This is the couch that lays out into a good sized bed, and it has a bunk bed over it. The bathroom is on the left here, but you can't really see the door in this picture.

The kitchen and dining area, that lays out into a good sized bed.

A very blurry shot of the kitchen.

So these are the before pictures. My brother is assessing the condition of the flooring, walls, counter top, furnace and various holding tanks today. And after he gets that all squared away, I will be put in charge of cleaning it, making curtains and bedding, and decorating it. I'll keep you updated on my progress, but I know that it will be slow going. As soon as the ice on the Mighty Miss cracks up a little, we'll all be back into boating, and this will go forgotten!

Tag You're It...Love and Romance

This week over at Tag You're It, the theme is Love and Romance. They have a special prize this week also, and the winner will be chosen at random from the participants! Again, please forgive the photography. I just can't seem to find the spot in the house to take a good picture! And now I can also see that it is blurry! I was in a hurry taking it, because Extreme Makeover Home Edition is on, and I have to watch Ty Pennington every Sunday....


The tag is made from the back cardboard of a used up legal pad! I love saving them, and cutting them up for tags and other crafty things. I hope that you all had a lovely weekend, and thanks for stopping in for a visit!

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!

Tag You're It & A Lovely Surprise!

Hi all! I hope that everyone's weekend has gone well. The challenge over at Tag You're It this week is a sketch challenge. The paper and flowers are some of the goodies that were sent to me by my bloggy friend Dawn from Crafty Ramblings. The rest of it is just bits and pieces from my stash. Thanks for taking a peak at it.


I had a very aggravating day at work Saturday, and was more than happy when the time came to clock out and come home. When I got home, I found a package in the mailbox! It was from my bloggy friend Nicolle from Boyd's Crazy Mama! She is such a sweetheart, and sent me the perfect things to put a smile on my face. AND!!!!....I now have a Valentine hanging on my fridge! Thank you so much Nicolle and Boyd!



I've decided that the glare on Boyd's Valentine is not from my poor picture taking....It is his bright smile lighting up the room! That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

Oh Happy Day!

Hi everyone! Whew, I am actually getting to throw a post in mid-week! I was off from work today and spent time doing the things that I have fallen way behind on! Like, taking my car to the shop, going grocery shopping, cleaning house, doing laundry, sifting through a bundle of lovely goodies that I got in the mail! Yep, I got a lovely surprise today in the mail. Dawn over at Crafty Ramblings won a prize. She had a little contest to see if anyone could guess what she won, and she gave us the clue..."it starts with the letter F". Well, I instantly thought of Fiskars, and I was right! Dawn won a Fiskars 4 in 1 Corner Embossing Punch and she sent a prize to me for guessing correctly! Now remember folk, I am no photographer so this picture is borderline lousy and doesn't do the goodies justice!


Look at all of this lovely stuff! There is loads of various papers, some laces, borders, stamped cardstock, a baggie full of little embellishments, envelopes and cards, and things that I'm not sure what to call but they are pretty! I can't wait to make something this weekend! I'm hoping to use some of it in the Tag You're It challenge, which by the way Dawn is on their Design Team!

She also sent this card along with everything. I am thrilled to have received a handcrafted card from her, because well...her cards are truly amazing!

Thank you so much Dawn! I truly love every item that you sent! I hope that I can incorporate some it into a challenge or two this weekend!

Tag You're It...Purple!

Well, it's week 43 over at Tag You're It! The challenge this week is to create a Purple Tag. The inspiration for my tag is simply this: I had that purple friends embellishment, and I have made alot of new friends through my blog! That's it. I built the rest of the tag around that. I still couldn't get a very decent picture, but the colors in the photo this week are very close to real life at least! Please excuse the artificial greenery in the background! And PLEASE if you enlarge it and see any dust, don't say anything because I will just simply die of embarrassment! Ha!


The purple theme was chosen this week, because they have a lovely guest, Michelle from Purple Onion Designs. And, Michelle has donated some stamps to be given away to one lucky winner this week! If you have thought about joining in on the fun at Tag You're It, this is a good week to get started! All you have to do is create your purple tag, then leave a link in the comment section at Tag You're It! Hope to see you there, and thank you for looking!

Photo Challenge!

Hi everyone! Boy, have I missed a lot in blogland this week! I can't wait until Spring, because I just know that I will have more time through the week to keep up with everyone. For some reason, coming home from work when it is dark outside, makes me feel like the day is done. I instantly get into the PJ's and chill! It's the same every night...Dog outside...PJ's...throw in some laundry if need be...throw some supper together...TV programs...Dog outside...then it's bedtime. I'll feel better when it stays light out until near 9pm!!!

I am way late on getting this posted, but Dawn over at Crafty Ramblings has chosen me for a Photo Challenge! I am to go to my sixth picture folder and choose the sixth picture in that folder and post about it. I am going to just tell you all the truth. I did not use my sixth picture folder because it is full of nothing but the tags and cards that you have already seen! So...I went to folder number seven and counted that one as the sixth. With all of that being said, the sixth folder is of my Brothers 40th birthday party out at his step sons place. We all sat around the pond and fished, then headed inside for supper and cake. I didn't spend THAT much time outside because 1) it was hot as hades outside and 2) there was a baseball game on that I wanted to watch!

The sixth picture in the folder is of my Brother helping his nephew with the fishing pole. There is a bit of a funny store about my Brother and his nephew. This little one here, is my Brothers' wife's' nephew. It is HER sisters' little boy. My Sister-in-law and the wee one here are blood relatives. Are you following me so far??? The little boy ADORES my Brother. He was asked one time if he would like to go and see his Aunt Cheryl. He replied, "Do you mean Uncle Jeff's wife?". He never calls his Aunt by name, he simply calls her "Uncle Jeff's wife". Isn't that funny! Anyway, my brother put one of those rubbery bright and glittery worms on his line for him. He took it off, and carried it around with him the entire day. His Mother said that he insisted on taking a bath with it, and took it to bed with him that night!


I am to choose 6 people to forward this challenge to, but I just can't leave anyone out! I would love to see more pictures from all of you! So feel free to accept this challenge, and please come back here and leave me a comment if you participate. I want to stop by for a visit to see what you came up with! Take care everyone, I'll be back with another post tomorrow!

Tag You're It: Numbers!

Hello everyone! I hope that you have had a lovely weekend. The challenge over at Tag You're It this week is Numbers. We were to create a tag that included numbers in the design. After much struggling, and too little time, I came up with one! I knew right away that I would do a tag involving a birthday. My SIL's 5oth will be coming up, so I made one for her. I'm sure that we will have some kind of a "make fun of her because she is getting up there" party, so I ran with it. Again this week, I feel that my creative mojo has stalled or something.

On a side note...I have finished my first full two weeks at the new job! I really do like it! It's new and interesting and doesn't feel like work at all! I have more of a routine down now, so hopefully I will be able to keep the blog updated a little better than I have been. Thanks for visiting!

Tag You're It: Sugar Candy Kisses

The theme over at Tag You're It this week is, Sugar Candy Kisses. I knew that I wanted to do something with sweets, but not for Valentines Day. First just let me say, this is one of those projects where I couldn't just leave well enough alone. I just kept adding and adding and couldn't stop. I'm not very happy with it, but it's done! I did find out that cupcakes are not that easy to just whip up out of paper (at least for me)! In addition to the previous problems, there is no light whatsoever in the house today! It is dark and dreary, so the picture turned out like....well not good. Thank you for taking a look!

I couldn't decide which picture turned out better. So here is one in different light.

Celebrating The Weekend and an Award!

Hi everyone! I can't begin to tell you all how happy I am to have the time this morning to catch up on all of the blogs that I enjoy reading! When I started my blog a few months ago, I didn't even really know why I was doing it. I somehow stumbled onto some craft blogs, and enjoyed reading them. I didn't even really know what the blog world was all about! So I hopped on board thinking that I would never have anything to post about, or would probably lose interest. That has turned out to NOT be the case! I enjoy it very much, and feel that I have made some lovely friends here.

Audrey from Audrey's Country Crafts, held a giveaway a while back, and I won it! I am embarrassed that I have taken this long to post about it. For fear that my reason for my procrastination will sound more like an excuse, I will just leave it at...I'm sorry. I won a wonderful cookbook ( I just LOVE cookbooks!), and a tote that she handcrafted herself!! She also sent me a lovely hand painted ornament.


I opened up my email this morning to find that Audrey has given me an award! I am very touched by this award and the intent behind it. If you want to learn more about how this award came to be go here please. The only rule is...if I pass it along to anyone, Audrey would like to know who has received it! Well, I knew straight away who it was going to! I enjoy many blogs, but these two ladies are among the first ones that I began following. I'm not even sure how I stumbled onto them, because their blogs are not "craft blogs". They are pure hearted blogs about their lives.

Nicolle (from Boyd's Crazy Mama) and I often joke about being long lost sisters. We have much in common, and I enjoy exchanging comments with her very much. You really must go over there for a visit. If for absolutely no other reason, the current picture on her banner will instantly put a smile on your face!


Jeannie (from Jeannie's Happy World) always has a post to put a smile on your face. From her sense of humor to videos of her daughter Bella singing, dancing, and just being a little girl, there is something for everyone! Especially now that I suspect that Jeannie has bitten by the craft bug!

So this award goes to these two lovely ladies! And to both of you, thank you very much for your kindness and friendship!

Where Did All Of My Time Go!?

Well, I made it through my first day at the new job! I can already see that I'm going to have a difficult time keeping up on all of the blogs that I have come to enjoy! I am used to staying up until 1 or 2am at night. It was difficult to force myself to go to sleep at 11:30pm (thank you Nyquil!). I hate waking up to an alarm clock. I was up at 4am waiting for it to start buzzing at 6:30 this morning. Once I get into a routine again, I won't need it. I can wake myself up at the time that I need to be up usually. It was quite a boring day actually. I spent most of it filling out paperwork and staring at travel sites. I had an hour lunch break which is totally foreign to me. A whole hour. It was quite boring! Tomorrow I will be learning more about the actual work that I will be doing. I am running out of here now to speed read through my dashboard! Ugh! I wish that I had more time, and it's only day one!!!

Tag You're It - Let's Go Stripey!

The challenge at Tag You're It this week is, Let's Go Stripey! We were to create a tag featuring stripes! Due to my cabin fever right now, I made this tag for the Spring! I plan on using it on a bottle of booze that will be gifted to my SIL on the first voyage of the season on the houseboat! Until then, I will leave it laying around in hopes that someone will get the idea to send me away to an Island Vacation! Ha! I bet it's still around for the Pina Colada mix this May!! Thanks for looking everyone, I'm happy to be back in the crafty swing of things!

I Went Through My Window Today!

Well, as many of you know, I have been waiting for a phone call that I should have received no later that Wednesday. I kept thinking this week, when one door closes isn't a window suppose to open? Where is my window already!!!!! That's how I've been answering that in my head! Well, I called and left a message yesterday for the woman who interviewed me two of the three times for the job. She wasn't at her desk (so they said), so I left a message inquiring if the position had been filled. Crickets from the phone I tell ya. This seemed to be a done deal. Out of my hands. Then today. Out of the blue. The phone rings. I had my questions all prepared: "Will my resume stay on file for future openings?" "Is there any one particular thing that threw me out of contention for the position, after three interviews?" and so on and so forth. I didn't even get a chance to ask that much. Here is how it went down...

Telephone: Riinnnnngggggg

Me: Hello?

Two time interviewer: May I speak with Cassandra?

Me: This is she.

Two time interviewer: Hi, how are you today?

Me: Fine, thank you.

Two time interviewer: It's "two time interviewer"I was wondering if you're still interested in the position?

Me: (running into the living room to do the happy dance on the carpeting so it cannot be heard) Yes, actually I am still interested.

Two time interviewer: Great! Can you start Monday?

Me: (acting all cool about it now) Yes, Monday would be fine.

Two time interviewer: Okay, Monday 9am-6pm. We'll see you then!

Me: Uh, well...Is the dress for work casual, just jeans.

Two time interviewer: Oh yes, very casual.

Me: Okay, well...is there a break room or someplace that I will be able to store a lunch?

Two time interviewer: Oh yes, we have a kitchen with a stove, sink, fridge, dishwasher, snack machines, soda machines...

Me: Okay, well...Great! I'll see you Monday then from 9am-6pm! Thank you!

Two time interviewer: Okay see ya then...Bye.

Me: Bye!

So that's it. I got the job! Thank you everyone for keeping your fingers crossed for me! I really thought that this one had slipped right passed me. I mean, my last interview had to be borderline comical. I was on all of these sinus medications, I had a fever, I felt like I was babbling! But it worked out. Like I said, I've never worked in this field before, but with this economy it's better than no job at all! And let me tell you, I've had plenty of other little part-time jobs that were awful!

This is a full-time position, with only one Saturday a month. And that is only from 10am-3pm. And it's in the travel industry. Yep. I will start training Monday to be a travel agent! Thank you again for the well wishes everyone. I'll be sure to keep you posted on how it's going. Tomorrow night, I'm going out to dinner with a few people (family) to celebrate! I already know that I will be having Crab Legs and Sea Scallops!

No News Is Good News......Whatever!

Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. No word today from the people that are currently torturing me. I would almost SWEAR on a box of chocolates, that they said they would call today. Maybe it was the medicine doing all of the listening (and talking-oops)! I'm done. I'm not going to worry about it. If they call tomorrow, they call. If they don't, I'll hunt them down and make them talk they don't! I'm putting it to the side (for at least 1 more day then I will call them)!

Did everyone watch The Biggest Loser? I got all teary eyed when Daniel lost his 30 pounds! I ate my dinner, then prepared for the show. I really, really want to start my new "get my weight and health back under control" regimen. I sat down with a healthy snack to eat during the program. Here is a sneak peak:


I wasn't really "feeling" it. So I added to my snack as the show progressed. Which turned into this:


Yes. That would be the orange that I sat and played with for an hour. Also, is the Milky Way candy bar. Oh yeah, and the cup has coffee with a packet of Hot Cocoa and two sweeteners in it. I have drank 1 gallon of OJ in the last 2 days. I just couldn't get into the orange. Oh I ate it....but I wasn't into it! The candy bar and the chocolaty coffee drink went down with no problem though! After all of this job hub-bub is behind me, then I'm going to get back down to business with the diet.

Tomorrow, Tomorrow....It's Only A Day Away!

But it feels like it is a WEEK AWAY!!!

I had my third interview today. This time it was with the very first lady that I interviewed with, and another one of the managers whom I had not met yet. This new lady, picked today of all days to ask me questions!!! I had warned them earlier on the phone that I was battling a horrible cold. I even slipped in to the conversation that I wasn't in top form due to the sinus medication that I was on. I felt like a babbling balloon head!! They seemed to like my answers to the usual questions: "How have you handled multi-tasking"? "How have you handled a customer that had a complaint"? "Why did you apply for this job"? and so on and so forth. One of them even commented that I gave the best answer that they had heard to one of the questions. But then they hit me with the big one....the one I had been fearing most..."You seem so passionate about the bridal industry, why would you want to change to this field, and would you be happy?" Have I told you all yet that for the last 20 years I have worked in the bridal industry (with 10 years moonlighting in emergency medical)? That was a tough one. I gave the best answer my stopped up brain could muster. And then it was done. They said that they would be calling me tomorrow with their decision. So there it is. Just sitting out there, minds already made up, and me waiting! Thank you all for your well wishes and crossed fingers!

On to other things. I have not had one creative bone in my body since Christmas. I am hoping to shake this cold soon, and get back to some of the challenges that I enjoy doing. But I don't believe that I will be digging back in until next week.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend. It's hard getting back to normal life after the Christmas/New Year hub bub. All of the pretty lights are down, no more trees or gift bags. Back to normal everyday food. Before we know it, Spring will be here and I'll be wondering where in the world did Winter go!

I'll be back tomorrow with the verdict!

Third Times A Charm....?

I was looking through one of my Craft CD's for a graphic to use on this post. One that depicts a sick person, as that is what I am STILL! I came across this. Isn't this cute, and totally wrong at the same time! Maybe it's just my medication. Anywho...I have my third interview today at 2pm. They called this morning. I gave them the heads up that I am battling a really nasty cold. I didn't want to delay it though, I really want to know one way or another! I'll be back with more later today. They said that they will be deciding in the next day or two (after today's interviews). And for all of you out there reading this that are sick, I hope that YOU get cured soon, but not the way this pig is!