Happy birthday, dude

School ended yesterday. I am now the parent of a senior. My last one. Maybe it's because I still see her as a baby that I just can't seem to process that reality. Oh, well. It'll hit me about the time she's packing up to leave for college.

First, can I just say how much I love the camera on my iPhone? It's almost as good as my Canon. Then again, maybe my Canon would be better if it had a more knowledgeable photographer using it!

In any case, since J is spending the night with a friend, I used the time to decompress with my stamps and paper. I'm sorely in need of a stockpile of cards, especially masculine ones. This card fit the bill. From Jen Gallacher, I drew upon her love of banners. From Kristina Werner, I drew upon her love of faux stitching. It seemed appropriate with the wood grain paper and the hemp twine. The card base is from Hero Arts, the patterned papers are from the 6x6 Echo Park pad, All About a Boy. The stamps are Paper Smooches and the ink is Unicorn from Memories. I can't remember where the hemp twine came from. It was in my last Studio Calico kit. Between several young male cousins and J's friends, I'm going to make several of these to have on hand.

Happy stamping!

Lazy Day Yumminess

I've been having a hard time getting back into the swing of cooking. Not that we've been eating out, it's just that I've been keeping things pretty basic. A couple of times, J hasn't felt like having dinner so I haven't cooked at all. After a long, hard, busy day at work today, the last thing I wanted to do was cook. But my desire to have money when we go on vacation outweighed my desire not to cook, so to Pinterest I went.

I came across the recipe for Ravioli Alfredo with Peas when I was looking for something on the Food Network's site. I don't even remember what I was looking for. But I love the mushroom ravioli they have at Olive Garden, and this recipe, while a little different, looked easy and tasty, so I pinned it. Fast forward to tonight when I don't have a lot in the fridge and don't want to waste time standing at the stove. Oh. My. Word. This was amazingly easy and amazingly delicious!



I stuck to the recipe with the exception of leaving out the nutmeg and parsley. It's not that I don't like those two spices, I just didn't happen to have any fresh lying around. I don't think I even have any dried. And I had some green onions I needed to use before they went bad, so I chopped the greens up and added some garnish. Regardless, the recipe serves 4 and if we hadn't gone back for seconds, it probably would have. No leftovers means a turkey sandwich for tomorrow's lunch, but that's alright with me!

Happy Mother's Day

It seems my posts are coming fewer and farther between. I'll have to work on that. It's not that I haven't been creating, because I have. I've been a scrapbooking and sewing fool of late. I've been crazy busy but for the life of me, I can't remember anything that I've been doing. I wonder why?

It's no secret to the people who know me that I am a momma's girl. I didn't really have a father figure in my life, just a wonderful mom who did whatever it took to take care of me. Since becoming a single mom, she's been my co-parent, sounding board, cheerleader and all around savior. I wouldn't have survived the last 12 years without her. It took several tries to come up with a card that's half as beautiful as she is, inside and out.

DCWV has never really been a favorite of mine when it comes to papers, but they have a garden-themed 12x12 pad that just screams G$ to me. Paired with a Martha Stewart border punch, some gorgeous purple roses and some twine and this is what you get -- a card suitable for my little gnome mom!

Happy Mother's Day to you!

Mini Chocolate Donuts

Happy Sunday!! It's extra happy because prom is finally over and Baby J can get down to the serious business of prepping for finals. The weather may not attest to it, but spring is here and summer is definitely not far away!

A quick snap of my angel-baby

Now that Little Momma and the baby nuggets are gone, I want to get back in the habit of cooking. The last few weeks of their stay was pretty busy, and it was just easier to grab something out. Now that things have calmed down, I'm finding my way back to nesting mode. Plus I think it's better for Baby J's health (and my own, as well) to have a little more control over what goes into her body, as far as preservatives and junk food...stuff like that. And since Krispy Kreme is always calling my name, loud and proud, I thought I'd take a whack at a recipe for chocolate donuts that's been on my Pinterest board forever. Buns in My Oven is one of my favorite blogs. The recipes usually call for stuff I readily have on hand (or can fake my way through) and don't leave me feeling out of my element technique-wise. And these little gems certainly didn't disappoint! Not overly sweet and very light. And since they're baked, absolutely no guilt!



I used a mini donut pan and got 15 donuts. If I wouldn't have overfilled all the little cavities, I probably would have gotten a lot more! But I got nice sized do-muffins, so it's all good. Give 'em a try!

Hello, spring!

I've been in a funk lately. The babies left for their new home over the weekend and I already miss them so much my heart hurts. Add in the fact that Poppy very clearly (to my ears, anyway) said "Susie, come go home" when I talked to him, and I'm all ready to take a road trip and bring my family back.

Anyway, I have managed to get a little bit of crafting done. I thought I might share some of the cards I made.



The stamps, ribbon and cardstock are courtesy of PTI. The gorgeous yellow ink is Hero Arts' Butter Bar. I'm in love! The black is Tuxedo Black. And yes, I realize one of the pearls on the second card is running off the paper. I didn't plan it out too well, but I still love how it turned out.

And just because I can, some recent snaps of my babies...



...annnnnnd here come the tears, so that's all for now.

Happy Birthday, Betty!

Lately I've been on a crafting supply binge. I've bought so much that I've actually misplaced a few things. I'm really bad about getting something with an idea of how I want to use it in my head, only to consign my purchase to some bin on my shelves, forgotten forever. In an effort to put a stop to that, or at least slow it down, I've now got a basket I keep on my desk. All my new pretties go directly in there. It sits right in front of me so it prompts me to remember to use it before I put it in storage.

My recent PTI order included some very cute spring stamps. I knew they'd be perfect for one layer birthday cards (I'm really trying to keep with clean and simple cards for mailing), and I was right!! I think my friend Betty will be pleased when she opens this up! Since we can't seem to get away from the snow, at least with this card she'll have some pretty flowers for her big day. I love the bright colors. I do wish I had a smaller flower stamp that I could use to fill up some of the white space, but all in all, I really like the way this turned out.

Cards, cooking and baby luv

Things have been kind of quiet around here lately. Now that Baby J's surgery is over and she's well on the road to recovery, I've been able to relax (and sleep) much more. I thought I'd share a couple of cards I made last week.



The first card was for a co-worker who's getting married in a couple of weeks. The second two are for a couple of my friends. From time to time, I like to let them know I'm thinking of them. After several months of not seeing their gorgeous faces, plans are in the works to get together and get scrappy this next weekend. I can't wait!

And here are some baked chicken taquitos I pinned awhile back and finally got around to making.



I made them according to the recipe, with the exception of using just plain, cooked chicken (because that's what I had). I liked them and will definitely be making them again, but next time, I'll make sure to flip the taquitos over halfway through the baking so that they brown nicely on both sides. Also, I'll have to remember to dust off the cornstarch that keeps the wrappers separated in the package.

And finally, Little Momma and the babies came over for an impromptu slumber party last night. For the most part, I've actually been with them since Friday evening. They'll be going home soon, so I'm trying to score as much time with them as I can. Little Momma bought a St. Patty's outfit for Peanut waaaaay back when, and we put it on today for an attempt at a fashion shoot. Peanut didn't appreciate it and they had to go over to their other grandparents' house, so the attempt didn't last long. But oh, what beautiful grandbabies I have!



Well, the last of the laundry is calling my name, and I want to try and get some crafting time in before it's time for bed. Have a great week!