First Day of School!

Tomorrow is the first day of school! I can't believe it's here. Tonight's open house went well, and 21 of our 26 students and their families came. Not bad. (I say "our" because I am blessed to work with my dear friend and co-teacher Traci all day long. Those who know us can't believe that they don't separate us! LOL We have an inclusion classroom meaning that we have students with special needs in our room and that they have two teachers to help meet their needs.)

The girls were excited to get to meet their teachers. Ansley is pumped up to start middle school (6th grade) and band (clarinet like me), and Macey is excited to begin 3rd. I don't know if any of us will sleep well tonight! I never sleep well the night before school starts!

Kinda scary to think that this will be my 32nd first day of school... That doesn't shock me as much as realizing that this is my 17th start as the teacher. When did I get so old?!? Hopefully I won't have to grow up anytime soon...

Wish us luck tomorrow! Thanks!

Tuesday Tutorial: Pick & Omit

From time to time, I will post a Tuesday tutorial to teach you a technique. (Now that's a mouthful! Before too long, my 5th graders will be able to tell you that the sentence uses the alliteration, but that's another story. Back to craft class!)


For this project, I wanted to stamp "online" but didn't have that word. Instead, I inked up letters from some of the stamps to create the word "online."

The "favorites:" stamp was from the stamp set. All of these images come from my Noteworthy stamp set.

You can use the pick & omit technique on any stamp to use just part of an image. I'd love to see what you do with this technique, so leave me a comment with a link to your creation (new or old). Thanks and happy stamping!

It's a Thanks-a-bration!

First, I have to thank everyone who has stopped by my blog! I am truly humbled and grateful. I am hoping that my excitement about the entire Operation Smile auction will carry me through today, my first day of the new school year. Yep, that's right! School starts today for faculty and staff, with students starting Friday. I have a lot to do to be ready for Open House Thursday night and for the start of school. (I teach 5th grade full time.) Though I hate that we're being mandated three furlough days, I'm thankful that our school system is not making us take them now (like the Governor wanted) when there is so, so much to do. (We're losing an inservice before Thanksgiving and 2 more days- snow days if we have them/postplanning if we do not.)



On another thankful note, Close To My Heart is offering a special thank you to customers from Aug. 3-17 on all orders of $100 or more! If you click on the photo, you should be able to read the text. If you can't, LMK and I'll be happy to tell you all about it. You can also find out more at my CTMH website.

Top Secret Mission: Revealed

[Insert Mission Impossible theme music here.]

You cannot even begin to imagine my surprise when I received a phone call several weeks ago from a Close To My Heart Executive Director. Her first question after introducing herself was if I could I be sworn to secrecy. Okay!!!

Close To My Heart has just held its Leadership weekend in sunny California, and though I had decided not to attend this year, would I create and donate something for a silent auction to benefit Operation Smile? It had to be something a bit over-the-top since other Close To My Heart consultants would be bidding on items in the silent auction, and all proceeds would go to Operation Smile. She didn't have to ask me twice!!!


If you are not yet familiar with Operation Smile, I encourage you to go check out their website. They are committed to "changing lives one smile at a time," and they do this by repairing cleft lips and cleft palettes of children around the world. Can you believe that only $240 can completely change a child's life and repair his or her beautiful smile? Close To My Heart has partnered with Operation Smile, and I am happy to take donations to help this worthy organization. You can see why it was easy to say YES and stay quiet about this "top secret" project!

Since I was challenged to create something for other consultants, I settled on something I want for myself (and still haven't made!): a desk set. Here is the complete set. I used too many materials to list here, but I stuck with the Emporium paper pack. (Feel free to ask about any particular item. I'll be happy to share more info.)

I'm not sure how well Blogger will let me line up my text w/my photos, but I'll try.

binder clip to hold a photo


binder clip to hold your "to do" list










pencil cup (altered Crystal Light container) ~ I love making these things!!!

Love that button stamp set!!!

The actual pencils
(Thank you, Karen Pederson, for the "lollipop roses" tutorial! That's how I made the flower on the center pencil.)

Round coaster wall hanging ~ my favorite item in this collection (and the last minute final piece because I didn't think that I had enough "stuff" in the set! It's probably my favorite because I haven't made anything like it before, and I love how it turned out. You can't see in the photo, but there's a window charm on the clock face. It really looks like a clock, and if you know me, you know I have a thing for clocks and watches!)

5"x7" Seasons art
(I won first place in the consultant art contest in Dec. '08 w/this concept, and I figured that's why I even got the phone call in the first place to participate. I was smart this time and have made myself one too!)

Acrylic notepad holder (2" post-it notes; altered 3"x5" frame on its side instead of standing up)

Here's how the post-it holder looks sitting on your desk.

Mini notebook to record fave websites & blogs
(I stamped the inside top right corners w/the letters of the alphabet to make it easier to record the info and find it again. Hey! I should have put my info in there! LOL)

Another fave project: altered composition notebook
(I have a notebook similar to this- though not quite as "fancy"- that I keep my CTMH notes in. It's great to have a spot for my info that I can easily find!)

Now for the biggest news of all: My upline emailed me yesterday to say that with an hour left in the auction, the bid was was higher than I would have ever dreamed!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait to find out the total and the generous consultant who will be making such a difference in a child's life. I am still tearing up as I think about it! I feel so honored to have been asked to participate and to help make a difference, one smile at a time.

P.S. I just found out that the auction raised about $5000 for Operation Smile! Woohoo!!! :)

August Close To My Heart Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

It's time for another Close To My Heart Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!
The August stamp of the month, It's Your Day, features 26 stamps to celebrate your special day. From here, hop on over to Nona's blog, or go to Jena's to start at the beginning and work your way through. Don't worry if you don't have time to hit them all this weekend; they'll be permanently linked here.

If you'd like to learn more about stamping or would like to purchase this stamp set and don't already have a CTMH consultant, just let me know! Also, if you're in the area, I'm teaching a "birthday party" card and gift bag class on 8/23 using this fun birthday set. (You can read more about it here.)

My first "stample" uses the Tinkerin' paper pack and follows the Wishes sketch, "Just Right." The original sketch is designed for a 4.5"x4.5" card, but mine is a 4" sidefold square. The colors are Clover Meadow, Twilight, Sunny Yellow, and Sunflower.

The next card also follows a Wishes sketch ("Noteworthy"). I love this 4-3/4"x3" card size! I was trying for a more masculine look by using the presents and the Moon Doggie paper pack. The crocheted ribbon is maybe too girly but I like it. To make the faux stitching, I just used one of the invitation stamps but left off the word "For." For the Cranberry present, I cut off the edge of the stamped image to make a narrower package. (The Garden Green present is the actual entire stamped image.) I also cut those two out of scrap paper and glued them on the focal image to add a little dimension.

If you've followed my blog for a while then you've already seen my last card. I made it for my DD's birthday in June. It too follows a Wishes sketch called "On the Edge." Have I told you how much I love this book of

sketches?!? This standard-size card uses the Boom-di-Ada paper pack in Hollyhock, Sweet Leaf, Autumn Terracotta, and Barn Red. I would have never come up w/this combo on my own, but I love how it looks. DD was pretty pleased too! Do the two candles look like an 11 to you?

As always, thanks for stopping by! I'll be posting more artwork featuring the August stamp of the month (from my virtual swappers group), so swing back by.

Thank you!

What a nice surprise this morning! My online friend Sarah nominated me for "The Circle of Friends" Award! Thank you, Sarah!!!


Here are the rules: Nominate 5 other bloggers you feel have become part of your circle of friends. Link to your nominees within your blog post. Include these instructions on how to pick up the award in your blog post. Link back to the person who gave you the award in your blog post, to show your appreciation. Comment on their blogs to let them know they've received the award.


How fun is this? I have been so blessed to "meet" so many people online! The ones I've chosen are people I haven't met in person. Here we go, in no particular order:

Mary (Didn't we actually meet? If so, refresh my memories as to where we were! LOL) for all your great sketches and the effort you put into VC, past & present

Leanne for your willingness to help and your great artwork

Debra for your willingness to help others, the CTMHHelp group, and for being part of my virtual swap

Jena for hosting the blog hops

Helen for your great stamping tips, etc.

Top Secret Mission

[Insert "Mission Impossible" theme music here]

I've been working on a top secret project here at Inky Scrapper headquarters. I can't share it with you yet, but I couldn't resist a quick tease. See, I was even working incognito!

"Vacation" in Atlanta

My mom, my sister and her two boys, my girls, and I all spent a few nights at my brother's house in Atlanta while he and my BIL are in the Keys fishing. (For some reason Logan did not want to go with us. He used work as his excuse, but I don't think that was the real reason!)

On Sunday, Mom and I took the girls to the High to see the Monet exhibit. Having seen most of Monet's work in France (I mean hanging in the Musee d'Orsay, the Musee Marmottan, at l'Orangerie, and at Giverny), I was looking forward to seeing what was on loan from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Though the exhibit was small, I was not disappointed. Sorry the photo quality is not great, but it was the best that I could do considering I wasn't even supposed to be using my camera! How was I supposed to know that cell phone photography permitted meant ONLY cell phones? I knew better than to use my flash.)

If you're thinking about visiting the Monet exhibit, hurry because it leaves next month. We also toured the final Louvre Atlanta exhibit. I was disappointed in it; it was not nearly as good as the first year.

On Monday, we took all the kids to Fernbank (notice that the boys did NOT go to the High!). They had a blast at the various hands-on exhibits, especially the bubble table.

We did quite a bit of shopping for back-to-school clothes and found some great bargains at T.J. Maxx and Filene's Basement.

Thanks, Bike Dude, for letting us crash at your pad!

Blog Candy from Paper Trey

If you'd like to win some free stuff, head on over to http://apassionforpapertrey.blogspot.com/ and see what they're giving away! ;)

Tropical Getaway (Layout #35)

At my "Tropical Getaway" scrapbook class last Sunday we created this gorgeous (as I say ever-so-humbly!) layout following the Moon Doggie workshop on the go layout guide.

Rather than going in our "Places We Go" album, this one will actually go in the "Things We Do" album. I am trying harder to bring more meaning, relationships, and feelings into my layouts. This one could have been part of the trip to the beach, but that's not the focus I wanted to emphasize.

We used quite a few techniques on this layout and two FABULOUS new products! The first product I want to highlight probably jumps out at you when you look at all the photos of my layout: the FLIP-FLAP PAGE PROTECTORS! With the flip-flaps, you can easily add a number of 4"x6" photos and/or journaling to your layouts without adding too much bulk while keeping your photos protected from fingerprints. Best of all, they are inexpensive: only $3.95 for 15 of these self-adhesive flaps. Look for more projects with these babies coming soon!

We actually stuck the flip-flap to the page protector (hence the slight glare). The first photo at right is the flip-flap closed, followed by the flap opened. What a great way to incorporate THREE 4"x6" photos in one space! These are nice and thin too, so there's really no extra bulk.

The other fun product we used were the Journey Journaling Spots. You can find two of them "hiding" on my layout with the postcards under the B&T paper (at the bottom left and the top right). These are another inexpensive item ($2.95 for 34 cardstock journaling pieces in a variety of sizes and designs) that can add some pizzaz to your projects. If you do any traveling at all (or dream of traveling) then you will find a use for these great pieces.

$$ Savings if You're Crafty

If you've ever wanted to save money on crafting supplies or even make money, now is an incredible time to sign up to become a Close To My Heart consultant! Click over on the "Fabulous Five" link at right to see the great signing bonuses. (Hurry, though, because the "Fab Five" deal ends 7/31/09!)

I'd love to tell you more about the many benefits of being a CTMH consultant! Here are just a few:

1. The best products on the market at reasonable prices
2. Great compensation program and discounts

3. Wonderful friends and "co-workers"

4. You can work the business (make $$), be a hobbiest (22% discount), or both!

Of course, you don't have to be a consultant to benefit from all that Close To My Heart offers, so let me show you how! I never knew 10 years ago how much being a part of this great company would enrich my life (and hopefully the lives of those around me).

I would love to hear what you love about Close To My Heart. Please leave me a comment and "share the love."

Hammock Layout (#34)

Many of the pieces on this layout are from a layout swap I did a few years ago where we created page elements to swap but not the entire layouts.

The girls and I got Logan this hammock last summer to replace the one that had worn out. We all love lazing in it!