Hope your New Year is just "Peachy!!"

Hi friends, I sure hope everyone is enjoying the holiday break and looking forward to ringing in a New Year! At our house, tonight will be a quiet one, we just returned from our place in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, a mountain resort. All I wanted to do this evening was stamp, and then in the middle of assembling my card, our daughter called and asked to take my camera for the evening!! What, my prized possession that I use to take pictures of my cards for challenges?? I got a lot of glue on my fingers hurrying this card along...so forgive me if the glue isn't dry. But I had a 1/2 hour warning and was scurrying to get this done! I wonder if our kids know the sacrifices we make for them!!
Anyway, this card was made for Magnolia's challenge for the month...it is on my sidebar if you would like to participate. The challenge was a sketch, and there were 5 circles on the side. Well, I had this new PTI sentiment set,. and was thrilled to find a "Peach" in there...it fits so well, and sentiments rarely do that for me!! I used some new prima flowers I had.
The most challenging part of this was trying to color the peaches with my copics as I had no peach colored copics, but found with a little experimentation, the orange, yellow orange, and yellow worked, who'd a thought? That is one advantage to having a limited number of copics, I am forced to experiment a lot with layering different colors and usually I find success! I also used prisma pencils on Tilda's apron and highlighted with my signo white gel pen!!
Tilda and I thank you for coming by...have a safe and Happy New Year!!

Stamping Sisters in Christ Challenge

Good day after Christmas!! This card was made for this week's SSIC blog challenge which was a sketch this week. I wanted to use this new stamp set and tried to incorporate it into the sketch. I love the peaceful quality and solitude of this stamp, so I paired it with the sentiment you see. It was supposed to be a thank you card for a Christmas gift, but it doesn't say "thank you." I think I will send it anyway.
Yesterday I had a house full of 12 kids, 10 adults, and 2 dogs chasing each other around the kitchen while I tried to cook for all of them...I am tired today. It was nice, but I am really enjoying the quiet and wanted to make a card that reflected what I felt.
I hope your Christmas was merry!!
Here is my stamp recipe:

Stamps: Serendipity:Winter Doe, SU Hostess: Patterned Pines (snowflake), SU: Peaceful Wishes
Ink: Papertrey Ink: Enchanted Evening, Lavender Moon
Accessories:
Circle Nestabilities, Impressabilities, Blue Organza ribbon from Sharon Johnson's Stamp Simply Store (on sidebar), Spare Parts snowflakes coated with Ice Stickles , EK Success Border Punch, Silver Embossing Powder

Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Christmas Blessings!

Just wanted to stop in and wish my fellow stamping friends a very Blessed Christmas!!

May your gaze be lifted heavenward as we ponder the incredible gift we have all been given. In the form of a baby, God became flesh and dwelt among us. I pray this event does not leave us at the manger, but propels us forward to the cross and the reason He came...to give us new life. I am so grateful for this gift, and just want to share with you the joy it brings me.

My card today is just something I stamped...a Merry Christmas and blessed New Year to all of you. I am thankful for your friendship, including the laughter and the tears along the way.

Stampin' Sisters in Christ Challenge

This week's challenge was taken from the book of Matthew 6:19:20...and the challenge was to

use up your stored or hoarded treasures on your card.

I made a gift card holder to store a treasure for somebody special.

These were this week's featured technique challenge on SCS to make a Beanie gift card

holder.

I used up some fluffy ball trim and rolled it up tight and glued it (like making a ribbon rose) to hold it together then used some filigree brads I had been saving forever for the pom pom centers! Inside there is a perfect pocket to hold a gift card. I used some Basic Grey holiday papers I had been saving up for this project. I made 2 of these and am showing both (one open and one closed) for this challenge. I used a saved up treasure, a hand crocheted flower for the second one.

Thank you for the challenges, and thanks for stopping by~

What Child is This?

I love the message of Christmas. This past Sunday, our church included a Christmas card with a baby on the cover in our bulletin along with the invitation to pass it along. I was so moved by the included message that I am compelled to share it here.

This is an ornament I made for our tree this year. The stamp set is from Our Daily Bread Designs.

I hope you will read the entirety of the message.

Thank you and may you be blessed!

"Births are commonplace. They happen everyday, in nearly every community, in every corner of the world. For every one of those births, the mystery and wonder of life is celebrated by parents, extended family, and friends as they all gather to behold the baby. Yet one birth in human history surpasses the wonder and mystery of all others. Because in that birth, the God of the universe took on human flesh to dwell among us. That is what the terms 'advent' and 'incarnation' are all about: the Eternal One breaking into time; the King leaving a throne in heaven to take up a manger on earth, the Creator entering into creation. This is how, some two thousand years ago, God Himself invaded human history.

The mystery of His coming is only surpassed by the mystery of His mission: to restore hurting, hardened, and lost hearts back to His love. This is a mystery that beckons exploration, an exploration into the deepest longings and thirsts of the soul. Jesus captured the compelling nature of His mission when He said, 'Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."

Maybe you've heard this Christmas 'story' many times, but what if these events really are true? What would be your response? You can read about this mystery by those who were eyewitnesses of it, such as the apostle John and his gospel account in the new testament of the Bible. This Christmas, may you come and behold this mystery for yourself, and see if it is not the most meaningful discovery you will ever make."

What do Snowmen Really Do at Night???

This is the profound question I was confronted with last night about midnight when I saw Lisa Lara's teapot card challenge. The Teapot Tuesday is now a regular challenge under the forum section on SCS, so look there if you would like to participate!

The teapot card was so cute and the Teapot was the prettiest one I've ever seen, all painted up in deep purple and twilight blue colors...

So this was the card I came up with. Naturally, snowmen play freeze tag at night!! What else can you do in sub-zero temperatures?? Living near the North Pole, they have lots of night sky...so what more fun way to spend the hours than playing freeze tag??

Now some of the tea potters are crazy, so you never know what they'll be up to...so grab a cup of cocoa, zip on up to the North Pole...and play along!!

My card was made with a image given to me by my friend, Peggysue!! It was perfect for this challenge today...and I had a few shimmerz paints and wouldn't you know there was a Wild Plum and Mystic Blue in the box, so that is what I used to paint on this night sky! Then Martha Stewart Holidays Glitter in Snow was added at the bottom. Thanks for stopping by today!

Over the weekend I had the fun of hosting a tea table at my friend, Maria's church for the annual Christmas Tea. She made a photo album video to view here if you would like. This was one of many tables that were there, all decorated in a different theme. I furnished all the china and made the tea party favors. It was pretty neat to see the table all decorated in my favorite colors, and know I could duplicate this at home if I wanted to.
If I had pictures of all the tables I would include them, they ranged from rustic to elegant, from simple to fancy, but all were so pretty and unique. The proceeds from this tea were part of a benevolent fund to aid single mothers. I thought that was an excellent cause!

Thanks for looking, hope you enjoy!! If you click on any of the pictures in the album, you can see a bit better!









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Dashing through the Snow!! Teapot Tuesday

This week's Teapot Tuesday challenge was to make a card of one of your favorite Christmas memories, or what you would most want to get for Christmas.

I made my card using last week's sketch challenge, giving my little friends and me a hill to ride our toboggan on. This stamp is my first ever Whipper Snapper and is so cute, I love it. I had ordered this along with some Magnolia images about 3 months ago...these penguins have been around the globe a few times, I think. The order was from the UK and I have no idea where the package went but finally had to go to the post office to pick it up.

It reminds me of my going to Disney World one year with our kids in January just after Christmas. While my two young daughters and their Dad were being whirled around on those really fast rides, I was riding by myself in one of those boats through the canals of "It's a Small World "...ya know the one with the singing people from various countries donned in their heritage costumes...I am sure that is just demented to some of you...and I am proud to say that I did make it down the Log Ride but seriously was looking for a place to jump off at the top of the mountain!! I was holding our oldest daughter's hand and she was having to reassure me...

well, so back to this card.

This is me and my stamping buddies...I am the one on the end and you can't see, but my flipper is dragging in the snow on the other side trying to slow the sled down. My friend, Charlene (Bertie) is on the top of the hill hurling snowballs at us...and we are dodging them coming down the hill. Oh what fun!!

And you, my friends, reading this, are the ones in front...we are having a good time, aren't we??

Thanks for coming along, I promise I won't drag my flipper the whole way...

What is your favorite winter time activity??