It's a BLOG HOP to celebrate the birthday of a great 16-year old!

Welcome to the very special celebration of the birthday of a VERY sweet 16-year old young woman. Her name is Emily (like my own daughter) and she is the daughter of my friend, Beth.

Over my 5-year (!!) course of blogging, I've met many, many crafting colleagues who I now consider friends.

Several of these are women who joined me in "Banner Hops" where we made special occasion banners -- Halloween, Christmas, and Spring -- for children at a long-term care facility where I used to work.

One of those women, Beth McGee and her young daughter, Emily, made beautiful banners many times, and generously donated them to the kids in need of special love. 

So when Beth asked if I would join with her in celebrating Emily's 16th birthday with a surprise card hop, I am all in.  I decided to make one of my favorite cards, a pop-up, to mark this special occasion and special girl.  Here is the card (front view, at top; side view next; and the back is the third image, below.)

If you're a long-time follower of my blog, you know I've made several of these cards. They're spectacular to receive, and often become real keepsakes. And they're really not that hard to make. If you'd like to see the template I've developed for them, just scroll down to the word-cloud (index) at the bottom of my blog and look for "pop-up cards". Click there, and you'll be taken to other examples, as well as the template.

WIN BLOG CANDY!!!

So now what's a blog hop without blog candy, right?

Last week, I taught a really fun class in which students made 7 Christmas cards using the beautiful CTMH White Pines Scrapbooking Program cards, CTMH Poppy Twine and CTMH Red Enamel gems.  One of the cards was a pop-up. If you'll be so kind as to leave a comment here on this post, and follow my blog if you'd like, one winner will receive the detailed printed instructions for the pop-up card, pictures of some of the pop-ups I've made, and the Close To My Heart products (mentioned above) I gave to my students to make the set!  The products have a value of about $15, and the directions are ... priceless, of course.

Again, the only requirement for my blog candy is to leave a comment on this blog post; follow my blog only if you'd like to.

It's time to move on in the Hop...

You should have arrived here from THIA's blog so your next stop is at JANIS's blog.  CLICK HERE to be taken directly to Janis's blog post.

If you came to my blog just to see what's up and would like to see more cute cards for Emily's 16th birthday, go back to Beth's blog at the start of the hop.  Beth (Emily's Mom) has GRAND PRIZE blog candy that you'll not want to miss!

Here is the full list of those celebrating this very special occasion:

1. Beth - http://thecraftyscrapyard.blogspot.com
2. Mary - http://cardztv.blogspot.com
3. Shawnee - http://sunshinycards.blogspot.com
4. Thia - http://bluemooncreation.blogspot.com
5. Ellen- http://www.cardmonkeyspaperjungle.com
6. Janis-http://pausedreamenjoy.blogspot.com
7. Jennifer R- http://www.craftycardgallery.blogspot.com
8. Rachelle-http://rachellescreativeplace.blogspot.com
9. Krystal - http://krystalklearcreations.blogspot.com
10. Cathie-http://mimiscraftcorner.blogspot.com
11. Connie- http://conniecancrop.blogspot.com
12. Maria - http://maria-linacreativedesigns.blogspot.com
13. Jessica D. - http://craftinandstampin.blogspot.com
14. Georgia-  http://www.geritolgal2.blogspot.com
15. Julie - http://muddypawsinkyfingers.BlogSpot.com
16. Barbara - http://www.spotofsanity.BlogSpot.com
17. Jessica P - http://kissinkrafts.BlogSpot.com

School is Cool Blog Hop - August 4 - 5, 2012

Greetings, crafting friends.

I'm pleased to be participating in this weekend's "School is Cool" Blog Hop by the Krazy Crafting Crew (KCC), a monthly blog hopping group of crazy papercrafting enthusiasts.  If you arrived from so-and-so's blog, you are in the right place. If  you're just stumbling onto the hop now, be sure to start at the beginning so you don't miss any of the great projects.

Now it's been a long time since I've been in school or have had a child in school, so bear with me. These days, I think it's only "cool" if you come equipped with an iPad, cell phones and graphing calculators.  Little do the kids of today know that I survived school without anything battery- or electric operated ... no calculator, no computer. >GASP!<

So today I will show you something I'd give to a child starting off in elementary school: a perfect little set for a bookbag:

 

Here are some additional deets on each of the doodads:

We are so excited to have Scrapbook Stamp Society sponsoring this hop!  Make  sure you follow all instructions so you do not miss your chance  at any blog candy offered.  To complete your entry for the Scrapbook Stamp Society you have to comment on all the blogs; to gain extra entries, each blog you "follow" will give you an extra entry. 

AND I HAVE MY OWN SURPRISE BLOG CANDY!
It's coming from my stash of really neat stuff.
To win it, be a CardMonkey follower and leave a comment for me here. In the comment, tell me What was your favorite grade or subject in school, and why?  Also, please leave me a way to contact you when you win!!
 
Your next stop along the way is LIZ

 Here is the full line up in case you get lost:

1. Jearise www.lorbysworld.blogspot.com
2. Lissa Marie www.somanycrafts.com
3. Ellen www.cardmonkeyspaperjungle.com
4. Liz - http://tryin2craft.blogspot.com
5. Lisa http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
6. Anita http://www.anitaandbugs.blogspot.com
7. Cicily - http://pinkdalmationscrapper.blogspot.com/
8. Katina Martinez www.twochicsandacricut.blogspot.com
9. Pam - http://mzlavr2.blogspot.com/
10. Jessi http://mylifeinartsncrafts.blogspot.com/
11. Pam Lavertu http://mzlavr2.blogspot.com/
12. Paula McLane Jennings http://preciouspagesbypaula.blogspot.com

 Thank you for hopping with us today, please come back tomorrow  for more school is “cool” fun!

DeFiaNtLy DiFfeReNt & CreAtiVeLy Yours,

SURPRISE! Baby Shower honoring Shawnee's new baby, Felicity!

SURPRISE, Shawnee!!

Welcome to "...and Felicity makes 10!," a surprise baby shower for our mutual friend, Shawnee, who is known in the blogging world as the blogger behind "Blessed on the Bright Side." 

In her real world, though, Shawnee is known best as "Mom" -- to a precious brood of soon-to-be TEN beautiful children!  What a great family and what a blessing.

Today we are having a surprise baby shower for Shawnee as our gift to celebrate her precious new arrival, a little girl who Shawnee and family have named Felicity.

Each of the blog hoppers here knows Shawnee in many ways. I came to know Shawnee best when she lovingly and generously made banners for special needs kids, in the Banner Hops I've sponsored for Pediatric Specialty Care.

Even though (and maybe because) Shawnee clearly has her own challenges in raising children like Brighton, her precious little guy with Mitochondrial Disorder, she still finds time to give of herself to other children with special needs.  Sometimes she's worked on her banners while sitting bedside in a hospital, but still, she cared enough to reach out to "my" young kids at PSC (where I am Admissions Coordinator), as if they were her own.

Thank you Shawnee, for that love!

We have each made a two (2)-page 12x12" layout for Shawnee to post baby's new adventures, to help Shawnee get started on a scrapbook just for Felicity!

Here is my "Perfect 10 (diva)" Layout I designed and made for the newest  (and only the second!) girl in Shawnee's family:

Admittedly, I'm not much of a scrapbooker, so this was a bit of a challenge for me. (I'm a cardmaker!) To make this layout, I used Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker paper in her new "Audrey" line that honors Nikki's late grandmother. The cute baby peeking over the upper right corner was taken from a vintage (1960!) baby book I found at a consignment store. To use it, I scanned it into my computer and used it as clip art.
The dictionary definition of diva was also taken from a vintage dictionary found at the same store ... can you believe they had "divas" back then!?  I guess that's an age-old term! 

Now that you've seen my layout, don't forget to get a peek at all of the other sweetness that has been (and will be) sent to Shawnee for her baby's scrapbook. The "....and Felicity Makes 10" hop started at Lynne at Her Craftiness.   Your next stop along the way is with Anita at Anita and Bugs.

But wait ... before you go ... what is a Hop without Blog Candy? 

I'd love it if you left a comment here during this Hop, and become a follower here too.  If you do and are selected at random of the winner of my blog candy, I have an adorable stamp you'll win, honoring your every crafty day:

Remember: to be eligible to win this stamp, you must be a follower of my blog, and leave a comment on this post. In your comment, please do leave a way for me to reach you, should you be the lucky winner! 

And for eligibility for the overall Hop Blog Candy, don't miss leaving a comment at Lynne's Her Craftiness blog. Lynne's giving away some wonderful goodies from her stash.  There are other blogs that are having blog candy too, so don't forget to hop on through.  Here's the entire blog hop order, in case you're lost:

1. Lynne ~ http://slasewcraftiness.blogspot.com/ (baby shoesies)
2. Kimberly ~ http://scrappingrookie.blogspot.com (babies first pictures)
3. Colleen ~ http://www.cbcscrapbooking.blogspot.com (bath time)
4. Tina ~ http://craftyandgreen.blogspot.com
5. Rachelle~http://creationsbyrachelle.blogspot.com (Bloom & Grow)
6. Lisa ~ http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/ (Sugar and Spice)
7. Beth ~ http://motherandaughterdesigns.blogspot.com/ ~ (Babies Wardrobe)
8. Michelle ~ http://michellesdesignsforyou.blogspot.ca/ Hello world ,my name is Felicity
9. Ellen ~ http://cardmonkey-business.blogspot.com/ A "Perfect 10" - Diva page!  YOU ARE HERE!
10. Anita ~http://www.anitaandbugs.blogspot.com New Arrival  -- This is your next stop!
11. Melissa~ http://pinkpolkadotscrapping.blogspot.com (my mommy and daddy page)
12. Brenda ~ http://www.friendscraftinwithfriends.blogspot.com/ (sweet pea)
13. Suzanne-http://www.cricutcraftingrammy.blogspot.com (sleeping page)
14. Lisa W.-http://mycraftyspaces.blogspot.com (Peas in a Pod)
15. Carolyn http://messmuddleandfun.blogspot.co.uk/ Hand and Footprints

Again, congratulations to Shawnee and Jason, and all 9 of their beautiful children, as they welcome their tenth baby: precious baby girl, Felicity.

Winning the Scrapbookers' Lottery!

OMG, I totally feel like I've won the Scrapbookers' Lottery! 

Today I saw on the blog for Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker papers that the card I made for little Olivia was chosen as the winner of Nikki's HUGE prize!! 

The info about the win is posted here:
http://nikkisdoghouse.blogspot.com/2011/09/happy-fall-yall.html

The info about the prize (oooh-la-la!) is posted here:
http://nikkisdoghouse.blogspot.com/2011/08/i-have-another-huge-favor-to-ask-of-you.html

But most importantly, here is an update on Olivia, posted on her aunt Stacy's blogsite:
http://stacy-scrappinqueen.blogspot.com/2011/09/post-2-olivia-update.html

And here is a picture of Olivia opening her mail (which I see included my card!). Isn't she an absolute cutie!!? 

Olivia's brain tumor was successfully removed in August, and with radiation she is now receiving, the chances of reoccurence have dropped to 20-30%. I pray that they are soon zero, and that this little girl can get back to the business of being a kid again -- including kindergarten!

For those who don't know Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker papers, please hunt them down and add them to your collection. They're a very fun paper, with bright bold patterns and special punch-outs, add-ons, buttons, brads, etc. all that match. My one local scrapbooking store carried it ... but the store closed this summer, for good. :-( 

I buy my NSS paper online now -- wishing I could find it locally! -- and cherish every bit of it I have. My favorite online shops for it are A Cherry On Top and Stop And Scrap.  Both of those have links provided to their NSS papers. (I've noted that ACOT does not currently have the newly released NSS lines ... BOO! ... but that Stop and Scrap has the line at 25% off right now. Sign up for their website and you'll get a coupon on top of it!)