It's a Wrap!

So hard to believe that Christmas is already past.  Only a few days left to this year! We got zonked with a blizzard yesterday, and a bit of the storm is hanging on today.  Which has helped to extend that "day-after-Christmas" feel.  I think we'll be staying inside as much as possible today - it's very cold and windy out!

I know I've mentioned before that my mom is a quilter.  I'm so excited to share this Christmas gift that she made for my hubby and I .... a beautiful quilt for our bed.  Sorry for the blurring on the sides of the photo, but my room is a mess with the after effects of the holidays!  I really didn't want you to see the clutter, but rather the gorgeousness of this wonderful creation! Isn't it pretty?!!  Thank you Mom, I know this took you many. many hours of love to make!  I feel so lucky to have such a talented mother.  Thanks for creating this for us. I love it!!!

And so do the cats!!!  Oreo could not wait to jump on and try it out!

 

We also had another special Christmas memory in our house. My oldest son is in his senior year of high school. He has been applying to colleges.  His top choice happens to be the college where  my father, brother and uncle all graduated from and a very well known and respected engineering school. My son wants to study engineering.  

Well..... the acceptance letter arrived several weeks ago.  But I thought it would be really neat to wrap it up and have him open it on Christmas to share that moment of finding out with his Grandad.  I wrapped up two gifts, a framed senior portrait of my son for Grandad, and the acceptance letter for my son.  Here they are sharing that moment together.

 

I hope the warmth of the holidays is continuing in your home!

We "Knead" Traditions

It is Christmas Eve!  Time for peace, hope, magic and celebration. It's also a time steeped in traditions.  We have several traditions in our home at the holidays.  Today my oldest son and I are carrying out one of our favorites.  We are making and baking Vanocka a traditional Christmas bread tied to our Czech-Austrian ancestors.

It takes several hours to make. It is truly a labor of love. The love part is the time that we spend together as we make up the dough.  These pictures are from a few years ago when I actually took time to snap some photos of us in the process.

The house smells wonderful with the mix of warm spices, fruit and nuts.

One of the toughest parts to making this bread is the braiding. There are three braided layers stacked on top of each other.  Some say it represents the baby Jesus wrapped in cloth and cradled in the manger.

I've preserved this in a mini-album I created about our Christmas Traditions.

I'm really looking forward to enjoying some of this bread tomorrow as we celebrate Christmas with family.  So tell me, what are some of your treasured traditions?

Merry Christmas!

Another gift to share

I'm working on finalizing some gifts for Christmas.  Today I created a travel mug for my dad.  Hopefully he is not following my blog so he doesn't see this before Christmas!

It was difficult to get a single photo of the mug that showed off all the details.  So I put together this mini layout to display the design and final product for you.

I used a template by Pixel Gypsy and the kit Splendiferous by Jennifer Fox Design and Jenn Barrette Design.

Gotta go wrap it up before my dad sees it!

What's Cooking?

Today I'm cooking up a batch of Italian Chocolate Spice Cookies.  They are so yummy!!  The house smells so good from all the spices in them.  This is a real Christmas treat!

I created this page for the cook book album I am creating.  It's one of those projects that is always on the back burner (pun intended!). I used the digi kit Secret Recipe by Connie Prince and Mye DeLeon.

Enjoy,

The gift (Birdhouse)

Did you see the card I made yesterday?  It's one post back.  Well, today I made the gift to go with that card.

This started out as a wooden birdhouse.  I sanded it, painted it and then adhered papers using Mod Podge.  The papers are from the Vita Fortunata pack by Quirky Twerp (same set I used for the card!).

I used the apron lace border punch by Fiskars to create detail for the roof and rail edges.  Red paint and a ring cut from the blue paper in the pack create a nice finish to the entryway.

 

I trimmed the side edges of the roof with scallop scissors. All of the papers have been sealed with a few coats of Hard Coat Mod Podge.

The bottom is trimmed with some velvet ric-rak. The flowers are Prima and Recollections, gems are Zva, and the pearls are from Queen & Co.

I sure do hope the recipient likes it!

Now to go wrap it all up so I can give it to her!

Brilliant Birthday

Hey, I've got a birthday card to share with you today.  This is going to someone that is filled with so much wonderful energy. So I wanted the colors to be brilliant, like she is!

 

I made the paper rosette by punching several scalloped circles from white cardstock.  I inked the edges, spritzed them with water and then crunched them up.  After carefully unfolding the circles, I stacked them, put a mini brad through the middle of the stack.  Then I scrunched up the circles and peeled them back to create the flower look. I sprayed the flower with Glimmer Mist (marshmallow and bronze).  Here is a close up of the flower:

The papers are from the Vita Fortunata digital paper pack by Quirky Twerp.

Let your Light Shine

Made this card for someone that has always let their light shine on me. They've given me a boost when things seemed dim, reminded me how much I can glow.  Sometimes friendship and kindness can surely lighten the load.

Ingredients:

Papers and elements are digital from the kit Everyday Wishes by Jennifer Labre Designs and Jenn CK Designs

Lace: Offray

Beaded trim: Hirschberg Schutz & Co.

Die: Spellbinders

Ink: Colorbox

Holiday eGreetings

Want to send some personalized holiday greetings, but out of time to get it all done?  I'm sharing a simple tutorial over at The Hybrid Chick today on how to put together some holiday greeting cards that you send out through email!  Check it out!

The Tree

Figured I'd best share the tree before Narnia (the puppy) chews it up too much!  LOL

  All decorated and lit up.  It's a cute little tree. A Fraser Fir that smells terrific!  Notice how there are no ornaments along the bottom levels!  Doesn't seem to deter the dogs and cats.  They all like the tree itself!

I made this layout with the photo. Not sure the tree will still look as nice come Christmas day!

I went to take a photo of the tree from outside the house and you can see who just had to be in the window! Along with the reflection of my neighbors lights!

And in the morning, both dogs were in the window!

Ho Heart Ho

Ho Ho HO!!!  Merry Christmas!!!  OK - almost Christmas!  Happy Christmas season!  I made this card and decided to put a little "heart" into it. Hence the "Ho Heart Ho"

I used the brand new just released to day Candy Cane alpha by WM [squared] Designs.  To get the effect on the heart, I used some dimensional clear adhesive and glitter.  Here's a closer look.

 If you look closely, you can see my reflection in the Christmas ornament!  LOL  Hope you're weekend is off to a fabulous start!

Folded Snowmen!

Brrrrr, it's a really cold morning here today! Perfect temps to share these cute little guys with you!

 

These are some cards I've been making using the iris fold technique. Want to learn how to do this?  I've shared a tutorial over at the Ideas For Scrapbookers site today! 

A little closer look

Hope you enjoy it!

Monday Again?

Can you believe that it is Monday, again, already???  Busy week ahead.  Who doesn't have a busy week this time of year?  Just remember to make some time to enjoy the season.

Here is a bit of what I've been working on....

I've also been trying to get the tree decorated and teach the puppy not to eat it!  She isn't attracted to the ornaments, but she is enjoying the flavor of the Fir boughs!

How can I resist giving in to that cute face??? 

Hope your week is off to a good start. I'll be back later this week to share some more inspiration!

Newsletter Freebie

There's a freebie holiday newsletter for you over at the WM[squared] Designs blog!  I made it for you using the Believe kit by WM [squared] Designs and Graham Like the Cracker.  Hop on over there and snag a copy for yourself!

A Template for You!

Just wanted to let you know that I am sharing a template today at the Ideas For Scrapbookers site.  You can read the full post at this link.  This is the scrapbook page that I made with the template

The Holiday Wish List

TodaysMama and GameStop  are giving away a sleighful of gifts this holiday season and to enter I’m sharing this meme with you.

1. What is your holiday wish for your family?

 That the spirit of Peace fills our hearts.

2. What is your Christmas morning tradition?

 Waiting patiently for everyone to be awake before we tip-toe downstairs to see the gifts under the tree.  We take turns opening gifts while we gobble up homemade breakfast casserole and cinnamon buns!

3. If you could ask Santa for one, completely decadent wish for yourself, what would it be? 
To provide, or show me the way to find a cure for autism. 

 

4. How do you make the holidays special without spending any money?

We enjoy listening to holiday music, watching holiday shows and movies and decorating our house. We have collections of snowmen, santas and Disney Christmas stuff. We also have memory books and scrapbooks that I have created over the years that we enjoy looking through. This all keeps the bond of family and the traditions of the holidays on our minds and in our hearts.
 

5. What games did you play with your family growing up?

Mille Bornes, Yatzee, Life, Clue, Monopoly, Scrabble and lots  of card games.

6. What holiday tradition have you carried on from your own childhood?

Having at least one "sleep out" under the lights of the Christmas tree!

7. Where would you go for a Christmas-away-from-home trip?

Walt Disney World!!!!  OMG!  It is awesome at Christmas time!!!

8. Check out GameStop  and tell us, what are the three top items on your GameStop Wish List this year? 

Oh wow, we would love to have the Playstation 3 Move Bundle for 2!!

 

And wouldn't it be cool to have the Xbox 360 with Kinect???!!!!

I would love to have a HUGE gift certificate so I could take the boys shopping and watch their eyes light up as they pick out their favorite games!!!

Woo Hoo!!! 100 Followers!!

Just doing a little dance over here. Celebrating reaching the 100th follower of my blog! Thank you to everyone that has been joining me on this artistic journey. I truly appreciate having you along for this ride!