TRIPLE TREAT FLOWER BIRTHDAY

Hi Stampers!

I spent a delightful Saturday afternoon doing a bit of stamping.....something I haven't done in quite a while and miss terribly!!! Things have settled down somewhat around our home and so it has been easier to break away and have some fun.

I have had a couple of friends who have had birthdays recently and I wanted to make them cards.....I'm always looking for good "excuses" to stamp :-)

Anyway....here is one of the cards that I made using the new Triple Treat Flower stamp that is in the new 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog. What I love about this simple little stamp (it is one of the a la carte stamps for only 8.98) is that it utilizes 3 different punches....which allow you to use this stamp in a multitude of different looks. The punches used are the Fancy Flower, 5 Petal Flower, and the 1/2" circle punch. Punches make everything soooo EASY!!

I used the sentiment from the new Hostess set Happiest Birthday Wishes (bought with hostess dollars....$21 for the wood mount and $15 for clear).

The NEW and much IMPROVED hostess rewards are the BOMB!!! I LOVE how Stampin' Up! has given hostesses such great rewards and freedom to use those rewards.

Well, I have plans to once again be consistent in my blogging. It's so hard because when I get behind, it gets a bit overwhelming knowing where to start again. There have been, and are currently, some GREAT Stampin' Up! promotions, not to mention to the new catalog, that I've completely missed. But, I need to just pick up where I can and gradually get back in the swing of things. So, tomorrow starts a new month.....and I will just start from there!

Until next time,

find some time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

GREAT STARTER KIT OFFER!

Hi Stampers!

Today I just wanted to let you know about a GREAT PROMOTION that Stampin' Up! is offering. They are offering the starter kit for just $99!!!

Contact me for more information!!!

Well, I sure am getting the stamping itch!! Just hasn't been much time for stamping and creativity.....I am going to have to crave out time for it!!!

Until next time,

find some time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDY!!!!

Hi Stampers!

As you know.....our son Andy is in Canada for the summer living and working with some friends of ours on their farm.

I sure do MISS him like crazy......and with him being there all summer.....we also miss celebrating his birthday. So, I made this card and sent him a small gift....we will do something fun when he gets home.

Here is the card that I made for him.....something fun, yet masculine.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDY!!!!

I LOVE YOU!!!

Until next time,

find some time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

CATCHING UP - GRAD CARDS

Hi Stampers!

So much has happened over the last few months I am not even sure where to begin. So, instead of stressing over whether or not I've covered everything.....I'll just highlight some of things that I can remember.

We finally built our garage......we had to postpone it a number of times due to rain, but it is finally up....not yet finished, but enough to put the cars and boat in.

After we built the garage......it came time for the kids to graduate from 8th grade!!! This is a very FUN time. We had a big party for them and they were both thrilled to finally have one of their dreams come true....they got new iPod touches!! Here they are with their dad....

Here's a picture of the cards that I made for each of them. I unfortunately forget the stamper who gave me the inspiration for these cards. They were fun and easy to make....

After their graduation, we went on vacation to the California Delta for some boating fun with some friends. The water was VERY COLD.....so I didn't get in all the way....just stuck my legs in while sitting on the swim deck. The kids and Steve went water skiing, wakeboardin. We also brought our towable....which I did that since you don't really get very wet and you don't have to jump in the water. Here's a few pictures of our week.

Our camp....

Andy water skiing under a bridge.....

Madison wake boarding....

Crammed in the boat.....

Riding in the tube.....

So, there ya go....some of the highlights.

Something else that has happened this summer that is not so happy, but very much impacting on our lives, is that my husband, Steve, was diagnosed with cancer. The prognosis for him is very good, but it still is very sobering. As Christians, we are trusting the Lord with confidence and asking for peace and wisdom as we educate ourselves and work through all that needs to be done, etc. I would be grateful if you would please pray for us as we go through this process.

Here's some pictures of him....this captures what he really looks like....

Here's my "Marlboro Man" version of Steve....

Everyone who has taken the time to get to really know him knows what a wonderful guy he is....I am so thankful to have him as my husband!!!

I just remembered one more biggie for this summer! Duh! How could I forget this?! Our son, Andy, is spending 7 weeks in Canada on Vancouver Island with some dear friends of ours who own a farm. He is living and helping them out with farm stuff.....he is having an absolute BLAST!!! Me, on the other hand, miss him everyday!!! Thank goodness for phones and Facebook!!!

Well, THANKS for hangin' in there with me!!! I will try and post some more of the stamping projects that I have done over the past few months....just be patient with me :-)

Until next time,

find some time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

CRAZY AROUND HERE!!

Well, this is the first opportunity I have had in over a week to sit down and even think about blogging. As you know, my mother-in-law, who is 79 years old, lives with us. Well, last week she fell and as a result of the fall broke a rib and fractured a vertebrae....which is extremely painful. She was hospitalized for a week.....but not because of the broken bones....it was because of her heart.....which is what caused her to pass out and fall. Anyways, we have been trying to make her as comfortable as possible and keep all her medications straight. She is improving each day.

On top of all that.....on Monday my daughter complained of pain in her stomach....by Tuesday morning the pain had concentrated to her lower right side. I immediately think....appendix. Well I took her to her pediatrician on Tuesday morning and he thought the same thing....so he had us hustle over to the emergency room at the local children's hospital. So, Tuesday we spent almost the entire day waiting to find out if it was her appendix. Well, after blood tests and an ultrasound.....it was determined that it wasn't her appendix (yeah), but she had an ovarian cyst! We were told that these usually resolve on their own. She is doing good and is back in school.

So....that's what's been going on here! As far as stamping.....I did complete the matchbox die favors for our church's women's retreat this coming weekend. I took pictures and will post them shortly.....I still need to download them from my camera.

Thanks for visiting!!

Until next time, find some

time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

AWOL.....& the NEW BOAT

Hi Stampers!

I know, I know.....once again I have fallen off the face of the blogging earth!

Each time I do, I feel awful!

I think about how I should take pictures of what I'm creating and then blog about it....but it just gets shoved to the back burner. So.....SORRY, please bear with me!!!

I have been working on making favors for our church's upcoming women's retreat.....they are similar to the Valentine's from this post, but I used sea shell images. I have quite a few of them to make.....so I will definitely take a picture of them when I get some done. I have made a sample and I'm in the process of putting them together in "assembly-line" fashion. So when I get my act together I will dig out my camera and take a few pictures.

I will share with you a couple of pictures of our "new" boat.....it's an older model MasterCraft. We had a boat almost exactly like this a few years ago.....we're pretty excited about this coming summer!!! We do LOTS of waterskiing on our waterski lake that has a slalom course....but we are looking forward to taking the boat out on a "real" lake and doing some tubing and wakeboarding. Slalom course skiers usually don't spend much time tubing......it's seen as a waste of "good" water ;-)

Although, we're trying to get Andy and Madison to get serious about waterskiing.....we tell them that skiing might be their ticket to a cheaper college education! There are still a few universities with waterski teams.

Here's the gang getting the boat ready to launch.....it was kinda chilly that day...but the sun warmed us up! We brought blankets just in case.

Here's a picture of the kids having our "Jenkins Family Traditional Picnic Lunch".....we ALWAYS have salami, Ritz crackers, cheese, and stuffed green olives.

YUMMY!!!

Well, I better get going......I will try and be back REALLY SOON because about a week or so ago, I was emailed that I was given a "Stylish Blogger" award....anyway, I need to read about what I need to do and thank those kind bloggers for thinking of me!!!

Until next time, find some

time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy

PUNCH BUNCH SWAP CARD

Hi Stampers

Well, I'm back with my swap card. I almost feel a bit embarrassed to show you after Jamie's gorgeous card.....I definitely need to step up my stamping efforts :-o

What I did do on this card was look at the Color Coach and use the colors that it suggested for So Saffron.....So Saffron, Riding Hood Red and Soft Suede.

Then I wanted to use the new Sale-A-Bration set Punch Bunch.....which I LOVE! This set is FREE with a $50 purchase of SU goodies! Nothing hard at all about this card.....just get out your Big Shot and punches and....Viola! a card is done!

Well, I need to scoot.....Grandma has a dentist appointment and I still need to get myself ready to go to town.

Until next time, find some

time for stamping!!

Blessings......Cindy