Cute Candy idea

I think this photo says it all.... lol Hope everyone is having a great day, and you have lots of fun with the trick or treaters! This is one of 3 cute little decorations I found this year.. and have them all hanging in our entranceway to the office.

Whooo's got Candy?? I do I do.. this is something quick I made up this week for some friends at work. Very simple and fun.. I took a regular size Hershey Chocolate Bar and cut Halloween papers up with my trimmer to 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches square. Then with a little adhesive (duck brand tape runner) I wrapped it around the candy bar. A small amount of ribbon tied around the center with a hand stamped tag attached. Quick, easy and FUN! Halloween papers were from last years DCWV paper stack - Fall.... see more stash being used up!

On to summer 09 to Vermont here is a layout I created this week.. I am loving my Cricut... this one is using the "Stretch your Imagination" for the birdhouses. Freehand birdie and papers are from the DCWV "Doodln Around Stack" I chose computer journaling for this one, as I was trying to stay within space I left open.

Left side layout

Right side

Until next time!

Random nothings..

Where has the time gone? Yes it's the middle of the week and last week of October and I've gotten all my Halloween cards done and mailed whew... sorry I did not photo any, was to anxious to get them out! I've got a layout or 2 on my table, of vacation from Vermont this summer.. Think I found the perfect paper, now need to journal, embellish and then I can post.. and file away!! I also think I just might be able to use my Cricut Stretch Your Imagination cartridge on this one too.. Score, using up stash and using the Cricut... what a winning combination!!

I miss my scrapping time, I've been too busy at work with the upcoming holidays and trying to hire a couple new team members to boot. I am off this weekend and really hope for some dry NOT rainy weather.. we need to get the leaves to the curb for pickup and maybe take a photo or two of the backyard leave fest...hahaha

So on the way home from work the other day I had to sit and wait for the Geese to cross, glad I grabbed my camera and took this shot... which proves I have to get busy and take normal photos, and not stalk the birds... lol

Well this little critter was happy today! I get them in my bird feeders all the time digging for the sunflower seeds and knocking all the other seeds to the ground.. get frustrated sometimes with it, but the birds deal and life is good!

Good thing I had water in the bird baths too, he needed a drink after this.. lol

So sad that the "new season shows" are into repeats already on a couple of them :-(

Kerry and I ran to Blockbuster to pick up a couple movies with a $2.99 coupon they sent me, so we will watch something tonight..
Until next time!

Warning ~ Photo heavy!!

So yesterday was a "fun mail" day, my friend Jocelyn sent this cute little Halloween Card!! I just love getting fun mail and sending it...Thank you Jocelyn for inspiring me to work on my cards today on my day off! It's raining here again, and I love the fall snuggle weather but I really want to be OUTSIDE in it.. lol

Card from Jocelyn!! Love it and you Girl!

Remember a few posts back I had some sneaks, well I finished up this mini gift album and here are a few pages. I like how it came out.. I used a couple pressed boards I found a Michaels, and painted them terracotta and made them look like a "flower pot". The papers were October Afternoon from a LRS kit. I found the perfect embellishmet for the front from Michaels part of their Recollections Autumn Splendor line.. Love that dragonfly!

This photo says it all!

I love stamping in my books too! I have many stamps that work well for lots of things and love the look it gives them!

The flowers are from Prima.. love Prima flowers almost as much as Real Flowers... lol

So while I was taking a peek at Laura's blog today she had a session on a mini book, and you all know my love of mini's so I figured I would photo some of them! These all sit on a shelf in my craft space to review and enjoy!! Hope you like them, a couple are still being worked on others are completed.

Owl still needs the perfect photos, I think I will use it for my growing collection of things "Owley" lol is that a word??

I love this one with actual photos covering the front!

There is one I did on my Faith... I do have a belief in God and all his glory, but do not attend a church faithfully. This mini was a documentation of growing up Catholic and my foundation of religion as I grew and acceptance of who I am and how God fits into my life. There is alot of journaling on the last couple pages.. This book is actually made of recycled cardboard and inked up around edges and through out.. I used the Basic Grey "Urban Couture" line for this and love how well it worked with those old black/white photos.. Growing up I do not have alot of photos of myself or family, but through my hobby I am making sure my children have them! Sadly I lost touch with the other children in these photos as we moved out of W. Boylston, I remember the name of the Church, but have no clue who the Priest or Nuns were. Nothing was written on back of photos :-(

My Faith ~

Sorry photo turned out blurry when enlarged.. It looks fine irl...

Inside back cover ~ the previous page I left out as it was personal journey through religon for me!

Hope you all have a wonderful day, and since this took so long to post, I'm off to find lunch...lol

Until next time!

Tour de Naperville ~ back home

Home Sweet Home.....

I love the bright colors of the fall, and this little flag greets all who walk up our path.

Remember all my bird stalking (watching) stories.. lol well this Birch tree is where most of it takes place. It sits right out front and I am blessed to have a corner of our living room with two large picture windows to view out of. I just love the contrast of the bright yellow and clear blue sky!

Around back I have this planter with 3 smaller mums still going strong. I love how it perks up our bulkhead. Soon these too will be gone for the season and I will be awaiting the end of winter for spring to fill this up again to bloom.

I have taken alot of photos of birds in this birdbath, it never ceases to amaze me how much they love this one! I do have a couple others in the yard, but they all gather around this one. Today it was over run with Robins.. lol they kept coming and really gettin down... LOL
I love my Sparky, he spends alot of time out of his cage with me and it's fun to watch him looking out at the birds. He is usually pretty good and not startled by much unless it's a Hawk... Yes a Hawk, we live close to the Prairie Forest Reserve and they are always there.. I am ok with them coming to visit as long as they do "take out" not "dine in". Sounds gross I know but it is a natural

fact of nature.

Here is a close up of the Red Tailed Hawk that swooped in.

Last but not least, this makes me Smile every time I sit to eat!! I love Halloween.

Until next time!

Tour de Naperville

So a friend did something like this on facebook the other day and it was pretty cool. She did a tour of her town and posted some photos. I tried to get more posted here but blogger is acting out and not uploading them so I'll start with these and add when I can.

Downtown Naperville is a fun place to go, lots of small shops, and a great River walk along the Dupage River. This is one of the fountains in front of a covered bridge that crosses the river. There are plenty of places to sit and relax and just enjoy!

Today when I was there I watched a couple who were getting photographed here, fun times! I wondered if they were engagement shots or just fun shots? My guess was engagement they were having so much fun.

Who could resist this fun place? Alot of the side streets downtown are filled with unique shops like this one.. Yummie Cupcakes

This is a newer place and my eye zoomed in on the Pumpkin Yogurt!! I love the fall and all the treats that go along with it. Have to say Pumpkin is my favorite fall treat!!

So moving along on our tour... don't you all just love this place? The distribution center is located here in Naperville and mind you it's HUGE..... lol I pass this everyday on my way to work..

Ok, so this is not unique to Naperville but it is fun. The weather was great so I whipped out my

gift card and stopped in for a Treat... Can you guess what I got?

Yup, if you were paying attention earlier you would have guessed a Pumpkin Muffin and Hot Chocolate yum! I sat outside and enjoyed the weather wondering to my self why everyone was staying inside to eat.... oh well their loss.

As we continue our tour, I've headed back towards my home on the Southwest side of the city. This is one of 4 High Schools we have, my son graduated here in 2007 with a class of over 1,000!!

This is one of 3 Libraries we have too! This is the newest one and Naperville has been ranked #1 for a number of years running according to the library index. It is awesome and I spend lots of time putting books on hold and going to pick them up!!

Until next time!

I'm still here... lol

Wow can you believe my last post was on 10/8? Time flies... I have been here reading all your postings but didn't have anything I felt was blog worthy to post.. lol still don't.
Fall is creeping up fast, and will be gone before we know it. In retail the holidays all blurrrrrrrr together... we are already pushing past Halloween, and thinking Christmas.. UGH!!!!
I really want to enjoy my holidays, so I am taking time to breathe :-)

I heard from my daughter the other day.. we had been playing cell phone tag.. lol I told her she could catch me on my regular schedule.. but hmmm never thought she didn't know what it was..
I have to put a call into my Dad this weekend the company he was working for closed it's doors today.. hes pretty bummed out.. @ 77 and still was working 3 days a week.. he will go stir crazy if he can't find something to occupy his time.. UGH.... parents are not supposed to go through this stuff.

Yesterday was my day off and I was working on a gift scrapbook for a baby shower, it's kind of cute looking, I was using the Nana's Kids papers from DCWV for a boy and my
Quickutz monkey die, going to pull out my Cricut Animal Kingdom cartridge and try making a couple more diecuts with it.. I am loving my Cricut.. and try to use it for every project I work on.. got to try and get my $monies worth from it.. lol And guess what the Nana's kids paper was in my Stash... lol gotta love using up stash.

I can post some photos later of it or tomorrow.. I need to work on some more scrapbooking this weekend and get some sewing done for Christmas projects, supposed to be cold and possibly rain/sun/clouds...
Until next time!

I found this "Over the Top" award on callista's blog and loved it, like her not going to follow the rules, but wanted to play along so here are my answers and hope you want to play too!

Here are the rules for the Over The Top Award:USE ONLY ONE WORD! It’s not as easy as you might think. Copy and change the answers to suit yourself and pass it on. It’s really hard to use only one-word answers so try your best. Tag 6 other bloggers and let them know that you think they are 'Over the Top'

1. Where is your cell phone? Counter
2.Your hair? brown
3. Your mother? passed
4. Your father? Hero
5. Your favorite food? Chineese
6. Your dream last night? none
7. Your favorite drink? cold
8. Your dream/goal? Ireland
9. What room are you in? craft
10. Your hobby? crafting
11. Your fear? lonliness
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? traveling
13. Where were you last night? home
14. Something that you aren’t? thin
15. Muffins? Blueberry
16. Wish list item? housekeeper
17. Where did you grow up? Massachusetts
18. Last thing you did? laundry
19. What are you wearing? slippers
20. Your TV? big
21. Your pets? Cockatiel
22. Friends? Best!
23. Your life? Fabulous!
24. Your mood? annoyed
25. Missing someone? Duchess
26. Vehicle? Jaguar
27. Something you’re not wearing? socks
28. Your favorite store? Archiver's
29. Your favorite color? Orange
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? week
32. Your best friend? Rosa
33. One place that I go to over and over? Library
34. One person who emails me regularly? Susan
35. Favorite place to eat? home

I'm not going to follow the rules and tag anyone, if you want to play along, feel free to!

Until next time!

What a fun award, thanks to my friend Jocelyn I get to share some things with you so Thank you sweet friend here is some Honesty straight from me!

Here is how it works....*Say thank you and give a link to the presenter of the award*Share “10 Honest Things” about myself

*Present the award to 9 other bloggers whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design or to those who have encouraged me

*Be sure to tell the 9 bloggers chosen that you are giving them the Honest Scrap award and provide the guidelines for them.

1. I was SHY when growing up! I tell people this now and they never believe me because I am so OUTGOING now.. lol

2. I collect Boyds Rabbits and Bears: started with the Rabbits and when they got scarce I moved on to the Bears, I have friends who give them to me and they are all displayed on a shelf in my craft room.

3. I love to Bake more than Cooking, especially in the fall/winter. I give alot of homemade goodies as gifts.

4. I wanted a tattoo years back, the sun, moon, and stars. Had it all picked out and where I would get it, BUT never wanted to pay the $$ to have it done alas no tattoos for me. And more so still don't do it because still won't spend the $$ but Kerry hates them on women.. lol

5. I love to travel, honestly thought at this stage of my life I would be doing more of it than I do! But until the economy picks up its short road trips that don't cost alot. Does this bother me yeah but I need a roof over my head and food to eat more than exploring right now.. lol Someday will come I have faith in that.

6. I love M & M's and separate them by color to eat them!

7. I always have funky socks on at work it's the little things that make me smile.

8. I hate liars, rude people, and know it alls....

9. I will answer pretty much any question asked of me, but always state this " Be careful what you ask me, you might not like the answer". I am direct and to the point and will tell you like it is. I will not sugar coat things to make you feel better. I will tell you things you really don't want to hear but you need to and that no one else will.. LOL I do it nicely but it will be the Truth.

10. I love my life and family, dislike working retail but the job does pay the insurance and allows me to have a better life and time with family, than if not working.

So now I'm supposed to bestow this Honesty to 9.... lol I've got a few. These ladies, have wonderful blogs great inspiration to me both in family and creativity.

laura

maggi

lisa

carla

kristii

Raining here again, hoping to finish up embellishing the Mini for Sisterinlaw's gift giving project. And move onto more vacation photos. I was able to pick up some WRMK page protectors at Archiver's to work on some Hybrid scrapping, I love the look of the pages done this way and the creativity of multiple photos. Best news is they are on $ale right now so time to stock up on a few more.. I have decided I love 3 ring scrapbooks much better, and look forward to working with these more. What about you.???. Is it Post Bound or 3 Ring? Side loading or Top loading?? I prefer top loading.

Until next time!

Monday Monday

Ahhhhh Monday again, amazing how fast it rolls around.. I just had a great 3 day weekend reading and relaxing. I finished up my Road trip to Iowa, started a Christmas gift for my Sister in Law, don't want to post just incase someone checks out my blog. It was something she wanted me to make for a friend of hers, I struggled a little in the beginning thinking of how to pull it off, but as I got into it was pleased with the results.. Maybe I can do a couple sneak peeks??

Fall is coming fast to Naperville, Kerry has been so busy at his sisters fixing window/wall/floor drama ~ don't ask... a simple project turned into a Nightmare... lol so he has been straight out for last 2 + weeks, our yard has been neglected.. :-( I should have used my time working outside, but it was rainin, cloudy and overcast Fri. & Sa.t so I had a General Hospital tivo marathon!! whooo hooo I am all caught up.. Yesterday was gorgeous, I swear I should have gone photo hopping around town, but Christmas will be here before I know it and I wanted to get this project out of the way.. made good progress, will put fininshing touches on this week.

Hope everyone has a great week !

Until next time!

Road Trip ~

Remember back in September Kerry and I took a road trip to Iowa, well today I was busy scrapping that trip here are the first two pages. I am using the American Crafts ~ Travel papers and Cardstock. And best of all I used my "Going Places" Cricut for the designs and "George" for the alpha letters, I am really liking using my stash and Cricut.

Beginning of Road Trip album~ First stop Fulton, Illinois

It is a Huge Dutch Commnity, I wish I had some wooden shoes on my Cricut... lol would be perfect fit here.

I really wanted to go to Archiver's last nite on my way home from work... lol I even pulled into the parking lot and got a spot right infront of the door!

But I must say my willpower won out last nite, I never even made it to the front door, What you say? you went to the most fantastic Scrap store around and you didn't go in... LOL Yup, I managed to turn around and get back into my car and head home to use my very own STASH!!!!

But my dear blogger friends, there is always tomorrow! lol We shall see~ I have a coupon burning a hole in my wallet!! lol not that I really need something but $aving money is always nice.

I have a 3 day weekend this week and today has been fun, scrapping, reading, and playing with Sparky. I ordered Chineese for lunch and Kerry and I enjoyed that. I'm going to finish up another layout from said road trip ~ loved adding these diecuts... Fun Fun Fun....

Now I am off to watch a bit of Tivo~~ I love Tivo, I have been a fan of General Hospital for over 30 years and got behind while on vacation, so it has been a soap marathon to catch up.. :-)
Until next time!