What matters most ...

It has been one of those weeks ... you know the kind I'm talking about. Where everything seems to fall apart all at once. You find yourself frustrated over the simplest setbacks and you feel like the whole world is out to get you. You can't seem to draw yourself out of "the blues". Then the ringing of the telephone and a little 'hello' and suddenly the clouds part. The darkness that has pulled you under no longers blurs your vision. You don't realize your head lifting and your shoulders straighten. Within moments a big grin spreads across your face. It's a so clear ... what matters most is that I have the love of family to hold on to me and bring me up. When I wake up in the morning and open my eyes the sun may not be shining but I know my world will be bright. And as I wait for my little ones to come 'snuggle' (aka-giggle) I will remember what matters most!

I took a 'lunch hour' (or two) this afternoon and put these cards together using various products from different companies including Stampin Up and Close to my Heart. I have become addicted to the Big Shot and use the Top Note die for everything. (Marie - this dies is a must have ... I used it on the page with the tree that you liked).

Thank you friends for blessing me with new friendships.
Best,
Samantha <3

MOJO88

Being crushed for time with the start of a new semester ... I decided to try my sister Marie's "whipped up during lunch hour" card technique! :) I thought about what I was going to do and then when it was time to sit down ... voila - a card in no time at all! I just wish I could apply that technique to homework and housework and ... LOL

Enjoy - and remember, it's only the click of a mouse to become a follower!

Happy MOJO ...uh Tuesday! :)

Life is fragile...

that's why God made mothers strong!

I was sitting here thinking about my beloved sister Marie and how much I detest the miles that separate us. I decided to put together a quick project - one that I know will bring a smile to her face as it includes pictures! Yes, Marie that is not a typo!

The pictures did not come out well as I think an adjustment was accidentally made on my camera and I am not tech savvy at all!

The color theme is pink and brown (my favorite). I believe the idea for this 4x4 accordion book came from Tresa Black (Fabulous Artsy).




Page 1: My youngest daughter, Kaetlyn.

Page 2/3: My boys - Caleb (left) and Steele (right)

















Page 4/5: My precious daughter Sayde and my ol
dest son Ryan.

Page 6/7: My husband and yes even a picture of myself with my sister Marie outside an Arhivers store near her home. (I didn't want to leave ... ever!)






And finally a picture with my dad!

I am going to pull out the tags and journal a special memory about each person and then carry it in my purse so I have it close to me.

I pondered a lot about motherhood while putting this together. It's funny how one does not affiliate strength with this role ... moms are gentle and tender. A mom will cry when her 5 year old son receives his kindergarden diploma. She'll cry when her daughter picks a bundle of dandilion weeds and presents them as a bouquet to her. A mom will cry when her ten year old son stand up with his trumpet in hand and starts belting 'America' off key. She will cry when her young son rides around and around on the mini-4wheeler and her oldest scores a goal in a soccer game. But tears can be deceiving ... they disguise a strength that is beyond the physical, and endurance that defies reason. When a child is mistreated (by a friend or adult) a mother will defend and protect. When a child feels defeated or discouraged, a mom will rehearse all the achievements (past/present/future) of that vulnerable child. And when a child fights agains the mother who loves him/her, that mothers heart and soul will kick into overdrive to figure out how to reach that wayward heart and bring it home again. Yes, life is fragile. That's why God made mothers STRONG!

~Samantha

Family - Friends and Fun

Some days I find my emotions on a roller coaster ride. I'm laughing one minute and crying the next.

I started my day thinking it was Friday. My husband began his vacation and did yard work, opened the swimming pool and camper and spent the day listening to the sounds of a house full of daycare children giggling (whining a tad bit) and just loving their "Samie". I tried to keep up knowing that my sister Valerie was due to arrive at my mom late afternoon.

As my day winded down, and the house filled with daycare parents the phone rang and it was my amazing sister Marie thanking me for a little gift box delivered to her doorstep. Just hearing her voice and knowing that she was so far away made me heart stop for a minute - oh how I wanted to just be able to give her a big hug and let her know how precious she is to me.

While trying to hear her on the other end of the phone, my daughter and husband burst in the door saying "Aunt Val is here!" Again my heart stopped. What joy my sisters bring to me. My heart fills with so much love and admiration every time I hear their voice!

To add a final blessing to my day, Val and I hopped in the car to see my other sister Jessie coaching her daughters softball game.

Family is everything!

Now for the projects ... last night I joined two of my friends for a craft night. The night was filled with so much laughter. We started the night making a card to be donated to the Ronald McDonald house (we do this at every monthly meeting). Then we made this amazing fold card, a scrapbook page and a little Matchbox.

Mojo87 Monday

It seems as though today was one of those Monday's where I should have just stayed in bed. I woke to a young child saying "Good morning Samie"! Yikes - I had overslept and my first daycare child arrives at 5:15 a.m. I put her back to sleep and rushed upstairs to get ready before the others came pummeling through the door at 6:30. I think everyone must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed ... all I heard was whining an cranking all day! To top it off ... I forgot to get a gift for my Mother In Law's birthday! I'll be mud for sure! I hurried to whip up a MOJO card - yup this one shouldn't even be posted! I noticed that my big square which I had set in a diamond position with a small square inside shifted and I hadn't realized it until I was typing this post ... like I said it's Monday!!! and my MOJO just didn't want to go! LOL
Happy Monday to all my friends!

Friday Night quick post

Just a short post ... the day finally ended and I made a mad dash to grab my dad's bday present (it's not like TODAY is his birthday present!). Then it was take out food and time to curl up and watch The Boy in the Striped Pajama's as part of a school assignment. My daughter and I needed to find an "out" to dry our tears (what a sad movie) so we whipped up a quick card or two! Now it's hitting 11 pm and I'm gonna curl up.

I don't know how my sister Marie can whip up cards so breathtaking during her lunch hour. I struggled for an hour to make a diaganol fold card and money holder card!

I wanted to extend my thanks to those who visit my blog, leave comments or follow me. It is your encouragment that keeps me moving forward!

Memories

Have you ever had one of those moments that you find yourself lost in thought remembering a special moment shared with a cherished person? Lately I have been thinking a lot about moments in my life when I felt completely relaxed and happy. Ironically, the phone rang today and the voice on the other end sounded like an angel whispering in my ear. How can two friends bare the depths of their souls and then cease all communication? It was as though we both new we needed a friend to talk to and fate guided us to reach out. I am still smiling and looking forward to reconnecting!

I decided that I have had this blank Memory Keeper from Close to My Heart sitting around for months collecting dust. When crafting I tend to find my comfort zone and fear stepping outside the circle and trying anything different. After braving my first MOJO Monday, I decided to play with my box. Since my Tickled Pink set has been here for a month also -it was an easy choice to pull it from the shelf and create this simple box! I used all CTMH products - my favorite of course is the bit of bling! Special thanks to my sister Marie (www.IsomCre8tions.blogspot.com) for her encouragement to believe in my creativity!

MOJO86

I've finally put my fears behind me and after much encouragement from my sister Marie, I decided to give the Mojo Monday challenge a try. Here is my very first attempt ...

Check out Dannie's for some great candy ...

Who wouldn't love to win some blog candy? Dannie is giving away an amazing gift of goodies ...
http://danniescreativeoutlet.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!

Play Day

It has been one of those days full of reflection. This morning I received a package in the mail from my sister Marie in Colorado. She has the most generous heart and a gift of insight. I thought of her often as I took the afternoon to relax and spend some time crafting. I often wish she were close enough to be on the receiving end of a hug of appreciation and love for her guidance, encouragement, strength and belief in those who felt they weren't worthy. Sister, you are more special than I could put into words!

My Play Day Projects:
I decided to use some of the piles of paper scraps that I had covering shelves, drawers and more. I made this Matchbox - for some reasons my pictures did not come out very well. I filled the box with some hard candies but there are so many different ways it could be used!











This second project is cuter than the picture portrays - it is a paper box. Again, I am filling with candies. I used the silhouette paper pack from CTMH that was in my package from my sister!














I have always wanted to try a Tic Tac holder. I love these!


I finished my Play Time by making this adorable paper bag/box with six coordinating cards. I saw this made by Dawn Giffith? but when I went back to find the site I couldn't located it (sorry)! The great thing about this project is that you can use one piece of DP 12x12 to make the bag and six simple blank cards!

















Thank you for taking a moment to visit my blog. I welcome your comments! If you enjoyed your stop ... please consider becoming a follower!
Yours in Inspiration
~Samantha

"Sisterhood of the Blogging Stampers #28

Hi Sisters!
I'm am so happy to join your group. To tell you a little bit about me ... I am a forty year old mother to five beautiful children: Ryan 20, Sayde 15, Steele 12, Caleb 10 and Kaetlyn 8 (yes, that is how her name is spelled LOL!). My days are spent operating a Registered Childcare Home (celebrating my 10th year), caring for my home and family while trying to finish my Bachelor of Psychology. A few years ago I visited my sister Marie (www.isomecre8tions.blogspot.com) in colorado and fell in love with Scrapbooking. I had never heard of an Archivers or Hobby Lobby store (now I want to move into one!) and through her skillful guidance I began my journey into paper crafting. I tend to play more with altered paper projects and cards more than making pages but am slowly beginning to bring myself around.
One of the challenges I face is that I live in a very small corner of Northern Vermont where there are no crafting or scrapbooking stores. I turn to the Cyber world (and all of you) for inspiration and guidance! Thank you for welcoming me into your family!

Life ...

The pressures of this life seems to be all around me - financial and health concerns, worries about my family, concern about the future of our nation. Some days I can keep it all in perspective and push away the care, but other days I feel as if I am carrying a great big heavy sack on my back.
I am not even sure how I should pray for many of these circumstances. I found that it is best to simply invite You into each situation and ask that You bathe all of them with your presence and Your influence. When my burdens seems heavier than I can carry, I hand them over to You. On my small frame they simply weigh me down but you are great enough to hold them all.
I think of me dear sister and all she has taught me about trusting You. I am beginning to understand that often the greatest way that we come to know You better is through our burdens, so thank You for the privilege of growing to know You. These were some of the little "sandwiches" I made for Teacher Appreciation week at the kids school. We made over forty of them and then made a couple of paper boxes to hold them.
I was so excited to sneak out for some more 'girl time' last night. My friend Deanna introduced me to another CTMH consultant that only lives 25 miles away! She led us in making six layout pages in less two hours! It would take me two weeks on my own! Thank you Jeni Dutil!!

Here is the second two page layout. I didn't realize the paper was overlapping when I put it down for picture taking!!

The final layout is my favorite. We stamped the background - I started out with a piece of white cardstock and did a bit of second generation and random stamping. Then we sanded cardstock frames. I was awed by my finished product! Jen introduced the Bella colors for this layout!


To make the end of me a bit brighter ... my first party was almost $350! How exciting! Here's to a couple of weeks off before semester begins - lots of paper crafting so check back ... and remember to follow my blog!
~Samantha

Nurture

As a mom to five children, a college student, a childcare provider, mentor, wife ... I allow little time for replenishing my energy. Every moment is spent meeting the needs of those around me that I have forgotten that I, too, have needs -physical, emotional and spiritual. I realized that if I do not attend to my own needs at some point or other I will fail at meeting the needs of those I most care about and stray from who I am. I took a few hours to attend an afternoon craft gathering at my friend Deanna's house and was blessed to meet an amazing SU demonstrator (visit her at www.wendystamps.com). Listening to her share her 'journey' with us really inspired me to think about my goals. Not only is she extremely talented, it was obvious that she was true to herself! She inspired us to 'think outside the box' and the two pages below were created under her guidance (I added a little of my own touch).



I am going to use this layout when I find the "just right" picture of my 20 yr old son and I. I was reminded of how much I cherished each and every moment of raising him and though he has begun his journey into adulthood I am blessed by his "I love you's" every day!







This was a fun, colorful page that I couldn't just have a flower or two ...





Have a Sunshine Day!!