Christmas Picture

This was Christmas Eve...aren't the girl's dresses cute? My MIL and I went shopping for Christmas dresses at Gymboree. I had some plaid jumpers all picked out and then saw some brown and pink jumpers that were sooooo cute, so we got those instead (we had their pictures taken in them at Portrait Innovations this year as a surprise to our families).

After Gymboree, we went to Once Upon A Child and found two Christmas outfits...you can't beat those prices and the kids look so cute. You can tell so many people buy expensive Christmas outfits and then resell them at secondhand stores after the kids wear them only once or twice. These two dresses were in great shape and I don't think either one of them was more than $6.00. Anyway, check out secondhand stores next Christmas!

I also found a couple of brand new with tags Gymboree sweaters there for Gracie and snapped them right up! :)

Sisters Mini Album

I was looking back in my older pictures for something new to scrap and found this album. I made it in September of 2007, just a few weeks after Ava was born. I made it as a gift for my MIL's birthday and I don't believe I posted it anywhere. It was really simple. I cut a piece of 8.5 x 11 Kraft cardstock in half lengthwise, folded it in half, cut some Very Vanilla "pages," folded them in half, and stapled them into the book all at once. I decorated the cover of the album with simple stamping (Paisley BG, a heart, and a SU! alphabet) I used Rose Red ink for the paisley, Old Olive for the heart and "sisters." A black scalloped piece, a couple of silver eyelets, and black gingham ribbon finished off the outside of the mini album. The inside was very simply decorated with stamps, ink, and chalk. I used an acrylic baby set for most of it that I purchased at my LSS, but I don't remember who made it. I thought it turned out pretty cute. As a side note, my parents and in-laws have WAY more scrapbooks of the kids than I do. It seems that I spend most of my crafting time making gifts for others. Need to remedy that.....hmmmm... :)

Older Card

Made to submit at the same time as the Ava album and just came across it on my computer. Cardstock, clear button, stamp, ink, and embossing powder by SU! The patterned paper, felt flower, and epoxy sticker are by Making Memories. :) If you click HERE and then click on the link in that post, it will take you to my SCS gallery, where I posted instructions on how to do the Faux Etched Glass technique, which I adapted from a button embossing tutorial given by SU! at a regional seminar. It's fun and easy to do. I backed the clear button in this example with a circle of pink patterned paper to make the Iredescent Ice embossing powder stand out more.

Another probable reject...

Made for Scrapbook Trends June 2009 issue, a call for wedding cards. Haven't heard anything and I am pretty sure the requests for work have gone out, so here ya go. :) All but the stamp and pearls are SU! The patterned paper is the new Valentine paper in the SU! bundle that they offered. The heart punch is also new from SU! I used the scallop border punch to create the dress and used another heart punch (the SU! punch has three hearts on one punch) to create the "bodice" of the dress. Pearls are Hero Arts and the stamps are Studio G from Michaels. Please comment if you have it in you---I don't think my ego can take yet another post with no comments! :)

This is the album that I made for my cousin and his wife when they had their new baby back in October. I blurred out the baby's full name, but it's right above the DOB. It went together pretty fast because they didn't know if they were having a boy or a girl and I made it THAT day so that I could take it to them when I visited them in the hospital that night. I used an album that I had on hand from DCWV. I believe I took out two pages from the center of the album and squished the staples back in place. I used the "Rock-a-Bye Girl" Simply Scrappin kit for most of the album. I believe I had to use a couple of my own pieces of Kiwi Kiss paper for the photo mats, but all of the rest of the embellishments and patterned paper came from the kit. I have a LOT left over, too, so I am going to make another one for one of my girls. :) I used a couple of flourish stamps from SU! Priceless set, one chipboard heart, a Felt Fusion flower and brad, ribbon, and the kit. It went together very fast since I basically copied the layouts from my sister's album that I made for my niece last summer. You can click on the pictures to enlarge them, but the quality is not the best since I just had my cousin's wife hold the album up to take the pictures last night in a restaurant.

Cover page. It says, "Among the world's most precious gifts, among its precious pearls, God smiles down upon the world and sends us little girls." Got the quote off of a home improvement show when I was pregnant with Gracie and wrote it down because I loved it. One of the decorators painted it on the wall of a little girl's room and I don't know if she made up the quote or if she got it somewhere else, but I have had no luck googling it to see who to credit.

Months 1 & 2

Months 3 & 4

Months 5 & 6

Months 7 & 8

Months 9 & 10

Months 11 & 12

Second-to-last page. Four blocks for "First Smile," "First Giggle," "First Word," and "First Steps." SO fast with the self adhesive die-cuts included in the kit. :)

Last page--a space for a 4x6 family picture. The stamp says "one little baby, many happy hearts" by Stampin' Up! (set name Curvy Verses). I covered the SU! chipboard heart with Pretty in Pink craft ink refill and either embossed it with clear powder or dried it with my embossing gun (can't remember).

Submission Reject

I made this back in April of 2008 and submitted it for publication to CK I believe. Probably Scrapbook Trends as well. They didn't request the album for publication, so I am sharing with you guys! :) The patterned paper and epoxy stickers are by Making Memories. Stamps ("Ava"), large eyelet, ribbon, and ink are Stampin' Up! If you missed the directions I posted regarding how to curl your grosgrain ribbon, click HERE.

Thanks for looking! :)

Recipe Share!

In the interest of procrastination, I am going to post my two favorite winter "comfort food" recipes. Both of them involve the crock pot, so you can't get any easier than that! :) Both recipes were adapted from posts on AllRecipes, since I can't leave well enough alone and have to put my personal spin on these types of things. Without further ado:

Slow Cooker Chicken & Dumplings

3-4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons butter
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed "cream of" soup (chicken, celery,
mushroom, etc.)
1/4 onion, finely diced (the original recipe called for one
onion and it was WAY too much, and we like onion)
2 (10 ounce) packages refrigerated biscuit dough, torn into
pieces (I couldn't find this, so I used one 16 oz. package reduced
fat grands buttermilk biscuit dough)
2.5 cups water
3 chicken bullion cubes
spices to taste (I sprinkle a bit of garlic powder, some celery
salt, pepper, parsley flakes, a bit of thyme, and a bay leaf)

1.  Place the chicken, butter, soup, onion, and spices in a slow cooker.
Pour water over the ingredients and add chicken bullion cubes.
2. Cover and cook for 5-6 hours on High. About 30 minutes before serving,
take the chicken out and shred or dice and mix back into the liquid
ingredients. Remove bay leaf if applicable.  Chop the biscuits into
bite-sized pieces, stir in, and cook until the dough is no longer
raw in the center, about 15-30 minutes.

*****

Crock Pot Salisbury Steak

2 pounds lean ground beef
1 (1 oz.) envelope dry onion soup mix
1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 TBSP vegetable oil
2 (10.75 oz.) cans condensed cream of chicken or mushroom soup
1 (1 oz.) packet dry au jus mix
3/4 cup water
1 (8 oz.) package sliced fresh mushrooms

In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, onion soup mix,
bread crumbs, and milk.  Shape into 8 patties.  Heat oil in
large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge patties in flour
just to coat and quickly brown on both sides in the hot
skillet.  Place browned patties into the slow cooker,
stacking alternately like a pyramid.  In a medium bowl, mix
together the cream of chicken or mushroom soup, mushrooms,
au jus mix, and water.  Pour over the meat.  Cook on the
low setting for 4 or 5 hours, until ground beef is well
done.  Soooo good over mashed potatoes!