1

It’s My Birthday!

Posted by Kathy Torrence on Apr 17, 2007 in Cards, Crafts

Yes, today is my birthday. I’m 39 today. My last year in my thirties. Next year I’ll be in my forties. My life is half over. Sigh…

And what a birthday it’s been so far. My son Matt has pneumonia and is home from school until Thursday. Matt is a great kid – he’s just a little….let’s just say ‘chatty’ (can’t imagine where he gets that from!). And he’s on steroids and nebulizer treatments every four hours. Which makes him SUPER chatty. There hasn’t been a single moment of silence in my house today.

And the nor’easter that came through yesterday flooded our basement. So much so that my husband stayed home from work yesterday to try to keep up with the water.

The weather has been absolutely horrible since Sunday morning – which means that my attempts to housebreak our new puppy have failed miserably! She hated going out in the rain – and when she did go out, we’d have to stand there with her to make sure she didn’t escape under the fence (not a problem in a few weeks as she gets bigger, but for now, she can fit right under).

So I’m out there at 6:00 AM in the cold, driving wind and rain with my robe and slippers on (note to self – don’t go outside again wearing slippers during a nor’easter – they’ll soak right through), carrying an umbrella to take the puppy out. And all she wants to do is play in the mud. And as soon as we go back inside….BOOM! She poops on the floor. Every single time. At least she’s consistent, I guess.

I did manage to sneak a few moments of crafting in yesterday, though.

I’ve been working on a ‘flag book’ based on an idea I received from a fellow demo during a swap at Leadership. It’s kind of a play on the accordion book, but the pages are small rectangles that fold each way. I haven’t put photos in the book yet, but here’s the book closed and open:

I’m going to do a class on this, I think – probably at the end of April or beginning of May.

It’s also my friend Denise’s birthday today (a link to her blog is on the right) so I worked on her card and gift this weekend too.

DENISE – DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER UNLESS YOU WANT YOUR BIRTHDAY SURPRISE RUINED!!!!

I made her a card that’s basically very simple, but classic. I, of course, forgot to take a photo of the card before I sealed it, but here’s a similar card I made to keep for the idea:

The card is a Fabriano card – the paper is absolutely beautiful and is so luxurious! I stamped the image with black StazOn ink and watercolored it with re-inkers and a blender pen. Then I took my new favorite toy – a glitter pen – and outlined the flowers and vase. Not sure if it comes through in the photo, but it looks like a vintage postcard when you add the glitter – and it is SO easy and fun to do!

I first got hooked on the glitter pen when my friend Jennifer bought one at the Stamp & Scrap Art Tour – then she used it on a card during our Stamp Club’s Shoebox Swap.

The glitter pen is called ‘Gelly Roll’ and I ordered it from Impress Rubber Stamps (one of my favorite companies – other than SU!, of course). It’s better than any other I’ve used – the ink comes out in a smooth fine line and when the clear ink dries, you’re left with just the glitter.

I also used a blue Fabriano card, a simple seashell image and the Gelly Roll pen for this card and envelope:

Very simple, but very elegant.  Not sure if the glitter comes through nicely in those photos, but in person – it’s a great accent.

But back to Denise’s present…I’m giving her what I’m calling a “Box O’ Stuff”:

I found a vintage jewelry box at a yard sale and I filled it with various crafting items including charms, ribbon, a vintage photo, dominos, vintage cigar labels, a vintage charm bracelet, vintage compacts, punchinella, watch parts, paper weights, muslin dolls, compasses, buttons, felt flowers, ephemera…you know – all the stuff we love to play with! I’ve been picking up stuff for her for a while now and just keep adding it to the stack. I ordered bunch of stuff from SkyBluePink, Outside The Margins, and DollarScrapbooking as well as eBay and numerous yard sales, thrift stores, and flea markets.

I wrapped the box in cellophane and tied it with a pretty ribbon – I hope she likes it! I’m certain that I would like to receive this as a present, so I think she will too.

And..here’s another photo of Daisy – the reason I’m not able to get much done lately…the little stinker (and I mean that in the most loving way)! Sorry – she’s just so adorable – I had to add another photo! 😉

 
1

Is It Spring Yet?

Posted by Kathy Torrence on Apr 15, 2007 in Uncategorized

It’s been a while since I posted – so sorry! But it’s been crazy around here!

The kids were on spring break the first week of April – we had about one nice weather day that week. Some friends and I managed to slip in a trip with the kids to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA:

It was nice to see some signs of spring! Of course, then the weather went downhill…

So I took advantage of the yucky days to clean out the closets. I ended up donating 16 bags of stuff to Purple Heart – I found some T-shirts that I’ve had since 1994! Time to let them go…

As far as crafts go, we also managed a trip to the Stamp Scrap Art Tour when it came to NJ. Taking me there was like taking an alcoholic to an open bar! I spent WAY too much money but bought some FABULOUS stamps from lots of different vendors. That’s right – I cheated on Stampin’ Up! – but it felt really good! 🙂

I’ve also been doing quite a bit of yardsale-ing with my friends. I managed to pick up some real bargains last week like some vintage teddy bears, a desk for my daughter and a stack of vintage suitcases that I’m using for an end table. Going to yardsales is like going on a treasure hunt – plus, it satisfies my shopping addiction while spending very little actual cash (unlike my trip to the stamp show!).

But the most exciting news of the month is the newest addition to our family. Let me introduce you to Daisy:

Daisy is a 10-week-old goldendoodle puppy. What is a goldendoodle, you ask? A goldendoodle is a cross between a golden retriever and a standard poodle. They were originally bred to act as service dogs for those who need a dog, but have allergies. They are supposed to pick up the wonderful temperament of the golden retriever, the intelligence of the poodle and – the best part – they shed very little, if at all.

These dogs (as well as their counterparts – labradoodles) have become very popular – we have actually been researching the breed for over a year now. We wanted to get a puppy last fall, but decided that housebreaking in the fall/winter would be too difficult, so we thought we’d wait until the spring.

After losing Maggie a few weeks ago, I was so upset – I cried for days and started all over again after I picked up her ashes from the vet. I thought about it and decided that for my birthday this year, I would like to have a puppy as my present. So my wonderful husband found a goldendoodle breeder online and we drove up to get her last weekend.

It was a LONG ride – 3 1/2 hours each way! And we actually came back with 2 puppies – we brought one back for one of Mike’s co-workers. It was an interesting ride, that’s for sure! Here are both puppies climbing on my son and daughter in the car…

And here’s Daisy with the little guys on Easter morning:

Having a new puppy is like having a baby – I’m exhausted! But she is so sweet and so adorable…she’s just also very….hmmm….ornery is the word that comes to mind! Here’s a photo of her trying to get under the fence to play with the neighbor’s basset hound:

She actually fit through that hole and ran into their yard!

She’s also already climbed the baby gate:

But is learning to get along with our cat, Jingles. Here they are actually co-existing on the couch with me (notice…Daisy is sleeping):

She is so sweet, soft, cuddly and adorable – it’s really helping to keep me occupied (as if I didn’t already have enough to do that!).

Along with everything else going on, yesterday was opening day for Pitman Little League. Mike coaches TWO teams – one with my son Andrew and one with my son Matt. Here’s Andrew’s team:

Mike is the second from the left (number 16) and Andrew is the second from the right). It turned out to be a nice day, but it’s still VERY cold!

Speaking of which…we’re in the middle of a nor’easter today and the puppy refuses to go outside….it’s going to be a LONG day….maybe I can sneak into my craft room at some point while the puppy is sleeping.  I want to try out some of my new stamps!!!!

Copyright © 2024 Flying By the Seat of My Pants All rights reserved. Theme by Laptop Geek.