Merry Christmas Memories 2011

Happy Holidays to all!

We had a wonderful holiday season
with plenty of food and laughter...

Plus all 4 boys are at home again!

Here are some pics...

Grandma & Grandpa with the kiddos...

Tickle, tickle tickle...

The handsome crew!

SAY CHEESE!!!
Can you tell we are related?!?

Baking away!

3 more days till Christmas!

Wrapping is done-onto the baking and candy making!!

First up SNOWBALL cookies.
My all time favorite....yum
Then peanut butter, chocolate chip
and jam thumbprints.
Pretzels dipped in chocolate are also
easy to do...and they make great gifts!

These are so simple and yummy.
(I got this photo online, these are not the ones I made)
(Mine looked just like these, too.)
Top a pretzel with a Hershey's Kiss and cook
in the oven 4-5 minutes.
Squish an M&M candy on top of the softened Kiss.

So many variations with this one...
Enjoy!

Wrapping away!

The Christmas countdown has begun...

This week has been spent
cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning
and some wrapping!

Check out these 2 cute gifts
for the little relatives in
our lives:

How about a nice game of hide and seek with
a sock monkey?!? I love games that involve more
than one player, and physical activity!

AND for the little boys:

Something nice and gross!
The players reach into the plush
head and try to pull out the "goodies"!

Happy wrapping!

Craft Fair Pictures 2011

Finally! Craft fair season is over!!

Whew! Now to get ready for Christmas...


I sell paper crafting items at area fairs.
I start in the summer and work
till the 2nd weekend of December.
( I have been working on holiday stuff since July...)

I think our display is awesome!
We use light weight wood shelving and
4" hooks to display our wares.
We always leave a sample album unbagged,
while the rest are bagged to keep them fresh...he he he,
and clean!

The albums are then separated into different sections: family,
vacation, baby, holidays, pets, etc.

And there is Mom, so happy and making a sale!

Sweet candied jalapenos!

The craft shows have been fantastic!

I have had a lot of positive feedback...thanks

Jalapeno canning time!
We had sooo many peppers this year
it was CRAZY! We ate jalapenos in everything...

SO, I made candied jalapenos with red peppers. YUM

Note the plastic gloves...
Very important when working with hot peppers!
It took a few hours to slice 4 pounds of jalapenos!

Here are the sliced peppers cooking in the syrup.
(The syrup is made of 1 cup apple cider vinegar
and 6 cups sugar.) This cooks for 5 minutes.

I used a slotted spoon to put the peppers in the itty bitty jars.

I then cooked the syrup till boiling for 7 minutes
and poured that over the peppers in the jars.
Into the water bath they go!
I think that "POP" of the lid is the neatest sound.

Candied jalapenos, anyone??
P.S. These are great over hamburgers!!

Mouse Memories-Disney Album

Can you believe it is December!! It feels like school has just started, right?

The following is one of my big sellers
at the craft fairs. I guess everyone loves
Disney, young and old!

It is made with the larger sized paper bags.
These come in a rainbow of colors and are just perfect for making mini albums.

Hopefully, this will be a great weekend!
Enjoy!

How does it all stick together?

Hello, I am just relaxing on the couch...

feeling pretty good, actually!

I have a craft show at Munster High this weekend
and I am sure I will hear the same thing-I am always asked
how I stick everything in my albums together.
Not an easy question-for sure!

I use many different adhesives to put together one album.
Here is a list of my favorites:

3-L EZ Runners Find these at Hobby Lobby.
Sometimes even 50% off!

Glue dots come in lots of sizes .
I use the large, flat dots the most.
For smaller things, the mini dots are great.
To make things "pop" off the page, I
use the dimensional glue dots.

I got the Xyron machine combo one year
for my birthday. These are perfect
for intricate, delicate pieces.
I buy the refills at Micheals
with a 40% off coupon.

For chipboard pieces, this quick drying glue is my favorite!
A little goes a long way!
For larger chipboard albums
I use the old stand by-Mod Podge

I use a foam brush to apply the glue to the chipboard.
Add the paper and smooth with a rubber brayer.

More favorites coming soon!

Knee Surgery, again!

YEP, another surgery!

Right knee this time...

This was taken the day I came home...
Needless to say-I was still drugged!

I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving!

Fall Paper Bag Album

Happy November!!

I love working with paper bags!

They are inexpensive and come in a wide variety of colors. Here is an Autumn Memories album I made using the larger kraft bags. (These are slightly larger than the typical brown lunch bags.)

I normally create the titles using my computer...Microsoft Word is awesome! These pics show the inside of the album.

I have a craft show this weekend...wish me luck!

Headed to STATE!!!

That's right!
the Cross Country team did it!
first time in 39 years...
Congrats to all the runners!

Sporty notecards

Hello friends and family and lurkers,

I know I know...
finally a crafty post!

I must have sports on the brain,
here are some sporty notecards.

I also made some tags.
Love these stamps, and sports!
The notecards measure 3x3 and I got
the envelopes from Hobby Lobby.

Enjoy the Fall weather...

Going to Semi-State!!

Huge News!!

The Cross Country team won Regionals!!
First time in 39 years...

What a great day it was.
(Collin ran a fantastic race. So proud!)

This Saturday is semi-state. If the team finishes in the top 5

WE ARE GOING TO STATE!

Great job boys and girls! And coaches...

P.S. I did not add the fancy oval...

It's your birthday, party like it's your birthday!!

10-10-11
YES, it's my birthday!
A very important day indeed...
I think I have been celebrating ALL month so far.
This weekend we went to a country barn dance place..
It was fantastic, but I do NOT remember any of the dances...

I had a blast and we will definately be going again!

I have been super busy getting ready for the upcoming craft shows!
Pictures coming soon!