Back from a wonderful weekend with family in Atlanta. On Saturday, we took son #2 out for a belated birthday dinner at our favorite restaurant. It is called the The Brick House in Decatur. My husband and sons are fancy shmancy beer afficianados and they have a gazillion different drafts and bottled beer. I, on the other hand, love wimpy beer! Just give me a Bud Light with lime and I am a happy gal! But, alas, I cannot get wimpy beer there, so I get Reissdorf Kolsch -- it's tolerable! The food is fabulous and they have the best appetizers. My favorite is a homemade Bavarian hot pretzel with spicy, grainy mustard! Yum!

The next day, we drove over to see our son, daughter in law and grandbaby, Caroline and took them out to lunch. She is now just over 2 weeks old and this was her 1st time at a restaurant and she didn't make a peep. Here is my favorite photo I took yesterday:


















Using this week's card sketch from OWH Stars & Stamps challenge, I created a birthday card. Here is the sketch:




















My card:

Happy Birthday, Zoe Rosebud!

Today is Zoe's 12th birthday! I know some people will say "she's just a dog", but not to us! To us, she is an integral member of the family. 12 is a pretty big deal for a big ole lab! Anyway, she and Brady will be celebrating with Frosty Paws ice cream -- peanut butter flavor! Here is a photo I took of her last Summer:














This is a card I made for my son and daughter in law to celebrate their 1st anniversary. I was inspired by a card I found in the 2Peas gallery by cristalfab. On the inside, I added a pocket for a local restaurant they like here. You see, there is a method to my madness. They live 2 1/2 hours away and after just having their 1st child, eventually they will be ready for a night out. And, I will so sweetly convince them to leave Miss Caroline with Grammy & Grampy for a couple of hours. Sounds like a plan, doesn't it?



















Another layout of Caroline - these were the very 1st photos taken of her with her parents after her birth. I found the design for this layout in the Page Maps book.














Leaving tomorrow morning, for a couple of days in Atlanta -- see you on Monday!

Created this quick card using a sketch from 2 Sketches 4 You. The heart embellishment is simply 2 pieces of felt cut into heart shapes. It is finished off by stitching with embroidery floss and a button.































What is this, you might ask? Everything outside (and inside) our home is coated in these disgusting coats of pollen. I had just hosed down the deck and the patio set last night and this morning it was back just as bad as the previous night! Growing up in the North, the moment the weather started to become nice, we opened the windows for the season. Here in the deep South, no one opens their windows and they tend to run their a/c 12 months out of the year.

Disappointed as I was, I shut all the windows until pollen season is over. Anyway, this morning was spent cleaning the kitchen floor and counters! I still have the scraptorium and the livingroom to do!

We are in high pollen status right now. If you are interested, check out pollen.com.

Using this week's card sketch from OWH Stars & Stamps challenge, I created a birthday card. Here is the sketch:


















And, here is my card:


















Supplies used: stamps (Hero Arts), dies (Nestabilities, Papertrey), twine (Papertrey)

So, yesterday, we, or rather, I had a little mishap in the backyard. I was outside throwing the ball with our youngest dog, Brady. Since our backyard is not fenced in and he runs off if not leashed, we have a run in between 2 large trees. I was throwing the ball towards the house and he and the lead to the run were on one side of me. For some reason, he decided to go around me to run after the ball. He is very strong and fast. Needless to say, I ended up on my backside with the lead wound around both ankles. The sound I made must've been so horrific that Brady just stopped and sat down off to the side. So, I'm a bit sore and have 2 nasty-looking ankles. I felt worse for Brady than for myself. He stayed away from me for awhile. I guess he thought I was mad at him. But, I still wuv him!

I'll leave you with a more-pleasant thought -- Dogwoods!

Do Not Disturb!

The good news is that I seem to be back in the scrapbooking mode! That being said, y'all are going to be tired of seeing my new favorite subject. But, my sweet little grand daughter seems to be the motivation I needed to get movin' again! So, here is another entry into the Scrap That Baby challenge. The sketch is from Pencil Lines.













Supplies: cs (Coredinations White Wash), pp (Sandy Lion, Reminisce), rub-on words (Scenic Route), rick rack die (Papertrey Ink), punch (MS butterfly), distress ink (Worn Lipstick), Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher.

Took lots of photos yesterday of the flowering trees and shrubs in the back yard. Here is one of my favorites, but, I cannot identify it. Anybody recognize it?

a new hand to hold ...

Finally got back to scrapbooking! This layout is my entry into Scrap That Baby's latest challenge. Using a layout design I found on Pencil Lines, I created a layout of my grand daughter on her 2nd day of life!













Supplies: cardstock (Coredinations), pp (Sandy Lion), dies (Slice, Nestabilities), button, (Papertrey Ink), embossing folder (CB Swirls)

Happy Birthday, David!

29 years ago, today, I gave birth to the 2nd of my 3 sons! It's hard to believe that it was that long ago! When he was young, he hated that his birthday was on April Fool's Day, but now it's okay - 'cuz nobody forgets his birthday!

Here is the card I made for him -- I struggle so much with masculine cards.


















Supplies: stamps (Unity, Inkadinado), die (Nestabilities), Scor-Pal for the grooves

Just went to the mailbox to find a Netflix movie -- we had The Blind Side next on our list, but, for some reason, Netflix is listing April 20 as the release date. It came out over a week ago! Grrr!

No recipe today -- we had steak & cheese subs last night and tonight is Boneless Wing Night at Buffalo Wild Wings. So, that's where we'll be!