Happy Birthday to you......Steve!

Today is our son-in-law Steve's birthday!!  Here is the card that I whipped up for him, last night before I went to bed!  It is a clean & simple card- but I think it turned out super cute!   I hope he likes it!

I used the same birthday stamp set for Nathan's birthday card- see it here that I posted yesterday!  

This birthday stamp set is an awesome hostess set!  I love the combination of the script letters with the bold letters. 

stamp set:  'Happy Birthday, Everyone'
card stock:  Thick Whisper White, Basic Black
designer paper:  Neutrals Designer Series Paper Stack (12x12)
ink:  Archival Basic Black
other:  Stapler, Dimensionals

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Yesterday morning I worked on paperwork & things.  After lunch I went to Osky to get groceries.  When I got home from there I started canning tomatoes.  Deke helped me work on them when he got in from choring.  We got 40 quarts of tomatoes & 2 quarts of juice done!  And we burnt the midnight oil getting them all done.  I'd like to can 100 quarts total yet to get us through the winter......so I'm hoping I can get that many & get them canned yet in the next couple of weeks.

Manda, Steve & the boys stopped out for a few minutes last night.  And shortly after they left Nathan, Sarah & Masen stopped by too for a bit.  They sat & visited with us while we blanched, peeled & worked on canning our tomatoes.  

Deke is up early this morning to chore & then he is off to the office for a board meeting.  I'm off to pick up the boys.  We'll run a few errands this morning (recycle center, etc) & then head out home to spend our day together.  Brayden will ride the bus out here to the farm after school.  He & Masen will be going with G'ma & Papa (us) tonight to a picnic & meeting that Papa has for one of the boards he serves on & is the chairman of.  The meeting is in Fairfield at the Maasdam Barn.  I've never been there before, but I have heard how neat it is & I'm looking forward to finally getting to visit it.

You can click HERE if you'd like to find out more about the Maasdam Barn.

Gotta run......

I hope you have a MARVELOUS Monday!
Happy Stamping!
Hugs-
SUSIE

Canning tomoatoes!

Last night Deke & I canned tomatoes.  We got 40 quarts of whole tomatoes & 2 quarts of juice done.  They sure will taste good this winter in chili, goulash, etc.  

As I am posting this the last baste is steaming in the canner on the stove.  When it is done I'll be headed to bed!! 

Happy Birthday to Nathan!

Wow- we have lots of family birthdays in August!  

Last Sunday was Nathan's birthday.  This is the card that I made for him.  It is clean & simple- but turned out neat.  I've rarely made white based cards before, as I love our Whisper White card stock, but it just wasn't thick enough for a card base.  BUT our new heavy Whisper White is awesome!  And it worked perfect for this card!

stamp set:  'Something to Say' (small star), 'Happy Birthday, Everyone' (hostess set)

card stock:  Thick Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Whisper White

ink:  NEW Basic Black Archival pad, Crumb Cake

other:  1" circle punch, 3/4" circle punch, small star punch (Itty Bitty Accents Punch pack), dimensionals, Glue Dots, Burlap ribbon threads

I used my fingernail & ruffed up the edges of the Crumb Cake.  

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We had a full day yesterday!!  Lots of joys & much thankfulness fill our hearts!  

We got up yesterday morning & I sang Happy Birthday to the boys.  They were on high & excited about their special day!  In count down to this day we've been marking the days off of a calendar at our home & Manda had a chain that they were removing links off of at their house.  We ate breakfast & then they went home. 

A dear family friend passed away (Jerry Hudson).  Deke & I attended his grave side services this morning.  The rain quit just in time & there were tons of people there.  It was great to see so many old family friends that we hadn't seen for years, as we all celebrated Jerry's life together.  

When we got home from Jerry's services I went to the Seeleys' & spent the rest of they day helping Manda get ready for the boys birthday party.  Everyone arrived at 5:00.  It was a fun time had by all!!  I already posted a few pictures of their party.  

We took Brayden home to his moms about 9:15 last night.  They are going to Adventureland for the day today.  We can't wait to hear all about it when we see him tomorrow night.  

This morning I'll be playing catch up.  I have the day off of work & am home alone for a change.  This afternoon I need to go get groceries.  And tonight I'll be canning tomatoes.  

I hope you have a SENSATIONAL Sunday!!
Happy Stamping!
Hugs-
SUSIE

The TWINS 4th Birthday!

Minions were the theme of the boys' 4th birthday party! 

You can check out their birthday invites that I made HERE!!   

Drake & Brody are posing with the Minion cake that my friend Cherie made for them.  Isn't it just awesome!  Her cakes are cute & so yummy too!

I love the smiles & joy shown here!  This is priceless!

Here is the Seeley family-

Trey, Manda, Steve

Brody & Drake

AND check out this adorable gift wrapping that Aunt Kathy made.  This is just so neat! 

An explosion of Snowflakes!

Here is another card I created for my team meeting I had last weekend here at our home.  This is a new stamp set & coordinating snowflake punch!  So fun!

stamp set:  NEW 'Flurry of Wishes'
card stock:  Pool Party, Whisper White
designer paper:  Home for the Christmas DSP
ink:  Pool Party
other:  Basic Rhinestones, Iced Rhinestones Embellishments, Snow Flurry Punch, Dimensionals

This is an explosion card.  I did one similar to this at my August monthly stamp classes.  You can see that HERE!!

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We had a busy day yesterday & on the go.  Susie's Hair Hut was open & I got all 3 Seeley boys' hair cut!  We took the boys & went to the races last night to cheer Nathan on at the final race of the season at Columbus Junction.  Papa Deke sat in the stands with me to help out with the boys.  And Masen & Sarah sat with us too.  Nathan started 5th & finished 5th.  The track wasn't the greatest & it was pretty much just follow the leader all night.  

The 3 Seeley boys ended up staying all night with us again last night.  So we are up early & going strong this morning.  We have a full day today ahead of us!!  We have LOTS going on.....

Today our twins turn 4 years old!!!  It is unbelievable that Brody & Drake are such big boys now!  Where has the time gone?  We are so blessed!  They are such a joy in our lives!  

I hope you have a SUPER Saturday!

Happy Stamping!
Hugs-

SUSIE

It is clean & simple!

This is a beautiful Christmas ornament card that was one of my shoe box swaps for my team meeting last weekend.  I wanted everyone to get a chance to use the new Precision Base Plate with a detailed thinlit.  I had all of the supplies cut for this- except they had to cut the words out & the ornaments- so that they could actually get to use the new products with total hands on.  

Isn't this just a gorgeous card!  

There is alot of new product used here that is in the upcoming Holiday Catalog!  The catalog goes live on September 1st!  Woo Hoo!! 

Notice these NEW products:

• new gold cord
• the ornament thinlit- Delicate Ornament Thinlits Dies
• the thinlit words- Christmas Grettings Thinlits Dies
• the designer paper- Winter Wonderland Specialty Designer Paper

stamp set:  none
card stock:  Real Red
12x12- Gold Foil Sheets, Red Glimmer Paper
designer paper:  NEW Winter Wonderland Specialty
ink:  none
other:  Big Shot, NEW Precision Base Plate, NEW Delicate Ornament Thinlits Dies, NEW Christmas Greetings Thinlits Dies, NEW Gold Cording Trim, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

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We played outside all morning & enjoyed the beautiful day!  The boys & I went to visit my Aunt Virginia yesterday morning for awhile.  My niece Jordan & great-niece Ella arrived about the same time as we did.  Wow- what fun we had with the kids playing on the swing set & visiting!  

Brayden rode the bus out after school & the boys all got to play together for awhile.  Then Brayden went with Deke & I to sort & load hogs.  He is a such a little farmer!  When we got done with that I made supper & took up to the shop to feed all of the guys.  It was late when we got in & I was beat.  I showered, picked up toys & called it a night.  

I'm off this morning to pick up the boys.  Manda has to work at the High School FB game tonight so the boys will all be going with me to Columbus Junction to the races.  Trevor & Mark worked in the shop all day yesterday, trying to get the car put back together.  Nathan helped for awhile last night & Deke burnt the midnight oil with Trevor working on it until wee hours of the morning.  The frame is all redone, sheet metal is off & they are working on getting it all back together. 

I hope you have a FABULOUS Friday!!
Happy Stamping!
Hugs-
SUSIE

Bow Builder Punch

Check out these 15 Ways to use the Bow Builder Punch!!

There are endless ways to combine the bow pieces from the Stampin' Up! Bow Builder Punch to get many totally different bow styles. 

The chart below shows 15 variations of unique bows you can easily create for cards, tags, gifts, and other paper crafting projects.  

This is pretty cool isn't it!  This is a very versatile punch!  
 

A holiday sneak peek with snowflakes!

This is another card that I made for my team meeting last weekend.  I love this saying.....and the snowflakes & the bow.  I think it turned out really cute.

stamp set: NEW 'Six Sayings' (hostess set), NEW 'Wonderland' (little snowflakes), NEW 'Holly Jolly Greetings' (big snowflakes)
card stock:  Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Whisper White
ink:  Pool Party & Bermuda Bay
other:  Bow Builder Punch, Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals, Glue dots

And of course you can't go wrong with bling!  If ever in doubt- that is just what you need to add!  Don't you think the rhinestones along the bottom here (under the words) are cute?

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Yesterday was a long day/night.  We went to Brayden's 1st football game.  It was fun to watch them- they did good.  Brayden is growing up way too fast.  He is a good little athlete.  He had a good 1st day at school & loves his teacher.  It was fun to hear all about his day!  I hope his whole year goes as good as the first day!
 
After his game was over we were all off to the races.  Nathan looked great & won his heat last night.  In the main though, there was a 8 car pile up!  And yep- we were in it.  Nathan is fine but his car is totaled.  He won't be racing it ever again.  Now to figure out what he is going to do for the rest of the racing season.  It was a bummer of a night.  

 

We are just getting home from the races & all 3 Seeley boys are spending the night.  I'm headed to bed & hope everyone sleeps all night.
 

Deke is up early & off to meetings again today.  I'll be spending my day with the boys.  Then I'll be wearing another hat, as tonight is my farmer night & I'll be outside helping Deke on the farm all evening & we will be selling hogs too.

I hope you have a super Thursday!!

Happy Stamping!
Hugs-

SUSIE 

Check out the little spider....

Here is a fun Halloween card.  Check out the little spider & spider webs in the corners!  This stamp set is the one that coordinates with the Witches Decor (Hat) kit.

stamp set: 'Witches Night'
card stock:  Tangelo Twist, Basic Black & Very Vanilla
ink:  Basic Black Archival
other:  Big Shot, Lots of Labels Framelits Die, 3/4" Circle Punch, Paper Snips, Word Window punch, Dimensionals

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Yesterday was a busy day with all 4 boys.  It was Brayden's last day with us, as he starts to school today.  He will be in the 2nd grade.  Gosh.....can't believe he is growing up so fast.  He is thrilled he has Mrs. Hahn (Tebockhorst) for his teacher this year & he is excited about seeing his friends again.  He loves school!  And so did his dad, aunt Manda & G'ma!  

Susie's Hair Hut was open last night & I did get Brayden's hair cut after the other 3 boys left.  Now to get the 3 Seeley boys hair cut yet sometime this week.

I burnt the midnight oil working on things- boxes & treats for my upcoming Halloween Treats class.  And Deke burnt the midnight oil working on things on the farm & in the shop.

Deke is off early this morning to chore & head to the courthouse for the morning.  Then this afternoon his brother (Doug) is coming to help him work on the truck.  

I'm off to pick up Trey this morning.  The twins have a dr appt this morning- so they won't be here until about lunch time.  Gosh....we're gonna run errands.  It will be so different only having one little one here for a few hours. 

Tonight we'll all be going to Brayden's football game & then we are all off to the races to cheer on Nathan.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL Wednesday!
Happy Stamping!!
Hugs-
SUSIE

This weeks- "WEEKLY DEALS"- August 25-31, 2015! (Limited supplies)

Santa & his reindeer

Here is another one of the swaps I made for my team meeting we had at our home on Saturday.  There is alot of new products here from the New Holiday Catalog!  So check them out!

• Precision Base Plate (to cut out the thinlits)
• Sleigh Ride Edgelits Dies (the trees here)
• 'Cozy Christmas' stamp set- Santa & his Reindeer
• 'Wonderland' stamp set- the snowflakes
• Basic Black Archival ink pad
• Real Red 1/8" Striped Ribbon (also comes with a roll of Garden Green in the pkg)

So what do you think?  I know.....it is a little early for Christmas!  But there are sooooo many cute new Christmas things in the this New Holiday Catalog- that I'll be sharing a few Christmas things on & off on my blog once in a while too.  

I think it turned out pretty sweet!  It is a definite vision of Santa & his reindeer flying on Christmas Eve!

stamp sets:  'Cozy Christmas' & 'Wonderland'
card stock:  Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake, Real Red
ink:  Basic Black Archival & Whisper White Craft pad
other:  Big Shot, Precision Base Plate, Sleigh Ride Edgelits Dies, Real Red 1/8" Ribbon, Dimensionals, Glue Dots, Paper Snips

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We had a fun day playing & enjoying the awesome cooler (fall like) day again yesterday.  We went to the cemetery to take a fall swag & flowers to put on my dads stone.  Then we went to What Cheer & played in the big park.  And then came home & played in our big sandbox!  It is fun to watch all 4 of the boys playing together.  

 

Last night I cut Steven's hair & then went to visit my mom, as she has been in the hospital since Saturday.  She has had a couple of rough days, but got up & sat in the chair while I was there & we had a nice, long visit.  I hope her new meds are going to work & she'll be on the uphill side now.

 

It was late when I got home.  I made supper for Deke when he got in about 10 & I spent the rest of the night working on farm bookwork.  

 

I'm off this morning to pick up all 4 boys & spend my day with them again.  Today is our last day with Brayden home to play with us, as he starts back to school tomorrow.  

 

Tonight I hope to burn the midnight oil stamping (since that didn't happen last night).  

 

I hope you have a TERRIFIC Tuesday!!  

Happy Stamping!
Hugs-
SUSIE

G'ma & Masen

Manda took a picture of me feeding Masen.  I took lots of pictures of Masen with everyone else, so I'm happy to now have one with me holding him.  He is a sweetie!  Reminds me lots of his dad......but that was 31 years ago now.  WOW!

Another beautiful 'Lighthearted Leaves' card

Here is another 'Lighthearted Leaves' card that I made as my swap for my team meeting that I hosted on Saturday.  It is kind of a vintage style.  I really like it though & think it is very pretty- especially in person.  Check out the big swirly words on it.....they are from a new hostess set called- ' Six Sayings'.  This is a very cute word set.   

stamp sets: NEW  'Lighthearted Leaves' & NEW 'Six Sayings' (hostess)
card stock:  Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake
ink:  Chocolate Chip
marker:  Chocolate Chip
other:  Big Shot, NEW Softly Falling Embossing Folder, Classy Designer Buttons (Vanilla), Very Vanilla Thick Backers Twine, Dimensionals, Glue Dots, Venetian Crochet Trim

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Yesterday I spent my day picking up & putting away things (projects, tables, chairs, etc) from my meeting I had on Saturday- getting our house back in order.  I then cooked & made a Chocolate Sheet cake for Nathan for his birthday supper we had here last night.  Susie's Hair Hut was open for a short time to give the birthday boy a quick hair cut.  We all had a fun time together here last night.  Nathan requested that I make Teets Tacos for supper, so that is what we had.  They are yummy- but so filling. 

We are up bright & early this morning & both on the go.  Deke is off to chore & then off to the courthouse for a board meeting.  I'm headed to town to pick up 4 of my boys & spend my day with them. 

Susie's Hair Hut will be open today & tonight- as I hope to get Brayden, Brody & Drakes hair cut.  And then Steve wants me to cut his tonight after he gets off work too.

After supper tonight I hope to get to burn the midnight oil stamping!  I have a lot of projects to get created for all of my classes that I am having in September.

I hope you have a MARVELOUS Monday!!
Happy Stamping!
Hugs-

SUSIE

A picture of Papa & Masen

Here is an adorable witches hat decoration!

WOW- last night I whipped up this adorable witches hat!  It is something that is available in the New Holiday Catalog & you can purchase it beginning September 1st.  It is called Witching Decor' Project Kit on pg. 7= $22.00.

How would you like to come make this hat with me?  Mark September 26th or October 3rd on your calendar & join me for a fun day of making lots of Halloween Treats!! 

This was a fun decor to create & I can't wait to use it when I decorate for Halloween! 

PLUS there are a ton of EXTRA supplies in this kit too!  Check out all of the extra things laying out on my table in the photo below.

I added some card stock for card bases & the rest of the supplies shown here were extras I had left over after making my witches hat.  I also have another whole string of leaves left over too.  I plan to put them around on top of our entertainment center & I can leave them up until after Thanksgiving time.  

Plus the 5 cards here, I also have several extra leaves still left over too that I can use & make some fall cards with them sometime too. 

Here are close ups of the 5 Halloween cards I made with the extra supplies in this kit.  
I added-

• 5- 5 1/2 x 8 1/2" Basic Black (for card bases)
• 3- 4 x 5 1/4" Crumb Cake
• 2- 4 x 5 1/4" Pumpkin Pie

Aren't they all cute!

There are 2 spider web doilies & the 9 stripped designer paper die cut pieces are all also included in this kit.

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We had a great time together stamping all day at my Iowa Inkers team meeting yesterday!  It is always fun to share with each other.  I am so blessed to have these ladies on my team & I love spending time with them. 

Today in Nathan's birthday!!  On My Gosh....I can't believe he is 31 already.  Where has the time gone?  He has grown into such a nice young man & we are so proud of him & all of his accomplishments.  We are having supper here tonight to celebrate!  Nathan, Sarah, Brayden & Masen, plus Manda, Steve, Brody, Drake & Trey will all be here.  

I need to finish getting tables & chairs all picked up from my class here yesterday.  And then I need to get Nathan's cake made & supper.  

I hope you have  SUPER Sunday!!
Happy Stamping!
Hugs-
SUSIE