Howdy little Partner!

Here are a few more cards from Pink Cat Studio's new Sweet Pea (Plate 2) set. Don't you just love these babies? I think they are adorable! I'm really pleased with how this top card came together, too. The cow paper is actually wrapping paper, and it's double sided. It has a cute little kids cowboy print on the other side, and that is what I was intending to use on the card. But then I had this red/white/black idea (one of my favorite color combos) and voila! I have to say I'm impressed with my shading on this one too. Maybe I'm finally starting to get the hang of these dang Copics. Could it be?!

I love the simplicity and clean white space on this card. :) I hardly ever use white as a base, but maybe I should rethink that in the future? I just love this set. And it helps that so many people I know seem to be having babies right now. lol!

Ok, now on to a few books I've finished this past week. Yes, you read that right. Two books in one week. About 1000 pages total, give or take:

I've made it through the first two books in the Twilight series. I love them both. I'm about half way through the third book right now, and am trying my best to read slowly so as to prolong the story as long as possible. I find myself wishing that the whole thing was being made into a tv series. We rented the movie last week after I finished the first book, and it was alright. My dh enjoyed it more than I did, but probably because he hadn't already seen another -better- movie in his head while reading the book.

I'm totally enthralled with the entire story, and am forming some theories about how this is all going to end, while simultaneously trying to avoid as many spoilers as possible so please don't leave any in the comments!

Have you read these? If not, you really should. I know a lot of people I've talked to are put off by the idea of a "vampire book", but it's really not like that. I mean, sure they're in there, but to me it's really more of a love story than anything. I'll post more about my thoughts after I've finished all four books. I don't want to say what I'm thinking (my theories) and look foolish for being wrong. :) hehehe.

Big Dreams

Today is day 2 of the Sweet n' Sassy Stamps blog hop for their new April releases, and the card I made for today features the new Dream Silouettes set. As much as I love coloring with my copics, it's so nice to have some of these block image sets. Just stamp and go! Well, sort of. *wink*

I used the brayer technique for the background on the main image, then stamped the wild flowers over the top using SU's Chocolate Chip ink. All of this is stamped on Glossy White cardstock (I've found that works best for the brayer technique). The base ink is from a Kaliedacolor pad. I think it's called Taffy? I can't remember for sure, but if anyone really wants to know, leave a comment and I'll check it and email you.

My blog is the last stop for today's hop, but be sure to get back in the swing of things tomorrow:

Friday, April 3 hop over to the following blogs: Courtney, Korin, Deb, & SNSS

And in case anyone is wondering, I did finish reading Twilight today(!!), and we rented the movie tonight. I'll post my thoughts next time I blog. I want to keep this post as dedicated to SNSS as possible! :)

Wednesday Weigh-In #10

Good morning, friends! How are you all doing this week? Have you had nice weather and been able to get outside and do some walking? We haven't. :o( It's still cold, and (lately) overcast. Blech. I love me some winter, but I can't wait for warmer temperatures now. Enough is enough!

Remember last week how I said I was starting to count calories to get past the plateau I was on? WELL! Let me tell you! It worked! I lost 5 lbs this week. Can you believe it? I'm not sure I can. lol! And the exciting part is that I'm really not finding it *that* difficult to stay within my 1800 calorie per day allotment, so I'm going to try to stick with it. I counted every day except Sunday, because we had Jack's birthday party that day and well, I'm human. I wanted to graze on all the goodies! So I grazed my little heart out over lunch, and then skipped supper - certain I'd fulfilled all of my calories, and then some.

How are you doing?

Hello

Here is a quick card I made tonight with some fun supplies from i {heart} papers. I was browsing through my blog the other day, and saw a card I made with this same layout a year ago, so I thought I'd try it again because, well, I like it. :) I like how you can really show off a piece of DP on the left there.

Anyhow! That DP I'm showing off is called Carnival Flowers. Isn't it a fun print? I have it paired up here with SU's Garden Green and So Saffron. I love when I find non-SU papers that match SU colors so well. It makes me happy. :) The stamp and sentiment are from the Spring Fling set that I just can't seem to get enough of lately. After coloring the image with my Copics, I added some yellow Stickles to the center of the flowers. Then I cut the circle out using my Nestabilities, and layered it on another scalloped circle also cut with my Nesties. I love those things! They take up so much less space than all of my punches.... and yet, I can't seem to part with my punches. I love those, too. I'm addicted, I tell ya!

I also have to tell you about another book I recently finished reading:

Yes, that's right. I read Hillary Clinton's Living History. All 539 pages of it. Why? Well, first and foremost because I have a fascination with our First Ladies. I have a growing collection of all the books that have been written about them (or that they have written, in this case), and am slowly making my way through all of them. Second, I like her. There. I said it. This moderately conservative right wing blogger has a soft spot for Hillary. Third, I'll be perfectly honest: I wanted to hear (well, read) her side of the Lewinsky thing.

As for the book.... eh. Most of it was fascinating, as far as the stories of where all she traveled and who she met, etc. were concerned. Some of it was long and drawn out. It took me a longggg time to finish this book. I've been working on it here and there for about two years. The problem is I didn't really feel like it flowed. It was almost as if every chapter was its own short story, so when I came to the end of a chapter, I had no overwhelming urge to continue on to the next one, and so the book would sit for days/weeks/months between chapters as I read other stories.

I believe this book was released before she made any announcements about running for President. I had the distinct impression while reading that the book was written in such a way as to shed a positive light on her and set her up for a favorable run. I don't know how to explain it, I just felt like I was reading a campaign pitch occasionally. So anyhow, if you're into history, or even a fan of Hillary, it might be worth the read. Otherwise, you can probably live without it.

Now I'm reading Twilight. I finally got sucked in. HA. Get it? ;)

For My Friend

Here's a card using one of the February new releases from Sweet n' Sassy Stamps. The set is called I'd Pick You, and the main images is of this bunny giving the flower to the mouse, but I saw a card with this layout a few weeks back (thanks, Cassie!) and thought I'd try it on this set. What do you think?

I used some SU! rub ons on the base (which, by the way, I am still not a fan of), and some blue gingham that I picked up at JoAnne's.

I also wanted to share this Pepperoni Bread that I made recently:


Doesn't it look yummy? It was! You can find the recipe >>HERE<<, but I would recommend eliminating the seasoned salt (it was too salty for my tastes), and adding a little minced garlic or garlic powder. You can also experiment with the toppings you use inside the bread. I think our next one will be filled with Canadian bacon and pineapple. Oh, and I'd double the cheese next time, too... Other than that, it's perfect! :o)

Hungry for dessert? Try this amazingly sinful Oreo Delight (scroll to bottom of post for recipe) I made for my Mom's birthday this week!

Pink Cat Studio Sneak Peeks, Day 3

Here are the two new stamp sets from Pink Cat Studio. Tell me they are not adorable! I dare you! If you missed the sneak peeks that the Design Team featured the past two days, you can scroll down to see my cards, as well as the links to the other Team members. All of the creations are wonderful!

Enjoy!

Blog Candy Winner!

Thanks to all who entered! Jen, I'm headed to your blog to leave a comment - be sure to get back to me soon! If I don't hear from you in 36 hours, I'll pick a new winner.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

My mom celebrated her birthday on Monday, so we had her over for some cake and showered her with birthday gifts!

Here she is with her gift from Henry. I helped him pick it out. ;o) He looks very pleased with my decision though!



Great-Grandma and Jack watched from the chair:

Here's mom with the bottoms to the jammies that hubby and I bought her. My mom lives in jammies when she's home, and it's hilarious, because she is so particular about them. They have to be two pieces, and those two pieces have to coordinate. She would not be caught in a red top with purple bottoms. Me? I wear whatever I grab first. Her? Not so much! You can see the coordinating tank top over her knee there. She loved them!

And here's mom with the birthday cake I made for her. One of the moms I chat with online suggested Paula Deen's Butterscotch Delight, but mentioned that she'd also seen it made with Oreos, so I combined a few recipes to make this Oreo Delight:

Does it look yummy? Because IT WAS! Holy man... you have no idea. It was soooooooo good! Quite possibly the best tasting dessert I've ever tasted in my entire life!

Here is the (combined) recipe I used:

Oreo Delight

1 (20 ounce) package chocolate sandwich cookies
1/2 cup butter

Crush cookies into bite size pieces. Reserve 1 cup for top. Melt butter and mix with rest of cookies. Press into 9x13 pan.

8 oz. Cream Cheese, at room temp
1 cup Powdered Sugar

Beat these together in a bowl.

3 cups Heavy Cream
3/4 cup Sugar

Whip these together until it forms stiff peaks.

2 - 3.4 oz packages Chocolate Fudge Instant Pudding Mix
3 cups Milk

Prepare pudding according to package directions using the 3 cups of milk. Fold 1 cup of whipped cream into cream cheese mix and spread over crust. Spread the pudding over that layer, and cover the whole thing with the rest of the whipped cream. Sprinkle the top with the reserved crushed Oreos. Chill overnight.

I have to tell you, it is NOT like me to go through this much effort for a recipe. I am the kind of person who will usually only try recipes if they include 3 or less ingredients and 2 steps. I found the Cool Whip variation of this recipe on allrecipes.com, and there was a day when I would have just made that.... but now I know why people go through the extra effort. If my mother's words ever came back to me, it was while tasting this recipe because it's totally true: you get out of it, what you put into it. Although I'm sure it's much easier, I'd lay money on the fact that the Cool Whip version doesn't taste nearly as good as this does!

If you decide to try it, leave a comment here and let me know how you liked it!

Wednesday Weigh-In #10

***Scroll down for my Pink Cat Studio sneak peeks!***

***Don't forget I have BLOG CANDY up for grabs, HERE!***

Another Wednesday, another weigh in! How is everyone doing? I lost 6/10 of a pound this week. It's not much, but I'll take it. I'm proud of myself for basically being on this plateau for almost three weeks and not giving up! There have been so many times in the past when I've hit a plateau and then just called it quits out of frustration. So far, so good though. I decided yesterday that I need to do something else to help me get past this little speed bump, so today I started counting calories. I'm giving myself 1800 calories/day, which is the number recommended by The Biggest Loser book that I'm reading. It's 4:11, and I've used up 1148 so far. 1800 calories seems like a lot, but it's not. LOL. I mean, I'll survive, but I'm pretty sure I was eating more than that before, which could be why I stopped losing. Doh!

So, we'll see how this goes. I'd like to stick with it for a week and see what results it brings. I just want to make sure I lose these last 9.4 lbs before the season (and consequently the Pound for Pound challenge) ends in early May. It's definitley doable, but I need to stay on top of it so the time doesn't get away from me and I'm crashing on an all-watermelon diet on April 25th. LOL. Ok, so I would never actually do an all-watermelon diet, but you know what I mean!

How has this week been for you? How close are you to the goal you set for this challenge? Do you think you'll make it?

Pink Cat Studio Sneak Peeks, Day 2

***Don't forget I have BLOG CANDY up for grabs, HERE!***

Are you loving all of these Sweet Pea baby stamps? I am! I just think the clean lines of the drawing are so cute... and so easy to color!

When I started this one, I pictured it as a pocket card... and that's pretty much what it is, except that after I was done with it I realized there really was no place to write a message. LOL. Whoops! The seed packet is held in place with one mini-glue dot, so I guess the message has to go on the back. Oh well! :o)

Be sure to check the other Design Team blogs for more super cute sneak peeks!

Becky Carafa
Janna Hull
Jodi Ann Lee
Lauren Meader
Lise Roy
Maria Bell
Mariska van der Veer
Nikki Fairbairn
Sparkle Smith - March Guest Designer
Vicki Garrett

If you're wondering about the Wednesday Weigh In post, I'll get it up later today.

Enjoy the day!