Photos from a Bday Shoot!! (and the balance of life :)

No I haven't forgot about you :) How could I?!?! I have just been so SUPER duper busy that I am seriously returning emails in the preschool carpool line, in line at the airport, and I might or might not have been cutting ribbon for favor tags as I cooked dinner..... Yeah, that, busy. Blessed, but busy.

I LOVE creating. I love making things for parties that moms and grandmas drool over and love. I love that something I put together with my hands adorns the wall behind your precious child and serves as a back drop for first birthday photos. I am that lucky.

Somewhere in that "luckiness" (made up word I am sure) comes the struggle of finding balance between, mom/wife/sister/daughter/business owner/personal shopper/driver/chef/house cleaner/entertainer/church member/friend/crafter/cruise director :) etc. You get the point and many of you are right here with me in the same boat. I know. I look up to you!

So, forgive me as I climb the mountain of catching up and realizing my limits and just love me anyways :) SOOOOO much on my camera to share. Now if I could just find the time to download, resize, touch up......:)

Enjoy these for now :)

I had a request for this party sign from a super fab client. Here are the pics she sent of her little one's birthday photo shoot :) DOLL BABY!!!

P.S.- Any tips or tricks from those who have it all figured out are perfectly welcome below :)

St. Louis bound and a few new creations :)

Congrats to ANNA KNOX for winning the American Craft buttons! Please send me your shipping info!!! Thanks!

(As an FYI- I plan on shipping all winnings next week, so those who have won something, you will get a shipping confirmation from me via email!!!)

This week has been crazy!!!

I have been slammed with orders and I have worked my rear off getting them all done!! SHEW!!  I fly out tomorrow night for St. Louis with Matthew, my parents, sister, and my Great Aunt aka Nanny. We are going to the PBR :) (Professional l Bull Riding, FYI :) My son is obsessed and being the farm girl I am, I along with my family love it too :) We will be back Monday night!

Here are some fun crafty pics from new orders!!!

Baby Shower Banner!

 Western Themed Thank You's for a Western Party I made a few weeks back!

 Jungle Cupcake Toppers to go with all the other jungle items :)

FYI- A new giveaway goes live tomorrow :)

Stay tuned :)

Giveaway winner...and another giveaway!!!!

Congrats to JODI LYNN - winner fo the Jillibean Soup/Unity Stamp giveaway!!! Email me with your mailing address!!!!

Now on to the next giveaway! Remember that there are 2 chance to win! Comment once on the blog and once on the Facebook page!!!

Thank you for helping me reach over 2,000 FB likes and over 640 subscribed blog followers!!!!

Today's giveaway???

A package of FAB buttons from American Crafts!!

Good luck!

Giveaway!!

It is a GORGEOUS day here in KY!!!!

\Took Matthew outside to ride his bike! Now he is off to the park with his great aunt.

It is so pretty that I want to do a giveaway!!!!!

How cute is THIS unmounted red rubber stamp from Unity???? It matches one of the new Jillibean Soup Collections!!! Well, it is up for grabs! Just leave me a comment here with a note about the weather where you are for a chance!

For a second chance, leave me a note on my Facebook page!

 (Click over on the right of my blog :)

I'll announce the winner soon!!!!

Good luck!!!

Hats off to you!

Hope you Valentine's was great! Hubby and I don't really celebrate it. Now, when we were dating....that was a different story. You HAVE to in college, lol. jk

Well, I made some fun new hats :) I am always being asked to make a hat for first bdat parties and such. SO here are 2 in the most popular bday colors for 1sts! Pink/Brown and Blue/Brown!

Gotta run! Lots to do!!!!

TuTu and Ties!

It's no secret. I love pink.

I love getting request for pink items.

Gives me a chance to get girly in a house I am outnumbered in :)

How cute is this theme, "TuTus and Ties"

I seriously love it. Girly, but welcoming to the little guys too :)

Favor Tags:

 Party Door Sign:

 Birthday Banner

 Cupcake Toppers

 Table Decorations

 Table Tent Food Labels

Off to play Spiderman now with the little one :)

Seuss-Tasstic!

Happy Sunday everyone! Fighting sinuses and cold weather around here, but to look outside through the window.....IT IS GORGEOUS :) If only the temperature matched the scenary right now!! :) Oh well, warmer days will come in due time and during the 100 degree July days, I will be thinking about chilly weather :)

Matthew was sick part of the week last week. I always told myself when I started paper crafting that no matter what, family would always come first. Same thing when I openend my Etsy shop. Well, as it has grown, there have been days when I have had to work on orders instead of doing something else fun with my monkey. Of course I make up for it, but this week I have had to turn down some really time intensive orders. I just knew that I would rather spend that time cuddling with my sweet boy and reading books and such. I will not be sorry for that :) To top the list of books, Dr. Seuss are some of my favs of course! SO how happy was I to have been asked create banners to go with a Dr. Seuss party!!

One fish, two fish......(go ahead, finish it in your head, I know you did :)

Have a great week!

Birthday Fun!

Hope everyone has had a great day! My headache is much better! Thank you for your sweet comments! My little guy has had a fever since Saturday night, so no preschool today for him! He is fine, just sinus junk :) That's what happens in KY when the temp is 50 one day and 20 the next :) lol.

So, I have a very special friend who I met through the crafty networks that be here in Louisville. She is so much fun to be around and UBER talented. We had a blast together at CHA and has been a lifesaver when I needed someone to watch Matthew for an emergency doctor visit! (When you don't have your fam locally, it helps to have friends like these!!!) Through our friendship, our sons have developed a friendship! Matthew loves to have Elan over to play, sled, and hang out! 

Well, Elan had a birthday recently and I had to make him a special card to go with his gift! (He shoudl feel very specal as I haven't stopped to make a card in for-EV-er it seems!!! So pulling out my fav EPP's Little Boy and the new number dies and birthday present dies from Papertrey Ink, I whipped this up for him:

DO you see that felt??? PTI has FAB felt!!!

Have a warm night everyone! Wind chill is 7 or 8 tonight here! BRRR!!!!!

A Pink and Green Theme!

Hey guys! I am fighting a horrible headache, so I apologize for the short post!

I have a client that I am working with on a first birthday party!

She loves pinks/greens and thought about a ladybug theme until her friend used it first! Bummer! So, in helping her to decide, I put together this inspiration board of some great pink and green party ideas! Enjoy!



My PTI obsession!!!

SO you all know I have this crazy obsession with Papertrey Ink. I have boxes upon boxes of stamp set that I could NOT live without that have yet to be opened. (Yes, problem, I know.)  I am one of those crazies who stays up until midnight on release day to make sure I get to buy what I want. SO, when I checked the blog today, I saw they were asking us to pull out our FAV project from the past year using PTI products. Here is mine!

Why is it my fav? Because I say "Absolutely Fabulous" more than any one human should. :) Paper and Ink- Ripe Avacado, PP: Itty Bitty Dots, Vintage Cream ribbonand button, twine, and Sentiment from Mega Mixed Message set :)

Head over to the PTI blog HERE to check out all that is going on!!

It's a polka dot party!!!

Happy Thursday to you all!

Have I ever mentioned that I love pics from customers? LOL. I do.

This one was sent the other day and I am in LOVE with those white columns!!! FAB!!!

So, glad she liked her banner!

Question- any interior features you just *love*?

I'll go first. Those columns :) 

I also adore; hardword, barnwood used in homes, spiral staircases, concrete counter tops, REAL fireplaces, and lots of natural light!!!! Love it!!

HOWDY!!!

I had a crazy rish order last week for a customer out in California. She was throwing her son a western 1st birthday party and needed my help! Well, 2 banners and 40 gift bags later, she sent me a note to say how much she loved all of it. She even included this picture from the party's photographer and she has more pics to send. Can't wait.

First, I love the pic of the pony. How adorable. Second- I love her home :) And third- I am now working on her latest order of thank yous to go with the last order.

Have a great day!!

More treat bags!

Ahh. A long night makes for a long day.

As much as I want to call it an evening, there is work to be done and a UK ballgame on :) Go Cats!

More treat bags to share with you guys!

I added ribbon to these and hiding the staples where I attached this was a little tricky with the ribbon! But it all worked out!

Ready to fill, seal, and give!!!

Calling it an early night! i hope my friends up north are all safe, warm, and cozy. I always tend to say a special prayer for all the little ones out there when I know cold hard weather is coming.  Nothing breaks my heart more than thinking of a child being in that mess. God bless them all!!!

xoxo-sj



Out of This World!

Hey my fabulous bloggy friends :) I hope you all are having a great Sunday. It is a gorgeous day here in KY and at a whopping 46 degrees, it calls for outside time! (Considering we had mulitple inches of snow twice last week!) That's just KY weather for you. It can be 70 one week and 6 inches of snow the next! :)

A fav local customer of mine had a party at the planitarium yesterday. She had asked if I could make some space like tags for her to attach to the astronaut food she was using as favors! Here is what I cam up with! (You can find the cuts on your Boys Will Be Boys cartridge!)

My little guy was a big fan of these!

Speaking of him, I got some good girl chit chat in Friday night when a good friens and her 3 kiddos came over to hang out and get crafty! The boys had a picnic of popcorn, popsicles, and juice in their pj's, with pillow pets,  watching movies, and playing! (Is that enough "p's" for ya? :)

I didn't get a lot done b/c I was too busy chatting and catching up with my girl :)

Hope you all have a great afternoon! Anyone working on anything special?

Classroom Candy Bags!

Happy Friday everyone! Spent the morning in the doctor with the hubby and then off to get my little monkey from preschool. He had a great day and LOVES his preschool! He goes 3 mornings a week from 9:30 until 1:00. One of those mornings I have Bible Study upstairs, (he goes to a fully accredited preschool at our church.) It is wonderful! If you are in the Louisville/So. Indiana area and looking for a FAB preschool, let me know! (There is a MDO starting at 6 weeks old too!) The other 2 mornings give me a chance to run errands, doctor appts, get some work done, etc. It helps SO much since I don't have my family up here to help out with Matthew when I need to do a few things.

Anyways! With preschool coming up I am always looking for something cute to give his 7 classmates. I have started playing around with ideas and even made a few sets to add to the shop. Be ready to see samples of what I will come up with :)

Here is the first set! I attached these to the cello bags with resealable strip at the bottom. Just fill up with candy, seal, and give :)

PP is Teresa Collins, CS is American Crafts and you can find the heart cut and shadow on the Doolecharms cartridge. I popped the heart and layers up on Elmers foam tape to add dimention! (Thank you ELmers for the big ole box of free adhesives to play with :)

Purse Cupcake Toppers

Happy Thursday!

I had a fun custom request the other day! A client was throwing a Thirty-One Party. (A purses, totes, bags, monogrammable items, etc)

She wanted some cute cupcake toppers to go with her theme!

Here is what I came up with for her! I love the glitter!!

I have added these to the shop too. They would make a great addition to a DIVA birthday party, girls nite, etc!

Prayers...

My heart is hurting this morning. I am very blessed to have 2 best friends. One since high school and one since college. Both of these girls know me inside and out (and love me anyways). We have made so many memories together. I was in both their weddings, there for births of  children, and they have been there for me during the birth of Matthew and the loss of my brother. I LOVE them! Yesterday afternoon I talked to my best friend from home, she has 3 beautiful little ones and is preggo, about 12/13 weeks, before her doctor's appt.  We got read to hang up, I told her to have a great appt and I would call her later to see how it went. Well, this evening she gave me the heart breaking news that there was no heartbeat. She is so very distraught. I have lifted her up in prayer all night and still find myself not able to sleep thinking about her. She miscarried her first child. Had  a girl, boy, girl, and has now lost another little one. She has complete faith in God, but that does not make the pain any easier. So for all you out there who pray, please add my dear friend Lindsey to your list.

Lindsey, Me, and and 2 more of our closest!

Crafty posts will resume tomorrow. Today I just want to lift up my sweet friend.

Have a blessed day!

Vinyl Jars!

Hey there!

I first apoogize for the bad picture, but as I was about to wrap these babies up, I realized I had not taken a picture! (B/C you know that is a must :)

I made these for Matthew's preschool teach, Director (which happens to be from my hometown, her brothers used to hang out with my dad and uncle in high school and her niece graduated with my brother! :), and asst. director (who's happens to be related to me on my maternal grandparents side, LOL) Seriously, you can move an hour and a half away from your hometown into the biggest city in the state and STILL find people that tie you to home! LOVE IT!!

I bought these jars at my second home...Michaels :)

I cut designs from vinyl and put them onto the jars, stuffed them with pretty tissue paper and tied with pretty bows! I added the designs to the top as well!

I love decorating jars! And you all know I love vinyl!!!! Here are a couple more projects I have done with vinyl! I am also going to look up the tutorial (Where I added vinyl to candles.) I made to show you who have asked how to use it with your Cricut!

Party Sign fun! Link up your projects!

You know I have an obsession with teh Create A Critter Cricut Cartridge, right? LOL

Well, here is another pieve of evidence to support that claim!

Isn't thsi party sign so much fun?????

If you have a Cricut and do NOT (gasp!) have this cart.....I would highly suggest you get it!!! There are a TON of fun things on it! Even if you have no kiddos! There are great uses for cards like Emily made, another card like Kristin made,  and

this cute gift bag Sandra made!

Have you made something fun with CAC? If so, link it up below to share with us!!!

Happy Sunday!!!!

Happy Sunday everyone! Last week was a crazy week! I visited my parents, we had more crazy snow, one of the ignition coils went out on my Hummer (while I was at my parents) and LUCKILY my dad's go to guy for automotives was able to fix it, at 8:30 at night so I could get back to Louisville before the snow! Then USPS lost an Express Mail package to ATL (remember that cute Nautial Crew sign I showed you the other day??? Yep, that package. SO I remade the WHOLE order and reshipped it for the frantic mommy! She got it all! And to boot, USPS delivered the package finally on Saturday, a week and 2 days AFTER it was supposed to be there. (I overnighted it!!!!) Good news- mom has her bday decorations and the other box is being returned to me, AND I am getting a shipping refund from USPS.  Bad news....I now have a nautical banner and a sign with MACK on them to find homes for! Everything else can be resold!

Anyways! I have some crafty pics to share! And guess what I am doing today?? Working on orders AND making a few cards! I need some card therapy! When you get crazy busy, you realize that you need to take a few minutes and make a few thigs that make you smile :)

Speaking of smiling... I can't look at these new hats without smiling! I had 15 ordered for a party and I HAD to take a pic before I sent them!!

oh, and remember earlier I mentioned snow???? Well, My little guy had 2 friends over Friday to go sledding with! My super sweet friend Amanda, let me borrow 2 of her kiddos to take sledding with Matthew and I! We all had fun!!! Here are a couple pics!



Owl Birthday Party!!

I am SO excited to share pictures from the Owl Birthday party I told you about!!!! I LOVE the way she pulled everything together! She added the number 1 to the cupcake toppers in glitter glue and did a great job!!! I LOVE seeing how my banner, toppers, and highchair banner look in action! Thanks for sending the pictures Erin!!!

ANd FYI- we are under mounds of snow AGAIN here in KY!

Have a good night!!!

Looks WHOOS one!

Happy day everyone! I had a request last month for a Owl birthday party. Not just any party. One done with crazy cuteness, Amy Butler (By K&Co) patterned paper and so much more! Well, I didn't get a chance to take a decent picture before shipping the goods, but I snapped this one with my camera. The happy mom is going to send over pictures after the party!

It is such a good feeling to know they LOVE the decor. I mean she had exactly what she wanted sketched out and emailed to me, so I did not want to mess it up! LOL

Hoot Hoot!

(Owl from Create a Critter, letters from Alphalicious)

Ahoy Boy!

SO I just had to show you this cute sign for a recent nautical birthday party I did! I loved the cute saying!

The cool part is that I made it a 12x12 so that it could be the first page in a scrapbook of his birthday party! Just slip it right in and first page is done!!

The letters are from Plantin Schoolbook Cricut Cart and the circle boat is from New Arrival! Loving this :)

SO what did you GIVE for Christmas???

Happy Friday everyone!!

Wanted to share some pictures of my FAV crafty Christmas gifts, given to many of my family and friends this year!!

First up, Magnetic Jumbo Clothespins! Great for the fridge or to turn upside down and use as a picture holder!

 Next were rolled ribbon rosette headbands! I love these babies!

 ANd last but not lleast, picture cubes!!!

LOVED getting crafty this holiday season!!!!

A Mickey Par-tay!

I have crawled out from the snow! :)

Preschool was ON for today.

Life is busy, but good! :)

I found these pictures that I forgot to upload and share! EEK! (Am I losing my touch? :)

Oh I have so much more from the Christmas break to show you! Gifts, cards, birthday parties! The list goes on and on and on!!! Until next time..... :)

Love ya'll!

E-I-E-I-O!!!!

SO I just have to share a picture a customer sent me! I made her some super cute table decorations for a baby shower and here is how she used them!!!

Didn't she do a great job!!!!!??!!

Hope you are all having a great Saturday!!!

She's Back!

Good evening everyone!!! I have missed all of you so much!!!! After the family emergency, (Aunt Jackie is MUCH better. I will update later, but she is now home from Texas and spent several days and nights with us :)  I took a few days as a much needed break to get through the holidays. The 30th was also my little brother's birthday. He would have been 24. A pretty emotional day for me. That is how old I was when we lost him a few years ago.  How old I was when I got married. How old I was when I had my son, etc. Just makes me wonder who he would be today. Love that boy. The heart and reason behind the "62" in my name for those who haven't been around these parts long.  (It was his football number :)

But I am BACK. As crazy and loud as ever :)

Blessed and thankful.

Joyful and happy.

Ready for another fabulous year.

And ready to blog my little heart out :)

Love you all and I hope your 2011 is your best yet.

See you tomorrow!