I'm glad to see that I got K Andrews post on my blog. It wasn't hard to figure out, after all. I wanted to post one more picture of my easel card. I couldn't get a good picture last night, but in the sun (YES, we did have some today!!!) it came out clear. So here it is, showing the sentiment sticker on the bottom. I love the way it turned out. I think I might want to make another, if I can find these or some similar stickers.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend!

I don't know how this works, but I'll give it a try.  Hope you'll join us in K Anderews Link Up Hop.

Hello to all my crafty friends and family!  I really do love to color.  I didn't realize that I had missed it, but I'm really having lots of fun in the evenings.  I couldn't resist this cute bunny with the addition of the fence behind him.  Isn't he darling? 

Now, if my sister is reading, I really hope she will stop.  If she continues, she'll just have to forget what she sees, because I really made this card too early.  When I found this great digi I just had to make the card!  This is my first easel card, and I think it turned out quite nicely.  I love the colors that tie together so nicely.

Isn't the paper great with it?  I found mat stacks on sale at Joann's last week and was able to pick up 2 that I loved.  I've been wanting this particular one since I first saw it.  This one is from Once Upon a Time by DCWV.  It's not easy to see in the picture, but the sticker on the bottom of the card says happy birthday.  It and the hat are from a set that my husband gave me for Christmas, from Punch Studio.  They're really nice.  I've been hoarding them...

Well, this looks like it'll be a great weekend.  Friday night and I've already finished two cards!  Can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

Spring in Montana isn’t like Spring where you are!

Lots of crafting going on but still no pictures to show.  Saturday should do it, I hope.  I’d like to FINISH something, not just get it half done.  Especially since I am working on Thumper (from Bambi) with my new Cricut Cartridge, Disney Classics.  Lots of layers!  I just love this cartridge, it is chock full of wonderful images from Bambi, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland and Pinocchio.  I absolutely love them all!  Can’t wait for summer vacation (school is out on May 27) so I have lots of time for crafting.  Well, I hope so, anyway.  Summers seem to get full of things too fast!

Spring in the north central Plains isn’t like elsewhere in the country.  We have wind, rain, snow, hail, sleet, a little sun, or a lot of sun, and the temperatures can be miserable, either cold or hot or anywhere in between!  However, it is still Spring, not Winter!  For which I am mostly grateful!  I am not a fan of mud.  I got mud on my shoes every day last week just trying to get to school in the morning, and mud on my pants before school was out three times.  I quit looking…  Some things just can’t be changed. 

So, anyway, no green grass yet, no leaves on trees, no daffodils or tulips.  It’s looking like those will be very late this year.  I hope I have iris before July 4th, but I suspect that it could be that late.  My sister from Sacramento e-mailed me a picture of her first iris bloom this year, Stepping Out, one that came from our grandmother.  It is just beautiful, and I hope I’ll have one in my garden, whenever that happens…  Meanwhile, this is the one time of year when I do miss living farther south.  Or west.  When we lived in Oregon we had roses beginning to bud in February, iris in May, and something all year.  I am really jealous of many of you. 

Oh, another sign of Spring!!!  Senior-it is.  I have 4 students who will graduate on May 21.  All of them have become anxious, which is not helping any of us.  One is worried about what he should do after graduation.  Another doesn’t want to move out but knows he has to.  A third had started a new job every afternoon and really, really wants to be able to work all day.  The fourth is planning to attend college about 8 hours away, and the reality of that is beginning to hit home.  I don’t know if I should ask for prayers for them, that they should keep it together until the end, or prayers for me that my patience doesn’t wear out!  But your prayers are always appreciated.

Oh, my!  Just a quick update to the freezer story...  After getting the freezer located and almost everything out of the living room, my husband has decided that he does not like it there...  and it should be moved to the closet where I thought it should have gone in the first place!  Who says men don't have hormone fluctuations!!!  lol

Sunshine today!!!  Hope that means it'll stay for a couple of days.  We would really appreciate it!

Many thanks to LeeLou Blog Layouts for my FREE new design.  It was FREE, did I say that already?  Their generosity is great.

I've had a busy day.  We bought a new freezer which (I think I already said) has been sitting in my kitchen since yesterday afternoon.  It is now in its new home.  Unfortunately, everything that used to be in that space is now in my living room.  Need I say more?  Chaos...

I did manage to get some crafting in, but not quite what I had expected.  Will get a little more time tonight before bed, but it will probably be next weekend before I get more time.  This is report card week!  In addition to the usual report cards, special education also issues progress reports on all goals and objectives for each student.  This is more paperwork, obviously.  The week ends with Parent-Teacher conferences after school on Thursday (4-7) and on Friday morning (8:30-11:30).  I really do enjoy meeting with parents.  I'd much rather talk face to face than to try to put everything into one little grade on the report card!  Anyway, it'll be a busy week.

So here are the projects I'm working on, 2 easel cards, one that I printed out (first time I layered one digi on another) and one I'm coloring.  Oh, there are some things I'm cutting out that I didn't include in this picture.  Anyway, lots of little things for any time I find free.  Hope it works!

Hope you all enjoy the week!  I suspect many of you have spring already, but we're having a snow shower again tonight.  Wonder if it'll be like that last shower that dropped 6 inches!  Oh, woe!!!

Happy Spring!

Hello everyone!  My picture today is not a card, yet, anyway.  I think I might mat it and hang it on my wall for a little while.  I wonder if it means anything to any of you?  My daughter should recognize it...  I used to recite this poem to my kids when they were small.  The poem can be found at www.nonsenselit.org/Lear/ns/pussy.html. 

The Cricut cuts (boat, owl and cat are from Give a Hoot, don't remember what size).  The fish and crab are stickers I've had around for a long time (I tend to hoard these cute things).  The background paper (sky) is from A Winter Combo pack by DCWV and the ocean blue is from the dollar store (love that place).  The boat and ocean were both embossed with a Cuttlebug folder but I cannot remember what it is called.  Sorry!

I'm home alone, crafting!  Sent everyone else to town to pick up the new freezer and have a "wonderful" lunch at the Golden Arches.  I'm really happy to be right here.  Might even have something more to post later, I hope.  Hope you are each enjoying your weekend as much as I am!

I have had a great weekend!  The sun was out part of the time, though it snowed for a while also (a typical day in north central Montana).  My husband was home and we were able to putter around a little.  We ate out with friends on Friday as we often do.  We made a trip out of town for groceries and to pick up a prescription, and went to church.  I had just the right amount of time for crafting.  Life can be very good!

I'm going to enter this card in a challenge at Pause, Dream, Enjoy.  It's fun to see how it looks compared to those others made.

I've been working on a double fold card that will let the inside unfold slowly.  Didn't get a picture of the first one I made so I'll have to make another.  It was pretty cute...  But I'm pleased with this one also.  This is for a friend who celebrates her birthday this week.  The sentiment (a freebie) says "birthdays are good for you, studies show that people who have the most live the longest."  What could be more perfect?

The next card is the same style, but maybe not quite so good.  I can't quite say what else I wish I had done, maybe used a different green for the base card, or maybe I should have embossed it.  I wanted to, but it didn't fit in my Sizzix Texture Botique.  I'll have to come up with some better plan, I guess.  Anyway, this is for my mom, hoping it will help her enjoy Spring! 

I'm off to try to finish at least one more card.  It's part-way done, so maybe I'll make it and can post it tonight.

There's a great giveaway going on for anyone who is interested, over at lovetocrop.com.  Check it out!

I can't believe I still don't have anything to show for my time.   I got a lot of pieces cut this weekend, but the only think I actually finished was a sheet of red cardstock arrows (about 25 in varying sizes) for a student's poster project.  She is completing the project for her presentation to the Montana State FCCLA convention in Billings later this week.  (If you don't know about FCCLA, check it out!  It's really a great organization for kids who are interested in technical and vocational careers.)   I hope the arrows will help her win!

Anyway, it has been rather crazy around here.  First, on Friday, my brother-in-law (a bachelor who lives next door) fell on the ice and broke his leg.  The ambulance took him to Cut Bank, 45 miles away (no doctor here in town), and my husband and I followed.  Then after the x-rays were read by a doctor in Kalispell (3 HOURS away) we loaded him into our car and drove him to the hospital there.  After a night in observation he's staying with another brother-in-law over there until the swelling goes down enough to do surgery.  Because the break is bad and a bone has to be removed from ANOTHER piece of bone that it was driven into (yuck!) they will have to open the leg and after cleaning up, will put a plate in, too much damage for a simple pin!.  Then he'll come home.  It's his driving leg, so he's out of work and off his feet for a while.  Hope he doesn't go crazy!!!  Maybe this will convince him to get his satellite or cable TV hooked up???

We didn't get home until after 8 o'clock that night.  My hubby was up at his regular time (5:00) Saturday morning for work.  I'm afraid that there was quite a bit of napping going on around here in the afternoon.  And then the time change, and a little housework, and all in all I didn't accomplish much!  I hope to get home early enough tomorrow to have some crafting time.  I'd like to see what I come up with when I get things put together!

We are finally getting some warm weather (lots of wind, also).  Hope you are all able to enjoy the first hints of Spring.  Isn't it wonderful?

No crafting today, I'm afraid.  My husband and I have joined three of his brothers and their wives on our annual weekend at Chico Hot Springs and Spa which is located just north of the north entrance to Yellowstone Park.  This is the fifth year for us, though the others were getting together before we moved back to Montana.  This is one of the things that makes living in Montana worthwhile.  We are so blessed to have family that we truly enjoy spending time with!  Sure wish my sister lived close enough to join us.

I have entered the flower and bee card from my last posting in the challenge at Top Tip Tuesday.  I'm not really worried about winning, but thought I would enjoy learning something new from this experience.  Mostly I seem to be learning that I don't know what I'm doing with all this on-line stuff.  I might have to look for a class this summer...  Oh, well.

It is still snowy here though it is much warmer than it has been at home.  We were pleasantly surprised that when we arrived last night the temp. was about 37, which is way higher than we've been for several weeks.  I'm suspicious that we'll be driving home in snow tomorrow, but I'm going to try to live one minute at a time and not worry about tomorrow!

I'm upset with myself, brought the camera, but forgot to get new batteries for it on the way down, so no pictures yet.  Sorry about that!

Hope you're all enjoying the weekend.  I'm spending time browsing through other people's blogs, getting lots of good ideas!  And I'm reading a fun book, Twelve Sharp, by Janet Evanovich.  It doesn't qualify as "quality literature" but in terms of entertainment value, I love her books!  When I want something that makes me laugh, I can always count on them.

Have a great weekend!

Wow!  Can't believe it's the second day of MARCH already!  How did that happen?  I don't know where I lost the week, but I surely did!

I came home to a whole lot of inspiration waiting for me in the form of many, many wonderful blogs!  I just couldn't stand it, ran upstairs and finished one card (picture below) and then worked on my first waterfall card.  It's coming along, though it's nothing to show off.  I've got the idea but have to work on the plan a little more before I finish the real thing.  I love puzzles, though, and a waterfall card really fits that bill!

So here is my latest card.  I used American Crafts cardstock (I love it! Such beautiful colors.) but cannot remember where the polka dot paper comes from.  If you know, please let me know.  I would love to look for more like it because it has been really fun to work with.  The cuts are all from Walk in My Garden, which has become my favorite cartridge.  I love the variety of flowers and all the things that they can be used for.  I have decided to post this on Top Tip Tuesday's latest challenge, just to see if I can do it.  I don't seem to understand all the instructions for things, but I keep trying!

And here's a picture of my Christmas Cactus (should I call it an Easter Cactus?).  It seems to be very mixed up.  I've never had one bloom in December and then again right away, but this has been beautiful!

Hope you all stay warm this week!  We are still at or below zero, more snow and wind.  The weather man told us this morning that LaNina is to blame.  I sure wish Spring would come!

What a week!  It has been COLD here, record setting, down to about 35 BELOW Thursday night, and then jumped up to about 20 above today.  That's a 50 degree difference in less than 48 hours.  Even for us that's pretty amazing!  I keep hearing that people are beginning to see signs of spring, but that's certainly not in Montana! 

No picture, still no camera batteries.  I spent my time today learning to make a simple card on the new Make-the-Cut software I bought almost 2 weeks ago.  I've been putting it off.  Once I bought it I decided I was afraid of it!  How silly. Don't know why I do that to myself.  Anyway, it was actually quite easy to make a basic cut using it, and I ended up with a cute card for a guy.  Maybe for my husband's birthday next month?  We'll see...  Tomorrow I'll try something a little more complicated.  I've been watching some videos and think I can take it a step farther.  It is still a little intimidating, though.I haven't been really out of town in a couple of weeks because of the weather.  A trip to Great Falls is beginning to look pretty good!  Anyway, I think I'll try to make another card tomorrow, or cut something, anyway.  I'll have to get my son to put new batteries in his camera and let me use it.  Mine used only a particular camera battery, who knew what a pain that would turn out to be! 

Meanwhile, baking ought to be nice tomorrow.  It should warm the house up nicely.

I want to say "Thank you!" to Melissa at melissa-moecreations.blogspot.com for her inspiration.  I love the layout, colors and use of embossing on her cute card.  I immediately had to hear to my craft room and try something similar.  It really didn't turn out that way, but I do like this card.  It was a lot of fun to put together!  I apologize that the color isn't better.  It is too cold to hunt through the vehicles hoping to find my recharger, so I borrowed a camera.

Still very cold here in northern Montana.  The poor weatherman is almost embarrassed to give his report every night.  We heard that the groundhog saw his shadow, but nobody here believes it...

No pictures after all, my camera battery needs to be charged and I have misplaced (I hope) the charger!  No surprise to any who know me well...  I've added a new link over on the right side of the blog, to Sliekje's Digi Stamps.  Sliekje designs wonderful stamps and gives them away!  You will enjoy them if you're interested in such things!

Hello!  Still very cold here, but sunny with a few clouds.  Last night we had dinner out in the country with friends, at the base of the Sweetgrass Hills.  Yes, just a mile or so from where my schoolhouse used to sit...  We headed home right before midnight in a light snowfall, this one the very dry powder kind.  It looked like diamonds dropping from the sky.  There isn't anything much more beautiful than that!  I know you would have all been cold, but you would have loved it if you had been here with us!

Not too much going on here today, just making sure the pellet stove keeps burning.  It really is nice.  I should get my grades done (lol) and then I could head up to the craft room.  Guess I should take my own hint, shouldn't I?

Hope the rest of you are warmer than we are, and having a great day!