Dining on Kauai

We've been enjoying the wonders of the Grand Hyatt Kauai property for three days and yesterday wrapped up the time we spent there. Tom & Kathi rode with the last of the Xango folks out to the airport to pick up the car we had arranged. Our new home for the next ten days is just down the street at the Paradise Suites, a condo community with pool that is just 600 yards from the beach.

Colli, Melanie, and Andy joined Tom, Kathi, Tyler and I at Casablanca for a great night of conversation and yummy eclectic international cuisine...kinda Italian Mediterranean with a beachy flair. I'd highly recommend the Toscana...it had a wonderful flavor. After the many comments from Andy (who is single) about his preferance for Ruebenesque women I decided... Ok, we're all getting loupy, its time to say goodnight :)

Ribbon Ideas - Club Scrap Addicts

I've been looking longingly at all those pretty ribbons in drawers on shelves and saved in snippetts here and there around my craft room.It seems I need a very long list of ideas if I am ever to use up my lovely collection...oh and of course the motivation is..... to be able to feel good about buying more pretty ribbon...am I right?
Well today while checking out a few sites on the web I came across this great piece...Ribbon Ideas - Club Scrap Addicts Thank You Club Scrap Addict!

There are so many great ideas! #46 is sure to be used :)

Forget-Me-Not Keeper Project from Stampin' Up!

Anyone who knows me also knows I get almost as excited about a good organizing idea as I do a fun project. I'm so excited about this idea because it works for both organizing and creating!

Day After April Fools Day

Why do I remember today...April 2nd in such a way? There are stories from our past that sit there on the edge of our mind, and when a phone number or car type or in this case a date comes up it reminds us of this strong memory.In my case it comes in the form of a shared experience with my great aunt, someone whom I dearly love. I credit her as THE most positive and beautiful mentor in my life. I spent the sweetest memories from my childhood with her family, (Bobo my great uncle, Nana the great aunt who I share about and Grace thier adult daughter who lived with them while these memories were impressed so deeply into my mind.)

Today is her birthday. Happy Birthday dear Nana...you are gone but not forgotten.
We spent many ordinary days with my aunt and uncle and there were many stories she shared. This particular day we talked about April Fools Day and the silly pranks some like to play. Our conversation took a twist and Nana mentioned her birthday...the fact that it was on Easter that year. She went on to tell us how it would only happen a few times in her lifetime...She was born in 1887... It happened on her 6th, 12th and 74th birthdays in her lifetime.


One of my favorite times that we saw one another was around the Easter Holiday. Each year Nana & Bobo would hand make an easter basket out of colorful chipboard  lined with easter grass. Inside the basket were the most exquisite colored eggs. The colors were rich and vibrant, no comparison to the pale dyed eggs with crayola writing our family colored each year together. They may have given us candy too but I really have no recollection of it...just the beautiful eggs. This story was ordinary, even though she was not. I celebrate you Nana.

Were not in the land of GOOGLE anymore!!??

So what did YOU think this morning when you hopped on the net?? I casually opened my browser set to my favorite search engine, Google to discover TOPEKA, and ok, I'm used to seeing the many different ways Google has dressed up their site but what is this??? What is Google up to now.... TOPEKA? 

I thought about it for a few minutes and decided that this past decade has been all about flexibility, change and being open to new ideas. Then I thought...OK now... why TOPEKA? wait...how will a less flexible market accept this change? Umm TOPEKA sounds like a word suggesting we can search for and find a topic.Umm...Wait a minute!! I've been PRANKED! Yup! Sure enough...It's April Fools DAY!

Using "MY DIGITAL STUDIO" ~ My First Card

Why would I want to digitally create a greeting card? Let's see...I could answer:

• Because I love using my computer to bring my artistic thoughts to life.
• Because  I want to prove to myself that I can.
• Because  I want to be able to show others how to do it.
• Because  I want to add embellishments to my final card.
• Because IF I decide I want to have my card mass printed, I can.
• Because I can put away all my supplies in a FLASH, Woo-hooo!

ALL TRUE STATEMENTS!

If I think of any other reasons, I'll let you know.  It's fun to challenge myself and see all the wonderful ideas and the many possibilities.I can make many variations so easily.  I used a stamp design from the set "Always". I used a paper from another digital artist, Christina Bartholomew. It is from her set called Siblings..Background 10.

Here's my card.  This first card is a 4.25 x 5.5 " card because I wanted to keep to a familiar format of my handstamped and punched card art.  You will be seeing three photos.  The front.  The inside greeting portion and the back of the card. I'd love to hear your comments and see some of your digital ideas too.

So-ooo here we are at fourth week of March and I am still recovering from a broken ankle, (it actually has been a month, OMG!)
I am doing what I can to keep busy...it seems there is plenty of time for reflection on all those things I wanted to accomplish. I found an interesting exercise in Real Simple, circa spring 2007 that has me looking at my New Years resolutions. So here is my evidence of progress and my warm-up list for leaving my comfort zone.
try: to write in my blog 4 times a week minimum
see: Vermont in the fall
taste: my foods rather than eat them too quickly...lose weight,tone muscle.
listen: For God's direction in the area of helping other women
visit: Greece, the Greek Isles and Turkey
start: accountability,S.M.A.R.T. Track to Success (well under way, yea!)
stop: saying no for comfort's sake
organize: craftroom... (Yes I am making good progress!)
read: books that I borrowed, then on to those I've added to my library
play: in my painting studio
learn: to let curiosity empower me more than fear holds me back