RECIPE SWAP, seemed so simple and innocent

I decided I wanted to have some meaning in my life where I can intrude on the lives of others without leaving the comfort of my own home, be part of a group of special people....so what do I do? I enter a recipe swap. Okay, seems simple enough. I can do this. Rules are pretty simple.

8x8 layout, single or double page
15 of the same layout
have to use the cricut to embellish
Due by April 8th

Oh yes, that is simple, no problem. No pressure. Just find a recipe I like, toss it on some cute paper, make a title with the cricut....OH yeah this will be a piece of cake (and no, my recipe is NOT cake). Oh Okie you are going to have this done in no time! Why these swaps must be simple. Why haven't I joined one before??

Then IT happens....I get the official rules in an email and there is something added. An evil twisted little clause that is stressing me out...What is the clause you ask??

Well read below....


The top 3 people who use the “Most Cricut Embellishments” on their page will be shipped a special prize donated by ScrappinforMyFamily!, KeishaHopping & Simply Scrapbooks of Augusta Ga. So really let your imaginations run wild!

What? I can win something? OH NO! Now the pressure is on! I gotta win, can't sleep until I win. Hunting for the perfect recipe (who cares if it tastes bad as long as I can tie in butt kickin embellishments!), thinking of the perfect cuts, searchin for the perfect papers, does it coordinate, will anyone get "IT", will the cuts look stupid.......OH THE STRESS IS KILLIN ME!!

I keep reminding myself "now self *that is what I call myself when I am talkin to myself* it isn't important that you win, it is just important that you took this leap and you are going to be part of history *a little exaggeration, but please allow me this as it helps with the stress* and no one will make fun of you, if they do you won't know it because you don't even know who the layouts are going to. So just listen to me self.......relax, enjoy the experience and have fun with it* Yeah I am not really buying it and now everyone thinks I am crazy for talkin to myself.....how did a simple innocent recipe swap get me to the point of having multiple voices in my head and stressing about colors, designs, and embellishments? It's simple really....*look of determination on face* I WANT TO WIN!

IT'S A small WORLD!!

And this is a true and cricut related story....

I am trying to get back in the swing of donating platelets every two weeks again. I had stopped when a tendon got hit when I went in for a donation, very painful! Anyway, facing my fear and trying to start up again.

So today was an appt. Went in and was chatting during the screening process, the ladies there are all so friendly and most know about what happened with me staying away so long so they are now all very concerned and always asking if everthing is okay. Anyway..Conversation that took place....

Lady: "how is work"

me: "it is good as always, but I want to quit so I can just stay home and scrapbook all the time"

lady: "OH! You are a scrapbooker! I got my daughter one of those cutting machine things last year for Christmas and this year her husband got her the bigger better one this year"

me: *of course very excited to be able to talk about my cricut to anyone who will listen* "OH THE CRICUT! I have one of those. I have the software that you use with the computer with it and love it. I make all kinds of files. I even have a blog and people go in and download my files. I am so addicted to the message board!"

Lady: *odd look on her face* "what is your name there"

me: *odd look on my face wondering why she would ask* "okieladybug"

Lady: *smiling from ear to ear and excited* "YOU ARE HER!!"

me: *confused look on my face* "huh??"

Lady: *lookin like she was about to jump out her chair with excitement* "YOU ARE HER, I KNOW YOU HAVE TO BE HER"

me: *still kinda confused* "what her?"

Lady: "my daughter has been downloading someone's files and asked if I knew a doodlebug or something like that that lives here in town"

me: *mouth agape* "NO WAY!"

Lady: "YEAH! I can't wait to tell her that I do know you!"

me: "what is her screen name?"

Lady: *shakin head* "oh she doesn't post, she just goes in and gets ideas and stuff"

me: *laughing* "well tell her she needs to post!"

NOW HOW ODD IS THAT?? And completely true! Her daughter does live in Oklahoma but a couple of hours from the town I live in!

WOW LOST

Okay I noticed something tonight, not sure how I missed it before. But Jack said "only 8 survived the crash". Why are they saying no one else survived???

WHEW! Who is glad that Desmond talked to Penny so he could find his constant? I sure was. Ya know this whole constant thing. I have a theory about that....

I think we all need a constant in our lives. No matter what happens in our lives as long as we have at least one constant that we know loves us and cares about us it will help us make it through the rough times in our lives. I have said this for years now. I know mine has always been my Aunt Betty. I need to call her more.........

Anyway back to LOST. So we still have more questions than answers. But at least we know that Faraday has a grip *sorta anyway* about what is going on with the time travel. Now when he will share this with us I just don't know!

I would post more but I gotta get some things done. Don't forget to check out TVGASM for great recaps.....very informative and humorous to boot!

Totes and more totes.......

Why is that when I need something I can't find it? I know at one point I had a package of sand paper but today.......IT IS NO WHERE TO BE FOUND! I have searched and searched in my organized mess and couldn't find it. I did however find a little sanding block that had enough sandpaper on it for what I needed. Now where did that thing come from? I don't remember buying it but it was in a tote with some woodcraft stuff I use to do *notice the use to, I don't do anything but cricut anymore....* and that has been tossed the the bottom of stack of totes!

Oh I have totes...tote for beading, tote for Christmas ornaments I make, tote for needlepoint, tote for quilt tops *will I ever finish those?*, tote for wood crafting *forgot about about the 15 turkey things you stick in pumpkins that I started and I never finished*.......and I am sure there are more.

*BIG SIGH* I think I am not a crafter, not a scrapbooker but instead I am a TOTE COLLECTOR!

Tumbling.....

I had made a TUMBLER as a request and didn't put it here. Someone asked about it on the Cricut Message Board so I am putting it on here now. In the preview screen I had put some hair from Paper Doll Dress Up on it. I deleted the hair for the file so it would be completely a George cut. If you use it you will also have to draw on a face, figured that would be easier than making teeny tiny eyes, nose and mouth and trying to have the cricut cut them. The limbs should be easy to move around if you want a different position. If you move them around and mess up never fear you can always come back and download it again! *SMILE*

Golf clubs...

I made some GOLF CLUBS this morning. Since I don't golf and it has been a long time since I have been around a golfer I hope they look okay! I need to be working on my weekly paperwork, but that just is NO fun! But gotta do it or I can't get paid....UGH! Gotta find a job where I don't have paperwork, but since anything in my field requires it I guess I am stuck. It sure takes away from my time to play with the Cricut and Design Studio.

On a more interesting note my God Daughter came by last night and got her word book. I called her and told her I needed her to come by and pick something up. She did squeal! Didn't cry.....but almost! She just kept looking at it and saying "WOW! WOW!" and said she was going to "accidentally" leave it in the lounge for others to drool over! *LOL*

Mr. Potato Head

Someone needed a MR. POTATO HEAD. He took a little longer than I thought, but who knew potatoes had teeth anyway! *HA HA HA HA*. He is made with George.
In the screenshot his mouth looks like a solid piece but there are two pieces, upper denture and bottom dentures *they have to be dentures because potatoes can't grow teeth silly people!* I had to unweld the pieces for a screenshot but I think I got them all welded back together. I do have the mats labeled with parts and colors. Of course you can use what ever colors your heart desires. I didn't cut him out because I don't need him right now. But if someone does cut him out please send me a pic to post! THANK YOU! *Smiling sweetly*

WOW! Susanuncle got on the ball with this design! She made the cutest card with Mr. Potato Head! Thanks for sharing the photo Susan! If you don't know Susanuncle let me tell ya she is just like one of the MOST MAJOR AWESOME PEOPLE EVUUHHH! Check her out at Susanbluerobot!

WHEW finished CHI-OMEGA Book!

I finally finished my God Daughters word book! I probably made it harder than it was, but I do that a lot! She was initiated Chi-Omega in January. This is her first year of college and I am so proud of how she is doing! She hasn't seen the book yet but knowing her she will squeal and maybe even cry, very sentimental that one is! You can click on any of the pictures and they will open bigger if you want to see better details.

Of course I had to use Stickles! Love those things! The patterned ribbon is Bo Bunny. I used Basecamp for the letters. The yellow and red paper is Bazzill card stock. The patterned paper is probably a mixture of papers, all purchased at my LSS. I used binder rings to hold the book together. I can't wait to get a Bind It All!


Here I just used some stickers as there wasn't enough space for a picture. The clear stickers came from Wal-Mart. I got the epoxy stickers at my LSS. They were a set of Chi-Omega sorority stickers.



Since I didn't want my God Daughter knowing about the book I had her add me as a friend on her FACEBOOK page so I could nab her photos! All of the photos came from what she has on her FACEBOOK. She will really be surprised!


I tried to leave places where she can journal on some of the pages. That way she can remember more about what was going on. Knowing how she is she will probably tell me what to write (but I will use the printer!) because she will be afraid of messing it up!


I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the hanging picture, it opens and has a pic of her and some of her friends. I don't know why she was dressed as a ladybug in the other page, but of course I was diggin that! *LOL* I cut the ladybug with Cricut, had designed it with DS *of course* and the George Cart.

I just used some stickers on these pages also. The flowers came from the LSS. I think they were only 10 cents a piece. I used glue dots to attach the flowers on the page. I got to use my new ATG gun on the project! HIGHLY RECOMMEND ONE!

I tried to tie these two pages together. I used transparency for the title on the two pages. I never knew MS Word had so many features! I think I am going to like using transparencies for journaling and such! It dried really fast also.

Finally the last page. I believe this picture was the night of her initiation. I looked on the internet for a Chi-Omega motto or something to do with this one. I did find their song and printed it on transparency. The ribbon is again Bo Bunny, some I had left over from a LO. The embossed vellum is with the cuttlebug Stylized Flowers. I stamped the swirls on the last page.

Overall I am pleased with the book. I did have my DD's input on a lot of it. She is great about telling me "that looks awful" "it needs something else" "you are putting too much on there", etc. She is a very honest critic! *LOL*

Dry hands, dry legs.....okay mine get kinda crusty

I am willing to admit I have very dry skin on my legs......looks like an alligator in the winter time! My neighbor's mother, who is a very lively 94, makes a wonderful homemade lotion. My neighbor was nice enough to share the recipe. I made this for my girlfriends to go in their Santa goodie bags for my Annual Girlfriend Christmas party, they all loved it! I just got some of those cheap containers at Wal-Mart with the screw on lids. I think they were about 5o cents a piece. I shared the recipe on the Cricut messageboard *I think it was cricut related......because paper makes our hands dry, we need to moisturize our hands so we can work with paper........paper goes in the cricut....YEP! CRICUT RELATED!*

Oh yes back to the recipe! So here it is!!

HOMEMADE LOTION
1 - 7.5 oz Jar Petroleum Jelly
1 - 8 oz Jar Vitamin E Skin Care Cream
1 - 15 oz Bottle Moisturizing Formula Baby Lotion (I use unscented)
1 - 11 oz Dry Skin Lotion
1/2 bottle of 18 oz Suave Naturals (for scent, can you other if desired)
Mix with whip or mixer in large bowl.

This stuff is just awesome! It feels so light! It does a great job on my super dry legs.

Palm tree, tooth and paintball gun

Just can't get enough of designing with good ol George!

Someone wanted a PALM TREE with George so of course I had to see if I could do it. I used the J for the trunk and crest shapes for the palms. There is a base to the tree and if you will cut it in dark brown you can then lay the trunk piece on it. The trunk piece has some cut outs so the dark brown will show through. Then just pop the palms on top and WAAAHHLLAAAHHH ya got yourself a palm tree!





Someone else was needing a TOOTH. I used ovals and a couple of triangles and welded them together.








Well I also made a PAINTBALL GUN AND SPLAT tonight. One of the message board members was needing one and I thought I would see if I could help out. The splat took a lot longer than the paintball gun! LOL

For the love of Penguins!!

My daughter has fallen in love with penguins since seeing the movie Happy Feet. I found the cutest stamps at my LSS and of course with her being with me I had to get them (she didn't have to twist my arm much though).


Inspired by the stamps I thought I would see what I could come up with as a cut file with Design Studio. I did some tweaking after cutting the cut girl penguin so it should cut right now. You will have to draw on the eyelashes and also clip the ends at the top of the skirt for it to fit right. I did get the boy done also but I don't have it cut yet. You can refer to the stamps as for placement of objects. As you can see the Penguin Girl is doing the hula! The Penguin Boy is holding a Popsicle!


The only bad part of making these files is that my daughter said "Can you make them bigger?" I told her "yeah". She said "Good I want to redo my room in penguins, I want a new comforter, paint my walls, and other cute things to go with it".

These cute 99 cent stamps are likely going to cost me a couple hundred bucks! (She is 16 now, two more years and she is out of here....hhmm, wonder how much money I will save once she moves out).

Lovely Lovely Bazzill!! and paper hoarders

Oh what a grand site it was when that beautiful brown truck stopped in front of my house! I greeted the man carrying my precious package at the door. I think I might have even squealed a little and he did look at me kinda strangely as I jumped up and down. Did he not know how long I have been waiting? Did he not know what precious cargo he was holding?

I now have 160 sheets of the beautiful, sturdy, cardstock. It is all nicely arranged in my paper shelf. My daughter laughs at my ROY G BIV system of organizing paper, but what does she know?? *rolling eyes and sighing deeply* I can't wait to use this lovely cardstock, but I am one of those weird paper hoarders. I buy paper and don't want to use it "because it is pretty" "because I might not find anymore" "because I got it on sale". All of which are just crazy ideas!! Aren't we suppose to use the paper? Isn't that what we buy it for? Then what the heck is wrong with us for not wanting to use the paper??? Makes no sense to me but I know I am not alone in this dilemma! So paper hoarders UNITE and start using that stash of paper! I know I am going to use mine....well maybe, after all it is nice, and what if I can't find anymore.....HHmmmm maybe I should place it somewhere safe and out of site until I can find that JUST RIGHT project to use it on.....

Time for church!

I got a request to make a CHURCH.

The picture of the cutouts isn't too great but I think you can get the idea! You will have to draw lines for the steps of the church. I used vellum to make the stained glass windows. I used a gel pen for the cross and colored pencils to make the different colored "glass". For the door I just cut a piece of paper a bit bigger than the hole and also used colored pencils to color in some boxes to add depth. The overall dimensions are about 5x5, and that includes the cross on top of the church.

Rearranging and Neglecting Family and Friends

I don't know if I will ever stop rearranging my craft area! Does anyone else get a new product and decide they need to rearrange? Since getting my Cricut I think I have rearranged about 5 times now, well last night I rearranged about 3 but only counting that as one.

A friend called me the other night, she said "What the heck as you so mad at me that you haven't called me for 6 months?" Of course she was exaggerating as it has only been like a month, well maybe a month and a half. Smugly told her "I have been Cricuting". Well of course she had to ask what that was. I tell ya, people who don't have Cricut's don't seem to understand us people that do! It's almost like we are a different breed of humans. Some SUPERIOR breed (of course superior because I ain't about to say inferior!)

Anywho, I got an email from my favorite aunt earlier in the week and she wrote "I guess you are still scrapbooking since I haven't heard nothing from you". That made me think...OMG am I neglecting my friends and family?? And the answer is yes and no. While I am not spending time with them on the phone I am spending time with them placing wonderful memories in my cherished scrapbooks. I think they should feel honored and stop all that whining about me not calling or coming to see them! There is no pleasin some folks!

Now it is time for me to go put some glue on them and stick them on a page!!

Thank you AMKSCRAP!

Thanks to Amanda the links for my .cut files should be working okay. She was nice enough to share her storage space and allow my files to be directly linked to her space. No more waiting for yahoo briefcase to work, no more nasty ads from mediafire! Just good ol plain click and download!!

If I haven't gotten all the links loaded right please let me know so I can get them fixed!

Be sure to check out Amanda's blog!

Files and more files - I hope

WOW I am getting such a tremendous response it makes me blush (honest injun even, oh and I can say injun because I am one hee hee hee, 1/2 Arapaho to be exact). Oh yes back to what I was doing....*la la la la la looking through pictures and files*.......

Here is the BREAST CANCER ribbon that was requested. I haven't cut it but several ladies have and said it worked great!








Someone had requested a TRACTOR made with George. The mats are labeled the colors for a John Deere but ya don't have to use those colors. I think if I had a farm I would want a purple tractor.....with pink flowers! YEP YEP YEP It would be the purtiest tractor in the county!






Jodi needed a STEPLADDER for a LO and this is what I came up with for her. She never has show me a the LO thought *ggrrr*










Late at night one weekend someone was talking about MUSICAL NOTES and needing individual ones so I got busy and made these in a matter of minutes.







Here is a MASONIC SYMBOL I made tonight. My daddy was a Mason although he wasn't very active while I was growing up I know he was active in the 60's while living in Kansas.









Was playing around one evening and came up with the MATCHING FLOURISH CORNER AND BORDER. I haven't cut these yet but I think they are pretty just the same! I did a FLOURISH FRAME but I don't have a pic of it.









Ladybugs sweet ladybugs! This was my very first DS design!! I was so proud! You will need to use a hole punch for the small wings as I figured it would help save on blade life.
LARGE LADYBUGS
SMALL LADYBUGS
There are 3 of the large to a cut and 4 of the small to a cut.



Okay that might be all I add for tonight. I will have to go through and make a list of what else I need to put on here. I think I need screen shots of some of my files as I know I don't have them for all.

ABOUT DOWNLOADING THE FILES

*UPDATE* This message has been changed as the downloading has been improved. Now you just have to look for the clickable words to download the files. It is a direct download so you won't be directed to another page. Also if you are having problems seeing the pictures posted you can click on the pic and it will open up bigger.

More files to see and download!!

WHEW! There are a lot of files so this might take some time. But I am going to give it that good ol Cricut try! TWO FOUR SIX EIGHT WHO DO WE APPRECIATE?? CRICUT CRICUT CRICUT!! *tossing pom poms in the air*. Oh yeah back to the pictures and files.

Here is the LO I did using the BATHTUB cut file.











This is the TABBY CAT FACE that I made. I think it would look better with some distressing but OH WELL too late for me now!










Here is the FERRET I made. I didn't expect it to be so popular. HOORRAYY to the ferret lovers of the world!







A wonderful Cricut MB member requested a GROUNDHOG. She made a beautiful card with it! Rheba is so talented!!







This is from someone mentioning they needed a TRANSFORMER. I made it into a card the whole pattern is on one file.










This one is a result of a challenge on the Cricut message board. It is a BABY BIB CARD. There is a full baby with bottle and bear on the file but I never finished cutting it.









My daughter is crazy about MYSPACE so I did this LO. The file includes all the components to complete the LO. The film strip is NOT my original creation I got it from Caro's blog and was made by Andre. Great job Andre!!! Check out Caro's blog as she has tons of great stuff. She and the ladies work hard over there with sharing files!






This is the result of one of the first challenges I tried. They are LITTLE SWIRLS made with George. There is a LARGER SWIRL but I haven't cut it yet.


I am using THE CAR one for a LO of my daughter with her driver's license. I still don't have the LO done *GGGRRRR*. I also have a KEY file that has two keys on it that I am going to use on the LO, but don't have a picture or screenshot.





WHEW!! Okay that is all for this post but please stay tuned as I add more!

HOLY SMOKES!!!

OKAY BOYS AND GIRLS GOOD NEWS!! I think I figured it out! Now I can post pics and links in the blog for a direct download! YIIPEE KIII YYEEAAA (or something of that nature). Now I will be busy with getting the pics and files on the blog. But here are a few to start with!

This is the orchid I made using George (of course). Get the cut file HERE.




















I made a hummingbird today. Get the cut file HERE.









Here is the ballerina and the shoes I made. I don't have a picture of the shoe, just a screenshot. Here is the link for the BALLERINA and here is the link for the SHOE.




Okay I will add more later when I get it all figured out! Sure hope this works out!

Please be patient with me....

As I am new to all this blog stuff I am trying to figure it all out. I want to be able to put pictures of my files that I have created with Design Studio and make clickable downloads that way. I have no idea what I am doing so it might take awhile! This particular post is a trial run (I almost typed ruin which might really what this turns out to be *crossing fingers but finding it harder to type*)


This is the cap and GOWN I made. And also the LARGER CAP!

Namebooks and SUPER BOWL SUNDAY

Oh what have I started *rolling eyes and giving out a big sigh*??? I have shown a few people the name book I made for my DD youth pastor and his wife for their new baby, well now everyone wants one! Which I guess is good for Cricut since I have told a few "well ya gotta get a Cricut and you can make them".

BUT...tonight I cut a base and the letters for a teacher at the school where I work. She is always giving me crafting tips and makes little things for me (she is really irritating sometimes because she is so good at everything). Well today I told her "ya know I know you liked the name book and was interested in making one, what if I cut one for your daughter and you can finish it". She was so excited (I think I heard her actually give out a little squeal)! She told me what kind of theme she wants so I pulled some paper that I had that I thought would be good and matched paper for the letters. I will be so excited to see what she comes up with for the finished product! Her daughter is teaching in Guam right now so she is going with a beach type theme. I started to pull some ebmellies to give her but didn't want her to think I was trying to do the whole thing for her. She asked me tons of questions about the Cricut and I suggested if she get one or get her daughter one that she go with the E. She was really excited when I told her about that one.

SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!!!!
Oh yeah baby I am excited! The teams playing are......heck if I know! But my LSS is having a sale from 2-4pm that day! OH YEAH!! *does the Kool-aid dance and hits the wall, bout knocking myself out - don't try this dance it will only give you a headache!!! * Anyway papers are 40% off, embellies are 30% off, and something else is 25% off. Don't remember what, but who cares!! I LOVE A SALE!
This is a picture of where I shop. No Friday shopping for me this week, savin it for the sale! I have browsed a few days this week so I can get ready for the sale. I am wondering if I should wear a football helmet and pads in case I need to tackle someone who is trying to go after what I have picked out! The owner finally got her website up and running!
Scrapbooking 24/7 is the name of the store. Man does she come up with some great LO's!