Keeping It Simple

Another post on keeping  Christmas simple. I got my gift in the mail from Dave...Yep I ordered it for myself but isn't that how we get what we want? LOL. It's a sweet little candle lantern to fit in antique wood bowl . I placed it in middle of the bowl and filled it with all the wonderful fillers which include, dried orange slices, pine cones and spruce berries. It truly looks like an old fashion Christmas. Simple and sweet and I knew I would love it. The table is an antique find I got a few months back when I was out junking and the rug underneath I hooked from a primitive star pattern at The Old Tattered Flag website but you can't see it. Thanks for checking in and I hope you are enjoying the simple  gifts of Christmas too. 
Merry Christmas.

Christmas Simple

Hi blog friends. How are the preparations coming? One of my favorite things to do is to keep a record of my December daily routine and at the end of the holiday make a December daily album. Last year was my first year doing this and when it was finished I had something I would cherish forever. It just made the season more meaningful and the preparations worth the effort. After all, it's really about the birth of our Christ and how the story impacts us in our everyday witness through his love. So with that said.. I have a few pictures of events we have been a part of to share that will go in my book. I will for sure share  the completion when January gets here and when I need a project share. I keep daily, dated envelopes  to record my day and believe me sometimes it's a challenge.
Blessings to you and may I just say.... DO TRY THIS. You will love this project.
Merry Christmas my friends.
Iley

                                Some sugared pretzel treats for friends
                                              the mail man and my hairdresser. All that
                                              mean so much through the year.

                             Good friends sent Will this adorable chair.
                                          He is only two months old but looks five.

                                    Annual dinner with my best friends from high school.

                                            Saturday day trip to historical Westin, Mo.
                                             with our friends. Another annual.  

                                          Yep, that's a belly dancer with my Dave.
                                         We went to a Greek restaurant, again with 
                                          friends.It was a great night. He's pretty happy.
                                           

                              

FEELING THANKFUL

Hope everyone is enjoying the aftermath of Thanksgiving and all those leftovers. I completed the Christmas card I am sending this year and have to say it was fun . This is the first year in a while I won't be sending handmade cards...well maybe to a few but it seems with little Will in our life now it seems appropriate to send pictures. So, I just want to take time out to wish everyone a blessed Holiday Season. Stay warm and healthy my friends. Here's a preview of our family highlights this year. We started out with some rough times but ended it with a bang. 
Blessings to all and thanks for checking in.
Iley

My son Curtis and his beautiful wife Kristen and grandson William Scott Burkett

Thanksgiving in front of the fire with our little man Will

What can I say about the Royals. It was a great year.

I Seriously Do Not Believe This is Happening ~~~GO ROYALS

Just a short post today to share more joy in our lives that being the wins for our Royals. Like Kyle said " Going to the World Series game with my brothers and dad is a bucket list thing". Having so much fun.
Tonight we have game four and we are grilling kabobs and rooting on our team.Thanks for checking in.
BELIEVE!!!
Iley

Great Date Night with My Eldest

It was a gloomy, cold and rainy night and I had just put the logs on the fire to stay home with a pot of lentil soup cooking on the stove. It was the perfect night except hubs was at the hospital with my FIL to get him checked out for a bad cough and cold. I was in with the dogs for the night which I was fine with but I then received a call from my eldest son Kyle asking if I would like to have dinner. Are you kidding me? I jumped at it. We talked about going dutch at an upscale restaurant but when I mentioned the fire and  soup on the stove he suggested a bottle of wine and a night in with mom. I was so excited. For those of you with boys you know what I'm talking about. This doesn't happen often. So here are some pictures I took of our evening. We even took in a cheesy chic flick movie on HBO. What a guy. It was the perfect evening so had to share.I can't tell you how much I love this kid.

Thanks as always for checking in. See, I'm even blogging again.

Grammy Love

Wow! Again it's been forever since I posted anything on my sad little blog but maybe just maybe I didn't have anything to talk about till now. Well, now my news...I am a Grammy to William Scott born September 29th weighing 7lbs. 20Z. Need I say more? So now let me share some photos and I hope to do better in the blogging world. I promise.

                                   

                                       I'm just so in love.

Thanks for checking in and I hope you are enjoying each  day during this beautiful time of year. I just love Fall and now have a reason to love it even more.
Iley

Loving The Raisin Boat Challenge

Hi everyone and thanks for checking in on today's card challenge over at Raisin Boat.

This months theme is red, white and blue which is always a favorite of mine. I used a gate fold card for my base and adhered a wonderful patriotic image along with a embellishment from K & Company. A sweet bow was attached to give it some spirit. I kept it simple inside with a Spellbinders die cut  for my sentiment from the Stunning Silhouettes set from Raisin Boat. They have the coolest stamp rental program so check them out. Papers are a mixture of Do Crafts Christmas in the  Country and K & Company.
Thanks for stopping in and leave a comment if you please. We're off to the South of France so won't be back for a while but isn't that normal for me? Life just keeps me hopping.
Have a great summer.
Iley

Raisin boat Card Challenge ~ ~ ~Red, White & Blue

I don't think there is a card that I love more than one done in red, white and blues with a patriotic theme. So when I saw the challenge over at Raisin Boat I just had to enter. For this card I used a spellbinders die in two sizes for my image. This sweet little country girl stamp is one I got on Ebay a while back. The sentiment however is a Raisin Boat stamp from the Stunning Silhouette stamp set. I just love the papers used from the Christmas in the Country pack from Docrafts. Yep, it's Christmas paper. The cute blue table cloth print is Graphic 45. The gate fold is a favorite as well.

Thanks for stopping by on my hit and miss blog post. We have been busy with home makeovers so not been on for a while as you know. Thanks again and have a great summer.
Iley

Pillow Talk

Just a quick share of what I've been creating this week. I think I'm addicted to these little Pillow Pockets.  We will be making these little cuties next month over at Your Paper Pantry for the Pockets for Your Thoughts swap that I host. I used a variation of paper, Prima flowers along with seam bindings and crochet trims. Most are for saying thank you to a friend, relative or teacher but I also added some Halloween for my special kiddo's that come trick or treating. Thanks for checking in. 

New Look ~~~

Hi everybody,
Just thought I would post my new blog look. I needed something to motivate me. The header is a  picture of my sweet daughter in law when she and my son were on their honeymoon June of 2012.  It seems like yesterday we were just planning a wedding. The picture is taken of Kristen walking the streets of Manarca, Italy. Looks dreamy doesn't it? AWWW... so just wanted to share. Hope this post finds you well and enjoying the simplicity of the end of summer days. It was always a bitter sweet time for me as my kids headed off to a new school year but also a refreshing  start for setting goals and new beginnings. 
Thanks for checking in and I do plan on sharing some creations in the next weeks ahead.
Thanks for checking in. 

Mini Pocket Folders

Hi my friends, Just a quick post to share some mini folders I put together after watching Michelle on ThePaperAddiction on YT do a fantastic tutorial. I love how quickly they come together. Hope you like them and let me know if you try one yourself.

Back To Christmas

Hi all my blog pals.It seems like I'm jumping back a bit but I wanted to share my Crhistmas album I just completed today for my friend Natalie. She and I have gotten to know each other through some album swaps and we decided last year that the next theme would be Christmas. She shares the same style as I do using lots of layers and always a love for that vintage touch. It is a very thick album but I love how it turned out. The front cover has a very vibrant image from an old Anna Griffin stack pack and a Christmas pick from Michaels that I cut down to size. The album binder was a new chalenge which I will do again because of the easy transformation. It was a kit from Pine Cone press that I purchased at Archivers. I plan on mailing it next week so since she hasn't seen the real deal as of yet this will only be a sneak peek but stay tuned for more to come. Thanks for checking in and as always I would love to know what you think.

Sharing Some Love

Hope this Sunday share of "love" finds you enjoying the stillness of January and looking forward to some Valentine goodness. February will be here before we know it and with that comes the season of love. I'm not usually a big Valentine kind of girl since my boys are grown and have their own Valentine sweethearts but I love the colors,sweet images and memories that come with the theme. So with that said I am sharing some sweet cards I made for a group of ladies and wanted to tell a little bit about them. I started with craft card stock and added the paper from Reflections LOVE stack which I'm really liking. The K&Company die cuts were a must have for these layouts but I added and fussy cut them on to some chip board to give them more depth. I also added stickles and the TH doily die for a completed look. The TH ticket die embellished with a close pin and flower and a LOVE YOU SO sentiment in my oppinion really topped it off along with the one tatterd flower in the middle card. It's always fun to make them a little different. Hope you like them. Thanks for checking in and I hope you will leave a comment and have a great week.

Forgoten Finds Challenge

Hi ladies, I hope this blog finds you enjoying the holidays and feeling festive. I took a break and made some cards for a monthly swap that I'm in and decided to take on a bit of a challenge. Have you ever purchased a tool or ink and tried it only to find it frustrating and wish you hadn't bought it? Or maybe you thought you just had to have it and tried it once and on the shelf it went. I have been guilty of this so I wanted to start using those long forgotten tools, stamps, inks and "have to haves". My cards are created using the roller technique and the BIG Juicy rainbow ink pad. I love how it turned out and am glad I gave it another go. I used an old forgotten tree stamp that I always thought was so peaceful and represented winter. I also embossed it in black ep. I love how the snowflakes make it pop. So,try my challenge and you may too fall in love with some old items in YOUR stash all over again. I would love to have you share what you come up with. Thanks for checking in and Merry Merry.

MIA.....BUT BACK

What a long neglected blog is my little A Blend of Life. It was a whirlwind November with a big birthday,a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family which was then topped off with a great gettaway to San Diego.I hope you are enjoying the holidays and thanks for taking a peek at my little basket I put together for my besties from high school. I purchased the basket in Old Town, San Diego and couldn't wait to return home and fill it with napkins, dish towels, a wisk filled with chocolates (it reads I WISK you a Merry Christmas)that I got off Pinterest. I topped it off with a festive Christmas pick,made some vintage post cards and used some pretty ones made by others. Have a wonderful season of giving.

Stampers Sampler

Hi everyone. I wanted to share that the Stampers Sampler Fall edition which I was featured in is currently out on the new stands. I was so blown away by this honor so had wanted to share it on my blog. Hope you will take a peek at the two Goddess Challenge tags that I created. I really had to go out of box on this one. LOL . I just love this magazine so chose them as my target for getting published. It was a personal goal for me and I was shocked to have been chosen. Thanks for checking in and have a great day.

Christmas Cookie Recipe Cards

Hi my friends. I hope you are enjoying the change in weather and looking forward to November which will arrive next week. We had our first fire in the fire place last night and it was my idea of bliss and everything simple on a busy day. I hope those of you on the East coast will be safe from the storm and are hunkering down. I had some fun in my cave yesterday and wanted to share my Oatmeal cookie recipe that was my mother in-laws. We lost her in May and coming home after a huge Sunday dinner with these in a cool whip container is a very fond memory. I know that they aren't your typical Christmas cookie but I just love them. Not sure what I will do with these yet but maybe I can incorporate them in a gift or project for Christmas. Well that's all for me today. I have a big birthday coming up so wish me luck on getting through that one LOL. I hope to spend it with my friends and family just celebrating life and all that it means. Wouldn't you know it lands on election day. I'm an Eisenhower baby if that gives you any hint as to how old I will be. Oh, my goodness. Take care and have a great week.

Tag 5 Funkie Junkie 12 Tag Challenge ~~~NOEL

Hi my friends. It's been a while since I posted on my blog but we have been super busy and we had a scare with my father in law a few weeks ago which added to the frenzy. Thankfully he is better and is in a rehab home and seems to be getting stronger. Thanks for all the kind wishes that have come my way. I thought I would start again in joining the tag challenge from Linda' thefunkiejunkie.blogspot.com</a> so today I have completed tag 5. I took the inspiration from the music and snow flakes that she used and found a wonderful Silent Night image on Pinterest. I distressed it with Tim's tea and walnut stain and adhered with a multi medium.I then embossed the gold snow flakes with Egyption gold EP and stamped the music notes at the bottom both being from a TH stamp set. The brass filigree is from Linda's store as is the natural woven jute that is tied at the top with the little Noel tag. This is a fun challenge and I only hope I can keep up with all 12 tags LOL so go hop on over for a visit. It really puts you in the mood for Christmas which will be here before we know it.

Twelve Days Till Christmas Challenge ~~Week Two

Hi Everybody. It's week TWO on Linda's http://thefunkiejunkie.blogspot.com/tag challenge and have to say I had a blast. I tried using a aluminum tag by running it through a TH embossing plate and then using alcohol inks but messed it up big time. I need practice with this technique LOL.I was inspired by Linda's tag by using the aluminum however so I saved it by then running it through Tim's doily die and went from there. The snow flakes were painted with metallic white paint and then covered in fine glitter dust.I can't stop using the platinum embossing powder with this color theme. I used a Crafty Secrets Santa image and framed the sentiment using Linda's red burlap from her store.She has an amazing selection so check her out. I also highlighted the top left corner with a awesome metal snow flake. Red tule and a sweet bell is used for hanging. I'm loving this challenge so come check it out. Just think how ahead of the game you will be with all those ready made tags. Thanks for checking in and love your comments.

Tea for Two and Friendship with You

I just can't get get enough of these fun little pockets. I don't know if it's the tags I love to create or just the idea of making a cute little parcel for a friend. So today I wanted to share my Tea for Two pocket that will be used as a thank you or just a sweet friendship gift. I started with the 7X 5 inch manila folder to make the pocket sturdy and covered it with shabby chic pink floral paper. The tea pot stamp was a gift and I have had sitting on my desk just waiting for the right project.The sweet venis lace heart is from my favorite FunkieJunkie.com store and the sweet rose came from Michaels. I adorned it with a heavy rhine stone trim and bobbles. The stick pin is from a stash and has a charm that says made with love along with a tiny key.

"Hold a friend with both your hands"

is a favorite qoute that I wanted to use. Inside it has a sweet pocket full of tea bags (Thank you Maryanne from a pocketfullofvintage on YT), some honey sticks for dipping and tags that are stamped with more friendship quotes. I hope you enjoy your week and can take some time to think about your friends or maybe just take some time and have a cup of tea.