Back in the saddle again....

Well, true to form, I've neglected my online presence for a little too long.  No.  Far too long.

 If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you'll know that I stamp in fits and starts and therefore post that way too :)   Thank you for sticking with me!

In truth, my crafting space has been collecting dust since the spring and I've finally gotten back at it.

One of the reasons for this neglect is because I started back to work this fall.  I am a public high school teacher but had been on an extended parental leave for the past 6 1/2 years.  Returning to the classroom part-time this fall has certainly been an adjustment.....but not an unwelcome one.  While I enjoyed my time at home with my children (and was blessed to have an employer who would let me do it), I have been wonderfully surprised at how much I'm LOVING being back in the work world.

I feel like myself again!

Now that I've gotten into more of a routine and things are starting to settle, I sat down to do some stamping!   Two words...

Paper.

Pumpkin.

Wow!  What a wonderful little treat every month.  My October kit had enough materials to make 9 cards....and a little more!   And I did NOT have to design them myself!

Or cut anything!

It was all done for me!  Yay!

Once they were put together....this was the end result:

AND I got 13 stamps with the kit!

I'm looking forward to using them again soon!

If you haven't already tried Paper Pumpkin out or you want to try it out again, click HERE to link to my Paper Pumpkin website.   It's really worth trying out or giving as a gift to someone who is crafty.
I've been receiving my Paper Pumpkin monthly for over a year and have LOVED what I've seen!

Happy Stampin'!

Thankful for friends

This weekend is Thanksgiving in Canada and it's definitely starting to feel cooler and like autumn in my part of the world.  It's hard to believe that it was actually warm enough about 10 days ago to go swimming.  But it was!  Here I am with a few of my favourite ladies on the beach of my family's cottage.  I am so thankful for these gals.  They keep me grounded and sane!

Hanging out with a few of my favourite ladies!

I had the pleasure of hosting them for a little retreat 2 weekends ago.  No kids.  No husbands.  Just us with good food, a little wine, a fabulous Bible study and lots of laughter.  I wanted to start their weekends off with a little something special.....but I didn't take a picture of it....thanks Julia for taking a picture and blogging about the weekend :)   

Here's what they got:

A little gift for my special gals

The gift box is from one of my Paper Pumpkin kits!  It came with everything I needed to put it together already die cut and ready to go.   Sweet!

The card (and yes, I know it doesn't coordinate) uses Color Me Autumn DSP from the current Holiday Catalogue and one of my favourite stamp sets, "Work of Art".   I really wanted use some of that DSP and I wasn't too worried about everything matching.  It fits the cottage vibe :)

I am so thankful to be blessed with a generous family who allowed us to use the cottage and a wonderful husband and mother-in-law who made it possible for me to be away!  

Happy Thanksgiving!