Timeless Talk & Week One Done!

Whew! It was a long first week of school with students. Friday was especially difficult because none of us wanted to be there! The kids were tired and squirrely and bounced off the walls whenever they had a chance and I was EXHAUSTED to say the least. But, this was my last first full week of school with students and last Open House. Two more “lasts” checked off my list.

I got NO stamping done this past week in my own stamp room. A bummer for me, because it is something I really like to do. I did get my August Paper Pumpkin done Sunday and I was able to attend a friend’s stamp club this past Friday evening. If this coming work week is anything like last week, I will have to resort to posting photos of the cards we made there. The card that I am posting is one I made awhile ago, but it is still current. The stamp set is called Timeless Talk and I love, love, love it!

Here it is…

Here’s what I used to make this card.

Baked Brown Sugar Card Stock 131296

Summer Star Fruit Card Stock 126839

Timeless Talk Stamp Set 126605-w/126607-c

Everything Eleanor Stamp Set 131987-w/124164-c

Baked Brown Sugar Classic Ink 131174

Honeycomb Embossing Folder 129378

7/16″ Trim 129287

Baker’s Twine from Convention Make ‘n Take

5/8″ Crochet Trim 118481

In Color Dahlias 127556

Vintage Trinkets 118764

Rhinestone Basic Jewels 119246

Window Frames Collection Framelits 129021

Hope you enjoyed your visit. Until next time…

Happy Stamping!

Josie

Joyful Christmas

So, I went back to work this past Monday for the beginning of my final year of teaching; my”victory lap.” I am beginning this year with mixed emotions. Part of me is very happy that I will begin a new adventure in my life this coming May as I retire after 17 years in the field of education, and part of me is sad because there is much that I will miss. I will miss the camaraderie among the people I work with who have become some of my dearest friends. I will miss bonding with the students I encounter every year. But there are many things for which I am excited to say farewell. One is lesson planning on Sundays and catching up on grading papers. Another is the endless in services that I will no longer have to sit through. One more is the disgruntled parents I occasionally encounter because they think I should hand their child whatever it is they want without their child earning it. Also, I will not miss the outside duties on cold winter days or the drives to work when the roads are icy and humans shouldn’t be out on them. I will not miss benchmark or state testing and worrying if my kids will show adequate growth. I will not miss indefinite pay freezes because funding for education is low. I will not miss grading essays, and finally, I will not miss my 4:45 a.m. daily wake up call so I can get ready and be at work on time. So you might ask, “Why did I hang around so long?” Well, it was because of the kids, of course! Through the course of the year, my students become “my kids.” I grow to love them as if they were my very own. Of course, there are days when I might wish one or two were absent…but being a teacher is just like being a mom. There were one or two when I wished my OWN children weren’t around. But in the long run, I could never imagine what my life would have been like if I had not had my own kids. The same holds true with being a teacher! What would my life have been like had I not had the hundreds of students I’ve had over the past 17 years? They’ve kept me young at heart and they have filled my life with such joy and love. Even though there are so many things I WILL NOT MISS, it will be hard to say good-bye.

I did manage to get in a little stamping done this week, which is ALWAYS a good thing. This is my first Christmas card of the year…never too early to get started on that.

Here’s what I used on this card.

Whisper White Card Stock 100730

Champaign Glimmer Paper 127885

Gold Embossing Powder 109129

Northern Flurry Embossing Folder 120902

Hope you enjoyed your visit today. Until next time…

Happy Stamping!

Josie

Best of Brides and Babies

It has been another busy day today. I’ve managed to get nothing but a lot of running around town done. And I had such big plans. I played personal chauffeur for my 28-year-old daughter today. She hasn’t had a car since returning from her six month trip to India in May or a cell phone for that matter, so today I spent running her around town getting set up with cell phone service and looking at cars. She purchased a scooter when she got back to town, but scooters are only good in “nice” weather. She’s finally finding work and won’t be able to borrow my car much anymore. I go back to work on Monday. So she finally did settle on a little Subaru that should keep her in wheels for a while until she finds better employment and find something better.

Today’s card is for a cousin of mine that will be celebrating fifty years of wedded bliss this coming September. September 6th to be exact! I was the flower girl in his wedding when I was 6 years old. Now you know how old I am. I am not ashamed. My father used to say of birthdays, “Keep’em coming!” I don’t like the alternative!

Here’s what I used on this card.

Best of Birthdays and Babies Stamp Set 133482 (clear only)

Very Vanilla Card Stock 101650

Champagne Glimmer Paper 127885

Tea Lace Paper Doilies 129399

Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder 109129

Gold Metallic Encore Pad 132141

Embossing Buddy 103083

Heat Tool 129053

2 1/2″ Circle Punch 120906

1 3/4″ Scallop Circle Punch 119854

Thanks for stopping by today. Until next time…

Happy Stamping!

Josie

A Lot to Share

I’ve been a busy little bee in my stamp room this week, and I’ve got a lot to share but not sure if I want to show all of it to you today. I think I will just make you wait! LOL! Other than stamping my husband and I took the time to do a day trip this week. We went to the Historic River Walk in Pueblo, Colorado. Now it isn’t as big a deal as the one in San Antonio, Texas, but for the size of city that Pueblo is, I was impressed. I’ve never been to San Antonio, but I hear that it is a nice place to visit. We just might have to put that on our list of things to do once I am finally finished working.

I go back to work on August 12th. It will be my final year of teaching. I am approaching this final year with mixed emotions. I officially retired at the end of this past school year, but this new one will be my “transition” year. Part of me is anxious to get back into a routine and wonders if I will miss having my own classroom of students on a daily basis. Part of me is ready to start this adventure called “retirement” and start doing some of those things I have always said I wanted to do. Time will tell and the plan right now is to take things one day at a time.

Today I want to share a card I made using the Tag a Bag Accessory Kit (130153) found in our current Annual Catalog. We got it as part of one of our make-n-takes at convention. I wondered what to do with all of the left over pieces after the make-n-take was complete and I decided to try this. It turned out pretty well, don’t you think?

A word about the Tag It Stamp Set I used: Every time someone purchases this set found on page 45 of our Annual Catalog, $3.00 is donated to Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Here’s what I used on this card:

Whisper White Card Stock 100730

Tag a Bag Accessory Kit 130153

Tag It Stamp Set 130300-w or 130303-c

Gorgeous Grunge Stamp Set 130514-w or 130517-c

Bermuda Bay Classic Ink 131172

Summer Starfruit Classic Ink 126991

Calypso Coral Classic Ink 126983

Old Olive Classic Ink 126953

Bermuda Bay Stampin’ Write Marker

Summer Starfruit Stampin’ Write Marker

The Stampin’ Write Markers are not sold separately in these two colors. They appear in the set of markers that appear on pages 143 and 141 respectively in the main Annual Catalog. Summer Starfruit is part of the 2012-2014 In Color Collection with the item number of 126856, and Bermuda Bay is now part of the new Brights Collection and can be purchased using item number 131259. You will get the entire set of colors when you order using these item numbers.

Well, I hope you enjoyed your visit here today. Until next time…

Happy Stamping!

Josie