Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Scrapbook Outside The Pocket - Layering

Week three of the Scrapbook Outside the Pocket workshop at BPC is all about layering. I decided to try the technique of using 3x4 cards to create a background, then layering bits & pieces on each of those cards.

As I'm preparing for my 4th unofficial BPC crop in Corsicana, I decided it was time to scrap some of the FUNny stories from previous crops. I chose a photo from the first crop back in May of 2012, picked seven 3x4 cards to use for the background and one 4x6 card as a photo mat. I actually moved things around quite a bit before I finished. I'm not sure I totally nailed this one, but at least the story is recorded.


Journaling reads: Friday evening one of Susie's Design Team members (Stephanie) asked if we'd like some fajitas for supper. She knew someone who was having a fundraiser and offered to pick some up for us. The fajitas were individually wrapped in foil, but they also wanted to send us some of the onions and peppers so we could add them ourselves. They didn't have any Ziploc bags, so they simply used one of the food handling gloves. When I picked up the glove, the extra butter/oil ran down into the dangling fingers and we named it the onion glove!

I'm really enjoying the materials in the Scrapbook Outside the Pocket workshop - there have been three techniques introduced each week with a sample layout, plus two bonus layouts from other scrappers. So far I've been able to try one technique each week, but maybe at the upcoming crop I'll have a chance to try some of the others.

Are you taking this class? Which techniques have you tried so far?

Saturday, March 22, 2014

4th Blogiversary

Today I'm celebrating my fourth blogiversary! On a Monday afternoon four years ago, I clicked the Publish button for the first time . . . and am so glad I did. As I celebrate four years of FUN blogging, I thought I'd share four FUN things I've been making plans for lately.

1. We have tickets to attend a screening of the Draft Day movie coming out next weekend. Many of you know that Robbie is a Cleveland Browns fan, so this will be a  FUN movie since it centers on the (fictional) general manager of the Browns as he tries to save football in Cleveland.

2. My fourth "unofficial" BPC Texas Get-Together is coming up in less than two weeks. I'll be cropping with eight BPC friends at Scrappin' Goodtime in Corsicana. I've already put together ten page kits, two theme album project files, and a banner kit to work on during our four FUN days together.

3. The reservations for our trip to Pennsylvania for the Philly Non-Sport show are all made. As long as I've know Robbie, he's always mentioned that one day he'd like to go to this non-sport trading card show held outside Philadelphia twice a year, so I'm excited that we're finally getting the chance to check out this FUN event. Robbie's brother, his wife and our two nephews will be joining us for a couple of days, and as a special bonus we'll get to spend some time with Cheri, too!

4. We're working on plans and reservations to celebrate our birthdays this year. As I turn 45 this summer, I'm hoping we'll be hiking in the Canadian Rockies, and we're thinking about celebrating Robbie's 50th with a trip to New York in the fall. Both of these trips are guaranteed to be filled with  FUN!

Have you been making any plans for FUN lately?

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Letting My Light Shine - Kindness Challenge

Cheri has been posting a challenge each week this year focusing on Kindness, and I have enjoyed incorporating her challenges on several occasions. This week she is encouraging us to be kind to ourselves and let our light shine by sharing things we like about ourselves (our physical self and our personality). I thought today would be the perfect day to share a few things as I wish y'all a

HAPPY SPRING
&
HAPPY INTERNATIONAL DAY OF HAPPINESS!

As y'all know I've struggled with my weight the last several years (although I'm working on that this year & will give y'all an update soon), however it wasn't always that way. Most of my life I've been fairly happy with my looks and many of my favorite things haven't changed. I like the color of my eyes (both my parents have blue eyes, but Daddy's are a much brighter color & Mama got her wish when all us girls ended up with Daddy's eyes). I like being a natural blond (I was the only person with blond hair in my family, so I thought I was ugly as a very young child . . . until I started Kindergarten . . . my teacher was absolutely beautiful . . . and blond . . . I knew then everything would be ok). I like that I have straight teeth (after my parents invested in braces, of course). I like my smile (Grandma always said I was like a ray of sunshine when I showed up smiling to visit her).

When I chose the word FUN  for this year, I not only wanted to incorporate more FUN into my life, I also wanted to regain that part of me that I felt I had not nurtured last year. In general I consider myself a FUN person, a faithful Christian, a loving wife, a good listener, and an encourager to others. I also feel that I've been blessed with the gift of teaching. I'm not sure if all my nieces and nephews would agree, but I personally consider myself one of the greatest aunts in the world! (oh, and humble, too!) LOL

I hope you are each enjoying this first day of spring and are finding lots of happiness throughout your day!

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Book Review - The Way West

This year I'm reading the Pulitzer Prize winners in fiction, and I recently finished the 1950 winner.


The Way West follows the adventures of a group of settlers from Missouri to Oregon in 1846. The wagon train is made up of a wonderful group of characters from Dick Summers who's hired to guide the train to Mercy McBee, a pretty young lady traveling with her parents and numerous siblings. The main character, Lije Evans, is traveling to Oregon with his wife and 17-year-old son because he wants to see the area settled and part of the United States, keeping it out of British hands. Each chapter is told from a different traveler's perspective, which worked especially well for helping me understand the individuals and their motives for embarking on such a treacherous journey.

When I first checked this book out from the library I was a little disappointed to learn that it was the second book in a series of books written by A. B. Guthrie, Jr. I typically like to read books in a series in order, however my goal this year is to read some of the Pulitzer Prize winners. I thought if I didn't like the first book in the series, it might deter me from reading this one, so I forged ahead and read this one anyway. I truly enjoyed the book, so it may be that some day I'll go back and read the others in this series.

I especially enjoyed this look into the American West and the trials and hardships endured by the pioneers who settled our land. It's hard to image that on some days the wagon train only advanced eight miles, or maybe twenty miles on a good day with nice weather and level ground and plenty of water and no illness or Indian intrusions along the way. I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys historical fiction and wants to learn more about the settlement of the western states.

So, that's 2 Pulitzer Prize Fiction Winners down, only 50-something left to go! :>)

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

The Final 2010 Layouts

I've finished all the layouts and labeled all three (yes, three!) albums that showcase our photos and tell our stories from 2010! It feels so good to complete that project, and Robbie and I had FUN flipping through each album before placing it on the shelf in the front room. Here's a look at the final three layouts.

I had FUN using some old Christmas lights stickers on this first layout. I used a pen to draw in the line to make them look like a string of lights.

I used a 12x12 overlay with black flourishes on top of a sheet of gray cardstock for this next layout, which made a lovely background, don't you think!

I've scrapped a ton of photos from our 2010 Family Christmas Get-Together, but I still had this one last story to record.

Here's a closer look at the journaling.

I'm currently in the midst of putting together page kits and project files to work on during a four-day crop in early April. What are you working on today?

Monday, March 17, 2014

My Teenage Driving Stories

I started gathering photos & memorabilia last month to help me share my teenage driving stories! I knew the topic in the Inspired Scrapbooking workshop this month was going to be Family Stories, so I wanted to be ready. These are the stories that are told over & over again when our family gets together.

I started out by typing up a draft of the stories, then I called and read them to Mama & Daddy and my sister Brenda. They helped me remember additional details and even shared some things I don't remember. I ended up with a ton of journaling, so I decided to use both sides of a 6x12 page protector for the stories and a 12x12 layout for the photos & memorabilia. Here's a look at the 6x12 pages.
Journaling reads: 
I love to drive; I always have! Even now in my 40s, I’m always up for a road trip with Robbie and am more than willing to do my share of the driving. I consider myself a very responsible driver now, following all the traffic laws and rarely going more than 4 miles over the posted speed limit. But, it wasn’t always that way . . . as evidenced by the numerous stories that Daddy (& Mama, too, on occasion) often re-tells about my teenage driving years.

Mama & Daddy bought a brand new Plymouth Horizon when I was 14-years-old, knowing it would be my car when I graduated from high school. I remember picking that car right off the show room floor. I pretty much learned to drive in that car, a red five-door hatchback with standard transmission.

The first day I had my driver’s permit, Mama let me drive to the mall. On the way we stopped at the Rec to drop off Brenda and one of her friends, who were riding in the back seat. I stopped in front of the Rec and heard the back door open then slam closed, so I took my foot off the brake and started going forward . . . only to hear the second car door close and realize I hadn’t waited for them both to get out and clear of the car. As it turns out, I ran over Brenda’s friend’s foot with the back tire . . . and broke it. (Ok, Mama said actually it just bruised her foot and maybe tore some ligaments, but I think the story sounds so much better if it was broken!) It would seem that this tragic event would have made me a cautious or fearful driver, but I don’t remember Mama & Daddy making a huge deal out of it. Mama took the girl to the hospital and they worked out the arrangements for the bills to be paid, but looking back I’m so glad they didn’t make this into something that would be a horrible memory. It was a terrible mistake . . . that I never made again, but I was spared a lot of grief by the fact that they didn’t turn a mistake into a guilt trip.

Brenda told me a story about a time before I had my driver’s license when her car was either in the shop or Daddy needed it for something, so she had to drive us to school in my car. She says I pitched a fit because I didn’t want anyone seeing her drive MY car! Mama pointed out that I didn’t even have my license yet, but I was still unhappy about Brenda being seen driving MY car. [I do NOT remember this incident and therefore cannot confirm if it really happened . . . although if I’m being honest, it does sound like something I might have done!]

I was at the Driver’s License Office at 9 am on my 16th birthday – I wasn’t waiting another day to get my driver’s license. I passed the test with flying colors, only losing six points on one right-hand turn for not getting over close enough to the side of the road first.

I was one of the lucky ones, having a car to drive to school and out on the weekends throughout my junior and senior years of high school. I tended to think that I could get away with anything, but somehow that never happened. Like the night I decided to teach Tracey to drive a stick shift – after hours of stop and go with her trying to learn to drive, it was time to head home. I got behind the wheel and turned right off the drag onto Twin City Highway. I said, “Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to drive like this” as I popped the clutch and sped off from a red light.

Unfortunately, there are lots of red lights on Twin City Highway, and I caught quite a few of them. Each time, I popped the clutch and sped down the road. When I stopped at the last red light before home, I looked in the rear view mirror and saw Mama & Daddy behind me. They must have been out running an errand or checking up on us, I guess. So, I eased off the clutch and very safely drove to Tracey’s house. When I got home, I walked in and asked my parents, “How long were y’all behind me?” I knew I was going to lose my car keys for a week when Daddy said, “We’ve been trying to catch you since you left the drag!”

Another time, I returned home late one night and told Daddy that my car was making a funny noise. The next day Daddy went out to see what the problem was and came back in and asked “Did you win?” Mustering a look of innocence, I said, “Daddy, I wasn’t racing.” Daddy said something about there being a hole in the aspirator tube (whatever that is!) and asked again if I had won. “No,” I said as I hung my head, “I slowed down when my car started making that noise so I lost.” (I’m not sure I ever really had a chance of winning against that Ford Mustang anyway!)

It’s not really my fault that I liked to drive fast; it’s actually Daddy’s fault. Seriously! I remember being stopped at a red light one time, on the way to church, when Daddy pulled up beside me in the Ford Fairmont and starting gunning the engine – an invitation to race that I just couldn’t ignore. I don’t think I ever outran Daddy, but me and my four-cylinder engine sure did give him and his V8 a run for his money!

I was only in one accident during those years; late one weekend night, Carla and I were on our way home from a dance. Once again, we were headed down Twin City Highway, but this time most of the lights were blinking yellow (it must have been after midnight). As I came out from under the Hwy 73 overpass, a car on the access road ran the blinking red light and hit my car, starting at the front passenger side and continuing all the way to the back bumper. I came to a stop in the middle of the road! Luckily, some guy friends from school were passing by at that time and stopped. They pushed my car out of the road into a parking lot and started changing the tire while Carla went to locate a pay phone to call Daddy. When she told him that we had been in an accident, Daddy asked, “Who did she hit?” Carla assured him the accident wasn’t my fault and shortly after that he and Mama showed up at the accident scene. The other driver was cited and their insurance paid for the repairs to my car.

There’s a little detail in that accident story that I never shared with my parents until many, many years later. A few weeks before, I had lost one of my contact lenses, so I had to wear my glasses for a while until my parents could save up the money to replace the contact. I hated wearing my glasses, so I had put one contact in that night and had not worn my glasses at the dance. On the way home, however, I had my glasses on, but either way I could only see good out of one eye! Even though the accident wasn’t my fault, I never again pulled a stunt like that where I couldn’t see my best while I was driving!

Mama & Daddy had a little party for me at the house after my high school graduation and one of my favorite gifts was all the keys to my car! I was lucky to get to drive it most of the time, but it was still technically a family car during my high school years and could be commandeered by Mama or Daddy at any time for their own use . . . but that night it became officially mine and anyone who wanted to use it had to ask and borrow a key! Lucky me that Mama insisted that all her girls own their own car when they graduated from high school and set out in life as an adult! I’ve had my own car ever since that time, and I still enjoy driving, but I no longer race and have finally grown up enough to appreciate an automatic transmission!
 
For the 12x12 page, I created a pocket to hold memorabilia (my driving test, receipts for driver's ed, temporary permits, tickets). . . and discovered a few stories I had missed! So, I added a little additional journaling to this page, along with photos of me and my car.
Journaling reads: 
I was thrilled to find several pieces of my driving history memorabilia to go with these stories about my teenage driving. It appears I received a ticket about six months after I got my license for running a red light (on the drag) at 10:35 pm one Friday night. It also seems that I took a Defensive Driving course so the ticket would not go on my permanent driving record. I have to admit that I don’t recall getting the ticket, but it’s difficult to dispute hard evidence (like the actual ticket!).

I do, however, remember getting a warning for having a headlight out. I was on the way home from Beaumont late one night with some friends (probably Tracey, Liz & Carla). We had the windows down and were singing along with radio .  . . and I was exceeding the posted speed limit when I saw the sirens flashing in my rearview mirror. I pulled over, sure I was getting ticketed for speeding, but the officer simply asked if I knew that one of my headlights was out. I replied, “No, but I’ll tell Daddy as soon as I get home.” He gave me a warning and we continued on our way . . . only to be stopped about 10 minutes later by another policeman! As he walked up to my window, I simply held out the warning I’d just received and explained that I hadn’t had time to get Daddy to fix the headlight yet. The officer laughed and said, “Looks like you met one of my illustrious associates already,” and sent us on our way. I woke Daddy up from a sound sleep to let him know I had been pulled over TWICE for that headlight and could he please fix it the next day!

I know it's a lot of journaling, and I truly appreciate those of you who took time to read through it all. I hope these stories brought a smile to your face or made you laugh out loud today! Do you have any memorable teenage driving stories? I'd love for you to share them in the comments.

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Disney Play! Date

For my March Design Team assignment for Scrappin' Goodtime, I chose some fun Disney papers, trendy tape and buttons from Queen & Company to create a 12x12 layout with the group photo from Disneyland at the Play! in Anaheim event. I had so much FUN layering these papers and cutting out words for the banner elements along the right side.


There were several other group photos from that day that I wanted to include in my album, so I used a divided page protector to create a companion page for this layout.


These Disney papers included a sheet with cut-out tags that made it easy to complete these pages, and the cute red, black and white buttons made perfect accents.


I really like how these two pages look together and how they reflect the FUN we had that day! (You can click on the photo to enlarge it.)


Do you have any Disney photos to scrap? Maybe it's time to scrap them and relive the magic!

Friday, March 14, 2014

Scrapbook Outside The Pocket - Grid Design

Week two of the Scrapbook Outside the Pocket workshop at BPC is all about using 3x4 and 4x6 cards as the major design elements of a layout. I chose to start with the grid design and pulled several cards and photos to created this simple layout.


I like the way this turned out and will definitely be using more of the cards I have in a grid design. Have you created a layout with a grid design lately?

Monday, March 10, 2014

Blog Cos You Want To - My Life In A List

In this Blog Cos You Want To post, Sian encouraged us to "leave a list lying in limbo" for when we needed a quick and simple blog post. She even provided a list for us to start with! Here's that list with a few modifications tailored to my life - things that I have or haven't yet done! (I've highlighted the ones I've already done.)

49 Things: My Life in a List
  1. Kept a friend for more than twenty years
  2. Made my own jam (lots of it, in a Little House kind of way)
  3. Sewn a quilt
  4. Learned how to clog
  5. Ridden on a sociable (bicycle built for two with seats side by side)
  6. Walked up the outside of a volcano
  7. Found or sent a message in a bottle
  8. Crossed the equator
  9. Slept in the open air
  10. Appeared on Live TV
  11. Been locked in overnight - or long enough at least for it to start getting scary
  12. Seen the Terracotta Army in China
  13. Watched the Changing of the Guard in London
  14. Looked at Paris from the heights of the Eiffel Tower
  15. Looked out at Manhattan from the crown of the Statue of Liberty
  16. Met a blog friend in person
  17. Found the love of my life on the Internet
  18. Set my heart on something and worked tirelessly to achieve it
  19. Driven from the Gulf Coast to the Canadian Rockies
  20. Flown in a hot air balloon
  21. Built my own house
  22. Found a beautiful fossil to take home and keep
  23. Gone to a school reunion and enjoyed it
  24. Met a scrapbooking icon
  25. Been photographed with someone famous
  26. Held a stranger's hand just because they needed me
  27. Had a handsome man buy me champagne
  28. Partied through til breakfast
  29. Learned to ride a horse
  30. Found something valuable and make sure it is returned to its rightful owner
  31. Sold something I made myself
  32. Been the first person in my family to graduate from college
  33. Dyed my hair a crazy colour
  34. Gone out on the town in an outfit I've made entirely myself
  35. Spent far too much money on something I've never worn
  36. Spotted a ghost
  37. Discovered a peacock feather lying on the grass and take it home
  38. Been recognized for some kind of community service
  39. Judged a competition
  40. Won a competition
  41. Started a Mexican Wave
  42. Taken part in some kind of endurance event
  43. Visited the oldest grocery store in Moscow
  44. Discovered disappointment, but found a way out of it
  45. Got something published
  46. Seen my name in lights
  47. Taken up something new and discovered that I'm good at it
  48. Asked for my money back
  49. Got married on a frozen river
Which of these items have you done?

Saturday, March 8, 2014

Christmas Cards

Yes, I know it's still over nine months until Christmas, but while I had all my Christmas papers and embellishments out finishing up my 2010 layouts, I figured I might as well create a few cards too. Before I knew it, I had 16 cards completed!





I chose a stamp from my collection (that I've never used!) for the inside of the cards, so these will be all ready to go when December arrives!


I must admit this is the earliest I've ever started making Christmas cards! How about you - when's the earliest you've ever started preparing for Christmas?

Friday, March 7, 2014

Scrapbook Outside the Pocket - Interactive Layout

This week the Scrapbook Outside the Pocket workshop began at BPC. I often use divided page protectors in my albums, but I don't do Project Life or Albums Made Easy projects. However, I have about 600 cards (3x4 & 4x6) in my collection - some of these my cropping friends gave me at last year's crop in Corsicana, but the majority of them I brought home with me from the Play! in Anaheim event.
Monica Bradford shared three ideas for using journal cards on layouts in this first week's lesson, and I knew right away that I wanted to try the interactive layout first! Here's a look at the page, already in the page protector.


I cut slits in my page protector so the interactive elements can be opened out. Here's how it looks with all four flaps open.


I really like how this layout turned out & the fact that I used 16 3x4 cards in its creation.

Anyone else taking the Scrapbook Outside The Pocket workshop? I think you can still sign up until next Wednesday.

Thursday, March 6, 2014

2010 Christmas Season Layouts

I'm down to the final layouts for my 2010 albums with photos and stories from the Christmas season. I enjoy the holidays and so have a tendency to scrap a lot of photos and stories from December every year. Here's a look at the batch I finished up recently.

 
As you can see, I used a variety of products - some old, some new - along with pieces of memorabilia I'd saved (the place cards from Christmas dinner and pieces of wrapping & tissue paper). I had FUN working with all these photos and remembering that holiday season. I just have a few finishing touches to put on my albums and they'll be moved from my craft studio to the front room display shelves.

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Organizing FUNdamentals - class review

I have to admit that I initially signed up for the Organizing FUNdamentals workshop at BPC because it had my 2014 word in it! I also happen to enjoy organizing, so even though I wasn't looking to re-organizing my craft room I was hoping that being involved in the class would help spur me in my goal to deep clean/declutter/organize and redecorate the entire house this year.

The class was divided into three 2-week segments with information and assignments for each week.
1. Dump & Purge - the idea here was to remove everything from your craft space, purging along the way.
2. Sort & Organize - for these two weeks, we were encouraged to sort all our stash and organize it in a way that works with our scrapbooking style.
3. Contain & Place - and finally it came time to put everything in containers and return it to the craft space.

Here's a review of what I accomplished during this class:
*I read and watched all the materials provided in the workshop.
*I participated in chats and and on the message board. I really enjoyed the Super Saturday and guest chats!
*I worked on organizing other areas of the house and finished the laundry room and front hall closet.
*I did actually do a few things in my craft room: I cleaned/re-organized two desk carousels, checked all the pens & markers and threw out those no longer working, and sorted & purged my Christmas papers & embellishments.
*I shared photos of some of my favorite organization methods in the classroom gallery.

*I also shared one of my favorite decor pieces - this was the sign my Grandma had in her window for several years. I added a photo of her in the top left corner - she's standing in front of her trailer with the sign in the window behind her. This hangs over my sewing table . . . actually it's her old sewing table!



I enjoyed all the workshop materials, however I had pretty much went through this process when I set up my new craft room a year and a half ago. I didn't really do much compared to those students who actually went through their entire stash during the six-week class, however I'm so glad I took this class and will be sharing more of my decluttering/organizing projects throughout the year.

Did any of you take this workshop - either this time around or when it was offered before? Did you empty out your entire space and follow along with the process?

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

One Little Word - March

To begin the month of March in Ali Edward's One Little Word class, we were encouraged to review our intentions and action items as well as fill out the reflection card for February.
The main prompt for this month was to create a Vision Board. How FUN! Ali used a 16x20 canvas for her board, however I knew I wanted to create something that would go in my One Little Word binder. I really liked Ali's background of all text, so I started with two sheets of 8 1/2x11 white cardstock and adhered pages from an old magazine as my background.

I have a shelf that holds old magazines and books and miscellaneous items that could be used for this type of project, so I thumbed through those things looking for items to reflect my word FUN. I found this great envelope that opened to reveal a photo with an old car, suitcases, and a lady reading a map. This was actually the envelope for an invitation/advertisement for a ladies' retreat that I received in the mail several weeks ago. I knew it would be perfect for a project someday!

In an old Wizard of Oz book that I had as a child and is now falling apart, I found this photo of Dorothy and the Scarecrow - looks like they are skipping to me!
In another old children's book, I found this FUN image of Mickey and Minnie setting off for an adventure somewhere.
And this graphic came from an old comic book that Robbie gave me.
I started laying these items out on my background and realized that I really wanted the word FUN to be in the center of the board, so at this point I taped the two pieces of white cardstock together.

I also cut some word from a variety of magazines to fill in the bottom center of the board.
I am thrilled with the way the final piece turned out.

I knew I had a special 8 1/2x11 page protector in my stash that would work to keep the center of my piece together. It has two flaps that open in the center and looks like this in the binder. (I slipped in a piece of patterned paper for now, but may end up doing something different with these flaps as the year goes on.)

Open the flaps to reveal the entire vision board.

I had a ton of FUN creating this collage and sifting through my stash of FUN items to find the perfect ones to represent my word. Have you created a vision board or collage lately?

Miscellaneous Crafting

In the midst of all the layouts I've been creating this year, I have also completed a few other miscellaneous crafting projects. First, I created a set of four Artist Trading Cards for the Scrappin' Goodtime ATC Club February swap.
I had FUN putting these cards together - a few paper layers, a strip of washi tape, a foam circle, a heart brad, and some stamping and inking!
I created two 4"x5" mini-journals with paper scraps and a few embellishments and stamps. These were gifts for the twins' birthday.

After I completed three layouts with the Kaisercraft Garage Days Collection, I put together six masculine cards with a variety of themes - birthday, Father's Day, thanks, hello, and Dad.


I also completed the card that came in the kit from the Clear Scraps class I took at the Scrapbook Expo.
I really like how some of the stickers are on the outside of the acrylic sheet and others are inside the card itself.

I haven't yet found time to format and print my 2013 Blog Book, however I did format and print a book for my sister with posts from the blog she published back in 2011 & 2012. With her busy schedule as a homeschooling mom, she stopped blogging and deleted her blog a while back, but I realized that I had the posts in my Reader and was able to copy those into a Word document and surprise her with a book.
I have to admit that I'm having lots of FUN crafting this year! What have you created in your crafty time so far this year?