It's Been A Long Time.......

since I have done a post on my blog. It is not that I haven't had things to post, it has just been very busy around our house. With 4 teenagers, things are never dull. I used to post on my blog first thing in the morning or late in the evening. There are too many things to be done in the morning before I head to work, and I escape to my room with a good book instead of my computer these days. It is a good thing for me, but bad for my blog readers.

Just before Christmas we added another 'little one' to our family. She is the perfect addition to our family of adults, kids and cats. Everyone just loves her to bits.

On Tuesday I was supposed to have what I would consider the perfect day! A full day of scrapbooking with friends and 2 hockey games. It did not go as planned.

I arrive at the store and got myself organized. I wasn't there long and I had to slip out for the first hockey game. I had my hot chocolate in hand and was really enjoying the game when I received the phone call from Shannon and Amanda about our little kitty. Somehow she found a bungee cord in our basement and thought it would make a good toy. She ended up getting the hook stuck in her mouth and did a lot of damage while trying to get it out.

I left the game and raced home to find her covered in blood and almost passing out. We made an emergency call to our vet and raced her there. She had to be sedated so they could assess the damage. The vet was concerned that she may have a tear in her esophagus (that would be very bad news). After further investigation we were given the news that she had a lot of cuts and tears in her mouth (that explains all the blood) and that there was a lot of swelling in the upper part of her gums and jaw area. This would get worse before it would get better, but she would be okay.

She was given a shot of antibiotics that would be good for 2 weeks, a shot for pain and swelling, and I was given a bill for $180. When we brought her home she was very sleepy and didn't even want to be held. Later in the day she started moving around and eating soft cat food (her favourite). Her eye was quite swollen and when she turned certain ways you could see blood too.

Needless to say, I didn't make it back to scrapbooking. The next hockey game wasn't until 9:30pm, so I did manage to make it to that one. I also watched the World Junior's game on TV with my hubby and Jay. The day ended up okay in the end, just not exactly what I had planned.

Sketch Support is going to be launching their new site on January 1st. I have been busy with my design team sketches and will be posting them through the upcoming month. I also completed my calendars and will share the finished pages as soon as I take the photos. I was sort of hoping for a nice sunny day.

Enjoy that last few days of the year.....I am off to the semi-final game in Jay's hockey tournament. Wish us luck!

Christmas Cookies

Last night I spent the evening baking with Amanda. She is always so busy with school, work, friends and Jake that I hardly see her. It was wonderful to spend some quality time with her.

On Tuesday evening she took a course on working with royal icing and fondant and decorating cookies. We couldn't wait to try out all the techniques she learned. After gathering all her supplies we got to work and this is what we created.

Christmas Trees

Snowflakes

Snowmen

Here they are all together. They are as delicious as they look. Her brothers were stopping by often to see the progress and couldn't wait to taste test!

She will be taking orders for these delicious treats, starting today. You can check out her blog here. I am so proud of her. She works so hard and really enjoys baking.

A Visit To Supperworks!

I was lucky enough this week to get an extra day off and my mom and I had the opportunity to try out SupperWorks. I had heard great things about it and I really wanted to give it a try.

My mom belongs to some special group and she can get free tickets and other goodies, so when SupperWorks came up, she jumped at the chance to go. After she committed to the date, she realized that it was in Toronto.......oops! I didn't see the problem. It was located very close to Sherway Gardens, so we made a day of it. A BIG thank you to Shelby for covering the store for me. It was in great hands and I really appreciated the time with my mom!

Here is a photo of one of the stations where you put together the different recipes.


My mom went first. They served us a glass of wine (I was the designated driver, so I passed).

There was a bunch of items to add to our chicken......but the cool thing was we didn't have to chop any of it, or shop for any of it.

Then it was my turn......don't I look good in my apron?

I am adding some cranberry sauce.

Everything was added to this zip-lock bag and sealed up tight.

Then we put a label on the front with cooking instructions. This dish could be cooked in the crockpot or the oven.

Here is a photo of the recipe that we followed.

When we were done (took a total of about 10 minutes) we drank our wine, sampled some soup and chatted with the other 'chefs'.

I made the chicken for dinner tonight and it was delicious. Even Jason ate it, which is really amazing. It was great to spend some time with my mom, outside the store. I helped her out with some Christmas shopping and got a jump start on mine too. I hope we get another opportunity to do it again soon.

More Great News!

Oh my gosh, it has been a very exciting week! Last night I posted my first publication (well, I can't actually post the layout) and now I am going to tell you some more great news!

Earlier this week I received an email from Allison Davis.......requesting my acceptance to her new SG Publishing Creative Team!!!!!! Yesterday it was officially announced (check it out here). I am super excited to be a part of this and I know that you are going to love it too! I have created a category along the sidebar of my blog with links to all the team members blogs.

We have received our first assignments and all the fun starts on January 1st! Check back here often to see what we have been up to!

My First Publication :)

A few months ago I was asked if I would create a layout based on a sketch by Allison Davis (I am her #1 fan) to be published in an online magazine. I was asked by Allison herself, which was such a huge honor.

She sent me this sketch:

This is what I created:

Supplies: Paper, Alphabet, Stickers, Brads: Karen Foster Design, Cardstock: Bazzill Basics Paper, Ink: Tim Holtz (Ranger Industries), Markers: American Crafts, Font: Bradley Hand ITC, Other: die cuts. Tools: Stamp: Close To My Heart, Other: sewing machine.

I completely enjoyed working with this sketch. Allison's sketches really inspire me and bring out the best in my scrapbooking.

You can check out the article, my layout and the other layouts that were submitted using the same sketch. Click here to visit ScrapStreet!