Creative Corner...Limelight Sketch Challenge

This weeks Limelight challenge was to use this sketch and some patterned paper. I needed to create a baby card so I thought...I'M IN!...perfect opportunity to get my card done and enter to win a prize!!! Here is what I came up with...
Recipe:
Paper ~ white, dude designs dp
Accessories ~ metal rim tag, circle punch, letter stickers, cm baby sticker, photo corner punch, brown pen

Meijer at a glance... 5/31 - 6/06

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Meijer Gallon Milk... $1.98

Strawberries 1 lb containers... $1.50

Kraft Chunk Cheese... $2.00
$1/2 printable

Bisquick Baking Mix 40 oz.... $1.99
.60/1 from 5/31 SS or Betty Crocker printable

Mrs. Dash Seasoning Blends... $1.99
$1/2 from 5/17 SS
$1/2 Meijer Mealbox Printable

Betty Crocker Suddendly Salad Mixes... $1.33
.50/2 from 5/17 SS
$1/4 Meijer Mealbox Printable

Nabisco 100 Calorie Packs... $2.50
{I have seen peelies on boxes of these at my local Meijer}
$1/1 Meijer Mealbox Printable

DiGiorno Crispy Flatbread Pizza... $5.00
$1.50/1 from 5-17 SS or $1/1 printable
$1/1 Meijer Mealbox Printable

Crystal Light On the Go mix... $2.99
(Buy any 2 Crystal Light on the Go mixes and get a 24 pack of Meijer Spring or Purified Water FREE!)
$1/1 or $2/2 printable
$1/1 Meijer Mealbox Printable

Chai Tea Cupcakes...

I saw this recipe and immediately thought of my friend Jackie...she loves chai! Maybe she will try this out and let me know how it is.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup liquid chai concentrate
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup applesauce
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup uncooked quick oatmeal (not instant)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup flaked coconut
3/4 cup light brown sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 inch square baking pan.

Combine the dry ingredients (oatmeal through sugar) in a medium sized mixing bowl, then add wet ingredients (chai through extract). Mix well and pour into pan.

Bake for 25 minutes and let cool. Cut your cake into rounds, top with your favorite frosting and serve.

My Favorite Things...embellishments

Well, National Scrapbooking Month is almost over but I still have time to share one more of my favorite things with you...EMBELLISHMENTS!!! You can never have enough of those, can you?! The list could go on and on but I will just share with you my top 3...

RIBBON!...Really I don't think I have met a ribbon I didn't like! Well, probably but there are so many yummo ones out there. Plus you can find ribbon everywhere! Stampin' Up ribbon is really great {you get a lot for your money}, also for $1 or $1.99 {less if you use a coupon!} you can snag some great little spools at JoAnns, Michaels or Hobby Lobby.

BUTTONS!...I especially like buttons that come in shapes, like the great flower ones from Stampin' Up. I also really like SEI and Basic Grey...come in colors that match their paper lines.

RHINESTONES/PEARLS!...Extra wonderful if they are self adhesive, like the ones from Kaisercraft! These are something simple to add to a card or scrap page that can make it really pop!

Yeah! Hope you had a great month scrapbooking....keep it up!

...peonies

I just love peonies! They are so fragrant and come in such beautiful colors. We have a large bush in our yard and each year I look forward to the time when they will bloom. Here is a bouquet I put together to enjoy in the house.

Limelight Anniversary!

Limelight Papercrafts is preparing for its 1st anniversary! They are planning to celebrate with BIG store-wide sales, sketches, games, and GIVEAWAYS! Check out the Limelight blog to see what fun prizes you could win!

Creative Corner...Scrap Club

Guess what?! May isn't over yet and I have my layouts done for this month!!! Our focus this month was "mother". I don't usually just do one photo on a page but this month I thought it was appropriate...plus I only had 4 pictures!

To check out Jamie's samples or for more info on scrap club stop by Jamie's blog.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ cookout

Tuesday ~ take out

Wednesday ~ tacos, rice, beans, strawberries...from our garden!

Thursday ~ dinner on the go... sis graduation

Friday ~ chicken patties, ramen noodles, green beans, strawberries


Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Meijer at a glance... 5/24 - 5/30

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Hidden Valley Ranch 16oz Dressing... 3/$7
$1/2 Meijer Mealbox
$1.50/2 printable

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter... 3/$4
.75 on sticks from the 3/29/09 V
$1/2 for spread or spray from 3/29/09 V

Eggo Waffles, Special K Waffles, Nutri-Grain Waffles or Eggo BakeShop or Kashi Waffles... $2.29
Buy 4 - Get $1 off INSTANTLY @ the Register
.75 on Kelloggs Eggo product from the 4/5/09 V
$1.50 off Kashi GoLean from VocalPoint or from Kashi
$1.50 printable

Orville Redenbacher's Microwave Popcorn....B1G1
.40 on 3 pack+ from the 4/19/09 SS
.40 on 30 oz+ from the 4/19/09 SS
$1 from All You

California Pizza Kitchen or Digiorno Ultimate Pizza @ 2 for $10
$1 off DiGiorno Pizza Meijer Mealbox
$1.50 on Digiorno from the 5/17/09 SS
$1 off California Pizza Kitchen from the 5/17/09 SS

Peaches or Nectarines... $0.99/lb

Meijer gallon milk... $1.98

Deals of the Day...CVS

I went to CVS today because I had a $5 ECB expiring. I didn't really have a plan for anything, besides I was going to pick up some deodorant. So I decided to browse the aisles and see what I could find. A 75% off tag in the baby section caught my eye. I got the Huggies Clean Team wipes for .75 cents...these will come in handy as potty training is on the horizon at our house! I also snagged a double refill pack of Pampers wipes for $1...a great addition to a baby gift I am putting together!!! I ended up spending $4 oop and getting a $2 ECB for the Aveeno shampoo.

Old Navy $1 flip-flop sale...

Old Navy is having their annual $1 Flip-Flop sale tomorrow....Saturday, May 23, 2009! All of their solid color flip-flops will be on sale for only $1 each. There is a limit of five pairs per customer.

My Favorite Things...paper

Can you ever have too much patterned paper?! I sure don't think so! I use all kinds but below I have listed a couple of my current favorites...

Basic Grey...The papers I used on the card to the right are by Basic Grey. This particular line is called Offbeat. I love the 6x6 paper pads...they are perfect for card making and scrapbooking.

SEI...My most recent SEI purchase was a Dill Blossom assortment pack. I just love the muted color scheme and floral pattern. It is fun and whimsical!

Stampin' Up...In February I participated in a designer paper share. By joining in you got a 6x6 sample of all the new designer papers from the spring-summer 09 catalog. What a fun assortment of papers they were!

What are your favorite papers to use in your craft projects?

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ grilled burgers, mac n cheese, broccoli

Tuesday ~ pork chops, stuffing, green beans

Wednesday ~ crock pot chicken & dumplings, mashed potatoes, corn

Thursday ~ leftovers

Friday ~ tacos, rice, beans, grapes


Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Meijer at a glance... 5/17 - 5/23

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Sweet Corn... 8/$2

Kraft Cheese Slices 50% off
$1/2 printable

Kraft Shredded Cheese, Cubes, or Sticks... $2
$1/2 printable

Philadelphia Cream Cheese... $1.25
$1/2 printable

Jell-o Gelatin or Pudding... 50¢
$1/3 printable

Country Crock... $1.50
.50/1 from 5/17 RP

Sweet Baby Rays 18 oz....99¢
$1/2 from 5/10 SS

Aunt Millies... $1.19
.35/1 from 5/10 RP

Healthy Choice Steamers, Frozen, or Complete Meals... $2
$1/2 from 5/17 SS

Buy Two 24 Pack Cans Any Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Mountain Dew, Coca-Cola, Diet Coke or Sprite 12 oz. cans @ 2/$11, Get One 12 Pack Cans 12 oz. cans Same Varieties Listed Above FREE!

Buy Any Five Kellogg’s Cereals or Nutri-Grain Bars or Plus Bars Get $3 off instantly at register

Creative Corner...Caardvarks Challenge

This challenge was to create a card incorporating a verse or quote. I don't really own any verse or quote stamps but did find this one in my stash of stamped images. Then my friend Jennifer suggested that I could use rub-ons or something printed out...great ideas I will have to remember for next time!

Recipe:
Paper ~ white, kiwi kiss, pretty in pink, basic grey sultry dp
Stamps ~ snag'em stamps - fairest of them all tree, quote sentiment?
Ink ~ black ink, copics
Accessories ~ circle cutter, scallop punch, rhinestones, flower brad

My Favorite Things...albums

I have tried all different styles and sizes of albums....6x6 post-bound, 8.5x11 strap-hinge, spiral bound, black chipboard, and the list goes on and on... I enjoy changing sizes every now and then, because I like trying new products and techniques.

My most recent favorite is American Crafts 12x12 d-ring. These albums allow so many more pages than traditional post-bound and I just love the simplicity of the albums. They come in a variety of styles, colors and sizes....including corduroy...which is on my list to try! I have used the modern and cloth style. They carry a small selection of these albums at Hobby Lobby. I try to get them when they run a 50% off albums and refills sale...costs about $10 for the 12x12 cloth album!

Do you have a favorite album style and/or size that you like to use? I would love to hear about it!

Creative Corner...Scrap Club

Here are my scrap club pages for April. This month we used the title "spring". I chose to go with Easter pictures for this layout.

To check out Jamie's samples or for more info on scrap club stop by Jamie's blog.

Freebies...

Go here to get your free sample of Bodycology lotion, hand soap, and body mist in either Coconut Lime or Brown Sugar Vanilla. If you are interested in these products the manufacturer’s website is also offering a coupon for $1 off one hand soap.

Get a free sample of Sun Crystals All Natural Sweetener here and here.

My Favorite Things...adhesive

In honor of scrapbooking month I thought I would share some of my favorite products. First up is adhesive. This is something that I have played with alot over the many years I have been scrapbooking. Believe it or not, I first started with a glue stick! Definitely not one of my favs...lol!

I have picked my 3 favorites that I couldn't scrapbook without...

Xyron Create a Sticker...I love this for letters that I cut out using my Cricut....works great for ribbon too!

Permanent Dot 'n' Roller Adhesive by Kokuyo...This is my new favorite rolling adhesive for photos, paper and the like.

Mini Dot n Go Glue Dots...I love not having to dig these out of a box and unroll paper every time I need them. They are on a handy little roller. I love these for adhering embellishments.

These are a few of my favorite things...now tell me what your favorite adhesives are!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday ~ chicken caesar burgers, tater tots, corn, salad

Tuesday ~ pita pizzas, salad, fruit

Wednesday ~ honey coconut salmon, corn, ramen noodles, bread

Thursday ~ pasta, shirmp, salad, bread

Friday ~ taquitos, salad, apple slices


Visit Org Junkie for more recipes!

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope all you mom's out there had a wonderful mother's day. I had a great day! My hubby and daughter made me feel very special!

Look at this great bag they got me! Since this month is all about scrapbooking, I thought it appropriate to show it off. It is an Amy Butler Creativity Bag by K&Company. I just think Amy Butler's designs are just fabulous!!! Check out her website for products, inspiration, and even some free patterns!

I can't wait to fill up my bag and tote it with me to the next crop!

Meijer at a glance...5/10 - 5/16

Here are just a few of the deals at Meijer this week. Be sure to check out the Meijer Mealbox for extra savings on various items. Also, for more deals check out your local ad here!

Aunt Millie’s Bread... $1.19
$.35/1 in the 4/26 RP

General Mills Cereals: Buy 4 Get $5 Off Instantly
.75/1 or .55/1 printable from coupons.com

Motts apple Juice or Hawaiian Punch... $2.19
$1/2 via Meijer Mealbox

Nabisco Snack Crackers... $2.50
Buy 2, pay $1 for a Package of Kraft Cheese (buy 3 packs for this price)
$1/2 (one cracker and one cheese) Printable here
$1/2 Triscuits in the 3/15 SS

Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies... $1.50
$1/2 in the 4/19 SS
$1/2 via Meijer Mealbox
$1/2 Printable here

Electrasol Dishwasher Detergent... $3.00
$2.50/1 in the 4/19 SS

Pampers points...

If you are a member of the Pampers Gifts to Grow program, then check this out....a free point! Just enter the code HAPPYMOTHERSDAY to have the point added to your account.

I know it's not much but they do add up fairly quickly. The points I have collected were used to get Little Bit 5 new books!

Creative Corner...Mother's Day

Don't forget that Mother's Day is coming up on the 10th. Break out your supplies and create a fun card for your mom. Our mother's and grandmother's will be getting a similar version of this card. I just love the saying..."Mother's are the stitches that hold a family together". It and the quilt blocks are from Papertrey.

Creative Corner...National Scrapbooking Month!!!

May is National Scrapbooking Month so get out those pictures and get to scrappin'! I am sure you will find a number of crops and other events going on this month...especially tomorrow, as it is National Scrapbook Day. I am going to try and be extra crafty this month. To start us off, here is a layout I created using the supplies in the 2nd bag from March scrap club. Stay tuned for more projects!