Happy New Year!

Happy 2009 to everyone! I am totally looking forward to ending 2008 and moving on with a much happier and healthier 2009.

As the subtitle of this blog says, Stamping with a Slash of Chatting. Um yeah....neither have been going on in my life. Basically, I have not stamped or chatted since I quit JustRite back in October. Life happens and priorities are brought to the forefront and my eyes were opened that my life was totally out of balance. It was time for a much needed break and reality check.

So what have I been doing? Spending time with my neglected family and my best friends in the whole world. I did blog a bit in November that Amy came here from Guam for a two week visit. So I asked Jen, Beth and Mary to come over for a girls night "in" and we had a feast of Chicago foods. It was so awesome to see everyone together and just sit and chit chat about everything and of course lots of giggles and laughs.

Life wouldn't be complete with out some bumps in the road and I have had my fair share with my teenage son. Without getting into too many personal details I will just say therapy, therapy and more therapy. We have along road to go and after many tears and many more prayers I just hope that he will come around and get that we care about him and only want what is best for him. And no this is not drug or alcohol related.....teenage know-it-all-ism is a huge factor here.

Going to work each day is a sanity saver. I have unofficially started working full time. I just have a lot of marketing project on the horizon and don't mind putting in the extra time. It'a great feeling to know that I do the marketing for a community bank....of all places in this economy.....that has a billion dollars in assets and was recently ranked #1 by the FDIC. People ask me all the time if we are in trouble and we are definiately not part of any economic crisis. As a matter of fact, we are growing and hiring. Yes, when people are losing their jobs daily and banks are closing left and right my bank is hiring and secure. I've said a million times here and I'll say it again....I love my job.

So that is a briefing of what I have been doing up til now. And now......I have been addicted to the Wii game system. OMG....I have played so much that my body has been sore since Christmas eve. But it is a great kind of hurting. LOL Jen has come over and we now have her addicted to Rock Band and We Cheer. So much so that we gathered "the band" at her mom's house last night and jammed all night long. Sooooo much fun.

We also have the Wii fit and I have the high record on the Ski Long Jump and Super Hula. After the kids go to bed I play and bust into a sweat. It's great exercise and I am totally addicted. Hopefully it will help me lose some weight and win the Biggest Loser competition at work. We are doing it for 12 weeks and we pay each week if we lose, maintain or gain. Winner will get the pot of money at the end of the 12 weeks. I hope to lose 20-30 pounds and I'll be happy.

And finally, my New Years resolution is to get back to stamping and blogging. I have eliminated all the clutter from my life and now have time to get back to some fun things that I like to do which will also coincide with my other resolution.....acting upon my kind thoughts....performing Random Act of Kindness. What does that mean? Well I am always thinking about doing kind deeds and just never act upon them. Like my co-worker Mary is jumping into Lake Michigan today and I thought about giving her a beach towel and of course didn't do it. Just little gestures of kindness that run through my head and never happen because I am too busy and too forgetful.

Oh....one more resolution.... Bill and I are going on a debt diet. I have been reading all these blogs and newpaper articles about cutting back and living within your means. Needs over wants is the goal for us. Only spending money on needs which should be much easier now because I was able to pretty much fulfill all my wants for the house over the last few months...and paid cash for my kitchen remodeling and new living room furniture. I don't need any craft supplies and I am an avid collector of papers and all things stamping, scrapbooking and die cutting. I just want to use up what I have and scrapbook!!!

So you are all caught up on my oh so exciting life. Thanks to all of those that have been emailing me and checking in on me. I figured Beth was the only person that read this blog and cared about my personal life crap. Apparently, others like to read my soap opera too and don't just look for the cards and pics.

I have been on Facebook too if anyone is looking for me on the internet. Ah....Facebook....the place you can say what you want and not be under the microscope of certain eyes and easier to figure out who is not my "friend".

Happy New Year and see you on the blog!

Happy Anniversary to Me!

Today is my 19th wedding anniversary and I know and will never dispute that I have the most wonderful husband in the world that unbelievably spoils me rotten. Really.

So we went to the city this weekend with Amy and Darrell and in the parking garage the levels were named after the months. Bill noticed that on the wall it said floor eleven was named November....which is our anniversary.....November 11th. So of course we had Amy take this picture of us.So today Amy came over with this picture in an awesome red glass frame as an anniversary gift. I love it and love that thoughtful girl that I am soooooo going to miss.

My wonderful husband gave me a Coach purse, a beautiful bouquet of flowers and the new G1 phone which is the T-Mobile version of the iPhone which is AWESOME! I am such a techno-geek and now I am totally hooked up 24/7.

Ok so I have mentioned Amy on my blog a million times. Who is the infamous Amy? For those of you that have been reading my blog since my Yahoo 360 days know that she is my Navy friend that I met in Florida. She and I had an instant bond from the day we met (we were neighbors in housing). She is Bailey's God Mother and on paper the God Mother of all four of my children (long story).

Anyway, I have not seen Amy in 6 years because when we left for Chicago she went to Cuba and now she is in Guam.....can she get any farther away?!!? OMG. But she will be back in the states permanently in about a year. I wonder if I can convince this island girl to move to the Windy City? Wishful thinking.

So here is a picture of Amy all bundled up and ready for a trip to the city.

Oh and I forgot the most important thing....Amy was here for her son's graduation from Navy bootcamp. It was my first graduation ceremony and it was awesome! But I'll upload those pics later.

We are off for our anniversary dinner and final dinner with Amy and Darrell (ok...I forgot to mention Darrell is her husband and I am excited to see Darrell too....love ya D). We are off to Ron of Japan for dinner....YUM!

See ya on the blog!

Life is good...really.

I am currently rearranging my life, my blog and my stamp room! Lots of trash being taken out of all areas. Life is good and it feels wonderful to be back here on my own blog.

Physically I have lost weight due to stress. Had a migraine head ache for two days this last week. Suddenly it all went away and I feel sooooo great!

Mentally I was completely burned out and so frustrated trying to understand the actions of certain people in my life. But suddenly when other people within the circle started talking and opening up it all made sense.

Spiritually I momentarily lost sight of me and felt like I lost myself. "People treat you the way you allow them to treat you" is a quote that gave me the courage to draw the line and not allow myself to be used as a stepping stone for someone else's ego.

I closed the door to walk away and surprisingly three other opportunities are already knocking on my door.....life is good...really. I should have followed my gut instincts months ago when the red flags were waving right in front of my face. Lesson learned.

I know most of you have no clue what I am babbling about but for those of you that do....thanks for the support. It just feels so good to be back here on my own blog and getting back to my own life without all the drama.

See ya on the blog....THIS blog!

Craft Fancy and a Rockstar!

As you know, I spent the day going a JustRite demo at the new store Craft Fancy in Arlington Heights. Soooooo much fun...thank you Simone(left in the pic). Let's just say SOLD OUT.

Even more exciting is that I spent the afternoon with Michele Kovack (right in the pic) from the blog Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker AND today's Featured Stamper on SCS. Talk about a Rockstar...wow! Michele is so sweet in person and it was wonderful to spend the day with her. Although, she is probably tired of hearing my speech over and over in her head. LOL Maybe Michele should be a JustRite Guest Blogger.....what do you think?

Speaking of JustRite...as if I have stopped talking about it yet.....there is a blog candy contest right now for all three Accessory Kits. All you have to do is subscribe to the daily feed that will email blog updated right to your email box. Head on over to the JustRite Stampers blog for more details. Tell everyone!!!

Ok...tomorrow I will show you some of the scrapbook pages that I made yesterday. I made 15 pages in one night! My inspiration....Simple Scrapbooks. Ahhhhhh....simple is good.

See ya on the blog!

Hola Amigas

Happy Cinco De Mayo! Sorry for my absence the last few day....YIKES....my life is in super duper overload at the moment.

Sarah made her confirmation last weekend, Maddie made her First Communion this past weekend, Sarah's birthday party is this coming weekend, Graduation is in a few weeks and of course we can't leave out the emotional mental breakdown I am having due to my know it all 16 year old son and his girlfriend.....did I mention I can't stand 16 year old girls?!? UGH!!!! I just feel so drained and tired.

Posts without pics are so boring so I am including this pic of a weeping Angel. It's the angel that sits atop of our family plot at the cemetery. Don't be creeped out....it's actually quite beautiful and peaceful there....and one of my favorite places to visit when I need to meditate and get a grip. Unfortunately, I don't have time in my life to make a cemetery run this week so I am going to just close my eyes tonight, plug in the iPod and pray the Rosary. God give me strength, patience and guidance is all I ask.

Thanks for letting me dump here....just need to vent and take a deep breath. {Ahhhhhh}. Sorry for this downer of a post. I'll be back later with something creative.

See ya on the blog!

Prayers Needed

Sorry for my absence. Please take a moment to say a prayer for Jen's mom. She is really sick and has been in ICU since Friday. I don't want to go into all the details but she thought she had the flu and it was determined to be much worse than the flu.

I have a ton of cards but none photographed. I'll try to get something up here tomorrow. In the mean time, say a prayer and visit some of my blogger friends listed to the left in my blogroll.

See you on the blog!

Good Morning Jesus

Just wanted to drop in and say Happy Easter to my cyber friends. This is a partial pic of my cross collection that is at the landing of my stairway. I have crosses from around the world including Bethlehem. I also have rosaries from around the world too which include one that I made in 7th grade and one that was made out of the roses from my dad's funeral. The kids each have their favorite rosaries as well.

Anyway, this is what I see each day as I come down to start my day and it is a daily reminder to be thankful for the blessings in my life.

Yesterday, Bailey walked to the landing and said, "Nobody say anything while I stand here and pray for Grandpa". I thought that was so sweet of her.

My kids have dubbed it "The Holy Wall" and it makes me happy that they see it as part of their day too. I heard Maddie walking down the stairs one day and said "Good Morning Jesus".

Today is supposed to be my Sunday PMS check but I will just say that life is good and I am thankful for everything in my life.

Life Interrupted

Hi there....I am still around but I has been sick at the beginning of the week and then yesterday ended the week with a trip to see Romeo and Juliet at Navy Pier in the morning and then I went to Jen's for a stamping party. Yeah....I didn't do any stamping, talked all night, paid for a Quickutz order, and paid for a SU order. Wow...I spent over $200 and did nothing but talk. Great night.

Anyway, today is Spring Cleaning day and then I can stamp! Yeah.....my office will be cleaned and ready for some serious creativity. So I will return later...much later....with something.

See ya on the blog!

Not This Stamp Again?

Yes, it is this sentiment stamp again. I basically bought that whole word set for this one stamp! Geesh....I am going to start making mhy own stamps and make my own sentiments.

I have been giving away cards at work a lot this month because we have 10 February birthdays and Valentine's Day in the mix too. So my little stampin secret is getting out. Almost every day someone approaches me and asks if I really made the cards. Today I gave a co-worker a birthday card and she didn't say thank you....her response was.....you have this much talent and you are working in a bank,,,why? Talk about boosting up my stampin ego....now I love my job even more!!! LOL

Tomorrow night I am going to hang out with Jen at Ivy's house. I am going to be in a room full of super crafty people.....ohhhhh I am so excited.

**Random Blogging** Here is some randomness about me.....three things about me for you. I got this email from Amy so I thought I would share it with all of you because you know...my life is just so darn exciting.

• Three places I have lived: California, Texas, Florida
• Three shows that I watch: Oprah, The View, American Idol
• Three places I have been: Disney World, Oprah, The Alamo
• Three people who e-mail me regularly: Jen, Amy, Beth
• Three of my favorite foods: Pizza, Enchiladas, Pasta
• Three places I'd rather be right now: Florida, Hawaii, Guam (I have a need for warmth)
• Three friends I think will respond: all my blogville friends of course....three of them
• Three things I am looking forward to this year. new kitchen, losing 30 pounds, stampin job
• Three favorite flowers: Lilacs, Roses, Geraniums
• Three kitchen tips: cooking maple sausage will make your house smell like pancakes for a week, cheap tater tots taste like crap, never burn microwave popcorn
• Three hobbies: stamping, scrapbooking, shopping

**American Idol** Shwoooo.....Garrett just got voted off. I thought for sure he was going to be the Sanjya of this season. I love David, Jason and John....so awesome.

Happy Birthday To Me

Yes, today is my birthday.....the pics are of me in the snow.....posts without pics are so boring.

The day started early with Beth calling me and singing me a lovely rendition of They Say It's Your Birthday...LOL....it was so funny. Then Mary met me in the parkingl lot with a gigantic bag filled with cupcake towels and a cool dip bowl.

Then I was surprised at work with a cake and singing by my co-workers. Two of the banker's are taking me to lunch next week. The President sent me a card with a Target gift card. Have I told you how much I LOVE my job?!

Thanks to Jen and Amy for my e-Cards. Of course, they remember my birthday and I am infamous for forgetting their birthdays. (Yes, Beth you aren't the only one I forgot.)

It was so cool to come home and find some Birthday RAK's in my mailbox. Thank you Krista H, Mary Anne W, and Jen J. I will have to post pics later because I don't have time to do it right now.

I am still getting ready for my 9:30 flight tomorrow morning. I have not packed yet!!! I am so excited that tomorrow I will be landing in sunny CA and away from the snow. After 13.5 inches on Wed we are due for 4 more this weekend. Hopefully, I will be able to get out of town before it happens and able to get back in after it happens.

I promise to take lots of pics and all the juicy details next week...probably late Tuesday night. Wish me luck and pray that my feet will carry me booth to booth and let me get to as many of my favorite vendors as possible.

See ya on the blog!

Snow Day....again!

Oh my goodness....I just had a snow day last Friday and this is by far worse that last week. It has been snowing all day. Every hour the trees get a little droopier, the deck gets deeper and the end of my driveway get plowed in more and more.

I thought I would be able to go into work late today but that wasn't the case. It just keeps getting worse with each hour. I am guessing that we have already received at least 8 inches if not more and we are under advisory for 4 more hours. Yikes!

Bill had to dig a path for the dogs to go potty because the snow was taller than the dogs. LOL

So I have spent the day getting caught up on laundry and chores since I will be gone at CHA this weekend {I am soooo stinkin excited!} Lots to do before I go and pray that there is no snow this weekend that will delay my flights.

Ahhhh...three more days I will be leaving all this wintery bliss for Annahiem, CA. Thank you for my blessing.

I'll be back later with some cards...I did get some stampin done today while locked in the house. See ya on the blog! Oh and sorry if my words and pics are all out of wack when you read this....I have no idea how to do the whole mulitple pic thing on my posts.

Thoughts, Favorites and Questions

This picture has nothing to do with stamping or my post. I just hate posts with nothing to look at. Here I am with my two youngest at a school party before Christmas.

**Thoughts** I haven't posted any cards on SCS in a long time. I got sick of the competitive atmposphere that was overwhelmingly obvious. BLAH!!! Everyone jockeying for a design team or to be the newest Rock Star Stamper. So many people kissing up to the Rock Stars and egos growing by the minute. BLAH!!! My least favorite stamper is still out there with her head as big as ever and her groupies growing just as fast as her big ego. BLAH!!!

While I took a little break from the stampin world something happened. A bunch of new stampin companies cropped up....along with a slew of new Bellas. So who the heck is Hannah....or Just Hannah as she is called by her friends. My Favorite Things is still putting out the headless girls. Verve Visual is new on the stampin scene and Paper Trey is amazing!!! Nicole Heady is a pure genius and makes me want to sell every stamp I own so I can purchase every single Paper Trey set....I could seriously convert to all clear stamp all the time.

**Favorites** So if you are reading me through Google Reader you will have to actually click on my blog to see my Google Reader Favorites that I mark daily. They are listed in the box to the left under my pic. Of course, you will see a little pattern because there are three bloggin girls that are so stinkin rockin that I mark almost everything to do. If you have a chance go visit these three blogs....I promise you won't be disappointed....these girls are 100% Rock Star Stampers without the Rock Star ego....love them!!!!

• Inkastamp by Ana Wohlfart
• Kwernerdesign blog by Kristina Werner
• Stamp A Little Love Baby by Cambria Turnbow

**Question** What the heck does PSF mean?

Ok...I am off to take my butt out into the sub-zero night to pick up Sarah at the movies. I had not intended on leaving my house for 72 hours but I gotta do it. Today was "cleaning day" so tomorrow can be "stampin day". YEAH!!!

See ya on the blog.