Binky Balls, Binky Balls, Binky all the way!

My nephew "M" sings binky balls instead of Jingle Bells ~ that's how he sings/says it. It is really cute and makes me laugh very time I hear it. Along with his "Ho Ho Ho, Merry Nismas". I spent Christmas Eve with "M" and his brother "A". It was fun hearing/seeing how excited they were that Santa was coming!! They even tracked him on the computer!~ I remember my dad and mom showing us "blinking" lights in the sky, on the way home from Church telling us it was Santa. We had to hurry in the house put our pj's on and get to bed! Now he is tracked on the computer.......jeez I am OLD!

I got to scrapbook with my 6 year old niece "A" and to tell you the truth, so does a better job of picking out colors and pictures than me! She saw so much more than I. It was a interesting/enlightening experience. I can't wait to scrapbook with her again! Time with my nieces and nephews are so special to me!

I had a HUGE revelation on Christmas Eve this year. I was stressing over what I bought whom, would I get it wrapped, etc. Plus, the thought of my Aunt still in the hospital, mentally a lot on my plate. As I was wrapping up the last couple gifts, I started to reflect on the past year. It was sort of a jolt....you know when you have a "brain fart" (as my friends call it). My husband has done so much for me and my family this year, visiting my dad everyday while he was in the hospital for his back surgery. He was there everyday for the 33 days, that my dad was in the hospital. He was "our" (my families) eyes and ears when we couldn't be there. He helped out at my parents when my dad couldn't get stuff done......was at the hospital with my mom, for my dad's last surgery (when us girls couldn't be there because of work and children) and has been my dad's "coach" taking him to rehab the last 3 weeks. Besides all the stuff he does for me here, helping get stuff together for my demo's to making my lunch everyday, to going here and there with me, when I know he would rather be at home watching whatever sports is on! Now I know that I have made he sound like a saint......which at time he is far from, but in retro spec the good out ways the bad.

I am truly grateful for him realize how lucky I am that he is in my life!

I guess it wasn't what was in the "wrapped box" so to speak, but the actions of the whole year. I felt so loved and so blessed that of course I had a crying meltdown!! When I tried to explain to him why I was crying, he told me that he was part of my family too, and that is what family does for family.

I have been slacking the last couple days, reading and lounging. I need to get back to stamping and getting my "stuff" ready. Before you know it, I will be back in school and back to work!! OH how I wish I would win the Mega Millions!!!

Thanks for all your prayers and good thoughts for my Aunt. She came home from the hospital the day after Christmas. We spent that evening at her house, celebrating Christmas part II with her.

OK enough rambling at this ungodly hour. I am off to do some more reading and drinking hot chocolate.

Have a great day and until next time...........

Merry Christmas From Our House......

..........................to Yours!

Love

Anne Marie, Larry, Tess, Humphrey, Tillie, Hillary, Tahiti and TaTianna

Santa Claus and Popcorn, Jingle Bells and Reindeer Songs, Christmas Trees and Mistletoe......

Handmade by S. G.

Copyright Stampin Up! 1990-2008

Hello!

Can you believe that it is almost Christmas? Holy Cow!
Where did the time go??? I have had an eventful two evenings,

with family stuff, that I am now behind in finishing up my Holiday Shopping and wrapping! UGH!!!

I will probably pull an all nighter tonight just to get it done!

I got this card today, from my friend "SG". She loves the Sock Monkey.....me not so much! It has been a on going "discussion" of the monkey since his appearance in the Fall/Winter SU catalog.

So, today when he arrived in my mail, I had a good chuckle!

Thanks "SG" for the cool card. I have received so many beautiful handmade cards, that at a later date I will post them all here!

Here in Michigan we had more snow today.......about 3 inches. Driving totally sucked! Now, we are having freezing rain and by tomorrow morning (just in time for me to start doing that last minute running) we are getting rain. Only in Michigan!

If you have a moment I would ask for prayers for my Aunt Margaret. She is currently in the hospital fighting pneumonia. We hope that she will feel well soon and be home for Christmas.

All righty then.....it's off to wrapping my gifts! Have a wonderful rest of the evening......stay warm and dry! Give your loved ones a hug and a kiss..........

Baby, It's cold OUTSIDE!

Good Morning, as my sister would say, Merry Christmas Eve Eve!!! My second youngest sister is a true Christmas Lover! She sends us(her family ~ my sisters, brother in laws and parents) countdowns during the year, letting us know how many days until......CHRISTMAS! Well, she loves all holidays, but I think Christmas and her Birthday are her favorite two!

It is a whooping 3 degrees this morning. I am off to do some last minute shopping for my husband (still need some stocking presents!) and then be home by 2p to wait (AGAIN) for the ATT repair truck. Hopefully I can get some wrapping done!

I started my Christmas Holiday a day sooner than planned. On Friday, we had a dumping of 12 inches of SNOW! Now, we have been tricked before in thinking a storm was coming, but didn't get it. When I left work on Thursday, we were told even if it snowed, school would be open. I came home, worked on finishing (yes, finishing) my co-workers presents and some last minute stuff for the Middle Schoolers. I went to bed, thinking oh how wonderful it would be to start our vacation early!

I woke up at 4am, looked outside, and saw NOTHING! I mean no snow, no NOTHING! UGH!!! I got up, and was a little disappointed that the snow hadn't started. I knew one of the c0-teachers in my room was going to raz me......I have the biggest crush on a local weatherman, and "J" keeps telling me he is always so wrong with the weather. Well, I knew since there was no snow, that it was going to a LOOOONGGGGG day!

I decided to iron my clothes, take a shower, read some blogs.....OK really just read some blogs! I got up to leave the computer room in my house, and looked outside. Now mind you an hour before there time, there was Nothing......and this is what I saw:

This is our backyard! The dogs of course needed to go out in the snow while I went and got my camera. Can you believe it?? HOLEY MOLEY! I sat glued to the television waiting for my school to close, and at 6:20a, the notice came over the TV! WHOOT WHOOT! No school, let the vacation begin! When all was said and done, we ended up with 12 inches of snow.

These pictures are from once it all said and one with. The front of our house and our dog Humphrey checking it all out!

But with the "good" also comes the bad.......our phone, television and Internet went out. It has been a quiet time here! It has been a long and frustrating story, for another day, but hopefully today (after 4 days of getting someone out from ATT for service) they will be out to repair our service.

I did get my holiday cards all done, all 143 of them! Here is a sample of one:

This card was CASE'd from Jean Harper at She designed a life she loved. I tweaked it, using up Stampin' Up! supplies:

Kiwi Kiss, Red Riding Hood (textured cardstock), Basic Black, Very Vanilla, and Whisper White cardstock. Black brads, Pretty in Pink, Close to Cocoa,and Going Gray ink. Stampin' Dimensionals, Square and Scallop punch, and the Coluzzle for the circle. I think he looks a lot like my dad!

OK, I am off to start my day, getting my husband up, so he can get to my parents, to take my Dad for rehab. My Dad had knee replacement surgery last week, and my husband is his "coach".

Have a wonderful day, and stay warm!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY................

VALERIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cookies!

OOPS! I forgot to post pictures of the cookies from our cookie exchange the other night!

We are Santa's Elves!

You can sure tell it is the season! Today, I stayed home from work because of a massive sinus headache. I knew, by the way I felt, that we were going to get the snow predicated! I am a weather vane too! Anyhow, I was also to have my Technique Tuesday class this evening, but the people who come, come from "far and near" and I was afraid that if I had the workshop they would have trouble getting home tonight! So I canceled.......glad that I did since we already have 3 inches of snow dropped on us! And a Winter Storm Advisory until 4a.

OK back to my story. One of my customer/friend wanted to come by today and show me what she made.........HA it was a present for me!! As you can see by the picture it was even wrapped in Stampin' Up Designer paper! And so was the gift bag made out of the paper! I was so pleasantly surprised that she and another friend thought of me!














It was such a nice gesture to think of me like that.....down to the Copic markers that I had mentioned in a conversation months ago! Thanks again you two stinkers!! I love you both!

So, how about them Christmas cards? I am holding at 37! Had I gotten rid of my headache today I would have worked on them. No such luck! I did, however this evening get 30 Santa's heads done for a Christmas Class party on Thursday. I will drop them off to my sisters tomorrow. I have to say they came out really cute! Tomorrow night I must finish my gifts for my BFF's at school, work on those cards, and finish up my husbands co-workers gifts for the holiday too. The library that he works for is open until Tuesday so I have this weekend to finish his up! I know, once again waiting for the last moment. I think that my New Years Resolution will try to be ahead of the game instead of running besides it! Yeah, who am I kidding!

I am off to bed, hopefully tonight I can sleep through the night instead of getting up 20 times...............thinking off all the cards I still need to make!

Have a great rest of the evening!

Run, Run, Run as fast as you can.......

....you can't catch ME I am the gingerbread man!!! Tonight was our Christmas card and Cookie swap. There were 6 of us who swapped cookies and cards. We had a great time and got some really yummy cookies! I was going to make Gingerbread Men but it didn't happen. Ran out of time!!!!

We also made 3 projects and I think they liked those too! I was a little pooped tonight from hiking today and from this yucky cold I am fighting. I am hoping they all had a good time.......My friend EM gave me this LOVELY SANTA. I have him displayed proudly on our entertainment center. THANKS EM for the BEAUTIFUL GIFT!

Here's my question for you....why is it that we always think that our "stuff" isn't good enough? These wonderful ladies made these beautiful cards. While they were handing them out they kept apologizing on them and that next year they will be better. I think they are all so very nice....and why they felt that they had to apologize for them is beyond me!

Popcorn Packs made by EM EM Christmas Card too! D's card

Darby's cards

K's card

S's card

Now tell me, why would they think that! I think they are all GORGEOUS!!!

I am going to tackle my stamping cove tomorrow, so I can finish (ahem start) my Christmas Cards. I have to figure out what the heck I am going to make. That's always the hardest for me, cause I play and play and play with the card, and when I finally get it just right I have to hurry up and mass produce! YUCK!!!

Alrighty I have rambled enough, off to bed I go.

Have a great rest of the evening........

Rockin Around the Christmas Tree.....

.....which we did tonight while we decorated. Seems the 4 cats wanted to play "tag" around the tree! YIKES! As promised, I took pictures during our set up and decorating.

The first is Hillary watching us....I think she was trying to figure out why we were bringing that huge tree into the house! As we brought the tree in, it was frozen in the bucket in the garage. Larry had to bang it to break up the ice and in the process broke the bucket. He was laughing as he was bringing the tree into the house.

As you can see the tree is wrapped up, and frozen! We thought HOLY MOLEY our tree is now this! It's not so roly poly anymore! The he was wondering if any "critters" got inside and are living in there......GREAT! Just what I need, the squirrel from "National Lapoons Christmas Vacation"

Here is Larry unwrapping the tree. I am thinking Man is it going to stay like this our is it going to over take our little house!

Here it is starting to un-thaw.........

And TA DA!!!! All unfrozen and decorated! Now if you look really closely in the entertainment center, you will see, that YES I still have Halloween Decorations out! I know I am a slacker!!!

Larry and I have tons and tons of ornaments that we have collected over the last 10 years of marriage. This year, we decided to use mostly our "speciality" ornaments and not too many bulbs.

So, as promised it is done, and ready for Santa to come and ho ho ho!!!! (Just in time for my Cookie and Holiday Card exchange for tomorrow night!)

Have a great rest of the evening............................

To Stamp or Not to Stamp.....

Tonight I had such a strong urge to stamp, but I had to study for my computer final. So, I studied a little and stamped a little......you know a little of this and a little of that......and this is what I got done!!! He was a "cased" from my friend Simmy Ogg ~ Come On Get Stampy !! and fellow demo Stampin Queen Dawn Griffith ~ Dawns Stamping Thoughts. I used a little of each, and this is what I came up with. One of my friends at school, was looking for place cards for her holiday dinner. Inside Santa is a Hershey bar.

All Stampin' Up! Products: Whisper White Card stock,
Very Vanilla, Real Red, Basic Black, and Basic Gray.
I used Pretty In Pink ink for sponging of his nose.

So did you check out the retirement list? I was very sad to see "Crab and Company" go. That was one of my very favorite sets. Oh well, I am sure Stampin' Up! will come out with something new and just as fun!



I am off to bed. My husband is getting up at 4:30a to cook for the homeless. Our church sponsors the homeless for a week, and my husband and brother in laws go and cook a breakfast for them. The alarm is going to go off mighty quick if I don't go to bed now.

Have a wonderful rest of the evening!