Lecture coming....

OK, this is not going to be one of my nicer posts & I do this from time to time, because it's MY blog & I can.

Here's my gripe today....when are people going to learn? Do they turn the page & just forget the last chapter they read? What am I talking about? I'm talking about people who have returned to their high speed driving habits now that the price of gas has dropped to a more reasonable rate. Did you all forget how we got (partly) where we were just 5 short months ago? I ain't saying that the price of gas went up because everyone was driving like their house was on fire & they had to get there to put it out. Oh no, that's NOT what I'm saying! I believe that the sky rocket price of gas was just plain & simple GREED BY THE GAS COMPANIES - in my opinion it was government allowed TERRORISM (that's a whole other chapter). What I am saying is that I have continued to drive the speed limit & sometimes even a little slower to do my part. It still saves ME gas in the long run anyway, but I am usually getting left in everyone's dust on the highway. Obviously all of these people still have a job to go to, right? Why else would they be in such a freakin' hurry? Now, don't get me wrong, I was a lead footer up until about a year ago, so I have been guilty of the same crime. The difference is that I have not already forgotten what our gas expense was back in Aug. - almost $500 in one month & I don't go to a job & my husband has a company vehicle & gas card, so we don't really have to pay to drive to a job everyday. I rarely wandered more than 15 miles from home. This was $500 for going to Walmart people! This month our gasoline bill was $145, the first time in, well, ever. The flip side to this story is now my DH has had his hours cut & I pray they don't go any less than that. I am now trying to look for work, just in case he does get his hours cut more, but I'm not counting on finding one with the the job hunters flooding the market desperately looking for work. I'm not asking you to cry me a river, because I have been very blessed this year. My husband still has a job, but his employer is struggling, like so many others. But, I digress...

So, if you are one of these guilty speed people, then shame on you! If you are one of the guilty ones & you're reading this & getting mad at me, then I say Good - we're even, because I'm just as f**ing p!ssed at you as I am the gas companies, for wasting everyone's gas unnecessarily & possibly causing the price to go back up, because it just did here yesterday!

I believe the price gouging we've experienced in the past 4 years was a truly needed wake up call for all the driver's of the world, although it was much too excessive, but once we got the price back down, some of you fell asleep at the wheel again.

WAKE UP!!!

Quit sniffing the gas fumes from constantly filling up your tank & do YOUR part! I'm not doing my part just so you can have more!

I wish I could say that speaking my mind here has made me feel better, but it doesn't. I know I'm gonna get p!ssed off again the next time I get passed on the highway by a dozen people hurrying to get to the gas station to fill up - for the 3rd time this week.

I don't normally get a big following on my blog, so I doubt that I will spark much rage among those few that do visit. BTW-thank you. But perhaps, someone different will see this & if I make a better difference with just one person, then I can say I'm doing my part even better. Knowing my luck though, I'll probably have the Feds beating down my door for using the word Terrorism.

God Bless & have a cheaper fuel day while it lasts!
Beth M

Ice Storm Cometh!

Well, just as it had been predicted, but I was hoping they'd be wrong. The ice storm hit early this morning & now there's no preschool, which means there's no preschool Christmas party, which means I have plates & baggies of cookies that won't be going anywhere & Brooke was disappointed, at least at first. I will still have her give her teacher's the gifts we made, but I won't be trying to hold on to cookies for two weeks, nor do I plan on making anymore after Christmas, just for this. It might sound harsh, but I have been on a baking & candy making frenzy for over a week now & once Christmas is done, I'm done! It's not like they're getting nothing, they're just not getting cookies.

Below are pictures of the icy scene this morning. I wouldn't say we got the kind of ice that they got last week out East-whew!, but it only takes a little ice to create havoc for people. There are several places that are without power right now & DH seen a spot on his way in to work (yes, he still drives in this stuff!) that had a tree down mostly across the road & the power lines were broken & down, creating a fire in the tree. The road was closed, but my DH just HAD to see why the road was closed. You KNOW he did! Even though the temperature hasn't gotten above freezing yet, I heard a few rumbles of thunder & seen some lightening this morning. I also witnessed a branch falling off one of the trees under the weight of the ice in our woods. Pretty interesting to see ice shattering in what looks like mid-air!

This is my rooster windvane that got refurbished as a garden ornament. He's a bit icy this morning, but doesn't it look kinda cool with the little icicles dripping off it's tail & the arrow? Even the dead Hibiscus stalk looks a little more interesting with some icicles dripping from it's tip too!

This is one of the redbud trees in our front yard. Notice how the seed pods are all slanted sideways with ice hanging off them? Yes, I was holding the camera level.

This branch is only a couple of feet from touching the ground. It isn't normally! I typically have a clear view of that stunning satellite dish in the middle of the front yard & that big orange wire running up it is just an added bonus feature. *snort!*

My grandma & her husband were supposed to be coming up to celebrate Christmas with us this weekend, but I'm pretty sure they won't be making the hazardous trip now.

Good day to stay in bundled up by the fire drinking hot cocoa, don'tcha think? I do! ;)

God Bless & take care!

Beth M.

Da-dum, da-dum, da-dum...

are you getting that "Jaws is sneeking up behind me" feeling during this final week of Christmas preparations? Everyone's scrambling to get those last minute gifts (if your one of the lucky ones that can even buy any Christmas this year) or making those final touches on the homemade gifts that you've resorted to because of lesser income. Me? All of the above & throw in an impending ice storm to mess with all your hard work so that now there might not be a last day of preschool to give the teachers & students their little treasures that Brooke & I have labored over. At least we had some very good quality mommy/daughter time, so it was still all worth it. And, none of the treats will go to waste, but WILL go to our waist!

This is the front & back of a simple little tag I made that doubles as a photo ornament for Brooke's preschool teacher. I thought it turned out pretty cute. I hope she likes it, whenever she gets it.






















These are a couple of jars I made up for two of our neighbors. They both have a country/primitive decor, so I was trying to decorate the jars to fit their style. I made them alike because they're also sister-in-laws & live across the street from each other. I thought the jars might be cute to use later & filled with pinecones.

Other than that, most everyone is getting homemade candies & cookies. Brooke & I have been working on more sugar cookies tonight, since they can't seem to last long enough around here to give out as gifts. I made some Date Balls the other day, and I am addicted to them! They are not going to be good for my pending diet. *snicker!*

I'm keeping it bit short tonight, I'm wanting to keep an eye on the weather as the ice storm approaches.

God Bless & take care!

Beth M.

Is it really true??

If you're reading this post today, then maybe you've noticed my Countdown to Christmas ticker to the right of your screen. It says that there is only 14 more days until Christmas!! Are you ready? I'm not, that's for sure! I have a ton of friendship gifts to buy & put together & pray that I haven't forgotten anyone.

Our schedule is filling up rapidly. Alan, my husband, is trying to figure out when to finish up his shopping. He said he went to stop somewhere on Wed., but the store was closed by 6:00 p.m., he got there at 6:15. He thought that maybe they might have extended hours for the holidays, but that was not the case & was disappointed. He wants to go shopping on Sat., but we plan on taking Brooke to see Santa that day & who knows what kind of lines we'll run into there! Can't really go on Sunday because we are visiting one of the local nursing homes to take them treats & visit with them. Then, immediately after that, I have a design team meeting that I have to go to.

I really shouldn't be on here either. I need to be signing cards, baking cookies & getting presents wrapped. Getting presents wrapped wouldn't work though, since my daughter is here. I have to wait until she's at preschool to get that done. Good, I have an excuse as to why I'm not doing that right now. *snicker*

Here are a few things that I have made this season that I wanted to share. Hope that even if you don't like them, that they inspire you to create something that you DO like!

This is a candle jar that I decorated using the latest Making Memories Christmas line of papers, vellum & stickers. I tried to stamp on the sticker though & realized that it must have some sort of waxy coating that made my ink blur. It wasn't the look I was going for, but I almost like it anyway.

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This is another jar candle that I decorated using LAST year's Making Memories Christmas paper, but the white poinsettias are from this year, & a Melissa Frances vintage label. I was quite please with how this one turned out.

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Then there's this little cutie idea that I stole from someone. (sorry, I don't recall who...) I made it as part of my Reminisce Design Team contest submission (which I did NOT win-bummer, but we won't go there).

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These are a small stack of 8 Christmas cards that I finally made this year. First of all, it was amazing that I even made ANY, let alone 8 of them. 2nd of all, I've had that Angel paper from Daisy D's like forever! Had them cut out since I brought the paper home, didn't know what to do with them after that. I can't believe they're still in decent enough shape to even use now. LOL!! I guess I was supposed to wait until now to use them, because I love the Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folder that I used & the Cinnamon colored Stickles really set the whole thing off, even though they're vintage looking. I added some White Lace stickles to the wings of the Angels to add a little festive sparkle, as well without taking away from the look. The reason the one card has a darker brown ribbon is because I ran out of the lighter colored ribbon on that very last card. I don't know which one I like better, but it doesn't matter now. I did it & they're done! YAY!!!
Well, I guess I should get off here and start getting the meatloaf ready for dinner. I love meatloaf with brown gravy. Mmmmm....mmmm!

God Bless & have a great day!
Beth M.

More cool news!

I learned last week that I was the WINNER of the Bloomin' Scrapbook's Flower Challenge! How cool is that?! The challenge was to submit a unique idea of how to use flowers in a project or page, so I probably overloaded them with my ideas. I sent them 3 ~ LOL! I will have to wait for my prize package to arrive in the mail, but I can hardly wait for it. I love their store, even though I only get to it once a year when we go camping in Brown County. The store is located in Bloomington, Indiana, not far from Indiana University.

Here is the article on their blog:
Bloomin Scrapbook's Flower Challenge

Now on to other news that's probably more exciting to me than to you guys, but bear with me if you will. I don't think I mentioned that I am going to soon be a proud new owner to the Cricut Expression! I can hardly stand the wait for it to be shipped to my local scrapbook store!! I currently have what is affectionately called the baby bug, otherwise known as the original smaller version of the Cricut. I do love the little guy, but quickly understood the want & desire for the larger, more expanded version. The bad thing about getting a Cricut (in any size) is that you will constantly want the extras that make it even more exciting. I guess that's why these companies make these things, right??? I'm really glad to see the price of the Expression coming down quite a bit from even a year ago. We got a great deal from my local scrapbook store, The Memory Zone, even though it was slightly more than the Walmart's Black Friday sale, I'll stick with trying to keep my LSS in business! Their deal also included a free class on how to use your new addition, so I felt that was worth the extra & they offer the best customer service around, even a year after the sale!!! I just wish I knew how much longer I'm going to have to wait.....

Scrapper's High!!

OK, get this! This might not be big news to some of you who have been published all over the place & in paper magazines, but to little ol' me ~ it's a HUGE deal!

I have been published in the December issue of Scrapbooking.com magazine - and, that's not all. My page was selected to be their cover artwork, as well!! I am totally ecstatic about this!! You have no idea.

The page was an original design I did as part of my assignment for the design team that I'm part of at my local scrapbook store here in Plymouth, Indiana called The Memory Zone. I seen the awesome Best Creations paper in the store earlier this year & knew right away that the picture I had of an old windmill was perfect for it. Silver snowflake & swirl stickers by Best Creations worked so beautifully with the paper, as well as the Creative Imaginations chipboard glittery snowflakes. The tag that pulls out from below the photo has the journaling of why I took the picture of the windmill. You can see the article in it's entirety by clicking on the image above.

Sorry about going on so much, but it is a big deal to me & I just had to share!

God Bless & have a great day!

Beth M.