Hello New Friends

We are hoping that some of our new friends will stop by and say hello!  We had fun writing cards this weekend to service members in Iraq and new penpal friends around the world.  This is a busy week for us.  Of course we have school work to do and our chores, but so much more.  This afternoon friends are coming over to play for a while, then we are going tonight to be evaluated for a basketball program at our church.  Tomorrow and Thursday nights we have church stuff, Wednesday we are going to try to get over to the local 4H meeting.  We have never been, but we love animals and think this might be a fun thing to try.  On Friday, we get a daddy/daughter night while Mom goes to a ladies thing and Saturday is a big Christmas dinner with our extended family.  Whew!  I'm tired just thinking about it.  Hopefully we will be able to put up our Christmas decorations sometime in there too!  Oh, and send Christmas cards.

Scrap Friday

My husband and I got up at 3 am yesterday and hit Wal*Mart and Target for their great Black Friday deals.  By 8:30 am, I was back home and ready to start my day again, this time with my girls.  We spent the morning making lots of cards.  We mailed nine Christmas cards to other homeschooled children around the world.  We subscribe to a penpal list of homeschool kids and the moderator of this group randomly selected groups to mail cards to each other.  One of the families lives with an hour of our old home!  What a small world!

Later in the afternoon, we recieved a letter from my daughter's Sunday School teacher reminding her that they were collecting items for a soldier in Iraq whose family attends our church.  On the list of items to send was stationary and blank cards.  We made some more cards to send to him also. 

After eating leftovers for dinner, we went to a nearby town for their Christmas lights parade.  What a wonderful Black Friday we had!

Scrap Friday or Black Friday?

What are your plans this Friday?  My family has never been big into the whole Black Friday thing.  In the past, we would go to a cabin in the mountains Thanksgiving weekend.  On Black Friday we would eat a leisurely breakfast and then head to the local KMart for whatever sales they offered.    This year, I will be at home and my husband will have to work.  Since Wal*Mart, Target, and Kohl's are on his way to work, we have a crazy plan.  We will both drive to Wal*Mart (they have the most on sale that we want) and shop there when they open.  Then he will go to work and I will head to Kohl's and possibly Target to finish my shopping.  Then I will head home to spend the rest of the day scrapbooking with my girls.  They always want to scrapbook with my but I am usually prepping something for a Close to my Heart party and either can't pay attention to helping them or don't want them in the middle of my project.  I will also make all of my Christmas cards so I can get them in the mail early.  I think this is a perfect compromise for my budget and my family.

Cookie Exchange Invites

Last week the girls and I had fun making invitations for a cookie exchange.  The invitations are created to look like a recipe card, complete with ingredients and preparation instructions.  They are adorned with Gingerbread men stickers and candy cane brads.  I will have to replicate it because I mailed them before taking pictures.  If you got one, would you mind emailing me a pic?

Custom made invitations and cards are available.  Just let me know what you'd like to order!

My Favorite Day

This is one of my favorite days!  I LOVE it when the UPS truck pulls into my driveway, especially when I know that the delivery is coming from Close to my Heart!  The excitement and anticipation are sometimes overwhelming when I see that big white box on my steps.  The girls and I gather aroud the box as I cut the tape holding all of the wonderful surprises inside.  Even though much of the contents are not for me, I get a rush just by pulling each item out of the box and looking it over.  I am caught up in the ideas that flow through my mind as I handle each paper pack and stamp set.  We all rush downstairs to our craft table to begin experimenting with my new goodies.  Rest assured, I do not practice with your new goodies!  Before we begin, we sort the order and set everyone elses items aside.  Then we let the creative juices flow!  Oh, I just can't wait!

Stampaganza

I wanted to let you know that this month is Stampaganza at Close to my Heart.  All stamp sets are buy 2 get the 3rd FREE!  This sale is good through November 30th, but supplies are limited on some stamp sets so shop early.  I'd love to see your cards and pages using your new stamps.  I'm using this opportunity to stock up on my stamps and also buy some early Christmas gifts.  Happy shopping, stamping and scrapping!