Cool as a...Popsicle

I was in love with the Summer Sweetness stamp set by Papertrey Ink before it ever arrived at my door. I love the cool popsicle designs. They are very summertime indeed. 

Not only was I inspired by Cas(e) This Sketch Challenge #82, but also by the fast approach of one of my favorite holidays, Fourth of July. 

I used both the Circle Scribbles and Summer Sweetness by Papertrey Ink to create this sweet card. 

I used a little Crystal Effects by Stampin' Up to make the popsicle look wet and juicy. 

Overall, I love the layout and think this could be a go-to design for me from now on. Happy weekend and stay "cool."

Go Bold...Go Gold

So I was wandering around Hobby Lobby with my little man Owen the other day and I became instantly in love with these cute phrases and sayings that were in gold. Typically decorating with gold wouldn't be my thing, but these totally caught my attention. 

I went back to the scrapbooking department and bought myself some gold embossing powder. I just bought the Splat stamp set from Papertrey Ink and I thought it would make for a really great bold image. 

I was also inspired by Cas-ology's Wood challenge 

and this was the result. 

I used the Woodgrain embossing folder to make one of the banner flags. I love this embossing folder. I also embossed some paint splatter from the Gorgeous Grunge set on the background. I love the look of the gold embossing on the Espresso cardstock. It looks rich and reminds me of the Rolos commercial. I think this card could/would work great for a masculine card. 

Owen's Birthday Quilt: Aqua, Green, and Gray

I have been busting it on this cute aqua, green, and gray quilt for Owen's birthday. I am not an excellent seamstress by any means, and there are a lot of mistakes on this quilt, A LOT, but I am so proud of the time and effort I put into making something special for my O's 2nd birthday. 

It was the first Twin sized quilt I've done, and man was it a beast to quilt. I just stitched in the ditch because it was super cumbersome to think of doing any more. I also made a real binding, for the first time. I was lazy before this and would roll the backing to the front to create a binding. I am proud I took time time and effort. 

I am looking forward to picnics and looking at stars on this blanket. I hope Owen loves it as much as I do. 

Happy Birthday Mom!

Owen was actually due on June 13th, which is also my mom's birthday. Usually people aren't that I excited to share a birthday, but my mom wanted nothing more than to share a birthday with Owen. He was born at 8:54 pm on June 12th. My mom was disappointed. She swears that her birthday is now June 12th so they can share. 

Although her and Owen don't share an actual birthday, she said that he was the best birthday gift that year. How can I ever top that?

I made her a card inspired by a sketch on Papertrey's June Inspiration Archive. 

A simple card for my mom's special day. 

A Busy Weekend

With the school year over, it is time to kick it into crafty high gear. Kidding, but I love that I have a bit of extra time during the day to craft while school is out, otherwise it usually has to take place between 9-10pm. I don't know about you, but this isn't really my best time to think. So...with it being my first official day off for the summer, I decided to whip up some cards. 

This upcoming weekend is going to be a busy one. My baby turns 2 on Thursday. I can hardly believe that time has gone by so quickly already. My mom's birthday is on Friday. We are having a birthday party for Owen on Saturday and Sunday is Father's Day. Way to pack it all in one weekend, eh?

Let's go backwards. Today, I decided to spend some time making Father's Day cards for the grandfathers/fathers in our lives. 

I used a couple challenges and a new Stampin' Up set: Work of Art to make a simple and clean Father's Day card. 

First, the inspiration: 

Pals Paper Arts Challenge #206 provided the colors

Fusion gave us the card layout

and Cas-ual Fridays Challenge #132 set the manly card parameters. 

Walla...a card fit for a father!

I used Papertrey's Signature Greetings by Dawn McVey for the sentiment, some thick twine, and a big shiny button. I'm glad to make a card for two great fathers. We are lucky to have them as grandfathers to Owen and fathers to us. 

Father's Day

Nick did not want kids. It wasn't really something we ever talked about. The closer we got to 30 though, I started to get the itch. Unfortunately, he didn't. I had thoughts in my head about growing old and having no one to take care of us, no wedding or graduations to attend. We got pregnant...not planned and honestly, I think it took Nick by surprise. He had no interest in kids and I was scared about what kind of parents we would be. 

With that said, you would never know that he didn't want kids. He is a great dad to Owen. I know that our work schedules are difficult and we are both essentially single parents during the week. He does the work on a mom and dad sometimes and I appreciate all the love and care he takes with our son. He loves him so much and it shows. I know that Owen wasn't really in our future, but once he got here, you could never tell that it wasn't planned that way. 

We both have our faults as parents, as everyone does, but I could ask for a better dad for my son. 

I put together a special Father's Day card for him to show my and Owen's appreciation. 

I took inspiration today from Colour Q's Challenge #244 and from Cas(e) This Sketch Challenge #79. 

I used Stampin' Up's Work of Art stamp set and Papertrey Ink's Signature Greetings for the sentiment. 

Happy Father's Day this weekend to all the dads out there!