November - A Month of Gratitude

There is so much to be thankful for in my life.
I'm spending the month of November trying to reflect on all the good.
Eventually I will put this all in a gratitude journal. It will be a mix of photos, journaling and ephemera. 

Thursday, November 1: I am grateful for blue skies, pretty clouds and clear, crisp autumn weather. Especially after all the rain and wind of Hurricane Sandy earlier in the week. 

Hurricane Sandy.....and the Tiny Prints Winner!

Hoping that all the East Coasters are safe, dry and warm tonight. The rain and the winds have been pretty intense today. 

Here is a comparison of the big beautiful maple tree in our backyard. Two weeks ago it was full of beautiful leaves. Today, not so much. 

....and the winner of the $50 Tiny Prints gift certificate is....

Congratulations Michelle! You will get your promo code directly from Tiny Prints. 

Tiny Prints Review - and a $50 Giveaway!

I can't believe Christmas is only two months away. Have you started thinking about Christmas yet?

Last year, we sent out Christmas Cards from Tiny Prints. As a scrapbooker and card maker, I love the quality of the signature matte paper and the clean and elegant design templates. The banners and the stacked typography are so hot in paper crafting right now. The rounded corners are my favorite detail on this card. 

photo credit: Darlene Denommee

We also sent Tiny Prints cards for our first married Christmas. I saved one and display it in a pretty frame with all the holiday decorations.

photo credit: Lea Lawson of Elle Photography

For 2012, Tiny Prints created a wonderful collection of cards in a variety of styles from modern to vintage to traditional. You will find many great cards  for Hanukkah, Christmas, New Years and more. They even have cards that showcase your pets!

Check out the Special Offers at Tiny Prints for some discounts on Christmas and holiday cards, and photo gifts..

Now for the giveaway! 
How would you like $50 off your order at Tiny Prints? 
(shipping not included, cannot be used with other offers or promos)
Just leave me a comment and I'll draw a winner on Saturday, October 27, 2012.


This post is part of a sponsored Tiny Prints Holiday campaign. All opinions are my own.

Book Review: You Have No Idea

I've always liked Vanessa Williams so when I received a copy of this book for the BlogHer book review, I dove right in and started reading.

I was impressed that she started talking about the Miss America/nude photo scandal right at the beginning of the book and didn't really pull any punches. She admits what she did, why she was naive (and a little rebellious) and what she regrets. 


But let's face it, she probably wouldn't have had such an extensive career post-pageant without this notoriety. She has tons of talent and this scandal helped make her a household name. It was interesting how she very much emphasized that she wasn't a pageant princess. She was a drama student with lots of training who entered the pageants for scholarships.


Williams is very open and honest in her book perhaps to a fault. Really, I don't need to know where your children were conceived and how you rushed into two marriages because you were pregnant. 


I did love the counterpart of advice from her no-nonsense mother starting the chapters. I wish there was more of Helen's side of the story told throughout the book. It really seems to me if Vanessa listened to her mother a little more she might have had a happier personal life. 


I think it's great that Vanessa tries to keep her blended family happy from two coasts. It's gotta be awkward at times to have two ex-husbands at the dinner table for Christmas. But is the only thing she cooks lasagna? She mentions that lasagna a lot. 


I wish there was more insight about her music career, her work singing Disney themes, her time on Broadway. It felt like the book skimmed through those twenty years to make quick mention of her most recent projects: Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives. 


Join in on the discussion at BlogHer Book Club.


This is a paid review of You Have No Idea by  Vanessa Williams and Helen Williams for the Blog Her Book Club. All opinions expressed are mine.

Happy Birthday, Brother!

Masculine cards can be challenging. My baby brother had a birthday last week. My husband took charge of the shopping AND the wrapping of his gifts. I just had to make a card. 

The zipper envelope is a Kerri Bradford cutting file from the Signed. Sealed. Delivered. set. It is such a cool and versatile design. Love it! I added a little stamping to the zipper part to jazz it up.

The star icon on the front of the envelope is also part of the same cutting file set. There are an assortment of icons which makes it easy to customize the envelope. I cut a second star icon and layered it over the envelope for a little dimension.

I designed a folded card in Silhouette Studio to hold the gift card and fit inside the envelope.
The front was stamped with the A Muse Studio grunged sunrays and embossed in clear.
I stamped the Papertrey Ink sentiment in A Muse french roast ink on a scrap of (very, very) old My Mind's Eye patterned paper. 

This is what the inside of the gift card holder looked like. 

A rugged masculine card for a rugged masculine guy.

A Bold Thanks

I'm taking Kerri Bradford's Silhouette Getting to Know You class. It is a self-guided class full of great tips, easy to follow videos and a terrific message board. I'm enjoying it a lot. If you are Silhouette owner, check it out over at JessicaSprague.com. I'm looking forward to her more advanced class coming up later this month too.

One of the class projects was to make a circle card with one of Kerri's cutting files. I used this week's ColourQ Challenge for my color scheme. It's a bold color scheme that really makes an impact with a simple card structure. 

It's time to think about Valentines!

I can't believe that Valentine's Day is right around the corner. February is the shortest month but it's also the sweetest month. I love to send Valentine Cards to my family and friends. Tiny Prints has some fantastic Valentine's Day Greeting Cards from the funny and cute to the romantic and sentimental. And you can bet they have a lot of photo card options too. 


If you have school age kids, there are lots of Valentine Cards to share with classmates and party invites too. Here are a few that I thought were cute.

This one made me giggle.

Did you know that Tiny Prints can send cards directly to your recipients for you? I chose this Valentine card for my friend who is deployed to Afghanistan. Won't she be surprised to get mail from Tiny Prints!

I ordered a Valentine for my husband too. But I need to keep that one a surprise.

I am a big fan of the quality of the cards from Tiny Prints. You can follow Tiny Prints via Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. 

Review: Listerine Total Care Zero

I was given a sample of the new Listerine Total Care Zero through a sampling program at Crowdtap.

Listerine Total Care Zero is a less intense, alcohol-free mouthwash. It claims to 

• help prevent cavities
• restore enamel
• strengthen teeth
• kill bad breath germs
• clean the whole mouth
• freshen breath

I was looking forward to trying a new and improved Listerine with an alcohol free formula. This version still has that antiseptic, medicinal Listerine taste. My Grammie used the original Listerine so the smell made me think of her and smile. I prefer a minty mouthwash. Because the the Listerine Total Care Zero is alcohol free, there is much less burning and pain.  If the Listerine Total Care Zero had tartar control, I'd definitely be a bigger fan.


If you are interested in trying Listerine Total Care Zero, there is a $1 off coupon on Listerine's website.  With Valentine's Day coming up, it's always nice to have fresh kissable breath!


Disclaimer:
I was provided a product by Crowdtap in exchange for my review.
All opinions are my own. 

Honeymoon Album

I mentioned before that my One Little Word for 2012 is FINISH. 
One of the goals I have is to complete 12 (yes, TWELVE) unfinished projects in 2012. 
I am happy to say that I've completed three projects so far.
Last night I finally completed (and ordered!) our Honeymoon Album.

We went on a Norwegian Cruise to Bermuda. The cruise was really convenient since it left from Boston. No airport or rental cars or baggage fees to deal with. We saw people bringing on cases of soda, beach chairs and coolers full of snacks. We parked at the garage on the waterfront and walked the few blocks to the Black Falcon Cruise Terminal. It took about 45 minutes to check in, drop off our bags and board the ship. I highly recommend it for families or couples looking for a getaway.

Oh, Bermuda was just beautiful. I can't wait to go back again.

Did you know that because the pink sand beaches are made from coral, the sand never gets hot under your feet? Even when it is 90 degrees! 

I used the Blueprints No. 1 templates from Paislee Press to keep the whole album consistent. This is a super simple book. Just lots of photos + a few words.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Create your own custom photo books at Shutterfly.com.

It's Monday, Where are You Reading?

In 2012, I'm trying to read 52 books and blog my reviews. 

Today's post is for a meme hosted by Sheila at BookJourney.


Finished this past week:
Little Black Dress by Susan McBride
The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings
Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter by Lisa Patton

Ten on Tuesday

Ten on Tuesday

1.    I’m trying this Ten on Tuesday thing. My hope is that it gets me blogging more regularly. I have all these ideas but never get around to sharing them here.

2.    In related news, my One Little Word for 2012 is FINISH. I have too many unfinished projects and ideas. This is the year I complete them or clear them out. It’s also the year I finish a 5K and  Do you have a word for the year?

3.    While we’re on the topic of resolution-type things, I’m making an effort to make some new recipes for dinner. Last week it was turkey meatballs and spaghetti squash and spicy and hot chicken soup.  Both were easy to make after a long day at the office and used ingredients I already had on hand. Two thumbs up.

4.    We finally took Christmas down over the weekend. I miss the glow of the lights on the tree. But I’m happy to have more room to walk around in the living room too.

5.    Can I just share how much I love Lands’ End flannel sheets? They are so soft and warm.

6.    I’ll be really happy if we make it through a New England winter with average temperatures in the 40s and  snow fall accumulation under an inch. But somehow I know we’ll be buried under a foot or more of snow soon. Until then, I’m enjoying the mild weather.

7.    I’m also enjoying the fact that the days are getting longer. Yesterday, at 4:30 it was still (just barely) light. Yay!

8.    I’m excited to see my high school friends this weekend. We don’t all get together often but when we do, it’s full of laughter and joy. So excited.

9.    Do you have any favorite workout tunes? I need to update my iPod playlist with some upbeat music.

10.Last night my husband was finishing a job in the town next to where I work. When I left the office, I called him to see if he wanted to meet for dinner. It was fun having a spontaneous date night. We went to a cozy little place with great food that we haven’t been to a while. We sat at the bar, talked, hung out. It was awesome. The bartender gave us great recommendations and we enjoyed our meals almost as much as the company.