Thankful for you

Well, I am. I'm very thankful for all of you who read my blog. I really am. And I don't tell you enough. But THANK YOU for all your sweet comments you've left along the way. They really mean a lot.

And since it's finally Fall, my favorite time of year, I thought I'd share a Fall-themed Thankful card.



This one works for 2 different challenges that are going on right now. First I used this week's card recipe challenge from the Nook to make a card that also fit the current theme over on the Paper Issues blog. "Tree Hugger" week is finishing up over there, and the woodgrain embossing on this one fits the challenge perfectly. Be sure to link up any wood or upcycled green projects over there. You have until Sept. 30 to post something.

And for a quick update on the home front, I'm actually excited to say that volleyball season is coming to an end! I don't think I've ever said that before, but this year I am. It has Worn. Me. Out! And my family too. Yesterday I literally gave Josh a high-five as he walked in the door and I walked out. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy refereeing (though not as much as coaching) but I've worked my tail off lately. I'm glad that it's finally coming to an end. It'll be a big sigh of relief.

K, I need to hop off so I can go bake my first pumpkin something of the season. I LOVE pumpkin foods. :) Sarah Kate and I are going to bake a cake today. or muffins. I can't decide. :) Too many pumpkin related recipes in my Pinterest account. ;)

Happy Wednesday everyone! Halfway to the weekend!!!

Need some Pinspo?

What the heck is that you ask? PINSPO is inspiration gained from Pinterest , a new site that acts like a virtual bulletin board on which you can "pin" ideas for fashion, home, crafts, food and so much more. And of course it's turned in to this huge source of inspiration too, thus "pinspo".

Over at the Nook we've taken some Pinspo and turned it in to a card challenge. Here's this week's Pinspo and the challenge is to turn it in to a birthday card.

And here's my card I made based on it.

You can find more information and more cards based on this Pinspo on this thread at the Nook. AND Jessy's giving away a $10 GC to the Nook store as a RAK for this challenge! So go check it out!

Hope everyone has a great start to their week!

It's Game Day!

Do we have a cute little lucky charm? Who knows, but at this point we're willing to do just about anything. Our team's grasping at straws right now. SO, we're trying to cheer the Rebels on by dressing out our lil guy for the first time this year. Maybe that'll help?!


So here's the little guy wearing a Eli Manning jersey in hopes that it brings our team good luck. I guess he grew faster than I expected, because the whole thing's looking too small. OH well. He's still wearing it today.


I've also prepared our traditional game day food. It's a lot of dips and appetizers so that it can be snacked on throughout the whole game. Today we're having corn dip with Fritos chips, spinach artichoke dip and pita chips, and a little somethin' we borrowed from Taylor Grocery in Taylor, Mississippi. It's hands-down our favorite catfish place. (Taylor, MS is also the home of the actor Morgan Freeman. ;) ) Anyway, we are snacking on a barbeque sausage plate which consists of turkey sausage, cubes of Colby cheese, toothpicked together and dipped in barbeque sauce! A gameday staple we borrowed from Taylor Grocery. Delish!

And since I'm late in getting my post up, here's the fam gathered around the TV for kickoff. And for the record, Caroline is NOT, I repeat N.O.T., in a Tennessee orange outfit. That's her Upwards soccer jersey from last year that she dressed herself in at that crack of dawn this morning. But I LOVE that the girls are taking an interest. I remember doing that with MY dad too. Special times and good memories, I tell ya.

So here's to hoping that with a baby boy all decked out in his Ole Miss apparel and a coffeetable filled with the gameday spread, our team can pull out a big win against Georgia. Maybe. Possibly. Here's to hopin'.

Happy Game Day everyone! :D
Hotty Toddy!

ETA: Well, at least he looked cute and we ate good! Not a win in sight for this team I'm afraid. :(

The ABC's of me

I've seen this going around the blogosphere, so I thought why not share too. Here's a few things about me. Maybe some of it is stuff you didn't know. ;)


A. Age:32

B. Bed size: Queen

C. Chore that you hate: mopping

D. Dog: Bentley, a black lab/German shepherd mix

E. Essential start to your day: checking my Google Reader feed

F. Favorite color: Teal/Aqua

G. Gold or Silver: Silver

H. Height: 5'3"

I. Instruments you play: piano--but I only remember one song after 7 yrs. of lessons, and it's a Christmas song at that! lol! (I never liked taking piano, obviously. I always begged to have art lessons. huh. Imagine that.)

J. Job title: Mommy :D

K. Kids: 3 (ages 5, 4, and 1)

L. Live: in Tennessee

M. Mother’s name: Jenny

N. Nicknames: I'm Dee to most everyone who doesn't call me mommy, but I've also had these through the years: D squared, DeNana (by my BF's mom), Blurr (by my grandad, because when I was little I thought it was my middle name instead of Blair)

O. Overnight hospital stays: with all 3 kids, and with SK and Claire's inutero procedure

P. Pet peeves: people who drive slow in the fast lane, GET OUTTA MY WAY!! hee! :D

Q. Quote from a movie: too many to name, but almost all of Sweet Home Alabama, and there's a
lot of Christmas Vacation referrals and quotes around our house, year round

R. Right or left handed: Right

S. Siblings: One sister

T. Time you wake up: as late as possible

U. Underwear: um...yes?

V. Vegetable you hate: it's not that I "hate" them, I just prefer not to eat them. ;)

W. What makes you run late: me, myself, and I (and the kids)

X. X-Rays you’ve had: only dental ones--the rest have been CT scans

Y. Yummy food that you make: I get asked to make squash casserole, gooey pumpkin bars, and broccoli cheese casserole for most family holidays. I'm also a Crock Pot frequent flyer.

Z. Zoo animal:the monkeys

Happy Friday everyone! :D

A sweet simple moment

It's just the run-of-the-mill kind of day around here today. Nothing in particular that stands out, just same ol' same ol' goings on. That was also the case the other day when I just happened to have my camera out (and ready) when I went to play with the kids in the front yard.

And something fun happened. Somehow the otherwise un-notable day became full of life. Our life. It was fun to watch it unfold through my lens. ;)







First it was running, then twirling, and then she decided to dance with her little brother. So sweet, so special. To see these two playing, dancing together with everyone smiling and laughing. Just a sweet simple moment that brought life and love and a warm fuzzy to an otherwise ho-hum kind of day. Love when that happens! Love it even more that I caught it all with my camera.

Thanks for letting me share!

GREAT news! Again!

I'm beyond thrilled to announce that I've been asked to be a part of the 2011-2012 Bella Blvd. Design Team!



Would woulda thought it? ME, a card maker! Hee! Don't get me wrong, I'm SUPER excited about this. And I'm still very humbled that I'm in such amazing company with that list of all-stars. I just still getting a kick out of it, that's all.

If truth be told, I still feel like I'm a beginner card maker. If you kept up with me for long, then you KNOW that. Cards used to be my nemesis. But then something clicked. I found a rhythm and style that works for me and now I like making cards. They're fun. It's always been a "side" job, kind of a way to use up my scraps that are leftover from layouts. But now, I guess it's for real. And it's still going to be fun!

I love that cards don't take me as long as a layout. I love that they're fun and whimsical and give me a chance to "play". I don't stress over cards the way that I do over layouts. They just kind of come together. And I'm not exaggerating when I say that my cards for my Bella submission literally just came together, as if on their own. It was refreshing and nice change of pace. So with this in mind, I'm really looking forward to what the next year has in store for me as a card designer. It's a whole new adventure for me.

For now, I'll leave you with one of my card submissions.

"You did it!" card featuring the "Tail Waggers and Cat Naps" collection

And lastly, I want thank you Stephanie and Laura for giving me this incredible opportunity! I can't WAIT to get to work! :D

Just a quick peek

at what will be arriving shortly at my front door step. I can't wait! And for the record, I ordered it before I'd made the team. I couldn't resist.

It features Crate Paper's "Random" collection as well as some Websters goodies. I can't wait to play! Be sure to grab yours here before it sells out. (And it will.)

Great news!!

New DT Members:

Deanna Misner- USA <-----THAT's ME!!!

Gina Rodgers-Australia

Jaz Lee- Singapore

Kim Moreno

Lilith Eeckles- Belgium

Lisa Kisch- Canada
Marinette LEFEVRE- France
Nicole Nowosad- Canada
Pamella Brown-USA
Shelleye McDaniel-USA

Returning DT members:

Anna Sigga- Iceland
Carol Monson- USA
Danni Reid-USA

Hilde L Aaslund- Norway

Jessy Christopher-Malaysia
Katarina Damm-Blomberg- Finland

Leah Killian-USA
LG Belamarino-Phillipines
Stacey Michaud- USA

I'm SO stinkin' excited! This is a team that I've wanted to be on for quite some time. The Nook is my "home" on the web, and I can't believe that I get to design for them now! Eeeek! And talk about worldwide! How exciting to work with such talent!