Happy Birthday & Mini Giveaway

** For There She Goes Stamp Pandamonium Blog Hop please scroll down. **

Today, I am  celebrating my 38th birthday! As always, I always have mixed feeling when it comes to my  birthday. No, it has nothing to do with aging. Because I am one of those girl that definitely not shy about my age. I wear my age with pride, because with each birthday I celebrate my life, celebrate the fact that I am still on this earth which is a blessing as there's still so many things I'd like to do and see. :)

Since I moved to the States, I have mixed feeling because I am happy that it's my birthday, but I can't help also feeling a bit homesick because I haven't been able to celebrate my birthday surrounded by my family. I think  the last birthday I celebrated with my family was my 16th birthday. It just that it would be nice to be with them on my birthday, even if it's only to have dinner together, you know.

Anyway, I was reminiscing a bit last night and thought I share one of my favorite pic from when I was 2 years old.  My mom always love having a garden, even if it's a small one and back then we have this hibiscus tree that often produce gorgeous flower. 

I have to say I love my childhood. We weren't rich, in fact my parents struggled to make ends meet when we were young, but we were rich in family love. My parents made sure of that. I grew up surrounded by cousins, neighborhood kids, etc. My brothers and I were pretty creative in entertaining ourselves. Empty box became a car, closet became a house, etc. We played on the field in front of our house with the neighbor's kids, just playing simple games. No barbie, no game boy, but pure kids fun. Running around, playing hide and seek, using our imagination to make things interesting, pretending to be a chef using whatever stuff my mom couldn't use for cooking, etc. And thanks to my brother, I found the love of reading which can take you to so many places in your mind.

I treasure my upbringing. I am thankful to my parents for the way they raised me. Thankful that I have siblings that I not only love but like and adore as well. Thankful that my mom taught me to be grateful for what  life gives me. Just plain thankful and grateful for everything. To be alive. To be healthy. And yes, thankful that I look younger than my age. LOL. Oh yes... can't forget the doggies. I am thankful for my doggies that bring me so  much love & joy.

Anyway, in the spirit of celebration, I am doing a mini giveaway. The pic below just a bit of what I am giving away. There's SRM sticker pack, Hero Arts stamp, fabric tape, etc. Things a bit hectic at the moment, so I didn't get a chance to really get everything prop up for good pic. So, just know that you'll get more than what's shown here. There'll be ribbon, more papers, etc.

Simply leave a comment by midnight CST Sunday, June 30th. I'll announce the winner on Monday. That's it from me today. :)

Pandamonium Blog Hop

Melyssa is back this month with another animal set, and it is PANDAmonium!! So. Many. Cute. Pandas. Full of sentiments, images, and FUN, you are SURE to love this set as much as WE do!!

PANDAmonium is a 6x8 set that includes a total of 23 stamps and will sell for $24.00.

Would you like to win the new PANDAmonium stamp set? Here is what you need to do- visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post.

You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday, June 29th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

You Make Me Happy

** For There She Goes Stamp Hadley Blog Hop please scroll down.**

 

2 post in a day! Yep, it's one of those rare day. :) This week, Some Odd Girl is releasing a couple new cut files and one of them is the Grass Fold Card Base. The great thing about this cut file is you can customize it to your need. You can use the whole card base or you can use just part of it.

 

I decided to play with the grass part only and on purpose I made the card base slightly smaller than the grass, so the grass would stick over the card base.

 

Pairing up the grass with my favorite SOG stamp of all time, the pug puppy from Preppy Pups set. Hm... you think I might be a bit obsessed with my pugs? ;)

Seriously though, this sentiment really reflect how I feel about my pugs. They make me happy. They are my kids. This card makes me happy, too. It just look so cheerful. I think you'll agree, right?

Every week there's something new at SOG store, so check it out and you might find something you like. Thank you for stopping by here and have a happy kind of day.

Hadley Blog Hop

We hope you are loving the new sock goblin line from Wendy Leach as much as we are…THEY ARE SO FUN!! This month’s set, Hadley has stolen our hearts, and we KNOW she/he will steal your’s as well!!

Hadley is a 3x4 set that includes a total of 5 stamps and will sell for $9.00.

Would you like to win the new Hadley stamp set? Here is what you need to do- visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post.

You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday, June 29th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

Amalia Daisy / Cinnamon Blog Hop

Artist Megan Suarez has two fabulous sets for us this month, both a continuation of her previous lines. Amalia’s Daisy, the second Amalia stamp for us, is SUPER adorable, and sure to make her way into your heart one flower at a time. Cinnamon is the newest addition to the Spice Girl line. I love how spicy but sweet these girls are!!! 

Amalia’s Daisy is a 3x4 set that includes a total of 4 stamps and will sell for $9.00

Cinnamon is a 3x4 set that includes a total of 6 stamps and will sell for $9.00

My first card up is showcasing sweet Amalia.

And, here's Cinnamon.
 

 
Would you like to win the new Amalia’s Daisy and Cinnamon sets? Here is what you need to do-visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post.

You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday, June 29th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

This Is My Life Blog Hop

Torico has designed a set that will be useful to card makers, scrapbookers, and multi-media artists alike. This is my life helps you tell your story, your way. Super cute images, fonts, and the number of sentiments and their possibilities are endless.

This is My Life is a 4x6 set that includes a total of 21 stamps and will sell for $15.00.

I keep my card simple and let the cheery yellow flower background to back up the main message of the card. :)

Would you like to win the new This Is My Life stamp set? Here is what you need to do-visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges below and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post.

You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday, June 29th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

Let's Go Wild

TGIF! Wow... this week really flew by for me and I didn't even get much things done creative wise. Work wise it's been crazy busy. Blogging get a bit behind. :)

Anyway, this week There She Goes Stamps is highlighting some previously released stamps. There are quite a few sets for me to choose from, but of course with my love for animals, I have to go with the set called "Jungle Out There" and I chose to play with the cute monkey.

Isn't this monkey so cute & fun? I love its naughty, happy expression. Sorry for the super short post, just have too much stuff going on, but nothing too interesting to share. Just work, work, work. You can find more inspirations from The Trendsetters at TSG blog. Thank you for taking the time to stop by here and wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

Ikat Print & Mister C

I was never really big into flower stamp. But, the moment I saw Wplus9 Fresh Cut Florals set, I know I want it right away. Normally, when it comes to flower stamp set, I'd wait and ask myself again in a couple days if I'd really use that flower set often because based on previous experience, the few flower stamps I have just sit there, collecting dust.

A good, fun flower set really makes all the difference. I love how I can create awesome layering with this set. Since, I am so in love with this set right now, I have to play along with Wplus9 Monday Mood Board.

                                              

It's really fun to see the ikat pattern become such a trend. Although growing up in Indonesia, and on occasion have to wear traditional costume, I used to think ugh... ugly pattern. LOL, like many people, you appreciate your country beauty and richness once you're no longer there. Many of Indonesia traditional dress has the ikat pattern on it. Did you know that the word "ikat" is Indonesian word?

Anyway, even though I have the ikat pattern stamp set, I decided to create the pattern on my card using my Silhouette. First, here's the card:

Second, not only that background was created using Silhouette, but I was using my spanking brand new, early birthday present from hubby Silhouette Cameo. Yes, I retired my old Silhouette SD, Mister Q and with a slight guilty feeling (because Mister Q been so loyal and actually still work like a champ) replaced it with Mister C.

Can you tell that I am geek out over this?

I've been wanting to upgrade since Cameo came out, but I am one of those people who doesn't like to throw out any tool if it's not broken. I just couldn't justified spending out that much money when the one I have still working. Anyway after a couple years of thinking, I finally broke down when hubby pointed out that I am always so good at saving and I need to pamper myself now & then.
 

Besides he argued that I work hard with my cards, I need good tool (although he's real reasoning is this way he doesn't have to stress out to find me a good birthday present... hah!). And of course, I did find a good deal on this. I ordered this from Dickblick.com. Normal Cameo price is $299.99 and dickblick normal price is $269.99 and we're lucky that they have 30% off promo going on when we checked the site, so mine only cost $189. I think that's the cheapest you can get Cameo anywhere online. So, if you've been thinking of getting one, watch dickblick.com website for special offer.
 

And shipping was free. They estimated that my Cameo should arrive on 6/24, well, it arrived on 6/15!! Hubby was saying I have to wait 13 more days before I can use it and I was like, no, no, no, no, no... this is the one exception. Have to use now. :) ps: I wasn't paid by dickblick to promote them in anyway, I am just sharing my good experience here. Doing my good deed of enabling. ;)
 

Thank you for stopping by here and please stop by again as I'll be doing a birthday giveaway soon!


New Addition

This past week we decided to expand our family. From family of four we are now family of 5. My cousin who has a soft heart for animals in need, been fostering this puppy for a while. She's a rescue dog and my cousin volunteer to foster her till she finds her forever home. At first, I wasn't sure if we should adopt her or not. After all I tend to gravitate toward flat face doggy, like pug, boston terrier or french bulldog.

But then like every other parents, you tend to do things that make your kid happy. Well, Eli my baby boy loves playing with Pup-pup (who we officially renamed into Abby). When my cousin said Abby had a showing to potential adopter, that's when hubby also realized he loves Abby and wants Abby to be part of our family. She is very affectionate and I love affectionate doggy. So, even though she doesn't have flat nose (hah...), we welcome Abby into our family.

Eli & Abby keeping me company while I am making cards.

She is pretty smarts as well. Next on our list is teaching her to catch Frisbee. She's already a pro is snuggling. Kind of funny to watch that even though Eli loves her, he'd get upset if she's trying to snuggle with me. He's like that's my mommy. He doesn't mind it when Abby snuggling with hubby. ;)

And, as I mentioned we're family of 5. The other member is Ollie, my older pug who recently celebrated her 15th birthday!!  She may have arthritis, but come feeding time that girl would bounced like crazy. She sleeps a lot and prefer her comfy corner rather than sharing with the 2 youngsters.

Now, that I have told you of my new family member, I can move on to card. This week There She Goes Stamp is holding anything goes challenge. Since last time I had the Donkey University set out, I made another donkey card.

 Love his buck teeth. I hope you will play along with us. You can enter the challenge HERE.

Well, that's it from me today. May your Monday starts off wonderfully!

Silly Donkey

How about starting the weekend with some silliness? I bought this Donkey University set from There She Goes Stamp because hubby and my brother-in-law often call each other donkey. They don't say it in a mean way, of course. I think it's a guy thing.

 

I laughed out loud when I first saw this set. I think my brother-in-law would appreciate this card. Here's my donkey card:

 

I paper pieced the shirt part and color the rest with Copic marker. The sentiment is from Paper Smooches Slang Gang set.

Short & silly one for today. Wishing you all a wonderful Friday!