Tuesday's {Tip} 101 Ways to Wrap Candy

Martha from Splitcoaststampers is hosting a "Wrapping 101" challenge on her blog. From September 15 and running until October 15, she is showing her reader's how many ways she can disguise and decorate treats. As you can see, she is already two weeks into the project; however, that means there are already lots of fun ideas for you to look at! For those of you that want to give a little gift to someone this holiday season, you might just find some great ideas in Martha's challenge. Enjoy, and get wrapping!

P.S. If you missed my 'for sale' items, I just updated this morning with 6 new Unity Stamp sets including kits. Be sure to check them out here!

His Holy Name {Challenge 20, Bread of Life}

Challenge Word 20: Bread of Life
God’s Attribute: Jesus is the Bread of Life. He is the Artos Zoes.

How does this affect my daily life?
Do you own a bread machine? Or do you go to bakeries where you can smell the bread baking? Who can resist the smell of freshly baked bread? Oh goodness, I know I can’t. It is irresistible and a “must have” once you smell that bread baking! Well, Jesus is the Bread of Life. He is able to take care of all of our needs both physical and spiritual. He satisfies the inner needs of our heart. Think about when you eat bread. What does it do? Bread nourishes us and gives us strength when we eat it. Jesus gives eternal life and nourishment to those who believe in Him. Do you want just a full stomach or do you want the Bread that truly satisifies?

Mary Foxwell Loeks said “A loaf of bread, golden brown and still warm from the oven, looks beautiful. But in order to do any good for anyone, it must be broken—first with hands or a knife, then with teeth. Finally the body’s digestive juices continue the breaking down process in order that the bread may do what it was meant to do. Jesus, the Living Bread, also had to be broken in order to do what He was meant to do—be life for us. What Jesus offers is not cake—sweet, temporarily filling, but not particularly nourishing. Jesus offers bread—something both desirable and good for us. He offers to be for us what we need to live. He Himself is the staff of life—eternal life.”

If you do believe, are you satisfied? Or are you still consumed by worldly things—money, pleasure, success, more crafting supplies? Are you living for the here and now or are you living for eternity and the things that will last? If you are not satisfied, are you soaking in His Word daily? Are you seeking His will for you each day or are you just “visiting” Him one day a week when you attend worship and then leaving Him at the door?

In Wiersbe’s Expository Outline on the New Testament when discussing John 6:22-65, Wiersbe says “the Bread of God is a Person from heaven (v. 33), and He gives life, not just to the Jews (as Moses did) but to the whole world! The way to receive this Bread is to come and take it; and this Bread will give life not only today, but also life in the future at the resurrection.”

For my page this week, I used a tree, leaves, and a baby to symbolize the different kinds of life. God is the creator of ALL things and gives life to ALL things so that is why I chose to create my page this way. The leaves, the baby, and the cross stamp all come from Layers of Color and were just perfect for this page! Papers: Bazzill, Scenic Route Ashville, Mustard Moon Ledger paper
Stamps: Layers of Color Nature Walk (leaves), Layers of Color Gothic Crosses (cross on journaling), Layers of Color Flower Child (baby)
Stamp Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink vintage photo, Brilliance moonlight white
Alphas: Rose Moka brown alpha stickers, Making Memories tiny alpha stickers
Embellishments: We R Memory Keepers metal accents, Maya Road chipboard tree, Shimmerz December Sky, Stickles cinnamon, Glossy Accents

The verse I chose for my page is:
John 6:26-27 “Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life . . .’”

Remember to use Keyword HHN09 when posting in online galleries, and to chat about the challenge, join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers! I will see you again on October 11th with a new study and attribute. I pray that you are hungry for more of Him instead of the worldly pleasures around you. Soak in His Word daily. Seek His will for you. Serve out of love for Him. He gives abundantly and has enough for all. In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 39 & 40}

Happy Sunday! Today I have Weeks 39 and 40 for you to work on for your study time. And they are:

Week 39: Power
Week 40: Light

Not too many weeks left this year. It's hard to believe. I pray you enjoy as you study His Word and that He brings you understanding as you learn. Remember to use Scripture Challenge Keyword: SCRC209 when posting to online galleries. Also, please join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers for links to your pages and general discussion about the challenge. Blessings,

Items for Sale {Updated 12/8/10}

Updated Items for Sale, 12/8/10:

U.S. sales only please as I cannot get to the P.O. to fill out international forms. Sorry! I accept PayPal payments only, and all items come from a smoke-free home. E-mail me if interested. I have 100% PayPal feedback rating (tripletmom94). Thanks for looking!

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Camera Bag: I have a Crumpler 6 Million Dollar Bag I have decided to sell. I bought it and didn't use it. My camera accessories have been sitting inside of it but that's it. It is in beautiful, like-new condition.

Crumpler 6 Million Dollar Bag
$65 plus shipping
Holds a digital SLR, vertical twin lens, external flash unit and basic accessories

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Scor-It Mini: I am selling my Scor-It Mini. Love this tool but I just don't use it very much. It is in like-new condition.

Scor-it Mini
$17 plus shipping
Board is 9 3/8" x 7" with a non-slip surface
Rubber feet on the bottom of the board
Centering ruler
Scoring Tool
For decorative embossed and de-bossed lines
Perfect size for cards & tag, and easy to take to crops, classes, etc.

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Unity Stamps (click on the set name to see a picture): All are brand new or used 1-2x.

Confetti Cupcake, $7
Flirty Flowers, $15
Love Builds a Home, $6
Party Brim, $6
Balloons & Stars, $6
Flowers Galore, $15
Gratitude=Joy, $12

Bitty Christmas Tags, (missing joy, believe, one set of 'to & from' sentiments), $10

Bliss & a Birdie June KOTM (retired), $23

Enjoy Your Story Nov. KOTM (retired), (missing the deer, row of flowers, pinwheel, & 'we care' sentiment) thus priced lower than half price, $19

Simple Pleasures, $10

Have a Diva Day (retired), $13

I also have many older monthly kits sets available. Let me know if you are looking for a specific kit (2008-2009). :)

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Pink Persimmon Stamps (click on the set name to see a picture):

Flower Garden, (one stamp used), $7 includes shipping

Ric Rac Rectangle, (two stamps used), $8 includes shipping **SOLD**

Dutch Journal Circle, (brand new), $6 includes shipping

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Foam Stamps
Will sell as a lot for $18 which INCLUDES shipping, or buy individually and you pay shipping. These are very light so shipping should be inexpensive! :)

Li'l Davis Time Capsule Foam Stamps, 39 stamps, $5
Making Memories Misunderstood, 43 stamps, $5
Making Memories Philadelphia, 36 stamps, $5
Making Memories Franklin, 37 stamps, $5

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Creative Memories (click on item name to see photo):
CM Circle Patterns, NEW, $7
CM Self Healing Mat, NEW, $10
Bubble Maker, retired, $11
Friendship Micro Maker, $5
Galaxy Micro Maker, $5
Meadow Micro Maker, retired, $7
Petal Multi-Maker, $9
Puzzle Maker, $11
Snow Maker, $11
Sweet Heart Maker, $11
Tag Maker, $14

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Cornish Heritage Farms (ALL items BRAND NEW, Photos below):

Dream Home, $3

Primitive Flourish, $3 Quirky Alphabet, $8 Ticking Backgrounder, 4"x5", $6

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I have also put a link in the sidebar for you to reference this post easily. Thanks for looking, and have a blessed day!

Saturday's {Sketch} TTS77

Good Saturday morning everyone! Most of you know that I closed my sketch site, Triple the Sketch. If you missed that announcement, you can read it here. However, I will still share my sketches on a limited basis--probably once a month or so on Saturdays. There will not always be samples to share but I can at least share my sketches with you. I hope that you will enjoy them. You can still access all of my sketches (TTS1 through TTS76) on Triple the Sketch. They will remain up for some time for you to enjoy and use. My new sketches (TTS77 and forward) will be posted here as I create them. So, here is TTS77 for you to enjoy today! Remember, I create my sketches so that you can use them for any paper crafting project--cards, layouts of any size, ATCs, altered art, etc. My amazing design team was the BEST at turning the sketches into ANYTHING! So, have fun, and please be sure to give credit when using my sketches and use the sketch number also. I appreciate that, and I hope you enjoy today's sketch! Have fun creating!

Organizational {Friday} 6x6 Paper

On Tuesday, I shared how much I love 6x6 paper. Well, today I am going to show you how I organize it all.

I store all of my 6x6 paper pads and packages in the smaller Target toy bins. They fit perfectly. This piece was actually toy bin storage for my girls when they were small but once they were finished with it, I spray painted it, and the unit is now in my crafting area filled with my crafting goodies. This is the toy bin before I spray painted it:
And here is a portion of it after it was spray painted.You can find these used at garage sales so be on the lookout. Or I have also seen bins very similar at Target that you can buy individually without the entire unit. They also come with a lid; however, I am not sure the lid would fit and/or close with 6x6 paper in it. My bins stay open, and I don't have a problem at all with my papers getting messed up in any way. To see more details on this unit, see my original post here and my room tour here (part 1 and part 2).

So, now that you know what bins I use to store my 6x6 paper in, here is what two of my bins look like:
I keep my paper in alphabetical order. I file first by company name, and then within the company, I file by paper design name. The dividers I made by cutting a 6"x6 1/2" piece of chipboard and putting a little label and ribbon on top. Nothing fancy but it keeps everything neat.

Now, how do I keep all of those little pieces of paper within each pack without getting bent, lost, or ruined? For 6x6 paper that come in packages like Memory Box or Webster's Pages, they are super easy to keep nice because I keep them in the original packages. I don't lose any papers, and they stay beautiful in the package.
For 6x6 paper that is in the glued pad like Basic Grey, I put the smaller pieces back in the pad and then I use a wide rubberband to secure the pad. Nothing has fallen out, gotten bent, etc. It stays really nice stacked in the bins with a rubberband. I have done this for years and I have not had a problem. So, I hope this gives you an idea of how to store your 6x6 paper pads. Feel free to ask questions in the comment section, and have a blessed Friday!

Tuesday's {Tip} 6x6 Paper Pads

Do you like using 6x6 paper pads? Well, I must tell you, they are my FAVORITE. They are almost becoming an addiction. I rarely buy 12x12 paper anymore. I tend to use the 6x6 papers even if I scrap a page larger than 6x6! Yes, I know the patterns are smaller than on the original 12x12 pages, but that doesn't bother me at all. I just love them!

I recently wrote an article about 6x6 paper pads that you can read here. Now two things about the article. First, the picture of my 6x6 storage has changed a bit. I will share that on Friday in my Organizational {Friday} post this week. Second, when I wrote the article, Webster's Pages did not have 6x6 papers. Guess what, now they do! Oh the danger of it all!!! Scrapbook.com only has the Christmas 6x6 papers in stock but Ellen Hutson has all three new 6x6 paper packs by Webster's Pages in stock--Magical Wishes & a Sweet Life, Postcards from Paris & Sweet as Cherry Pie, and Home for the Holidays & Winter's Wings. Oh so yummy! I hope you will consider using 6x6 papers on everything you create! They are cheaper, you get an entire collection, and they are definitely easier to store! Enjoy, and remember, I will share my 6x6 storage on Friday! Have a great Tuesday!

His Holy Name {Challenge 19, The Word}

Challenge Word 19: The Word
God’s Attribute: Jesus is the Word. John 1:14 says “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” Jesus is the Word made flesh.

How does this affect my daily life?
Who do you believe Jesus is? Do you believe He is a prophet? A teacher? Or do you believe He is God? John 1:1-2 clearly states that Jesus, the Word, is God. It says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” Jesus is the Word made flesh. Dr. Henrietta Mears says “Christ became what He was not previously—a man. But Christ did not cease to be God, He was God-Man.” Jesus came because He wanted us to know the Father as He knows the Father. He came so that we might believe and have eternal life with Him. Jesus, the Word, and the Bible, His Word, are living, eternal, and life-giving. Do you believe? Do you know with assurance that you will be eternally with Him? If not, I pray that you will do that today. Please feel free to e-mail me if you have questions.

And if you do know that you have eternal life with Him, are you soaking in His Word daily? His amazing Word has been preserved for us so that we might continue to know who He is. The Bible, His Word, is His love letter to us. God speaks to us as we read His Word. Are you listening or are you only making requests? When God speaks, things happen. Genesis 1:3 says “And God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light.” John 2:7-9 says “Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet’. They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.” God speaks and there is light. God speaks and water turns to wine. What is God telling you? Are you listening?

For my page this week I used some old Mustard Moon paper from 2006. I need to pull out my older stash more often! I also used the gorgeous Layers of Color Royal Birds stamps and Old World Flourish stamps. Papers: Bazzill, Basic Grey Lime Rickey, Mustard Moon Ledger Brown
Stamps: Layers of Color Old World Flourish (corners of scripture), Layers of Color Royal Birds
Stamp Ink: SU garden green
Alphas: Heidi Swapp lemonade stand chipboard alpha, Making Memories tiny alpha stickers
Embellishments: Cactus Pink chipboard lace, Shimmerz Spritz baby's breath, Creative Café felt trim, Stickles lime green, Folk Art wicker white paint, Nestabilities scalloped square dies

The scriptures I chose were:
1 Thessalonians 2:13 ". . .When you received the Word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the Word of God, which is at work in you who believe."
Hebrews 4:12 "For the Word of God is living and active. . ."
Romans 10:8 "The Word of God is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart. . ."

Remember to use Keyword HHN09 when posting in online galleries, and to chat about the challenge, join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers! I will see you again on September 27th with a new study and attribute. May the Lord increase your love and knowledge of His Word. In Him,

Scripture Challenge 2009 {Weeks 37 & 38}

Today, I have two more challenge words for you. They are:

Week 37: Fear
Week 38: Name

I pray that these challenges help you in learning more about our precious Lord. I also pray that they help you in your daily living for Him! Enjoy your time of study, and remember to use Scripture Challenge Keyword: SCRC209 when posting to online galleries. Also, please join us in this thread here on Splitcoaststampers for links to your pages and general discussion about the challenge words. May you have a blessed time of study and worship. In Him,

Organizational {Friday} Shimmerz & LuminArte H2Os

Can you believe it? An Organizational {Friday} post? I am slowly getting into the swing of things as we start new schedules with everything this year. Hopefully each day will continue to get better, and I can get back to posting and creating as I enjoy. This week I wanted to share with you how I organize both my Shimmerz and LuminArte paints. Oooh, how I love to use these beauties, and keeping them organized truly helps.

First, let me tell you that my paints are in one of my Scrap 'n Cube drawers (as most of my supplies are); however, you can use ANY kind of drawer for your paints. My organizational method will work in any drawer you have. My particular drawer is 1 1/2 inches high. You can see it here:To organize my paints, I keep my Shimmerz separated from the LuminArte paints. I also do NOT store them in alphebetical order by name. I store them in color order. Each company puts the color name on their jars. Shimmerz puts their stickers on the lid, and LuminArte puts their stickers on the bottom of the jar thus they are stored upside down. You can see how I have the Shimmerz in the front part of the drawer, followed by my brushes, then the LuminArte paints at the back of the drawer.Each section is separated by a wooden dowel I purchased at Michael's and cut to fit the drawer. I love using wooden dowels as dividers in my drawers. You have probably seen me use them before.

And to keep track of the colors I have and to see samples, again I have used my grid paper to keep handy in my color reference book. I created my grid paper in Microsoft Excel, and I print it out on cardstock. I get two pages per sheet since these pages fit in a smaller binder. Here is my Shimmerz page: My LuminArte page looks the same but with the LuminArte paint samples. If you haven't seen my color reference book before, you can see my Stickles pages here and my stamp ink page here.

I hope this has been helpful. If you store your paints another way, feel free to share a link in the comment section. I am sure everyone would love to see various ideas! Thanks for stopping by, and have a blessed Friday!

How About a Color Challenge?

Do you need a little challenge? Do you like color challenges? Well, I think they are quite fun, and my latest color challenge article posted yesterday! Here is the challenge:
You can find the article and design samples here. And a huge thank you goes out to Laura and Linda of Layers of Color and to Elizabeth Carney of Triple the Sketch! These girls have amazing talent, and I am thankful for their help with this article. I hope you will play along, and post a link to your creations in the comment section. I would love to see what you come up with! Enjoy!

Tuesday's {Tip} Planner Pages

I don't know if any of you use the Memory Dock planner or not. I know there was a lot of talk on various message boards about We R Memory Keepers not making the calendar pages anymore and that pages such as Day Timer, Day Runner, Franklin, etc., will fit the planner. I personally have never used it because I have an adorable baby pink Franklin planner I love! Anyway, in a quest to help my subscribers with any planners they may use, I found some really wonderful stuff this week! Let's look at what I found!

First, if you want to play around and make your own book using a Bind-it-All or something similar, look at these pages I found on Brenda's site! They are all free to download and include pages such as 2009 calendar, remember/notes, layouts to complete, shopping list, and to-do list. You may want to keep track of her site because I am assuming she will have a 2010 calendar download available sometime. Super wonderful!!!

Next, I found out that We R Memory Keepers has their Memory Dock products on a SUPER sale. This includes various pages for their planner for $0.50, their Creative and Journal Dock binders for $1.30-$3.80, their Memory Dock Totes for $2.45, their Photo Docks for $3.87, and several other amazing items on sale. I bought $160 worth of pages and goodies for just $26 (which also included the shipping cost)!!!!! Gracious, that's cheaper than I can print them. I don't know how long the sale lasts but you might want to check it out. I have ordered from them many times, and I have always had great service though their shipping can be high. But with prices like that, you still get a GREAT deal!

I hope I haven't enabled you too much and that this has been helpful. You could certainly make some great Christmas gifts with these pages too! Enjoy, and see you next time!

Saturday {Sharing} & Contest Reminder!

Hello everyone! I know some of you may be gone this weekend enjoying a nice holiday weekend. I am home trying to work on Bible study, design work, and enjoying my family! But, I thought I would stop for a moments and share a few creations. I also wanted to remind you about the Memory Box contest!

First, the contest. If you missed my last post back in mid-August, I will share the details again. The contest ends on Sept. 11th, and we haven't gotten a lot of entries. Now who wouldn't want to win $100 in Memory Box product? For complete details, see my post here. It's not too late to get your entries in, and I would love to see you play along! Good luck to all those that enter!

Now for a few Memory Box creations. All of these cards were created using the new Memory Box stamp and paper releases. Aren't they wonderful? And remember, all of the step-by-step directions to these creations can be found on my Memory Box blog along with complete product lists.Well, I hope you enjoyed this little Saturday post. Enjoy your long weekend, and see you again soon! Thanks for stopping by! Blessings,

Tuesday's {Party} Birthday Girls!

Yes, today's Tuesday's {Tips} is being interrupted for a VERY special reason! Our precious and amazing girls turn 15 today! My husband and I could have never imagined having triplets, and now we can't imagine life without them. Each year as they grow, I get more tearful thinking about them all leaving home soon. I can't bare the thought. I cherish EVERY moment with them, and am thankful the Lord has allowed me to homeschool (going into our second year now) so that we can spend even more precious time together! I am blessed beyond measure!

Precious girls, thank you for being the best daughters any parent could ever ask for. We haven't hit the terrible teen years--we just have MANY joyous moments with each of you creating amazing family memories that we pray you look back on with great joy! Look at how you have grown!

NICU Party May 1996 {1 1/2 years old} Fall 1999 {5 years old} January 2009 {14 1/2 years old} How you have grown and changed through the years but yes, your beautiful curls are still there but the latest tool {the flat iron} is your friend--for two of you anyway. :) You each have your own gifts that the Lord has blessed you with, and we can't wait to see how He leads you to use them. We love you, and Happy Birthday my darling girls!!