Food, Food, Food!!!

Found this image when I searched for "free clip art of food journal" yeah, I've felt this before...

I swear sometimes I think about food as much or more than teenagers think about sex! I have said it before and I will probably say it forever - I wish I could just eat without having to weigh it, count it, and see how it measures up in my carb count for the day! What's the comeback? "If wishes were fishes we'd all swim in riches." Yeah, yeah, yeah-sometimes a girl just needs to gripe a little!

I AM making progress, I have walked Cookie every day except Wednesday and I have put down every morsel that has gone into my mouth all week long. I skipped writing down the amounts on Saturday though not really sure for what purpose, maybe I was just rebelling.

Creating a menu for the week is very helpful. We buy fresh meats, fruits, and veggies (heavy on the veggies) and that seems to be working to keep my mouth and tummy satisfied. It is my BRAIN that I am struggling with! The week before last I had been craving Lay's potato chips and Lay's French Onion dip (quite a specific craving-I know). So when it was time to go to the grocery store I figured I would buy it, have it, and get it out of my system.

The first serving went very well, I weighed it all out, put in a bowl and had it as my afternoon snack. That was around 4:30 that afternoon. I ate it slowly enjoying every bit of it. I then proceeded to think about the rest of the chips and dip and how easy it would be to just go get more. I thought about it and envisioned myself walking to the pantry and make it happen for the REST OF THE NIGHT!!!

We went to bed around 10:30 that night, Jamie was tired and I just wanted to go to sleep and NOT think about food anymore! Maybe it was too soon to work that type of food into my day but I have learned from experience that if I am craving a food that much I should have it or I will eat more of other foods trying to satisfy that want and then still end up having the food I was craving in the first place. I thought it was reasonable to think that I could portion it out and add it to my menu.

Now that I have had the chips and dip (which I devoured in replacement of my lunch on Saturday) it will be a long while (I'm talking over a year or so) before I will have a craving for it again.

On the bright side I've made it through my first craving and didn't throw in the towel of accounting for what I put in my mouth. This will probably resonate with some of you and make others of you wonder what the issue is. Eh, we all have our things and food is one of mine (yeah, I've got multiple things). However, I choose to be accountable because I choose to do what I can to be a healthier me and I get the chance to make that choice every time I eat.

Thank you for stopping by and letting me vent!

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :) 

Scrapbook Blessings Club Challenge: Christmas Card Valentine

I have decided to participate in February's challenge over at Scrapbook Blessings Club or SBC for short. It is quite a clever challenge! The rules are this: you can make whatever you like (I made a card-surprising I know) it has to be a Valentine related item and here's the challenge...wait for it...you must make your Valentine related item with CHRISTMAS SUPPLIES!!!

So clever! I read about this challenge on their blog a couple of days ago and really wanted to participate but was afraid that I might be too late. Lucky for me (and even you, if you are so inclined) entries are accepted until the last day of the month by 11pm. It was a lot of fun digging into my Christmas stash and deciding what could be used to create a Valentine's card. It turned out to be quite easy so many items were just wintry and not exclusively Christmas related.

These are the items that I pulled together for this card:

 Ingredients:

• I used the sentiment from the La La Land stamp set "Marci with Christmas Ornament" well a piece of the sentiment I masked off the words I didn't want
• I have no clue where the patterned paper comes from because it was in my Christmas stash :(   Sorry
• the little snowman is C.C. Designs "Nerdy Snowman"
• the snowflakes were made with a Martha Stewart snowflake punch (the snowflake border punch just wasn't working for me)
• I punched a heart out with a punch from Creative Memories "Friendship Micro Marker"
• I covered the snowflakes with clear Wink of Stella pen to make them sparkly, I also colored in the heart with a pink Wink of Stella
• since the little nerdy snowman is wearing glasses I filled the lenses in with Glossy Accents
• I still felt like it was missing something so I added Stickles in frosted lace to create the look of snow

Here it is, isn't he adorable? I am very happy with him and will have to save him for someone really special. As per my usual most of these supplies (if not all of them) were acquired from Scrapping For Less. If you are up to the challenge I encourage you to go over to Scrapbook Blessings Club and give it a go! Oh and please feel free to leave any comments down below and thank you so much for stopping by!

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

The Best Mistake We Ever Made!!!

Our dog Cookie

 In my description on this blog and every other social media outlet I am on I mention my dog Cookie. I figure I am well overdue in introducing her on here since she is such a major part of my life. So here she is! She is currently eight years old and will be nine on St. Patrick's Day.

Now my hubby and I constantly refer to her as "the best mistake we ever made" and here is why. Jamie and I had gone out to dinner to Red Lobster and I ordered one of their huge lobsterita drinks (oh and I'm a light weight like a full beer in and I'm ready for bed) and I finished mine all by myself so I was quite giggly. My husband was driving us home when we somehow got to talking about puppies and the pet store (yes, I know go ahead and gasp, we both hate to admit this) in the mall. Next thing I know we are pulling a u-turn and heading for the mall. This is how we met Cookie. She was the cutest little bundle of fur and when we were playing with her she kept untying Jamie's shoe laces.

We were smitten and everybody who worked there got in line to hug her goodbye and they were all so sad but glad she was getting a good home. Ever since we have blamed our decision to buy a dog from a pet store on my lobsterita. Turns out she has been the sweetest dog we have ever known! One of her favorite things to do is have my husband pick her up and hold her on her back like a baby. She has been known to fall asleep like this. Another absolutely endearing thing she does is when you are holding her she will bury her head against your chest. It is just so sweet, one of her veterinarians was so smitten with her I was a little relieved when he gave her back to me.

I don't know what it is about dogs that is so entertaining but this little gal takes the cake! After she eats her breakfast or dinner she will often be found squirming around on her back making the kind of noises I associate with a great massage or really delicious food. It is hilarious! She also likes to get e

very single toy she has and put them in a circle (as well a dog can form a circle anyway) and then lay in the middle of them.

She likes to curl up in the crook of your legs if you are laying down on the couch

She loves so many things and I do mean LOVES! She loves her crate and often times if she isn't right with us or in her little beds (yes beds we have them all around the house because she likes to be close to us no matter what we are doing) she is in her crate. She is so easily excitable as well. She is excited every morning when we let her out of her crate to go out, she is excited every evening when we say "go to bed" and she runs into her crate (and if she thinks you weren't looking she will leave her crate and go back in making sure that you are watching) so excited for bedtime. She excitedly runs to the mailbox to sniff the pole and then when you call her back into the house she runs like the wind (sooo flippin funny to see!)

She alone has brought us so much joy and taught us that bottom line, we should all just be excited for each new day!

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Birthday Card Series 2016 #2

Hey Everybody! 

This MFT stamp set is full of sweetness! The only images from the stamp set I used on this card were the little girl and the presents, there are so many more images to be used! This paper set is so adorable and I am happy to be using it and at the same time sad to be using it up. Do any of y'all ever experience this? I have been working really hard to not allow myself to horde any of my supplies anymore (the struggle may seem silly but it's real!) 

Ingredients:

• patterned paper is from Bo Bunny The Avenues Collection
• My Favorite Things stamp set Sweet Birthday Wishes
• I used a brush tipped black marker to line the outer edges to give the images a more finished look
• took a Wink of Stella brush pen and colored in the bows on the gifts and the bow in her hair as well as her shoes

• used sequins and pearls from Bo Bunny The Avenues Collection Jewels

All the supplies I used to make this card I purchased from Scrapping For Less. 
 This is possibly the best of both worlds because it is super sweet with no regret involved!!!

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Birthday Card Series 2016 #1

Happy Birthday!

Well it's bound to be someone's birthday today so that's for them. For the rest of you I hope you are also having a fine day!

The Birthday Card is probably the type of card I make most often barring Christmas cards and I always seem to either be making them after the recipient's actual birthday or cutting it super close.

So this year I am on a mission to not only send out the cards I make for the birthday guys and gals in my life but to also make more than I need so that I can have a collection to pull from. This first card in the series had to have a little card surgery...turns out that I did not like the way the sentiment looked when I stamped it and I wasn't sure what to do about it. It wasn't horrible and I certainly could have left it as it was but it just kept bothering me! So I finally thought to take my purple Wink of Stella pen and go over the sentiment. I was so happy when it seemed to fix whatever it was about the sentiment that I didn't like.

I was halfway through fixing the sentiment when it hit me I should take a before picture or no one would have a clue what I was talking about...

The picture doesn't quite do it justice because you are not able to see the sparkle that the Wink of Stella pen added, also since it is a darker purple it is much easier to read.

I tell you all this as a friendly suggestion that if you find yourself pretty much finished with your card but still not happy with it try to fix it. Some of the cutest cards I've made were results of me trying to fix a mistake. Also I have found that if there is something about a card that just isn't working for me I for some reason cannot bring myself to give it away. I know I'm not being judged or critiqued for the cards I give to my friends and family but for some reason if it doesn't look right to me I just can't leave it alone.

Thankfully, it's just card making and not life and death worse case scenario you scrap it and start over! (Yeah I know that's the absolute worse case scenario, right?)

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Plan It!

Hi Everybody!

Hope you are having a great President's Day (maybe even getting in on some great President's Day sales, ya know, like the Forefathers intended)!

Anyway I wanted to talk about planning today, more accurately planners themselves. I have been looking for a good planner for a couple of years now and have looked at several. I went to Target, Staples, Office Depot, I searched online and considered buying an Erin Condren planner but just couldn't quite bring myself to pull the trigger. (I lucked out and one of my friends gave me an Erin Condren planner that they found on discount at Office Depot, it turned out to be a really great planner.) Then I came across an album of planners on Scrapping For Less while looking for my 2016 planner and my search was over!

The planner I chose is from Simple Stories and is called Carpe Diem planner. One of the reasons I really like this planner is that it is blank and you are able to write in your dates. That feature works for me especially this year because I was still out of the country when the year started and didn't have Scrapping For Less send it to me in Ireland because I didn't want to pay the postage since it would only be a few weeks. So I didn't use January but it won't go to waste either. I put it at the back of the planner and I will be able to use it next year!

It is full of inspiring sayings and I love the color as well. I really like to have the option to fill out what I want to accomplish in the day because it helps me organize my thoughts. I also like the perpetual calendar that is at the front of the planner so I can put down birthdays I want to remember. There are others available at Scrapping For Less as well but this is the one I thought would work best for me.

I wanted to share this planner because it took me so long to find one that I was really a fan of and that I felt was as flexible as what I was looking for. Hope this helps and that you are able to find a planner that will work for you.  Do you all use a planner that you write in or do you use your phone or both? I use both, I like to keep details written down while I put the main events on my phone especially the ones that I want to share with my husband so that we aren't constantly having to ask each other if we are available on certain dates.



Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Valentine Series 2016 Last Card!!!

Hey Sweeties!!!

Well we made it! This is the last card of the Valentine Series for 2016 and I have had a great time making these cards! Originally when I began this series I only had a few people in mind that I planned on sending or giving a card for Valentine's Day. Jamie (the husband) and I recently made plans to have a game day (table top nerd gaming that is!) with one of our favorite couples. Turns out we will be getting together on Valentine's Day itself and I just could not resist making a card for them. Now I will say that this is the first time I have made a Valentine card for another couple but the image I used really seems to lend itself for this.

I was so very giddy when I realized that the image I wanted to use would look adorably cute on the paper pack that I have been itching to dig into. I tend to get very excited when I see an image I want to use and in my mind the entire card starts coming together all at once, even down to the finishing embellishments and that is exactly what happened with this card.

 INGREDIENTS:

• stamp is from Simon Says Stamp Newton's Nook
• all the papers used are from the 6x6 collection from Dovecraft
• the heart bling in the corner I pieced together from pearls from BoBunny and from my stash 
• colored wih copics
• added some shimmer with Wink of Stella to the kitties' collars and to the Eiffel Tower that is on the background paper and the crown
• stamped the image on the inside with My Favorite Things hybrid ink in bubblegum 
• the little stickers on the inside are from a card kit I got from SFL

I am so grateful for those of you who have taken the time to read these entries. I hope you enjoy them and please keep stopping by whenever you are able to! Please feel free to leave a comment and even share what you are doing to celebrate Valentine's Day and the ones you love.

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Valentine Series 2016 #6

Hi ya!

I am excited to show the image I used on today's card. I borrowed this stamp from a friend over a year ago I believe (and am a little embarrassed to admit). I took it with me to Ireland and looked at it often always having the intention of making this card but didn't quite get to it. I brought it back home with me because I had the card I intended to use it on already in my head. It has been in my mind for quite some time and it feels great to get it out here into the real world!

This is for a friend of mine who LOVES tulips and I wanted to make a card for her with this image because I cannot look at it without thinking of her. Plus the little gal on the image looks to me like she is just bursting with joy to share all the tulips she has. I think the image lends itself to bright and happy colors and I really wanted it to have a cheery feeling.

Ingredients: 

• image is from Penny Black and created by Mo Manning
• the yellow and blue paper is from my stash
• the red striped paper is from Echo Park 8x8 paper pad Dots & Stripes
• I used Copic markers to color the image
• Wink of Stella in clear to add some sparkle to the flowers and the vases
• I stamped the sentiment on to a label created with a label punch from the Paper Studio
• the sentiment is from Hampton Arts Jillibean Soup Handwritten Sentiments
• stamped the sentiment using My Favorite Things hybrid ink in Wild Cherry
• stamped the main image using My Favorite Things hybrid ink in Black Licorice
• the paper the image is stamped on is Neenah Classic Crest Card in Solar White (this is the paper I bought in the UK and the sizing is different than in the States) 

I have made this card for one of my closest girlfriends and I look forward to giving it to her for Valentine's Day. There really isn't anything that lends this particular image to V-day itself but when I see this image I think of my friend and I thought it would be a perfect image to include on a card to let her know I love her and am thinking of her. So keep in mind that if you don't feel that you have a Valentine specific image that lends itself to be used for friends or family etc you don't have to! Just find an image that either makes you think of them or that you think they would enjoy seeing. The sentiment doesn't even have to be related to Valentine's Day you can always just write it on the inside. Either way I cannot imagine that they wouldn't be pleased to get a card from you and that it would certainly bring a smile to their face, we all like to know we are loved.

Oh! One more thing...it may not stand out to you and I realize that I may be pointing it out and ruining the image for you but it SCREAMS out to me when I look at the card but I have repeated the mantra that "handmade items are NOT perfect nor are they meant to be" (sigh) and I am okay now. I was coloring that tiny little piece of her scarf between her ear and her hair and my marker "burped", which means that too much ink came out and I FREAKED OUT!!! It went into her face and I thought the image was ruined and i had already colored all the flowers and vases and I was in shock! Then I calmed down, blotted the area with a paper towel and used my lightest skin color to move the yellow out of her face as much as I could. I think it is passable enough to still be used and given but I would be lying through my teeth if I said that my eyes don't go straight to that blemish as soon as I look at the card, I am however able to take in the entire image and I feel better about it. I mention this little incident to just encourage you that if you make a mistake or a mistake is made for you DON'T PANIC! There is usually a way to resolve it without trashing the card and starting over. :)

Thanks for joining me for a card and a bit of rambling!

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Hesitant Shopper No More!!!

Hi Everybody!

There is an issue that I didn't think was an issue until my recent experience (which is what today's post is about) however said issue drives my husband crazy. The issue is this: I am a hesitant shopper. So what I mean by that is I will see something, really want it, and then have to take some time to think about it. I may take days, weeks, months, and yes sometimes even years before deciding to actually purchase the item I initially wanted. At home in the States this method has typically served me well as often times by waiting I will get the item at a good discount or will find an item I would rather have. While living in Ireland...not so much.

So what had happened was...I had been in and out of a great Irish souvenir shop called Carroll's Irish Gifts and had seen the cutest mug that was covered in photos of Dublin's iconic places and items in black and white while having a few items like the double decker bus etc. in color.  I would love to show you a picture of this mug but alas I do not have one. Every time I saw the mug in a shop (many places we visited had this same mug) I would think to myself "you are living here you do NOT need a mug". So I didn't get it and I didn't get it and I didn't get it.

Fast forward to our last night in Dublin and I had decided that I wanted that mug. We had company with us and since it was our last night in Dublin we wanted to go out for dinner and have Bangers & Mash one more time. So we went out and then after dinner I dragged everyone to Carroll's to get my mug but they were closed. There was a chance that another Carroll's that was close by might be open so I dragged everybody over there but that one was closed too. Grrr! Now mind you it was cold and windy and not pleasant at all! So I had everybody tromping through city center for nothing! The store has a website so I went online to find it and the store no longer carries that mug. I found another mug that I liked so I ordered it. It came in the other day and I was so excited! I found the scissors, opened the box, unwrapped the bubble wrap and discovered my new mug was BROKEN!!!

Unbelievable! So I sent an email to the store and they were incredibly helpful and attentive but because the item was so inexpensive and the cost to replace it and cover shipping just didn't make sense so they issued me a refund. No Dublin mug for me. :(

 Lesson learned! In the future I will not procrastinate if it is something I really want. I got the "I told you so" look from Jamie (let's face it I got that look every time I mentioned the mug incident). Almost every morning when I go to get my coffee I think about the absence of my Dublin mug and shake my head to myself. Why must I always learn things the hard way?

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)

Valentine Series 2016 #5

Hello Everyone!!!

I bring a new cutie your way today and he was as much fun to color as he was to use on a card! While I was coloring this image I was thinking about musicians and how they have a reputation for people popular with the ladies. I find that to be true for me too...but to an extent. There are certain instruments that I find more attractive than others for example a saxophone is hot as is a guitar or even a piano but...the bongos? Bongos just don't do it for me. This image while not sexy in any way is stinkin' adorable!

Ingredients: 

• card base from my stash
• "lover boy" background paper from DCWV scrapbook kit in a stack Love & Wedding
• grid paper from my stash (I think it was from a collection called Lost & Found from My Mind's Eye but not 100%)
• image from La La Land Crafts Saxophone Luka
• I cut out the wonky frame with My Favorite Things Blueprint 15
• the wooden LOVE is from my stash and I used Smooches to color the wood
• I had also used Smooches to color accents on the saxophone
• I colored in the hearts with clear Wink of Stella to add some shimmer
• Glossy Accents on his eyes 

Everything I used to make this card can be purchased from Scrapping For Less (keep in mind all items depend on availability such as paper packs etc.)

Can't Catch a Break!

Hello Everybody!

I was so happy I was feeling better and almost completely myself again. The nagging tickle in my throat I kept getting each time I tried to lay down was going away and I was planning on a fun and productive weekend. And then...Saturday both of my eyes are itchy, red, and oozy...eww I know. I have only had conjunctivitis or "pink eye" as it is commonly known twice before and it is certainly a distinct feeling. So of course all my plans were cancelled my loving hubby went and got me some eye drops and I have been hiding indoors yet again because I know how contagious pink eye can be. I have washed my hands dozens of times and have been vigilant about not touching my face whilst interacting with anything else.

I have even stayed on my side of the couch and away from Jamie because I didn't want him to get it and at first I thought he still might be able to make it to hang out with our friends, but we were both worried that he may be a carrier and we did NOT want to be responsible for passing this mess along to anyone so he stayed home too.

Between arriving back in the States on January 16th (a Saturday) then on Tuesday January 19th coming down with the flu (I guess that's what it was: chills, fever, body aching so bad I didn't care what happened to me or around me) and then finally feeling human again by Friday, January 29th and then being hit with pink eye on Saturday January 30th I feel like I CAN'T CATCH A BREAK!!!

Is is the pollen, the ragweed, the hay fever? I have no idea, all I know is that I traveled to several different countries the last 6 months and did not get sick like this. (I had a couple of incidents that I could follow back to something I ate but nothing major or long lasting.) So I gotta say I don't feel very welcomed home! (Ooh starting to sound a little bitter, it's the drugs talking, oh wait I haven't taken any drugs...)

Alright, my venting has subsided and I am really grateful and fortunate to have a spot out here on the world wide web to come and get this stuff off my chest! So thank you for indulging me in this little pity party and now I am ready to move on. Luckily for anyone who may happen to come across this post I am not going to share a picture of my pink eye situation and oh yes, I have one, a really gross one too but I feel it would be an overshare and might put quite the damper on a Monday now that I think about it a little more, so let's just say it was ew! Like Jimmy Fallon's character on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Ew! Don't know what I'm talking about? Check it out here!

Thanks again for indulging this little rant and I am so happy to feel like I am just a few days from being 100%.

Wishing you sunshine and smiles,
Kim :)