Jaque is celebrating!

Check out this awesome giveaway and the wonderful news Jaque received! Click here to head on over!

Thanks for stopping by!

~~Jen H~~

Hospital Stay =(

I am never sick beyond the usual  common cold. I haven't had a hospital stay since my last child was born almost 6 years ago. Tuesday night right after I posted my MPS DT project I headed to bed. I didn't even make it there. I was up till 4 being all kinds of sick and in pain. My hubby woke up and made me go to the ER. I had a 5mm kidney stone and I couldn't pass it. I had to stay in the hospital overnight and have a stint put in my kidney. I go back Wednesday to have the stone broken up and the stint removed. Until then I am just going to take it easy (as easy as a mother can) and try to get plenty of rest and drink lots of water. Hopefully I can get back on track soon.

MPS DT call

Robyn over at My Pink Stamper is having a Design Team Call! I have been so busy the past month moving and then trying to get internet service out in the country. I finally got everything unpacked and straightened out and I thought I would go ahead and make a project to kick off my blog again. It is so good to be back and I am so excited to be crafting and posting again.


The challenge was to make a card, scrapbook page or other project using your favorite Cricut Cartridge with the following colors...
Orange
Turquoise
Green
Brown
and other optional color of choice

Well for my project I used Accent Essentials. I find my self using it more and more. I love the cuts and along with my gypsy I can create a lot of different card shapes.
  The Recipe:
Accent Essentials- two frames welded together I used Kraft cardstock
and then one frame in green DCWV Brights stack
I made two pinwheels with Jellibean Soup- Blossom Soup (blue stars)
                                                                            Spotted Owl Soup (blue and green dots)
                                                                            And the Orange Dot is just some paper from my   
                                                                             stash.
Two buttons
"Thanks" Stamp
Basic Brown SU ink that I used to ink the edges and for the sentiment.
A home made wobble for the big pinwheel
I guess my optional color was white =P
The colors aren't as vibrant in the picture as they are in person but it still looks super cute!
=)

Just want to Thanks Robyn for the opportunity. There are so many adorable projects already posted and I don't envy anyone having to make the hard choice from all of the talented ladies (and gents?) out there!

Thanks for visiting and taking a look!

~~Jen H~~

My apologies and 100 Follower winner!

I am so sorry I haven't been on here for a couple of weeks. We moved and it has been so crazy. It has been hard getting internet that doesn't cost an arm and a leg at our new house because we live out in the middle of nowhere but it should be up and running soon. Crossing my fingers.
I wanted to go ahead and announce the winner of my 100 Follower Giveaway and the winner is ........

Amy E
who said.......Yay for 100 followers! I can't wait to reach that milestone too! Congrats

Congrats Amy E  please email me your address and I will get this out as soon as I actually get to see the email! =)

Thanks so much for stopping by!


~~Jen~~

~~HUGE~~ 300 Follower Giveaway...

Jessica over at chick-n-scrap.blogspot.com is having a huge 300 follower giveaway! It is a huge box of yummy goodies! Click Here to check it out!

If you head over there and become a new follower please let her know that Jen H sent you! Thanks for stopping by!

~~Jen H~~

~~~~100 Follower Giveaway!~~~~

I hit 100 followers this morning and to celebrate I would like to do a giveaway for my fabulous followers! I am giving away a Yourstory photo personal bookbinding kit.  
If you would like the chance to win you can do any or all of the following:
1. Must be a follower
2. Leave comment under this post
3. Blog about my giveaway or put in side bar.


Leave a comment for each thing. ( Make sure you leave your blog address so I can visit and become a follower too!) That is up to three chances to win!

I will draw the winner on Monday, June 13 @ noon.

Thank you so much and I appreciate each and every one of you!

Due to shipping US residents only please.

~~~Chillin' Bug Hop Winner~~~

I am going to go ahead and announce the winner tonight. I am super busy packing my house by myself before the big move this weekend. I wrote all the names down and put them in a hat and had my daughter pick one and she chose...........

Christine Real

And this is what she said:

Christine Real

This is such a sweet summery card, I was going to say that I wished I could tie a bow like you did, then I looked at your candy and it said Bow Easy? What is Bow Easy and why don't I own one? lol!

Congrats Christine, I will contact you shortly to get your address. 

Thank you to everyone that hopped with the Grillin' and Chillin' Bug hop weekends and Thanks you Barb for the opportunity to participate! 

Thank you to all of you that stopped by and became a follower and to those of you who are already followers! I really appreciate it! I am only 1 follower from 100 followers so I am going to have to come up with some blog candy for that! =)

Hugs, 

~~Jen H~~

 

~~~CHILLIN' BUG HOP~~~

Welcome to BugBites first ever Grillin’ & Chillin’ Bug Hop!  

To celebrate the beginning of summer, Barb over at BugBites is hosting two consecutive weekends of Bug Hops.

Last weekend was about the Grillin' and this weekend it is all about the Chillin’, June 4-6.

I am so very nervous excited as this is my first ever blog/bug hop! YAY!  Thank you Barb for this opportunity!

If you've come from visiting Cherie, you're in the right place! If you've just happened across my blog and would like to play along with our Grillin’ & Chillin’ Bug Hop, click HERE to start from the beginning.

Each fabulously talented lady along the bug trail is featuring a project based on the Chillin’ theme. What’s more exciting is you can participate too by creating a project and linking it up over at BugBites for a chance to win a Big Prize.

But, there’s a twist. Your project must included at least one Cricut cut and at least one of the critters that have been hidden within some of the bug stop blogs. Be sure to visit all the bug stops to find all your critter choices.

While you are looking for the critters, be sure to check out the blog candy that each designer has to offer you. You don't want to miss out on any of it!

Now for my project!  I created a card that incorporates some of the colors that remind me of summer and  things I love about summer!  Who doesn't love shopping for a new pair of sunglasses, going to the beach, or just chillin' with a nice cold treat on a hot day? Summer is vibrant, bright and so much FUN!!

Recipe:   A2 sized Kraft cardstock card base
                All paper used is from my scrap stash
                1" circle punch and cuttlebug swiss dot folder for background circles
                All cuts were cut at 1": Popsicle, Palm tree,sand castle, dragonfly from
                                                          doodle charms
                                                          Sunglasses from nifty fifties
                                                          Watermelon from stretch your imagination
                Black sticker alphas
                Studio G {fun} stamp, embossing ink pad, black embossing powder, heat gun
                Stampin' UP So Saffron ribbon
                Recollections punch on left side



Next stop... (the ooooh so talented), Diana's blog, I have been a long time follower of hers and she is so talented. See what she has in store for you today.
Remember, once you have hopped to all the bug stops, it's your turn to show us your  Chillin’ project.
Make sure to include a Cricut cut somewhere on your project, include one of the hidden critters and link up your project over at BugBites by Midnight CST June 6 to be eligible for the big prize.





 Now for some blog candy! I have up for grabs today a wonderful Posi-Bendr Bow Easy! I will also throw in some embellishments from my stash. If you would like to be eligible to win this blog candy please become a follower and leave a comment under this post. I appreciate every one of my followers/friends.  I will randomly choose a winner on June 7th.

Just in case you lose your way here is the line up!

Barb          http://bugbites411.blogspot.com/~ Start

Tanya         http://nonnascraftcorner.blogspot.com/ 

Jenn          http://scraphappensembellishit.blogspot.com/

Jovan        http://www.cardsbyjovan.com/

Britt          http://sunshineandcrafts.blogspot.com

Brynn         http://www.flairandfrillscreativity.blogspot.com

Maureen     http://mosaddiction.blogspot.com

Cherie        http://oneheartscrapper.blogspot.com

Jen    H      http://theholtonshome.blogspot.com/<-----You Are Here

Diana L      http://dianamlarson.blogspot.com<-----Your Next Stop 

Priscilla      http://priscrafteeescape.blogspot.com/

Heather     www.housesbuiltofcards.blogspot.com

Theresa      www.miislucky.blogspot.com

Peggy Sue  http://ICrea8Cards.blogspot.com/

Kim           http://uscrap2.blogspot.com/

Shelly        http://mypaperlove.blogspot.com

Amy          http://www.lovetocrop.com

Lezlye      www.lezlyes.blogspot.com

Thank you so much for hopping along with us!!!

   
 ~~Jen H~~

Grillin' &Chillin' Bug Hop Challenge

I made this Summer fun card for the Bug Bites Grillin' Challenge. You must include at least one cricut cut and a hidden critter. I made this with scraps and the nifty fifties cart for the hamburger and the twine I made and the ants are stickers. I have no idea what the bright spots are on top of the hamburger, my camera just kept picking it up.  Thanks for looking!

DD's Crafts 1000 follower giveaway!

Debbie over at DD's Crafts is having a giveaway! She is almost at 1000 followers, how great is that? As soon as she hits that mark she will be picking one lucky lady to win the Wild Card Cricut Cartridge!

I can't wait to get my hands on this cartridge. It is one that is on my wishlist. Head over there by clicking here, and become a follower today! You wont be sorry! =)

Have a great one, ~~Jen~~

Ahoy

Just a quick card to put on here. Friends of our are sailing in for memorial day and I just wanted to make a quick card for them.

All of the paper is scraps. The Ahoy is from Plantin Schoolbook.

The frame cut is from gypsy wanderings I used my gypsy to make a frame. 

I used scallop scissors to make the waves and left a little gap so the card base could peek through.

Of course the picture makes the red look a lot brighter than it actually is.

Four black brads and some hemp cord.  The little piece of paper at the top of the navy blue was made using a punch I got at M's for $5 yesterday. It took me about 15-20 minutes to make and I think it turned out cute for a quickie.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
~~Jen~~

Bow holder for my sister....

I stayed up last night to finish this bow holder that I made for my little sister, and I don't mean her daughter or something. My father remarried and I have a 9 month old half-sister who is just so precious. I always prayed to God to give me a sister and He obviously heard me!  Even though I am 28 years old, I am still thrilled to have a sister!  I made all the bows that are on it and the bow holder itself except the gerber flower.  There are two ribbons stitched together to make little pockets for the bow so they don't slide anywhere. That is what I did before getting into paper crafting was making hair bows for my daughter and niece and to sell at craft fairs and such. I still dabble when my daughter needs a bow to match a new dress or I get a new sister!=)

 

 

 

This is my lil' sis Francesca

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look! I hope you have a fabulous day!

Hugs,
~~Jen~~

So Very Busy

I have been so busy lately. My family is moving as soon as the kids get out of school. My Hubby is working out of town and only coming home on the weekends until we can move to where his new job is. It has been hard for the past month being apart, being a single mom during the week with three active kids, and financially supporting two households! I am looking forward to getting the move over with but before that happens I have to pack this 5 person house by myself and keep enough out to live on till we move. Not the most horrible thing in the world but definitely not fun. I am determined to still take a little time out of each day to spend with my craft stuff before I have to pack it up. I am trying to keep it out till the last possible minute. =) I really have a few challenges that I would love to do and I need to work on my project for the Grillin' and Chillin' bug hop, which by the way is going to be so much fun, hosted by Barb over at Bug Bites !!! I am so excited for that!!! I'm not participating in the first hop which is the Grillin' part, but I will definitely hop along with the very talented ladies that are. I will be participating in the second or Chillin' bug hop and can't wait! Mark your calendars for this one it is going to be so much fun with lots of blog candy and an end of the hop challenge.

Hugs,
 ~~Jen~~

My first Award...How exciting!

I received this award from Priscilla over at Pri's Craftee Escape. Thank you so much! I am very excited because this is my first award and it is a great feeling!

The Liebster Blog award is given to bring newer blogs into the light. It's a great way to share blogs that might not otherwise have been noticed and should be! As a recipient you must share the love and pass it along to others, as well as these four things:

1. You must post on your blog and tell a little about the award and announce your 3-5 picks.
2. Let those know you have chosen them.
3. Copy and post the award on your blog for all to see.
4. Have fun and continue to inspire.  

I have chosen the following blogs to pass this award on to in no particular order-

1. http://kcustom-fi.blogspot.com/ 
2. http://sweetpeascards.blogspot.com/ 
3. http://savorysweetandsparkly.blogspot.com/ 
4. http://lovecupcakesandjesus.blogspot.com/
5. http://crafdeecat.blogspot.com/ 

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs, 
~~Jen H~~ 

Link Up Love Party with K Andrew

Kristal over at Getting Cricky with K. Andrew is having her fabulous Link up party. If you haven't visited her blog before you are in for a treat! Besides the fact that she is uber talented she is always giving and has such inspirational words to share. I am so glad that when I started my blog in February of this year that she was one of the first blogs I came across.
This Link up Party is such a great way to meet new bloggy friends and get inspiration from others. I am excited to be a part of this Link up party again this month and can't wait to start visiting other blogs and getting inspired.

Along with this post we are supposed to put our favorite project that we have done. I am not sure that I have a favorite but this is the one that meant the most to me. I had made a mother's day card for my mom and she was my inspiration. I just took a lot of what I know about her and put it into my card.

I hope you all have a great time with this Link Up Love Party and meet many new friends!


Hugs,
~~Jen H~~

Retro Daddy-Getting Cricky Simply Sunday Challenge

Yay! I get to be a guest designer over at Getting Cricky for today's Simply Sunday Challenge- Retro Daddy. I am so excited! The card that I made is for my father. He loves his vinyl! He stills has all of his records from when he was younger and often frequents flea markets and such in search for more.

Recipe:
Cricut Cart- Nifty Fifties for the daddyo cut
White Cardstock for base
Orange paper is scrap
The patterned paper is Nikki Sivils- Dan the Record man collection.  I used the Dan's Turntable and reverse side Record Strips.
White gel pen - Black gel pen

























Thank you for stopping by and taking a look!

Hugs,

~~Jen~~

A+ card

I just wanted to share real quick because my other post got deleted and hasn't shown up yet. The card I entered in the  FCC-challenge me monday #59- teacher feature and in the Cardz Tv NSD Challenge.

I don't know if my other post will ever show up again but just doing this as back up. It's a regular A2 size card all the paper was scrap, the apple is from doodlecharms, the A+ is from Plantin Schoolbook and the ribbon is SU. Also used a white gel pen.

Thanks so much for looking!

Hugs,

~~Jen~~

Baker's Twine

I saw a video tutorial HERE on how to make your own bakers twine so I decided to try it out. It only took me about 45 minutes to do all 7 colors. I think they turned out pretty cute. Not exactly the quality that you can buy but it is perfect for the crafter on a budget, like me!=)  Thank you UKMaryanne for the tutorial!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
Jen

OMG'sh

I devoted today to getting the NSD challenges from MPS done. OMG'sh I took 9 hours collectively to get all 12 projects done and just uploaded them with only 3 minutes to spare. I was very glad that I pushed myself to create so much. I haven't done that much since I got my cricut in January. =) Now that I am officially done I am going to take a long relaxing bath (my neck, back and arm hurts, not to mention I am glittered, inked and glued =P) then I am going to take my tail end to bed. I had so much fun and I look at my craft area and cringe. It is a total wreck. Tomorrow will be clean up from Hurricane ME! I wanted to show you guys what my favorite project of all was.

This card was from challenge #6, which was incorporate a tag. I finally got out my quilling stuff and quilled this adorable butterfly. I think he turned out great for my first quilling project and I know I am going to have some
much fun with this in the future!


















Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope everyone else had just as much fun with these challenges as I did.



HUGS,
~~Jen~~

MPS NSD challenge #12

Kids theme

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #11

Pink, green and black

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #10

Pet Theme

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #9

Glitz, glam, glitter

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #8

Summer Theme

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #7

Scrapbook LO

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #6

Incorporate a tag

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #5

3-D project

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #4

Mother's Day

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

MPS NSD challenge #3

Breast Cancer
http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

Just a Note

This was one of the funnest cards to make. I got the sew-easy a couple of weeks ago and hadn't had the chance to play with it yet, so I pulled it out and I think it turned out cute for a simple card. The blue paper came from my scraps but the yellow polka-dot was from MME- Stella&Rose-Hattie paper pad. (which by the way is so pretty). 

I made this for the Sew Fabulous Challenge over at Getting Criky but it went with the Kraft Cardstock MPS NSD challenge so I entered it there as well.

Kraft cardstock-

http://www.mypinkstamper.com/

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
~~Jen~~