Time for a Close to my Heart Open House!!!

Wow! It has been way too long....but I think I'm finally ready to show you what is new and exciting at Close to my Heart!

It is Open House time!!!....Scheduled for Saturday Oct. 6th from 5-9 at my house, it promises to be the biggest and best Open House and Idea Book Party ever!!  We will be "touring" the Fall/Winter Idea book, checking out new product, doing demo's of the new Studio J Essentials product and the new Artiste Cricut cartridge. Make and takes will be available for your creative side and deeply discounted retired product for your thrifty side!

Also there will be registration for some upcoming workshops and classes this fall with info on a new monthly "club" starting in January. Start off the new year nurturing your crafty side and making time for you! Lot's of input from members as to what you want to do each month, so come and check it out!

Feel free to bring your friends and neighbors too, the more the merrier....Contact me for directions if you haven't been here before, or can't remember how to get here. Please drop me an e-mail to let me know you are coming so I can have enough food and fun to share with everyone!
Can't make it? There is a link to the party through my Close to my Heart website here. Order by clicking the "Open House Party" link on the right and you can be part of the fun. Just order and your product will be sent directly to your home and there are some great "while supplies last" items only available there as well! In addition, I will send you a gift for "attending" even if it was online!

See you soon....
Terrie

Missing Barbara....

Missing my sweet mother-in-law these days. Barbara passed away on August 14th at 7:58pm at home with her loved ones surrounding her. We brought her home to Arizona to bury her along side her beloved parents and baby sister. She will be missed until we see her again in heaven.

Sorry about the delay....

Sorry friends for my absence...back from the cruise, back to work, back to school and now waiting sadly for updates on my MIL Barbara as her cancer has progressed and she is in hospice now and we are waiting to hear about arranging our trips back to Tulsa for our good byes  : (

While the cruise was wonderful and our time together precious....it seems way to fast.....

I will be back as soon as I can to update and share some dates for CTMH events that I will have to put on the back burner for a few weeks...Sorry

Be back as soon as I can, and thanks for understanding....

Terrie

Tasting It!!!

Convention is getting so close, I can taste it! One of my favorite things recently has been getting the opportunity to go to Close to my Hearts annual convention. 4 whole days of creative bliss, time to reconnect with old friends, make some new ones and play with paper to my hearts content!


This year I will be attending with my good friend and downline, Cathy and we are headed to Dallas! Yes, deep in the heart of Texas, we will be creating up a storm. One of our favorite activities is getting to hear about all the new products and progams offered by CTMH and get our hot little hands on the new Fall/Winter Catalog and Idea Book. Every year it just gets better! Close to my Heart does such a good job keeping "on trend" and "innovative." Looking forward to it!


On Sunday the 15th, I will be picked up at our hotel by my fun SIL and BIL along with my sweet MIL to head out to Galveston to sail away on the Carnival Magic!! Yep, it is finally time to celebrate Barbara's big birthday with a cruise. A little delayed, but very much anticipated by all of us. I love these people and can't wait to relax and reconnect with them. Bryan will also get to test out his Scuba Diving skills finally with two dives, one in Roatan and one in Belize....Me? I'll be laying low and relaxing with Larry and Barb on a beach somewhere!! Lot's of pics to share upon my return....


Also will have info on my New Catalog Reveal and Open House. I have been purging and collecting all sorts of fun things to sell and share with my friends as I recently moved my Studio back into a smaller, more usable space. You will all be invited for a tour and some fun creative time soon!
Love ya,
Terrie

It's Stampaganza Time!!!

Are you ready for some stampin? It's time once again for Stampaganza with CTMH! Order any two stamp sets and get a third stamp set (of equal or lesser value) for FREE! This applies to any A,B,C,D or E size set. (only custom and SOTM are excluded)
Keep in mind you can also get the Stamp of the Month, for only $5 with a $50 order, so that even sweetens the deal. Especially since this month's SOTM is a cute, and very trendy, birdy stamp called "Life Is Tweet." Make sure you head to my website here to start shopping...

To make this month even "tweeter", if you order $35 in product, (before S/H and tax), I will let you choose any stamp set out of my large collection for free!! (If you bump up your order just $15 more, you will get the SOTM for $5 too!!) To get this great deal, contact me directly through my e-mail, found here and I will place your order directly....(If you are out of town, I will even include shipping to you!!!)

It's a great offer, I look forward to hearing from you soon!!!  This order will go in on the 15th of June, so start shopping!!! If you need a catalog, let me know!!
Terrie

Lovin' "Dotty for You"

Sorry about the delay getting back....Our workshop we had originally planned for this Saturday had to be rescheduled as our venue became unavailable : ( 
We hope to still have the workshop, but probably in late June. I will include some pictures of the cute card box I made with CTMH's "Dotty for You" National Scrapbooking Month special. This fun, easy project is very economical too...when you spend just $35 before shipping and handling, you can get the kit for just $5. It is a great savings with a retail value of over $19! Head on over to my website to order, or leave a comment and I will get back with you and add it to an upcoming order!! If you order a paper pack through me directly, I will provide your card box for free! Yay, another $5 value!
Talk to you soon!!

Happy "National Scrapbooking Month"

What do you have planned this Saturday? Why not spend a little time getting you "Scrap" on! It's "National Scrapbooking Day" and I for one plan on spending part of the day in my craft room creating something fabulous!

I am working out the final details for a workshop/class featuring Close to my Heart's National Scrapbooking Kit "Dotty for You" so check back in the next day or two for dates, prices and options for you to order these kits online or come to a class held locally in the North Valley.

On a very sad note, I lost my camera at a recent scrapbooking trip to Greer, so I do plan on having pictures of the cute Note Card Set I created with our "Dotty" paper soon, but will have to purchase a new camera first.....
Don't worry though, it will be worth the wait!!!
Can't wait to share with you all.

In the meantime, make sure you send me a copy of what you create on National Scrapbook Day and I will post them on my blog for all to see.....If I get several pictures, I will have my CTMH team vote for a winner and I will send you an awesome prize package! You are welcome to enter more than one project and in case you don't get to create on May 5th, I will leave the contest open till the 15th because surely everyone will have time to create by then!!! Best of luck to you all and get busy creating!
Terrie

I Love Texas!!!

Just back from another fun and fast trip to Texas for Spring Break! Ian and I flew to Austin and Mom and Dad picked us up. Of course we went straight to the Roadhouse in Bastrop....Most awesome burger and sweet potato fries ever!

Lots of time at the park in Castlegate where Mom and Dad live, playing basketball, swinging on the monkey bars and walking. Ian was in heaven..

We went to Van Vleck on Friday and Ian was thrilled to get to ride and drive the golf cart. He did really good too, also made fast friends with the cat next door.

Took our usual family picture with Buddy and Wanda...we love spending time with them, and miss them so much in between visits. Also got to eat a King Buffet again....the shrimp was awesome!

On Saturday, we went to the Texas Aggies Softball game against Missouri...unfortunately they lost, but Ian enjoyed the close game and the 4 homers hit by the Lady Aggies! He also really liked the peanuts, he must of since he ate a whole bag almost all by himself!

What trip would be complete without a trip to Brenham and the Blue Bell Creamery for some Ice Creme! Here is Ian in his factory hat.

Leah was so jealous, but this year the blue bonnets were plentiful and so beautiful! I made Ian sit in this field for pictures...it smelled so good there.

I am so blessed to spend time with my still very active parents. They are so generous to us and we are so grateful to have them in our lives....

Love you Mom and Dad,
Terrie

Welcome CTMH friends!

Welcome to all my NEW friends from CTMH! Close to my Heart has just launched our new Online Business addresses, and anyone who visits my business site can come check out my blog with a click of the mouse......so if you are visiting for the first time....WELCOME!

On this blog, I share artwork, family stories and frankly anything that strikes my fancy. Hope you will come back often and be a part of my CTMH family....

I am heading out on vacation next week to visit my family in Texas, so probably won't be posting, but rest assured, I will have plenty of fun things to share upon my return!!
Talk to you soon...
Terrie

Welcome to Our World Dori!!

Hi Friends,

This post is to welcome the newest member of the family....Dori, our new kitty!

Dori is short for Dorito as we have decided to name all our animals after snack food.

So far we have Poppy, our puppy (short for Popcorn) Sushi, the fish, (enough said), our sweet Slurpee cat, who we miss so much everyday after the 7-11 Slushee drink and now Dori....



She actually looks kind of big in this photo, but she is still very small, less than a pound!
Hope to update you more as our little one grows up!
Talk to you all soon...
Terrie

February Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!

Hi all,

Welcome to the February Stamp of the Month Blog Hop, featuring "Thoughtful Tidings."

Tomorrow is the big day when you too can order this first of 6 new Stamp of the Month's as the new Close to my Heart Spring/Summer Idea Book goes LIVE!

There are so many new and very fun papers, stamp sets and embellishments, but for today, we are going to show you the first SOTM from the new catalog...


This is a round robin hop, so if you have come from Nancy's Blog, you are on the right track, check out my card and candy holder and then head on over to the next blog listed below...


I created a thank you card for the leader of my daughters dance troup. She is a demonstrator for a dance group for kids and young adults with Down's Syndrome and Autism. This leader does so much for these kids, I wanted a special card to include with her gift.

The stamped image is from the SOTM and the ribbon is our Cranberry grosgrain. The large "mum" flower is created from several of our paper flowers. (Easy once you use the tutorials found on the bulletin boards.)



Next is a tiny french fry box, cut with the AP Cricut Cartridge, the perfect size to hold a Hershey's minature. Wrapped up with some twill ribbon stamped with the star from this month's SOTM. It is a perfect little something. The picture right after will show you how tiny the box is....






That's it for me, but make sure you hop on over to Judy Burger's Blog to see what she has created this month!

Goals

OK, I promised to return to day and give you my goals for the new year....

I'm calling them goals instead of resolutions since I haven't had much luck with those : )

So without further ado...here they are, in no particular order!!!


1. Move More and Eat Well...
(coined by Cathy Zielske)


I know how to do this I just have chosen not to....This year


it is becoming more of a necessity than a choice. My sugar


numbers are up as well as my weight and I just don't feel


as good as I used to. I know I'm older, but I know with a little


work, I could feel a whole lot better.



2. My Crafts need to pay for my Supplies...


This shouldn't be too hard, I just need to keep track of things


better. When I sell something, it needs to go into the account I


buy my supplies from. I am nickel and dimeing our family

account to death.


3. Support my CTMH Downline better...


I have done a horrible job with this in the past. I think since I

learned the ropes pretty much on my own, that I think everyone

likes to do it that way....This is not necessarily so, I need to

keep in touch and have routine meetings and crafting sessions

with my girls. Should help all of us with our business goals.


4. Remember my family and friends with Occasion Cards on time...


I love all my family members and friends so much, but they

would never know if by the way I remember

(or don't remember) the special events in their lives. This

year, my event calendar will get a workout and those cards

will make it on time.

5. Project Life...

I am starting Project Life this year. I have planned to do

it in the past, but just never got around to it. My title page

is almost ready, (I need some family input) and I will try

and post here often. This will also help in the "keeping in

touch with family" goal mentioned above.


6. My Mayo job...


Going way out on a limb here since this has been a goal

of mine for several year. I will get the Rolodex in working

order. I will get the pictures taken, the images gathered

and sorted and assembled in a usable product for all of us,

but mostly for my students. Also, I will submit an article

or two for publication. I have some abstracts started and I

will keep on plugging away until I get published.


7. My "Real" job....


Motherhood is what I consider my "real" job. It is the most

important thing I do and if I mess it up, then I have done

my kids a disservice. While I know that not all the

"parent-child" issues we have in our house are not my

problem alone, I think I have not appoached problems

with a calm, let's fix it demeanor, but a reactive demeanor

which just escalates the problem. I will work on that and

if I can't do it myself, I will seek out professional help.


8. Date night with my wonderful Hubby....


Even if it is just the two of us sitting down together

sans kids, or heading to our room or the hot tub to

chat, we will spend time alone together at least once

a week. It is hard to find this time some weeks, but

it will be more of a priority this year. Also, I intend

to make our home a welcoming, clean, happy place for

us to "live."

9. Church and Faith...

It is time to get a handle on what I am putting into my

relationship with my God. I am realizing that it has

been pretty much a one way street, I need to step it up,

I need to stick my neck out once in awhile, I need to

show others what my God has taught me and I need to

dig deep before I make decisions, really look for his

guidance, not use others input to make the hard decisions.

I need to show God how much he means to me and how

much his sacrifice is appreciated and revered.


10. Simplify and Live within our means.....

While I have said I would simplify before, it really

needs to be in accordance with our bank account

and our long term goals.

Nuff said!!!

Happy New Year!!!

I'm back (again), but not apologizing....I have had the best time ever with the family this year. No real big plans, just quality time spent together and making plans for next year.

Christmas we spent the day being really lazy, but got to talk to both sides of the family and play with new toys, Ian's 3DS and plan a shopping trip, to spend Leah's Christmas money, and sit in the hot tub, and by the fire and play our new favorite family game, Apples to Apples...

We cooked a prime rib on Christmas and a ham today, both were awesome and then I forced everyone to eat black eyed peas to assure us of a "lucky" new year.

Reflecting as we watched fireworks last night, we couldn't help but be a little saddened to realize that we spent last New Years Eve and Day planning to say goodbye to Bryan's dad Bill. In fact we couldn't even remember what we did last New Years Eve. (I don't think we really cared much) Then this year we lost Kathy and Bryan's mom was diagnosed with cancer....it just was a long tough year. We know with God's grace and his goodness that this year will be better.

I am starting Project Life this year and hope to share here a glimpse of how truly blessed we are and how much we have to be grateful for....

Hope to be back tomorrow with my Project Life Title Page complete with a "snapshot" of our lives right now, this minute...
Also, some goals for 2012, not resolutions....Goals!

Till then, savor every minute and make every one count,
this ride is gonna be fun!!!

TD