Great News

We saw Dr. Delashaw, a neurosurgeon with OHSU today. He says that Brett does not have a colloid cyst. He said he does not know what the film shows but that it does not look like a colloid cyst would look. He had three other surgeons looking at the film and they were all scratching their heads. He also said it does not look like anything to be worried about at this point. We scheduled another scan for June 4th to see if it changes. If it does change then he would want to do surgery. If it doesn't change then they would continue to monitor it. He said that it is possible that this is something that has been there Brett's entire life and it may just be there and maybe nothing would ever have to be done to it.

Updates on Brett

I have decided to use my blog to keep friends and family udpated on Brett. He has a colloid cyst deep in his brain. This is not cancerous but it is a concern because it can cause complications or death if left untreated. Surgery is another concern and can also cause all sorts of complications. We are meeting with a neurosurgeon today at OHSU and should have more information on what will be happening. I will post updates as I know more. We appreciate your prayers and positive thoughts.

A New Baby

We got a furbaby in January. His name is Arnie and his is a 'poochon' which is a poodle and bichon mix. He is oh so adorable and lots of laughs. Cami (aka Naughty Girl) has a love/hate relationship with him. One minute she is hugging and kissing him and the next she is pulling his tail and pinching him.

Christmas Stamp A Stack

Here are photos of the cards for the upcoming stamp-a-stack. The date is Friday, November 20th. If you are interested email me for more details!

Patterned Pines Holiday Mini Hostess Set

This is a hostess rewards stamp set. It is one of my current favorites! This card will be a make and take card for tomorrow night's demonstrator meeting. The colors I used are Real Red, Old Olive, and Ballet Blue.

Super Cute Halloween Cards

These are two really great Halloween cards that I have recently received. The card on the left came from a recent meeting and I believe this is a copy of a card front received as a swap at Convention. Sorry but I don't know who to give credit to for this idea. The card uses the stamp set 'Halloween Frights' and the 'Modern Label' punch was used to make the fence. The card (with the candy) on the right was created by my upline and friend Susan Rodgers and uses the Sweet Centers stamp set which is in the Holiday Mini Catalog. We will be making these cards at my Fall/Halloween Workshop on September 17th. If you would like to attend please RSVP at dana@danahatch.com

Gift Tags/Card Candy

I made these for a swap next month. The idea was to make something (other than a card) using new product from the Holiday Mini Catalog. These are small packages of gift tags and I thought they would make great hostess gifts.

Cat Anatomy 101

My daughter thinks our kitty's belly button is below her tail. LOL!

Summer Fun

I took Cami to Sears to get some updated photos. They have this cute beach scene so I just had to get some bathing suit photos!

Shutter Card

I made this shutter card today while my daughter is in her preschool class. The most difficult part of this for me was cutting the slits. I had a hard time with my hobby blade probably because I don't use it much. I used sanding blocks to fix my choppy cutting job :). This is a cool card and great for when you don't have much to say because there isn't much room to write in it ;)!

Explosion Box Scrap Book

I wanted to show off this cute explosion box/scrapbook that I recently completed. Of course I haven't gotten around to putting photos in it or decorating the outside of the box but I still think it's cute enough to show off! I used the pop up cake die inside but instead of the three layers of the cake, I only used the top two to make it fit. This is going to be a great gift for whomever I decide gets it!

Decor Elements!

These photos are a little tricky because they are both mirrors but I wanted to show you SU's Decor Elements. These two mirrors are the first times that I used this product. I really enjoyed making these and plan to decorate a wall in our family room using some different ones that I ordered. If you like these and want to know more about them please contact me. I will be having a decorating party at my home soon!

Happy Independence Day!

Emerging Color

I made this to try out the technique 'emerging color.' I stamped the butterfly dots image on white cardstock (in Melon Mambo ink) and then stamped over it with the solid butterfly image in Versamark and embossed with clear embossing powder. The last step is to brayer a color on for the background color (Soft Suede ink) and take a rag and wipe the excess ink off the embossed butterflies. The butterflies, ribbon, and the scallop around the salutation have dots on them and bring the whole card together.

Circle Circus, Clean and Simple

I like this new stamp set (Circle Circus) but have had trouble figuring out how to use it. This layout is from cleanandsimplestamping.blogspot.com which is my new favorite blog. I colored the main image with the new in-color markers after embossing it with clear embossing powder.

I love the clean and simple look

The floral card was inspired by a layout on http://www.cleanandsimplestamping.blogspot.com/ This is going to be my fav new site because I am a clean and simple kind of gal. The pear card is going to be one that we will make at a Summer class at my church. I am trying to come up with some cute cards using up some retiring supplies.

New Toys Round 3

The card with the birds is made with a Level 2 Hostess Set called 'The More the Merrier' and the floral card was made with 'Razzle Dazzle.' I used my Scor Pal to get the grid lines on the floral image--just score the cardstock first, then brayer on a background color and then stamp the focal image.

New Toys Second Round

I had a little more time to play with the new toys tonight. The floral card uses a new stamp set called 'Razzle Dazzle' that coordinates with the 'Razzleberry Lemonaide' designer series paper. I used my new in color markers (thank you SU! for making markers for us this year!) to color the floral image. The card with the pheasant stamp was made with a stamp set called 'Autumn Days.' The colors on this card look funky in the photograph and better in real life. Check out the polka dot ribbons which are also available in all of the new colors!

First Play With My New Toys

Wow this is my second day in a row posting here! Unfortunately my stamping time is nearly zero because my daughter no longer naps since the Binky Fairy came. This means I have no 'self' time.

The above card was made with my new toys. I splurged and express shipped my new 'In Colors' and preview stamps that will be in the new catalog. The stamp set used above is called 'Circle Circus' and it is stamped on designer paper called 'Razzleberry Lemonaide.' The base of the card is Melon Mambo cardstock. By the way, my Melon Mambo stamp pad smells like cherry Koolaid! I was pleasantly surprised when I opened it. Isn't it cool how the stamp matches the little silver flower?

June 26th Pop-Up Cake Card and Gift Bag Class

Here are some photos of the pop up cake card for the upcoming class on Friday, June 26th. We will also be making a coordinating gift bag with a cupcake on it! This class will be $10. Please RSVP if you would like to attend.