WARNING....this is a LONG POST..maybe my longest ever!
This is me:
This is NOT me
http://spellbinderspaperarts.com/blog/2011-spellbinders-design-team-finalists-round-one/
I am on the Prima Education Team, I design red rubber stamps for Purple Onion Designs and Dies &Embossing Folders for Sizzix and well, speaking of dies, here is an example for the my shapes you can cut from felt (yes, you can cut felt)
no, they are not hacky sacks, but I am thinking that if you filled them with kitty litter or rice, they probably could be (dang cute ones, too!) No, they are pin cushions...
anyways...apparently there are TWO Stephanie Ackermans in this industry and plenty of room for more, but....I am me, and she is she (a little Dr. Seuss for you!) I don't know her (but did get a little email from her once) and I am not sure about what exactly she does...but congrats to her on being a finalist for the Spellbinders team!
and well, just because I know you are dying to know...here is a little about me:
1. I started out Stephanie Knudtson at birth (no, not this big, this was me on the 3rd birthday!)
and a handful of my Facebook friends knew me as like this from the Class of 1987..whoot whoot!
Although I never had a "glamour shot" photo session, I really should have with those nails and I feel pretty confident that many of my readers had highly flammable "aqua net" hair and shoulder pads.
2. I was Stephanie Tafoya for 10 years
3. I had two stinky lovely boys (well, I mean I still have them!) and they are growing up way to fast!
4. I love my home and rather be there than anywhere...except for Maui
at Lara's in South Africa
or on the streets of Huntingdon PA.
5. We have a dog, "had"a rabbit, and have had the same carnival 10 cent fish for a LONG time because he swims in bottled water....apparently he is the Real Orange County Gold Fish.
5. I was once I mean, TWICE President of the US, I mean PTA, drove a mini van (which I LOVED and still would drive one today)
6. I ran a marathon , went to church, volunteered at the school, worked at the school..spent alot of time at the school..while traveling through divorce
7. I have traveled to many a skate park and sat in beach chairs on the front curb with the GND (girl next door) for many an hour..Now the kids are sitting on the curbs with their friends and there is no room for the moms....and the girl next door moved away...
8. I have worked in an office, catered and served many a drink the several of the REAL OC housewives (and have never been a waitress!) went into the category of Self Employed, baked 100's and I mean HUNDREDS of cakes and cupcakes...painted 1000's of snowmen on ornaments
9. In 2006 I dove head first into the Paper Crafting world after several dreamy talks and a visit from a girl..my creative life took a turn and have made the most wonderful amazing friends...
fast-forward...
10. Re-connected with the first boy that I ever loved (when I was 15 and we worked at McDonalds)
11. Surrounded by my family and my best friends, became Stephanie Ackerman in 2007
12. just a few months after that, this was published...
and I did this, that and the other..here and there..traveling, teaching, designing, gluing, cutting, coloring, doodling, blogging..learning...failing, crying...laughing....
13. I call myself "god's Crash test Dummy" because sometime I do things...well, once I took the guard off of a die cut machine and wound up rolling my finger right through it (yeas, I had to roll it back out so I could be taken to the urgent care!) and yes, of course I have a picture...you don't want to see it!
14. I take GIANT leaps of faith (because I like to stay at home) and have traveled the streets of Downtown Los Angeles to find creative treasures
and have traveled around the world to South Africa where I met up with my best Creative Soul Friend and found my home on the other side of the globe..and did it again two years later year....
15. I pray ALOT...and doodle about it
16. I am blessed to have an amazing family
17. some super cool friends that get my dorkyness and love me anyway
18. I have some amazing friendships that have bloomed from this wacky world of paper..and my own vuvuzuela
19. I belong to a REALLY amazing Church and give all the credit to GOD for my wildly creative amazing life....
and am blessed and HONORED to be working on a new project for our Women's Ministry with a super team of women that I can not wait to share...coming in the fall of 2011...eeek!!!!
20. Our house...is in the middle of our street...and it is really super fun where we live....sometimes more like a campground. We have said "Bon Voyage" to too many neighbors (if you ask me) but have welcomed in some amazing new neighbors...and I have a new girl next door that I look forward to sitting on the curb watching her kiddos someday...not quite yet....all the newbies are sooooo young...makes me feel...really...."mature"!
oh yeah..I LOVE to make things....alot!
whew...that's all I have for now, because I am bored and sure that you are too....
oh, did I mentioned that I LOVE Bon Jovi?
You have an amazing story and much of it is like mine. Divorced after 21 years of marriage and now married for 14 wonderful years. I just signed up for your 12 month scrapbook course and I am so excited. I am doing this for me and to be about me. I have grieved for the past year over the suicide of my precious only sister and 2012 is going to be different. I have put on alot of weight since her death because I am such an emotional eater and I suffer from fibromyalgia and dysautonomia. But I have great faith in a mighty God to heal me emotionally, spiritually and mentally, and your page and journey has inspired me. I need to do this to journal "my year" back to life for the rest of my family and my beautiful 15 month old grandson. Thank you for giving to the Lord! I plan on knowing you much better!
Posted by: Suzanne Light | December 30, 2011 at 07:31 PM
Someone pinned this blog and I am SO happy I saw it! You seem like an amazing person that I would love to know. I am Thankful that this life is not all there is and there will be an eternity ahead to get to know all the cool people that God has called to be His own. Your comment about being God's crash test dummy was pretty funny. My husband calls me the "spice in his life"...sometimes it's like snorting wasabi! lol.
Posted by: Dawn Kalsbeek | March 13, 2012 at 09:26 AM
Loved reading this about the person that is inspiring me right now. Would you mind terribly if I did something like it about me?
Posted by: Aubien | April 19, 2012 at 09:51 AM
GO FOR IT!!!! Tell your story.
Posted by: stephanie ackerman | April 20, 2012 at 06:20 AM
I just discovered you on the Purple Onion site. Must have been the only rubber stamp company that I missed.:) BUT lovin' your Doodle Word set which I just saw there. Sooo, after reading your "getting to know me" blog, I would really like to know what font you used to design that word set. I could use more than just those few words when creating my greeting cards. Thank so much...Sharon
Posted by: Sharon Green | May 07, 2012 at 10:11 AM