Homegrown Hospitality

For a good cause...

  Most of you know that I created and am working on a BIG AUCTION to benefit and raise funds for my commitment to the Avon 3 Day 39.3 walk this coming Sept. and have created the "Fight For the Girl{s} campaign. 

As things come together I will keep you informed on all of the details...BUT, I thought that I would kick off this week with a little something....Homegrown.

In the past year, I have received MANY emails & inquiries regarding my magazines published through CKMedia:

 

 

and while these magazines are no longer in circulation, I had an "idea" and contacted my friend Megan @ CK last week and asked if they could donate the "leftovers" to the auction. Well, in the mail on Friday, I received about 1 dozen of each issue...and so here I am, hopefully inspiring you to make a donation and in return, you can choose one of the magazines and I will send it to you...or two..or three...

BUT,

I did not know exactly how to "pitch the idea" to you because I am a no pressure, just "get along", equal opportunity, totally non-competitive type o' girl that really hates to "ask", especially in such a financially tough economy...but then, today at church, right there on the message notes was a verse that made it very clear to me...

so, here is me..asking you..to consider a donation of $7.00.  (5.99 of the proceeds goes to the Avon Foundation & 1.00 for shipping)

BUT...

there is a hitch...there are only 12 of each, so you are going to have to email me at [email protected] first..BEFORE YOU MAKE A DONATION...so that I can keep track of the magazines....

It is a totally SIMPLY COMPLICATED way to "ask", but I do hope that you would consider making a contribution because together, we can Celebrate Hope and Fight for the Girl{s}!

change is good...in this case...better

   

 

 

a quick note....during my little break....

there are people in your life that leave a "footprint" and Heidi Grace is one of those people to me.

She has been missing in action for almost a year and during that year, I have kept my mouth quiet for her...but as quiet as I have been...

I CAN BE EQUALLY LOUD

and today is a day that I have been waiting for...for a long time....so..if you are a paper lovin,fabric sewin girl like me....then YOU are gonna be sooooooooo happy about this...

go on...

go look....

here is her blog

and here is her super cute website  (link is fixed)

and PLEASE let her know you are happy to see her....I sure am!!!!!!!!!!

Except for Love & Forgiveness

NOTHING is ever FREE...at least that is what I usually say

except for today....

because if you go to The Daily Digi...some of the Sx2 (Stephanie x 2) Doodles...

are FREE!

and here is a quick look at what I just did with them....

I will give you more specifics on this later in the week, but for US NON-DIGI people, just download them off the site, save them into a file on your computer and then open a normal ol' word document and insert them like a picture and then print them on card stock...it really is that easy.  Okay, so I did complicate it by adding ink & machine stitches, ribbons, buttons..blah blah..blah, but as the boys would say.."That is the way I roll" which I think means that "that is the way I do things"...

other than that...THERE IS ALOT GOING ON right now under my little roof, like the the busiest last three weeks of school. open house tonight, classes this weekend, soccer games to get to, kits to make, laundry to do..one coughing kid, one recovering husband that WAS REALLLLLLLYYYYY SICK over the weekend, a closed door for me with another opening up, a doodle class that is going to get going WITHOUT PENS????, an unbelievable fundraiser auction in the works with an amazing line up...and

most important, a need for your prayers for my BFF on the other side of the world.  I became a "Fairy God Mother" on Friday to South Africa's newest & cutest baby girl, but because I wantto respect their privacy until I get the green light to share more, I really would ask that you keep Lara, Dave and sweet little baby Naomi in your prayers....

xoxo

s.

Memorial Day 2009

Worth the wait...

When I was growing up, I never knew “what I wanted to be” and as I graduated high school, I still did not know. All I ever did know is that I wanted to be a wife and a mom…oh, and to make things.

After 39+ years later, I finally know.  Why it took 39+ years to figure out, I will never know but what I do know is that I have 39 + years to work it…whew!

I am Stephanie

GOD loving

cookie baking

paper creating

flip fop wearing

daughter

sister

wife

mom

daughter in law

sister in law

friend

neighbor

regular ol’ girl

 

and I have a

 

 

to

 

what about you?

Back in the day...nah!

It is the kick off to Memorial Day Weekend...

Back in the day I would have been sleeping at this time of the morning, packed up and ready to head to the river, planning a weekend full of just fun,simple non-stop sun, makin' sure I had a new bottle of "sun in" for my hair and LOTS of Hawaiian tropic for my long arms...and just being plain ol' happy to welcome in summer.

 

 

Now I wake up at 3:15 am thinking

• "my running clothes" are in the washer and won''t be dry in time for 8am (I don't dry my running stuff)
• The school carnival is two weeks from today and I still need to find more volunteers, email the BMX team about posters, find out a list of the games...
• Don't forget to put sunscreen on the back of my neck while we sell dinner tickets after school for Open House because my neck burned on Tuesday...
• The kids are sleeping on the pull out bed in the living room and John has to get up at 4am and won't know and might trip as he shuffles through the house making his way to the coffee (because we live in a small house and the house of couch takes up the entire room therefore pulling a bed out of the house of couch is RIDICULOUS ) so I should get up and turn on the lights so he can see but the kids are sleeping and it is enough that I am up at 3:15, I surely do not need the entire house up.
• I betcha the dog pee'd in the bathroom...(yes...I was right, now IF only we could get him to use the toilet)
• I should really just get my hair cut back to the way it usually is
• I hope my pen order comes in because if not, maybe I should just go back to the "other" pens, which I bought a few new ones because I needed some new colors...at full price at Aaron Brothers without even a coupon and NOW, via email, at 3:15 it appears that there is one in my in box!

Now that I am up, wide awake and drinking coffee in my nice quiet house of couch, I would not trade a thing, well, okay..maybe I would have done things a little differently, but it would have not lead to right here, right now...and I like right here..right now because I am

  

• able to run/walk for someone who needs me (& you) to fight like a girl..for the girl {s}
• able to plan a school carnival that the kids LOVE to come to regardless of the blood, sweat and tears that goes into planning it.
• grateful for great friends that will sit next to me in the sun to help sell tickets.
• the mom of two healthy kids that think it is super fun to pull a mattress out of a couch and sleep on it on a school night..and hopefully a husband who will be unconsciously happy that he has a wife that was worried that he would trip over it, which would NOT HAVE BEEN A GOOD WAY to start a long weekend..(I am going to go ahead a say "good thing for me")
• um..I will get back to the dog....ughhh.
• thinking a bad hair day it better than not having hair...I just need to get a new hat.  My Bon Jovi hat is on it's last leg...
• blessed with the ability to doodle...regardless of the pen...but maybe think about switching to an economy pleaser like crayons...YEAH!!!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend....

p.s..hold your comments on the photo..especially you RANDY..cause I know you have got to have some mullet picture hiding somewhere...but honestly...WHAT WAS I THINKING??????????????? sorry mom & dad!

Updates on everything...

I am going to step down from my fundraising efforts for a moment so that I can catch up on things that need attention..

like a Doodle class that was supposed to start on May 15th...but since we have no pens as of yesterday, I have not sent out kits yet.  As I mentioned in an email last week, I want to do this right, but at the same time, I do not want to negelect you and your desire to doodle...so I am working on some alternative plans...so please, for all of my Doodlers out...not to fear...I have not forgotten about you..nor our class and am ready to just march on without the dumb pens...

I also am excited to head out to Palm Desert NEXT WEEK to join up with the Desert Scrappers Retreat for a few classes teaching little lovely book...using Teresa Collins, Jenni Bowlin a little felt...and a little this and that...I LOVE this little book...sometimes little things make a BIG DIFFERENCE....

 

and the great thing about these classes are that you do not have to be attending the Desert Scrappers Retreat to join us...just send me an email to [email protected] with "Desert Scrappers Class" in the subject line and I will fill you in on all of the details.

and speaking of classes...I am heading to Making Memories Unforgettable in Arizona late in July...so watch for that...and I am planning to rejoin my friends at the Pink Pineapple...just need to work on that..and well, I am working on  NEW DIGITAL DESIGNS  &  few other things...but like a nice fresh bunch of grapes...it takes time to become fine wine...or raisens for that matter...

so I must go....but you never know when I might pop back in...and again...thank you all so much for joining in with me and my committment to the Avon 39.3 walk...WE are all in this together....

 

My heart is so full

  

an auction to benefit & support the fight for so many...

details to follow soon.