You're In My Thoughts / NAC 117

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you had a good weekend and are getting ready for a fabulous Thanksgiving. Unfortunately I needed another sympathy card this weekend. This one is for a friend's daughter. Her grandmother was recently diagnosed with cancer and I wanted her to have something pretty and to let her know she was in my thoughts and prayers. I was so excited with how this turned out. The Nachos have a sketch challenge for you this week. Here's what I came up with-

Here's this week's sketch-

Here's a side view of the butterflies. The solid ones were colored in with my Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie Blendabilities. The floral one was colored in with my Stampin' Write Markers. I used my Butterfly Punch after coloring them to punch them out. All 3 were popped up on dimensionals and the wings were curled slightly to give them extra dimension. I also added a few  rhinestones to the floral one for an added bit of pretty.

I took my color combination from the pretty floral DSP and used
Night of Navy, Blushing Bride, Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie.

Here's a look at the inside. The butterfly was a second stamping from the one used on the front. I simply huffed on the stamp to re-moisten it. Although I don't have a picture of the envelope, I used the 3rd stamping for it.

sorry it's a little crooked :0

That's all I have for you today. I'm happy to say my friends daughter really liked her card and I hope you liked it as well. I sure hope you're going play along with us this week. I can't wait to see what you create!

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the universe. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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Park Lane Birthday / NAC

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Hey y'all. Happy Veteran's Day! I wish I had realized the timing of today's card, I would have done something more in line with this special day. So, No Veteran's Day Card but a Big Shout out to all the Veterans and their families. Never Forget that Freedom isn't Free!

I was so happy with how this card turned out and even better, it's recipient Loved it! The Nachos have a sketch challenge for you this week and I used it to make a birthday card for one of our doctors. She is so sweet and just absolutely elegant. I decided to use my new favorite DSP, Park Lane, for her card and it just evolved. In the end it reminded me of her and made me so happy. I'm soooo excited to share it with you and I hope you like it too.

I almost turned the card to landscape mode, but I had already mounted the smaller strip of DSP and it would have changed the look of the sketch a little too much for me. What do you think?

Here's this week's sketch-

Love this sketch! So Versatile.

Here's a close-up of my focal point-

This is the first time I think I've used the Spiral Flower Die for a card. I picked the Daffodil Delight because it was in the coordinating DSP that I used for the panel. I sponged both sides of the flower with the Blackberry Bliss so it looked pretty from all angles. I used a bamboo skewer to lightly curl the edges of the petals. I wanted a little bit of bling and couldn't find anywhere to put it. Then I had a little moment of inspiration and pulled out my Daffodil Delight Blendabilities and colored one of our retired Large Jewels. Adhered it with a pool of Hot Glue and I think it really adds an unexpected bit of pretty. I also embossed the sentiment with Clear Embossing powder for a little extra texture. 

I can't believe I forgot to take a pic of the inside. I used the large Blended Bloom flower as an accent on the inside. Sorry about that. :(

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked it and I hope it inspires you to play along with us this week. I can't wait to see what you create!

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain. 

Be Safe-

Shan

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Be Scary / NAC 111

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Hey y'all. I hope those of you that live here in America had a wonderful 3 day holiday weekend. I worked most of it at my second job, but it sure was nice to get to sleep in, especially on a Monday! I also got to spend a lot of it with the babies which is always a plus. I also got a few minutes of downtime to play with this week's challenge. The Nacho's have a sketch for you this week and I'm excited to see what you create with it! Here's what I came up with-

I love being able to try new designs without any fuss or muss. I created this week's card with MDS and had fun playing. I created the banner previously, using a combination of punches, and then saved it for use later. How cool is it to be able to do that?!? So many options!!!

Here's the sketch we have for you this week-

So many options...What will you create? I can't wait to see it!

Here's some of the items I used to create this week's project

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

I also used the Eat, Drink, and Be Scary Stamp Set and Decorative Dots Overlay.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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Love Your Guts / NAC #109

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you're having a Great week so far. :) The Nachos have a Sketch Challenge for you this week. This is definitely a sketch that leaves a lot of room for interpretation. I can't wait to see what you come up with. I used it as a jumping off point. Here's my take on it-

I've been wanting to use my new masks and thought the hearts would be cute. My darling's on the other side of the country and blue is his favorite color so that was where I got my color inspiration. I used Island Indigo, Marina Mist, and Pool Party and my daubers to add the ink. Don't recognize the stamp set? It's from My Paper Pumpkin (MPP). I love the stamp sets that come with MPP. Here's this week's sketch-

Here's a look at the inside-

The sentiment is from the same set. I Love it! Seriously!!! :)

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope it inspires you to join along with us. As always if you have any questions, be sure to leave a comment below so I can get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

Love Who You Are / NAC 107

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 Hey y'all. HappyTuesday! I hope you're having a Great week so far. It's time for another sketch challenge with the Nachos and this one has lots of room to play. I got today's stamp set just before convention with the thought of using it for swaps, and I just ran out of time. I've had the thought of this card in my mind for a while now,  with a couple different versions floating around up there. I'm really excited with how it turned out. Here's this week's card-

I think this sentiment is so important. It may be had to do, but it is definitely something to strive for. For many years, more than I would like to think about, this has been an issue for me. Adding PTSD to the mix surely didn't help. It is however, something I'm working hard to do on a daily basis. I don't often take my cards and put them up for myself, but I put this one up in a special place, where I could see it every time I'm in my studio. I love how cheery it is, don't you? It just makes me happy!

Here's the sketch we have for you this week-

I took a little liberty with the sketch, but
the bones are still there

Here's a look at the inside-

Before I go, I want to leave  you with some more pics of little Nacho and Chili Cheese. Why? Because they're just soooo stinking cute!

Little Nacho is such an Amazing Big Sister! Look how happy she is to be holding C.C. She is so sweet and gentle with her. It amazes me how different from each other. I can't wait to see them grow up together!

Well that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked this week's challenge card and I hope it inspires you to join us. Here's the supply list for this week's card-

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's Not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-
Shan Pin It

To Infinity... NAC #105

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 Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! I hope you had a great weekend and if you live here in the US, that you had a wonderful Labor Day to end your Summer. Oh My Goodness! Can you believe Summer is over already!?! Where did it go? It's been a busy one for me and I think the next few weeks are going to be even busier. My daughter is being induced because she is High-Risk and so my Grand-baby #2 arrives on Thursday. This means I've been spending every minute possible with my sweet little Nacho, giving her all the love and attention I can before she's no longer an only. Here's a layout I did last weekend when she stayed over. I decided to use the sketch for this week's Nacho Sketch challenge as a scrapbook page. I also ended up turning it into a Project Life type page as well, that I will try and share later this week. Hope you like it-


                                     

The background is from the Nobody's Business MDS digital kit. It went perfect with her little outfit!

Here's this week's sketch-

There's so many possibilities. What will you come up with? I'm sure it will be fabulous and I can't wait to see it!. Be sure to head over to our page and link up so everyone can see.

Thanks so much for taking time our of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the universe. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's Not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the resin.

Be Safe,

Shan

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Just Chillin' / NAC 101

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you're having a good week so far. Did you have a good weekend? I hope so! I sure did. I got to spend the weekend with Little Nacho, who's 18 months old now and then you know what happened Sunday Night? Football!!!! I'm soooo excited! What I'm most excited about though is showing you this weeks Nacho Challenge project. :)

We have a sketch for you this week and I L.O.V.E., love it! I used it to make a scrapbook page and I can't wait to show it to you! Here's what I designed for this week's challenge-

When I saw this pic of my sweet baby and her new best friend Eggie (Edgar O'Malley), I knew I wanted to do something special with it. They just love each other. Sweet Belle holds him and gives him kisses and little Eggie just purrs and snuggles back. I loved the colors and patterns in the DSP from My Favorite Things. I was scrolling through my Papers looking for something a little different and I thought this was just perfect. What do you think?

Here's this week's sketch-

Love this Sketch!

Well, that's all I have for today. I hope you liked my page and I hope it inspires you to play along with us this week. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Thanks of taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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The Big 100/ NAC #100

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you're having a great week so far. I'm so excited for today's post!!! It's a special week at Nacho Average Challenge. It's hard to believe but it's our 100th Challenge. I can hardly believe it. I'm so glad you stopped by. :) For this week's challenge you can pick any of our previous 99 challenges. I can't wait to see what you create. We have so many Awesome challenges to pick from. I wasn't sure which one I was going to use but in the end my card kind of decided for me.

I had a coworker that requested a card for a friend. The friend was having a difficult time in her personal life and this stamp set just said pic me. Then my DSP said the same thing and so on and so on... Here's what I came up with-

I haven't used my Top-Note Die in a while and was so excited by how this worked for this card. I cut my DSP with it and trimmed it at the perforations. I then cut out a piece of Raspberry Ripple to mat behind it. My friend liked it so much she requested 5 more. Yea! #HappyDance

Here's the sketch I used-

What will you create this week? I can't wait to see what you design. As always, if you have questions about today's card, please be sure to leave a comment in the space below so I can get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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A Sea Street Hello / NAC #97

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you had a great 4th of July and are ready for a new challenge. It's been crazy here trying to get swaps ready for convention next week. I've got some cards I'm so excited to show you! :) Are you going to be at Convention? I'd love to swap with you! The Nacho's have a great new sketch challenge for you this week. I took a break this weekend to play with little Nacho and to come up with this-

I've been wanting to use my new Sea Street stamp set and the coordinating paper and I had fun making this quick and easy card. That little octopus is so stinking cute!

Here's this week's sketch-

You can keep this Clean & Simple or step it up. What will you do with it? I can't wait to see your creation.

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked this week's fun card and I hope you'll play along with us. If you have any questions, be sure to leave me comment & I'll be sure to get back to you.

Before I leave though, I thought I'd add a sweet little pic of Nacho. Hard to believe she's 15 months old already-

She decided she was going to supervise the putting away of our groceries. She grabbed her blankie a toy and crawled up in her stroller all by herself to do the supervising.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Be Safe-

Shan

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Anytime Love / NAC #95

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! I hope you're having a great week so far and enjoying some fabulous summer weather.  The Nacho's have a sketch challenge for you this week. I don't know about you, but sometimes I start with one idea and then end up with something totally different. I had a different stamp set, different paper, different colors, everything when I started this card and hard to believe this is what I came up with.  I'm pretty happy with the end result though. Hope you like it too-

Every once in a while you just need to have a little Love-Note on hand. They're not just for Valentines day. I used the "Love" stamp out of the Everyday Occasions card kit.

Here's the week's sketch-

I have to admit the two little flags threw me off a little. So I stacked them and put them under my shaped piece.  Not quite the same, but close. What will you create with this week's sketch? I can't wait to see your fabulous creations! 

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated. Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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You've Got Us / NAC #93

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you're having a good week so far. The Nacho's have a Sketch challenge for you this week. I can't wait to see what you create!

I have a co-worker that's having surgery this week to rule out Lung Cancer. She's already had a biopsy and they need to do a bigger section. She's an Army Lt. Col. and doesn't strike me as girly-girly and certainly not frou-frou, but I wanted something that was really bright and cheery. Here's what I came up with-

I know, I know, this paper is retired, but I haven't had the time or the money to order the new, and this is so cheery and perfect for this card! Not only that, but I had plenty left, so why not use it? :) The layer beneath the white c/s is also DSP, it's the gingham check.

Here's a close up of the flower. This is definitely not a mailable card unless you were going to put it in a box. This is definitely not going in an envelope. there are 7 punched flowers, 4 Daffodil Delight and 3 Whisper White, all with Daffodil Delight sponged on the edges. I used a brad to hold them together and then topped it with a rhinestone I colored with my blendabilities.

Here's the sketch we have this week-

Because there are a lot of people at work that will want to sign this I put W.W. c/s on both sides.

 Here's a look at the individual sides-

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card and I hope you decide to play along with us. I can't wait to see what you come up with! As always, if you have any questions about today's card, be sure to leave me a comment below and I'll be sure to get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are dry appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm . It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the Rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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Special Someone /NAC #91

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday. I hope you had a safe and happy Memorial Day spent with family and friends and didn't end up with a sunburn. :) Sorry this is late. These 3 day weekends really throw off my schedules. The Nacho's have a Sketch Challenge for you this week, and I have a confession to make. When I looked at it on line, I thought the base was just a background. So mine, looks  a little different from everyone else's. On the upside, I used DSP as a background which I rarely do. :)

I needed a card for my upline- Robin's birthday.  So it needed to either be Vintage, something I rarely do, and just didn't have time or the energy to stress over (since my PTSD has been stressing me enough) or something outside my comfort zone- I chose the latter. Here's what I came up with-

So....

1- It's pretty Clean and Simple

2- DSP as a Background

3- Embellishments. 2 of them!

I know it sounds pretty simple, put the only way she would have been more surprise would have been  1- Vintage, 2- A 1-Layer card, 3- A card that was Crumpled & Torn.

Remember how I said I didn't quite get the sketch right? Here's this week's sketch-

I got part of it right it you flip it on it's side. :)

 I was trying to figure out how to get the words lined up evenly (even with the SAMJ) when it hit me that if I just off-set them I wouldn't need to worry. *Lightbulb Moment* Then, I stamped the inside with the pretty little present from sketched birthday and added dazzling diamonds to it but then I wrote my message before I took my pictures. *headdesk*

Love this font!

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's card, and I hope you decide to play along with us. I can't wait to see what you come up with!. As always, if you have any questions, please leave me a comment so I can be sure to answer them.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated. Till Next time.

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about 

Waiting for the Storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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Age Doesn't Count / NAC # 89

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Hey y'all Happy Tuesday. I hope you're having a great week so far! I'm going to make sure that this week's post gets posted! SMH!!! We've got a sketch challenge for you this week and I tried something new. I don't know if you've heard or not, but Stampin' Up has new Alcohol based Markers called Blendabilities. They're like "Copic" markers. As a demonstrator, I got to Pre-Order mine and They arrived last Thursday and I finally got to pull them out and play with them. I needed a card for my friend Nicole's birthday and decided to try and combine the two with this week's challenge. She was very happy with the outcome. :) Here's what I came up with-

And here's this week's sketch-

As you can see, I used it as a jumping off point but the bones are still there.

Here's a closer look at the coloring-

Not too bad for a first time. I really like how smooth these markers are and how they just melt into each other without pilling. What I also really like is they come in color families of 3, light to dark in colors that are already in our color families, not some weird number system, and they're $11.95 for a set of 3. WOW!!!

Here's the inside, because you know I did something on the inside :) -

Well, that's all I have for you this week. I hope you liked my card, and I hope you like this sneak-peek of our upcoming catalog. Most of all, I hope it inspires you to play along with us. I can't wait to see what you come up with! As always if you have any questions, please leave me a comment in the space below and I'll be sure to get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. you are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain. 

Be Safe,

Shan

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Carbs Schmarbs / NAC #87

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! Just a quick post today because I got in really late last night. Did you get in late too? Bet you did if you were at the Big Reveal! Yep, I was at the SU Live Premiere of the new catalog. Let me just say if you weren't there, you missed something Super!!!

The Nachos have a Sketch Challenge for you this week. I used mine to make a birthday card for my boss. What will you make with it? Here's what I came up with-

I used a Z-Fold for this card. However, since there's a lot of us at work I knew I 'd need more space than was available to write on. To solve this I took the other half of my sheet of cardstock and glued it to the back of my card so the card opened up and had two sections to write on. I was so happy with how this turned out and my boss like it too. The only thing was it didn't fit in a regular envelope. :( The banners were just a little too long. It would have fit if I had moved the focal point over instead of lining it up with the fold. Oh well. :)

Here's the sketch-

I apologize for the picture quality, I forgot to download the pic. Luckily I had taken a pic of my computer screen with my phone so I could take it into my studio.

Here's a look at the inside-

Well, that's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my card and I hope it inspires you to play along with us. As always if you have any questions about today's card, please feel free to leave me a message below and I'll be sure to get back to you.

Thanks so much for taking time our of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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A Little Ombre / NAC #85

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday! Hope you're having better weather than we are today. It was in the 80's this weekend and today it's rain and possible snow. Seriously, Mother Nature!!! I wonder if I click my heels 3 times....

Tuesdays mean a new challenge with the Nacho's. Today we have a sketch challenge for you. My card is fairly clean and simple, just a little time consuming. Here's what I came up with-

Have you tried the Ombre Trend that everyone's doing these days? Most I've seen have big strips of colors. I went a little smaller, but still managed to get 7 of our pinks across my card going from dark to bright to light. I simply stamped each flower 3 times, punched them out, then layered them. The 3 with the rhinestones were popped up with dimensionals the others are just adhered with Tombow. Too Easy. A little sponging around the edges a simple sentiment and I was done.

Here's this week's sketch-

For the inside, I stamped 3 times without re-inking to get a similar effect.

That's all I have for you today. I hope you liked my clean and simple card for this week's challenge. What will you create with it? I can't wait to see! As always if you have any questions about any of my cards or projects, don't forget to leave me comment below so I can get back to you.

Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe-

Shan

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Your'e In My Thoughts / NAC #83

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Hey y'all. Happy Tuesday and Happy April Fools Day to you! It's no joke that I love Tuesdays because the Nachos get to share a new challenge with you. This week it's a sketch challenge and I hope you have as much fun with it as I did. In fact I enjoyed it so much, I made two while I was at it. Here's my card for this week-

I was enjoying my SAB paper and stamp set set. It's hard to see, but there's just a little glitter on there for some added prettiness. 

Here's this week's sketch-

Here's a pic of both cards-

Of course I had to put a little pretty on the inside too-

Well, that's just about all I have for you today. I hope you liked today's cards, and I hope it makes you want to come and play along with us. I can't wait to see what you come up with! As always, if you have any questions about today's cards, please feel free to leave me a message below and I'll be sure to get back to you.

Before I leave you today there's just one more thing I wanted to share with you-

Nacho's 1!!!!!

Can you believe it? A year ago on Sunday I got the most Amazing gift ever! I became a Gigi to this Beautiful little girl. And to show how much I love her, I'm temporarily giving up my brand new Craft Room for her. They should arrive later today. I have no idea, how I'm going to get any stamping done with my arms wrapped around her!!!

Well, that really is all I have for you now. Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by my little corner of the world. You are very appreciated! Till Next Time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

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