The other day, I received a message on my blog from Carolyn Bounds. Carolyn’s Blog is P.M.S. etc. (or Papers, Markers, Stamps, etc.) hehe great blog name isn’t it? Carolyn selected my blog as one of her favorites, and awarded me this:

I have to say that I was so honored and jumping for joy that I was listed on Carolyn’s blog with all those other great blogs she mentioned. She also led me on an inspiration journey when I went to look at all the listed blogs. Thank you Carolyn!

It is now my turn to indicate which blogs are some of my favorites and award them with the “I Love Your Blog” logo. But first, I need to post the rules:

1. The winner can put the logo on their blog
2. Link the person you received your award from
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the girls or boys you’ve nominated.

Now, for my choices. If you have already been given this award once, well . . . just know that I draw inspiration from you every day! These are in no particular order mind you, just a list I made of the stampers who inspire me on a daily basis!

Cindy Lyles - StarLit Studio, for your style and creative use of embellishments.

Anna Wight - Sassy & Sweet, for the enjoyment you give me with your marvelous creations and your stories and pictures of “life on the ranch.”

Debbie Olson - Thinking Inking, for the inspiration you give me each and every day with your creativeness.

Leslie Miller - Running with Scissors, for the inspiration you have always given me, your wonderful creations and for sharing your gardens, which someday I hope to see in person.

JanTink - Stamps, Paper, Scissors, for the laughs and giggles you have given me over the years with your stories and wild ramblings.

Wendy Vecchi - Studio 490, for your incredible style and work.

Pam Hooten - Iris Garden, for the inspiration you give me with each project and your incredible use of embellishments.

So there are my seven stampers who inspire me to keep working on my craft and to have fun when doing it! Thank you all!

It was a sad day here yesterday. We lost our 12-year-old Yellow Lab, Shadow, to cancer. He hadn’t been the same since we lost our Dalmatian, Penny, a year ago. He had stayed by her side for weeks, keeping her warm and guarding her. He never wanted to leave the garage after that. It was as if he was expecting Penny to return. Of course, during this warm summer that we’ve had here in the Ohio Valley, his move out to cooler air was a must.

He would stand at the sliding glass door on the deck and bark until I went to give him two large bones. He would gobble them up and then trot off to rest. When I came home from Texas last week, I noticed a huge change in him. He no longer wanted to play with the little pups, and he didn’t bark for his treats. Yesterday morning, he was non responsive and lying in the garage. Lance took him to the vet, where we found out he had cancer and there wasn’t much we could do.

We named him Shadow because as a pup he would follow the girls around the house. It seemed so appropriate – their shadow. He was a neighborhood dog, roaming from house to house getting his daily lovin’ and treats. He made friends with the little boy down the street, whose family all but adopted him. They had a bed for him on their deck and when we were looking for him that was the first place we would go. He received Christmas cards from the neighbors, addressed to Mr. Shadow Cheever. Our little pups loved him and Miss Ellie will surely miss him. He was her boyfriend, even though he favored Sydney.

Shadow will be missed not only by us, but his neighborhood families as well. He was a gentle dog but also very protective. Sadly, the only picture I could find of him this morning is one from when we had the garage built and it is rather distorted and blurry.

The fence was down and he was chained by the tree to keep him out of the workers way. Of course, a fence was just there and didn’t do much to keep him in the yard. He could, and would, climb it to get out to roam from house to house. When he was ready to come home, he would once again climb the fence to get back in the yard. Such a fabulous dog!

Morning. I’ve been feeling under the weather for the last couple of days, and there’s not going to be any stamping here again today. I got Jeanne to the airport yesterday for her flight home, and then had breakfast with my sister, mom and some of mom’s close friends. By the time I got home I was totally worn out. Any hoo, I drugged myself up, crashed on the couch and finally around 8:00 last night went to bed. I think it’s going to be another day just like that today!

What I’ve decided to do today is share some recipes with you. This goes back to the Lizzie Anne Blog Candy post about your favorite summertime desserts. I finally got that recipe from mom for the Banana Split Cake, along with a few others.

BANANA SPLIT CAKE

Melt 1 stick of margarine in a 9 x 13″ cake pan. Blend in 2 cups of graham-cracker crumbs, and pat evenly over the bottom. In a mixing bowl, beat at high speed for 15 minutes 2 sticks of softened margarine, 2 eggs, and 2 cups confectioners’ sugar. Carefully spread this blend over the crust. Slice bananas (about 3 large ones) until you’ve a layer covering the filling. Next, drain 1 large can of crushed pineapple, and spread fruit on top. Over all, make a layer of Cool Whip (one large container will do it). Last, sprinkle on 1 cup of coarsely chopped nuts and several well-placed maraschino cherries. Cover with waxed paper and leave in fridge for several hours or overnight.

This next salad, we had at my niece’s graduation party. My stepsister made it and of course we all had to have the recipe! Mallory is planning on taking this one to a party this weekend.

BROCCOLI STRAWBERRY SALAD

4 cups chopped broccoli bite size
1/4 cup Golden Raisins
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/3 cup shredded carrots
1 cup sliced strawberries 1/4″ thick, 3 slices each berry
1/4 cup salted peanuts

Dressing:
3/4 cup mayonnaise
½ cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons white vinegar

Whisk till fluffy
Toss with hands into salad.

Hope you guys enjoy these treats! Have a great day!

Stampfest Orlando that is! Jeanne and I are still at Kittie’s, and will be here until Tuesday morning. That’s when we hit the road for the trip back home, taking a different route than when we came. Wonder if Atlanta is ready for us?

We had to say goodbye to Broni this morning. We dropped her off at the airport around 9:30 and then headed back to work the show. I already miss her. Actually, I started missing her the minute we left her at the airport. I am so tickled that she decided to make the trip with us! She very quickly became my “sister friend” and the more we talked, the more we realized how much we truly have in common. Desserts for one thing! Oh my heavens, did we ever enjoy our desserts. Especially that white chocolate bomb from Chilis!

We all had such fun in the booth on Saturday. It was very busy, but it didn’t keep us from greeting old friends and making new ones. We seemed to be the hang out for the SCS’ers to gather! I was able to get a few pictures, but there were some that got by us.
Here’s the team all together. Well all except Candy who just disappeared on us.

But, here’s Candy showing off for us. Honestly I think she might have been shushing someone, but it sure looks like she’s saying something else to me!

Lois a/k/a Clownmom came to see us on Saturday. We met her in person for the first time last year, even though we had chatted with her online for years. It is always great to see Lois – she is such a hoot!

At one time on Saturday, Kirsten, Mimi, and Dina were all in the booth at the same time and we were able to get everyone together for a picture. Actually, Dina spent most of her time with us, and what a pleasure it was to finally meet her and her husband.

Here’s Mr. And Mrs. Rubbernecker (Pat and Dave), sneaking in a well-deserved break on Saturday.

Near the end of the day on Saturday, we finally were able to get Jerri Kay back to the booth and had a photo op! Oh my goodness, what fun to finally meet Jerri Kay!

Sunday was a bit slower, but we still stayed busy working our demos and having fun!

We have all decided that we will be sleeping in tomorrow and just enjoy spending the day together with no running around. I’m looking forward to it!

Well hey there! I know I’ve been MIA a few days and surely owe you an update. Jeanne and I left Tuesday morning bright and early and drove to Broni’s house in South Carolina. OMG Broni just the most adorable person and the more we’ve talked the more we realize we have in common! Yesterday morning we loaded up the car and headed for Orlando. Of course, one of the places I wanted to stop on the way was Savannah. Ever since my girls were in scouts and I was a leader, I have wanted to go to Savannah. I was so excited when I saw Girl Scouts walking down the street in their uniforms – you just know they had been to the Juliette Gordon Low house! We ended up down on the river front for lunch, just couldn’t wait to get that seafood.

While we were having lunch up on this balcony,

coming down river was this marvelous ship. Once we got back to the house, I googled the name and found out that it is used to transport cargo, specifically automobiles from makers to distributors. We never have ships this large on the Ohio River.

Broni and I weren’t satisfied until we cruised around Savannah and found the house from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. We started off here at the Forsythe Park, thinking it was looking over this one. Nope, but there was this fabulous fountain in the middle.

With Broni as my navigator we started up one the main streets (which have little parks in the center every few blocks) and right there, before our eyes . . . The Mercer House.

We left Savannah after a couple of hours, realizing that the next trip down will have to have at least 2-3 full days to explore the area. Before we left the river area, I was able to snap this picture of the Savannah Cotton Exchange building.

Up on the top of the building is the most intricate detail.

With another stop at Cracker Barrel. This time for pie and coffee, which they were out of just about every dessert. I settled for pecan pancakes and Broni and Jeanne shared the last apple dumpling. Settling in the driver’s seat, knowing that a sugar coma was imminent, we headed south for Orlando.

Today, we had planned on going to Daytona and tour the track, and just mess around on the beach. However, we got a little sidetracked this morning, and decided we would take advantage of the pool in Kittie’s backyard. We had a plan – go for lunch, buy some groceries and pool floats and come back and enjoy the sunshine! Hmmpff. It started to rain while we were in line buying the floats and it hasn’t stopped since. Maybe we shouldn’t have bought the damn things! Needless to say, I crashed and had a wonderful long nap and it now feels like it should be mid-afternoon, when actually it’s 8:30 and we’re throwing stuff on the grill.

Tomorrow we plan on helping to set the booth up for the show. Hopefully in the morning before we have to leave there will be a little floating in the sun time!