Flip - Flops

It is 5:30 on a Monday morning after a convention and my hubby needed a ride to the train station for a day of "Guy Fun" in Milwaukee.

Bella and I are tired, but we understand that even Dad needs a day he can call his own - especially after he spends a weekend helping me out at a stamping convention behind the cash register talking to many many women .... he is a quiet guy .... do I need to say more?

So here we are, up waaaay earlier than usual in the backyard watching the sun rise. As Bella patrols the backyard fence under the bushes in search of a bunny, I drink my iced coffee planning out our day.

I flip flop back and forth on a full day of work and a few hours of play as I rub the sleep from my eyes and take in all the possiblilities.

As I do this I think to myself that you may also be looking for something "new" to do today so I have posted a sample of my favorite "Flip-Flop" card made with our 417G - Flip - Flop stamp and our 453C Small Solid Hibiscus stamp.

In the center of your 4" x 5.25" white cardstock stamp the 417G Flip - Flop stamp. Mask it and stamp repeatedly on either side of the first image until the card is full of flip-flops.

Using the Pan Pastels (I'll let you choose your own colors here!) color the flip-flops in. ***hint ***you may need markers or colored pencils for the toe straps.

Color in the background using the larger sponges with the Pan Pastels dragging the sponges up at the top of the card and down at the bottom to get the effect shown. You may also use the sides of sponges in a slightly darker or lighter color to get some added texture.

Stamp the Small Solid Hibiscus using a dyebased rainbow pad 2x onto a scrap peice of white cardstock.

Cut out. Punch 1/8" holes into center of the hibiscus and also on the center flip-flop at the tip of the toe and strap.

Attach the cut out hibiscus" to the center flip-flop image with decorative brads.

Layer onto colored cardstock.

Stamp inside the card with either our 795I - Flip Flop Poem or our 7092E - "No One Can Fill Your Flip-Flops" and you are ready for a day in the sun!

Hugs to all as Bella and I get our Flip - Flops on and go for a walk!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

On the Road Again....

Here we go again!

We've had a few weeks off to restock, rethink, and repack for our summer road trips.

This weekend we will find ourselves in Tinley Park, Illinois with the www.stampandscrapbookexpo.com

Our next trip will be with www.heirloompro.com in Novi, MI on August 7th and 8th.

Of course we will be bringing with us the wonderful, the fabulous, the newest pastel on the planet - Pan Pastels and Sofft Tools so make sure that you stop by our booth and check it out. If you can't get there from here, go to our website at www.bugawumps.com , catalog, then "EXTRAS" and that should give you all the info you need to see what this unbelievable product has to offer!

Bella and I need to get packin' so we are ready for all of you!

Bugs and Kisses!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo - looking forward to moving on!

How Sweet It Is

How many times have you said to yourself, "I wish I had...",

"That would have been so neat!", or "If only I had the time"?

I have been planning Bella's first Birthday Bash for weeks knowing that there would be issues with time not only for me but also for the participants.

This was one celebration, silly as it was, that I didn't want to let go by - Bella would only be one once and even though she could care less about a party (let's face it every day is a party for Bella) I didn't want to let the day go by without making her feel special.

So I put down my stamps, turned off the computer, closed my eyes to the dusty furniture, heavily weed hewn gardens and found my favorite sugar cookie recipe to bake some tasty treats for all Bella's "people" friends.

Once the guests arrived, we were going to play games of chase the puppy, fetch, frisbee, ball, and of course the inevitable " catch me if you can" and then off to Dairy Bar, our favorite outdoor ice cream stand for a vanilla cone....it would be Bella's first taste of this frozen treat!

102 cookies later, heavy rainstorms flooded the streets that kept our original guests away, the muddy puddles in the backyard were so deep they were quickly inhabited by Mr. and Mrs. Mallard and their brood along with the fact that Bella had came down with an upset tummy - too much excitement I suppose.

Still we had her party it just didn't go the way we had originally planned. She shared her birthday cookies and goodie bags with all our neighbors and their children at our annual block party later that evening when the skies cleared. Bella spent the night running, chasing and playing with children of various ages. The kids on the street sang "Happy birthday to Bella "and one little girl even made her a birthday card.

We never got to the Dairy Bar for her first ice cream treat but I don't think she minded since she fell asleep in my lap with a soft smile on her face later that night. When the flood waters receded, her brothers and sisters came by the next day to celebrate with a game of chase in the backyard a good belly rub. She thanked them with warm licks and kisses to which we all said "Oooooooh".

It was a perfectly sweet 1st Birthday Bash regardless as both Bella and I got exactly what we have always wanted - each other. Life doesn't get any sweeter than that.

Here's a little advice from Bella Boo "Have a cookie and celebrate the ones you love, you never know when the weather will change and you sure don't want to miss the rainbows!"

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Bella's BIG Birthday Bash

Bella is officially "ONE" year old!

What a Birthday Bash! Presents, prizes and cookies for all! Not to mention the wonder "FULL" goodie bags she handed out at the end of it all :P

As I was planning Bella's 1st Birthday Bash many of my friends thought I was crazy - after all, she is just a dog...in their eyes...

As our family plans our daughter and her fiance's wedding, the same sane crazies are telling me to tell them to elope and save us all the time and the money...

AND then it struck me, "Celebrations are the glue that bind us together".

Celebrations are gentle reminders of how good life can be if we open our hearts to those we love.

Celebrations are the quiet smiles in hospital rooms that pass between loved ones during moments of crisis...remember whens....it will be better soon, hope.

Celebrations are loud. They dance to thunderous bands under stars or high ceilinged halls lit by candlelight...holding daughters and sons tightly as they stumble finding their way through the music with two left feet....knowing their children will follow suit with children of their own....knowing they will love as they have been loved...knowing the wonder of it all.

So on this warm humid afternoon as I look at my very tired but happy puppy surrounded by bones and squeak toys from all our neighbors, friends and family, I am glad that we have found one more reason to celebrate.

Who could resist celebrating a puppy named Bella? Who doesn't want a good reason to eat cake and cookies? Who can ignore the sweet laughter of memories gone by, the sticky hugs of a child or the whisker wet licks of a beloved pet?

Wishing you all a sweet treat today in as many ways as you wish to celebrate your day!


Laura Anne and Bella Boo, who "Officially" turned one on June 14th, 2010

Hazey, Lazy Summer Days

June 1st....the start of a new month, a new diet and summer!


The first day of anything is wonderous.


It is like a blackboard that you can erase and start clean again.
It is like the rain that leaves behind a clean fresh smell and black dirt so rich that your flowers seem to have grown overnight.


It is like a new calendar, new baby, new house, new school, new stamp, new colored pencils, a new piece of paper.......

Life feels new to me on the first day of the week, the month or the year.

This is when the opportunity to become more feels the most possible regardless of the odds. These are the days when I sit down and take inventory of what needs to be done (practical, realistic things) and the things I would like to do (always reaching for the stars kind of things).


So on this first day of June my doorbell rang and the UPS man dropped a shipment of 10 huge boxes of Pan Pastels and the toys I use to create with and it was a "wonder-full" moment!

I can complete the shipments waiting from the last convention as well as pull a handful of "NEW" colors to play with as I work on some of displays.

I can make a card or two for Stamp LaJolla with her adorable Hula Bunnies and send them to her - excitement is bubbling as I write this...yes, I do stamp other companies designs as well - I am as addicted as you all are too!

I can make some earrings for my daughter, using my hoards of beads, bangles, and love....


I can finish drawing my new line - yes, Bella Boo, there will be a stamp of you soon!

OR


I can just sit in the lawn chair and dream of all the possiblities knowing that I have a whole summer ahead of me to accomplish whatever I chose to do.


Hmmmmmmmmm.....lazy, hazey dazing on this first day of June, this first day of summer!


Hugs to all as I dream of warm colors, cool evenings and bright festive filled stamped cards!


Laura Anne and Bella Boo


PS. Please note that cleaning is not on any of my lists!

Pan Pastels and the Fun - Has Just Begun!

The "toys" for the Pan Pastels are "NOW" here as well - check out our website at http://www.bugawumps.com/ to view them with ALL the Pan Pastel colors as well.

You will find these products under the "catalog" tab, then click on the " extra stuff" tab to view this wonder"FULL" line of pastels.

Here are some examples of of the color blocking that you can do with them.

There are VERY LARGE sized sponges so that you can double and triple load colors to make your own rainbow background - it is so much easier than a rainbow pad and a brayer with no drying wait time.

There are also SMALL and MEDIUM sized sponges and applicators so that you can paint in your detailed areas. Different shaped tips to color in every nook and cranny - or is that "granny?"

The coverage capacity and longevity of these pastels has been rated the highest in the industry. We think it's because of the creaminess - you'll think it's the amount. Regardless, it is a product that you won't regret owning for years and years to come.

Add to all that - this is practically a "DUSTLESS" pastel and you will rarely if ever need to use a fixative on it ... saving your lungs and our environment from any further harm. Although your voice may be tired from all the "yahooing" and "cheering" to your friends about them once you have tried them.

If you would like to see us in person and take these pastels for a test drive we will be in Milwaukee, WI this coming weekend, May 22 and 23rd and have added a show in Collinsville, IL on the 12th and 13th of June.

Even Bella Boo is barking up a storm and won't stop for a "paws" when we stamp!

Bugs 'n Kisses from two very excited ladies!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

We Are UP and RUNNING!

We are up and running! ARE YOU?

The Pan Pastel Color charts are up on our website along with "ALL" toys!

Time to check out what everyone who was at the Akron, Ohio convention already knows - these are the best pastels ever!

The "Toys" that are optional add-ons are fabulous as well.

This is going to make your stamping "technicolor" dreams come true.

I can't tell you how wonderful the response has been to these little "pots" of gold! Not only is the color coverage, deep, rich and full bodied but they last forever. A little bit goes along waaaaayyyyy here. Quality is everything and these are definetly everything an art minded gal wants.

So - check out our website at http://www.bugawumps.com/ and head to the "catalog" then the "extra stuff" tabs and you will be on your way to so much fun that it may be illegal :)

Hugs from Bella and I as we wade through the backyard swamp on this fine midwestern rainy day....we both like to splash around in the puddles looking for the rainbows!

Colors Galore

This is it! The Pan Pastels that everyone is talking about!

We have the "FULL" line of all these 80 creamy dreamy pastels that are a really "just to die for" product that once you use them you will wonder how you ever did without them!

People have been e-mailing me right and left about where to get them - HERE of course!

The colors are luscious, full bodied (like any good woman should be :) with coverage that you won't believe. These are NOT your "mama's" old pastels!

There is very little, if any of that chalky powdering and you can stamp over them and even emboss over them without missing a beat or shall I say inked image?

The full color charts as well as all the tools and toys that go with these wonderful pastels will be up and running on my website and hopefully here (this is where I need my nephew Charlie's help and he is a dear to provide it for me!) as soon as I get home from my latest sojourn - middle of next week is my goal if all goes well!

I am a one woman show and sometimes life gets in the way or I get in my own way as I make things more difficult for me so that it is easier on my customers ... LOL. It's a gift.

Just ask Bella as she shakes her fuzzy little head while I try to figure out how to get this computer to do what I know it is possible of or as I run up and down the stairs with the latest box of ideas while stuffing my car with as much product as I can (so much so that 1/2 of it never even gets put out at a show due to spatial issues - LOL even more) to provide as much fun for you stampers and scrapbookers as I can.

CALL, WRITE, or E-MAIL me for more info on this terrrific chalk! Questions and answers I can handle at the moment. I would love to hear from you and get you hooked on the best pastel colors in the world!

Have a colorful day if nothing else.

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

RE: Grow Your Own Garden

"Plant your own garden, decorate your own soul and know that you are strong......"


These are lines from a poem I found hanging on the wall of a college office where I worked in the "80's.


The message this poem sends to those who are open to it is one that has an enduring affect long after the paper it was copied onto has disintegrated at the folds, smudged by oily chocolate chip stains with drips and drops of brown coffee saturating the words trying to hide the poem's truth.


I don't know who wrote it. It was signed by the infamous "anonymous". What I do know is that it has saved me time and time again from feeling sorry for myself, from becoming a victim of circumstance, from falling into the trap of daily female whining.


There are days when my head hurts so bad I want to crawl back into bed and succumb to sleep; there are times when the laundry basket is so high I can't see out my window (just to clarify - the basket sits on top of my machine) or when my children are struggling so hard with a difficult issue that I want to hold them, cry with them and then run away.


Instead, I choose to get up and take Bella for her walk, start sorting the underwear and just take the time to really listen to my family's problems, hoping that they know they are not alone, that they were heard and that they carry the strength within them to solve their dilemma without it turning into a full blown out drama (not pretty for anyone and much harder to reconcile gracefully later).


In each of us there is the strength to see ourselves through our days with the tools we were given. Some of us have more tools than others, but still we all have some tools or the ability to acquire them if we are open to seeing the world and our day(s) with a positive attitude. This is not to belittle those with severe depression problems, just to differentiate between a true problem and a minor blip on our life's radar screen.


I am thankful for the friends, acquaintances, and passersby that have come my way over the span of my lifetime. Some are still with me, some have gone, and some are still waiting to come into my world. These people have held my hand, have opened the window of knowledge, have given me the tenderness and sometimes the critical words to kick my butt into the next stage. Without all of them I would have been a walking, talking, whiny victim.



The colors of one's garden depends on the vision you see for yourself. Do you want to be seen as blue as the water or as sunny as a daffodil? Do you want to be strong - like red or weak like the color of a bland tea? What is your dream color? Who do you wish to be when you grow up? What is the color of your legacy when you are no longer here to physically touch those you love?


Do not wait for tomorrow. Do not wish upon your future. Instead, make today your own, "Plant that garden, decorate your soul, embellish your artwork, and smile, knowing that you are strong, that you have worth, and that you will endure....."


Good thoughts on a clear day from one beautiful woman and her adorable puppy to many others!


Laura Anne and Bella Boo

P.S. My "kids" will tell you I am really this "mushy". LOL

Coloring our World with the "NEW" Pan Pastels

I am looking through rose colored sun glasses today after a wonderful showing of support from our customers at the Akron, OH rubber stamp convention this past weekend.

We brought to market a "NEW" product for the stampers to enhance their cards with - Pan Pastels and the wonderful tools that go along with this fabulous product line.

Color, Color and more color describe these very vibrant pastels. These are not your Mama's chalky, grainy, gritty pastels.

The Pan Pastels are creamy and go on like a dream leaving very little "chalk dust" if any behind.

I am hoping to get the colors and some more samples of our artwork done with them up on our blog and our website in the next few weeks so that you can see for yourselves that a wonderful new world of color is waiting for you.

Our next show is in Southfield, Michigan - if you are in the area, certainly drop by our booth to see this fabulous product! You won't be disappointed.

Hugs to all as Bella and I color our day with the all the sunny (80 to be exact) colors that Pan Pastel has to offer. Bella has already chosen the magenta and bright orange for her first project.

Bugs and Kisses!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Easter Bonnets

Happy Easter! Happy Spring! Happy, Happy Everything!

Bella and I are all excited to finally, finally see spring make its spectacular entrance into Chicago. 80 degrees and sunny, sunny, sunny!

Easter is two days away and I am trying to fit into anything lightweight and colorful. Bella, being the new puppy in town is going to have a new "collar" and a "new spring coat" to wear out on the town come Sunday when we go to visit the in-laws. (Fashion photos of Bella will be appearing here on Monday for sure.)

Creative cleaning is happening all over the world as women feel the warm weather knock on our doors. Less is more - more or less when it comes to making cards.

Just a few reminders as you begin to think and stamp into spring:

Keep your hand stamped and crafted cards simple and fun. Layer only once or twice to keep the postage down and the focus on the image.

Humor is always an added blessing to those handmade cards, so don't forget to pick your "message" before designing your card so that it is incorporated as a design element and not an afterthought.

As Bella and I head downstairs to the studio to create some "Easter Puppy" cards for her friends and family, I promise you that I will not stamp in a bikini amidst an incredibly clean and minimalistic craft room (if you don't) - as I try to follow my own rules!

Hope you too, are smiling your way down the bunny lane this weekend!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Happy Birthday to Matt!

Happy Bugday to our son, Matt today!

Hard to believe that 35 years ago this bundle of boy came into our lives at 7.8 lbs, 21 inches tall.

He now towers over me at 6' & some inches tall ... wonder of wonders!

So as we light the birthday candles and eat some cake, I thought that maybe you would like to celebrate someone you love with a card.

Bugawumps stamps needed:


Maestro - 186E

Treble Cleff - 580C

Baby Moonbee - 303A

Happy Bugday to You.... - 7002F


1. Stamp Maestro - 186E in the lower left hand side of a piece of white cardstock (4" x 5")


2. Draw 5 lines along the top of the cardstock with a fine tipped permanent marker


3. Stamp Treble cleff - 580C once at the left hand side of the lines and Baby Moonbee - 303A

multiple times at various heights along the lines so they will look like notes on a staff


4. Draw lines on top of the Baby Moonbees - 303A so that they look like notes, i.e. see sample


5. Stamp "Happy Bugday to You..." - 7002F in lower right hand corner of cardstock


6. Color in ALL images with markers or colored pencils of your choice


7. Layer cardstock onto black and white checkered paper lining up the checkered squares


8. Randomly color in the white squares on the checkered paper, i.e. see sample


9. Layer card onto either white or black cardstock


YOU ARE DONE with the card, but not your day - so go out and celebrate the best way you can.

For Matt, he'll probably be having a beer tonight with his wife and a few good friends and a piece of his favorite German Chocolate Cake.


Bella Boo will be chewing on her favorite rawhide bone and wondering when the party will begin - again.


As for Me, well, my tastes are a little simpler - I'll have a Diet Coke spiced with lime and some of the frosting!


Hope your day is full of frosting and other sweet treats that help you create a lifetime worth of good memories decorated with great friends!

Happy Bugday to all!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

The Sky's the Limit

As the days warm up and the sun stays with us longer, I find myself wandering out into the backyard with Bella later and later delighted to find a sky full of stars over my frosty breath.

Today I am thinking of packing up the bulkiest of my sweaters, the heaviest of my jeans and the most cumbersome over padded underwired bras that Victoria's Secret promised would make me sexy (how anyone would notice under those sweaters is beyond me) and move towards a free-er, more minimalistic life style.

Barefeet, sun kissed shoulders, freckled faces and cool citrusy summer drinks.... yummy stretched out days that melt into purple hazey evenings dazzled with the brilliance of an orange setting sun. My favorite season, summer, is almost upon us.

So for today, let's stamp the uplifting moments that define our future and leave the cold snow covered past behind.

Three stamps: OH MY bug stamp, BOOBS word stamp, and any old star stamp that you have in your drawers - we used the top portion of our CELESTIAL HEART stamp.

Add to that -Alcohol Based Markers, stickers and a little glitter glue is all it took to make this card.

Stamp the images, color in with your markers. Add a little glitz here and there with the glitter glue and top off with a few well placed stickers for added dimension.

Layer the original stamped cardstock onto colored papers or another layer of colored cardstock.

*****To make quick little flowers on your cards, just press the tip of the marker into the paper (straight down so that it makes a dot) and then add the stems with a fine tipped marker (normally on the other side of a Marvey or Tombo marker). To make the leaves, just press the side of the marker down near the stems you've just made. Easy, fun, and almost foolproof - so practise this on a piece of scrap paper first.

Well, off for a walk with my Bella Boo to see what she can find to amuse us both with today!

Bugs and Kisses and Sunny Wishes for a Great Day!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Checkered Past

One of my favorite Bugawumps word stamps is

"Wishing you a checkered past and a polka dot future".

Seems to me every girl should have something a little wild and crazy that happened to her somewhere in her life so that she has at least one really fun story to tell the "young 'uns" when the time comes and also so that when the time comes she can see that the road she has taken has brought her to a good place and understands that without that road she would not be the person she is today - the process of getting ourselves to that "happy place" is as important as "being in a happy state".

As my cell phones ring, the tv's blare, and Bella barks, I sometimes feel like the world is out to get me and ask myself, "why is life so complicated?" It is that moment when I need to step back and realize no one promised me a perfect life (or body for that matter) and that it is up to me to change what makes me uncomfortable, unhappy, or overwhelmed.

So as I take a deep breath on this cold, sunny, and yes, snowy Monday morning I will start my day rationalizing about the reality of what I can honestly accomplish in a 24 hour period (no, a 15 pound drop in weight will not happen today nor a Picasso-esque masterpiece) and be happy with a playful puppy at my side, a load of laundry that needs to be done, and a good cup of coffee to see me through the mundane chores that make up my life.

This is the "stuff" that gives the polka dot future a chance to emerge. As the possibilites of my day unfold, my friends call, a challenge steps forth, and a cookie calls my name, I will remember that these are the moments that will color my story for generations to come - how I choose to tell the story is mine.

Make today's yours!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Wearin' O' the Green

If you aren't smiling today, you are not Irish!

In a world not to long away or far away our family started going on leprachaun hunts after dusk on St. Patty's day.

Our son Matt, who was almost 6 years old at the time, started the tradition. He insisted that he had seen a leprachaun riding on top of a neighbors car and that if we hurried we could catch the leprachaun and the pot of gold would be ours. He truly believed he could catch a leprachaun and I didn't have the heart to tell him that in actuality, catching a leprachaun was harder than one would imagine. So the tradition of going out on a cold damp night in March (sometimes in a foot of snow) became ours and eventually the neighborhood's as well.

I play well with others and not wanting to disappoint our young children, I made a run to the grocery store for anything green that would suffice as Leprachaun booty.

Rushing up and down the aisles of our neighborhood grocery store, I found some green M & M's (minty ones, yummmm) that I thought I could pass off as something leprachaunish and then what to my wondering eyes did appear but "GOLD" wrapped Passover coins for the upcoming Jewish holiday ... no, we are not Jewish, but anything will work when the imagination is at play.

As I drove home, more and more excited at the prospect of my kids finding the leprachaun gold, I began to think about how to make the leprachauns appear without really appearing. Throwing the coins out the car window up and down our street, the plan began to take shape.

Armed with flashlights for saftey and healthy imaginations bundled into heavy winter coats, the hunt began. Under bushes, the old leaves became leprachaun hair that had been caught in the branches while the wet spots on the pavement became footprints left behind and the gold .... we were so close so many times .... and of course, everyone knows that if you don't catch the leprachaun first, his gold turns into chocolate

Arriving home, their pockets filled with magical chocolate gold, our children began dreaming, "maybe next year" ... and then as they scampered down the hall to get ready for bed telling each other how tricky those leprachauns could be, the real fun began. While we had been out searching, those playful leprachauns had come into our home, jumped on the beds, and left hundreds of green shamrocks and M & M's sprinkled throughout the house. Later that night, long after the hunt was over, my husband and I heard the soft, sweet, sleepy, giggles as our not so big children slept in a place made of green and gold chocolate covered dreams.

Wishing you and your family well loved traditions that come out of blue or even green that will make golden memories that will never get lost in what should be the most important thing in our lives - our children.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Look Out - It's Friday

Ever feel like a kid who just got out of school - finals completed, no homework due, no schedules, nothing to do but have fun for a week of spring break?

That is how I am feeling today. The sun is out and it is a warm day in Chicago's suburbs. It feels like SPRING is finally here!

After 6 months of cold and rain and snow and just plain gray, the greenery that is sprouting through the muddy spots in my back yard as well as the cardinals playing hide and seek in my bushes are giving me the lift that even my underwire bra can't.

These are the small moments when life is great.

So "LOOK OUT", the small card above is yours for the making.

Materials needed:

1 Bugawumps "Look Out" Stamp
2 Small decorative brads
1 piece of ATC white cardstock
*** assorted small pieces of decorative background cardstock

Directions:

1. Stamp only the top portion of Bugawumps "Look Out" stamp on your white ATC
sized cardstock.

Color in the stamped image with markers - alcohol based or water based.
Shade in the images with your colored pencils for depth and detail if you want.

I used my alcohol based markers to completely fill in the background. You could
also sponge in your background or brayer it. Remember, this is YOUR card!

2. Cut the stamped cardstock so that you have only an 1/8" on either side of it.

3. Layer the colored card onto a second piece of decorative cardstock cutting the
right side of of the cardstock approximately an inch wider than the other three
sides.

4. Punch two holes for the decorative brads and add them to the top two layers of
the cardstock. Add a few more layers by attaching them with your favorite choice
of glue, tape, Xyron adhesive, etc. cutting as you go until you are happy with your
choices. Just try to keep it small, easy and under 5 pounds.

The easier we make our life, the more joyful it will become. "KISS" - Keep It Simple, Silly or even Sunny - just make it yours!

As for me, first a good cup of coffee, a walk with my favorite puppy, and then off to the office to finish up an order or two and I will be able to call the day my own .... 4 steps .... that's all anyone needs !

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Quickies

Spring is here!

The birds are a chirpin' and the bunnies are a playin' in my backyard.

I just had to pull this stamp out and make a quick card with one of my newer designs...yes, I draw more than just bugs :)

This card took less time than a hop down the bunny trail with Bella Boo.

Materials Needed for Project:

1 Large bag of your favorite Jelly Beans

1 Bugawumps "Peepers" stamp

1 3" x 4" piece of white cardstock

1 brown paper bag

***** assorted pieces of colored cardstock for layering

HOW TO: Stamp "Peepers" four times on to a piece of cardstock. Color "Peepers".

Eat a few jelly beans.

Using a VERY LARGE Oval punch, punch out 3 ovals onto a specialty paper (brown

paper bags work for me!)

Now eat just the red jelly beans.

Cut the Oval in 1/2 so that it looks like a cracked egg.

Give your brother all the green jelly beans.

Now, tape, glue, whatever you normally use to stick things on to paper and stick the
egg shells over the chicks as seen above.

Grab a handful of jelly beans and go for it. YUM!

Layer onto cardstock and you have one fun spring card to send out before the jelly

are all gone!

Admire your card and have a few more jelly beans.

Congrats! You did a great job. Finish off the bowl of jelly beans - you are on your way to a very happy creative day!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

P.S. CAUTION - DO NOT give your dog the black jelly beans. It could be a messier day than
than you want .... this is another story for another time, it involved my son, black jelly

beans, our puppy, BJ and a very loooong car ride.

No Parking Zone

How often do you wish you had your camera ready?

I went all the way back home to get mine when I saw this. It was so worth the trip!

I am not sure the owner of the porcelain vehicle realized where he had parked it as it was at the bottom of a driveway, but it sure was a fun sight.

Which gets me to thinking, cameras have become so small that keeping one in your pocket or purse at all times could be the most creative tool you can use on a daily basis. The only drawback is that if you must have it with you to utilize it.

I will admit, I am guilty of not thinking ahead and wish more than once I had my camera on me. While my cell phone has a camera in it, it is an older model and the resolution is so low that if I want to use the photo later the quality is too poor (I resist new technology and its high cost) so once again, it is normally in my car and turned off as I journey down the streets of my town or someone else's. I probably shouldn't worry about the quality of picture, it is the image that should be the reminder of where I was creatively thinking at the time I took the photo.

Still....think of all the fun, wonderful sights that pop up between here and there on a normal day in your life, trucks with signage, kids in the parks with parents, puppies, squirrels, flowers blooming, bloomin' onions, rain droplets on anything, sidewalk chalk art, rocks in the road, sandy beaches, snowy days, poolside fun.....etc.

Being creative does not mean that you have to always be productive.

For me, creativity is experiencing the usual in an unusual way. What you do with the information you have collected is up to you to use whenever you want.

The main focus is that if you never see the "unusual" in the ordinary, you will have a difficult time creating something that you can call your own.

Looking at life through a different lens may in fact change yours.

So at least for today, I am seriously going to put my digital camera (new batteries included) into my coat pocket and see what the world has to offer.

Off I go wishing you a fun-filled day - just be careful where you park!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo