Merry Christmas!!!

To all those who celebrate this wonderful holiday...hope you are with family, loved ones and/or friends! I'm about to wrap the last couple of presents before I head for bed :0) but wanted to wish everyone warm thoughts and memories of the day!


Merry Christmas :0)

December Babies...

A special shout out to my little brother, Dave, on his birthday (December 11th)!!! Hope you had a wonderful day...sorry I didn't call you :0(

Another December baby (22nd) is my big baby, Taka!!! This will be his 14th year on this earth. One of Hiro's friend came over to celebrate with us (so Hiro had an impromtu sleep over...gee how did that happen?! LOL!!!). So Happy Birthday to Dave & Taka...many, many more good years to come!




Taka conducting the birthday song....












Blowing a candle out on his favorite carrot cake :0)

To all my friends who are Spellbinder Wizardettes....

....is that a word?! LOL!!

Spellbinders posted that they are in search of design team members for next year!!! If you are a fan of their dies and machines like I am, you too should go for it! I want to give it a try so come join me!

Here's the link!
Good luck to you!!

Speaking of tags....

This is for the benefit of my Japanese scrappers...as promised, here's the pictures of the tags we'll be making this month (most without ribbons when I took this picture/you will have them):










上の写真は、今月のプロジェクトです。
もし興味がありましたら是非参加して下さい。
宜しくお願いします！
MargieH

This past weekend has been a rush of events for us. Saturday, my oldest DS had to skip Saturday Japanese school to take a placement test for high school (he'll be a freshman in the fall @ Schaumburg High School) - YIKES! How did he grow up that fast?! Right afterwards, I had to take DS #2 to the bus stop so that he could attend Japanese school (was not happy that big brother wasn't going...he indicated that he wanted to take the placement test! LOL!! Wait 2 years, kid! You'll have your chance! Then I rushed to get my hair done and get to the dry cleaners before picking up DS#1...didn't quite make so DH had to step in and get our little guy. Then off to a holiday party all the way downtown...love the chance to catch up on friends at this annual gathering...too much white wine & champagne ;0P But so much fun!

Sunday, it was back downtown (Wrigleyville) to Church. It was so nice to see our congregation members as some of them are close to 80s and 90s years young. The ladies made this wonderful hot ODEN (kind of like a thin brothed stew full of potatoes, vegggies and fish cakes)...great for a hangover! LOL!!! Then afterwards we went to MITSUWA for some much needed food shopping! LOL!! Then we passed out at home...it was a very quiet evening!

So how was your weekend?

Tagged By Ivy...

As I see in the comments, my dear friend Miss Ivy tagged me so here's the rules & my answers:

Here are the rules...Welcome to the 2008 edition of getting to know your friends! Try not to be lame and spoil the fun! If you get tagged, copy this entire survey and paste into your own blog, change all of the answers so that they apply to you. Then visit the profiles of some of your friends and "Tag" them by simply leaving a comment, asking them to visit your blog, and state that they have been Tagged! The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known! Some of you may get tagged several times, so they can always refer back to your blog for your answers.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 6am....stumbling around to brush my teeth & wash the good ole face and off downstairs to get lunch bags ready for the boys. Can you believe that Schaumburg school district does not offer hot lunch to their kids?! OY! I have to do this until the boys are in high school.

2. Diamonds or pearls? Pearls...my birth gem (June baby)!!

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? I think it was SpiderMan 3?!

4.What is your favorite TV show? Runway

5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Coffee & (maybe) toast

6. What is your middle name? It's Japanese and I don't answer when called :0P

7. What food do you dislike? Mussels = YUK!

8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? A Japanese band called UverWorld

9. What kind of car do you drive? A silver ACURA RDX...love that car!

10. Favorite sandwich? Roast Beef w/ lots of horseradish :0)

11. What characteristic do you despise? Liar

12. Favorite item of clothing? Jeans

13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? I never been to Europe so I would love to wander around that area! AND my DH promised to take me there...are you reading this Hosho?! Heehee!!

14. Favorite brand of clothing? Talbot's, Liz Caliborne

15. Where would you retire to? Somewhere warm without any natural diseasters (you know, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes - LOL!!)

16. What was your most recent memorable birthday? Two years ago when we had family from Japan over and they remembered my birthday! We had a mini impromtu party! Loved it! Great memories! Two days later, we were off to Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone Nat'l Park & Grand Teton for a summer/birthday vacation :0)

17. Favorite sport to watch? Not into watching...

18. Furthest place you are "tagging" this? Not sure yet...

19. Person you expect to send it back first? Would be a miracle...there's a lot of these going around

20. When is your birthday? June 14th (Flag Day!)

21. Are you a morning person or a night person? Was a night owl but getting old and have to get up early for the kids so MORNING PERSON (of no choice - LOL!!)

22. What is your shoe size? 8

23. Pets? Do my kids count? If not, no.

24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? I'm part of an article about design teams for a Japanese scrapbook magazine that should be coming out on the 10th - so excited & honored that Emi (the editor) asked me!

25. What did you want to be when you were little? A music/theater teacher

26. How are you today? I'm great but ovewhelmed with my schedule...

27. What is your favorite candy? Altoids

28. What is your favorite flower? Oh, wow. I have two: pink roses & gerber daisies!

29. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Tomorrow! Knowing that I survived another day to enjoy another one!

30. What's your full name? Marjorie T. Higuchi

31.What are you listening to right now? Silence..well, DH is now walking around.

32. What was the last thing you ate? Vanilla Bean Ice Cream!

33. Do you wish on stars? Sometimes

34. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Pink!

35. How is the weather right now? COLD!

36. The first person you spoke to on the phone today? My son's teacher...in trouble again that little guy! OY!

37. Favorite soft drink? Definitely COKE!

38. Favorite restaurant? Daruma Restaurant (Japanese restaurant in Hoffman Estates, IL)

39. Real hair color? Black

40. What was your favorite toy as a child? Headless Barbie...thanks to my brothers!

41. Hugs or kisses? Both!

42. Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate

43. Coffee or tea? Coffee!

44. Do you want your friends to email you back? Of course.

45. When was the last time you cried? Just an hour ago...I'm such a sap when it comes to sad stories on TV!

46. What is under your bed? Dust bunnies..probably.

47. What did you do last night? Creating some Christmas tags!

48. What are you afraid of? drowning

49. Salty or sweet? Sweet

50. How many keys on your key ring? key ring...try paper weight!

51. Favorite day of the week? Saturdays (esp evenings...the only time I can rest). Kids have Japanese school on Saturdays and we have to be downtown to officiate church. Sometimes no church, I try to schedule SB classes.

52. If you can choose your talent, what would it be? To make anything on a sewing machine!

53. Do you make friends easily? I seem outgoing but am really shy.

54. How many people will you tag this to? Not sure.

55. How many will respond? I'm hoping most.

Tag to those of you reading NOW! HA!

JOY to the world....

Heehee!!

I just finished submitting this to the TaDa folks but wanted to share this with you all! These past few weeks I've been into these door knob holders...don't ask, I don't know why! I might do a class on this one...one of these days :0)

Papers are from TaDa Creative Studios, of course!

The letters "J" & "Y" are brought to you by Spellbinder Wizard folks! Note that I was able to cut thin chipboard and the pattern papers with the Wizard....even embossed both! VERY COOL!!! SO EASY!!!!

The door knob holder is from Basic Elements.
Metallic paints & glitter are from Ranger Ink (Dabbers & Stickle)
Ribbons are from May Arts & Queen & Co.
Stick pin from Maya Road
Charm & Jingle Bell - unknown (didn't keep the package)/the bell is from Hobby Lobby
Adhesive - mostly 3M QuickDry & Glue Dots

Just love how this turned out!

Happy Holidays!!!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! For some reason this year, we had a hectic social life weekend! LOL!!

First we had a house full of friends for Thanksgiving dinner...it was WONDERFUL to have them over and to express our gratitude of their friendships :0) Our friend's eldest asked me why we celebrate Thanksgiving...we're Japanese! Her mother didn't know what to think of her daughter's question. I just smiled and told her that you don't have to be of any kind of background to express thanks for what we have...a warm home, good health, good friends and such a good life. I think she got it :0) Love teenagers...they're curious about everything...well, the ones I know at least ;0)

One day of rest (Friday) which I needed! Handwashed all the (two sets of) china, silverware and serving plates & such. Did not need to go out to stores....I think this is the weekend to stay out of stores! LOL!!

On Saturday, we went to a "reunion" lunch...hmm, maybe dinner (it was a 10 hour affair!) in Palatine. Although all have resigned from the Bank, we get together a few times during the year at each other's homes. We eat, laugh, sing, drink and eat some more. So lucky that we are able to do this. Most of them we have known for close to 20 years! Time flies! Cheers, you guys!

Sunday, I had to get some projects done. Couldn't find any of the stuff I needed without digging out from the basement! This is what happens when you have to clean the house and throw stuff downstairs! UGH! LOL!!

I had the opportunity to sit down and play with the Wizard! Love my Wizard...esp. the Nesties! With the scalloped circle and the regular circle, I made a holiday card. Notice the TaDa Creative Studios BEAUTIFUL holiday papers. The paper is printed in metallic ink! VERY cool technique! You have to see in person....just BEAUTIFUL!!!

Notice the white in the background! Yes, it snowed overnight in Chicago!! OY! But what a perfect background to my holiday card! LOL!!! All the papers (I used two different patterns) and accents are from TaDa Creative Studios. Just added a little fiber for the paper button accent.







This is the inside of the card...don't you just love two-sided papers! I cut a circle from my Wizard and you know you can emboss with the Wizard, right? Well, you can! I edge with Pebbles Inc chalk (the shimmer matches the shimmer in the papers) and stamped with Stampin' Up on StazOn Aquamarine color for a bold touch. Of course, if you're adhering with vellum, you need the Xyron!




So this is my card to you! Hope that the holiday season brings you and your family JOY throughout this festive season. Remember loved ones that are far or who have passed on (thinking of you, dear Becky!!!). Gratitude to you for visiting my blog, and/or attending any of my classes at Frozen Memories, CraftFancy or at my home!

I'm thinking FALL when there's SNOW outside...

Figures! LOL!!!

I wanted to post some fall pictures of when my DH & I went for a walk at Schaumburg's Spring Valley park...















So beautiful and relaxing! It was such a beautiful day that you really didn't need a jacket. These were taken the day before election day so the kids were still in school and we had a nice little date day :0)











Well, I should say we DID have a nice relaxing time until I met this little winged thing....was too close to the fence when the friendly one nipped me! Boy! I didn't see that coming! LOL!!! Guess it was her way to say "HELLO!" OY! I love this picture tho! Heehee!!

Blog Candy Alert (Spellbinders)....

Guess what, Spellbinder fans!

Spellbinders finally got a blog and they're offering some blog candy to mark the occassion! Click here and comment on your favorite die! What's yours?

Mine (for now or for today) is the Snowman! He's so stinkin' cute! Look at the post below to see my layout "SNOW DAY."

Trading Pages....

Do you all remember Trading Spaces on TLC channel?

It's a show that has people trading their houses/particular room in their houses to do a decorating makeover (without control or input! YIKES!!).

Well, I belong to a YAHOO group called PaperPiecing (folks who have interest in paper piecing (PP) accents for their layouts, cards, etc.) and we decided to do a trading pages swap. One sends pictures to another member, he/she does a layout using them which includes a PP accent and sends it back to the owner.

I had the opportunity to do our list mom's picture of her son and his (ex-)girlfriend spending a snow day last winter at her house. Great timing as I had just gotten TaDa Creative Studios' newest holiday paper line which is perfect for these snow pictures! The paper is printed with metallic inks and it's just BEAUTIFUL!!!!

See my paper piecing?! Can you believe it's a die?! It's from Spellbinder's Wizard system! LOVE their products! I have a HUGE wish list of stuff to get!!! LOL!!

Enjoy!

A TaDa Contest!!

Are you making some "scrappy" gifts for any loved ones for the holiday season? Why not "kill two birds with one stone?" Enter them in a contest to win great prizes for yourself!! The gift is theirs but send the image of the project to TaDa! Easy, right?!

Find info about TaDa Creative Studios here: http://www.tadascrapbooking.com/
Find all contest details here: http://www.tadascrapbooking.com/Cropportunities.pdf

Deadline is December 15th.

Send entries to our fearless leader and design team coordinator, Tracy Austin (a Making Memories Master 2008) at leusch_austin@hotmail.com

Looking forward to seeing all the entries!
Good luck and happy scrapping!!!

VOTED!!!

And I am so excited about the results both nationally and locally! Congratulations to all!!!! It is a very proud thing to do as an American citizen! Hope you voted too!

Just wanted to post that I am alive and well! But cannot believe another month has slipped by (October)!!! I do have some things to post but am getting ready for a Japanese community craft show/open house tomorrow and Friday.

So I hope to post soon on some fall scenes! PROMISE!

Have a GREAT day...it's going to be another 70+ weather in Chicago!

September...come & gone...

So bad at blogging these past few weeks...

Most of you might know, my dear friend & co-owner of Frozen Memories, Becky Brunetti, had past away early morning of Sept 10th...she was a heart transplant recipient and I guess her heart didn't want to go on anymore. If you knew her, you were lucky! She had a big smile along with that big heart...she touched everyone and tried to live life to the fullest. I miss her terribly but can only imagine what her kids and husband are feeling. For those of you who wish to honor Becky, think about sending donations to Becky's charity: Have a Heart Foundation, 747 E. Boughton Road, Bolingbrook, IL 60440. Thank you!

Also in September, I attended a scrapbookers' retreat which I desperately needed esp. after Becky's death. It's been years since attending one and was lucky to hang out with my friend, Fiona! Met several new friends and it was good to be creative again. Definitely recharged my batteries - thanks, Fiona & Marie!!!!!

The last weekend of September, I had attended a Crop for A Cure (Univ. of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation) that my friend, Sarah, had organized. I was so excited for her when I heard that they raised $3500!! WOW! Hope she has another one next year...I'll ask her when she is recovered from this year's event! LOL!!!

Well, I think I'm caught up for now ...well, I emphasize NOW. LOL!!

Thanks for reading!

September 11th...

Today marks the 7th anniversary of Sept 11, 2001 terrorist attack against our Country...I for one cannot believe it's been seven years. We as a family witness this horrible tragedy from our backyard when we lived in NJ - our townhouse was right on the Hudson River across from Manhattan.

I wrote this two years ago on my blog and wanted to share here:

"Mixed emotions as I write this...I remember that beautiful peaceful blue sky day so well. I was taking my two boys to IKUEI Japanese international school. It was a straight shot north from West New York, NJ (Jacobs Ferry) to Englewood Cliffs, NJ...driving along the coast of NJ where the Hudson River was east of me...after I dropped off my happy little guys, I drove back the same route.

I had the radio on and that was when I first heard that there was a plane that crashed into one of the towers. The radio announcer didn't have much information as it just happened and speculated that maybe the pilot had a heart attack. I turned off the radio, thinking what a way to die and was anyone hurt in the building and down on the ground!I stopped by Target in Edgewater but no one was in the store...not even an employee! I spotted one coming in from the back door/the dock area and that's when he informed me that the crash was not an accident but a terrorist attack.

I went straight to the Japanese supermarket to get food (since it was the holiday weekend, we had no food) and saw what everyone was talking about on TV. My DH called me and told me he was on the ferry headed towards the Wall Street area but the Port Authority would not let them into New York so he was on his way home. Thank goodness...he had clients at the Towers and would pop in to say hello to them unexpectedly. Luckily he had such a heated conversation with the Tokyo office and decided he would go to work later in the morning.

He saw the second plane hit the Towers while he was on the ferry....he couldn't believe what he had just witnessed!I got home with bags full of groceries and we headed off to get the boys...the 15-20 minute drive took over an hour and half as the George Washington Bridge (GWB) was closed off (inbound to NYC). We finally reached the school and the kids were told that there was a HUGE fire in NYC and everything was closed. Our trip back home only took the normal 20 minutes because the police were worried about the GWBridge and we had taken the back road.

The back road was blocked on the way there so we had to go through Ft. Lee which is usually packed with traffic on a normal day. I found out later that they closed our street - River Road (we live between the Lincoln & Holland tunnels and the GWBridge) after we got home. All the fathers from the "IKUEI families" were safe...although it took them until 1 or 2am to get home.

We saw the smoke and what was left of the Towers from our neighborhood. When the winds shifted, we could smell that terrible smell and we were forced to close our windows. I am left with this empty hole in the NYC skyline...I've known that skyline all my life. When I graduated from university, I had celebrated my graduation with family friends in the Windows of the World Restaurant. I stayed at the Vista Hotel in the Tower on my business trips to American Express headquarters across the street, walked through to get places in the neighborhood. It will be sorely missed. I pray for all those who have perished and to those who were left behind to morn their loss. Hug your loved ones tighter tonight as I will with mine."

CHA - Spellbinder Wizard....

Yes! I'm still trying to finish up my CHA comments! LOL!! Sorry I am slow! But wanted to share a product line that is finally getting some recognition in the market = the Spellbinder Wizard!

I have never had a machine that can cut, emboss and flatten like the Wizard! If you want a sturdy not made out of plastic machine, this is it. Granted I have my Sizzix, Sidekick and Silhouette but I go to this one more often. Although it is made out of metal, I think it is lighter than my Sizzix. I just finished a project which required cutting some QuicKutz Revolution dies and guess which did the job BEAUTIFULLY! Now they're coming out with an electric machine (quieter and for those who have issues with their hands such as arthritis, this would be perfect!)...hmm, this would be cool to have! LOL!!!

Anyways, I wanted to share my pictures of their booth and the beautiful make'n take I did with my friend, Beth!

This HUGE sign took about 15 minutes to hang...

There's my friend, Beth, working her magic!

The pretty blonde lady with the name badge is Stacey Caron, the owner of Spellbinder!

This is the beautiful make'n take that was done at their booth! Love this sunflower die...another one on my list! Heehee!!!!




So if you're in the market for a unique die cut machine, I highly recommend this one!

Going backwards to CHA-Summer...

Sorry for jumping around like this but I realized that I haven't even shared my CHA photos! SORRY!!

CHA...well, it happens so quickly and even working for a couple of days...I still missed a lot! Overall, attendance in retail customers & manufacturers were down but I had a lot of traffic @ my MnT (make and take/make items from that particular manufacturer's booth & bring it home with ya)on Friday and mixed on Saturday. Sunday was my off day and was able to visit booths leisurely.

This post I'd like to share pictures of my friends in the industry doing their thing @ various manufacturers' booths!


This is my good friend, Beth Pingry, from Spellbinders. You know those nice folks who has that awesome die cut machine - the Wizard! Love their stuff! Hi, Beth!! We've known each other for YEARS! Proud to call her my (sorority/Delta Zeta) sister...if she claims me! Heehee!!!! A very creative & talented designer :0)




The sweet lady on the left is my friend, Theresa Tyree, and a very talented designer who is on Piggy Tales' design team! The other sweet lady is Debbie Juden (with her little one) who owns this great company!



OK....this friend is the wonderful & VERY talented, Melodee Langworthy, who I just admire for her character & creativity!!





One of the companies I just adore is KODOMO (officially KODOMO NO KAO)!!! And these two ladies are the driving force of this company esp. in the U.S. I think this company is a hidden treasure and hope that many retailers get on board!



OK...not a friend but a friend's daughter (but she's a lot of fun, this one! LOL!). This is Teresa Collin's daughter, Taylor, and a real cool chic :0) Wanted to stop to say hi to Teresa but she left earlier to catch one of her boys' sports events at home. So in place to Teresa, I took this picture of Taylor (looks like her mom) in action! Thanks, Taylor, for the MnT session!


Now this young lady I have been anxious to meet for months...maybe it's been a year?! Is the ULTRA-talented lady, Wendy Veechi (here demo-ing for Ranger Inks)!!!! SO love her creative mind and she debuted a new line of stamp products with Stampers Anonymous - HOW COOL!!!! So happy for her!!



And of course, I had to find Robin Beam! Here she is at Amate Studio's booth and she is amazing at what she does! Now I may need to go back to jewelry making! LOL!! Love what she has created there in such a short amount of time! WOW!!





So those are some of my friends that I was able to capture on "film!" More CHA stuff to come :0)

Class @ Craft Fancy (Arlington Hts. IL)!!

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to toot my horn!
Looked over at our newest LSS (local scrapbook store)'s blog to see THIS!
WOW! Thanks, Simone & Carol!!!! I am excited to share this project!

I made one in TaDa Creative Studio's papers for their booth at CHA (Craft & Hobby Assoc. trade show) and everyone wanted to know how to make it. Well, if you're in the Chicago area, it's being offered at Craft Fancy! So come join us!!












The dates are:

Saturday, August 9th
11:00am - 1:30pm

Tuesday, August 12
11:00am to 1:30pm

TOOT! TOOT!! LOL!!

Card Positioning Systems (CPS#74) Challenge...

Hey all!

I will post about my experience with CHA in a while but I wanted to post my take on a card sketch over at CPS (Card Positioning Systems). I have not made a card by using a sketch and thought this was fun after seeing all the others (boy, the stuff you can put on a little card! LOL!!).
So here's mine...













Supplies used:

Stamp - JustRite Stamps
Patterned Paper - TaDa Creative Studios
Cardstock - Die Cut With a View
Chipboard accent - LaserLine
Circle Cutters - Coluzzle, Fiskars 2" circle punch
Paint - Acrylic Dabbers (Ranger Ink)
Ink - Stampin' Up

It's a very simple design. I'm really liking these paper flowers I have been folding...they're all 2" circles. Then I snuck in a little "H" in the middle. These papers are new TaDa papers introduced at CHA last weekend ~ aren't the colors beautiful?!

Thanks for looking!!

CHA - LaserLine (#4114)...

Hey all!

Getting final touches for CHA (Craft & Hobby Assoc. trade show) somewhat completed (between panic attacks!) - LOL!!

Attendees for CHA, hope you all come & visit LaserLine! I will be doing a make'n take at the booth on Friday & Saturday! One of my favorite mini album designs...so far! LOL! TaDa Creative Studios had kindly provided their cool papers for this MnT! Thank you, TaDa!!!

Details listed below - along with pictures of a sample I just put together this afternoon.

10:00am - NOON (Friday & Saturday)
2:00pm - 4:00pm (Friday & Saturday)

This would be the cover/frame....

I spread the pages out so that you can see what it looks like...

The last page of the MnT...that's my niece, isn't she a cutie?!

Thanks for looking & hope to see you there!

CHA Sneak Peek - TaDa Creative Studios (#2325)

Here's the sneak peek for TaDa Creative Studios!!! Hope you all like them as much as I do!

Well, what do you think?

Collection comes with coordinating tags and pockets have been laser cut, as opposed to die cut. No pesky white tabs! All folds are scored for easy assembly.

Here's what I did with the "Daddy 'O" line:

Card Frame Kits by TaDa Creative Studios are plain die cut cardstock tri-fold bases that come with assorted frames that can be layered over the photo window. What a great idea to send photos of the kids to loved ones! Once received, the card turns into a free standing personalized photo frame! GO GREEN!!! LOL!!

I used the kit to make a "Cute Sweet" card! These papers are, of course, TaDa Creative Studios too! AND they're cute & sweet...don't you agree? LOL!!

Playing with the background design of those "dots" - I pop-dotted a few as you can see on the side picture of the Card Frame Kit. Love this kit...you can use it in SO SO MANY ways!

The best part for you CHAers, come join Tracey Wilder as she will do demos on Saturday from 10-12 and 1-3.

Please take a peek at my fellow TaDa DTers' blog like Julie's & Tracey's for more eye candy!

Blog lag...

as to opposed to jet lag! LOL!! Which my parents are probably experiencing right now as they are back in Japan.

Catch up of June events:

I thought summers were supposed to be "lazy days of summer" but no! I have been driving around taking little boys (well, not so little anymore) to camp. And of course, the two locations are one end to the other! GRRrr!

Also I have been holding scrapbooking classes but not as much as during the school year. But I have been fortunate to have a huge interest in them! So thank you to all my scrappers for hanging out with me between camp times! LOL!!

It is also CHA time! This time around I have a break! LaserLine (Booth # 4114) has extremely busy with some new accounts! YEAH!!! Good for them! So I won't have new products out...just designing a new MnT. More on that in a different post (when it come closer to CHA, I'll post).

I want to thank all my friends for a very happy birthday wish (June 14th=Flay Day!) and want to wish my fellow June babies good wishes & fortune on their day too! So here's a card for you made from mostly TaDa Creative Studios (CHA Booth #2325), of course! LOL!!

The sprinkle stamp is also from TaDa, "birthday wishes" stamp from Stampin Up! as well as the inks & markers. The bling (aka Stickles) is brough to you by Ranger.

Another thing...happy father's day to my dad and to my dear hubby from the boys! They made a mini album for their daddy. We got him a sport shirt since he joined a health club and wanted to add to his wardrobe! Thank you for all you do for us, dad & Hosho! xoxoxo

OK..back to work on my CHA projects! Just got a box of new stuff from TaDa and can I just say I love it!!!!!!!! LOL!

Reflection...

on Memorial Day is probably the theme of the day.

I spent the day with the family by taking a walk (about 30-40 mins - our boys can only last so long! LOL!!) in a place where you can get some exercise and reflect on your thoughts. As the day was Memorial Day, I thought of my friends' spouses that are serving overseas and how their families are spending this day without them. Made me feel how lucky I am that I can spend the day with my family...it was a beautiful day in more ways than one!

Got to sleep in a little in the morning and in the late morning, we went off to Spring Valley Nature Center & Heritage Farm in Schaumburg for our walk. Of course, we had to "bribe" the boys into going by having a late lunch of RAMEN and bubble tea at MITSUWA's food court. You can only imagine how fast two boys can move to get in that car! LOL!!!

If you are ever in the Schaumburg IL area (aka Woodfield Mall), you'll have to make this one of your stops! I never went to the back of this place....there's a farm (duh!) and took some great pictures! I'll share some below:




Can't get over how tall my oldest DS is getting!







This statue is placed by the vistor's center and is such a sweet piece! Definitely one of my favorites!







Can you tell how excited my boys are to be walking in 80 degree weather?! LOL!!! "Deal with it!" HA!






One of the scenes before arriving to Heritage Farm :0)








Such a magnificant bird! Was gobbling all day long! LOL!!





Look at the colors on this one! He is a beauty! This one was the quiet one. There was another who didn't know what time it was...he kept going all day long too. What is up with these birds - it was a very noisey bird coop! LOL!!







I made a friend!








This is Heritage Farm's visitor's center.




It was a very nice way to spend a holiday and after a week's worth of cold weather too!

Hope you and your family had a wonderful holiday weekend....hope that you also reflected a little about those who serve, served and sacrficed.