2008 Book Review

Another year has come and gone...and this year I read a lot more than last year! My reading goal this past year, 2008, was to read 20 books off of my To Be Read Pile and to read a new author for each letter of the alphabet.

i didn't do so well...I missed two letters of the alphabet U and X and I only read 16 books off of my TBR...next year, 2009, I am going to do a different reading challenge...

So, onto my review...

My Top 5 of 2008
The Host by Stephanie Meyer...what a fantastic mix of romance and sci-fi...I am totally in love with Ian!
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi...totally amazing memoir that left me speachless...very well writen it did not drag or feel like a nonfiction type book
Atonement by Ian McEwan...this is a litterary book, not a fluffy beach read...and it is very good!
Blacklisted by Gena Showalter...real quick Younge adult book, number 4 in the series and I so want to read the others now.
The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig...the second book in her series and it was, to me at least, better than the first, I already have number 3 on my TBR pile.

Worst of 2008
The Painted Veil I couldn't stand the characters...but I really enjoyed the DVD
The Golden Compass I was cnfussed the entire time...
The Color of Magic I just didn't get the humor...
Seventh Son not my type of Fantasy and a real intro book into a long series instead of a story of it's own leading into a series
Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict borring...

I've already forgetten all about them
Wild Horses it was a mystery and I vagely recall that it had to do with a race track accident...
In the Devil's Snare So many names and so much information that I purged it all...I know it was about the Salem Witch trials and that is all i remember
How to Marry a Marquis now that I have looked it up I remember a romance line
Lead me On I didn't like it so I purged everything about it
On the Prowl I read this for a story by Patricia Briggs, there were 4 short stories, I remember not liking any of the others and that is all I can remember

Everything Read in 2008
Moon Called
Wild Horses
The Funeral Planner
The Nanny Diaries
The Painted Veil
Atonement
New Moon
The Golden Compass
Knight Errant
The Weight of Water
British Bad Boys
The Birth Order Connection
Eclipse
Must Love Dragons
Promise Not To Tell
Jumper
The HostIn the Devil's Snare
Up Close and Dangerous
The Masque of the Black Tulip
The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette
How to Marry a Marquis
The Boy Next Door
Lead Me OnThe Color of Magic
The Shack
The Book Thief
Breaking Dawn
Blacklisted
Blood Bound
The Illuminator
Beauty and the Spy
Caine's Reconing
Sam's Creed
Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict
Pilgrim
Infidel
The Queen's Fool
Seventh Son
Hello, Gorgeous!
Marked
On The Prowl
You Suck
Blue Bloods

The Road to a Friend's House is never long

Here is my latest work on the Circle of Friends Circle Journal. This particular one is our fearless leaders.

She selected for her theme..."A Circle of Friends Travel Guide" Because she can not visit all of us (we are very spread out across the US) she wanted us to take her to the area we live in. She let it be very flexible, it could be anything from our hometown to a favorite room, where we grew up and or a combination of these things.

The only real requirements that she gave us were that we had to include a photo of ourselves, our mailing address, e-mail and phone number (optional).

I am glad she mad it as flexible as she did since I will be moving this summer and I am all in a funk about it. I love where we live right now, good friends, nice house, great church and a wonderful place to bring DD up. But all good things do eventually come to an end and we have to move on.

Because of my funk...I did not concentrate on the town I live in, instead I decided to go with the things that make my home home to me.

The Right hand page of my two page spread is where I have included a photo of myself with my little family. Under the two smaller hearts are photo's of my dog and cat.

The left hand page has a few elements starting on the far left I have created a pocket and placed two matching tags inside. On one of the tags I have written all my contact information for where I currently live, the second tag is so Sandi can fill out contact information for my new home.

In the center I have placed a pear, indicating my, as well as my families love of food and hospitality. We love to have people over to sit around and eat good home cooked meals and chat.

And last but not least the far right I have created a miniature book, inside the opening I have had written "Sitting and getting lost in a good book with loved ones close by. Watching DD learn to read."

I love to read and DD has taken up grabbing her own books (her favorite is Curious George) to sit and read with mama...she says the vowels and points to the words mimicking reading out loud.

I did have a hard time with this journal but only because I have not quite come to terms with the upcoming move. However, it really made me take a look at what goes on in my house that makes it my home...I hope to one day be able to shower Sandi with some of my hospitality...so she can experience all the wonderful things I have expressed in her journal in real life.

Another Christmas Present

For Father's day I sent my father a set of handmade, died and stamped napkins and they were a hit! So much so that when it came time for my mother to pick out Christmas gifts for her sister and kids, she asked me to make them all napkins.

Because of the number of napkins I needed to make, 24 total, we decided to go with only one design. The center of the napkins are an ocher tone with two different shades of shimmy gold randomly streaked on. The trim is a rich jungle green with a green shimmer paint that had a lot of gold in it also...it really matched the center perfectly. The image that I stamped is a sketch of a Lion by Leonardo Da Vinchi.

So, for all those months that I didn't post anything on my blog, now you know why LOL...24 napkins do take quite a long time to put together but I learned a lot and think I have most of the sewing kinks worked out.

I hope they all enjoy them!

My Sister's Christmas Present

Today is the 1st of December and I have just finished my little sister's Christmas present. I have had the materials for this project since May, they were originally going to be her birthday present but time got away from me. Since they are her Christmas present I am scheduling this post Way in advance...so please keep in mind that my spacing may be all messed up b/c I am preoccupied with opening my own gifts...I'll fix it if I need to later. Okay so for the first of three pillows. I used an image from Alpha Stamps Brother Grim Collage Images, The Ball #1. It is a fabric image that has been heat set and will not fade. I sewed it on using as decorative a stitch that I know how to do. the mice in the corners are also from an Alpha Stamps collage sheet. The Windows are hand stamped, the stamp is by Stampington and Co. I broke two needles putting the trim on...I had to go out and buy a sturdier needle but I got it on. I thought this one was going to be my favorite, the colors are right up my alley but when everything was all said and done, this one took a back seat. Funny how that goes.

My second pillow is the one with the most complicated sewing on it. I had no idea what I was doing but I figured it couldn't be that hard.

I wanted the 3 different fabrics to look like the stairs in the Alpha Stamps image, this one is from Midnight #1.

In the upper left hand corner I placed a triangle of the dark, what I dubbed, bushes, fabric.

I stamped the pocket watch on and added the hands to look like it is just before midnight...it wasn't until afterwards that I realized I should have set them a little after midnight...Cinderella is already in her rags again...oh well...

The silver ribbon is sewed down and I think I did a pretty good job with the bow...bows are my arch enemy.

I learned a lot about sewing with this pillow...

And last but not least, my favorite! Although when I started the project I thought this one was going to be the one that did not come together. I had all these extra things I was going to do to make it look "better" and I ended up not doing a single one of them.

The image is from the Alpha Stamps Collage Sheet Midnight #1. The stamp is a fun swirl that is by Autumn leaves. I stamped it repeatedly in brown ink that has been heat set and will not wash away.

Before the stamping the green color I selected was far from my favorite...but the brown toned it down wonderfully and it is a perfect match to the image. I could not bring myself to buy anything purple...I loath that color. That didn't leave me much to work with.

After learning how to attack the trim on Pillow number 1 this trim took no time at all.

I hope she likes them...b/c if she doesn't I am going up to her place and bringing them back. I am having a very hard time wrapping them up.

Thanks for looking...hope you are having a wonderful holiday!

Inside the Box With the Big Red Bow...

This week over at One Powerful Hour a very dear art friend of mine has set a wonderful "out of the box" theme...

Elisabeth of Sassy Stampin' Momma has challenged us to...

Inside The Box with the Big Red Bow.....
This is a time of year where everything is wrapped up and makes it even more exciting by trying to guess what's inside that box with the big red bow! It could be a small box or a huge box. Whatever it may be, it's a great surprise! But what if you knew what was going to be in that box? If you could choose, what would that be? The possibilities are endless!


I immediately thought...2 tickets to paradise...I don't know if the song was playing at the time or if the bad weather just has me yearning for a more pleasurable atmosphere...but as you can see, that is not what I ended up making. I got everything out and stood there for scratching my head, just not feeling the project. So I walked away for a few hours.

When DH got home he asked me if I had seen my Christmas present under the tree...I had of course and then it it me. DH is especially proud of the gift he is giving me this year...he keeps telling me how much i am going to love it and asks me all the time if I would like to open it early.

So, I decided instead of forcing something into my box, that I would make the box with the big red bow since it's contents to me are a total mystery at this point.

The top is where the majority of my time was spent. I stamped a key background onto green paper and covered it with gold pearl ex. On top of that I placed the eye image and gold embossed all around in various areas and also sprinkled some glitter. The pointsettia is painted with Twinkeling H2O's, the key is a charm I received from blog candy and the words are covered with diamond glaze.

The front of the box is what i am most pleased with. I cut out the key hole and covered it with clear embossing powder, added some pearl ex and re embossed. When it was still warm I wrapped it around a pen to give it a curl.

Around the outside of the box the phrase is "Christmas, is not a date, it is a state of mind." Which I am finding very true this year.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend before the big holiday. Thanks for looking.

By The Sea

I signed up for an upcoming Altered Tin swap. Actually, I didn't make the deadline I was hemming and hawing about it for so long. But they let me join in anyway and boy and I glad they did.

This is my first ever Altered Tin so I wanted to get a head start on it in case it did not turn out. Well, it did, actually I would say it is pretty darn close to exactly what I envisioned.

I decided to go with a Treasure Chest type theme. I have always loved the beach, it is fun and romantic and carefree and dangerous all at the same time. Plus many of my favorite childhood memories are from times my family spent on the beach. So here is my own personal beach to carry around with me...although I am giving it away...because I live no where near the beach.

Before starting I sanded the tin and coated it with PVA and then a layer of Gesso. When all that prep was done I affixed the female image and painted around her with a crackle paint that I later aged a little with some brown ink. I sealed that and added various rocks and real sea shells!

Inside I coated it entirely with sand, yes, real sand. The inside top has one of my favorite sayings by William Blake stamped on a handmade paper that to me kinda resembled a rocky beach. The inside bottom (deep section) is what I am most proud of. I cut out various sea shells from an old post card and coated them with clear embossing powder and then elevated them to various heights inside the tin on small wooden dowels. Down in the bottom of the tin I added some rocks and sea shells.

All around the outside of the tin I attached various beads and other ephemeral that reminded me of the beach/ocean/sea. I did this by first punching holes in the tin with an awl and then looping fishing wire through them. This step was actually done before I did any work on the inside of the tin.

To finish it all off I attached a mermaid charm that I aged with some rust colored Alcohol ink and a sand colored thread (the only thing I don't like). They guard the treasure inside.

Holiday Arch

I've been following the Tim Holtz 12 day's of Christmas Tags and I wanted to try some of his techniques.

I also love Gothic Arches but I have not been able to take part in the last few weeks because of other holiday projects.

So I decided to combine a couple of challenges and some techniques and came up with this Holiday arch.

I used the Tim Holtz background technique from day 2's tag. But I used greens and golds for the background.

The last two Gothic Arch themes were Snow and Tree's. Well, I don't have an entire tree but I do have some tree branches and snow, well, mine is gold...yep, wouldn't gold snow be cool!

So anyway, I hope you enjoy my arch. I have put it in the Circle of Friends December Lottery, I hope whoever wins it loves it as much as I do.

Thanks for looking.

12 Day's of Diva-ness Days 3 and 4

And the fabulous gifts just keep coming!

Yesterday was Day 3 of the 12 Day's of Diva-ness and my fabulous Diva sent me a Yankee Candle Holiday Sampler, the scents are Mistletoe, Cinnamon and Sugar and Red Apple Wreath. I lit the Red Apple Wreath yesterday and it smells scrumptious!

On the Fourth Day of Diva-ness my Diva gave to me....a set of Alcohol inks and some clear embossing powder.

The set of Alcohol inks are the Miner's Lantern collection and the colors are Rust, Stonewashed and Pitch Black. I can't wait to try them out...I am growing my collection slowly and using them up faster LOL...and I am always in need of clear embossing powder!

Thank you most fabulous Diva! I love all my gifties...off to try a different Day 3 candle.

I will leave you once again with a few of the fabulous Diva Guidlines

21. Being a Diva begins on the inside. Once you've convinced yourself, the rest of the world will follow.

23. Divas don't do fanny packs.

26. Divas know how to shop, so forget the budget and go for broke!

28. Divas don't beg. They ask, demand, pout, holler and cry and if none of that works they act like they didn't really want it in the first place but they NEVER beg.

29. Thou shalt keep thy profile updated, with lots of info that divas can use for shopping spree purposes.

12 Day's of Diva-ness Day 1 and 2

Today the PBS Diva's started our Second Annual 12 Days of Christmas Swap. This is a gift swap with one other Diva where for the next 12 days we will open one gift per day!

I have had the gifts from my diva sitting next to my computer now for about a week and it has been killing me not to open them...

But the wait was worth it...

On the First Day of Diva-ness by Diva gave to me
one Tree Wire Form to hang fabulous art swaps from.

And today we actually got to open two gifts, we had to wait for the silly mail system to deliver one last box...

So

On the Second Day of Diva-ness my Diva gave to me Two (and yes, I did get two of them) black frames to put my favorite pictures in.

Thank you most fabulous Diva partner of mine...I already have both of the wonderful items in use as you can see...

I can hardly wait till tomorrow!

Now I am off to report my fabulous items to the other Diva's and to send a thank you to my wonderful Diva...


I will leave you with a few of the Diva Guidlines:

1. Motto: Put on your big girl panties and deal with it!


10. Feather boas are an essential wardrobe component.

14. Screen protectors on your monitors are a MUST! You'll understand this rule all in good time.

17. Divas talk with their hands. Flutter to the left then flutter to the right. Just be very careful not to smack the person next to you.

19. Divas should never try to light a disposable lighter immediately after having applied lotion to said diva's hands.

My first Altered Domino

This week the challenge over at One Powerful Hour is to alter a Domino...

Set by Louise from Zuzu's Petals' n Stuff

I have never altered a domino before in my life...so for my very first ever attempt I decided to go simple...and I am not happy with it...so next time I will challenge myself a bit more. To me this one looks like all the all the others..and on top of that it came out Purple...I hate purple, it was suppose to be a deep eggplant...

So I alcohol inked the domino, then I stamped the image. I attached a small bit of German scrap that was pink but I colored it silver with a Krylon ink pen. The word I cut out of a book and attached it with a mixture of glossy modge podge and a pearl ex powder. I outlined the edges of the domino with my Krylon Ink pen.

The wings are black embossed on some of my Twinkling H2O paper and then I cut them out (obviously) and attached them to the back. I also added a layer of the Twinkling H2O paper to the back to cover up where I attached the wings and the dots on the playing side of the Domino.

I ran out of time but I want to add a metal halo over her head. I think I will have to drill a very small hole in the top of the domino and insert the metal and fill the hole with glue...we will see if I ever actually get around to doing that since I am not a fan of my domino...

thanks for looking

Incorporating Inchies

The inspiration for the latest Challenge on One Powerful Hour came from a very good friend of mine's Circle of Friends Journal.

Incorporate an inchie (yours or on that was given to you) into a larger piece of work.

Janice's (Reyn's Nest) Journal was an inchie journal. She wanted us to make 4 inchies and place one on each of the "mini" pages in the journal she made. When I flipped through the journal I noticed that most COF members made their 4 inchies a theme and then I got to Janice's page...her's had a giant tree that went from the top page to the bottom page. On each individual page she placed an inchie. So I decided to try something similar with my contribution to her journal.

So, I took two of my favorite stamps, both unfortunately discontinued, and worked from there. I stamped a swirl stamp on each page and covered it with pearl ex powder. I then placed my man and woman which I tried to make predominantly black and white. The Inchies were suppose to be my only "colored" section.


The first inchie I created was the one on the bottom. I placed the inchie over the mans hand, so the hand is the only "colored" portion of his body, I used a plaid background paper for the color on the suit. To add a bit of fun to it I cut up an old cigar label and placed bits and pieces all over the inchie. The finishing touch being an arrow that spins.

For the top inchie I decided to "color" the woman's face and part of her dress. I added a small tag that says "adore" with a feather behind it to add some interest.

The other two inchies only one covers a portion of the woman's dress and I used really bright colors and some rhinestones. The second male inchie is all about hats, even though the man I used did not wear one.

I had a great time with Janice's Journal even though it was very hard for me, inchies are the one "hot trend" right now that I seem to really have to work on.

Hope you enjoy my contribution and the idea...and now you know where I get some of my inspiration for the One Powerful Hour challenges!

Modes Couture

This week Think Monday think ATC challenged us to use Cloth + Paper.

During the holiday season, we’re using a lot of paper and sometimes also cloth. This is why I’d like to invite you to make one or several ATCs with these materials. I’m looking forward to see your ATCs.

I love working with fabric but I think I was lacking some creative juices...I went straight for the "clothing" theme. OH well, I still really like what I have made.

Her dress is all fabric...I stamped the image onto the pocka dot cloth and then again onto a grayish white. I cut out the dress from the pocka dot and then the wrap/bow from the grey and layered everything together.

I was very excited to use this stamp. A great friend of mine sent it to me a few months ago and I have not had time, nor the opportunity to use it until now.

Additional things that you can not see in the scan...I coated all the black words and table in Diamond glaze and the little whitish dots at the bottom and near the dress pattern cut out are actually miniature pearls. her necklace is coated in miniature pink seed beads.

Thanks for looking!

Recycled Zoo

Over at One Powerful Hour Carol, the Guest Designer has challenged us to Recycle!

I saved a bunch of DD's formula containers and thought that it was time to use one. So here is my Recycled Formula Container done up in a Zoo style...

Believe it or not this did take less than an hour. I wrapped the container with some wall paper and then cut out the opening. the inside is lined with a decorative paper. next I stamped the Giraffe and covered him with Flocking...cut him out and mounted him. The bottom I then covered with strips of shredded green paper.

To finish it off I covered the top opening with a shimmery white twaul and wrapped a velvet ribbon around the top and finally attached a silk leaf and a golden rhinestone...

Hope you enjoy and go check out Carol's fabulous Tin shrine! WeLcOmE 2 mY wOrLd

All Bookworms...

Over at One Powerful Hour the challenge is to make a bookmark....

"The bookmark you make can just be because or it can represent a book you have read and loved. If you do make one for a certain book please tell us what book and why you enjoyed it so much...after all I am on the hunt for a fabulous read for the upcoming holiday's."

I made a Just Because Bookmark. Actually I made a bookmark out of a fabulous Template that a friend of mine created for an upcoming swap we are doing in COF.

My favorite kind of bookmark is the ones that clip over the page you are on. However if you get the metal ones of these they make little marks on your book pages. So I thought a heavy paper clip over would not leave marks and the butterfly would look lovely sticking out of my books.

I prepared the book print by using various shades of Tim Holtz distressing inks and then printed the butterfly onto it. I added Denim blue embossing powder to portions of the wings and some purple embossing powder, then I covered the entire thing with clear embossing powder to make it sturdy.

The bookmark portion is glossy paper with a mixture of alcohol inks. I swirled the inks so it is more of a smooth look instead of splotches and then I dotted the paper with the alcohol inks. The black swirls are embossed. I then added the embossing powders I used on the butterfly to the edges of the bookmark and finally finished it off with the phrase "All Bookworms Become Butterflies."

I had some other sayings I was going to use but that is the one that my DH liked the most.

I hope you enjoy and thanks for looking.

Top 150...USA Today Best Seller List

I go this from Books, Writing and Life (Matt's Blog) who got it from Rhonda's Corner of the World (another blog) who got it from somewhere else, I guess. This is a list of the top selling 150 books of the last 15 years. I am always interessted in what is considered Best Sellers...typically I end up not reading them...run as fast as I can away from that section of the book store.

When looking over the list though, I saw a lot of books I have read and a ton of which are on my To Be Read pile so I have bolded books I've read and Blued those I want to read, if it is in Red, I tried to read it but just couldn't make it:

1 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling
2 Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution - Robert C. Atkins
3 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
4 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
5 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
6 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
7 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling
8 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
9 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
10 Who Moved My Cheese? - Spencer Johnson
11 The South Beach Diet - Arthur Agatston
12 Tuesdays With Morrie - Mitch Albom
13 Angels & Demons - Dan Brown
14 What to Expect When You're Expecting - Heidi Murkoff, Arlene Eisenberg, Sandee Hathaway 15 The Purpose-Driven Life - Rick Warren
16 The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
17 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen R. Covey
18 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
19 Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus - John Gray
20 The Secret - Rhonda Byrne
21 Rich Dad, Poor Dad - Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter
22 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
23 Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... And It's All Small Stuff - Richard Carlson
24 The Secret Life of Bees - Sue Monk Kidd
25 Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
26 Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
27 The Notebook - Nicholas Sparks
28 The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards
29 The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
30 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
31 A New Earth - Eckhart Tolle
32 Oh, the Places You'll Go! - Dr. Seuss
33 The Four Agreements - Don Miguel Ruiz
34 Angela's Ashes - Frank McCourt
35 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
36 Body-for-Life - Bill Phillips, Michael D’Orso
37 New Moon - Stephenie Meyer
38 Night - Elie Wiesel, translations by Marion Wiesel and Stella Rodway
39 Chicken Soup for the Soul - Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen
40 The Greatest Generation - Tom Brokaw
41 Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer
42 The Celestine Prophecy - James Redfield
43 Wicked - Gregory Maguire
44 Good to Great - Jim Collins
45 Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer
46 Eragon - Christopher Paolini
47 Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood - Rebecca Wells
48 Your Best Life Now - Joel Osteen
49 In the Kitchen With Rosie - Rosie Daley
50 Simple Abundance - Sarah Ban Breathnach
51 A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
52 A Million Little Pieces - James Frey
53 The Testament - John Grisham
54 Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul - Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Kimberly Kirberger
55 Deception Point - Dan Brown
56 The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho
57 Marley & Me - John Grogan
58 Dr. Atkins' New Carbohydrate Gram Counter - Robert C. Atkins
59 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
60 The Brethren - John Grisham
61 The South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide - Arthur Agatston
62 The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town - John Grisham
63 For One More Day - Mitch Albom
64 The Polar Express - Chris Van Allsburg
65 The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
66 The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow
67 What to Expect the First Year - Arlene Eisenberg, Heidi Murkoff, Sandee Hathaway
68 Love You Forever - Robert Munsch, art by Sheila McGraw
69 Green Eggs and Ham - Dr. Seuss
70 A Painted House - John Grisham
71 The Rainmaker - John Grisham
72 Skipping Christmas - John Grisham
73 Cold Mountain - Charles Frazier
74 The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night-Time - Mark Haddon
75 Life Strategies - Phillip C. McGraw
76 Seabiscuit: An American Legend - Laura Hillenbrand
77 The Summons - John Grisham
78 Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - John Berendt
79 The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
80 The Runaway Jury - John Grisham
81 Goodnight Moon Board Book - Margaret Wise Brown, art by Clement Hurd
82 The Perfect Storm - Sebastian Junger
83 Snow Falling on Cedars - David Guterson
84 The Giver - Lois Lowry
85 Embraced by the Light - Betty J. Eadie
86 The Chamber - John Grisham
87 You: On A Diet - Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz
88 The Prayer of Jabez - Bruce Wilkinson
89 Holes - Louis Sachar
90 Digital Fortress - Dan Brown
91 The Shack - William P. Young
92 The Devil Wears Prada - Lauren Weisberger
93 Water for Elephants - Sara Gruen
94 A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini
95 The Seat of the Soul - Gary Zukav
96 Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul - Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff
97 The Partner - John Grisham
98 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
99 Eldest: Inheritance, Book II - Christopher Paolini
100 The Broker - John Grisham
101 The Street Lawyer - John Grisham
102 A Series of Unfortunate Events No. 1: The Bad Beginning - Lemony Snicket
103 The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
104 Into the Wild - Jon Krakauer
105 The King of Torts - John Grisham
106 The Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell
107 The Horse Whisperer - Nicholas Evans
108 Hannibal - Thomas Harris
109 The Audacity of Hope - Barack Obama
110 Running With Scissors - Augusten Burroughs
111 The Glass Castle: A Memoir - Jeannette Walls
112 My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult
113 The Last Juror - John Grisham
114 The Devil in the White City - Erik Larson
115 Left Behind - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
116 America (The Book) - Jon Stewart and The Writers of The Daily Show
117 The Red Tent - Anita Diamant
118 John Adams - David McCullough
119 The Christmas Box - Richard Paul Evans
120 The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - Ann Brashares
121 Sugar Busters! - H. Leighton Steward, Sam S. Andrews, Morrison C. Bethea, Luis A. Balart1
22 Blink - Malcolm Gladwell
123 The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle
124 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death and Life - Don Piper, Cecil Murphey
125 The Fellowship of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien
126 1776 - David McCullough
127 The Bridges of Madison County - Robert James Waller
128 Where the Heart Is - Billie Letts
129 The Ultimate Weight Solution - Phillip C. McGraw
130 Protein Power - Michael R. Eades, Mary Dan Eades
131 Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul - Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff
132 Into Thin Air - Jon Krakauer
133 Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides
134 Three Cups of Tea - Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin
135 You: The Owner's Manual - Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz
136 1,000 Places to See Before You Die: A Traveler’s Life List - Patricia Schultz
137 Self Matters - Phillip C. McGraw
138 She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb
139 1984 - George Orwell
140 The Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. Lewis
141 The Millionaire Next Door - Thomas J. Stanley, William D. Danko
142 The Other Boleyn Girl - Philippa Gregory
143 The Zone - Barry Sears, Bill Lawren
144 The Pilot's Wife - Anita Shreve
145 The Lost World Michael Crichton
146 Atonement - Ian McEwan
147 He's Just Not That Into You - Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo
148 Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
149 The World Is Flat - Thomas L. Friedman
150 Cross - James Patterson

I've only read 25 of these, told y'all I wasnt' into the "it" books. The ones I have read on here i either loved or hated...nothing in between...I find that interesting, a lot of them I did read for school and a lot I have heard of and I am totaly uninterested in.

Note: I could not get spell check to work...sorry for all the typos :)

Spouces Flight

Yesterday there was no work (crafting) done by me...I spent the day with DH at the Spouses Flight. It is kinda like take your kid to work day but instead of kids you take your wife/husband.

As many of you know my DH is a pilot for the USAF. Right now we are at a training base, he spends his days trying not to get killed by students who are learning to fly. He currently flies the T-6 also knows as the Texan II. The Navy also uses this jet to train their pilots.

So, yesterday I put on what I refer to as an adult onesie...way to big for me as you can tell LOL...and just think, I borrowed this one, it is 10 sizes smaller than DH's! The flight suits are also made just for men...talk about a pain when you have to go to the restroom. I did not have to wear a G-suit since we were not actually flying, just taxiing down the runway. I did however have to wear a harness, after all the seat belts and parachutes and all sorts of what not clip into it. The funny thing is that I am wearing a friend of ours who is currently deployed, I did not have to adjust any of the straps...I don't know if that says more about me or him LOL...

I wish I had a picture of me in the aircraft with the helmet on and visor down but we just weren't thinking...after all it is a once in a lifetime thing to be in an aircraft with your husband. The AF just does not allow that!

To make a long story short...it was an amazingly fun day and I am very glad I went. I hope next time to be able to actually take off...

Oh, I even got my own set of wings...the students don't even get those!

Christmas Decorations

Gillian has also issued this fabulous challenge over at Mixed Media Monday. Gillian’s challenge to you is to create a Christmas ornament or decoration, that can be hung on the tree, in a window, etc.

Today over at One Powerful Hour the Guest Designer Joanne W. Has challenged us to make Christmas Ornaments. There is also a fabulous Rubber Stamp give away from Inka Stamps for one lucky participant.

Here are my ornaments. Both of the images are from Alpha Stamps as well as the fabulous 2 x 2 inch square ornament. I am also using these pieces for a swap hosted through the Alpha Stamps yahoo group. If you are not a member you should be!

For the ornament on the right I used the Alpha Stamp image and then I added the three little Santa's at the bottom (also from Alpha Stamps). On the outside of the glass I places the circular 3D sticker that says "Merry" and all around the metal edge I affixed using diamond glaze red rhinestones. To finish of this fun ornament i added some fabulous Christmas ribbons.






Because the ornaments are so fun and easy to make I made another on.

This one also uses a collage image from Alpha Stamps. The snowflakes are stamped with versa mark and then I used pearl ex powder to turn them an iridescent shimmery gold.

On the outside I covered the metal ornament with gold glitter and affixed a gold Christmas tree that was part of a ribbon. To finish it off I affixed the gold rick rack...

Hope you like my ornaments. they were supper fun to make and easy. Thanks Joanne for the fabulous challenge!

Here is a bit more about the Guest Designer...

My name is Joanne Wardle, and I have been cardmaking for about 5 years. My main love now is stamping, but it took me a while to get into it. I love to try stamping onto different surfaces. I am also a complete challenge addict, so I'm really pleased to have chosen this theme, of Christmas decorations, for One Powerful Hour.

Make sure to check out her fabulous blog...Made By Joanne

Keri W. Custom Order

Hey all...this is a custom order I am working on for a friend of mine I have met through the fabulous book site that I use all the time PBS.

Keri... Please remember that the computer screens and my scanned images are not true to the actual colors of the cards. The red and green I selected are very traditional Christmas tones.

I did the snowflakes on the red card and on the green I added a touch of gold with a product called Glimmer Mist that is sparkly. The phrase "Peace On Earth" is Gold embossed (slightly raised) on both cards.

I can cut off the window ledge and make the shape of the stained glass a perfect arch instead of with the two (right and left) little juts that the pictures have.

I hope this is what you are looking for. Please let me know.

For those of you that are awaiting my "Secret" Christmas Card...and you know who you are...this is not it! So you will just have to keep waiting and keep guessing...ain't I a little stinker :)

Spooky

This week over at One Powerful Hour Debbie has set a marvelously spooky theme!

I wanted to go back to my roots for this one...what roots are those? Well, my Glitter Roots of course :) The center panel is entirely glitter! The bats are black glitter and the rest is orange glitter.

I am a little upset that the velum tape shows through so much on the Trick and Treat phrases...it doesn't show up that much in real life, sometimes scans bring out all the flaws...

A few moments ago I received this fabulous string of photo's from my sister. Yes, that is my DH and DD in motion. You can see the smile on my DH's face but what you can't see is that Kudzo is laughing so hard he is having a difficult time holding onto her. When he did this the first time I thought he may pull a joint out of socket or something but that girl is tough! And boy does she love it when Daddy' plays with her...

Hope everyone is having a marvelous week...and a Happy Halloween to you all!

Dream Vacation

Here is my latest Circle of Friends work. This is my entry for Nancy's Dream Vacation Round Robbin Journal.

I have wanted to go on an African Safari for a number of years now. But I am too scared to go and my DH is totally against it. So I guess I will live vicariously through the discovery channel and my journal page.

To start off I distressed some topographical maps using tim holtz distressing inks in Shabby green and vintage photo. The palm trees are stamped in brown ink and painted with Twinkling H2O's.

The Elephants and the Giraffe are stamped on paper that I made using the same distressing techniques, just different colors, as I used on the background paper. It was a very fast and easy way to add some depth to the animals without having to pull out my colored pencils. The Zebra is stamped on white paper and dusted with a bit of yellow and brown ink to make him not so bright.

To finish off the pages I added sand, yes, actual sand all around the edges and made a sand dune on the right hand page.

I know that these pages took more than an hour to put together but I am not sure how much longer...the cutting was a bit time consuming but everything else was really fast, and I still have sand all over my desk but this journal page works nicely for the One Powerful Hour challenge this week of repetition.

A bunch of fun stuff!

I Won the Bi-Monthly Lot-O-Rama at Alpha Stamps Yahoo Group. The theme for August/September was Unique and boy are the ATC's that I received.

The top ATC is from Jan Williams called "Paris Weekend' and she wrapped it in the fabulous orange tissue paper and those are felt pumpkin stickers with a "Smile" rub on. the image of the woman I believe is covered in wax...it is fabulous!

Center Left is from Kim Smith and she has fabulous glitter touches at the neck of her woman and she sent me a wonderful Halloween themed collage image.

Center Center is from Lenna Andrews, she also did the envelope at the bottom of the photo. I have the ATC turned wrong in the photo it should be horizontal instead of vertical. I have gotten the fabulous leaves she used and I am so going to get the little pebbles...it is marvelous.

Center Right is from Teri Calia the words read Shine, distinguish oneself, B, and I Rock is up the side. The letter B is covered with a fabulous clear rectangular pebble. She also sent me some absolutely wonderful Halloween themed charms, a bat, skull and bones and pumpkin...I can't wait to use them.

Thank you all so so so so much...I love every single one of them and they are all very unique. As the winner of the lottery I got to select the theme for October/Novembers lottery...I selected Occasions...I have not made my ATC yet but I am pretty sure I know what i am going to do.

The day before I left for Boston I received this fabulous tag book.

It traveled all the way from England. When I collected it from the post I had no idea what it was or who it was from and I was all giddy with excitement.

Well, it just got better. This is a diva gift from Suse.

What are the Diva's? it is a participate if you can and if you want art exchange. I did not even know that my name had been added as a Diva.

I have the tag book sitting on my art table, I can't decide what side I like better...they all compliment each other so well. The fibers are also absolutely wonderful. I guess to put it bluntly the tag book is Marvelous and I love every single front and back of each tag!

Thank you so so so much Suse for sending your lovely piece to me and thank you Zuzu for adding me as a Diva!

I briefly mentioned that I was going to Boston this past weekend. I went for my youngest cousins 17th Birthday.

October is a huge month for birthdays in my extended family on both sides. So I had quite a few gifts to make. These are my favorites though.

When I was making them I did not realize that the initials would spell O.J. I find that rather amusing... The O is for my cousin and the J my niece...

The center square is hand stamped, painted and lightlyy colored. The rest is all fabrics. I think it is amazing that I had a stamp that looks almost identical to the flowers in the decorative fabric.

I hope they like them...

And last but not least I thought I would throw a picture of DH and Kudzu on here...I have other pictures from this past weekend but this one is my absolute favorite.

We are outside of Mom and Dad's house...the tree in the back is starting to change colors, I wish that we had a fall down here...the tree's were absolutely lovely up in Boston...

Okay well, I am done with this novel...off to work on some projects that I have to mail out this weekend.