Butterfly Frame - Party Prize

WHEW! This is the last of the posts about the party prizes! Now you guys can see why I wasn't posting anything crafty for so long...I was too busy making all the party prizes and I couldn't share on here because I didn't want them to be able to see everything.

Supplies Used:
Make The Cut Software
Graphic 45 Botanicals
Prima Bling
Border Punch
Circle Punch
Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Epoxy Clear Domes
Mounting Foam
Signo White Gel Pen






 
I found these little bees on the punch out pack and really liked them and incorporated them into the frame by punching out some 1" circles to put them on and then adding an Clear Epoxy Dome on top of them. It just added a little extra interest to the frame. I did use mounting foam to attach them to the frame.

I wanted the "live, love, GROW" to really pop off the frame so I did use a lot of mounting foam. I cut two pieces for the orange behind the green stripe and after adhering the green stripe to the first layer of orange I put mounting foam between the two orange layers. I did the same on the maroon print  layer and then also on the bottom layer that attached the whole piece to the frame.  A few years back I saw where Enfys, of Going Bugging, had used this method and I loved it so I use it as often as I can when I can go wild with dimension.

I absolutely loved the butterflies on this paper and wanted them to be the focal point of the frame, well besides the picture that will go in it of course! I found an image on the internet of a Monarch I liked and did a little tweaking so I could cut it with my Cricut and MTC.

I actually showed a picture of one of the butterflies back at the end of November in my GLIMMER GLAZE - BUTTERFLY MTC FILE and there is more information there if you would like to read  it. The flourishes out of the tail are some pieces of a big sheet of Prima bling. I got several sheets a few years ago in a really good sale bin and have been slowly using them by cutting them apart. I also used a flourish on the bottom right hand side of the picture hole.


You can download the file for this project below...
MTC FILE - Live Love Grow Frame
SVG FILE - Live Love Grow Frame

Peacock Feather Frame - Party Prize

While I very rarely remember who wins what at my parties I do remember who won this one...MY SISTER! The reason it is so easy to remember is because when she opened it and pulled it out of the box I went "OOOHHHH!!" like it was the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen. Which was totally stupid of me because I made the dang thing! *okie smiles remembering how she and everyone else in the room cracked up laughing at her reaction*. I will attribute my reaction to it being over 2 hours since the party had started and my having about 5 glasses of Hurricane Punch by that point.

Supplies Used:
Webster's Pages Paper
Webster's Pages Embellishments
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Prima Bling

I used a fairly neutral sheet of paper for the base of the frame and then added a 12x12 vellum overlay on top. Since there was a lot of printing on the vellum I wasn't too worried about the tape showing around the edges.

Once again I used one of the little cards that were included int he box as a way to add some sort of words to the frame. I really can't tell you how much I love the Webster's Pages boxes! All of the embellishments were from the box, as was the paper. I thought it looked a little busy but since all the elements went so well together I doubt the picture will have a hard time being the focal point.

Tomorrow will be my last post of the Christmas Party prizes. There will be downloadable file in tomorrow's post and hopefully I am going to start having more files to share in the Make The Cut and SVG formats.

Dream BIG - Party Prize

This frame was pretty easy to do since all the papers and embellishments were from a Webster's Pages warehouse sale box and the elements all just flowed nicely together. I did have to change out some of the embellishments a few times until I got something that looked decent to me.

Supplies Used:
Webster's Pages Paper
Webster's Pages Embellishments
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Stampin Up Border Punch
Liquid Pearls

I wasn't sure about the black leaves at first but once I got them down and the flowers on top I decided it actually gave the flowers a nice background and made them not get lost in the paleness of the paper. The "Dream Big Big Big" was from a little container of cards that was in the warehouse box as well. I did try to match up my papers and embellishments by collection as much as possible.

If you guys have never done a Webster's Pages Warehouse Box Sale then you really should! I think they have them once or twice a year and my friend Carmen let's me know when it is and then orders for us. She usually orders two boxes each and it is well worth the money! This year's boxes were the exact same but we both decided that was fine since we won't be as likely to hoard it all...well at least that is our thinking but knowing us we will hoard somethings - we always do!

Beach Frame - Party Prize

My friend Carmen came across this fantastic Graphic 45 paper at Tuesday Morning a few months back and picked some up for use to split. I was of course thinking about my cruise layouts but decided to use some for a frame since there was quite a bit of it.

 
Supplies Used:
12x12 Memory Frame
Graphic 45 On The Boardwalk
Ranger Memory Slide
Shells from Puerto Rico
Starfish Charm
Jute
Colorbox Chalk Ink

 All the images are from the Graphic 45 paper. I did cut around the men from a different sheet of paper but I thought they were just too dang cute not to use. I love the vintage look of this and I might need to make one for myself!

I had a heck of a time getting sand in that little blister for the Memory Slide and I think it all ended up falling out anyway. I am really going to have to practice using stuff like that. The other items stuck in there well and went so together so nicely with the theme. I still had some shells from one of my cruise's and then added a starfish charm that my friend Carmen had given me in an assortment she had sent.

I was afraid the frame looked a little plain compared to my other ones I had made for prizes but there were a few guests who really commented on liking this one. One of them was BFF Karen, who of course lives for the beach so it only made sense she would love this one!

Christmas Frame - Party Prize

I rarely make holiday themed frames because I feel they are something that can only be enjoyed for a short amount of time instead of staying out all year long. In the Webster's Pages box I got last year there was some gorgeous Christmas paper and it made me go out on a limb and make a themed frame for a party prize.

Supplies Used:
12x12 Memory Frame
Webster's Pages Paper
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Petaloo Flowers
Pearl Brads
Brads
Various Embellishments

The white flowers are actually some of the "COLOR ME" flowers that you can ink, dye, spray, etc. I used Glimmer Mist on these to give them a little sparkle. The Pearl Brads are some I got at Eyelet Outlet and I just love them! I am not sure where they reindeer came from, I just found them in my stash of Christmas embellishments. I used the brads from the flowers to attach the reindeer to the frame and tried to position them so it looked like they were leaping into the picture. I couldn't really figure out another way to attach the reindeer and this method seemed to work out great.

Here you can see more detail of the flowers and also some of the little "skittles" I added for some extra detail. Those little plastic accents can really add to a project while not being overly intrusive.

I used mounting from under the metal "Christmas" sign to bring it up off the frame. I wish I could remember who makes the little metal sign and I am sure one of my readers will know. I thought it worked perfectly for the frame.

Ornament - Swag Bag Gift

Every year I try to make something special and personal for each of my party guests. Most years it is an ornament of some kind and this year I found one on Pinterest that I really liked and wanted to make.

Supplies Used:
Clear Glass Ornaments
Feathers
Beads
Vinyl
MTC
Fake snow

I used wire to add the beads and feathers to the top loop of the ornament. For the initials I used Santa's Sleigh font and cut the letter in silver glitter vinyl and the shadow in white. I added fake snow to the inside of the ornament. There was also a ribbon loop for hanging added after this picture was taken.




Once I had the ornaments all done I needed something to present them in. I also wanted to make sure each guest could transport the ornaments home without fear of breaking. Make The Cut came in handy as I was able to make an ornament box fairly easily and also duplicate the cuts to cut multiples as I needed 12.

Supplies Used:
Make The Cut
Make The Cut File - ORNAMENT BOX
Kraft Paper
Mica Paper
Stampin Up 2 3/8 Scallop Punch
Circle Punches
Microsoft Word

I used Santa's Sleigh for the word circle in Microsoft word and if you can't read it it in the picture it says "Here is an ornament for your tree, a little gift just from me!"


If you would like to make the box I have the links below. I am not sure how the SVG will come out in size but I know in MTC I have to click on "use actual" under the preview window for it to open to actual size. I used Kraft paper for the bottom of the box and Mica for the lid. I used a piece of clear plastic in between the main lid piece and the lid reinforcement piece so there was a window showing the ornament inside.

All the guests really thought the ornaments were nice and they were so simple to make. My sister pulled hers out of her box and immediately dropped it, shattering it into pieces. I was going to make her another one but I didn't have any extra ornaments. I guess I should have known to buy an extra box! I still have her box and ornament top so maybe I can find some more next year and fix it for her.

SVG - ORNAMENT BOX keep images grouped, size to 11.2457 wide x 11.3332 high, then ungroup images.
 MTC - ORNAMENT BOX

I would like to give a little shout of of "THANKS" to Reddy for trying out the SVG converted file for me so I would know if it worked! If you guys haven't checked out Reddy's blog REDDY'S RAMBLINGS you should really do so! She does some awesome work and shares her files! 

Candy Recipe Tins

A few years back Stampin Up had some little metal tins in their clearance section and my friend Linda and I were so excited because we thought we could use them as tins for greeting cards. What we didn't realize was the corners were rounded and that made it impossible for A2 size cards to fit in their and we were stuck with the tins. I have used a few for different projects but this year I used 6 to make these nice little candy recipe tins as prizes for the party.

Supplies Used:
Stampin Up Metal Tins
Ranger Alcohol Inks
Various Cardstock
Cricut Expression
Various Cricut Cartridges
Make The Cut Software (MTC)
Design Studio
Various Embellishments

Alcohol Inks were used to color the metal tin. Only the top of the tin lid was decorated with paper. The title on the tin was cut with MTC and I was glad I was able to easily add more than one shadow layer. The candies were images from the internet that I did a pixel trace on and cut with MTC. I cut the candies out of Mica and Bazzil Bling papers to give them a richer look which might not show up well in the picture.

Each tin had a total of 12 candy recipes, all of which I have tried and are my favorites. I did choose the easiest of recipes that I use since I  know some folks aren't candy makers and like to keep things simple.

I know folks are always worried about messing up recipe cards so I included a little plastic sleeve in each tin so the receiver can put the card they are using in the sleeve for protection. I am terrible about making a mess when I am cooking so I know I would appreciate such a gesture. Of course I would appreciate a gesture of never having to cook again a day in my life HA HA HA.

I tried to decorate each recipe according to the theme of the candy, some of them were kinda hard to do such as the Butterscotch Haystacks and Coconut Bonbons. The candy canes were from a cricut cartridge, at least I think they were and the bow on them actually was a bow from a present cut on one of the cartridges. I am quite sure the swirly snowflake border was from a Cricut cartridge. It took quite some time to get all the little snowflakes colored. I cut them all out of white mica and colored with my ProMarkers so I didn't have to cut them all out of different colors of paper.

I did find that just adding some ribbon was a great embellishment and helped hurry up the process of getting cards done. Another HUGE help was my daughter! She put the majority of these together for me while I was at work. At the time she didn't have job and was more than glad to help. She did a wonderful job and has no idea how much appreciated her helping me. She even went through some of my supplies and added Glimmer Mist and other nice little touches she thought of all on her own.

I used quite a few cuts from Lacy Labels for the mats on the cards and did have to do a little manipulating of them to make them fit the area I was wanting. I tried to mix them up and not use all the same mats but a few were repeated.

The biggest problem was making sure I had enough paper to complete a full set of 6 recipe sets that included 12 cards each! Somehow I was able to find enough paper in my stash to complete the task.

I think all the recipients of the candy tins really liked them. Carmen ended up with two somehow but she was nice enough to trade one with someone else. I am not sure what kinda of recipe things I might make for next year but it seems my guests do like those type of items for prizes so I guess I will have to come up with something!

Pen Charm, Personalized For Each Guest!

Sorry about the late post! I forgot to get it posted earlier.

This was a last minute idea and what seemed so simple took a lot longer than I thought to make...I know that happens to ya'll too so don't even try to pretend!

Two of the games at the party was going to require each guest use a pen. I had them do a Christmas Word Scramble and Holiday Movie Trivia. I picked up some gel pens at General Dollar and then when I got home with them I thought it would be nice to personalize the pens a little and add to their Swag Bags. I have never done any "dangles" as my friend Carmen calls them and when I was making them I tried to call her for help and she didn't answer so I know my little Pen Charm Dangles didn't turn out as nice as what Carmen makes, and she wasn't overly thrilled with my attempt but for a disposable pen I think it was fine.

The snowflake charms are ones I got off of eBay back in the summer. I planned on using them for cards and layouts and I think they worked well for the dangles. The beads were some I already and since the pens are disposable I didn't want to waste a bunch of money on something fancy. I wasn't sure what material to use so I just used some wire I had laying around *okie wonders if everyone has wire just laying around*. I left enough wire at the end so I could just use it to attach the dangle to the clip of the pen cap.

I used Make The Cut and my Cricut to cut the names. I can't remember the font I used but after getting the names all lined out I added a small circle with a hole in the middle and welded it to each name so I would have a way to add it to the dangle. You can see the size difference from the ones I cut and then after they were shrunk. I used the shrinky dink film that turns out white and then used my ProMarkers to go around the edges of the name so it would stand out a little better.

Everyone seemed to like their personalized pens and if I decide to do them again I will do a better job of researching the supplies I would need to make it a little classier.

Stampin Up Notepad Case

My friend Linda found these handy dandy things on the internet a few years back and made a few and I just loved them. I ordered cases to make some but then never got around to making any, until this year and I thought they would make great prizes for the party.

Supplies Used:
Stampin Up Stamp Caseas
Various Cricut Cartridges
Make The Cut Software
Clipart from Internet
Border Punches
Stampin Up Patterned Paper
Making Memories Breast Cancer Paper

The paper for this one is from Stampin Up and was a collection by the name of Rockabilly they had a few years ago when I first got into Stampin Up. I got the crown and wand from the internet and imported it into MTC for cutting. I used a font from my computer for the lettering and I believe it might be Blackletter, or something of that nature.

I thought Kimmy was going to spaz out when she saw others open these prizes as she kept telling us she is "the queen". At one point I told her "uh, no you're not" and she told me "I am the queen of my school and the queen of *okie can't remember the name* (some beach resort)" to which I responded "uh well you ain't the queen of my house". I know someone did trade prizes with Kimmy so she could have one of these notepad cases, which was very sweet of them.




I used ribbon to make a loop at the top to hold the mini gel pen, which can be found at Staples, and then just used ATG tape to attach it to the stamp case.

Double sided paper works wonderful on these cases so there is a pattern to show on the inside of the case. I accented the notepad with a strip of the paper I used to make a little pocket.

The paper for this notepad case is from Stampin UP as well and I can't remember the name of the collection off hand. I used the new Stampin Up butterfly punch and one of the coordinating stamp sets for the butterfly. The scallop circle is a SU punch as well.

I finally used the Daisy punch I have had forever and hadn't used to make a strip to divide the patterns of the paper. The word Believe is from either the Cricut cartridge Home Decor or Home Accents. I used MTC to make a double shadow on the word to make it pop a little more.

Since the notepads have to be cut down a little to fit in the case I made sure each case had an extra notepad. Staples will gladly cut them down for you. I think it was like a dollar or something to have them cut 12 pads and they only had to cut a little off the bottom.

Linda and I were at Tuesday Morning a few years ago and they had a ton of Breast Cancer paper and I got several packages and I think this was the first time I had used it. I had a couple of guests who do the walks every year and one friend who is a survivor so I knew someone would appreciate these.

The words, labels and strip are stickers that came with the paper and although I generally don't like stickers I did like them for this occasion. There isn't a lot of dimension that can be used on the cases due to the nature of the case so flat embellishments work great. I did use a punch for the loopy border.




One of the packs of paper I got was specialty paper and I used one of the scallop sheets to embellish the inside of these notepad cases.

The double sided paper really shows well on this one with the breast cancer ribbon being on the inside.

To attach the notepads to the inside of the case I used my ATG tape. I have a couple of rolls where the centers fell out and while I can't use it in my ATG gun I didn't want to throw them out and I am glad I didn't. I use them most often for ribbon but they came in handy for preparing the extra notepads for later use. I just added strips to the back of the notepad and the user can just remove the strips and replace the empty one.


These were a lot of fun to make and all the guests really seemed to like them. I think I might have to make some more of these to have on hand for last moment little gifts.

8th Annual Girlfriend Christmas Party - Part 5

After hitting some refreshments the guests were ready to once again start the games. The next game was Siamese Gift Wrap. There were 6 teams, with 2 people on each team. The teams were given the exactly amount of supplies so there could be no talk of cheating or unfairness! Each person hand to keep one hand behind their back during this process.

My poor sister and her teammate Kimmy were disqualified because I had to keep telling them to use only one hand. As you see here my sister is getting ready to put her hand on the box and Kimmy kept slipping and using her "arm", which was still disqualification due to not having her hand behind her back.






Linda and Karen did a great job of only using one hand and they worked rather well together. Linda was not amused with having to sit in the floor and made some comment about her age or something. I of course, do not go for that kinda crap because after all...she is only a few years older than me *okie laughs at the unusual knack she has of answering the question of "oh how old is so and so" and always answering with "oh they are my age" or "uh, just a few years older than me" and really believing these statements*.


Nancy and Wendi communicated quietly and efficiently during their wrapping process and had wonderful taping of their gift. I think they were the ones that constantly maintained the rule of "one hand behind your back".

Robyn had the unfair advantage of having my daughter on her team. I was glad I was not the judge because I would have chosen their gift simply for the sharp clean edges and nicely tucked corners. My daughter has been an excellent gift wrapper since a very young age. Chuck did the judging and to be honest I don't remember which one he chose.




 
Our last game before Dirty Santa and the auction was Christmas Pictionary, which was more than amusing!

Notice the look on some of the faces in this picture and image those looks throughout the whole game. It was hilarious to see some of the drawings. I can't remember what was said when this picture was taken but evidently Nancy and Helen were amused while my sister Cheryl and daughter Shiane were rather shocked.

The next big shock came when it was this teams turn to draw and guess. They choose Linda to draw which got the response for me "REALLY? LINDA IS YOUR CHOICE?" and that sent me into fits of laughter. Linda often tells me "I can't even draw a decent stick person" so of course that choice would amuse me! However, Linda was not amused with my comment *okie giggles about getting a good little jab in on Linda, who is always such a good sport*. Well once I said that Linda promptly took of her necklace (guests were not allowed to say cuss words) handed it to Carmen as she said "F*CK YOU SHIRLEY!" I am so glad I had the camera ready at just that right moment to catch this on film!

I didn't get a picture of Karen drawing but I did get a picture of her finished product! One of her phrases was "Little Drummer Boy". She drew a stick person with appendage in a particular place to show it was a boy and then next to it was a drum. I think we all laughed until we cried on that one! Then she had to add "I draud that!" as she explained to everyone about us playing Quiddler and me trying to use the word draud, which by the way is not a word but when you have had enough margaritas it sounds like it should be!








Dirty Santa was the last game before the auction, and is one game I look forward to since it is the only one I get to play.

The best picture I have from that game is when Helen stole a purse from Andrea, who had stole it from Robyn and Helen knew it was locked down and her evil little laugh just cracked us all up. I was so thrilled that Helen was able to make the party this year and hope she gets make more of them. I talk and text with her and we had met in person about 4 years ago when I was in Arizona for a few days and we had such a good time that one day we got spend together. She is talking about maybe coming for a week this summer which would be awesome. If she does I think Karen and Carmen might try to come in that same week as well! Now that would be a great week for sure!


After Dirty Santa it was time for the auction, which somehow I didn't get any pictures of. It is often very hard to be the hostess and photographer at the same time. Shiane did a great job trying to snap pictures here and there and got many shots that will be scrapbooked later. I try to keep the auction even as I made sure that there were 3 prizes per person. There were 3 prizes extra since I had a guest cancel. I asked who all had 3 prizes and then tried to take only bids from those who had 2 prizes to keep things even. I had one guest get perturbed because I wouldn't take her bid and even went outside later on and complained to someone about it.

To end the night I go a few hostess gifts. I wasn't able to get pictures of all of them, too many refreshments effects one's ability to remember to photograph wonderful things, but my daughter did get a snapshot of this most beautiful light up glass block that Robyn made for me. I haven't found the perfect place for it yet but I am thinking on the shelf under my TV in the craftroom so I can always see it!



So now I finally come to the end of the Christmas Party posts. I hope you guys can all understand the fun we have and how much I enjoy putting this party on for my friends. I have already started planning 2013's party so I can get it out of the way because in 2014 it will be the 10th annual party and it will have to be bigger and better than anything I have ever done to commemorate such a monumental event!

Oh I will be posting pictures of the auction prizes over the next few days. I have those in draft mode so it won't take me as long to write up posts.

8th Annual Girlfriend Christmas Party - Part 4

Have been so busy with work and getting Christmas stuff done I haven't had time to get the posts done about the party. Now where were we?

Oh yes...it was time for the games!

I always start with a few worksheet games to test my guests Christmas knowledge. This year we did Christmas Movie Trivia and a Holiday Word Scramble. Some guests did excellent and some...well evidently they dont' know a thing about Christmas! HA HA HA

Carmen and Helen look so studious as they work on one of the games. You can also see their swag bags in this picture. I think everyone really liked the bags this year since they were personalized and they were big enough for them to put their prizes in as well. This way they didn't get them mixed up with the belongings of others and were easy to carry home.

On the left is my friend Linda that I talk about all the time. Linda has been attending the parties I think for 4 years. She also gives me some great ideas for prizes and then sometimes I tell her "well you make the shit then" and we just laugh.

Kimmy is the other lady in the picture. She was new this year and I contacted her about filling in for another guest who was not able to make it due to family medical issues. Kimmy drove up all the way from Austin Texas for the party. She quite frequently said "I'll go Texas on your ass" and none of us were quite sure what that meant but it is a phrase we will never forget since we heard it all night.


After the word games we decided we better get a group photo before we have too many refreshments and forgot *okie thinks that punch was rather refreshing and knows if she had any more refreshments that night she likely would have not remembered the night*.

Back row: Linda, Cheryl, Helen, Carmen, Andrea, Karen, Carrie, Robyn. 

Front row: Me, Wendi, Kimmy and Nancy.

Our next game was the Gift Stacking Game. There were 3 people to a team, two sitting back to back and one standing and placing the boxes. the one that was facing the standing person described how the boxes were stacked and the person facing the other direction had to stack the boxes according to the verbal directions that were given. This team consisted of Andrea, Nancy and Wendi.



I just had to share this picture of my BFF Karen and if you are thinking she was thinking "WTF!" you are wrong..she was actually saying "WHAT THE F$UCK". Carrie was giving her directions and we were all laughing because the directions were rather vague, such as "okay now grab the square box".  I am quite sure that this team was the one that got the most laughs due to the instructions given and Karen's fabulous facial expressions throughout the whole ordeal.

I have to brag a little bit with this team. My daughter stood in on the games since I had a guest cancel at the last minute due to some unforseen circumstances and she did a wonderful job. This team that consisted of my daughter, Helen and Kimmy. Shiane gave wonderful directions and their penalties were the lowest but their time was the highest.

After such a tedious game the guests decided they needed a refreshment break before continuing to the next....which will be tomorrow's post!

8th Annual Girlfriend Christmas Party - Part 3

Saturday was the party and we were able to relax a bit and not have to rush rush rush this year. That morning and day I was doing some last minute cleaning and setting up the living room for the guests while my house guests were busting around in the kitchen getting their appetizers for the party all made.

I got the punch area set up and I think I came up with a rather ingenious set up this year. I have this little fridge that was my daughters when she lived in the dorm, we refer to it as the beer fridge, and a little cabinet that were along that area in the dining room. I used a long piece of tempered glass to put across the top of them and added a tablecloth and WALAH! I had a great punch area!

I found the cups and plates at the bargain store last month and that gave me plenty of time to personalize a cup for each guest. Even though the cups were disposable I thought it was a great way for people not to get their cups mixed up. I used white and silver vinyl to do the names.

I am really big on personalize things for the party and that is one reason I am a little strict about the guest list and if people show up or not. This year for the "swag bag" I ordered some reusable shopping bags from One Bag at a Time and personalized them with iron on vinyl. I called the company when I found them on the internet to make sure they were legit and thankfully they were! Everywhere else I looked wanted me to order like at least 100 bags, I only needed 12. I actually ordered 13 and it's a good thing I did since I didn't think about my iron needing to be on a lower setting for these bags...the first bag got beyond scorched! Everyone loved their personalized bag! Each bag contained a personalized ornament, a small bottle of Bath and Body Works lotion, a personalized pen and their Santa bucks. They were great for the guests to keep their prizes together and to carry home.

Helen claimed her chair, I would like to say early on in the party but it was actually as soon as she walked through my front door I do believe! What she didn't realize is that the chair is Lucy's recliner and who ever sits there must share the chair with Lucy. I don't think Helen minded too much though.

Lucy gets so spoiled when I have guests in for the party and she ends up driving me NUTS wanting me to pet her all the time for about a week or two after the party. I think I am going to have set some strict rules about petting time in the future so I don't have to go through this with Lucy every year!





Someone snapped a picture of me and the kids before the party got started. This is actually the first picture we have of all 3 of us, at least I think it is. Shiane and Chuck were a great help during the party. I did have one guest who had to cancel at the last minute due to unforeseen circumstances and Shiane had to take her spot in the games. Chuck was busy with refreshing everyone's drinks and did the judging in some of the games and was also a time keeper on the games, those pictures will come later!


Another traditional picture is of me and Carmen. We make sure we get one every year. I think this year's picture might be my favorite. We look like some hot sexy mama's in our red blouses and sparkling jewelry!

All the guests had arrived by 7pm, even though the party was set to start at 6pm. Wendi was running late because she was in Tulsa during the day at the Nutcracker Ballet, which she was not happy about having to go. She texted several times to let me know she was on the way. I think she was scared if she didn't she might be marked off the list. However, she not need to fear that. Wendi and I have become great friends since we met a few years ago when she bought my first Expressions from me. Some of you might remember the name as she was the one that went on the Cricut Cruise with Karen and I.

Okay sorry this post is so short but I am running short on time and must get some other things done. The next posts will be showing the games we played and a few stories to go along with those!!!