Birthday Card - Graphic45 Proper Gentleman

I think I mentioned earlier this week about being excited when I found the few sheets of Proper Gentleman and how it is difficult to make a masculine card sometimes. Well even after I had my cuts all done for the base of the card I had problems thinking of what to put on the card to embellish it! As you see I finally came up with a pocket watch, a small snip from one of the sheets and then the sentiment.

Supplies Used:
Graphic45 Proper Gentleman
Various cardstock
Make the Cut
My Creative Time All Around Birthday
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Stampin Up Punches
   1.75" Circle
   Word Window
   Modern Label
Hallmark Card Studio

I got the idea for the card base of Pinterest but once I got it done I was stumped on what to put on it for embellishment. I got the little piece that looks like a postage stamp cut out and put together but it was just too small to be the focal point. I literally thought about it all evening and part of the next day before coming up with the idea of the pocket watch!

I found a clipart image of a pocket watch and I chose this one since it looked like the front of the watch included. This way I can cut it with or without the front for future use. I love how you can really change a file so easily in Make The Cut!

I measured the stamp and then put a circle on my mat to adjust the size of the pocket watch to match the stamp. I love the My Creative Time stamps. They always give a good impression and Emma has some wonderful designs. She also has dies to match quite a few of her stamps and they work wonderfully! I forgot to shade the front of the watch but I think it looks okay anyway.

The sentiment on the front and inside was done with Hallmark Card Studio. I just used the same sentiment a for the the card from yesterday and tweaked the font a bit. I started to add "old man" but decided that it might not be appropriate for everyone's taste.

The file for the Pocket Watch Card is available for download and includes the base cuts of the half circles and half top note shape *okie calls it that since that is what Stampin Up calls the shape* as well as the Pocket Watch. You can delete the extra shapes since I cut 6 at a time.

Download the file here --> Pocket Watch Card (MTC file)  

Birthday Card - Graphic45 Steampunk Debutante

Ya know good and well I got the layout for this card from Pinterest, as I said before I am still trying to get back in the swing of crafting. It's amazing how taking some time way from daily crafting zaps the creativity out of a person.

Supplies Used:
Graphic 45 Steampunk Debutante
Various Cardstock
Make The Cut
Stampin Up Paper Piercing pattern
Stampin Up Marker
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Hallmark Card Studio 
Brads

The Time Flies and the gear was from a file I downloaded from Pazzles, at least I think. I can't even remember now to tell ya the truth! There were more gears in the file but I just wanted one for this card so the beauty of the paper could still shine through. I wish I had made my oval a little smaller so the text print paper would have shown more, live and learn...live and learn!

The paper piercing is something I am starting to do more of. I use to try and do it but my holes were never turned out perfect like they do with the Stampin Up paper piercing pattern things. It always seems like it is going to take a long time to do the paper piercing but it really goes quickly.

I am also getting more into double matting my cards as I think it adds some interest, it wastes paper a bit but it does look nice!

More Cards Made

But don't have the pictures ready to post! HA HA I am so mean! One of the cards will have a file available for download to use with Make The Cut. I used some of the Graphic 45 papers I got while in Orlando, and all three are birthday cards.

One card I made is using the Steampunk Debutante collection. I was only able to acquire 3 different sheets of this collection, but ya know that means I actually get 6 designs so it works out okay.

I actually got one of the sheets at a Tuesday Morning here in Oklahoma and then found two others in Orlando. I split my  paper with my friend Linda and this time I also have some set aside for my friend Carmen.
 

When I found the Proper Gentleman collection papers Linda was rather excited. We also find it difficult to find masculine papers for cards without paying an arm and a leg. I think I ended up with 4 different papers in this collection. I wish I had found more designs since this is a fabulous collection *okie wonders who she is kidding when everyone knows that all the g45 collections are fabulous*.

This one will have the file available for download.

The Le Cirque is a fun collection and sometimes fun means challenging when trying to make an A2 size card! I was able to finally figure out how to use up some of the "poster" images from one of the designs and more will be explained in the post of the card. There are some sheets in this one I am still trying to figure out what I can come up with but the good thing is that even if the front is a big print the back usually has a smaller pattern for backgrounds and accents.






I could give you along excuse about why I don't have one of the cards to post for today but I will just be honest and tell you in three words.

Game
Of
Thrones

I am totally addicted to this show and since it was on last night I didn't get the pictures edited. Hopefully I will get them edited tonight and get the posts scheduled for this week. I still have to use my 1 sheet of Brides to Babies, Christmas Emporium, Curtain Call and Wizard of Oz collections for projects so I can at least say I have used each collection!

To Find The Perfect Machine

Someone posted on Facebook a link to the Die Cutting Machines Review 2013. There was some opposition about the accuracy of the machines. I haven't used all the machines listed but it did make me think about the machines I have tried.

Cricut Original - This was my first die cutting machine and I instantly fell in love. It cut so accurately and with the help of Design Studio I rarely wasted any paper. I got perfect circles and scallop circles from this machine. During a recent Facebook converation it was discussed how this machine seemed to be more solid built than the newer versions of Cricut machines. I think I have to agree. Mine was a work horse for sure and I have to admit it cut beautifully.

Cricut Expressions - I upgraded to an Expressions after some very generous people donated to my website thinking I needed to get with the program and be able to make bigger cuts.

I had to return two different machines because I wasn't getting accurate cuts. ProvoCraft was very gracious about fixing the problem. I finally got one that cut decently, but still not as accurate as my baby bug did. I then purchased a Red Expressions because, well...I LOVE RED! I did luck out there and it cut better than the one I had previously. I sold my original Expression and made a friend in the process.

Cricut Imagine - I got to use one of these machines while I was on a Cricut Cruise and I was not impressed. It was too testy and the slightest bump seemed to knock it off calibration and made the cuts inaccurate. Not that I go around bumping my machines or the tables they sit on I sure didn't want to bother with a machine that was so touchy. I did think the whole printing and cutting thing was pretty cool, but not cool enough for me to be come an Imagine user. I guess it is a good thing I didn't want one since these are no longer being manufactured. I do know some folks who have Imagines and love them. I also know a lot of folks who have them and hate them.

Cricut Expressions 2 - I won one of these on the Cricut Cruise, and also won one during an HSN contest for a layout I entered. I sold one to my friend Wendi, who was also the person who bought my original Expressions for her mother-in-law who was wanting a Cricut. I used this a few times but since it didn't work with Design Studio it was more of a paper weight. The times I did use it I had to use my Gypsy...which we all know I loathed. I did get good cuts from it and I think I would have liked it more if it could have worked with Design Studio *okie suddenly wonders if that program will even open up on her computer now*.




Cricut Mini - I won one of these on the last Cricut Cruise. It cuts great and is a little quieter than the Expressions. I have to use Cricut Craftroom if I want to use this machine and I don't much care for that program. It seems to lag due to the internet connection and is notorious for shutting down during the middle of crafting and if you don't save save save your file it is lost *okie so hates losing work*. The machine it's self seems to be a pretty good little cutter. Again, it didn't work with Design Studio so I didn't use it much. I still do have this machine, it's a dust collector now that I am using Make The Cut.

Pazzles - This machine can pretty much do anything I do believe. I acquired a Pazzles through an individual and I am still getting use to the settings on it. I use the machine with Make The Cut and it seems to cut very well so far...if I can get the settings right. I think if I had started out with this I wouldn't be so intimidated or make mistakes like I do. When I first got it I about cut straight through a mat. It has a lot of force and can cut a good variety of materials, everything from vellum to chipboard very easily. My decision to get a Pazzles was based on research on several machines. I originally wanted to get a Silhouette Cameo but after finding it can't cut chipboard I decided against it.


I think the machine a person should get really depends on their needs. I still feel the Cricut is awesome for those who don't want to be tied to a computer program. It does limit what you can do because so far none of their programs have the capability to do what Make the Cut or Sure Cuts A Lot can do. Overall from what I have found there is no perfect machine. Everyone has different opinions about pros and cons about any machine on the market.

I can say this...I have not regretted, not even once, from getting away from using cartridges. My Expressions works great with Make The Cut and I do believe it cuts even better than it did with using carts and Design Studio, the cuts just seem a little more accurate.

When I can find a machine that can pick out my papers, add adhesive on the back and put the layers together then I will have found the perfect machine. Until then I am happy with my Pazzles and Cricut Expression for my crafting needs.

Uplifting Birthday - Yep, It's A Card!

Linda spotted some really fun looking cloud paper when we went to the scrapbook store last weekend and when she got a few sheets I knew she would do something fantastic with hers and I would be jealous she had the paper and I didn't. I couldn't let that happen so I got a few sheets too! I told her I thought it would be good to do a card with hot air balloons. This one turned out to be my favorite card out of the 5 different designs I did over the weekend.

Supplies Used:
Make The Cut
Miss Kate Cuttable's File
Studio Calico Here and There Collection
Various patterned cardstocks
Cri-Kits Gel Pens
Brads
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Stampin Up Markers

I will not be offering this file for download since it was purchased from Miss Kate Cuttlables. You can purchase this file here - Hot Air Balloons, for a mere 50 cents. I did tweak mine a bit and welded the basket to a balloon so I could have a solid base layer.

I looked around for different SVG files for hot air balloons and there are a few out there. Some were quite elaborate and I knew I didn't want to spend time putting together tiny little pieces for a card. If I had a layout to do I would have loved to used a more elaborate file, but this one worked well for the card I was wanting to make.

I did make my banner in Make The Cut and I used the Cri-Kit gel pens to get the sentiment on the banner. I moved the letters around to get them to work on the wave of the banner.  I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the card, the inside sentiment reads "An Uplifting Birthday" and it was done using Hallmark Studio. I was able to match the fonts, which is another feature I love about using Make the Cut.

I usually always use mounting foam to add dimension and this card definitely needed dimension to add to the over all theme. I added it to one of the clouds and then the larger balloon.

The dimension on the banner was done by curving it in several places and then just adding glue to the part that is under the balloon and then on another wave *okie isn't sure if that made sense or not and wonders if there are classes for being able to give clear instructions and then decides she is too lazy to even google it*. I guess you will just have to take my word that it was easy and it made the banner look really cute and wavy looking.

Over all I would say my "get back into the groove of card making" weekend was a success. I know I would have gotten more done if it weren't for that stinking True Blood marathon I was doing but I still say that a total of 30 cards isn't bad for a weekend of crafting!

Still Love My Cuttlebug Butterflies!

This was suppose to be a simple and fast card...NOT! Once again episodes of True Blood interrupted my crafting groove and I couldn't make up my mind on what butterflies to make. I ended up with a small pile if different butterflies, punched, stamped and several different colors before settling on the Cuttlebug Combo butterfly done with Coredinations Vintage cardstock.

Supplies Used:
Cuttlebug Butterfly Combo
TPC Studio Rustic Garden paper
Coredinations Vintage cardstock
Vellum
Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch
Stampin Up Tag Punches
Imaginisce Glam Rocks
Magic Mesh
Grosgrain ribbon
Paper Flowers
Twine
Brad

Magic Mesh was sold in scrapbook stores a few years ago and I don't think I have seen it in a long time. I was going through some of my supplies and found several 12x12 sheets and thought I would try it on this card and I do have to say I like the effect!

The larger flower layer is one that came from Iam Roses, a wonderful company that has awesome flowers for a fantastic price! A few friends of mine had been talking about this company and then my friend Tricia sent me a few *okie thinks a few is quite the understatement* and I loved them. I told Linda about the place and she and I ordered some to see how we liked them...we LOVE them!

Tomorrow's card is my favorite I did during my "get back in the groove of card making" weekend!

Cupcake With A Cherry

This is the other card I made from the Cratepaper Party Day collection. You can download the card file - Cupcake Cherry.

Supplies Used:
Cratepaper Party Day
Graphic 45 stripe paper
Bazzil Swiss Dot
Make The Cut
Queen & CO. Pearls
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Stampin Up Marker
Mounting Foam
Signo White Gel Pen

The card seems pretty plain to me, but remember I have been out of the swing for awhile. I started to do more faux stitching but I got lazy and just left the paper inked and slapped the beech together. Okay to be honest, I've gotten hooked on True Blood and that really interrupted my creativity over the weekend.

I turned the image of the liner at an angle so I could get the diagonal stripe like what is printed on the paper. I lucked out that some Graphic 45 I had matched well with the Cratepaper paper.  I think I should have made the shadow a little thicker, but what's done is done.






The pearls did add a little extra to the card and made it not be so plain.

I swear tomorrow's card will be better!

Wish Big - Cupcake

Linda came down on Friday and we of course had to go to the scrapbook store! They had some new paper in by Cratepaper called Party Day Collection and I had to get a few sheets. The cupcake and the scrabble tile paper is from the collection.

Supplies Used:
Cratepaper Party Day
Graphic 45 stripe paper
Bazzil Swiss Dot 
Stampin Up Punches
  - 2 3/8" Scallop Circle
  - Ticket Punch
Stampin Up Wish Big Stamp
Stampin Up Paper Piercing guide
EK Success 2" Circle Punch
Janome Sew Mini
Colorbox Chalk Ink

When I saw this paper I fell in love with the cupcake prints on the paper and while I didn't originally think about punching them out I did find it made for some fast and easy cards.

I pierced around the circle using one of the Stampin Up Paper Piercings Pack Essential guides. It sure makes it a lot easier to get even piercings!

Much to my relief the stamp did well on the Bazzil Swiss Dot cardstock. and I like the effect of the texture.

I'll be posting another card this week from the Party Day Collection.

Owl Old - Birthday Card

I am finally getting back in the swing of crafting and making some cards after a bit of a hiatus. I had to go to my board on Pintrest to get some ideas because after not making cards for awhile my brain was void of any ideas.

Supplies Used:
Basic Grey Paper
Stampin Up Punches
  - Owl
  - Scallop Border
  - 2" Scallop Circle
  - 1" Circle
Brads
Colorbox Chalk Ink
Grosgrain Ribbon
Twine
Mounting Foam
Stampin Up Marker
Safmat by Letraset

The 2" scallop circles were cut quarters for the wings, and then I cut a slight angle to get them to fit behind the owl correctly.

I did the sentiment using Microsoft Word and then printed on Safmat. I love...LOVE this stuff! It is great for when you are wanting a sentiment that you don't have a stamp for and don't want to wrestle with printing and cutting the paper the right size, which can be time consuming.  I am trying to contact someone at Letrastat to find a US supplier since there are several people wanting this product now.

I have cards to post for the rest of the week as well. I was a busy little ladybug this past weekend!

Vacation Photo Tray

Karen and I decided we wanted to do photo tray's of our cruise since we had done one last year. We both have bathrooms that are decorated in beach decor and they work well. There were only two white trays when we went to get them and I had to get the one with more slots. Karen said 6 was enough for her to work with...I think she was afraid she might be overwhelmed decorating so many slots and to be truthful I wondered if I could do it.

Supplies Used:
Paper Studio Photo Tray
Make The Cut Software
Tim Holtz bottles
MME Indie Chic 6x6 pad
Stickles
Colorbox Chalk Ink Prussian Blue
Acetate
various embellishments
seashells from Tanio Beach
Creative Imaginations Rub Ons
Mounting Foam
Hot Glue Gun

I put acetate over the photos to keep them free from dust and steam since the tray will go in a bathroom. 

The "Fire In The Hole" is going to be a memory that Karen and I will have since it was the name of a rum we drank...which was not very good.

I cut the life preserver and added some Stickles on the edges of the red.

The charms on the photo at the bottom came from my friend Carmen and they worked great for the tray. I used brads to attach them to the photo.

I thought I should put the year in one of the little slots so that as I grow older and my memory fades I can know what year this vacation took place. The picture of the sandwich is a Conch Burger, it was very good! I added a few rub-ons on the paper with "Bahamas" because it seemed to need something so it wasn't so plain.







The pack of bottles we got at Michaels had several sizes and I thought one of the skinny bottles would look nice with a little note in it. I wrote some gibberish on a piece of paper, rolled it up and then burned the ends.

The anchor was a die cut I had in my stash. The long charm was another one that my friend Carmen gave me.

I thought I needed a ship in the tray and made it in the colors of Carnival ships. I cut two sets of waves and pop dotted them for dimension.

I thought a picture of Karen and I should go in the center of the frame. I added some jute on the acetate piece over the picture and then some shells at the bottom of the picture. I thought it kinda gave the picture an extra little frame besides just the double matting of the photograph.

I picked up some shells on the beach and put those in the tray. Oh and the sand in the bottles came from the beach in the Bahamas as well. The flip flops were in my beach stash of embellies. There is a rum bottle rub-on behind Key West but it is a bit hard to see.

I tried to choose photos that were from each location or something special about our trip.

I found the camera embellishment at Michaels in their $1 bin area. I was glad it fit in the tray as I wasn't sure when I got it but figured I could use it for something. I cut the seaweed for the long area simply because I had to have something there and was running out of ideas.

It took me longer than I thought to finish the tray but I think it was because I was watching "Game of Thrones" while doing this and I kept getting distracted...CONSTANTLY!



I think I might try to pick up some more trays when I am in the city if they are on sale and do one or two as prizes for my Christmas party next year. It did feel good to do some crafting again and I think I will try and get some cards done this coming week. I am running low on birthday cards and I need to replenish my stash!

My Last Weekend In Orlando

Last Saturday I was still in the warmth of Orlando. A dear online friend, Renay, who lives in the area sent me a message saying she and her sister were meeting for lunch and asked if Karen and I would like to join them. Karen has chatted with Renay on Facebook for a few years now, as they both use to play games on Facebook. We had a great time and it felt like meeting up with people we had known in person for years. I am always  amazed how it is so easy to be comfortable with some folks when you finally meet them in person when you have only talked to them over electronic means.

Karen and I went to the HSN outlet and were a bit disappointed because they didn't have much. Of course it was likely due to them getting ready to shut their doors at that location next month. We did see a few papercrafting items, but none of which I was interested in. There was some Flower Soft products and Karen asked if she needed it but I told her "It's pretty cool but to be honest I have had some for a few years and haven't used it" so she passed on it. There were several different packs of Martha Stewart punches, the HUGE ones, and personally I think her punches are a piece of chit *okie still thinks it is odd that she loves EK Success punches and they make MS punches but the quality is definitely not the same* so of course I passed on those. The only other thing we saw that captured our interest was the Fiskar Fuse. I knew I couldn't get it home in my luggage though so it wasn't even much of a consideration for me. After texting my friend Helen, who is like the Papercrafting Shopping Guru, and her telling me it was on clearance in the stores I figured it must be a product that wasn't worth getting so we both passed on it as well.

We hit a Tuesday Morning where I was able to find a few packs of Graphic 45 paper from the Proper Gentleman Collection and one pack from Brides to Babies. I called Linda and asked if she wanted me to pick them up for us to split and of course she said yes. There were about 3 packs from the Curtain Call Collection that I passed on because the patterns were too big for Linda's use and I wasn't interested in them.

Saturday evening was spent getting stuff packed up for going home and getting pictures traded. I got some from a few years ago from Karen that I needed and somehow I missed getting her pictures from this years cruise! *okie bangs head on table* Oh well, at least I have enough pictures to do my memory tray and some layouts and I guess that is all that matters.

On Sunday we decided to go and check out some other Tuesday Morning's to see if they had any Graphic 45, the first one was a total bust and we didn't find anything. But the second one...OH EM GEE! TOTAL MOTHER LODE!

I got papers from Curtain Call, which I had passed on at the other TM but this time they had some that I thought Linda and I could use. There were 3 pages from Wizard of Oz that I liked and picked up, I left the munchkin paper because to be honest it just kinda freaked me out. I got a few more pages of the Proper Gentleman, I had two from the day before, and those will be great for masculine projects. There was only one page from the Brides to Babies, but it has some nice stripes on the back and the front isn't bad and will be good for a layout and some cards. I found 2 pages from Steampunk, we had one that I got about two months ago when in OKC. The big winner was Christmas Emporium and I found 6 pages from this collection. I also picked up two different die cut from a different collection but they go well with the Christmas Emporium and I think Linda can really use those nicely for her Operation Write Home cards. Which reminds me, I need to get Linda's bill totaled and sent to her. She always adds a $300 delivery charge to my bill when she brings me stuff and that is with her driving from 35 miles to my house. I can't wait to see her face when I charge a $2,500 delivery charge since her paper had to be flown 1,700 miles!

I spent the biggest part of Sunday evening organizing Karen's paper. It was funny to hear her say "oh I didn't know I had that" or "I really had that much plain cardstock?". Of course I organized that cardstock by color and explained to her that it is a lot easier to see what she has and to find colors she needs this way.

This picture only shows a little of the mess I had in her living room floor. I also organized her patterened paper by themes so when she pulls out pictures it will be easier for her to grab the paper she should use. I think she was happy with leaving me alone during this task! I was also able to watch the episode of Walking Dead I missed and watch the current episode.

Karen made us a really nice dinner of pork loin, rosemary potatoes and salad. It was AWESOME! I wasn't even sure if Karen could cook! All these years it has always been Karen visiting me, and about the only thing I cook for her is steaks on the grill, and I never thought about if Karen could cook. I have to say she is a fabulous cook!

Monday morning I packed up my last few items and then Karen and I packed and repacked the paper in my bags about 4 times to make sure we had it all spread out and that my two checked bags weren't over the weight limit. Luckily my bags passed, actually they guy didn't even weight them. I tipped him $5 and he just put them on the conveyor belt. I would not recommend this at the Houston airport though...they ALWAYS weigh the dang bags!

After my flight my daughter and sister picked me up at the airport. We went to dinner and then it was time for the hour and a half drive home. Lucy went crazy when she heard my voice and while she has never been a puppy that licked people's faces she was giving me doggy kisses like crazy. I got my bags unpacked and my dirty laundry sorted and then I was ready for bed and to head back to work the next day. I can truly say I am blessed beyond words to have a profession that I love and look forward to leaving vacation to go back to when it is time.

I have to be honest and tell you that I don't remember the last time I have been gone away from home for that length of time and while the time was well spent with my BFF Karen, meeting up with some fabulous friends, seeing new and exotic *okie isn't sure anything was exotic on the trip but figures that sounds really good* places, I am total agreement with Dorthy from the Wizard of Oz - THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME!

Meeting New Friends Who Are Old Friends

Okay maybe that doesn't sound quite right so I should explain. Before leaving for Orlando I posted on Facebook that I would be in the area and asked if anyone in the area would like to meet up for lunch while I was there. After some chit chat back and forth we decided to meet up at The Rain Forest Cafe at Downtown Disney. These gals are new friends in person but old friends from chatting. A couple of the ladies are ones I have chatted with for about 5 years or so and a couple were ones who I have only been chatting with for the last two years or so.

One of the awesome things about Disney World is that people like to vacation there *okie still doesn't quite get the attraction to Disney World but figures to each their own*.  Luckily Jann was there vacationing from Minnesota and Debbie was in from Ohio. I thought all the ladies knew each other and I was quite surprised to find out they didn't really know each other from online.

There were a couple of ladies who planned on meeting up but for one reason or another were not able to make it. Those that did make it were Carol, BFF Karen, Diana, Debbie, Jann, myself and Candy. Candy evidently took this picture since I don't see her in it! *okie also wonders where her picture of the group standing outside went to but can't seem to find it and thinks she is gonna have to beg one of the ladies to send her one*. We had a great time at lunch getting to know each other, well okay them getting to know each other since I have been chatting with them for quite sometime. It was really great to meet Carol in person since she and I were on a design team together and we also have had numerous lengthy phone conversations over the last few years.

Jann is part of the Night Owls group, which originally branched off from the Cricut Messageboard when it started going down hill. The Night Owls have made Mini Me's that travel with each other and get their picture taken. Jann pulled out the Mini Me's during lunch so they could join us! Cheryl from Oz decided to start drinking my slushy drink! *okie thinks Cheryl is quite the lush*. Notice the little Mini Me who is sideways...well that is Camilla, she had too much to drink before we even started lunch! HA HA HA I couldn't believe all the details the ladies put into their Mini Me's and it was fantastic to be able to look at their handiwork.

After lunch we went outside to visit and ended up spending a few hours chatting about different subjects. Candy was nice enough to let me try her caramel apple pie apple, or something like that, from Goofy's Candy shop...IT WAS AWESOME! Too soon it was time for everyone to go. Karen and I had to go meet her brother and his family over by Legoland, they were in the Tampa area on vacation from Tennessee.

Karen and I had parked on the opposite end of Downtown Disney from the Rain Forest Cafe so we decided to hope on the pontoon with Debbie and Jann to get back over to the parking lot. Debbie snapped this picture of us with her phone during the ride. I looked for alligators but didn't see any, actually quite disappointed in my trip to Florida...not one alligator seen!

I feel very blessed to be able to say I have friends all over the country and even more blessed that I actually get to meet them as time goes on! While I may not be a consumer of Cricut products anymore I will forever be grateful for the fantastic friendships that the Cricut has brought into my life.

Our Last Day...Day At Sea

Our last day was a day at sea and we thought we would go sit by the pool. NOT! Every lounge chair was taken so that was out. We finally did find two lounge chairs on the Serenity deck but there was absolutely no breeze at the back of the ship and we felt like we were strips of bacon in a frying pan so only lasted maybe 20 minutes. We spent most of the day just hanging out and enjoying different things on the ship and discussing the pros and cons of this cruise compared to the other two we have taken.

The Punchliner Comedy Club was by far our favorite entertainment of the cruise. We just loved the comedian Chris Wiles and he had me in tears during two different shows. The other comedian Eddie Clark was very good as well but there was just something about Mr. Wiles that hit our funny bones a little more.

Our Utah gals, Ashley and Kacie, joined us the last night for the two adult comedy shows and a girl in front of us was nice enough to take a picture of all four of us. This will definitely have to be made into a scrapbook page!

I warned Ashley and Kacie that they would become material for my Facebook page and my website and joked about signing a disclosure statement. I am not sure if they took me seriously but since they are now Facebook friends of mine as well I guess they know by now that I was very serious! LOL

After the cruise Karen and I discussed our cruising experiences we have had in the last few years and made a few decisions. We have decided we like the bigger ships better than the smaller ones. We weren't disappointed with Carnival at all but just think bigger ships have more to offer. We feel like there has not been any service that can compare to the service we had on Holland America. We did like our room with Royal Caribbean the best, but then again we had a balcony then. We decided The Punchliner Comedy club was our favorite entertainment of the cruises we have been on. Who we cruise with next is a mystery to us right now because we don't necessarily  have a favorite line at this time but we do know we would like to cruise again. We prefer the Eastern Caribbean so far over other locations, this much we do know. We figure we have a whole year to decide what to do next so we aren't sweating it right now. We might actually start looking into an All-Inclusive vacation for next year. Eventually we want to go on an Alaskan cruise but that will likely be a few more years before we do that. I think all we know for sure at this point is that we do want to continue to do a vacation together at least once a year for the remainder of our lives...guess that is one thing that makes us BFF's!

Key West...Our Favorite Stop!

Our stop in Key West was by far our favorite. I am sure there are many stories to tell from this day and many that Karen and I will talk about for years, and some of those that we will never tell another soul! HA HA HA...but seriously, not tellin ya'll everything from this day!

We got into port at 12 pm and our excursion of the pub crawl was suppose to start at 12:30. We had to go through immigration here since we had been out of the US ports and this was our first stop back on US soil, this delayed everyone disembarking the ship but luckily since we had an excursion we were priority cruisers and got to go before the masses. After we got off the ship I pulled out our tickets and the excursion had been delayed to 1:30 so we had plenty of time anyway.

I have to say that our tour guide Robert with The Key West Pub Crawl was awesome! He was very upbeat and must have the patience of a saint to put up with the drinkers during the tour. We had a lot of spring breakers in our group and they did get a bit rowdy at times but were great kids over all.  We got to see the studio where Jimmy Buffet did his recordings and the house where Key Lime Pie started. There were great little shops along Duval Street and we had time to browse during our stops as well, although I don't think many did much browsing.

Karen and I wore our shirts proudly! Here we are modeling our tanks. It took us 4,382 stores before we found tank tops! I knew I should have just gotten the ones at my Walmart at home but just knew Florida would have tons of tank tops. Well they did but most were the spaghetti string ones or they were the ribbed ones. Never again will I think "oh I will just pick one up when I get there"...nope, nope, nope! From now on the project will be done before I leave home. I also learned that you really do need a good solid surface to do the heat transfer vinyl. I did these on Karen's ironing board and some of her lettering came off. Or maybe I should just get a heat press! HA HA HA But seriously, I would love to have one!

Ya know how you hear "It's a small world" well see the three guys in this picture...IT IS PROOF! I started talking to them, well simply because I will talk to a dang tree stump if it sits next to me for more than 10 seconds, and found out they were all from Oklahoma. But not only were they from Oklahoma but they graduated from a school called Butner which was only about 10 miles from where I graduated! For the life of me I can't remember their names. I can however remember the name of the delectable drink I have in my hand...Key Lime Colada!! OH EM GEE It was like heaven in a frosty slushy drink! They did tell me it was worth spending a full vacation in Key West instead just of one day in port.

One of the things people say not to miss about Key West is the sunset and as the sun went down I found out why. This was a little island off the island that had some very large expensive homes on it and it was absolutely breath taking. I know my picture doesn't do it justice for sure!



After getting back to the cabin, showering and getting dressed we decided it was time to get a bite to eat and find some entertainment for the evening. We checked the schedule and decided on going to the comedy shows again and to the Hasbro Game Show before the comedy club opened. 

Karen and I ended up sitting up front because the place was crowded and this somehow lead to me being part of the game show! The cruise director was asking questions and if you knew the answer you had to stand up and get his attention and answer the question correctly. He asked where Starbucks started and I knew the answer so I stood up and jumped up and down. Since I got it right I was told to go up on the stage. There were four people to each team, one was the red team and one was the blue team. I was on the red team and I had two kids and a man on my team.

We were told our challenge was to play Connect Four, but it was a HUGE game! We were actually tossing volleyballs in the large game piece to win. I was rather nervous since I haven't played basketball in years and wasn't sure I could even hit the ball in the top of the panel. HOWEVER, if you will look at the picture and see the red ball on the far right of the game panel moving down...YES! Yours truly made the shot and got it in! Our team won that lead us to getting a large card and having a seat off the stage. We later went up and put our game pieces in to see what our points were, mine was something like 9,200 but the winner had like 21,000 so I didn't win all the fabulous prizes but I did get a $20 gift card to HasbroToys.com and a  Monopoly card game. I asked if I got a free drink as consolation prize and the cruise director said "A free drink? This is a family show...go sit down". He didn't like anyone getting  more laughs than he did HA HA.

The rest of the evening was spent at the comedy show and visiting with other cruisers.

Nassau...Not Impressed

Our stop in Nassau was so short it was hard to do anything and basically we walked off the ship, went out the port looked down the street, went back through the port thing and went back to the ship....bingo bango done!

In all fairness we didn't wake up until about 9:30 that morning and by the time we got ready, went and ate breakfast and got off the ship it was after 11 and everyone had to be back on the ship by 1:30pm so there wasn't much we could do.

We did find a few things to take our pictures by just so we could have some proof we were there. Karen is standing by some kind of very decorative thing that we have no idea what it is. She did have a picture of me by a big bird looking thing but that picture is on her camera and I don't have her pictures edited yet on my computer.  We are thinking these things are used for parades or something. There were little tables of trinket things in this area so you could get some souvenirs if you liked but we passed as we thought most looked like stuff made in China but had Bahamas or Nassau printed on it.

I do have to say the ride out of the port was beautiful and we did stand out on the dock just enjoying the view for awhile before getting on the ship. This picture was taken as we were going out of the port. I believe that big tall building on the right hand side of the picture is the famous Atlantis resort.

We did enjoy a great comedy show this night and after that we went the rest of the remaining nights to the comedy shows. The Punchliner as it is called featured a comic named Eddie Clark and another, who was our favorite by the name of Chris Wiles. We turned in fairly early this night because Key West was our next stop and we had a Pub Crawl to attend! Here is a picture of our sting ray that our room stewards made for us. We did have great room stewards by the names of Julius, Noorad and Stephanus. Stephanus was quite intrigued with our vaporizers and while we were on the cruise he told us he quit smoking "cold goose", which caused Karen and I to giggle and tell him it was cold turkey. I didn't get to see him before I left and ask him if he was still going cold goose with the smoking.

I will be back home in Oklahoma tonight but I will continue with the posts of the vacation. If you are getting bored then too bad, I can't just stop right now and not finish the vacation posts...it's just how I roll ya know! HA HA HA