Play Ball!

My cousin's son turned seven in April. When asked what he wanted for his birthday, he told his dad that he wanted a signed baseball from my son, Adam. How sweet is that? I contacted Adam, who sent me a baseball for him. This is the card I made to accompany the baseball and a couple signed cards. I was happy for the opportunity to use this adorable stamp set and color coordinated it to match the team colors. The form of the card is called Tri Shutter and actually pretty simple to do. You can find directions for how to make them on the Splitcoast Stampers website.

Recipe: stamps- Put Me In Coach (Storage Units, Ink and More); paper- black, white, dp (source unknown); ink- black archival, SU markers; accessories- chalks (for sky).

No Time To Blog

This is one of the reasons for being so behind in my blogging. The garden is starting to come in. This morning we finished up the last of 24 quarts of green beans from the first picking. I had a lot of help though. My husband, Erin and Jill all helped pick, snap and fill jars.

My Jenn Flower

...known to others as gaillardia or blanket flower. I like to name a plant after the person who gave it to me, or someone it reminds me of. My friend Jenn gave this to me when she moved to Texas. She's thriving, Jenn!

Blue Bayou

I wish I was talking about an exotic spot where I'm vacationing this summer, but (sigh...) it's only the name of the color of my card.

Recipe: stamps- Sanded (SU), Botanicals by Rhonna Farrer (Autumn Leaves); paper- blue bayou (SU, white, Old World Stack (DCWV); ink- blue bayou (SU), oasis green (VersaMagic chalk ink), Mist collection (Petal Points by Color Box); accessories- pewter brads, silver embroidery floss.

I Actually Do Have Readers!

...because a few of them have gotten after me for not posting for so long. Thank you, friends! And sorry I've been so lax.
Wow, has it been a busy month! But we've gotten a lot accomplished, too. Probably the most work has been done gardenwise...both vegetable and flower. We've planted corn, potatoes, sugar snap peas, green beans, squash (zucchini, spaghetti, and yellow straightneck), cucumbers, tomatoes (several varieties), asparagus, peppers (green and banana), onions, green striped pumpkins, swiss chard, eggplant, cantalopes, lettuce, and cabbage. I think that's everything. Thank you, Lord, for blessing us with a rainy spring and early summer. Everything has gotten off to such a good start. I've frozen peas and this morning we finished twelve pints of zucchini relish. If anyone wants the recipe for the best relish they will ever eat, contact me.
The flowers are so beautiful this year. The photo is from June 10th, so it's not quite up to date. I'm continuing to work on the beds, always a work in progress. No matter what, the weeds always thrive, don't they?

A Miracle!

...to me, at least. The neat thing about this pic is what you don't see. Blackbirds, starlings, grackles, and cowbirds. Last weekend I told my husband I was thinking about stopping feeding birds. "All I'm doing anymore is feeding blackbirds." It had gotten to the point they were emptying the feeder at an astonishing rate and scaring away all the little birds. And all I was doing was making noise and chasing them away like a madwoman.
As a last resort, I got on the computer and googled "getting rid of blackbirds at feeders". I got three results: one- learn to appreciate blackbirds, grackles, etc. okay... no! two- buy or rig a feeder with a fencing cage around it (sold to protect against squirrels)...larger birds can't fit through. Okay...pretty good idea, a definite possibility. three- try safflower seeds. Most small and songbirds love it. Blackbirds, starlings, etc. don't have a taste for it. Hmm...interesting. So I bought some, put it out Sunday night. Monday morning, no black birds. Tuesday, no black birds. It's Friday and I've seen maybe three or four at the feeder all week. They check things out and take off...not interested. It's absolutely amazing to me. The cost per bag is a little more, but I'm not going through bird seed at the speed of light anymore so it will even out in the long run.
How cool is that?!

Charlene's Sketch

Another Monday CCEE challenge. This month, Charlene (LilLuvsStampin) is the hostess and provided us with a sketch to follow. The printed chipboard flowers I used were included with a tin of Prima flowers I found at Target.

Recipe: ink- pink passion (SU); paper- white, pink passion, gingham check dp (Me and My Big Ideas); stamps- Upsy Daisy (SU); accessories- Cuttlebug embossing folder, gingham ribbon (Offray), Creative Memories oval cutting system; flowers (Prima).