Here we go again...

The female bluebird in the west box laid her first egg yesterday. A normal clutch for bluebirds is five eggs. If this couple is 'normal' she will lay the last egg on Friday and start incubating immediately. Typical incubation is 12 - 14 days and they will fledge 16 -22 days after hatching. I will monitor the nest box daily until the fledglings are about 13 days old. Checking the box after that may encourage early fledging. As before, I will try to take pictures for you.

Here we go again...

The female bluebird in the west box laid her first egg yesterday. A normal clutch for bluebirds is five eggs. If this couple is 'normal' she will lay the last egg on Friday and start incubating immediately. Typical incubation is 12 - 14 days and they will fledge 16 -22 days after hatching. I will monitor the nest box daily until the fledglings are about 13 days old. Checking the box after that may encourage early fledging. As before, I will try to take pictures for you.

My gratitude for the bluebirds inspired this card. I do keep a daily record to report to the Illinois Bluebird Society and I do thank them for the beautiful flash of blue and the lovely muted song of the male. They add immeasurably to my garden and can brighten up even the most depressing day.

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Tilda's Diary, Stampin' Up; Distress Ink: Walnut; Copics: [Skin E11, R20, E00][Dress E34, E33, E31, E30, E50][Book E42, B32][Feather T3, T1][Hair YR23, Y21, YR31][Chair E57, E59]

Chin up

So many people are having financial trouble these days. My grandson just moved back in with his mom and step-dad; unable to pay for an apartment with his salary, he is now bunking on the couch. I've heard this same tale from many people and the newspaper is equally depressing. Now with the oil spill (I have a friend on the coast of Florida who is really worried) it's hard to turn on the news without feeling down. I really think friends and family are the greatest support system we can have during times of stress. It was nice of Sentimental Sundays to have an "Encouragement and Support" challenge. This is a card I made for that challenge:

The sentiment was also embossed with the Tim Holtz 'Bricked' die after being stamped and then raised with thick pop dots. Materials used for making this card are:

Paper: Stash, Best Occasions Textured Cardstock; Stamps: Whiff of Joy, Cornish Heritage Farms; Tim Holtz 'Bricked' Embossing Folder; Distress Ink - Fired Brick, Brushed Corduroy; Smooch Silver; Spellbinder Die; Copics: [Skin R20, E11, E00][Hair E33, E31][Clothes Y08, G94, G99, E35, B93, N3][Dove N1, N0, Y32]

Old and new...

For those of you keeping track, my baby bluebirds fledged on the 24th. Either mom and dad are building a new nest in the box in the backyard (the west box) or it's a completely different pair. The nest was finished when I checked the box earlier today. My husband attached a squirrel/raccoon/snake baffle to the west box which has never had one. I have cleaned out the north box and am waiting for another pair of bluebirds but a wren seems interested. Either way, this is the box I see from my craft room so except for house sparrows, I will rent to any occupants for the entertainment value I receive while I work.

Old and New

For those of you keeping track, my baby bluebirds fledged on the 24th. Either mom and dad are building a new nest in the box in the backyard (the west box) or it's a completely different pair. The nest was finished when I checked the box earlier today. My husband attached a squirrel/raccoon/snake baffle to the west box which has never had one. I have cleaned out the north box and am waiting for another pair of bluebirds but a wren seems interested. Either way, this is the box I see from my craft room so except for house sparrows, I will rent to any occupants for the entertainment value I receive while I work.

Spouting off now: I received my new Martha Stewart scoreboard from Cindy Echtinaw about two weeks ago. I have the Scor-Pal and the Scor-It. I have used nothing but the MS scoreboard since the day I got it. I love the 1/16th divisions. It's lightweight, and though the scoring tool is fragile, I just go easy on it. I will be putting the others out at the fall garage sale. Now, I'm not a fan of Martha. I think she makes people feel inadequate - you watch her on TV and can't see the thousands of people in the background who do the shopping, the prep work and, for all I know, think up the ideas. BUT I do love her glitter and punches, I believe she's raised the level of those tools across the board. Whoever she's hired to create those products gets a huge KUDOs from me. I can now add the score board to that small list.

I have a girlfriend who has a birthday on July 4th. Last year I sent her a red, white and blue card. This year I thought I would send her a card that is just for her birthday and not another holiday. I truly enjoyed making this card, I thought it turned out very well. Hope you enjoy the card, as always, if you would have done anything differently or you have suggestions, please leave a comment. I do so enjoy reading your comments. Supplies used were:

Paper: DCWV Latte Matstack, Sweet Glitter Matstack; Stamps: JustRite, Firecracker Designs, Magnolia Valentine Tilda, Magnolia Cake; Ribbon: Offray - tied with my Bow Easy; Spica: Sky Blue, Lilac; Copics: [Cake W00, N0, R85, R81, Diamond Glaze][Skin E11, E00, R20][Hair YR23, YR31, Y21][Dress G21, B91, B93][Cupcakes Y32, B93, B91, G21][Candles G24, B93, Y38, YR18, Y08]

Magnolia Challenge #13

The Magnolia Stamp Lover's Challenge #13 is being hosted by Vivi. She picked red, white & blue as her criteria for a card. This is my take on this challenge. The spellbinder die was colored with distress inks direct to paper. The stars and edges of the spellbinder die were frosted with Stickles Pink. FYI: Distress Ink Stormy Sky and Copic B45 match very well as do Distress Ink Fired Brick and Copic R59. I colored the red in the ribbon with N1 to tone down the brightness which didn't go well with the distressed theme. I think she's just waiting for the parade to come along, don't you?

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Our Daily Bread, Technique Tuesday, Magnolia Tilda w/summer bow, Magnolia Garden Chair; Spellbinder Die; Distress Ink Stormy Sky, Fired Brick; Spica: Garnet; Stickles: Pink; Copics: [Skin R20, E00, E000][Hair E33, E31, E30][Clothes B45, R59, B41, N2, N4][Chair E59, E57][Chair E59, E57]

Totally Gorjuss Challenge #35

This is my first entry into the Totally Gorjuss Challenge. I had just finished this card when I discovered the challenge so while it wasn't strictly made for the challenge, it was a card looking for a challenge. I love this image - so girly. I've had the paper in my 'stash' pile forever. When I first started making cards I used to tear all the paper from the pad and stack it up so I could just flip through it. I don't do that anymore, but I still have a HUGE pile of paper with no manufacturer to give credit to. I like the way this easel card turned out and hope you do, too.


Paper: Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Princess Tilda, The Paper Co. Studio 'You Go Girl'; Stickles: Tiara; Spellbinder Die; Distress Ink Tattered Rose; Spica: Mint, Gold, Black, Clear; Martha Stewart Leaves; Prima Flowers, Magnolia Flowers; Kaiser Pearls; Copics: [Skin R20, E00, E000][Clothes YG91, YG93, E42, N5][Hair E35, YR23, Y23]

Time for some sillyness

You can tell I really feel better when I start doing the absurd. As you may have seen on some forums, Cricut is selling some cartridges exclusively at Walmart, supposedly due in July. I have seen images from all the cartridges and only two caught my eye - Botannicals and Splish Splash. I have an extensive collection of "sea" stuff - mermaids, ocean creatures, pirates, etc. The images are flourished fish, dolphins, seahorses, and this little beauty. You find friendship in the strangest places, eh? The octopus has been texurized with a Cuttlebug folder - it really adds a pop to the card - so was the anchor. And Tilda, being the kind sweetie she is, loves everyone - a little diversity is good for the soul.

Paper: Making Memories Travel; Stamps: Magnolia Jolly Roger Tilda, Kimmie Stamps Sentiment; Cricut Splish Splash Cartridge; Cuttlebug Folder, Kaiser Pearls; Copics: [Skin R20, E00, E000][Hair E33, E31, E30][Clothes B93, B97, B95][Boots N8, N5][Map E43][Hat N3, N5, N1][Flag N3, E57] Spica: Clear

On a personal note, during my bout with kidney stones I was so sick to my stomach most of the time that I couldn't eat. After 3 weeks, I'd lost eleven pounds. It's been seven weeks and my eating habits have changed. I no longer eat "everything on my plate", I get full much faster than I used to, I snack during the day (fruit mostly) and find I don't have to eat a meal for supper. Sometimes just a salad and some fruit. Consequently, I find T-shirts that used to bunch at my hips now fall smoothly their entire length (this means you can actually read the back of the T-shirt now - lol). I haven't weighed myself lately but plan to do that at the doctor's office on Tuesday. I had my last x-ray on Monday and will find out if I have more stones to pass or if I'm 'good to go'. I don't recommend kidney stones as a weight loss program, but if there was a silver lining, this is it.

Nine days old...

Since I've been feeling so well lately, I've been dedicated to making up for lost time. Almost six weeks of not making cards have led to a frenzy. I have so many ideas perculating. I did take time out for Movie Tuesday. Ruthann and I watched Overboard with Goldie Hawn and Big Trouble in Little China with Kurt Russell. Which lead to UTube and old Goldie Hawn videos from Laugh-In. We found a Dean Martin and Goldie Hawn video that was hysterical and that led to Dean Martin singing "Sway", my very favorite DM song. Dean Martin led to booze (did you know he drank apple juice, not liquor, on camera?)

Nine days old - feathers are starting to look like feathers and are getting bluer by the day. Mom and dad are constantly in the nest box with food and out of the nestbox with fecal sacs. They still will not touch the meal worms even though they can clearly see them from the branch they survey the nestbox from. Bluebirds are very clean birds; the inside of the nest box will not be covered with fecal matter and the nest will be perfect, if a little flat, when the chicks fledge. I hope you are enjoying watching them grow as much as I am.

Nine days old

Since I've been feeling so well lately, I've been dedicated to making up for lost time. Almost six weeks of not making cards have led to a frenzy. I have so many ideas perculating. I did take time out for Movie Tuesday. Ruthann and I watched Overboard with Goldie Hawn and Big Trouble in Little China with Kurt Russell. Which lead to UTube and old Goldie Hawn videos from Laugh-In. We found a Dean Martin and Goldie Hawn video that was hysterical and that led to Dean Martin singing "Sway", my very favorite DM song. Dean Martin led to booze (did you know he drank apple juice, not liquor, on camera?) which led to this card:

Paper: GCD Chic Bebe; Stamps: Magnolia Tilda w/wine, Stampin' Up, Flourishes; Mustard Seed Distress Ink; 18 Kt Gold Leaf Pen; Diamond Glaze; Spica Clear and Pink; [Bowl Y08, Y02, YG05, Y28, Y26][Bottles: R01, B0000, E31, R37][Tray, etc. T1, Y32, V09, E37, V17, V15, YG95, B45, E50][Skin E00, E000, R20][Clothes YG93, R01, B0000, E31, E50, E35][Hair E99, YR23, Y21, YG95] The gold pen was used to edge the white base card, as well as the wine label. All the bottles and glasses were Diamond Glazed. The tag is a spellbinder tag. I found the wine label on the web.

Nine days old - feathers are starting to look like feathers and are getting bluer by the day. Mom and dad are constantly in the nestbox with food and out of the nestbox with fecal sacs. They still will not touch the meal worms even though they can clearly see them from the branch they survey the nestbox from. Bluebirds are very clean birds; the inside of the nest box will not be covered with fecal matter and the nest will be perfect, if a little flat, when the chicks fledge. I hope you are enjoying watching them grow as much as I am.

Bluebirds are seven days old...

It finally stopped raining enough for me to take new pictures of the babies, now seven days old. They have a spattering of feathers and in the sunlight you can even see blue in them. They're still very tiny and mom and dad are feeding furiously. I have placed the meal worms in a dish by their favorite branch but they have ignored them so far. Last year I had a pair of bluebirds that wouldn't touch the meal worms, I wonder if this is the same pair, it's the same box that the pair last year nested in. Several years ago I had a pair of bluebirds that were crazy for the meal worms. Tomorrow I'll post a picture of them. Hope you are enjoying watching my babies grow up. They could be fledging in another week - they grow up so fast.

Bluebirds are seven days old

A girl is never well dressed without wonderful shoes...and these are spectacular. I colored them with copics, covered them with Spica mint and then Diamond Glaze. They sparkle and shine in the sunlight. A girl can never have too many pairs of shoes. I have so many favorite Magnolia images and this is one of them.

Paper: Stash, Stamps: Magnolia, The Paper Co. Studio; Spica: Pink, Mint; Smooch: Pearl; Kaiser Pearls; Martha Stewart Ribbon; Spellbinder Tag; Copics: [Skin E11, E00, E000, R20][Dress YG63, G82, G40][Rose YG05, R21, R22][Shoes G82, YG63, Spica Mint, Diamond Glaze][Hair YR23, YR31, Y21]

It finally stopped raining enough for me to take new pictures of the babies, now seven days old. They have a spattering of feathers and in the sunlight you can even see blue in them. They're still very tiny and mom and dad are feeding furiously. I have placed the meal worms in a dish by their favorite branch but they have ignored them so far. Last year I had a pair of bluebirds that wouldn't touch the meal worms, I wonder if this is the same pair, it's the same box that the pair last year nested in. Several years ago I had a pair of bluebirds that were crazy for the meal worms. Tomorrow I'll post a picture of them. Hope you are enjoying watching my babies grow up. They could be fledging in another week - they grow up so fast.

The world is a wondrous place ...

Sunday was an eventful day in our lives. I was in the house doing laundry when my husband came to the dining room door and yelled my name. When I asked what he wanted he told me to hurry outside he had something to show me. I was thinking a hatching praying mantis ball or fabulous butterfly. I followed him to the back of the property behind the blue spruces and in front of the brush pile he creates every year with trimmings from the trees and bushes. In the spring he will burn the previous year's pile and start a new one. He had been out trimming the path behind the property and the pine trees so it would be easier to mow around them. He was standing about four feet from the brush pile and told me to look. So, I looked at the brush pile and all I saw was brush. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a tiny bit of color that didn't look like dried brush. When I focused my eyes on that spot, there was a tiny fawn lying in the grass at the edge of the brush pile. You could just see it. Carl said he had walked past that spot many times hauling brush to the pile, the fawn never blinked. We did not take pictures because we were afraid we would scare it out of its hiding place. We don't like to distress the creatures that we find on our property. And that's also why I don't have new pictures of the bluebirds; it has rained here for three days. I don't want to open the box for fear I will get them wet. The first nice day, tho, I will be out with the camera.

The world is a wondrous place ...

Sunday was an eventful day in our lives. I was in the house doing laundry when my husband came to the dining room door and yelled my name. When I asked what he wanted he told me to hurry outside he had something to show me. I was thinking a hatching praying mantis ball or fabulous butterfly. I followed him to the back of the property behind the blue spruces and in front of the brush pile he creates every year with trimmings from the trees and bushes. In the spring he will burn the previous year's pile and start a new one. He had been out trimming the path behind the property and the pine trees so it would be easier to mow around them. He was standing about four feet from the brush pile and told me to look. So, I looked at the brush pile and all I saw was brush. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a tiny bit of color that didn't look like dried brush. When I focused my eyes on that spot, there was a tiny fawn lying in the grass at the edge of the brush pile. You could just see it. Carl said he had walked past that spot many times hauling brush to the pile, the fawn never blinked. We did not take pictures because we were afraid we would scare it out of its hiding place. We don't like to distress the creatures that we find on our property. And that's also why I don't have new pictures of the bluebirds; it has rained here for three days. I don't want to open the box for fear I will get them wet. The first nice day, tho, I will be out with the camera. In the meantime, I make cards for my stash. I am going through another easel card phase and trying to build up my card collection with cards that I always need: birthday, get well soon, thank you, just because... The bandaid was cut from a Cricut Cartridge and would be good for him to sit on. This little guy has been playing soccer in honor of the World Cup. You just want to hug him, don't you? Hope you like him.

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Edwin Bandaid, Cornish Heritage Farms; Cricut Cartridge: Everyday Paper Dolls; Smooch: Pearl; Tim Holtz brick embossing folder; [Steps T4, T3, T2][Skin E11, E00, R11][Hair E19, E09][Bandaid E33][Shirt G21, G82, G12][Pants B93][Shoes W6, W3][Large Bandaid E33 Sprayed with air gun]

I'm back...

Some of you know that I haven't been at my best the last six weeks. I've had an educating bout of kidney stones and two different procedures to handle them, one invasive and one not. I know way too much about the little buggers now and am drinking copious amounts of water in order to get rid of some smaller ones (this card was inspired by water). I have an x-ray planned for Monday to find out if there are any more that need intervention. Those of you that listen to Bob and Tom can tell Chick McGee that I have been taking his pain pill of choice. Whew! Now I know why Chick is fuzzy sometimes. During this episode I discovered that morphine can be good. Needless to say, I haven't been in a cardmaking mood lately. It's just been the last couple of days that I've actually spent any time in my craft room. Today I was inspired and created five cards. This is the first one:

Paper: Making Memories Travel; Stamps: Magnolia Tilda Mermaid, Stampin Up, Peachy Keen; Glimmer Mist Bubbles; Kaiser Pearls, Spica: Mint, Baby Blue; Martha Stewart Aquamarine Crystal Glitter; Copics: [Sand E33, B91, T2, YG03, E19][Crab R24, R27][Shell B91, B93][Skin E11, R20, E00][Hair E35, E37, E33][Tail G24, B91][Top G24, B95][Starfish E30, E33][Rock T6, T5]

I was out in the yard yesterday and got another picture of the babies. One egg did not hatch so I removed it. I understand from the literature I have read that the heat can make it explode which wouldn't be good for the nest or the rest of the babies. They are starting to grow downy hair but their eyes are still closed. I will post every couple of days with new pictures. The first eggs hatched on June 7, this picture was taken June 10. The oldest two are 3 days old, the youngest is 2 days old.

A welcome arrival...

You've read about my bluebirds, now I'd like to introduce them to you. This is the box they live in. It's on a fence about 10 feet from my craft room window covered in Dropmore Scarlet Honeysuckle and Clemantis. This box has seen lots of baby bluebirds since we put it up about six years ago. It's on the north side of our property so it gets early morning light when the sun comes up.

This is dad. Isn't he a handsome brute? I can see why she fell for him, he's a beauty. He's been hanging out in the trees across the street, pacing no doubt, like the expectant father he is. He shows up at the box once in a while but not very often. I know the eggs have hatched because he's been here all day with food offerings (does that look like a great big fat juicy worm?). These pictures were taken from my craft room window. The tree branch is on our crabapple tree and is about 20 feet from my craft room window.

This is mom. She's been living in the box since the last egg was laid on May 25th, just two days after my birthday. She leaves to feed and probably visit with dad, but she never stays gone long. I will be able to get better pictures in the early morning when the sun hits the branch they sit on before going to the nest box. I have a great little point and shoot camera but this branch is just about a foot too far away for my camera to shoot well without sun. Tomorrow I will go the the bird store in the big city and buy meal worms. It's fun to feed them and it helps them raise healthy babies.

And these are the first two, just newly hatched today. OK, now you all go "awwwwwwww". Actually, they're naked and bulgy. Not very attractive, but before long (16 - 21 days from now) they will be out of the nest and mom and dad will be looking to nest again, hopefully in the same box.

Magnolia Stamp Lover's Challenge #12

I love to combine images and I think these two work wonderfully well together. I can see Edwin growing up to be just like dad, can't you? Put on your thinking hat and see if you can't mix and match a few stamps with your Magnolias, come up with something outside the box and enter this challenge. Supplies for this card (with the exception of Captain Scurvey and the treasure chest) can be found at StampingScrapping.com where the very best customer service awaits.

Paper: DCWV All About Boys; Stamps: Magnolia Pirate Edwin, Kraftin' Kimmie Captain Scurvy + Treasure Chest, Magnolia Barrel, Anchor; Edwin: (Skin E93, E11,. E00, E000) (Hair E55, E53) (Shirt W3, R35, W5) (Pants B45, B34, YG41) (Hat + Boots C7, C5, Spica Clear); Barrel: (E57, E33, E43, E31, C3, C5); Treasure Box: (E57, E43, C3, C5, E3, Clear Spica); Anchor: (C5, C3, C1, C00); Captain Scurvy: (Skin E02, E00, E000) Coat (Y28, B29, B28, Spica Clear) Pants (Y28, B29, B28) Boots (C5, C3) Sword (N5, N3 Spica Gold) Hat (B29, B28, Spica clear + gold) Eye (B0000) Tag: Stampin Up, E31 Airbrushed