A good lawn gone bad....

Our 3rd battle with nature involves the moles and Japanese Beetles (not to be confused with the Asian Beetles). My husband is a bit of a fanatic about his lawn. If it were up to me, I would turn all of the grass in our yard into a natural prairie filled with native plants. Grass only attracts starlings. I have to admit I would probably lose my bluebirds, they like the lawn to spot bugs in. Our mole infestation drove my husband crazy (actually it wasn't a drive, it was a short putt). My theory was we had a gazillion Japanese beetles which lay eggs in the ground and hatch into larvae. The moles eat the larvae. The first year the Japanese beetles hit our yard they ate everything and were everywhere. I would go out in the morning with a small bucket of soapy water and knock them off of my flowers just to keep some in the garden. It was a losing battle. I suspect the moles came because there were so many larvae in the ground. The second year, we had Japanese beetles but not so many, this year Carl only emptied the traps twice. The traps are a mixed blessing. We don't know if they just capture the ones in the yard or attract more to our yard. The first year he put up the traps, he was emptying them every few days. The moles, on the other hand, have proliferated. We have mounds all over our yard and it's become hard to walk because the ground is so uneven. He bought traps that didn't work, poison that hasn't seemed to work and finally resorted to flooding which did. Of course, you have to be able to get the mole when he's flooded out of his hole. Moles will still dig in frozen ground which gives you an idea just how strong their claws are. You can't flood them in the winter, so this fight will continue. As I sit here on the computer, I see the herd of deer just across the street. When it comes to mowing down gardens, the deer are the biggest culprits, followed by the rabbits. The moles are low on the list, they don't usually damage the garden, preferring the lawn to hunt in. I think I'm going to have to change my approach to gardening in order to accommodate all the pests. The alternative is to have a heart attack fighting them all. It's been hard to realize that I don't live in the city where my garden was lush and safe, I live in the country where it's being attacked from all sides.

A good lawn gone bad....

Our 3rd battle with nature involves the moles and Japanese Beetles (not to be confused with the Asian Beetles). My husband is a bit of a fanatic about his lawn. If it were up to me, I would turn all of the grass in our yard into a natural prairie filled with native plants. Grass only attracts starlings. I have to admit I would probably lose my bluebirds, they like the lawn to spot bugs in. Our mole infestation drove my husband crazy (actually it wasn't a drive, it was a short putt). My theory was we had a gazillion Japanese beetles which lay eggs in the ground and hatch into larvae. The moles eat the larvae. The first year the Japanese beetles hit our yard they ate everything and were everywhere. I would go out in the morning with a small bucket of soapy water and knock them off of my flowers just to keep some in the garden. It was a losing battle. I suspect the moles came because there were so many larvae in the ground. The second year, we had Japanese beetles but not so many, this year Carl only emptied the traps twice. The traps are a mixed blessing. We don't know if they just capture the ones in the yard or attract more to our yard. The first year he put up the traps, he was emptying them every few days. The moles, on the other hand, have proliferated. We have mounds all over our yard and it's become hard to walk because the ground is so uneven. He bought traps that didn't work, poison that hasn't seemed to work and finally resorted to flooding which did. Of course, you have to be able to get the mole when he's flooded out of his hole. Moles will still dig in frozen ground which gives you an idea just how strong their claws are. You can't flood them in the winter, so this fight will continue. As I sit here on the computer, I see the herd of deer just across the street. When it comes to mowing down gardens, the deer are the biggest culprits, followed by the rabbits. The moles are low on the list, they don't usually damage the garden, preferring the lawn to hunt in. I think I'm going to have to change my approach to gardening in order to accommodate all the pests. The alternative is to have a heart attack fighting them all. It's been hard to realize that I don't live in the city where my garden was lush and safe, I live in the country where it's being attacked from all sides.


These are my treats for the trick or treaters tonight. We have so few in our neighborhood that we can afford to give them something nice. I fill these with a variety of candy; they can hold a surprising amount.

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Waltzing Mouse; Martha Stewart Bat Punch; Sizzix Box, Carry-All XL die

Battle Nature, part deux...

Our second fight has been with the Asian beetles that were imported to eat the aphids on soybeans. We have the perfect house for over-wintering them; a south-facing light colored house. On warm days in the fall, they cover the south side of our home. Literally, hundreds of thousands of them. They can find their way into the tiniest crack in your home and will stay hidden inside until a really warm winter day when they will congregate on the warmest windows. I would come home from work everyday and vacuum them up - we have white walls and a white down comforter, if they are smashed they leave an orange color you cannot remove. When they're frightened they let off an odor that is really obnoxious so my vacuum always smells awful. Our second year in this house (we're heading for year 7), there were Asian beetles in our Thanksgiving mashed potatoes. I've grown to hate them. During the house inspection here, my husband wondered why the attic was filled with empty bug bombs. Guess we know why now. Somewhere my husband heard of a spray product that you cover your house with. The beetles land on the house after it's sprayed and just die. He sprays about this time of year because the beetles start to swarm during harvest when they're disturbed from their feeding grounds. I have 'invented' a little device to help capture them in the house. I duck-taped a water bottle to an old broomstick. The top of the broomstick hits the center of the bottle and is taped from the center to the bottom, making it really stable. I put a half a cup of warm soapy water in the bottle. When I see a beetle on the ceiling, I cover it with the bottle opening and slide the bottle along the ceiling. The beetle will fall into the bottle and die. On the walls, I just slide the opening up the wall under the beetle. Same thing. The only place they were safe from me was in the corners. Got the solution to that, too. Another broomstick or wooden dowel with a wad of masking or duck tape on the top and just dab. The beetle should stick to the tape. Caution: please don't tip the bottle when it's above your head. The nasty smelling water will spill into your hair forcing you to run screaming into the bathroom to wash it. Just don't ask me how I know that. Beetles 0, Closes 1. Stay tuned for our third and last battle. I love living in the country....

Battle Nature, part deux

Our second fight has been with the Asian beetles that were imported to eat the aphids on soybeans. We have the perfect house for over-wintering them; a south-facing light colored house. On warm days in the fall, they cover the south side of our home. Literally, hundreds of thousands of them. They can find their way into the tiniest crack in your home and will stay hidden inside until a really warm winter day when they will congregate on the warmest windows. I would come home from work everyday and vacuum them up - we have white walls and a white down comforter, if they are smashed they leave an orange color you cannot remove. When they're frightened they let off an odor that is really obnoxious so my vacuum always smells awful. Our second year in this house (we're heading for year 7), there were Asian beetles in our Thanksgiving mashed potatoes. I've grown to hate them. During the house inspection here, my husband wondered why the attic was filled with empty bug bombs. Guess we know why now. Somewhere my husband heard of a spray product that you cover your house with. The beetles land on the house after it's sprayed and just die. He sprays about this time of year because the beetles start to swarm during harvest when they're disturbed from their feeding grounds. I have 'invented' a little device to help capture them in the house. I duck-taped a water bottle to an old broomstick. The top of the broomstick hits the center of the bottle and is taped from the center to the bottom, making it really stable. I put a half a cup of warm soapy water in the bottle. When I see a beetle on the ceiling, I cover it with the bottle opening and slide the bottle along the ceiling. The beetle will fall into the bottle and die. On the walls, I just slide the opening up the wall under the beetle. Same thing. The only place they were safe from me was in the corners. Got the solution to that, too. Another broomstick or wooden dowel with a wad of masking or duck tape on the top and just dab. The beetle should stick to the tape. Caution: please don't tip the bottle when it's above your head. The nasty smelling water will spill into your hair forcing you to run screaming into the bathroom to wash it. Just don't ask me how I know that. Beetles 0, Closes 1. Stay tuned for our third and last battle. I love living in the country....


All the fighting with the beetles has driven me to drink. I didn't keep track of the supplies for this card but the image is a Kenny K. The tiny margarita glasses are from Cindy Echtinaw's Drink Minis which I'd like to think I had a hand in designing. I love these for backgrounds for drink related cards, these have been glossed for a glass look and glittered around the edges to look like salt. They look good enough to drink, don't they? The hat has been glittered within an inch of it's life.

Battling Nature - part 1...

Welcome to the battle between nature and the Close family. We've been waging a battle with raccoons who have decided that our deck is their own personal toilet. Every morning a new deposit. Apparently they pick a place and that's where everyone goes. Yuch. So, I had an idea yesterday, I sprinkled the latest 'gifts' with cayenne pepper. I figured if they couldn't smell it, maybe they wouldn't do it. But, unbeknownst to me, raccoons have a direct line to a higher power and last night it rained and thundered and stormed and washed all my cayenne pepper away and there was a new gift. Raccoons 1, Closes 0. Stay tuned for the battle of the Asian Beetles.

Battling Nature - part 1

Welcome to the battle between nature and the Close family. We've been waging a battle with raccoons who have decided that our deck is their own personal toilet. Every morning a new deposit. Apparently they pick a place and that's where everyone goes. Yuch. So, I had an idea yesterday, I sprinkled the latest 'gifts' with cayenne pepper. I figured if they couldn't smell it, maybe they wouldn't do it. But, unbeknownst to me, raccoons have a direct line to a higher power and last night it rained and thundered and stormed and washed all my cayenne pepper away and there was a new gift. Raccoons 1, Closes 0. Stay tuned for the battle of the Asian Beetles.

I love this new set of Cindy Echtinaw's Spellbinder compatible stamps, they stamp beautifully and coordinate with so many of the Spellbinder sets - the Lacy Squares stamp set will go with any square Spellbinder set - the scallops, the classic squares, the lacey squares; they are a great value. Paper: Bazzill; Stamps: Penny Black "Micey Day" and Cindy Echtinaw "How ya Bean?" and Cindy Echtinaw "Lacey Squares"; Koh-I-Nor Pencils; N1, N2 for shadow; E41, E30, E31 for teabag; Waterfall Stickles; Spellbinder Classic Squares; Spica Baby Blue and Pitch Black

Reduce, reuse, recycle...

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - I have a couple of hints for you today in the housekeeping arena. One day while shopping at Wallymart, I found a huge bundle of white terrycloth washrags for a mere pittance. And I use them everywhere. I always have a clean one in my craft room for cleaning messes and stamps, one stays in our showers to wipe them down after use, I have several in my cleaning caddy for dusting, cleaning ceiling fans, wiping corners, etc., I keep several in the kitchen for spills and spot floor cleaning. When they get dirty, I wash them with the blue jeans and some liquid bleach for colors. It doesn't matter if they are discolored, they work just fine. And before you ask, I don't use them for windows, I use newspaper for that. If I should use a paper towel in the kitchen, I recycle those. I don't recycle the newspaper. My second hint: I HATE dust pans. No matter how good the design, all the fine dust you sweep up escapes under the dust pan so you move it back and sweep again and move it back and sweep again. AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGG! I picked up this trick from a professional housekeeper. Just sweep onto your closest carpet - and then vacuum. Voila, all the dust is gone. I'm donating my dust pan to Goodwill.

Happy Birthday, cuz

I have a cousin by marriage who is married to a now retired IT person. I'm quite sure that she's even busier now than she was when she was working - and less stressed. Since I popped her birthday card in the mail today, and since I'm almost positive she doesn't have time to read my ramblings, here is her birthday card:

Ingredients for this card were: Paper: Stash; Stamps: Stamps Happen Inc. Bees, PaperTrey; Smooch Illuminate; Copics: Y18, Y35, Y38, Y17, C7, 0, E19, E08, Y32, E42, background Y17. It was funny, I have a gazillion (yes, a gazillion) sentiment stamps, several sets with just bees on them and do you think I had one stamp that said "Happy BDay? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. So, I created it using two different stamps sets from PaperTrey - one had the Happy and Day in it - one had bee in it. It works! I loved coloring this stamp, but I have to admit I used the back of the stamp as a guide for my first coloring, so kudos to whomever did the art work on this stamp block.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - I have a couple of hints for you today in the housekeeping arena. One day while shopping at Wallymart, I found a huge bundle of white terrycloth washrags for a mere pittance. And I use them everywhere. I always have a clean one in my craft room for cleaning messes and stamps, one stays in our showers to wipe them down after use, I have several in my cleaning caddy for dusting, cleaning ceiling fans, wiping corners, etc., I keep several in the kitchen for spills and spot floor cleaning. When they get dirty, I wash them with the blue jeans and some liquid bleach for colors. It doesn't matter if they are discolored, they work just fine. And before you ask, I don't use them for windows, I use newspaper for that. If I should use a paper towel in the kitchen, I recycle those. I don't recycle the newspaper. My second hint: I HATE dust pans. No matter how good the design, all the fine dust you sweep up escapes under the dust pan so you move it back and sweep again and move it back and sweep again. AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGG! I picked up this trick from a professional housekeeper. Just sweep onto your closest carpet - and then vacuum. Voila, all the dust is gone. I'm donating my dust pan to Goodwill.

MSL Challenge - Sparkling

This easel card is for the MSL Challenge "Sparkling". It's hard to see with this photo, but all the paper has sparkles in it. The buckle depressions are filled with Patina Stickles. The rhinestones also sparkle as does the band and veil on Tilda's hat. Bling, don't we all love it? There's still time for you to enter this challenge, or, failing that, run over to the challenge and get some inspiration from the wonderful design team and challenge entries.

Paper: DCWV Linen Closet; Stamps: Magnolia Tilda with Veil Hat, Alota Stuffed Chair; Copics: [Skin R20, E00, E000][Chair T3][Clothes G0000, G000, G00][Hair Y11, Y17]; Patina Ice Stickles

Back to Fossil Rim...

Fossil Rim is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) through which they join other zoological facilities and conservation organizations (national and international) in working cooperatively with many species. It's located south of Dallas, Texas. The employees we met were dedicated and passionate about their facility. I'd like to publicly thank our tour driver, Tamara, and Kelly, our black rhino and cheetah tour guide, for their hospitality, their knowledge and their patience in answering questions and putting up with us. We have discussed a return trip in the spring to take pictures of the babies. The following pictures were taken by my husband who is a much better photographer than I am, honey, your 50 cents is on the hutch....

Giraffe - Giraffa camelopardalis - Range: North eastern Africa, Somalia and north Kenya; Giraffes are the tallest living land animals, the patterns on a giraffe are unique to each individual, much like that of a human fingerprint. The giraffes were great fun, coming to the tour bus for treats and happily covering everyone with giraffe spit. Their lips are as soft as velvet.

Fallow Deer - Dama dama - Range: Europe, Asia Minor and Iran; The males have branched or palmate antlers (shaped like an open hand), fallow deer have spots and may be white, tan or chocolate brown, they have a prominent Adam's apple that distinguishes them from axis deer when antlers are absent.

Waterbuck occur in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana. When exposed to a high level of human activity, they will become almost completely nocturnal, only entering grazing areas after sunset. This is a good example of how man not only affects the habitat of animals, but can also affect their normal behavior on a daily basis.

The color of waterbuck varies from grizzled gray to red-brown. They also possess white ear linings, eyebrows, snout and a white ring on their rump. Only the males have the impressive forward-curving horns

Blackbuck - Antilope cervicapra; Range: India and Pakistan; Adult males are black and white, females and young males are tan, only the male blackbuck have horns. Due to their popularity on hunting ranches, there are more blackbuck in Texas than in their native India although the creation of protected preserves in India has rescued this animal from almost certain extinction. It was comical to see them herding up 'their' females, it must be exhausting. They are constantly watching to make sure none roam or no other males approach their harem during mating season.

This is the female Blackbuck. They have the most beautiful eyes with long lashes.

You should allow four to five hours to drive the park. At the half-way mark, there is a restaurant and gift shop with tables outside overlooking the park. Since I collect teapots, my husband purchased me a zebra teapot and a white Fossil Rim bathrobe made of heavy terrycloth. It's so warm and comfy. I guess he got tired of seeing me in my ratty old one. I have lots more animals to show you, so stay tuned.

SSCC #8 - Gift Card Holder

The challenge for Stamping Scrapping Challenge Central is a Gift Card Holder. I had planned to make a card gift holder but when I saw the tutorial that Suzanne Dean did on her Mini Suitcase, I couldn't resist. This was so much fun to make and super easy. I realize it doesn't have a lot of embellishments but the person for whom this is intended is rather young and would not be impressed. The gift card is for his mama to pick out something for him and the chocolate is for mama.

There are relatively few ingredients to this project. Cindy doesn't have the Teddybear in stock, but if you e-mail her at stampingscrapping@charter.net , I'm sure she'll try to get it for you. I added some Spica Lipstick to the heart on his face and a little Turquoise to his patch.

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Teddy bear; Stampendous Stickers; Copics: R20, E37, E30, E35, E33, R46, BG45; Spica: Lipstick, Turquoise

An invitation to a Safari...

My husband and I have just returned from a trip to Fossil Rim in Glen Rose, TX. If you haven't been there, I highly recommend it. I will be posting about this vacation for many postings so I can share with you what a fabulous place it is. Wild and educational. We stayed at the Foothills Safari Camp, a small collection of tents on the edge of a waterhole which is pretty active in the early morning and evening.

This is the tent we stayed in - it was called Cheetah. There are only six or seven of these tents available, so if you want to stay in one, book early. There are also rooms at the lodge which are bigger and fancier (and more expensive).
This is the inside front of the tent. Behind the curtains is a fully equipped private bath with a shower. I admit, it's tiny, but we spent very little time in the tent.
This is the view from the porch on our tent. The water you see is the waterhole and it's bigger than it looks. Lots of the animals came down to drink in the morning and evening. We also saw many bluebirds and scissor tail flycatchers which seem to frequent the area. At night, you could hear the mating calls of the European Red Deer which sounded a lot like one of those wooden frogs with the stick - when you rub the stick over it's back, you get the same sound. Actually, they were a little obnoxious at times.


This is the pavilion which is open 24/7. It also has wireless which I didn't know about until the last morning we were there (lol). You can have a private dinner here with a chef and waitress. There are lots of tables and snacks which are on the honor system. You just write down what you've taken (wine, soda, candy bars, etc) and they will bill you when you check out. A glass of wine and some down time on the deck are all the relaxing you need here. We took this trip with two other couples so we used the pavilion to play UNO at night after dinner. I won....when the first person hit 500, I was still in the 130s. The Rim is 1700 acres - you can drive through or you can take some of the photo tours. We took 3 phototours and I'll share some of those pictures with you.


Giraffes are beggars. Who knew? And who knew they have the world's softest lips. Like velvet. And they are gentle. Not like the ostriches which are much greedier and will follow you for miles just for a snack.

The Emu are not as bad as the ostriches but can be little pests, too. In fact, if you are a dedicated photographer, feeding the animals isn't a smart idea. Once you throw out the first handful, all the animals rush your car and they will be too close to photograph. You are not allowed out of your car unless you take the behind the scenes photo tour which will get you close to the cheetahs, wolves and the black rhinos.

I love red...

Red is the color I always go to when I'm looking for cheerful. This paper is really terrific, it's from a Basic Grey 6x6 paper pad I purchased from Cindy at StampingScrapping.com. I embossed the PaperTrey flowers with a red embossing powder. I cut some out and stamped some on the greeting. The flower centers are rhinestones from my stash. The ribbon was a stroke of luck, I had purchased it years ago at one of the Michael's $1.00 sales and never opened it. Since I've organized my ribbon, it's really easy to see the patterns and colors, this one just jumped out at me. I have a collection of the Magnolia Crystals but this is the first time I've used any of them, cute aren't they?

Paper: Basic Grey Olivia, Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Bon Voyage, Stampin' Up sentiment & rectangle; PaperTrey flower; Stampin Stuff Embossing Powder Red Tinsel; Magnolia Crystals; Copics: [Skin E11, E00. E000, R20][Clothes YG01, YG13, YG03, YG17][Hair E21, E33, E30]

Reduce, reuse, recycle...

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - I found a really inexpensive way to organize my ribbon. I've seen lots of different systems but they all cost more money than I'm willing to invest. I have a large closet in my craft room and have nothing hanging on the bar. The last time I was at Dollar General, I picked up 12 plastic clothes hangers for a dollar. With a pair of wire cutters, I cut them on one side about four inches down from the join under the hook. I threaded my spools of ribbon according to color onto the hanger, taped the cut with Duck Tape (it's like the force, it has a light side, a dark side and holds the universe together) and hung it in my closet. It cost me next to nothing and that bar in the closet was just going to waste.

Just hangin' around

I ordered a bunch of these little Flower Soft Display Globes and planned to fill them with candy, but as you can see, they are pretty hefty. Since they would be too heavy if I filled them with candy, what to do? I thought they would be perfect for a small diorama. I used MudPuddles Tahiti Beach and added some tiny shells before it dried. It turned out rather well, but would need a box if I planned to send it to someone. You can find these globes at: StampingScrapping.com.


Paper: DCWV Nana's Kids; Stamps: Magnolia Sea Background, Magnolia Dangling Edwin, Inkadinkado, JustRite; Flower Soft Display Globe; Smooch Illuminate; Nellie Snellen Flowers; Stickles: Crystal; MudPuddles Tahiti Beach; Copics: [background B000, BG01, B0000, B00, BV01, BV00, BV0000, BV000, Y08, E07, E0000][Skin R11, E11, E00][Hair E34, E31, E30][Anchor T2, E33][Clothes B91, B93, B95, B97, E55, E57, R22]

Name that song #1...

Coming back from the grocery store the other day with the radio cranked up as loud as I could stand it, the thought occurred to me that I could make a card out of the song I was singing (off-key, I might add). I'm a child of the 60's so that's my music of choice. We have a terrific radio station called Hippie Radio and I'm a fan. They play all those songs I listened to in high school and even some 70's and 80's. So....this is the card, you supply the song. Since I plan to do this periodically, I will supply the decade. All you win by guessing right is bragging rights.

Hint: Between 1960 and 1963 - Name that song.....

Paper: Stash; Stamps: Magnolia Witch Tilda, unknown calendar stamp; Spica Clear; Stickles Black Diamond; Marth Stewart Ribbon Border Punch; Copics: [skin E00, E000, R20][Broom Y26, Y23, E55, E57][Dress, Hat, Shoes W6, W9, W8, YG03, G94][Hair E07, E09, E19]

Reduce, reuse, recycle...

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - How many products do you buy that are encased in acrylic packages (you just know the manufacturer does not want you to get into it)? I cut those packages down so I have flat pieces of acrylic and use those for stamps that have cling cushion, for windows in cards, for mixing alcohol inks for cool backgrounds, and for stamping see through sentiments (you need StayzOn ink for this). You can die cut this material, too. I'm sure if you think about it, you can come up with other uses for this wonderful material.

SSCC #7 - Halloween

I think I've already mentioned that I love Halloween so I won't repeat myself. It's one of the few holidays that I actually make cards for and send to all my friends. It's nice that Magnolia has some "spooky" images for us to work with and Cindy carries them in the store but they won't last long, so get yours now.


Paper: Making Memories Wedding; Stamp: Magnolia Bat Tilda; Cuttlebug Spiderweb Embossing Folder; Metallic Rub-On; Cuttlebug Tricks & Treats Cut & Emboss Set; Unknown Cuttlebug Alphabet Dies; Spica: Melon; Stickles: Crystal; Copics: [Skin E00, E000, R20][Hair Y11, Y02, Y19][Top C0, C1, C3, V04][Pants T8, T6, T4][Shoes N1, N2, N3]

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - How many products do you buy that are encased in acrylic packages (you just know the manufacturer does not want you to get into it)? I cut those packages down so I have flat pieces of acrylic and use those for stamps that have cling cushion, for windows in cards, for mixing alcohol inks for cool backgrounds, and for stamping see through sentiments (you need StayzOn ink for this). You can die cut this material, too. I'm sure if you think about it, you can come up with other uses for this wonderful material.