Just a Quote for Friday

"I expect to pass through this world but once;

any good thing therefore that I can do,

or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature,

let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it,

for I shall not pass this way again.”

~ Stephan Grellet

Vote for Me! {or Doug}

At the beginning of May, I planted some sunflower seeds in our backyard and within a week we had some serious sprouting going on. These things have grown so fast, I swear you can almost see them growing if you watch close enough.

I have been checking these stalks daily, eargerly awaiting some blooms on top. Every time I think the new growth might be a blossom, it turns out to be another round of leaves. Enter: the ongoing [good natured] banter between Doug and I.

Me: "Hey!!! It's a bloom!"
Doug: "No, Deb, it's just another round of leaves."
Me: {pouty face} "Nuh-uh. You're not the sunflower expert, Doug."

Me: {a day or so later}: "You were right...just more leaves..."

And then last night, when the sun was setting, I took my camera out and saw this:

Doug says it's another round of leaves.

I say it's the beginning of a FLOWER!!!

What do you think?

~ ♥ ~

A quote for Wednesday, and winner of the angel stamps

I saw this quote, loved it, made it mine.

It's on my work bulletin board. :o)

Thanks for your lovely comments on my attempts at passing along some of my craft room over-stock - starting with the angel stamps. I didn't have many takers, but I sure did have a lot of you agreeing with me on purchasing items with good intentions and then never getting around to using them.

Something sweet came out of this ~ I have a new blog follower by the name of Rocio and she is the only one who said she wanted those stamps. So, I don't even have to draw a name, and I'm oh-so-happy to send them along to Rocio so that she can get some good use out of them. You should check out her blog and all of the adorable cards and great scrapbook layouts she makes.

Tell her congrats and that Deb @ PaperTurtle sent you.

;o)

The Weekend Recap

Wow, that just might have been the fastest weekend ever, and I really wish I had just one more day to wrap up a few things. ~sigh~ Before we dive into the new week, I'm giving you a little look at my weekend.

One of my favorite flowers is a strawberry bloom - they are short-lived and just so pretty. We planted this strawberry plant in Rexy's habitat thinking it would be a treat for him to nibble on if he got super hungry. He basically ignores it.

I've been at my "new" job for three full months now - long enough for me to begin building some nice friendships with a few of my co-workers. {These things do take time...}  One of my new work friends brought me a bag of what she calls "pearl tomatoes" from her garden. Doug and I had them on a salad yesterday and they were yummy.

Saturday afternoon I went to a birthday party at a bowling alley for one of Carrie's co-worker friends. My awesome shoulder didn't allow me to bowl, but I had fun watching and hanging out with a very nice group of people. :o)

A little out of order here, because this freaking amazing cinnamon roll was part of our breakfast Saturday morning. Doug and I met Carrie at Liberty Market in Gilbert for a yummy meal. After breakfast Doug went home, and Carrie and I headed to our favorite scrapbook store for some needed supplies. 

Carrie and I joined a gym a couple of weeks ago, and my body is wondering what the heck happened here. I've got some sore muscles, so I took time off from the gym and did a lot of stretching this weekend.

Yesterday afternoon I made a batch of cupcakes for Doug to deliver to a friend who lost his wife last week. :o(

A bit of a sad note to end this post, but...that's how life is sometimes.

And here we are at the beginning of a whole new week.

Another chance to get out there and do some great stuff.

Blessings to all of us this week!!!

♥

PS: My girl C is having a little weekend recap link up party on her blog today.

Judy's Garden

Let me tell you about our awesome friend, Judy.

♥

She has actually been a friend to Doug for...well...forever and because Doug chose me to be his wife, Judy gets to be my friend too. If you knew Judy you'd love her like we do. She's a super cool, down to earth, hippie chick and first class act all rolled into one.

Judy has three of the cutest little grand-boys ~ and now she's Grandma to a grand-girl too {hugs and prayers to baby Harper}. At the beginning of this month Doug and I were invited over to Judy's house for a graduation celebration in honor of her youngest daughter, and while we were there I took pictures. {I know, big surprise!}

I thought you'd like to see her super cool garden in raised beds, and you can be jealous of all her amazing tomatoes just like I am.

And you can also be jealous of her adorable little grand-boy, Wyatt too. I know I am!

♥

My own little world

I walked into my craft room the other day to find Whiskers sunning himself in my chair. I grabbed my camera, half expecting him to jump down before I returned, but he remained.

I know how you feel, little cat. It's a great place to be, isn't it?

Now move aside, my furry friend.

I have "work" to do.

Happy weekend, everyone!

♥

Just a Quote for Friday

{shadow magnet on my refrigerator}

"I hope some day to make you all

a cup of coffee. Alright, peace."

~ Johnny Depp

Pass the Angel Stamps

A chance to share with friends.

Here's how this all started: Our lovely Sian started "Pass the Book" on her blog a while back. She would offer up a book as a giveaway, and the idea was that the winner of that book would borrow it for a while and then, in similar fashion, pass it along to another recipient who would then repeat the process.

Last month I offered up a DVD of "Thelma and Louise" and I called my post "Pass the DVD." My thoughtful friend, Alison, won the prize and I really hope she enjoys the movie with her daughter. I forgot to mention in my original post that just because I was "passing the DVD" that didn't mean that Alison was required to pass it. She can keep it for her own for as long as she wants, or she is welcome to pass it as she sees fit. The DVD belongs to her to decide.

Among the comments I received on that post was one from our down-under friend, Amy, in which she said, "Great idea Deb, this is a fun Pass the ____ idea!" What Amy didn't know was that at the time I was in the process of gathering items from my craft room to pass along to my blog readers in a "Pass the _____" kind of way.

It's true. Great minds do think alike!

I hesitate to admit this in a blog post because my husband reads my blog, but I'm hoping that some of you will echo your own similar confession in the comments so I won't look so bad. Eh-hm...here goes nothing: I have items in my craft supplies that I purchased with good intentions and have never used them. Like, they are still in their original packaging. {Sorry, Doug!!!} Come on, ladies, I'm not the only one, right?

Truth is, I really don't need all this stuff, so I'm going to start giving it away.

Who wants these acrylic angel stamps?

Anyone?

Anyone?

Leave a comment if you want them and I will draw a name and

announce the winner next Wednesday right here on my little blog.

♥

PS: I'd love to hear your comments about what you purchase and then never use. Be sure to tell me in your comment if you want these stamps or not, that way I'll know if I should put you in the draw.

Busy me.

Hello, friends!

♥

The cool thing about a garden is that it keeps on growing at its own pace while the rest of my world seems to be going in full-speed-ahead. I spent last weekend working on a birthday gift for my sister {still not done with that!}, and I enjoyed some time outside on Sunday morning playing in my garden and taking photos. The sunflower seeds I planted are getting taller and taller, and our basil plant is going crazy. Here are some of the photos I took, just in case you'd like a peek at what's growing around here...

I know, I'm not supposed to let the basil plant bloom - I just couldn't resist a photo of this beauty, before I pinched the top off.

My guy. ♥

And that's it for now, friends.

We're alive and well and busy and happy.

How about you?

:o)

And the winners are...

Hi everybody!

It's time to announce the winners of my first sponsor giveaway.

I'm so happy that there were so many sweet comments {on my blog and on Facebook} about LMNOP's adorable cards. It was my pleasure to introduce them to you. :o)

And, I'm also happy to announce the names of the two lovely ladies who have each won four of these adorable LMNOP cards...

Congratulations, Nikki and Judi!

I'll send your little prize packages right away!

♥ ♥

PS: A great big special thanks to Kimberly of LMNOP for her generous gift of all these sweet cards. I have a few more of these sweeties to give away with future blog prizes. Stay tuned...

PSS: Yes, as a matter of fact,  that is a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cereal bowl {thanks, Doug!}.

My Sister's Birthday

My sister, Valerie.

♥

Oh how I love this woman.

She is strong, loving, caring, funny, outgoing, friendly, and pretty much

AMAZING.

And today she is 50.

:o)

Happy birthday, V!

iloveyousomuch!

A roadtrip to the beach ~ the recap

A good Monday morning to all of you.

:o)

I'm in a rush this morning, but I wanted to post a the few Instagrams I took this past weekend of our quick San Diego trip. And go...

Doug picked me up from work at 3:00 on Friday and we headed out of town.

~happy~

We stopped at McDonalds in Gila Bend for a bathroom break. You'd have to know Gila Bend to appreciate this photo - a broken up wagon as lawn decor.

Me. Happy for the road trip, bored with nothing to keep me busy...

5:00 p.m. coffee in hopes that we'll be able to stay awake past 9:00 p.m. {It worked and I think we made it till about midnight!}

Saturday afternoon, sitting at an outdoor bar drinking mai tai's - my man to the right of me, the beach and ocean to my left - when I received a call from Carrie who proceeded to lecture me about how many drinks I had already had and "It's only 2:00, dude!" Hello? I'm on vacation here!!!

The hotel where we stayed was on Mission Bay and we had a room with a bay view. It was so nice, and made it really easy just to stay put in our room, enjoy the view, and take some time to relax.

And at night we got to see the fireworks display from Sea World. It was so cool to see the reflection of the fireworks on the bay. {Ok, ok, so I'd had too many mai tai's to be able to figure out my big camera settings to get a decent fireworks photo.} :o)

Sunday morning we walked to the other end of the boardwalk to have breakfast at a favorite spot, and along the way I saw this cool painting on the curb:

We managed a little shopping at Sea Port Village before making the 6-hour drive back home yesterday. I picked up this silly little penguin and my Instagram caption was: "Kinda' like having Debs14 along for the ride." :o)

It was a quick trip there and back, but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and it was a much needed get-away. This week I'll be focusing on being grateful for our little trip instead of feeling sad that it was so quick.

I totally wish we were still there!

~sigh~

Wishing a fantastic week to all who read this.

♥

Just a Quote for Friday

K1 and k5

"Only thing better than being an aunt?

Being a great-aunt. ♥"

~ Aunt Deb

LMNOP ~ my first sponsor

Hi blog friends!

Guess what?

I have a sweet giveaway for you today, compliments of LMNOP by Me, a new blog sponsor.

Cool, huh?

It's funny how these things happen. A former co-worker-turned-Facebook-friend has an aunt who makes these adorable cards and was looking for ways to promote them. I basically said, "OOOOhh!!! Pick me! Pick me!" and she did. Without further ado, I give you Kimberly of LMNOP by Me.

♥

A little bit about Kimberly

"For as long as I can remember, I've loved color - lots and lots of color! I was the kid who got in trouble for decorating the hall walls with crayons. I loved the color of the sky, the color of bugs and, if I thought there wasn't enough color, I would add more - like green food coloring to chocolate chip cookies. To use the colors that I loved, I stated drawing so that I could fill in the lines with all sorts of magical colors provided in paints, magic markers, and crayons.

The Watercolor Stem Series was born of my fascination with watercolors. There are so many different hues to choose from! Be still my foolish heart!

Alone on a wooden deck overlooking a bay in Port Townsend, Washington, I began playing with my watercolor sets. I had seen a painting of flowers in a field earlier that day in an art gallery and thought it was "nice" but if I were to paint it I would have the flower stems bloom with more than just flowers. Why would you want to limit anything's possibilities? It's just the way my head works. 

{photo from LMNOP by me}

These cards are a little different than the average card because they are designed both on the front and the back of the card. This is for two reasons: 1) I think you should be able to enjoy a card from all sides, and 2) why should you waste the back of a perfectly good canvas?"

* * * * * * * *

Thanks, Kimberly! It's so nice to meet you.

You can see more of Kimberly's adorable designs on her website.

♥

Now for the giveaway. :o)

Kimberly has given me a generous selection of her adorable cards to giveaway on my blog. For this first round, I'll be giving four of her cards to two lucky people. Just leave a comment on my blog (or on the Facebook's PaperTurtle status update) and I'll put you in the drawing. I'll announce the lucky winners next Thursday {June 14, 2012}. Good luck!

Carrie's Birthday Story

June 6, 1988

~ 24 years ago today ~

5:00 a.m. – I am wide awake and trying to find a comfortable position on the guest room bed. I’ve been "sleeping" here for the past month, because getting in and out of a water bed with my expanding pregnant tummy has become nearly impossible.

5:10 a.m. – I feel like making chocolate chip cookies. I think I’ll just get up…

7:30 a.m. – Craig leaves for work and I assure him that I’m feeling fine.

8:30 a.m. – I decide I’ll make a pot of spaghetti sauce with meatballs to have for dinner tonight, and some extras to go in the freezer for after the baby is born.

9:30 a.m. – I am standing on a kitchen chair cleaning out a top cupboard shelf. {At the time this seemed like a perfectly normal thing to do, now I’m shaking my head wondering what in the world I was thinking!}

10:30 a.m. – Laundry is going, both beds are made, cookies baked, meatballs done, kitchen cleaned, and I’m continuing my quest for a clean house. . .
12:45 p.m. – Craig calls [again] to check on how I’m doing before he takes his lunch break and I tell him that I’m just fine. “Go to lunch, nothing’s happening here.”
12:46 p.m. – I bend over to pick up a bottle cap and my water breaks.
12:47 p.m. – I call Craig at work and talk to his co-worker who is excited to go find him in the lunch room and send him home. The baby is coming!!!
1:15 p.m. – Craig plows through the door, all nervous/excited and still in his work smock.
1:45 p.m. – Checking into the hospital I ask the young girl at the registration desk, “When can I have an epidural?” and she smugly replies, “Well, we need to get you into your room first, Mrs. M.”  psh.

7:30 p.m. – The monitor that’s hooked up to our baby shows signs of stress and my doctor decides to do an emergency c-section. The whole room fills with nurses and people scurrying around. As they wheel me out of that room and into surgery I call out to Craig, “Don’t forget the camera!”  He’s in a fog and mumbles, “Oh yeah…” 

7:44 p.m. – “Tell Her No” by The Zombies is playing on the radio in the operating room as Dr. Scott pulls my little baby out and says,“It’s a girl!”

11:30 p.m. – Finally – a nurse brings my sweet Carrie in for me to hold for the first time. Her dad and I are absolutely smitten. ♥

The rest is history.

Happy 24th Birthday, Carrie.

Today I celebrate the amazing gift that is YOU.

♥

{linking to Sian's Storytelling Sunday}

Flowers, my kitchen, my cat, and my mom.

See that on my blog banner?

"...little bits of random"?

Well, here we are, folks.

I've been known to buy flowers for myself, quite frequently. My standard picks are daisies and sunflowers, or mixed spring bouquets, but never roses. Well, last week my grocery store had these beauties and I just couldn't resist them. Doug seemed a bit surprised when I brought them home and I assured him I won't make that a habit - I'll save the rose buying for him. ;o)

Don't you think they look pretty on our kitchen table?

Little miss Fancy Jane occupies my chair most of the time here lately. I've been known to sit across the table rather than booting her out of my her spot. Spoiled kitty. ♥

And here's the part about my mom:  Every three weeks my mom gets chemo, and today is one of those days. Her doctor added a new medication to the mix of chemo drugs last time and it was really hard on her. We would sure appreciate a few extra thoughts and prayers today and over the next week(+) as her body processes this new medication. Thanks, friends. And go Team Teal!!! xo

Oh how I would love to spend a slow morning here in my kitchen, chatting with my mom {or you} and sipping on a glass of iced tea. But alas...it's time to get ready for work.

Happy Tuesday, everyone.

♥

First Weekend in June - The Recap

Hello, friends.

Hello, Monday morning.

~sigh~

Monday mornings are so bittersweet. We had such a full and fun weekend, and now we get to start all over again and work toward the next one. Wanna' see what we were up to over the past few days? Come on in...

Rexy enjoyed some pool time. Lucky for me, this little guy is always so curious about my camera/phone and he ends up being fairly photogenic, don't you think?

Friday night is date night, and after having a quick dinner out we came home and sat on the patio to enjoy the sunset - nothing totally spectacular, just a pretty pink sky. And here we are enjoying the pink:

I planted sunflower seeds four weeks ago and I swear you can almost watch these things growing! They are already about 10" tall. Yay!

And speaking of growing, I have a carrot sprout happening on my kitchen counter. :o)

Saturday afternoon I made some time for a little scrapbooking. I put my previous blog post down on paper for my Project Life album and had a great time doing it.

Saturday night we kicked off the week-long celebration that is Carrie's birthday and had a great time hanging out with her and her friends. {Thanks for including us, Carrie!}

Yesterday was go-go-go from the time I got out of bed - doing laundry and house stuff before Carrie arrived for her annual birthday breakfast of chocolate pancakes. Then we headed out for pedicures, a little shopping at Whole Foods, and iced tea at Paradise Bakery & Cafe.

Yesterday afternoon/evening we spent with good friends and family celebrating the graduation of our sweet friend, Allison. I took a bunch of pictures of little ones at the party, including this one of our adorable little great-niece, sweet baby K. Isn't she precious?

And with that, I'm off to get busy. Carrie's actual birthday is on Wednesday so we'll be celebrating with her {again}. And I have several other things to fit in this week, getting ready to take a little weekend trip with Doug next weekend. Yay!

I hope your weekend was as blessed as ours.

Here's wishing us all an amazing week ahead ~ go make it so!

♥