so many blessings...

We have so much to be thankful for in our home and we had such a great 5 day "stay-cation" at home together! I enjoy family downtime so much! I love when my hubby walks through the door early(doesn't happen that much this year), love when my kids want to stay in their jammies all day, and I love when we just have fun hanging out!

This year my sister and her boyfriend, David, came to visit on the Tuesday before turkey day and the Saturday after. We were there stop in between North Carolina and NYC! I was so excited for them- they went to the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, the Christmas Spectacular Show and so many other sites and adventures in New York City. But the biggest event was the special carriage ride they took through Central Park where David asked my sister to Marry him!!!!! Oh I am over the moon happy for them! My sister has found her Prince and he is such a great person!!!! What a great Thanksgiving!



I have known about this secret for over 2 1/2 weeks and it was killing me! David had emailed me to get my parent's phone number so he could talk to my Dad; meanwhile my sister had no clue! She is so cute because as she told me today, "it seems everyone knew but Me!"

Now the cat is out of the bag and I can breathe again! The kids did great keeping it a secret too! They had fun trying to guess where Mr. David would propose! HYSTERICAL! Patrick wanted the top of the Statue of Liberty and Ireland wanted St. Patrick's Cathedral. It is going to be a fabulous 2010!
and my brother and his wife are Preggers too!!!! Their first baby is due July 2010! LIFE IS FULL OF JOY!!!!!!!!!!!!

~Jennifer :)

CLubbin' FUN!!!!

Yesterday was my local Scrap n Play Club and we had so much FUN! I just LOVE my club members and I love when they bring their artwork to share!!!!! I have a challenge with my Club Members that if they bring back their pages with photos on them and if they have created more with all the left over paper I will have fun "happies" to give them for sharing and going the extra mile! It is so fun to see their artwork and the fun things they have created! I know we all love being inspired by each other and having our work appreciated! So here are some pics of their fabulous creations(feel free to click on the pic to see it bigger).




Last night we created 2 12x12 2 page layouts and the kit comes with directions to make 12 cards too. I made all of this plus had paper leftover to make a fun layout and a couple of cute 6x6 cards and I STILL have paper left in my kit. I love showing my friends and customers how much value they are getting from their monthly kits- it just simply ROCKS!!!! And thank you to my local club members you helped me get back a little of my creative groove I have been missing! And to my Club to Go Members- look at all this you can make! Are you long distance and want to be one of my Club to Go Members just simply email me at craftingdivas@cox.net to join and I will get you all set to go!

layout one- cannot wait to add pics!

layout two- so super cute!
one set of 6 cards- love these! (I still need to finish the other set)

bonus layout I created last night! it is from Cherish p. 108
bonus cards I created last night using Originals pgs.18 and 75

and here is all the paper I still have left over to keep creating with!!

Sorry for the long post but I sure made up for lost time, ehh?!?

Creatively Yours,
Jennifer :)

so touched by Friends....

I am so honored and touched that two of my friends value me and my blog that they gave me a Friendship Award! I know I have been quiet for a week or two now- not intentional just life getting a little bit hectic and I am trying to remain in control. HA-HA I know!
I have been busy with the kids, military wife duties, team mentoring and just plain life. I also am trying to make time to do things that I always put aside like Yoga and things that I enjoy. So I am taking some of my own advice of taking control of my calendar and making sure I add things in there that are meaningful and purposeful to me.
So when I logged on to Check my blog and my friend's blogs I was so BLOWN Away and touched by their thoughtfulness to honor me. It really was a bright spot to my couple of weeks of some grey skies. I was so surprised to get this award and so thankful. Take a minute to visit their sites because they are truly special people in my life! Tina and Melanie- HUGS TO YOU BOTH!!!!!

What this Award is all about: It is given to blogs that are exceedingly charming. These bloggers are not interested in increasing their own status, but rather aim to find friends and be friends. The hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are born! Now it's my turn to pass this award on to five of my blogging friends. It is a great joy to do so:

Now it's my turn to pass this award on to five of my blogging friends. It is a great joy to do so:

1. Tiffany- she is my longest and one of my dearest friends. She has a heart full of love and she has amazing gift of putting life events into a funny full of life perspective. I just wish I could be as clever as she is! I am so thankful for our friendship over the MANY years!!!

2. Angie- one word comes to mind- SUPERMOM! She is such an inspiration to me. Angie has a heart of gold and motherhood just blooms from her spirit- she is an inspiration!!!!

3. Doresa- a fun CTMH friend and person that inspires me professionally! I love Doresa and just wish I could see her more often! I love our email chats and always look forward to hearing from her. She is a fabulous artist and a very classy gal!

4. Tina- I have to put Tina down eventhough she nominated me. One of the reasons I go through blue spells sometimes is because I miss my dear friends that I have left because we had to move. I love keeping up with Tina via her blog...makes me feel like I am not too far. Tina has been such a great friend and inspiration to me- I love her to pieces!!!!

5. Siobhan- we have recently reconnected on Facebook and it is so fun to keep up with each other. We were stationed together in Utah and then as the AF life goes on we are separated and usually keep up with the family Christmas cards each year. Now the FUN of being able to check in and see what they are up to is so FUN! Siobhan is a very taletned artist that has been published in many card making magazines and I just love hearing what she has been up to!

Hope you have fun checking out my friends blogs! And I hope to be blogging again soon and have some artwork to share!!!!

~Jennifer :)

exciting function today!!!

I had a great day today! I attended the Belvoir Officer's Wives Club Luncheon today and had the pleasure of listening to Chef Roland Mesneir speak today. Chef Roland is a retired White House Pastry Chef- he worked in the White House for 25 years! It was such a treat to listen to his stories and hear about his inspiring story. He comes from a French village of only 140 people and what he has attained in his life is truly a story to behold and share! He has written 3 books- 2 cookbooks and one memoirs. I purchased the memoirs book and it was so fun to have him autograph them!

I was also touched by the Belvoir Officers Wives Club reaching out to Ft Hood and their victims. They were asking for donations to help the victims and their families directly impacted by this horrific act of violence against our Military. Words cannot express enough how deeply affected I am and so many in the military community by this one horrific act- it is beyond words and reasoning. Ft Hood is in the process of creating the "November 5th Fund". The proceeds will go to meet the needs of the families and survivors of the Ft Hood Massacre. If you would like to donate to the November 5th Fund, you may send checks to the address below.

Please make checks payable to "CONSOLIDATED CHAPLAINS FUND", AND WRITE "NOVEMBER 5TH FUND" IN THE MEMO BOX. This will make sure your money goes where you intend it. Otherwise the money will go to the general Ft Hood Chaplains fund.

Garrisons Chaplains Office
Bldg 44 761 Tank Battalion Ave
Fort Hood, Texas 76544-3030

take care and God Bless!
~Jennifer :)

all wrapped and ready to go.....

Would you like to win this adorable( if I do say so myself) Christmas Card Box?!? This is my donation item for the Island Creek Craft Fair Silent Auction. I also added a FREE Workshop for you and up to 8 friends! I hope my Virginia friends will come bye and say HI! There are over 60 talented crafters at this Craft Fair- so much fun to shop for unique Holiday Items for your loved ones!!!!

The Craft Fair will be tomorrow Saturday November 7, 2009 from 9:00am- 3:00pm at the Island Creek Elementary School. I hope you will swing bye and take in all the fabulous items!

Here are some pics of what the box looks like!




Enjoy!
~Jennifer :)


*this box was inspired by another fabulous CTMH consultant that shared her ideas on our Bulletin Boards last year...sorry I forget who it was! Another reason I LOVE my job- we all share our fabulous creativity!!!

busy, busy!

WHEW!!!! What a weekend! We have been going like crazy! I love being active with the kids and having so much to do but it leaves me a little sad because I don't have that much time or energy left to craft and be creative. Oh the joys of trying to find the happy balance! :) I love that I can stay home with them and enjoy them and all the memories we make together!

My sister and her boyfriend came up for the weekend to share in Halloween with the kids! It was so much fun to have them here! We all enjoyed pumpkin carving together. The kids even made sure that Auntie and Mr. David (that would be the boyfriend) had a pumpkin to carve too! But I think the consensus was that their pumpkin was petrified or genetically altered because even my strong hubby could not cut that darn thing!!! Then it was Face Painting Wars- which was so FUNNY! Michelle started remembering how much it itched as a kid and then watching them trying to get off was hysterical! Oh the simple things!


Then Saturday morning brought FOOTBALL!!!! Patrick had his flag football game and let's just say the weather was ucky! Drizzle rain, 50 degree temps- yikes! I know I have years of this in-front of me! David and Michelle get major props for sticking it out in the ucky weather to cheer Patrick and his team on! The Bulldogs won and Patrick's team is undefeated so far this season! I am so amazed with how much they are learning and Patrick has one determined spirit! He has great ball awareness and is always trying to help his team. He loves to play defense....wonder what the future will bring! I mean seriously he is only 6! HA!

After the game it was time for Hot Cocoa and Donuts then off to warm up before we headed out for an evening of trick or treating! The rain and drizzle made a repeat performance for the nights activities which was sorta of a bummer but it really did not slow us crazy kids down! Michelle and David planned to dress up and I jumped in on the action last minute which is why my costume is oh so original! HA! But I told Josh that the AF should look at my boots- they rock! He then said they were not so practical- oh whatever! :)



Well that was our FUN Filled, high energy weekend! The kids are off today and tomorrow so we are taking it easy and they are having FUN playing! I am finishing prepping for the upcoming craft fair this coming Saturday and then hopefully things will slow down just a bit but that is this time of year! :)

~Jennifer :)

love my TEAM!

There are so many great parts about my Close To My Heart business that I love, but one of the best perks is forming great friendships with your team! I am so BLESSED! Last Thursday I held a local Crafting Divas Team Meeting. My team is spread out across the country and in other countries- how cool is that?!? I would love, love, LOVE to meet with them all at once but that is so HARD! I am hoping, wishing, and praying that some of my girls are headed up here this summer for Convention. The DIVAS would have a blast!

I keep in touch with my team via emails, newsletters and training calls- I love staying connected with the gals! This year I have started a fun incentive program for my team to let them know how much I love having them and how much I love cheering them on with whatever goals they have mapped out. One of the fun things is at the end of the sales year if they have attained and maintained a certain sales status then they are a Diva Queen Bee! My super downline, Elissa, is on track to attain this and it was fun to have her wear a crown and scarf for the meeting- we all need to feel special and rewarded! I know Elissa is going to ROCK this year and I am so proud of her for taking that leap of faith in herself and her business!


Just had to share how proud I am of my team and how much fun we have together! I would love to have you join my team and the fabulous Close To My Heart Family!

~Jennifer :)

my lil' punkins!

Oh my...it is Halloween time! I love fall and I love enjoying it in Virginia! It is so fun to see the leaves change and enjoy the temperature changes, smells and sights- LOVE IT! The kids and I have been so busy lately. I took them to a local pumpkin place after Piano lessons today for them to pick out their pumpkins- we had fun! It was fun to see all the different types of pumpkins and Patrick of course had to pick out all the ones that were not standard- that would be my individual guy for you!

I am looking forward to the upcoming Craft Fair I will be at on Saturday November 7th. It will be so much fun to meet new faces and see familiar ones. I am also looking forward to after the craft fair so I will have my creative time back- shh don't tell anyone. :)

Until then I am enjoying making things for the craft fair, playing with the kiddos and getting ready for Halloween- Trick or Treat!!! :)

feeling like giving....

so I saw this ADORABLE Blog Award and wanted to give it to my favorite bloggers! I just love their blogs, fun sense of self and cannot wait to hear their answers! So here we go....

1. Tina
2. Karen
3. Tiffany
4. Christine
5. Angie
6. Shannon

So here is the deal ladies.... The Rules are:
1. You can only use ONE word!!!
2. Pass this along to 6 of your favorite bloggers!
3. Alert them that you have given them this award!
4. HAVE FUN!!!

Now the FUN PART!!!!

1. Where is your cell phone?
2. Your hair?
3. Your mother?
4. Your father?
5. Your favorite food?
6. Your dream last night?
7. Your favorite drink?
8. Your dream/goal?
9. What room are you in?
10. Your hobby
11. Your fear?
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years?
13. Where were you last night?
14. Something that you aren't?
15. Muffins?
16. Wish list item?
17. Where did you grow up?
18. Last thing you did?
19. What are you wearing?
20. Your TV?
21. Your Pets?
22. Friends?
23. Your life?
24. Your mood?
25. Missing Someone?
26. vehicle?
27. Something your not wearing?
28. Your favorite store?
29. Your favorite color?
30. When was the last time you laughed?
31. Last time you cried?
32. Your best friend?
33. One place that I go to over and over?
34. One person who emails me regularly?
35. Favorite place to eat?

Hugs to you!!!!
~Jennifer :)

visited Ireland in her City Classroom today...

WOW!!!! I am so impressed with Ireland's new school and her amazing teacher this year! WOWSA- makes me want to go back to school or to teaching!!! They are doing a great unit right now where their classroom is a city. Each student had to apply for a job including what qualifications they had, refrences, etc. Then once their career was selected they had to get to work. Ireland applied to be an Entrepreneur and hmm go figure she wanted to do Handmade Cards, pictures and homemade Fudge! She named her store front- Bohnart Creations!!! You could say I was a meany but I told her this was her job and she had to do the work, meaning the cards needed to be made by her! She spent about 3 days making cards and doing individual drawings.

Today I got to go visit her in her City and help the bankers look over their books. I was so impressed! The kids are learning about Check Registers, Deposits, Balancing a Checkbook, purchasing insurance, and so much more. They are having so much FUN that they don't really notice how much they are truly learning and obsorbing! I am loving this and hoping the FISCAL responsibility continues to the homefront! :)

Here are some pictures of her today with her friends at school. It was also Sport's Day so she was sportin her AF Falcon Pride- her Daddy would be so proud! She also wore her Green Bay Packer sweatshirt but their classroom is SUPER warm!



my purchases I made in the City...the Mayor gave the Auditors $5 each to spend!

~Jennifer :)

It feels like Christmas already to me and I am so EXCITED to share it with you....

Stampaganza is BACK!!!!! YIPPEE! Starting November 3, 2009 and lasting until November 30, 2009- You can Buy 2 Stamp Sets and Get ONE FREE!!! This is a great way to stock up on those stamp sets you been wanting to purchase and just think about all the gifts too!!! Do you need to create a wishlist for that special santa in your house??? Just email me and I can get you all set up! Tell your Santa I even gift wrap too!!! :)

I just could not contain my excitement and had to share ASAP! This is also a great time to have a fun night or day with your girlfriends for some FUN Stamp Therapy plus earn even more goodies for free!!! And there is always the ever popular Catalog Party- share the love!!!! My November is filling up FAST so contact me soon to get your Stamping Therapy Session scheduled soon!

I look forward to hearing from you soon! I also would love to see you at the Island Creek Elementary Craft Fair on November 7, 2009. There will be over 60 craft vendors with amazing goodies to sell- great way to get unique and special holiday gifts! And stay tuned....I am planning a FUN Santa's Workshop for Friday December 4, 2009 and/or December 5, 2009!!! I will be announcing all the fun details for this event pretty soon!!!

~Jennifer :)

more exciting Studio J News!!!

I just love my job and I love sharing all the fun and exciting news with you!!!! Each Thursday night consultants receive an informative email from the company on upcoming promotions, incentives and any other exciting news to share. Well tonight was about one of my favorite and exciting things CTMH has created- STUDIO J!!!! To say I am excited to play and create with this new tool is a MAJOR understatement!

I love how much detail, time and effort CTMH takes in every new product they develop and launch. Studio J is no different- it is GOING TO ROCK! So I thought it would be fun to share with you the great news they released to us as you will see how much work they put into a product and how much they reward their consultants too. You could be one too!!! I would love to have you join my team- I love working with my team ( my friends!). Interested???? Check out my website to join or email me at craftingdivas@cox.net with any questions you may have- I would love to help you along your journey!

LAUNCH PHASES AND TIMING Studio J will be launched in four phases—stair-stepping the release gives leaders and business builders earliest opportunities to familiarize themselves with the software, so they can better support their teams and large customer bases. All Consultants will have preview access to take advantage of our great discounted pricing and experience Studio J before customers see the product in the spring. The four phases and groups are as follows: 1. All Leadership 2009 attendees: November 2009 2. All Consultants with an active MyCTMH Tier II site: January 2010 3. All Consultants: February 2010 4. Customer launch: March 2010

PRICING Retail pricing for Studio J layouts is $12.95 US/$15 CAN, with introductory promotions that include free shipping and page protectors. During the preview period, Consultants will be given the chance at an unbelievable deal: layouts discounted to just $9.95/$11.70 each—and fully commissionable. You may order up to 10 discounted preview layouts, either in a single order or in multiple orders. Shipping charges apply, and no free page protectors are available during the preview period. PAPER AND PRODUCTION Leadership attendees were given a sample layout at the event. Since that time, we have upgraded our process and will now provide “100-year” archival quality paper that is used by top professional photographers and uses silver halide processing, the gold standard in photo processing. The paper isn’t specified as either glossy or matte. It’s shinier than a true matte, but it’s flatter than a glossy stock. We’re excited about this upgrade, which will give your layouts great color vibrancy and lasting quality. Colors will be rich yet will vary slightly from “classic” B&T and cardstock papers using the same colors. This is intentional and required for Studio J’s unique processing and papers. We’re excited to share a layout with you—for all those who attended Leadership, you will be receiving a new sample layout that showcases our upgraded paper and new color process. It’s already on its way in the mail to you

Stay TUNED!!! As I am so excited I get to start playing in NOVEMBER and share with you the fabulous layouts I create with just a click on my computer! WOO-HOO!!!!!!!

~Jennifer :)

ps- have you check out the Studio J website yet??? simply go to www.studioj.com- and see what is in-store!

AND DO YOU REMEMBER the GREAT Promotion for this month????.... STUDIO SPLURGE

When you join my Team during the Month of October you will have the opportunity to earn 10 FREE Studio J Layouts for FREE!!!!!!!! so imagine....you can get 10 for FREE and then another 10 at the incredible discount they are offering consultants during the Preview Period! Life is GOOD!

It's a Wrap!

I love making my own wrapping paper and cards. All I need is plain brown wrap, some ink pads and a fun stamp set and then VOILA! I have a beautiful, unique wrapped gift!!! It is fun to have the kids do it too!

Just think with some inks and different stamp sets you will always have the type of wrapping paper you need! Just some imagination and you are only limited by your own creativity!

We have so many stamp sets to choose from and tons of themes...visit my website to start exploring and I am always here to help assist you in any way I can. :)



~Jennifer :)

Club FUN!!!

We had a great time last night! I just love Club days!!!! I had fun making my Club customers fun little thank you "happies" for joining. I also have fun spoiling my club members if they bring someone and that friend joins and if they bring back completed pages or creative fun things they have made. I just love sharing!

Bethany got the Rockstar award last night for using up all the bits and pieces from her Grace Workshop kit. She made 2 extra double layouts that were just beautiful and more cards. I was so amazed with her creativity and use of paper! Way to go Bethany!

I am looking forward to next month and we get to play with Sweet Home...stay tuned for some fun artwork and creations. Would you like to join the fun? You can play near or far! Just email me and I will let you know all the fun details!!!!

~Jennifer :)

oh the things Patrick says!

Don't you just love all the milestones your kids journey through??? We had a big event tonight during bedtime routine- Patrick lost his first tooth! He worked on that wiggly bugger for about 15 minutes and refused for me to help. I was so amazed at his little determined spirit- he was bound and determined it would come out tonight!

So many of his friends started loosing teeth in Kindergarten last year and he just did not understand why his were not wiggly yet! The look of pure joy a few weeks ago when he realized he had his first wiggly tooth was priceless. And as if all this was not sweet enough he brought the whole experience to another level which I will ALWAYS remember!

As he was laying in bed checking his tooth out after he pulled it out he looked up at me and asked "Mommy why does the tooth fair collect teeth? Is that for real?" Oh his face was such a Patrick face- the are you serious she really collects teeth face! I worked so hard at not laughing and had to make up a great story about the Tooth fairy- what a great night to remember!



~Jennifer :)