Some More Creations

OK, I had promised all of you the pictures of my creations over the past month. I am home today with my 5 yr old son who has pink eye in both eyes. I LOVE LIFE!!!!

Anyway, had time to take pics, upload them, crop them, etc. So, hope you like.

First, I created these tags as the start for my tags to go on daily packages in a shoe box swap that I am involved in on cricut.com. I have been studying Tim Holtz lately and really trying out his different techniques. So, that is where the creativity came for these...it is all thanks to Tim. Hey, you definitely need to check out his web. He has an amazing blog and a lot of demo's on his site. www.timholtz.com












Second, in this swap that I mentioned we were given the job of making a tri-fold card for our partners. I found this great tutorial at splitcoast stampers and made the attached card. I am not a busy person when it comes to cards, etc. I really like it simple with some character. So, I hope you like what I created.



















Thirdly, as I mentioned yesterday, Monday was my daughter's 21st birthday. I wanted to make her something that she will treasure for the rest of her life as I know she is getting close to moving out from my nest. So, I wanted to find a poem that expressed how I felt about her and create a shadow box to put this in and had some different ideas to begin with. However, I am pretty happy with how it turned out.



















Lastly, I also mentioned I had a better picture of my king cake...I have attached that too.














OH...and I couldn't help but to show you, what my daughter thought was the greatest gift ever that she gave me this weekend.....I hope you laugh as much as I did...

Happy 21st Tiffany

My daughter turned 21 yesterday.

Originally, she wanted to have 3 friends over and have an evening of making sushi at home while listening to Japanese music and then to watch horror movies on the big screen TV. Her friends bailed!

So, instead, I got some family friends over and we went to eat hibachi at a great Japanese rest. nearby.

Now to explain the king cake! I have mentioned to you before that we used to live in New Orleans. Well, Tiffany considers New Orleans home to her as I do as well. Ever since moving she has asked that I make her a king cake for her birthday. Well, this year she didn't ask and I made it for her as a surprise. Everyone at the rest. was intrigued to hear the history of the king cake so I thought I would share it with you this morning.

http://www.mardigrasdigest.com/html/history_of/history_of_the_king_cake.htm

Summary

The history of the king cake starts in 12th century France where the cake would be baked on the eve of January 6th to celebrate the visit of the 3 wise men to the Christ Child. A small token would be placed inside as a surprise.

However, I'm sure you know that there are rituals that included the cake even further back then that. Apparently, back in Western Europe during the pre-Christian religions, it was believed that there needed to be a sacrifice for the harvest to be a good one. Therefore, to choose who would be the sacrifice they would bake a cake and put a bean in the cake. Whomever, selected the piece with the bean would be the sacrifice. He would be treated like a king for a year and then sacrificed and his blood put back into the soil making the harvest bountiful.

Then when Christianity came into play, they put their own spin on it as to not have any sacrifices, they chose to have it symbolize the 3 wise men coming to visit the Christ child. The French brought this tradition with them when they migrated to Louisiana and there it remained as part of the ceremony for the Epiphany.

When the cake was incorporated into Mardi Gras it was used by the 12th night revelers to select who their queen of the ball would be. They still do this to this day, however, now they use a wooden replica of the cake. The women pull out drawers and if you have a silver bean you are in the court and a gold bean means you are the queen of the ball.

However, for us peasants.....we have parties every weekend starting January 6th until Mardi Gras. Whoever gets the baby in the king cake at one party has to have the next party and supplies the king cake for that party.

These cakes are simply a cinnamon roll made into a log formed into a circle or sometimes braided. The fillings can be quite extravagant as well. My family prefers the cream cheese. Others can be cinnamon, apple, strawberry, blueberry, raspberry...you name it!

So, hope you all enjoyed that and have enjoyed sharing in my daughter's 21st birthday.

Happy New Year!!!!

A little late is still better than never, right?!?

OH well, hope all of you had a great New Year's celebration. This New Year's was full of New Year's Past for me. I really miss the times as kids when we would have New Years Eve at my Aunt and Uncle's home with all my cousins, brothers & sisters-in-laws, etc. there. We would eat all night, watching tv. Of course, all the kids watched Dick Clark's Rockin Eve and all the adults wanted to watch the Guy Lombardo TV show and sing Old Lang Syne. Then, of course, we had to change the channel and watch the ball drop. As soon as it would drop, we all had to kiss each other...even the old great uncles, and then go outside to make noise. Did you do that? I would love to hear how all of you brought in the New Years in years past.

This year, I wasn't even awake for the New Year's coming. I went to a friend's house, got tired and came home early. I'm such a poop-head now that I'm older!

Anyway, what was everyone's New Year's resolution? I decided to try to get, and keep, my life organized this year. However, I am still on this losing weight thing. So, we started "The Biggest Loser" in my office to coincide with the TV show. So, wish me well on my continued journey to lose 150 pounds.

This year is going to be a very good and productive year for me. I have decided to go full force ahead with my Etsy business. Of course, I just finished creating my look of my site..check it out www.watson901.etsy.com Let me know what you think of that too! Now, I need to start uploading pictures of items that I sell. So, that will take some time I think as everything I do is custom work.

Also, this year will be 25 years that I am out of high school, so hopefully there will be a high school reunion for me this year. However, if not, my husband is having his 30'th in September. So, I am so excited...we are off to visit Williamson, WV in September. What is exciting about that is that I am actually going to visit with and scrap with a fellow blogger, WENDY!!!! We are actually staying at her bed & breakfast while there and Wendy and I will be doing some scrapping. YAY!!!! I guess I should be excited about seeing all my husband's family as well, I am too...but I love to scrapbook and don't get to do it with others very often.

Also, I am going to apply to go to Ranger University, pray I get in there too! If I get in there, I can pass on my secrets that I learn about Tim Holtz's products to all of you. Speaking of Tim Holtz, I made my first tag the other night. I have to say, I loved it!!! OH, his work is so me....nothing to be exact about at all. I will post a pic of that as well.

I made my first Tri-fold card the other night. I will post a pic this weekend, if not before, and I will find the link that I followed for the tutorial and post that too. I love the end result, but I wasn't real good at all the measuring, etc. I think I am more a non-exact scrapbooker, card maker, etc. If there is such a thing!

Wow, didn't realize I have been doing so much without posting pics. I will definitely get better about this blogging thing, I promise!

Till next time....