October SOTM Blog Hop

Welcome to the October Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!!!

If you came here from Susan's blog, you're on the right track. Check out what I have to share, then scroll down for the link to the next blog. I hope you get inspired and find lots of ways to use this months stamp of the month. Need a consultant? Stop by my website to get all the info on how to add this set to your collection.

I kept things sweet and simple this month. Christmas can be hectic so I like to show some quick and easy ways to add a little something to the gifts you share with friends, family and coworkers.

Here's a little bag topper. I filled the bag with cookies, but you can fill it up with candy, cocoa, cookies, little gifts...


Now hop on over to Shannon's Blog to see what she came up with!

This month we broke our big blog hop group up into smaller groups to make it more manageable. There are 20 talented ladies in my group....but if you need more ideas than we can share, stop by Jena's blog to and scroll down to see links to the other two groups. Enjoy!

A View from my walk....

It was an interesting day in San Diego today. Don't freak out, but... I saw a few raindrops on my windshield!! Really! And then... I saw a rainbow as I pulled into our park. And as if that wasn't enough, about 15 minutes later I saw this gorgeous sunset. An hour later I saw lightning!!!! Amazing.

The best part is that I think Fall just might be coming to San Diego. Hallelujah! I love fall! I celebrated today by bringing candy corn and peanuts to work. Candy corn and Peanuts? Yeah, people here think I'm crazy too...until they try it.... You can thank my old boss for this little addiction. I thought it was weird when he first showed me. Now, it's a fall tradition.

Biking, Stamping, Dog Walking..oh and Working

Biking, stamping, dog walking and working...that pretty much sums up my days lately. It's a good thing I love that little dog of mine, because I figure I spend at least an hour a day exploring the neighborhood with her. I pretty much know which houses have dogs, where the local cats hang out and which cats like dogs....and which cats don't.

After a bit of a struggle getting back into a nice schedule, I've fallen in love with cycling again. Last year was all about riding farther and faster and better. It was about getting the right equipment and the constant struggle to keep up with my friends. This year? I kind of floundered for a while after my little bike gang went through some growing pains. One dropped us like a hot potato (guess we aren't good enough to ride with her anymore....) The other is struggling through some health issues. Which left me.

It's a little harder to motivate yourself to ride when you're not meeting someone else or trying to keep up with someone else. It is so easy to say it's too hot. I'm too tired. I have too much to do. Hubby is home this week. I need to walk the dog and I don't have enough energy to do both.

I used all of those excuses so much that I felt like I was right back at square one. How can I possibly ride the whole way home? It's soooo far... I cheated a few times by meeting Josh at the 6 mile mark. I kind of liked that commute. It was easy! For me commuting has always been this BIG thing. Something I had to conquer. But that 6 mile commute? Piece of cake! It was fun.

Finally I decided I needed to suck it up and stop cheating. The first day I was sore. Second day? Not so much. Now? I'm loving it. I go at a nice easy pace. I'm not trying to get faster or better. I'm just riding home and enjoying myself. There is no competition. I don't feel bad because I'm so much slower than everyone else. I just ride... and guess what?

I am getting faster anyway!

Day Two of Spook Fest....

I am still.....having camera issues. As in, my camera is broken so I have to borrow Joshua's. He let's me borrow it, but I don't have instant access to it at all times, so today I resorted to using my camera phone.

I had sooo much fun making this and it went together in minutes! This started out as a simple wood piece (2 3/4 x 7 1/8). I just glued my paper directly to the wood. Easy, Peasy!! So easy...that I'm already dreaming up a Thanksgiving and Christmas one! The best part? The kit for this is only $2. How cool is that? Leave a comment or email me if you want one!

Close To My Heart Supplies:
Enchanted Paper Pack
Spooky Smiles
Autumn Terracotta Ink
Black Ink
Chocolate Ink
Sponged with Pansy Purple Ink

Feelin.....spooky......

The adorable spooky tree in the Close To My Heart catalog got me all inspired to start creating fun Halloween goodies. Then of course I had to buy Maisy a Halloween costume. Maybe I'll give you a sneak peek on the last day of our little spook fest here....

So stay tuned for a few days of some spooktacular ideas!!!

Here's our first little goodie.

I was inspired by a post on the Close To My Heart consultant bulletin board. As soon as I saw the spooky eyes inside, I knew that I had to use our new Merry Monsters set (B1333). This was the free make and take that we did at my last workshop.