Have a SWEET Saturday!

I don't know about you, but I think today is a perfect day for cupcakes... or just cake of any kind :D The kids are already fighting, my hubby and dad are working on my broken car, and I need to clean house :) *breathes in deep* Yup, smells like Saturday. The one day you wait for all week.... that something ALWAYS happens on :D lol!!!
I colored this image the week before Christmas, I just have not had time to put this beauty on a card ... until now! :) This is one of the new images Tracey has baked up for us and is available at The Stamping Boutique. Isn't it just TOOO SWEET?!?! I fell instantly in love.

I also want to share a little peek of our new images soon to be available at Fresh Brewed Designs!


This is a PEEK of one of the images you will see if you join our hop on Jan 19! We also have a surprise or two to announce that day... so I hope you will save the date and join in! Remember, if you snag the badge at the top of my blog, add it to your sidebar, hyperlink it back to here ( http://joemamainks.blogspot.com/ ) and email me with the link ~ I will send you the Latte Love cup featured on the badge for free!

Another reminder: The Fresh Brewed Friday challenge is up and running! Want your chance at winning some Fresh Brewed Rubber? Come check it outat Paper Craft Planet and The Latte Lounge!

Digi Day with Fresh Brewed Designs and The Stamping Boutique

We had such a blast over at TSB PCP Digi Day today! Lots of Freebies, Fun, Chatting, Challenges and time spent with great friends. You may have missed that part... but the fun is not over!!! you still have a chance to win prizes!!!

You can find the challenges at the Stamping Boutique Paper Craft Planet Discussion board. You can find all the challenges HERE and they are all titled Christmas Sweets DD # 1-4

Fresh Brewed Designs is sponsoring two challenges:

Paper Piecing: for this card I used Angel Cake Bakes

Flutterby Wed_ open challenge

Tags: I created this tag with Cookies and Cocoa
Cute Card Thursday - Blues

this tag with Gingerbread Boy
Stamp Scrap Doodle - Christmas Color Combo

The Stamping Boutique is sponsoring two challenges as well

Anything but a card

and a recipe (sorry, I dont have a card for that)

They did ask us to come with a recipe in hand... so here is what I brought to the party:

Stamp Scrap Doodle - Christmas Color Combo

Whew that is a long post!!! sorry!!! but I hope you enjoyed stopping by!

Just a reminder: The current FBChallenge is still going on! It is a RED WHITE AND PINK challenge. We also have our PCP Fresh Brewed Friday challenge up: Bling it on!!! Hope you get the chance to check them out as well

Have a blessed night.

Jesus is the Reason for the Season

Welcome to the Jesus is the Reason Blog Hop!!!
We are delighted to have you with us as we celebrate the Good News of our Savior's birth! We are a small band of blogging crafters who love God, and in the midst of all the seasonal festivies, we wanted to take some time to focus on the real meaning of Christmas: the birth of Jesus Christ.


image by Fresh Brewed Designs

Christmas trees, bows, SANTA, snow, reindeer, cocoa, shopping, woes, laughter, family, memories that grow, children, elves, parties, candles all a glow.
I know we can all name the reindeer that pull Santa's sleigh, know what treats make his day. We can look for elves to sneak on our shelves and watch us as we play. Naughty or nice? Elephants for Christmas. Mistletoe hanging for you to sneak a kiss from your sweetheart. The smells of moms special pie baking in the oven. Cinnamon and pine trees. Ornaments hanging on the tree that capture and reflect the light and twinkle enough to make you escape away into the fantasy of all the wonderful things Christmas brings.

All of these things are a part of my Christmas. We love to laugh, share, spend time together, buy presents for one another.. and every year it seems the world gets busier and busier and busier and Christmas becomes less and less important. We do not take the time to spend with our family, we do not take the time to think of those less fortunate than we are. We do not take the time to sit on the couch and read books and share stories with our children. Why? Oh it is a very simple answer. We have taken our focus away from the REASON. The reason of Christmas is Jesus Christ. ALL of the things I listed are wonderful things. I am not trying to take the FUN out of Christmas. These things I listed are things MY FAMILY does. But the key, the key to it all, is that we focus FIRST on this: One day a mother, Mary, gave birth to a very special baby boy. That boy, God's son, Jesus, was given to us as the most perfect gift. I know as Mary held her little baby boy, she did not think of all he would have to do, endure, or face. She just loved him. And continued to love him and know that God had a plan for him. A mighty and great plan that is above all I can imagine. He loves us so much.

image by Fresh Brewed Designs(card in dark with a tea light candle behind it)

I want to add a special thank you to a few ladies. First to the lovely Catherine for setting this up and letting me be involved. She is such an inspiration and a wonderful friend.

Next I want to thank a few of our wonderful sponsors for their generosity.

Simply Betty Stamps
The Stamping Boutique

I am also honored to be able to sponsor this hop with my shop:
Fresh Brewed Designs

There will be a few secret hop stops (and we are not telling who they are) that will be hosting these lovely prizes being offered.

Also, Catherine is hosting a challenge on her blog. The challenge is for those of you who want to join in on spreading the love of Christ through the blog world with us. All you have to do is create a Jesus is the Reason themed card, post it to your blog and link it to Catherine's page during the duration of the blog hop. Those that participate will have the chance to win a little bit of blog candy!!

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you will be blessed during this hop and will feel the love of Christ through every post you hop to. Let us not forget this season that Jesus is the reason for it all!

Here is the hop order in case you need it along the way. Your next stop is
KADIE

Heather http://joemamainks.blogspot.com/ (me)

Kadie http://mymindseyecreations.blogspot.com/

Karen http://krbskorner.blogspot.com/

Kelly http://sandcastlestamper.blogspot.com/

Lori http://mycomfortcottage.blogspot.com/

Lorie http://thethinkinspot.blogspot.com/

Maria http://joyfulstamper.blogspot.com/

Paola http://paola-sama.blogspot.com/

Sammi http://stuffbysammi.blogspot.com/

Stacy http://impressionsofaribbonaddict.blogspot.com/

Susan http://pinkflannelpajamas.blogspot.com/

Catherine http://paperaddictcatherine.blogspot.com

Hi :)

This post is sooo super fast, if you blink you may just miss it!
These cards were created for The Stamping Boutiques Digi Day that was this past weekend. I am just getting around to posting my cards I made for the challenge / fun they had going on. I love Tracey and her images. They are all just too too cute for words. You can find these and a whole lot more at her store The Stamping Boutique.

You are so sweet!

I created this fun little birthday card using The Stamping Boutiques image called Little Girl with Balloon. I fell in love with her when I saw her. Isn't she just adorable? I used American Craft paper, prismacolor markers and stickles for this card. Also, I used last weeks ICS sketch. Time escaped me and I ran out of time to enter their challenge.

Other Challenges:
The Stamping Boutique
Stamp Something: pic inspiration (bday)
Papertake Weekly: blue
The Pink Elephant: Summer

U R Cool

I made this card using the super cute / cool KK image from The Stamping Boutique! (in which you have a chance to win by playing along at my Freshly Brewed Challenges Month Long Challenge!) I really think she is so cute! I love her little outfit and piggy tails. The Creative Belli blog must be tired of me already this week, I know... but I have had so much fun adding paint to my projects this past week. When I saw the Eat Sleep Stamp sketch for the week I just KNEW what I was going to do! For this image I printed two, masked and painted a stripe of silver down the side of her. I then outlined the painted area with a black marker.

All the papers I used to create this card are RAKed. I am trying to do all I can to use from my stash. (so hard!!!) I have so much paper though ... I have told my self I can't buy more. :D

I hope you all have a Mocha Latte kind of Monday! :D

Challenges:
Eat Sleep Stamp
Creative Belli: paint
The Stamping Boutique
Our Creative Corner: It’s Embossable (silver heat embossed sent)
Fab n Funky

Fairy Sweet

Here are a few cards I created using some of the Fairy Cynthia images by The Stamping Boutique. Aren't they just the cutest!!
I am entering these into the Stamping Boutique month long challenge. Also, did you now that Stamping Boutique has a fun group over at Crafters Digital Art Center AND the Latte Lounge. Links to both are on my sidebar.

Other challenges: Diva Coffee Break

Other Challenges: Our Creative Corner Sketch, Crazy 4 Challenges: colors pink purple and green
Stamp Something: Summer theme