More Cosmo Cricket Recipe Pages!

Okay, I got the okay to share these layouts! You can refer back to this post if you want more details!

I forgot to mention when I originally posted this that there is a circle cut out in the center of the cover. So the scalloped circle frame, chipboard flower and all that are actually on the first inside page!

I decided to use some sketches from a fantastic site I came across a while back called Scrap A Little. The author of this blog is Helen Croft. She has some super fun sketches as well as fantastic tutorials and lots of inspiration! I hope you take a minute to check out her blog! The following are two more pages to my Cosmo Cricket Family Recipe Album Kit from Creative Cuts & More .




Everything but the buttons is from the kit.


Everything but the ribbon is from the kit.

In case you want the recipes, here they are:

Teriyaki Chicken

3/4 cup Soy Sauce

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

1/4 cup Water

1/2 tsp Minced Garlic

3 TBS Toasted Sesame Seeds

Mix all the ingredients together and marinate chicken overnight. I have used other meats before and they are just as good. I make shishkabobs often in summer using this recipe.

BBQ Beefies

(meatballs)

1 lb Burger

1/4 cup Quick Oats

1 T Parmesan Cheese

1 Egg

2 TBS Catsup

1 TBS Milk

(sauce)

1 8 oz can Tomato Sauce

1/2 cup Pineapple Juice or OJ

1 Clove Garlic, Minced

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

1 tsp Vinegar

Dash of Salt

Mix together Meatball ingredients and form into meatballs. Brown in frying pan. Mix together sauce ingredients and simmer for 5 min. Serve with rice.

So if your short on time to cook, you can always use store bought meat balls which is what I usually do!

New Sites

I came across two new sites I want to share with you.

The first one I came across a while ago. Its called Ideas for Scrapbookers. This site has really cool templates and some really fantastic inspiration. I can't wait to get some time to play with her sketches and try them out. WAY COOL blog! Here is a sneak peek of some of the templates and layouts found on the blog.

Next off is a site I found through my all time FAVE blog, Cosmo Cricket. Its called Blue Light Bride. FABULOUS inspiration there too. It is geared towards weddings, BUT, you could take the ideas and use them lots of other places (events, scrapbooking, photography, etc). Great, great site!

I think this button bouquet is just too cool!

How pretty is this cake?

Isn't this just an adorable photo! I might just have to find a bench and some throw pillows and use a similar pose for my kiddos sometime!

I hope you get a few minutes to check them out!

Cosmo Cricket Recipe Book Cover

I finally finished the front cover to my Cosmo Cricket Cookbook! I had so much fun creating it too! This is from the Creative Cuts & More Treasured Family Recipe Album Kit. I HIGHLY recommend the kit, it is SSSOOO much fun! These would make GREAT Christmas gifts!

Everything shown is form the kit except the scalloped circle frame, Making Memories Tiny Alphas and the rhinestone. I should have gotten a close up. I distressed around the inner patterned paper and also sewed around the edge of it. I thought I was going to share two other pages with you but I forgot that I used a couple sketches for them and created them for a design team call. I haven't heard if I can share the pages now or if I have to wait til the call is over. So check back soon (maybe even tomorrow ;) )!!!!

2S4U Challenge

Creative Cuts & More is this weeks sponsor over at 2 Sketches 4 You blog. I have a super fun 3-d sleigh from CC&M that has been waiting patiently on my table for a couple weeks now! I had an over all idea, but didn't know where to go from there. This sketch was the perfect answer to my problem. I apologize for the horrible pictures, its pretty gloomy here. Here is the sketch:

Here is my take on it:

You can't see it in the picture, but I used crackle glaze on the black part for for a really cook effect/texture.

I came across this saying last year and knew I would use it this year. I make a ton of chex mix and plan to give it away as gifts this year. The say is: Santa 'chex' his list twice to see who's been naughty or nice. So be good for goodness sake!

Thanks for stopping by. Make sure to stop by tomorrow I have some more pages from my Creative Cuts & More Treasured Family Recipe Album Kit using Cosmo Cricket Early Bird. I am having SSSOOO much fun playing with this kit and can't wait to share my newest pages with you all!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I was able to get a couple Christmas presents bought and found Christmas outfits for the kiddos! I grew up with a tradition of having a special new outfit for Christmas every year. I have continued that on with my kiddos (even though I don't get a new outfit every year anymore).

I just adore the Twitterpated line by Imaginisce. Nicole was SO generous in sharing some of her goodies with me. I have finally played with them. My photo taking skills have gone down hill somehow and I can't seem to get good pictures anymore.

I journaled around the edge of the white paper. Peyton asked fairly often and still does if he can hold Madeline. I think it is so sweet that he loves his sister so much he wants to hold her.

I cut out a couple extra clouds and popped them up for some depth. I also sewed a little frame around the picture in the middle.
My mom got a new sewing machine and is letting me borrow her old one. I am just LOVING having it at a arms reach to play with.

Here are a few pictures as a glimpse into what we do at home during the day. A good ole fort! Yep, having our tea party with orange pasta ?? shakes. I can't remember the third ingredient Peyton said he used, but I think the orange past shake sounds delicious don't you?

Oh, and yes, my kids do have pants, they both just happen not to be wearing them haha! Peyton likes to run around in his underwear these days now that he is potty trained. Although we are still working on the poo poo training part. ;)

Cars, cars and more cars! Peyton was so nice in sharing his cars with his sister when this picture was taken.

I will hopefully be sharing a few more pages from my Cosmo Cricket Family Recipe Album this week. I have the cover done and two more pages almost done! I can't tell you how much I am loving this kit from Creative Cuts & More.

My Minds Eye Challenge

My Minds Eye blog is one of many that I follow. They recently posted a sketch challenge. Here is their sketch:
Here is my take on the sketch:

A few weeks ago my cousins came to town. We took the kids to the pool. Maddy and Peyton just LOVE going. I sure wish they had better open swim times. If they did we would be there more often! Here is Maddy with her cousin. Cutie patooties if you ask me!

Peyton was too excited to pose and smile nicely. Maddy just wasn't sure what to think with all the noise and how wound up her brother was.

Chris's mom bought this little water suit for Maddy. Its supposed to help block bad UV rays. I thought it was pretty darn cute!

Creative Cuts & More Holiday Hop

Hello and welcome! I'm participating in Creative Cuts & More Holiday blog hop. You'll want to make sure and start out at the beginning, Die Cut Diva. If for some reason one of the links is broken along the Hop do not worry, HOP back over to Die Cut Diva where the complete list will be.

Now onto my project! I came across this really cool story last year called 'The Meaning of Christmas'. Sorry, I can't find the exact origin of it. I found it on a scrappy friends blog. I knew instantly I wanted to make a mini album of it to read with my kids every year. I have the story all typed out at the very end of this post. It will take a few minutes to read, but is well worth your time!

This is the Black Chipboard Tag Mini Album from Creative Cuts and More. I just adore this shape for a mini album. The albums from CC&M come with no binding. This is fantastic as you can customize your album. It is easy to take off or add a couple pages and you can choose whether you want rings or the Bind-it-All as the binding. Other CC&M die cuts I used are the Antique Label on the cover, a photo corner, snowflakes and a felt candy cane! The rhinestones on the snowflakes are also from CC&M.

As a continuing part of the celebration CC&M will be giving away a FUN Christmas Card Kit! After you have finished the blog hop, return to Die Cut Diva. There you will find instructions on 5 different ways to win! You have until the 15th to leace a comment! Also, CC&M will be having a great sale. For the next six days, we will offer 15% off the entire store. But act quickly, it is only active until 11/15 Make sure you enter this code ccholidaybloghop1109 during checkout.

Now hop on over to Chris's Blog.

Now for the story "The True Meaning of Christmas"

Late one Christmas Eve, I sank back, tired but content, into my easy chair. The kids were in bed, the gifts were wrapped, the milk and cookies waited by the fireplace for Santa. As I sat back admiring the tree with its decorations, I couldn't help feeling that something important was missing. It wasn't long before the tiny twinkling tree lights lulled me to sleep.I don't know how long I slept, but all of a sudden I knew that I wasn't alone. I opened my eyes, and you can imagine my surprise when I saw Santa Claus himself standing next to my Christmas tree. He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot just as the poem described him, but he was not the "jolly old elf" of Christmas legend. The man who stood before me looked sad and disappointed, and there were tears in his eyes.

"Santa, what's wrong?" I asked, "Why are you crying?""It's the children," Santa replied sadly."But Santa, the children love you," I said."Oh, I know they love me, and they love the gifts I bring them," Santa said, "but the children of today seem to have somehow missed out on the true spirit of Christmas. It's not their fault. It's just that the adults, many of them not having been taught themselves, have forgotten to teach the children." "Teach them what?" I asked.Santa's kind old face became soft, more gentle. His eyes began to shine with something more than tears. He spoke softly. "Teach the children the true meaning of Christmas. Teach them that the part of Christmas we can see, hear, and touch is much more than meets the eye. Teach them the symbolism behind the customs and traditions of Christmas which we now observe. Teach them what it is they truly represent."

Santa reached into his bag and pulled out a tiny Christmas tree and set it on my mantle. "Teach them about the Christmas tree. Green is the second color of Christmas. The stately evergreen, with its unchanging color, represents the hope of eternal life in Jesus. Its needles point heavenward as a reminder that mankind's thoughts should turn heavenward as well."

Santa reached into his bag again and pulled out a shiny star and placed it at the top of the small tree. "The star was the heavenly sign of promise. God promised a Savior for the world and the star was the sign of the fulfillment of that promise on the night that Jesus Christ was born. Teach the children that God always fulfills His promises, and that wise men still seek Him."

"Red," said Santa, "is the first color of Christmas." "He pulled forth a red ornament for the tiny tree. Red is deep, intense, vivid. It is the color of the life-giving blood that flows through our veins. It is the symbol of God's greatest gift. Teach the children that Christ gave his life and shed his blood for them that they might have eternal life. When they see the color red, it should remind them of that most wonderful gift."

Santa found a silver bell in his pack and placed it on the tree. "Just as lost sheep are guided to safety by the sound of the bell, it continues to ring today for all to be guided to the fold.Teach the children to follow the true Shepherd, who gave His life for the sheep."

Santa placed a candle on the mantle and lit it. The soft glow from its one tiny flame brightened the room. "The glow of the candle represents how people can show their thanks for the gift of God's son that Christmas Eve long ago. Teach the children to follow in Christ's foot steps...to go about doing good. Teach them to let their light so shine before people that all may see it and glorify God. This is what is symbolized when the twinkle lights shine on the tree like hundreds of bright, shining candles, each of them representing one of God's precious children, their light shining for all to see."

Again Santa reached into his bag and this time he brought forth a tiny red and white striped cane. As he hung it on the tree he spoke softly. "The candy cane is a stick of hard white candy.White to symbolize the virgin birth and sinless nature of Jesus, and hard to symbolize the Solid Rock the foundation of the church, and the firmness of God's promises. The candy cane is in the form of a "J" to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth. It also represents the Good Shepherd's crook, which He uses to reach down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray. The original candy cane had three small red stripes, which are the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed, and a large red stripe that represents the shed blood of Jesus, so that we can have the promise of eternal life."Teach these things to the children."

Santa brought out a beautiful wreath made of fresh, fragrant greenery tied with a bright red bow. "The bow reminds us of the bond of perfection, which is love. The wreath embodies all the good things about Christmas for those with eyes to see and hearts to understand. It contains the colors of red and green and the heaven-turned needles of the evergreen. The bow tells the story of good will towards all and its color reminds us of Christ's sacrifice. Even its very shape is symbolic, representing eternity and the eternal nature of Christ's love. It is a circle, without beginning and without end. These are the things you must teach the children."

I asked, "But where does that leave you, Santa?"The tears gone now from his eyes, a smile broke over Santa's face. "Why you, my dear," he laughed, "I'm only a symbol myself. I represent the spirit of family and the joy of giving and receiving. If the children are taught these other things, there is no danger that I'll ever be forgotten.""I think I'm beginning to understand.""That's why I came," said Santa. "You're an adult. If you don't teach the children these things, then who will?" ---Author Unknown