the.amanda.sewell

Weekend again, time for another adventure.  This week J was talking to me about his homework and actually said "Mom, we need to do more fun stuff so I have more to write about for my homework and in my journal!"  SERIOUSLY!  Crazy kid!  We do something practically every weekend! We started off the day with a green smoothie (and my kids liked it -- wanted more.  Remind me to write the recipe I found here some time!)  Then we got in the van headed toward Tucson.  The ride there seemed really long, so we broke it up when the kiddos seemed bored by taking some pictures with the cool boulder-y mountains and we got off at a tourist trap that said we could see "The Thing."  The babies had fallen asleep so just E, J and their dad went to see the THING.  It cost $2.50 total for all of them and it turns out, the THING was a mummy (see pictures below).    Rest Stop Inside the museum at The Thing A cool bug they say, th...

Continuing my appreciate the teachers during the year rather than just at the end of the year quest (it is helping me to be in the now, for now is the only moment we ever have to truly live). . . for September, I decided to get the teachers hand sanitizer (apple scented) and give them an apple (not in the traditional sense of course, but I think that they will appreciate this apple more!)  Anything to keep the kid germies at bay . . . I googled and found this little poem (I used all but the last line because it sounded too end of the year-ish).  Simple little giftie, but I hope they realize how much they are appreciated!  A bright red shiny apple, a gift of thanks for all you do The seeds of learning taking root, sown with care by you Your daily smiles and guiding hand, Your encouragement and praise Shape our hearts and minds and light so many ways. Insistence in hard work in school and belief in our best, Sets the course for future goals and a life...

Ahh, now there we are, back in the correct season!  Finally!  I used some old Magnolia stamps (I'm not even sure they are available and the names listed below I made up) to create this card!  It features SC224 (Splitcoaststampers).  I did not realize that there was a whole gallery of all the sketches.  It is AMAZING!  Like a sketch goldmine, if you love sketches as much as I do, you have to go check it out.  At the site, use keyword:   " SCSketches " <-- or click that link and it will take you right there!   Hopefully this weekend we are headed to do some apple picking and it will really start to feel like fall here . . . it is hard with the hot desert temperatures.  I also would like to take an adventure up to Sedona to see all the pretty leaves changing colors . . . I love the fall! Stamps:   Fall Leaves Tilda (Magnolia), Autumn Wishes (Magnolia)  Paper:   Edamame (K & Co.), Solar White Classic Cr...

It's completely normal to make a valentine in September right? I just saw this paper at Hobby Lobby and totally loved it and had to make it into something.  I will just put this card away in my stash for later . . . yeah . . .It's probably because I listen to too much cheesy lovey music. I bought the Owl City - The Midsummer Station the other day and the lyrics make me smile *nothing wrong with love* Layout is  SC374 (Splitcoaststampers)  I added the ribbon on the diagonal because I decided to put the sentiment on the inside, and I thought it needed something.  I think it turned out cute! Stamps:  Heart Tilda (Magnolia), Love Notes (Gina K)   Paper :  Grey (Prism), Solar White classic crest (Neenah), Tiny Polka - Pink Tonal (The Paper Studio - Hobby Lobby), Smitten Love (Me & My Big Ideas)   Ink :  Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)   Accessories :  Oval nestabilities (Spellbinders), Scalloped Oval nestabilities (Spell...

So, did you know that a piece of black and white striped paper (similar to her tights) is very hard to find.  When I first colored this image, I thought I would like stripes for the background.  I started off at Hobby Lobby, where they didn't have any stripes (except for in a MAMBI halloween pad for $20, which I was tempted to get but decided to try another store.)  Next I tried Michaels, and NADA! And finally I went to JoAnn's and did not find any that would work there!  Grrr!  So finally, I took a trip to my fave scrapbook store in Mesa (which has gone all fabric loving now *sad face*) and found this awesome paper in the clearance area (*yay*) but still no stripes.   If I ever design a paper line, guaranteed it will have plain black and white stripes in a variety of sizes!  Hehe!  Maybe I just wasn't looking in the right spots . . . Hope you like Alice!  I look forward to printing off some other awesome quotes from that movie to use ...

We decided late this morning to go on an adventure.  We got in the car and headed toward Flagstaff, AZ and on the way there was an accident, so we were slowed on the freeway by a police officer and then by the amount of cars waiting.  I was reading "Where We Belong" by Emily Giffin (which I managed to finish on the way), so I did not really mind.  I also took the opportunity to open the window and snap a couple pictures of the cacti in the desert (the clouds were pretty too).  If you have never been to the desert in AZ, here are a couple of pictures of it's beauty! (These were all taken while driving slow on the way). Finally, we arrived at Meteor Crater !  We paid our admission and headed inside.  We got a couple of postcards, made smooshed pennies and then browsed the museum there until it was time to watch the short film they had.  It was interesting and explained about meteors hitting the earth and how the scientists figured out th...