Close To My Heart Card Workshop - 2/25/09

I am hosting a Close To My Heart Card Workshop next Wednesday, February 25 from 6 to 9. Here are the cards we will be making. I have 3 open slots left if you are interested. If miles seperate us, e-mail me at kirwankm@hotmail.com to see how you too can make these cards.

Presidents' Day!!

Presidents' Day, originally known as Washington's Birthday, falls on the third Monday of February. This year Presidents' Day falls on February 16, 2009.

So this morning while in the car on our way to Preschool, I had a great conversation with Nathan.
I said, "Nathan today is Presidents' Day."
He said, "It's Presidents' Day Mommy??"
I said, "Yup!!"
He said, "Mommy am I going to get a lot of presents today?" HA HA HA!!!

My California Retreat Layouts

As you may have read in some earlier blog posts. I went to a California Beach House Retreat the end of January. I ended up with Bronchitis and an Ear Infection and had to go to Urgent Care so I didn't get nearly as much done as I wanted to. Here are the LO's I was able to complete.

Crafty Mama's Having A Sale

Crafty Mama Kelci from Crafy Mama's Creations is having a sale...go check her out HERE!!

Special Coupon

30% off any one item in my shop effective now through Tuesday, February 10th. Just make your purchase through Etsy, pay via Paypal, and enter coupon code "FEBLOVE" in the notes to seller field. I'll refund you the coupon savings asap.

***Please note that I will be out of town enjoying Disneyland with my family Saturday-Tuesday. I'll resume shipping, issuing coupon refunds, and get back to sewing on Wednesday.Have a great weekend!

CTMH Card Workshop - 2/25/09

CARD WORKSHOP

Are you suffering from cabin fever?
Looking to get out of the house, get some dinner, meet some new crafty

friends and make 8 fun cards?

Please join me on Wednesday, February 25 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
in the Party Room at Noodles & Company

(3600 University Ave and Midvale Blvd in Madison).

Meet at 6:00 PM for a quick dinner and meet some new crafty friends!!
We will begin the actual Card Workshop at 6:30 PM.
Create 8 fun cards for only $15!!

Feel free to bring as many friends as you like!

Please RSVP to make sure I have enough supplies on-hand.
One lucky attendee will win a great prize!!

You won't want to miss out on all the fun!!

CTMH Home Gathering - 2/21/09

HOME GATHERING #2

If you missed out on my 1st Home Gathering last weekend, you are in luck

as I will be hosting a 2nd one Saturday, February 21 from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM!!

We had a great time playing Bingo, earning FREE stamps and

making a super cute make-and-take card!!

You don't want to miss out again!!

Please RSVP so I make sure to have enough supplies on-hand.

Bring a friend...heck bring a bunch of friends!! The More The Merrier!!

CTMH's February Stamp of the Month!!

Easter Eggs - February Stamp of the Month

An amazing collection of designer eggs, complete with an adorable Easter verse.

It's "eggsactly" what you need for a "hopping" happy holiday!

D1340 February: Easter Eggs(Set of 20)

$22.95 US/ $28.50 CAN

Recommended Block Size: 2" × 2" (Y1003)

With a minimum qualifying purchase, get your Stamp of the Month at a great discount or FREE!

You spend: $25.00 You save: 25% off Your price: $17.21

You spend: $50.00 You save: 50% off Your price: $11.48

You spend $75.00 You save: 75% off Your price: $5.74

You spend $100.00 You save: 100% off Your price: FREE!

FREE Stamps in February From CTMH!!

Happy 25th Birthday CTMH!!

Featured Promotion

This month we're celebrating 25 years as a leader in the scrapbooking and stamping industry, but you get the gift!! This adorable celebration themed stamp set is yours FREE with your qualifying purchase! Valued at $13.95, this super versatile set features the hottest thing in celebrations - a Cupcake! With sentiments like "celebrate," "party" and "hip hip hooray" this set is perfect for all of your cards and scrapbook pages celebrating the good times in life.

When you purchase $25 in stamps
(Customized Name and Stamp of the Month excluded), you'll receive a custom-designed
B-size My Acrylix® Good Times stamp set (retail value $13.95), for FREE!
Plus, you'll have earned 25% off of our beautiful Stamp Of The Month, "Easter Eggs."

To get your FREE stamp set, you can shop online at http://www.keeleyskreations.myctmh.com/
or if you'd like to save a few dollars on shipping, contact me and I will process your order for you.
PLUS, to make this offer even sweeter, if you hold a qualifying Idea Book Party or Home Gathering, I will give you a FREE Exclusive Ink Pad of your choice!!!!

You can earn TONS of FREE product!!
Contact me today to plan your event. Your friends will thank you for it!

Nathan's 3 Year Well-Check - 2/3/09

Woohoo...I am all caught up I think...hehehe.

Nathan had his 3 year well-check appointment. He measured 38 1/4 inches which was the 75th percentile and weighed in at 34 lbs which was also the 75th percentile. They no longer take the head circumference measurement, but if I had to venture a guess I would say it's still pretty big...hahaha!! It's all those brains people!! They do start to take their blood pressure though at age 3. That was a little scary to him at first, but then daddy put it in words that Nathan understood. He told Nathan that it is like having his water wings on in the pool. It would fill up with air and then she would release it and it would kind of tickle. Nathan totally calmed down after that and even giggled as she did it. Way to go Daddy!! His blood pressure was 86/48 which she said was normal for little kids. He got a clean bill of health so we don't have to hopefully go back until his 4 year well-check...knock on wood he stays healthy until then. Oh yeah...no shots this time around so Nathan was ecstatic!!

3rd Ear Infection in the Kirwan House - 2/2/09

Sean woke up that morning with his right ear being plugged and in a great deal of pain. So he too went to the doctor and was diagnosed with an ear infection...that makes Nathan, Me and Sean. They say ear infections aren't contagious but man...Sean and I haven't had one since we were little kids...what the heck?!?! So he is now on antibiotics!! I sure can't wait until we are all germ free!!

Nathan's Preschool Parent Teacher Conference - 2/2/09

Nathan's Preschool was closed on Monday 2/2 due to Parent Teacher Conferences being held. I wasn't worried about him as I knew he had been doing great there. We know his teacher really well (Miss Rebecca). She was actually at the Super Bowl party on Sunday, and Nathan enjoyed getting to spend some one-on-one time with her!!

Here are the comments she had written for him:

Health and Physical Development: (Gross & Fine Motor)
*Takes care of own sleeping, eating and toileting needs (working on dressing for outside)
*Moves with purpose and coordination - uses the lily pads on the climber with little assistance
*Fine motor control - traces objects

Social and Emotional Development:
*Very well mannered - always saying please and thank you
*Waits for his turn
*Open to playing with anyone
*Displays pride in self - "I'm a strong boy!"

Language Development & Communication:
*Recognizes some letters (criss-crossed crayons to make an X)
*Listens to stories
*Can hold a multiple turn-taking conversation
*Communicates needs and wants with words

Approaches to Learning:
*Open to new experiences
*Works on skills (pulling up pants, pouring milk, using water fountain) with assistance until he feels confident to do them solo
*Shows persistence and focus with extended play
*Creative expression with dancing and singing

Cognition and General Knowledge:
*Can follow simple rules and games like Candyland (knows colors, one vs. two, follows the track)
*Can count to 12 (working on one to one correspondence)
*Can sort objects by one attribute

Strengths:
*Follows rules (makes his own choices and isn't a follower)
*Social manners
*Communication

Current Skills we are working on:
*Letter and number recognition

Super Bowl Sunday - 2/1/09

So somehow I got my posts out of chronological order...oh well!!

We packed up the kiddos and headed over to our friend's Brenda and Craig's house for their annual Super Bowl Party. It was a great time of playing euchre, making bets, eating chilli and watching the game!! I was hoping that the Cardinals would beat the Stealers, and they almost pulled it off. It was a lot closer than I anticipated it being so that made it fun to watch!!

California Beach Retreat - 1/23 - 1/27/09

We wake up in the morning and both of my ears had popped back open while I slept...yay...I could hear!! My friend, Jen, picked me up from Heather's and I rode to the retreat with her while Shana and Heather rode together. We drove 2 1/2 hours from Fresno to Pismo Beach. It was a fun ride. I had a blast chatting with Jen, Kelci and Shanna (my online friends whom I finally got to meet in person). We started scrapping and eventually Shana and Heather rolled in along with Kat, Kristi, Andrea and Eva. I had a great time, and then my right ear started to throb and pain started to take over. I grabbed some Extra Strength Tylenol right away and decided to hit the hay. It didn't work...I tossed and turned and couldn't sleep due to my darn ear. I went out to the scrapping area and decided since I couldn't sleep I might as well get some scrappin' done. NOPE!! It hurt so bad that I couldn't concentrate. I laid down on the couch out there and finally fell asleep for about an hour and a half.

Thankfully Kelci offered to take me to the Urgent Care which opened at 9:00 AM. We were the second ones in line. I explained to the doctor what had happened, and he asked if I smoked because most of my voice was gone. I said no, and then he wanted to know if I had asthma. Again the answer was no. He said I was wheezing quite a bit, and that I had Bronchitis...how lovely!! He prescribed some meds for it, and then was going to let me be. I asked if those meds would take care of the horrendeous ear pain I was having. He said no, and then prescribed some Vicatin. Kelci took me to the Pharmacy, and we headed back to the house. I ate a muffin, took the Vicadin and drugs for the Bronchitis and went to lay down. The pain was just as intense after 45 minutes so I called the Pharmacy. He told me the Vicadin should have kicked in within 15 to 30 minutes. He said to give it another 15 minutes (making it an hour) and to call back if it hadn't stopped. It didn't so I called back. He then told me to take a couple IBproferin, and if that didn't work to call the doctor. Well about 10 minutes later I felt perfectly fine!! I was back to my old self and went on a scrapping crusade...hehehe.

For the rest of the trip I felt better as long as I took some drugs. I was a little worried for my return flights home, but the ear pain had stopped, and my right ear was just plugged. I took some Vicadin before we took off on Tuesday, January 27th nd all was well. We left Fresno and landed in Denver, CO and then straight home to Milwaukee, WI from there.

On Wednesday when I was home it still was plugged so I went to see my own doctor. He said it looked as if my ear drum may have ruptured as there was a little blood on the ear drum itself and that there was still some pressure in my head causing my ear to be plugged. There wasn't anything they could do. He said it will pop open on its own. Well it is now over a week later and it is still plugged. I might have to go back in and have it checked out...ugh!!

But despite all that...I had a blast and definitely want to go back and do it again next year...Minus the cold and ear problems!! LOL!!

My First CTMH Home Gathering - 1/31/09

So I had my very first Close To My Heart Home Gathering on Saturday, January 31st. I had a great time doing it. There were six ladies in attendance, and I think they enjoyed themselves. We played a few games, they won some fun stamps, and we made a super cute make-and-take card. Speaking of making things...I need to take pictures of the layouts I did in California...gotta make a mental note not to forget...hehehe. I had also gotten four outside orders so I definitely made my quarterly minimums!! WOOHOO!! THANKS LADIES!!

Trip to Green Bay - 1/23 thru 1/25/09

The kids and Sean took Shana and I to the airport on Thursday 1/22 for our beach house scrapbook retreat in California (a couple pictures are posted in a previous blog post). Then on Friday after work they drove to Green Bay to spend the weekend with Auntie Brandy, Uncle Matt, Gabe and Grandma Barb. They had a lot of fun and visited Chucky Cheese and Hooters...hehehe.

Nathan's 1st Ear Infection - 1/20/09

Ok so here is my attempt to catch up on my family...I should really be in bed sleeping but it would drive me nuts to know these things happened, and I hadn't shared them with my friends and family!! Nathan woke up from his afternoon nap and was sitting at the counter eating a snack when I happened to walk by and noticed his ear looked funny. I took a closer look and totally freaked out. He had some thick dark brownish/blackish goop coming out of his left ear. The right one wasn't so bad. I immediately called the doctor's office and got him an appointment. Sure enough he had an ear infection...a double one but the left ear wasn't nearly as bad. We had to put drops in it to help fight the infection from the outside, and he had to take an antibiotic to help fight it internally. I felt so bad as he never complained about his ear hurting so I had no idea!! He did great with the drops and LOVES medicine!! All is better now...thank goodness!!

On our way to the California Scrapbook Retreat - 1/22/09

So I didn't post much about Shana and my adventure to California because so many things happened, but I want to get it out there as it was a super fun time despite some setbacks...hehehe.

Thursday, January 22nd:
We left Shana's house for the airport a little after 10:00 AM. We get to the Milwaukee Airport at 11:45 AM for our 1:50 PM flight. We were good little travelers...getting there a couple hours early like you are suppose to. We do our hugs and kisses and say our good byes and then we head in. We walk right up to the Delta Ticket Counter where there are at least 5 ladies standing around gabbing. One of them looks at us and asks us what flight we are on. I say the 1:50 PM to Cincinatti, OH. She then proceeds to tell us that the 1:50 PM flight no longer exists. OH SHIT!! It was changed to a NOON flight. She got us on that flight, but we had to haul ass to get to the gate. We made it on the plane and landed in Atlanta, GA instead. We barely get off that plane and have to board our next plane to Salt Lake City, UT.

All goes fine and dandy, and we land in Salt Lake City. We had a 2 hour delay there so we grabbed a bite to eat. The woman on the loud speaker announces that due to heavy fog in Fresno our plane may divert us to Bakersfield, CA instead of Fresno where we want to go. Mind you Bakersfield is an hour and a half away!! They say if we are diverted there that it is up to us to find our own way to Fresno. Otherwise we can put ourselves up in a hotel in Salt Lake City for the night and grab the 11:30 AM flight to Fresno on Friday. Shana called her friend Heather (whom we were staying with for the night) to ask her what we should do. Heather couldn't believe they told us there was fog as she said the sky was clear...What the heck?!?! We take our chances and get on the plane. We no sooner sit down when the flight attendant comes on the loud speaker and says that they were suppose to have called ahead and told us that the Fog was not an issue, and we would be landing in Fresno. YAY!!

So the previous flights hadn't been too much of a problem. I was a little worried as I had caught a cold earlier in the week before we left. However, on our decent into Fresno I had the worst pain in my ears ever!! I literally had tears sneaking out of the corners of my eyes. I couldn't wait to land. We finally get in to Fresno, CA around 11:00 PM, and I can't hear a darn thing. Both of my ears were plugged solid. Shana had to literally get inches from my ears for me to hear. Heather picks us up, and we head to her house and then off to bed!! What a day!!

Binge Blogger!!

I have become a binge blogger...LOL!! All of my posts seem to come at once during the week here lately. I apologize for that!! I have been super busy at work since we are now short-staffed. Long hours = Less time for me to blog. Which unfortunately has also meant a lot less picture-taking of my two cute little monkeys!! Hopefully things will slow down on the work front a little so I can get back to bloggin about my family and not just quick little posts about sales, coupons, etc...hehehe!!

Cup of Tea!

I received this totally cute joke the other day from a friend and had to share!! Thanks Sarah!!

One day my mother was out and my dad was in charge of me.
I was maybe 2 1/2 years old and had just recovered from an accident.
Someone had given me a little 'tea set' as a get-well gift and it was one of my favorite toys.
Daddy was in the living room engrossed in the evening news when I brought him a little cup of 'tea', which was just water.
After several cups of tea and lots of praise for such yummy tea, my Mom came home.
My Dad made her wait in the living room to watch me bring him a cup oftea, because it was 'just the cutest thing!'
My Mom waited, and sure enough, here I come down the hall with a cup of tea for Daddy and she watches him drink it up.
Then she says, (as only a mother would know)
'Did it ever occur to you that the only place she can reach to get wateris the toilet?'