The teacher strike is over!!!

I'm breathing a big sigh of relief here. I didn't know how much longer we could last. Miss Moo starts preschool today and it would have been very disappointing if Oblivianna couldn't go to school as well; but last night the teachers' union voted to accept the school district's latest proposal and we're starting school today . . . nine days late. At this point, I'm just grateful we're starting, but I'm sure later on in the school year when we're missing scheduled vacation days and adding on days to the end of the year to make up the time, I'll be more disgruntled.

So here I am at 6:30 a.m. uploading cards and waiting for Oblivianna to get dressed so I can take her upstairs and help her get some breakfast. This is one of my most favorite cards that I have made in a while. I used the "Stinking of You!" sentiment on the inside, so this is a good card for just about any time you feel like giving a card (except for when you need a sorry for your loss card). Also, the Rain Drop bubbles are irresistible. When I was editing the card I zoomed in and I could see myself taking the picture of the card in the reflection on the bubbles. For this card's full recipe, visit my SCS Gallery.

Well, Oblivianna is all dressed. She's wearing an ensemble of grey tiger-stripes from Gymboree's Classroom Kitty Collection and when I say ensemble, I mean an ensemble of tiger-striped everything . . . shoes, socks, pants, and shirt. I tried to talk her into toning it down a little, maybe wearing a pink shirt or something, but she's made up her mind. That's my girl. Enjoy your day. I'm going to enjoy my 3 1/2 hours alone while Miss Moo is at preschool. Happy stamping.

School Strike Day 7

Well, it's day 7 of the teacher strike here in Bellevue. The school board is holding a special meeting that parents can attend and express their views about the strike and any legal action that the district may be able to take. The PTSA sent out an e-mail recommending that all parents wear black shirts to identify themselves. Black shirts! Why not black arm bands and black veils! I feel as though I should show some sign of being in mourning for the loss of freedom I'm experiencing due to Oblivianna not being able to go to school. Seriously though . . . seven days of no school that we're going to have to make up at the end of the school year . . . with no resolution in sight. At this rate, Oblivianna will still be going to school on the Fourth of July! One funny thing is that Oblivianna keeps telling people that she is on strike, instead of the teacher's being on strike. It's pretty hilarious.

Okay, that's enough of my rant completely unrelated to card making and stamping except that trying to keep Oblivianna from getting too bored and fighting with Miss Moo too much has taken up stamping time. Here's my card for the day. The color scheme for this card was inspired by Miss Moo's snuggly blanket from Target. For the full recipe for this card, look in my SCS Gallery. The two main ingredients that "tickle my fancy" on this one are the Twinkling h2os that I used to paint the wings and the crown and the Hero Arts gem that I placed on her crown. Who doesn't love a little shimmer and bling on their cards? I'll admit that I got a little carried away with the scoring and polka dot placement, but I think that it gives the card some texture.

That's all for today, folks. Happy stamping.

An Unwanted Extended Vacation

Who wouldn't want an extended vacation, you ask? Well, if the extended vacation is your child's summer vacation from school, I can think of thousands of parents here in Bellevue who could do without having their kids at home. Still. The school teachers in our fair city are on strike and school didn't start on Tuesday the 2nd as it was supposed to. It didn't start on Wednesday the 3rd either. As it is now, the school district website says that schools are closed until further notice! Ack! That's all I can say. I really do love Oblivianna and Miss Moo, but I was very much looking forward to having the days to myself beginning in September. I'm concerned. How long can this go on?

So, how are these days at home with my children any different from what we've been doing the entire summer? There is quite a difference actually. For one, the part time nanny that helps keep me sane during the summer months went back to college. I'm flying solo now. Second, we are traveled out. We have no where else exciting to go and nothing that we're dying to see. If my daughters have to take a car ride that is over twenty minutes, they start to worry that this is going to be another one of those long car rides and they start checking around for their portable DVD players and books to read. Third, the girls have spent way too much time together. They easily get on one another's nerves. They get bored with each other but then they need each other to keep entertained.

So, to keep myself entertained, I've been making cards. I try to ignore the high pitched banter between Polly Pocket and Barbie. I don't worry about what a giant mess the play room is. I just try to stay in my card making world and when that doesn't work, I lock myself in my office and play Spider Solitaire. Anyway, here's a card that I made with Barry. I wanted the card to have a sort of heavy English pub look to it, so that is why I used the dark greens, reds, and blues. I'm pleased with how the card came out. I had to make the tag twice, because my husband pointed out that bar fly should be two words and what I had looked like a newly created adverb, "barfly." Try using that in a sentence. It doesn't work well. As always, you can see the list of ingredients that went into making this card in my gallery on SplitCoastStampers.