adventures in catching up

I seem to be *behind* on everything, and have been since at least Friday, when I rushed home to finish the laundry so I could pack for our long weekend in Chicago and Milwaukee.  I needed to check on the bees before we could leave, too; they seemed to be doing well.  We had a lovely time over the weekend - Andrew and Heather got their custom-made (engagement gift) kite up for the first time with help from Donna Schenk who created it:

We stopped at the new and expanded Mars Cheese Castle in Kenosha and they actually had samples available - mmm!  Usually we stop just before closing and the samples are gone, but it was rainy and windy at Family Kite Festival Sunday so we left early.

While I was unloading the car Monday, the screen door shut on my bare foot and caused massive bruising.  I've been limping along and accomplishing little ever since. I did complete my demonstrator preorder for new Stampin' Up! merchandise yesterday evening - YAY - there will be new stamps, ink, paper, and punches in the house, hopefully next week!

I missed TWO card-making challenges in the past week - aargh - one at Jingle Belles and one at Shopping Our Stash.  I made ONE card this evening that covers the current challenges at both sites, though - maybe I can be caught up before the end of this weekend.  Here's my dual-challenge card:

 At Shopping Our Stash we were challenged this week to use our oldest stamp; at Jingle Belles we were challenged to "Let it sew, let it sew, let it sew".  Lauren & Stef are just so clever with their blog titles!

The first stamp set I remember purchasing is Sincere Salutations; it's still available and I still use it regularly, so it's not really the neglected or untouched set the SOS team were looking for.  Of the stamp sets I own, there's a circa 1999 set called Star Santa that I tracked down on eBay because I fell in love with it, but I've only owned it about a year and I've used it for two or three Jingle Belles challenges already.  Then I remembered that at that first Stampin' Up!® workshop, I purchased a Stampin' Around wheel called Candy Cane Christmas which I never used.  Ever.  And it's a Christmas stamp, so therefore it's automatically a Jingle Belles card, too!  So I opened the Real Red cartridge that I've also never used, clicked it into the handle (I have used that) and made a background.  Staying with "oldest" as a theme, I did use the Star Santa for a focal piece.  I had already decided that I could continue to avoid putting card stock in my sewing machine by cross-stitching Baker's Twine through a Dotted Scallop Ribbon punch.  Some day I really will put some card stock in my sewing machine, but it wasn't this evening.

When I went to file this card I discovered five other Jingle Belles Christmas cards that needed insides and envelopes, so I finished them up.

We'll be home most of this weekend, so there's some chance I may be caught up by Sunday.  Or not.  That reminds me, I'll need a graduation card.  And a gift.  And I need to send Stampin' Up!® newsletters.  And there's still a Less is More challenge for this week...