The Domestic Goddess...

Good afternoon, everyone!

Another day...my, how the week flies!

Just a couple of  quick things to share with you today...I've been having fun with some new products from Crafty Secrets...I'll have more to share later this week--so much fun!

I made another shadowbox card featuring the wonderful images from the newly revised "Domestic Goddess" Creative Scraps...here it is:

I can't tell you how much I love these shadowbox frames--Vicki Chrisman's amazing idea--thanks, Vicki!  These are available through Crafty Secrets...I just have so much fun putting them together!  Can't wait till Vicki's next big idea.....!

The revised Creative Scraps have images on the back now...Here's what they look like:

...more to choose from!

Some lace, aqua rick-rack trim, lots of silver glitter, some Dazzling Diamonds, and gorgeous red crystal rhinestones...

And some fun crystal cherry rhinestone charms...

Ooooooh....sparkly!

You all know by now that everything I make reminds me of something in my family's past...today is no exception, of course!  I couldn't get this image out of my mind today...

I realize this photo isn't taken in the kitchen....but just look at my Grandmother, Velda on the right...is she a domestic goddess, or what?!  A little family ice cream-making time on the back patio...

My grandfather was a fairly prominent banker in the Phoenix area in the '50's, and this photo was taken for a newspaper article on their family...you wondered why they were so perfectly posed, didn't you?!  That's my mother, Karen, on the left...don't you just love her dress?  (My Mom just added that she designed and made that dress she's wearing...yet another domestic goddess!)

My mom's brother and sister, Glenn and Judy, are also there...Judy was to die just a few years later at age 7 due to cancer...a sad but sweet story for another day...

Well, that's all I have for you today...off to my daughter's softball game and my youngest daughter's soccer practice...don't you just love the days when everything overlaps?  Wish I really was a domestic goddess and could be everywhere at once!  (And have dinner hot and ready when we get home!!!)

Have a wonderful night!

Crafty Secrets DT Challenge--In the Kitchen!

Good morning, everyone! Hope the day is going well for you all--it's just POURING here! This is our version of winter here in Central California--it FINALLY feels like Christmas!

I was so thrilled to be asked to join in with the Crafty Secrets Design Team today in their monthly Challenge as a Guest Designer--thanks, Sandy! The theme for this month is kitchen-oriented...so much to choose from in that category with Crafty Secrets!

I'm really not happy with my photos today--sorry about that! The lighting is just terrible--so not much I can do!

For my card, I chose an adorable vintage image from their "Domestic Goddess" Creative Scraps--LOVE those Creative Scraps! So many fabulous images to choose from!

I stamped the mixing bowl image from the "Little Chef" stamp set for the background and glittered it up--of course! Sacrificed a second image from the Scrap sheet and cut out the little kitchen fairy so I could pop her up--one of my favorite things to do! I love that the Scraps come with word strips that can be used with the images--makes the job quick and easy!

I punched the border with my favorite new Martha Stewart Loopy edge punch, and used Crafty Secrets' "Earthy" paper pack for the green houndstooth paper...some lace, grosgrain ribbon, more Martha Stewart "White Gold" glitter and a big, fat button, and that's it!

Wish I'd had time to do another project, but I didn't!

Thanks, ladies, for letting me play with you today! If you haven't been over to the other DT ladies' blogs yet--hop on over pronto! What an amazingly talented group of women--I'm always inspired by their projects! Here they are:

Vicki Chrisman--Design Team Leader

Pam Hooten

Marisa Grosson

Michele Kovack

Michelle Van Etten

Melissa Phillips

Flo from France

Heidi Blankenship and Linda Duke are also on the Crafty Secrets DT, but were unable to participate this time--but stop by for a visit anyway!

We'd also love you to stop over to Splitcoast to the Crafty Secrets' Forum, where we have a fun challenge each week! This week, the amazing Darlene is our host, and I'm sure she'll have something fun "cooked" up...Come and play with us!

Since we're talking about kitchens, baking, etc...I thought I'd include something delicious for you--wish you all could just take a big, fat bite of this yummy cake!

This is how the Campbells' do cake...once in a while we'll pull out the recipes and make one from scratch, but we're usually in a hurry, so we'll just take out a cake mix and have at it!

We do a little something to make it our own, however, and people really love it! We add a whole bag of some kind of chips--chocolate, butterscotch, white, cinnamon...you get the idea!...to the batter before we pour it into the pan!

When you bite into your cake, there's this extra fabulous crunchy, melty layer on the bottom from the chips...YIKES! We can't make a cake without doing this anymore! Came up with the idea a couple of years ago...always seem to be looking for ways to add more calories to something! Try it, I think you'll love it!

The other thing I do...I just can't seem to use "canned" frosting anymore--I've found a few delicious frosting recipes over time that have become favorites. I'll use them over and over...modify them according to cakes--but homemade is just SOOOO much better! So that's what we did here, too! Here's the recipe for the creamy, chocolatey frosting!

Well, that's it for this wet, wintry morning! Hope your day is wonderful, no matter the weather, and that you're enjoying this beautiful Christmas season!