I've moved!

I know it took me a long while to get all settled in my new space.  If you haven't yet given up on me yet, you can find me here: http://www.tamibayer.com/

Thanks for stopping by.

Changing Directions

I've been blogging at Fiskateers for almost a year now and I'm thinking it's time to change direction here.  A girl can only blog about crafting so much and I think that's why it's been quiet on my personal blog.  I've always believed that if you can't change your mind once in a while you may not have one.  So, I'm thinking it's time to change direction just a bit while I still have a mind.  Not sure exactly how that's going to look, but I'm rolling a few ideas around in my brain.  Sometimes thinking out loud and throwing it out to the universe helps me see the path.  Thanks for listening.

Just dropping in to say hey!

The last month was a whirlwind of travel for me and I had a blast!  I was in a flurry of make and takes at some local and not too local places.  For now, I've stopped to rest and catch up on everything before I run off to Chicago next month.  Here's a peek at one of my trips:



Seriously, what is up with the weather?  While I was in Arizona, my son and husband were struck by lightning while fly fishing and while I was in Palm Springs last week, my father-in-law and his wife lost their garage to a tornado.  Everyone is fine with hair raising stories to tell.  I'm very grateful, but a bit hesitant to go away again, not sure what will happen next. It's just crazy.

In other crazy news, my adorable baby boy is turning 16 this week.  He towers over me at over 6' tall and has moments when the hormones take over and he's not so adorable.  I love him oceans and am treasuring every moment of these last few years he'll be here at home with us, even the challenging ones. He still loves fishing and rugby, which balances out the PS3 addiction and constant texting.  His friends are so much smarter and more important than we are, so I'd have to say he's a pretty typical teen.

On the same day that the boy turns 16, Curtis and I celebrate the 24th anniversary of our first date.  Almost a quarter of a century together, and he still surprises me.  I picked a good partner for this roller coaster of life.  I can't wait to see what the next 24 years bring.

Wishing you a fun filled summer.  Thanks for stopping by today.

Here's part 2 of Stamping Basics:



Thanks for stopping by today.

I've started a new series of videos called Stamping Basics. It is very basic for those who are just starting out on their stamping adventures. Here's the very first in what will be a long series of videos:



Thanks for stopping by today.

I'm hosting a Winter Stamp Out over on the Fiskateer site this weekend. We're getting inky with twenty challenges as we say goodbye to Winter and hello to Spring. It's bunches of fun. The very last challenge is called Simon Says 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Honestly I was scratching my head trying to come up with the last of the challenges and threw this one in. I've been busy hosting, but really wanted to play along in at least one challenge. I chose this one because it's the toughest of the bunch in my eyes. Here's the challenge: Create a card using 5 embellishments, 4 patterned papers, 3 stamps, 2 punches, and 1 piece of cardstock. My Chicken Soup Card:

Here's the breakdown:

5 embellishments- tag, hemp, bakers twine, green burlap, piece of old measuring tape
4 patterned papers- 1" pieces of Jillibean Soup papers from the Chilled Strawberry Soup and Snowman Soup lines
3 stamps- chicken, sentiment, messy background stamps
2 punches- Fiskars Notebook Border and Chip Off the Old Block punches
1 piece of cardstock-there's a kraft cardstock base under all that other stuff :)

For the FTC Police: The Jillibean Soup Papers and Fiskars punches were given to me by the companies. The rest of the things used to create this card are from my own stash of treasures.

For everyone else thanks for stopping by today! I hope you have time to get ink on your fingers this weekend.

I'm still alive and well here.  Had a wonderful time at CHA.  In case you haven't seen it, here's the photo montage:



I added in some of my travel plans over there on the right.  I'll be doing a big round of make and takes all over in May.  I'm blogging regularly on the Fiskateer blog if you ever want to see what I'm up to when I'm not here.  Will definitely try to stop in more often than every other month.

The brief update: Snow, snow, and more snow falling right now, still practicing yoga, still substitute teaching here and there, still loving the orange handled scissors, the teenager is over 6' now with white blonde hair and loves playing rugby, the dogs are looking forward to spring right along with the rest of us, and life is good-sometimes it's crazy, but mostly it's good.  I hope all is going well with you and please don't hate me for not being here much.  Come see me at the other place I blog when I'm not around here :)

I had a wonderful birthday weekend!  Thanks for all the sweet wishes.  Hair was off the chart amazing.  It's in my top 3, and I'd go see it again tomorrow.  If it travels anywhere near you, don't miss it, and don't take the kids.  It's definitely a date night play.

CHA preparation has taken over my life, but I'm not complaining.  It's amazing and worth every moment of searching for crazy things like orange teapots.  I made a video today of my absolute favorite new product coming out at winter CHA.  Fiskars is so awesome.  I asked for this product and they delivered.  I have to pinch myself every once in a while to make sure this is all really happening.  I'm one very happy fiskateer.



Thanks for stopping by today!

I'm celebrating another candle on the birthday cake today, well actually all weekend. My sweet husband brought me a chocolate croissant and tea in bed this morning complete with a candle and the most adorable Minnie Mouse card. I'm a big Disney fan, and Minnie has a special place in my heart. Tomorrow he's taking me into LA to see Hair at the Pantages. I'm absolutely giddy. The weekend wraps up with brunch on Sunday with my mom and sister. Girl time instead of football games sounds like a perfect way to spend the day.

In the middle of all that fun, I planned to stop in the Verizon store to update my ghetto phone. I've been waiting longer than I should, holding out for the mythical Verizon iphone. I was all set to join the droid team, having given up on the iphone as a pipe dream. I just heard on the news that the iPhone is days away from being available with Verizon. Woohoo! Now, that's the cherry on top of the birthday cake. I'm doing a little happy dance.

It's definitely the beginning of a beautiful year. Just for fun, I'm sharing the horoscope from the newspaper.  I look forward to it all year long:

"You become increasingly well-rounded this year as you add interesting new friends and activities to your life. A warmhearted someone opens personal and professional doors for you. February brings memorable encounters and loving exchanges. April features an unexpected gift. August brings a windfall."

That's a horoscope I can't wait to see unfold.  Last year's was extremely accurate. 48 is going to be a great year.  I can feel it.

grace

I've chosen my one little word for the new year: grace: thoughtfulness toward others; goodwill; seemingly effortless charm of movement.  Firstly, those who know me well know that I don't come by physical grace naturally.  It's an effort and one I intend to continue working toward with my yoga practice.  I'm working on a new project for 2011 called Hearts of Orange, Crafting for the Common Good.   It's a year long effort of crafting for others that starts tomorrow.  


Have you chosen a word for 2011, yet?  I've found that my word takes on new dimension as the year rolls on and brings new things into my life I hadn't expected.  I can't wait to see what grace brings in 2011.  Happy New Year.

Happy Holidays from our crazy house to yours!

Thank you for all the wonderful anniversary wishes.  It was an amazing beautiful getaway.  We spent time in the Denver/Boulder area of Colorado.  The last time we were there was on a cross country trip before we had our son, so about 16 years ago.  It was just as lovely as we remembered and we even ate at the same microbrewery that we hit the last time we were in Boulder.  So many fond memories of that trip flooded back.  We created lots of new memories and it definitely won't be our last trip there.  We already have a list of things we'd like to do and see.  A long weekend just wasn't enough time.

Sorry to have been away from the blog for so long.  We got home from the trip and it was Thanksgiving and then all of the Christmas preparation began.  Such a busy and fun time of year.  We are so thankful that everyone is healthy and happy for the holidays.  Looking forward to lots of yummy cookies and laughter.  I  hope you have a beautiful holiday season.

Twenty years ago today I married my best friend.  He's still my best friend and I can't wait to see what wonderful new adventures the next twenty years bring.  We're getting on a plane in the morning to run away for a few days of quiet celebration.  

Happy 49th Anniversary Mom and Dad.  Hugs and Kisses and wishes for many more!

I've been busy working and playing.  I went to a sewing weekend with my mom, aunt, and cousin last weekend.  We giggled and sewed and ate and visited for two days.  Then when we came home, my cousin stayed with me for two nights and we crafted and giggled and visited and ate some more.  I don't know that we accomplished tons, but we had lots of girl time fun.  I spend so much time on the computer lately, that I haven't crafted much.  It was wonderful to just play and get messy and create.  Then, yesterday I went to a scrapbook expo with a couple of my stamping friends and played all day looking at all the goodies and make and takes.  We even stopped at In and Out Burger for lunch.  What a treat!  Hubby and I went to see the movie Red (funny with action, good date movie) this afternoon while the kiddo went to a Halloween party dressed in a toga.  I'm afraid he's already looking ahead to fraternity parties.  Curtis is happy about that, hoping for a legacy :)

I made this little card as a thank you for the Fiskateers who took on a blind color challenge last week.  Take a peek at this video if you'd like to see the amazing things they created.  

Thank You Card Supplies Used:  Cupcake Squeeze Punch, Paper Crimper, In Stitches Border Punch, Postage Stamp Border Punch, Latte Love Stamps, Swirls of Fun Stamps, Colorbok Paper, Ranger Distress Ink, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder and Die Cut Awareness Ribbon, orange tulle, cardstock.

Thanks for stopping by today!

I made a huge mess making this little boo cameo pin to wear on our Halloween Disney trip.  I can hardly wait for all the spooky disney fun! You can enter to win the punch I used to make the bat by sharing a Halloween memory or tradition on the Fiskateer blog.  

Supplies used: Fiskars batty for you squeeze punch; Fiskars cameo appearance squeeze punch; Fiskars grass border punch; Fiskars paper crimper; Graphic 45 papers; Tombow markers; Ranger stickles; Judikins glass beads; fabric trim scraps; pinback.

Thanks for stopping by today.

I've been busy tearing up old wool sweaters to make new flowers this week.  Since it's October,  I want to share a pink one with you today.  It's the month to remember those touched by breast cancer.  I actually find myself thinking of those touched by any type of cancer, not just breast cancer.  Touched isn't the correct word, body slammed is more like it.  

I'm a melanoma survivor.  It's been seven years since I first heard that dreaded malignant word.  Honestly, it's taken me this long to be able to write about it.  I can't begin to describe the range of emotions attached to such a diagnosis.  I'm one of the very lucky ones.  I noticed this little mole on my knee change shape over the course of a two week long car trip.  I was sitting there in the passenger seat for long stretches of time and noticed what used to be a light colored circular mole had turned into a little heart shaped mole.  I actually thought it was kind of cute at first.  Then it developed a third little round up between the two halves of the heart shape.  It was definitely asymmetrical, but had none of the other warning signs of skin cancer.  The speed with which it changed scared me.  When we got home from our vacation I called to schedule an appointment with the dermatologist.

He honestly didn't think it was anything.  He actually showed me photos of what to look for, what skin cancer is supposed to look like.  I told him I didn't care, that I wanted it removed.  It worried me.  I really think he removed it to humor me.  In just a few days time I got a phone call from a surgeon's office asking to schedule me for surgery to remove a malignant melanoma.  That's how I found out.  My doctor was on vacation and the doc on call didn't follow up.  It was such a body slam.  I had no idea what to expect.  

It was a very long weekend of researching what I could online.  My biggest fear was not being here to raise my son.  He was only in 3rd grade at the time, just a little guy.  The statistics for melanoma are quite frightening.  It's in the handful of types of cancer you never want to have.  You can't get rid of your skin; it's everywhere.  The phrase "comfortable in her own skin" no longer applied to me.  

My mom drove me in for the surgery day.  It was an outpatient surgery and I was awake for the whole thing.  They gave me a local anesthetic and did a wide excision to remove all the tissue around the area.  The goal is clean margins.  I referred to it as my knee lift.  That knee used to be a little thinner than the other one.  They look about the same now.  That was my whole treatment plan because the melanoma was in situ, which means it was on top and hadn't grown large enough to have a stage or put me at big risk of it going other places in the body.  I lived for a long time in fear that they missed one little cell.  Rational or not, that scared me silly.  

I am forever tied to my dermatologist.  We get together twice a year, I take off my clothes and he inspects me from head to toe.  I'm a bit of a patchwork of small scars where he's removed other suspicious looking moles over the years.  We talk about our family vacations, music, our kids, etc.  His nurse and I share stories about our hair color which has changed over the years for both of us.  Once a year I also get to have blood drawn and go to the room with all the disney posters so the radiologist can take a photo of my lungs.  I just did all of this last week again.  I also had a mammogram on the same day.  

I'm walking proof that early detection is the key to surviving.  You also have to be your own advocate.  If something isn't right with your body, keep talking until somebody listens to you.  If I hadn't insisted, I may not be here today to share my story.  I'm very lucky indeed.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by and took the time to leave a comment on the orange blog hop post.  So sorry I didn't get back sooner to announce the RAK winner.  I've been sick the past week with bronchitis which is no fun at all.  I'm feeling much better now, though.  The winner of the stamp set is Laura Bray.  Shoot me an email with your mailing address when you get a moment, Laura.

I just finished a new video tutorial using some of my fave fiska-tools.  Click on the video to view full screen.



I hope you'll find time to make a few fall cards.  Thanks for stopping by.

Welcome to the Orange Blog Hop.  If you happened by not knowing about the hop, we're having a Fiskateer hop today celebrating all things orange a la the orange handled scissors I love so much.  If you aren't yet a Fiskateer, I hope you'll consider joining in.  All you need to do to get started is send me an email at tami@fiskateers.com and let me know about your craft interests.

I had loads of fun playing around with my new favorite Fiskars punches and stamp set to come up with this orange tag for you.  It's a bit on the yellow side of orange, but it does look more orange in real life.  I used some of my old favorites here, too.  The base is an Avery tag covered with sewing pattern paper.  It's pretty delicate, so a glue stick on the tag is about all it takes.  I wrinkled up the pattern paper first for texture and then used a brayer after I got it glued down to get it to stick good and get out the air bubbles.  I then stamped over the paper using Versafine Ink and the stamp set called For the Birds.  The border punch is called In Stitches.  The flowers are by Hero Arts with a sewing snap through the middle.  I painted Radiant Pearls over the top of the tag and on the top flower.  The sentiment is stamped onto a scrap with the same Versafine ink and then punched out with a new squeeze punch called Postage Stamp.  That's a piece of old measuring tape tied up on the top.

I have an extra set of the For the Birds stamps to give away to one lucky hopper who leaves a comment here.  Be sure you sign in with enough info so I can find you after the hop if you win.  Next stop on the hop: Kate Blue #4529

Thanks for stopping by today.

CHA photobooth silliness

I can't believe it's September already. I'm two months into my Lead Fiskateer gig and I think I have my sea legs back now. It's been a wild ride so far and I'm loving every minute of it. It seems like summer just flew by in a flash this year. Kyle is back in school as a sophomore with a very heavy load of classes. He seems happy with his classes and is studying every night already. That's a good sign. He comes home speaking french to me every day and I love that. It's been a long time since my high school french class, but it's coming back quickly. Maybe we'll have to take a trip to France or Quebec next year and try out our skills. I'm enjoying my weekly yoga classes and spending way too much time on the computer lately. I have plans of making a new video tutorial soon, hopefully this weekend. I'm carving out a little time to read The Help, and I'm loving it so far.  Curtis and I have weekend travel plans for later this fall to celebrate our 20th anniversary. It feels like we just got married yesterday.  I hope you're having a good start to your fall season.  Thanks for stopping by today.