Happy Friday evening my friends! I know I'm posting at night...that never happens..shocker right? LOL I'm all into the shock-effect...keep y'all on your toes ;) Nah last night was Valentine's Day and hubby decided he was surprise whisking me away for a Valentines dinner out with out the teens (whoot hahaha) and I had nary the time to finish my project or get a post ready. So we had a yummo-licious dinner...seafood, wine, chocolate fondue, champagne...mmmm! It was a nice getaway even if when we got home Alexa was yelling and having a teen-temper-tantrum about how unfair we are...story of my life. Few moments of peace & greatness...and then....back to REALITY right ahahaha..not EVER a dull moment in my house with 2 teens and 8 animals that's for sure! She has big ISSUES with us not letting her drive in cars with her friends...all of whom have NEW licenses and I'm sorry but its not gonna happen. So she's pretty mad with us...not that I care...that's my duty as a mom to keep her safe and no teen needs to be driving with other teens right away. Certainly not here in crazy Northern VA traffic...no sirreee. So that's our rule, period...she doesn't like it...and we don't care. I remind her often that I'm her MOM, PARENT, not her friend first and my duty as her mom is keep her safe as I can while I can. After almost 17 years with her she knows her yelling does NOTHING...so she can slam doors, etc but its not changing anything LOL. And her driving? Well she will start behind-the-wheel driving in May and be able to get her license around Christmas or January. She hasn't been in a rush and neither have we...plenty of time to drive and after being in a car accident a couple of years ago thanks to a teen that was texting, she's a bit nervous about it all. WHICH IS GOOD...she knows firsthand what texting and driving can do..so hopefully she always keeps that in mind. I thought parenting lil' kids was HARD, but boy-o nothing compares to teens that's for sure. Dating, driving, friend drama, parties, drugs, alcohol, technology, bullying...etc...its enough to make my hair turn WHITE. And they don't warn you or tell you all this when you are thinking about babies...yeah cute, little cuddly babies...cuz you know what? NO ONE WOULD EVER HAVE KIDS if we REALLY EVER KNEW what it REALLY was all about right? LMBO and they surely don't cover these things in parenting books...oh what a ride it has been with these two kiddos. I will surely miss the pants off of them when they leave but man they are trying to put momma in a straight-jacket some days!
Tomorrow I'm heading 3 hours south with my buddy Marti to see Love and Theft in concert at a club...Canaan Smith will be singing there too and I'm big fans of both. And yes they are CUUUUUTE...and put on a great show! Should be a REAL good time and Marti & I have promised the hubbies that we will be good...bwahahahahaha...yeahhhhh riiiiiight ;)!
And I've got BIG NEWS coming next week...ohhhh its exciting...well I find it all exciting anywho LOL! So stay tuned for all of that......
Also I'm teaching in FL next month so if you are nearby, come check it out and hang out with us while learning some AWESOME Copic techniques. All details are HERE!!
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WOW, she's just amazing!!!!! Love all the blues and the way you coloured her. Hugs, Brigitte
ReplyDeleteGreat card and love all the blue shades. YEA for you as a Mom to stick to your driving/riding rules. She'll appreciate it when she has kids of her own. I could go on and on as have grandkids her age. Edna
ReplyDeleteWow Suzanne,
ReplyDeleteyour card are really wonderful,the colours and the image is so fantastic.
Many hugs and greetings
Angela
Beautiful blue card! And good for you for putting your foot down with your kiddos. I'm always a little scared when I'm driving and see a car full of teens. There's just too many distractions for inexperienced drivers. Also, for anyone in the US who is looking for that designer paper, they now carry it at 7 Kids College Fund. Yay! I love that Capsule Collection but cringe to pay shipping from the UK.
ReplyDeleteKids! You'll all get through it and be all the better for it, believe it or not! What a cutie this baby is! I love the papers and colors and different designs. Love the mesh too! And your dies are to die for! I'd love to see a video of how you put a card together! Maybe some day...
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend!
Hugs,
Susan
Beautiful, monochromatic card! As for the parenting thing, I don't have any of my own. I'm active with my brother's kids, though. My middle nephew just started driving a few months ago. He's a very careful driver, but I have the same fear that you do. Luckily, the topic of riding with his friends has not come up yet, as he is one of the first ones in his group to even have his learner's. I'm not looking forward to the conversations about it, though, and I'm not even the mom!!! I feel for you!
ReplyDeleteSo nice of your DH to suprise you with a nice dinner out, Suzanne. I am really into surprises.
ReplyDeleteI love your darling card. Boy, she is fantastic and beautifully colored. Gorgeous papers and elements bring her to life.
You have a great weekend. Sounds like you and Marti will have lots of fun at the concert. Safe travels...
Hugz,
Cathy Lee
This is absolutely beautiful Suzanne, I love the colours and pretty design, so very sweet, I'm sure the recipient will be thrilled
ReplyDeleteHugs Julie P
Stunning card--love it!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful card.. love the blues.. I know, I know, I know exactly what you are feeling. My son, now 23, had the same restriction when his friends got their licences.. His Dad and I were the ONLY parents out of 5 boys who picked him up and dropped him off at the locations his friends were going while they were all in one of the boys' cars... He hated it and protested like your daughter...we also had a rule when he drove that NO ONE was allowed to be with him for 6 months.. until he got used to driving. This may help.. his father and I sat him down and told him that we WANTED him to experience his independence and WANTED him to one day drive with his friends, but the GOLDEN RULE we set in our home was this: It has to be as comfortable for us (his parents) as it is for him... we told him how we LIKED when he went out with friends because it gave us time to do what we wanted to do but if we were sitting here biting our fingernails feeling fearful about what HE was doing, then it was going to be a "no go." We felt we had the same right to have the same "good time" at home that he was having going wherever with his friends... so after a bit of protesting, he got it, and thanfully he is a great and safe driver today. This is such a hard time SUzanne, I felt like you were writing about me... it does get easier but you will always worry on some level. You have TWO, not one, teenager so that does maker it harder. I come from a family of 7 and so we were FIVE teens at once.. so I do call my mom, at 85 years old, for wisdom when I feel consumed with worry... she said to arm them with all the info you can, stick to your rules no matter how much they whine, and say a prayer because the rest is out of our control! Know that this will pass, I promise.. just hang in there, put your earplugs in and keep strong. You ARE doing the right thing even if your kids will never let you know...xxx Ann Marie
ReplyDeleteWow, this is awesome! Love everything about her. You made her look so beautiful in blue!
ReplyDeletehugs Yvonne
Hi Suzanne. I enjoyed (if that's the right expression) reading of your teenage issues. I think you are right that if parents knew what they would go through in the teen years, they wouldn't have children but it comes good in the end (usually). Just wait until they are 30 and it should be okay!!! And you have made a STUNNING card. Your colouring is exceptional and the design elements and colour choices are fabulous! Hugs, Lesley
ReplyDeleteThis is gorgeous Suzanne! Have fun at Love & Theft!!
ReplyDeleteJust a quick note to agree with you about the driving situation. I lost a sister at 17 while she was taking a friend home from work. She pulled out in front of someone else. The friend was fine but she died instantly. When my daughter got to the age of 16, she never pushed me very hard as she knew what I went through. We have always kept our kids "friend-free" for at least 6 months. When we allowed it, it was just to go to and from school and school functions. PS--I have enjoyed your cards and many books you have suggested to me. Thanks for all you do.
ReplyDeletePerfectly monochromatic card, great shading on the colouring.
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining in the Crafting Cafe First Challenge and good luck!
Neil
Fabulous card and Beautiful coloring Suzanne..Loz
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous card, Suzanne!!! Love the blues, and the embellishments, everything goes so perfectly together. It's colored to perfection.....
ReplyDeleteAlso, I admire your parenting stand. It's rough raising teenagers, especially with todays influences. And, l feel letting them know their boundaries, holding to those, and yet loving them is a challenge, however good parenting; and my hat's off to you. You seem to do such an awesome job, and always make the effort to do so much as a family. That will be the payoff, trust me. My kids share stories of "remember when we....." and with one of my children and husband gone, those memories mean even more!!! And the cards you'll receive telling you how much they appreciated what you did and still do is so worth it. You're doing great!!!
Beautiful, beautiful blue birthday card! Of course, I love that image and you colored her wonderfully. Love all the details of your card! Oh and glad you had a wonderful surprise Valentine! Thanks for sharing this with my Happy Birthday challenge at Sandy's Crafty Creations.
ReplyDelete~sandy
visit my blog @ sandy's crafty creations
lovely card
ReplyDeleteThank you for joining us at Charisma Cardz
Love Jan
xx
Beautiful card! I love all that blue!
ReplyDeleteThanks for playing at The Crafting Cafe in our first ever challenge!I hope you can play next time too!
Good Luck
Hugs
Dawn xx
Wow this is gorgeous, love your use of colour and DP. The design showcases the image perfectly.
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining our anything goes challenge at Charisma Cardz.
Hugs Sheryl xx
Wow! She is absolutely stunning! Those blues are simply gorgeous! Such beautiful embellishments and elements! Breathtaking creation!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for joining us Craft Us Crazy. Hope you’ll be able to join us again for another challenge.
Hugs, Kym
Fantastic card in my favourite colour!
ReplyDeletestunning card, love the gorgoeus image and fabulous layout and design. Thanks for joining us at Milkcoffee Challenge this week. xx
ReplyDeleteWhat a fab card! She's just adorable and I love all the different shades of blue used together. Thanks for playing along at the crafting cafe - I hope you'll join in next month too! Claire x
ReplyDeleteGorgeous coloring! Wow!
ReplyDelete