It's My Birthday!

Today is my birthday...at least for another hour. It's not just any ol' birthday either. Today I turned 30! It's been a great day. Although I didn't do anything extraordinary; it was the simple acts of acknowledgement that really made today special: the phone calls from friends and family, the cards and emails, and the flowers from my hubby.

I have to say the highlight of today was the last half hour that I just spent watching Jim make my birthday card. He got too busy making my Chocolate Covered Cherry cake last night and helping the kids make their cards, that he didn't get one done for himself. He said he wasn't very inspired and asked if we could sit down together to do it tonight.

Some quick background: Jim only stamps cards for me on special occasions like Valentine's Day, my birthday, and our anniversary. He usually picks out a swap card or other display sample and CASEs it as much as he can using whatever cut cardstock I have lying around. (He's not keen on the paper cutter.)

So tonight, he opened my cabinet to browse the stamp sets. I pointed out the new Wow Flowers stamp set and he decided to use that. But then he sat down and just stared at the desk. So I pulled out the new Flower Power Simply Sent Card Elements Kit. He immediately recognized the Wow Flowers stamp set on the cover: "Hey, that's your set!"

I explained that the Simply Sent Card Elements Kit included everything he needed to make a card and I handed him the instruction sheet. He quickly picked out the "pink" card and got started. I helped him cut the cardstock. (Unlike the other Simply Sent Kits, this cardstock and paper comes in a full sheet. You can cut it according to the step-by-step directions or use it to create something from scratch.) Jim noticed the cardstock was textured: "Wow! That's new!" he said. He was equally excited about the self-adhesive die-cuts that come in the kit -- all cut and colored, ready to peel and stick! I sat back and let him go at it. He followed each step of the written instructions and put the card together.

He was a little perplexed by the instruction to adhere the paper "3/8" from the edge of the card". So I showed him the ruler on the grid paper and he used that to figure out where to put the paper. It was fun to watch him him work, picking out what he needed, spinning my Color Caddy to find the right colors to stamp with. Oh, I highly recommend the Stamp-a-ma-jig with this kit! Jim had to stamp the Happy Birthday circle stamp on a very tight-fitting die-cut. The first one was not so good. I showed him how to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig stamp positioner and the second time was perfect!

I remembered to get out the camera at the very end, just in time to take a picture of his final touch:Here's Jim with his finished card:

I told him now all he had to do was write something creative inside. I loved his response and even jotted it down so I could share it: "I'm not very creative -- that's why this [kit] is so easy!"

I know you'll love this new Simply Sent Card Elements Kit too. Whether or not you consider yourself "creative", you'll still be able to make beautiful cards in a snap! The kit will be available when the new catalog is released on August 11.