What's a Mom to Do?

Been a long week here. Between the long weekend, working unexpectedly and trying to put in some miles on the bicycle there really hasn't been much time to sit down and create. And when I did sit down to create~~ guess what?! Somehow the ideas (that were totally awesome, btw) in my head were MUCH MUCH better than what was coming out on paper. Totally frustrates the heck out of me when that happens.

Being the organized, on top of things Mom that I am (insert some dripping sarcasm here____), I needed to make some thank you notes for the youngest who celebrated his 9th b-day the first weekend of this month. Since I had used the Extreme Skateboarder from SU on his card, I had it in my head to continue with that same theme. Now~~ here is where it gets tricky. First off: I had it in my head to make this card as a double challenge card (mistake number one). The CAS challenge this week on SCS was to use pop ups or dimensionals on your card. Great! I can do that!! Then I had it in my head to combine THAT challenge with Thursday's Way to Use it challenge, which was to use red (mistake number two). In my wonderfully creative mind (haha) I had the skateboarder in front of a graffiti wall, grinding on a rail of "thanks". But in reality ended up with this:

First off: I forgot how SMALL this image was, which required the card to measure 4x4. I had in my "vision" a more realistic graffiti background, using some reds, blues, greens (you know....like a wall that all the taggers love). Obviously all of my attempts at that never produced something that I liked. So I just went with stamping the Gratuitious Graffiti background in versamark onto Whisper white paper. Like how it shows up kinda with a brown/dirty tint? That comes from having your stampin' scrub pad being dirty. What can I say? I felt it worked for the grungy graffiti wall so I grabbed a sponge dauber that had been used mostly with browns and lightly tapped it onto my Black Soot distress ink pad and sponged around the edges of the card.

Then I stamped the skateboarder in Black Soot onto some scrap Whisper White. And cut him out (Again....what was I thinking?!! This guy is TEENY TINY!! And I have EIGHT of these to make!! My hand just ACHED by the time I finished cutting out all those little guys!).

Then the sentiment. Here is where my "mom" dilemma comes into play. I originally stamped the "Thanks" in red. Using a different font. Great!! Fits both challenges. When I show it to the Toad and the boys, they say "cool, but that font doesn't really go with the whole look". Oooookaaay!! So I drag out another "Thanks" in a different font and try again. That particular font was too big. Not a great response from the critics. The Toad suggests using the same alphabet that I used on the original card (see above link). Sooooo, I drag out that set and stamp "Thanks" once again. DS (who, is very particular about how things should be in his creations/my creations for him~should be) says "It goes better with the background thingy, but I guess it is hard to read". GREAT. Now what?! Pull out yet ANOTHER "Thanks" and stamp. FINALLY!! Everyone says that that is the best one. BUT!! (you know there had to be a "but" in there somewhere!!) DS decides he wants the sentiment in BLACK. Ok....I personally think it has a little more "pop" with the red. But the Toad is looking at me and lifting his eyebrows says "They're HIS thank you cards. Make them how HE wants them". (sigh) Fine. So what is a mom to do? Make the card so that it fits "her" idea for challenges or make the card so that it fits her child's idea? Obviously, my child won.

I then popped up the BLACK sentiment on dimensionals and then cut down more dimensionals so that I could have the skateboarder "grinding" on the thanks (which, btw~The Toad just informed me that this "thanks" doesn't look like I stamped it, but rather that it is a 6th generation "copy" off the computer. GREAT. Thanks!! I am SO NOT doing those AGAIN!!

Overall rating: *** 1/2 out of ***** (because in my mind it was just SOOO much better!! hehe)

Thanks for dropping by. I really hope that it doesn't take me another full week before I come up with another card. Cross your fingers that my body adapts better this week to all the riding that I need to do. I've been coming home just worn out from the rides and have no energy/creative juices flowing (outside my head that is).

Have a good one and hoping I'll be back in the next day or so!!