I’m home from camp, but I’m going to leave the care package treat up.  Here’s an “add on” for a kit I’ve been working on.  The kit will be packaged up and available in the stores next week but you get a sneak peek here.  This is the Believe Add On and you can get it here.  Look for the Believe kit next week.

Good morning everyone!

Here’s another freebie.  This one’s from my “And I Quote” series.  One of my favorite singers these days is Brad Paisley.  Some of his songs are soooo beautiful (“Whiskey Lullaby” and “When I Get Where I’m Going”) and some of them are just hilarious – like this one.  If you haven’t heard his song “Online” yet you need to find it and hear it.  And if you have a older child or teenager at home, use it as a jumpoff point to discuss how people can misrepresent themselves on the web and how dangerous it can be.

But enough of all of that… you want the freebie, right?  Here it is!  Click on the image to download and please leave me some love here if you like it. 

In America today is the day that we celebrate our independence.  Today was the day that the Founding Fathers put pen to paper – risking everything they had including their lives should the cause be lost - to explain why it was necessary for us to separate ourselves and be, not just a colony, but a nation unto our own. 

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

With these words, our nation was born.  The Declaration of Independence goes on to explain our grievances against the crown and government of England and it is fascinating reading.  You can read a full copy of it here.  My children don’t know it yet, but tonight we’re going to read the Declaration and then tomorrow they will work together to put it into today’s language.  I think it’s important for them to understand that Independence Day means.  Our young men and women in uniform have not fought over the years to safeguard barbeques and fireworks, but freedom.

Can you tell I’m just a bit patriotic?  Honestly, the older I get the more I realize just how special what we have in America is.  Of course, we still have problems.  We always will.  And it’s difficult to balance the needs and rights of one group of people against another but if everyone is to be free that is what we continually have to struggle to do. 

So Happy Birthday, America!  In celebration, I’m giving you the present.  Here’s a 4″x4″ quick e-card that you can send your friends.  Just type your text in the frame (over the fireworks) and off it goes, ready for you to share your feelings of pride in our country and thankfulness of our freedom with your friends.  Enjoy.

Download here.

Howdy all,

Welcome to the blog that originates in the mind of a sunny Floridian.  Yep, we got more sunshine coming your way today.  Check out this cute little brag book quick page.

In case you’re new to brag books, they’re actually great.  You grab this little page, stick your photo in, print it out (it’s designed at 6″x4″) and put it in a photo book.  Then you stick that in your purse and any time you want to share some of your creations they’re right there in your purse.

This freebie was designed to coordinate with the Crazy Diamond Sunshine State of Mind brag book quick pages available as a kit from BusyScrappin’.  Normally this pack of 8 brag book quick pages is priced at $1.75, but now through the 4th of July you can get the kit for only $1.  Grab the kit, put your pictures in, get a $1 photo album from the Dollar Store and for only $2 you’ve got a cute little brag book to take everywhere with you.

Whether you purchase the kit or not, the freebie is for everyone.  Download your copy at the BusyScrappin’  store.  When you get to the store, scroll down to the bottom of the home page and you’ll see the latest freebies.  If you don’t see it there it just means that there’s been more freebies added.  Just click on my name (Crazy Diamond) on the buttons on the left and you’ll be taken to a page full of my stuff.  The freebie’s on there as well.

Any questions, just let me know.  Hope you have fun with this freebie.

Hey there, hi there, ho there, all!

Well, today’s the day.  Got your mouse clicking finger ready?  Today you get an awesome megakit freebie and all you have to do to get it is click around.  The members of the ADS Designer group have put together a megakit freebie that you’re going to love.  One palatte, one idea and over 40 designers means you’re going to have tons of new stuff today! 

Here’s my portion of the kit.  My background was just a bit different than most becuase I grew up a country girl with a lake in my back yard.  I have great memories of swimming, boating, eating scuppinines and honeysuckle (before dinner … mom wasn’t happy with that), fishing, eating homemade icecream, making mudpies, playing baseball with ghostrunners (we had to… there was only my sister and I), taking family vacations and in the summer time staying up all night and sleeping half the day away.  Those were great days and I sure do miss them.  No, you can’t go home again, but with this kit you can sure feel like you’re there.

Grab my portion of the Backyard Playground megakit here.  Then go visit these blogs to get the rest of the megakit.  Please remember that we’re spread out all over the world in different time zones so if someone doesn’t have their link up yet, please try back later.  Also, remember we have no control over 4shared or other file sharing sites and how they handle traffic.  If you have a problem obtaining a piece of the kit, just try back later — they’ll be up for the whole month of July.

abyscraps by Sheila
Ahh Scrap!!!
AllieKat Creations
Angel Flying Solo
Angelfaye’s Corner
Angels Digi Scraps
Angies Asylum
Bearly Scrapping
Beckmoore’s Scrapalittle
Brooke Designs!
Burkhart Scrapzone Designs
Busy Scrappin
Buzybee Designs
By God’s Design
Carolina Girl Scrap Creations
Catt’s Scrapps
Cen’s Loft
Creations by Rachael
Creations By Tara
Creative by Stella
Creative Dreams
DigiScrapalicious
Gloria’s Retreat
HS Designs
Inspiredbydominic Designs
Just Passin’ Thru
Kim’s Scrappin’
Kirsty’s Box of Scraps
Kreative Junkie
Lady V dZine
Life in the Texas Panhandle
Lighthouse Scrapping
Mamadukez Creationz
Moonlight Scraps
Munchkin Scraps by Aeryn
Nancy Wilkins DBA Scrappy Cats
NiCoAl Goes DigiScrapping
PinkuPixie’s Bits-n-Pieces
Random Inspirations by Monica
RoseMcDigital Designs
Scrapaholic Designs
Scrappin As It Happens
Scrappin’ Happens
Scrappinmamma’s Digitals
Scrapping with Tammy
SHA Scraps
Stellarific Creations
Sweet Adaline Designs
Sweet As Mel
Swordascrappin
The Amazed Scrapper – note: had some issues with her files early on the 1st but fixed the problems as soon as she found out. If you downloaded previously and experienced problems, please feel free to visit her blog to replace them.
The Scrap Loft
The Template Club
Xandra Martin Designs

Howdy all,

Well, I’ve been busy, busy, busy getting new kits put together and in my stores, Ahhh Scrap and BusyScrappin’. So this evening I decided to play with a little word art.  One of my favorite songs these days is Brad Paisley’s “Letter to Me”.  You should listen to it sometime — it talks about all the stuff we’d like tell our younger selves.  Or, if you’re lucky enough to have a teenager at home, the kind of stuff you’d like to tell them right now.  So here’s my word art of this song.  Hope you like it. 

Click the image to download the freebie.  And y’all come check out the stuff I’ve been working on in the stores.

Get yer mouse-clickin’ fingers ready for July 1st.  That’s the day when the ADS Designers group will be releasing their Background Playground collaboration megakit.  One color palatte, one basic idea and around 40 designers means that this mega kit is going to have tons of cool stuff in it.  Make sure to check back on the 1st of July to grab my portion of the kit and get all the links to the blogs for you to visit to get the rest of the kit.  Intrigued?  Wanna see a preview?  Okay… here’s just a bit of the preview of my portion of the kit.

This is just a bit of my contribution to the mega kit.  Come back on the 1st to see all of it and click around to all the blogs to get the rest of this mega kit!

Hey there, hi there, ho there from the Sunshine State!

Well, by now it’s hot, hot, hot down here and humid and sticky!  I’ll tell you what, it doesn’t surprise me at all that air conditioning was invented in Florida.  But now that we do have a/c that’s where I stay — inside inthe a/c scrapping and designing.  Today’s inspiration came straight from the sun and you’re gonna love it!  First there’s the new element kit — A Sunshine State of Mind.  Twelve lovely little embellishments to bring a ray of sunshine to your layouts.

And because I just couldn’t stop creating these cute little suns, I made an add on freebie.  Check out these.

Both of these are available at Ahhh Scrap.  And don’t forget to stop by the forums to play some of our games.  We have a great challenge about everyday activities going on this week and a fun game of hangman and other games.  See ya there!

On 22 June we lost one of the most intriguing and controversial humorists I’ve known – George Carlin.  Whether he was just messing around (“Get on the plane… @#$! you, I’m getting IN the plane.  There’s less WIND in here!) or making us think (“Why is it abortion when it’s us but when it’s chickens it’s an omelet”) George had a way with language and a unique view of the world.  In tribute I’ve created a word art set with some of what he said.  Click on the image to download. Enjoy!

Helping get a new site ready is a lot like having a child.  You do all the planning you can do and then you can only hope everything goes well.  But it’s a great feeling and it makes me want to celebrate.  So, I put together another freebie for you – something related to children.  Here’s some word art regarding the only things we can give our children – Roots & Wings.

Just click on the image above to go to Ahhh Scrap and get the freebie.