Welcome Friends!
Hi, I'm Nicole. I'm glad you stopped by.
Quick run down about who I am...
I am a Mom. Step-Mom. Wife to my best friend. Christian. Blended Family. 36. SAHM. WAHM. Writer. Scrapbooker. Close to My Heart Consultant. Creative. Bookworm. Playful at heart. Midwest girl.
Loves scrapbooking, cooking & baking, photography, horseback riding, words, living frugal, animals, sushi, chocolate, coffee and walks in nature.
Strongly dislikes spiders, Brussels sprouts, cleaning and messes. Ironic eh?
If you need to contact me for any reason, please email me at nicole (at) nicolehumphrey (dot) net.
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By Nicole Humphrey Cook
Practice and Experiment.
Don’t just go out there and think you are going to create a masterpiece. It can happen, but it doesn’t always happen that way. Practice different styles of cards, different techniques and different ways of making them. Don’t let yourself get discouraged when something doesn’t turn out right. See if there are ways to alter it to make it work, and if not, do not get down about having to scrap it and start over.
They always say practice makes perfect, and I encourage you to do lots of practice cards to get you ready for creating masterpieces. Do not ever hesitate to try out a different technique on a new card if you desire. Just remember, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Words to live by.
Click Here For More Tips.
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
I re-read some emails last night, and while I read them well the first time, I guess this just did not click.
Read what my Director wrote to us:
2008 Team Incentive
The best way to GROW your business is to KNOW your business! So, for 2008, each of you who earns your PhD with Close to My Hearts Online Training Academy, will be rewarded handsomely with a gathering of your own!
That’s right! Earn your PhD and receive a gathering on ME! ;0) You will receive $175 in FREE products ($150 gathering plus $25 hostess rewards…plus any SOM or other incentives available)! So start working on your classes and knock out your CTMH PhD!!
Uhm, hello? Seriously! Wow! Okay, so if you might have remembered, about a week ago I completed my Bachelor’s Degree with CTMH. And I forgot to post the other night but I successfully completed my Master’s Degree as well. Hmm….so next step? Ph.D baby!
I’m already through one section, only four more to go. Can I get most of it knocked out before I go to bed tonight? I sure hope so! Plus I am totally wanting to grow my My Acrylix sets, so…yeah.
I’m outta here so I can get crackin’. Wish me luck!!
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
*** Discount Alert ***
If you go to my Close to My Heart website, click on Shop Online, and then go to the bottom of the list to discounted items, you will find all sorts of things on sale right now. And not just some little sale. Most of these products are between 30-50% off the retail price. I am talking: Really.Great.Deals!
These are the types of items you will find on sale:
• My Legacy® Albums
• My Reflections® Scrapbook Kits (12″x12″)
• My Reflections Collection™ Scrapbook Kits (12″x12″)
• My Child’s Reflections™ Scrapbook Kits (9″ x 9″)
• My Originals™ Card Kits
• My Acrylix® Stamp Sets
• Exclusive Papers
• Accessories
and there are at least a couple of dozen sets of My Acrylix stamp sets on sale!
The coolest part about shopping at my site is that you can use your Discover Card, Visa or Mastercard and then the order will be shipped right to you!
But I would hurry and order the discounted items quick. It is only while supplies last and I know there’s been a huge fluctuation in orders today alone! 
P.S. If you do place an order, I will personally mail you a special goodie, so be sure to email me and let me know so I can get it out in the mail.
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
To get started you will need the piece that you plan to add the burnt edge to. I used a tag in my example, but you could use a mat or a other type of embellishment. The look will even work on photographs.
You also need a brown ink pad, a black ink pad and walnut ink.
To begin, protect your work surface and then begin stamping your brown ink pad along the edges of the tag (or other item) blending into the center of the tag.
Next, take your walnut ink and add to the edges of the piece only. Try to avoid getting anywhere but the edges.
Last step, grab that black ink pad and ink the entire piece only on the edges. You can apply the ink to the edge directly from the ink pad. Now, use a sponge and blend the inked edges into the center of the piece. This is what you get.
It is now complete and time for you to embellish it however you would like. I have had a sepia toned photograph of my daughter for awhile that I was unsure of what to do with. I decided to unevenly cut the photograph and attach it to the tag. I then placed a transparent overlay over the top and trimmed the edges.
To finish off the look, I added a Making Memories Washer that says “Treasure” and then I gave the ribbon a inked/stained look as well. This is my finished product.
Now it’s time for you to get creative and have some fun with the different things you can create with this look! Have fun!
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
I got about 12 layouts done this past weekend, and also just under 10 really cute cards. I haven’t photographed everything yet, but when I do, I will post. In the meantime, here are a couple of my favorites. Sorry about the pictures. There is just NO easy way to get a good picture. I have got to learn how to scan and stitch again. LOL
This layout was made with a kit from the monthly kit club I get. I stayed pretty true to the sample, and used Pumpkin Patch pictures. I’m glad to be done with these pictures.
 
This next set was done also from a kit, however I changed the photographs and concept quite a bit. I wanted to challenge myself to create a layout expressing my feelings about my Close to my Heart business and what I hoped to gain from it. There is hidden journaling, but I did place the quote “I Can and I Will” on the left page.
 
I’ll post a couple more layouts later.
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
 I mentioned earlier that I had two kids home sick from school today. Ugh!
It was funny though, because the child that looks the worst (pale, circles under her eyes, etc.) is the one with the most energy. Of course, she is the youngest. LOL
I made them some lunch – chicken soup and fruit. She gobbled the whole entire thing up in less than 10 minutes and wanted more.
 While the other child (who refused to be photographed – hey she’s 13! LOL) who actually looks alright albeit a bit disheveled from staying in bed all day acts as if she is royally dying. Can we say Drama Queen? She’d kill me if I ever told her that.
Here’s my cutie 8 year old eating her yummy lunch. As soon as lunch was done, she asked if she could go to school tomorrow.
Uh. No. Feel better girls!
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
It is tax time, which means we are expecting a nice sized refund back, and one of the things we want, is some new living room furniture. With seven people in our family, one sofa just does not cut it and quite frankly I am tired of finding kids sitting on the coffee table or elsewhere. So we know thats one thing we are getting.
The other thing on my wish list is a new bed. I don’t actually want a new mattress because I have a double pillow top and I love it! I just want a headboard. A complete bed, ya know?
Well, you have got to check out hooker furniture. Not only do they have beautiful furniture for every room in the house (living room, bedroom, children’s rooms, home office, dining room, kitchen and more!), but they will ship it to you. That’s right. You don’t have to go rent a truck and ask all your friends and neighbors to come over and help you move it into your house, because they will.
Tonight I spent about an hour on the site and found about 10 pieces I sure would love to have in various locations in our home. There is a living room wall unit that is absolutely to die for and would hold our television perfectly! Along with our ever growing DVD collection.
Guess where I am shopping in a few weeks?
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
I got about 12 layouts done this past weekend, and also just under 10 really cute cards. I haven’t photographed everything yet, but when I do, I will post. In the meantime, here are a couple of my favorites. Sorry about the pictures. There is just NO easy way to get a good picture. I have got to learn how to scan and stitch again. LOL
This layout was made with a kit from the monthly kit club I get. I stayed pretty true to the sample, and used Pumpkin Patch pictures. I’m glad to be done with these pictures.
 
This next set was done also from a kit, however I changed the photographs and concept quite a bit. I wanted to challenge myself to create a layout expressing my feelings about my Close to my Heart business and what I hoped to gain from it. There is hidden journaling, but I did place the quote “I Can and I Will” on the left page.
 
I’ll post a couple more layouts later.
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
I finally figured out how all you blog savvy gals were getting the little “link to me” code over to the right to work with a banner and the text so someone can add it easily.
It’s over there, you have to scroll just to the bottom of the About Me section.
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I created that banner awhile back, but had no way to allow people to take it. Now I do. hehehe
So, if you want to share the bloggy love or exchange links and you actually display graphics on your page, feel free to take it and display it and I will do exactly the same for you. Just be sure to let me know!
More later, I got a LOT of scrappin’ done over the weekend.
Two Peas Blogger Challenge:
Find a quotation that moves you and write it down. Why does it move you?
That’s easy. There are two.
“A mother holds her children’s hands for just a little while, but their hearts forever.” – Author Unknown
It moves me basically because from the moment I conceived my children I was so intensely in love with them that I absolutely understood that while I couldn’t hold their tiny hands for very long, I would hold onto the love that they bring and their hearts forever.
The other one, a little different.
“If one advances confidently in the direction of one’s dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” – Henry David Thoreau
I love this because its how I live my life. I try to be confident in my decisions, even when they go against what others perceive as the “right way”. It is with this thought process, I have achieved the dreams that I have achieved thus far.
Have a Happy Day, I’ll be back in a bit!
By Nicole Humphrey Cook
 Oh it just figures. I have two home sick from school today. YUCK!
Here’s the scoop. It was their weekend at mom’s house and everyone left healthy and happy and doing great. When they arrived home last night (an hour and 20 minutes late) the youngest sounded horrible. Every time that she opened her mouth to speak, you could hear it in her voice and she just looked beat. She however ate a full dinner and so we thought perhaps she was just really tired (as is typical for a weekend at their moms as there is no bedtime and no beds!). The other two didn’t eat much at all, picked at their food, ate a bite or two, however they were chatty and seemed okay.
Fast forward to this morning. We woke the middle schooler up for school and she looked horrible, sounded horrible and obviously felt horrible which she was verbal about. Strike 1. *sigh*
Next, an hour later we wake the elementary kids up. I knew my daughter was fine, as she had been fine all weekend. The youngest, the one who was so obviously sounding horrible last night, looked as white as a sheet. Horrible really. Yet she got up and went through the motions to prepare for school. I looked at her father and said no. I don’t normally encourage the kids to stay at home if they want to go, but we have all been healthy this school year and we need to kick this in the butt so we can move on and get better. No going to school for her.
I checked out the middle gal and she seemed ok. She said her throat felt a little scratchy but she felt alright and was eager to go to school. If she was sick, she would have said it, so we let her go. Thankfully we still have three well kids, but for how long?
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Check out the new Summer Idea Book
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