A B-I-G 100K Celebration

This is B-I-G!!!! My counter has passed 100,000! (That's not the big part ... keep reading...)

As I sit here scratching my head trying to sort out my feelings of amazement, confoundment, and delight, the single emotion that rises to the top is one of gratitude. Gratitude for this God-given talent that I can enjoy and share with others. And gratitude that so many of you choose to stop by here on a regular basis. From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU! I appreciate each and every visitor and am grateful for every single comment. You have given me a level of encouragement and confidence I never expected. I feel truly blessed to be part of this amazing community of stampers who love what they do and so freely share their creativity! It is humbling to consider that just as I have learned from and been inspired by so many others, in some small way I too can inspire in return.

I don't want to get too mushy on you, so let's get on to the celebration: Thanks to the amazing generosity of the owners of the companies I am lucky enough to design for, I've put together some B-I-G blog candy. One lucky winner will receive THREE stamp sets -- Father Figure by Verve Visual, Fruit of the Spirit from Our Daily Bread Designs, and Wild Birthday Wishes by H&M Stamps -- plus an assortment of Ranger distress embossing powders from Pez-A-Doodle Designs. [A quick word about Pez-A-Doodle Designs. It's run by a local friend of mine, Marti, who has her hand in all kinds of different crafty ventures, including Studio G stamps, Hampton Art stamps, and Ranger products. She's coming out with three of her own stamp lines very soon, too!] Thank you Julee, Kelley, Heather, and Marti!! Aren't they the BEST?!

How to win?! Just leave a comment on this post telling me either your favorite contemporary author or favorite current written work (fiction or non-fiction). Not much of a reader? How about a favorite magazine? A non-stamping blog you like to read? I will close comments on Wednesday, May 28 at noon EST, and randomly choose a winner shortly after that! Good luck!

I do have a card today, too, a celebration of a different sort. This cute little boy is from a set called Celebrate the Day, available today at H&M Stamps (along with two other new sets). Coloring is done with an aqua painter and reinkers. The ribbon, dp, and brads all came from a really old (July 2005, in fact) monthly scrapbooking kit from Paper Wishes. Feels good to use up something old!

Thank you for stopping by! I'm headed out of town this morning for some holiday R&R with the grandparents. Have a happy and safe holiday! 'See' you again on Tuesday.