Berry Blessings

Welcome back, my crafty friends! I hope you’re having a wonderful week. I sure am. I have gotten to play with a few more of my Stampin’ Up!® preorder products from the upcoming January-June Mini Catalog (JJMC) and Sale-a-bration (SAB). Did you know that we’ll be having two Sale-a-bration events this year? One will be January and February 2021, and the second will be in July and August. The best news is that the January/February SAB will be products that are produced in the USA, so they will be available throughout the entire SAB event! You may remember that in the past, products sold out because they were made overseas, so production and shipping was held up due to the Chinese New Year. Not this time, my friends!

Look at this card using the cute Berry Blessings Stamp Set and Berry Delightful Designer Series Paper (DSP) that  you can earn with a $100 order in January or February.

How cute is this? I love the DSP as well as the stamp set, and the Berry Blessings Stamp Set coordinates with the Sweet Strawberry Bundle in the JJMC. (Can you say, “Die-cut strawberries?”)

For this card, I stamped the leaf base in Mossy Meadow (it was supposed to be Garden Green, but I grabbed the wrong stamp pad), then stamped the “leaf filler” with Granny Apple Green. The blueberry outlines are stamped in Night of Navy, then filled in with Pacific Point. I used this technique to line up all the stamps. The sentiment is also stamped in Pacific Point.

Speaking of the Berry Best, I’ve been thinking a lot about our country and the “kids” we’re leaving it to. Is it the best? I know the generation before mine was a little hesitant to let go and leave us in charge. I mean, we were children of the 60’s and 70’s, and the things we were “into” were pretty scary. My husband was written off as as waste. His high school counselors recommended trade school for him so he wouldn’t be a burden on society. When he talked about school, it sounded like he was a complete washout. But I saw his high school grades one day. They were very respectable – especially since he never studied. The man is brilliant; he just needed some direction. He just finished all his course work for his second doctorate and only needs to complete his dissertation project. Pretty impressive for a 60’s kid, don’t you think?

Then there are my children. Jon, my older son, wants to be very wealthy. Why? So he can spend it on others. He is the most giving person I know, and has always supported those less fortunate – including donating to a water pipeline for a village in Africa so they can have clean water. Wesley is raising the most incredible daughter. She is so giving and compassionate. You can read about her latest ventures here.

If you know me, you know I hate labels. I cringe every time I hear the term “snowflakes” (except when it applies to the weather). Stereotypes benefit no one. I choose to remain positive about the next generations.

One day, our doorbell rang. When I answered the door, I saw a group of kids from the neighborhood. I assumed they were selling something, so I was ready to say no. One of the girls started a story, and Mike, who was sitting in the living room, said, “Oh, that’s for me.” I was clueless. The girl handed him a bag of cookies; he thanked her, and that was it. Neighborhood kids giving out cookies? What’s up?

Apparently these girls were selling something a few months before. They were selling cookie dough. Frankly, if I had answered the door that day, we would have had cookies until the next decade. Mike, however, said he didn’t want any (seriously???? He didn’t ask me first? Perhaps I wasn’t home), but he gave them $X amount (I forget how much) for them to spend on their favorite cookies. The caveat was that they would bring him some cookies after they were baked. The kids ran off with his money and he didn’t expect to see them again. But, no. These girls ordered the cookie dough, baked the cookies, and brought Mike a huge bag of the finished cookies. How incredible is that? These same kids showed up one day in the summer asking if we had any chores they could do to earn some money. Sadly, we had kids the same age, and while Jon and Wes wanted us to hire them, we declined so that our kids could enjoy the experience of pulling weeds, mowing, and cleaning up dog droppings.

While there may be some kids around who don’t have the work ethic and values that we grew up with, most of them do care about their neighbors and friends doing well and enjoying life. They keep their commitments. And they want – as we do – a happier and more well-0ff society. And I am proud of them and trust them to lead us forward!

Thanks for stopping by Stamping with Buffy. Have a wonderful day!

Product List (only the current Stampin’ Up! Products are listed. The upcoming Sale-a-bratin and JJMC products are not.)