Party Over At My 'House'!!!

A 'Blog GiveAway Party', that is!!! :D

Last week I put the question out there 'cuz I was considering hosting a giveaway here on my blog. I had decided that when my Twitter account hit 100 followers (yeah, I know, 100 big freakin' deal 'cuz everyone else has, like, 10 BILLION ~ Well, Ashton Kutcher does at least LOL But for me, 100 was a big deal) I wanted to celebrate by giving someone the chance to celebrate along with me. And I hit it last Wednesday (A few have since dropped like flys, but we won't count that!)
Soooooo...It is now time for the First Ever Pink Cupcake Arts Blog Giveaway Extravaganza!!!! :D
Since I consider a lot of the people that follow me on Twitter to by my friends, and because I like to share the things that I like with my friends, I decided that this would be the perfect chance to share some of my favorite things. And that is exactly what I am giving away, a container/bag that I have STUFFED to the brim with some of my favorite arts-y, crafts-y, super fun goodies!
Anyone wanna see a pile of all the Fabulous stuff? Nod once for yes!

I gathered all this fun stuff from the TONS of supplies that currently take up residence in my studio. There is stuff in there for art-ing, for crafting, for sewing, for jewelry making, for....well, for just about anything you can think of and more! (I like to think that I suffer from 'Crafter's ADD' :D I like to do A LOT of stuff, but never do anything exclusively for very long LOL)
A short list of some of the stuff included in the Big Bad Pile O'Wonder is...
Calligraphy marker, Sakura Gelly Roller, sketch pencils, yards of fibers, wooden beads, paper flowers, star confetti, Prismacolor blender pencil, FQ of fabric, samples of some of my favorite glitters, embossing powders, and acrylic mediums, Twinkling H2O watercolor paints, water soluable oil pastels, grungeboard, cross-stitch kits, metal findings, assorted beads, library cards, ribbon, ric-rac, and sooooooooooooo very much more. :D

Then I attempted to stuff it all into this bag...

The bag is about 6 inches wide by about 12 inches long, and I'd say about 2/2.5 inches deep. It zips all the way around with a dual zipper and has a nifty little handle that you can carry it around with.

Big Surprise...It all fit (but just barely LOL :D)

(I AM a Master Packer :nods once for yes:)

I am guessing that by now you are wondering what exactly it is that you need to do to get in on the Giveaway part of all of this, right? Well, it is VERY simple.
The chance to sign up for this GiveAway will run from December 1 thru December 10. On December 11, I will assign everyone's entries a number, and plug them into a random number generator to decide the Big Winner!!!
The person chosen will be notified by email that they have won, so be certain to leave your contact info when you comment.
Every person that comments to this post will receive 1 entry in the GiveAway. In order to qualify for any of the Bonus Entries, you have to leave a comment here first. (Please feel free to let me know what additional things you have done to get the word out there so that I can be certain to add the entries in to your total. :D)
BONUS ENTRIES ARE AVAILABLE
Every new person that signs up to Follow my blog will receive 1 additional entry.
Every new person that signs up to Follow me Here on Twitter will receive 1 additional entry in the GiveAway.
Every person that Tweets about this GiveAway will receive 1 additional entry.
And, as an added bonus :D, if the amount of individual entrants reaches 20 I will include the extra special prize of a handcrafted 'Carry-All' bag made especially for the winner by ME :D HURRAY!!
Sooooo...be sure to tell your friends, neighbors, co-workers, people on the street, the grocery checker, well, anyone that you know that likes free stuff :D Get the word out there, and JOIN THE PARTY!!!

Wanna see what I am doing right now? :D

I signed up for a gift exchange on MotherHenna. :D

I LOVE making stuff for other people (as I mentioned before) So I decided that I would join the WONDERFUL swap going on over there. I can't wait to see who my partner is and to get started making something just for them.

 


Anyone want to join me? ;) You can find the info on the Mother Henna blog.

Possible Blog-y Giveaway?

I have been thinking about hosting a giveaway here on the ol' blog. However, I am at a total loss on what I should give away (I am not entire certain that it would be legal to offer one of the girls up as a prize ~ or that anyone would WANT to win one of them for that matter! ROFL)
SOOOOO...if anyone has any thoughts on what they might like to receive as a gift (and not, like, a MILLION dollars or anything supremely expensive) then please comment here and let me know.
:D

Which One Are You?

Pulled from an email...

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as if as soon as one problem was solved a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen and filled three pots with water.

In the first, she placed carrots.
In the second she placed eggs.
And the last she placed ground coffee beans.

She let them sit and boil without saying a word. About twenty minutes later, she turned off the burners.
She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.
Turning to her daughter, she said, "Tell me what you see."

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

The mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did, and noted that they felt soft.
Her mother then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg inside.
Finally, mother asked her to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.

The daughter then asked, "So, what's the point, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted differently.

The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.
The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid center. But, after sitting through the boiling water, its insides had become hardened.
The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water...they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot , an egg, or a coffee bean?"

Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, I wilt
and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?
Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial
hardship, or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my outer shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? Which actually changes the hot water - the very circumstances that bring the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor of the bean. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you instead of letting it change you.

When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level?

How do you handle Adversity?

ARE YOU A CARROT, AN EGG, OR A COFFEE BEAN?