Core'dinations Tornado!

tornado n. (pl. tornadoes or tornados) a violent destructive whirlwind.

This past week we have been eating at the coffee table. I feel shame. There was not one square inch of dining room table as it was covered in Core'dinations ColorCore Cardstock.
I have been asked by Core'dinations to design an hour long class for a Retailers' Event at Open Page Wholesalers in Mississauga, ON. I will be teaching the class on Thursday, March 26th.
Unfortunately I can't post the layout at this point...but I will after the event is over...with instructions. It is a class which features many techniques using their cardstock including: tearing, sanding, antiquing, distressing and embossing. The best part is that it features their *NEW* Whitewash Collection. It should be arriving at your local scrapbooking store or on-line store very soon!
Here is a card that I made this past week for my DT gig at Sketch This! which features Whitewash.
Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock (Whitewash, All in the Family), American Crafts patterned paper, Fiskars scalloped heart punch and Threading Water border punch, Stampin' Up! label punch, Basic Grey rubon, Making Memories buttons and sanding block, Cuttlebug butterfly die and embossing folder, Uniball white pen, foam layering tape, hemp string.

Soup's ON!

We love soup at our house. I usually make a huge pot of soup on Sunday afternoons and that lasts us for most of the week. This week's soup was Roasted Garlic and Sweet Potato Soup.

Roasted Garlic & Sweet Potato Soup

6 large sweet potatoes

1 large cooking onion, chopped

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 head roasted garlic

6 cups reduced-salt chicken broth or bouillon

1 or 2 cups of water

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350'F. Slice potatoes in half, lengthwise. Rub cut surfaces with olive oil and place cut side down on a baking sheet. On the same baking sheet, place a whole bulb of garlic and drizzle with more olive oil. Bake uncovered in center of oven until the sweet potatoes are soft, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile heat olive oil in a saute pan. Add chopped onion and saute until clear and soft. Place in food processor. Remove half the potato pulp from the sweet potatoes and place in a food processor. Squeeze the roasted garlic into the food processor with sweet potato pulp. Run the food processor until a smooth puree forms. Place puree into a large saucepan and add remaining pureed potato pulp. Add broth and water until desired consistency. Cook on medium heat until thoroughly heated.
Nutritional Information per serving (Makes 10 cups):
99 calories; 3.5 g protein; 1.5 g fat; 18 g carbohydrates

I found the recipe in Tosca Reno's book "The Eat-Clean Diet". I have all of her books including "The Eat-Clean Diet for Family & Kids".

Also, last week Brianna Taylor won the Valentine's Day pack of Core'dinations cardstock and some Jillibean Soup products as well. She sent me her family's favourite homemade soup recipe as well. Sounds easy. I LOVE that!!!

TACO SOUP
Ingredients:
2 packages taco seasoning
2 packages ranch dressing mix
1 10oz can crushed tomatoes
2 or 3 cans black beans with the juice
2 cans Mexican corn
2 cans Rotel brand tomatoes
1 lb of ground beef
Directions:
Dump all into a big pot and add 2 cups of water. Simmer for 2 hours on a low bubble. Serve with grated cheese and a blob of sour cream. Enjoy!




Finally, I wanted to share what I made on Friday night. I was home alone. It was quiet. It was AWESOME!
This is a 6"x12" layout that I made from some of the photos that I took last Monday on Family Day. I am proud of the fact that Ontario has given us a day off work to celebrate being a family.

Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock (Snowflake white, Vintage - Asparagus), Jillibean Soup patterned paper, American Crafts Thickers (Typo/Peacock Blue), Making Memories felt flowers and buttons, Fiskars scalloped heart punch, Tsukineko ink, Glue Dots, Creative Memories tape runner, EK Success marker, kraft paper floral wire (dollar store), foam layering tape, date stamp, and hemp string.

Happy Birthday, Kimber!

Today is Kimber's birthday. Be sure to drop by her blog and wish her well. Her husband, Bill, is returning from Iraq sometime this week or next. Very exciting!!!

Today would have also been my grandmother's birthday. She would have been 95. She was crafty. She was funny. She went to the gym every week and would have kicked your butt at volleyball. Her only regret in life was that she never learned to play honky-tonk piano. Yeah. She was that kind of grandma.

Here's a quick tag card that I made for my friend, Kimber.

Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, WorldWin craft paper, Jillibean Soup patterned paper, EK Success circle punches and marker, Stampin' Up! ribbon, bird stamp, and heart punches, Scenic Route worn grid paper, We R' Memory Keepers eyelet, Making Memories letter stickers, Hampton Art "birthday wishes" stamp, Gel-a-Tins tree trunk stamp, pencil crayon and foam layering tape.

Happy Family Day!

Today was Family Day in Ontario and it was also Aunt Hope's birthday. She is spending her birthday, at work, on a Carnival cruise ship. We miss you, Aunt Hope!
The Hodgees rocked it out on Rock Band while visiting some good friends in Stratford, ON. We spent the day with the Hughes family. There is no better way to spend Family Day than with a four kids, a drum kit, two guitars and a microphone.
Ema on drums.
Daddy on guitar.
ROCK ON!
I also wanted to share a layout that I made on the weekend. I think it may be part of my design team entry for the current Jillibean Soup call...but I will see what else my brain comes up with before the 28th of February.
Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, Jillibean Soup patterned paper and journaling sprout, American Crafts Thickers, Dymo labeler and Broderbund photo editing.

JBS and Core'dinations WINNER!

The following is real dialogue which occured at the Hodgkinson home at 3:05PM EST.

Mom: Hey, Matt. I need you to do me a favour.

Matt: K.

Mom: I need you to think really hard. I need you to tell me a number between 1 and 106.

Matt: (Thinking hard. See photo.) K. That's easy. 25. What does that mean, Mom?

Mom: You just made someone very happy. The person who wrote the 25th comment on our blog.

Matt: Cool.

So, the lucky winner is:

Brianna said...
My favorite is Taco Soup! So easy and so yummy!
February 9, 2009 10:29 AM

Brianna, can you please drop me an email (thehodgees@yahoo.ca) ASAP so I can mail you your Jillibean Soup and Core'dinations products....and a Happy Valentine's Day to you! Brianna, be sure to include in the body of your email your Taco Soup recipe so that I can post it later this week. I will also be sharing The Hodgees' favourite family soup recipe.

By the way, Matthew is sporting the latest t-shirt craze...a "My Mom Rocks" shirt I found at Bonnie Toggs. All the cool kids are wearing them...clearly!

Have a great Valentine's Day!

Love,

The Hodgees

Jillibean Soup and Core'dinations Giveaway!

*** Edited to add new images of Jillibean Soup cards ***

Last night I scrapped at my friend Mel's house....till the ween hours of the morn!
I made a layout and a card. The card can't be shared till Tuesday but the layout I can share right now.
Over at Kraft Girl Kits they have a February Sketch Contest. It's a sketch designed by Jakki Weddle. Anyhoo, I nabbed me some of the *NEW* Minestrone collection by Jillibean Soup, which arrived at our store on Friday.

Supplies: Jillibean Soup patterned paper and kraft paper, Core'dinations cardstock, foam layering tape, Zig marker, Cricut diecut title - "Stamped", watercolour pencil crayons, Hampton Art stamps, Staz-On ink, Stampin' Up border punch, date stamp, Sketch designed by Jakki Weddle for Kraft Girl Kits.


So, from RIGHT NOW until Saturday, February 14, 2009 at 3PM EST, I will be taking entries to win a prize pack of Jillibean Soup's Minestrone papers (6 sheets), 2 sheets of printed kraft from the Cold Raspberry collection, 4 Journaling Sprouts, AND 12 sheets of coordinating Core'dinations cardstock. This includes two sheets of their *NEW* Whitewash paper. Ya just can't get better than that!

The Rules: Simple. Post a comment on my blog. Within the body of your comment, give me the name of your favourite homemade soup. On Valentine's Day, at 3PM EST, I will ask my son to pick a number between 1 and the highest number of comments posted. Please only post once. I will then post the winner's name and they can contact me with their mailing address. Be prepared...if you are picked I will be asking for the recipe for your favourite homemade soup to share on this blog. Best of luck!

Here's another project that I made on Saturday night at my friend Mel's house. Be sure to drop by Sketch This! to see the sketch that this card was based on...and take a stab at it yourself...either as a layout or a card.

Supplies: Jillibean Soup patterned paper/kraft paper, journaling sprout and bean seeds, Scenic Route patterned paper (heart), Core'dinations Vintage cardstock, American Crafts Thickers, Storage Unit, Inks & More stamp (fly), Hampton Art letter stamps, Staz-On ink, Fiskars border punch, Stampin' Up border and heart punch, Zig marker, foam layering tape.

This card was the result of Ema writing her name where the teacher's name was supposed to go on her "Hello Kitty" Valentines. The paper is from the Cold Raspberry collection at Jillibean Soup. Check out how friggin' cool their kraft paper looks on sanded Core'dinations cardstock (French Roast in this case).

Supplies: Core'dinations cardstock, Jillibean Soup kraft paper, patterned paper and journaling sprout, Scenic Route grid paper, EK Success letter stamps, Staz-On ink, Stampin' Up border punch, Making Memories sanding block, foam layering tape, ric rac.

Friggin' Groundhog

Wiarton Willie has seen his shadow. Another six weeks of winter was his prediction. Seriously. Seriously? Six more weeks? Then again, what's it to him? He just heads back down his hole to his cozy little burrow and falls back asleep.

While February has started off with this harsh news it is one of my more favourite months. Chocolate is coming. Matt just turned 7 1/2 yesterday. Ema will soon be 4 1/2. Reed, their one and only cousin, will turn 1. I will spend the 18th of February remembering my grandmother when she would have celebrated her birthday. My friend, Kimber, will celebrate her birthday the same day AND welcome her husband home later this month after he returns from Iraq. February is going to prove to be a very loving and joyful month.

On that note, here's a card that I made for this week's Sketch This DT assignment. I got to play with Core'dinations' new Whitewash cardstock which I got my mitts on at Winter CHA. Delicious!

Home Sweet Home

It's nice to be home. Although it was great to travel to Anaheim last week for the Craft and Hobby Association trade show, it's nice to be home. I saw lots of my scrappin' friends while in California...and made some new ones as well. I drooled over new papers and product lines. Licked samples in order to claim dibs on them. Now the process begins of waiting for all the great new products to arrive at our store.

This was one of my favourite photos from our trip. It's a photo of Dana, our store owner, at the end of our last day. She is exhausted. She is heading for our hotel room to crash.

I will be back soon with a card that I made using the brand new Whitewash cardstock by Core'dinations.