Happy post-turkey day, a birthday, and the s4a anniversary blog hop!

What a crazy busy week it has been, I hope all of you who celebrate Thanksgiving were able to stuff yourselves silly with all sorts of good food. I know I sure did! I made a delicious pie and brought it to my mom's house. She is an ER nurse, so she gets every other Thanksgiving off, and this was one of those years. I just love when she cooks, it's a comfort thing. Growing up, she did almost all of the Thanksgivings, so her food is what I crave this time of year. It's always sad when she has to work, I just can't seem to recreate her potato heaven (yes, they are the creamiest most delicious mashed potatoes one will EVER eat.)

I'd also like to wish a very happy 11th birthday to my Andraia. She is growing up so fast, and I am so proud of the sweet, kind girl she has become. How many people can say that their 11 year old genuinely believes in Santa? Well, I can! It amazes me...her innocence has lasted, let's hope it remains for a few more years at least! Nothing big planned for today, as her big party is on Sunday. (Did I mention my son turns 3 on Tuesday, and his party is Monday night? That I have time for anything else amazes me! My mind is churning with to-do lists!)

Ok, ok...I know why you are really truly here. It's blog hop time! Before you read on too far, make sure that you have started at Melissa Pablo's blog! If I am your 10th stop, then you are all good! If not, click the link to her blog above to start from the beginning.

I have had the honor of designing for Sketches4All for half a year now. I love the friendly community, the inspiration the gallery provides, contests, challenges, and amazing sketches. Are you a member? You should join us! There's always a prize being offered up by someone, and there are some great ideas all over the site!

So here's the sketch the DT had to work with:

...and my take on it:

This is my middle child, Rileigh, on the Polar Express. It is an honor to be able to take this trip, as there is a lottery process involved to obtain tickets. One can try each year and never get a chance to ride the train to the "North Pole," which is so magical. I remember when we took this trip, it was -20 degrees and Patryk was only a couple of weeks old. We couldn't pass up the trip, so we bundled him up in a bazillion layers. I'm glad we did, I know I'll never forget it! The kids (yes, even Patryk) all received a bell from Santa's sleigh, which looked just like the bells the children receive in the book/movie. I used My Mind's Eye Be Merry glittery papers for the background and word paper. The striped paper and hot cocoa paper are KI Alpine, cut from the multi-stripe paper. You can't really tell in the photos, but the KI paper is shimmery. The doily is from the Chip Chop Shop (my new favorite embellie shop, TOTALLY check them out...Leanne is so talented!), the flowers Prima mulberry paper flowers, and MM silver brads. I used gold DMC floss to hold a piece of striped paper, which is a pocket for the actual ticket stub (there is writing on the back about the Polar Express and I wanted to be able to pull it out to read it.) The journaling: "You were able to live every child's dream, and got a ride to the North Pole via the Polar Express. Here, you are enjoying Santa's favorite hot chocolate."

You've already seen the amazing Echo Park grand prize offered by S4A, but I am offering one of my own! If you follow all of the rules listed below, you will be entered to win one of each of the My Mind's Eye Holiday Dreams papers from my pad. That's 18 sheets of embossed glittery holiday papers for those layouts featuring your treasured Christmas photos (and I'm sure there will be some surprise embellies thrown in, too!) I just love their papers, and this line is discontinued!

Here's the nitty gritty:

1) Just follow along the hop to the next person and find the hidden letter on each person's blog, then unscramble the letters to find the mystery word. My hidden letter is R. Make sure you leave a comment an each blog as you hop along to get credit

2) Become a member of Sketches4All

3) Using the sketch above, make your own layout and post it on Sketches4All. Don't forget to put in the hidden word you found after unscrambling the letters you found on our blogs when you post your project

4) Post in the forum for this contest to let us know you've posted in the gallery!! That is it!

To be eligible for my rak on my blog there are a few things you can do, each one will get you another entry into my rak. I will pick a random name from the entries to win!!

1) Leave me a comment on this post and you're in the drawing!

2) If you want another chance of winning, post about this contest on your blog and/or tell your Facebook friends about it! You will need to post with links so I can see, be sure to post them separately so I can give you points (a separate comment for both the blog post and facebook post).

3) Go through my blog posts and tell me what your favorite creation is. I do cards, layouts, and altered items, so you're bound to find something to inspire you.

4) Become a follower of my Blog and get another entry!!

Even better, each design team member may be giving away a different prize besides the grand prize offered by S4A, so don't stop here! Keep moving and visit everyone's blog! Hop on over to Fia's blog (a.k.a. big boss lady. She is amazing, and I love working for her!), she is the last stop on the hop, and has 2 of the letters you need to complete the mystery word!

Can't wait to see you over at s4a, thanks for hopping along, you have until December 6th to participate in the hop, post your layout in the gallery, and participate in our daily challenges related to this anniversary contest. Have a fantastic day, see you at s4a!