Lady Gaga in High School....

Seems there is a fervor over how different Stefani Germanotta, now known as 'Lady Gaga,' was before in High School and how different she is now.

I'd like to weigh in on this one...

Seems to me that when you are in H.S. you are expected to conform, and most of us do.

Don't you think that when you are an adult, it's time to be yourself?

This blog is all about the creative part of my life. I'm no Lady Gaga yet I still have great ways to express myself and you do too!

I want to be known for different things than Stefani Germanotta wants to be known for. Maybe you do too. It's all good.

Yet we can take a page out of Stefani's book and find our best self and the way we express that.

Are you willing to take a chance on being unique? Have you found your style?

Pam Hoffman

Me & my Navy girl at her graduation from basic training in Chicago, March 2004

"When You Have a Dream..

...you've got to grab it and never let go." ~Carol Burnett

I Created a New Blog!

For several years, I've enjoyed Valentine's Day very much for all the hearts and 'love' items on the market. I collect new items almost every year and I pull out many of them and start decorating around the house, a little bit like you might do at Christmas!

It all started when I read a book called "Love 101" which helps you be more loving towards yourself.



I recently had an idea about this particular emotion, so to support it, I started a blog!

To visit my "You Are Love" blog, just click on the link!

Pam Hoffman


*Disclaimer: As a member of "Amazon" I will receive a material gain if you follow the link from here to there and make a purchase.

Blog Follower Giveaway

I am SO GRATEFUL to my followers that I will send each one of you (ok, probably not my boyfriend!) a little giftie, a RAK (random act of kindness) if you will.

I know that I like getting mail so...

If you are following me RIGHT NOW and you'd like a craft item, probably greeting card(s) or something like that, send your physical/snail mail address to pamhoffman at cox dot net to claim your prize by 2/21!

If you write a little bit about what you do or what you like, I can send something a little more focused on your interests, if I have anything like that!

Are you having a giveaway? Do you ever practice RAK (random acts of kindness)? Do you know how to get followers? Leave a comment so we can all learn!

Pam Hoffman

Fairy Orb my mom sent me for my birthday!

The Magic of Getting Mail...

I just LOVE getting cool stuff in the mail, don't you?

Well, it was a great day for mail today.

Three interesting things arrived.

I got a prize I won from The Kerrs....

beautifully wrapped!

I had forgotten that I won this so I was wondering what I had until I opened the package:

Thank You Jenny & Travis!

And for some reason, this came to me too:


I'll be digging thru the pages to see if there are any interesting images I can use for crafting and I'll probably recycle the rest (or maybe use some words from the pages).

I looked thru the items inside and they are better than average for this kind of thing!

And I did a survey a little while back and the reward came today too...






I was actually kind of expecting this one and I knew right away what it was about upon seeing the return address:


Do you have any prize winning tips on winning prizes and giveaways? What have you won lately? Are you using giveaways on your blog for anything?

Pam Hoffman

OWOH Winner!

Thank you all SO MUCH for visiting my blog for this One World, One Heart event!

You are ALL winners - you met some great new blogger buddies and you got a lot of eye candy with all the prizes and all the things everyone creates and posts to their blogs and maybe even a little inspiration! I know I did.

And the blogs are still there to go and see. I'll be visiting even more as I did not get through the entire list in time - found out about it a bit late I suppose...

As for the giveaway on MY blog, I printed out all the eligible entries, cut them to size (as uniformly as possible!) and had my boyfriend pick out a winner!

drumroll please..



And the WINNER IS...



Grace!

I'll send Grace an email message letting her know that she is the winner of the greeting cards (and a few other things i picked up over the weekend!).

Thank you all for participating in my blog giveaway for OWOH!

Pam Hoffman

One World, One Heart: A Blogging Community Event!

I recently learned of an interesting event:



I have read the particulars, which I think I understand, and I have decided to participate!

Thanks to Lisa for creating this and continuing the process which seems like a daunting task to me!

A little bit about One World One Heart...

• Who: Lisa Swifka
• What: OWOH is an annual blogging community event
• When: once a year, OWOH was started by Lisa in 2007
• Objective: to encourage a closer community amongst bloggers with a little prize for commentors thrown in for incentive

OK, so here's my giveaway...

I recently participated in a card swap which is the inspiration for this giveaway.

I am offering at least ONE (1) giveaway of one set of 4 handmade greeting cards (blank inside for your own message) & envelopes to send them in, of my own design, also including my 'pam-o' branding on the backs and pictured here:



No guarantees but I have a little time before I send this prize out and I may get a chance to add in more goodies. You'll just have to participate and see!

IF YOU WANT TO WIN...
If you want to win my giveaway, you want to follow the directions!

#1 Leave a comment on THIS blog post on MY blog!
#2 Make sure to include some way for me to contact you in the event YOU win so I can get your mailing address and ship the prize to you!
#3 Your comment must appear on this post of my blog by February 12th at midnight MY TIME [i'm in southern California if you want to look it up!]
#4 I reserve the right to eliminate a comment (and therefore your entry!) which seems to be objectionable which includes hate related, sp@m related, racist, sexist, ageist or anything I think of as objectionable and I'm pretty darn tolerant!

If you don't want your kid sister or grandmother reading it, it shouldn't be in your comment!

This giveaway is open to anyone who leaves a comment and follows the directions!

Winner will be ANNOUNCED on my blog February 15th sometime as I will be celebrating Valentine's Day on the 14th and then my birthday on the 15th!! It's a busy time of the year for me.

There is still a little time left to join. Will you visit Lisa's site and get on board of the One World, One Heart bandwagon or will you wait until next year? You do not have to be a creative type, you do need to have an active blog!

Pam Hoffman

Scrapbook Expo January 2010, Costa Mesa, CA

Last month, at Scrapbook Expo, my friend Rich Newell came along and helped me by obtaining pictures and videos of part of my day there.

This is some of that material...



It was the first time I ever did anything like this so it was definitely a learning experience!

I think I would do things a little differently next time.

We filmed on Sunday and after it was all over, I found myself wishing I had arrived at the Expo on Friday, did all my wandering and shopping and picked up all the material there and planned out Sunday in advanced.

As it was, I was there on Sunday figuring things out and having no real idea what I wanted to accomplish and knowing very little about where things were, etc. If you'd like to do something like this, I recommend you get the particulars nailed down before you get your camera crew there - especially if you are paying! Rich and I have a mutually beneficial arrangement here as he is into graphic arts, etc. and can showcase his work and expand his portfolio this way.

Anywho, the first of the videos about the show is right here:


The Expo is probably best covered in a couple of days - I only kept Rich about 1/2 day which was lucky since it rained after he left.

I stuck around to do my shopping and browse.

Like I said, I wish I'd have done that on Friday.

Have you been to the Scrapbook Expo? in which city? what did you like the best about it? the least?

We have more video to show you so stay tuned!

Pam Hoffman

See the way cool pendant? Christmas present from my daughter!

February, My Favorite Month!

Between busy, lazy and life, I'm finally getting here to freshen up things. Mind you February is one of my favorite months of the year!

Here in Southern California, the rain has brought the green and flowers blossoming (sorry everybody back in snow country!) and in February Valentine's Day then my birthday are here to celebrate and I've taken a fancy to all things hearts, lovey dovey and Valentine-y as my personal favorites, second only to Christmas.

I have lots to share, so stay tuned as I get back in gear here! ;)

Thanks for visiting, hope you enjoy the new background stuff...I could leave it up a long time! ;)

Pam Hoffman