It’s the 4th of July in the States (and almost everywhere else right now, in fact) and it’s time to celebrate. Fireworks, tail-gating, the whole lot!
Noodle went to preschool yesterday and she made an American flag. The teachers told me it’s part of their “inclusion” policy that they honor all holidays of their students and their students’ families. I thought it was so sweet. I also thought it was perfectly hilarious, so I made a crack that went something like “Oh, that’s so sweet that you helped her celebrate the day we got away from you guys!”. Of course I said it in my most sugary sweet and playful voice so they knew that I was joking. We had ourselves a good solid 5 minutes of laughing and thigh-slapping at 1) my stupidity and 2) how well the Brits and Yanks can get along now and 3) how civilized I am, for an American.
It was sweet. I really love her school and she has the most wonderful time there. Those ladies are worth their weight in gold.

Also, in the spirit of the holiday, I have a new mini kit.
I hope you enjoy it! It’s free for now, but I may put it up for sale soon.
Also, if you leave me a comment, I will put you in a drawing for a $20 GC to my store!

Click HERE to download.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you’re all having a wonderful day!
This mini kit is no longer available for free download, but you can purchase it HERE for just $2! Thanks for stopping by!

84 comments
July 4, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Michelle Adams
LOL, Jan! You crazy American Lady!
I was looking around for a 4th kit with kraft paper colors in it – leave it to you to read my mind! LOl! Thank you!
July 4, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Jessica
Are you buying comments now? LOL
Thanks for the fun mini kit… I love the paper!!
July 4, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Shawna Taylor
What a cute photo of Norah, lover her lil flag! Thanks so much for the mini kit, love it especially the kraft papers!!
July 4, 2008 at 7:25 pm
BTMIN
I love that sweet little smile! Thanks for keeping us entertained with your funny little stories! I LOVE your blog!!
Happy 4th of July to you as well. Thank you so much for the adorable mini!!
July 4, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Jenny
Wow, you’re so generous. Thanks!!!
July 4, 2008 at 7:58 pm
HeatherK
What an adorable pic! Thanks for the minikit!
July 4, 2008 at 8:16 pm
SandraC
You are hilarious!
I do not need too many stars and stripes in kits, but I really do like yours!
Since I have not one drop of American blood, only South-American
Your kid is adorable.
Have a great weekend!
July 4, 2008 at 8:39 pm
Brooke
Adorable photo – what a cutie! Thanks for the mini-kit. I’m always excited when I see that you’ve got something new available.
July 4, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Dave
Haha is Noodle finally enjoying school?
July 4, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Shabby Miss Jenn
HOW CUTE IS THAT PHOTO JAN! Happy 4th! I love your patriotic enthusiasm!!!!
July 4, 2008 at 10:46 pm
Caroline
Gogreous pic & gorgeous kit.
Have a great 4th!!
July 4, 2008 at 11:03 pm
Christine Newman
LOL, funny story and cute photo! I love this mini-kit, it’s GORGEOUS! Like Michelle said, the blue and red go SO well with the kraft papers!
July 4, 2008 at 11:05 pm
jodie
Gorgeous photo
Love the comment
Thanks for the kit.
July 5, 2008 at 12:49 am
Bobbie
Happy 4th of July. Thank you for the wonderful mini kit!
July 5, 2008 at 2:09 am
Demetria
that’s a darling pic of your baby with the flag … I hope you had a great fourth… thanks for sharing your talents
July 5, 2008 at 2:11 am
Elizabeth
thank you, your daughter’s pic is just adorable, you can tell she’s proud of her creation, too!
July 5, 2008 at 2:33 am
tatsiana
Very cute picture! Thanks much for the minikit!
July 5, 2008 at 2:51 am
Jenn
Thanks for the mini kit and happy 4th!!!
July 5, 2008 at 3:03 am
kathleena
Thank you for the kit! Great picture and interesting take on star placement!
July 5, 2008 at 3:30 am
shelly
Thank you for your wonderful gift and have a Happy 4th with your loved ones!
July 5, 2008 at 3:41 am
Mary M
Thanks for the lovely kit.
Your girlie is a sweetie!
July 5, 2008 at 3:42 am
Becky
Thank You!!!! It’s so generous of you to offer this spectacular kit. It’s GREAT! I really enjoyed reading your blog and your daughter is precious! Stunning photos. Have an AWESOME weekend!!!!!
July 5, 2008 at 3:59 am
Kimberly
Thank you so much! I love this kit !!
July 5, 2008 at 4:10 am
Julie P (babyofmine)
what a cute comment! LOL she’s a cutiepatootie with the wee flag, too.
thank you for the mini kit.
July 5, 2008 at 5:07 am
Donna
Noodle is irresistibly cute. She’s quite the paper artist, too. And it’s very cool what you did with the selective colo(u)ring. Thanks so much for the sweet mini kit!
July 5, 2008 at 5:30 am
Suzy
What an adorable photo! And I just love that kit–especially the neutrals, which you don’t see often in patriotic kits. Thank you so much!
July 5, 2008 at 6:15 am
Heather
I just found your blog, and am going to download this great kit! What a cute story! Love what you did with that pic.
July 5, 2008 at 6:23 am
Toby
Thanks so much for these fab papers!!!
July 5, 2008 at 11:21 am
Monique
Thanks for the mini kit!
I am a preschool teacher as well, great arts and crafts project!
July 5, 2008 at 12:20 pm
chigirl
thanks so much for the mini kit, love the frayed flowers. I’m afraid I have a slight addiction to July 4th kits, must be the patriotic theme…
Happy 4th weekend.
July 5, 2008 at 2:16 pm
finless
Thanks, I love your stuff. This is another great kit.
July 5, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Maria
Thanks so much. You DO give freely! Love the kit!
July 5, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Tracy
oops, i left my message in the wrong place! Love the freebie and that little one is a doll.
July 5, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Kerilee
Beautiful freebie – thank you!
July 5, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Gen
Love the photo & the kit! Thanks so much!
July 5, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Sharon
Thanks for the kit. It will be fun to use..
July 5, 2008 at 5:24 pm
scrapmuch
thanks for the beautiful freebie! great photo, too
July 5, 2008 at 5:26 pm
michele
That photo is absolutely adorable. I laughed once I realized that your daughter made that flag in the UK. So nice of them to celebrate our independence.
Thanks for the kit! It was fun to visit your blog for the first time…I’ll definitely be back!
July 5, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Erica
Hey Nun,
What a great blog!!! I love all of the pictures of the girls and your “quirky” dialog. I miss you tons and have been thinking about you like crazy!
Keep up the great work; you’re an amazing talent!!!!
Much love always and forever,
Erica AKA: Nuni
July 5, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Tina Brown
I just ran across your blog and I love your work—thank you for the give away!!
July 5, 2008 at 6:15 pm
Jana
Thank you so much! I absolutely love these papers. And such a cute picture too!
July 5, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Debra
Love it Jan!! Thanks!
Darling photo (could she be any cuter?)….and super cute story!
July 5, 2008 at 7:55 pm
Ashley
Thank you for this darling kit…
And your sweet daughter is adorable. Love her flag, and the story about her teachers.
So pleased to have found your blog! I’ll be a regular reader now!!
July 5, 2008 at 7:58 pm
CindyC
Thanks for the kit, its awesome. What a cutie!! She is adorable. I love her smile.
July 5, 2008 at 8:41 pm
Cindy
Love the photo! It’s perfect for our free country! Love your work too! Thank you!
July 5, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Laura
Thanks for the awesome papers! Very nice of you to share
July 5, 2008 at 11:49 pm
Kate
Thanks for the great kit. The pic of noodle with her flag is adorable!
July 6, 2008 at 12:10 am
tape
Thank you for the wonderful new kit! I love your work.
July 6, 2008 at 12:15 am
Cyn
Love, love, love these papers!! Thank you!
July 6, 2008 at 12:50 am
Jessica
this is so nice of you – thanks for sharing!
July 6, 2008 at 1:09 am
sharon dale
Thanks so much for this gorgeous kit Jan! Even though in Australia we don’t celebrate 4th July, it’s still lovely and I’ll find some pics to scrap with it!
July 6, 2008 at 1:15 am
Sharon-shutterbug
Great mini, thanks for sharing. Hope you had an awesome 4th across the pond, and your little Noodle is too cute for words!!
July 6, 2008 at 1:17 am
faith
found your kit on digifree…it’s beautiful. Thanks for sharing!! =)
July 6, 2008 at 1:59 am
April
Such a cute picture of Noodle with the flag! Thanks for the kit! I am excited to use it!
July 6, 2008 at 2:23 am
Laura
Hey Girlfriend, Just wanted to say thanks for the goodie. Love you girl!!
July 6, 2008 at 4:36 am
Mer/marie
Thank you. I love your designs! Also, thanks for all you do at Songbird Avenue. It’s nice for someone to give back. Happy 4th to you!
July 6, 2008 at 6:19 am
PhoebeJo
Such a fabulous picture!! What a cutie!! These papers are just gorgeous!! Thank you so much for sharing them!! It’s funny, I never seem to like themed papers for my traditional pages but I am sure loving these!! Your work is always amazing!!
Thanks, again!!
July 6, 2008 at 7:27 am
Michele
Thanks for the freebie! Awesome pic! And I love your sense of humor.
July 6, 2008 at 7:51 am
fran b
Kimberly
Thank you so much! Love your kit!!!!Happy 4th!!
July 6, 2008 at 8:23 am
Sue
Love the flag its a real work of art, so is your kit, thank you so much for your generosity
July 6, 2008 at 8:25 am
ehooton
I love the mini! Thanks for making it free for a little while!
July 6, 2008 at 10:01 am
Blanche64
thank so much !
July 6, 2008 at 11:38 am
Christine
Oh, love the papers! TFS!
July 6, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Lou Ann
Thanks for the freebie! Can’t wait to use it!
July 6, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Renee
Thank-you.
July 6, 2008 at 3:26 pm
HilaryG
Thanks Jan! I always love your gifts. Thanks for sharing the photo of your daughter and the story
July 6, 2008 at 4:28 pm
~Julie~
What an adorable picture!
Thank you so much for the freebie
July 6, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Cindy
Darling, Thank You!
July 6, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Bettina
Great kit.. thanks so much!
July 6, 2008 at 5:06 pm
Amber
Thanks! Love the kit.
July 6, 2008 at 7:01 pm
kristen
I love this mini kit, the papers are what I have been looking for! And the pic of your daughter is ADORABLE!!
July 6, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Diane
Thanks for the kit – glad you got to celebrate!
July 6, 2008 at 8:32 pm
Jana
Hi Jan!
Thanks so much for the mini kit. I love how you did the photo with b and white expect for the flag:P I enjoy going on virtual field trips with your family and friends. My husband and I took our dream vacation in the UK we were lucky enough to have 2 weeks but I could have stayed for 2 weeks more.
July 6, 2008 at 9:00 pm
elina2
Thank you for the beautiful mini kit!
July 6, 2008 at 9:25 pm
shell
Thanks so much love your work!
July 6, 2008 at 9:42 pm
krohnmom
Thanks for this great patriotic freebie. Your talent and generosity are greatly appreciated.
July 6, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Holly
Thank you so much for sharing! I really love the colors you chose!!
I can see a lot of pages coming from this!
July 7, 2008 at 12:34 am
twoboyz00
This is wonderful! Thank you very much!
July 7, 2008 at 2:18 am
Ramie
Thanks so much! This is a gorgeous kit. Your generosity is much appreciated.
July 7, 2008 at 2:22 am
Debra
Jan – This is perfect ! Love the colors! Thank you!!!
July 7, 2008 at 3:28 am
Helenicki
Love it! Thanks! Thanks!
July 7, 2008 at 3:29 am
Brenda
Thanks for the GREAT freebie! I love it!
July 7, 2008 at 4:34 am
Melinda
What a lovely kit! Thanks, Jan!
July 7, 2008 at 5:15 am
Heidi
WOW!! Wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful work!