Well, Hi Everyone!!! Here I am - notimetostamp - better known to the rest of the world as Sharon Johnson. And I really can't believe I am saying hello to you from this gallery!!! It is WAY beyond my wildest imagination that I would ever be here included with all of these ultra-talented women. All I can say is that I am so truly, truly honored!!!

A bit about me - here's my life in a nutshell: graduated high school in '71, 1 year of college, 12.5 years as a legal secretary. I then "retired" at the age of 30 to marry Steve and become a dairy farmer's wife. We have three sons, Steve, Ben and Brian, who are 21, 19 and 15. The two oldest are in college. We have a small family operated dairy farm in Baraga, Michigan, which is in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, along the shores of Lake Superior. The unique thing about our farm and family is that we have a Centennial Farm, being run by the same family for 105 years. Our boys are the 5th generation here! I have always felt so very fortunate and blessed that I was able to be a stay at home mom and wife. I truly love being at home!!!

Now, about my creative life - I have absolutely no training whatsoever, not even so much as a high school art class. I did, however, grow up in a family where my Mom and Dad did "everything", from building houses to making clothes, home decor, upholstery, etc. My Mom taught me to sew at a very young age and I guess sewing is the most creative thing I have done on a regular basis throughout my lifetime. However, the sewing kind of came to a screeching halt when the rubber took over the sewing room - LOL!!!

My introduction to rubber stamping came in 2000 when my 15-year old neighbor girl called and asked me if I'd come to her stamping party. "Well, of course, I'd love to come," I cheerfully replied, while inside I was thinking, "what in the world am I going to have to buy now!" LOL!!! Well, we all know what I had to buy and the rest is pretty much history. That first purchase was with skepticism, but it didn't take long for me to realize I had found something I could get a lot of enjoyment from. And that is exactly what I got - a lot of enjoyment. I spent all those years stamping, enjoyably, but on pretty much an as-needed basis. I needed a card, I'd go and make one. I attended stamp camps with friends and truly did enjoy myself.

However, in April 2006 that was soon to change. I decided one day to sit down and check out this Splitcoast site I'd stumbled upon on occasion. Well, that one day did it!!! My enjoyment for rubber stamping very quickly turned into a true passion. A passion that had been fueled by all of the wonderful works of art I was seeing before me on the screen. It was truly eye opening. The inspiration was never-ending. I was in awe. I wanted to do all these gorgeous things that everyone else was doing. Well, I just dug in, started trying, and I am still trying - it's a never-ending process - there is just so much to be done and so many possibilities, and still so much to be learned. And, of course, all of a sudden I "needed" so many new things so, naturally, I became a Stampin' Up! Demo, which was one of the best decisions I have made. It just feels so natural and right for me - I absolutely love every minute of it!!!

Oh, and about my username: notimetostamp. I get asked a lot about it. When asked to key in a username, my thought process was "Gee, I don't really have time to stamp, what am I even here for?", so my fingers just spewed out "notimetostamp", never realizing I'd be making so many new friends and actually come to be known by that name. I guess if I had put more thought into it, I should have called myself "madetimetostamp"!!! LOL!!!

Like I said above, I really can not believe that I am here, one of the Dirty Dozen, a Dirty Girl!!! But once the initial shock and numbness passed, I decided to consider this just one of the daily challenges that I love to play, just a little bigger!!! I'll give it my best shot. And to me, the challenge is not only in trying to make a few things that you hopefully will enjoy, but to instill that same passion and desire in you that I received from this site. THANK YOU EVERYONE, FOR ALL YOU HAVE GIVEN TO ME!!!