TUSAL update

It's that time of month, time to show off the collection of ORT's! I'm sorry to say, my collection is not very big this month. As a matter of fact, this collection is for the whole year, not a very impressive group of threads if I had to admit.

The white threads at the top of my meager pile are the most current. This is also an update of the piece I'm working so hard to finish. I feel pretty good if I manage to stitch about an hour a week, it's hard to get much accomplished at that rate, but I feel like any stitching is better than no stitching! Thanks for checking out my progress!

Another reveal

I wanted to get this post done over the weekend, just never quite got around to it. As I mentioned in one of my recent posts, I participated in another swap with Chaotic Goddess Swaps, this time it was a Halloween theme, or, as they called it, Swapoween!  I was partnered with Kristin. We exchanged a couple of emails to get to know each other a little bit, then we exchanged boxes.  Check out the goodies I received:

Kristin did such a wonderful job with this! She sent more "fall" themed items, so I can enjoy them a little bit longer, and I'm glad she did. I received a welcome sign (the kitten looks like my little Elliott), a kitchen towel, a wicker pumpkin basket, a pumpkin spice candle ( I hadn't even told her that I hoard these candles all fall, so I have them to burn the rest of the year!), and a little ceramic pumpkin candle. By the way Kristin, this little pumpkin perfectly matches two others that I have on my dining room table, yeah! And she sent a bag of pumpkin candy, and miniature twix bars. I have been nice to share the candy pumpkins, but I've kept the Twix in my car, for when I need a quick chocolate fix during the day-I really needed these today, thanks Kristin. There was also a cute Halloween card included. I'm so glad I participated in this swap, this was a lot of fun. 

I sent Kristin a box full of Halloween goodies, but in my typical style, I didn't take a picture before I sent it out. I had a lot of fun shopping for my partner, but you'll have to check out her blog, Hopelessly Ever After, and see her post of goodies I sent. You can also check out Chaotic Goddess Swaps, and see what the other swappers sent each other.

And the night is still early, I've got a little bit of time to stitch before I call it a night. I'm getting close to finishing my current project, so I'm eager to work on it! Thanks for stopping by, have a wonderful day

Stitching Update

Last week, I had hoped to post an update on the little bit of stitching I've been doing. There's not a lot to show, but the project is coming along nicely

Of course, it's still a work in progress, so I haven't ironed the wrinkles out yet. I had hoped to have this done by now, but looks like I'll have to adjust, maybe it'll be done by Christmas. I've been pretty determined to get this done, haven't worked on any other WIP at the moment.

Last Saturday, my guys and I did our annual event-hubby, young son and I ran the Spotlight on Nursing 5K in Indianapolis. Since the money raised goes towards nursing scholarships, we run it every year. I had my best run time yet this year, not fast by any means, but my best time. This'll be the last time young son will run this with us, since he'll head off to college next fall. I'm not adjusting well to the thought of my baby growing up and leaving home, but guess it's going to happen whether I want it to or not!


My last bit of fun to share is that I've joined another swap with Chaotic Goddess! I have really enjoyed the swaps I've done, and I think this will be fun too-it's Swapoween! This'll be a perfect excuse to go shopping for all the Halloween items I don't typically buy for myself, but I think are so much fun! Check out my swap partner, Kristin's blog if you get a chance. We'll be shipping our boxes to each other at the end of this week, it's as exciting to ship as it is to receive! Next week I'll post the goodies I receive, so come and back and see how we did for each other!

Thanks for stopping to visit, enjoy the rest of your week

Happy October!

Where do the days go? I can't believe we're this far into October already. With all the rain lately, I really can't decide if it's fall, or if it's Spring again! I have to admit I love the cool nights, great sleeping weather, but I think I'm about ready for the rain to stop now.

Thank you my friends for your nice comments on my previous post. My pretty purple flower has been doing a lot of spinning lately with all of this wind!

This past Saturday was National Cardmaking day, did you know that? So, what's a crafter to do, make cards? Yes, probably, but I did not. It just didn't fit in this weekend. I would like to share a card that I received recently though. My bestest friend that I've known since childhood sent me this card recently

The picture really doesn't do it justice. You can't see online that this was made from papyrus paper, that the little hummingbird's body has miniature jewels that make it sparkle. I was in love when I saw the card, and it carried such sweet words from my friend.

So, what did I do Saturday that I couldn't play with paper? Hubby and I participated in Mallow Run Winery's Wine at the Line 5K race! There was an option to run 5 miles, we just enjoyed the 5K. After the run, you are rewarded with a souvenir glass, with your choice of wine, and music on the grass. The rain held out long enough for us to get through the run, have a bite to eat, and hear a little bit of music. When the sprinkles started, we hurried home! It was a lot of fun.

And as a last note, this is the way our weekend started out:

Youngest son was asked by one of the queen candidates to be her escort for the homecoming game Friday night. How happy we were that he escorted the girl that was chosen to be North Putnam's 2013 Homecoming Queen! They looked so good together. And their photo was on the front page of the local paper Saturday morning, not the whole queen court as we expected to see (of course hubby and I had to go out in search of the paper to have for a scrapbook) This was the first football game we've been to this year, and probably the last, well worth it in our opinion.

That's it for today my friends, must get ready for work! Hoping to get a stitching update on here this week! Thanks for stopping by, have a wonderful day

Purple Has Meaning

Well, while I'm sharing my recent purple acquisitions, I want to throw one more out there! If you've surfed my blog a little bit, you've probably read about my new job as a hospice nurse, which I am super excited about. I'm done with the majority of my training, and get my "wings" to start seeing patients on my own next week, finally!

I have to say, I really like the company I work for, they are so supportive of the patients and their families, and so involved in the community. They are also supportive of employees. One of our staff lost her mother to Alzheimer's, a disease that affects so many of our patients. In support of the staff member, the company as a group, participated in the local Walk to End Alzheimer's. In our matching purple t-shirts (which happens to be the designated Alzheimer's color), we walked together, supporting our co-worker, her family members that came together that day, and all of our patients that are affected. It was so touching.

As a participant in the walk, we were each allowed to have a flower. This was my first experience with this event, so I just picked a flower, without knowing the significance of the four color options. Guess what I randomly picked....

During opening ceremonies, they explained the colors. It just so happens my purple flower signified having lost a loved one. My pretty purple flower will stay planted in my flower garden.  I smile as I watch it spin, not only because I love the color, but also because it will reminds me of my grandmother that I lost to Alzheimer's,  just a few years ago. Just one more reason to love purple!

Thanks for stopping by-

Favorite Color

...swap reveal that is!!! Yep, I received a wonderful box of goodies, and I'm excited to share!

I don't know if you've had a chance to look at this blog, but I'm hooked! This is the second swap that I've participated in with Chaotic Goddess, and I'm keeping my eyes open to get in another!

I was assigned a wonderful partner, Kaylee, from A Chair in the Shade. I thought it was funny that we shared the same favorite color, purple! We shared a couple of brief emails about ourselves, and surfed each other's blogs a little bit to learn what we could about each other. Kaylee was right on with everything she sent me, I couldn't have asked for a better box of goodies. Wanna see what I got?

This was a lot packed into one little box! 

 First off, because I like flowers, I received a little purple flower pot, and crocus bulbs. I can't wait to plant these little bulbs!

Since I do love my scrapbooking, I also was the happy recipient of several scrapbooking products:

Pretty ink, Washi tapes, pretty purple sparkles, and embellishments. I have some pictures of my daughter in law at her law school graduation, with purple and black being the dominant colors, these will be perfect to complete the pages!

And last, but not least,

I received handmade items as well! Kaylee sent me ( see bottom picture) a small zipper pouch that she made. This is just the right size to carry in my nurse bag every day, since I don't carry my purse into patient homes with me. I took a second picture of the bag squished, so you can see the pretty fabric inside as well. The bag is laying on a purple dishcloth that Kaylee stitched as well. One can never have too many dishcloths!

There were so many thoughtful items in this box, and I think Kaylee did a wonderful job putting this together for me, thanks Kaylee, and thanks Chaotic Goddess for hosting this swap!

Pages, as Promised!

So, maybe I didn't get this posted over the weekend, but at least I didn't wait a full week! Yes, I finally found the time to take a couple of really lousy pictures of the latest scrapbook pages, hoorah! It makes me feel like I'm starting to have a life again (insert smile)

This first layout is Close To My Heart's new Sarita paper. I created these pages for my group that meets every month. These were the August pages. The colors are soooooo bold on these papers! Lots of pink, purple, dark blue, just so many colors to pull out of the patterned paper! I used the layout instructions that came with the Sarita Workshops on the go kit, but I changed up the papers a little bit from the suggested ones. Personally, I like to have just a little bit of pattern with more solid cardstock for emphasis. For me, too many patterns takes the focus away from the photos.


The next layout is one I did this past weekend, for our 4H group, the Happy Scrappers

This club is a mix of seasoned scrappers, and people just beginning. I didn't want to overwhelm the new girls, and I didn't want to bore the others. I chose what I love, simple elegance! This is the new Huntington paper from Close To My Heart. These colors are wonderful for fall. I love that there is fall paper, without pumpkins and trick or treat. My kids are too old for that, and I know others are in the same boat too, so these flowers were perfect.  I'm not sure if you can read it, the embellishment says "Give Thanks For All You Have".  I hate to put a title on pages I demonstrate, because I want people to actually use the pages. I also included a small label on the left side, made from our Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge. I am starting to use the Cricut cartridges more and more.

I'm so glad I was able to share these pages with you, thanks for stopping by to see them! I've got a gorgeous card I received, that I will be sharing later this week, hope you'll come back to check it out. Thanks for stopping by!

I did it again!

Yep, I did it. I joined another swap. I enjoyed the Local Flavor Swap so much, I joined the next swap hosted by Chaotic Goddess:

This swap will be super easy. Once assigned a partner, contact them, get to know them a little bit, and send them a package with at least 5 items in their favorite color. Doesn't that sound like fun! It's just something different. I would love to swap handmade items, but currently, I don't have as much time for handmade as I would like. I'm getting to know new people through these swaps, and I am really enjoying that. Today is the last day to sign up for this, so go I encourage you, go check out the details.

Just a little update. I started my new job a couple of weeks ago. I am officially a Hospice Nurse. I'm making the long trek out to Terre Haute every day for training, but once I'm officially done with that, (in about a month), my territory will be my own local county. I'm super excited about this job, it was what I wanted to do when I finished school-and to be able to work local is a bonus! I think the hard part right now is finding a car that will be fuel efficient, and spacious enough to work out of every day. I've been driving hubby's Prius the past week, but he needs it back. I promised myself a new car when I finished school, and had my heart set on an SUV. Comparing the mileage in those, with the Prius, I just can't do it. Unlike me, hubby loves car shopping, so I've put him on the hunt.

I've got a Close To My Heart demonstration to do this afternoon with a group of local ladies. I was up last night preparing, working with paper, and hubby finally asked why I was so energetic at 10pm. I guess it just felt good to be in my craft area again. Before the weekend is over, I will post pictures of the scrapbook page they are making today, as well as the one my group made a couple of weeks ago, before I headed to Tennessee-hope you'll come back and visit again this weekend! Thanks for stopping by today, have a great day

Sharing my swap!

I've had a box waiting patiently for me at the post office for a couple of days now. With my new work schedule, I am not home the hours that the post office is open, and my teenager has been somewhat forgetful of running an errand for me. I harassed him enough there was no way he could forget to go today, and I'm glad he went!

My delivery was the Local Flavor Swap, that I participated in through Chaotic Swap Goddess. You just never know what you're going to get when you join a swap. I am happy to say I am thrilled with the items Catie sent me representing her state of Washington! Let me show you a picture of everything together-

This was such a fun collection of things to sort through. And I have to admit, there is one item not shown in this picture-the box of Halletts Chocolates wasn't very happy about waiting at the post office for a couple of days. It is currently sitting in the fridge, trying to regain a recognizeable shape, so I can enjoy it tomorrow. Do you see the box hiding at the back of this group-the smoked salmon, how awesome is that! When my grandmother lived in Washington, she used to send salmon back to Indiana, I haven't had this in years. I wanted to dig in right away, but I think I'll wait until the weekend.

There was an interesting collection of postcards included-

Catie made notes on the postcards, the significance of the pictures, her memories. I loved reading every one of her notes.

There were also books about the state, as well as maps. My 22 year old son decided the wolves in the book were so cute, he should get one. I told him ok, he can have as many as he wants, after he moves to his own house!

And something I have never even heard of-Huckleberry honey? My hubby absolutely loves honey, so this will not go to waste, I can't wait to see what it tastes like!

This was such a fun swap not only to receive, but I enjoyed gathering the items to send to someone else. I was so excited about getting everything sent out, I forgot to take a single picture of the things I sent. And what a coincidence, Catie emailed me, saying she forgot to take any pictures of what she sent, so could I share pictures of the items with her.  Seems we were matched up as appropriate partners!  I think I'm going to keep an eye on the Chaotic Goddess, see what other creative swaps she comes up with! Make sure you check out her website for the Local Flavor Swap reveals, it'll be a fun way to get a new perspective on a few cities!

Thanks for stopping by

Trying something new

I love to travel, see new areas, experience the local flavor. With a new job starting up next week ( hmmm, don't think I've shared that yet), I won't be able to just get up and go whenever I want to anymore. But I found a way to still experience something new, and help someone else do the same. Let me introduce you to the Chaotic Goddess' 

Doesn't this sound like fun! I've done swaps over the years, usually they require a lot of paper cutting and gluing, so this sounded easy peasy! The rules were pretty simple: staying within a budget of $20-$30, not including shipping, fill a package with goodies that represent your town, or things specific to your location, for your partner. Since I've taken so long to post this, it's too late for any more sign ups, partners have been assigned. The boxes will be shipped out this week, so make sure you check back here to see what creative ideas my partner Catie comes up with to introduce me to her town, and check out the Chaotic Goddess to see what other people send. On that note, I've got a box to go pack up and get mailed out tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by, have a great day!

Still Plugging Along

Earlier this month, we celebrated my birthday. Some people like big parties, lots of people around-I like  to be home with my family, nothing big. My guys kind of struggled, trying to decide whether or not to even make a cake, since I have been diligent with my Weight Watchers, and losing the pounds. I made the decision easy, YES, chocolate cake! After all, Weight Watchers emphasizes eat what you want, just be aware, and account for it! My youngest baked the cake, and added a little creativity. Normally I would insert photo here, but I guess the pictures are on somebody's iphone, and I don't have it. It was cute though, trust me.

And my guys spoiled me with gifts. One son bought me a new purse, another one got me a barn star that I've been begging for-it looks perfect on my front porch. Hubby's gift I picked out for myself!

A friend of ours posted on facebook that she had some antique water pumps she was selling, from her grandparents house. I've been looking for one for the flower bed, so the timing was perfect.  She had two of the pumps, and a cast iron trough.

We bought all three pieces, and the argument began! Hubby wanted to strip the paint, repair any damage and repaint everything. I said that would take away the antique appeal.  In the end I just gave up and told him do whatever he wanted-easy to see what he chose.

I don't know if the value of the items is better or worse now, but after several layers of paint were removed, we could easily read the name Myers, and patent dates on one of the pumps. I think the antique look of the paint hubby chose was perfect, and the pumps look a lot better now.

They aren't in their final destination at the moment, but once the flowerbed is under control, these pumps will look great with my wagon (which is currently hidden behind the butterfly bush)  If I can get my apples finished, maybe I'll get to that flowerbed this week.

Remember the bushels of apples from last week? After peeling and freezing all of them, we started in Saturday morning and picked all the apples from one tree, and then the pears. Along with the frozen sliced apples, I now have 10 pints of homemade apple butter, 20 quarts of applesauce and 4 bushels of apples waiting-I'm not even thinking about picking any apples from the second tree! If we have nothing else to eat this winter, we have plenty of fruit!  On that note, back to the kitchen I go.....

Crossing My Fingers!

I hope I can get this post in, before I lose my internet! We're brewing up quite a storm here in central Indiana, some much needed rain. But with the good, comes the bad-when it storms out in the country, the internet doesn't last long, so I've got to make this quick!

I promised to share some of my excuses for my absence. Excuse number 1:

The books are finally gone from my library. I spent what seemed like forever reviewing, studying, testing with a tutor, until finally, I have passed my state licensing, and have officially transitioned from an LPN to RN. I found the cutest keychain on Etsy that I just had to buy myself to celebrate! I didn't realize how much of my time I was spending on studying, and now I wonder how did I ever get anything else done! Now I am out looking for the perfect job. I think I've found it, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Excuse #2

I'm allowing myself some much needed time for paper therapy! I've probably spent more time cleaning out and organizing my papers than anything else, but I have completed a couple of layouts. I totally cased this layout from another consultant, but it was perfect for these race pictures of my son. I've had this Victory paper pack from Close To My Heart for several months, and this is the first layout I've completed. Using flip flaps that attach directly to the outside of the page protector, I was able to have 15 pictures and some hidden journaling on this layout. Here is a picture of the open flip flaps, revealing more photos:

And although this hasn't taken up much of my time, YET, I just have to share:

I recently received this wonderful RAK from my friend Vickie. This has got to be the cutest pincushion! I don't know how she does such tiny stitches, but the pictures just don't do this justice. With the handmade counting pins, this is perfect. There was also a LHN pattern that I am anxious to get started on. I love, love, love LHN, and this will be my next start-thank you Vickie!

Time to say goodbye-my service is starting to fade in and out-but my new blackberry bushes are getting watered, so I'm happy happy! Thanks for stopping by.

A Simple Woman's Daybook

Good morning my friends-

It has been a while since I've posted, all good reasons for my absence! I have so many wonderful things to share in the next few days, but I'm going to ease into it. I'm starting MY week today, with an entry I haven't done in a long time, sharing my simple thoughts:

Daybook Entry, August 6th

Outside my window, the sun is up, the birds are singing, begging me to fill the feeders. Since I was gone over the weekend, the squirrels emptied the seed rather quickly.

I am thinking that I need to get my to do list written out for today. I have a lot to accomplish, I'm sure to  leaving something off if it isn't written down.

I am thankful that the blue star banner is now out of my window. We were at Ft Campbell, Kentucky yesterday, and saw our son return home from Afghanistan, safe and sound.

In the kitchen the coffee is staying warm for me. I haven't had my first cup yet.

I am wearing my workout clothes. I don't like to sit around all sweaty, but I really needed to cool down a little before I showered.

I am going to the dentist this morning. I have rescheduled this filling twice already, but enough is enough, gotta go today.

I am reading-nothing. And it feels good. The schoolbooks are gone, and I've got time to do other things. I've got books on the shelves waiting to be read, I'm just not ready yet.

I am looking forward to a job offer from the company I interviewed with last week.

Around the house, it's quiet, and still. Hubby left for work a long time ago, the boys aren't up yet, it's just me and my thoughts.

A few plans for the rest of the week-youngest son needs to be registered for school, his senior year. The process of transferring from the online school back into the local school is a little unnerving for me. I'm going to miss that time with him. We need to get his classes figured out, get a sports physical, and back to school shopping. Classes start next week. I'm not excited.

A peek into my day

The apples are ripe in the trees. I've already been sharing with my friends, now I need to get some put away for us. I want to beat the deer to them this year!


Coffee's calling, time to get that list written out. Thanks for stopping by, I hope you'll be back again this week, so we can catch up a little more. Have a wonderful day!

Background Stamps

Studio J

It seems there's always so many things that need to be done.  Like right now, the grass needs cut, but we had to get the mower repaired first. It's tough being an adult sometimes, deciding to do the necessary things, even if it means not getting to play as much.

On one of my sleepless nights lately, I decided to play! I have so many pictures that are just waiting to be organized, or printed even! My husband pointed out last week, over 18,000 photos on my computer,  that's a lot of memories that I haven't backed up! This particular sleepless night, we had multiple guests visiting, so I couldn't just go in my craft room, and start turning on lights and making noise. I wanted to create, but had to be quiet. I pulled out my trusty laptop, and in the dark living room, I was able to complete several layouts from start to finish, using the Studio J online scrapbooking from Close To My Heart. Take a peek at some of my work!

These were photos from Mother's Day this year. I love using the Studio J scrapbooking. Using this software, I can scrap my pictures in record time, using any retired paper that I may not even have in my stash! Ever paper has design elements to use, such as stickers and embellishments, that you can customize to your own preference.  Even if you aren't computer savvy, which I am definitely not, Studio J has many videos for instructions on the basics. Here's another project

I love old fashioned scrapbooking with paper, scissors and glue, but sometimes, getting the photos off the computer is well worth the change! When printed, these pages are 12 x 12, photo quality, ready to go in my books. With all of these layouts, I simply dragged my pictures across, and dropped them in a photo well. You can alter the paper colors, but these worked for me just the way they were.

Eight pages completed, in one sleepless night, not bad! This weekend, I was invited to go to an all day crop. I've already ordered pictures to be printed, and I'm going to pull together some coordinating papers. I'm going to challenge myself to see if I can get eight pages scrapped the traditional way, wish me luck!

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day

Freebies to Share!

Last week, while I was on vacation, Close To My Heart  held their annual convention for consultants in Disneyworld. I always enjoyed being at convention with my friends, and sharing the excitement when new products are released. Of course, the most exciting moment is seeing the new Idea Book!

As always, the book doesn't disappoint, there are many new and exciting products. This fall, there's even a new Cricut cartridge, called Artbooking!

Close To My Heart already has two exclusive cartridges, the Art Philosophy, and the Artiste. As is our standard, the cartridge comes with three stamp sets, and three sheets of chipboard Dimensional Elements that coordinate with the images on the cartridge. This is really a bargain for the price!

If you'd like to get your own copy of the brand new Idea Book, let me know! I can get one in the mail to you this week, and you'll have plenty of time to drool over it before the new items are available August 1st. You can purchase your book via the Idea Book tab on the right sidebar.

While waiting for your new book, you can enjoy some Close To My Heart freebies! Starting this month, Close To My Heart will be releasing free artwork to download, including colorful gift tags, notepaper, home decor, and more! You'll find "Rediscover" ads in Creating Keepsakes, Paper Crafts, and Scrapbook & Cards Today magazines telling you where to find your freebies, as well as here on my blog! This month is a sheet of 8 tags, with the words "You Make Me Happy."  The tags are several different colors, so you have many options.

I wanted to try these tags for myself, but I didn't have much time. I pulled out my CTMH Originals card making idea book, and put together a very quick card:

I'm anxious to try a few more fun ideas with these tags. By clicking on the "Rediscover" link on my right sidebar, you can download your own set of free tags.

Happy Crafting!

Happy to Be Home!

Good morning my friends!

Yes, as my title suggests, I am home, happy to be sleeping in my own bed again. Thank you my friends for your prayers and well wishes as I have traveled, and cared for my aging parents. I am happy to say mom is on the mend. She is back to work, and completing her cardiac rehab. We had a few scary times with her, but she is recovering well. Dad is not doing as well. I am thankful for every day he is still with me, which I fear won't be many more. He is happy and accepting what will be, and so we go on.

I am trying to get back into my routine. Not that there is much of a routine in the summer. At least I can start to work out consistently again, and eat like I am used to. I think the food is the hardest part of being away from home. For example, this is what mom and I had for dinner, the night she came home from the hospital after her heart attack:

I love that the cardiac leads are still on her chest, hahaha. Now, I do know that a hot fudge sundae may not be the best meal for a cardiac patient, but, isn't there a saying, Life is short, eat dessert first! We actually argued about the ice cream. After this one treat, we purchased a much healthier version for her freezer! And over the next couple of days, we purged and restocked the fridge and pantry. I do not want to ever, ever, do that again, what a job! She had enough unhealthy food to satisfy my teenage son and his friends for quite a while! I'm sure when I go back to visit, she will have repurchased many of the same foods, and the cycle will continue. Sometimes, you just can't teach an old dog new tricks.

I was barely home from Texas, when hubby and I packed our suitcases and went on vacation. We have a friend with a home in the Dominican Republic. Since he is currently working overseas, he rents his villa during his absence. If you are looking for a place to vacation, I highly recommend Residential Casa Linda. We stayed in villa 647. We went with another couple, so splitting the cost made it even more affordable. Our villa had two bedrooms with their own bathrooms, and being at opposite ends of the house, we had plenty of privacy.

We spent our mornings in the backyard, laying by the pool,

 and our afternoons being tourists.

We ziplined over the jungle

played with monkeys

traveled by cable car to the top of a mountain

and climbed against the current up several waterfalls, so we could slide back down (no cameras available).

And yes, we even saw the ocean.

After all of this, how did we celebrate the 4th of July? Quietly relaxing at home, enjoying the nice summer breeze, grateful that the final countdown has begun, for our son's return from his deployment

I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July celebration! Thanks for stopping to visit!

A Temporary Hiatus

Good morning my dear friends! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I was blessed to be able to spend the weekend with my mother. An unexpected vacation for me right now.

A week ago, young son had his broken wrist set in a cast. He will not be racing this summer while he heals. This will be stressful for all of us.

My father had another heart attack the same weekend Avery had his wrist fixed. It was not his first attack, and he stabilized quickly, is home recovering. When I saw him in the hospital, he looked great, as normal as is expected for him. His prognosis is not good, with his diabetes, congestive heart failure and emphysema. I am thankful for every day I have left with him.

Mom also had a heart attack the same weekend. This was totally unexpected. I always thought mom was invincible. I made the drive to Texas in record time. Mom is home from the hospital, but not cooperating well. Trying to change her to a heart healthy diet is a big task. And we are trying to teach her to take her blood pressure, and take the doggone medicine. She's stubborn. The hardest part of her recovery right now is getting her to understand that she needs to take it easy while the stents heal.

I will be staying in Texas a while. My heart and hands are full, so I will be on a temporary computer hiatus. I will return to my postings when I have had a chance to catch my breath!

Hugs to you all, have a great week!

Creative Packaging

Good morning my friends! I have a fun little package I created that I'd like to show you. I made this container with my customers last month, and I've been very negligent about sharing it with you all.

This is called a Kraft container, by Close To My Heart. It is similar to a shipping tube, made of sturdy cardboard. I used paper from the Lucy paper pack, with stamps from the current Buzz & Bumble workshops on the go kit. Usually, it is difficult to get paper to adhere to round items. I used tombow adhesive, and had no problems having the paper stick this time.

As you can see, the container opens at the top, which makes it a creative gift package. I was able to get this tube of heel repair cream into the container, with some paper shred. I put the Kraft container and these little socks into a gift bag, and shipped it to mom for Mother's day. If you have problems with cracked heels, like mom and I do, these socks are wonderful! They have some type of gel inside them. I only put them on at night, which is perfect, because I get cold feet at night! When I wake up in the morning, my heels are so much softer, they are wonderful. These can be picked up at Walmart.

 

 Close To My Heart is teaming up with Big Picture Classes to bring you a live webcast with step-by-step instructions for making your own kraft container, "Happy Thoughts". 

The FREE webcast will air Thursday, May 30 from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm (MDT). During the presentation, you’ll learn to make several projects from a variety of sponsors, including Close To My Heart’s Happy Thoughts kraft container, as the presenter walks you through the steps. Watch the Pajama Party by yourself, or with your friends for a fun crafting pajama party. Anyone with an Internet connection can watch, so be sure to order your project supplies in advance and then tune in!

The Pajama Party class will be available for FREE atBigPictureClasses.com on May 30. If you would like to interact on the message board, participate in live chat, post to the gallery, download handouts, or enter any contests, you will need to log in to the Pajama Party “classroom” by creating a free account on the Big Picture Classes website.

To make the Happy Thoughts kraft container, you and will want to have the following items—or similar products—on hand:

• My Acrylix^® Frame Flair Stamp Set (D1546)
• My Acrylix^® Happy Thoughts Stamp Set (C1536)
• Chantilly Paper Packet (need 1 sheet of B&T, X7163B)
• Crème Brulee Cardstock (need 1 sheet, X5754)
• Lagoon Cardstock (need 1 sheet, X5762)
• White Daisy Cardstock (need 1 sheet, 1385)
• Whisper Cardstock (need 1 sheet, X5929)
• Whisper Exclusive Inks^® Pad (Z2172)
• Lagoon Exclusive Inks^® Pad (Z2195)
• My Creations^® Kraft Container (Z1833)
• Baker’s Twine Neutral Assortment (need 3 yards, Z1701)
• Color-Ready Trinkets Wooden Shapes (Z1844)
• Sparkles Black & Grey Assortment (Z1754)
• 3-D Foam Tape (Z1151)
• Micro-Tip Scissors (Z534)
• Corner Rounder (Z578)
• Paper Trimmer (Z1783)
• My Acrylix^® Spritz Cleaner (1778)
• My Acrylix^® Stamp Scrubber (Z1782)
• 2" × 3½" My Acrylix^® Block (Y1009)
• 4" × 5" My Acrylix^® Block (Y1012)
• Cricut^® Art Philosophy Collection (Z1686)

You can order these items from my website, just click on the link on my sidebar.

Thanks for stopping by friends, have a great day!

Good Morning

Good morning my friends!

Now that I have recovered from my weekend and done a little catch up around the house, it's time for a quick post.

I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day. I didn't have my traditional sit around and sip my coffee type of day. My day started out here

Yep, hubby and I were in Memphis, TN. We traveled down on Saturday, to spend the weekend with our daughter in law. We left the two boys home alone for the weekend. They behaved very well this weekend, no horror stories of chains on the fridge, or locking each other  out of the house, like the last time we left them.  But that's another story in itself!

Sunday morning, we had breakfast at the hotel, and drove out to see Graceland. We've made many trips to or through Tennessee, but have never made the time for this adventure. We only spent about 3 hours touring his property, but it was interesting. Did you know Elvis had a twin brother? We didn't know that.

After our sightseeing, we rushed back to the hotel, changed and made our way downtown. We spent a couple of hours with Lindsey and her family at the University of Memphis law school graduation. Doesn't she look cute in her cap and gown!

We are so proud of Lindsey. Now the hard part for her, preparing for the bar exam. I know she'll do fine. And even though my son Chris couldn't physically be there with us, they arranged for him to see the ceremony

Via the Ipad, he was able to Skype from his location and watch the ceremony. Technology can be wonderful! He even had a front row seat to watch.

Before we headed home Monday, we helped Lindsey and her family move the rest of her things out of her apartment. Everything into storage, until closer to Chris' return home. Then everyone will get together again, and help her empty the storage, and set up the kid's house. We're looking forward to that move!

Tuesday was Mother's Day, round two. Our annual tradition is planting a tree. From my first mother's day at this house 13 years ago, this has been my gift from my boys, we've got a lot of yard to fill with trees, and I love seeing the trees grow, like my kids. This year's tree is a Japanese Maple, I love the red leaves

 This tree has a lot of growing to do! As long as all the rain we've been having keeps coming, it's growth will not be stunted.

Well, time for me to hit the road. I've gotta get out the door to my Weight Watcher's meeting, don't want to be late!

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day!