A couple of fun challenges

While reading Anna's blog, I found this game being played and I thought I'd join. Hope you do, too, it's easy and looks fun~!
Here's what to do:
How to play:* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.* Turn to page 56.* Find the fifth sentence.* Post that sentence along with these instructions in a note in your BLOG.* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual... Use the CLOSEST

My sentence is: The train out of California rode through Nevada City.

The book you ask? "The letter" by Richard Paul Evans



Anna's blog lead me to Sue's blog, which challenges you to go to the sixth folder in your pictures and the sixth picture in that folder. How funny is this one~! (my son...now 11...is going to kill me!) This was after a day of sledding 6 years ago and he just couldn't "hold it" any more.

Christmas cookies

Being new to the family this year, our daughter-in-law wanted to start a new yearly tradition. My mother, (or "Gran" to the kids, and "Great Gran" to theirs...) volunteered her house when Jessica decided she wanted to gather the families and let the kids decorate Christmas cookies.


We really enjoyed it! I think the kids licked more than they decorated, and tired after only a few cookies, but we enjoyed spending the time all together! The "guys" were able to hibernate in the basement with "Papa" and the pool table. Guess I should have taken some pics of them, too, huh? Eh..... they aren't as cute as these guys!

Merry Christmas to all~!

Daughter singing at Christmas Crescendo~! Woo Hoo~!

Last night, our daughter sang in the Christmas Crescendo concert that I talked about in an earlier post, and she did fantastic!

There was some silliness......

Some singing from both adults and children, some tap dancing, some audience participating carolling....

Some story telling......



and a visit from both Santa and the Grinch!



The below videos are low quality, taken on my dual still camera/video recorder, so the visual quality isn't that great, but I wanted to share it with everyone. I'm so proud of her!

She has an awesome voice, but is very shy and doesn't have a whole lot of confidence. This is her first time doing any sort of public singing (other than church...). I'm so proud of her!

Santa Baby...........

When she puts her mind to it, she has more guts in her than I do! I'm so proud of her! (oh! I'm sorry.... Did I say that already?)

and my favorite... was Walking in a Winter Wonderland....

Writing, Reading and Journals

The girls I work with are always telling me, or making reference to how much I read and write and how much they wish THEY had the time. My response? "No, I don't! I'm a really REALLY slow reader, and you just think I journal so much because that's how I spend my lunch hour." (in between bites!)

I really do enjoy these things, but walking around my home.... I didn't realize how right they are!

My book case and magazines....

My "Sunday morning notes"...journal.... The journal the notes that I keep from Sunday morning sermons. Our pastor teaches directly from the Bible, a book at a time, going verse by verse. I love that he does this. It keeps everything in it's on context and helps me understand so much more.

An entire journal dedicated to the book of Revelations.....

My note book of the Wednesday night women's Bible study......

and as I study.... passages that I want to memorize, or just stood out to me for some reason.

Of course my art journal.....


And my daily journal.... (the one I'm usually writing in at lunch)..... This one is sort of like a diary... just my daily routines, thoughts, and the occasional Starbucks sticker!



This is AMAZING to me. I never in a hundred years thought I would be so... I don't know....

"WORD" oriented. I love it. Each and every one of my journals helps me grow in some way!

Flowers & Journal Pages!

Today, our family received the most beautiful flowers from my niece, for Christmas. I love it that she does this for us and look how cute the vase is, too! Thank you Jackie~!

I also got some soul journal pages done! First, the Web of Love. We were prompted to think of how we weave our own lives....the good and the bad, and to think of how it's all inter-connected and how the way we our lives effects others. I began with titles... Wife, Mom, Step-Mom, daughter, sister, etc.... and then added other descriptions from there. I'm happy with the "appearance" of the page, but I could have dove deeper into my choice of words in the web.



And also Trust the journey....... I like this page! The background started with some circles and swirls, just like we often feel our personal journeys through life feel. I picked several quotes that spoke to me, and added the strips to the page, and a flower to soften it all up a little. I'm glad I have this page to look back at and remind myself, that the sometimes rough journey helps my growth. If I don't grow... I just die. Right?

Scraps and Journal Pages

Last night I wanted to complete the next two journal prompts, but when I sat down at my table, the incredible amount of "scraps" that I save, were really starting to BUG me! This is not near as much of what i have, but they are thrown into several different locations, by no sort of organization. So! i begin separating them. Fri st by patterned paper or solid paper. Then I put them into separate areas, with the really small pieces in zip locks so they don't make a mess like they were! I was surprised how long this took me! I think I worked on doing that for about an hour - hour 1/2. Isn't funny how that little, piddly stuff can just run into a bigger project than intended?

When I was done with that, I at least started on the next two journal prompts, getting the backgrounds done. I really like the orange, but I think I like how they are going to be two totally different prompts, but the colors I've done, will tie the two together, making it a little easier on the eye, despite they are going to be unrelated!

Time with my daughter

Yesterday, after church, our daughter came over for a few hours for some help with a "prop" for when she sings in the Christmas Crescendo that I talked about here. One of the songs she will be singing is Santa Baby, and she wanted to make it fun. The song talks about the greedy, material things she wishes for, so we made a poster board with a Christmas list and all the items that is asked for, in the song. It turned out cute... I think she's happy with it.

I think the part I enjoyed the most is just having time to sit and talk to her. She, too, is a new stop-mom, and was nice talking as two adults, rather than mother/daughter, about how it can be both frustrating and rewarding, being a step-mom and how much you love and yet how in the end, you are truly limited in the comforts that you can offer (and sometimes the discipline, too! lol)

She (and her brothers...) have always sort of teased me about scrapbooking and making art. In the middle of our "project" she said .... "This is fun!" She's played with making ATC's in the past, more out of shear boredom at that moment, but I think (or maybe hope...lol...) that she really likes being creative and just won't admit it!☺

Soul Journal Pages :)

Ok, In my absence yes, I have done a little bit of creating, and yes, I'm a little behind in Kathryn's journal prompts, too. :)
The first page I'm sharing is the "Lexicon" page. We were asked to look through some of our previous art work and look for images that we see continually used, and to sort through magazines and pick images that speak to us as "ourselves". (You know....when you see that sweater or that.... home decor or music, etc...and think to yourself.. "Oh, that is SO me!"?) Well.... this is the finished product. I could have done pages and pages on this prompt, but being that I'm a little behind, I thought I would limit myself to two pages.

The next prompt was "Intuitive". Again, we were to go through our magazines, junk mail, old calendars, etc... and cut out images that appealed to us. We were to do this quickly and sporadically, without much forethought. We were then to collage them and limit ourselves to NO titles, or words of any kind, and this is where I ended.

It's kinds of funny, actually, how this worked out. The left side seems to be my "happy" page, and the right side my "sad" page. Anyone who knows me may see in the images what I mean by this. Again, it wasn't planned or thought about....it just sort of happened. I thought even the choice of colors that I used reflected the same.

I guess there is more to be said about intuition, than I've given thought to!

29 days of Giveaways~!

Please visit Art by Chrysti.

She is in the middle of the most amazing act of kindness! Chrysti is giving aways something every day, for 29 days. That's right! And even more than that, everyone who participates, and links to her page, will receive a small gift as well!

If you have a boost of creative energy any particular day - Chrysti is also accepting donations if anyone has anything they would like to give away, if you would like to participate in her giveaway along with her.

Check it out~!