My own 'lil world

FreeShopping Spree

2010-08-17T13:21:00.003-04:00

Linda, over at "A crafting Journey", is taking a little blog break, for a vacation. In the mean time, just leave her a comment on her blog, wishing her well on her vacation, and be entered to win a free $50.00 shopping spree!

Thank you so much Linda~!

Yes… Another vacation post

2010-07-27T09:18:00.001-04:00

We decided to take a day to venture into Tawas City and let the kids swim in Lake Huron. What a beautiful day for it! 86 degrees and finally getting a little tan!

They scared seagulls away…. it’s funny how this picture turned out. It sort of looks like Alex is playing volleyball… but he’s just chasing birds! LOL

Played in the sand…

I love having dedicated time for the kids. Despite all their silly antics, they grow up so quickly and become beautiful young adults. I think these are my two favorite pics of the day. So beautiful.

After we got back to the cabin, Courtney and I spent some time drawing and creating. I played in my art journal and Courtney has been drawing on loose leaf paper and collecting them in a “school folder”. She’s a good little artist~! I think like me, she likes the quiet time to put her thoughts together and let them flow out of her pens. I Love it~! It will be a good excuse for me to wander around the stores for a new journal and make a little journal gift for her. (Shhh~!)

I finishes up a couple of pages I had started some time ago….

And…! The best part… LOL…. My husband even drew a picture of me as we played~! He doesn’t understand the whole art journal concept, but I think maybe he secretly wanted to be a part of it. LOL

Vacation Post

2010-07-25T09:23:00.001-04:00

While our older kids are at home, house and dog sitting for us, we have ventured up north, to Michigan’s wilderness. We still have five days to go and have completely enjoyed ourselves for far!

We have four wheeled, swam, fished, and generally relaxed!

The boys….

The girls…..

A break for a quick consult of the map…

The ride home….

And by the time we got back, the girls were just as happy as the boys~! What a great time for all of us. Apart from the mud, sand and speed, we saw two deer, a doe, and a black squirrel.

We three families have been coming to the same location for almost 10 years now, and this is the first time we’ve been to the cabins since Clarence’s passing almost a year ago (that I posted about here). I know in my heart he would be so proud of his kids, and happy that our families are carrying on the “Bass Lake Traditions” Sorry sweetheart, but the fires kinda suck now. That will always be dubbed “your thing”. We love and miss you.

After the four wheeling…. we swam

We ate….

We played in the sand…..

We started a bon-fire ….

We let the kids make s’mores…..

And just generally let the kids be… well….. KIDS! (Including my hubby in the back, there. lol)

Wall Art

2010-07-13T21:52:00.000-04:00

As you all know, I spoke about adding on to our home here and we finished construction in March.

There were several planks left over from the flooring, and my was racing what I could do with them. I have a wall that needs some perking up, maybe I could make some sort of wall art with them, right?

I’m sort of disappointed in myself at how I didn't do so well at tasking pictures of the process…. but I thought I would share the finished product with you.

The planks have a slight veneer to them so I started with sanding them a little bit. My first layer was some Raw Sienna oil paint and them some Burn Umber. It’s the first time I worked with oil paints and my thought was it would stick to the cracks and grooves of the wood. I’m not sure how well that actually worked, but I liked how it turned out.

While the paint was still wet, I was able to use some pop bottle caps and some canning lids and twist into the paint, wearing off the paint in the different circle shapes. I used the same technique with bubble wrap and let it all dry.

I then painted the bubble wrap with some green, and stamped that on. The bird house is actually cut out of some tissue paper and the tree is a stamp.

I tied string around each of the three pieces and added some beds to two of them.

And this is the finished product. I think I need some vinyl flourishes or something between them or around them or something. Honestly, let me know what you think~! Criticism as well~!

Summer Fun

2010-06-28T23:11:00.001-04:00

I’ve been so bad with posting on my blog lately. My blog was originally created to keep as my “creative forum” and to keep in touch with all the lovely ladies I’ve met through art – journaling and mixed media. And then Facebook came along and my blog has taken a sever hit. So I’ve decided – why not merge the two and post my blog links on my Facebook, right? (everyone say Right!)

Summer so far has consisted of some four-wheeling with the hubby and our youngest son……..

Lots of “grandkid time”…. Uncle Alex and Ryleigh…

Some cocktails on the deck with my daughters-in-laws… while our men work

(Carrie)

(Jess)

The kids love it when we actually have those moments to sit and relax on the deck, because it means they get to PLAY~!

(Ryleigh and Chayse)

(McKenzie and Chayse)

(Zoey and Ryleigh)

My dear husband has been better about watering the garden that I have and thanks to his efforts, I have some beautiful blooms~!

I think I even saw the dog winking at me over their beauty.

My lovely art chicks… I PPROMISE….. My next post will be some art. Despite not posting or sharing…. I have indeed been creating, ad of course continually being inspired by all of you~!

Weekend Deals

2010-05-25T21:13:00.001-04:00

I’m a little late in posting about the weekend, but better late than never, right?

So we had a pretty awesome weekend. Friday night, my hubby had band practice so my twelve year old son and I took advantage of the time and caught a movie that Dad didn’t want to see. We saw Robin Hood and I loved it~! I was really surprised that he did too, since it was more “war strategy” than I had anticipated.

We left there – swung through Dairy Queen and finally stopped at the tattoo shop to ask for my “vision” for a new tattoo to be drawn up. (By the way.. the not very successfulness).

Saturday… we dropped our son off to spend the night with his cousin, Sami, while we headed for the casino in Greek town. And for the record….. I did all the winning and came home $20.00 ahead even after dinner, gas and gambling, We left there and picked up my parents from Detroit Metropolitan Airport after a 3.5 week long cruise. They were both whipped and Dad got that funky cruise ship stomach virus while there and was quarantined for three days! I’m glad they are home, I know they are, too.

Sunday…. after picking our son back up again, I actually talked my hubby into checking out some GARAGE SALES~! We don’t do that often… and I never have with as much luck as I did then!

We ended up with some Americana decor… a basket, (I have a slight basket fetish…) some scrap book stuff, a blanket for going to the race track on the weekends, some brand new, never worn shoes, and a brand new music stand for my son’s guitar music.

The best deal yet….. was a bike for our sweet grand-daughter, Taryn… for FIVE DOLLARS! Now she has a bike for Gran and Papa’s house.

Lastly…. I’m currently reading the Diary of Anne Frank. She said something in her diary that really hit home for me.

“Paper is more patient… than people”

I love it~! So true… in so many ways….

Back Again……

2010-05-16T22:57:00.002-04:00

Hello fellow bloggers~!

Although I have regularly read my all my favorite blogs, I can’t even believe it’s been nine months since I’ve blogged myself. As I look at my last post, I also can’t believe it’s been almost a year since one of our closest friends, Clarence, has passed.

So what the heck have I been doing with myself? How do I cover eight months of life into the space of one blog post? Impossible~!

Our eldest son and his family moved from Michigan, to Oklahoma.

Our second eldest son and daughter in-law had their third beautiful baby.

Our third eldest.. our daughter and husband had their first baby.

We’ve added almost 500 square feet on to our home and we’ve bought three four wheelers for some summer adventures.

Our third eldest, our daughter and her family, followed her brother to Oklahoma.

(I don’t have a picture to post of them because they both run whenever they see a camera in my hand~! brats)

What have I done on the creative front? Being honest with myself, not a whole lot. I’ve still journal obsessively. I have several I’m keeping up with. My daily journal, my Bible studying journal, and my art journal. I’ve done some scrapbooking, a couple of paintings, and I’m working on an abstract piece from left over planks from the wood floor we installed when we added on to the house and pictures of that will follow once it’s completed.

So I ask myself, “How do I get back into the “blog swing”? I start with the “now”.

We’ve just had a fantastic ending to a really good weekend. The driver of our race car moved up to the “pro-stock” class and his first race in the class, the first race of the season, he won his heat race and finished third in the feature~!

We had two of the grand kids spend the night Saturday night and totally enjoyed spending time with them~! We swung on the swings, we rode the dour wheelers around the yard, we attached the lawn mower “cart” and drove the neighborhood kids around, too. Chayse and Papa ate popcorn and snuggled till they feel asleep with Gran and Taryn had a nail polish party and Taryn did her own page in Gran’s “special art journal”. Of course they didn’t want to go to bed, and wanted to sleep with us respectively. LOL.

We finished the weekend with church in the morning, and when the kids came to pick up the grand-kids, it turned into a full day of grilling out, more four wheeling, and just spending time with each other.

Translation…. play play play… till we all fell asleep for a mid-afternoon nap~!

The night/weekend ended with a my husband, myself, our son, and his friend taking a bike ride up to the ice cream store. :) Cappuccino crunch is the best~!

Good-night all… and here’s the beginning to keeping up on my blog again. I find when I blog… I tend to be more creative at the same time. I can’t wait to sit on my new deck this summer, and paint away while watching the kiddies play.

Blog Giveaway

2009-08-24T15:12:00.003-04:00

Jennifer is giving away a wonderful pile of goodies, so make yummy art with!

It's a big one.....go check it out~!

Clarence Banks

2009-08-18T16:23:00.004-04:00

I love and miss you.

I can't believe you're gone.

When we laid you to rest yesterday, there was a rainbow directly above you. It was the coolest thing. The way the clouds hid portions of it, it looked like the rainbow was upside down.

It was smiling down on you. Courtney and C.J. loved it and new it was a reminder of God's promises.

Grief

2009-08-15T17:33:00.004-04:00

My husband lost one of his closest friends Friday night. It's a sad and awful weekend. He leaves behind a wife and five children. A family we vacation with every year. A family who's kids call each other cousins. A society short, one great man.

This picture sums up the silliness that graced us every day. Peace be with you Clarence.

And the news article:

Flint police officer recalled as tough but compassionate
by Bryn Mickle The Flint Journal
Friday August 14, 2009, 4:20 PM

FLINT, Michigan -- Clarence Banks saw himself as a big brother to the bullied.
The 23-year Flint Police Department veteran balanced a hard-nosed approach with a compassion for the people he was charged to protect.
"He stepped up to take care of people's problems," said Keith Speer, a Flint police officer who spent years as Banks' partner on the beat.
Banks, 47, died of a heart attack while off duty Thursday night.
The former U.S. Army drill sergeant was a longtime member of the department's honor guard and one of the city's first K-9 handlers, said Speer, president of the Flint police officers' union.
Banks credited his police dog Midnight with saving his family's lives in 1996 when the German Shepherd awoke him in the middle of the night and alerted him to a ruptured gas line.
The pair spent several years together searching for everything from missing children to robbery suspects before Midnight's death from lupus in 2002.
Speer said Banks also worked narcotics and street patrol but in recent months had been assigned to the city impound yard.
"You couldn't ask for a better backup," said Speer.
Flint Firefighter Rico Phillips recalled an incident when he called for help with a violent patient in the back of an ambulance.
"Clarence opened the door and immediately calmed the patient down," said Phillips."He had a certain way about him."
State police K-9 handler Troy Szukhent, who served in an Army Reserve Unit with Banks, said he had a reputation as a hard worker.
"He always had a good sense of humor," said Szukhent.
Flint Mayor Dayne Walling called Banks a "great officer who served the city for many years."
"He will definitely be missed around here," said Flint police Chief Alvern Lock.
Banks is survived by his wife and four children.
Funeral arrangements by Swartz Funeral Home were incomplete Friday afternoon.

New Music Find

2009-08-10T20:30:00.003-04:00

Maybe I'm a little behind "the times".... I don't know, but I just discovered Matt Hires music and I love him~! Thought I would share one of his videos. Don't forget to pause the music player first and enjoy~!

Adventures & Mishaps

2009-07-29T08:13:00.016-04:00

Wow~! Has it REALLY been since April that I've posted?

No~! I think someone got in there and changed the dates on all those posts! LOL

My hubby coached my sons summer baseball team, which is now over, and Football practice has began. Summer just seems to run away from me!

Every summer for the last five years, we and two other families, rent 3 cabins on "Bass Lake" and this year we were told the cabins were not being rented this year, and possibly being put up for sale. So~! We made different plans this year and just my hubby, myself, son and his friend headed "UP NORTH", just outside Mackinaw City. We all totally enjoyed it and just got home on Saturday. So how did our week go? We had lots of fun, and lots of mishaps, too!

We left on Saturday and arrived at Paradise Lake......

The cabins were really nice....they had Pergo floors, brand new appliances in the full kitchen, two "bedrooms", TV and fresh towels every day. Outside there is a grill, picnic table, shuffle board, basketball hoop, volleyball net, two row boats with life jackets and a third row boat with a motor that we could rent. The cabins are perfectly located in between, Mackinaw City, Petoskey, and Cheboygan.

We drove about 20 minutes into Cheboygan and did some grocery shopping, and let minute supplies we had forgotten about, and the boys spent the evening hours on the lake fishing.

Sunday, friends of ours were on their way home from visiting family members in Sault Ste Marie and stopped to hang out with us for about an hour. As they travel the area often due to their family members, and are familiar with it, we asked about things to do on "the other side of the bridge", in St. Ignace. We were curious about "The Mystery Spot!" Jennifer had said her daughter has been there quite a few times, and really enjoyed it. So considering our kids are about the same age, and none of us had ever been over the Mackinaw Bridge before, we would give it a shot!

Anyone who knows me, knows I cannot be in the drivers seat over a bridge without crying and panicking, so hubby did all the driving and we headed over the bridge, for St. Ignace. What a beautiful view~! Did you know the bridge actually sways 12 feet!? Yes, TWELVE FEET! Can you believe that?

Well.... the Mystery Spot, unfortunately....was a disappointment, although I think I think its appropriately named. It consisted of three rooms, where the "gravity goes wild". Everything is built on angles, etc....and is based on all optical illusions, and really doesn't deserve much more discussion on it. But it certainly left me with a Mystery of why we spent $40.00 for a family of four, to spend an 8 minute guided tour through three rooms.

But~! We did find the very best soft serve ice cream right next door! St. Ignace is a beautiful place. It's small, and quaint, and peaceful driving along the coast and watching the boats pass by. We were "home" in plenty of time to get some more fishing in. My son's friend is a fishing maniac! He's up at 5:30 AM....waiting for my hubby to wake up (and sometimes...WAKING him up..LOL) to go out fishing. I think if all we did was fish the entire week.....Joey would be perfectly happy.

Sunday evening, our daughter called and let us know our truck was stolen. :( It's actually our truck that we were "temporarily" lending to our daughter when she started struggling after her hours being cut at work, in hopes to help her out....and someone STEALS IT!!! grrr.

Monday, we drove into Petoskey. We took the boys go-karting.... (oh! and by the way... I kicked all three of their asses~!) Woo~Hoo!

We walked along the pier at the Marina.......

Of course we needed more ice cream, and the three boys graciously indulged me in a little shopping time. All of Petoskey is just gorgeous! I would LOVE to live there. Granted...the winters are hard, and quiet when the "tourism" isn't there, but I think I would be quite happy in front of a fireplace with a book, just looking out the window at the city's beauty!

ah............. I can dream, can't I?

Tuesday, we went to Mackinaw City for Thunder Falls Waterpark. My son is a little water baby~! We were fighting off and on weather, but despite some minor misty rain...it stayed pretty warm.

Alex...the water baby.....

Joey....the fisherman....

Wednesday..... The weather very average and threatened storms all day. The boys fished a little bit and when the harder rain threatened, we headed to Mackinaw City again and went to a movie. We saw The Proposal. I was surprised the boys agreed to it, but the really liked it, too. It was a cute movie, funny, and had a great message, too.

When we came out the the theatre, the sun was attempting to shine, so we walked around the area. Stopped and listened to a live bank playing the park. I went into the Island book store and bought a new book as I was almost done with mine. I bought, Love, Eat, Pray and can't wait to start it.

Thursday.... oh Thursday. We all headed out to the lake for some fishing. The boys in the boat with a motor on it, and my hubby and I in a row boat (hubby fishing, and me mainly just getting some sun and reading). The boys of course beat us at the getting to the "good spot" and have already begun fishing by the time we row out remotely close to them.

Unfortunately, to my horror, when Joey was casting over his shoulder.... he "stuck himself" with a fish hook, in the back of the head! It actually went through his baseball hat and into his scalp. We headed off to Cheboygan (about 25 min away) to the hospital. They were able to numb his head and remove the hook, and got out of it without any stitches. Joey handled it very well! I know he was scared, and he was with "his friends parents", but he got through it like a trooper!

On the way home from the hospital, Joey bought a "lucky hook" that attaches to the bill of a baseball hat and they had decided they wanted to go go-karting and fishing again. By night fall, Joey had caught 15 bass, 4 rock bass and Alex got his first "big one".... a 30" Pike~!

Friday: Ok, seriously, don't laugh. We head out on the lake again, the boys in the boat with the motor, and hubby in I in a row boat. I dropped the anchor, sat down....... in the front of the boat. My hubby, simultaneously reaches for the tackle box.... and....
OVER WE WENT~! We were in about 10-12 feet of water and it was scary!!! Keith went under the boat, looking for me, and I, was swimming around the outer edge of the boat looking for him! The boys only panicked for a moment, until they could get over to us and make sure we were ok, then the laughter broke out! Unfortunately, we lost the cabin key and a fishing pole to the bottom of the lake. My book, the tackle box, our shoes and glasses and other misc things floated and were recovered. Keith had his wallet and cell phone (mind you...BRAND NEW....only one month old cell phone with no insurance on it) in his pocket.

We dangled from the side of the boat, trying to bail water, while the boys tried to pull us into shallow water. Half way there, Joey jumped into the water logged boat to help bail, while Alex had to row all of us in, since it was too much weight for the small trolling motor.

LOL.....Good times.

The drying goods......

In between all the fishing and the mishaps, I enjoyed my quiet time taking in the sun, the sights and natures beauty! I did a lot of relaxing and reading..

Noticing that even in such dry and wasted areas....beauty and thriving life still exists....

I went stone and rock hunting with my son.....

.....and got a good chuckle from the bird pooping all over the boat. Not that he was actually pooping all over the boat.....

but rather that he was cheeky enough to sit next to the owl intended to scare him away. He's no dummy and he's enjoying the view and much as I was!

And lastly, we arrived back home on Saturday to find that a woman had seen our truck dropped off by what looked like to her..... a "staggering drunk" ..... and after it sat for 2 days, had decided something was wrong when the "drunk" never came back, found the registration in the glove box, and drove out ot our house to let us know where the truck was.

We are truly a blessed family~!

12 x 12 Wood Mixed Media

2009-04-23T07:50:00.004-04:00

Taking Flight has been a great book for me. I've loved the challenges in it so far, and I've completed chapter 2. The challenge was a mixed media on wood. I choose a 12x12 piece. Ok, that's sort of a lie, I found some pieces of left over wood my hubby had thrown in the garage from a previous project he had worked on, and had my Dad cut it into 12x12 squares for me. Now I have a few more left to play with, too!

First I worked on the background. A little Canary Yellow... a little raw sienna... some burnt umber, and stamped some words on the background as well. I was actually really pleased with it. It's been a long time since I could say that~!

Then I used some bubble wrap, painted with Leaf green and "stamped" circles. I also used a cap from some 35mm film, dipped in white and stamped some more circles, highlighted with a charcoal pencil.

Now it was time to play with clay! I've never used polymer clay before, and it was a lot of fun! I had no idea what i was going to use, since I didn't have any of the character constructions Kelly Rae suggests in the book, so i pulled out my stamps and just started checking them all out....thinking.... I wanted to start with a small one, being the first time using the clay, so sort of warm myself up, I guess.

I love this philosophy.... "It is not the destination....it's the journey" and I added the "Go For It!" embellishment.

The idea behind the challenge in this chapter is about Letting go of our fears. This was a part of my reasoning for the Go For It embellishment, then I decided to use a tree for the main portion of the collage. I am firmly rooted where I am today, and have an abundance of love and blessings surrounding me. There is no reason I should have any fears in trying to accomplish anything at all!

Learn to Soar - Taking Flight

2009-04-23T07:47:00.007-04:00

So, I started to work out of Kellie Rae Roberts book, Taking Flight with the ning group. Actually, I started a couple of weeks ago, with Chapter One, learning to Soar. What a great chapter! It really got me thinking, asking all the questions about buried dreams and unearthing them. Dreams we used to have, dream we gave up on, or maybe forgot about.

I started by taking one of my son's old hard-covered school books, front and back cover, and cutting them in 1/2, leaving me with four "boards". My problems....wait....my own insecurities...lol.... started in when I begin painting faces. I had a really hard time with the face on this one. I painted her eyes twice, then decided the whole face needed redone, started over again and this is where I stopped torturing myself.

We were given suggestions for the biding to use words like ART - WHISPERS - etc...

I decided to stick with the chapter theme, SOAR... since I have no idea where this is taking me and I will just sort of SOAR through the process.

Ok, so the eyes gave me a really hard time, that just means I will be better this time, right?

WRONG~!

The next girl I started on was waaayy off!!! The idea I had in my head was a wide open mouth. I wasn't sure why I was inclined this way, but the thought process evolved into her singing and maybe some sort of bird embellishments.
Oh my word.... the mouth was AWFUL! It was more like a big 'ole gaping hole! The "inside" of the mouth was painted black, and these tiny little lips surrounding this hole.. a bright red. She looked like she was screaming at the top of her lungs and yet had no tongue or teeth or uvula.

Ok, so I try to make the lips a little larger and the hole a little smaller. WRONG AGAIN~! This whole mouth was just not conducive of the entire face and her lips now looked like some sort of cartoon character with a bad saline injection. I think she was re-painted about six times. The constant rubbing and repainting and changing also took its toll on the background paper.
Anyway, she ended up like this. I decided to put an AC/DC T-shirt on her and make her a "rebel". I guess the journaling came from the original "screaming" girl, and my frustration. lol

My third girl.... just a sweet girl holding a flower. A little better, but boy do I have still have some practice to do. I hope my hips don't look like hers any time soon. I WILL be 40 this year. :(

And finally..... this girl. I think she's my favorite, but still not what I envision myself drawing.

I still have the back cover to finish and the journaling left, but overall, I actually enjoyed it. It's funny....thinking of all the tries, re-tries and frustration... how each girl evolved. I'll never be a prized artist, but I'm sure having a lot of fun~!

Paul Colman - I love this song~!

2009-04-21T20:03:00.002-04:00

I've been working away on my Taking Flight projects and will post some pics soon. In the meantime: Ok, don't forget to go down to my music and his pause so you can listen to this.....

I absolutely love this song! I heard it once on the Smile FM, and haven't heard it since. I have to admit, I saw the video on Paulette Insall's blog, but when I heard him make the "police reference"(as most of you know.... my hubby is a an officer.......), I loved it even more!

I hope you like it, too!

I'm on a roll~!

2009-04-14T09:14:00.008-04:00

In the past week/10 days I've got quite a few scrap-book pages done! Woo~Hoo~

As you can see by the journaling, I'm a tad bit behind. Yes, not only am I working on last year's pages, but I'm working on 2007~!

Some beautiful, lackadaisical, Summer Days...

A graduation party of a close friend's son......

Diggin' Dirt.....

and of course, bicycle's are an intricate part of summer!

A not so good day at the hospital, getting tubes in the ears.....

A big brother's love and some home~work.....

Big brother again, working hard to make good memories...
This one is still missing a picture of the "finished project", which will be added soon.

and what better way to finish off a summer than with the Renaissance Festival?

I've mentioned before, I'm working through Kellie Rae Roberts' book, Taking Flight, with a yahoo group, and tonight, I started working on painting a wood block. My first time painting on wood. So far, I totally love it! I went a little big, the book gave a suggestion size of and 8x8 block, and my hubby had some spare wood laying around the house and some were already cut into squares, so the size I'm working on is actually a 12x12 block.

Blank space!! Oh no! What will I do with it? I'm haven't bought the polymer clay yet. That will be a first for me, too, so I'm excited about this project. I'll post pictures next time.

Mail Day~!

2009-04-13T17:01:00.000-04:00

What a great mail day! I participated in a couple of swaps on "swap-bot" for some handmade cards and what great cards I received! I got another two envelopes of a TON of stamped images. (all of which I'm sure I will use!)

I don't know about you guys, but I have yawned and yawned all day today. I think I need a day of recuperation from all that Easter ham!

He is Risen!

2009-04-12T22:56:00.004-04:00

Happy Easter everyone!

I look forward to the day He comes again~!

and the most beautiufl one in the "peach" is my grand-daughter, Taryn~!

Altered Clipboard

2009-04-07T21:24:00.004-04:00

So I had told you about an altered clipboard I had made during my blogging absence, for a friend. It's the first one I attempted and I really like. I don't feel like the pictures do it justice, but I thought I would share them.

I think my favorite part was her reaction. Tammy is what I guess you would call a "new" friend and she does so much for other people. She runs a home day care, and has three children of her own. She is also the catalyst in beginning an "In-Betweeners" group at church that some of you have heard me talk about before. She really thinks of others first, and tries to help anyone who may be in need. Tammy always seems to have a composition notebook, and a spiral notebook and all those bits of paper and post-it notes that all of seem to acquire with a busy life-style, so I thought I would surprise her and do something for her A: for no reason at all and B: to maybe help with all those tasks she so lovingly takes on!

Hello

2009-04-07T08:40:00.004-04:00

Wow, it's been since February since I've posted!? What in the world have I been doing with myself!? I haven't even worked on my soul journal, nor have I kept my daily journal current. I have, however kept my Sunday sermon journal and my Wednesday Women's Bible study journals current. Guess if I'm going to keep any of them current, those are "the ones" to keep up on, huh?

I've caught up on quite a few scrap book pages for my son.

I've done my first altered clipboard.

I've participated in a couple of swaps on swap-bot.com. If you don't know about this site, check it out. It's a lot of fun! It's free, and you choose what swaps you want to sign up for with choices from swapping spare supplies, ATC's, matchboxes, hand-made cards, journals....all sorts of things. And who doesn't like good old fashioned mail in their mail box?

I finished a book. Emma & Me. This was given to me in a swap (^^^). What a great surprise. The book was about two sisters, aged 6 and 8. The youngest, at age 3, had seen her father murdered by a "robber". Mom remarries and abusive alcoholic and it's the story line of their lives. The last two chapters of the book, has a twist that you NEVER expect is coming! I love those kinds of books. You know, when you so wrapped up in it, you believe every moment of it, and when that twist happens, you think, NO WAY, because you knew the characters, "SO WELL!".

Oh~! and I'm the biggest Loser at work! Woo~Hoo~! A seventeen pound loss so far, baby!

I love Kim's rocks! I keep telling myself I'm going to paint/decorate all those rocks I have in the basement that my son gave to me in his toddler years when he "collected rocks" and gave all the "pretty ones" to Mom. I've just never had the heart to get rid of them and now I can transform them into rock art! I've bought some acrylic spray sealer for once they have been painted, so that is one of my "to do" projects.

I also need to get moving on My Taking Flight book with Kellie Rae Roberts, and of course, my soul journal.

I don't' know about you, but sometimes there is no real "problem" I'm battling. No "down mood" or "depression", and no real "I'm so busy" excuse, but that life just sort of carries us away. When this happens to me, eventually when I start to drag, become sluggish, or feel sort of hum-drum, it hits me! I haven't been creative! I haven't connected with all of my lovely artful blog friends!

The altered clip-board.... I admit.... I love! It turned out really well and will post pictures soon.

Taking Flight Project and OWOH gift

2009-02-17T20:08:00.005-05:00

Last night I began working on the project from Chapter One of Kelly Rae Roberts book, Taking Flight. I am going through the book with a group a girls in the ning group.

The project required cutting the covers off of two hard cover books. Well... when my son was in.... oh..... 4th-ish grade, the school was getting new history books and when school out for summer break, they let the parents take the old books. I wish I would have know then the great uses and fun I could have with them and I would have taken more than one!

Anyway! I didn't have TWO books, but this Michigan book was large enough, that I could cut the covers in half, still giving me 4 "pages" to work with. So that's what I did.

Then I got busy with the gesso and then collage some papers all over it. Next is the scary part....drawing my girl face! OOO ....such challenges I'm in for. I'm pretty excited about it.

Work was awful today. I have to make up a couple hours due to a long Dr. appt. the other day, so I was in at 7AM...and the day just dragged! I think I yawned about a million times! I was so pleased when I came home though!

(back up a little.... Last weekend I found some really cool flowering teas...of all places...at Office Depot!) So I came home. I made myself a "cuppa" .......and..... AND!!!

The friendship book from Mary at Green Paper came in the mail today, that she so generously gave in the OWOH project! It's so beautiful! It was exactly what I needed today. I really enjoyed sitting for that moment, relaxing, and checking out all the cool vintage papers Mary put in the book. She even included a pocket, made out of an old map, filled with lots of other loose vintage goodies.

I'm off now ladies.... of to watch American Idol! I'm not much of a reality show fan....but Idol... my whole family loves.

Playing Catch up

2009-02-15T13:59:00.004-05:00

Hospital Doodles: Ok, so somewhere in between hubby's in surgery and kids having grand babies, I did two little doodles in my journal. They are pretty plain and boring. I'm still not quite sure what I will do with them, if anything. Maybe they will just end up covered up with layer upon layer of goodies. Who knows...

Painted Papers: Next, is a page from my soul journal. It's one of the painted paper prompts Kathryn gave us and it's probably the least of my favorites. First I thought it was the colors I picked. I'm not a big fan of yellow. But there are other yellow projects I've worked on that turned out ok, so maybe it's the boldness of the black ink. Or maybe the actual stamps I picked? Just an over-all combination of them, it just doesn't work for me.

Weave our Dreams: This one I enjoyed doing, but honestly, I didn't totally follow the instructions. The chosen words were supposed to be about our dreams. Again, on a quick stop at the house, before running out the door to the hospital, I grabbed a bunch of scrap paper, my small letter stamps, and a black archival ink, and just started stamping words.

Just words.

Words that just meant something at that moment, or words I thought of a lot, and here is the finished product. Again, I really liked working on this page. It was a good one to work on in the hospital, too, as I could sit there and take my time at weaving the paper and getting them lay in the right order, that I wanted.

And Lastly, a little tiny shot of what I'm working on today.........

Have a great day ladies~!

I'm a OWOH Winner~!

2009-02-13T08:35:00.003-05:00

I was lucky enough to win not one, but two OWOH gifts!

Thank you Lori at Artivity for a beautiful collage sheet that I already have 1000 uses for in my head!

Also, Thank you so much Mary, at Green Paper. I was the winner of one of her books! And if you've read any of my previous posts, you know I love journaling, art journaling, Bible journaling, daily journaling.... lol What a beautiful book, too that I know I will put to great use!

Thank you to ALL of you who participated in OWOH! I've never seen such a large giveaway project before! Now that I understand it all, I can't wait till the next one, so I can participate in the giving process, too! It's a wonderful way to get to know each other and share our work. I think that's the true hearts desire for an artist, to share their work with others, bring some level of joy to them, as it brought to ourselves in creating it!

Baby Ryleigh

2009-02-11T18:21:00.001-05:00

Beautiful New Baby~!

2009-02-10T09:20:00.004-05:00

Ryleigh Nicole was born last night, 5 weeks early and still weighing in at 5.10 oz and she's 18.5 inches long. She is our eldest son's first baby.... and our 5th grand~baby.

She's beautiful and our son is an emotional disaster! lol Ahh..... the circle of life.

Monica's blogOversary

2009-02-06T17:16:00.003-05:00

Monica at hands and heart is giving away a beautiful BlogOversary painting. I love her work and although I would LOVE to win it myself, I know we all get inspired by and enjoy other artists work. Check our her blog and leave her a comment for a chance to win.

Hubby is Home and I'm Spreading my wings~!

2009-02-06T15:47:00.007-05:00

Ok....I'm a BAD blogger.....and I need to give you guys an update!

My hubby came home last Friday and we've gotten a week of "recovery" under his belt. He's doing really well. Let me say again... he's doing REALLY well!! lol. Actually, I'm having a hard time holding him down and keeping him from doing too much. He's energetic and talkative, full of future plans and just generally happy. Having him home for a week...and being that energetic, I told him...... honey.... "You're DRAINING me!" lol.

That's a good thing, though. Been a long time since he's been hopeful and energetic. Thank you for all of the words of encouragement.

So.... on one of those days in the passed week that seem to have all blurred together..... we made a trip to Barnes and Noble and I bought Kelly Rae Roberts new book, Taking Flight.

I'm going to begin the journey with Teri and a group of other great ladies and I'm looking forward to stretching out and spreading my artful wings!

Hospital update

2009-01-28T08:00:00.007-05:00

For those of you who don't know him, my hubby had an elective surgery yesterday.

Up at 3AM
Out by 4:30AM
At the hospital by 5AM
Surgery 7:30 - 10:30AM
Home at 7:30PM

I'm exhausted.

For those of you who know my hubby and haven't been updated yet.... he is doing exceptionally well. Everything is working like it should and he's up and walking. He had his tubes removed this AM and should come home tomorrow or Friday.

Please pray for him, for quick physical recovery and to keep his spirits up, too.
Me? for rest and strength to keep the house and our son's schedule going without collapsing! lol

Soul Journal Background page

2009-01-25T18:53:00.002-05:00

I love how this page turned out. Kathryn asked that we spend about two minutes just writing. Boy, I needed that! When I sat down to do it, I was on my lunch hour at work and didn't realize how much I needed to vent.
My writing was all about being surrounded by negative people. You know that choice person in the office that drives everyone nuts? The one who isn't happy unless they are whining? The one who enjoys dragging you into all of their drama? Getting the idea of what vent was? lol.

That of course went on to, all the people outside of work, that I allow to "get to me" with their comments.

That evolved into - "Wait!" "I whine!" "Who am *I* to complain?!" Right? I mean, we all have those days. The days when we are no better than the people we complain about and I decided that I needed to get off my high horse and have patience. I need to offer understanding and prayer for these people. Just as the Bible states, we are ALL sinners, none worse than the other, and that of course is SIN! All I'm talking about a little grumbling!

So I took a breather, took a check list of my equally bad attitude and punched back in with a little calmer attitude. When I got home.... I finished off the page.

It really evolved into something beautiful~ I like the texture the stamp made, and I used green, a color I don't normally use, or like. But I really like this entry. The picture isn't so good, but if you look hard enough, I've even hidden on the right side.... "Turn a new leaf".

oh~! and yes.... my page is "under consturction".... I was growing tired of the black... Be patient with me... lol

Report Card - Movie & Soul Journal

2009-01-24T23:19:00.003-05:00

What a treat we had in the mailbox today! We received our 11 year son's report card. He received all A's and B's! Not that this a surprise, really, as he has always done well, but it always nice to see that he continues his hard work on a regular basis. All of his teaches have always said what a well behaved kid that he is. Reports usually include adjectives like respectful and kind. He has a lot of friends and he and his "football buddies" tend to remain together in their group, but he never seems to leave anyone out. He's been known to be the one to help out the kid(s) having problems, or even sticking up for the ones being bullied. Education is fantastic, but these are the qualities that I'm most proud of him for. The thinks that can't be "taught". The character qualities that will last longer and be more effective than any text book can show him.

We went to a movie today, too. Saw "Ink Heart". I really enjoyed it. We are all readers, and often enjoy the library. I'm the one who loves the atmosphere of a Barnes & Noble or Borders, and could wander, or sit and read or drink fancy named coffees and be lost for hours, so this movie was right up my alley. Yes, it's a kids type movie... but that considered, I still liked it! It's about a book being read out loud and when that is done by certain people... "Silver tongues"... that they can "go into the book" and when they do... someone "comes out of the book".
Anyway.....good flick.

I also completed the next journal prompt. It was more of a texture and background page. It's sort of busy for me...but I like it. The color is hard to see in the picture, but it reminds me of the orange creamsicles we used to eat when we were kids.

Felt good just to get back to my art journal again and I'm going to set some time aside for it tomorrow, too. 'Night all..........

A whole mish-mash of stuff....

2009-01-21T08:46:00.015-05:00

I've worked a little bit more on the board for church...

The puzzle pieces represent pieces of the church coming together as a whole.... and of course the words, that I posted before, that I've changed a little bit. Hopefully the next time I post about this it will be the finished board!

What else? Hmmm... I've journaled every day, but I really miss my art journal! It calls my name every name. Nor Have I scrap booked lately either. I don't like weeks like this one. You know those weeks when you're so busy and tired that you don't have time for creativity or reading or any of those things we do to regain some of our sanity? I find the weeks nearing it's end and the laundry piling up and the house not quite the way it should be... but find myself asking - what in the world HAVE I DONE...all week? (and not really know an answer!)

My husband's Mom is in the hospital with pneumonia (she is nearing 70 and already has congestive heart failure) and my daughter in law has been in the hospital twice with pre-mature contractions, (she's only 32 weeks), my husband has his own medical issues we have been preparing for and my Mom's .... (Hi Mom....! ILU)..... birthday is tomorrow and I want her to know how much she is loved and not forgotten about on her day.

I have to wonder, maybe I'm not that busy! Maybe everything is just to heavy on my head...that it feels like it. Hmmm.... maybe that's why I go to bed at 11:00 and lay there staring at the ceiling and don't fall asleep until 3:00 AM? Boy I hope the hubby is enjoying those back rubs!! lol

My Inspiration isn't working for me...

2009-01-18T08:26:00.006-05:00

Ok, so Connie's blog took me to Jessie's blog, who has given me a little inspiration for the board I'm ATTEMPTING to do for church that I spoke about in an earlier post. Jessie has been taking a word and working into her art, and I thought... "This may work for my in-betweener board".

The purpose of the group is to reach out to people in need and to let the church know that we are available for them. We are hoping by making the board and sort of announcing ourselves, will promote people coming forth with their needs.

Anyway..... they are SO NOT done, and I'm actually thinking I will do four words. But here is where I'm at so far. Each square is 4 x 4.

I'm not feelin' it girls..........

Surprise~! ...and a SJ Page

2009-01-16T07:01:00.004-05:00

I came home yesterday to a huge surprise! I had a swap package in from the swap-bot web-site that I belong to. I was way early, and by far the best package I've gotten in a long time. Look at this! The swap was a "journal with a twist" swap. Meaning... you make a journal entry a day, for a month and with each entry, you send an "extra" to go along with it. Wow! Cathy certainly out-did herself!

I received a blanket, 5 teas, 3 mint hot chocolates, a pair of socks and a book. (all perfect for Michigan's -23 degrees!!) There was also a baggie of brads and bottle caps and paper clips, etc.., 2 sets of letter stickers, matching ribbon, some clear acrylic stamps, a mini scrap-book album, a chip-board album, note cards and envelopes, a wooden box to alter and in the box...was more! A necklace with a scrapbook charm, and bracelet to put your own pictures in, flowers, ink and more embellishments! What a wonderful package. I hope Cathy is treated as well by her partner!

I love got another soul journal page done. The prompt was all about texture and adding items that would make some texture, and then adhering it all down with gesso. I used some mesh, a paper flower, and chipboard letter, a foam star, button, lace, a napkin and also I stamped in the gesso as well. I enjoyed it.... but I think I should have used more items. But!! I kind of like how a little color still shows through on some of the items.

Have a wonderful day, ladies~!

I received a Lemonade Stand Award!

2009-01-15T23:00:00.013-05:00

Karen at purplecat's corner, was kind enough to bestow me with a Lemonade Stand award for being a blogger who shows great attitude and gratitude! Thank you so much, Karen!

Now I get to pick 10 of my favorite bloggers who also show great attitude and gratitude. These girls are blogs I love to read, all for their own individual and special reasons:

Iris at The Indigo Dingo
Kim at Queen of Arts
Stacey at Primarily Primitives
Erica at BluJayStudios
Judy at Judy Wise
Jessie at Diary of a self portrait
Christy at Average American Girl
Connie at Dirty Footprints
Anne at Gaal Creative
Dove at Morning Dew

To pick up the award, (1) comment at this blog, (2) clip and paste the award logo and attach it to your own blog, (3) list your own ten favourite blogs, (4)comment on their blogs to advise them,(5) link back to this blog in appreciation.

New finds and New projects

2009-01-13T08:07:00.005-05:00

Over the weekend I had some good buys at Hobby Lobby. I've been wanting a water brush from some time now and had a hard time finding one. Gotta love Hobby Lobby! I bought a couple of new stamps and some book rings, too. I want to attempt to make my OWN book. I tend to buy journals, or alter old or found books, but I think make my own book with my own cool papers in it, would be fun! We'll see how it goes. I have so many "plans" and "ideas" and due to lack of time, I never seem to accomplish as much as what is in my head.

Next, we were off to Office Max! My son's binders were falling apart and he wanted new binders and a messenger bag to carry them in. We found a great binder at Office Max that zips closed, has two separate binder rings and dividers with pencil & calculate, etc... storage. It also has a strap on it, so it can be carried much like a messenger bag. He's happy and I'm happy we didn't have to search and search for "just the right messenger bag" that he wanted.

And finally, I worked A LITTLE BIT, on a project that I feel completely overwhelmed by. We are forming an "in-betweeners" group at church. No - that's not right. An in-betweeners group has already existed for some time but has never really "taken off". There seems to be quite a bit of interest in it lately, so we have decided a "purpose" for the group other than a bunch of people of the same "middle-age", hanging out, getting to know each other and having fun. We are going to be the group to "fill needs". We will have both "in-church" and "out-reach". This will include, the elderly who need their driveway shoveled. The hospital bound, who just needs a visit, someone recovery from illness and needs meals delivered, and of course, the ones hit with financial hardship.

Well.... I decided I'd be a part of the committee and they have asked me to decorate the "board" in the church, so that everyone is aware of us, what we do and they will know who to come to (and some sort of "box", too, for anonymity).

This board is 8 FEET x 4 FEET!!! No pun intended.... but HOLY MOLY!

I've never worked on anything bigger than 12x12 INCHES!! Boy do I have my work cut out for me!

Let's get to know each other...

2009-01-08T20:58:00.006-05:00

This was a litter get to know each other posted on Erica's blog.....

Sit down.....and have a cuppa tea with me~!

1. What is my occupation right now?
Don't hate me ok?...... I'm a bill collector. (but HUGE corporate debt, I won't call YOU, I PROMISE!)

2. What color are my socks right now? A Burgundy toe nail polish... (I'm not wearing any socks!)

3. What am I listening to right now? Big Head Todd and the Monsters

4. What was the last thing I ate? Grilled chicken salad & bread sticks

5. Can I drive a stick shift? I forced myself to learn after I had already bought this car that I HAD to have!! I saved my own money Dad! THIS (P.O.S. mind you...) is THE ONE! i want~)

6.Last person I spoke to on the phone? Don't know... someone from the Police Dept.

7. Do I like the person who sent this to you? Of course

8. How old are you today? ick...... thhh... thhh... thhirrr.... thirrrteee....nine!!

9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Is crafting a sport?

10. What is my favorite drink? Tea -or - Star Bucks Hot Spiced Apple Cider

11. Have I ever colored your hair? Umm... see age above. ^^

12. Favorite food? Soup or salad

13. What was the last movie I watched? @the Theatre: 7 Pounds on the living room floor: Mr. Woodcock.

14. Favorite day of the year? My son's birthday☺

15. How do I vent anger? Nope. Hold it all in until it eventually spills over in a burst of tears.

16. What was my favorite toy as a child? I don't think I was EVER a child.

17. What is my favorite season? Fall

18. Cherries or Blueberries? Blueberries

22. Living arrangements? What the hell kind of question is this? Married in a house... I guess

23. When was the last time I cried? Yesterday In Bible study class

24. What is on the floor of my closet? Dust bunnies & shoes

26. What did I do last night? ^^^ Bible study class

27. What am I most afraid of? Dog the bounty hunter

28. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? They make burgers WITHOUT cheese?

29. Favorite dog breed? German Shepard

30. Favorite day of the week? Rainy/snowy/blizzard/stay in the house and do nothing days

31. How many states have I lived in? I've only lived in five places in my whole life. All in Michigan

32. Diamonds or pearls? Pearls

33. What is my favorite flower? Daisies & Heather

Ok, now copy and paste all the questions on to Your Own Blog...and leave me a comment that you did it! I thought it was fun!

Blog referrals... lol

2009-01-07T13:17:00.009-05:00

what the heck ELSE do I call this post? lol. I'm spending my lunch hour blog reading... and found some goodies I wanted to share w/everyone.

Moni is giving away two beautiful pieces.... and will be drawing on January 10, 2009. Her snowman are gorgeous! Click the link in Moni's name and go check them out!

I was reading Letha's blog today and she has noted Ewian's blog who has all sorts of great info on different types of journals, like their size, durability, Producer, etc... to make that awful decision making process a little easier, especially for those who are new to journals. I've been doing them for about 6 months now and still consider myself a baby.... I know I sure enjoyed reading the mounds of info she took the time to put together! check out her Dream Journal post.

and lastly, the always beautiful, sometimes a little scared, but always bold enough to come back strong.... Erica.... is offering a new workshop. Erica's work is great and I think she would have a lot to offer and artist of any skill level.

Holy moly!

Did I just call myself in there and call myself an artist, too?

I think I did.... :)

Soul Journal - Advent Calendar

2009-01-05T22:45:00.005-05:00

I know..... I've been hibernating.... I would love to tell you that all is well and wonderful. I would love to tell you that I've just been sooooo busy, that I haven't had a moment to post. Those things, unfortunately, are not true. All is not ..... bad. They are not good. lol....
I think I'm still in my holiday recovery mode. I'm not sure.
I haven't posted in so long, I thought I would drop a quick notes of what I'm up to. Pathetic when I haven't written in so long...and still don't have anything to write about. Guess that's a sign of the 40 around the corner, huh? The year life slows down and I become... boring! lol

I did finish two books, finished some notes in a Bible study journal, been to an "in-betweeners" meeting at church and considering joining the newly forming "committee", falling waaaayy behind at work (which is totally stressing me out) due to all the days we were closed during the holidays, and we've been to lots and lots of movies (Bedtime Stories, Yes Man, Seven pounds and of course Marley & Me)

Anyway... I've been working on the advent calendar prompt in my soul journal and here's what I have so far.... I think my journal is a little smaller than what most soul sisters are working in. I had to break my days into four pages, six per page. I'm still working on them and will update the pic when they are finished.

My goals in the next few weeks coming: Get caught up in my soul journal. Make some background papers in my original art journal. Make some mixed media 4x4's. Strip this awful wallpaper in my "computer room", and maybe even begin a new canvas. Get a new book scrapbook for my youngest son and start a new book that I got from a co-worker for Christmas. ("Black" the first book of a series)

Are we taking bets on what gets done and what doesn't?

A couple of fun challenges

2008-12-27T16:04:00.005-05:00

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

2008-12-25T01:05:00.003-05:00

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~!

2008-12-21T11:22:00.002-05:00

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

2008-12-20T12:56:00.008-05:00

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!

2008-12-19T20:25:00.006-05:00

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

2008-12-16T08:42:00.002-05:00

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

2008-12-15T13:45:00.003-05:00

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 :)

2008-12-14T21:21:00.003-05:00

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~!

2008-12-04T14:11:00.004-05:00

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~!

I will not be moved - Natalie Grant

2008-11-30T15:30:00.002-05:00

I love this song.....thought I would share the video......
(of course, don't forget to go down to my music player and hit pause, so you can hear the video)
Hope you enjoy it~!

Thanksgiving/My new space/and a Blog Award~!

2008-11-29T13:03:00.018-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Thanksgiving at the Speer home went very well! Three of the four kids came home, plus both of our parents, a nephew and a niece! I love a house full of family and as usual, I cooked waaaay too much and everyone got a "doggie bag". Unfortunately, I completely forgot to take pictures! My blessings are bountiful! God has been good to me!

Black Friday is something I normally do every year, but just not something I wanted to vest my time in this year. The only child left at home is 11 and bless his heart, is very content. He only as four things on his "list" this year. I did manage to make it to Lowes around 11:00am for a new 6.5 foot tree with 500 lights on the prelit tree for $58.00, so I was pleased with that.

Ok, so one of the other things I've done with my time away from blogging was move my......."space". I'm not sure what to call it any more. It started as scrap booking table - then evolved to scrapping and journaling table, to scrapping/journaling/art journaling and then to scrapping/journaling/art journaling/painting & collaging table. So! With all these additions of creativity, I've outgrown my little space in the computer room and I have moved my newly titled "Art Space" to the basement. It was nice having it next to the computer, for referencing, printing pictures and blogging, but I'm so much happier in the basement. I have a TON more room, a stereo and a T.V., too! (now I just feel guilty that I'm so "removed" from the rest of the family.

Today, I'm taking the time to be creative and am in my new art home, full of ideas. Mostly trying to get caught up in my son's scrapbook that I'm soooo far behind in!

But anywhoo..... I come upstairs to take a break - cuppa tea - and check my blog and discover.....

I've been awarded my VERY FIRST blog AWARD ever! Woo-Hoo~!

This award states: This award states that: This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY- nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends, they are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these artists.

Thank you so much Linda, for the prestigious award! I've met so many wonderful people here and it's so nice to see not only the appreciation for my what seems like feeble blog attempts at times, but for the friendship that is offered between each other, as well! I would like to extend the award to:

The always faithful, Dove.

The very brave and real, Erica.

The always encouraging and creative, Linda.

And my warm friend, Karen.

Pumpkin Cake

2008-11-25T03:40:00.001-05:00

This was a dish that someone at work brought in and it was soooo yummy!
I plan on making it for my family on Thanksgiving and thought I'd share.

Pumpkin Cake
1 lg can pumpkin
1 lg can evaporated milk
1 c sugar
3 eggs
3 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt

1 pkg yellow cake mix (dry)
1 cup chopped pecans
2 stick butter/margarine

Mix first 6 ingredients together and pour into greased 9x13 pan
Sprinkle dry cake mix over top of pumpkin mixture then the nuts.

Pour melted butter on top

Bake at 350 for 50-60 min until pumpkin is set.

Top with cool whip.

Welcome to my neighborhood

2008-11-22T09:10:00.006-05:00

I see so many posts about people's every day travels and I thought I would introduce everyone to my neighborhood. I've met so many great friends through this blog and I love seeing where other people are from and their daily routines. It seems to help get to know everyone better.

I live in a pretty small township where everyone knows everyone else. Everyone in the community really reaches out to everyone else and I love it here. We are just 15 minutes from the city, and yet just far enough away to feel like we are in a private little world. There is no easy expressway near us and maybe that's why we feel a little "out of the way". We are lucky enough to live right on the dividing road between postal delivery routes, that we get our mail delivered, but the actual post office for the township I'm in, doesn't even have trucks to deliver mail and operates on post office boxes.

Every day, this is the road I travel and it's really pretty in the midst of fall with all the changing colors of leaves lined up against the lake. I wish I had a picture just a month earlier.

"Town" only consists of the post office, the local Family Diner, a McDonald's (who DOESN'T have McDonald's, right?), a library, the local grocery store and a Rite Aid on the corner. That's it and I like it that way!

Our church is located right down the street from our home.....seriously, like, 10 houses down. And this...... our modest little square in the world that belongs to us. It's where all our kids were raised........ our home. (guess I should have raked before I took the picture, huh?)

Hope you enjoyed the tour...... It's going to be a busy week for everyone! Remember what's it's all about this week and take the time to sit quietly and give thanks for all of your blessings!

Christmas stuff

2008-11-21T14:25:00.010-05:00

Ok, so seriously.....what have I been doing? Too much to fit into one posting.

Last weekend our family volunteered at church to help pack shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child through the Samaritan's Purse. My son's family volunteered last year, but my husband and I did not, and we decided to make it a family event this year. My husband, myself, middle son, his wife and kids, and our youngest son all got there at 9am ready to pack.

What an operation it is! Last year, 1000 shoe boxes were packed and this year's goal was 1200. Brenda did a fantastic job organizing it and now I realize what a year long project it is for her. Each month throughout the year, Brenda will announce what sort of items should be donated. Example: January may be hygienic items, then February may be stuffed animals, and of course September is always school supplies..... you get the idea. Well for a year worth of donations with a goal of 1200 boxes, Brenda's pole barn was full!

One problem...... we're packing ..... on the weekend of.....opening hunting season! Where are all the men that are supposed to help lug all these boxes!? We managed though and had a great time doing so. Tables were set up in assembly line format. First get the hygiene products and school supplies that all kids need, then to the table of the correct sex/age bracket and fill the rest of the box.

We made our goal of 1200 boxes and had them all packed, and on the trucks by 12:00 noon! Woo Hoo~!

Next, my employer takes a big part in volunteering for Operation Home Front who has identified 28 Michigan families who were deployed to Germany with very little notice. they were not able to prepare for their departure very well and for reasons not understood, they are also not allowed to leave their base very often, so they are having a really hard time providing for their kids the way they normally would. We have "adopted" the 28 kids and employees of our great company are buying Christmas gifts for these kids so ensure they know they're home state of Michigan appreciates what their Daddy's are doing for all of us. If this is something you are interested in volunteering with, please visit the web-site. There are lots of different opportunities there.

Lastly....... our daughter has an absolutely, goose bump providing singing voice. She sang around the house constantly, while growing up. She sang with the youth group in church and then as she grew older... she sort of got away from it. She recently sang at her brothers wedding, but really, that's been it.

Well my always willing to sing father, be it in a house, in karaoke, or in plays, was recently in a 1940's vaudeville show at a local theatre. In hopes to encourage our daughter again, I suggested to my Dad...."Hey - the next show coming up - why don't you give Marie a call?" (ok - so I'm hoping the guilt factor will come into play when "Papa" calls her...and she yes...... rotten I know...lol)

Fast forward.....she said yes - she auditioned for the Christmas Crescendo at the Pix Theatre and she was accepted! Woo Hoo~!

I've seen so many people, posting pictures of their daily travels lately and I think that's a great idea! I doubt I will introduce my mug to the world yet..... I had hair down the middle of my back and in July... I cut it all off! I mean ALL of it!! I've only cut it once since then in attempt to let it all grow back out again.....so I'm still not feeling the hair love and shy away from a lens.....
BUT..... I have a few pictures already of my little area of the world..... that I will try to add to and post next time.

Seeya soon ladies~!

Just begin

2008-11-18T13:51:00.006-05:00

First of all.....where have I been?
I'm not really sure. Here, there and everywhere. Mostly in a dark closet hiding and crying.

I found this poem on the 1000 journal project web-site. I really liked it and thought I would share it. I couldn't read the author's name, so I guess I will say...."author unknown".

Begin..... Just begin

At the beginning...... or the end

Just begin

Begin again.....Put pen to paper or

Set your foot on the road

& follow with another

Make a mark

Start a spark

And tend the fire within

Breathe in

Be inspired

Time is running

Don't let it run out

Time is turning

And doesn't wait.

Clouds drift, sun burns

Rivers flow

things grow and die

Does a bird not sing?

This moment won't ever be, again

So begin!

Just do it!

A chance not taken

Ends in nothing

Listen to your heart

Don't miss a beat

This is it!!

You ARE the answer

And...the question.

Don't look back

2008-10-31T07:48:00.001-04:00

I finished the canvas and I really like it!

Maybe I'm over excited, or to green to see the I'm sure, many flaws, but it's my second canvas/mixed media/collage (see I'm not even sure what to call it! lol).

I know it's hard to read the text... it reads.....

"Don't look back. Don't look forward. Look up! Keep focus on the things above."

Sneak Peak

2008-10-30T08:20:00.001-04:00

This is the woman I was sketching last night to incorporate onto the canvas. I painted her and I'm really giddy about her! I really really like how she turned out!!

New Canvas

2008-10-29T08:27:00.005-04:00

This is only the second canvas I've worked on and on Monday night I base coated it with a leaf green acrylic paint. After that, I had collaged some dictionary paper, some maps and some lace, and covered that lightly in gesso. On top of that, I did a wash of russett brown and let it dry overnight.
The dictionary text had the word trust, trusty, trustworthy and other variations. I've always been drawn to map paper, too. I'm not sure where this is headed, I'm just doing it as I go.

Last night when I went back to it, I very sparingly put a light wash of the same leaf green. I brushed some metallic amethyst on some bubble wrap and "stamped" that on the canvas. That was a lot of fun! I've never used bubble wrap before and I really like how it turned out especially being that I used a metallic paint. It didn't take long for that to dry and then I stamped some flourishes on it and this is where I'm at so far. The picture really doesn't do it justice. The buble wrap circles are really pretty! They sort of shimmer a light purple and you can't see the green "base" to the background very well, but I'm really happy with it!

I spent the rest of the night on my belly, on the living room floor watching, "The Shield" and sketching a woman on water color paper.

Have a good day everyone~ ! Yesterday is over and today is a whole new opportunity!

Wedding News

2008-10-28T09:29:00.007-04:00

As reported earlier, the wedding went very well. Our son asked my husband to be his best man. How awesome is that? I don't know of many young men who would choose their father to be their best man. What an honor that was for my hubby.

Jessica also explained to me that Nolan's mother has her own role as "the mother of the groom" and I have been such a large part of Nolan's life and so supportive of her, that she would also like me to stand up for her. I, too, was honored.

This being said..... since we were both in the wedding, I had to trust my camera to somebody else and ....... the pictures are awful! I have floor and elbow shots! The pictures that are of full people, look like a big blur. So! It will be a little while longer, until I gather pictures from other friends and family before I have anything to share.

The ceremony was beautiful. They were married in the church that we all attend as a family.

The groom ~ Nolan's mother read a small scripture, and his sister (23), sang. She has an amazing voice that makes me cry just at it's sound, let alone that she's singing at her brothers wedding! Nolan asked that his middle brother (25) stand up for him, and his youngest brother (11) light the candles. The position I was standing in with the bridesmaids made it possible to see all those silly faces he made to Jessica, the serious ones, and the lovingly mouthed... "don't cry", as he wiped her tears during the song his sister sang. I had a really hard time holding it together!

The bride ~ Jessica was beautiful! She was proceeded down the isle by her 3 yr old daughter and her nephew, and then walked down the isle by her father. She had two long terms friends, myself and her sister-in-law stand up for her. Apart from nerves grabbing hold of her mid vows and needing the pastor to repeat a few things, she did very well.

The reception ~ Dinner was made by Jessica's family and was absolutely fantastic! My brother & sister-in-law came from out of state and my cousins from out of town. It was so good seeing them. I wish I would have had more time to spend with them, and sort of felt guilty that I didn't. I was finally able to give Nolan's all of his scrapbook from throughout the years of his life, and made a "blank one" to insert the pictures of their wedding, to begin their lives together. Now I have a new "victim" and will have to teach Jess how to scrapbook!

They are happy with their day and I'm so proud of both of them.

Creating~ Last night.... with things back to normal, and the house clean again, and laundry on the go.... I just wanted to sit down and create something. ANYTHING! lol. So I sat with a 9 x 12 canvas and started on a background. I have no idea what I'm making at this point, I'm just....creating....and it feels so good.

More on the canvas later.

Nolan & Jessica

2008-10-26T20:57:00.002-04:00

My son is married~! The wedding went very well. There were a few minor bumps in the road but I think we recovered very well. I am exhausted and have lots to catch up on in the house, and will post more later. Thank you for all of your prayers and well wishes.

The ceremony ~

The Departure ~

My son's wedding

2008-10-23T13:31:00.004-04:00

I haven't seemed to have time for much posting, or art, or reading, or much of anything for that matter.

My eldest son (step) is getting married THIS Saturday! Of my three step-kids, he is the last to get married. Wasn't it just last week that I was cleaning up vomit as his little round face pouted with fever and wasn't it just yesterday that we sat at the kitchen table with a distraught little boy trying to learn the math principles? They grow up so quick, don't they?

His brother, now married for almost 3 years, has two children. His sister, now married a month, with a step-daughter of her own. The eldest is the last to get married and now he too, will be a step-Dad of two.

All three of them were raised in our home and I hope every day that I have given them a good base, or example, of what being a "good" step-parent is all about. About never trying to "replace" their parent, but being close to them and there for them at every turn, on THEIR terms, when they...are ready. About never disgracing or belittling their natural parent. About the balance that is needed in not being "too strong" with them and yet not allowing yourself to be walked on....because of. I hope they see that it's about being in it for the long haul and albeit kids may not understand things in their young years, when they grow up, they will see how much you love them. They will see what a blessing and honor it has been to have those kids in their lives. And despite calling you by your name, when you overhear the conversation with their friends, and you are refer ed to as "Mom", or you get that phone call of desperation, needing your advise, or they get that hug that lasts that extra three seconds with a "thank you" or an "I love you".... that it all comes full circle.

I've made a lot of mistakes. I regret a lot of things. I have made a poor example in some areas of my life.... but these are the things I can only pray that I have taught..... my children.

Now the youngest.... "our" son.... He's 11 and I'm locking him up in a closet until he's 40. That's not considered abuse is it? I'll still feed him, I promise!!

Hang Tag giveaway

2008-10-23T13:28:00.003-04:00

Stacey has a some wonderful Hang tags to giveaway. I love them....go check her out~!

Soul Journal - Doodle

2008-10-19T16:00:00.000-04:00

My complete Doodle prompt for my soul journal. This was fun for me. I had a really awful day at work, and when I got out at 5:00, I had to run home and pick up my son for football and be at practice by 5:30. (mind you...that means, drive home, change myself into something comfy, make sure he is changed into all his football gear, get the water bottle packed, the asthma inhaler, be out the door again and to practice all in 1/2 hour) By the time I got to practice I was whipped! Once it got too cold for me, I sat in the car and "doodled".

It's not real pretty, or artistic or anything, but the way I see it, is it marred and has marks and imperfections, that make up a beautiful whole piece, much like we are as humans. I am trying to learn to see past those marks to the quality and beauty of the the whole thing in all of us, and everything I encounter.
(wow..... that was a lot deeper than I had anticipated!)

Anyway.... Thank you Kathryn, I enjoyed this one, too!

Soul Journal - Healing Love

2008-10-18T10:00:00.003-04:00

This is my completed Healing Love soul journal prompt. It's for a man, obviously, in a lot of emotional and mental distress at this time in his life for both personal and professional reasons.

Love the weary

2008-10-17T07:00:00.001-04:00

A friend of mine often writes poetry and song lyrics. I was thrilled when she asked me to read something and wanted my opinion of it. It, and she, is amazing. I cried when I read it.

I feel a journal inspiration coming on......

Mama made a baby
Daddy went to jail
He drove her crazy
Like a hammer drives a nail

An all-American boy
Rose from the dirt
Went away to the navy
Came home in a skirt

He said Mama can you still love me
Even if I’m gay
She never answered the question
And they still aint speakin today

Somebody needs to love me
Somebody needs to love you
Butter-side up or butter-side down
Somebody needs to love him to

Silver-spoon fed Juliette
Found her Jer-Romeo
Put a bun her the oven
Left her all alone

She said daddy can you still love me
Let me dance at your ball
But the king don’t raise black babies
Inside the castle walls

We've got to…

Love – the weak and the weary
Love – the strange and the scary
Love – the bald and the hairy
Somebody got to love them to

Christians don’t like Muslims
Muslims don’t like Jews
My God don’t like your God
Nor the path you choose

So they lead them to the ditch
By staff and by rod
Shoot one by one
Till they pray to another mans god

Giveaway Celebration

2008-10-16T11:46:00.015-04:00

I just discovered a beautiful blog today, and Pam is giving away two beautiful prints to celebrate 10,000 hits on her blog! Her work is beautiful, check her out~! Pam also mentioned it would be ok to post a picture of her prints..... I love them~!

Soul Journal - Lost and Found

2008-10-15T17:37:00.005-04:00

I completed my lost and found journal prompt and this one was really emotional for me.

The background started with blue acrylic paint, then washed with a yellow, and finally I used distressed it with brown distressing ink. Taken from one of the prompts from Sarah's journey, I put a blob of orange paint on the page, closed the book, opened it again, and let it dry over night.

The border items.. the "otello" snaps and vintage girl were sent to me in some swap mail I received that day, the string, I found on the ground at my son's football practice (and we tell our kids not to pick up garbage!! lol how funny is THAT?), the stamp was given to me by a co-worker who knows I collect cool ephemera and the buttons and zipper I had laying around the house.

The leaf, as instructed in the prompt, has reaffirming comments on it, that were taken from comments other blog readers have left me. The "lost" is sort of personal and is covered with butterfly velum because I don't want to be THAT easily read.

I like the border, it was fun doing it, and I'm happy with the overall layout, too!

This is a great Halloween game~

2008-10-12T21:58:00.002-04:00

Scary Prank Toys & MySpace Layouts at pYzam.com

I've been tagged~!

2008-10-11T22:22:00.012-04:00

Wow~ I've never been tagged before and I got tagged twice in one day! I was tagged by Jennifer at Trial and Error and and by purplecats corner!

I have to give seven random facts about myself and then tag seven other blog friends.

1. My parents emigrated from Scotland and despite the miles, we are still very close to our family.

2. I would eat soup and salad for breakfast lunch and dinner if I could convince my family into it.

3. The last thing I do before crawling into bed every night, is read my Bible.

4. Although I love my friends and family, I am happiest when all alone.

5. I was born with a hole in my spine. (no big deal - don't even realize it's there.)

6. When I was about 7 yrs old I played T-ball. After trying to hit the ball, and missing, I quit and walked home. I've never played ball since.

7. I would love to buy a "fixer upper home" on the ocean front, and retire there.

Now the trick is, I'm supposed to tag 7 other people, but I was tagged twice.... so I guess I'm left tagging 14 people. Whew! Here we go.......
KayakChick, Anna, Annette, Connie, Suze, Cheryl, and Dove.
Whew....and another seven, Linda, Karen, Marci, Linda, Christy, Kathryn, and Kim!

Ok girls! If I could tag FOURTEEN people, then YOU can find seven to tag, right!?

I was dreading this, but it was kind of fun! :)

Soul Journal Permision Slip

2008-10-05T17:06:00.003-04:00

As I continue the soul journal, here is the last pages I completed, "Permission Slip". I really enjoyed this one. I like how it turned out; the colors, the entire layout and of course searching myself for the things I need to allow myself.

First Mixed Media Canvas

2008-09-21T17:46:00.007-04:00

As I've explained, I've been working on my first mixed media piece other than art journals. I choose a canvas, gesso'd it, attached some mixed papers, then washed it with a coffee bean and then flesh acrylics. After that, I cut a tree out of of some scrapbook paper, and dabbed on some green leaves.

While that was drying, I sketched a girl and some pumpkins on some watercolor paper, finished them with water color paints, gel pens and markers.

Once my paper doll and pumpkins were cut out, I attached them to the canvas and sealed the entire piece with Modge Podge.

Once that dried, I added some "confetti leaves", the paper leaf, some glitter and finally the fibers on the edge and this is what I'm left with......

I'm fairly happy with how my first attempt turned out, but I still think it's missing something. I'm not sure what. A "title"? A poem? Some sort of words...... I dunno.... But overall, yes, I'm happy with it. Let me know what you think.... and be honest!! I have thick skin! lol

My Saturday

2008-09-20T17:11:00.011-04:00

Well, today was our third football game of the season. Game #1 - We won! Game #2 - We lost. What will today bring? Hmm... we have a small team of 14 players, with two that can't make weight and one injured.

They had a great game and a great attitude today! My hubby coaches...

and the defensive line improved a TON. We didn't "give" anything away to the other team. Our son in particular was allowed to start today and I can't count how many times they announced his name for blocks and tackles! He's number 28.

They played with all of their hearts today and despite a pretty bad loss they were really proud of themselves.

Almost all of the boys on the team have entered middle school this year and a few of them have had problems adjusting to the change, and a few have been "picked on" by the 7th and 8th graders. The team, both the "popular" and the "not-so-popular" have learned to all stick together and watch out for each other. They all sit together at lunch now and seem to have bonded regardless of their individual backgrounds. It's nice to watch them grow and mature.

We have a "by" next weekend so that gives us two weeks for the injured student to recover and the two that have been working on their weight are pretty confident they will be ready to play in two weeks. The team is working so hard and they are super supportive of each other. I can't wait to see what the next game brings.

When we came home, I worked on my collage a little more, and I'm sure I will do more tonight, but here is where I am at.

New challenge

2008-09-20T10:15:00.001-04:00

I've taken on a new challenge! See the "Embrace the face" button on my side bar. The only instructions given was to make a tree. It can be on any surface of any size, and any medium.

I picked up a 9x12 canvas at a garage sale not long ago and I've decided to give it a shot. Apart from art journaling, I've never done a collage piece and I have no idea what I'm doing! That's ok though as I'm adopting the Nike motto "just do it" and I think I'm going to enjoy this. The only thing that scares me is the name "Embrace the face!" I'm not very good....AT ALL... at faces, and I just know that will be coming, but I guess that's why it's called a challenge, right?

I started with covering the canvas in gesso and collaged some papers on it. I used some of the paper that the beautiful art book was wrapped in when I won it from Suze, along with some other music sheet paper, and also a tag from a pair of my son's jeans that we bought from JC Penny. The tag already has a metal eyelet in it that the "rope" went through to attach it to the jeans. I left that hanging off the edge on purpose with some sort of ...oh I don't know... fiber of some sort in the future, nearing the end of this unknown project and here is where I'm at so far with it.

Instant Gratification

2008-09-19T23:56:00.005-04:00

The next prompt in the continuation of the soul journal was Instant gratification. I choose prayer. I bought some black gesso about a month ago and haven't used it yet. I thought this page would be a good one to try it out for the first time, and I'm happy with how it turned out.

Concert~!

2008-09-18T21:53:00.004-04:00

I just realized that I had a post sitting in my drafts, that I never posted....

A family that belongs to our church underwent some really really tough times. A couple who were high school sweet-hearts, married shortly after high school and in today's time, have four girls aged 18 16 14 and 11.

At age 40, Debbie was diagnosed with cancer. She fought a long hard battle, never loosing her faith and still always teaching faith and peace to all that she knew. Our church family helped with ...you name it! Finances, baby-sitters, rides to and fro for the family, cooked meals, daily phone calls and visits and sometimes silly little gifts just to show support.

After a year long battle, Debbie passed away in April and Howard was left lost in a house with four daughters he had to be strong for, one about to graduate in two months coming.

One month later, in May, Howard also lost his father sudden and unexpectedly.

Howard, too, has never lost his faith. Sure he was angry and confused and depressed and scared.. but never lost his faith. He journaled constantly, he learned to pick out Prom dresses and never forgot how to praise God.

In August, Howard organized a "community concert" at church, with his eldest daughter's boyfriend, playing live music. (and let me tell you.... modern music!? In OUR church!? An EVENING CONCERT!?) Well some of the "elder" church members didn't know what to think and out of respect of Howard, his family and their struggles.... everyone came!

Howard spoke to everyone, thanking them and letting them know as hard as it was, he and his late wife never gave up. They knew that ultimately, they were not in control and that God has a plan.... and who were they to argue that? I don't think there was a dry eye in the house. It was sad, it was encouraging, it was peaceful, and it was all for God's glory. The band was fantastic! A bunch of young, energgized kids who were able to get everyone up dancing and clapping!

I struggle sometimes. I struggle often, to tell you the truth. But Howard's message had so much more to it. Mine will always lay in God, but despite YOUR beliefs and convictions, we are all here together. All trying to make it through life's good bad and indifferent moments. I think we can get so self absorbed in our own struggles, we tend to forget how incredibly blessed we are. I think if we truly put others before ourselves, things are put in perspective.

I think the trick is living that way.

Not just when it's easy.

Not just when we are "blue" and want to see that "we don't have it so bad".

But to live with others in mind first.

Every day.

Doors

2008-09-15T08:44:00.006-04:00

I finished my "Doors" prompt, which I believe was Sarah's final journal prompt before the याहू group started taking over the continuation।

I really like this one! My title...."God never closes a door, without opening another one for us to bloom in"....

The door on the left represents to me, the door closed shut. Sometimes it may be a good thing that ending, and I don't understand why....or sometimes it can be a bad thing that that has ended but has all of those ugly and scary loose ends attached to it. Change always sucks for me! I hate change. I've realized what a creature of habit I am!

The "new door" could be a new chance or beginning or opportunity. One that I could possibly "bloom" in. I guess the "new door" is a representation of hope. The flower on the right is actually a flower from a co-workers garden, that she gave me.... probably .... a month ago.
And here they are......

What a weekend!

2008-09-15T08:41:00.014-04:00

Rain Rain go away!

Wow! What a wet weekend! It rained on Friday. It rained on Saturday. It rained on Sunday! I've never seen it rain, that constant, for that long! All I could think of was those poor people in the hurricane regions. I know how yucky and depressed and lazy I felt this weekend, but that absolutely cannot compare to what a lot of people are going through!

Saturday, my son had a football game. Of course the boys love sliding in the mud and getting dirty, but they did loose. They worked hard though and had a great attitude! We are now one WIN and one LOOSE. We'll see how the rest of the season goes. My Mom and Dad actually came out to brave the puddles and wet bums on the bleachers with me! Alex normally doesn't have too many people come watch him, so he was glad to see there! Dad's clothes looked 40 pounds by the time we left!

Soul Journal.....

So I finished off gesso-ing all around my family, getting as close as I could without touching or smearing the ink. I used a que-tip and got in between all the little spaces, as best I could. Then I just used a cotton ball dipped in acrylic pain and "sponged" a sky. The rest is colored pencils and the writing is in Permanent marker. It's not what I originally had in mind... but all considering, I'm fairly happy with it.

I also finished my reflections page. I think the favorite technique I learned was the magazine stencil. Along with opening up my creative flow, learning and helping me to create something every single day, I felt .....invigorated. Free, I guess.... so the female figure sort of gave me that feeling and I had to use her!

Movies~!

Saturday, when we realized the rain was just not going to let up, my son and I headed for the Block Buster! My his definition, we rent a movie for Dad, a chick flick, and a video game. So we rented Stop-Loss; a movie about a soldier who had already done two tours of duty. On his day of "release" he is informed that he has just been assigned to a third tour and cannot go home as anticipated. This was a little bloody for me, but still a good story.

The chick flick that I decided to rent.... ha-ha (no pun intended).... was RENT. I watched this movie years ago, and didn't remember too much about it, but after seeing a post on Suze's blog about Rent, I decided to watch it again. What a good movie! I cried, I laughed, and a cried again! This is a musical and unusual for me to be that emotional for a musical.... but I loved it!

Well since I rented two movies and a video game, I had a coupon for a third on to be rented for free. Well..... rain - rain - on it's way - I'll be in for two more days......

So I also rented Smart People. This was a really good movie, too! I liked the sarcastic humor in it! I totally relate to that! (unfortunately, I can be a bit a smart a** myself). The ending left you feeling like you wanted more....but over all. I like it.

The winner.....by far....this weekend has to go to RENT~!

Have a good day chickies!

Soul Journal- Photo copy

2008-09-10T07:37:00.011-04:00

Well... I tried finishing up some unfinished projects. I completed my Misfits page. It's not much different from my last post, but to tell you the truth, I wasn't really "into" this prompt. I think it was a little "cartoon-y" for a Mom of an almost 11 year boy who has to fight the video game and cartoon battle every day. It was neat and I don't "regret" doing it, it just wasn't something I could be very creative with.

Next I worked on the photo-copy prompt. Pink, purple and burgandys are my favorite colors. So since this prompt was about my favorite pieces of soul journaling so far, I thought I would go with my favorite color family as well. I don't know if you can tell in the picture or not, but the "Fun Pass" on the lower left corner is actually embossed bright pink as well. I think I like how these pages turned out but at the same time, think they look too......... simple?

Lastly..... My frustration........

When I thought Sarah's prompts were over and before I knew a Soul Journal Yahoo group had started, I played with sketching something. Keep in mind...lol..... I've never sketched people before!! That in mind..... I was actually really pleased with my little sketch~! At that point, I've looked at it for probably a week thinking to myself.... "Maybe I will finish this page off and consider it a "practice" and maybe attempt doing a canvas of it." I've played with pictures in my head for a week now, I've just completed Misfits and Photocopy pages.....now I'm going to tackle me sketch....

I should have went to bed!

I began going over the pencil sketch with black marker, figuring I wanted to prep the page with gesso, so I could either paint color on the sketch or even collage the clothing, but gesso would be a good start and the black marker would show through enough to go over it with the paint. Right?

Nope......

First I realize paint from the previous page had bled through. this has never happened to me before! It's a moleskine journal and the previous page even had gesso on it! {thought process}.... "well maybe the gesso and paint/collage" will cover it.

So I begin to gesso. I didn't pay enough attention to which black marker I used (a non-permanent - acid-free scrapbooking marker) and when my brush hit it..... IT
SMEARED!

Waahhhh!!!!

The page was already half gesso'd, so I finished off gessoing it.....leaving a border all around my non-permanent sketch. :(

What in the world do I do next? I really want to salvage this little drawing of my family!

Wordle

2008-09-04T21:23:00.004-04:00

I finally went and checked out the wordle web site I've seen quite a few people talking about. How Fun~!

Erica - BluJay studio's giveaway

2008-09-04T16:15:00.003-04:00

Ok, so the last few posts have been "giveaway" related and you guys are going to start to think that's the only reason I'm here....but REALLY! It's not, I promise!
What drew me to blogging is the inspiration that can all see to draw from each other! I love taking part in the challenges, learning new techniques and getting to know all of you!

Speaking of which, Erica at BluJay studio is one of my REGULARLY read blogs and she's wonderful. I love the video she made of herself dancing! She's just so "in-tune" with herself.
Anyway! She's giving away her newest paintings, and despite holding hope that I may be the winner, any of you would be lucky to have it! Visit Erica's page and check it out!

Another Giveaway!

2008-09-03T14:38:00.003-04:00

There is another great oppoturnity to win a Halloween pacakge!

Just visit Paper imagery Designs and leave her a comment...it's that easy! And it's a wonderful Halloween package!

Art book from Suze~ Yay~!

2008-09-02T22:20:00.006-04:00

Thank you again, to Suze! I received my Art book in the mail today and what a beautiful package. Everything about it was great right down to how it wrapped! Suze wrapped it in old vintage "newspaper" looking paper, with stamps and tags on it, and even her own postage!

I loved the "newspaper" so much, I as being very tactful in how I opened it, in hopes to save the paper, right? I mean, how great would it be to make more art out of Suze's generosity? So I carefully cut away at the paper and opened my box in great anticipation. Once opened, I was pleased to see that the art book was loosely wrapped in the same great paper! Making my way hrough the box, I found an envelope, thanking me for visiting her blog and it was filled with some wonderful goodies!

and now.... the prize.... the Art book. I love it! I don't know how much more I can say about, other than, I just love it.

Thank you Suze..... Your art and your kindness are both appreciated!

Soul Journal Misfits & Self Portrait

2008-08-31T14:54:00.006-04:00

I've been a bad blogger..... I have no excuses. I'm just simply not motivated.

Here are the beginning stages of Sarah's Misfit prompt. I'm not finished with these. I don't know what else I'm going to do yet, I just know they aren't done.

And here is my journal pages of Sarah's self portrait. She asked to begin with writing beginning "Today I feel" and also so a self portrait strictly by finger painting. The picture of these is poor, but it's kind of cool looking at the left page. Some of the highlighted words that stand out are strong, unafraid, define, learned, suffer, grow, God's child, stumble, survive and accomplish.

I wish I felt some of those things today.....

I'll post the finished misfits when they are done.

Thank you Suze~!

2008-08-26T11:29:00.005-04:00

Yay~!! I won. I won. Woo Hoo~! Woo Hoo~!
Suze at Pink Crayon Studio is celebrating her one year blog anniversary by sharing her beautiful art work, in the form of an artbook.
I can't wait to admire it in my own home!
Thank you Sharon for your kindness, for the commitment you've made to your blog, and for your artistic inspiration!

I need some guidance....

2008-08-26T10:39:00.004-04:00

I work with a girl who, she and her boyfriend, have just had a garage sale this past weekend. Her boyfriend has a lot of really really old vintage items. Apart from old guns, and swords and cabinets, books dated in the 1920's, etc.... and he has a lot of ephemera.

Knowing I'm interested in things like that, she brought in the vintage ephemera and I'm drooling over it!! A lot of it is dated in the 1920's. Some post marked post cards, greeting cards, old score cards from board games, etc. She plans on putting the remaining items on "craigslist", so I mentioned to her, "Let me know what you are asking before you post that."

This girl I work with..... she is.... "that girl" that every office has, that is sort of quirky and easily "miffed" and often makes a "tense" office atmosphere.

She keeps insinuating that at the garage sale this past weekend, no one wants to pay and keeps trying to bargain with her and she has let things go for way too cheap. This followed by, "how much would i say something like this goes for?" I told her I've never bought anything like that before, and I'm really not sure. (The sticker from the family garage sale is still on each of the zip lock baggies, with $1.00 marked on them, each bag containing between 5 and 20 items). She says she thinks they meant $1.00 per piece of paper.

I by NO means want to rip her off, but I also know her personality and the constant "victim" role that she plays. I want to be fair with her but I don't want to be taken advantage of either.

Can anyone give me a guideline or some sort of base as to what vintage ephemera goes for?

No brush Required

2008-08-24T13:17:00.002-04:00

This is a video I found on youtube that I thought to be amazing! Who am I to "not try" because of insecurities of not knowing techniques. What an inspiration!

My son is getting married~!

2008-08-21T08:51:00.000-04:00

The oldest is getting married~! Wow, I never thought I would see the day that Nolan would be married! He was the one that either picked the girls that Mom and Dad would never approve of, or just plainly had no interest in "settling down". Maybe nearing 27 in November, he has decided "it's time". Thank God we like Jessica. She is beautiful, intelligent, low key and yet can whip Nolan into responsibility mode in 2.7 seconds. They balance each other well, when Nolan can get her to relax a little and enter his goofy mode. We're happy to have Jess join our family. By the way....NO! He doesn't normally wear a cowboy hat! Did I mention he has a goofy side? This picture is taken at Michigan International Speedway, at a Nascar race the two of them treated my hubby to.... V.I.P. passes and all! Aren't they cute!?

It's so strange. My husband and I have a son of our own, but when my husband and I met, Nolan was younger than the age our son is, now. He (and his two siblings) have always lived with us and, yes, I claim them as my own. Donny has been married three years now and has two children, now Nolan is getting married and Marie is discussing marriage as well. I'm so proud of all of them. Of course as a parent, you always want the very best for them and believe the plan that WE have mapped out for them is the very best plan, but they have each found their own way. They have grown. They will continue to grow, and I am blessed to be a part of that process.
It's amazing how time flies!

Congratulations Suze~!

2008-08-21T08:21:00.003-04:00

Please visit one of my regular blog reads: Pink Crayon Studios as she is giving away a beautiful art book in celebration of her one year blog anniversary!

On the other hand, don't bother! Because I am going to bribe her with money and gifts and compliments and general sugary sweetness so that I win it myself! :)

Good Luck.

Soul Journal - Collage Potpourri

2008-08-20T21:28:00.008-04:00

I've been working hard at Sarah's collage potpourri journal prompts. This was actually three different assignments all with prompts given to be completed in our own random order. I had a lot of fun with these!

Page 1 & 2

Page 3 & 4

Page 5 & 6

Soul Journal Tape Pages

2008-08-20T08:15:00.005-04:00

Sarah Whitmire had us try a technique using all kinds of different tapes, which I really enjoyed. It's amazing how much texture a simple household item gave to my pages, as you can see here. Sarah asked us to set the pages aside while we moved on to some other pages. When we came back to our "tape page" Sarah said there were no rules, just go page to the pages and complete them and here are my results. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the pages have a much more orange, brown and green hue to them. I really like it. I think it might be missing something, but I will once again, let it sit....and may add something later.

Back to the Bricks

2008-08-16T20:16:00.014-04:00

We had a great day today. Downtown Flint, (which is paved in bricks on the main strip) had a "Back to the Bricks" car show today. My husband suggested we go down there and check it out as our son really enjoys looking at old cars, too. Wow! Were we surprised! The entire downtown area was packed! The entire strip of Saginaw street was filled and all the little side streets off it, too.

There were vendors, live music and all the little cafes were bustling with people. My son and his friend even had the opportunity to sit in a drag strip car, which they loved! They really enjoyed seeing the 69 Chevelle's that Dad has always wanted and of course were enamoured with all the cars loaded with extras.

We had lunch in a cafe' ......

And I of course found my favorite car, too! How cool is this?! I just HAD to take a picture.

Then, one of our older sons called, and unbeknown to us, they were at the car show, too (and of course is always a good day when we get to see our grandson, too!) So we finished off our day strolling down town together.

If anyone knows anything about Flint, Michigan, it's a city in dire straights. I think the city is #2 on the nations list for worst crime, as result of the most home foreclosures and an unemployment rate that is also in the top five in the nation. The city really is neat if it would just come back to "life". The business are fleeing and the buildings are falling apart. As the city makes it slow and monotonous attempts to revive it, it was nice seeing the huge turn out of people for the event.

I'm working on my soul journal this evening as we have a late dinner in front of the T.V. and will post my accomplishments in it tomorrow.

Beautiful Art Giveaway

2008-08-15T21:30:00.005-04:00

I love it when bloggers are generous with their art work and celebrate their own milestones with giving away the artwork they have worked so hard at! I can only hope that one day I will be as confidant in my creations to give something away, too!
Anne is giving away a beautiful piece. Visit her at and leave her a comment for a chance to win, too!

Soul Journal - My House

2008-08-14T09:46:00.012-04:00

Sarah's "my house" prompt asked us to build our childhood homes by drawing them first, making a pocket in our home and draw some of it's surroundings. This is simply symbolic and although kind of similar, really doesn't look like our house.

My father used to (and still does) constantly sing. The music notes above the house symbolizes his singing. My childhood home was only three houses from the high school where the marching band always practiced in a large field and my Mom loved it that she could sit on the porch and listen the music each school year. I never realized how much music surrounded our house.

My brother and I had a dog. Piper. Our first and only childhood pet. Of course emigrating from Scotland, my Mom kept a lot of "tartan" things around the house and Piper used to have a tartan blanket that she slept on.

"The Yeglic's" were our neighbors. I used to sneak next door and ask Mrs. Yeglic for a cookie (since my mean Mom would NEVER buy anything WE liked!). Mrs. Yeglic would invite me in and we would have casual conversation. After asking again for a cookie, she would ask me what the magic word was. After completely avoiding the fact that I was asked to say please and in my own way refusing to do so, I would sometimes sit for an hour, and talking about nothing until I finally gave in and said, please.

At the grand old age of eight, I had decided that I was "too big" to call Mrs. Yeglic.... "Mrs. Yeglic" and yet too young to call her Julie. We had all happily agreed she should be called "Mrs. Julie." My parents became pretty close with the Yeglic's and they even traveled back to Scotland with us at which time "Mrs. Julie" held me during my panic, as we teetered on the side of a mountain, as a semi truck tried to pass us on the narrow road. Mrs. Julie has since passed away and I still have the dishes she passed along to me when I was only...probably 16 yrs. old.

I really enjoyed doing these pages and here is where I am at, now.

~Tomorrow I will work on my paper dolls to go inside the pocket of the house.~

Soul Journal - Tape Pages

2008-08-14T09:43:00.004-04:00

I had a lot of fun following Sarah's instructions for the "tape pages". I gathered up some painter's, duct, silver, electrical, masking, and decrotive tapes first.

After writing over the pages, I covered the writing randomly, with the different tapes.

+

And finally, distressed the edges of the pages and wash them with an orange and yellow acrylic paint mixture, wiping off some of the wet pain, giving it an even more distressed look. I'm not sure how I will use these pages, but the texture on them are great! I really enjoyed doing these.

Fall is here~!

2008-08-12T16:05:00.008-04:00

I love watching my son play football~! I was never really "into" football, but since he has started playing, I just love it!

The selfish part is that the two hour practice, 5 days a week, gives me "down-time" to lay on my blanket, in what little sun is left and read, or journal. I love the time to unwind from work.

But seriously, I love watching him play. I'm they psycho Mom in the stands screaming like I want someone in China to hear me.

He loves sports of pretty much any kind and I'm glad. I wasn't sports oriented AT ALL! I was on the swim team, but more out of curiosity I guess. Wanted to experience the "team comradery" in high school. It really didn't work for me. I was too shy and insecure, but I'm glad I did it.

It keeps him active and fit and he's made some great friends!

Go Hornets~!

Fall is my favorite time of year and I love when football (or as he calls it..... "hell week") starts because I know fall is around the corner!

Soul Journal Inchies

2008-08-09T17:25:00.006-04:00

I just finished my inchies layout from Sarah Whitmire's soul journal page. Yesterday I gesso'd the pages and distressed them with a wash of "toast" acrylic paint. I finished the night off with sitting in my over sized chair, watching TV, drinking tea, and choosing my 24 images. We actually rented the movie, "There will be blood". I was a good movie, but with all the academy awards it had received, I was sort of disappointed.
Anywhooo....

Today, I glued the images to the pages. Then I choose two colors to mix that I don't normally use. I used parakeet blue and Irish mint. I'm really happy with how it turned out and had a ton of fun doing it. I'm not sure why, but I think my favorite image is the yellow flower.

I hope my fellow soul journal-ers are having as much fun as I am! I've even shared my excitement and the process with my sister-in-law who hasn't dabbled with art very much, and I think she's going to give it a shot! I may even go shopping tonight (if I can convince the hubby to allow me to drag him shopping while we are out tonight, that is..) for some basic supplies for her!

Oh~! By the way.... I've passed one pesky stone...and have one more to go! I'm not sure if that's good or bad yet. :)

Soul Journal - Creative Armour

2008-08-07T21:21:00.006-04:00

I worked on Sarah's "creative armor" page. Ok, I think I screwed up... I made my page #1, on the very first page when you open my journal, making page #2 and #3, laying next to each other. Reading ahead in Sarah's prompts, I see that wont work, as I will need two page layouts next to each other.

All is good, though. I just made my "Protective armor" entry as two pages. I'm not done yet, but I like how it's turning out so far. First.... ME! In my beautiful armor dress and the second page, a traditional suit of armor. Here is what I have so far.

Soul Journal Day - This book belongs to!

2008-08-07T16:13:00.011-04:00

I've just recently found Sarah Whitmire's soul journaling challenge and was immediatley interested. When I saw it, I thought of my brand new 5x8 Moleskine that's been sitting patiently on my craft table, yelling out my name to be put to use.

The first prompt was "claiming our journal".

I began last night and here are my first few pages. I was extremly motivated last night, going to bed with thoughts swarming my head of the next few pages since of course I couldn't help but "read ahead". I planned to come home from work today and get a t least two pages done.

Now the bad part.... I woke up at 4AM with this horrible, God awful back pain that brought me to tears. What in the world could this be? My back hurt, my belly hurt, MY BACK HURT! I toughed it out in the bath tub till morning and after today's Dr. visit... apparently I have a 3x5 mm kidney stone. Boo~! I've never had one before and I guess it's a big enough one that the Dr. is worried I won't be able to pass it, and I have an appt on Monday to have it removed. (If I make it that long w/out needing the E.R. room!)

So anyway.... in my.... "not so painful" moments, I am still going to work away on my new Soul Journal. Hopefully it will keep my mind off the pain. Hope you enjoy the pages so far.

I want to live

2008-08-06T21:40:00.002-04:00

Just a quick post.... I love this song....and love the video. Besides, how can you NOT love Josh Gracin's little baby face?

Coupon organizer

2008-08-05T23:21:00.009-04:00

I wasn't feeling real creative tonight, but still wanted to stay occupied and "make something". I decided to try and make a coupon organizer. I was fun and quick~! I made both of these within about 30-45 minutes. Maybe now I will be a little more disciplined with clipping coupons now that I have a beautiful organizer to keep them in!

I wish I would have enforced the flap with card stock to make it more sturdy when tying it shut, and I also thought, of course after I was all done with them, that I should have used an elasticized closure, so that it could be connected to the cart, while shopping. Oh well.... it was my first attempt and very on the whim.

Let me know what you think.

(front) (back) (back side of coupon envelope)

(front) (back) (back side of coupon envelopes)

(and finally, the inside of the coupon envelopes)

Back from Vacation....

2008-08-04T20:41:00.025-04:00

Well, we made it back safe, sound and relaxed. A whole week of sleeping in late, playing in the lake water, taking naps when we felt like it, reading and journaling. I deffinatetly feel decompressed.
I finished up a few journal pages that I have been working on (yeah....sad to say for a month now!), but I got them done!

In a post last month, Pancake Saturday, Anitra made a commented that prompted me to make a journal page of my story, focusing on my "Medusa hair" in the morning and here is that page.

Next... I finished a page that I titled "1967 Riots". The page is about the 1967 Detroit riots and how it coincided with my parents emigration from Scotland. The idea of riots breaking out in both South Bend IN where they were headed to, and in Detroit, where they eventually settled in the suburbs, really scared my Mom. She kept asking my Dad, "What are you bringing me to!?"

Next... I did a page about all the different things... "I am"
It's sort of a simple and silly one, but nonetheless, it's what I was thinking.

Next... a sketch I did of the lake we visited all week. I sketched it first, then finished it with water color paints, and some acrylic washes. It's my first "real" sketch...and in my opinion, doesn't look very good. I'm sure in time, after lots of practice, when I look at again years from now, I will look upon it fondly.

Now....all that being said... I feel pretty crappy today. I've always avoided the subject of any sort of depression as my family all have access to my blog. But....those close enough to me know, and those who don't are still my family... and who else can you depend on, right? So... here it goes...

Between on ongoing issue at home, a weight that goes up and down like a swing, the big 40 creeping up, and a general unsettled feeling about the future (as far as where we will live/work after my husband's upcoming retirement...) I just feel CRAPPY! I thoroughly enjoyed my vacation but I think the aftermath of everything slowing down, gave me way too much idle time to think. Unfortunately, when I ponder thought, I tend to think on the negative things, instead of the positive.

Why do I do that? That's such.... CRAP. I am blessed is so many ways.

Even when I look at my journaling and scrapbooking projects, I feel like I'm a "want to be"... I have no education in art. I have no real "talent"..... I'm just striving to do the things that interest me, and get me mind out of the gutter, but I can't even draw! I'm self taught and not excelling very well!

No...I'm not ready to go.... nutty... or drink myself silly or any of the other extremes people tend to think of when they hear depression.....and no.... I don't want any...."pick me ups"... It's just one of those days of seeing the reality of things....and knowing they suck.

Wow!! That post when down hill! Anyway....tomorrow is a new day. God will, with no doubt in my mind, bestow more blessings upon me. I hope I wake up with eyes wide open and enjoy them! In the mean time....I hope you enjoy my pages.

2008-07-28T10:07:00.008-04:00

Well..... In about an hour....we are off for a week. These are from a few years ago at the cabins.... but they are some of my favorties~!

Take Care everyone.