My Little Voices

Mother's Day

2011-05-05T19:39:00.000-07:00

Another post from a Facebook friend:

Re-post this if you have a Mom in Heaven!¸¸.•*"Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ"*•.¸¸

If flowers grow in heaven Lord, then pick a bunch for me. Place them in my Mothers arms and tell her they're from me. Tell her that I love and miss her, and when she turns to smile, ( ◕‿◕｡) ღ ❤ place a kiss upon her cheek and hold her for awhile.

MLK, Jr. quote

2011-05-03T09:28:00.000-07:00

A Friend from Facebook posted this:

"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that" -Martin Luther King, Jr

Happy Easter

2011-04-22T17:14:00.000-07:00

Reflections of Christ Slideshow
www.youtube.com

All 26 images from the Reflections of Christ project by Mark Mabry.

Bits and pieces

2011-02-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

I'm happy with myself, I finally got my Shingles shot last week. Easy peasy. Since I had chickenpox as a child and my father had a nasty case, I thought it prudent.

Anyway, my arm was red for a few days where the shot was given and it itched for a couple of days, but it's all good now.

And then I chipped a back tooth, so I'm getting a crown next week.

And now it is snowing - my bulbs have been peeking out of the ground for awhile already and now it is snowing.

February has been an interesting month.

Remembering Challenger 25 Years Later

2011-01-28T13:30:00.000-08:00

‘High Flight’ by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed and joined the tumbling mirth of sun-split clouds, – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless falls of air...
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, nor eer eagle flew –
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high, untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

From left are Ellison Onizuka, Mike Smith, Christa McAuliffe, Dick Scobee, Greg Jarvis, Ron McNair and Judith Resnik

President Ronald Reagan in the Oval Office of the White House from his televised address to the nation about the space shuttle Challenger explosion:

"The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God." "

Good-bye Aunt Marianne

2011-01-18T19:06:00.001-08:00

Saturday was spent with mixed emotions. The oldest generation is all gone now that Aunt Marianne passed away on January 5th. Her service was on Saturday and the room was filled with relatives, friends, neighbors and co-workers - all telling wonderful stories.

We all enjoyed her 100th birthday in June 2010, and that is a wonderful way to remember her.

and Happy 2011, belatedly

2011-01-09T21:37:00.000-08:00

I got caught up in my life, also my 100 yr old aunt passed away on the 5th & we've been busy with all that that entails. Her memorial service is next Saturday - January 15th.

It's been snowing here, but nothing is sticking. I need a really big snow to perk me up!

I've been cleaning out again - several trips to the recycling bin & garbage can. And, several boxes ready for charity.

Our house's foundation was worked on January 3-5, so we are now level. They raised the Southeast corner of the hour almost 4" - so now I have cracks inside that need fixing, some windows that don't want to shut, doors that do shut now...a mixed blessing. I'll post pictures of this later.

I've been cross-stitching and will post pictures of that later, too.

I hope you all have a wonderful 2011.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T00:18:00.001-08:00

Afghan finished

2010-12-11T11:29:00.000-08:00

I finished my Afghan for the Bernat Mystery Crochet-Along:

I had to order another skein yarn to finish the shell edging, so I didn't finish until last night. But now it is done!

Cindy & Sammy like it too.

How the time has flown...

2010-12-02T16:22:00.000-08:00

...since I posted last. Over a year..what on earth was I doing? Well, having a not so good time at work, so I quit/retired January 8, 2010. Then I had a great time cleaning clutter from the house - something I am still doing. It's great to go through each drawer and closet & find things I thought I needed but really don't.

We are getting the foundation to our house fixed soon (as soon as the engineer's report is completed) the estimate is $21,000 - yup, $21,000.

I was called back to work for the month of October ('new' webmaster quit & they were in between web folks). They paid me the same salary as when I left in January & I did not have to deal with the problematic people where I was before. A wonderful time & I was able to leave on better terms & a much happier me. I told them I would be available if they needed me, but for no more than two weeks at a time. We'll see if that happens.

I've been doing other crafts (other than scrapbooking) and am really enjoying myself. I'm crocheting again & am finishing a Crochet-a-long with Bernat. I chose shades of blue instead of using the suggested yarn. I tore apart an afghan I started a couple of years ago. Here's my afghan before the finishing edge. Cindy enjoys the Afghan, too.

You can see truer colors on my Ravelry page.

I also got interested in using my beads when I ran across the Bead Journal Project. Now, I am not a professional, but I do have some crafty skills. I am not joining the project, but it did prompt me to go off on my own & get creative. I decided to use mixed media - fibers and beads. I chose to do projects about things I liked. So I've done a dragonfly (see the little frog in the lower right side crawling up on the lily pad?),

Christmas tree: I still need to add tinsel or a popcorn string - haven't decided yet what,

the beach: added shells on the beach. I still need to create the jellyfish floating in the water, and a starfish or two. Can you see the seagulls in the sky and the seaweed on the beach?,

fall: this was my first & I ran out of steam after doing the tree & grass. But Mr. Wind will be done next with his big puffy cheeks - blowing leaves around,

and my version of a Cinderella dress: I know her dress is supposed to be blue, but these are the fabric colors I had to create the dress. Now I just have to bead the background & attach the dress.

They are in various stages of 'doneness' ;-)

Well, I have a few things to do this evening & must get to them. I'll try to be a better blogger in the future & post more often.

Fun Etsy Store

2009-08-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

Look at the Cricuit covers & scrapping goodies she has to offer at Scrapguild. Wouldn't a matching set of covers and a scrap catcher be fun? She takes special orders. And look how she is storing her cartridges and booklets....too cute.

From her site: I have a fashion design background, have sewn for 30 years and quilted for 10.

Here's her blog Cricutcraftyclare.

It's too HOT!!!!!

2009-07-29T15:38:00.001-07:00

Yup, 104 degrees in downtown Seattle. Way too hot for not having air conditiong at home. It's sooo hard to sleep.

Temperatures soared into three digits around Western Washington early this afternoon, hitting a record 102 degrees at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport between 2 and 3 p.m. The 102-degree mark at Sea-Tac, where the city's official readings are taken, topped the overall record of 100 set on July 16, 1941 and matched on July 20, 1994. Seattle's record for July 29 had been 95, set in 1971.

Where I'm From...

2009-07-26T18:51:00.000-07:00

We have a challenge on our Obsessed Scrappers United boards..to go to this site and create a LO using the questions about where I am from. This was based on a poem by George Ella Lyons called "Where I'm From." It took quite awhile to come up with my words & the LO followed easily. I used paper from July's Club Scrap Jr. kit....it fit the theme beautifully!!

Where I'm From

I am from cool saltwater breezes, from shells, starfish & clams, from a Voit wetsuit for skiing over the sound, long sunny days & cold winter nights.

I am from a home built by my parents & added onto when I was born, from beautiful “mother-tended” gardens, from a shop full of tools & smells of creativity.

I am from wild blackberries, thimbleberries, nettles, elderberry trees, Fireweed, Indian Paint Brush & from the sweet scent of Sweet Peas & colorful, sweet blossoms of Nasturtiums.

I am from family gatherings reuniting souls each summer & loving, caring, closely knit kin, from George & Ruth, from Andrews & Loomis.

I am from the honest & hard-working, music lovers & the curious, from the artistic & creative.

From wait ½ hour after lunch before you can go swimming & is your homework done.

I am from solid & quiet Presbyterians, from the huge brick building & a Sunday School teacher I loved. I am from red-doored Episcopalians & a small church in Port Townsend.

I am from the Pacific NW, third generation, from pioneer stock. The ocean, sound, lakes & rivers run through my veins. From grilled & smoked salmon, butter clams, shrimp, Dungeness crab, sweet corn from grandpa’s garden.

From hardy Yankee stock in Maine who came west in the 1840s, returned to the east to fight in the Civil War, & came west again to homestead in Washington Territory, from a guitar playing dairy farmer & an Irish lass turned school teacher. From a dairy farmer’s son & a brick mason’s daughter – country & city united, strong, dedicated, hard-working men & women.

I am from photos lovingly scrapped from the 1800s to today, from a genealogy written in 1700s Ireland, tatted lace, crewel pictures, hand-made dresses, a hand-hewn shingle from a barn long gone, silver from a generation that lived in a castle & were landed gentry, my paternal grandfather’s guitar that I never heard him play, the letters from cousins in England during WWII, & the stories passed down from generation to generation to those who still love to hear them.

Blog as a beautiful graph

2009-07-17T14:05:00.000-07:00

This is My Little Voices, visualized as a graph using an HTML DOM Visualizer Applet :

Isn't it pretty?? Try your blog :-)

This is what 99 looks likes...

2009-06-14T14:51:00.000-07:00

This woman has so far, had an inspiring life - serving as Red Cross Club Director in the Orient during WWII to being the Director of Home & Family Life education for the State of Washington (30 years) until her retirement in 1977. She still has a wonderful wit and an enjoyment of all her family around her.

So, family from all over the state came to Olympia to celebrate her birthday at Falls Terrace.

There were over 30 0f us there and my aunt had a great time. The food was wonderful - I had a Seafood Louie, and others had plank grilled salmon, oysters, chicken..and at the end a big birthday cake. I need to mention that the flowers on the cake were 'crimson & gray' - my aunt is a Coug as are almost everyone of us - Washington State University doesn't lack for alumni in our family!!

And, I got to meet the youngest member of our family, Demetri, who is a delightful 2 year old. We held a wonderful conversation for quite awhile.

After, Falls Terrace, most of us returned to my aunt's home and we opened cards and gifts, chatted awhile longer & then left for home. DH & I got home around 10:00 PM after dropping off my nephews.

We were tired, but very, very happy!! Always need that family infusion!!!

I'm soooo ashamed

2009-06-09T16:56:00.000-07:00

I haven't updated my blog in such a long time :( But, here I am today. Lots of stuff going on this week. Tomorrow we have a funeral mass for DH's uncle on Bainbridge Island. He was 82 and quite ill for some time. His wife is just trying to get used to an empty house. I'm sure it must seem very quiet to her.

Saturday, we go down to Olympia for a 99th birthday party for my aunt. She's the last one of the five kids. My dad passed away first in 1985 at age 68..but his sisters were long lived...each of the other three sisters lived to at least see their 90th birthday. My aunt in Olympia was the second eldest and my dad the youngest. It should be a fun time for the family. We are bringing a life-long friend (age 93) of my aunt along with us - they should both enjoy the time together.

Next week DH & I go to San Antonio for a scrapbook retreat with my Obsessed Scrapbook sisters. There will be about 20 of us staying cool in the scrapbook store. A few DHs will be there, too...mine just wants to toodle around SA and see the sights. I want to take some pictures because the last time I was down there (in the 1980s) I didn't take a lot. So Riverwalk & Alamo here I come!! I'll be working on a couple of swaps - I don't want to bring a lot of stuff on the plane - so I'm pre-cutting and packaging up my stuff. I'm so looking forward to this since I've never met these wonderful ladies in person!!

We've been having HOT weather here (yes, I know it will be hot in SA) and we don't have air conditioning...just a lot of fans and popsicles.

Well, that's the short update for now. Happy Summer!!

Susan Boyle - I am a fan!!

2009-04-17T19:38:00.000-07:00

I watcher her performance on YouTube from April 11th and was in awe. I will be looking forward to hearing more from her. You can see her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables via YouTube from Britain's Got Talent 2009.

Fruit of the Spirit - Love

2009-04-07T17:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry the picture is a little off center. Hopefully you can see it just fine. Prima flowers & butterfly. I really enjoyed putting this one together.

Yeah, I know I've done two for Love - but the spirit moved me to do so! I'm working on Peace & Patience now.

April Telephone Scraplift

2009-04-05T19:03:00.001-07:00

In a group I belong to, Obsessed Scrappers United, I am taking part in a challenge. The hostess emails the first person in each group a layout. This time I was first & boy was it a doozy of a LO!! I had to really scratch my head on this one!! I'll post the original later - after this round is over - along with my interpretation. Sorry I can't post it now **sigh** I just finished it & want to show it off...but, the others in my group read my blog and....well, you know ;)

My?? Dog

2009-04-03T11:09:00.000-07:00

I was surfing this morning on MSN and the home page had a link to "Best pet for you by zodiac sign." So I had to see what they thought the "best pet" for me would be. Hummm, a Bernese Mountain Dog. They are beautiful, that's for sure, but I'm not sure it would fit into my lifestyle at the moment.

According to Pets 911, they are very loving - wonder if they like cats?

So check out the web site & let me know what pet was picked for you.

The Fruit of the Spirit is JOY

2009-03-30T17:57:00.000-07:00

OK, so now I am caught up through last week. I've been doing the Bible study, I just haven't had time to do the LOs to go with it ;) Anyway, the center of each flower has a word or two about joy: laugh, heaven, happiness, have fun, care deeply, delight, etc. And, of course, my dove.

I love my hubby....

2009-03-30T15:34:00.000-07:00

Today my DH said, "I would rather be happy and have less money than be unhappy and more money."

I have been under incredible pressure at work and have been looking at my options. His statement really lifted me up. He has been running numbers to see if I can get out of this nightmare, and he supports me 100%.

What more could a wife want? I love you, honey.

March telephone scraplift...

2009-03-28T20:00:00.000-07:00

So, the thing is, you are emailed a layout & you have to look at it & then create your own LO. I was last on this 3 person team & this is what I came up with.

The Thickers were the wrong color, so I used some Making Memories Red paint and painted them!!

I hadn't scrapped too much from 9-11 and these pictures from the flower memorial at the Seattle Center seemed to pop up and spoke to me. So I created a "Seattle Remembers" LO showing the pictures I took when we went down to put flowers at the International Fountain. There were thousands of flowers and it was a beautiful day to go and say a prayer and remember.

The Fruit of the Sprit is - Love

2009-03-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

A little late - this is last week's Bible Study. The Fruit of the Spirit is love.

Goodbye, PI: 1863-2009

2009-03-18T17:41:00.000-07:00

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

I grew up with this newspaper. Every morning it was delivered to the door. It is part of my history and I'm a little sad at its demise. They will go on on the internet, but there is nothing like spreading the paper out on the table and reading here & there, or going through section by section.

After 146 years, the P-I's final edition rolled off the presses yesterday, and quickly sold out. So many things are changing, sometimes I wish the world would slow down a little. So I wish the remaining 20 staff members the best of luck with the new venture.

S ......

2009-03-15T12:03:00.001-07:00

has now stopped!!! It turned to rain & then about 1/2 ago everything stopped. There is a trace of snow on the lawn. Off I go to read the Sunday paper and take a short nap.

The "S" word is at it agan....

2009-03-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

It's SNOWING AGAIN. So, here I am back on my adverse weather alert shift. Nothing take the fun out of a pretty snow fall quicker than to have to work from home because it is snowing.

It's sticking to everything but the roads here where I live...I don't know how the rest of the county is faring, but you can be sure that the towns & cities snuggled up next to the base of the mountains are getting some.

OK, that's it from the home front for a bit. And how is your morning going?

Fruit of the Spirit

2009-03-12T08:46:00.000-07:00

I finally finished it. The introduction page for my Scripture Scrappers Bible Study. We are starting with the "Fruit of the Spirit."

I knew what I wanted to do, but as with all my LOs - it became an ever-changing piece of work. My first thought was to have grape vines hanging over a stone wall. Then I thought about the tree of life. Then I remembered a beautiful piece of printed vellum I've had forever.

So, I sketched out a curved stone arch, drew some grapes and vines over the top, drew in a tree, etc.

Then I gathered my materials....well, sometimes your materials can lead you in a different direction... I found some Prima roses. I decided on paper piecing, so I cut out my tree, punched my leaves, cut out the stones for the arch and then decided punching out little round purple pieces and trying to make grapes was not what I wanted to do. So below is the final outcome.

I used the paper piecing for the tree, stone arch. I painted a vine and leaves on the left side and placed Prima roses. I found some cute stickers of God's creatures and tucked them in here & there and used stickers for the title - "Fruit of the Spirit." Then, I cut out the inside of the arch, placed the garden print velum under it and attached it. I placed a white piece of card stock under the whole LO and placed the sticker of the stone house behind the velum.

Lastly, I placed the white dove on the page. That white dove will repeat on each page with the name of the fruit on it. So, below is the final LO - what do you think??

It's finally over..

2009-03-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

Four days of 12 hour shifts. Went to work today at noon & was able to leave as soon as I wanted to. I wanted to leave at 4:00 PM or 4:30 PM, but I had a meeting that lasted until 5:00 PM. But, at least I can go to work tomorrow at 8:00 AM and leave at a normal time. It's gonna take a bit for my body to adjust - this with the time change happening on Sunday really threw me for a loop!!

I've started my Bible Study - see our blinkie to the right - and I really am enjoying the process. I've almost got my intro page scrapped, when I do, I'll post it here. I'm doing paper piecing, so it's taking me a little time to finish it.

Same ol', same ol'

2009-03-08T15:35:00.000-07:00

So here it is Sunday and I'm sitting on the computer just in case there is snow somewhere here. At my house it is 40 degrees & partially sunny. Last night I stayed at work until 9:30 PM & then came home and finished my shift until midnight.

I wish I were scrapping or making charms or ATCs - something creative with my hands instead of here on the computer!! I did get a basic LO drafted for the Bloggin' Bible study, so I just have to find my papers and embellies and put the front page together.

OK, enough whining for now **sigh** Hope your weekend is better than mine!

Bloggin' Bible Study

2009-03-06T23:07:00.000-08:00

I'm going to take part in an online Bible Study where we scrap the verses we are studying. I can't think of a more fun thing to do and get back into my spiritual life where I belong!!!

We are starting with Fruits of the Spirit & I know just the papers and stickers and ribbon and flowers and buttons and, and, and I can use to do this study!!!!

We start on Monday, March 9th - if you might be interested, visit the blog.

This beading site is gorgeous!!

2009-03-06T22:52:00.000-08:00

Have you visited Beverly Ash Gilbert's blog?? The beads are beautiful and the work she does is amazing. She's giving away some bead soup right now - go visit!!

So what am I doing up so late?

2009-03-05T22:13:00.000-08:00

There "might" be a weather event & so our work group is on 12 hour shifts. My shift is noon to midnight. Luckily, I'm at home right now (it's about 10:15 PM). I go into work tomorrow at noon, if nothing happens, I can come home at the regular time, but sign in every now & then to see if there is anything happening in the rest of the county. Where I live, we usually get the "weather" because we live in the convergence zone - there is nothing going on outside.

So that bring us to Saturday. I have to go down to work at noon & stay there until midnight. On
Sunday, I can work from home. On Monday - if there still is a weather event, I go into work at noon and stay until midnight.

I'm tired just thinking about it. Soooo, bottom line, please pray for warm weather in the Pacific NW.

43 Things Personality Quiz

2009-02-24T18:53:00.000-08:00

I 'stole' this from Betsie's Blog ;-) and found out I am a Spiritual Money Managing De-Clutterer.

Take the quiz & let me know what you are!!

Let's get caught up

2009-02-14T21:50:00.000-08:00

Oh wow, another month??

Weather
Well the snow disappeared & then we had more last Monday. Guess the groundhog was right - six more weeks of winter!!

CleanScape
So I called CleanScape and had a very nice conversation with the Customer Service Rep. I gave him the date and approximate time when my recycling was picked up with the garbage. They have video on the trucks that see what their employees do. The Rep. said they were very serious about recycling and were very sorry this had happened. Anyway, I don't know what the result was; however, they listened to me and I believe that they took care of the problem.

Work
Friday, Feb. 13th was our second of ten Furlough days. Which means I didn't work, not did I get paid yesterday. This is a cost saving measure by the county and all county employees (except essential workers - sheriff, prison, some health workers, etc.) did not work & the county saved some money.

Valentine's Day
DH gave me a small heart shaped box of chocolates for Valentine's Day. He's not real big on holidays, but I try to give him a nudge in the right direction. What was really nice about this is that I've been sick with a cold for two days (feeling really crappy) and he remembered without me telling him....I'll keep him for another year.

Snow done & melting!!

2009-01-05T21:59:00.000-08:00

Quick note...we ended up with about 4" - 5". It's mostly melted now, but is was a surprise - no forecast of it happening. So, I'm back at work and wishing I still was on vacation ;-)

It's still snowing

2009-01-04T20:14:00.000-08:00

DH is safe at home (with groceries!!) We now have 2" on the ground & it's still snowing. According to weather.com it's supposed to turn to rain around 10:00 PM - we'll see.

It's 33F, dark and

2009-01-04T17:55:00.000-08:00

Snowing!! I'm waiting for DH to get home safely from taking DS home to his bio-mom.

On that note....after a two week vacation, I'm going back to work tomorrow :( I have so enjoyed being home and getting caught up on various tasks.

Well, just needed to talk about the weather to get it off my mind. Hope you are all safe & warm tonight.

Huh? part two

2009-01-03T17:40:00.000-08:00

I thank CleanScapes for posting a comment about their service...it was nice to hear from them & I really do appreciate their customer service.

Can you feel the 'but' coming?

Yup, here it is. We put out our garbage container & our recycling container Friday night. Then I decided to trust what they said to do and I gathered up a lot of extra recycling, put them into paper grocery bags and found a large box (our new computer came it in, so I know it would be sturdy) to hold it all. I had five grocery bags of cans, glass & plastic and one large plastic cat litter container on top of it all. The contents were not hidden, and I had my son write 'Recycle' on the box.

Along about 11:30 AM or so on Saturday I hear the welcome noise of the garbage truck (they always come first & then the recycling truck comes by later). I am having a pajama day, reading & scrapping, so I am not dressed. I peek out the window and watch in dismay as the big box of recycling is thrown into the back of the garbage truck followed by the emptying of our garbage container. The driver had run the compactor before I could get my housecoat on & tell them to pull it back out.

I am very upset with what they did. They did not pay any attention to what they were doing...sure, they were in a hurry because a lot of people needed their garbage picked up. I can understand that, but the box was clearly labeled Recycle....so my question to CleanScapes is...

What else was I supposed to do?

Huh??

2008-12-30T20:02:00.000-08:00

So last weekend, was the second week in a row that CleanScapes was not able to pick up our garbage or recycling. Our normal pick up day is Friday and when there is a major holiday (Christmas, New Year's Day, etc) our pick up day goes to Saturday. (Recycling gets picked up every other week.)

OK, so here's the "huh?" part: On Saturday, when CleanScapes once again said they could not pick up our garbage (they leave a message on our phone - that part is good customer service), they said we could take our garbage to their facility between the hours of 9AM & 3PM. So, if their big huge trucks cannot pick up our garbage because of the conditions of our street, how do they think we can get out with our little puny cars????? On Saturday, we still had lots of snow and no melting. 9AM??? it's still cold and dark and there is ICE on the road. Our car was not going anywhere.

So, this coming Friday it will be three weeks. Luckily, we have a large garbage container so if they really come on Saturday (remember, we have a major holiday this week) we should be OK. But, we are overflowing with recycling and that will not be picked up until a week from this Friday. We have our 96 gallon container filled and have six grocery bags under the table plus three boxes of recyclables that will not fit in the container....they did say they would pick up extra stuff at no additonal charge...just nothing in a plastic bag. Hummmm, we live in the Pacific NW...if we put stuff out in boxes and bags they will be very soggy and yucky.

Anyhoo, the snow is still melting and we never got plowed out. It's still slushy in the street and at the end of our driveway. We still have snow on the lawn. And, I can't imagine what our heating bill is going to be.

Life and times at our house.

It's melting!!!!!

2008-12-28T22:00:00.000-08:00

Yes, it started to warm up yesterday & the snow is slowly melting. That is a good thing. If it melted quickly, we would be under flood watch for all the major rivers here. So, we finally got the car out yesterday & DH did a grocery store run, a pharmacy run and post office run. He had the worst case of cabin fever. I'm just happy I'm home can scrap to my heart's content. I'm working on 1988 right now & I'm almost finished.

Luckily we have not lost power, so the On Demand and all the movies were at our command ;-) We mailed off the Netflixs, so we should be getting some new movies next week.

I have another week of vacation, so I hope I can really have it instead of worrying about DH going back & forth to work & then making sure he was warm & dry when he finally made it home.....in the dark....walking on all that ice & snow.

Oh yeah, the washing machine is leaking, so I will now call a Sears repairman tomorrow. **sigh** it never ends.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T11:26:00.000-08:00

For the first time in years, we have a white Christmas. It is snowing right now - a lot. No more snow pictures, you can look at the ones below to see the white blanket.

A little while ago we saw something we've never seen on our street - someone went by on a snowmobile!!

From our home to yours, DH and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and are snug and warm where you are.

December Commit 2 Paper kit arrived

2008-12-24T14:58:00.000-08:00

I just received my Commit 2 Paper kit.

The papers are gorgeous: SEI Alpine Frost collection, Silver alphabet from Thickers, Prima flowers - beautiful browns, whites, gray & tan Bazzill, and some lovely ribbon. I now have more paper to make layouts for my snow pictures!!

More of the same...

2008-12-24T12:54:00.000-08:00

OK, it was SUPPOSED to warm up a bit last night....it snowed instead. See that car in our driveway by the lamppost? It was cleaned of snow yesterday. There was about 2" more on top this morning at about 9:30 AM. It's 33 degree F right now with occasional snow showers. Once again, it is supposed to warm up tonight. We will see.

This tree was supposed to have the snow all gone.

It must have warmed up a bit. There are icicles hanging from our back porch roof.

I tried to get Cindy to settle down. So I put her favorite puppy in the chair & she cuddled right up.

I didn't put that stuffed animal on top of her, she snuggled under it & turned around until it was where you see it. The tree is safe for awhile.

Oh, and here is a headline from the local paper:

Snow, then rain, then snow again
A weather system blew into the Puget Sound overnight, bringing a dusting of snow to some parts of the region -- and making for slushy, slippery roads. But rain is already falling in some places, and more snow is in the forecast for Christmas.

Has it been a whole month????

2008-12-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

Since I posted??? Geesh, life does get in the way of fun. Well, it's snowing here...we've had about a foot of snow since Sunday and the forecast says more tonight. Nothing like snow to bring neighbors together. Haven't spoken hardly any words to them all year & now we are pulling together to help each other out when needed. The snow brought on one good thing. I will say, I do enjoy watching it fall.

Luckily, I am on vacation until the new year...but, DH has to slog it out to the bus stop & try to get into work.

I'm catching up on scrapping - snow pictures at the moment....yes, Robin, I used some snowflakes & when I take a picture of the LO, I'll put it on the boards ;-)

Our tree has lights and a few non-breakable ornaments on it...........Cindy (furbaby girl) just can't leave it alone & thinks we put it up for her amusement alone. The presents aren't under the tree because she uses them to to advance further up the tree.

Sammy (furbaby boy) is being his lovable self and cuddling close when he can, crawling under the covers, and generally being a good boy.

Felting

2008-11-08T16:22:00.000-08:00

November & December kits from ScrapGoods uses the technique of felting. We received some templates to make a flower, but I wanted to see what I could do. So I made a blue bird with a red wing.

Here's the blue bird in progress:

And then making the wing:

And then the end product.

I decided I wanted a wispy tail & end of wing. It was fun. I really enjoy this technique, and am so happy I also got several other colors of wool. I'll sew a bead on for an eye and cut out a felt beak. Then I plan to felt a limb for it to sit on!!

Only one thing to say....

2008-11-04T17:11:00.001-08:00

Breast Cancer Awareness

2008-10-21T17:57:00.000-07:00

My best friend and neighbor was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this month....in the same breast that was treated 13 years ago (lumpectomy). After all the scans, x-rays, MRIs, blood tests & such, I took her to the hospital last Tuesday for a mastectomy.

Luckily, it was caught early & no lymph nodes needed to be removed. She is home, cancer free - again - and no chemotherapy!!

How blessed we are that she will be with us many, many more years.

My SS came through!!

2008-10-21T17:54:00.000-07:00

Yup, I got the entire paper set of Basic Grey Euphoria....I am soooooo happy!!

On Saturday, I was elated to receive papers that had luster and shimmer and I was blessed to receive arcadia, helio, utopia and elysian fields. I was in a ferver and frenzy trying to figure out where it all came from. It was with madness and delirium that I went into my trance.

When I awoke I was cool and in rhapsody when I realized that my secret sister felicity had sent me a gift.

Euphoria was spread out all around me. Now I am fondling all these lovely Basic Grey papers and am very euphoric!!

I have a secret....

2008-09-30T20:46:00.000-07:00

My ScrapGoods secret sister, that is. A lovely lady that I get to buy for. And, I can buy stuff for myself, too!! Her tastes are much like mine, so this is going to be really fun. I've already scoped out the links she gave me; already put in a couple of orders.

Her name.....

You've got to be kidding.................no one finds out until I reveal myself. ;-)

What love is

2008-09-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

I received this in an email in my aMUSEme group:

What Love means to a 4-8 year old . . .
Slow down for three minutes to read this. It is so worth it. Touching words from the mouth of babes. A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, 'What does love mean?'

The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think.

'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love.'
Rebecca- age 8

'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
Billy - age 4

'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'
Karl - age 5

'Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.'
Chrissy - age 6

'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'
Terri - age 4

'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'
Danny - age 7

'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.
My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss'
Emily - age 8

'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.'
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,'
Nikka - age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.'
Noelle - age 7

'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'
Tommy - age 6

'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'
Cindy - age 8

'My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.'
Clare - age 6

'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'
Elaine-age 5

'Love is when Mommy sees Dad dy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.'
Chris - age 7

'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.'
Mary Ann - age 4

'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.'
Lauren - age 4

'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image)
Karen - age 7

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'
Mark - age 6

'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.'
Jessica - age 8

And the final one

The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,
'Nothing, I just helped him cry'

So, what does love mean to you?

Tag you're it!

2008-09-22T21:32:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged! Kylie seems to think I need to update my blog. Can't imagine why she would think that!! So, the little kiwi tagged me.

The "rules" of the game are as follows:
1. Post the rules on your blog
2. Write 6 random things about yourself
3. Tag 6 people at the end of your post
4. If you're tagged, DO IT and pass on the tag

Write six random things about yourself...
1. As soon as I get home, I take my shoes off and wiggle my toes.
2. My favorite color is blue.
3. XML & CSS are easy peasy.
4. I never skipped a class in school.
5. The beach is my happy place.
6. Teenaged children can be a pain in the patootie!!

Tag six people at the end of your post

1. Miss Bee
2. Julia
3. Tara
4. Geri
5. Amy
6. Marinka

Mama Mia!!

2008-07-19T15:22:00.000-07:00

I really want to see this show. I love the people in it & the music sounds like sooooo much fun!! Anyone else looking forward to this one?

Tim Holtz & CHA...

2008-07-19T15:19:00.000-07:00

Just read in another group:

"Back to Tim Holtz stuff. Grungeboard is coming out in a holiday pack and nature pack. Also grungeboard books. The stencils are finally going to be released. Keyholes are coming out in the Ideology line. Tim Holtz fragments are coming out in oval and round shapes plus a set shaped liked tags. The tag shapes are all pretty small and great for ATC's. The crackle paint is coming out in metallic colors and white."

Take a look at his blog for pictures.

Oh wow, I can hardly wait to see the goodies!!

The goddess within & other creations

2008-06-23T17:25:00.001-07:00

OK, the quarterly ATC swap at aMUSEme. Two themes. GODDESS - must use your face on the card. I guess I went a little overboard, but is was fun adding all the glitz:

The second theme was UMBRELLAS. At first I was going to do a paper piecing of the Morten's Salt Girl with white micro beads flowing out of the salt box. Too many pieces and I was not happy with the results. Then I saw a lovely stamp online of a beautiful Victorian lady with a parasol over her head. I was going to put lace on the parasol & use Glittering H2Os on it. The stamp came & it was no where near the fine detail as was shown online..poor lady looked like she was possessed. So, I decided to do some more iris folding and got my pattern and folded 16 umbrellas:

No, I didn't put the gold seal & ribbon on mine......the hostess gave me an award for knocking her socks off!! The back of the card reads: The back of the card reads, "Congratulations! Your ATC has been chosen to receive the Hostess Choice Award for the aMUSEme UMBRELLAS ATC swap. This award is given to ONE swap participant for outstanding workmanship. Your ATC is EYE CANDY and knocked my socks off!"

Charming, just charming

2008-06-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

I was fascinated with the charms that some ladies brought on the cruise to trade. So, when Jan said she would host a charm swap, I jumped right in..........never had made a charm before in my life, but I do make dangles for my tags. Then, at ScrapGoods, one of our members wanted to host a swap & I suggested... CHARMS!! She took me up on it and so here are the charms I have made for both swaps.

They look alike, but for one swap the wire is gold & for the other swap, the wire is red. I attached lobster clips before I mailed them off. Thank you for looking & enjoy.

My first acrylic album..

2008-06-18T18:55:00.000-07:00

OK, so it takes me awhile to get my feet wet when a new technique shows up. We received acrylic albums in September 2007's ScrapGoods kit. Humm, I started saving embellies that would look good with 'see-through' albums and amassed quite a bit....I can collect with the best of them!!

Well, the weekend of June 7th the ScrapGoods design team held an online crop & had several classes & challenges. One of the challenges I took on was to create an acrylic book. I'd been thinking about this for awhile & wanted to do a book of my sister who passed away in 2000.

I took pictures of the inside pages before I attached any ribbons, just to make sure the pages showed up OK. I hope you enjoy seeing as much as I enjoyed making it.

My sister loved the poem "When I Am Old I Shall Wear Purple" - so that's the color combination I chose - purple & red.

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat that doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickles for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beer mats and things in boxes.
But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.
~Jenny Jacobs ~

Marianne as a baby and about 3 years old.

Marianne at about 2 on the left. The poem is a Native American Prayer

I give you this one thought to keep -
I am with you still - I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the swift, uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not think of me as gone -
I am with you still - in each new dawn.

Marianne at about 5 years old.

Marianne & our cousin Barbara. The poem reads:

A life well-lived is a precious gift of hope, strength and grace
from someone who has made our world a brighter, better place.

It’s filled with moments sweet and sad, with smiles and sometimes tears,
with friendships formed and good times shared and laughter through the
years.

A life well-lived is a legacy of joy and pride and pleasure,
a loving, lasting memory our grateful hearts will treasure.

Marianne's high school graduation picture 1960.

Marianne's college picture about 1964. The poem on the other side of the page reads:

The tide recedes,
but leaves behind bright seashells on the sand.
The sun goes down,
but gentle warmth still lingers on the land.
The music stops,
and yet it echoes on in sweet refrains.
For ever joy that passes, something beautiful remains.

M.D. Hughes

My sister & I at two stages in our lives...when I was a baby sitting on her lap and in 1997 standing side by side.

The text below the picture reads:

Sisters share that unique & special relationship that combines friend and family - a bond that is at the same time supportive and enduring. The woman who shares her life with a sister is blessed.

And the last page with a quote:

Each life is a miracle that changes the world…
And leaves it a better place than it was before.

Indy is back

2008-06-07T19:43:00.001-07:00

My two guys (DH & DS) and I saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull last night. Indy has aged, but he is as handsome as ever & can climb mountains and save the damsel as good as he ever did!!

Remember Disney's Even Stevens & Shia LaBeouf? He is great in his role in this film...a younger adventurer to carry the fun forward? Maybe so.

At any rate, I enjoy the entire film & will probably be adding the DVD version to my other three Indy DVDs!!

What color of Opals best suits your personality?

2008-05-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

Sponsored by After Midnight! (opens in new window)

Aurora Bright Blue

There's a bit of magic in any great work of art, but you seem to have found the source of pixie dust. Faerie, fantasy, myth and legend are all sources of great inspiration for you, and you delight in giving others a glimpse of something far from the mundane. There's some part of you still playing with the Lost Boys, or dancing with Pan himself, and hopefully you will never lose that.

To take this quiz yourself, just click here!

Cruise blogging

2008-05-27T17:01:00.000-07:00

If you take a look at Tim Holtz's blog you will see his video of the Alaska adventure. When he pans around the audience at the end, I'm on the left, second row back...........hummm, I couldn't find myself, either.

And, this is the blog of The Creating Place a neat scrappy store in Juneau. They were very excited to see Tim!!

Cruising Day 7 - the final gift.

2008-05-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

At the end of the session, Tim said he had a very special gift for us. He showed us this cute little suitcase.

He had it made just for us (remember, presentation is everything) to hold the special gift.

The suitcase was soooo cute and opened up......

A stamp made just for us to match the logo for the entire artistic cruise. The stamp will never be available for sale.

Tim was nice enough to sign each one for us. We were sworn to secrecy since ours was the first group to receive them.

Cruising Day 7 - Alaska Memories - a picture frame

2008-05-19T20:44:00.001-07:00

So we were given a paper photo frame, a page of colored Alaska images and several pieces of clear acrylic. We used a glaze to adhere the acrylic pieces here & there over the various images. When dry (like 5 seconds later) we cut out the acrylic pieces from the paper & had lots of little acrylic Alaska images. We were given a grungeboard tag which we inked. We then used the glaze to attach the pieces to the paper frame.

This is Tim's example.

This is the one I did:

These are the gifties we received.

Cruising Day 6 - Words & Windows - Ketchikan

2008-05-19T20:33:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, alcohol ink, Hambly & Prima overlays. We used the blender solution in a Koi waterbrush. There were six drops of ink in each well of the pallet. It was totally dry and we used the blending solution to wet it & put it on the transparancies.

I only colored the Prima overlays because the pattern is sandwiched between two layers and the blending solution would not have any effect on the design. The Hambly overlays are not sandwiched & so the paint that makes the design would be dissolved by the blender solution. I didn't color the Hambly overlays. We were also given plain transparent pages & two heavier duty transparent pieces for the front & the back. All the projects already had the holes punched in them, but there was a bind-it-all on the table & we used it to bind all of our books.

And the gifties so we could decorate our books some more:

Cruising Day 5 - Weatherd Reflections

2008-05-19T20:19:00.000-07:00

Glacier Bay. Wanted to share some of the photos I took from our veranda off our cabin. It was beautiful.

Ice particles in the water.

And then the project. A 12x12 frame with a mirror in the middle.

Many strips of grungeboard pre-cut into 1/2 inch wide lengths. We then painted them with various color daubers. When dry, we used sand paper on them and then a wire scratching tool. We then cut the strips into various lengths & glued them onto the frame, including the four edges. We then wiped the grungeboard with an ink pad and blended it in.

Then we were given some Thickers and some ribbon to finish the decoration....something I still have to do.

Cruising Day 4 - Skagway

2008-05-19T15:02:00.001-07:00

No Creative Journey today - just a rainy day in Skagway.

Um, yeah, and then it started to SNOW - OK May 14th & snow...well, it is Alaska :-)

And that evening, ScrapMap sent each of us some chocolate covered strawberries. Yum, watching it snow & eating strawberries!!

Cruising Day 3 - Juneau - Parts & Pieces

2008-05-19T14:44:00.000-07:00

This was a mini project created by Karen (key chain) one of Tim's friends who helped him during classes. Basically, it bits and pieces of clock stuff, brads, wires, clips, chains, etc. all presented (per Tim - "it's all about presentation") in a little coffee stained bag - yup, the bag smelled like coffee. You can see the monogram stamp on the bag (more info about it below in this post).

And here is what I came up with. I still have lots of bits & pieces to play with, but now I know what do to with them!!

And, I attached it to my journal we made the first day.

Some more goodies we received. Yup, that's a monogram stamper kit. Tim had several set up so we could stamp our projects & then he gave each of us one of our own. I went into the Creative Journey Emporium & purchased a set of tiny letters and numbers to go with this.

John & I went on a photography tour of Juneau - several miles of walking and taking photos. Here's our ship as viewed from Douglas:

John & me at Mendenhall Glacier:

The end to a wonderful day.

Cruising Day 2 - first Creative Workshop - Memories of the Journey

2008-05-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

Yup, I'm at the right place.

Class kit, donated by Ranger. Had to bring it to class each day so we could use the goodies. Distress ink, crackle paint, black paint dauber, mister, white pen....see all the goodies below.

The first project: Memories of the Journey. We made a small book with Grungeboard covers, covered with crackle paint and inked. 7 Gypsey's knob, ribbons, new prima flowers and all sorts of goodies. The book was made to fit in the tin - I'll be decorating mine later.

Here are some of the internal pages - each inked with our ink blender and decorated with fun stuff. Tim likes stuff and knows we like stuff, so there was lots of stuff in the workshops.

Speaking of stuff...here's some of the free stuff we received on the first day. Lots of companies donated goodies for us.

And my favorite picture....Tim and me...he is such a funny and creative person.

Cruising Day 1

2008-05-19T14:13:00.000-07:00

Welcome reception in the Spinnaker Lounge. We were given our name tags & a tote to use every day. Had to wear the name tag, or we weren't allowed into the classes. The name tag holder was big enough to hold the schedule of events, my camera (Sony Cybershot) and ATCs for trading. Had to bring the tote EMPTY to class....hummm, I wonder why???

After a bit of housekeeping details, Tim was introduced and he is such a wonderful & funny guy. He wouldn't give away any secrets as to what we would be doing each day. But, that's OK, we were ready to roll!!

Do you post your family photos online? Read this!

2008-05-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

ORPHAN WORKS OF 2008

There are two bills that are coming up in the House & Senate that will change copyright as we know it. They were shot down once before because of action against it, but now they are back as bill numbers HR 5889: The Orphan Works Act of 2008 (House of Representatives) and S 2913: The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 (Senate).

This is text from the Illustrator Partnership web site:

Due to the lack of publicity about this bill, the most innocent victims of this plunder – those who put images online - are still completely unaware of it. Who am I talking about? Average American families who have enjoyed the internet as a way to share the happiest, and even saddest, moments of their lives with their friends and family across the country, and even around the world, through the wonders of technology. Google has already said they plan to use these orphan works in the millions. Why should companies like this be allowed to to harvest our property from private web pages, blog sites, share sites and the like?

If you are posting your photos online, you should send the email letter on the Illustrator Partnership web site (all you do is enter your info and press send!)Takes 1 minute!!!

2008-05-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

I've been looking at the Basic Grey new lines and am in love with Boxer.

Aren't those colors and patterns just gorgeous?

Tim said...

2008-05-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

"okay FYI everyone....
the "design emporium" will be stocked with all of my NEW idea-ology products that are not in the stores yet... can't wait!

-tim"

The "Design Emporium" is where we will do our crafty shopping from stuff Tim brought. Have I said I'm very excited yet????

Well, I am!!

2008-05-01T16:23:00.000-07:00

Oh my, look at all the boxes Tim sent off to Seattle for the cruise. I wonder which one will be mine ;-)

I'm packing an extra bag to bring home all the goodies. I promise to take pictures of each and every goodie I get!!

We are on the Norwegian Pearl if you want to see where the classes will be...right next to the Stardust Theater.

Just heard from Tim

"the "studio at sea" will be our workshop room which is the Barcelona/Prague rooms on Deck 6 Forward. you will have access to this area starting an hour after all classes are over for the day and all day on wednesday (since there are no workshops that day in skagway). just a reminder that the studio at sea is an open creative forum with no supplies stocked, etc. so if you're planning on working on personal projects (since i know all other projects will be completed in class) be sure to bring what you need. also, ALL supplies needed for ALL workshops are provided for you by me - that's right, no need to bring scissors, adhesives, etc. it would just be taking up valuable luggage space need for all of the fun stuff that awaits you. see you all soon!"

Travel Journal & ATC

2008-04-27T11:15:00.001-07:00

I finished my Travel Journal last night & love the colors & beads & ribbon!!!

I decorated the inside pages with leftover rub-ons, travel stickers and such. Plenty of room for Tim Holtz to put his autograph :-)

I really like the elastic that holds the pages closed & the base for the journal only cost me $1.99 at Goodwill!!

So, this is where I'll journal the daily happenings and clip on ticket stubs & other bits of ephemera so I can remember the moments when I get back home & start scrappin' the fun. I'm hoping I can get DH to write in it, too...I think I can without twisting his arm too much!!

This is a picture of my Alaska ATC.

I used holographic wrapping paper for the background to look like the northern lights and a great picture of Denali.

I popped a tiny eagle - yes that is supposed to be an eagle!! And I cut out totem poles & popped them up on the card as well.

The title of the card is Dena'ina - The High One. Also known as Denali and Mt. Mckinley.

Music Fat Book

2008-04-27T11:07:00.001-07:00

This is the Fat Book page I've created for my ScrapGoods swap. Instead of choosing a particular person or type of music, I chose to show two ways to enjoy the music - through an iPod & a CD.

I had fun making the iPod out of black foam board brads and a plastic slide mount. I downloaded pictures of the screen and controls and printed them out & attached them to the iPod. I hope everyone enjoys their personal iPod!!

I was able to use several different brad & charm letters to form the word 'MUSIC' on the edge of the treble clef. The treble clef was cut from specialty paper. I decorated the iPod with a bead dangle.

I have to finish the back with my explanation of what I did & then get them sent off to the hostess - but I'll wait awhile for that..they aren't due until Auguse ;-)

Scrapin' Friendzy - April 19th

2008-04-27T10:52:00.001-07:00

Scrapin' Friendzy was a little different this time. I was in a different room, but that was OK, 'cause so were my friends!! This is my table before all the "stuff" got pulled out to work on. It was nice because it was on the end & I didn't have to crawl over anyone to get out when I wanted to go upstairs to visit the shopping area which Ballard Camera brought. They also had the make & takes and the classes by Stampin' Up, Creative Memories, The Angel Company and Close to My Heart. I only did the Close to My Heart class, 'cause I was busy completing several swaps. I finished my Alaska ATC for the cruise, Perceptions LOs for ScrapGoods, and 99% finished my card swaps for aMUSEme and ScrapGoods. I also stared at the FatBook page to see if I could add any more.

We had lots of good stuff to eat. For breakfast there was yogurt, fruit, sweet breads, bagels, coffee, tea & juice. There was a bottle of water & some chocolate already at each of our stations. Throughout the day, there were veggies, chocolate and a cracker mix to munch on. Then for supper - taco salad, fruit, soda or water.....and later a hot fudge brownie on ice cream for dessert.

Travel Journal

2008-04-26T17:29:00.000-07:00

Almost finished with my travel book....just putting some embellies on the inside so I have happy things to look at each time I make an entry. Thinking of having DH write in it, too - gotta find the man pen :-)

Artful Collage Flowers

2008-04-22T11:40:00.000-07:00

And a post on Tim's blog yesterday, showed the flowers close up, and an explanation about them - they are Artful Collage Flowers from Prima!!

I'm working on a small journal to take to hold autographs & some memorabilia. Wish we were boarding NOW!! I want to get my fingers on that paper & those flowers!!

The suitcases

2008-04-20T17:36:00.000-07:00

have been brought down from the attic, I'm adding & deleting items from my list and I can hardly wait to board the ship. Look what Tim has in store for us. Isn't that paper beautiful? And, if you look at the next post, you'll see some gorgeous flowers!! There are holes drilled in that paper & it looks like we are going to make a book of some kind. Oh man, I can hardly wait for the cruise.

I had a great time at Scrapin' Friendzy (local all day crop) yesterday. I finished most of the ATCs for the cruise, the cards for my aMUSEme swap and 90% done with the cards for my ScrapGoods swap. I'll post pictures when all is complete.

Chevron Lace Afghan

2008-04-18T18:51:00.000-07:00

So, I guess it's a good thing I am crocheting an afghan....I have it about half way done - in shades of blue. I haven't crocheted in a looooong time, so this has been a nice experience. One good thing about making an afghan - as it grows longer, it keeps you warm while you are making it!!!

A little closer look at the stitch.

Yup, one more snow picture ;-)

Biggie Paper Clip swap

2008-04-18T18:36:00.000-07:00

Just found this picture of a swap I did last year. We used biggie paper clips. One we had to make a flower & the other was whatever we wanted to so. So I make a paper rose & a bad hair day clip.

Rolling Pin Recipe swap

2008-04-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

I'm in a swap in my aMUSEme group & we are making rolling pin recipes. Here's the front of mine...I just love black, red & white!!

And here is the recipe inside.

And the back, stamped with a stamp my friend Marjie made for me.

Snowing in Shoreline

2008-04-18T18:10:00.001-07:00

Yup, snowing in the middle of April. It's 34 degrees Fahrenheit and I'm happy I'm inside!!!

Later... and now it is sticking...

Cruise

2008-04-08T18:21:00.000-07:00

Oh gosh, it's almost time for the cruise!!! Wow, we got our tickets last week, we've prepaid our parking at the garage, reserved a cat townhouse for Sammy & Cindy at the vet's and are now looking at booking our tours online.

For Juneau, we are going to do the Capture Juneau Photography Tour. John had wanted to see the Mendenhall Glacier & this tour includes that, so this is a perfect tour for us.

We are also going to visit our favorite store in Juneau - Caribou Crossings and buy another picture by our favorite artist Karla Morreira. We have three of her paintings already - Stardust (mine is in cobalt blues instead of purple like this picture , Bering Sea Blues and Dragons Moon.

In Skagway, I think we are going to do the Golden Glass Blowing Experience.

We haven't decided if we are going to do any tours in Ketchikan yet or not. We have been to Alaska several times & have done several of the tours, so that's why the Skagway is a little different experience for us & we may just walk around Ketchikan and enjoy the stores. They have a wonderful bookstore there & I know I'll lose John there :-)

Anyway, the time is getting closer & I'm ready to have fun on board with Tim Holtz classes & on land with all the wonderful scenery. I'll try to update my blog daily while we are cruising so I can share the experience with you.

I just wanted to be sure of you

2008-03-28T18:00:00.000-07:00

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind.
"Pooh!" he whispered.
"Yes, Piglet?"
"Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw.

"I just wanted to be sure of you."
- A. A. Milne

What color am I?

2008-03-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

Humm, is this really me? Maybe - my favorite color is blue:

you are lightcyan

Your dominant hues are green and blue. You're smart and you know it, and want to use your power to help people and relate to others. Even though you tend to battle with yourself, you solve other people's conflicts well.

Your saturation level is very low - you have better things to do than jump headfirst into every little project. You make sure your actions are going to really accomplish something before you start because you hate wasting energy making everyone else think you're working.

Your outlook on life is very bright. You are sunny and optimistic about life and others find it very encouraging, but remember to tone it down if you sense irritation.

the spacefem.com html color quiz

The eagle has landed....

2008-02-26T08:29:00.001-08:00

across the street. I'm working from home today and I see this enormous bird land across the street. The crows are going wild - not happy at all. I take a closer look & grab my camera. One shot is what I got.

I called the Woodland Park Zoo and asked if any of their raptors were missing. Nope, all where they should be. I was informed that there were a few mating pairs just north of us. This juvenile (you can tell, because the white head feathers have not come in yet) came a few miles south to find a meal. I was told those feathers don't come in for a couple of years. I have never seen an eagle in our neighborhood in the 11 years I've lived here. A few stray ducks from the two ponds nearby, but never an eagle.

This really made my day....what a wonderful sight.

What Ruth means

2008-02-07T18:43:00.000-08:00

You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something.
You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense.
You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun.

You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way.
And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life.
You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it.

You are a seeker. You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life.
You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations. You're most comfortable when you're far away from home.
You are quite passionate and easily tempted. Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble.

You are truly an original person. You have amazing ideas, and the power to carry them out.
Success comes rather easily for you... especially in business and academia.
Some people find you to be selfish and a bit overbearing. You're a strong person.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

I've been tagged

2008-01-26T17:12:00.000-08:00

Well, my friend Tina tagged me...this is all new to me, but I guess I need to answer some questions!

Rules :
1. You have to post the rules before you give your answers.
2. You must list one fact about yourself beginning with each letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, use your maiden name).
3. After you are tagged, you need to update your blog with your middle name and your answers.
4. At the end of your blog post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name.

(Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged and that they need to read your blog for details.)

Here are my answers : (Thanks, mom, for the short middle name!!)

K: Kind - I always try to be kind to others --- do unto others...
A: Artistic - I love scrapping, making cards, ATCs, really - any kind of paper crafts and mixed media.
Y: Young-at-heart - have to be to keep up with my friends....love 'em all!!

Hummm, who next....yup, Joyce!!

Friendship quote

2008-01-01T18:00:00.000-08:00

One of my aMUSEme friends posted this to the group yesterday. I thought it a wonderful, thought-provoking quote:

But oh! The blessing it is to have a friend to whom one can speak fearless on any subject; with whom one's deepest as well as one's most foolish thoughts come out simply and safely. Oh, the comfort - the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person - having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are, chaff and grain together; certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then with the breath of kindness, blow the rest away.

- Dinah Craik 1866

1st SG swap of the year

2008-01-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

Since we are not getting a BBB (beautiful blue box or big blue box) from SG for January, some of us decided to do a BBB swap. We signed up and were paired up. This BBB (only it's in a brown box, not blue) will be mailed to my BBB partner, Julia, tomorrow. There's lots of fun stuff in there, but I'll wait until she has received it to reveal all the goodies I'm sending.

Happy New Year!!

2007-12-31T21:00:00.000-08:00

It's almost 2008 for me...for some of my friends it is already the new year.

I wish you all a prosperous, peaceful and healthy year ahead, with lots of scrapping and crafting.

Shhhh, My secret sister mini-book swap

2007-12-30T13:41:00.000-08:00

At SG, I am involved in a mini-book swap. We've decided to keep the person we are creating for a secret. But, I can post these pictures of the book I've created for her. This is the cover. She wanted a flexible binding so she could have a "lumpy" book. So, I chose ribbons.

The next two photos are a couple of the pages.

I also included a pocket to keep special stuff.

White Christmas

2007-12-25T14:29:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!! We are spending a quiet day at home. Presents have been opened and I'll be starting dinner soon. We received one extra present this afternoon, it started to snow.

Now, since we live in the Pac NW, it will turn to rain soon, I'm sure. But, for now, we have our white Christmas.

Today is also the day my SG friend, Bobbie, & her DH are taking their beloved dog, Duncan, to the Washington State University Vet School. Duncan has a nasal cavity tumor. We are all praying and sending warm healthy thoughts to them. You can read more about this on Bobbie's blog.

Name Book class

2007-12-18T11:30:00.000-08:00

On December 9th my aMUSEme group sat down online and learned how to make Name Books. Mine isn't finished yet; however, I wanted to show it off. I still need to decorate the front with some primas and put my name on the inside with some rub on decorations.

This is the book closed & tied with pretty pink ribbon:

This is the book open:

I used some holographic wrapping paper for the outside and some pretty Chatterbox PP and Bazzille cardstock on the inside.

Where has the time gone?

2007-12-18T11:03:00.001-08:00

Oh my gosh. It's almost Christmas. I've been busy sending out cards to my ScrapGoods friends, wrapping presents and working. Yup, working, still...but I do have vacation next week, so it is good.

The tree is still standing, only one ornament broken so far. It's just a little piece broken out, so I rehung it with the hole to the back of the tree.

It's snowing in the passes, Snoqualmie Summit is gorgeous right now and the skiers are sooooo happy. I wouldn't mind a bit down here in the lowlands.

Christmas decorating

2007-12-09T19:17:00.001-08:00

The Christmas tree is now decorated and I feel calmer just looking at it. Now, if I could just figure out how to turn the flash off on my camera, I might get a decent night photo with the lights on. Oh well. I've saved a little room for some homemade ornaments from my sisters at ScrapGoods. When I receive them & put them up, I'll post that, too.

The mantel has the nativity and my angels.

These are my snowmen. They are so much fun and they remind me of my sister. She loved angels and snowmen. So, it's a small Christmas reminder of her every time I see them. That's my great-aunt Kathryn on the right. It's a pastel that was done many decades ago.

Sammy, be good.

This is Sammy not being good. I don't have any photos of Cindy not being good because I was too busy saving the tree to take any pictures.

Sammy and Cindy resting up from helping me.

Fat Book

2007-12-04T21:43:00.001-08:00

I joined a Fat Book swap at my LSS last spring. The theme was the letter "J." We each created our own cover and 12 identical pages - one for each participant. This is my cover: I wrapped gold embroidery thread around a letter "J" I made out of cardboard. I put "jewels" and other J items on the cover.

I chose Jellyfish & Jewels as my page. I covered the 6x6 chipboard with a piece of blue cellophane, then some yummy handmade paper with wonderful fiber in it and covered that with another piece of blue cellophane. The jellyfish bodies are pieces of glass (flat on one side & rounded on the other); the tentacles are beaded fringe. I attached a treasure chest filled with pearls & gold seed beads. The diver is an embossed stamp image on gray paper. The floor of the sea is torn sandpaper. There are real shells and other embellishments on the page.

This is a page done by another participant - she chose Junk as her page theme.

This participant chose Jumping Jack as her page theme. The Jumping Jack has movable arms & legs.

Now, why did I put this here?? Because I've joined an online Fat Book swap with my aMUSEme group. The book theme is Childhood Amusements...I have some ideas, but nothing has jelled yet, so I can't share with you what my page theme will be.

Folding Class

2007-12-04T21:38:00.000-08:00

I belong to the Yahoo group, aMUSEme, and this past Sunday we had an online class and learned how to fold these cute packets.

I haven't put the bow on yet, but I will before I use the packet to hold little goodies for the recipient.

The larger one was made from an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of wrapping paper and the smaller one from a 7 x 5 piece of paper.

You can also put plain paper through a Cuttlebug and emboss a pattern on it. So many different things you can do with this.

It's snowing!!

2007-12-01T15:03:00.000-08:00

Woo hoo, first day of December and it is snowing. Now, mind you, I don't like to go out & have to shovel or drive in the stuff, but when I can be inside all snug and enjoy watching it come down....that's what I like.

ATC Swap

2007-11-30T17:29:00.001-08:00

These are the two ATCs I made for a Pennywise Arts swap. This first one was for the theme "Winter Wonderland." I used my Cuttlebug to emboss the paper with the snowflake and then swipped two different shades of blue across the embossing. I then covered the ATC with double-sided sticky tape and covered the ATC in diamond glitter. Then I stamped the snowman on a separate piece of paper; painted the nose & scarf; covered it with double-sided sticky tape and transparent glass micro beads. I then adhered the snowman to the snowflake card.

This next one was my interpretation of "Wise Men Still Seek Him." It's a trifold ATC. I used Glimmer Mist to create the blue backing. The wise men and mother & child are clip art. The mother & child are popped up from the card. The star has gold micro beads on it.

I was lucky enough to win the Hostess Choice Award for this card. I received a purple ribbon for it and the card below.

The back of the card reads, "Congratulations! You have received the Hostess Choice Award! For: Wise Men Still Seek Him. This award is given to ONE ATC swap participant for what I call 'EYE CANDY.' This could be based upon several things: composition, color, originality of design, etc., whatever happens to catch my eye and knock my socks off!" PWA ATC Swap Hostess