Bretta's Babbling

Almost a year

2008-07-11T18:40:00.003-05:00

Well, if I waited a full year from my last post then I would miss telling everyone that Christa Joy is getting married on August 15th. It's a lovely story, full of testimony to waiting for the right person. Their story can be found here.

2007-08-18T09:07:00.000-05:00

I've had this list of "things to blog" sitting on my desk for weeks. So, I thought I'll tackle it a bit at a time. It's not like it's work or a chore, it's really fun for me, but I haven't had much time for "fun" lately.

Ward's dear grandfather passed away in late June. We actually got the call on my birthday saying that they discovered that morning that he had cancer and only had a couple of weeks to live. We debated on waiting until the following weekend to go down there, as that is when Ward's mom was going, but decided to go on immediately. We were so glad we did! The timeline went like this: Friday - Granddaddie was doing errands, driving around town and such. Saturday (my birthday) - found out about the cancer, admitted to the hospital. Sunday - we left here at 2 am and got to the hospital around 10:30. He was sitting in bed talking some and knew who we were. Monday he ate the last time and quickly began to get worse. Tuesday evening we had to leave to come home. Wednesday night he was gone. SO FAST! We were so glad we went when we did. We had plenty of time to say goodbye and support the other family members as well. It was really bizarre too, because as he got progressively worse the only voice he would respond to was mine. He would answer me in one word answers, when the same question asked by three other people would get no response. Then when he could no longer answer he would blink to answer. I was so glad to be there to help assess some of his needs.

He was a lovely man. Educated. Smart. Hard-working. Caring. He will be missed.

Be a blessing...receive a blessing...

2007-08-07T11:06:00.000-05:00

Please consider helping the family whose story is told here. You get some great homeschooling and family resources and a chance to bless someone.

Congratulations!

2007-08-07T10:46:00.000-05:00

Congratulations to Nina & Bernd! I am privileged to be on Ninascraps' Creative Team and she is getting married today. She has a little gift for everyone to celebrate with her:
Love Ahead is free today only at Oscraps with the coupon code Celebrate.

2007-08-07T01:36:00.000-05:00

Five Minutes for Mom is giving away a HDTV! Check it out here.

I have a list of things to blog about...maybe I'll get to it in a couple of days.

Happy Anniversary!

2007-07-07T13:07:00.000-05:00

There's something special about having our anniversary on the "luckiest" day of the century. We don't believe in luck, but we do know we are blessed! Twenty two years ago today, on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Texas, we were married on a day that was more meaningful to us because of the "two sevens" in the date 07/07/85 . Seven is often thought to be a number signifying completeness or perfection and we were certain God had chosen us, placed us together to be one in His sight.I can't even remember life without you...nor do I want to, except for being able to compare how much brighter and richer my life is now as to then. Can I put into words how much I love you? I won't attempt to do so here, for those are words to be spoken between the two of us. I will say, though,that as I have watched you be a Christian, a father, a son, a friend, a worker and a husband, I have fallen in love with you over and over again. You are my best friend and so much more. Happy Anniversary!

2007-05-27T21:12:00.000-05:00

I have pictures to show you! Tyler took his friend, Jade, to the Georgia Homeschool Foundation Prom. They went with friends Hunt and Katie (Katie is the one Tyler took to winter formal - as friends - where she met Hunt and they have been dating).
My favorite photos from the evening:

And a layout:
Credits are here and here

Yesterday we walked in the Memorial Day Parade, honoring Georgia's soldiers who have died in the Iraq/Afghanistan wars. No pictures, but we each carried one or two names of soldier on a placard...101 soldiers in all.

This month we had to have our dog, Zeke, put down as he had cancer. He was a loyal, loving friend. Look at his "old man" grey beard...

And one final layout I recently did - I love this one! I was also thrilled to discover it was Layout of the Day over at The DigiShoppe gallery.

2007-05-13T09:18:00.000-05:00

No apologies...life is just busy.

Today is Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to all the moms in my life.
I was awakened by breakfast in bed. Fresh cantaloupe and kiwifruit and my favorite berry juice.

Some years I don't look forward to Mother's Day. I tend to think about my failures as a mom and feel like I don't deserve all the praise and sweet words. I know this is stupid and I should just relax and enjoy the day, but I can't help myself. At the same time, I know it's not really all about me and is a chance for my children to express their love. It makes them feel special to make me feel special.

Ugh, I experienced the worst pain of my life last night...writhing on the floor, take your breath away kind of pain! I think it was a gall bladder attack/gallstones. It lasted about an hour and then went away. Totally not fun!! To the doctor this week to find out what is wrong. Left me feeling weak and tired and I still have a puny stomach today. Staying home from church to rest.

2007-04-13T12:40:00.000-05:00

I'm typing this entry on my new 22" widescreen. This thing is wonderful! Great color and clarity. The speakers are pretty lame, but I didn't buy it for the speakers as I already have good ones hooked to my PC, so I don't really care! Great for scrapping...I can have PSCS2 open and next to it ACDSee or Picasa open at the same time. Thanks, Ward!!

Layout for today (click picture for credits):

Melanie tagged her CT...so here are my answers:

FOUR JOBS I HAVE HAD
1 – Receptionist in the corporate offices of a supermarket chain
2 – Missionary
3 – Cleaning at church
4 – Consultant/Support team in US for Australian software company

FOUR MOVIES I HAVE WATCHED OVER AND OVER
1 – The Scarlet Pimpernel
2 – The Princess Bride
3 – Bangkok Hilton (technically an Australian miniseries)
4 – Sense and Sensibility

FOUR PLACES I HAVE LIVED
1 – Frankfurt, Germany and Fort Lee, Virginia as an army brat
2 – Azle, Texas and Auburn, California when newly married
3 – Melbourne, Australia as a missionary
4 – Blairsville, Georgia as...me...now and for the last 16 years

FOUR TV SHOWS I LIKE(D) TO WATCH
1 – Monk
2 – Lost
3 – 24
4 – Cold Case

FOUR PLACES I HAVE BEEN ON VACATION
1 - Florida
2 - Hilton Head Island
3 – Hawaii
4 – St. Simon's Island

FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS
1 – Red Peppers
2 – Avocado
3 – Salmon
4 – Grilled Veggies

FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW
1 - I like it here!
2 – but taking a long bath is one of my favorite rituals
3 – a hot tub would be nice....
4 –

FOUR PEOPLE I WILL TAG
1 – If you are reading this, then I pick you!
2 – you too!
3 – and you, ma'am!
4 – Okay, you can do it too if you want to.

Shhh...

2007-04-06T10:35:00.000-05:00

We snuck back into town early yesterday morning. But our business is officially still closed until Monday, so we are still on vacation, just doing things around the house that need attention. We had a lovely time away, just not long enough! I could use a couple of weeks of idyllic peace and quiet like we had in Sparta. Seriously, one morning I got up early and was reading my Bible in the living room and my ears started ringing. I realized that it was that "silence is deafening" phenomenon. It was so surreal. I have only experienced that before in the outback of Australia. While in Sparta we had a blessed respite from the battles we have been facing. Spiritually refreshing!

We pretty much stayed "home" other than going to town for groceries. One evening we headed south on the Blue Ridge Parkway (which was a couple of "blocks" from the house) looking for a place to shoot some family photos. We ended up at a historical cabin "The Brinegar Cabin" and here are some of the shots we took. The family ones weren't terrific but still satisfactory!

These are unedited as my monitor "blew" as I turned it off to leave for vacation. It's been slowly dying for six months or so. That means no scrapping until I get a new one as it is painfully slow to try to scrap on my laptop. I was determined to scrap some CT requirements while I was away even though it is slow, but of the eight discs I burned to take with me, only four would read on my laptop...of course the ones that would read had NONE of my CT products on them. Sigh!
I have a 22" monitor picked out, just trying to convince Ward I "need" one that big! Anyway...back to the pictures

(What is that white spot in the upper right corner??)

We're going on vacation!!

2007-03-26T23:03:00.000-05:00

For our entire married life, I have wanted to go on family vacations just for the sake of just our family getting away together. That is never enough for my dear husband. He wants to visit someone. I can count on one hand the times we have gone away as a family just to get away, just us. Actually, I'm trying to recall just one time and can't at the moment.

Yesterday, Ward said, "let's get away, just our family...no cell phones, no computers, no distractions". So today I emailed my sweet aunt in Indiana and asked her if her "getaway" home in Sparta, NC, is available next week. It is!! We are going away for an entire week and there really is no cell phone signal at the house and no dsl. Just a peaceful little house in the woods. I'm so excited! So thrilled Ward would suggest this on his own and so happy the house is available. I know the kids will be bored stiff if all we do is sit around and yak, play guitar, play lots of games, watch dvds, read, sleep and eat (although all of that sounds like heaven to me), so we will plan at least one day outing to get out and explore.

A week away will surely throw me out of the loop even more. I found that as some family situations have been pressing in on us that those things which I found entirely enjoyable before just seem so trivial. It's not as enjoyable to just wander all over the message boards and go digishopping. I still love me some scrappin' though as it seems "purposeful" instead of mundane.

Babbling...

2007-03-25T23:52:00.000-05:00

Now you do get to hear Tyler sing! He's a teeny bit wobbly in the middle of the song and it makes him nuts everytime he hears it, but I love it anyway!

2007-03-19T21:10:00.000-05:00

Well, our eight lessons of drawing class are over. I'm already looking forward to the advanced class coming up most likely in May.

2007-03-15T11:24:00.000-05:00

I wish you could all be sitting right here with me. I'm at the spa store and Tyler is down in the showroom singing to an accompaniment track of "My Heart Goes Out to You" by Warren Barfield. I could listen to him sing all day. Yeah, I'm a little bit biased, but he really does have a great voice. Ward's mom is a talented singer and musician so that gene comes from her (definitely not me). He is singing this song for a fundraiser at church...a dinner theatre event to benefit the dance team's mission trip to Germany.

I'm so blessed...

2007-03-14T20:28:00.000-05:00

Why do I think I have to wait until I have something profound to say before I post on my blog? Surely there are those out there who want to read my mindless ramblings for no reason other than they have nothing else to do.

Actually, I do have something great to post, but it's not my quote, but one by C.S. Lewis. I stole it off my daughter's myspace, who stole it off someone else's and so on...

"Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." —— C.S. Lewis, "The Weight of Glory"

Really profound and definitely thoughtworthy.

Art class is going very well. I'll post my "big project" still-life drawing as soon as it is finished...hopefully done tomorrow.

Christa Joy is home one week from today! YAY!

Latest layout:It's a two pager and the credits can be seen here and here

2007-03-02T14:02:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official, I'm a LEMONHEAD! Melanie Colosimo asked me to be on her creative team! I'm very excited, because not only is Melanie a fabulous scrapper and a talented designer, she is also a super sweet and fun person. Her designs can be found here.

Reece and I are taking a drawing class from a local artist, Al Garnto. We've only had three lessons, but I've been amazed at the fact that I can actually draw! I hadn't drawn anything since high school, other than the occasional picture for one of the kids. I'm not saying I'm like majorly talented, but I'm having a blast and not totally inept at it. Although I'm drawing in "black" pencil, I'm ready to replenish my Prismacolor 120 pencil set and try my hand at color too.

2007-03-01T23:39:00.000-05:00

Pretty bad...post a new header on my blog and then don't post again for a month! So, I've ditched the Valentine header (but not my Valentine!).

The biggest thing that happened in February is that Christa Joy has gone to Texas for a month to spend time having quiet and praying about her future. She is staying at the ministry headquarters where Ward and I met and married. She's been gone for eight days - we all miss her lots! But it's all good, we trust she will hear from God and come back rested and refreshed.

I've been doing some study from the book "Praying God's Word" by Beth Moore.
I'll try to share some of what I've been learning over the next few days. Very exciting stuff.

On the scrapping front, I was in a bit of a slump, but picked up and finished two layouts over the last two days. One is the layout I based my blog header on found here (I love the picture Tyler took of me) and the other is this one (click image for credits):

My Valentine

2007-01-27T12:10:00.000-05:00

Finally updated my blog template! I puttered around to create my own again and finally decided my time would be better spent elsewhere, so I dashed off to The Shabby Shoppe and used a gift certificate I had on hand to purchase this blog header. Haven't had time to play with all the cute buttons and don't know if I will, but they are there if I want to.

Since then, I've gone back to snag Shabby Princess' new kit, a Piece-a-cake album and valentine's cards freebies. Pretty stuff!!

I joined on with the ladies at New Beginnings to have some accountability for losing weight and exercise. I'm still going for raw food and everyone seems accepting of my oddness. I'm not 100% raw yet, but I'm striving for MORE raw.

I've been tagged!

2007-01-19T17:36:00.001-05:00

I really must change my blog header soon! Soon!

In the meantime, I've been tagged by Melanie (keemackaymom) to blog about five things you don't know about me. Some will know, of course, but most won't!

1. My two oldest children were born in Australia while we were serving there as missionaries.

2. My third child was born at home, on purpose.

3. If I eat ice cream, I pour milk on top.

4. I cannot “curl” my tongue.

5. My cat likes to take baths with me.

and a bonus thing: I LOVE eating with a spork! I have one real metal one and I love it!

Now, I have to tag three people, so....
Melissa
Amy
Melanie (lemonyr)

Catching Up

2007-01-16T01:35:00.000-05:00

A New Year! Don't you just love fresh starts? I have been eating better and thus am feeling better. I feel God working on several things in my heart and speaking to me often about my life and the lives of those around me. I'm excited! Change is painful, but when needed, so good!

Tyler turned 17 on the 7th. Where did the last 17 years go???
The two page spread below is of Tyler and his friend, Katie, before they left for the homeschool group's winter formal dance. Click the images for credits.
Christa Joy will be 20 next month. I was 20 when I had her. Now that makes me feel old. This will be the only year that she will be half my age.

I did a photoshoot with her last month. The layouts below showcase the results:

Click image above for credits

The above layout was done for Andrea Burns' CT call, so it's not posted anywhere else online yet. All items are from her CT call kit, except for word art by Marsha Zepeda and Laura Alpuche's Messy Frameworks.

Our local homeschool co-op started up again last Tuesday for the final semester of the year. Being the registration coordinator means it's a busy time for me. I also tend to fill the hat of co-director and also, our info coordinator has just started chemo for breast cancer, so I'm helping out there too. It's such a great program, it's really worth the effort!

Until next time...

2006-12-22T12:31:00.000-05:00

Pretty pathetic! My last post was at Thanksgiving and here it is almost Christmas! Just been so busy getting ready for the holidays and enjoying the festivities.

I would like to wish the random readers of my blog, whoever you are, a most blessed Christmas, from my house to yours.

Credits: Michelle Coleman background paper from "Sweet Evangeline"
everything else from Ange Barton "Shelf Letters Volume 2"

Ugghhh...

2006-11-22T21:41:00.000-05:00

Well, I know I won't have a problem with overeating tomorrow (Thanksgiving Day). Reece brought home a lovely little stomach virus this past weekend and now Ward and I both have it. The rough part will be over today, but I know (from Reece's experience) that tomorrow we will be wiped out and still have no appetite. So we are postponing our celebrating until my niece is here from Hawaii the first week of December. We were already planning a low-key celebration tomorrow with just my parents and then going to have a bigger shindig when Michelle is here. I won't even begin to describe the lovely background noises Ward is making right now...

Everyone please have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!!! Count your blessings and thank God for them.

Oh, one layout to share:

Journaling: I loved designing this quilt! Audrey Hiers taught a wall-hanging quilt class for me and some of my friends. She told us the basic quilt blocks she wanted us to use and then challenged us to “make it yours”. I love all things designed by Susan Branch so borrowed her basic house design (with its crooked chimney) for my quilt. The blocks represent a home filled with love to overflowing. I was so pleased with how it turned out even though it took me two years to complete, starting in 2004 and finishing in 2006. It looks great in our home and matches the colors of the full size quilt I made in 2002.

Credits:
Stacie Prinzo Cascia Papers
Kathy Moore "Washed Worn and Faded" corner stitches
Ztampf Fhung Lie's artistitches
Christine Smith Watercolor Alpha
Font: Century Gothic

Sale and Tribute page

2006-11-16T10:02:00.000-05:00

My latest layout done as a tribute to my WONDERFUL father for Veteran's Day 2006:

Credits can be seen here
and you can see the rest of my gallery if you should feel so inclined by clicking the "bretta" in Home » Member Galleries » bretta
at the top of the picture (or right here, LOL).

Journaling reads: Dad You have my utmost admiration and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for serving our country. You joined the U.S. Army during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, never imagining that you would be in a war in Vietnam just a few years later doing a job very few people would ever want to do. That job was Graves Registration - recovering the bodies of soldiers killed on the battlefield and preparing them to be sent home to their loved ones. It's a job no one really thinks about - that someone had to go into hostile territory, usually by helicopter and often with the enemy nearby, to search for and recover a body. Sometimes you would be pinned down all night while on a mission, just hoping morning would come quickly. In your words, "Everything in me wanted to run and hide, or escape, but duty, honor and country kept me steadfast on the task at hand." You've told me stories of having to just disassociate yourself with what was going on around you and just get the job done, of having to wear Aqua Velva cologne on your surgical masks because the stench was unbearable, of struggling through putting pieces of bodies back together again and of things just so horrible that I can't bring myself to write about them. A special job, because yours was the last point of contact before a soldier went home. You were able to treat each person with dignity and respect and know that what you were doing, although difficult and painful, would bless the family back home.

You were so good at your job! After Vietnam, you served at various bases, and then the Army sent you to Fort Lee, Virginia, to the Quartermaster School where you were able to teach others about working in Graves Registration. You were so good, in fact, that you wrote the Army's policies on Graves Registration - their guidebooks, courses and manuals. Now retired, you still serve others. You still burn with zeal and your family burns with you, because of seeing you be an example of true patriotism and service. Everything in your past led to the shaping of the wonderful man you are today. I'm so very proud of you, Dad!

Thinking through some things....

2006-11-06T22:23:00.000-05:00

I really don't want to share at the moment, but I do want to post this quote (from Oprah, who I don't watch and don't endorse, but who speaks wisdom here) as a reminder to myself:

“What you have done is the past, and you alone get to determine what your future will be.”

”You are not your past. You are what is possible for you. Own this truth and move forward in your life. Forgive yourself, and others will be able to forgive you.”

Long post with lots of layouts

2006-10-20T19:39:00.000-05:00

Well, well, well, time flies when you're having fun! Busy, busy, busy! Since we last spoke, I have succeeded in taking my family on a vacation, which just never happens! Our friend, Richard, flew in from Australia on business and instead of flying into the Atlanta airport as usual, he flew in to Greensboro, NC, where we picked him up to spend a few days at my aunt's vacation home in NC. Lovely, lovely time. Lots of card playing of all sorts...Hearts, Knock Poker, No Name, Princes and Paupers. Games of Dominoes and Balderdash. Relaxing and fun! Richard being the shrewd, cunning, mathematical, card-counting sort came out on top in the "games won" category, but we gave him a good run for his money. No one plays cards with Richard in Oz because he's so shrewd and clever, so he comes here once a year to get a good dose of competition. I'm extremely competitive, so all he REALLY cares about is getting a higher score than me, whether he wins or not!

We had NO cell phone service anywhere in the area where we were staying. What bliss to not have Ward's phone ringing every five minutes! He got lots of rest while we were away!

I'm back to eating raw food only starting today. So far its been so refreshing. I didn't eat until I was hungry this morning which was around lunchtime, when I had two oranges. Then I got busy in the kitchen making myself some raw treats to help stave off any cravings that might arise. I made onion bread, corn chips, carrot-pecan burgers, mock salmon pate (what I munched on for lunch) and date/nut torte. My dehydrator is buzzing away in the kitchen and the smells are wonderful! I still want coffee, but hey, I'll live without it!! Drinking lots of water instead. Made Avocado Chutney to go with some of the corn chips that were done around the edges of the dehydrator trays. Yummy! I could live on that stuff!

And finally, I leave you with several layouts for your viewing pleasure! Click on the pictures to see credits:

My winning entry in the Ztampf Birthday Card Contest is next. I won 3 full size kits of my choice, a special surprise gift (which I haven't received yet...I think that will come at the end of their birthday month) and 50% off the store for an entire year! I'll probably own everything Fhung Lie puts out by the end of the year LOL. My other two entries are also shown.

Two weddings

2006-09-25T10:07:00.000-05:00

Yep, we attended two weddings on Saturday.

Jimmy & Madge were married at 5 pm. Okay, TECHNICALLY, they were pronounced husband and wife at 5:13 pm...I'm a dork, but someone looked at their watch when WE were married and told us we were officially married at 5:26 pm...so yeah, I'm the dork who always looks at her watch when the preacher says "man and wife" Anyway, we are so excited for their new life together in Jesus. Jimmy has been sort of a "third son" over the last few years, hanging out with our family and extended family. He's a great guy and we're thrilled he has found his soulmate.

And then Tonya & Christopher were married at 7 pm. Okay, 7:43 pm to be exact. We've known Tonya since she was just a little peanut with a head full of golden curls. She was such a doll and I always said she was going to be GORGEOUS when she got older and I was right!

Love chats!

2006-09-22T13:06:00.000-05:00

Just picked up this prize at Robin Cabana's chat...the WHOLE collection! Woohoo!
The collection can be purchased here.

My blog needs a bit of lightness...

2006-09-21T23:03:00.000-05:00

Things you CAN'T do when you're NOT in a pool...

2006-09-19T19:06:00.000-05:00

My friend was laid to rest today. I thought it was neat that her cemetery plot is right next to the one reserved for me and my husband. And just a few plots over from the only grave in our family site, my infant nephew who died last year, Charles "Chase" William Honaker III.

Lots of thoughts have been running through my head and heart. As I mentioned a couple of posts ago...I wish I had done more with Debbee, spent more time with her. I know that she knew I loved her, and I knew she loved me, but still I wish there were more memories together. More crazy stories. I am going to make an effort to be intentional about time spent with those I care about...to stop working and have that cup of coffee, to not be TOO busy!

Debbee was such a nut. Eternally youthful. When she had her first bout with cancer many years ago, she made her niece promise that at her funeral she would get up and say the punch line to that *old joke to the tune of The Pink Panther...which she did even though she prefaced it with apologies if it seemed irreverent to anyone. There was so much laughter at her funeral. It really was the celebration of a life that touched many others and glorified God!

*joke is here:
What does the pink panther sing when he steps on an ant?
Dead ant..dead ant..dead ant...dead ant...dead ant...dead ant...dead ant

2006-09-19T19:05:00.000-05:00

Miss Deborah Jean Jones

Miss Deborah Jean Jones age 48 of Jones Creek Rd. S. Blairsville passed away on Sunday Sept.17,2006 in the Emory University Hospital following an extended illness. Miss Jones was born on Aug.20,1958 in Vero Beach, FL., The daughter of Dallas Cecil Jones and Janie Lou Spear Jones. She had been employed as a LPN Para Pro with the Union County School system. She had an Associate Degree and was working on her Bachelor Degree on teaching special need children. Deborah was a Sunday School Teacher. Mrs. Jones was a member of the House of Prayer Church.

Surviving Miss Jones are father and mother, Dallas and Janie Jones of Blairsville, one brother and sister in law, Dallas Reece and Patricia Jones of Blairsville, two sisters and one brother in law, Karan Jones of Blue Ridge, Lois and Jerry Rich of Blairsville, six nieces and nephews, Melissa Standridge, Grant Earl, Lance Corporal Chad Earl, Jessica Jones, Trevor Jones and Kelly Jones, four great nieces and nephews, many other relatives and friends also survive.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday Sept.19,2006 at 11:00am from the House Of Prayer Church with the Rev. Jerry Helton and Dr. Tom Jordan officiating. Special music will be presented by the House of Prayer Church choir. The following gentleman will serve as pallbearers, Paul Holliday, Jeff Jefferson, Chris Busbee, Ed Durbin, Mike Hodges and Tommy Murphy. Serving as honorary pallbearer will be Nelson LeCroy. Interment will follow in the House of Prayer Church Cemetery.

Mountain View Funeral Home of Blairsville in charge of the arrangements. You may sign the family guest book and send condolences at www.mountainviewfuenralhome.com

2006-09-16T17:12:00.000-05:00

I'm just feeling sad right now and needed to put my thoughts down in words. My friend, Debbee, is in the final stages of her battle with leukemia. She is not expected to make it through the day today. She is in the hospital in Atlanta and I was planning to go see her on Monday.

Debbee,

How I long to be with you today. I am sorry that I didn't spend more time with you. I wish we had drank a lot more coffee together and, yes, even eaten a lot more donuts together!

You never failed to flash me your gorgeous smile. I love that about you, that even in the midst of great hardship and pain, you chose to have joy.

There were things you wanted to do before you go. It doesn't look like you will get to do those things, but, honey, when you see Jesus that is going to make up for anything you think you might have missed. You will finally get to meet your bridegroom, as He awaits you with open arms. He was your life's love and now you get to be together for eternity.

I know that heavenly group greeting you will be far grander than any Vegas show. Hey, there are voices there that are going to be greater than Celine (and you might have an even better seat to see her show)!

Your family will miss you so much and so will your church family. I don't think anything made you happier than sitting in the choir on Sunday, and it always made me happier to see you sitting there.

Your exuberant, youthful spirit made me feel younger whenever I was with you. If I didn't see you in the hall after Sunday School, I felt like my Sunday was missing something! Thanks for all those back row hugs. All the times you took a moment to squeeze my shoulder and say, "I love you, honey!"

Thank you, Debbee, for the many years of friendship, the countless smiles and the love you poured out on me.

I love you, honey!

Tribute to Michael J. Pescherine

2006-09-11T02:24:00.000-05:00

This is only something small from me to pay tribute to Mike "Pesch" Pescherine, whom I've never met. His memory lives on in the hearts of his friends and family and my thoughts and prayers are with them on the anniversary of 9/11. Credits for the items used in the "page" above can be found here.

The Green Plaid Shirt

The shirt caught Lynn Beckman's eye as she was sitting at an Upper West Side bar five years ago. "It was hideous," she said recently. But the man wearing the green plaid shirt was looking her way so intently that she approached him. "I really like the shirt you're wearing," she told him.

Michael J. Pescherine's answer goes unrecorded, but the two talked until 2 a.m., started dating and were married in 1999. Mr. Pescherine, 32, was a bond trader at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and worked on the 89th floor of 2 World Trade Center.

Michael and Lynn Pescherine were inseparable. They ran the 1999 and 2000 New York marathons together. In their Upper West Side apartment last summer, they watched as the telltale lines on her pregnancy tests got bluer and bluer. "You're getting more pregnant by the minute," he screamed in delight.

Such moments more than made up for Mr. Pescherine's awkward confession that he had not really noticed his future wife at the bar that first night. He was actually watching a Knicks playoff game on the television set above her.

His family — his parents, one sister and three brothers — are awaiting the birth of Mr. Pescherine's son in March. Lynn Pescherine's friends are making the baby a quilt with the green plaid shirt at its center.

Profile published in THE NEW YORK TIMES on December 6, 2001.

Michael Pescherine, 32, a top achiever

From the time he was a boy, Michael John Pescherine wanted to be a football player. But a back problem concerned doctors enough that his parents decided to keep him off the football field.

"That was always a heartbreak to him," said his mother, Anne Pescherine. "When he wrote letters as a kid, he would always write that he was going to be a football star."

Yet Mr. Pescherine -- Mike to his friends, or just "Pesch" -- was the type to find a way around an obstacle.

He wound up wrestling and playing baseball at Parsippany High School, where the Denville native graduated with honors in 1987, and for the past two years he ran in the New York City Marathon.

When friends and family gather on Oct. 2 to mourn Mr. Pescherine, who was lost Sept. 11 in the collapse of the South Tower of the World Trade Center, the many accomplishments of his 32 years are what they will recall.

"He was very resilient. That's the kind of guy he was," said his sister, Nancy Gionco of Chester. "He always rose to the occasion and excelled at whatever he did. To most of us, it appeared effortless. It seemed to come naturally."

Still, she said, Mr. Pescherine worked for his success: "When he was a kid he broke his leg, but he insisted we pitch balls to him even though he had a cast."

And he remained devoted to football, if only from the sidelines. He was a huge fan of the Nittany Lions at Penn State University, his alma mater, and the Giants.

He was a top-notch student, as well, earning a master's degree in business finance, and was a successful bond trader, for the last two years with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, on the 89th floor of the Trade Center's South Tower.

He lived with his wife, Lyn, on Manhattan's Upper West Side, and she is to deliver their first child in March. In anticipation of that birth, the family is asking that in lieu of flowers donations be made to an education fund for the child.

The memorial Mass will be held at 7 p.m on Oct. 2 at St. Peter the Apostle Roman Catholic Church in Parsippany, where Mr. Pescherine was baptized and confirmed.

Mr. Pescherine is survived by his wife; his parents, Anne and Thomas; four siblings; and five nieces and nephews.

Profile by David Gibson published in THE STAR-LEDGER.

Pescherine 'smart and hard working'.

By Sarah Rothman

Collegian Staff Writer

Michael Pescherine was many things. He was a graduate of Penn State's Smeal College of Business. He was a bond salesman. He was a runner. He was a Nittany Lion football fan. He was a husband, a son, a brother and was soon to be a father.

Michael Pescherine did a lot of living in his 32 years.

Tom Pescherine, Michael Pescherine's brother, said words like ambitious and intelligent come to mind when he thinks of his brother.

"He had that combination of smart and hard working," Tom Pescherine said.

"He had a lot of natural ability, but he also worked very hard."

Michael Pescherine was working at the investment-banking firm of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. in the World Trade Center the morning of Sept. 11.

Charlie Crowley worked with Pescherine for more than six years at various investment banking firms.

Crowley remembers Pescherine for his commitment to his job, but also for the strength of his character.

"Honest, hardworking -- these are words that you don't say lightly about Mike. Some people throw them around, but with Mike there was a real integrity about him," Crowley said.

Though Crowley said Pescherine was an outstanding student in college, he said Pescherine was humble about his accomplishments.

"He was very modest. I think he got something like a 4.0 GPA at Penn State, but you'd never know it. He was very unassuming," Crowley said.

Pescherine received his undergraduate degree in 1991 and his M.B.A. in 1994, both from Penn State.

"He loved Penn State. He loved it so much he went back there for grad school," Tom Pescherine said, laughing.

Crowley said Pescherine remained an avid Nittany Lion football fan after graduating.

"Come this time of year, he was always talking about Penn State football," Crowley said.

"He always kidded about [Joe] Paterno, about when he was going to retire and how he was asleep on the sidelines," Crowley said.

Crowley said Pescherine enjoyed his work.

He said he liked coming up with strategies for his clients and loved numbers.

But Crowley said Pescherine also valued his time off.

"He put in a lot of hours during the week, so on the weekends he really spent time with his family," Crowley said.

Tom Pescherine called himself Michael Pescherine's "very big brother" because of the seven-year difference in their ages.

He said some of the best times he spent with his brother were in the last 21 months of his life, when Michael and his wife moved into Tom's apartment building.

"Because he was downstairs we had lots of dinners; we spent a lot of time together. He got to know my kids really well," Tom Pescherine said.

Despite back and neck injuries, Michael Pescherine was an avid runner, racing in the New York City Marathon in 1999 and 2000 with his wife, Lynn.

He took up running to spend more time with his wife, Crowley said.

Lynn Pescherine gave birth to their son, Ryan Michael Pescherine, in February. Crowley said the baby looks like Pescherine.

"He's a very happy little baby," Tom Pescherine said.

Weekend plans? I think not!

2006-09-09T15:56:00.000-05:00

Well, our truckload sale at our spa store is almost over. Yippee!! It was pretty successful as far as leads and sales go and hopefully, increased our visibility somewhat. I think we may come and hang out here tomorrow after church in case we get some "lookers" since we can't take the unsold spas back to the factory until Monday anyway, plus we can't exactly leave all these spas sitting here unattended "for the taking" either!

I made the mistake of playing with our friend's Canon Digital Rebel XT today. Now I want one!! I'm not much of a photographer, but you don't have to be with a great camera like this. Here are some pics I took today:

a little lost, but also found...

2006-08-31T16:18:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling a bit lost the last couple of days. My PC's mouse decided to up and quit a few days ago. No amount of switching to other mice, other ports, restarting, uninstalling, reinstalling, etc. would correct the problem. Then the keyboard went out. I was still able to access my pc and work on/from it via the internet and logmein.com, until last night when it decided to not boot up at all and give me a blue screen with error message. I had a chat with my techy friend and he will come and look at it when he has a chance (hey, I can't be pushy, all he asks for payment is a bowl of ice cream :o)

In the meantime, no Quickbooks to do our invoicing for our pool business, no PS CS2 to do scrapbooking, no database to work on our homeschool co-op registrations At least I have my laptop and can get online, but I still feel a bit lost....

All that said, I have had more time for other things. Spending time with my family instead of sitting in front of the computer. The house is looking pretty spiffy since I have more time to clean. I have had more time for devotional quiet time. Now, the REAL realization is that I have always had the TIME to do those things, but have chosen to use the time to do other "stuff." A good thing to ponder....priorities.

Is it just me or did August absolutely FLY by?? I can't believe tomorrow is September 1. We have one of CJ & Tyler's friends visiting from Ohio this week and then school starts back (co-op and homeschooling for us), then CJ goes on her hike with my dad (which means I have to help run the spa store while she is gone), then Richard comes from Australia. And sometime in all that hoopla I have to get our taxes done, since I filed for an extension in April.

It's true...the older we get the faster time seems togo by. Remember when we were kids and thought Christmas or the end of the school year would never arrive??? Sigh...

Secret's Out

2006-08-25T08:46:00.000-05:00

I made my first creative team! For those of you not familiar with the digiscrapping community, this means I will be creating layouts using a designer's products and then posting them on galleries, to help promote the designer's work.

I am on Keely Simpson's Scraps 4 Shane team! We have a blog HERE. So excited! Although I scrap for my family and as a creative outlet, it's nice to have others appreciate my work.

Mexican Glasses

2006-08-24T14:08:00.000-05:00

I have a secret!
I always wanted to say that on my blog, probably because I am a total DORK!

Nope, I'm not pregnant. I'll spill soon!

Template from Jen Caputo
Shabby Princess Black Linen Paper
Nancie Rowe Janitz Island House Paper (red - slightly recolored)
Durin Eberhart paper (green)
Michelle Coleman Hand Stamped Alpha
Fonts: MA Sexy,

It's a Mom's life for me...

2006-08-24T14:05:00.000-05:00

Happily, I am a stay at home mom. I am the queen of my casa. I teach my kids at home. I help my husband in his business. I create beauty in my home. I am the peacemaker/keeper. I can do all these things through Christ who strengthens me.

nope, no title

2006-07-26T11:46:00.000-05:00

Just don't want a title today! So there!

I had a huge post typed up a couple of days ago and blogger kept eating my posts. I'm thinking it might be better to type a post in notepad and then just cut and paste here, but what am I doing? Typing directly into blogger. Dipstick!

Still fighting the battle to return to eating raw completely. I'm thinking about joining Raw Food Boot Camp for the accountability and such, but can't decide if that's what I need to do or not. Ward says he will do it with me and be accountable to each other, but I'm not so sure. We are too easy and forgiving with one another. And, try though he does, he doesn't stick to something long when we try to revise our eating habits. I tried to explain to him this morning when he said, "can I still drink sweet iced tea?" that the changes are just until we lose the weight we need to lose, then we can start incorporating things we miss back into our lives. I think a mindset of "this is just for now, for this season" helps. Anyway...

Monitor blues. My dear six year old 19" monitor is biting the dust. It has been flickering for a couple of weeks now and last week it just quit. However, plugged it back in night before last and it worked again, only to quit again last night. It works again this morning. I guess it's just getting tired. So, now I will need a new monitor. Bummer, 'cause I was hoping to get a Wacom Intuos tablet soon...maybe I better sell some of my junk on ebay.

Okay, and it's weird that my monitor came back on after I thought it was dead, as I recently plugged in my laptop after six months of believing it was dead and it booted up! It works great as long as the a/c cord is in just the right spot. It has a short in the back of the laptop where it plugs in. AND my Sony digicamera that has not been working for six months or so is now working again! Totally weird, but GOOD weird.

Here's a layout I did about my granddad. I was really pleased with how it turned out!

Journaling reads: There were so many things about you that I loved ~ Your smile ~ How you would put on your engineer's cap, then set up the train set and play with us ~ How you patiently would take the fish off the hooks after I caught them ~ Your deep soft laugh ~ Playing Uno with you until 2 am ~ How you would say “I’m pretty” when someone asked how you were ~ Your kindness ~ How you never let the fact that you only had one hand slow you down or keep you from doing anything ~ The way you loved to work with wood ~ Your pleasant gait ~ Your pride in your family ~ Your easy-going attitude ~ How you pushed us in the tire swing on the "granddaddy tree" ~The way you loved me ~

Credits:
This layout was completed for Gina Miller's sketch challenge at SBB.
A Quiet Love kit by Nancie Rowe Janitz
Michelle Coleman's Graphic Brushes
Ali Folendore Torn Alpha
Melany Violette Pretty Petals Freebie
Gina Miller Note This

Fonts: Decadence, SP Purkage, Century Gothic

Blogger keeps eating my post!

2006-07-24T09:57:00.000-05:00

I've been really meditating on the following, excerpted from a newsletter sent out from my friends Mike & Connie at Great Plains Ministry:

It's Not About Me! - (Really? I am sooo shocked!) Being human, we all have that sinful bend in our hearts to think about ourselves more than anyone else.

Hebrews 12:2 says, Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. The word 'fix' doesn't mean just glancing over once in awhile. It doesn't mean taking a peek when it's convenient. To fix our eyes means to 'look at attentively' and is taken from the word 'to stare at'. In other words, keep looking at it - all the time - and don't take your eyes off it to look somewhere else.

How often do we get our eyes off of Jesus? For me, it might be easier to answer, "how often do I FIX my eyes on Him? Easier because the number would be much smaller. I have desperately needed this reminder from Connie/Jesus to FIX my eyes on Him. To focus completely. It's helped me many times over the last few days since I read it. Thanks, Connie!

I am trying to RAWk!

2006-07-13T13:09:00.000-05:00

I talked last year about my love of eating raw foods. Seriously, eating raw foods has literally changed my life (see my very rough website www[dot]brettaogburn[dot]com.) I started eating cooked foods again a few weeks before we left for Mexico because A) I didn't have a choice of what to eat for meals there as they were provided for us B) I couldn't just eat raw fruits, vegetables, salads there as they wash their produce in their water and even a tiny microorganism can make you sick in their water C) I knew it would be easier while traveling. Well, now I have been back from Mexico for a few weeks and am still eating some cooked foods. The stupid thing is it's all about instant gratification! I have ENJOYED the taste of the cooked foods. BUT, last night we ate at Golden Corral on the way home from the airport and although I ate mostly raw foods, the cooked food I did eat just suddenly didn't taste as good next to the raw food! That's a good thing for me! The other stupid thing about continuing to eat cooked food is that I DON'T feel as good. My PMS was a nightmare this month and I NEVER have any PMS when I'm eating raw. My joints hurt again. I don't sleep as well. Some of the 65 pounds I lost last year are coming back. Generally, Ward said my disposition is not as pleasant either (okay, those weren't his EXACT words...haha...not even close really as the word "grouchy" was definitely mentioned more than once last week)

So, it all boils down to self-discipline and putting aside the desire to "live in the moment." Maybe that is part of the distraction thing I talked about earlier too. Living in the moment with no thought to future consequences. Ouch, scary stuff there! I'm going to keep thinking on this one. Maybe I'm putting off further contemplation at the moment by saying that, trying to ease the burden of conscience right now...

She's Here!

2006-07-13T08:48:00.000-05:00

Yay! My niece arrived from Hawaii yesterday and she is so sweet! There was quite a bit of nervousness on all our parts..."will she like us?" "will she think we are totally weird (we are)?" "will she hate our tiny little town compared to the big city where she lives?" But she is just precious and sweet. Lovely personality and easy-going!
Lots of fun things planned while she is here. Having her belated 18th birthday party this Saturday (I guess it could be a belated 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc. party since we've never had one with her!). I'm crying now just thinking of how glad we are to have her with us...

I've determined this morning to spend less time reading about scrapbooking (blogs, galleries, etc.) and more time actually scrapbooking (and cleaning house). I really believe though that part of the appeal of digital scrapbooking is in the community, the STRONG sense of community, of those who do it (or just collect digi-scrapping supplies, like I do ;o), but for someone like me who is EASILY distracted it's perhaps not a good thing...it is easy for me to get off on "rabbit trails" instead of doing what is most important to me and my family.

Why am I so easily distracted? Is it my personality type - sanguine - "I just want to have fun" type personality? Most likely, but what can be done to overcome this? Something to ponder...

This is kind of a weird layout I guess and here is why:

My daughter took this picture. Okay, before I get asked what type of filter was used on the picture, I'll confess...none! This is what happens when a teenager gets bored at work and SCANS HER FACE on the scanner! She then added the scripture (so I have no idea what font she used) and posted it on her myspace. I loved the soft ethereal quality so had to make a layout!

Credits:
PS7
Janel Kretschman My Daughter's Playclothes; paper
Overlay and Spring Spreys by Fhung Lie at Ztampf!

I'm "balling"!

2006-07-09T23:02:00.000-05:00

Hehe...yesterday I popped in and out of chats at Guardian Peas all day long and during one someone told me that they were sitting on a fitness ball instead of their desk chair. Said it helped her back. So, tonight at Wal-Mart I picked up a cheapie for $10 and it's great! However, we aired it up in the living room and then couldn't get it through my bedroom door! Tyler came through, though, and maneuvered it in! So far, it's great although the cat is not sure what to think of it.

The week is the first week of the summer camps at our church. So, I will rarely see Christa Joy and Tyler as they will be counselors when they aren't at work. Christa Joy works at our hot tub store and Tyler cleans swimming pools for his dad. Three weeks of camp...sigh...I will miss them!

One marvelous thing is happening this week though! My niece is coming to visit from Hawaii. She is 18 and I have never met her before as her mom and my brother divorced when she was very little and we lived overseas at the time. She'll be staying with my brother for about a month and we are all so excited to see her. She and Tyler talk on the phone all the time, so he's really thrilled too. On that note, I will leave you with a layout of her...

Credits
Michelle Coleman Good Karma blog freebie
Michelle Coleman Antiquated Swirl brushes
Gina Miller Glitter Glue Border
Gina Miller Curved Template (modified)

Fonts: Blackjack, Freebooter Script, Chelt Press Trial

Happy Anniversary, Honey!

2006-07-08T07:07:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was our 21st Wedding Anniversary. 21 years! My mom always told me, "it will be weird, but you will reach a point where you will have been married for half of your life." I reached that point two years ago!
Last night we went out to eat with Reece after work, just because it was easier than working something out since he was with us anyway. I asked him to sit at another table so his dad and I could look into each other's eyes, but he wasn't going for that for some reason! We will go out together just the two of us another night.

Our weird anniversary tradition until this year has been to eat pizza in the living room with the kids! I know, totally weird! But when Christa Joy was 2 years old we lived in Australia and had plans to go out and eat for our anniversary, dropping CJ off at a sitter on the way. Unfortunately, the car would not start so we ended up ordering pizza in and ate on a blanket in the living room floor, with CJ climbing all over us and enjoying the little celebration. We decided it was a lovely thing to celebrate the fruits of our marriage (our children) and we have done this most every year since (not always on the floor!) and then we go out on another night for our special evening just the two of us.

Last night we came home, tired, and went out for a little jetski ride and Reecie had a swim in the lake. Then we settled in and Ward was looking at jetski forums and I was on my laptop chatting at the Guardian Peas fund-raiser event. I looked at Ward and said, "we are two old married people!" Content to be together even if we're doing different things. I would ask him occasional trivia questions from the chats and he would occasionally comment on whatever he was looking at online. Contentment and satisfaction in the shared companionship of best friends!

I love you, Ward!

Credits for the page above:

The quote on this page comes from an American Greetings card Ward gave me for Valentine's Day this year. I cried when I read it and had to read it over and over again!

It reads:
I love you! When?
When I hear you laugh
When we share a secret
When your eyes sparkle
When we’re just us
When we don’t have to talk
When you remember
When I watch you sleeping
When I don’t have to explain

When you walk into the room
When we are in a crowd
When I’m by myself
When you’re just being you
When you make me giggle
When I hear your heart beat
When you reach for me
Even when you’re not looking

That's when I love you!

Daniela Peuss "Jump Into Fall" freebie kit - papers
Distressing Kit from scrapartist.com
and a boatload of fonts I've never bothered to sort out!

I'm home!

2006-06-27T12:49:00.000-05:00

I'm back from Mexico! We had an amazing trip. Full of lots of "God Sightings," seeing His hand at work. It was awesome to be used as His hands & feet for the people of Juarez. The poverty is astonishing. The need is great. What we did was a drop in a very large bucket to what needs to happen in that city. Primarily, they need JESUS and His salvation. More on the trip later. The pic of me and Tyler above is my favorite pic of the ones we took (as we don't have the 20+ disposable cameras back from the developer yet). Below/behind us are the cities of Juarez, Mexico and El Paso, Texas. We hiked up this mountain and spent time praying for the city of Juarez. It was muy caliente (very hot) and took me an hour to get to the top, but I did it! So glad I did - it was worth it! Below is a pic of our youth group (minus the three who went home early) atop the mountain.

For Lori

2006-06-09T12:22:00.000-05:00

Hey Lori...I couldn't resist playing with your Alex pictures, they were so beautiful! Here is one result:
And anyone else reading this who is in need of a fAbulOUs photographer in our area, check out www.lorigragg.com.

Credits:
Michelle Coleman www.scrapartist.com A Guy Thing Kit
Shawna Clingerman Worn & Wispy Brushes
Gina Miller Note This! Collection
Fonts:
CK Woodhouse
Gallery Caps

Slacker!

2006-06-06T15:16:00.000-05:00

That's me...blog slacker!

Let's see. CJ had her appt. at dentist yesterday as a follow-up to having her wisdom teeth out ten days ago. She did fabulously with the whole thing. Almost no swelling and just mild discomfort most of the time. Covered in prayer...works every time :o)

Don't ask me why, but Ward is on a Napoleon Dynamite kick. I think it has to do with one of the kid's new KJ-52 cds, as there is a hilarious ND song on it. So, I had to BUY ND yesterday and tonight we are having a (family) party with tater tots and quesadillas (cause they fit the movie theme, gosh) and a side salad (because it's healthy).

I got the RAM for my computer today and my dad helped me install it after he got off work. It's running great and the best part is CS2 is in the final stages of installation at this very moment! Woohoo!!!

Christa Joy and my dad are preparing for a 10 day hike on the Appalachian Trail this September. They are spending money on supplies like crazy...it's almost comical to watch them. They can't see each other without talking about their trip. They estimate the trip will cost them $1000 a piece in supplies, well...the backpack was $160, the shoes $90, the tent $190, the experience they will share...PRICELESS!!! Grandfather & CJ...joined at the heartstrings!

I'm not real happy with this recent layout, but not sure exactly why. I'll probably end up redoing it but for now, it's staying like it is!

Credits:
PS 7
Blizzard Papers by Rachel Dickson
Black Dress paper from Birthday Blitz by Gina Miller
Red Paper from Desert Window by Dianne Rigdon

Fonts: Worstveld Sling, Garamond, Papyrus, Scrap Happy, Minion, SP Purkage, Times New Roman, Sandals

Kim Hill's Torn Paper Edge template

And another more recent layout of my brother:

Credits:
Christy Sturm Army of One Kit
Chipboard Basics by Amanda Rockwell
Sketch Your Life by Lilach Oren

The upside...

2006-06-02T19:29:00.000-05:00

To the green fabric not matching is that I found this
absolutely adorable print that perfectly matches the striped fabric! It's from the Good n' Plenty line so I KNOW this time it matches. Found online for $13/yd and as I don't need much I can splurge and get it. I like it much better than having two solids anyway! Fun print!

I put this layout together today (yes, something fresh for you instead of the old ones sitting on my hard drive!)

Journaling reads: We were amazed when we saw this picture of Bretta’s mother, Bobbie, taken in 1958 at the age of 15. Christa Joy looks so much like her. We intended to
have a similar shot taken of Christa Joy at that age, but never got around to doing it. However, when her senior pictures were developed we thought this one had
quite a likeness to her grandmother’s photo. This photo of Christa Joy was taken in 2004 at age 17.

Credits:

Joyful Spirit papers from Scrapartist

Gina Miller Yarn Circles

Gina Miller Alpha from Collection 10 of the Designer’s Studio Collection

Painted Alpha from Hunibuni

Carrie Stephens Torn Vellum Mat

String from Miss Mint’s For My Father, Frabels from Fhung Lie at Ztampf!, Tag “templated” from Scrapartist Summer Whimsy, Wave Stitched borders from Gina Cabrera (recolored)

Font: MA Simple Pleasure

WooHoo!

2006-06-01T22:55:00.000-05:00

I just won this fabulous collection from one of my favorite designers! Scrapbook-bytes hosted a chat with Gina Miller - I answered a trivia question correctly first and won this. You can see the collection (or buy it) here.

Now I definitely have enough scrapping material to keep me busy for a long time without buying a thing! Okay, maybe a font or two... ;o)

My fabric for my outdoor furniture arrived today...unfortunately the greens do NOT match. I thought they didn't clash badly but Ward disagrees (that's why I buy kits for scrapbooking, I'm terrible with colors). So now I need to find more black, more stripey or pink as I don't think the make the green for this line. But, they do make a cute dotty one that matches... Maybe I'll find some cheap!

Less than three weeks till our mission trip to Mexico. Only Tyler (my 16yo) and I are going with 19 other youth group members/chaperones. It should be a great time. Gonna' have to get a couple more chiro treatments on my back/neck so hopefully I won't have too much trouble while I'm gone.

2006-05-31T08:18:00.000-05:00

I just went back and edited my last post. I had vented about something distasteful that had happened over the weekend. My 16 yo son came in after I finished my post and said, "Mom, you should delete that because it will keep reminding you of it and it will keep bugging you instead of you being able to 'forgive and forget'." Well spoken, son, I'm so proud of you! It just took me two days to get around to deleting the bad stuff in my post.

Today I'm going to get more cleaning done. It's frustrating having a small house sometimes, especially when it is full of packrats. We have a hard time letting "stuff" go. I personally always feel like I'm drowning in PAPER. I can't even think about working outside yet when the inside is looking so bad.

Another layout...I like this one a lot!

Kit Used: Sweet Shoppe - A Day to Remember Kit
Elements/Extras: Gina Miller Yarn Circles, Ztampf! Spring Sprey
Fonts: Retro Rock Poster, Unnamed Melody, Scrap Cursive, Garamond, the Blue Cabin, SM_recussionism

2006-05-29T12:08:00.000-05:00

We had a lovely day yesterday. Had Reece's birthday lunch at my parents. Every month we get together at my mom & dad's house to celebrate one person's birthday. If you are the only family member with a birthday that month then it is your day and you chose the theme for the meal which we all contribute to. If there is more than one birthday that month then one person gets that month and someone else gets a month when we don't have any birthdays. Generally, after we eat and the guys stretch out for a little bit to rub their bellies and catch a few winks, the adults gather in the dining room for a few rounds of dominoes. We call it "slapping bones" and play Mexican Train style with our own variations and house rules. Sometimes we throw in a card game (Rook, Skip-Bo, Phase 10). We eat more, visit and stay as late as dad's next work day schedule permits. If he's off then we stay late but we usually leave by 9-10 if he is working the next day.

Reece requested spaghetti with huge meatballs. I didn't take a picture, but we are having leftovers tonight, so maybe I'll get a pic then...these were 3 oz. meatballs each! Everyone said they were excellent and I tasted one so I have to agree! I'm still as raw as able, so I stuck to salad and then fruit salad later. Yummy!

Lots of good digi scrapbooking sales this week and some nice freebies floating around as well. I scored some nice Photoshop actions from Atomic Cupcake over the weekend, so really looking forward to playing with those. Shopping for some Ram today for my computer...it's sooooo slow when using PS 7 and I think I'll be able to install PSCS2 (which I already have) once I give my RAM a boost. Woohoo!

Another layout...

Perfectly Imperfect stitches & Chip Strip Alpha from Gina Miller
Papers from Michelle Coleman's Color Happy Collection
Hearts & Swirls are scans of my kitchen cabinet knobs :)
Font is Worstveld Sling

2006-05-24T11:22:00.000-05:00

Odd, but I felt like a truck ran over me this morning, not sick, just exhausted for some reason. I'm drinking lots of water this morning to get rid of that sluggish feeling.

Watched the season finale of "24" last night (taped)...not bad! I told Ward earlier that I like how 24 doesn't leave you hanging between seasons, like if you didn't watch it next season it wouldn't matter. But they surprised me last night and left us hanging! Ah, the suspense! Looking forward to the Lost finale tomorrow (I know it's tonight, but I will watch it tomorrow on abc.com since we don't have cable.)

Another layout done previously.

Credits: All items from Fhung Lie's Ztampf! kits www.ztampf.com
Fonts used are PS Purkage and Worstveld Sling

Fabric = Work!

2006-05-23T17:16:00.000-05:00

I'm quite excited that I have now purchased the fabric to recover my outdoor chairs...4 chaise lounges and 6 regular chairs! You know what that means, Sharon...playing at the lake again!! We were looking at $400 or more to replace the cushions, then I got to thinking that I could do it myself and save lots of money! So I "won" an auction on ebay and then "won" two more that coordinated with the first as I needed 18+ yards of fabric. I still think it is funny sometimes that we "win" an auction, because it is not free like the gift I WON at a scrapartist.com chat yesterday. So here is the fabric:
I love it and although it doesn't LOOK like the green matches perfect they are from the same product line, so I'm just chalking it up to the picture lighting. We'll see! Oh, and I WAS able to save a LOT! Considering this fabric retails for $30/yard I think I did pretty good...I bought 21+ yards and my total was $150 including shipping, so the rest of my savings will be sweat equity!

And here is another layout I've done for your viewing pleasure...0kay, really for my viewing pleasure! I think it was the second or third layout I created.

Blue background paper is from Robin Cabana's Seriously Blue. Other elements are from Michelle Coleman's Boho Chic, except for the blue doodles (my own brush design)

2006-05-23T08:30:00.000-05:00

I've decided to start blogging here on a regular basis. Somehow I think it will be good for me to have an outlet to share some of my thoughts. I also want to be able to share my new obsession...digital scrapbooking. But mostly I want to be able to put on "paper" what's going on in my life - maybe I will be able to analyze the things that aren't working better and reinforce the things that are going great. Of course, I also need to fix my website about raw food living. Maybe I can do them simultaneously! Here is one of my favorite digital layouts. More to share later.

November 2005
Credits: Background Paper - Christine Borgeld (Natural Reflections), Mat - Cottage Arts Linen Ruby Paper

Jesus met me in the laundry

2005-07-29T13:43:00.000-05:00

This morning I had the most beautiful time with the Lord. Folding a mountain of laundry to put away...turned on Keith Green and began to worship Jesus. I finally abandoned my laundry just to bask in His presence and spend time with Him. It was wonderful and I'm so grateful to Him for meeting me in my laundry! Maybe I'll look forward to folding more next time!

Now...

2005-06-09T18:02:00.000-05:00

Had my doctor's checkup on Monday. It was great fun to have him come in the room grinning ear-to-ear and come over to give me a big hug. He had checked my chart before coming in and saw I lost 38 pounds. Said it made his week start out perfectly to have someone come in who actually listened to what he told them to do. Yay! I have to go back in four months. He said whatever I am doing, keep doing it!

I'm feeling weird-ish this week. Difficulty concentrating...kinda dreamy. Hard to explain. Tired of being away from home every day as we are opening our new spa store. My eating has been strange...eaten out as a family a lot this week as we are always out! I've not done great, but not terrible either. Followed the doctor's eating advice, but not 100% raw like I like to be. Probably at 75-80% though right now, which isn't bad and according to the internet still makes me a "raw foodist" Maybe I'm feeling weirdish because I'm not eating all raw like I was.

Still waiting for my wheatgrass juicer. Started a new batch of seeds this morning and hopefully I'll have enough grown by the time it gets here. I'm not the type who likes to let something new sit and savor the anticipation of using it. I want to open it, rip into it, and use it NOW!

I MUST get back to exercising regularly. Today is the first day I've made an effort, although I did play volleyball with the youth group last night (boy, was I sore this morning!!). Today I stood at the spa store counter and walked/marched in place for at least 20 minutes while I surfed the internet. Hey, it looks weird, but at least I was moving.

I'm longing for Jesus. I know, kind of a random thought to type, but I just feel such a longing to get closer to him lately. I'm looking for those moments when I can snatch a quick prayer and praise to HIM.

From April 26, 2005

2005-06-06T20:09:00.000-05:00

I've been working to lose in excess of 100 lbs since February 1, 2005. I'm down almost 30 pounds already! My whole search for better health started when I went to the doctor for some rapid heartbeat problems that had recently arisen. They weren't stress related (they just happened frequently, sometimes when I'm resting, not necessarily when I walk upstairs or exercise). Anyhow, the problems are not serious and are being controlled with a tiny amount of medication. BUT, I really praise God for the problem as it brought our attention to a serious issue. My bloodwork showed that my blood sugar level was getting high. Not diabetic yet, but high enough to cause concern. So, by doctor's order "you must lose weight and get your sugar down"...he gave me simple guidelines to follow (soooo glad they are really SIMPLE!). No sugar (you can have a sliver on your birthday), no white - flour, sugar, rice, potatoes, no root vegetables. I embarked on this way of eating and have steadily lost 10 lbs a month. But about a month ago, I noticed that when I ate a raw meal (salad or veggies uncooked) I felt sooooo much better. Not sluggish and drained. I began experimenting with eating raw stuff...WOW! I had read about and wanted to buy Serene Allison's "Rejuvenate Your Life, Recipes for Energy" book, so I took the plunge and ordered it since I knew it was a raw food book. (book can be purchased from www.aboverubies.org) I am soooo excited about raw food living. I'm eating mostly raw now and feel so much better. No more heartburn! No more bloated, overstuffed feeling! Better sleeping! My PMS symptoms are so mild, where I usually have a lot of breast tenderness right now, there is NONE! I've asked for a veggie garden for Mother's Day and an Excalibur Dehydrator for my birthday in June. Our family also has a weightloss contest going, with weigh-in this weekend and it looks like I'm on track to win. I hope anyway, as the prize is $100 ($25 from each of the family members participating). In hindsight, I wouldn't want to do this again...only because it is not a race to lose weight...it should be a lifestyle change of the way we eat, not just losing weight to win a prize. For me, the biggest prize IS the weight released!!!

Oh, and you know what else is cool?? When you don't eat sugar, you don't crave sugar. It is so weird but I am happy to just SMELL most foods. It is satisfying to smell the vanilla in a fried banana topped with cream, the French Vanilla in my son's hot chocolate as he sits here beside me, the cinnamony fragrance of fresh apple pie. I don't have to eat it! I made some Rich Carob Bars from Serene's recipe book the other day and they are scrumptious...to me...but the rest of the family rather went "ummm, this is different, mom". I realized it's probably because it's been so long since I've had chocolate that the carob is a satisfying substitute and the fruit in the bars tastes satisfyingly sweet as well. Ahhh....satisfaction!