

Colouring Creativity Faith and Photography
...........I was 35 years old, here's my last DL picture (I know it's a crummy picture but see my short hair?)
...........I had a newborn baby. Our youngest was just 2 months old (thus the pudgy face in the above picture...!
...........I was on mat leave, but both my husband and I were in a very difficult working environment, it was in a lot of ways a toxic working situation organizationally and relationally.
...........We left said employer, it was not a happy exit - in fact pretty ugly; then we were asked to come on staff with our church working as Youth Pastors with students. It was a renewed calling that we both love and threw ourselves into passionately - as we serve God and kids and families we love.
............I became an SU Demo and built a wealth of great relationships and a chance to express my creativity
............I started posting cards on Splitcoast in June of 2007 after my husband's cancer treatment. Life's too short to wonder if you are *creative enough*. I just wanted to enjoy creating!
..........JulieHRR asked me to be a part of the Dirty Dozen Design Team and my creative world grew a happy garden! I built some wonderful friendships in the sisterhood of the DD
.........In the time span of 3 years I became very ill and had to have 2 surgeries and a month of recovery; the next year my husband was diagnosed with a rare form of Cancer, but it was treatable and he had chemotherapy, about 6 weeks of isolation and is in remission! Then last spring my husband tore his quad muscle tendon separating his knee joint from his quad muscle, this meant surgery, 1 week in the hospital and then 6 weeks with no weight on his RIGHT leg (no lifting it, driving etc...guess who became the family chauffeur?).
It's been quite a five years. Some wonderful beautiful things that I'm incredibly grateful for...some rather painful ones I would not have chosen. A lot of people dread turning 40. In fact my husband asked me on Tuesday morning how it felt to be on my last day of my 30's. I replied "well, 39 wasn't always so good to me, so I'm ready for the 4's!"
Beth (MyPrecious) had a great post on her blog of 40 things she wanted to do before she was 40. Well, I wasn't that organized, but I have been thinking about that idea and I think I'd like to make a list of 40 things I'd like to do now that I'm 40.
Here are some (not 40 things yet) that I've come up with:
1. Build and continue to discover deeper depths in my walk with Christ. God has a lot of work to do in me in the year ahead, a lot of places of healing, a lot of places of deepening. I have always desired to be fully His, and I think He's taking me to places in these next month's that are making that more real. I think for me...these are years ahead of rebuilding.
2. See my children thrive in their growing up years...help them become more of themselves, more of who God is calling them to be.
3. Love my husband - deeper, wiser, with a more sacrificial heart. Time is so precious. We've learned that in so many ways in 5 years. I don't want to take it - or him for granted.
4. Carve out more space for me that includes stillness, silence, places of restoration from our busy world.
5. Healthier patterns...I'm not gettin' any younger! So, healthier eating, and more exercise and to finally lose ALL those baby pounds!
Well, that's a start! What about you? If you look back on the last 5 years of your life, what are some common themes? What about your next 5 years...who are you becoming and who do you want to be? There's a great song by Switchfoot called "This is Your Life" that I love. Some of the lyrics are:
This is your life, are you who you want to be?
This is your life, is it everything you dreamed that it would be?
When the world was younger and you had everything to lose.
Don't close your eyes
The idea for me is that you don't get a second chance, don't miss it because this is it, are you who you want to be? That really challenges me.
OK...enough preaching. Here IS a creative project I haven't shown you yet...I am privelaged to be a part of the Product Review Team over at Splitcoast and we review different products each month. Yesterday another review was unveiled for JustRite stamps of their new line of creative products. The review is HERE: and the creative projects by the team are really great and are HERE:
Here is one of mine projects using the Baking Ensemble from Just Rite. I created a sleeve for a mini Banana Bread loaf so it could be given as a gift. We really love Banana bread at our house (especially with Chocolate Chips :)) Whenever bananas are getting a little brown I throw them in the freezer for future banana bread.
The sleeve is 3 inches wide and 11 inches in length. I scored the sections in order to make a little *tote* for my bread. I wrapped the bread in waxed paper (I'd also wrap it in saran wrap too for giving to someone). I added ribbon around the bread and fed it though the word window hole in the top of my tote so my bread won't fall out.
I used the outside rim of the Just Rite Baking Ensemble stamp on my circle stamper to decorate the sections of the tote and added marker.
I LOVE the tag, it's my favourite part. I stamped the sugar label a second time on Kraft and trimmed it out, and added it on top, then I gave the spilled sugar some crystal effects and Dazzling Diamonds to make it more real. So CUTE! Some embellishments and it's a really cute gift!
Ok....nuff' for now. I still have lots to show you hopefully this week. And some exciting news too!
Recipe: Stamps: Just Rite Baking Ensemble Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red Paper: Real Red, Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White Accessories: Just Rite Round Circle Stamper, Striped Ribbon, Chocolate Chip Grossgrain, Gold Cording, Brads, Word Window Punch, Dazzling Diamonds, Scallop Circle Punch, SW Marker
12 hours later.....
Recipes: Sample One: Designer Christmas Cottage Stamps: Home for Christmas Ink: Brown Stazon Paper: Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip DSP, Ski Slope DSP, Watercolor Paper Accessories: Aqua Painter, Reinkers, SW Markers, Felt Fusion Too, Taffeta Ribbon, Dimensionals, Mono Multi, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Scorit
Sample Two: Designer Wreath Stamps: Flourishes Siberian Iris and Lilac sets Ink: Brown Stazon Paper: Very Vanilla, Watercolor, Kiwi Kiss Accessories: Reinkers, Aqua Painter, Piercing Template, Chocolate Satin Ribbon, Mono Multi, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Oval Punch, Gold Cording, 1/16th punch
Recipe: Stamps; Crazy for Cupcakes Ink: Basic Black, Riding Hood Red Paper: Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip, Bella Rose DSP, Whisper White Accessories: Wide RHR Striped Grossgrain, Scallop Circle Punch, Circle Punch, Piercer, Dimensionals, Chuiky Glitter, White Beads, SW Marker, Scallop Edge Punch
I love the smell of pine. And along with the theme of pine.....
2. Somewhat under protest we bought this 2 days ago.
All my life I grew up with an artificial Christmas Tree that was - well, frankly, ugly. You know the one where the branches look maimed and you stick them into holes in the pole...ewww, it ends up looking like a skinny plastic green monster. As a child - outside of the presents underneath it I wasn't ever a big fan of it. I always begged to have a REAL tree. So I said to myself that one day when I could choose - we have real trees in our home. And for the 14 years we've been married we have, I love the look, that you never know what you'll be getting each year...and the PINE smell :) I'm not a big fan of the daily watering and vacuuming of the needles however . But see then last year my parents bought a NEW artificial tree, pre-lit too...and it was actually so pretty! It looked like a real tree! So I gave in. They were at Costco and my husband bought one. My compromise is that we'll have a pine wreath for the smell.
3. We took our kids to a CFL (Canadian Football League) football game last weekend. For 2 of the kids (oldest and youngest) it was their first professional live game. They had SO much fun. Especially our daughter! She LOVED all of it. Our 5 year old also said in awe "It's SO BIG!" (The stadium holds 60 000 fans I believe and we were up pretty high). We had a great night - even if I'm not a huge football fan. Here's a funny pic of my daughter and I there. She took it with her arms out in front of us. She really doesn't have a double chin...so funny. Even funnier...I'm wearing her hat....her vest....and her shoes. Talk about reverse parenting!
4. I have been on a cleaning/organizing binge lately. I have cleaned my bathroom and kitchen from top to bottom and organized all my cupboards. Seriously, I was appalled by how much outdated...STUFF we had. Medicines, ingredients, things that said "refrigerate after opening" that I never noticed (oops!). In 14 years of marriage you accumulate a lot of stuff. I am now beginning to realize what I really need, what I really use and have TOSSED the rest! I had bags of garbage for the curb from these ventures. It feels so good to have clean cupboards again, very freeing! :) ...so much more stuff to go...like my desk and craft cupboard.
5. I made Thai Chicken Drumsticks for supper last night. We got a new spice packet sample in the mail, isn't that random? All you add is vegetable oil, lemon juice and soy sauce. Marinate, and bake or grill. It was good too. I love Thai food. It's my very favourite ethnic food. They have recipes for Pad Thai (my personal favourite Thai food), and some other yummy things too! I'll be buying this.
6. I read in both my boys' classrooms this week. It's Read-In-Week here, focusing on Literacy and guest readers in the classroom. In our Kindergartner's class I read Elliott Gets Stuck and in our 4th Grader's class I read 2 chapters of Prince Caspian. :) I really LOVE to read, and so do the kids. Today is "Bear Book and Blanket Day" at their school. They can come to school in their PJ's bring a stuffed animal and a book, and we have they all gather in the gym to read. It's SO cute. This is a silly picture of them getting ready for PJ Day. One has a stuffed Shark ...the other a stuffed Penguin.
7. And last but not least, I am turning 40 in exactly 20 days!
Now I'm supposed to Tag 7 other bloggers, ok, well I won't have 7 but you'll all enjoy these....some are new to blogging so go give them a visit!
Then fold that in half to give you a center line.
Unfold and then take the first folded side scalloped section and fold in toward the center line (like paper airplane sides). Then you have a petal type image. You could use this for a folded flower on your cards too. Do this 3 times for the Turkey Tailfeathers.
Then take your 3 sections and piece them together for the tail feathers and adhere on your card where you'd like it to be, (upper center in this case).
For the feet and beak I used a partial Scalloped Circle in Mustard (you just don't need a whole circle) and cut out the feet (one scallop bump in the middle and 2 halves on each side) and beak (one scallop bump cut upwards in a triangle shape). I added More Mustard with my Stampin' Write Marker on the beak because my daughter told me it didn't stand out enough otherwise! :) At almost 12, she's getting a very good eye of a designer!
Layer over top the smaller circle for the head attached to the larger circle for the body with Dimensionals. Put together your 3/4 inch square and strip for the dapper hat. Add eyes with the SW Marker.
Sample Three: Grateful Blooms
I love the fall feel to the new Haiku papers, and love the Eastern Blooms style. Here the vine image is stamped toward the center from each corner in Mustard on Vanilla. The two blooms are stamped in Saffron and Mustard from each end of the 3 Bloom stamp and cut out. The background is created with one of the stamps from the set in Saffron.
The sentiment is from By Definition and the ribbon is added with a knot for a nice simple feel.
I didn't do this in the class (but would have if I would have thought of it), but later I added some Microbeads on the flower centers with some 2 Way glue. I think it gives it some pretty texture.
Sample Four: Spidey Senses Tingling
And last but not least....I totally cased this cutie patootie spider from CaseGJ over at Splitcoast. Seriously I think it was brilliant. She has a really nice gallery of creative 3D things too. I'll be honest, I'm not much of a Halloween person...but these I just couldn't resist, and they fit in our theme. I've simplified parts of mine here for the class. Scallop Punches for bodies, and the Photo Corner Punch in 2 colors for the legs, 1/8 " punch for eyes and nose, SW Marker for the pupils. In the middle are Peppermint Patties :) NO stamping! ....a great way to use up scraps... they would be cute classroom treats too.
Thanks for popping by!
Recipes: All Dressed Turkey Stamps: Fun and Fast Notes Paper: Always Artichoke, Whisper White, Close to Cocoa, More Mustard, Prints DSP Ink: Basic Black Accessories: Punches (see above + Word Window), Brad, Chocolate GG Ribbon, Dimensionals
Autumn Blooms: Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Canvas Paper: Summer Sun, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White Ink: Summer Sun, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, VersaMark (on the Canvas Bk), Accessories: Scalloped Square, Oval, Square Punches Sponge Daubers, Rhinestone Brads, Riding Hood Red Taffeta Ribbon
Eastern Blooms: Eastern Blooms Paper: So Saffron, Very Vanilla, More Mustard, Haiku DSP Ink: So Saffron, More Mustard, Old Olive Accessories: Olive GG Ribbon, Key Tab Punch, Brads, Piercer, Microbeads, 2 Way Glue
Spidey Senses: Stamps: NONE Paper: Basic Black, Lovely Lilac, Real Red, Whisper White Accessories: Scallop Punch, 1/8 " Circle Punch, Photo Corner Punch, SW Marker, 2 Way Glue, Peppermint Patties