Rebecca and the Neighbors...

Hello There,

I hope today finds you well and happy to be reading my post...I know when I feel down or stressed...I  take a few moments to read some of my favorite blogs... it makes me feel happy...H-A-P-P-Y...happy ...

So because it's spring and taking pictures outside in the sunshine makes me happy...I thought I would share some of my pics with you....I hope they warm your heart like they do mine....

Rebecca and Gracie have been outside playing and running and jumping on the trampoline and swinging...and soooo some of the neighbors came over to check them out....

They really perk up when Rebecca is out fooling around in her yard....

and did I mention Rebecca keeps raiding the fridge for apples for the neighbors and they are very appreciative to little girls bearing gifts of apples...

really don't remember what this is about...it looks like she dropped the apple....

that's ok the neighbor found it no problem...

they are still friends....

and she lets Rebecca pet her without feeding her apples...

I seriously don't know who's cuter....

"and then she said"...it looks like she is talking to Rebecca...

and I know Rebecca talks to her....look at her listening ear....

it's good to have neighbors....

Rebecca and her neighbors....it's the simple little things that are sooo adorable....and warm our hearts....

Gracie looks like she wants in on the snacks and conversation....

I love watching my girl grow....and I love that she is an animal person....

Well, hello there...thanks for posing...

Oh, look another neighbor came to visit....

"are you still taking pictures....make yourself useful and go git some apples while me and Rebecca visit..."

gentle spirits....bonding....

Rebecca has a knack for interacting with animals....

they are communicating without words....you know how neighbors like to talk over fences....

Yes, Rebecca has apples for her too....

Blessings
Sherry

First Tag Swap

 Hello There,

I have just participated in my first tag swap with Laura Denison at Following the Paper Trail and I wanted to share my tags with you...it was so much fun to do....I picked a french country theme....we had to make nine 4x6 tags, keep one and send in eight and we were supposed to sign each one....so here are a few photos to show you what I have done...I had a Mary Engelbreit mini calendar that is a tare away desk calendar with the most adorable children's images (she is my favorite children's illustrator) I wanted to use some of the images on something and not just throw them out...they are too cute....I hope this gives you some good ideas of how to do your own tags for swaps you should try it....it's really fun....and these tags can be used in cards or mini albums and even on scrapbook lay-outs....I hope you enjoy them....

This is what the back of each tag looks like....I made a small pocket and added two mini tags to it....

On each 4x6 tag I inked the edges of the tag and the image....

I also punched the lower edge and added a music note paper clip on the side...

Each tag has a ribbon tie on top and a felt flower with a brad in the center...

I also added some rhinestone stickers on the lover side edges....

These tags are relatively easy to make and the illustrated images with the quotes in them are just adorable....

Each tag has a different image and sentiment....

I loved the images so much they were kind of hard to part with....

This is one of my favorites...love the look of the mother and child with the comforter....and the sentiment reminds me of God being our Comforter....

This is the tag I kept....it reminds me to always remember it's the little things in life that are so precious and bring so much joy....and create so many memories....

Blessings
Sherry

Spring Day

Hello There, 

I love spring...it's just sooo pretty....and green...and rainy....I love the new flowers and buds popping up everywhere....it's just wonderful....I hope to do a little planting myself this weekend in between Rebecca's softball games that is....I have posted a picture of a beautiful spring day for you...even the sun feels perfect in the spring...

A beautiful day....

Blessings

Sherry

Sports Uniform Flowers

Hello There,
I hope you are doing well...I have been very busy lately...Rebecca's school softball league has just finished and now her regular league last game is tomorrow night...and then we are into full blown softball All-Star...summer mode...she had a tournament this weekend and then a game Monday night, and tonight (we just got back), and her last official game for the league is tomorrow night....at the game tonight as she was catching...she made a play to throw down to second and get the runner out...it was a perfect throw...but as the ball left her hand...she yelled "There's nobody there"....the ball hit the bag and beat the runner easily......oh well...the game goes on....she has practice Thursday night and then another tournament starts Friday night and will go thru the weekend.....

Life is full of amazing things...moments are fleeting...children are growing up....Life is precious and good and wonderful...even in the midst of pain....Life is good....

I have been brainstorming on how to capture these treasured moments of Rebecca's childhood... I thought of her old uniforms and all the photo's that need to be scrapped....and I thought...I should use this material somehow....in the lay-outs with her photos....

I have been learning about making all sorts of flowers for scrapbooking lay-outs...and I thought I would use some of these flowers...I have just started making the flowers....and I do not have the photos of them in the lay-outs yet....I will post pictures of them as they are finished...

Here is a flower I made out of some of Rebecca's old softball uniform socks that she has worn thru the years...I love all the velvety layers of this poufy flower....

These are really purple...the same material as the flower above...these are spiral roses...

These are some spiral roses I have made from some tie dyed purple and white socks she has worn from a previous uniform year....notice the stained or slightly brown areas...these are actually ground in orange softball field dirt that would not be washed out.....


Blessings
Sherry

Easter 2012

Hello There,


I hope you all are well...we are doing great....the daily routine sometimes takes alot more time than we expect...doesn't it...


I hope you all had a great Easter....it was  a beautiful day and our Sunday service was amazing...then we went out to eat with Holly and Rebecca...then took MaMaw some flowers at the nursing home... she has called me frequently since Sunday to let me know they are really being enjoyed by the staff that takes care of her and her room mate.....God is good.....

These are the roses that Gary gave me for my birthday....just beautiful....

 This year I made Easter bags...instead of baskets.....and I love how they turned out...Gary bought me a new Cricut cartridge called "A child's year"....and it's just amazing...full of beautiful images of children growing up...all the silhouettes you see on the bags are from this cartridge and I popped them out with foam dots....

 Aren't these images adorable.....

So so sweet....I am going to get a lot of use from this cartridge....


when Rebecca opened her bag...she yelled "Yea, bubbles...I love bubbles....and then she ate some of her candy and colored her eggs....there is nothing better than having kids in your life....they bring such joy and enjoyment to our days...I love love love being a mom....I have included the pics of the egg process....if your interested....

Rebecca is coloring her Easter eggs...one of her favorite things to do....

a little unsure of how this color is going to turn out...

thinking about re-coloring this one....have you noticed my photos are fuzzy...I need to clean the lense....

Now getting happy about the results...

Ta Daaaaa we have a winner...the perfect color...and now a clear picture....

carefully checking the color...she is serious about her eggs....I think this picture is supposed to be in front of the one you just saw....

I love that she is almost fourteen and still loves to color Easter eggs....

this is serious work here....interesting when I look at my photos at what I really capture.... I can see the lunch leftovers on the stove....

"Mom,  you still taking pictures...."

She gave me the stink-eye....

Apparently giving me the stink-eye cracks her up....

She is working on her ninja egg....did I mention she is into ninja's lately....

I repeat...serious work going on here....

I love capturing the creative process....

I should do a post of each year she has sat here coloring eggs in this same stool....but that would probably be boring to you...what I should do is a lay-out just for me...oh that would tickle me....:)

This is a magic egg...it has eyes, a beard and hair....that showed up in the dye....we are impressed with this.....love love love those inky fingers....

Blessings
Sherry

Send a Smile 4 kids cards

Hello There,

I hope you guys are doing well.  I have been busy this week making cards and I took a few photo's the other night...to show you...I made 60 cards to send to the kids hospitals that is put together by "Send a Smile 4 kids"...I have their badge on my sidebar....this is a wonderful paper craft project to get involved in....

Basically, they ask you to make a card and leave the inside blank to write in....these are delivered to surrounding hospitals....they don't have any hospitals participating in Texas yet...so I am sending mine to the Iowa address...these cards are given out by the staff and doctors to the children as a form of encouragement to them....and I am blessed to be part of this blessing....

I am sending 59 cards, this time because we had an emergency birthday card need that came up the other day and since it was for a pre-teen friend of Rebecca's we used one of these....most of my cards are for teenage girls...which is where they said they have been coming up short....

Our weather has been kind of sketchy this week....windy, thunderstormy and rain.....so I have not made it to the post office yet....but hopefully by Friday....I have the cards and mini to mail for Alison S. birthday, and the birthday card for Laura D. and now my hospital kids cards are ready....Oh, the joy of a crafty day.....

Here are some of the cards there are many different styles with lots of coloring and fun images....I am sorry the photo is dark....it was very late when I took it and the lighting is dim....I thought it was just me as my eyes were very tired....

Here is another photo of the rest of the cards.....again I am sorry that it is so dark....


Blessings
Sherry

Heatherlee's Wedding

Hello There,
Well, it's Monday morning and it definitely feels like a Monday...we got back from the wedding late so I did not post her card last night...the wedding was beautiful and they were very very happy....everyone looked beautiful, especially the bride....the ceremony was outside in a beautiful tree shaded area...and the reception BBQ dinner was wonderful....and the cakes were amazing...they did a great job with the color scheme and decorations... I just love weddings...the covenant with God is just amazing to be a witness to and take part in...we dropped Holly off at her house...and then MaMaw off at her nursing home and then we headed home...wow, I'm tired this morning...I think I need a nap....I just got back from taking Rebecca to school...this is the start of her last grading semester or quarter....I don't know what they call it....but basically she will get one more report card this year to finish out 8th grade....

and then...

She will officially be going into her high school years....WOW.....time flies when  you are raising children doesn't it....


Here is the card I made for Heatherlee and Daniel Peterman....

I used black cardstock for the base of the easel card...and some  designer papers from my stash to layer the front...the photo is one of their engagement photo's that is one of my favorites....I made the flowers out of the matching paper....I used my tattered floral spell binders die and popped it out with pop dots, the bling is recollection and I had some beautiful beige organza ribbon in my stash that matched perfectly...and then I made the stick pin out of pearls....I love the way it turned out.....

This is a side view of the card to show more of the dimensional details....

and this is the back of the card....this is another of their engagement photo's that I just loved....and I think it made the card...


Blessings
Sherry