Beautiful Daffodils

This afternoon I noticed when the sun was setting that it was shining right through the daffodils under our kitchen window. I couldn't help but take some pictures. So beautiful!

Love the ruffle around the sunny yellow corona. All the little details of a daffodil make me smile.

I love the little crinkly brown part of the stem where the flower begins (spathe). It's like a little wrapper was peeled off to let the "candy" inside emerge. After some snow/freezing rain yesterday, they hung their heads a bit low. I hope they perk up soon.

This is a closer shot of the first flower. Notice the little nick out of the petal at "9 o'clock"? This tender little flower is kind of like all of us....we have our flaws, but with a little sunshine in our lives(God) we are still beautiful. (ok, that's sappy...but, that's what observing nature does to me) After all, He did create it all. And, my oh my what a wonderful artist He is!

Love the gradation of that sunny yellow at the center right down to the buttery cream color of the petals.

No, I am no daffodil expert. In fact, I did a Google search to find out the technical names of the parts of the daffodil HERE. Wow, amazing what you can Google.

Ahhhhhhhhh.....beautiful daffodils!

Uh, is the beautiful factor of a daffodil what makes Riley and Jack bite them off their stems and shred them in the grass? Ugh....I found another one today! Bad, bad puppies! :)

I love this poem by William Wordsworth called Daffodils:

I wandered lonely as a Cloud

That floats on high o'er Vales and Hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced,

but they Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:-

A poet could not but be gay

In such a jocund company:

I gazed-and gazed-but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude,

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the Daffodils.

Mic Becerra Update

You might remember a post recently about my friend's husband that was diagnosed with Acute Myeloma Leukemia. They have created a blog about his condition/progress/treatment HERE. Please continue to pray for Mic, Wendy and their family. He is battling fevers and a sinus infection. At this point, his immune system is completely wiped out and it is such a risk if he gets ANY infection. I will continue to update periodically, but if you wish you can visit his blog often for updates or even subscribe for e-mail updates. Every prayer is appreciated. Thank you!

Maya Angelou Poem

I like this poem that my friend sent me in an e-mail and thought I'd share. It sums up just how good God's grace is in our lives. We are all sinners and so in need of His love and grace! Happy Sunday, everyone! :)

Christians
By Maya Angelou


When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not shouting 'I'm clean livin''
I'm whispering 'I was lost, Now I'm found and forgiven.'

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak and need His strength to carry on.

When I say.... 'I am a Christian' I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed and need God to clean my mess.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible but, God believes I am worth it.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I still feel the sting of pain...
I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner Who received God's good grace, somehow!

Masculine Birthday

I finally stamped something! I needed two masculine cards for next week. This one will be for Dr D. at the office. His b-day is Sunday, but we'll all celebrate on Monday with something yummy from the local bakery! I used the Cuttlebug folder to create the embossed layer. The cardstock is a mix of Basic Grey Archaic line and some solid colors from SU! (Chocolate Chip, Kraft). I used the distressing tool to give the edge of the oval some texture. The sentiment is from a SU! set called It's Your Birthday. It's hard to tell in the pic, but the base cardstock is a light moss green textured piece from Archivers. Oh, and I inked the cardstock edges and lightly over the embossed surface with my trusty Chestnut Roan cat's eye ink pad. Love that thing!

This card is for my nephew Josh. Well, technically he'll be my nephew on June 5th (when he marries Julie), but he's already family in my opinion. He LOVES getting mail so I can't wait to send this one. I'm going to tuck in a Best Buy gift card to make him smile. :) The main sentiment is from the same It's Your Birthday set, but I also used a round journaling stamp out of my clear stamps stash. The line of words is part of a retired SU! background stamp. I just used my chocolate chip marker to ink that part and stamped it onto the burnt orange piece. I inked this card using my Charcoal cat's eye ink pad. I wanted so badly to wrap some ribbon around the polka dot part of the card for visual balance, but it's a GUY card so I just added some eyelets. After looking at it, I think the polka dot strip should be a bit smaller top to bottom. Oh well...

I wanted to make the envelope match, so I cut another piece of the polka dot paper and carefully traced and glued it to the flap. I used my Mono-Multi glue so it should withstand the postal commute. I know those automated machines can be treacherous!

Ok, that's all for this weekend. I want to spring clean and get this house in order as much as possible...that includes my craft area. I stamped these two cards in about a 6"x6" space on my very very very messy table. Ugh. hee hee

Eskie Ornery Day?

Today is Jack's first birthday. I think he knows it's "his" day since he has done just about EVERYTHING and ANYTHING ornery as possible! Here's a little recap of an Eskie Ornery Day that isn't even over! Oh boy! The testosterone is flyin' high today in this house! LOL!
I always joke that I have to take 50 pictures to get one good one. Well, I finally had Kevin hold him for this shot. Isn't he a handsome birthday boy!?

Despite the rainy, dreary weather I got a few pictures outside....barely....here he was ready to dash after Riley as they ran like maniacs outside. I had two VERY wet boys after that! It's interesting to try and dry one dog as the other one bites the towel. Oh boy!

Wait...Jack...sit...oh....wait....ugh. Yep, I took about 10 like this one before Kevin picked him up. He was chasing Riley, naturally. Oh boy! It's like he's saying with that licky tongue...."Momma, show me the cake!" Uh...oops. I forgot to get his doggy ice cream treat (Frosty Paws) when I was out and I didn't want to go back out in the rain to buy it. He and Riley will celebrate another day. Besides, I think they are wound up enough as it is today. Oh boy!

Did you know that Jack not only attended the prison training program called Eskie Behind Bars while he was under the care of the rescue, but also GRADUATED? Yep, I have papers to prove that he KNOWS his commands. However, he likes to use many stall tactics to avoid going back in his kennel. See tactic one above: SUPER GLUE YOUR PAWS TO THE CARPET AND WHEN MOMMA PUSHES ON YOUR HIND END, REFUSE TO MOVE. Oh boy! LOL! He should just go right in when someone says "Jack, kennel." Should, I said. :)

Tactic two: LAY ON THE FLOOR FACE UP AND PLAY WEAK BOY Yeah, he acts like he just can't get up and if you try to get him up he really gets "weak". Oh boy! LOL!

And, lastly...even if Momma tells you not to jump on the spare bed where you always jump when given the kennel command....well, DO IT ANYWAY! LOL! Yep, tactic three is JUMP ON THE SPARE BED AND LOOK AWAY. If you do not see Momma and pretend to not hear Momma then Momma surely isn't telling you to get in your kennel. Yeah, right. You see, Jack knq3w2o (yes, he just typed that)...where was I...Jack knows his commands. He just likes to use stall tactics even though he NEVER wins. He is quickly scooped up by Momma and put in the kennel anyway. Bummer, dude. Oh, boy! Wonder what new tactic he'll come up with next?

When trying to take said "perfect Jack first birthday picture", please remove younger brother dog specimen or you'll get THIS repeatedly on your camera! fight fight fight Oh, boy!

I told you. It's non-stop action here in the Simmons house. I don't know what they put in the water lately, but man oh man. Boy oh boy. Yep, it's a joy to know this baby boy Jack-a-ma-Dack. I am so thankful he's ours. Happy Birthday to this furball!

Oh, wait. I forgot to mention that when you try to take the perfect picture of birthday boy dog, he may also jump on your chest and stick out his tongue. Look closely, it's that silly little pink thing hangin' out of that ornery Eskie mouth. I tell ya...he's full of it today! Oh, boy!

He can even do tricks. Some dogs "shake". Some roll over or play dead. He can do the "one ear up, one ear down" trick. I guess he tries to hear what's happening all around him and gets this super goofy look. LOL! Oh, boy!

Ok, Jack. Now that's ENOUGH! I think he got the camera and took his own picture here. I'll be back soon with something crafty I hope. Yeah, that is when I get these wild turkeys under control.

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday sweet Jacccccccccckkkkkkkkk!

Happy Birthday to you!

And many more.........

Abby's wedding invitations

These are way prettier in real life, but they are officially in Abby's hands so I can't take another picture. Abby is my hair stylist and she's getting married in May. She wanted just 15 invitations for her private wedding ceremony and asked if I'd make them. Her colors matched the SU! colors Lavender Lace and Pretty In Pink perfectly. I was able to find this elegant embossed paper(8x8) at Joann's, as well as the purple shimmer paper there, too. The base cardstock is the shimmer cardstock from Papertrey Ink (the best shimmer paper in my opinion!). The only other supplies I used were my SU! daisy punch, the pink layered flowers from Jolee's, some white shimmer grosgrain ribbon, the ticket corner punch and the self-stick purple bling stones. I printed the invitation wording inside using the Edwardian Script font (gorgeous!) and layered that on Pretty In Pink cardstock. The inside pieces were matted and I used the ticket corner punch on them, too. (no pic of the inside...sorry)

The invitations are 5x7 and I placed each one in a vellum envelope (from Joann's) that was decorated with a strip of shimmer cardstock and another layered flower accent. She can write the recipient's name on the shimmer strip. She is hand delivering them, so I was able to add more bling and goodies than one that was mailed. It made creating them more fun, too! She came by Tuesday night to pick them up and both she and her mom were quite pleased. It made me happy that the bride was happy! :) Abby is just such a sweetheart! *click this bottom pic for a closeup of the shimmery purple paper and layers*

Super Saturday

Yesterday was a good day! Although I was yet again sleep deprived (can you say snoring husband?), it was a good LONG day with loads of fun. The day started with scrambled ham 'n cheese eggs and yummy toast. Then, I gave Jack a much-needed bath after his romp in the back yard mulch/filth. A white dog just doesn't understand the concept of keeping clean. Plus, he's a boy! Wild! Finally, I spent the rest of the day/evening with my mom. We stopped at the Scrapbooking Cafe (local scrap store) for some goodies to match Julie's wedding colors. Then, it was off to Joan's to a super fun Stampin' Up! workshop. Nope, I wasn't the demonstrator. I cancelled my demonstratorship back in December. It was nice to be on the "other side of the table" persae. Holly had two fabulous projects, Joan had incredible food and the company was great! Mom and I stayed a while to visit and were highly entertained by Joan's granddaughter Jillian who is almost 2 1/2. She even sang with her ruby red slippers on and kept going like an Energizer bunny (she was avoiding a nap I think). LOL! Mom and I made two stops at the mall, then enjoyed a somewhat late dinner at a local Wendy's. Ahhhhhhhhh...what a fun and super Saturday! Today it's laundry marathon and watching the dogs while Kevin and his mom go to the Air Force Museum in Dayton.
You can see the super cute scrapbook page we made HERE. We also made this neat gift card holder using the Big Shot Top Note die and various other SU! products. The stamp set and double-sided patterned papers are both Sale-a-Bration FREEBIES you can choose from when your order is $50 or more. For more details, you can visit Holly's SU! website and order anything there you "need". :)

It's hard to tell, but we used the slit punch at the top of the green cardstock that creates a tab to secure the gift card after it's in the tan pocket part. *click any pic for a closer look*

Doesn't Jack look like a weasel when he's wet? He tolerates his bath, but is so ready to shake, rattle and roll when I take him out. He proceeded to rub his entire body all over the carpet when I dried him off. Ugh....I have to vacuum a lot since he's a shedder. So worth it! (side note: gotta love that 50s style green tub....it's in perfect condition so we keep it...) LOL!

Oh, momma...come on.....skip the pictures and get me out of here! tee hee Wet Weasel! I think I am just as wet when all is said and done! Seriously!

Connie sent home some treats for the boys including this jumbo Nylabone and some mini rawhides and other snacks. They loved them all!

My poor Riley is such a ragamuffin right now. Is it dog abuse to delay their haircuts and allow them to look scraggly for a few weeks? EEK....he should go next week for one then he'll be all adorable again. :) His breed has lots of tears so his little face gets all stained and scraggly. LOL! He's still so stinkin' cute!

Odd Random Whatnots

For those of you who visit my blog for crafty things....well, this post might be a disappointment. For those of you who visit my blog for random everyday life stuff....well, you hit the jackpot! :)
My first daffodils bloomed Wednesday. These are the miniature ones under the kitchen window. They are so sweet and little and happy! I think the next bunch will pop out Thursday. I love daffodils. Every spring it's as if God puts them right there to see me smile. :) Too bad Jack wanted to EAT two of the blooms. I have to search online now to see if daffodils are toxic to dogs. What a weirdo!

Jack was smiling while outside with Riley and I on Wednesday afternoon. My thermometer said 67 whopping degrees! The sun was almost intoxicating and the breeze was delightful! He had a fun conversation with a squirrel on the power lines. It was funny!

Jack:Ruff Ruff

Squirrel:Bark Bark

Jack: Ruff Ruff

Squirrel: Bark Bark

Riley is almost in camo with his "caramel blondie" fur. He was sniffing out the next "treat" while back in the mulch at the corner of our back yard. Man, those mulch beds need cleaned up! See next picture for sampling of yard treats.

I found random things in the yard, including this "log" of mulch that obviously intrigued them. They also had a hunk of mortar from the loose bricks on the one flowerbed border. Can you imagine what else was in the yard? Well, Kevin got all that after supper. Peeeeee---Ewwwwwwww! :) The boys love to chew sticks, mulch, dead leaves, sticks, mulch, dead leaves, sticks, more sticks, more mulch and so on. Ugh!

About a week ago, I was sitting at the computer and looked down to see THIS! Blood on my Jack! What? What happened? Was he bleeding or was it blood from Riley? Well.....Riley is losing teeth and his gums were bleeding while they wrestled and bit each other's fur. Yep, it was just blood from Riley. Whew! I thought I had a doggie trauma on my hands. LOL!

Riley says, "What's up brother, did I get my blood on your pristine white fur? Ha ha ha. I win this wrestlemania I think. arf arf :)" *sniff sniff*

Right after that I took Riley's picture. It's as if he's saying "Who? Not me." LOL! Two boy dogs are way more rambunctious than one girl dog was. It's giving me gray hairs!

Ok, now for the really weird, really random thing I saw when I went to Hobby Lobby last Saturday. I pulled into the parking lot and passed this van. I read it, then reread it(talk about a major doubletake). You'll have to click on the pic to get the full view of what it says. (Butcrak Plumbing--No Actual Butcrak ever shows, then a phone number). If a man hadn't been sitting in the van, I would have moved my car and parked it by the van for a really close picture. I was sitting in my car and held the camera out the window and over the trunk of the next car so it's far away and blurry as I had to zoom in. If that doesn't make you scratch your head, then who knows what would. Oh my! For real though! What was THAT? *giggle*

I made spaghetti Saturday and when I took the last noodles out of the box, this is what I found. A spaghetti "U". Never in my life had I seen that. LOL! Yes, I truly do find things in life extremely entertaining. I am weird, but I have fun. LOL! I cooked it with the rest of the noodles.

In the Joann's craft store parking lot was a flock of seagulls. They must have been lost. I mean, HELLO birds...Florida is south. LOL! Some were even taking a break and laying down. I rolled down the window, said hello(yes, I talk to animals) and snapped their picture. (Ok, now I doubt myself...these are seagulls, right?)

It's these kinds of random things that make up my life. It's the kind of things that might not even humor the next person, but I find delight in the details around me. Thanks for letting me share. Stay tuned for more crafting coming up soon. I am working on Abby's wedding invitations and hope to have them done soon. I am just waiting on the shimmer cardstock to arrive from Papertrey Ink. I got a haircut today and we went over the wording so the design is a "go".

Quick Gift Bag

My niece Julie needed a baby boy gift bag when she was in town last weekend. I had literally ONE baby card in my stash. Luckily, it was baby boy themed. I remembered the matching patterned paper scraps from the same line and created a QUICK gift bag to match. I simply cut the scrap to size, adhered it to the bag, and added large ric rack and the baby's name in sticker letters. Whew....I felt like I saved the day! LOL! *click for a closer look* You might remember the card from way back when. Nope, I never added the "ground" stamp for the elephant to stand on. Oh well...

I like the name Kohler. It's unique. The only problem....I knew I had seen the name somewhere. It's the brand name of our toilet. Oh brother! No wonder it was familiar. I STILL like the name for a baby boy. LOL! Sorry, Julie but it is funny why it was familiar. :)

Daddy Don't Go layout

This is the last layout I completed at Craft Farm. I did do one more of Jack, but haven't journaled it so I count this one as the last completed one. (click pic to see details)

The black and white strip has to be the thinnest scrap I have ever used on a project! :)

Made this a quick post as I'm heading up to bed! Have a happy week everyone!

Best of Friends

What do you get when you mix photos of adorable pups, 6 patterned papers, two solid papers, several buttons, a few brads, some die-cut letters, white and brown ink pads, a white gel pen and some little rub-on letters? A page about two wild boys who love each other like crazy! Click any pic to see all those crazy details. :)

Prayers for Mic Becerra

A friend's husband was just diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia Thursday. His name is Mic Becerra (pronounced Mick Buh-sarah). I asked her if I could post the info for a prayer request. He will immediately begin an intense week of chemotherapy, followed by 4-6 weeks of maintenance treatment. His immune system will be knocked out and it is important that he gets no infections during his treatment time. He will be hospitalized the entire time until they test him again to see if he is in remission. Mic and Wendy have two children. She asked that we pray that he will get through the treatment without any infections, that he will be able to tolerate the treatment and that the white blood cells will return as healthy, productive white cells. Thanks to everyone who will say a prayer(s) for this dear family. I will update for continued prayer requests as I learn more about his treatment and progress.

Flowers for Wanda

Click to see details and read the journaling. This page is about when Jack first met our dear neighbor Wanda and took her flowers. *wink* I only used cardstock, a white gel pen and various chipboard shapes that were colored with craft ink. OH and a couple brads and some journaling. I used the Cricut for the title letters (All Mixed Up cartridge).

Here's a close-up to show you the texture of the Bazzill cardstock, the chipboard hearts and little white dots I made using my trusty white gel pen.

I just got home from scrapbooking with my mom and it's after midnight. We had a really fun time. I didn't get much done, but I did run into someone I hadn't seen for over 6 years and we caught up. Everyone at the crop was so very nice. The food was super yummy, too! I have to wash my face and get some sleep. Kevin has a haircut Saturday morning and not sure what else we're doing. My niece Julie is probably coming up from Columbus and little Tucker might come over and play. Oh my...three puppies in the back yard sounds like chaos! Blessed chaos at that! LOL!

Our Family

I finally made a page with our "family" picture from Christmas Eve 2008. Riley was just a little punk then. He has since had a haircut and grown quite a bit. All his black hair is cut off and he's a bigger punk now...that needs another haircut. LOL! *click for a closer look at details*

The funniest thing about this layout is I used Ken's pizza pan to trace a perfect curve on the ivory paper. Shhh...don't tell. I went in the kitchen of the B&B looking for something large to trace and the pizza pan was in the dish drainer. Perfect! LOL! Yes, I crack myself up.

I cut the flowers out of another coordinating patterned paper, added some to the page with dimensionals, then finished it off with Stickles. I also added some faux stitching along the curve of the ivory paper using a dark brown journaling pen. If I remember correctly, I think all supplies but the sticker letters and ivory paper are by Kaisercraft. When I look on their site, I don't see these patterns, so not sure. The letters are by Basic Grey and the ivory paper was a gift from Connie. It has a neat texture, but I have no clue the brand. I cut off the little strip on the end of the papers and toss it so I forget those details. :)

Happy Friday! Guess where I am going tonight? Yep, scrappin' again! I asked Kevin on Thursday if he cared and he looked at me like I had eight heads. (He was surprised I even ASKED him if he cared that I go.) Well, you know....he did just have the boys to himself all last weekend so I wasn't sure if he'd be "puppied out". Is puppied even a word? LOL! You know what I mean. He'll be glad that I'm only going for 6 hours instead of three days. :)

Gone Home

As most of you know, my paternal great aunt Irene died in January. She was laid to rest in the family cemetery in Kentucky on 2/1/09. I was unable to go, but Connie took a few photos that she shared with me. I made this very "heart healing" page in her memory. It is often hard to scrapbook the difficult moments in life, but it can be quite therapeutic as well. Connie said that the lower portion of her stone has the words "Gone Home" engraved on it. I was having a hard time with a title for this page, and her suggestion was not only meaningful but downright perfect.

This is a close up of the flower/button details. You can click either picture to really see all the details.

Thanks for stopping by! Thanks, too, for letting me share such a tender page.