Thankful for His Promises!

We had a pretty wild weather day here in the beautiful Pacific NW- nothing in comparison to the Midwest definition of *wild*- but still pretty awesome. I'm a *weather watcher*- love watching storms, clouds, rainbows, etc. etc. God really puts on a display :) Today we had beautiful billowy clouds with silver linings, black ominous clouds, about an inch of hail ( my poor baby flowers! ) and this most awesome rainbow...I just can't help but say a thankful prayer everytime I see a rainbow: thankful for what an amazing thing it is, in and of itself, thankful for the eyes to see the beauty of it, and especially thankful that Scripture tells us that it's a reminder of God's Promise to us, that He would never flood the earth again (and thereby watching over us and caring for us forever :) At one point it was even a *double* bow across the sky.


I love it when you can see both ends! If I had a wider angle lens, I could have gotten the whole thing! Have a beautiful day- resting in the Promise of God ><>

Springtime *Random Blessing*

I made some fun cards for my friends- used up some hoarded background paper, printed the sentiment on my computer, punched the leaves and flowers out of scraps and of course added a little glitz!
This is the inside- I went on Ebay and found a 'lot' of the old flower seed Starbucks cards- took them in and had them load enough for 1 drink:) In hindsight, I suppose it would have been way way cooler to have the card match the Starbucks card...but I started off on a rabbit trail with the other colors....Happy May Day ><>

Happy Tree :)

So my little dogwood tree just bloomed this week- in spite of all the humiliation I put it through by hanging decorations on it, and the late frost we had....I think it's beautiful! And God does a WAY better job of decorating it than I ever could :) ><>

My stamping buddy...

This is Daisy, my constant companion...at least when it's her idea...and usually smack dab in the middle of whatever it is I'm trying to do...stamp,bead,watch tv,read,or sleep :) I've had cats all my live long days, but I've never had one that lays upside down like this! It's her *comfort* position, I guess- she's totally relaxed and ready to nap. Hmmnnnn...did somebody say *nap* ????? Happy Saturday ><>

It's a boy.....

This is for my cousin's daughter's baby shower ( does that make her my 2nd cousin? I never can figure that stuff out!) I've had this little plaid guy forever- I'm going to guess it's a *Rubbernecker* image I bought UM at a convention. Just love him! (or her, if she's pink :) The words are some I made before I started H&S - it's actually a clear stamp from over 15 years ago...It was tons cheaper than rubber back then (and probably is again...funny how things come full circle!) I used a Kaleidocolor stamp pad, and a little bit of my glitter glue gel pen (love THAT thing too!) ><>

I LOOOOOVE Ebay :)

Where else in the universe can you find totally off the wall cheap stuff that you don't need that makes you smile every time you see it ???? Somewhere along the way I must have decided to stay a kid, because my stamp room has all kinds of *toys* in it too (BESIDES the stamps...which of course, are NOT toys....heheheheh) and this is the latest edition to the *toy box* that is my work space/desk :) ><>

Happy Anniversary Dad & Mom :)

Super easy/quick card that I made at a Stampin' Up club thingy awhile back- turned it into an anniversary card for my folks :) Probably self explanatory to you Stampin' Uppers ><>

Happy Birthday Vickie :)

I made this for a dear friend who is turning *5-0* this year...a coupla years behind me, but I won't hold that against her :) and I'm not going to tease her and make jokes about it, because quite frankly....I didn't find it all that amusing myself :) I think we've been friends for over 30 years...but I can't remember :) This is all Stampin' Up stuff- you 'fans' probably know the colors & stamps' names better than I do :) I liked the color combinations.....something different :) ><>

C28

There's a great website- www.c28.com where you can go and buy awesome Christian clothing & accessories, plus you can download free backgrounds for your computer and all kinds of things! I've downloaded a few and turned them into a screensaver for my pc. Really fun stuff, and really a great ministry! Check 'em out :) ><>

For Emersyn :)

This card is for a dear friend's grand-daughter-to-be :) Her nursery is very bright, beautiful & *giraffy* so I stuck with that for her card...the image is from a hand drawn stamp a friend of mine did many years ago...I added some ribbon, some bling and it's *spot-on*.....get it ??? heheheh. ><>

Happy Birthday Barb :)

I made this card for my longtime friend Barb, who will be turning *00* something soon...and is a little sensitive about it :) I could also call it the *Goodwill* card, since I got a lot of the ingredients there....The orchid background paper is actually a *Wallie* that I got in a big ol' grab bag, and the crystal embellishments are actually 'skin art tattoos'- got a ton of those there too :) Stamped the phrase (I think it's 'I <3 to Stamp") and stuck a few bubble stickers from Michael's in the corner. Yay for thrifty! ><>

Name Above All Names

This lovely card was made by one of my awesome customers (Hi Sally :) and I just love it! Thanks for the permission to post :) You can check out Sally's blog- there's a link on the left of the page here....beautiful stuff there :) ><> Oh yeah...image by Heart & Soul :)

As promised earlier....

The Easter sanctuary *mobile* - turned out pretty, I think- got some gold appliques, some ribbon, and ivory satin. Looks really nice when the light shines down through the middle :) Pretty much all I did was stand around and observe/help/steady - One of these days I'll start posting stamping stuff again...heheheh ><>

Easter Banner

This is my 'favoritest' Easter banner of the bunch :) One of our awesome quilting ladies made the background, and all I did was applique the butterfly on....very cautiously as I didn't want to mess up her beautiful work! I 'stuffed' the butterfly as I sewed it on, making it 3D-ish. I know Jesus isn't a butterfly....but it symbolizes new life and resurrection. He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia ><>

Beauty from Ashes...

This is something fun we do at our church every Easter.....we take a bare 'ugly' wooden cross- covered with chicken wire, and 'transform' it by covering it with flowers...people come up during the service and just have fun poking the flowers in :) It's also a 'rite of passage' to have your picture taken in front of the cross- fun to see as the years go by and the kids in their 'Easter best dress' look so cute! I think we've been doing it long enough that it's a 'generational thing'. Praise God for the Cross that transforms us into something beautiful in His sight! ><>

He Is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!

This is a beautiful sunrise I caught on film a few years ago- 'photoshopped' the words onto it. May you enjoy this Glorious day to the fullest! ><>

Good Friday Sanctuary Art

This hangs in the center of our church sanctuary- it moves with the air currents ever so slowly- really a visual worship tool ( especially for those of us who lean towards the visual side of life :) There's black cloth for our sin, some purple for repentance/royalty (WHY it photographs BLUE is a mystery to me!) a crown of thorns with some red ribbons entwined, and the nails representing what we did to Jesus... I have the joy of heading down to church in a little while and helping change it into the glorious message that He's Alive! You KNOW there will be pictures to follow :) May you feel God's Presence ever so near this weekend as you celebrate His Resurrection! ><>

*Awesome* Friday

*Good* just doesn't express it well enough for me! ><>

A Double Post Today :)

First- I wanted to share a little about Maundy Thursday: "The word 'Maundy' comes from the Latin word for commandment, mandatum. This is a special day for Christians. It is the day when we remember the Last Supper, the agony in the garden of Gethsemane and the arrest and trial of Jesus. The Last Supper is a key event for Christians. It was at this Last Supper which Jesus shared with his disciples that he changed the words of the traditional Passover meal and commanded his followers to break and eat bread and drink wine in his memory. This act of remembrance is known as the Eucharist, Holy Communion, Mass or The Lord's Supper." (definition taken from Maundy.com) He also washed the disciples' feet as an example of how we should humble ourselves & serve others.(When I was little- I thought it was called Monday Thursday :)


Secondly - These are some fun paperweights that I made this week- bought the glass tiles online awhile ago- Ebay maybe?- and stamped 'joy' in the corner of some background paper squares. Cut them out and stuck to the back of the tiles with Diamond Glaze stuff. I think they would even be good magnets, but you'd need a pretty hefty magnet to hold them up! Here's a closer look:


Lord- I want to be Your servant and do Your Will- may it be so this Maundy Thursday and every day of my life :) ><>