super duper Goodwill find :)

I hope you all had a blessed Christmas- no matter how it looked for you this year. I have a lot of friends and family who had a hard time being *merry* ~ it's tough when life zaps you during the holidays. My theory is that there is always something to be thankful for :) 

I found these little gems when I popped into my local Goodwill hoping for some after Christmas markdowns.....they are ( I believe) printing blocks for fabric or paper, handmade in India from wood and copper strips! I think they are lovely and it makes me wonder if the maker was a Believer :) Cool, huh?

Advent Sanctuary mobile

This could be my favorite one yet! I've always wanted to add lights to the mix~ and this year I found an LED battery operated star on a timer :)  We'll see how it all plays out.....it's not easy winching it up and down, so I'm hoping I won't need to do it more than once. I love the Advent season :) Some churches go 'blue' and some 'purple' ~ we have blue Paraments and purple candles in the Advent wreath.....so me being 'me'......I try to crowd in as much purple as possible :) May your Advent season be a time of preparation and anticipation of the celebration of Jesus's birth! 

Blessings to you

Praying that you all have a thankful day, no matter what circumstances you find yourself in. There is always something to be thankful for :) I'm thankful for my Lord, my family near and far, and the smell of a bird roasting in the oven~

Advent Tea Calendar

And I'm back with another Pinterest find  (here's the original pin)

Here's my 'take' on the idea! I found the mini bags at Michaels.....but I would probably just make my own next time. Each bag has a different tea in it- it gets a little expensive doing it that way ( PLUS they are mostly decaf - for a few of my friends) so I would recommend going together with a friend and splitting the cost. Or just make a bunch- they get progressively less expensive that way :) Another hint - next time I would make sure the tea bags are all individually wrapped.....I had to print some labels for some teas so folks would know what they were drinkin' :) I made the box from  12" cardstock and the lid from a transparency sheet. I also tucked in some chocolate truffles here and there to make the bags *stand at attention* :) I can't wait to give these to some special people in my life! 

leaf rose :)

Hi y'all :) Sorry I've been AWOL for so long. I really have no business having a blog apparently. I wanted to show you what I just made :) I got the idea and the directions from this Pin http://www.pinterest.com/pin/9992430399170967/  Mine doesn't look as lovely as the original, but it's all I could do. And it looks a little more like a Poinsettia than a rose. But you get the drift. Hopefully it will dry nicely and I can keep it! Have a great fall day my cyber friends !

VBS amazingness :)

VBS started today! As mentioned earlier....here's a photo of the decorations that our *resident scenery wizard* came up with.....the WORKING fountain was carved from huge blocks of dense styrofoam that was being thrown out by some local builders. So much fun for the kids. And having a *water feature* at church makes me think we should have one in the entry way all the time :) I'll get back to you on that one....heh heh.  

Bubbling over :)

This was this month's card club offering :) I have so much vellum stashed hoarded and I got the inspiration from a card on Pinterest. The Heart & Soul sentiment fit perfectly, I thought :) And sequins are always a good thing! Ttfn~
*note to self*....some of my punches are a little persnickety and work better if I punched more than one layer of vellum at a time.....