Show and Tell

Delight... and... Flower Fusion #10

Today is Wednesday, November 30. Tomorrow a new month begins. Wow.

I went to work for about an hour this morning — really just put in an appearance. I was there during morning opening time, though, and got to see and talk to some of the moms that I hadn't seen in awhile and meet some of our newer moms that I hadn't had the pleasure of meeting yet. Oh, and even lay eyes on a few babies who were born over the summer. Very precious! So, I guess that even though it was short, it was a good work day. :) After all, I've always considered getting to know the moms an important part of my job. I love being able to encourage them as they are doing the important job of raising their young families. Hopefully I'll be able to get back to doing more of that soon... maybe in January.

This might be a fine time to show you photos from our visit to the Christmas tree lot. The youth at the church where I work have a tree lot as a fundraiser for the first time this year and we decided that it would be good to support them... so while Britt and Kenneth were still here last weekend we did a little tree shopping.

It's not a very clear picture, but these are my hams... always ready to cheese for a photograph. I'm skulking around, trying to take candid shots and they just can't seem to stop themselves from hopping in. :)

This is the tree that Ken & I selected for ourselves. It's about 7 feet tall and narrow, so it fits in the corner of our family room nicely.

And, here are Britt & Kenneth sizing up a tree.

They had two vehicles with them in Charlotte and since one was big enough to accommodate a tree, they helped to support the youth group that Britt was in as a middle school-er by taking a tree back with them.

 Their tree is about the same height as ours, but much more full... perfect for their house. Awwww... their first tree in their first house. How fun is that? :)

And, speaking of fun...

Cute picture, huh? Did you notice the bunny ears that Kenneth put over Britt's head? Sigh... boys just don't really grow up, do they? :)

I just love a Christmas tree lot at dusk, don't you? It's just so festive. (If you're local, this tree lot is at Sharon Baptist Church, in case you want to check it out and purchase a tree that will benefit youth missions.)

 

Here is the scripture that I chose for today. It's actually very much like the ones for the last few days... still from Psalm 119. Still a cry for rescue.

Psalm 119:174-175

"O Lord, I have longed for your rescue, and your instructions are my delight. Let me live so I can praise you, and may your regulations help me."

Once again, I echo the Psalmist in my longing for rescue. I do want to live so that I can continue to praise the Lord and lift up His name as the One who saves. Jesus is the ONLY One who can save our souls. Reading the Bible and knowing His laws it keeps me on His path... which is a tremendous help. Having a rule-follower type of personality, I've always liked knowing what is expected of me... so I'm really glad that the Lord has clearly outlined it in His word. I've said it before, I think, but that is a good reason to read and know your Bible. You, too, can know what God expects of you!

 

I mentioned a couple days ago that my stash of cards to give to those who bring us meals was getting low, so here are two more cards for the pile. 

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Being the impatient sort, I couldn't wait until the light wasn't shining through the cards to take the pictures. Oh, well. You'll have to ignore the text showing through from the inside. And, I should really pay more attention to when my stamp pads need to be re-inked, too (as evidenced by both cards, but especially the one on the right). Oh, well... again. :)

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Flower Fusion #10, Flower Fusion #4); cardstock is inexpensive office store white and PTI (Stampers Select White); ink is PTI (Simply Chartreuse, Berry Sorbet, Melon Berry, Summer Sunrise, Dark Chocolate); also used PTI dies (Flower Fusion Stem, Flower Fusion #10).

One more picture from today. You may remember me mentioning before about how pots of flowers just appeared on our front porch. And how when those mums had run their course, they were mysteriously replaced with pansies? Well, we did find out who was doing all that sneaking around in our landscaping... and she's been at it again.

Ken was working in the garage when Sara Gwynn drove up and began fertilizing the pansies she had planted earlier. What a sweetie! I was getting ready to go on my second walk of the day, so she joined me. It was fun to have a walking and talking partner. :)

That should be it for the day. I'm hoping that tomorrow my energy will be increased even more... especially since the parents are hosting a luncheon for the weekday school staff the next two days and it would certainly be a shame to miss that! :)

Thank you so much for visiting us here and for your continued prayers. We so, so appreciate them and you. Sending you big hugs!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Today is Tuesday, November 29, 2011 — our 31st wedding anniversary. Yay for us!

Today was also a chemotherapy day... my third. And I guess this time it just flat wore me out... because it's nearly 8:30 p.m. and I'm just now getting started on a blog post. And I'm not sure that I'll finish it in the usual format. We'll see. Last time I bounced back pretty well, so I'm thinking that after a good night's sleep I'll be fine to go to work tomorrow.

One cool thing today, I was in middle of my treatment and a man came in carrying a bunch of pink balloons and a beautiful pale pink orchid.

His wife was having her last treatment for breast cancer today. The effort that he had put into making it a special day by surprising her with balloons and flowers was pretty fun to see. And as the day went on the two of them were joined by friends and family... such a big celebration and so fun to observe from my little corner of the room.

 

Now for some scripture.

Psalm 119:145-147

"I pray with all my heart; answer me, Lord! I will obey your decrees. I cry out to you; rescue me, that I may obey your laws. I rise early, before the sun is up; I cry out for help and put my hope in your words."

And, since it's getting quite late, I'll refrain from adding any of my own comments. But, I think you can tell that I'm pretty drawn to verses that pray for rescue and healing.

 

Finally, it's time for me to share the anniversary card that I made for Ken and slipped into his brief case this morning so that he would find it when he started setting up for a long day in the infusion room. My mom and dad always wrote love notes on the outside of the envelope to each other when they gave cards, so this year I decided to carry on that tradition. And Ken must be in the running for the best husband in the world. He's become something that we never anticipated at this point — a caregiver. It kinda stinks, really, but he is so good at it. I'm so thankful and don't think there is a better husband out there... at least not for me. I'm very blessed! 

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It's pretty subtle and hard to see, but I used one of the images from Modern Wood Mats as a background image, repeating it to add a little bit of interest to the card.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Modern Wood Mats, Through the Trees, Little Labels); cardstock is PTI (Rustic White, Kraft); ink is Stampin' Up (More Mustard, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip); twine is PTI (Rustic Jute); also used a PTI die (Jar Labels 2).

Whew! I finished the post before The Biggest Loser was over tonight... just barely. Hopefully my energy will be better tomorrow and I can do a more compete post.

Thanks so much for your prayers today and for the love that you continue to lavish on me and Ken. We're so appreciative! Love and hugs to you!! 

Sustenance... and... More Food Thanks

Today is Monday, November 28. Thanksgiving is over and we're rushing headlong into the Christmas season. Did you do any decorating this weekend? We did a bit.

No, we didn't decorate the Jeep. But that is where Ken put the bows while he draped the lights as he tested them on Friday night. Between the lights and bows... well, it kinda makes for a festive-looking garage, doesn't it?

We also started a very little bit of inside decorating. After last Christmas I bought a champagne colored tree from Treetopia and had been eager to put it up, so Britt & I dug it out of the attic first.

 That was our first round of decorating it... and here it is finished:

I think I'll need to get a picture of it in the daylight, too. This pic's a little blurry. But it's a very sparkly tree and I'm loving it. :)

 

The scripture I chose for today is from the Psalms again.

Psalm 119:116-117

"Lord, sustain me as you promised, that I may live! Do not let my hope be crushed. Sustain me, and I will be rescued; then I will meditate continually on your decrees."

These verses are very much along the line of what I shared with you yesterday. In fact, it seems to be a theme in Psalm 119 — praise the Lord for His commandments and then ask Him for mercy and rescue. And, that's pretty much what I've been doing since August. Glorifying and begging. And trusting in God's faithfulness. He is so good! And if you want some encouragement from the Lord, you might want to read Psalm 119. It's long... but it's full of good stuff. :)

 

For today's craftiness, we have a couple of thank you cards.

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I haven't made cards for the food stash in awhile, so I'm building back up. You may remember that I like to make a couple of these cards at a time, but I always switch up the colors. Each person deserves a card that is unique to them, I figure. That, and I also don't really like to do the exact same thing over again. It's more fun this way. :) Anyway, here are two cards for the stash... same design, same stamps, different colored flowers. Variety is the spice of life, right?

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Flower Fusion #9, Flower Fusion #4); cardstock is office store white; ink is Stampin' Up (Old Olive, Early Espresso, More Mustard, Perfect Plum); also used PTI's Flower Fusion #9 die.

Just a few more pictures from the Thanksgiving weekend. Lynne and Mike stayed until Saturday morning. And, apparently their dog, Ivy, was ready to get going.

She hopped into the car all on her own as the good-byes were being said. Then our dog, Roxy, must've thought a car ride looked like fun, because she tried to stow-away. 

Good thing she wasn't very subtle about it. We would've missed her. :)

And here is the annual picture of Lynne and Michael...

Love those guys. And, we'd love them even if we weren't related. Funny. Smart. Full of faith. And fighting a deadly disease... like us. Their fight has been going on longer, though. Michael was diagnosed with cancer of the gall bladder a few years ago and given a short time to live... like weeks. And he's still here. You know that I find that inspiring! Back in October, Mike shared his story at his church. It's really good, honest, and worth a listen, if you have the time. You can find it by clicking here.

And now just a couple pictures of the Christmas decorating...

 We left the glittery brain tumor awareness bow on the mailbox and Britt added some Christmas-y bows and baubles to the top. 

While she was doing that, Ken was putting the icicle lights on the house.

I took some pictures of the house all lit up, but it was still a little too light outside to get the full impact so I'll have to try again later. Stay tuned. :)

And, that should be it for tonight. Tomorrow is my third chemo treatment. I'm scheduled to be in the infusion room at 10:00. Prayers are appreciated. :) Tomorrow is also our 31st wedding anniversary. What a way to celebrate, huh? But, we'll be together... which is more than I can say for many of our previous anniversaries, so that's a sweet blessing. I expect we'll appreciate this anniversary more than any of previous 30, too.

Thanks so very much for stopping by and for continuing to give us so much love and support... and for sending up so many prayers. You all are the best! Give yourself a hug from me. :) 

 

Worn out, but hopeful... and... Candy Cane Christmas

Today is Sunday, November 27. All the guests have gone home now. Britt & Kenneth went to church with us, but left to go back to Raleigh before the Panthers game began. It's definitely time for me to try to get back into a regular posting routine. I've been a little lazy for awhile now.

Since we haven't talked about medical things for awhile, let me give you a quick update. Because everyone was leaving today, it seemed like a good time to go down one more milligram on the steroids. You know that always makes me a little nervous, so you can pray for my mind to stay clear and focused. I sometimes wonder how many of my "issues" with the step-down process are of my own making. It seems like a lot of fighting this tumor may be a mental game, so I'm trying to win the battle of the mind. But... I'm pretty excited that I started out this journey in the hospital taking 16 mg a day and am now down to just 4mg. The goal is to get to zero, of course, so I'm on my way.

How about something much more interesting than medical stuff? Like... here are some of our Thanksgiving decorations this year.

 These tea towels were sent to me by Kenneth's parents... and I love them. They looked so great hanging on the oven doors in our kitchen.

And here is the sideboard in the dining room.

The thankful banner was given to us by our neighbor Maria. I think she received it at a Stampin' Up party she attended a year or so ago. I attached it to the wall with something we use at school called Teacher's Tape. It holds things really well and doesn't damage the wall or leave stickiness behind (or, at least, it hasn't ever for us... if you decide to try it you may want to be cautious). We love it for school and I love it for home, too. (If you're interested in trying it, they offer free samples to educators on their website.)

 

I'm going to give you a couple scriptures to think about tonight. Both are from the Psalms. This first one is from today's passage in my daily Bible. It may be a verse you've heard before.

Psalm 119:105

"Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path."

God's Word is like our instruction manual for life. It tells us what God expects from us. It teaches us how to live. The wise read their Bible and take its instructions to heart.

And here are some verses from yesterday's reading that I'd like to share, too.

Psalm 119:81, 88

"I am worn out waiting for your rescue, but I have put my hope in your word...

..."In your unfailing love, spare my life; then I can continue to obey your laws."

I can tell you that tonight I am pretty worn out... physically and mentally. I'm tired of being sick and as the day has gone on I'm more and more tired — inspite of the fact that I had a nap that caused me to miss the entire third quarter and half of the fourth of the Panther game. And I never nap through a game.

So, I'm a little discouraged — at least, at this moment. I truly feel worn out waiting for God to rescue me... and am wondering if He will. Or if He will in the way that I want Him to. I pray that He will decide to spare my life so that I can continue to love my family, go to work, blog... and hopefully make a bit of a difference in my little corner of the world.

And, after I write all that, I get a grip and go back a little farther in my Bible... reading this reminder from 1 Peter: "Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you." I may not like what is going on in my life, but I don't doubt that God loves me. I can trust Him with all my concerns. And it's important that I not let doubts cloud my faith.

So, Lord, tonight I pray for myself and my mind. I pray that You will give me peace and not allow my mind to be filled with doubts. You are so good and Your plans for me are good, too. Your love never fails and I will continue to trust in You and Your goodness.   

 

Well, this is the last card that I've made and not shown you. Hopefully I'll have time to make some things tomorrow — because, if I don't, these posts may get a little boring for the craft oriented folks. 

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This is a card that I made in response to my "use-everything-you've-bought-at-least-once-before-buying-anything-new rule". It's a good rule, I think. It puts a bit of pressure on me, but that's probably not a bad thing. And it can keep me from impulsively buying things that I like the look of and then get and have no clue what to do with them.

I bought the Candy Cane Christmas set exclusively because of the mug. I just love that mug. And I can use it at other times... like I did on the thank you card shown here. The Tag-its #8 set? Well, I bought it solely because I can't resist a series. I know. That's a bad reason. And, I really do not need any Christmas sets at all. I don't usually make Christmas cards (we order photo cards). But it was only $5.00 so it was very affordable. Worth it, right? I mean, those are snowflakes... surely I can find a way to use them in January. :)  

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Candy Cane Christmas, Tag-its #8); cardstock is PTI (Stampers Select White) and Stampin' Up (Melon Mambo); ink is SU (Real Red, Melon Mambo, Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose); baker's twine is The Twinery (Pink Sorbet); also used a tag doily from Martha Stewart, duct tape (PT-candy) from Fortis Design, and PTI dies (Candy Cane Christmas).

Thought I'd share a few photos from our Thanksgiving day before thinking about moving on to Christmas stuff.

There's the bird... fresh out of the oven. Ken always cooks our turkey. In fact, he makes the entire Thanksgiving meal. I have never cooked a turkey or made stuffing or put a whole big meal like that together. A few posts ago, I promised you the story. In 1982, a couple years after we were married, we invited some college friends — 5 of them — from Chicago and Kansas City to join us for Thanksgiving in St. Louis. Ken & I were excited to be hosting our first traditional Thanksgiving dinner. I had made a menu, done the shopping, and we were ready to go... until I got sick. And I was sick for the entire week of Thanksgiving. Ken came into our room on the morning of Thanksgiving, looked at feverish me, and determined that there was no way that I could cook the meal. I was even too sick to get out of bed. So — I had an aunt who lived in St. Louis. Ken called her and she walked him through the process of stuffing and roasting a turkey. And he's the only Hayes from our house who has ever done it. I kinda figured... if he knows how, why should I learn? Besides, he gets a great deal of satisfaction from the fact that he can get the entire meal on the on the table and have it all hot and ready to eat exactly when he says it will be ready. I'd hate to deprive him of that! Yep. He's quite the guy. (I think I'll keep him!) And that's the story of our first Thanksgiving. :)

So, moving on... here we are gathering for a prayer of Thanksgiving before the meal.

Instead of passing the food, we had a buffet line. 

We've found that to be a bit easier with such a large group.

After dinner, while the adults visited...

the kids played with the ducks that a preschool family gave to me...

and joined Kenneth for some games on the iPad.

The dogs even got a little attention from Ken's cousin's daughter...

which, I'm sure, pleased them greatly.

And, as the evening winded down, so did the activity level...

with the afghans and the puzzles coming out...

It was a great Thanksgiving Day. And, a very typical holiday around here.

Thanks for bearing with me as I chronicle our life. And thanks for your prayers as we walk through this interesting journey. Maybe you can tell, but the way I feel and my mood and thoughts often change quickly. But I always come back to the Lord's goodness and His love for me. I have so much to be thankful for! And one thing I'm thankful for is all of you who read my blog, send us your love, and pray for us. We sure do appreciate it! xxoo 

 

Another no-post day

Well, apparently I'm having trouble getting back in the swing of things. Lynne & Michael left this morning. Britt & I did a little Christmas decorating and I took a walk and a nap. We watched the NC State football game on TV (State won!) and have been watching the Civil War game since then (Oregon State vs. University of Oregon — U of O is winning handily as I write this). We took another walk and then later another... each time we go a little farther. Maybe in a month or so I'll get all the way around the block. :)

Ken put the lights on the outside of the house and then the four of us (Britt, Kenneth, Ken, and I) went to buy a Christmas tree. I've got pictures of the day... maybe tomorrow I'll have them ready to share. Of course, I've got a few Thanksgiving pictures, too. This may take awhile.

So, that's a synopsis of the day. Maybe tomorrow I'll finally get back in my usual routine. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for all your support and prayers. Love and hugs to you!  

No-post Day

Just thought I'd pop in and say that everything is OK here... just hanging out with the family. Janis left early this morning and was planning to drive all the way to Kansas City today. Lynne and Mike drove into South Carolina to visit a friend and decided on the way back that they would stay with us another night. Yay! So, we're just kind of hanging out around the house and enjoying each other's company.

Thanks for stopping by and one of these days coming up we'll get into a regular post. :) Love and hugs to you!

 

Beauty from within... and...Thanksgiving Dinner Placecards

Today is Thursday, November 24. Thanksgiving Day in the USA. As I write this, the smell of roasting turkey is wafting through the house. Michael (who is a talented classical guitarist) is playing the guitar in the living room. Sounds from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade are filtering in from the family room. Oh, my... it's a beautiful day at the Hayes house!

And last night was pretty beautiful, too. You know, when I'm writing a blog post I'm just sort of talking. Like I'm talking to friends (which I am!). So, it seems that I must mention going to Pinkberry quite often. So often that Ken's sister Lynne expressed interest in trying it while she was here. Well, the only time we had was last night... so, even though we had eaten frozen yogurt at the mall earlier in the day, well... we had to make sure that Lynne had some Pinkberry. It was the right thing to do. :)

 Don't you agree? :) I had the chocolate and peppermint yogurts swirled and then topped with white chocolate shavings, chips of peppermint bark, and magic shell chocolate. Oh, so refreshing. Mmmm. But, really, sharing one of my favorite spots with my family was the most fun of all. 

 

Today's scripture is, again, from 1 Peter. I think you'll see that it's quite appropriate for my situation. 

1 Peter 3:3-4

"Don't be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God."

I must admit to smiling a bit when I read these verses. Of course, I like to look nice and stylish but I've never been consumed with having lots of the latest clothes and perfect hair and makeup. Good thing, right? Because here's what I look like today when I'm not wearing a hat.

Nothing like losing your hair in a weird sort of pattern to keep you humble! But, I figure... it's just hair. I think it'll grow back. But, even that's not that important to me. I just want to continue living. And I'd like to live my life with a spirit of love and gentleness... and, well, all of the Fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control — Galatians 5:22-23). I'd like my life to be a positive example to others... not because of anything I do, but because of what God does through me as I surrender to Him. He is my strength and my protection (Psalm 71:7) — and He will be yours, too, as you learn to live for Him. Something to be thankful for on this day of thankfulness, isn't it?    

 

I've been making placecards for our Thanksgiving table for a few years now. It's fun for me, but a bit of a challenge, too. The challenge is that when we registered for china in 1980, I was a pastel sort of girl... light blue, light pink... those were colors that I loved. Um... not so much anymore. But, of course, I still have the china. And we still use it on special occasions. And I still do like things to coordinate. But working with spring-y colors in the fall is a bit of a challenge, I think. Anyway, here are our placecards from the past two years...

And here are this year's...

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The only way I've figured out to marry autumn colors with my china pattern is to use a blue and a purple in the design. Well, this year, I forgot about the purple (must've been a brain tumor moment)... but I did use some blue so I think it'll be OK. :)

Those are the placecards for all who will be attending our Thanksgiving dinner. 17 people... ranging in age from 2 to... well... let's just be non-specific and say over 80. I love having several generations together. It just makes for a rich, fun gathering. Don't you agree?

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Places, Please) and Stampin' Up (Straight Up Alphabet & Numbers); cardstock is PTI (Stampers Select White, Rustic White); ink is SU (Not Quite Navy, More Mustard, Basic Gray); rhinestones are Kaiser (brown); also used the PTI Placecard die.

So, I thought I'd leave you with some Thanksgiving inspiration from the preschool. First, in the way of artwork...

 

Then in the way of feasting...

  and preciousness...

 and plain, old fun... 

I hope your Thanksgiving Day is filled with many, many of the Lord's richest blessings. Thanks for spending a bit of it here with me. Sending you lots of love and prayers for a blessed holiday!

happy thanksgiving

Today is Wednesday, November 23. The day before Thanksgiving. The cards above are a little teaser of my November stamp club cards which are included in this post. Just to keep you craft-oriented folks interested. :) 

Ken's sister Janis, his mom, and I left the house this morning around 10:00 and went to the mall to do a little shopping.

Yep. That's the three of us. :) My mission was flat shoes with a peep toe that will show off my next pedicure. We finally found some at a department store and they were on sale... and then rang up even lower than the sale price. That's always a pleasant surprise, isn't it?

On the way to finding the shoes, though, I got distracted by a sale in Anthropology. Love that store! Love their clothes... but not so much for me right now on my newly chubby body. I did get quite a few little stocking stuffer types of Christmas gifts, though, and this...

 beautiful rug. It was 50% off of the orignal price and then an extra 25% off that, so I had to snatch it up, right? I think it will really liven up our foyer and provide a cheery welcome for guests.

 

Now, how about some convicting scripture? At least, it was convicting for me.

Psalm 119:36-37

"GIve me an eagerness for your laws rather than a love for money! Turn my eyes from worthless things and give me life through your word."

OK. These were not the verses that I was originally planning to post today. But I read them again and — probably in light of my trip to the mall — was a bit convicted. Talk about a place that can skew your values and make you feel like you need a lot of stuff that you really don't need at all. I saw a beautiful fireplace screen (and, of course, wanted it)... but when I looked at the price tag it was $1,295. That is a bit excessive, I think. Or at least hard (well, impossible) for me to justify. (Although, I must admit to trying to figure out if I can get a similar look with some large crystal Christmas ornaments and a good glue.)

I think it's OK that I like to have nice things... as long as I am also tithing, paying my bills on time, and caring for those in need. And, aren't we all aware that there are so many people in this world who are in need? The contents of your mailbox may look like ours — full of letters from ministries and worthy causes who depend on donations to continue doing their good works. It can be a bit overwhelming at times. We obviously can't support every single need that is presented to us, but I believe that God pricks each persons heart for specific things and that if respond to His promptings every need will be met.

So, Lord, turn my eyes from worthless things. Give me an eternal perspective and show me how to live for You. I want to be useful for You!  

 

These are my stamp club cards for November. The theme was Thankfulness or Thank You cards... so I made Thanksgiving cards. I didn't get them finished before our meeting, so I'll distribute them at our December gathering. I think that'll be OK. :) 

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I couldn't decide... should I knot the twine through the button or should I tie it in a bow? So I did some of each... and I'll let our stamp club members decide which they like better.

I don't usually send Thanksgiving cards, but this year I'm using these cards as the welcome cards for those who are staying at our house for the holiday — Ken's mom, his sisters Janis and Lynne, brother-in-law Michael, and Britt & Kenneth. They'll each have a card on their nightstand or bed when they arrive. It's just what I do. :) 

One more thing that I try to remember to do on my stamp club cards is to stamp a small coordinating image on the back cover of the card and sign it with the year and my initials. Just an extra little touch. And, since most of our club members do something similar, it helps all of us remember who made what.

AND TELL:  stamps are from Stampin' Up (Array of Sunshine, Thankful For); cardstock is Papertrey Ink (Rustic White) and Stampin' Up (So Saffron, Ruby Red); SU marker (Riding Hood Red); ink is SU (Riding Hood Red, More Mustard) and Versamark; buttons are PTI (Scarlet Jewel); twine is PTI (Rustic Jute); also used SU's Square Lattice embossing folder and scallop border punch, EK Success Dotted Scallop edger punch, Creative Memories corner rounder, and Perfect Pearls in gold. 

Well, I had more that I was going to post but it'll have to wait for another day. My goodness. It's after 10:00 p.m. Definitely time to finish things up and get ready for bed!

Thank you so much for stopping by. I am planning to post tomorrow, but it'll be a day full of family, food, and fun — as I hope yours will be, too! — so we'll just have to see. Hugs and love to you!

 

Mug Filled with Thanks

Today is Tuesday, November 22. And it looks like Ken was able to restore everything that was on my computer. Yippee!! I'm so, so, SO thankful... as you can imagine! I was trying not to panic, but the thought of trying to figure everything out again was pretty overwhelming. So... instead of panicking, I prayed. :) God is so good to me!

... Well, I spoke too soon. Not about God being good to me... he's always good to me. About my computer being OK. Most of my photos seem to have vanished. Fortunately, I had already put all my craft ones in posts that will be finished (with any luck) over the next few days. Technology... love it and hate it. {sigh}

 

For today's scripture, I'm actually going to use verses from yesterday's passage. I think that's OK. :) And I think that when you read them you'll see why I didn't want to skip them.

James 5:13-16

"Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.

"Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results."

I believe that God heals. And I'd like to say more about this, but I'm still sorting a lot out in my own mind. So, let's revisit this verse another day, OK? 

 

How about a thank you card? 

SHOW

Oh, how I love this mug. I want a whole set of them. Remember my post from a few days ago with the yellow and red coffee cups? Yes, I have a real thing for mugs and coffee cups. Come to think of it... I have a thing for real hot beverages, too. :)

AND TELL:  stamps are from Papertrey Ink (Candy Cane Christmas, Daily Designs Sentiments); cardstock is PTI (Stampers Select White); ink is Stampin' Up (Pool Party, Daffodil Delight, Going Grey, Basic Gray); also used PTI's Candy Cane Christmas die.

That's it for today. Ken's sister is making us some hot chocolate and we're watching on old episode of Bones... and I'm just slightly distracted. :) 

Tomorrow morning Janis and Ken's mom and I are going to do a little shopping at the mall. And I'm thinking that some frozen yogurt from Yoforia will probably be part of the outing. I mean, we'll be right there... Gotta take advantage of that!

Thanks for stopping by. I'm going to try to get an earlier start on this tomorrow and hopefully not be so distracted. I hope you'll be able to visit again soon. Sending you hugs for today!     

Hmmmm....

I have a plan for the week. Unfortunately, I messed up my plan by trying to open an email that looked like it contained an iTunes gift certificate but did not... and it caused my computer to be severely messed up. So, Ken is trying to restore all my computer stuff and I'm left without all my information to post on my blog. Hopefully, he'll be able to get all my stuff back. And hopefully I'll be posting tomorrow.

Just thought I should update you so you didn't worry about us. We're well. Just frustrated. And... I hear Ken's sister's car pulling into our driveway, so it's time for me to go. The holiday weekend has begun!

Love and hugs to you!