Hello?? Anyone There????

Hi there everyone. I know, I know, it has been awhile...like January 7th that I last blogged??? I have no excuses, just trying to live life without Jay and wonder what my next step is and still try to keep sane in an insane world!!!

In the above picture, those are my Lilly of the Valleys, always pick and bring them in for a touch of spring in the kitchen to look at whilst I do the dishes. And even though JP is not here, for some reason I "still" have many dishes to do???? But eventually they do get done, in phases.

I have been doing some cards here and there. Still make cards for Heartland Hospice along with a few other ladies. The last couple of months we have been able to meet together, otherwise we were following "Covid 19 Protocol" and not meeting or just dropping cards off at a place and they were picked up by the Card Coordinator.

The cards above were from a "Stamping Up" kit from 2017. It was a fun kit, apples, strawberries and blueberry cards. I still have some checked background left over so I can make more cards like this. 

The card below is a die I have had for years....makes for a very pretty card. I can't remember how I made the colored background. Experimental ideas using different techniques that get stuffed in a box and forgotten about. This is going to be my challenge this summer...take old dies and stamped images and turn them into cards. I really have a lot of stuff. AND, 3 months to make cards for Hospice meeting September 2nd. I have a feeling that time will go FAST!!!! 

Below are my Irises that grow in the front yard. It was so windy the last couple of days that the poor flowers blew over. So, I cut them down and brought them in to enjoy for a few days. I have so much to do around this house. The neighbor next store cuts the grass in the front of the house. During the winter he was shoveling the snow. I will tend to the backyard with my manual push mower....I can handle that. If I do a little bit each day, I may catch up, by that time it will be fall.

I am going to make a few more of these cards, so pretty and they can be any kind of card I want them to be. The one below is a sympathy card. I am going to use a Thank you card like this for the main post picture. You should see it in the next day or so.

So my life has been up in the air for the last 10 months since Jay's death. I have not been able to handle being a "widow" that still sounds foreign to me. I have been told not to make any big decisions for at least 1 year. After that, not sure where I am going. What with the way this world is going, do any of us know where we are headed?? I only know, through this all, my faith in Jesus Christ and Him Crucified is the only way to go...there is much comfort in knowing him as Lord and Savior of my Life. I think I am learning how to depend on Him and Him alone...which is where He wants us all to be. 

That being said, I shall close here. Hopefully I can keep up with this blog and add new cards maybe once a week. I have moved my stamping space from the basement to Jay's old room. So it is handy just to walk in, sit down and make a few cards. Works for me and I don't have to climb stairs.

You all take care and take JESUS!!! ~ Louise
 

A Few Cards For Hospice

Hi there everyone. Well it has been awhile, been missing since February 13th....thought I would be back sooner. But you know, sometimes I just don't have much to talk about. I know a lot of blogs I read....there is something going on everyday. Me....not so much, I am guessing this is just a small lull in my life. Maybe when Spring comes around, I will be more active. 

Card making has been at a minimum lately. It's been like a whole month that I even went downstairs to make a card or two. Have not felt very inspired I guess. So today, I went downstairs to get some cards ready for Hospice tomorrow. I had a bunch made, but last month I did not make it to Hospice meeting....weather was bad and we could not get the car started....we needed a new battery to the tune of $179...just what we needed, but where can you go without a car now a days....no place.

So the above cards are some I made today....easy peasy kind of cards. Just embossed with the Cuttlebug. Stamped the saying and used Speckles to color in the middle of the Daisy. This card can be most any card you want. Turned these cards into Thank You's.

The cards above and below....I made these last month. Embossed with the Cuttlebug, then I covered it with black ink then clear embossing powder and heated with a heat gun. The technique is called "Black Ice". I used gold card stock and red card stock. Using the same embossing folder for both. I added a few gems to all the cards along with a ribbon and Thank You tag.

The cards below, were cards I made with the Stampin' up club kits I was getting once a month from Stampin'up. Cute cards, everything is in the box to make 8 cards. You can use their ideas or come up with your own ideas. I chose to use their ideas. I decided not to get the kits anymore....$20 a month, became to costly.

Again, here are a few more cards using the daisy embossing folder.....using the Thinking of You verse. Easy, peasy simple card to make. Need to make some more of these cards to have for extras.

Well that about covers it for now. This weekend I need to start working on income tax....(not a favorite project.....BUT I have to think, the refund will help us quite a bit.) Since JP went part time in August, we have been living on the edge and just barely getting the bills paid. Oh well, I pray every night....."Give us THIS Day, our Daily Bread" and God has been faithful by helping us daily to get through....with a roof over our head, food on the table, clothes on our back, a car to drive. We are rich then most, so I better NOT complain!!!

You all have a great Month of March....I may be back for a few posts....but then again, I may not. I am thinking of taking a "Hiatus" for a couple of months until something exciting happens. So in the mean time, keep looking up cause better days are coming ~ for sure!!! Cheers ~ Louise

A Graduation Card Using Stickers

Hi there everyone...hope you are having a lovely Sunday. We have a graduation party to go to for this handsome man.

Invitations were sent out so I thought, why not make a card using his picture and some stickers. This is what I came up with. Turned out pretty neat I think. The card is on white cardstock, added a side panel of blue and the silver side is a tin tape that I got at the hardware store...I guess it is used for heating and air-conditioning duct work. I ran the tape through the cuttlebug and smeared alcohol ink over it. Then added the picture and the stickers.

The party is from 1-5...hopefully we can make the last part of the party. Well...I guess not....JP does not want to go, oh well, guess I will have to mail the card or save it for next week to give to him.

I have a "stamping up party to go to today also.....now I guess I can take my time at that. Funny how things can get so busy...yikes!!! Life sure does not slow down for anyone, does it.

Well you have a great day and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Just a Few Cards......

Hi there everyone. May 31st....the last day of the month, here comes JUNE!!! Thought I would post some cards I made yesterday. It was one of those days where all it did was rain off and on. I thought about going outside to plant some plants.....but I guess....just too lazy and didn't want to get rained on.

This next Friday is Hospice meeting....and I do not have any cards made....yikes I better get cuttin'. Since I had been sick (April 12th) have not made a single card...gosh talk about taking time off....this was ridiculous. So, I went down stairs to make a few.

I basically wanted to make some "Thank You" cards to send off to "Rebuilding Together" people for all the wonderful work they did on my house and yard. There just aren't enough thank yous in this whole world to go around to thank them all for the work and all the wonderful improvements. I think, every time I use something, I ask God to Bless those that did this and that improvement. It is just amazing to me that all these strangers would take time from their busy schedules to help me and JP with our problems. I guess all these years of helping others.....the tables have turned and now we need the help. It's strange, being on the receiving end.

So here we go....a tour of my card making. In this picture (sorry for the darkness....guess there are a few light bulbs missing in the light fixture....shall have to fix that this week.) The top 3 cards are Thank you cards.....the set is from Stamping Up. The bottom 3 cards are Happy Father's Day cards.

In the above cards, the idea is from a card I saw on the Internet using the goose and washi tape. This stamp set came with the little birds....so I thought, why not make a card using them too. Makes a nice card for a man.

Now in this card I was using a technique that Frenchie used. Using wax paper and making a reflection in the water.....I always wondered how to do this. Here is the link.

These last two pictures are the Father's Day cards. Again using the "reflection technique" and wax paper. The silver side is a metal tape I got at the hardware store and ran it through my cuttle bug then smeared some Copic markers on top to POP out the flowers with color....kind of neat huh?

I have about 4 more cards to make using this technique....most likely will send one of these cards to my step-father and maybe one for JP from Kylie our dog.

So probably this next week I will be busy making cards for Hospice....funny how we go through phases in life.....after not touching or making a card in almost 7 weeks, now I am ready to make some cards. Course my house was turned upside down, so it has taken this long to get things back to a "sort of normal". Still have the basement to re-organize, as I had to move everything away from all the basement windows so "Rebuilding Together" people could install the basement windows. Needless to say that is what I have been doing this past month....moving, re-moving, packing, unpacking and uncluttering my little house. I may be doing a garage sale in July.....my neighbor will be doing a monthly sale....so I think I will join her. Geez that means the garage needs to be cleaned.....yep, I have lots of things going this summer.

Well you all have a great day and keep looking up.
Cheers ~ Louise

PS....The Hawks won Game 7!! Yay!! Now they go to the finals!
PSS..I had my Deep Cleaning at the Dentist....the appointment went well....second half will be July 7th.