Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Little Red Wagon #82

I can't believe it is Wednesday already! It has been a busy long weekend of cleaning up the gardens, yard, garage and house in anticipation of my brother and his wife's visit this coming weekend! I will be glad to go back to work today to get some rest! lol

It is my turn to post the challenge this week at Little Red Wagon, so I hope you are ready to join in the fun!

My challenge is to use a number on a card, layout or project.


With 3 high school graduations in our family this year, I decided to make a graduation themed card for the Class of 2011!


I hope you decide to join us this week! Simply create something using a number and link up your project at Little Red Wagon. I would love to see what you make!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Blessings in the Rain



This was our first long weekend of the summer in Canada - Victoria Day!

It started out with a gloriously sunny day on Saturday, while I was working! Then yesterday and today, my days off, we had a mix of clouds, mild sprinkles, and forceful downpours! Ahhh yes, perfect weather for getting all my yard work done, which was my goal this weekend - NOT!

Oh well, despite the rain, I managed to get lots done, and while I worked I continued to count blessings...

#131. the rainbow of colors at the nursery


#132. Mr. B's hard work and patience as he indulged me in my quest to get everything done in the yard and gardens this weekend

#133. planting gerbera daisies - my all time favorite flower


#134. delighting in the beauty of one of my gerbera daisies after one of the many downpours this weekend!

#135. watching the birds in my birdbath

#136. my favorite garden shoes


#137. clay pots in all sizes

#138. rain, rain and more rain - it makes me grateful for the sun!

#139. sweet, juicy watermelon

#140. lilacs starting to bloom

May the Son shine on you this week and may your blessing be too numerous to count!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Tea Time

I saw a great sketch on the Sketchy Thursday blog and I decided to give it a try! This sketch also included an inspiration photo which I loved!

I took the photo rather literally with the color scheme and the tea cups. I had some photos from a tea that I attended at Langdon Hall a while back and I thought they would be perfect for my layout.


I used papers from BoBunny and Fancy Pants and had fun mixing them up! I love when papers from different manufacturers work well together :)


For my title I used some Loopy Lou letters from Doodlebug Design and I used some BoBunny mini alpha stickers for my journaling.



Then I did a ribbon ruffle and I added some flowers that I made. For the flowers, I used some gorgeous satin ribbon in the perfect color for my page. I twisted and glued the ribbon in place and added a little button with floss for the finishing touch!


This was a fun layout to work on! Thanks for looking ~

Friday, May 20, 2011

BabySaurus!

The Two Scrapbook Friends Forum is a great place for inspiration, chatting and challenges!

The Design Team posts a number of great challenges weekly and monthly. One of the monthly challenges is a Sketch Challenge. The April sketch inspired me to do this adorable layout of my niece's baby, Nolan.


I used the new BabySaurus line from My Little Yellow Bicycle and let me tell you - it is the best! The prints, the colors, the embellies... all just too sweet!


One of the things I added was this adorable embellishment of felt dinosaurs. Then I added some stickers, a sun die-cut and last, but not least, stitching! (Carolyn will be proud of me!)


I have only seen Nolan once and because he was in an oxygen tent, I couldn't even hold him! Now every time I see a photo of him, my heart melts and I can't wait to visit again and give him a squeeze! In the meantime, I will be happy scrapbooking his pictures.

Have a great weekend!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Little Red Wagon #81

Avril has challenged us this week to make something using a tree! I have been really inspired by some of the DT work at TSF recently, so I decided to use some of their ideas (trees, stitching, paint splatters, etc.) and I created this single page layout.


The cardstock and stickers I have had in my wagon for a while, but the paper is a newer line from Pink Paislee - Hometown Summer. I absolutely fell in love with this line from the moment I saw it and I couldn't wait to get my creative hands on it!

I began with a sheet of Kraft Cardstock that I altered with some cream paint splatters. (Love it!!!) Then I used the Cricut to cut out the tree and clouds - thanks to Avril who lent me her April Showers cartridge :)


For a finishing touch I wanted to try making a very cool butterfly using a small wooden spool and some butterfly shapes. For a complete tutorial on how to make this butterfly, check out the Two Scrapbook Friends Blog/Forum this coming Friday. Christa is doing an awesome video showing you how to make them!


Then some stickers, chipboard, buttons and stitching and I am quite happy with the result!

Why not join us at Little Red Wagon this week? Just create something using a tree and link it up! We would love to see what you make :)

Monday, May 16, 2011

Multitudes on Mondays



Each year at this time I can hardly wait to start digging in my garden. I love getting down on my hands and knees to work the earth and to prepare my gardens for the flowers I hope to plant. As I work I feel a tremendous peace and sense of satisfaction. Moving from one garden area to the next, I feel a connection to the earth and the promise of the beauty that will soon burst forth.

It is also a time that I think of my father. He grew up on a farm and developed a love of the earth as a young boy. When he married and moved to the city, he would still help his father tend his concord grapes and the few acres of vegetables he continued to farm. As the years went by, my dad's love of the earth was evident in his flower gardens. His yard became his own little farm and instead of vegetables, the fruits of his labors were an abundance of colorful blooms on the many annuals and perennials he tended.


Growing up, I would often accompany my father in the garden. I learned first hand how to plan which flowers would go where, how to prepare the soil, and how to gently plant each young flower so it would grow to it's full potential. I also learned how caring my father was, and how his gardening skills were a reflection of his tender heart.

My dad was a tall man with very large hands. He would often curse his hands because they made him feel clumsy when he would try to do delicate things, like removing a sliver from our finger when we were small or pulling out a tooth for us when we did not have the courage to do it ourselves. And yet, when I watched him garden, he handled the young plants with a gentleness that belied his size. I was always amazed at his ability to carefully place and secure each small plant in the ground and then smooth the soil around it so it felt at home.

I thank God for the times I spent with my father helping to plant his gardens. He taught me an appreciation for planting and growing and enjoying the flowers that bring so much beauty to our world, and for this I am ever grateful.

My list continues...

#121. acquiring my love of gardening from my father


#122. digging in my gardens again after a long cold winter

#123. having the faith to know that God watches over us every moment of every day

#124. an evening out with Sue & Ted, long-time friends, and simply enjoying each others company without pretense or effort

#125. shelter from the rain

#126. forget-me-nots in my garden


#127. date night with Mr. B

#128. looking forward to a visit from Brian and Ann

#129. a freshly cleaned and organized garage

#130. foot rubs!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Little Red Wagon #80

This week at Little Red Wagon, Rosanne has challenged us to create something with a house on it, so I created this card!




It is bright and cheery and I even added some hand stitching!

Now you can head over to Little Red Wagon to see what the other girlfriends have made and to show us your own creations using a house!

Monday, May 9, 2011

Counting Graces


Mondays. The day I choose to share my list of gifts. My counting to 1000 with Ann and all the others who have been touched by the grace of her book. The day I publicly give thanks to Him from whom all good things flow.

#111. colorful candies in a pretty tea cup


#112. the beauty of a garden placed in a glass vase on my table - a gift from my boys for Mothers Day


#113. the first barbecue of the season


#114. one-on-one conversations with Tyler, my eldest, and appreciating his knowledge and thoughts on different subjects

#115. breathing deeply the wonderful smell of fresh cut grass for the first time this year

#116. the cup being half full rather than half empty

#117. discoveries on the beach with my bff at Grand Bend


#118. having a camera that I totally love and being able to capture life in photographs

#119. going to the movies with a fun group of friends after a long day of work

#120. quiet

May your days be blessed!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Little Red Wagon #79

It's Wednesday already! Time sure flies when you are having fun!

Our challenge this week at Little Red Wagon is bicycles! When Regan posted this challenge I had just received a collection pack from Echo Park and sure enough, there was a sweet bicycle sticker as part of the kit.

So, this is what I created!


I made this sweet little spring scene that I then put into a frame. It is now sitting on my desk and it brings a little bit of sunshine and the promise of blue skies, butterflies and birds to my day!

Let's see what you can create using bicycles! And do share with us at Little Red Wagon - we would love to see what you make :)

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

National Scrapbook Day Forum Challenges at TSF

National Scrapbook Day is this coming Saturday, May 7th! At Two Scrapbook Friends we have decided to start the celebrations early with some fun scrapbooking challenges on our Forum. Each of the DT members, along with Carolyn and I, have posted a challenge to encourage lots of scrapbooking this week.

Banners are all the rage right now and I love them! So my challenge was to use a banner on a layout. This is a page that I created using Kaiser Craft products along with a few items from my stash. I created the banner using cardstock and images cut out of the paper.





It is not too late to join in the fun! Just go onto our Forum to play along. You will get some scrapbooking done and you will also have a chance to win a prize! I hope to see you there :)

Monday, May 2, 2011

Counting Blessings!

It's Monday and I continue to count blessings with Ann at A Holy Experience. It is hard to know where to begin. Everywhere I look I find a gift, a token of His love that follows me throughout my days and into my nights. I find blessings in my family, my friends, my work, my prayers, the sun, the rain, the large and the small!


Gifts, blessings, joy!

#101. a father giving in to his son's desire for a pet

#102. enjoying a book so much that I don't want it to end

#103. encouraging words from friends

#104. the blessing of good health

#105. exclamation points!

#106. newborn photos of Nolan




#107. soft, furry bunnies!

#108. a Royal Tea Party with friends

#109. democracy and the privilege to vote

#110. tiny buds on trees

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