I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
As the title of this blog post implies, this post is about my reflections on the year that is soon ending. Tomorrow will be my "Personal Favorites of the Year" post and then we'll usher in a new year the day after that.
I totally understand if you want to scroll past these reflections to the end of this post and check out my card. (There IS a card at the end of this wordy post!) Feel free to do so, if that is your wish. I promise I won't be offended. Sheesh! I wouldn't even know you'd done so. LOL!
I had such high hopes for the year... 366 days ago. Then March arrived and with it, my world (as I know it) changed. In an instant. The first week of March, as the pandemic was taking hold here in our area, my husband and I made the decision to keep our son Brock home from the sheltered workshop where he spends four days a week. They do an outstanding job, but I just felt the risk was too great. Apparently they agreed, because not more than a day or two later, they temporarily closed. Brock being home required me to stay home, too, but I was okay with that because after all, I didn't want to take the risk of getting sick and him getting it from me.
What I didn't anticipate in early March was that we'd still be doing this on December 30th, nor does it look like we'll be seeing any change in the plan in the next two months, which means we will be sheltering at home for an entire year (maybe even longer).
There are certainly a lot of "woe is me" things I could say about that - couldn't we all? However, I tend to be the one whose cup is always half full (the eternal optimist) so instead I'd like to reflect on some positives.
My word for 2020 is Optimize (to make as perfect, effective, or functional as possible)... and I truly believe that I have embraced that word more than any of my words in recent years. For instance, when my shut-down started and I knew that for the foreseeable future I would not be going to out-of-town meetings and the many other things that normally fill my days, I took steps to make sure I didn't just waste the time at home. I started what I called my Stay@Home Organizational Challenge, spending at least 10 minutes every day going through everything in my playroom, purging and organizing. It was a task that definitely needed to be done... and it was freeing to get things in better order.
I learned to Zoom this year, as did many of you. (Some of my meetings turned into Microsoft Team Meetings, so I also learned how to do that.) A highlight of the year was when Brock's sheltered workshop started Zoom meetings with the clients. Five days a week most months. Those 30 minutes are fun. They play games, learn to draw things like penguins and reindeer, learn dance moves and more. Brock's favorite is Bingo! I rejoice with him when he gets to see his friends on my computer screen. Because I sit beside him (out of the view of others but close by to help - and to mute him when he gets noisy) I have gotten to know the other important people in his life. That has been a beautiful outcome of this year.
Brock and I switched to online worship services during this time. I miss going to church and being with people, giving hugs, etc. I miss community... BUT I am thankful for the ways our churches have stepped up and offer online services now via FB Live. We have 25 churches (and normally attend all of them throughout the year as part of my husband's job) - probably half or more of them are now live every Sunday morning. I appreciate the efforts they've made in these unconventional times. It has been a learning curve for them, but they've done an amazing job and Brock and I benefit by attending one of the services each Sunday morning, plus I peek into a few others too. It also is a nice perk, that my husband usually gets Brock and I a donut to enjoy during church.
I've mastered monthly shopping via curbside pickup (an hour's drive away from my home). I've learned to survive without going to restaurants and have tried some new recipes - some delicious and others not so much so. LOL! I've ordered more things for home deliver this year than any other year in my life, helping out our postal system's revenue.
Life is different this year; but life is good!
Now, how about that card I mentioned...
I guess we've all had way too much lemonade in 2020.
Papers: Accent Opaque 120# White and SU So Saffron CS and DP from my scrap file
Dies: MFT Wonky Stitch and Rubbernecker Nested Rectangle Stitch
Embellishments: Brads from an unknown vendor
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
I need to work on forgiving myself, too, I think. The white square (Advice from a Tree) piece is a bit crooked and it has frustrated me terribly. I tried removing it, to adjust it, with no success. UGH!
Thanks for stopping by my blog today!
Stamp Set: Stampendous Forest Sayings stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and SU Work of Art stamped with Lawn Fawn Doe Ink
Papers: Accent Opaque 120# White, Fun Stampers Journey Green Olive, and Recollections Kraft CS
Inks (for blending): SU Crumb Cake and Soft Sky
Dies: Gina Marie In & Out Stud Dot Square, Rubbernecker Nested Rectangle Stitch, Sizzix Woodlands, and SU Circles
Embellishments: Your Next Stamp Glitter Enamel Dots
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
This blog hop is birthday hop for Denise, the owner/designer of The Project Bin stamps, a line of stamps that can be funny, sweet and sentimental, and everything in between.
We, her design team, are celebrating Denise, a woman whose beauty is not only outward, but also shines from within. Her kindness is evident through her uplifting words, gentle spirit, and ready smile.
Denise, thank you all that you do and for who you are! I consider it an honor to know you through this craft that we enjoy! You have been such a blessing to me personally and to the crafting world.
I used The Project Bin's Birthday Girl stamp set to make my card.
My card is a slimline card. In the picture above, the left (poppy colored) piece is the card front and the right (white colored) piece is what I added to the inside of my card.
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
I've thoroughly enjoyed this series because flowers are my favorite thing to color.
As per my normal pattern, I should post my card made with the November Greenhouse Society stamp set this month. BUT (scary word, right?)... but the pandemic made production problems for Technique Tuesday (other companies suffered with that, too) so instead of having a November stamp set, they gave club members a credit in their account and let them choose what to purchase from the entire store. I checked out the Greenhouse Society stamps, but I have most of them and the ones I don't have, I didn't really think I wanted so I snooped around in the entire site and quickly fell in love with Bobbi the Bear.
Fast forward to December, and again Technique Tuesday gave club members a credit... so I got the die set to go with Bobbi the Bear.
Today's card, though not flowers, is my Technique Tuesday Greenhouse Society Series card using the items from both November and December. That means in January, I'll need to post this at the end of the month, once I've had time to receive the January set. I think that will work fine, but if it doesn't, I'll adjust.
Papers: Accent Opaque 120# White and SU Night of Navy CS and DP from my scrap file (I think it may be called Cosmic Sky from Paper Studio)
Dies: MFT Campy Tree Lines, MFT Starburst Sentiment Strip, and Rubbernecker Nested Rectangle Stitch
Embellishments: Gina Marie Clear Enamel Dots
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
Silly me. There was no need to fear this challenge. After all, Lydia had an excellent video of two options to use for creating the needed shadow for her Light and Shadow Need Each Other Challenge. Check out her video - HERE. It really does make this very easy to do.
I didn't have any graphite paper, so I had to go with her second option. That being said, I really like the way option one looks and wish I'd had graphite paper so I could have done that.
I used Raisin Boat (SumMore Fun) stamps to create my simple scene.
After cutting out the mask, I covered him up and ten cut a mask of the snowy hillside, being sure to overlap it over the base of the snowman to keep him from "floating" in my scene.
I didn't have a background stamp so instead I used snowflake stamps (from three different Raisin Boat stamp sets - Dear Santa, Holiday Hang Ups, and Tangled Tinsel) to create the snowy sky.
I then removed the snow bank mask and using the backside of the snowman stamp I stamped his shadow onto my paper. Isn't that clever? Thanks to Lydia... of course I would have never thought to do that without her "how to" video.
I then used the reverse piece of the snowbank I cut and protected the sky while blending some blue ink to the edge of the snowbank.
After that I simply removed the snowman mask and colored him. I also added a little blending of ink to the edge of the sky. I added three snowflake brads and then assembled the card.
This is such an easy technique to do. I would highly recommend it.
Paper: Accent Opaque 120# White and SU Misty Moonlight CS
Die: Rubbernecker Nested Rectangle Stitch
Embellishments: Snowflake Brads from an unknown vendor
I am going through the 100 Days of Bible Promises with a small group of online Bible Journalers. I will post my completed entries here on my blog at 6:00 pm each day of the journey.
Merry Christmas! I hope you are all enjoying the blessings of the season!
At Christmastime we always send a handmade (by me) and poem (written by my husband) to each ministry family in our association. As is my norm, I'm sharing the card I made for them here on my blog on Christmas Day.
You can see my previous four cards via these links if you're interested...
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