Keeping it Simple

Hi friends,

Sometimes you just have to hit the easy button.  We are knee deep in boxes and moving (only 10 days to go till the movers arrive) and I had planned to make all my summer cards before I boxed up my craft room.   Well last night around 7:30pm I realized I was out of time.  The craft room needs to be torn down and boxed up this week and the weekend was gone.  Not quite ready to give up, I decided to find one design that would fit most of my upcoming card needs and go into mass production mode.  I will have to {gasp} buy my masculine cards (fathers day, male birthdays) but I was able to use this one design for my upcoming female card needs.

This is not my favorite way to craft, but it works really well.  I started with a basic card layout of a card I loved.  When you are in fast and easy mode there is no time to design a card from scratch.  I also just used whatever patterned paper and stamp sets were close at hand.  Again, not the time to make my own designer paper or perfect the images.

I cut out 8 of each item and got busy.  I chose various sentiments (to match the various occassions) and then in assembly line fashion threw these together.

When hitting the easy button, I tend to stay within one manufacturer's product offering because I'm more confident that it will all go together.  This card uses items from papertrey ink: Beautiful Butterflies, Lovely Leaves and Everyday Blessings patterned paper.  The sentiments are from various companies.  I made a wedding card (best wishes), a birthday card, a happy retirement card, a happy graduation card and 4 sympathy cards.  I mixed and matched the patterned papers from the paper set and used up all my pearls.

I was done by 9:00pm and still had time to watch my recorded episode of Smash (love the drama in that show) and made it to bed by 10:00pm.  Easy Peasy.

And so now, the craft room is officially closed till August.  I will box up all my stuff, put it in the pod and wait till we are settled into our new condo and then start again fresh.

I will try to stay up on my blog during the next 2 months.  I have an international business trip coming up and of course moving updates for you all.  I may include crafty images from blog sites I frequent so if you are only here for the craftiness, keep coming back.  I won't pretend these images are from me (I'll credit the sources every time) and maybe you'll find a new blogger to follow from my links.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.  Have a great day.

Aunt Verna

So we had some sad news this week.  My Aunt Verna passed away on Wednesday.  She was a dear sweet soul and I loved her very much.

She went peacefully surrounded by 2 of her daughters with hymns playing softly in the background at 7am May 15, 2013 at 93 years old.  She had suffered with dementia for a number of years, but overall lived a full and healthy life.

So, below are two of the sympathy cards I made for my cousins.  I plan to make a few more so I have one for each of her daughters.

Let me tell you about my memories of my Aunt Verna.  First and foremost she reminds me of the wife described in Proverbs 31.  Below are some of the verses that seem especially descriptive of my aunt.

Proverbs 31:26-28

She is clothed with strength and dignity;
    she can laugh at the days to come.
She speaks with wisdom,
    and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
She watches over the affairs of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children arise and call her blessed.

My earliest memories of my aunt were in her home in Palmyra NY.  She and my Uncle Bill lived in a small and cozy farmhouse on acres of land in upstate NY.  I always thought of my cousins as country girls and they always thought of me and my sister as city girls.  They lived on a road where the trees would overhang over the road and cattails, daisies and other wildflowers grew by the side of the road.  In the front of their house was a big tree with a swing.     They had a water pump in the backyard (that worked) with an tin cup tied to a string so you could get a cool drink anytime.   On the property there were fields of corn, strawberries and all kinds of vegetables, plus an over-sized garage that housed my uncles big trucks and farm equipment (for his business.)  

Below is a family photo.  In the center is my grandparents Betty and Frank.  On the far left is my dad and mom (in the peach blazer.)  On the far right is my uncle Bill and my Aunt Verna (in the pink pant suit.)  I'm guessing from the fashions and hairstyles that this was taken in the late 70's.

Next door to my aunt was my grandparents summer trailer.  My mom was the youngest daughter so my grandparents were always old to me and I don’t remember when they lived in the house, I only remember visiting them in Florida or in their trailer.  The farm house was like no house we had down near NYC.   There was a wood stove, an old piano, a big old dining table, a soft sofa and two recliners facing a small TV.   My aunt’s bedroom was a tiny room off the living room with just enough room for a bed and dresser.  Next to the bedroom was the one bathroom in the house with a toilet, sink and tub.  There was a curtain separating the bathroom from their bedroom and if anyone used the bathroom in the night, I’m sure it disturbed them since they were right there, you felt like you were peeing on top of their toes in bed it was that cozy!  The stairs leading upstairs were small, narrow and steep and in many places on that top floor you had to bend down so you wouldn’t hit your head on the roof.  That was where my two cousins slept and you had to walk through Caroline’s room to get to Nor’s.  In the basement was the laundry and for quite a while my aunt used a wringer washing machine.  I think she was still using that well into the 70’s because I thought it was the coolest thing to wash the clothes and wring them out, then hang them outside on the line.  We didn’t have that at my house.

My memories of my aunt were almost always in her home:  either her farmhouse or the lake house.  My grandparents had a small cottage on Canandaigua lake and at some point they sold the cottage to my Aunt Verna and one of my other aunts.  The two aunts shared the cottage for a number of years, each taking turns having it for two week stretches of the summer but at some point my Aunt Verna bought her sister out and it was theirs.  They did some renovations on it and that’s when it changed from ‘the cottage’ to ‘the lake house.’  At the lake house my sister, cousins and I would have a blast.  We would spend our days walking to the corner market for snacks, flirting with the boys, sunbathing on the raft and swimming.  On special evenings we would get to go to Roseland, a local amusement park on the lake.  We girls would squeal with delight after being given permission to go and we felt so grown-up as pre-teens.   

My Aunt was usually cooking, cleaning, hanging laundry on the line or sitting by the lake visiting with someone.  She was way more of a cat person than a dog person (although I remember her dog Tecler.)  She drank tea more than coffee and loved to play cards or games at the table in the evenings.

One specific funny memory (there were many) was the time that my Aunt, Uncle and cousin Nor came to pick me up at the train station in Rochester.  I would often (at least once a summer) take the train from downstate for a visit with my aunt by myself.  It was so cool to travel alone on the train.  I think I started doing that when I was about 10.  I was probably 12 or 13 during this visit and on our way home from the train station we stopped for dinner.  This was a typical rural restaurant for the late 70’s.  Picture a lot of round wood tables, uniformed waitresses, pie in a spinning display and the kind of place that had fruit cup on the menu for  an appetizer.  It was a NICE restaurant.  We sat down and immediately I noticed the young man who was filling our water glasses.  He was not more than 16 years old and I thought he was the cutest thing!  So I quickly sipped from my glass and noticed he came right back to fill my water glass.  I whispered to my cousin – drink your water – get the water boy to come back to the table.  As you can imagine, my cousin and I stayed ultra hydrated all night long and yes the water boy probably visited our table 20 times that night.  My aunt and uncle giggled about us foolish girls and didn’t complain when we made them hurry home since we both had to pee so badly!

Aunt Verna was a soft spoken woman, kind, gentle and godly.  She would go to the Catholic church but not fanatically.  I got the sense that she experienced God’s presence more in the beauty of nature than in the church, but I remember going to church with them all and it was a typical activity for them.

She loved to rock babies and I remember visiting with her when Sarah was really small and she seemed so happy to just have baby Sarah lying in her arms for hours on end.  While visiting with my baby we were going to go somewhere else and I was going to wake Sarah to get in her car seat.  My aunt quietly said ‘why would you wake a sleeping baby?’   She was so wise… in hindsight, I can’t imagine why I thought I needed to hurry to get to my next visiting place.  Frankly it had never occurred to me to NOT wake the baby.  I had someone to go, Sarah would adapt.    I think I took her advice and stayed put for a bit (at least that day.)

She had a strong sense of contentment although she didn’t have a lot of worldly possessions.  I think she was in her 50’s before she and Uncle Bill bought their first ‘new car.’  It was a big old thing – like an Oldsmobile or something.  She loved music and loved to garden.  Those were things she and my mother shared a love for.  I can’t ever remember her saying anything unkind about anyone.  At one point, after my grandparents had passed, they rented the trailer.  The renters were not good – rumors abounded about drugs, late nights and potty mouths, but my aunt would find something nice to say about them.    She was a warm lap, a listening ear, an encourager and one of the kindest people I’ve ever met.  She always welcomed me and my sister into her home, even though we would often disrupt things tremendously with our city ways.  She never scolded us or made us feel unwelcome.

There is so much more I could tell you about my Aunt and so many more memories I could share, but I think the comments above are enough to give you a sense of who she was and why she was so special to me.  I know I will see her again.  She had a quiet, but firm faith in God and the forgiveness that is available in Jesus Christ.  I am sad that she is no longer on the earth but I celebrate that she is in the presence of God experiencing his peace and love.  

The family is planning a private cremation but rumor has it there may be a 'life celebration' picnic this summer where family and friends can gather and remember her warm spirit.  Thanks for visiting today and getting to know my dear Aunt Verna.

Masculine Cards and 'what's new in the {empty} nest

Hi friends,
I haven't been a very active blogger and you know something..... I actually miss it.  I hope to get back into my blogging patterns later this summer after we are all settled in our new condo.

So, first, let me share a few cards I made over the last few days.  First, I'll apologize for my terrible photography.  I don't have my nice photo area set up and have taken to photographing all my cards on my table - with terrible lighting.  sorry.  the photo area will be back in business in August.  promise.

So, I"m not a huge fan of these cards.  Honestly I'm not a huge fan of masculine cards in general and these just seem 'blah' to me.  I loved these papers when I bought them but I'm struggling to find a card I love when I use them.  But they will serve the purpose.

So, let me tell you ‘what’s new in the {empty} nest.’  My, we have been busy.  We need to move out of our home on May 30^th, so our first priority in getting ready was to identify all the items in our current home that wouldn’t ‘make the trip’ to the new smaller place.  As I described to my husband, our new place is 2/3rds the size of our current place, with no storage.  So basically at least 1 out of every three things we have here, can’t go with us.  I’ve also been challenging us (yes – me too) to go through the items that are in boxes in the attic, basement or closets.  I mean really, if they are in boxes and we haven’t used them in a year, do we really need them anymore?

So, the huge purge has been going full strength.  We started piling all the items into the garage and prepared for a moving sale.  Oh….  My…… Word….. what a lot of work.  What a lot of stuff….. what a busy morning we had Saturday when tons of people descended upon our driveway, yard and garage to buy our used stuff.

We had a very successful day.  It was beautiful out, we had a great turn out, we made some money (over $800.00) and best of all, when the sale was over at 1pm, there was hardly anything left over.     And we got to chat with some very nice people – some neighbors – some friends – and some strangers.  Overall it was a good day, but I’m so glad to have it behind us, and I wonder if I’ll ever have enough energy to do it again.  Sigh – did I say it was exhausting??  Well, it’s over.  Yeah!

Below is a photo collection to give you an idea of how much we had to start and what was left over.  Bob made a car run to Treasures (the thrift store that provides tuition reduction for Whitinsville Christian School) and now I just have a few things to take to Salvation Army and we are more or less done with the purging.  All that is left now is packing and moving.  That part will seem easy now that the decisions have been made and the extra stuff is gone.

 And this my friends, is all that was left at 1:00pm.    Not bad..

So what else is new in the nest?  Well, I am so excited to have Eric heading home this weekend.  I have not seen him since January – unless you count skype – which is not the same.  I am so happy that he is home in time for Mother’s Day.  Hopefully we will take some time off from our packing to enjoy a nice meal out.

Well, that’s all for now.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog today.  I should have another post this weekend with some mother’s day cards and more of an update on Eric and his summer plans.   Enjoy!

Impression obsession challenge

I am thankful for.....

This weeks challenge from I/O stamps is the above statement.  What an awesome challenge.  I chose this lighthouse scene and it reminds me that I am thankful for ..... Summer, the natural beauty of New England coastlines and lobster.

I added the sentiment 'life is a journey' and thought this might make a nice graduation card for a boy.

This card uses I/O stamp H1292 northern lighthouse.  It also uses the sentiment C3775 Life is a journey stamp.  I used a scallop punch to get that brown accent and colored the image with tim holz distress markers and copic markers.

Check out the other creations on the I/O blog, or enter you own submission.  Challenge ends Wednesday May 8th.

http://mitrafriant.typepad.com/impression_obsession_news/

April PTI Blog Hop

Hi all,

Today's post is for the papertrey ink blog hop.

This month we were challenged to create a project that features something tilted.  Position a frame at an angle, tilt your text, add a background strip diagonally, create a border that has an incline, slant a sentiment block, the sky is truly the limit!   

I inked up Rosie Posie and made my own background paper, then die cut some roses from the set as my focal point.  I decided to make my angle using banners diecut from my handmade patterned paper.  Since Mother's Day is coming up, I used my tiny tags mother's day sentiment to top it off.

Thanks for visiting and before you go, enjoy a little Boston humor as we Bostonians try to stay cheerful despite our heavy hearts over the events of last week.  

YOU'VE GOT TO LOVE BOSTONIANS
The geographical center of Boston is in Roxbury.
Due north of the center we find the South End.
This is not to be confused with South Boston which lies directly east from the South End.
North of the South End is East Boston and southwest of East Boston is the North End.
There is no school on School Street, no court on Court Street, no dock on Dock Square, and no water on Water Street.
Back Bay Boston streets are in alphabetical awddah: Arlington, Berkeley, Clarendon, Dartmouth, etc. So are South Boston streets: A, B, C, D, etc.
If the streets are named after trees (e.g. Walnut, Chestnut, Cedar) you are on Beacon Hill. If they are named after poets, you are in Wellesley.
Most people live here all their life and still do not know what the hell is going on with this one. Route 128 South is I-95 south and it is also I-93 north.
The underground train is not a subway. It is the T, and it does not run all night
(Fah chrysakes, this ain't Noo Yawk).
Order the cold tea in China Town after 2:00 AM; you will get a kettle full of beer.
Bostonians: think that it is their God-given right to cut off someone in traffic.
Bostonians: think that there are only 25 letters in the alphabet (No Rs, except in idear.)
Bostonians: think that three straight days of 90+ temperatures is a heat wave.
Bostonians: refer to six inches of snow as a dusting.

Bostonians: always bang a left as soon as the light turns green, and oncoming traffic always expects it..
Bostonians: believe that using your turn signal is a sign of weakness.
Bostonians: think that 63 degree ocean water is warm.
Bostonians: think Rhode Island accents are annoying.

How to pronounce these Massachusetts cities correctly:
Worcester: Wuhsta or Wistah.
Gloucester: Glawsta.
Leicester: Lesta.
Woburn: Woobun.
Dedham: Dead-um.
Revere: Re-vee-ah.
Quincy: Quinzee.
Tewksbury: Tooks-ber-ry.
Leominster: Lemon-sta.
Peabody: Pee-ba-dee.
Waltham: Walth-ham.
Chatham: Chad-dum.
Samoset: Sam-oh-set or Sum-aw-set, but nevah Summerset!

Have a great day.

Celebration Card and a great essay about disappointment

Hi all,

So I hit the craft room again last night to make a card for my mom.  She has been on weight watchers and is very, very close to her goal weight.  I remember how significant an event it was when I reached goal so I wanted to celebrate with her.

So, here is the clean and simple card I made for her.

I used my papertrey ink birdies and my cloud die.  It came out cute, just the way I wanted - clean and simple - but elegant also.

I will mail it this week (if she reaches goal tomorrow) or sometime soon.  She is only 1 pound away and is working really hard so it won't be long before she gets there. 

So, in addition to sharing my card, I wanted to share this message I read the other day.  I get a bunch of biblical messages in my daily mailbox feed.  One that I get is from Rick Warren.  The e-mail on Monday was especially insightful and I thought I'd share it with you all.  It spoke to me about the events of last week and the challenges I face (and hear others face) with disappointment.  We all so want the world to be a better place, but it is often unrealistic to expect it to be 'heaven on earth.'

Sin Causes Emotional Distress and Disappointment
by Rick Warren

“I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless — like chasing the wind. What is wrong cannot be made right. What is missing cannot be recovered.” (Ecclesiastes 1:14-15 NLT)

Sin causes emotional distress and disappointment.

Solomon writes a lot about this in Ecclesiastes: “I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless — like chasing the wind. What is wrong cannot be made right. What is missing cannot be recovered” (Ecclesiastes 1:14-15 NLT).

Solomon is saying that, as a human being, it seems pointless, because we cannot change the past and we cannot control the future. All the stuff that we’ve done wrong, we can’t undo. All the stuff that was done wrong to us, we can’t undo.

And, we can’t control the future. Most of the important things in your life you have no control over. The world cannot be fixed by human effort alone.

Can we go out and do good in the world? Yes. Should we? Yes. Should we relieve pain? Of course.

But the world is irreparably broken. We serve others to relieve hurt, to heal people, to help them make it through. But we’re not kidding ourselves. We’re not going to bring the Kingdom in on Earth. This is not Heaven. Our ultimate job is to get people into the perfect place, not try to make the world a perfect place. Should we try to make the world better? Yes. 

Should we expect it to be perfect? No. The damage is too deep for repair.

Because that damage is so deep, we get stressed out — because things don’t work right, we don’t have enough time to get everything done, things get in our way. There are delays and difficulties and dead ends and, of course, disappointments.

Did you ever plan for a big event and think, “This is going to be so great!” Then when it’s over, you think, “That was it?” I know people who’ve spent an entire year planning for a wedding. Then it was all over in an hour.

The fact is, we have the amazing ability to overestimate how happy we’re going to be with a person, an event, or a possession. We’re not just disappointed with events that happen in our lives or with people in our lives. We’re disappointed with ourselves.

Why? Because this is not Heaven. Everything on the planet is broken. Nothing works perfectly because of our sin.

Talk About It

• Who or what have you blamed for the broken relationships and disappointment in your life?

• What is the thing, event, or person you are anticipating will make you happier? How do you think God wants you to change your outlook?

2 Birthday Cards and thoughts on the Boston Marathon Bombing

Good morning,

Today I have two birthday cards to share with you and I feel compelled to comment a bit on the events of last week, since Boston is my city and I felt the impact of the Marathon terror, up close and personal.

My niece and cousin both have May birthdays and I found this darling sketch and decided to make both cards using the same sketch and color pattern.  Isn't it sweet how both images work for this card, but using a different image gives a different look?   My cousin Christie is a fun loving girl - a freshman at Potsdam State University in NY.  My niece is a nature loving high school senior.  So, using different images allows me to taylor the cards a bit to their personality.  Using the same sketch and color scheme means the cards come together in a snap.

So, what I can I say about last weeks events?  I have been feeling a nudge to blog about the events all week, but really had a hard time sitting down and actually writing about it.  Boston is my city.  It has been for over 20 years.  First let me tell you about the tradition of 'Patriot's Day' also known as 'marathon day' to set the stage for the events.  Just as Memorial Day is the unofficial start to summer, Patriots day is the unofficial start to spring in New England.  The snow is finally gone, flowers are starting to bloom and the kids are on the first day of spring break.  The Red Sox always play a home game (early) and lots of people take the day off, although few companies give employees the day off.  It is the day to go into the city, if you don't mind crowds.  The marathon route starts in Hopkinton (where we go to church) and winds through many towns before finishing in the heart of the city.  Our family (like so many others) would often go to our favorite spot (everyone has one) and cheer on the runners.  The full 26 miles of the marathon have fans at every inch of the race.

The day is a celebration and has no religious component, nor political component.  It is really just a day for spring family fun.  This year, with Eric and Sarah not at home, I did not take the day off so I was at work when I started hearing chatter from people around me about injuries, hospitals and explosions.  Checking facebook I saw a friend had posted a link and I read in horror about the events unfolding less than 15 miles from my office.  Many of my friends had been posting photos of the marathon finish line so I knew people I cared about were in harms way.  I texted those that I had known were at the finish line as spectators and was very relieved to hear back that they were okay and trying to get out of the city.

My son, Eric's girlfriends mother - Cindi was 10 yards away from the second explosion.  I talked to her Wednesday and she described that she felt like she had the flu, she was still so emotionally and physically drained from the event.  They were across the street and hurried to get out of the city.  Her friend was petrified and Cindi had bruises on her arm from her friend grabbing hold of her so tightly as they hurried out of the immediate area.  A girl I work with was running the marathon.  I heard the next day that she was near the finish line and didn't finish the race.  So many people near us were impacted but thankfully we did not know any of those hospitalized or killed.

Friends and family all called, e-mailed and texted us that afternoon and evening to ensure we were okay.  We assured them we were safe and thanked them for their concern.

We all muddled through the next few days, going about our business but with heavy hearts.  We watched the news like you all did and saw the hero's that acted swiftly to bring healing and care to those in need.  A friend of mine works at the city hospitals and described the incredible scene of walking through a line of swat team members as she entered Mass General on Tuesday.

Thursday was starting to get back to normal when they released the photos of the two men.  A friend I was talking to hadn't seen the photos and asked me to describe them.  I said they looked like friends of Eric's, skinny boys with dark hair.  I was amazed at how 'normal' they looked.  We went to bed Thursday before the manhunt started but it was frightening to wake up Friday morning at 5am to the radio alarm describing the events of the previous night and the manhunt that was going on.

We are moving to Waltham in a few weeks and Waltham was one of the towns in lock-down.  I sent a quick e-mail to our new neighbor and the people we are buying the condo from and told them we were praying for them.  They have a newborn and a 4 year old and I was imagining that they were quite afraid as the police and swat team went door to door on the hunt.

Bob and I both went to work, not at all fearful that the manhunt or chase would spread into our work communities, but it was hard to concentrate in the office.  Again, business went on, as usual, but all of us were on edge waiting for news that the suspect was captured.

As they found the suspect in a boat, we realized that this home was very close (only a few blocks away) from our new condo.  The Watertown mall where the media set up is where my new Target is.  It is a beautiful neighborhood, normally sleepy and suburban.  On that day, it was a war zone.  I watched home videos of families driving and encountering the police at the scene.  It was hard to believe.  It was also hard to believe that this 19 year old boy, the same age as my son, was a terrorist.  The stories were everywhere that he was a pretty normal kid.  I, like you, are waiting to hear what happened and why he got roped into this mess.

So today it is a week later and soon we will observe a 'moment of silence' to honor the victims.  You may wonder how I feel about this as a christian.  Was my faith shaken by this event?   The answer is a loud and clear no.  My faith was not the least shaken.  In fact, my faith was strengthened.  Around the world, events like this happen all the time.  For generations to come and for generations behind, events like this happen.  Evil exists on this earth.  The fact that evil exists does not in the leaset indicate that God does not exist and abound.  The bible says 'in this life you will have trouble.'  Jesus had plenty of trouble.  Old testament characters faced evil.  Sadly, evil exists.  But God's love exists as well and where evil is present, God's love is present as well.  I'm sure you've seen so many images of men and woman who ran into harms way to help people.  If we are simply evolved creatures, why would we go into harms way?  But we are more than flesh and bones.  We are created with compassion and even in the face of danger, God has placed compassion and love inside us and when we allow that to come out, we become the hands and feet of God to a suffering world.

So, how will I respond to the events of last week?  Well, I won't hide in fear behind closed doors.  As a matter of fact I'm more motivated than ever to be there next year.  Maybe I'll volunteer to help.  I am also all the more committed to showing God's love to a broken world.  I hope to be more likely to listen to a friend who is hurting.  I am more likely to bravely share the love of Jesus Christ with someone who I'm not sure knows Him.  And I am committed to follow-through on an idea I had a few weeks ago about serving my new community of Waltham.  I have been prayerfully considering how I will serve my community and learned about 'Therapy Dogs' a few weeks ago. These are dog owners who will train their dogs and bring them to places like hospitals and nursing homes to allow people to pet their dogs and temporarily forget their troubles.  I used to bring Joey and Tank to my Grandmother's and all the patients would stop and look. Many would pet them and it was joyful to see the happiness a friendly dog could bring them.  I am more committed than ever to get involved with the Waltham Therapy Dog organization - helping out in any way they need.  I heard that therapy dogs were involved in helping those impacted from the bombings. I want to be part of the healing of our community.

So, how will you react to the bombings?  I once heard that when we are hurting we have two choices.  We can raise a fist at God and yell 'why could you allow this?'  Or we can open our hand and ask God to help us.  I pray that you will open your hand and ask God to display His love in a real and tangible way today.