A wonderful Swap and a Cakewalk just for fun!

After getting invited to swap a friendship banner with Elizabeth from Creative Breathing, I decided I needed to reach out as well and hope I could get people to swap one on one with me too….

I have been emailed by some of the most  wonderful women I know….all happy to swap, a few more I am still hoping for to hear from.

I wish I could do 100!!!!!  But even with my Cricut I would be in big trouble….if you think you would like to try this with others just hop over to Creative Breathing and see her post about her wonderful triangular banner….there is so  only a few out there that do as good a job combining papers and elements as Elizabeth does….she is such an inspiration to me!

She is already full as everyone would love to trade with her, I feel so lucky to be one of them, but  there are many lovely bloggers out there that I am sure would love to do this also!  Just ask them….:)

Also, I FINALLY got my October Afternoon “Cakewalk”  collection in the mail!!!!  I have always adored OA collections but this one is just so cute, it is a “birthday” them, but the papers and elements could be used for anything….I did enhance the color so you could really see them, the red I more of a pinky red…..enjoy!

 

This photo if the real colors….

 

These have been enhanced….

Just love these buttons!!!!!

 

OA calls these miscellany packs…chock full of paper and button and fun!

I am thinking part of this is going into my 521 Lake Street banners……the nice thing too about this swap is there is no real time limit so I can really think about it!  Thanks for stopping by…

 

Excited! Now blogging on the go!

Here is Abbey at home from my new smart phone!

Our Lunch Box Swap!

 

By far this was one of my favorite tag swaps….the wonderful Elizabeth of Creative Breathing did it once more!  This swap was based on a Box Lunch, the ones you used to have with your sweetheart years ago….

So from the sweet “box” they came in to the flowers and the homemade bluebirds, and oh…who could for get the ants????  Enjoy!

Wrapped just like a yummy sandwich!

This was such a blast. lets do it again soon ladies!!!!!

Just Imagine….

 

I realized on Sunday that it would have been my mom’s 90th birthday this year.  And my Dad would have been 90 in July….now I know better than to believe I would have had them until 90, but it is still inconceivable that they would be this old! 

I wanted to share some photos of them with you…another time, another place, another lifetime ago…..

Charles Robert Burgess at 7 months old.

At 4 years old…..

In high school….

My folks when they graduated…..

The only baby photo I have of my Mom, she is the little towhead on the right……the other sweet little girl is my Aunt Phyl.

My mom as a young girl in love….

 

In high school….

During World War II..

Right after the war….

My folks back in Eau Claire on vacation in 1975.  They would both be gone by 1983.

It is hard to fathom that everyone connected with these two, fathers, mothers, siblings, all gone but one.  Whole families passed away….I miss each and every one of them….there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of my Mom and Dad….how in the world could they have been 90 this year?????  To hard to fathom, because it means they have been gone much too long.

A year ago on Father’s Day this is where Scott and Rianna,  his daughter were….on his patio enjoying a good day.

We had just found out that he was ill…..and hoped to get him to the Cancer Treatment Center of America in a few days….it just wasn't’ to be…he was gone in a little over a month.  This is where we were this morning…..

Rianna wanted to celebrate her Dad’s birthday, he would have been 52.   Her pain is not diminished at all, and it won’t be for quite some time.  I know how she feels and I wish I could have kept her from this heartache.  This is still so wrong…..so very very wrong…..how can people that mean so much to us be so far away?????  Just to hear their voices, or see their smiles…..but it is not to be here on this earth again …..still missing all of you….

Thank you my friends,  for letting me feel safe enough to write these feelings down and put them out there and know I won’t be judged.

Back to Craftin”

I joined Elizbaeth of  Creative Breathing for a fun “Boxed Lunch Tag Swap”.  She always comes up with such fun themes! 

So I went looking for images and papers….and found these…

Lucky girl…she has two beaus! 

A mixture of October Afternoon papers and the Cricut cartridge Elegant Edges…thank goodness for my Cricket!

 

Some fun shapes and words, and of course part of my stash of goodies….

 

And this is what I came up with!

I did everyone a little different, I just go with what I pick up off of the table…:)

The back of one…

I get myself all worked up trying to find a “theme”…I do it every time, and it ticks me off frankly!  I have to quit it, perfectionism be gone!

Once I get in the groove I have such a good time….thanks E for having this swap! 

A Long Week

Hi all,

It has been a long hard week, last Sunday we had a small family BBQ for my youngest son Chris.  He is moving to Texas so he can do an internship at a music studio for his degree.  Bryan, my other son and my grand puppy Abbey came to see us.  This is how most of us were by the end of the evening….

The next morning Chris took off for Austin….it is a 15.5 hour drive from our house to his new digs.  He did it in one day….I was freaking out until I heard from him that he got there safely…..

I have never had either of my sons live out of state, this is really hard.  Especially since he has spent the last 7 months living with us here on the east side of town.  We have had a really good time…I take it day by day, he seems to be doing well….and I think I need to go see what Austin is like, don’t you?  He hopes he doesn’t have to come back…that will mean no job.  He really doesn’t want to do that, and I don’t blame him.  So I keep my fingers crossed that the studio that lets him intern will hire him afterwards.  Miss you buddy…:)

Tuesday I go to a Ceramic class here where I live and I finally finished my first piece….a Christmas Yule log.

I loved the retro feel of it….and I learned a lot! 

I am not sure I like the silver ring on the bells, maybe it should be red?????  I will give it some time.  I can always redo that part as it is not glazed but stained.  Not bad for a beginner, I think. :)

I guess it is Christmas in June….wish it was outside, it hit 111 degrees yesterday!!!!  Time to stay inside. :)  Thanks for coming by….