With much joy (and a good dose of fear and trembling in the middle), I present to you:
(click image to be taken to the new business blog)
It is newly hatched and not quite yet polished, but I hope you will share my journey on this new road.
A few months ago, we had bought a computer that didn't work out for our needs. So the plan was that we'd drive home after church and return the computer. We'd driven separate cars, so each parent took a child. Well, I thought Ron said we were to meet at the store, so I happily booked it down to the store and waited in the parking lot. Then I got a worried phone call from Amanda asking, "Mommy, where in the world are you?!?" {Hi, my name is Heather, and I have listening issues.} I went back home then.
That evening, Amanda breathlessly dropped this paper into my lap:
As you can see, it was borne out of our computer returning event. We laughed a lot when she sat at the piano and played her piece. I especially like "dooet".
A few days ago, she wrote this note to her friend Brooke, who's been out of town for a few months:
Translation - Dear Brooke, gymnastics isn't as fun without you. P.S. Emma is in class.
They're all buddies from her gymnastics class. Waving to Julie here - hi! Tell the kids we miss them! Hurry back soon.
...
Today I'm in an especially reflective mood... for those of you that didn't know, Amanda is being homeschooled this year. I'm thinking about some of the incredible highs we've had when things click, and some not-so-sharable lows when they don't. But overall, homeschooling has helped me fully own up to the fact that regardless of who is teaching my daughters, Ron and I will always be the first and last teachers in their lives. Pretty heavy stuff. The joy of learning is so sacred - is it possible we can do our girls justice?
Having been an educator of other people's children for over a decade, it's easy to get stuck in a mode, spouting off maxims and formulating education plans with relative ease. But when it's my own kids, WHOA. The stage fright is extreme. Here is where homeschooling has realigned my thinking again. When it comes down to it, children are created by God to learn, so long as their basic needs are met. And boy, has Amanda been teaching me that. The key is whether I am providing a nurturing environment that lets Amanda's God given gifts shine, OR if I'm forcing my will, my ideals, myself onto her. That isn't to say I shouldn't equip her with morals and standards... it's just easy to get in the way of something so natural.
Always hopeful that God fills in the gaps. :)
Happy World Card Making Day! You've reached the beautiful Pacific Northwest at this stop. To thank you for coming, here is my gift to you:
(click image for download)
I rummaged my craft closet for a few supplies: jewels, white butterfly rub-ons, glue dots, and my trusty Xacto knife to cut out the pretty blossoms. The digital papers and blossoms are courtesy of Scrap'it Designs, her About a Girl kit.
Here are some close ups:
(back of the card)
You should have reached my blog from the ScrapMatters blog. Your next stop is at my friend Kari's blog. Tell her I sent ya!
Yes, you read that correctly: World Card Making Day! Any chance I get to celebrate life, I'm ready with my party hat and appetite. :) And how about some freebies to go with your hors d'oeuvres?
It will start on Saturday, October 4th, at 7am Pacific Time at the ScrapMatters blog.
(For those of you that aren't craft/scrapbooking enthusiasts, I really appreciate you chugging through all the crazy art lingo I throw at you - you must really love this family to do so!)
Regardless of how much I vow not to let it happen, Christmas (and its crazy commercialized frenzy) sneaks up on me. So let it be known: 12 weeks left! When I have a chance to collect my thoughts, I can be purposeful about keeping the celebration focused on the true gifts.
Simple Mom is a blog I follow regularly, and she leads the way in organizing the 12 weeks so that mayhem doesn't grip the hearts, minds, and pocketbook of your family.
This year, one of my goals is to hand make gifts. I enjoy the thought of sending my loving touch through them, and want to teach my girls the value of true gift giving. Otherwise, do you know what happens to me? I wait until the last minute until I haphazardly spend beyond my budget just to appease my gift list, and spend extra on overnight air to deliver the packages. NO MORE.
One of the handmade gifts I'm undertaking is a project my hybrid team and I are heading at ScrapMatters, called It's in the Cards:
(Click on the image to see the thread at ScrapMatters)
Hope you can join me! It's a weekly venture, so the workload is spread out. It should be tons of fun. :)
(Rolling out the welcome mat) Hi everyone! Thanks for stopping by my blog - you should have arrived here from Mary's blog (www.plumdumplingdesigns.blogspot.com). We are celebrating ScrapMatters' first birthday in the happiest way possible. Giving out freebies, of course!
In my family, the birthday star gets to choose a non-traditional birthday cake (usually a yummy Marie Callender's pie or other not-so-birthday-ish treat) and a restaurant for dinner. We make all our gifts, in true "hybrid" form. Hybrid scrapping, that is.
Okay, I'm giving out TWO freebies.
The first one:
(click on image to download)
The second will be revealed at noon - so come back here for more! It's a fantabulous party hat template.
See you again in a few hours or so -
Your next stop on the Birthday Blog Train is Tater's blog: www.taterscraps.blogspot.com
Have fun! Remember, there are 39 stops total, all loaded up with freebies galore. :)
::edit::
This freebie is no longer available - thanks!
sweet little Abigail not included:(click image to download)
Make sure you bling it up! And happy, happy birthday ScrapMatters.
Recently I was asked to be hybrid team leader for ScrapMatters. No brainer - of course I said yes. :) Today I got to unveil the new hybrid blog line up on the team blog - check it out. The freebie I'm offering is actually posted there, and it looks like this:
Amanda, Abigail and I participated in a kids stationery mail swap, and I made notepads with scratch, recycled paper for the pirate-loving boys:
Don't forget to stop by tomorrow to pick up all the freebies in our blog train - we're celebrating ScrapMatters' first birthday in style! Go to the ScrapMatters team blog in the morning!
