Stuarts Album & update

Stuarts back in Shoalhaven Hospital now and is doing better each day. He has his ups and downs and is getting quite frustrated but all in all he's doing well. He no longer needs dialysis- which is just another miracle. He told Al & I on my last visit - Thursday - that he did 3 laps of his room with his physio.

Simone organised a 8X8 scrap album for Stuart and these 7 LO's are my contribution. Pop over to Haylee's blog to have a squizz at hers. I can't believe I made these all in one day. AS most of you know I am an off the page artist and rarely do LO's, so I am quite pleased with myself for getting these done so quickly. They are simple but effective and that's what I wanted.

I still haven't mastered taking good shots of Lo's so I am sorry about the glare.

It could only happen to me

last Thursday I decided I was going to have a bit of a pamper and have a home facial. I cleansed scrubbed and then steamed my face with intex oil oh it felt good. The I put on the mask. After about 10 minutes I heard the dog make a sound like he wanted to get out so I wandered around to see what was causing his upset (he was in the back room with the door closed as Royce left about 15 minutes earlier and left the gate opened). I found a paddy wagon - yes a Police Car - in my front yard. Well my heart flew to my mouth as John had spent the night ob BOwral and Royce was about to go to Canberra. So I go to the door and there are 2 police woman - at this point I remember I have a face mask on and a turban on my head, feeling a wee bit embarrased I apologise for my looks and explain I was having a pamper day (I am so glad they were police WOMEN). They then proceed to ask me if we had a Nissan Navarro vehicle, they gave me the number plates - so quickly in my head I had to place each car we own and the number plates - and let me tell you my brain has been on strike for the last 2 weeks and I am sure I looked like a right narna as I said I don't think so. Is it a sedan. When she answered no its a ute I felt a whole lot better no utes in this home ( a van yes, we use to own a nissan and Royces Skyline is a Nissan). Anyway finally we work out that the ute belongs to the people we bought the home from. So they left wishing me an enjoyable pamper.

I was shaking so much by the time they left, with relief I think. About 5 minutes later Royce
comes home and I throw my arms around him and tell how glad I was to see him and that I loved him. He passed the paddy wagon on the way in so he wasn't surprised at my story.

Next time I decide to do a facial I will make sure someone else is home, so I can at least run to the bathroom and wash it off.

God of the Little Things

I just read this devotion from Joni Eareckson Tada in my Women's devotional Bible, based on Psalm 103:13. A beautiful picture of a loving God & father. I found it so encouraging I wanted to share it with you.

Is God concerned about the details of your life? Does he care about the "little things"?Piles of dishes need to be done. The washer leaks a big soapy puddle on the floor - and you've got people coming in an hour. Little things.Nobody else seems to notice, or pay that much mind..... So why should God? After all, isn't he the God of BIG things? Isn't he the one who spoke swirling galaxies into vast frontiers of space, who measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and calculated the dust of the earth (Isaiah 40:12)?Why should this great, awesome God notice the tears that came to my eyes this morning at breakfast - when no one else noticed? Why would the creator of the universe care about my worries that kept me awake until two in the morning? Why should the almighty Sovereign of eternity be concerned about the fact that I'm late for an appointment and can't find a parking place?Sure, the Bible says he has compassion for his people. But isn't that sort of "general" compassion for humankind? Isn't that an arms-length kind of compassion? Just how intimately is God involved in our small, petty problems? David says he has the compassion of a father.
I remember my father having a kind intimate, heartfelt compassion with me. Often when my dad would be busy at his easel, I'd sit on the floor at his side with my crayons and colouring book. Sometimes he'd set his brushes aside, reach down and lift me into his lap. Then he'd fix my hand on one of his brushes and he would enfold his larger, stronger hand around mine. ever so gently, he would guide my hand and the brush, and I would watch in amazement as, together, we made something beautiful.This is the kind of love our God has for us. Fatherlove. The kind, gentle compassion of a dad who deeply cares for his sons and daughters. Maybe you never had a dad like that............. but you do have such a father.Let God's big hand close gently over yours. With his help, even the discouraging scribbles of your life can become a masterpiece. Nothing would delight a father's heart more.

Would you like to win $50 worth of scrapping goodies

Follow this link to heavensent scrapbooking http://heaven-sent.com.au/component/option,com_fireboard/Itemid,26/func,view/id,3605/catid,14/ join up in the forum and then post this link on your blog to be in the running to win a suprise pack of scrapping goodies woth $50-. Worth the effort I would think.

SWS and May creations

As promised here are the prjects started and mostly finished at the SWS retreat.

This first is the beginning of an album I am making for my sister for her birhtday next week. She never visits blogs so I will be pretty unlucky if she happens to come in here and see it.

I have covered each page just need to add pics, journalling and embellishments.




This card was made by using a heart stencil. I carefully traced the stencil then using an eyelet punch I made the holes. This was exactly the card I wanted to make but was not sure how to go about it until I saw this stencil in the cropworks shop. I entered it in the card making comp and was exstatic to win the first prize.






This Lo was not completed over the weekend. In fact I only threw the hearts on today when I decided it was time to put it on my blog.


This tin was completed over the weekend as part of my demo in my class to show the ladies a different way of altering the tin they were doing. (see further down)



























This Lo was the first item I started to make at the Scrapping with Soul Retreat (I neded up putting it aside and made my bag). It was my entry in the personal choice. It is also my page for the Verse challenge over at the Scrap of Faith Blog. Made using my favourite PP BG Romani and fussy cut flowers, one of my favourite embellishments.











I just love how this bag turned out. Made using the BG Sultry Range of papers and die cut chipboard stickers.




It also fitted in with the Love is theme of the weekend and was my entry in the OTP comp.



















These are the tins I taught at the SWS retreat. I had 21 ladies in my class and they all ended up with a very beautiful tin. It was very exciting looking around during the remainder of the week end and seeing"my tins" all over the place.















This book was made to go in the tins and was an added extra in the instructions (made from the scrap of the tin papers). If you would like to know how to alter the tins and make this book to match go to http://scrapoffaith.blogspot.com/ as this is my DT project for this month.












Scrap of Faiths May book of faith theme was Love of Christ. Love was also the theme for the SWS retreat - sooo I made this LO to cover both. I am still warming to Lo's so they are still very simple.







This Lo came about because of the Love monogram. While I was putting it together I was singing "Jesus loves me this I know etc", so I had to make it my Love of Christ LO.




Thank you for visiting my blog. I am sorry I dont update very often but sometime life just gets too busy to sit long enough to do it.

An update on my brother. He has been moved out into a general ward now which is great news. he still needs the dyalisis as his kidneys are still not functioning. They will monitor this for 8 weeks b4 they decide if he will need to stay on dyalisis. He still has a long way to go. Please continue to keep him and his wife, 3 children & their partners and 6 grandchildren in your prayers.


This was my may project for the SOF blog - follow the link in my side bar and look for the link to OTP's for the instructions


This was so much fun to put together - I had a ball.

What a huge few weeks

What a huge few weeks it has been. Firstly my knee has healed quite well and only aches when I have been on it a lot. Still having trouble getting down low, but am working on it.

The biggest thing that has happened is that my brother Stuart, pictured with me in this pic taken at his daughters wedding Feb 2006, had a massive heart attack Friday 2 weeks ago. He was air lifted to St George Hospital the early hours of Saturday morning, where they did a bi pass Saturday evening. That was successful but there was so much damage to his heart that he began to deteriorate overnight. We were all called up to the hospital at 4.30am Sunday as they did not expect him to survive. We spent the next day & a half on tender hooks, he was in a very unstable condition. He was put on a heart and lung machine and dialysis. He turned a corner Monday just after lunch and they decided he was stable enough to transfer him to St Vincents and under the care of the transplant team.

He is now making a miraculous recovery and I was even able to talk to him on the phone today.


I just want to thank all my Friends who have been praying for him. God heard your prayers and Stuart is on the road to recovery. Our God is a God of miracles and Stuart is one of them.

One of the things that this made me realise is that I don't tell my brothers and sisters that I love them. They know I do. Today I Have let them all know I love them and will make sure every time I talk to them that I do. I tell my nieces and nephews every time I talk to them but not my brothers and sisters. That is about to change.


The Other big news is that last weekend was the Scrapping With Soul Retreat. It was a great weekend. I taught a class on altered tins and attended a Lusi Austin free style class. Still havent finish that LO, will soon.

Below are pics of my SOF friends who I met up with over the weekend. I have a group shot and will upload that with in my next update which will have pics of the projects I finished over the weekend.