Umbrella man

This $20.00 die was half off!  I've looked

at it before but wasn't going to pay

that  kind of money for a die that I didn't

think I'd use all that often.  But I can't

pass up 50% off!! 

Isn't it cool?  I love the saying, too.  Obviously.

Yesterday my friend, LuAnn and I went to

Ft. Wayne to get some bird food, shop at

JoAnn's where I got the die and then out

to lunch at Olive Garden.  Next month will

be two very hard days for her.  The first

will be when her husband, Dennis, had a

catastrophic injury, the second two weeks

later when he died.  Grief is such hard

work.  I'd heard that before, but you don't

know until you experience it.  Everyone's

journey is different.  So while I understand

losing a spouse, I don't understand what

SHE is going through because it's so

personal to each person.  But she is doing

the hard work and more importantly, 

leaning on God to get her through.  As

hard as it is to lose someone to death,

it's comforting to know that they are with

their Savior.  I imagine John and Dennis

along with my cousin Ronnie, having a great

time together and probably wreaking havoc

 in Heaven!  Guaranteed John is trying to

run the place!  Of course, I know that's

not true, but it's fun to think of him

the way he was here on Earth. He was 

always right.  Or at least he thought he

was.  So most of the time I just let

him think that.  It was easier!!

A little birdie told me

I got this set of crazy bird stamps

in the mail yesterday .  There's 4 more 

in the set.  Guess how much I paid

for them?  Nothing!  I ordered them 

from Amazon with gift cards that I

got from Bing Rewards (now microsoft

rewards).  It only takes a few minutes

a day and about once a month

I get a 5.00 gift card.  It doesn't sound

like much but it adds up quickly.

This card is for a lady in our sign 

class who broke her wrist....

Last pic (obviously) is a top view.  I think I've

posted a double zed card before.  Or "Z" as we

Americans call it.

I started the interpreter prep class last night.

I was scared to death and about to run when

I heard what we were going to do.  Seriously.

I thought about "getting something from my

car" and leaving!  We had to write a card about

ourselves, why we wanted to learn sign, where

we thought we might go with it, things like

that.  Then we passed it to the person

on the left.  They familiarized themselves

with what was written, then the person who

wrote it read it and you had to interpret.

Naturally I got my teacher from last 

semester who, of course, already interprets.

Now I'm really freaked out.  So she begins

to read and there were only two, maybe three 

words I wasn't sure of so I tried to use a

different word that meant the same thing.

When I was done she looked at me and

said, "Oh my gosh, I can't believe how

well you did!  She even looked shocked.

I think she had her doubts about me in

the 3rd class, but much of my problem

is that I just can't understand what 

someone else is signing very well.  I

hear that will come...eventually.  That really

boosted my confidence.  I'm just so shy

about signing in front of people and don't

have confidence that what I'm signing

is right or that it will be understood.  So I'm

glad I decided to take the class in the

first place and decided not to run at the

beginning!

Christmas bells

Isn't this just the prettiest design?

I was a little nervous because you have

to draw the dots of the musical notes

with a black pen.  If you mess it up, you 

start all over again-unless you do the 

notes first, I guess.  But they

turned out really well.  I am pretty happy

with it.

 

This card I made for a friend

as a kind of thank you card.  It doesn't

say that, but I wrote a note inside.

The musical note background is

actually from a Christmas pack I

just bought, but it didn't look

much like Christmas so it looked OK

for the card I had in mind.  

 

Tonight is the first class for "interpreter

prep".  I have no desire to learn to

interpret right now.  Nor am I ready

by any means.  But any learning is

good learning so I will go in with an

open mind.  Pam said everyone will

be on different levels so there isn't

going to be pressure to be able

to interpret things like sermons, LOL.

Good thing as I would have run for

the hills!  Maybe someday I will be

good enough to interpret but I don't

 see that coming any day soon.

 

Three styles

I made this first card in the colours

that the pattern called for.  As I looked

at it, I decided I didn't really like it

and thought, wouldn't it be pretty if

it were just in blues?  So I made one in

blues and liked it and then thought, 

wouldn't it be pretty in the metallic

thread?  So I made a third one

that way and loved it too.  After all,

they aren't all going to the same person. 

 I'm going to have all my Christmas cards

done by the end of September the way I'm going!!

I enjoyed spending some time with

Cody yesterday.  We don't get to do 

enough of that.  He's got a busy life.

It's crisp and chilly this morning.  I'm glad

I decided to put on a jacket before I went

out.  I know Winter is just around the corner.

The Summer went way too fast.

 

 

Are you ready?

Last night I was getting ready for bed and I

felt a little hungry, but didn't really pay

any attention to it.  I thought the hunger 

pang would go away.  All of a sudden I

had the worst pain in my stomach that

radiated toward my chest and into

my entire back.  I became nauseous and was

 instantly sweaty.  I also felt a little dizzy.

Having heard that women have different

 types of heart attacks than men (is this true??) 

I, of course, assumed I must be having a

heart attack.  My mind always goes to

worst case scenario.  It went away slowly

after about 30 minutes, but in that time I

seriously considered calling Cody to take

me to hospital.  I knew it really wasn't

a heart attack or I would have been on

the phone.  But it was really scary.  I

don't want to die.  But if that should happen,

I know I'm ready.  I have many family members

and friends who aren't ready.  That scares

me far more than a heart attack.

Isn't this just the cutest little brown bag?

I came across a package of them the

other day and decided I'd better use

at least one!  The tag fits right inside.  I just 

love how it turned out!

Here's a card with the tree pattern, but I 

did it only with the iridescent thread.  It made

for a striking card.  I wouldn't have added

the stars, but somehow got a smudge on it

and had to cover it up.  So you can't just

have two stars on one side....It looks a little

goofy, but it's OK, I guess.

Now for one scary picture....

I love snapchat.  I wish my phone would

make the videos through it though.  I can

do videos on the phone, just not in the

app for some reason.  A bummer because

it will change your voice, too.  Oh, well.

Spiderwoman

I don't mind spiders.  As long as they

are not big, black or hairy.  Or in my

living space. The tree in my front yard

is considered my living space.  When I 

walked B'Elanna this morning I walked

right into a spider web from the tree to

the ground.  Not a big web, just strands, 

but that was more than enough.  I skirted 

around it on the way in and there was more

on the backside of the tree!  It seems the

entire tree is covered in a beginning web!  

I took the broom out and went around the

entire tree knocking out as much as I could

see, but if it reappears I will have to call

in backups.  I mean, how many spiders are 

in that tree and how big?  I know I have

American funnel spiders sometimes, but

I have only seen them on the bushes before

I cut them down and in the grass.  Do they

make webs in trees?  And it doesn't look like

the same type of web.  I feel very creepy 

crawly now.  I may end up jumping in the

shower.  Shiver.

Three more stitched cards.  I have no

clue what to do with them.  I just love making

them!  I know who I'm sending the birthday

card to.  It kind of looks like a guy card, so

I'm sending it to my grandson for his birthday

next month.  

It's really foggy out today.  I'm thinking  the

kids will have a two hour school delay. Then

they will have to make it up at the end of the year

and get one day (so far) less from their non

existent summer vacation.  I can't believe they

started on August 12th!  I don't remember when

they got out, but I'm sure it was the beginning

of June.  We used to get three whole months!

Tomorrow Cody is coming over for hot and

sour soup and to practice some signing with

me.  He said if I made the soup it would

"incentivize" him.  Did you know "incentivize"

is a word?  I didn't.  My computer didn't even

flag it just now!  It sounds like a made up word

that the dictionary people finally gave up and

added because people weren't going to quit 

using it!  Like "impactful"  What the heck?  Now

THAT word my computer flagged.  It is NOT

a word.  But people use it so it will no doubt

be added.  The word that drives me the

craziest, though, is "conversate"  You do NOT

"conversate".  You converse.  I swear.  People!

You need to learn your own language.  How

to use it and how to spell it!  Sorry if I offend

anyone, but I am the self appointed language police!

LOLOLOLOL!  YES!!!  I know LOL is not a word!

But it is an abbreviation and that doesn't count.

Since I am the language police I make the rules.

75 degrees and snowmen

I don't know the exact temp, but the

news said it was supposed to be 75 this morning

and break the record of 71 degrees for

the warmest morning on this date.  I do

know it's been raining a little bit and was

sprinkling when I took B'Elanna out.  I'm

hoping for a thunderstorm but you know how

that goes; Goldilocks zone and all.....

So, even though I love the warm weather

I decided snowmen were the order of the

day.  These are just the cutest snowmen ever!

Yes, another journal.  Remember I said I

got them for 50 cents each? !

 

Sort of a matching card.  I decided the

violet didn't look as good as blue.  Actually

the pattern calls for confetti pink which I have

never been able to find, even on the internet.

I think when the patterns were designed it was

available or something.  Although it lists the same

colours on new patterns, too.  Maybe it's something

you can only find in the UK.  The blue fuzzy

yarn really makes it festive.  I don't think I sent

Christmas cards last year, or maybe just a few.

I'm not officially celebrating Christmas in that

I don't have a tree anymore and have no desire

to decorate, but I do love to stitch so I may as

well put it to good use and make some cards.

I am looking forward to dinner tonight with

my friend, Dianne.  I think we are finally over

our Mexican  phase.  We're going to a place

in town that serves both American and Chinese

food.  We always have American.  If I'm going

to eat Chinese food I like to go to the Great 

Wall buffet  so you can have a choice.  John and

I used to go there a lot.  We also used to go

to Olive Garden  frequently.  I miss going there.

I was talking to a friend yesterday who lost her

husband 3 months ago.  We were discussing

how life would go on but it would never be

the same again.  You've lost a part of yourself

and it can never be replaced.  You change.  It's

hard to explain even to yourself the change inside.

It will be two and a half years this month since 

John died and still some days it seems surreal.

I don't know how people get through things

like this without God to turn to.  Prayer was

the only thing I had some days to keep me

going.  I'm grateful that John is with God

and I would never ask him to come back

even if I could, but I wish he hadn't had to go.