Upcoming Projects...

Since VBS has passed, I have been catching up on some stuff at home. My wonderful husband has been a huge help! If I didn't have him helping to catch me up on laundry and dishes...well, we just won't go there...it's not pretty! With all his help (I love him so much!) I should be able to start a few projects soon.

A set of 4 key chains, two Pink Jasper necklaces, and one 'Becca's Bracelet' (can be found in the jewelry slide show) are on the top of my list. I am hoping to get these all finished before the last week of July starts. I am supposed to help chaperon over 200 high school band students at the OVAC Band Camp held at a local college. I get to be on campus with hormonal, hyper teenagers for over 5 days. Pray for me...please...I am begging you!

In parting, here is a shot of a tree growing in my Pap's yard. He loves this tree! I think I may have to frame this picture for him!

VBS Finale

It was amazing! We didn't have as many kids on Friday as we had on previous nights but that was okay. The ones that did come to VBS, immediately ran to the craft table to see what our "Master Crafter" had for them to start the evening! Many of them decided to make another shell necklace. That was unquestionably the favorite craft of the week!

After a bit of a nervous breakdown about the slideshow not working in the tv when I tested it (thank goodness I decided to test it at all!), and my uncle Richard and cousin Matt coming to my rescue with Aunt Nancy's laptop, things started moving along. The kids rehearsed their songs without the words on the overhead and did an amazing job. Then it was time for the Showcase!

We had invited parents, grandparents, and friends to come see the kids perform their music, see their crafts, and hear what they learned. The children were wonderful! When I turned on the overhead projector to put the song words on the wall, they all groaned! They had been at me since Wednesday to let them sing without help...so we went 'cold-turkey' on PARENTS' NIGHT!!! They didn't miss a beat! They sang four songs with the music. The fifth song I had a hard time keeping the song and the music straight on my part, so we went a capella on the "King of Kings" round. It gave me goosebumps to hear those little voices singing with everything they had, filling that hall with sound.

Each child was given a completion certificate, as well as a copy of the picture that was taken of them in our 'boat'. They were so pleased to have their own picture. Thank goodness for 1 hour printing! After the pizza party, they got to take home any crafts that had finished drying, Bible memory tokens, and all the little things they accumulated during the week.

It was a wonderful week. Now, we get to go back on Monday and take it all down. Our pastor is being moved and the church is having a dinner for him on Sunday evening. He asked that all the decorations stay up for his dinner, he likes looking at them and wants to make sure that everyone has a chance to see what we did. I am sure going to miss him. He did so much for the church. Another church needs him, now. So, he has to go where he is being called.

I hope you all visit Aunt Martha's blog to see her slides of VBS. If you look carefully, you might even be able to figure out which one is me! LOL! Good luck!

VBS Update

Oh, my. I am exhausted! I think it is a good exhausted, though. I am not sure yet. I will let you know.

The final night of VBS is here. Last night the kids carved "rocks" with Aunt Martha. Tonight they learn about the feeding of the five thousand during storytime.

The music is going over so well! Aunt Martha and I are about tied with which one the kids like best. Not to worry! I like both music and crafts! I grew up surrounded by both!

My Aunt Nancy and her daughter-in-law, Kim, have been able to help out a lot the last few days. They have been a blessing during craft time! Aunt Nancy has also been helping us take pictures of the kids. The pictures started out with just a shot of them in the boat that we made...

...then is escalated into a surpise that I have finally finished for tonight's presentation for the kids and their parents. SLIDESHOW! The first one we have ever had at VBS! I know many churches may have them, but this is a first for us (and me!).

Here's a view of the sunset we were blessed with last evening.

VBS - Day 1

Wow! We had such a wonderful time on Monday! Monday we ignored the lesson plan for the night because we invited Rabbi Lowry to come talk with the children.

It was a wonderful sight. All these little faces lined up on a pew in a United Methodist sanctuary listening to a Jewish Rabbi tell stories about all the things he brought to show them. They learned about the Torah - genuine Torahs are hand written and take scribes an average of two years to finish; it is written four columns at a time and then sewn together.

Rabbi taught them about the Prayer Shawl and the yarmulke. He smiled when we first came into the sanctuary, as Aunt Martha and my husband had worked so hard to finish the yarmulkes the boys were wearing. The girls had head covers. It was nice for them to be able to learn the history of the item the were wearing. Rabbi told them that the Prayer Shawl was to remind them of the Ten Commandments. The children were so good! They were so quiet, just sitting there listening. It wasn't the quiet of a bored child, either. It was the silent sound of captured interest. Rabbi had them and he knew it! You can see it in the smile on his face!

The children got to see a very old scroll that contained the story of Queen Esther written on parchment. It gave me goosebumps. He showed us his Menorah and told the story of Hanukkah. Rabbi explained a little bit about Passover and all about the ritual meal that Jewish families have every year. He even brought a box of Matzo for the kids to have during snack time so they could taste something similar to what the Israelites had before they left Egypt. Just before we left to go downstairs, he showed the children how to play dreidel and sing the song that went with it. It was wonderful! They all thanked him with smiles and excitement!

Rabbi told me later that he loved working with children. "They are our tomorrow...they need to know our yesterday," he told me. He was wonderful with them, helping them understand that if God is our One God and we are His children, that makes all of us brothers and sisters. I am so thankful that Rabbi Lowry was able to visit with us. He was able to show the children that their world is not as small as they would think. It was amazing. Sitting in the sanctuary of a United Methodist Church, hosting a Non-Denominational VBS, and listening to a Jewish Rabbi teach a group of children about the origin of their faith. God's hands and angel's wings...

(Oh, Rabbi gave Aunt Martha and I permission to post his pictures on our blogs on one condition...his bolo tie has to be straight!!! LOL!!!)

Are we done yet!?

For the past week I have been going to church with my aunt and my mom to decorate for Vacation Bible School. The other co-director had hand surgery on the 11th, so she hasn't been able to meet us every day. My husband, God bless him, has been such a big help. He has taken care of the house, managed the kids (which is is more than capable of doing), and put up with me coming in at 10:30 p.m. almost every night.

Saturday I spent all day out of the house, doing things for VBS, well, not all of it was VBS but tell that to my Mom when she sees a yard sale!!! The upside - I have maybe an hour's worth of work left and I am done (as long as we have decided not to paint-in the last two backdrops). The downside - I have had two major migraines this week. The first one last three days because I wouldn't take my pill. I was down to my last two and wanted to wait until I could get more from my doctor. I solved that issue on Friday. The second started Saturday when I was helping my mom trace a backdrop onto a flatsheet using an overhead projector. The bulb kept flickering, driving my vision nuts and triggering my migraine. Then the paint fumes when we painted two backdrops didn't help. I wasn't able to take my pill until I was just almost home since I only have 20 minutes from the time I take it until I start feeling it. This was a bad one, though.

I am officially exhausted and I haven't had the first day of VBS yet! We will see what that brings.

Little Pirates and VBS...

Well...the doctor that saw Little Pirate today was not prepared for a 5-year-old with a corneal abrasion. She thought she was getting a 60-year-old with a corneal cyst! Surprise, surprise! So, after doing pretty much the same thing that was done in the ER, I was told to bring him back on Monday to see the main specialist in the office. I should continue with the antibiotic drops that were prescribed by the ER physician and use a cold compress as needed for swelling. Basically, OOPS, come back on Monday! LOL!

I am sure that if Little Pirate had a serious problem with his eye we would not have been leaving the hospital. He did get to feel like Mr. Cool today! They had to dilate his eye, so he go to wear sunglasses EVERYWHERE! Even inside!

Following the interesting outings with the children, I had to go back to church with Aunt Martha and Mom to work on VBS again. We picked up a few more shower curtains and other odds and ends that we needed. I will post pictures once everything is done. It is starting to look so cool!!! So far, we have turned a piano into a rock, a lawnmower box into a boat and a coat rack into an ocean! Confused yet? It's great! You will love it! Just wait til Aunt Martha and I put up pictures...YES! Both of us will most likely be posting pictures of the same VBS. Why not?

My only concern is making sure I am ready for Rabbi. I am so nervous! I have never met him, but Mom has. He has agreed to come on Monday and teach the children about Temple. He is going to be our whole lesson. I wanted the children to learn as much as possible, as accurately as possible. Rabbi is apparently tickled pink about this! He has a son or grandson graduating from medical school this weekend, he is leaving for Southeast Asia middle of next week and he is acting like a kid in a candy store about coming to VBS! You know...I think I am going to have a great time with this gentleman.

As a 'Thank You' to Rabbi for taking the time to come and do this, we are going to take up an offering all week that will be donated to a charity he works with in his honor. I did not think that he would want something material, and after discussing the matter with my pastor it was agreed that this was a great idea.

Now, to finish a few more things before bed. Then tomorrow I am up early and going again. Picking up Mom and Aunt Martha to go to Lowe's to get Plaster of Paris and vermiculite for a stone-carving craft, going to church to paint backdrops, and then running the 16-year-old to a graduation party for a friend's sister. What a day!?

New Pictures!!!

Just let me know what you think...

I am trying to find out what is involved in making some of my photographs into greeting cards. So, that is the next project after I make some key chains following VBS. Here's the new stuff...

And it's only the beginning...

Wednesday, late afternoon - early evening, my youngest son say, "Ouch!"

"Are you okay, honey?" I ask.

"Yeah, Mommy. I am okay," comes the response from the living room. I am in the kitchen working on food stuff. I stick my head into the room just to make sure. He is rubbing his eye and it's a little red. I check it but see nothing. Fastforward several hours. The eye is redder, swollen, and he says it hurts. Now, he is the youngest of four, so I have been through a number of things with his brothers that has left me prepared for many things. So, I rinsed is eye with sterile saline solution, which made him feel much better, and gave him a cold compress to keep the swelling down.

Happy Thursday morning! Can anyone say "Emergency Room"? Yep, that's where we went. He has a Corneal Abrasion -- a scratch on his eyeball! Now, for the "how" of the scratch on his eyeball. Please know, this made the doctors and nurses in the ER laugh! Heck, the child got TWO freezer pops out of this!

While I was busy in the kitchen, my youngest decided to tear a page out of one of his coloring books. He then rolled it up into a telescope so he could pretend to be a pirate and...can you see it coming?...it went into his eye. *Sigh* With all the rubbing he did because of the paper he also scratched his eye. Yay. (note the heavy sarcasm and worry.)

So, this morning I am back to the medical center to see the eye specialist the ER referred us to. Hopefully, everything will be fine. I know I made light of it but to be honest, I am scared. My children's vision is so important to me. I turned my back for a few minutes and here I am. I know that the doctors in the ER said that I did everything right with the saline solution and the cold compress, but somehow that doesn't make me feel any better. Of course, I do have a name for him now. The 8-year-old is Rebel and the soon-to-be 6-year-old is Little Pirate. Brighter things. God's hands and angels wings...

A Decade of Kisses...

Hmmm...

Interesting choice of words, hmm? Well, ten years ago, on Friday, June 13, 1997, my husband kissed me for the first time. Truth be told, he got hold of my shirt, hauled me over to him and planted one on me. Wow. Still gives me goosebumps.

He married me one year and two weeks later. I am still trying to figure out what I did right in my life to deserve him. God really blessed me when he gave me my husband. I love that man.

Just a few flowers...

Spent time with my mom today. Of course. State the obvious, why don't I? LOL.

Took a few pictures of some flowers that I found along our travels. I am so glad that my camera goes with me everywhere!

Oh, and we found a fantastic shower curtain that we can use for Vacation Bible School!!!

Mom's Home!!

YAY! Mom's home!! My mom went to the WV United Methodist Annual Conference this past week. She left last Wednesday and got home Sunday evening. During that time she had her birthday, too.

I have been driving my DH crazy! I will stare at the phone, wanting it to ring or itching to pick it up and call her. I would sit around with this sad look on my face and he'd ask, "What's wrong, Hon?" I missed my mom, that's what was wrong.

Well, she called last night! I was thrilled. DH was thrilled...beyond thrilled, actually. His exact words were, "Oh, thank goodness! She's home!" LOL! He loves picking on me.

Today, I am off to the store to make sure I have everything for my first night of VBS decorating. While I am there, I think I will look at some of the new beads they have gotten in. I was recently asked about bartering some of my creations and I am thinking very hard about it. Since I haven't really ventured out of my comfort zone of family and friends, I am a little nervous and intimidated because this person is so talented with what they do. I still look at the things I make as just a hack-job. I am a bit of a Jack-of-all-trades but a master of none. I think all SAHM's are that way. We have to figure it out or the house falls into chaos! DH says that I should give it a go. Well, sink or swim. We will see.

Key rings

Today I made two new creations. With the success of my Cane Bracelets given to my mom and aunt, I thought I would give it a go. I made two key rings, or key chains, as gifts for a couple girls that graduated with my oldest. Because of the weather, and the fact they forgot about the party, the guys were unable to go but I made the key rings anyway.

I think they are cute. As with my jewelry, I will get better at them the more I make them. As it is, I did get to use a bead out of my Junk/Treasure Drawer! I looooove the pink one! The textures on the blue keyring make me just want to hold it all day!

Accidental Honeysuckle

If you haven't figured it out by now, I spend a lot of time with my mom. Ever since my dad died ten years ago, we have been very close. So this is another "I was out with my mom" post. Just to let you know.

Last evening, I had taken Mom out to a funeral visitation, since one of her parishioners passed away (he was 91 and they were married for 72 years). I was her chauffeur for the evening as her knees were causing her some discomfort and she has a four day conference she just left for today that includes a lot of walking. So, her driving was out of the picture. I got a bit bored sitting on the porch of the funeral home trying to stay out of the way and not disturb the family, but still be close if Mom needed me. I did what any camera-aholic does. Take pictures of ANYTHING! But not noticeably.

When I went to the van to get the camera I passed a fence covered in greenery. I had passed it to get the the funeral home to begin with but something was different. So what? Honeysuckle, that's what! Wonderful, beautiful, aromatic honeysuckle.

I remember when I was little and we lived in Louisiana. The last house we lived in had a wonderful back yard. As you stood in the yard looking at the back of the house, the left corner of the house had this huge honeysuckle bush. It smelled so good!

Walking back to that honeysuckle-covered fence, with that smell enveloping me, I felt like a little kid again. So lost in my thoughts, I momentarily lost my balance on the uneven ground and unintentionally took this picture...

Yeah, it could be a lot better. Still, it's not bad for having lost my balance to take it.

New Gems!

Finally! After several weeks of nothing, I have finally made something. This is my Aunt Martha's Cane Bracelet. It did not take me too long to make the actual bracelet. The elastic piece that I had to sew for the handle...yeah, that was a long conversation with my sewing machine. Almost 30 years old and I am still scared of the darned thing. Go figure.

I had fun making the Cane Bracelet, though. For those wondering, Aunt Martha's and Mom's canes unscrew and have push-button height adjustment. The Cane Bracelets are attached by key rings that are slid onto the cane when it is separated and the elastic that is sewn around the key ring is pulled over the handle to hold it just under the hand-grip. See the slide show for a better look at Mom's burgundy cane with the Cloisonne Cane Bracelet.

While I was picking up an extra pack of beads to match what Aunt Martha chose, I found this darling Dragonfly key chain. The colors were perfect! With her having just finished all those dragonflies for VBS, it seemed like it was meant to be! I think she liked it. She got very excited when I dropped in on her at work today. I know I could have waited, but I wanted to make sure she didn't have to chase that thing around any more than she had to.

Pretty Beads!!!

Sorry, no pictures today. Although, I did take a few of some really nice fluffy clouds, I haven't downloaded them yet.

The beads Aunt Martha picked out are just gorgeous! They coordinate perfectly with her cane. I told her that I still plan on using the beads I found, as well. This will just give her another bracelet to use if she wants. Plus, when she is able to stop using the cane the Cane Bracelets make a fantastic addition to key rings!

I promise to post pictures of everything when I am finished. With VBS coming, I have to get it done soon or we will be chasing her cane all over the church hall! Hahaha!!

Bruised family...

My poor family. My mom is wearing a knee brace and has to ice down her knees every night. She also has to walk with a cane. Now, my Aunt Martha, Mom's sister, has been wearing a medical boot for about two months ( I think. Feel free to correct me, Aunt Martha!). She has something wrong with the tendon in her ankle and it hurts her so much. Well, because of the medical boot, she walks funny. Because she walks funny, she isn't able to stay on her feet very long. And because she isn't able to stay on her feet very long...Mom got her a cane. A blue one. Like hers. *sigh*

Luckily, it is only temporary. It has helped her, though. I feel better knowing that her footing is better. She is even able to park a little further from work and not have to deal with parking meters now.

I had planned on making her a Cane Bracelet to coordinate with her cane, too. I even picked out beads and everything. Then I get this really excited email from Aunt Martha telling me that she found the prettiest beads at the store and could I "please, please, please..." use them to make her a Cane Bracelet. OF COURSE! *smile* I am going to call her in the morning and tell her that of course I will make her a bracelet. She is my Aunt Martha! I don't think she knows how much she has influenced my life. Heck, I wouldn't be able to put beads on a string if it wasn't for her and Mom! This is going to be fun!

Sunset

The day after graduation I had to make everyone get back into their good clothes and go to my mother-in-law's home. In the crush of people and the chaos of figuring out what Isaac wanted to do after Pomp & Circumstance, I had not taken pictures of him with his grandmother! EEEK!

Well, after pictures were taken over at my MIL's(they look great), I took the camera to the store to get them printed. When they were done, and I was stepping outside , I pushed the buggy under a plateglass window to gather my things. I glanced up and saw a reflection of the sky. I immediately took out the camera, seconds were important!

Philosophically, to me, the cloud in front of the sun are all the obstacles that anyone encounters in life. Yet, we are still able to let ourselves shine and be seen around those obstacles, in rays of hope and achievement that are unique to us in some way. This sunset represented the closure of just one milestone in a young man's life. I can't wait to see the rays of sunlight yet to be.