I've mentioned Crop Circles a few hundred times in the past lol, an online facebook scrapping group I belong to. One of the regular challenges/games in the group is the Same But Different challenge. Everyone who signs up receives an envelope with the same items. Usually 5-6 items or so, paper pieces, elements, ribbon or string etc.  We then all create something using those items, page layout, cards etc.  you are required to use at least 1 of everything, for example if there are 3 buttons you must use at least 1, 3 pieces of paper at least 1 must be used etc. You can use everything if you want.
This month the colors and elements were perfect for a fall layout. The diecut leaves and pinecone, The paper I used for my banner and punched pieces, the metal leaf, and border peice.

A Puzzling Situation:

I've mentioned before Crop Circles: The scrap group I belong to on facebook, made up of a group of talented women all with ties to the island of Newfoundland. Besides lots of great friendships, tips, and advice there are also a number of challenges in the group. This time around it was a Puzzle piece challenge. Each person bought a puzzle and sent out a piece or two to the participating members, to be altered, decorated and then sent back. The end result for each person will be a complete puzzle made up of pieces altered and worked on by the other members. An awesome memory collection piece!    I have received 13 pieces so far (some were 2 pieces which I fit together and then altered) and they are below.

Materials used:
 Various papers used Hedi Grace, Tim Holtz and Hot of the Press Color Me, Tim Holtz inks and paint dabbers, Mics ribbons, Word art KC Company and Basic Grey. Tim Holtz tissue wrap, Tim Holtz paints and inks, Tim Holtz Rock Candy crackle paint.

Tis the Season

 I know it is still October, but when making all your own Christmas cards  Tis the Season any and every month. I have been trying to get a jump start on some of my Christmas cards this year. Between medical issues, being away, returning to work and taking part in some of the awesome challenges in the Crop Circle group time can really get away from a person!



I'm not sure how many umpteen of these cards I made, these are the cards I will be sending to family and friends over seas.  I got into a conveyer belt mode and once I found my grove these came together rather quickly.
I used the Tim Holtz Mini Ornamental Movers and Shapers Die to cut out the window. then ran the cardstock through my Big Shot using the Swiss Dots (I think) cuttlebug embossing folder.  Inked all of my edges with Tim Holtz Evergreen bough and Iced Spruce Distress inks.  The background tree line is a Memory Box tree Silhouette  stamp that I stamped using Memento Northern Pine. 
The cabin stamp (which I adore)  and the inside card sentiment are from the Stampin Up Christmas Lodge Collection. I used Tim Holtz Aged Mahogany to stamp the cabin and the word sentiments.

I outlined the edges of he cabin rooftop using  a White Marvy Puffy Velvet fabric marker, quickly sprinkled some Martha Stewart crystal glitter while it was still wet, and then set it with my TH heat tool. the Outside sentiment is from Stampin Up Contempo Christmas ( and note to self  do your stamping BEFORE your embossing haha I always seem to forget that ;) )

Thanks for stopping by !!!!

Christmas Mini Album for a friend a work in progress

I have made a few mini albums in the past and really enjoy working with them. The versatility, the endless options for mixed media, the vast variety of page alteration and decoration.
I've been working on a Christmas gift for a friend of mine in the States. He has always been a great source of inspiration to me so I wanted the album to reflect our faith, inspiration, hope and comfort.


Some of the items I am using ( There is no way I can remember it all lol)  Prima papers, flowers and embellishments, My Minds Eye papers ad embellishments, Recollections papers, Bazzill Cardstock,  Petaloo flowers, Kc & Company Stickers, The Quote Stack: Scriptures,  Heartfelt Creations, Just Rite and Impression Obsession Stamps, Misc items.

 It's been a little while since I've posted anything, real life has been a little hectic lately.

Catherine and Cathy Create  run an awesome blog full of helpful hints, gorgeous projects and of course loads of challenges. One of the challenges they are running this week is the CHALLENGE: "In Threes".      Basically the idea is create something, a card, page, tag, what ever your heart desires but you must use 3 of something.  Flowers, buttons, images, the list of possibilities is endless!!
I decided to give this a whirl and below is what I came up with.

 I made a pop up slider card and I used the stamp sets  Kindness Matters and Summer Silhouettes from Stampin Up. My 3 are the 3 dandelions on the front of the card.  I added a little glitter to the dandelion puffs using Glossy Accents and MS Crystal Fine Glitter.
 

 When the tag/tab is pulled out, this is what the card looks like.  The Thank You image and border are from Hot off the Press.

 Finally this shot shows the tag that is used to pull the top image up and slide it into a standing position. The butterfly is a MS stamp and then little floating dandelion s from the Stampin Up Summer Silhouettes,  again glitter applied for a little added sparkle.

Thanks for looking !!!!

Well it is the beginning of yet another week, the weekend has passed and the count down to the next one begins.
 In August I underwent surgery to have a lump removed from my neck as well as the right half of my thyroid. 3 weeks after that I was told that I have thyroid cancer, that they had removed the cancerous lump, the right half of my thyroid, my parathyroid gland and lymph nodes and have to come back in for another surgery on the left side of my neck to remove the rest of the thyroid, 1 or 2 more parathyroid glands and more lymph nodes and 4-6 weeks after that under go RAI (radioactive iodine treatment) Of course I was told that I had "the good cancer" and that things would be fine. However that is anything but the case.
 No cancer is the good cancer! Cancer is just that cancer regardless of where in your body it is. True the treatments may be different than other cancers and the survival rate for the 4 different types of thyroid cancer are considerably higher than other types, but that in no way makes this the "good cancer"( I am in no way trivializing other cancers, I know how devastating, debilitating and ravaging they are)
 Apart from countless surgeries, with wonderful scars left on your neck anywhere from 4 inches to ear to ear, having your body plunge into a hypothyroid state (and the side effects of that in a nutshell you loose ALL of your metabolism, ALL of your energy, you are so tired through out the day everything is constant battle, you cannot sleep at night insomnia, "brain fog" constant forgetfulness, non alertness, muscle aches, joint issues, bowel issues, dry brittle hair that falls out, extremely dry and cracked skin, intolerance to temperatures either hot or cold,  fast, irregular heart rhythms, anxiety attacks, chest pains, decreased bone density, extreme mood swings and the list goes on.)  You get to have this monitored closely for the rest of your life with constant blood work because levels can change quickly meaning a change in medication dose. You get to have RAI, a pill so radioactive that you are put in isolation in a lead lined room, the pill is given to you in a lead lined sealed container and then you are isolated from human contact for days because the treatment you are receiving to kill any remaining thyroid tissue could truly harm others. You are then lucky enough to come back yearly and have smaller doses of the radioactive iodine and have full body scans to search for newly developed thyroid cells which means a re-occurrence of the cancer. If that is the case the thyroid cancer then grows again in the neck area, the lungs, the spine, bones and blood stream. But the "good" doesn't stop there, because thyroid cancer re-occurs in 1 out of 3, you get to under go RAI again and possible neck and spine dissertations. If your parathyroid glands( the glands that produce the calcium your body needs) are damaged or removed( you have 4 and can function with 2 relatively ok) you develop hyperparathyroidism as well (please check the link, the side effect are vast)
 Because you no longer have a thyroid you no longer have any of the T4 or T3 hormone, which your thyroid produces and every single cell in your body needs both of these to survive and work.  You are put on life long meds. With thyroid issues or thyroids not functioning correctly they put you on life long medication to help stimulate and create the T4 that your body no longer produces with the hopes that your body will continue to convert the T4 into T3.  However with thyroid cancer you are put on extremely high doses of the same medication in order to suppress or prevent further growth of thyroid tissue this is to help prevent recurrence or progression of their cancer. So what happens is a thyroid cancer survivor then has their body thrown into both a hyper and hypo active state.  Your body is a constant seesaw swinging from one side effect to the other never settling on one. with hyperparathyroidism as well, you are put on life long extremely high doses of calcium and Vit. D to help you metabolize the calcium.  Calcium levels also change quickly so you watch and wait for symptoms to let you know ( tingling in hands and feet, severe muscle cramps, extreme brain fog, irritability  etc) then either wait for a dr to change or dose or head to the ER for painful IV injections. So ontop of all dealing with all that 24 hours a day, every day for the rest of your life we get to keep remembering we have "the good cancer"
I have been doing ok with this, have been handling it fine emotionally, (physically I am having quite a few issues), but for some reason out the blue yesterday morning it all hit me hard and for the first time I cried.
When I finished crying I did what all of us scrappers do, I headed to the craftroom to work through my emotions and this is what I came up with. 

Just a little something to help me stay motivated

Happy Hump day !! Whoohoo the weekend is almost here! I've just returned to work this week after a month off for medical reasons and believe me I cannot wait for the weekend lol. 
From the end of August to early October I have quite a few male birthday's in my family. I've struggled a little in the past trying to come up with cards appropriately masculine (sans flowers and poofs and frilly things lol)  Below are a few of the cards I made this time around.


This card was made using Pretty Little Studio: Monsieur Collection, papers and journal card. Film strip border is Tim Holtz.

 My dad is a big fan of the British "Carry On..." films so I bought this stamp for that reason, It is a Technique Tuesday set. I then used  EK punches (scallop and tag) to make the birthday tag.  I cut the tree using a Memory Box die, distressed and inked the edges using Tim Holtz Frayed Burlap and Bundled Twigs.Added an eyelet and some ribbon.  I Stamped the inside of the card using Impression Obsession WoodGrain background stamp. The Birthday banner stamp from hot fudge studio was stamped onto a Spellbinders Label 8 die.

 I again used the Keep Calm and Party stamp on the next card. The papers are from Hot off the Press: Steampunk Collection. Cut out some gears (distress inked and sprayed them) and a car silhouette and good to go !

Thanks so much for stopping by ! Have a fabulous day !!!!!