2014 Life Verse

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6


Tuesday, November 27, 2012

New Surgery Date

Hey guys.  I sure hope everyone has been doing ok.  How was everyone's Thanksgiving?  Mine was good.  We go to my sister in law's house every year, so I had no mess to clean up. :)  I had planned on making homemade yeast rolls but that didn't happen.  So, I stopped at the store and picked up some King's Hawaiian Rolls.  For those of you who have never had those...OMGoodness...they are so delicious.  Addictive.  Fantastic.  Yummy..yeah I could go on and on, but I won't.  We had all the usual fare for dinner.  My SIL makes the best stuffing ever.  She found a recipe that allows you to cook the stuffing in the crock pot.  It's fantastic.   For dessert, my MIL made pumpkin pies, pumpkin squares which are like pumpkin rolls without all the hassle.  Someone had given my SIL a recipe for a fruit cobbler with only 4 ingredients.  It was wonderful and so easy.  All you need is butter, brown sugar, a yellow cake mix and canned fruit of your choice.  That's it.  1 hour at 350 degrees and you've got an amazing cobbler.  Top it with some vanilla ice cream and your in heaven.

So, today is my birthday and I woke up to about an inch of snow on the ground.  I didn't ask for snow for my birthday. I'm not going to complain though.  Some of the surrounding areas got as much as 7 inches.  I'll take my one and be happy.  So, I turned 40 today.  I was hoping to have a big party, but my fall put the nix on that.  I wanted a real birthday party, but, I am thankful that I'm alive and can walk so I'll take it.  I got lots of cards in the mail and my MIL made me a special dinner...spagetti with meatballs, garlic bread with cheese and bake pineapple.  I didn't want cake this year.  My MIL gave me the most beautiful card and it made me cry.  It was so beautiful.  It basically said that she views me as a daughter and not a daughter in law.  It was absolutely beautiful.  Yep, I'm a sap.

On to the latest update on my surgery.  As you know, my original date was postponed because my sugar was too high.  That was my fault because I got so frustrated with the whole diabetes thing and wasn't taking my insulin like I should have.  I ended up having to go back to the endocrinologist who changed my insulin a little and this past Friday, gave me the ok to have the surgery.  I called the surgeon's office on Friday afternoon, like I was supposed to, only to find out that the scheduling department left early.  So, I left a message and they called me on Monday.  The scheduler told me that as far as she could tell that there were no openings until after Christmas.  Well, let me tell ya, I was not a happy camper.  I asked her if my neck was as serious as they led me to believe.  Was the situation really as dire as the doctor's said.  If they were willing to wait that long, did I really have to wear this brace and be so very careful?  She told me that she would speak to Dr. Campos about my concerns and as soon as she heard back from  him, she would call me.  Well, I didn't hear anything yesterday, so today I called back around noon.  The nurse said that Dr. Campos was in surgery today and she only had a few seconds to see him this morning, and that she was waiting for him to reply.  I figured I wouldn't hear anything until at least tomorrow.  At 5 pm, Amy called and said that Dr. Campos had come back to the office after surgery to look at my file.  He said that yes, my neck was as dire as he said and that I couldn't wait until after Christmas to have this surgery.  He looked at his schedule and rearranged some things and scheduled me for next Friday, Dec. 7th.  I have to be at the hospital at 6am.  I am so not a morning person, but on the bright side, I will get a 4-5 hour nap..hehe  My momma is going to be here on the 4th and will be staying for a few weeks to help me out.  I already have the plan in place for my daughter and it looks like I will finally be able to get this neck taken care of.  I am not worried at all.  I know that God has me in the palm of His hand and He will be with me in the OR guiding the doctor's hands.  I'm just glad that I am finally getting it done.  

Please continue to pray for me.  I very much appreciate all of them.  I will keep you guys updated as things move along.  Thank you so much for following along with my on my journey.  God bless ya'll.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

QKD Saturday Showcase

Good Morning all.  Can you believe this is the last Saturday of the month?  Unbelievable.  I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Today's  project is a tag that I made using the Butterfly Surprise Box stamp from Joanna Bromley.  I love this little stamp.  It's so cute and versatile.

I made this tag by stamping the image 6 times on white card stock in different colors of Distress Inks.  I cut two of the main images in quarters and used them for the background.  I crinkled my tag and sprayed it with water to distress it.  I then used a direct to paper technique to add four different colors of DI inks.  I used my heat gun to dry it and then attached the images to it.  For the four little tags, I cut each one 1/8th smaller than the one before it.  I added a brad and attached them to the middle of the card in a fan.  I did ink all of the edges with DI Vintage Photo.  I added some multicolored trim to the top and added a sentiment.  There also is a little bling in the corners.

I hope you enjoyed my project and have a good time perusing through the QKD Store.  Thanks for stopping in and God bless you.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Doctor's Appointment

Hi ya'll.  Just a little update.  I go back to the surgeon tomorrow morning at 9am.  I'm not sure what's going to happen.  I do have another appointment with the endocrinologist on Friday and he said that if my sugar is still good and my numbers are good he will release me to have surgery.  I will know more tomorrow and Friday.

A friend of mine has blessed me with a trip to the beauty shop.  I'm going on Friday to get my hair cut short because with having to wear this neck brace and getting ready for surgery, it's just too hard to take care of my hair.  I want something short, easy and quick.  Shower, throw some gel or mousse in it and go.  I will upload a pic afterwards.

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving.  And I say..Gobble til you wobble..you can always fast on Friday..hehe  God bless ya'll and thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

QKD Saturday Showcase

Hi ya'll.  I'm here with another card using the cute Ms. Claus stamp by Sandra Caldwell.  I just love her rendition of older people.  Some of them are very funny.

Today's card is of course a Christmas card.  I used two oval die cut DPs from DCWV for the background.  I cut a piece of red card stock for a base and ran it though my Cuttlebug with the Holiday Words embossing folder. I tied a piece of white satin ribbon round the card and tie a cute bow knot.  I used paper piecing to make the focal image.  I did this by stamping the image on the white card stock and then again on red.  I fussy cut out her hat and dress and glued them on to the white stamped image.  I used Spectrum Noir pens to color in the parts that needed coloring and added alittle bit of glitter pen to the bell and the holly.  And of course I had to add some bling to the corner.

Thanks again for stopping in and I hope you will hop on over to the Queen Kat Designs Store and check out all the wonderful stamps you will find there.

Hope you all have a great day!  God bless.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

QKD Saturday Showcase


Good Morning friends.  Welcome to another Showcase Saturday for Queen Kat Designs.  Today's card uses the  Surprise Butterfly Box by Joanna Bromley  I love this little box.  It could be for birthdays, congratulations, marriage, engagement, retirement.  This stamp has so many possiblitlies.

I used Spectrum Noir alcohol pens to color in the image.  I did a few spots of Sakura Glitter Pen just for some bling.  I rounded the corners or the image, inked them in DI Vintage Photo and matted on a gold card stock with rounded corners.  The DPs are all from my stash and are from K&Co.  I added yellow/gold gems in the corners.  The sentiment is from a pack that I had hidden in my stash.

I hope you all like this card and will take a hop on over to QKD shop and take a peek at all the wonderful stamps.  Have a wonderful day and God bless you.

Friday, November 9, 2012

News

Hey eveyone,

I have an appointment with the endocrinologist on the 13th.  I requested to actually see Dr. Harris.  No PAs no diabetes educator, just Dr. Harris.  The last time I went, the diabetes educator told me to count carbs.  REALLY??  I have had diabetes for 13 years and your telling me to count carbs.  Lady, I can't carbs in my sleep.  Give me something that will help me.  Good grief.

I have my next appointment with the surgeon on Nov. 20th.  I did find out that my family doctor didn't feel comfortable with me having the surgery until we get my sugar down a little.  She said I could stroke out, have a heart attack, or numerous other issues.

So, the way I see things, God knows what He's doing.  He has this whole thing mapped out.  Maybe He is going to use me as a walking testimony of healing, maybe not.  Maybe someone that needs to attend to me during surgery wasn't going to be there today.  For whatever reason, God didn't want me having surgery today.  That's ok with me.  I will just keep trusting in Him and plodding along with my new blue and white fashionable collar. hehe.

I kinda over did it today.  I tried to do some dishes, a load of laundry, and cleaning off the kitchen table.  Yeah, I paid for it.  I had a severe headache and slept all afternoon.  I have to try and remember that I am not a superwoman.  I am not invincible.  I have to take it slow and be careful.

The biggest bummer of this whole thing is not being able to craft.  It's been 5 days since I last crafted and I'm going stark raving mad.  I miss it.  I have tons of cards to make, I am following along with Kathy at Paper Phenomenon making a 31 Days of Christmas Lapbook and that's on hold.  I need to craft something..I have to figure out a way to craft while in this collar.  Anyone have any good ideas?

I will keep you updated as things progress.  Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers.  I truly appreciate them. God bless you all and have a wonderful weekend.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Latest Update

Good Morning friends.  My surgery has been postponed due to my sugar being high.  My sugar always runs higher than most for some reason, but the doctor doesn't want to do the surgery because most people don't heal well with high sugar.  I am an anomaly.  Nothing about me is normal, but you know how doctors are.  I will keep you posted as I find out more.  Thanks so much for the prayers and thoughts.  I truly appreciate it.  God bless and have a wonderful day.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Newest Information

Hello there friends,

I just had my appointment with Dr. Campos, the neurosurgeon.  I am scheduled for surgery at 11 am on Friday.  He said there was no option other than surgery.  I have two huge pieces of bone that were broken when I fell and they are pressing on my spinal cord.  They have to be taken out.

The surgery is a 4-5 hour long procedure and a 3 day hospital stay will follow.  They will be going in through my throat and moving aside my vocal chords, esophagus and bronchial tube.  I may wake up with no voice for a while because when everything is moved aside like a curtain, it becomes irritated and swollen.  Dr. Campos will remove the C4 and part of C5 and replace it with carbon fiber discs.  There will be a metal plate screwed into C3 and C5 to fuse the vertebrae.  I do have to quit smoking because smoking prevents new bone from growing.  My vertebrae have to regrow some to fuse with the metal plate.  If I do not stop, I may have to repeat this surgery and that's something I don't want to do.  So after 30 years, I am saying goodbye to Marlboro.  Friday Morning will be my last smoke on the way to the hospital. My husband said we will take the money I am spending on cigarettes and put it in an envelope and at the end of the year I can spend that money on scrapping supplies.  I'm excited.

I won't be blogging for a while.  So this is my last one until I can sit up and sit in a chair for any length of time.  I do not have a laptop, just an old dinosaur that gets me through.  I will check my blog one more time before I go to bed on Thursday night to get any messages you guys might leave.  Thanks for the prayers and warm thoughts and I will "See" ya'll soon.  God bless.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Update: Emily's Injured

Hey guys.  I know that many of you check in from time to time to visit me.  I have to tell you that I won't be posting for a while.  I fell on Thursday and whacked my head pretty hard off a dresser.  I thought I was ok, but the headache was progressing daily.  I woke up on Sunday with a headache that would kill a horse.  My husband took me to the urgent care site and after only 15 minutes, the doctor came in and said they couldn't see me.  I needed a CAT scan and they couldn't do that there.  I did have a concussion and they wanted to check for bleeding on my brain.

We headed to the ER  and 14 hours, a CAT scan, 4 MRIs, and two shots of morphine, they found out that I have cervical stenosis in my C4 and C5 vertebrae.  I am now in a cervical collar and have an appointment with the neurosurgeon tomorrow morning at 9:30.  There is a 98% chance that I have to have surgery on my neck to enlarge the opening in the vertebrae.

Cervical stenosis is a problem.  A major problem.  If I happen to hit my head or twist my neck the wrong way, I could end up as a quadreplegic.  I am not all about that.  So, I have to be very careful.  No lifting, twisting, bending over, or anything strenuous.  My daughter is such a good housekeeper at 8 years old, she is helping me out alot.  My husband took me to vote this morning and is taking me to the doctor in the morning.

I just wanted to give you guys a heads up so that you won't be worried if you don't see any posts for a few days.

Thought I would show you guys a pic of my new fashion accessory.  Cute ain't it.  LOL.  Thanks for stopping in and I will update you guys as soon as I know something.  God bless ya'll.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

QKD Showcase Saturday

Good Saturday Morning.  I hope everyone is warm and having a wonderful day so far.  It's cold here.  When my husband got home last night, the heat had kicked itself on.  I have it set at 50 right now because we have oil heat and it's really expensive to fill the tanks.  So, last night our house was colder than 50.  BBBRRR.. I was snuggled under the comforters so I didn't realize it was so cold.

Today is Saturday which means a new project for Queen Kat Designs.  Today I am using a new stamp by Sandra Cadwell called Ms. Claus.  I think she's adorable.  Sandra has some of the most amazing stamps over in the Queen Kat Store.  If you haven't checked her out, you most definitely should.

I thought I would change things up a bit and make something besides a card with this cute stamp.

I started out making a circle card, but then changed my mind.  I made this into a Christmas ornament for our tree.  I used a cd to trace around for the card base and the DP. The three lacy die cuts came from friend of mine.  I stamped the image on GP #110 card stock, red card stock and green card stock.  I used the paper piecing technique for Ms. Claus.  I used a dark gray Spectrum Noir pen to color her in.  Everything else is paper pieced.  I cut her out and pop dotted her into the middle of the circle.  I used a light green glitter pen to color in the holly on the hat.  The glitter stars are die cut stars ran through my Xyron and dipped in silver glitter.  I added a red ginham bow and punched a hole at the top to hang.

All in all, I think she turned out very cute.  I can't wait to put this little cutie on my tree.

Thanks for visiting today.  Have a wonderful Saturday and God bless.

Too Cute to Spook

Good Morning Friends.   It's almost 5am here and I can't sleep.  I hate when that happens.  So, I sit here at my computer writing this post.  Oh well.  It's going to be a good day anyway. ;)

Today's card was made for the My Craft Spot Challenge.  Our challenge was to create a card with the theme, "Too Cute to Spook."  I wasn't quite sure what to do with one.  But then I found this adorable image from Cuttlebug Cuties.  When I saw this one, I knew she was the one for this challenge.

Isn't she adorable.  How could she spook anyone?  I used my colored pencils and OMS to color her in.  I cut her out and used pop dots to adhere her to the front of the card.  I also used some DI Vintage Photo to try and cover up the bright white outline around her.  Sometimes I like to leave that outline, but she didn't look good with it.

I made this paper rose with the Tim Holtz  Tattered Flowers Die from Sizzix.  I just bought it from AC Moore on Thursday on sale.  I have wanted it for a while and when I saw it on sale, it came home with me.  I filled the center with hot glue and added black seed beads.  I attached this with hot glue to the bottom left of the front.

Here is the finished card.  It's an Easel Card.  I am having so much fun making these types of cards.  I even made an Ernie one for my husband's birthday on Wednesday.  Yep, that's right.  He's a Halloween baby.  I used two different patterned papers from DCWV Halloween and Fall pad.  They are black and pink.  It's kind of hard to tell on camera.  I added a strip of bright pink card stock so that the little cutie would show up better.  I then added the sentiment which I popped up with two layers of foam tape.  The black gemstones I added for some bling.  All in all, I think she turned out pretty cute.

I thank you for stopping by today to visit and I hope you all have a wonderful Saturday.  Stay warm and God bless you.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Hebrews 4:16

Good Morning Friends.  How is everyone today?  I hope that those of you effected by Sandy are safe and  sound.  My heart goes out to everyone affected.  

Today, I am featuring a card made for Word Art Wednesday.  This challenge blog is all about using Scripture and uplifting quotes to make cards.  Cassandra Cushman is the founder of the blog and Word Art Designer, along with  Karen M who designs the Word Art also.  This is my first challenge with them because I couldn't get the art to download.  I finally switched computers and voila...I have word art.

Our Scripture for this week comes from the Book of Hebrews, Chapter 4 Verse 16.

Excuse the crookedness of the picture.  I'm still not too good at it.  I chose a pink and green color scheme just because it's one of my favorites.  I found this paper in my old stash and I do believe it's from DCWV.  I used a piece of scalloped ribbon in pink for the middle.  I matted the Scripture on three different mats and used pop dots to adhere it.  I added pink rhinestones to three corners and a handmade satin flower with pearl center to the other corner.  The flowers are very easy to make.  Just cut three graduated circles out of costume satin.  You can make the as big or as small as you desire.  Using your heat gun, hold the piece of satin at and angle until it begins to melt and curl.  Move fairly quickly so you don't scorch the edges.  You can also use a candle to do this, but I haven't mastered that yet.  Once you have your three curled pieces, attach them together by sewing a pearl bead to the center.

I do thank you for stopping by to visit today.  I hope you have enjoyed my card.  Be safe today and God bless you.

Make a Wish

Good Morning.  How ya'll doin' this cold mornin' ?   I am sittin' here with my fleecy on and an little electric heater by my side.  It's just Nov 1st and I refuse to turn on my oil furnace. It's going to have to get alot colder before I do that.

Before we get started with my card for today, I have a special request.  For those of you who pray and believe in the power of God to heal, please say a prayer for my dad, Gerald.  He had knee replacement surgery on Monday and is having a hard go at it.  He still can't put any pressure on the new knee yet and is still in much pain.  Thanks in advance for the prayers.

So, today's card was made for the Penny's Paper Crafty Challenge for this week.. Birthday's.  Penny is celebrating her 100th challenge.  Congratulations Penny.  That's quite an achievement. 

I used a cute image from Dearie Dolls  and man, is this site full of precious images.  And the best part, they are all FREE!  Yep, that's right, Maryellen gives us her beautiful creations for free.  She is one talented lady that's for sure.  I used my colored pencils and OMS to color in the image and the sentiment, which is from Birdie Brown.  I chose an aqua and grey color scheme to highlight the image.  Both DPs are from my stash and are DCWV.  The aqua card stock is Colorbok. Even though the one strip of paper looks black, it is actually dark grey.  

Thanks for stopping in for a visit.  I hope you enjoyed this card today.  Stay safe and warm and God bless.

White Delight

Good Morning.  Welcome to another Thursday.  I hope it's a good one for everyone.  Just think..only a few more hours and it will be Friday!!

Today I have a card to show that I don't make very often.  I am a very colorful person and don't do alot of tone on tone cards.  I made this card for the Digi Darla challenge for this week.  The challenge is to make a white card.  I'm not a big fan of white as a focal color.  I need the rainbow..hehe, but I gave it a shot.

Sorry for the shadows in the picture. I used an embossed piece of card stock that has words about Friends and Friendship on it.  I bought this 8x8 piece a few years ago down in Hershey, PA at Things Remembered in the outlet mall. I have been saving it for a reason, and I guess this challenge was the reason.  I cut it down to 5 3/4" square and attached it to the white 6" square card base from Colorbok.  I added a strip of lace that I got at Joann's the other week for 30% off.  The flowers I made out of costume satin.  I cut three circles in graduated sizes and crinkled the edges using my heat gun.  I then sewed a white pearl in the middle.  They are fairly simple to make, you just have to watch your fingers.  They tend to get a little hot.  Adding some white pearls to the corners finished off the card.

I hope you enjoyed my White Delight card.  Thanks again for stopping in for a visit and we'll see ya'll next time.  God bless and have a wonderful day.

Thinking of You

Good Morning Friends.  How is everyone today?  Thank you for stopping by to visit me today.  I truly appreciate it.  I hope everyone is warm this morning.  It's pretty chilly here in PA.

Today's card is a Thinking of You card that I made for two challenges.  The first challenge is over at the The Outlawz.  It was Wednesday's Sketch Challenge.  I really liked this sketch.  I think I may be using it quite often.  The second challenge this card is entering into is over at The Stamping Boutique.  They have some really great challenges and a wonderful design team.

My pictures are pretty much always crooked.  One of these days I will learn to do better, but until then, we just have to deal with it..:)  I love the way this card turned out.  It's so soft and pretty.  All of the papers and card stock came from my stash.  I think the DPs are from DCWV and I know the card stocks are from Colorbok.  The stamp is from a free set that came in a magazine I bought and I have no idea who designed it.  i love the floral images in the set.  It also came with some sentiments, just not a thinking of you one.  So, I printed out the sentiment from my computer.  I added a touch of pink grograin 5/8" pink ribbon and I was done.  I did sponge some pink ink around the flower to give it a little bit of a pop.  I cut out the image using my oval dies from Nestabilities.  I used pop dots on both the image and the sentiment.

Thanks so much for coming to visit today.  I hope you all have a wonderful day.  God bless.