I can't believe how long it's been since I posted last! Well, since then my back has gotten better, I went to the National Stampin' Up! Convention in Salt Lake City, and Tim just started teaching at the college again today! My trip to Utah was fun and inspired me to move out of my role as a hobbyist demonstrator and make it into a business, so I will be hosting my first card class on September 15! Now my trip home from Utah was from hell, seriously. Let's just say that I will not be flying again any time soon and I have absolutely no desire to ever go to California again! Those people are the rudest I have ever seen in my whole life! WOW!
Anywho, just figured I should post and let ya'll know I'm still alive. I now have an iPhone and it doesn't seem to be as easy to blog on it as it is on the computer! lol
Monday, August 22, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
June Card Swap, Birthday & Father's Day gifts, and other Crafts!
Our June card swap was a Father's Day card, of course. Here it is...
I used Night of Navy textured card stock, Night of Navy ink, Whisper White card stock, linen twine, spiral punch, and Sweet Shoppe Lower Case *I think.*
I made this card for my Mom's 50th surprise birthday party I threw for her tonight!
I found this small (empty) metal paint can at Menard's and decided to make something out of it. I typed out stats and info on Alzheimer's Disease and made this into a donation can.
I used this on the donation can.
This also.
I made a seam with buttons on the back of the donation can.
This is on top of the donation can.
There was a farmer selling fresh strawberries in Jasper last month when I went for my Stampin' Up! upline meeting and my strawberries came in this cute basket that I weaved DSP through. :)
I love my basket! :)
I saw a similar project on my upline's, Tiffany Bauer, Crafty Picks last week. This one is for my dad for Father's Day and has a picture of me and him from my wedding.
The 2 1/2" circle punch makes the perfect sized circle to put on the lid for a note!
This one is what I gave my mom at her surprise party with a picture of me and her when I was 4 years old.
Note to my mom. :)
This one is for my hubby for Father's Day from our furbabies. :) It has my favorite picture from our first family pictures in it. This will go on our new entertainment center when he finishes building it!
The note from our babies. :)
My first attempt at making button rings!
Let me know if you would like any! :)
Well it's been a long day with an early, long trip to Jasper and throwing my mom's surprise birthday party...it's time for bed. Good night blog world! <3
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Last Chance Stampin' Up! List!!
Stampin' Up! is preparing to release an awesome new catalog on July 1 so that means the "retiring" product list was released today! The products on these lists will be gone FOREVER!! Some paper is being modified and will return in a different way but other than that everything else will never be seen again! lol. Go to stampinup.com and look at the Last Chance lists! There is a lot of cardstock, ribbon, and Definitively Decorative products!
If you'd like to order something comment on this post or email me at guardgeek_2005@hotmail.com asap! The stamp sets that are retiring will continue to be manufactured until June 30 but the accessories list is a limited supplies list...aka what they have is what they have and if you want it you better order it NOW! :)
If you place an order of $50 or more (before tax & shipping) with me, I will give you a FREE 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog on July 1!
Get your orders in! :)
If you'd like to order something comment on this post or email me at guardgeek_2005@hotmail.com asap! The stamp sets that are retiring will continue to be manufactured until June 30 but the accessories list is a limited supplies list...aka what they have is what they have and if you want it you better order it NOW! :)
If you place an order of $50 or more (before tax & shipping) with me, I will give you a FREE 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog on July 1!
Get your orders in! :)
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
May Card Swap!
This month's card swap theme was a card with a different fold...birthday I think lol. I had to ask what was meant by a "different fold" because I wasn't completely sure lol. It just means not the typical folded card! ha go figure lol! I wanted to make a cake shaped card but just couldn't get it to come out right so I thought "What else is associated with birthdays that I can shape a card like?"...Here's what I came up with...
It's a gift bag!! I made the folds so most of the cards do actually stand up alittle! And yes, that is tissue paper sticking out of the top of the bag! :)
This is the simple card that is in the card bag! :)
Hope you like it!!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
The History of My Crippled Body
Well, for those of you who don't know, I have had 3 ruptured disks in my lower back for 6 years now (can't remember if I've blogged about this yet or not lol.)
I was at the end of my senior year in high school, my parents we're in the middle of their divorce, and I was getting ready for college classes in the summer. I had a '99 purple Plymouth Neon Expresso that I loved. The steering wheel didn't tilt so I would have so sit down sideways and slide my leg under the wheel then turn forward to get in. I had done this a thousand times in the almost 3 years I had had that car. Then, one day towards the end of March 2005 I was getting into my car as usual...except when I got my leg under the wheel and went to turn forward...I had this horrific feeling of paper ripping down the left side of my leg and hip. I moaned in pain but went on. It seems thinking back now that the horrible pain was instant but I actually think it took a couple days to become crippling. Either way, this is what happened next...
My mom was still working at Buehler's Buy Low as the DSD Clerk and had to be there at 4am when the trucks came in and my dad had moved out earlier in March, so I had to get myself up for school and get ready and go. My mom would usually call and make sure I was up...I'm no where near a morning person! lol. She didn't know it for awhile, but I was unable to get out of bed the normal way. I would have to literally roll off my bed, into the floor, and work my way onto my hands and knees to pull myself to a standing position. I don't know how long this went on, but I remember one occasion specifically that really was then end of trying to ignore whatever was going on with my body...
I came home from somewhere and was getting out of my car...at least that was my intention. I was in excruciating pain and was unable to move to get out of the car and had to use my cell phone to call my mom in the house to come out and help me out of my car. I cried the whole way up the sidewalk into the house because I was in so much pain. I finally went to the doctor who referred me to an orthopedic surgeon, of course. This is the interesting part...my back never hurt this first year, my hips and legs were the painful parts. My hips and legs would hurt so bad it felt like they were seizing up like full leg charlie horses X 100, and I felt like my legs couldn't work. This interesting/weird fact led me to seeing at least 8, yes 8, different orthopedic surgeons with no answer to my pain.
I remember one ortho doctor specifically that actually suggested I was faking the pain for attention! Needless to say, my mom made sure that doctor understand that I wasn't faking. :) I finally went to the last ortho doctor who was nice enough to admit that he knew I was in pain but didn't know what was wrong with me and referred me to a spine surgeon in Indianapolis. Which I greatly appreciated his honesty.
The spine surgeon in Indi was the first to do an MRI on my back, remember my back never hurt so the other ortho doctors never bothered to xray anything other than my hips and legs. The spine surgeon, Dr. Sasso, found that I had 3 ruptured disks. *NOTE: I saw Dr. Sasso for the first time in April 2006...alittle over a year after I first hurt my back...I had spent that entire year sleeping in a recliner because I could no longer lay down in a bed.* Because I was only 18 almost 19 at the time, Dr. Sasso wanted to avoid surgery...as did I! So he had one of his associates do what I just found out is called a steriod nerve block...which excuse my word choice but it HURT LIKE HELL!!!!! That actually doesn't even accurately describe how painful it was; it was 10X more painful than all the pain I had felt that entire year combined.
My parents took me back up to Indi for this procedure. We were waiting in an exam room across the hall from the procedure room when we suddenly heard a woman screaming bloody murder from the procedure room! She was having the same thing I was getting ready to have! Ok, if you don't know this important fact...I am TERRIFIED of needles and the screaming woman wasn't helping me feel comfortable! I begged my parents to take me home but with some encouragement and stern words *lol* I agreed to go through with it. Normally, they don't allow anyone to go with the patient into the procedure room but the sweet doctor that was doing it realized how upset I was and let me bring my Dad with me.
Now remember how I said I had to sleep in a recliner that whole year because I couldn't lay down? Well, they made me lay on my stomach *OUCH* while they used a live xray machine to view my spine. The doctor was very nice and talked me through the whole thing while I cried and held my dad's hand for dear life. He numbed up my skin, put a port in one of my disks, and proceeded to inject 5-6 different things...towards the end I was screaming just like the woman before me. The final injection through the port was the steriods...this hurt the most! I literally felt like a Mac truck hit me from my lower back down and had pinned me to the table! My mom busted through the procedure room door at that point because she couldn't stand to hear me scream anymore, luckily the procedure was over.lol. The doctor, nurse, and my parents helped me half way sit up and get into a wheelchair. My left side was completely numb for about an hour.
They wheeled me down to the car and got me in, and we drove back to Mt. Carmel. The 4hours or whatever later, I was able to get out of the car on my own! I was also able to walk, bend over, dress myself, and easily go to the bathroom. You may laugh but sitting on a toilet when the nerve going down your leg/butt is raw with pain making it awful! lol. I was fine and dandy with no back pain for the most part until Spring of 2009.
We had been living in our house for almost a year and it was the first warm day of spring...I had gotten my flip flops out to take our new puppies, Toby and Scooter, out to potty. If you've never seen our house, we have a deep ditch in our front yard before you get to the road. I took the boys out front and we were in the grassy area before the ditch. The boys wanted to move forward alittle so I walked forward alittle bit. The ditch didn't look deep but had a small layer of leaves on it. Suddenly the boys saw or heard something and jerked really hard...which yanked me forward and into the ditch on my knees. I realized then that the ditch had about 2 feet of leaves on it and then about 3 feet of mud! I was stuck and my dogs had ran off down the street! I pulled my way out of the ditch as fast as I could, kicked off my flip flops, and took off running down the street for my dogs. Toby stopped about half way up the block and then we took off after Scooter who I finally had to step on his leash at the end of the block so that I could catch him.
I called my mom when I got back to the house for help. I knew I had to do something because I could already tell my back was messed up. I was able to get a massage the next day which helped and then I began seeing Dr. Gill and getting chiropractic adjustments. For the most part, my monthly adjustments have been able to maintain my back health. I have had a handful of times that my back has gone out since then because of different things.
On April 25 this year, the day after Easter, I slipped and fell at a dog client's house. My right leg went straight out in front of me while my left leg bent and went behind me. When I hit the ground, my upper body laid backwards. I managed to get myself up, into my van, call my mom for help, and get back to my house. I realized when I got home that I was missing a small and huge chunk out of the side of the toe big on my left foot. My mom helped me clean up, change my soaked clothes because it was raining, and we called Dr. Gill. He luckily was able to get me in immediately for an adjustment. We determined that my left knee was not happy and that my left ankle was sprained.
I took 2 1/2 weeks off from dog walking to allow my ankle to heal and hopefully allow my back to get better. My ankle felt better and my back was decent so I went on my first walk after the slip. That night I couldn't walk. I went and got more adjustments and mentioned that my knee really wasn't feeling better. He determined that he was pretty sure I have torn my meniscus in my left knee and has referred me to an orthopedic surgeon in Evansville. We are also discussing the possibility that the adjustments may not be able to make me better this time and we may have to consider other options.
So, I have an appointment tomorrow (5/20) with the orthopedic surgeon. We are hoping and praying that if it is torn that it is mild and only needs a knee brace and not surgery. We are also hoping and praying that the adjustments will make my back better so I don't have to have that steriod nerve block again or worse...back surgery at almost 24 *on Monday! :)* Besides the fact that we don't have health insurance, I am terrified of needles and the thought of having any kind of surgery makes me nauseas! I do not take any pain medication except Tylenol when I really need it because I don't have any prescriptions. Your prayers are appreciated.
So now you know the story of my crippled body. I wrote this post for 3 reasons...1)Alot of people either don't know I have all these problems or don't believe me. 2)For those who don't believe me or don't think it's as bad as you think I make it sound because I'm not old enough to be in more pain than you, here is the whole story believe it or not. You are more than welcome to come to my house and help me get around for a day and see for yourself! 3)To thank those who have helped me so much and are irreplaceable. My parents who were in the middle of a divorce at the time and still managed to care for their daughter and still take care of me today. To my new step parents who have joined in on the caring for me when needed. To my wonderful husband who met me during that year of unknown pain and has stuck with me through all that and all the pain since. He helps me walk, he puts my shoes and socks on, he helps me change clothes, he holds me when I break down and cry on the occasion from these frustrations, and even helps me when my back locks up trying to get off the toilet. lol. To my Aunt Judy and Grandma Oliver for always checking on me. To the college teachers I had that first year who never got mad when I came in late to class because I couldn't get moving quick enough in the morning or when I couldn't stay for the whole class because I was hurting too much. To Dan and Donna Garvin, my "2nd parents", for taking care of me and continuing to pray for me all these years.
That's my story. I don't want pity, I would just like understanding from some people. :)
I was at the end of my senior year in high school, my parents we're in the middle of their divorce, and I was getting ready for college classes in the summer. I had a '99 purple Plymouth Neon Expresso that I loved. The steering wheel didn't tilt so I would have so sit down sideways and slide my leg under the wheel then turn forward to get in. I had done this a thousand times in the almost 3 years I had had that car. Then, one day towards the end of March 2005 I was getting into my car as usual...except when I got my leg under the wheel and went to turn forward...I had this horrific feeling of paper ripping down the left side of my leg and hip. I moaned in pain but went on. It seems thinking back now that the horrible pain was instant but I actually think it took a couple days to become crippling. Either way, this is what happened next...
My mom was still working at Buehler's Buy Low as the DSD Clerk and had to be there at 4am when the trucks came in and my dad had moved out earlier in March, so I had to get myself up for school and get ready and go. My mom would usually call and make sure I was up...I'm no where near a morning person! lol. She didn't know it for awhile, but I was unable to get out of bed the normal way. I would have to literally roll off my bed, into the floor, and work my way onto my hands and knees to pull myself to a standing position. I don't know how long this went on, but I remember one occasion specifically that really was then end of trying to ignore whatever was going on with my body...
I came home from somewhere and was getting out of my car...at least that was my intention. I was in excruciating pain and was unable to move to get out of the car and had to use my cell phone to call my mom in the house to come out and help me out of my car. I cried the whole way up the sidewalk into the house because I was in so much pain. I finally went to the doctor who referred me to an orthopedic surgeon, of course. This is the interesting part...my back never hurt this first year, my hips and legs were the painful parts. My hips and legs would hurt so bad it felt like they were seizing up like full leg charlie horses X 100, and I felt like my legs couldn't work. This interesting/weird fact led me to seeing at least 8, yes 8, different orthopedic surgeons with no answer to my pain.
I remember one ortho doctor specifically that actually suggested I was faking the pain for attention! Needless to say, my mom made sure that doctor understand that I wasn't faking. :) I finally went to the last ortho doctor who was nice enough to admit that he knew I was in pain but didn't know what was wrong with me and referred me to a spine surgeon in Indianapolis. Which I greatly appreciated his honesty.
The spine surgeon in Indi was the first to do an MRI on my back, remember my back never hurt so the other ortho doctors never bothered to xray anything other than my hips and legs. The spine surgeon, Dr. Sasso, found that I had 3 ruptured disks. *NOTE: I saw Dr. Sasso for the first time in April 2006...alittle over a year after I first hurt my back...I had spent that entire year sleeping in a recliner because I could no longer lay down in a bed.* Because I was only 18 almost 19 at the time, Dr. Sasso wanted to avoid surgery...as did I! So he had one of his associates do what I just found out is called a steriod nerve block...which excuse my word choice but it HURT LIKE HELL!!!!! That actually doesn't even accurately describe how painful it was; it was 10X more painful than all the pain I had felt that entire year combined.
My parents took me back up to Indi for this procedure. We were waiting in an exam room across the hall from the procedure room when we suddenly heard a woman screaming bloody murder from the procedure room! She was having the same thing I was getting ready to have! Ok, if you don't know this important fact...I am TERRIFIED of needles and the screaming woman wasn't helping me feel comfortable! I begged my parents to take me home but with some encouragement and stern words *lol* I agreed to go through with it. Normally, they don't allow anyone to go with the patient into the procedure room but the sweet doctor that was doing it realized how upset I was and let me bring my Dad with me.
Now remember how I said I had to sleep in a recliner that whole year because I couldn't lay down? Well, they made me lay on my stomach *OUCH* while they used a live xray machine to view my spine. The doctor was very nice and talked me through the whole thing while I cried and held my dad's hand for dear life. He numbed up my skin, put a port in one of my disks, and proceeded to inject 5-6 different things...towards the end I was screaming just like the woman before me. The final injection through the port was the steriods...this hurt the most! I literally felt like a Mac truck hit me from my lower back down and had pinned me to the table! My mom busted through the procedure room door at that point because she couldn't stand to hear me scream anymore, luckily the procedure was over.lol. The doctor, nurse, and my parents helped me half way sit up and get into a wheelchair. My left side was completely numb for about an hour.
They wheeled me down to the car and got me in, and we drove back to Mt. Carmel. The 4hours or whatever later, I was able to get out of the car on my own! I was also able to walk, bend over, dress myself, and easily go to the bathroom. You may laugh but sitting on a toilet when the nerve going down your leg/butt is raw with pain making it awful! lol. I was fine and dandy with no back pain for the most part until Spring of 2009.
We had been living in our house for almost a year and it was the first warm day of spring...I had gotten my flip flops out to take our new puppies, Toby and Scooter, out to potty. If you've never seen our house, we have a deep ditch in our front yard before you get to the road. I took the boys out front and we were in the grassy area before the ditch. The boys wanted to move forward alittle so I walked forward alittle bit. The ditch didn't look deep but had a small layer of leaves on it. Suddenly the boys saw or heard something and jerked really hard...which yanked me forward and into the ditch on my knees. I realized then that the ditch had about 2 feet of leaves on it and then about 3 feet of mud! I was stuck and my dogs had ran off down the street! I pulled my way out of the ditch as fast as I could, kicked off my flip flops, and took off running down the street for my dogs. Toby stopped about half way up the block and then we took off after Scooter who I finally had to step on his leash at the end of the block so that I could catch him.
I called my mom when I got back to the house for help. I knew I had to do something because I could already tell my back was messed up. I was able to get a massage the next day which helped and then I began seeing Dr. Gill and getting chiropractic adjustments. For the most part, my monthly adjustments have been able to maintain my back health. I have had a handful of times that my back has gone out since then because of different things.
On April 25 this year, the day after Easter, I slipped and fell at a dog client's house. My right leg went straight out in front of me while my left leg bent and went behind me. When I hit the ground, my upper body laid backwards. I managed to get myself up, into my van, call my mom for help, and get back to my house. I realized when I got home that I was missing a small and huge chunk out of the side of the toe big on my left foot. My mom helped me clean up, change my soaked clothes because it was raining, and we called Dr. Gill. He luckily was able to get me in immediately for an adjustment. We determined that my left knee was not happy and that my left ankle was sprained.
I took 2 1/2 weeks off from dog walking to allow my ankle to heal and hopefully allow my back to get better. My ankle felt better and my back was decent so I went on my first walk after the slip. That night I couldn't walk. I went and got more adjustments and mentioned that my knee really wasn't feeling better. He determined that he was pretty sure I have torn my meniscus in my left knee and has referred me to an orthopedic surgeon in Evansville. We are also discussing the possibility that the adjustments may not be able to make me better this time and we may have to consider other options.
So, I have an appointment tomorrow (5/20) with the orthopedic surgeon. We are hoping and praying that if it is torn that it is mild and only needs a knee brace and not surgery. We are also hoping and praying that the adjustments will make my back better so I don't have to have that steriod nerve block again or worse...back surgery at almost 24 *on Monday! :)* Besides the fact that we don't have health insurance, I am terrified of needles and the thought of having any kind of surgery makes me nauseas! I do not take any pain medication except Tylenol when I really need it because I don't have any prescriptions. Your prayers are appreciated.
So now you know the story of my crippled body. I wrote this post for 3 reasons...1)Alot of people either don't know I have all these problems or don't believe me. 2)For those who don't believe me or don't think it's as bad as you think I make it sound because I'm not old enough to be in more pain than you, here is the whole story believe it or not. You are more than welcome to come to my house and help me get around for a day and see for yourself! 3)To thank those who have helped me so much and are irreplaceable. My parents who were in the middle of a divorce at the time and still managed to care for their daughter and still take care of me today. To my new step parents who have joined in on the caring for me when needed. To my wonderful husband who met me during that year of unknown pain and has stuck with me through all that and all the pain since. He helps me walk, he puts my shoes and socks on, he helps me change clothes, he holds me when I break down and cry on the occasion from these frustrations, and even helps me when my back locks up trying to get off the toilet. lol. To my Aunt Judy and Grandma Oliver for always checking on me. To the college teachers I had that first year who never got mad when I came in late to class because I couldn't get moving quick enough in the morning or when I couldn't stay for the whole class because I was hurting too much. To Dan and Donna Garvin, my "2nd parents", for taking care of me and continuing to pray for me all these years.
That's my story. I don't want pity, I would just like understanding from some people. :)
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
May Challenge :)
The challenge for my upline this month is to create a 12X12 scrapbook layout because May is National Scrapbooking Month! Here it is...
I made this scrapbook layout with pictures of one of our dogs, Ginger, taken by Kelly Birrell in October 2010 as part of our first family pictures.
This horizontal picture is of Ginger with her Halloween costume on...we have 3 beagles and our last name is Haug which people mistakingly say as "hog" so we dressed them all up as pigs...the 3 Little Pigs! :) lol
I wrote out the story of how Ginger came to live with us. :)
These are the Stampin' Up! products I used for this layout: Sale-A-Bration DSP, Whisper White cardstock, Melon Mambo cardstock, Melon Mambo Pom Pom Trim (Occasions Mini), Hemp Twine, Trinket Key (Occasions Mini), Big Designer Buttons: Sweet Stitches (Occasions Mini), Ticket Corner Punch, Build A Blossom stamp set (Occasions Mini), Blossom Petals Punch (Occasions Mini), Strength & Hope stamp set (Summer Mini), Dimensional adhesive, Melon Mambo ink, Early Espresso ink, Designer Brad-Filigree.
This is the first scrapbook layout I've made on my own, I kinda rearranged a layout I have from a scrapbook class.
Enjoy! :)
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Projects That Are Overdue Their Posting...
I haven't posted in quite a while! Between planning fundraisers for the Alzheimer's Association and the nice weather, I haven't made myself stop and blog. lol.
I made this card for my Aunt's birthday in March. The card base is actually a retired cardstock color that I bought on eBay!
I made this cute card for my bff for our 1 year together! lol. This stamp set is from eBay, also. *Everything I use is Stampin' Up! unless I say otherwise. :)
I made this card for my Dad's birthday in March...can you guess what day he was born on? lol
I made this card for the March card swap, I think, but didn't like it enough so I made a different card. lol
I made this card for my mother in-law's birthday in April.
This card was for Tim's oldest niece's birthday in April. This is the first card that I sewed on on my own! lol. The middle cupcake is raised with dimensional adhesive.
I made all these sympathy cards because my step-mom's aunt passed away and these are for her, her siblings, and her mom.
This is the card swap card I made for April! If you've looked at my cards in the resent past, this should look familiar...I made a similar card in pink for my step-brother's girlfriend's baby shower in March. This is a unisex baby card.
This is the diaper cover.
This is the actual card.
I made this card for a pastor friend/2nd dad's birthday in April. I was soo excited because this was the first card that I made myself with a bow! lol
ATTENTION! The Occasions Mini Catalog will be over April 30!! So if you would like to order something let me know asap! :)
Monday, April 4, 2011
April Challenge...COMPLETE! :)
Our April Challenge was to choose 1 set from these 3 designer series papers from the 2010-2011 Idea Catalog that we didn't care for much...Lap of Luxury, Woodland Walk, or Blueberry Crisp. I chose Lap of Luxury for 2 reasons: 1. I'm not a pink fan lol, 2. I don't care for the pink and purple combo much, it works, I just don't care for it as much as I do others. With whichever DSP we chose, we had to either make 3 cards of 1 12X12 scrapbook layout. I'm more into card making at the moment so I chose to do the cards, and here they are...
I love this card! I'm forcing myself to over-hang some of my accents...I'm a little OCD about odd things like that. lol. For this card I used: Pretty in Pink card stock, Lap of Luxury DSP, Wild Wasabi card stock, Very Vanilla card stock, Very Vanilla 1/4" grograin ribbon, hemp twine, dimensional adhesive, Pretty in Pink ink, Wild Wasabi ink, Chocolate Chip ink, Build a Blossom stamp set and matching punch (Occasions Mini Catalog), and Something to Celebrate stamp set (Level 2 Hostess in Occasions Mini Catalog.)
I love this one, too! These are the first cards I've used the Build a Blossom stamp set and matching punch on and I think I'll be using those A LOT! For this card I used: Lap of Luxury DSP, Very Vanilla card stock, Wild Wasabi card stock, Concord Crush (2010-2011 In Color), Wild Wasabi ink, Concord Crush ink (2010-2011 In Color), Build a Blossom stamp set and matching punch (Occasions Mini Catalog), Something to Celebrate stamp set (Level 2 Hostess in Occasions Mini Catalog), and Ticket Stub Corner punch.
This card is not my favorite, but definitely not the worst card I've ever made. lol. I made this at about 1 a.m. after a very long weekend, so my excuse is that I used so much of my "creative juices" making the first 2 cards that I didn't have any left for the 3rd. lol. For this card I used: Lap of Luxury DSP, Very Vanilla card stock, Chocolate Chip ink, Pretty in Pink ink, Wild Wasabi ink, pearl accents, hemp twine, Ticket Stub Corner punch, small heart punch, Because I Care stamp set (Hostess Level 1 in the 2010-2011 Idea Catalog), and Something to Celebrate stamp set (Level 2 Hostess in Occasions Mini Catalog.)
I hope you enjoyed my cards! :)
Special Stampin' Up! offer!!
Hey all! Sale-A-Bration may be over..but Stampin' Up always has something fun and new coming out!
Right now, while supplies last you can get Grab Bags when purchasing things online! Here's the scoop on what it's all about:
- There is no minimum purchase required to participate in the grab bag special offer.
- There is no limit to the number of grab bags a customer may purchase; however, grab bag items are only available while supplies last.
- All grab bag sales are final. There are no refunds or exchanges.
- Not all grab bags will be unique.
- You should use the following item numbers when ordering grab bags:
Item | Description |
125873 | $5 Grab Bag (containing at least $20 worth of products!) |
125874 | $10 Grab Bag (containing at least $40 worth of products!) |
125875 | $15 Grab Bag (containing at least $60 worth of products!) |
I know I'll be getting some grab bags! How bout you? Let me know if you would like to order any Grab Bags! :)
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Good Bye Grandma Lee Haug
If you know me very well, you know that I am very involved in supporting the Alzheimer's Association. In 2010, I got the Alzheimer's Association to allow me to organize a Memory Walk for Wabash County. I organized numerous fundraisers and the walk by myself. I have a small committee for the Walk to End Alzheimer's (new walk name) this year and we have already had our first fundraiser for the year, Bagger for a Day, which we raised almost $700 at. In 2010 we raised $6,000 for our walk...in 2011 our goal is $12,000!
What you may not know WHY I'm so involved and passionate about the Alzheimer's Association...
Almost 10 years ago, my great-grandma, Goldie Wilkinson, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. My family allowed her to stay in her home for almost a year before moving her to the Alzheimer's Unit in the United Methodist Village in Lawrenceville, IL because it was no longer safe for her to live alone. At the time, I was around 13 years old and didn't fully understand what was going on but I was very upset about my grandma being put into the nursing home.
As time passed, I learned more about Alzheimer's Disease by doing reports and such in high school. When I was in college I did presentations on Alzheimer's Disease, also. I understand just about every aspect of the disease now...that doesn't make it any easier to watch the woman I once knew become no one. If you have never known someone with the disease and have never had to be around the effects of it, you need to thank God every day!
These are the different stages of Alzheimer's Disease in my definition. It starts out as what seems to be simple forgetfulness, but progresses into odd forgetfulness like forgetting where they live or who you are. And in what seems like no time at all, your loved one can no longer recognize your face, your name, your voice, or even your love. There becomes a point when your loved one becomes fearful of everything and nothing can comfort them, communication is usually very little at this point. My great-grandma is to this stage. She very rarely speaks, is terrified of having her hair cut/nails painted/baths, eats very little, walks very little, and can no longer recognize the urge to use the bathroom.
The final stage of Alzheimer's Disease usually moves most sufferers from the Alzheimer's care unit into the end of life care unit of a nursing home or into the hospital depending on how fast the final stage progresses and facility policy. Alzheimer's Disease causes the brain to deteriorate, scans of a person's brain with Alzheimer's is extremely smaller in size than a normal brain, and in turn causes the body's functions to stop. Walking and using the bathroom are usually the first to go due to weakness and/or instability. The body eventually is unable to function and shuts down causing death. The process of Alzheimer's can take as little as a couple years up to 30 some years. There was a woman in the same unit as my grandma who battled the disease for over 20 years before her battle was over.
Now that you understand how Alzheimer's progresses, I'll catch you up on my life and how Alzheimer's has affected it.
My great-grandma's brother, Loren Gerrish, also has Alzheimer's Disease now. Having multiple people with the disease in your family raises your risk of developing the disease in the future even higher. When Tim and I began dating in 2005 I learned that his grandma, Lee Haug, had just recently developed the disease. So, now that we are married (4 years in September 2011) I worry about our future children because Alzheimer's is on both sides of our family.
So, these are the reasons I am passionate about supporting the Alzheimer's Association: my great-grandma has the disease, her brother has the disease, Tim's grandma has the disease, and I want to find a cure so I don't have to worry about my Dad/Tim & I/our future children getting the disease. My dream is a world without Alzheimer's!
Tim's grandma, Lee Haug, lost her battle with Alzheimer's Disease this afternoon. It may sound odd to you that I thank God her medical issues took her home to be with the Lord before her short battle with Alzheimer's did, especially if you've never been around the disease. But I ask that you go back and read through my description of the stages again, do your own research, or go volunteer at an Alzheimer's unit before you think I'm a horrible person. God blessed Lee with taking her home today, I pray every day He'll bless my great-grandma with the same thing. No one should ever have to go through this disease, no one should ever have to realize that no matter how much you love your spouse they can no longer accept or return that love, no child should ever have to care for a parent who no longer recognizes them, and no grandchild should have to become aware of this horrible disease by losing the person they always knew as their grandparent.
I will support the Alzheimer's Association until the Lord takes me home and I hope you will, too!
www.alz.org
www.walktoendalz.kintera.org/wabashcounty2011
Rest in peace, Grandma Haug! I hope all your cherished memories have been returned to you. <3
What you may not know WHY I'm so involved and passionate about the Alzheimer's Association...
Almost 10 years ago, my great-grandma, Goldie Wilkinson, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. My family allowed her to stay in her home for almost a year before moving her to the Alzheimer's Unit in the United Methodist Village in Lawrenceville, IL because it was no longer safe for her to live alone. At the time, I was around 13 years old and didn't fully understand what was going on but I was very upset about my grandma being put into the nursing home.
As time passed, I learned more about Alzheimer's Disease by doing reports and such in high school. When I was in college I did presentations on Alzheimer's Disease, also. I understand just about every aspect of the disease now...that doesn't make it any easier to watch the woman I once knew become no one. If you have never known someone with the disease and have never had to be around the effects of it, you need to thank God every day!
These are the different stages of Alzheimer's Disease in my definition. It starts out as what seems to be simple forgetfulness, but progresses into odd forgetfulness like forgetting where they live or who you are. And in what seems like no time at all, your loved one can no longer recognize your face, your name, your voice, or even your love. There becomes a point when your loved one becomes fearful of everything and nothing can comfort them, communication is usually very little at this point. My great-grandma is to this stage. She very rarely speaks, is terrified of having her hair cut/nails painted/baths, eats very little, walks very little, and can no longer recognize the urge to use the bathroom.
The final stage of Alzheimer's Disease usually moves most sufferers from the Alzheimer's care unit into the end of life care unit of a nursing home or into the hospital depending on how fast the final stage progresses and facility policy. Alzheimer's Disease causes the brain to deteriorate, scans of a person's brain with Alzheimer's is extremely smaller in size than a normal brain, and in turn causes the body's functions to stop. Walking and using the bathroom are usually the first to go due to weakness and/or instability. The body eventually is unable to function and shuts down causing death. The process of Alzheimer's can take as little as a couple years up to 30 some years. There was a woman in the same unit as my grandma who battled the disease for over 20 years before her battle was over.
Now that you understand how Alzheimer's progresses, I'll catch you up on my life and how Alzheimer's has affected it.
My great-grandma's brother, Loren Gerrish, also has Alzheimer's Disease now. Having multiple people with the disease in your family raises your risk of developing the disease in the future even higher. When Tim and I began dating in 2005 I learned that his grandma, Lee Haug, had just recently developed the disease. So, now that we are married (4 years in September 2011) I worry about our future children because Alzheimer's is on both sides of our family.
So, these are the reasons I am passionate about supporting the Alzheimer's Association: my great-grandma has the disease, her brother has the disease, Tim's grandma has the disease, and I want to find a cure so I don't have to worry about my Dad/Tim & I/our future children getting the disease. My dream is a world without Alzheimer's!
Tim's grandma, Lee Haug, lost her battle with Alzheimer's Disease this afternoon. It may sound odd to you that I thank God her medical issues took her home to be with the Lord before her short battle with Alzheimer's did, especially if you've never been around the disease. But I ask that you go back and read through my description of the stages again, do your own research, or go volunteer at an Alzheimer's unit before you think I'm a horrible person. God blessed Lee with taking her home today, I pray every day He'll bless my great-grandma with the same thing. No one should ever have to go through this disease, no one should ever have to realize that no matter how much you love your spouse they can no longer accept or return that love, no child should ever have to care for a parent who no longer recognizes them, and no grandchild should have to become aware of this horrible disease by losing the person they always knew as their grandparent.
I will support the Alzheimer's Association until the Lord takes me home and I hope you will, too!
www.alz.org
www.walktoendalz.kintera.org/wabashcounty2011
Rest in peace, Grandma Haug! I hope all your cherished memories have been returned to you. <3
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
I got an AWARD!
Thank you, Kelly, for the award!
The Liebster Blog Award is given to bring new blogs to light. It's a great way to share blogs that might not otherwise be seen or ones you want to share with others.
As a recipient of this award I must share the love and pay it forward by:
1-Creating a post where I blog about the Liebster award & reveal my 3-5 blog picks
2-Let the honorees know that I selected them
3-Copy & paste the blog award on my blog
Now I have the huge task of narrowing down my favorite blogs that I love to visit and gain inspiration from so I can share them with you.
New blogs that you must visit are...
As a recipient of this award I must share the love and pay it forward by:
1-Creating a post where I blog about the Liebster award & reveal my 3-5 blog picks
2-Let the honorees know that I selected them
3-Copy & paste the blog award on my blog
Now I have the huge task of narrowing down my favorite blogs that I love to visit and gain inspiration from so I can share them with you.
New blogs that you must visit are...
Kelly Birrell
More Creations...
Here are more of my past (yet recent) creations...
I made this for my step-brother and his girlfriend's baby shower, making their invites was my gift to them. :)
This is the baby shower invite cover.
This is the baby shower invite in the cover. :)
This is the first diaper cake I made (in November 2009.)
This is my 2nd diaper cake...I made to smaller ones instead of 1 large one this time.
I finally got to make a diaper cake for a BOY! (November 2010)
This was my other gift to my step-brother and his girlfriend for their baby shower.
This is a towel cake I made for a friend's wedding shower! I was trying to figure out what to make for their shower at church and it just popped into my head to modify the diaper cakes I always make! I think it turned out really well! :)
My Stampin' Up! order should be here by Friday so I can complete my challenge and card swap for April! YAY!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Some of My Creations...
I have most of my creations in a photo album on my Facebook page, but for those of you who don't have me on Facebook here are some of my creations...
I made this card for one of my best friends' wedding shower.
I made this card for a wedding shower at my church.
I made this card when Tim's niece had her tonsils removed. I used a curvy verse get well stamp inside, and the punched out piece on front is raised with dimensional adhesive.
I made this card for my father in-law's birthday.
I made this card for my step-brother and his girlfriend's baby shower. The front pink/white piece is raised with dimensional adhesive.
I made this card for my grandpa and step-grandma's anniversary. I also used this same card layout for the March card swap, just with a different curvy verse stamp.
*Excuse the poor picture quality, these were all taken on my cell phone! lol*
Well those are some of my creations with Stampin' Up! products so far. I have a few more that I will post tomorrow along with some of my other crafts. :) Going to enjoy a nice quiet evening at home with my furbabies, and work on some fundraiser things for the Alzheimer's Association. <3
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