Review: Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero

Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero by Amanda Kloots
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Prayer Flag

I thought this was the greatest idea!  A girl I know knows a girl that has a sister (man that is complicated) that is going through chemo.  In order to lift her sister's spirits she is having folks make Prayer Flags that will hang near her while she is getting chemo. I think it is wonderful that she will be able to read God's word, uplifting messages and inspirational quotes while she is sitting there. I was honored when I was asked to make one for this girl.  I feel so blessed that not only did I get to make one for her, but I also get to pray for her.

Here is my flag:

And I just want to add.....be a positive inspiration in someone's life today.  

Trace Creek Crop

This year DiAnna and I went to the crop together.  Our ambition is always larger than our time frame.  Meaning we always plan to make things and get a bit sidetracked.  However, we have developed a philosophy.  Get done what you can, but make sure you have a fun relaxing day.  This year was no exception to that rule.  It was nice to be off work, no one bothering you for meals or fights with siblings...just relaxation, friendship, shopping, eating, and a little Jesus.

DiAnna and I decided before the crop to made matching aprons.  My apron was pretty crappy so this was brilliant idea.  We both took a denim apron and trimmed it with pink trim.  She used an eyelet trim and I used tulle (because I wanted a tutu).  

Here is a photo of my work station.  I was going to work on a Marilyn Monroe drawing that I made.  It was inspired by a pose she did in a publicity still for Niagara.  She was pretty wicked in that movie and I recommend you see it if you have not.

These steampunk inspired items were featured in the Mia's Madness booth. I simply love everything they sell.  It's junk to most by an absolute treasure to me.  I chose some items from the junk bin.  A triangle pendant, a washer, and a few other metals.  Stay tuned to see what I made from .50 of stuff. www.miasmadness.com

This is a photo from the yard sale.  This is where you sell items you no longer need/want were gifted.  I sold a bunch of stuff this year and I did not spend one dime of money shopping it. Now I did get things but everything I bought was with money I made in the yard sale. 

Check out this wagon!  It is all mine!  I have been going to TCC for many many years and never won a thing.  I was sitting with my friends in the church and telling them all that I hoped they won something.  And I listened and wait a minute I realized Jill Rogers finally called MY name.  I won one of the grand prizes. I got the third grand prize awarded the first two prizes where $50 cash. I prefer the wagon because it is something I have always wanted but I never would have bought for myself.  It is extraordinary.  I am very grateful that my name was called. 

I made a couple of sketches but this is the only thing that I finished on the TCC relaxation day.  A wood panel of the Marilyn Monroe drawing I made.  The panel was painted a few colors, I didn't like any of them and finally I got to this green and I liked it.  Next I used Barquoe Motifs to stamp some swirls using StazOn! ink.  Then I used some Aleene's tacky glue and painted it onto the board.  I let it get a bit dry then I painted it with white.  What a nice crackle finish it leaves.  I did a die cut of the Tim Holtz viewmaster thingy and place the die cut on the board.  I used wood icing to make some texture for the background.  Once this dried I used some Walnut Stain ink by Tim Holtz for some effect. I cut MM out from the paper she was drawn and painted on and used Mod Podge to put her onto my board.  I think it's fabulous!!

This is the project I made using the stuff reclaimed from the junk bin.  I did not take a before picture...boo.  The top picture is when I first put it all together. I used wire to hold the circle onto the triangle and made the elder wand with wire down the center.  I painted it with gesso to cover the mixed metals. I added glitter because I thought I would keep it black, but no I found my Krylon chrome spray paint.  I layered many layers of paint on here. I think it turned out grand. 

Another TCC comes to a close.  DiAnna we will do it all again in the spring, Lord willing. 

Seeking His Grace: Blessings/Prayer box

I had this box I was covering. It was not just any regular box, it was a glorious Whitman's sampler chocolate box.  I had covered it in K&Co paper (not sure of which line...it came from a best of pack and the pack did not list the names).

 I had mentioned it to my friend, Valerie and she came up with the idea of a blessings or prayer box.  It was very fitting for such a wonderful box.  We weren't sure what to call it and we talked back and forth for a couple of days with ideas, finally this morning she came up with "Seeking His Grace".  It was PERFECT for our project.

I used Mod Podge in a matte finish to adhere the paper to the box and to give it the finish it needed.  To do the lid and the bottom, I tore little strips of the K&Co paper and decoupaged the tiny bits to the box. The sides were measured and cut to fit.  I also covered the inside bottom and inside of the lid.  

The outside of the lid was decorated in a chipboard branch and paper bird that I had.  The flowers and letters are from Prima.

I think our project turned out to be fantastic!  

I am blessed beyond measure....

There's this girl I work with...well there are many wonderful ladies in our building, but today I am focusing on one.  Heather....I was having a fairly rough day...well week.  And after Heather came in the office and gave me a pep talk...quoted some scripture and generally made me feel better, she left to do her job.

Sometime around lunch she brought me a carrot cake cupcake from Cass & Co., which happens to be the best place to get cupcakes in the whole city of Paducah.

The box was pretty awesome so I took it home and took it apart.  I realized I could cover the box.  I covered the box with papers both inside and out.  I decorated it up a bit and left it on Heather's desk....now she can choose to put a gift inside it and give to someone else.

Here is one of the verses she shared with me:
Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help  you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand"

Now how can you have a bad day after reading that???


I tell you what, I am so blessed by the people that I work with....every single day so many blessings. 

Sunday afternoon good times

This is the album I made today. It is the second chipboard album that I made yesterday.  The Marilyn page is my favorite. The image on the far right is a stencil that I had cut, the other three Marilyn faces are transparencies that I made.  I printed Marilyn faces using my Marilyn dingbat font.  I took packing tape and adhered to the front of the faces.  I pressed it down and even rolled the brayer over each image.  Then I ran warm water along the back and rubbed off the paper.  I LOVE the way they turned out.  This page will actually be added to the album I made yesterday. 


This second album was made for a friend that just recently had to put her dog to sleep.  She is heartbroken and I thought it might help to have a place to reflect on her beloved dog and maybe relive a memory or two.

CR84FN Challenge 70----Wish my eyes were Aqua

Have you ever seen a person with Aqua eyes?  They are simply breathtaking!  This color makes me wish I was around it all the time. I had thought of doing a room in my house this color, but I am saving it for now.  One day, if I ever get a craft room the walls will be purple and aqua.  So I am saving it.  In the meantime I will stick to putting it into my work.

Three of today's cards feature a line of paper that I have been trying to get my hands on for MONTHS!  Every time I went to Achiever's they were out.  In early December I got to go on a trip for my work and had about two hours to go to the mall.  I only went to Achiever's and there I did some serious damage to my pocketbook.  One of the things that I bought was a 8x8 of Ladies Diary by Graphic 45.  The pad that has eluded me for what seems like FOREVER and now it is MINE!!!!  Here are the first projects I made using a single sheet. *****I intend for this paper to last me quite a while.  

Images of ladies and gentlemen are from the Ladies Diary paper pad.  The patterned paper and the stickers are by Creative Memories, the ink is by Tim Holtz (Distress), the bird and butterfly die cuts are by K&Co and the flower by Prima.  They all go together so nicely. I simply can't stop staring at them.

The last card is just as cute, but playful too.  It features a bike by K&Co.  I have actually had it for some time I just didn't know what to do with it.  I think this works nicely.

******************************************************************************

I am also going to put a little chat in this blog.  Think about Happiness.  What does it mean to you?  I am an extremely happy person. I am blessed beyond measure. I have a wonderful family.  I have a great job.  I thought about why people are NOT happy.  One of the books I read was The Happiness Project and while I KNOW I have flaws, my family has flaws, my life has flaws....I would read this and think "I am way happier than this girl".  So I am just going to share with you something that I read years ago and made note of...

Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.
-- Francesca Reigler

 You can agree or not, that doesn't matter, what matters is I am happy, I am blessed, I am loved. 

Love and Marriage

A couple of the girls at work at getting married.  They are taking two lives and merging them into one.  A path I went down almost 19 years ago, and I love him more today than 1993.  I hope these girls are as blessed in their marriage.  As lucky in their life partner.

One of the best Bible verses goes with my thoughts on marriage:   1 Corinthians 13:4-7

 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

  I made one of these cards for one of them and the other for sale.  Every single item on both cards is from the scrapbin.  A bin that seems to be bottomless!!!  

The Wedding and Have Fun rub ons came in some offer to join a club through the mail.

The inks are ALL distress inks

The pleats and rosette were made with the Martha Stewart scoring board

The crown is from K&Co

The boarder punch is Fiskars!

 The flower is Prima

The buttons are Making Memories

The color scheme is by CR84FN

and

The design is by Mojo Monday

I have confidence in paper scraps

This was a self imposed challenge.  Something to get my creatives waves flowing and something that I would not allow myself to spend bunches of time on.  I limited myself to 2 minutes per card and only to the papers, embellishments that were in a canvas box.  You can tell that I have been heavily influenced by the Titanic and once again that love has spilled over into my cards.

The first could have been a card that was in the writing room on the Titanic. Maybe the lady in the photo was a passenger.  Did she make it or not?  Quite possibly she did and this is a thank you card she sent to the captain of the Carpathia?????   

And the second card?  Maybe it is a photo from the newspaper articles written on the Titanic?  Maybe a photo of a family that did not make it?  Or a photo of a family where the kids survived and were now orphans?  

The last card is my favorite.  I think this girl is so happy to be doing whatever it is she is doing.  Maybe going on to a new life?  Marrying the man of her dreams?  Leaving Ireland for some greener pastures?   She is living her life NOW!

The stamp and the photo of the lady are by Tim Holtz.  All inks are by Tim Holtz.  The papers are scraps but they are combos of K&Co, Making Memories, and Recollections.  The Thank You stamp is by Fiskars. The flower stamp and pennant punch are by Stampin UP! String by DMC. 


What did I learn from this challenge?  That sometimes art doesn't have to take all day to be nice.  That sometimes I should trust my instincts and just go with my intuition while crafting.  Be confident in myself. 

Today I had a Bible verse on my mind, it might have something to do with my creations...it might just be another of my ramblings....Philippians 1:6
For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Blessed!!!

Today's posting is all about choices.  I was thinking about the choices that I have made.  I guess in friends.  I was thinking about friendship and the people that were there for me when Henry (Grandpa) died.  There were some people that I expected to come to the visitation and did not.  Then there were those that I thought might come but would not and they DID!  Then there were those that true friends.  Friends I have had for over 20 years.  Friends I feel like I have let down in the past and won't do that again.  God has shown me much in the last two weeks.  He has shown me that I can do things that I did not think I could.  He gave me the ability to tell someone I love that it was okay to quit fighting.  He gave me the ability to promise I would care for my mother-in-law and mean it.  He comforted us during a very hard spring break.  He gave my mother-in-law a blissfully aware attitude to be able to cope with the funeral.  And He showed me that I have put my trust and love in the wrong place.  That I needed to shift what I was doing and who I was doing it with and realize that I have made the right choices by following His will and I need to continue to do so.  I am going to try not to look back at mistakes I have made but look ahead to the good that I can do.  I am have made so many boo-boos, I should learn from them and not repeat them.  I intend to do just that.  I am focusing on truth and not falsehoods.  

I am blessed!!!

To get the looks below:

Patterned paper-K&Co I believe it's Bailey

Pink card stock- open stock from Hobby Lobby

Cream card stock-Bazzil

Doily from a local supermarket

Pocket watch chipboard-Bo Bunny

Ink-Distress inks in Spun Sugar, Frayed Burlap,and Old Paper

Flower from something my father-in-law bought from Publisher's Clearing House

Girl stamp-Hot off the Press Vintage Ladies

Butterfly Chipboard-Oriental Trading

Stickles-Distress Stickles in Picket Fence, Spun Sugar, Vintage Photo, Black Soot and Gold

 

Good Friends

I don't think I have been lucky here. Sometimes I think it's me, sometimes I think I choose unwisely, sometimes I just think that maybe I am unlucky.  Oh, but I do ramble.  

I just mainly wanted to state that I feel that I have gotten in too deep in an area I should not have, who among us has not. I was seeking something. I still have not figured out what it was. I look at what I have and I see I am blessed beyond measure. Way more than I deserve. I have a loving husband that treats me like a princess.  Two VERY good kids that are just incredible.  A possessions I don't deserve but am grateful for none the less.  

I am not going to dwell on the things I have screwed up or left in the past.  I am going to focus on the here and now and my blessings. 

 

Two quotes to leave you with today:


'Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art… It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.” CS Lewis


1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”