My Best Creative Designs

Here are my best design products - my kids. MJC, 18, and CCC, 15, at the Mock Trial Regional Event on Saturday. This is our fourth year in the mock trial program, and my son has loved it! This is my daughter's first year. MJC won "Most Effective Attorney" both rounds! He was the prosecution and had closing arguments and did a great job. We are so proud of him! CCC was a wonderful witness. She is just so calm on stage and managed beautifully for her first time.

Here are some shots of the whole team and the lawyer coach. He has devoted countless hours over the years to our kids! We are very thankful for him and for the teachers at our high school who sponsor the team. Outside of their regular jobs, these professionals spend a great deal of time - approximately six months a school year -- working with the team.

Don't these students look magnificent?!! When you see them perform, thinking on their feet, knowing state law and quoting it during rounds, you wouldn't really believe that they were high school students if you didn't already know it!

Definitely, if your school has a mock trial program, consider getting your kids involved. No matter what type of student your child is, he/she can excel. There are so many possibilities. The fact that they learn a case and the law that goes with it, learn their particular part and the rules that go with that, and then have to perform against another school and be prepared to follow a completely different take on the subject and stay on track is magnificent! They are polished, thinking on their feet, dedicated to the subject, and an integral part of a team. It's very exciting and very rewarding!

I Was Feeling The Love And Then Just Felt Sick

Valentine's Day started out to be a good day but went downhill fast.

GOOD DAY:
1. I am happy to say that I won three of the ONE-World ONE-Heart blog giveaway project. Now being that I was very particular about the ones I entered - only ones in which I knew I would love to receive the artwork - I am very thrilled. My prizes will come from Cheryl, Kathy, and Dawn Marie. If you go to the link over each lady's name, you will see what is coming my way. However, Dawn Marie's was in the making, I think, at the time of her post.

2. I made a new friend in the blog world. While reading Ravenhill - I know, again, but just look at today's posting and see the beautiful fabrics she received. Anyway, I noticed Erna's comment that she was new at blogging, so I just had the thought to hop over to her place, in Holland, it turns out, and left a comment there. I was her first comment received, and she wrote to me very excited and is going to send a treat my way. I told her I should say, "No, please, you don't have to do that." But I would definitely like to see what she would send from home. Check out her blog. It is called Blij Als Mij. That's Dutch for "Happy Like Me." Great blog name! Say hello and make her doubly happy and check out her parents' hotel she mentions on her February 5 posting. Very nice. I might need a visit.

3. I embroidered the hanging heart above from some wool felt for a friend. She liked it enough to hang on her bedroom door. Great compliment, very appropriate.

4. Something personal: My son has been offered a full scholarship from a specific college program, including extra funds that he can keep for spending or saving!!! He has been accepted to two of his choices so far and needs to make his decision soon. In this case, it really is like the Emmy awards, "It's just an honor to be nominated!" We are so proud of him. And if he takes the full scholarship offer, I won't have to work more to keep his pockets filled while he studies!! My husband and I visited the department that offered him the full scholarship on 02/14/2008 - definitely felt the love there - and would feel just marvelous to have him choose that program.

Bad Day:

The bad day started Monday evening really. I began to feel a bit of a sore throat/sinus thing coming on. Tuesday it got closer, Wednesday it was full on and I was in a cloud, Thursday I developed complete - TOTAL - laryngitis while visiting the above college (not that my son minded me down to a whisper!), Friday worse, worse while we visited another college out of town, and today, Saturday, I couldn't take it anymore. I went to the Urgent Care, and I tell you there must have been 20 people in front of me with the same symptoms coughing, blowing noses, etc. I would have been there for hours. So, I got up my courage, called my friend whose daughter-in-law is a new doctor in the practice I go to, and asked her to have her call me from home. I felt bad about using my connections and a bit of guilt by mentioning the long line at the urgent care but not as bad as I would have felt had I stayed there all morning! Thankfully, the sweet girl told me to just come on over, so I actually made the house call and was treated to a Z-Pak.

I Started Feeling The Love Again…

Scandanavian Beauty

Every so often, I come across something I must have. Well, there are LOTS of those oftens, but every, every so often, there is something really beautiful to me that I must have. I spotted these little babushka dolls a short time ago and immediately knew I had to have one. But how? No patterns around. I didn't notice any for sale. Then, one of my favorite bloggers, Emily, who lives in Norway, mentions she is making them for a future web shop. So, I waited and lurked (Note to nonbloggers: That means you're poking around the blogs and not commenting every so often that you are there.), and it finally paid off. I think I might have been one of the first to the shop, because I found little Hege here, and she is on her way home to me! I have the perfect place in mind, too, to display her. Please stop by Ravenhill to see what Emily is up to and to her Ravenhill Etsy Shop so you can have a Scandanavian Beauty for yourself. And don't just lurk, hit the comment button on her blog (and mine, too, please!) and let her know what you think!

heART's in the mail!

Okay, my heart art is worn out! So much worry and planning over the heart swaps I participated in. As I mentioned before, I bought too much: heart punches, heart paper, heart doilies, heart boxes, heart wire-shaped heart tray, heart buttons, heart stickers, heart machine embroidery designs, and more heart supplies that I can't think of. Again, I probably already had most of the items I needed anyway, but the shopping hunt, of course, inspired me.

I received this sweet card from Jen for the ITTY BITTY VALENTINE SWAP. I love the tree branches with the little hearts floating away. So pretty. And see how she used the brads for decorations in the corner and the perfect, little bows. She told me those bows gave her a hard time, and that makes them all the more special because I'm a "perfect bow" nut and will work one again and again until it is just right.

Molly sent me this lovely embellished heart box for the SWEET HEART BOX SWAP. She filled it with yummy chocolate, cupcake holders, candles, and fingertip towels. I'm sorry to say that Camille and I were so excited about the contents, they were disbursed around the house before I remembered to take a picture, so I snagged these photos from Molly's page.

Here is the altered heart box I sent to Molly. It was so hard for me to think about what to do. I decided to rip papers up and decoupage them to the box lid, and then I chose one paper for around the box bottom. I had more ideas, but this was all I could do.

Filling it was easier, and you can check out what I put inside by clicking on the picture. Of course, I machine-embroidered a dishtowel for her. Why do I do that every time? Oh, yeah, because I can -- thank you, Grandy.

This is my send for the MY VINTAGE CHERRY HEART SWAP.

Now, I am risking showing these pictures because I don't know if the box arrived yet to its destination. I sent this set to Else in Norway. You know, it was easy to find the items to fill the heart-shaped tray quite affordably. HOWEVER, I probably doubled that by the postage! NOTE TO SELF: Next time don't choose a glass-lined, wired tray to send across the sea! On the other hand, Else tells me that V-Day supplies aren't as abundant in her area as they are here, so I'm hoping she will have fun using the cards and cupcake liners and such for her Valentine sweethearts. When Else's comes my way, I'll be anxious to see what she sends from her Norway.

If you head over to the mishflicks and click on the Swap Set off to the right, you can see more views of everything sent and received.

Thanks to the ladies to hosted these swaps, as I can tell that is a big job.

MaryAnn hosted the ITTY BITTY VALENTINE.

Maria hosted the SWEET HEART BOX SWAP.

Dolly hosted the MY VINTAGE CHERRY HEART.

It looks fun and creative, but I think in the end, it is just hard work keeping up with everyone and making sure everyone is as happy in their match as possible. You must have to love it to organize it. I'd better not even entertain the thought of hosting one of those. BUT, I have some really good ideas running around in my head . . . .

My Art Out In The World!

Here is the result of my participation in the January Inchie Swap hosted by Joanne. Mine is the one on the bottom left with the little button. Below you'll see all the inchies I made for the swap. I sent 8, and Joanne sent back 8, including one from each participant, all mounted on a pretty little card she made. The picture above is actually the one Joanne posted on her site. Click on it and see it up close.

Joanne lives in England, and it seems like a lot of the participants live there or in Europe, so my art is out in the world now! It's fun to think that what I've created has landed up in places I may never visit. Look at the detail one can get in an inch. It's hard to believe that those squares are truly so small.

So, go by Joanne's blog, Made By Joanne, and see all the cards and paper art she creates. She also knits and gets some great yarns. Maybe you will challenged to participate in one of her inchie swaps.