Redeemed!

Good Wednesday all my crafty friends! Well in just a few short days, my kids will be back at school! I am sure that many of you are like me and getting ready will all the necessary preparations! Peace to you as you struggle for those mandatory items on their school supply list! If you ever need a challenge or character builder, shop down the school supply aisle the week before school starts! LOL Bless you ALL everyone! :))))))

Yesterday, I shared with you my blessing box in the mail. Today, I will share with you a quick tag I did with one of those gorgeous tags that was gifted to me! This tag is also a part of the Tag It Tuesday Link It Party over on Sheri Whitfield's blog, Cards and More by Sheri! All I can say is, there ain't nuttin like skidding in at the last minute!!! LOL

This month's theme was Patriotic. If there were ever a time to be unified and patriotic in a country, it would be now! I love living in this country and am VERY aware daily how very blessed I am! As in ALL things, I choose to look at my patriotism based on the foundation of Christ! That is in the natural as in the spiritual. This country was based on "One Nation Under God," and I choose to believe that, have faith in that and operate on that on a daily basis! We live in freedom here on this earth, yes by the protection of those brave men and women who stand for us, however there is One who stands NO MATTER WHAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES ARE as the mediator between man and God who provided us with not only freedom, but ETERNAL freedom! Jesus Christ!

This tag was already red, so I didn't have to do much to it really. I began by just scraping some white gesso over with a makeup sponge and them stamping in the background with a my Unity Stamp Layers of Life July 2013 Collection in Black Archival Ink. I then lightly brushed over with gesso again to fade it out.

I then stamped with a "sun ray" like stamp from Tim Holtz's Bitty Grunge Stampers set that in my mind I could use to "burst out" stars, so to speak. It didn't really work out like I planned, but there you have it!!! At any rate, I stamped with yellow ink from ColorBox and then embossed with clear embossing powder. I then stamped again with a blue ink from the same ColorBox set using a stamp from my Unity Stamp Layers of Life January 2015 Collection on the edge. I then distressed the edges with Tim's distressing tool and colored the edges with that same blue ink.

I had this brilliant idea, that didn't turn out to be such a brilliant idea, to mix my gel medium with Finnabair's Glass Glitter in Gold Rush and put through a cute star stencil. Cute idea and when it dried it was ok, I guess, but so chunky that you really couldn't say it was "shiny." So I simply added Gold Stickles on the top to give it some more "bling!" You live and learn!!! LOL

I then simply stamped my sentiment and gave some shadow with my white gel pen, added some cute little blue sequins and some ribbon with a sweet little cross attached! Voila!

The scripture in my heart when I was doing this tag was from Galatians 5. That whole Chapter is concerning your freedom in Christ! It tells us that it is for freedom that Christ set us free! But that freedom was from EVERY yoke of bondage that would keep us in captivity from the things of Christ! God gave us a free ticket for a way out! Why? That we could live free to do His will and purpose on this earth for His very glory!! You can't do someone's bidding if you are chained! Christ's victory was not in vain! It was for YOU and for ME that we may operate in full power by the Spirit and not under the law, which only brought death! He loved us so much, He made a way for our freedom and that Way, Christ Jesus, willingly went that we be reconciled back to the Father for eternity! Phew!!!! I don't know about you, but that is GOOD to me! That is a love worth fighting for!!! 

Here is a link to one of my favorite songs by Big Daddy Weave - Redeemed, that I encourage you to bask in! :) 

My friends, Let Freedom Ring in your heart today! Eternity is a long time!

Blessings to you!

Does Time Really Fly?

The answer to that age old adage is emphatically YES!!! At least to every mom or child on seeing the end of summer vacation!!! The scene is bad enough of a child's first day back to school, the scene is much worse with a mom who has to resume the "backpack, notebook, signed paper, homework, test study notes check!!!" I guarantee in just one short month, the face in the mirror will be all too familiar...................

The adage actually is traced back in English to 1836...WOW...! It originates from the Roman poet who wrote that "tempus fugit" (time flees). In 1835, Shakespeare threw a clock out the window and came up with the saying "time flies" in 1836.

All that said, it was a good, if not short, summer even though we didn't get to travel very much. We only went on one camping trip this summer. But we did a fair amount of swimming and sunning and messing around locally. It's hard for my girls because my husband and I both work, so unfortunately they have to be at the house all day long. But we went without any mishaps to speak of, save the occasional bee sting or sunburn! Not too shabby! LOL

The worst part for me was ALLLL the plans I had for my craft room for the summer! Those literally flew right out the window!! You know, "the best laid plans of mice and men!" Summer time, so flew on by and I got NOTHING accomplished!! I will get my challenges posted this week (never fear Tracy Woodsford), HOPEFULLY, but that is ALL I worked on as the month of July flew right on by! EEEEEEK! :) May the Art God's forgive me!!! LOLOLOLOL

Well I will just have to share what I got in the mail yesterday to give me that art, get me out of a rut, kick in the who ha boost!!! LOL I was SO COMPLETELY EXCITED to receive this MAJOR BLESSING from an ANGEL friend of mine, Wanda Hentges!!!! Wanda sent me an amazing RAK that sent my little heart pitter pattering!! Wanda, my friend, YOU are a TREASURE!!

Out of the gate was the AWESOME tag that Wanda made with her sweet message on the back! I LOVED, LOVED this tag! Wanda's gift and talents are so evident on her webpage and Google+, but it is so much more in person! The colors in this tag and the textures of the embellishments were gorgeous! I loved this little pot and flower. I think I might try to frame this bit of preciousness for a sweet corner in my home!!

Once I removed the tag, all the goodness inside came forth!!! LOl Wanda sent me these AWESOME tags of green and red! These tags are the large size, which I have never worked on before, so I was totally stoked about that!!! As a matter of fact, I couldn't wait and went right home and busted one out that I will share tomorrow!! Loved, loved these tags!! The next bit of goodness was a baggie CHOCKED FULL of amazing bits and bobbles for my mixed media journaling!! Chip pieces to die cuts to bits of embellishments. Once again, I was giddy with excitement! I went through that baggie like you wouldn't believe! I have so many plans for those yummy bits!!!

Then the next layer was the ULTIMATE TOY SURPRISE INSIDE!!!  Wanda sent me amazing discontinued paints from her stash!! The part that is so exciting for me is they are PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Paints!!! YIPEEEEE!!! I have coveted those paints for soooooooo long! Wanda is an amazing Designer for Paper Artsy and her projects made with their paints are always just FABULOUS!!! I simply can't wait to do my next project with all these fabulous colors! Wanda was SOOO VERY generous and I had soooo many beautiful colors included! If there is anything such as an Art Angel, I believe Wanda, my friend, YOU ARE ONE! :)

In God's Word He tells us "This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you." (John 15:12) That is God's amazing heart towards us His children and His heart for His children towards others!!! We are to be representatives or ambassadors for Christ here on this earth. It is God making His appeal through us that ALL be saved and come to know the knowledge of the truth of that GREAT LOVE!!! When others see us, they need to see Christ!!

If you don't know God's Word, which is His purpose for your life, then you can't act according to those truths. Engaging or acting on His Word is to KNOW and LOVE Him and represents a life totally submitted and yielded to His purpose. That is my desire! I have my moments to be sure, but thank God for His infinite patience, grace and mercy!! 

Wanda's precious gift along with her beautiful artwork are all indicative of her love for her Heavenly Father! She's a precious spirit and I can't thank her enough for her random act of kindness to me! I encourage you to go visit Wanda over on her blog and see ALL the lovely things she does with her amazing gift from the Lord!  Thank you for making my day Wanda!!

Share the Father's heart with someone today! You will be blessed and you will be a blessing! :)

More Love in my Box! :)

Good Tuesday all my crafty friends! Today I am going to share with you MORE of the love that came in my post box yesterday! I am sooooo being spoiled right now! :) It is surely more than I deserve, but I am so thankful for the blessing and fun that I KNOW it will be! :))))

Out of the gate, all I have to say is TONYA GIBBS!!! :) I follow a number of people in BIG art world and she is DEFINITELY one of them! Tonya is such an amazingly creative person! She is so talented and I love, love watching her videos! I mean Limor Webber snagged her for her Design Team, so ENOUGH SAID! :) The thing that I love most about Tonya is her ability to make you feel like her best friend! As you watch her videos and glean from her creativity, she is making you feel right at home! Recently she had a project that she did on her blog and taped a set of Ustream video's that covered a Gelli print mini album process for her project in the month of June. I can't ever watch Ustream vids live because I don't have internet at home, but I always catch the taped versions. The never disappoint! You can start watching the project video's here for the wonderful process.

At the end of the video process Tonya did a give away for those who commented on any of the videos. Now, I will have to be honest, I am a bit of a "stalker" when it comes to some of the artists I follow! LOL So I think I commented on all of them and probably blabbed (a lot!) on her blog a bit as well! LOL So, that being said, I was in the pool for the give away automatically because of my "gift for gab!" LOL Well truly, I NEVER win anything, but my friends....I WON!!! LOL Isn't that a hoot! :) I have to say though, in this past year, God has blessed me a couple of times with winning some give away's and allowing me to receive Love in my Box!!! So I can NO longer say "I never win anything!" LOL

So yesterday, this is what I found in my box that, that precious Tonya sent me! I received a 5x7 Gelli plate and GOBBLES of crafty goodness to start my own mini album! TONYA YOU ROCK!!! I had no idea she was going to bless me with so much goodness!!! The funny thing is I was watching one of her vids yesterday and was coveting (I know, not a good thing! LOL) those paisley die cuts that she was using in her gelli print card project and wishing I had those for my project! Well, low and behold, that lovely lady sent me just that!!! LOL I laughed and leaped for joy! :) I CAN'T WAIT to get started on that project because I was in love with her finished product! Die-Versions die cuts are now on my list of things to add to my stash (thanks for that Tonya, LOL)! They have lots of wonderful products that are compatible with many die-cutting machines, so go check them out!!

This morning as I did my Bible study, my thoughts immediately went to Tonya and her gift to me. The scripture for today was out of Matthew 9:35-38 which reads, "Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. When He saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields." We are PARTNERS with Christ in Kingdom building!!!

My friends, one of the main parts of that scripture that stands out to me is "when He saw the crowds, he had compassion on them." God says in His Word, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should reach repentance!" That's God's heart toward us! He wants ALL to be saved! So goes His compassion on a lost and dying world! So what does He do? He sends the Holy Spirit to dwell in mankind that WE be His voice, His feet, and His hands that ALL should come unto Him!!! WE are to be a reflection of a loving and compassionate God who had compassion on us first and then we are to extend that to others! WE are His body on earth!!! What greater love is known to man? What an AWESOME God we serve! He thinks of EVERYTHING! :)

How do I know there is a God? Because of me! I am first and foremost a testimony of the great things He can and will do! I was a mess, BUT GOD!!! The things He has done for me my friends go on and on! How do I know there is a God? Because of people like Tonya! Those who serve, Christ serves! Tonya has been dealing with family emergencies, yet she extends her hand with the heart and attitude of Christ and serves! Out of the small things, great things can happen! I know Tonya will be blessed as are all who strive to serve with the hands of Christ!! 

There is a quote from William Carey that goes like this; "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God." When you EXPECT great things from God, I guarantee you, He will equip you to DO great things for Him! Thank you Tonya for your service!

I'm so eager to get going on my project and I hope you will go over to Tonya's blog, Psycho Moms Scrapbooks,  and check out her talent and great projects! Try out a mini album for yourself! You be blessed today as you partner with Christ for Kingdom building! :)

Blessings

Gorgeous Mail!! :)))

Good Monday, all my crafty friends! :) I have been on hiatus for weeks now! Whats up with that? LOL Well, I will tell you my friends. It's been a whirlwind of a summer! I say summer, but it only just turned "technically" summer on June 21st, however, my kids are just before going back to school and their "summer break" is about to be over....HUH???? It just tickles me!! It's not like it used to be when I was in school.....ummmmm "back then," as my girls say!! LOL Well long story short, ALLLLLLL this time I thought I was going to have to do art this summer, didn't happen!! :) Now, that being said, it was for a good reason.

Many of you know I have two super daughters and my oldest is 15 and my youngest is 11 (I got started late in life, LOL). My oldest no longer feels the need to cuddle, get tickle bombs, joke, get kisses or identify me as "mom" in a public setting (unless she needs money)!! My youngest however, I believe, will be my advocate for years to come! LOL We both love to watch movies so all summer long we have been watching movies till the wee hours each night, mind you, I DO have to be at work the next morning! LOL But she won't be there forever, so whilst she still wants to spend time with me and those big puppy eyes asks me to watch a movie with her, I can't turn her away! My art room beckons, but my baby girl trumps it all day long! LOL I am working on a few projects here and there, but for the most part, its been ALL about her! She's certainly worth it! :)

We went on a great camping trip over the 4th of July, so here is a picture or two of me and my crazy crew! :)

CRAZY

CREW,

ENOUGH

SAID!

Well Friday when I got home I had GEORGEOUS mail from June Tag Swap Partner over on the Google+ Community, Jackie P. Neal!!! Yipeeeee!!  I was so excited to have Jackie as my Tag Partner in June! She is such an awesome artist who is constantly creative, encouraging and inspiring! She is just the sweetest gal and she LOADED me up with creative goodness!!!

Out of the gate, Jackie's package was so fun and colorful front and back! When I saw that package in the mail, I was grinning from ear to ear!! I just knew it would only get better on the inside!! And I was NOT disappointed! Jackie my friend, you just went CRAZY!!! I think I eewwhhhed and aaaahhhhed every time I reached into that package of goodness! I was on a crafty high! :) LOL

Jackie loaded me up with some of the most awesome emphemera and die cuts! I love emphemera, I mean who can get enough of that stuff, right??? There was this gorgeous vintage birthday card that was full of more crafty pieces as well. One of the coolest things she included were postage stamps that were cut from envelopes as far back as 1952! How neat is that? I already have my wheels cranking about how to use those! I can't wait!

Another cool item Jackie included that I went right along with her precious sentiments to me was an "Inspire" stamp that I can't wait to use! The prized tags were wrapped with some awesome scrapbook papers and this AWESOME felt paper that I will be able to use in the future! At every turn my head was spinning with thinking "what project am I going to use this and this and this in?" LOL Note to you Jackie...not a good idea to give me too many things to go off on rabbit trails about! LOL, LOL, LOL  Then the drum roll....

Jackie, you really outdid yourself! No other way to say this except, this tag was the BOMB! I think I may have had a little misty in my eyes when I saw this tag and read the beautiful sentiment on the back!! "Queen of Inspiration" was what that sweet lady put on this tag and on the back Jackie said I was the tag queen!! Jackie, I am humbled for sure! You guys, this tag is even more beautiful in person! The mermaid tail rocks with lots of fishy texture! LOL It's just a gorgeous tag from textures, to colors to the, to the bling, to the beautiful words! Love, love, love!

And if that wasn't enough, she also sent along this beautiful vintage tag as well! I love, love my vintage and this such a beautiful tag. It was so light and summer..ish feeling to me. I loved the color and the texture in the background was gorgeous! And once again, Jackie blessed me with such beautiful and humbling sentiments on the back! I can't express how much I appreciate all that you chose to bless me with! It was a great day indeed!!

I think I have said this a few times before, but I can't express enough how fortunate and blessed I am to have so many lovely, beautiful, talented and creative online friends as I do in our Google+ community! I know there may be some that think we are a little "nutsy," but call it what you will, I feel so very fortunate to have you all as my dear friends! We have not met in person and may never, but it doesn't lesson the importance of your friendships nor make them any less valid or valued! I think it makes them even MORE because we have established special relationships with nothing attached! We've exchanged words, creativity and the occasional photo and still managed to forge what I call meaningful relationships! It's a good time to be alive to have technology to accomplish such a wonderful thing!

THANK YOU so much Jackie for brightening my weekend and warming my heart! I can't wait to get started on some new projects and using your gifted crafty goodness!

Well, I hope to share some projects this week my friend! I have a special one that I am working on that is for my niece but we shall see how that turns out! LOL I pray you all have a crafty good day!!

Blessings