This Week Has Thrown me... Emergency Appendectomy!

I really didn't see that coming! I was feeling so much better from the Curcummin I was taking for th FM. Sunday afternoon I started to get sharp pains on my left side abdomen then the pains kind of radiated all over. I couldn't sleep all night due to the pains. Thenext morning I made a Drs appointment but couldn't get in until 3:20. I lasted until 2:30 and told hubbub to take me to the hospital! Eight hours of waiting later we were told it was my Appendix. I got into surgery around 1:30am Tuesday morning!
I was in the hospital until Thursday! There's no place like home!
Just wanted to update you as to my where abouts!
I'm doing fine now just alot of sleeping!
Hugs to you all and many blessings!

Saturday Night Journaling

Sometimes I just need to draw girlie things... this was my girlie Saturday night!

Hope you are all having a fabulous weekend. Hugs and blessings to you all and as always HAPPY CREATING!

Healing Art Journaling Coming Along

Healing Art Journaling is something that is so close and precious to my heart and now that God has confirmed His purpose in my life I am going full force into diving right in. God is doing AMAZING things in me including leading me to feeling so much better physically ~ SERIOUSLY! I do not remember when I felt this good!

Over Christmas my in-laws came to stay with us and I spoke with them about my Fibromyalgia... a week after they went home I received an article from my mother-in-law about Fibromyalgia and research that has proven people with it who take Curcummin (a derivitive of Turmeric) (Found at everyday health food stores) are finding themselves in a lot less pain and having not to take as much pain medication! I had heard of this a few months back but kind of blew it off as 'ya, another thing that is supposed to help, whatever!' (I was really frustrated back then)... anywho... when I received this article from my MIL I thought about it, and decided that God was trying to tell me something so I went and picked some up and have been taking it for two weeks now, three times a day. I think it is actually working... that and God is showing me such grace and mercy. I know it is all due to HIM who strengthens me.

So... back to the point... I'm feeling good... I'm psyched to do this healing art journaling for the women at the shelter and for my church. God is opening all the doors and is even speaking to me in my dreams and the adrenalin is flowing! YAHOOEY!

The above page I drew two faces, without features, because I am going to write a letter in each. However, I think I may use this in the journaling classes for the ladies to write what's on their mind. It can represent so many things going on inside of them! I got the idea for the border design from a carpet at the ladies shelter (I LOVE FINDING TEXTURE EVERYWHERE!). What a funky design right? So right!







This spread I was thinking about holding your light out to the world so that they can see it! I pictured actually holding the light within us in our hands, how it would look if we could physically hold it and give it out to people!




I did this page while watching a movie and playing with my new labeller. I have wanted one of these babies for a long time and have been watching the prices fluctuate for months... then I found one at Staples for $20.00. I thought, 'what a great price right?'... then I discovered afterwards that the tape that goes inside costs $22.00 each for 13' of tape! YIKES-A-DOODLE that's expensive! So now I am using it sparingly but still had fun making these labels.

Well I hope you are all geared up for a fabulous weekend! I know I am! I pray that you have an amazing weekend and are blessed with great joy, peace and love!

Happy Creating everyone!!!!
Much love always.

Thankful God Knows Me Journal Spread

This week has been a strange one... I was tested and I think I came out okay (with a lot of prayer). There was a confrontation at work and anyone who knows me knows that I am the LEAST confrontational person on the planet! It came completely out of the blue and threw me off guard ~ God helped strengthen me as He always does when I go to Him in prayer. I cannot tell you enough of how blessed I feel to serve such an amazing God.

This journal spread came this past week as I was thinking about the orchestration of events that are falling into place for me to teach at a Women's Shelter here in Calgary. Let me tell you the whole story...

Two Saturday nights ago I was anxiously lying in bed feeling very frustrated staring up at my art shelves, looking at all my supplies. I was mad at myself because lately it has felt as though I am taking advantage of the gifts that God had given me, not using them for His good and perfect purpose. With tears flowing I began to pray crying out to God for Him to relieve me of my gifts if I am not using them for Him. I asked that He take them away if I am just wasting them. I then asked, if they have been given to me for His good purpose then confirm them in me, let me know so that I can serve Him. I prayed for a long time and went to sleep feeling a little uneasy not knowing what God had planned for me.

The next day I went to Church and there was a prayer call for anyone needing prayer. After humming and hawing... I went up to the front. I wanted prayer to ask God what His plans were for me and to show me what to do. Waiting my turn I bowed my head expecting one of the pastors to come up to me. Instead, one of the pastors wives came up to me and began praying. Her words hit me like lightening and my body instantly began to tremble... she said something in regards to ,'God, this lady has a gift and she needs to use it for You...' Right then I knew that God was confirming His gifts in me.

That afternoon this lady called me and I went over to her house the next day where things were set in motion for me to teach the women Healing Art Journaling at the Women's Shelter where she works.

I am so in love with my GOD! He wants to give me all the desires of my heart, and my desires are His desires. My desire is to comfort those in need with the same comfort Jesus once showed me when I was in the darkest period of my life (read 2 Corinthians 1:3-4). Now, it's my turn to give back. Thank you God for this amazing opportunity to serve you.

Did you know that God wants to give you ALL the desires of your heart too? Ask Him and you will see!

Happy Creating everyone, with many hugs and blessings!

Waking The Dead That They May Live

This is what I accomplished at work last week! It has been dreadfully slow for awhile now but we still manage to pull in some Kitchen Cabinetry business... not enough to keep me busy at work but enough to stay in business!

I had three faces in my mind - one representing the walking dead, one representing coming to life, and one representing actually living. I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed working with the grey tones ~ I never use grey.

I hope and pray you are all having a wonderful start to your new week and that you are all warm (if you are in a snowy climate like myself)!

We had a fabulous weekend with my boys gone off to Youth camp and my hubby and I left staring at one another saying, "Okay, now what do we do?" LOL.

Hugs and blessings, and as always... Happy Creating!

My dear sweet friend Angelia over at Angelia's Art Journals has honored me by me being her first interview on her Thursday Blog post of Thursday's Child.
If you would like to see my interview please go to her blog and click on the link Thursday's Child on her sidebar.
Thank you Angelia for this great honor!
Hugs and blessings everyone!

Working Wisdom Into My Soul

I began this spread a couple months ago and for some reason I struggled with the right side. I drew the bird and then I stared at the bird... pondered the bird... and couldn't get past the bird. Not only the bird stumped me, but... the red paper really blocked me creatively too! I don't know if it was the bird or the red flap that through me off!

Have you ever been stumped like that?

After a couple of months I went back to it and managed to finish, but this was really hard to do!




I did enjoy working under the flap however. I liked the pattern of black circles and white marker.

Well, enjoy your weekends everyone! Hugs and many blessings and as always Happy Creating!

Happy New Year - Time To Make Somebody HAPPY!

Time to make somebody HAPPY!

Lastnight my hubby brought in the mail and I received some wonderful happy mail! I LOVE receiving letters from my penpals ~ or anyone for that matter! LOL. My friend in Winnipeg sent me a beautiful letter made out of recycled material and it was just lovely! I am so very blessed. Her letters are all so entertaining and creative.

So I went to work in the reciprocation process to produce my return letter to her...

I found these beautiful sceneric napkins at our local grocery store about a month ago and have wanted to make something with them for the longest time - now was the perfect time! If you click on the above picture you can see that I stitched the napkin together! Don't you just love the scene that is played out on it???



Inside the cover you can see how I glued it onto the other side as well as stitched it. I added pages to the inside of the booklet, pages 2 and 12 (as placed in the book) I shaped into large leaves and then colored and embellished them with some texture.





Pages 3 and 11 I sprayed with Glimmer mist using an alphabet stencil, then I drew wings on the top of the pages. On the other side, pages 4 and 10 I used a large flower sticker that I received from another wonderful penpal of mine which created a lovely accent to the booklet as you can see below.





Don't you just love that flower! I knew I had to use it as soon as I received it! You can't keep something this beautiful to yourself!!! Pages 5 and 9 I drew one of my lovely feather masks with eyes and journal lines ~ I love the Peacock blue with this and have used this color on multiple masked faces I have made!





In the very middle of the booklet I zentangled my hand (which if you know me, you know that I absolutely love zentangling and drawing hands!) This worked out perfectly to create a wonderful focus for the overall spread!

Now all that's left is to fill it in with all the juicy details that only a penpal can write to a penpal! Did I mention how much I love Happy Mail? Now it's my turn to make somebody HAPPY!

Well, I wish you all a very Happy New Year with much love and many blessings! Happy Creating everyone!