Where have I Been?

Wow! I just logged into my Blog and realized it has been an incredibly long time since I have written here. A lot has happened in my life during the interim including some major changes.  I am now at a point in my journey that I really want to start writing again. I only have a few followers so only a few of you know I have neglected this blog for so long and understand why. :) 
Today is my 52nd birthday.  There are multiple days in the year that tend to be milestones that cause us to stop and take inventory of where we are at in our journey.  New Years Day, Christmas, our kids birthdays, anniversaries of our marriages or when we lost beloved love ones.  For me my birthday is one of those days when I automatically pause and reflect on the last year, inventory where I am in my life, and look to the future to determine if I feel I am on the right path. 
I am glad to leave this last year behind.  There has been much joy in the year, but also some crushing heartaches.  I have come through it stronger and calmer than I have been for a long time. 
I am looking forward to the year ahead of me.  I am no longer working outside my home and am excited to have a lot more time for the things that bring me joy.  Time to spend with my sweet hubby and create a home for him that is less hectic and more peaceful.  Time to be with and hopefully help my family that I love so much.  Especially my daughter Jenn.  Time to create and sew.
 I am currently working on a king size sampler quilt.  It is in black, white and red.  I have made 12 different blocks and have 12 more cut out and ready to stitch up. I will post some photos of the blocks after I take some pictures.
Michael and I decided we needed to make some changes to our home so it will work better for us.  We are moving the craft room to half of the old daycare room (remodeled from the garage), the craft room will become the guest room, the guest room will become a library/office, the other half of the garage will become Michaels workshop, and the shop behind the house will be for gardening and storage.  It is a lot of work and requires a few "planned" disaster areas while we move through the process.
I am also working on a couple of other projects but will cover those in future blogs.
  

Crafting Away

I have been busy crafting away over the last several weeks, but could not post a number of items until after the holidays because they were, or were part of Christmas gifts.  A good example are these sets of picture frames.  I made them to go with photos I took of my friend and her girls last October.  We had an amazing fun day at a local park doing a "photo shoot".  It was a Mom and Daughter outing and my daughter Jenn joined us.  We ended up with some amazing pics and had so much fun.  I told the girls we wanted photos for their dad for Christmas when I planned all along to make frames for their rooms custom to their colors and personalities with a photo of themselve, a sisters shot, and a Mom & daughter shot.  I am putting the frames on here so everyone can see how they turned out.  The photos are also awsome, but I choose not to share someone else's daughters on the internet. 
I ended up with some lovely shots of Jenn, and even a new photo to use on my facebook profile.  I highly recommend taking a good camera and some time and shooting a lot of pictures.  Of course it helps to have someone like my daughter who is amazing at posing people around to help out!  I can't wait to start scrapbooking some of the pictures.

Happy New Year

We spent New Years Eve with some good friends.  It was a lot of fun. As usual the changing of one year to another leads one to think of all that has happened in the past year, what was accomplished, what you did not get done, again.  Still need to loose those same pounds I resolve to loose every New Years.
 Gwen mentioned one of her friends chooses a word for the new year, instead of making resolutions that are always soon broken or forgotten.  I have been thinking about that and I like the idea.  I did not have a word ready, although one immediatly leapt to mind.  After thinking about it for a couple of days and mulling over a number of words, it is still that one word that keeps rising to the surface.  Renewal.  A time of renewal.  I think I could look forward to a year that was to be a time of renewal.  There is something hopeful and fresh about the word renewal.  It does not throw away everything and start over, it takes what is and refreshes, sweetens, and adds to, to make better what you already have.  I like the thought of that.  I have a good life, I am a good person.  There are areas I need to improve, and so I will follow my first instict and adopt RENEWAL  as my word for the year of 2011.  I will also make no resolutions this year.  I will just work on finding ways to refresh, sweeten, and add to my already very good life.

Another Christmas past

It is hard to believe that another Christmas has come and gone. They swing around so often these days.  What happened to those long days of anticipation leading up to Christmas of our childhood?  Did it just seem so much longer because we were not responsible for all the planing and preperation that went into making everything so special for the family.  Is that why it seems to go by so fast now?  There is just so much to do in such a short period of time and we don't want anyone to miss out on experiencing those special memories, those feelings that we cherish? 
My husband and I received a wonderful gift from our daughter and son in law this year.  They always give wonderful, thoughtful gifts.  This year they took his parents, ourselves, and the two of them on a three hour train ride along the river through the snowy countryside.  The air was crisp and cold, but the sun was bright.  The rocks had little white hats as they sat in the clear cold river water.   The train clickety clacked along, whistled occasionally when it crossed a road.  The car we were in was warm and filled with the murmers of many conversations being held as Christmas music played softly in the background.  A wonderful gift of time, conversation, and laughter.  The memories will last the rest of our lives and we will cherish them.  If you get an opportunity to spend an afternoon on the Thunder Mountain Line along the lovely Payette River, take it.  It is worth the time spent.
It is times like this that I am going to choose to remember from 2010.  There have been many.  I cherish the memories of the times I have spent with my family and my friends. 

New Thoughts

I have been thinking alought lately.  A few weeks at home recuperating will do that to you.  It is either that or staring numbly at daytime TV.  My current favorite quote that I changed today is about one of the realizations that I came to.  I can think endlessly for days and not come up with one new thought or idea.  No matter how hard a person  tries, or how intelligent, or learned they are, very few people today come up with a new idea.  We basically are taking thoughts that have been passed down through the ages, arranging them in new ways, and tying them up with our own peice of string or ribbon.
What has really struck me as I have read many other blogs and talked to some of my friends lately is that we basically all need and want the same things.  We need to feel safe and accepted.  We want to belong and to be loved.  We want to be healthy, to be able to pay our bills, to have fun, to feel valued, to be happy.......
Whether it be here in Idaho or elsewhere around the Globe, I think many are thinking the same things.  They are just using different words, expressing their thoughts in different ways, tying their little thought bouquets up with different colored ribbons.
I am going to try to stop focusing so much on the ribbons, and enjoy the flowers.

File Folder Project.

Here is a peek at the file folder album that I made for my friend.  It is her favorite colors. I had more fun putting it together.  I found the directions at
 http://www.making-mini-scrapbooks.com/filefolderscrapbook.html





they were easy to follow.  I used some decorative file folders, so did not cover them with paper, and kind of did my own embillishments.  I did use all of the measurements, and they worked perfectly.  I found the big file envelope that matched also.  I used the Sabrina line from Making Memories, which I purchased on one of my favorite scrapbook sites, http://www.cropchocolate.com/ , very addicting site.  Awsome folks and excellent customer service.  Cardstock is Bazill.  I made the lace flower.  Sorry if I can't remember where everything is from, there may be a little something from somewhere else.  If you see something that I forgot to give credit where it is due, feel free to leave a comment.  I would like to add that the black leather flower with pearl center is one of my faves...I cut it out of some trim from JoAnns and then added the pearl.  Reminds me of Kimberlee, elegant and gracious, with tough and fun- the perfect combination.

Well....

I thought I would be more consistent about posting new blogs, but surprise, surprise!, I am not.  I have been very busy working on several projects at once and a few are actually coming to completion.  I am meeting a friend for lunch today, actually a group.  One friend recently married and I had to miss her reception due to illness.  I saw a very fun project on another site, started it, and the project kept screaming Kimberlee the entire time I worked on it.  It was hers from the first paper slice.  Some things make themselves for others with love for others from your heart, I hope she likes it.  I am going to attempt to attach the photos and link to the site where I found the instructions.  If it all does not show up all proper like, let me know and I will try again.  I am a new blogger and in the learning phase.  I certainly want to give credit to the sites where I lift ideas when I can, especially since this one had such clear instructions! I am going to have to add links and photos later or I will be late for lunch and work, oh my!