Odds and Ends

I've just been working on my sister's chair cover thingies but the machine I'm using keeps snapping the thread.  I gave up in frustration after the fourth time I had to re-thread it. Some day I will own a sewing machine - one capable of doing at least a zig-zag stitch.  But what right have I to complain?!!!  My friend loaned me (indefinitely) her grandmother's sewing machine.  What a dear, sweet, trusting friend.  

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things". (Philippians 4:8)
This verse gives great insight on keeping positive, and how to stay that way.  I could grumble and complain, but I'm not going to.  And since you are reading this, I'm going to let you see a bit of my thinking about "such things".  In pictures!

 First off, this past year I was thinking about a "label".  I kind of like this one.  It's my own design and a professional could probably do better.  But for now, it will work!

Then there are the many embroidery designs I've done.  Like this one.  I kind of like it, too. Here's how my first attempt turned out:

Not the greatest (I was trying to figure out which way I liked to wrap the letters).  But it's a fun start, right?

And then there's fabric.  Does fabric make you happy, too?  Well, these gems are from my quilting friend Brooke, and I made this piece of loveliness with some of them:

(And my Sunshine looks so adorable in it.  I love this fabric - thank you so much, Brooke!!!)

Here's a UFO from my pile: a quiet book.  These are the pieces for my OHIO TIC TAC TOE and PLANT THE VEGGIES pages.  The tic tac toe pieces are buckeyes and ladybugs (state tree & insect) and velcro on/off.  The Veggies are carrots, potatoes, and beets and are inside pockets.  If any of you have made quiet books before, you know how much time they take.  I really do want to show you the finished pages, but that will have to wait for a bit.  


And still keeping on the "such things" theme, here's some more:

A sweet "Mermaiden" I made (from Hilary Lang's book Wee Wonderfuls).

And a couple of pincushions.  The one on the left is a porcupine (I made his nose a little too platypus-ish, but he's still cute.) 

Alien Blobbies (another cadamsCREATIONS original)

And here's the robot I made for Spunky when Sprout was born.  He actually designed it (pretty great for a 4 year old, if you will pardon my bias!)

And the "E" bag I made for my sister.  I was so impressed with how well this bag turned out.  It was one of my first bags!

OK, I know this blog is about my crafty stuff, but here's a little randomness about me:

I love big fat fluffy squirrels.  (These were in my back yard.)

And last (but not least) for the day:  I love my Sprout, who just recently turned one year old.  He's grown so much!  I remember when I found out I was pregnant he was about the size of a blueberry, so we called him "baby blueberry".  Then he was born and had to be in NICU for a little bit, and when I took him home he shrunk.  And kept shrinking.  On his 23rd day (after losing almost 2lbs) he was hospitalized.

Oh yes.  Look at those eyes!  He's beautiful.  Anyway, he's better now, and growing like a weed (hence the name Sprout).  He started standing on his own on Christmas day, and just took his first step (toward me!) today.

This was at his birthday party - after he devoured his cake (though I'm not sure how much of it actually got IN his mouth!)

Oh, writing this post was good for my heart.  I am so amazed at the things that my hands have made in the past year (that's about how long I've been sewing) and grateful for the friends I have (new, old, creative, and not-so-much). And just thinking about the growth and development of my youngest child (and my other two as well, but that's for another day....) makes me smile.

Hope your life is full of "such things" to think about.  I encourage you: keep those good things in your remembrance.  It will do your heart good!

Blessings,
:) Caren

Advent & Anniversary

Today I'll be rambling on about my thoughts on advent calendars, so I'll share some pictures of the little people who got me thinking of the subject....

I want to start a tradition with my family.  I'm celebrating my 9th wedding anniversary today, so if my math is correct, this will be my 10th Christmas with my husband.  And my 5th with Spunky, my 2nd with Sunshine, and my very first with little Sprout (who is 11 months old today, by the way!)

So I picked up a couple of advent calendars for my "big kids".  You know, the pre-packaged kind with candy behind each door.  So, ignoring the fact that Spunky opened and ate three days worth even before December began, we started on Dec. 1st, right after dinner. 

So I got to thinking: we humans are a self-centered bunch. So how do we get our children to understand that it truly is better to give than receive?  Is it even possible?  I believe that it is.  And that it is my duty to see that my children have every opportunity to learn.  By example (how my husband and I live), and by doing it themselves. 

My boys! (Spunky & Sprout)

My heart was saddened by the advent calendar as-is.  Now, don't get me wrong, I am not judging those of you who do the advent calendar thing.  This is my conviction, and I believe it is for me, not necessarily for you, but I wanted to share. I'm starting a Christmas tradition in my house.  The advent calendar with a twist.   

I got my calendars from Hallmark - love the robot on day 9!

A traditional advent calendar (here in the U.S.) is a countdown to Christmas - and you open one day each day of December, and there's a little treat inside.  But I wanted to have an advent calendar that gave an opportunity to give. To love one another.  To share.  Not to feed the self-centered-ness and greed that we all have in our hearts.

So here's the beginning of our tradition.  We open the little "doors" on our calendar and then we give.  Yep, that's right.  Give that treat to someone else!  Now who likes that idea?  I'm telling you right now that our kids didn't - not one bit! Until we explained that brother shares with sister, so that means sister shares with brother.  OK, so they're both getting a treat, but they have to give "theirs" to each other.

Will it work?  Will it have a positive effect on the kids?  Will it teach them that it is better to give than receive?  I have no idea.  Parenting is not a "you have it or you don't" skill.  It's a process.  And I am being honest with you - I'm still trying to figure it out.  

So I told you all (in this post) that I made some stockings for the Stockings for Kids drive.  Yep, Lyanna was looking to get 50 stockings and she had 219 donated - yay!  At some point she had a giveaway from everyone who had donated to that point, and I won an advent calendar kit.  Fitting, right?!!  It has now been finished but not hangable yet - not sure how I'm going to do that (at the moment it's hanging by binder clips).  

I'm thinking up things for next year's advent, because I think doing the pre-packaged-share-with-your-sibling thing is the way to go this year - start small so the lesson sinks in.  So for next year, I'd like to have verses about loving one another along with a small action for each day. Something that doesn't involve too much time or effort, but trains us to give.  Even if it is a compliment.  Or an appreciation.  Or a piece of candy.  Whatever.  God gave His LIFE for us.  Is a piece of candy so much to ask?  

We love because He first loved us. (I John 4:19)

Blessings to you all this Christmas season!  

~ Caren

Myah Sue

Today's post is a bit different.  I know I usually share crafty ideas with you all, but I got a message from a friend that I want to share with you.  Some of you may know that I like to gift my creations to kids who are ill or disadvantaged in some way.  One such child is Myah Sue.  Her grandmother was my bible study leader several years ago.

A while back I posted about this magnetic playset idea here on my blog.  These are Myah's dress-up dolls. I sent them to her when I found out that she was going to St. Jude's hospital because of a brain tumor.

It was this time last year when I found out, and started to pray for this sweet little girl (who was four at the time, same as my Spunky - they used to play together).  I also made some "Sleepover Pals" for her.  Some little friends to take to the hospital and sleep over with her when she's away from home. (I blogged about these little dollies in this post.)

I just received a letter from Myah's grandmother and I really hope you don't mind but I want to share it with you all, because it may be the most beautiful letter I have ever read:

Dearest, sweet, loving, and faithful family and friends,

Today, in the peace that only comes from God, we share with you that Myah is in Jesus arms. Our grief is undeniable, but so is the joy that Myah is home with Jesus. No more visits to the hospital, no more finger pricks, no more pain…for that we are grateful.
Myah passed away at about 6:00 this morning lying between Mom and Dad. When our spirits were summoned at about 3:00, it was clear that her body was dying, but her heart was strong and her breathing was very much there. We hadn’t really said our goodbyes, and it became clear this was where God was leading us. Myah’s sighs clearly spoke to us over and over, I love you Mom, I love you Dad as we said our goodbyes and let her know that we would see her again in a blink, a minute (in God’s time). God’s peace was abundantly clear and her face shone out happiness, a smile, and heavenly peace.
In our eternal eyes, we were able to see visions of Myah running up to Jesus and jumping in His arms... We saw her holding his hand, jumping, Him swinging her around, and her fingers going through His hair, sweet glimpses of her new life, a life that we will share with her for eternity. 
What we want to share most about Myah is the enthusiastic love she has always had for God, Mom & Dad, her brother, her wonderful grandparents and close family, her church friends, her school friends, and really just about everyone she’s ever met. The song in her heart as well as the ones constantly flowing from her lips are life and love. Our desire is for Myah’s passing to extend far beyond being just about us and our sorrow, but the message she was chosen to carry. 
Please do not let the loss of Myah to be in vain, open your heart to know Jesus and his love in a deeper way. Reconsider your faith questions, ask God, and listen to His love. We don’t believe God was causing her to suffer; we don’t believe He was the root of her tumor. There is evil dwelling in this sin ridden world of sorrow and loss until Jesus comes back, and we long for the day to join Myah. We want everyone who knew her to join her someday and hear her sing again. Things happen even if you believe in and follow God; Christians aren’t exempt. We don’t know why we have this heavy burden to carry, but we have a hope that’s greater than what we’re going through. 
We would ask that you reflect on her life and how she lived and try to live in the same way. The things of this world like jobs, houses, cars, toys, and IPods were not important to her. Often, when something would break or there was housework to be done or on other occasions, Myah would say, “that’s okay it’s not important, people are important”. So let her life change the world by first letting it change your world. Many of you prayed earnestly for Myah and for us…maybe some of you who hadn’t prayed before or for a long time. Myah opened that path; please don’t just close it. Don’t look to the future for the next thing to feel good; live in the here and now, embracing your family and what’s important. Consider your life, evaluate the order of importance of what’s in your heart.—If God is not first, then when the things of this world like sadness and sorrow come against us, we will crumble. In the words of one of Myah’s favorite singers, The Donut Man, “life without Jesus is like a donut, cause there’s a hole in the middle of your heart.”
Finally, we would be greatly remiss if we didn’t somehow try to put into words the incredible blessings we have received from those of you who have surrounded us with love in all forms. Your love and blessings have given us strength beyond what we could have imagined. Your prayers, meals, housework, childcare, e-mails, facebook messages, texts, fundraiser participation, Myah’s celebration and prayer vigil last Friday, the carolers on Sunday evening…we could go on for days. Please read 1Corinthians chapter 13; Daddy read this the other night to Myah. It says, in part, (love) “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres”. Your love and God’s love through you has sustained us. Thank you for protecting our time with Myah, for trusting and hoping with us in God, and for persevering with us through this journey. Please continue to pray for us and encourage us by sending stories of how Myah’s message has impacted your life and your relationship with Jesus. Those stories, in part, are the way God is redeeming our loss.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Blessings to you, dear readers, and may your hearts be full of the peace of God this Christmas season. 

~ Caren