I am at a loss for words with the tragedy in Japan. My heart hurts for all the poor people who are suffering, who have lost loved ones, who have lost everything, who are now living in fear. Words are not enough for them.
Our second oldest daughter Meghan, is currently stationed in Yokosuka, Japan, just south of Tokyo. She is in the Navy on the USS Blue Ridge, an amphibious supply ship. Fortunately she was not on the island when they experienced the earthquake. She was safe and sound in Singapore where her ship had docked the day before. I knew not to be afraid for her when I heard about the earthquake, but I sure had a lot of people calling me to check on her. (My heart is carrying enough right now, I think God knew that.)
Here is the proud momma moment: Their ship has been sent to deliver much needed aid and supplies to the suffering of Nortern Japan. She may or may not directly have an impact, but she is going to be experiencing something that will alter her way of thinking. She is going to be doing something that most of us can only think about doing. She is going to see people who are truly suffering. She is going to see the anguish, the despair, the ultimate of destruction, and she is going to be able to say that she was a part of the healing process. That is pretty incredible, and I imagine that there are going to be moments that she will never be able to forget. The face of a stranger. The site of a building lying in ruin. Splinters of homes lying in a field. A jumble of nonsense. I pray this will be a moment of maturity for her. I don't want this to scare her, but I want it to awaken her. I want her to truly realize that she is witnessing something that is so horrific and to be able to appreciate the magnitude of the situation. (no pun intended) I want her to grow from this and become a better person- I hope she learns to care more, to love more, to find the good, to make every moment count. Things that one cannot fully teach their child.
May God bless Japan, and all those who come to her aid.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
God Bless Our Home wall plaque
This was originally going to be a gift for one of my Sister-in-Laws, however it's not really her style and I am going to attempt another for her. When I told her this, she told me it was fine for her, but I convinced her that she doesn't have pink or shabby in her home. She couldn't argue with that. :) I am going to list it on ebay and hopefully make a bit of money on it... anything will help with all the medical expenses we are racking up.
The Great news is that Ashlyn is gaining weight. She is 67 pounds now and on the 20th percentile on the growth chart. Higher than she has been in over two years. The goal is to get her up to the 25th and have her maintain it then they will remove the ng tube once this can happen. For now we have cut her nightly feeds down to about 11.5 hours. She is getting about 1750 calories via the tube feeds at night and we are trying the best we can to get her about 1000 calories in food intake daily. Not so easy when you have to avoid peanuts, tree nuts and sesame seeds. This places limits on snacks and we have to read labels for everything. It's shocking what actually contains peanuts, or is produced in a facility that uses nuts.
She started PT this week and begins counseling in about a week and a half. Still waiting for OT and ST. Baby steps.
We're doing aobut 3-4 hours of school each day now and slowly making progress there. Another bonus to doing virtual school- she is not losing anything by not attending school- she will still get to do all the work required for the grade level, as this is a 100% completion program. She will not complete 5th grade this year, We aren't even at the semester mark for many subjects, but we have until July 31st to complete as much as we can, so that is what we will do. She will have to start next year at 5th grade, then work a little harder to complete all of 6th as well. By then she'll be feeling stronger, and she is a determined and hard working young lady. I have faith that things will all work out. :) Extra patience will be needed on my part. lol
It's been raining here the past few days with a lot more in the forecast. Perfect weather to hunker down and scrap- which I have been doing slowly. Priorities first. ;)
The Great news is that Ashlyn is gaining weight. She is 67 pounds now and on the 20th percentile on the growth chart. Higher than she has been in over two years. The goal is to get her up to the 25th and have her maintain it then they will remove the ng tube once this can happen. For now we have cut her nightly feeds down to about 11.5 hours. She is getting about 1750 calories via the tube feeds at night and we are trying the best we can to get her about 1000 calories in food intake daily. Not so easy when you have to avoid peanuts, tree nuts and sesame seeds. This places limits on snacks and we have to read labels for everything. It's shocking what actually contains peanuts, or is produced in a facility that uses nuts.
She started PT this week and begins counseling in about a week and a half. Still waiting for OT and ST. Baby steps.
We're doing aobut 3-4 hours of school each day now and slowly making progress there. Another bonus to doing virtual school- she is not losing anything by not attending school- she will still get to do all the work required for the grade level, as this is a 100% completion program. She will not complete 5th grade this year, We aren't even at the semester mark for many subjects, but we have until July 31st to complete as much as we can, so that is what we will do. She will have to start next year at 5th grade, then work a little harder to complete all of 6th as well. By then she'll be feeling stronger, and she is a determined and hard working young lady. I have faith that things will all work out. :) Extra patience will be needed on my part. lol
It's been raining here the past few days with a lot more in the forecast. Perfect weather to hunker down and scrap- which I have been doing slowly. Priorities first. ;)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
two layouts
I had some time to scrap this week so I made a couple of layouts. I haven't made a layout in months and as simple as these two layouts are, I found it difficult to put them together... I spent way too much time pushing paper, but once I just let go and did not overthink them, I found they came together quite nicely. :) I love it when that happens!
The first is a layout of Kara and Meghan and some pics from Chicago. This was the day after Meghan's graduation from boot camp and Kara was still in training at Great Lakes, so I got to spend the day with both of them (lucky me!). It was a special day for us because it was the first time in 5 months that the 3 of us had been together, and even more so it was one of the last days we were together... not sure when that will happen again... probaby years. :( At least we had a good time that weekend and I am thankful for this time together as brief as it was.
supplies: everything Crate Paper
This one is of Skylar- in her Bee costume. She's soooo darn cute and her personality really shines through in these photos. This girl has the gift to always bring a smile to my face. :) She is truly a blessing to me.
supplies:
cardstock: Bazzill
pp: Sass Lass, WRMK, and Love Elsie
chipboard: AC Thickers
flowers: Petaloo
bee cdie cut: October Afternoon
ribbon
The first is a layout of Kara and Meghan and some pics from Chicago. This was the day after Meghan's graduation from boot camp and Kara was still in training at Great Lakes, so I got to spend the day with both of them (lucky me!). It was a special day for us because it was the first time in 5 months that the 3 of us had been together, and even more so it was one of the last days we were together... not sure when that will happen again... probaby years. :( At least we had a good time that weekend and I am thankful for this time together as brief as it was.
supplies: everything Crate Paper
This one is of Skylar- in her Bee costume. She's soooo darn cute and her personality really shines through in these photos. This girl has the gift to always bring a smile to my face. :) She is truly a blessing to me.
cardstock: Bazzill
pp: Sass Lass, WRMK, and Love Elsie
chipboard: AC Thickers
flowers: Petaloo
bee cdie cut: October Afternoon
ribbon
Saturday, March 5, 2011
many thanks card
I found this cute little card sketch site this morning, Sassy Lil' Card Sketches. The sketches are really cute and I was definitely hit with some inspiration when I saw this weeks sketch. And, with a prize pack from Cosmo Cricket up for grabs... even more motivation! :)
Here is the sketch:
and here is my take on it:
I am drawn to the color yellow lately... it really makes my heart happy. The pink and blue on this are also among my favs. I am thrilled with how this turned out- thanks for the great sketch inspiration! :)
Here is the sketch:
supplies:
cardstock: Bazzill
pp: Crate Paper
ribbon and fabric strips from my stash
rubon: DCWV
chipboard flower: Lily Bee
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Some Valentine's Day projects- and more
March already! I am finally getting around to posting these projects I made for Ashlyn, Skylar, and Emily for Valentine's Day. The last few weeks have been crazy and it's taken me a few days to settle down.
I used some frosting containers and papers from WRMK. Also used are stickers from Pink Paislee, Momenta, Bees from Petaloo, brads and ribbon.
Skylar's set:
As some of you know, Ashlyn has been ill off and on for years now. Many of her doctors have suspected something autoimmune, but nothing has really presented itself, and it could take years to diagnose this if indeed she truly has something autoimmune. She had a REALLY GOOD streak of feeling well back in the end of September through November, only to take a decline a few weeks before Christmas. She was just getting one viral thing after another and just feeling, and looking horrible. Then toward the end of January she started to bounce back, only to be knocked down by a terrible allergic reaction to peanut butter. This sent her body over the edge and she slowly began to decline dramatically. It got to the point where in a 3 week period she lost 5 pounds, and being that she is 11 and was down to 53 pounds and was unable to walk, had a fever a rash and all over pain, this prompted emergency action. She was admitted to our local children't hospital on Thursday morning, Feb. 17, was given an NG tube and kept there for 9 days. They figure the fever and rash were caused by a virus and everything else because her body wasn't receiving enough nutrients, although fortunately her levels were still in great shape. They were unable to pinpoint exactly what happened, but they did rule out anything cancerous or neurological. We finally made it out Friday the 25th in the late evening. She was sent home with the NG tube and has had nothing but formula feeding via the feeding tube since. They are calling it "failure to thrive" something typically seen in infants and toddlers. She hasn't had much growth the past 2 years and this is a concern. She is doing wonderfully now! She's had a lot of PT and has been working hard and progressing quickly. She is up and walking, able to sit and do play games and work on school, things she hasn't been able to do for numerous weeks. She has a smile on her face and oh to hear her sweet laughter! What a blessing! Our girl is back and it's beautiful! She still has a recovery period, but she's strong and determined and will be successful.
the day after she was admited:
the day before she was dischared. HUGE difference!
Life is good! I'll be back soon- take care!
blessings, Rae
I used some frosting containers and papers from WRMK. Also used are stickers from Pink Paislee, Momenta, Bees from Petaloo, brads and ribbon.
Ashlyn's set:
Skylar's set:
Emily's set:
As some of you know, Ashlyn has been ill off and on for years now. Many of her doctors have suspected something autoimmune, but nothing has really presented itself, and it could take years to diagnose this if indeed she truly has something autoimmune. She had a REALLY GOOD streak of feeling well back in the end of September through November, only to take a decline a few weeks before Christmas. She was just getting one viral thing after another and just feeling, and looking horrible. Then toward the end of January she started to bounce back, only to be knocked down by a terrible allergic reaction to peanut butter. This sent her body over the edge and she slowly began to decline dramatically. It got to the point where in a 3 week period she lost 5 pounds, and being that she is 11 and was down to 53 pounds and was unable to walk, had a fever a rash and all over pain, this prompted emergency action. She was admitted to our local children't hospital on Thursday morning, Feb. 17, was given an NG tube and kept there for 9 days. They figure the fever and rash were caused by a virus and everything else because her body wasn't receiving enough nutrients, although fortunately her levels were still in great shape. They were unable to pinpoint exactly what happened, but they did rule out anything cancerous or neurological. We finally made it out Friday the 25th in the late evening. She was sent home with the NG tube and has had nothing but formula feeding via the feeding tube since. They are calling it "failure to thrive" something typically seen in infants and toddlers. She hasn't had much growth the past 2 years and this is a concern. She is doing wonderfully now! She's had a lot of PT and has been working hard and progressing quickly. She is up and walking, able to sit and do play games and work on school, things she hasn't been able to do for numerous weeks. She has a smile on her face and oh to hear her sweet laughter! What a blessing! Our girl is back and it's beautiful! She still has a recovery period, but she's strong and determined and will be successful.
the day after she was admited:
the day before she was dischared. HUGE difference!
Life is good! I'll be back soon- take care!
blessings, Rae
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
more projects for Ally Scraps
OK, I'm back. Waiting for the TheraFlu to kick in, so I thought I would share the bottle set I created with the Echo Park Be Mine collection available at AllyScraps.
see ya!
It's been a long time... (and some GDT projects from AllyScraps!)
Wow. It sure has been a long time since I have been here. I miss it. I am going to make an effort to get back into this blog, even if I don't scrap as much as I used to, which is another thing I miss and am going to make an effort to get back into. :)
On that note, I was asked to be a guest designer for Ally Scraps this month. I was fortunate to have been on the DT twice now and being a guest designer is a honor.
I was given the Echo Park Be Mine collection to work with, which is beautiful! After having not scrapped in months, I sat down and created several cards and projects in just a matter of hours, literally. I was so worried that I wouldn't live up to my expectations, but I did. It is just like riding a bicycle, you just need to get your balance and you are off. heehee
Here are some cards:
and a candle:
OK, that's it for today. My head is splitting and I am going to lay down. I'll be back with more soon. :)
Take care,
Rae
On that note, I was asked to be a guest designer for Ally Scraps this month. I was fortunate to have been on the DT twice now and being a guest designer is a honor.
I was given the Echo Park Be Mine collection to work with, which is beautiful! After having not scrapped in months, I sat down and created several cards and projects in just a matter of hours, literally. I was so worried that I wouldn't live up to my expectations, but I did. It is just like riding a bicycle, you just need to get your balance and you are off. heehee
Here are some cards:
Take care,
Rae
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