This month's A Year to Remember Class

The online scrapbook class A Year to Remember with Heidi Swapp has reached the halfway mark. Don't want it to end. But since we first did our goal in January, June took us back to that goal to reflect what it will take to reach that goal. Also had a lot of little projects in between this life challenge and art challenge this month. With this class, you not only learn cool techniques, but it is life inspiring.

This is the one photo that came out okay. We had to take about 20 it seems to get a somewhat "normal" picture of me. All of the others, I just started laughing too much. Those really are more me...but then you couldn't tell if I was laughing or crying or in pain. Here's some of the other ones:

It was so hot and humid too. We were melting out there and I didn't help matters. We had a lot of fun though.

The banners and the mirrors were little extra projects that always go along with the month's life challenge to inspire you to reach your goal. The first one is in my workroom and says "Let Go." Has a lot of meaning for me and is the first thing I see when I walk into that room. Makes a difference seeing it. Did another for Father's Day for Clarence, Dennis' Mom's husband.
















This is a little extra gift for someone who has a birthday coming up and she loves dragonflies. Found the picture on the web, traced the pic of dragonfly, then made a template and used that for the mirror. So he's a real dragonfly!

These clocks were little projects from last month, but didn't get to post them. Came out so great. My brother-in-law's clock says "The best is yet to come." Mine says "She knows the time is now." We both turned 40 this month.

Conduct an Interview

One of the scrapbook mags has this "conduct an interview" with 10 questions to be asked. This is fun. Here's the questions with my answers. Leave a comment with your answers too:

1) What age would you like to be for the rest of your life?
You couldn't pay me to go back to any of the grade schools or high school ages...my 20's or early 30's for that matter too. 39 and 40 so far seem to be the best for me. I don't feel like I have a blindfold over my eyes and have no choice or control in where I'm going or doing. So if I could stay right where I'm at would be great.

2) If you could own the world's largest collection of anything, what would it be?
Classic books, all those books I never read growing up, because growing up got in the way of enjoying them. Music from any century and era, especially Big Band, Blues, and the Classics.

3) What three wishes would you ask of a genie in a bottle?
To never worry again; to do what I want to do and not what I do not want to do; unconditional, healthy relationships.

4) What are the secrets to a longer, healthier life?
To not worry and just do it.

5) What is something you feel too young to do?
Not much of anything.

6) What are three things you need in order to be happy?
Rational beliefs; believing I'm free to not do what I had to do in order to cope; and living like it.

7) If you had an extra day each month that no one else had, what would you do with it?
Being that this is a bogus question, I'm going to give a bogus answer and say travel back in time to anywhere in the world in one day and be back home in bed that night.

8) What is something you'd like to do that you're not allowed to?
I wouldn't say allowed, but rather having enough passion and guts to do it is more like it. I've always liked the idea of having a huge fence in our backyard with different sized kennels to hold all the stray animals I find to give them food and water, and TLC.

9) What superhero powers would you like to have?
One of my best friends, Paul, and I used to pretend that we were the Wonder Twins. We would act out how they would say "Wonder Twin powers, activate," then their fists would touch and they'd say whatever it is they want to turn into. I was always the tree, and Paul was the bush. Then when you're ready to transform back, you say, "Wonder Twin powers, deactivate." We would do the sound effects too. Those are the kind of friends I always felt the most comfortable with.

10) What is something you wish you never had to worry about again?
Everything.

Is it Love or Not

Haven't been on in awhile. But had a wonderful 40th birthday, really! My sisters, brother-in-law, and niece came over, well, I didn't know they were coming over until they were HERE! Went to lunch and had a really good visit. Just haven't been able to post, because for the last two weeks I have had terrible headaches (I've had them since grade school). Got more meds from the Dr. Thank God for her!

But that's not what I'm posting about. Happened to pick up one of my scrapbook mags and saw this very honest and loving layout about the day a mom discovered her baby had Dravet syndrome about 13 years ago and the way life for both of them had been since that time. Beautiful story, but what really got me was when she said this:

"And I have learned that God loves us and that He is with us through every challenge."

This blog is not the place where I would journal, so WARNING, this time this is straight out of my journal ;) All the signs and stuff that say God loves you or Jesus loves you is like putting the cart before the horse. It's in your face and almost forced on people - God FORCED on people. God does love us and you and He does draw us to Him. If I didn't know Dennis and I saw signs put up telling me he loves me - I might think that's nice, but I don't even know him. That doesn't mean that God didn't have His Hand in you seeing a sign on the road saying God loves you. He can take bad behaviors or poor behavior and use it for His good and to draw you to Him.

But that is what bothers me about the churchy stuff and all the stuff and signs with God loves you, is God can be a lot more creative and loving the way He would want you to feel, experience, and learn that He loves you, because He wants you to love Him in return for REAL, NOT based on the mechanics of religion.