Thriving Art

HELLLOOOO  T-GANG,  friends and followers!!  So  Saturdays post  was all about "getting back in the saddle again" and getting back into posting regularly again.  Well, that lasted all about 24 hours.  Sunday I woke up with a head full of .........welllll, a very stuffy head and a cough to go with it.  Yea, all those vitamins and supplements only held it at bay until the holidays were over. I did A LOT of sleeping Sunday off and on and got an other good nights sleep last night, so I feel like I'm in the land of the living today. I even got dressed, put on my shoes and went out to buy some much needed groceries this afternoon. There is SO much yucky stuff going around here, and from what I have heard and read, everywhere else too. Just the season.............and lets not forget the impact of all the weather has too.  My goodness we have had some rain here........ten years of prayers are being answered this year....LOL For the ho...

Only 4- 5, depending on where you live, days left in 2016, are you ready for the new year??? It is frosty out this morning so I hope you brought along something warm to drink. I know the  T-gang  are here with their drinks in hand.  My coffee always comes with me in the mornings. I came in here to work on a journal for the new year.  It had been put together and some paint put on the pages over a month ago, then set aside as the holiday grew closer and things started to really get busy around here.  I have it set up, like a planner, with a week spreading across two pages......Monday through Sunday.  Well, the 1st of January is a Sunday hmmmmmmm! Hadn't thought about THAT! So the first day of the first month is on the first page....LOL!  Here are a few pages from my trial run. You can see the 2017 journal under it waiting for a bit more of something.  It started as just a journal, a week on each page, but I wasn't consis...

Twas the week before Christmas,  and all was set just right.  The cards were all made,  and presents taped up tight. So on the sofa I sat by the trees bright lights. Watching Christmas movies, I had taped through the nights. When what to my ears do I hear? my cell phone is ringing ever so clear. My friend is calling me, "Lets do our Christmas lunch my dear" So, the date was all set  and the time was too. But just a bottle of wine  for her wouldn't do. So off to the stores I did fly, look at the people standing in line...oh my! What does my mind remember this day? Oh shoot! I forgot Ronda's birthday. So into the cart things got loaded, checking off the things I had noted. Now everything is wrapped,  for both of these friends, but this is not where the story ends...... Now my memory is old  and starting to fade, I almost forgot  an appointment I made. To the beauty shop I needed to be for...

This year I decided to use a lot of my dies to make Christmas cards.....it started that way over a month ago when I created the following two cards......(ssssh! I just finished the insides this morning ) So stating early really hasn't helped me much as I am dashing to the finish line today, so I can start sending them out this afternoon.   I love this framed tree die from Gina Marie Designs.  For this first card I did remove the center trees so I could insert my reindeer standing in the snow.  Background and snow drifts are made from a very fine glittered paper and then I added some extra snow with Pearl Pen.  The snowflake is a left-over from last year. My Time to Craft is having a challenge of Christmas Animals and I think my reindeer will fit right in.     Challenge 335 Christmas Animals      Here is the same framed tree die cut, with all the trees left in place, and an other left-over snowflake. This card I am going...

If you wait long enough, or in my case, just get things half made (grin) the challenges roll around that fit your project....LOL!   I have started making a few Christmas cards......or at least getting some of the components made. This little gold embossed tree has been sitting on Betsy for almost two weeks!  I finally mounted it on some gold glitter paper, added a few rhinestones and got it onto a card base, with a simple sentiment. The black background paper is a glossy cardstock, but getting it photoed was a challenge in it's self.   I adore how this card turned out, and hope to make a few more, but the black glossy cardstock is getting harder to find these days.   Here are the challenges that came along to fit my card...LOL!   PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO VISIT THSES CHALLENGES AND SEE THE MAGNIFECENT DT WORK!   Challenge 272: Any Holiday   Challenge 120     Week 386: Sparkle and Shine   Cha...

    The last Tuesday, of this year, to meet up with the T-Gang and Elizabeth , and of course I am running late!! So this is going to be a quick post..........that's my intention anyway....*grin*  I'm starting with a picture of the beautiful turkey my DH cooked for Christmas dinner.  He cooked it outside in one of the ceramic cookers.......I wish you could smell it.....OMGoodness is was delicious!!     Our dinner table, with labels, since I write about these families quite often.  I had the pleasure of having 4 generations of our DIL's family here for dinner........we have known these people for over 35 years......yep, Brian and Vanesss grew up together.     The "little" sister's table   Most of you, that come for T-Day know these two     Before Christmas, I received a package from Lisca, the Scrapping Cavewoman.   She had made me this fantastic book about her and her life in Spai...

I was busy this evening (Monday) getting out some of my Christmas china and decided to stop and have a sweet coffee and an energy bite. Then I remembered it's time to link up with Elizabeth and the T-Gang for one last get together before Christmas. My sweet coffee has sugar free chocolate and caramel syrup and a lot of unsweetened heavy whipping cream .........tastes like a virgin Bailey's Irish Cream and coffee.  I have since drank that, and a second one .....with the Irish cream.......needed more punch!!!  LOL!  For the past month I've been trying to stay away from white flour and white sugar ( Bailey's doesn't count at Christmas time...LOL), and I came across this recipe for these energy bites on Pinterest.........I LOVE THEM!!  check out her blog HERE   It feels good to have both feet among the living again, although I still have a cough, but ever so much better now.  I went to the Dr. twice and he finally told me I now have asthma, and...