Why I've Been Missing

I thought I'd update everyone as to why my blog posts have been few and far between and very sporadic.

In February my husband was diagnosed with lung cancer. He lost his voice and had gone into the Doctor in January.  They originally told him he had a "viral infection". It kept getting progressively worse and after a day at the clinic where they put him through a battery of tests, I was told I had to take him to St. Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield, WI. We were having a snow storm that day, so it was a very interesting drive that night.

He was in the hospital for 11 days that time and another eight days again in April. He was just released from St. Mary's Hospital at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN this past Tuesday after three weeks. Even though he had already been diagnosed, I think this past hospital stay was by far the most stressful.

We are currently staying with his sister Judy and brother-in-law Gary at their home in Prior Lake, MN. We'll be here for awhile.

Our dog Toby has been boarded so many times in the last few months. For the first part of his "vacation" this last time he was at the vet in the town where we live. I wanted him closer to Rochester so I found a kennel that was able to take him. This was a totally new experience for him and I think he had a blast! He was able to socialize with dogs as small as 4 lbs and as large as 200 lbs. The kennel we used is called Irie Kennels. Susan and Wayne were so nice and very accommodating. I highly recommend them if you are ever in the Rochester, MN area and need a place for your pet. The photo above shows Toby (far right) when we pulled up.

This photo shows his excitement when he realized I had come to take him home!

I will try to update my blog as time allows. It will more than likely be more geared to a recipe or other things now and then and not crafts until I get back home again. I'm going to miss being able to create cards and mini albums and sharing them on my blog, but I just couldn't bring all my supplies with me. That reality was and is very depressing for me. There's nothing like being in your own environment and being able to do what you love. I'm hoping that all of you will stick around and continue to check back to see what I'm up to.

Thanks for stopping by!

Fushion {Hypothesis #5} Challenge

 

Here's my card for the Fushion {Hypothesis #5} Challenge this week. I really like their challenges and have been able to participate in almost all of them. I think I've missed two. With my life right now it's hard to squeeze time in for challenges, but I'm going to do my best to try and participate if possible. 

Normally I've just use the sketch and not combined both sketch and color. This time my card is loosely based on the color, but I haven't added any green and the colors are not exact.

This is the sketch I followed:

For my card I used patterned paper from Webster's Pages from the Sunday Picnic & Everyday Poetry collection. The flowers and leaves were die cut using Spellbinders Rose Creations by Donna Salazar. The banners were cut with the Spellbinders Shapeabilities Nested Pennants. I inked all he edges with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo Distress Ink. The flower centers are pearl gemstones from Hero Arts. I used some burlap ribbon for the leaves. The sentiment is called Fancy Friends by Hero Arts.

Be sure to stop by Fushion and check out all the beautiful cards. Don't forget to stop back after the linky closes and vote for your three favorites!

This post is also linked to these parties:

All Things Fee

Craft-O-Maniac Monday

A Round Tuit

A Marvelous Mess

Made by you Monday

Thanks for stopping by!

A Basketful Of Flowers

I finally used some paper that I received in the Webster's Pages warehouse sale box last December!!! I'm really trying to go through my patterned paper. With the amount of paper that I have it could be years!

Fro my three border strips, I used an On The Edge die called Scallops by Tim Holtz Alterations. I don't use these dies near enough. This patterned paper is from the Petite Papers Sunday Picnic & Everyday Poetry Collection Combo Pack.

I used a Hero Arts rubber stamp called Bicycle for the main image. Black metallic decor was added to the wheels of the bike. Because I'm not one to use any kind of markers etc, I decided to use up some Hero Arts flower gems that I had in my stash. I added enough to make it look like the basket is flowing over with flowers.

For the sentiment I used another Hero Arts stamps set called Find Joy. I stamped the words and then cut them apart and lightly inked the edges.

Perfect card for an almost perfect day. We are getting some sunshine today and the snow is almost completely melted (as well it should be since it's May!).

Products used:
Patterned Paper: Webster's Pages
Bazzill
PTI - Vintage Cream
Ribbon
Hero Arts: Metallic Decor, Flower Gemstones
Stamp: Hero Arts Bicycle F5293, Joy Ride CL481
Tim Holtz One The Edge Die Scallops
Baker's Twine
Memento Ink - Tuxedo Black

This post is linked to these parties:
Bowdabra Crafty Showcase
Think Pink Sunday
Sew Darn Crafty

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week!