Gone to Lake Granbury

I don't like living without AC so I packed Aiden up late last night at hit the road at 4 am to avoid evacuation traffic. I'm at my parent's house and will be until I am certain power is back on at home! The family couldn't be more thrilled. ;) I have a grandmother that thinks hurricanes should come every three months so I'll bring Aiden up more often! LOL! I'm going to have fun shopping at all the local boutiques on the town square. I can't wait to see what Halloween decor my favorite little shop has!

See you next week!

The Craziness Continues...

Aiden is sick with some mystery ailment and is not making life easy for me this week. I found myself secretly wishing that the world would be swallowed up in a self-made black hole when they switched on the LHC last night. *SIGH* No such luck. I'll be trying to console an irritable toddler all day with the Color Wonder markers and 97¢ party noise makers I bought at Wal-Mart last night "in case of emergency" for today. BOTH came out before his first nap at 9 am.

In between the mayhem I am trying to knock things off my never-ending, always growing to-do list. I believe I have agreed to do too much this fall. The stress hurts and I'm about as irritable as Aiden. Things will slow down after Halloween, which feels like an eternity away. For now I will finish typing this and then clean my floors. That will probably make me feel better! At least I can check it off my list!

P.S. In case you were wondering, I think the January Valentine craft is going to be pink metal mini buckets with vinyl lettering and clear cellophane treat bags to go inside with ribbon ties that you can fill with candy and use for teacher's gifts, neighbor's gifts or for your own home decoration. They're easy, inexpensive and adorable!

P.P.S. Yes, Miss Mint's site is down. Yes, something big and cool is coming! Yes, I have seen new products and I know she's working on some other new things as well. I'd bet a new freebie is one of them but don't quote me on that. I haven't seen a new freebie at all - not a single paper or element - it's just my speculation. You can follow all the fun on Miss Mint's Blog and I am not confirming or denying any of the rumors about what will or will not be on the site when it re-opens. NO, I do not know what she looks like! I have only talked to her on the phone and I can tell you she's a girl and she's 29. And she really hates when I make her say "this is Miss Mint" when I pick up the phone! ROFL!

Consolation Prize?

I feel bad that a partial draft of Midnight Sun leaked and frustrated Stephanie Meyer so much that she put the entire book on hold "indefinately". The first Twilight book is my favorite and I was sooooo looking forward to Midnight Sun. Even more than the release of Breaking Dawn.

Breaking Dawn was supremely disappointing to me. I felt like the author was tired of the story and finished everything up in a predictable, mundane way to ensure she wouldn't have to continue the story any longer. I was beyond disappointed.

Then Diana told me the illegally leaked draft of Midnight Sun was posted on Stephanie's Website, with a note to her readers. Since she's angry and not going to finish the book, she wanted her fans to be able to read what was written instead of being dishonest and seeking it out illegally. I have to admit that my heart leaped when I opened her PDF to see it was 264 pages long! I also have to admit that my heart sank because I knew it would only be half the story. Indeed, the draft ends just as the story begins to get good.

The selfish side of me appreciates being able to read Midnight Sun so soon after Breaking Dawn. Even though this was a rough draft, it's written well, in the same style as the first book where emotion pours from every page. As you read, you're reminded of how new crushes feel and think "Oh, yeah! I remember that feeling!" as you experience it along with the characters. I consider it a consolation prize after a fourth book so disappointingly written.

I'm sad the leak has ruined the fun for everyone BUT I'm betting on human greed. After one or two more books don't return the fame and fortune Twilight did, Midnight Sun will be finished to claim the last some-odd million the series holds for her. (Can you imagine the sales potential after an "indefinately held" project with a sudden secret completion is then unexpectedly released?) I'll be patient. Because the part of the book I have read has been even more impressive than the first. Someday I'd love to have Midnight Sun sitting beside Twilight on my bookshelf. The "free sample" has only left me wanting more!

P.S. Read it if you want or choose to not read it if you want. I won't judge you! I'm fascinated by my degree field and couldn't resist a peek into Edward's thoughts. It was even more fascinating than expected!

MILD SPOILER:

Edward was right. He really did love Bella more. I would have NEVER thought it possible but honestly, he was right. Her human emotions simply could not match his. I'm still stunned that his side of the story is so deep, complex and beautiful.

Embellishment Swap & Peppermint Goodies

The mint CT is having an embellishment swap and I am sooooo excited about it! An embellishment swap is where you clean out your stash of scrap supplies and send all your duplicate, unused or extra goodies to a friend and they do the same for you, doubling the amount of 'random' embellishments you have to choose from when crafting - or in our case, hybriding.

This is just a pinch (literally, not even a fourth) of what I am sending to my friend Megan. The picture shows a few of the bright holiday items in her mix:



I can't wait to see what she does with it! I'll try to remember to post a picture of all the embellies I recieve once they arrive.

Back to my new love of scrap supply pictures. None of my friends have probably seen how crisp & realistic Miss Mint's supplies look printed:



Some scrappers buy digi supplies so they can print their own supplies for a fraction of the cost of buying them packaged in stores. I have mine printed at a photo lab on matte paper but you can also print on cardstock at home if you want that traditional 'chipboard' look. When everything is cut out and piled all together, it makes it difficult to tell what paper pieces are digi and what is store-bought!

Halloween Inspiration!

It's that time of year when all the holiday decorations in the store get me itching to start some fun decorating projects! My hobbies have doubled since this time last year and so has my list of things I'd like to do!

For example, fellow CT member MJ sent me a bunch of her cute little scrapped circles. (I've recently gotten into basic card making.) This is a photo I snagged from her blog - I didn't make these:



Cute, right?!! I also love her photos - wish mine would come out as crisp! She was gracious enough to send me several samples so I could see how she had made them. (I'll be adding a smaller circle to my craft punch collection soon!)

And now that I'm in the mood for fall, I keep stumbling across inspiration everywhere! Take a look at this random mix of goodies I stumbled across on Etsy:



I love how the artist used eyelash yarn to give these tags a cobweb look! (the subtle photo border helps, too!) I'm a sucker for black gingham. :)



What is it about photographs of piles of embellishments that I love? (Brian would say it's the clutter. I seem to thrive in bead & scrap clutter!)



I did NOT know you could buy food on Etsy!!!!! Aren't these popcorn-balls-that-look-like-candy-apples adorable?!!



Okay, LOVE this halloween tree with it's scrapped paper ornaments!



The rusty jingle bell and tea stained tag caught my eye on this. I like how primitive and charming it is.

If you want to go looking for trouble, hop on Etsy and search for Halloween. (Or Halloween Sign or Halloween Decor or Halloween Cards) Then try to not buy all the fabulous home decor & craft items you find! LOL!

Give Love & Thanks

It's already September and today I started working on one of my big Halloween projects for Miss Mint. I'm brainstorming Thanksgiving crafts and I have a growing list of Christmas ideas but the one thing I keep coming back to is that I want to begin a tradition of giving and thankfulness this year. I want my children to grow up remembering the excitement of baking & decorating cookies then feeling that engulfing sense of love and joy when they gave them away. Or the adrenaline rush as they tip toed a surprise gift to a front door and rang the doorbell before sprinting away, giggling with anticipation and glowing with excitement!

Then there are the hard gifts to give. The ones you got so excited about making for a friend you love so much but for whatever reason, the moment they are complete - and are more gorgeous than you had envisioned - you feel shy about delivering them. What do you say when you give it to them? What if the gift gives the wrong impression? What if your intention is misread? What if you appear shallow for giving a temporal item and not your time or service? My fellow female readers will understand me when I say that our "girl rules" mean we have more to pay attention to than just the obvious codes of social etiquette. So why would I pause at delivering a thoughtful gift made with all the love I could pour into it?

Because the recipients are facing something I have never, and pray to not ever, experience in my life. And yet, when I know they would want to have their friends closest, I feel this sudden shyness about bothering them, interrupting their day and taking away from their time.

Good friends bring out the best in you and I am so grateful that I have a friend who has experienced things I have not and who can give the best advice for such situations: GO. E-mail, talk, visit, drop off cards, letters & gifts; give support and hugs, call & listen, offer to help with specifics - not just make vague, general promises that you can be called on at any time - but really look for where you can help out and then do it. You won't be stepping on anyone's toes, you'll be answering prayers. (And probably doing the only kind thing for that person all week.) You won't be wasting anyone's time, you'll be saving them hours. And you won't offend with a gift, no matter how small, because it will be a tangible reminder that they are surrounded by friends who will go to the end of the earth with them and then carry them back home. Just go and act. It's wanted, needed and appreciated.

To everyone reading this, let me share that the smallest gestures are more than wanted and that you wouldn't believe how heartbreaking it is when everyone shies away, afraid to say or do the wrong thing, and unkowingly do the absolute worst thing: ignore.

If you love them, step in (or break in if you have to!) and show that you will brave scary feelings and frightening situations with them, cry alongside them, bake double batches of cupcakes and pack three times as many school lunches to ensure your friends aren't left wanting and needing. Anything you can think of will be perfect and honestly, you simply cannot go wrong with whatever you lovingly give!

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Kels, I'm so sorry that I lived minutes away from you in Kingwood in 2004 and didn't know you. We have been close since the moment we met and I wish that moment had been at a baby shower years earlier. But the things you have shared with me have really changed my character and although I wasn't there with you, I won't be hesitant about approaching those that need friends, comfort and companionship because of what I have learned from you. Perhaps one day I will get over my hesitation and shyness but thank you for giving me new perspective. For the rest of my life I'll never be able to be a quiet observer. I'll always go and do.

This world. *SIGH*

I was digging through the drawer in our kitchen where we keep tape, string and other miscellaneous items when I found an old pet fire rescue sticker. You know, the ones you put on your window to let firemen know there is an animal in the house you'd like saved if possible after all the family is out. I remembered that I had gotten it for free when we moved to Houston so I googled quickly this morning to see if they still made a child's fire rescue sticker like my parents had once put on my window when I was little. I shouldn't have been surprised to see Fire Departments urging parents on all the websites to NOT use such stickers. (For the same reasons we didn't decorate our house or yard in any way when Aiden was born.)

The first thing they said was that they too easily mark the rooms where children are sleeping for predators, which are more common in neighborhoods than housefires. Next firefighters are trained to enter and search, not wander around the property looking for stickers first. This is because children change rooms, grow up and move away. Precious time would be lost looking for stickers in the window and searching bedrooms while children may be trapped elsewhere in the house. Lastly there is some belief that the stickers might build a false sense of security for children who would wait to be rescued instead of trying to escape from a fire on their own. Most sites requested that you remove all of these types of stickers immediately, whether they are on a child's bedroom or not, so you don't attract unwanted people to your property.

Isn't it sad that the world has changed so much? Parents want to protect their children from everything but it seems more and more impossible to be their sole protectors, watching them 24/7. I thought it was insightful of Paul Holinger when he said in his book "What Babies Say Before They Can Talk" that children should be allowed to politely say "no" to a parent at any age and have that answer be respected. That way children learn that they can say no to adults and exercise their will to escape dangerous situations instead of being intimidated by strangers because they are used to submitting to adults (parents) who never allow a contradictory response at home. I know Brian probably thinks I'm a bit too passive with Aiden sometimes but so what if he "gets away" with telling me no, he doesn't want to pick his toys up right now. The toys on the playroom floor aren't that big of a deal but the fact that he got to say no and have me respect what HE asked is tremendous! Not only for his understanding that he can express any thought or feeling freely and have it aknowledged but it builds our relationship closer to the mutually respectful, parent-as-a-gentle-and-loving-guide role that I want.

Funny how one little sticker and one little google search can get me thinking so much about parenting!