A Facebook Journal

I finally started working on my journal for the bits and bobs I've accumulated from friends on Facebook. (I love that term..."bits and bobs", but you must say it with an English accent.)

I won a beautiful address and card book in an auction and always knew I wanted to alter it for a journal. Some of the pages have beautiful floral illustrations that I don't want to cover up, other pages can be painted or papered, but it has pockets and tabs and all kinds of goodies. When I first got it (months ago) I altered the cover in the same style as the journal I got from Yolanda Pasillas, yoliebean on YouTube. I adore that look.

The first page in the book is from a swap I did at Your Paper Pantry with Jane Bain, lizbeth601 on YouTube. She made a beautiful collage for me that I've kept in my craft corner for years. Originally it was mounted on corrugated cardboard that I had to remove for placement in the book. I think it makes the perfect first page. On the left side of this two page spread, I'll add some writing and a recipe card Jane included for apple cake!

The second page has an art postcard from Tamara LaPorte, a couple of business cards and a tag that served as a mailing label. I found a bit of lace in with my keepsakes and attached it to the edge of the page. The opposite page will have photographs of the items associated with the cards.

All in all, I think this is going to be a fun book to look back on when it's finished.

Have a good day friends! xxo

Compassion for a Stranger

I was in the lobby of a dental specialist the other day. Not just any dental specialist, but a feline dental specialist. My rescue cat, Heidi, and I were waiting for the vet to examine her mouth and determine how bad this periodontal disease really was. I was expecting the worst. The first consultation I had with another dental vet was bad...real bad. $4,000 bad. So I just sat quietly and waited.

The office was located in a building for a veterinarian specialty group. Dental, Cancer, whatever, it was a big building. I watched the dogs come and go to the other vet offices. Little dogs, big dogs, dogs dancing in circles, dogs with cones on their heads, itty bitty lap dogs and great big HUGE dogs. Heidi seemed to be the only cat until a woman sat down by me and put her carrier on the seat between us. She asked me if I had a sick kitty and I told her all we had were some dental problems....."and you"? My heart broke when she choked out the words that her 9 year old cat had kidney disease and had experienced some problems that morning. She tried desperately to speak but she was struggling so hard to keep the tears back that she couldn't. In that moment, I felt my own desperation as I grabbed her hand and held it tight. There were no more words as we held onto each others hand. Two strangers who knew nothing about each other except that we both loved cats. I could have known this woman my entire life for the compassion I felt, but I didn't even know her name. And then it was my Heidi's time to be examined. I gathered her carrier and waved a quick good-bye to the woman that had touched my heart so deeply.

This brief encounter was sad and heartbreaking, and I'll never forget it. Two strangers able to connect on a level so deep. An immediate, heartfelt connection. It was sad, it was beautiful. It reminded me how wonderful this life can be in spite of ourselves. I reached out to someone, and walked away feeling like she had given me a gift.

More Documented Life Planner Pages!

I don't know how I've managed to keep up for 6 months but I have! Whoohooo! It's actually getting easier now that I know what I'm doing and how I want to do it. I started using acrylic paint in week 24 by spreading it very thin. Like how it turns out. Acrylic and Pan Pastels seems to work for me.

Week 22

Week 23

Week 24

Week 25

ICAD - 30 Days or Bust

I'm going for it. A full 30 days of index cards. Yessiree, bob. I'm well into the 3rd week right now so I KNOW I'll make 30 days. Then I'll decide if I can go 60. So, if you're not a Facebook friend, and you haven't seen my daily offerings...this is for you, and for that linky thing that Tammy does. She's the ICAD Queen, the person in charge, the ringmaster, the boss, the big kahuna, the cheerleader, imagineer and all those other great words rolling around in my head right now. We love Tammy, and we show our love every year. You should join us!

Daisy Yellow ICAD FAQ

Every day has a prompt, but it's up to you if you want to use the prompt or not. There are also themes to choose from, or "one staple" collages, or anything you want to do. It's not about rules or working on something you don't enjoy, it's about being creative. Every day. It's fun. It's loose and free.

Day 1 - Prism

Day 2 - Circus Tent

Where?

Day 3 - Hello, my name is...

Day 4 - Puzzle

Day 5 - Galaxy

Day 6 - Nail Polish

Day 7 - Yellow

Day 8 - Mandala

Day 9 - Alphabet

Day 10 - The Beatles

Day 11 - One Staple Collage

That wasn't the prompt. It's just what I did.

Day 12 - Paisley

Day 13 - Gasp! I missed one!

Day 14 - Magenta

Day 15 - Stickers

Day 16 - Roll the Dice

Day 17 - Polka Dots

Day 18 - Orange

Day 19 - Oh no! I missed another one!

Day 20 - Candy Wrapper

Day 21 - Repeating Pattern

Documented Life Project - Weeks 20 & 21

Week 20

Week 21

Documented Life Project - Weeks 18 & 19

Week 18
This weeks challenge was to add an inspirational quote.

Week 19
Turned out to be a sad week with the loss of the lovable mascot at the Friends of Felines Rescue Center. It really is amazing how the internet pulls people together. People that never met were in tears and sharing their grief together, while miles apart. I chose to use the entire weeks spread in memory of Putter.

DLP - Week 16

Some are good, some are not so good, but I'm still at it and looking forward to each new week. I don't always follow the prompts, but then you don't have to!

This spread is from Easter week. The challenge was to use food or snack boxes in your art which I did...literally. Creative, huh? Added some cut-outs and color and came up with what looks like an ad rather than a journal page. Did I include that here? No. Go get a box of Welch's anything and you'll see my page.

The inside, however, I kept within the theme of Easter. Not a lot of anything to write about and no pictures. The one important piece on this page is the quote from Leah Fung, posted to Facebook on Easter Sunday. The image referred to is not included...as I understand it, it was a complex drawing of the pathways within a cell. Leah wrote:

"Thought I’d share this image with you. I know it’s not your usual Easter Sunday inspirational picture, which I love seeing, but I’ll explain. It’s an illustration of the known cell signaling pathways of just ONE protein receptor (ER-alpha, for example) involved in the growth of just ONE tissue (breast, in this case). There is still so much unknown with just this single protein in this one tissue, let alone its function in all the other tissues of the body. And just imagine there are roughly 100,000 proteins in the human body and each with different mechanisms and pathways of their own. (Sorry, my geek is showing, lol). The complexities of how the body functions at the molecular level are astounding, and what we know is still infinitesimal -- that isn’t an exaggeration. I’m showing this to you because today I’ve been thinking about why I believe in God. It’s not because of some giant leap of faith -- I’m not that strong -- or just because of how my parents raised me or what I learned in church. The fact is the more I learn about how the body functions or any science that makes me curious enough to wade into it, the more I’m convinced these things can’t be random or ever conceived by man. We’re clever but not that clever. At least for me, and what very little I’ve learned, it must be God. Happy Easter, friends!"

Week 17 - Favorite Shoes

Spring!

I have so much to catch up on! But first I have to tell you about Marlene at Uniquely Ella. She is the master of shabby chic and is blowing everyone away with her incredibly beautiful creations! She's auditioning for the Shabbylishcious Design Team and has made some of the most beautiful shabby chic creations I've ever seen.

Check out her video here

And you must check out her holiday house tours for some exquisite decorating ideas. 4umarlene1 on YouTube. She definitely has the magic touch. I'm truly excited for her and I wish her the best of luck!

Okay, so I really got into spring cleaning this year and cleaned like I've Never cleaned before! Part of my motivation was due to Sophia at My Great Challenge. My goodness, is she a whirlwind of activity. She cleans, she paints, she builds walls and tables...yes, "builds" them. Just makes it all look so simple... I think that's because she knows what she's doing and explains it so well. Her blog is loaded with great information and I truly love her videos. Seriously, you need to check her out, she'll make you proud to be a woman. mygreatchallenge on YouTube.

I cleaned and cleaned, and cleaned some more...(omg, the nooks and crannies of a home are hard to get to) moved furniture, sorted out drawers and closets, and brought out all of my favorite knick knacks and put them back again. I'm not all shabby chic, and not all vintage, but I have a lot of "old" stuff. And I have a large enough bedroom to use part of it as a craftroom. I cleaned that too. The problem here is that you have to empty everything before you can move it...oh my aching body. Gave oodles of stuff away and did my best to shabby it up! I like it. I'm happy with it for now, and I can still add to it. Here's a peek at a corner of my room.

See you soon!

ICAD is Coming!

Yay! It's time for ICAD! Well, not exactly, but as Tammy says, it will be here before we know it! This is an easy and fun challenge that begins in June. Check it out and share the joy!

Would you believe I was going to post this a month ago? April 20th to be exact. I think I was having some problems trying to get the link right and forgot about it. Better late than never, and still enough time to get the word out to anyone that doesn't already know about ICAD.

Check out Tammy's blog for more information! Daisy Yellow ICAD FAQ

Join the Facebook Group which is already hopping! Daisy Yellow ICAD Facebook Group

Monthly Paper Kit Club

I've posted a few pictures on Facebook of the beautiful paper kit I received from Cathy Michaels Design... thought I'd give you all a closer look. I love these papers! I love the look of them. I love opening the package and finding all the goodies hidden inside.

Cathy's card with contact information just in case you want to join the club! :)

April's package arrived today. Can't wait to see what's inside!

Cathy Michaels Design Monthly Paper Kit Club