Be the change - Kiva

Thanks to a friend, Margaret Davaz, for introducing me to Kiva.  Kiva is a nonprofit organization that matches up borrowers with lenders.   You can choose who you want to loan as little as $25 to help them toward their goal. The website has information about the person and the reason for their request.  Your $25 loan is added to others to complete a request from the borrower.   And as they pay back the money you loaned, you can relend that money to someone else.  The website shows you the loans you have made and the repayment for each one.

I have loaned to people with small businesses in Haiti, Cambodia, Kenya, Paraquay and the United States.   You can choose from 78 different countries.   Of the 8 loans I have made, 2 have been completely repaid and I have re-lent that money to others.

Check it out and 'be the change you want to see' by helping out someone else.

Be the Change

One of my favorite inspirational quotes comes from Gandhi - "Be the change you want to see in the world."   Instead of expecting politicians and government to fix things, why not do what we can to make things better for others?     I like the idea of random acts of kindness, but I think we need to go a little bit further and be intentional about being kind and generous.  Look for ways to help others.  Seek out ways to give not only financially but also to give of our time and energy.
Between now and Christmas I plan to share some of my ideas of how to  'be the change'.

Recently Haiti has suffered massive destruction from Hurricane Michael.  There are many organizations that have popped up seeking donations to help the Haitians.   Who do you choose?  Who can you trust?   Many have such high overhead that most of your donations would never reach the Haitians. And others are corrupt and not doing the work they have promised.

I have a young friend who is a midwife in Haiti and she has shared a reputable organization that has been in Haiti for years.  She works through the organization, Heartline Ministries. (heartlineministries.org)

For donations -

Send check payable to Heartline Ministries and designate "Haiti Housing Fund." 
Mail to:
Heartline Ministries
P.O. Box 898
Sunnyside, WA 98944

Busy Day in the Kitchen

I have had a busy day in the kitchen.  First - shopping for supplies to make 6+ meals of Creamy Chicken Taquitos.   And I wanted to add some Caramel Apple Taquitos as a little plus. 

 Here is what I started with.  I was thrilled to find a 10 lb bag of frozen skinless, boneless chicken breasts.  I used the whole bag for my taquitos (100 +)  And I bought all the small tortillas they had.  I could have used more but will finish making the Caramel Apple Taquitos for my family later this week.

 In addition to all that cooking, I had thawed a freezer meal to make Hickory BBQ Meatball Subs for supper.  When I started cooking the meatballs and trying to squeeze them all in the skillet, they kept breaking apart. So - I made Hickory BBQ Sloppy Joes.   Everyone like it!

 Couldn't wait to have some of the Caramel Apple Taquitos.  So easy to make with caramel ice cream topping and canned pie filling.  I served them with whipped cream but would really be good with a scoop of ice cream.

And after all that - I got all the dirty dishes in  the dishwasher (except the big pots, etc) and Tom cleaned up the kitchen.  He always does the dishes and cleans up the kitchen - I cook , he cleans.  Works for me.  There was a lot of cleaning tonight but on other nights when I pull out the taquitos, the cleanup will be super easy.

2016 IN colors - WOW!

I am loving the new IN colors at Stampin Up.  They are so bright and 'happy'.  I've been playing with them lately and completing some cards for some challenges.

 This card shows all 5 colors (top to bottom) Sweet Sugarplum, Dapper Denim, Peekaboo Peach, Emerald Envy, Flirty Flamingo.  This was for a one layer card challenge.

 This also uses all 5 colors.  The flowers are stamped and then punched.  To give them some dimension, I placed them face down on the foam pad and rubbed with a stylus.  I made the petals curve.  This was for an IN color challenge.

 And again I have used all 5 on the flower.  I stamped it in Stazon black then colored with the Stampin Markers.   This was for a challenge to use a black background with some color.

 This charming little card uses Flirty Flamingo and Peekaboo Peach.   The ribbon and enamel stars take it up a notch - and then the envelope liner puts it over the top!

 Another card using Peekaboo Peach and Flirty Flamingo.  The sequins were left from a Paper Pumpkin kit. They went well with the colors.  The onesie is from a Stampin Wheel I have.  I stamped it onto the envelope paper and cut it out.  I stamped on a piece of Peekaboo Peach and cut out the star, then added it to the onesie.  I like the shaker - makes it WOW!

 Speaking of WOW!   This slider card will wow the recipient.  Again using the 5 IN colors.  I used a tutorial at Splitcoast Stampers for a Tab Slider Card. I made a few modifications like using the Word Window punch to make the slider track.

 Pull the tab and you have a surprise.   I made one this morning for a friend at church who is involved in a program that uses boxing to treat patients with Parkinson's Disease.  I regret I did not get a photo :-( before giving it to him.  I used the mitten punch and some images for boxing gloves on the internet to add some lines and trim down the cuff so it looked like a boxing glove.   Put it on the slider and added a sentiment that I hoped his birthday had a lot of 'punch'.  He has 3 little boys and I bet they enjoy the card  - maybe his older girls also.

This one was a little trickier I want to try a few more.   I think they would really be fun for a small child who might believe it is actually magic.  

Pull the tab and the image is magically colored.  I need to look through my stamps for some good images to use for these.

Weather Blanket Update

Remember the weather blanket I am knitting.  One row per calendar date - color determined by the high temp.   Well, I did not pick it up for quite a while so am trying to get caught up by doing several rows each day.

Here is it - up to April 4.   The top of the photo is Jan 1.  The navy rows are the markers for each month.  I did several rows after the photo was taken - we are up to April 10 now.  

I'm still here

Haven't posted in a while - but I'm still here.  I have added a couple recipes that I made recently.
For our Freezer Blessings small family group, I made Honey Lime Chicken and rice.  Have I told you about our Freezer Blessings group?  Each month 5 cooks make 6 meals of the same recipe and freezes them.  Then on the designated date (usually after church on one Sunday) we swap meals with the other cooks so we go home with 5 different frozen meals (our own and one from each of the 4 other cooks).  Meal #6 is donated to a family that we want to encourage or help out in a small way.
I believe it started in January or February and was very successful the first month.  Most of the families were 5 or more. We have only the 3 of us, but we like leftovers and it is also nice to have them for a meal to prepare when our daughter and her family come to visit.
Several single ladies or couples commented they would like to do something like that but the meals would be too big for them. So we soon started a small family (3 or less) group.  I usually participate in both each month. For June, I made the Honey Lime Chicken and since one recipe makes 6 servings, I just split it between 2 quart sized freezer bags.   I also made a large batch of rice and divided it into quart sized bags.  The recipients will just need to thaw and heat!
For the large family meals, I made Cranberry Chicken Kabobs - a recipe from the Wildtree website. I really like the Cranberry Poppy Seed Dressing.  Tonight I made Cranberry Apple Spinach Salad.

I have also been busy with crafts.  I finished up a couple quilt squares for a Robots, Aliens and Outer Space themed stitch-along.

I used variegated floss for these cute little robots.  The original design did not have any back stitching but I just felt it needed some.  

I saw this chart on Pinterest and just had to do it.  The design was too large for the usual 14 count Aida that I use so I had to get some 18 count.   It was very easy to do the black stitches to outline the areas, then I just filled in with the colors.   I never noticed it before but Rosie from The Jetsons reminds me of Hazel from the series of that name.  Wonder which came first, and if Hazel was the idea behind Rosie.

A friend asked me to make a couple thank you cards so I played around a little during my lunch hour. The colors are Tip Top Taupe, Calypso Coral, Pistachio Pudding and Very Vanilla.   After stamping the basket and flowers with black Momento ink I sponged some Pistachio Pudding to color the leaves, Then I colored in the flowers with Calypso Coral and Crisp Cantaloupe.

This is a simple anniversary card I made recently.  I used the heart shaped framelits to cut out the hearts.  Pink Pirouette and Soft Suede go really well together.

Busy weekend

It's been a busy weekend - and it's not over!

Friday night, the grands spent the night so Mommy and Daddy could have a break.  We did some stamping.

 She loves wearing my old t-shirts when she stamps.  Keeps the ink off her clothes. This t-shirt was actually one of two that we got from my sister's family for the girls.  So this may have been her mommy's shirt at one time.

 Here's our big boy, sort of sitting up on the couch.  He was playing with the ball and talking to Mickey on the TV.  He loves to make noise.  Sometimes he just sits and growls. 

We spent a lot of time relaxing on the couch.  They are laying on my lap.  We watched Mickey's Clubhouse on Friday evening.  Saturday morning pancakes were eaten while watching Toy Story. 

On Saturday morning we took the kids home and helped Mommy and Daddy clean out their garage.  Looked really nice when we got done.  Came home with a trunk full of things - some for charity donations and some for us :-)

Saturday afternoon when we got back home, I did 10 miles on the stationary bike and then tried some new recipes with my Wildtree products.

Marinated Cucumbers and Onions
Bacon Jalapeno Cheddar Bread

This morning I am enjoying some of the bread toasted and spread with some cream cheese. Yummy!

Birthday Party - #3

Happy third birthday to our granddaughter.  It was so much fun celebrating with her recently.  I used a lot of my cardmaking tools and supplies for some non-card projects. 

PJ Masks birthday banner.  I had never heard of them before we started planning the party - but I know them all now!  Bright primary colors are always a hit.

The annual chalkboard.  She has grown and developed so much over the last year.  And she is now a BIG SISTER!

Cupcakes made by the paternal grandma topped with decorations made by the maternal grandma (me).  We are so blessed to both be able to have such a big part in this sweet girl's life.

Thanks Grandma and Poppa! I love my present - clothes!  and a toy....

she had to take a break from opening presents to play 'fetch' with Daddy. 

Our annual photo - some day I won't be able to hold her on my hip for the birthday photo :-)

Photo booth props - although we never really did the photo booth.  She has been having fun playing with the masks since her party.

And we even had enough extra decorations to change the wreath from the snowflakes to a PJ Masks theme.

And here are some closeups - Gecko (green mask), Owlette (red mask) and Catboy (blue mask). I had a little help from Pinterest (printable PJ Masks circles) and my sister (starburst die-cuts since I do not have those).

Another perk of having all the card-making supplies - a ribbon to match any paper :-)

And here is another non-card project I completed lately.  A crib mobile for the new grandson.  I purchased the hardware on Amazon - however due to the design of his crib, the mobile had to be attached fairly low on the crib.  This may have to be moved to hang from the ceiling like his sissy's was.

I used an anchor punch, a sailboat stamp and a sailboat die to make a variety of designs in Night of Navy.  Whisper White and Marina Mist circles were used as bases - and a few of the white starbursts my sister provided for the birthday party decorations were used here also.

Introduced my granddaughter to stamping recently and bought her a set of Minion stamps made by Crayola.  The ink is clear but shows up as a dark blue on the 'magic paper'.  She was playing with these on her own, and realized she could put her finger on the ink pad and then press it on the paper.  She definitely has that creative gene!

PJ Masks party theme

It's birthday time for the granddaughter - she's 3!  Her choice for the theme is PJ Masks.  I knew nothing about them.  Evidently they are a kids' show.  I spent most of the day in my craft room making party goodies.

I found some printables on Pinterest and got some assistance from my sister.  I saw a banner on Pinterest that used a sunburst type shape but I do not have the sunburst framelits.  My sister does and she cut the shapes from Gumball Green (Gecko), Real Red (Owlette), and Pacific Point (Catboy). Also some smaller white ones for the middle of the banner pieces.   A couple weeks later I decided I needed some sunbursts to make cupcake picks so once again she came through, cut the shapes, and mailed them. 

For the cupcake picks, I used toothpicks.  I wish I had picked up a box of flat ones because the round ones were a little harder to work with.   I put some Tombow glue on the back of the circle and place the toothpick on the glue.  I added a piece of transparent tape just for reinforcement.

 I turned them over and added the printables which I had punched with the 1 1/2 circle punch.   I added a couple dimensionals to the back and....

put them on the sunburst circle.   They turned out pretty cute !  They will be just the right touch !

The banner is made with sunbursts in a couple different sizes.  I used a regular circle layered between 2 sunburtss.

 H A P P Y   B I R T H D A Y - Makes the banner pretty long.  I like the bright colors -very festive! And while I had everything out, I made a couple cards.

I used some of the printables and did a bi-fold card.  The 3 heroes are helping me wish a happy birthday to the sweetest little girl I know.

This shows how the card opens.  

I had to try another card that I saw recently.   The original was 4 sides but I tried with 3.  It turned out great!  When putting it in the envelope you can flip the center circle around several times before putting it in the envelope, when the recipient opens it the center circle will spin.

I printed some lifesize masks to make props for a photo booth area at the party.  I have Owlette, Catboy, Gecko, "Birthday Girl" word bubble, "3", and a couple lightning bolts.  I'll have to post some photos after the party.

These cards were still laying on my desk so I added some envelope liners.  I love the stacked coffee cup design.

And it's April already!

Here it is early April - which means another page comes down off the Stampin Up - Paper Pumpkin calendar.   I just can't throw the page away so will recycle some of the paper - or reuse maybe is more appropriate.

The spotted paper was from my March calendar page.  

The flowers are from the Flowering Fields stamp set which was a Sale-a-bration set this year. 

Add some Hello Honey and Always

On another note, I tried a new recipe that was a big hit.  

Chicken Avocado Burritos

These were pretty yummy.  I think I will try them again and maybe add some black beans or corn.  The original recipe says you can freeze them so may have to stock up.

Finished up this square over the weekend.  It was a Valentine's challenge.  The chart was provided and each person could choose the colors.  I pulled some from the floss I had out for another project.   Actually thought I pulled 2 shades of blue but realized they were gray when I started stitching.   I think the colors look good together.  I'm sure it will be perfect for someone who receives a quilt in the future.

And April 4th - it's ice cream time.  Dad would have been 103 today.  We had our celebratory ice cream Friday evening. Bekah picked up blizzards on the way home from work.  (This picture is actually from several years ago - notice the naked nails - before Jamberry)