A simple "thank-you" means so much!

I made a card for my nephew (by marriage) Curtis. He is such an awesome guy. Works hard so my niece can be a stay at home mom to their 2 wonderful daughters. Daelyn and Suri. He is such a hands on dad. I love this picture of them. So I made him a card and the sentiment I put on it says, "Not all Hero's wear capes." He "thanked" me for the card via face book and it made my day! That was my reminder as to why I make cards. I have been trying to remember to take pictures of my cards....but forgot to with this one.

This card is for our friend Greg. We met him through the Meriter Stroke Support Group. He sure has had his struggles. He was doing great since his stroke. But last Tuesday, he had some reaction to some medication, and he is back to square one. He was moved from Meriter in-patient rehab to a nursing home. He has a chocolate lab, that I am sure is really missing him.

I have been trying lots of new recipes. Some have been great, some not so good. Thank goodness I have a husband who is willing to eat my experiments! I made these gorilla balls on Sunday morning. Oh my! They are so easy and sooooo good! The house smells amazing while they are baking!

They are canned biscuits. Flattened out a bit. Then sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. Then you take a piece of cream cheese and put it in the center. Wrap the biscuit around the cream cheese to form a ball. Making sure to seal tightly. Rolled the balls in more cinnamon and sugar. Then I took butter and melted it with some brown sugar. Once melted and combined, I poured this sauce over the balls. Baked at 350 for about 30 minutes. This experiment sure was a keeper!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you are all having a great day!

Joan

Fall weather...makes me happy!

Sure does not seem like that long ago since I posted.

Fall is my favorite time of year. I have been busy baking and canning.

Canned some tomatoes from our garden. Still have a LOT of green tomatoes. Both cherry and beefsteak. I have a feeling they are going to all turn ripe at once.  I have picked 5-- 1/2 gallon sized buckets of cherry tomatoes. Even tried my hand at making Raspberry refrigerator jam out of green tomatoes. It is really good! If you did not know there were green tomatoes in it, you can not tell. Although, next time I make it, I will chop up the tomatoes a lot smaller. My jam was a little chunky!

I have been making some cards. When my mom passed away in June, I lost my pen pal. We loved sending each other cards and letters. I lost my desire to craft after she passed away. I have been forcing myself to make some cards, and finally for the first time today, it felt good making cards again.

I sent this card to my dad. He has lots of trees at his house, and fall is spent raking and burning leaves. Although I don't think he has as much joy in doing it as this monkey.

This was my first shot at a center panel card. (ok so, this was my third attempt!) I think it turned out ok. I look forward to making more of these. I am still learning how to color with colored pencils and orderless mineral spirits.

This is for my niece, Kristen. She is a CNA at a nursing home, and as I know from working with the elderly with my volunteer work they can sometimes be a challenge. I hope this makes her day a little brighter.

Thanks for stopping by and hope you come back soon!

Enjoy today!

Joan

WHEW...what a week!

We have had such a busy week. Wonder why it seems that everything happens at once? Next week, we have nothing but our volunteer schedules. Let's see....Monday was the holiday. Sure seems like a long time ago. We did yard work. Pulled a bunch of weeds. Cleaned up some of the garden. Tuesday and Thursday is the day I get to help my neighbor  (and friend) with her grandchildren. I love spending time with these kids, although it makes me miss our granddaughter! I go over at lunch and help feed them. Once they are all down for naps, my job is done. They are 2 years, 23 months, 9 months and 8 months. The youngest are really starting to get around so that makes things a little more challenging! Bryan goes to Meriter on Tuesday's to volunteer. On Wed, I had a surprise for Bryan! About 4 months ago, I entered him in a Home Town Hero contest put on by a A1-Furniture and Bedding. You had to write why you thought they should be a Home Town Hero. I wrote about how proud I was of his fight and determination since his stroke. His never give up attitude. I told how since he can't return to work, he now volunteers 2 days a week helping the current stroke patients at the same hospital he did both his in-patient and out-patient rehab at. First place was a $500.00 gift certificate, second place $50.00 and third was $25.00. I got an e-mail on Sunday that he had won 2nd place! We are saving up for a new recliner for him. Since his stroke, some nights he just can't get comfy in bed with his left sided weakness so he sleeps in the recliner. This recliner is almost 20 years old! We got it really cheap because someone had special ordered it and did not like the color green it came in. Well, on Tuesday while Bryan was at Meriter, the owner of the store called and said that Bryan's story really touched his heart. He wanted to give him a new recliner! WHAT! He asked if we could come into the store on Wed and pick it out. I did not tell Bryan where we were going. We got to the store, and he wanted to know what we were doing there. I told him that I had to go in, I had won a gift certificate. Once in the store the owner came and met us. He showed us all the recliners and pointed some out. They were very nice, but seemed small. Bryan sat in one that he REALLY liked. It had a little higher of a back for when he sleeps in  it. The owner had a phone call, and said he would be back. I watched the owner as he watched Bryan try the different recliners out. Always going back to the same one. I told Bryan not to get to attached because of the price. He said he knew, but it was so comfy. The owner came back and said to Bryan, "you really like this one, don't you?" Bryan replied, "yes, it is nice, taller back and very comfy." Then the owner said, "Well, ok then that is the one I want you to have!" My jaw dropped. This was a $699.00 recliner! Our neighbor helped Bryan go and pick it up later that afternoon. We got the old recliner moved upstairs (it's mine now!) and Bryan's all set up in his "man cave." I have even gotten to sit in it a few times.Then Wed night was our monthly Young Stroke/Caregivers support group. We really enjoy going to these. We have met so many awesome people through this group.  So now it is Thursday already. We spent the day getting the hot tub ready for winter. We started draining it in the morning. Then I went to do my lunch duty with the kids next door and Bryan went for coffee. After it was drained, I got in and scrubbed the inside. Then begins the process to fill it back up. Friday is our day to volunteer, and that brings us to today. Spent the day getting things done around my craft room. Cleaned and put everything where it belongs. Tried my hand at making a new kind of card called a panel card. After 3 attempts I think I got it. (I will post pictures tomorrow) Watched the Badger game. The water in the hot tub is now up to 120 degrees, guess where I will be going tonight! Ahhhh...

It was a good week, it was a very busy week.

Thanks for stopping by.

Have a great day!

Joan

A blog hop...

I followed along on a blog hop today. Saw some amazing cards with some new stamps. You should come and hop along. You can start here: http://ladybugcraftsink.blogspot.com/

Hope you come back soon and enjoy today!

Joan