Showing posts with label Handmade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Handmade. Show all posts
Last week on IG I said, "Every serious illness journey is filled with hundreds of people who play such important and key roles in it. Words could never describe the gratitude I continue to have for each of you that are walking this difficult road with me" and it is so true. I know that the illness journey often seems long and lonely and in many ways it is.
But recently I have been thinking that it the illness journey is actually very full. Full of people who are constantly giving their time, their energy, their best to help me in this critical time in my life. When I consider this I don't feel lonely, in fact, I feel overwhelmed with the way that love is full in my life.
My life is particularly full every single Monday when I spend a lot of time in the hospital as #courtneytheportney is specifically cared for and I am treated with extreme compassion. From the moment we arrive we are greeted with workers who park the car for us and always greet us with a smile and ask how things are going. I check in and I am embraced by the three receptionists who not only know my name and my story, but always have an encouraging word for this little heart of mine. When we need to make new appointments or change things around, the schedulers work so hard to help us, making us feel like we are the only patients that they deal with.
And as #courtneytheportney is cleaned, watched and monitored and dealt with and accessed I am met with compassion. Compassion in listening to me tell "just one more story" from teaching days, of listening to me share about longings for a husband and kiddos, and support for the journey that I am walking. Even as I write this I have tears of gratitude running down my cheeks. Every single word of encouragement, smile, and laughter we have shared has been a precious gift to me on this journey. Every time that I have had a concern it has been met with wisdom and knowledge. No complaint or concern of mine has been dismissed lightly. These nurses and medical assistants have been in the trenches with me, helping me through.
So last weekend my mom and I spent some of Sunday afternoon having fun making these chocolate covered pretzels with spring colors. (We are still in the midst of winter here in the north so we are dreaming of spring days *smiles*) It was so fun and we loved the final results and we were so excited that every person we gave these goodies too saw our overwhelmed hearts of love and gratitude in this small present.
It was so much fun and it was very easy to do. Here are the supplies that we used for those who might be interested:
2 bags of Hershey's Dark Chocolate Chips
1 bag of Snyders "Old Tyme" pretzels
1 bag of Snyders Gluten Free Pretzels (these are the mini looking pretzels you see in the pictures)
Disposable Trays, Cellophane, and Cupcake Holders from Michaels in Spring Design
Wilton Sprinkles (Purchased from Michaels)
To make these adorable pretzels simply:
(1) Heat the bags of Hershey's Dark Chocolate Chips, mixing until the chocolate is completely melted (some people add 1 tablespoon of oil to help thin out the chocolate but we did not do this)
(2) Simply dip the pretzels into the chocolate and sprinkle on your sprinkles while the chocolate is still warm
(3) Let the mixture dry for approximately 1 hour
(4) We put the big pretzels directly on the tray and then put the gluten free pretzels in cupcake wrappers to keep them separated.
(5) Enjoy!
A huge thank you again to all of the nurses and medical staff that work so hard to help me in my journey and to those who are working tirelessly around the world to help patients. You are treasured!!
Happy Saturday again friends! I hope you have a wonderful day and weekend!
Happy Saturday again friends! I hope you have a wonderful day and weekend!
“The Light still shines in the darkness and the darkness has NEVER extinguished it.”
- John 1: five-
Merry Christmas family & friends!
As we approach this beautiful season of celebrating the birth of our precious Savior, I am truly in awe of God’s sweet mercy to meet us each new day. While this past year has been incredibly difficult, I see everyday the truth of Psalm 27: “I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living”.
It is impossible for me not to get choked up with tears when I think of your precious faithfulness of walking this incredibly long journey with me. Some of you have been walking this journey with me for the past seven and half years and have courageously loved me each day. After the diagnosis’ of Lyme and Cancer came you were the first to rally and say that I would beat this. While I understand that have I have a huge fight and a very LONG road in front of me I feel confident that after so many years of going downhill we have not only laid a foundation to truly start the healing process, but am starting to move forward.
This is simply because YOU have faithfully walked this road with me, blessed me with emotional support, given of yourselves, given abundant financial gifts that humble me, and for all of your countless support in hundreds of different ways. I am honored to call you friends. You have never claimed to be so but you truly are my heroes. To those of you that have contributed money specifically for treatment I can't begin to express my humble gratitude. You truly provided the means to help me obtain treatment and fight for my life. Without you this would not be possible! Your sacrificial gifts have reminded me that the Lord provides everyday and are a beautiful reminder that He will continue to provide each day in the upcoming year. To those of you that have listened as I have expressed so many feelings in the past and have been incredibly kind with your words and encouragement I am so grateful. Your conversations and your words have truly touched my heart. What a BLESSING you are! To my precious blog readers and those who have connected with me through my books, your words have truly been a beautiful encouragement as I share my heart here on the blog and in my books. You have been a beautiful blessing this past year and I look forward to connecting with you more in the upcoming year!
Through tears I have questioned the Lord as to why this journey is so long. Truthfully, I have not heard an answer to my many questions. Instead the Lord beautifully wipes my tears away and promises that He would never leave me and He has faithfully kept that promise. Truly, "wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And HOPE. And LIGHT. And... even beauty." (Joni Erickson Tada) I read a phrase recently that has truly spoken to me: “no matter the circumstance we are still under the same auspice”. How beautifully true. Even in the times that we think that the Lord has forsaken or forgotten us we can rest assured that our precious Lord has NOT and He has us engraved on the palms of His hands! (Is. 49:14-16). As I close out this letter I want you to know that no matter the circumstances sweet friends we are still under the same auspice. Hold fast to Him. Rest in His Him. May you be abundantly blessed by His love, His Joy, His Comfort, & HIS peace this season & in the year to come!
With lots of love,
Happy Saturday friends!
I hope that you are having a wonderful weekend! Today I wanted to share with y'all about an adorable new storybook mini-album that has been added to the shop. With the re-opening of the shop last week, I have been having a delightful time making new items, fulfilling orders, and having the opportunity to create again (even if it is done from my bed at this point in time!!).
A recent addition to the shop has been this adorable Christmas Carols storybook mini-album. This album is lovely vintage treasure for your entire family to enjoy! A sweet and unique mini scrapbook (size is a Goldenbook size which is approximately 7 1/2 x 6) with lovely journal tags, unique embellishments, and 24 special and unique acid free pages that coordinate with the Christmas Carols book cover and provide a lovely opportunity to remember and easily document special moments throughout this holiday season.
Each of the Storybook Mini-Albums in my shop use vintage and non vintage book covers that bring a "childlike" feel in remembering favorite stories and discovering new ones! This VINTAGE "Christmas Carols" is a precious Goldenbook cover that reminds its readers of the holiday season and Christmas songs from decades past.
This album comes embellished with sweet and vintage ribbon, pretty scrapbook paper, washi tape and cuteness that you will quickly fall in love with. Simply insert your pictures and write your precious memories to remember the wonder and precious memories of the season for you to enjoy for years to come.
This could be an excellent way to document your child's Christmas (for you to keep or to give to them when they are older), special moments of the holiday season, family get-together's, a baby's first Christmas, or simply a lovely addition to your vintage and shabby chic Christmas decor.
If you are interested in this specific storybook mini-album you can find it by clicking HERE or check out the shop in its entirety by clicking HERE!
Happy Saturday y'all!!
Ever since I was a little girl I have had a love affair with mini-albums and mini-journals. One of my favorite Christmas presents for my sister was a mini-album (shown above and below) of 25 wishes I "wished" for her. I loved spending the time thinking and praying through different wishes and prayers and loved adding in precious pictures that brought back many special memories and laughter.
One of my favorite things about mini-albums are that they are so personal and can be easily displayed and carried with you.
I have also found that mini albums can be a sweet present to someone going through a difficult time.
One of my favorite mini-albums that I ever created was a "mini teapot album" for a friend who was going through a particularly difficult time this summer.
When I was teaching I loved to create mini albums or mini books for the girls Bible Class that I taught as a special little gift. Often these books looked different depending on the class but I loved to try and give a little mini-gift that they could take with them.
Mini-albums are so adorable and can be created for a ton of different occasions.
If y'all have been around the blog for a little bit then you know that two of my favorite shop items are two Christmas mini-albums. Both the "Merry and Bright" and the "Homegrown Christmas" mini-albums have been best sellers in the shop and they are always a favorite of mine to make!
Last year it was so fun to create two engagement mini-albums for two of my sweet friends.
And two years ago it was so fun to create mini-albums as swag gifts for a blogger meet up! Have y'all created any mini-albums before? Have they been for a trip or a special occasion? Would love to hear about them!
Hope you are having a wonderful Saturday friends!
The colors are so bright and happy and remind me of Spring!
I was thrilled with the final results and loved this color combination!
I was also so touched when Emily facebooked me a picture with her daughter holding the journal! Such a sweet little gift to me!
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