Its Been Awhile

Its been awhile and while I wish I had a grand announcement to make, I dont. I can say only that I continue to have new diagnosis and feel like rock hit me every time I climb the mountain of the last diagnosis. I feel bad, guilty, and so tired. I promise myself that I will not let my life or my wonderful families life be affected but who am I kidding? They know Im tired. They see how much weight Ive lost. I cant gain weight even if I eat all day. I cant see well and pain is all I know. I have so many dreams, so many things that I have to do, get done, lists of those I want to help, and a sweet daughter that I will forever show how to give of herself not only in good times, but in bad as well. Only, that has taken a backseat because I have to find out what is wrong with me, so I can continue to give the best of me to her and my terrific family, and that has meant giving myself shots weekly (something I thought I could never do) to keep my vitamins up so that I dont end up in the hospital, even though thats not working, and they dont know why. More tests tomorrow. I cant say Im not scared but if Ive learned anything about giving of yourself, what you give comes back around. And my family is fighting with me. I will never give up. Its never been an option and its never going to be. So hold on, and I promise, slowly I will get back to projects that are only temporarily on hold. God Bless!

Hospice Garden of Peace

I had to redo some of the garden elements and here is the picture (not a close up...sorry) of me and a nurse who works at Hospice. My eye looks funny (I have chronic Irisitis). I wanted to thank everyone who helped to make this happen. Especially Lorraine at Fairymeadow Miniatures who shipped the entire finished greenhouse!!!! Thank you!!!!! The greenhouse will be viewed by those who are terminally ill, their families, and staff and have already been told that staff greatly appreciate the donation and although it is very hard to see.....there is a name above the door that reads.....Garden of Peace with a flower at the end. THANK YOU ALL!! Slowly the work on the last two donations is coming along but again, I have had appts and tests here and at other referred clinics and overnight hospitals. I am lucky to have help (my daughter who is seven loves to do Paper Minis from http://www.paperminis.com/ ) so that helps alot! I have much more to do and there have been pieces of finished work that were dropped, accidents and much more, but for being a first timer, Id say Im doing the best I can with sudden health issues with myself and my daughter, and other unforseen issues within my family (who hasnt had hard times these past few years?) Slow but steady and while the womens shelter was the home I thought I would finish first, that is where my heart is, and will probably be the last one done. The Habitat for Humanity house is going well but need to get pics taken and updated. Soon I hope!

Progress

First, I wanted to say how sorry I am that it is seems so long between blogs but we've been very busy. My father is quite ill, and I've had a range of tests, and have been trying to balance all of this with many family matters, not feeling well, and slow progress being an over excited newbie. I can say that I have enlisted help for the hopefully late July garage sale to purchase clays, and I have decided to sell many of my own collections since childhood. I am also selling all of my old craft items, clothing, cd's, movies, games, gaming systems, ect, and am trying to focus on that only right now. I have appts through this time, my father will be going through a "zebra test", and I pray that they find no cancer. I have a happy little girl who loves the summer and such a help! I received a completely finished, painted, and ready to go conservatory for Hospice. And three gorgeous arrangements!!! I had wanted an office physician to lead to the garden but lack of funding and items and the way the conservatory is going, I have opted to do just the beautiful conservatory itself. And I did some of the plants/buying overhead light, the flower at the entrance to the conservatory, and the rest of the plants/extras are gracious donations!, but truly, all of this is owed to Lorraine at Fairy Meadow Miniatures!!! I owe many many thanks to her and all those for the help, encouragement and my wonderful family. I'm very lucky. So, hopefully this should be donated officially in the next few weeks!! Thank you all!!! I took pictures but I cannot get them to show up. I will be handing that job to a friend. Photos soon as I can! Again, thank you!

News

I just wanted to inform everyone that I will be gone for a few weeks as I have appts, my family is traveling as well to see my ill father, and all of us will be together for a short, much needed, family time. I am undergoing more testing, and currently unable to eat much, meds are making me sick to my stomach. I will post new pictures in about three weeks, I hope, of the finished furniture, clothing, and a HUGE glimpse of the conservatory for the Hospice donation. I have truly found out that roomboxes are so much easier!! I don't know how you do it all so fast! I apologize for the break, but until I'm better and my family is ok, I will only be taking kits with to work on and perhaps a few books to read : ) Trying to keep smiling so that I will not cry anymore tears over this. Trying! That's all I can do.

What I have...

What I have to offer other miniaturists and hobbyists, artists, sewers, clay crafters and anyone else who love to create anything with use of their creativity is my support, my guidance, my story, my resources, my items that I've bought myself and I have the following for individuals who need assistance in donation or fundraising, just as I am!

Remnants of all sorts, some are better quality and some are the cheap 25 cent piece from Walmart. I can't pass up a cheap remnant. I LOVE tulle and have oodles of it if you need any let me know the color!! I have tons of beads but these are the old vintage three prong beads, (all the vintage items such as my lace, handsewn aprons, hats, clothing, gloves, and otherwise made of clothe I do not part with as I collect vintage clothing and fabrics), I have tons of sequins, new and very very large and ugly old ones!, perhaps some 1/4 inch scale items I've made awhile back when I could still see with both eyes!, cardstock paper (plain, or different hard colors), and many books which I could take to the library if you needed a certain page copied, etc. Some stickers, but none that work with miniatures. If you're a scrapper, and donate, that might work for you! Let me know! Now, I'm really taking a break. Doctor's orders. Nap time.

Again, thanks to all who have helped me. I will continue to make and donate homes/rooms until I cannot see or walk, and then I'll learn how to do it blind! Watch me!

Paper Mini's Wishes

I've set up a wishlist at paperminis. Can you ever have enough mini books with pages that turn and words you can read, while your daughter says to you....mommy, the children will love the books the very best! And I think she's right!

Break

Taking a bit of a break for a few days and wanted to let everyone know that I wont be blogging or posting. I'm not feeling the greatest and I do have a few appointments. I am grateful for your understanding!! I am going to be organizing the items of mine that I have which I will post for those who may be in need of them, such as fabric (I love remnants!!!), beads, and scraps of this and that. Some things I used to enjoy and no longer do and have items of miniature making potential or other craft/hobby potential for any individual who wishes to donate a project/roombox/home for auction or strict donation such as I am doing. I hope I can help!!

I will also be posting a list soon for two websites that I have up, paperminis.com and paperwishes.com as I have wishlists for those sites. One is, of course, my favorite site and good friend Ann's paper mini's site that boasts brilliant books beaming full of readable words, brilliant smooth pages, and kits that pictures cannot justify! Trust me! And to top it off, Ann is so generous that every single month she has a free project for everyone in the club (and all you have to do is email her! Hello!!!?!!!!) and they are AMAZING projects!! One of my favorites was last Halloween when she had a printable halloween costume and candy!!! Ann's kits are amazingly priced even with the crazy market and the quality is unsurpassed! Don't believe me? Give one a try! I dare you! With $ tight for everyone I can always be reassured that I can do Ann's free project and sometimes that's literally all the items I have!!! I am posting my wishlists to see if anyone can help when they place an order on her popular website by even purchasing a single item to go towards my projects. The other site is a favorite scrapbooking site and favorite only because of the "mom's warehouse sales" and cheap grouped specials. I hope that anyone who knows or is a scrapbooker will help with this or even let others know, or perhaps if you've gone digital like the rest of the world (except me!!) I would love for any scraps, tools, distressing items, stamps, stickers, paper, vellum, how to books/mags, etc, to help me. I use scrapbook paper to wallpaper rooms! I use scrapbook stickers to make things stick together when I am low on adhesives. I use embellishments on my special love....dressing wood, no kidding! Please check out Ann's site if you havent become familiar with it and also the scrap site. I would appreciate any and all help. If you are in a club, tell them. If you have a large or small family, please tell them my story and see if anyone can help. Coworkers? Anyone? Even one kit, one piece of paper, it all helps!!! I can make a ton of things out of one sheet!

I think that my passion will be hobbies and crafts, and a few things I have to keep secret as a miniaturist who wants to sell one day!, as well as babies...all things babies. From making them, to clothes, toys, mommy's with their babies and toddlers, period furniture, modern working toys, modern fashions and themes, and dressing beds. And when I get a plain bed, I totally rip the bed off, make a matress, make sheets (yes, both fitted and plain), a comforter of the very, very small amount of Rattan (I think thats what this fancy stuff is!?) and satin (only feels like the real deal, can't afford the real stuff) and then I sew that fancy by hand, glue on a beautiful bedskirt that I have pleated by hand, and now, on this first dressed bed, I am attaching a beautiful drape over it with tulle and handsewn beads on the ruffle. (This is the first bed I've made, it's not the bed in the pictures you've seen, it's for the women's shelter....an elegant bed to the place that owns a piece of me, a huge piece of the woman who still wonders when I'll be back there with a black eye and they'll welcome me with open arms...a bed to those who've given me more strength than I thought I had, they are the ones who will get the elegant, most beautiful bed I've ever made or ever will make again, my rattan, satin, beaded beauty will forever be a gazing point in a house that fosters not beauty but understanding, not riches but knowing that life means so much more than worrying about $, and THE only house, the ONLY PEOPLE that I can honestly say I've told my story to, my whole story, to the most graphic detail I still recall and smell and fear, they hold my secret, in a file in an office, and to represent that, the office will be in the home, and a letter, a mini secret letter, will be tucked between the sheets on the bed of my dreams. That home will be done one day, not soon, because my heart is put with every stitch, my memory brings tears sometimes when I finish a piece or decide that its not good enough, just like me, never good enough, and then I remember all too well how often I have been that person, and still am sometimes....too afraid, too frail, too alone, too hurt to ever truly trust again, and I start over on a new piece, because truly it has to represent freedom, strange women that had never met me suddenly holding my hands as I collapse and cry, and feeling for the first time in my entire life...I mattered.

So, as I cry here now....sorry about that but I cannot explain that house too much as this is how I get...it's going to be a truly emotional day the day I walk in and give the home to the women and children who are there today, only remembered by staff because I retold my story, and to leave the house in a different way than I left it last time. This time I leave I think and I pray and I hope that I feel I've only just begun to repay what they've done for me, things they will never even know. That is what life is all about.