In loving memory of Bernice Butz

Bernice Butz lost her battle to metastatic colon cancer and passed into eternal life on Sunday September 16, 2012. She lived an amazing life.  She was born in Easton, PA and resided in Nazareth, PA for most of her 82 years.  She was a devoted wife to her husband (of more than 60 years), Joseph Butz, and a wonderful mother to her sons.   She lived to see her grandchildren and great-grandchildren born, and she loved them dearly.  She was a faithful member of her church and loved to sing with the choir.  There is so much more to say about her, but instead, I decided to do what I do best.  I made this layout in her memory.  She loved to sew and quilt.  (That is why I used the sketch from one of my favorite books about scrapbooking:  "PageMaps 2".  You can find this particular sketch is on page 117.  I thought it looked just like a part of one of her quilts!)

God looked around His garden and He found an empty place,

He then looked down upon this earth and saw your tired face,

He put His arms around you and lifted you to rest.

God's garden must be beautiful. He always takes the best.

He know that you were suffering.  He knew that you were in pain,

He knew that you would never get well on earth again.

He saw the road was getting rough and the hills were hard to climb.

So He closed your weary eyelids and whispered "Peace be Thine."

It broke our hearts to lose you, but you didn't go alone.

For part of use went with you, the day God called you home.

Rest in peace, Aunt Bernice.  We love and miss you.

New challenges!!!!

Good Morning everyone!  Happy Saturday!  I hope you are all having a great weekend so far!  It looks like it rained a little bit here last night, but the stars are shining brightly now, so I think it is going to be a beautiful day!

For all of your scrappers out there, I would like to share the newest challenges at Scrapping the Music and Heather Landry's latest sketch!

Here is "Miracles Momma Designs" most recent sketch:

Sketch/Template #24

 

 

I was inspired by the beautiful fall weather we are having lately and wanted to make a page about the joys of Autumn.  I chose to use just one side of her sketch - the side with the journaling.  Here is my page:

 

I used photos that I took while driving (I should clarify -  my husband was driving - I took the photos from the passenger seat.) to a Halloween party last fall.  The party is at the home of friends who also adopted their daughters from China, and has become a beloved ,yearly tradition for us.  We love the drive to the party almost as much as we love the party itself, and my journaling reflects that!

Feeling inspired by Heather's sketch?  If so, please check out her blog here!

Also, it is time for a new set of challenges at Scrapping the Music!

Scrapping the Music's Challenge #206 A and 206B:

Frauke is hosting the challenges this week. She chose a beautiful German song entitled "Rain Red Roses."  I was totally inspired by this wonderful song, and thought of the red rose bush that my mom bought for me when we first moved into this home.  Here are some recent photos:

When I took these photos, it was raining lightly and I thought - "How perfect . . . for Frauke's song!!"  Here is the page I created:

 

Frauke's prompt for challenge 206B is as follows:  Do you remember what kind of music your mother/ your parents liked ? Did you share her/their taste?

I love anything vintage, so this prompt is right up my alley!!!!!  My parents loved music.   When my sisters and I were growing up, they would play albums over and over again on their record player.  We also enjoy watching variety shows on TV!  There were many during the 60's and 70's, but the one that really stands out for me is the Andy Williams show.  I still love hearing his beautiful voice to this day, and remember fondly watching his TV show and his Christmas specials, too!

My page:

 

Both of my "Scrapping the Music" layouts were created with a Scraptastic Club kit:  Rain Red Roses was the August "Barn Door" kit and Andy Williams was the September "Noted" kit.  Both kits are available at www.scraptasticclub.com.  

Thanks for stopping by my blog on this beautiful fall day!  I am looking forward to relaxing today and getting the chance to enjoy it!!! 

11 years since 9/11 . . .

I want to share with you some pages that I have made over the years in honor and memory of those that died and fought for us on and since 9/11.

The first is a layout I made last year about the "Little Chapel that Stood:"

My twin sister bought the children's book for me after we visited Ground Zero for my birthday.  It was written by A.B. Curtiss.

My journaling reads as follows:
 Throughout history, St. Paul's chapel has offered comfort and spiritual guidance. The chapel opened for worship on October 30, 1766 and is where the first president of the United States, George Washington, worshipped. The brownstone chapel survived new York's great fire in 1776. It is Manhattan's oldest public building in continuous use, and it is the only remaining colonial church. Over the years, St. Paul's Chapel sat in the shadow of the towering World Trade Center towers. The entrance of the chapel was directly across the street from the towers, not more than 50 yards away.
When terrorists attacked the towers resulting in their collapse on September 11, 2001, St. Paul's Chapel miraculously survived, virtually undamaged. It became known as “The Little Chapel That Stood.”
It not only stood structurally, it stood spiritually. In the days, weeks, and months that followed the attacks, the chapel served as a relief center for the firefighters and rescue workers. The chapel provided workers with refuge, food, medical attention, space to rest, and a place to pray. The iron fence that surrounds the chapel served as a place for family members of missing victims to post photos and messages to their loved ones. St. Paul's Chapel was a gathering place for everyone who needed physical and emotional support following the worst terror attack in the history of this country.
As the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches, St. Paul's Chapel is still a place were the memory of the victims of the attacks in honored. When you look at the altar inside the church, you look back at the faces of all of those whose lives were lost. Their photos remind us all of our terrible loss. The faces are of mothers, fathers, husbands & wives, and brothers & sisters. Many worked in the World Trade Center, but some went into the building while everyone else was trying to escape. That day, 2,753 people lost there lives in the World Trade Center. 343 of them were firefighters, 60 were police officers, and 8 were private emergency medical technicians and paramedics. The faces of these people are represented on the altar.
St. Paul's Chapel provides an island of peace, quiet, and serenity in the midst of turmoil. It has done this for 245 years! It stands as a quiet and compelling place in a chaotic world.

The second layout I would like to share with you was done for a Scrapping the Music song back in 2010 when Michelle asked me to be a guest designer for the first time on their blog.  

 The song was  "This is Home" by Switchfoot, and was the theme from "The Chronicles of Narnia" movie. I used artist Stephen Wiltshire's drawing of NYC - I scanned it and copied it onto my page.



And the last page I would like to show you is one I have shared before - I made it after my family visited Ground Zero.

We visited Ground Zero as a family 4 years after. It was a very emotional experience, full of tears and hugs. and prayers. Here is the layout that I made in 2005. The journaling reads: Many lives were lost on that September day. As our world stood still, and each of us prayed. Many people, just like you and me, gave their lives to set another one free. And on that day, when our world stood still, we all joined as one . . . in God's will.

"May all of us remember with love and compassion this day.
May we grieve with those who still mourn,
And share memories with those who cannot forget.
May we draw strength from those who bravely responded,
And gave their lives to save others.
May we stand with strangers who became neighbours that day,
And remember their generosity and hospitality.
Above all God may we remember your faithfulness
And learn to trust in your unfailing love."

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for stopping by my blog today.

Scrap Fit Step Challenge #8

Hi everyone and all of my scrappy friends out there!  I am here to show you the layout I made for the Scrap Fit Step Challenge #8.  I just got my new kit from the Scraptastic kit club entitled "Noted" in the mail and couldn't wait to scrap with it.  I used the photo that I took of the "blue moon" the other night, too.

Without any further ado, here is my layout:

My journaling reads as follows:



"A "blue moon" refers not to color, but to rarity. Blue moons are defined as either the fourth full moon in a season, or as the second full moon in a month. When Anne saw the amazing moon, she ran upstairs and said “mom, mom come outside and bring your camera!  You have to see the moon!” After I took some photos, we danced around like silly people.  It most definitely was a marvelous night for a moon dance!"

For the Scrap Fit step challenge, I used my "Slate" glimmer mist.  To make a "negative" die, I punched some stars out of card stock and placed them on my page.  I also used an old felt star cut out that I had.  Then I spritzed away!!!  

I hope you get a chance to check out the Scrap Fit blog and the Scraptastic Blog, too!  They are both wonderful sources of inspiration and have nicest and friendliest scrappers!

Have a wonderful rest-of-your-weekend as it comes to a close.  Thank you so much for stopping by my blog today!

Labor Day Weekend

Good morning everyone.  Labor Day weekend is officially over and it's time to go back to work and school!  Anne is excited about going back to school after only having 4 days of orientation last week.  I hope it's not a culture shock for her to get homework today!  LOL!!!

We had a wonderful weekend.  How about you?  We started off by celebrating my mother-in-law's birthday at the Marblehead Chowder House in Easton, PA.

We highly recommend this restaurant!  The service was excellent, food delicious, and atmosphere wonderful!!!  My mother-in-law got each of her daughters-in-law a beautiful sweater because we celebrate our birthdays in September, too.  Thanks Regina!

And Rosie and Dave had the most wonderful picnic on Sunday - filled with great food and wonderful friends.  (It was not the first time we were at their home, but the first time we saw their yard in warm weather.)  We walked down a magical path to their home:

I absolutely loved their home and especially their yard and garden.  Their house sits on a hill and has an absolutely wonderful view: (I always dreamed of having a wooded yard just like this one!!)

Rose told me that they had an above ground pool, in their backyard when they moved in, but when their kids grew up and moved out, she and her husband removed it, enclosed the area and made an English garden.  I can't tell you how beautiful it is and how much I loved it.  The whitewashed picket fence was my favorite:

I reminded me of a beautiful "Secret Garden!"

Anne was worried because there were not going to be any kids her age there, but she adapted and had fun!!

 Every part of their yard looked like a relaxing a beautiful spot.

The people were so nice and fun.

My sister Karen, and Deb got their picture in the paper after attending a Blues Festival.  They were showing off:

 Us being silly:

 And Anne was a BIG help to Dave at the grill!

 Katie was up at Penn State, but not forgotten in our hearts:

She actually got her picture in the Centre Times.  Check it out:

Looks like they had a blast!!


Yesterday was a rainy day, but we spent it with my sister, Karen, her husband, Tim and my mom and John's mom.  It was so nice to get together with them and enjoy an indoor picnic!

Have a wonderful Tuesday everyone.  Happy first day of school for all that apply!

And thanks so much for your visit to my blog!

Fall Party

Happy September everyone!  I can't believe that fall is almost here already.  I think each summer goes by more quickly than the previous one.  This one was extra fast because we knew we were taking Katie to college at the end of it.  Katie is doing great at school so far, and as for me, well, I am "surviving" without my every day "flesh and blood" contact with her . . . . and knowing that she is doing well makes me happy!!!

Today I would like to share a fall layout with you in honor of September being here.  I used photos from the Boorstein's Halloween party last year!  They have THE most fun and fabulous Halloween party every year that this past one was no exception.  Here is the page I created using the fall papers and embellishments that my sister gave me:

Don't you just love the warm feeling that fall gives you?  I know I do!!!!

For my layout, I used a sketch created by Kim Keane at My Creative Sketches.  They have a monthly sketch challenge at their blog:  you can get you layout featured on their blog, and you can win a great prize, too!  Check them out!!!!

Here is Kim's sketch:

Happy Labor Day weekend, to all of you USA-ers out there!  I hope you all have a safe holiday, and have loads of fun in the process!

I will leave you with a photo of us enjoying the labor day weekend last year:

I remember Katie took this photo - we were getting ready to see "Big Time Rush" at the Allentown Fair!  Fun memories . . .

The Moon Belongs to Everyone!!! (and the latest Scrapping the Music challenge!)

The moon belongs to everyone . . . the best things in life are free.

Last night Anne came running in saying "Mom, mom, you have go get your camera and come outside!!"  I did just that and this is what I saw:

The most amazing looking moon with a beautiful orange glow!  Anne and I just stood there and marveled at it's beauty.  Then we started dancing around like crazy people.  It was a marvelous night for a moondance!

I woke up this morning, went out to water my plants, and what did I see:

That beautiful moon was still there, shining as brightly as can be.  I needed no lights to water my flowers,  by the light of the silvery moon . . .

And now . . . I would like to share this week's challenges at Scrapping the Music!  We have 2 new design team members joining us and they are so very talented:  Her and Jessica!  Please go check out the Scrapping the Music blog to learn more about them and to see their awesome work!

Challenge #205A is an amazingly fun song titled "Stray Cat Strut" by the Stray Cats:

I used photos of my girlfriend, Barb's cat because she most definitely has cat class!!!

 

Thanks Phinn, for the awesome music goodies!!!!!

Challenge #203B is the following prompt:  What song reflects an event in your life?

When I saw this week's prompt, I was sure that I wanted to scrap the song "I Knew I loved You" by Savage Garden!  The fact that it was sung by a "boy band" didn't matter to me - it reflects so eloquently how I felt the moment Anne was placed in my arms in Changsha, China!

So . . .if you feel inspired by either the song or prompt, or maybe even both like I was, go to Scrapping the Music and play along.  We would love to see your creativity and share your friendship there!

Happy weekend everyone!!!!