ANOTHER NEW YEAR -- TRY AND TRY AGAIN !!!

-------November 1, 2015

So many things have happened, last year to this one,  so I lost track of blogging again.  But, here I am, trying again to complete this endeavor.  How many times did Thomas Edison try to invent the light bulb????  I hear it was MANY, MANY times ---  so I am in good company !!

Family issues have prevented me from blogging --- and a year has passed --- and my grandchildren have turned 7 and 5 now --- and the youngest is now a kindergartner and "full-time" ....    Our town had part-time kindergarten -- so this year is the first time that they made it full time!!  I wonder when that changed??? When I was in school  (many, many mooooooons ago)  our kindergarten was always full-time.  Hmmmm --- when did that change??  Oh well -- enough of those thoughts.

It looks like today, being Sunday, is going to be another busy day --- first to church and then visiting with the grandkids.  Tomorrow, being Monday, they will be in school, so I will come back to start the
blogging again --- (maybe this time to be more successful)  I will keep plugging away !!!

Sooooo - oooo ----- here we are again --- it is November 25

 - the day before Thanksgiving --- I do have a lot to be thankful for --- I'm alive for one thing, the grandkids are doing ok and healthy -- my "kids" are breathing ok -- the time just flies by --- I have got to make a pumpkin pie, an apple pie, "smashed potatoes" and carrots --- just a little trimmings ---

November 26 is another milestone in my life --- I think I just turned 69 -- yes I did - I just had to count on my fingers.  Yup, yup -- I am officially 69.  Wow --- It's funny how, in our minds, we don't feel that old, but our bodies (some of us anyway) tell us a different story. (Thank God for Aleve !!)

I've gotten the urge to write again --- little articles -- we'll see how far we get.  I found a writer's group but it conflicts with my grandson's Lego Playtime at the Library on Monday nights --- my son is going to see if he gets home on time, that he can take Aidan and I can go to meet with this group.  We'll see. In the meantime, I am reading some books on writing articles.

I read a biography on E.B. White recently -- the first book I ever read was Charlotte's Web.  That book was given to me by a woman I really looked up to -- her name was Ruth Nelson -- she was a reporter for the Waterbury Republican-American, a newspaper in the city I lived in.  She really got me interested in reading. 

Then, later in my life, I went to school in Litchfield, CT  (Wamogo Regional High School) where I had a classmate named Josephine Franklin -- whose mother just happened to be Madelaine L'Engle and she was in the process of writing "A Wrinkle in Time" in longhand on a yellow legal pad !!!!  Wow -- she gave up some advice that just opened up my world --- she said even if you know or think you know what a word means, look it up in the dictionary, you might be surprised at what you find.  It could mean something totally different than what you thought.  This advice really came in handy when I was reading the bible -- Wow - what a difference a word makes !!! 

I really wish I could connect with Josephine again; just to let her know what a difference her mother made in my life.  When my grandsons and I were at the library this last week,  I found another book written by Madelaine L'Engle; it was called, " The Other Dog".   I laughed because it was like the dog narrated the story about the birth or what he thought was another dog, when in reality, it was the birth of her daughter, Josephine.  How cutely it was written.

***I did write a little something to add to this crafting blog and here it is:

Crafting is all I have ever known; it has always make me happy.  I would feel like I really accomplished something every time I learned to do a new craft.  It was like I was fulfilled for a moment.
When I was younger and newly married, I would take up one new craft a year and make everyone on our Christmas list a gift using that craft.  It saved us a lot of money.  Now, the lists have dwindled and children, nowadays, require electronic gifts, clothes, books and jewelry (but I do hand-make those; the jewelry, that is. 
This year I am looking at making handmade birthday calendars and some homemade peanut brittle.  Next year, the gifts might be calendars with a scrapbook feature.  I love making cards and keepsakes; once I learn how to use the camera my son is letting me use, the gifts will change.  I am not sure how they will change, but they will change.***

Well, this is it for this week -- I just have to learn more about blogging.  Wish me luck !!  In the meantime, dream great dreams and let God be your guide !!!  (Hopefully, I can get this done once a week -- This is one of my goals )

TTFN !!!  (Ta-Ta for now !!)

A WEEKLY POSTING ???

Maybe I could be more consistent if I write a little each day and publish once a week; then maybe I would have time to upload pics and write what it's all about!!  Sounds good to me !!!  Then the family and I went camping and that just messed me up altogether.

OK...today is Monday, the 28th,  and the plan for today is to get maybe one or two cards done.  I found out about two deaths in the family so the two sympathy cards I made over this weekend are going to be used up.  I need more of them.  We all seem to run short one time or another.  I just looked at the date and talk about  getting messed up!  I need something to eat -- I just noticed the time, and lunch is definitely needed. 
One of my favorite places is Pinterest!!!  So full of inspirations and ideas !!  It has become a daily "MUST"  !!  I do have to pick up my Stampin' Up order.

Today is Tuesday, the 29th of July -- I just have to make time.  I learned how to add a gadget today on the blog.  The only trouble is when I try to change the place it had landed in, the blog does not give me a chance to save the change.  I can preview it changed but on the page where the change occurs (to drag & drop)  the blog changing area doesn't have a button that says "save changes".  I guess I have to visit the forum again.  That is where I learned how to "add a gadget".  So now I am off to pick up my SU order and hopefully I can get back to this later.  (After I get done with PINTEREST !!! )

Yup -- goofed again !!  Today is 8.1.2014 -- Friday -- and I missed typing for 2 days.  I spent most of my time on Pinterest and visiting though.   So today I would like to DO something.  I am looking at remaking clothing.  I hate throwing out clothes (for the material mostly).  I just saw some cute things to make out of old tee shirts....I do want to do THAT !!!  Later -- people !!

OK -- here I am again!!  Today is August 5th, 2014!!    I am going to try to really do a weekly blog-thing ---  but I have been a little busy anyway!

Played games with the grand=kids and my DIL -- we had fun and then I went downstairs and worked on a necklace I had been wanting to make.  When I was down in Florida, I found this pendant and I immediately pictured a 3 string necklace.  I HAD to get it; finding the right beads to go with it was a challenge.

A friend of mine, who is a jewelry maker - Beedle's Baubles -- told me to go with a satin cord and just make it as a single pendant strand.  On the back of the pendant, was a piece of backing with 3-rings on each side to make it a 3 string necklace.  So here is the finished product -- I absolutely love this.  It is all that I expected it to be !!  It is silver with clear rhinestones in the center -- lovely !!

 

I have also made a couple more necklaces where the beads just caught my eye.  Here they are --

 

 

 

I was born in November, so Topaz has been one of the favorites, but these beads really caught my eye!!  Now I should make a bracelet and earrings to match -- on goes the search for beads that will match.

 

 

I love the vermillion color -- these beads just spoke to me.  I took a picture of them two ways - together and separated.  The reason for the separation is to see which way I would like to see them worn. I did find some beads to use them for the "in-betweeners".  But, to me, it still doesn't look right.

Maybe I should just leave them together as in the first photo.  Hmmmmmm!!

 

 

This is a picture of two of my favorite people:  Aidan ( in the foreground) is wearing his new "Dino Dan" type outfit -- he LOVES dinosaurs and Alex (in the background) is quite the little ham-bone!!  They are so cute, but a REAL handful !!  Alex will be in 1st grade this year and Aidan is in pre-K 4!!

This is my youngest son, Wayne, with the newest addition to our family -- Jayden, who is 1 year old.  He is a little chubby baby -- he'll lose it once he starts "runnin'" !!


This past month I even was camping with the family -- what fun that was !!  I really enjoyed it -- it's been a long time (longer than I would like to count) since I was camping.  I think I only had the two oldest children at the time -- Phil and Peter.  Camping and fishing -- that was the thing in those days.  That was so much fun!!  We did go fishing this time -- Alex got the first catch, this trip, was a "TURTLE"!!
And I did catch a fish -- !! -- Yay!!!  Glad to see I haven't lost my touch!! I wish I had a picture of what we caught.

 

Here is the family discussing the "plans for the day".  We were at Black Rock State Park.

 

Making smores was just the thing for  the evening !!!

 

Here's the two grandchildren pretending to be ALLIGATORS coming to shore to attack GRAMMA !!

A really fun weekend !!



 

I have made some newer cards -- I just have to take pictures and then I can post them. 

I also got the tee-shirts and have started making the "scarves".   I have to get the contrasting embellishments before I can take pictures and "show them off"  !!

 I just love PINTEREST !!!  I can already see the presents I will have fun making!!  OK -- I guess I am done with this blog for today!!  Yay !!  I just wanted to have something interesting to say; I have been checking out other blogs and most of them have something on a daily basis --  maybe someday I will have a little something for every day -- or maybe every other day !!

Thank you, Lord for my talents and another day !!  Help me to put everything to good use !!

Until next time --
Ronnie-Bear

 

 

 





Trying to be consistent ----- !!!!

So much to do; so much to learn!!  I love to Craft. I have been doing it since very my very young days.  At least I am showing that you CAN teach an old (I'm not a dog!!) (sort-of-old) wondrous personality (I like that one!) new tricks (?) nah, new things, new crafts, new recipes, new interesting things. (Much Better !!)

I wanted to do and be many things in my lifetime, but many obstacles came my way for a few of them; and maybe for a good reason.  Let's see -- Auto Mechanic, U.S. NAVY, Hairdresser in NYC, Home Construction -- Creativity is in my blood!!  As I look back, I can see why a lot of these vocations did not pan out - or maybe I gave up too easily ??? 
I really loved working on cars - my boyfriend and I took apart his GTO to put new rings on his pistons in the engine -- that was a heavenly accomplishment - I loved getting greasy hands and the feeling of accomplishment after it was done.  I changed my own oil and even took parts from other cars to fix my tail-lights on my car (splicing wires and such) OH WHAT FUN !!! And the best part about it was that when I pulled the knob - they worked !!!
The NAVY??  My mom and dad would not sign for me to go in -- (good thing --- VIETNAM)
That was a close one !!
Hairdresser in NYC??? -- I didn't want to leave home at that point (boyfriend, of course)
Home Construction?? -- I wanted to take a class of Industrial Arts in my high school (WAMOGO Regional H.S.)  and I was told that was a BOY'S CLASS so I was refused (that was in 1960, imagine that!!)  When I got older, I took a woodworking class in an Adult Continuing education course -- I did have fun with that -- I loved making things with wood and other such things  -- It all had to do with crafts !!

I have made jewelry, crocheted a LOT of Christmas presents, sewed a lot of clothes (even gowns) for dances and weddings (I still like to sew) -- and now I make cards and I love to scrapbook -- I can't afford those trips people go on -- too overwhelming to be in a group of hundreds of people.... I like small groups!! 

OK enough of this one post -- I am going to try to be more consistent (hopefully I will be successful!!

Thank you, Lord, for another day !!

It's a New Year (again) !!!

I know I archived a post -- but I don't know what happened to it??? !!!  I have to practice more on this blog.    I am going to try to get better --where does the time go????  Some days just zooooooom by -- I guess I mean ALL days -- they just seem to just zoooooooom by at an alarming rate. 

At least I got a few things done this month -- Scrapbook pages -- a few cards -- one was a total challenge -- and I just love challenges --- a "POP-UP BOX CARD"  ----- it came out sort of  good, although I just used scrap papers -- I tried to put together papers that would sort of match, but it still came out OK....the next one I make, I will definitely give more thought to before I leap to putting these types of cards together.

 

Now I have to fix the alignment -- sheesh!!!  Thank goodness it worked!!!  Now I have to try to do a really good one!!!  Ok, now I'm going to upload the cards I just did (I must be on a roll -- not really or I would have more than this done in a month -- I wanted to challenge myself and try for 1 card a day -- that's a dream -- I'll just have to keep plugging away !!)  I do love to craft cards -- I also want to do some mini-albums for my family -- like cousins and such -- little by little.

 

 

This is the inside of this challenging card from a tutorial I saw on Splitcoast Stampers -- a craft website that I belong to.  It was easier than I thought it was going to be.  I love making those bows!!  Now for the front ---

 

 

The tutorial was all about the inside stack of presents for this challenge.  To me, I think doing the front of the card was more challenging than the inside.  I kept thinking -- "What can I do??, What do I do with this????"  I finally figured it out...but it was exasperating!!!  Sometimes it comes easy and other times --- days!! 

 

Now for the finale of this blog this evening ----  My scrapbook page of " The 3 Generations" --  It is a picture of me, my dad, and my dad's mom -- my grandmother " Baba Waterbury" !!!

 

 

 

I love the way this page came out!!  I started reading a book on Scrapbooking (I have a few of them), and this was a very interesting book.  I was trying to do pages that would have more than one picture.  This particular book had quite a few interesting ideas of different types of pages and subject matter.   One chapter talked about 1 picture pages.  I am starting to learn more about embellishing a scrapbook page.....So this page is my 2nd pride and joy (the first one was my prom pages).  I'm hoping I can see if I'm getting beter at it as I go along. 

 

Well, it is REALLY late now - like quarter to two in the a.m. ----  So, I better get to the bedside and under the warm, cozy covers -- like it's really C-C-C-O-L-D out there tonight!!! 

Sweet Dreams, whoever may be looking at my blog!!!

 

Catch you later -- and hopefully I will make more of an effort to get more posting done!!!

MU-AH !!!  Wish me luck for this coming year!!

 

 

 

 

 

 





I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW LONG IT'S BEEN !!!

I can't believe that a whole year plus has gone by since I added to my blog. I am soooooo ashamed of myself.  I even looked at this blog in February and I meant to blog again, but the time just evaded me.  

I did start to scrapbook though; and am VERY pleased with the results !  I just happened to find all the pictures I had of my senior prom from Wamogo Regional High School in (s-h-h-h-h) 1964.

Page 1

Page 2

Flip-Top Jounaling

DETAILS OF THE DATE

I did get some help from the women who own the store that I get a lot of my craft supplies from -- Treasured Moments in  Watertown, CT.  They are very cool and very helpful.  The woman that got me into stamping and I were supposed to go to a "CROP FOR A CAUSE" on the National Scrapbooking Weekend for the Alzheimer's Association.  My daughter-in-law was giving us a present by paying for the Donation for us to join the "CROP".  

Much to our dismay, it got cancelled due to a lack of participation.  They started with an attendance of about 20 -- which was good for a first time crop -- it was going to be catered.  Then someone died and some of the people that were going were related so they cancelled out.  A few other illnesses and other emergencies came up and that left 3 -- another participant, my friend and myself.  Needless to say, the crop was cancelled.  The good news is that the Association decided to try it again on August 3 of this year.  Hopefully, this will be the beginning of something great!!  This was the first time I was going to get to go to a "CROP".  
                    I saw some pictures of cropping weekends and 
                    cropping trips and to say the least -- they look 
                                VERY OVERWHELMING!! 

              (ALL THOSE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE ALL AT ONCE!!!)

At least with 20 people I could handle that!!  Well, I just hope that in August it doesn't get cancelled and it goes as planned.  I'm looking forward to it~!!

Anyway, because that crop got cancelled, the women at the Treasured Moments Store decided to have a free crop for those of us that got disappointed. This was a special treat for me as I have never been to a crop, so starting off small was great to me!!!  (Besides, their store was going to be the crafter's supplier for that crop, so they felt a little disappointed themselves.)  
                        The above pictures are the result of that crop!!

Our school colors were red and white -- the accent of blue was chosen because my gown had a turquoise bodice so I thought that the accent of blue with the red and white touched it off nicely!!

              So to whoever see this blog, I hope you like my pages!!

I have been experimenting with some techniques -- like marbleized paper using shaving cream and distress inks.  I am also working on some calendars to make as gifts -- these are sooooo cooooool !!!  I am working on a 12 x 12, an 8-1/2 x 11 and a 6 x 6 one.  I am also working on some blocks as a "Family Picture Gift" and am looking to be making some Mini Albums for my kids to have.  I will post pictures when I finish the projects.  (I know -- I have my fingers in a lot of pots !!)    

                             "ONE-BY-ONE IS HOW ITS DONE" !!!

                                 I'll get that trick eventually!!

Thank you for another day, dear Lord --

Thank you for my family and all my blessings --

Thank you for the talents you have given me --

Good Night to All --

May sweet dreams of creativity overflow your cup !! ==

                                              (Where did THAT come from???)

Nighty-Night !!  Til next time................

Ronnie-Bear

SURPRISING INFORMATION !!!

Hi There (whoever is here visiting) !!

Last year I missed entering the 2011 World Card Making Contest because of the date.  I did not realize that the date stamp that was required landed on a holiday and the U.S. Post Office was closed.
It took me awhile to gather all the information that was required, like the paper companies of the designer paper's I was using, the stamps "name", the inks, etc.  Being a new stamper and a new contest submitter, I wasn't aware of all the little details and then trying to get that information and the instructions to fit on the back of the card.....WOW !!  That itself has to be a work of art !!  I was so distraught....I could not wait to find out when the next contest was going to be.  (Not soon enough !!) 
So onward I go, doing sketches and trying to catch up to that 1 card a day goal that I had set for myself, just waiting for the day when I could send in my cards.  Then when I looked at the rules, I saw that you could not submit any cards that were shown on any website, any gallery, any blog; well, as we live and learn.  Those rules already cancelled out one of my cards. 
Two weeks ago,  a magazine called "Card Maker" was sent to me because I had signed up for a newsletter somewhere.  I'll tell you what -- I love that magazine.  It had really interesting articles in it, tutorials, and techniques & tips.  It's really a great magazine for Card Makers. 
Then, THERE IT WAS !!!  A new contest -- Yay !!  I was ready now !!  The deadline date is March 20, 2012 !!  I already sent one card in.  On my desk, right now, is a card that I am going to mail in tomorrow.  (Can't even show it to you, darn !!)  It's like you are so proud of what you did and created, but you have to keep it under wraps until the contest is over.  I'm like jumping out of my skin -- because I want to show it....but I'll just have to control myself a little longer!!  Maybe it's the Polish side of me -- creative and over anxious with pride and just want someone else's opinion.  Oh well, I will learn.
I did a few things this month, I joined "Operation Write Home"  that'll keep me busy and designing in a simpler fashion.  I had a death in the family, so I made about 10 sympathy cards in three days, took the pictures, and then mailed them.  Now all I have to do is re-make a few of them, so I can enter them in the contest - my goal is to send in at least 10 cards - hopefully.  I need 8 more.  The one I really wanted to send I can't because it was for a sketch challenge on Splitcoast Stampers to use only scraps  ---  I am soooo proud of that one -- that one I could post here and I think I will right now!!

This was really a cool challenge on Splitcoast Stampers !!  I hear a lot of card designers keep all their scraps.  I laughed when someone said to me, " If it'll be big enough to punch something out of it, I'm keepin' it !! "  Well, that made me laugh because that is just what I do.  Notice those flowers that were punched and that flourish type punched things on the right hand side; when I have left-over paper, sometimes, I'll just punch flower shapes or that flourish shape, circles, and whatever punch I could use I'll punch out some shapes.  See that circle for the "i" ?  That, I punched but it had a flat side -- see how well that fit perfectly to the flat side of that square it's leaning on.  And  see that little heart???  That was leftover from a Spellbinder's Label.  The only thing I had to really make from my scraps was that heart and the "u" !!  Everything else is just as it was in my scrap pile.  I am very proud of this card!!
Now I am going to post a couple of pictures from the pile of sketches.  Enjoy!!

This card went to a special friend of mine for his birthday in November.  We were bus drivers together and we always had coffee on our breaks between runs.  This was also for a sketch challenge on Splitcoast Stampers; it was fun!!

This also was for a Splitcoast Challenge and it went to a friend in Massachusetts for her birthday!!  The large white flower and the strip band across the card is white glitter paper and the center of the flower is with navy blue tiny beads.  They're raccacolie beads ( I know the spelling is wrong, but I'm not taking the time right now.  I want to get this blog done.)  The 4 strips downward are of canvas textured paper.  It really looked nice together.

Now for the other big news.  I did the Blog Hop from Paper Crafts Magazine from the winners of the contest that I missed entering, the 2011 World Card making Day Contest.  Whoever wanted to had to go to all 20 blogs of the winners and leave a comment and you might get chosen to win "part" of their prize and another person would get a copy of the March/April 2012

PaperCrafts magazine.  Well, it took me two nights but I did all 20 blogs.

Winners would be announced today.  Shock of all Shocks, I SAW MY NAME!!!  A winner of a prize package.....WOW-WOW-WOW !!!  I sent

my name and address to her, so she could send me the package !!  It's almost

as good as winning the contest !!!!!  (Well, to get published, yes, it would

have been better, but this is a "STEP" in the right direction !!  I share in her

JOY !!!  (And I get to "follow" the "20 BEST" !!!)

I also do Pinterest  and FaceBook under my name -- Veronica Pozarvitz

SplitCoast Stamper i.d. is  Zbear1

Well, I hope you had a good read tonight and I am starting to get "mouse-hand"....so I will say Good Night, Sleep Tight and don't let the bedbugs

BITE !!

I'm new at this, so please forgive that I couldn't even fix this left alignment.  It just wouldn't go!!  I'll figure it out sometime or other.

Love to all and HAPPY CRAFTING !!!!!



2 New Projects Finished !!

Hi There !!  It's the start of a brand new weekend in Connecticut!!  The other night the weatherman said....we could expect "snow-showers"....and woke up to see absolutely  nothing !!  Well, the way I feel now, the beautiful temps we have been having............it's too late to have snow now....I'm ready for spring.  My son's peach tree has buds and I've been taking the grand-kids on the swings and playing basketball with them.  Now all I have to do is attach the wagon to my bicycle and I can take them for a ride !!  I love getting them outside!!

So now, Wednesday night I finished the "Cascading Card" for the This or That challenge on SCS.  Just took awhile to get the pictures and editing them to see which one I was going to post.  OK...here it is for TLC362.

I hate to even send it now, I like it so much !!  It's for a cousin in NY for her birthday.  I also finished a "Smash Book" for her for a present.  I don't have a picture of that, but if you look up Smash Books on You Tube, you can see what I am talking about.  It's a really cool thing to do and make to get rid of odd designer papers and papers in general.  It was a fun project !!   

I would like to set a goal for my card-making, but I am sooooo afraid to look foolish if I couldn't complete my goal.  But I would like to see how far I could get.  Ok so for the year my goal is (let's be reasonable now) to be         at        least   150  cards.                                                                  (Now I have to count just how many I did make  -- Oh more work!! )                                                                                                     



I really want to enter some contests, since I missed the last one because of a holiday; the cards wouldn't have gotten postmarked by the date indicated in the guidelines--so I missed out on that contest.  So now the date is March 20 and i am getting ready for this contest now!!  (But the writing on the back of the card kills me !!)   That's OK...I will choose to suffer a little for the sake of designing with a possibility of getting known  and published !!  That would be sooooo coooooool to see my name in print as a card designer !!

Ok, off to bed  --  Thank you Lord for giving me a desire and the talent to design cards and any other talent that I have that I have used to gift and earn money to feed my family at a time when it was needed.

Good-Night All and Thanks for Looking !!