Bring on the Cold Weather!

We're ready - Bring on the chilly evenings and crisp cool mornings! Our wood was delivered to our little cabin in Vermont and we're ready to enjoy a glass of wine, a good book and a nice fire!

Cricut Train Birthday Card

We recently attended the first birthday party of the son of my daughter's good friend. I knew I would make the card, but had been creatively challenged over the last several weeks.



That's what is so great about the Cricut. I looked through the cartridge booklets and came up with this card. I used the train from the New Arrival Cartridge.

Dolores Rose

My thoughts and feelings about my mother are no different than many of you for your own Moms. My Mom, Dolores was a wonderful and generous person filled with love for her family. A devoted wife and mother, she was always there when you needed her, but let you live your own life and perhaps hold her tongue when that was best to help you learn your own way. She loved keeping in touch with her entire family and kept us all informed of family happenings. She definitely would have been a daily blogger!

Seven years ago my Mom was called to Heaven after a brave but so short battle with Cancer. My Dad had this inscription put on her headstone.

"Love means something different to each of us. To me love means Dolores."

Several months ago my pregnant daughter in law came with me to visit my Dad and as we often do we went to the cemetary. When my daughter in law saw my Mom's headstone and the inscription that my Dad had put on it she was very touched at the love and devotion they had for each other. It stayed with her as they were deciding on names if their child was a girl. They did not want to know the gender and had already picked a boy's name, but not a girls.

The night my granddaughter was born we waited in the birthing center's waiting area. We heard the cries of new life and someone called out "It's A Girl!"
As we gathered around to welcome our granddaughter my son told us how touched my daughter in law Jasmine had been that day and that on the way to the birthing center that night they had decided to name the baby Dolores after my Mom. Her middle name - Rose - is after Jasmine's Great Grandmother.

Jasmine had never met my Mom - but saw that day what kind of person she was through the eyes of my father. Someone you would strive for your own child to be. Thank you Dan and Jasmine we are so blessed to have you in our lives...... excuse me ...... I have to go get a kleenex again. :-)

A Girl ....

Our beautiful Granddaughter has arrived. As new Grandparents, my husband and I are thrilled and feel so blessed to welcome Dolores Rose in our lives. Only an hour old we got to see and hold her for the first time.






I have often been told by friends how nothing beats being a grandparent. Of course there is the light hearted side where you can spend time with your grandchildren, but then they go home and you have your quiet time again. All the fun without the worry and responsibility. (By the way, my hat is off to all those grandparents that are raising their grandchildren) But, I have seen the awesome part is .... absolute instant love. I have felt that "instant love" three times as I have three children. To be able to feel that again is so amazing and joyous!



She is now a month old and I can see changes every day. I am so very lucky to have them living close by.

My next post will be how my heart was touched when my son and daughter in law decided on the name Dolores.

Shout Out - AJSDESIGNS

See what you could win over at the EtsyGreeting's Blog this week.

The winner has their choice of either a mandala card or an actual mandala. These are just beautiful and AJSDESIGNS puts a lot of work into each one. Take a look and see how you could be the winner of one of these!

Here are a couple of samples of her work.