All Sales are Final

In August we decided a trip to the beach was in order.  School was about to start.  I wanted to give the kids a reason to live.  I had my reason to live: school was about to start.  Yeah, it was all good.

My husband and kids were playing in the waves, leaving me lying on the beach all alone.  I was trying to look all "cougar-ish" when I spotted a couple of young men on bicycles who had stopped abruptly in front of me.  One was breathing heavily and attempting to look tired, but I knew what was really going on.  It wasn't the heat of the day, it was my hotness that was leaving him breathless.  I casually glanced down to be sure I was making the most of my "attributes" when I noticed my top was slightly askew, giving the guys a free show.  Well, you know what they say.  You get what you pay for.  They left rather quickly.

Sorry, no refunds.

Anniversary Card (and shameless bragging)

Okay, I'll admit it up front.  I'm posting this card not because it's some great example of creativity, but because I can't pass up an opportunity to show off pictures from my daughter's wedding.

The base of the card was cut from the Cricut Songbird cartridge, welding the back and front together in Design Studio to turn the shape into a card.  I also used the Songbird cartridge for the other layers, which were tweaked in Design Studio to fit within the basic card shape.  The birds are cut from the Cricut Wedding cartridge. I printed the wedding photo on vellum and cut it in on my Cricut to fit the card.  Patterned paper is from the s e i  "Madeline" stack.  The sentiment is stamped and embossed in silver.

I can't believe it's been a year since the wedding!

A Tale of Two Sisters

We couldn't have been more different, Teresa and me.  She was friendly and outgoing; I was ridiculously shy.  She was the life of the party; I just wanted to stay home.  She was extremely smart and opinionated; I was deathly afraid to speak my mind.  She was my big sister and I adored her.

We were born thirteen months apart and whether she liked it or not, I was her shadow.  I depended on her to help me navigate the scary world outside our front door.  Frankly, I was a pest.  But I'm pretty sure she loved me anyway.

Ten years ago, Teresa suffered complications after a surgical procedure and has been in a vegetative state since.  I miss her like crazy.  She had so much to offer the world and I feel that we were all cheated.   I've awakened many nights after dreaming that she miraculously recovered, only to face the reality that it will almost certainly never happen.  And the sadness washes over me once again.  I want so much to have a conversation with her.  She always made me feel that I could do anything.

Yesterday was her birthday.  I wish I could have picked up the phone and called her like I did so many years ago.  Sometimes a girl just needs her big sister.