The Funkie Junikie Boutique Challenge #9 A Mother's Love... The Little Birdies!

    It's last minute again. But there's always good reasons why I run so late! (LOL) Actually, this time is not exactly a good reason; it's simply that Mother's Day is my very least favorite holiday/day out of the year. Coming from me- the ultimate Mrs. Mommy- that sounds strange, but I do have my reasons for the dislike, and while they're not really interesting enough to go into, suffice to say that I finally came up with an idea that I could not only live with, but it actually made new memories for me and it's one I hope I can keep doing. Not to put my late Mom-in-law down, because someone will read this and end up having a cow. Oh well; we hashed it out years ago, not long after it happened. After I finally became a Mom in 1989 (we'd been married for 5 years by then, remember, so it was a pretty big deal to me), the ChiefHubby and I always tried to make a point of making sure our Mothers heard from us on Mother's Day, or as close to it we could get. And after all the hoopla on that particular visit,  when things quieted down and it was just she and I out on the front porch for a minute. After some funny thing said, I mentioned that this was MY first Mother's Day as well. It came fast- before she could think about it, as she said later; "But you are not MY Mother." I wondered aloud what she meant and she answered that she didn't have to wish me a Happy Mother's Day, because I was not HER Mother. Now, part of me understands that now. But at the time, it hurt... a lot. Years later, we were able to talk that out, but it kind of added to my already-dampened joy of declaring one day out of the year "Mother's Day". Especially when REAL Moms do NOT have 'a day off' like paying jobs. Oh yeah; we don't get paid either. 
So when it came to be MY turn to be a Mother-In-Law, I was determined that I WON'T BE ONE AT ALL. I don't want to be an "In-Law" Mom, because I am just MOM. Of course, I have no intention of taking any place of my Girls' Moms!! In fact, I am so very HAPPY they have Moms- especially that their Moms and Dads are also a second set of parents for our 2 boys as well!! Besides, a girl still needs her Mom now and then, and her Daddy, too...and it'd be really nice to have mine, truth be known. He died 4 years ago today (April 28, 2016), and I miss him every day. He was my Step Father, who was not "Step" to me at all, and had to play the "I'll pay you to keep her" game with my ChiefHubby. Our kids were his Grandkids, and I miss being able to show him my own Grandbabies now. My three older Sisters are dealing with the same- having Grandbabies the same years as me.

    In any case- blood doesn't prove you are FAMILY. To be part of a family takes LOVE. So when A Mother's Love- The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge #9 was announced, my thoughts started running this way right off. And that's what led to my memory of that conversation. I am determined that MY DAUGHTERS will know how important they are, & how important this day is to them as Moms, as well as to me: for the gifts of LOVE they have presented me with- first, by loving my Sons, and secondly by birthing such beautiful Grandbabies... and especially; for allowing us to ENJOY those babies!!
The younger Daughter up in Minnesota is having her first Mother's Day with their 6-months-old-that-very-week Baby, and the Older Daughter celebrates her 3rd with 2 Babies. How could you go wrong when you powerwash the house and the very next week find 2 birds with nests on the house's outer lamps?
  

                         I'll cut the chatter and show the matter...

Starting ideas came from the TH Stencil I've wanted for ages...Thanks, Amazon Man!

The oldest Grandson calls our UPS man (& probably all UPS men) "Amazon Man",

so we started saying "The Amazon Man left another package!", lol.

TH Paperie Memoranda is the PERFECT Spring go-to paper!

The Mat Board leftovers from a previous project made good filler for the main Tag's birdhouse.

After I got the idea stuck in my head, it got easier to imagine it taking shape.

I'm missing the TH Stencil Bricks.

Seeing all those bricks being crafted by Tim's new Bricks 3D Embosslit; 

add another "WANT!" to my list. I didn't notice one during my last shopping.

His stencil was the next best thing.

The TH 3D Embosser shown here is Lumber.

I used the Paper Studio Farm Stack again, and that stack is getting slimmer by the month.

I've got the green shades left. 

Here is where I did the sanding on the greyish Farm Stack paper, 

and some branch pieces from the TH Alterations Die Branch Tree (an oldie but goodie!)

 to start "stacking the wood to cover the main Tag's birdhouse, 

and make 'nesting' for the inside.

The Main Tag was planned to be mine, and is 3D and thick,

while the two other Tags would be flat.

I've been warned before not to add 'do-dads' to BOOKMARKS as gifts to my kids.

And believe me; all my kids -and now the Grandkids, too-  LOVE books.

So that's always a safe gift from me.

Stacking the cut and emboss-foldered wood onto the front.

I used Tape Glider to adhere the pieces together- 

but waited to add it to the front AFTER making a matching hole.

Doubling it like this just adds to the effect in details.

I even cut and stacked the thinner sides, since they were visible.

Making the hole again- by just tracing the first.

And using the new Crackle Stencil !!!

Yep, I knew it: I'm a fan!!

Not having any TH Distress Embossing Glaze yet,

I chose another out of my stash for the two Bookmarks- a Glossy White.

So NOW you see why I didn't have the TH Bricks Stencil in the photo above;

it hit me over the head that I DID have some TH Distress Embossing POWDER,

(in Antique Linen- one of my FAVE go-to colors)

and the fact that the stuff does make a really nice bricking...

I couldn't resist.

Er….my MUSE couldn't resist. lol

Heating the now dried TH Distress Embossing Powder.

I did cut a firmer inside set of pieces...from the Amazon Man's boxes.

Here's the laugh of the day: this trash is definitely related with Mother's Day...

I had to order my feminine hygiene items online.

How embarrassing! Yet, fitting in some honorable way, for this.

My first time at using the TH Distress Crayon technique to colorize the TH Paper Dolls.

(Thanks to Paula Cheney for her helpful videos that help Tim out!)

An older Sizzix Strip Die was perfect for the lettering on the Girls' Tags.

And here's another 'RUN-DON'T-WALK-TO-ORDER-THIS-STUFF!'

because that TH Fabric Tape is the bees knees !!!!

It's strong, it's sturdy, and it's tape the way tape should be!!

And since one of the rolls looks like the TH Memoranda Paper... :)

I chose to use this as I would my TH Tissue Tape; fold it in half to itself for my ribbon.

The trick is: pull out just over HALF of the tape cover, clipping off most of it but leaving

just a bit for your fingers to hold onto for pulling.

Then using the rest of your fingers on that same hand- gently lay down the tape to

its other half as you glide the tape protector cover off.

I practiced on one after I opened up the tape and found it to be

EXTREMELY GOOD TAPE!

My RA hands did much better using only half of the tape opened at a time

instead of the whole thing at once.

And then...you know me... I hadda get it personal and up close.

So off to my computer I went for the latest, cutest pics of my 

BEAUTIFUL GRANDBABIES...

and turn them into GrandDolls!

Making the crops, then copying a mirrored set of each

(the 2 older babies were taken together, so I made 2 sets extra since they overlap

a bit in the photo),

and save these for another day- and another thing for their "Time Boxes".

A little fussy cutting, a little Glider Tape...

and some awesome TH Transparent Wings!

And here's the Happy Mother's Day results...

Yes; the GrandDolls do come out of the pocket/birdholes !

They'll get a kick out of it...some day.

I just HAD to add the GrandDolls to my Tag- so they could see how I matched them up.

Does any other Mom/Grandma out there "see" a child as what they will look like or

be like when they are older??

With my own 2 boys, it helped me guide them to what I just knew they could do.

I tried my very best to always follow that 'sight' I had of them- even as babies.

And now; as Memaw, I'm just THERE. 

I'm not Mom to these babies. But I can still help my own kids be the best

Parents they can be. Although...none of them seem to need any of our help

because all four of them are AWESOME PARENTS & my heart bursts with LOVE!

The Backsides.

Actually, the flowers of mine were supposed to be on the front.

Embracing your adhering mistakes means that sometimes the "mistake" knows 

a better look than you did... I LOVE IT!!

(Pardon my PopDots- Little Girly, pull your dress hem down!)

                                          Some closeup pics:

Check out the BRICKS...

And all that yummy TH IdeaOlogy !!

Here's the "LOVE" on the main Tag.

The TH Fabric Tape

More IdeaOlogy!

The "LOVE" on this 'peeling white paint' is so adorable to me.

Oh. Wait...that must be that BABY I am staring at! ;)

Here's the double-sided of Peanut- just to show they are double-sided.

At the very last minute...I decided to add the date of Mother's Day- May 10, 2020

to all the Tags with Black Perm Archival Ink.

Wrapped and ready... for the stack of gifts to go out!!

Right now- our county is on total lockdown.

So when things are better...

I wish to THANK YOU all for the comments and for checking in to my Blog!!

I'm hoping to not be so late ALL the time, but....

the woods are calling me!

But YOU can join in with us next time, at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog

and perhaps win a $25 GC from our Sponsor; The Funkie Junkie Boutique !

If only they'd be as LARGE as past years. But, it's just begun!

I have a lot of time to think while I am out there, and my thoughts go from

missing my Dad- I always took him some when he couldn't go out to find his own-

to the fact that Cass County, Indiana- (home to the Chief and I) is right now 

the WORST in the country with  COvid19.

I've been home since March 1st without going out, and it's weird to say the least.

My heart breaks during this time, and all I can do is KEEP PRAYING,

and KEEP TRUSTING THE LORD.

Until next time...

Stay Safe, Stay HOME, & Stay Connected!

HAPPY BLOGGING!!

Mini Album Makers Challenge for APRIL: The Journals are Blooming all over!

   I was actually relieved to see the note from the Design Team of
APRIL Mini Album Makers Challenge choose to simply extend March into April for the current Challenge entries! Both months have been challenges in themselves, to say the least, and I was a bit behind in the Studio with several things myself.  Having the ChiefHubby at home during this time has been nice, but it does upset the usual 'schedule' that we both normally follow. The good news is- beyond having more time to walk together, take rides on 'the toy' (a huge 4 wheeler he purchased for me to use as transportation down the hill to the lake for sailing in my sailboat)- we've set a record early date working together on getting the place 'summer ready' once again. All that is left is to simply take the cover off the pool (even the leaves are out!), and put the pump on.  That is a huge load of work that normally takes me 2 months to do. I still have the decking to stain, but it's all been power-washed and the stain itself is due to arrive today! That alone is nearly a full month early in itself, and I'll only need a week of dry, sunny days- at the most- to get finished. And then... it's out to wax the already power-washed and waiting sailboat to make her yare, and Momma happy. When Momma is happy- everyone and every thing is happy. 
   If the photo at the top left looks familiar, that's because this project was meant to tie in with my previous post TFJBChallenge#8 Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes Tags. You'll see a final photo of them all together at the end of this posting, but before that; let's get busy with the "How To" that shows how I brought this set of journals together...

I've had this TH Resist 12x12 Stack since it first came out, but used only a few sheets.

It was time to get it back out- the stiffness of this paperie felt perfect for a journal booklet!

That newly acquired TH Alterations Bigz XL Die Large Stems...

paired up well with TH IdeaOlogy Wallpaper.

A package of new scores; gotta keep that economy going! ;)

For a different add-in, I decided to use the TH Ticket Book for tucking a few tickets

into a TH Stitched Pocket Thinlits die cut out of TH Classic Corestock in black,

and sand it down a bit.

I got out a few other IdeaOlogy items to use on the covers, and add to the inside of the journals.

The TH Small Butterfly Punch was the only thing I ended up NOT using.

I spied this folder on the ChiefHubby's bookshelf (we share a walk- through office) during 

my recent dusting tour, and noticed it was still full of school notebook paper,

While I suspected it belongs to either the ChiefHubby, or the younger Nuclear Engineer Son

(I'm the only one of 6 of us not having a college degree of some kind- and all of them have

gone to PURDUE for some length of their educations, with 2 having PURDUE degrees);

I decided it was "finders keepers" and would volunteer to be used sacrificially 

for these journals. In the end of it all; this paper actually MADE the journals !!

Strange or not, I actually began this project entirely because of the pockets- 

specifically the one that went into the journal book I was keeping for myself.

You'll find out why- if you listen to the video posted at the last of this post.

Copying 2 more pockets, and adding some TH Distress Ink in Faded Blue Jeans-

just for some added color on the inside that matched the lines on the notebook paper.

The left side cut is the COVERING of the TH paper stack!

In retrospect; I was thinking that using that cover ALONE would have looked cool, too!

The resist affect was all over the outside covers of the stack in mini stash squares.

Here, and in the next photo as well...

 you can see the difference after adding some TH Distress OXIDE Ink in Vintage Photo

(my fave "go to" TH ink- both Regular and Oxide)

makes to the paper itself. The right side cuts have been shaded and heat dried.

A few of the same TH IdeaOlogy Pen Nibs- so each has the exact same book marks...

...and some IdeaOlogy Number Brads for closure ties on each journal book.

(The bluish light is from a new necklace type of light the ChiefHubby ordered for the heck of it-

he enjoys the same things EVERY FIREFIGHTER has to collect: flashlights, knives, cutters, and window breakers. *sigh* But once he brought this in and put it around my neck...

Okay; yeah, I was won over with it! It's a Craft Studio light now- LOL!)

Sewing the signatures and pockets to the bind with some upholstery thread.

A peek at the inside backs of the total binders before the back covers were added.

The resulting journals...

Fronts...

Backs;

you can see the light shining onto the resist. I love the way that works!

And here are the matching sets- with 2 additional Tags that go out to a total

of four people as well as one set that will stay in my own box.

(I always keep one of everything I make- just in case I need a reference where a photo 

doesn't help much. When I die- maybe it will bring smiles to whomever they end up with!)

And here's the VIDEO;

From our home to yours: we're keeping our faith that the American people

will be bound together with the golden cord of CHRIST's Love & 

pray for GOD's Will for the USA to turn and seek His face in this time.

None of us can control the future, nor tell what our future holds.

But we can all decide on how we react to what comes to us.

May we all decide to lay down our dislikes and take up the hand of peace.

Until next time...

Stay Safe, Stay Home, Stay Connected, &

HAPPY BLOGGING!!