Day Two: Hot Fun in the Summer Blog Hop

Welcome to day two of the Hot Fun in the Summer blog hop.  I, along with some talented crafters, have teamed up to share cool craft projects that display summer fun! Of course, a blog hop isn't complete without blog candy! There will be giveaways on various blogs throughout the hop! Plus there will be a SOC (Scraps of Color) blog hop gift awaiting one visitor!! To be eligible for that prize, you must comment on all the blogs by Mon, June 25 at 11pm EST. From all who are eligible, one lucky reader will be randomly drawn. The winner will be posted on all the participating blogs on Wed, June 27.
One lucky blog hopper will win:

Description: It's two kits--one is a 6x6 album starter kit, including a 6x6 paper pad, stickers, and flowers from My Minds Eye. There's enough product for the album and two cards. The other is an Archivers Designer's Favorites kit, vol. 1. It comes with some Bazzill cardstock, patterned papers, Thickers alphas, and all kinds of embellies.

Joy in the journey is the first blog in the blog hop. So you are in the right place. The other blogs in the hop are listed below. There is also blog candy here! To win the following prize from 'Joy in the Journey' all you have to do is the following:

1. become a follower (or already be a follower) of this blog
2. leave a comment on any of 'Joy in the Journey's' blog hop threads by 11 P.M. EST Monday, June 25, 2012. Only one comment per post.
3. Comments on each day's post are entered for a chance to win. (so if you leave a comment on each project you will be entered to win the blog candy multiple times)

The winner will be chosen randomly. All winners must reside in the continental US. Here is the prize:

And here is the project:
Perhaps it is because school is out and they are chillin' in a tree, but whatever the reason these girls are all SMILES. 

YOU ARE HERE:Tina http://www.parablesproductions.blogspot.com/

Sheryl http://gemzisle.blogspot.com/
Lorie http://lorie-thepeddler.blogspot.com/
Suz-que http://suzqucrafter21.blogspot.com/
Cyndi http://nashvillesscrappinsisters.blogspot.com/
Qadirah http://alilcraftydiva.blogspot.com/
Margaret http://margaret-ilovecrafting.blogspot.com/
Tiare http://classygirlmusings.blogspot.com/
Jetti http://gigi-zone.blogspot.com/
Felisa http://felisa21.blogspot.com/
Cassie http://cassiescraftcafe.blogspot.com/
Kristen http://1206designs.com/
Sharette http://scrappernthemaking.blogspot.com/
Kate Blue http://kateblue.blogspot.com/
Caryn http://thescorpiancrafter.blogspot.com/
Princess http://www.papercraftingparadise.blogspot.com/
Cheryl http://onecraftyncpeach.blogspot.com/

 Thanks for stopping by. Remember to come back for day 3 of the blog hop and another project. I hope you have been inspired to go make something pretty.

Hot fun in the Summer Blog Hop

Well summer is officially here!  Yay, but boy is it hot in DE.  So to celebrate summer: I, along with some talented crafters, have teamed up to share cool craft projects that display summer fun! Of course, a blog hop isn't complete without blog candy! There will be giveaways on various blogs throughout the hop! Plus there will be a SOC (Scraps of Color) blog hop gift awaiting one visitor!! To be eligible for that prize, you must comment on all the blogs by Mon, June 25 at 11pm EST. From all who are eligible, one lucky reader will be randomly drawn. The winner will be posted on all the participating blogs on Wed, June 27. 

One lucky blog hopper will win:

Description: It's two kits--one is a 6x6 album starter kit, including a 6x6 paper pad, stickers, and flowers from My Minds Eye. There's enough product for the album and two cards. The other is an Archivers Designer's Favorites kit, vol. 1. It comes with some Bazzill cardstock, patterned papers, Thickers alphas, and all kinds of embellies.

Joy in the journey is the first blog in the blog hop.  So you are in the right place.  The other blogs in the hop are listed below.  There is also blog candy here!  To win the following prize from 'Joy in the Journey' all you have to do is the following:

1. become a follower (or already be a follower) of this blog
2. leave a comment on any of 'Joy in the Journey's' blog hop threads by 11 P.M. EST  Monday, June 25, 2012. Only one comment per post.
3. Comments on each day's post are entered for a chance to win. (so if you leave a comment on each project you will be entered to win the blog candy multiple times) 

The winner will be chosen randomly. All winners must reside in the continental US.   Here is the prize:



earthtones

 Now for today's project.  Many of you know that even though I do not have children of my own,  for some reason I am the kid magnet in the neighborhood.  I captured these pictures of these two little guys climbing the tree in my front yard.  The kids actually knock on my door and say "Miss Teen Teen, can we climb your tree?"  Although these photos were taken in early spring before everything started to bloom...being a kid and climbing trees definitely spells SUMMER FUN!

YOU ARE HERE:Tina http://www.parablesproductions.blogspot.com/

Sheryl http://gemzisle.blogspot.com/

Lorie http://lorie-thepeddler.blogspot.com/

Suz-que http://suzqucrafter21.blogspot.com/

Cyndi http://nashvillesscrappinsisters.blogspot.com/

Qadirah http://alilcraftydiva.blogspot.com/

Margaret http://margaret-ilovecrafting.blogspot.com/

Tiare http://classygirlmusings.blogspot.com/

Jetti http://gigi-zone.blogspot.com/

Felisa http://felisa21.blogspot.com/

Cassie http://cassiescraftcafe.blogspot.com/

Kristen http://1206designs.com/

Sharette http://scrappernthemaking.blogspot.com/

Kate Blue http://kateblue.blogspot.com/

Caryn http://thescorpiancrafter.blogspot.com/

Princess http://www.papercraftingparadise.blogspot.com/

Cheryl http://onecraftyncpeach.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by.  Remember to come back for day 2 of the blog hop and another project.  I hope you have been inspired to go make something pretty.

Little crafter at it again

My niece called me to ask if she could come over to my house and make Valentine cards for her classmates.  You know kids wait until the ninth hour, so it was difficult for us to get together.  Finally, we pulled it off.  I think she did a great job on these simple cards.

She inked the edges red for the girls and black for the boys. Then she went over the stamped hearts with glaze, gel and glitter pens.

 

Materials:

cs

colorbok chalk ink

heart stamp

sakura glaze pens

at you Spica pens

to/from stamp

Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.  I hope you come again soon.

Angel Tree

I recently had an opportunity to participate in Angel Tree. The card I selected was for a 11-12 year old girl requesting a diary/journal. I asked the facilitator if the gift could be hand crafted instead of store brought. I received the OKAY. Whoo Hooo! I made this journal.

Outside covered with fabric.  Padded with fiber fill batting.

 Inside is a piece of chipboard covered with contrasting fabric and a ribbon closure.

These are just composition books covered and padded.  I may make a smaller journal and a book mark.  I plan to include a pink pen too.  I made another one for my niece's birthday.  

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you come again soon.

Inquiring minds want to know...

Some people have asked hoe I made this little origami dog card.  So, here is a tutorial.  I hope this helps and that you try this project.  It is really fun!  For the original post please see: http://parablesproductions.blogspot.com/2011/03/rak-for-neighborhood-kids.html

                                                                                                                                                                             

Start with a 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of card stock or paper.  This works great with pp paper that has Dalmatian spots all over it.  I even used camouflage pp for my  friend in the military.  Fold top right corner to left side of paper to form a triangle like shown. 

Cut off bottom edge.  You can also start with a square of paper 8 1/2" x 8 1/2".  (BTW this scrap cut in half makes two 2 1/8" note cards-small, but a great size to include with swap items)

Fold down right and left points to form the ears.  I just eyeball where I want the ears to fall.  I leave about 3/4" at the top of the dog's head between the two folds (ears).

 Decorate.  Use googly eyes, markers, crayons paper, pom poms etc.

You can write messages under the ear flaps, draw games, use stickers etc.

The paper is doubled and forms a make shift mouth/ pouch.  You can fill this with small items such as candy, confetti, stickers etc.   I used silly bands. 

A 6" x 9" envelope works for mailing.  The back can be decorated also.  I usually write a message there.  This project works great not only for kids to receive, but also for kids to make.  I have also sent this origami dog to my adult dog lover friends with a tea bag or some other little trinket.

Thanks for looking and all the comments of encouragement.

You're never too young...

...to pay it forward.  My girlfriend was visiting with her two sons.  I was poised to give out food that day so she and I had the boys to help.  In fact, they did a great deal of the work.  The were very eager as they  helped to separate, bag and load up food.  This was a small giveaway, only two bags per family.  It was still hard to steer the rolling cart full of groceries, but this little guy insisted that he could and wanted to push the cart.  

 

The brothers worked together and shared the tasks. 

The younger brother ran ahead so he could knock on the door of each house.   

When the people didn't come to the door right away he said "Do you think we should answer the doorbell?" So sweet, we all knew he meant 'ring' the doorbell.

The children were a delight to watch as they greeted the people and gave them the bags of groceries.  It is so easy to wear the tee shirt that says "WWJD", but it is great to take action showing kindness and love to others.  These little boys proved that you are never too young to learn to share and give.
 
My heart and mind are full of so many passages of scripture about selflessness, giving, sharing and the poor, but Proverbs 22:6 KJV encompasses all those messages:  Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

RAK for neighborhood kids

I made a bunch of these dogs for the kids in my neighborhood.  I used brown and tan cardstock.  Under the ear it says "Have a nice day!" with a smiley face sticker.  There is a tic-tac-toe game under the other ear.  The inside is filled with silly bands.  The back has a little blurb about sharing and giving.  The children have been doing really good about helping the neighbors with little things like putting away trash cans, picking up paper etc.  They have a lot to learn about community and doing the right thing just because and not only when they are prompted by someone else.  I just want to keep them encouraged.

The back says:

SHARE and GIVE

No matter what you have you can always share it

The heart that you have when you give to others

Is like the heart that God has when He gives to you

Only His heart is BIGGER!

When you give something, do not expect anything in return

Just give because you want to show someone love

Give because God says it’s the right thing to do

Miss Teen Teen

I wonder why...

At a dinner gathering, I end up in the kid corner---imagine that!  My Godchildren, niece and I set out to create a village out of gingerbread.  Complete with a toy shoppe, Santa house, chalet, factory, and candy store.  I have never made a gingerbread house before.  It was fun.  These are our masterpieces.   LOL

Santa's house-->

I thought mine was absolutely wonderful and that Santa would be lucky to live in such a house.   I wonder why the kids kept saying, "...really? Aunt Teen Teen...Santa is mad at you..."

Hot Chocolate holders for Cute Kids Crafts

My niece has always taking a liking to arts and crafts.  Whenever she visits I can expect to hear "Aunt Teen Teen, what are we going to do today...can I paint"  So, not wanting to disappoint  her and being a believer in pseudo child labor (hahahaha) I taught her to make hot chocolate holders.  I am hosting a charm swap and the chocolate holders will be the little 'thank you' gift included in each return package for the participants.  Together we made a sample and packed our supplies in preparation for a impromptu crop the next morning. 

How sweet it was to watch as she picked out paper, ink, stamps and other supplies.  She had a chance to measure, cut, score, stamp, ink edges, glimmer spray, mask, etc.  I introduced her to using pop dots, a heat tool as a dryer, and marathon scrapping...or at least scrapping until your project is done.  She was tired, but said she had a great time.  

 

She made these holders using envelopes from the resale store of course.  The flowers cover the little indentation on the envelope.  See how a couple of them are on the right and not on the left.  Well, when she cut the envelopes differently from the sample she had made the night before, and scored at the wrong line she thought she had made a terrible mistake.  Diane and Melissa (the ladies at the crop) were quick to educate her.  We all sang in unison, "There are NO mistakes in scrap booking, only opportunities for embellishment!" She thought we were crazy...she giggled at our song. lol 

She loved glimmer spraying the prima flowers and drying them with the heat tool.  She asked, " Aunt Tina, how do you make that spray stuff, cause I want my own to have at home..."    I saw the sky open up and I heard the angels singing...I think I have created a little crafter.  I would say my work is done, but somehow I suspect my work is just beginning. lol

Cooking 'Pass It On' party

The name is just what it says: I plan and host parties and 'pass on' my knowledge to the participants.  The themes include many creative subjects like cooking, sewing, writing, acting, scrapbooking, jewelry making, crotcheting, etc.  About 10 children were invited to a cooking pass it on party.  I try to incorporate some subject related craft and storytelling as a part of each party.  This time the children made chef hats.  After telling the story of "Stone Soup" the children made a big batch of soup.  I never saw children eat so much soup.  When they kept asking for more I thought it was a scene from 'Oliver Twist' (lol).  I had to empty out all the take home containers to accommodate the requests for more, so the parents didn't get to taste the soup. 


The childern worked in pairs and made lemon meringue pies.  Good thing I anticipated the challenge that separating the egg yolks from the egg whites would cause.  I had several cartons on hand.  After a few tries and being patient each group was successful.  Their faces lit up as they took the pies out of the oven.  They were proud of themselves and I was proud of them too.

Are they listening?

We got a lot of snow the other day. I was content to stay locked inside and dig out later. Especially when the folks who were knocking on the door offering to shovel my driveway were adult men and women and asking for way too much money. I guess it is a sign of hard times. Gone are the days when the neighborhood kids did that sort of thing. I can remember raking leaves, cutting grass, shoveling snow and planting gardens. I digress...So, I am sitting at my desk pretending to work when I hear this scraping noise outside the window. I go to look and it is some of the neighborhood kids shoveling Miss Tina's driveway. I was moved to tears. I was especially moved when I saw a little 4 year old with his baby shovel helping.

I have been telling these kids for three years that we are a community and we need to care about each other. Everything is not always about money. When you see Ms. Mary across the street carrying groceries or dragging her trash can to the curb--HELP HER. I was not sure if they were listening. Still, I kept encouraging them to show love to our neighbors. So after they built 2 snow forts and had several snowball fights they decided to shovel my driveway.

I bundled up and went outside to thank them. I used my wheelchair so I could help too (can't lift the snow while standing). I could not run, so they took that as a moment to flood me with snowballs. They loved getting Miss Tina wet...quiet as it is kept, I had fun too.

I invited them in for cookies and hot chocalate. Over our snack I learned that they had helped a couple of neighbors a few times washing cars and cutting grass. And that they decided on their own to help me that day. Whoo Hooo!

Well I am thankful that they are getting the idea of being connected as a community. It was all fun and games until someone spilled hot chocolate...of course they cleaned it up. Aren't there laws about child labor (LOL)