Thankful Thoughts

This morning the temperature is a cool 38 degrees and the steam is lifting off the Lake here in Georgia with the sun rising in the background and the shadows reflecting trees that are ready to shed their leaves....no color to speak of yet, but you always know that when the temperatures begin to dip, the color is not far off....therefore the inspiration for my card today...

We are entering the Season of Giving Thanks.....thanks for many things that we sometimes take for granted, thanks for the little things in life that bring a smile to our face, thanks for the freedom to be able to live in this great Country, thanks to our brave Military for keeping us safe and most of all.....Thanks to God for the Beauty of his creation and his abounding Love.

May your day be filled with peace, love, understanding, and forgiveness as I leave you with my reflections from the Lake.......

jo

October Halloween Goodies

I love the Fall months because the colors are amazingly bright, the air is much cooler, and everyone begins to get into the upcoming Fall Celebrations.....Craft Festivals, Halloween celebrations, Thanksgiving......

This month I had a blast with the Paper Pumpkin Kit from Stampin'Up.

We don't get trick or treaters in our neighborhood anymore and I really miss seeing the kids and passing out the goodies.....but I know that it is much better and safer for them to go to organized events....so I decided that I would make these for the grandchildren of a friend of mine......the bags are full of "chocolate" of course and the cards will have McDonald's or Chick Fil A gift cards.

Have a fun and safe October, as I leave you with reflections from the Lake as the leaves, acorns and hickory nuts begin to fall....

jo

 

The Swallowtail Butterfly by Stampin'Up! is one of my all time favorite stamps.

Here I have combined it with the Watercolor Wonder DSP from Stampin'Up! and it really brings out the beauty of the stamp.  This makes a wonderful gift set as note cards or Occasion cards.

A New Beginning

In 2007 I began a new adventure of stamping and scrapbooking.

An adventure that has brought me much pleasure, peace and sense of accomplishment.

Our hobbies are not only a reflection of talent, but also of creativity and sense of self.

I will graciously admit that I am "technically challenged", when it comes to computer stuff, so in my attempt to be savvy, in 2010, I created Lakeside Reflections.  It was fun and a great way to connect my thoughts with those I love and share this crafting addiction.  However, somewhere in that journey, I never learned the art of renewing a blog and it disappeared (still don't know exactly what happened).  

So, here I am again, beginning a new adventure of blogging, hoping not to forget or mess up the process of keeping it alive and well. 

My new adventure will include reflections, projects and adventures of crafting with others.

One never has enough Manly Cards on hand for 
those special guys in our life. 

In a recent challenge with some friends, we decided to dig deep into our creativity and begin a new stash of Manly Cards.  
Above are the two that I made for the challenge.  The one on the left, I cased from Laura Erickson on Kay Kalthoff's Blog (see original www.stampingtoshare.com ).  I didn't stray from the original design because I just loved it the way it was designed.... 
so way to go Laura and Kay!!!
(Inks, paper and stamps used for the card on the left are from Stampin'Up! The Open Sea, Gorgeous Grunge and Work of Art)

As I receive the others from my fellow crafters, I will post for your enjoyment.

One of the most wonderful aspects of sharing our work on blogs and websites is that it gives inspiration to other stampers and scrapbookers who may be having an "artist's block".  To see what others are doing can open up that block and wonderful other inspirations evolve.