Art by Debbie Saenz

Family Fun, then Tragedy...but We're Thankful!

Wow! So much has happened since my last post...The month of June began with our much anticipated family Disney World trip, but sadly, ended with a family tragedy!

 Our family 

Our daughter Kari and her beautiful family 

After all of our kids and grandkids met up at Disney World and spent 4 days there, (yes, it was very hot, but loads of fun!) my husband, myself and our two youngest headed several hours further south to spend another week with our extended families. 

Our trip was going well until we were heading back to our home in Georgia. We stopped in Melbourne, FL to pick up our grandson, Isaiah, to bring him back with us for two weeks as planned. 

Since it was lunch time, we met our daughter and the rest of her family at a local restaurant before getting back on the road. Well, it was then at the restaurant, while waiting for our food to be served that my daughter got a terrifying phone call from the police. One of those calls that makes your heart stop....their home was on fire! 

They were renting their home and had no renter's insurance. (Who ever thinks it will happen to them?) They lost everything! But praise be to God, no one was home at the time of the fire and their lives were spared!

Our adorable grandchildren, Isaiah, Arianna & Quincey

It's been just over two weeks since that horrific day and we are here in Georgia with all three of our grandchildren until Kari and Alfonso figure things out and are ready for their children to come home.

Meanwhile, it's been truly amazing to see the abundance of love from our family, our church family, and friends.  We brought the kids with the clothes on their backs (except for Isaiah who had clothes for two weeks) and now I think they each have more clothes than before the fire! and maybe even toys too!. What a blessing!

Isaiah is becoming very acquainted with the "big brown truck", as he say's, that returns every other day to deliver boxes to our door step. His job is to bring them inside. He has shouted, "it's like Christmas!" on more than several occasions. 

With all the excitement on this end, things are still difficult, of course,....mommy and daddy miss them like crazy, the kids are missing them too, and I'm becoming reacquainted with the exhaustion of having little ones 24/7...but, we're so thankful that we are able to help with the kids during this difficult time. I will cherish every moment with my beautiful grandchildren!

I've had to put my art on hold for now, but my camera is always close by. I've taken hundred's of pictures already! 

With a grateful heart,

Debbie xo 

I'm so thankful for those who have loved and prayed for my family. (I would love it if you'ld say a prayer for my family too. xo) I know the Lord will use this tragic event for good, ultimately, even though, here and now, it's beyond our understanding.

For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of thy peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
Isaiah 54:10

Easy Wrist Corsage Tutorial

Gosh, it's been busy around here! Landscaping our front and back yard, Cinco de Mayo Party, Prom, Graduation, my hubby's B-day, and a trip to FL for my mother-in-law's birthday celebration. Whew! it's been exhausting. And all in the last 3 weeks! 

It's been hard to keep up with the swirling ideas I have in my head for new art pieces and to finish the ones I have started.

But, but, but, I wanted to share this little tutorial I put together....

I made this wrist corsage for my son Nick to give to his sweet girlfriend Laura for Prom. It would have been perfect for a wedding too!

Easy Wrist Corsage Tutorial

Supply List

Satin Wristlet (I got mine at JoAnn Fabrics - you will only need the metal device for the wrist corsage & don't forget to use your coupon!)

3 Fresh "Sweetheart Roses" (I got mine at my local Publix Supermarket) Make sure to keep them in water.

Several sprigs of fresh baby's breath

Fresh greenery

Silk leaves

Small silk flower sprigs

Ribbon

Beads, approx. 66 (I used plastic iridescent beads)

Stretch string

Glue gun

Super glue

Metal floral wire or a bread tie

Small piece of white poster board or card stock

 1. Cut and remove the satin and elastic parts from the metal clip, you will only need the metal part. 

2. String three strands of beads on the elastic cord, ( I used 22 beads per strand; adjust according the the size of your beads and the wrist size you will need).

3. Bring each end of the elastic cords up through the slits on either side of the metal clip and tie each bead strand into a knot. Tie each strand of beads separately. (Opps! Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of this step, but I think you can figure it out)

4. Add a small amount of Super glue to each knot to reinforce. 

5. Cut a small piece of white poster board to fit over the top of the clip as shown. Glue in place with Super glue. (This will prevent the hot glue, which you will add later, from melting the elastic!)

6. Add a cluster of silk leaves and the silk flower sprigs to each side of the clip and fold over the metal pieces on the clip to secure in place. Add hot glue if necessary.  

7. Make loops with the ribbon (four or five on each side) and secure with the floral wire or bread tie. 

8. Use hot glue to secure the ribbon in the center as shown. 

9. At this point, you should STOP! unless it's less than 24hrs. before the event or else your roses will not be very fresh. I made mine the morning of the Prom. So if it's time...continue with this step and cut the stems off of the roses.

10. Hot glue the roses in the center of the corsage. Wait a moment for the glue to dry then pull several of the ribbon loops up between the roses to fill some gaps.

11. Cut the baby's breath into small sprigs and separate the silk flowers into small clusters; set aside.

12. Make ribbon loops by twisting and adding a small about of hot glue.

13. Tuck baby's breath, silk flower clusters, greenery, and the ribbon loops around the roses securing everything with hot glue.

14. Don't forget to store your beautiful corsage in the refrigerator! I placed mine into a small tupperware container. While I was at Publix to purchase the roses, I should have asked the bakery department for one of those plastic containers with a lid. Next time!

This was so easy and so much fun to make, but the best part was watching my son give it to Laura. He was so cute, he told me it would be so special if I made Laura's corsage instead of buying one. And I'm so glad I did!

What an adorable couple!

Love and Blessings xo,

Debbie

 

 

 

Help! My 16yo son took over my studio...

When I say take over, I mean literally took over, moved in, music and all!  But it's all good...my son Nicholas, or Nick as he likes to be called nowadays, had been working on a special Valentine's gift for his girlfriend Laura since last Wednesday. 

He had an idea of what he wanted to do from the very beginning. I suggested other options, but he had his mind set. He wanted it make a paper bag photo album. 

And he wanted to do it with Mod Podge! Yes, my teenage son knows just what to do with Mod Podge. After all, he's seen his mom create with it since he was itty bitty. It's not uncommon for me to find a bottle of it in his room after working on some kind of project. Not only my Mod Podge, but when my paper cutter or any other tool is missing, I know just where to look. 

Here is his creation! He did a WONDERFUL job and he did it all by himself! I offered my help, but he said he didn't need it. I wondered what he would come up with. I should have know...he has always been very creative! 

Here is one of the 10 page layouts. He had a theme for every page and his little notes were very poetic. This is my rugby playing future marine showing a new side of himself. It's times like this that make me realize my little boy is growing up. Oh but why does it have to happen so fast?

They each made this Valentine's Day very special for one another. Nick greeted Laura with a bouquet of flowers this morning before school. And here they are after school exchanging gifts before their day together. Nick had his first lesson in making dinner reservations. 

I discovered Laura had been working long and hard on her own project for Nick. She made him an "I love You"  YouTube video. Wow! they both poured so much love and time into making special memories for each other.

Even though I've not really had any studio time since last Wednesday and it now looks like a hurricane went through it, I enjoyed seeing my son in creative bliss motivated and determined because of love. 

 Happy Valentine's Day! 

 Debbie xo

PS. Yes, Nick will have lots of clean up to do tomorrow...oh joy!

A Special Baby Quilt

This month has been a whirlwind of exciting events! One, being the birth of our 3rd grandchild, Quincey, who was born on October 16th.

My husband and I had just returned from the Outer Banks in North Carolina where he officiated a wedding for friends of ours. Upon returning, I still had to finish writing instructions for Plaid projects I had done. Then I was able to get started on the quilt I wanted to make my new grandson before I headed out to FL to meet little Quincey and help my daughter Kari. It was crazy, but Yea! I was able to get it done and even a few additional goodies to go along with it!

 I used Winnie the Pooh material and satin binding. 



This is the back of the quilt.

I used one of those iron-on tags on the back.

I embroidered on the front. 

I made this quilted tote bag too with several pockets on the inside.

I created this tag by stamping Quincey's name on muslin with StazOn ink. I ripped the edges and sewed it onto a tag I made with the same material I used to line the bag with. An eyelet and a bow completes it!

 

I got into the satin and made this cute blanket for little Quincey too. I made this one smaller than the quilt. I took pictures of the few and simple steps it took me to make it and plan on posting a tutorial of this quick-to-make baby blanket.  

Quincey weighed 7 pounds and 11 ounces and was 19.5 inches long and looks just like my daughter. He's so sweet! I stayed for 4 days before I returned to Georgia. It's always hard leaving my daughter and my 3 beautiful grand kids!

Here are Quincey's big brother and sister, Arianna and Isaiah.
Aren't they ADORABLE?
The quilts I made Isaiah and Arianna became their favorites. Arianna's quilt is so tattered and well loved that there was only a few inches of lace left hanging off the edge. Thankfully, I brought my sewing machine with me, found the Melbourne Jo-Ann Fabric Store to purchase more lace, and was able to fix it while I was there. I had my doubts that she wouldn't love it as much with the stiff new lace, but, to my surprise, she kept saying, "Pretty, Oh pretty". Whew! 

 
I arrived home late Thursday night, slept some, repacked, packed up an Etsy sale, and at 9am the next morning, my youngest daughter, Sarah and I were off to Apalachicola Florida (another 8 hour drive) where she was running a marathon the next day.

Sarah is an amazing athlete! She made a personal record with a time of 3:38 and qualified for the Boston Marathon (which is very hard to get into especially at the young age of 17!) Sarah finished first in her age group and was 7th overall female in the Running for the Bay Marathon. 

 I'm totally exhausted, but I'm praising God for my Beautiful family and thanking Him for the celebration moments that I've been able to share with my wonderful family!

Full of Blessings xo,

Debbie

Blessed and Refreshed and there's so much more

AHH! We are back from a wonderful vacation. We were able to see our family in South Florida then my hubby and I escaped to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. It was full of surprises, good food and art, and lots of leisure time. 

 Cheers to 20 wonderful years of being married to my best friend!  I love that man!

I have so much to tell you all, but I'll do it little by little in the upcoming posts. Stay tuned!

Blessings XO,

Debbie

Half Iron Man and my Amazing Daughter

This past weekend was incredibly exciting! My 17 year old daughter, Sarah, competed in the Coliseum Health Systems Rock n Roll Half Iron Man in Macon, GA....Sarah's first Half Iron Man which consisted of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 miles on the bike, and then a 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles), a total of 70.3 miles! 

After training 4 to 5 hours everyday for the past 12 weeks, this was an amazing accomplishment. She finished in less than 7 hours and placed first in her age group. Well, she was the only one in her age group. Most kids her age wouldn't put the time and dedication it takes to train for something like this.

What  I find most amazing is whenever she finishes a long race, this being the longest, she is NEVER out of breath after crossing the finish line! She carries on a conversation as if she's simply relaxing on the couch...blows my mind away everytime. Oh to be young and in tip-top shape. 

Here's a recap of the event:

 

It's 6am and were at the park with over 500 participants. Sarah's getting her body markings. Race numbers go the arms and thighs and your age on your calf. It's interesting to know all the participants' age. Several were in their 60's!

  

Getting ready for the swim portion. 1.2 miles in a lake. I prayed for her the whole time while standing on the shore and seeing nothing but little dots and flailing arms.

My heart is always relieved to see her emerge out of the water! Even though there are small safety patrol boats surrounding the course, the worried mom mode always kicks in. 

  

Now for the bike portion of the race...56 miles! It's a good thing she had her spare tire changing kit with her. She had a flat tire along the way, but thankfully the man that was behind her stopped to help her change it...he was dropping out of the race anyway and asked Sarah if she would tell them, at the next water station, to go back and get him. 

 Looking good! Now on to  her favorite part of the race!

 My hubby was trying to keep up with her while filming her. She was just beginning the last portion of the race, a 1/2 marathon, 13.1 miles. She's loving this!

 The smokey smell of BBQ cookouts drifting through the air, the soothing sound of live music in the background of mounting claps and cheers of friends and family, cow bells clattering...ahh all of this adds to this memorable event. 

 

 She came in sooner than we expected; we were talking to some people when we spotted her coming in towards the finish line. She was sprinting with with full force energy. My hubby was barely able to keep up with her while trying to film her cross the finish line!

 

 Yea! She finished in less than 7 hours. They'll send her her official time in the mail. She looked wonderful and said she could run another 13.1 miles! She's truly inspiring and incredibly amazing! Do I sound like a proud mom?

 

 Here she is with her trophy. It was the cutest guitar along with an adorable guitar case. 

 

 

 

I don't mean to boast, but this is one amazing child and we are so proud of her! She's a hard worker and incredibly dedicated and focused. I believe the Lord has huge plans for her!

 

A Marathon preparing for a Marathon

Busy is just not the word! Maybe Marathon? 11 projects for Plaid, samples for Hobby Lobby classes, company to prepare for, 3 graduation gifts (which I will share in my next post :), T-shirts and medals for my daughter and her friend, and of course, piles of laundry to contend with, meals to cook, dishes to wash, floors to mop, and kids to chauffeur around, etc, etc...WHEW!! Makes me tired just thinking about it. 

I should be in my craft room working right now, but I'm taking a break while writing this post....

I thought I would share about what my daughter Sarah and her friend Lena have been up to. 

My daughter Sarah (the one on the right in the picture below) is 17, and an amazing athlete! She has been running since she was 14. She's run 2 official marathons (several unofficial in our neighborhood and one just last weekend), 2 triathlons, a 50K, and is now training for a half Iron man!

Her friend Lena (the one on the left), is a foreign exchange student from Germany. Lena and Sarah have become really close friends having similar interests. Sarah trained Lena for a 1/2 marathon which they ran together last February. Lena wanted to run her first marathon here while in the States before she goes back to Germany, which sadly she will be leaving in just a few weeks. 

Sarah put together a training program for her while eagerly searching for a local marathon for them to run before Lena leaves. Finding none, they decided to organize their very own! 

Lena trained very hard for weeks and was nervous but excited for the big day! Last Saturday was the Silver Comet Trail Marathon!

Of course they had to have marathon T-shirts! Notice, instead of 26.2, it says 42.2K, in Germany they refer to a marathon in kilometers. Lena will wear her shirt with pride :)

Thumbs up for the runners!  I cut out this stencil of a girl running.

hubby and the girls got up and out the door by 6:00am. Since I had to work on my projects, I was not able to join them. After an hours drive they arrived at the Silver Comet Trail which is over 61 miles long, and starts in Smyrna, Georgia and ends just past the Georgia Alabama state line. It was breathtakingly beautiful with most of the trail through a canopy of trees, at least that's what I heard, and what the pictures tell. I can't wait to see it for myself one day.

My handsome hubby, the water-boy and videographer! He was loaded down with a backpack of water-bottles and road in front of the girls, providing them with water every 2 miles, with camcorder in hand.

Sometimes they ran through intersections, then back on the wooded trail. 

Cheers for a water break! 

 

Yea! they did it. when they finished my hubby awarded them with their medals. 

 

They were quite surprised to receive their medals before they got home. They were not done when they went off to bed the night before, so I stayed up and secretly finished them. They were hidden in the pack pack until they crossed the finish line.

 

Then they died! fakers...I see the grin on Sarah's face :) They had so much fun and what an accomplishment for Lena! And Sarah for training her!

Once they arrived home, they enjoyed a celebration ice-cream cake. The girls both enjoy baking and made this cake the day before, along with vegan brownie bars, which they took along for a snack. They often get-together for baking days...when they're not running! 

 

I'm so proud of both of them and we (and especially Sarah) will sure miss our Lena! I can see Sarah venturing over to Germany someday. Humm maybe I can fit in her suitcase. LOL! 

Now I better get back to work! 

Blessings xo,

Debbie

 

Paper Mache Letter for Baby

The princess has arrived! My brother-in-law, Danny, and sister-in-law, Michelle, finally had their baby girl! After five boys, it was about time. Sweet little Isabella Maria was born on March 11th. Yea! I finally got her gifts sent out to her. This is one of the gifts I made:

What would I do without Mod Podge? Especially Sparkle Mod Podge! I decoupaged this paper mache letter "I" with lots of pretty papers and of course needed to add brown since her "Princess" room is all decked out in pinks and browns!

Rhinestones, of course!

A faux crystal knob to dot the "I", I know it's a capital "I"

...but adds more sparkle!

Ribbons and lace, and a little heart charm!

Sweet little Isabella!

God Bless you my beautiful niece!

In my next post, I will show you the other gift I made for Isabella.

Blessings xo,

Debbie

A Special Mother's Day

There's just something special about receiving handmade cards from your children.

I'll add these to my growing collection 

My day was very special...after church, we shared a beautiful Mother's Day snack with our church family.

 This edible corsage cascaded across this beautiful cake. The table was spread with other delicious goodies along with delicate pick roses.

Then for lunch, my hubby took us to Havana South, a Cuban restaurant where we enjoyed the flavors of Miami with lots of garlic. Yum! I only wish my older children and grandchildren lived closer and were able to join us. Phone calls will have to suffice.

I was blessed with a special Mother's Day celebration and I hope you were too! 

I wish all the Mom's

 A Happy Mother's Day 

Blessings XO,

Debbie

 

Happy Easter!

He is Risen! He is risen indeed! Today we celebrated the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Because He lives, we live. Alleluia!  

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. John 11:25-26

Sunday is always a day worth celebrating and even more when it's Resurrection Sunday! After each service, it's always a beautiful time of food and fellowship.

For the special occasion, I decided to dig up my cake decorating supplies and made this cross cake. I love this cake recipe because it's so easy and very delicious. 

Hawaiian Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 eggs

1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple with juice, undrained

1 cup shredded coconut

1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 13 x 9" baking pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, mix everything together with a wooden spoon until all ingredients are moist.

3. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Enjoy!

 

My daughter Sarah made these beautiful Resurrection Cookies. These cookies are hollow in the center, representing the empty tomb!

On the first Easter, Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Matthew 28:1-9

The excitement is not what it used ot be, but I think they still look forward to it.

 

Out on the deck after church. I can usually use a special occasion to lure my son Nick into a photo shoot...but after several shots he's done. However, my daughter Sarah is much more willing. I guess that explains why I have loads of pictures of her and hardly any of Nick. 

We ventured down by the creek and got some great shots. This is one of my favorite. After our photo shoot, we enjoyed a special Easter dinner. I hope and pray your Easter celebration was a joyous one :)

Sending Easter Blessings XO

Debbie

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...1 Peter 1:3