So yesterday we were under a Blizzard warning. I don’t believe I have ever been under a blizzard warning before. I live in Oklahoma. I remember the Little House on the Prairie books and in one of them they put a string between the barn and the house so that when they go to tend the animals, they don’t get lost because of the snow. I used to think that snow like that just went with a different era. Sort of like the dinosaurs. But now I know its still happening because we got 14 inches of snow in one day.
That is the stack against the door. It doesn’t look like that now because I used it to make snow ice cream. Yum!
For our Congenital Heart Defect event for today I’d like to share a poem written by my friend Sandra Hanson. She has a little girl, Ashley, who was born with a heart defect on the same day I had Evie. She was scheduled for open heart surgery but the day before they found out Ashley’s heart had healed itself and she didn’t require it.
“A Mother”
A mother lays silently waiting,
Watching a tiny heart on a screen.
It beats full of hopes and dreams.
A mother lays silently dreaming,
Feeling little feet push on her belly.
Legs kick anticipating life.
A mother tosses and turns anxiously,
Counting down the hours to delivery.
Impatient to meet her new baby.
A mother lays on a cold table, numbed,
Straining to hear that first cry.
It comes, loud, full of life and promise.
A mother holds out her hand waiting,
Wanting to caress her new baby.
Velvet soft skin on a tiny little face.
A mother lays warm in bed,
Tucking her baby in beside her.
Relishing the smell of her hair.
A mother and baby drift off to sleep,
Both exhausted from their day.
Dreaming of the new life to begin.
A mother sits in bed stunned,
Doctors say there's something wrong.
A perfect baby with an imperfect heart.
A mother stands beside a bassinet,
Watching the baby within.
Pretending it's all a bad dream.
A mother cries in bed at night,
Holding her precious daughter.
Unable to help as she struggles to eat.
A mother sits shocked once again,
Dreaded words falling around her ears.
A failing heart inside a beautiful baby.
A mother ages years in a moment,
Living an unwelcome life in seconds.
Anger, worry and fear consuming.
A mother grieves and mourns her loss,
Dreams of a healthy baby, broken.
This unchosen new path is a fight.
A mother holds her baby near,
Crying broken prayers to God.
Begging for strength, healing and faith.
A mother feels tired and broken,
This road is harder than imagined.
Her baby gives her strength to go on.
A mother cries on a hallway floor,
Listening to tortured cries ringing.
Necessary evils performed.
A mother feels indignation rising,
People stare and whisper.
A yellow tube, sustaining life.
A mother feels her heart exploding,
She unwillingly, purposely causes pain.
Yet her baby smiles, showering love.
A mother lives through nightmares,
Imagining handing her baby over.
What to say when it might be goodbye?
A mother walks with her baby,
Down a dark, lonely road, unchosen.
No one knows.
A mother angry, she cries for her baby,
A tiny innocent suffering too much.
Her daughter's strength gives her faith.
A mother awed by her daughter,
An inspiration in a tiny package.
A tiny little mouth that always smiles.
A mother hopes for and fears a day,
Decisions are to be made by others.
Trying to remember God is in control.
A mothers stands silently waiting,
Watching a tiny heart on a screen.
It beats full of hopes and dreams.
A mother with tears coursing her face,
Holding her beautiful daughter.
An angel disguised as a baby in pink.
A mother now sobbing, unable to stop,
A lifetime lived in only six months.
Emotions released, held for too long.
A mother thinks of all they have lost,
Of what they have all suffered.
Of what they have all learned.
A mother thinks of all they've gained,
Friends made and prayers realized.
A lifetime of lessons learned.
A mother watches her baby crawl,
Finally able to enjoy her.
No monitoring, no medications to give.
A mother stands silently beside a crib,
Watching her baby sleep.
Humbled by the miracle within.
A mother then kneels and prays,
Thanking God for what He's given.
A broken heart, healed by grace.
You can check out Sandra’s book ‘Born with a Broken Heart’ which is a compilation of stories from families who have been touched by this birth defect. Thank you Sandra for letting me share!
Today’s craft is Valentine’s hair clips! Here is your supply list:
glue gun
1 package of hair clips ($2 at Michael’s for 6, might be cheaper at Wal Mart of the dollar store but I was fighting the snow)
1 package of foam hearts
First you are going to plug in your glue gun so that it can heat up. Totally random but glue guns are SO cheap these days. I bought the glue and the gun for a total of $5 at wal mart. Wow. Anyway, while your glue gun is heating up you can start experimenting with your clips and hearts to see what designs you want to do. I recommend using a larger foam piece to cover the far left side as it has the largest silver piece to cover. Make sure you are gluing only on the top and not the under part that pops open or it won’t open and you will have some issues. I also applied glue to the foam itself and put hearts on top of the cupcake that way.
Next, start gluing! This shows you how I used the large foam heart to cover up the large silver area. I then glued the small heart to the side of it to finish up.
Ta da!!!! Here it is finished! After the glue sets, you can pull all the hangy strings off and you are done! How simple IS that? And these would be adorable as a matching set for a certain girl and her besties. You can also clip these to Valentine’s to add a little extra for special friends.
And here are my finished masterpieces! I thought they came out super cute! Another simple, cheap and easy project! I bought this package of foam pieces for $2 and the clips were also $2. I have plenty of hearts left over so if you can score more for less somewhere else, you could make probably 20 or so from the one package of foam. Definitely enough for a class or two of girls. I am keeping 1 for Evie and giving the rest away to the first 5 comments WITH e mail address so I can figure out where to send these cuties.
Yesterday Ramona released this awesome kit: The image is linked.
I love these colors and elements. Perfect for a new home, remodel project or any at home family pics. Here is my layout:
And some free word art!
You can pick it up here!
Make sure you enter in the Valentine’s Give Aways!!
4 comments:
Cute ideas!
LOVE the clips! very cute and cheap!
jhgibson2003@yahoo.com
Love the clips the cupcake ones are adorable!
These are so cute...LOVE them Laura!
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