Happy Anniversary & Winners Announced

First, I just have to say Happy Anniversary to my amazing husband. The story of how we came to be is truly amazing, a beautiful story, and one that can be shared for generations to come. No words could ever say how deeply in love I am with you, my best friend, soul mate and incredible father to our children. You amaze me every single day, are so wonderful and supportive and our "cord" will always be connected tightly. I thank God every day for blessing me with you, and for bringing you back to me. It is so wonderful to have a man that loves me the way you do and I know it with all of my being. Happy Anniversary Goon Ball, and here is to many, many more years and an eternity to come.

On another note, I know you are all wanting to know exactly who the two winners are of my anniversary giveaway. I have received so many messages of love and support, am so happy that so many people clicked on the link to help give free mammograms, and blessed that so many have prayed for my mother at this time and sent her so much support. Thank you so very much from the bottom of my heart for that from us both. Be sure to click on the links at the top right of my blog, to support the cause so many suffer from. Breast cancer effects us all, and early detection is the only way to survive.


So, on to those winners... I had my oldest pick the lucky numbers for me and here they are...

Winner number one who will receive this issue of Artful Blogging and some wonderful stamps is...

Carolyn from Magpie Pixie. Now how cool is that? I am thrilled to be passing these on to such an amazing gal and was so surprised when your number was picked! Carolyn has an amazing shop as well and is currently selling a fantastic collage sheet that helps in the support of breast cancer.

And the winner of the next set of gifts below, a copy of Home and more lovely stamps is...

JoAnn from My Little Cottage In the Making. Her blog is fantastic and you will be inspired for sure if you check her out.

Thank you again to all that visited, entered, and left me lovely messages. May God bless you all and I hope that you will visit me again soon!

So, now I am off to get ready for my anniversary date with my amazing husband. We've been married for seven, but have known each other for almost twenty one. Wow! I look forward to growing old with my soul mate. I'm so blessed!

Rhonda...

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is the birthday of the most amazing man I have ever known. My dad always played with me while growing up and I have so many special memories of the time we spent together. We've also made lots of great memories during my adult years and he is one of my best friends.

Here we are during our scuba diving trip last summer. Only problem was that when we got to our destination, we found out a tropical storm was on the way. It rained the entire time and we never even put our bathing suits on. But, we still had a great time and I would do it all over again.

We went diving a few years ago and just had the best time. He also met me when I lived in the UK and we traveled to new places and had the best time. I love my dad!

My dad has helped to make me into the woman that I am today and has always stood by my side, believed in me, and has been there for me through both good times and bad. He is more amazing then he will ever know.

And I can't even begin to tell you what an amazing grandfather he is. My daughter's love their grandpa so much and he spends so much quality time with them both. He plays with them, takes them wherever he goes, takes them to dance, skating, swimming and soccer lessons, and just loves them and supports them so much. I feel so blessed to be able to give them such an amazing man.

Happy Birthday Dad! I could never thank you enough for all that you do for us all, for your love and friendship, and for being the great man you are to us all. We are so blessed to have you, and I am so proud of you in every way, as a father, grandfather, friend, and husband. I hope you know how much we all love you and I hope that this is a wonderful new year for you.

Chirp! (That's a little saying we have with one another.) Love you!

Rhonda...

Important Issue For All Women

This is an email I received today. You won't believe this crap, but seeing some of the problems my family has had with the insurance companies trying to play God, I am not surprised.

Subject: Be my Bra. From a nurse: I'll never forget the look in my patients' eyes when I had to tell them they had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast. I remember begging the Doctors to keep these women in the hospital longer, only to hear that they would, but their hands were tied by the insurance companies. So there I sat with my patients, giving them the instructions they needed to take care of themselves, knowing full well they didn't grasp half of what I was saying, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet 'Thank You' they muttered. A mastectomy is when a woman's breast is removed in order to remove cancerous breast cells/tissue. If you know anyone who has had a Mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure. Let's give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery. It takes 2 seconds to do this and is very important. Please take the time and do it! Please send this to everyone in your address book. If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, this is one of those times. If you're receiving this, it's because I think you will take the 30 seconds to vote on this issue and send it on to others you know who will do the same. There's a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require insurance companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It's about eliminating the 'drive-through' Mastectomy where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached. Lifetime Television has put this bill on their Web page with a petition drive to show support. Last year over half the House signed on. PLEASE!! Sign the petition by clicking on the web site below. You need not give more than your name, state, and zip code.

http://www.lifetimetv.com/breastcancer/petition/signpetition.php

This takes about 2 seconds. PLEASE PASS THIS ON to your friends and family, and on behalf of all women, THANKS

This is a legitimate issue and I have visited the above web site to do my part. Hope you will too.

R...

Another Side To Rhonda

I chat about a lot of things here on my blog. But I don't really touch enough on "Rhonda" as an individual. I talk about my projects, my family, and cool swaps and things I find while on my adventures, but not about me as much. Kind of odd, because before I was married I was VERY independent. I knew what I liked, what I wanted to do, and lived life to the fullest. One of my favorite things to do at that time was to go repel off of a waterfall/cliff about 90 minutes from my home. I was getting ready to go sky diving, and really wanted to go BASE jumping. But now that I am a mother, those things are a part of my past. I can still scuba dive and will hopefully go again soon, when there are NO tropical storms moving in. That is a great post that I need to do about one of my adventures with my dad. We have had some great trips together. Anyway, my point is, I don't discuss me as much.

One thing about me that you all don't know a lot about is that I am literally the biggest Killers fan on the entire planet. Seriously, I LOVE this band! You hear people say, "Oh, I just love their music and they changed my life so much". Gosh, I used to laugh when I heard people say stuff like that and I just thought that it was so silly. But now I understand. The Killers music has helped me through some REALLY rough times, like the ugly court battles involving my step children and the times when I feel like I am having a midlife crisis. There is one song that really made me a huge fan and started my love of The Killers. It's called "For Reasons Unknown". When I first heard this song, I just wanted to jump up and dance. I used to dance a lot, out with my friends at clubs, but not anymore. This song brought me back to life, in a way, and I have been a huge fan ever since. Even my girls know all of The Killers songs.

Seriously, I am crazy about The Killers. I have books, magazine articles, records, stickers, t-shirts, I'm in the fan club, have European released Cd's, loads and loads of stuff. Posters, buttons, CD released posters, foreign magazine articles, and I even sent a letter to them. Best part, my husband totally supports me. He even hung out with me after a concert by their tour buses until 2am, just for a chance for me to meet them. He ended up asking a crew member and found out they had gone to their hotel long before. But what a husband to do that for me. I was trying to stay calm the entire time and just breath. "If they come out Rhonda, move slowly, breath".

But what I also like about The Killers is that they aren't your typical rock band. They are really nice guys. They don't raise hell and act like rock stars. They are guys with families, and values, and just love to share their music. When I see them in interviews or on their Victims blog, they just crack me up and are so real. I know I would have so much fun hanging out with them. Oh, I wish...

What brings this all up for me to post about it is that their new song "Human" came out yesterday from their new album "Day & Age" which is coming out November 25Th. It's like a 40Th birthday present to me, because my birthday is on the 7Th. I can't wait to get this new Cd and hope they will be touring America soon. My husband knows that I will be in the front row of my 3rd Killers concert. To hear their new song, click here:

http://www.thekillersmusic.com/index.html

Below are some pictures my husband and I took during the concerts we have been to. They are awesome on stage, and they sound amazing in person!





Here is Brandon Flowers playing guitar on the song "For Reasons Unknown" I believe it is the only one he plays guitar on. Usually he is on the key board.

On the drums is Ronnie Vannucci. He is amazing and I love the expressions he makes while playing. Something that you might not know about me is that I love the drums. So much so, that my husband got me a set one year for Mother's Day. I put on my Killers Cd's and try to play along with Ronnie. At the end of this concert, long story short, I was close to the stage and screamed his name and he actually turned towards me and heard it. Sorry, I told you I was a big fan.

Another cool picture of Brandon. He is so brilliant on stage and just connects with the audience in an amazing way!

I was so close to them at our second concert. It was just incredible!

Here I am before my first Killers concert. I was so excited. During the concert, the cute shoes and the dress shirt came off and I was going crazy. We had a blast!

Here I am at the second concert while they were setting up the stage. I was like, "Oh my gosh, those are Brandon's key boards". And yes, my t-shirt goes to show what a freakin' fan I am. Get it, I'm a Victim, of The Killers. I think it's cute.

I think this picture is so cool, and you can see Mark Stoermer back there on the bass. I love to watch him play too. He is calm and seems so quiet.

And here is guitar player Dave Keuning. Nothing personal Dave - Dave doesn't always look like he is too comfortable to me in photos, but man, once he is on that stage, he is a rock god.

I absolutely LOVE The Killers. I know so much about them all, love what they do, and I am so excited about their new album. I would give anything to meet them. Although I would want to be calm and "cool" I would probably just become a blubbering idiot.

So, be sure to take a listen to their new single, and check them out on the Internet. You can see their videos and hear their music and they might just touch your life the way they have touched mine. You could also cross your fingers for me, that one day I will meet them. Of course, I do love the power of prayer, but know it is a very selfish thing to pray for. Hope you enjoyed learning about another part of me.

Have a "Killer" day!

Rhonda...

The biggest fan on the entire planet of The Killers!

My Adventures With Mom & An Update

Mom is officially half way through her radiation treatments. She is hanging in there and glad to know that the tiredness and other symptoms that she is having are normal at her stage of treatment. I called her while out with my youngest and I could tell she had more energy that day. She was ready to get out and go to one of our favorite stops. Afterwards, we stopped for a funnel cake (oh how I love those funnel cakes) at a new little spot my husband showed me. My oldest took this picture and enjoyed some chocolate dipped ice cream.

Here are my found treasures from my day. Lots of bling to add to my travel round robin books that I am doing (post coming soon), some old buttons (cause I need more buttons - yeah right) some new playing cards to see in my shop and other wonderful old things. It was a fun and quick adventure. Sorry for the sideways picture. I don't know why my blog put it on there like that, but I am not about to start this post all over again.

When we got back to mom's house, she had some goodies waiting from the mail delivery that day. She was so excited, because the cards and such had slowed down, but should be picking up now with more wonderful spirits getting her address to send her some strength. Here she is with some of her wonderful cards and gifts.

I think just about every time I talk to Mom, she tells me to please let everyone know how very thankful she is for your kindness and prayers. She told me, "I don't know how I would have made it through this without all of these cards and prayers. Please let them know, I get my strength and courage from them."

Here she is in her "studio" where she has some of her lovelies displayed here and there. She just loves your cards.

This is a lovely package that she received from Lisa. As she read her card, she just started to cry, and then I got teary eyed. She is just so touched by it all.

This is her bookcase by her chair where she displays some of her cards and gifted art work.

This is a gift from my great new friend Jullie from Whimsical Notions. She is a jewel and I am so glad that God blessed me with her.

And another blessing, my good friend Carolyn from Magpie Pixie. I was taking pictures and realized this was from her and yelped, "Mom, you got your gift from Carolyn and you didn't even tell me". Big sigh of relief!

This is a wonderful card from Marie.

From Carolyn

All of her goodies from Lisa.

I feel so blessed, and so does Mom. We are so thankful to you all for helping her through this tough time. Hopefully her battle with cancer is almost done. I told Mom that as soon as she is done with her radiation treatments and feeling back to "normal" that we were going away for a weekend. My plan is to go somewhere with lots of shops to visit, a nice B&B we can stay in, and a time to celebrate our friendship and lives.

God bless you all!

Rhonda...

Rhonda's Amazing Anniversary Giveaway - September 29th

So, here it is... Rhonda's Amazing Anniversary Giveaway. This giveaway actually has a lot of things all rolled up into one. I decided to do the giveaway on my wedding anniversary so Happy 7Th Anniversary to my amazing husband and I!

This giveaway began because of my bad habit of buying something, just to find out I have already purchased it. Below is a fantastic example. Instead of returning the items, I decided to gift them to someone else. Therefore, I will have two winners. We will say that there is one winner for each of my beautiful daughters on my amazing anniversary.

Here is what each winner will get.... things that I have two of. I've done it before, and unfortunately with the way my brain works, I am sure I will do it again.

Winner number one will receive the above items: A copy of one of the many publications by Somerset, many of which are my favs including the newest Artful Blogging magazine. Winner one will also receive this unmounted stamp set, and a mounted hydrangea flower rubber stamp... because why on earth do I need two of these?

Winner number two will receive another favorite, Somerset Home, as well this unmounted stamp set and mounted stamp.

Okay, so I will now admit, there is a catch and I am going to be totally honest with you. You must do two things to sign up for my swap but three are appreciated:

1.) You must sign up for my giveaway by leaving a comment on this post, just so I know you would like to participate.

2.) You have to click on the following site and then click one more time to help fund free breast mammograms. Seriously, just two clicks and sponsors donate. It is not required, but you can shop a little too to have even more donated to the cause.

Fund Free Mammograms! TheBreastCancerSite.com

I will just have to trust that you have done the second part. I want this giveaway to be a great treat for two lucky winners, but also do a little good in this great big world of ours.

As many of you know, my mother is currently fighting breast cancer, and she WILL win this battle. Prayers for her are appreciated. She only found out that she had breast cancer BECAUSE OF EARLY DETECTION. She has a mammogram every year. Last years mammogram was just fine, this years mammogram brought breast cancer. She could not feel it through a self breast exam (which I hope you all are doing). They only found it through her mammogram. I had my first one this year at the age of 39 - AND IT WAS NO BIGGY AT ALL!

3.) This one is only if you choose to do so, and where my brutal honesty comes in. I would LOVE it if you would post my above giveaway button on your blog, if you have one. It's great to spread the word and give others a chance to win a giveaway. But I also want more people to read about "A Card A Day For Lynn" which is to help my mom through her radiation treatments. Just little happy thoughts in her mailbox every now and then.

So, there you have all of the juicy and truthful details about my giveaway. You have until midnight (eastern) on September 28Th, to sign up and two lucky winners will be announced on my anniversary, September 29Th.

I am excited about this giveaway and making some lucky person's day. When I can make someone smile, it makes me smile. Good luck, and thank you so much for visiting!

Rhonda...

A Card A Day For Lynn

Great Swap Goodies From Tammy

Tangee from A Sparkly Messy Life always has the best swaps. I participated in her Ghoulishly Glamorous Swap and had the best partner. Tammy, from Anderson & Jake's Place was my partner and she sent the girls and I some great goodies!

This witch is the perfect addition to our Halloween decor. I can't wait to hang her up and the girls love her!

Tammy also sent the best goodies within my Parisian styled box, but the girls, Chuck and I already ate them up. There were Gummy Bears, which I haven't eaten in years but now constantly buy at the store, and some yummy Ghirardelli chocolate.

I love the Halloween banner as well and it will be a nice addition. I never decorated for Halloween before I had kids, but now I love this new tradition.

My thanks to Tangee for hosting yet another fabulous swap, and a huge thank you to Tammy for the wonderful package of goodies!

Rhonda...

Update On Mom - Week Three of Radiation

Hello to you all! Again, Mom wants to thank all of those who have sent her get well cards and gifts. It has really helped her thought this challenging time. If you haven't placed my button "A Card A Day For Lynn" on your blog, please consider doing so. I really want to get some more cards heading her way and any ideas you might have I would REALLY appreciate. They just do so much for her, and I am grateful.

Mom is getting ready to start, I think her third week of radiation. It is really making her tired and her skin is really bothering her. I feel so bad for her. She doesn't feel like doing much of anything, but I am so grateful to God for her survival and her road to hopefully beating cancer.

The doctors really wanted her to try Chemo because the cancer was so close to her chest wall. Even her closest doctors that know her medical history urged her to try the oral type and said she could always stop if it really made her sick. I urged her to try as well, but I can't force her. She has to follow her own gut, but I fear what might happen down the road if the cancer does come back in another spot, and worse another spot in her body where it isn't as detectable. So, pray, pray, pray please. She needs those prayers.

I know she will get through this and she is keeping her sense of humor over all. She is addicted to these itty bitty books we have been doing and it has really helped to divert her attention so that is great. She is even doing the itty bitty pink book in honor of breast cancer month, October. Keep a watch out because one of these beautiful books will be auctioned off to help the cause. Way to go Mary Ann!

On another note, the picture above, the banner I made for my blog, are pictures of my girls when they were younger. I just love them both, the pictures and my girls as well, of course. Thanks to Caz for always inspiring me and for her compliments on my work.

Off to play at the park with both girls and my husband, which I am so thankful for. My oldest fell on Friday, right in front of me, and all I could think was, "Oh, my gosh, she almost nailed her face on that cedar chest" just to have her turn and look up at me. She did just that, nailed her poor little face right on the cheek bone. She now has a swollen black eye and I just feel so bad for her. My mom told me that I did the same thing, on the same cedar chest, when I was a girl. I had two black eyes and I don't remember any of it. I don't think I will be passing that chest on to either girl because I fear the way things come in threes and if I am blessed enough to have grandchildren one long, long day from now, I don't want to jinx them!

Have a great week and check back soon for the huge giveaway I will be having with not one, but two winners!

God Bless!

Rhonda...

Show & Tell Friday - Giveaway Coming Soon!

It's Show & Tell time again! Be sure to visit Kelli for other participant's wonderful collections. This week, I am showing my collection of fun finds and passed down beauties that is now on display in my kitchen.

Many of these items were given to me by my wonderful mom. The sailor is a bank that a boy gave her when she was younger that was a gift from a bank for opening an account. He had a crush on mom, little did he know it would be given to her daughter from another man. The donkey was my grandma Betty's and I don't know the story behind the dog. The little cups were a treasure find. The mussie tussie was the first one I ever made for a Fun Friday Challenge at Etsy Cottage Style. I am very proud of her!

More wonderful finds and gifts from mom and grandma. I love all of these little treasures, most are salt and pepper shakers. When I look at them, they give my face a little grin and a happy jump to my heart.

The single mouse belonged to my grandmother. My mom and I found it in the top of my grandfather's barn among lots of old papers and so much dust we literally could not breath. But come on, we were treasure hunting and no one besides grandpa has been up there in years. I, found gold! The other beauties are more treasure finds during my adventures in antique shops.

Hope my lovelies gave your hearts a smile too. Be sure to check back soon for my second ever giveaway. I will be posting all of the juicy details in a couple of days!

Have a great weekend and thanks for visiting!

Rhonda...

My Amazing Mussie Tussies From Jules

I have always loved mussie tussies, so I was very excited when I heard about this swap through the flickr group Vintage Ephemera Swap. I LOVE this group, and I LOVE vintage ephemera. I have never made a mussie tussie, but was thrilled to learn and even more thrilled when I found a great new friend through this swap. Her name is Jules and she is from "Down Under" and I already feel like I have known her for years. You should pay her a visit at Whimsical Notions.

After chatting, and getting to know more about one another, we found out we had a lot in common. We decided to do one small Halloween tussie, and one with the theme of birds, nests, and eggs. Now Jules loves to make tussies and does an excellent job doing so. She must be a reincarnated Victorian woman. Check out the fabulous tussies I received and the goodies. I felt like it was Christmas morning and stayed parked on my steep driveway because I had to see in the box IMMEDIATELY!

Check out the loot!
I love vintage playing cards.
These witch tickets and wand are adorable!


And she even threw in this Eiffel tower, and we all know how Rhonda loves her Eiffel towers!
Beautiful! Birds and eggs and feathery goodness all over!
I love these vintage cards and the tag that hangs from the tussie!
Fact is, I love it all!

I love the golden bird that peeks out from within.

Even the inside was decorated.

These are some wonderful extras that Jules added.
Oh, oh... I know about this one too well when it comes to my studio and the ephemera I am obsessed with!

This is an extra treat that she made just for me. She also sent one to my mom as well as a "pick me up" for A Card A Day For Lynn. I am still looking for more people to send mom cards. Just follow the link on the top right for more info, or leave me a post with your email address so I can send you the info. And thank you so much Jules for thinking of mom. She LOVED your gift!

So, I've said it before and I will say it again. I am addicted to swaps! I love getting these wonderful surprises in my mailbox, but even more then that is I love the amazing friends I have made along the way. I look forward to learning more about Jules, and we have already decided to keep each other after the swap. Her package of tussies is on it's way and I hope she loves it as much as I loved mine!

Thanks for visiting and have a great day, or night if you are in Australia!

Rhonda...