To Honor You

First, I want to thank those of you who commented on my "Fix You" layout about our Alex.  Many promised to pray for him, and we really appreciate it.  Some people won't understand, but Alex truly was a member of our family.  Jon and I adopted him when we had been married for less than a year, so he was deeply woven into the fabric of our lives.  He was our "baby" for the four years before we had Paige, and of course he continued to be our baby up until the end.

We made the decision to put Alex to sleep on Wednesday.  It was and continues to be a gutwrenching, agonizing decision.  There is so much guilt connected to the idea of calling the vet and arranging for your child to be put to sleep.  The grief and anguish comes in waves.  In those times, I try to remind myself of how much pain he really was in.  It would have been selfish to keep him alive just because we didn't want to let him go.  It had gotten to be a terrible struggle for Alex to have to go up and down the stairs to our yard for bathroom breaks.  We had to help him lift his back legs to get up off the floor.  His eyes were sad most of the time.  We had run to the end of all medical options and prescriptions, and he was getting worse.

Thankfully, the girls are taking it much easier than Jon and I are.  Alex wouldn't have wanted them to be sad.  He hated it when any of us were crying or upset.  He's feeling better now, up in heaven...but we keep looking for him here.  We keep thinking we hear the sound of his collars jingling.  It's hard.  So hard.  And so sad.  He is everywhere in our house, in our yard, in our hearts. 

I woke up early this morning working through the idea I'd had last night.  Humans have obituaries when they die.  I wanted our Alex to have one too.  I wanted to preserve those memories and quirky things that made Alex everything he was to us.  It's hard to understand now, but I know there will come a time where seeing this layout framed on our wall will only bring smiles and not more tears.

To read the obituary, click on the layout, and it will be made bigger and easier to see.

Thank you all for taking the time to remember our Alex with us. 

I know there are plenty of other pressing sorrows in this world, but thank you for helping to share ours.

Wendy

My Creative Sketches blog (For Me)

Hi All!  Jillibean Soup and I have made a layout of my Erin's beautiful beaming face.  She had found a small blossom in a park we were hanging out at, and she ran full speed to give it to me.  Aww...cue heartmelting swell of love...

I made this to participate in the first sketch challenge at My Creative Sketches blog. . .
I stayed very true to their sketch, and when I saw all of those circles the first thing that came to my mind was the Jillibean journaling sprouts.  Perfection!

I hope someone gives you wildflowers today, or at least brightens your day with a smile like this!

Cards for Olivia and the My Mind's Eye Challenge

This month for the My Mind's Eye challenge, I did both a layout and a card.  First up, the girls on Sunday, July 3rd in their annual themed dresses.  At church that day, the children sang "God Bless America" and, of course, "Happy Birthday" to America.  Both of my girls had little speaking parts in front of "God Bless America," and they remembered them and did great.  Every single thing on this layout is from My Mind's Eye other than the adhesive (ha!) and the circular brads.  The sketch looked like this...

Then, I read on Stacy Rodriguez' blog about her cousin's daughter, Olivia.  I was planning on trying the card challenge this month, using the adorable playing cards that are geared toward a child.  This seemed like a perfect opportunity to take that 1/2 hour and make a card to brighten Olivia's hospital room.  Read more here: Cards for Olivia drive . 
Here's the card...

Thanks for stopping in...
Wendy

Another Sassafras Challenge!

Hello all!  Long time, no see!  This past month has been very hectic, and now I'm back in my classroom preparing for my 26 angelic second graders who will come to be my students very soon.  In the midst of it all though, I needed a little crafty break for myself so I took up the August Sassafras Lass challenge.  If you remember, I posted about entering the June challenge and told you I'd let you know if I made it into the top ten....   Well, they actually choose a top sixteen that month, but MY layout was the fourth one shown on the page!  YAY!!!  :)  I didn't get the July challenge done, but here's August:

For this challenge, all we had to do was use three different Sassafras Lass alphabets.  Well, that was a snap because I think I have at least 12 different Sass alphabets at my disposal!  :)  These were the first professional pictures we'd had taken of the girls for two years, and I saved a few wallets.  They just forced me to make a griddy layout.  I love grids!  :)
Thanks for stopping by!
Wendy