Fe-Fe's World Of Craft, Creations and Kids.

This blog was started mainly for my crafting, however I also find myself writing about my family life too and in particular about my son Josh. Josh is just Josh to us and we're used to his quirky behaviour. As I don't want to have to mention Josh's autism every time I post about him, I thought I'd mention it here. Hopefully you will bear this in mind as you read and it may give you a little insight into the wonderful world of the autisic child in a very gentle way!

Friday, 26 December 2008

Penny Black Saturday Challenge and Cuttlebug Challenge.

I made this card to qualify for both the Penny Black Saturday Challenge which is "Multi Fold" and the Cuttlebug Challenge which is to make a criss cross card.

The photo is not the best has I've had to take my photo studio down to make room for Santa coming! Sob sob! But hopefully you can see it well enough.

I used the Swiss Dots embossing folder and Nestibilities in my Cuttlebug for the embossed background and the circles. The mouse stamp is a Penny Black and the Poinsettia stamp is one that came free with a craft magazine. The red paper is Cricut paper.

7 comments:

Dawn said...: Hiya Fe!
Hope you had a great Xmas
Ooh I like this and the embossing on those bits is great - I've never tried a criss cross card yet - too lazy!!! LOL
It's gorgeous!

Hugs
Dawn
xx; 26 December 2008 at 11:17
Pauline C said...: Fabulous card Fe - one of my face Christmas images and I also love Criss cross cards - love it! Thanks for joining in the PBSC this week - Happy Christmas & a Happy New Year, and hope you will join us again for 2009
Pauline x; 26 December 2008 at 17:34
Kath Stewart said...: beautiful card for the challenge Fe and I love criss cross cards and your gorgeous image - thanks for playing along this week at PBSC
Hugs
kath
xxxxx; 26 December 2008 at 21:21
Lorraine A said...: very beautiful card , the paper you used is gorgeous too , lovely :-); 27 December 2008 at 10:06
Unknown said...: Gorgeous card Fiona! You have combined two of my faves, Penny Black and Cuttlebug, well done.

Barbarax; 27 December 2008 at 21:02
tracie said...: Oh wow gorgeous card Fe, love the embossing and cute image - perfect for the challenge.
Thanks for joining us this week
hugs
Tracie :)x; 28 December 2008 at 10:26
LOUISE said...: Great card FeFe, love the swiss dots, it really brings out the rest of the elements. Love it! Louise x; 2 January 2009 at 10:45

Ode to Special Mums

Ode to Special Moms(by Erma Bombeck)

Most women become mothers by accident, some by choice, a few by social pressures and a couple by habit. This year, nearly 100,000 women will become mothers of handicapped children. Did you ever wonder how mothers of handicapped children are chosen?

Somehow I visualize God hovering over Earth selecting his instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation. As he observes, he instructs his angels to make notes in a giant ledger.
"Armstrong, Beth, son, patron saint, Matthew.
Forrest, Marjorie, daughter, patron saint, Cecilia.
"Rudledge, Carrie, twins, patron saint, give her Gerard. He's used to profanity."
Finally, he passes a name to an angel and smiles, "Give her a handicapped child."

The angel is curious. "Why this one, God? She's so happy."

"Exactly," says God. "Could I give a handicapped child to a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel."

"But has she patience?" asks the angel.

"I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and resentment wear off, she'll handle it.
"I watched her today. She has that feeling of self and independence that is so rare and so necessary in a mother. You see, the child I'm going to give her has his own world. She has to make it live in her world, and that's not going to be easy."

"But, Lord, I don't think she even believes in you."

God smiles. "No matter. I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just enough selfishness."

The angel gasps, "Selfishness? Is that a virtue?"

God nods. "If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally, she'll never survive. Yes, here is a woman whom I will bless with a child less than perfect. She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied. She will never take for granted a 'spoken word.' She will never consider a 'step' ordinary. When her child says 'Momma' for the first time, she will be present at a miracle and know it! When she describes a tree or a sunset to her child, she will see it as few people ever see my creations."I will permit her to see clearly the things I see...ignorance, cruelty, prejudice...and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life, because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side."

"And what about her patron saint?" asks the angel, pen poised midair.

God smiles. "A mirror will suffice."

"Welcome to Holland"

"Welcome to Holland" By Emily Perl Kingsley

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away...because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss. But...if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.