Christmas Wrap-up

Christmas is over and we now look to a New Year. I don't make resolutions for the New Year. But I do have daily goals. This song pretty much sums it up and I want to share that today.

Speak, O Lord, as we come to You

To receive the food of Your Holy Word.

Take Your truth, plant it deep in us;

Shape and fashion us in Your likeness,

That the light of Christ might be seen today

In our acts of love and our deeds of faith.

Speak, O Lord, and fulfill in us

All Your purposes for Your glory.

Teach us, Lord, full obedience,

Holy reverence, true humility;

Test our thoughts and our attitudes

In the radiance of Your purity.

Cause our faith to rise; cause our eyes to see

Your majestic love and authority.

Words of pow'r that can never fail—

Let their truth prevail over unbelief.

Speak, O Lord, and renew our minds;

Help us grasp the heights of Your plans for us—

Truths unchanged from the dawn of time

That will echo down through eternity.

And by grace we'll stand on Your promises,

And by faith we'll walk as You walk with us.

Speak, O Lord, till Your church is built

And the earth is filled with Your glory.

My prayer is that if you don't know Christ, that you will come to Him. He is our Lord and Savior and came that all may have life. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. I love all of you my dear friends. Debra

Christmas Traditions

Christmas. A time of love, giving, memories, sharing and tradition. It is a wonderful season that is here because of the gift from God. Jesus Christ is our gift from God. All we need to do is accept Him.

We all have traditions this time of year. Baking, playing, shopping, decorating. The list could be endless. In my family we bake Julekage. (pronounced: you la ka ga) This is a Swedish Christmas Bread. It is a must have and tastes wonderful. We also make Ruskies, Candy Cane Cookies and Peanut Butter Balls.

Julekage rising.

Julekage loaves rising.

MMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmm!!!

Julekage!!!

Ruskies. I don't know why they are called that. But they are sooooo good. The crust is butter and cream cheese. The filling is pecans and sugar with a weens of milk.

We love the hustle and bustle of being out and about. Or being in the house while the snow flurries around. And of course there is the sledding for the young ones.

Another tradition we have is reading the Christmas story. The story of Jesus the Savior's birth. He is our present from above. May you have a wonderful Merry Christmas as you celebrate this true meaning of the season.

Christmas Tags and Something New!

I made some Christmas tags today and then used a new set that is in the Occasions Mini.


I just got this tag die for the Big Shot and it is fabulous! I used the Yuletide Christmas and Serene Snowflakes sets for these.
















This uses the set I {Heart} Hearts. It also uses Scalloped Heart of Hearts Embosslits Die, Small Heart Punch, Pinking Hearts Border Punch, Real Red Satin Ribbon, and the Perfect Polka Dots Impressions Folder. These are new and will be available January 4. These are items in the new Occasions Mini. Lot's of fun stuff in there and I will share more in the next few weeks.

Thankful it's December!

October was spent with us having H1N1. It really threw us for a loop. We just had gotten over that and it was the first week in November when my Mom had a mini-stroke. The first blessing about that was we were over H1N1. The second blessing of the mini-stroke was that while my Mom was in ER she was diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia. Had she not had the mini-stroke she would not have been diagnosed as quickly. She is home and on oral meds right now. November was pretty hectic though. My November Club/Class needed to be canceled and these were the cards that were planned. I made them for my club members.

This card was made with Branch Out which will be retiring January 4th. This set is so easy and versatile. I just love it! The other set used is Autumn Splendor. I stamped on the Wood Sheets. Those are sooooo cool!!! You can even punch them out!

This is a hinged card. The set is Berry Christmas and the background embossing uses the Petals-a-Plenty Folder.

The technique used here is Cracked Glass. I stamped the snowflake, punched it out and then sponged the edges. I then inked the whole piece in Versamark and embossed with Glassy Glaze Enamel. Versamark the image again, emboss again. Then put it in the freezer for a bit. Take it out and crack it. I sponged it with Soft Suede ink to emphasize the cracks. LOVE it. The set is a hostess set in the Holiday mini called Patterned Pines.

Patti wanted to get together for horsdoevres at her house in December. So my club did that last week and swapped cards. This was my swap.

This is the set Branch Out again. I stamped the tree and then sponged with Night of Navy and Bordering Blue. The snowflakes are stamped in white craft ink and embossed in white. The tree limbs are outlined with the white gel pen.

All cards are SUO. If you would like more information on any of these cards or products to purchase you can contact me at 4debra@sbcglobal.net.