Crafting For My Sanity

This post was going to be about how to scrapbooking tips but as you will be able to tell in just a second it went in a totally different direction but I suppose since it is my blog I can do that and I don’t even have to change the title. Now here is the thing I had to change the post for.

Do you ever stop and think about what you are doing in your life, really? I mean really stop and think about it. That is one of the things that I find valuable in doing my crafts. I then have the time to think about all the things that i never seem to have a moment to think about any other time.

It is a moment like I have said before that I am able to breath and pause and contemplate all that i am and i am doing so i can start again to give it some direction and make sure it is pointed in the right direction. My husband and kids seem to like it when I do except when it means they have more to do but they kinda know what I am doing when I have my alone time because I always seem to have something to give them when i come out of my imaginary crafting cave. After I have been there for a while I am refreshed and calmer and more focused like I said and I really do get more done aside from thinking more clearly

It is just a good thing to do for me and if you have never tried it I recommend you find something like crafts for me to do so that you can get some down time from our busy world we live in here in the western world.

My life just seems to be getting better and better no matter what problems seem to rear their ugly heads. I put my trust in Christ and no matter what sort of thing happens it all seems to be ok. I then will go work on my crafts and find a way to calm my mind so that I can stay focused and some how some way it always seems to work out.

We have been married for a long time, forever it seems sometimes and we have been through a lot of stuff so I kinda know what I am talking about. That is not to say that it is always easy but we always seem to get through it some how. Right now we are going through some stuff with our finances and I know some how it will work out so we will be ok. I mean it may not be as I had planned it or look like anything I had envisioned but it will work out I am sure.

So set back and get some perspective and put your troubles in Gods hands and stop churning it around in your head and just see how it all plays out. But don’t be disappointed if it is not the way you want. Just be happy that it works out some how some way.

A good friend of mine just went to the hospital again and it got me to thinking how much we have to be thankful for and that no matter what the petty arguments my husband and i may have or little trouble the kids may get in or the financial problems we may have, we really are quite blessed beyond measure. We in the United States are a privileged class to start with and many of us even that grew up with what here may not have been a lot are wealthy beyond compare when measured by the worlds standards.

We have our health too. We have been blessed with good health all our lives and now is no exception. Nutrition is not an issue except when we don’t pay attention to it. The point is I want all everyone within shot of this blog to take 5 minutes and see how long a list of things you can be thankful for. It will make you appreciate all you have and enjoy and have a lighter day. Give it a try and see what I am talking about and how much you really have. If we would do this everyday I think it could change our lives.

Finding time in my busy life to post to this blog has been a challenge but at the same time it is a very good feeling when I do. I want to try to do it more often when i get a chance. i am up early this Sunday morning and the house is quiet, just the way I like it. I dream of one day having my own office so I can go and write and do my crafts anytime I want and do it in complete solitude.

I just had a moment of clarity. I have several hobbies that even though I am in my late 30s now will carry me through the rest of my life. This one especially of writing should be one that continues to keep my mind sharp and as technology gets better and better I should be able to speak my writing tasks like these posts and the computer will do the typing so as long as I can talk I can post or maybe I will just do video??? that would be fun but I might be a little nervous about being on camera. Oh well I will cross that bridge when i get there and I have the nerve.

Last night I meet with a friend of mine and it has been a while and she is going through a nasty divorce. Well really it is not so much a nasty divorce as it is a problem or discrepancy about the property settlement. You see you ex is not wanting to recognize their common law marriage and is trying to manipulate the situation so that my friend only ends up with about 20%-30% of what is probably due her.

This is after a 19 year relationship and it is so sad to me that this guy could do this to my friend. You see I have known them for about 7 years now and had no idea he might be capable but I suppose this lends itself to the saying that you never really know a person until they are under pressure and you will see what they are really made of. How sad huh?

Fortunately for my friend she has enough resources that she doesn’t have to work for now and until this is all decided she can focus on herself and keep herself healthy and grounded. Incidently, you might ask what does my friend do to keep herself sane? Well I am glad you ask, she sews like a mad woman. I think she has managed to sew herself a whole closet full of new clothes in the last year.

Here is just a little tip that I thought many of you might be able to use if you are a hobbiest and like crafts. I want to you to be away of www.ebay.com At this auction site you will find almost everything you can imagine. It is a site where you can either buy things or you can bid on things that you want or need. You just have to have patience and wait to make sure you win the bid. So go check it out and see what you think.

Well, we are way into the month now and I am not getting as much of a chance to blog as I wanted to with the three kids and the 7 dogs, yes you read right, 7 real live dogs, we have two daughters, one son, 5 yorkies, 1 palm, one German shepherd… a cat and a geinie pig too. Well now you know why I have a little stress in my life. Oh, some more things are my husband has ADD, I drink a little too much (not everyday like alcoholic too much but a few times a week I will have a couple of glasses of wine) and that is too much in my mind. I am on three kinds of medication for thyroid, pain and hormones.

Do you understand why I need an outlet like crafts to relieve myself of some of this at times. Oh yea, there is more. Our kids are in everything and that is a tremendious source of stress. The are always gone but always have time to make a mess but never enough time to clean it up. Isn’t that funny.

Wow this is turning into a post about me and not so much about crafts but so be it. It is what it is. Maybe more next time.

I know it has been a while but the whole reason I have this blog is to tell you how I have begun to “weave” crafts into my life to relieve the stress. Well there has been a lot of business and I have needed a lot of crafts lately and today was no exception.

It has been one of those days but it is over now and I have been doing some scrapbooking for the last couple of hours. I can not tell you how much I enjoyed it and how therapeutic it is for me to have this outlet available for me at any given moment. It is the cheapest theropy available that I know of. I mean what does it really cost? i can do two hours of my “theropy” for the cost of a few scrapbooking products that come in cheap packages or the cost of the yarn for knitting etc compared to $100-$200 and up for a theroptist and I can do it in my robe or my pajamas.

Theropy doesn’t get any better than that in my book unless it was for free and the theroptist came to my house on about 5 minutes notice. hahaha We all know that is impossible.

There is one other thing and that is the therapy I am talking about is not really therapy although I like to talk about it that way. Really what I am talking about is relaxing and finding a way to get into your own head long enough to figure out what is important to you so you can make clear decisions and make them in such a way that you are being true to yourself. Make sense?

Today I was running a little late for an appointment and I was starting to stress a little. i showered and I put on my makeup and my freshly pressed clothes and did all the things that I always do to make myself as presentable as possible and then I am getting to put on my shoes and all of the sudden it hits me.

The bottom falls out of my plans like you would not believe. I forgot a vital part of the whole scene and I remembered that as of yesterday I had no vehicle. See, what happened was my mate got sick at work. You know throwing up and migraine and all and I get this call about three pm and I have to drive all the way across town to pick him up. There he is laying on a couch at work and I have to practically carry him home.

Well today he is feeling better but we decided to wait until Monday to go get the truck since gas is so high and it is so far to his work. great plan until I discover that at 4o’clock he is still playing golf and has our only car. Crap!

Now here I am stuck waiting, ready to go and waiting. Did I mention waiting? for him to get home with the car so I can go to my appointment LATE!!!. I hate being late.

So what do i do? I grab my needlepoint and start my stress relief. I do that for about 29 minutes and then decided to do this post. I have resigned myself that I am going to look dumb for my appointment when i stroll in late but I am more relaxed now and that IS the point of my crafts.

The whole idea started one day when I woke up and realized no matter how crazy my life gets there is one place I have found that will give me solice. Where I can go and find peace. Now don’t get me wrong. I find that ultimately in my relationship with Jesus Christ but I am talking here about just a way to wind down and escape from the everyday tentions of my busy life.

That magic bullet for me are the crafts I love so much. I plunge into them and I escape from the drama, the tention and the stress of my daily life. It really is amazing how much builds up over time until I am able to find a few minutes to get away from it all and just “craft” a little.

So that is the premise and the purpose we are going to discuss here along with anything else that pops into my tiny little brain… so here goes.