Fun Flowers

I had the opportunity to make these cute little flower pens for a group recently.  They were actually quite easy, although my carpal tunnel right hand was a little painful during the process!  I wish I had more free time to create things and share them with you, but during this "season" of life, I have 3 teenage girls that are keeping me busy running!!

Have a blessed day!!
~Amy

Valentine's Day tins

Abby and I made these cute little bandaid tins for her classmates for Valentine's Day. We filled them with gum and candy so they loved them! The other exciting part was that I just searched around my stamping room for something to use to make the gifts and I found just the right amount of tins for this project!! I am in a real cleaning and downsizing mode right now, so this was a great find!!

Have a blessed day!!

~Amy

Shutterfly card

Classic Brown 5x7 folded card

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Psalm 119:105

I was coming in from picking Emily up from work on Sunday night and just thought this lamp was so picturesque with the tree limbs behind it.  It made me think of Psalm 119:105.  As I ponder more about it, life can be just like this.  Sometimes it is very dark and I can barely see anything around me.  The light helps me to see, but only for a short distance.  God will light our feet and our path before us, but He only uses a lamp not a floodlight.  We can sometimes only see the next step we are to take.  For all we know there could be dangers all around, but we only see that one step and should not try to move out of that light that our Father provides for us.  God paces our steps in order for us to avoid many of those dangers, I believe.  When we rush ahead without waiting on God's timing or when we try to veer off the lit course He has made for us, that is when we run into trouble.  May we each strive to follow the steps that God lights for us as we sojourn here on earth.  May we not run ahead, lag behind or veer from the designated path.  May we learn the lessons that God has for us on that path.  There will be pain and heartache along the way, but it is still a safer and more rewarding path than the one without God with us!!

Blessings to you,
~Amy

Isaiah 43

That is the theme of this past week---Isaiah 43.  It seems like every time I read something this past week, it referenced that chapter of the Bible.  I knew that I needed to read the whole chapter myself since I kept being reminded of it.  That chapter is special to me from past promises and gave me new promises.

In 2006, when the Lord told me to go to India on a mission trip, I really was not excited about it.  Who would be?  I mean I had heard of the unsanitary conditions, the lack of sleep that people got on these trips, and most recently I had heard of the water.  You see, two of my pastors had just been to India in August, the rainy season.  There was so much flooding in the slum area of Bombay (a.k.a., Mumbai) that my pastors had to take off their shoes and socks, roll up their pants legs and wade through water that was a foot deep and so murky that they had no idea where they were stepping.  But they had to do it in order to see the precious orphan children that our church cares for.  And when I went on my trip in January of 2007, we would be visiting all the children, too, even the ones at the same home that my pastors waded through the water to get to.  All I could picture after that was walking through that murky water.  What if I stepped on something sharp and cut my foot, only to get a severe infection or something worse?  What if there were snakes in that water?  The "What ifs" went on and on, and I just couldn't seem to stop thinking about them.  I prayed about it because I was very uneasy.

The Lord heard my prayers and gave me an answer!!  I love it when the answer to a prayer comes quickly.  Then I am able to remember that I am precious to my Father (I am Daddy's baby girl!).  Of course, as a side note, I must say that I am always precious to my Father even when the answers to my prayers are delayed or come in a different form than expected!  Back to my story... the Lord lead me to Isaiah 43:2 which says,

When you pass through the waters,
   I will be with you;
And when you pass through the rivers,
  They will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
  You will not be burned;
  The flames will not set you ablaze.

Amazing!!! Right there in God's word, He had an answer prepared for me long before I was even born!!  I tried to focus on the water part though, since fire was mentioned.  I hadn't even thought of fire...  But I digress.... From that point on, I began to get excited about my trip to India.

I do want to make sure that you notice though that it says "when you pass through the waters."  It doesn't say IF you do, but WHEN you do.  That is a great reminder for all of life.  We will pass through water and fire in this life, maybe not literally, but at least figuratively.  We need to remember during those times when we feel that we are drowning or burning up that our Daddy, who loves us so much, is right there with us!!  There will never be a trial that comes that God says to us, "Sweetie, you are on your own with this one!"  Instead He will walk through the trials with us, carrying us when we are too weak to walk ourselves.

What a wonderful reminder that was from my past.  A time when God showed me that He heard my prayers and He loves me enough to stick with me in the difficult times as well as the good times.  You can't rely on mere human beings to do that for you!

But as I read on in that Isaiah 43, I came to verses 18-19.  This part of the chapter served as my new encouragement for the season that I am in right now.  It says:

Forget the former things;
  Do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
  and streams in the wasteland.

Hallelujah and Thank You, Jesus!!  Does anyone besides me need a "new thing"?  I have been struggling in this same place for so long that I feel like it will be my home forever.  But God told me this week that He is doing a new thing!!!  Have I not perceived it yet?  Maybe I have been too busy dwelling on the former things...  But I have been instructed to forget that stuff.  Of course, we cannot truly forget (unless we get amnesia), but really what God wants is for us to not let the mistakes and problems from our past to define who we are forever.  First Corinthians 5:17 clearly tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"  I believe that the old is going and the new is coming continually.  It is a process of being "conformed into the likeness of His Son (Jesus)." (Romans 8:29)  Lord, thank you for giving me the hope of  "a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."  Now help me to truly "forget the former things" and not dwell on them!

So there it is!  Remembering God's faithful promises from the past and seeing that current promise of a "new thing!"  Lord, may I begin to perceive it and wait expectantly on You to fulfill Your promises to me!!

Blessings to you,

~Amy 

Christmas 2010

Sweet Tree Christmas

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Time of your life....

So I heard this song the other day on the radio and it really struck a cord with me. Here is what it says to me:
1) Changes will come in life whether you want them or not
2) So you need to live in the moment and enjoy the season that the Lord has you right now
3) I know this song is not a Christian song, however it makes me think of this passage from Ecclesiastes 3

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
A Time for Everything
1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

So here's my advice (and the way that I want to live my life): Go out there today and live your life to the fullest. No one knows what might be right around the next corner...maybe good, maybe not so good... But make up your mind to learn the lessons that the Lord has for you through each experience!!


I'm off to live life now!! Have a blessed day!!

~Amy

Stampin' Days

Meredith, Abby and I had some time to stamp this weekend.  I know that you are probably shocked!  We had so much fun!!  I wanted to share some pictures of the girls' creations.  I didn't take any pics of mine.  I was continuing to convert all of those card fronts that I collected over 6 years into actual cards.  I did 75 cards on Saturday, but only 7 today.  Maybe I was having a little burnout today!  LOL

Here are Meredith and Abby's masterpieces:

Meredith's card #1

Close-up of card #1

Meredith's card #2

Meredith's card #3

Meredith's card #4

Meredith's card #5

Abby's card---outside

A close-up of Abby's card

Inside the card

Meredith's card #6

Okay, this is most of their cards.  I didn't get pics of Abby's 2nd card yet.  Didn't they do great on their own?  I was so busy with my card fronts that I didn't really help them with their creations.  They are very talented if I do say so myself!!

Have a great day!  I hope that you will have time to be creative!!
~Amy

What's new from SU!?

Check out the links I have posted on the right side of my blog to the new catalogs from SU!  It is an exciting time of year with all the new, fun stamping stuff available!

Also, I still have just 6 stamp sets left of the unmounted, retired sets that I advertised in the posts below.  Contact me if you are interested in purchasing any of the remaining sets.  (Sorry, sets with SOLD beside them are already gone.)

I hope that you are having a great summer!  We are keeping busy here at the Collins' household with camps, work, swimming with friends, a little crafting and even a little math!!  We are looking forward to a week at the beach (Fripp Island) coming up soon.  A little sun, a little sand....nothing is more relaxing or healing than that!!  I might even get to read a book all the way through!

Enjoy your summer fun!
~Amy

Retired Stamp Sets for Sale---$10 or $12 for the ones in this post

This last batch of sets are either $10 or $12 as noted.  These sets are new, unmounted, but I can assemble if you would like.  Shipping will need to be added if you are outside the Roanoke, VA, area.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me by email or phone.

Happy shopping!!!
~Amy

Cause for Celebration (set of 9)---$10---SOLD

A is for Adorable (set of 8)---$10

Simply the Best (set of 10)---$10--SOLD

Both Way Blossoms (set of 4)---$12---SOLD

In the Spotlight (set of 12)---$12--SOLD

Retired Stamp Sets for Sale---$7 for the ones in this post

Here are more stamp sets for sale (see previous post with sets for only $5!).  The sets in this post are priced at just $7 each and are all new, unmounted (I can mount if you would like).  I will need to add shipping if you are outside of the Roanoke, VA, area.

If you have any questions, let me know.  Happy shopping!!
~Amy

Along the Same Lines (set of 4)

Event Full (set of 6)

For a Friend (set of 6)--SOLD

Friendship Blooms (set of 5)--SOLD

Word on Word (set of 5)--SOLD

Sweet Dreams (set of 6)

Sidekick Sayings (set of 3)

Retired Stamp Sets for Sale----$5 for the ones in this post!

SPRING CLEANING!!!

I have been trying to clean around my house and have discovered LOTS OF STAMP SETS that I am ready to sell.  So check out the list and e-mail or call me if you see something that you would like to purchase.  It will be first come, first serve for these items.  Also, if you are not local (in the Roanoke, VA, area), then I will have to charge you shipping as well.  (I think that the basic priority shipping is something like $4.95, but we can work out those details if needed.)

So here are the first set.  All of the stamp sets in this post are priced at just $5!!!  Happy shopping!! 

Additional info:  all of the stamp sets shown are new and unmounted (I can assemble them for you if you would like) and if you would like to see additional pictures let me know. 

~Amy 

Bitty Basics (set of 10)

Merci (set of 6)--SOLD

Lots of thoughts (set of 6)---SOLD

Polka Dot Punches (set of 4)---SOLD

Botanical Blooms (set of 7)--SOLD

Yummy (set of 3)--SOLD

Congrats (set of 7)---SOLD

Dear Friend (set of 4)--SOLD

So Many Scallops (set of 4)---SOLD

Christine came over again!

And when Christine comes over, it is usually to make some more beautiful frames!!  This time she made frames for her friend Anna and her friend's dog (or little boy...) Buster.  She used hydrangeas in the frames because those are a favorite of her friend.  And she stayed with greens and other earthy tones for the frames and copper embossing powder was used for the letters.  (I still had some even though it was retired by SU!)  I love how those turned out.  And I enjoyed spending some time stamping with a friend!!  Here are the pics:

A little close-up of the flowers!

Have a great day!!  Remember to get those orders to me!

~Amy

Time to order!!

Well, ladies, I have spent a little time updating my blog links down the righthand side of the screen.  Check out the new Occasions Mini Catalog and the Sell-A-Bration (SAB) Catalog.  Those catties offer limited edition stamp sets and Designer Series Papers.  You'll want to order soon so as not to miss out on the wonderful limited edition Stampin' Up! stuff!!  You can also click on the link to see the regular catalog as well.  I have a few more of those catalogs in stock, too.  If you would like a hard copy, please feel free to contact me about that.

So, if you would like to place an order with me, please get your order and payment to me by February 25nd.  For this order, I am offering a SUPER SPECIAL in honor of this month of "love"----20% off of your order!!!  And remember the SAB special is that with every $50 you order, you can get an SAB set, SAB catalog product or one of the pre-selected regular catalog sets for FREE!!!  There's not a better time to order than right now!!!  Need more details?  Contact me or read the info in the SAB catalog.

I look forward to hearing from you!
~Amy

Another project

So, I've had these Laura Ashley notepads lying around my stamp room for maybe a year, and I finally decided to create a little notepad cover.  I designed it myself, but just yesterday saw a similar design on Splitcoast Stampers.  Their design has an inside pocket, too.  Nice idea....I'll have to add that to my next model!!  Here are the pics:

I really like this notepad cover.  The scrapbooking paper is an older set, but I really need to use all this (wonderful) paper that I have already before buying any new (beautiful) paper!!

We are getting more beautiful snow today in the mountains of western VA.  I really LOVE watching it fall so peacefully from the sky.  I hope you are enjoying whatever life is bringing you at this moment!!

~Amy