Friday, June 17, 2011

Just when you think . . .

. . . that things are getting better, the bottom drops out of your bucket.  My mom used to tell me it is because you are not supposed to count your chickens before they hatch.  Kim’s divorce is final, Joshua has graduated with honors from elementary school, Tabitha is coming to visit, I have a shop in which to sell my designs, and most of all: Kim’s health has been really good for the past 8 months (relatively speaking).  Well that is what we thought.  She went to Wake Forest on Monday to participate in the gasteoparesis study and they had her drink too many carbs and she wound up in the hospital and went through ten hours of diarrhea, nausea, and out of whack blood sugar counts. While she was there they ran some routine tests of her blood and urine which showed some cause for alarm because her creatin level in the blood was too high, and they wanted her to see a specialist about her kidneys immediately.  It just so happened that she already had an appointment for today with a specialist because when she had to have that blood transfusion a couple of weeks ago her primary doctor didn’t like her lab results either.  Kim just called with the results of her specialist appointment.  On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the worst and dialysis is needed, Kim’s creatin levels in the blood and urine put her at a 3. She is anemic (thus the transfusion) because the kidneys are not doing their job of supplying whatever it is you need to make blood in your bone marrow.  What they are going to do for the present is put her on high blood pressure meds (she is already on low blood pressure meds) and hormone therapy to try and combat the kidney failure.  She first has to do one of those 24 hour collection cycles and get them to the lab and the specialist will take it from there and figure out what type of meds and how much she should be taking. Then we will pray even harder (if that’s possible) that things will get better or at least not get worse.


I know that I am a pessimist, always have been because every time I start to feel comfortable and maybe even happy about something, things go bad.  That’s my experience with everything from husbands and lovers, to home purchases, to missing a sale at the grocery store, to picking the wrong line at MacDonald’s, and my children’s’ health; every single time, things go bad.  I pray, I plead my case(s) to whomever is in charge, I try and be optimistic but I end up divorced, then finding and losing the love of my life, living in a house that wasn’t built correctly and causes all kinds of problems and expenses, and having my children suffer ill health to the point of it wrecking their lives and the lives of those who care about them.  And I know I am whining, but damn, does everything have to go bad for Kim?  Can she not have some peace for a little while?  She was just told this week, by her ex-husband, that he’s not going to pay for Joshua’s meds for the summer; he needs to have some spending money so he can ‘have a life.’  Enough! Do you see why I periodically feel like not living anymore?  It is just so hard to face the day sometimes and the nights are a bitch.  I have friends to talk this over with but they cannot solve the problems or even make me or Kim feel better. What’s the use?


Saturday, June 11, 2011

This and That


Hello Y’All.  Well I am back from a week of non-stop drama!  
 
First, my granddaughter, Suzy, was in labor from early Monday morning until late afternoon Friday when she finally delivered my great grandson Gavin Bentlee Marlin.  We were all counting the contractions, worrying that Gavin was in distress because he had been in ‘position’ for so very long, and wondering why the doctors didn’t think Suzy should be hospitalized in case of major complications.  She went to the ER at least 3 times and they sent her home; frustration seemed to be her major problem as the contractions didn’t seem to bother her-ever! When the little fellow showed up he weighed in at 7 pounds 2 ounces and 19 ¾ inches long, which is a pretty good size for such a young mother.  Both he and Suzy are doing fine, in fact she has gone back and finished her final exams and is home for the summer.  Gavin has lots of dark brown hair and right now his eyes seem to be grey (but I know they will change soon) and he has the sweetest little round head.  I thought for sure that his head would be misshapen because of the long labor but he’s perfect. 

Gavin Bentlee Marlin

Not yet 24 hours old!









































While Suzy was having Gavin, I was in a dental surgery suite having a tooth removed.  It went really well and I felt that I was going to do much better than I ever did when I had out my wisdom teeth. Not!  It turns out that I was allergic or sensitive to the antibiotic I was given.  At first I thought I was having a heart attack because my jaw, chest, back, and arms went into some sort of spasm that mimicked a heart attack!  When I realized that swallowing, even my own saliva, was causing the pain and that it wasn’t my heart I was somewhat relieved but honestly the pain just wouldn’t go away since swallowing is an involuntary reaction to moisture in the mouth.  This went on for days, which seemed like weeks since I was not eating or drinking, before we checked out the side effects of the antibiotic which proved to be the culprit; I thought it was my acid reflux going into high gear and it never occurred to me that an antibiotic could cause so much pain.  For those of you who are sensitive to medication the name of the medicine is Clindamycin.

When I started feeling better I had to get right to work on my digital designs since my shop hardly has anything in it at all so I was working at least ten hours a day.  This past Thursday my grandson, Joshua, graduated from grade school!  It seems like just yesterday he was an infant and now he is going into middle school.  Be still my heart . . . I think I am going to suffer empty nest syndrome worst than my daughter will.  Joshua has got to be the sweetest, most loving, grandson anyone could ever have.  You should see him with his new nephew, he cannot leave him alone for any length of time and is constantly kissing and baby talking to him.

Here is the preview for some frames I finished late last night; I hope to have more done by tonight.  I want to finish up on the July store collaboration so I can complete a kit I began last month that is called ‘Good morning, Sunshine!’








Here is a preview of my Doodle Bug Brushes:
 




 
I hope y’all continue to have a wonderful weekend and pray for all the animals and people who have been displaced by the wild fires in the western United States and for all those folks around the world who are suffering from the warfare that seems to be popping up all over the globe.


Thursday, June 2, 2011

Quick Page Freebie!

Here's the freebie I promised, a quick page I made with my OceanSide kit; personal use only.  Hope you like it!

Click HERE for 4Shared  or HERE for MediaFire

If you'd like the kit just drop by my shop at Southern Comfort Scraps.

Hugs,
Liv

PS: Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter so you don't miss any of my freebies and new products!

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Newsletters, Sales, etc!

Hey Y'All!

I am going to do a newsletter!  It won't be a naggy every day kind of newsletter (I don't like those kind), I'm just going to send one out whenever I have something new to say or show so I hope y'all will sign up to receive them (look to your right, top of blog page).

Southern Comfort Scraps has just put the June Collab Ice Cream Social in the shop.  It is brought to you by 5 of the designers; each has contributed a wide variety of papers and elements. There are 13 zips with over 230 MB of goodies. PU Only. All you need to do is spend $5 anywhere in the shop and you get it for free! Awesome! I didn't contribute anything to this one as I just signed on but I will be in on the July one.
Click on the preview and it will scroll through the previews for you.
Blogger doesn't take gif like it use to :(

I have to get started on next month's collab but I will have a quickpage freebie for you soon.  A friend of mine says she schedules her freebies the same day of each week-sounds good and if I get to going good I think that's what I will do.  I'll let you know when the freebie is available in the newsletter!
Come visit me in the shop!

Sunday, May 29, 2011

New Products In My Shop!

Hello friends!  Well after more than 36 hours straight of packaging, uploading, description writing, and all the technical stuff you have to do to get your products in a shop,  I have finally finished with my first new kit!  It is called OceanSide and it includes a full kit (50 elements, 1 alpha, and 12 papers), a 12 glitter style add-on, a frame cluster and photo mask add-on, and a complete bundle of them all!  I need to get some rest now but my plan is to make a quick page or specialty cluster freebie for all my loyal fans.  Speaking of which, I need to hear from more of you about being on my CT; don't think you have to put out a lot.  Just be willing to download (for free) at least one kit or product per month, make a layout, a hybrid project, or the like, photograph them and post to a minimum of 3 forums, i.e.: DigiShopTalk, My Scrapbook Art, and one other of your choice. Here are some previews of OceanSide:
Thanks for checking in with me!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Just A Little Note About My Freebies

Hello my faithfuls!  I wanted you to know that I had to lock some of my freebies for the time being.  This doesn't mean that I will not be offering freebies, just that some of them are so intricate that they need to be revamped and put in my shop for sale.  Sorry if you missed any that were previously free.  From this point on, I will offer freebies that will stay free and the links will stay active.  Hope you all will stick by me and check out my shop when you get a chance. I promise to get some freebies on here as soon as I load my shop up!
Thanks for hanging in with me!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

It's Open!

Hello everyone!

Well, my shop has finally opened even if there is only one product in it! The reveal of the shop:

Southern Comfort Scraps

My one and only product is some doodles and brushes.  Yes, I have been working on stuff but you would not believe how complicated and mind numbing it is to learn a whole bunch of new things at one time as in Zen Carts, ftp upload sites, preview loading, description, and attribute links. Whew!  Can't say I did a good job on putting this little product in my shop; it ended up that the shop owner (kudos to Echo) fixed my Zen Cart for me. Duh  . . . can you say dunce?

Anyway, the doodles are clean and large and can be used in many different ways; I colored one and included it in the download.  It is really simple to color them.  Jut put a layer Under the doodle (Cntrl and click on the new layer icon and a new layer goes under your current layer) and color on this layer with your brush, simple!  You can also use a clipping mask above a doodle and use color or designs (papers) for clipping and also styles work beautifully.  Another option is to use the brushes in your color of choice using the color picker and even coloring these after stamping.  You can set the brush attributes so that you can get random sizes, random amounts, and directions or even dual brush attributes; have fun and experiment!

Please drop by my shop HERE and have a look.  I am planning on having a lot of kits and elements in there soon.  Don't forget that I will need a Creative Team so if you would like to get my products free by joining me send me an email to me at: countryliv at yahoo!

Hugs and thanks for being here!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Working-Working-Working!

Big mix up! They liked me, they really liked me! LOL! I am still going to design for the shop that I thought dissed me!  Seems that my email got lost on the way with my acceptance and after 10 days a friend of mine thought she'd check in with me and Woo Hoo! I'm on my way!

Actually my trade name is already up in the shop but I have nothing for you to buy, so . . . I'm keeping it to myself until I can 'hit' you with it!  I'm so excited, that I just can't hide it . . .

I'm off to prepare some product! Just a heads up for you:  Some of my freebies will be revamped and put in my shop for sale so if you were wanting them just the way they are, grab them now because I will soon lock the links!  This doesn't mean I won't be adding freebies for you as I go, just that some of the more intricate designs will no longer be available for free.

Wish me luck guys!

Hugs,
Liv

PS:  I will soon be looking for a couple of lovely people to make up my Creative Team so keep me in mind if you are interested.  I think I will be asking for layouts made with the Summertime kit.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Freebie and News

Hey Y'all!

Well, I guess you thought I got a job or something! Nope.  My 'good' news that I wanted to share was that I was asked to join a shop as a designer. I was so excited . . . but, alas, no.  Everything seemed to be going fine and then . . . nothing.  I guess they decided that they didn't need me after all. Oh well, if it was meant to happen it would have.

Looks like Carolina is about to suffer through some more storms in the next few days.  My front garden was just recently designed and planted and I hope I don't lose it to bad weather.  Once it gets established, I will take some photos to share.

Went to Winston-Salem last week with Kim; she had to have one of those nuclear digestive test.  She is 10% better than she was last year which is remarkable!  The surgery she had in February didn't work. She is doing well otherwise though this stomach thing gives her a fit sometimes.  She also became a dog mommy for the 5th time!  She has a little toy Brindle Manchester that looks exactly like a Hyena to me! Never seen a Brindle in any dog breed except boxer. One day I'll get photos of her too. So the count is: 5 dogs, 3 cats, 2 children, and a grandchild on the way.  Yes, I am formally becoming a great grandmother (I think I already am and no one has bothered to tell me).

Joshua is doing great with his baseball; he is such a jock.  The biggest problem he faces now is his anxiety; divorce plays havoc with children's psyche.  He is doing really great in school though.

Okay, so I made a frame cluster with some pieces of my Summertime kit.  I love these colors and hope you like them too!
No longer available!
Look for it in my shop soon!

Please leave me a comment; I love reading what you have to say about my work. 

Thanks! Have a great week.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Take a look!

I just had to share this beautiful card that my friend Vicki C had on her blog the other day (the image should be 'clickable' for a close up).  She is a paper scrapper and does such a lovely job that sometimes she makes me forget my arthritic hands and do some paper work. Sigh . . . she rocks!


Be sure and check out her Blog 'This Art That Makes Me Happy'

I will have some good news for you soon (maybe good news for me and not you?) . . . something is going right for me and I will share as soon as I can!

Hugs!

Friday, April 22, 2011

Summertime Digital Kit

Hey Y'all!

Well, I finally finished the Summertime kit.  I got the bright idea of adding bubbles and for some reason the technique eluded me!  But I got them and it is all ready for you to download.  This is the first kit I have made in two years; I have made some elements and word art but not an entire kit.  I love the color pallet so much and will probably use it again for some add-ons and such.


Sorry, this kit is no longer available :(  Please watch for a revamped kit in my store!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Hugh Quickpage Album Freebie

Just a reminder that you can follow the link in the previous post to the  CoolscrapsDigital, April QP challenge contest and pick up a hugh QP album for free.  I counted 34 registered participants! So head on over and get yours!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Quick Page Entry for CoolScraps Digital

I am entering a challenge at Cool Scraps Digital along with a bunch of other people.  Here is my entry:


If you would like to get this one as well as many, many more to make a wonderful QP Album please visit the Cool Scraps Forum and go to the April QP Monthly Contest thread.  You can find the forum HERE
I think you will be allowed to vote for your favorite QP, so pick me please!

Hope you enjoy!

Here is a preview without the banner so you can see it all:

Sneak Peek!

I know, I Know! Two post in one night? Record for me huh? Well the reason is I have been working on this bright and happy kit for you and it just isn't ready yet but I wanted to at least give you a peek at it.


I am having so much fun with this one and I hope you will come back to pick it up when it's all finished!

Hugs!

Looky!

Oh, looky, looky! There have been two (yes, that's 2!) people who have used my designs on their crafting blogs this week! I am so excited to have someone actually let me know how much they liked my designs.

The first one was by Golden at the Gold Dust blog HERE.  She used my Easter frame in a tutorial that turned out simply marvelous.

The second one was Diane of Pittypat Paperie who has a great crafting blog HERE. Diane used my Easter eggs from year before last to make some hybrid covers for lollipops! So outrageously cute you just have to check them out.

Please drop by these blogs and let these ladies know what a great job they are doing!