Holland: Part One

Last weekend we traveled with the singles group from church to visit a replica of Noah's Ark in the town of Sneek, Holland. We had a great drive up to Sneek and the hostel we stayed in was probably the nicest one I've ever been in. It was kind of funny traveling with a few of the single men: you could tell they weren't used to taking a female traveler into consideration because they couldn't understand why we had to stop at a rest stop with a toilet! With Jordan, Alex, and I following the group in our SUV, we had some nice family time just talking, listening to music, and pointing out items of interest along the way. Holland is a major exporter of cheese so I was delighted to see many, many open fields dotted with black and white cows. A view of the ark at dusk on the evening we arrived.

Anchored on a barge, the designer said the volume of the replica is approximately 1/14th the volume of the original ark. The replica was pretty impressive so I can only imagine how enormous the original must have been!

The designer of this project built a replica of the Ark of the Covenant into the base level of the ark, as well as this replica of the Jesus' tomb and the cross he was crucified on. Throughout the ark are scripture verses in Dutch inscribed on the walls.

Good old Noah, hard at work.....

Here's a view down the length of the top level. The builder put in two small aviaries on the upper level, as well as a place for visitors to sit and have refreshments (pretty sure the restaurant aspect of this level wasn't authentic but you never know...maybe this was Noah's lanai!)

Do you see the guy standing underneath the giraffe in the blue coat? He came with our group and if I'm not mistaken, he said he's 6'4", so that should put some perspective on the model of the giraffe!

Alex and a moose...future boyfriend? Ha!

Here's our friends, the Wightman's, heading into the Ark. And they came two by two!









The evening of our arrival we all headed into Sneek for dinner and a look a the local shops. I should have taken more photos of the town because it was very quaint and charming, with cobblestone streets and brick sidewalks. Alex had some freedom from mom, hanging out with another teen from our church and scoping out the town on her own. The hostel and ark replica were located just a few blocks from the city center so it was delightful to stroll leisurely through the town. Ice cream shops are prevalent in most cities and villages so of course we had to stop at one after dinner. Here's Jordan scoping out his sister's ice cream, hoping the "cuteness" factor will get him a taste.










I just noticed Alex's ice cream cone on the bottom left of this photo...what a hoot! The ice cream shop we stopped in was small but quite charming. The inside was paneled in a luscious dark wood and rather than tables, they had deep window seats with cushions. I was particularly captivated by this unusual flower arrangement on the counter. European floral arrangements always have varied textural elements that make them works of art, which has always made me want to learn how to make them. A dear friend at church has arranged for me to work with a local florist to learn the European way of building an arrangement "in hand" and I can't wait!

The Waterpoort, Sneek

As we were enjoying the view from the Waterpoort and deciding on what we would do about dinner, I noticed a boat coming down the canal with a dog in it and just had to capture a photo. The dog looks incredibly happy to be hanging over the front, enjoying the ride. We should all be so contented with the journeys of life.

Here's Alex enjoying a moment at the Waterpoort in Sneek.

Outside of the ice cream shop stood this talking trash can! All you had to do was wave your hand in front of it and it would say something in Dutch and the door would open. It was silly, but we all had a good time making it speak and open.

Say Cheese!

Here's Jordan and I posing for a rare photo together behind the youth hostel. (I'm usually the one behind the camera!) It has taken me three days to find the time to download all these photos!! Oy! I hope you enjoyed part one of our trip to Holland. Stay tuned for future installments!

Biospharenhaus: Fischbach bei Dahn

Thursday was the big field trip day, with Jordan's class visiting the Biospharenhaus in Fischbach bei Dahn. (It's too bad we couldn't have stopped in Dahn: we passed right by my favorite basket factory!) Within the Biosparenhaus are three levels exemplifying habitats found in Germany, most specifically the local region, and how those areas are affected by industrialization, pollution, etc. The displays are fantastic as they are all highly interactive to keep the kids engaged in learning. The only problem I found is that each display had so many bells and whistles, the kids spent more time rushing around trying to figure out what each display did and not necessarily ingesting any actual knowledge. I mean, who really wants to read about bats when there's a really cool set of night vision goggles on the display that you can use to find bats within a darkened room? Jordan and his friend Skyler climbed up to a rock ledge to burn off a little excess energy after an hour long bus ride. Jordan looks like King of the Mountain with that cocky smirk on his face!

While the kids enjoyed the Biospharenhaus, it's the area surrounding it that held the most appeal for the group. A short distance from the museum is the Baumwipfelpfad, a sort of obstacle course built up in the trees. Click on the link to see more pictures of the course, including the treehouse platform and slides. The end of the tree course ends with a bang...a fantastically twisty-turny metal slide! Once the kids went down the slide, all of them had to go through the course a second time. Even I went down the slide twice: talk about fun!

Here's my group, kindly obliging me by stopping for a photo op!

After the excitement of taking the group through the tree course we stopped for a picnic lunch and started on a 2 kilometer walking path with several interactive stations for the students to visit along the way. This tree trunk fascinated the kids as it was home to some very large ants! The ants dug an entire colony within the tree trunk and it was unbelievable to follow a large trail of ants right up to the trunk.

Jordan stops to check out a Vampire Beetle on the path.

Despite the frigid water temperature, the kids just had to strip off their shoes and play in the water. It was hilarious to watch each kid quickly hop in to the water just to see them hop out even faster! Eventually they would brave the water again and look for various creatures inhabiting the water.

A brook runs down from the pool the kids were in and actually meanders from a small lake nearby. It was a tad overcast throughout the day but you can still see how beautiful the area is and was rather ideal weather for the kids to be out in for such an extended period.

Big cheesy grin from Jordan!

We thought the slide from the Baumwipfelpfad was going to be the big attraction for the day but the Vampire Beetles stole the show. They were all over the walking path and once the kids got over the initial scream and freak out over touching them, they began to pick them up. The kids ended up adopting them as we walked along, letting them crawl up their arms and onto their clothing. The coloring of the beetles was beautiful: a deep, glossy black with an irridescent blue-green sheen to them.

Here's the beetle Jordan carried around for about an hour. He wasn't too happy with me when I made him leave the beetle on a rock before we left but I'm sure the beetle was relieved to be left in his own habitat!

A few nature shots: these fern fronds captured my eye and everywhere you looked there were lovely shoots of flowers and ferns cropping up beneath the trees.

Whew! We made it to the end of the path and needed a much deserved break in the swing. I highly recommend visiting the Biospharenhaus and Baumwipfelpfad if you're even in the area. Thanks for stopping by!

Photo of the Week

I know, it's April and I'm STILL posting pics from our trip in December. I couldn't help posting this one of the kids because it's a realistic depiction of their relationship and sweet personalities. The day I took this, we had arrived at the Monterey Bay Aquarium too early and decided to walk down to Starbuck's to while away the time. Part of our amusement included taking photos at the table, much to the annoyance of a few of our fellow customers (I think some of them were a little irritable because the morning coffee hadn't kicked in!) so this picture is a result of our impromptu photoshoot. I know I'm prejudiced because I'm their mom, but aren't my children adorable? You can probably tell what kind of grandma I'll be...one of those annoying ones who constantly shares photos and stories about the grandkids, chasing total strangers down in order to shove reams of photos at them and gloat about how baby Suzie is potty training early. Seriously, I've been extremely blessed to have two children who love the Lord, enjoy being with each other, and are a joy in the home...despite their occasional cranky moments. A picture really IS worth a thousand words!

Facebook Musings

I finally came out of the dark ages and joined Facebook today. Blogging has become a means of self-therapy for me: a way to jot down thoughts on projects or trips and clear out the mental clutter. Since I'm barely able to maintain any level of consistency with my blog, I've always told myself that I just don't have time for Facebook but if I'm honest, that's not the real reason I haven't joined. Want to hear my really lame excuse? My weight!! Isn't that the silliest and saddest thing you've ever heard?! It's amazing to me how much I've allowed what I look like to control what I do or don't do in life and I hate to think of people from my past perusing my photo and dismissing me or not thinking of me as a worthwhile person because I've gained like 1,000 pounds since high school. There was a boy in elementary school that I had a crush on (yes, that's how far back this goes...I'm so pitiful!) who once told me that he liked me and thought I was pretty but didn't want anyone to know because (and I quote) "You're fat". You'd think I could move on from cruel comments made by a pre-pubescent boy who probably doesn't even remember me but it's amazingly true how we allow ourselves to feel inferior for the minutest of things. The media crams its version of beauty down our throats everywhere we go, to the point that we're so appearance conscious that I think we often miss seeing the true beauty of people we come into contact with because we're focused on the outward appearance. It's even true at church, where often people are sought out because they "look" like a Christian. You know what I'm talking about: the right clothes, the right haircut, the Bible tucked under the arm, etc. For all my insecurities, I'm just as guilty of putting more stock in appearances than I should but I want to strive to reach out to people and get to know them for who they are and not what they appear to be. So I'm hoping that by putting my toe out there to test the Facebook waters, I'll be able to re-establish old friendships and make new ones without anyone caring what I look like but want to reach out because of who I am as a person and vice versa. Okay, now that I've aired my little insecurity for the day, I'm going to go out and enjoy the beautiful weather before it once again departs. Thanks for subjecting yourself to my angst and if you want, look me up on Facebook and ask me to be your friend so I don't look friendless! Ha! Have a wonderful day!

A Mess and a Few Projects

What a mess but a happy mess! Last Saturday I hosted a German Stampin' Up! workshop and it was a lot of fun! I've been wanting to purchase some of the German Stampin' Up! sentiment stamps since the company established itself here in Germany in 2007 but could never find a German demo until recently. This is some of the mess leftover from the workshop and my subsequent club class on Sunday. I needed to finish up some samples and figured there was no point in shlepping everything upstairs to finish it when everything was already set up in the living room. I had eleven guests, some American and some German, making extra work for the demonstrator as she had to translate between English and German, but she did a great job and I think everyone had a good time. Beate brought some terrific samples (unfortunately, I didn't take photos!) but you can visit her blog to see her handiwork.

Isn't this fantastic?! This was my hostess gift from Beate, which immediately made all of us want to make one. Beate added so many little details that made this project extra special, such as the addition of organdy ribbon and the beautifully detailed chipboard flower.

How cute is that?!!! The box coordinates perfectly with the hazelnut chocolate nuggets inside and I love how the lid fits into the box to create a display. You can visit Beate's blog to see how to make this project, however the directions are in German and the dimensions are in centimeters so be prepared to adjust your thinking if you're used to working in inches. You can also contact Beate through her blog if you're interested in ordering however, she can only ship to German addresses so you're out of luck if you live stateside!

After posting that beautiful gift box, I don't know that I want to show my meager little project! This is a simple but quick design for a lovely card that can be used for any occasion. I'm really hooked on the Close To Cocoa/Baja Breeze/Kiwi Kiss color combination, which you may have noticed since the last three projects I've posted have utilized these colors.

Here's a close-up of some of the detailing. I'm off to run errands and enjoy some of the beautiful sunshine! Have a wonderful week!

Circle Scissors, Paper Pleating, and Ribbon Flowers, Oh My!

Here's the latest in club projects featuring two new techniques and a new crafting tool! While both of these projects are a bit more labor intensive, I think they're well worth the extra time. I designed these for Mother's Day but you could easily adapt them for other occasions.

The Mother's Day Window Bag, adapted from a bag demo'd by StampinUp!'s Shannon West, utilizes the new Circle Scissors Plus. The Circle Scissors Plus is a circular cutter which can cut varying sizes of circles, up to 16". This is actually version two of the original bag I designed as I gave away my original to one of my customers who couldn't stay to complete the bag. Before teaching yesterday, I had already been playing around with the Circle Scissors so I could demo the tool with confidence. Every sample I made while trying it out was effortless but when I went to demo it for my Sunday stamp club, disaster struck! It was hilarious: everything I cut was either crooked or didn't cut all the way through, and I ended up screwing up SIX craft bags before I got it right. At one point I grabbed up all the bags, tossed them on the floor in a fit of dramatic pique and said, "That's it! I quit!" Everyone cracked up and I finally was able to demo the project. When Shannon West features the tool on the video for SU!, she says, "Just turn it like you're stirring a pot of soup." Well, my soup was defective! If you'd like to see a video tutorial on the Circle Scissors Plus, visit Angie Juda's Stamping Academy.


This card features two new techniques: paper pleating and creating a ribbon flower. The paper pleating is super easy and creates a lovely effect. Simply score a strip of cardstock or designer paper at 1" and 1/2" intervals (1, 1 1/2, 2 1/2, 3, 4, 4 1/2", and so on), then fold the paper in pleats. Once the pleats are folded, go back and smooth the pleats with a bone folder or Scor-Tool so they will lay properly. Back the pleat with a strip of Scor-Tape or Sticky Strip as you'll need something stronger than Snail adhesive to keep the pleated strip on your project. If you pleat a 12 inch long strip, it creates a 4 1/2" pleated strip which is perfect for trimming down for a standard A2 card.
The ribbon flower was created with a 10" strip of wide grosgrain ribbon (the wider the width of ribbon, the larger your flower). Beginning at one end, run a loose stitch or gathering stitch all the way up one side of the ribbon, pulling the thread tight at intervals. I used DMC floss rather than thread for its strength factor as it is less likely to break each time you pull the ribbon for gathering. Once the end is pulled tight, place a small knot at the end to help keep the gathers in place, then stitch the two ends of ribbon together to form a circle. Stitch a button over the top and you've got yourself a lovely ribbon flower perfect for a card or scrapbook page. Who knew that my mom's lessons on sewing would actually come in handy! Here's a link to a ribbon tutorial on Peacoats and Party Hats for those visual learners. I'm sorry the pictures aren't the greatest...I was trying to get some nice outdoor photos and they weren't as clear as I thought they'd be. Still working on the photography :) Happy crafting!

Supplies: (Bag) SU! Close To Cocoa and Baja Breeze Classic Ink, SU! Parisian Breeze Designer Series Paper, SU! Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, and Baja Breeze cardstock, SU! Great Friend stamp set (2009 Mini Occasions catalog), Circle Scissors Plus, paper piercer, Buttons Galore assorted white buttons, natural twine (Listmann's), Marvy Uchida Giga Tag punch, SU! 1 3/4" circle punch, SU! ribbon originals, dimensionals, window sheets, Cricut, SU! Crystal Effects, SU! Dazzling Diamonds glitter (on butterfly)
(card) Supplies almost identical to list above. White grosgrain ribbon (Dollar Tree), SU! Baja Breeze flower button from Button Bouquet set, SU! eyelet lace punch

More Etsy Goodies!

I'm addicted to Etsy!!!!!!!! Somebody please block my computer from allowing me on their site.....! I love, love, love Etsy! Okay, I'm okay now. Frequently I will see a product on a project that you just can't find overseas or if you find it, it's really pricey. Most of the vendors on Etsy are very reasonably priced and everyone I've done business with has given such great customer service. So here's my enabler alert for the week: The Polkadot Strawberry

Isn't this pompom trim just gorgeous? Of course, it doesn't hurt that it's my "signature color". (Okay, who knows what movie that line came from?!) I'm working on an awesome project by Ali Edwards and this trim would be perfect for it (click on Ali's name and it will link you to my nifty new project). The Polkadot Strawberry carries oodles of beautiful trims, ribbons, and beads. The vendor is allowing me to bulk order my trim, which I think is uber nice, and there are so many lovely colors and textures to choose from. So if you're working on a crafting project and you're looking for some rich, beautiful trims, this is the shop to visit.