Drift Creek Camp

It's time for a reminder that time is running out to sign up for the Fall Quilt and Scrapbook Retreat at Drift Creek Camp.

I will be there teaching some classes, and holding open-house style cardmaking time with my entire collection of stamps and an enormous selection of supplies. Details can be found here: http://www.driftcreek.org/Programs/Fall_Quilt_and_Scrapbook_Retreat
I'd love to see you there!

Many members of my husbands family, including us, will be getting together this weekend to remember Matt's grandpa Jake Leichty who passed away on Monday morning. The memorial service will be friday. I have already said goodbye to all of my grandparents, and am so glad that we have two wonderful great-grandma's on Matt's side of the family who are still around to be a great blessing and influence in my kids lives. I'm so thankful to the Lord for elder family members who bring a perspective to our lives that is so needed.

I feel like there is so much more that I wanted to say, but I can't think of where to begin. Writing does not come easy for me, but I thank you for following along with my thoughts.

I will be back in a few days with something fun, creative, and new...hmmm...
See you then.

See you at The Venetian!

I have several fundraising events coming up, and would like to invite you to join me in helping to raise some money. These cardmaking fundraisers are going to be open-house style events. I will have all of my supplies on hand, along with ideas, tips, and helpful advice so that you can just play with the supplies and make as many cards as you like.

There will be a requested donation of $3 per card that you make, although additional donations are welcome as well.

The first fundraiser will be held to raise money for my sister-in-law Kristen Leichty. She will be raising money for her 11 month long mission trip which begins September 6th. Kristen will be traveling to Europe with Radical Journey, a program of the Mennonite Missions Network: http://www.mennonitemission.net/Work/Service/RAD/Default.asp

So if you would like to be a part of the fundraiser, the information is below:
The Venetian Theatre
Albany, OR
Monday, August 25th from 5-9pm
*the cafe will be open with coffee drinks and soda available
if you are interested in attending this event, please shoot me an email at valonda1@juno.com



This is my little niece, Dominic. Dominic will be 4 years old in November.

Dominic had a g-tube placed when she was 14 days old due to urgent need of complete nutrition that would help her overcome all the challenges she presented at birth. These challenges included low birth weight (4.6 lb. at 39 weeks gestation), small head, an area of damage in her brain, two small holes in her heart and a severe bilateral cleft lip and palate.

She has received surgery to repair her palate and lip, but has been receiving 99% of her nutrition from her g-tube (a small apparatus surgically placed in the stomach allowing food to be deposited there directly, bypassing the mouth and esophagus). Dominic doesn’t experience food like you and I. She has oral sensitivities, poor oral motor skills, fear, and negative associations (like vomit or pain) with food that she needs to overcome. For Dominic moving food in her mouth in a way that is necessary to eat is not natural, it is hard work.

Dominic is medically ready to wean from her g-tube to oral feeding, but she needs some help. There is a therapy available in Washington called Rapid Wean directed especially for kid just like Dominic that could have her eating significant amounts of food orally in a matter of 14 days. (to learn more visit http://tofthouse.com/ )

Dominic will be entering this therapy in October, but does not have insurance that will cover the costs of this therapy. God has already been blessing Dominic and her family, and much of the money has already been raised, but as the time draws nearer, there is more that I want to do to ensure that Dominic gets the therapy she needs in order to continue growing and developing into the sweet little girl that God made her to be.

This fundraiser will be the same type of open-house style event as the previous one. If you are interested in attending this fun event, you can RSVP by emailing me (valonda1@juno.com).
The event will be held:
Friday, September 26th from 3-9pm
at Scrap-a-Latte in McMinnville, OR
Hope to see you there!

Bethany's card

Do you remember the posts awhile back about the fun I had teaching middle schoolers about stamping? Well, lucky for us, Bethany read the post where I was commenting about her card, wishing I had taken a close up picture of it, and she sent me this picture. I just love the whole idea of this card, and I think she did an amazing job. She created the beautiful Alcohol Ink background that she cut the flower petals out of , and added Stickles to the centers of the flowers to add a little sparkle. Thanks for sharing your card with us Bethany!

Back from Seaside, OR

Hi everyone,
I'm back from a great long weekend. I left Thursday for Seaside, Oregon. My husband plays beach volleyball and is a tournament director for the North Pacific Beach Volleyball Association, so this year I was helping run bracket boards for the 27th Annual Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament. I am exhausted, but I had so much fun. If you live in the area you really should try to take it in. This tournament is huge! I don't have the exact numbers, but I believe there were over 900 teams participating in the various divisions of the tournament this year. Amazing! With this many teams participating, you can imagine that those of us taking care of keeping the tournament moving along were VERY busy recording wins and losses, etc. As a result, I didn't remove my camera from its case one time, so I don't have any pictures to share with you. However, if you are interested, you can find pictures from last years' tournament here: http://www.seasidebeachvolleyball.com/vbgallery.htm