May Craft Challenge...

Holy Toledo you guys are awesome!! Thanks so much to everyone who voted for my project! I WON!!! Woo Hoo for me!! So, I'm feeling much better about my project (needless to say), and I'm also excited for the next packet to arrive! I'm also thinking about getting out April's stuff and making something (different than my original idea, but still). If you want to see where it's official, check it out here! Once again, WOO HOO!!!

Vote for ME!!!

Okay, the polls are open! Please go to Christy's page and vote for my project!! Click here! Or if you're having troubles with the link, try http:/www.christynelson.net. You can only vote Thursday and Friday (today and tomorrow), so go check out the fabulous "Movie Organizer" and help me win!!

Christy's Craft Challenge: May

You may be saying to yourself, "May? What happened to April?" Well, I had a great idea and it looked really cute in my head. When I went to create that beautiful idea, the reality of it wasn't as great as my imagination, so...I never finished. I know, slacker. In my defense though, it's hard to be enthusiastic about making something when you've got all sorts of tax deadlines and pressures and stressers. I had a few pressures and stressers during April. I may finish it, I may not. Oh well. Christy's didn't turn out the way she wanted it to, and she blogged about it. That made me realize that I didn't have to succeed at it either. What I had to do, was not let it get me down, and not give up. So, that's what I did. I signed up for 3 months worth (I think??) of the Christy's Craft Challenge. I figured, why not? It'll give me an opportunity to create something, and if not, build up my rats nest, cuz after all..... I am from a family of Pack Rats!!! He he he....

Anyhoo, so Christy mailed out the May Craft Challenge packets, and luckily I didn't have to wait to get it in the mail to know what was in it because Christy blogged about it here. When I read the post though, I was both a little excited (what would I make???) and scared (would I FAIL again???). Oh well, it came, I've made something, and "win" or "lose" I've got something crafty out of it in the end!

So, here are the materials that Christy sent out.

For some reason (probably because it's small) I lost the green flower button. Oh well. The rules say that you have to use at least SOME of each item, but not all of them. So......flower paper, blue fabric squares, 2 green wires, 2 large artificial flowers and 4 flower buttons later...... you get (well, if you're me at least):

FRONT

BACK AND FRONT

INSIDE

The reason I chose this project (which is sorta like an address book) is because I needed one! Jordan and I wanted a way to keep track of our movies (but you could also use the book for keeping track of your games, books, etc.) and so I made this. Now I can alphabetize my movies (on 3.5x5 index cards) and add more when I get more movies, or take some out if I give any away or sell any.

Now, the "win" or "lose" part. Well, everyone can vote on their favorite entry, and the person with the most votes will WIN. Win what? Well, a prize silly (a donated prize pack from one of Christy's sponsors)! And, Christy will also chose a second winner from those who blogged about it and that person will win a free month's craft challenge packet. So, if you like my little project, feel free to go to Christy's blog on the 28th or 29th (that's right, there are only 2 days you can vote) and vote for my project! Or, just go check it out, and if mine turns out to be really cheesy and someone else made something really cool (which will probably be the case because I'm new at this) feel free to vote for their project! I'll post a reminder on the 28th and 29th, just in case, so you don't forget to vote!!

So, based on my fun this past month (and I actually got Jordan's input and so it made it THAT much more fun), I'm definitely recommending this to everyone I know (and don't know too)! It's only $5 to partipate, and you can get all the details from Christy's site here.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Happy Birthday to my good friend Linsey!!!!

Happy Birthday!!!!

I just wanted to wish my sweet friend Melissa a Happy Birthday!!!!

Great Gatsby! It's a GIVEAWAY!!!

Okay, so while I don't have a little girl to do girlie hairdo's on, I still read a blog called "The Story of A Princess And Her Hair" and I love looking at all the cute little hairstyles. I try to think of my friends that have little girls who might not read her blog, and I usually forward it on because they are just SO DARNED CUTE!!! Anyhoo, she's got a sideblog just for deals and giveaways called Hair and Share! and on there was info about a GREAT givewaway! It's for a brand-spankin new flatiron! I've never owned one, and I'm WAY too cheap (um, I mean THRIFTY) to go out and buy me one, so I'm racking up my entries, hoping I can win it.

Check out all the details here that she's got listed about the givewaway, and how you too could be entered to win! You have a chance to have 12 different entries in the giveaway, which will be held on May 31st, but you gotta get crackin!!!

More GREAT STRIDES

Just in case you are interested in participating in a GREAT STRIDES walk for CF in your local area, I thought I would let you know that there is a walk scheduled for the following areas (check-in time is at 9:00):

Boise, ID (Veteran's Memorial Park)
Saturday, May 30th

Salt Lake City, UT (Wheeler Historic Farm)
Saturday, May 16th

Ogden, UT (MTC Park & Ogden River Parkway)
Saturday, May 30th

Provo, UT (Seven Peaks Resort)
Saturday, June 6th

If you would like to participate in a walk in your local area, let me know, and I can add you to our "Team" and you can get registered online (or I can even register for you).

GREAT STRIDES

This coming Saturday, May 9th, Jordan and I will be taking Great Strides to help the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation raise money for the research and development of a cure for Cystic Fibrosis. The GREAT STRIDES walk (for the Oklahoma City area) will be held at the Myriad Botanical Gardens in Bricktown in downtown OKC. Check-in for this walk is at 9:00, while the actual walk doesn't start until 10:00. It will be a short walk (about 1/2 - 1 mile) around the garden area, and lunch will be provided by the Norman Pita Pit to those who participate. If you're interested in joining, contact me, and I can sign you up as a member of my team, or, if you prefer, just show up!! There is no "entrance/registration" fee, however, sponsorship is encouraged...that's how they are raising money for the cure.

If you are unable to participate in the walk, but want to help sponsor my team by making a donation, you can do so by donating at this website: http://www.cff.org/great_strides/AshleaThiel

You might be wondering why I've chosen this "cause" to support, and how did I even hear about this fatal disease. Why do I care about this? The reason I support the CF Foundation is because my younger brother has been living with Cystic Fibrosis his whole life. This means that he has had numerous lung infections and hospitalizations, and a few times we honestly didn't think he would come home from the hospital. He's had a lot of health problems come up because of this disease as well, and I'm hoping that someday soon they will find some way to cure this disease.

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If you'd like to know more, here's some info on CF from the Cystic Fibrosis website:
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What is Cystic Fibrosis?

Cystic fibrosis is a life-threatening genetic disease that causes mucus to build up and clog some of the organs in the body, particularly the lungs and pancreas. When mucus clogs the lungs, it can make breathing very difficult. The thick mucus also causes bacteria (or germs) to get stuck in the airways, which causes inflammation (or swelling) and infections that lead to lung damage.
Mucus also can block the digestive tract and pancreas. The mucus stops digestive enzymes from getting to the intestines. The body needs these enzymes to break down food, which provides important nutrients to help people grow and stay healthy. People with cystic fibrosis often need to replace these enzymes with medicine they take with their meals and snacks, which helps them digest food and get proper nutrition.

What is a typical day for someone with CF?

Because the severity of CF differs widely from person to person, and CF lung infections flare up from time to time, there is no “typical” day. However, each day most people with CF:

• Take pancreatic enzyme supplement capsules with every meal and most snacks (even babies who are breastfeeding may need to take enzymes).
• Take multi-vitamins.
• Do some form of airway clearance at least once and sometimes up to four or more times a day.
• Take aerosolized medicines—liquid medicines that are made into a mist or aerosol and then inhaled through a nebulizer.

What is the life expectancy for people who have CF (in the United States)?

There is no way to accurately predict how long a person with cystic fibrosis will live, as many different factors affect a person’s health. Severity of disease and time of diagnosis are two such factors. Many people have a mild case of CF, while others can have moderate or severe cases.
In addition, some adults with cystic fibrosis have only recently begun to use new treatments, while an infant diagnosed at birth will have the advantages of starting specialized treatments that were not available even a decade ago.

Data from the CF Foundation Patient Registry, a tool that tracks health statistics from patients treated at CF Foundation-accredited care centers, shows that more than 45 percent of all people with CF in this country are 18 years or older. Also, the Foundation calculates the median predicted age of surviva for people with CFl. This number is based on a statistical method of using life table analyses developed by insurance companies to calculate trends in survival.

In 2008, the median predicted age of survival rose to 37.4 years, up from 32 in 2000. The median predicted age of survival is the age by which half of the current CF Patient Registry population would be expected to survive, given the ages of the patients in the registry and the distribution of deaths in 2008. The steady rise of the median predicted age of survival suggests how improvements in treatment and care are advancing the lives of those with CF.

In 1955, children with CF were not expected to live long enough to attend grade school. Today, thanks to continued Foundation-supported research and specialized care, an increasing number of people with cystic fibrosis are living into adulthood and leading healthier lives that include careers, marriage and families of their own.

Back Posting??

Since we've now found homes for all 6 of our puppies (Jemaine was the last to go this past Saturday the 2nd) I've decided to take the posts off of the two doggy blogs and add them to this one, that way I have sort of a "running journal" that I can look back on. So, if you're using Google Reader, and all of a sudden a bunch of old posts pop up as new, that's why. I'm going to date them the same date/time that I originally did, that way I can keep a better time line.