I just spent 10 days with my parents in St. George Utah which meant I had a little extra time during the days to doodle. I decided I wanted to make a gratitude album, so I worked on quotes for it that whole week. It was a really difficult trip for me, so focusing on my blessings was very comforting.
My dad had what we thought was a stroke two weeks ago. Once they did an MRI, they realized his stroke symptoms were actually due to a 6 cm brain tumor that was pushing on the left side of the brain that controls speech. After he was given some steroids, his speech returned to (somewhat) normal. But then we had to face the fact that he has terminal brain cancer with months to live. He starts radiation this week and we are hopeful that it will take his 2 months expected life span up to 6-12 months. The bottom line: we don't have much more time with my dad and after losing my brother three years ago, this is a really hard thing to accept.
During difficult times, I find it comforting to focus on my blessings and those things that bring me joy in life. Making this album helped me to do just that. I started with a bunch of gratidude products that I had just received from Studio Calico including the Happy Heart stamp set by Shanna Noel (which is back in stock!). The flower in that set became my repetitious design throughout the album. The cork 3x4 grateful card on the cover was also purchased at SC. I used the Gratitude journal cards for Shanna's Gratitude Documented class throughout the album. You can enroll in her class until the end of this month - November 30th! And now to show you all the pages in the album - there are 33 spreads so get ready as this will be long and picture heavy!
I will be adding journaling to some of these pages, but I wanted to do that after I posted it since it is personal. I hope you enjoy this album and let me know if you have any questions on techniques or products I used. Thanks for visiting! Be grateful during this holiday season! Suzy
INCREDIBLE! I love the sayings on the cards beside the pics. Did you make them or find them somewhere? Would love to gratefully lift this theme.
Posted by: Holly Hudspeth | November 18, 2014 at 04:22 AM
This is just beautiful Suzy. What ink did you use to stamp,the flower on the front,the colours are gorgeous, thanks
Posted by: Amelia | November 19, 2014 at 02:53 AM
I make mini albums, so I always look for new ways to bind them. I love how you bound this album! I'll have to try yarn!
Sorry about your dad. It sucks to have elderly parents with health problems.
Posted by: Kim | December 05, 2014 at 09:16 PM
You are really creative! Thanks for sharing.
I am sorry to hear about your dad. My dad had a brain tumor in the exact same spot. It started as a benign tumor and 8 years after it was removed, cancer came in. I am sorry to say my dad is no longer with us due to the cancer, but I am thankful to know he is healed in Heaven. Good luck to you and your family as you spend time with your precious dad!
Posted by: Ali Smith | December 09, 2014 at 03:45 PM