Merry CHRISTmas

Merry Christmas to one and all.

2008 has been a year of blessings. New lives have been welcomed into the world. Tragedy revealed abundant generosity and love previously unknown. 50 years of holy matrimony was celebrated while a new marriage was begun. Blessings came in the form of ample opportunities to serve our fellow brothers and sisters, sometimes receiving blessings where none were thought to be. Reflecting back over the year, if we look and listen hard enough, many more blessings will surely become obvious.

So long ago, shepherds looked in fear to the night sky, suddenly brightened to daylight by a multitude of angels singing loud Hosanas. They listened as the angel of the Lord told them of the greatest miracle of the ages. They ran through the streets to the far side of a sleeping town to see for themselves the babe lying in a manger. And there, they were the first to see the Holiest and most wonderful of blessings God has ever given His children, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Some time later, wise men from the East also looked to the heavens, studying a star. They were compelled to follow that star until they reached what lay below. Even they knew something special was about to be revealed to them. Their search ended at the doorstep of the King of Kings.

Others even later looked and listened, afraid of what they saw and heard, denying the truth. Yet their actions became a blessing as God’s plan unfolded then and continues to unfold now.

People over the centuries have looked and listened and found Him. Some still look and listen, not knowing what it is they seek or expect to hear, not finding anything. Our hope for you in 2009 and beyond is that you look and listen and see and hear the goodness and love of our Holy Father.

Have a joyous CHRISTmas and a properous New Year!

Another Custom Job

I had a small shelf for printer and other paper, created specifically to the dimensions of the standard paper size. It was 3 shelves high with a back extending higher than the top to keep the paper from falling off the back side. It worked well, but took up table space. After surveying the scraps and leftovers in our basement, I found enough materials to create another custom shelf to fit over the printer. See picture below. My motto is, if you can build up, build up! There never seems to be enough work surface, especially when you share the room with 3 other people! The same day I made this shelf, I put up a board with hooks to hang scissors, rulers and other cutting tools up out of the way, but easily accessible. I found a good use for the other shelf. In a cabinet where I keep craft supplies, I put the "paper" shelf on the upper shelf. It now holds cards for every occasion, categorized accordingly. This freed up space in the cabinet. I call this custom job a 2-for-1. I have also included a picture of my storage units for all of the small craft items, most are labeled.

My daughter says I need to post Christmas pictures. These are years past.

A Happy Client

Pictures from a client's home. She had a space in her basement that was intended to be her space for scrapbooking. She has a counter for a workspace and cabinets for storage. Unfortunately, it is at the bottom of the basement stairs. As you can see in the before pictures, because of the proximity to the stairs, it became a catch-all. Things made it to the basement to be put away later, but later became later and later and soon it was all piled up on the counter and around the counter and on the floor.

I went to her home and spent about 15-20 minutes surveying the scene, taking measurements and discussing her needs and what was planned for the area. Her husband was in the process of building shelves at the foot of the stairs to store some of the objects that were currently piled up on the counter space. At home, I analyzed the situation and decided what needed to be done and purchased to clean-up and organize the area.

On another day, she and I went to work, sorting and purging. Objects that had a home but had not made it there were sent to it. Other objects that were no longer needed were set aside for a garage sale she had a week later. Others were donated to several non-profit resale shops we have in our county. Still others went out to the trash or recycling. After sorting and purging, we went shopping together and purchased a hardware storage container with drawers of varying sizes for some of her supplies. She already had a couple of small shelves available that we were able to put to good use. She was happy to have a space exclusively hers to spread out and scrapbook. With the completion of the shelves her husband was building, the space is no longer a catch-all. And there is leftover space for additional supplies. We spent about 2 or 3 hours total time to give her back her space.