Working on a dark bear

I got a little sidetracked last week with doing my income tax.  It took longer than I hoped, but it is done , yah !

This week I am working on a new mink bear in dark chocolate brown .  I have to complete it's face then sew him/her closed .  I like the way it is turning out so far , and I hope his eyes and nose will show up with all the dark fur.  If not , I'll have to rethink this bear :)  Here's hoping it all works out and I can offer it for adoption soon :)

Oh...I still plan to post some Haiti pics.  I just need to find the time to sort through and load them !

Time to regroup

It has been a month of emotional highs and lows for me, but I think I am ready to regroup and move forward. 

For starters, the Haiti trip stories and pictures have been filled with lots of emotion. Overall though,  it was a very positive experience for everyone involved, including family members who stayed home.  We got to develop new friendships and support each other when times of worry crept in. 

However, while they were away I got news one day that I had to be at the hospital the next day for a core needle biopsy , as something showed up on my mammogram .  The biopsy itself  wasn't extremely painful  (thanks to the freezing ) , but being clamped in that mammography machine for 45 minutes is not my idea of  fun !!! I'm still bruised ! However, I am thankful I got checked. , and  I thank God everything  turned out to be benign.  That was such a relief to hear this week. God is so merciful .  It's so hard not to let your mind think the worst when you've had cancer recently.  April is cancer awareness month so I guess I'm being made really aware lol.......

Finally, yesterday I had my first ultrasound on my neck  since my surgery last June.  I'm praying that nothing abnormal shows up there.  I feel healthy and am very hopeful .  In May I have some more follow-up tests requiring the $1600 thyrogen  injections I've waited months for due to a global shortage.  If all is clear I won't have to get checked for another year !  Yeah, that would be nice. 

So , I am going to enjoy this wonderful Easter season by  take a group of teens to volunteer at the local soup kitchen,  and then next week get back into bearmaking.  I really enjoyed finishing Brambles who sat on my sewing table for 3 weeks.  Bearmaking really is so therapeutic.


May you and your family have a wonderfully blessed Easter.  He is Risen ! 

Please meet Brambles

5.5" Brambles, made from recycled mink fur, is my newest creation.  He is also my first bunny of 2012 .  You can learn all about him on my website .http://www.beckoningbears.com/available.htm

A change of pace

While my hubby and daughter are in Haiti I decided to hang up my needle and thread for a few days.  Instead I've been painting my kitchen and hallway.  It is a perfect time as I don't have to stop to make meals etc.

There has been lots of communication with the Haiti team.  We had several phone calls, emails, videos & photos posted to facebook.  I even got to skype with them last night.  Things are going very well so far.  However, It is hot , and the car fumes are troublesome in the congested streets as they travel 45 minutes to the work site each day.  

Here are some of the pics they've shared.

 

The church they are working on. Notice the old church to the left.

 

Our team and 3 of the Haitian pastors.

 Getting to know the children after church. 

  One of several guards at the local store.

Views from the guest house in the gated & guarded area where they are staying in Port-Au Prince

The Haiti journey has begun !

My hubby and daughter have started their adventure. It all began the other day  when the team  spent  5 hours at church  packing boxes and suitcases of  school supplies , hygiene supplies, tools , medications, etc. 

We were up at 3:00am this morning to get to the airport for 4am. The team of 11 boarded their plane at 6:30am and arrived several hours later in Port-Au-Prince after one stop over .  The family members that stayed behind got together for a potluck meal earlier tonight.  It was a great time, topped off by a phone call from the team.. We each got a couple of seconds to chat with our loved ones to hear that all is well. 

I look forward to hearing from them whenever they can get online.  They have some hard construction work ahead of them in the heat.  But, I can only imagine how amazing this must seem to all of them.  For 9 of them this is their first ever mission trip !

I pray God uses them in a mighty way and brings then home safe and healthy :) 



   

Here's Reilly

Please meet my little red-headed Irish bear, Reilly.  He is available on my website HERE.

A new bear in progress

Here is a little sneak peek at the bear I will be introducing tomorrow, March 19th @ approximately 3pm , Atlantic Time.