The Great Pumpkin Card

"Each year, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere. He's gotta pick this one. He's got to. I don't see how a pumpkin patch can be more sincere than this one. You can look around and there's not a sign of hypocrisy. Nothing but sincerity as far as the eye can see." – Charles M. Schulz, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

Linus' hope is endearing, and the thought of a sincere pumpkin patch is heartening. A place with no sign of hypocrisy and nothing but sincerity, now that's a warm and wonderful place to be. In fact, I was there this past weekend. Two sorority sisters and I spent the weekend together for the first time in over 30 years. Our days were filled with fabulous food, long conversations and the walks to go with them, an old scrapbook and the mental quest for names, and hugs that speak of abiding friendship without words.

The Great Pumpkin will surely rise from 5 Hedgerow Lane this year. 

Stamp Credit: Pumpkins and leaves by Stampin' Up. 

The (It's not a card) Tour of Pumpkins

Pumpkins and October go together like snowflakes and January, but how about pumpkins and July? For the last 15 years I have faithfully watched the Tour de France during the first three weeks of July. I like riding my bike, but I am not an avid cyclist, therefore it is difficult to explain in a few words the appeal of this event, nonetheless, after all these years I am familiar with the teams and the strategies, and I thoroughly enjoy the race. France's beautiful country side is a bonus, as is listening to the accents and wit of Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett, who provide the live commentary. (They are the best sports commentators around if you ask me.)  

My pumpkin project began as a way to justify watching hours of TV every day for three weeks. Thank goodness for the DVR. I recorded the five hours of live racing in the morning, then folded and glued and watched in more manageable chunks of time later. 

Each pumpkin needs 10-12 punches.

Fold the punches and glue the sides together. 

Add brown or green ribbon for a stem.

Ya, gotta love the Dollar Tree for glass vases. 

I ended up making around 100 pumpkins or enough to fill fourteen vases. The best part was giving them all away last week. I would say July and Pumpkins went together very well this year. 

  

An Insomniac's Card

Making cards, or in this case a note pad, is my go to reaction to show someone I care. Every once in a while that includes the hunt for "the perfect stamp". With one look at this image you may wonder why I haven't worked up a halloween theme, so let me explain why this drum playing skeleton couldn't be any better.

I have a friend who had major surgery which involved removing a rib to repair a vein. Before the surgery she and her husband hosted a BBQ and served spareribs! She used a life size plastic skeleton (aka halloween decoration) as her profile picture on her Caring Bridge site. In a shop near the hospital she found (and bought) a pale pink plate, of all things, identifying all the thoracic bones. A month before she would have walked on by, but she also has a fabulous sense of humor and knows how important it is to find things to make you laugh to keep the fears at bay. She copes with insomnia, too, and that just stinks. When I found this stamp, I stopped looking and knew, "This is going to make her laugh!" 

Praying for a friend and making her laugh are almost the same thing. 

They are good for the soul – for both of us.  

Stamp Credits: Rubber Hedgehog Rubber Stamps (skeleton); River City Rubber Works (sentiment)

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Sit on a Pumpkin Card

Goldilocks pumpkins. That's what I call these. They are not too big and not too small. They are just right for coloring. I am participating in my second 30 Day Coloring Challenge with The Daily Marker, and it is a daily challenge for me to decide what to do each day. Coloring (well) is still kinda new to me, and I'm learning a lot from the other crafters and artists sharing their work on Instagram at #thedailymarker30day3. I will practice with a variety of techniques using these pumpkins, and I will share some of them here, too. These are done with colored pencils, and I'm tickled with how they turned out.  

Know what I like even better than the pumpkins? The quote! Look what else I discovered on Instagram – #thoreaubackthursday. That's today. Check it out. 

Stamp Credit: Pumpkins by Stampin' Up.