Is Global Warming on the Wane?

As I wake up on this crisp Autumn morning, I ask the question, "Is global warming on the wane?" Ok, actually it is not me that asks it, but this is the title of a great article I just read in the 2009 Old Farmer's Almanac. A condensed version can be found online at the almanac's website here, but it is worth finding a copy of the real thing and reading it.

The article speaks of how our planet's climate has been cycling for as long as we have been recording these things. Solar physicists believe that our sun has much to do with these cycles that cause the earth to either warm or cool. To quote the article, "Our Sun is a variable star. Its most notable variables are brightness, or irradiance; eruptive activity, including solar flares and geomagnetic storms; and cosmic rays. These variables manifest in cycles of 11, 22, 88, 106, 213, 429, and more years." It appears that these cycles have a much greater effect on global warming and cooling than do the carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere because although carbon dioxide levels have slowly risen over the last half century, the earth's climate has cycled from warmer to cooler to warmer to cooler several times.

Many scientist are now saying that we are most likely heading into the next ice age, relatively speaking. They are monitoring the ocean temperatures and can clearly see that they are holding less heat. It seems that we are heading into a cooling cycle.

There has been much hype in the media about global warming. We must remember that the news media makes it's money when they can stir the pot and get people upset. I do believe that carbon dioxide levels are higher today than they were a century ago. However, I think we, as humans, think much to much of ourselves to think that we play a major role in the earth's climate changes. There are things MUCH bigger than us that come into play (i.e. the Sun). And even beyond the huge cosmic factors affecting us, I also believe that there is something even bigger than anything we can see controlling everything - that is God, the Creator of it all. Yes, we have been charged with the task of caring for this planet, and we should do our best to do so, BUT I think we need to keep ourselves in perspective. We are so small compared to God and the forces in the universe. Let us remember this when the media attempts to strike fear into our hearts. Let us also remember that the Creator of everything is who is in control. He truly does "have the whole world in his hands."

How much would YOU pay for a caramel apple?

Even though I have been trying to eliminate e-mail by un-subscribing to many newsletters, I just can't seem to bring myself to get off the DeBrand's Chocolate e-mail list. Come on - it's chocolate. And chocolate makes me happy - especially DeBrand's chocolate.

Anyway, I just got an e-mail saying that it is officially Fall because the caramel apples are now available at DeBrand's. Don't these look luscious? They are double dipped in caramel and then milk or dark chocolate. If someone wants to get on my good side, a gift of one of these would serve them well.

But wait...can you guess how much one of these babies costs? $5...or maybe $10? No, if you want to sample one of these delights, it will set you back $23.00! Yikes! Yes, that's for ONE apple. I will say that although I have never had one of these, I have seen them in the DeBrand's store and they are huge. One apple can be sliced and used for dessert for the whole family. But at $23, our family won't be sampling one of these anytime soon. It is fun to dream...and drool, though.

I Love Fall!

There is nothing better that waking up to a beautiful crisp fall day. The sun is shining upon the golden corn fields. Those corn fields make the most delightful rustling sound as the breeze blows. It is gorgeous and just makes you thankful to be alive! Can you tell that this is my favorite season?

I really need to get outside and shoot some photos. These are from a few years ago before we had our SLR camera. It was when we were building our house and I was in the habit of taking photos everyday to document the progress. I also managed to get some beautiful shots of the golden corn and beautiful blue sky. The fields around us are planted in rotation so they alternate between corn, beans and wheat. I have to say that seeing corn in the fields is my favorite, though. I am loving the fact that this year we have corn both in the field behind us and in front of us.

What is your favorite season? I love the golden colors of Fall along with the crisp air. You get similar temperatures in Spring but they are accompanied by humidity and rain and mud. Alternatively, the Fall gives you dew on the grass and mist in the air. It is perfect for sitting outside in the evening around a fire. We have done that several times already this year. The kids love roasting marshmallows and making s'mores, watching the harvest moon rise over the corn, and witnessing the stars appear and trying to figure out the constellations. Such wonderful simple pleasures!

The Wood Prince

Meet my little wood prince. I had so much fun creating this piece of art that I just had to try my hand at another one. This time I chose my son and I just didn't have the heart to turn him into a fairy. Someone commented at Scrapbook Graphics that he was a Wood Prince and I love that. He has a crown of leaves and a wheat sceptor. Credits for all of the goodies included in this can be found here along with a before and after picture.

Playing with a fun new scrapbook kit

I just wanted to share a couple of new scrapbook pages. These were both done with a brand new collaborative kit at Cottage Arts created by Doris Castle, Julie Mead, and Michelle Shefveland called Bountiful Blessings. I am loving the colors in this! This first layout has photos of my daughter Abi from last Thanksgiving. The kit colors were a perfect match for her dress and her homemade placecard.

I also used a free template which is available to newsletter subscribers in the next Cottage Arts newsletter.

Journaling reads:
The table has been set...the placecards have been lovingly created by Elizabeth...smells of yummy food are wafting through the air...It’s not quite time to eat, but 2 year old Abi is ready at her place and waiting with fork and spoon in hand.

Full credits for this page can be found here.



This second page uses photos I took last week of my son, Patrick, on his 6th birthday. It was a gorgeous Fall day and I took him outside for a offical 6 year old photo shoot. He loved that! This page uses not only the Bountiful Blessings kit, but also a new page tear template set, too. Click on the banner below to find them both.

Full credits for this layout can be found here.

Just one more pumpkin page...

Can you stand it? Although I have a couple more cute photos from the pumpkin farm, I am going to set them aside because I am itching to scrap some photos from my youngest's 1st birthday.

This layout was done for a challenge over at Cottage Arts to scrap about a "crop" - the kind that grows. I figured the pumpkin farm qualified for that. I kept the page simple and just used one of my photos to overlay on the backgound. I had many photos from in the pumpkin patch, but no real stand-outs, so I decided to cluster them together and tell the story.

Journaling reads:

Picking the Perfect pumpkinWas no easy task when faced with a huge beautiful pumpkin patch like the one Anna, Patrick and Abi faced on this day. Patrick immediately found one he loved as soon as he stepped off the wagon into the field. Anna and Abi were a different story.They perused the entire field. Anna finally settled on a bigger one.Abi picked up one cute pumpkin after another. She would pick it up by the stem and I would remind her that she learned in pumpkin school not to do that, but to instead hold the pumpkin itself with two hands. This discouraged her because the pumpkins had dirt on them and she didn’t want to get dirty. So she would discard that one and continue searching. Even Patrick had a last minute change of heart and asked if he could trade his pumpkin for another. Then the bell warning that the wagon was about to leave rang and I had to inform Abi that if she didn’t pick a pumpkin immediately, she would go home without one. She managed to choose one, but kept asking me to carry it because it had dirt on it. We returned home and cleaned the pumpkins and everyone was happy with their perfect picks.

Full credits for the page can be found here.

I can't believe that another week has flown by and it is Saturday already. How does that happen? Fortunately, we don't have a busy day planned and I am hoping that my family sleeps in and gives me some time to get some things done in peace and quiet.

Pumpkin School

I told you that I loved Fall and there would be more layouts like this! Here are some of my kids with their cousins at the pumpkin farm for "Pumpkin School."

Journaling reads:

On September 27, 2007, Anna, Patrick and Abi attended “Pumpkin School” with their cousins at the Kurtz pumpkin farm on Highway 37. Before taking a hayride to the pumpkin patch to pick their own pumpkins, they went to school in the barn. There they learned all about how pumpkins grow, saw lots of pumpkin varieties, and even how to carry a pumpkin. It was fun for mom, because she remembered taking Elizabeth to Pumpkin School back when she was in preschool.

Everything on page (except the photos ;-) is from Cottage Arts. This was created for a challenge there. Full credit can be found here.

Gratuitous Giftie - Fall Quickpage

It's beginning to feel like Fall around here. We have had those cool, crisp nights and clear sunny days. The leaves are just beginning to turn. I love this season!

I figured it was time to share another freebie with you all. This is actually a quickpage that I created last Fall. I had been playing with some fun backgrounds including this leaf one and decided it would be fun to put them together like quilts. This is a pattern for a quilt square called Liberty. It leaves a perfect spot for a photo.

I hope you have fun with this! It can be downloaded here.

Pumpkin Patch Day

Yesterday was pumpkin patch day! My sister-in-law invited us to join her MOPS group at the pumpkin farm several weeks ago. I made the mistake to bringing it up to my children to see if it was something they would want to do. WHAT was I thinking? They hounded me that day and EVERY day since then about going. ("What time are we going? Are we going today?") I finally put it on our big family calendar so they could see what day we were going and we have counted down the days to it. I guess that is preschool math at its best, huh?

I took my middle three children. Even Anna at 10 years old was excited about it. I warned her that it was going to be geared toward preschoolers and she didn't care. We all had fun and I was able to get some fun photos because I wasn't hauling a baby with me. Elizabeth had no real desire to go and stayed home to babysit Rachel.

I really had the bug to scrapbook so I spent a little time in the afternoon yesterday with a couple of these photos. This top page features my oldest nephew. This photo was just begging me to scrap it. He is just the perfect picture of the pumpkin patch with his smile showing how proud he is of the pumpkin he picked himself and his bright orange sweatshirt. I used Doris Castle's My Heart's Delight kit and full credits can be found here.



This second layout is of my Anna showing off her pumpkin pick in front of the hay wagons that took us out to the pumpkin patch. She spent a lot of time picking and had difficultly making a decision. I created this using the Cottage Arts Naturals 4 Paper Pak and Scrap.Edges 6 Brushes and Overlays. These textures are just wonderful. I created that pumpkin using some simple clip are as a guide and cutting out paper pieces. Then I used the dodge and burn tools in Photoshop to give it some shades and highlights.

Since the fall is my favorite season, I am sure you will be seeing more pages like this in the near future.