OLW Blog Hop - August

I am finally able to join in the OLW (one little word) blog hop again. I will be honest and say that this was put on the back bunner for one reason and another for several months. My word, BALANCE, was usually in my mind, but applying it to my life wasn't. Ok, that's not fully right either. Trying to get out of debt and being balanced in our money was starting to take over. I am trying to deal with that now by applying my word to my entire life (not just money). It's hard and some days are better than others, but it is something that I am trying to get better with. With that being said I wanted to share with you my June and July pages. I have caught up in my assignments, but thought the last two were worth sharing with you.

For my June page we were challenged with creating 9 small canvas that represented our word. Think of them as mini-art journals. I kept the color in mind and kept with the cooler, calmer colors of blues, greens, and purples. I tend to equates these colors with calm and clamness with a sense of balance. I gave my two boys a canvas each to create what they wanted. These represent the balance I want with my family. The butterflies and bird represent balance as they can hover and balance on the smallest of twigs/leaves. The doily is the fragile part of balance as the slightest chance can cause a big shift while the single splash of red can symbolize that the shift isn't always a bad thing and can, in fact, help re-establish balance in another part of life.

The July challenge was to focus on music. I love music and how it can remind me of times and people in my life. I use music for getting me into a crafty mood sometimes, to inspire my students to write, to understand why I feel what I am feeling, etc. For this month I wanted to focus on how music could represent my word. This proved much more difficult than I had originally thought. It took me over a week to decide on some songs and a little longer to choose to nine to showcase in the nine mini-canvases. For the center of the CD I used a bumble bee as the music for the overlay is from Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumblebee" (with which I repeated the bee for the center. I decided to add some journaling in the side pockets to explain a rather fast song as well as list out the songs I chose.

The journaling with the overlay talks about how the song makes me think of my Grandpa and how he always seemed to enjoy his moments and didn't really do the whole fast paced living thing (the way I tend to live my life). By the end of the song I am actually clamed down and more relaxed.

The songs that are listed out next to the CD are:
The Flight of the Bumblebee
Greatest Day Ever by Wayne Kerr (this song makes me smile and feel good)
What if I Stumble by DC Talk (a song that reminds me that God isn't counting how many times I fall down but that I get up)
Friends by Michael W Smith (a song that takes me back to my childhood)
Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
Feel Good Song by Wayne Kerr (the title says it all, lol)
Beautiful Day by Zigg Marley (a reminder to enjoy the days and to take time for that inner peace)
We Are Family by Sister Sledge (family is important)
Circle of Life from The Lion King (we are all searching for out path/balance in life)
Get Happy Now by Wayne Kerr (again, the title says it all)
Declaration (This Is It) by Kirk Franklin (Each day is a new day and a new chance to live it the way we should)
Be Good to Yourself by Journey (a reminder to turn off my distractions and focus on what needs my attention)
Moon Days by Cindy Morgan (a reminder that balance is something that many seek in the midst of daily living)
Back to You by Wayne Kerr (a reminder to find my way back to my Heavenly Father and a sweet reminder that my husband is also important)
Young at Heart by Frank Sinatra (even if life throws a curve-ball, you can handle it when you are more calm and enjoying life - the good and bad)
Balance by Ted Winn (the whole song is about getting the balance we need)
Jesus Help Me to Stand by Alison Krauss (sometimes it is a matter of hope and faith in God/Jesus to find a moment of balance)
Fragile Balance by Dan's Nature (I love listening to nature songs and classical music for a calming effect - something of which I need in a fast paced world)

The blog hop list:
Margie http://xnomads.typepad.com/blog
Nikki http://www.inkyart.com.au/
Monica B http://questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com/
Cheri http://cheriandrews.blogspot.com
Jamie http://jmpgirl.blogspot.com
Jill http://jillconyers.typepad.com/
Monica B1 http://Scraplifters.blogspot.com
Lynn www.crafty-creativity.blogspot.com
Melissa http://blog.mshanhun.com
Sam http://learncreatedo.wordpress.com/
Jenn www.studiojenn.blogspot.com
Maureen http://cookingmylife.blogspot.com
Chrissy http://getcraftywithchrissy.blogspot.com/
Jan http://mysimplelittlelife.typepad.com
Kimberly http://foreverdaisies.blogspot.com/
Kathryn http://www.katlodesigns.com
Lisa http://backtoallen.com/writers_blog
Amanda http://scrappnbee.blogspot.com
Cassie http://craftycassiescorner.blogspot.com/