Tangible Legacies

100% Attitude!!

2010-05-05T16:30:00.003-04:00

The pattern for the layout is from sketch 27 at Crop Divas. The title says it all!

D-lish!!

2010-05-02T18:31:00.005-04:00

My daughter made her first mac & cheese and pineapple upside down cake this past Easter. I used the colors from the Project #1 Challenge over at Crop Divas. The sketch inspiration is from Valerie Salmon's blog. I had to capture the moment. The other layout is of my son during the Black Heritage program at school. The colors are from the Project #2 Challenge over at Crop Divas. I used another of Valerie Salmon's sketches.

Beautiful Gift Idea...

2010-04-19T14:46:00.003-04:00

This post is a shout out to Diana R., whom I affectionately refer to as Mom2 (Mom squared) because to have her presence in my life is to feel loved exponentially—she’s extra special. I want to share a beautiful gift idea that came through her when she gave me a gift for my birthday. It was a bag of three of her favorite things--I absolutely loved it! The gifts included a copy of one of her favorite books, an oil and reed decanter, and her favorite stain fighting detergent. Words really can’t express how blessed I was by her gesture. They were gifts from her heart that were special to her, and she took time to share why she selected each gift. They were a few of her favorite things--the gesture certainly made me feel like one of her favorite people. Frankly, it inspired the poem below and encourages me to be more intentional in my gift giving as well. So here is the poem I wrote to accompany my “gift of three” to others:

My Favorite Things
Enclosed are three of my favorite things
I love them because of the joy they bring
I share them with you because you do the same
My heart fills with joy when I hear your name

Enjoy each small gift as a token of love
I’m blessed by your example of God’s holy love
As a blessing to others and especially to me
Find someone else special and share your own three.
Marvita Franklin, 2010 ©

School album update...

2010-04-09T17:36:00.004-04:00

This page is for my son's school album. The layout is from a sketch at Stuck on u Sketches. The sketch is by Jolene Pienaar. Check out her blog, Sketches by Jolene.

Family and Crop Divas Destination news...

2010-04-09T10:00:00.004-04:00

I've just been picked up for the creative design team for Crop Divas Destination. Rowena has lots of great sketches and tutorials available. Check her out when you get a chance. I'm excited to work with her.

This layout is from an album I've been working on for a while. We gathered to celebrate her 90th birthday. Not much technique here...I used cuttlebug to emboss flowers and letters then shadow them. The font is George on the cricut!! See ya

A Celebration of Teapots & Friendships

2010-01-16T10:56:00.003-05:00

These are the early pages of a book I'm creating to commemorate my teapot collection. They are all very special to me as are the treasured friends and family who have contributed to the collection. I have a total of 28. Most of the initial layouts for each pot are complete. I just need to find all of the pictures of friends and journal the stories of our friendship along the way. I'm so excited about this project. For years, I've wanted to create scrapbook pages for my collection. This teapot from the Cricut Ashlyn's Alphabet cartridge presented the perfect display for them. Blessings, Vita

My Two Favorite Men....

2010-01-14T15:59:00.004-05:00

This was for a sketch on the Cricut Messageboard.

2010-01-09T13:19:00.004-05:00

A friend and I made these cards for a special luncheon she's hosting soon. She heads a post abortive ministry to women. The stamp is from Unity. The butterfly is a Sizzlit. The embossing is a Cuttlebug folder. The edges are done with Ranger Distress Ink. The shape is created with a Nestabilities die cut.

Balance...

2010-01-05T14:47:00.001-05:00

Balance. It isn’t as tangible as some would have us believe. I’m sure there will be those of you who disagree. But hear me out…. Whenever I see a set of balanced scales, they look fabulous! They’re evenly tethered and still. Everything is linear and stable. Balanced scales don’t move. Linear, stable, and still are not words that characterize my life. My issue with balance is that it necessitates that every component find its place and alignment. I don’t know if that happens often. Over the past year or two, I’ve concluded that balance isn’t as much my goal as learning to “manage the movement” of my life. My life is constantly moving. While the scales may be managing the tension of keeping themselves still, they don’t accurately reflect the continual change that comes with everyday life and the need to shift priorities and adjust fire accordingly. This life requires a continual adapting to the moment, clarification of goals, and renewed insights. Managing the movement acknowledges that adaptability is as critical as stability. Managing the movement means that we can be very present in the moment and responsive to opportunities that present themselves and, perhaps, not fret over what was left undone or what we must let go of. I look forward to 2010 being an exciting year. I pray you’ll manage all of your movement well and/or find the balance you need. Blessings to you, Marvita

New Horizons

2010-01-01T15:58:00.005-05:00

New Day...New Year...New Horizons. I love New Year's day! Frankly, I usually sleep in until very late. It's my favorite part of the day. It's as though I'm recuperating from the previous year and recharging for the coming one. I typically spend time on New Year's Eve praying, in quiet fellowship with family and friends, or sleeping through it. I'm beginning this year with fasting and prayer and believing God for amazing personal growth and deeper intimacy with Him. One definition of "horizon" is "the apparent junction of the earth and sky." I'm believing God for "new junctions" this year--new junctions of encountering His presence as never before, new junctions in current and future relationships, and new junctions in creativity. What are you believing God for this year? I pray every dream and vision you have for 2010 will find its manifestation and fruition in the grace and love of His presence. God bless you in 2010. Serving Christ with you, Vita

Loving Mom

2009-11-16T21:51:00.005-05:00

My latest post...another based on a sketch from scrapsketch-woohoo! I might actually get a few albums completed this year. Blessings, Vita

The latest from the cutting room floor...

2009-11-12T12:25:00.009-05:00

I love “blue red!” It’s an intense, rich red, and I rarely come across it. So, I jumped at the opportunity ot pick up this piece of fabric at Joann’s over 2 ½ years ago (I know…it’s a long time, but if you’ve read the post on persistence, you know I’m not dismayed by that). I’ll admit I was a bit intimidated because I didn’t want to ruin it and because of the weave. It’s sort of like a woven boucle. I used fusible interfacing on every piece to avoid unraveling. The pattern is Vogue 2273 (I purchased it at least 3 years ago). It has a beautiful faux welt pocket near the neckline, but I abandoned it because of the weave. I also had to make some major alterations, but it was great fun once I was over the fear factor.

Loving on Grammy...

2009-11-10T21:43:00.006-05:00

My latest layout based on sketch #181 by Stephanie Vaughn at scrapsketch. I'm a new member of the design team. This was an opportunity for me to use my new Cricut Gypsy as well. I did some embossing, stickles, and ribbon. I used SpellBinders die cutter for the journal box.

New Design Team Member

2009-10-24T08:38:00.007-04:00

Very excited...just added a as member of the scrap sketch design team! So, look for more layouts soon. Check out their site. You'll love the inspiration. I love sketches...they are a great launching pad! I'm currently working on my son's school album and the album from our women's ministries 2009 retreat. The slide show on the right features layouts from our 2008 retreat. Our women's ministry is amazing and they ROCK at creating an atmosphere to allow women to be refreshed, revived and renewed when we come together. Blessings, Vita

Cricut Celebrates its 100th Cartridge

2009-09-25T12:42:00.007-04:00

Head on over to http://www.cricut.com/ to celebrate the release of Cricut's 100th cartridge: Winter Woodland, http://www.cricut.com/shopping/ProductDetails.aspx?id=361&s=1&sc=2 .

See you there!!!

“Persistence”

2009-08-04T21:43:00.005-04:00

Persistence. It’s the reason I’ve reengaged the blog after five long months without a word. I’ve certainly wanted to slow down and disentangle my thoughts, but “life” has been getting in the way. There have been changes at work, new project launches, and let’s not forget the everyday “trials of life.” So…I’ve managed to get a bit behind. And, sometimes, even that feels timely. As I recently sat outside in my garage during an amazing summer thunderstorm, I pondered the issue of persistence. Our swim team was poised to warm up for a weekly swim meet, but was held up because of a rain delay. Everyone assumed the meet would be cancelled, but the officials wouldn’t call it until 30 minutes after the scheduled start time of the meet. They were pretty persistent to keep team members in place until they were absolutely sure they wouldn’t be able to hold the meet. The storm eventually subsided in time and the meet proceeded successfully.

Persistence saved Lot’s life in Genesis chapters 18 -19, as God prepared to destroy Sodom. Abraham demonstrated tremendous persistence as he pressed God to spare the lives of the few “righteous” that might remain in Sodom. His first request would spare the city of Sodom for 50 righteous people. That was a big deal—for God to spare a sinful city just because His “friend” asked—yes, it was a huge deal. For Abraham to continue to press His “Friend,” was even more amazing! Abraham understood that he was being persistent—look at what he says each time he presses a little harder. By the time we get to Gen 19:30, Abraham is begging God not to be angry at him for his persistence. And in verse 32, Abraham presses His Friend even further for just 10 righteous people. Wow…what a great example of persistence and love. After all, Lot was his nephew and his persistence would have been motivated by that love.

What Abraham and many others in Scripture knew is that Godly persistence is both useful and healthy. When we’re able to be persistent in a Godly way toward the things that matter, lives are changed, and perhaps, even saved. Persistence has been paying off in my own life as well. I finally launched a website for my consulting company, Phaneros Consulting (www.phanerosconsulting.com). It has taken me a while to get there, but I’m excited that the persistence paid off.

Where do you need to be persistent today? Don’t give up…go ahead, press through. Great things may be waiting for you! Blessings in Christ, Vita

Personal Alignment...

2009-02-28T16:27:00.011-05:00

I was recently very excited about a garment I was making for myself. I was excited about the pattern and found the perfect fabric for it. My favorite item in the project was the skirt; I also purchased some wonderful buttons to put on it—you know, the kind you purchase individually from the fancier fabric stores. I selected the right size pattern, but I usually have to make a few minor alterations. On this pattern, however, one major alteration was also required. Seasoned seamstresses know that most patterns are sized for a “B-cup” bra size. In the interest of modesty, let’s just say I’m not a B- or C-cup. As a result the jacket was too sung across the bust and no amount of side seam adjustment was going to fix it. In addition to this, I accidently purchased a lower quality lining fabric, too. Because the fabric was inferior, the shrinkage was ridiculous. Because of the shrinkage of the lining, the exterior layer of the garment was distorted. The lining pulled on the outer fabric, seams didn’t line up, and the fit was uncomfortable. Even though the garment appeared to look okay at first glance, closer examination revealed the distortions that were the result of the poor quality that lurked underneath.

The whole process got me thinking about what happens when we’re not aligned internally. I mean what happens when what we think or believe doesn’t line up with God’s way of doing things? I believe it causes a similar distortion in our lives. We may think what’s going on inside doesn’t mater, but it really does. In the same way the inner construction of a garment can often distort the external appearance of it, the thought, attitudes, and beliefs inside of us can have a significant impact on the behavior we manifest on a daily basis.

My friend, Rhonda, recently reminded me of God’s Word in Isaiah 55:8-9,

“ My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And My ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts. “

As much as we might hate to admit it, we don’t think like God does…. The garment “errors” and the passage in Isaiah brought home for me the importance of not allowing negative thinking and sour attitudes (or inferior quality thoughts) to bitter who I am inside. If I do, it will affect what I show the world or what others see. Most of us aren’t talented enough to “think and believe” one thing at our core, yet “live out” something else completely—at least not for very long. It took a few extra hours and some work on the interior of the garment, but I did manage to correct it enough to be wearable. I had to open some seams, add extra fabric, and think outside of the box about how to make it work. I still couldn’t fit it, but I was able to bless a friend with it—she’s convinced God meant the outfit for her all along. LOL!

Why not let one of our goals during this next year, be to align our thinking with the Lord’s? Colossians 3, encourages us to “set our minds on things above….” For some of us, it may mean opening areas of our heart that were previously closed, adding extra time to meditate on God’s Word, and thinking outside of our old comfort zones. If we try aligning our thoughts with His, perhaps His will will have more priority in our lives. Blessings in Christ, Marvita

The Heavens Declare Your Glory....

2009-02-27T16:25:00.008-05:00

So, I spent last week in Hawaii on business. It has been 20 years since I last visited the island of Oahu. Of course, much has changed. What was very apparent in this rich, lush landscape, however, was the beauty of God's handiwork. The beautiful scenery immediately provoked reminders of Scripture about the majesty of our God and the wonder of His creation.

"The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands." Psalm 19:1

"O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!" Psalm 8:1

I was taken aback by how beautiful the vistas were. We certainly don't need to travel 14 hours to appreciate the majestic beauty God places before us every day, but the time alone in this beautiful landscape allowed me a moment to reflect on the awesome wonder of our God.

"The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all it contains, You have founded them." Psalm 89:11-12

"The heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones." Psalm 89:5

I also hiked Diamond Head Crater. I'll admit that while I do exercise "fairly" regularly, it has been a while since a physical activity challenged me the way this one did. It brought me back to how much I miss being outdoors. The views from atop Diamond Head were breath taking and again I'm pulled back to God's Word....

"The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" Psalm 14:1

How’s Your Focus?

2009-01-25T23:48:00.010-05:00

What are you comfortable paying attention to? I’m usually more comfortable paying attention to a lot of things—both inside and outside of my head. I like taking in information about the what’s going on within and around me. I also like connecting dots in my head to make sense of all of the pieces of information I’ve gathered. Therein lies one of my biggest challenges. Because I’m so comfortable attending more broadly, it takes a lot of discipline for me to narrow my attention when dedicated focus is necessary. In fact, when I have to do it, I often feel like a toddler on punishment. I try to find all sorts of excuses and “work arounds” to move on to something else. It isn’t that I don’t enjoy what I may be doing; I just don’t like having to only focus on that one thing. And, here’s the real kicker: when I am more intentional and purposeful about focusing my attention, I reach my goals much faster, deadlines are met, and I’m much less stressed. Perhaps, you’re really great at narrowing your attention and focusing in on details…only to find that you’ve analyzed every detail of the bark in front of you but missed the giant fact that you’re standing in front of a tree…in the middle of a forest.J Fear not beloved, there’s hope for all of us.

Like Ezra in the Bible, we can apply the kind of attention necessary to see our goals and dreams come to fruition. In Ezra 7:10, we see that Ezra “set his heart to study the law of the Lord….” The Hebrew word for “set” carries with it the meaning, “to attend to, to direct, and be fixed.” Ezra narrowed his attention, focusedhis heart on studying the law of the Lord so he could do it and teach it. His commitment to do so was necessary for his leadership role in Israel. It’s interesting that earlier verses in the chapter tell us Ezra was skilled in the law of Moses and that the good hand of God was upon Him. While he apparently had been blessed with the necessary skill set and God’s favor, he still had to make a decision to “set is heart to study.” This week, I had to make some decisions about effective use of my time. I’ve been working on two major projects that should have been completed months ago. They aren’t complete because I haven’t really focused my attention or dedicated the time necessary to see them through. As I did things differently this past week, I was encouraged by the major strides I was able to make.

The fact is we can’t do everything all of time. We must make choices. Ideally, we seek the Lord’s guidance regarding direction and priorities. We keep things in proper order when we trust His leading. Like Ezra, I want to consistently “set my heart” to study God’s Word. I’m impressed that Ezra was able to stay focused. Talent and gifting can sometimes be distracting. We forget that everything we have comes from the Lord, and we can’t do anything apart from Him. I also want to steward well over every responsibility my heavenly Father entrusts to me. I want to be found intentionally and purposefully doing God’s will.

What are you focused on in this New Year? What dream, ministry, or vision needs more of your attention? I encourage you to set your heart to accomplish the necessary activities to see it through. Blessings in Christ, Marvita

"Our first Circus event"

Aiming for the goal...

2009-01-11T16:35:00.008-05:00

Have you set goals for this year? I have a few I’ve committed to, but I’m still clarifying others. In past years, I came up with my goals by early December and had them all ready to go by the new year. Sometimes I'd list too many, and even though I accomplished a lot, I'd feel overwhelmed because I was running hard after them or failing to make them happen. I would end up doing but not experiencing. My lists might be complete, but I could barely remember why I made it a goal in the first place (it even sounds goofy as I write it J).

As we enter the third week of the New Year, I’ve narrowed my goals to a significant few and have been very intentional about taking my time to really consider what matters most right now. Launching this blog is one of my goals for the year. Starting it was one objective—timely maintenance of it is another. One sketch, one layout, one pondering per week isn’t difficult, but I’ve certainly figured out (in just three weeks) that I need to have a plan; then, I need to follow-through!

While my goals do include other projects and books I want to complete in the coming year, my number one goal this year is to be more responsive to God’s leading. I want to hear Him more clearly. Like the children of Israel in the wilderness following the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, I want to move when I see Him move and rest when He says rest. If He says hug someone, I want to hug them. If He says share a meal, make a phone call, stop and pray, or stop and listen, I want to do that, too. Slowing down to hear doesn’t always come natural for me. I have to be very intentional about valuing and protecting those moments in my day that allow me to be still, reflective, and contemplative. Otherwise, I find myself subject to being sucked into the vortex of busyness and stress. I’ve learned over the years that it’s much easier to be vigilant about protecting the things I value in the first place, than it is to get them back once they've been stolen--especially my time.

I’m excited about the coming season. I look forward to growing with God this year—and being transformed from the inside out. What are you looking forward to this year and what goals will you set to help make it happen? Living out loud, Marvita!

My dd this summer during our vacation. I used GS and IA for this layout. I also added some stickles & chalking. Paper is by Heidi Grace.

Write the vision down...

2009-01-05T02:44:00.013-05:00

Vision is a powerful thing. It allows us to see ideas and dreams come to fruition and can establish legacies that impact future generations. In Habakkuk 2, God tells Habakkuk to “record the vision and inscribe it on tablets, that the one who reads it may run. For the vision is yet for the appointed time; it hastens toward the goal and it will not fail.”

In 2008, I began the practice of recording my project ideas in composition books. I maintain a separate book for each major project I’m working on. This has been very useful for me. I’m a multi-tasker who loves dreaming and jotting down notes on post-its, napkins, old envelopes and anything else that’s handy. I can also be an "oohhh, look at the pretty bird..." person as well. Left unchecked, my imagination would have me singing worship songs from the tops of mountains and dancing around like Julie Andrews in the "Sound of Music" (my favorite movie btw!). The composition books give me one place to cast vision, write it down and make it plain. It’s also a safe place to re-think, re-work, and re-envision the idea as it moves forward.

I’ve been blessed to see how the Lord has used this new discipline in my life during the past year. While I can occasionally over-think and over-complicate projects, I’ve seen major growth when it comes to moving from the conception of an idea to its completion.

The new year before us presents a great opportunity to “cast vision” for the next season of our lives. What dreams do you have? What idea or project of yours is waiting to be birthed? What passion has God placed in your heart that pleads for your attention? Have you written it down…have you made it plain? I love Dawson Trotman’s quote at the top of this web page: “Thoughts disentangle themselves as they pass through our fingers.” Take time this week to think about the dreams that lay dormant in your heart. Dare to dream them again, write them down, and entrust and commit them to the Lord’s care—you’ll be amazed at what awaits you. Blessings, Marvita

New Beginnings...

2009-01-01T01:54:00.011-05:00

I love fresh starts! Lamentations 3:22, reminds us “it is because of God’s mercy that we are not consumed; His compassion never fails. They are new every morning and great is His faithfulness.” It’s a pretty AWESOME truth--with each new day, the dawn reminds us that God’s mercy and compassion begin anew for us...we get a do over or, better still, a do again. We get another chance to pursue deeper, more intimate relationship with our heavenly Father. We get another shot at manifesting His love in us toward others in more random and amazing ways. We get more opportunities to say “thank You, Lord for (fill in the blank).”

A New Year is also a new beginning. In 2009, we again have an opportunity to start fresh—with new goals, new ideas, and new clarity…. New can be good. New can be intimidating. New can be scary. I’m so thankful that in all that is new, God remains faithful--to love us, provide for us, guide us, and surround us with His amazing grace.

Blogging is new for me! It’s an outlet to focus my own desire to leave “tangible legacies” for my family and friends. And, at the same time, it’s a place where I hope to encourage others through the grace of Jesus Christ. I’ve chosen to focus on scrapbooking here, but I’m also a journaler—I love the clarity it can provide as well as the opportunity it gives me to articulate everything in my head and heart that may not make sense until I’ve worked through it on paper.

The themes will change from week to week, but the desire of my heart will be the same: to encourage you to create, inspire, dream, and record your own tangible legacies and to share my own ponderings about the matchless wonder of our awesome God!

While the sketches and layouts may often be tied to the weekly theme, they are certainly open to various interpretations and iterations. I decided to make a layout about the beginning of 2nd grade. Be creative, enjoy, and share your creations through comments with direct links to your work! Serving Christ with you and looking forward to this year’s journey, Marvita

Last entry for 2008

2008-12-31T20:28:00.010-05:00

Before the year officially ends, I wanted to share a Christmas project I did with my son's classmates before they went on holiday break. I'm the homeroom mom for his 2nd grade class. I didn't want to overwhelm the kids with too much since they were also anticipating pizza and ice cream. So, I took a photo of each child, cut it out as a circle, and cut card stock ornaments using the Cricut Joys of the Season cartridge. I used paper from DCWV-Christmas pack. It was great! The children put their photo on one side and used the patterned paper and silhouette cut design on the other. The kids used glitter glue and stickers to enhance their ornaments. They really seemed to enjoy the project.

Hope 2008 was awesome for you!!! Marvita

In the Beginning...

2008-12-11T00:20:00.010-05:00

My first post...yippee!!!

I over-think many things, so it has taken me a while to get started. I am excited. I love scrapbooking, reading, journaling, leader development and (especially) God's Word. If I can keep up with myself, I'll try to post pics of my crafts. If, however, (as usual) I'm seven steps ahead of or two steps behind myself, I'll just take time to ramble and live out loud!! These are pics of cards I recently made for a church member who is going through chemo...Blessings, Vita (aka "The Mocha Scrapper")