DJS: The Beatitudes

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they are children of God."

I am, by nature, a peacemaker. I want people to get along, and I will do my very best to get each side to understand - if not agree with - the other. So it's no surprise that this is one of my favorite Bible verses.

In America, it seems there's some new political upheaval nearly every day. We need peacemakers more than ever.

Sitting in church this past Sunday, this verse kept going through my mind over and over. And I finally realized that what needed to be done was simply to do a word art set for ALL of the beatitudes. As much as anything else, they are a blueprint for the kind of people we should be.

So here we are - only my second set of word art NOT created specifically for a blog train. Use them individually to accent the character of someone you are scrapping a portrait of, or use them together for a non-photo wall hanging. I hope you enjoy them.

***KEEP UP with my new kits (and a few other things that are important to me) by liking my Facebook page, DigiJen Scraps Word Art.***

DBTL: Gaucher Disease Awareness

Hello to all of my cause-and-awareness-oriented scrappy folks out there!

It's time for the Digi Blog Train List to take off again, and this month we're focusing on a genetic condition that I admit I'd never heard of before at all - Gaucher Disease.

This is one of those conditions that can have widely varying symptoms, ranging from an enlarged liver and anemia on the mild end of the spectrum, to death for newborns on the extreme end. Please, don't just grab the freebies that our designers have created - take time to actually read about Gaucher Disease and become familiar with it. You can find out more about it here.

Now, on to the reason you really ride these blog trains - the freebies! 

You can get the complete collection by visiting the following designers' blogs:

Dea’s Design
Ostrea Designs
Moore Blessings Digital Design
DigiJen Scraps <-- You Are Here
Dreamn4Ever Designs
Cocotounette Designs
Shuckclod’s Stuff
DBTL FB Page(click bonus)

And now...

When you are dealing with a disease that so few have heard of, there aren't a lot of Gaucher-specific ideas for word art. But anyone dealing with any kind of chronic illness for themselves or their children can use a little encouragement. So this month's selection of word art is meant to encourage anyone going through a tough time.

DOWNLOAD

ALSO...while you're here, if you enjoy the word art that I create and can use it at all in your layouts, I've created a Facebook page where you can keep up with what's new from DigiJen Scraps. I keep having ideas for more word art that don't necessarily fit the blog train themes that I participate in, so I wanted to just start following the mojo and seeing what comes of it. 

Feel free to drop by, like the page, and keep up with whatever my twisty mind comes up with next.
DigiJen Scraps Word Art. (Teaser: I'm working on something and hope to have it ready sometime this weekend.)

Thanks for stopping by and we'll catch you again soon!

SDBT: Commotion in the Ocean

I am an Aquarian. Maybe that's why the sound of running water has always helped calm me down. It has always helped me destress. Give me a stream or even a little table top water fountain, and I can feel myself relax and my breath slow down.

But I didn't have any idea how wonderful the ocean itself was until I was on a cruise ship a few years ago for the first time. The sound of water smacking the side of the ship was unreal - in a good way.

So I was excited with this month's theme "Commotion in the Ocean" for the Scrap Designers' Blog Train. It was hard to choose just a handful of quotes to turn into word art this time...but I did my best. So I hope you find something that you can use:

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And you can drop by to visit these incredible designers and pick up their contributions to this collection, too:

Promethean Concepts
Nellie Bell
Songbird Scraps Designs
Scrapbook Crazy Creations by Robyn
Lady DGScraps
DigiScrap Angelhaze
DigiJen Scraps  <-- you are here
LEA Art Designs
Moore Blessings Digital Design

Enjoy the ocean, kiss the sea, let it kiss you back, and have a great summer!

DBTL: Operation Dignity

It is our military men and women who protect and defend our way of life.
They are the ones who are among the first to help in a disaster situation.
Some of them give their very lives to fight for the ideals we as a country believe in.

And when they return to civilian life, some of them need a little extra help themselves.

That is when it's our turn to say "Thank you" and support them through organizations like Operation Dignity, which provides assistance for homeless veterans and their families. While this particular organization is local to one county in California, you can check to see if there are similar groups near you through which you can help.

In the meantime, the Digi Blog Train List designers have put together a nice collection for you this month.

You can pick up each of the parts from their various blogs and the DBTL FB page:

Dreamn4Ever Designs
Moore Blessings Digital Design
Nellie Bell's Unique Boutique
Dea’s Design
Shuckclod’s Stuff
Ostrea Designs
DigiJen Scraps <-- You Are Here
DBTL FB Page(click bonus)

And now, for my part. When trying to come up with ideas for words this month, all I could really think of is that they have done so much for us, the least we can do is be kind to them.

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For those in the US, have a great Memorial Day Weekend coming up...for the rest of you, I'll see you back here next month!

SDBT: Celebrate Seniors!

It's time to celebrate seniors!

No...not those seniors. Not the ones finally breaking free from high school or college.

THESE seniors - the ones of a certain age, maybe with gray hair (or maybe no hair at all!), maybe with grandkids or maybe on their own! Some may still be the picture of geriatric health, while some may have several chronic issues to deal with. Some may have retired into the lap of luxury, while others may barely be scraping by on government assistance.

But no matter how life has treated them or which road they traveled, all seniors have wisdom to share, stories to tell and love to give.

When asked to think about "seniors" for this blog train, the target age was 55 and over. Now, I just barely fit into that category, having turned 55 only a few months ago. My hair is not gray (thanks to what my sweet cousin calls "hair therapy"). Other than serious arthritis in my knees and a few extra pounds, I'm amazingly healthy. I'm still working a job I enjoy, and I'm an actively involved grandma to our only grandchild.

It's this last part that really is the joy of my life - my one-and-only (and probably going to stay that way, according to his mom) grandson. So I'm celebrating seniors by celebrating the special bond between grands.

You can celebrate seniors with all our designers by visiting their blogs to pick up their freebies:

Promethean Concepts
KJDdesigns
Songbird Scraps Designs
Skinni’s Scraps and Stuff
Nellie Bell
DigiScrap Angelhaze
DigiJen Scraps
LEA Art Designs
Moore Blessings Digital Design

And you can pick up my "grand" word art at the download link below:

DOWNLOAD

Enjoy your May and I'll see you back here next month for our June theme - Commotion in the Ocean!

SDBT: Pet-astic!

As I write this, my feline furboy is on the couch behind my head, kneading the fuzzy blanket that I keep thrown across the back of the couch, purring, sometimes chirping at me.

In other words, he's being a good boy.

Five minutes from now could be a completely different story. And I'm sure that tonight, after my husband goes to bed, King Richard will start his nightly routine of scratching at the doors to get out, then trying to knock things off of shelves or off of the kitchen counter to let me know his displeasure at life in general. And I'll fuss at him, and threaten to take him back to the shelter (even though I've had him for five years now). And then when it's time to go to bed, he'll curl up next to my head, I'll lay my hand on him to feel him purring, and all will be forgiven.

And tomorrow it will start all over again.

Yes, we love our pets, whether they have fur, fins or feathers...or scales.

The designers of the Scrap Designers Blog Train know this, so this month's theme is "Pet-astic!" This month, we were given no specific palette to work with, but simply went with the colors that naturally occur in our non-human children.

Be sure to visit all of these designers to pull together an awesome pet-themed collection:

KJDdesigns

Songbird Scraps Designs

Promethean Concepts

Skinni’s Scraps and Stuff

Moore Blessings Digital Design

DigiJen Scraps

LEA Art Designs

Nellie Bell

And to give a special touch to your layouts created with the kits and papers from the other designers, use some of the word art available here:

DOWNLOAD

Have fun doing layouts about your pets...and be sure to scroll down for another blog post and some other freebies (and sales!) just because I'm a fan girl. 😉

DJS: Big Top Fun

All I can think of is...

Ladies and Gents, 

this is the moment you've waited for!

From the moment I first stepped into the theater last December to see "The Greatest Showman" - and had to fight with myself to NOT turn around and go right back in for a 2nd showing - I've been waiting for this day.

April 10th - DVD/Blu-Ray Release Day here in the US.

It has been a very long time since I had a movie grab me the way this one has. And I have NEVER paid to see a movie 9...or was it 10?...I lost count...times at the theater. 

(featuring: "Big Top Bundle" by Kate Hadfield Designs)

Despite the complaints about historical accuracy or just what kind of person the real PT Barnum was, this movie is full of messages about living your dreams, being proud of who you are, and accepting others who are different from you. 

I could go on and on about the "dream" aspect of it, including the fact that it was a dream project for star Hugh Jackman, taking nearly a decade from start to screen....or the fact that this little movie musical should have folded by mid-January based on its opening weekend box office totals when it didn't even make back 1/10 of its production cost, but instead has been in movie theaters for 15 weeks, made back 5 times its cost, spawned a sing-along version, and - at least locally - has finally been pulled from the theater less than a week before its disk release. 

(featuring: "School of Wizardry" by Magical Scraps Galore)

But mostly, it's the music that has grabbed people. I had to wait a month because Amazon had the CD on back order. The soundtrack has been at the top of the album charts since early January and is already projected to be the biggest selling US album of 2018. It tied (or maybe beat?) the record set by Adele's "21" at the top of the charts in the UK. The anthemic "This Is Me" won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Oscar.

And it's the best **** CD to blast and sing to as you drive along the interstate.

So yeah...I'm a bit obsessed with it - so obsessed that I felt compelled to create some word art reflecting some of the key messages of the music.

(featuring: "Courage" by MagsGraphics)

What's more, I've pulled some of my designer friends into the fun. These three lovely ladies all have circus-themed kits available and have offered to create sales of them so you can match the "Big Top Fun" word art to their designs. Please check out:

"At the Circus" by MagsGraphics

30% off through April 23rd

"Big Top" by Kate Hadfield Designs

30% off through April 15th

Bundle (includes "Animal Antics")

    Papers    Alpha    Doodles   

"Come One, Come All" by Magical Scraps Galore

40% off using coupon code through July 15th

CODE: MSG_C1CA-40off

Good at The Digichick and GingerScraps

And NOW...FINALLY...the promised word art:

DOWNLOAD

Thanks for letting me rave about my passion movie. And if you haven't seen it yet, really, you MUST go get a copy of it as soon as you can.

(You know what? Since the sales are already live, I'm going to post this a day early. I just can't wait!)