Tenerife at Christmas

We were only home for two weeks after getting back from the States before we were off again for a 6 day stay in Tenerife.

The view of the square in La Orotava from the roof of our hotel.

The Canary Islands have never been on my wishlist of places to visit but we wanted to go somewhere warm and Tenerife didn't disappoint either in warmth or interesting places.  And I have 643 photos to prove it!   However I won't show you all of them but beware this is a photo heavy post.

For this blog post I'll concentrate on the Nativity scenes we saw at various places.   The work involved in them is spectacular.

On our first night we walked down to the square and found this amazing nativity scene with people-sized figures.  Just like last year where we found Jesus was born in Madeira, the Canarians incorporate the Nativity into their culture.

 Sorry some of the photos weren't as clear as they should have been.   While we were in the aquare these folks turned up.

Opposite the square there was a room with this model in it.

We visited Garrachio and this model was on show.

This was in the room next door.

And this was in the last room.

On Christmas Eve we went to La Laguna and saw yet another Nativity.  I didn't take so many photos this time!  The model was behind glass and yet again featured Canarian life to such an extent that the Nativity scene was a small part in the right hand corner!

 We loved the attention to detail.

Our last Nativity scene was found on Christmas Day.   These were taken in Santa Cruz in the Parliament building.

 We loved that there were Pelicans.

 Well done if you've got this far.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

Take Me Deeper 2015

Take Me Deeper is a year long, weekly devotional hosted by the His Kingdom Come Community.

If you are a regular reader of my blog you will know that it takes me a long time to decide what format I am going to use for any project.  I consider doing an altered book but discarded that idea.

While I was in the States I picked up this Strathmore Mixed Media book.

I thought I might use my Gelli plate for every page and looked at what size I could make the paper so that it would work well on my 10"x8" plate.

Then I realised that I didn't want every page covered in acrylic paint!  I'm very fond of white space.  Plus I thought I would go back to doing the Art Journal Calendar that is inspired by Kate Crane.

So I got out the Dylusions journal that I had bought for the Take Me Deeper project and then discarded!  Told you I had trouble making up my mind.

I plan to combine my TMD devotionals with my Logos365 word in the same journal.   I went through the journal working out where each month will start.

There aren't enough pages to do all I want.   Fortunately I had another Dylusions Journal.    I removed double pages from my other journal taking them from the middle of the sewn signatures.   I cut the fold off so that each added page is 8 inches wide.

I put washi tape down the side with the rounded corners.

I put the page with the washi tape under the page it is being fixed to and folded the tape over.

I opened up the added page and put washi tape down the join.

I needed one more double spread.

I put double sided tape around the edge of the back cover.

And stuck an extra page into the journal.

My plan is to put the calendar on the page on the left of the double spread and the front of the added flap.

My Logos365 work will be on the double spread that appears when I open the flap.


Here's the photo tutorial as a video.

For more details on Take Me Deeper and Logos365 go to His Kingdom Come.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice

My word for 2015

I have been choosing one word for the year for a while now.  You can see my words here:

Restore 2011        Focus 2012

Present 2013        Participate 2014

I have used Ali Edward's One Little Word classes for these words but this year I am taking part in logos365.  Watch this video to find out more.


Logos365 is part of the His Kingdom Come Community.   Do check it out if you haven't already joined.  It's a really exciting venture and I am thrilled to be part of the Foundation Team that set it up.

So back to my word for 2015.

I downloaded the worksheets from the logos365 group on His Kingdom Come and read through them but didn't fill them in.   I prayed a bit and thought a bit and left it at that.   In the early hours of the next morning I was awake and I felt that God was telling me what my word should be.

When I've chosen words in the past I haven't really asked God for the word.  I have worked on the basis that if the Holy Spirit is living in me and the word that I have chosen fits with what God has been saying to me through the Bible, through sermons or through people praying for me then God was part of the decision-making.

Participate has been a great word for me through 2014.   The Documented Life Planner project served its purpose through most of the year.  I had put Participate or one of its synonyms at the top of every weekly page which kept the word in front of me.  I filled it with things that I had done and kept it up right through to October.  The last week that I filled in was week 43.

And then I started participating in setting up His Kingdom Come and working on Pause, Ponder & Prepare and getting ready to go to Florida and really taking part in my life.  Woohoo!   So I stopped living by proxy in my planner and got on with life.   Yeah!    And I had the best time with all the family in Florida but especially with Andy & Naomi and Roger.

 So 2015's word had been suggested and I wasn't enamoured.  Which is often an indication that actually I need to do something about it.   I thought about it - because that's what I do!

Then I had a look at the worksheets again and thought about the questions and thought about my answers.  I didn't write anything down - do you know that feeling about somehow you are more committed to something if you've written it down?  There's sometimes a fear in opening up even to yourself on paper.   Which is daft really, when you think about it, becuase you're writing down the thoughts in your head - which you already know!

So what is the word, you may be wondering?   Well, it's

Thirst 

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”   John 4:13

I'm not sure where this will take me in 2015 but I will be writing about it here.

Thanks for stopping by.
Bernice