Gifts from the Heart

It feels as if it were yesterday that I was strapping my twins, Melissa and Darren into their car seats to go to a Mommy and Me class.  Today, my now 18 year-old twins are fastening their own seat belts before taking off in their own cars.

You know why you love your Mom, but, does she?  As a way of expressing your feelings on paper, write a 300-word essay on why she should be featured in The Magazine of Santa Clarita.  Many years ago, English artist, James Abbott McNeill Whistler painted a portrait of his mother, you know the one, paint your own memory with words in a heart-felt story about your Mom. 

June Carey is a painter who had the dream to live in one of her paintings, in an Italian villa.  That dream recently became reality when in 2006, Carey found her Dream villa in Vitiano, Italy.  June wanted to be surrounded by landscapes and sunflower fields that has for years depicted in her Italian landscapes and now she is there, at her Villa in the Spring, Summer and some of the Fall months, painting in her new home and she loves being surrounded by the beauty.

The Magazine of Santa Clarita is starting a new monthly column, featuring less fortunate children who need the love and support of a family.  Open your hearts and home to these children.  If you think you can take on the challenges of raising them, who knows, you may be surprised by how they add and enrich your family with all of the love and appreciation they will shower you, if only they could be adopted and given a permanent home. 

The birth of spring, tasty dinners and families coming together are all tell-tale signs that the Easter and Passover season are here.  If you’re looking for a unique hostess gift or a new look for your table, try using an arrangement of fruit, that’s right, fruit, not flowers for a change of pace.

Has it really been 5 months already? Time has definitely flown by.  It feels like just yesterday when I was running around the house with that pregnancy test.  Now I am half way through my pregnancy.  I still can’t believe it.  Anyways, this month has been great.  I feel fantastic and I have lots of energy, which is always a plus.  Sometimes I forget that I am pregnant.

Thanks to the keen observation and nomination by Bob Brauneisen, Principal of Northlake Hills Elementary School, The Magazine of Santa Clarita is honoring Sheila Tanenbaum for her excellence in teaching.  Here is what Brauneisen had to say about Tannenbaum:

Prepare yourself to be hurled into a drama of Biblical proportions. The Santa Clarita Master Chorale at the College of the Canyons Center will perform Elijah, by Felix Mendelssohn, for the Performing Arts, Sunday, March 18, 2007, at 3:30 p.m.  A pre-concert lecture by Artistic Director Allan Robert Petker will be at 2:30 p.m. Felix Mendelssohn was hailed as a second Mozart for his musical gifts.  Like Mozart, he also died young, at the age of 38.  He wrote and premiered Elijah in 1846, shortly before his death for an audience of two thousand.

Research shows that Camcorder tapes last only 12 Years on average.  DVD is the best solution for preserving your irreplaceable memories.  Did you know that your home videos are only expected to last about 12 years?  Imagine the disappointment when you attempt to watch your wedding video on your 15th anniversary only to find out it’s ruined.  If you are like most camcorder users, you’ve probably noticed that your older tapes are fading away, don’t worry, now you can insure that your memories will be available for years to come.  Transfer your tapes to DVD.

Glenn Marshall loves cameras.  No, really, it’s not just that he loves them, but, he loves the history and evolution of them and collects them with a passion some might find a slight bit fanatical.  With more than 250 of them in his collection, including some rare ones that date back to the 1800s, he talks about them like they are his own children.  His knowledge of the history of cameras is broad.

The Aktion Club is a newly chartered community service club and is providing adults with disabilities an opportunity to develop initiative and leadership skills to serve the community.  So far, 27 charter members are active and membership continues to grow.  In December, the club provided two huge baskets of food for needy families in the Santa Clarita Valley.  Future projects may include working with seniors, park clean-up and helping with other community projects.

As business owners for 26 years, we really appreciate representing our gallery as a dealer of The Greenwich Workshop.  They operate their art publishing company with the highest integrity and service of all the companies we have ever worked with in the art business.  Scott Usher, President of Greenwich Workshop, really takes care of his art gallery network and insures that we get the highest quality art to offer to our customers.

Congratulations to Crystal Moore of Canyon Country.  This stunning image of her youngest daughter, Bailey is a sight to behold as is the fact that the butterfly seemed to be posing for the photo.  Moore said it followed her daughter around the front yard and waited until she went...

If your could only hold and see your loved one’s hands forever, hmm, there’s a novel idea.  But, how is that possible?  
Valencia entrepreneur Lisa Brewster has it covered, in clay, that is.  Brewster makes handcrafted ceramic impressions of hands and feet for newborn babies all the way up to seniors.

Since weddings all begin with the engagement ring, Ginger has helped with planning thousands of weddings.  One day a customer told her she should be a wedding planner. Ginger shares her knowledge as a complimentary service to her customers.

You can get out of the laundromat faster now than ever before.  Some laundromats can get you in and out in four minutes and that’s pretty fast.  And some are super easy, offering washing, drying and folding services.  Now you’ll reclaim your weekends.  It’s the fastest way to get your weekly laundry done.

Have you ever heard people say, “Where have the years gone?”  We all are growing older and have so many memories to preserve. Family, friends, teachers, coaches, they play such a significant role in our lives.  So why not scrapbook your memories?  Many people are afraid to try this hobby because they feel they just are not artistically inclined.  However, in today’s scrapbook world many companies have taken the intimidation away.

God vision?  Got vision?  Or is it both?  Got God vision?  Some of us don’t even bother to ask the questions and that can be detrimental on two levels.  First, a life lived without vision is destructive.  Proverbs 29:18 says, “Without vision, the people perish”.  Other translations suggest “people are unrestrained”.  The idea is simple, human beings were created for a life bigger and more significant than we can imagine and a purpose larger than ourselves.