Savannahrandons

12/30/24- Shortly after my last update, I went back to the hospital and was admitted this time. Drs found blood clots in both lungs. I was just released today. I am in poor shape folks. I do have some late swaps to get out, and you will hear from me this week partners. Please be patient with me, they will go out. Swaps that have a due date of 12/31 will most likely be late as well. I'm sorry, but totally out of my control. please pray for me and my family.

12/14/24- I am sad to inform you that I have had a medical emergency that has affected my mental health, my fine motor skills and speech at times. as i am sure u are familiar this hobby uses all regularly. I am going to have my son help me get out my current swaps that I was unable to drop from. As I am hoping to be well enough to participate again soon, please allow me to just skip January in participation. Thank you for your grace in this matter. I will check back at the end of the month with an update, unless done so earlier. In swaps from a due date of 14th dec and later, please be patient with me. I will be at the mercy of my teenage son's time to help me get everything out, hopefully on time. If late, u will hear from me. Thank you for your patience. PS - yes, the Drs think this could be a condition called Conversion Disorder, caused by among other things, Extreme Stress. It is treated with rest and medication.

11/21/24- I'm back from Mom's for now but honestly don't know for how long as she is progressing in this horrible disease. I will probably go back the end of December or beginning of January is what I'm thinking. I going to try and join a few swaps for Christmas cards. I'll see how those go before I add anything else.

8/18/24 - Well, I am back at mom's in VA. I've been here for 2 weeks now. Mom's cancer has progressed to the point that she needs someone with her at all times. I will only be swapping if I am required to do so to stay in group. Hope you understand. If you would like to send happy mail for me and mom, here is address: Katherine O'Brien 500 Big Forrest Court. Apt 421 Newport News, VA 23608 Send all mail to this address please. I will be here till Oct. at least. Thank you everyone for your prayers.

6/21/24 - I am so excited! One week from my big cruise!! I have stopped my mail as of June 26th so I will not be getting mail after that. I will rate what I have received up till then. We return on July 9th, with me getting mail on the 10th. As usual I wish everyone a happy swapping time.

5/29/24 - I am exactly 1 month out from going on our big 20th Anniversary cruise!! I have not been doing much swapping since I've been dealing with Joel's graduation from high school and getting ready for cruise - our ship is the Carnival Vista - and I can't wait!! So much to do before we go though so I won't be swapping at all till after the cruise. If I am missing any swaps, I will be notifying you this week. I know there are a few that I have let slide thinking I would get them later than never, but more than a month has gone by. And I am rating as they come in too, so not behind on that, just so you know. So if you have not been rated, I have not received your swap. Hope everyone has a nice start of the summer!! Happy Swapping!!!!

4/2/24 - Today marks 1week after Joel's emergency surgery to remove his appendix. He is healing well and resting comfortably. He is upset that he can't go skateboard yet, but he will live. Thank GOD!! It could have gotten bad very quickly.

And, we just got the estimate for the necessary repairs on husband's car. Tomorrow will be 1week since attempted theft of car occurred. $1870!! Our deductible is $1000 so my swap budget will be affected for a little while. Just means I can not participate as much as I would like, but I will still be around.

2/04/24 - I am current with everything right now including rating and sending. I wound up sending 1 swap, a postcard swap, out late by 24hrs and I am sorry for that. It cost me the opportunity to join a very nice monthly swap that sounded like a lot of fun. One of her pre-requisites was not being late on any current swaps, and she was pairing up her swap the day after my postcard swap was due, so she banned me, rightfully so. There are always consequences to your actions!! But I do feel some lee - weigh is earned sometimes. I mean, life just got in the way!! With dealing with my mom's cancer stuff and my houseful of boys, I had too much life at one time. I really enjoy swapping and hope to never be late again, but to say with certainty, I can't. Call me a realist if you want, but it's the truth. I can't predict the future and tell you that life won't get in the way again! But, what I can tell you is that I will try harder for it not to happen again. You have my word!!

1/11/24 - I just got home from my mom's house on Sunday. (Today is Thursday) Sad news though, and this is part of why I stayed longer. She had an apt with her dr on the 4th and was told that she has lung cancer. We don't know all the particulars as of yet. She is due to see the pulmonologist on the 17th and the surgeon on the 27. As you can imagine, this was not the news we were hoping to get and it has taken our breath away. I am coming home to a house that has not had a woman's touch in a month and it is going to take me a bit to get it back on track. I have a stack of about 40 envelopes to go through from swapping. Please give me time to do this. I am not even going to try before this weekend. I promise I will rate when I open up your envelope. Since I am going to rate one at a time and in no particular order, its gonna take me a minute. I appreciate the patience ahead of time. Happy New Year everyone!!

First off: please message me if a swap you are waiting for has not arrived! the postal service is doing their best, but I'm still seeing quite a few delays and undelivered mail. I am happy to send out new stuff/replacements ASAP, as long as you let me know!

47yrs old Christian woman, married to the man of her dreams (literally met on a blind date), and the mother of 2 wonderful sons, ages 23 and 18. Only have the 18yr old left at home, but that is enough. He just got his drivers license, ugh!! We have 3 dogs - Mr. Poe who is a 7yr old chiweenie. Katie who is an 9yr old chihuahua terroir mix. And last but not least, our gentle giant, Dobbie (named after the house elf on Harry Potter) who is a 20yr old wire haired terroir mix. I'm a stay at home mom, but that doesn't mean I stay at home! LOL! I volunteer at my local church every Tuesday for the food pantry ministry. I am also the Programs Manager for NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Health). I coordinate and lead support groups, education classes, set up informational tables at local events (to help spread the word about mental health awareness), and many other duties. Between these two projects, my personal health appts, and keeping up with the house - I am one busy momma!! I live for the call of the weekend when I do most of my crafting and swapping.

I thoroughly enjoy country and christain music. I can tolerate most anything else except opera and classical. My youngest listens to rap and that gets a little rough to handle sometimes, especially with the language and all. That's when I tell him to put the ear buds in!! Favorite country artists would have to be Garth Brooks and Reba for older stuff and Jelly Roll and Luke Bryant for newer stuff on the country music side. No favorites in the christain music arena as I like it all really. Well, gospel and hymns can be tough to follow, but still like them just not as much as contemporary.

love murder mysteries, especially those with a medical or legal theme to them. Really like the kind that you start and can't put down until you know "who done it"!! Fast readers work well with my short attention span. I don't have a favorite author as I will read anyone. Some author's I have read in the past are Iris Johannson and Tess Gerritson. Also love James Patterson's legal thrillers! He has some page turners.
If you are looking for a good book to read, I just got done reading the following two. Fast paced, page turners they were!! Most Wanted by Lisa Scottoline - about a couple who conceive a child using a sperm donor only to find out that he may have been a serial killer. They now need to find out for sure, but who to turn too?? Then.... Catch Me by Lisa Gardner - about a single woman who thinks she is going to be murdered on January 21st of the new year. Which happens to be the anniversary of the murders of her best friends. She gets a homicide detective involved in trying to solve her murder before it happens!! I read this one in a week!! Currently reading The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay. A little different than what I am used to reading, but I like it. Hard to explain, you will just have to look it up for yourself. If you like psychological thrillers, than it will be right up your ally.

NCIS, CSI: Vegas, Law and Order (any of them), Bull and 911 are all great choices for me. I also watch the Chicago series on NBC, but not as faithfully as those listed previously. Just started watching the new Quantum Leap. I love it!!!! Star Trek and Dr. Who are always great Sci Fi choices. Crime Drama shows are a great bet too! Shows like Forensic Files, 48 Hours, 20/20, and Dateline are awesome. Anything on Investigation Discovery Channel.

I currently am into papercrafting. Mostly ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) and greeting cards. I have been making ATC's since 2018 and trade them all over the world on Facebook. I make greeting cards with a group of lady friends. We get together twice a month at someone's house. (a Stampin' Up demonstrator). That is the only time I make greeting cards as I only work on ATC's at home. I have a feeling that is going to change as I sign up for swaps, but I'm ok with that. I have my own craft room, which I love. I still overflow into the living room by a lot!! LOL!! I have an extensive acrylic and rubber stamp collection. Almost a bookcase full of bins and binders full of stamp sets. I'm always on the hunt for the perfect stamp set because I can only use stamp images that fit into a 2.5" x 3.5" space (the size of the ATC). I also have an extensive collection of dies for my Sizzix Tim Holtz Vagabond electric die cutting machine. I also us a Brother Scan N Cut machine which I use to cut out my stamped images quickly. You could also say I collect stationary items such as note paper, postage stamps, and pens. Kinda goes along with the papercrafting I guess?

love Taco Bell, any mexican food in general really. I used to get the tostada, but they don't have it on their menu anymore. Was just there the other day and they have brought back the Mexican Pizza, which is close so I'm happy. Favorite drink would be Mountain Dew Baja Blast Zero. Mountain Dew Code Red and Venom are awesome choices too! Ok, I see a theme here. Let's just say any Mountain Dew flavor will do. LOL! Favorite sweet would have to be chocolate of course. I mean, what girl doesn't love chocolate? Skittles, Starbursts, jelly beans (any kind) and Sour Patch Kids (any flavor) are great second choices. Favorite teas include cinnamon and chai, but like fruity and mint too. I do not like Earl Grey tea or Breakfast tea.

curling up in my lazy boy chair and reading a good book is always fun. I can get lost for hours this way!!

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2Q4ROUSJX7CTH?ref=wlshare/ (Amazon Wishlist)

Postcard Likes: Harry Potter, Disney, Coca-Cola, weird in some way (ex - 3D, odd shape), oversized, cows, cats and dogs, any animal really except those in dislikes, ocean and related (beach, shells, lighthouses, etc.), floral, poetry and quotes, recipes (food and drinks), fairies and fairy tale related, holiday related, inspirational, map cards, greetings from...., cruise ship cards (going on first cruise 6/29/24), holiday (any)

Postcard Dislikes: advertising, bugs and insects, snakes, anime, coloring, homemade (unless swap calls for it), gothic or dark themed, day of the dead, a card where there is so much info on the back that I can hardly write a message

Misc. Likes: Purple, blue and teal, hot pink are my favorite colors. Stationary, post cards, ATC's, lace and trimmings, buttons, charms and other small embellishments, writing pens of any color (really enjoy gel pens), tea (really like chai, plz no Earl Grey or Breakfast), religious items are welcome, journals and notebooks, pins of all sorts (the kind that go on a backpack, youngest collects them), stickers (especially the 3D ones), ribbon, murder mysteries, cows (black and white preferred) , cats and dogs (really any animal, NO bugs or insects, NO snakes), wallpaper samples, printed paper (small prints for my ATC's), Steampunk items, Disney items.

An extra list of things you can send me that I’ll love -Alice in Wonderland stuff -bath and body stuff -journals -purple things - washi tape -stickers -handmade things -pretty cards/envelopes (handmade are welcome) -post cards -inspirational items -art -ephemera -acrylic and rubber stamps -pretty postage stamps (used or new) -note/writing paper -mail art - seahorses - bee items- letter sets, mug rugs, murder mystery book

Misc. Dislikes: playing cards, hot chocolate, used postage stamps unless pretty, fabric scraps, unlined stationery, reward stickers, goth items, ATC backs, foam stickers, stuffed animals/creatures (only on here b/c I got one once, smh)

Wish list: stickers or labels with the swapbot envelope guy Ernie on it. I can't make them myself and can't find where to buy them, so I thought I would wish for them. :)

(copied from someone else's profile, but it put my words down exactly the way I feel) just an FYI... I truly enjoy the art of swapping. I always take the time to read my partners profile and see what I can create for them & what kind of goodies they like. Even when it’s “sender’s choice “. I always try to tailor my swaps to my partner as best I can. I want my partner to be really happy when they open my mail 🙌🏼🥳 I put a lot of time and effort into my swaps. I prefer quality & thoughtfulness over quantity 🙌🏼 thanks in advance :-)

I mark swaps sent AFTER I officially drop swap off at my post office.

I RATE my partner as soon as I have received their swap. I would appreciate the same. If you do not rate me, I don't know you received your swap.

I am very proud of my 5 rating!! I won't do anything on purpose to mess that up. So, Please contact me if you have not received your end. I usually send out my end of the swap prior to the due date. I will resend if necessary, but give it more than 2 weeks to get to you. My mail goes down to Jacksonville, FL before going anywhere else. I know, messed up system. But it its what we have to work with so please be patient.

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Last updated December 30th, 2024