A Break In The Clouds...

...at last!!A whole day without any rain!!
Couldn't have picked a better day either as Anna & the girls came over today and the girls got to burn off some energy out on the trampoline :)
The day was spent doing all many of girly things...the obligatory 'show' (Cinderella this time!), drawing, playing on the Wii, dance routines ...you get the picture!
So whilst the younger ones amused themselves the kitchen was taken over by the scrappers in the house....except I only have a small ktchen table so whilst Anna & Em used that, I was relocated to the kitchen work top!I worked on a present for my sister-in law, a canvas with a pictuer of the girls on.Anna very thoughfully bought her Doodle templates for me to borrow and I am in love.Here's a sideways sneak of it, I hadn't stuck the photo down at this point!
We also had time for the customary photo shoot, can't wait to see some of the ones Anna got of the girls :)We handed over the cameras to Holly & Izzy at one point...maybe not such a good idea judging by the photos they took!
We also swapped pressies (I got a yummy Reeses's Nutrageuos bar!) and traded stash - love having a scrapping friend to split packs of stuff with.
We sadly waved off our visitors at the end of the day and can't wait for the next time!

Yum!!

So with the weather being so horrible all weekend, yesterday we resorted to an old favourite - making bread! The girls love pounding it and using the cookie cutters(!!) to make shapes.So as we have no out door pics for the last few days, here are some bread ones! The pic of the bread was taken this morning when the sun was streaming through the window...just before it started raining again!
We did manage to get out for a little fresh air though - yipee!
On Thursday we have Anna & the girls coming over - which is causing much excitemenet in this house ! Bedrooms ahve been tidied and the kitchen table cleared.Just need to buy Anna a jacket potato for her lunch (to be washed down with Hazelnut Galaxy!) and I am done!
Right off now ! catch you tomorrow :)

Week 34

...is now live! Here's mine in full :)I went for the 'clean & simple' approach this week,rather than rummaging around trying to find more to add to it! And I'm happy with it which is what matters most :)

So, my supplies this week were
KI Memories True Love papers
Bazill spotty brad
Lil Davis ric rac
Autumn Leaves Doodle tag stamp
Scalloped bazzill (I think, Anna gave it to me!)
Heidi Swapp letters
Sharpie pen
chipboard flower covered in KI
Photo was taken by Holly in the garden last week.Don't you just love what a six year old can do with a Fuji?!
I am really making the effort to wade through all the KI paper I bought when I first started scrapping.love love love it!
Yesterday I actually got some new papers - woohoo! I ordered some of the French Twist range from Craft Obsessions.I am so happy to finally also have my Repo Herma full again...I am lethal with DST!Also placed a little order at First Class Crafts too for a few bits that I am in 'need' of;).And Anna has some goodies for me that she has ordered on my behalf! And that is my stash budget gone for this month!Well almost anyway!
It hasn't stopped raining here today at all...grrr! Hoping it will stop a little bit tomorrow or I'll be tearing my hair out! Today has been spent food shopping and mooching about the house (lots of Wii-ing and surfing!), finished with a bath and freshly painted toe-nails! Feel better for that!

Just wanted to say a huge thank you to Anna too for the photo she got of me last weekend.I really don't enjoy having my pic taken (as she found out!) so I am so pleased with this one(And the rather gorgeous layout with it on!)

Two to 'Go'....

Finally manged to finish off my 'Go' layout for the prompt on 'One Little Word' Still feel it needs something else...but my enbellishment collection seems to consist of flowers and not much else! I used Basic Grey Phoebe papers,Stamps Away alphabet stamps and Heidi Swapp letter masks.

The other layout I finished is for Anna's Celebrate Women prompt :) Anna has become the most amazing friend over the past year...I can't really imagine not knowing her now! She is always there for me whether I just need to 'borrow' some cardstock or am feeling low.Thank you hun - mwah!xx

The weather has been a bit nippy here today, though I still made sure the girls spent most of the morning out in the garden! They were happy enough playing on the slide & trampoline until the usual arguments which ended up with them both back inside!Tried to have a photo session with them as I need a photo for a 'project' ,which didn't prove easy! Em's face 'dropped' between every shot and her smiles didn't quite look that genuine!

Fancy joining us?

Fancy a chance to join us at Pencil Lines? If so check out the blog for a special announcement!:)

Here is my sneaky for this weeks sketch....I think poor Anam is probably in shock that I have managed to get it to her early!;)I am not known for my promptness....!

Today I am celebrating no grey hair..well for a week or so anyway until it starts growing again! Had my highlights and 'inbetween the highlights' colour done yesterday.I would share a photo but Holly's David Bailey skills were somewhat lacking yesterday and I just cannot do the at arms length self portraits!

Had a quick chat to Lyzzy today after she kept texting me - you mad woman!Go check out her blog for her fab layout in answer to Anna's Celebrating Women week :) I honestly have started a layout for this, just not got it finished yet!

No real plans for the weekend..all depends on the weather...

Annie...I confess...I have broken into the M&M's...and polished them off!

Sneaking this on..

..because I've actually managed to do a card in it's 'proper' week!
Here's my card for Emily's 'Change' prompt this week.It's a bit messy looking, but I'm trying not to be so 'clean'! I have used the quote 'I am a work in a progress' as I am trying to change a few things , but it is a progress...was never going to be a 'quick' change!!
I have to go and put away all my scrapping stuff now as I've even managed to get my Pencil Lines layout done too, then off for the school run.
But I will be back later with some exciting Pencil Lines news (go check out the site if you don't want to wait!)and a sneaky of my LO :)

How straight?!

Had to carry out an emergency fringe trim on Em yesterday...and I'm actually quite impressed by my hair dressing skills!She has a school disco tomorrow and wants her straightened for it.The only problem being that her fringe was so long it would have been down to her chin if I'd straightened it as it was!
Today was weigh day and woohoo, I made a dent in my 'need to lose' amount! I just have to keep going now....
The weather has been gorgeous today .It was lovely to just sit out in the garden with the girls after tea (well, I sat, they ran around!)Love this photo of Holly's Crocs! Just took this of her when she wasn't posing!

I still have no creativeness to share, hoping to get something done tomorrow before I go to the hairdressers.
Right, I am off for now.
Hello to Alison if you read this!! Yes, I have been brave enough to tell a real, non- scrapping person that I have a blog.So now I'll have to watch what I say! :)

Sweet treats

So today Holly had her promise ceremony and is now officially a Rainbow! Try as I might though, I cannot get Jo's words out of my head...Big Mac & Fries!! She enjoyed herself and came home very hot & tired.
The cakes she iced yesterday smelt gorgeously yum and were so bright I had to take a photo! (I'm sure she'll thank me for it one day ;)

And I completely forgot to say a huuuuge thank you to Annie who sent me this lovely package of goodies through the post! They are stashed away in a cupboard for now but everynow and then I hear them calling me!
Hoping to get the layouts I started yesterday finished off sometime this week (before they join my opile of half-done things!)And I still have loads of Emily cards to catch up on too....

Cropping Day

Today I had a day 'out' and went over to Anna's crop :)I will readily admit that I am rubbish at crops! I never know what to take, I take too much, forget what I meant to take...you get the picture?! We finish at 4 and I usually get going at about 3pm! So today I came away with three haf-done layouts...which is pretty good for me :) Whilst there I helped Anna sort out the kits for a very special sponsored sketch that we have we have coming up on Pencil Lines in a few weeks.To say I am excited is an understatement....we have some fab goodies to 'do our stuff' with!
Week 33 is now live over on Pencil Lines.Our guest desinger this week is Jo-anne teRaa.
Here's mine :)
I used Basic Grey Gypsy papers
Heidi Swapp acetate hearts
Heidi Swapp chipboard alphas
Punched and doodled on flowers
Stamps Away journalling stamp
Stamps away stitching stamp

Tomorrow Holly has her promise ceremony at Rainbows :) She spent this afternoon icing cakes with Geoff , to take with her for the 'celebration' Yep,we will all be there and the camera's coming too!

Happy sunshine!

What a difference a bit of sunshine makes! I spent this morning doing washing, hoovering and getting the house straight for the weekend and I actually enjoyed it! Once all was done I settled down to watch the final episodes of Grey Anatomy series 2.Now, I knew it was weepy from what I'd heard other people say...but OMG!! I howled!! And stupidly enough, I wasn't expecting that as an ending!Sigh...now I want to watch it all again...just as well most of it's been taped over, I'd get nothing done!
I also finished off the two layouts that I started yesterday.I'm not sure about the one of Em...think it needs something else on it, but I'm not sure what? I couldn't even think of a title for it so just went with 'e'! The one of Holly has been done using the Fancy Pants Kewl class kit from the Scrapping Angels retreat, love the colours and they matched Holly's top & skirt perfectly.Sadly I don't seem to have overcome my habit of putting a huge flower on every layout....:(

Healthy eating is going well so far this week - a snack size Galaxy Ripple only has has 4.5 syns ! Hallelujah!
I still have my Pencil Lines sketch to do for Sunday , so if you see me here tomorrow - shout at me!
And one last photo for Anna.... check out the length of those stems ;)

Blast from the past!

Trying to catch up with Emily's prompts and have managed to do the 'bedroom' prompt one :) We have had several hideous bedrooms due to moving quite a bit, the most recent horror being the red glossed walls in the maisonette we lived in three years ago! However, my most remembered room(especially by my family!) will be the first decor I chose when we moved in 1977 :) I chose some lovely (!!) jungle wallpaper, covered in lions , tigers etc with a blck background.And for the shelving unit that my Dad constructed I chose a delightful shade of lime/Kermit green called Jitterbug green.Yep, you can just picture such a wondrous combination can't you?! Sadly , by the time I out grew this combo, I had grown tired of the jungle animals and gouged most of their eyes out!! (it was backed with polystyrene stuff)Gosh, I'd be horrified if my kids were to vandalise their rooms such a way now! So there you have it, my truly unique 70's bedroom memories! I painted the card with acrylic paint and used a Heid Swapp mask for the flower.Sadly I have no pics of jungle animals to add more authenticity to it!

Rainy days...

..mean play days! As it has chucked it down nearly all day the girls resorted to playing Twister this afternoon.Now this is not your new Bratz or Tweenies version..but my original one from when I was their age! I checked the box...and sure enough - 1977!! Don't you just love the picture of the perfect 70's family on the box?!
Week 32 is now live over on Pencil Lines so don't forget to go and check us out! Our guest designer this week is Fiona Beckman, winner of the Scrapbooking Magazine's Scrapbooker of the Year competition last year.
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My scanner hated this layout but Anam has done her best to return it to its natural glory!
I used
KI Memories paper
New Angel Kiss flowers
Heidi Swapp spotty ribbon
Heidi Swapp chipboard alpha, inked,Mod Podged & sprinkled with glitter!
Doodlebug rub-ons
Stamps away journalling stamp
various brads

Nothing much going on here due to the rubbish weather! Went to visit my Mum again this evening and she is much better, though not sure when she will be home.She has the misfortune though to be right next to a woman who never stops talking .Believe me, I have heard about all her bowel movements over the last couple of evenings (not by choice!)and it's really not nice!
Back to our normal school routine tomorrow ,though I do need to try and get Em an Orthodontist's appt as her brace has suddenly gone really loose.
And Annie...I've just finished off the last of the Reese's pieces...;)

Oh and Jo? Will you be updating your blog soon? Pleeeease?!

Just popping in...

...quickly, will update properly tonight!

For Lyzzy, the beach pic is of Filey Bay, the end where our holiday park was.And full marks to Shirl..the sand pic is indeed me, seen through Holly's eyes!
And apologies for deleting all Lyzzy's lovely comments, I thought she'd got her buttons stuck!!

Back later!

I'm back!!

We arrived home from our hols safely this afternoon!

As expected the weather was pretty rubbish but we managed to get everything done that we'd planned.The main object was to visit the places that Em missed out on by missing the school trip.So on Tuesday we pounded the streets of York, taking in the Jorvik centre,DIG , the Shambles , York Minster...and a fair few shops too!I tell you, I have realised this week how much I love my Crocs! So much walking, and no aching feet at all :) Plus I managed to get Holly's pink Mary Janes.I'm still thinking they are too big but her toes were coming out of the holes in the size below! We returned to York yesterday to vist the National Rail Museum and to see Cliffords Tower.

Much as I enjoyed it I am glad to be home...you really cannot beat sleeping in your own bed.

This evening I have been visiting my mum in hospital as she has had a shoulder op today:(

I'll leave you with a couple of photos from this week :)

Yum yum yum!!

Have to share this pic of my treat I picked up yesterday! When we were in Watford we came across a shop called Sweet Heaven..selling Reeces Pieces - drool!! I quickly grabbed three packs (though had I realised how expensive they were it would have just one!)Now I have to make them last..and last....
Week 31 is live over at Pencil Lines , and here is my layout.
This week I've used this months page kit from scrapping Angels.Everything you see is in the kit, plus I still have loads of scraps left over, as well as brads, cardstock , patterned paper and ribbon that I haven't even touched yet! Oh, I used one of my own punches to cut the blus flower from cardstock in the kit :)The papera are from the Tres Jolie range by My Minds Eye.
I also used
Stamps Away alphabet stamps
Freestyle alphabet stamps
Banana Frog dotty swirl stamp

We got a Nintendo Wii yesterday - woohoo! I can't believe how knackered my arms are , but all that boxing must be toning my bingo wings!!

Tomorrow we are off on our hols so I will be having an internet free four days...I am quite ready for it!So please try not to miss me too much and I will be back to bore you at the end of the week!

Oh..and the only thing I am guilty of is waiting for a CJ to arrive home...just incase you were wondering...

Well, what a surprise....

..after how many weeks of sunshine it finally decides to cool down just days before we go on holiday!! Grrrr.... We are off to a Haven park in Filey for a few days next week.Whilst there we will be visiting York, and doing all the things Em should have done on her school trip! But as we have never been to that area before, if anyone knows of any 'must see' places please let me know! More importantly...are there any stash shops I can sneak into?!
Just been pottering about today, strimmed the front lawn and cut one of the back garden hedges.The girls (and Geoff's!) veggie patches are coming along well now, we should have a little harvest of beetroot, lettuce and carrots!
Pic today is a sneaky of my Pencil Lines sketch for this week, done using the new monthly kit from Scrapping Angels :) Just need to add something else to it before it gets emailed off!
With such a fab response to this years Scrapping Angels retreat Anna has already booked the venue again for next year, woohoo!
Tomorrow we are going to do a bit of clothes shopping for the girls ,though I'm thinking maybe I'll be packing more of the winter clothes for next week! May squeeze in a visit to Poundland to check out the chipboard and we're also in search of kids crocs.I've managed to get Holly a pair , but I'd forgotten what shallow feet she has, they really do look like boats! So I'm thinking I may have to try and get her the Mary Jane style instead.
Right, I am off to stare at my layout a bit longer and wait for more inspiration!

Just for Anna...

...I am updating!! Now you can stop nagging me woman!!
So...where to start?! As I said in the last post the Scrapping Angels retreat was a HUGE success.I am so pleased for Anna after all the hard work she put in to make it all happen(even if she does always nick my words and use them as her own!:).And somewhere along the way I have given the impression that I am organised (thanks Jane!!), could someone pass this info on to my DH please?!The charity auction raised a fantastic amount for the very worthy cause of MS.Must have been the oh so graceful way Helen and I paraded the 'goods' on offer!:) Check out Anna's blog for the grand total (and again she hasn't given me credit for the photos...;) )
Anna, Annie and I found a fab place by the lake for a little photo shoot, very 'under the boardwalk' like.Love the pics I took of them both .Also have to share the fab photo Anna took of us when Geoff and the girls came to pick me up on Sunday.Photos of the four of us are very few and far between!
Louise and I took full advantage of the wonderful puddings on offer at the hotel (you were such a bad influence on me!)Annie I spent Saturday night at Anna's where we polished off the evening with a glass of wine and a good old girly gossip! Thanks to Peter for my yummy breakfast of peanut butter on toast Sunday morning!
Cannot wait to do it all again!
I have so much catching up to do...haven't blog surfed for ages or done my Emily cards either :( Hopefully I will get a chance to get some bits done later in the week.I also have a rather yummy Scrapping Angels kit to use too *insert big smilie here*
Right I am off to copy photos onto discs and draw up a list of terms & conditions of employment for Anna ...so that she can pay me overtime and holidays....:)

Phooey, the pics are all over the place and I don't know how to move 'em!