It's oh so quiet...

After almost seven weeks of school holidays ,I was finally home alone again today...it felt really strange! Whilst I was tempted to chill out and watch a film and do nothing, I got started on the boring stuff like hoovering,mopping and cleaning the bathroom :( There is so much that needs doing in here at the moment I thought I'd just start off with the every day stuff!

This is my Pencil Lines LO for this week, and I can honestly say I love it :) I have had the papers for ages, just waiting for that perfect photo, which came along last week :)

I used Basic Grey Sugared papers & brads

Scenic Route letter stickers

AC Puffy thickers

Petaloo flowers

Martha Stewart butterfly punch & border punch

Kaisercraft pearls

October Afternoon stickers

The stitching is hand done, hence why some of it looks a litle bit wonky !

Last night I have to admit I was asleep within seconds of my head hitting the pillow,must have been all that walking ;) !! Yesterday was a fab day,I'm so glad I did it! My main incentive for taking part was to keep Anna company but I'm pleased I've managed to raise some money too :)
If you want to see our band of supporters all in orange ,check out the race coverage on BBC2 on BBC I-Player ! We found out that as I walk pretty fast anyway, Anna's running matches my very fast walk so I able to keep up with her when she ran the last k !! And I even managed a jog over the finishing line!! (And I'm pretty sure the photos of that are awful!!) We ended the day with a picnic by the Diana Fountain, where the girls had paddle to cool their feet down .We will be back next year :)

Fab day :)

And I even managed a short jog over the finishing line (I don't do running!!)
Back tomorrow with my Pencil Lines LO for this week :)

Today was Em's first day which meant that it was her turn for a photo shoot...much to her resentment!And it was time to take some of them both,though most of them are awful as Geoff was messing around and making them look all over the place!
And it's the weekend tomorrow -woohoo!
Tomorrow afternoon I'm taking Holly & her friend to see Hannah Montana The Movie (again!) as it's on at the cheapy cinema :)Then I need to do some serious catching up on the ironing and housework stuff :(...
Today I went and got myself some trainers for Sunday,so I think I am all ready :)Just need to try and remember what tube station we get off at! Holly is all excited already and has been wearing her MS tshirt for the last two days in preparation :)

That time of year again...

When the schools start going back and everyone has photos of kids in uniforms on their blogs! Same here too! Well, only one child as Em doesn't go back until tomorrow..

Here's Holly all dressed up and ready to go :)It was a bit dull and windy so my pics aren't great,fingers crossed for sunshine tomorow when they have a joint photo session!

And it's all official now. My MS t-shirt and sponsor forms arrived today :)

A little plea...

No layout to share today as it's my holiday week from Pencil Lines :) Business as usual next week!
Today we had a lunchtime bbq with my mum & dad.It did look as though it was going to be a typical English Bank Holiday this morning as it was very grey and drizzly,but it actually turned really hot and sunny eventually :)
The guinea pigs returned to their home this morning :(, feels strange without them out in the garden any more :( And I still keep looking out for dandelion leaves !
You may have seen on Anna's blog that I'll be doing the Womens's 5k race with her this coming on Sunday :) Now, I can asure you that I'm not running it!! With Anna's back pain, she has decided to walk it rather than run this year,which means that really I have no excuse for not doing it with her! So if you would like to sponsor me,please let me know (I haven't had my details through yet as I've only just registered) or please donate on Anna's page here .It really is a worthwhile cause :)

Tomorrow we are hopefully off to the zoo for a day out.Holly was supposed to have a sleepover at a friends house this evening but had to come at about 9.30 as she was sick, bless her :( She was so upset as she really wanted to stay and is now tucked up in bed ,fast asleep.Fingers crossed she just over did it and will be fine to go out tomorrow :)

Whizzpops and yum yums :)

Yesterday we went to the Roald Dahl museum and the above is what the girls had in Cafe Twit! the Whizzpopper was hot choclate with raspberry coulis,marshmallows and crushed maltesers -yum! And the yum yums were...yum! The museum was really good ,and I much preferred it to the Natural History one!! It is in a lovely village and as the weather turned warm we went for a walk up to the church to see the grave .The girls also went to story telling workshop whilst we sat and had a drink outside :) They came home with yellow ledger paper and 'special' pencils as used Roald Dahl when he wrote his stories :)



Today we have doing the 'boring' stuff ,like haircuts and food shopping! This rather lovely book fell into my basket while were out though,looking forward to making a few things from it!

Tomorrow morning we will be up bright and early as Anna is coming over and we are off to see Coraline :)
And I've just realised that I still have that delightful job of putting name tapes in all the new school uniform...joy!

Busy busy

Well sort of!
Yesterday we has a bit of a lazy day and had a bit of a lie-in :) Once up we went out to St Albans to get some paint for the bathroom as well as sneaking in a quick visit to paperchase :)
Sunday was another hot day and the girls spent the afternoon in the pool whilst I finished reading 'Confessions Of A Shopaholicc' :)
Today we all went to London to visit the Natural History Museum.The girls enjoyed it though it was very hot & stuffy and we came home with aching feet!Just as we started to walk home from the station the heavens opened and we arrived home very wet and soggy...
Tomorrow we being invaded by girls, Em has two friends round and Holly has one here too :) Let's hope it doesn't rain and they can go outside,as I think Holly is hoping to show off the guinea pigs!

This my Pencil Lines LO this week,my final week using MLS,as I'm having a holiday week this Sunday! I have lots of other scrapping catch up on though :)
I used papers from the Lucky range and Doodlebug Loopy Love letter stickers.
On Thursday we are hopefully going to the Roald Dahl museum and then on Saturday Em & I are off to the cinem again, this time with Anna :) I can't believe the holidays are nearly over again...:(

Lots of visitors :)

We have had a few visiotrs here the last few days:)
On Thursday we had the Bowkis family here for a BBQ :) Although the date was set a couple of weeks back, it was a bit last minute that it was going ahead due to the weather.anyway, we made lots of noise,ate lots and laughed lots:) I took hardly any photos and thos I did take I think Anna may kill me if I post!
And yesterday we took delivery of these sweeties :)

We are babysitting our friend's guinea pigs for the next 10 days,though I think the girls would be happy to keep them for good! They came out for lots of cuddles and pampering yesterday,so are probably are feeling a bit ignored today as both girls are out at the moment .I had no idea that guines peas ate so much or so many different things!Luckily I have been leaving the dandelions growing in the garden in preparation!

Enjoying the sun!

I'm still here! But with the mini heatwave we've been having and Geoff being home,I am in total wind down mood and blogging hasn't appealed..!

Saturday afternoon we went to pick Holly up from Anna's :) She had a fab time (including afirst aid lesson, Olympics lesson and a long walk round the farm!) and came home very tired,even having a sleep in the car on the way home :)

On Sunday I think we just chilled, I really can't remember! On Monday afternoon we went to the Claire's outlet in search of a Hello Kitty lunch bag for Holly,which we found ,as well as an HK headband and Em got herself one of their surprise bags with some really good stuff in it!Mind you,she did peer into few before choosing one!

And yesterday we had a lovely day out at Aldenham Country Park in Elstree :) They have the most fab recreation of Winnie The Pooh's 100 Aker Wood...I was in my element! I don't know how long it's been there but I wish we'd taken the kids there when they were smaller,the photos would have been so cute! I'm hoping we might go back in the October half term with it will be all Autmny and leafy :) There was also a huge lake to walk round,adventure playgrounds and a small farm.A bargain of a day out for just the entrance fee of £5 for all of us!

When we got home it so hot I actually went in the pool with the girls,not a pretty sight! I tried to get pics of them using the underwater cameras ,but that was easier said then done!

Today has been absolutely boiling hot again so we all spent the afternoon in the pool before em headed off to my Mum & Dad's for a sleepover :)

The Talent Show

Today we were treated to the Deacon V Bowkis Talent Show, a twist on the usual show put on by Em,Holly,Izzy & Lilly during our get togethers ! This time,they had been practising in advance ready for a showdown...Anna & I took our roles as judges very seriously(!!) and delivered some X Factor stlye comments and criticisms! We only agreed to choose an winner on the condition that there were no tears,tantrums or diva strops by the those who didn't win! This time the winner was Em,but no doubt we'll be having a re-match soon!



As per usual Anna forgot her camera today so not many photos were taken :( Holly & Izzy were happy to strike a couple of poses though :)


Holly has gone back to Anna's for a sleepover with Izzy.Despite a few tears when she left,apparently she was fine again within a couple of minutes :) I get the feeling though that she will be very tired when she comes home tomorrow!

Train ride

Today we went on a very short train ride (one stop!) to Digswell.The main point of going was that my sister wanted to take her daughters over the viaduct.Anyway, whilst there we decided to revisit our youth (and Mum's!) as my Nan & Grandad used to live there.We had a little reminisce ..only to find that the sweet shop (remember 1p chocolate tools?!)is now a floor coverings shop .We walked down to my Nan & Grandad's old house ,which brought back lots of happy memories :) I have some very old photos somewhere of me & sister on the front porch wearing winter coats and fur hats which would go perfectly with the new Little Ladies paper from My Little Shoebox :) Whilst part of me really wanted to knock on the door and ask if I could have a look in the garden I think I'd probably rather remember it the way it was... I did sneak a photo of the house though and the rusty old lamp post which is still at the end of the drive :)

On Tuesday we went to get Em's school shoes and got the last pair in her size! And then we went to see Ice Age 3 :) The kids have never seen so many films in one holiday!

Tomorrow we're having a visit from the Bowkis ladies :) And Anna is going to be taking Holly home with her for a sleepover with Izzy ! I'm sure she'll be fine,she's looking forward to a Rock Band session :)

And I'll leave you with a couple more butterfly photos as there were so many out there again yesterday :)

Rubbish blogger?!

Yep,that's me!!
Summer has returned the last couple of days and it's been lovely :)The pool has finally had some use,I think the girls have only been in it twice so far this year.
So,last week...just trying to remember what we did!
On Wednesday the girls went to Knebworth Park with my mum & dad and had a whale of a time seeing the dinosaurs,playing on the fort and having a train ride :) They arrived home very hot,sticky and tired!On Thursday we didn't do much and then it threw it down with rain from 5 o'clock onwards.
Friday totally confused me as Geoff was off and it felt like a Saturday! We went shopping for the few bits of school uniform needed in the morning.I have a gripe...why is it so difficult to find kids tights that fit?!In the afternoon Holly went to an activity/play zone place with a friend whilst Em had her best friend over and she stayed for a sleepover.Whilst they went shopping on Saturday morning Holly and I went on a bike ride round both lakes :)After lunch they all made the most of the sunshine and went in the pool, armed with their under water cameras!
Last night Holly had a sleepover at my mum & dad's house.It always feels weird when one of them isn't here!
The garden is still a butterfly haven and I have still been chasing after them with my camera (much to the kids amusement!) I got this photo whilst standing on a garden chair!

Today has been spent mainly in the garden :) I mowed the grass and then sat on a sun bed reading 'Shopaholic' ,whilst keeping an eye on the kids in the pool :)
Then this evening Em and I went to see 17 Again,which was fab:) I just don't get why people take such young children to see 12A films though...isn't the 12 in the rating a bit of a hint?!
And finally ,Pencil Lines is live ,with more My Little Shoebox loveliness :)I used papers from the Home Sweet Home range and a photo taken a couple of weeks back using the tripod and timer!

Bugs and beasties...

One reason I love the butterfly trees in the garden is that they attract...butterflires ! The last couple of years, we haven't seen that many,the peacock butterflies only seemed to appear a couple of days :( However this year has been better :) Last week and over the weekend we had lots of Peacock butterflies and Red Admirals flying around.They were pretty impossible to take photos of as the wind was blowing the tree branches around and most of my pics were blurry:(.I finally managed to get some okay ones when they settled on the less pretty things in the garden...like a piece of old wood, the blue sand pit and the sunbed!


We then had a visit from as whopper of a dragonfly.The photo isn't brilliant but you can get an idea of how big it was!

Who stole this week?!

I thought I'd blogged on at least Tusday...obviously not!!

So to catch up...um, I spent the first part of the week still feeling grumpy about the weather,the car and other things,that much I can remember! It rained a lot...or just looked like it like it was going to rain ...and then didn't...we resorted to making sock puppets out of old tights...both girls saw friends, we got Holly's school shoes,popped into town a couple of times...I think that sums up the week !

Last night Geoff and I went to a wedding reception of someone he works with.Let's just say that next time I will definitely eat more before I have a drink (or two...!) I'm obviously not as young as I used to be..and felt rather rough this morning! After a walk round the lakes with the girls and some Diet Coke I was feeling much better :)

At least I've been able to go out on the bike a bit more this week,as well as going out with Holly a couple of times :)

As the wether forcast hasn't been looking great,we're now booked up to see a couple of films at the cheapy showings :) Tomorrow we are off to see Bolt,then on Sunday Em and I are off to see 17 Again and next week we're booked for Ice Age 3 :) What's the betting the sun will now shine on all those days?!

This month on Pencil Lines we are joining up with My Little Shoebox ! We have their design team joining us every week this month ,we are all using MLS ranges and they are also sponsoring the gallery RAK for this month!

This is my layout using the Flawless range :) All items used are my MLS except the black alpha stickers which are Jenni Bowlin:)

I will try and come back tomorrow with photos of the butterflies in the garden at the moment :)

Bah humbug...

Is it possible to be bah humbug in the summer? Ah,but we're not having a summer ,are we?! With the exception of yesterday, fortunately for Anna & Peter! Yesterday afternoon we slowly made our way over to the Bowkis' residence.I say slowly because we were lucky to get there as the car was playing up :( At one point we were doing 30mph...trying to get up an incline on the motorway,not good! So sadly ,we stayed long enough to mingle a bit ,grab a burger and a brownie (or two!) and then head for home again,not fancying the prospect of breaking down on the M1 :( I didn't even get my camera out,so fingers crossed Anna's got some nice ones :) Car will booked into the garage asap...

This is my Pencil Lines layout for this week :) Love how black & white can make such a difference to a photo :) I love this photo but it has a really weird blue tinge to it in colour as it was taken early evening in the shade.

I used
Bazzill Kraft
Pink Paislee paper
Pink Paislee chipboard letters
MLS tiny aplhas
Pink Paislee brads & stickers
Prima crystal swirls
Tim Holtz tag
Angel Kiss flowers
Kaisercraft pearls
Polar Press rub on
MM clip

Romans,muffins and....rain :(

On Wednesday the girls went to the Verulamium museum with my Mum & Dad ,in St Albans :) They got chance to dress up in Roman style clothes ,and Holly made mosaic mask .Luckily,my mum took her camera :) They also had a picnic but they look frozen in those photos!

In the afternoon we made peanut butter & Chocolate cheekies,though they look just like muffins ...Despite putting the right amount of peanut butter in, they don't really taste that peanut-ty though :( Don't think we'll be rushing to make them again !

Yesterday afternoon it rained...and whilst it did the girls played at spies!

This morning we went into town and almost as soon as we got home ...yep it rained.I'm getting a little bit fed up with it now!So whilst it poured this afternoon,the girls had their nails painted in preparation for tomorrow...

Tomorrow we are off to the Bowkis' family bash late afternoon :) Holly and Izzy have spent ages on the phone to each other (who do they get that from?!) making face painting arrangements :) They also have some Hello Kitty tattoos to put on people for a small charge...all in the aid of charity of course! Holly was quick to name MS as her charity,Anna you've taught her well :) So keep your fingers and toes crossed that it doesn't rain tomorrow...please!

Good old English summer....

Oh yes...we have rain! Not really a huge surprise but it's so depressing! I want to sit out in the garden or be out getting some fresh air. There was a brief 5 minutes when the sun came out in the afternoon so we hopped on our bikes and went round a couple of blocks! The girls are still enjoying themselves ,despite the lack of being outdoors.This morning Holly decided to dry Em's hair for her and in return Em 'styled' Holly's hair ,adding loads of clips :) This afternoon they decided they wanted to do some painting.So while they did that I thought I'd try and tidy/sort the kitchen shelves where I keep my scrapping tote,tools and general 'stuff''.Oh my word...I must stop buying mini photo albums and books with a view to filling them /altering them !! It got to the point where I really couldn't be botthered putting it away,but I did as well as chucking out a few bits that have been hanging around for years.I'm now left with a tidy tote shelf and a basket full of stuff that I need to out away/find a proper home for.I'm getting there slowly though!


For some reason,Holly decided she wanted to make jelly during the holidays...not sure why! So yesterday I dug out the big Mickey Mouse silicone mould and we made the jelly. These moulds are not the easiest to use ...they bend!Anyway,we tipped it out onto the back of the chopping board..and here is our orange Mickey :) It looks quite small in the photo,but really it wasn't!

There were also a few beans ready for picking today so Holly went out to get them...in the rain :( Not sure how many more we'll get as the black fly seem to be munching most of the flowers :( The girls enjoyed them with their tea anyway :)

Schools out :)

Well it's been out since Friday but I haven't got round to blogging before now! (Stop nagging me Mrs Bowkis!)Anybody else having problems with Virgin Media? Our internet keeps slowing down to snails pace,after a while you just give up waiting for the pages to load!
So what's been going on....erm, summer seems to have done a runner,can we have the all day sunshine back please?! The washings been in and out so much today it doesn't know whether it's coming or going...
Em had a fab day in London and loved the London Eye :) Just a shame she tripped over coming out of the school car park on her way home and completely mashed her knee :(
Holly and I cycled down to the library so she could join the reading challenge, and she came home with two Roald Dahl books :)
Both girls finished early on Friday .Holly came home with a swimming certificate and a Golden Book award ,whilst Em got a certificate & badge for 100% attendance and a citizenship award for good behaviour :)
I am so looking forward to not having to make any packed lunches for six weeks! We're not going away anywhere but have a few days out planned hopefully for later in the holidays :) Just keeping our fingers crossed for some decent weather so that the pool gets some use and we go out on the bikes :)
This is my Pencil Lines layout this week :) We were sponsored by Upsy Daisy papers :)




All papers are by Upsy Daisy
Pink Paislee chipboard letters
Tim Holtz tag
Queen & Co felt
Kaisercraft pearls
MLS mini alphas

Catching up

..with a couple of things Em has been up to :) Last week saw the end of the Food Club she has been attending,run by sixth formers and meant to encourage them to try cooking more healthily.She came home with a folder of the recipes they have used.each page complete with a photo of her beaming next to a plate of whatever she had made! When another pupil commented on the fact that she was smiling in all her photos her reply was 'I'm a seasoned professional...my Mum's a scrapbooker...' !! She also won a Muffin recipe book as her team won the end of term quiz.I can see it coming in handy...!

Em also came home with a present for me,something she has been working on in Technology.She made me a lovely wooden pencil case,completely with an engraved pig! (I had to choose from a selection of designs!) I just need to find somewhere safe to keep it now :) Today she came home with another lovely wooden box compete with fitting lid, engraved with her name ,which she has made in her Technology sessions the last two days.I think she enjoys woodwork!)At least that's what it was called when I went to school!

Today I went over to visit Anna again as she's still off work :( We admired some very lovely scrapbook stash,and ate posh crisps and cherrries (not forgettting our tradition of chocolate croissnats for a late breakfast!)

Tomorrow Em is on her London trip and Holly wants us to cycle up to the library after school so that she can sign up for this years reading challenge :)

Ooops, nearly forgot,yesterday was Holly's sports day .Despite a heavy shower it went ahead apart from the final event (the relay).I risked being reprimanded by sneaking a photo of Holly...or at least I tried ,it's not eay to pretend you're not taking photos without them being out of focus!

Winding down

So this is it,the last week of another school year...hard to believe that Em has just about finished her first year at secondary school already!This week she has Enrichment week, where she gets to do workshops,courses and go on days out!On Wednesday she is off to the London Eye and the Science Museum :)
Tomorrow (weather permitting) is Holly's Sports Day.Though having just checked the weather report it looks like a no go!
Today we decided to delve into Em's savings account and invest in a new bike for her.Her old one is about the size of Holly's so far too small for her really! Can't believe how expensive some bikes are though! We've told Em this one will have to last her til she's in University!Anyway, we went out for a ride this afternoon though I think she regretted choosing a route with a hill in it!Hopefully we'll get out for lots of rides over the holidays :)

The girls have also been enjoying the pool and have spent the last two afternnons in it!Mad..it's not even been that warm!

This is my Pencil Lines layout for this week.
I used
Pink Paislee paper
October Afternoon papers
Prima Say It In crytals coloured green with a Sharpie pen
October Afternoon journsalling sticker
Baic Grey buttons
AC Puffy thickers

The Nando's van

Just a quick post as I need my bed!Nando's were at the Fun in the Park day we went to on Sunday and had this van behind their stand...love it!!

It rained

...a lot!! And I got absolutely soaked..twice! How come it always does it at around 3.15 too, just as school finishes?! Methinks we have cursed summer now by finally putting our pool up...!
Today I went to see as Anna ss she's still signed off work.We just sat on the sofa ,watched a film and ate lunch :)
Holly came home with lots of her school work today, including the moving monster she made...not quite sure where we'll be putting it,it's not small!
I'm off to bed as I can hardly keep my eyes open!

Country Dancing,Chico and a BBQ!

We have had a busy weekend here :)
Yesterday we went to Hatfield House for the Herts Folk Dance festival as Holly's school were taking part.It started off really sunny and hot but thankfully cooled down and rained a little.It was a really lovely day :) We all took picnics and sat on our blankets watching them doing country dancing and maypole dancing:) They learnt new dances,did ones they alreday knew, and danced with the other groups.At the end,one of the organisers asked one of Holly's teachers how she got them all to smile so much...it's probably because they all do it just for fun rather than being competititve about it like some of the schools/groups there!


We then went food shopping before coming home and putting the pool up:)

Today Geoff was working so the girls and I went down to the lakes where there was charity Fun in The Park Day.We got there early-ish as it was suppoosed to be opened by Chico from the X Factor a couple of years back.I don't know if that happened as it was pretty quiet there but we saw him talking to one of the sound guys so the girls went over and got his autograph and posed for a photo! We didn't see him again after that ,although he was due on stage at some point later in the day.There was loads going on,and the weather was beautiful.There were Butlins Red Coats there with Butlins characters,hence lots more photos!,as well as craft stalls,live bands, etc. We came home about 2.30 as Geoff was om his way home from work and the girls wanted to go in the pool once he'd sorted the chemicals etc! We finished the day off with a bbq - yum :)I worked my food off by cycling round both the lakes once the girls had gone to bed ..polishing my halo!!

This is my Pencil Lines layout this week.We were sponsored and got to use gorgeous 3ndypapir papers :) Loved these, and didn't want to cut them up!I also used
AC Puffy thickers
Kaisercraft Pearls
Basic Grey buttons
MM tiny alphas

Melting

It's been a bit hot hasn't it?! I know ,I know, can't please anyone .It's either too hot or too cold! Though to be honest I haven't found it that bad til the last few days when it's been so stuffy too.And the main problem is having to do stuff...if I had nothing to do and no where to go it would be great!

Poor Em had to spend yesterday at the local sports centre as part of National Sports week.To say she came home hot and thirsty would be an understatement!

Haven't much else to share other than this photo of the butterfly bush in the back garden which has just started flowering.This one is a real triffid having sprung up from no where a couple of years back.We also have another ,which is my fave as it is a deep purple colour but that hasn't flowered yet.

I'm still going out on the bike every evening :) It struck me last night though...it was gorgeous out there at about 8pm,warm but not too hot, a cool breeze...and I saw hardly anyone else the whole time I was out .Bit sad really as we're lucky enough to live somewhere quite 'pretty' and green.

Oh well, better go and do some boring housework I guess!

Shopping instead of cropping

Cropping would definitely have been the cheaper option!

I admit to having a bit of a love hate relationship with Primark...I love some of their clothes but I hate the fact that they hardly ever have anything in above a size 12! Em still came home with a few bargain t-shirts though!I also got Holly some gorgeous ginham tops from Debenhams,she looks like a cute little hilbilly in them!We also went into the Build A Bear shop ,where Holly got herself a Hello Kitty one with some money my Dad gave her.She wants to make new clothes for it during the summer holidays when she's at my mum & dad's :)We also took Em's bear with us to see if they could fix it's broken voice (she recorded her voice for it about six years ago!) ,but sadly tney couldn't :( They did re-stuff for it for her though! And thank heavens for re-sealable food bags...they are a God send when you have a Travel sick child!Say no more!!

This is my Pencil Lines layout for this week,usinga photo that Holly took last week :)

I used

Crate Paper

Scenic Route Sonoma papers (I LOVE them!)

Prima swirls

Basic Grey chipboard letters

Jenni Bowlin ticket

Martha Stewart punch

It's been way too hot the last couple of days and is set to hit the 80's here over the next few days! Last night we had thunder and lightening going on for ages..

Tomorrow I am off to see Anna ,a bit of a rare occurence these days!