Sneaky Peeps!

Bad Girls May kit goes live tomorrow......this kit will be a must if you wanna play along with something the DT have up their sleeves for the end of the month ;)

Just to wet your appetite here are a few sneakies of the 5 LO's I created - there's still more to come but that's been kept safely away from view until the big day!







J's still not well - he has this nasty viral infection that's doing the rounds....poor lil chap is looking so pale and totally listless. We have watched St Trinians this morning whilst snuggled on the sofa. Its such a funny movie but I really don't get the attraction for Russell Brand - ewwwww....he's 'orrible - or am I missing something?????

Have fun.

T.x.x.x

Fond Farewell.

Funerals bring forth such a mixed bag of emotions.
Obviously there were tears as the congregation stood to say goodbye to a remarkable lady, but there were also heart warming moments - moments when fond memories came flooding back and bought smiles to the faces of those who had the pleasure of sharing their lives with her.

Listening to the vicar give his sermon really set off some thought provoking thinking's in my mind - the Vicar said when he had seen Grandma, shortly before her death, she had told him she wasn't afraid to die because she knew she was moving on to a better place.......how reassuring that must have been for her - to really "know" and believe 100% that there is something else after this life.....I think I believe that there is - but I don't "know" with as much conviction and surety as I would like - this is defiantly something that has been puzzling me for a while now.
Having been bought up to "believe" and spending most of my younger years as a very active member of church life, I guess Ive kinda always thought I "knew" - but now I'm not so sure?????

After the church service, which was packed out with standing room only, we met up with folk we haven't seen for years and shared a tale or two - Grandma was a very much loved and respected member of our community and I know she will be missed by many - especially her family.

RIP Minnie - rest well.

T.x.x.x

Monday!

Hubs has been busy all weekend redecorating our living room.....we were not so keen on the colour we had painted it once we had our new furniture in place - so it was back to the DIY store, where we spent far too long deciding on a new colour scheme.

Finally we decided on classic vintage tones to compliment the 600 year old exposed beamed ceilings and stone walls......we want to achieve a warm rustic feel to the room, so have opted for antique cream with splashes of mossy green and rich ruby.
The colours have really pulled together well and the room is starting to look a lot like I had envisaged it would.

We found the perfect curtains and other soft furnishings before finally hitting an antique store to grab a few old bits and pieces to complete the look we wanted to achieve.

Whilst Hubs has been busy painting I sat and played with May's Bad Girls kit which is sooo colourful and crammed packed with some pretty amazing finds - one of which is just perfect for me to create something little that will sit perfectly in my new living room!


Its been good for us to keep our minds busy over the past few days - with the news of two recent deaths, its been quite difficult for both Hubs and I not to think about all the loved ones we have lost. Losing people you love is always difficult - my dear old Dad always said that when he passed away he didn't want us to cry - if we cried then we were crying for ourselves and for the things we didn't do when he was around - I guess in some ways he is right but 10 years on I still get teary eyed when I think of him and wish he was here right now to see his Grandchildren....what I would give just to have just 5 minutes to chat with him right now :(

My arm is no better and after spending Friday afternoon at the hospital it seems surgery is the only way it's going to get fixed....apparently I need a new elbow, so its on the waiting list for me!
I'm so sad that I couldn't make it to the Scrapping Angels retreat - this arm of mine wont let me drive atm :( I've heard the retreat was fantastic, with great classes and lots of fun.....just wish I had been there myself :(


This is one of the classes I designed using some fab black cored chipboard (which I happened to find in my local craft store), along with Prima and Hambly goodies - all bound together using a Bind it All - Debbie taught the class on my behalf - so BIG thanks to Debs.x.x.x

Best go and sort J out - he is home from school today with a icky bug :(

T.x.x.

MIA.

With family stuff going on I've not had much time to blog this week.
Its been a busy and emotional week.
My arm is not getting any better - in fact its worse than ever:(

It is with great regret I am unable to make it to the Scrapping Angels retreat this weekend :(
To say I am gutted is putting it lightly.
Thankfully one of my scrapping pals has stepped in and will be teaching my classes on my behalf - so the delegates still get to play with a bundle of Prima and Hambly goodies I used for the class kits and will be taught by a super douper teacher too :)

I just wish I could be there but sometimes you just have to be sensible and do what you know is the right thing and at this time my family and friends need me more than ever.


RIP Grandma.
T.x.x.x

Productive!

We have had a rather productive weekend with lots of jobs ticked off our "to do" list.

Saturday saw the start of me reorganising my stash - I made so much mess in doing so but now everything is sitting just where I want it to be and I "found" some bits I'd bought back from the US that I'd forgotten about!!

Halfway through my stash sorting I got a call from my local craft shop to say some items I had been waiting on had arrived - so off we trotted into town to go collect them - whilst wandering through the town centre we decided we would go and take a look at a independent furniture store - its nice to window shop eh?

We have been "looking" for a new sofa for such a long time and after finally finding one about 8 weeks ago we thought the deed was done - the new sofa should have arrived last week but no sign :( After contacting the store we were told there was a slight problem (insert major muck up!) and our order would need to be cancelled and then re-ordered!! 8 more weeks of waiting....er I don't think so - we cancelled the order and started our search again.

So, we entered the local shop - I was thinking that there was no way we would be able to afford anything, as the store is - as J called it "very posh"- we spotted the sofa we wanted and nearly fainted when we saw the price - £300 less than the original sofa we had ordered from one of the multi nationals! Not only was it cheaper - but it was a better quality too!

Our old sofa was passed on to a local charity on Saturday afternoon - so we are bean bagging it until later on today when our new furniture arrives :)Hows that for service? No 8 weeks waiting when you shop local - thank you Banburys :)

After our trip into the town centre we headed to the garden centre - having been totally inspired by Rachel and Ann - we have decided to grown our own! J and I have planted up tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, beans, lettuce, courgettes, parsnips, carrots, spring onions, pumpkins, peppers and chillies! I'm just hoping we manage to keep them going and have something to harvest in a few months time!

Hubs went out with J yesterday to stock up on more "grow your own" supplies - and J came home with this little pressie for me

Sunday saw more tidying and reorganising of the house and stash - and J planted up some more seeds! He keeps checking them every 5 minutes to see if things have started to sprout!

Our mates called round to see us and shared brunch whilst Max enjoyed his little session on the quad. He made us all giggle when he asked - " Does Santa have a big enough sack to fit one of these in, Dad?" - Bless.....I gotta scrap that page for him!

The quads have been such a huge success with the guys over this past holiday - hours of fun have been had by all and they are sure to get plenty of use during the summer months.

J and his quad featured on my Pencil Lines LO for this week. The sketch was created by Jana Eubank one of the winners of the Pencil Lines Sketch competition.

I used new release products from Piggy Tales - which are produced using recycled materials and Soy based inks - so what with growing our own and me using "green" scrapping products we are doing our small bit to save the planet!

T.x.x

Toot!!

The new DT have been announced on the ScrapDreamie blog - go take a look here and join me in welcoming Francine, Michele, Morag, Oddbjorg and Sabrina to the team.
:)

T.x.x

The Dress!

The guys school holidays are drawing to a close, with just a few days left before they return to the 7.15am alarm awakening! Its going to be a shock to their systems because the one thing I have learnt over the past few months, is that teen age boys do not like to surface before 11am at the earliest!

They trundle downstairs in a zombie like state - fill their faces with double portions of cereal - hit the shower and by midday have flitted off to spend time with their mates......returning back home for one thing only - FOOD!

Both have developed a huge appetite just recently and are thankfully experiencing a growth spurt.....being small in stature Bobs is a little "hung up" about his height and at this moment in time wants nothing more than to be tall like his Dad.....I remember back to Hubs teenage years and can recall him being a tiny tot, but in the space of twelve months he shot up to being over 6ft tall - there is hope for Bobs yet - although Ive told him not to worry - size after all - does not matter LOL!

So with the guys off gallivanting with friends I had some time on my hands.

There was no better way to spend an hour or so than with my pal helping her select her wedding dress!

Decisions, decisions - with so many dresses to chose from I thought she would be forever searching for "the one" - but thankfully the very first dress she tried on fitted like a dream with only the minimal alterations required - I wish I had her figure - she looked simply stunning!

Like most brides - she looked like a fairy tale princess and I can't wait to see the look in her intended's eye when he sees her walking down that aisle for the very first time.

As her beloved pops by to read this blog there is NO WAY I can share any images - tee hee sorry Tux - you will just have to wait until Sept. ;)

Scrapping wise I've been playing with some of the quirky Robotics papers from Sassafras for ScrapDreamie - you can see them here and check out the feature written by Mrs Sassy Frassy Lassy herself!

T.x.x

Even more Ouch!

Take one HUGE needle + fill with steroids + insert into elbow joint = MASS PAIN!

My silly elbow not only continues to hurt like hell but is now bruised beyond belief!

I'm back to see the Doc on Tuesday and if the swelling and pain haven't eased then the last resort is an op :(

I'm just so glad its my left elbow and that I am still able to scrap! I cant do much else - even lifting the kettle with my left arm is nigh on impossible - its a good job Hubs is around cus he has kept me topped up in the hot drinks dept :)

Ive been excused household chores - Doc's orders ;) - therefore my time has been spent doing what I love the most - messing about with the guys, catching up with my bestfriend down at the beach and planning her up and coming wedding :)

Oh! and Ive been playing with some pretty funky papers!

Hope your weekend has been fun.

T.x.x.x

Gah!

Struggling with an injured left elbow over the past few days has meant Ive not been feeling on top of the world.
It appears I have damaged a nerve in the elbow and need a lil op to correct it.
Sitting in the Orthopaedic Dept for 4 hours this afternoon was not fun!

To cheer myself up Ive decided to spend the next day or so planning a trip away with the guys and friends :D With the start of the summer season just a few short weeks away we want to get in early and bag ourselves a "quiet" weekend away and we know just the spot!
We found this little place a couple of years ago and love it - it has loads to keep the kids all occupied - but somewhere where us adults can chill out and enjoy time, kicking around doing very little apart from watching the kids having fun.....I'm really looking forward to going back there again and so are the guys :D

I've been scrapping lots just lately - having organised myself, I am now all up to date and actually ahead of scrapping commitments which means I can spend some time scrapping a few pages just for the hell of it - I want to have a lil play with some bits I picked up a few weeks back from our local arts and crafts store - nothing scrapbook related at all - but I thought they may be fun to use??? Who knows - I need to go experiment - if the arm allows!!!!


Have fun.
T.x.x

and they're off!

Get Ready - Get Steady - GO!

J got the hole shot - come on Bobs open up that throttle!

Hey! Bobs - take it easy boy!

Go! "Speedy" Go!

J's "Victory" wave!!!!!!

OHHHH! Someone threw a strop!!!

A major strop!!!!!!

On our walk back from the field J asked me if he could use my camera to take some photo's.








That boy amazes me with how at ease he is with the camera!
He has a project he wants to do on his favourite colour - I guess that must be yellow then!

I'll leave you with my Pencil Lines LO from this weeks sketch - the PP's and velvet ribbon are from Cosmo Cricket - the rubon from Daisy D's.
Kirsty took this photo of me last year - Ive scrapped it before but in black and white -

Ive set myself a challenge to scrap more with coloured images and its not as easy as thought it would be!

There are just a few days left for you to get your DT submissions in for the ScrapDreamie DT call. The team have been inundated with amazing entries from right across Europe - with 4 team spaces to fill the decision making is going to be tough. The team are looking to recruit scrappers with a wide variety of style - so please do try out - you may be just what they are looking for.
All info on the call can be found here.

Have fun.

T.x.x.

Poppin!

Ive been busy busying myself over the past few days with lots of family stuff so no time to get much done scrapping wise....with a few snatched minutes to spare I managed to get a LO completed - here's a lil sneaky -

I haven't shared my Bad Girls Layouts yet as the kit went live on the 1st April whilst I was away.....I loved the bright and cheerful colours of this months kit - plus the kit contained a sheet of eye poppin Bam Pop frames - which I just happen to adore :)

I'm enjoying some much needed family time and am being indulged with plenty of hugs and kisses after my time away.....proving that absence really does make the heart grow stronger.

We awoke this morning to a light scattering of snow - it vanished as soon as the sun began to shine, which was a blessing as we have planned to spend this afternoon making a quad bike track for the guys to go whizzin around.

I'm off to go take some piccies - have fun.

T.x.x