12.31.07
Happy First Blog Birthday!
Some time last December I started a wee blog over on Blogspot. It was a result of finding out a friend was blogging and was part of the Daring Cardmakers Team.. I had to have an ID in order to leave comments. I started it off thinking who on earth is even going to know I’m here?!
Well, since then I’ve posted stuff – both inane and otherwise – for just over a year. And in that year, I’ve joined a couple of forums, and even become part of a card sketch team. But most of all, I’ve made quite a few blogging buddies.
It’s been an amazing journey in virtual land over the past year. One that has allowed me to make – and meet – some very amazing people. I would never have thought some crazy, semi-journal, self-publishing thing would have ended up in very real friendships. I hope to meet a lot more of my blogging buddies in real life – but most of all to enjoy those virtual friendships made already this past year.
Happy First Blog Birthday to me! 
Mini Update 00001
Hmmmm …. does that mean I have a 5-fugure amount of updates? Probably not – or maybe I do… Depends on how much of the old Verbal D* I end up with I guess!
Ok, so blah blah – you know I was not feeling great leading up to Christmas. I seriously hate being sick and it was no fun seeing all the Christmas spirit passing by. I LOVE getting into the groove – and really resented that I really did not have the energy to make something special happen for the family this year. Still, I got better and I’m sure there is 1001 people out there with real hard-luck stories so it’s time for me to just suck it up and get on with stuff.
In amongst that nonsense, I got an envelope a couple of days before setting off to the Coromandel. Inside was one page…. with exam results.
I passed both exams!!!!!
Yippppeeeeeee!!!!!!!! does not even come close to expressing the total relief and pleasure that I felt to see the two “PASS” indicators beside each subject.
Turns out the one I was totally convinced I had crashed and burned in, I got a pass slightly better than a mere scrape. Only by a couple of percentage points mind you – but something nicer than merely the 51% I had been hoping for in my wildest dreams.
As for the second paper – the one I thought I had actually done pretty well in – Huh! I didn’t do quite as well as I thought I had. Hmmm on that one. Maybe they did what I wished they could do: take the extra marks off that paper and transfer them to the one I was sure was failed! BUT it was a pass nonetheless. I’ll take that.
So four from four to date and next year I’ll be doing the last two papers.
12.30.07
Ok, I’m Back!!
Just a quick post to let you know that I am in fact alive and kicking.
I really got knocked around by that nasty old virus – it definitely took a couple of weeks out of the energy levels and that wasn’t such a good thing leading into Christmas. I was still suffering a couple of days into our getaway to up north!
Anyways, it’s all good now – and there are lots of updates!! I think I’ll post little short ones over the next few days so you don’t get bored reading one big long one! But for now, the Mr’s are scrapping it out downstairs (after a fractious journey south the last couple of days!) so I think that is my cue to get back down to them. Sigh! 
Brotherly love, eh?!
12.13.07
Oh It’s Christmas?
Are you sure? Not feeling it just at the moment.
Could be a lot to do with the fact some virus bug has taken me down the best part of this week. There is so much I need to do before we head off on our christmas break. After being in bed for the last 3 days, being up and about today is firstly a good thing. But a little weird too: I’ve discovered being upright is a little unsteadying!
Have a feeling that I’ll be taking it easy over the next couple of days. The fact that there is 1001 things to be done …. oh well, some of them will get done. Some won’t. I guess in a glass half full kind of way, I’m really glad the bug took me out this week and not next week. I’ve had to rely on some good friends to help me out with the Mr’s – so glad good friends exist!
This morning I headed uphill to Mr 3’s preschool. Realising I was a little dizzy still, I was grateful for the fact we really are only a minute’s drive away. {sorry planet – today I couldn’t have managed our hill without the carbon emissions!} I had completely forgotten that it was the preschool’s christmas party. Luckily the head teacher reminded me – and said not to worry about bringing a plate as there were already plenty. So I popped back for the 10.15 kick-off. This scrapbooking mum completely has lost the plot: I forgot my camera. Well, actually “forgot” would imply I even thought to bring it in the first place. I didn’t! I got a few photos on a friend’s camera – we’ll see if they are any good.
The adults were ushered into the main church room, and then the kid’s were brought in through the middle to be lined up on stage. Some were gorgeously dressed in festive dress-ups. Then we were treated to a few christmas songs, complete with actions. Now, I am completely hopeless with estimating numbers so if I say there were around 40 kids there might have actually been more – or less. But you get the idea. Theses kid’s are all aged variously between 2 and 5 with the vast majority aged around 3-4. Can you imagine trying to get so many to learn the words and the actions to 4 different songs? Well the lovely teachers more than managed it – the kids performed beautifully! It was so cute to see them all concentrating and singing so well. These weren’t the traditional carols either – so it was really neat to see them performing. And in turn you could see the kids were all so very proud of themselves. Made me so glad that I could get there this morning. Okay, maybe I do feel a little christmassy afterall!
12.10.07
Elfed!
It had to happen!
I’ve had a giggle on the various Elves that have been popping up over the last few weeks. Then on checking a certain email account, I found this in the mix! Thanks K! ………… I think!
12.06.07
December 6th Card
Here’s my little card for Di’s blog this week.
I love how the patterened paper sort of looks all warm and faded…. still in Christmas tones but not quite – makes a good summer card methinks!
What I didn’t like is that my sheet of rubons (deja views) got pushed around on my desk (grrr! by a little Mr 6 who wanted to clear some space so he could play an online game….) That meant they have been sitting in the sun for a few days. Made the rubons really hard to rub on. More like rub until it kills you! The stamp is an inkadinkadoo one that I picked up last year. I love the stylised look – and it looks great all embossed and shiny gold!
I used: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey patterned paper, Deja Views rubon, inkadinkadoo stamp, encore metallic ink, embossing powder, faux stitching
If you take a look at some of the other cards made by the girls, one was made using ricrac in the place of the sketch’s scalloped edges. I was thinking of doing that, but found I didn’t have the right colour or sized ricrac for my liking. (I know! my crafting buddies will no doubt be surprised to hear my ribbon collection does NOT cover all requirements!) So I used the faux stitching… my current favourite technique! Saves me hauling myself up to the sewing machine!
From the “Exciting stuff in my life” file, I am having so much fun zipping around in a brand new SX4. I’m loving it! Sadly I only have it for a few hours while my Hyundi is with my mechanic. We have taken one of these peppy little numbers out for a test drive before (while we were dreaming of the kind of car that we would like to replace our current number 2 car).
I say dreaming as while we would very much like to have a bit of bling with our wheels, our abode requires a “bit” of maintenance. And as such it will chew through the dollars first. Sigh! So, sometime next year, we will be trawling through the imports and the 2nd hand cars instead. But for today, I can zip me and the boys around in a little bit of style and enjoy the keyless entry, the nice stereo, the cupholders being “just so”… you know: all the totally pointless and irrelevant but Oh-So-Nice things in life!
And if I win Lotto then I can run and buy me some bling! I must remember to buy a ticket one day.
12.05.07
Can someone please throw the pause switch?!
Mine seems to be stuck on fast forward! I swear I’ve blinked and the last couple of weeks have disappeared!
Because we are going away for Christmas this year, I have part of my brain ticking over the things that need to be organised and that we will need to pack. Somehow that has not really connected with the fact that this trip is really only 3 weeks or so away and at some point there is going to have to be a move from planning to taking action. Maybe it’s this glorious weather that is to blame. I think my brain has already taken off on its summer holiday!
Today Mr 3 and I went along to the last music group of the year. It happens to be the very last music group that we will attend because Mr 3 will be starting Morning kindy at the beginning of the new term. This Wednesday morning activity has been a much loved part of our lives for pretty close to 5 years now. Firstly with Mr 6, briefly with both Mr’s and now just Mr 3 and I. It’s things like this that mark the changes in our lives and makes you realise that its not only the days and weeks slipping by far too quickly, but the years as well. I’m still double checking on my fingers to work out how long we have been there because it really doesn’t seem it could be that long. But it is!
Some of Mr 3’s buddies still will be going for a bit longer. And I love the companionship and the lovely coffee (not to mention the totally yummy baking!) so I might just have to pop in every now and again for catchups! Because it was Christmas and because it was officially our last time, Mr 3 wrote his name on some cards and we baked some star shaped shortbread yesterday. Mr 3 handed a card and a package to each of the three women that take it and was so pleased with himself. It was nice to be able to give even a little token of how much we have appreciated this group.
