Beginning the year as I mean to go on

Throughout the year last year, I knew I wasn’t doing as much scrapping for myself as I wanted. There are lots of stories and lots of photos that I really want to get in and play with. When Hubby asked me the other day “what did I want to do before going back to work?” my first thought was – “Something crafty!”. Luckily for me, the weather conjured up some great indoor weather – how else can you look at wind and rain in what is meant to be fantastically gorgeous summer time days???

I gave my space a bit of a shuffle (I can’t say “tidy” cos that would be lying! That is another job for another day!!) and created some space at my little table. The first thing I did was get a card out of the way which has been in my head – I don’t know any babies about to be born as yet, but this will come in handy once I do!

Then I headed to Harvey Norman / Norman Ross (side bar: why do both stores exist in the same building and attempt to compete?? I know they are owned by the same people so I just don’t get it!!) Norman bet out Harvey’s VIP price on enlargements, so I did my printing at Norman’s for a change. I needed some 8 x 10s for the school photos as I decided finally, I really needed to get started on the Becky Higgins School Years kits that have been waiting for me to do something with for at least 18 months if not longer! I’ve been collecting items from the Mr’s from their pre-school activities and popping them into the provided pockets but hadn’t actually scrapped any photos. I have now! They might be basic (very basic), but as a first dip of the toe back into scrapping, the pages were just what I needed.

The kits are definitely American with “Grades” instead of years, but I figured I can make this work with a bit of good old Dymo.

Mr 8 in Year 3,

Mr 5 in Year 1.

A little planning on what I need to do for the other pages is needed but they will get done before the end of this month. Then I just need to catch up on the rest of the pre-school items like kindy and the like and I’m up to date on these albums! Great because that will keep me motivated for the upcoming years. Despite being stung on the shipping price (the kits themselves were awesome value – plus it was even better at the time because the $NZ was really good!), I’m still pleased I got these kits. It’s going to be fun to have something simple, cohesive and all-encompassing of the Mr’s school lives at the end of however many years I’m looking at!

Once these were done, I had the need to break out my new Circle Scissors (new in the Stampin Up Summer mini… there’ll be more about those over on my SU blog: Kelly’s Stampin Spot if you want to take a look over there in the next few days and weeks ). There was also a challenge on Scrappin Patch’s forum (to use a frame of some sort) so I ended up the day with this next page.

I felt like this was a pretty good haul for someone that hasn’t touched her scrapping supplies for many (too many!) months. It certainly made me want to keep up with the urge to scrap so I have a feeling there is likely to be more pages being done over the remainder of the year! I’m determined to get more of our stories told as well as keep up with the other crafty urges I’ve unleashed through ’09!  Plus, it felt oh-so-good to dive back into my underloved stash of scrapping goodness.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed that little tour of scrappy goodness. I’m off to fold some washing so that maybe I can get another little project started before I go back to work tomorrow morning!

PS – for those of you that are interested in Stampin Up goodies, there is an Inventory Clearance Sale on at the moment – until 24 January, in fact. Click over to my SU blog, and check out the Current Specials image. Click on that and it will take you to the file with all the goodies in the sale – some of the sets are up to 50% off. There’s some great Alpha sets perfect for layout titles at just $46 (half-price) and then there is the awesome value “Wonderful favourites” set – 23 stamps for just over $35. (This set in my view was way under-priced to begin with, and now at the sale price, it’s incredible value.) This last set is a great one for all kinds of family members on your layouts and helps make great cards.

I am, of course!, happy to place an order for you if you are interested in any of the items. Just send me an email and let me know. I’m looking to place an order for this sale 14th January, and then any last minutes orders on the 24th.

So it’s about time!!

Time I posted something on here again I say! Can anyone believe it is June already?? This really has got to be the fastest every year to date!!

So, I’ve been busy in real life – um, that really does sound like a theme for life right now doesn’t it??! Since making the decision to become an SU demo, I’ve been almost attached to the phone to Keryn asking this, that and the other thing. I’ve promised her family it will get better!! I had a wee moment of panic as the starter kit was delayed in Auckland thanks to a broken Courier Post label machine…… the fact it already has an address label on it didn’t seem to be a good enough reason to just continue the journey ….sheesh!

So workshop preparation was a little anxious for a while – I did however work out what I was going to be able to demonstrate instead and put together the samples while Keryn was coaching me through the various points of doing a presentation. The actual “First Workshop” was on Thursday night, and I would have to say, proved to be happily successful.  That is based on the sales, the bookings and the total raucous laughter that ensued throughout. The laughter I think was not at the samples or the demonstration itself, but a reflection on the fun ladies that attended. Awesome time.

So now I have that wee milestone under my belt and am looking forward to that being finalised and onwards and upwards.

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It was school photos yesterday. The Mr’s were turned out in their *Good* clothes – a smart shirt and new jeans. Hair was brushed and pushed around so it was Just So. Mr 5′s class was the first one up and it was done right at the start of school time. As I made a last minute decision to get a sibling shot as well, I was still hanging around. Mrs E spotted me and said, come over and watch. So I did. Man. School photos are still done exactly – EXACTLY – as they were when I was a kid. Lined up in height order, pushed quickly into place by the photographer. The benches even looked the same. Apparently the firm doing the school photos round here are the same ones that have been doing the school pic since the ’50s. Scary – but kinda cool!! It’s the son doing the task now. Oh, and Mr 5 is in almost the same spot I used to be put into – one of the middle rows, at the end.

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I realised the other day that as the year is speeding by I really haven’t been getting through those crafty projects I have all waiting for attention. I’m hoping that I might be able to rectify that at some point this week. Time will tell. One thing I did get a 20 minute spot to do though was make a card for a friend. Specifically it was because she is one of my first hostesses. But really, it’s because of all the little things she does – mostly listening to my at times incessent chatter! – and well, because it was fun to do something right now:

And it was fun to use the latest Mojo Monday card sketch from Julee. I so love her sketches and with all the cards I need to make over the next month (so many birthdays, babies, stuff coming up!!), I think I’ll be using several of these sketches.

Oh, and because I wanted to be a bit clever, I even decorated the inside of the card:

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OH! The new neighbour baby: it’s a boy, Arthur is his name. And he’s sooooo cute! A was in hospital just the one night – I’m always amazed at this, especially for first time mums. Only because I am such a wuss and quite enjoy the *holiday* hospital stays entail!!

A little bit of news

Thanks to my total addiction to papercrafting and the great special price to join the ranks of Stampin’ Up, I officially became an independent Demonstrator earlier this week.

I am really excited by this venture because I know it means I get to meet other people that enjoy cardmaking and scrapping like me – and as a bonus I’m hoping I might even be able to pay for my own addiction……

Anyway, so I can keep this blog filled with  my usual goings on for family and friends, I’ve created a separate blog that will be dedicated to all things Stampin’ Up!. You’ll find all the news and creations associated with my SU venture over there at Kelly’s Stampin’ Spot. And just so you don’t need to go hunting around for this post to get that link, you’ll see I’ve already added a nifty wee link over there -> on the right.

And in amongst the insanity

There is a little normal life continuing in our household as I tick off items on the To-Do lists heading towards “The Party”. For instance, Janine hosted a small crafty get together for a few of us over the weekend. So nice to actually scrap something. Not that I’m going to show you guys right now, because I kind of like it a lot, and I’m thinking when I’ve done the journalling, I might even have a go at submitting it somewhere. Possibly.

But some cards I’ve done last week, I will show you. Because my camera battery was finally charged and I took some photos! Firstly, I’m very pleased with this very pretty card I made specifically for our neice K over in the US. She’s been feeling more than a bit poorly after being hit with a cold and various compounding infections. We hope she’s feeling better very soon. Actually, I’m only going to pop the sneak-peek here….

And then I made a card for Keryn’s latest colour challenge. Actually, she made it really easy for me to do. Having meant to take part in her challenges for a few weeks now, she got exasperated with me and handed me the cardstock scraps when we got together on Friday night. One way to make sure I do something right, huh??! LOL Considering I was putting this together in 10 minutes before I left Vicky’s house as I felt it was getting late, I’m quite pleased with how this came out. The colour challenge was Close to Cocoa, Sage Shadow and Barely Banana with a neutral.

While I was downloading these photos off my camera, I also realised I never even mentioned something I did way back at the beginning of February. So I’ll quickly share with you now.

Feb 3 was my Dad’s 60th. My brother suggested I fly down and surprise him and we’s all go out to dinner together. It worked really well – he had no idea. My sister had arranged to just come out and meet up with him, so when he saw me, the surprise was evident. In fact his first words were when he saw me was “Bloody hell! If I knew you were coming, I’d have cleaned up a bit!”. Sis was a bit miffed at that!

He had taken the day off work at the behest of Little Bro and was just pottering around his place. While he was off getting a shower and a change, Sis and I mooched around his place. It’s the first time I’ve actually seen it since he’d done quite a bit of work on it. And while I laughingly call him the newest “Trailer Trash” I’m actually very impressed with how homely he is making his pad.

He’s added on a full lounge and ensuite bathroom as well as that verandah. Plus he has cobbled the side drive and has a workshop and vegie patch out the back. Not too shabby!! Although my sis might have something to say about being caught in the photo

And a little later on that day, we wound up at the West Coast bar and cafe for dinner. It was the biggest, juiciest steak I’ve had in a very long time.

And hte cake featuring stuff that Dad is:

And then having gotten over the party fun and goings on, mid February saw Hubby and I get some quality time by leaving the boys at a neighbours for the afternoon, and what turned out to be longer part of the evening than anticipated. We took the bus ride over to Martinborough, and the return journey was late departing as we seemed to have the most concientious driver in the fleet who wanted to ensue no concert goer was left behind. but apart from that little glitch, we had a fabulous time. Where? Here:

That’s Opshop up on stage and along with Anika Moa and Dave Dobbyn provided just the best summer concert in a very long time.  We saw them at Alana Estate in Martinborough, the day was nothing short of perfect, the food on offer was divine and yeah, we had a great time. If you haven’t already been and they are coming to your neck of the woods soon – go!

Happy 9th

It was Hubby’s and my 9th Wedding Anniversary yesterday. We celebrated a little…. I bought a lovely pair of gold earrings for hubby to give to me, and a wee box of chocolates for him. Having looked up the sorts of gifts typically given, I see I haven’t gone for the tradition (pottery or willow) or modern (leather). I prefer gold anyway

This is the card that I did…. very pleased to be able to use a new stamp (the heart) from a Sale-A-Bration set I got my hands on this week. Really enjoying the craft cardstock too – why haven’t I used this more before now??

It’s the dining room light making that red look more orange, so I took another picture too without lighting. It was so dark around here yesterday with the rain. We needed it for sure, but really…. it was just bucketing. Dead on school pick-up time too. Funny that.

And that wonderful blurry look? I picked up the other camera and forgot to check its settings. It was still on macro. Bummer!! LOL Nevermind. Hubby liked the card and the chocolates and thought he had remarkably good taste in jewellery. LOL

And as well as enjoying a lovely indian meal and some bubbly a little later on, I’d also enjoyed the company of girlfriends in the morning. How much better can a day get??

Right, now to get my A into G. There is a layout sitting unfinished from last Friday night, and a few more besides I’d like to get on to. It feels good to be creating again.

I’m on holiday already

…. or my brain is at least! I keep writing these fantastic, funny blog posts in my head. And then promptly forget to actually come and type them up. Something to do with the weather I am sure of it… it’s simply too much like holiday weather to be getting things done.

I’m almost done with the christmas card making. I’ve started writing in them. I’ve finished the newsletter – and have started to print them as needed. One teacher’s gift has been made and given. I’ve thought about the baking I was planning on doing. Might still do some – gingerbread men I think.

The best thing so far is that I am really looking forward to Christmas this year. I feel really excited about the Mr’s ripping open their gifts (far too many of them because I have gone a weeeeee bit overboard this year!) This is such a far cry from where I was at mentally and emotionally last year. When mentioning this among friends last week, one was kind enough to point out that I’ve done a bunch of work to make it so. But while that may well be the case, I also think it helps that I’m taking pressure away by not worrying about what I should be doing….. taking the time to enjoy what I am doing.

Like the Christmas in the Park in Avalon over the weekend. Totally fun for the kids – and great to see it making a comeback (it’s been a few years between drinks). Left my camera at home though… so hoping that some of Hubby’s cellphone pics will do the job.

Like lunching with Beverley, Sarah and Janine last week. Then going to a crop in Otari the next day. Spending time on Friday night with other girlfriends, having enjoyed a family night of dancing and sausage sizzle.

In amongst all of that, I have been creating. Mainly Chrissy cards. In one of two designs. This second design is pinched from Sarah….

So very, very simple to do. Yet so very effective, don’t you think? Sarah, the wonderful girl, even lent me the stamps and inks to recreate the look myself at home.

And while I’m showing some of the creativity going on around here, take a look at these little goodie bags….

Little 3″ totes, just perfect for holding some notecards, or little gifts of appreciation. Plus ultra quick and easy to do – just what you need at this time of year! Take a look at this tutorial if you would like to see how easy it is to make one for yourself.

Verve is making it too easy!

I’ve alluded to the fact I need to get a move on with my Christmas Card production before. Well, now I’ve finally got started.

I knew I had tons of bright red and green that I purchased last year and probably some even the year before. However, with stuff that was going on around about this time last year, I just wasn’t in the headspace to do the cards. This year, I’ve been wanting to do it, but felt guilty at having stuff that no longer appealed to me, but also knowing that I really, really should use what I had.

Then Verve announces it is having a release party for some new seasonal stamps this coming Sunday (=Monday at 2pm NZ time). Fellow craft and blog buddy, Sarah is a guest designer this month – and that alone made it a little more exciting. And then….. Julee from Verve goes and designs a bunch of sketches for us all to take part in the release party. Cool!!

Especially when they are as cool as this:

Ummmmm!!! Can you say “Mass-production-perfection!” faster than me?? I don’t think so!

So I made a start. And the sketch is pretty darn perfect for that paper that I wasn’t so thrilled to be using. Now, I reckon they’re looking pretty good!

Now I will manage to create several more of these and then I will get to play with some new stuff and some new designs. What more could I ask for?? How about another 4 sketches – because that is what Julee has up her sleeve. Wooo-hooo!!

General card details: Cardstock from Timbral’s; PP – Doodlebug or Pebbles Inc; Ribbons – Stampin Up or other; Stamps – Stampin Up or Verve; Ink – Whisper;  Accessories – Stampin Up tag punch, kindy glitz, foam dimensional adhesive

The world keeps spinning

…and the days keep passing. I am ALWAYS amazed at how quickly time can pass. Especially when you have 101 things you want to get on and do and somehow not enough hours in the day to achieve it all. So, it’s been a busy week around here. Mostly just recovering from those exams. I’ve been surprised at how tired I’ve felt in the week to 10 days since they were done. Apparently I was running on adrenaline for a good month or so before hand and now that has all left, drained was what was left.

Instead of leaping into all the planned projects I had in mind, they’ve been started in a more piecemeal fashion. Which is OK, because I get to enjoy doing things slowly. And enjoy the fun of being in the moment a little more too.

Moments like creating stuff for Beverley who has a birthday coming up – AND a scrapping retreat in Aus. How cool is THAT??! I’ve given her the bits and pieces already, so I’m going to share here:

I know Beverley likes her birds, so I just had to use the Always birdie – and I really l like him in the Sage Shadow colour! The sentiments are Verve – I’m totally in love with their sentiments. Very much not overly mushy but still lovely. They have a release party coming up next week – and I think a little birdie may have shown me some of the new sets….. totally lovely!!

First use of Silver bells Glimmermist. Such an easy way to pop a bit of shimmer and glitz on a project. The ribbon was certainly celery – and in my mind’s eye it was not quite working with the colours. So I sponged a hint of sage shadow on it and it worked. But you know what?? Certainly celery and Sage Shadow DO work very  nicely together – check out the wintergreen paper collection in the Stampin Up catelogue!

I’d purchased a few charm squares of cupcake fabric for my gift (another of Beverley’s loves!). I had popped out to Sawmiller’s Quiltery in Upper Hutt (that is a whole other post in itself… the yummy fabric, the amazing quilts…..!) and the bag was perfect as the gift bag. So I added a few touches and there it was.

Having done a spot of crafting in order to prepare, I was looking forward to getting together with the girls at the James Cook. Sarah and I took the car in – so easy to get to as it is right off the motorway. So hard to get out from – for four hours it cost us $34!!!! Daylight robbery. Had I known that, I would have organised to take the train – or even park in a completely different place. But because we were doing the High Tea there, it made sense to park there as well. Not again!!

A sample of the High Tea – and it was delicious!!

The birthday girl – arranging the composition of her photo. This is why I’m a snapshotter rather than a photographer!!

After enjoying a good old catch up and chat and food and endless cups of tea and coffee, we walked a few of the calories off by wandering around the Kirk’s christmas shop. Birds are everywhere this year!! I bought a couple of gorgeous red, feathery fellows for my tree.

The following day was the 31st – Halloween. This isn’t something that I’ve really got into before, but after the party our neighbours had last year, the Mr’s were totally looking forward to it again this year. L wasn’t up for organising a huge bash again as she had a new baby. However, it wasn’t going to get overlooked and we did a much smaller scale thing. Pizza and beer (yum!) for dinner, a couple of mates dressing up and a spot of doorknocking. The kids loved it – and got an amazing haul. The neighbours were very generous – and some got into the spirit of it all by dressing up, or making hte kids do something.

The first time they were asked what was their trick, they were stumped. then Mr 7 decided he had the perfect trick. Ear farts.

Yes, really.

The kids all thought that was fantastic so he got to perform the trick over and over. And over again.

Is that a genetic thing? Boys and fart noises from any part of their bodies??? !

The H’s.

Trick or treat! Mr 7 was a vet, Mr 4 was a sparkly wizard. See Mr 7′s pet carrier? He managed to persuade people not only to pop items in his trick or treat bag, but also into his pet carrier for Rusty pup. Hmmmmmm.

Baby L was also dressed up in her pram as a fairy – totally cute as a three month old. I was a sparkly witch with a sparkly purple hat, and not to be left out was Angus, the pirate dog!

Krafty Verve challenge

A couple of weeks ago, Verve started the September parade challenge, which was to do a card featuring natural elements like Kraft card, or twine or somesuch. Knowing I have some new Verve goodies, still to be inked, I thought it would be a great challenge. However, knowing I also have the serious revision thing going on, I have to be very good and ensure I’m not playing instead of studying. So, I did a quick card I needed for a pal of Mr 4′s:

Supplies: Kaiser stamps, Stazon ink, SU! cardstock and twine, scrap Kraft paper, watercolour pencils

I have since done another card for one of the Mr’s cousins but still have to upload it. I managed to use one of the Verve stamps on that one too, so I’ll feel better about that

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Angus update:

Going to bed really well now. Night 3 saw a bit of wimpering as he was put to bed and that was it. The next few nights have seen him walk into the laundry with me, and settling happily. Yay! He does wake us in the morning, but with Daylight saving, so far that time is OK.

Our biggest issue now is the house-training…. I really hope we get this sorted soon. Anytime we’ve managed to get him to go outside, it seems to have been great luck rather than anything else. Yesterday was a bit of a nightmare as we were having “mistakes” soon after we’d taken him to the spot where he was meant to go. Grrrrrrr! However, we’ve decided to go the “crate training method” and I’m hoping this will allow us to get it sorted soon.

This method sounded a bit over the top to me when it was first suggested to us. However, as I need to have the time to revise, I can’t be 100% attentive to him so it seems like a good method for us all afterall. In addition, we want to make sure he has a happy space to be confined in if we have visitors that are not comfortable around dogs. Especially as he gets older – and bigger!

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My Circle Journal made its way home last week. It’s lovely and I have pictures to share too. But again, I’ll have to be a tease and promise that you will see those a bit later

That’s my 15 minutes online time up, so have a great day!

Sunny Sunday

Wow! The weather today is just stunning. I wish I could pop a little in a bottle and bring it out on those days that aren’t quite so nice.

I’ve been a bit absent with blogland over the past week. Head in the books – and so far it’s going ok. Not brilliant, but I feel like I am getting through the material so it’s all worth the effort.

During the week some of the girls and I got together with Sarah to celebrate her birthday that was on Wednesday. That was fun: lunch and crafty shopping. Wait, it wasn’t our birthday too?? Oh well! Now, making a card for a fellow card-maker can cause any amount of anxiety. But then, I figure, any effort is appreciated in that vein, so I went for it:

Then I went and decorated the inside too:

Clearly, I’m still taking photos with the shaky hand look.

Yesterday I managed to get to a friend’s crop with a bunch of other girls. Great fun. This and SENZ were on my list of still-must-do’s prior to my exams in late October. It felt really good to just go and hang out. I’m pleased too that I got a couple of projects completed. One was for the Sketchbook Olympics so I won’t share that today.

But I did get my own layout from last week’s Scrapbook by Design bossy scrapper finished. I’m sure there is a boss’ perogative to be late in completing!

The funny thing about this layout is that after I saw this one, I was taken with it and thought it would make a great layout to lift and use for instructions. It turns out that it is Fifi’s sister!! Too funny!

Realising that I was going to need a card for today, I also whipped up this card. It was great, because I got to play with Sarah’s nestabilities. OMGosh! That’s all I’m going to say on that matter. For now. Plus, she very kindly let me get the wee sentiment inky for the first time: a little Verve one…. and I think I’m going to have to have a wee peek at their site because the sentiments were really my cup of tea. Ok, there were a couple that had us ROFL-ing…. but the hilarity at crop stays at crop.

And so onto our lovely Father’s Day. The Mr’s decided they wanted to make hubby breakfast in bed. The Peanut Butter Toast kind of breakfast. Something that Hubby isn’t quite as keen on as the rest of us. So he had organised some fruit toast instead. The Mr’s were so excited, they didn’t quite make it to the “no earlier than 7am” get up and go time. But they did come in for a snuggle until that hour. We listened to the last of the Sunday stories on the radio until 7.

Then Hubby decided to hit the road and head on over to the Wairarapa for lunch and a little look at a camping ground that he had been considering for a boys weekend. Lunch in Martinborough was lovely, the drive around Lake Ferry interesting. The campground not quite working. But hey, the reality check was good and now another place will be chosen. I think we’re having BBQ for dinner tonight so really, not a bad day.