Are you Scrapbookings Ultimate Champion?

There's a new comp up at Scrapbook Essentials. Fancy seeing yourself as an ultimate champion? Read up on the prizes/rules and other essential info here and then sign up here. There's already quite a list of names so it's shaping up to be an exciting competition.

Wish I could enter too - only I guess that wouldn't be fair seeing as I'm part of the judging team. :o) On that note all bribes of jellybeans will be accepted here! LOL

In other news ... did you notice how it was a beautiful blue sky, sun shiny day? Gotta love the sun, it makes life so much more enjoyable. For the first time in ages I managed to hang out a load of washing and it dried all by itself without needing the dryer at all! And I went for a big long walk in the sun while Jessi was at kindy.

It's been a good day.

Finally

...after saving up my hard earned coins, I took home from the shop my very own copy of Nic Howard's book.

This was a momentous moment in my life yesterday. I took that baby home and planned to read it all -cover to cover- right away. I grabbed a cup of coffee and sat for maybe 15mins trying to take it all in and fend off the kids who wanted my attention, while instructing Michael on the proceedings for preparing dinner.

Then reality took over and I realised that if we wanted to eat dinner at a reasonable hour I'd better get in the kitchen and do something about it. So I cooked dinner, did the dishes - our dishwasher broke, pulled the curtains ... you know - did what had to be done.

Then I walk into the lounge and find this:

I think he was studying the dishwasher 101 layout, or maybe he was impressed with the size of Nic's letterbox - whatever it was, the book is obviously just as amazing as I knew it would be.

Now let me get a cup of coffee and enjoy it!

Just wanted to say ...

...thanks - for all the comments left about the princess layout. :o)

And to share some photos from today.

All three of them looking at the camera at the same time!





It doesn't happen very often that the light is good and the kids are good too! Ok so Jessi was having a little grump there but she got over it.

This is a loaded layout.

Lets see if I can remember everything:

Firstly this is my kiwi jack layout. A lift off the lovely Roo.



I had to use the crown thing, I cut round my photo and even scrounged up some note paper from the kids stuff - couldn't do much about the words at the top of the note paper - except choose the pink or the blue words ... just as well they both matched the layout!

Secondly I also did this layout because Tam over at Scrap of Faith issued a Sunday challenge to do a layout using three of her favourite things - the colour teal, a bird and hand stitching. The deadline was Monday evening - so it's thanks to that challenge that I got this completed so quickly. And hence the reason why the bird replaces the flower in the whole 'jack' scheme of things.

And thirdly this layout - being a layout of myself - is a rather late attempt at the whole 'scrap a layout of yourself with the word beautiful in the title' thing. Ann kindly cut the beautiful word for me using her cricut. I've had it sitting on my desk for ages - waiting for 'this' layout.

And the topic - the princess thing - it's a God thing. It's kind of a popular Christian topic at the moment. You can buy t-shirts that say 'I am a princess - my father's the King' Not sure if you can read the journaling - but it say's that I don't always feel like a princess - in fact right now I feel (and look) rather like a frumpy mummy but it's about knowing that I am because God says so.

Oh and a couple of other things - note the flowers on the pink background - lifted from one of Neens dt layouts, using the heidi swapp mask and the white ink. And I also borrowed an idea from Jo - inking the embossed Elsie paper so that the patterns stand out more.

When I took a photo of this layout on Monday to post in the scrap of faith gallery it looked slightly different. I decided after I'd taken the photo that I wasn't quite finished and it needed a bit more! So this is a slightly different version. There is one other little detail that I'd like to add - but I'll have to buy one first - and that is to add a tiny little crown to the 'e' in princess. Maybe a metal one like Meg had in one of the previous SE kits - or maybe a bling one ... I don't know ...

So there you have it - one very loaded layout!

Spare a thought for Reef

You may have heard on the news over the weekend about this train crash. As it happens, the little girl who lost her parents was in Alexanders class at school.

Reef is such a sweet little girl and it's so sad to think she lost both her parents in such a horrible way. I didn't know them well. But I stood outside that classroom alongside her mother each day. We spoke briefly about the weather and stuff and shared the same look of motherly concern when our children were kept on the mat a little longer ... because they'd been talking too much.

It's another reminder that in an instant something could happen that will change life forever. Another reminder that life does not go on forever. The big plans we make now for our future may never happen. The small concerns of day to day living don't mean a lot when looked at from the big picture.

What will Reef remember of her parents? I hope she has lots of memories of quality time spent with them doing stuff that made her feel loved and accepted in this world.

What would my kids remember if I was to suddenly be taken from them? Would they remember the constant nagging to hurry up and get ready for school? Would they remember that I was too busy folding washing to play hide and seek today? Would they remember that I cooked a nutritionally balanced meal for dinner?

It kinda makes you question what is important in life. What good memories are my kids building about life? Where are my priorities? What do I spend the most time doing?

Just a few things I've been thinking about. As for Reef - I'm sure she could use a few kind thoughts and prayers right now.

Thanks also for all your kind comments about my recent layouts. It is really nice to receive positive comments. I still haven't taken a good picture of the kiwijack layout - it's a rather grey and dismal day in Wellington today. Right - gotta go do pilates before going back to kindy.

Design Team Stuff

Well, 'A Sassy Lass Called Elsie' was an awesome kit to work with. I loved the combination of Sassafrasslass papers with Elsie papers. Check out all the other dt girls work here.

My favourite layout for the moment would be this one:


It's refreshing to have all that space around the edges. When I took photos of Dad in the hospital Mum said they better not end up on the internet or in a magazine or something. But I think this one would be o.k. For those of you who don't know ... Dad came off his motorbike on the farm and had serious head injuries. He spent two months in hospital but is now at home - still recovering but very much alive.



This one I started scrapping with the big photo and then remembered that I had some photos of a younger Jessi in exactly the same spot. The frame around the smaller photo is a Zina Wright stamp which I doodled onto acetate.



Just playing with the lined paper in this one.



And the torso. This is actually a Wendy Redshaw-Bruhns design from Freestyle 07. The girls at Rebekah's birthday party did a very simple version and all the time they were doing it I was thinking - 'that paint colour would go so well with the sassfrasslass paper from the kit.' So I took one home to dress up in Sassa style.

And I'm still going with the kit. I've just finished my take on the new Kiwi Jack - lifting a layout by Ruth Cahill. But I'll wait till tomorrow to take a pic of it and put it up here.

Wow at how fast Hannah was on that Jack. Hers looks awesome and I loved how she explained all the thinking and reasoning behind the layout. I should do more of that ...

Right, off to bed - in hope that I can then get up at a suitable time for getting the kids up and dressed and fed and ready for school - before 9am!

It's the 14th already.

I'm honestly not quite sure how it got to be the 14th already. Time flies when you're having fun - or busy or something I guess.

I only have a couple of sneaky peeks before my design team work goes up at Scrapbook Essentials. To be honest that's all I've done - two things. I have another layout sitting on my desk half finished and loads of ideas floating around in my head for more. It's incredibly frustrating to have such a lovely box of goodies to play with and yet not enough time to play.

I think I'm ready for school to go back and my nice little routines to return.

It's party time.

Eight years ago, today, after waiting what seemed like forever - and then another 10 days, I walked into hospital expecting my life to change forever. Eight years ago, it did change - I became a mother for the first time.

And now she is 8. I haven't got any cute baby pics to show you - that was before we went digital. But I can show you a few from today.




The Cake.



The candles.




The naked torsos.



Choosing the papers.



Dressing the models.




The finished project.




The party bags.

I'm baaaaaack.

Two and a half days spent in bed .... mostly.

Venturing as far as the kitchen every so often and then the computer - so I could sit down and rest!

On Saturday I announced to the kids when they came running into the bedroom screaming 'Muuuuuuuuummmmmmmm' ... 'There is no Mum in this house today - only a sick lady who wants to go back to sleep!'

Today I'm feeling good.

Today my three kids went to a friends house for the day, while I spent the day at Kiwiscraps - teaching 22 other kids the fine art of beginning scrapbooking.

Today I went to weight-watchers and lost 1.8kgs! (That's what happens when you spend a few days with a cold and don't eat like usual.)

Today I have started preparing for Rebekah's birthday on Wednesday. (Actually stressing slightly cause she has no presents to open cause I haven't bought any yet!)

Today I might just finish the layout that's been sitting on my desk all week - waiting for me to get better.

Today I can think of some happy things to write in the blue day c.j. (Which I have until Monday by the way Janine - so you can have a look through sometime before then maybe?)

Tomorrow (cause that comes after today) we have some people coming to put insulation under our house and in the roof space. Did you know how much stuff we have in storage under our house and in the roof? There's lots and lots and it all had to be moved in preparation - so the kids are playing with christmas decorations and suitcases.

And just for a second, when I saw the baby's bassinet ... I remembered what it was like to have a teeny tiny baby in the house. And then Jessi hit Alexander with the giant candy cane and there was screaming and yelling and no, there will be no more babies in this house!

A Blue Day

Look what arrived today:

Does it look familiar Nan Jules? I'm guessing it's a lot fatter than it was when it left your house earlier in the year.

I'm having a kinda blue day today myself so it was quite timely to get this and have a little flick through. It makes interesting reading to see what makes everyone happy. As to what makes me happy ... I think I'm gonna have to think about it for a little while - I'm sure I'll find something soon!