Paper Fantastic

My secret exposed...

2006-06-16T23:45:00.000+10:00

...AND...I am moving to a new blog :o)

Check out my fab secret here

Clucking :o)

2006-06-15T11:18:00.000+10:00

Why?

No I am NOT pregnant ROFLMAO!!!!! ;D

It's because I saw my friend Bec's cousin's newborn baby girl yesterday...and she was soooooo damn cute!!!! Brought back so many memories of being pregnant and labour and the kids as babies...so I had a good old cluck and remembered the old times, but I also reminded myself of how good it is to have those days behind me now. Yeah, I miss the baby years, but I love the little people my kids are becoming and I wouldn't go back there for QUIDS!!!! OMG I remember when Lili was born...Lachie was 19mths old and GO GO GO. Lucky she was a good baby lol!!!

Speaking of my girl, she is three in August. Such a big girl now, and I am so proud of her. She speaks very clearly and has beautiful manners...in all just a well-behaved, sweet little girl. I fall more in love with her every day :o) Here's a layout (below) of her that I did for the Scrap To The Max newsletter that came out today (HUGE SALE on now so get your butts over there, and sign up for the newsletter while you are there too!!). Amber has been working soooo damn hard this week to get the newsletter and the store ready for the sale, and so has her trusty sidekick Nic (HI GIRLS!!!!), and all of the effort has paid off 'cos the newsletter looks AWESOME!!!! All of the other DT girls have some absolutely fabulous stuff in there too...it's a pure visual feast !!!! ;D

And, I'm gonna be naughty and tell you if you wanna see my other two layouts from the newsletter, then head on over the the Scrap To The Max gallery and check them out there hehehehe ;P

Anyway, here's Lili's layout...

The Live song "Heaven" that's playing on my blog came out when I pregnant with Lili...we thought it was a "sign" that we were having a girl because the Creed song "Arms Wide Open" came out when I was pregnant with Lachie and he was a boy ROFL (we didn't know what sex either of the kids were in utero as they couldn't tell) ;D Hmmmmm, just feeling nostalgic about my girl particularly and the fact that she's not a baby anymore. *SIGH!!!*

OOOOOOOH OOOOH...the big news is coming TOMORROW!!!!!! Stay tuned (cheeky making you all wait, I know lol) ;P

Catch you all then, and enjoy browing all of our gorgeous layouts at Scrap To The Max in the meantime ;D

Thank you for all of your support girls...each and every one of you. I couldn't make it through the day without you all :o)

MWWWWWWWAAAAHHHH!!!!!! xoxo

Shaking off some sickness...

2006-06-12T21:10:00.000+10:00

...over the last couple of weeks has been proving a little difficult for me. Nothing majorly wrong (unlike Shazz's poor sister...great to hear she's doing better Shazz!!!! :oD)...just niggly infections that have been leaving me feeling very fatigued and quite ill. Hopefully I'll be feeling better soon!

I have something really EXCITING that I am just DYING to announce to you all!!!! It sure has been a long time coming and I can't wait to get going with it FINALLY!!!!Look out for it here by the end of the week ;D

Busy working on DT layouts for Scrap To The Max at the moment, so I'll be able to share them soon too :o)

Short and sweet today...BIG relief for everyone's eyes, I bet lol ;D Chat to you all soon with the details on my secret project ;D

MWAAAAAAAH!!!! xoxo

Occupation...

2006-05-31T00:19:00.000+10:00

...job title...job description...etc. This week Mark and I have been busily filling out enrolment forms for Lachie for Prep School which he is due to start next year. OMG...I can't believe I just wrote that! It scares the LIFE out of me!!!! Anyway, that's for another blog post :o) So, Mark was busily doing his bits on the forms and thinking he'd give me a hand and fill mine out for me (I was busy scrapping...isn't he a sweetie???) and he calls out, "What do I put for your occupation?"

Yuk. I hate having to answer this question. Why? I don't know really...maybe it has to do with the embarrassing fact that I have only ever had two "real" jobs in my entire 30yrs on this planet. Maybe it's because I have been a "professional" student for the last 10yrs doing unpaid work experience in the hope of gaining employment from it at the conclusion of my studies...until now, that is. Maybe it's the the fact that "Homemaker" or "Household Duties" are terms that I feel uncomfortable with labelling myself as...since when do we get paid in monetary terms to be a mother and wife anyway? Lol ;D Or maybe I feel ashamed that I don't fit squarely into ANY occupation, and I don't think I ever will?

I called back, "Let me think about it and I'll fill it out tomorrow."

So, I pondered...and pondered...and pondered. I'm not a student anymore. I am not currrently working in any occupation which I can define on a stupid form in one or two brief words. I am not just a "housewife", and I refuse to ever be. But there is one thing that has been constant in my life, and which I am pursuing a new career in. Art. I paint, I draw, I scrap, I write, I design, I create...I LOVE it, and I always have, and forever will. It's a part of me that I have ignored for so long, suppressed, put on hold to pursue an academic career that would never satisfy or whet that overwhelming drive to create that completes me and is responsible for my very presence in the world.

The next night Mark looked at the Prep School forms lying on the kitchen bench still untouched by myself. He called to me again, "What do you want me to write here for your occupation?"

"Artist", I answered.

That's what I am now, always have been, and always will be. Regardless.

And with the utterance of that one word, I felt complete, alive, at peace...for the very first time in my life.

YAY!!!!!!!!

2006-05-28T23:11:00.000+10:00

This layout is my absolute favourite and it's been requested by SM for publication in their upcoming doodling gallery!!!!! I am soooo chuffed because I have been SUCH a baby about subbing my stuff, so I have subbed hardly anything at all...self-confidence thing lol ;D But, thanks to lots of encouragement (read: kicks up the butt...you know who you are girls ;P) I have decided to be less precious about it and, I DID IT!!!!...and hence the title of this post :o) I bet you are all ROFL your arses off at me now for being such a sook and yelling at the computer screen "I TOLD YOU SO!!!!!" hehehehe ;D

Now, a little bit about this layout...just in case you are interested. If not, feel free to skip this bit lol ;P It is a vertical double 12x12, and I have rounded the opposite corners of the black cardstock...aaah, bit self-explanatory. So, the white background is there 'cos I am too slack to be bothered with cropping it away properly. AAANYWAY, it's all about how my sense of style is very eclectic, and that this has carried over to my scrapbooking too. That's why I am wearing the necklace in the picture...it has lots of different little bits on it (ribbon, charms, shell buttons, etc.); very eclectic, and I wanted the photo to convey the layout's message of course. LOTS of different bits here, lots of different doodling, and it was HEAPS of fun to do!!! I actually intended to use this for my Scrap To The Max dt application but never got it finished in time, so I have been slowly working on it for the last few months...and it seems as though it has taken me FOREVER to finish it. I am so glad that I have, and I am thrilled to bits with it :o) Hmmmm, I need to take some detail shots of it a-la-Nic 'cos Blogger won't let you look at it the size it's meant to be.

Enough yabbering about that :o)

I am feeling like a REAL dill because when we got to the show on Friday, and I pulled out my camera, I turned it on and went to start shooting.....and no bloody CF card. DOH!!!!! BIG TIME!!!!!! So, no pics from the show :o( But, we all had a great time, just can't SHOW you how much of a good time (pardon the pun lol). Damn expensive though!!!!! Remember how I said Lachie wanted a Spiderman showbag and Lili wanted a Pony one??? Well, they weren't getting them for $21.50 EACH!!!! And they were just as happy with the $5 Freddo Frog showbags we got them instead...gorged themselves silly on chocolate lol ;D Oooooh, gotta tell you this too...I took Lili on the Ferris Wheel...and SHE was the one that asked ME if she could go on it!!!! I thought she'd be terrified to be up that high 'cos she's only two years old, but no tears...she actually laughed the WHOLE time and had a BALL waving to Daddy and Lachie...sooooooo damn funny ROFL!!!! ;D ;D ;D And no, I wasn't scared either lol, just in case you were wondering ;P But, I held onto her so tight...no way I was letting her budge!!!

Well, pretty good weekend here. Mark let me have the mother of all sleep-ins today...woke me at 11.30am and trust me, after the period I've had this past week, I needed it!!! Isn't he a sweetie???? I just hope I can sleep tonight! We went over to Mum's place for lunch - home made pizza YUMMY!!! - and played footy and jigsaws with the kids in Mum's backyard...Lachie was going for the kill tackling Mum...it was soooo HILARIOUS!!!!!! Mum was almost wetting herself laughing lol ;D And Lil wanted a rest for a while, so we played with a jigsaw puzzle and watched the antics :o)

Wow, a rather short post for me lol ;D Check back in soon with something REALLY exciting...suspense lol ;P

Thanks for your support everyone and for checking in on me :o) MMMMMWAAAAAH!!!! xoxo

New Layouts :o)

2006-05-25T22:52:00.000+10:00

Ok. Here we go...lots to look at! Told you I've been busy scrapping lol ;P

Sometimes I have so many ideas for new layouts floating around in my head that everytime I try to scrap them, I end up with all of them on the one page and it is just a TOTAL MESS. I've had this going on in the last week. So, I scraplift. Not fussy layouts, just simple things. I really love Jamie Waters, Shannon Tidwell, and Candi Leonard, all dt members for KI Memories (who else? ROFL ;D). And Kristina Nicolai-White of Two Peas fame...she rocks too :o) So, off I go on my merry little way, and I have a ball!!! Somehow it settles my creativity down and lets me create in my own style again when I'm ready.

So, as I mentioned in an earlier post, I was in HEAVEN when I saw the article in CK, "Make 12 Layouts in One Night!" (May 2006, p.68) by Marianne Madsen, with all layouts by Jamie Waters. I was soooo doing the whole Homer-drool thing over it lol ;D And perfect timing too, with my scrap-jumbled brain! PLEASE excuse my photos...I swear everything is straight irl!!! So, here's my layouts for the "recipes" I've used so far...

Recipe 1 (p.72): Old pics of me the day my cousin Anna was christened. My Auntie asked me to be her Godmother. I was so chuffed! I'm almost nine years old here...no laughing allowed lol!!!!!

Recipe 4 (p.75): Self-explanatory pics...Lachie playing with a cane beetle. He loves bugs and lizards and things :o)

Recipe 6 (p.78): Lachie's portrait for Junior Kindy room at daycare (2004). Isn't he a sweetie? He's 2 here :o)

Recipe 7 (p.79): Some pics of Lili being cheeky and not wanting to cooperate for some photos when she was 15mths. She was a terror!!! I tried and tried for AGES to get these...not the best photos but I wanted to scrap them anyway :o) Awww, the memories are flooding back!

Recipe 10 (p.82): Some quick photos of Lachie that I took the first day he was due to start in the Senior Kindy room at daycare last year...BIG boys' kindy ;D Hard to get him to stand still...he was so keen to get going lol ;D

Recipe 11 (p.83): A silly pic that Mark's Mum took of Lili rolling around on the grass and playing with her dolly. This was taken just after she'd learnt to crawl on her knees instead of her belly (10mths). She giggled the whole time ;D Geez I miss her being a baby...she was such an easy baby and so much fun! Lachie, on the other hand...drama queen, spewed everywhere endlessly, forever on the go. Phew!!!

Six recipes down, six to go. I've used all old photos from my stash that have been crying out to be scrapped, so that's the plan...I need to go through them all again and pick out some more :o) Each one took me on average about 35-40mins, compared to my usual 3-4hr marathons, so it's been a nice change to get six layouts done this week instead of two ROFL ;D

Oh, one more lift while I'm at it...a Candi Leonard lift here :o)

If there's one thing that I love about scrapping, it's that every single layout doesn't have to be an elaborate "masterpiece" iykwim. I can change up my style and let whatever I want influence me, whenever I choose, and I am still getting layouts done for my albums. AND, the brain settles itself down too. So, everyone's happy in the end lol ;P

Well, I'm off now to have some freshly-baked chocolate slice (like brownies) with my Mark...I know, it's midnight and I've been baking, I must be crazy ROFL ;D I made a chocolate cake too. Well, when the mood strikes lol ;P...

Be back soon with some pics from the show, and another layout I've been saving. Seeya!!!! MWAAAAAAAH!!!! :o)

My kids' layouts :o)

2006-05-25T17:06:00.000+10:00

I am so proud of my two for their scrapping yesterday...I think this might have to become a regular thing with us :o)

Here's Lili's layout. She loved sticking everything on and had an absolute ball! She fiddled with it for ages, and added some cutting down the right-hand side (copying off her brother ROFL!!). So here it is, and yes it is proudly hanging on her bedroom door, which she thinks is just wonderful ;D

And here's Lachie's layout...he's really into cutting at the moment, so he just HAD to cut it all around. He said it was too big so he had to cut some off...ROFL!!! He was so much quicker than Lili, and he's got a really linear style. And, he used a whole gluestick on it, which I had only bought yesterday especailly for him to use for his scrapping...GRRRR!!!! Lili got one too. Anyway, here it is, also hanging proudly on his bedroom door, which he also thinks is fabulous ;D

So there you go :o) We are planning another scrap-a-thon for the weekend so YAY!!!!! Can't wait...I am sure we will have fun again ;D

Patience Nic...will blog my layouts later tonight LOL :o) Tea to get ready now for the hungry hoardes, so see you all later tonight :o) xoxo

Counting down...

2006-05-25T02:13:00.000+10:00

...to People's Day at our local Fraser Coast Show on Friday!!! We are so excited...the kids and I have been talking about the show non-stop, it seems. I don't know who's more excited, me or the kids lol!

Anyway, Lachie has been remembering all of the fun stuff from the show last year, but Lil wasn't two yet so she doesn't remember much. Lach has been talking about the kids' rides to Lil and I endlessly...they have this little bunch of rides all grouped together in the one area with a HUGE big circus tent-type roof covering it (complete with access to toilets, seats for parents, and food, and the wood chop is right across from it too so it's good for all of us ;D). Last year, the kids went on every ride (there are five under the circus tent), and on the motorbikes three times, and they are both soooo damn excited about it!!!! And the show bag ads have hit the telly this week...Lachie wants a Spiderman bag and Lili wants a Pony bag. OMG I can't wait to see their little faces when we drive into the showgrounds this year!!!!

Show time reminds me of home though...Maryborough home. We moved out to where we lived when I was 5. Two years later, the new showgrounds were opened up on the highway...we had to travel for a couple of mins past it each time we went into town or home again. Still have to. Anyway, we'd keep an eye on the showgrounds the weekend before the show...we'd watch each day as more showies arrived, more rides went up, and the anticipation built too until the show opened. We could see the fireworks from our house, smell the smells, hear the screams of the people on the rides, see the lights glowing in the sky...it was just magic! And we lived so close, so we went every day the show was on. GOD I loved the show when I was a kid! And I still love it :o)

But I am really missing it this year. Missing watching the showies set up, seeing the showgrounds evolve, hearing the sounds and seeing the lights. Missing Dad's house, my childhood home. Not missing Maryborough, or our freezing cold house down the road from Dad's though!!! Our new house is MUCH warmer thank goodness :o) But missing this time of year living in Neil Road...and my Dad, and my dog Tessie. This is the first show time since I was 5 that I haven't spent living in Neil Road, and it's a bit of a shock to the system. I'll get over it though :o)

In other news, I've been feeling really flat this last week. Period time again...and don't even ask!!!! It's been horrid!!!!!! Really painful and I've felt sooooo tired. Been sleeping lots trying to pick myself up. This time next week I'll be feeling 100% again though, so that's good. Still, I can't complain. At least I get my period, unlike my friend Bec who wants a baby more than anything in the world and will most likely never have one of her own. Makes me feel blessed that I have two special little kiddies that I love more than anything in the world. I don't know what I would've done if I was in Bec's position...I don't know how she copes sometimes.

Not much else to report, other than I've been busy scrapping :o) Remember that CK article I told you about last post? I've been using some of my old photos to scrap some layouts using the "Recipes" from the article...just bumming around doing some scrapping for me :o) I love them!!! Not taking me 15 or 20mins per layout though lol ;D I'll share some later. And today Lachie, Lili and I had a scrap-a-thon...it was fun!!!! I scrapped one of my layouts from the CK article while I helped them out. Lachie needed more help than Lili, even though he's older...he's more fussy, like me. Lil? She justs slaps it on...wish I could be as carefree with my own scrapping as my 2yo is lol ;P I love their layouts :o) They want to put them on their bedroom doors, so I'll do that for them tomorrow while they are at daycare...nice little surprise when they get home :o) Will share a pic later, too.

Well, thanks for reading my mammoth post (are they EVER NOT mammoth???? ROFL ;D) and I'll check back hopefully later today with some layout pics now my camera battery is nice and charged. See ya!!! xoxo

Scrapping news!!!!! AND a challenge for you...

2006-05-17T23:56:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone! How are you all out there in Blogland?

The latest newsletter from Scrap To The Max came out on Monday night, and Amber has done such a FANTASTIC job of putting it together...kudos to you girl!!!! It looks so awesome, and our rockin' DT have done some mind-blowing layouts for you all to perve at, so go check us out here! YAY!!!!! I LOVE newsletter day ;P

So, speaking of the STTM newsletter, that's the reason why I couldn't show you Nic's layout...I decided to keep it for the newsletter, and Amber has used it to set a challenge for this month. Download my flower template from the gallery and give it a go!!! Use it to create your own layout, uplaod it to the gallery, and you might win a fab prize from Scrap To The Max!!!! Here's the original I did Nic...

Nic, I am so touched and humbled by how much you love it girl. I am having so much fun doing these layouts for everyone! Moi sent me her pics last night, so now I am all set to get scrapping hers...look out for it here next week Moi!!!! ;D

My second layout for STTM...my fave. I journaled the words from Pete Murray's (no girls...he's ALL M I N E !!!!!!) new song "Opportunity" straight onto the photo of me. Used my Uniball Signo gel pens Zig Writers. I had TONNES of fun playing with my new KI goodies that I got for last month's dt pack, as you can see lol ;D Threw sooo much on there...couldn't help myself ROFL!!! Oooooh, and those new Heidi Swapp silhouette chipboard hearts that STTM has in are to-DIE-for...I have been hanging out for some for MONTHS!!!!!! But I LOVE it, even though it's busy, and it is a really precious layout to me as the lyrics describe the place I am in with my scrapping right now...

And here's my third layout...for this month's ribbon challenge. All ribbons are from the yummo range at STTM (except the red ric rac). Pic is of my two gorgeous little kiddies giving each other a cuddle, as they do. Lachie was telling me tonight how much he loves his little sister, and how he said "Non-night Lil, I love you" when Mark tucked her into bed. I love how they are such good mates, how they look out for each other and cuddle each other all the time, run to each other when Mummy or Daddy get up either of them...they are so sweet! But, oh TRUST me, they do fight too, everyday!!! What siblings don't, huh? But I am just so proud of the way they show their love for each other everyday, too...it really tugs at my heart-strings :o)

So, that's it from me for STTM for another month! I hope Amber will let me sneak some more new KI onto my layouts for next month too...puleeeeeeeese Amber????? ROFL ;D

Other scrapping news from me: LOTS going on. I am busily sketch-sketch-sketching layout ideas at the moment...I am a sketching machine!!! I always begin my layouts by sketching a plan of it first...artist's habit! Anyhow, I have bought a new sketchbook this week and have been so busy designing some new layout ideas...what for? SOme just for me, others for something I can't tell you about just yet...you'll have to wait and see ;P

I am LOVING Marianne Madsen's "Make 12 Layouts in One Night!" article in this month's CK...AND, all of the layouts are by one of my fave scrapbookers, Jamie Waters! I ADORE Jamie!!!! And her new baby girl is just the cutest little thing!!!!! So I am taking up Marianne's challenge...I've been busily going through my old pics of the kids and will be using them for the layouts. I'll post them here as I go :o)

So that's me...busy busy busy planning new scrapping adventures. Stay tuned for more soon!!!!!

Well, THREE posts in ONE night means I am ALL blogged out for now, but I'll be back with more soon girls...chat then and thanks for dropping in on me :o)

MWAAAAAAAH!!!! xoxo

Tagged...

2006-05-17T23:39:00.000+10:00

...by Mel! Here it is matey...finally I hear you say ROFL ;P

In my Fridge
Apple juice - Lachie's fave drink
Chocolate "Thomas the Tank Engine" cupcakes
Leftover sweet & sour chicken from tea tonight
Broccoli - Lili has been wanting it every tea time lately, so we have LOTS lol ;D
Fresh ham for lunch tomorrow...yummy!!!

In my Closet
Skinny clothes (me too Mel!)
LOTS of pairs of thongs...I love 'em and wear them even in winter!
A blow-up jet ski - pool toy of Lili's that she WON'T leave alone so I'm hiding it from her!!!
My winter clothes - unpacked them just recently and it's been too warm to even contemplating wearing them here yet!
Too many beaded handbags lol...handbag FREAK here ;D
My black gypsy skirt...I am LOVING this at the mo!!!

In my handbag
Billabong wallet
Mobile
Body Shop raspberry lip balm - YUMMY!!!
Tissues
Tampons - 'cos I never know when my damn period is going to appear!
Nurofen Plus - for above-mentioned unpredictable period

In my car
CD's
Toys, toys and MORE toys - why do kids do this?????
Kids' shoes - ditto for above
Latest CK magazine - got it today and LOVE it!!!!
Bills - YUK!

On my DVD / Viedo player
CSI that I taped on Sunday night
"Ghostrider" DVDs - anyone else have a husband who loves this motorbike-riding freak????
Madagascar - my two love singing "I like to move it move it" at the top of their voices at the mo lol ;P
DVD remote - away from "Lili the battery bandit" ROFLMAO...she keeps pinching them to put back in a very annoying toy of hers that we took the batteries out of ;P
Photo of our nephew Jesse (Mark's sister's delightful 13yo boy)

Hmmmm, I might just have to scrap that now! LOL ;D

Thanks Mel :o)

No news is bad news...

2006-05-17T23:23:00.001+10:00

...well, with me it is anyway. When you don't hear from me for a while, things have been crap. I tend to withdraw and deal with things in my own quiet way, and I have always been like that. So, last week was the CRAPPIEST week!!!!!! But it's done and dealt with and moving on :o) THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to you all for your gorgeous caring encouraging supportive posts...honestly, I couldn't have made it through the last week without you girls, so thank you, really, from the deepest blackest nether-regions of my dark heart ;D

GOOD NEWS!!!!! My heart is not so dark this week lol, and here's why ;P

Ding dong, the witch is dead...lol, not really, but may as well be! Mark's boss has been given an unceremonious transfer, effective come November...he's off to Mount Isa!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!! No more intimidation and bullying from him directed towards my Mark, and now Mark knows he's moving 1000kms away from us in the very near future, he's absolutely over the moon...you should've seen him on Monday when he came home and told me...sooooo funny!!!!! He literally almost DID jump over the moon, I swear!!!!! Seriously though, it is so nice to have him happy and joking around again :o)

Man, I don't think we have EVER been so happy to see payday as we were this last couple of days...yesterday for me, today for Mark. And his lost pay has been reimbursed, but he lost half of it to the bloody tax man *blowing him a BIG FAT RASPBERRY!!!!* Oh well, at least we will be able to pay off most of our unpaid bills so that is GREAT!!!!

Well, I am off to blog about happier things now...I just wanted to get all of this other stuff out in a separate post. So, on to brighter things now :o)

What did I say?

2006-05-08T16:10:00.000+10:00

That it wouldn't be ages between posts next time? Well, here I am a week later updating my blog...I think I just won't say I'm gonna do something by a certain date/day in future 'cos it NEVER pans out the way I want it to...GRRRRRR!!!!!

So much stress here lately which has seen me be awol again. Mark's having problems with his boss BIG time...you wouldn't think a big government company like his would tolerate bullying and intimidation being directed towards a worker by their boss, or that a boss's administrational error would result in Mark losing a whole week's pay???? So things have been hard for us lately in our little lives...finances are terrible and we are trying to pick ourselves up and work our money crap out. Thanks Mark's boss!!!! We could kill him...GRRRRRR!!!! Lucky we have my Dad to help us out a little...I love him to bits :o) Don't worry, our marriage is great...no probs there...we just have to get over this little financial hurdle. Keeping our spirits up though!

Well, let's start back at last Monday...we didn't get to my Dad's until Monday (Labour Day for us) and the kids had a ball playing with Pop. Lachie went for a ride in Dad's mini he's been restoring (remember???) and they looked pretty funny riding around the yard in it with no windscreen, doors, etc.!!!! Lili was too scared lol ;P The kids love Pop, and he absolutely adores them...we miss him heaps now we don't live two houses down the street any more, and I miss my puppy Tess who now lives with Dad, but we are only 30mins drive away and we still see him every week. Here's a pic of Lachie and Pop driving the Mini...

And here's a view of under the bonnet, which Dad has completed...looks pretty good!!! See the little "driver" playing racing cars??? Hehehe....

Dad's just finishing off the exterior painting now...he wants it all done by the time he goes back to work next Monday. He's been on holidays for three weeks, working on it every day from 7am-10pm almost every day. Gosh he's going to be so thrilled when it's all finished, and I'm looking forward to a ride too! Last time he took me for one was when I was about 10yrs old (20 years ago now!) so it'll bring back some memories, that's for sure!!!

Well, on the scrapping front, Nic's layout is finished (YAY YAY YAY!!!!!), but I can't show you just yet!!! Sorry to keep you all in suspense! And Moi, send me your pics girl 'cos you are next on the list ;D DT projects for Scrap To The Max are due Wednesday, so I'll be busy doing them for the next couple days, and I have something which I am really pumped to share with you all...details soon :o) Exciting stuff!!!!!

Ooooooooh, I was sooooo thrilled to be part of Kim Archer's online classes again last week! I created two layouts, one for each of the kids' albums. Here's a little peek...

...and I am doing Kim's other class on Thursday this week. Hope to see some of you there ;D Another ooooooh...the Creating Garden on 2Peas a the moment is rockin'!!!! So much cool stuff in there...really inspirational!!!!!! Lovin' it ;D

That's it from me...Nic's layout is coming as soon as I'm allowed to share it. And Mel, I'll get to your tag next post ;D Emails to catch up on and blogs to visit, so hope to catch up with everyone soon. Just wanted to post here first so that you all know I am still alive lol ;D Hope all is well with everyone! Thanks for reading my mammoth post girls and chat soon okay? :o) MWAAAAAAH!!!!! xx

Quick update...

2006-04-29T21:23:00.000+10:00

Thanks for your comments girls...you are so sweet :o)

Here's the link to my LSS's website where Mum and I will be DT members...Crazy Crafts Warehouse. Pop in and visit Collette and Andrew if you are ever up this way...they'd love to meet you :o) And tell them Karen sent ya...that's me walking out of the shop in the photo on the website's main page too ROFL ;D

Not much happening here. The kids are driving me absolutely NUTS at the moment though...it feels like all I have done today is pick up after them. Lili is the worst...she's stuck in that 2 year old phase where they pull everything out, and I mean EVERYTHING!!!!! Out of her wardrobe, Lachie's wardrobe, throw the toys off Lachie's top bunk, reef all the toys off their shelves in their toy corner, up-end the Lego box, destroy her Barbie house, throw stuff from one end of the house to the other...OMG some days I could just...GRRRRR!!!!! I remember when Lachie used to do it and one was bad enough, but with him making mess as well, you can imagine my house at times!!!! I usually don't worry about it too much, just get in there and make them clean it up, but it's really getting on my nerves this week. Must be hormones lol ;D

LOTS and LOTS of scrapping to do this next two weeks...I have everything planned out and I just hope I can get it all done. Head down, bum up!!! We are going up to Maryborough to visit my Dad and Mark's parents tomorrow (30mins drive south, and my old home town) and I need to get some nice shots of them with the kids. Should be interesting 'cos they are all a bit camera-shy! And Dad has been restoring his Mini Cooper S which he used to race in the early 70's. It's an original, one owner...he bought it in 1969 (I think?). He's taking it to Bathurst this year for the 50 year anniversary of the Mini as part of the QLD Mini Club...a real thrill for him as he never had an opportunity to race at Bathurst and finally he'll get to drive the track in his beloved car as part of the celebrations. I can't WAIT to scrap that for him!!!! I hope to get some shots of the car for him tomorrow...he's painting it at the moment and then all he has to do is put it all back together...getting exciting!!!

Well, that's about all everyone...thanks for stopping by and hope to share some pics tomorrow, and Nic's layout Monday or Tuesday. I love how it's looking!!! Oh, hope you all like the Chilli Peppers tune...my FAVE group and they have a new album out soon YAY!!!!! Mark and I can't wait to get it ;D

Stay happy and well, won't you? Bye for now!! xx

Some exciting news!

2006-04-27T16:56:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone...I've had a pretty crappy time since Easter Sunday with being sick (bacterial tonsillitis and a blah period at the same time...YUKKO!!!!!!!) so hence the lack of blogging. Hope you all haven't given up on me! But, every cloud has a silver lining and I have some really exciting news to share...

I've been asked by the owner of my LSS to be on the design team she is putting together...and so has my MUM!!!! This is soooooo exciting for both of us...we go to "Scrap and Yap" together every Monday, as you may remember, and have been doing so for over a year now. We know Collette and Andrew (the husband-and-wife owners of the store) really well and they know all the ins-and-outs of our families...such friendly people who really look after their regular customers. Anyhow, I was telling Collette all about my DT for Scrap To The Max the Monday just gone, and she mentioned that she'd like to start something like that up. Well, the next day, she told Mum and I she had selected us BOTH!!!! Mum is soooo chuffed, and it'll be awesome to be on a DT with my Mummy 'cos I love her heaps and we're such good friends ;P We only have one layout to do each month, so that's a nice light workload for us too. And Collette has got some yummy new stuff into the store which we can't wait to play with...new Heidi Swapp for one(she's never carried Heidi's stuff before)!!! So, I can't wait to get started now, and neither can Mum! Will include a link to the store with my next post, which won't be 11 days away like this one was from the last, I SWEAR!!!!!

Well, just a quick one tonight to let you all know that I am alive and well again. And, I just want to have a shout-out to those special friends who emailed and asked me how and where I was...you know who you are ;D Thank you so much...it means more to me than words can express.

So hi and bye for now everyone...hope everyone else is well! Back to my layouts for you all now. Nic, you're up and your layout is in the works! Share soon so check back. More tomorrow all!

MWWWWWAHHHH! xx

Happy Easter!!!!

2006-04-16T17:43:00.000+10:00

Hope everyone is having a fabulous time over the break, and that the Easter Bunny was kind to you all ;P We've had a very lazy time in our little house over the last couple of days, but lots of visitors. The kids are really cranky at the moment though...all chocolated and played out, so I think they will crash early tonight. Phew, 'cos they are driving us nuts at the moment!!!

The new newsletter is out from Scrap To The Max, and we have some gorgeous new things to show you (my Easter cards above were designed for the newsletter)...hope you didn't miss it!!!! Lots of news...Amber is starting up some challenges which is FAB, and you can win some cool prizes!!!! And our forum is also up and running, so drop in and say hi to us all over there...you're bound to meet some gorgeous girls there ;P

And KI IS COMING TO SCRAP TO THE MAX!!!!!! YAY!!!!!! I will be using some for my projects for next month's newsletter...oooooh I can't wait to finally get my hands on some of the new stuff!!!!! YAY YAY YAY!!!!!

AND, here's my new layouts from our latest newsletter for you all to take a squizzy at...I really love these!!! They were for our pp challenge (I used new Basic Grey Urban Couture pp and Wholy Cow rub ons) and chipboard challenge (I painted and doodled on chipboard hearts which are available for the store). Hope you all like them :o)...

Wel, that's it from me :o) Have a fab holiday and chat to you all soon. MWAAAAH!!

P.S. I just adore this new INXS song...it's so mellow and just fabulous! Have fun checking it (and J.D.) out girls ;D

Going K K K...

2006-04-10T10:55:00.000+10:00

....KRAZZZZZY here waiting to get my hands on some of the new KI stuff!!!! I start getting excited about new KI stuff coming out oh, NEVER!!!! I am always excited about it and keep up with all of the happenings and whisperings about the new stuff. Have you ever been truly obsessed with something????? Honestly, it's TERRIBLE sometimes...makes me laugh long and hard at myself ROFL ;D But this is the one thing I crave, I need, I MUST have...I think it's all about the colour. My most favourite thing in the world is tonnes of colour splashed together in the same tiny space. Give me that, add some funky designs, and I am happy. So THAT'S why I love my KI :o)

Hmmmmm, sounds like a great idea for a layouta bout KI, don'tcha think????

Hehehehehe ;P

P.S. Hey, check out Madonna's new clip...love the funk, love the attitude, just love it. Fullstop. ;D

Hopefully caught up now...

2006-04-03T11:15:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone!

Thanks once again for your gorgeous comments on my last post :o) I think that I have caught up with everyone's emails now...finger's crossed xxxxx!!!! ;P

Wow has it been super busy lately for me...but then again, I say that every post, don't I? ROFL ;D Mark has only just gone back to work last Thursday...they pulled the pin on him going back when he was meant to as they wanted to make sure that all precautions were in place for him to prevent a reoccurrence of his injury. They could've told him before he actually showed up though! About three weeks ago now he was told he was right to go back, so he did, only to be told by his boss to turn around and go back home again!! Apparently, he wasn't told by his 2IC that Mark had a medical clearance to return so he had to leave. And then the crap started...Workplace Health & Safety visited from Australia Post Head Office, then he had to go back to the dr, then they over-looked Mark's dr's recommendations, then he had to go to an Occupational Therapist for further assessment...OMG!!!! And they had a postie off last year with the same injury and did none of this to him. Poor fella, was thinking he'd NEVER get back to work! But finally, he was given the all clear to return last Thursday so now my Marky is a happy man again :o)

Mark's missed work so much! He comes home from work every day and raves about what's been happening forEVER!!! He's such a gossip ROFL ;D He has some restrictions on his duties though, like only being able to deliver mail on the bike for 4 hours at a time, and he has to take hourly breaks when sorting (as they stand for a good few hours while they sort their mail into their runs), but that's okay. At least he is back and happy...and our money situation will be a bit better now as he's getting his proper penalty rates, not just sick pay rates. YAY!!!!! And I get some peace (not that I didn't like having him home, but I'm the type of person that needs some solitude or I go crazy iykwim?), but the kids are missing him not being here in the mornings now. Lachie has been playing up when I drop him at daycare...I hope he settles soon 'cos it really breaks my heart :o(

LOTS of work to do!!! Scrapping like mad...trying to work on Nic's layout and I have DT stuff due in a week too. Easter themed stuff, which is a bit of a challenge for me. I have never scrapped Easter before and I don't like how the holiday has become so commercialised...makes me sad that the meaning of Easter gets lost these days, and the same with Christmas. I want to scrap something with a bit of a "meaning" to it, as well as some fun stuff, without it all looking/sounding a bit too naff iykwim. I plan to take Mark and the kids to church on Easter Sunday this year...I go every year, but I want us all to go as a family. I need to go to church more often...I'd like to try and go once a month, but it doesn't always work out that way :o( Oh well, that doesn't mean I am not a Christian...I'm sure God understands! Oh, I am Anglican (Church of England) in case anyone was wondering :o)

Ok, LAYOUT SHARE TIME!!!!!!

I took both of Kim Archer's classes this past two weeks, and they were fabulous, as always! ;P Kim does such a fantastic job with her classes, and she really makes you feel like a part of the class.

The first two are from the "Funky Fabric Stamping" class...I did one for each of the kids. They both love looking at these and "reading" the little tags :o)...

...and this next one is from the "Celebrate Family" class. I decided to do mine on the family trait that Mark, Lachie, and Lili share...they can all roll their tongues!!!! LOL ;P It fascinates me, because I can't do it ROFL! Most of Mark's family can, but it doesn't run in my family at all. Might sound silly, but I've wanted to scrap this for a long time as it's the most obvious trait of Mark's that the kids both have. Mark was born with Binder's Syndrome, a condition where the child will have a very flat nose and quite marked dysplasia of the sinuses and upper jaw (basically, the cartilage and bone in the face do not build up in the mid region of the face as they are meant to) due to conditions in the uterus. Mark's mum had a septum growing in her uterus when she fell pregnant with him so it was essentially divided into two parts, so Mark had very little room to grow. He survived though, God knows how, but was very sick and little for a long time after he was born and had to be fed with a dropper or a spoon as he couldn't suck. His Mum and Dad had longed for a boy and it took five miscarriages to get Mark, so he's a bit special (he has 2 sisters who are 8 & 10 yrs older than him).

So, that's why I scrapped this. We'll never know what Mark would've looked like if he hadn't been born with Binder's; it is not a genetic condition in his family so if not for the septum he would've looked "normal" iykwim, and we'd be able to see bits of his looks in the kids, but we can't. But, we can see that they can roll their tongues, just like Daddy, so that's a silly but very special thing to us :o)Anyway, here it is...put your sunnies on though 'cos it's pretty bright LOL!

Well, thanks for reading my mega-post girls ;D

Catch you all soon :o) MWAH!!!!! xoxo

Playing catch-up...

2006-03-27T23:57:00.000+10:00

REALLLLLY quick post for today!!! I have been a bad blogger and net-friend lately...snowed under at the moment with lots of stuff. But don't worry, I am happy and well! ;D I'll do a half-way decent post and email catch-up later in the week...please don't think I am snobbing you anyone!!!

Ok, here's some layouts I have been wanting to show you...

This first one is a case of one of Elsie's layouts in the March edition of CK. I thought her layout was AWESOME and just HAD to do one for Lili ;P I took this pic of her in Winter last year...still baby-looking here...isn't she a sweetie??? Used lots of girlie colours here to match in with her jumper. KI pp of course lol ;D And I am fast developing a thing for buttons...been collecting lots over the last few weeks :o) I really LOVE how this layout turned out, and I am soooo in love with the cute little tags behind the photo!!! Forgot to take a pic of them though :o( And I did this one just for me, 'cos I wanted to ;P...hope you all like it!

And these three layouts are from the Scrap to the Max March newsletter. Next one is coming out soon girls so don't forget to subscribe! And our gallery and message boards will be up and running VERRRRY soon, so I am looking forward to "seeing" a few of you there ;P Oh, and the second layout here features more doodling from the infamous undies (see earlier post) ROFL ;P

Oooooooh, before I forget...congrats to Karen on her pregnancy!!!! WOOOOHOOOO girl....that's so fabulous and I am totally over the moon for you to finally have your second, much longed for pregnancy :oD YAY YAY YAY!!!!!

And check out this full-length music clip for Gwen's song...it's so cool! Hadn't seen it before ;D Has she had her baby yet? Anyone know when she was due???

Well, that's all for now and I will catch up with you all later on in the week...promise!!!! :o) MWAH xoxoxo for now!!!

Back and brighter...

2006-03-22T00:36:00.001+10:00

...okay, I am feeling HEAPS better, so everyone can stop worrying about me now lol ;D STILL working on my emails to all of you to say thanks...I have done a few tonight. Seriously though, I am getting there, day by day, and thank you all again for your support...I couldn't have made it through the toughest times without you guys :o) {{{{{{HUGS}}}}}} So here's some Shannon Noll for you all to drool over! Lachie's fave song at the moment. The words really get me with this one, even though I'm not a huge fan of his. And man does he look noice in this clip...yum yum!!! ;P

First up though, I just want to say how sad is the disaster left behind by Cyclone Larry in Far North Queensland? So many people homeless, livelihoods lost, lives ruined...my prayers are with you all at the moment. The response by the government has been fantastic so far, and let's all hope that this continues over the coming months and years as people in the affected areas try to return their lives to some form of normality. It is tremendous to see how people are banding together up there to help each other out though...brings tears to my eyes. And the tireless efforts of the SES and all rescue personnel are nothing short of fantastic. Please donate what you can everyone, even $5 will help in some way...there has been an appeal account set up through the Commonwealth Bank for monetary donations. I am not sure of any other donations that are needed...no doubt clothes, furniture, etc. but I'm sure that centres co-ordinating any collections of personal items will be announced in the coming days. I just cannot believe the devastation up there...such a beautiful part of Queensland too...one of my fave spots. So very sad.

Happier things now :o) Here's Janelle's layout that I have completed for her...I call her "Nellie" so that's what I have written up the right-hand side. I am so thrilled with this layout, and Janelle really loves it too, which is a relief *pheeew* lol ;P Lots of doodling and jewels again...loving them at the moment ;D

And I have been DYING to show you all my layouts from the Scrap To The Max newsletter! I'll do so next post as blogger is being naughty tonight. Follow the link (see? I've finally learnt how to do it! lol ;P) and check out the girls' gorgeous work :o) And while you're there, don't forget to sign up for next month's newsletter if you haven't already done so ;D

I have been tagged too, thanks to Nic and Lou...I think someone else did also, but I can't remember for the life of me who it was with all of the crappiness in my head lately!!! I am so sorry :o( Anyway, here's my answers...

What scrapbook lines/products etc do you dislike?I don't like purple...yukko!!! Unless it's really vivid and bright and mixed with other pretty colours lol ;P And I don't like heritage colours, so lots of browns are blerk for me too. And pastels...don't like them much either...you know, the reeeeaaly pastel ones. But I'll use midway between pastel and so-bright-you-gotta-wear-shades colours. Jolee's stickers, fibres, and Easter-themed stuff are on my yuk list too.

What is the hardest thing you ever had to scrap?
The canvas that I did for my LSS class that featured a photo of my Nana and I...I cried a river over that thing! I have yet to scrap any more photos of her because I start bawling when I so much as look at them, let alone try to scrap them. I am also yet to scrap about my miscarriage (of Lachie's twin)...another very distressing thing. So things that have a LOT of sadness tied to them are difficult for me to scrap, but I need to push myself to do it more often.

What technique do you use more than anything else?
Lots of different patterned papers, doodling, handwriting, handcut shapes, ribbons, buttons, epoxy and resin accents, and jewels are featured on my layouts at the moment ;D But my own handwriting is used on every page...I never use the computer for journaling.

What is the smallest scrap of paper you save?I save absolutely every bloody thing ROFL!!! I am such a hoarder...you should see me scraps box...it is almost overflowing lol ;D I'll use the tiniest little scrap of pp and ribbon too. Hey, you never know when you might need it for a tag???? ;P

Have you ever had any scrapping related injuries?
I have permanent nerve damage in the tip of my right index finger because I use my craft knife and write on my layouts so much...seriously!!! It is so dead that I can stick a pin in it and it doesn't even hurt...bleed, but I feel nothin', baby! Wish my damn uterus was numb instead ROFL ;P

Finish this sentence, “If I wasn’t a scrapbooker, I would spend my money on....."
More holidays (to the Sunshine Coast, up north, and to Brissie to see Mark's sister), a gym membership, some Clarins skin care (LOOOOOOOVE that stuff!), and an eyebrow wax (mine are feral at the moment lol) ;P

Give your best storage or organizational idea...Jars and little glass bowls! I have tonnes and store absolutely everything in them...they are cheap and look great too. And I picked a fab idea from Elsie Flannigan too...I've put all of my pretty buttons into a blue bowl and have it sitting on my desk. Looks like a lolly shop...yummo ;P And I don't hide my stuff away...I have them all sitting on the shelves of two bookcases so I can see it all, otherwise I forget what I have ROFL!

You just won a week long scrapbooking cruise for 5. Who is going with you?C'mon, you know me!!!! I couldn't possibly choose so EVERYONE can come...YAY!!!!!

When you received your first publication notification, who did you tell?The owner of my LSS as she was the one who encouraged me to submit so much, my Mum, my DH Mark, my Dad, my friend Bec, and my Scrapboxx buddies...pretty much everyone as I was really stoked and proud of myself!

I'm tagging next...Everyone who hasn't done this one yet ;P

Well, that's it from me for now everyone...stay tuned 'cos I have LOTS of scrapping to share next post! MWAH everyone and xoxo's!!!

Reality check...

2006-03-20T02:18:00.000+10:00

Well, what is my little bit of grief compared to what my some of my fellow humans are facing as I write?

I have a home, a family that is alive and well who put up with my bullshit and still love me regardless, and my treasured scrap supplies and photos. Yes, my beloved and most treasured Nana is gone, and so is my darling Auntie Margie, but I have a life that I love and everything that I could ever need right here on Earth with me right now...including two little children that think I am the best thing since sliced bread, and a husband who worries himself sick about us three and would give his last breath if it meant our very survival depended upon it.

In a few hours, people just like me will have their lives torn away from them and destroyed, literally, in one way or another, in coastal communities along the Far North Queensland Coast. It has been decades since a cyclone even remotely as strong as Cyclone Larry has hit the Queensland coast. But this one is ridiculously huge and ridiculously dangerous. Cyclone Tracy Queensland-style. So everyone in Far North Queensland, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE heed the warnings issued by the authorities... evacuate, move to higher and safer ground, and protect your little families. Don't take ANY risks! My thoughts and prayers are with you all in the times ahead.

And please everyone, visit Nora and leave her a message of support. I have been an admirer of Nora's scrapbooking through 2Peas ever since I started scrapping. Nora and her husband Sean have had issues with infertility in the past and had decided to adopt a child. They were blessed with the arrival of their gorgeous daughter Darby Jane a little over a week ago and were so totally overjoyed to finally bring her home from the hospital. Just as they were settling into their new lives as a family of four, with Nora's son Mac, they received a call from their adoption agency late last week saying that the birth mother wanted Darby back. And they took her...the adoption paperwork was still sitting on a staff member's desk and hadn't yet been officially filed when the birth mother changed her mind so Nora and Sean had to simply hand her over. And to make matters worse, the birth mother now doesn't know whether she should in fact keep Darby for good, or whether she should hand her back to Nora and Sean. They are absolutely BESIDE themselves, as you could imagine. So please, drop in to Nora's blog and lend her a shoulder...anything, even just so that she knows she and Sean are cared about and thought of. She could really use it right now...don't be scared, she won't bite.

Anyway, yes I am greiving, yes that is terrible, but it's simply a God-awful part of life...and something that I just have to deal with. Things could be much, MUCH worse, that's for sure. So thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your gorgeous words of support, your stories, your {{{{HUGS}}}}, and your positive vibes over the last few days. I will hopefully get to email you all individually sometime over the next two days. Thinking of you all and wishing you nothing but health, harmony and happiness in your lives :o)

{{{{{{{{{HUGEST OF HUGS}}}}}}}}}

Luv Karen xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Photos...

2006-03-16T04:00:00.000+10:00

Happy Birthday Dad!!!!!! (Here with Lachie)

My Auntie Margie (back) and Nana (front). Nan was the older. Both of them were 88 when they died. I miss you both so much :o(...

...just wanted to share these :o)

Bad day (Wednesday)...

2006-03-16T00:29:00.000+10:00

...it started off crap, and I just knew that something majorly bad was going to happen today. Y'know, one of those days when nothing seems to go right, and just one bad thing after another happens? Well, today was it :o(

At about 7.30pm my Dad called me to tell me that my Auntie Margie died at 6.30pm...my Nana's sister. They were best friends and it devastated Auntie Margie when Nan died 2 years ago in January. I did so much with Nan and Margie, and she was such a wonderful person...so much like my Nan and me. I loved her so much and it is awful now she has gone too...all of Nan's brothers and sisters are gone now...the end of an era. But I know they will all feel complete now that they can all finally be together...they lost one of their brothers when Nan was 14yrs old, Margie was 12, so it has been a long time since their family has been complete. And Margie lost her grandson Robbie in a horrific car accident here in 1997...she was close with him like Nan and I were and she has never recovered from his death, as she didn't from her husband Bobbie's death in 1975. So it makes me happy to know that they are all there now, finally together in Heaven, having a good old laugh and a "tottie" of port (or two ;P), telling some crazy stories.

But still, I am here greiving for Margie, Nan, Robbie...for all of them...wishing they were still here or that I could see them and talk to them, meet my uncles who I never knew, have those old times back...but I never can, at least not in this mortal life. And try as I might, the grief for Nan never goes away...it just bubbles under the surface until something like this stirs it up again. So I never cope well with death, not that anyone ever does though, and I don't think I ever will. It really rocks me, and this time with Auntie Margie's death, it is even worse...like losing Nan all over again, and grieving for lots of family members instead of one. So I am feeling very upset and miserable and wanna see and hear and cuddle Nan so much right now. But it will pass, for a little while at least. And I WILL BE OKAY...PROMISE!!!!! Just feeling really selfish and sorry for myself right now and wanted to let you all know that I might not be around for a few days. Hence "My Immortal" by Evanescence...feels like I am singing the verses to Nan, and she's singing the chorus to me...very real and raw as this song was out when Nan died. I still love it though :o)

Oh, Nellie's layout is FINISHED...YAY NELLIE!!!!!! Much happier news there!!!!!!! Will share a pic later on when the sun is up ;D

And it's my Daddy's bithday today (16th)...HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!!!!!! Love you heaps :o) xoxoxoxoxoxo

MWAH everyone, and good luck to Megan for Friday!!!! Thinking of you all who are going through a crappy time at the moment, and sending {{{{{{HUGS}}}}}} to you all!

Chat soon! :o)

Forgot to add...

2006-03-13T17:52:00.000+10:00

Ooooooh, one more share...look what came in the post for me today from the gorgeous Janelle!!!! Nellie did this special layout for me in return for the one I am doing for her. Your turn next Nellie...stay tuned! :o)

And here's a list in order of who's layouts I have yet to do, so if you haven't already sent me your pics, get emailing girls so I can get your layouts done ;D
Nic
Moira
Sandi - got your pics thanks Sandi :o)
Nikki (from Scrapboxx)
Rachael Giallongo
Shazz - got your pics too thanks Shazz :o)
Rachie

Karen's layout! and weekend pics

2006-03-13T16:45:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone! Here's Karen's layout for you all to take a peek at :o) I hope you like it Karen!!! Coming to you soon in the post ;D I used my fave KI pp of course...and added some doodled flowers and doodling on Karen's GORGEOUS photo. The words printed on white cardstock came with a 6x6 Studio K album I bought last year, and I re-discovered them in my stash when I was packing my bag and thought they'd be perfect to use ;P

I finished Karen's layout off today at Scrap & Yap at our LSS, during which we also organized a tag swap which I am going to take part in...should be fun!!! There are 12 of us in it and we are randomly assigned a month of the year to scrap. We each do up 12 tags and give them to the store's owner, Collette, and she is going to put them together for us and give each of us a ready-bound book of the tags...COOL! Just wanted to include that for anyone who wanted to know ;P

Here's a layout I have been meaning to post for a while now. The lovely Kim Archer graciously RAK'd me the class instructions from her last lot of classes (which I couldn't attend as Mark had his op scheduled for the same week), and this is what I came up with. I LOVE this layout!!! The black/green/white colour combo is one I haven't used before, and it worked out so well here with Lachie's shirt and cap matching the KI Evergreen pp. MM mixed rubons were used for the "Feb 06" which tie in with the fonts on his hat, too :o) I haven't had time to add the journaling though under the lift-up flap, so I hope to get to that over the next couple of days now that things are less busy.

And here's where we spent our day yesterday...Torquay Beach, Hervey Bay. My old stomping ground as a kid. I used to trot off down here with my brother and four cousins...Mum and Dad would bring us down to see Nan and the kids (my Nan had custody of my four cousins) and to go to the beach almost every weekend in Summer :o) We had such good times here, and I am so thrilled to bring my kids to the same beach to play...gosh I love living down here :o) Oh, the land you can see in the background spanning the horizon is Fraser Island...a 30min. boat trip and you're there. If any of you are ever up this way, you've gotta go see it...it's gorgeous!!!! And the whales are spectacular too :o)

A few more pics to share...Lachie scoffing his whiting fillets...

...and Lili throwing shells, as she does when it's low tide ;P...

I'd share some pics of us having ice-creams at our fave little ice-cream shop on the Esplanade, but Lili was being Miss Tired/Cranky Girl and wouldn't give Mummy a break lol...*hrmph* toddlers for ya! ROFL ;D

Well, thanks for sticking with me thru this post! Catch up with you all soon :o) Oh, and Rob is staying for a while, Peta and Megan...good eye candy, huh? ;P

Look out for our Max Chick DT work!!!

2006-03-11T23:02:00.000+10:00

Coming soon to an inbox near you LOL ;P I hope that you have all signed up at "Scrap To The Max" to receive the store newsletter...it'll be out next week, so Nic says. As you may know, we have been busy little bees creating lately and we can't wait for the newsletter to come out. So yes, all of my DT projects were finished on time (YAY YAY YAY!!!!) and you can all see what I and the rest of the Max Chick DT have been up to REAL soon, promise ;D

Well, having a S L O W weekend here, which is a nice change of pace actually. But we are missing our weekly Saturday night BBQ/movie/drinks/chat with our mates Dave and Bec...they are at Bec's Nana's 90th birthday party tonight. And last night was Mark's Mum's birthday, so we had tea with Mark's parents, sister Susan, and nephew Jesse. The kids LOVE Jesse...rolling around on the grass with him and having tickle-fests, chasing him around the yard, just doing silly kid stuff LOL ;P Tomorrow Mark, myself and the kids are off to the beach for lunch for a play and we're having fish and chips on the beach too. Lachie LOVES fish, especially whiting fillets, and he loves fishing too!!! He's such a finnicky eater so it's nice to see him scoffing down something her loves ;D Actually, we might even take the kids fishing yet...that sounds like a great idea too! And GO THE TIGERS!!!!!! Fab win on Friday night boys...kicked some St. George butt big-time ;P

Oh, before I forget, last night I saw "Wolf Creek" on DVD...have any of you seen it? It's a new Aussie film based loosely around Ivan Milat's backpacker murders, but set in outback WA. SUPER gory, and the scary thing about it is that there may actually be loonies out there like Mick, the serial killer in the story...like Ivan Milat for instance. You know, people who have been "operating" for years and never been caught...and who knows how many people Ivan Milat really murdered? There's been so much speculation around that since his arrest...god I remember all of that like it was yesterday. I was living in Rockhampton on the residential college at uni, by myself in my little room, with no family around...just my friends. It freaked us all out no end. Anyway, watch it if you dare...it'll make you never want to go down a dirt track in the outback again though...freakishly real!!!

Last but not least, here's some more Rob Thomas for Megan, since I know she loves him so much and is missing him being on my blog ;P I have been thinking about you so much lately Megan, worrying about you...I hope things go well with Olivia this week...big {{{{HUGS}}}}. And {{{{HUGS}}}} to Nellie and Nic and Karen who have been feeling under the weather lately...get well soon girlies!!! Worried about you too :o) I know, I worry too much lol!

See you all soon girlies...and {{{{HUGS}}}} to anyone else out there who is ill in one way or another. I hope you all feel HEAPS better soon :o)

MWAH! xoxo

Happier ;D

2006-03-09T02:17:00.000+10:00

YAY!!! Mark's leg is getting better, my bleeding's stopped, Lili is going to bed at a decent hour, and Bec and I are back on track...MUCH happier today ;D

And WOW, Nic and Kim, now I see what you mean about deadlines making you work so much more effectively lol ;P I've almost completed two of my three DT projects in the last day...just have to put the finishing touches on both of them (brads, rubons on one, etc.) and then just ONE TO GO!!!! I am so excited about the first newsletter coming out very soon for Scrap To The Max...the other DT girls and I have been working so hard on our projects and FINALLY we'll get to share them!!!!! YAY YAY YAY!!!!! Amber is doing such a great job as boss, and Nic is too as Boss Max Chick ;P I am really loving being a part of this amazing little group we have and getting to know the girls a little more...they are all so lovely :o)

So...why a Pink song, you might ask???? Well, the thing with me and music is this. I am not necessarily a fan of one particular group or singer or style...I am drawn to the song. It might be the melody, the lyrics, the message, or the film clip that I love. With this Pink song, it's the message...and the film clip! I love how she's so true to herself; she doesn't try to be like all of the other skinny, blonde, big-busted, up-themselves women on the American music scene. She's Pink...totally herself, all the time. And I also love how she's encouraging women to reject the stereotypical bimbo-type with this song and just be themselves, too. LOVE the little girl in the clip...isn't she the cutest little thing? And I LOVE the chuck-offs at Jessica Simpson, Paris Hilton, etc...soooooooo DAMN FUNNY!!!!!! But my fave part is at the end where the little girl flicks off the tv, contemplates which to play with - the barbies or the football - then she picks up her footy, and the "good" Pink does the little *two-fingers-swept-across-her-eyes-and-big-grin-thing* and disappears...soooooo cool! Reminds me of me when I was a little girl, and of how I am today. I still loved my Barbie's though lol ;P

Well, happy listening (and watching), and I'll catch you all soon. And thankyou so much for your support...luv ya's...MWAH! ;o)

I got music ;D and an update :o(

2006-03-07T03:58:00.000+10:00

YAY!!!! Thought the place needed brightening up a bit...I've been contemplating adding music codes to my blog for a while now, and tonight I decided, why not? So here's a Matchbox 20 song that describes the Ridgeway Household at the moment...and it's one of our faves too ;D Don't worry, I promise the next song/video will be more upbeat :o)

Well, things are still crap, but we are managing and are doing a great job at laughing at the crappy things ;D

In short, Mark has developed a clot in his leg that was operated on...not a DVT, but a clot in his superficial saphenous vein (upper top of his thigh). Not life-threatening like DVT's are (THANK GOD!!! we were pretty stressed till we found out for sure), but he is in an awful lot of pain and can hardly walk. Hopefully the Diclofenac the dr prescribed him will help him feel better in a couple of days. He took the first one tonight and is sleeping well, so that's a good sign!

And, as expected, my OBGYN doesn't agree with me having a hysterectomy. He has put me on some HRT (yes, sounds wierd, I know!) which he thinks will help, but I have tried it and it made me feel soooooo sick. But, I will indulge him...he says that I am in no position at the moment to make any decisions about a hysterectomy due to the way my current episode is affecting my anxiety levels and that an OBGYNs goal is for me to reach 35 on other treatments before I have a hysterectomy. Well, there's NO WAY IN HELL that I am putting up with this crap for another five years, let me tell you!!!! Anyway, he wants me to think about it some more and come back in about 2-3mths and he'll reassess me and talk about it some more. So that's okay, I understand where he's coming from and he understands where I'm coming from, so I'll push a bit more next time I see him. After all, it's my quality of life that I think should be my top priority, not my fertility as I'm done having kids, and my age therefore should not affect his decision to do it or not...ya think????

And Lili is being a toad...sleeping too long at day care and not going to sleep until 10.30-11pm. Fed up...will be having another word to them tomorrow! Plus fights with Rebecca, our friend. She misunderstands things that are said and creates drama for us and her hubbie Dave...GRRRRRRR!!!! Dave will talk some sense into her though...he can usually get through to her.

Wel I am soooooo over these dramas!!! And you are all such fantastic cyber-friends to put up with it and to offer your support...thanks so very, very much girls...I'd be lost without you ;D But seroiusly, any more downer-posts from me and I swear, you can all shoot me lol!!!!

Busy week scrapping for me, so I should be feeling better tomorrow after a nice, long scrap lol ;P I have Karen's layout to finish, and my DT layouts for Scrap To The Max are due Friday. Lots to do! And I have been up waaaay too late tonight (this morning now lol) so I'm off to bed. Tomorrow's a better, brighter day, I'm sure!

Chat to you all later...hope all is well with everyone out there in blog-land :o)

Lou's layout!

2006-03-01T12:14:00.000+10:00

Glad you liked it Lou!

The flowers were hand cut from a sheet of Urban Lily paper (heard that Urban Lily is no more...buggar! loved their stuff!!). Doodling was inspired by a pair of Barbie knickers that I bought for Lili...I looked prety funny sitting in "Scrap and Yap" at the LSS Monday morning with this pair of knickers sitting on my desk though...got some laughs and strange looks lol ;D Had to explain to everyone that they were fresh out of the packet and not yet worn hehehe!!!!

Well, Karen you are next girl! Look out ;P

P.S. Update - off to my gorgeous German OBGYN who delivered my two babies next Monday to see about my bleeding (still going...GRRRRR...eight weeks now!). Hope he'll agree a hysterectomy...fingers crossed!!!! Mark is back to work next week and the physio agreed with me...he is healing as expected and he's much less cranky now, but still sore. Doing okay though!

Luv Karen xoxo

WOW!!!!!

2006-02-20T23:59:00.000+10:00

What a busy stressful week!!!! Been preeeeety crazy here. I don't think my life is ever gonna slow down ROFL :oP

Mark has been so damn cranky with his knee as he hasn't been improving as quickly as he thought he would. Uh, hello Sweet, the dr and physio said it'd take 4-6mths to recover to 100%????? Well, didn't say it like that until I'd repeated it to him for the fifteenth time lol ;P GRRRRRR, why do men never listen to their wives? So I am sending him off to the physio tomorrow who can tell him again himself, then he might believe it ;P

I've also been helping our good friends Dave and Bec pack up their house. They are moving to Hervey Bay and it'll be great to not have to drive 20mins to see them any more. They'll be just down the road, which'll be nice. Mark and Dave have been best mates since they were toddlers...they grew up across the road from each other and went to the same school too. So proud of them that after all they have been through together they are still best mates, after 31yrs :o)

Bec and I have also been trying to help out Bec's sister Nadine. Her husband walked out on her last Thursday and she has three little boys (6, 3, and 1). We've been helping out with her housework and with babysitting the boys, and Mark and I had them all over here for tea on Friday and Saturday nights. The kids had a good play with our two! They play so well together, and Lili absolutely adores Caleb the baby!!! I think she's going to be a real little mother like I was when I was little :o) Anyway, it's been such a reality check for me to have five kids in the house, all under 6...makes me appreciate only having two lol! But Nadine has felt so much better for our help, so that's fabulous :o)

I've still been sick too...bleeding's still going :o( Gotta stop soon...how much can one woman bleed, seriously? It's been 7wks now!!! I also got a urinary tract infection and thrush from the antibiotics I took for it, and I have a cold. YAY me!!!! When I get sick, I get sick ROFL!!! I am feeling better now though...not 100%, but better :o)

And here's some pics for you that I promised over a WEEK ago LOL!!!!! Bad blogger, I know!

The canvas that I did for my last class at my LSS...me and my Nana. I used my Scrapboxx canvas layout as a template for the design. PP and accents are from the new K&Co Neopolital range by Brenda Walton. LOTS of jewels and doodling here!

Here's the cover of my circle journal that I've been doing lately. We've just started our first round...and it's my first ever cj too! Mine is very Elsie-inspired lol ;P Here's the title page too...I scrap-lifted the heart design from Elsie. Yep she's still a huge inspiration to me...check her out at 2Peas and in CK this month. ROCKIN' as always!!!

Last one...here's my *barely* 4 year-old boy riding my brother Brad's old BMX with NO training wheels at my Dad's place (this bike is doing damn well being 24 years old too!). I am so proud of him!!! And MAN can this boy RIDE!!!!!!!! He doesn't believe in brakes ROFL...hmmm, just like his Uncle and Daddy! I just hope that they don't get him into motorbikes...OMG, who am I kidding? The kid loves 'em already...it's a wonder his first word wasn't "motorbike"!!!! Stuff what Mummy says, hey boys? This kid of ours is going to be a speed freak too LOL ;D

Well, thanks for reading everyone and I hope to be able to show off Lou's layout soon! Yes, I am *still* working on it...lol ;P Nevermind, I'll get there!

Quick update...

2006-02-10T16:30:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone!

Thank you all for your congrats and thoughts re: Mark and myself over the last few days.

Mark's operation went well and he is home. His dr was able to remove the torn cartilage, however he did discover that Mark has early arthritis in his knee as a result of previous injuries to his knee :o(. He'll never have a normal knee joint, we've been told, so maybe a knee replacement is the go for later in life. But after this surgery and recovery is through, he should retain his previous state of mobility so YAY!!!!!

Well, we are off to our friends' place for the weekend, so I'll catch up Sunday night. And thanks for the pics Karen, and to Shazz also for her pics of the roo swmming at the beach ;D hehehe...had a good laugh and shake of my head, Shazz!

Luv ya's!!!!!

YAY! I can spill my secret!!!

2006-02-08T22:22:00.000+10:00

Check this out - http://www.scraptothemax.com.au/maxchicks.htm (damn link thing won't work...GRRRRR....click on "Max Chicks" in my links to you right).

SURPRISE!!!!!!!!!! ;P ;D :o) hehehehe...

I am sooooo excited about it...WOW it really is a fantastic break from the crapiness lately!!!!!! Thanks Amber and Nic for picking me ;D Can't wait to get started, and the girls are all fantastic too (hi Max Chicks) :D Got my first pack of DT goodies so I'll have a super-busy month now :o) And don't forget to check out Amber's gorgeous goodies in her store while you're there, too!

Thank you all so very, very much for being so gorgeous. I don't like to complain about the bad things in life, but sometimes it just feels sooooo much better to get it out. Things are looking up with the bleeding...slowing down thank GOD!!! So I am feeling heaps better today. Have some iron tablets too, so they should help.

HUGE {{{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}} to everyone (MWAHHHHH too!)

P.S. The pics are coming...short of time last night and today...get there soon, I PROMISE!!!!! ROFL

Low...

2006-02-06T23:08:00.000+10:00

Sorry I haven't blogged for a few days, but there's been so much going on around here lately, and I am so worn out. And sick...damn period's playing up again...as in five whole weeks straight of playing up. I am very seriously considering a hysterectomy now...blerk! So fed up with the whole thing that I just wanna SCREAM!!!! I'm anxious, scared, sore, tired, nauseous, anaemic...don't know how to feel. Just want it all to end :o( (oh, the period stuff that is!).

The kids have been so naughty too and Mark is cranky as he's torn the cartilage in his right knee in a MAJOR way so he's been off work for a month now. He has surgery on Thursday. It was meant to be today, but it was rescheduled, so an even grumpier husband I have tonight! Poor fella...the pain and swelling and not being able to do anything are driving him up the wall, to say the very least. So is the cost of the surgery...over $1000 and that's the gap fee. We also have to pay a $250 excess for his stay, and it's only day surgery! Makes you wonder why we have private health cover in the first place...but if we didn't, he'd be on a waiting list and off work for a lot longer than he has been already. Plus, he'd be operated on in Brisbane...at least we only have to go 2kms down the road for his op, so that's a blessing, and we know which doctor will be operating on him and he is well respected in our area. Lots to be thankful for given the sad and sorry state of Queensland Health at the moment.

I am scared though...Mark has had a lot of operations in his 34 years for Binder's Syndrome. His Mum developed a septum in her uterus during her second pregnancy with Mark's sister which essentially divided it into 2 parts. She lost four babies before she conceived Mark, and he was born with no cartilage in his face, shortened limbs, a severe overbite, and very small. Binder's Syndrome is the medical name given to the collective facial malformations that he was born with. Anyway, lots of major, MAJOR surgery to fix it all in his early twenties and you can hardly see the scars now. That brings us to here...he "died" during one of his operations, but he was resuscitated after a couple of minutes of being "worked on". I'm worried that his body won't be able to handle any more surgery, and that he'll go into cardiac arrest this time too. I know, it's unlikely and irrational, but I'm still terrified about it. Hope everything goes okay...at least his knee will be better afterwards.

Good things now...I had a great postie day today! I received a pack of goodies, Julie's layout that she did for me, and Lou's photos. Man I can't wait to scrap!!! Off to Bundaberg for the day tomorrow with Mum though, so nothing's going to get done until tomorrow night. Ooooooh, Mum and I are joining the photography club here in Hervey Bay too...Mark bought me a Canon EOS 350D Rebel a little while ago, so it'll be nice to learn a bit more about it! So that's Wednesday night taken care of. Hopefully I'll get a chance to do some work after my trip tomorrow! And my canvas that I did for my class at my LSS has come home too *sigh*...so now I can share some pics of it too.

Well, sorry for the ramble. Hope to share a few pics tomorrow night ;P Take care everyone! And get started sending those pics *nudge nudge* ;P I have Lou's, Nellie's, and Sandi's now (ta gorgeous girls MWA!!!). In order of posting it was Lou first, then Karen, Nellie, and Nicole, etc. so get sending girls! Look out for Lou's layout which will be coming soon to my blog, bar any more dramas LOL! (finger's crossed xx)

So post me your pic Karen ;P!!!!! You're on for next week, as are you Nellie ;P YAY!!!!!!!!!

Luv Karen xoxo

P.S. I feel a bit better now ;P

My Mum did this!

2006-02-01T10:36:00.000+10:00

Ooooooh, 'scuse me being a little rudie-nudie here hehehe...but have a read of this story...it's so funny! I remember Mum and Dad telling me all about this photo time and time again when I was growing up...funny, I have photos of Lili playing with the hose when she was about the same age, too! Mum has a whole series of these photos and has scrapped them all in my childhood album that she's doing. She's also doing one up for my little bro. She's done some gorgeous work in them! I really love this page...I am trying to convince her to submit it. She hasn't been published before and it would be such a thrill for her!!!

Just a little light-hearted fun that I thought I'd share! :D

Hope everyone is having a great day!!!!! xoxo

P.S. I still love water just as much as I did when I was little...swimming and playing with the kids with the hose are my fave things to do ;P Some things never change, like the chubby little thighs for example ROFL! Hehehe....

My photo swap with Peta :)

2006-01-31T13:57:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone! As promised, here's a pikki of the layout I have scrapped for my gorgeous friend Miss Peta Stokes. Pete is a very special person who wears her heart on her sleeve; she's compassionate and honest and I am proud to call her my friend :D

I used KI paper for the star, jewels (again!), American Crafts ribbons, Lil Davis chipboard letters, and LOTS of doodling!!!!!! I really love the graffiti look - will have to do some more layouts using this technique :)

Hope you like it, Pete...luv ya :D

Presenting...

2006-01-30T21:56:00.000+10:00

...my layout for the gorgeous Miss Julie Love!!! Julie is one of my fave Aussie scrappers, and I am lucky enough to be able to call her my friend :D She truly is a wonderful, kind-hearted soul and I feel so blessed to have "found" her...so hi Julie!!! I hope you like your layout!!!!!!

All KI of course lol...apart from the chipboard letters, rub ons, and jewels. Papers and ribbons are from the "Chill Out" range...gorgeous colours! Julie and I both adore KI stuff so what else could I scrap her layout in ROFL ;P More doodling here too. LOVING doodling with my white gel pen at the moment! ;P

And stay tuned tomorrow for the layout I've been doing for Miss Peta Stokes...I've not been well today so haven't had a chance to finish it :o( Off to complete it now, Pete!!!! Cya then everyone!!!!

Lol Karen, you read my mind!

2006-01-27T11:06:00.000+10:00

Okay girls, I can't resist! I am going to scrap a layout for each of you!!!! YAY YAY YAY!!!!!

I'll complete the layouts running in order of posting to my comments...Lou, Karen, Janelle, Nicole, Moira, Sandi, Nikki, Rachael, Shazz, and last but by no means least Rachie! I have a couple of other projects I need to complete in the next week ;D,so I will start completing your pages for you, starting with Lou!!!! I had already organised to do a photo swap with Julie before I did my last post, and Peta ever so kindly scrapped an AMAZING digi-layout of me (see the Boxx or her blog at the side if you haven't already seen it ;D), so I will complete those first...hope that is okay girls, even though they commented to my post too (you naughty things ROFL!)

Oh, I so LOVED all of the crack-me-up comments you girls added to my last post...tooooo funny ;D ;D ;D Thanks to you all for taking the time to read my little blog!!!! I seriously CAN'T WAIT to get started on your layouts...this is going to be SO MUCH FUN!!!!!

P.S. SPECS FOR LAYOUTS: PM me through Scrapboxx and I will send you my email address or home address if you don't already have it...don't want to post it here on my blog. So, you can email me through your photos or send them via Aussie Post. Your photo can be of anything/anyone, and please include some journaling about the subject. Doesn't have to be heaps of journaling...include as little or as much as you want. Don't forget to tell me whether you want a colour or b+w photo on the layout, and what size you want me to do it in; I'll do either 8.5x11 or 12x12, or smaller if you'd like. And if you'd like it to be similar to another one of mine that I have in my Boxx Gallery or here, or a totally individual new one, that's okay too. I'm pretty easy-going LOL :D Ta again girls! xoxo

Surprise!

2006-01-25T09:22:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone!

Big surprise for all of you...I'm feeling like having some fun, so if you would like to have a layout scrapped for you - by me - please leave me a comment here. I will draw five names randomly from everyone who posts by 10am (AEST) Friday 27th Jan.

Oh, no cost involved...my services are totally free, just 'cos I wanna have some fun after feeling crappy lately ;D

So get posting if you want a Karen original, girls ;D

I am okay...

2006-01-20T10:54:00.000+10:00

...today. I had a BIG cry yesterday and had a nice chat to Mum on the phone about everything, and I went to visit Nan at the cemetery in Maryborough too. I bought her some beautiful cream carnations with a gorgeous dark red edge around the petals (she loved carnations) and then I had a seafood feast with my Dad and Auntie Ruthie (Dad's sister) last night for Ruthie's birthday. Mud crab, sand crab, and prawns...YUMMO!!!!! So, Nan would've been happy to know that I was feeling better...she hated to see me upset. I know she's at peace in Heaven, but it is so hard when the memories overwhelm you and you wish they were still here. But I know she can't be...she does visit me in my dreams though and it is nice to see her then. I know she's looking after me still ;D I haven't managed to take a pic of my canvas yet, so here's a copy of the photo I used on it of Nan and I instead...at my wedding in Sept. 2000.

Oh, I received some good news today! My "A New Me" layout has been requested by Scrapbooking Memories !!!!!! I am so THRILLED because I was so happy with that layout! I haven't submitted anything since my "Elsie" page was accepted, so it's my third layout to be published...COOOOOOOL!!!!! Can't wait to see it in print ;P

And I've been tagged by Julie Love again too (hey Julie ;P) so here's my answers Julie...sorry for being a slack-bum!!! So this will be a HUGE post, but thanks in advance for reading everyone! And stay tuned here...I have something exciting planned for next week! DETAILS SOON!!!!!

4 jobs you have had in your life
1. Telemarketing for a whole entire week after I finished Year 12 (yuk!!!)
2. Work experience for uni (6mths) in the pathology lab at the hospital collecting blood, analysing blood samples, and doing microbial analyses (LOVED this!)
3. I worked in a nursing home for two months over the Christmas/New Year period in 2004/2005 as an aged care worker - excellent work experience for my nursing degree but the staff were horrible...not going back there again!
4. Teaching scrapbooking classes at my local scrapbooking store...not doing this anymore (finish up in Feb) and am looking into setting up classes from home at the moment. I REALLY want to share scrapping with other people!!!!

4 movies you could watch over and over
1. Titanic
2. Silence of the Lambs (and Hannibal and Red Dragon - fascination with forensics)
3. Twister (fascination with storms lol ;D)
4. ANYTHING scary...just NOT werewolf movies (scare me to death!!!!!)

4 places you have lived(I have lived a sheltered existence ;P)
1. Mayborough (I was born there and lived there until I was 18)
2. Rockhampton (for three years to study a B.Sc (Biology) at CQU
3. Back to Maryborough again...yuk!!!!
4. Hervey Bay (lived here now for a WHOLE MONTH)!!!

4 TV shows you love to watch
1. Desperate Housewives
2. All Saints
3. Medium
4. CSI

4 places you have been on vacation
1. The Whitsundays - stayed at South Molle Island (3yrs old though!)
2. Canberra & the snow at Mt Blue Cow (LOVED skiing and the art gallery!)
3. Cairns (gorgeous!)
4. The Sunshine Coast (once a year since I was a child...my fave!!!)

4 websites you visit daily
1. Two Peas
2. The Boxx
3. My daily blog list:)
4. Uni/nursing sites (note this will be no.1 when uni starts back soon lol!)

4 of your fave foods
1. Prawns (with cocktail sauce, of course ;P)
2. Mud crab (especially on fresh bread with vinegar and pepper...YUM YUM YUM!!!!)
3. Any kind of "Surf & Turf" (steak with a seafood topping and creamy/cheesy/garlic sauce...YUMMY!!!!!...especially with a nice side salad)
4. Chocolate mud cake (especially the one from "The Cheesecake Shop"!!!)

4 places you'd rather be right now
1. Scrapping
2. Swimming in Mum's pool
3. Sleeping (late night on the puter ;D)
4. Holidaying in the Whitsundays with my Mark

4 bloggers you are tagging
I think nearly everyone has done this one now so there's no one left to tag ;P

I've been super busy...

2006-01-17T23:03:00.000+10:00

...scrapping this week! Here's a boyish version of the layout I did for Kim's online class last week. I'm working on one of Mark in a landscape format of the same too. I just loved the layout so much that I HAD to create three lol ;P

Lachie is such a night owl, just like his Mummy (hehe ;D), and he'll often get up in the middle of the night and wander out to me to see what I'm up to. He's always up for a chat and some late-night tv (or a play on the lounge chair!) before I hunt him back to bed with a BIG cuddle! So that's what this layout is all about!! I used Chatterbox pp and sanded everything HEAPS...I also made my own letter "o" in the "so" and "you" using the negative of the letters from my Heidi Swapp chipboard alphas and rounded off one of the corners to match the rest of the layout. And no KI here either lol!!! But Mark's layout is entirely KI so at least that's made up for its absence on my other layouts lately hehehe ;P!!!!

Tonight Lachie has been terrible with not wanting to go to bed, so of course Lili has been playing up too...naughty kids! We had FINALLY conquered the bedtime naughties, but they have been so terrible this past week!!! Maybe they know Mummy's been feeling upset...very perceptive is my boy especially and he'll always pick up on it. He hasn't said anything yet - won't be long I guess - but he has been extra cuddly towards me.

I have been feeling very, very sad lately...it's 2 years on the 20th January since my beloved Nana died (my Dad's Mum). She was my entire life and I was so attached to her that I'd cry each time I left her, even as an adult (silly, I know, but I hated leaving her). I'd dreaded her death since I was old enough to know what death meant, and her passing devastated me even though it was expected. I scrapped a canvas of her and I together this week (will post a pic later) to have as a nice reminder of us and our friendship and how much I miss her.

Catch you all when I am feeling a little better :o)

My latest layout...

2006-01-13T22:52:00.000+10:00

Yep, my "A New Me" layout featuring my new haircut...I am so proud of myself for the way it turned out! I LOVE it!!!!! The black background is just to make your viewing easier...I used Kraft cardstock for the layout's background and rounded off the top left corner to match in with the circle of patterned paper. You may notice some similarities to this layout and the one I did in Kim's class because I had my things laid out on my desk ready for the class for a couple of days before-hand and decided I really loved the Kraft/MAMBI Chester papers/aqua blue cardstock combo, so I thought I'd use it for this layout too! Though I'd started it before I actually took the class, the painted edge to the cardstock and rounded off edges made their way onto this layout too ;D

Lissy - a friend of mine from Scrapboxx - sent me some of the gorgeous new Heidi Swapp iron-on letters for Christmas and I thoought they'd be perfect for this ultra-girly layout (all pink and glittery and so fun to use!)...and they matched in nicely with the pp and sticker flowers. Speaking of which (sticker flowers), aren't they just DIVINE????? They are from the new K&Co Brenda Walton range (embossed flower stickers, to be exact - also very glittery and girly ;P). And they're really funky too, I think! I doodled a bit with my white gel pen to add some vines between the stickers and accents to them, and used some Heidi Swapp jewels amongst the vines and to accent the word "new".

I hope you all like it!

Kim's class!

2006-01-12T21:48:00.000+10:00

Wow, I had such a fun night! I did an online class with one of my scrap idols, Kim Archer, and I am so thrilled with my page!!! I used some machine stitching, painting and sanding on my layout and I hand-wrote the journaling. I kept my layout quite similar to Kim's - I loved her original with the painted and sanded chipboard letters and flower and wanted the same effect on my page. And I couldn't help but throw in a couple of bits of the new American Crafts ribbons...LOVE those! OMG I have such a ribbon stash that it's not funny anymore!!!! Oh, and the patterened paper is from the MAMBI Chester range (loooove them!!!!!) and LOOK - NO KI ANYWHERE ON THE PAGE ROFL ;P !!!!!!

Anyhow, if anyone's interested in taking one of Kim's classes, be they in person through The Scrapbook Megastore in Newcastle or via her new online classes (coming up soon), I highly recommend them! Kim is an AMAZING scrapbook artist and a kind, lovely, welcoming person...she really makes you feel at ease. I have wanted to do one of her classes for a looooong time, but I live in Queensland and she's in Newcastle so it's a bit hard for me to get there, and the online classes are a fab way to do a class with her when you live so far away! Wish I had a chance to chat to everyone more though...too busy scrapping though lol ;P

Best of luck with your online classes in the future Kim!!!!

Thank you all sooooo much for the gushing compliments about my new look...what a HUGE boost for my self-esteem (which has been suffering a little of late)!! And stay tuned for my layout...putting the finishing touches to it tonight ;D

A new me!

2006-01-10T21:19:00.000+10:00

Well, here it is...my new hairstyle! I will get someone to take some better pics when I have the chance, but you get the general idea.

WOW, it is SO SHORT!!!!! I had the length halved and my hair now sits about an inch below my shoulders...and it is so curly! It was a lot straighter last time it was this length (high school). My hormones sent my hair crazy when I was pregnant with my kids and it became VERY wavy and has been that way ever since...funny, hey?

I LOVE my new style, I really do! And yes I was sooooooo scared when I got to the hairdresser's...she didn't want to cut it ROFL :D :D :D!!!! I feel free and light - I can wear it up in a high pony tail now and no headache WOOOOHOOOOO!!!! - and I am very excited about all of the pretty up-do's I'll be able to create too ;P

Catch you all later! I'm off to scrap all about my new hair now lol ;D

My Hair Saga (lol ;P)

2006-01-09T22:26:00.000+10:00

See this photo? It's me at age 15...DEFINITELY so not an average teenager, but that's for another blog entry ;D Anyway, for my entire childhood, my Mum made me have short hair as she despised having to try to look after it...my thick, blonde, wavy hair. Yep - my hair was officially my Mum's WORST nightmare (a legacy of my Nana's - Dad's mum - typical German hair lol ;P) - and it was also mine as I so wanted to have the beautiful long hair that all of the other girls in school had. They used to tease me and said I looked like a boy (my nickname was "boy/girl" - how awful!!!!)

So, at age 15, right after this photo was taken, I decided to grow my hair as long as I possibly could, and I did! And by the time I was 18, it reached my waist!!! Oh, how I adored to have such a swathe of long golden locks, and instead of everyone teasing me at uni, it drew comments about how gorgeous it was! So I kept it long, and it has been long ever since...never shorter than mid-back (bra length, I call it hehehe ;P). In fact, Mark said that my hair was the thing that first attracted him to me. Here's a pic of my hair as it is a-la-naturale (but add two inches on to the length since this pic was taken)...

But right now I am sooooo beyond sick of my long hair. I have been wearing it in the same style for over ten years and it is so long and thick that I cannot wear it in an up-do without getting a mega hair-headache!!! It's worn in one of three styles constantly at the moment and it is even so long that I can't wear it down anymore as it is EVERYWHERE...in my eyes, sticking to my sweaty skin in this heat...and I am beginning to not like it anymore.

So tomorrow is a HUGE day for me. I am off to the hairdresser for a cut and some foils...YAY YAY YAY!!!! Now I have serious trust issues with hairdressers at the best of times, and this is an entirely NEW salon that I am going to, so this is scary for me...really you have no idea how scary!!! And it is daunting to let go of my long hair and try something new after so long. But though I am sure I will hate it to start with, it WILL grow on me (pardon the pun!) as I find how many more things I can do with shoulder-length hair as opposed to waist-length hair lol ;P

Tell me I am doing the right thing everyone? I know Nicole will not be impressed though as she loved my hair in my Scrapboxx newsletter pic so much (hi Nic! I am sorry - please don't hate me lol!!!!) but it just has to go. New decade, new look!Will post a pic of my new do when I am ready everyone hehehehehe...WISH ME LUCK!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and I can feel a SERIOUS mega-layout coming on... ;P

Bitchiness...

2006-01-09T21:41:00.000+10:00

...it never fails to surprise me, scare me, anger me, and sadden me. I am a pretty peaceful person, and there are not many things in life that I can say that I really hate (apart from peas - yuk!!! lol ;P), but bitchiness is something that I truly and utterly despise. I am honestly floored by some of the snide remarks that have been going on in the scrapping world lately, and I wish it would stop!

I have always lived by the mantra that it is so much easier to be polite and nice than it is to be nasty and that if you don't have something nice to say, then don't say it at all. Everyone is different and not everyone will like your work, no matter what you do, so please ladies, if you don't like the way some scrappers are doing things at the moment, then keep it to yourselves. No one needs to feel down about themselves or their work...scrapping is a wonderfully personal hobby that so many of us adore, so please, don't spoil it for everyone. Dislike someone or someone's work if you like, for whatever reason, but please keep any nasty remarks private.

So as a parting remark, I will add this...follow the trends if you like girls, or don't - scrap whatever or however you choose!!!! If you want to scrap that way, then just do it!!!! And don't give a crap about what ANYONE else thinks!!!! If YOU love it, then that's the most important thing...it really doesn't matter who else does. Scrap for YOU and because YOU love it!!!! And please everyone, leave the hatefulness alone and be kind to each other...there's enough hate in the world at the moment and we don't need it in scrapping!!!! :D

(And 'scuse my very scary close-up all, but the expression is really applicable don't you think? I know, I am a dag lol :D :D :D)

I'm back everyone!!!

2006-01-04T23:50:00.000+10:00

And here's a Chrissy pic of the kids that I took just before we moved from our old place...Lili wouldn't smile properly though!!! But don't they look like they love each other? They look so cute together in their $2-shop Santa Hats and Chrissy t-shirts...not half biased though, huh ;P

And a BIG HI to you all! I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and New Year, and safe travelling to those of you who spent or are spending the holidays away from home. I haven't managed to catch up with many of you yet, but I hope to do so over the next few days :D I definitely missed you!!!!

We've had an EXTREMELY busy time here, hence the lack of blogging from me LOL ;D But seriously, I haven't had the chance to scratch myself over the last couple of weeks and net time has been VERY limited with all of the happenings around here! Still, things have been great...we had a rather quiet Christmas Day, with the usual family fueds (GOD I wish everyone would cut it out - won't bore you with the details). What would Christmas be in our family without them though? *Sigh* My 30th birthday on Boxing Day was rather hectic though...big family dinner out at my fave seafood buffet restaurant here in Hervey Bay and Lili was so cheeky and would not sit still and eat!!!! But hey, she's only two, so I'll let her off the hook ;P I did have a nice night though, and yes, I AM feeling older for sure!!!! And I got the most gorgeous gifts from everyone...I feel really spoilt hehehe :D :D :D

Anyway, we've just returned from a rather spontaneous holiday on the Sunshine Coast. We went away a couple of days after my birthday and spent New Years down there. We didn't get up to much...I did do some serious shopping though ;P!!!! Just spent our time swimming in the resort pool and at the beach, and we did a bit of fishing too...Lili caught her first ever fish on her new little Barbie fishing rod too (it was so cute!!!!) And now here I am in my grubby house with washing and toys coming out of my ears!!! Seriously, we need to rethink the toy storage around here with all of the pressies the kids got! And my scrap room needs some re-arranging too 'cos Mark spoilt me with heaps of new scrap stuff...and then there's all of the birthdays coming up in our family this month and scrapping to catch up on (and submissions to send!) so looks like I'll be super busy around here before uni starts back in March!!! OMG does it ever end???? LOL ;P

Speaking of submissions, my first ever published pages are coming up in the next issue of Scrapbooking Memories!!! And yes Julie, that is my "Elsie" page in the Next Issue preview of SM Vol 7 No.5 (LOL you cheeky thing) ;P!!!! Wow, it has taken FOREVER to come around...I submitted my Elsie page last year in July, I think. I am hoping to be able to submit some more soon and have mare layouts published this year, time permitting! I just have to be more organised...don't know what has happened to me in the last year 'cos I usually have everything planned perfectly, but I feel like my head's been all over the place. Must be all of the goings-on we've been through in the last year...it's been a big year and I am hoping that this year will be less drama-filled and a little more relaxed (just a LITTLE would be great!!!!!)...here's hoping!

I've been tagged...

2005-12-20T11:12:00.000+10:00

...by Julie Love :D Julie is one of my all-time fave scrappers - I've been admiring her work from the minute I saw it in the first edition of SM that I'd ever bought - and she ever-so-kindly emailed me a piccie of her (here with her son Josh) for me to add to my post. So HI JULIE!!!! Thanks for tagging me - this has been fun - I'll have to scrap these answers when I have time (something I'm forever short of lately ;P) It's a Christmassy-style tag...here's my answers everybody :D

1.Do you decorate your house this time of year? if so… how? ( a photo or description. )

We add a string of lights to the outside of the house and have a couple of light-up santas and reindeers in the windows for the kids. I also bought the kids a couple of little wooden signs to stake into the ground so that Santa knows where to find them at our new house ;P We have the tree up and decorated too...a little later than normal this year though with the big move. Not much else up this year though due to the time factor.

2. Have you ever been in a decoration competition?

No - maybe one day just for the fun of it ;D

3. How much is toooo much?

I don't like too much tizzy stuff around my house...HATE tinsel as it makes such a mess!!! But I do load the Christmas tree up with decorations and bead chains, and I can't get enough of the Christmas lights - you can NEVER have too many of them, or too many decorations in the shops LOL ;D

4. How do you celebrate this time of year?

Up until now I've always started off celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve with watching the Christmas Carols on telly while I slowly get ready for our midnight service at my local Anglican church, and I always go with my Auntie Ruthie...she and my Nana (they are Dad's sister and mum) always took me to church. I have been going to that big old church with its antique stained glass windows and pews and altar since I was a baby - I was christened there, confirmed there, married there - and I am really going to miss it this year. So this year we are taking the kids to the 7pm family service at the Anglican church here in Hervey Bay...they should really enjoy it :D Then it's home to watch the Carols on telly with the kids and help them put out their Santa sacks and a snack for Santa...I can't wait!

Christmas morning starts with the kids waking us up shouting "Look what I got!" (well, only Lachie in the past, but Lili will be yelling it too this year as she has become more proficient with her vocabulary hehe!). Then we look at the kids presents with them and help them open them, watch them play for a while, then we all open our presents from each other. Brekky's not usually much as the kids are too busy playing and we have always had to dash off to one of the three grandparents' places to start the round of visits, but this year we are not doing the travelling thing. We want the kids to have a relaxing day, not a hurried one, and to be able to play with their new presents. So my Dad and his partner are coming here for morning tea, then it's off to Mum's for lunch and a big pool party (YAY!!!!!) 'cos it's so hot here, then our friends Dave and Bec are coming for a casual bbq tea. Then we all fall into bed absolutely knackered!

The day never ends there though...I have two days of Christmas LOL!!! Boxing Day is my birthday, so I wake up to a second round of hugs and kisses and presents for the second day in a row ;D Then we have another day of swimming at the beach with a picnic or bbq lunch, lots of phone calls or visits from people, then we go out for tea with Mum and my brother somewhere that has prawns on the menu (I LOVE prawns!!!!). This year, because it's my 30th birthday, the whole family is going out to tea at the Marina here...my fave restaurant is there and it's right on the water, and they have a seafood buffet!!!! YUMMO!!!!! Can't wait for all of the Chrissy partying to start!!!!

5. Who’s job is it to wrap all the Christmas gifts? Will you (or whoever) use gift bags, or wrapping paper?

Hehehe mine LOL!!! Mark is not very good at wrapping presents - even he admits it - so he lets me do it, and he either gets mine gift-wrapped at the store or buys a gift bag ROFL :D I am taking the kids shopping tomorrow though and we are going to buy a present from them for Daddy, so they'll wrap that (with Mummy's help ;D) We use mostly wrapping paper, but gift bags for some things like bottles of wine.

6. What do you dislike most about the holiday season?

Family fights. I hate going to my Nana's (Mum's mum) on Christmas Day to visit as my cousins are always there and they ALWAYS end up fighting with each other or their parents or someone...really ruins it. And I also don't like having separated parents at this time of year. It always means that someone has to miss out on having a meal with us on Christmas Day. That can often put noses out of joint, too. Fights are just not what Christmas is all about!!!!!

Another thing that I don't like is Mum having to work on Christmas Day or my birthday. She's a nurse and for the last few years running she's had to work. It realy ruins the day for her, especially if there's a fatality or lots of injuries through the Emergency Department or something like that. She's the nurse manager, so she is in charge of all staff for the entire hospital when she's on duty, and Christmas means lots of staff calling in sick, so that stresses her out too 'cos she has to try and replace those staff members. She hates having to call in others to cover them and ruining their Christmas plans, and trying to juggle the other staff around to cover all of the patients! So she always comes home from work feeling down and incredibly tired at Christmas...this year will be nice for her as she has two weeks off (YAY!!!!) so we'll have a relaxed and happy Mum for Christmas :D

7. What are your top 3 fav Xmas songs?

O Come All Ye Faithful (I love to sing it loud and to hear everyone else sing it loud at church - it sounds glorious echoing through the church, especially the chorus!)

Away in a Manger (it reminds me of all of the children in heaven at this time of year, especially of my Kiara - Lachie's twin who we lost during the pregnancy - and of children around the world in need)

Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer (because the kids love to sing it so much LOL)

8. Real tree or fake?

Definitely fake - the real ones smell nice, but they don't look pretty for half as long as a fake tree ;P

Miss Nicole Finlayson, you're tagged next ;P Can't wait to read your answers!!!!!

And thanks for the comments on my work everyone...it truly does mean so much more to me than you'll ever know!!!!! :D :D :D

My secret's out lol!

2005-12-16T21:48:00.000+10:00

...well, here's my "big" news that I've been keeping a secret for the last couple of months - I am the Scrapboxx Guest Design Team Member for December!!!!! YAY!!!!! Like I said a while ago, not that big in comparison to others' news, but it is still a big deal for me! It's so thrilling to have Maria showcase some of my work for the month, and I really loved creating for her :D

Here's a pic of my first project, my Basic Grey Lunch Pail that I scrapped...I covered the box with scraps of KI papers and addeed some KI ice candy, prima flowers, and Elsie-inspired embellies to the outside. I decided to use the blank pages that come with the lunch pail kit to make a little book to sit inside the lunch pail in which I can record all of the things that inspire my scrapping, hence the title "Inspirations" on the book. Lol, went a bit crazy with the ribbons here :D :D :D The book is divided into sections titled "sketches", "products", "people", "words", "places" and "other bits"...each section contains blank pages for me to record the things that inspire me, be it in journaling or photo or magazine pic form :D I also attached a series of tags to the book, each showing a photo of me with a Heidi Swapp ghost letter stapled to each tag so that they spell k a r e n as you flip through them. It took me AGES to make, but I'm pretty happy with the end result :D Can't wait until I can share my other Scrapboxx guest dt projects with you all!!!

The Scrapping is going pretty slowly at the moment...busy buying things for the new house and doing my Christma shopping. I HATE leaving it until the last minute, but really had no choice this year with all of the dramas with selling the house! So Lili and I are hitting the shops tomorrow afternoon...Lachie is having a sleep-over at Poppy's (my Dad's) house, and Mark is going to do some jobs in the yard...and then we are off to the Chrissie Carols at the Seafront Oval tomorrow night here in Hervey Bay. It is due to storm though, so we hope it's not all washed out! Lili will be upset 'cos she loves to dance and sing...thinking of getting her into dancing lessons (nothing too formal though) as she'd really love it! So, things have been pretty busy here this week - lots of swimming in Mum's pool and at the beach lol ;D - and next week doesn't look like slowing down with Chrissie and the big birthday next weekend! And I have to make my rum balls and chocolate chrissie cake and finish off the shopping yet!!! OMG, I think I'll be worn out before then ROFL!!!!!

I've been quiet because...

2005-12-10T00:01:00.000+10:00

...we've been busy MOVING!!!!!

YAY YAY YAY we finally received confirmation last Saturday that the contract on our house was unconditional, despite some major dramas on the behalf of our buyer (the details of which I will not bore you all with here ;P). So the last week has been spent frantically packing up our house, moving in on Wednesday, and unpacking again. It is almost all done now...just the tv cabinet to set up and a box of the kids' books to unpack.

And wow, has it been an effort and a half! And in the middle of all of that, Lachie has been sick. Poor little mate...he's finally caught the infection that our mates Dave and Beck picked up and passed on to us. I got it, gave it to Mark, then Lili got it, now finally Lachie has it...and when he gets sick he goes down like a sack of potatoes. Temp BIG TIME amongst a sore throat and ears and snotty nose, but today was his worst day - he vomited in the car everywhere on the trip back to Maryborough to take the kids back to their old daycare for their last day there. So he stayed home with me and played and helped me unpack. He was such a good boy...I'm so proud of him :D I just wish he'd take his antibiotics though...he calls it his "yukky meddy" and the children's Nurofen his "yummy meddy"...that's so cute ;P And he seems to be a little better this afternoon - playing with his Poppy so that's a great sign - so hopefully he'll be okay tomorrow.

So, why the haste to move I hear you ask? Well, settlement is the 14th December - next Wednesday. So today and tomorrow we are mowing and weeding and cleaning the old place like crazy 'cos Mark is working long hours next week and I am busy too. Someone remind me to re-enrol for uni by the 14th December 'cos I am bound to forget! ROFL my memory has been shocking for the last few years...must've been due to those two highly stressful pregnancies in two years (well, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it ;P)!!!

But seriously, we are loving our new life in Hervey Bay so far...and the LSS is 2mins drive away now not 40mins hehehe :D :D :D I miss my Dad and my doggie Tessie though. Tess has been a product of shared parenting since she discovered my Dad's place 7yrs ago...she wandered in and stayed. She was one abused little puppy when she found us. Anyway, I moved out of Dad's and into our old house in the same street as Dad's when Mark and I were to be married, 5.5yrs ago now. Tess has since slept at our house and visited between our place and Dad's during the day. So, because she is a "bush dog" and is used to roaming, she'll never like the uptown life (no cow pats or dead rabbits to roll in near the new house in Hervey Bay - YUK she is feral!!!!!!), so she's with Dad full-time now. She is going to come for sleep-overs here though, and she came to visit for the day today. LOL I know, all of this over a dog, but she is a special little animal to Dad and I. She found us when we needed saving, after Mum had left Dad, and broke us out of our depression. So, Tess is a very much loved and adored (and spoilt!) member of the family. I miss her heaps :O( but I love living here. Catch-22 really.

So, that's me for the moment...hopefully a new layout to show soon! I started on it Friday last week - before the move - so I wanna get it finished. I HATE leaving things half-finished!

Thanks for checking in on me everyone and for reading my essay ROFL ;P

Three faves of mine...

2005-11-28T22:48:00.000+10:00

FAVE NO. 1: The latest issue of CK (Creating Keepsakes)...it's totally FANTASTIC!!!! If I sat here and picked out all of the things I adore in this issue, I'd be here forever, I think LOL :D. The Christmas ideas (especially the "Bling Bling" article) are fabulous...but my absolute faves are Elsie's new layouts (of course, hehehe). Can't beat this mag...IT ROCKS!!!!!!

FAVE NO. 2: This accent that I created for the SM Masters comp this year. I keep it in my box full of KI goodies (see my earlier post)...there it sits, waiting to be placed onto a layout for my Lachie. I ADORE this little thing and it was so simple to make!

Here's a pikki of it all closed up...

...and opened to reveal the journaling and accents (it swivels around on the blue brad on the front of the accent)...

...and here's a close-up of the journaling...

Now I am feeling all inspired to add it to a layout! Look out for it soon ;P

FAVE NO. 3: My relationship with my Mum. We are so much more like friends, seriously. She's been working so hard lately - she's a nurse too, nurse manager at the Hervey Bay Hospital in fact - so we are all off to her place tomorrow for some well-deserved quality time. I scrapped a layout about her and I last night but the light was wrong this afternoon, so no photo yet. Hopefully I'll get to post a photo tomorrow.

And please everyone, check out a post by Nicole Finlayson on her blog (link to the right) about the "real meaning" of Christmas. She's a fantastically lovely person, and a fabulous scrapper to boot, and has a really timely message here that I think you all should read.

Thanks for looking, everyone!!!!

Not slack, just super busy!

2005-11-27T02:29:00.000+10:00

Yep, trying to sort out the contract conditions for the sale of our house, find a new place to live, organising removalists, sorting out chuckable stuff from the worthwhile stuff, and scrap a few things has been driving me NUTS this week!!! We've been sooooo busy, and it doesn't look like letting up anytime soon. But I LOVE being busy, I thrive on it actually...I just wish I had some more time to SCRAP!!!!

I managed to complete a project tonight for someone...but I can't share it yet! Bummer!!! I am totally STOKED with how it turned out though; I feel really proud of myself :D I have really come a long way with my scrapping in the last 16mths since I started scrapping. And I owe it all to my Mum...she introduced me to it in the first place.

Geez, I hope like CRAZY that the sale of our house goes through...it'll be so nice to live 2mins from my Mum...we'll be able to scrap together HEAPS!!!! I don't know anyone else in my area who scraps, so it's just Mum and I. I love my Mum so much...we've been through more than any normal mother/daughter would go through so we have a pretty special relationship. She's so supportive of me so I'm going to love living so near to her, not to mention swimming with her in her new pool, going to the beach with her, taking her to visit my Nana (she also lives in Hervey Bay), going shopping and just "being together"...miss ya Mum!!!!

God, I hope we hear more in the next couple of days...we are nearing the buyer's decision on whether she accepts the building/pest inspection report. Really sweating it out here...we need this sale so badly for a lot of reasons!!!!!!!!!!!! My poor DH is so stressed that he is hardly sleeping or eating, so.................

PUUULEEEEEEEEEEEEZZZZE LADY MAKE UP YOUR MIND SO MY MARK CAN RELAX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you for your support and congrats of late, too...you are all so fantastic and it's great to have this little space in the universe to share my life with you all :D

WE SOLD!!!!!!!

2005-11-20T18:50:00.000+10:00

For Sale...not any more!!!! Sorry Mr. Kooky, we're moving!!!!

YAY!!! We have a contract on our house!!!!!!! I think Mark and I jumped up and down for about half an hour when we found out on Saturday...and I was dancing around with Lili in my arms and she kept saying "More Mummy..." so I danced around a bit more LOL :D!!! So, no doubt my whinges are forgotten with that one word from the real estate agent on Saturday arvo..."CONGRATULATIONS!!!!"

A few details...it's a cash sale so the contract will become unconditional after the building and pest inspections which will hopefully be done early this week. Then we can move!!!! YIPPEEEEEEEE!!!! Ok settle Karen ROFL :D :D :D Anyway, we're off to look at 3 houses in Hervey Bay tomorrow...nice area, brand new, 4brms, db garage, high fence, totally gorgeous!!! We are going to rent for a few years now. Had enough of owning a house for a while!

So...hopefully we will be moving next weekend. And I am looking forward to having a big spending spree and buying a new bed for us, new linen, and some decorator stuff for the house. And painting some canvasses, and doing some framed layouts, etc. to display in the house. And spoiling the kids and family for Christmas! And hopefully I will get a nice pressie now for my 30th birthday (hint hint Sweetie xoxo ;P). But we will invest a little chunk too after we pay off that horrible mortgage...be nice to have a little nest egg behind us for the first time in our lives.

Well, that's it for now...big storm coming so I'll go now. Hopefully it won't be a bad one like the other ones that've been around up here in QLD today! Catchya all later...I'm off to watch the light show outside :D

So NOT having a good week..

2005-11-18T00:31:00.000+10:00

...for a number of reasons, all listed in order of occurrence. So here goes, the BIG whinge!!! *sigh* but I need to get it out so that I can feel better. And I do not intend to offend anyone. It's simply my blog, my opinions, my shitty week. So sorry everyone for being grumpy :(

Whinge no.1 - my periods SUCK...BIG TIME!!! So much so that I am seriously considering having a hysterectomy. I am booked in to see my Gynaecologist in Brissie next week and we are meant to be discussing my upcoming surgery for Endometrial Ablation, but I am now thinking "Stuff it, I just want it to STOP for GOOD!!!!!!!!" To cut a loooong story short, I have a period every two weeks, the blood gushes and I have big clots (sorry too much info!), and none of the standard pain killers work on the pain anymore...not even Nurofen Plus. I need some Tramal but the doc won't prescribe it - bugger 'em!!! How many times do I have to go there in agony and ask for some pain releif? No Ponstan doesn't work you idiots...how many times do I have to tell you?????? Anyhow, I don't like my chances of my gynae doc saying "Yep ok, we'll do a hysterectomy...no probs if that's what you really want". Geez, I had a full-on fight with her over me wanting an Endometrial Ablation over more bloody hormones which do not help my Depression at all...and she's a WOMAN for God's sake so you'd think she'd understand???? Nope. Anyway, I guess I'll just have to be content with having the lining burnt away from the inside of my uterus for now and hope to hell that it works...but you can guarantee that we'll be having another fight 'cos I will be pushing the Hysterectomy issue. It's my body, it's my choice...we want no more kids, no more hormones, no more bleeding, no more Depression...and a Hysterectomy is my only guaranteed method of acheiving all of these. Major surgery? Phoey if you compare it to the pain and bleeding and SUFFERING I've experienced over the years. So this leaves me as I am today - anaemic thus so fatigued it's not funny, taking four oestrogen tablets a day to TRY and stop the bleeding, on Implanon which is doing more harm than good, and hormonal, cranky and teary. I am just grateful for one thing...my Mum had the same problems, had a Hysterectomy by her 31st birthday, and ALWAYS told me not to waste my time having kids...and I THANK GOD every day that I listened to her and that nagging voice that told me not to wait.........

Whinge no.2...Lili has bloody school sores (Impetigo)!!!!! So thanks, Daycare, for letting the parents whose child had school sores send their child even though they are medically not allowed to return until the sores had healed as it is so contagious. So now my poor little girl is on oral antibiotics, is infested with these horrible sores, is itchy and is in pain, and can't go to Daycare and play with her friends and big brother. Oh well, I guess we won't be paying that extra $100 off our Daycare bill 'cos we spent it on the doc's bill and creams and antibiotics and dressings and special Pooh-Bear band-aids to make my poor little mite feel a tad bit better and so that she can look at Tigger or Piglet or Pooh and smile instead of looking at disguisting pussy wheals...what a shame for them! Oh, and did I forget to mention that we still have to pay for Lili's Daycare even though she won't be there for ten days????? Yep, I am one PISSED OFF MOTHER!!!!

Whinge no.3...well, not really a whinge...my Daddy has had an enlarged prostate for a year and it's been getting worse. More blood tests for him today to see if it's progressed to cancer. I'm scared...he can't die like that...he's supposed to live till he's 85 and spend his final years tinkering with his cars and playing with his great-grandkids. He's only 57...he's not ready to go yet. Really alarmed and frightened and sad thinking about it, so I'm trying to keep myself busy doing other things. Note I said "trying".

Whinge no.4...my Mum has been working too much! She's so tired and I miss her!!!!!!

Whinge no.5...internet providers have had me offline a lot this week. I'm back now (obviously), but geez did I miss the net more than I thought I ever would!

Whinge no.6...I'm scrapping heaps but I can't share, not allowed :( But you'll see what I've been up to soon enough hehehe ;P (Trust me it's not that big in the scheme of other scrappers' big surprises, but in my own mind it's a HUGE deal ;P!!!)

Whinge no.7...Drama queen of a so-called friend! I can never do anything right by them, and I am SOOOOO SICK OF IT!!! I need a break for a while. (Not from you Del...you're my saviour :D u know who it is ;I)

Whinge no.8...people wanting to pay pittance for our house!!! Yes, the drama's still going. You should have heard today's offer *blowing rasperries*...makes me mad but not wasting my time on this one.

Whinge no.9...FED UP with washing every day and mowing two acres of grass every weekend just to impress people who want to pay pittance for our house!!!!!

Whinge no.10...gosh, I've whinged a lot, hey? Oh well...I never let if get to me like this anymore and I feel heaps better now it's out!

Hopefully next week is better...it HAS to be 'cos Scrapboxx is back online!!!! HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!! I missed you Maria and everyone else :D :D :D Now we might get to chat a bit more, hey?

Promise my next post will not be cranky...it'll be bright and happy and upbeat and colourful!!!! :D ;P :OD..........PROMISE!!!!!!!!

*super cheeky grin*

I've been tagged!

2005-11-14T23:05:00.000+10:00

Well, as I mentioned earlier, Peta (Possum) has tagged me so here's my go...ta Peta, luv ya!!! Enjoy reading everyone! :D

2 names you go by:
Kaz
Kazmeister

2 parts of your heritage:
German (my paternal grandmother's mother)
Danish (my paternal and maternal grandfathers' parents)
....trust me - I have the fair skin, blonde hair, blue eyes and big hips to prove it!

2 things that scare you:
Werewolves (freak me out BIG TIME!!!)
The death of any of my loved ones
....NOTE TO SELF - I've scrapped these on a layout - must post it on my blog :D

2 of your everyday essentials:
Milk - LOOOVE it!
Colour

2 things you are wearing right now:
My old CQU polo shirt...aaaah, the memories ;P
My funky, new, very professional-looking glasses :D

2 of your favorite bands or musical artists (at the moment):
Delta Goodrem
Red Hot Chilli Peppers
....very much opposite ends of the spectrum!

2 favorite songs (at the moment):
"Photograph" - Nickelback
"Far Away" - Nickelback

2 things you want in a relationship (other than real love):
Comedy
Affection

2 truths:
I should be SCRAPPING!!!
I'm not sure if I want to finish my Nursing degree

2 physical things that appeal to you (in the opposite sex):
A cheeky smile (I'm with Peta on that one!)
A sexy butt ;P

2 of your favorite hobbies:
Scrapbooking
Reading Patricia Cornwell novels

2 things you want really badly:
To never have another period AGAIN!!!! EVER!!!!!! (OMG mine suck!!!!!!)
To be on the KI Memories and Scrapboxx Design Teams (yep, dream on Karen *sigh*)

2 places you want to go on vacation:
A round trip up the coast of Queensland from where I live (3hrs nth of Brissie)
The Scrapboxx Retreat in Augusta next Feb

2 things you want to do before you die:
To see my kids grow up to live healthy, happy lives, and have their own children
To seek peace with my inner demons (very deep there!)

2 ways that you are stereotypically a dude/chick:
I believe that fairytales can come true
I love being "girly"...getting dressed up, made up, hair done, nice jewellery on, then going out for tea...that and shopping with my friends :D (makes me feel REALLY good about myself!)

2 things you are thinking about now:
Enjoying the feeling of Christmas approaching (can't wait to put up my Chrissie tree, go looking at all of the lights, and spend Christmas Day swimming in Mum's new inground pool - YAY YAY YAY!!!)
My 30th birthday party on Boxing Day (boy, one kick-ass Christmas coming up this year!!!!)

2 stores you shop at:
Scrapboxx of course!
Crystalmania (a Hervey Bay store...at the Marina, lots of boats and sea and sea breezes and crystals and cool jewellery, and Baskin Robbins is next door, too ;P)

2 people i would like to see take this quiz:
The very talented Nicole Finlayson and Julie Love (luv ya work girls!)
And can I tag Brooke Lyons too? What the heck, I don't care if I can or can't...you're tagged too, babe! Luv ya work too ;P
(what ya reckon...should I make Peta do it again? Hee hee, I am cheeky ROFL ;P)

Can't wait to read your answers on your blogs, girls! See you all later ;P

P.S. No go yet on selling...lots of lookers driving past, though. I've given up stressing about it! Like Julie said...good things come to those who wait :D

My blog header...FINALLY!!!

2005-11-14T00:08:00.000+10:00

I've been wanting a pretty header for a loooong time now...and here it is!!!

I scrapped it using my all-time fave paper line, KI's "Colourful" Collection. I've used some of the papers from the old AND the brand spankin' new KI Colourful collections to make it...and because I love colour so much, of COURSE my blog and my scrapping is *all about the colour* :D

And where does the title *Paper Fantastic* come from? Der, because I love brightly coloured patterned paper...as if you can't tell...just check out the "My Layouts" link to the right if you don't know what I'm talking about LOL :D

A BIG thanks to Nicole Finlayson for your advice on how to add it to my Blog :D

And Peta, maybe you can tell me how to move it down a space or two so that you can see the whole thing??? I have nooooooo clue (html dummy here ;P)

Oh, and speaking of Peta, she's tagged me so I'll post my tag answers next post. Hmmmmm, now who will I tag?

Hee hee ;P....watch out everyone!

Baby Kiah!

2005-11-08T14:09:00.000+10:00

I am really happy today :D Had a fantastic day yesterday...

"Scrap and Yap" (crop @ my LSS) with Mum in the morning was fab and I got HEAPS done on one of my projects (can't show or tell yet - will post it as soon as I am allowed - hehe)!!! YAY!!!!! Then I had lunch with my Nana and she took me to visit Anna and her new baby Kiah...that's Kiah in the pikki above. She's only one month old but WOW has Kiah got some HAIR!!!!! She's such a little sweetie...she lay in my arms asleep for an hour, not a peep out of her :D Oh, and you pronounce the "i" in "Kiah" as "eye" (say: K-eye-ah) iykwim!

I was so impressed with Anna. She had Kiah all dressed up for me in a pretty dress complete with a bow in her hair and her new bracelet that was a special pressie from her Mummy :D How cute!!! And to talk to her was like talking to the old Anna, before all of the drugs and stuff. Nan and my Auntie had told me she was off them and I am so thrilled to see and hear it for myself :D :D :D I am soooooo PROUD of Anna for getting it together and for loving her little kids the way she does....I came away from this special time with her with a grin from ear to ear :D :D :D The old boyfriend is hanging around though, so that is a bit scary. I really hope that she will see through him....Nan is very worried for her, and so are Anna's brothers. At least she has all of us on her side and knows that we are there for her if she needs us.

And I had a great time catching up with my Nana! I hadn't seen her for ages and we chatted all afternoon, just catching up on each other's lives. I used to visit her a lot when I was going to uni at Hervey Bay, so at least when we move there I'll see her more and we can get back to old times, sewing kids' clothes and chatting :D I miss that....

SPEAKING of moving, the people that looked at the house on Sat. offered us $175000...and we have it listed for $235000!!!! How RUDE!!!!!!!! The agent didn't even want to tell us what they offered - he was thoroughly disguisted in them wasting everyone's time, and so were we....he actually gave them a serve! Oh well, better luck next time....our agent sent them off to re-think their offer and will contact them on Thursday again to see what there new offer is. So we still have our fingers, toes, and everything else crossed xxxxxxxxx !!!!! Hope it sells this time!!

Scraplifting

2005-11-06T22:58:00.000+10:00

As promised, here's a scan of Anna's birthday present! I am really pleased with how it turned out :D I am going to scrap one for myself, too....be a nice start for my "Family" album that I have been intending on scrapping. Thanks to Elsie Flannigan for the inspiration :D

There's a bit of controversy surrounding scraplifting....is it right to copy someone else's work? I think it's totally okay, as long as the really similar pages are not intended for submission to a mag, and if any pages that are published which have a clearly scraplifted element on them are credited to the original artist. It's a hoodoo area, though. Ultimately, all scrapping ideas are based on a reinterpretation of another's, so where is the line drawn???? Who knows, but if Creating Keepsakes says it's great to scraplift, then it MUST be okay! And I won't ever let anyone make me feel bad if I use a lifted idea on a layout again!!! BTW, I am looooving CK this year! But then I've loved it since I started scrapping last year :P It's definitely my fave scrapping mag!!! :D :D :D

So off you go, everyone - feel free to scraplift! Just remember to credit your ideas :) And check out CK's "Scraplift!" article (Emily Magelby, p.103, November 2005 edition)....it's full of tips! Oh, and CK don't pay me to say that they're great lol :D I just love the mag :D :P :D

Moving???

2005-11-05T01:51:00.000+10:00

Let's hope so!!! We have two groups of people coming to look at the house on Saturday....and neither of them have to sell their place before buying another, so that's a great start! OMG would it be fab to be living by the beach in time for Christmas....gotta try not to get my hopes up toooo much! But hey, a girl can dream, right :D

Having a late night tonight doing a layout for my cousin Anna's 21st birthday on Sunday....she has no baby photos of herself so I thought I'd scrap her one that I have and frame it to make a special pressie for her. I'm also her God-mother....I was eight when she was christened!

I've been reminiscing over the photos of me holding her at her christening....I was one PROUD little missy to have a God-daughter :D I've always tried my hardest to look out for Anna, even as a child - I knew what being a God-mother was all about hehe!!! I'd mother her, trot off to the beach with her under my arm and splash in the waves and build sandcastles, play Barbies with her, pick her up from school when I got my licence, stay at my Nana's (she had custody of my cousins) on school holidays and take her to the movies and shopping, and always try to teach her right from wrong. Unfortunately, no matter how hard any of us tried, she fell in with the wrong kids at school. Now she is 21 and has a newborn baby daughter who is the result of her prostitution and has a drug problem. She also has a 3.5yr old son. And she was a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of her son's father. I am not making any excuses for her, and I wish her short life would have been easier for her. But I love her just as much as ever. I can only pray that she finds some stability in her life now that she has a new baby and rediscovers her responsibilities. She knows that I'm here if she needs me. Anna, love you always... you'll forever be my little God-child :D xoxo

P.S. I'll post the layout tomorrow, hopefully! It's an Elsie scrap-lift, too cute and funky to resist scrapping it for Anna! Elsie is still inspiring me heaps with my scrapping, as are some of the other Garden Girls :D And Shannon Tidwell's DT stuff at www.kimemories.com is sooooo awesome!!!!!! And so is Heidi Swapp with her hand-writing.....OMG too many inspirations to mention :D :D :D

Can't do without...

2005-11-01T00:33:00.000+10:00

...my KI Memories goodies! I AdORe their ice candy and ribbons!!! And the papers are just to- die-for too :D

I scrapped this box to keep them in...bit hilarious that such simple little things can make someone feel so good, huh? But I love them *sigh*! Just looking at this box full of gorgeous little bits feels almost as good as actually using them :D

Check out the new Favourite Things Collection at www.kimemories.com .....waaaaaay Colourful!

Reflecting and reassessing...

2005-10-31T23:49:00.000+10:00

Hmmm, so maybe this has something to do with me turning 30 this year???

So lately I have been quietly thinking about my life...where I've been, where I am now, and where I want to go. Think the Nickelback song "Photograph" and that's my thought pattern of late, except I wasn't a minor crim as a kid lol! :D And you know what? I'm pretty happy with how it's panned out so far, even though I've been to hell and back upteen times over the last ten years.

Most of all, I am really proud of myself this year. I have finally conquered my Depressive illness. Yep! Nada, zilch, gone....no more for me!!! :D Thanks to two miracles-in-a-pill every day a fantastically understanding GP and husband, and to a new-found self-determination no less. I feel like a new person who can take on ANYTHING and come out the other side relatively unscathed. I feel like a junkie who has been addicted to emotional pain for ten years and has finally detoxed and kicked the habit (no offense to any addicts of any kind out there). I sure have grown during the past twelve months and now my newfound positive attitude is with me to stay, as are those two little pills I take every day (but that's okay) :D

LOOK OUT WORLD HERE I COME!!!!!

Storms

2005-10-27T01:09:00.000+10:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, it's been really stormy around here lately. Here's some photos of a storm that I took last week.When my brother and I were little and saw sun rays streaming from a cloud (similar to this), we'd say that it was someone's spirit going up to heaven :) Isn't that cute? Anyway, hope to see some more gorgeous storms tomorrow night! Some lightning photos will be nice, but I need to learn how to do that with my camera. Will have to read up and try it one day! In the meantime, I have no idea how to scrap these photos!!!!

Bad, BAD blogger!!

2005-10-25T14:25:00.000+10:00

Yes, I have been neglecting my blog for the last few weeks....but I've been so busy with my new scrapping adventures lately that it's been hard to find the time! I've now taught two classes at my LSS and have really been enjoying the creative process behind it :) And I have lots of work to do on some other scrapping projects with deadlines due in the next few weeks, so I have LOTS to keep me busy at the moment!!! It is great....I have really been getting into my scrapping and am truly loving creating at the moment. BLISS!!!!

Here's one of my layouts that I've created for my classes. I really love how it has turned out! This is my little boy Lachie - he's three and a half years old. And yes, he IS a ratbag, BIGTIME!!! But that's one of the best things about him. And gosh can he make you laugh!!!

I am going to try submitting this layout and some others to the mags this week. I haven't been submitting for the last three months....lack of confidence, I guess. But that is quickly changing. I feel better and better with each page that I create, and I just know that I can do this if I really want to. I have so many layouts to submit that it's hard to know where to start!

Another passion of mine (apart from my family, scrapping, and science) is storms. The storm season is in full swing here in Queensland where I live at the moment! And it has been so HOT!!! I love Summer, the heat and humidity of a typical Queensland Summer....and weekends at the beach are just perfect! I can't wait until we are living at the beach....we'll be there nearly every afternoon after Mark finishes work, I think! Yes, we still haven't sold the house yet, but that's another story. Anyway, I have my eye on the sky this afternoon with the severe storm warnings on for the second day running. I caught some gorgeous photos of a storm passing over our house last week (will share them next post), and maybe I'll get some more today. We'll see!

Friendship

2005-10-05T22:58:00.000+10:00

This is Delia. We met at university in our Anatomy and Physiology class, first year of our Nursing degree in 2000. She just walked up to me one day and asked me how things were going. Del later said she felt sorry for me because she could see I was shy and she used to be like that, so she always made a special effort to talk to me. We organised to go on our first clinical allocation together, and that was it...friends :)

Del is the most wonderful person. She is an enormous support and is the type of person who would give you the shirt off her back if you needed it. She boosts my spirits with just one word or one look at her beaming smile and we always have a good laugh when we see each other or talk, no matter how bad things might be in our lives. And boy do we get up to mischeif sometimes!!! But seriously, Del is a true friend...someone who loves you unconditionally and will defend your name right down to the end., and she has taught me more than I ever thought one person could. I did this layout for her birthday last week...just us in my backyard. Soooooo...........

SURPRISE!!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEL!!!!! LOVE YA TO BITS!!!!!!!!!!!

Happier :)

2005-10-04T23:35:00.001+10:00

Lots going on on the scrapbooking front...I am teaching my first class at my LSS this Friday night. Scary and exciting at the same time! I'm a bit bummed that I have only four people in my class thus far though. Hope the numbers pick up in the future. So, my mojo is back (AT LAST) and I am off and scrapping!!! Probably why I am feeling happier - scrapbooking truly is my saviour :)

Yes, still trying to sell the house. We wish it would hurry up and sell so that we can move to the beach. Mid-thirty temps have been predicted here for later in the week and I am wishing that the beach was just 5mins away instead of half an hour!!! Oh well, I'll be off for a swim at the pool instead. I'm going to try to swim three to four times a week and do weights too. I REALLY need to drop some kgs and I LOVE the pool and weights. I feel very unfit and blah at the moment.

Well, bus-i-ness all round here...sick kids, my hubbie Mark needs a CT scan to investigate the cause of his migraines, I've had the flu and need surgery to treat my heavy periods, unexpected family visitors, a new baby in the family, trying to spend more time with my mum and my much-cherished friends...have you noticed how hard it can be to love everyone equally sometimes? All we can do is try though, and always remember to appreciate our time with them and to love them for who they are.

But despite everything, I really am loving being alive at the moment.

And that is a HUGE HUGE deal for me :)

Happy end to a crappy two weeks :)

2005-09-15T22:08:00.000+10:00

Finally! Something good to talk about :) Friday 16th September is mine and Mark's 5th wedding anniversary (WOW where has the time gone?) and we are off to Hervey Bay for the night. We are staying at the flashest motel, right on the beach, and are going to indulge ourselves on cocktails and seafood for dinner at our favourite restaurant! We are sooo looking forward to it!!!! It is really nice to get away, even though Hervey Bay still feels like home as I am there so much for uni and to visit Mum and the LSS. WE CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!! So see you all on Monday - have a great weekend everyone :)

P.S. Yes, that's Mark and I on our wedding day :)

My bloody teeth....

2005-09-15T21:47:00.000+10:00

are driving me CRAZY!!!!! I had to have another one extracted this week. I am fed up with them and am ready to have the whole lot out and get dentures. I guess the old wives' tale is right - have you heard it? That the earlier your teeth come through, then the earlier in life you will start to lose them? Well, that's me in a nutshell. I was doomed from the start because I was actually....

BORN WITH TWO FRONT TEETH!!!!!

Yep, you did read that right. My bottom two front teeth were sitting right there in my gum when I was born. My poor Mum was absolutely horrified!!!! They were pulled out by our GP when I was six weeks old though as he and Mum were worried that they would easily come out by themselves as they would readily move back and forth when Mum was bottle feeding me. Anyway, I have really crowded bottom front teeth as a result and had endless problems with my wisdom teeth. They were removed under general anaesthetic as the top two were impacted and the bottom two were growing out at 45 degree angles to my gum....OUCH! I also had a major infection in my salivary gland following this surgery for which I was hospitalised and which needed six months worth of antibiotics.

Well, this brings me to here....lots of fillings, lots of infections, and four other extractions later. I am now missing four top molars - two on each side not including my wisdom teeth - and I need a little plate with four teeth on it so that I can eat properly. Well, maybe more as two of the molars that are left are not much good. I just don't understand how someone who is only 29 years old and has a good oral hygeine routine and calcium intake can have such crappy teeth. Oh well, nothing's perfect in this life....

ESPECIALLY NOT ME!!!!!!

:) LOL :)

Hellooooo!!!???

2005-09-11T22:33:00.000+10:00

Yep, it's official...my scrapping mojo has gone awol. Aaaaaargh!!!! Right when I need it...I have another comp to enter (For Keeps Elite Team) and the deadline is FAST approaching. Oh my God - what now? Better send the troops out to search for it asap!!!!!! This was the last page that I created, two weeks ago almost, and very aptly it talks about how I re-discovered my creativity after such a long time spent trawling through my tertiary studies. Just wish I could re-discover it now but I've been stuck on completing a double page layout for the last week lol!!! :) Not like me at all...

I am such a dork in these photos - hehe!

Well, this week has been pretty crappy all round. Here's the drill...

Lots of house and yard work getting ready for the open house which was to be on Saturday just gone. Note I said *was*...Mark came home from work vomiting on Friday afternoon and thus our last-minute preparations went out the window. Promptly rang the real estate agent to cancel and we think he was a little cranky. Can't help these things though.

Been pretty lonely around here. My Mum - who I chat to every day on the phone even though we only live half an hour away from each other - has been away, and so has my Dad - who lives only two houses up the road from us so we see him every day. I really, really, really missed them. I love the close relationship that I have with each of them and they are such special people in my life...supportive, reliable, incredibly loving people that form the centre of my little family's existence. Lachie and Lili missed them a lot, too. They are so set in their routines of visiting or talking to them on the phone and it really threw them out to have them both away at the same time. And to make matters worse, their Nanny (DH Mark's Mum) was also away for a few days, Grandad had a skin graft on his nose, and their fave cousin Jesse (Mark's nephew) is in hospital after an asthma attack. We also re-kindled our friendship with two of our long-term friends who we hadn't seen for a long time. So, with all of these going-ons, things have been pretty skewiff this week. Hopefully things will settle down this week for us all.

Got something very exciting happening for my little family later on in the week, though. Will share later ;) For now I'm off to snuggle up in my bed as the first storm of the season drops it's much-needed rain on our roof.....aaaaahhhhh, just love it. It's the little things like that make me so happy :)

Sooooo busy! And Happy Birthday Lili :)

2005-09-04T22:21:00.000+10:00

Wow, the last week as been really frantic! Let me fill you in...

On the 29th August, my "baby" turned two years old...where has the time gone? She's growing up way too fast!!! Anyway, lots of partying went on over a number of days and she's all partied out, poor little thing! I think she's feeling a bit like I feel at the moment :) That's her in the photo I added above. Isn't she cute?

I got my Masters entry back :( Oh well. One of my items from my entry is going to be published (YAY!!!!!) so I am stoked about that at least :) I know that my stuff is not really what the mags here in Australia are looking for at the moment and I have made peace with that. But I'll just keep submitting and entering my work in competitions and maybe they'll like it. The main thing is that I LIKE IT, and I do, so that's the most important thing. I do have some plans up my sleeve for the future...hush hush for now, though!!!! ;)

Dramas on the selling the house thing, too. The lady who has the contract on our place has to sell her house before she can buy hers - and she has 30 days to do so. Let's just say we aren't counting our chickens!!! So, we'll keep marketing our property and hope that it sells - be it to her or someone else, it doesn't matter. We are all very ready for a fresh start, for life near the beach, for a new house, for all of the new things yet to come in our lives. And we can't wait!!!

And one last thing...we're ringing the bank tomorrow to apply to access some of the equity in our home loan. We only decided this tonight, but we've been wanting to do something for a long time now and we were going to wait til we sell the house, but can't see why we shouldn't try for it now. We want to buy a 4WD and a camper trailer so that we can see some more of Australia or just to go for a trip to the Sunshine Coast or somewhere and not have to pay a fortune. We really want to do a trip to Cairns (tropical far north Queensland, an 18hour drive from where we live) and stop at some of the major tourist places along the way...Mackay, the Whitsundays, Townsville, etc. That's our ultimate destination at this point in time. Two or three weeks would be great...when Mark has holidays next. Might seem like a bit of a naff thing to do, but we can't wait. And the tourist parks are awesome in Queensland - lots of things for families to do, and they are really gorgeous. Really looking forward to that phone call tomorrow! Hope they say YES!!!!

Anyway, that's us at this point in time. Busy, busy, busy!!!! But it's fun :) This week will be just as busy...lots of scrapping to do, amongst other things. Fill you all in later ;)

Success at last!!!!!

2005-08-27T21:59:00.000+10:00

WOW...I am still floating on air! My "Elsie" page is going to be PUBLISHED!!! Don't know when, but "Scrapbooking Memories" are going to publish it :) I can't believe this - and just when I was starting to doubt that it would EVER happen, there it is.....an acceptance email in my inbox! It's almost a relief in one way....a huge weight off my shoulders. I've been wanting it for soooo long now that I feel like now it's happened, I can just relax and get on with my scrapping. Well, kind of. I am *still* waiting to hear about my Masters entry. I'm getting tired of the waiting, tired of the speculation, tired of waiting for the phone to ring (or *not* ring)...ho hum, I'm getting used to it now though lol :) I created this layout to help take the load off a bit. It worked, too. Scrapping out my feelings ALWAYS makes me feel so much better. That's what I love about creating. I can be me, just Karen, and I can be whatever I choose to be or feel however I choose to feel and it's totally okay. I can thrash my emotions about on a humble mish-mash of paper and record this life of mine, however boring it may seem to everyone else, so that I can look back on it later and see how I have grown. That's why scrapbooking is, to me, everything...my "Paper Fantastic".

Worried...

2005-08-20T00:16:00.000+10:00

...about lots of stuff today.

About my sick little boy - he's meant to be going to his cousin's house for a sleepover tomorrow night and he'll be so crushed if he's too sick to go, but his breathing sounds "gaspy" at the moment (he's asleep for the night) and I don't muck around with illness anymore after my husband Mark's bout of ill health earlier this year (another story altogether).

About my Scrapbooking Memories' Masters Competition entry - will I get the nod or not? - the waiting to find out really sucks. Hope I'll know one way or the other in the next week.

About getting published - will it ever happen? I am starting to doubt that the mags here in Australia will ever get out of their rut and dare to publish something a bit different and slightly outrageous..but who knows? I can only keep trying, can't I?

About these *new ideas* that I have for some scrapbooking business ventures - I'd love for them to pan out and for me to be able to make a living creating like I always secretly have dreamed of.

About my Mum, my husband, an annoying male friend of mine...will the stress ever end? Phew, calm down girl!!! Shake it off and go to bed and wake up to a bright new day. Here's to tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Elsie's page!!!

2005-08-18T00:20:00.000+10:00

Well, here's my finished page about Elsie complete with scans of the tag which sits behind the photo. I realy like how it turned out! Not so happy with the stitching of the layout. I have a bit to learn, yet.

Wow, soooo busy with scrapping...I will be commencing teaching at my LSS in October and with the Guest Design Team Member thingy coming up for Scrapboxx in November, I'll have heaps to do. LOTS of stuff I want to experiment with before then (I am really digging funky collage and Heidi Swapp's products atm) and I have comps to enter on the Boxx and pages to submit to the mags! Phew, I like to push myself, hey? But that's me...I like to be busy. No idle hands here :)

I also want to get into my painting more. I have some fabbo ideas I want to get down on canvas. Need to find more time, though...the story of my life lately lol!!

Anyway, catcha all soon with a little more info on me and my crazy existence......

submit, submit, SUBMIT!

2005-08-16T11:37:00.000+10:00

That's my scrapping motto at the moment. I'm trying to explore my options as far as my scrapbooking is concerned. Persistence is the key, as my Mum keeps telling me. "Keep submitting and don't be discouraged by knockbacks", she says. And Mum is usually right with these type of things...and this time is no exception.

I've had a couple of exciting opportunities open themselves up to me over the last week. Firstly, I submitted an entry to join the Scrapboxx Design Team (a well-known Aussie online scrapbooking store/community). While I didn't get the top spot, I did place within the top three and have been selected to be Guest Design Team Member for November 2005. SO COOL!!!! Secondly, upon mentioning this to the owner of my local Scrapbooking Store, she re-suggested that I teach classes at the store for her! I've hence accepted and I am due to start in October :) So, things are moving along nicely! Now, if I can just crack the publishing nut.....

Here's a pikki of my Design Team entry. Yes, they are all photos of me :) The middle section is a mini-book that opens to reveal all of the reasons why I want to be a part of the Team...and I still do! This is definitely another one of my scrapping goals that I'd like to achieve. We'll see what happens - I'll just keep submitting and entering comps and you never know what other doors may open up for me!

Scrap, scrap, scrap...

2005-08-14T23:05:00.000+10:00

...that's all I seem to do lately, but I'm not complaining. I am loving having some time away from uni at the moment so that I can focus on my scrapbooking. I haven't got that much done in the last two weeks, though. We (i.e. my husband Mark, children Lachie and Lili, and myself) have just returned from a week's holiday. Wow did we need it! It was so great...in between kids getting in trouble LOL :)

Well, back to the scrapping. I'm working on a page featuring my favourite scrap artist at the moment....Elsie Flannigan (Garden Girl from www.twopeasinabucket.com). She is so amazing...I love her funk and portraiture. I emailed Elsie to ask if she would kindly send me a photo of herself for the purpose of the page...and she DID!!! I was so blown away! I'll post it tomorrow night after I finish. Hope you like it, Els!

In the meantime, here's a layout I did recently that's all about my thoughts on motherhood. It was inspired by a Two Peas poster...can't remember their name though! Hope everyone likes it. I'll post more soon...