Sarah's Cards Challenge

I've been scrapping again, yes don't fall of your chair!

I was inspired by Ifa's challenge to scrap about work on the Sarah's Cards Blog

Here is my entry;

I'm really pleased with it, it's something I hadn't thought of scrapping before, and I had recently come across some photo's of the places where I worked years ago.  So it all fit together nicely using Helen's tutorial on how to make a photo strip in Picassa. (Which I can't find just at the moment!) 

There is some hidden journalling which tells the story of my working life so far, 25 years!  I'm not sure if the fact that I have been working for 25 years is so scary or the fact I have 25 years still to go!

Thanks for looking!

Project Life

Well again I have neglected you blog, sorry! Life just seems to run away with me, I haven't managed any scrapping since the Sarah's Cards retreat last year, so I have decided to try a different route since I really enjoyed doing a December Dhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifaily.

I have started a new project this year, 'Project Life' after seeing Rachel's and Jen's versions at the retreat last November. Thanks Rach!

I wasn't sure how to go about it and whether I would be able to keep up, I originally thought I would do a double layout per month, but then soon realised my January was that busy I would never fit it all into a DLO. So I have gone down the weekly route but I don't have to stick to it all through the year, we will see how it goes. Thanks Helen for answering all my questions with regards to this, I am sure I was a pain lol

I have kept up with it so far by just printing photo's off each week and leaving gaps for journalling. I have a real problem with choosing just one photo, so to cram as many as I can in (my usual trick) I have used Picassa to make photo collages.

It's definitely not the best Project Life I have seen, and I wasn't sure whether to share it, but at the end of the day, now I have got up to date I love it!

Front page has not yet been completed;

Week 1







There is a 6x12 photo insert due to having too many photo's to put in, but I haven't taken a picture because there is someone who doesn't like their photo being on the internet. You will probably see a few photos with faces blurred out due to this reason as we go along.

Week 2:







Week 3:







Week 4:







Week 5:







Week 6:





I had a go at making my own printed journaling card on this week, it's not turned out too bad!



Week 7:







Week 8:







Week 9:







Week 10







Lets hope I can keep up with the next 10 weeks!

Thanks for looking xx

Sarah's Card Challenge

Well it has been a while, and I am getting longer between posts, sorry!

I haven't had the time to do any scrapbooking and I have been dying to get my stash out and play, and this Pinterest challenge got my creativity flowing again!

Thanks Helen!

I love Pinterest, and although my layout didn't quite go to plan, here is my entry.



I had intended the flower to be a butterfly, but it didn't quite work out, and I also tried to get my sewing machine working, but I couldn't so I ended up hand stitching it instead.







It's my first layout which I have done myself this size and I am very pleased with it, the question is, will I go back to 12x12? We will have to wait and see!

More Scrapping!

I've been to the Leeds Paper Dolls crop on Saturday and I managed one and a half layouts, not like my friend Jen who can knock out 5 or 6 in one day, but I get there in the end!

The first layout has been on my mind for months, I wanted to show the difference in how my little baby has grown into a little girl!



I'm pleased how it turned out :o)

And I'm pleased with this one too, I'm not sure where but I saw a layout which used a mask, and I loved the idea. So while I was at the LPD crop I cut out a paper heart, and I borrowed Jane's Maya Road mists, and used a couple of my own to create the heart shape. I think I was a bit heavy handed and if I did it again, I would try and do it from further away.





I'm really pleased how this turned out, as I left the crop with just the heart done and the scalloped edge cut and I was stuck, luckily it all came together last night. I also did a little hidden journalling behind the photo to explain my feelings to Chloe. <3

Some scrapping!

Yes! I know you are astounded! Basically now the craft room is alot tidier and my desk is clear I can actually scrap again! I still want to get the room alot more organised, but at least it is usable again now :o)



Nandles mean Sandles in Chloe's talk, this was taken last summer, I still need to find the date of the photo.

TFL xx

Happy New Year! 2011

It's been a while... a very long while! I can't believe the last time I blogged was July! So neglectful!

What have I been doing since July? I've no idea lol My memory is shocking! Anyway rather than bore you with catching up, I am starting again, right here with my resolutions for 2011.

I've been thinking of new years resolutions for this coming year and then I looked at the ones for last year! They appear to be very similar!

My New Years resolutions for last year:

1. Do more layouts! (Failed, I haven't done anywhere near the amount of scrapping I did last year, infact, I can't choose my 10 favourite LO's because I have only done 5!!! Ignoring the ones I did on the Sarah's Cards retreat!)
2. Get upto date with my scrap projects. (Failed, again I am even more behind!)
3. Lose weight (Like I haven't said that before) (I've put that stone on which I had lost last year :o( )
4. Eat healthier meals. (Ongoing, still eating too many bad ones too!)
5. Do more exercise. (Failed! I still don't do any exercise at all!)
6. Keep the house clean and tidy. (Failed! The house is a mess as usual!)
7. Be more organised! (Failed, I'm as disorganised as ever!)
8. Take more photo's of my gorgous daughter! (I am trying to but sometimes a month slips by and I haven't taken any!)
9. Don't take on any more projects until I get some completed! (I did!)

It's not good, I don't know why I bother having resolutions, but I do start each year with the intention of keeping them up, as I will this year! So resolutions for this year are exactly the same, but hopefully with some more Achieved's beside them!

So projects I need to catch up has now grown!

1. JYC 2009 (Journal Your Christmas)
2. JYC 2008 (Yep I haven't even finished that one either!)
3. Scrap Your Day
4. BOM (A - Z Book of Me)
5. Just Us (A mini book of piccys of me and Dave)
6. JYC 2010 (I've only done 10 pages!)
7. Halloween book of Chloe (In progress)

I have also started knitting! Impressive I know (for me!) I have knitted my Mother-in-law a scarf for Christmas and I have knitted myself one with the left over wool. I did try to knit my Mum one, but the wool had this major fault in and because the shop (Samuel Taylors) didn't have any more of the same wool, they kindly gave me a scarf which had been crotched in the same wool. I was still a little disappointed as I had wanted to knit her one too. I am currently knitting a baby blanket because my oldest bestest mate Bev, is having a baby, which I am so excited about! (oldest because we have known each other the longest! lol)

Here are some other things I have been upto this year:

The Wedding Guest Book I did for Emma (Chloe's Nursery Keyworker)



Inside Page:



Example of an inside page:



Unfortunately the pictures aren't great, I also did one for my friend Hayley which was very similar, but I can't find piccys of that one sorry!

My MIL's scarf in progress:



And a couple of pictures of my little Angel <3 'The Whirlwind' formally known as Chloe xx

Firstly a WIP (Work in Progress)- the advent calendar my dad made, is mostly decorated, i just need to figure out what to do with the roof space! I don't think Chloe noticed it wasn't finished.









Well that's it for now, I will try and blog more this year! (And scrap more and stick to my resolutions etc .... lol )

T xx

A mad few months and some Scrapping!

Well it's been a while again!

We have had a right few months, Chloe has had chicken pox, we had to get my parents down to look after her for nearly 2 weeks! Thanks Mum & Dad!

If you want to skip my ramblings, scroll to the bottom for the scrapping!

Anyway, while they were down, I was playing 'a lady goes a pace..' with Chloe on my knee, and when it got the galloping farmer, she landed on just one of my knees and she really cried, I settled her down but she went straight to sleep, like someone had flicked a switch! We couldn't raise her at all, no resistance in her limbs, her eyes were just fixed stare when we lifted her eye lids and her breathing was really slow & we were having to wait for her next breath. We called NHS Direct who then called an ambulance, we had an emergency response vehicle, who then decided he wanted her to go to hospital. Thankfully she started to come round at this point, by the time we got to hospital, i was having trouble keeping her on my knee in the ambulance! And at the hospital she was running round creating havoc.

The consultant said it was a reaction to the shock, her body had shut down a bit like a faint. Scary! Anyway it was clear that she was fine and they checked her over and sent us home.

Just after my parents went home, I wasn't very well, and i was off work sick a week, then at the weekend I woke up feeling really poorly, I couldn't move my head, an unbelievable headache and an aversion to light! We called NHS direct again, and they wanted to call an ambulance, but I refused and said Dave would take me in. I was admitted into hospital with suspected meningitus, I was put on a drip and x-rayed, luckily they decided I didn't need a lumbar puncture! Whilst I had been taken to x-ray, the ward phoned Dave up and asked where I was! He was beside himself wondering if i had collapsed somewhere. They moved me up onto the infectious disease ward for the night, I had a lovely view of Leeds! They decided it was just a nasty virus and I was allowed home the following day, with some very strong pain killers. (they were going to send me home without them, but I wouldn't leave until they got me some! lol)

When I finally got back to work, I started a 3 month secondment to the Business Applications team, I'm learning SQL and its been really good and I love it, I have definately found what I want to do.

Dave, his Dad and myself went to see Paul McCartney in Hyde Park in London, it was fab! Thank you to Dave's mum and Richard for looking after Chloe xx She had a fab time too! <3

I have also had my birthday, we went and had a lovely picnic down at Woodlesford Lock and we went for a 2 mile walk, Chloe walked a mile by herself!

Since then the guy who was brought in as my manager, and was doing my old job has had a better offer and is leaving! Because of the recruitment freeze I am going to have to do some of his job (which weren't actually part of my job!) I'm pretty fed up about this, because their is so much to learn where I am, I don't want to have to juggle both things. But it could have been worse, I could have been back doing my old job full time!

Then I wasnt very well again with raging tonsilitus! Its been a nightmare! But I am starting to feel quite a bit better today and I have managed some scrapping, so finally after all that waffling here goes....

Apologies for some of the pictures being on their sides, I've no idea how blogger does it, can anyone tell me?







This next one was inspired by the lovely Mel, http://talesfromthebigbluecouch.blogspot.com/


The stitching didn't go well, firstly cos when I got my old sewing machine out, which used to be Auntie Vicki's. The plug had been taken off!!! I can guess who did that! (it wasn't Dave!) So I wasn't happy, then after ranting to Dave, he calmly suggested that I put one on from something which we didn't use much, and I have! I managed to get quite a bit stitched but then the sewing machine kept jamming, not sure why. I ended up using a pen to fill in the gaps! You can't tell if you squint at it! lol