What a BLAST!!!

I made it home in one peice... just!! I even have a bruise so it must've been a great weekend!! The retreat was fan-bloddy-tastic!! Hanging with Chelle, Lisa, Karen and Kim all weekend was the best way to spend a weekend... thanks girls for being such great friends!! We had way too much punch to drink, strangely enough it kept getting stronger and stronger as saturday night progressed!! I didn't scrap a lot... too many classes, had to eat and sleep and chat as well... but did finish these two!!

This one I've discovered is crooked and I did this sober:

This one I did under the afluence of incahol and isn't crooked - go figure!!

I'll scan and photograph the class ones later. Maria is so the lady, petite, beautiful of face and personality - a truley gorgeous person. Brooke, Nick, Lou, Erica and Ali really are just as I imagined they would be. Lots of fun and way talented!!

It's here!!

Retreat here I come!!!

I am sooooo excited that I'm feeling sick in the tummy, all nervous excitement! I have to get something from Spotlight and can't for the life of me remember what it was supposed to be!! I'll go and see if looking triggers the vacant memory after I drop Kel @ school... 9:20 start this morning, what's with that!?!

My cold has abated, just a very sore throat, tight chest and a tight head - night and day tablets are packed to keep it that way!! I really think the flu shots we have at work help me fight these cold/flu things!

OK... off to triple check my scrap case!!

Noooooo.......

I'm sick, so not fair! I have the retreat tomorrow and have woken up with a cold. I wish I could kid myself and say it was hayfever, but it's a cold and I'm sulking. I'm going to stay at home today, drugged up on Garlic, C and Horseradish {the heavy stuff hey!!} and see if I can move it along nice and quick... not fair *sad sooky face*. I feel bad that I'll be calling in sick the day before I go away, but I'll be useless there anyway, need a clear head to quote and that I don't have... all sympathy is welcome, donations of chicken noodle soup and chocolate will be greatly appreciated. I'm such a sook!!

2 more sleeps...

OK... I am heaps excited about the retreat now!! After all this waiting it is finally 2 sleeps away {well 1 if we account for the fact that I doubt I will sleep tomorrow night from excitement}!!!
I am so NOT organised! Lisa has god knows how many LO's organised, Karen has a pile... I have a whole 1 - pretty good hey!!! So tonight I opened my scrap luggage and have thrown "don't forgets" in there for packing tomorrow night! I have to pack my alphas for Lisa to ferret through, she has chocolate... have to be sucking up!!
The album I want to take for show and tell won't close, and took up most of the luggage, so it's coming on the bus in my hand luggage now, thank god all I was going to take in hand luggage was a purse!
And on top of that I have to remember to pack clothes... geez!!
So I have to be thinking of getting some LO's organised for if I get time between classes... more of the slide pics I'm sure!!

Hubby home tonight!!

OK... so I admit it! I'm looking forward to collecting him from the airport! Not looking forward to my lovely tidy house being messed up, but maybe it's time to enforce some new rules. Will probably be something like Mistra does the lot... LOL!!
Not feeling too crash hot today though, and Kel is complaining of tummy hurts - so we'll be staying home. Although to be honest with 39 the forecast temp today would rather be at work in the aircon... but don't want to pass any bugs around at work, especially with one of the girls being pregnant.
So Kel and I will crash on the couch and be couch potatoes together today...
Darren phoned this morning to tell me he'd gone to his old high school, the principal gave them a tour and swapped email addresses so he can forward some old pics to Darren - how nice!! So he's wandering around Sydney for the rest of today waiting for the time they can hop on the plane - he and his ma should have a good day, some retail therapy to make up for the emotional day they had yesterday.

Moving...

Yep... yesterday I packed up and moved... my scrap room!! Again!!! I was originally in the formal dining area and decided to shift into the activity room so I could be closer to DH in his computer cave {can't fit both of us in the one room!!}, but the room was proving to be too much of a traffic area and moths liked me... not to mention the dust!
So last night I decided to bite the bullet and move back again. I left the glass dining table I used as a scrap desk out there and will use the activity room as the dining room now. And now have our antique oak dining table as my scrap desk {no cutting straight onto this I'll tell you!!}. The height for this I just realise is sooo much better than the glass one... So now I have a cosy little area again... where I can see into the family room and watch TV {hehehe} and can look out the window at my weiros in the avairy... smaller space, but I'm happier!

Life throwing punches...

It's been a rough couple of weeks... DH's pay ran out, he wasn't getting workers comp, so we are going through the routine there now... but that will take time. Luckily I got paid {monthly} so have paid bills and we have enough for a few weeks. Worry time, but not panic time. Everyone goes through the same at least once in their lives... DH's health is the important thing.
We got a shocker of a phone call yesterday... DH's aunt died, she's not old but was sick. We're not sure if she took to much medication by accident or on purpose... I guess we will never know. She was a lovely Christian woman so believe it was accidental, her upbringing and belief wouldn't allow herself to take her own life. So DH is off to Sydney on the weekend to attend the funeral - they were close, but his mother needs him. A bit of stress for him to have to deal with so I hope it doesn't set him back, he hasn't greived yet... he will, but 'when' is the question. So it's going to be me and my boy this weekend, that's a first - it will certainly be quiet!!

Anyway... besides all that - I'm still in good spirits. We will get through this time that has been dealt to us... it's time for our lesson in appreciating what we have! We'll learn again to not waste our money, be grateful that we have one another... and remember to love each day for what it is!

Productive Saturday...

I have had the best day... first went fabric shopping for Lynn and had the best time! So many gorgeous fabrics available now - I also have expensive taste. I found this stunning embroidered silk {yes silk} that was only $54 per metre... hmmm, even I couldn't spend that much on scrapping!! I got an odd look from people as I'm matching materials to paper... obviously I've crossed the boundaries from the scrapping aisle to the world of material... shame on me!! LOL!!

I've finished my recipe swap LO's for a crockpot dessert swap I'm in... and have done the Birthday Cards for the b'day card swap on LC's. Have been bopping away to Guns n' Roses... strange looks from hubby at that! Not only was he surprised that I like them, but I knew the words! His comment "I thought you were a nightlclub bebob BlackBox nut during this era"! LOL... ummm well yeah, but I also have a sister who wasn't - my poor parents having to live in a house that had BlackBox at one end and the Gunners at the other!! They were very patient people!!

Went for a walk to get photos for the Snapshots of Australia... I have chosen to do my own little part of Australia, right outside my backyard is hectares of bush... love our Aussie bush!!


That's the kids and the dog walking down the track. Thank heavens for this track out there as there is no way I would be out in the bush in the height of summer with dugites on the loose!!

So that's my today... tomorrow we have my nephews birthday to go to, will be good - hope the weather is cooler though!!

Time out...

Sorry nothing exciting in my life to report... just some quiet time out for me. I'm exhausted from heaven only knows what... but for a change am listening to my body and taking it easy.
I'm really really really looking forward to my weekend away at the retreat... but am starting to worry over leaving Kellan at home. Yeah I know he's with dad... but will dad feed him, put him to bed, remember his medication, put a bandaid on him if he skins his knee, what if something happens to Darren and Kellan doesn't remember how to phone for help... the list goes on... and yeah I know... just don't worry Mistra, they will be fine, time for me to have some ME time... sigh... I KNOW all will be fine... I KNOW this so why do I worry!! Guess it's just part of being a mum, I should be more concerned if I didn't have these feelings!! Oh us women are funny creatures... {well this woman is anyway} :-)
OK... happy happy joy joy... forget this wussiness!! Lisa is bringing chocolate on the retreat... are you saving some for me? I'd better put an order in hey!!
We have our photo day on Saturday for the Snapshots of Australia Journals on LC's... I have NO idea what I am going to photograph, perhaps I'll just go 'borrow' Kim's... LOL... joking!! I have a few locations in mind... will decide on the day!! These journals are going to be awesome though, I can't wait to see them all when they are done!!
Anyway... that's all for now. Take care of you!

Busy Bee...

I have had the most amazing busy weekend!! I have sat here at home all weekend and done nothing but chat'n'scrap!! LC's had a Cyber Crop weekend, I was setting the challenges and moderating the forum... phew talk about flat out! It has been FANTASTIC and I'm really happy with it! Lynn had some treaure hunts and it was soooo exciting/funny waiting for people to find what was where! We're still chattering away now...

These were my challenges:

1. Old New Borrowed Blue: Old was the the charm and NalClip - New was the Sweetwater Papers - Borrowed was the Folder idea from a LO by Jen Hall for Julie Love {I think, sorry if I've got it worng}, Blue was the Mat, Material Ribbon and Folder
2. 60:30:10 Colour Challenge - Red/Violet/Blue... eek I hand sewed... pretty pleased here!! I hand made the bracket as well.


3. LC's Logo Inspiration & a Quote: I drew from the colours of LC's Logo, the Gold Lettering and the Ribbon to create this:

Tagged by Mel

Melanie tagged me!! Woohoo!!
I was doing my rounds, wondering why Lisa and Karen both didn't tag me... their friend and was about to crack the sads {LOL} when I realised why... derrr!!

The rules are that you romove the top name from this list and add yours on the bottom, so it has 5 names on it at all times.

Samantha
Chris
Anthea
Melanie H
Mistra Hoolahan

Here are the questions:

What were you doing 10 years ago?
Discussing with hubby if we should have a child, working for Scott Print, still quite newlywed.

What were you doing 1 year ago?
Discovering the world of Scrap Forums... I joined my first {ScrapWitch} on the 13th Feb!

Five snacks that you enjoy:
Red Rock Deli Chips, Turkish Delight, Polish Sausage/Cheese/Crackers, Savoury Shapes/Dip & Dates

Five songs to which you KNOW all the lyrics :
Hot Potato - The Wiggles
Little Little - Jenny Morris
Step Back in Time - Kylie Minogue {stop laughing}
Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve
Bambeleo - Gipsy Kimgs

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:
Sell this house and buy a nicer home in the Hills or near the Beach, buy a holiday home in Katoomba or on the Central Coast NSW, start my own scrap cafe, take the whole family on a holiday... and then take all my scrap friends to scrap shop in America!!

Five bad habits:
I don't make the bed in the morning, don't exercise enough, don't drink all my coffee, I don't fold the washing as it comes out of the drier, I forget birthdays... am so bad with that one!

Five things you like doing:
Scrapbooking, watching movies, taking photos, spending time with family and writing lists!

Five things you would never wear, buy, or get again:
Bikinis... even when thin I looked shocking!
Velvet Hot Pants... um yep used to wear them - LOL!
Bubble Skirts
8" Stilettos
Cheap Tape Runners!


5 Fav toys
Digi camera, computer, PSE4, scrap supplies, pocket pc.

5 People I am tagging:
Alli P

That's all I know who haven't been tagged... teach me for being a slow poke!!

My LC's Feb Layouts....

My Layouts for February's feature are in my gallery @ LC's if you wanted to see. Lynn challenged us with... KI Memories!! Fiona was estatic, I nearly died!! I LOVE this paper, but I think I was a bit overwhelmed by what scrappers like Julie, Karen and Fiona can do with it. In the end I simply relaxed and did my own thing! I scrapped some old very favourite photos and used the KI My Guy papers.. yummy for me!!

While there have a nosey at Angels Fiona, Kerry & Vicki's LO's... our styles are all so very different which just proves the diversity of KI Papers!! We each were able to work on a different theme in the range so the gallery is full of gorgeous colours!

Just wait and see what Lynn has planned for us all for March!!

Dreams...

OK... I just read my friend Chelle's blog and she had this wicked dream, which reminded me of a dream I had 2 nights ago... which spun me out!! Although my dream was nowhere near as exciting as hers...

anyway I dreamt I was shopping with Alli P... fair enough, not all that far from left field - she lives in Perth, I know her, she's gorgeous, we both scrap. Scrap shopping would be a logical thing... except that we were SHOE shopping!!!!

Alli... if you read, bought any nice shoes lately!?! LOL... I'm still giggling about it!

Brighter day...

Things are looking much better this morning. Helps that DH is awake and dressed with me this morning, first time in 5/6 weeks! Kellan is dressed and ready for school, DH is taking him so one less thing for me to have to worry about.
Yesterday was a low point for me... I have realised I simply cannot do everything!! I'm not a big one for telling the world my problems, but it does help getting it out of off your chest. I guess if I pretended my life was perfect I'd only be kidding myself hey because we all know life has it's ups and downs!!

DH has been suffering depression due to stress and his pay runs out next week - I've been freaking over that. He has spoken to his work and they have offered a lot of options... they really are being fantastic and that alone is helping.
My own work has become hard work, for all of us - but doing dual roles at the moment and having one of the most helpful gorgeous girls ever employed there, leave, has put a lot of pressure back on me - as well as Gabi who is doing so well with the added workload.
I'm stressing about how Kel will cope this year, he didn't do very well last year and coping with his ADHD has exhausted me... not a lot I can do about that though, except get him and I both back into routine.

There's a lot to be said for routine and perhaps that's been most of the problem for me - we've had none for months!! And I have to ASK for assistance with things that I am able to ask for - that's a lesson I have trouble with, I'm not used to being able to hand over control to another person!

But after a good sob, a few good chats with friends then hubby... there is a big light at the end of the tunnel.