Happy...

Is this the face of a happy boy? Last year's sports day 100m was such a let down - C broke down mid-sprint with a pulled muscle. His confidence was shattered.

I have spent the last couple of weeks reminding him to stretch before each practice session, and that winning isn't everything.

Yesterday...

seems that it is everything after all! Confidence restored and all is now well in his 11 year-old world.


P.S. Just a thought - “If winning isn't everything, why do they keep score?” Vince Lombardi

Finally and at last...

A couple of projects that have been taking far too long are finally finished - the curly calendar and my renovated memo board. Neither very spectacular, but things that kept getting put off. (Don't you hate the way life keeps intruding into craft time?!)

The Calendar is from Kaisercraft, one of my favourite companies for their innovative, affordable project items and their fantastically philanthropic company ethic. (Check them out here if you're interested.)

I had to alter it a bit - the kit has just dates and months. My kids always want to know the day, so I used the month tiles as days, and added a flower with some interchangable (good ol' velcro) chipboard centres to be the months instead.

The memo board is an old one from our office that was no longer needed. Now, with a bit of pretty-ing, it is a menu board for my kitchen, with whiteboard space for our meals for the week and pinboard for those recipes not in a book (You know - downloaded/photocopied/written at someone's house/stolen from a magazine at the dentist!)

P.S. A quote in honour of Toni - "It is time for us all to stand and cheer for the doer, the achiever - the one who recognizes the challenge and does something about it." Vince Lombardi Well done for all your fundraising efforts!

Very Inspiring...

The Scapbook and Papercraft Convention was great! I did 4 classes over two days, shopped for supplies, watched lots of demos, checked out new products, caught up with friends, had a night away from the kids and didn't have to cook for 48 hours. What's not to love?! The classes I did were excellent, the most fun one being Ngaire Bartlam's "Art of the Home". She made sure everyone had a whale of a time while creating something completely different - more for the collage art value than the photos! Not sure how I will fit this bumpy creation into my album, but it can sit on the recipe book stand for now. The second class was with Teneale Williams - a gorgeous lunch box tin with 4 mini cards inside. We had the choice of 2 out of 5 double-sided papers for the body and lid of the tin and there were not two tins the same in the whole class! The colours are so pretty and girly (not me at all usually!) but I love how it turned out.

The mini album class with Zoe Pearn was full on! In two hours most of us got about two thirds of the way through the project. She was very inspiring though, with great original ideas and a huge stash of products to use (and bring home to finish with!) My last class was 'Better Photos' with Rachel Richter which was very informative. I have changed a few settings on my camera and the shots are already looking better. Lots more experimenting to do!

Haven't had much sleep but it was a blast and I am feeling very inspired. Might even finish something!

Still busy..

A very busy weekend just gone, but not full of anything fun :( Just cleaning and mega-tidying - my boys prefer to wade through their rooms rather than walk, so aim to keep the floor covered from wall to wall with toys, clothes and artworks (in their opinion!). Every few weeks I just can't stand it and spend an entire day finding the floors again. We also have visitors this week, and I will be away at the Scrapbook Convention for the coming weekend (yay!), so everything needed to be ship-shape to start the week. I thought I would post some pics of older projects instead of the current unfinished ones...

This is my craft room clock that I re-vamped late last year. It's much more antique-y than my usual style, but I was trying to use some stash items that had been gathering dust. I quite like the way it turned out.

This is a card I made for my sis and BIL last month, using leftovers from my curly calendar (as yet unfinished). And this is my beautiful new fabric from Ink & Spindle - just arrived last week. Some yummy creations planned for these. P.S. My thought for the week - "The safest way to double your money is to fold it over once and put it in your pocket." Kin Hubbard ...especially during the GFC!

Too Many Projects...

I have been working on lots of projects since my last post - haven't had time to blog! Here are some of them - my first item made from the new stash of fabric... It's meant to be a brooch, but it's huge, so perhaps it could go on a hair band or tote bag. You never know - I might get brave and wear it to a craft show where that kind of thing doesn't stand out so much! The tutorial is here. I also prettied up an old hardcover notebook, as the one I usually carry around was full. It is my ideas book - for jotting random thoughts, quotes, recipes, layout ideas, website addresses etc. (BTW, if anyone knows where I can get some hardcover notebooks with blank pages instead of lines, please let me know. Been looking for ages.) I am really happy with it - it's so pretty it makes me smile! It's mostly made with Bella bits and pieces. Then there's the apron - I am transported back to the 50's with this one. The gathered skirt makes me look as big as a house, so I won't be modelling it anytime soon, but it's great. A real domestic goddess item! It's reversible too - twice as many groovy fabrics to look at. I altered mine a bit, but the general idea is here. I am also re-vamping a lampshade and noticeboard for around the house, and finishing a curly desk calendar for the benefit of my two youngest, who are constantly asking what day it is. Pictures of them when copmpleted... What with those projects, a couple of birthday cards and a full-time job, it's no wonder the kids' rooms are a mess, the carpet needs vacuuming and the garden is overgrown. Oh well, our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy, as they say. Till next time, take care all. P.S. "My second favorite household chore is ironing. My first being hitting my head on the top bunk bed until I faint." Erma Bombeck

Family Camping Adventure

We have finally made it! The youngest child is now 5, and we have been camping as a family for the first time. I never wanted to take the kids as babies or toddlers - too much "stuff" to lug and not enough maturity (the kids or their Dad!) for me to really enjoy the experience without stress. But now, woo-hoo! It was only a weekend at the lovely (and close) Elanda Point, but great anyway. The kids had a ball in the water and out, we saw lots of wildlife (many birds, a goanna, kangaroos and an echidna), they got to toast marshmallows, run and play with friends and sleep in the tent (Brrrr - thermal underwear on the way from eBay already). It was a lovely weekend, but far too short. We will have some improvements and additions to the equipment by the next time we go, so roll on Family Camping Adventure no 2 - mid-Winter!

Happy Mothers' Day

What a lovely day! Breakfast in bed... Cuddles with the boys, pressies...

Handmade cards and pictures from school...

As well as a couple of hours shopping and getting a haircut (it's amazing the things I appreciate doing alone these days...)

Picked up some new fabrics for my stash - should see me through the next few sewing projects. ::Bliss::

P.S. A thought for all the Mums out there - "Any mother could perform the jobs of several air traffic ontrollers with ease." - Lisa Alther. Don't we know it!!