One down..

I don't know about you but i find the most time consuming bit about mini albums is the adding of photos and embellishments. The cover and the pages for me seem to always come together relatively easy though its the insides... they seem to take for ever. Though, iguess im talking from a production point of view. With work commitments I learnt very quickly that if i was going to get a project finished quickly that i was going to do the cover and the album pages first and then stick the photos and embellishments. Most of the time, as long as there was enough done to enable photographs, it was okay.. then as the pace slowed, i could go back and finish off..
It is a habit that i have fallen into now and desperately have to get out of. I miss the enjoyment of creating each page as i go, giving them each their own individual look and feel..
Anyway.. because if the way i have been doing these albums for Brisbane, I have left all the photo sticking in and embellishing until last.. and boy oh boy has it take some time!!
While i sit here rabbit on about nothing really, the final touches of glitz is drying off..
I know i promised some sneakies guys... though.. im sorry.. Greys Anatomy came on and i got distracted and plum forgot about glitzing.. I had hoped to get atleast one of the albums finished and snapped tonight.. though.. ~dramatic sigh~ im just going to have to wait until tomorrow now.
:(

While i think of it.. i will take a sneaky pic of the DT layout i have done too and some of the other things that i have completed over the last little while. Hopefully tomorrow there will be a bit of eye candy to make up for my huge delay.
For now though.. here is something that is heading over to America to CHA.


I've been working some on mt classes blog though have nothing to show for it.. in working, i mean.. thinking... and lots of it. Now, just to be able to channel all my thoughts into making something pretty and presentable so that i can start this little venture.

I cant believe the weekend is again over... why is it when you have so much to do and so many plans the time goes so quickly, though when you have nothing to do you find youself checking the clock to amke sure the batteries have not gone flat!?

Its been cold here all weekend and i have found that just the right opportunity to just potter away at my desk, hang with the kids and watch some movies and just get things organised here at my desk. Though.. even though i have accomplished everything i wanted to do this weekend (except for two of these books) there was still i wanted to do with the kids.. like play ps2 with Jamie. Play with Playdoh with Miranda and paint toenails with Kiera.
I wanna make some super duper cool critters like the girls made today!!!
(i will add some piccies in the morning)

I am not going to let the weekend pass next weekend without doing every one of the things that i missed out on today..
By then, those books will be in queensland! :)

Quote of the Day

To be all
that is
possible
we must
attempt the
impossible.
to be all
that we
can be
we must
dream of
being more.

Where does the time go!?

Man... time seems to be slipping from my grip before i even have time to make the most of every second. I hate wanting to hit the rewind button just so i can hold onto a little more time. Arrgh. Though, with the time that is slipping, im doing lots.. anyway. Does that make sence? Though, still with that said, i just wish sometimes for a few hours extra in one day. ~L~
Mothers day has been and gone... (I will back blog about that AFTER i upload the pictures from the day from my camera. I know..i know... totally a slack bum! ~L~
Ive been meaning to blog for so long now.. though it seems that the days are gone before i get a chance... someone slow time so i can catch up... please!?

I've been doing lots and lots of exciting stuff for scrap apple.. Over the weekend i will do some sneaky peek tease shots... though, until then, you are just going to have to be patient..

I have also been working on getting my arse into gear and get my classes up and running. I am toying with a few ideas... 1. Doing some from home on a regular basis. 2. Having a website built to be able to sell and teach my classes online.
3. Do both!

I'd love some feedback from anyone on your thoughts...If you were to do an online class, or any class for that matter, what you would like to see available... Feedback peeps.. that is what im looking for at the moment! I have my ideas.. though i'd love to hear what others think too.. ;)

I am also going to be teaching a class online on the 7th of June for Allcraftz for you for their National Scrapbooking day.
All i can say at the moment is Teresa Collins, 7 gyspies and YUM!
In the next week i hope to have more details available and a sneaky of the class to show.
Everyone is welcome... I would totally love to have a jam packed class so if your interested, please pop by the forum and leave your expression of interest!
Anyway... I hope that everyone is having a day and now that the week is over, have wonderful plans for the weekend.

The pure of heart..

I have not only had the pleasure of talking to this wonderfully talented lady but also was lucky enough to be at the Trade show that her gorgeous line of stamps & chipboard range was relased at through buzz & Bloom last year. She is a scrapper that inspires me to believe in my own ability & talent & not be afraid to scrap outside of the ordinary and a blog that i stalk on a regular basis..Anyway, Lusi is offering up a chance for one lucky person to own their very own set of her beautiful stamps. How amazing is that!? All you have to do is go visit her blog and follow her easy prompts! Who knows.. you could own a lil bit of Lusi too.. Good luck! ;)

Thank you.

I'd just like to say thank you to four marvelous people who have become very much a part of my daily life who i may not tell enough how much they really mean to me...

Cathy, what can i say... you are like the other side of me... the part i cant see... the extra limbs i dont have... the smile when i have nothing to give and the laughter in my days when i have lost mine. You are my best friend whether you know it or not.. There is nothing left to say but i love ya honey.. Thank you for being you.

Hannah, when all the time in the world was available to us.. we let it pass to easily... we did not make the most of it... and now... states away, a friendship blooms more and more each day. You make me smile just by being you... You are a friend with no limits... you are the ears when i need to say something.. you are just you... a beautiful human being... and one of my dearest, most treasured friends..

Marilyn, in no uncertain terms.. i love ya babe. Generations mean nothing when friends are concerned... you are a sassy imp just full of mischief... a girl just ready to cause havok on the unsuspecting and take the innocents like me along for the ride. You are one of a kind... a true diamond in all its glory. We will meet one day.. and i cant wait.

and... then.. there was...(last but by no means least)

Richard, YOU ARE are my brother. There is no other way to say it.. We share a bond even stronger than blood. One that i would not give up for the world. What ever has happened in my life for the past 9 or so years, you have been there... What seems like a eternity can pass without a single word spoken between us, though with every breath.. you are right beside me.... It is a bond that i dont think could ever be broken. xxx I love you darlin'.

Between my two besties, Cathy and Hannah & these two beautiful yankies i am totally blessed. For the lack of friends i have had in my lifetime.. these 4 have made up for it ten fold. I truely feel like the most luckiest girl alive. They have all been there for me when ever i have needed a friend... and have opened their arms wide and allowed me to be part of their lives and their families. I could not imagine life without any of them in mine. They say that friends are like the seasons.. they come and go... these 4 are like a perpetual summer... bringing warmth and sun into my life every day. The love they show me, always, is humbling.

That is all...

Feeling the Love...

Marn,

what have you done girl!? (Besides make me cry!) When you said something was arriving on my door, i just figured it was some lovely little token RAK or something as lovely... though... OMG... i would never have in my wildest dreams thought that you would do this.. and have them delivered by a Hunky honey of a guy no less...
~hugs the stuffing out of you~ I have just had the most glorious gorgeous... beautiful hot pink gerbras delivered to my door..
you silly girl... thank you!!! What did i do right to find a friend like you!?
love ya tonnes..
Sandra

PS: I really dont know how i could thank you for making me feel so needed and loved as you have right now.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Impromptu Proposal - The update!

Well... i think there was a little more to this than my lil innocent girl wants to admit.. Miranda invited Bradley to her party and he sat opposite her at the little tables at macdonalds all morning.
I got to talking to his mother, who filled me in a little more. Isnt it interesting what evolves and is discovered when mothers talk!? I heard that apparently Miranda is going to buy the house and groceries and Bradley is going to buy the cars and furniture when they get Married. You know what it is in Miranda that Bradley sees as marrying material? She taught him all he knows about budgie-boys. Aka Slaters!! Yep.. you know the ones... those lil black bug things that when touched roll into a ball and make great marbles!

There is one worry... he has already been married three times!!! ~LMAO~ Aint lil love grand?

What does ANZAC day mean to me?

I got asked today what Anzac day means to me... I know that for many, it is just another day... a public holiday and a day to drink...

for me.. it is so much more...

Anzac day has always been VERY significant in my life. My father was serving in the army through the second world war and only his appendix played up as he was boarding a ship (and they burst a short while after) he would have been taken a POW on the burmese boarder. His cousin was one of his unit and was one of the very few who ever made it home again, very malnourished and mistreated.. and totally unreckonizable.

It really brings home the cold truth of war when i realise how very lucky my dad was not to be there.. and how lucky (depending on how you look) that my dads cousin came home. If things had been different, i would not be here..

My father was taken from me 15 years ago and up til that point i ventured out to many dawn services with him.. Took part in the parades with him, marching along side him and all his mates and hung out with some of his old mates before they headed off to the RSL for their lunch. It was very much HIS DAY. The day that he looked forward to all year. For years, men from his unit, both that went OS and those who stayed behind got together.. for that one day... Marched together... remembered together. Sadly, last time i was home and spoke to one of the guys, there were very few of them remaining.

Because my father was deeply appart of the RSL and all they did, and i have so many wonderful memories, hearing the bugles now on ANZAC morning.. really rips at my heart. I dont go to the dawn services any more if Matt does not have a duty .. simply because it is "easier"...

The dawn service in 1994, 7 months after he died, I was lucky enough that we lived at the base where dad had been based throughout the war. His name was read from the Honour Roll and guns fired in his honour.

When i can, i love to go to one of the big city parades to watch the parade.. and see the men who still carry the flags of their unit, weather they are able to do it on their own, or be driven.. it makes me so very proud.. to see that proud, undefeated glint in such old eyes.
One day, i plan to walk along side them in honour of my father.

For those men and women who somewhere, today, fight for the freedom that we are accustom... you are in my thoughts..

For those who did not survive the battle they faced bravely.. You are a true hero and will NEVER be forgotten. Thank you.


LEST WE FORGET.

My baby is growing so fast..

I dear friend of mine that i have known for over 9 years, who shared every step of my pregnancy with me and i were only just wondering where the time has gone.
Miranda is our reminder of how fast time moves and and how long we have been friends...Rich, again i will say darlin' ... we ARE getting old!

To the lil girl who makes us feel so old when we realise how fast she is growing,
My divine miss M... my baby girl... I love you so much and just want to wish you the happiest 7th birthday ever!

Blow all those candles out and make the biggest wish ever!

Love
Mummy
xxxx

Another little shares-ey..

I have just been having a sticky beak at a few blogs and saw the most incredible layout on Lynettes blog and figured that since the SIA (Scrapbooking in Australia) Trade event and their designer awards have past there was no harm in giving you a looksy at my entry for it. I entered along with Melissa, Alison and Danielle, the other three girls in the Kaiser Design Team.. I have to say though im in awe of what Lynette did.. She says she is really happy with how hers turned out.. and i cant blame her.. its G.O.R.G.E.O.U.S...
While Kaiser did not get anywhere with our entries, i could not be happier with how mine turned out either..

I dont think we could have done a better job of capturing the real character that Jamie is and always has been.. Isnt he truely something to be proud of!? ~LMAO~

Happy Birthday Mama

I wanna take a moment to send the biggest and best wishes out to the most beautiful soul i know.. my mama...
74 years young this year... Happy birthday.

I love you!
xxxx

Quote of the Day

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to persue them.

~Walt Disney~

The cat is outta the bag!!!

Wooohoooooo..... finally i can spill the secret of all secrets.... though i will admit, i confided in a friend who was sworn to utmost secrecy.. I know.. im sad.. though.. hey.. you try keeping a secret this big!!

I have been put to tears.. in the best way possible.. had a sore throat from screaming ... not to mention totally blown away with an invitation to join a group of ladies that i find so much inspiration from... the likes of Kirsten Butts, Lusi Austin, Jen Hall, Rachelle Minett, Sarah van Wijck, Melissa Duffy, Lynette Van Barello to name a few NOT to forget Louise Nelson!!! (yes.. i forgot her.. shame on me.. :S ) All celebrities in their own right and very well published.. A design team like none that i could have ever imagined myself being a part of. The one design team that above all otehrs that i have always dreampt of being on... Can you guess who im designing for?

The beautiful Dawn and Kelly from Scrap Apple want me!!!!

I cant tell you how very excited i am to be not only working with these two women but the girls on the team.

Scrap Apple

They have already set me to work... and i cant wait to be able to really get my teeth stuck into things...

In lurve...

I was visiting Elsie Flannagans blog just to see what she has been up to lately and discovered this beautiful picture that she has created which in no uncertain terms i must have. She has it for sale in her etsy store though only in a 6x4 print size. I have sent her a little bit
of mail in hope that she will have other sizes available in the near future. It would be so at home on one of my walls. I did initially think i would put it in my scrap room, though honestly.. how much work do i think i would get done!? I would be forever getting distracted by looking at it. The colours are just so yummy. Anyway.. I just had to share...
wish me luck.. I may be the very proud owner of this Elsie work of art, very very soon! Yippppeee!

Don't adjust your screens!

You are not lost.. I have just given the place a bit of a face lift...
A change is as good as a holiday, dont they say? And since i'm not going anywhere, i guess a change is the next best thing.

After my last hair disaster i have decided that i am not going to play with colour there for a while.. so... instead, ive figured that its time for my beloved blog to go through a bit of a renovation...

sooooo... what do you think!?

Hope that you all had a wonderful sunny shiny sunday... We had a gorgeous day. Even though the sun was trapped behind some clouds for some of the day we went over to St Kilda and had a walk along the esplanade. bailey loved being able to run on the grass, although he was not too sure of the seagulls and wanted to come hide behind us every time more than one landed near him. He is such a hero in the backyard when a bird lands, quickly chasing it off with his "oh so (not at all) scarey" bark though goodness help him when they gang up on him and all decide to land! (Ofcourse, if you ask him, he would tell you they were after him. It had nothing at all to do with the fact that someone was throwing chips to them!) ~LMAO~

I got some great pictures as well.. though, i will have to leave them until another day.. this blog stuff has gobbled up all my time tonight.. and now.. im frazzled.
Have a lovely night.. and dont let the bed bugs bite!


PS: This sudden change is not the Something HUGE that is about to change either... hopefully i will be able to shed some more on that "news" very soon. xx

Something HUGE is about to happen...

OMG OMG OMG... I think I'm going to die of excitement (is that even possible?) or... atleast... hyperventalate with excitement!
Something HUGE has just happened... Something HUGE ... totally... 100% Gi-normous is about to take place... and... I can't tell.. Well... Not yet... I am sure by the end of tomorrow you will know ALL about it!

Have i told you that its HUGE!?

The latest from a very messy studio..

I believe that in order to create one must have a mess. A clean work environment means that you have not spent enough time creating... ~L~ Well.. that is my theory and i am sticking to it, much im sure to Matts distaste.. Its funny to look at our studio..
my side is untidy... there are snips of paper and backing off tape littering the floor much like we have had a ticket tape parade march on through when we were not looking, my desk, while it is better than it generally is after days of scrapping, is still unorganised... while my pencil case is near by the strewn pens of a rainbow of colours, not one is actually in the case.. much the same could be said for my tools... my bin, overflowing has become an impromptu stand for one of my boxes of chipboard and i have offcuts of paper scattered in some kind of a half way orderly pile at one end of my desk..
the swamp as it has often been refered to.

..........

while, on the other side of the room, squared away all neat and tidy and in the utmost military fashion is Matts desk. His laptop. Documents that require urgent attention in an extremely neat pile to one side. His mouse sitting centred on his mouse pad. His pens gathered all together in a pen holder. Nothing at all is out of place.

I guess... this is a perfect display of ying and yang.. huh!? ~L~


So... anyway.. this is what i have been doing in my swamp..

I love this photo of Miranda... look at that gorgeous gummy smile would you... Easter eggs aaaaaannnnnd a visit from the tooth fairy all at the same time... lucky girl!

The journalling for this layout is tucked behind the photo of Jamie.. it reads: "Jamie, after an unfortunate run-in with a can of baked beans where you came of totally second best & required emergency surgery to repair severed tendons, you got the nick name Beenz from your year 6 class mates. While your recovery was long and your passion for basketball was put on hold (much to your disgust)your finger did heal with a lot of rehab and patience. The name beenz has stayed long after those scars started to fade. I wonder weather the name, like your scars will be life long "
The paper has been tucked away for a while in my racks.. i found it at one of the paper shows though did not know exactly what i would do with it, was drawn to the freeness of the doodling on it. It suits jamie so well,.... even while this photo was taken and he was still suffering a lot of pain and still undergoing rehab.. he remained the carefree.. happy go lucky dude that he has always been.. :)

Hows this for spooky

If you have been reading for a while you would know that i was totally bummed when i realised that changing my gmail account would also take away all of my photos that i had posted on my blog up until that time.. wellllllll... i was more than bummed.. more like devostated when i discovered that a photo that i adore of Miranda, taken and uploaded onto our comp and not SAVED to disk before our computer crashed... was gone as well.. Today ... i decided to seive back through my posts and what do you think i found? THAT Photo. Everything else is show as red X's though she is there! Yep.. Ive saved it to my hard drive.. just incase and plan to get it printed TOMORROW!

How spooky???

The only other time this has happened was after my father died. I went to the photographic store to get pics of Kiera developed. On this roll were the last photos of my father. The only photos that came out were the ones of my dad. Photos of kiera were lost.. though others had pics of Kiera, i was not too upset over that, though i had these irriplacable pictures of my dad! Again, something was looking over me today when this pic of Miranda was miraculously saved!!

Boredness prevails!

I found this little typing test thing on the net and thought i would give it ago... It pretty well gives you a string of words any you have to type until the timer stops.. it will then calculate hhow many words a minute you can type..
This is what i got..

45 words

A little share-sy...

I have had the best weekend this weekend... i know... its Monday, though since i didn't go to work today, its still officially weekend for me! ~L~... Anyway... i woke the other morning with a million thoughts in my head... Class ideas.. layout ideas... and they all insisted on coming out right there and then... so while the rest of the house slept, i sat out here in the studio quietly and sketched ideas.

It has been talked about for some time now for me to teach the way i want, from where i want.. when i want.. and... im excited to say that its only a second away from becoming reality... In the next few weeks i will not only be teaching from the back end of our home, i will also be teaching classes using products that have been made specially for me, designed by me and exclusive to my classes..
talk about excitement-plus!!!...

Anyway... as far as the layouts... here is a sneeky of some our newest papers... i love them so muchthey remind me so much of Canberra, and autumn and the country... and .... totally makes me homesick for all those things... Isnt it just gorgeously scrumptious?
Anyway... this is the first that i have completed... It would have been uploaded earlier only the dull day = dimensional magic taking longer to dry... No matter... its here now... and i think im really happy with it.. I have more layouts screaming to get out... and one just having the last details completed.. and that too will be on show...