It seems as if my first try at a music link didn't work. But I have had one of those lightbulb moments, rare, I know, but I think it's because of the format I was trying to upload the link in.
So, I'm having another go. Please, if you are one of my unlucky readers, could you let me know if it works now? Ta! Just hit the play button (and I'll keep my fingers crossed, LOL!).
I love music. But I particularly love music to do housework to. It has to be played LOUD. And I'm always looking for new tunes to hoove(r) to!
The soundtrack to Bridget Jones's Diary has, for a long time, been my favoured CD to get down and dirty to but thanks to Cherry I now have a great alternative. Lily Allen (Daughter of actor Keith Allen apparently).
It not only sounds great but the lyrics are really funny and very clever. The first few times I played the songs I just laughed out loud. Not to be recommended for first time listening via an mp3 player in a public place! I must also warn those of you of a sensitive nature that the lyrics are a little 'risque'. I'm going to try something new so hopefully it will work. To hear one of my fave tracks just click play on the embedded audio clip below (you may have to wait for it to fully load or it will play a little disjointed).
OK, I'm going to crank up the pc (I downloaded it from iTunes and haven't yet burned it on to a CD) and get on with some housework. Richard has taken the children out so that I can try and make the house more slightly more presentable.
How decadent. And blissful. And funny and energising and yummy.
Lots of chat, lots of laughter, lots of cakes and cookies, lots of scampi and chips washed down with Pimms (provided by Corinna - thank you), and not a little bit of spending. Unfortunately, or should I say expectedly, not a lot of scrapping but hey, crops aren't about cropping. Are they?
I did manage a whole 2 layouts, one of which is a double, and here they are.
Bedbugs is really simple but I love it. It looks so soft and flumpy (?). The patterned paper actually had a pink background but I chalked it blue to match the duvet on the bed. I actually used some of the stash that came with that Heidi Swapp kit Costco were selling. The chipboard alphabets for the title. I love, love this photo of the girls, even if it is a few years old now. Katarina with her nose in a book as usual and Harriet pretending to read a book but actually clowning around. Look at her scrunched up little face.
And One December Day is based on a Becky Fleck sketch which I've been wanting to use for ages. Now I have. The main photo is one of Richards favourites of the children and again I have used the Heidi Swapp chipboard alphas. I also used some of my Primas stashed but as I couldn't for the life of me find some navy ones I had to use a Sharpie pen and colour over some green ones. I also like that I've managed to include quite a few photos from this day out.
So that's it. The sum total of my efforts yesterday. But I did have a great time.
I go through phases when it comes to reading.
I don't ever stop reading, reading is a constant in my life. By phases I mean alternating between not reading so much to never being seen without a book and no housework being done. I have been going through one of the former phases which usually means that I have been reading but that I have not been able to 'get into' any book.
However I have just finished reading How Will I Know? by Sheila O'Flanagan. I really enjoyed it. It was what I would call a very gentle book but by that I don't mean boring. The blurb on the back says:
It was love at first sight for Claire and Bill Hudson. They met at Claire's fifth birthday party and they were destined to be together for the rest of their lives. When baby
Georgia came along, it was the icing on the cake. So
when a tragic accident snatched Bill away, Claire felt like she'd lost everything - except Georgia. In the
three years since, Claire has devoted her life to Georgia;
she knows no man could ever replace Bill, and the child needs her all her attention. Now Georgia's a teenager, though, and there's one thing Claire can't advise her
on: dating. And so, purely to help her lovely young
daughter in her journey through the teenage years, Claire
sets out on some serial dating. And destiny is watching,
again...
Chick-lit at it's best I would say. Although the whole 'Dinner in the Dark' was a little odd!
Yay, Richard is now on holiday. For just over 2 weeks.
I have been so looking forward to this. Just having some hang time together. We're not going away anywhere. Just day trips, taking in some sights and spending some family time together.
{{Hmm, I may try and sneak in some scrapping though}}
Oh, and Richard's brother Erik is arriving tomorrow which we are all looking forward to. It's been ages since we saw each other, and I mean ages, over 2 years. It will be good.
Later.
We have fish. Finally.
You may remember, way back when, I blogged about getting a new, fantastic looking, even if I do say so myself, BiÜbe fish tank. Well, I took my second water sample back a week later only to be told, again, that the water wasn't quite right and I should wait another week!
Cue disappointed children (and mum).
However, third time, and over 3 weeks later from setting up the tank, lucky. We got a fish. A red Fantail goldfish to be precise. Oh the joy on the children's faces when we finally, after letting it get acquainted with the water, set it free. And the joy on my face when I came downstairs the following morning to find it still alive.
A week later we went back to the aquatic shop, took another sample of water and fantastically were told our water was great and yes, we could add another fish. Woohoo! The children spent ages, and ages, trying to decide on which type of fish to choose - so I chose. A black Moore. Hmmm, not a popular choice. What I saw as different and appealing in an odd sort of way, they saw as, in their words, UGLY. Poor little fish. He can't help his googly eyes.
And then finally, after another couple of weeks, we went back to the shop with yet another water sample yesterday and our third, and final, fish joined our little watery room. The last fish is a red and white Ryukin which is actually more white than red but we like him that way.
Now the children are happy. They have a fish each but ... now the dilemma ... who gets which goldfish? Harriet was very adamant she wanted the red Fantail. They were all adamant that none of them wanted the black Moore. Noah wanted whatever fish the girls wanted. Didn't matter which one as long he was getting what they wanted. Katarina, I swear that girl will make a great diplomat one day, came to the rescue and said that she would have the ugly one.
Now the only thing left to do was to name them.
I proudly present: Chuckles (Harriet's), Google (Katarina's) and Cheep Cheep (Noah's fish - don't ask).
On both the lack of sleep Saturday night and the scrapping I managed to get done during the day.
On the sleep front I felt bad enough on Sunday but yesterday was a complete wipe out. I was so tired that I felt physically ill. Why is it that it seems to take a couple of days to catch up with you?
On the scrapbooking front though, Saturday wasn't that great either. I just couldn't get 'in the zone'. I really loved the Wednesday sketch challenge and felt quite inspired by it but once I sat down I spent the next few hours just paper shuffling. I think the problem was that I was trying so hard to do something in the theme for which I signed up for. The Book of Me. But I just couldn't put my hands on the right sort of photos, due mainly to the fact that I haven't sorted any of my pre-children and pre-marriage photos out (which I am now making a mental note to do).
I eventually had one of those light bulb moments
and finally realised that yes, it was a cyber crop and yes, I signed up for a particular theme but no, no-one would know, or even care, if I didn't scrap that theme, no, it wasn't the end of the world if I just scrapped what I like. So this is what I did.
So in total on Saturday I did one LO, it was a double LO, and I also finished another LO that I started weeks ago at a crop. Not much I know and in future I will get my head sorted out quicker. I don't know why it is that I just become so focused on one small thing. It's ridiculous. And I will stop it.
I've uploaded the 2 LOs in to my 'My Layouts' album to the right. The one based on the Wednesday challenge is called Canada Day and the other one that I just finished off is My Little Picasso Harriet. They were both based on Becky Flecks sketches. They aren't that exciting but they are 2 more LOs completed for the albums.
I don't do sleep deprivation and last night certainly falls under that category.
I must have been asleep for around an hour or so (it was very hot and muggy and took me a long time to even fall asleep) when I heard a door creak, the patter of little feet and then another door creak. Mine.
Sure enough, I open my groggy eyes and spy Noah getting in to bed and cuddling up to his daddy. As a general rule we do not agree with children sleeping with us, there are obvious exceptions for example when they were younger and sick, but generally sleeping in our bed, with us. No. So I picked him up to take him back to his own room via a trip to the bathroom, just in case.
He was pleading to be allowed to sleep with us, I almost caved but then I could hear my mothers voice in my head "no, if you start, it could become a habit!" (how come you can always hear your mother's voice doling out 'advice'?)
So, I'm carrying him back to his room and he starts crying. Not the sort of crying you can ignore but these small, silent, heart wrenching sobs. I harden my heart and put him back to bed and then jump back in to bed myself. But, as every mother knows, my mind is now on full alert, listening for any signs of wakefulness to the point that I'm now fully awake myself. And can I get back to sleep? No, I can't.
An hour or so passes by, where I am involuntarily jumping at every tiny sound, which I then discover is generally coming from Richards direction. He doesn't snore but he is a very noisy sleeper! And then, creak, pitter-patter, creak. Yup, Noah is back!
He thinks I'm asleep. I know, because when I lift my head and whisper his name, he immediately turns tail and hies it back to his bedroom. But now I know he is really awake and I'm laying there listening to him crying again. So, up, out of bed I get again and the upshot is he ends up in bed with me. Now, I know this isn't a good idea, namely because I can never sleep when I have a child in bed with me. But hey, I think he needs some comforting so I provide. He then whispers to me that he was in bed and "mummy, I was getting hotter and hotter!" and then proceeds to wrap himself around me and thereby increase his body heat exponentially. Meanwhile I'm laying there with the most amazing headache, probably heat induced, lying very uncomfortably with one arm under Noah and the other armed being held by him and wrapped around him.
And then in the quiet and darkness I hear his little voice. "Mummy, I'm your snuggle-bug..." He sure is.
I lay there for what seems like an age and I can tell that Noah is drifting in and out of sleep. I can 'feel' him rubbing his eyes, falling back in to that lovely state of restfulness just before you fall sleep and decide that this may be a good time to see if I can persuade him back to his own room. This time he goes back really well, you know this as a mum, you can tell the difference. He was happy to be taken back, he just requested his ceiling fan be turned on.
I, however, am even more wide awake than ever. With a pumping, brain blowing headache. I look at the clock. 3:09am. Uggh! I lay there, alert for any further signs of movement. Time passes. Slowly. Then 'bang'! A loud noise and, sure enough, a door creak and the sound of feet. I jump out of bed ready to head off any thoughts of Noah getting out of bed to find... Harriet. I find her with her bedroom light on, shining brighter than the sun and with the explanation that apparently her water bottle fell off her bedside table and woke her. She then decides a trip to the bathroom is needed. I'm more concerned about the noise that this will generate and it's potential for waking her brother. I think my lack of sympathy with her must communicate itself as she asks me what is wrong. To which I think I grumped out a few syllables.
She takes herself back to bed but passes me on the way from the bathroom to the bedroom and stops, puts her arms around me and says that she's sorry I'm having such a bad night but that she loves me very much.
Awwwww! So even though it was a very bad night, it was a good one too. Being a parent is hard but those times where your children's love for you shows through make it all worthwhile.
And I did finally get to sleep, the last time I looked at the clock it said 4:11am but the next thing I knew it was 9:30am and Richard woke me up with a coffee.
That is what I'm having today.
I haven't scrapped in ages, apart from the LO I did for the cyber crop class, and I have been feeling itchy all week just sitting on the sidelines and watching all the stuff being created for the UKScrappers cyber crop.
But not today. Today I'm handing over the children to Richard and I am putting up a figurative 'Do Not Disturb' sign (actually perhaps I should actually make one it might have more effect?) and am spending the day catching up on all the other fabulous classes and challenges.
I'm particularly feeling inspired by the challenges which are sketch based ones using Becky Fleck's fantastic sketches. I'm not sure how closely I will keep to my theme (I signed up for the Book of Me bus) but I don't care as long as I get some layouts done. I don't think it matters really what you actually scrap, this is turning out to be a very relaxed and chilled out cyber crop. Nice.
OK, I'm off now to inject myself with caffeine, to take a quick shower (I can't scrap in PJ's, it messes with my mind...) and then just get down to it.
Well my class seemed to be received well yesterday so I'm relieved and happy. I can't believe how quickly some people got their layouts completed and uploaded onto the UKScrappers gallery. Such speedy scrappers. I'm obviously a very slow scrapper because the number of comments I had along the lines of 'it took me nearly 2 hours to complete' or 'I spent so much longer than I normally do on a layout' lead me to think I obviously spend way too long on my layouts. No wonder I don't get that many done!
It seems most people struggled over using their own handwriting, something I do a lot, but they were pleased that this gave them the push to do so and surprisingly, in some cases, they liked the results. This is good.
It's been so interesting seeing all the various interpretations/differences in the layouts uploaded. That's one of the things I love about scrapbooking. The variety, the fact that there is no 'wrong' way to scrap, how even in a class people can and do put their own stamp on a layout and everyone ends up with a different look or feel to it. If you have time you should pop along to the gallery here and take a look (not sure if the gallery is open to non-members but it's worth a try).
And now I'm exhausted, I've tried to leave a comment on each and every layout and that's tiring business I can tell you. I'm planning on getting down to some of the other classes and challenges over the weekend. It's hard trying to find time to scrap at the moment. Why do children need a summer holiday? LOL. Just kidding. They've been great, choreographing and putting on shows for me and Richard, creating clubs and making up their club rules and today they finally got to play with their new Floam, which was a big hit (more on this tomorrow).
And with that I'm going to go, sit down with a beer and a Lemonade Sparkle (I blame Nat for this one), put my feet up and watch some trashy television.
Oh but finally here is my class layout, as usual click on it for a larger image. It scanned terribly and cut the edges off but I can't be bothered to do it again.
So today is the first day of UKScrappers Summer Scrappin' Holiday cyber crop.
And I'm very nervous
!
PaperArts is the first stop on the bus route (you need to know about the crop to understand this reference, lol) which means my class is the first class. I'm so nervous I feel sick.
Will people like it? Will they do it? Is it interesting enough? Is it challenging enough? Is it too challenging? LOL. Me? Insecure? No...
Oh well, it's done now, I can't change it so that's that.
Doesn't stop me worrying though ...
So today is my blogging 1st anniversary. With this post I entered the Kingdom of Blogdom.
I never imagined that I would still be at it a year later. I'm just not that steadfast in my crazes
so I am amazed.
I know there have been lots of people posing questions on forums along the lines of why? Why to people blog? To be honest? I don't know! But I know that I like it. It's a great way to keep in touch with family and friends, saves on sending out mindless emails to various people in which you have to say the same thing but try to make it different for everyone. And on the flip side of the coin I enjoy reading others blogs, must be the voyeur in me!
I also plan on completing a scrapbook album "A Year in the Blog of Jools" or something to that effect. I regularly back up to my hard drive all my posts and I already have done the hard work of writing the journaling to go with the photos
