Class update

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.

Summer Scrappin' Holiday

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 ...

Happy Blog Day to Me

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

Apologies

For being such a boring blogger lately.

For non-scrapping readers: Life is just pretty much jogging along, the children are off school so I'm busy trying to keep the house tidy, entertaining them and so I don't have much time for blogging, apart from the fact that my life is pretty boring at the moment. No momentous occasions on the horizon, no holidays looming, just plain old, nice, everyday life. So sorry.

For scrapping readers: Due to the above I haven't had much time for scrapping obviously. I intended to get down to some yesterday but we had a baptism to attend in the morning, followed by a BBQ at their house afterwards. The Pimms was flowing and I was just too I've-had-a-drink-or-two-in-the-afternoon-so-I'm-not-much-use-to-anybody-tired to do anything much more than sit and watch Spongebob Squarepants with the children!

So, yes, another boring post from me. The only other two things I have to say is that finally the weather seems to have settled down to a much more pleasant 22/23º (so much more civilised) and that UKScrappers is having a relaxed cyber crop which is running this week from Wednesday to Sunday, with a class and/or project per day. The idea is that you sign up for a particular 'bus' (album theme) and the classes and projects will hopefully get you well on the well to starting and completing an album based around the theme you choose, either a Book of Me, Time, A to Z or Holiday. Fiona, PaperArts, asked if I would put something together for the shop for one of the classes, which I did, and my class is, scarily, the first one and will be posted on the forums this Wednesday, 2nd August.

My baby is 4

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DARLING NOAH
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

My baby boy is 4. I can't believe it. The last 4 years in some ways have just flown by and so much has happened.

We had his birthday party on Saturday, at the Little Party House, and it was great. So relaxed and stress free. The children all had a great time, the food was fab, the dressing up clothes were a great hit and the party games were really good fun. It was a very good traditional style birthday party and the children were all so well behaved. If you live in this area I would highly recommend them.

My stash wishes from CHA

Not much actually. Am I the only one who is beginning to thing that a lot of the new stuff out there is becoming same old, same old? I'm finding it very hard to see something that grabs me and makes me think "now that I have to have!".

Of course a couple of things have caught my eye (I am a scrapbooker after all and can always find something to buy!).

Apart from the new Urban Lily I've already talked about in THIS post I am really liking:

• American Crafts miniMarks rubons, particularly the Accents ranges



• BasicGreys LilyKate range. I have recently really gone off BG but this range looks fab



• Love, love, love the Cropper Hopper ribbon storage boxes which you can see HERE (scroll down around the half way mark)



• Also it looks like Chatterbox have come out with a fab range of colourful rubons which look great even on black but the only image I can find is HERE (and again you need to scroll down to around to just pass the Doodle Genie)



• Really like some of the new KI Memories ranges (didn't like the Color Theory stuff much) but love the Color Lab embellishment kits, mainly because of the packaging!

And there are a couple of other little things I'll add later but that's about it really. Quite restrained I think.

A great weekend

Only marred by the humongous thunderstorm on Saturday afternoon.

Our best friends Nik and Cam and their 3 children, Anya, Isla and Erin, came for the weekend. It was so great to spend time with them. We have seen each other since our move back but this was their first stay at our house. The children love getting together and it is so nice to see their friendships with each other develop over the years, particularly Katarina and Anya who were born only 9 days apart. They have all known each other since the day they were born. It's nice.

The weather is continuing to be absolutely beautiful, too hot, but I keep telling myself I shouldn't complain. Last week it was, yet again, in the early to mid 30s and it was inevitable that we were due to have a thunderstorm. Unfortunately this didn't please the children as they were told that after we had run a couple of errands (to buy sandals, take Kat to dance etc. etc.) that they would be allowed to go in the pool. Just as we were driving home I remarked to the eldest girls that it looked and felt like we were due for a storm and half way home the heavens opened. Sheet lightening, forked lightening, hail stones as big as my finger nails and more than a little rain.

We had some unhappy children on Saturday I can tell you. Fortunately the storm cleared, the sun reappeared and by Sunday the grass had dried and after church they all went in. I think Noah felt a little out 'lassed' by all the girls in the pool so he refused to get in!

And the weather is continuing. I've just looked at the 5 day forecast for Swindon and it will steadily rise from late 20s today reaching the early 30s by Wednesday. And undoubtedly we will then have another thunderstorm and the pattern will repeat itself. I'm thinking of buying shares in a fan company!