Scrapping Like Mad

Breathe, girl, breathe. I must keep reminding myself of this.

Next week is PaperArts' 4th Birthday Crop and I'm lucky (or should that be unlucky?) enough to be teaching the weekend, along with the fabulous Shimelle. Obviously I can't speak for my own classes, because I'm just not that way (self-promoting LOL) but I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, that Shim's classes look fantastic!

So I'm busy scrapping away, trying to produce something that won't look too shabby next to Shim and on top of that I've also put the additional pressure on myself of producing no less than 3 sample LOs for one class and another sample of my acetate book. No pressure there then.

On top of that I've got a CJ to complete (the last and it's all over, hooray!) and I do really need to get it out in the post this week. Not to mention putting together some class notes for the class I missed last month due to laryngitis. On the one hand I thrive on challenges/pressures like that, well, I say I do but I'm beginning to think that I used to but that as I'm getting older (oh, so old) I'm not thriving so much as stressing.

So, I've promised myself that as from next weekend, when it's all over with, I'm going to take a step back. Some time out. Get myself organised. Not take on too much. Part of which has sort of already been set off in motion as I've handed in my notice at work (although at the moment it looks like they don't want to accept it...) and hopefully will be the first step in de-stressing (which will please my doctor).

OK, nose...grindstone...me...later!

Wiltshire, Eh?

Which will go over the heads of most Brits but is aimed at my Canadian friends.

So I get woken up at 7am by the excited voices of the girls getting dressed. I hear the words "warm", "layers", "gloves", "scarf". I tried to ignore them and go back to sleep (after all a quick one eye open look at the other side of the bed confirms that Richard is up - he can deal) but nope, I just couldn't.

I pull back the curtains, and blow me down if we haven't magically been transported back to Nova Scotia during the night. Around 3 inches of snow lies on the ground and it's still snowing. Going down into the kitchen to get a much needed mug of coffee, I get a feeling of deja vu: he is listening to the radio and the announcement of school closures. Yes, it's a 'Snow Day'. Can you believe that?

Typically it's today when I have to work and not yesterday, when I didn't but the girls have been out since 7:15am and loving it.

I'll post some photos later, once I'm dressed and gone out to take some.

Happy Snow Day...

A Conversation Overheard

Between Harriet and Noah whilst driving in the car:

Noah: Can God swim?
Harriet: He doesn't need to - he can walk on water!

Cricut Complaint

No, not that I'm unhappy with my Cricut - I'm not. I love my Cricut. But what I am annoyed about is that they've now announced that they will start shipping, in May 2007, a new larger format Cricut. One that will cut on either a 12"x12" mat or a 12" x 24" mat!!!! If I had know this I would have seriously have thought about buying that size as opposed to the 12"x6" one I have.

And they must have known for quite a while that this was going to happen. It really annoys me when they do this. Grrrrr!

On a happier note they are coming out with some FABULOUS new cartridges which I will have to have. I'm particularly loving these ones:

I know the last one is a bit left field for me, considering I have never been to Disney World - but I plan too! LOL.

I am also desiring one of these:
This will not only carry your machine but has room for 12 cartridges, tools, accessories and a cell phone. Cool!

Luckily I'm having a 'round' birthday this year so I am now starting to lay the foundations of my rapidly increasing wish list! Obviously all of these will feature prominently on that list! So, Richard, family, take note!

Mummy Moment Part 2

No, not Part II of Back To The Future but a proud mummy moment of another kind.

A poem by Katarina:

The Power of the Sea

The sea was pounding against the rock face
Crashing and spraying with amazing grace
The light house was standing tall and strong
As the sea unleashed all her wrong
And as God looked down on the roaring sea
He waved his hand and smiled at me
And all of a sudden the sea went calm
And I was skipping home unharmed.

How beautiful is that? How talented is she?

Mummy Moment Part 1

Well, I am slowly starting to feel better but won't be running any races for a little while (as if, LOL!).

Today was a day off and I relaxed and chilled out, visited with friends this morning, had a coffee and a chat, lazed around in the afternoon and topped it off with a dvd cosy-up with the children after school. It was great - I introduced them to one of my favourite movies of the 80s - Back To The Future.

I'd recently bought the trilogy, very cheaply at Homebase (?? how weird's that??) and thought it would be great to sit and watch it with them. Noah, unfortunately (or fortunately if you read on further) got bored and took himself off to play Stuart Little on the playstation but the girls LOVED it. Now, this is the fortunate bit (or unfortunate now... if you see what I mean), the rating was a PG. Well, that'll be fine, I think, uhmmm... NO. There was actually quite a bit of swearing (which I don't remember there being at all). You should have seen the look on the girls faces! Outwardly I feigned shock myself but inwardly it was so funny to see them look so surprised - both at the bad language (which wasn't horrendously bad I hasten to add, no 'f' words or anything) but also at the fact that I still let them watch!!! Bad mother, I am... But it was good. Real sort of retro 80s.

They LOVED it. It took a while for them to just settle in to just watching it. To start with they were just constantly asking questions.

"Is that the sort of sunglasses they wore back then?"
"Did you have sunglasses like that?"
"Is this 80s music?"
"Is that an 80s car?"

You get the picture. Harriet even had a chuckle over the opening film credits and how 'old' they looked! Great stuff. As soon as it was finished they wanted to watch Part II but that's for tomorrow!

Borders

So I popped in to Borders last night, like you do when you only really need to go to the chemists, but hey, it's right next door and it would be rude not to, wouldn't it?

I was very lucky to not only find a copy of Creating Keepsakes BUT also Simple Scrapbooks, a magazine that I haven't managed to put my hand on to in many a month! Result.

But even more intriguingly as I'm paying for my purchases (OK, I threw in a couple of books for Kat, for me and for others) the guy serving me casually remarks "oh, you're one of those scrapbookers!". Or words to that effect, my head is still feeling a little woolly from recent illnesses. To which, after I get over my shock that he even registers what scrapbooking is, I reply that of course I am. We have a very brief chat about magazines (he commented that the UK mags are not as good as the US ones!) and he then says that he is trying to give the scrapbooking look to a website he is trying to set up! The long and the short of it is that he asked for my email and this blog address and is going to check things out and, maybe, be calling on me for some advice!

So if you are reading this Borders Guy "hi!".