A Lost For Words Bouncy Experience

Bouncing.....that's what my kids do on our garden trampoline.  Lately Liam has been trying somersaults..... somersaults of the kind that should not be done on a garden trampoline without risking a trip to A&E.  Now Freya is following his acrobatic displays.

I signed them up for some one off sessions earlier on in the year and after enjoying their taster sessions they started classes last week.

I was still on enforced bed rest with my DVT and Grandad took them to their first class last week but this week after what seemed like a very long day at work I took them.  After some time a lady came over whose children were in the class before ours and said she recognised Liam and Freya as she reads this blog.

Shocked is not the word, people read this blog.  May I apologise for my lack of speaking as I really was totally shocked that I have readers who I don't know and I do appreciate you taking time to read my ramblings.  I promise you I can string a sentence together, honest.

I would like to thank everyone who reads this blog, those I know and those I don't.  Thank you for sparing time to come into my little world, it really is appreciated.

One day Liam wants to bounce for our Country, just like this...

Until then I'll pray we don't find a seat at A&E.

Sunday Scrapping

Have luckily had the opportunity to spend sometime scrapping this morning before I start on the task of Sunday Lunch and school lunch box baking.

I have completed a page using Shimelle's starting point:

Shimelle set the challenge to use a stripy background.  I wanted to use my Sarah's Cards April kit up as I am nearly at the stage where its time to turn the kit over to my stash and scraps box and I felt there was possibly another one or two LO's left in the kit.  Sadly I did not have any paper uncut so have used a piece of red cardstock as my base.  This is my starting point:

And this is my finished LO:

I have taken inspiration from Miss Smith who recently celebrated 200 posts by sending her readers an embellishment to use on a craft project.  Then she hosted this lovely blog hop yesterday so we could all see what everybody had made.  There really were some lovely L's and other craft projects made.  I read Kirsty's blog post offering these embellishments to her readers but did not have time that day to send an email.  Well with one thing and another I missed sending a request for one and having seen yesterday's blog hop I so wished I had made time to send that e-mail.  

I thought I could have a go and would like to say thank you Kirsty for inspiring me to make some of my own embellishments.  

I have so many bits and pieces its something I really would like and should do but just needed that little push for me to begin.  Now the real work begins and I have to try to think of some ideas of my own.

One Little Word

This January I declared my one little word this year would be me.  Sadly the latter part of this year has seen this personal pledge fall far from my mind.

I need 'me' to return.

These last few months have been hard and to be honest I have really struggled.  After getting over a problem with the tendons in my foot around Easter I then developed this skin infection which caused (now over 100) blisters which then turned in to abscesses.  Four of these have needed operating.  Then came the broken leg and knee followed by last week developing a DVT due to my broken leg being immobile.

I have struggled to keep a grip on things and I am tired, frustrated and a lot of other similar 'labels'.


I feel like I can never compare to others, to achieve what they achieve, to be as happy as they are, to wake up in the morning and not feel ill, in pain or have energy.

My scrapping mojo left me, in fact my mojo for most things in life left.


It frustrates me that I have no control over a number of things in my life and no matter how hard I try, there is nothing I can do to change this fact.


I have lost 'me'

And today.....although the pain and the tiredness remains, I feel more ready to tackle finding 'me'.


I get upset when I read some blogs where everyone's life is so wonderful.  It upsets me to think, these people can't be honest.  I only hope they are honest with themselves because I truly do believe life is not perfect and it upsets me that I get upset for a mere moment that my life is not perfect like theirs.

I am making a promise to myself that I will not believe these fairy tales and will live my life being honest and true to myself.

I do believe in 'me' and I will let 'me' shine.


I would like to thank a wonderful lady who inspires me and for encouraging me to be true to myself and write this post.

Document 2011 - April

They are only 5 months late but here are my Document 2011 pages for April.  Just need to add a couple of passport photos and the news and weather highlights (waiting for some white cardstock) for them to be completed fully.

For the focus page I used a sketch from Shimelle which is part of her sketch of the week challenges.  I changed the photos to 4 small ones instead of 2 panoramic view shots.  

I am really loving this album and want to concentrate on it this month and get up to date.  What is holding me up is the lack of passport photos for the calender pages and I plan on placing a large order for those this coming week and then with a bit of concentration I should be able to get up to date with this project.

Is anyone else keeping a similar album?  If yes, are you managing to keep up to date with it or is this thing called life getting in the way?

Bromsgrove Crop

Last Saturday it was Bromsgrove Crop and I started to get up to date with my Document 2011 album.  I decorated the calender page for June which already had the month's events pencilled in:

I then set about the first set of 6 x 4 pages:

Then the second set of 6 x 4 pages:

Just need to get my passport photo's printed for June and the photo's for the focus page (some shot's from our  photo shoot, CD came this weekend and I love them) and then June will be finished.  I am awaiting some photo's for April and May and then need to make the focus pages for these months and then I will have half the album finished.  For July and August I have sorted the papers out I am using and the calender pages are pencilled in awaiting the photo's.

The plan this coming week is to carry on with the Document 2011 catch up.  Hope to be back to show you some progress later in the week.

This Year I Will.....Quick Update

This year one of my goals was to have a family professional photo shoot.  Well this goal has been achieved, in fact twice.  In June I paid and booked for a shoot, then 2 days later I won a shoot.  Have had the pictures back this week for the shoot we won.

Sadly scrapping is on the back burner for the next week or so as I started this past week walking with out the splint on my broken leg.  On Sunday afternoon, my leg started to hurt and I thought I had overdone things.  Mentioned it on Tuesday to the Consultant at the fracture clinic who then promptly sent me off for tests.  Credit to the man, his call was spot on.  I have a DVT. 

Hospital gave me the choice of going into hospital for the next week or complete bed rest at home.  Have chosen to go home and I am now stuck in bed until Tuesday next week and have the DVT nurses coming in each day to see me and evaluate the warfarin which I am now on for 3 months.

To say I am bored is an understatement but at least I am at home in my own bed and not stuck in hospital.  I did manage to get some photo's of my scrapping from Bromsgrove crop so will blog that in the next few days.

Shimelle's Starting Point Challenge (3 Sept 2011)

I have been looking at the lovely sketches on Shimelle's blog and then these new starting point challenges for a while now but with my scrapping mojo going and being unable to get to my craft room I have not taken part in any.  Well after Bromsgrove Crop on Saturday, scrapping mojo has returned and I still had the scraps of Sarah's Cards April kit to hand and decided to have a go at this starting point challenge yesterday while lunch was cooking:

Shimelle had used all scraps for this and I decided to do the same.  This is my starting point:

And here is the finished LO.

Hope you have all had a great weekend.  I'm back at work today after a 7 week break, to say I am not looking forward to it is an understatement!  Must dash as the sooner I get there, the sooner I leave.

Party Food Practice

In October we are having a wedding celebration for UK friends and family who didn't come to the wedding in Lithuania.  Well you just have to have a practice run of yummy party food don't you?

This is the white chocolate and strawberry cheesecake:

and the ever popular layer cake:

Really tasty but to be honest I think I need a little bit more practice before the party, especially the cheesecake ;0)

Scrapping Lull Has Been Broken

After a break of 2 1/2 months I finally scrapped this past weekend.  I only managed time to produce 1 LO but it really cheered me up.  Again using Echo Park For The record papers I scrapped another picture of our visit to Anne Hatherway's cottage.

I put in a photobox order from our Summer Holiday and hope to start on our holiday album this month as well as a Wedding album for Martyn & Deimante as well as getting on top of Document 2011.  One thing which has held up the photo order was the time it has taken to upload to Photobox.  I have had to upload in batches of 200 photos as any more and the upload would crash and on a regular basis it took over 8 hours to upload a batch of 200.  has anyone else had problems like this with photobox?

Hope to get some more scrapping in over the next few days because its back to work on Monday.  Oh boy, am I looking forward to that! 

It's The First Of September....

...which means Learn Something New Every Day from Shimelle.  But the question is, will I join in this year?  

I have thought about this the last few days and to be honest I still have not yet decided that I can complete this album based on the prompts that will come.  I like the idea of making an album and at the time each year but don't really think I have the time to think of a lesson I have learnt each day.  I'll admit, last year it was so easy some days but other days really was a struggle to find a new lesson out of the mundane.

I have ordered a little 6 x 6 album but to be honest, that could be used for any project.  I haven't sorted out any papers and supplies or looked at the forum and pre class notes.  I've not even opened the e-mails.

I even looked back through my little album from last year and can clearly see which days I was struggling to find a lesson learnt that day.  So what can I do this year?

I was thinking whether a month through my eyes would work?  A little photo each day showing my life and if I learn something new that day, I'll document the lesson learnt.  I am stressing 'my life'.  Too often, well always, my scrap booking is about Liam and Freya.  Very rarely is there a picture of me.  I just don't like having my photo taken, let alone write about me on a LO.

Perhaps this is what I need?  But I may struggle with a whole album all about me.  One thing is for sure, I will document how boring my life is!  Not a lot of excitement goes on, that I am certain of.

For some reason, which I can't explain, it scares me to make an album about me.  It just does not feel right. 

Is anyone else joining in this class?  How to you feel about the lessons learnt everyday?  Does anyone else struggle to find something new every day?