Little Adventures

{Documenting June 2011}

2011-10-29T07:00:00.000+01:00

June seems a long time ago now, but I'm pleased to have reached the mid-way point in the year!

This month saw little man turning 8 months old, and becoming more & more cheeky by the day. These photos are just so typical - looking all cute & smiley, and holding the sign upside down! Another Shimelle starting point was the inspiration for this page.

I had to stretch a little bit to fill my mini pages this month. For some reason June was fairly sparse in activities - it was so hot I think we just chilled out at home & went to our baby groups, but I failed to get many photos. I know I was stressing about going back to work a lot this month. Still, I did manage to find enough to fill the gaps. So June saw the arrival of our first nephew Alexander, it saw Benjamin learn to kneel and pull himself to stand, it was our 3rd wedding anniversary (I love this block - the present theme is leather for 3 years, so I went to M&S and picked up a leather swatch from the homeware department to put on here), B sent happy birthday messages to his grandma & grandad, and my mum and dad went to Canada!

I have to say thank you to Shimelle for getting me out of my scrapping rut, what with the starting points that I love, and the new class Pretty Paper Party, which is where this page came from. This wasn't an event as such, just a sunny day messing about in the garden and taking silly photos of Benjamin in my sunglasses lol! He'll thank me for this when he's older I'm sure (hmmm).

{The Party}

2011-10-28T19:26:00.002+01:00

Benjamin's first birthday party was a small affair with just a few close family & friends, but I still wanted to make it cute & fun of course!

We went with a monkey theme, since he's our "little monkey", and I kind of went a bit mad with balloons - I ordered 100 and strung them up all over the house! In fact they are still up now, I can't bear to take them down because B loves them so much!

The lovely SJ made us some super cute invitations featuring an adorable little monkey with a cupcake - what's not to love?!

Here are a few of the party details:

1. Those balloons - I used an idea I'd seen on Pinterest and blew them up then threaded them onto a piece of thread and hung them all over the place! It worked great! I love that they aren't in your way on the floor, and no helium required - win! I will definitely be using this idea oevr & over again.

2. The cake. The all important first birthday cake. I admit, I was nervous. I don't bake a lot, although I would like to. The cake was pretty simple really - a chocolate sponge with chocolate butter icing. I cut a alither away from the top semi-circle to give it shape, then added rolled icing for the face. The hair is made of matchsticks, the ears are jaffa cakes, the eyes are buttons and the nose chocoate coated raisins. I love how it turned out!

3. I strung up all of Benjamin's monthly photos using little chalk hearts to mark the months. It was great to see them all together like that, so this series will definitely be making it's way onto a layout soon (if I can figure how to get 13 photos onto a page, maybe it'll have to be the first double I've done in years!).

4. A monkey party just wouldn't be complete without bananas. Both the fruit and the sweetie kind!

5. Just in case anyone wondered what flavour the quiche was, or which cheese was which I made little food flags for the buffet table. Quick, easy and effective.

6. I can't claim to have made the napkins, but they were cute lol!

Finally to commemorate the little man turning one, we had a print made, again by SJ - see how well it coordinates with the invitation? Love that! These are a few of Benjamin's favourites at the tender age of 1. I would love to do something similar each birthday, it's such a nice reminder.

If you love this, you can have of your own! SJ does Likes prints for individuals, families, and also family values prints. Great for birthdays, christmas or just because. Any age goes - I'm tempted to do one for myself! Take a look at her shop here.

{Documenting May 2011}

2011-10-27T07:00:00.000+01:00

As promised, here are my pages for May in my Document 2011 album. I am so happy with the way this album is turning out, it's such a wonderful way to look back over the year.

Benjamin's 7 months page was based on a starting point by Shimelle. I used a subtle grid paper for the main block so that I would have plenty of space for journalling! This month it was all about movement - he went from stationary to crawling in several stages over the month. Using a washing basket for the photos was my way of keeping him in one place although it was still hard work! The 'seven' letters are the same ones you can see in the photo to date it.

Some of May's activities included a girly scrapbooking weekend away (half of the weekend was technically April, but I used creative license, since April was so packed already!), my 27th birthday, Benjamin loving the swings, teething (and the arrival of the first 4 teeth), lots of time in the garden, and little man's baptism.

For my focus page this month I used my favourite photo from Benjamin's baptism - it was such a lovely day. My sister did a great job with the photos - I love how Michael & I, and Father are all looking and smiling down on him, which is exactly what the whole day was about. I stuck to a fairly neutral colour scheme of pale yellow and grey, with a few splashes of green and blue.

{Documenting 2011 - catch up!}

2011-10-25T12:30:00.002+01:00

I've been way behind on my Document 2011 pages - April pages had been sat half done in my to-do pile since early May! A couple of weeks ago now I sat down and blitzed my way through them! I think because they'd been sat there so long I'd got a sort of scrappers block on them, and they just needed to be out the way!

Since then I've also completed May and June, and July is in progress, so I'm happy with that. With two scrapbooking weekends up and coming in November, I feel confident that I can get this project up to date. A massive photo order done yesterday should mean I can just grab it and go. In fact, I may not take anything else with me!

Here are April's mini pages:

April was a really busy month, with loads of days out and events to document. I prefer months like that, sometimes I have to work hard to fill the 18 squares! So in April we had my mother-in-law's 60th birthday party, easter, an ale festival, my first mother's day, a trip to the zoo, the royal wedding and a few random phone pictures of Benjamin.

This month was his half-year, and I LOVE the pictures from this month's photoshoot. He was at that lovely age where he could sit up, smile & laugh, but would stay still lol! I layered up lots of papers under the photo, and put my journalling both on the yellow die-cut piece and all the way around the edge of the page. The stars are embossed chipboard (I may be slightly addicted to Zing! powders at the moment!). There don't seem to be a huge amount of star shaped embellishments out there, but I love them for little boy pages. I'm in the market for a star punch if anyone knows of a good one?

...and then he was ONE

2011-10-12T22:40:00.000+01:00

My baby is one. Officially no longer a baby and more like a toddler.

People are right when they tell you that time flies by so much more quickly when you have children. It really does. I don't think anyone really believes it until they experience it though.

From this to this in 12 short months. I'm so proud of my little man.

The day started with presents of course, and the birthday boy sported mummy's new favourite stripey sleepsuit! See that stack of presents behind him? That has taken a long time to open, because he loves all his new toys so much he just wants to play with them & not open the next one!

Then off we went to the Sea Life Centre which was a huge success - he loved watching the fishes, and one particular playful penguin was captivating!

Back home and time for a few photos. The balloon pictures didn't really work out since the weather was a bit rubbish, so instead we have cake photos for his one year pics. Since he won't sit still enough for a number prop anymore, I made a customised vest for him using photoshop and some t-shirt transfer paper - super easy & super cute!

Just out of interest, this is what hapens after you give a one year old a cupcake....

...sugar high! It was hilarious - he was dancing around and squealing at the top of his voice. Racing over to the window and slapping it whilst shouting at the garden. Rubbing his hands over his chest & belly like a man possessed lol!

Having recovered from the sugar rush, it was time to test out more new toys, here he is enjoying a couple of them - a cute wooden trike & a fun fire engine (I think I will hear nee-naw noises in my sleep!).

Last but not least the important family photo. Rubbish quality beacause it was getting dark & I had my ISO set wrong d'oh. But although it may not be great quality, it's us. Hopefully I'll be able to get some more family photos at the weekend when he has his little party & there's someone else to take our pics - much easier than doing it yourself!

{Almost 1)

2011-09-26T18:55:00.003+01:00

I can't believe how fast the last year has gone. This time 1 year ago I was almost 40 weeks pregnant and sooo ready to meet my little baby. Now, that precious newborn is a toddling, smiling, clapping, laughing little boy with so much personality. He has grown so fast! He will turn one in two weeks - wow!

I only started doing the 'official' monthly photos at 3 months, but I have photos from the right days of the previous months, so here is his first year....

The day he was born - 10/10/10 at 10.27pm

1 month old, starting to smile

2 months old, looking more grown up

3 months old, starting to get cheeky!

4 months old, loving tummy time

5 months old, learning to sit

6 months old, teething!

7 months old, getting harder to photograph since he won't keep still!

8 months old, won't leave the props alone!

9 months old, being taught naughty tricks by Grandad!

10 months old, refusing to look at the camera!

11 months old, walking!

I have plans for the one year photo which involve lots of ballons! We shall see how well that comes off - he might not want to cooperate with me!

{Sarah's Cards - August kit}

2011-09-18T08:00:00.000+01:00

I have my thrid and final page from the August kit to share with you today, and I saved my favourite until last!

This photo was taken on my birthday this year and I just love it. The chipboard from Bella Blvd had loads of cute word pieces that fitted in really well with my page - I wanted to use as many as I could so I lined them up down the side of my photo on top of a pice of paper cut out with a template and pierced along the edge. The background paper was created by first misting and then embossing (in white) a design stamped randomly over the page.

{Sarah's Cards - August kit}

2011-09-16T08:00:00.000+01:00

My second page for the August kit from Sarah's Cards uses three photos from our honeymoon - I think we literally lived on cocktails out in Hawaii - not difficult since there are so many to try, and some are like a meal in themselves! They all came with pineapple, so we managed to kid ourselves that because we were having fruit, they weren't too unhealthy lol!

The sheet I've used for the background went perfectly, but felt a bit flat so I added dabs of red paint to the red circles using the end of a pencil (the rubber tip is excellent for this!). The kit also included some gorgeous chipboard, which I layered up with stickers on this page.

{Sarah's Cards - August Kit}

2011-09-14T15:42:00.000+01:00

I apologise for my lengthly absence from this little blog, there's no particular reason I haven't been updating, just the usual excuses of life being too busy etc etc!

The August kits are now well and truely with subscribers, so it's time to share the pages I made this time around. The kit features the gorgeously summery 'Hometown Summer' range from Pink Paislee.

This page I've been waiting to make for a while, but obviously I had to wait until Benjamin turned 9 months old to get the photo. This is him at '9 months in' and '9 months out'! I loved using pictures together on a page that weren't originally taken together. I don't do it very often because I store my photos by date, but I'm going to make a conscious effort to do so, because it really can help to tell the story!

{Monochrome}

2011-06-12T13:08:00.000+01:00

It's my turn to post on the all new Sarah's Cards blog today.

Here's a sneaky peek at the pages I'm sharing. Hop on over to see the full projects!

If you haven't already seen it, Lou posted a wonderful challenge a few days ago - a £10 e-voucher for the shop is up for grabs so why not have a go!

{10 things on the 10th}

2011-06-10T15:40:00.000+01:00

If you haven't seen Shimelle's blog post today then hop on over & take a look - a wonderful idea to post a '10 things' list on the 10th of every month. As Benjamin's birthday falls on the 10th, what better way to document the previous month in easy bullet points.
Today, my baby is 8 months old, and here is what has happened since his 7 month birthday:

Benjamin, in the last month you have...
1. Got your first tooth..
2. Got your second tooth..
3. Got your third tooth..
4. Got your fourth tooth!
5. Been baptised
6. Had your first go on the swings
7. Learnt to sit yourself up from lying down
8. Started enjoy meat & fish dishes
9. Become a cousin when baby Alexander was born
10. Started to crawl!
Not bad going for just one month!

I also want to include my 10 favourite pictures from the last month. Here they are in no particular order...

1. My birthday - we took a lovely lakeside walk, which had lots of wonderful photo ops!

2. This month you became very interested in bubbles - you think they are great & want to catch them!

3. Your first time on the swings was a huge success.

4. Just because no top 10 of photos was be complete without a finger-sucking photo. You do love your fingers.

5. Your 7 month photoshoot - it was hard work this month, you really did just want to eat the tag!

6. Shoulder rides with Daddy!

7. Your baptism, I love this shot.

8. The amazing baptistry that you were baptised in. (It's the largest in the country so out priest tells us!)

9. You have the cheekiest smile ever, you are going to be such a mischief when you're a bit older!

10. The 'ooh' face is one we've been seeing more & more often. It's usually accompanied these days by bubble blowing & raspberrying.

This post may even make it onto a scrapbook page one day - ready made journalling & photo choices!

{For the Record}

2011-05-24T15:52:00.000+01:00

Having just picked up my June kit from Sarah's Cards to work on (it's really stunning and packed full of goodies - subscribers are in for a treat!), I realised that I didn't share my pages from April.

Here are a couple of layouts that I made with the kit, which featured Echo Park 'For the Record' along with plenty of other great items. Not a lot of explanation required here really - the first page is about my dad and his grandson, and how I just love watching the two of them together. Dad isn't so keen on the nappy changing side of things lol, but he adores the cuddles and playtime!

This kit featured an alphabet sheet from Bella Blvd, which has 4 different fonts on it - I loved all the options, so I conbined loads of stickers to make a really long title (or a title-less page with journalling, whichever way you want to look at it!). Already this photo was months ago, and my little boy has changed so much again. Sometimes it scares me how fast everything is whizzing by, and I wish I could just stop where we are for a moment or two, but then Benjamin will do something new like roll over, or sit up by himself and I realise that he is becoming his own little person with every day that passes, and I love that.

{Exciting times}

2011-05-21T09:30:00.002+01:00

There are exciting things happening over at Sarah's Cards at the moment, so if you don't already follow the blog can I suggest you hop on over there and add it to your read list. As of 1st June the blog is having a big old shake up and it's all very exciting! Every month there will be posts from all the design team members with projects and inspiration (there really are some stunning projects coming your way!), along with challenges and giveaways.

Click on the picture above to head on over.

Whilst you are at it, you might also want to follow Sarah's Cards on

Facebook

and on

Twitter

for all the latest news, and exclusive giveaways.

{Make and Create}

2011-05-20T12:22:00.000+01:00

I was so thrilled to be asked by the lovely Anna to be guest designer for the Make and Create May kit.

This month Anna has created two mini kits - one for little girls and one for little boys. They are both gorgeous, and I'm lucky enough to be working with the little boy kit - perfect for the my little man.

You can puchase the kit here in the shop - do have a look around while you are there - there are so many cute embellishments and kits, including many handmade items. Keep and eye out on the inspiration section too for my creations using the kit!

{Crafty Clearout}

2011-05-08T19:36:00.000+01:00

It has been on the horizon for quite some time, since my craft space is looking less than organised, and those that know me will know I don't work well in mess (I clear up after every layout, and put everything away, including all my tools, I like to start afresh each time!).

So, in the name of creativity and productivity I am having a bit of a clearout, and selling some stash on good old eBay.

Not wanting to pimp too much, but if you are interested you can have a look at my items for sale on eBay here.

LOADS of cardstock, flowers, stamps and a Cricut machine are up for grabs, and I'll be adding more over the next few days so keep looking!

In the meantime, here's another layout I did last weekend - I used the gorgeous MME woodgrain for my background, and I even gutted it so that nothing was hidden and I could use the remainder on another page . Funny story - I cut the scalloped paper too small for the size of the hole I'd cut in the woodgrain, hence the little circular butterly embellishment to hide the gap! I'm enjoying square photos at the moment, and have ordered a few in 5x5" size from photobox - if you are stuck in a rut, a different size & shape of photo is great to get you out of it!

{Document March 2011}

2011-05-08T12:00:00.000+01:00

As promised, here are my pages for march. I am really enjoying the 4x4 mini pages as something a bit different to last year's book which was 6x4 mini pages. I quite like the idea of these ones which are a mixture for next year's album, but let's not jump the gun!

So, March was Benjamin's 5 month photoshoot - he was just learning to sit up for a few seconds without tumbling down, by the end of the month he was fairly reliable and he's a pro at sitting now! We started weaning at about 5 months, and he's taking to it really well and now enjoys a whole selection of fruit and veg along with some finger foods. We are just in the process of moving on to meat recipes now. Things change so quickly! His favourite things for this month were swimming, lip-smacking and bathtime. I love that I've got these pages to look back over & see what stage he was at for each month. I need ot start jotting information down though, because it's so easy to forget when he first did things!

My mini pages for March include a whole selection of cute Benjamin photos, the Sarah's Cards retreat (my first weekend away from the little chap),filling out the census, my sister getting engaged, lemon cake, making beer at home, and spring flowers in the garden. Using Instagram pictures from my phone combined with a kit means these come together easily, without having to think too much. I was a bit (=totally) rubbish at collecting 'things' to put on my pages in March, for May I have an envelope pinned to my noticeboard to help overcome that!

I've just realised I didn't take a photo of my second page for March - it's all about weaning, I'll get it up next post.

April was super busy & I have no idea how it's all going to fit onto 18 squares - I think I might have to squeeze the girly weekend into May (well, it ended May1st so that counts right?!) or else I really won't have space for all the fun things we did!

{Country Cottage}

2011-05-06T20:58:00.000+01:00

If you travel around blogland at all, you will probably have come across the fact that the scrappy girls & I had a lovely country cottage last weekend. I had such a fantastic time - there was scrapping, wine, Harry Potter, tiny ponies & great friends - what more could you want?!

My productivity was nowhere near that of some of the others, and that was I'm sure partly due to the amount of wine consumed on Saturday, and the fact that the weekend felt more like a girly holiday than a crop. Still, I managed 7 layouts (if you count a side of my document 2011 mini pages as 1 layout - if you count it as 9 then I did 23 lol!).

This page is of recent pic of me and my little B taken on my very first Mother's Day a few weeks ago. I used mostly the April Studio Calico kit for this one - I have to admit I was very unsure about the metal banner thing when it arrived, but on the page I love it! Just goes to show you shouldn't judge a product 'til you've used it.

I also got my document March pages done - coming up in my next post!

{Half a year}

2011-04-15T13:11:00.001+01:00

Yet again I am amazed at the speed of time passing by. My little newborn baby boy isn't really a newborn anymore, he is a whole half a year old (can you have a whole half??!). The 6 month mark of course meant it was time for another photo shoot! Once again the prop spent more time in his mouth than where it was meant to be, but I got lots of pictures that I love. Here are a couple of my favourites.

{A sketch challenge - Nom Nom}

2011-04-08T19:23:00.000+01:00

It's that time again - the April sketch is up at Sarah's Cards for your chance to win a £10 e-voucher. All you have to do is hop on over to the blog to get details of the sketch and then post a link to your page in the comments by May 2nd.

Here is my page - I wanted to document the fact that Benjamin loves to put everything in his mouth - it's one part of the 'Benjamin test' - is it chewable? (along with is it bashable?). I like the coordinated feel that using papers from one range gives on my pages, but I also like to mix things up a bit now & then! This page is a middle ground, because I used three different ranges from the same manufacturer - Echo Park 'Springtime', 'Little Boy' & 'Playground' - so the styles are similar and perfect for mixing & matching.

Still managing to stamp on every layout right now - this time 'you make me happy' from an American Crafts stamp set. I also love misting at the moment - this time I created a mask by cutting out a big circle from cardstock & placing it in the middle of my page with repositionable herma so I could remove it again easily, but it didn't move whilst misting!

{B}

2011-04-04T20:20:00.000+01:00

I saw this idea on the American Crafts blog a little while ago & thought it would be perfect little project for Benjamin's room. I decided to go for monotone in green to match his nursey, and I now have intentions of making loads of these - it was so simple & I just love the finished result hanging on his wall.

PS. This is also an amazing stash-buster, I am now almost out of green buttons and brads!

{Going Overdue}

2011-03-29T09:12:00.000+01:00

Still using up leftovers from my Metropolitan kit - I think I've got 2 more layouts to show you after this one, and then the kit is gone gone gone! This page is all about how I never really thought I'd go overdue, how much the time dragged and how I wish I'd enjoyed it a bit more (difficult with painful SPD, but I do miss being with bump!). Totally worth every second we waited though.

I'm keeping up with my 'stamp on every layout' goal - this layout has two - one gorgeous border from MME, and one Cats LIfe Press sentiment. Yay, go me!

{New toy!}

2011-03-22T16:46:00.000Z

On Monday I picked up this little gem - the Canon 50mm 1.4 lens, and I am absolutely loving it!

Here are a couple of my favourite photos from the last few days. This is his new "lip-smacking" face, which is is constantly pulling right now!

Also still a big fan of putting anything and everything in his mouth. These two fingers being the favourite - they have to get a suck between every mouthful of food too, which is proving to be quite messy!

{One Happy Saturday in June}

2011-03-22T09:00:00.001Z

I'm on a mission at the moment to use up some stash - it's taking up too much room! I've been on a 'kit-killing' rampage lol, to make space for some of the lovely new CHA goodies I picked up at Sarah's retreat.

This page is made using Studio Calico 'Metropolitan', which is very almost gone now - I think that may be the first time I've used up a whole kit & it feels good. Just a few more bits to use up & then I can truely say that kit is killed! I added some Dear Lizzy fabric paper which I've been holding onto since last March (!!!) & I embellished it with perfect pearls. You can still get this paper in the shop and oh my it is lovely!

{Storytime with Daddy}

2011-03-21T09:00:00.000Z

Benjamin really enjoys storytime before bed, and so me & Michael take it in turns tor ead to him. When it's not my turn, I sit downstairs and listen in on the baby monitor - I adore listening to his 'daddy' voice, and how he does all the characters and points out things in the pictures. I'm not sure Benjamin appreciates it all yet, but I love it!

{5 months old}

2011-03-20T09:00:00.000Z

Just sharing a couple of pics from Benjamin's 5 month photoshoot.

He's such a wriggler now! He loves to sit up, then flop forwards onto his tummy, do a little swimming motion, roll over onto his back & then wants to be pulled to sitting again lol! He also tried to eat the prop this month!

{Newborn Baby Smell}

2011-03-19T09:00:00.000Z

I can't believe I'm feeling nostalgic about Benjamin's newborn days already - he's only 5 months old! One of my favourite things about those early days was the newborn baby smell - totally scrumptious - I couldn't stop snuggling & sniffing him haha! To be fair, he still smells pretty darn good, like a baby should, but it's not that 'brand new smell' anymore.

{Little Man}

2011-03-18T09:00:00.000Z

At the Sarah's Cards retreat there were a few fun challenges for the delegates, with amazingly awesome prizes! Unfortunately we as DT weren't eligible for prizes, but we decided to join in anyway!

We all loved the sketch challenge - you can see all of the DT's pages on the blog. This is mine - I used Echo Park's Little Boy papers which went so perfectly with a picture from Benjamin's 4 month photoshoot! I hionestly didn't dress him to match these papers, but you might think I had. I love this photo - it makes me giggle every time I see it. I also borrowed a gorgeous punch from Rach - Martha Stewart 'Starburst'. Annoyingly, I can't find this punch in stock anywhere and I think it's been discontinued :( If anyone happens to know where I can get my hands on one, I'd be very grateful! Can you also spot some of the gorgeous new Maya Road trim on my page - so many lovely new ones to choose from.

{Almost sitting}

2011-03-17T09:00:00.002Z

This is a photo from about 3 weeks ago - Benjamin was almost managing to sit unaided, just needeing to hold onto my hand and I loved that - he's growing up so fast already & I don't want him to become too independent too fast, although each little milestone is amazing !

He can sit my himself now - not everytime but he can do it. Often he ends up face-planting into the sofa or bed, which he thinks is hilarious!

I used a couple of stamps from Cats Life Press on this page, recommended by Laura - they are just fab, there are so many great little sayings and images. I love stamps and I don't use the ones I have enough - maybe it's because they aren't very visible on my desk. Hmm, off to try and find a solution to that problem!

Note: Challenging myself to use a stamp on every layout I do.

{March Sketch Challenge}

2011-03-16T09:18:00.001Z

It's time for another sketch challenge at Sarah's Cards.

This time our sketch was created by Vanessa, and here is my page using lots of lovely new stash that I picked up at the retreat.

I can't help thinking Benjamin will look really odd when he has teeth! I'm so used to that gummy smile and I absolutely love it that I'll be sad to see it go when the time comes. He's only 3 months old in these photos so hopefully a while to go yet!

Find more details of the sketch over here and enter to win a £10 voucher - whoop!

{Documenting February 2011}

2011-03-15T17:00:00.000Z

Staying up to date with this year's Document project so far yippee!

So, here's my pages for February, starting with the 'Benjamin update' page & his 4 month photo. I think the best thing about this month of his life was the proper laughs we had - so adorable. He also learnt to sit up, to screech & to roll onto his side. He now sleeps all night long, from 10:30pm - 7:30am which is pure bliss!

Next up, February's main event, which was a weekend away with the family to a lovely barn in rural Suffolk. We spent the weekend eating lots of yummy food, playing silly games & going for walks. It was a bit chilly but I made everyone line-up for a photo lol!

Lastly, February's mini pages. This month included lots of photos going up on the walls, waffles with malteasers & ice cream for breakfast, playing with great-granny, valentines day, and Mungo sleeping in lots of silly places!

The retreat

2011-03-09T21:54:00.001Z

At the weekend I had a wonderful time up in Warrington at the Sarah's Cards Retreat. It was great to get together with old friends and to meet those I hadn't already met.

The weekend included 6 classes from my talented fellow DT, and whilst they were ongoing the crop room fell silent & looked like this...

I had the pleasure of working the shop and oh my there were lots of goodies! Gorgeous new stash from Echo Park, American Crafts, My Minds Eye & Sassafrass amongst others. Yes I did buy a few things, I'll share later! I tried not to go too mad, after all new Crate, Cosmo Cricket, Fancy Pants, Maya Road, October Afternoon & more are due in soon!

It was a little odd being away from my little boy for the first time, but we all managed, and while I was away he learnt to do this...

Amazing how quickly they change!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The giggler

2011-02-25T11:19:00.000Z

My little boy did his first little laughs a couple of days ago. We've had squeals for a few weeks now, but not a proper laugh like this. Apparently gargling with water is hilarious. Who knew?!
Be warned - this laughter is highly infectious!

4 months old!

2011-02-11T12:03:00.000Z

Seems only a moment ago I was taking his 3 month old photos - that month has flown by!

Love Nest

2011-02-06T06:00:00.000Z

The February kit from Sarah's Cards features the 'Love Nest' range from Glitz Designs. This kit is packed full of gorgeous papers and fab embellishments from some of my favourite manufacturers including stickers from Crate and brads from Dear Lizzy at American Crafts. This month's kit is amazing for both masculine and feminine pages - I love it! Have you checked out what is coming up in the next few months? Some amazing paper ranges hot off the press from CHA, I can't wait!

Here's a little peek at what is coming your way in February's kit.

Grab Bag

2011-02-05T09:00:00.001Z

A random selection of photos of the little man from December and January. Just because.

Just the Two of Us

2011-02-04T09:00:00.000Z

A picture from our first wedding anniversary this time - I was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the large (enormous!) pile of Benjamin pics that I grabbed an older me & him photo instead. My first attempt at misting and I LOVE it, I'm converted! I tend not to use plain cardstock anymore, but a little misting and it's all jazzed up :)

A new hobby!

2011-02-03T09:00:00.000Z

I sometimes feel like I have far too many projects on the go, but I've started another one despite that! This is a cross stitch for Benjamin's wall - in it's final form it will be a Noah's Ark, but so far it's just a lion lol! Hopefully this will be finished quicker than the quilt I started last January *embarrassed* so please pester me for progress pics - that will be a good incentive for me to get it done!

Becoming Mrs Naulls

2011-02-02T09:00:00.000Z

I've managed to find quite a bit of time to scrap over the last week or so, since little B has finally settled into a better routine and has a nice long nap at lunchtime - perfect for a little crafty time!

Inspired by all the beautiful wedding layouts I've seen recently I dug out some of our wedding photos (over 2 1/2 years ago now eek!) and made this page about changing my surname. The journalling describes how I love being part of a 'Mr & Mrs' team, and how I have to spell my surname since no-one can work it out when you say it!

Document January 2011

2011-02-01T13:36:00.000Z

So, it's the 1st of February today (um, where did January go??) and I'm already up to date with Doumenting 2011! I've finished my January pages - I did the majority of these a few days ago, and just left a gap in the mini pages in case anything amazing happened in the last few days of January. It didn't.

Anyway, first up is one of my feature pages - I do two feature pages a month rather than one feature page and an envelope page since I'm pretty useless at collecting stuff and would end up with an empty envelope most months. This page is about Benjamin's first swim - we went last weekend and took him to a local private hire pool so that we had it to ourselves, and it's lovely & warm and clean, just far nicer than the public pool. Of course the added bonus of doing that was that we could take pictures yay! He seemed to really enjoy it and was kicking about like crazy by the end, although he looks a bit nervous in the pics!

My second feature page for the month is a photo I took of B on his 3 month birthday, and lots of journalling about all the things he's doing and his favourites at the moment. Things like starting to put everything in his mouth, and loving 'The Grand Old Duke of York'!

For my mini pages this year I've chosen to use page protectors divided into 9 small squares - idea totally stolen from Laura! I've used just photos from my phone (awesome apps Instagram and Hipstamatic) - since they are already square it's super duper easy just to print them off (I actually got them printed at Photobox - I collaged 4 together and got an 8x8 print), add a few details and done!

This month we saw the first signs of spring, took lots of photos of the little man, went to mum & baby cinema, started going to a music group, welcomed the new year, went on our first couple's date without B (to see Harry Potter - finally, and it was awesome!), went for walks, were amused by Mungo's sleeping places, and loved that Benjamin learnt to play with his toys.

Don't expect this level of punctuality for the rest of the year!

A January Challenge

2011-01-13T13:21:00.001Z

There's a new challenge for you over at the Sarah's Cards blog, and you could win a £10 e-voucher if you take part so why not head on over and take a look?!

I created this page documenting my '2010 in a nutshell' (if you watch Harry Hill's TV Burp you might sing this phrase a la 'this weeks apprentice in a nutshell'. If you don't watch it you'll be wondering whether I've gone crazy right now!)

2010 took us from positive pregnancy test right the way through to a beautiful almost-3-month-old baby boy so it was quite a journey! Additionally, this page is my title page for my Document 2010 album :)

Speaking of Document 2010, I have great plans for Document 2011 and am itching to get started on it! Just a little more to finish from last year's album and then it's all systems go on this year's!

I realise I haven't shared most of my pages on here, so I'm planning a big post with all the piccies once it's fully complete.

Welcome to 2011

2011-01-01T17:12:00.000Z

Happy New Year!

Well 2010 was quite a year - I found out I was pregnant in January so my year was mostly taken up with the excitement and wonder of pregnancy and the arrival of little Benjamin in October. From hearing that first little heartbeat, to seeing him on the scan, to preparing the nursery, to holding him in my arms it has been the most incredible journey and I am still in awe at how amazing it all is!

2010 set the bar pretty high, and I'm not sure how 2011 is going to top that but I can't wait to find out what's in store for us. I love this time of year - the excitment of new beginnings and the promnise of fresh starts. Already I am feeling the organising bug taking hold, and I've written a list of tasks to accomplish in the house this year already! I don't really do resolutions, for I never seem to keep them, but I do have a couple of wishes for the year:

1. To enjoy being a mum every single day, even when it's the toughest job going, and to make the most of every moment for already the little man is growing up so fast!

2. To make time for scrapbooking each week, and actually use some stuff up (or get rid, eek!)

3. To 'Document 2011' - I love my 2010 pages and would love to continue this

4. To finally get the house organised - so many drawers/shelves that are piled high with randomness and it's driving me nuts! One drawer at a time I will get there

5. To finish all the painting in the bathroom - just the skirting, cupboard, boxing in and floor to go!

6. To spend less - I am not so good at this - I tend to just buy what I fancy and with my maternity pay taking a sharp dip soon it's important I do this!

So there we go, nothing too challenging I don't think (but I'll let you know this time next year for sure!)

Goodbye 2010, you were fabulous!

Hello 2011, I'm excited to meet you!

p.s. This picture makes me laugh so much - can you tell who was on champagne??!

2010-12-25T06:00:00.003Z

Merry

Christmas!

Cheeky Little Monkey

2010-12-23T11:07:00.000Z

A quick page share!

(Layout created for sketch challenge at Sarah's Cards blog)

These pictures are from when Benjamin was 6 weeks old. 4 weeks on and we are getting plenty of these gorgeous gummy grins which just make my heart flutter. He's becoming a lot more vocal now, and is getting very close to laughing I think - little coos often accompany those smiles!

I have been making my Christmas album (not fully up to date, but this one will definately get finished!) but just have not had the time (or the daylight) to photograph and uplaod pictures. Maybe I'll do one massive share when it's finished!

I hope all your Christmas preparations are going well - 2 sleeps til Santa!!!

First baby boy page!

2010-11-26T13:52:00.000Z

It was so nice to take a little bit of time to do some scrapping after about 8 weeks of not doing any! This page came together over the course of a couple of days - not something that usually happens, I usually like to sit down and finish a layout once I've started but obviously that's not practical anymore so I'm going to have to adapt my scrapping style!

I used lots of the gorgeous new Pebbles Inc New Arrival range along with plenty of other bits & pieces, and I'm really pleased with how it's turned out. There are so many things I want to write about and document, but until I can figure out a way to get those feelings and events down on paper in a way that does them justice it's simple journalling all the way!

Craftiness

2010-11-22T14:06:00.001Z

Hold the press, I've actually got some photos printed out and some lovely new baby boy stash (Pebbles - new arrival boy). It's the first time I've scrapped in the last 6 weeks & it feels good! I was a bit nervous at starting to scrap pictures of Benjamin, but I figure I can always scrap the same photo twice if it all goes wrong haha! I have the journalling all ready, written a couple of weeks ago thanks to Shimelle's True Stories prompts. I also have fab new iPhone app sketches2scrapbook for inspiration in case i get stuck!
So watch out for a layout soon!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Time flies by...

2010-11-17T15:54:00.000Z

I know it's a little while since Halloween, but I wanted to show you these cute cute pics of my little boy all dressed up in his pumpkin suit!

I can't believe how big my little baby is getting already! He's almost 6 weeks now, and the days are just flying by. Some days I look at him and think how tiny he is, still so fragile. But other times I see a real little boy, full of character and love. He's smiling lots now, which is just amazing (he's got such a cheeky grin!), and he's starting to show interest in toys and lights - he's fascinated by mirrors and shiny things!

A little reminiscing about being pregnant - it seems like a long long time ago that I was this size! He's grown a bit since he was born, but I'm still totally amazed that he fitted in there! I made this page for a sketch challenge over at Sarah's Cards, but I wanted to share it here too. The journalling, a letter to 'baby' was written about 2 weeks before he was born.

The new arrival!

2010-10-23T23:31:00.001+01:00

Announcing the arrival of Benjamin!

A little delayed in updating - I've been totally wrapped up in my new mummy bubble & busy cuddling my son! Yup, it's a boy!
Benjamin was born 12 days late on 10/10/10 at 10:27pm - I forgive his lack of timekeeping since it means he has the coolest birthday ever! He weighed in at an impressive 9lb 14oz and has the cutest little chubby cheeks u have ever seen.

We are so totally in love & completely over the moon to be a little family of 3. We are all doing well.

Posting from my phone since I haven't really been bothered to sit at the computer yet, but I have a whole load of photos to share already - he'll be 2 weeks old tomorrow & already the time is flying by!

No news

2010-09-30T14:03:00.000+01:00

Quick update:
No news is, well, no news in this case!
I'm still here, still pregnant and now overdue.

Fancy a sketch?

2010-09-23T17:05:00.000+01:00

The new sketch challenge is up over at Sarah's Cards - you could win a £10 e-voucher so get creating! More deets over on the blog, but here is the sketch (designed this month by Rachel Ward) and my take on it using gorgeous MME papers and one of my favourite wedding photos.

Documenting July 2010

2010-09-17T15:25:00.001+01:00

I'm not really 'keeping up' with this project, but I am loving how the album is coming along, so I don't mind that I've only just finished July's pages!

I'm especially enjoying looking back at my bump photos over the weeks - I felt huge at this stage, but my it's grown a lot more since then!!

So, July's pages using the Cosmo 'Delovely' range.

DIY photoshoot

2010-09-14T12:17:00.000+01:00

I've been nagging M to let me get some proper bump photos for ages, and finally at the weekend we got round to it so just thought I'd share a couple of my favourites.

Baby's Room!

2010-09-08T11:52:00.001+01:00

So it's nearly time for baby to join us, and we've just finished the nursery (well except for curtains!). I'm so pleased with how it's turned out. We don't know if we are having a girl or a boy, so we wanted something neutral, something calming and something airy.

We went from this oppressing yellow (and on the ceiling too - why??)....

...to this pale green with fresh white woodwork and a lovely new carpet. I can't believe how much lighter and fresher the room feels!

That tall chest of drawers was a cheap plain pine unit brought years ago from good old Argos. I primed & painted it in cream and then added funky handles in cream/green dots &stripes - so much better! The bookcase was inherited with the house - we actually have 2 of them. I think we need to get more books though - so far we only have The Hungry Caterpiller!
Oh, please also excuse the old kitchen chair in the corner - we have a lovely nursing chair which will go there, but it's currently my sitting room chair until baby arrives!

We spent a weekend building the wardrobe, long chest of drawers and the cot. I saw we, what I really mean is M built them whilst I directed and passed screws lol! The wardrobe is actually huge, and the 5 little sleepsuits in there look a bit pathetic! I'm sure it'll fill up soon enough though.

I made these little birdies one afternoon when I was bored (totally love having a fabric shop 6 doors down!). Hoping to fill the room with plenty of little details over the coming months.

Ah muslins, so practical and yet so pretty all rolled up in a basket!

That stripey sleepsuit is my favourite so far - it rocks!

So I think that's probably baby overload for today!
I'm getting on well with my Document 2010 pages so should be able to share July in the next couple of days.

Still here

2010-09-06T10:30:00.003+01:00

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth!

I'm still here, still pregnant and still scrapping - I can't show you much of what I've been doing yet, but I'm hoping to catch up on my Document 2010 pages this week. This pic of me was 3 weeks ago now at 34 weeks - I love my bump but I'm ready to meet baby now! Still, only another few weeks to go.

In the meantime, here's a page that I did for the Sarah's Cards August kit - totally different from my usual in that I challenged myself not to use any patterned paper and I ended up using barely any colour either just good old kraft!

It's a hard life

2010-07-16T17:14:00.001+01:00

Yup, being a kitty is apparently exhausting! Mungo has developed an ability to sleep anywhere, especially loving cardboard boxes! Super cute!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

It's that time again!

2010-07-14T11:37:00.000+01:00

Yup, it's CHA time again and that means lots of lovely sneak peeks of what is to come!

A few of my favourites so far...

These pretty butterflies from Prima.

A second Dear Lizzy range from American Crafts called 'Enchanted'.

These fab flower embellishments from American Crafts' new 'City Park' line.

The third line from Echo Park - Life is Good.

Documenting June

2010-07-12T15:26:00.000+01:00

I knwo I said I was doing this weeks ago, but then my printer ran out of ink & I had to wait for replacements to be delivered before I could print off the mini pictures, and then life just sort of got in the way! Anyway, here are my finished pages for Document 2010 - June.

First up, the main page (non baby themed) features some gorgeous views from a trip to Devon to see family. I love this part of the country, and although it always takes a long time to get there, it's worth the journey! I'm actually going back again this month!

Now for my second main page - the baby themed page. This month it's all about seeing baby moving around by my tummy shaking & wriggling - it's hilarious! I call it the belly disco.

Finally, two lots of mini pages featuring (amoungst other things) a taste of wonderland, some pregnancy updates, pretty flowers, delicious cream teas and a cute kitten!

I used Echo Park 'Sweet Summertime' papers for all of June's pages, along with some Elle's studio tags, and the almost obligatory Thickers & My Little Shoebox tiny alpha!

Prettiness

2010-07-06T16:53:00.000+01:00

I love flowers in general, but in particular I love my orchid! It's so beautiful at the moment & it makes me smile whenever I walk past it. My mum is the queen of orchids - she has a whole windowsill full of them, and they are usually in full bloom too. She bought me this mini one a while ago, and I don't think she was expecting much from it (or me!) but it has definately exceeded expectations.

I took this set of pictures for Shimelle's class, and I love how they turned out! The butterfly one was pure fluke - he just fluttered into the frame without me realising and I only had the chance to take one picture - amazingly his wings are spread open, what luck! Can't wait to scrap some of these, and I might even get one blown up on canvas for my scrap room.

Love your pictures, love your pages

2010-07-06T10:26:00.001+01:00

Shimelle's latest class started yesterday - it's all about taking photos you adore, and making fab pages with them! The perfect combination!

To start - a little bit of spontaneous photography to capture whatever is going on right now. Off I waddled with my camera (lets not pretend I can walk any faster than a waddle right now!) to the garden. Daisy was very kindly sitting in the perfect position just waiting for her photo shoot! A few snaps later and here we go - my spontaneous photo!

What do I love about this photo? Well, obviously it's got Daisy in it, and she's adorable! She's looking right at me, and looks very calm (that doesn't happen too often!). I love the purple haze of the lavender behind her, and the fact that it wasn't bright sunlight so no harsh shadows. I love the rustic effect of the wall - a straight line, but actually not so straight! The only thing I'm not so keen on is the bottle green wall - not painted by us I might add!

Kitchen makeover!

2010-07-02T08:48:00.001+01:00

Our kitchen has a lot of open shelving, which makes storing practical yet ugly items a bit of a mission! A while ago I bought a whole load of these cute kilner jars from Ikea, and we keep everything in them - flour, sugar, pasta, rice etc etc. They look much prettier than packets, but that look was being totally ruined by the very practical sticky labels I'd attached to stop myself trying to make sauce with self-raising flour, or pouring caster sugar over my breakfast!

I've been saying I'll sort this out for ages & ages, and never actually managed to get around to it (typical me!) so yesterday I spent an hour pretty-ing up the jars finally. It took hardly any time at all - they are very simple, but how much better they look!

Ingredients:

1 length of ribbon

1 kraft tag

1 sheet Bazzill swiss dots

1 length Dymo tape, black

You will also need a Dymo labeller, a heart punch, and a Cuttlebug + die or scallop circle punch

Method:

1. Take the kraft tag and punch a heart in the corner

2. Punch/die cut a scallop circle and attach to the side of the tag

3. Add Dymo labelling to the tag

4. Tie ribbon around the jar and attach the tag

5. Admire new pretty kitchen jars (and check out my new dotty tablecloth - £6.99/m at Dunhelm Mill, bargain!)

Lazy Summer Days

2010-06-28T17:37:00.002+01:00

It's been a beautiful few days weather wise & I've been making the most of it by relaxing in the garden!
With a little help from mum the garden is looking stunning - the roses are particularly thriving.

Today I've been scrapping though - making a start on my Document 2010 June pages so will be able to show those soon :) I'm using the new Echo Park papers that I picked up from Sarah's Cards a couple of weeks ago - their second line is now available & it's just as fab!

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sarah's Cards July Kit

2010-06-24T09:25:00.000+01:00

Ooh it's such a lovely kit this month, so fun & vibrant!

The main paper range is Pebbles Inc 'Treehouse' - I love working with their papers, they are such a lovely quality.

Here are my layouts for the DT this month...

Document 2010: May

2010-06-21T16:13:00.000+01:00

I woke up in the middle of the night a few days ago and couldn't get back to sleep, so I started thinking... I really should be documenting my 2010! It's such a big year, and there's a lot going on what with expecting our first born child lol. So, at 3am I got out my notebook and pen, and I wrote down a list of what I need to include each month that's passed so far. I decided that instead of doing an envelope page (I haven't been collecting stuff!) I would do 2 main pages each month - one dedicated to something baby related, and one to a non baby themed event.

I've started with May, since that was pretty recent and it makes me feel a little bit more caught up haha! So here are my May 2010 pages :)

Time flies!

2010-06-21T12:38:00.000+01:00

2 years ago today I was getting ready to be married. I cannot believe it has been 2 whole years - time flies when you are having fun I guess!

I remember the excitement of getting ready, the hustle & bustle in the house all morning with people coming & going and then how serene it felt once everyone had gone and it was just me & my dad. I remember the scent of the flowers, the slight mist in the air that morning, and watching all the little details that I had meticulously planned come together finally.

I remember being excited, not nervous to walk down the aisle, and the look on Michael's face at the other end. I remember saying our vows & being so overcome with emotion that I did the one thing I had promised myself not to do - cry. I remember forgetting that we were in a church full of people, and feeling like it was just us two. I remember Michael forgetting to wait for his cue and kissing me before he was told he could 'now kiss the bride'!

I remember my cheeks aching from smiling so much, and not a fake camera smile - a genuine I'm-so-happy-I-could-burst smile. I remember the happiness of having so many family & friends share the day with us, and taking a moment to stand back & take it all in. I remember dancing, twirling, singing and laughing, and I remember wanting to wear my dress everyday because it made me feel like a princess!

Most importantly I remember it being the happiest of days, and the beginning of life together as husband & wife.

That life as a pair is now ending, and we'll soon be a trio, a happy little family of 3! Only 99 days to go!

Sketch Challenge at Sarah's Cards

2010-06-20T12:55:00.000+01:00

There's another challenge for you over at the Sarah's Cards blog - this month a sketch again.

I used 3 of my current favourite things for my layout - Cosmo Delovely papers, Hipstamatic prints and my bump! I remember thinking at the time wow, my bump is huge, but 8 weeks on and it looks tiny in that photo compared to how it is now. I actually struggle to think that baby has another 14 weeks of growing left to do!

Hop on over to the Sarah's Cards blog now to see a bumper load of inspiration from the rest of the design team, and post a link to your page. You could win a £10 e-voucher if you enter by 12th July so get creating!

A little bit of colour love

2010-06-17T12:15:00.001+01:00

The Color Room just keeps on publishing fab little colour combos that I love! (Although it pains me every time to write the word colour without a 'u' in it!)

This was palette #7 from a few weeks ago - a gorgeous mix of orange, pink, yeloow and green that I would totally not have put together myself! I used their sketch too for this slightly tongue in cheek page! What is it with men at weddings? They always seem to be drawn to holding the bouquet!

Cardstock - Bazzill; Patterned Papers - Basic Grey 'Green at Heart', Crate Paper 'Pink Plum', Pebbles Inc 'Twitterpated', Pink Paislee '365 degrees', October Afternoon 'Thrift Shop' & 'Farm Fresh'; Journal Spot - Scrap Em @ Etsy; Stickers - October Afternoon 'Thrift Shop' & 'Fly A Kite'; Letters - My Little Shoebox 'Sunrise', American Crafts Thickers Delight in Leaf ; Punch - Martha Stewart; Stickles

Sarah's Cards June kit peeks

2010-06-15T13:56:00.001+01:00

June's kit from Sarah's Cards features the gorgeous Pebbles Inc 'Treehouse' range of papers - I love these papers, especially that gorgeous yellow one with clouds on *heart*

One of my favourite bits in this month's kit is the chipboard template included - I don't know what the official name for this shape is lol, but I know it is one of my current go-to shapes! What is so great about this is that you can use it over & over again yay!

Here's a few little snaps of my pages for the DT with June's kit.

A weekend in Wonderland

2010-06-14T12:55:00.016+01:00

What a weekend!

The lovely SJ threw an amazing Alice in Wonderland themed birthday bash which included all manner of fantastic decorations. The costumes were great - Michael was the Knave of Hearts (mainly because he wanted to get a sword and an eye patch!)

I was the White Queen - you'll have to looks at the other girls' blogs (Shimelle, Laura, SJ, Rach, and Leanne) to see pics of me, because there really aren't many on my camera!

There was amazing rainbow cake - the most scrapworthy cake I have ever seen in my life, and it tasted pretty good too!

There were playing cards, and cupcakes, and walks on the beach.

There was bunting, and pretty china, and a sword fight.

There were smiles, and laughs, and lots of catching up, and many many photos.

Thanks girls for a fab weekend!

Update

2010-06-13T23:00:00.001+01:00

It's been a busy few weeks, and being pregnant seems to be taking up a lot of my mental & physical energy, but I promised certain people at a certain amazing tea party this weekend that I'd update my poor neglected blog so here I am.

Have you seen the new 'Sweet Summertime' papers by Echo Park (new company on the block!)?? This line had totally passed me by, I knew nothing about it until I saw it at said tea party less than 24 hours ago & already I've ordered the lot! Gorgeous papers & fab quality too - oh so summery! You can get hold of it now from Sarah's Cards.

-- Posted from my iPhone - oooh, technology!

Fancy a challenge?

2010-05-18T18:49:00.000+01:00

The new monthly challenge is up on the Sarah's Cards Blog - loads of inspiration from the design team, and a £10 e-voucher up for grabs so get creating!

I've been playing along with The Color Room again - this week's palette was a gorgeous mixture of blues and greens with a little brown thrown into the mix. Perfect for one of our London Eye photos taken last year when we spent the day in the capital for our 1st wedding anniversary. Not only do you get a fab colour selection to inspire you, there is also a sketch provided each week, and I loved this week's so stuck to it pretty closely. I'm really happy with how it turned out, and I even used up a few really old scraps - got to be a bonus right?!

Patterned paper: MME, SEI, October Afternoon 'Night Light'; Letters: AC Thickers, My Little Shoebox, Jenni Bowlin; Gems: Basic Grey; Journalling Spot: Scrap 'Em @ Etsy; Puffy shape: AC 'Abode'

Bump update!

2010-05-14T10:09:00.000+01:00

We had our 20 week scan yesterday - we are now over halfway!
Everything looks perfect with baby which is such a relief to know, and the best birthday present ever!
We decided against finding out if baby is a girl or boy - we will have a lovely surprise on delivery day. It was a bit wierd knowing that we could find out if we are having a son or daughter, but we stuck to our guns! So for now we are embracing greens, yellows, creams & whites, and I have a couple of things in rainbow colours!

The Color Room

2010-05-10T13:18:00.000+01:00

I found a link to The Color Room over on Leanne's blog a little while ago - each week they post a palette of 4 colours, along with a sketch to inspire you. I loved this week's colours because they almost perfectly matched our wedding colours - pink, green, cream and lilac. We didn't have much purple, but hey, it's close enough!

Sarah's Cards update!

2010-05-05T17:21:00.000+01:00

Here's what is coming your way in the May kit - I am a little jealous not to be working on this one, it's stunning! The DT have done some amazing pages with this.

Time to share the pages that I created with the April Sarah's Cards kit - gorgeous spring colours and loads of patterns!

Also you have until Monday 10th May to enter the latest sketch challenge over on the Sarah's Cards blog - there's a £10 e-voucher up for grabs so get scrapping!

Finally a big hello to my Grandad and Granny who I recently discovered googled me and now read my blog! *waves*

The Bumpy Bump

2010-04-24T17:55:00.001+01:00

Ah, the bump is getting increasingly bumpy these days! I'm sure I look further on than I am (4 1/2 months) but as M keeps reminding me - it's going to get a whole lot bigger than this. Great, thanks for that lol!
We've been busy looking at pushchairs, car seats, prams, nursery furniture and all the other bits & peices that we need - it's a massive job, I could not believe how many different types of pram they are and I wasn't sure how on earth you go about choosing! It's like they are talking another language half the time. Despite that, I think we have picked out the carseat, and I have my eye on a certain pram - we just need to travel to a certain shop to try it out & make sure it's easy to use and comfortable to push!
Any mums out there - tips of things you definately do need would be great, and tips on things that thye try to seel you but you really don't need also much appreciated!

Blog Party - Woodgrain

2010-04-18T14:40:00.002+01:00

The lovely Shimelle is holding an all-weekend blog party - check it out over here!
There's tons of inspiration and challenges to get your teeth into, and loads of fab prizes up for grabs too. 6am tomorrow is the deadline so get scrapping!
I've been keeping a note of the challenges and slowly starting to put together a few projects, in between enjoying the sunshine and attempting to clean the house.
This is the first one I've completed - I used Shimelle's sketch as a starting point, and also included a little bit of delicious woodgrain. We took this photo during a lovely brisk winter's walk on the beach up in Norfolk. It was only a few days after we found out we were going to be a mummy and daddy so we were feeling particularly loved up - aaaww. Yes, I am wearing earmuffs - I cannot pull off hats so these are my winter headgear of choice!

Simply Perfect

2010-04-17T13:46:00.001+01:00

It's no secret that I love weddings. I love all the planning and preparation that goes into them. I love the pretty colours, the classic designs and the elegant shapes. I love the quirky and personal touches. Most of all I love the meaning behind the day.
This picture of my brother-in-law's wedding last year sums up why I love weddings really - happiness.
Not to forget of course, wedding photos are an excuse to go all out pretty pretty pretty on a layout!!

New look!

2010-04-17T12:52:00.000+01:00

A quick update!

Yup, the blog has a new look and a new name - fresher, cleaner and simpler.

Baby is doing well, the belly is getting rather bumpy now! Our fruit app tells me sproglet is now the size of an onion.

More updates to come this afternoon!

2010-03-16T17:28:00.002Z

Thank you for all your congratulations & well wishes :)
Of course, every life event needs an iPhone app, and being pregnant needs several lol! One of my favourites is called BabyBump, and the reason it is one of my favourites is because it gives you a weekly fruit update. What's a weekly fruit update? Well, it tells me every week what size baby is compared to certain fruits lol! We have progressed from apple seed to blueberry to prune, and today is the start of peach week! Peach - that's a cute fruit. I'm a little bit scared about the time it moves on to watermelon and pumpkin haha!

Despite appearances I am still scrapping! At the recent Sarah's Cards retreat I managed a couple of layouts in between teaching, eating & shopping! This is first of 3 that I made - lots of newly purchased goodies on here: Some lovely new Crate (yum!!), gorgeous AC Letterbox frames, my fabby new tab punch, several new border punches and a gorgeous honeycomb Prima stamp. I love the new Crate papers, especially this range in fabulous blues & greens - perfect for watery photos!

I've been busy....

2010-03-12T11:42:00.001Z

For once I feel like I have a valid excuse for not blogging lol!
I've been rather busy building a baby - it's an exhausting business and I have been quite happy to sleep for many more hours than I should admit to!
We had our first scan yesterday - meet Sproglet! Little babe was very active and doing the sort of gymnastics that would earn an olympic medal. Everything looked, in the sonographer's words - perfect. We are both over the moon!
Our due date is 28th September which feels like a long long way away, but I know that chances are it will be here before we know it!

2010-03-01T10:53:00.000Z

I know I've been gone for a while again - just don't seem to be able to find the time nor the energy for blogging at the moment!
Anyway, a few old layouts that I don't think I've shared yet just to keep the old blog moving a little bit lol!
Hoping to be back soon!

CHA is coming!

2010-01-16T13:57:00.000Z

I love this time of year - so many gorgeous new products to oogle!
So far I am finding a few things that catch my eye - first up, american crafts. I always like their bold designs, and I am liking the retro feel of 'Abode', plus it features cute polka dots, yay!

Okay, so this next one might just become my favourite ever product - textured woodgrain cardstock! Yum yum and yum! The other patterns are pretty cute too :)

Learn to Sew part 1

2010-01-12T14:24:00.001Z

My mission for this year is to learn a little about sewing. I really want to make a quilt, but I thought I'd start with something a little smaller!
This little chappie is a lot smaller, but for my very first project, I am chuffed with him. Yup, he's not perfect, and a little scruffy round the edges, but I like him!
Unfortunately the kittens have decided he shall be their play toy, so he has to sit high up on top of the shelves lol!

The Album Cover

2010-01-04T14:49:00.001Z

So I have done some scrapping already this year, but I can't share any of it yet as it's hush hush lol!
Instead, I'll catch up on some layouts of last year that I haven't put on here yet.
Don't you just love that yellow polka paper - definately one of my favourites of 2009!

Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010!

2009-12-31T15:03:00.003Z

Well not quite, but only a few more hours to go and 2009 will be a thing of the past!
I achieved many of my goals in 2009, although there are a couple that will be carried forward to the year ahead.
It's been a busy year -

we bought our first home together and moved in
we took on the challenge of being responsible parents to 3 gorgeous kitties lol!
I finished my first year of work & training and began year 2
scrapbooking wise I enjoyed working for Scrapbook Inspirations and Sarah's Cards, and enjoyed a number of trips away with wonderful scrappy friends
we enjoyed the weddings of several family & friends
we took a much needed holiday & finally got diving again

With so much going on the year has flown by, and I have a funny feeling that 2010 is going to whizz on past too. With that in mind (and in the style of the lovely SJ) I have a word for 2010:

Indulge

This isn't about being luxurious or self-absorbed, but it is about making time for myself & doing the things I enjoy. It's about reward for work - if I spend my time doing something necessary but boring, I reward myself for it by allowing myself to chill out for the next hour. It's about learning skills to make my house an inviting ones - baking, quilting & decorating are 3 that spring to mind! It's about slowing time down, immersing myself in the moment and savouring the little things.

A very happy new year to you!

December Sarah's Cards kit!

2009-12-24T13:49:00.000Z

Perfect for both snowy and non-snowy pics lol!
Here are my pages - apologies for the horrendous light, much as I love winter I do not love the lack of good quality daylight!

So Christmas is almost upon us - are you ready?
I have done the last of my wrapping this morning. Sadly I will be off to work this afternoonn until midnight, and same again tomorrow. Still, at least I get Christmas day morning at home. It will be very strange not seeing all the family at Christmas though.

A very Merry Christmas to everyone!

Tranquility

2009-12-09T20:28:00.001Z

Taking photos underwater is so hard to get right so I was pleased with this shot on holiday earlier in the year! It's all fairly self explanatory really lol!
I used papers by We R Memory Keepers, letters & badge by American Crafts, stickers by Scenic Route, flowers by Prima and journalling spot by Elle's Studio.

So I started work in A&E a couple of days ago and am loving it so far! It's a total change to ward work, completely different way of working, but it's great. It's a good job I'm enjoying it because I don't have a day off for another couple of weeks lol!

2009-12-03T19:08:00.001Z

Being the on-call for general surgery the alst week has kept me busy, so I haven't had time for blogging, but thats all done now and I have finished general surgery whoop whoop! I'm pleased to move onto something new - surgery is not the career I want, and although everything is useful and interesting to a degree, 4 months has been plenty lol! I move onto A&E now and I'm quite excited about it - I think I'll quite enjoy it! Before that I have a few days off, so I'm making the most of it, although the list of household jobs is growing ever longer and the pile of washing is slowly taking over the spare room!

Still working my way through all the layouts I've done recently - here's another one for you :)

I wish....

2009-11-20T16:52:00.000Z

Underwater photos are so difficult to scrap - basically there is blue, blue and some more blue lol! The idea for this page started off with the cute Cosmo Cricket Snorkel range, and when I saw this banner I knew it had to be my title! I also used Bazzill Kraft & Swiss Dots, Prima flowers, Hambly overlay, Scrap 'Em journalling spot, October Afternoon tag & My Minds Eye mini alphabet.

Best girlies

2009-11-19T09:50:00.001Z

This is a layout about another of my favourite groups of girls - my school friends. We spent a weekend up in the Yorkshire Moors back in June, and went for a lovely (and exhausting!) walk down to a stunning river & waterfall. At the bottom we had a little impromptu photo shoot and came away with this lovely group shot. I used lots of October Afternoon 'Cherry Hill', along with some Doodlebug glitter cardstock & scallop edge, AC Thickers 'Chit Chat', My Minds Eye mini alphabet, AC 'Letterbox' chipboard frame, Prima flowers & gems, Sassafrass flower & Creative Imaginations label.
This page and the one below go together really! The second page being documentation of the 'out-takes' lol! Only three of us are in the picture & you can just see our heads, but for some reason I just loved this photo and had to scrap it! I used Bazzill swiss dots cardstock, AC 'Blue Skies' papers & badge, October Afternoon journalling stickers and Prima gems.

Sarah's Cards Lovelies

2009-11-18T16:43:00.004Z

I spent last weekend with this bunch of lovely ladies - the Sarah's Cards gang - in a barn in the middle of nowhere! It was a fantastic couple of days, despite me having a nasty cold, so thank you girls for the laughs & the inspiration. A couple of weekends ago I had another scrappy weekend away with my lush girlies so I have lots of layouts to share over the coming few days :)

You can see work from all of the design team over at the Sarah's Cards Blog, and at the moment we have a challenge for you! Take part in the sketch challenge and you could win a £10 e-voucher fvor the shop! Why not give it a go?

Here is my layout from the sketch - yup, I used my blog post from the other week to make this page!

5 favourites on the 5th

2009-11-05T09:58:00.002Z

Here are five things I am loving right now:

1) Log fires. There is nothing quite like it! Trudging outside to the log shed at the bottom of the garden and lugging a big basket full of logs back into the house; lighting up and watching the flames dance; the homely smell and cosy feel; the kittens snuggling up on a cushion in front of the stove - you can't beat that.

2) The iPhone. This little gadget has made my life simpler, easier, and more fun! At the touch of a button I can check the headlines, read my email, send a blog post, get my daily LOLcats fix, get directions, look up facts & figures, take photos, have a game of scrabble, or even make a phone call!

3) The troublesome two (aka Mungo, Daisy & sometimes Bret!). They get into all sorts of mischief, and have already successfully broken several items, but they are so darn cute that it is all forgotten in an instant. You never quite know what you'll find on opening the door in the morning, but it does make things all the more interesting around here! They have definately made our house a home.

4) Roast dinners. It's the perfect time of year for a big roast meal with all the trimmings, and I'd happily have one every week! Chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, pork, duck, pheasant... Cooking on the aga makes them all the more tasty and traditional (you've never really had roast potatoes if you've never had aga roasted potatoes!), and M enjoys cooking them too, which is a bonus!

5) Pjamas. I adore pjamas - the are the comfiest & cosiest of outfits, and they come in all sorts of pretty and fun materials. Combine them with some big fluffy slippers and a thick dressing gown or cosy throw and you have the perfect chillaxing attire. In my opinion, you can never have enough pjama days.

Class is in session!

2009-11-03T09:37:00.000Z

Shimelle's new class - Blogging for Scrapbookers - is up and running this week, and today (well, yesterday actually) is all about the pledge!
I'm not going to pressure myself - I know I won't get around to blogging everyday, or even every other day, but I would like to form some new habits. I would love to start sharing photos and projects soon after they take place, rather than 2 months later! I want to document events while they are fresh in my memory. Work, life and general procrastination tend to get in the way when it comes to blogging, yet really being busy should be what enriches the stories I have to tell - a busy life surely must have some interest to it!
Watch this space!

Underwater is my favourite place to be!

2009-10-27T20:46:00.002Z

So this time a month ago I was out in Gozo, having a wonderful holiday and enjoying a spot of diving. Underwater is such a fantastic place to be, I find it so incredibly relaxing - I can totally chill out and just go with the flow - I love it! How I wish I could be back there now, drifting along with the fishies.
Underwater photography on the other hand in tricky. Very tricky. There were a couple of pro BBC photographers out there and their equipment is incredible - it looks like a car is driving towards you on the bottom of the ocean the amount of lights they have! I managed to snap a few shots that came out okay - yes that bottom one is on a wreck (seriously quite a surreal experience swimming through wrecks!). We also did a night dive, which was fab - there were literally hundreds of these giant fried egg jellyfish, some of them a foot or so in diameter and bright yellow. What with the wierd creatures, the black water and the slight nitrogen narcosis it was a bit trippy!

In sadder news, which I'm sure everyone has heard by now, Scrapbook Inspirations is to cease publication with the next issue being the last. I am so sad because it was my favourite magazine, which I had bought right from the start, and of course on a personal level it is disappointing having only just been given the opportunity to be involved in the regular design team. It was quite a shock to everyone, and a shame that it perhaps reflects the falling trend in scrapbookers :(

2009-10-02T04:39:00.000+01:00

Well its 4:40 in the morning and i have no patients to see but annoyingly the registrar is asleep in the doctors mess lounge & is snoring like a creature possessed haha!
In my boredom & sleep-deprived state I thought I would share a photo of my current location - a little snippet of life in a hospital rest room in the middle of the night!

-- Post From My iPhone

2009-09-30T18:16:00.001+01:00

I am working nights this week which basically means sleep-work-eat-sleep-work so no time for scrapping or blogging! Back on Friday with holiday photos!

-- Post From My iPhone

Explorer

2009-09-27T14:00:00.000+01:00

This is my 'I haven't been playing in the cobwebs, I promise' look!

Yes I'm turning into a plane buff!

2009-09-26T08:00:00.000+01:00

I had a lot of fun phtographing these planes, more than I was expecting, so a few more photos then I promise I'm done with the aeroplanes lol!

Mighty machine

2009-09-25T10:00:00.000+01:00

The Eurofighter: this thing is menacing! Seriously the amount of noise it made, my stomach was churning. It travels in directions and at angles that are so unnatural - it must take a lot of training to stay conscious doing this kind of stuff!

On the second day...

2009-09-24T07:00:00.000+01:00

Day 2 - these two purring is the best sound! It makes my heart melt! This is their 'it wasn't us' look haha!

The 1st

2009-09-23T11:00:00.000+01:00

Finally getting around to uploading my pages for learn something new everyday - here is page 1 - always keep first aid skills up to date! After a scary day with hubby cutting his wrist with a blade, promptly passing out, obstructing his airway & fitting as a result I learnt that even if I ever stop being a doctor it is so important to keep those skills! So a fairly serious message for day 1 - something more lighthearted to come tomorrow!

Cute update: Mungo

2009-09-22T10:00:00.002+01:00

My little boy is so photogenic, he takes such a cute photo!