Happy 2011!!

Posted on | December 31, 2010 | 5 Comments

Wow, it’s been a week since I updated my blog! I didn’t intend on not documenting our Christmas and all that but the Kindle kept me busy (I’ve been busy organizing the house too). I think hubby’s regretting his present for me. I think I need to quit it too. Going to bed at 2 or even 4 a.m. to craft is one thing but to use my eyes on grey text (200 pgs/day since Christmas, HA!) until that time (I was also cooking, doing chores, playing with the girls, watching movies and more with the Kindle) is a bit much.

Anyhow… I did the page above a few weeks ago. There are 12 photos from January-December and the last three are cool places we’ve been since we moved to the UK. 2010 has been a wonderful year for us. Big changes, different challenges, and a lot of adjustments and we all did well.

I have no idea what 2011 holds but whatever happens I think each one will be wonderful, even the hard and challenging ones because those are moments when I learn most about me.

Take care my friends and have a great and safe new year’s eve and day!!!

Materials:

Template: Splendid template by Splendid Fin
Elements: Office supplies 1 and graph brushes by Splendid Fin
Paper: Creativity by Crystal Sweet Summertime papers.

Christmas Eve

Posted on | December 24, 2010 | 10 Comments

I hope by now you’ve all relaxed a bit. If you didn’t get your shopping done there’s always birthdays and whatever day. If you didn’t get all the baking done, there’s still new year’s day. Or like us… Boxing Day! We’re invited to our friends’ house and we’ll be eating and playing games. In the UK Boxing Day is also shopping day. They say it’s similar to Black Friday in the US.

I have chilled out and I haven’t even baked, ha! I think after my marshmallows turned into a sticky mess I just gave up… plus I am not very good with that gas stove so hubby and M’s do the baking ;) I did though shop for a ham and all that so we’ll have a simple and yummy meal tomorrow.

Well, this will be short and sweet. I just want to wish you a wonderful Christmas Eve and so excited for Santa to come tonight and the look on M’s (and hopefully Jovie’s) face in the morning!!!

There’s No Place

Posted on | December 23, 2010 | 5 Comments

Like home for the holidays!!

Although I’d love to be in Germany right now visiting some awesome friends of ours or taking the train to Paris or flying to the Alps to see another high school mate of mine and her partner it is nice to be home with the kidlets and hubs. Logistically it’s good that we are staying in this year because ground and air transport is a bit chaotic right now. Heathrow just functioned somewhat normally Wednesday and the trains have been slow.

Whether we visit/not, I do have a thing for staying home on Christmas day. I want the kids to wake up to presents under the tree from Santa! Oh, speaking of, does Santa leave your presents wrapped or unwrapped? Ours are always unwrapped.

Before I go, I want to leave you with this digital page of Jovie at 18-months. LOVE LOVE LOVE this little girl. She is just a bundle of energy and joy. She does the cutest thing and she’s the reason why I’ve been offline this week (I haven’t made one single craft project!). By night time I get sooo tired that I’d just go to sleep too where usually I’d stay up until 2 a.m. or even 4 a.m. I’ve been working from home too and let me tell you, it is tough juggling that and a young family! One night I went to bed at 10p and then got up again at 2 a.m. to finish something up. It was graduate school all over again but at the end it felt good because I was doing something for my grey cells.

I hope you have a great holiday season with your family and to those who celebrate, have a joyous Christmas!!

Materials:

Page created using Carina Gardner’s new Fresh Pick Winter pattern paper (coming Dec. 27th at JessicaSprague.com) with the sentiment also from Carina Gardner and also coming soon and elements from Kitschy: Fresh Blooms and Icing Flowers.

If…

Posted on | December 18, 2010 | 8 Comments

Have you ever heard or read this by Diana Loomans: If I had my child to raise over again?

I got to reading it while waiting for M and Jovie’s doc’s appointment the other day and I thought that it was a sweet little reminder for us busy adults to be a part of our kids’ lives and to let them be kids. I thought the light reading was a great reminder for me because I don’t want the girls to have my childhood, a serious and rigid one. The hubby and I don’t want to also have the “what if” thoughts or conversations years from now and not be emotionally close to our children.

I am glad that hubby’s on the same page with me on how we raise our kids and I think if we keep it up the kids will remember all the fun things we did while we connect and show them the world.

Here’s the full verse:

If I had my child to raise over again,
I’d finger paint more, and point the finger less.
I’d do less correcting, and more connecting.
I’d take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.
I would care to know less, and know to care more.
I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.
I’d stop playing serious, and seriously play.
I’d run through more fields, and gaze at more stars.
I’d do more hugging, and less tugging.
I would be firm less often, and affirm much more.
I’d build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I’d teach less about the love of power,
And more about the power of love.

Card details:

Today is Saturday and so I used Waltzingmouse’s new sketch for this card. To make this card fun I added a small bit of tinsel and a bell. To add a splash of color I used the red and white baker’s twine.

To spruce this card up a bit I did some embossing, misting, masking, sewing and stamping. Can you see the little snowflakes on and around the sentiment?

See the splatters? I just blew really hard after I sprayed. Do you see the stamping on the kraft paper? I did that after I embossed just to give it something extra.

Last CSS…

Posted on | December 17, 2010 | 2 Comments

One more week until Christmas!!! We have most of our packages in and this week the girls and I are hoping to do a lot of baking. I am hoping the oven will do the cookies justice. The gas oven thing isn’t working out well for us although a friend of mine thinks it’s just busted. My friend said that even if the gas is in the back the heat is suppose to circulate but ours doesn’t. Although it’s ok to use for cooking, baking is a whole different story!

I am getting my projects done too. I want a relaxing holiday week with the family with no DT work, no teaching stuff, no side gigs, etc. to do. It’s not often we all get to hang around at home, esp. with hubby’s busy schedule so I want to make sure that we get our family time in!

Speaking of the hubs… I have here a manly card that I created using Clear and Simple Stamp’s Icons Extra and Icons 1 set. It’s got a bit of pattern but for the most part it’s pretty simple. This is my last card as a Clear and Simple Stamps DT. My three month’s up and I decided to not renew due to my 2011 work schedule. It’s been super fun and I’ll miss getting and working with their products! M about had a heart attack when I told her I’ll be working again but then she calmed down after I told her I’ll be working from home. I’ll have almost 40 students so Savitri’s going to be busy busy on the classes’ message boards and grading assignments!! I also hope to book some photo sessions too — hoping for a very productive 2011!!

I’ll make this sweet and short. I’ll post another one Saturday morning for the Waltzingmouse sketch challenge. It’s the last one for this year so you all better participate!!! Ciao!