Yucky Day!!!

I am officially ill!!!

It must be official because I went to bed this afternoon even though I didn`t get up until 11am, and I rarely admit defeat and go to bed when I am ill, at first I thought I was suffering from a little too much alcohol last night, had a few of my girlie friends round for food and drinks, but I felt terrible, all achy and cold to the bone so snuggled up in bed and slept!!! I think Ella and I just spent too long in the cold in Manchester yesterday. Feel a bit better now but still have that horrible flu ache, hope it is just a 24 hour thing as I have the busiest week this week!!!

Got a card to share with you, one of my workshop cards for Tuesday, I am teaching a Christmas Card acetate workshop, the other card is still in progress...well to be honest I haven`t started it yet was planning on doing that this afternoon but all the best laid plans!!! I am going to try and get that designed tonight.

This is my SOS for Her space My Space, taken yesterday in Manchester...just look at the architecture on that building absolutely stunning...I really need to get out more it can`t be normal to stand in the freezing cold taking photographs of buildings!!!

Off now to design my other card hope my mojo is awake!!!

Cold Continental Christmas!!!

Hit the streets of Manchester today with my lil Girlie Ella, she had birthday money burning a hole in the pocket of her funky new jeans and wanted to put it into the tills at Primark and fill her wardrobe. We visited the Christmas Markets first, and even though it was freezing cold it was such a great Christmassy atmosphere, with continental delights from all over the world, we sampled olives...well I did Ella wrinkled her nose in disgust, cheeses mmm the lime green pesto cheese was delicious, chocolates, fudge and mini dutch pancakes...oooh taste bud sensation...so many yummy tastes from around the world.

Then we hit the shops and Ella spent her pennies eventually after waiting in the queue in Primark for forty five minutes, god it was rammed and I had to get quite shirty with a bloke trying to push in front of us, Ella was splitting her sides as I told him exactly where the back of the queue was...he wasn`t best pleased but tough luck mate you got to wait your turn like the rest of us.

Oooh and I am so happy too, I have wanted a cream fur jacket since I saw one in Debenhams for £60, and I got one out of the kids section of Primark for £10...aged 13, some woman gave me a filthy look while I was trying it on so I just said that I loved buying kids clothes for myself because you don`t pay any VAT...she stomped off in disgust!!! I hate animosity and its not my fault I am a skinny little shit...its in my genes...(size 8 jeans lol)

So took loads of Pictures today, when my hand hadn`t frozen solid to my camera!!!

Girlies waiting in the freezing cold for the train

Ella and her Chocolate and Marshmallow Kebab

Yummy gingerbread treats

Chocolate Heaven

Mini Scrummy Dutch Pancakes...mmmmmmmm

Santa's Grotto in the Arndale...have you seen the size of those Balls!!!

Messing about in the Pound shop...My kids love the pound shop and I have at last found a hat to match my boots!!!

Look at the pretty lights

Off now to defrost my toes and kiss my radiators!!!

Her Space My Space SPS

Took this photograph of Ella this morning in the freezing fog at the train station on the way to Manchester to spend her birthday money...still can`t believe she is 11...I love the look on her face excited at the thought of hitting Primark!!!

Her Space My Space...Rain

I have not took part in this for a few days but the photo prompt today over at her space my space is Rain...I hate rain not because it gets me wet and I can never find an umbrella when I need one even though I have about six of them but because I have naturally curly hair that I hate...inherited from the milkman I think as my mum`s is straight and my Dad is bald!!!

It has to be attacked with my GHD`s every single morning for at least ten minutes or I would hugely embarrass my girls when dropping them off at school looking like a very pale Diana Ross in the middle of a chain reaction!!!

So back on subject...rain...this is Wolverhampton through a rain soaked Virgin Train window.

Dancing Angels and Cupcakes

Grab a coffee and make yourself comfortable I have a feeling this is going to be a long one!!!

My kids make me laugh so much sometimes...Mia comes home tonight and say`s Mummy I am an Angel...now my kids are well behaved to a point but I wouldn`t call them angels so I replied no you`re not you can be a bit naughty sometimes...

No she says In the Christmas Play I am an angel in the "Timity Screen".........................!!!!

Mummy: "What...."

Mia: "The Timity Screen"

Mummy: "You Mean the Nativity Scene"

Mia: "That`s what I said The Timity Screen"

Mummy then very insensitively rolls around the floor, tears streaming from her eyes with laughter and makes Mia say it over and over...she still can`t say Nativity Scene and its so going to be a title for a scrapbook page!!!

The girls also had their Christmas Disco tonight at school...yes I know we are still in November but hey they had a "summer clothes day" at school last week so nothing surprises me anymore, and for the first time ever I was so totally organised, I had bought Mia a new outfit, eventually, why are there so many trampy clothes around for seven year olds, whatever happened to keeping our children children!!! I hate seeing little girls dressed up as teenagers...it is one of my pet hates I think it looks disgusting...oooh hark at me...so lovely new outfit from the Pumpkin Patch, oh my God I could buy everything in there, I love it. Ella had a new outfit for her birthday yesterday so was wearing that and I even plaited their hair last night so it would be all curly tonight...I know I need to get out more but just look how gorgeous my girlie's looked...

When they got home Mia insisted on having a Disco in the Dining room and made up dances for me and her to perform to "Cherry Chapstick" and "So What"...I don`t need a personal trainer when I have my own little Angel...I was exhausted and she was so full of energy saying come on Mummy as Mummy was collapsed on the sofa!!! Guess who has not been on the Wii tonight!!!

and finally...phew I can hear you say, I have been working on a card and a layout for the last few days...been a bit mojo less so it took a while, plus I wanted to stitch on the scrapbook page and could not find a needle in my house...bloody crafter with no needle whatever next!!!

So this is my layout, picture is of Mia about two years ago and is in the gardens of Chester Zoo, I got a new stamp set by Hero Arts this week and one of the sayings is "See the flowers Smiling" just thought it fitted this picture perfectly:

And finally this is a card I have made for a friends birthday, managed to combine Four...yes Four Challenges into this one card!!!

The fabulous Sketch is from Papertake Weekly challenges, and is such a great sketch to work from I will definitely be using it again. Over on Cupcake Craft the challenge is to use sweets or treats on your card, so I got out my gorgeous lil cupcake stamp I have had forever and stamped, water coloured then embossed it with liquid applique, how cool does that cream look. Over on DutchDare, a site I recently found, the challenge is to use three flowers on your card and finally on Secret Crafter the challenge is to decoupage, which I have done to the lil cupcake....wow I am exhausted now!!!

I love taking part in these challenges at the moment, great if you find yourself mojo less like me and there are always plenty of gorgeous creations by the design team members to lush over too.

I am off now to recover from the intense workout by Mia Motivator!!!

Eleven Years...

...ago my little baby girl was born, weighing a little tiny 6 pounds and 9 ounces...so small and cute with loads of black curly hair...now she is nearly as tall as me has a mouth almost as big as mine and an attitude that I am sure I never had...honest!!! Little did I imagine when cuddling her or ironing her beautiful little frilly dresses that she would give me half as much trouble as she does...hmm if this is what she is like as a pre-teen I think I will be leaving home when she becomes a fully fledged teenager.

So Happy Birthday sweetheart, glad you liked all your presents and stuffed your face with High School Musical Birthday cake...she insisted on eating Troys face!!!!

Funnily enough over on Her Space My Space the photo prompt today is birthday...and unusually for me I have not took a single photograph today...shock...I know call myself a photographer/scrapper but when she was opening her presents this morning before school it was about 6.30am and all I could think about was coffee...I am such a terrible mother...but we are going on a girlie shopping day on Saturday so will take lots of photos then...promise!!!

So will leave you with this photo of Ella...taken on Saturday and she looks exactly the same tonight!!!

Off now to look through some very cute baby photos!!!

Happy Birthday Birthday Girl xxx

Beary Box Challenge 4

Completed this layout as design team member for the Beary Box Challenge Blog over the weekend and it has just gone live, check out the blog for the layout sketch and the other designers fabulous work, prizes are up for grabs too!!!

These pictures are of Mia from 2006, she looks so young and small, they grow up too fast!!! Check out her fringe which took forever to grow out!!!

Where has the day gone today!!!

Well I had to have a lie in this morning until about 11am so I think half the day disappeared, I hate getting up late but as I went out last night I needed to recharge my batteries, and sleep off the hangover that I woke up with at 6.30am!!!

Had a really good night out though, went out with a really good friend into town to one of those all you can eat buffet restaurants...mmm Chinese food, I think I ate my body weight in spring rolls, prawn toast and crispy duck...ooh and squid mmmmmm!!! Then we went into town and drank and danced the rest of the night away...the only downside of the night out was having to pay to get into pubs...whats that all about...and having three different stamps on my hand in permanent ink that is still slightly visible today!!!

So I ploughed through Mount Everest in Ironing this afternoon...well it was Snowdonia really, I hate ironing soooooo much if I won the lottery I would pay a really fit bloke to come and iron for me while I watched...and probably told him how to do it!!!

And I braved the Arctic conditions in my new coat to fetch supplies.....How cold has it been this weekend I really think winter has hit us full force this weekend, although we have been spared the snow in Warrington!!!

Managed to complete another challenge card this afternoon, found this Magnolia Vs Stampavie challenge site...I love magnolia stamps and would love the full set of Tilda's...hey when I win the lottery I will fly to Sweden and collect the lot!!!

The challenge was called Get the feeling and had to feature texture on your card, I have used core-dinations card which already has a lovely texture and embossed fluffy bits and "snow" with liquid applique.

Off to peruse the take away menus, I am too tired to cook!!!

Challenge Me!!!

I have been creating a couple of cards this afternoon, its too cold to go outside and I have the heating on high...sod the expense, and hot chocolate in hand, makes a change from a glass of wine!!!

So the first card I have created is using my gorgeous girly Penny Black stamp, I bought her last year and I still love her this year, I have embossed the "fluffy bits" with liquid applique. This fits in nicely with the Funky Christmas challenge on the Penny Black challenge blog I stumbled across this week.

And the next card I have made combines three challenges in one, sometimes that just happens!!!

The sketch is taken from the sketch Saturday blog, The latest dare over on Daring Cardmakers is Cafe Chic...featuring coffee on your card and I have found a lovely Basic Grey challenge site and this weeks challenge is to use embossing on your card, along with a Basic Grey product, so I have used some scrummy paper and embossed the liquid applique.

Really enjoyed making these cards too, and working to the challenges!!!

Off now to find more challenge sites!!!

Super Saturday

The weekend is finally here...after five days of wishing its here....Yipeeeeeeeeee!!!

Got a layout and a couple of cards to share, worked on these last night and its lovely and bright, ideal for taking photos!!!

Beautiful bloom layout of Mia using gorgeous papers that I got at the NEC last week, yep I did stroke them before I cut into them:!!!

I got this cute stamp at the NEC last week, couldn`t resist him.

This is a Christmas card for a certain special little guy

This is the card for Ella`s birthday next week.

Off now to starve myself...going to an all you can eat Chinese restaurant tonight with one of my friends and then into town afterwards for a good old fashioned pub crawl...Party time!!!

Her Space My Space...France

Bit of a tongue in cheek take on today`s photo prompt which is France....Here is my little baby girl with a Frog!!!

Bring on the Weekend!!!

Really Bring it on, I am so ready for a weekend...I have had the busiest couple of weeks and it seems like I haven`t had a moment to myself to just sit and chill out!!!

As a family we have so much going on at the moment, I have just started a new job that has involved so much planning and paperwork, the girls are gearing up at school for their Christmas fayre and have a "themed day" almost every day, where they have to dress up or take something into school, Ella`s 11th birthday is next Tuesday, Mia is going away the week after next with school, the washing, ironing and housework still have to be done and I am running round like a headless chicken every day so it seems!!! So I bought one of those big dry wipe boards yesterday....the ones with the calender on, managed to hang it straight too on the kitchen wall and every day for the rest of November is filled with one thing or another...apart from tomorrow and Sunday...bliss!!! Two whole days with absolutely nothing to do...well apart from the washing etc etc!!!

I am so going to try and catch up with some crafting, I have lots of ideas that are just that at the moment...swimming around my head, I have lots of new stash I bought from the NEC that I have not even looked at yet, papers that need stroking, I also have Photo challenges to catch up on, so I am planning a whole weekend of just that crafting and taking photos.

I had to attend parents evening for Harry last night and was pleasantly surprised, Harry is a typical teenage boy at home...but at school apparently Harry is a highly intelligent boy who works to the best of his abilities and applies knowledge in a constructive and creative manner...the only negatives I heard all night, after seeing fourteen different teachers, was that he talked too much in lessons and will chat with anyone...hmmm wonder where he gets that from!!! Treat for Harry for doing so well....drum lessons...OMG I am so going to regret that!!!

So I promise some crafty posts over the next few days, I have Christmas cards to make, a certain special little girls birthday card to make, a couple of crafty Christmas ideas floating around and plenty of scrapbook layouts to create!!!

Off now to eat my family size bar of Galaxy...mmmm...and enjoy a couple of glasses of wine!!!

Her Space My Space...Italian

Bit of a cheat here...shock...Here is My Mia!!!


Italian because the name Mia originates from Italy and means My...honest...look here

I love this Picture of Mia...and yep they are my glassses she had stolen!!!

Wednesday Witterings!!!

I had an Indian Head Massage last night, I have never had one before but a friend of mine is doing the course at college and needed someone to do a case study on...of course I bravely stepped up and volunteered!!!

Oh My God how fabulous is it, amazing, now I have had massages before but this was just so relaxing and cleansing, I felt totally amazing afterwards, had a pretty decent nights sleep and got up this morning feeling so good...I can certainly recommend it, and if you can find someone who can do it for free all the better!!!

So it is a good job I was so "cleansed" this morning because I had a workshop today that featured the dreaded glitter and without thinking I wore a black top!!! Big mistake at one point I was sparkly enough to sit on the top of a bloody Christmas tree and had to scratch my head with a bone folder so the glitter all over my hands did not end up embellishing my new Cosmic Purple hair...well I say cosmic purple but it is more Mahogony really...spent Sunday evening dying it then the rest of the evening cleaning the dye off everything in the bathroom with the cillit bang!!!

After work I shot over to the college for a meeting with my new Line Manager...god almighty I had forgotten how much paperwork was involved with teaching for the college, I came home with half a rain forest for each course I am teaching and another six trees worth of forms to fill in for Human resources...I am sure that all these pieces of paper are unnecessary and just justify someones job somewhere, probably a junior in the shredding office making hamster nesting ...!!!

I finally convinced Harry to have his mop cut tonight too, I am saying mop and meaning exactly that...so he had a choice I get the clippers out and shave the lot or he uses his money to pay for a short back and sides, he chose the latter probably because he knew the clippers would get tangled in his hair and we would end up at A & E having them surgically removed!!!

Have just finished this layout for a challenge over on a face book group I am on, the challenge was to title your page "Why" and my journalling reads :

"Why are you both growing up so fast, asking me about make up and music, what happened to my little baby girls snuggled in my arms smelling of Johnson's"

Off now to fill in my 16,000 forms for a job I already have!!!

Her Space My Space...Fake

Fake...thats a toughie, until I remembered I had my photo took last week in front of a fake Christmas tree covered in fake snow, holding a fake present...you can`t get any more fake than that!!!

Her Space My Space...Button

I have the best picture for this, Diane is a very good friend of mine and she is shall we say a little on the loud side so I had to take this photograph of her earlier in the year at the GMEX to finally say "I got Diane to Button it"

Still makes me smile every time I see this picture, and how big is that button!!!

Wax Lyrical....

...My Candle making Class started today and it was so good to be teaching in a formal capacity again I loved every minute of it, my ladies are lovely, I know them all in one capacity or another and we had such a laugh too, waxing our wicks until they were stiff!!! Unfortunately a gentleman walked in just as I was trying to explain this to the ladies and we just fell about laughing at his poor face...needless to say he left very quickly!!!

I love teaching so much, I love to be able to teach somebody a new technique and my enthusiasm for what I do tends to motivate and enthuse others and this was certainly the case today, my ladies loved the class, almost as much as I did and we managed not to set fire to the wax, our hair or burn down the building and everyone left happy with their two candles slowly setting!!!

I can also share this layout with you, this is my third design team challenge for the Beary Box Blog and it went live today, I had real trouble with this sketch as I only ever usually scrap with one photos, so just because I like to be different I only used one photo!!!

This was the sketch:

and this is my layout:

Go and check out the blog, there are some very talented designers over there.

Ooh and almost forgot to mention I am published again today, if you have the latest copy of Papercraft Inspirations four of my cards are featured in the quick cards section...yay me!!!

Off now to pick the lumps of wax off my jumper!!!

A Cornucopia of Crafting....

...Isn`t that a fabulous word, certainly my word of the day "Cornucopia" heard it on the Telly last night and thought I must use that word more!!!

I have been creating...and I am covered in red glitter and white marabou trim, god that stuff gets everywhere, bloody feathers attached themselves to me and I walked to the shop earlier looking like a Budgerigar getting a few funny looks too!!!

Have made three Christmas cards two based on my workshop design, I really like this design at the moment and am planning a couple more cards in this style.

Also made this card using the card wraps that I bought on Thursday at the NEC, well I used one of the wraps as a template and created the patterned paper wrap instead. I am not sure about them yet but it is always good to try something different, and it is nice to use those little mini embossing folders that I bought two years ago and have never used!!!

Have also designed Wednesdays Mini Bags and Boxes workshop, this picture makes the card look orange but it is a really nice glittery red, we will be making the mini handbag and pillow box, ideal for small gifts and the mini Christmas cracker, ideal for gift vouchers.

Off now to de-glitter and pluck myself!!!

Peace Reigned...

...and they all got wet!!!

Do you have family sayings that only your family understand or use, this is one of ours that we use when its quiet another one is "There`s not Mushroom in here" obviously whenever we have mushrooms...sad really isn`t it!!!


I think I may be going a little stir crazy!!!

I have been alone all afternoon and it has been heaven pure heaven...total silence, apart from The Script pleasantly singing away in the background, but the total peace meant I could actually spend the whole afternoon uninterrupted by "Mum can I have a drink" or "Mum can we go to the shop" and I have completely planned my candle making course which starts on Monday...made a couple of candles and managed not to set fire to the kitchen, although I will be picking bits of wax from the worktops and cooker for the rest of the evening...good excuse for a take away tonight though!!!

Have a layout and a card to share with you that I completed this week.

Layout is of Jack and I, the first photograph I have of Jack where he is actually taller than me and the first photo I edited woo hoo!!!



Close up to show the 3D details:



And this card is a variation of the bronze card I taught in one of my workshops this week:



And another close up to show the 3D



Feeling slightly smug too as I have done over half of my Christmas shopping and bought 75,000 rolls of wrapping paper today too...slight exaggeration but Asda are selling 2m rolls of wrapping paper for 16p...ideal for the kids pressies which I do not wrap and dress as nicely as the adults ones, and at the end of the day it gets ripped off and thrown in the bloody bin!!!

Off to complete the next item on my Wall of China sized to do list!!!

Birmingham and Manchester

Packed myself a little packed lunch yesterday...well I stopped in Marks and Spencer's on the way to the train station anyway, those of you who know me know that I don`t do packed lunches, and set off to the NEC at Birmingham for the day with my good friend Diane, for those of you that have read my blog for a while you will now that we went to the craft show at the GMEX earlier in the year and we are now craft fair buddies...or basically just crafty buggers, how we did not get thrown out of that show in Brummie land yesterday is beyond me, even though I felt like death becomes her and had to sit down several times we just spent the whole day laughing, from the minute we got on the train in the morning until the minute we left it last night, where we were desperately trying to set up Darren, a squaddie from Surrey on his way to Edinburgh, with Claire who was getting off at Preston, we found out about another lady who had left her boyfriend that morning and was missing him that much she was going back and another lady who was on her way to Blackpool to see her Mum!!! we are so nosey and I bet that carriage was glad to see the back of us when we got off the train.

As for the show at the NEC we were not that impressed with the exhibitors, although I got a bit giddy when I met Julie Hickey and she recognised me...how cool, and I did come home minus about £50 with two bags full of goodies, still got to sort through all that as we didn`t get home until eight last night, had loads to do when I got in then had a Date with Primark in Manchester today...oh and the Arndale too, have been Christmas shopping...finally got a dent of it done, so another obscene amount of money spent on High School Musical Merchandise...why do I get the feeling I am being ripped off every time I buy something with Troys face on it!!!

WhSmiths has an amazing offer on this weekend though, if you spend £30 on anything you get £10 off, and a lot of their books are reduced, half price or buy one get one half price, although my back is complaining that I bought the Guinness Book of Records!!! Primark also has a bit of a sale on, although I must have overdone it in there as the bloody useless paper bags they give you always tear on me..and yep walking up Oxford Street back to the station mine did tear, least my new sexy undies were not strewn all over for all to see!!!

Will leave you with some of the pictures of the trouble we got up to yesterday!!!

Early in the morning at Warrington Train Station, all excited and ready to go!!!

OMG They should have these moving walkways everywhere!!!

These are probably the biggest cupcakes in the world, and no in my delicate poorly state I couldn`t manage a whole one and yes the cream went everywhere!!!

Flower Power...the poor guy demonstrating how to make these flowers was glad to see the back of us, and shouted down to warn all the other stall holders too...Oh the shame!!!

Totally wrecking the Christmas displays!!!

I finally found a horse to match my Cowboy Boots...Yee Ha!!!

And just before we were thrown out for totally wrecking the Christmas displays I fluttered my eyelashes at a lovely security guard and persuaded him to take our Piccie...I think he was glad to see the back of us too!!!

Flagging and shattered on the train home...but still smiling!!!

I am off to stroke my lovely new papers!!!