Wednesday 28 October 2009

In the bat of an eye

And then October was gone! Wow, how did that happen? I have no idea but it is well and truly gone.

I can't even profess to have been wildly busy with work and creativity making the days fly by. I have been rather uncreative if the truth be known and work was decidedly quiet. There were two weeks of school holidays here and that makes lessons few and far between because everyone seems to be away (insert jealous feelings here...) and out of the office.

There haven't been many high points to the month (an Elton John concert



and a trip to my *local* scrapbook shop but not much else) and luckily no low points (in contrast to Libby and my mum - poor things). So I can't really complain, apart from the fact that I do, in fact, complain all the time! LOL! Too busy? Moan. Too quiet? Moan, moan.

It's been a hard month for me with regard to my words of the year from 2007 and this year - POSITIVE and CALM respectively. I have had to remind myself of them over and over again. I guess it is very much a work in progress.

Must. Stop. Moaning.

Must. Start. Smiling.

Must. Control. Temper.

Must. Count. Blessings.

However, it's not all doom and gloom and I really am smiling here. I know how I am and I know what I have to work on. You have to take it with a pinch of salt, don't you!

I really haven't done much creating which on the one hand is a bit of a shame, but I have been busy organising some details for R's birthday party which is actually quite a lot of fun. It's reaching the final stages of the planning and it's all very exciting. So many wonderful people are coming over from the UK to see us. It is very humbling to know that people want to come and help us celebrate our milestone and when I stop and think about the fact that more than 20 people are planning to come over (Jac is even planning to come from Dubai!), I get a lump in my throat.

It means such a lot to us and I want to make sure the party is a success. I am so looking forward to seeing everyone, and am really excited to see the little ones! They are growing and growing and growing and it seems like a LIFETIME since I last saw them even though it will actually only be 5 months compared to the 14 months for R. Let's face it, that is an eternity when kiddies are growing up.

Anyway, I did actually manage to remember and complete my 12 on 12 (finished the layout on the 13th, can you believe it?). I think this is probably my least favourite layout of the series so far due to my choice of papers even if the photos were still fun for me. I have to find a better way, though, of getting a self-portrait. From month to month, they are getting worse! I guess in 10 years, I will look at them and have a different view of myself 10 years younger but right now, they have to improve. I ought to get the big DSLR out and work out how to use it!



Ooo, just noticed a real hightlight of October there on the layout - our fireplace! It's so wonderful and we totally love it. We light it almost every night and so far, we haven't needed to use the (fantastically cosy) unfloor heating at all, apart from a little in my room. The fireplace kicks out a sensational amount of heat and we both love it. I guess that is a layout for another day. And romantic? Yes. And soothing? Most definitely! Although I still miss living in the city centre of Re, this fireplace more than makes up for it. I need to get myself a little reading light so that I can sit next to the fire and just absorb the beauty and the warmth. Mmmmmm.



Anway, this year we are celebrating Halloween again. And I decided it was time to change up the decorations. Then I saw this wonderful project (here) on the Bella Blvd website designed by Jessica Ball and I just knew that I had to lift this idea and create my own spooky wreath. (And yes, I will be repeating this for Christmas!) Oh my, this project was just gorgeous and I loved the fact that it was really quite a simple concept. It was fantastic and I fell in love instantly. Check out the designer's blog here. Her stuff is lovely.

Ok, so my project is not perfect but I love it, even if I say it myself. I collected all sorts of silly Halloweeen stuff together and got busy with the glitter (glittering the whole flat in the process). Such fun! Such a fab project and it's not going to die while still hanging on the door. I used some of the new BG Eerie collection that I just picked up the week before which made me feel all kind of virtuous.







I was on a roll, so I fished out the CC lacing cards I had lying around and produced this cute little banner that is now hanging on the wall. It was great to use up some of the huge amount of Halloweeen papers and embellies that I have and here I used CC Haunted, some Heidi Swapp bits and pieces and some Doodlebug ribbons as well as other bits and bobs. I always forget how good it is to use up product and be able to see it out in the open.

(Photos are not so good - I need to find a better way of taking pictures of my projects now that the light has changed and the hours of daylight are limited)





Of course, my little Bellaboo banner from one of the first Bellaboo mini kits, Frighteningly Fabulous is also out and enjoying a bit of a comeback! Can't believe it's now two years since Libby created this kit and I got to work with it! Good times...



One last thing before I bore you to death here with a blog entry that is trying to make up for the fact that I have not writen a word for the last almost four weeks...

I saw this picture on Stacy Julian's new website, on her I Love Colour section and also fell in love. I need this colour combination somewhere in my flat. Isn't is gorgeous? It just fills me with inspiration and an overwhelming need to go out and find something in this gorgeous blue...


(Image from www.pillowsandthrows.com)

I feel a little un-blog-inspired. What to write about in the future? Any ideas?







Sunday 4 October 2009

Slow weekend




We have been totally lazy this weekend.

Yesterday, Saturday, was a Bank Holiday here in Germany (Reunification Day) and that means that it's a REAL Bank Holiday. No shops are open. Nothing happens. Hardly anyone is on the streets. It doesn't matter that it's a Saturday.

Usually, Saturday Bank Holidays drive me a bit crazy but not this one. We decided that it was going to be sloooooow. We would get up late. Sit around. Be lazy. Do nothing. Watch crappy daytime TV. And that is exactly what we did!

I won't even tell you how late we got up! Let's just say it was not single digits. And the same today. A lovely, relaxed day.

We went out to dinner last night to celebrate 11 years since we met (can it really be so long?!?) and mmmm, it was delicious. Here's my layout to recognise this milestone.



And then late last night I read this entry on Libby's blog. I got quite emotional. Her words were sweet and stuck a chord.

What did I do before scrapbooking?
  • I took a lot of photos but didn't know what to do with them. 
  • I kept piles of memorabilia but could hardly remember what bits represented what memory. 
  • I collected pens and papers but they were not pretty and were rarely used up. 
  • I knew that I wanted to capture those past memories and my innermost thoughts, but didn't know how. 
When I discovered scrapbooking, I knew that this was something for me, but I was afraid to jump in. Honestly, I read loads about it online and thought about it all the time. I know that this could be the answer to my dilemmas but didn't really know where or how to start. And then I mentioned this to Libby and dragged her over to a shop I had seen advertised as stocking scrapbooking supplies. We both knew instantly that this was it! We had found it. I bought a whole load of random products and had no idea whatsoever about how I was going to actually create a page. In those days, we were both feeling our way around - it was really funny! And look at us now. This hobby of ours has most definitely taken over. It fills many, many of my waking moments and even when I am not actually sitting here creating, I am thinking about it.

I love living here. I don't really get homesick any more (well, rarely anyway). But when I hear about Libby's crops, I really feel it. I wish I was there more often. I love it every time I go and I love to see the girls, to spend all my time giggling and being unproductibe and I love every minute! So guys, you know that I would be there more often if I could! But I'm always there in spirit!

Oh, and I almost forgot - Happy Anniversary Libby and Jon. We wish you all the happiness in the world.

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