woyww

I did start this post at 9am but got distracted by one thing or another so just getting around to finishing it now!
So whats on my desk at the moment is this months sarahs cards kit. My mojo has seriously done a runner so decided to scraplift a bit to see if it helps. two of the layouts I liked used the same backing paper, which was a cream stamp type shape on black background. As I wanted to do a double layout I cut the edging off, then stuck the stamp shape onto black card and the edging onto cream card. :) Hopefully will work out ok as took me ages!

This is the layout I did do. Title is Big brother, always there to help. But I wanted it to just read 'big help' at first glance so used different alphas. I also used my new tearing ruler for the curvy edges. :) This was a scraplift from 'my two favourite girlies by Nat' and I'm really pleased with it. :) Hoping to do some more scrapping tonight!

Kiss of death

I should have expected it really, lol, its just like when you put the washing out the heavens open.
See the other day the weather was amazing, so we decided to get the paddling pool out for the kids. We've had one in the garage since last year we bought in september so obviously never used. Took me 3 hours to pump the bloody thing up. Then ripped it against the handle when moving it out the door. pmsl. Mark managed to sellotape it up enough they could play with it untill we went shopping that afternoon.

So paddling pool take 2, as the first one was so big I wanted a smaller one. Less hassle I thought. This one did look a bit bigger on the box though.

Yeah so that was no good. lol. Just let the kids play in the spinkler untill after dinner when it was 'Paddling pool take 3'. We went to the argos clearance warehouse and picked this up for £10. Third times a charm we thought. :)

Untill the next morning when it was just a blob of plastic. On further inspection all the edges were leaking slightly so dont think it was sealed right. Back to the shop then!
The clearance warehouse didnt have anymore pools so after looking about we picked this one.

However by the time we got it home, pumped it up and made dinner it was too late to go in the pool so told the kids they could play in it the next day. Have we had sun since then?? Have we heck! Typical. lol. Its still standing though, so thats a good sign. :)
Cuddles :)

Caitlins a bit under the weather at the moment. unsure what it is but shes very cuddly and likes to lie down a lot. :( Bella seems to be sensing this and hasn't left her side. How sweet. :)

OMG where has the time gone?!

I cant belive its been over a week since my last post. Been so busy here its insane. Had MOT, Bella was spayed, trip to the Gadget show live, trip to sundown adventure park, digging in front garden, spring cleaning, number of trips to the tip. By the end of the day I'm so tired Im only good for my bed. lol.
Anyway, so the fun things. :) On wednesday we went to Sundown adventure park with pen green. Because it was a pen green trip we only paid £10 for all four of us when it should have been £10 each. This I think is a stupid amount for whats there (basically a really big swing park) but for £10 it was good and kids had fun. :)
There was a train ride there, so obviously that was the first stop off. lol

Caitlin was less than impressed the horses didnt move.

How cool are these swings! Kids loved them as I never push them high as they throw their heads back and I worry about them falling out. No such worry here so pushed them as hard as they liked. :)

You can tell how good the day was by how few photos I took can't you. lol, usually its a case of I'm having too much fun to get the camrea out, here there was just nothing to photograph. lol.
Yesterday was Car boot day again. :) Not been to one in a while and the weather was great so really looked forward to it. Ended up with some great bargains. Got a big pile of computer games for the wii, ps2, and ds for £7. Including some dora and cars games for the kids so they were pleased. :) There were also loads of cradmaking bits for some reason though not so much for scrapbookers. Did get a tearing ruler though. :)
After car boot we took the kids to the park. This would be SUCH a good photo if Mark didnt have his eyes closed.

Then onto my mums for a bbq. :) Was a great time, letting the kids play together while the adults chilled out and ate daft amounts of food. (grans home made scotch eggs. YUM!) Since I didnt get a photo of all the kids at christmas I thought I'd try now. This was the best one. :)

Cute bunch arnt they. :)

Easter bonnets and a layout. :)

Well today was spent making easter bonnets with the kids for nursery next week. :) We went out last week and bought them a hat each and all the fluffy chicks/bunnies we could find, and obviously I brought out some of my flowers and ribbons to add to it too. :)
Nursery also asked us to take photos of the children making thier hats. Obviously I was only too happy to oblige. :)
Caitlin showing the Bunny she wants on the front of her hat.

Cameron making little paper 'wheels' to go on his hat (for wheels read balls. lol)

Caitlin showing me where she wants her 'flowers' (for flowers read balls again. lol)

Finished product. :)

I'll get better photos of the hats themselves when the kids take them off. lol. Now short of the ribbon tying, and putting the glue where they tell me to (im not letting them handle a glue gun, lol) I'm pleased to say the kids did it all themselves. :) I can't stand those parents who take over and do their kids art work so yeah it looks great but the children have had NO imput in it whatsoever. I'd rather it was a complete mess and my kids were proud of it. :)
Soap box over, it was actually interesting to watch them pick where they wanted things to go. Cameron picked the thomas ribbon (surprise surprise) then stuck most of his 'wheels' rabbits and chicks at the front and at the top of the hat. Where, he reasoned, 'they can see better' hich Mark admits he would have done as a child. Caitlin however was just like me. Each daddy/mummy chick needed a baby beside it, all had to be evenly spaced around the edges with a pink 'flower' in front and then behind. To be honest if I HAD done hers it probably wouldnt have looked much different. lol. Little scrapbooker in the making. :)

Speaking of scrapbooking this is another layout I did. I was pleased with this as while going through kits I found some 'sping' themed stickers. However I couldnt remember which of my phtoos were taken in springtime. So instead I used them on this photo of Caitlin playing on a platform attached to a spring. lol.

Off to 'The gadget show live' tomorrow. BIG fan of the show so quite excited. :) Never been before so not sure what will be there but sure it will be fun. :)

From the mouths of babes.....

Does anybody elses children twist things to make them sound MUCH worse than they are or is it just mine? lol. Honestly if someone heard half the things my two say I think social services would be on us like a shot! For example, Caitlin told her Nanny the other day that 'Mummy was holding a knife and I had to stay away from her because she didnt WANT to hurt me' Now you hear that it sounds like I'm standing over her threatening her with loss of control, when really I was peeling potatoes and told her to stop running and jumping around me as I didn't want her to get hurt. See, much less phychopathic. Camerons gem at nursery was just as good 'Mummy stabbed me with a needle but I was a big boy and didnt cry' cue me blushing madly and explaining he had a splinter.
However there are times their perceptions on the world are welcome, such as when Caitlin pointed to a copy of FHM with a pretty female model on the cover and proudly told Daddy it was a picture of Mummy. Wasn't going to argue with that one. :) lol

WOYWW and old jeans!!!

Ok so old jeans might not seem like a big deal, but considering I havent fit into them since last summer and I'm now wearing them comfortably I'm very excited about them. lol. Lost 10lb so far on ww which considering how many 'bad weeks' I've had I'm pretty pleased. :) Ok onto whats on your workdesk wednesday. :) And at the moment, its a mess. lol. I was determined last night to break the cycle and do some scrapping, so I put 'Eclipse' on my pc, put my headphones on so block out distractions and got to it. :) I managed just under 3 layouts which I was happy about. None of them are outstanding but hey, they're done. lol. (well, without titles)
This is the main part of my desk with the un finished layout on it.

This is the pile of papers and bits to the left of me.

This is to the right. My flowers from mothers day are just starting to die which is pretty impressive considering how cheap they were. lol

And this is the floor. lol. Well it makes a wall between me and the kids. :)

This was the second layout I did and I quite like this one. :) I love this photo of Caitlin as it was before the stage where she hated getting her photo taken so would smile happily. Wish I'd taken more photos as that stage didnt last long. lol

Realllllly old photos of Cameron in Butlins when he was 2. This was the first layout I did so not great as wasn't really sure how I wanted it to come together. lol

Well I've got to get some breakfast and do my hair before leavign the house in 15 mins. better run! Hope everyones having a good day. :)

Before and after. :)

Well the big news in my house this week is the garden is finished!!!!!! This is it before....

And this is after. :) Bit of a difference isnt it. lol. We cant put anything on the grass yet as it needs to grow a bit first but we have a trampoline, swing set and slide to go there. On the patio we have an old swing seat, patio table and chairs. I want one of those nice outdoor rattan sets but can't afford it right now. Hopeing to get them later on in the year when they'll be cheaper. :)

However we did get this. :) Its our 5 year anniversery tomorrow and the tradional gift is 'wood'. Mark was going to get me some scrapbook paper (paper made from wood. :) ) but we saw this at the argos discount warehouse reduced from £120 to £40. I LOVED our old chimera, sitting outside on cold nights toasting marshmellows, so we got this instead. Still kinda the theme, burns wood so its close. lol.

Well in other news the kids went to the farm with Mark on Sunday. They had a great time, except for the lamb who Caitlin claims tries to eat her. The fact she was holding a milk bottle to feed said lamb she insists has nothing to do with it. The lamb obviously wasnt a vegitarian. Fair enough. lol

Butter wouldnt melt.

Right, determined to do some scrapping tonight so will hopefully have a layout or two to share tomorrow. :) Dont hold me to it though. lol

day off, and mothers day book.

Well yesterday was a 'day off' meaning no digging/painting/big cleaning jobs. The sun was shining so I packed a picnic and me and my friend Debbie set of with the kids down to east carlton. Was a great morning. :) The kids all loved playing together and behaved really well. Harry (Debbies son) doesnt know many boys as nor does Cameron so they pretty much followed each other round everywhere. lol. I did take my camera but naughty me didnt take a single picture.
After that we came home and I slept for about 3 hours. lol. Caitlin hadnt slept too well the night before so was shattered! Glad I did to be honest as it was Caitlins turn to stay at my mums last night which seemed to really unsettle Cameron so he didnt go sleep untill gone one this morning. Was still a nice night though. Ended up eating lots of junk foo,d wearing face masks and watchign lots of 'Chuck' Which Cameron wasnt to impressed with but if he wasn't going to bed it was his own fault. lol. Couldnt take any more Thomas!!
Anyway I know its late but thought I'd share the book I made for mum for mothers day. Every year for the past 3 years I've made her a book showing the grandkids growing up that yeah. This has become harder as more grandkids came along. lol. But this was this years.

Love the echo park papers on the front. :) Obviously a big thing to document was the birth of Lillie.

Cameron looking proud. :) Love this photo.

All of the grandkids (except Lillie) on Mollies birthday last year.

Lillie laughing. :)

Mum, dad and Evie at the park in the summer.

Caitlin at disneyland. :)

Obviously done lots more pages than that but those were my fave. :) Spent today doing more digging round the front. got rid off all the bush now just need to dig up the roots and flatten the ground. MUCH bigger job than I expected it to be. :( Marks going to the farm tomorrow with the kids on a dads group trip so will make them a picnic soon. Not sure if I'm going, would like to go but would equally like some time to myself. lol. Will see how things are in the morning. Can currently hear kids screaming at each other outside so staying home is winning atm. lol

More garden work. :)

OMG I'm aching today. lol. Well yesterday we got a lot of work done and finished off most of it this morning. :) Our back garden has not got nicely painted fences and garage door and the garage has been sorted out a bit. We did plan on chucking loads of stuff but as usual kids have spotted most of it and decided they cant live without old spaceships missing bits and 9 different footballs.
I'll wait till they go bed tonight then bin them. They never notice. ;)

Front garden has a lot of work still. Originally the green bush covered all the space right up to the wall where the bins are. I've managed to clear half of it and dig up the roots. SO took some slabs from the back garden and moved them round the front to rest the bins on. Fair way to go but even the little change of moving the bins makes me feel I'm getting somewhere. :)

Well typing is hard at the moment as yesterday I was making a Philedelpia pasta recipe. Low points on weight watchers so thought I'd give it a go. When cutting an onion Cameron let out a yell from the garden and I sliced my finger open. Trying to get a curious child to fecth his father from the garage without letting him see the fact you're dripping blood all over the floor isnt easy. lol. So I'mm all banaged up now. Wasnt a big cut just deep and right by the nail with HURTS! Wouldnt have happened ringing dominos for a pizza thats all I'm saying. lol

Busy busy busy. :)

Been a bit awol. :) Had a nice relaxing day Saturday then had my mum round for dinner sunday for mothers day. Even though I had my day on friday hubby still made me brekky in bed and made me some cards.



Was actually pretty impressed as he HATES card making. You should have seen the mess though, he didnt realise that punches drop the waste from the bottom so had loads of bits of paper all around my desk. Dinner went well. Had fish cakes for starter, roast pork, stuffing, veg, roasties and home made yorkshires (Was SO proud. :) ) with chocolate fudge cake for pudding. Dont think I'll have done too well on weight watchers this week. lol
That said I have been doing a lot of exercise. Been working cutting away the bush outside and digging up the roots. Taking longer than I thought. This is how it looks so far.

Was much worse than that, all of it was the big green bush to start with. Plan to cut all this down, gravel it all and put plant pots out. Much prettier. :)
Speaking of gardens, ours gets done monday!!!!!!!!!!! You have NO idea how excited I am about that. :) :) :) This is currently how it looks.

Not the nicest. Its tiny anyway so tiny, messy, potholed is just not good. We bought new paint to do the garage door and fences today so hoping we get some sun soon to get that done this week. :)

spoilt rotten

Well yesterday was my mothers day and I was spoilt rotten. :) We went to Stamford and bought some yummy stuff at the market (cakes, pies fruit etc) then had lunch at my fave fish and chip shop there. The kids loved it too, Cameron ate his and half of mine! lol

We bought the kids a few bits too. They each got a magazine from a stall selling old magazines cheap, plus some toys from chairty shops. This is Mark and Cameorn playing with one of those water toys, where theres a 'hoop la' type game in the water and you press a button to blow the hoops about. Im not good at describing things. lol

Catlin with her little flute. We also bought her a dora doll. Learn from my mistakes, find out what the doll does BEFORE you buy it! Obviously in the store theres no instructions or batteries so when we got home we looked online. Turns out is sings and dances while moving around the floor. At full volume and full speed. Caitlin loves it, my head, not so much. lol.

While there Mark also bought me one of those large ceramic mixing bowls for baking. Ive wanted one for ages so was thrilled. :) He also got me some flowers, perfume and a tin of roses. So then I couldnt say he didnt buy me roses. lol.
I was also thrilled to find a tiny tag punch for 99p! I love the one stampin up do but cant justify their prices, so when I found a do crafts one in the bargain box in colmans snapped it up. :)
Only a short post as still working on my mums book for tomorrow. not done card yet either. better get a move on!