I was just going through some AVI files on my computer and I thought, I wonder how YouTube works. Well, I went and created an account and it is so easy! All you do is upload your file and it gives you the code to paste into your blog straight away, you don't even have to 'work out' how to do it! Simple.

Anyhow, a little video of Mark and the kids on Plymouth Hoe a couple of years ago. It's only a snippet as I was just practicing.



I stayed up to watch the Lisa Bearnson TSV on QVC but it's a cardmaking kit so I am not that interested :) I did like the pack of 30 American Crafts slick writers but it was only ten different colours with each colour in three different thicknesses. I would rather have 30 colours.

Anyhow, I am going to bed now else I will never wake up in the morning. I am taking the kids to Jump tomorrow - it's like Playzone. In fact, the one I am going to used to be a playzone.

That's right! The housework is all done, the ironing is sorted, the washing is in, just fed the kids and cleaned that mess up so I am going to scrap for the rest of the day (well until tea time!).

I did some scrapping yesterday as well so I am feeling really lucky to have the time at the moment.

I have just been up and down the loft about a hundred times trying to sort out the tv arial. We have cable in the lounge so that picture is perfect but the kitchen tv is atrocious. Anyway, I have given up now as I can't get it right and the kids think I have gone loopy! I have just attached a little arial to the kitchen tv now but the picture still isn't very good. The reason I am trying to do this is that I scrap in the kitchen! I think we have to invest in a decent arial.

It's half term! I have to think of some things to do with the kids for the next week. Obviously, gluing and sticking is high on the list but I need to get them out. I am going to take them to Jump on Tuesday (big ball pool like place) which they will love. If the weather improves I will take them on Plymouth Hoe for a run around and an ice cream. I must check the cinema too, that may be another idea and of course I will take them to the local park on days that we are not doing much. They always act like loonies if they are couped up inside!

Here are some pictures of them making birthday cards for Mum last week. I am going to get their craft stuff out now and they can join me in the kitchen! I have got some papermania paper and they have loads of foam shapes, feathers and things so Ithought they could do a layout :)

I have a headache! Have slept most of the day. Just checked emails and forums and now I am going to sit on the sofa with a glass of red (not advisable I know - but nice!) and watch the final of American Idol :o)

A silly little layout to make you smile!



That's all!

It is my Mum's birthday today, I won't reveal her age as she probably would not appreciate it. Anyway, I couldn't wait to go over and see her today (she lives just across the road) as I had made her a card and a mini book. I also made a gift bag to house the mini book out of matching papers.

She loved them which is what I was hoping but I always have a glimmer of self doubt when I create something - especially if it is for someone else!

Card for Mum

My mum loves Mary Englebreit so, as you can see, I created this ME inspired birthday card for her. The little maze book is full of photographs of my children and the tags have little notes on them detailing little things that the kids do and say at the moment. I thought it would be a lovely way to record those little things that we tend to forget over time. I have written how Charlotte wants to be a butterfly when she grows up and how Ben truly believes that he will be bitten by a red and blue spider and become Spiderman when he is bigger! As for the gift bag!! I didn't have a template and wanted it to be a particular size so I just guessed how it was made and whipped it up this morning.

Mum's Maze Book

I have been at Mum's most of the day which was lovely and awful in equal measures. Lovely because my sister, my nan and my auntie (who share's a birthday with Mum - but they are not twins) were there and it was great to see them. Awful because I have had a really bad headache all day. The headache is easing off now the kids have gone to bed - funny that :D

I had an email from Mark today :o) He said that his Mum (who lives in Alicante) has managed to get us a villa near her for two weeks in August! I am so excited about a summer holiday when he gets back, it will be great! Now where are those diet books?

Ben and Charlotte have got a healthy schools week this week so I have to write down everything they eat and any exercise that they are getting. I feel like a single parent at the moment with Mark away - don't they think I have enough to do / remember without this. I shouldn't complain, it is a great idea to get the kids interested in nutrition and exercise but to be honest Ben already is. He loves fruit (Sportacus has helped out there) and wants to drink milk all the time to make him strong. Wanting to be Spiderman when he grows up has really helped in this department and he would rather have good things than bad these days. Charlotte needs work however, she would eat sweets all day every day if she was allowed!

Back to scrapbooking. Have you been over to the Scrap In Style TV website / forums. You should go, it is great - I am fast becoming an addict! Also, if you have missed the launch of the One Little Word challenge blog go there right now! The first challenge is to scrap a layout based on the word 'Go'. This is my attempt:

My 'GO' Layout

The journaling reads:

"When Mark goes away - due to his work in the Royal Navy - I am strong! I think I cope incredibly well.

I can’t stand the wives who spend the entire time moaning that their other half is working away. You know the ones who make it sound like it is their husband’s choice to go, as if it is done to deliberately cause them distress, extra work with the kids and general loneliness. Surely they knew that their husband was working for the armed forces before they got married! What do they expect to happen when their loved one is drafted away from home?

I am not saying that it is a bed of roses, or that at times I don’t feel exactly the same way. I am just saying that the whole world does not want to hear this and that their husband does not deserve to shoulder the blame for their sadness. All of us in this situation have to suffer the same consequences of our husband’s profession and even if I don’t show it, inside I GO to pieces."

Well, I think that's it at the moment. Byeeee.

I saw this on Karen's blog and I just had to have a go. Apparently I belong in 1983 - I am not THAT old fashioned am I?

You Belong in 1983

Wild, over the top, and just a little bit cheesy. You're colorful at night - and successful during the day.

I also saw this on Elsie Flannigan's blog and had to try this out too :)

Read my VisualDNA™     Get your own VisualDNA™

Have a go, go on you know you want to!

Last night was the Plymouth crop. It was lovely to see everyone but, as usual, I was yapping a lot and only managed to get one ATC done. I gave that to Anna so I actually came home with nothing lol. Well, Anna loved the ATC and tried to steal it so I thought it would be nice to let her have it :o)

When I went to the Little Cottage Crafts workshop in December I won some Bam Pop papers in the raffle. Well these have been in my stack of papers ever since and every time I take them out to use on a layout I find something that seems to 'go' a bit better. It is not that I don't like the Bam Pop papers, in fact I really love them I just haven't had the right layout for them. Well, last night I set myself a challenge to use the papers on my next layout. I have done it today so here it is!



These papers really do 'pop', they are so bright and colourful!

Ben is home from school today. He felt really hot this morning and was complaining of feeling itchy so I thought it would be best to make sure he is ok. Actually, he seems fine now. I was probably being a a bit over protective but better safe than sorry. He is laying on the settee watching Spiderman and routinely sniping at Charlotte so I don't think there is much wrong with him now.

ETA: Here is a pic of the ATC I made last night. Anna kindly scanned it for me :o)

I have gone for a new look blog! I love it, what do you think? I have had great fun this evening making my header and other graphics and editing the template!

Mum had to take a photo of me today and I love it so much (and I usually hate my pictures!) that I have used it on my blog header. I remember that Kirsty Wiseman gave me a little tip about looking good in photo's when I met her in December. Well Kirsty, I remember and you are right - I love this picture :)

Mum and I went to the Exeter crop (Scraps in the City) on Saturday and, as usual, we had a fantastic time. The girls there are just the BEST people you could ever meet. We were sad when we left (Mum even had a few tears) because it was the last one. The organiser Fi (you may know her as Scrappybunny on UKS) is moving - Boo Hoo! She will be setting up a new crop at her new location and I can't wait because I am really going to miss those girls.

Saturday's crop was our belated National Scrapbook Day celebration and we had classes by Shimelle, Debbie Jewell and Janice Warren so we had loads of stash to play with from the kits. To be honest all I did was Shimelle's '1 Lucky Girl' mini book because I was yapping so much and celebrating my ScrapGenie post. I loved doing this book though and I was really pleased with the result. I will take a photo and post tomorrow. I haven't quite finished it as I didn't have a decent enough photograph of myself for the front cover - guess which photo will be going on there now!!

Just so that there is a picture in this post here are a couple of Ben and Charlotte trying to kiss me through the dining room window last week. Where did that nice weather go?

Well you know I said I was on a high? Well, I can't seem to come down this week as everything seems to be happening to me :o)

Firstly, I got layout of the week on UKScrappers and my layout is on the front page for the entire week. Now, you would think that was enough to happen to one person who scraps wouldn't you? Oh no, not me! Someone up above must be looking after me this week because...................

wait for it................

I applied for the ScrapGenie Design Team and I got it. Yep, you read that correctly!! I am on what I consider to be the best design team going. I can't believe it. In fact I have to keep going to the ScrapGenie blog to make sure I haven't imagined it. They have announced it on there and also put a picture of the layout I submitted as one of my application pieces.

I can't think straight today really and the phone hasn't stopped ringing! So, just so there is a picture here, this is the digi layout I did with Kirsty Wiseman's new free kit 'Jolly F-Ugly Japes', it was on her blog yesterday and she didn't even know that I was applying for the same DT as she is on!

I have been feeling so creative for the last couple of weeks, I love it when it is like this and you can just produce one thing after another.

I am feeling too tired to type much and I want to watch 'How to look good naked' in a minute so here are a couple of layouts I have done since the weekend. I have also done three other projects but I can't share at the moment!

I love these colours!


I had problems with the Santa layout as I have really gone off these papers but I am really pleased with the layout now.

I am definitely on a high at the moment! I have had the most fantastic weekend.

I went to Tracie Hudson's house (well beautiful cottage!) this weekend to attend the Braunton crop which she runs. Terrie and I travelled up on Friday afternoon. We made great time but we made a wrong turn and didn't find Tracie's house, we found the pub that we had been to the last time we went up though - funny how we remembered where the pub was! Anyway, we eventually found Tracies house to be greeted by Dylan her dog. Well, I am not really a dog person - I don't hate them but I don't love them if you know what I mean. Dylan loved me!! He would not leave me alone which was quite funny but I spent a lot of time screeching and jumping lol. We met Tracies hubby and sons, they are such a lovely family.

I snagged this pic from Terrie's blog but I think she got it from Tracies lol
We all went to The Rock for our tea and a *few* drinks. I wasn't until the next day that Tracie informed me that the glasses of red wine I was drinking were extra large, a fact I can corroborate based on how I felt on Saturday! We had a good natter and laugh, Tracie and Terrie are great company.

When we got back to Tracies we had a little play on the computer and the set up an kind of assembly line to pack the kits for the crop the next day. I am absolutely amazed that all the kits seemed to be in order when they were handed out on Saturday not only had we been drinking it was very late and I was tired.

The actual crop was great! Tracies class was lovely and I managed to scrap a lovely photo of Ben sticking his tongue out using her layout idea. The Shimelle book was also really good but I haven't finished the cover yet. Alison Docherty (Scrapbook Inspirations) was there and taught a brilliant maze book - the best I have seen because it is bound like a proper little book, it is just gorgeous. The other class was also by Alison and was a really pretty layout that used Fancy Pants chipboard flowers as a template to cut the flowers out of patterned paper and included some stitching up the stems. Even though I was suffering for most of the day I had a really good time :)

Alison's Class Layout

Tracie's Class Layout

Alison's Maze Book Class

Shimelle's Mini Book Class

Oh and Tracie made me a gorgeous bead!!! She's a clever b****r that one!

Polka Dot Bead by Tracie

All in all I have had a great time this weekend, I met great people, ate, drank and chatted loads. Quite simply I had fun!

And yes I do miss Mark but I am determined to have a good time while he is away and not wallow in self pity and become depressed like I have during so many of his previously deployments! I am keeping busy and passing the time, so far it is flying by so that is great!

I forgot to put the digi lo up that I did. This was based on a class by Kate Hadfield (Whatkatiedid) - Her instructions were really great :)



There's not a lot going on here at the moment, just your everyday 'stuff'! I mowed the lawn last night and cut the edges with shears, I have only got a little postage stamp sized lawn in my courtyard so it didn't take long :) Mind you, it is the first time I have done it for years as that is Mark's job. I nearly had to phone my Mum as I couldn't work out how to turn the Flymo on - I am so thick sometimes! Mark thinks I should dye my hair blonde again when I am so silly.