Meet Our New Baby.....

Wednesday night we welcomed a new fur baby into our family.
This is our baby girl "Rosie". She is a Whippet & came to us on a plane from NSW from a lovely breeder over there who has made my Molly's greatest dream come true. She has wanted a dog for so long but it wasn't possible where we live now so with the big move came her chance to finally get her puppy.
Rosie is mainly living indoors at the moment & we only have 3 weeks left until moving day.
Bella the cat isn't too sure about this strange new creature but is getting braver every day. They even got nose to nose today which is a huge step for Bella.
Rosie has settled in really well & loves nothing more than to snuggle up with one of us on the lounge at night. She gets tired out pretty quickly & also loves having a snooze in her comfy bed when she gets exhausted.
Here are a few photos of our gorgeous girl...



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Rosie's when she first arrived home.






The proud new Mummy with her baby.







Rosie's favourite place to go play with her toys is under the dining table.







When it all gets too much for her, she crashes in her bed.

Thanks for stopping by today.
I'm still rather busy with the packing etc but do have a few things to share soon.
I will need to pack my craft room up soon so I might use it as a good opportunity to have a cull
of my stash too.

Blog Candy.....

Head over to Melissa's blog for some amazing inspiration & a truly awesome giveaway!!!!

Cleaning Away The Cobwebs.....

And the dust..... gosh this poor little blog was in a terrible state after being neglected for so long.
Life has been busy, we've been on a bit of a rollercoaster ride these past few months but I am hopeful that everything will be sorted out very soon on the housing front.
The first buyers we had for our house didn't get their finance approved so it was back to square one. Thankfully we received another offer within days & we are now just waiting on their finance to go through. Please keep your fingers crossed for me, I don't think I could do it again.

I've not had the time for creating either but my beautiful girl, Chloe, gave me an irrestible Mother's Day gift which has inspired me to get back into it. The sweetheart gave me not 1 but 2 awesome Cosmo Cricket paper packs, Garden Variety & Joyride!!! In case you didn't know already I'm a Cosmo junkie, I love everything they release.

Clo & I had our first girls scrapping day in ages over the weekend. It was wonderful & even though I felt incredibly rusty, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Here is a card that I made with "Joyride".







These are such cute papers & I love the colours.

I have a few more that just need some finishing touches so I'll share those soon.
I really hope you are all well & happy & thank you for stopping by today :)

WOW!!! I Made A Card....

It's seems like an eternity since I made a card. My poor craft room is gathering dust from lack of use. I made a point of sitting down & having some chill time to make this card for the February card challenge at Scrap Pile.
This is what I came up with







I've used October Afternoon papers, I could never get bored of their gorgeous designs. They make me happy just looking at them.

On the home front, everything is going well, we're chugging through all the work & are just about there now.
I really can't wait to get my life back again, though I may need some help finding it, LOL.

I hope all is wonderful in your world & thanks for stopping by :)

Caardvarks Challenge.....

Well lookie here....I actually made a card!!!!!
I downed my paintbrush for awhile today to indulge in some creative therapy & it felt GOOD.
Caardvarks provided my inspiration with a fantastic challenge they have going at the moment with Scrapbook Trends CARDS Magazine as their sponsor.
The challenge is to create a wedding card & the winning entry will be published in the July 2010 issue. After having just finished 40 wedding invitations it seemed perfectly natural to make a wedding card, LOL.
Anyways, here's my card that I came up with.







I've used pretty MME papers.

I guess you may have noticed that I've been changing things on my blog again. Gosh I get bored with things easily, it must be the hyperactive part of me, LOL.
A change is as good as a holiday or so I've heard.
Hope you will all give the Caardvarks challenge a go for yourselves as I'd love to see your wedding cards too.
Enjoy the rest of your week :)

OMG Life Is Crazy.....

Well mine is, that's for sure!!!!
The past month has passed in a blur of paint fumes, cleaning, lots of noise & commotion.
You see, we have made a life changing decision & it is requiring an awful lot of work in order to make it happen. For the past 20 years we have run our own patio business but it has come time to start lessening the physical load on my dear hubby so we have decided to close the business. This in turn saw hubby apply for a fantastic job, which he was successful in gaining, which just happens to be about an hour away from where we currently live. Another decision was made, a heart wrenching one at that, to put our house on the market & move somewhere closer to the new job.
We started building this house 13 years ago with our own little hands & even though it's been incredibly tough at times, we're pretty darn proud of the achievement. It's not going to be easy to walk away but on the other hand we are looking forward to a life that is simpler.
There are loads of bits & pieces that we need to finish off on the house, hence the flurry of activity lately.
This month also saw our son turn 18. A big milestone birthday for my little boy who has grown into a gorgeous young man. He had a party at home with some of his friends which went really well.
He has also done himself very proud by receiving an awesome TER score of 95.45 & to top it off, he was awarded an impressive university scholarship. So he's off to uni next month to start his Commerce degree.
This is the card I made for his birthday. It ties in with his gift from us which is a trip to his holy grail, the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix.







I've also been very busy making the wedding invitations for a long time friend. I was thrilled to be asked to make them for her & here they are all finished.








School started back this week & Miss Molly adores her new year 3 teacher. This will probably be her last term at the school which is sad. I've had children attending this school for the past 20 years so it's going to be hard saying goodbye to everyone. I've been spending hours on the computer lately researching new schools & getting to know which areas would be better to move to.

I don't know how often I will be able to update this poor blog of mine in the near future, not that I get much time to create anything anyway.
I hope you are all well & happy & until next time, take care & I'll keep you posted on the madness that is my life :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR....

Even if I am a little late. Gee it's been a busy start to the year so far, which is really terrible because I'm supposed to be on holidays & relaxing!!! Ahhh well, never mind, I'm sure things will quieten down one day....hah!!!
How was your Christmas? It was a wonderful day here, quiet but lots of fun.
We ate wayyyy too much, all got spoilt & enjoyed each others company very much.
I just have to share this adorable photo that I took of my gorgeous little grandson.
My daughter raced against time to get this cute little hat knitted for him in time & it was so worth it to get a photo this gorgeous.







Hope you enjoyed your first Christmas baby boy.

I hope 2010 is a wonderful, happy & fulfilling year for you all. It's looking like it's going to be a year of change for me. Lots happening at the moment but I'll fill you in on that another time.
Change is a good thing though. It can bring many new experiences & opportunities, as well as challenges, but I'm really looking forward to something new & interesting in my life & feel ready for it.

It was Chloe's birthday shortly after new year so I was back into the card making quick smart, to make her this birthday card.







I had some other cards to make too but unfortunately I can't show you those ones....they're a secret, LOL.

Before I go, I just wanted to let you all know about a great challenge that is being held over at Scrap Pile.
Here are all the details:

JOIN US FOR OUR

'LAZY DAYS OF SUMMER'

COMPETITION

To celebrate the start of 2010, Scrap Pile is holding a "Lazy Days of Summer" competition. It will run over six weeks, starting MONDAY 18th January. Each week, participants will be challenged to create a layout or other project, with a different summer theme each week. There will also be games and challenges each week, minor weekly prizes and an overall prize for the winner.

Here's a sneak peek at the prize which has kindly been donated by our main sponsor BUMBLE BEE CRAFTS:

The runner up will receive a beautiful 12 x 12 Floral Brocade Pearl White Album by PRINT BLOCKS together with a Scrapbooking pack.

All are welcome to join. Register for the forum now , and indicate your interest.

So if you are looking for a bit of fun with a great bunch of girls, head on over & sign up.

That's it from me for today.

Take care :)

The Last Post For The Year .....

WOW, this year has seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye!!!!
It's been a good year in many ways though it had it's challenges too. I love New Year & always look forward to it. There's something about having a clean slate & a fresh start that I find very invigorating.
I wish you all a truly fantastic 2010 filled with good health, happiness & dreams fulfilled.
Thank you very much for stopping by my blog & leaving such kind comments.

Just thought I'd share a few projects that I've made lately.
This is a Kaisercraft Wreath that I made for my good friend, Mel.







This card was made for a challenge at the recent Scrap Boutique cyber crop.
My criteria that I needed to use for the card were: pink/purple, chipboard & a wreath.
I made the wreath from a chipboard ring & tied lots of pink, purple & white ribbons to it.







This card was also made for a Scrap Boutique challenge. Liz showed us how to make cool pocket cards & I really loved making this, it was a whole lot of fun.







A friend from Scrap Pile sent me a little hanging calendar as part of our Christmas Swap & I prettied it up a bit & will be hanging this in my scrap room.







My last piece of news is that I have had some cards published for the very first time. It seems really weird to see my cards in a magazine but very exciting too.
They are in the current issue of Cardmaking, Stamping & Papercraft - Vol 15 No 8.







Well that's it from me for now.
I'll be back next year :)

Merry Christmas To All.....

Just popping in to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas & a fantastic 2010.
Take care :)

A Fun Blog Award....

I received this from my friend Karen, thanks so much!!

I'm so sorry that I haven't done this earlier, Karen, I completely forgot.

Here are the rules:

* You can only use ONE word
* Pass this along to 5 of your favourite bloggers
* Alert them that you have given them this award
* HAVE FUN!!!


1. Where is your cell phone? Charging
2. Your hair? Frustrating!!!!
3. Your mother? Deceased
4. Your father? Deceased

5. Your fave food? Cake

6. Your dream last night? Nil
7. Your fave drink? Cappuccino
8. Your dream/goal? Perfection :)
9. What room are you in? Kitchen
10. Your hobby? Cardmaking

11. Your fear? Crowds
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Younger :) :) :)
13. Where you were last night? Home
14. Something that you aren't? Messy
15. Muffins? OK

16. Wish list item? KitcenAid
17. Where did you grow up? Brentwood
18. Last thing you did? Showered
19. What are you wearing? PJs
20. Your TV? Loud

21. Your Pets? Bella
22. Friends? ScapPile
23. Your Life? Busy
24. Your Mood? Sick
25. Missing Someone? Chloe

26. Vehicle? Lucius
27. Something you’re not wearing? Socks
28. Your fave store? IKEA
29. Your fave color? Green
30. Last time you laughed? Today

31. Last time you cried? November
32. Your best friend? Hubby
33. One place that I go to over and over? School
34. One person who emails regularly? Mel
35. Fave place to eat? Chinese

I pass this award on to these fabulous ladies who are definitely OVER THE TOP!

CHLOE - My gorgeous daughter

LEAH - Too lovely for words

LIZ - Inspirational!!!

HELEN - Sweet chocolate junkie

LEONE - Funny & talented lady

Over to you girls :)

Some More Christmas Projects.....

Hi again :)
I just wanted to quickly pop in & show you another Christmas gift I've made.
This is for my daughter's grade 2 teacher.

I've decorated a plain glass jar & filled it with Smarties. She'll get a laugh out of it I'm sure.















And also, here's a card from another batch of Christmas cards I made to hand out to friends.







Lots of gorgeous Making Memories supplies on this one.

OK, the weekend is over again. Only 4 more days of school to go & then we start our glorious summer holidays.....can't wait.

Have a fantastic week everyone :)

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas.....

Yippee, it's less than 2 weeks until Christmas!!!!
I've been working on my final Christmas gifts & cards this week & am happy to say that I'm all ready for the big day & can't wait :)

It's been very busy here with some very important occasions lately also.
My son graduated from high school last week at a beautiful ceremony held at UWA. We were all so proud of him & his achievements which included receiving 3 awards on the night, for being the highest acheiving student in Accounting & Computing & he also received the ECU Business Award.

This is the card I made for him to celebrate his graduation.







Three days later he set off to his Year 12 Ball looking like such a handsome young man in his 3 piece suit. Such a proud Mum moment, I can tell you :)

It was also my birthday this week & my darlings spoilt me with wonderful presents & lots of love.
I just had to show you this awesome snail card that my daughter, Chloe, made for me. Isn't it too cute???







Anyway, I thought I'd show you some more Christmas cards that I've made. These ones are all for family members.
This one is for my daughter, Chloe. She made a special request to have that beautiful Making Memories felt embellishment on her card so here it is.







This one is for Til, my little grand daughter.
I've used Kaiser papers on this one & handmade the little stockings.
This card was also for a challenge at Scrap Pile's last CC.







This card is for sweet little Oliver, my baby grandson.
The papers are from October Afternoon.







This one is a little different but it's for my son, Luke.
I wanted to make it meaningful to him by including one of his interests into it. So I printed out this picture which is of the bird on the Liverpool Soccer Club Logo, he's a Liverpool fan.
I thought, hey, at least it's a festive colour, it'll be OK. Anyway, he'll love it so that's all that matters.







Thanks for stopping by & I hope your Christmas preparations are on track too.
Bye for now :)