NEW CHALLENGE

GRRRRRRRRRRRRR

this is the third flippin' time i have tried to create and upload this post.

NOT HAPPY JAN !!!!!!!

i have set myself the challenge of a LO each day for the month of july. that means 31 LOs this month. i am already a few behind but hoping to catch up today.
plus i completed the last of my EMMies for june and this is the double LO i did for the sketch component.

1/31...a LO of mark giving me "that look" when i have done something wrong.
(i have been getting it a lot lately as we have had some major issues in our marriage)

2/31...a LO of matt (who turned 19 yesterday BTW)
i love this pic of him....he really does become oblivious to all around him when he picks up that guitar.

you will just have to wait for another post to get any news about the family cause i am NOT re-typing all the info i had before blogger stole it away.

and the double LO of my niece, B, that i did based on the sketch for june at EMM will be at the end of this post because stupid blogger won't let me move it.

so as you enjoy this day remember...look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
mark has actually come to bed when i did the past few nights instead of staying up to work. it has been nice to lie there and talk and have some "us" time, which has been long overdue and much needed by us both.

DOES THIS MAKE ME FAMOUS....???

THIS appeared on the RJR blog this week.
so i ask you.....does this make me famous....????

i have been a slack blogger
I KNOW

but thought i would post these

my BOM challenge for this month....to scrap about your school years.
i was 16 in this photo...so self concious and finally emerging from a very troubled period in my life.
i had just met mark so things only got better from there on.

this was scrapped using the challenge pack from EMM.
i have wanted to scrap this pic since i had it printed but i'm not sure i am happy with the result.
oh well...it is a very important memory scrapped now.
move on.

and next week...with the school holidays here and a bit more of a laid back approach to life, i will have time to post a bit more of a meatier update.

hope you enjoy your weekend and if you are lacking inspiration you can head over to EMM for the latest cybercrop challenges and also rondelle is having a great 30% off storewide (except for cricuts and their bits) but it ends at midnight tonight.

also the sale at RJR ends tonight too.
great bargins to be had.

remember...look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
i have people in my life who care for me and who love me and that in itself is such a blessing.
one friend in particular, and you know who you are, is my voice of reason in the darkest hours and has such a calming influence on me and ALWAYS seems to know the right things to say to me when i am falling apart.
thank you.
i love you my friend
xxoo

BARGAINS TO BE HAD

jenny over at really just ribbons is having a great stocktake sale.
every single ribbon in the store has been reduced by a minimum 10%, with American Craft ribbons reduced by an amazing 40%.
the sale ends on june 30, so get yourself over there and grab yourslef a bargain.

jenny is also now stocking the new and exciting Ribbon Stiff which is the latest and greatest product to hit the scrapping/card making scene.
i can't wait to get my hands to some of this stuff because i hear that it is great.
and as jenny says in her sales blurb
"an essential for any ribbon addict"

and speaking of ribbon addicts -
not that i am one to point fingers but....check this out.
toni is one of my new fellow RJR DTers and man.....has she got it bad !!!

not much scrapping going on here at the moment....i have almost finished my first RJR DT project using the gorgeous ribbons that jenny sent us but have struggled a bit with the design.
jenny has been most generous with what she sent us
"thanks jen"
so hopefully i will be able to get a few LOs and some cards done.

we have had kait ill all weekend with migraines and high temps and a very sore throat. she has spent most of the weekend either on the lounge watching DVDs or asleep in our bed.
i had the fire going all day yesterday to take the chill off the air so today it was off to visit "big Al" the dear old fella out at the wood yard and get a bootload of wood.
matt and jake were with me and kept me laughing and giggling all the way with their banter and stories of their soccer team mates.
i feel so lucky and blessed that my sons are great mates as well as being brothers. i have friends whose sons seem to be constantly at war with each other but my boys really are the best of friends.

anyway....not much of a post so i won't bore you any more.

remember...look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
how blessed i am to have two wonderful sons who love, respect and care for each other.
love you guys
xxoo

SOME LAYOUTS TO SHARE

my latest entry in the june EMMies at EMM - the challenge was to use flowers as a feature, e.g. to form a frame, as part of a journalling block, etc + use bling.

love the colours in this one and i love this photo of kait.

this was a quick LO i did one night when i was at a loss as to what to scrap. the photos were taken at the EMM retreat in march and i taught jay, along with a few of the other girls, how to do french knots.

thanks for looking and remember.....

look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY PHOTO FOR TODAY

this little girl really loves her daddy.
and he loves her right back.

ON A BRIGHTER NOTE....

...after many many tears and lots and lots of talking and clearing the air, mark and i seem to be slowly rebuilding the bridges that we burnt over the past few weeks.
there isn't much i can go into because it really is a private issue but i think we have a better understanding of where we are in our relationship. but more importantly what we have to do to keep our family together and happy and stable.

thank you to those of you that emailed me, concerned about what was going on.
your friendship and concern really does mean a lot to me.

now onto some pretty exciting news.
all that "secret" scrapping that has been going on over the past few weeks is a secret no more with the arrival of an email on friday night from the lovely jenny over at really just ribbons telling me that i was one of the lucky for people that she has chosen to be on her very first design team.
and with this announcement on her blog it was suddenly all official and very very exciting.
i am truly honoured and i can't wait to get started on some scrapping using some of the totally gorgeous ribbons that jenny has in her store.
i am also looking forward to getting to know jenny much better as well as the other girls chosen for the design team.
here are my pieces i scrapped for my application to be a part of the team.

this is a ribbon album i created by weaving ribbon to cover an album i bought from rabbit photos. i am planning to photocopy my favourite LOs and carry them in this album when i travel to see friends.

the back view of the album

a close up of the closure.

the album open

the album open showing the spine

a LO of my guy using lots of ribbon attached in different ways. i love this photo of mark looking so happy and relaxed
the card i made for my niece and her partner for their engagement...lots of delicious ribbons and i LOVE that allison ellis PP.
a close up of their initials....chipboard inked and layers and layers of UTEE (love the stuff)

a close up of the ribbons and charms

so that is my exciting scrapping news.

i want to congratulate my wonderful friend julie for winning the may round of the EMMies over at EMM. julie's work is amazing and you can see it all here in her gallery.
she is an amazing scrapper, a gorgeous gal, a great friend and SIL to the beautiful ruthy (my favourite of all time scrapper) - couldn't ask for me really could you.
well done julie and a well deserved win.

and on that note it is time to go and feed the troops.
teenage boys are always hungry....has anyone else noticed.
and they travel in packs....i have just had my two babies arrive home with a couple of friends in tow....hope i have enough spuds for dinner.

remember.....look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY PHOTO FOR TODAY

my beautiful boy drumming at his CAPA performance last week.
he had the crowd on their feet, the girls screaming his name and his mum sitting in the audience with tears in her eyes and her heart so full of pride it almost burst.
his teacher tells me that he is one of the best drummers she has ever had the privilege of teaching.
and he plays a pretty mean guitar too.
(not the best photo but photos of drummers rarely are)

DOIN' IT TOUGH

it's been a tough week that's for sure.
on so many levels and for so many reasons.
sometimes i wish that life, just for once, could be easy...
that relationships could be black and white not these deceptive shades of grey.
*SIGH*

and on that note remember.....look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
things can only get better
things can only get better
things can only get better
and with that she knocked her ruby slippers together and was transported home to where she was loved and felt safe

FREESTYLING...???

am i a freestyler...???
maybe just a little bit perhaps...???
you be the judge.

this is my LO for the guest designers challenge for this month's EMMies over at EMM.
really messed with my head and this is the final attempt of 4 or 5 attempts to "get it right" and be happy with it.
i love this pic of kait....it was taken over 2 years ago but i love the colours in it and the way it says "i love life" - and she does...and she makes me love having her in my life.

i had a phonecall from the lovely karen today....we had a good chat for about half an hour and covered lots of topics, including a project we have decided to put our heads together on....more news about that soon.

just a short and sweet post today to share my latest creation.
it's wednesday tomorrow and i am off to give my regular donation of plasma at the blood bank.



remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
i am sitting here listening to kait practice her saxaphone, matt play the guitar and jake practice for his CAPA ("creative and performing arts") concerts for school this week.
how blessed i am to be surrounded by music created by my children

SCRAPPING TO SHARE

today i want to share some LOs i did over the weekend (oh...and a card) for the EMM cybercrop.
i think it is the fastest i have scrapped so many LOs ever.

this was challenge one of the cybercrop.
i LOVE this pic of kait taken when she was only a few months old...she has such a serene look on her face. i loved getting my fingers into some paint to create the flowers - might use this technique again soon i think. and there is no journalling on this LO at mark's request...he feels that sometimes the journalling detracts from the photo and the the LO.
so this one's for you babe.

this was challenge two of the cybercrop
love this pic of the boys that mark took at christmas...shows their mischievious side.
using orange was a challenge as was finding some coloured rub ons but i like the way it turned out.

this was challenge three of the cybercrop
(top view is the card fold closed and the bottom view is the card flap open)
cards are not my forte i can promise you but to have conditions put on the creation - ARRRRRRRGH !!!!
messed with my head big time but it's done now and i think i like it. some of the ladies created some GORGEOUS cards....you can check them out here.

and this is my BOM entry for this month's EMMies.
we were asked to pick out the song that means something to us for whatever reason and as daggy as my choice is...."AMAZING GRACE" is mine.
i just love the serenity and the message behind the song and it is a song that has comforted me at many times in my life.

i have one more LO due for this month's EMMies and i am struggling to get my head around it but i do have some ideas so i just have to sit at my scrapping table and let it all flow.

on a personal note
* a very happy birthday to my gorgeous, slightly zany friend marie for yesterday.
hope you had a lovely day my friend and that you were thoroughly spoilt by your boys.
and a congratulations to blake on his confirmation - what a special day for you as the mum of such a special young man.

* and a huge congrats to rondelle and kevin on the birth of their third daughter, meg rose - isn't that just the most delightful name.
rondelle is the lovely owner of EMM where i like to hang out and annoy everyone...LOL
meg is a little sister for emma and lilly.

i have more news to share....both on a personal and a scrapping note.
i know i said i wouldn't "go there" with the personal stuff here on my blog but you know what....buggar it...!!!
it's my blog and it is a record my life and the special times in the life of my family so i will be including personal stuff from time-to-time.
if you don't wanna know about the good, and sometimes the bad, just look at the pretty pictures.

time to head off so remember......

look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY PHOTO FOR TODAY

i was out in the garden yesterday practising taking photos on the macro setting on the camera when i snapped what i thought was just a photo of the pretty coloured purple berry onone of my plants.
but if you look carefully you will see a spider and the skin that it has just shed.
i was blown away when i put the photo on the computer screen and saw the spider and then noticed it's shed skin.
isn't it amazing all these little miracles that surround us in everyday life and how easily we can miss them when we don't look carefully.

UPDATE

just a quick update to let anyone who cares to know that i am still alive.

we have celebrated two birthdays since my last post
jake was 16 on the 9th
kaity-j was 11 on the 16th
i hope our babies enjoyed their birthdays...i think they did.

our home life has changed dramatically as both mark and i now realise that we are in trouble financially so things have had to be reined in and i am now in the process of looking for work or starting a home-based business
(anyone got a great idea...???)

on the scrapping front, well not much is happening.
i have been busy creating lots of craft for the school bonfire night even though i am no longer co-ordinating the craft day or the stall due to one particularly nasty woman who has made my life hell in the past few weeks.
the old shazz would have fought back and stood her ground but i am really "over" fighting battles and coming out with a little less of my soul in tact so i beat a hasty retreat from most of the school activities i have been involved in and happily crafted at home over the weekend with my step-mum and a friend.
i will post some pics of our creations soon.

i have finished my DT application items - probably don't stand a chance but i'll give it a go anyways.
will post my creations once the team has been announced - next week i think but i am not really holding my breath.

will leave you with two LOs i did to complete my 20 LO non-shopping challenge.
now i have to go shopping with a VERY limited budget.
i think another non-shopping challenge will be in order - my stash still needs depleting.

this LO shows matt's frustration with being benched for most of this year's soccer season with a recurring back injury. he really hates it and my heart breaks for him as he sits and watches his team play each week.

my last non-shopping challenge LO showcasing my spunky son.
i wanted to use the mini rob and bob clipboard and a checklist seemed like a good idea.
one of jake's teachers at his PT interview told us that the girls just swoon when jake walks by and they couldn't believe that he doesn't notice them doing it.
i guess if the girls were shaped like a soccer ball or a drum kit he may take more notice...LOL

i hope that you have a great wednesday.
remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
winter is slowly creeping up on us and it's time to light our fire, snuggle in under the doona and keep each other warm.
mmmmmmm - love the smell of a roaring fire and the atmosphere it creates.

I WISH...

...i could share my latest scrapping efforts but i can't because like i said before...i am applying for a DT position and i have scrapped these especially for that.
i am assuming that soon i will be able to show you because i don't think i stand a chance of gaining a position but hey....
stranger things have happened i suppose.

and just wanted to say how much i HATE confontation. especially when the anger from one person is misdirected at another.
it makes me feel sad and low and angry and on edge.
hate it...hate it...hate it

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
the loving arms of my husband and his level-headedness when i am losing mine.

'TIS SUNDAY

have been doing lots of scrapping but very little i can share.
i am actually in the process of applying for two design teams - probably don't stand a chance but would like to give it a go anyways.

i have completed my first LO for this months EMMies over at EMM.
this month's sketch was created by the lovely grace and this is my interpretation of it.

matt truly does light up when he picks up his guitar - his face and his soul just shine with his love of music and it is evident in his playing just how much he loves it.
the gold embroidery thread lines are supposed to imitate a musical stave but after seeing it, matt commented that they look like his guitar strings - especially when combined with the circle.
the gold paper i used to matt the photos and cut out the musical notes was a gift from auntie joanie ages ago and i just love the shine and texture of it.

other exciting news is that rondelle has asked my to run an online class over at EMM on the mini album i made...talk about NERVOUS...!!!
i have yet to choose the papers etc i want to use for the class - will probably go with a girly one and a boy-ish one but i am excited
(and did i mention EXTREMELY NERVOUS...???)
to be asked to run the class.
so if you are interested, head on over the EMM and register, if you haven't already become a member of this great site, and sign up for my class.
i think rondelle is offering just the class only (you supply the materials).
the class will run in mid june as i am flat out with the school's bonfire night, etc until then.

and now, as another weekend fades into the past, i am looking forward to a busy and productive week ahead.
i hope yours is all you hope it to be.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
my nephew putting his little arms up for me to pick him up and when i did, getting the biggest sloppiest kiss on my cheek from him.
gotta love those little chubby bubby arms.

WILL WONDERS NEVER CEASE

i signed up for the EMMies over at EMM when they were announced back in march.

never thought i would ever have a chance in hades of ever winning any of the rounds but thought it would be a great way to get inspired, stay motivated and get some scrapping done.

and lo and behold, after a hectic morning or trying to get "stuff" done for bonfire night at the school and giving plasma (a fortnightly occurance for me) and the dreaded grocery dash, i came home, logged onto EMM and found this

to say that i was very excited/shocked/stunned/speechless would be an understatement.
i NEVER thought i would have had a chance against some of the other girls who have been scrapping along with me in the EMMies comp.

here are, dare i say it, my winning entries for april.
(ALL my EMMie entries are in the slide show in my side bar that i will update each month)

this is the LO i did using the challenge pack that we purchase each month from EMM
- great packs and heaps in them.

this is a LO for my BOM. we had to scrap a LO about our siblings.
i have a very uneasy relationship with my brother and sister from mum's marriage to dad so i journalled about how innocent we were when this photo was taken (circa 1968)
it is one of the few photos i have with my brother and sister.
lots of hand sewing on this one to the point i made my fingers bleed !!!

this LO was part of the guest designers challenge for the month.
the VERY talented marg was the guest DTer and challenged us to use paper layering using at least 3 different PPs.
love these pics of me and my boys.

this LO was based on a sketch that was provided...AGAIN i had issues with re-sizing it.
spent hours cutting out the flowers from felt as well as han sewing but this has to be one of my favourite LOs that i have done.
i love this pic of our gorgeous girl but sadly the journalling is all too true...she is growing up way "too soon" for either mine or mark's liking.

and finally my mini ribbon album about the EMM retreat.
see all the details in this post.
we are required to complete and OTP every two months for the comp.

so there you go....i am still stunned that i won.
but i have had this silly grin on my face all afternoon.

hope you have had an equally rewarding and joyful day
remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
running into friends you haven't seen for a while because you are both so busy and feeling such pure joy and that instant bond of unfaltering friendship as you hug each other and say how wonderful it is to see them.

SOME LOs TO SHARE

EMM had a cybercrop on the weekend.
pity i hurt my back on friday and couldn't sit in my scrapping chair for more than half an hour at a stretch over the weekend...boo hoo hoo...!!!
but i did manage to do two of the challenges.

this challenge involved taking an element from a piece of PP and repeating it.
i used some of the leftover PP from April's challenge pack from EMM and repeated the crosses.
i love the white background handmade paper on this LO made by aunty joanie - so textured - just beautiful.

this challenge involved using a sketch supplied and changing just one of the elements.
because i scrap in the smaller 8.5 x 11" size, i took the liberty of changing a few of the elements. i used "Piggy Tales" PP that was given to us as a freebee at the EMM retreat...gotta be happy with that.
the gorgeous ruthy is a DT member for "Piggy Tales"


i also managed to get my OTP finished for my April's EMMies entry and uploaded to the site....you can see all the photos of my mini ribbon album that i made here.
it celebrates the EMM retreat we had in march at lake ainsworth - so many memories of a really great weekend.

this is what the front looks like though.

have a happy tuesday....now my back is somewhat better i hope to get stuck into some scrapping today. and hopefully catching up with some people via their blogs
(something i have been very remiss in doing these past few months)

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
the chill in the air that heralds the start of the colder months and the time for lighting our fire drawing closer.
NOTHING better than snuggling up in front of a roaring fire.

OH GOODIE.....I'VE BEEN TAGGED...!!!

I have been tagged by the gorgeous Kim.
i love doing these things - haven't done one in ages.
the only thing i won't do is tag 7 people cause i am sure everyone i know would have been tagged by now sooooo....
if you wanna take part in the tag here are the rules:

Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves.
People who are tagged need to blog about their seven things and post the rules as well.
At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names.
Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!
OK, here goes...

1. i have a rare degenerative bone disease in my right wrist called kienbocks disease. it went undiagnosed til i was 32 and it will eventually mean that i will lose most of the use of my right hand. there is no "cure" for it and i will have to take drugs for the rest of my life to counteract the effcts of the disease and just cope with daily living.
sucks, hey....???

2. i am the eldest of 5 children - a brother, a sister, a hlaf-brother and a half sister. i found out about my half brother only 2 years ago and he and i have just clicked as siblings.

3. i have a real "thing" for men in uniform. it is a bit of a joke amongst my friends and family but i really do go weak at the knees when i am around uniformed men. not real fussy on which uniform but i do have a preference for RAAF blues.

4. i am a trained primary school teacher but have not taught full time since i had my first son 19 years ago. i tried going back to teaching in 2002 but found i couldn't cope with the politically correctness that was imposed on the job.

5. i was school captain and dux of the school at primary school. i was school captain, SRC president and female student of the year in year 12. i still keep contact with most of my high school teachers and my primary school teacher who i had for 4 years and my primary school principal.

6. i am a very loyal and trusting person - or so my friends tell me. unfortunately these qualities have been the source of some of the more hurtful experiences in my life. as i have grown older i have become a lot more selective with my loyalty and my trust.

7. i am a direct descendant of Alexander Graham Bell who invented the telephone
(don't blame me for all those big phone bills though....LOL)

so there you go....all the useless information you may or may not have wanted to know about me.

i hope you have a happy friday.
i have SOOOO much work to do scrapping wise at the moment. i have my EMMies entries to finish and EMM is having a cybercrop tomorrow night.
so drop by and joining in the fun.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY PHOTO FOR TODAY

the view from our side door, early one morning.
just beautiful...!!!

WELCOME BACK.......ME...!!!

i am back to blogging - for how long we shall see.

a couple of things have happened over the past few weeks that have had me questioning a lot of things in my life, including how much of myself i should put out into the world via this blog.
it never ceases to amaze me how nasty some people can be when you make yourself the least bit vunerable by wearing your heart on your sleeve or by putting yourself "out there" with an opinion about something.

so for now i will try and keep it to my scrapping feats - or attempts, whatever you think they are and maybe some smatterings of my daily goings on.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
the amazing sight of hundreds of people, old and young, with their heads bowed, observing a minutes silence at todays ANZAC march that kait marched in with her school.
how special to think, that 92 years on, we can still give thanks to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice so we can live in peace and free.

"LEST WE FORGET"

A PINK ALBUM FOR BRIDGET

by now many of you who read my blog will have received an email or seen this post on EMM.
for those of you who haven't and would like to take part, please leave me a comment here or drop me a line at
shazz64@westnet.com.au
and i will email you the details.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY PHOTO FOR TODAY

wishing my sister, jo, a very happy 40th birthday.
here she is with her son, kye (pic taken this week)

HOW DO THEY DO IT...???

how do so many women out there seem to "have it and do it all"...???
how can they appear to be such great mums and wifes and sisters and friends and scrappers...???
when most days i seem to just struggle through life.

maybe they don't...!!!

maybe they struggle with their lives as much as what i do and just don't share these things with us.
me...???
well i chose to wear my heart on my sleeve and tell people about my struggles/sorrows/lows and frustrations.
i don't know if that makes me a bad person...just "normal" i would have thought.

i look at other people's blogs and in just one day they have managed to scrap these amazing LOs, while cooking their husbands a 5 course meal and spending quality time with their umpteen kids and take pics of them dressed in their designer clothes and spend time with their eqaully gorgeous friends and well....i bet you know what i mean.
i feel that at any moment they will rip the buttons from their blouses, revealing a HUGE "S" and a red flowing cape underneath showing the world that they really are a superwoman.

am i jealous...???
well kinda.
and i don't want any flack here either...i am not single-ing out any one person nor bagging anyone out.
in all honesty i really just wanna know how they do it all in one day/lifetime and still remain sane and appear so together.

so maybe it is time to be thankful and give praise to what is good in my life.
time to add a happy thought (or pic) to each and every post to help me look at the happiness and the blessings in my life.

i'll leave the "superwoman-ing" to others who appear to do it so well.

a happy thursday to each and every one of you.
remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

HAPPY THOUGHT FOR TODAY
** snuggling up under a warm doona with mark and having kait come in and squeeze in between us.

MILLION DOLLAR SMILE

jakey always has had a million dollar smile.
even with a mouth full of metal for the past two years his smile has been just gorgeous.
so it was so exciting this morning, to go...

from this...

to this

he still needs some work to bleach out his discoloured tooth
(the result of a schoolyard accident when he was 9)
but for now i just love looking at that gorgeous smile.

on the scrapping side, i spent the day hand cutting SOOOOOOO many bl**dy felt flowers for a LO and doing a whole stack of hand sewing.
i think the result will be worth it...i guess we will all have to wait and see.

hope you have a happy wednesday.
remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

EASTER ESCAPADES

we had a very enjoyable easter weekend.
the long-eared, fluffy tailed fellow hopped our way and left some goodies;
we had a meal with mark's parents last night (won't even venture down "that" path of woe and disbelief) along with mark's brother and his family (thanks geoff and di for helping us get through the night);
helped a friend celebrate her 40th on saturday night -
"SURPRISE KIM"
- and boy....was she ever;
sewed some of these little fellas up as easter gifts - just SO cute and i actually made up my own pattern for them by just looking at the picture so i was pretty chuffed with myself;
braved the crowds on saturday morning with kait and mark to buy mark some new work pants and grab some supplies for the meal with his parents;
and i even managed to fit in some scrapping.

here are the two LOs i completed today.

gotta love the wacky sense of humour that this gorgeous boy has.

a simple LO of our gorgeous girl.

i am now officially halfway through my non-shopping 20 LO challenge to myself and embarrassingly my stash doesn't even have a dent in it, so i might be starting another non-shopping challenge when i have finished this one.
i have to make a start on my EMMie entries for this month pretty soon too i guess.
i have to decide on which retreat pics to use for my OTP mini album plus get the challenge packs paid for so rondelle can pop them in the mail for me.

and two reasons for celebration...
1. jake gets his braces off tomorrow morning after two whole years. i have been so proud of the way he has coped with having them on and the prodding and poking and pain he has endured along the way.
2. a very happy birthday to my dad for yesterday.
i can't wait to see him (and nanny) next week when they come up.
love you daddsie xxoo

so......whatever you did on the weekend and wherever the universe took you, i hope that you had a good one.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

RELAX....!!!!

that is what i planned to do today.
sleep in, have a lazy day just hanging out at home with the mark and the kids, scrap a bit, watch some telly, read a book.
a good dose of insomnia put pay to that as my eyes popped open about 2 a.m. and i didn't close them again until i had a nanny nap this afternoon.
i also washed, folded and ironed several baskets of clothes, swept the floor, did dishes, fed a whole stack of hungry teenagers for lunch (a bit hard when i couldn't serve them red meat seeing it is good friday but they hoed into their vegemite bread rolls with little complaint), had a visit from a friend and am now about to start our traditional seafoiod good friday evening meal.
it's all good though.

i finished scrapping this double LO for the april EMMies guest DT challenge today




















- well it should have been except "someone" read the challenge incorrectly and i had no room for the hidden journalling component.
ah well....i look on it as another photo scrapped, another memory captured.
won't be cutting out so many bl**dy flowers again in a hurry though....not good for the old eyes i can tell you nor the dicky wrist.

hope that you are all having a wonderful easter break so far and that you don't have to brave the shops tomorrow - wednesday and thursday were enough of a nightmare up in this neck of the woods.

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

p.s. did you notice my new slide show in my side bar.....go and have a look-see if you like

JUST KEEP SCRAPPING, SCRAPPING SCRAPPING...

- sung in my best "dory" voice of course -
LOL

thank you to those of you who left comments about my last post and those of you who emailed me.
i'm still not sure that it was the right thing to do, to show the LO, but i did and i guess it is another step in the journey of "moving on".

been scrapping up a storm these past few weeks - started at the EMM retreat.
no actually...probably started when i moved my scrapping area up into the corner of our bedroom. it is so jmuch nicer scrapping up here, close to mark and the kids and my darling kait even hauls her little table in and scraps with me some weekends which is always a buzz.
and being part of the EMMies has helped too - have had lots of inspiration from the EMM gallery and the guest DTers that rondelle has dug up.
and i think i am finally reaching that place where i have wanted to be with my scrapping, since i first started.

where it doesn't matter about the product or whether it is published or whether people leave comments when it is posted to a gallery or on my blog.
cause it's all about telling the story of our family and leaving a written and photographic history for future generations.
kait loves looking through the albums and it has sparked many a discussion about the memories i have scrapped.

so here are some more LOs that i have done in the last few weeks.

a LO for my BOM - also part of my March EMMie entry
this was me when i was about 6 weeks old.
i still have that blanket i was lying on

another LO for my Emmies entry for march.
we had to doodle on an embellishment.
not sure i am happy with the result but i do love this LO and what it stands for

this is another photo taken in 1911 - not photoshopped at all.
i love looking at it and seeing all the lovely little faces of mark's ancestors.
part of the product i used here was an EMM challenge pack from a few months back

this LO was done for the EMM cybercrop last friday.
we had to use a B&W pic, B&W PP + a floral PP and the theme had to be "love".
i love this pic of mark and kait...i love them both and the relationship that they have together

this LO is the second one i did at for the CC. we were given two poems for inspiration and one of them mentioned "earth's splendour"
to me, flowers are earth's splendor so it made sense to scrap a photo of one of the grevilleas in our garden.
the title is hand-cut (OUCH...!!!) from hand marbled paper that aunty joanie did (she is such a clever chookie)
not sure i am 100% happy with it but hey....it's done now.

this is the final LO for the CC. we had to scrap a LO using black, white & green, a B&W pic and some rub-ons.
love this pic of my baby girl, reaching forward to stop me from taking her pic..."not quite fast enough baby"....LOL

thanks for looking.
and that is my lot for today.....

remember to look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo

NO APOLOGIES

this double LO needed a post of it's own.
i sat one day, feeling so sad and lost and angry at a lot of things and started to write about that day 14 years ago. my thoughts and memories just flooded back and this is the end result.
i don't expect anyone to post a comment - to be honest i don't care what you think of it.
it is what it is - it is truthful and written from my heart and i make no apologies for posting it.

Page 1

Page 2

look for the things in your life that make you smile
~~ and remember, let those you love, know that you do ~~

~*~ shazz ~*~
xo