Busy Weekend & Tagged by Lainy

Well last Friday (24th) was my first 'in a hall' Workshop for Creative Memories and I was chuffed that it was so well attended (12 ladies).  I really enjoyed the evening and met 4 new ladies, some more card makers than scrappers, so with card making being my fave thing too we all got on really well!

Some lovely pages were made and I got a chance to demo some of the new punches, shape cutters and trimmers that I invested in for my workshops.  The evening started for the scrappers at 7:30 and some of the girls left as late as 10:50 so clearing up/locking up and dropping my Mum home I got back home about 20 to midnight! Had a rubbish nights sleep the night before, Livvy awake at 3am until about 5:30 so a bit jaded but sm

iled through the evening - yawning isn't good with new people is it??! 

We have been having broken sleep a lot  recently with Livvy and so I was pretty tired on Saturday morning, but we had arranged to go visit friends that live in Beer in Devon, via Exeter where Crafts4Crafters was being held 24th - 26th.  Creative Memories had a stand there, and I thought I would go and say hi to the girls and see how my papercrafting samples had gone down!  I was worried that I would wander around and get very tempted to spend, but I felt that it was more needlecraft, knitting and stuff and so not too much temptation, but a bit!!!  There were a few things that caught my eye, I gave in to a few, but not all...............!

Got to our friends about 6pm after being picked up after the show, Neil and Livvy had dropped me off earlier in the day and travelled the 20 miles or so on to Beer.  Had the most gorgeous two courses ever and hit the hay - Livvy slept all night must have been the estuary walk that they all had (we seriously doubted that would happen given her pattern at the mo) ironically their little one woke us (all except Livvy) at 5am!!!  Had a great day with our friends a wonderful roast and then headed home.  

It was great to have a change of scenery and it's a really lovely part of the country. The girls got on so well too, we have some really cute pictures of them together Clara was one in October and Livvy just a tad over a year older, soooooo sweet!!!!

Talking of sweet Lainy has tagged me (thanks Lainy!) the challenge being find the 6th Folder in your Photo Library and the 6th photo in that folder

Here it is

This was taken in November 2006 when Livvy was just a couple of months old, seems like forever ago now - where does the time go???????!!!!!!!!

Will pass on tags tomorrow...............hopefully!!

Belinda

We have the best neighbours!

                       I know Christmas seems a dim and distant memory now, but....... since I am madly making scrapbook and card samples for my Creative Memories business at the mo, I was going through the Christmas pictures and I found this one.  It makes me think how lucky we are to have such great friends that are also our neighbours and how thoughtful people can be. Sam lives next door with her Hubby Ian and they have twin girls soon to be 5, on Christmas Eve Sam arranged for Santa to leave his footprints on both their path and our path after he had landed with Rudolph and co!  Bit of a skiddy landing as you can see by the marks left.  I don't know the stopping distance for a sleigh but I think Santa may have been exceeding the speed limit a little, he was in a big hurry though so I guess it was understandable!  Anyway, Livvy thought it was great but was a little bemused when the footprints were still on the ground over a week later. Sam explained to us that they were talc and as it had been so cold and with no rain there they had stayed. All gone now though as the wet stuff returned last week.

I'm having fun making up the samples, they are for my CM Director to use at a show next month.  I can appreciate now when I read on others blogs the difficulties in being DT members and working with a kit and not being able to dip into your stash.  I have tried to pack all my other stuff away and just stick with CM stuff.  Tool-wise it's easy as the cutting system is fab, in fact it was what sold me on becoming a consultant.  I had purchased so many circle cutters and been disappointed every time (I am a huge circle fan)  I know Nesties are great too but costly and I would end up buying all of them without my cutting system, and not everyone wants a die cutting machine do they?  I have just ordered the new Squares and Rectangles set from CM and am looking forward to getting going with it, it will cut 18 different nesting shapes as does the Circle set amazing until you hear that the Oval cuts 24 nesting shapes.  They are my best CM products no doubt.  I do love the Tag Maker it's a close runner up, there could be some competition for the runner up spot though I have also ordered the new Sweetheart shapemaker which looks fab and is really versatile.  I am a bit buzzy about CM at the moment (in case you didn't notice!!)  I went to a training day last Saturday and it was a brill day and got me even more inspired and excited about new product lines that have just been launched and all the lovely stuff in the pipeline.  The Hostess programme has been recently changed and is really brill too.  I have a number of friends that work with or Host party plan (direct sales companies) and we all try and go to each others parties in order to support each other, but Anne Summers, Pampered Chef, Virgin Vie, Body Shop and Candlelight have been in my diary in the last year and none of them have such generous Hostess Rewards.  So with a new year and with renewed vigour I am happy to be focusing my energies on being a very active Creative Memories Consultant.

Belinda x

My Christmas Nigella Moment (well 2 days!)

Well as previously mentioned I did get my mitts on the book that is Nigella's Christmas, and boy was I gonna use it!!  I had spent a small fortune for the previous 2 supermarket visits on seasonal ingredients, and with my heart brimming at the idea of giving homebaked gifts to our lovely neighbours and friends, I began!!  Two days and 6 dishwasher loads later the idea had worn a tad tarnished...........but!  It all tasted fab - I made 'chocolate biscuits with icing sprinkles', 'cranberry christmas morning muffins', 'cranberry mincemeat tarts' and 'christmas puddini truffles'. 

At the end I wrapped and decorated these homemade goodies and added some labels and delivered them with love!!  They were all well received and only one neighbour eluded me and disappeared before I could deliver..........so no choice really when they hadn't returned by Boxing Day we ate them ourselves - um yummy!!!

I think I need a break from being a 'Domestic Goddess'  until perhaps..........next Christmas!!

My blog entries are a little like buses none for an age then they all come at once!

Belinda x

So what did you get????

My gosh how long since I posted?????? So..............Happy New Year oh and Merry Christmas oops bit late!!!!

Here is a couple of photos from our first Santa trip with Livvy - she was a little hesitant until she got to knock on the toyshop door to pick a present - then strangely she was very eager!!!

Were you all lucky, did you get what was on your Christmas list?  My list was very short but I got all that was on it so I was a very happy girl - well girl is stretching it 'old girl' would be more appropriate given my age! I got the new Take That CD Circus, the DVD 'Stardust' that had 'Rule the world' as it's soundtrack by Take That (is there a theme here?!), and a Graphics Tablet for my Apple Laptop.  These were the items on my list and I was chuffed to also get Pink's new CD and Rhianna too music wise.  Neil got me an Apple Photo Book with the photos of all the  highlights of 2008 and this was my favourite pressie by far!  Gorgeous piccies of my little Livvy, I can't quite believe the changes in her from January 2008, It's not until you look at photos you really see how fast they grow.  He has done an amazing job with this book, firstly they are all his photos he has taken, he is always behind that Canon Camera of his, I moan about it at times - but boy am I now pleased that he takes such brilliant pictures at all the important and also unimportant times because all these times are moments to capture for ever - to never forget - to look back on days, weeks, months & years from now and smile and remember!  

I don't believe in New Years Resolutions but I think we can all try to be better at being aware of improving who and how we are - so with that in mind:

no 1. I will (try) not to moan at him when he points that lens at me when I am laughing and enjoying my family and life in general and he captures that moment - I will try not to worry about how many chins I have, or if my nose looks big at that angle (it does at every angle anyway, it's my Dad's nose so.......!!) or that my teeth are crooked!  God now I sound like I look like the 'elephant man'!!!

no 2. I will try to keep on task and not go off on a tangent - very hard for me as I find it impossible to do the short version, and I digress to the point of losing the point all the time, as if you've followed this blog from day 1 you probably already know ( I get this from my Mum.............!!!)

no 3. Take responsibility for my own foibles (sorry Dad, sorry Mum!!) and accept I need to change and to chill.  I will read that time management book that I bought and only flicked through during 2008.  

no 4.  Not leave my craft space in a total tip, thin my overloaded cupboards as I go! Cut down on the purchases, until I am sure I need them (I mean really need them!!)  bit of a large get out clause here!!!!!!

Belinda x