Sounds so sweet - never lasts

On Friday we had a real Friday 13th type of day. It was just EVIL. It culminated in the kids being banned form TV for 2 days, and if during the 2 days they ask to turn the TV on, another day was added on. Sounds extreme, but my God, they deserved it. For two generally well-behaved kids (I mean, kids will be kids) they were just utterly disobedient. Time for a lesson.

As we stand at this moment, they don't get any TV until Wednesday. They'll learn.

In the last couple of days, we have had good and bad moments, but the good have been oh-so sweet!

Yesterday I was sitting in the study doing....I can't even remember, and then I heard it. The giggling, the glee. It was the girls playing out in the driveway on their scooters. Zooming down the hill at (what seems like to them) break-neck speeds, and just generally having fun out in the sun together. I love those moments.

Yesterday they rediscovered their friendship.
Yesterday they enjoyed the sun.
Yesterday they didn't watch TV.
Yesterday they were so sweet.

It was the sweetest of sweet.

Today was actually a good day too - until the end of it. But it was explainable.

I took the girls and a friend of Ardyn's out to see the new Tinkerbell movie. It was only playing at one (relatively close) cinema for a short time. It was today or never - or at least until it came out on DVD.

So off to a strange Shopping Centre, stuck in roadworks, not sure if we'll make it, got there, no idea where to park, then no idea where the cinema is......place so bloody big, wandering around in circles...........then we find it. Get our tickets and popcorn and find the cinema. The girls were so excited. We were the first in the cinema and they were running up and down the aisles, giggling and playing and putting the BIGGEST smile on my place.

It was a great movie too.
Then 90 minutes later we wandered around the strange shopping centre trying to find a craft store coz the kids wanted some stuff to play with, then more wandering and going up and down various escalators to find the car, found the car....off to Maccas!!!!

Of course no one ate anything because they had too much popcorn and lollies, but they enjoyed having a play...........as kids do.
Back to Charlotte's house, crafting, playing rock band, coffee for me, relax........

When we got home, there was some more happy playing, but before too long the nightmare began. Fueled by exhaustion we all started attacking each other. The kids were crying at anything, I couldn't handle them. Cal's not here to offer any relief (he's in Melbourne as a dear, dear friend's father passed away during the week, and the funeral is tomorrow). I feel so bad with how the day ended. How the weekend ended. We had had such a lovely time and it just feels like I destroyed it. I hope that by the morning they have had a good night's sleep, and have forgotten all about it. I hope that by the morning I have had a good night's sleep and have forgotten all about it.

Just going to watch Offspring and then head off to nigh nighs. Busy week ahead. Lots of baking to be done. Lots of cleaning to be done. And a very special third birthday to enjoy at the end of it. Something to look forward to. And I am really looking forward to it.

K xx

Retreat Weekend

I had a FANTASTIC time at the Forever Always Retreat this weekend. It was the first time that I have been to their retreat, but the 14th that Sonia has hosted. I highly recommend it to any crafters out there. It wasn't just about scrapbooking, there was sewing as well, but you could pretty much come along and do anything. And 'anything' doesn't just mean craft-related activities. You can craft, bush walk, take photos, whatever. I even debated taking a book and a bottle of wine and just relaxing, but of course I filled my boot full of scrapping supplies and made my way to Glengarry to spend a few days attempting to find my creative self.

This is a fantastic property for a craft retreat. Even though the accommodations are basic, you have run of house, the conference room stays open 24 hours for those late night bursts of inspiration, and it's in a beautiful setting close to home - well my home anyway.

Sonia holds a true 'family' retreat. The FA Design Team are tight knit, a lot of the women attending have been to all 14 retreats and know each other quite well, and Sonia's family are there to pitch in to set up and pack up, cook us the most fabulous meals all weekend, and just be friendly and supportive. Even though I knew only a couple of people before I went, I was made to feel at home and a member of the family.

Relax. I did.

I spent a wonderful time scrapping and sewing and chatting and eating and drinking and talking and just hanging out.
Did I say that I highly recommend it to anyone wanting a relaxing weekend away?

I have found the urge to create again.....and I need to use up some of this stash that I have been "collecting". So I have signed up to join in the Blue Bazaar Scrap Bootcamp on their forum to get through it all so that I can condone spending money on more product - hehe.

I also logged into my Big Picture account to see what workshops I can do from there, and ended up signing in to participate in their Big Idea Festival. More chance for creativity.

Basically, I am determined to get through my stash, contribute to a community and chisel sometime for me out of my crazy schedule to get a little bit creative. Can you tell?

Wish me luck....even better, who's joining me?????
K xx

Scrap Bootcamp

Okay, so my Scrap Stash is out of control. And to make things worse, there are so many yummy yummy products on the market at the moment.
As much as I would love to spend Cal's hard-earned, I can't bring myself to do it when I haven't scrapbooked for MONTHS.

I am off to the Forever Always Retreat next week, and hoping that I will get organised enough to use some stuff up. And then from September 1 I am joining he crew over at Blue Bazaar for their Bootcamp. I hope to get rid of 50 photos and 50 sheets of paper in 50 days.

Considering I haven't done anything creatively for myself in the last 50 days, I don't know what makes me think that I will ever get through this.

Wish me luck.
Come and join me if you want. The thread in the forum is here.

K xx

New Books

Becasue Ardyn has this fascination with how everything works, I got these two books for her today.

They have transparent pages in them to show (as an example) how the ribs sit over the muscles and lungs. I am in LUURRVVEE with them, and I KNOW that she will be too.

All Grand Plans go to waste, don't they?

Well mine do, so it seems.

I had plans today, I would call them Grand Plans, and I just didn't pull them off. They were plans just for me (hence I think they're Grand). I was going to enjoy my time alone today.

I have no kids in the house today. For the WHOLE day. I haven't had this for WEEKS! And the very few days that I have had without kids in the last 8 weeks or so, we have had visitors. And if there were no visitors I was 'turning the place over' for the next lot of visitors. Then it was school holidays........so I haven't managed to have very much 'me' time lately. And anyone who knows me knows that I need that alone time to regroup and refresh (but then again, who doesn't need it).

So the Plan was to drop the kids, go to gym and then come home and do some painting. I have some furniture items that I have 'acquired' in the last few months that I have been meaning to repaint before bringing them into the house. They have been living out in the garage waiting for their new finish. It has even got to the point that Cal has moved them 'out of the way' - he doesn't think that it's going to get done.

But I am determined to get these things DONE!! I have given myself a 4 week time frame to prime and paint a wardrobe, mirror, buffet (and possibly another small cupboard). I HAVE to prove Cal wrong now. :) And they need a few little changes done to them like new handles and closures.

BUT, my day didn't go as planned. I even contemplated coming home after dropping the kids off and just cleaning the squalor that is my house.....then Ardyn reminded me that we didn't have presents for the parties that the girls are going to on the weekend. Oh dear! That meant going to the Mall right when the Target Toy Sale had started. I was trying to avoid that.

Last night a friend txt'd me asking if I was going at midnight, and my response was "Hell No!". And then when she told me today that she had gone at 5:30am, I called her "Crazy!". She said that there was only about 10 people there at 5:30 though....even so, I was home in bed toasty warm.

Anyway, I digress.......
So now, after dropping the kids off, I had to get to the Mall to get presents. The new Plan was to get in and out as quickly as possible to get home to paint. The gym can wait until later/tomorrow/some other time.

After a coffee and perusal of a mag, I braced myself and headed in for my 2-3 items. Next thing you know, I had a trolley, and was piling it full with toys. Bugger me! It's just so easy to give in. And with Miss B's birthday around the corner, it was even easier.

So a quick visit to the Mall turned into a 2 hour visit, and I then thought that while I was in the area, I would pop into the local Vinnies to see what they had on offer. And I was glad that I did.

For AGES I have been looking for a large ornate frame to paint and use as a mood/notice board. But EVERYONE wants them for the same purpose these days, so they were always too expensive. Well, I managed to pick one up today, with a PERFECT mirror inside (God it's heavy) for the bargain price of $20!!!! It's 34" x 24" in total, and the frame is about 2.5" wide. Now to decide whether to convert it a cork board or keep it as a mirror!?!? Either way it's getting painted.....another thing to add to the list. Now to choose a colour?? High gloss black? Aqua??? Hmm - so many choices!

Along with that, I grabbed some cute little mugs for the kids to have their hot chocolates in for 50c each, about 3m of good quality denim for $3, a couple of little silver trays for a buck each, a small hinged wooden file box for $2 and a couple of knitting and sewing patterns for $1.

So by the time I got home and responded to some emails, checked FB (the necessities) it's 2pm - and I still haven't had lunch. The idea of painting has gone out the window. I have an hour before I have to go and get Ardyn, and I don't want to get started just to have to stop. So my Grand Plans have been moved to Monday. But I had a very productive shopping day!

Now to eat and relax, and enjoy the quiet, as it will be shattered before too long.

Hope you're day has (in some way) been productive.
K xx

What a week!

Am I crazy? I think I might be. But I survived.

Last Sunday I decided to pile the girls in the car (sans Cal) and travel over 1000kms south to Ararat.
For those of you who don't know where Ararat is, here is a map of my trip.



We left at around 9am and were aiming to make Albury for dinner. The plan was to stop wherever we wanted, and collect postcards along the way that Ardyn was going to make into an album of our trip.

We stopped at Goulburn and spent quite some time there, playing, drinking hot chocolate and shopping - and of course getting a postcard. Next stop was Gundagai. I don't know Gundagai too well, so it was straight to the Visitor Centre as I thought that would be the easiest place to find a postcard. It was, and the girls had a run around the park that was there, happily playing tag before we popped over the Maccas for a coffee and a shake. Last stop was Albury where we stayed here which is where we always stay if we stop over in Albury for anything (well, it's actually Lavington, but close enough I say).

After a very chilly night in Albury, and a cold cold morning, we headed off on the second leg of our journey - after getting our morning coffee and postcard that is. The girls had been very well behaved up until this point, but I could see it going downhill at some stage.

We battled the fog out of Albury and made it to Seymour for lunch. Off to the Visitor Centre again, and from there we were directed to a lovely little coffee shop for lunch. Then off again - next stop was to be Kryal Castle just outside of Ballarat. I had been wording the girls up for weeks about visiting the castle. You see, every time we drive out to Ararat, Cal is in such a hurry to get there, he only ever points out the castle, but we never stop. So I had planned to stop. Then we got there.........they had no power and were closed for the day. BUGGER!!!

I tell you, I felt like Chevy Chase in National Lampoons Vacation ("I'm on a pilgrimage to see a moose! Praise Marty Moose!!!") I wanted to punch that moose in the nose just like he did. But I did not succumb to holding a fat security guard hostage at gun point so that the girls could experience the castle.

That was the beginning of the end to a joyous trip. They were both so upset. But I think that the biggest thing was that we couldn't get a postcard of the castle. We took some pictures of the girls out the front, and ventured into Ballarat thinking that the Visitor Centre there is sure to have a Kryal Castle postcard......you'd think!!!

There are two Visitor Centres in Ballarat - one at Eureka Stockade and one at the Art Gallery. The one at Eureka only stocks Eureka Postcards, and the one at the Art Gallery only stocks fine art postcards. Not one of them stocks standard old "Ballarat" postcards. So we found a newsagent hoping that they would and when they didn't they directed us to the Visitor Centre. OMG!!!! The girls were upset, I was angry that I had wasted an hour in Ballarat for nothing, and we still had an hour to drive.

We arrived in Ararat at about 5pm on Monday, and boy was I glad that my brother was there like 5 minutes later. Good ol' Uncle Mal played with the girls and allowed me to have a little bit of 'quiet time'. Then Aunty Nik arrived with the purpose of our trip - beautiful Baby Willow. All bad thoughts go out the window when you get to hold a new baby. I loved my time holding this precious bundle who slept in my arms and made me forget all the torment of Ballarat.

So, a few days in Ararat, with plans to visit Sovereign Hill on the way home. But then the rains hit, and knowing that Sovereign Hill would be a big pool of mud, we decided to head straight home to Sydney.

So on Thursday we packed the car and made our way back to Ballarat - the plan was to grab some rolls for lunch and attempt to find a damn postcard. We got lunch and petrol okay, but then the hunt for a postcard drove me nutty again. I have decided that I now HATE Ballarat, which is unfortunate, as I have some lovely memories of that place and its people. Anyway.......

I told the girls that we were going to have a long drive, and weren't stopping until Glenrowan - Ned Kelly's last stand. This leg went okay, and we spent a good amount of time in Glenrowan learning about Ned and taking photos of the giant Ned statue. From there it was only a short trip to Albury. But by this time Ardyn had the most terrible cough that I have ever heard. One of those that doesn't stop, and then she can't breathe in between. I honestly thought that I'd end up at the hospital that night. Straight to the chemist when we got to Albury for stuff to allow her to sleep soundly. It worked. She slept really well, but went back to coughing all day yesterday.

Yesterday was pretty easy. We stopped in Gundagai again, but this time outside of Gundagai (five miles to be exact) and had an early lunch at The Dog on the Tuckerbox. We had planned to stop at Hollbrook earlier, but it was 3 degrees and foggy when we got there, so we stayed inthe car. So we had brunch in Gundagai instead of lunch. I wasn't complaining being ahead of our very loose schedule. From there all Ardyn wanted was a photo with the 'really big sheep' in Goulburn, so we did that, and then were back in Sydney, in our own home by about 4:15pm. Yay!!!!!

It was a great adventure for the girls (and me really), but I was so glad to get home and see Cal. I was getting a little homesick and sooky by Thursday night, which is not unusual for me.

Right now, I am sitting in my PJs, coffee beside me, listening to the girls quietly playing (and loudly coughing) while Cal hangs out the washing. Ahhhh..........what a relaxing Saturday morning. I know that I should hit the gym, but it feels so nice to just potter around. Maybe later.

I hope that you are enjoying your Saturday morning.
K xx

Oh my!! What a month!

I can't believe that it's July! And thank God it's July. We have had such a busy month, and I'm kind of happy to say goodbye to June 2010.

In the last 4 weeks, we have had about 8 days without extra bodies in the house. And those days were spent washing bed linen and towels, cleaning and turning the house over to get it ready for the next lot of guests. Don't get me wrong, I love the guests who came and visited, but I was EXHAUSTED by the end of it. And within that 4 weeks we had Ardyn and Bailey's dance concert and the associated rehearsals, 5 birthday parties and a chest infection - I was very very sick. We were all extremely tired.

I have had a few days to try and get myself together and get my house back to normality, and we are now faced with school holidays. And we are going ot be just as busy I think. Playdates at the park, bowling, movies, ballet and sleepovers are all being packed into the first week, as in one week the girls and I are jumping in the car and heading south.

ROAD TRIP!!!!!

We are leaving Cal at home to work (so we can pay for our trip) and we are off to visit wintry Ararat and see my beautiful niece Willow for the first time. I am so excited!!!! My baby brother's baby!!!! The girls are beside themselves at the opportunity to see their 10th cousin. We are going to take it easy on the trip down and do it in 2 days and then hang out for a few to make it back to Sydney a week later for ........ another birthday party!

Then back to school. Geez, a few moments ago I was looking forward to school holidays, now I'm over them, exhausted and looking forward to school going back. Hehe.

So that's what's going on in our neck of the woods. Nothing really exciting, but very very busy.

I'm being summoned. There's sticker books to be done, and my assistance is required.
Back soon.
K xx