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Following Erin Lincoln's example, and trying to stick to my stash diet, I've done 7 new layouts from existing stash. So 93 to go ...
I'm 'paying' myself to scrap - weird I know - at £3 a layout. This is so I have a tally of how much come the next scrapcamp I have to spend :)
£21 pounds.
Hmm, I should add this to my sidebar. might do that now. Sadly until I get a new camera I can't show you the stuff but hopefully soon :)
... it tolls for thee.
A little morbid perhaps but mostly appropriate what with birth and death being so intertwined on physical, philosophical, spiritual and physiological levels. I hear my bell.
If I were giving birth to Jesus (and really I hope i'm not because I'm allergic to hay) than Jude McAllister, a friend from uni, would have had John the Baptist at 4.05am this morning. This is another way I know i'm not likely to be responsible for the Second Coming - because she had a little girl. A healthy 7lb 12oz darling of a thing. And congratulations to the McAllisters!!!
No, what I mean by the Biblical reference was that Jude, for me, was the one who came before. She was 3 weeks on from me and now she is no longer pregnant but has her baby. I'm absolutely over the moon for her and hubby Phil but that was my last event horizon before Baby Day. Now, its my hour. Hell, tomorrow begins my likely birthing month (feel free to laugh when I'm sat here like a sweating pig in July still full o' the child). I'm in parts very jealous and in awe that she has Done It and given birth and her baby and apprehensive that I still have this rite of passage to come.
I don't quite feel ready, though I'm not too far away, but I now feel an urgency, a finish is near. I have a crib and a cot and some nappies and a car seat. There's still some painting and flooring to negotiate. But my bell is ringing, albeit faintly, and once it has begun I don't think much stops it. One way or another I'll have news in 6 weeks time!
Went to Ikea for scrap storage. Didn't find a lot worth getting.
Will have to rethink. Seems Cropper Hopper stuff for my birthday might be the way to go.
Would post more but tiredness is overtaking me. Might attempt more later on.
... some of you crazy kids have asked what you could buy for the Office Junior I'm currently baking (t-30 days ...) so to make it easy, I went to my pals at bumpto3 and made a baby gift list. There is also one at John Lewis but that's for mostly bigger stuff and I haven't finished it yet. If you want to peruse the baby list at bumpto3 then please said me an email to rellyDOTannettATgmailDOTcom and I'll send you the password.
Today Hub and I baked for and then attended the Eastbourne NCT's dance-a-thon and tea party. 2 hours persuading little ones (or principally their parents) to guess the name of the cat, pick a lollipop, have a go on the lucky dip, buy some cupcakes, enter the colouring competition, buy a raffle ticket and join in with our sponsored dance. We saw a lot of small kids, it was a real eye-opener and overall it was pretty fun. We have a 1 year old's birthday party tomorrow too!
But you know what? Kids are tiring. I'm shattered.
I was unaware until very recently that scrapbookers had groupies, just like bands or film stars. I mean I knew on certain message boards and galleries certain people were bound to get a ton of people commenting - regardless of whether it was the best layout ever, or the Bst LO EVAH!!!!11, if you see the distinction. As in, there are some people who could shit on cardstock and it would become a new trend. Does that sound bitter? Its not meant to, I mean generally the scrappers who cause a buzz cause a buzz because their stuff is way better than the average joe with a roll of herma and some Chatterbox papers, but that perhaps some people go over the top with the praise because they are dying to get the nod from the creator.
But there are a few scrappers who are now superstar league - I mean really really really good, regularly teach big conventions, write articles and books, produce LOs that really genuinely touch me on different levels. Inspirational, I suppose. Luckily a few of them also write a blog - and I try to read them because it reminds me of a few things 1) that there are always new things out there to try
2) that I really like scrapbooking 3) that these really inspiring women scrap about the same things I do most of the time, we are all just enjoying telling the story, showing some photos, making something pretty. Lastly, and I suppose slightly more darkly, it reminds me that sycophancy is everywhere ;)
I mentioned the other day that hubby has moved into an office in Brighton. He's sharing with a company who produce really, well, exciting (if that can ever be applied to web standards design work) stuff in their field. They've written books, they speak at conferences across the world, they teach. Hubby does some freelance stuff for them from time to time. They like him, he likes them. But some of their sparkle is beginning to have a strange effect. Just by working with them, even before he was in the office, just by being geographically closer to them than the average person, he has started getting more comments on his flickr stream from their groupies and other things, silly things. The halo effect.
Just goes to show: scrapbooking and web 2.0 - everyone likes to get closer to their heroes.
Birthday - happy birthday Dad! Hope you have a great day!
Baby - 37 days left! Criminy! Had a hypnobirthing session, which was interesting - looking at the fears and worries about birth and afterwards. I pretty much realised that nesting is proving a painful experience for me because I want to be able to do everything at once. And I can't. Boooo. Did put the sheets on the crib and moses basket last night though.
Brighton - That Nice Boy is in his new office in Brighton, so hopefully he can be persuaded to step out a get a few vital purchases for me. Top of the list, some crib sheets, unless I find some on ebay!
Brother - Graham continues his jaunt around Oz. Jealous, me?
And there is another B word, bothering me - but right now I'm not going to spill here. I will, though, in the fullness of time.
On a scrapping note, I'm working my way through the classes I like from the UKS cybercrop. I was at scrapcamp while it was on. I've completed a nice pastely rob and bob layout about Dippin' Dots. Hopefully later, I'll share. Today, I'm going to shift some bits and pieces around and then try out another.
So, 6 weeks until this baby is due. Entering the zone. Actually I'm entering the zone with tonsillitis so I feel pretty out of the zone. Pretty out of everything. But it has finally clicked with us, and don't laugh because its hard to really appreciate how earth-shattering this is, that nothing will be the same again. Whatever happens.
What are the chances that I could I get on a plane and just go travelling for 6 months (not that I ever did) without leaving more than a forwarding address?
Its also pretty unlikely I'll ever have housemates again (hooray) but it also means I won't ever have the cool housemates again, like Pauly G.
Its almost a dead cert no-one of teen age will ever look at me as an object of lust again (unless of course I become a MILF ... but lets just not go there). I'm just too, well, old and grown up now.
If i had £500, I'd pick a sideboard from Laura Ashley over a week in Ibiza.
I drink tea more than I drink vodka and orange.
In the last 3 months: NCT meetings, 3. Visits to Pub, 1.
i suppose in a practical sense at least I've grown up ... just need to get my head around the status Mother and i'll be good to go. Just give me another 18 years.
I've been very excited for the last few hours, as my little nursery (still no floor or changing station), currently has all my scrapbook stuff in, and a little desk. So, to celebrate NSD, its me, radio 4 and 2peas all in a room together. Let's see what we can create ...
Progress! I've taken apart the filing system for my embellishments (especially stickers) I had that really wasn't working for me and instead I've gone for the Ali Edwards' School of Scrapbook Supply Keeping. That is, put things in open baskets so you can see them. I've got my eye on a display dynamics tower from paperarts too, as I already have a mini cardstock tower. For now, patterned paper is in a basket too. My rub-ons: in a basket. My tools: ah, change of theme, in a plastic drawer mini-tower. But my blossoms and buttons: in a box, in a basket. Clearly I'm a freakin' genius. Or at least I have a sporting chance of remembering where I have put things and what I have! Next stop: home for metal embellishments.
On the actual scrapping front, My Darling Hubby helped me print out a project from Simple Scrapbooks to make an 8x8 album for my baby boy, when he arrives! I'm also going to get a little more down and dirty with Miss Heidi Swapp
I even braved looking at the Ikea website to pick out a shelving tower to put the baskets on. I've eaten some fruit. I put on a skirt today (let's ignore the three dresses i tried that i was kidding myself would be fine on a very pregnant body). Necessity might be the Mother of Invention but Progress is her filthy love child. Love it.
