Just Like Heaven

Holiday Horror Heads

So we are at the end of week one of the school holidays.  The weather has been disgusting to say the least.  We've all been pretty much cooped up inside with colds and when we have left to go somewhere I am met with, "Do I have to wear my jacket?"  "WHY can't I wear my thongs?" "It's not FAIR!!!"  Ugh....mind you my offspring haven't been too bad.  They've spent a bit of time with friends, been bowling, watched a lot of TV, played the PS2 and the computer and made piles of paper mess with their crafts and scrapbooking.  Not too bad so far considering....

So today I FINALLY made it to the Post Office and whilst arguing about shoes and clothes and who gets in the car first and did we have to go and why can't I buy toys and what song is on the CD player and who looked at who with a mean face and whose breath stinks and and and......and....I grabbed two Postpaks off the shelf and made my way to the teeny bench to write addresses down while being bombarded with, "Muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum can I look at the footy stuff?"

"Yes but don't touch please" I replied to them.

"Muuuuuuum Alex keeps touching." 

"No I don't it's you."

"Nahhh it's not me Mum he's dobbing on me for nothing."

"Am not"

"Are so"

And I'm biting my lip as right now I'd like to knock their heads together but instead I'm trying very hard to ignore the banter.

 I ask Alex to swap my envelope for the bigger one on the shelf over there as if I leave this spot, the queue of people waiting for my bench will take my place.  So he goes to the shelf and pulls down not one, but a PILE of envelopes.  Grrrrrr............and they're the wrong ones and Maddy is laughing at him and he's cracking at her because she's laughing and I'm just about DONE!  So I ask him to come back and stand with my purse and I'm feeling like my blood pressure is about to explode and I head over, pick up the fallen envelopes and get the right ones.  I say thankyou to Alex for helping me and go back to writing my addresses.  When I over hear a conversation going on behind me with a younger couple.

"God you wouldn't want to smile would you?", followed by some comments about sour mothers etc.  That was the woman and the man patronisingly replies with some wankish comment about how she should be kind as not everyone has so much to smile about and she replies with some comment like, "Yeah but still..." and then I realise they are talking about ME!  WHAT!!!!!!  The more I eavesdrop, they are talking about the incident with the envelopes and how grumpy I am.

I was so embarrassed initially.  I wanted to hide but now in hindsight I want to throw a Lynette Scarvo "ARE YOU JUDGING ME?" right at them.

Excuse me?  Screw YOU..I am sick, I am tired and I have spent all morning being bombarded with the endless bickering of brother and sister and constant drivel about ponies and Star Wars.  I haven't had a decent sleep in weeks thanks to my snoring husband, I didn't know if there was enough money in my account to post the work off that I was posting and I've just driven the block 27 freaking times using probably $45 worth of fuel just to get a #$%^&*( car park and YOU are judging ME!!!!

Just like every other average mother in Australia I get up every morning wondering if I'll make ends meet, pick up a constant stream of dirty dishes and clothing, odd socks and pieces of rubbish.  I'll be demanded on and whined at by every child I've given birth to and let's not forget by my significant other.  I'll somehow manage to piss someone off inadvertently either from my immediate family, extended family, girlfriend network, workplace or total stranger.  I can do that on a daily basis with little effort yet good intention.

I'll manage to feel guilty about something somewhere that isn't my fault and I'll be told by at least one family member that they don't want that for dinner.  I'll forget at least one item at the supermarket and I'll be mad at myself for eating something that I shouldn't or that I didn't exercise today.  I will say yes to at least one thing I mean NO to and I'll put off that something I've wanted to do for myself AGAIN!  I'll forget not only something from the supermarket, but I'll also forget I was meant to be somewhere, I had to do something today or I was meant to ferry someone somewhere today.  And I'll feel bad about it!

Grr......again I repeat if you are reading this Post Office rude woman - SCREW YOU!  I'm doing the best I can.  May you have children who leave you stretchmarked and saggy and may they be blessed with verbal diarrhea and peck you every day until your ears bleed.  And my you never have a restful sleep and may other women JUDGE and berate you while you're in public.  You know, in case you don't feel shitty enough about the job you're doing - BLAH!!!!!  May you never think a full sentence again and may you feel like that almost equally arrogant man of yours is just like having another child.

Oh ignorance is bliss........:X

Saved by sickness and scrapping....

Back in April when we went on our long weekend into the city, Alexander had been talking about a project he was doing at school.  His "Passion Project" he called it.  It was about his passion, something he loved.

As soon as he mentioned Pokemon, Lego, Star Wars or Ben 10, I think I tuned out.  Anyway he was desperate to go to the Museum to take photos of the spiders for his project as he'd decided to do the project on "gross things".  I kind of followed what he was saying but much to my shame I mainly just nodded in the right spots, gave him the camera and told him to take photos of whatever he liked.

I vaguely remember him telling me he wanted the photos printed. "Yep mate no problem I'll get to it".  I had no idea what he wanted.  Each time he vaguely mentioned it, I vaguely answered with something to buy me time I guess.  While we were in Melbourne he had asked me to print out a picture of a spider for him which he cut out and stuck onto a piece of Reflex paper and wrote some random facts around it.  I thought he was amusing himself while we were on holidays.

I didn't give it much thought again until I went to school on Tuesday to his classroom to pick him up early as he'd been feeling sick.  His teacher invited me to stay and watch the presentation of one of the children with their "Passion Project".  So I did.  It was wonderful.  A Powerpoint presentation all about this boy's love of the Zebra Finch.  What the?  A Powerpoint presentation?  Is that what Alex had been going on about?  Was this the project he kept kind of mentioning, every time while he could NOT have my attention.  I was either cooking dinner, on the phone, on the toilet, or doing something that needed my full attention.  Or that's my excuse anyway. 

So I watch the gorgeous presentation and then leave with Alex.  "When's your presentation?" I ask him.  He tells me it's on Thursday.  It's now Tuesday.  Very excited I ask him if it's ready to go and he tells me it's not yet.  He tells me he needs the photos and some information gathered from the internet, like he's been asking me.

At that moment I realise that I am possibly THE worst mother in the world and the sting of the "too-busy-to-give-the-kid-some-attention" kicks in big time as I realise I have become one of THOSE mothers.  The kind I swore I'd never be.  I felt bad, and asked him if I could see what he had so far.

He ran off to his classroom to get it and he presented me with two wrinkled up pieces of photocopy paper with the diagram I had half-heartedly printed out two months ago and the random facts written on it.  It was pretty sad looking and he looked so ashamed.  He reminded me how he'd asked me to print his photos and how he'd asked for help.  Yep, Mum feels even worse now.  Apparently some kids had made dioramas with their parents, a couple had made a video and one even had their Dad contribute drawings and photos!

Realising we'd been granted a chance I told him to go and get all the information he'd gathered so he could  work on it that afternoon at home.  I'd help him.  I had work galore due but this was more important.  I actually felt sick with guilt.  I think I felt worse because he was so cool about me NOT helping him.  If he'd been cross with me or something I'd have an excuse, but I had nothing.

So we went straight home.  I edited the photos he took right then and loaded them onto the USB stick and took them straight to the lab to get printed. 

I tipped out every blank mini album and  scrapping supply I'd been hoarding for something special and I told him to go for his life and use anything for his project.  He opted for a mini album in a board book.   Mind you  I'd been saving this blank book for something but it didn't matter anymore.  I'd been saving the red spider web paper since he was a toddler.  Again it didn't matter.  Nor did the hacked up Cosmo Cricket papers, or half a bottle of Tombow that he used matter anymore.  What mattered was that my son could have had to stand up in front of his class with a project that he knew was crappy.  And knowing how much pride he has in his work, he'd have been humiliated within himself.  Sigh....more Mumma guilt.

It was so nice to work on it with him too  He did the bulk of the work.  In fact I was amazed at the skills he had as far as using Word and the way he formatted everything.  All I helped with was the text box sizing to fit the book and the odd bit of Googling.  He designed the whole look of the book, picked the papers and I thought his heading ideas were super-cool.

I'm so proud of what he did.  All I did was helped him glue and sand. The photos were giving me the creeps anyway.  Eww, the Huntsman was a real one at the Museum and don't even get me started on the Cockroaches - EEEEEWWWWW!  Anyway he scored 18/20 for his presentation - the two point deduction was because he sat on a chair to present and talked too quietly.  Woohoo - he was STOKED and best of all he was enthusiastic about going to school that day.  Another confidence boost - something my boy really needs!

Not to be neglectful of Miss Maddy Moo - I finally paid for her mermaid party that I'd promised her, and set about making her damn invitations!  I'm so crap at invites but anyway here they are with my number and stuff edited off.

Yes I even bought the damn die cut for the Cuttlebug just for that die cut shell...hmm......

Mind you she LOVES the invites and I finally came up with an idea for her special cake today!  She's having a mermaid party.  She's got a bit of a 'thing' for mermaids right now - so cute!

And just one more pic for today.  I'm sick with a nasty cold.  I feel like death warmed up at the moment - blah.  I'm stuffy and foul and poor kids are home on holidays and Mum is sick and the weather is FOUL!  In an attempt to not park them in front of the PS2 ALL day we baked!

We also made jelly and Nathan and Alex cook stir fry beef for dinner.  Apparently Alex did the bulk of it.  ANOTHER boost to his self-confidence and I can tell you the noodle stir fry was DIVINE - yum!!!

Well that's about all that's happening in Finno-land tonight.  I've been scrapping and scrapping but nothing I can share today.  I'm teaching tomorrow night, I'll share then!

Oooooo one more thing.  THANKYOU for all the nice messages, emails and comments about the loss of our fur-baby Basil....I looked for him again today.  It's just not the same here without him....I appreciate the kind thoughts - thankyou :)

Life Lessons

Well I'm pretty sure it's official now.  Our beloved Basil-cat is not coming back. :(

Yesterday I saw Madeleine in the backyard sitting at the picnic table looking through a scrapbook of pages she'd made herself.  I went and sat with her and asked her what she was doing.  She told me she was really missing Basil and if she showed him her scrapbook with photos of him in it, he'd realise how much she loves him and then he would come home to her.

Oh it just broke my heart.  She truly thought he left because he didn't realise that we love him so much.  Then she thought maybe he didn't like the food we were feeding him and a whole host of other reasons that all made perfect sense.  It was awful, in fact I am still choking up thinking about it.

So we told both kids the truth, that we think he has died.

And they were heartbroken.  We all were.  Nathan too.  We all cried.  And cried.  And cried.  And poor Alex was just so so sad.  It was one of those horrible moments where you wish you could hug their pain away.  But of course I couldn't.  It was just awful.  We had no explanation for them.  Except that death is part of life.  We shared funny happy memories and told the kids it's okay to be sad.  But it's okay to be happy too. 

So after an exhaustive sook-session, Nathan took the kids to play with some friends and it was the perfect distraction.  Alex was sad again last night but I think they'll be okay.  It's a hard thing to learn but not a lesson we can avoid forever.  I can't help but keep checking the front door looking for him though. :(  I'm heartbroken. That furry little creature has been with us forever. :(  But life goes on....

I scrapped my behind off yesterday.  I have masses of mojo and creative energy and am hanging out to channel it somewhere!  Wish I had more time to make stuff - grr...

Kids are on holidays from today and they were wild.  Oh dear they are so energetic and BOTH blessed with the gift of verbal diarrhea.   Lucky me.  Not.  Oh boy I'm hanging out for some serenity already and it's only the first day!  I was a bit busy finishing off work stuff so preoccupied I guess but tomorrow we might do some cooking I think.  I put them to work tonight putting washing away and doing other chores and have told them if they tell me they're bored, the grout in the bathroom needs a clean, the windows need washing and the car needs a clean.  Reckon they'll be bored tomorrow.  Nope I don't!  I'm hoping we make it out for a bike ride tomorrow.  That should tire them out!

They did give me two minutes of their time today though.  I need this for a class sample and they turned out better than I anticipated - yay!!

You can hardly tell they spent a large portion of today bickering at each other - lol.  Little treasures. I actually do love having them home on holidays.  Mostly - lol!

That's it for today - seeya xx

Today....

Okay so I *may* have dropped my bundle last night.

I *may* have had too much to drink 'blush'

I *may* have dragged my pathetic sooky ass to bed very early last night.

But today is a new day right?

I'm still sad about my cat.  Shattered still, but life goes on right?  And the other stuff.  Well I've come this far right?

Hmm......here's what I found in the issue of Scrapbooking Memories that I picked up at the shops today.

 
I did this during that feral heatwave we had earlier this year!  Bit weird to think about that now after seeing snow from my window on the mountains.  IT hasn't lasted long this year. :(  So far...

Well I've managed to fritter away just about all day today and achieve nothing.  Grr....Nath is fishing, kids are being good and I feel crap and can't be stuffed doing anything!

Meh, who cares it's the holidays right?

Lol...

 

Second Week of Winter stuff....

Well the long weekend was lovely even though I spent all of it right here, on my ass, at my desk!  I finally finished my work that I had overdue on Wednesday - crikey!  I've never been late for a deadline before - oh well, had to happen some time I guess!

So aside from scrapping like a mad woman, our kids have been busy too!  Alexander had an excursion to the local tour of the Alfred Brash Soundhouse.

In between scrapping like a flustered mad woman, I went as a parent helper and walked with the kids to participate.  It was so cool  They got to make their own music and even burn a CD!  They just loved it.  Mind you, it's not the most ambient piece of symphony but it's precious all the same!

Madeleine and I had a very special girl's night out on Friday with one of my girlfriends and her daughter as well.  We went to see the musical Cats.

I thought Maddy would be bored silly but she was completely enthralled.  Even when I started to get bored, she was still completely mesmerised.  It was so beautiful to get to take her to real theatre and to have her enjoy it.  Far out it was LONG though!  Amazing singers, gorgeous costumes and a visit from the felines at interval.  Madeleine being maybe the tiniest audience member there attracted attention from the cats who were more than happy to have their photos taken with Miss Moo who was wary at first until they talked to her.  Sweethearts they were.

Getting these photos too made me grateful that I finally bought a point and shoot Canon camera because I could not have been bothered lugging my SLR around with me all night!  Maddy clung to the program book all night and talked about it non-stop all of yesterday!

In scrapping news, I have another class date to announce here for next month.  I will be teaching Doodling at Scrapbook Sinners in Traralgon on Sunday July 13th.  I have THREE classes on in total - morning, afternoon and night so if you want to book in, contact the store.  Woohoo it will be a full on fabulous day of doodling delight!!!

And in other scrappiness, my first Weekend Inspiration post has gone up at Aussie Scrap Source

I couldn't have been any happier with the first one I got to do.  Cosmo Cricket.  Hello, I think something cosmic happened to allow me to use my favourite ever company first!  Woohooey woo hoo!  Okay enough of the woohooing, here's my contributions!  Click them to see them bigger :)

That above range is Get Happy.  It seriously MAKES me happy!  It's sooo cool!

This range is Honey Pie.  Perfect Maddy colours.  Perfect Nic colours - lol!  I actually taught this as a class at Simply Said a few weeks ago.  It's now in a lush shabby white frame and when it's finished with at the shop it will be living in Madeleine's room!

Well my computer is running like a snail today, it's driving me mad!  And I have a couple of scrappy things to get done so I'll leave this post here.  Anyone got snow yet?  I keep looking at the mountain out my windows but so far nothing.  Mind you it's about cold enough - yay!!!

Scrapping and Celebrating!

Thank goodness it's a long weekend - Happy Birthday Queen Elizabeth and many happy returns if it means a long weekend!

My baby boy turned nine on Thursday.  As with every year I found it all bittersweet.  I love birthdays and this year he was the most excited he has ever been.  It's always a good opportunity for reflection too and it reminds me how fast the time I have with my babies has flown! Nine, yes NINE!  Wasn't he just born??

Anyway I spent the day baking these:

They are Pokeballs from Pokemon.  Apparently last year's were so cool that he needed them again and they were a hit!

I even got to see some finished friendship bands made by the children that I thought didn't understand what I was trying to teach them.  That was fabulous.  I just love the pride that kids (and adults) have when they show you what they have learned from you.

It makes sharing things so worthwhile!

He was a happy boy my Alexander!  He got the presents he wanted - Lego and Bakugan and then had his two best mates over for afternoon tea.  Same as last year.  I thought he'd do something different but this is what he wanted.  Since I'm working on a magazine feature right now, I needed new photos and these crazy boys put on a little show for me - lol!!

They are such good mates and I love how much fun they have when I get the camera out!

This is the face that only a mother could love above and I really do love this one below!

Happy Birthday Alexander!

He also surprised me with a simple cake request.  Nothing fancy this year just chocolate cake with fruit rings and Smarties please!

The family pics we had to have.....

I'm still completely smitten with this boy!

I noticed this in my photos - that how you cut your cake is all in how you hold your tongue:

And apparently same can be said later on when Madeleine was putting the lid on the soft drink - lol!

My sister brought Alex pizza for dinner and her and her kiddies stayed for dinner.  Bad light meant bad photos but I did get this cute one of my nephew Joshua who didn't like Nathan popping the paper bag but really begged him to do it again!

It was a great day all around!

I'm spending the whole weekend scrapping.  I have a TONNE of work to get through and for the first time ever I'm starting to doubt making the deadlines.  I'm remaining positive though as it's only temporary that I will have so much work on.  Speaking of scrapping here's a couple I did for the Aussie Scrap Source blog.  Firstly my use of  Glimmermist.  I wasn't too sure about this blingy product at first but wanted to have a go and well YUM!  I now have it in a few different colours it was SO much fun!

 

And I did this one for the Scrap Her Style challenge.  My second challenge was to scrap the delightful Mel Goodsell. I got to scrap her gorgeous Bella.

I think it actually ended up looking like a Melissa Goodsell layout and I had so much fun doing it!

You can see the other ones here

One more share - last week's class for Simply Said, from my Book of Me series...When I'm Gone...

That's about it for today.  It's amazing how much I can waffle on!!! Have a great long weekend xx

Sniff sniff

Aw it's so silly.

I'm working on a project right now which will document Alexander's growth from birth to now.

The quickest way to find old pics is in my old CM album since I used film back then.

So I'm flicking through the ovals and circles and reading all my journalling.  I've always journalled a lot.

So glad I made that album even though I think it's kind of ugly now.  That information is priceless to me.

Makes me even more determined to scrap even more.

Makes me a bit sentimentally teary too - how sad, happy and mooshy all at once!

Love those silly old albums.  Since my baby boy turns nine tomorrow, I still treasure them and can see how far we've come :)

Off to teach a class tonight - that's about it for today - seeya xx

Pinch and a punch.....

It's the first day of Winter - yippee!!  I can't see any snow yet though.  There was a bit and then the weather warmed up and it's gone - sigh.....plenty of time yet!

Well we've had a MAD weekend!  I'm almost grateful it's Sunday night so I can have a rest - lol....

I've been working on some scrapping stuff and I have just finished one lot - hooray.  I had no real set idea of what I was going to do and I'm happy with how it ended up.  I have managed it in between the comings and goings of our household - somehow!

Friday I taught Alex's grade how to make friendship bands.  Sort of.  Who'd have thought it would be so hard to teach them - far out it was HARD!!!!  They weren't able to follow me, it took ages for me to cut all the thread, I wish I had thought it through better but anyway they eventually 'got' it.  Sort of.  I just assumed they'd be about the same as Alex - der.....on my part!!!

Still, they all gave it a go and the teacher is helping them again tomorrow!

Alex's basketball team seriously kicked butt again on Friday night beating their opponents by almost 20 points!  He has come such a long way with his skills and their gorgeous coach has been teaching them heaps - it's awesome!

Yesterday was a madness of people coming and going and Maddy was at a birthday party and Nath took Alex fishing and nothing I had planned actually happened!  We had visitors and phone calls and shopping that needed to be done and I didn't get to my desk until late and I didn't really care to be honest.  Nathan and I had too much wine last night and caught up with friends online before crashing way too late.  Love crazy nights like that.  I had the best sleep I've had in ages - until after 10am - woohoo!  Apparently Nath got up to kids in the night and everything and I heard - nothing!  Bliss :)

So besides running around after everyone and scrapping I bought this month's Scrapbooking Memories and I've got this in it.  I did the October Afternoon product challenge.  I've used this stuff heaps - it is yummy!



This gorgeous baby is almost six.  Wow the time has just gone......

Okay I need to get back to cleaning my desk.  Have a happy Monday!

It's perfect.....

.....kids are back at school and healthy for the most part - hooray!  I'm ignoring my own cough and sore throat now in the hopes that lack of attention to it's presence may well make it go away!

The weather here is perfect too.  Mind you it's COLD but I don't mind that.  The sun is shining, the Autumn leaves are golden, it's breezy - delicious, perfect weather!

My home is pretty clean and tidy now too.

So all good. 

I worked last night at Simply Said teaching my fortnightly Book of Me class. This week's theme was your name.  Had some gorgeous insight and discussion - a good night all round.  Here's my page about my name.  I'm the squishy-faced baby with my Mum in the pigtails.  The tags actually open into a little book with hidden journalling about my name.

 Not a whole lot else to report right now.  I've been very busy with scrapping related stuff and sick kids and catching up with friends and my car is in for a service today - just the normal stuff!


Okay I better get back to my scrapping stuff!!!

At least they're sharing.....

Lots of the time my kids loathe sharing with each other.

Unless one of them is sick - then they seem to share their viruses with each other without even trying - lol!

Yep the dreaded cold-bug is STILL hanging around at our house.  Alex ended up staying at home again on Friday meaning I had to cancel my scrapping date - grr.....and then it basically continued all weekend.  Our weekend flew as our every day has been, but before Madeleine finally succumbed to snot-ville, she was a beautiful fairy at a birthday party on Saturday!

She had a BALL, on of the best days she's ever had apparently.  The party was at Enchanted Blooms and everything was gorgeous.  I'm told my Miss Moo is having her birthday there and it's going to be a mermaid party.....it's not so far away either!

I can't believe it's the 20th of this month already!  Amazing how fast the time flies...

The weekend here was so cold so we did a whole lot of nothing, just letting kids rest.  I cleaned out and re-arranged my scrapping space and did two layouts - one for Aussie Scrap Source and one for KSK .  Still have a couple to go but today I'm working on a class sample for Simply Said .  I was meant to work this morning but was able to re-arrange everything so I could stay home with Madeleine!

Alex went back to school yesterday - that was ugly but to his credit he worked through the feelings he had and despite tears from both of us, we're now in a happy place!  Geez parenting is hard at times......I'm grateful that he has a fabulous teacher - phew!

Maddy's teacher called me in the afternoon to pick her up as she was flat and sick.  Sigh......I've had kids home or someone else here every day for almost three weeks!  Ah well what can ya do?

I can share this layout I did for Aussie Scrap Source.     It was for the Scrap Her Style feature where we scrap (or attempt to - lol) scrap in the style of one of the other girls.  For this round I was scrapping like Caroline McLachlin.  We are so different to each other that I was scared, but like I said, now that I've done it, I have a total new appreciation for the graphic scrapping style. :)  it was fun, thanks Caz :)

Our fish are doing fabulously too!!!

The weather is now turning nasty, better go get my washing off the line!