Merry Christmas!

Hello all my blogging friends. I'm just popping in to wish you a joyous festive season. How was your 2012? I can't believe that almost a year has passed since I wrote my last blog post. Although I don't plan to blog frequently again, I thought I would write you all a quick hello, and bring you up to speed with some of the things that we have been getting up to in the Link household. Here is a snapshot:

 

Phil built a house in his spare time

Jak continued to be his naughty self, chewing all our shoes even though he is 9 and should know better.

 Phil and I even got into the same photo as each other a couple of times!

We continued to renovate our house (I use the word "we" loosely as Phil did most of it!)

Easter fun.

 We went on a short break to the beach

 House extension happening

My sister visited from Perth

Phil threw me a surprise birthday party

Jamie lost some teeth

Sports day at school

I went to my high school thirty year reunion. Everyone still looks the same.

More renovation work. There's a cement truck in our front yard!

We went on the most amazing cruise toNew Zealand

We all got dressed up

 Jamie got a chance for a quiet chat with Santa.He must have said all the right things, as he got spoilt for Christmas :)

We spent time with close friends.

Sending you blessings for 2013.

Kathie xx

Six Years of Blogging

Six years ago I started this little blog.

Since then I've written over 1020 posts!

But time moves on. Increasingly I've started feeling like I'm talking to myself. And it's not felt like the fun it used to. Even worse, I feel like I've got nothing to write about.


So, I am posting my last post tonight. To say goodbye, and to thank my readers for walking with me in friendship for the last six years.

Take care
Kathie xx

Happy birthday dad!

Today I'm sending out happy birthday greetings to the best dad in the world. Happy birthday Dad!

And, while I'm here I have a couple of scrapbook pages to share. These were in the Aussie Reader Gallery of Creating Keepsakes magazine a couple of months back. 

Journaling: This is what makes you happy - a good set of play equipment. You rate everything based on the quality of the play equipment. Childcare fails miserably; kindy is fabulous. You even relate everything to the available equipment - one nearby school is the "Shrek School" as it has a wooden bridge like the one in the the movie; another school is the "Pencil School" due to the large wooden pencils in the playground.

My happy, smiling son. Jamie is such a happy child. Always smiling. Always bouncing around the place. Always chirping on excitedly about something. Singing. Jumping. Running up to me "Mummy, mummy!" and telling me some new conclusion about the world around us. Ah, I love being a mum :).

Since this page was made, he has mastered the monkey bars with excellence. Here he still needed his dad's help. Nowadays he can speed across the entire monkey bar in a couple of seconds.

And this page:

Journaling: Forty five – it sounds so, well – so middle aged! I don’t feel middle aged, but sometimes these days I see it in the mirror. I look at these photos and reflect how I’ve grown as a person. At 45 I’m comfortable with who I am and where I am in my life. 45 is a good place to be.

I used a heap of photos from when I was a baby through until now. I kinda like them all grouped on the one page like that. It's true, I don't feel 45...well I've had another birthday since I made that page... so, 46. Do we ever feel our age, I wonder?

Every now and then I catch sight of myself in the mirror and see the new lines on my face and the onset of crepiness on my neck... and I realise that I am indeed becoming middle aged. Well, OK, have become middle aged :).

I hope I can grow old with grace. Somedays I think I can. Other days my vanity gets the better of me.

Kathie xx

Published pages to share

I had two layouts in the December issue of Scrapbook Trends (US). I do love this magazine. 

This is the first page. A real Christmas page!

Journaling: Know what it is to be a child? It is to be so little that elves can reach to whisper in your ear. Francis Thomson.

That little face. Nawww. It just makes me smile.

And this page. I created this page when I started working more days a week last year, because I was struggling with the general lack of time.

Journaling: Now that Jamie’s started school we have all new routines. I’m working more and trying to squeeze everything else in too.

I found it a real challenge to get the balance in my weekly schedule. I almost can't remember the relaxed, pleasant days of being  stay-at-home mum. We seem to rush everywhere these days.

I am grateful though. At least I'm not fulltime! I still do get a chance to do my housework during the week. And get to the gym once or twice. Gotta be grateful for those little things :).

Kathie xx

School holidays

Jamie goes back to school tomorrow, to Year 1. We have had such a fabulous summer holiday. It's been just how a summer holiday should be. Lots of sleep-ins. Lots of lazing about watching cartoons. Lots of friends over. Lots of visiting. A sleep over at Grandma and Grandad's... It was good.

 Bayblades was popular

 Lego with Dad

 Trips to the beach

 Visiting friends

 Indoor fun when the weather got too hot

 Lunch out with friends

 Friends sleeping over

 Bouncy castle in the back yard

 More fun with dad

 Time to laze about playing electronic games

 Talking the latest Wii games with friends

 Flying a kite at the beach

 More friends over

 Pool parties

 Hanging out at the swimming pool

 Picnic lunches inside, just for something different

Beachside fun parks

I have gotten used to my boy being home with me for the last six weeks. I've gotten used to the lazy pace of summer days, to beautiful weather, to friends and activities to look forward to every day.

I am not looking forward to tomorrow.
It feels like Jamie's starting school all over again.

Kathie xx

Collections

Jamie still loves his collection of soft toys. I wanted to pack them up to make room for his cars or Starwars collections the other day. But, no, he wasn't having a bit of that.

Sweet :)

Sunset

Even though there is little time to sit down and scrapbook or create anything arty at the moment, I am still trying to keep up with the memory-keeping. I've joined a 366 photo group on Facebook and am committed to taking a photo a day for this year, and recording the story behind it. If you are interested, you can friend me on Facebook (see sidebar) and follow my photos.

I find though, that sometimes it's difficult to choose just the one photo. My photo for yesterday was a good example.

 This is the photo I posted. Phil and Jamie at the beach flying a kite - well, trying to if the full story be told ;). I chose it because of the interaction between the two of them.

But this was a pretty close second. There is something about a photo of a little boy gazing out to a boat sailing into a setting sun. Don't you think?

Kathie