Ali's challenge to us

Ali has set us a challenge. Again. She challenged us last year and I joined in and loved the opportunity to reminisce over old layouts. Here's the challenge. Are you up for it?

I want you all to post in your blogs 10 of your layouts. It doesn't matter if you've already uploaded them to your blog before - just think of it as giving us all a "refresher".

Now - these 10 layouts - they have to be a *certain* 10. I want to see the 10 layouts which are either:

(a) your favourite 10 layouts; or
(b) the 10 layouts that you're most proud of; or
(c) 10 layouts that have some really special significance*** ; or
(d) a combination of any of the above!

*** I know that *all* our pages are special and signficant - but i'm referring to those layouts that really have that extra "meaning" to you...

AND! finally!

Please post a comment here with a link to your blog telling me that you've taken up my challenge!!! I really want to see!!! And spread the word!!! Let's all celebrate our own AND each other's scrapping!!!!

Because I participated last year, this year my layouts have to be different to those I posted last year (Ali says so, lol). They are here if you're wondering.

So, let's get started. I have to say before I start that a few of my favs this year are out for publication and so, to be good, I have skipped over them. They'll have to wait until next year's challenge ;).


Road Rules 101. This one still cracks me up. My nephew, William, driving a toy car in the back yard. Love those gestures. I have no idea what he was actually doing, but they made a fun story!

This. A start of a return to a simpler style for me. I fell in love with white space after drooling over some of the artists on 2peas. American scrappers seem to have a greater appreciation of white space than Australian scrappers. Love this photo. Love the feeling behind the layout. One of my alltime favs.

Missing You. This was inspired by a greeting card and I always love how different inspired pages turn out. Love this one. And it's one of the few layouts of Phil.

On the Day you Were Born. OK, I've never ever posted this one before. It's deeply personal. It's not particularly creative. It's all about the story. See the mini file folder on the RHS? It's full of Jamie's birth story. Pages and pages and pages of writing and other photos from the moments when he was born. I adore the featured photo. He had been alive for, oh, all of 2 seconds. So precious.

Little One. Simple and exactly how I saw it in my mind. This LO was done for an article in FK on using fabric. I used all baby fabrics - old wraps, towels, feeder etc. Again, much of the sentiment for me is in the journaling.

So Tiny. Precious. One of the few photos I have of my Grandma and Jamie. A return to my love of all things vintage? Perhaps.

Bundle of Joy. My take on doodling. I never really got into doodling, but I love adding little handmade accents to my page.

The Dress. Love this one for its difference. And for the story and the memory behind it.

Goal. A therapeutic layout here. It was strangely comforting to see all the things that we have accomplished in our house renovations as I listed them down the RHS. Mind you, the list of things that still had to be done was disheartening too! We're getting there.

My Music. My most favourite at the moment. Happy. Fun. Groovy. Me.


OK, that's my 10. What are yours?

Kathie

Warning about Australian Scrap Central website

I just saw this warning posted on Scrapboxx:

It is with great distress and sadness that I pass on a warning regarding the Aus Scrap Central Forums (ASC)

unfortunately this forum has been overrun with spammers and hackers over the past few months - it has been filled with viruses and we warn anyone and everyone to not click on any links within the site (please pass this on via your blog and online friends).

Unfortunately the new site owner (that took over from Shari) is not contactable and does not appear to be doing anything about it. This has the potential to cause a lot of inconvenience for a large number of the people in our online scrapbooking community - so please pass this warning on and let's hope this issue is resolved very soon.

What a pity! I started out in the online scrapping community at ASC. I made many friends, some of you even still visit with me :). So I'm quite sad that it's deteriorated like this.

Please, please, please don't go visiting there until they can get it cleaned up.

That's all today!
Oh, except to say that I was rapt to see that my "My Music" LO that I posted last time was featured in Blue Bazaar's newsletter this fortnight. Thanks Luise!

Kathie

Breaking out the ol' stamps!

This fortnight's layouts are up at Scrapbook Station. Check them out. Wow! What a great design team Janine's put together. It's amazing how diverse the artists are, we all have quite different styles. And when you drop by, join us on the messageboard. We're such a friendly bunch. And all mad keen scrappers.

OK, so here's my layout:

I totally broke out the stamps for this one. I hadn't used them for ages. Had to blow the dust off, lol. And it's completely got me inspired to use them a bit more. I may have to lash out and buy some more. I don't have many.


Can you see the inspiration?

Then, just because I felt like it - here's another one to share. I have had the text for this done for, like, a year or more. Just waiting for inspiration for what to do design wise. I used pics of the CD covers of some of the albums. I love how this one turned out. It makes me happy looking at it!
Journaling: Well, there you have it - my favourite song each year since I was ten.That's thirty years of music. It's a mixed bag, isn't it! From pop to rock and roll; disco, country, dance music, alternative. Totally mixed up. Eclectic. But, hey that's me! After all, I *am* a Gemini.

1975 These Boots Were Made for Walking, Nancy Sinatra.
1976 Ring of Fire, Johnny Cash.
1977 Ballroom Blitz, Sweet.
1978 Hold the Line, Toto.
1979 My Sharona, The Knack.
1980 Call Me, Blondie.
1981 No Secrets, Angels.
1982 Cold As Ice, Foreigner.
1983 Hey Little Girl, Icehouse.
1984 Living on the Ceiling, Blacmange.
1985 Take on Me , A-Ha.
1986 Smalltown Boy, Bronski Beat.
1987 Sign your Name, Terence Trent D’arby.
1988 When Will I be Famous? Bros.
1989 Good Thing, Fine Young Cannibals.
1990 Ride on Time, Black Box.
1991 Unfinished Sympathy, Massive Attack.
1992 Stay, Shakespeare’s Sister.
1993 No Limits, 2 Unlimited.
1994 Protection, Massive Attack.
1995 Don’t Speak, No Doubt.
1996 Poison, Prodigy.
1997 You’re Not Alone, Olive.
1998 Milk, Garbage.
1999 Why Does My Heart Feel so Bad, Moby.
2000 Broken Bones, Love Inc.
2001 You are Alive, Fragma.
2002 Thank You, Dido.
2003 Beautiful, Christina Aguilera.
2004 As the Rush Comes, Motorcyle.
2005 Shot You Down (Bang Bang), Audio Bullys.
2006 Pump It, Black Eyed Peas.

Man, I was such an eighties chick. And as you can see a bit of a disco lover. Bronski Beat and Bros, lol. Still love 'em. And proud of it. Wow, that list brings with it some nostalgic memories. Of nightclubs, with the music pumping. Of my sister and me, dancing like crazy people all night long. Yep, alllll night. Wow! Of parties and great friends. Of concerts at Thebarton Town Hall. Of staying up late (or coming home early) and watching Rage on TV. Of fantastic heart pumping, get your body moving aerobics classes with Chris on Saturday and Sunday mornings. (remember, Cherill? Yeah, I saw you sneak by. Hello you! Shelley, remember?) Of restoring antique furniture in the back shed with FYC up full blast "Good Thing, Where have you gone". Of jogging up hills to rocking music. Of kicking back in the backyard with the speakers all turned outside.
Yeah, I love my music.

And, finally, one to leave you with. Love this photo! This is in FK this month.


Looking at these three LOs, I really do have to scratch my head when thinking about my "style". I really am driven by the mood the photos convey.

We are slowly recovering. Thanks for your well wishes. We still all have to have naps during the day, lol. Yesterday we all had a big afternoon sleep. All afternoon. But gradually we are on the improve and eating again. Sad news is that I think my Mum has come down with it. This is one nasty little contagious beasty!

See you
Kathie

Fifteen months already

Dear Jamie,

You are fifteen months old. And a couple of days. But we'll forget the couple of days, alright? We've all been yuckily sick. Yucky, yucky, yucky.

So, here we are. Fifteen months. You walk around all the time now. You can even run. In a fashion. With your arms and legs going everywhere. You really do look like a little drunk. You have your first pair of shoes. Grandma and Grandad bought them for you and you wear them proudly whenever we go out. I’m surprised because you seem to be quite taken with them and here I was, expecting a fight to get you to wear them.

Your vocabulary is expanding now. You have added some new words this month, so that you now can say:
“Boo!” – you said this to me for the first time tonight. You love this game!
“Moo!” – you have learned to say moo before woof, which surprises me. You learned it at Grandma and Grandad’s where you eat from a bowl that has a cow on the bottom. As you eat, you uncover “Maisy” the cow and we all say “moo!” “moo!” like total idiots. On second thoughts, it probably shouldn’t surprise me! You even moo when you see the giraffe on your bath towel. I admit, he does look suspiciously like a yellow cow with a long neck, so I’ll give you that one Rabbit.


“Toes”, “Nose” and “Jash” are old favourites in your language tool box now.
“Ded” is relatively new. Of course it’s Daddy! But until now you haven’t really said it with much intent. Now, when Daddy comes home from work and I say “who’s that?”, you look at me intently and ask “Ded?” It warms my heart.
“Andad” and “Amya” are also new and are your names for Grandad and Grandma.
I’ve given up that I’ll ever hear you say Mama. Oh, I know, patience, I know.

You have great fun trying to say “tuck tuck tuck” when we’re pushing the little boat around in the bath at night. I say “chug chug chug” as fast as I can, and you laugh and try to copy: “tuck tuck tuck”. Ah, it makes me giggle. While on the subjects of baths though, how did you develop this fascination for the bath plug and drain? No sooner have I put you in the bath than you start pawing at the plug and urging me “err!” “err!” to pull it out again. You just love to watch the water flow down the drain. I thought little babies were supposed to be scared of the bath emptying! Not you!



I love asking you questions nowadays because I get a serious look from you and then either a nod or a shake of your head. Yes! You’ve learned yes and no. First you started nodding. “Do you want a drink, Jamie?” and you’d nod. “Are you hungry, Jamie?” and you’d nod. “Shall we change your nappy, Jamie?” and you’d nod. Thinking that perhaps it was just random nodding, I set you a test: “Do you want a bath, Jamie?” You nodded. And then you turned straight around, walked to the bathroom door and banged on it. Well, I guess that was a definite yes then.

You love to dance. We dance to Raggs on the TV. You get really excited when I ask you if you want to watch Raggs on the TV. You sit down on the rug in front of the television and watch the screen excitedly, waiting for the first picture to appear. When you hear the first tunes of Raggs, you turn to me with a beaming grin on your face. Your favourite bits of Raggs are the songs they sing in the band. They dance, and so do you. You step from side to side and you walk forwards and backwards. Grandma pointed out today that you dance in time to the rhythm. You are a rhythmical little baby!

You have largely abandoned up your toys this month, preferring instead to rummage in the kitchen cupboards. Which caused me no end of frustration earlier in the month, until Daddy could get around to fixing some catches on them. Now you have a large drawer that you are allowed to fossick in. And by the end of the day Mummy’s Tupperware has been all over the house, has been in and out of that drawer several times. I am getting used to stip-stepping over miscellaneous plastic items littering the kitchen floor. Daddy is still having trouble with this skill and on weekends I quite often hear the skittering of some plastic utensil across the wooden floorboards and a muffled exclamation. Poor Daddy.

You are fascinated with objects that have lids. Preferably objects that are useful. Like Grandma’s handcream container. When you get to Grandma and Grandad’s house, there is a routine. You must greet the pets in the pictures hanging by the back door; then you must say hello to the little green frogs who live above the stove. After that, you like to admire the little porcelain girl who lives in the kitchen dresser. And finally, you want Grandma’s handcream container sitting below the little girl. You see, Grandma’s handcream comes in a long octagonal container with a lid. And this lid is wonderfully tricky to put on and off. It can occupy you all day.

There is a ritual to the commencement of the handcream container game. First of all Grandma takes the handcream out of the container. You sit obediently on the floor and wait. She takes the lid off the handcream and puts a dab on the back of your hand. You rub it into your skin diligently and the she shows you how to sniff the pretty cream. “Aaah! That smells good.” Then, she puts the lid back on the cream and puts it back on the dresser. And hands you the container. Well! It’s the best toy ever. Poor little gnome, who used to be such a firm favourite just sits forlornly on the bookshelf.

You are so cute when you sniff! I don’t actually know if you’re sniffing or blowing. I suspect you’re blowing. And you scrunch your entire face up. You have taken to doing that when you smile too, lately. You wrinkle up your nose and eyes and give us this huge gumby smile that shows all of your teeth. Weird. Where do you get these things from?

And speaking of teeth? You have finished growing your 12 month molars and have also now cut your eye teeth. In such a rush, Rabbit! Slow down. You are growing up really too fast.

I love you!
Mummy

Feeling yuck

Jamie and I are both suffering from gastro right now. Yuck. I haven't had gastro this bad since I was a kid. I feel like total crap. All Friday night chucking up, on the hour every hour, all night; all day yesterday in bed. I should be there now, but I'm bored. And it's hot. And I've got a headache. OK, I'm off to down a couple more panadols, then getting myself back to bed while Jamie's still asleep.

Just a feeling miserable for myself post today ;)

And Nic and Isaac came over for lunch on Friday. It was lovely to see them both. Even if I was a bit distracted due to Jamie being whingy (now I know why!). And now little Isaac's throwing up too. And I feel awful. Guilty as. Poor little fella.

Go on.... you know you want one!

I caught up with this gal today. So funny. So intelligent. For someone who has been through a really rough year, she has so much resilience and vitality. And passion. LOL, she has a million things she wants to do. She wants to make a difference. For her world. For her kids. I love that. Although, as I listen to her I can't help but feel quite pale, boring and wan in comparison. Old and cynical and battle weary. And I find myself hoping that if I sit there for just a little bit longer some of her enthusiasm and energy will rub off on me :).

So, Lisa, I have this to say to you:













Go on! You know you want one :)

Good night people
Kathie

First Food

OK, I just did this huge spit post about "space constraints" in magazines and how a magazine can just bump your pages despite having given you an indication that they are going to publish them. And how unfair it is. Because they have no intention of letting you know that they're not publishing your work. And you just sit there waiting for a contract. And turn down subsequent offers to publish your work. Anyway, I'm over it now.

And then, after six months you write and ask what's happening, and they tell you that they have "space constraints". In my book it just means they offered the spot my LO would take to someone else's LO. My shoulders are broad. I wish they could have the courtesy to let me know though. They say there's too many LOs to notify contributors. How many others have been bumped too? Do you even know that your LO is no longer being published? May pay to check if you've been sitting there waiting patiently.

LOL, maybe not quite over it.

So, onto a happier topic. SC is just brilliant at the moment. I have a layout in issue 39, which is just out. "First Food":

Journaling: By the time you were five and a half months old it was obvious that you were ready for solid food. You were hungry all the time and eyeing our food with great interest. We gave you some apple from Daddy's dessert one night and you gobbled it down. So, the next day we started in earnest. This was your first proper meal - baby rice cereal.

Yeah, so happy submitting scrapbookers, lol.
Kathie

A Jamie-Tigger

Jamie loves Tigger. This morning, he pulled this outfit out of his cupboard when it was time to get dressed.
Shelley gave it to us. He's never had the chance to wear it. It's size 0. He's almost grown out of size 0. So, I thought he had good sense to want to wear it today.

Isn't he so cute?

I really have to get a new camera though. This one sucks. Really. It's my fall back camera since our other one stuffed up. (Since I stuffed it up :( ). And it sucks. It needs the flash for everything. It has shocking depth of field capability. It takes about 5 seconds to focus when the flash is required (and no, I'm not exaggerating). It freezes after the photo is taken, until you depress the button again. Oh and it's only 3 megapixel.

All in all, it's probably the worst camera you can imagine owning if you have a toddler. A toddler who either runs away from the camera, runs towards the camera, or who has learnt to anticipate the flash and close his eyes!

So, for each lovely photo (which isn't all that lovely given that it had to involve a flash), I get about 10 of these:

If he's even in the shot:
LOL, and here's another closed eye photo:


But this isn't due to the camera. The little devil, this is a closed eye of anticipation. He's about to throw his plate on the ground and is already anticipating the crash. Grrr.

So, here's this week's layout. It's a bit busy. I think I might make a few changes. But here it is in the meantime.

When our camera broke and we had to resort to the old point and shoot, I knew I was in trouble.However, I had no idea how difficult it would become to take photos of you once you were walking. Poor use of available light inside, incredibly slow focus if the flash is needed and only 3 megapixel means that half the time you're barely even in the shot! Ah, I need a new camera!

See you! I'm off drool over the Canon 400Ds on Ebay.
Kathie

Layout share

A few new layouts to share:

Jak and Grandad are 2 of your most favourite "people". You were in little baby Heaven, sitting on Grandad's lap, patting Jak!

Before you were born, I used to daydream about what you'd look like. I imagined that you'd have dark, curly hair like your Dad. So, imagine my surprise that we have a little blonde-haired boy. People say you look like me. And, although I find it hard to see that, I certainly see your Auntie Sonia in you. Sometimes, when you were really little, I'd have flashbacks like I was holding my baby sister. But, increasingly I see your Dad in you. In your chin; in your eyebrows and in a variety of expressions that flit across your face.

It's my Dad's birthday today and we just got home from having tea with him. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!

Wow, the Scrapbook Station messageboard simply *exploded* into action tonight. If you haven't dropped by to say hi yet, where ya been?

'Night!
Kathie

Baby shoes

Jamie's grandparents bought him him his first pair of shoes yesterday. We went to playgroup this morning and he looked like such a big boy in his new shoes. Here they are, next to mine inside the front door. Too cute! At the moment, he's carrying them all around the house with him.

Random snapshots

Things that are making me happy at the moment

Bright happy shoes - pity that they're too small that he'll ever wear them. We have to go shoe shopping soon. Anyone know how long they should be walking before you fit them in proper shoes? Is it 6 weeks?

White ceilings - such a small thing, but what a huge difference it's making to our house! These ceilings used to be billiard-table-green (sounds weird, but it worked with the previous colour scheme). And they soaked up the light. Now, we hardly ever need to have the lights on. Yay!

Happy smiles. No other explanation required.

Walks around our suburb. Although it's way too hot today.

Locks on my kitchen cupboards. Finally. I was getting sick of chasing Jamie around, closing cupboards before he could pull all the glassware out. Or drink the cleaning products... And getting around to re-arranging stuff in the cupboards so he now has "his" drawer. It's keeping him happy for ages!

New leadlight around our front door. The original glass around the door was orange bubble glass. Know bubble wrap? Imagine it orange and that's what was there originally. This is such a beautiful change. And it lets sooooo much more light in!

Bright, sunshiney overalls. What a little surfie dude :)

A dust bowl for a front garden. OK, this *doesn't* make me happy. But it will. When we have a new picket fence and landscaping :)

What's making you happy today?

Kathie