Almost a year ago..

It's almost a year ago since we sold our old home. It was beautiful once it was finished. This layout just appeared in Creating Keepsakes Issue 13(4) Aussie Reader Gallery.

Sold
Journaling: After three years of blood, sweat and tears our house is finally renovated and has been sold. It does truly look stunning but oh it's just been so much work! I remember when I first moved in here with Phil, we agreed we would do a quick reno and move somewhere else. See, this was Phil's house and at first I really struggled being here. As much as he bent over backwards to make me feel at home, I always felt like I'd really just had to squish my stuff in wherever it would fit. Gradually it became my home too. Still, we had our plan. Three months we thought it would take. But life has a habit of getting in the way of these things. Jobs, investment properties and finally a baby slowed us down. Plus, Phil wanted to do everything himself. So 3 months became 3 years. Finally we're finished. And moving on with the next steps in our plan. Woohooo!!!!

It's the weekend!

Yay, it's the weekend! What do you have planned? What's next week got in store for you?

DH has been interstate for business all week, so it'll be nice to have him back home. My parents are also interstate, visiting my sister in Perth (if you live in Perth make sure to pop into Pusey's Puffs bakery when you're in the Nedlands neighbourhood - the best food!). So I've been very busy this week and very lonely.

Next week I have to take DH to hospital for some minor tests on Mon; then we are catching up with Nic and the Blue Bazaar girls (yay!) on Tues; then we have playgroup on Wed; then it's work again... What about you? Anything exciting? Any trips planned? Any fun times?

LOL you girls. I guess my work does sound daunting. You have to remember though that I studied for years (five) at university to learn what I know. And then I've worked in the field for twenty years. So... it's just second nature to me. But I don't get so much satisfaction from it anymore. To tell you the truth, I prefer my days at home with my little ratbag. It's nice to have the mix of things though.

Have a fantastic weekend people!
I'll be back next week sometime with some layouts.
Kathie

Thursday at work

Ever wondered what an injury prevention strategist does? So far this morning I have:

- researched developments from the Workplace Relations Ministers Council meeting held recently where they discussed national harmonisation of OHS laws; and briefed my colleagues

- researched national developments in OHS over the past week (research results, legal cases of note etc.)

- investigated correspondence received by an agency from WorkCover SA and reported back

- finalised a briefing paper for the senate estimates committee

- finalised a draft response to a complaint received by the Premier

I have an interesting job, don't I?
Hope you're having a good Thursday!
Kathie

Dinosaur toast and pictures

Mummy, Jar-Jar make dinosaur!
(yes, that is a toast dinosaur)

Drawing a picture for daddy.

A couple of snippets of life in the Link house today.

Hope your day has been good.

He's such a boy

"Mummy, Jar-Jar make poo!"

I look over. He's playing with the playdough. And sure enough, there on the table are three little aqua lumps that do indeed resemble poo.

"Yes" I say, "you did make poo".

I mean, what else do you say?

A big welcome

This girl has just joined the Shop and Crop design team.
Awesome, hey?
I love Jen's style of scrapping and I'm looking forward to working with her.

So much talent on that DT. I keep pinching myself that I'm part of it.
Check out the other girls in my sidebar --------->

New layouts

This week's theme for the Shop and Crop DT Gallery is to scrap the boys. Here are my layouts. Beautiful Scenic Route Grafton line. I mixed it with those Pink Paislee alpha stickers that I am developing a love affair with :) and added in a good dose of neutrals to make those colours pop.

ournaling: Looking at you in this photo, I'm struck by how much you've changed in the last month or so. You've grown up so much. You no longer have the chubby cheeks of a baby; no you're a real little boy with a little boy's grin now. I love watching you grow, but sometimes I can't help think that you're growing up way too fast!

Still experimenting with a bit of a patchwork feel. I've been admiring quilting lately and am inspired! I've added a liberal dose of hand stitching too - good ol' blanket stitch. The speedometer's from a MME Daily Dose card.

Journaling: Jamie adores Jak. Jak, well, Jak's not so sure. He treats Jamie with a healthy dose of suspicion. All Jamie wants to do is to paly; to catch Jak, touch him, pat him. But, well, Jamie's your typical two year old. He's ROUGH! And Jak's had his hair pulled, his ears tugged and his eyes poked once too often. Look at him - pleading with me - HELP!!

Mmmhmm. Paper piecing. "Kathie's grass" as Cherill calls it. More hand stitching. Some vintage book paper to bring down the tone a bit. And stamping! Woohoo! I sat down the other night while watching tellie and stamped out a whole pile of images. So they're just sitting there waiting for me to pick them. The only way to get me stamping, lol!

Work today. Back to it!
Kathie

Growing up

He's 2 and a half. I've been looking through photos this afternoon. Here's a few:






And recently:


He's growing up!

Back tomorrow with some layouts for Shop & Crop

Kathie

Dot points

No illness in the Link household this Monday morning. Yay!

Jamie spending the day with Grandparents. He was so excited to go this morning. Little fella loves his Gay and Gandy (Grandma and Grandad).

New toy library toys. To keep a little guy happy tomorrow.

Grocery shopping. Fridge stocked. Red cabbage in the oven on low, already cooking (organised me yay!) for tonight's tea.

Savouring Scrapbook Trends mini album idea book that was waiting for me on my doorstep. Yvette, yours will be on its way to you later this week :). Coffee in one hand; magazine in the other. Best way to wile away an afternoon!

New scrap goodness thanks to ST goodie box. Dream Street papers like:


Do we even get these in Australia?

Playdate tomorrow.

Playgroup wednesday.

Then work thursday and friday. Sigh.
Actually, it's not too bad. Got a parliamentary briefing note to write; a bit of research to do for my boss who has been invited to appear before a senate enquiry; a briefing to write for senate estimate committee; some info to collate on public sector policies. All interesting stuff.

Trying to pump out some layouts this week. Ever have those runs where your pages come together effortlessly? I had about five or six. And now... nothing works... everything is just effort, trying to get over the block...

S'posed to be cleaning house. Sigh. Procrastinating.

OK, I'm outa here and into the bathroom where there's a shower waiting to be scrubbed.
Have a good week!

Bump!

I was just packing up the power cord for my computer; winding it up and putting it in the cupboard. You know, just the usual tidying up.

Jamie was fetching his little tag-along bug toy from his toy cupboard right next to me. And he looked up, saw what I was doing and started to complain.

"Bump!" he cried. "Bump!". Clearly distressed.

Puzzled, I asked him what the matter was. He looked up at me, clearly not happy with what I was doing. "Buuuu-ump!" he cried, pointing up. Like it should be obvious (which it wasn't - it rarely is).

"But I'm not doing anything", I said, totally perplexed. "I'm just putting this away..."

And then it clicked!

Bump.

We've got Thomas the Tank Engine on the TV in the background.

And I'm packing up the railway tracks, over which Jamie was just about to drag his trail-along-bug "car". And make a bump - like we do when we're out driving in the car and cross a railway line.

Sometimes it takes me a while to recognise the alternate purpose for everyday household items ;)

Colours

Last night we were up at my mum and dad's place for tea. Jamie and I had given my mum a box of Roses chocolates for Mothers Day. We were in the process of devouring a good portion of them ;) after tea and the brightly coloured foil wrappers were strewn across the coffee table. Jamie was admiring one, and I asked him what colour it was.

"Def", he answered.
"Purple", I corrected.

And then mum says "I think he said Jeff".

Bless him. That's what it was.

Jamie knows his colours: Red = "Murray"; Blue = "Anthony"; Yellow = "Greg" and Purple is "Jeff".

Happy Mothers Day!!

Happy mothers day to all you hard working mums out there. Hope you had a great day.

Since I posted last I've been in bed with gastro. Urgh.

Only today did I feel back to normal again. And this morning Phil says to me "I don't feel too good". Oh oh. Yep. Urgh. He was sick all day. Poor baby.

So, after making sure that he had all that he needed for reasonable comfort - gastrolyte, telephone, wet flannel etc, I bundled Jamie in the car and we headed over to visit Janine at Scrapbook Station. I was after some Pink Paislee papers. Ooh they're sooo sweet. Big smile.

And this afternoon, while Jamie napped I did some creating. Happy happy me. Not what I was planning (there was mention earlier in the week of a shopping trip and a jacket that apparently I would love), but good anyway. And I'm hopeful that the jacket will still be there next weekend ;).

Mothers Day layouts

This week's theme at Shop and Crop is Mothers Day. Here are my layouts for the gallery. The girls have done (as usual) some stunning work. This week the entire eight members of the DT have uploaded. So much inspiration! Go and check it out.

Remember when...
Journaling: This little cutie is my mum. Look at those little chubby cheeks! That blonde hair. She is so precious, "helping" with the gardening.

When I found this photo recently, I was struck by the similarity of Jamie and my Mum at this age. Wow!


Motherhood
Journaling: This thing called motherhood caught me by surprise... In my twenties I said why sould I waste an outstanding tertiary education and a promising career by having a baby. In my thirties a doctor told me that I might never conceive. My reaction shocked me. I realised that I wanted to be a mum. I wasn't until I was forty that I finally became a mother and the intensity of my feelings for this little guy just blow me away.

I hope all you mums out there have a lovely day on Sunday and get to relax and take it easy.

Kathie

Ah, yes... I remember this merry-go-round

... the rainy weather has just struck. And for the last three weeks we've had one infection per week follow us home from childcare. Yes, we're back on the merry-go-round. Sigh.

Jamie's recovering from gastro at the moment. Blech.

I'm nauesous and sleeping lots, but seem to be OK so far. Touch wood.

Back when the house is in some sort of normality again.