Getting Back to 'Normal"

Well, whatever you want to call 'normal'.
It's normal to me I guess as nothing about my life is normal!
The house is coming along good. The paving is all done so I now have no problem getting in or out BY MYSELF! (don't take ANYTHING for granted people).
We have a lovely new stamped concrete patio and walkway, new driveway, new fence and gates and the landscaping has started but today it is noisy and busy with new wood siding going up.
Inside, we're getting organized and all but 2 boxes are unpacked. We have a nice 'new' black/stainless stove to replace the prehistoric one that was here and 'new' oak cabinets are sitting in the garage waiting to be installed. I'm waiting for the kitchen to be done before we paint and hang curtains. I know - so maybe it's still not normal but it's come a long way from having to maneuver my wheelchair over wooden planks set on mud and sand!
Being back in Ladner, added to my normalcy too. My mobility scooter had been acting up lately so hubby bought me a brand new one!I love it!! It's so quiet and smooth and has tons of features that my old one lacked. We bought my old one used over 10 years ago (1996 model) so I was due for a new one. Anyways, being able to scoot into town again and visit my old haunts and see familiar faces felt good. I felt at home again - something I never felt in Tsawwassen. Don't get me wrong - Tsawwassen is a lovely town right on the ocean and only a 10 minute drive from Ladner. It has great shops and is sunnier there even more than in Ladner - but it just wasn't home to us. So, I guess you can call us official Ladnerites now - we're here to stay!
Also, to help get back to normalcy too was the start of "Geek Club' for this year.
We have a small group this year but then again, it's summer! Who wants to be inside scrapping or doing anything for that matter when we can be outdoors! Hopefully once fall comes, we'll have more join us - if not, I enjoyed our friendly, fun little group!

We started by making a ribbon bookmark. This was so cute.
We used a metal 'frame' and inked and stamped patterned paper for the inside.I stamped a flower but you could also use a sentiment or even replace it with a photo. After the ribbon was coaxed thru the tiny holes a button and twine was added to the bottom and a rhinestone to secure the top ribbon. Although the pic only shows a closeup it is about 12 inches long and the top just has a simple knot in it.

How pretty is this:



Next we made a pretty pinwheel card. We embossed the base cs (orange) using the much loved Big Shot with polka dots. We then stamped a pretty flourish design on the white c/s (I NEED this stamp!) and added the stick for our pinwheel. We next added a sentiment onto vellum (i chose 'thinking of you' as it is always so versatile) then attached this to a c/s mat (green) and popped on our little pinwheel.

What a cute and cheerful little card.



And a Closeup:



So, that's it. I guess we'll never have 'normal' again as we once knew it. But slowly and surely we're settling into our new normal. Hubby's semi-retirement, the kids married and a new grandson on the way!
Life is good!

Xmas in June

I love the Prima 'Sweet Fairy' paper and accessories so much that I decided to make a little journal with it this week. I made each page into a pocket so that photos, emphera or whatever can be added. On each page I added a circular tab and adhered 'Pebbles' onto them. Also inside each pocket I added a circle of cardstock with a co-ordinating ribbon loop to easily pull it out. This can be used for journalling or a photo or whatever can be attached to it. Once the covers and pages were done I got out my Bind-it-all and attached everything. I used Prima 'Pebbles, Flowers and die-cut stickers to embellish. It has 'pretty'pages, 'whimsical' pages, 'romantic' pages and 'cute' pages - it's this flexibility that I like so much about this paper line.

Here's a few pics.


















As fun as it was making this, I'm still not sure what I'll do with it. I'm thinking it may be the first of different journals that I may make for xmas gifts.
Hey - not bad - it's only June and I have my first xmas gift done!
Usually when that happens I'd say I'm off to decorate the tree or do xmas baking - but instead - I'M OFF TO DO SOME GARDENING AND TO BARBECUE!!:)

I Feel So Old!

It was one year ago today that my hubby walked our baby down the aisle. (well, actually a path to the beach). She got married by the ocean on the west coast of Vancouver Island in Tofino, BC. Although known as the place where the road stops (next stop:Japan) or the surfing capital of Canada or for it's spectacular storm watching it's also known as a beloved rain forest - which translates into rain, rain and more rain! Lo and behold though Mr. Sun came out for us that day and we couldn't have asked for a nicer day. That was a year ago - where has the time gone?
Never mind that but how did our baby go from eating dirt in her sandbox to such a beautiful young woman in such a fast time. I turned around and she was all grown up!
Remind me next time to not turn around so quickly! (well, actually just sayin', there will be no next time).
But, how fast they grow!
To make matters worst, or should I say, to make me feel older, today I went to a baby shower for our daughter-in-law. Our son and his wife are expecting their first child in July. Yes - I will be a grandma - did I mention how old I feel?
But I don't mind it this time - if getting old(er) means grandbabies then bring it on! I'm ready and excited!!
I had mentioned that I was working on a special project. Well, now that the shower is over I can show you what it is. My daughter-in-law loves baking and makes cakes for all occasions. So, I made one for her. A diaper cake! No, it's not edible (probably taste like shi...uh you know what I mean - LOL) But it's diapers rolled and wrapped then stacked into layers with lots of goodies tucked in. I had so much fun making it.
I don't know what I enjoyed the most - shopping for baby stuff or making the cake!
I rolled little socks into rosettes and added them to the sides along with all the other goodies then topped it all off with a little plush dog - all in blue and white. Oh yeah, did I mention that it's a boy!!
I was pleased with the way it turned out and most importantly my daughter-in-law loved it.







I then made a little bib card to go with it. Using my BIG SHOT I cut a scalloped circle then a centre circle which I embossed with polka dots. I added flowers and brads to each side but attached the left side to 2 layers to allow the card to swing open.A ribbon was added to tie the bib to gift.



So yeah, I'm getting older (not old but older!) and I wouldn't have it any other way!!!

More Sweetness

As promised, I did go and play last night with my Prima 'Sweet Fairy' paper and made a layout of my adorable niece. This picture was taken last summer while she was a junior bridesmaid at our daughters wedding.
I love this paper line - it's colourful yet soft and whimsical yet romantic. I added Prima flowers and rhinestone swirls and the title (appropriately called Sweet) is AC Thickers.

So without further adieu here it is:



A closeup showing the beautiful Prima flowers. (flowers and paper line available at The Paper Passion.



Off to clean the house and plant flowers now - I'll be out to play on the weekend again!
Have a great week!

SWEET!

In more ways than one!
First of all our driveway and patio is done! I can finally get in and out of the house without depending on someone else to push me along planks. We spent the weekend cleaning and setting up our patio furniture. It looks great! A trip to the nursery to buy a few flowers and we'll be all set. Mind you the deck rails, soffits, fence, landscaping, lighting and painting all still need to be done - but the mud and sand is finally gone! The rest I can put up with. Free at last!
Secondly, my scrap 'space' is almost done - YAAY!! We bought shelving, baskets and boxes from Ikea and spent 2 days putting it all together. My hubby assembled the shelving units (4 in total) while I assembled the Baskets (7) and Boxes (18) - yeah I know - even those need assembled! And the boxes had screw type thingys in them so they took ages to do. Anyways, everything is set up and my scrap supplies are organized. The dining room (that I share my space with) is also set up - we just need to hang pictures and add a light fixture over the table then I will share a pic. But it looks Sweet - much sweeter than I had thought it would. This makes me a happy camper - I mean, scrapper.
Lastly, I received a fully loaded pizza box from The Paper Passion. Not only was it Sweet but it contained the 'Sweet Fairy' Line from Prima.
This paper is so cute. My daughter is grown now so I have no little girls to scrap for but this paper can be used for anyone of the feminine nature - young or old alike. I love the glimmer stickers that go with it and also the journalling tags. I haven't done a lot with it yet but I did make a 'Thinking of You' card. I hadn't scrapped for soooo long and when I received my pizza box I just HAD to make something! I have been working on another project that I will post next week but in the meantime I am going to pull out the 'Sweet Fairy' again along with all my beautiful Prima flowers and bling and create a layout of my adorable niece.

For now, here is a pic of the card.



And a closeup showing the cute glitter stickers.




Well, that's all for now. Thanks for looking - off I go to play! :)