ONLY JOKING

It's the first day of term......yippee!! and wanted to share a photo of my two handsome boys in their new uniforms. Lewis is starting Senior School today - such a big step for him - and Sam, my baby, starts at Junior School. Funny enough, it was Sam who was really nervous, Lewis was just worried about the homework!! Anyway, Daddy was here when they woke up this morning and it was great to have some support in re-assuring them (and to lace up the football boots lol!) It's my day off today so now Tony has gone back to work, I'm not sure what to do with myself! Did all my housework yesterday so I'm twiddling my thumbs a bit. Did stamp out a couple of images earlier but to be honest, I can't wait for my two babies to come home and tell me all about it - how sad am I! I'm sure all those of you who have kids know exactly what I mean! Hope to be back soon with a couple of cards but not today!!

At long last I have a card to show! I made a few of these for the boys' Teachers last week but just haven't had time to put it on my blog. The image and sentiment are from Elzybells and the bunny has been coloured with Promarkers with some doodling around the edges. Cardstock is My Mind's Eye (double sided). Used the Fiskars punch along one side and added some flowers and sticky gems from my stash. Kept to a very simple layout as I had to make three of these the night before the kids broke up for the holidays - last minute again! Luckily Lewis made a fabulous card for his Teacher but unfortunately, because of the rush, I forgot to photograph it! It was a very emotional day last Friday - both boys were leaving their respective schools for good - Lewis will be starting senior school in September and Sam will starting at Juniors. Needless to say the Leavers' Assemblies were tear jerking to say the least and we were all blubbering wrecks by the time we walked out of the sch...

Just popping by to say Hi and to let you know I will have a card to show soon - it was Sam's birthday on Saturday so had a busy and fun weekend. However, forgot to photograph the card I made him so will try to do that soon so I can put it on my blog. In the meantime, I would like to introduce the newest member of our family - Noodles (Sam's choice of name, not mine!). I think I near enough blinded the poor little fella when I took this photo earlier this evening pmsl! We've already had a couple of mishaps with him since Saturday, one certain Son of mine let him out of his cage on Saturday.....mentioning no names LEWIS! and I learned one vital lesson - don't stand up when holding the hamster because when they try to escape, they bounce off the furniture as they fall!! Seriously, the hamster is fine and wasn't hurt. Sam thinks he so cool and they call him James Bond because of his antics.....personally, I think he's more like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible........

Just a very quick post to show a couple of photos of Lewis on his way to London last Monday. He should be having a fantastic time by now and I can't believe how quiet the house is without him! I've also had tears from Sam because he's missing him dreadfully......bless him! Lots to do today but hope to be back with a card tomorrow.

Thought I'd pop back and just show what my boys looked like this morning! Just a quick explanation for anyone who doesn't live in the UK - Red Nose Day or Comic Relief is a time for people to do something silly to raise money for charity. My eldest, Lewis decided that apart from buying his red nose, he was going to dye his hair red, go to school in his pyjamas, be tied to his best friend all day, and do a sponsored silence. If you knew my Son, you'd know that the last one was particularly hard for him to do as he never stops talking! Anyway, he managed it.....well done Lewis! Sam hasn't been very well at all today although he seems a bit brighter now and managed to keep a sandwich down. However, he still managed to put his red nose on this morning and give me a smile! Hope you all have a great weekend - red noses or not!

I haven't got a card to show today but do have some photos. We've had a busy time in our home just recently - firstly the Tooth Fairy has paid a visit FIVE times in the last couple of weeks and just couldn't resist showing you this photo of Sam - he's now lost his top two teeth - don't they look so cute when that happens! Plus, it's great hearing him trying to talk and seeing him try to eat lol!!! Lewis has lost three teeth but he's more camera shy!! Yesterday was a big day for Sam. Firstly, his class did their assembly at school and the topic was traditional stories so the class did a rap of Red Riding Hood - it was so funny and they looked so cute in their shades, baseball caps and bling (which they made themselves out of pasta and paint!!) Then, in the evening Sam's big moment had come and he graded for his Black Belt at Tae Kwon-do and he did me and his big brother proud! What a star! The belt is actually embroidered with his name and the date of his...

Oh, I so wish I was tucked up in my bed, however, it's 11.40 at night and my kids are still not asleep!! They are so excited and of course, Mummy can't go to bed until I've done the things a Mummy has to do on Christmas Eve! (Got to be very careful as my eldest reads my blog!). I've already fallen asleep on the sofa once tonight so thought I would load a couple of photos on my blog to pass the time. The first is a small Christmas gift I made for my MIL. It's a fridge magnet kit from K & Co so thought it might come in handy for her. I got the kit from Hobbycraft a little while ago. The second photo is a picture of my two boys, which was taken last Sunday when we paid a visit to Santa. Going to check on the little rascals once more in the hope of being able to get to bed myself sometime soon. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who visits my blog and leave such kind comments and would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New...

Even though the sun is out today (still cold with a heavy frost last night!), things are not so sunny inside! The boys are still not well and just to top it all, I woke up with a splitting headache...just hoping I haven't caught it as well because that's how Sam's bug started! Two things to share with you today and one of them is this photo I took last night - I left the boys downstairs watching TV while I went to get their rooms ready for bed and feed the guinea pigs and at one point I thought "they're extremely quiet", so downstairs I go, only to find this...... Oh, bless them! See, I knew they loved each other really!! Sam was fast asleep and dribbling everywhere but Lewis didn't seem to mind! The second thing I have to show is a card I made recently for my Dad to give to one of his friend's little girls. I had this image already coloured so just picked out the papers and put it together - it was only when I was photographing it that I thought I...

Sorry I haven't posted a card yet today but have been out visiting our new baby Ruby and thought you might like to take a peek. Not a wonderful photo of me but just look at her.....isn't she a little darling!! I've told Sam that I'm going to dress him up in baby clothes and cuddle him all day!!! Will be back later with a card to share.

Hi All, sorry but no cards to show today as I've been busy trying to get some order to my craft stash so I can knuckle down and do some work! Also, had an excellent weekend and a really fun day out on Saturday at Paultons Park. The weather was fantastic and I think we managed to go on nearly every ride....I think the highlight of the day had to be the Go Carts - me and Sam -v- Tony and Lewis - which ended in a draw, but what a scream!!! The log ride came a close second where, of course, they were all trying to fix it so I was the only one who got soaking wet!! We were exhausted by the time we got home but was able to spend a very relaxing evening with plenty of wine! Anyway, thought I would share a couple of photos with you and will be back soon with some cards.

So sorry it may seem that I've been ignoring you but crafting has taken a bit of a back seat of late while I've been concentrating on my personal life. Had a really peaceful, enjoyable last ten days. We've also been enjoying some great weather down here at long last (unlike some of the foreign holiday resorts!), so me and Tony took the boys to the beach on Saturday and had a really fun time! It gave us chance to all spend some quality time together as a family and me and Tony even had some quality time of our own! So thought I would share a couple of photos with you! Will try a bit harder now to get some cards made! Thanks for stopping by.

As some of you may be aware, High Hopes have released their new set of stamps and Ila who is part of their DT has some gorgeous blog candy on offer. If for some insane reason you're not interested in winning some HH stamps, I urge you to visit Ila's blog because her work is absolutely stunning.....I love it!! So pop on over and take a look and try your luck!! Well, we got home from the fete yesterday just in time as it poured with rain! However, the boys enjoyed themselves and thought you might like to see a photo of them with their balloons!! If you're wondering what Lewis is holding, it's a palm tree with a bear climbing up it!! I didn't realise until I had taken the picture, that there is a photo behind them taken six years ago......do you think they have grown?!!! Hope your Sunday is a bit drier than mine.....very wet and windy down here!!

As promised, I'm back to let you in on my surprise for Tony tomorrow! Don't know where to start with this but maybe a little personal history first. When I married Tony in 1996 I was a UK size 14. I've always had to watch my weight and never been naturally thin but was never vastly overweight either. In March 1997 I fell pregnant with Lewis and that's when the trouble started.....the weight piled on and after he was born as well because I wasn't eating properly and just grabbing food out of the fridge when I had a spare five minutes.....oh, the joys of being a new Mum! Then I got pregnant again with Sam and even though I didn't gain much more weight during pregnancy, I made up for it afterwards! Am I boring you yet! It took me ten years and many failed diets to finally get serious about losing weight so I started my diet in January this year and this is the evidence....... please do not show the first photo to small children or animals as it may scare them !!!!!...

...well, almost! For people who know me, it's obvious you can't shut me up for long but I was overwhelmed by the number of cards, good wishes, etc., I received for my birthday....you really are a lovely lot of ladies!!! I've had a lovely day - very peaceful and quiet doing absolutely nothing at all apart from make my birthday cake. I made it for the boys really but did enjoy a piece of it with a coffee this afternoon....lemon cake, my favourite!!! Last Sunday I had to go to Craft Central for some double-sided tape and took Sam with me (he's six by the way). He had a wander around the shop and when it was time to leave told me that he had seen something he wanted to buy me for my birthday which was £3.99!! He assured me that he had enough in his piggy bank and could I phone Vanessa to ask her to take him back to the shop after school the next day!! I tried to explain that it was too far for Vanessa to come but that if he really wanted to spend his money on me, I would t...