Busy!

Both Craig and I feel as though we have been unusually busy over the last couple of weeks. Craig was away with Mitchi and Big Yammi over the weekend, so he has worked the last 2 weeks without a break, which means I haven't had a break either. Today we took it easy and had some time with the kids and also pottering in the garden.



Planting two more rows of red beet hopefully to preserve or make chutney out of. My rows are pretty crooked! Wouldn't make a very good farmer!



In this photo, you can see the vegie patch starting to take shape. I have carrots, spinach, parsnips, red beet, broadbeans tomatoes and zucchinis already up and today I planted Bernie pumpkins, purple runner beans, spuds, corn, more red beet and spinach and red onions. Tomorrow I would like to get a half row of cos lettuce and rocket in, some shallots and capsicum (may be too cold yet) and some green and butter beans. I feel a real sense of satisfaction tonight that the vegie patch is coming together so well this year after it being a dismal failure last year!



I know this photo is blurry, but Caitlin looked like such a cool cat in my sun glasses. She was very impressed that I wanted to take a photo and posed like a model!



I tried Callum on some toast crusts on Thursday. I was really surprised that he loved them! He only gagged a couple of times and actually swallowed a heap - perhaps the toasted crust off half a small slice of bread. This is really funny, considering that he can't stand a single lump in his vegies and is super fussy about the texture, temperature, thickness and vegie combinations (he likes everything mixed with apple or pear!). Caitlin thought that it was great that he was eating her crusts that she leaves all the time!



Caitlin can be so laid back some times! Here she is having a pick-wick (picnic) on her special owl plate, feet up, resting in Dad's cane chair from when he was a little boy.



I caught a photo of Callum in action blowing a raspberry today. He loves doing this and uses it as emphasis all the time - cheeky little man! Luckily he hasn't started doing it when he eats... yet.

We have the first Winner of one of the RAK packs! She finished the layouts in a super quick time and says she was on a huge roll!

And, the winner is...

Dee Wells.

A little pack of goodness is coming your way!

There are 2 more up for grabs if anyone can complete the challenge by next weekend.

ED again!

We had an eventful day yesterday. Caitlin and I were getting lunch and she was jumping around everywhere like she always does and she tripped over and... crunch, her little chin hit the floor. It was such a small fall, that when I picked her up, screaming her head off, I was really shocked - she had blood actually dripping from her and I thought that she must have put her teeth through her tongue or lip which she has done before. Actually, she had, in that really small fall, managed to put a one inch gash in the crease under her chin (where the double chin starts) and about 1/2 a centimetre deep. Blood just poured from it! She was, naturally, absolutely distraught.

We took her down to the emergency department and saw a Doctor there (can't get in to the clinic here on short notice). They debated whether to put stitches in, but they were fairly confident that skin glue would do the trick. Caitlin was such a brave little girl. She didn't cry or even complain, even when the Doctor was squeezing her cut and making her put her head right back. The Nurse managed to steri-strip her chin twice (because she didn't get it right the first time) and still no objections from Caitlin. When the Nurse said "now this might sting a little bit" that was the end of Caitlin's good humour!

When we were still at home Caitlin had been asking "they won't hurt me will they Mum?" and I had tried to play it down by saying that I didn't know and that they would be as careful as possible, not knowing if she would need stitches and that they could hurt. Caitlin screamed and kicked and would not, for anyone, stay on the trolley. She was down and on her way out of there. In the end we had to wrap her in a sheet to restrain her and while I held her down and another nurse held her head still, her chin was glued and a piece of fixomul put over the wound.

Craig said later that he didn't envy me having to do that. When I was trying to reason with her to stay on the bed, I was so close to crying. It was a really hard thing to do! Of course not long after we had finished, she calmed down and was fine. The nurse mentioned an icypole as a special treat, so she perked up quickly! I think the episode will have damaged our chances of being able to treat her easily in that sort of setting again though.

She has to keep the fixomul on for five days and is not allowed to get it wet, so I think we will give swimming a miss on Monday, just to be on the safe side. I really hope it heals well because there was a patch that bled for quite a while and it looked as though the glue had not stuck in that one spot. We will see next week.

Callum, of course took it all in his stride. He is such a calm and placid boy.

I will post some photos at a later date because my camera memory card isn't being picked up by the computer. I think I need to shut down the computer and give it a rest!

I am just working on my second layout for my challenge. Actually, it is a frame that I have been making for at least 4 months, so I thought that qualified as old stash! It is coming up nicely and I can't wait to paint the scrap room now so that it looks nice on my wall (get rid of the hideous yellow)! A couple of friends are absolutely motoring with the challenge. D has done 7 layouts and L had done 3 last time I spoke to her and I am sure she will have done more by now!

Time for bed and to check my little ones are sleeping soundly!

The New Dockers

Sorry, but I just have to say... Poor Eagles! All they have to do now is emulate Carlton and lose the rest to get some priority draft picks!

One Down

Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill. Patterned paper: Crate Paper . Stamps: Stampin' Up, Hero Arts. Ink: Color Box. Brads: Making Memories. Acetate bird: Heidi Swapp. Alphas: Making Memories, American Crafts. Gel pen: Hyper Gel. Other: thread, staples, edge distresser.

Here is layout number one for my challenge. Pretty simple, but I can't really do anything else and get it to look good! I took inspiration from Elizabeth Karchener's blog header. To get these layouts done pretty quick, I have decided that I will lift some layouts or use some sketches or even lift some of my own layouts. I have also decided that I will try to do five layouts on Caitlin and five on Callum. Seems only fair. Rolling along!

Challenging myself...

I seem to be scrapping up a storm at the moment. Running classes always inspires me to scrap more and to scrap better I think. Classes have been so much fun! Thursday night my cheeks were hurting by the end of the session, so thanks ladies! H and D, you two together are just a crack-up.

This layout is a class one (using pics of my friend L), but I love it, so thought I would post it here. I think I will do another for Caitlin but use some circles of patterned paper and perhaps the quote "she makes the world a better place" by Kobi Yamada. I have a heap of layouts to share, but I think I will upload one or two per post so as not to completely bore everyone!

I am about to start a challenge that I have set for myself - to make 10 layouts out of old supplies (no recent additions allowed) to get rid of some of my stash. It is getting out of control in my desk and need to make room for some new buttons and alphas that Craig bought me when he was down in Perth this week. The 10 layouts, no doubt, won't even make a dent on the stuff spewing from my drawers, but I have to try!

I have three small RAK's (random acts of kindness) from my stash to go out to some lucky people if you would like to join me. All you have to do is:

• Leave a comment on the blog to let me know that you are going to join in.
• Let me know every time you complete one of your 10 layouts by commenting on the blog or emailing me.
  
• When you finish all 10, email me with your name and address and I will send you a RAK if you are one of the first three to finish!

Hope this is heaps of fun! I am about to start... what are you doing reading? Go and start using your stash!

Long time no post!

Yes, I have been reminded that I should post at least as many times as Mardi Winen! (every other day!). Do I have that much news? Maybe...

I think winter has hit here. Finally the days are below 20 and the nights below 10 degrees. I am not looking forward to the really cold nights because I am still up at least once a night to Callum, so I think I might freeze (or be doing some serious controlled crying to get him to sleep all night!).



Callum has been changing heaps lately. This is his usual pose at the moment - hands shoved in his mouth to sooth his gums. He had his second hair cut last friday and is completely blond now! He is saying mum mum all the time and when he is really upset he calls out Mummm eeee! He has also started saying bub bub, which is pretty cute. He is building his language pretty fast compared to Caitlin, I think, because he is also babbling heaps and putting two sounds together already, such as goo ahhh, which I can't recall Caitlin doing so early.

On Tuesday a little tooth popped through at the bottom. He now has 3 teeth at the top and 3 at the bottom. I was having a feel a little while ago and I think the 4th tooth at the bottom will be next - I can feel it just sitting there. I can't wait for all these teeth to come through because he has been so unsettled and in heaps of pain with them. At least he has started eating again. He had 3 days where it was far too painful for the spoon to go into his mouth (even the rubber ones we use).

Today, for the first time, Cal put up his arms for me to pick him up! Yay! I love it when they start to do that. I know when he is excited to see me because he kicks and wriggles all over the place, but actually making a "pick me up" gesture is just great.



Caitlin and I had our review at the naturopath last week and she is impressed with how well we are both doing. Caitlin is just a changed girl. Not that she has ever been a really naughty kid, but she could get really grumpy and difficult sometimes but she is now mostly a very agreeable girl. She chatters all the time, sings the most amazing songs that I have never even heard before (and she knows all the words) and is just the best company. Neither of us have had a cold either, so that is the best news of all considering how sick we were last winter. Craig has his review next week and I think he will be doing well too. He is almost off his reflux tablets and feeling well.

Craig has been away in Perth for 2 nights for a business meeting and will be home on the last flight tonight. It is our wedding anniversary today, so it will be great to have him home . We are going to get some nice take-away from Villa Maritana and have a romantic tea in! Then tomorrow, he trips off again with Big Yammi from Mitsubishi in Japan and won't be home again until late Sunday, so I will be missing him heaps by then.

Time to give Cal a snack! I will post some scrapping stuff after the snack.