IKEA, Ice-Cream and other stuff

So I am still on holidays - only a couple of days to go. It's been so great and so relaxing. Just what I needed to get me through till the end of another year. We've managed to pack in quite a bit over the last couple of days. Monday was a bit of a veg day. Tuesday we went looking for new bathroom stuff as we have to get our bathroom renovated. We ended buying a new bath, toilet and vanity cabinet. We found this awesome builders/renovaters warehouse and the stuff was really well priced and we found exactly what we were looking for. Now we just have to find tiles and then get the process started. Wednesday we went to IKEA - totally one of my fav places to visit. Love all the rooms, the furniture is cool and all those storage ideas - AHHH! Love love love it. If I had to be left behind, locked in a shop all night, it would be IKEA. I'd sleep on their beds, run around like a crazy woman and eat swedish meatballs all night!! We checked out a couple of storage trolley thingys for my scrap stuff. Got some ideas so that's cool. Bought a funky as little set of drawers that I am going to alter and cover and funky up. Will share a pic once I've done it (hopefully finish on Saturday)
Today Andrew and I went out for breakfast - love going out for breakfast. We then drove up to Healesville to check out the new Beechworth Bakery up there (YUMMM) Grabbed some lunch and ice-cream, checked out a few shops - antiques, crafts, op-shops. It was such a fun day and such awesome weather.
We're off to the Grand Final parade in the city tomorrow. Should be fun - will hopefully be checking Koko Black - an awesome chocolate place. If we can't find, I may just have to take Andrew to Max Brenners.

Sorry about the drivel. But hey I'm on holidays!!

5 things I am grateful for today
1. The opportunity to hang out with Andrew for the week and reconnect with each other
2. A gorgeous day in the sun today
3. Bacio Ice-Cream - WOW
4. That I can now swim 400m non-stop (swimming course is in 1 1/2 weeks
5. That I have three more days of holidays

Till next time

THE DILEMMA

So again I've been MIA. Was at a youth conference for the end of last week and just tried to relax a little over the weekend. And now I am on a week's holiday. YAY!! So need this week off. Today I vegged out. Tidy the house a little, did a bit of garden, watched crappy daytime TV - yeah to Oprah and Queer Eye. Tonight I have been banished from watching TV as the Brownlow is on and Andrew must watch that! Hopefully we'll be able to get away for a couple of days - even if they are day trips.

Anyway, to my dilemma. Our household is soon to become very tense. You see I am a Sydney Swans supporter and my hubby Andrew is a West Coast Eagles fan. Now I am not what you would call a die hard fan - I like to see them win but am not beside myself with grief if they lose. Andrew on the other side - DIE HARD FAN. Last year our teams were in the Grand Final together as well and Sydney won - Andrew took it hard. This year if Swans win again, I don't think he'll deal with that to well.

So the dilemma is, do I be a good supporter this week and pray that Sydney wins. Or do I put my marriage first and become an honourary Eagles supporter?? LOL such a dilemma. If the Swans win, I may be staying at a friends house on Saturday night!!

5 things I am grateful for today
1. New photos to scrap (Andrew is at the Grand Final all day Saturday so I am scrapping!)
2. A week of holidays!
3. A great night watching Idol with friends last night
4. That my hubby got GF tickets (he is so excited)
5. Did I say I'm on holidays! Hee Hee!

Till next time

My LOs from Scrap Pile Cyber Crop

Just wanted to share the two LOs I did over the weekend. Was going to do it yesterday but Blogger wasn't playing nice. First one is of my hubby Andrew and my friend Cath's hubby Mark. Just celebrating the fact that they have become good friends as well now.

Second LO is of me with my grandparents (Dad's parents) I think I was a pretty cute kid actually.


















I am so excited I got some scrapbooking done. Really want to get some more done while I am on holidays next week.

That's all I wanted to share!!

5 things I am grateful for today
1 Another lovely day
2 That I finished my book last night!
3 Chicos!! YUM
4 That we're getting broadband really soon
5 That my lovely hubby is getting two relaxing weeks off!

Till next time

Busy Week ahead then RELAX

So again I've been an absent blogger for a week or so. I just totally forget to update my own blog - too busy reading other people's!! Had a great weekend. Wasn't too busy which is nice. Spent Friday night on the computer at Scrap Pile's first Cyber Scrapbooking Crop. Was lots of fun and there were some great challenges for the night. I managed to get a couple of LOs started (and finished them over the weekend) and I am pretty happy with how they turned out. I'll share them later cause Blogger is being a poo and not letting me load photos! GRRR!!
Sunday went to church and actually got to sit through the whole thing. I usually run a teen small group during the sermon but we don't run during holidays so it was nice to hear a sermon!!
Had Sunday lunch at some friend's house. They are going to train to be Salvation Army officers at the start of next year (for 2 years) and they have to move into a college in the city so Andrew and I are looking after their dogs for the next couple of years. Was pretty cool to meet our fur foster kids, Ally and Patch. They are such gorgeous dogs - both in looks and personality. I hope they like us.

Last night I played basketball again and as usual we lost. I don't even think we are that bad. We just don't seem to be able to get that ball through the hoop as often as the other team. I am sure we'l win one day.

The rest of the week I am flat out helping out with a youth conference run by the Salvos called Youth ACC. Should be a great event but tiring as well.

Which is why I have a week of holidays next week. I am so excited. I haven't had holidays, during the year, for about 1 1/2 years now. Just never got around to taking them. So hopefully Andrew and i will be able to get away for a couple of days and just chill out. Will be so nice

Anyway, i gotta go and get some more stuff done for this conference. Will be back at the end of the week!

5 things I am grateful for today
1. That Reigan got voted off Aussie Idol - I wasn't a fan!
2. That I'm on holidays next week
3. Awesome scrapping websites, Scrap Pile & Scrap of Faith
4. That I've almost finished the book I am reading "The Book Thief" - all 584 pages!! Only 70 to go!
5.That God loves me!

Till next time!

I am a TV Star!

So my hubby and I were totally on TV last night. On "Thank God you're here". I was only expecting to maybe be in the shots when they spoke to Tom Gleisner but there was one close up shot of some audience members and it was Andrew, myself and our friends Graeme & Matt. The only close up shot of the audience in the whole show! HA HA! We are superstars! LOL. If you want my autograph, just email me! :)

Not much else happening today. Went totally housework crazy yesterday. Cleaned the whole house. Got all the washing done. And I even managed to fit in some scrapbooking. Feels so good to have a clean and tidy house and no washing to do. That pretty much never happens.

My mum, dad and sister are coming over for tea tonight so it'll be good to catch up with them.

The swimming is getting there. Went on Tuesday night and managed to do 300m without stopping and then an extra 300m after a little break. Am off to the pool later today as well. Hopefully be able to do 300m without stopping again. I'm slowly working my way up to 400m non-stop.

And I just wanted to share a couple of pictures of the Fruits of the Spirit tin I made in an online scrap class for Scrap of Faith (click link on the side) the other week.



I am really happy with how it turned out. I think the colours look really great together.

So that's about it for now.

5 things I am grateful for today
1. A great bible study last night
2. That my mum, dad & sister are coming for tea
3. The book of Psalms (am reading it with some of the girls from Scrap of Faith)
4. A clean house and no washing
5. That I am loved

Till next time

Much ado about nothing

Nothing much has been happening in my world of late, but my friend Bruce (an avid reader of my blog) told me I needed an update so here goes.
What to say, what to say?? I think I may do the random dot point style of blog today - something that has become very popular among HTML land (like the geek speak, Bruce!)

• I am totally loving Idol this year. The singers are all really awesome and it will be hard to pick who goes each week (unless of course someone has a real shocker of a performance)
• I'm not doing too badly with the Bronze medallion training. Have to be able to swim 400m non-stop. At the start of training I could do about 75m. I can now swim 200m. I have 4 weeks to go! EEEKK!
• Another thing I am totally loving is the Australian scrapbooking website ScrapPile. Loving the challenges and it's making me scrapbook again.
• Totally loathing Germaine Greer and her totally insensitive comments about Steve Irwin, her lack of class and her lack of any idea about Australia. Bitter, bitter old lady.
• Getting pretty excited about FIJI now. Only 4 months to go. It's going to be a lot of fun
• Getting a little tired of losing every week in Basketball - I still have lots of fun though. We are officially on the bottom of the ladder. There was another team who was there with us - they too were yet to win a game - they beat us last night!! HA HA LOL. It really is quite funny. At least we made them feel good.
• Love that I have the night at home. Might get stuck into a scrapping challenge from Scrap Pile
• Love getting yummy scrapbooking packages in the mail. Soo goood!

Well that's about it for now. Hopefully post again really soon. Have to go for a swim now.

5 things I am grateful for today

1. Diet Coke - love this stuff and no WW points

2. Nail buffer - love how it makes my nails so shiny

3. A pool close to our house so I can go and train

4. My friend Bruce (and Jackie) for reading my blog when he should be working!

5. Freshly mown grass - love that smell (and I'm grateful to my hubby for mowing it!)

Everyone needs to watch Thank God you're here on Ch 10 tomorrow night at 7:30pm. It was the one I went to the taping of. You may get a glimpse of me when they cross to Tom but you may not - depends how wide your TV is!! But it's a funny ep and worth a watch

Till next time

Post # 90

Can't believe I have made 90 posst on this blog. Not to sound cliche or anything, but wow is this year flying or what. As if it's only 3 1/2 months till Christmas. Not that I'm complaining or anything cause I love Christmas. Bring it on, I say! Have managed to get a bit of scrapping done this week. Feels good to be creative again. Came across this quote the other day and it really struck a chord with me

While it takes courage to achieve greatness, it takes more courage to find fulfilment in being ordinary. For the joys that last have little relationship to achievement, to standing one step higher on the victory platform. What is the adventure in being ordinary? It is daring to love just for the pleasure of giving it away. It is venturing to give new life and to nurture it to maturity. It is working hard for the pure joy of being tired at the end of the day. It is caring and sharing and giving and loving MARILYN THOMSEN

There is worth in being ordinary. Being ordinary is not about not trying. It's not about being lazy and letting others do stuff. It's about being happy to be who you are, where you are and being good at it. It's about being a first rate you rather than a second rate somebody else. It's about realising that everyone has someone to influence - not just those that we see as having achieved greatness.

So enjoy being ordinary. Be great at being ordinary and see how powerful being ordinary can really be

5 things I am grateful for today
1. That I am ordinary
2. A free Saturday tomorrow
3. A sleep in tomorrow - YEAH
4. Some scrapping time this weekend
5. My family

Till next time, have a great weekend

I've been published

I am soo happy. I found out back in January that one of my LOs would be published in the magazine Scrapbooking Memories and finally the issue has arrived. I have been stalking my letterbox for over a week now and started doing a happy dance in the car as I pulled in the driveway and saw that mag sticking out of the letterbox. This is my first time at being published in a magazine and although I don't scrapbook so that I can get my work published, it's kind of exciting to see something you created in a magazine that 1000's of people will look at.
It's not the best LO I've done and it's not my favorite but I am still totally stoked. The other cool thing is that my LO is one the same page as my good friend Katie's page. Love her work.

So that is my super happy news today. Not much else happening in my world. We lost basketball again last night but we had a ball so that's the main thing. And it's helping me get fitter which is very necessary.

Have got a pretty casual week this week - so nice for a change. Am hoping to get stuck into some scrapping. Haven't done a page for ages.

5 things I am grateful for today

1. The opportunity to have my page published

2. Spaghetti Bolognaise for tea - YUM

3. The school kids I get to hang out with at lunchtime as part of my job

4. Grey's Anatomy & Australian Idol - totally loving these shows and one of the reasons I am not getting my scrapbooking done

5. That my hubby's school concert went well last night. Only 1 1/2 weeks till school holidays.

Till next time.

MIA and D&M

Spring has sprung well and truly. Today has just been the most beautiful day outside. So I know I've been missing in action over the last couple of weeks and only posting occasionally. Bad blogger but life is just a little crazy. Hope it will get a little more subdued for a bit now. I promised last blog that I wasn't going to do the whole today I did this and yada yada, cause frankly my life ain't really that interesting at the moment. So deep and meaningful is what I promised.
I was in a shop called Socrates the other day - totally love that shop. It's kind of like Australian Geographic/crossed with a toy shop. Lots of cool gadgets and things to play with. So I saw a big rack of cards - love cards, and came across a few with some really awesome quotes on them and they really made me think. I love quotes. Love that other people have said exactly what I am trying to say. I love that they have the ability to really make you think and go "Aha!"

The first one said- Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.

How awesome is that. Peace isn't about no noise, it's about peace in your heart. Having inner peace. The sort of peace that you know you are where you are supposed to be.


The other quote was - Live in the moment and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering FANNY CROSBY

That is so true. Especially for those of us who are scrapbookers. Sometimes we are so worried about taking that perfect photo or capturing that perfect moment that we actually miss what the moment truly is. We need to live in the moment. Make life beautiful and make it worth remembering

So what are you doing to make life beautiful

5 things I am grateful for
1. Wise people who say wise things that make me think
2. Free tickets to the movies so Andrew and I can go on a date
3. An opportunity to hang out with my youth group tomorrow night
4. Books to read
5. Australian Idol - loving this series.

Off to the movies tonight with Andrew. Have a great weekend

Till next time