Toucan Scraps and News

Outside The Lines

2012-02-13T16:36:00.003Z

I've finished my art journaling page about Colouring Outside the Lines.

I used a combination of the Follow Your Art Feb 2012 kits by Cilenia Curtis, Aria, and Angie Young. And Being Me by Angie Young

Art Journal - Pregnancy Loss

2012-02-10T20:47:00.004Z

I've finished my art journaling pages about my pregnancy loss story.

I used the Follow Your Art Workshop kits for Feb 2012. Find out more about the free year long workshop here.

TJ's Entry - Letraset Colouring Competition

2012-02-10T16:58:00.001Z

And here's TJ's entry for the Colouring Competition at Letraset. coloured with Promarkers

Roo's Entry for the Letraset Colouring Competition

2012-02-10T16:34:00.003Z

Roo used Promarkers to colour his owl in for this month's Colouring Competition at Letraset.

Letraset Colouring Competition

2012-02-10T16:16:00.009Z

This month's image for the Letraset Colouring Contest is a doodled owl. He's so sweet and there are so many many ways he could be coloured in. I could re colour him over and over again. The kids are enjoying it too. I'll share their's with you in the following posts.

As I was thinking about colouring this image today and all the design lines I was reminded of something an art mentor said to us once - never the frightened to colour outside of the lines. This applies to our lives as well as our art and I think I need to do some colouring outside the lines for real this week. I'm thinking another art journaling project is in order ....

So for today I coloured outside the doodled design lines making them part of the texture of the piece. I used Letraset Tria Markers.

Fermented Brazilian Cheese Breads

2012-02-10T10:35:00.007Z

I overheard the ladies in the corner talking about the Brazilian new comer's contribution to the toddler group party buffet. They're not made with normal flour, she imports it from Brazil. I went over to join in and asked her what its called - Cassava root. Well that will be gluten free so I allowed the kids to have some and they were very popular.

Daniel did an internet search for me and we do have that flour here in England - we call it Tapioca.

The nutritional value of flours increases if you ferment them. And with gluten free baking we've discovered it also makes the finished goods lighter and fluffier.

I tried out the Brazilian Cheese Breads this week using fermented flour.

They are puffed up straight from the oven but flatten down as they cool. Eaten fresh from the oven the breads are crispy on the outside and gooey in the middle. Once cooled right down they become spongy.

The Recipe.

To ferment the Flour - Start the Day Before.

Measure 2 cups of Cassava (Tapioca) flour into a bowl. (For a lower carb version use 1 cup Cassava and 1 cup coconut flour).
Add 1 cup live Kefir and stir in.
Leave covered for about 12 hours

Daniel makes our Kefir. If you can't get hold of any you could use live Buttermilk or Live plain unsweetened yoghurt instead. It needs to be live in order to ferment the flour - pasteurised won't work. if you live near a dairy farm you might be able to get hold of some unpasteurised whey.

Rest of the Ingredients

1/2 cup melted butter
1 tsp salt
2 cups grated cheese
2 eggs

Making the Cheese Breads.

Preheat the oven to moderate (170 deg C)
Mix everything together in the bowl used to ferment the flour to form a thick batter
Spoon into bun moulds
Bake for 10 - 20 mins until golden brown

The kids had some of these fresh with their dinner yesterday and cold in their lunch boxes for school today.

Turnip Smoothie

2012-02-10T10:13:00.005Z

This morning's breakfast smoothie was such a success that I just had to write down what went in it. Thank you Daniel it was fabulous.

1 turnip
1 large bananna
2 mini pears

Note: all the ingredients are raw, yes even the turnip, and Daniel blended it all together in our OmniBlend.

One for You, One for Me

2012-02-08T09:15:00.002Z

Another one for me ... The little monkey was cheating at snap by sneaking in extra cards for herself when dealing. My scrapbooking mind grabed a camera and was thinking layout! This month's sketch at Digitals sprang to mind and I could "see" the title spread across the bottom in my mind.

Sitting at my laptop whist Tisha does some gluing I put the bare bones of my layout together and promptly got stuck - which kit(s) shall I use? The pink in this month's inspiration kit at CKC matched up with the very pink photo so I had a look at that kit more closely for other colours and element ideas.

Bingo cards - Angie Young's What a World Needs

Tickets - Cilenia Curtis Vintage Love

Doily - Sarah Meyer's Cute Cakes Freebie

She's only 3 so I'll need some fun things too. Perhaps a smiley face button (Jan Hosford), some dolls and teddies (DeDe Smith).

Paper with small heart print - Nicki Beaudreau

And to finish off, a childish font (Darlin BTN) a paper and alpha from Cilenia Curtis

The View Outside My Window

2012-02-06T10:47:00.005Z

Further to all those news reports about the chaos caused by harsh winter weather here in the UK I thought I'd share a photo of the view from my window this morning.

A Classic Aspergers Day.

2012-02-04T19:43:00.004Z

Today is one of those classic Aspergers days. Roo always has to have every day planned out in advance. If we don’t have any plans he develops his own. For today he decided upon a Pyjama Day, a day mostly spent in his bedroom rediscovering the toys he hasn’t played with for a while. Expecting daddy to propose a trip to the park, Roo planned to stay at home with mummy to make something instead.

A perfectly wonderful day, except for one little thing. Today is our snow day. It started snowing at lunchtime and is expected to end in rain by early evening. We have tried to encourage the lad to go outside and play in it. “No. No, today is a pyjama day. I’ll play in the snow tomorrow”.

Sorry son, there won’t be any snow tomorrow. Let's hope and pray it's not an Aspergers Melt-Down day.

Well, I couldn't really resit scrapbooking that now could I? I used Angie Young's new kit called Being Me - just perfect for my little boy. The date tags are by Cilenia Curtis.

Roo's Recycle Box

2012-02-04T12:53:00.005Z

Daniel's taken the girls out to the park, but Roo didn't want to go. It's far too cold for him, either that or it didn't fit into his previously planned out day.

Mummy time was definitely in the plan as he came to sit on my knee whist I read through my emails etc. My u-tube update included a tutorial by Vadeler on making a pillow box using a toilet roll tube. Here is the box Roo made, he remembered all the steps very well.

6 Fold Mini Album

2012-02-04T10:22:00.006Z

A while I go I came across a video tutorial from Split Coast Stampers for a 6 fold card, as I watched it I was thinking "this would make a great mini album". I've made one for our God Parents to arrive on Valentines day. They love us loads and the photos would really bless them with us not being able to visit.

I used Cilenia's Vintage Love and Young Love kits.

Follow Your Art - Love

2012-02-03T09:33:00.004Z

There is a popular song in modern churches that contains the lyrics "It's not about me, .. It's all about you Lord." I was art journaling with this song in mind and felt that God was saying this back.

I used the Feb Follow Your Art kits by Cilenia and Aria (they are on 15% off through to Sunday). The hearts shapes were made using Sarah Meyer's Heart Clip Its.

Pregnancy Loss

2012-02-02T17:40:00.003Z

Those of you who follow my blog will know a little about the 3 fabulous children I have with me here on Earth. TJ was actually my 4th baby, they have older siblings in Heaven. Two were lost to miscarriage and the third was still born at 32 weeks.

I've been reading people's stillbirth stories for a while and decided to have a go at writing mine down. This is our story.

In 2000, Daniel and I decided it was time for us to start a family. We did all the right things and took all the recommended steps for preparation. I got pregnant with my first baby in the Autumn that year. At 7 weeks I started to bleed. The emergency scan was inconclusive and I continued to bleed for a further 3 weeks. The 10 week scan confirmed that my baby had died, but the embryo was still implanted. An operation was needed to complete my incomplete miscarriage. We were devastated. It was the 5th of November, I could see the celebration fireworks through the hospital window - celebration was the last thing on my mind. Bonfire night will always have a tinge of sadness for me.

We called our baby Misha. All we have to show for his/her existance are photos of the flowers our employer sent us (we worked for the same Company) and the love in our hearts.

When I got pregnant again I was too scared to tell anyone, and then I bled heavily and completely at 7 weeks - Simon(e). One of our elders spotted something was wrong and took me to one side to find out. I was then instructed to tell at the moment I even thought I might be pregnant again - how were they supposed to support me if they do not know. I couldn't face another pregnancy and decided to go on the pill with my next period. A period that did not arrive - I was already pregnant again.

To say I was scared would be an understatement when at 7 weeks I bled for a few hours. When the bleeding stopped and a scan the next day showed a beating heart we thought we were home and dry. At 7 months things just didn't feel right, the baby wasn't moving normally and I was so tired all the time. I was told the baby was running out of room, that's all.

On the Wednesday I saw the Midwife who said I measured fine, there was little movement and I was told to count kicks - it I didn't get 10 by 6pm to call in. I called in. When I was examined the machinery couldn't count my baby's heart beat it was far too fast. I was transferred to the consultant unit at the next town and stayed the night.

Thursday afternoon I finally saw the Dr. She did a scan and told us our baby was in heart failure. Heart failure had started some time ago and it might now be too late. Too Late! Too Late! Why couldn't I have be seen earlier? Several hours later after various tests on my heart I was pumped with heart drugs to try and stabilise my unborn babies heart beat.

On Friday evening there was a flourish of movement, after nearly 3 days of nothing, my heart leapt in joy only to be dashed to pieces an hour later when the death word came - no more heart beat.

Joel was born in the early hours of Tuesday morning on the 29th January 2002.

5 years later, with encouragement and help from ladies who had also lost babies to stillbirth I started to create a memorial album for Joel. It can be viewed on-line here.

Joel's first birthday was filled with mixed emotions. It was the day I had a positive pregnancy test result. When TJ was born screaming at the top of her lungs I heard Daniel's breath echoing mine "This One's Alive!"

Blogged with encouragement from Pour Your Heart Out

WOYWW 2012

2012-02-01T09:46:00.006Z

It's been a while and I've missed some fun and games at What's on Your Work Desk Wednesday. I'm back, or rather my desk is. It's not been used a lot for crafting recently as we've been concentrating on a huge household re-organise and de-clutter. I still have a few areas left to tackle but am taking a little break.

Daniel bought me some pink boxes for re-arranging the craft storage on top of my wardrobe. I can now get stuff down somewhat easier.

The boxes came with lots of tiny ones too that have been used to separate sequins, beads, brads and flowers etc making them easier to find. Tisha thinks my stash is sparkles heaven and keeps wanting me to get it down for her to play with.

Do They Have Balloons In Heaven?

2012-01-29T10:00:00.000Z

My stillborn son, Joel, will be 10 today. The grief is lessening as time passes, but doesn't go away. I added an art journal page to my son's memorial album this week. You can see it by clicking here if you wish. The page is entitled "Do They Have Balloons In Heaven?"

Shopping

2012-01-27T20:45:00.005Z

Went shopping with my mum in town today, it was great to spend the time with her and the little one got treated to a new outfit for Daisy. The others got something special too. A boutique was having it's final days of a closing down sale and I picked up a few things there to update my wardrobe with. Will get TJ to take some photos of me in them to show you soon.

My dad's got his telescope mounted and set-up at their new home and has invited the kids to come round and see the moon at the weekend. Both TJ and Roo seem to already know that it is made of rock. Tisha, however, is expecting it to be made of white shiny things.

For those of you that have been encouraging me with the sort-out, de-clutter and re-organise, it's about 2/3 complete now. Thank you for your support.

Drayton Manor Layout

2012-01-25T21:07:00.001Z

I've not had a lot of energy for paper crafting these last few weeks but have been having a lot of fun and stress release from scrapbooking. When I saw Angie Young's latest love themed kit, What The World Needs, the lovely warm orangey colours with light pink and brown caught my eye. The colour matches my daughter's coat really well, and this month's colour challenge at EAD.

I chose some photos taken at Drayton Manor a few years ago, and the layout design was taken from a template Cilenia gave as a freebie in a recent Digitals newsletter.

Creatively Raw

2012-01-25T10:00:00.000Z

Creatively Raw is my latest art journal page about goal setting for the free Follow Your Art Workshop being run by Cilenia Curtis. I mixed Aria's Food for Thought kit with the Jan Follow Your Art Worshop kits and one of my alpha's. The journaling on the page is based on my previous blog post sharing the recipe for the side dish shown (you can find it here)

Laundry Day Layouts

2012-01-24T14:21:00.015Z

Now for the moment you have all been waiting for - the finished layout of my kids enjoying Laundry Day at the Victorian Working Museum. I've used items I collected together for my Jan CKC kit (details here and here).

I was originally planning a single layout for both kids, but changed my mind as I was putting the page together. This one is for my son's album.

With a few changes made to the first layout I have one done for my daughter too. This is one of the wonderful benefits of digital scrapbooking.

Museum Layout Preparation - Laundry Day Addon

2012-01-24T14:00:00.002Z

This is part 2 of the layout preparation process I am sharing with you this month, you can see part 1 by clicking here. I've glanced through the many photos we have from our working museum visits and I chose some from Summer 2009. I remember my kids loving working at the Laundry at Blists Hill Museum. Roo wanted to go back again several times.

These photos would make a fairly monochromatic layout with the base kit I put together last week. That would work, but in this layout I want to capture some of the joy and excitement the activity produced. To do this I'm going to add a splash of colour, taking colours from the children's clothing as my starting point: Orange and Lavender.

This month's CKC inspiration kids include some layered flags and tags with vintage images, chipboard shapes, orange ribbon, bold alphas and some gold bling. Using that inspiration as a starting point here is the Laundry Day Addon that I have assembled after rummaging through the orange and lilac elements in my stash.

The items are from various kits by different designers:

Lace: Catherine Designs.
Pegs: The Scrappin Cop.
Hanging Heart: Meredith Cardall.
Frames: Lenas Scrap Design and My Memories.
Stitching; Meredith Cardall and N Beaudreau.
Orange Ribbon: Kiss This Designs.
Button and Bows: et Designs.
Layered Shapes: Jessica Safty

I Am an Artist

2012-01-23T16:09:00.007Z

I came across this piece of artwork on Facebook Today.

I have found in my life as a crafter and as a digital artist that people haven't been willing to pay me for my work, they don't value my time or costs - they expect it for free. This is one of the reasons why we decided not put the effort into rebuilding Toucan Scraps after the store was hacked closed last summer.

Raw Turnip & Sage Rice

2012-01-22T17:37:00.007Z

Now that is what every mother likes to see, an empty plate.

Tonight was a joint effort for dinner. Daniel made a mince slow cook and I made the accompaniment with one of my favourite vegetables; turnip. The easiest way to prepare raw turnip is to "rice" it. Here's my recipe.

Put the following ingredients into a food processor and chop finely, then serve - nice and easy.

1 peeled raw turnip (if you can get them organic then you only need to scrub them and can eat the peel too, but Daniel can't find any organic ones).
1 tbsp fresh sage (or 1 tsp dried)
1 tbsp pine nuts
1/4 tsp Xylitol (optional)

Tisha's Sparkling Monster

2012-01-20T18:01:00.003Z

My little one wanted to make a sparking monster today. It would have been 300 % easier and less frustrating for her if the kit came with dry adhesive instead of a small bottle of PVA glue.

She is entering this into the Children's Challenge Corner.

My Manga Journey

2012-01-20T17:02:00.005Z

I've finished another page for the Follow Your Art Workshop on goal setting. This page is about my Journey into Manga Art. How far along I have come and where I want to travel with it this year. The character drawings are all mine, some you may recognise from stamps and kits I have previously had on sale.

d
Background from Beautiful Mess 8, Tag from Follow your Art January Date Tags. All by Cilenia Curtis.

Museum Layout Preparation - Base Kit

2012-01-19T10:00:00.003Z

I've had so many new kits these last few months, I fell in love with Cilenia Curtis's stuff and picked some up in her sales last year and have now become a member of her DT. I also won several kits during December from various designers. Playing with them all over the last few weeks has been great stress release and loads of fun.

When I was browsing through this months CKC inspiration kits the Frosty Window Pane add on caught my eye, it has a similar feel to the January 2012 Follow Your Art kits I've been playing with. So I used some of the items in those kits as my base and added some of the daisy themed items from my Jotter Buttercups and Daisies kit. (There's a big daisy in the inspiration kit.)

I put my ACDSee tagging to the test and found a lovely wooden ruler by Amy Dane, she has some interesting swirly stamps as part of the same kit (A Good Read) so I added those too along with a paper covered in script. Cilenia's Softly kit has a lovely grass stamp/brush in it.

Now I have a little neutral kit that is making me think of all those working museum photos that are waiting for some loving attention. After I've chosen which photos I'm going to use I'll add more things to this base kit to complement the photos.

Carrots, Peppers and Cabbage

2012-01-18T20:12:00.006Z

As a family we aim to eat between 25 and 50 percent of our food raw. Placing chunks of raw vegetables on the side of the plate every dinner time can get rather boring. So this year, one of my personal goals is to get more creative with my raw food presentation once or twice a month.

This is today's side dish.

Scrub 2 small organic carrots. Chop the ends off, cut in half and place in the food processor.
Wash an organic sweet heart cabbage and place 1/3 of it in the food processor.
Wash and Seed an organic sweet red pepper. Add to the food processor.
Peel 2 cloves of garlic and add to the food processor.
Chop finely.
If working ahead of time add the juice of 1/2 a lemon to prevent discolouration etc.
Spoon the mixture onto serving plates.
Cut 4 mini vine tomotoes lengthways and lay along the top of the chopped vegetables.
Sprinkle the centre line with chopped nuts.

This was served this evening with pork loin stakes marinaded in something spicy by Daniel.

Music Layout

2012-01-18T11:19:00.006Z

Today I am saying goodbye to my favourite sketch site, the Sketchy Thursdays Blog Challenge is in it's final week. I have loved your sketches ladies, thank you so much for all the inspiration you have given me. Here is a layout I created using the last sketch and one of Aria's latests kits called Blue Moon. It's another childhood memories layout, this time of the musical instruments I used to play.

I added a few items from other kits to finish it off. You can see detailed credits and a larger version of the layout in my gallery by clicking on the image.

Made on Monday

2012-01-17T09:52:00.006Z

Tisha and I had a busy crafting day yesterday. She made her first Thank You Card of the year and I made one too.

There is a tutorial on how to make a concertina card on the Toucan Scraps Tutorials blog (click here)

In the evening I managed to finish a scrapbooking layout with some photos of Roo from his cute toddler days.

Busy Colouring

2012-01-13T10:46:00.002Z

Clinic Day

2012-01-11T21:18:00.002Z

It was diabetes clinic day again today. I was so stressed about it, for some reason it always feels like I'm going to an exam. Both children are on pumps now and have the same HbA1c targets of between 48 - 53. Roo's was 51 and TJ's 53. Both in target! Yeessssssssssssssssssss!

Happy Boy

2012-01-10T15:18:00.000Z

I've had several nights this last week where I've spent most of the first half of the night up and treating hypos and unstable blood sugars for both children. Scrapbooking in between the blood tests etc. helps calm my nerves. Or maybe it distracts them rather than calms them. I picked up some sketches from some of my favourite sketch sites to play with. Sketches help make the layout creation simpler - perfect for such moments.

I liked the circular cluster shape in this fortnight's card sketch from Sketch and Stash and thought it would "stretch" well to a scrapbook layout. I used one of the kits I won during December and a photo taken of Roo 3 years ago. The kit is called Revelling by Kristen Rice (K Studio).

Nanna

2012-01-06T21:13:00.004Z

Life is manic, and I've been finding the de-clutter process rather stressful. So to de-stress I created a layout this evening inspired by this week's Sketchy Thursday with the bonus colour scheme of Blue and Silver from Scrappy Chics. This is a memory page for Daniel's Nanna using Angie Young's new kit "Begin Today".

The Supplies Chest

2012-01-06T15:12:00.006Z

No, this isn't a craft supplies chest, it's full of medical supplies for TJ and Roo's diabetes. The wheeled chest stands approx 19 1/2 inches tall, 27 inches wide and 16 inches deep.

The insulin fills the top compartment of the fridge door.

De-clutter Update

2012-01-05T17:31:00.007Z

For those of you kind enough to enquire about my de-clutter progess we are doing well. Daniel had the day off work today to help with some of the big stuff, and again tomorrow.

Phase 1: Throw Out

Out grown and damaged clothing waiting to be upcycled. - DONE
All those pre-pregnancy clothes Daniel wanted me to hold onto hoping I'd fit into them again. DONE Take any that are still in good condition to the Charity Shop. - waiting
Failed craft experiments and small scraps older than 2 months still waiting to be reused/recycled - DONE

Phase 2: Sort out and Re-organise

The cot that was being used as storage and general dumping for anything without a home in the corner of our room, and blocking the walk-in cupboard has been dismantled. A now empty toybox from downstairs has been altered to go in front of the walk in cupboard

- wheels!

We intend to fill this box with all the diabetes supplies next.

Jobs remaining

Finished craft projects waiting to be used/gifted
Craft Scraps that can easily be reused
Kids Craft materials and kits
Storage of kids toys - in progress
Storage in our walk-in cupboard. - in progress
Books
Medical supplies (need more space for these now that Roo has new equipment). - in progress

Daddy Day Layout

2012-01-04T17:06:00.003Z

I've been busy throwing stuff out today and was looking through some old photos of the kids during my tea break. This one of TJ December 2009 caught my eye - she had decided to have a special "I Love Daddy Day" complete with a cake I helped her bake for him.

I created a quick scrapbook page for her using a kit I won from Meredith Cardall last month - What a Hoot. Thank you Meredith. To help with the quick layout I visited my 4 favourite sketch sites and flipped this week's Sketch Saturday sketch to go with the landscape photo.

Follow Your Art - My First Pages

2012-01-03T16:58:00.004Z

I'm taking part in the free Follow Your Art Workshop by Cilenia Curtis (find out more here). Here are my first 2 pages for my journal. Clicking on the images should take you to larger versions in the Follow Your Art Gallery.

I used the January 2012 Follow Your Art kits by Cilenia Curtis, Angie Young & Aria

Renewed Layout Completed

2012-01-03T16:40:00.005Z

Last month I showed you this layout as work in progress, I added the finishing touch today - a photo of my renewed little boy.

I used the Softly Page Kit by Cilenia Curtis. Clicking on the image should take you to a larger version in my Living with Diabetes Album.

Roast Chicken and Raw Cranberry Sauce

2012-01-02T21:00:00.002Z

Daniel bought some fresh cranberries a few days ago intending to make a homemade cranberry sauce for serving with meats and cheeses over the New Year etc. I suggested he tried a raw one instead of the more traditional cooked version. The result is more tart than the cooked stuff but very tasty.

I added some to the dinner today: Roast Chicken, Raw Cranberry Sauce and a Medley of Vegetables.

The ingredients:

2 punnets of fresh cranberries
1 whole unwaxed organic lemon
2 oranges
Small amount of Xylitol (sweetener to taste)
Small amount of Arrowroot Powder (thickener as desired)

How to make it:

Wash the fruit
Juice the oranges
Blend with the whole lemon
Put everything in a food processor and whiz it to the desired consistency.

De-clutter Time

2012-01-02T13:43:00.011Z

We have run out of space. We desperately need to move to a bigger house but are still waiting to sell this one. In the meantime we need to be ruthless in chucking things out.

The De-clutter Schedule:

Phase 1: Throw Out

Out grown and damaged clothing waiting to be upcycled. If I haven't found time to start on them in the last 6 months am I likely to find time in the next 6 months? Probably not.
All those pre-pregnancy clothes Daniel wanted me to hold onto hoping I'd fit into them again. Take any that are still in good condition to the Charity Shop.
Failed craft experiments and small scraps older than 2 months still waiting to be reused/recycled

Phase 2: Sort out and Re-organise

Finished craft projects waiting to be used/gifted
Craft Scraps that can easily be reused
Kids Craft materials and kits
Storage of kids toys
Storage in out walk-in cupboard.
Books
Medical supplies (need more space for these now that Roo has new equipment).

Phase 3: Give Away anything I'm definitely not going to use that is still in good condition.

Last days of School Break

2012-01-02T11:36:00.005Z

It's time to share with you the pages in Roo's Visual Time Table for the end of the School Christmas Break.

We doodled the images for today. This morning Roo chose to do dressings up and jigsaws. This afternoon we plan to take the Christmas Tree down and make a start on Thank You Cards.

Back to School Tomorrow. An important page not to be missed from the timetable.

This visual timetable has been a HUGE success.

Rubber Ducks for Mr Blue

2012-01-01T17:47:00.002Z

The Medtronic Rep gave us some skins to put on the kids insulin pumps. These are like removable stickers. Roo chose the rubber ducks one and now that we know he is happy with Mr Blue and Mr Blue is working well we gave him a make over.

Living With Diabetes Layout

2011-12-31T11:00:00.000Z

I've been wanting to scrap this for most of the month but struggled with inspiration until I opened up the new Follow Your Art kits by Cilenia, Angie and Aria for January 2012. Then the inspiration just flowed. Thank you for such perfect timely kits ladies.

Clicking on the image should take you to the larger version in my Living with Diabetes Album at RAKScraps.

Creative Hearts

2011-12-30T13:40:00.006Z

I was recently honoured with an invitation to join Cilenia and her Creative Hearts Team. I'll be working alongside some amazing artists and digital scrapbookers using kits by Cilenia Curtis, Angie Young and Aria available at Digitals. Their kits are perfect for Art Journaling as well as "traditional" digital scrapbooking. I'm sure to learn loads from you ladies, thank you.

Their January Release is fantastic, and I'd encourage you to sign up for Cilenia's Newsletter to start your Art Journaling journey in 2012.

Journey ATC

2011-12-30T11:18:00.005Z

I made a digital ATC this week as part of my mediation time. It features two scripture quotes that I want to memorise and live in.

If you have a bible you can find the quotes in:

Proverbs 16 verse 9

and

Psalm 37 verse 23

I used some torn map border strips by Angie Young (Collage It Borders Set 2) and a background paper from Cilenia Curtis's December Art Journaling Kit.

Owl Thank You Card

2011-12-29T19:11:00.009Z

I've been playing with some of my new toys today and I made a thank you card. Anything goes at Aud Sentiments this week, they are having a DT call if you are interested.

My big new toy was a Cuttlebug with some dies. The owl was made using a Woodland Folk layered die, and the green scalloped mat was cut with a spellbinders nestability die. I ran one of my Fiskars texture plates through the Cuttlebug for the background and inked it lightly to bring out the design. The patterned papers are scraps from old printouts of the Thank You Letters digi-papers by Toucan Scraps.

Three Visual Timetable Pages

2011-12-29T18:17:00.006Z

Tuesday and today were quiet, at home days for playing with new toys.

Yesterday however was, against my judgement a very busy one. Here is what Daniel initially planned for the day.

He wanted to return to his parents house to spend some time with them and his sister before his sister's family returned to their home in Northern England. I have 3 very over stimulated and under slept children who needed calm down time - not another day trip. On Wednesday morning he added a detour to my brother's house to drop of my niece's Christmas Present.

Something else unscheduled happened yesterday too. Roo woke up with high blood sugars and very dangerously high levels of Ketones. I gave an emergency injection, followed by a complete insulin set change. When I inspected the old set the tubing appeared to be crushed for about 4 1/2 inches in length. Unfortunately the occlusion alarm didn't go off, perhaps because Roo's doses are so small that the pressure hadn't built up enough yet. We managed to avoid a stay in the intensive care unit or children's ward and set of on the journey to Grandma's house a couple of hours late. Roo was back to "normal" by late morning.

My Pressies

2011-12-29T11:39:00.008Z

We had a wonderful Christmas and the kids had loads of presents. I even had quiet a selection too.

The owl was a little extra. He was one of the items sent to my mum in her Secret Santa package from a Quilting club. As she already had two of these she gave me her new one. Isn't it sweet?

Pre-Christmas Dinner Workout

2011-12-27T14:32:00.001Z

My son being entertained by Uncle Chris whilst giving his Uncle a pre-Christmas Dinner workout.

video copyright Daniel Coles 2011.

You'll find another Christmas Day video on the Toucan Scraps Tutorials Blog today: my young TJ folding napkins for the dinner table.

Christmas Weekend

2011-12-27T12:18:00.008Z

We've had a really busy, but fun few days over the Christmas Weekend.

On Friday the diabetes nurse came for a home visit to discuss how I'm getting on with two children on insulin pumps and look at their test results etc. The visit was helpful and I am now able to look after Roo to my routine rather than the draining 2 hourly schedule set by the nurse on the 8th Dec.

Meanwhile the kids and Daniel made a start on packing the suitcases for a trip to his parent's house. Daniel's brother and his wife arrived at bedtime. The bed picture on Roo's visual timetable is one he picked from my digi stash to represent a night on a different bed.

There were no planned activities on Saturday which upset Roo a little. He got very unsure and unsettled several times through the day. When Grandma mentioned having a fondu at Dinner time he nearly freaked out - he wanted dinner not a fondu. We sat down with him and explained how a fondu is choosing your own dinner from a selection and cooking it at the table. Then he was happy.

Daniel's sister and her family arrived late evening on Christmas Day, then after spending a little time with them we got back in the car to drive home again.

Yesterday we had another presents day, this time with my parents who now live locally.

A wonderful 4 days spent with family.

Petal Money Envelopes

2011-12-23T12:00:00.001Z

We're giving cash presents to some of my husband's family this Christmas. I made these petal envelopes to give the money in using Cilenia Curtis's new kit: The Gift of Love.

If you wish to see the digital bit of this project you can view it here.

Red and Green are this week's colours at MTME

Saving Energy with Albert the Owl.

2011-12-22T11:23:00.007Z

One of Daniel's uncles bought the kids membership of the RSPB earlier in the year. As part of that they get a magazine. The younger two get the Wild Life Times and TJ gets Bird Life. The latest edition arrived yesterday.

Saving energy is one of the subjects in the Wild Life Times this month and it included an activity with Albert the Owl. Albert sits over a light switch, with his beak on the switch. The idea is that he reminds them to turn lights off when leaving the room to save energy.

Roo now has Albert in his room.

And Tisha made one for the girls room. She was getting very frustrated trying to cut it out, so I discovered she was using her left hand. I think we need to go get some left-handed scissors for her.

More Visual Timetable Pages

2011-12-22T11:18:00.004Z

There are the pages from Roo's visual time table for yesterday and today.
Yesterday my parents came round for the day. They both did the first parts of their diabetes care training with me in the morning and Dad learnt about carb counting over lunch. Daniel had the afternoon off work and Mum took me out shopping for a couple of kid free hours whist Dad practive hypo treating under Daniel's supervision. Roo had lots of those yesterday.

Today I'm on my own with the kids again. This morning Roo elected to work through the magazine he recieved yesterday from the RSPB. And this afternoon they are going to wrap presents for their cousins.

Declaration of Faith

2011-12-21T10:00:00.000Z

I used my Channuka Miracle kit to create this faith scrap.

Getting Ready Layout

2011-12-20T21:46:00.005Z

I used this month's AFSC sketch to scrap about getting ready for Roo's insulin pump for my Living with Diabetes Album.

There's a larger version in gallery with credits here.

The Importance of Being Specific.

2011-12-20T16:40:00.006Z

Children with Aspergers and other Autistic Spectrum Disorders will not always fully understand verbal instructions. This is not because they have difficulty understanding words. Rather, it is because we are very rarely specific and a lot of things we mean are implied but not spoken. One such episode occurred in our house this afternoon.

I wanted to make sure that anything to be packed for a planned visit to Grandma's house at the end of the month is clean before the Christmas stuff starts. So my instructions to the kids were:

"Make sure anything you want to wear to Grandma's goes in the wash today"

The result?

The girls picked up some washing off the bedroom floor and put it in the washing basket and said what they are wearing today is not going to Grandmas. Perfect.

And the boy? He promptly started emptying the clean clothes from his draws into the washing basket. Not so perfect.

What I should have said:
"If you have any dirty clothes you want to take to Grandma's, make sure they go in the wash today."

Roo's Plans for the Day.

2011-12-20T12:32:00.002Z

Today's timetable page was left blank as we had nothing planned for the day.
When I went to discuss the day with Roo this morning and put something in it for him I discovered he'd already filled it in.

Homemade Christmas Gifts

2011-12-19T17:15:00.001Z

TJ has been busy crafting gifts today for grandparents.

First she stitched two Lavender Pillows.

This is a sticky note pad cover. She printed the snow flake background with a freebie stamp from a magazine inked up with the Azure Blue Promarker. Blue & White is this week's colour scheme at I love Promarkers.

And another Sticky Note Pad Cover also using Promarkers with some Daisy & Dandelion Clear Stamps with this week's MTME colour swatch.

A Crafty Morning

2011-12-19T17:00:00.003Z

As you can see from Roo's timetable today we started the day with scissors. We've been making Christmas Cards and Wrapping Presents. He decided to get his Thomas train set out this afternoon.

These are Roo's Cards made with old stash from a Scrapbooking Calender I was given several years ago. He liked the bold colours and fun characters.

Tisha had already finished all her cards, so she helped me finish off my last one - another scrapbooked card. This one is made using traditional scrapbooking supplies from my stash and is the first time I've used chipboard letters. (Tutorial on how to make a card like this here.) The children wrote their names on the tags inside the photo pockets again. There are some lovely projects with removable items on the C.R.A.F.T challenge blog this week.

Church Christmas Celebration

2011-12-18T14:24:00.005Z

What are we up to today? Here's today's page from Roo's Visual Timetable.

We did nativity plays and story telling at church this morning followed by a bring and share lunch in the back room. Roo's spending the rest of the day playing with his toys.

Edwardian Christmas

2011-12-17T16:31:00.008Z

We visited the National Trust's Sunnycroft Edwardian House this afternoon to see it decorated for Christmas. They'd got some of the old toys out on display which was nice. One of our church elders was part of the Carol singing choir. We checked out the dinner menu and got the kids to inspect the tree ornaments. They had decorated with sliced orange, ribbon and straw woven hearts and other shapes. Paper chains decked the halls. Internal photography is forbiden so I've no photos to show you. But I do still have something for you to see.

Roo struggles with changes to routine due to his Aspergers. He gets apprehensive if he doesn't know what is happening. So one of the best tools I've found to help him manage change is a visual timetable. I've made him a book styled one this time. The pages are A6 size and made from card.

The front cover shows which days are going to be different to normal and when everything returns back to the old routines again.

Here is today's page. The morning was blank as we had nothing set, so Roo decided what he wanted to do and we filled it in together.

Daniel has managed to get some days off work but there are spread about with work days in-between. So to help Roo know which days Daddy will be about I've added his picture to the relevant pages.

Table Centre Piece

2011-12-16T11:53:00.011Z

This week's colour swatch at MTME reminded me of the December Art Journal Kit by Cilenia Curtis. I decided to make a table centre piece with it for the Church party at the weekend. I have MTME's In a Pinch Template and thought that if I mirrored the top section I'd get a shape that resembles a cracker but more boxy.

I cut open the top of the box with my Fiskars Shape Cutter.

I didn't have any ribbon to match my project so I coloured a length of green ribbon with a Sage Letraset Tria marker. The broad tip makes colouring the ribbon quick and easy. (Tip: have scrap paper underneath to protect your work surface.)

There is dried lavender inside, and one of the ladies serving in the kitchen will get to take it home afterwards as a gift.

For Roo's Teacher

2011-12-14T19:51:00.002Z

Roo stamped and coloured an image to put on a candle yesterday. He coloured it using TJs Promarkers. I melted it into the candle for him. The candle is a Christmas present for his teacher.

This is his entry for the Children's Challenge Corner Christmas Challenge and the Celebrations Challenge at Passion for Promarkers

For TJs Teacher

2011-12-14T19:46:00.004Z

TJ stamped and coloured an image to put on a candle yesterday. She coloured it using her Promarkers. I melted it into the candle for her (I decided it was too dangerous for her to try just yet). The candle is a Christmas present for her teacher.

She is entering this candle into the Children's Challenge Corner Christmas Challenge and the Celebrations Challenge at Passion for Promarkers

Renewed Layout in Progress

2011-12-14T13:14:00.006Z

I'm scrapping a layout about my renewed little boy using this week's Sketch from Sketchy Thursdays. (They'll be posting a new one tomorrow.) I've not had chance to take any photos of my energetic son this week, I hope to do so soon and have left space on this unfinished layout to add them later.

The journaling is similar to what I wrote in a blog post a few days ago (here). I've used Cilenia Curtis's latest kit called Softly available at Digitals.

Special Card for my Parents

2011-12-14T10:57:00.005Z

I wanted to do something a bit different for my Parent's Christmas card this year and scrapbooked the front. Each of the photos is on a pocket. I got the children to write their names on the tags tucked inside each pocket.

Aud Sentiments are looking for holiday sentiments on cards this week, and both Card Making Mama's and For Fun have been making lovely Christmas Projects too. One of the For Fun DT made a really sweet gift card holder. And finally, for the colour swatch it's Red, Green and White at Colour Create this week.

I've posted a tutorial on how to make this card on the Toucan Scraps Tutorials blog (here).

Roo and Monk

2011-12-14T09:32:00.002Z

Monk is the name Roo gave to the pump pal I made for his insulin pump to go into at night. If you look closely you can see a little bit of the tubing along the back of the teddy.

Russell James Free Webinar

2011-12-12T20:25:00.010Z

Russell James, aka The Raw Chef, is running a free webinar this week on making Raw Deserts. He's running it 4 times. TJ and I attended the first session today. It was very interesting and TJ really enjoyed it. She even took notes.

As I know you all love my budding young artist I thought I'd share her notes with you. To find out how to prepare these yummy nutritious desserts pop along and register for one of the 3 remaining sessions (here).

Chocolate Kale Chips (Crisps)

Step 8 is Russell eating one of his finished chips.

Marbled Raspberry Vanilla Tart

Mango Pomelo Timbale

I love this girl and her creative thinking. I guess this means we'll be trying to make some of these over the school holidays next week. TJ intends to take her notes to school tomorrow to share with her teacher.

Altered Pump

2011-12-12T17:21:00.004Z

When we went to the hospital to get Roo started on his insulin pump the Metronic Rep was there to help with the set-up. He also did the training session for the other parents with kids starting on pumps. He brought a collection of "skins" with him for sticking on the pumps to make them a bit more fun etc. We picked up a small selection.

TJ used one to alter the look of Pinky today. She's been wearing her pump for nearly 2 years now.

Turnip and Cashew Stuffed Peppers

2011-12-12T16:57:00.006Z

I decided to get a bit creative with dinner tonight and am serving Turnip and Cashew Stuffed Peppers alongside some hotpot leftovers.

To make the filling put 1 soft turnip and 3 handfuls of cashew nuts into a blender (we use an Omni Blend) and process until smooth adding a little water as needed. I also added a pinch of ground sweet spices for a bit of extra flavour.

Cut the sweet peppers in half lengthways, remove the seeds, and spoon the filling on top.

Sprinkle with chopped nuts ready to serve.

Day Three

2011-12-10T18:31:00.002Z

Just 3 days on an insulin pump and I have a whole new boy. He is so much happier and full of energy. He's also stopped demanding more and more food all the time. Whist a miraculous cure is still what we dream of, right now I'm rejoicing in a little boy bounding into the kitchen with a hop, skip and a dance.

There was a dramatic change in TJ when she got her pump, but she was very poorly on injections. I was not expecting to see such a marked difference in Roo.

Insulin management via an insulin pump is so much more effective and leads to more energy and a healthier, happier child. It's such a shame that you have to fight to get one, and that they are not more readily available.

Thank you God for two insulin pumps for my two precious children.

Quick New Pump Update

2011-12-10T14:44:00.003Z

Hi folks, Roo is so happy with his new insulin pump. He has called it Mr Blue.

As part of the switch over process I'm having to do 2 hourly blood tests night and day for a while. This is for a number of reasons. Firstly it takes a few days for the old insulin to completely leave his system so he has insulin overlap meaning he needs close watching to ensure he doesn't go seriously hypo. Also we want to see how he is responding to the different insulin type and delivery method. The old insulin should be clear by late afternoon today and then we start the process of programming to insulin pump to Roo's needs. Those 2 hourly tests are part of that process.

I'm exhausted.

A Pump Pal for Roo

2011-12-07T20:27:00.003Z

We are getting ready for switching Roo onto an insulin pump tomorrow. I'm so excited. How can I possibly be excited about a medical machine? I know the freedom it will give us in Roo's diabetes management. Also it will mean an end to having to treat Roo and TJ differently.

As part of getting ready I have made a pump pal for Roo. It's a teddy with the body section turned into a zip bag for the insulin pump to go into a night. He will cuddle the bear instead of having the pump strapped to him at night.

I adapted the Honey Bear pattern from Funky Friends Factory. This pattern is free if you sign up to their newsletter. Thank you Pauline.

St Nicholas Day

2011-12-06T09:42:00.004Z

It's St Nicholas's Day today. You can read about him on wiki-pedia here.

As a child my mother taught us that St Nicholas Day is about giving anonymous monetary gifts to the poor. And children are given gifts of oranges and nuts in a stocking or shoe that is left out.

In the middle of Birthdays, Christmas, Chanukka and Diabetes we don't do the latter part of this tradition in our household, there are plenty enough presents going around in December. However I still like to give anonymous gifts and get the children involved with the giving.

Do you celebrate St Nicholas Day? If so what traditions have you adopted into your day?

Good Friends

2011-12-05T21:07:00.005Z

These very special friends were an amazing support to us in our early years of marriage and through our many trials. We still keep in touch occasionally and it's always like we'd only talked yesterday. They live in Wales and are like "God Parents" for us. I used this week's Sketchy Thursday's sketch and MTME's colour swatch.

Items are from various kits, full credits in the gallery (click on image). Left hand panel journalling added afterwards as it contains information personal to our friends.

For the Tree

2011-12-05T14:04:00.005Z

I helped Tisha make some finishing touches for our Christmas Tree this morning.

Oh the fun of glitter .... and the mess.

Those are from an old jigsaw with missing pieces. She covered 6 of them until she got bored so the rest went as they are. Now there are a lot more "missing pieces".

Christmas or Winter is the theme at Children's Challenge Corner this month.

Exciting and Surprise Deliveries

2011-12-05T13:33:00.005Z

I'm so excited this afternoon and full of buzz. Why? Because this long awaited package arrived.

This is the start up pack for Roo's insulin pump.

I hope he likes it and gets on with wearing it OK like TJ does. He's getting fitted with it on Thursday. Also included in the package is a continuous glucose sensor, he's been awarded the same part-time sensors deal TJ has. This is such a relief, we were warned that he probably wouldn't get it.

And I also got a lovely surprise package from Fiskars, my favourite craft tools manufacturer.

Not much of a Choice

2011-12-04T18:07:00.003Z

TJ was very not happy about having to have her cannula etc changed today for her insulin pump. She complained. I told her she didn't have to have it done there was an alternative - going back to multiple injections (4-6 a day).

Not much of a choice is it?

The set change went smoothly, but I so wish there was a better choice for both my kids.

Yesterday's Celebration

2011-12-04T13:27:00.005Z

We had loads of fun as a family yesterday for my son's birthday. We joined up with a neighbour whose son shares the same day and celebrated together.

Need a close-up of that cake?

Roo loves mince pies, and Daniel baked him a large one for his special day. The candle is supposed to light from a central fuse, play happy birthday and open up. It didn't open and produced a rather large alarming flame from the collection of candles stuck together at the top. Roo and I managed to blow it out together though.

Vegetable Rice

2011-12-01T17:34:00.005Z

Tisha wanted rice for dinner today and I needed to use up a fresh turnip. So here's the result.

1. Put the following raw vegetables into a food processor and chop finely.

1 turnip
1 sweet red pepper
1/4 white cabbage

2. Stir into a bowl of cooked rice (today the cooked rice weighed 380g) and serve.

I served the rice dish with baked tuna.

Duck and Vegetable Medley

2011-11-30T17:51:00.003Z

Raw vegetables are regularly on the menu in the Coles household. Today I put a little effort into making them a bit more interesting.

Raw Vegetable and Sesame Medley

1. Roughly chop the following vegetables and put them in a bowl

1 Large Sweet Red Pepper
1 Medium Carrot
1/4 White Cabbage
2 Spring Onions
4 Small Tomatoes

2. Mix the vegetables together

3. Add 2 tablespoons of Tamari Soy Sauce (Gluten Free)

4. Coat the vegetables

5. Spoon the vegetables onto serving plates

6. Sprinkle with Sesame Seeds.

Tisha's Christmas Cards

2011-11-30T11:18:00.002Z

Tisha's been busy making Christmas Cards. Here's a few for you to admire.

Notes Cards and Pocket

2011-11-30T10:53:00.004Z

This week's 3D/Template challenge at Just Us Girls inspired me to make a set of note cards in a matching pocket for one of my gift making projects.

This is a hybrid project using Cilenia's Flutters Art Journal Addon and Beautiful Mess Texture Overlays.

Hand Printed Bag

2011-11-29T13:01:00.007Z

I'm having a some fun this week with my home made gifts. I printed this cotton drawstring bag using a hand carved rubber stamp and Tria Markers.

Anything goes at the I Love Promarkers Challenge this week.

I've posted a tutorial for printing bags with alcohol based markers on the Toucan Scraps Tutorials Blog (here). Would you be interested in a short series of classes on rubber stamp carving in the new year?

A Card For Roo

2011-11-29T10:33:00.003Z

Little Tisha has been busy card making this morning. She made this one for her big brother, it's his birthday at the weekend.

This is her entry to the I Did It Creations food and celebration themed challenge.

Coconut and Avocado Cream

2011-11-29T09:03:00.004Z

Good morning, I just have to share with you the wonderful breakfast Daniel made for us this morning.

ingredients

2 Avocados
1/2 Coconut
1 Mango
1 Large Pear
Dried Cranberries (optional)

method

Drain the coconut water into glasses for drinking.
Stone and skin the Avacado and Mango.
Remove the stalk from the pear.
Shell the coconut and break into pieces.
Add the coconut, avacado, mango and pear to a powerful blender (we use an Omniblend) Alternativly use a food processor for a courser but just as tasty result.
Whiz until smooth.
Pour into bowls.
Top with dried cranberries and serve.

Home Decorating

2011-11-28T05:01:00.008Z

Hello everyone, it's members blog hop time with CKC again and this week we were challenged to make something decorative using our November CKC kits. (You can find out details for the pieces in my CKC kit "Italian Gardens" here.)

If you're doing the hop you will have arrived here from Heather. To start at the beginning pop along to the CKC blog. If you leave a comment there you can enter to win a prize from this month's sponsor.

For my project I turned this,

and these

into this

The box has small holes in the lid under the topper, and contains dried lavender from my garden. I used papers etc that match with this week's MTME colour swatch.

Thank you for popping by, please let me know you've visited by leaving a comment. Your next stop on the blog hop is with the lovely Bethany.

Have fun and be blessed from Angela

Forever Friends Bears

2011-11-26T11:15:00.005Z

I came across another challenge blog this week called "Forever Friends challenge" featuring those gorgeous cute bears. This fortnight's challenge is Christmas is Coming, and I had some Forever Friends Stickers left over from a magazine freebie last year.

One of my overseas friends will be receiving this soon. Yes, it's under 10g. I've nearly finished my making lightweight cards experiments ready for my article next week.

Looking for Guests

2011-11-26T10:36:00.007Z

I'm going to be very busy this December. Roo has his birthday next weekend, and then a few days later he gets fitted for his insulin pump. A new insulin pump means about 2 weeks of continuous monitoring and pump programming. I get little help from the overworked nurse, and as I'm already experienced am likely to be doing it all by myself.

I was thinking that it would be wonderful, as well as helpful, to have several guests on my Tutorials Blog for December. I'm looking for a mixture of scrapbookers, paper-crafters, photographers and other artisans. Could we even make the magic number to have a "12 days of Christmas Guests"???

If you have a hint/tip/technique or a full tutorial to share then I'd love to hear from you. You'll find out more details on the Guests Page here.

I love to welcome guests at anytime, so if you can't do Dec and want to join me sometime next year then that would be great too. And return visits would be brilliant.

Boy Pump Pouches

2011-11-23T14:34:00.005Z

I've been doing some sewing in preparation for Roo getting his insulin pump next month. Here are his first two pump pouches. I made them using the design that TJ prefers, hopefully he'll be comfortable with them.

He'll need another two, but I'm running out of material and will need to do some more shopping first. The badge on the Thomas one was rescued from a tattered pair of Roo's jeans.

Oriental Teabag Folding

2011-11-23T12:10:00.007Z

I'm still working on cards that weigh less than 10g. This is the latest and I used the colour swatch from My Time Made Easy for my paper choices. The background is a MTME printable. I've a few more experiments to do than I'll be able to write an article for the Toucan Scraps Tutorials blog for making lightweight cards.

Funding Approved

2011-11-20T12:00:00.002Z

Funding has been approved for my son to get an insulin pump. His planned start date is the 8th Dec.

I need to get him some pump pouches made this week.

Behind The Curtain @ CPC

2011-11-19T15:18:00.005Z

DeDe from Digitals challenged us to create scrapbook layouts about places we like to visit on-line. I started with Behind The Curtain. It used to be my favourite place to go, a private behind the scenes area for the CPC Design Team. The team was disbanded last month when the site changed ownership. I used this weeks Sketchy Thursdays sketch.

World Diabetes Day Postcard Swap

2011-11-19T10:10:00.002Z

The kids and I took part in a postcard swap for World Diabetes Day this month. All 3 of our's have arrived at various parts of the world so I can show them to you now. We used a sheet of London stickers from EAD that came my first box of Tria Markers - a prize from an EAD giveaway. That was the beginning of my now huge collection. The stickers need colouring in, and the kids used TJ's Promarkers.

Part of the swap rules were to include the Diabetes Online Blue Circle logo inside the design. Can you spot it?

TJ's postcard for Kyra in Japan.

Roo's postcard for Jamie in Puerto Rico.

My postcard for Kathleen in America.

And I want to say a big thank you to everyone who took the Big Blue Test and helped us reach our target to be able to purchase live saving insulin for people around the world who can't afford it.

Umbrella Tree

2011-11-19T09:30:00.003Z

Tisha needed an umbrella for her new teddy bear yesterday. I have a shower favour template from My Time Made Easy and their colour swatch this week is pink, red and black. When Tisha chose red and black for the main colours I thought she could stick pink stickers on it. NO, no pink allowed, had to be yellow. She cranked the handle on my x-cut machine and we die cut some yellow flowers from DCWV adhesive border paper. For the handle I used a pencil secured in place with a glue gun.

So now for red, black & pink (for MTME) on white layers coloured using Letraset Tria Markers (for Passion for Promarkers).

I used the same template, but this time turned it into a tree table centre piece (I love Promarkers).

Nut Tree

2011-11-18T16:19:00.003Z

I picked up a splendid little nut tree digi stamp by Delicious Doodles from Stitchy Bear Stamps a few days ago. I thought it would look rather stunning for a black and white card. The OSAAT challenge this week is black and white.

I used some glitter pen for a silver nutmeg and the golden pear.

The Sack Race

2011-11-17T17:10:00.003Z

I arrived at the finish line and the school head was there waiting check I'd not been cheating again. This was becoming a bit of a joke. A quick check that my sack didn't have a hole in it and I was declared the winner again. I always won the sack race without fail and by miles, the other kids were usually still fairly close to the starting line and many had fallen over. It's the only race I ever won, and did so every year throughout infant and junior schools. It's a shame they don't include that race in secondary school sports events or the Olympics.

Jen at CKC created a sports page add-on this month, so I had a rummage around in my stash to put together a page kit for another childhood memories page. There are no photos for my layout, just memories. I needed some sackcloth, space for plenty of journalling, themed elements and some alphas. Why have I never purchased any sports embellishments or kits? We used to get coloured badges for each race win - some plain buttons?

Clicking on the image should take you to the larger version in my RAKScraps gallery complete with credits.

Italian Gardens - The Two Pager

2011-11-16T18:00:00.005Z

The Lords of olden times at Trentham Hall had an architect design them Italian styled gardens. This two page layout shows photos from our visit there during the Spring of 2009. I used the Italian Gardens kit I assembled a few days ago (details here) together with the challenge at CKC to use tags. I'm not sure if photos of my two cuties counts for using 2 or more characters on a project at Cupcake Crafts this week.

How about some close-ups showing my tags and layered embellishments.

Blue Tag from Have a Blast by Sara Amarie. Distress tag from Aunties Attic by Jennifer Trippetti. Victorian Lady Image and Green Corrugated Card from Paper Roses by Meredith Cardall. Blue Rossette from Asian Pleasure by Joyful Moments. Orange Pompom from Childhood Friends by Jennifer Barette.

Heart from an old RAKScraps kit by Correen Silke. Blue Ribbon from More Candy Wrappers by Sara Amarie. Word Tag from Aunties Attic by Jennifer Trippetti. Flower from in the pumpkin Patch by Createwings Designs.

Quilt Tile, Leaf, and Button from old RAKScraps kits. Orange Corrugated Card from Paper Roses by Meredith Cardall.

Journal Tapes from Have a Blast by Sara Amarie. Leaves from My Memories. Bold Botanicals Alpha by Jennifer Trippetti.

Birthday Memories

2011-11-15T10:20:00.009Z

Something I love to do when I've finished a scrapbooking layout, is to send a link to the designer whose kit I've used. It always blesses me to see something people have created using my designs, and so I like to bless other designers in that very same way. I think I really blessed Amanda Thorderson this week when I sent her a link to the funky page I made for TJ using her Teen Scene kit. This morning I opened up my message box and Amanda had sent me download links to the Teen Birthday Addon kit. I'm the first to get this kit - it's not in her store. Thank you!

I dug out a scanned photo from my 13th birthday and made a birthday memory page with the kit I have been gifted with and this week's Sketch from Sketchy Thursdays.

New Layout

2011-11-14T20:35:00.002Z

I've moved to Blogger's newer wider layout for my blog. This gives more space for the blog posts making them less cramped. It does mean I don't have photos down the side any more at the moment. I need to work out the new background measurements to be able to do that again. In the meantime I'm missing them.