WOYWW 107

I've been MIA for a few weeks, but hopefully back on track now. I did still have a bit of a snoop at all things crafty on Julia's lovely blog to keep my hand in.

This week i have been making a couple of cards and a couple of layouts, but as you can see my stash is limited as is my useable work area.

Oh for my desk in Turkey. I think that is why  i'm not crafting so much. I have a little camping stool to go with the little sidetable, which is not very comfy at 33 weeks preggers, but it is better than kneeling (I'm finding it harder to get up now, lol).

So not much going on other than some stamping and I am still trying to get to grips with my promarkers.

is it cheating?

Do you use premade scrapbook pages?

I bought a few packs from TKMaxx when i came home in April to build up my stash of scrapbooking papers. Whilst choosing i found a couple of packs which were premade and all you had to do was add photos. I bought 3 different packs: 2 summery and 1 easter themed.

My mum loves getting new pages for her albums, and i had gone through a bit of a dry spell so i thought that this would be an easy way of starting again.

I guess it also means that there is at least some variety in the look, as my latter pages all have that same formula look to them.

But, my question is ... is it cheating???

how do all my pages end up looking the same?

Another week passes by in a blur, but Monday seems to be my day to catch up on all things crafty. Probably because i have the house to myself so i feel that i can lounge about and do what i want. 

On UKS this week the blog bits talk about 'clean and simple'.  I do like this style but i have noticed that over the last few months my layouts all sort of look the same, probably because this is the style I default to when inspiration deserts me.

In an attempt to vary my layouts I thought i would have a look at Shimelle's sketch of the week but as i have just printed off 150 photos, none of which are bigger than 4x6, the sketch didnt work for me this time. Not to be defeated though, i read down to her post about her early years album where she takes you through one of her albums which documents her childhood. What I found interesting was that not only were there pages made recently but there were pages from her earlier scrapbooking years. I didnt find the same layout/style/look in any of the pages that she displayed.

I think one of my problems is that i pick up a lovely patterned paper and feel the need to use it as the whole sheet. This ofcourse limits the position and sometimes the number of photos you can use. As i looked back through Shimelle's layouts she seemed to have used plain backgrounds, then blocks of the patterned paper as accents or highlights. Think i might try this approach, and ofcourse use some of her previous sketches as a starting point.

time for a catch up

I can't believe it has been so long since i blogged.

Well, the last couple of weeks have been a bit of a blur...Kerem left for home again last week as Mum returned from her Canadian holiday, there was work and babysitting and trying to clean the house....but now it is back to reality. I am enjoying working part time at Simone's salon. I have even got my head around some of the beauty treatments and products. Although getting used to being back at work has been tiring to say the least. I suppose it might have something to do with starting work in my 3rd trimester!

The scan last week went well. I cant believe that i am 32 weeks now! Kerem and I were in the new Larbert hospital for this scan and on our way out we bumped into one of my cousins. I think the last time we saw each other was at my Dad's funeral....9 years ago. It was nice to get back in touch, and I went round to visit at the weekend and met her kids, who are very grown up now from what i remember.

When we were out at the shops her youngest asked if i was staying for dinner, I said that i wasn't and that i would head home after the shops. Ofcourse, that was a little chat just between the 2 of us. So, when we all got back to the house and she turned to ask if i was going home now I think my cousin almost feinted....aghast that her daughter could be so rude! I thought it was hilarious, but then i was privvy to the first part of the conversation - which i hastily repeated so the wee one wouldnt get into trouble. Lets face it, it was an honest question on her part anyway. I wouldnt have been offended with or without the first part of the conversation.

It is so refreshing to see children's curiosity and honesty.

I am planning on doing a wee bit more babysitting of my youngest nephew this week hopefully, and hoping for more photos. I am hoping to get some crafting done this week, especially because I have a few birthdays coming up and ofcourse the photos need scrapping. Although I checked the local Morrisons, and it is going to be 20p per print. Anyone know of cheaper options?

All work and no play....

makes me grumpy!

Today should be a crafty blog day, but I have been so busy with the house trying to get it into a state of readiness for letting that i have had limited time to play with my crafty stuff. All i have managed to achieve this week is punching out some Martha Stewart butterflies. That is also the main reason for my lack of blogging in general.

I also wanted to thank the ladies that left me such lovely messages last week on my post. It really does help when i read your comments, so thank you.

After meeting with a new letting agent, they have advised that rentals are going better as unfurnished. So, with that in mind we have decided to gut the house. So far we have taken rubbish/old furniture to the skip; got the council to do a special uplift and arranged for some of the better items to be taken away by one of the charities.

Needless to say, I want to try to get the house finished this week. Then there is the painting. Why is it that everything you look at, the more you look at it, needs painted?!?

I have to say that my family and my best pal have been a great support. It is actually quite difficult clearing a loft at 6 months pregnant! It is impossible to do it on your own! And the extra hands where the painting comes in ....well, that helps too.

I have a midwife appointment today, so i figure that is a good excuse to go visit all the WOYWW desks to get at least a little crafty fix!

Hope you all have a wonderful wednesday.

another day another scan

Thursday I had another ultrasound to check the baby's heart. That was the first scan since finding out that the baby had Edwards Syndrome, Trisomy 18. It was mainly to check for heart defects. Thankfully the consultant couldn't find any problems, although he was careful to remind me that this condition means that issues can still come up.

Seemingly about 60% of pregnancies dont make it to full term. Of those that do most babies don't survive past a week.

The first decision i need to make is whether to have a planned caesarean or try for normal birth. He said that if I try for a normal birth and they monitor the baby's heartbeat they will more than likely end up doing an emergency section as the baby will more than likely go into distress. I want a normal birth, but I get the feeling that there is nothing normal about this situation.

The second decision that I need to think about is how I want to proceed after the birth it the baby survives. Do I let the pediatricians care for the baby? Or do I keep baby with me and maximise the time we would have together? I think this is a no win situation. I imagine that i will feel guilty with which ever option i choose. So far I have chosen both options thousands of times and then changed my mind again....

So for now, I am praying with all my heart that we just get some time with the baby, however we choose to proceed.

WOYWW 100

It is officially wednesday, although it feels strangely like a very late Tuesday night, so I guess it is OK to post about what is happening on my workdesk.

Well, nothing is happening on my desk - cos it's in Turkey and I am in UK. However, i have been spending far too much time down at Karen's Crafted Creations. Apart from all the crafty gossip we have been catching up on, I have also been catching up on some birthday cards. Caught by the skin of my teeth I might add!

Although i don't have all my stash or my tools with me, i have managed admirably to beg, borrow and blag everything i have needed this past week from my crafty mentor. She also has 2 gorgeous chocolate labradoodles which take residence in the craft zone at the weekend.

I managed to get to a craft show this saturday and picked up a couple of things like the craft mat that is on the desk at the moment. I tried to heat emboss my last one to disasterous results.  The other bits and bobs came from Karen - the do craft grab bag which i have to say i have got my money's worth out of already. Don't you love it when that happens! You buy it, you use it, you know that you have saved money with it and still you get to play with new stash. Totally cool!

If you are wondering why i am ranting on about desks etc then pop over to Julia's blog to find all the answers.

Hope everyone has a crafty wonderful wednesday