Potty Training Is Complete

Oh Bless. Oliver is potty trained - yippeeeeee ! He has had a couple of accidents but apart from that he has done really well. I thought the one place he would have accidents was at nursery. No, not one accident.

It has turned cold here. Rob had to turn the heating up and we have to scrape the ice off the cars in the morning. The past two mornings have been okay, with no ice - I wonder if we will get snow this year.

K.

Binder Journal

Go to Krafty Kylie for the tutorial.

K.

Thomas and Friends

Here is my little Oliver playing with is Thomas the Tank Engine set. He put the track together himself, then when pulling the trains along the track he talks to them and tells a story just like his Thomas DVD's. Rob and I sit there some nights looking at each other amazed by what Oliver has said. He maybe only turning 3 on the 1st December but he is like a little old man.

K.

New Project

Here is my next project. I got the idea from Step by Step Projects - Decorative Journals by Donna Downey. I bought it from amazon UK.

Donna uses a 3 ring binder in her book but I thought a 4 ring binder was better for me. I decided to use my Paper Salon paper with Bazzil blue cardstock. The letters are chipboard which I have coloured with SU! Chocolate Chip and the other 'home' in blue was done on the PC. I will use this on the spine of the folder.

I will post the finished project later today (hopefully) with a tutorial. It is pretty simple but I did not do it EXACTLY the same as Donna did - I didn't have all the products she used handy.

K.

Sneaky Peak

Before you say anything.....no, I haven't got a new light. This is the same light but the photos were taken about 10 minutes apart !!

Thought I would tease you a little with my Christmas cards. LOL. Well, what I used to make them !!


The finished card is inside the envelope and if you look closely, you can see the red glitter !!

You will have to wait until Christmas to see the finished project but most of you that read my blog will get one in the post so you will be able to see it in person. Hope you like it !!

K.

I'm on a roll

Yes, I have a production line going for my Christmas cards. I currently have 60 to make but as usual, there will probably be some I have forgotten to add to my list (I blame my baby brain due to having Oliver !! LOL).

Hope you have got your cards well under way too.

K.

Stampin' UP! has come to the UK

Yes, SU! has officially opened in the UK and Europe. I am planning on becoming a demonstrator in Australia when we move and found out about a month ago that SU! was coming to the UK. I had a brainwave (LOL) that I could demonstrate here in the UK and get my confidence up, then when in Australia, I could hit the ground running.

I contacted SU! to see what the process was. I knew that I would have to re-sign in Australia but I wanted to know if I had to purchase both starter kits. SU! UK came back to me saying that I DID have to purchase the starter kit in Australia even though I would have the UK kit - both kits are identical apart from the stamps (but you can always change the sets). My problem with this is that I would have double the tools when I don't really need 2 sets. It was suggested that I wait and sign up in Australia. Oh well, I will still purchase SU! products here (at least they will be delivered to my door).

K.

Treat Box

I made this 'Treat Box' today while Oliver was having a nap.

You can find the tutorial on Beate's blog or on SCS and it was pretty easy to make. I should have filled it up with CHOCOLATES but I know that I would have wanted to eat them ALL!! LOL


I also used Papertey Ink's Beautiful Blooms stamp set which you can see on the outside of the box.

I am really pleased with my effort and pretty much made it up as I went along.

K.

Supplies: Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Beautiful Blooms). Ink: SU! (Chocolate Chip, Summer Sun, Old Olive). Paper: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey (Urban Couture). Accessories: Yellow Satin Ribbin, Yellow Eyelets.

Updated Box

I decided to jazz up the box in the previous post as it was just toooooo boring for me.

I used my corner rounder punch on the handle and also the top of the box. I also added the organza ribbon.

Hope you like it.

Box

For those of you that don't know or have never heard of Papertrey Ink's Nichole Heady - where have you been!! Check out her blog HERE. I highly recommend you do. She is a very talented lady!!
Anyway, this project is from Nichole's blog. I made this box very plain with no added embelishments. The card on the right is my practice sheet (another Nichole Heady creation).



Supplies: Stamps: Papertrey Ink (Beautiful Blooms). Ink: SU! (Creamy Caramel, Really Rust), Adirondak (Cranberry). Paper: Bazzill cardstock. Accessories: Gold Brad.

Another Card

Here is another sample. I got the sketch from Amy Westerman (check out her blog). I changed the sketch slightly and only added the sentiment and not the image, mainly because I am on my out the door to my keep fit class and my christmas stamps haven't come out of their box yet. I will grab some when I get home tonight and hopefully post another sample.


Supplies: Stamps: Crafter's Companion. Ink: Versafine (Black). Paper: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey (Fruitcake). Accessories: Red Organza Ribbon, Rectangle Nestabilities, White Gel Pen.

Christmas Cards

I started on some Christmas cards last night using my nestabilities (first time I have used them). I wanted to create a couple of designs to see which one I like the best and then start on making them up to send out this year.

Rob likes the top one best and so do I.

I forgot to add my red gem stones before I took this photo to the corners of the sentiment piece. I may not use black ink for the snow flakes on the top of the card but use versamark and red glittler - a girl can never go without her glittler and I haven't used mine in a while. I will have to have a play today.

Ignore the eyelet at the top left corner, I was trying something and didn't like it but I cannot take out the eyelet now it has been set. The white border around the 'merry chrismas' sentiment is a white gel pen. I wanted to use my Papertrey Ink Borders & Corners stamp but they weren't big enough - I could have played a bit more but as it was after 11pm, I was too tired.

Let me know what you think of my designs. I am open to any suggestions.

K.

Supplies: Stamps: Crafter's Companion, Stampendous - Perfectly Clear Stamps (Retro Border). Ink: Versafine (Black). Paper: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey (Fruitcake). Accessories: Red Organza Ribbon, Red Gem Stones, White Gel Pen, Square Nestabilities.

Potty Training

After a nearly non-existent summer here in the UK, I have decided to start potty training Oliver. I was hoping to do it months ago with the summer season but it wasn't warm enough to have him running around with no trousers on, then I was going to do it while in Australia last month but we were never home for more than 2 days in a row !!
Now that winter is drawing near (it is 8 degrees today), the heating has been on since we arrived home, it is warm enough inside the house for Oliver to be wearing no trousers.
I did actually start his training last weekend but he was ill with a bad cold during the week and wasn't in the mood to wear his under pants.
He has a potty in the lounge room and upstairs he has a seat for the big toilet. Yesterday was a really good day - he had no accidents at all!!! I was told that the biggest problem I would have is trying to get Oliver to do a poo in the potty. He so wanted to do one last night he asked for his nappy but I managed to bribe him with a new train if he went on the potty. After about 5 minutes, he said "I'm doing it, mummy". We praised him and gave him big hugs and kisses. I was really so proud of him and he was pleased with himself too!!

Little Girl Birthday Card

I had to change the photo as the black background just wasn't working. It also made the card look very dark.

One of Oliver's friends is having a birthday in a few weeks time so I decided to use my Pretty Princess stamp set from SU! How cute is this little princess!!

I got the sketch of this card from the Australian SU! catalogue but changed a couple of things.

Supplies: Stamps: SU! Pretty Princess. Ink: Black Stazon, So Saffron, Pink Passion, Lavender lace, Old Olive, Blush Blossom, Barley Banana, Elegant Eggplant. Paper: Elegant Eggplant, Lavender Lace, White. Accessories: Papermania Ribbon Collection (Pink), White Gel Pen.

It had to happen!

Well, I guess it had to happen......we have been back in the country for 1 week and Oliver gets a cold. Luckily I bought some cough medicine whilst in Australia so I have started giving that to Oliver hoping that he gets better quickly.

Guy Fawkes Night

This is the history of Guy Fawkes Night in the UK.

In 1605, thirteen young men planned to blow upthe Houses of Parliament. Among them was Guy Fawkes, Britain's most notorious traitor.

After Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, English Catholics who had been persecuted under her rule had hoped that her successor, James I, would be more tolerant of their religion. James I had, after all, had a Catholic mother. Unfortunately, James did not turn out to be more tolerant than Elizabeth and a number of young men, 13 to be exact, decided that violent action was the answer.
A small group took shape, under the leadership of Robert Catesby. Catesby felt that violent action was warranted. Indeed, the thing to do was to blow up the Houses of Parliament. In doing so, they would kill the King, maybe even the Prince of Wales, and the Members of Parliament who were making life difficult for the Catholics. Today these conspirators would be known as extremists, or terrorists.
To carry out their plan, the conspirators got hold of 36 barrels of gunpowder - and stored them in a cellar, just under the House of Lords.
But as the group worked on the plot, it became clear that innocent people would be hurt or killed in the attack, including some people who even fought for more rights for Catholics. Some of the plotters started having second thoughts. One of the group members even sent an anonymous letter warning his friend, Lord Monteagle, to stay away from the Parliament on November 5th. Was the letter real?
The warning letter reached the King, and the King's forces made plans to stop the conspirators.
Guy Fawkes, who was in the cellar of the parliament with the 36 barrels of gunpowder when the authorities stormed it in the early hours of November 5th, was caught, tortured and executed.
It's unclear if the conspirators would ever have been able to pull off their plan to blow up the Parliament even if they had not been betrayed. Some have suggested that the gunpowder itself was so old as to be useless. Since Guy Fawkes and the other conspirators got caught before trying to ignite the powder, we'll never know for certain.
Even for the period which was notoriously unstable, the Gunpowder Plot struck a very profound chord for the people of England. In fact, even today, the reigning monarch only enters the Parliament once a year, on what is called "the State Opening of Parliament". Prior to the Opening, and according to custom, the Yeomen of the Guard search the cellars of the Palace of Westminster. Nowadays, the Queen and Parliament still observe this tradition.
On the very night that the Gunpowder Plot was foiled, on November 5th, 1605, bonfires were set alight to celebrate the safety of the King. Since then, November 5th has become known as Bonfire Night. The event is commemorated every year with fireworks and burning effigies of Guy Fawkes on a bonfire.
Some of the English have been known to wonder, in a tongue in cheek kind of way, whether they are celebrating Fawkes' execution or honoring his attempt to do away with the government.

Bonfire Night is tomorrow and this will be my first one, so I will post some photos afterwards.

Nursery Day

As Oliver hasn't been to nursery for 5 weeks due to us being in Paris and then Australia, we thought he might take a couple of weeks to settle back into things, but no! It took him two minutes to move away from my side when we got there, but once he found the bike, he was off. I did manage to get a kiss goodbye and then a wave from afar. LOL.

When I picked him up, all the girls said he has been no trouble all day. During the day the kids iced a cookie and put smarties on top so after eating all his dinner, he ate his cookie too.

K.

Pumpkin Oliver

How cute is this !!!!!

I went out today and found this outfit (the only one for Oliver's size) and when I asked him if he wanted to be a pumpkin, he said 'yes'. It didn't last too long and he soon wanted to take it off. Oh well.

Early Mornings

Since we arrived back from Australia, Oliver has been up between 4:30am and 5:30am and it is killing me. I was in bed at 9pm last night and lucky I was because this morning was the 4:30am wake up call !!!! He has not had a sleep today but I am hoping he doesn't want to go to be at 6pm like last night.

Happy Halloween !

I really have to get a new light to take photos with!!

Anyway, this is my little fun card for Halloween. We don't really celebrate it here in the UK but I am sure that the children in our street will be out and about tonight.

As I do not have any Halloween stamps (I might have to buy some from Papertrey Ink), I got on the computer and used some from clipart.


My bat is flying but you can not see it from the top photo.

Hope you have a great Halloween (if you celebrate it).

K.

Baby Girl Card

I had to quickly whip up this baby girl card for Karen as I couldn't really use the blue card (I will save it for another baby boy).


Supplies: Stamps: SU! Bundle of Joy, Wash DayJumbo Wheel, Hero Arts (It's a Girl). Ink: Pink Passion, Cartain Celery. Paper: SU! Pretty in Pink, Certain Celery, Blush Blossom. Accessories: Pale Pink ribbon from local craft shop.

Baby Boy Card

I made this boy card a couple of weeks ago while in Australia for my friend Karen as we thought she was having a boy - no, she had a girl !

Supplies: Stamps: SU! Bundle of Joy, SU! Riveting. Ink: SU! Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue. Paper: SU! Bashful Blue, Barely Banana, Certainly Clelery. Accessories: Pale Blue ribbon from local craft shop.

Thank You Cards

I was asked to make 10 of these thank you cards for Ruth and Henry for their daughter Daisy's Christening this weekend. I made almost exactly the same card last month but this time I used the organza ribbon.

I took all (well almost all) of the things I needed to make these but I left the thank you stamp in the UK so I finished these off today using my stamp-a-ma-jig.


I am pleased with the finished result and hope Ruth and Henry like it too.

Supplies: Stamps: HOTP (QVC UK kit). Ink: Brilliance (Pearlescent Coral). Paper: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey (Blush), MME (Bohemia). Accessories: Bazzill Wings (Bitty Blossoms Flowers (Pink & Brown).

Stamp-a-ma-jig

WOW! How fantastic is this gizmo !!! It is from Stampin' UP! and it is called the "Stamp-a-ma-jig". You have to get one.

Unfortunately I could only photograph this with a reflection from the light which in one way helps to see the clear imaging sheet.

I stamped "Thank You" into the corner of the sheet, then..........


.......I positioned the sheet onto the card where I wanted the words to appear. I take the clear sheet away leaving the black stamp-a-ma-jig (handle) and replace with my wooden "thank you" stamp.


Viola !!! This gizmo is great for wooden backed stamps becaus you cannot see EXACTLY where you are stamping, this just makes it a breeze and a perfect image every time.

For the rest of this card see: 'Thank You Cards' post.

British Summer Time Ends

Well, it had to happen!!! Our clocks went back 1 hour - which means that come 4pm, it will be dark. Just as I was getting used to the great Australian "Spring", I'm now in the English "Autumn".

Oliver was calling for me at 5am (we hadn't yet turned our clock back!) so I went and picked him up and he snuggled in with Rob and I but I knew it wouldn't be for too long. He had nearly 10 hours sleep and he was soon asking for his breakfast. I was awake too so we went down stairs to eat together while daddy got some more sleep.

We are back in the UK

We have made it back. Rob worked until 1:30am Friday night so he managed to sleep through his alarm this morning. We came out of the gates and there was no one to greet us. I noticed a missed call on my mobile and it was from Rob. First thing he said to me was "I'm really sorry, I slept through the alarm!" It didn't take him too long to get to us but Heathrow airport is a mess.

Oliver had a good sleep on the flight from Sydney to Hong Kong. We were delayed leaving Sydney due to a thunder storm and the new A380 was at Sydney airport. The law states that ground staff are not permitted to work while there is a storm so we had to wait for it to pass. As we were taking off, Oliver was saying "faster, faster".

When we got to Hong Kong I had to wait to get the buggy and then we had to rush to our connecting flight. Luckily, one of the Cathay Pacific staff came with us and I am glad they did as we ended up having to catch a train and go this way and that. I'm sure if I was on my own, we would not have found our way in time. We were the last ones on board but we did not delay the flight as they were still loading the plane with food or our bags!! Oliver had another nice long sleep (thank goodness) as this is the longest leg - 12 hours !!

Now the mission of today is to stay awake until about 9pm tonight.

We are on our way back to the UK

Yes, a month has gone by and today we are heading back home to daddy. It has been really nice to spend time with my parents and my brother and for them to get to know Oliver again. As dad has been off work this week, he has been able to play more with Oliver instead of only an hour or two after he arrives home from work and before Oliver goes to bed.

When I look back at our time in Sydney, we haven't been out to do any sight seeing (only to the zoo) so it has been a nice relaxing time with only a couple of days where mum and I were out and about when my dad had his operation.

I am sad to leave but I know that WITHIN the next 6 months we will be living here permanently and Oliver has already made friends with Nathan and Hannah which was really nice to see.

Poppy is fine

Oliver came along to pick Poppy up from the hospital. We had to wait until his blood results came back and were ok before he was allowed to come home.

Dad showed us a picture of his arteries with the before and after shot of his stent addition. There are two other problem areas which will have to be resolved at a later date. It looks like he will have to have another one put in in about 5 weeks time as that artery is also critical but not like the one that was just fixed. Dad asked why he couldn't have them done all at once but the doctor said this was more dangerous than fixing them one by one. Who are we to argue with a doctor. Dad just thinks, the more times he goes in the bigger Mercedes the doctor will be able to afford !!! LOL.

Operation

Mum and I took Dad to South West Private hospital today as he had an operation to have a stent put in due to his heart attack back in July. Apparently the doctor said his artery is critical and needs to be done urgently other wise he could have another heart attack.

We arrived at 1pm but the doctor was running behind so Dad didn't go in for his operation until 6pm !! Mum and I went to get something to eat and by the time we got back, dad had been taken to his recovery room where he was being monitored. We had a quick chat with him and we could see he was getting tired so we left him to sleep. I didn't have Oliver with me as I asked my friend (Veronique) sister, Vanessa is she could look after him and Oliver can play with her son, Nathan. Veronique then looked after Oliver when Vanessa went to work. Thank goodness he wasn't with us as there is no way he would have sat for 5 hours waiting quietly with Poppy.

It's A Girl!

Horaaaahhh !! My friend Karen and her husband Steve had a baby girl today - Kaitlyn Rose. 9lb 12oz, 54cm. Wow. We all thought it was going to be a boy, but no, it is a little sister for Hannah.

CONGRATULATIONS GUYS !!

I even made a boy card the other day so I was prepared. I will now have to make a girl card and keep the boy one for another baby - that could be you Janine !!

Taronga Zoo

This is our day out at Taronga Zoo in Sydney. It was a lovely warm day with the sun shinning.

As you can see we saw the Gorillas and this family were kind enough to have their photo taken with Nanny and Oliver !!! LOL.

When we got around to the lion's we were just in time to see them being fed. One was pacing back and forth as he knew what was coming and then you just had to watch him tear into his food as they were right in front of the glass window. The next window along were the tigers and they were already eating their food when we got there.

Oliver loves Giraffes so he had to climb on this baby giraffe and have his photo taken. There were a family of Chinese people who Oliver kept saying hello to so they wanted to take a photo of him as well. It was really quite funny.


This photo of Oliver and myself was taken as we were sitting down to watch the bird show. Some of the birds fly only cm above your head as they parade around. One flew right over Oliver's head.

Hannah's 2nd Birthday

It was Hannah's 2nd birthday today and we were invited to her little party. Poor mum Karen is having braxton hicks contractions and is hoping not to go into labour today. Hannah loved all her presents and everybody had fun.

Time to Play

I took Oliver for a walk today as both Mum and Dad went to work. I ended up going past Karen's house and Oliver wanted to say 'hello' to Hannah, so we knocked on the door and they were home. Karen still hasn't had the baby so she was glad for us being there as Oliver kept Hannah occupied and Karen and I chatted. It was a very warm day today - 36 degrees.

Hello Daddy !

Rob called when he got home from the airport to say he arrived safely but the landing at Heathrow was a little bumpy.

This photo is of Oliver talking to his Daddy. He cannot sit still and talk, he has to walk around the house and was told Rob he missed him. Bless !

Daddy Has Gone

Rob flew back to the UK today. He could only get 2 weeks off work and IBM even put on hold the start of a new project to wait for Rob to return to work. It's good to know they hold him in such high respect. They realise that Rob actually knows what he is doing unlike some other IT consultants who just blag their way through and take praise for work they had very little involvment in.

Dinner

The whole family went out for dinner tonight to 'The Barn' restaurant in Campbelltown. They really do lovely meals there. You can order Kangaroo and Emu as well. Not for me, I had chicken.

For those of you that know my brother Michael, you may notice he looks different - he finally cut off all of his hair and looks like a boy!!!

1000 Hits

Wow, my counter has reached 1000 hits. I didn't think it would be so quick for the counter to reach 1000.
Thank you to all of you for reading my blog. I hope it is not too boring and you get a laugh from it from time to time.

Ball Time!

They boys had a play with the ball today. Oliver was running back and forth kicking the ball all over the place.

We then went shopping and of course, Oliver spotted 'The Wiggles' ride so he had to have a go. All of these type of rides cost AU$2.00.

Oliver & Hannah

Karen and her little girl Hannah came over this morning. This is Hannah and Oliver colouring in. This is the first time I have met Hannah and she is so adorable. She has beautiful curly hair and she most certainly looks like her mum - sorry Steve!!! LOL. You cannot see just how tall Hannah actually is (but so are both her parents) and she only turns 2 on the 19th October!!

Karen is due to have her second baby any day now so I am really glad we are here as this will be the first time I have been around when a friend has had a baby. I have bought my craft stuff with me so I can make a baby card as Karen and Steve don't know what sex the new addition will be. Very exciting.

A Little Off

Oliver was a little off colour today. Rob and I went out early to open up a bank account so if we buy a house we can use that account and when we move over, we have one already set up. I then went to the shops with my friends Veronique and Vanessa (who both have children), so Oliver wanted to then come along. He hasn't slept very well since we arrived and has been sleeping with Rob and I (which is a rare occurrence) and he has a cough too so I think today was the day it all caught up with him. He fell asleep within seconds of me putting him in the car and the journey home is only a 5 minute one.

Poppy's job tonight was to read Oliver his bedtime story. We could hear the two of them from down stairs (well, we could mostly hear Oliver interrupting Poppy!!) LOL.

Warm Day

We (Nanny, Rob and I) went for a walk to Mount Annan shops to get a few groceries and Oliver had to ride his new bike. It even has a little hood on the top for some shade and it was needed today. The temperature got to 36 degrees. On our way back home we walked past the great big pond and we saw some ducks.


When Poppy got home from work he spent some time with Oliver drawing !!! Poppy would draw and Oliver would scribble over the top of it. They had fun.

We made it!

Hoorraahhhh, we are in Sydney. We had an interesting flight with Oliver. I'm not in a hurry to repeat it but he did pretty well considering we flew direct with just an hour and a half stop over. He had a run around in Hong Kong airport so he used up some of his energy. He fell asleep about an hour before we landed in Sydney and we were trying to wake him up on touch down - his eyes would open for a second or two then they slowly closed. It was funny.
When we got to my parents house, Oliver had a ball - he had so many toys to play with. He has all sorts of toys including a three wheeler trike.

AUSTRALIA!!

Yes, you guessed!! We are on our way to Australia, but only for a holiday - not quite ready to move just yet. We will be making this journey again in a few months time though when we MOVE to Sydney.

Disneyland Paris - Day 3

Can you see Oliver???? He is somewhere on the horse. I think he picked the biggest horse. LOL.

I'm not too good on rides that go sideways so I sat out on the tea cups. Ruth, Henry and Fred on in another cup while I looked after Daisy.

Another photo of Oliver and myself with Fred.

We all got a fast pass for the Indiana Jones Roller coaster ride which we were all looking forward to. Unfortunately, when we went back, the ride was closed. We didn't get to go on it.