THE QUEEN OF QUIRK

thursday already?

Hello, all!
I can't believe it's already Thursday! Tomorrow night Maria and I are heading to Wood Green Animal Shelter to set up for our first craft show this weekend! ACK! I am so nervous...nervous energy, the anticipation of the unexpected...making sure we have everything. Oh my goodness.
We are getting the last of our product delivered this afternoon and then we have to pack that up and get everything ready for our table.
I really don't think I've ever been this nervous before.
I need to take some photos so you can see what all we have put together.

Listening to the new Snow Patrol CD. Thanks to my bro, Dave, for telling me they have a new one out. Perfect album. Totally jamming out right now.
I really need to calm down.
Ok, I think I'm going to go eat some breakfast.
These nerves are gonna get the best of me if I don't quit! :)
Have a wonderful Thursday. Be back soon with some photos!

tuesday's not so schmuesday anymore

That's because of a wonderful turn of events! And I finally get to spill the beans!
BUT not quite yet.
hahahahaha
I know. I'm evil.
FIRST, it's my wedding anniversary today! Yay! 8 years! Colin and I went out to lunch today while our wonderful friend, Maria, watched Norah for us. It was heavenly. Who knew pub food could be so good? If you are ever in the area, you must stop at The Bell Inn in Stilton, England. Superb food and an amazing atmosphere. We were seated in a timber-roofed, club chair-filled, fireplacey room filled with fresh Stargazer lilies and a view of main street to enjoy our wine (for me) and beer (for Colin) while we perused the menu. In the meantime, our little table was being set up. The fireplace was heavenly. It's just the kind of room Colin and I would want in our house for our library...very Holmes-esque. Lovely.

When we were seated at our table, we were greeted with bread so fresh it was still warm and butter that would make you hug a cow. The meal was absolutely delicious and we sat for 2 hours, talking and dreaming and reminiscing. Plum filled roast pork, butternut squash soup, risotto, Gewurztraminer... It was a lovely afternoon. A great way to spend our anniversary. So glad Colin took today off! :)

He also royally surprised me with a totally unexpected gift. I'll have to photograph it tomorrow in proper daylight and show you all!

SECOND, today is my first day at my new store! I am now selling at Two Peas In a Bucket! You can see my first kit for 2ps HERE.

And look at all of the amazing layouts my wonderful creative team has done! Wow!


Thanks for stopping by! That's all I've got for today! Been waiting to spill the beans for 2 weeks! Every Tuesday I will debut new products at 2ps (some oldies but goodies, too). Have a wonderful day! Ciao!

bonfire night and the famous 44

Hello!
First, congratulations to our 44th President! Looking forward to seeing how his next 4 years unfold. :)

Second, it's Bonfire Night here in England. A wonderfully distorted and wacky view on the famous Guy Fawkes. Around England tonight, bonfires will be lit and in some places, effigies of the man will burn in them. Jacket potatoes (that would be baked potatoes for all the Americans) will be cooked in the flames and fireworks will light up the night sky across the land tonight.

Mia has been learning about Guy Fawkes in school and when I asked her about it last night, I knew I would have to record it for everyone. Of course, Norah and Lara had to get in on the webcam action. No stopping the showmanship! :)

Thanks for watching! Happy Bonfire Night and Howdy, Prez!
Peace.

last day of half term

This past week the kidlets have been on half term (American equivalent would be a fall break I guess) and I have to say that I am soooo ready for them to go back to school. My kids need a routine or they start clawing at my face and raiding the pantry. Every day since Halloween, I have been startled out of my skin by absolutely HORRIFIC screams and howls over lollipops. Someone will pinch a lolly from someone else's treat bag and it inevitably sounds like the sky is falling on top of us. And last night I was sitting on the couch reading (Eleanor of Aquitaine) and when I got up, my bum stuck to the couch. Apparently I sat down in a wonderfully sticky lolly spot. Yum, huh?

So, today I am going to get a bunch of packaging done and then I have to iron all their uniforms. Yay! If ironing was a sport, I would win, hands down. But that wouldn't actually happen because I loathe ironing. The only thing that makes it tolerable is the lavender scented linen spray I use on everything that gets ironed. Somehow it just makes it pleasant. Do I want to iron now? No, not really, but at least it's bearable and that's what counts!

Right now, though, we're taking it easy. My partner in (card) crime won't be here til later so in the meantime I am trying to get some digi stuff done and prepare for my EXCITING NEWS. Which, of course, I still can't tell you about, BUT is still exciting. :) I know. I'm a jerk.

To make up for it, I'm inviting you into my home so you can see what we're doing right.this.second.

Noodle is chilling out in front of the TV watching Cinderella.
Norah... Hey Norah... Look at Mommy...

Helloooooo....Noodle. Whatcha doin'?

Well, hello there. So nice to see you. Note the backwards couch cushion...need to fix that. Actually, I need to wash that. I think that's the one that stuck to me last night. Yum.

Let's go see what the big girls are doing.
Oh, they're on noggin.com, playing games. Looks all calm and peaceful.

Oh, wait. Oh, here comes the Monster Wiggle!

So, that's it for us right now. Hope you all are having a wonderful Monday! Ciao, all!

september, __________, november...

I have no idea where it went, but it's gone-zo! So sorry about the lack of blogging. Things have been crazy busy around here lately and I just haven't been able to keep up with the blog.
So, wanna know what's up!?!? Ok, let's dish!

In between all the work, there has been furious playing of Rock Band II. We are big fans and our band is pretty rad!

Now, what's that work, you say? Well, in my infinite wisdom, I have started, along with a wonderful woman, a little card company. Little, as in, it's just the two of us and there are not enough hours in the day for us to actually get everything done that we want done. Well, that sentence was a mouthful.

In between my own designing, Songbird Avenue, and my family I am trying to squeeze in a newborn company. The great thing? I LOVE IT. ABSOLUTELY. LOVE. IT. It's a lot of hard work but we're getting to the fun part now of packaging and selling our wares. Our most popular item is the cute little characters we came up with for mini Christmas cards. Children here, in England, exchange holiday cards like we do Valentine's Day cards in the States. It's a big deal here. The kids practice their wonky little handwriting and then they all exchange cards. So, we decided to make our own range. This is just two of the designs...

Well, 3 actually because you can see Frosty on the left. The only one missing is the elf. He's been working really hard lately. He might be taking 5.

So, needless to say our house has been a storm of creativity and cutting and stapling and packaging and designing. We are in full swing and as soon as I have better photos of all the other stuff we've created, I'll post those and I'll also introduce you to our website when it goes live. :)

Colin has been wonderful through all of this. He's been so supportive and helpful that sometimes he just needs a catnap....with a Noodle.

The rest of the fam is doing well, too. Lara has shown an interest in yoga so she has been doing her thang. Noodle tries to get involved, but what Noodle is actually doing is called Choga. Chubby yoga...it's hard work.

Norah moved to a big girl bed this month as well. We took an hour drive and headed to IKEA. It had been about a year since we'd been to one and I just wasn't feelin' it. I love the kids thing they have and I wanted to buy way more than we needed, but as for the rest of the stuff...eh. I think I am losing my life-long love of all things IKEA. GASP! What could it mean?!?!

We also got her some new bedding. These hearts just screamed "Take me home!!!" All in all, it was actually a really smooth transition. Noodle had been climbing out her crib for weeks and it just started to feel like a cage (as much for us and it did for her). So, Noodle is officially a big girl now. Next up: POTTY TRAINING.

We somehow managed to squeeze in Halloween this year. I didn't think we were going to have an extra minute to carve pumpkins and have a party, but somehow we squeezed it in. I Martha'd my pumpkin while the rest of my family made adorable little faces in theirs.

Mia was quite the wuss this year and almost gave up on her pumpkin do to the high goo factor, but she perservered and ending up enjoying the process.

Friday night we went trick-or-treating around our village. There was trick-or-treating on base, but we decided to try something new this year. We went with a bunch of little friends and we had a wonderful time.

Lara has this thing for "Japanese princesses" as she likes to call them. She wore a similar costume last year that was a bit more toned down, but as soon as she saw this pink number she had to have it. Mia, in keeping with her dream world, fairy tale lifestyle, decided to go as Little Red Riding Hood this year. She looked adorable. And since we've moved to England, everyone and their uncle has called Noodle a "cheeky monkey". So, naturally, that set the tone for her costume.

I wish I had had time to make their costumes this year, but it just wasn't going to happen. At least I planned ahead and ordered their costumes in September because I totally forgot about Halloween until it was right on us. We had just enough time to slap the costumes on and run out the door!

After we got back, we turned on the fireplace and had some drinks (some warm, some chilled) and snacked and talked while the sugar-high mini tornadoes tore up the house around us. Good times were had by all.

I tried out a few new recipes and wanted to share them with you. They actually turned out really well. Wish I had taken photos, though! Dag!
MONSTER FINGERS
HOT ARTICHOKE AND RED PEPPER DIP
(For this one, next time, I would actually squeeze all the artichokes til they were bone-dry to avoid any juice in the dip and I would quadruple the cheese probably. Me likey cheesy.

This is a great source for Halloween recipes. Wish I'd had time to do more of them. Love the "Adam's ribs". Creepy fun!

We called it a night right at the witching hour. Next year I am definitely going to go all out for a super swingin' Halloween party. I just love them!

I hope everyone has been well and happy this past month. Even though things have been crazy for me, I have still been having a wonderful time.

And I also have another announcement...but not quite sure I can spill the beans yet. It's a BIG 'UN.

Happy fall, y'all!
Oh! And dont' forget to check out the November Songbird kit. It's scrummy-licious!


Ok, I really am going now. Ciao, all! :)

so gladdy!

Ok, I am super thrilled about how well-received my Oscraps Spotlight was! Thank you, to everyone, who participated and downloaded the freebies! I am truly blessed! You all made it such a huge success! :)
I have to buckle down now and decide who the winners are, but it is taking a bit of time considering how many entries we got. I will have an announcement tomorrow! :)

In the meantime, I wanted to tell you all about 3 new templates I have up for sale. I know...I totally forgot to post about them. I am such a scatterbrain these days! Funny how the latest Real Simple mag had an article on just that subject. I think I am sleep deprived and am substituting the word "multi-tasking" for "overwhelmed". Ah, well. Such is life, I guess. BUT I am determined to get more sleep and to keep to my newly appointed work schedule. It's been extremely hard for me to juggle both Songbird Avenue and my own designing. And now I have an even bigger project on my plate (eek! can't wait to tell you guys!) and so I find myself stretched even thinner. It's getting to the point where I just fall into bed at night and hope that 7 am doesn't come too soon. Enough about that, though! I'm sure you have zero interest in hearing my sleep-deprived prattle!

So, here are my 3 new templates!
They are all filled with yummy elements that you can use on other pages as well! None of it is recycled or reused. It's all brand new! :) You can purchase them HERE if you feel so inclined. And if you'd like to see the layouts up close, they are here, here, and here. :)

That's all I have for today. And I completely forgot about that "UM" challenge I had a few weeks back! In order to make up for it, I am going to gift everyone who made a guess. I truly apologize for that! If you're going to sit and listen to my babble and actually pay attention, well, then...you should be compensated, for goodness sake!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day. I need to head to bed early for my 4 am wake up call for the Songbird Avenue October kit debut. Yay! :) Ciao, lovelies!

Ok...just one more thing. My blog pal, Lisa, has made some incredibly beautiful bags and I think she deserves a pat on the back and some lovely blog comments. Hop on over there and tell her how fabulous she is! :)

K, I really am going this time! Nighty night!

in the SPOTLIGHT, baby!

I can't believe how long it's been since I was in the spotlight at Oscraps! It feels like forever ago and just yesterday!
I've got some fun stuff in store for you!
Stop by my Spotlight thread at Oscraps to enter in my sweet little contest! There will be 3 winners of $20 GC's each!
Hurry, though! These babies won't be free after Friday! :)
Happy Scrapping! Ciao!

a little bit of sunshine for ya

Ok, as promised, new products are here! Finally! I feel as though I've been sitting on this stuff for weeks just because I couldn't find the time to get it all finished! I hate when that happens! :) So, without further ado, Here is Limoncello:


And here is the coordinating quick page album. Sunshine Album:


And here are some lovelies by my wonderful creative team!





And last, but not least, my Shutterfly album. I simply can't wait to get this one in my hands!

Click here to view this photo book.

if you can believe it...

I am actually fine. So is my entire family. I have no good excuse for not posting other than being completely overwhelmed and just not feeling like it. I know. That's a lame-o excuse-o, but it is what it is. We really are all fine. I've just been busy and I haven't been motivated to blog.

Actually, that's not true.

I did video blog last week to save time, but my webcam didn't record the sound. So, it was just a 7 minute long video of me...miming. No fun, right? Yeah, I thought so, too.

So, I've got some things coming up that I need to share over the next few days. A new kit, a new quick album...and a spotlight over at Oscraps. So, I've been busy, busy behind the scenes.

The girls are doing really well at school. Lara starts netball today. Not really sure what it is, but as long as she does it while Mia is in swim class and I am spared an extra extracurricular outing during the week, carry on, kiddo. Netball til you're blue in the face! Ok, I just wiki'ed it. It's women's basketball. Go figure. Basketball was one of those things that scared the ever-livin' heck out of me in high school. I thought the ball was too heavy, the girls (and guys) were too sweaty and certainly way too competitive for me. I really really did not like basketball. Watching it was cool, however, but I always had this nervous fear of being too close to the court. I usually sat in the middle with my friends, but I was always longing for the safety of the mezzanine. Funny how I never had any of those fears with volleyball. I was a kook.

Our visit with my mom was wonderful. The girls had so much fun with her. They miss her to death and Noodle still wanders into the guest bedroom looking for her.

We had an absolutely gorgeous weekend, so we went to Rockinham Forest and then to Rutland Water, which is a reservoir. We didn't actually go to Rutland. We went to Edith Weston which is on the south bank of the reservoir. (With gorgeous views, I might add.)

I thought the signs were really cool...

Some thistle growing along the path.

The snake that almost made me have to change my underwear.

We were just walking along, all la-di-dah-like when I looked down and saw this thing a foot from my helpless, exposed ankles. Not only did I jump to the right about 4 feet, I also crushed Colin's hand and yelled an extremely loud expletive. Needless to say, I was a bit jumpy after that.

And to top it all off, Lara was bug-hunting, so when she found an especially beautiful beetle, she screamed at the top of her lungs. Poor, poor Mommy, who was walking just behind her, screamed as well and jumped away from Lara only to find that she was screeching gleefully about a beetle and not screeching terribly about another snake.

The laughter pretty much didn't stop after that.

I am a wuss and am very good at being the butt of a joke.

After The Walk of Horror and Fear, we drove north to Rutland and spent the rest of the afternoon on the reservoir. The girls had a really good time, boat watching, people watching, and picking the first chestnuts of the season. 

That's about it for now. I need to get going. Almost time to pick up the big girls from school. Then we have a long afternoon of swim class, netball, and dinner. :)

I hope everyone is doing well! Ciao!

Totally Us!

Yay!
My first quick page album is now on sale! I'm so excited! I hope you enjoy creating with it! :)

Here's a super cool album done by my fab CT member, Debra. Just look at her photos! WOW! :)

   Click here to view this photo book.

Click HERE to purchase the Totally US album!

Thanks for stopping by! And don't forget to take a guess on my previous post! LOL ;) I guess I need to try and say "UM" a bit less! ;)

Also, don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter! :)