{Pretty Paper Party #3}

The most productive prompt.

I took 8 sheets of patterned paper. Choose a couple to be left whole. The rest I cut up. Yes, cut up all of them into various shaped blocks.

Then I picked photos and created layouts. This was most awesome idea! Shimelle rocks!

And I created 6 layouts - and I had tons left over which went back into my scrap bag (the idea is to carry on scrapping but the weekend came and I am unable to leave my stash out - but the scraps will be used again  - as will this technique!)

 Our first and one of the only (due to a very over excitied little man who did not want to stay still!) from the wedding as an offical family. Actaully makes me happy all these layers of patterned paper.

A photo from earlier in the year of me and my sister. The title is the nickname my parents call us - SD1 and SD 2 - which means 'sad daughter' (sad not as in unhappy but sad as geeky). I made the little pennats along the bottom - love them!

 Pictures from Lauras wedding (which k pointed out I put the wrong year on! Must correct that srsly my brain is a fail sometmimes) Plus this pattened paper i had been 'saving' for ages. Happy I've used it now!

 Old pics of the boy. simple but i love the photos so much.

A record keeping layout about the boys sleeping habits, nap times etc. Again Simple but a layout i'm happy I have.

Finally a picture of my bridesmaids taken on my friend Helens hen weekend. yay.

{Pretty Paper Party #2}

Here is a layout I made from prompt two - but I used the techniques from this prompt on my layouts for number 3.

A couple of older pregnant pics. Felt good to put this down on paper - and a couple of my fave pregnant pics. I really like the black butterflies on this layout and butterfly band behind the pics is the left over from the punched elements.

Only a quick post for now.

L

{Pretty Paper Party #1}

I signed up to Shimelle new class.

If you haven't I would suggest you should

Amazing amount of inspiration (I have completed 6/7 layouts in under a week from the first 3 prompts!!!) This has totally given me my mojo back.

Rather than put all those layouts in one post I though i would split them up and number them based on the prompts for other class followers.

From Prompt 1 I did two layouts (but i'm sure, as with all the promptes I will go back to them and make more layouts!)

 A couple of pics taken on my iphone from the top of our trip on The Echo Wheel while in Liverpool on our honeymoon. I loved being able to get so many patterns onto my layout without being so overpowering.

The offical 'here is your wedding certificate' moment.I really like the paper sections as the other layout, but this is a bit softer. I actually used 7 different patterns here!!

Thanks for stopping by.

{Crop Day : October}

The October crop was great fun, and I was very productive even though I was extremely disorganised. I actually just dumped all my photos, papers etc in a couple of bags and trundled off. I did use Shimelle sketches and starting points for my layouts - a great jump start! And i have plans to try the new starting point for a layout soon (I'm not usually quick enough to get in before the deadline!)

I have a huge pile to scrap (wedding honeymoon etc) but I also recently went through my albums and reorganised then chronologically and there are a few stories missing. So I have printed off those pictures and I am going back and scrapping the stories.

As many will know my friend Laura, recently gave birth to a beautiful little girl. Now Laura has done an amazing job at recording her pregnancy. I didn't. At all, and I am amazed at what Laura did and I also at what some of my other friends have recorded their pregnancies and their children. I have a crop friend by the name of Michealanne, and she has given birth to a lovely little chap called Jimmy. Michelanne recorded her whole pregnancy weekly in an awesome 12x12 album! She is a super mum! And I'm pretty sure she will always be up to date scrapping Jimmy's life! (Unlike me!!) And my other friend Jen has done an amazing job a photographing Benjamin on a monthly basis (again something else I didn't do or think of doing!) All these things inspire me to be better mum and at recording these things. One thing I did complete last year was my document album - which is a lovely record of seeing Maxwell change (plus all my photos are stored by date so I can look back at them) I know I didn't record much of my pregnancy by photo partly as I was worried something would go wrong and partly I think as I didn't 'look' pregnant till right near the end. (and also our camera was broke for a large proportion of 2009) However I have made the effort to print off a selection of photos from that year and make an attempt to scrap them. I might not have amazing whole albums that I envy of my friends but I can least have a few pages in my album. That's gotta be worth something right?

So on top of my wedding, honeymoon and general pictures of Maxwell - I now have a pile of older photos to get down in my album (and I am not going to panic about scrapping them all now!) I will enjoy the process of choosing my pictures and papers and being inspired.

All this means my pages are not all one theme (which helps the overwhelming feeling of scrapping my wedding now!!! lol!) and means it is exciting to pull out a photo and scrap that now! I hope at least.
At the crop then I scrapped 3 honeymoon layouts, 1 wedding layout, 1 recent Maxwell layout and 1 old 2009 picture of our 3 month scan of Maxwell  - which happened to fall on our anniversary. I used a mix of my studio calico kits, some new American Crafts paper and my scrap bag.

I love these recent pics of M at the park. This was an exclusive paper design in the calico kit. I cut some matching shapes out of patterned paper in green, to pull the green from the photo. A few girls at the crop did a similar page via a sketch, so I took up the crop challenge.

My husband pulls the silliest faces!! Srsly. These pics were taken a few hours before we headed home to London. I cut down the 4x6 to form a photo strip effect. (I love these thickers so much!!)

Our journey to Liverpool was hellish! 8 hours! Crazy! During our honeymoon I took lots of pics on my iPhone to, so I can scrap a mix of pictures.

My sister organised our whole honeymoon, which was a surprise as we had no plans to go away. Our whole bridal party chipped in for us to have a break away as Mr& Mrs and Liverpool was a lovely city location. My sister had made envelopes for us to open each day which told us about our planned, prebooked and prepaid activities - I kept all the letters and wanted to include them on my pages. This was our first activity. And as the journey was awful getting there our trip on the wheel took place a little later than imagined but it was still lovely.

The wedding layout. It makes me happy. All that matters.

And finally the scan picture. Looking back at this makes me emotional. And sitting at the crop writing the journalling made me tear up. That little baby bean there in the scan is now a big healthy boy of 20 months.

That's all for now.

{Autumn Days}

These past few days have looked like this.

I heart autumn

{20 months on...}

This week Maxwell turned 20 months. Wow.

I still can't quite believe it some days. That, me, I am a real life actual mum. Times have been difficult, and stressful and tearful. But the majority of the time is pretty amazing being a mum to this little man.

I do doubt my abilities sometimes. And I compare myself and the way we are raising m to others. I am constantly worried i am doing something wrong or I am not good enough for him.

These past 20 months have been amazing I have become a wife and mum. Truly lucky and blessed.

At 20 months old maxwell is

Not talking (the odd word!) but is understanding so much. He knows where he trainers go once they have taken off. He knows how to turn the beside light on among other things.

He is babbling more and more. Though his favourite thing to say is 'dad'. Little man is a true daddy's boy. When the phone rings he says Dad, when the doorbell rings he says dad and when he looks at photos he says dad.

He is loving looking at my albums. He takes them off the shelf and likes to turn the pages (and says dad at pics of K)

He is very clever and only has to see you do something once and he remembers. Like the other day he saw K put on his knee support, now when k is getting dressed he likes to 'help' daddy put his support on.

He has been sleeping in his cotbed for a few months now (as he learned to climb out of his cot!), which is working well. Except we have had a run of early mornings recently.

He has started to 'pull' us by the hand or leg if he wants us to do something. Like wake up! Or go to the kitchen. I'm trying to encourage him to actually tell me what he wants. All in good time I guess.

He is so loving. And even though he is a daddy's boy, if he gets into bed with us. It is always a snuggle with mummy!!

My little boy is at times a handful. He loves to explore, run about, climb, make noise and generally be a little monster. But I wouldn't change him. Im the one who needs to change. I need to relax and not worry about how others see him. (I just want to be a good mum!)

I write this now while sitting next to my lil fella all tucked up in bed. Lucky mummy indeed.

Xxx

{my life right now, in iPhone pictures}

I shall not apologise for being busy, being a mum and being a wife. Life has been busy. And my evenings I have needed to relax. Thank you to all those who read and comment. I shall try harder.

Here is a look into my life right now thru the lens I use most. My phone.





































Mucho love to y'all