Mojo?

Wow.. 2 layouts done this weekend! When you consider the amount of hours at night I have spent sitting on my backside refreshing webpages.. waiting for some sign of life.. it is a pitiful amount really.. but still.. it is a lot more then the usual ZERO I produce!

This week two people left the team, Christine and Sally. It will be really strange to have such an empty team now but I don't want to keep living a lie. I hate to feel like people are forced to be there and I just want everything spring cleaned and vibrant.. ready for action. I just want to create and be happy and share things with other friends who have the same obsession for paper as I do.

If you want some inspiration head over to this ladies blog:

beckiedreyer.blogspot.com

She always has such gorgeous art to ogle! SO vibrant and rich. Everytime I find a nice blog I will post it here now so that my friends can share where I visit.

Enjoy your sunday xx

Pirate Princess Mini Book

Here are alll the pictures for my mini book.. heaven knows I took alot!!

This book was made for my daughter as a bedtime story to keep forever. It also serves as a little keepsake reminder of our bedtime routine and little in-jokes we had.

book spine:

The books cover:

Here is what the book looks like inside the faux-book:

This is the inside of the faux book: it reads "Dear Emily I wrote this book just for you because you trully are a princess and you deserve your own tale. All my love - Mommy xx"

The book and inner cover that Emily has so far loved to read and handled gently!:

Once upon a time there lived beautiful little princess. She had brown curly hair and a sparkly pink crown. She was so pretty:

She thought to herself "Hmm I wish I could make a pony appear, I love pink ponies". Emily waved her magic wand. But, intead of a magic genie.. Out popped a naughty daddy monster! "Oh NO" cried princess Emily as the daddy took her.

Emily wrote a letter to her brave brother, Prince Logan. "Help please, Save me! The evil daddy moster has got me trapped!"

Prince Logan read the letter.
Prince Logan raced to the rescue on his big white train. He put daddy in the naughty corner for 27 Years!

Emily was so happy to see Logan. He took her to his castle for some chocolate cake and strawberry pop.

Princess Emily returned to her castle and brushed her teeth until they were shiny. She drank up her cold milk and went fast to sleep next to teddy. And she slept happily ever after..

MIA: Pinkladymel!

Sorry!

I haven't posted for what seems like an age! I have been busy doing the cybercrop and then half way through I got really tired again so had to stop doing anything as I just couldn't concentrate.

I received a wonderful package from Rusty Pickle today thanks to Beckie (as I blogged earlier). It was full of chocolate bunnies YAY!! I loved the old range of this and the new range is pink and cream.. MY FAVOURITE.

Back on to the UKs cybercrop, here is my work that I completed:

My C3PO Mannequin Ain't he cute!! Mr threepio holds my memories of visiting memorabilia with Lee and a baby Logan.

This is me with my children - My heart and soul - visiting the zoo. Tried some hand stitching on this and for the agony I was in afterward due to arthritis It just wasn't worth it *sob* In this picture Logan has that haircut that made me want to divorce his father. I can't believe he was too shy to say anything to the hair dresser whilst she was making my son into a mullet man.

Here is a lovely shot of my duvet oh and.. A layout! This is much more my style and I was so happy once I completed it. I felt like I had found ME! I seem to have a lot of different styles dependant upon my mood and seeing as i'm a little crazy that could be anything :)

I have wanted to scrap these photographs for ages because they just encapsulate everything my husband and son are about together. I finally got to use my Heidi Swapp velvet rub ons YAY! And those title letter stickers.. Grrr.. what a pain!

First of all, I have had many comments telling me the best thing about this layout is the edging and asking how I achieved it. I would love to take credit, really I would.. But I am seriously not talented with scissors (back to the arthritis again) and therefore have to admit all credit goes to Autumn leaves :)

There is an acrylic flower there I made with swirl stamps and inked the edges. I promise it does exist.

So what have I been doing? Well last night I started to feel ill and then an hour later it hit me.. full blown ear infection and fever. Lovely. Feeling really shakey today and having two toddlers plus a rockette husband is not good for poorly ear drums. I have been to quieter parties.

I have decided to stay in Tipton. In this home we have built our whole life in. It is hard and the house has a lot of faults but right now I need some stabillity in my life and waiting three years to move has just drained every ounce of that happy person I used to be. I can't deny I am sad to not be back where I grew up, close to all of my dearest family and in green luscious surroundings. It is grey and industrial here. I am surrounded by houses and there is no where to just pop for a walk. It is just roads and houses. Back in Telford there were plenty of parks and forests and happiness. Equally, I am happy because to leave this house is to leave all of the memories it holds. Getting married, our first house, the birth of our two children. The bedroom we painted as a castle for Logan. The nursery we decorated together, our first ever attempt at decorating... the nursery that held our babies and our tired heads.

So now I am on a gardening rampage.. who wants to come help me dig?!

It is dark and grey outside but inside I feel like a rainbow just waiting to burst out and live life.. I'm sure I am right on the edge of getting there. It is a much better place to be then the limbo.

Mel xx

A special project

I got a lovely PM from Jakii asking me to make her one of my door signs if I like. I think she was like.. trying to be nice and make me feel good and now she is getting one of my crappy signs winged to her house.. I hope she loves it because I tried hard!

Also.. look at all that stash.. Thats Killer!



My friend Niamh is sad today and I didn't even know. Love her to pieces so will have to make her something to make her feel better. She is probably crying now saying "no god.. please not MORE stuff made by mel.. my room can't take it!!"

MWAHAHAHAHA

Good Lord I spelt "cock" in thickers.

I just finally completed my layout that I had been putting off for ages. I love these photos of my boy being brave enough to touch a cockroach and I am so pleased I finally got round to doing some scrapping.. talk about procrastinating!

My swap for the crop

Here is my swap for the UKS Cyber Crop goodie bag. I hope my swapee loves it. The pictures are rubbish because it is night but I just realised I am out all day tomorrow at my nans and if I don't do them now I never will!

Let me know.. Would you honestly be pleased to receive this?

1. An escort to take you to your party

I couldn't believe it when I saw this oscar! I am really not into teddy bears much so it was hard for me to get any inspiration! If I received a teddy i'd still love it but I just couldn't get my brain into gear! You have to pop it in water and it grows 6 times its size! I know the swappee has children who might love to have a go at this.

2. Something sticky and a pen:

I got my person a notebook for her "autographs" because I have shopped for a week solid to find a cute pen now and nowhere has one. I've looked in places that I KNOW have them.. WHSmiths etc. BUT NO! I was going to alter one but with everything going on at home, I had already used my time on everything else I had made :(

I know my swappee is into decoupage so I thought you can never have enough craft foam pads especially for some nice depth to your pages. I also LOVE these twinkles writers which I have used on my card. (from my own tube, not my swappees hahaha)

3. An emergency Ration:

Come on this is screaming emergency EAT ME all over it. I know my swappee loves red wine and this is a brilliant bottle of erm something red.. and I'm sorry but I did try hard but I dont drink so I could only guess it was right.. *blush*

4. A feel good item:

I spied on all my swappees past posts and saw she loves white musk from the body shop so I took myself off and got these lovely shower gel, body cream and body scents. I thought no pamper would be complete without an eye mask and picked up this gorgeous one from boots!

5. A home made box or bag:

My box turned out to be the worst pile of crap I have ever made in my life. I was going to send it because I had tried really hard but then I thought it made everything look rubbish and got rid of it *sigh* I have this excellent storage case for a4 papers and I thought it would be a good thing to hold it all and to use afterwards for decoupage sheets etc.

This is a card and gift tag I made to go on the present. The card has a verse inside that I made up with clues of who I am. I hope my recipient likes the kind of thing I have done as I guess you have to be that sort of person. I am having visions now of my swappee only wanting some new stuff and throwing all my crap hand made stuff in the bin. I don't know her BTW.

and last but not least here is something I made from a piece of wood I stole from my husband. I wanted to make up for the fact that I had not made a pen. I thought she would appreciate a door sign for her craft room as I think she has her own. I painted it white and inked the edges. I used some of my special looping brads to attach the "Enter with chocolate only" and a hell of a load of rub-ons! The flowers and birds are all stamped and coloured. A metal heart and wooden rose later and It was complete.

I want to keep it. Please, please recipient, if you don't like it, just tell me and i'll pay to have it back! I'm so sentimental LOL

After all that waffle I think mental is more the word to look for!

Will get it to Royal Mail tomorrow and hope it gets to its destination safely :)

Mel x

So

Wednesday 16th April

Here we go again! Seriously craving an indian today (the food)!

Breakfast
Nothing, had to rush out and do loads of things at Merry Hill.

Lunch
Muller Light Clementine Yoghurt (mmm) Banana, Satsuma, packet of Skips.

Dinner
Mushroom and wine batchelors pasta N sauce, Quorn Sausages. 2 corn on the cobs (I like 'em!)

Forgot to have my healthy extras ARGH

Today I was shopping with Emily and she was adorable. She really loves Hello Kitty or "sweepy cat" as she calls it. We was in Primark and she was pulling all the necklaces off trying everything on then going "nah" and throwing them back onto the floor. She is such a diva and a sweetheart. We walked about the disney store where she got a tinkerbell sticker and was racing around with a vacuum. Later on she got a bit boisterous as this is only day 2 of trying to go without naps and she gets tired later on. My little girl is so grown up. She had to be bribed out of the bear factory as she wanted the most expensive one in there, which was a Hello! Kitty bear and wouldn't get out!!

Feeling like a macdonalds today.. MMmmMmm

The diet so far..

Tuesday 15th April

Diet started. I weigh a MISERABLE XXstones and 4lbs. Unbelievable!

Breakfast
Was too tired so didn't get time for breakfast

Lunch
Satsuma and a Banana then homemade Bombay potatoes

(Par-boil some potatoes, when soft dice them. Place some fry light into pan, when it is quite hot throw in 1 tsp cumin seeds and allow to toast for 10 seconds. Then throw in the potatoes, 1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp salt and sprinkle with Black pepper. Allow everything to fry lightly mashing the potatoes with the spoon to give a rough crispy edge. DONE!)

Dinner
Jacket Potato with beans and 42g of low fat cheddar. 2 corn on the cobs.
Sundae made with 42g Weetabix crunchy bran, Fat free natural Yoghurt and organic strawberries.

I really enjoyed my sundae but have to remember to put the bran at the top as it was a bit soggy at the bottom and I can't deal with that! REALLY enjoyed my dinner although the WeightWatchers cheese is disgusting and I think should only be toasted. Day one of the diet and I think it's all going ok.. so far!

Diets always start Monday :)

Well.. I am on a mission to change my eating habits and try to get into the routine of cooking nice healthy meals. I suppose some would call it a diet but I want to do this forever. I want to look good and lose weight. I want to be perfect for my husband and be confident in how I look. I don't want to embarrass my kids by being a fat mom.

It has been really hard for me the past few months. Probably even more so for Lee. I have been so tired and everytime I get better I start to randomly fall asleep in places again. I want to craft and play with our children. I want to be productive and be a wonder woman for him and I feel like I am letting everyone down. I am not living life to its full potential because I can't.

I am 100% sure now that this is caused by the central nervous system damage. The medical term for that is M.E but I don't like to say it. I don't know why.. It feels dirty and fake. I did a lot of research into it and as soon as I read the medical report I felt like I had a reason, an explanation for being so abnormal. It is in the last stages of finalization now to be proven as a real illness and there are tests but I haven't even gone to the hospital for my fractured pelvis yet! I don't want to tell anyone because they will assume it is an excuse. They will also probably assume I claim for disabillity but I can promise on my childrens lives that I don't and never will. My husband goes through hell everyday and I believe disability money is for people like him.

As soon as I open my eyes in the morning I am exhausted. I feel like I want to cry constantly because there is so much I want to do and so much guilt for not doing it. I push friends and family away because I feel like I can't deal with them right now. I just want to sleep.

Sorry for the long rant. Just feeling over tired and miserable lately.

Product Review: EZ Runner

So, I totally forgot that I had used a new product on my last layout. Infact it was the whole reason I started it! What a doofus!



I signed up to be a blog tester on http://www.scrapgenie.blogspot.com/ and was sent a mystery product. I was really excited to open my package when I realised it contained my worst nightmare... One of those glue runner things!



I have tried X-cut, Herma, Dovecraft, Stores own brand etc of glue runners and I just can't get along with them. The thing is, i'm ditsy. I keep holding the runner upside down which in turn makes the tape roll back inside itself. This then makes a huge sticky mess, the whole thing gets stuck together and I end up just pulling the tape out and using it like a roll of sticky dots! I wasted a £5 Herma in seconds :(



Anyway here is the review!:



3L Scrapbook Adhesive EZ Runner



How often do you use Adhesive?

Crazy amounts. Every single day.



What is the main type of adhesive that you use?

I settled down with "Anita's 3-D Clear Gloss" but from now on I am going with the EZ Runner.



What do you look for in an adhesive?

Something that is a good price, but more importantly something that is quick and easy to use and makes a nice clean finish. Sometimes the Clear Gloss can get a bit messy and is no good for ribbons so this runner would be perfect.



How easy is the product to remove from its packaging?

No problem at all. Just a simple cardboard backing.



Does the product appeal to you i.e does it look good?

Yeah. It sounds strange but I like the way the plastic feels. It's a nice weighted matt plastic. I don't like the shiny plastic on most runners as they are slippy.



How easy is the product to use?

I never read any instructions or had any difficulty. There is a finger groove at the top which kind of indicates which way up it goes and I just got straight on.



How well does the product perform?

It is absolutely amazing. The glue just slides out really fluently. There is no clicking or pulling and everything on my page actually stayed in place. Every glue runner I have tried, the things start coming unstuck! I was honestly, so impressed with this.



Do you like this product?

During use of thisproduct I did my usual trick. Can you believe it!! I was so annoyed because I thought I had ruined the whole dispenser by holding it upside down and running it backwards. It was absolutely fine. I couldn't believe it! I LOVE this product.



Do you consider it good value for money?

I get through a LOT of adhesive so at £4.99.. I'd have to find myself some in a sale because that is a lot of money to me. Not quite as expensive as Herma and in my opinion it is worth every penny.



Would you consider buying this product in the future?

I would love to stock up on these because from now on it is THE glue I use. Worth every penny in my opinion. I would never have chosen it without this test.



What would make you more likely to buy this product in the future?

If there was a trial price or a sale then I would stock up on a tonne of these. It is a good price compared to others in its range but I don't have a lot of money for the amount of adhesive I get through. I think the packaging looks outdated, Kind of like finding a product from when you was little! If it have a new packaging it would probably get peoples attention more.



What would make you less likely to buy this product in the future?

If it changed because I thought it was perfect and I hate it when maunfacturers mess with things!



SO there you have it folks. Honestly, I rate this 10/10.

And now I'm totally peed off because I have "She's an easy lover" stuck in my head but "It's an E Z runner.. It sticks good glue so you can't even seeee ittt... It's like no otherrr".

Over and Out.