into scrap booking?

I have been scrap booking which always involves sorting through my supplies.
I have a pile to give to a scraper - I am just too "lazy" to put it on Trade Me - quickest way to get it out of the house is this way.
A pile of pages and mats and stickers ... see pics.
Leave me a comment and I'll post off to the first person who wants it. Quick! Go! (Only for New Zealanders sorry.)

Sharing a Vintage Swap to take part in...

Head over to Butter and Buntings for a fantastic vintge recipe swap.
This looks really neat!

capsules of life

*Big post office run - 3 swap parcels and a bunch of snail mail letters sent off to Australia (x2), USA(x2), France, UK.
* HUGE mammoth effort to get 30 parents and around 45 odd children all signed up for a reading programme at school. I organise the whole entire thing from making library cards, book bags, sets of books for each child which match their reading level and then running the things. More time out of library but same volume of work to do.
*AND carry on maintaining the library as usual. but NOPE today it is a mess. I cannot do it all by my self, but I have to... roping in friends to help do it. Some of us work a lot harder than others like at any workplace.. Shelving is piled up everywhere.
*And we throw into the mix jury service next week. NOT excited. BUT actually time off work might do my brain some good.
*Not good only 4-5 weeks into a school term.
*Summer soccer is over. Yay. Team won their grade. Yay.
*Only have music and futsal 2 nights a week and that is IT for extra curricular stuff.
*Started my next uni paper - need to carry on as I started.
*Weather still stunning and piles of laundry done every day.
*Thinking here we go with another term of being exhausted and staying home in the weekends - sorry family. Need home time seriously.
*Thinking of a poor friend who is on bed rest in hospital at only 30 weeks. that must be HARD> No idea what is around the corner.
*Going in to teach her how to knit to drive away some of the insantiy.
*I need flowers. More. In vases. Where do you buy good not too expensive flowers from every week? I have no idea...
*Doing well with scrapbooking. Love making memories.
*Doing very very well with not spending so much money on stuff I do NOT need. Making do with stuff.
*Got a new lead for the rabbit except we did not put it on properly... cue a PANIC and lots of yelling as we ran around the backyard trying to catch it.... funny now. Was NOT funny at the time.
*I neeeeeeeed sleep...........
*Husband finally coming right after 2 weeks of a viral thing.

Badge collector

I am not too sure you gets more excited about scout badge collecting - the scout or me!
Today's chore - pinning and sewing on scout badges (lots collected from jamboree and from years ago too!).
HOURS of work! HOURS. and not even half done.
And a broken sewing machine needle. Not at all the easiest thing to sew. Or sew straight.
The scout is very pleased though to finally have more badges on the blanket. He has been at the annual Founders Day camp this weekend at Motu Moana and his scout group won the pioneering Trophy! There will be another one or two badges to sew on the camp fire blanket after this weekend now.
I am a past cub scout leader - Scouting is so good for kids - both boys and girls are welcome in scouts in New Zealand - we were the first country to admit girls to scouts around 20 years ago. i think in USA scouts is still a boy thing - correct me if I am wrong!

Kia Kaha (Stand Tall) Christchurch

Three years ago today, at 12.51 pm, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the city of Christchurch in our South Island. 185 people were killed. Three years on many people are stuck in an insurance limbo land, houses may have been repaired, but with a low quality of work, people have mental health issues, schools are being merged or closed and taken away the one safe consistent part of life that children may have had. Our government, EQC and others have let this poor city and its lovely people down .

I have been scrap booking my Christchurch photos today, from my visit of September 2013 - it is hard. How do you scrap book photos of damaged buildings and bare land? Kia Kaha Christchurch! You were so beautiful, but we will watch you rise again, stronger than ever.

Let's be honest...

about the state of my house.
It is Friday night. I am whacked. Husband has been sick for 10 days. I have started my next university paper. >br> The heat is KILLING me. Killing me slowly. Humidity is very very high.
This is what my house looks like.
Joy. I can't be bothered at the moment.
Takeaways for the second time this week - too hot for the kitchen - it is a tip too.
I have

Saturday and Sunday to sort it all out. Tonight I am scrap booking, at futsal, dropping a kid off to Founders Day Scout camp....
NOT cleaning. (4 loads of laundry out on clothesline now. Did I mention the heat is killing me>

What I've sent

I took part in Tracy's Valentine Swap.
The items to be swapped had to include a handcrafted heart, sweets and something around flowers.
this is what I sent to Tracy , who was also my swap partner.
I knitted a heart coaster and a dishcloth (still loving the Sugar'n'creme cotton), a bamboo bowl (adore anything made out of bamboo - bamboo underwear is a favourite of mine!), flower seeds, chocolate and lollies and sprinkles fo cakes and cupcakes.

Silly me had a dyslexia moment and got house numbers confused and sent it off to another house way up the road (and the cheeky people actually opened the parcel before sending it back to me - at least they did that! - but it wan't cool enough to keep - hee hee), before re-addressing correctly for Tracy to receive it. I know she has received it and loves it all. Another swap completed and I am close to sending my packages off for my own swap - Share your Country.

Kiwiana pillow love

Every summer I do a cross stitch. This past summer I have done two - one started a few months ago but finished this summer - it should be back from the framers this week.
And this one - a cross stitch map of New Zealand I started in December and finally finished it tonight. It would have been finished weeks ago but study put a stop to that!
I sewed it up as a cushion half an hour go and adore it! (I secretly think my husband said make it into a cushion as he thinks we have enough cross stitched things on the walls and he freaks every time at the cost of framing - hee hee!
Heirlooms dear. Heirlooms. >br> The NZ map pattern and kit is available from The Stitchsmith. Do you cross stitch much?

This

weekend has made me sooooo happy! Free time and no guilt doing anything! I've been...

sewing on my newly serviced machine. (what a difference!I took both my machines in for their first - eeeek- ever service. But YIKES - the cost! $125 per machine! I had no idea it was so expensive!)

stitching. I will make this into a cushion - which fabric do you like the most for the back?

buying parallel imported sneakers for me at $25 pair from The Warehouse (yay for my size 3 UK/ size 6 US feet!) and board games for school (spent around $3000 on games lately!)

scrapbooking up large. I have been a HUGE HUGE Creative Memories album maker for about 12 years and have over 35 albums. A friend worked out I had around $10,000 worth of albums at least..... They went under as a company last year and i refuse to pay the inflated trade me prices for new pages/page protectors. this afternoon at Spotlight I bought the first of my "Project life" pages/album etc. The husband cracked up when he saw it and said "that's all done for you. No effort there in page layout/design." To me, yes, he is probably right but i have no idea what else to use and it is simple and pretty cheap after creative memories stock! I am a big story teller and my children have very well documented lives!

,br. and the hot dry weather continues. Next I need to seriously get on with letter writing and finishing swaps.
How was your weekend?

Swap Love

A package today at school and another one yesterday. Love. Tracy's Valentine's Swap had me partnering with Alisha from Invercargill. (a one day delivery from there to Auckland - first time I've been impressed with your service this year NZ Post!)

2 sweet pouches with a notepad, paper clips (perfect for uni work.) and sticky notes (I go through so many at school!); a chocolate rose; Whitaker's Strawberry Milk chocolate (new to me!, fab engraved pencils and eco store soap. And Cat's Sew Sweet Swap saw the third gorgeous zippered pouch with more goodies arrive from Jennie today.

In the funky fabric pouch I received 3 New Zealand bars (Pixie caramel! I have not seen one of these for soooo long!), very cool K- Mart notebooks, sticky notes and a pen. >br> Feeling very spoilt by both wonderful swaps! Thanks ladies so much for all the gorgeous items! Stationery and zippered pouch love!
The husband might have dengue fever from his visit to Tonga! Fingers crossed not. I am enjoying my free time before I get into my next uni paper.

Things

Whew. One exam over. 13 A4 size page sides of essays written.... still feeling nervous about final result - exams and I are not best friends. There were tears before and after.... Now I have freedom for a few weeks until my next paper (Language and Literacy) starts.. first assignment is on a picture book. I had a wee giggle at that. And it is 60% internal - much more up my alley. Good mail at school today - lots of squishy lovely sugar'n'creme cotton yarn and sparkly divine sock wool from Red Riding Hood Yarns - treats to me for finishing my paper! (I can always think of an excuse to buy sweet little things.) And the most gorgeous zipper bag too from Red Riding Hood. Love it. And a swap package too - yay. So what to do? Scrapbooking? Letter writing? Reading? Knitting? Pick sewing machines up?? It is hard to relax after a university paper completed in 3 months! Isn't the weather horrific all around the world? Gobsmacked at the flooding in England and the snow storms in USA, bushfires in Australia and our backyard is dirt central! We need serious rain.

Since Friday Night while memorizing stuff....

But I really want to make big things... :) 24 hours and I'll be freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

I just want to...

and not have to do any study! I feel very guilty looking at all the letters I owe too....

weekend again/ Sew Sweet Swap

Here we are again. Gorgeous sunny day for the usual end of the week laundry mountain! Study. Husband home for a couple of days. Bought me an issue of Australian Country Style. Yay. He is the guy who goes overseas and spends not one cent.... company travel!
Looking forward to reading my growing pile of new mags and knitting the multiple balls of Sugar'n'creme yarn ordered last night in a few more days - freedom is on its way. :)I am knitting dishcloths for a school gala. (a school I am not even associated with either. Apparently my dishcloths are becoming known around the place. :) )
I participated in Cat's Sew Sweet Swap and was partnered with Jennie, who does not have a blog. This is what I sent her -

A pouch (learnt how to sew in a zip - yay!) with chocolate, fat quarters (so hard to find spots and brights at Spotlight - I need to find local craft shops!) and Typo tissues. Loving all the swaps happening out there.

Waitangi Day

I think I have decided I might nearly be a super woman! Stephen is overseas working. He comes back on Saturday, only to fly to Tonga on Monday. This did not go down with me when I found out on Wednesday (always little notice with his job) - in fact we had a good fight. We hardly ever fight. Not his fault I know> But just not good timing for me with uni exam next Wednesday...
Today we have hung out at home. I have, disgracefully, basically ignored the boys..... Well at 10/12/15 I think they can look after themselves...Study, study, study for me...
I have run around the supermarket grabbing food; run into The Warehouse and bought parallel imported Adidas and Puma tees and shorts for Kieran for his birthday in a few months at the bargain price of $12.60 and $10.60 each; run into K-Mart and found summer pjs for next year for $5.00 a pair. First lot of shopping since December for me! That is really good for me. I have been trying to cut back on stuff which is not needed!!
Then four year 11 boys all turned up to hang out at our house for the day. funny how parents are the last to find this out. But it is always good to see the mates your kids hang out with!
more study. Dinner of hot chicken, salads from deli bar, hot chips and chicken bites. Lazy food to me, which I hardly do, but today dictates it.. essay memorization is not fun!
Hope all the kiwis had a good Waitangi day - I could get used to a day off like this every week. :)

Nailed It!

So, so happy with number 2 essay! Now I just have to sit through a 3 hour exam next week...

Ryan finally started school today - he was happy about it but not happy at me taking the yearly photo on the first day of the school year. Ha! A 2 week gap between the boys starting school which has been a long 2 weeks...

And a pic from SKIDS the other day - he loved it and wants to do after school care 1-2 days a week "so you can run around and be free for a bit after school Mum." Bless him.

Today I moved things around in the library - my volume of new books is INCREDIBLE - I have to find shelf space somewhere.... I love having books out front on display. And I made a quick permanent Fairy Tales section. Those and nursery rhymes seem to have gone out the window of so many children's knowledge...