Howdy Ma'am

Have you ever had something that frustrated the heck out of you? Computers top the list for me but that's not what's frustrated me the last couple of days. I was running low on tape for my snot gun (ATG 700 to those of you use the proper name!) a couple of weeks ago so tried to place an order with my usual site but unfortunately it has closed down for a while. I finally tracked them down and they put me on to another site who would sort me out. I ordered my usual 10 rolls expecting to be told it came to £22 including postage like my previous place but instead was told it was £36!!! I did have another site I could get the tape from which was over £30 but not as much as £36 but you know that way when you get passed a certain point and your brain wants to say forget it but your mouth says yeah that's fine? Well, that's what happened! But that's not the frustrating part. The woman said it was Stix 2 tape and it was better than the other stuff yadda yadda yadda .... well for the price I would hope so. I didn't want to invest in the flippen' company for goodness sake...just buy some tape for my snot gun lol. I ordered it just before Christmas and I finally got it yesterday and not before time... I'd used my last 1/2 inch the night before. The long and short is it's a nightmare! It's thicker than my usual tape...it doesn't do corners like my usual tape...it doesn't break off like my usual tape...IT DOESN'T WORK LIKE MY USUAL TAPE!!! I swear it's the same stuff doctor's use for butterfly stitches lol. I've loaded my 2 guns with the stuff and I've another 8 in the box to get through before I eat humble pie and go to Viking where I got my my gun in the first place.

Now my rant is over I want to share with you the card I was talking about yesterday. Like I said I have never made a card for this occasion before and I don't think I ever will again. If any of you have let me know. I got a text message from a friend the other day inviting us up for the bells tonight. She said she had a little something to celebrate apart from the New Year. I'll let the card do the talking...

How cool is that? An OBE!!! The card turned out exactly how I pictured it so I'm really pleased. The crown is from a Stampin' Up! set which hadn't seen ink since I bought it about 5 years ago...But I KNEW I'd need it sometime and I was right lol. I wanted to keep it as simple as possible but still have a bit of wow and I think it does.

That's my dinner arrived from the chippy so I'm off. Enjoy whatever you're doing to ring in the bells tonight and stay safe.

I'll catch ya next year! x

I need more stamps...

You know when you've got to do a card but you can't find an image suitable and you think you don't have any stamps at all even though you've got a gazillion? Well that was me tonight lol! Those that know me know I have a gazillion plus stamps but I couldn't make a decision to save myself. Martini Nikki wasn't the stamp I was going to go with at first...it was a Penny Black cat holding a bouquet of flowers but I wasn't really feeling it. I had looked at Martini Nikki but I had made a card using her for a friend of the recipient of this card (Ines had ordered a card for her) and decided against it. I think I took out every single stamp I owned but I always went back to Nikki so after a couple of wasted hours I decided Nikki it was!

This card is bigger than I usually do...my standard square card is 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 but this one is a whopper at 6 1/4 x 6 1/4!!! I'm not sure why I chose this size...think it was for the PB cat image as it was pretty big...and normally I shy away from such a large card as I figure it takes a lot to fill it but I'm really pleased with how it turned out. Unfortunately the ribbon in the picture looks like it doesn't match but it goes perfectly with the pink in the striped paper. I decided to throw caution to the wind and get a button in there somehow. I remembered the 'buttony bow' from http://stampedbyhand.blogspot.com/ (I still haven't worked out how to just put a name and not the whole http rigamarole so if anyone can help can you let me know please!) and decided to do one on this card. BTW, Joanne from Stamped By Hand has a video tutorial on her buttony bows if you want to take a look ...it's easy peasy when you see it done ;D Anywho, I hope Ines likes it and I hope her husband is happy to give it to her!

I've a very special card to make for a friend later. I'm not sure how many people have made a card for this particular occasion...I know I certainly haven't and I don't think I ever will again! I know exactly what I'm going to do (makes a change lol) and it's going to be extremely simple (not the easy simple) AND I hope simple (the easy simple lol). If it get it done in time I'll post it later.

So for now, thanks for stopping by. Hope you have a great day :D

Catch ya later x

I'm still here!

Hello there...I haven't left the country though I'm tempted with this freezing weather lol. I have loved the snow and I'm still not fed up with it and the dogs are having a great time though poor Ruby has a bit of a time of it on the ice with her 3 legs. She has done the splits quite a few times now but she just gets back up and carries on lol! There's more snow scheduled before and during the New Year so it will be fun and games digging all the cars out of our street. Any car with front wheel drive has no chance so those cars are left at the top of our street.

We had a lovely Christmas....just the 5 of us then after dinner Nicole's friend came over for a bit. I don't think we've stopped eating since. Three course dinner's every night but that's all going to stop tonight! The baking is almost finished and I won't be doing that again until next Christmas. I managed to unload some Rocky Road onto Postman Steven...he's got grandchildren so hopefully they'll enjoy it.

I finally made it into my workroom yesterday. It was still a mess from when I shut up shop on Christmas Eve so I had to clear that before I could begin. On Christmas Eve a friend called and asked for an engagement card for her daughter whose boyfriend was going to propose on Christmas day. I finished this off today...probably not a traditional engagement card but I love this Pink Petticoat image and wanted to use it. I also love this Bo Bunny paper and thought the hearts tied it together. I hope my friend likes it.

It's another easel card and I'm thinking I'm going to have to be a bit more adventurous with the bottom half of the card. I've seen quite a few recently and they've got everything but the kitchen sink on them. I'd love to use flowers but I always abandon the idea because I don't seem to get the look I want. Same with buttons. I've been using a few lately but again I wonder if they look like I needed to fill a space. I wanted to put one on this card with a bit of ribbon through the holes but I wasn't feeling it lol.

I was also asked for 2 cards to give to the same person...one is from the daughter to her mom and one from the husband to his wife. I decided I wanted to use Ruby blowing out the candle for the mom and this is what I came up with.

I saw this sketch on a blog...in fact the only thing I changed was the punch and the image. I don't normally follow something so close but my creativity seemed to hit a brick wall and I needed a helping hand. I was asked to use 'mamma' instead of 'mom' (mum).

I'm going to do the husband to wife tonight. I didn't have a clue what I was going to use for that one but I found a stamp that has never seen ink (shock horror lol) and deemed it suitable. If I get it finished in time I'll post it later.

I'm off to get dinner started...one course only!!!

Catch ya later x

Merry Christmas!

Santa Claus is Coming.....

One more sleep...I can't believe it's Christmas tomorrow:D I think I've got everything done and if I don't then too bad lol. I went into town quickly today...on the train...but I didn't load myself down like the last time...think I learned my lesson! I wanted to get a couple of things for Steven but couldn't think of anything. He didn't know what he wanted but as I was standing in Prince's Square talking to Nicole I spied The Pen Store and the lightbulb went on! Something for his business Poor Wee Soles. When he goes to meet people he takes a battered notepad so I ended up getting him a beautiful leather Filofax A4 folder that has a notepad on the right and space for business cards and papers on the left. I was so pleased with myself when I left the store and really hope he likes it. He's going to look for a suit in the sales for his business meetings and he'll look so smart carrying his new folder :D

Here's a card I made the other night ... another order...and she specifically asked for cupcakes and girly. I remembered I had bought the Pink Petticoat cupcakes and that one of them had holly on it but could I find them? NO! BFF Karen came to the rescue and emailed it to me and this is what I came up with.

Sorry to bore you with more snow pictures but I took these yesterday when I was walking the dogs. I think the snow is beautiful like this. BTW...Pierce and the boys did get home safely the other night when the snow was really bad :D

Looking up my street

My backyard again...

And again...

and again!!

Still have a bit of ironing to do then it's bed cuz Santa will be here soon!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Catch ya later x

2 more sleeps

I can't believe it's Christmas Eve's Eve! Where the heck did this year go? I got the rest of the food in today but boy was it busy at Sainsbury's. It took Nic and I forever to get parked but thinking back that was the EASY bit...getting out of the carpark was another story! I think we were lucky as it only took us 45 minutes to get out....I heard it took an hour and a half for others to get out of that same carpark earlier in the week!

Here's a card a friend ordered for her daughter's whose birthday is today. I love this Stamping Bella stamp. I hadn't ordered anything from SB in months but as soon as I saw her I knew I had to add her to my collection of Bella's. I knew my BFF Karen would love her too so I got one for her birthday...that's why her present was late!!

I'm pretty pooped. I've barely sat down today. After dinner I did some more baking. Speaking of which I made a big big BIG mistake last night...I made another batch of Kris Kringle cookies...OMG they are soooooooo good...especially still warm but soooooo not good for the waistline lol. Tonight I made Turtles (amazing!) and Rocky Road (amazing!) and some wheat and gluten free shortbread for Ben's mom (amazing!). I think I might be joining a gym in the New Year lol.

Right...dogs need out and I need my bed.

Thanks for stopping by...catch ya later x

Snowy Days

Take a look at these pictures I took at about 3:30pm this afternoon ...

Front yard...

Back yard! It stopped for a bit but now it's back in full force. Steven finally managed to get his car out of our street to go to work tonight but he's on his way back as the roads are so bad. Pierce and Ryan have been stuck in traffic for about 45 minutes and they're only 10 minutes from home! Unfortunately there are a few really steep hills on their route so who knows when they'll get home. I love the snow...especially when I'm out with the dogs. They absolutely love the snow. I had them up at the tennis courts at the top of our street this morning and they were going crazy! There was a traffic cone there and Rocky managed to grab it and was spinning around with it like it was a discus .... poor Ruby kept having to duck otherwise she would have been knocked out LOL! I did manage to take a video of it so if I can manage to work out how to get it on here I'll post it later.

This card was an order for a friends friend's nieces's first Christmas (I like to confuse lol). I love this stamp. It's by Inky Antics and I had seen it in an American magazine about 5 years ago. I searched high and low for it but couldn't find it so I phoned Inky Antics and it turned out it was discontinued but they still had a couple left even though it wasn't on their website! I don't think I'll ever part with it because it's perfect for little ones.

The boys still aren't back yet so I hope they're ok. Steven just called to say he couldn't get back up the hill to the house so he's going to try and go around the back way. Maybe I don't like the snow so much after all.

Catch ya later x

Practice what you preach..

Hello...how ya'll doing with your Christmas preparations? All set? Me? Nope!! I suppose that's not entirely true...I'm probably more organized than I think. I've got an appointment at the hairdresser's tomorrow so I'll have plenty of time to go over things in my head. I finished making my Christmas cards on Sunday :D...yeah I know...a bit late but I'm sure they'll get there in time.

Remember my post on Friday? About taking the train into town cuz it was easier than driving in and trying to get parked at this time of year? As long as you don't have too much shopping to carry? Welllllllllllllll...I think I'm going to have to practice what I preach because what started off as a great day on Saturday turned into a nightmare! Got up early...showered, washed my hair (we were going out that night so I figured I didn't have to worry about the hair), straightened it etc, etc. Left the house, the sun was shining...blue skies. Made it to the station in plenty of time (remember I'm only 30 seconds away) for the 9:03 train. Got myself a seat, settled in, list out, check, check, check. Arrived in town...shopped, bought, shopped, bought. Doing really well though noticing I'm acquiring quite a few bags. Legged it up to Buchannan Galleries to John Lewis's...added to my bags then decided to head back down to Princes Square. As I made my way to the exit I noticed people were quite wet...no, they were really wet...no, they were actually soaking. I got to the door and it was pouring out!!! So there I was, hands full of shopping, wool coat, no umbrella (not that I would have been able to hold one anyway!) with a decision to make. Do I go back inside and grab a coffee and wait till it stops or do I just go for it? I decided to go for it and braced myself for the onslaught. I think I was soaked through within minutes! But the worst was to come...it started to snow. Now when I say snow I mean SNOW! It was so thick and heavy I could hardly see in front of me. I think everyone got caught out like me because they were running for cover and girls were squealing like stuck pigs lol. I abandoned my plan to go back to Princes Square and head straight for the train even though I was 40 minutes early. At one point I started to laugh out loud because we all looked so funny drenched from the rain and snow. My lovely straightened hair was no more...think McCain's crinkle chips and you've got it lol! By the time I got to the station my bags had started to disintegrate and I had to decant things into other bags. I managed to find a seat and just sat there with the steam rising from me...Starbucks was right there in front of me and boy did I want one but didn't have the energy so just waited for my train. I got home in one piece but did resemble a drowned rat!

Right...enough of the rambling...here's Karen's card I promised for Saturday but didn't deliver (for obvious reasons!!!) That was probably one of the better things to happen that day, Karen received her parcel which meant I was only a day late for her birthday ;D

What do you think? I absolutely love her...she's called Two Jill and is a digital image from Mo's Digital Pencil. I'm sure we've all seen a little girl or boy strike this pose when they don't get their way! I had bought her a week or so before Karen's birthday and was waiting for the right time to use her. When I knew I was going to be late for her birthday I instantly thought of her.

Well, I have a card to make...an order for a friend so I better get cracking. I still have to wrap all my presents and do quite a bit more baking to give away. I feel another batch of Kris Kringle Cookies coming on!

Thanks for stopping by....catch ya later x

Mrs Blobby

Remind me not to start baking for Christmas so early. I seem to be eating more than I'm freezing or giving away! I feel like a stuffed turkey and I've more baking to do which means I'll be eating more. About 7 years ago. I gave up cakes, cookies, sweets, crisps etc for 5 years. Yes you read right 5 years!!!! I think I'm making up for it now lol. I'm really going to make an effort to get more exercise in the New Year because it's true what they say...it's very hard to lose weight when you get to your 40's.

I meant to make a post a lot earlier today...like this morning...but so much was going on so now I'd like to wish my BF Karen a very happy birthday :D Hope you've had a fabby day. I was going to post her card on my blog but I only mailed it today...but it wasn't my fault!! Her prezzie didn't arrive until this morning so I wrapped it up and hopped on the train (we're playing musical cars at the moment!) into Clarkston to post it. Hopefully she'll get it tomorrow. Unfortunately the train only stops in my village every hour so I decided I would walk home! I went to my favourite deli Eat and got myself a cappucino and set off. It only took me 40 minutes which I thought was pretty good going as some of the sidewalks were covered in snow. If Karen gets her package tomorrow I'll post her card for you to see. I LOVE it :D

I don't have any cards to show you today but I came across these pictures from last winter and thought you'd like to see them.

I was trying to be a bit creative with the first picture...I'm sure some would say there's a lot wrong with it but I think I achieved what I set out to which was to have the leaves and berries in focus and the rest out of focus. Don't ask me how I did it though...I think it was a fluke lol.

The second picture is of my back yard. I'm standing outside just under my kitchen window. I love this view...especially in the winter. In the summer I can see cows and sheep in the field. You can just about see the train tracks...just above the fence at the bottom of the yard. It takes me about 30 seconds to walk to the station...very handy at this time of year! Saves trying to get parked in town and as long as I don't buy too much to carry it's fine.

I'm heading into town in the morning (on the train)...I haven't bought my kids one single present yet! I want to try and get everything done so I don't have to go back in. I'm going to go to Costco on Monday to get my turkey crown...this will be the 4th year I've bought it there and every time it's been delicious.

I'm off to take the dogs their walk and get to my bed...I'm getting the 9:03 train in the morning!

Catch ya later x

Finally...

....got my Christmas trees up yesterday! Phew...what a job. I always wait until the weekend AFTER my birthday which should have been last weekend but what with rushing around and X Factor (gotta get your priorities straight lol) I never got a chance. And what a final to X Factor...I was back and forth between Joe and Olly but decided that Joe should win and he did!! I {heart} Joe but I'm sure my friend Elaine will remind me of some of the texts that we sent back and forth the weekends leading up to the final. It was Olly all the way and something about a cougar kept coming up LMAO!

Anywho, here are my trees...not great pictures but you get the idea. I've got a 10ft slim one in the hall and a 6ft plump one in the tv room. The one in the hall is dressed all in purples and the one in the tv room is dressed with decorations my mom has given me and the kids over the years. It became a bit of a tradition (one which I'm sure Judy wishes she never started lol!) that my mom would buy me a new decoration every year. She included the kids for about 4 or 5 years then it was just me and then shock horror she announced one year she wasn't going to send me one anymore either!!! I don't think I'd ever had a tantrum as a child (I'm sure I'll be told otherwise) so made up for all the ones I didn't have and I'm still getting my decorations though they are getting smaller and smaller! Mom always wraps them up so I don't open it until Christmas day. This one is about the size of a 50p but squareish and flat...can't even begin to think what it could be but I'll love it like I've loved all the ones from previous years. Two years ago she gave me 2 beautiful baubles from her trip to China. It was the first time she'd been back to China since she emigrated when she was 10 years old but sadly she couldn't find the village where they had lived in the internment camp. All the maps were in Chinese and even the Chinese people didn't know!!!

Looks like it's been crammed in there! Picture doesn't do it justice.

Sorry for the fuzzy picture...this is one of my favourite decorations my friend Jean gave me from one of her trips to the States...1992 Steven was only 18 months old! Now he's 18 and 6'5"!!!

Another fuzzy one for you...one of the decorations my mom sent me :D

Pierce cleaned me out of Christmas cards this morning so shock horror I went out and bought some! Oh the shame :( I'm going to try and make some for my nearest and dearest but if you do get a store bought one from me please don't hold it against me lol.

Catch ya later x

One quick post...

This will be quick because I've a million and one things to do before I go to my bed!

I made this card for my nephew tonight...what do you get a 21 year old?? Well I decided to go for the safe option and give him an HMV gift card. I didn't want to just put it in an ordinary card and I remembered my friend Elaine had made her dad this card (we'd made it in one of the workshops) and she said a gift card fit perfectly ;D

Catch ya later x

ps I told you it was quick lol!

All shopped out....yeah right!

Late Friday night I texted my friend Annette (you know Annette...2 latte's, 2 cappucino's & 2 pieces of banana bread Annette....Yeah...that Annette lol!!) to see what she was up to Saturday morning as Crafts At Home were having a 20% off everything sale! It didn't take long to hear back...I'm sure our texts passed each other lol. Anywho, she picked me up at 9:30ish and we headed off talking 10 to the dozen. I had packaged up some Kris Kringle cookies for her and not before time because they are so moreish and if I don't start giving more away I'm going to eat them all!! We got there just about 10 only to find the shutters down...we looked at each other like the world had come to an end lol. I got my phone out and scrolled down to the email she sent and sure enough it said the sale was Saturday the 12th and opened at 10. What a relief it was to watch the shutters slowly wind their way up and the door was opened and in went went...at break neck speed I might add! You'd think they were giving it away we were that excited but hey...a sale is a sale!

I pounced on some Imaginesce Christmas paper that I probably won't use till next year but I was a Girl Guide once upon a time and our motto was Be Prepared so I was preparing ;D. Next I headed over to the punches...I really love the new Martha Stewart and EK Success punches and CAH had plenty to choose from...in fact too many as I changed my mind every 5 seconds. Annette wasn't any help since she kept pointing ones out that I had missed. It was great because we were the only ones in the store the whole time (an hour maybe) we were there. Margaret and Angela were very helpful offering tips and suggestions and Annette was quite excited to learn they do classes for the Cricut. Annette's husband bought her one for Christmas though I think it's only the box that's going to be wrapped up under the tree lol. Our piles (crafty ones lmao) were getting higher and higher though I think Annette won. She got a Bind It All...a pink one! and an i Top with all the bits to go with....well we had to take advantage of the 20%...it would have been rude not to. I was a very lucky girl because Annette bought me an EK Success punch for my birthday ...Thanks Annette...I did try for the Making Memories Slice but she'd turned her hearing aid off by that point! Here's what I bought including my birthday present. I also got my BF Karen her birthday prezzie but I can't show you that cuz she reads my blog.

I've wanted the 'cheese' punch since I was home last year

This is the punch Annette bought me...the line is embossed between the holes. I'll make a card using it and post it this week.

It wasn't long before we had to head and pick up Annette's daughter Eilidh but we had a great time. If we'd had the time I think we'd still be there looking, stroking, comparing.....and of course it's so much better to do this with a friend :D

Catch ya later x

Sweet Treat

Thought I'd share this recipe with you as I haven't made any cards recently. I love to bake but I don't do much since my kids are grown up but I always bake in the weeks leading to Christmas. I usually make Turtles (OMG!!), pecan puffs and shortbread...Scottish and Canadian. This year I wanted to add to the menu and when I was talking to my little sister yesterday she told me she'd been at her friends and they made Kris Kringle cookies and they were amazing! I decided tonight was the night so I went to Sainsbury's this morning and got all the ingredients. The recipe says it makes 72 cookies but I think I got closer to 80!!! And can I tell you.... they are d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!!!!! So I thought I'd share the recipe with you :D

Big Batch Kris Kringle Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 oz Belgian white chocolate chopped into small pieces
2 cups chopped pecans, toasted
2 cups dried cranberries

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on med speed until light and fluffy. Blend in eggs and vanilla. Add flour, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in chocolate, pecans and cranberries.

2. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls, 1 1/2 inches apart, onto ungreased baking sheets.

3. Bake 9 - 11 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 3 min; remove to wire racks. Cool completely. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Catch ya later x

For She's a Jolly Good Fellow....

What a great birthday I've had ;D ... Prezzies, phone calls, emails, text and Face Book messages. I had a lovely lunch with my friend Jean ... thanks Jean... and picked up some things where Nicole works and got the train home. Pottered a bit then got a take away and then Nicole, Ben and I watched my wedding video (my fil had it transfered onto a DVD) which was so embarrassing!!

Have a look at one of the prezzies my BFF Karen got me :0

Only THE best pancake syrup in the world!

Here I am being called in for the cake


Nic and I posing while Ruby and Rocky eye up the cake lol!

Ready, steady

Blow!!!

Me & Stevo

Ben, Birthday Girl & Ryan

Conspicuous by his absence is Pierce...he hates getting his picture taken!

Thank you everyone for your birthday wishes ;D

Catch ya later x

Happy Birthday To Me!

This is me on my 8th birthday with my friend Jana. How funny LOLOLOLOL!!! I hadn't seen Jana in 25 years or more and she contacted me a couple of years ago and we met up last year when I went home for my mom's 70th birthday. It was really great seeing her and catching up on all the years. It's so bizarre but her parents have family in Troon which is 35 minutes from me and they visit every year and I didn't know it! And another crazy coincidence is before Jana contacted me Pierce and I had been to a restaurant in Glasgow on a number of occasions called Chardon d'Or. The owner Brian comes out and goes from table to table making sure everything is ok. Anywho...Jana and I are talking on the phone one day and blah blah blah it turns out Brian is her cousin!!!

I'm going for lunch with my friend Jean today to a little place in Princes Square called Fantoosh. I think I might have mention this place before...it makes the most fantastic chilli pate...We're not meeting till 1:30 so I hope there's some left for me!

Thanks for stopping by...I'll post later and tell you how my days been.

Catch ya later x

Confused??? I am!

I was asked to make a card for a friends friends wedding a couple of weeks ago. Although the wedding was in November my friend has been in Thailand for the last 8 weeks, missed the wedding but wanted the card when she got back early this month!!! Also another friend knows my friends friend and she had already asked for a card for her...are you still with me LOL??? Only thing was I had to remember what I'd done with the first card! Anywho, this is what I came up with...

I hope Ray likes it...I'm pretty pleased with it. I used my Bo Bunny paper I got from Funky Farm Scrapbook Barn yesterday. I bought it for the other side which I used on this card ...

Isn't it scrummy!!! I think I'll be using a lot of it in the future...hmmm...I only bought 4 pieces and I've used most of one of them...better make sure Hayley keeps some for me lol.

Gotta get to my bed now....I've got a big day ahead of me tomorrow and I'll need my rest! Check in tomorrow to see why ;D

Catch ya later x