Sunday - A Day of Rest

Well, kind of. I had a lie in this morning. Unintentional. Didn't set the alarm and woke up naturally at 11am. Ouch! I don't like getting up that late when there's so much I want to do. But I know I needed the sleep so it's ok. That was all the rest for a Sunday I was going to get.

I've worked all day on my new online store. My new business. It's just lil ole me but it's all mine. Both Steve and I are freelance graphic designers and artists and being self-employed means you have to really work at it. And work we do. It's our only income and so we know we have to make it work. Which isn't easy. Fortunately, we both absolutely love what we do. Neither of us are afraid of hard work.

So I spent the whole day today working on the back-end of my online store; writing up marketing plans; creating new products and slightly re-designing the look which is similar to my new blog header graphic. I kind of want my online presence to be cohesive. So people will recognise "Diane Rooney - Digital Scrapbook Creations" when they see it!

Not much rest today. In the end though, I'm happy to have achieved so much. There'll be other Sundays with plenty of rest. Today I had to work.

Friday and New Digi Scrapping Stuff

So it's Friday again. Wow! Another week's flown by. It's been good. I had a wonderful day out with my daughter-in-law and granddaughter in Canterbury on Wednesday. And then my granddaughter spent the night which was just too wonderful for words. She's the sweetest little thing and an absolute delight. It was good quality time with her but I felt somewhat shattered after she left! She kept me on my toes for sure. She's almost 8 mths old and is so funny and just chats and laughs and plays all day. So full of personality and spirit. Of course, I'm bias!

I managed to finish my Amelie Collection - a coordinating set of papers and embellishments for digital scrapbooking, all in pretty blues, cream, yellow and red.

Dreams of Summer and a Day of Crafting

Where is our Summer? I don't want to moan. I mustn't moan. All I can do is sit and dream of Summer. We are lucky where we are here in the South East of England. Yes, it's been raining. Really raining. Lots of storms. Cloudy days. And rain. Lots of rain. But it's nothing to the horror of what our fellow countrymen are suffering further north. Horrific flooding causing great misery. No clean water. No electricity. Millions of £££'s worth of damage.

We woke up this morning to more rain and a very dark cloudy day. It was more like October. I woke up very late even though I'd gone to be at 10:30pm the night before. I needed some sleep. A lot of sleep. I'm still recovering from being very ill last year with anaemia. My blood levels are still not up to normal. Anyway, I digress. I woke up feeling quite groggy... a little bit blue and not feeling like work at all.

So I decided to sit quietly and do some crafting. It was very therapeutic and just what I needed to do, and in the end, I will be able to use what I created for work. Initially I was going to sort out all my old bits and pieces of ribbons, material and buttons etc.. As I started to go through it all, I suddenly thought I could use it and create little "scrappy embellishments". Scrappy meaning scraps of material. Not necessarily for scrapbooking. If you know what I mean. Either way, they turned out really cute and I've decided to do another whole bunch of them.
These ones I created using blues and pinks - mainly. Trying to keep them colour co-ordinated. The next lot will be greens, rusty colours and purples. I love that I was able to use old bits and pieces. And I still managed to sort everything out and get it fairly neat and tidy.

So it was a good day in the end. Dark, cloudy and very rainy outside. Perfect excuse to stay indoors, sit at my table and be creative all day long.

A Good Day

Today was a good day. An old fashioned English Summer's day. I had a little bit of a lie in and then did some work, if you can call it that. I love my work so it's not really work, work, if you know what I mean. Tidied up, got changed and took a little wander into town. It was the "Beer and Oyster" Festival which I'd totally forgotten about so there were loads of people around. It was a great atmosphere.

I stopped off at a beautiful antiques and craft fayre at the Town Hall and bought some vintage buttons. So cute. Looked at some really beautiful bits and pieces and got inspired for work! Always thinking of my work! After doing a bit more shopping, I took a slow walk home, had a bit of lunch, did some washing and did more work. Caught up on emails etc.

So yeah, today was a good day. Simple pleasures in life. A little bit of sunshine and inspiration. And a good hair cut. Yay.

Friday Already? Surely Not!

Ok - who took my week? Where's it gone? I can't believe another week has gone by. It's seriously crazy how quickly the time is going. So much going on. So much on my neverending to do list - not in any particular order:

• Several products for Scrap Girls on the go
• Crocheting little flowers and also a bedspread for my daughter
• Sorting out photos which I need to get up in the hall, my office and the living room
• Sleep
  
• Photo art to finish
• Update my website
• Sleep
  
• Freebies for my blog to package up
  
• Several unfinished layouts to complete
• Sleep - oh, did I say that already?
  
• Backend admin to do on my new online store so I can finally get it live and get it launched!
• Clean the house

I really need to take a leaf out of Anna's book and do a fairly consistent every day to do list. Usually I just scribble down the immediate, pressing things - you know, "the deadline is today" kinda things!

Before I go I just thought I'd share this photo taken of me and my granddaughter last weekend. She's an absolutel doll and I'm crazy about her and I get to babysit her tonight! Yay!

Family

I spent the weekend with my family. Unfortunately I had to go on my own as we've got an issue with our dog, Cassy - she can't be left or has to go everywhere with us. Not a good situation but that's a whole other story. Anyway, I went to my ex's as he did a wonderful bbq celebration lunch for our son, who was awarded Teacher of the Year for his area. Quite an accomplishment for a young man of just 22yrs and only been in the job for 2 yrs.

It was a wonderful day with lots of his friends and family there. I got to spend some wonderful time with my precious granddaughter, Jorja. She's an utter delight. So sweet natured and so funny even at just seven months old. I still can't believe I'm "Nanny Di" at just 43 yrs old. Although my Dad was the same age when I had my first son so maybe it's history repeating itself.

In the evening, I went to my sister's where I was spending the night. We had such a lovely time together. My parents, brother and aunt were also there and my youngest son for a little while until he had to go to work. I realised as I sat there that these people are so precious to me. We are very close as a family. I think we've always been close but after a horrible family tragedy 8 yrs ago, we've been even closer. To cut a long story short, and I can't go into it fully because it's still too traumatic, and still being fought in the High Court, my brother was tried, convicted and imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit.

Those years were hard and stressful beyond anything I've ever suffered including my divorce. We had to pull together as a family and we did. So sitting there Saturday night I realised how important my family was to me. How precious and how lucky we are to have each other. And it made me so happy to be back in Kent to be near them. I moved because I needed to be near my children and little Jorja but I knew sat there that it was also to be near my brother, sister and parents.

However, I was glad to get home Sunday afternoon to my husband. I missed him. And he seemed to have missed me too. ;) We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening chilling in the living room watching movies and my West Wing dvds. Steve worked on the laptop at the same time. It was idyllic. Quiet. Peaceful and us.

And yesterday I spent the day cleaning our flat and working. Steve cooked dinner in the evening while I soaked in a warm bath. We'd had bad news that our neighbour had died. He had a massive heart attack while they were operating on his hip. It was a shock even though he was in his 80's. He'd started to recover from the stroke so well and was doing great according to his wife and family. And then he just died. It really affected Steve and I. I got out the bath and sat in the living room reading a magazine while Steve finished cooking dinner. He suddenly put his head round the door and said "I really love you. So very much". He's said that before but the look on his face and in his eyes told me something more than just the words I was hearing. It was passionate. Deep and meaningful. I asked him what brought that on... he was so affected by our neighbours death. That he wanted to let me know how much he cared about me and that we should treasure every day with each other. And I agree. I already knew that from my experience with my brother. How in a second your life can change. How you never know what's round the corner.

It was ironic to me that the past couple of days had been so emotional and so thought provoking in terms of my feelings towards those closest to me. The day before I went to see my son and my family, I'd done this layout. It's my dad and his grandchildren. They all absolutely adore him as we all do. So I thought I'd share it here with you all.

New Digi Scrapping Goodies!

Added some cool and somewhat colourful digital scrapbooking goodies to my store at Scrap Girls:

Colourful Crocheted Flowers Embellishments

Assemble Your Own: Felt Word Tabs - Guys

Something I Ate?

I'm not feeling well so I decided to get up and work. Not sure if it's something I ate but all night I fought off running to the loo and throwing up. I've also got a temperature and had a headache for a few hours now. Drinking lots of water.

I can't stay in bed when I feel unwell like that. I need a distraction even though I've been sitting here a couple of hours now and just kinda lying back in my chair staring out the window. Yes, I have done some work. I'm working on a new digital scrapbooking kit called "Amelie" - a french country style themed set of graphics. One of the customers at Scrap Girls requested it and it inspired me so I've been working on getting it done. I think some of the other designers are doing a similar collection so it will be interesting to see how they turn out.

Oh and I love my iPod at times like this. Early morning. Steve's still in bed fast asleep. Everything's still and quiet outside. Perfect. Now, if I could just shift this virus that's hurting me..

Creating Memories

Today, our elderly neighbour asked for our help as her husband had collapsed. We immediately went over there and Steve asked me to call an ambulance after clearly seeing that he'd had a stroke. I looked after the wife while Steve did what he could to get her husband comfortable. Being ex-military, Steve knew enough First Aid to get the situation under control before the paramedics arrived.

This elderly couple are in their eighties. We see them every day. Our office, at home, faces out the front so we see the comings and goings of our neighbours. We watch them go shopping, visit family and tend to their garden. Both are very sprightly and look so well for a couple in their eighties. In fact, I was surprised to hear they were that old. I honestly thought they were in their seventies.

Anyway, to see him collapsed like that was quite a shock to me. Not long before he collapsed, he'd been outside pruning the roses. His wife was calm enough but visibly shocked and suddenly seemed extremely vulnerable and frail. I talked to her and kept her focused and as reassured as I could until the paramedics arrived. I told her how Steve and I have watched them many times and hoped that we would be like that in our old age. And it's true. There was something very endearing about this elderly couple. So sweet. So together and clearly love each other so much.

I realised as I talked to her and listened to her talk about her husband that the love we feel for our spouses doesn't really change just because our bodies do. It was obvious to me she loved her husband as much now as the day they married. Simple. Our emotions (no matter what they are), spirit and essence of who we are remains the same. Our bodies grow old and die. It was so enlightening to me. I realised at that point that I really am going to get old and one day die. But the love I feel inside of me for my nearest and dearest will always be there.

Steve felt the same. Today's experience really deeply affected us both. We worked for the rest of the day but every now and then talked about them. Steve said the hallway upstairs (where our neighbour collapsed) was full of photographs, of memories. Their home was so homely and you could feel the love between them in their home. It's so hard to explain. It was there.

Steve and I talked about how important it is to us that we live each day to the full. To really love each other and try to keep short accounts. To make great memories so when we reach our old age we can look back and know that we did all we could to love each other and our family and friends to the very best of our abilities. That we created wonderful memories for each other and the children/grandchildren.

Our neighbour is doing well. He's in hospital now and his wife gave us a little thank you card earlier on this evening. We were both so touched that she would even think of us during such a hard time. It had to have been a long day for her and traumatic. And yet she took a few moments to write a thank you note.

I'm going to get old. I'm going to one day, die. In the meantime, I'm going to love my husband and my family dearly. I'm going to do all I can to cherish them and create wonderful memories.

At this point in time, I really understand and appreciate the real meaning of scrapbooking.

Crochet & Relaxing Weekend

Steve and I are trying our best not to work so much on the weekends. It's hard really as our jobs are also our hobbies. Our passion. That's how we met actually. An online art gallery! So it's hard not to work when your work is also a big part of who you are and also it's a relaxing pursuit.

That said, we also love to go for long walks, wander round town, the harbour and go to the beach. We love it when we see my kids and our granddaughter as well as going to Ashford to visit my family. Lots to do other than work and be on our computers! All done mainly on the weekends.

This weekend I decided to catch up on some crochet. I've been making a bed spread for Jenni in pinks, cream and purples. Square by square. It's coming along nicely. After a long walk Saturday, I sat crocheting for most of the day. I did some housework, cooked dinner and then spent the evening crocheting.
Sunday I decided to make some cotton crochet (filet) doilies and flower motifs. I went through all my craft books and found an old crochet one and followed some patterns. I'm really pleased with how they all turned out. I even did some pretty edgings.
And now I'm thinking of scanning them and turning them into digital scrapbooking products! Ever resourceful, eh?

Summer?

It's July 6th - where's the Summer?

All Things Magic

I love all things magical and innocent such as fairies, elves, unicorns, Father Christmas, The Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny etc. Sweet imaginings of children. Stories of gingerbread houses and talking whimsical animals. I used to keep those kind of things alive for my children when they were growing up. Always did special things at Christmas for my kids and throughout the year really.

As such, I've started some scrapbook kit designs based on all that magic, imaginings and innocence. My first one was a huge success and I've decided to totally revamp it and re-release it as it's a couple of years old now. I did manage to get this new one finished called "A Little Unicorn" which will be in my Scrap Girls store in the next couple of days. Got one coming up called "A Little Fairy" and many others in the making. I love them. I'm inspired by the memories and magic of my own childhood as well as those by my own children and now my little granddaughter.

One Step Forward

Today is going to be a one step forward day. The sun is shining. I spoke to my dearest, darling daughter this morning so today is going to be a good day.

Some days it's two steps back. Just the way it is. I love my new life but the hurt and pain of my broken marriage still haunts me. Plus there's still so much more that may well be happening in the near future that's going to affect the lives of my children and grandchildren. But we need to be positive. Everyone involved. We need to be positive. Live and let live. Heal. Move forward. Love each other. Be there for each other. And just move on.

So today is one step forward. I'm going to clean our apartment. Put some washing on. Go for a long walk. Do some shopping. Have a nice shower. Do some lunch. Work on my computer for the rest of the day. I've got a ton of Scrap Girls projects I'm working on and can't wait to get stuck in later on this afternoon.

One step forward.

Family Weekend

Steve and I just spent the weekend at my parent's for a family get together. My parents do these get togethers a couple of times a year and they are really lovely and special. My aunt from Cornwall is staying at my parent's for a few weeks so it was nice to see her as well. Most of us spent the night there and we all had a wonderful, wonderful Sunday morning breakfast which Dad cooked. We sat outside on the decking and it was just so nice to all be together. We all really missed Jenni though. That's when it really hits you as a family when someone is missing. Nevertheless it was nice to see everyone and spend some quality time together.