The Lou-natic Asylum

Emily's 10th Birthday cake.....

2011-11-10T12:22:00.003Z

Hi all in Blogland.... well have been cake making again, this time for my own daughter Emily who was 10 on Tuesday!

She wanted a cake that was a bit girly, included her fave colour purple but also was Dr Who themed so I bought a Tardis Fimo mould and used it with fondant...cor was it a bugger to get outta the mould! Also colouring white fondant to navy blue left my hands looking like Smurfettes for 24 hours and also turned the whole family's 'doings' green! LOL

Apologies for the crap quality of the pic but it was taken on my mobile phone!

Hope you are all keeping well xxx

My niece's 16th birthday cake

2011-09-23T16:38:00.004+01:00

Hello peoples in blogland.....now don't get too excited that I am posting cos I still think it's gonna be very few and far between. Shell has talked me into keeping the blog just to keep a record of different things I have done and so that I can look back thru things.

Well I have been making cards lately but also have made this....it's my niece's 16th birthday cake. Danni is 16 today and she asked me to make her cake for her. Its been a long time since I have made a birthday cake, about two and a half years I think, so this has been very difficult for me to put together with my health playing silly beggars with me! Still it was worth the effort and after two days of stress it is finally complete.

Thinking of giving up my blog...

2011-05-24T17:12:00.002+01:00

Hi peeps out there in Blogland... have you been getting as cheesed off and dis-illusioned with Blogger as I have lately?

Time after time again I spend hours going round all the blogs on my side bar, waiting forever for graphics to load, blogger to decide whether it wants to let me post or not, and for what....?

Very little traffic thru my own blog!!!! Thats what!! ..... so makes me think that this blogging lark is just a waste of time and effort! I enjoy looking at cards but blogger makes it so laborious to comment that I just don't have the patience any longer!!

Most of my crafty mates also display their cards on Facebook or on forums I belong to so will comment on there from now on... but would like to hear your views of the way blogger works lately girls.... maybe I will forward it on to them....

Also will be interesting to see who exactly reads my blog..... and who can be bothered to comment LOL.... this action will, I am sure, free up many hours in the weeks to come where I could actually get on with some more crafting!!!

Many, many thanks for the regular posters who do make the effort to comment on here... I wont be deleting your blogs from my favourites and I will keep looking at your fabulous work xxx

Guitar Hero, an Owl and I Love You!

2011-04-28T15:02:00.003+01:00

Well hello there peebles in blogland!!

Made three cards this morning/afternoon and the first is for Shell's lubbly hubby Nige.

Some of the funniest capers when we get together are when the kids and the fella's play on Guitar Hero so I thought this was quite apt for him! Better still we are doing a meet up with Shell and troupe on the 21st May which happens to be Niges birthday so I will be able to give it to him in person with a big smacker too!!! Watch it Mr Swinscoe!!!

This one is for my mum for her birthday in May, she adores owls so I used one of my woodlands friends stamps on it and also placed 3mm teeny tiny crystals in the centres of a lot of the flowers, took me forever!!!

And last but by no means least is for my darling husband Ady. On Tuesday we will have been married 14 years so this is the card I made for him. Seems like only yesterday I wore that big gorgeous Ivory Dress!!!

Well thats it for now blog fans x Love n huggles to you all x

The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady...

2011-04-27T09:51:00.005+01:00

Hi all out there in blogger land. I hope you all had a lovely easter and loads of choccy to polish off! I've just had a lovely couple of weeks with the girls home.... not much PC or blogging opportunities but never mind...am back now!

With my last months Cardmaking & Papercraft

magazine we received some lovely papers and chipboards... so had a bash and made these three cards.

This yellow one uses the backing papers and the chipboard with a sentiment taken off of a craftsuprint sheet! And some ribbon of course from my stash!

This pink one was simple, I just used another of the sheets to decoupage and then spread Stickles round the flower edges to give it a bit of sparkle. In this pic the glue is still wet but it looks even nicer now its dry!

My mum adores poppies so was well happy that the paper stack included this one.... am gonna save it for when she does something nice and warrants a little thank you card... lol

All these lovely shaped cards were bought online from Crafty Emma's Store

Hope you all have been enjoying this spectacular weather, down on the south coast where I live we have had it fantastic which made a nice change cos the kids holidays weather is usually pants!

Take care peebles.....xxxx

Three lovely Easel Cards.....

2011-04-04T10:13:00.005+01:00

Well good morning all you out there in Blogger land.... is it just me or are any of you finding blogger a bit temperamental at the minute..... when I am trying to blog hop commenting its taking ages to lload pages then it doesn't post the comment.... also making posts on my own is a pain!!! Still I will battle on undaunted... never let it be said that I wasn't a tryer! LOL

Right well these are some easel cards I had fun making the other day... they all came out really well and thats unusual in itself cos for each crafty session I have at least one attempt usually ends up in the bin! Usually cos I have scored too hard and it falls apart in my hands LOL But not this time... I am happy to say they all came out just right.

The top one I am actually taking to a friend of mine in town this morning as she is having a tough time so I thought it would cheer her up... Must admit though the little satin flowers fell off so now they have been replaced by paper flowers in the card colours with a nice glittery brad in the centre LOL!!!

Now I know you'll probably be thinking why on earth is she doing Christmas cards in April!!!!! But I had the sheet from last year and thought it would translate quite nicely into an easel card so I just did it and am happy with how it came out!!

At least I will be well prepared...as have already made about 7 christmas cards this year now LOL

This is just a general one for my spares box... which is now looking quite healthy again...was getting a bit worried there for a while but have knuckled down and got some extras in there.... luckily have already sent out all my April cards and May is a quiet month for me so will be able to build it up even more in the next few weeks!!

Anyhow, thats it for the moment.....

Just a little footnote.... my gorgeous friend Shell is suffering at the moment and I just wanna send her extra hugs and love...... Wish I could be there to give you a squeeze hunnny xxxxxxxxx Miss ya loads xxxx

Needed to fill up my crafty card box... so knuckled down!

2011-03-30T13:01:00.010+01:00

The ones above were all CUP sheets ... made for speed.... I class them as cheats cards but desperate times call for desperate measures!

One of the stamps Shell stamped out for me when she was down at New Year x

This one is for Ady's Uncle as he's just had cancer surgery..... :0(

Cakes for Comic Relief and a whole lotta cute cards!

2011-03-23T14:02:00.013Z

Hi there everyone in blogland? Am I making you feel hungry???

Well I was being a good mummy last week and made some delicious treats for Emily (9) to seel in her Year 4 cake bake sale for Comic Relief. I am led to believe only her class did this and that they raised almost £90 so I think the parents came thru brilliantly! I must admit I quite enjoyed making them.... and also the perk of munching the leftover smarties, cadbury mini eggs and jelly tots!!! Well ya gotta find something to enjoy aint ya? LOL

The small fairy cakes even had some pretty edible glitter on them which you can get from www.rainbowdust.co.uk or www.magicsparkles.com

Then their had to be the traditional butterfly cakes of course and with easter coming up and there being sooo many mini eggs in the shops I had to stick some of them on too didn't I?

Then there were some choc chip cookies... made them with Clover instead of butter and they spread out alot but the kids say they were gorgeous so who cares. Then there were also little frilled shortie biscuits, sandwiched together with white choc spread and glazed with a bit of icing and some jelly tots!

Oh yes, then I made some cards too...... this is one of my Forever Friends die cuts pack...

This one is too!!! But it can sit in my BLOKE pile!

This popcorn bear set I got as a magazine freebie ages ago but never used it! Till now.

This is my mums mothers day card.

This is one using a background from Picaboo Free Backgrounds and a stamped image.

This one is made with a Gorjuss girl stamp and some gorgeous papers that my gorgeous friend Shell bought me for crimbo...thanks babe xxx

I like this one, the little stamped girl is so cute and I think I did her justice with the pretty pink papers and the satin ribbon!

Thats all folks LOL

Aston Martin DB9 - and a disappointed hubby :0(

2011-02-26T12:50:00.007Z

Hi all,
Hope you are all OK out there in blogland.

Have been doing a bit of card making keeping myself sane whilst the kids have been off school and the weather has been so dreadful that we have been stuck in and the girls have been at each others throats!!

It's hubby's birthday on Tuesday and he has to work all day, 1st March is the first day of the season so he NEVER gets his birthday off work! Made him an Aston Martin card, put his name on the number plate! Now obviously I cannot afford to get him one for his birthday, but I did look into a DB9 driving experience at a racing track... got all excited as it was within the budget... £119 BUT maximum driver weight 16 stone..... and Ady is 17 stone ..... absolutely gutted I can tell you. Not mentioning it to him tho as he will just be disappointed. He reckons he's on a diet now so you never know he may be ok by next year!

And a small assortment of other cards I have done xxx

Inspiration from Cardmaking and Papercraft magazine Freebie for FEB

2011-02-15T13:23:00.013Z

Hi there peeps,

Well the other day I received my subscription magazine Cardmaking & Papercraft and it had some lovely little 'kids on the beach' chipboards..... so I thought I would have a go and see what I came up with. They are small 5" x 5" square cards so suited the small chipboards perfectly. I really enjoyed making them..

The other cards here are ones made with watercoloured images and also one with a die-cut forever friends sheet I had from ages ago!

Card for DIGGER DAVE!!! Spanked bum for my husband!!

2011-02-10T13:05:00.002Z

Don't we all love our hubby's????? Well mine was pushing his luck earlier I can tell ya! He phoned me up at five past twelve this lunchtime and asked me if I could make him a birthday card for one of the blokes at work..... the bloke is called Dave and he drives the digger for the caravan site he works for. Now I wont repeat what I said to him on the phone but I did eventually agree... let's face it girls.... it's good to be able to remind him of the favours I do from time to time isn't it? LOL

Well on a CD in our car we have the JCB song by Nizlopi.... my youngest loves it so I googled the image and put some text to it and the printed twice and decoupaged... et voila......

Perfect card for DIGGER DAVE......

Hubby has just got home and says it's perfect, mind you god help him if he said anything else LOL!!!

Gentle start to 2011 with some watercolouring!

2011-01-04T09:57:00.007Z

Good morning Blogland and Happy 2011 from me!

Hope you are all fit and well and have not suffered with this dreadful cold/flu bug over the festive period.... some of my friends have had it and it really knocked them off their feet poor buggers!

Well after a lovely time between Christmas and New Year when my friend Shell and her family came to visit (although the weather was absolute pants) I was feeling in the mood for a bit of card making and recently got some lovely shaped cards (part of my pressie from Shell) from Crafty Emma's Store... look on Shell's blog if you want the link!

They are fab and lend themselves to any type of card! Especially girly ones! I used some golden glitter sticky sheets purchased in the sale at Hobbycraft to cover some! Its gorgeous and doesn't spread glitter everywhere which is a bonus!!

Anyway hope you like them xx

I bought loads of crafty stash while Shell was here, she is such a bad (but good) influence!! Hehe

Merry Christmas To You all in Blogland

2010-12-25T07:15:00.004Z

I really can't believe I am actually doing this post on Christmas Day! I have not been a very good blogger recently so I thought I better get my butt in gear!!!

So from me to you..... Happy Christmas

Hope 2011 is mega fabulous in ways you have yet to imagine xxx

In Memory of a Soupdragon...... RIP Kay x

2010-12-16T11:28:00.003Z

Some very sad news reached me about 11pm last night, my dear friend Kay Higgins, AKA Soupdragon987 passed away on the 14th December 2010 peacefully in her sleep.

If any members of the Imag-e-nation site remember Kay and would like to leave a comment please do and I will ensure any messages for the family are forwarded to Ellen, Kay's daughter.

I was only speaking with Kay last week about the possibility of a trip to Tiverton, Devon during the summer so we could get together..... guess that's not gonna happen now.... :0(

She was only 48... and I for one am going to miss her lots.... our twice weekly chats were a giggle and she was one special lady xxx

To Kay....... missing ya tonnes already my special Orum sister xxxxx

Forever Friends Wedding Invites... and xmas cards!!

2010-12-07T12:29:00.005Z

Just when I thought I had finished all my christmas cards (have even posted them!) I get a last minute order from my mum to make one for my sister, one for my niece and one for their best friends! Typical!

I have also been working on some Forever Friends Wedding Invites for one of Ady's friends (Ady is gonna be the Best Man) who is getting married in June..... why there was such a rush for these invites I don't know but what the bride wants the bride gets... right?? hehe!!

Finished the last of these this morning and they are all sitting on my kitchen worktop waiting for the Stickles to dry on the champagne splashes!

Thanks for visiting me at my blob, hope you like the cards and invites x Thank you xxx

Which invite will she choose?

2010-11-24T12:37:00.004Z

Well once again I have been asked to come up with some sample wedding invites..... the last ones I did were Tatty Ted and I was sick of the sight of them before I was done!!

This brides theme is white, gold and black.... the 3 samples I have come up with are all quite different in style so I just hope she likes one.... my favourite has to be the chandelier... I think its quite classy... also the least work!!!

My hubby is going to be the Best Man at the wedding and the couple live in Caister near Great Yarmouth so we are going to be staying up there for the weekend... so looking forward to it, haven't been to a good wedding knees up in yonks!

Let's hope she likes at least one of them! Just hoping it aint the Bear cos I don't really wanna paint 35 of the little buggers!!!

Oooooh Looky what I got!!!

2010-11-22T12:48:00.002Z

Nice surprise from my buddy Shell over at The Camel's Hump

she awarded me this YOUR BLOG HAS ATTITUDE award!

Apparently I have to tell you 3 things about myself that make me different, then nominate 5 other peeps to receive it and also post it on my sidebar with a link to the

DIGI'S WITH ATTITUDE Blog and you can receive $5 worth of free digis for your time!!!

So... 3 things that make me different from everyone else out there in BLOGLAND!!

1...... would be the fact that I adore cold roast potato and salad cream sandwiches.

2...... would be my obsession with the silver fox Phillip Schofield... I even have a signed photo of him in a frame in my bedroom!! Don't call me sad... please!!!

3....... would be the fact that I am restrained enough not to buy every crafty item I can lay my hands on!!! Something which I know alot of you can't do!!! Shell in particular!!!

OK so the 5 peeps I am going to pass this onto....

SHAZ

ANGEL

ANNE (craftyanny)

JOANNE

MICHELLE (shelly welly)

Thanks Shell for this... am off to claim my FREE DIGI'S now!!

Shades of purple......

2010-11-16T13:30:00.005Z

Seems I liked this colour a bit much in my last few cards!!!!

Combined with a Gorjuss girl or two, they went quite well and as for the other image!!! Well I though he/she was fab! Love the purple slippers!

Bad pain ... cr*p mood.... = MOJO boost!!!

2010-11-10T09:45:00.005Z

Morning all, well it's sunny here at the moment, the last few days have been unbelievable weather wise as I am sure most of you will agree.... and boy... has it got to me!!! I woke up yesterday morning barely able to move... felt really down as in so much pain...I don't think there is any joint on my body that the arthritis hasn't now invaded and damaged.... and it seemed they all wanted to play at once yesterday!

Spoke to my best bud Shell on the phone and she lifted my spirits and we agreed that the best thing to do was distract myself so I thought I would make some more Christmas cards.... seem to find inspiration for them at the moment but get stuck on Birthdays etc..... have made about 85 christmas ones now!! Probably will have some left to use next year!!

Anyway these are what I came up with... bit different for me coz my cards have become a bit boring lately I think...

I really enjoyed doing them (even tho it hurt like hell) and I am really pleased with the results.

Dr Who A4 Tardis Card..... for my daughter Emily

2010-11-04T12:18:00.005Z

Well ladies of blogland I am pretty chuffed with this one! It came out almost exactly as I planned and that is a very rare thing these days!!! LOL

My youngest daughter is 9 on Monday and she is mad keen on Dr Who.... she has really on;y started watching it since Matt Smith took over the reigns but she is so knowledgeable already! Its Dr Who this... and Dr Who that.... drives us all completely insane. We have bought her the tardis birthday cake and to keep with the theme I have made her this Tardis birthday card. I took a sheet of A3 white card and did a gatefold. Then I covered the gate flaps with blue holographic card with stars and swirls (which I thought went with the time travel/space theme really well) Then I used the web to find the poster, the Police Box sign and the St Johns Ambulance crest.. made windows from silver vellum and white card. I accented the panels on the front by cutting the panelled area from an extra bit of the holographic card and cutting the panels into it and then fastened on with stick pads so it lifted it a bit giving the tardis some depth.

For the inside I used a web picture of the inside of the tardis (a downloadable screensaver which I cropped) and also downloaded the Matt Smith Dr Who font from Dafont here http://www.dafont.com/matt-smith-doctor-who.font

Then I found a Dr Who Poem and copy and pasted it into place.....

The poem reads...... for those who can't see!

Unknown lands with alien forces,
Through time and space the Tardis courses,
The Doctor and his companion travel,
The plans of aliens they unravel,
The only timelord left alive,
He saves the earth with Gallifreyan drive,
He fought the Daleks and Cybermen,
Destroyed the Slitheen and the Sontaran,
His sonic screwdriver he uses with care,
To open up doors or to mend and repair,
Amy Pond and Martha Jones,
Stayed by his side in alien zones,
Mankind and Earth they ritually save,
When aliens regularly misbehave,
He saved the Ood and battled Judoon,
By transporting a hospital onto the moon,
Nine hundred and three and still going strong,
The doctor puts paid to the alien throng,
Then into the Tardis he closes the door,

He travels through time to fight aliens once more

I am really happy and I know she is gonna absolutely love it!

Supportive cards for good friends......

2010-10-30T15:26:00.003+01:00

Had a bit of a shock this week when a good crafting friend of mine had a heart attack, scared the bejesus outta herself and us!! Poor Jacci has had some treatment and is now home in the bosom of her family once more thank god! She better not go pulling a stunt like that again in a hurry I can tell you.... my nerves can't stand it!!

This is my card for Jacci.....

Also another dear friend of mine has been having a hell of a time lately and is feeling rather down in the dumps... so am hoping this card will cheer her up a tad. Sometimes when life gets you down it helps to know that your friends are there for you. I hope she knows I am there for her poor love.

Cards for my mum's darts team!

2010-10-22T14:57:00.007+01:00

Hi all, yes, 2 posts in 2 days.... ooooer!

Mum popped in yesterday and asked me to make some christmas cards for her darts team.... she only wanted small ones and wanted watercoloured images so they were pretty easy to knock up....used some free papers, some glitter strips and Jak's poinsettia sheet to add the finishing touch.

Not long now till Christmas!

2010-10-21T14:32:00.007+01:00

Hi there blogging buddies... well the days are ticking down to 'the most wonderful time of the year' or so the song goes!! Now I know some peeps hate the very thought of it but I must admit I love Christmas with all the trimmings ... I even started my christmas cards in July while recovering from my back operation!

Update on the op by the way.... total waste of time! But lets not go there in this cheerful post!

Here are some Xmas cards I have hastily put together....

Time for a quickie? Xmas card that is!!!

2010-10-05T12:19:00.008+01:00

Yep, EIGHTEEN quickies to be precise... it's a wonder I can still walk!!!! Sorry about the sexual inuendo peeps but am feeling in a silly mood!!!

Got stuck in and pretty much finished off all my christmas cards the other day.... have been quite brutal with my list this year as I got so bogged down with them the last few years I have had to cut some off my list of sends. The postage prices were astronomical and I am afraid some online crafty friends may have to make do with E-Cards this year! I will try and get out as many as I can I promise x

Made these the other day in one sitting... using scraps and bit and pieces from my stash. My printer is still being temperamental so I just stamped a quick greeting inside too. Not at all my usual standard but needs must I suppose! At least most of them have a nice watercoloured (by me) image on them so hopefully no-one will be too disappointed!

Bookatrix trix trix - yes... 3 of the blasted things!!

2010-09-21T12:22:00.009+01:00

Well hello out there my fellow bloggers... hope you are all keeping well.

I have the workmen in this next couple of weeks and the place is noisy, dusty and a blooming nightmare to be amongst!!! Still having to be home all day is meaning I am motoring on with some cards I had to make and here are the first three offerings... I had a tricky customer recently...my hairdresser..ever the perfectionist... wanted a bookatrix done in gold and silver for his mum's 90th birthday... he is so picky that I got some of my gorgeous friends involved to send me bits that maybe he would like...special thanks to Liz, Cath, Kara & Sylv xxx You little darlings made my job sooo much easier...coz he couldn't poo poo the beautiful die cut hearts you all sent me xxx

My hairdresser said no frills, no bows, no ribbons, no gushy words, then he asks me to put the All my love, for ever and ever.... bit on it!!! If that ain't gushy I dunno what is! LOL Then he says he wants a few samples of the card I can use so I scored and trimmed 3 contrasting sets on my fab bookatrix board (an xmas pressie from my lovely Shell, thanks babes) all in silver, gold and ivory pearlised card so he can choose to mix and match whatever he wants. So he comes round on Monday and chooses it all and it only took half hour to finish the blooming thing then!!! Then he wants an acetate window box so I made that up, lucky I had some! He is coming to collect it on Friday..... so hopefully I can exchange it for a haircut!!! I'll have to put my hair in dreds if it gets much longer LOL!!

The others I made up so I could use the left over scored bookatrix pages, luckily I needed a couple of special cards done so the bookatrix was just right.... My niece Danni is 15 on Thursday... and is getting excited already about the prospect of her PROM... so I used some glittery peel offs (which I don't often use but these seemed appropriate) and some lovely feathers! The other one is using peel offs again (can you tell I have run out of photo paper???? LOL) and this is for the couple who I have just made their wedding invites for... at cost coz I am soooo nice!!!

Two new cards..... one for Shell's Anniversary!

2010-09-05T11:52:00.002+01:00

This one was made for a swap on the Crafty Cow, my swap partner is Andrea, trouble is my desktop pc has got a terminal case of the Blue Screen of Death!!! So had to make this card... topic being Food Glorious Food completely from papers and stash... can't even do a nice insert,.... sorry Andrea!!

And this one is for my special buddy Shell.... and her hubby Nigey Pie of course!!! Hope they like it!! The background was made for me by Janeygrey.... thanks Janey xx It worked perfectly x

Beautiful Blogger Award...thanks Hazel x

2010-08-28T09:54:00.004+01:00

I was nominated to receive this award by the lovely Hazel, thanks hun x I really appreciate it and thanks for checking out my blog on a regular basis too x

To qualify for this award I need to nominate 7 more people to give it to and tell you 7 facts about me. So, here goes -
1. I have been married to Ady for 13 years.

2. Most of my working life was spent in Banks and Estate Agents...boring I know!

3. I love the sunshine! (used to love the winter but now not so much!)

4. I am lucky and have all my close family very close by.
5. I have 2 beautiful girls, Georgia who is 11 and Emily who is 8

6. I love card making with an intense passion! LOL

7. I am fairly well educated with a Diploma in Buisness Information Systems!

Blimey... what a load of old twaddle about my life lol!!!

Righto here are the 7 peeps I wanna award this one to..

Mrs Teabelly or Kath who we know and love!

Sheika Linda my lovely friend Linda in Dubai

Jackie a lovely crafty friend I met thru the Magical Crafts forum (alas now defunct)

Nicky a strong woman whom I admire greatly

Sue who is not only a talented cardmaker but also a dab hand with jewellery

Myra a lovely lady who I got to know thru another craft forum

and last but by no means least

Maureen P a lady who's cards are just stunning x

So ladies..... grab your award and post on your blogs with pride! I did....LOL

Two friends.... two operations.... two best wishes cards......

2010-08-16T14:05:00.004+01:00

Well it seems to be the season for operations! Both my friends Juli and Jane are having operations this week... Juli today and Jane (hopefully) tomorrow....

So I made these cards this morning..... I really hope they raise their spirits whilst they are recovering as much as the cards they sent me after my operation did.

Sendng them both massive hugs x Thanks for looking x

On the red card I started putting tiny little 1.5mm iridescent turquoise gems on the swirls but in the end I only did the bottom swirl before it drove me completely mental...you wait...they'll probably all fall off whilst the envelope is in the hands of the Royal Mail! LOL!

Some Quickie Christmas Cards

2010-08-12T13:02:00.006+01:00

Well the title says it all....

Not been feeling 100% at the moment as have had a wretched cold and cough for 2 weeks now, I ache from coughing, my back is spasming too with the force of the cough. So not a happy bunny.

Just threw these together from some die cut sheets I bought ages ago and some cut price card packs I got from The Works just after Christmas!

Some general cards in Cerise Pink and Silver! Hot Hot Hot!!!

2010-08-01T13:30:00.007+01:00

I made these three cards a few weeks ago after spotting this Kanban sheet on Ebay in one of my many expensive trawls!!! I had some lovely good quality cerise card too so made these up and am happy with them. Haven't decided what they are for yet so no inserts or sentiments on them yet!

Get well cards...... lots of them!

2010-07-18T09:21:00.014+01:00

Well.......... what can I say?

Apart from to thank each and every one of you that has sent a card, email or text message in the last few weeks.... you have kept me strong... each and every one of you and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! At least it's not from the heart of my bottom! LOL

My lounge is awash with colour and everyone that comes round is envious!!!

At least I wont be lacking in inspiration for my own card making for a while!

Also an update... the physio has helped alot, the scar and bruise is still a bit scary but my recovery (so far) is going exceedingly smoothly. Just need to work on building up my strength and taking it steady. I have been told I will take at least 3 months to get back to normal (whatever that is) and up to a year for my back to fully heal.... but that I will also have to be extremely careful from now on. I will be attending out patients physio for a while yet.

Arthritis is not too bad at the moment..... so keep ya fingers crossed that it continues to behave!!

Love you all and once again....THANK YOU XXXXXX

Hello all, well it's been done.......

2010-06-30T10:20:00.002+01:00

Hello all from a sunny South Coast.... a sweltering house and a very bored me!!!

The surgery was done on Friday, I was discharged on Sunday afternoon..... and I have been bored to death ever since LOL!

Not really allowed to do too much but then the pain certainly restricts my usual kind of activities. I have managed to build up my sitting upright time and have progressed quite well with my walking.

Never got a chance to speak with my surgeon before they discharged me so am unsure whether I am classed as a successful op or not.... the pain down the leg seems reduced but have lost nearly the entire sensation in my right foot now (whereas before it was only partial) and the numbness up the back of the leg now extends right up to the buttock, whereas it was only up to the knee before.

When I chatted with the surgeon before the op he said that during surgery the nerve can become more damaged and this is what I think may have happened... would have been nice to be able to ask him tho! But then it could just need time to settle down.... I keep forgetting that I had the op only 5 days ago! LOL Never been the patient kind me!

Hubby is looking after me brilliantly, have had some stunning cards from my crafting friends and will display those at a later date. Really sick of daytime TV though... I have to spend ALOT of time laying down... only allowed to sit for about 20 mins at a time a few times a day (for meals etc) and it can be awfully boring..... only so much Jeremy Kyle and Deal or No Deal one can stomach!!

Just popped on to give you an update and to say a great big thanks for all your support over the last few weeks and months xxxx

Now having my spinal surgery on Friday! OMG!!!!!

2010-06-21T20:51:00.002+01:00

Well the title says it all really.... had a phone call from the hossy today asking me if I could make arrangements so that I could have my surgery on FRIDAY!!!! Yes... this FRIDAY!!!!

So now I have less than a week to sort everything out, kid care, Ady time off, hospital case, stock cupboards up so they don't starve etc etc..... oh I shall be glad of a rest in the hospital!!!

Please keep fingers and toes and anything else you have 2 of crossed for me on Friday... need all the bladdy help I can get!!!

Best go write out July's birthday cards so that I don't forget to send em off..... just as well I have a few made up!!!

Some new cards made by me and the kids.....

2010-06-20T10:32:00.014+01:00

Couple of general girly cards for use when Georgias and Emilys friends have birthdays... just small decoupaged ones x

This is for Emily's teacher... she put it together herself x

This is for Georgia's Teaching Assistant, I did this one... there are 2 similar for Emily's TA's x

This one I didn't make except to cut the card... it's for Georgia's teacher

These are just a couple of general boys birthday cards as Emily has just as many boy mates as girls being a bit of a tomboy herself!

Just a general one made from a Craftsuprint sheet.... for the spares box

Another one for the spares box using a Kanban foiled topper x

Simple Spitfire card for my dad... he likes simple and clean not fussy! Boring in other words LOL! For me as a crafter anyway! LOL

Another general birthday for the spares box using another Craftsuprint sheet x

This one the girls put together by themselves for their dad.. they also bought him ( well I did) two new WWE Wrestling T-shirts and I got up and cooked him brekkie at 6.20am before he had to go to work!

Surgery here I come......... OMG Help!!!

2010-06-15T09:07:00.002+01:00

Well it's official...... had the call from the hossy and they have had a cancellation and my spinal surgery is booked for Monday 12th July.

Yes I am scared shitless (sorry for swearing!) but I also know that after a year of pain it is the right thing for me to do to say that I have given it a shot to help myself.

Please keep everything crossed for me.....

Needless to say I may not be making many cards between now and then or maybe I may make shed loads to keep myself occupied!!! Must get on with my Father's Day cards... haven't done either of them yet!!! Naughty girl!!

Dragonfly Kizzy Dizzy with foil embossed acetate!

2010-06-08T10:40:00.004+01:00

Made this one to take part in the Monthly Challenge on the Crafty Cow

The challenge this month set by Andrea is to use Acetate on your card....so I dug out some foil embossed dragonfly acetate that I had in my stash but had never used..... and I had a gorgeous Kizzy Dizzy kit with dragonflies on it so I put the two together...I think it worked quite well. Finished off with a nice cream and gold ribbon tied in a bow... that turned out well for a change LOL!

New cards at last... Crystal Palace, new baby and floral!

2010-06-07T15:42:00.006+01:00

Righto... straight back from my Jollies to Wales and launched full stretch into card making LOL... 4 cards in one afternoon! One for a mate who is mad about Crystal Palace (well someones gotta be) one for my mate Juli who has just got a new grandson, one for her daughter and fiance and one for a card swap on the Crafty Cow made for Ellen.

Will post some of the holiday pics soon... but wanted to get these cards posted first as that's what this blog is really about after all!!! LOL

Will deffo make an effort later in the week to get round all your blogs and comment x Bet you have all been busy creating your works of art! I promise!!!

William Loach!

2010-05-19T10:34:00.004+01:00

Ladies, I have someone very special I want you to meet.....

Now William is not the first William the weather loach we have had in our tropical tank....
there is a very sad story behind William the 1st one we had....

We got the original William when we first started the tank and I immediately loved him, something about the whiskers on his chops I think! He was about 3 inches long and whizzed round the tank like a mini rocket! All of a sudden you would hear a whoosh as he would shoot under the stone if the weather atmosphere changed... they do that!

One day Ady was walking up the stairs and he felt something on the bottom of his trainer..... when he looked he saw that somehow the bladdy fish had gotten out of the tank and had wriggled its way to the bottom of the stairs... apparenty these fish we know now are expert escape artists and he must have got out thru the cable hole for the heater. He was leaking blood from the gills, was covered in carpet fluff and dog hair so we put him in a jug full of aquarium water and checked him out.... i used a paintbrush to get him cleaned off and then I said to Ady I thought we should euthenaise him.... but Ady put him back in the tank... and miracle of miracles he survived and thrived!

We blocked up the only hole big enuff for him to have escaped from and he was fine.....About 6 months later.... I was cleaning the tank and it occured to me I hadn't seen him that day, he was usually out and about at least part of the day, I told Ady when he got in and he confirmed the blasted fish wasn't in the tank as I had feared... he had done it again! Thru the tiniest of gaps he had made his escape! We searched high and low and eventaully found poor William shrivelled up and very dead behind a pack of laminate flooring we had stashed behind the sofa I was gutted.... he had been such a character and survivor after his original exploits. I couldn't bear the tank without him and I am afraid to say I lost interest in the aquarium.

Anyways to a happier story..... we were going round a local aquatic shop last week and saw another one who looked exactly like him.... so we got him..... I was ready to love again! We have blocked up all holes so it ain't gonna never happen again thats for sure! Aint he cute? ....So presenting....... William the Second....... (William Roache from Corrie geddit?)

Oriental, flowers, blokes card and an update from me!

2010-05-09T11:38:00.011+01:00

Well I went a bit bad recently on Craftsuprint again! It was all that Crafty Cow's fault giving me an Oriental Challenge! I had no Oriental stuff on my PC to use or any 3d die cut sheets and as my cd-rom drive is being very temperamental I just had to go and BUY some Oriental sheets!!!

Have had a bad week this week.... had an almighty row with my dad, which is still not sorted, it's breaking my heart being at odds with him and he is being so stubborn...he always has to be right...he is so infuriating! Trouble is I have my hubby on one side saying 'I wont let your dad talk to you like that, you have to stand up to him!' , and I have my poor mum stuck in the middle between the pair of us! I don't know how it will pan out yet but please keep fingers crossed that he at least apologises for talking to me like something he trod in in front of my kids coz if he doesn't I don't see this getting sorted very quickly and we are meant to be going on holiday with them in less than 3 weeks! Oh god.... the drama!

Also the back and leg are being a trial at the moment, still not heard anything from the hospital and the pain was so bad this week I was seriously considering phoning up my consultant and asking for yet another epidural (that would be 3!). I did the usual though and tried to distract myself from the pain by crafting! Least I am filling my spares box up pretty rapid! LOL

Anyways to all you in blogging land I hope you are all well. Will be doing the rounds pretty soon, am trying to go round the blogs once every 10 days or so and catching up with everyone.

Summertime Blues......

2010-04-30T11:48:00.003+01:00

Well the May theme for the Card Swap over on the Crafty Cow Forum

is Summertime Blues....my swap partner is a lovely young lady named

Kayleigh so I wanted to do a nice charm on it for her to keep! I painted

a little Tilda with a pussy cat in as much blue as I dared! Found the lovely

backing for the card of the Picaboo Free Backgrounds page.

Hope she likes it x

Sheep, Shoes & Handbags! What more could ya want?

2010-04-29T11:11:00.004+01:00

Hehe..... likes the title!!!

Here are some cards I rustled up this morning, did all the cutting out a feww days ago whilst in bed! So these took all of about 30 minutes to knock up!

Hopes ya like them x The 'I love EWE' one if for mine and hubby's anniversary!

Black hair with pink highlights for my mate Lena!

2010-04-22T10:23:00.005+01:00

Had a phone call from my mate Lena last night coz we were arranging to meet up at the hossy for coffee when I have my blood test tomorrow.... and she told me her daughter had said she was looking old and tired so had done her hair for her...there was me thinking just a trim and maybe a recolour...but oh no...not Lena.... she has had a loose perm done and had pink highlights put in...her hair is a dark brown/black colour and is quite long!!! It's her 45th birthday on Sunday and although I had already made a card I just had to redo it with a new theme!!! This is her new one...what do ya think?

I used a Gorjuss girls stamp but admit that I chopped off the hair a bit as the hands are not letting me do intricate cutting out!

She also asked me to make a baby boy card for her and her daughter as they are going to a baby shower next week...they know the sex of the baby already so I whipped this up for her.

Had the watercolours out again......

2010-04-20T12:49:00.009+01:00

Having a bit of a rough time pain wise...... so have tried to keep distracted.... so got the watercolours out again and had a bit of a painting session....managed to watercolour about 9 images before I got bored!

So made some of them into cards there and then...just general ones to go into my stock box.

Hope you like them x

Busy busy busy... so many cards to make!

2010-04-13T11:18:00.012+01:00

Been busy again at my craft table..... wanted to get May and Junes cards done and dusted.... just in case I have surgery soon...want to have a stock made up of reasonable ones!

This is what I came up with..... some I like, some I love and some are OK!

2 new easel cards and a Thinking Of You.....

2010-04-10T20:57:00.006+01:00

Hi there bloggers..... Hope you are all well x

I have been doing a bit of card making lately and decided to have a go at some of these Easel cards I see so many of... must say I like them and they are relatively easy to do.... especially after you have Elastoplasted the finger you cut on your craft knife coz you forgot you had the blade up the wrong way to score the folds D'OH!!!!!

Also there is a card I made for a friend who is having a tough time and a card for a swap on the Crafty Cow forum with a theme of Apertures. The other is a tri-fold card for a shopaholic teen!

5 more new cards...... oh yes!

2010-04-02T12:21:00.007+01:00

Well I had to make some more... seeing as.... my mum and dad popped round with some friends and they ended up buying all the ones I made last time plus a few more from my store box too! Very productive morning that was LOL

So today I sat and made some more.... I made most of these ones with downloads I got from a site called Paper Creator the pansies I got in 3 colour ways but have only done the pink ones so far...I also have lilac and peach and they are all stunning x They we 99p per download and came also with backing papers, a page of sentiments and also printables for an envie. Not bad value, I shall be using them again and the print quality is superb I must admit.

5 new cards made today! I'm on a Roll!

2010-03-31T13:53:00.008+01:00

Hello there blogging buddies.... well have been on a bit of a roll today ... made 5 cards already!

I hope you are all keeping well, hugs for anyone who is below par!

The 5 cards are all made using Craftsuprint sheets.... not exactly hard ones I hear you say, but I must admit...simple but effective!!!

Bunnies....Kizzy Dizzy and more!

2010-03-29T11:37:00.008+01:00

This gorgeous little bunny stamp is one of my favourites... I actually bought it for Shell, my bessie mate, and she stamped some for me so I could play! Love this card!

This one is a Crafts U Print sheet.... called a tunnel card.... very simple but also very effective. It had a Happy Birthday tag on it but I wanted the card for general use so I used a brad and a flower to cover that up! Simples!

These two are just a couple of simple easter cards for my kids best mates.... accompanied by some choccy of course!

This one is for my Mum's birthday in May.... it is a Kizzy Dizzy kit and is absolutely stunning. I printed all the stuff out for this ages ago and never got round to putting it all together till yesterday! I printed the envelope onto a slightly pearlised cream paper stock and it has a lovely sheen. Inside the main panel of the card...tied with ribbon is a folding booklet with a lovely verse on it that concertinas. I forgot the photograph that bit LOL!

Also had my Orthopaedic appt at the hossy...... he yanked my leg up till I screeched and then said he would 'whip that disc out' as a matter of urgency... so am now just waiting for my admissions date x

A big mixture of cards..... and a nervous blogger!

2010-03-19T11:36:00.016Z

Mum and Dad's Anniversary card.

Various christmas cards... one for a challenge on Magical Crafts, theme of red and gold.

My mum's Mum's Day card

An odd birthday/general use card!

Another birthday/general card

A difficult card for a friend who has just lost her twin sister.....

just made it as simple as possible

My MIL's Mum's Day card, she loves dolphins x

Hi all,

I haven't posted for a while and I do apologise, I hope you are all well in bloggerland x Big hugs to you if you are not! Had a lot of PC problems lately... that lovely old blue screen of death keeps shutting me down on my desktop.... and then not letting me start my PC up again for a day or so! Gawd knows whats happening but have had to neglect blog hopping for a bit which is annoying. Never fear, I will be back amongst you all soon!

Never the less, even without my trusty printer (can't use my ole Epson on my lappy) I have been making a few cards... having to rely on my stamps to make inserts though, which I don't really like at all as I don't have too many stamps with greetings on!

The cards above are all a mixture of Christmas, Mothers Day and an anniversary card for my mum and dad, as its their anniversary today, and I only just got it made by the skin of my teeth! LOL

I am starting to feel VERY nervous as I have my appointment with the Orthopaedic Surgeons on Wednesday.....!!!! Help!

Don't know if my nice siggy is gonna appear, coz its not here in the posting box (iykwim) so will sign off....

With love and huggles,

Louise xxx

Craft themed retail therapy! The best sort!

2010-03-08T12:36:00.002Z

Bought some craft stash on Saturday whilst I was out.....Went to a garden centre which had a Carole's Craft attached..... and bought some

Flower Soft (summer mix £3.50)

Adhesive pearlised gems (100 for £1)

Adhesive pale blue and white round 5mm gems (150 for £1.99)

Crafting flowers (325 pieces for £1) all intermixing colours

Dufex freestyle decoupage Pansies sheet 3d (99p)

Kanban Glamour ladies toppers x 6 (embossed with gold £1.25) die cut

Kanban Moonlight Sentiments in black white & Silver (1.29)

Kanban Birds of a feather toppers (£1.49) die cut in black, white & holographic silver

2 craft accessory packs £1.00 each

Golden heart & pearl toppers x 6 (99p)

and last but not least

a mixed bag of die cut christmas sheets containing......alphabet tiles x 20 A4 sheetsPaper ribbons 6 on a sheet x 5 A4 pagesAssortment of twisted pyramage, decoupage, waterfall, and tonnes of other styles 30 sheets in all10 A4 sheets of backing paperscorners.... 5 A4 sheets.....greetings 8 A4 sheetsOMG the list in there goes on I can't list it all... I would say about £45 worth of die cut quality sheets.... all for.................wait for it...............

A TENNER!!!!!!!!!!!

Here are the piccies........ got it out all over the floor to take piccies and sniff and stroke it!!!

Simpsons, Family Guy and The Undertaker

2010-03-01T11:58:00.005Z

This one was from me....... he loves Family Guy & the Simpsons so I thought it was perfect for him LOL!

This one was from Georgia, she wanted an Undertaker (WWE Wrestler) one for her dad, so I obliged with this....

And this one is from our youngest Emily....... she loves Simpsons as much as her dad so it was not a hard choice!

These are the cards I made for my hubby's 41st birthday, which is today! He has to work so we had a night out on Saturday and I cooked him a nice meal last night to make up for it. He also has no idea I got him a Stig birthday cake! Hope he likes it, he loved all his cards!

Oooooooh it's a big 'un!!! LOL

2010-02-24T13:49:00.003Z

Now now, what I meant was... it's an A4 card! LOL

Now get yer minds outta the gutter and look at my card!! Requested by the wife of a family friend, she was quite, ahem, specific... (coulda said annoying) in what she wanted! LOL

The first thing she asked me for was BARGES!!!!! Oh the time I wasted looking for the colourful barges with all the lovely painted watering cans on...... could I find any suitable? Not a cat in hells chance! So I had to go with her second choice of steam trains..... the likkle viking hat is a reminder of his viking ancestry... ooooer!!!

I have 3 layer decoupaged this one, not that you can see it LOL!

My gorgeous birthday cards - thank you all x

2010-02-13T16:46:00.012Z

These first 2 batches of cards were made by some crafting friends who know without doubt how special they are to me....... thanks guys, incredible as always xxxx

Above, some of my crafty friends went a bit naughty on me and lavished me with gifts.... my thanks especially to Liz, Norma and Pat for making me feel ultra special on my birthday xxx

These ones above include the cards from my hubby, my girls, Shell and her girls and a very special mate called Claire x Thanks all, they are perfect x

These ones above were from some of the lovely crafters I still keep in touch with from my 'Imagenation' days! Thanks girls xx

These shop bought ones were from my family and a good friend of mine x

These little beauties above were from the lovely ladies.... Angel, Shell, Steph, Joanne, Irene and Jackie over at the Magical Crafts Forum x

These ones were from my friends Jacky, Jane and Jen on the Crafty Cow forum x

Well I promised I'd post them..... and here they are .... in all their glory! I felt all warm and fuzzy on my birthday knowing so many of my crafty mates had sent me a gorgeous card....thank you all from the bottom of my heart... it took me over an hour to open them all!!

Love you all lots, believe me they will be treasured.

It's official - Spinal Surgery here I come......

2010-02-12T12:01:00.004Z

Well peeps, sorry no crafting recently but with the back being bad and another bad fall last Thursday which put me off my feet for over 2 days I have not been able to get comfy enough for crafting! Must get some done today though as hubby aint gonna have no valentines card LOL!

Had my consultant appointment on Wednesday and the outcome of that is that I have now been referred for urgent review by the orthopaedic surgeons. My consultant wants the disc removed as a matter of urgency so now just have to wait for an appointment.....how long that will be I have no idea... who knows what Urgent means to the NHS these days LOL!

Wonder if it will be over with before my holiday at the end of May, I doubt it, I suppose that would be asking for a miracle..... but you never know, my arthritis consultant has a bit of clout with the hossy that will do the spinal surgery so will keep fingers crossed.

Can't say that I am not scared but have come to terms with what needs to happen and am actually looking forward to getting it over with to tell the truth! After my last fall I had to have another emergency epidural to lessen the pain and still only felt minimal relief..... so if a solution to this pain is available then I have to try it don't I?

At least they cannot say I do not try and help myself, I do everything they recommend....!

I had a lovely birthday too peeps on the 7th feb, got a tonne of birthday cards from lovely crafting buddies from across a wide range of forums....... will be posting piccies of the cards and individuals who sent them very soon.

Thank you all sooo much, you made a birthday that was looking very gloomy because I could hardly move a very special day. I was waited on hand and foot by my adorable hubby and the kids were little darlings all day too, I felt very special... it took me well over an hour to open my cards and I even received a few special gifts from some very close crafting friends which I absolutely adore... piccies of those will also follow.....

This is my Pay It Forward Crafting Style Box

2010-01-26T12:06:00.007Z

This is my first batch of stuff to go into the PIFCS box....

Then some lovely ribbons too....... followed by

Loads of tags, christmassy bits and other bits for your crafty needs...

Hopefully the person who receives it will appreciate the goodies within it!

It is difficult to do as you don't always know what kinds of things

your fellow crafters will have a use for so I have just shoved a bit

of anything I feel may have a use!

Gonna post it off tomorrow... not showing the box as it was not

very well decorated! Hands are not great today so not many options and

wasn't able to use the scalpel to make my own box so had to try and

'pretty up' a box some energy saving lightbulbs came in!

Re-cycling and all that LOL!!

But who will get it........ ooooohhhhhh!! One thing I can tell you is that it

is one of my regular blog commenters.

So now I have Paid It Forward I have added the banner to this post...

if you are reading this and have no idea what on earth I am on about

either read the post below this one where I received a goody box myself or go

straight to Joannes PIFCS blog where it is all explained!

Pay it Forward Crafting style - Thank you Liz!

2010-01-25T13:13:00.003Z

I had a lovely surprise thru the post on Saturday and it was this lovely little box of crafty bits made for me by the lovely Liz. Now Liz made this as part of a new blog thought up by Crafting Joanne called Pay It Forward Crafting Style ..... you can get the gist of how it works by visiting the Pay It Forward blog here.

The basic idea is that you choose a crafty friend to send a little gift onto .... and that friend will then post that item onto their blog with a link to the senders blog and the Pay It Forward blog so that the idea gets around and it becomes a fab success.

The recipient is under no time limit to send onto another crafter but obviously it would be nice to get it done so I am gonna be thinking hard about what I can send to my mystery recipient.... will it be you??? Well you'll have to wait and see!!

All that remains is to say thank you so much to Liz for thinking of me and sending me this cheeky little gift and please be assured I will be Paying It Forward Crafting Style very soon!

Genuine Pre-historic creatures!!!

2010-01-23T10:12:00.008Z

Now girls......I am gonna show ya something interesting.... but that may not be to everyones taste.... For Christmas Shell bought Emily an unusual pressie.... TRIOPS..... Have any of you heard of them.... ?? I certainly hadn't!

They are actual prehistoric creatures, they survived the centuries during interrupted states of suspended animation or 'diapause'. This state enables the triops to survive seasonal drought. They come in egg form and you have a little fish tank... the eggs hatch within 24 to 48 hours and the eggs are like pin heads but then they grow at an amazing rate.....

We don't have many photos from early on.... we put the eggs in water just after boxing day and they are now nearly 2 inches long from front to tail! They are creepy looking, with the appearance of having 3 eyes.... they have red spindly legs and eat their food floating upside down! They also love grated carrot, flakes of fish and shrimp!

Gonna add some piccies now..... we put 6 eggs in and had 3 hatch.. they also shed their skins too!

They are really quite fascinating... The first picture is 2 triops fighting over a picec of cod! If you look carefully on the lower triop you can also see eggs on board!

They apparently have a life span of between 30 and 90 days, then you can just hatch more!

A Hell of a week........

2010-01-17T16:10:00.010Z

"IDIOT ALERT....... SHE'S DONE IT AGAIN!!"

Aggravated my back again just getting out of the shower last Saturday morning .... pure agony now for over a week ... doped up on pain relief and diazepam again. Not been out of house for 8 days straight now and am in last stages of insanity.

Constantly hooked up to my TENS machine, popping pills like a druggie and still only just taking the edge off..... not a good week at all. Been so tearful and miserable but my forum friends have been trying valiantly to keep my spirits up..... thanks to each and every one of you xxxxx

Telephoned my Rheumatology clinic and told them what happened and they have booked me in for an emergency epidural for Thursday... it cannot come soon enough I can tell you that. I have now lost TOTAL feeling in my right foot (it was just partial before) so I have obviously damaged the nerve more. Just wondering whether the already protruding disc has popped fully back out (if it ever moved back at all coz I saw no indication pain wise that it did) or whether I have popped another one out. But I can talk to my rheumatologist about that on Thursday.

I have an appointment to discuss my back surgery on the 10th Feb so wish me luck that he will refer me quickly and get this bladdy back sorted out. I am gonna go psycho otherwise..... maybe my naming my blog The Lou-natic Asylum was the wrong thing .... almost like a pre warning that things was gonna go pear shaped!

Made these cards last week, whilst I was still able...... hope you like them x

OMG I made some Christmas cards too!!!

2010-01-10T17:28:00.009Z

Pain distraction in full force...more cards made. Was doing a christmas card challenge on Magical Crafts that is supposed to help us build up a stock of xmas cards gradually thru the year and Shaz's theme was Trees... so I did that then made 3 more xmas cards! I couldn't help myself LOL... also made my swap card for the Crafty Cow for my swap partner Lexie. All in all a good afternoons crafting, just need to do the inserts and sort out envies!

January's cards so far.....

2010-01-08T14:36:00.012Z

Made this card with Jak's

hibiscus sheets. Lovely aren't they?

OK the kids were getting on my nerves this morning.... 3 days off school and they are doing my nut in to be frank so I retreated to my craft table and zoned out!

Not their fault I know that the schools are closed. Unfortunately I can't take them out in it at the moment because it's turned to ice and is treacherous. We have more snow falling now so they

are gonna be happy! Still need to get some grocery shopping done somehow! The cupboards are nearly bare!!

Anyway, these cards were made very quickly... using stuff I had already cut out on cold winter nights!

Hope you like them!

The ballerinas are actually iron on transfers, but I think they made super toppers!

N-Dubz the snowman!

2010-01-07T11:42:00.003Z

Well alot of you will know this snowmans hat! I bought it a while back before

I even knew who or what N-Dubz were..... then I wore it one day and

got yelled at by some lads...." Oi N-Dubz gis a go on yer scooter!!! "

Needless to say I have stopped wearing it and it is left

redundant in the coat cupboard LOL!!!

Emily soon found a use for it tho... she made this yesterday

and the poor hat cannot be seen anymore as it snowed over the top

of it LOL!!!

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a great 2010

2009-12-21T13:47:00.001Z

That's the last of em.... except one I cannot post!

2009-12-18T10:20:00.010Z

Here is a birthday card, just to break with the christmas theme,

this is for a very special lady whose birthday is the 4th Jan... she doesn't come

on here so I should be safe to show it LOL!

Here's the snowfall in our back garden this morning!

Righto peeps, this is the last of 2009's christmas cards... can't post Shell's on

here just in case she peeps! I am glad they are done... had to work really hard

to get these made with all the computer problems I had.,.... hardly any cards to crafters

this year ..... still there is always next year! I tried to send all I have email addys for

an e-card instead!

Just leaves me to wish everyone a Happy Christmas
and to hope that 2010 is a good vintage for you!!

Happy Christmas all xxxxxx

Now I am fussy.... but even I like these three cards!

2009-12-08T13:24:00.003Z

I quite often make cards that I am not happy with and end up
ripping them up and starting again..... but I must admit the three I

have made this morning will not be going anywhere near a waste paper bin....

well that is unless the recipients don't like them LOL!

A Special thank you card

2009-12-07T10:56:00.002Z

This card is made for the lady who lent me a mobility scooter after

my fall down the stairs during the summer..... since the fall I have

been unable to walk far without severe pain and would have

totally lost my independence if it weren't for this ladies generosity....

We have now bought the scooter from her (for a brill price)

and when I take the money round I am taking her this card and

a big bunch of nice flowers!

She really has no idea how much she has helped me in the last

six months or so.....

A4 Christmas Card

2009-12-04T10:57:00.003Z

Morning all,

Well I seem to have mended my poorly PC (fingers crossed) and was able to get some stuff printed to make this card yesterday, still have to do the insert but at least it is nearly done! Just hope the puter works today when I turn it on!! Used Jak's sheet for the flower/poinsettias and cut the name out using my cuttlebug! What a nightmare that was....think something is wrong with my bug as it doesn't seems to apply pressure evenly on the plates :0( So if I want to cut out a letter I have to push it up to the front on the left hand side to get it to cut!!! Never mind, can't afford to replace it so it will have to do!

Rolo is all better now thank god...... vet bills weren't too bad in the end and we only have to meet the first £80 for the excess so all in all not too bad!

Getting really excited for Christmas...... alas my poorly computer has cost me alot of time and I am afraid crafting friends will have to forego their usual christmas card from me this year as I don't have the time now to make them all...... I am so sorry ...... I had just enough made to cover friends and family, so please forgive me..... I will do better next year I promise! You know I would do them if I could!

Loads of events with the school and lots of hospital and doctors appointments coming up so have not a hope in hell of getting many more made, so will have to choose a select few....

Rolo is better but now puter is poorly sick!

2009-12-02T12:07:00.004Z

And it's the one I do all my card making on!!!! It has XP and my silly old Epson printer wont run off the Vista on my lappy!!!!

So sorry peeps but there will be no new cards till I can fix it...... or get it fixed!

I am going spare without my card making to keep me distracted!

At least Rolo is much better and was checked by the vet again today and he doesn't need to go back! Only a £20 bill today! Still waiting for the insurance claim form to come thru tho!

So as a little treat for you all I thought I'd post this gorgeous piccy of my two girls..... I absolutely love this one!!! Aint they booootiful?

My poorly baby boy..........

2009-11-29T12:59:00.002Z

Oh what a weekend....... :0(

My beloved 6 yr old Welsh Collie Rolo, is not well, not well at all........ and he is NEVER poorly.....

Saturday he stopped eating and drinking..... he had absolutely nothing... except the water I managed to get into his mouth with my hands.... which is so unlike him. Well he hadn't been sick overnight so I had hoped he might be a bit better this morning but he wasn't. We even bought a tin of meaty chunks in gravy (his fave for a treat) but he wouldn't touch it or water again.....

So I phoned the vets.... and was asked to take him straight down......

When the vet checked his temperature is was nearly 104 which is very high and straight away he injected him to try and get that down as quick as possible. I have to syringe feed him a litre and a half of water (which Rolo hates) each day and give him antibiotics as from tomorrow, he had an antibiotic injection to get working today so tablets are for tomorrow onwards....

Poor baby is just laying there feeling sorry for himself, no energy, oh it makes me sooo sad.

I have been told that if he goes downhill then I have to take him straight in, no waiting for appt, just take him in...if he improves he then has to go back on Wednesday for a check up. OMG I nearly fainted when I was handed a £120 bill for a 20 minute consult! It was £50 just to be seen on a sunday... let alone the consultation fee on top of that! Just as well we have insurance... but Direct Line are so bloody slow, there is no way we will get a refund before christmas! Oh well.... cut back time again..... but he is so worth it.... I would never scrimp on health care for him x

3 Patchwork cards from Maureen's Template!

2009-11-20T10:53:00.006Z

The inspiration for these cards comes from a template a good crafting friend
of mine designed and allowed me to use..... Maureen P is a long standing member

of the crafters haven Imag-e-nation and although I no longer belong to the forum

I have kept in touch with her thru her blog

I love the versatility in her design and I am sure if anyone wants the template if they

leave their email addy on her blog she will send it over to you x

Just follow the link above to her fab site and have a look at the other

brilliant freebies she offers too...... ranging from boxes to

decoupage sheets and more x

The blue fairy card is for my eldest Georgia, I think she will love it.... she

is getting more grown up now so its just right for her.

I have made a spelling error on this card so will have to send it

to someone who aint too hot at spellings!! Still I know plenty

of people in my family that are a bit dim!!! In Ady's too LOL!!

The last one is for my sister Rachael..... she had a really crap Christmas

last year.... so wanted her to have a nice card.... not too sure if I

am fully happy with this one tho, so will have to see if

I give it to her or start again!

8 new Christmas cards in one morning......

2009-11-18T12:51:00.009Z

Not bad going me thinks!!!

5 new Christmas cards.....

2009-11-15T12:46:00.006Z

Well I am getting there slowly... made about 30 Christmas cards now... only
about another 50 to go LOL

Here are my latest efforts.....

Thanks for looking x

An award from Alison... thank you hun x

2009-11-11T10:17:00.004Z

I recieved this award from Alison now what I have to do is answer these questions

Here goes......
1 Where is you cell phone - next to me on the sofa
2 Hair - dyed dark reddish brown
3 Mother - alive
4 Father - alive
5 What is you favourite food - roast dinner
6 Dream last night - embarassin!
7 Favourite drink - brandy and diet coke
8 Your dream goal - healthier
9 What room are you in? - living room
10 Your hobby - card making
11 Your fear - never walking properly again
12 Where do you want to live in 6 years time? - right here
13 Where were you last night? - home
14 Something that you aren't - rich
15 Muffins - yuck
16 Wishlist item - new joints!
17 Where did you grow up? South Coast of UK
18 Last thing you did - had an Omega 3 capsule!
19 What are you wearing - Jeans, boots and big wooly jumper!
20 Your TV - living room
21 Your pets - Welsh Collie called Rolo and fish tank
22 Your friends - Awesome
23 Your life - happy
24 Your mood - good
25 Missing someone - no
26 Vehicle - Mobility scooter (Portaloo!)
27 Something you're not wearing - earrings
28 Your favourite store - Dotty P's
29 Your favourite colour - yellow
30 Last time you laughed - about 5 mins ago
31 Last time you cried - last night watching Holby
32 Your best friend - My hubby
33 One place you go to over and over - school run!
34 One person who emails you regularly - Dale
35 Favourite place to eat - carvery
36 Facebook - yes

Please pass on to five more bloggers, my five are as follows:

Shell's Shed

Crafty Cuttlebug

Lace Ribbon's Buttons & Bows

Wellnifty

Maureen P

A card for Rory ..... and others......

2009-11-09T17:59:00.005Z

This card was made for a special little lad who has recently undergone some pretty major surgery...... Rory is just 3 months old and is a Down Syndrome baby.... and an appeal went

out to make some cards of support for Rory and his parents as they are having a very

tough time...... I mean.... who could refuse? Really hope his mum and dad gain strength from

all the love and best wishes that reach them in the cards that friends of Shell make for them x

Thanks to Shell for letting me know of something I could do to help support them x

This card was made for a friends son Stephen who has had a really tough time lately too....

Stephen suffers from frequent fits and recently a bad one made him fall and he fractured his

collar bone. He loves Mickey Mouse so just wanted to send him some love and hope

he feels better soon x The next card below is for Norma, Stephens mum..... a wonderful woman

who, with her lovely hubby, care for Stephen tirelessly and fight his corner ever step

of the way. I have nothing but admiration for people like them x Wishing them all well x

This was Normas one..... I put the motto inside.....

'Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass.....

it's about learning to dance in the rain'

This card was made for the November swap on the Crafty Cow... my swap partner was

Lexie... when Lexie joined and introduced herself she let slip she likes shoes and handbags

so I thought I would tailor the card to suit her... seeing as we were given a

free reign on design this month! I know she has received it so can put it on

here now! She liked it, thats the main thing LOL x

3 side stepper christmas cards

2009-11-05T12:19:00.004Z

All made from side stepped sheets from http://www.cardmakersheaven.com/index.php?p=1_114_Christmas-Side-Steppers

Hello lovely peeps..... more cards to show!

2009-11-04T10:26:00.008Z

Morning all,

Had a couple of 'off days' so got stuck into my usual distraction!!! Here are the fruits of my labour!

Also had a busy week last week as we had Shell and her troupe down, although bot Shell and I were not feeling in tip top condition we made the best of it and did as much as we could. Even poor Emily was really sick...... one day we went to Butlins and I felt like a really nasty mummy coz I wouldn't let her go in the pool... Shell and I sat upstairs with her whilst the others went in with Ady and Nige and these little silent tears were rolling down her face, I was so sad..... still I will make it up to her. It is her birthday on Sunday x

Still no news on my DLA Appeal, they are certainly dragging their heels..... it has been 13 weeks now since I sent in my letter.... they wrote back after 10 wks and said they were writing to my consultant.... he never received the letter, so I have chased the DLA peeps to send it again, hopefully they have, I will leave it one more week and then chase again! I need the money soon as I am due to start my hydrotherapy sessions next week, and I cannot really afford for the expense to come out of the household budget!

Have come to a decision about the surgery after thinking long and hard ..... I am gonna go for it .... I cannot keep going on like this.... time to do something radical!!! It is a scary thought but less scary than this carrying on... I have too much to deal with with the Rheumatoid Arthritis and the Diabetes, so at least if one problem is cured (hopefully) then life can start to improve as I hate the way this is starting to affect my family. Something just seems fundamentally wrong with my parent and hubby pushing me in a wheelchair when I have to go further than 100 yards or so!

Anyways peeps, I managed to get up straight on the blogs the day before yesterday, so am up to date on my commenting! At last!!

Hope you are all keeping well x

A selection of new cards I made....

2009-10-24T19:50:00.010+01:00

Made with my prize from Magical Crafts Forum!

Made using stamps from my mate Jan (Cubbie) at the Crafty Cow x Thanks Jan x

Made using and layering my Ladies in Waiting new

medallion stamp and watercoloured in metallic paints

Made with the same stamps from Jan x

Not a brill appointment.......

2009-10-21T11:57:00.002+01:00

Right, so I know I have not put much on about my health recently as I have been trying to concentrate on cards to distract myself, but I needed to get this off my chest as I am pretty scared now......

Left hand has flared right up and hence I cannot hold my walking stick, have been using the other stick in my right hand for a while but this is aggravating my back and making the sciatica worse still. All arthritic joints in my body have decided to flare at once, making life.... to be brutally honest..... bloody miserable! Have a walking stick handle shaped bruise from where I fell again the other week right on the fleshy part of my stomach, any higher it could have broken a rib LOL.

I went to the hospital today as I asked to have a steroid injection in my hand to try and ease the swelling and be able to use it again, but my Rheumatologist caught me off guard.... the first thing he asked was how the sciatica was....and then after I told him that there was little improvement since the summer and that the Arthritis was flaring up again too.... that he wanted to see me and hubby in 3 months time with a view to discussing SURGERY to remove the disc. He seems certain the disc is sequestrated fully still and stands not a hope in hell's chance of going back in naturally... and he thinks I have too many things to try and deal with so he thinks surgery is the best option for me.. scared the hell outta me to tell the truth, but when I ask myself if I want to go on like I am at the moment, I cannot lie and tell you I could.... cause I definitely can't.

He has put me on Prednisilone, a steroid, which may make me put on weight... or rather WILL make me put on weight unless I am extremely careful, which with my limited mobility is gonna be a blooming nightmare. He has also upped my dose of Methotrexate...and also put me on an anti-malarial drug called something like Hydroxychloraquine which apparently reacts with the Methotrexate and can help. This drug can have side effects on your vision though, so I have to be very careful!

But all in all, the main conversation today seems to be pushing me towards surgery, which I was not expecting at all today as I had only been there because the Arthritis was acting up.

So peeps, now I have some very serious thinking and homework to do.... I am trying not to listen to horror stories, so please do not reply with one LOL!!!!!

That's all for now folks, take care of yourselves, speak soon x I am sorry to put this on here but needed to get it off my chest!

Blimey!!!!! I Won!!!!! Magical Crafts Forum Candy!!!!

2009-10-19T11:45:00.004+01:00

Oh what a lubbly start to my day..... the weather is all wet and cold and I am aching madly, but what a lovely surprise I got when I logged into one of the forums I belong to this morning.

Angel over at Magical Crafts http://magicalcrafts.freeforums.org/index.php has been running a candy haul for new members of her fab forum. Basically the first fifty members names were put in a hat and then her gorgeous kiddies pulled MY NAME out of the hat!!!!!!

This is what I have won..... aren't I lucky? LOL

Many thanks to Angel, not only for the candy but for running such a lovely forum that made me feel at home as soon as I joined... this is just the icing on the cake xxx

Why don't you pop on over on the above link and have a look round the forum if you have not already joined, the lovely ladies are from all walks of life and have lots of different aspects of crafting that they cover. Great place to get a bit of inspiration and have a good chat at the same time x Hope to see you there soon xv

New hat, 15 christmas cards and a partridge in a pear tree

2009-10-13T17:29:00.008+01:00

Well maybe not a partridge, more a pair of snuggly kitty kats on a card I made for a friend to send to a friend in need...... my mate loved it so lets hope her mate does too.... this one will be winging its way all the way to Oz! The christmas cards are just quick ones, at least two of them will hit the bin coz I don't like em now LOL....

Went out today down the town and bought meself some cold weather stuff... got a new pair of Thinsulate gloves to keep my mitts toasty... a new pair of boots for the cold... and this lovely fetching hat.... dunno what my hubby's problem is but he says he aint going out with me in public if I am wearing it LOL!!!!!! He paid for it LOL!!!!

Liverpool FC card......

2009-10-11T18:27:00.002+01:00

Quite simply what the title says ....... a card for a Liverpool FC fan who is 8..... my youngest daughters best boy mate! He loved it x

Card for a friend........

2009-10-08T13:38:00.003+01:00

My friend Kara is having a rough time...... so I think she needs a boost....

She has a lovely black Labrador so I chose that as my theme.... ribbon out of my stash... insert background from Picaboo free backgrounds... and hey presto.... !!

Do you remember the Dolls House?

2009-10-06T13:40:00.015+01:00

Well this is a wrench I can tell you..... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160367697350&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

Well this is a wrench I can tell you..., I started renovating this lovely big Victorian Style handbuilt dolls house a couple of years ago..... got round to sanding down, undercoating, repainting, re-doing the mock beams, halfway thru tiling the roof with individual tiles and then disaster struck and I got diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in my hands and knee...... so hence... work ground to a halt and it has been sitting under a duvet since then :0( I have no hope of getting it finished...so am hoping someone with a creative flair will want to take it as it is taking up too much room in my daughters bedroom!
I bought loads of stuff to decorate and furnish it with... these are all included in the sale..... you can see from the pictures how much stuff is included.
I think there is enough flooring to do the whole house, maybe not the hallway but the main rooms definately. There are two large pieces of carpet in a cream/taupe colour and also some lino for the kitchen floor in a blue and a textured flooring for the bathroom also in blue.
There is definately enough wallpaper to do the entire house..... six different designs in all...... most of the designs having 3 sheets of each pattern.
There is furniture for the kitchen (old farmhouse style) with a table with 2 carvers and 4 chairs..... oven, fridge freezer, cupboard and sink unit. This also comes with a small bone china tea service.
5 lots of plastic moulded window dressings....
Complete bathroom suite incorporates a bath, pedestal wash basin, toilet, vase and chair....
Lounge furniture includes TV/DVD/Hifi cabinet and a Welsh Dresser
Lastly the box of roof tiles and the leftover UHU glue! Hopefully there are enough tiles to finish the job (but don't quote me on it!)
Also the stairs and banister rain are included but need rubbing down and repainting and fixing into place.
The whole front section of the house comes off..... it has a lovely double apex roof with a double chimney breast. Nice verandah with fixed shutter detail to most of the windows.
Measurements of the base board are Width 36" Height 32" Depth 18"
actual house Width 34" Height 32" Depth 17.5"

Probably the hardest card I have ever done!!

2009-09-28T09:33:00.005+01:00

OK this card was a blooming nightmare.... these were the instructions I received.....

Hi Lou

We would like an A4 card please.The theme of the card is "Mediterranean Cruise" as that's where my son and Hayley met aboard Ocean Village 1, where they're both resident performers with the show band. If you go onto youtube and type in Pete Newberry you can see his showreel which gives you a flavour of the music and Hayley is on there singing with her duo partner fleetingly near the end.

Front cover - can you please use Brian's attached photo of Sorrento either as a whole page backdrop or taking up 3/4 of the front cover with "Happy Birthday Hayley!" either above or below it. I don't think I'll ask you to put "30th birthday" on the front cover in case she's sensitive to hitting 30 but if you want to put something inside the card referring about 30th feel free.

Inside the card - I have attached some photos of Hayley - can you splice them together to cover one of the inside pages please. They are as follows:-

3844 - this is a picture Pete took of their shadows on the ground as they walked along - if there's anyway pf cutting out Pete's foot please feel free!

3847 - please use all of this pic

3878 - " "

0811 - can you cut off the two people on the sun deck above so the pic focuses on the duo1163 - can you trim everyone off this picture except Pete and Hayley

1006 - please use all of it

For the page with the birthday wishes on can it say something like the following:

To Hayley,

Many Happy Returns

have a great day

fondest love fromGill, Brian, Kate & ClemXXXX

I'll leave you to work your magic on all of the above - complete artistic license to change anything or use the photos in different places etc

Many thanks Gill

Well everytime I tried to make it as a landscape mountain fold, it fell flat with the weight of everything.... so I have totally changed it...... just hope she is happy with it.

It looks nicer in the flesh, its one of those cards that hasn't photographed too well....bad time of the day for the light I think !!

Nine new A5 Christmas Cards

2009-09-24T13:32:00.012+01:00

Made the first 2 cards out of a small pack of tiny cards .... it was 25 cards

for 50p at the Birthdays shop... so I just used 3 cards to make one topper!

Bargain!!!

This, of course, is a Freds She Said doodle dallion.... or something like that LOL

This card was made from 2 of Joanies fan sheets, printed both out

and then mixed the two up! Hope it looks OK! Thanks Joanie x

Just love this stamp.......

Love this Reindeer download and also stuck on a christmas

tree die cut my mate Karen sent me last year and I never used then!

Made these yesterday!!

Had pain, did cards.... full stop, end of story! LOL

Hope all you bloggers are keeping well x I have my 10 yr old off school with a cold... drippy nose, cough and shivers... the school don't like em coming with ANY SIGN of a cold at the moment coz of the swine flu outbreak. So that means she is off and driving me barking mad!!

MRI result and Update

2009-09-12T08:50:00.002+01:00

Hi peeps,

No cards to show but for those that know me on a personal basis I thought I would let you know whats going on...... I am out of hossy for the weekend, gotta go back on Monday for another week, maybe another one after that but we'll see. Have had loads of physio and hydrotherapy, although not as much as last time. I think they were playing it safe with me till they got the MRI results......

Well I had the MRI on Wednesday morning.... as soon as it was over the scanner bloke said they had identified that SOMETHING had shown on the MRI and that they would compile their detailed report and get it to my Consultant. On Thursday morning I had my Consultant appt and he already had the results!!!

Good news turns out IT IS NOT THE ARTHRITIS STARING IN MY SPINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank God for that! I was sooo relieved I cannot tell you all!

BAD NEWS though too .... I have a BADLY (his words not mine!) slipped disc (not prolapsed or bulging but right out) and it is totally compressing the nerve running down the right leg which I why I have so much pain and have lost the feeling in the foot and part of the leg. Consultant has offered me another Epidural and also said that the Bed Rest prescribed by the A & E doctors was probably the worst thing to have done.... FFS!!!!!! I think I will keep the Epidural as a trump card in case anything else aggravates it and I need extra pain relief!

So now I have to hope like hell that I can get fit again, build up my core strength and that in time the disc will heal and move back off the nerve, if that doesn't happen within 6 - 9 months he said he will offer surgery.... if I want it (in two minds at the mo, scares the hell outta me) during this time I will just have to manage with a numb foot and a knackered knee (as I damaged and flared the arthritis in that when I fell)

So all in all, good news..... loads of work for me to do, but no-one else can do it for me, can they? So best get on with it.

Thanks to you all for your support and best wishes.

To my hubby Ady, my kids Georgia and Emily, my best mate Shell, my mum and dad and a certain group of ladies known only to me as my SISTERS ....especially I would like to say THANK YOU...... I could not have gotten this far without your continued support and love... you are all my strength and I am so blessed to have you all in my life xxxxxx

Cards cards n more cards!

2009-08-31T17:29:00.011+01:00

Been keeping busy x

Hope yer like em x

Kids back to school on Friday and then I am off again into hospital on Monday 7th Sept, getting MRI done on the 9th Sept so won't now update blog till next time I am online again x

Hope you all have a lovely few weeks x

Back to the hospital again........

2009-08-26T12:45:00.003+01:00

Had my appointment with the chappie who deals with my Rheumatology problems but who also happens to be the one who did the Epidural, he is still not a happy bunny, but then neither am I. I still cannot feel my right foot, have to walk on crutches and cannot get upstairs in my own bloody house :0(

So I saw him this morning and he says.... 'we wants ya back in hossy for a bit and we wants to do an urgent MRI to see whats going on!' Well I'm madly happy about the MRI bit, coz I wanna know whats going on even more than he does! But its going into hossy again :0(

Just as Emily starts at her new Junior school... poor little love, last time I was taken in she was just sitting her SATS and this time I am only gonna be able to take her for her first day at her new school..... GGGRRRR!!!!!!!! Life is not fair sometimes is it?

So I will be going back in again on the 7th Sept, who knows how long for this time, same rules apply, home for the weekend, checkup with the doc every thursday to let me know if I have to come back on the Monday for another week!

Will get the MRI scan done whilst in there, hopefully in the first week. Then we will (hopefully) know what we are dealing with and may have an idea of what to do next. Although my bed is nice and has a nice duvet cover I never really figured it as being part of my lounge furniture for this long! Mind you, using a hossy loo will be a darn site nicer than using a bloody commode all the time!

So there you go.... the saga continues x

Only photos I have to show you are of my gorgeous girls xx so here you go....

This is Georgia enjoying her picnic at the New Forest!

This is Emily, taken last weekend also at the New Forest enjoying her ice cream.

A Young Lady needs our assistance bloggers.....!!

2009-08-21T16:02:00.007+01:00

Our gorgeous Katie Kat (Shells daughter) has pestered her mom so much that

Shell has given in and allowed our Katie to do her own sketch challenge.....

you will find all Katies details here and also a link to the actual blog

entry on Shell's blog here

This is Katies original sketch

This is the card Katie did to show us what to do....

Well my daughter Georgia and I decided to join in and these are the cards

we came up with, I hope they are good enough for our Katies challenge x

This is Georgia's one.......... I think she did a fabby job, but then I am biased!!!

This is my card, I hope Katie thinks it's good enough!

Please hop on over to Shell's blog here and join in, we must encourage

these youngsters of ours to get involved in all things crafty!!!

Well here we go again.... pain distraction technique kicking in again!

2009-08-20T15:59:00.013+01:00

Well, frankly been having it rather rough, half the time I am bed bound, strapped to TENS, heat pads and various massage thingys..... just to keep sane. Tried a couple of days (not on purpose) without my diazepam and oh my GOD!!!!! I just could not function at all! Still have NO feeling in my right foot, so am based downstairs now, haven't been upstairs since the day I was admitted to the hossy for the 2nd time, 2 weeks ago!

Ady has had to go back to work so I haven't even been out of the house since Saturday! Kids are going stir crazy!! I have had 3 visitors this week..... yes 3...... :0(.... my mum, my mate Lena and my aunty Ruth. Ady is back to working 6 days a week so I am pretty much stuck in full time. The wheelchair is too heavy for Georgia to push so we can't go out at all! I did received my Blue Disabled Parking Badge through this week though, so thats a start. Just hope the DLA are as quick sorting out my re-assessment of my claim!!

Got a phone call from a friend the other day who had seen some of my cards on facebook and asked if I wanted her to try and get a few sold in her local shop, nothing amazing, certainly wont be cash rolling in, but it would be nice to sell a few I suppose, so I thought I better make up a bit of a stash! If I even break even I will be happy as long as I can restock out of the money I get!

So have been trying to keep busy putting some simple, some more complex and some just plain cards together for most occasions.... and we'll see what this lady thinks. Still gotta do inserts for most of them though so they are not ready yet. I have fits and starts of being able to do them so they have taken about a week so far! I do cutting out in the evenings and put the cards together in the mornings after the meds have kicked in for a bit!

Anyways here is what I have done so far x

Hope all you bloggers aren't missing me too much, I know I will never have a cat in hells chance of catching up but as soon as able I will be out there again in blogland sprinkling your blogs with my comments I promise x

I don't think it has worked ........

2009-08-12T13:40:00.002+01:00

Although if I am truthful the bed rest has lessened slightly the back pain, but am still in awful pain down the leg and still cannot feel my right foot. Am taking 19 painkillers a day (Tramadol, Co-Codamol and Ibuprofen) plus 4 x 5mg diazepam a day.

Not quite the effect I was hoping for :0(

Ady's work have agreed to compassionate leave until Sunday but then we have to see what will happens next. How the hell I will manage with the kids still off school I don't know.......

Have had 3 falls on my crutches...... can only walk about 18ft (length of lounge) and I am in severe pain and exhausted... and have not been upstairs in my own house for nearly 10 days now! Using a commode and using the kitchen sink to wash in as I only have an upstairs bathroom. Ady washes my hair with my head back over a bucket! Not exactly the Elizabeth Arden red door treatment spa is it??

Waiting for a call back from the Chronic Pain Team and the Occupational Therapists to see what can be done, but I have no idea where I go from here. Don't even seem to be able to crack a smile at the moment, which is most unlike me.

Have re-applied for my Disability Living Allowance as my condition has deteriorated so much and also applied for a Blue Badge which will help when I am able to go out and about in a car.

We have luckily got hold of a wheelchair so at least I am able to get out for a bit of fresh air every couple of days although it does hurts with Bognors bumpy crappy pavements!

Am just sorry that I keep putting on miserable posts....... but I have printed out loads of bits to try and distract myself so hopefully I will have some cards to put on here soon x

My Epidural.....

2009-08-06T10:32:00.003+01:00

Hello there peeps, I know I have been a bad blogger keeping you up to date with whats going on but the saga continues............

On Monday I had an arthritis checkup with Sister Walsh and my hubby (who has been waiting on me hand and foot since I have been on bed rest for that last 5 days) wheeled me down the hospital in a wheelchair. I had yet more blood taken and then she disappeared outta the office for a while and came back in and said the magic words I had been waiting to hear.

'Louise, I am doing your epidural on WEDNESDAY!!! You just cannot go on like this, specially with the kids at home.

Almost floated home, felt so much relief it was untrue!

So Wednesday came and I arrived at the hospital, had BP done, got into a very sexy backless hospital gown, and was told I was third on Dr Menon's list... he was doing 8 that day!

Firstly he checked my reflexes as I have lost most of the feeling in my right foot and up towards my knee.... and I was told, rather worryingly that I have absolutely no reflexes on the right foot and that concerned him greatly. He said the epidural may help release the trapped nerves that was most likely causing this. Was turned over and laid on my front as it is not very easy to turn over on my own at the moment. He did the procedure but once again he was concerned because during the whole thing I felt no sensation or pushing pressure and no sensation down my legs or in my back when he administered the injection, which I am told is most unusual.

Laid on my front for ten minutes, then was allowed to lay on my side and have a cup of coffee and a cheese sarnie. After that I was asked if I could manage a wee and if I could I was allowed to go. So I summoned Ady and my trusty Steed (wheelchair) and he took me home.

Unfortunately, at this time, there is no improvement, in fact I am more uncomfortable as my ribs hurt from laying on my front and my butt hurts where he did the procedure!! But there is still time, so I am not losing hope.

The doctor came to see me just before I was discharged and was disappointed that I felt no instant help from it however slight, he said that they could not offer me an MRI for 4/6 weeks after an Epidural (NHS rules he said) and then if still nothing had improved they would look at further options (including surgery). Yikes!

So for now I have to rest, but also move about frequently, take my painkillers religiously and not bend too much or lift heavy objects. And just hope like hell that this kicks in soon.

One good thing is that whilst I was at the hospital my husband went in to see his employers (as he has not been at work since I first went into A & E by ambulance last wednesday ) His Managing Director has agreed to Fully Paid Compassionate Leave till at least Friday and then he has a meeting with her on Friday morning to let her know how things are going and to decide what is going to happen from now on.

He is stuck at the moment as I need a hell of a lot of help and with the kids being home too it is a nightmare! So we will have to see what she says on Friday about whether any more time off will be paid or whether he will have to use up all his holiday entitlement. We will just have to hope that she continues to be compassionate!

Once again thanks to all my friends for the lovely wishes and some gorgeous cards I have received xxx Cards from my daughters Georgia and Emily, my bestest bud Shell, Sylv, Liz, Jen, my auntie Ruth, my mate Julia and my friends little girl Georgia who hand drew and coloured me a gorgeous white tiger and made it into a card for me with some lovely neat writing x Thanks to you all xxx

Sorry I haven't been on....

2009-08-02T11:56:00.004+01:00

I am sorry I haven't posted for a while but have been having a few problems of late.

Woke up Wednesday morning, Ady had to pull me out of bed... took me 15 minutes to get down the stairs. Then realised I couldn't sit down! Not at all.... no matter how hard I tried.... so I kept trying and trying and he called his mum to stay with me but i still couldn't sit down. I was in tears with the pain and couldn't stand on one foot much longer as I couldn't put weight on the right leg... so from half seven in the morning till 11.30 am I stood on one leg leaning up against a wall....

In the end there was nothing for it but to get Ady home from work. My MIL had been over to my doctors twice to try and get a doctor over to see me but they refused as they didn't have the time. So in then end we had to call 999 and get an ambulance because I was nearly passing out with the pain. The paramedics came and they managed to get me to the ambulance with a hell of a lot of gas and air. Every bump was agony, just typical half of Bognor is having roadworks at the moment.

Got to A & E and was assessed quite quickly thank god... was given a cocktail of drugs, voltarol, morphine, and diazepam so they could do an xray. They decided to admit me as they couldn't get the pain under control so they got me up to a ward and I tried to get comfortable. The Orthopaedic Surgeons came to see me and mentioned that they wanted to get an MRI done but then they decided not to... ! In the ward there was this poor old love who just kept repeating the same thing over and over... calling out 'help me lord, please help me' again and again and again... then every time a nurse came in it would change to 'dear lady please help me' over and over again.... it was sad but it was also driving me daft. When they came back to my bed and said all they could offer at the moment was bed rest and pain relief and they gave me the option of going home to do it, I must admit I jumped at the chance just to get some Peace!

It was agony getting into the car and the drive home was murder but I managed it and then was bodily manhandled up the stairs by my hubby and straight into bed..... I slept quite well, I should imagine from all the drugs that had been ploughed into me at the hossy.

But, oh god, if I felt pain the day before, it was nothing compared to Friday morning..... I have never felt anything like it.

The scariest part was that I have now lost partial feeling in my right foot and leg.... so hubby phoned the Orthopaedic department and they said 999 and get me straight there asap. I must have swallowed so much gas and air in those two days! Was seen very quickly again and they pumped me full of morphine again and diazepam and did some specific tests to assess my nerve damage affecting my leg and foot. They still did not get an MRI done! They got me at least 80% pain free this time with a double dose of everything which made me relax more and were also able to to offer me some aids at home to allow me to go home till I could be seen by a specialist. I have been given special crutches to help reduce the stress on my already arthritic wrists, a commode (because I cannot do the stairs at all) and my bed has been bought down into the lounge and I have a proper hospital backrest to support my back whilst upright.

I have now been on 2 full days bed rest, my husband and kids have been brilliant, I am taking painkillers by the bucket load and diazepam too to take the edge off, my tens machine is nearly constantly on the go and I have 2 hot water bottles taking care of the aggravated arthritic joints.

The long and shot of it is that I have slipped a disk (or two) that is pressing on the nerves reducing feeling in my right leg and causing extreme pain in the back and right leg.

I am waiting for an appointment to be assessed by the back specialist with a view to admitting me to hospital (to the same unit i went to before with my arthritis) getting and MRI carried out and also to discuss the epidural and the possibility of surgery.

So that's it.... here I am..... off my bonce on drugs (good ones), sometimes screaming, sometimes crying, other times fine..... but still smiling and trying to keep positive.

Just wanted to let you all know what happened and to say thank you for all the support I have received from all my friends and family xx

Also THANK GOD FOR BLOGGER SPELL CHECK AS YOU WOULD NOT HAVE UNDERSTOOD ANY OF THIS LOL

Cards Cards and more cards

2009-07-27T08:52:00.008+01:00

These were not all f the cards I have made in the last couple of days but they were the

best of the bunch LOL!!!