It's been one of those days...

Christmas – bring it on…

I love Christmas.  Whilst going through the check-out at the supermarket yesterday the check-out operator asked me if I’d done all my Christmas shopping.  I said I had… I was expecting some work to come in and to be really busy just before Christmas, so I had it all done.  *sigh* “I hate Christmas” she said.  “Really?” I said… “I love it.  I love the songs, the stuff for the kids, the warmth, the giving, the smiles on Christmas morning, the way we get in touch with people we don’t see all year… I love it”.  She seemed surprised I answered that way.  Like perhaps all day she is used to hearing people complain about the season.  She changed her tune at that point and told me stories of her grandkids and their smiles on Christmas morning.  Sometimes I think the bah-humbug attitude comes from people because they think other people expect it.  Enjoy the season, I say.  Bring on the silly songs, the smiles on the faces of those you are giving to and long evenings outside socialising into the night.  Bring it on!

This layout was featured on the Prima Blog over the past week, along with a post about my Christmas traditions.  I’ve enjoyed the Prima Blog especially over the past few weeks as they’ve visited their incredibly global design team one at a time to learn about Christmas the world over.  I had no idea it was so different in other countries!

What is planned for this week then?  The work I expected to arrive has arrived and I am buried in new BasicGrey papers… I’ll be doing a whole lot of layouts for their booth at CHA, the scrapbooking tradeshow that will be happening in just over a month. 

My favourite little brother arrives home from London with his fab fiancé.   I can’t wait.  The kids adore him, I adore him and I still miss him as much as ever when he is gone, even though he has been gone 12 years now. 

Alrighty, it’s 9.30am, I’m fighting the urge to steal some Christmas chocolates and I’m going to knuckle down and get into this BasicGrey.  Enjoy your day!

laters

Five things on Friday

Last night we went to the senior school prize giving.  Braden took away the ‘Top year 5 boy’ trophy for outstanding achievement academically and on the field.  yea yea.  That’s my boy!  It’s a massive school so taking that home was a huge thing.  Last night as I was saying goodnight to him he asked which parent he got his brains from.  I told him it was obviously me.  I used to be an A+ student right through school.  Now I can barely remember where I parked the car.  Clearly someone has my brains.

Jacob has rocked the school scene too.  He successfully created his own seminar on the African Big Five.  In years gone past I might have been dragged into nagging, guiding, nagging and helping.  This year he works on Mac computers at school and his software isn’t compatible with my 5 year old windows laptop.  I couldn’t help.  He created a 20 minute seminar by himself, rocked the presentation and got a 3/4 score in all the judged aspects.  Digital class, I love thee.  I might be behind the times with my computer, but I can smile in the knowledge that it forced independence on my eldest. 
On a scarier note, next year he’ll have ‘iPod touch’ on his class stationery list.  Digital class – I still love thee, despite you sucking up all my flybuys points on iPod touches…

Dear Mr Watties.  Last night as I was making dinner I discovered that the tomato sauce was coming out of the bottle really super fast.  Upon investigation I discovered that you have made the hole in the lid BIGGER.  Some young punk probably spent 4 years puking on himself at uni to think that clever idea up… bigger hole, use more sauce…   Mr Watties, you haven’t heard the end of this.

WANTED:  Clever uni student that has invested many years of pizza eating, mother energy drink consumption and setting sofas on fire to come up with a clever idea to stop the tomato sauce coming out of the tomato sauce bottle so fast.  Prior tomato sauce experience essential. 

Last but not least… links to the fun and the inspirational.
Tim Holtz 12 Days of Christmas Tags.
Julie at Collections rocking the white vintage.
Prima Blog – always full of inspirational projects

Wait – there is six things… the last thing?  White girls can jump. 
Abby in the waves at Hahei this past weekend.  Edited by LG.  This photo screams to be scrapbooked.

Laters