Salmon..

Quite a few blogs back I talked about our trip to the Minack when Uncle Bill, Deborah and Suzannah were here at Christmas....and it came to me how I felt about the coastline about a mile either side of the Minack..

'If I were a Salmon... this is where I'd be heading..'

This was the inspiration for this layout using some papers Linda asked us to work with in the Christmas break... well 3 months later is just about on time for me, being punctual and that!

Tags.

We've done a bit of surf clothes shopping the past week or two.. fantastic array of labels and tags come with the clothes.  I'm looking forward to some nice holiday layouts that will use these up..

I can see one layout already.. Zac & Ross have both got themselves some 'Dirty Dog' sunglasses..all we need is the Dirty Dogs themselves!

...and Next have made their tag look like a baggage label.. clever stuff!

Used a few tags on this layout for Ross.. poor thing, he found himself in Bali last spring.. only it was rainy season and not much bodyboarding got done.

How they change!

I wasn't that happy with the stuff I did on Saturday, but when I got home I was dead beat, cold and then hot and very grateful for the chip van which comes to the village on a Saturday. Normally I get my sensible head on, for just a token moment, before I succomb to easy-tea, but this weekend it was me shouting 'Chip Saturday' from the sofa. 

Thought I was sickening for something, but asleep by 10 and a lie in on Mother's Day and I was raring to go again.. well, maybe not rarng, but happy to wander around St Ives for a couple of hours looking for the last minute bits for our holiday.(missed the surf gear sales by about a month I reckon.. bah!)

I found this set of photos and thought it was about time I laid them out...they were taken at a quarry near Delabole where our friends were staying in a teepee, back in October 2008.

Frans has always introduced our kids to some fun activities... camp fires, very traditional camping on Bryher and this time we went boating in the quarry and got to see the teepee and ate fish on a camp fire. 

Kate has certainly rown up in the last 18 months.. but I guess they do between 11 and 13 don't they, and she's had a few growing up experiences in that time too!

'Hair by Bill'!

At Christmas when Uncle Bill was here, playing official paparazzi we ran a slide show of the best pictures and were amazed at all the images of Kate's hair, in it's various formats!  Hair by Bill I thought!

Ever since she was a little kid she's loved changing her hair styles, though today it is generally straightened and she bemoans the thickness and sheer volume of hair she has.

As a toddler it was curly and a gingery blonde but now just great shades of blonde.

I did this layout using an invisibles page and Star and heart masks on saturday. the photo isn't the best, probably better on Linda's site (when she gets to it)

How big is your mouth?

.... I'm having trouble working out why a piece of Chunky KitKat seems to be massive in your mouth, but when you're at the dentist it seems there's a couple of hands and various sucking / drilling tools and a folded up tongue in there...

... never had my mouth open so long and not made a noise!

And how come our generation spent years of child-rearing encouraging our kids to drink 'Sugar Free' for the sake of their teeth, only to have it all sent down the pan by an all-be-it-very-successful campaign by the powers that own CocaCola / Schweppes etc  that has rendered the teens of today slaves to the 'energy drink'

Grumbly old Woman or what!

You know what I need?  A day scrapping.. and I get it tomorrow, not even planned anything yet, going off the cuff / al fresco / al dente / commando.. whatever they call it!! (No, I know it's not one of those!)

Proud mum..

(.. quietly though).. my big girl let me know today that she has banked 'A' and 'B' grades in her Business & Economics 'A' levels and is heading the same way later this year for her Maths.

Pretty damn good for self-taught and all the while working, being poorly, having a baby and all the trials and tribulations that we went through..

So proud, and she should be too...

Autobiographies..

..I had a brochure today from the Daphne duMaurier Festival, held every May in Fowey. and they have a couple of sessions for people who want to write their autobiography.. .. sounds like a fun idea, then you think about all the odds and sods you find nostalgic and sweet and realise that whilst they are fondly remembered yourself, they are to others, just that..odds and sods of a single existence. 

My Mum & step-dad had friends once who ran a Children's Home, came to Mousehole shark fishing with Phil, and had met a lot of people along the way...he and Phil laughed about so many stories, and the guy said he would one day write them down in a book.. called 'Words Fail Me'   I often think of it, and I'm sure if he were here today, in the 21st century with all it's red tape and political correctness he would have several more volumes to add!

My Col came up with a great title for his own book if he were to write it...and for those who know him, (now or have known him when he worked as a diver or with all things marine and engineering), I'm sure you'd see the double meaning in 'In Too Deep' 

He doesn't do much in halves and throws himself in deep to discover all he needs to know about something.  I guess a few times he has found himself up to his neck in smelly stuff, whether that's the real stuff working on a sewer outfall or some grim ship off India, or just promising the world to a customer, but only being able to deliver the odd continent or two!

And as for taking on me and two kids, he certainly had his hands full, but as always with a big smile and a positive head-on he ploughed on and made things happen... even if much later he admitted that the one thing he had underestimated was the dog!

Anyways, back to the festival... we've been a couple of times, but to see the least literary of the events.. one year Al Murray and another year Suzi Quatro...well creative in their own rights I guess and using 'Literary Festival' in its broadest sense maybe.  Suzi was so good, I think she'd just turned 60, still a big personality in a small package. Col's Dad said his face hurt from smiling so much, it was a good night!

This year the Stranglers are the token 'pop' offering, but not sure if we'll go.

As for biographies, one of my 'jobs to do' entails deciphering lots of pencil written notes in a note book, written by my Mum's Dad when he was in Africa during the First World War. he was a teacher and thinker by nature and must have found it hard to go to war, some of the bits I have read so far make me think of the Tom Hanks character from Private Ryan.

All grown up!

A good day today, nothing spectacular to report, but just did lots of things, ticked a pleasurable number of boxes, and just kind of 'had a good day'.

Kate turned 13 today, so effectively we have now ushered all our children into teenage-hood and beyond. 

She is such a 'girl' it was actually quite satisfying to indulge that with a glam bag and lots of bits and bobs for our holiday, everything from Beuno Eggs (very nice) and silly string and eyeliner and bangles.  She spent the day with her girlie pals, they are here 'sleeping over' and we had Indian for tea...an easy day on all of us!

JB and I did town this morning, met some faces from my past..(dear Jordan she waited patiently while we gassed... Col and Zac said she should have taken a small fold out chair and an interesting book for such occasions) Out of the blue we met a friend from when Ross & Lisa were young, it was lovely to hear news of her children and also to commiserate with each other about the way our late 40's seems to have heralded an era of caring for our loved ones, and how this is not always an easy transition or a state we have found comfortable.  Despite not spending time together for almost 18 years, we slipped easily into mutual chat, I love that, it's what's nice about living where you belong.. seeing people out of the blue who have shared a bit of your history, no matter how recent or long ago.

Then I met a cousin, I grew up with him, know the names of Chelsea football players of the 60's and 70's because of him, saw him every day for 12 years, but we have barely spent an hour together in the last 35 years.  But again, the comfort I think we shared in 'knowing' each other was almost palpable.

With me turning 50 this year and Zac coming up 18, it's quite a year really, makes you contemplate your ageing!  Reading a magazine this afternoon, lots of guff about the ageing process, another dig in my ribs that I should eat healthier and do more active things.. surely eating dark chocolate and still meeting Col across a double mattress at least the average amount of times a week is enough?.. well maybe to celebrate my 50th I'll start in earnest.. and they did offer a few yoga exercises you can do in bed.. now there's a place to start!

One thought..... there are few people who would give up the experience, perspective & maturity age has given them for the sake of a younger fitter, body.  What we want is the wisdom without the wilting, which is like having your cake & eating it, without even the bother of baking it first.

....mmmm...JB and I made chocolate fudge cake and I made a big apple crumble, so I guess I have done my share of the baking, trouble is I often eat MORE than my share too!

Sister layout.

This is the almost finished product.. just a bit of journalling to add.. hey, maybe I should just reprint my blog below?  Used some green rickrack braid, always a favourite of Auntie's  when she made me dresses for Sunday School Anniversary!!

I did the page as part of a double spread, accompanying a Fashion Disaster page I did for Linda's challenge.  Good old Cuttlebug for the labels with hearts, and plenty of bronze ink to distress and vintage it, Linda would be proud!

It was good looking up 'sister quotes', some are really quite fitting, makes you realise how history repeats itself, even skipping a generation now and then!   In Mum's day I guess she was the 'dancer', the two marriages and children, whilst her sister watched, but today Kate is literally the dancer in our family, but I think Jordan would be found with her head in a book or drawing, rather than simply 'watching' !!

Laughing...

... seems to be a good way to make the day pass faster! Dear Col has a huge drive this week, he left here yesterday, towing a trailer with a big roll handling unit on it, to be in London early this morning. So far he has already had the van broken into (nothing taken.. he lived too long in Liverpool area to make anything that available!), seen two customers and is heading for the far east of the country, before wending his way home... via Manchester and Leeds!.

Back here I was checking our banking and asked him about a Credit Card payment as we have had our cards used fraudulently a few times before. I said to him that 'I don't want to appear controlling but...' and he laughed out loud.... and for quite a long time.... by which time (luckily) I had joined in..'...oh, if you're worrying about appearing controlling, then you're way too late!'

So, there's no hope for me.. or you if you want to use my card un-noticed!  xxx