Dreams do come true

Well, he did it. I still can't quite believe it. A black man has made it to the White House. I do hope Martin Luther King is smiling (wherever he is). A very, very happy day - I'm sure I could hear a collective release of breath around the world this morning.

I come from a very politically aware family, so I've always been aware of elections and political issues. However, this is the first time that I can remember following a US presidential election so closely, and right from the start. Mr A has been the same - if not worse! It's been amazing to watch, holding my breath and hoping, just hoping so hard, that this amazing thing would actually happen.

We had both spoken of staying up to watch the results come in, but in the end, I didn't make it past midnight (only the 1st two states had come in by then). Mr A got up to sort out the little one at about 4am and checked the internet - so the first thing he said to me when I woke up this morning was 'Obama's in the White House' - wonderful, wonderful news!

And what a speech! Oh my - I had to watch the whole thing on the net. That man has a serious way with words. And McCain was truly graceful in his defeat as well. Disappointing as usual were Mssrs Bush and Brown who seemed to be just coming out with stock comments and blah......why am I not surprised?

There have been a few times when I've felt that I've been witnessing history being made - the fall of the Berlin Wall was the first, then there was the first Gulf War (and the not so historic arrival of CNN!), and of course, 9/11. Some were occasions for hope, some for fear and a dread that mankind just won't learn from past lessons. Today was one of those hopeful times - I really do hope Barack Obama gets the chance to bring about solid, long-lasting change that the US so badly needs. I even found myself telling Little Miss A at 7am this morning that it was a historic day (she, of course, was more interested in the whereabouts of her teddy!)

Well done Mr Obama - I for one think you'll make a great President.

Toot, toot, toot!

What is that noise? It's the sound of me blowing my own trumpet! Well, I figure I'm allowed just this once - here's why.......last Sunday I finally got the chance to open up the November issue of Scrapbook Inspirations (it had been sitting on my kitchen table since Tuesday, waiting for a quiet moment). Imagine my total shock (and extreme excitement) when I turned to the Reader's Page and found that, not only had one of my LOs been published, but it had won Star Letter! Wow, wow, wow! I tell you, my heart almost stoppped, and then I was doing a happy little dance around the kitchen. It was unfortunately too late to tell Mr A (he was already asleep) so I had to keep it till the following morning. The other really silly thing is that Mum had been staying with us for most of the weekend, so I missed out on the chance to show her 'in real life'......oh well!













So, today I received a gorgeous parcel of goodies from the magazine team - a pack of really big pink brads, two packs of 6x6 Papermania papers (one in black & white, one in raspberry tones), some brown alpha rub-ons and loads of Chatterbox goodies

















I've already used some of the pink papers to make this:



















Thanks Scrapbook Inspirations - my ambition to get an LO published has come true much sooner than I could have hoped for!!!

Brrrrr!

As the title says: Brrrrr! It's got really, really cold here recently and we even had snow last night (although it didn't stick!). We were all running around this morning, finding gloves, hats, scarves, winter coats etc. Do you think I might have slightly overdone making sure that Little Miss A was sufficiently warm?

One hand-knitted hooded cardigan & scarf, body warmer and gloves! I think she looks adorable - but she could hardly move!

I had a great time getting her sorted out for the nursery's Halloween party last night - isn't this just the cutest little outfit ever?

This is definitely a fairy with attitude!

Also, did you know (I'm sure you did!) that Christmas is coming? I'm pretty much sorted on the present front (apart from my Dad and brother-in-law - always have problems with the men!). I've also got started on the decorative side - how funky are these gift tags?

And I'm cracking on nicely with the Christmas cards too - they all seem to have a bit of a Victorian feel to them this year.

And great fun was had by all.......

I took Little Miss A to Brussels this weekend to see her grandparents - and what a love fest it was! All three of them had the most marvelous time, with Little Miss A providing Grandma and Grandad with non-stop entertainment - such as when she found a pair of Grandma's shoes and actually managed to walk quite successfully in them (I should add that she was already wearing a pair of her own shoes!)

On Saturday, we went to see a very old friend of mine, whose children (ages 6 and 3) had not yet met Little Miss A. They were apparently so excited, that my friend had a really hard time keeping them calm before we arrived! Her daughter had laid the table all by herself, including a little table just for Little Miss A, complete with plate, bowl, cup, fork & spoon, and a napkin! So cute!

Doesn't she just look like she's planning her next bit of mischief? Mr A's reaction upon seeing this picture was just to say 'Oh oh.....'

Also, for some reason, she has started pulling this funny face every time a camera is pointed in her direction - don't ask me why, but it is VERY funny - especially when combined with pigtails

On Sunday, the weather was still stunning, so we all went off to this wonderful forest where you can walk and enjoy nature in all it's beauty. It's obviously been colder there than in London, as there was loads more leaves on the ground - a great excuse for Little Miss A to have some fun

and a wondeful opportunity to get some nice family photos

So yes, a good time was had by all, although I am rather knackered - travelling alone with a toddler (aka Duracell Bunny) is not something to be taken on lightly!

Oh and before I forget, we've had LOADS of new words recently. These include:

- apple (pronounced abble)

- taxi (we took quite a few over the weekend!)

- nana (banana)

And then this evening, when I was getting her ready for bed, she was asking for Grandma ('gamma'). I told her that Grandma was in Brussels - and got 'bubble'! This will particularly please a very good friend of ours who, as a result of marrying a Greek man, is known as 'Auntie Bubble' (i.e. bubble and squeak = Greek - Mr A has a great love of Cockney rhyming slang......)

Olympic Heroes

It's not often that I think or even say that I'm proud to be British, but this was one of those days. I was lucky enough to see the Olympic Heroes Parade this morning (it went right past the bottom of the street where my office is located).

There was a marching band from the Household Cavalry (I think?) which set just the right tone. The sun was also shining really brightly and just added to the overall atmosphere - I was also amazed at how many people made the effort to leave their desks.

12 full floats filled with all the sportsmen and women who took part in the Olympics and Paralympics, 61 golds, 42 silvers and 46 bronzes - if there was a ever a good reason to celebrate, I can't think of one!



First up, I got a shot of local Hackney boy, Phillips Idowu, who won a silver medal in the Men's Triple Jump - love the fact that he's so nervous about keeping his medal safe that he's holding it rather than wearing it around his neck!








Then, we have the most successful British Olympian in a single Games - the absolutely fantastic Chris Hoy with his haul of three gold medals - it was just fantastic watching on the cycling track, no-one could touch him. And he seemed so happy to be there.



I missed getting a shot of Rebecca Adlington (which was the real reason I went down there), but all in all, not a bad way to pass your lunchtime break!

Has it really been that long?

Well, yes, I know I haven't posted in a while, but that's not really what the title of this post is about........I've seen quite a few Graduation layouts on UKS recently, and it got me thinking it was time I scrapped mine. Which in turn led me to realise that it was SEVENTEEN years ago (eeek!). This thought then led me to realise that this means Mr A and I will have known each other for TWENTY years next October (double eeek!). I can still remember that time so clearly, it really does not seem that long ago.............

So here is the famous LO - papers are from Bo Bunny and Sizzix, and for once, I've included a lot of journalling, with comments about my Dad being behind the camera (and therefore not in the picture - as always!), a bit of info about my outfit (a black & white polka dot Jackie O style dress, with a turquoise boxy-style jacket, all made for me by Mum - I loved it, but it was so very 80's!), as well as a note commenting on the fact that while Mr A also graduated that day, all photographic evidence of this fact has mysteriously disappeared!!!!


















On a slightly nostalgic note, I suddenly noticed that the wonderful old West Pier in Brighton is standing behind the smaller picture of me - it was still relatively intact in those days.........

Scallops and edges

Well, I so enjoyed doing the Scrummy Stash Cafe challenge earlier this week, I just had to have another go! This is a revamped LO - I never like the original - and features little ol' me, aged between 4 and 6 months (I think!). I had a wonderful time making this, as yesterday was what can only be called a truly icky day (I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that this LO was great therapy).


















Patterned papers: Cherry Arte & Sassafrass Lass; Rob & Bob 'Girl' epoxy sticker; hijacked earring (the little pink crystal flower top right); vintage cream lace; spotty grosgrain ribbon; Fancy Pants chipboard swirl (covered in Pink Stickles); Doodlebug heart and flourish stickers (the latter haven't really come out in the photo); Paperchase, Prima and Kaiser gems; the spotty border is Magenta Stickles and Pastel Raspberry Liquid Pearls, and last but not least, a heart die-cut from Sue (Mini Owner) and Sizzix letters from Cheryl (CW18).

Next, thanks to the amazingly creative EllePiggo, I stumbled across this amazing challenge blog today - Daring Cardmakers. This week's challenge is to include scallops on your cards. Well, I have quite a few birthday and anniversary cards to make this weekend, so this was just perfect timing. Here are this evening's efforts, all made using scraps and freebie papers that I've never found inspiration for until now: