Wishing you a Happy New Year

Image found here

 

I hope that you had a very Merry Christmas & that 2013 has got off to an excellent start?

 

I had hoped to blog more in December, but things got in the way & I've come to the realisation that 2012 kicked my backside in many ways last year. I think I spent most if not all of the year trying to keep my head above water, & not become overcomed by all that life threw at us. It was not the hardest year that I've ever encountered, however I dont think I actually dealt with a lot of the emotions from those bad years & those emotions certainly let themselves be known in 2012.

 

I've seen many bloggers post about their word for the year. The idea of a word to live by has always intrigued me but I've yet to feel inspired to choose a word for myself. Until now.

 

I think my word for 2013 is Positivity.

 

I need to remain positive, to stop becoming overwhelmed by all the crap life likes to throw at me. To not become angry at situations which are out of my control. To no longer worry about what others think of me, as the people who truely love me, love me for who I am & dont want me to change. To surround myself with positivity, to not let others negativity drag me down. To let the positivity help build my confidence in myself, as my beautiful daughters need a strong confident Mum.

 

In other words, I need to kick myself up the backside & pull myself out of this rut.

 

I am planning a blog makeover soon, a new year needs a fresh start/look. Im feeling the need to simplify & prettify. I'm also going to break out the big camera (well ok, big to me, not quite an SLR, but maybe I'll save lots of pennies & treat myself this year) & start capturing life properly instead of relying on my Iphone.

 

Wow, this was only going to be a post wishing you a New Year, didnt expect to be pouring my heart out. If you havent fallen asleep by now, then I thank you for reading! LOL!

I would like to take a moment to thank you for reading my blog,& for leaving such lovely comments. They make my day :-)

 

Another of my plans for the New Year was to go to bed earlier & rest so Im going to stop rambling on & get some sleep.

 

I wish you a very Happy & Lucky 2013.

 

xxx

 

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

 

Christmassy crafting has begun.

 

 

It's officially Xmas when the Coca Cola truck arrives!

 

 

The tree has been put up (this was just with the lights, before we decorated)

 

 

The front door has been Christmassified (I think I made that word up!)

 

 

Chrtistmassy films have been watched by the light of the tree.

 

It does feel like Christmas has just crept up out of no where, & all of a sudden we are less than 2 weeks away! The gift shopping is almost done, the gift making is underway, next week is full of Nativity plays, Christmas discos, carol singing. Wow! Im tired just thinking of it!

 

How prepared are you? All done? Or starting to panic!!

 

xxx

Where did October go?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, what happened to October? I seem to have blinked & missed it! Doesnt time fly when you are really busy & so much is going on?! LOL!

 

I have to admit Ive lost my blogging mojo (& my creativity mojo seems to be awol too). I kept thinking Ive got nothing interesting to blog about, until I sat down one day & made a list of changes I want to make to the blog. I thought I'd take a look around & see if I have anything lying about that I havent blogged yet. Turns out I have nearly 20 'projects' that I havent blogged! I cannot begin to think why I havent!! So,over the next few weeks I shall be attempting to photograph & blog these projects, so that at some point soon there might be something interesting to read about here, woo hoo!!

 

Well, I'd better get on then. Its cleaning/housework day, in preparation for having a relaxing weekend with the family.

 

What have you got planned for the weekend?

 

xxx

Checking In......

.......to say Hi!! How are you? Everything good?

My older girls have been back at school for 2 weeks now, Miss M had a sad start to term with the news that 2 of her best friends were moving that week. It was heartbreaking to watch her try to deal with the news, I dont think I have ever seen her cry so hard. But every day I think she is finding it easier to deal with. I think as adults we forget how huge things are to kids. As adults, we deal with friends moving by agreeing to stay in contact via phone, email, facebook etc. Also I guess with busy lives, we dont see friends as often as we'd like. But as a kid, your friends are there every day in school, its a constant in your life. Them moving away is a huge upheval in their life.

Miss K has dealt pretty well with the new term. She suffers from some health issues (not majorily serious but enough to impact her day to day life) & she is on the Autistic Spectrum, so change can be a tough thing for her. We've had some tears when trying to deal with homework, remembering teachers & what she needs to do. Plus a nasty bout of hayfever/virus has seen her having to use her inhaler.

Miss L-R starts back to school tommorrow. She'll be going in the mornings rather than the afternoons for this year, which should be easier on our schedule. Its going to be weird not having my little sidekick around, but she loves school so all is good.

That gives me just under 3 hours a day to myself, which is strange. But good. I need to lose some weight & get fitter, so with the time now available I have no excuses!! I also have some other things in the pipeline, but all will be revealed at a later date :-)

Autumn is in the air. I love Autumn, its my favourite season. I'm starting to think about what to plant for spring as some bulbs will need to be planted soon. I cant quite believe I like gardening. For years it was of absolutely no interest to me, & now, I love it!! Im definitely a novice though!! But I guess the best way to learn is to actually do it!!

I havent had much time online to visit blogs etc, but 3 that I have spent some time on lately have been very inspiring so I thought I'd share them with you. (Although they are so good, you probably already know them but I'll share anyway!)

The first is Posie Gets Cozy. Alicia's site is full of beautiful photos, quilts, embroidery, cooking, etc. Its one of those sites that just makes you want to slow down, curl up on the sofa in front of a fire, sew/embroider/crochet something pretty. She also sells some really cute embroidery kits for Christmas.

The second is Heart and Handmade which is full of beautiful photos of beautiful things. I always come away feeling very inspired to make something or somewhere very pretty!!

Finally visit Cherry Menlove. The lovely Cherry has a book coming out soon, which I really want to buy. Her site is full of interior loveliness (she has just moved into her forever home & is in the process of decorating), gardening knowhow, beautiful recipes, lovely crafts & beautiful photos of her lovely twins! Cherrys site was the inspiration for my new kitchen shelves which were made by lovely husband last week, then painted & decorated by moi. I'll use some of my new found time to myself this week to photograph & blog about them.

So thats it really for now. I've got washing & ironing on the schedule for today (Joy!!), plus the usual cooking & cleaning. Miss K has a party this afternoon, so I think some crafting time for me & the other two is in order. I might squeeze in some baking, Im thinking lemon cake maybe?

I hope that wherever you are, all is good with you. Have a Happy Sunday :-)

xxx

The end of summer.

 

My older girls went back to school today :-(

 

I really thought that I'd be looking forward to them going back, but I wasnt. We have had the lovliest summer. Dont get me wrong, there have been lots of whining & arguing. But the bad times were definitely outweighed by the good. We didnt complete all of our list (finances are not good right now), but we achieved quite a bit & spent lots of time doing nothing together. Its been really nice.

 

I still have my youngest at home as her school doesnt start for 2 weeks.

 

I am looking forward to getting back into a routine, actually starting a brand new routine which works better for us than last year! & getting the house under control (Im waging war on clutter!) Ive been busy reading organising blogs & pinning ideas. But then I find I have too many ideas & dont know which ones to use!!

 

Do you have any good tips? Or blogs that you read that you can suggest?

 

I am also looking forward to having some specific crafting time for myself. Im toying with the idea of making some bits to sell. Plus before we know it, it will be Christmas!!! I really dont want to be finishing making stuff on Christmas Eve, that was not fun last year lol!!

 

xxx

Stuck in a blogging rut

Im in a real rut at the mo where blogging is concerned. I want to blog, but I just cant come up with anything to blog about.

Im blaming the weather, its July, yet the weather here is absolutely miserable, grey & seemingly constantly raining. Its so depressing. I have so many WIP's that I am just not motivated to finish, Im not even motivated to start something new. I dont even want to bake :-(

I do have 1 or 2 finished projects to show, but its impossible to get a decent photo of them with no light. Fingers crossed we may have 5 minutes of sunshine soon, & then I'll be snapping away!!

I think that once I have dropped little Miss L-R at school this afternoon, I'll come home & do some painting. I havent painted for ages. I'd really like to have a go at some Cath K style roses. Maybe painting something pretty might scare the funk away?

The next post will be more upbeat I promise!! ;-)

Oh & the photo? That'll be the lovely little Miss L-R with her Olympic torch that she made yesterday. At least my girls bring some sunshine into my life.

Take care.

xxx

Hello

& welcome to my new followers! (not followers in a weird cult like way) It was lovely to check my blog to see my follower numbers had jumped quite a bit, I blog for me mostly, but it's nice to know others are interested!

So, to welcome you all, I made cakes! Please help yourselves :-)

My posting has been very sporadic & slightly boring lately. This is partly due to the Easter holidays & feeling a bit down in the dumps. I think I just need some sunshine, sunshine makes everything better doesnt it?

I am trying to introduce some positive changes in my life, healthier eating, more exercise, tidier, more organised home, more creative time for me. My head feels very jumbled right now. Im trying to let go of a great deal of negativity & focus on the positives, which isnt blooming easy! But Im perservering, I will get there.

Im planning on a blog makeover, as I feel like it needs freshening up, like a bit of a spring clean. I've been spending lots of times reading blogs that are super inspiring, taking note of the aspects I love about them & trying to figure out how to incorporate them into my little space.

What are your favourite blogs? What is it you love about them?

xxx

It's Saturday & the sun is shining!!

Well hello there! Hope you are well? I'm currently sitting in bed on the laptop, at 9:15 am enjoying a cuppa with the sun shining through the window. *Sods law, just as I wrote in the sun disappeared behind a cloud*

I think this post will be just a random selection of what it going on at the mo, Im having a few of those really busy weeks where nothing is actually being achieved. Does that make sense?

So, here we go, what Lisa has been up to lately (with no photos Im afraid!)

• Started to paint a wall in my kitchen, it's Duck Egg Blue. Which in the pot looked lovely & serene, pale & calming. In reality, its bloody vibrant, but I think Im liking it!! I've been planning to brighten up the kitchen for at least a year now, but as the house is rented, we are quite limited to what we can do. Its in no way my dream kitchen, but as Im the one who spends the majority of my time in there, Im going to make it somewhere that makes me happy. As the colour is so bright, Im only painting 1 wall (plus if I was to paint the whole kitchen, I'd have to pull the fridge out & thats not something I wish to do)
• Painting the kitchen means that I will finally have somewhere to hang the 'Keep Calm &...' posters I bought about a year ago!! I know some people are over the Keep Calm phase but I still LOVE it!!
• I'm also painting a toy box in the same Duck Egg colour.
• Have got no further with the other pieces of furniture yet.
• Although I may have to postpone the painting of the sideboard unit we brought, as its going to be used to house the girls art & crafts materials, which are currently taking over the house. I think we'll just have to use it as it is for now, until the weather dries up enough to take it outside to be sanded.
• Guess I'll be organising the girls arts & crafts stuff today then.
• Oh & finishing the painting!
• My lovely crochet blanket is coming along, no where near finished but getting there. Am on the 5th row of circles, so will finish this row & take some photos to update the blog with.
• Really should get up & get dressed as Miss M is off to her friends at 11.
• Miss K is out with her Daddy for the morning, so it'll just be Miss L-R & me for a while.
• Talking of Miss K, she had grommits fitted a few weeks ago. We were very worried about her coping with this, as she is autistic, so change, esp to her senses can be really unsettling. But she is a Star, & despite a few wobbles, is just dealing with it.
• I dont think I've written about Miss K being autistic before. It's not the only health issue she deals with. She's been through so much in her 7 years, more than an adult will go through in their lifetime. She's the strongest, most caring loveable little girl I've ever met.
• Feel like crying now.
• Could do with a cuppa.
• I spent last night decoupatching a bird, sewing a strawberry & starting to stitch a teacup. All whilst watching Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Pt1.
• Wonder what I'll achieve whilst watching Part 2?

See? Completely random. This is what actually goes on in my head! LOL.

Ok, enough rambling for today, have I bored you senseless? Promise the next post will have something to show.

Have a Happy Saturday!!

xxx

**Just as I was finishing this post, the Postman arrived with the new copy of Mollie Makes, so exciting!!**