I'VE FINISHED.....YES I HAVE ..... YIPPPPPPEEEEEEE........ HAPPY NEW YEAR

Well here it is.... the last few pages.... I managed for once in my life to set a goal and time frame and do it.... I can not tell you how happy I am. I'm on cloud nine.... this has been a huge achievement.... I'm crying and jumping for joy..... 80 pages DONE!!!!!!    I'm going to be really sorry to see it go and only hope that it will make the people that see it SMILE.....   My NEW YEAR starts with a big smile and a blank sheet..... one very happy bunny here.......

Nearly there........

I'm feeling a bit punch drunk... my eyes hurt and so does my brain.... I can't believe that I have nearly finished. ONE and HALF SPREADS to go.... Yipppeeeee! When I signed up and the Sketchbook arrived, I thought I would never finish in time.  I have had huge encouragement from my Devil daughter (who pushed me to do this) and my sister and all of you who have said such nice things.  THANK YOU!!!!!  

I'm taking a day off tomorrow. Angel daughter wants to go shopping with her Mummy!!! I couldn't possibly refuse.... can't wait!! Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite.....

I've been a busy girl....

Yes, I managed to lock myself in my office (spare room)over Christmas and work on my Sketchbook Project 2011. I'm nearly there, a few more pages to go.... panic in the middle of the night once again.... running out of ideas... then new ones are plucked out of dreamland... 

Well this one speaks for itself... we've all asked that question.... "Does my bum look big in this...?", bottoms are made to be big we can't help it.. It's Mother Natures way of keeping our darling menfolk concentrated on us even when we have our backs to them. (We'd look silly if we had boobs front and back  so Mother Nature just put our back boobs lower and there we have it a BUM). So the answer is YES but the real question we should ask ourselves is  "DOES MY BUM LOOK GOOD!" and every Boob/Bum loving male will tell you  "OH YES!" - he's programmed to be fixated on round objects of any size........

I have no idea where this came from...

Have you ever noticed... that when you start putting food out for the birds, they some how find your bird table in seconds and before you know it, every bird around is visiting......

This popped out of nowhere too....then I found an article about the last Pit Pony in Wales and it got mixed with horse whisperers (loved the book - hated the movie) and a life long fascination with wild Mustang ponies... oh there is no logic to how my brain works......

My Christmas....

I had a wonderful Christmas Eve with Mr Hollywood and my two gorgeous daughters, then Christmas day we all went to Grandma & Grandpa (my Mum & Dad) and my Grandmother's (who is 97). As usual, we ate to much and probably drank to much... but it's Christmas....  above is the finished wrapping for my eldest daughter... on the sides I painted a gold ribbon and wrote a little poem that followed the ribbon... it went like this......

This is for my Angel,

I love her very much,

She's growing up a minger,

And doesn't keep in touch.

She's gone away to study,

And left me all alone,

She's got so many buddies,

That she's slow in coming home.

I know it's part of growing up,

I'm glad she's found her way,

It's just that I'm missing her,

Each and everyday!

Yes, I know, really soppy..... below is a picy of my table decoration.  I started with a round piece of wood, painted it in greyey coloured blackboard paint... stuck some pine cones round the the centre candle, then delicately plunked my old wooden angels around the edge (bought these years ago with my Grandma that is 97).  

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas...

My Christmas spirit is back.... sort of...

 

So late last night I finished pages 64-65 of my Sketchbook Project 2011. Yes I have finally counted how many pages there are. I even catalogued them in a new file on my 'puter. They are all out of "My Scans". Well, I no longer have small children or pets that need walking etc.... So I have lots of time for me.  As you will know from my earlier post I was feeling very UnChristmas.... not like me. But hey we all have our off days. It rained all day yesterday, non-stop, torrential rain... did I say all day? Well it rained and in the evening it turned to SNOW..... Luckily this morning, it's back to rain.  Christmas can begin. I have to go shopping for those little extra things.... I'm going to be all Bah Humbug again.... Back to last night.... after a nice cold glass of red "from a box"... it's cheap and I'm doing cheap... I came up with this... all light and fluffy...

Roses are Red,

Violets are Blue,

I hear a Hummingbird,

What about you?

Pages 62-63 busy busy busy

There are fish in the Ocean,

There are fish in the Sea,

I'm a fish in a fish bowl!

I think she wants to EAT ME!!!

Christmas is coming, Christmas is coming.... must dash....need to prepare umbrella.  Not for rain.. it's for doing battle in the Super Market with similarly armed old ladies...  

      oh I nearly forgot  ,,,,,,,,,,,,                                    

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

love

Catherine, Maud, Fluffy Muffin, Beryl and Thing 

xxxxx

Bah Humbug and all that.....

I've been a busy bee all day... have managed to get up to page 63 of my Sketchbook... no mean feat. Anyhow am feeling a bit grumpy and bah humbug... so this suits my mood and those of you who are familiar with Maud, will realise that she is having a lovely CRIMBLE! .....

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Political Correctness is getting on my t...s. sorry can't say it... not because it's not politically correct , I can't say it coz it's not f......g polite.... sorry ranting over. Hope I haven't offended anyone... it was not my intention.... Promise I will be all Happy Christmas tomorrow.....

Page something or other.... Sketchbook Project 2011

I've more or less finished all my presents so am now devoting my time to my Sketchbook....I finished this late last night... delirium set in and I started to think "OH NO!" I had no more idea's of what to do. Anyhow, I dragged my wiry self off to bed.... 3.30am I woke up with loads of ideas... impossible to go back to sleep and darn't get up coz I didn't want to wake Mr Hollywood (who is not on holiday and had to get up early). Then spent the next two hours repeating in my head my ideas so that I wouldn't forget them when I finally drifted off to sleep and woke up again. Am now up 7.30am feeling like I didn't sleep at all.... Ideas... what...f....g ideas. Suppose I had better have breakfast and get dressed...and back to the Sketchbook..... tea, coffee... hopefully the mush that I call my brain will wake up soon.....

Nothing to do with Christmas.... SketchBook Project 2011

I've been trying my hand at Poetry, can't really call it poetry more like a few lines that rhyme... sort of. I finally got to the middle of my sketchbook and well here it is....

I climbed this mountain and got to the top,

And now I've started I cannot stop...

It took some time in getting here,

Wish I could stay and have a beer..

So on my journey's way I go,

To send this sketchbook to Brooklyn... ho, ho, ho!

Yes, well I have had enough of winter... and long,... for, hot summer days.. only six months to wait...

The words written on the squiggly line read as:

I'm a little Bumble Bee, happy as can be.

I bumble bumble all day long.

Collecting pollen....see!

Just a little break from the avalanche of Christmas.....

My first Christmas decoration

This is my favourite Christmas decoration, because my Nan bought him for me about 40years ago. We went to the local Newspaper shop to buy some sweets and there was a box of  Father Christmas's, I think he cost 1p. I've treasured him ever since. I'm now blubbing as I'm thinking about my Nan.. and I really miss her... on that soggy note, I'm going to throw myself into cleaning the house.. that should sort me out... At least I'll be able to cry in a clean house instead of a mucky one....

Christmas decorations...

The angel was made by a very talented artist in the village where I work.  She's a matchbox angel... A matchbox sandwiched between shiny card.. I think she's gorgeous and fun. Wish she had been my idea.... The star was made by me... a school project that we did with the children at school... it's made from 4 star shapes, painted then each star folded in half and then the 4 stars stuck together to make the one. Then decorated with glitter gel.. Fiddly to make but very effective....over the last two weeks I have helped make hundreds of these stars... Simple, fiddly, effective... the kids had fun....

Friends...

Friends, we all need them...they are precious.  A friendly gesture to someone you meet even for a few seconds can mean so much, a simple smile, a friendly "Hello" an acknowledgement that the other person exits.. we all need to know that we mean something and that we are not invisible... if for only a second or two...

Christmas wrapping paper...

I love to decorate my own Christmas paper... it all started with that usual chestnut... no money and not wasting money on something that will be torn up and thrown away.  I remember my Nan, saving birthday and Christmas wrapping paper and storing it under the stair cupboard... She had lived through the Second World War and had come from a time when recycling didn't even have a name.  It was just the norm and everyone did it. I now save pretty paper, when it comes my way and store it under my desk, a little less musty and dusty...

But for something really personal I make my own wrapping paper...

I use plain old brown paper, it's cheap and goes a long long way and can be used for all occasions on any occasion... My Angel isn't finished, I've used pencils, felt tips and acrylic paint and of course Glitter gel, where would we be with out glitter gel... when she's dry she will get the works.....

This is a CD wrapped in brown paper (I can say that coz Mr Hollywood doesn't read English yet) anyway, felt pens and more glitter.....hey presto pretty Christmas paper that didn't cost an arm and a leg..... and isn't it the thought that counts.....

Dear Auntie Flo...

I think we've all got an Aunt Flo somewhere that just loves to knit for the whole family.... got to love them...

Christmas is coming.....

The countdown to Christmas has really started... Most of my presents are sorted. The last panic at school for all the children's creations to be finished is in sight... fingers crossed, well by next Friday it will have to be. They are all nearly word perfect with "We wish you a Merry Christmas" not easy as they are all French and not used to saying wubble U's (double u's) and H's, so Happy is now Appy Nooow Ear. But oh so cute, with cheeky toothless grins.
I'm two pages away from the middle of my SketchBook Project 2011. So panicking big time. Still haven't counted the pages.... I'm drawing, painting etc everyday.. I'm loving it, but at the same time feel like I'm in a bad dream that I will never get to the end in time.
Anyhow, here is my latest offering...there is lots of glitter but unfortunately doesn't show up on the scan...   Can't stop... back to the drawing board...

For my little sister...

Thought you would like these... love Big Sister x

Mummy's little Princess

Inspired by when my girls when they were little and would dress up as fairies and princesses and what-knot.... I love that word "What-Not", my Nan used it a lot. Such a versatile word "Oh, you know what-knot" or "oh do pass the what-knot" or "oh, have you seen the what-knot?" "What, what-knot?" ok I'm going to stop there and get some fresh air... 

ATC

This gives you some idea how small it is... Sorry, Maud wanted everyone to know that she's small and compact too...

This is an ATC that I made about 4years ago and has been sitting in my sewing box all this time.  I knitted the little jumper on some fairy needles. The needles in the picture are made from cocktail sticks and a couple of wooden beads. A crystal at the end, a few pink beads and the ball  of wool - cotton wrapped around a bigger bead. I loved it so much, I couldn't part with it.  It is 9cm by 6.5cm... tiny...

Fairy Wishes

My gorgeous daughter sent me a letter with this lovely drawing that is supposed to me. Cheers.... sorry I haven't been around for a few days... I'm sick... not enough to take to my bed and stay there, but sick enough to drag my sorry carcass around and do things that have to be done.. like go to work... then come home and flop into bed with heated wheat bag, tissues, cough mixture and paracetamol. Never mind Mother Goose, I've doing my  dying swan impression.... hopefully tomorrow I will be back on form.... hope all of you are well...

The girls are in their boxes......

I little bit of tinsel .... and..

The girls are as snug as a bug in a rug...

Ready for tomorrow to give to my friends... Maud is happy too, four less Fluffy Muffins round the office...

Maud in the smoke room....

The orange one is the one that got baked on a too hot oven, thanks to Maud. The green one is thankfully ok. Maud was rugby tackled and dealt with. Fluffy Muffin is beginning to learn....

Fluffy Muffin got the girls to put Maud in the smoke room. Sound proof too.... he he he...

Everyone say "Cheese" or "O"

 

He was inspired by the Fimo Staedtler site. His insides are foil and yes he is a Cork Stopper. Just a little stocking filler.

Hope your day was better than mine... I got snowed in.. and to top it all I'm coming down with the lurgy.. sore throat, shivers... just want to go to bed and drift off to Happy Dream Land... or Blank Nothing will do too.... sniff sniff... I'm really pathetic when I'm sick.... sorry.  May you all be warm and toasty and free from lurgy....

Smokin......

The "Clonettes"... more like the "Smokettes". It doesn't show up that well on the photo but the girls are all little grubby, the faces are splotchy too.  Maud decided to light that darned cigar while I was baking. She also turned the oven up to high. So my poor little Smokettes who were destined for Christmas pressies will now be glitterfied and hung on my tree. Maud is in a foul mood, coz it means there will be MORE Fluffy Muffin looky likeys round the office....

Shouldn't pollute the Air