Hmmmm, how do I do this again??

Moi you were right. I have given this blog away before and come back, and it seems that history might repeat itself....

Truth is, there were many reasons that I stopped blogging. There has been a lot of ongoing sadness in our lives and I just really didn't feel like blogging. I didn't want this to become my place of whining, so I thought it would be easier to close it down and concentrate on getting things back on track.

Also, I started this blog way back when, due to my interest in scrapping....and then this year I lost interest in scrapping. Big time. I was completely overwhelmed by things going on at home (and with family and friends) that computer time and craft time just didn't exist any more. It's been a full-on year this one!

Anyway, Olivia asked me the other day if I could start scrapping again because she "wanted to make sure we kept the memories". Sensible kid that one....

So I am now hoping that from here on in I can manage my time better and include some scrapping in my days. And I also want to catch up with my online friends who I haven't chatted to for a while....I hope you're all well!

And for those who wondered why I am going by my maiden name on Facebook (which is Tassell), it's purely because we are organising our 20 year school reunion through a Facebook group, and it was easier for me to track people down using the name they all knew me by. My marriage is fine lol :-)

Happy days!

Just in case anyone still drops by.....

I've got a new email address:

meganstephenson@bigpond.com

I am missing my blog....missing the sense of belonging that you get from this wonderful scrapping community we've got...might succumb to peer group pressure down the track and re-open it. Just maybe.

I hope everyone is well :-)

No, I'm not doing a backflip....

No, I haven't flippantly changed my mind on the whole closing down the blog thing lol, but I am still getting emails from people asking if they could have the password to it. I'm going to leave it open for a bit longer so the previous post can still be read :-)

Back from the Bush

I've just had the most wonderful weekend away in Tamworth with my old school mates. It was truly amazing. There were about 20 of us who caught up and spent virtually every minute of these last two days laughing together and carrying on. I can't tell you how happy it makes me to have these people in my life. And I also can't tell you how exhausted they make me lol...we had two very busy days followed by two very late nights...but all completely worth it!

Anyway, the main reason for me making this post tonight is to let you know that I am going to close down my blog. I've thought about it over the past 12 months or so and now the time has come...thank you to everyone who has popped in here and said hello. I've made such lovely friends through blogging and will still be in touch via email, and I'll also check in on everyone else's blogs as often as I can.

Thanks for the laughs I've had along the way, and also for the witty and often cheeky comments you may have been responsible for lol...and there have been plenty of those!! I am surrounded by so many cheeky folk....which is just how I like it :-)

Megan xx

ETA: I've been receiving emails regarding the blog - thank you so much for your concern, but all is good here! I changed the blog to being password protected simply so I don't lose all my past posts, but I'm not maintaining it under a veil of secrecy lol. It was either have it password protected, or delete it altogether and I didn't want to do that.

I will leave the blog open for a week or so, just to give everyone time to read this post, then I'll change it back to being password protected :-)

Household Happenings and Some Scrapping

These holidays are going way too fast. The girls started the holidays quite strung out and in dire need of a rest, and now they are so relaxed and happy that I don't want school to start again. I like them just as they are right now.

We've been busy here - the girls and I had a trip to my Grandmother's for a few days after Christmas which was fantastic. It recharges my batteries and grounds me. I wish she lived closer though, as the 6 hour drive on my own gets a bit tedious! We also went to Anna Bay, which is down near Nelsons Bay. This is Charlotte having a play in the waves. We should have gone for longer though, because we didn't get a chance to do nearly as many things as we wanted. We spent a lot of time at the beach and also took the kids into Nelson Bay to go snorkeling. Charlotte was in a mood so I took her into town for an ice cream, but Olivia had a fantastic time looking at all the fish. We went to a protected area and there were thousands upon thousands of fantastic sea creatures, and not one spear-gun in sight. Just the way I like it :-) And I scrapped! It's been a while, and I was questioning whether I'd be bothered to ever do it again. Everything I did just looked the same and I was growing bored with the whole thing which is horrible, because when I first discovered scrapping I loved that I could record stories for the kids with photos of them at that particular time. And I still want them to have that, so I'm doing my best to get motivated again.

I made this desk thingo for Ned's birthday. It's very simple, but I needed to do it like that because he works at a mine site, and I think the last thing he needed on his desk was an elaborately decorated floral number. So this is what he got. And I did this page last night. Some friends and I took our kids to Oakvale Farm (near Nelson Bay) last year and we had a great time...until the clouds turned a very vicious black and lightening and hail pelted down from them. We made a hasty retreat, but at least we had seen everything.And next weekend I'm heading up to Tamworth for the long weekend. I spent my high school years in Tamworth, and we are having a reunion with a heap of old school mates, which I am REALLY looking forward to. The Country Music Festival is on at the moment too, so it is going to be a whole lot of fun.

Will be back with an update after the long weekend! Be good :-)

Last one for 2007

Well it won't be long until we'll be breaking out the bubbly and singing Auld Lang Syne yet again! I'm really looking forward to the New Year, and I love all the good vibes and positive thoughts we all have when New Year rolls around. And the resolutions....like many others, my New Year's Resolution is to not make any New Year's Resolutions as it's just safer that way and I can't let myself down.

Sooooo, I'm here for an update. I have nothing to share other than photos, as I haven't scrapped a thing since October. I just haven't had the interest or the time for creating anything, but I do have some photos I want to use, so maybe my drive will come back sometime in the New Year. Before I go on, I'll share this photo of Mo Man I took before that fungus was removed from his face. I am so glad it has gone....ugh...there is nothing attractive about a moustache!

The last few weeks have had plenty of highlights, and also a few of difficult moments. One awful time was when this little cherub stuck a mint up her nose and I had to take her to the doctors for some most torturous poking and prodding. Charlotte is...um...strong of character, and she utterly loathes male doctors. So when the on call doctor wandered into the surgery and he was male, she screamed blue murder. "Don't let that boy doctor near me" she wailed over and over, as everyone out in the waiting room wondered what on earth could be happening to that poor child who rushed in the front door and was whisked hurriedly away to the clinic part of the surgery. The end result was that she had pushed it so far up that they couldn't see it and taking an x-ray was useless, so they sent us home and told me to keep an eye on her as they were worried it could dislodge and go into her lungs. So with Ned just having flown to Melbourne that morning, I went home with two distraught little girls and absolutely no chance of sleeping. Thankfully, everything has gone fine so far and there have been no problems. And let's hope it stays that way!

At the other extreme is something that is a most definite highlight for me of the last couple of months, and that is being involved to organise our year 12, 20 year reunion. I have to slap myself every time I say out loud that it's almost been 20 years since I left school. I'm still so young and don't feel any different from when I left all those years ago lol. Santa brought the video of High School Musical for Olivia and we have been watching it over the last couple of days....for Pete's sake, some of those kids singing and dancing on there were only just being BORN when I was doing my HSC! Enough said.

Another thing the kids got for Christmas was a trampoline. They were both so thrilled with it, but Olivia especially loves "boincing" about. Charlotte told me she would like the trampoline much more if it was rainbow coloured, but she will still use it even though it is blue, which I was happy to hear. This is Olivia having a turn, and another shot I took of her while we were outside playing totem tennis and boincing.

I try so hard not to do long posts, so I had better pull the pin on this before it gets any longer. I want to wish you all the most amazing and fulfilling 2008, and may many great things happen for you and those you love. Thanks so much for stopping by (and getting this far).

See you next year!

Sometimes a mother just has to brag

Olivia wrote me a little note the other day. She had turned a piece of paper into a concertina, and wrote a little message on each fold. This is what she wrote:

Love
Mum, you are the best mother in the world, from Africa to Brazil, and I love you. From Olivia xxxooo

Fun
Mum when you and I spend time together it's like birds flying across the golden sky and I love you xxxooo

Laughter
Mum when you and I laugh together it's so much fun! And I love you xxxooo

Hug
Mum when we hug we have the best time ever, it's truly wonderful! And I love you xxxooo

Together
Mum I love us having a lifetime of treasures, but we have it already, and I love you! xxxooo

And then I cried, which she thought that was the ultimate praise lol.

Thought I'd pop this layout on here today - I just love the Fancy Pants range. This was the layout I was going to be teaching at Shop and Crop later this month but we've canceled the class for now, and may do one next year instead.


Have a great weekend!

Introducing Otto, and a Papercrafts Report

I am so pleased to hear that I am not the only one with a hairy husband for the month of November!! Ned's mo is coming along quite well, and just the other day I figured out who he is looking like....remember Otto in A Fish Called Wanda? He was played by Kevin Kline, and always spoke in Italian in order to seduce Jamie Lee Curtis. This is him:

And this is Ned! Don't you love the raised eyebrow? In all fairness, I told him to do it lol. Anyway, only 20 odd days to go and he can shave it off! Rachie you can't possibly think he looks better with this fungus on his face??!
Last weekend I took a trip to Sydney with the one and only Lady Libby Morris, to go to the Papercrafts Festival. We got there in time for our 10am class with Celine Navarro which was great! After the class Lib introduced me to Alison Shearer, who I had met online ages ago but had never crossed paths in real life. And what big bags of fun she is! Our chance meeting at the festival led to us having a very humorous night, but more on that later....

Libby and Alison went off to do another afternoon class, and Shell arrived around the same time. We booked into our room then went back to the festival. We met up with some great ladies and had so much fun getting some photos at the men's toilet (the white background worked a treat!). Danielle Quarmby took these with Alison's camera....she just can't take a bad photo! They all turned out brilliantly I thought. In the photos you can see Libby, Shell, Alison, Kylie, Beth and Lusi...and yes, the world's largest mouth which belongs to me. And also the biggest bum, but you have to go to Kylie's blog to see that lol.

The night continued with many, many laughs at Lone Star with Lib, Shell and Alison. I don't think they will ever let us back there.....or if so, they will put us in our own soundproof room. Funny, funny ladies! This is me and Lib with the Lone Star Bull. Can't tell you how many people were looking at us strangely while we posed for this photo, but the place was full and almost every eye was on us. At least Libby had a nice girly type of glass, while I was there hanging onto my tankard of beer lol. Classy.

I've actually been scrapping too. I've finished off a couple of mini albums and am now starting on a cj. Those photos can wait for another time though....right now I just wanted to post these shots of a fantastic weekend and lots of good memories.

And now I want to do it all again!

Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

Ned came home from work tonight and sat me down. He said he wanted to discuss something with me, and that he needed my advice. He then proceeded to tell me that ALL the guys at his work will be participating in Movember and will be growing a moustache, and he will be too!!! I laughed. A lot! And then the realisation of what he is going to look like over the next 4 weeks started to sink in. And it's not going to be pretty. But it is for a good cause so I can grin and bear it....and walk 6 steps behind him whenever we are in public places. Movember is held to raise awareness of Men's Health issues, namely Prostate Cancer and Male Depression. I am sure with Ned's appearance over the next few weeks, he will also be raising awareness for much more than that.

To be a part of the whole movement, progression photographs need to be taken, so tonight we took this one. And then I played with it. Man, there is a very good chance my handsome husband is going to look very seedy this month! I do make apologies to anyone who likes facial hair - I think on some guys it looks extremely hot (heck, Hugh Jackman even makes sideburns attractive) but I'm not sure that Ned should be allowed to grow a mo for any other reason than this ONE cause, ONCE a year.

And of course, the style of moustache needs to be decided. He thinks he will go down the Errol Flynn path....I've put a poll on the side bar and would love some feedback please!! I think it's a whole lot of fun, and it will certainly be a talking point this month lol.

I'd also like to know if anybody else's husbands are getting involved...would love to see all our men sporting moustaches on your blogs!

10 Years On....

Today Ned and I are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. We had such a beautiful wedding with all the trimmings....lots of friends and family, a fabulous setting and everything went off without a hitch. Well, everything except the fact the organist didn't show up, but that was okay because my mother plays and she did an exceptional job at short notice! Here are some of my favourite photos from our day - I can't believe it has been a decade already.

And as far as scrapping goes, this is all I've done in the past few weeks. It's an entry in Julie's CJ, and her theme is "One Wish". When I was growing up, all I ever wanted to be was a mum....I didn't have any big career aspirations; I just wanted a great little family of my own. And even though my head is still pounding from a day of Charlotte bouncing off the walls and then the two of them squealing for hours after Olivia came home from school, I can honestly say I got what I wished for. I should have also wished for sleep, but I guess we only get one shot at it. I also need to mention that the class I will be teaching at Shop and Crop has been postponed until November 24th. It will still be held between 1.30pm - 3.30pm at the shop in Elder St, Lambton.

Thanks for visiting, and thank goodness it's Friday tomorrow!

The Results are Back.

And I've got the All Clear!

I had my ultrasound on Monday and was told that it just looked like a harmless lymph node, and I got the report in the mail today confirming it, so I am stoked! Since finding the lump I have tried really hard not to get myself in a tizz over it all, but I still felt such monumental relief when I was told the news. They said I'll have to make sure I do regular checks, and have repeat scans down the track, but to me that's not much different to what happens now so I'm really happy!

Thank you so much for the emails and comments; I sincerely appreciate them. I've had two scares with the Big C now (I had cancerous cells removed a few years ago from another area of my body), and reading messages and hearing of other people's stories really does help when you are feeling a little vulnerable.

October is Breast Cancer Month. Monday 22nd is the day to proudly wear our Pink Ribbons in support of the National Breast Cancer Foundation, and those people who are living with, fighting the disease, or who have sadly lost their battle. I also think it's a good day to remember anyone whose lives have been touched by cancer.

Happy, happy days :-)

A Big Thank You, Another Layout and Class Details

I am just blown away by the emails and comments I've had on here about how many of us have found lumps in their breasts, or those who have known other women going through the same thing. Thankfully most of the stories were about benign lumps, but one email told me of a lady whose doctor said to her over a period of 6 months that the lump she had found was nothing to worry about, and it ended up being cancer. 18 months of chemotherapy later she was clear, but it's such a dreadful thing for anyone to have to go through. Thanks for the comments and positive thoughts; it really is appreciated and very helpful :-)

Today I wanted to share this layout I did for Shop and Crop using the October kit. Did I mention before that it was just so beautiful to work with??! Very pretty and girly, and I think I am the number 1 fan of Fancy Pants right now.

And, for anyone who is in the Newcastle and Hunter area and would like to come along, I'll be teaching a class at Shop and Crop on Saturday October 27th. The class will run from 1.30-3.30pm at 96C Elder St, Lambton. If you would like to be there, email Sasha or ring her or Suz on 1300 762 110. It will be fun and I'd love to meet some more of the local ladies! We will be using more of the Fancy Pants range of products....you just can't go wrong with them!

We are off to a local animal park tomorrow with a few families from here, and I have been madly cooking all day - marinated drumsticks, mini pizzas, apple and cinnamon loaf.....all of them delicious and all of them driving my kids nuts because they're sitting on the bench cooling down and they're not allowed to eat them! Hopefully the anticipation will make them taste even better tomorrow :-)

Oh, and can someone bring me up to speed with Facebook???!! I've joined the hoards of people with a Facebook page and I've been super poked, given beer and scotch, had an invitation from a vampire and currently have a Yo Mumma request lol. I really need to devote some time to this to work it all out!!

Back from the Bush

That title sounds like a Lee Kernaghan song, but I'm going to run with it.....

I'm back! I had a lovely break out at my Grandmother's with my girls for a few days. We just kicked back and enjoyed each other's company, then on Saturday we had a family gathering to celebrate her birthday. It was wonderful, but I tell you, getting a photo of this woman is more difficult that getting a group of kids to all behave and smile in the same direction for a shot! This is the best birthday one of her with my girls. She kept licking her fingers of birthday cake or looking away at the girls...looks like I'll have to wait until her 89th to get another crack at it!

While I was out at her place, I found a lump underneath my armpit in the breast tissue, and I'd be lying if I said it didn't give me a fright. I got in to see my doctor today and she checked it out for me. I felt sick while I was sitting in the waiting room...I was sitting there thinking that I didn't want this to be the first day of a journey I really don't want to take. She checked everything out though, and said that because the lump moves around, it's a GOOD sign. I'll still need an ultrasound next week to be completely sure it's nothing nasty, but so far it's looking positive. I am okay, and am trying not to be concerned about it at this stage. I ummed and ahhed about whether I should post about this and decided that I should, simply as a reminder to stay vigilant about checking for any lumps etc. It's better to grab these things early and get them sorted out, rather than let them go. And while I'm sure my lump will turn out to be nothing but fibrous tissue, I'd really appreciate it if you kept your fingers crossed for me as well please :-)

We're still in the second week of the school holidays here and I have quite a few little outings planned with the girls over the next few days. These things give you a little bit of a shake-up, so we are going to be out and about enjoying each other's company as much as we can.

I hope the week is a good one for you!

Thank Goodness for the Holidays

I am so pleased the school holidays are finally here. Mind you, the girls spent all day Saturday arguing over the tiniest things and I was getting a bit rattled, but it seems the dust has settled again and we are all starting to relax and get into holiday mode.

I've got a few things to share this time around, so I'll start with this layout I've done for Shop and Crop, using their October kit. This kit is one I just couldn't wait to use - it's the new Fancy Pants stuff and everything in it appealed to me! There is enough product in this kit to make many layouts, and it really is great value for money (I know that just sounds like I'm plugging it, but it's really true!!). I was really happy with this layout...I love the transparency, and it's so different to anything I've ever done before. I'll post the other layout I did using the kit on here when I'm allowed :-)

The other exciting news for me is that I am this month's Jack over at Aussie Scrapjacked!! Please give it a go - there are great prizes up for grabs, and I'll scrap a layout for the winner as well....if they want one :-)

And as I mentioned at the top of the post, the kids were not settling into the holidays at all well on Saturday, so yesterday we went to the Hunter Valley Gardens to let them run wild and free. There was face painting and activities, and a local zoo brought animals along for all the kids to touch and feed, which my girls just loved. Olivia got up and held a snake ALL BY HERSELF! That may not seem like a big feat for most kids, but for Olivia it was a great show of courage. And I was so proud of her for not being at all nervous (unlike her fraidy cat mother) and just getting up there and doing it. Charlotte was stoked as there were baby emus and kangaroos, which are two of her most favourite animals ever. We ended up being at the Gardens for over 6 hours, and boy oh boy did the kids sleep well last night!!!


The girls and I are heading off to my grandmother's on Wednesday for a few days. We'll be having a gathering of the clan at Coonabarabran this coming weekend to celebrate her 88th birthday which I am really looking forward to. I love getting back out there and spending my time...so many good memories there and such a fabulous sense of freedom. I guess that feeling often comes with revisiting places that were special to you as a child doesn't it? Whatever the reason, I love it!


I hope everyone has a great week :-)

RAK Winner and other random things...

I feel sick. It's all self inflicted and I feel miserable. For most of the past few months I have been completely devoted to getting healthy and losing some weight - and I've lost 10 kilos!! Yesterday as part of my fitness routine I walked for an hour and a half with my girlfriend Jane. It's a beautiful walk out in the bush and we natter and laugh to our hearts content without having to worry about cars and things wizzing past. Anyway, afterwards we went to lunch, and at the restaurant they had the most amazing sticky date pudding. It looked incredible.

So this afternoon, little piglet me made one. And I ate a BIG piece covered with butterscotch sauce. It's amazing how your body just doesn't need this sort of food and gets used to not having it. And oh boy, do I need to lie down now lol. If you would like the recipe, email me and I'll send it to you. You too can feel as dreadful as me with very little effort!

ANYWAY....the main reason for this post is not to tell you about the state of my stomach, but to thank you for the comments for Charlotte's birthday. She loved having them read out to her. And in regard to the cake - the picture you see in the last post is how the cake looked after Charlotte had played in it! Look how wonky all the sides are even after I tried to fix it up!

And I also need to announce winner of my RAK.....it's SUSAN from SCRAPBOXX! Susan I will pop over to your blog and let you know :-) Thanks so much to everyone for Charlotte's birthday wishes!

Although most of you have already seen these layouts, I thought I'd put them in as it's always nice to have some colour in a post. The Glam one is in FK this month, and the Amazing layout is in CK Aust.

And I want to wish an extra special birthday to my grandmother, Sis, who is turning 88 years old today! Hip hip hooray!!