MAKING CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS WITH THE KIDS.....

James turned up as l sat to cut out the doves so we spent an hour or two making things for Christmas

brought back lovely memories of past Christmas decoration making...aaaaaaahhhhh!

HAPPY MOM

DOVES ARE THE  THEME DECORATIONS THIS YEAR...

Cards 1st though..ready for early posting..never managed that one before hehe

Found the square envelopes perfect to take a dove

TIP...

never make cards with out finding envelopes 1st..made that mistake before....couldn't find enveloped to fit the cards l made one year..ggggrrrr! lol

l cut out a few Doves and James punched extra snowflakes (you can never have enough) from the left over bits of card while we watched a Bond film on TV with the fire on and the candles flickering on the mantle

l did enjoy his company and the lovely memories of past decoration making together

ANYWAYS....this is what we came up 

I'll be using this Dove and others in lots of different ways over the next month

wood...fabric...paper...card...plastic...can you see the card l've used is embossed with 

MERRY CHRISTMAS?

I need more ink for the printer...don't you always?......and some sticky pads to lift the Dove a little bit 

but happy with the design and glad the hard bit has been done...

choosing a design to make!

ADORE ALL THE CUTTING OUT AT CHRISTMAS....

I love Christmas and cutting out.....give me a bit of paper and a pair of small cutting out 

scissors (had mine years and they still cut perfectly) and l'm a happy bunny hehehehe

One year l was in plaster and cut out hundreds of 3D stars in a rainbow of colours...

stuck them to the dado rail and the cat spent the whole of Christmas pulling them off and chewing them up! lol...memories ooooh l'm going all gooey again hehehe

THANK YOU ALL XX

for the good thoughts yesterday...it worked l feel lots better and the pains have gone...Doc says he thinks it a build up of grit...never gets to a stone but can be a bit of a pain!! hehe

Have a special Sunday hugs xx

BETWEEN THE PAINS

Not had a good night my right kidney is giving me some gip....ouch!..happens every now and then 

but l won't make the K&N at 2 this afternoon....hope some will make it though...have fun all

FUN IN BLOGLAND

Yesterdays trip through blogland l found a fab blog and a link to a photo ageing site

SO SORRY...

in my excitement to get the photo site l can't remember which blog it was

PHOTO AGEING SITE LINK

It's a Japanese site and ages your uploaded photos for free

ORIGINAL                         AGED

great fun....I love a good playtime hehe

THANKS EVERYONE

for all the lovely comments on the Bakewell makeover so far....still so many 'little' ideas growing in my head.....but Christmas ideas must come next and cards 1st!

l'll try to catch up through the day pain allowing

Have a wonderful weekend all hugs xx

PEACE REIGNS FOR NOW!!

6 Months of hard work and many changes....

Teeny weeny bit of finishing off in a few places but that's it for 2010....

Furniture back in the kitchen...

Lounge before and after...

Windows before and after....

oh and the loo downstairs...

and the bedroom wall...

thanks for all the lovely comments on the makeover so far 

been a fun and at times exhausting journey but for 2010 that's it for now

a few days to recover and then 

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS...to fill my time lol

hugs all have a wonderful weekend x

DARK START

Up in the dark to remove the boards.....l knew they would be early...8.08 the door bell went

we had lift off hehe

kitchen window was soon in...

and by 10.38 they were finished and gone....

we measured up what plaster board etc we needed and off the builders yard

back with all we needed and a nice piece of white oak for the door...

finished about 4.30 all boarded and drying ready for the plastering and floor finish...

LOVE IT..REAL PLEASED

Already getting furballs sitting at the door waiting to be let in....out through the flap and in through the door.....this is fun!

all ready for playtime tomorrow....

dumping ground for all the bits and pieces....

really will need to tidy the garden now patios to build and lawn to finish hehehehe

doors have made a huge difference to the space....really really pleased 

finishing off to do and then the kitchen units but going to have to wait for them until new year maybe even spring time....oh well l'm sure it will be worth it..l can see the white doors and open shelving now!! hehehehe

early night tonight...Phil back to work tomorrow

Sweet Dreams all xx

WACKY WEATHER!

Perfect  T-shirt weather yesterday...what is happening with the weather?

From winter to summer in a couple of days

T-SHIRTS AND BRICK DUST and ooops l forgot to take the washing in so it will all have to be done again!!...silly me hehehe

started a 9 and the wall was out by 10.30 and we started on the thermalite blocks....by 1.30 the wall was out the plaster board cut ready for this mornings removal and the rubble taken to the skip..two trips

We had a beautiful sunny day to remove the wall..thank you!.....and now less than a couple of hours and the new doors and windows will be arriving

excited or what!! hehehe

FLAPPY BIT ADDED to the cat flap yesterday afternoon and they all sat and looked at it and then at me....so down on my hands and knees to show them it was easy to push open hehehehehe....MAD WOMAN lol

no drafts at all now a big working flap and they all have used it..what a relief

cya later 

off to remove the plaster board and make a very big hole in the wall....last time they arrived early...l'll get the kettle on and the biscuits ready lol

hugs all xx

FURBALL APPROVAL

Not a lot to tell today..all the furballs love the tunnel...they rush in and out as it's so big hehe....still waiting for the cement to harden before finishing it with the flappy bit and trim...

hehehehe.....no more squishing through the cat flap...oh and we managed to sell the old back door today too...little bit of help towards the cost

Moved the bins but still to build something like this....to make them look pretty lol

or this...

Tomorrow we will be removing the bricks ready for 8 on Thursday morning...the new French Doors and let there be light in the kitchen the new window!

we are both feeling a bit wrecked right now mind willing body giving up fast!

Next.....

Christmas decorations for me and Phil will go play with Bertie type welding hehehe

at least that's the plan after this window/door job....

but we have found a supply of white/cream chippings for the garden triangles hehe and we do need some additional shelving in the middle section of the wardrobe and the bedroom furniture needs painting white and the new handles fitting and my work room need a major sort out now l can get in there again...and we need to build some book cases....and l'm sure there was 6 million other jobs to do!

Stop my mind l want to get off....LOL 

can someone knock me out....stop me from thinking about all the jobs that need doing?

Sweet Dreams all x

COULDN'T HAVE BEEN COLDER....

With only a board up at the new window to be......it couldn't have got any colder.....

minus something or other last night 

and now we have a large hole in the wall drying before it gets a new door fitted lol....

Mr T checked it out for us....

the new furball door.....

did some research on cat flaps and found we could get one fitted to the French doors....made some enquiries and our window fitter wanted almost £200 to fit one...gasp!

now l love them dearly but £200....gasp gulp!!!

RETHOUGHT THAT ONE....FAST

£20 FOR A NEW FLAP BUT IT NEEDED A TUNNEL....

Having decided there was room in a wall to fit one but we needed a small tunnel...no pipe the right size so though maybe a bucket would do?

Found one in the garage the exact size we needed..

HOW LUCKY WAS THAT?

Marked the hole.....

oooooh! that's a big one

drilled and chipped and eventually made it big enough...

nice mess too hehehe...

until the hole fit the bucket.....

it passed for size!

filled the spaces with expanding foam and cemented the outside

needs to dry before we can fit the door on the outside but going to work a treat and only £26 in total

How's that for a saving?

Fingers crossed they all use it ok!!

Off to catch up with Downton Abbey now

Hugs all xx

LOOKS BETTER ALREADY....

Jokingly l said after it was all under way...'l've changed my mind' lol...

If l could afford it l would have taken the whole back wall out and installed those fabulous folding walls....now that would have been the best of the best but very happy with our filled up hole 

see how the sun shone in the morning for the knocker outer..l helped with the pushing and shoving that was needed to get it out and removing the plaster and the splash back to the cooker

and still the sun shone...

and l swept again...

then we had a chocolate break....

Chocolate trifle from Tesco....yum yum yum

and still the sun shone...Fuzzy arrived to brick up the hole at just gone 11 as promised

and it started to rain..so we put up the parasol to keep him dry and supplied with cup after cup of coffee

but the sun still shone and the wall grew higher...

more coffee and the job was done..

quick tidy up and he was gone by 3...the bricks do look a bit pink but right now they are wet and they will weather some

But when we get out into the garden again the bins will go here off the side path that's well used and 

will be out of sight in a wooden construction with plants on top like a big window box but that's another post for another day

LOVE IT HATE IT...

When you make changes you're never quite sure it's the right thing to do until it's done

For me it needs to feel right and it sure felt right even with the boarded window

by this time the sun had gone and l was freezing so went to snuggle under a blanket and fall asleep for a couple of hours....ooops so now l'm wide awake again

oh well a HAPPY END TO THE DAY

the furballs are a little confused though but enjoying the cleared space and playing with a ping pong ball

after their evening meal...maybe they will let me sleep past 4 in the morning!

mmm miracles do happen...don't they? hehehe

Sweet dream all x

A TABLESCAPE

Theatre last night to see Colin Fry...the internationally known Spiritualist Medium...believe in it or not it was a great evening 

My friend Alison watches him on TV all the time and was really excited when she heard he was coming to the local theatre and wanted to go...so we went and had a really good girlie evening out and a take away before we went out....

Decided l would put a tablescape together for the evening hehehe....got all the new china so thought it a great opportunity to try it out hehe....we were so stuffed with take away no one wanted the afters though

but lots of laughs and a really enjoyable evening for us all

MY NEW WASHER WAS SICK

Bur repaired yesterday......yes only just over a month old and it broke!!!

Seems that two very important bits of plastic had not been locked in place at the manufacturers....so a 2minute job sorted it out......thanks you Mr Repair man and you came very quickly too and then went off to repair another poorly machine or two...

BUT...always a but isn't there? 

I pop a load in the machine and snaps the door shut and push the buttons for another little tune to be played..oh happy me LOL....simple things hey!....my musical machine still makes me smile

off l bounce to play tabelscapes.....admiring the scene l could hear 

gushing water

HELP!!!!!!!!

My newly repaired musical machine was emptying water inside the cupboard.....

l lept into action pushing the off button.....

another little tune played...

l wasn't smiling this time!....

screw driver in one hand and mop in the other....

he'd only gone and pulled the pipe out of the waste hadn't he as he'd man handled the machine.....oooops!

sign of relief dry cupboard and back to the 

simple and colourful 

pheeeeeeeeww!! could have been worse if l hadn't been standing within feet of musical martha!

Just 30seconds before they arrived l'd lit all the candles so it sparkled when they walked in lol 

lots of oooh and aaahs hehehe..did look pretty though lol

love it now its dark at 6 and you can light candles to eat by don't you?

great curry....but left us with lots of chocolate trifle and a cheese board for today...l'll start that diet tomorrow!

BACK DOOR OUT SOON...

and the bricks being laid at 11.....good job it's not cold this morning and keep your fingers crossed it doesn't rain here today!

SO GLAD YOU ALL LOVE THE FLOWERY HUG FROM YESTERDAY

it will be brick dust and mess for tomorrow l'm afraid hehehe

hugs all have a super Saturday 

xx