Two Girls Challenges - Idea one...

Siany and I have put together a blog. It's just for a bit of fun! We just give ourselves a basic challenge for a layout every two weeks.
If you'd like to go and check it out its here.
Feel free to join in if you like the ideas!!
This is a sneak preview of my final product of the 1st idea.
Go here to see the final product and also Siany's final product!
Xx Jess

Foto Friday..

I dont think i need to write a lot as i have lots of photos to share from yesterday!
Siany and I took our Nikon cameras out and about and had fun taking photos!!
I then knew of a great place to take photos (but.. i couldnt bloody find the place) So Mum took us there!! It was great to have her there as she has the eye for photography and in the past when she was fully into it, she sold lots of her work and even won a photography comp!
So here are a few of the 100s of photos we all took...
Go make yourself a cup of tea! I think they may be quite a few!
Xx Jess

Me

Siany hopping into her little car
A duck - Love his reflection!
Sian and I on a rock with the beautiful Blue Mountains in the background (can you see my mum waving?? lol)

Close Up of Sian and I
My Mum and Me
again...
My Mum sitting on a rock!

Siany Me
Mum & Me (reminds me a bit of Charlies Angels)

a HUGE thankyou!!

A HUGE thank you to Janine Kaye for sending me the biggest and best RAK, from Scenic Route, EVER!!!!
(its more than i'd buy on a scrapping shopping spree!! lol!!)

Can you believe how spoilet I got?!!
I LOVE all these goodies!! Can wait to scrap a layout with them!!!
Thanks so much Janine!!

Xx Jess

Cyber Crop - Week Five...

This weeks challenge by Lusi Austin (from the Scrapbooks, Paper & Things website) is my favourite so far!!!

The Challenge:
"What MOVES you”
Scrap what moves you – literally! Scrap about your FAVOURITE MODE OF TRANSPORT…..be that your car, bike, bus, feet!
You must include:
* At least 3 photos
* At least 5 eyelets
* At least 3 kinds of different Patterened Papers (as much or as little as you like as long as there are 3 different patterns)
* At least 1 craft punched shape

It came at a good time as I have (just last month) paid off my little Astra! Its fully mine now - phew! I hate being in debt of any kind! I bought it as in impulse buy back in november 2004. I really didnt think i'd get the finance approved, but it did, so i took it as a sign I had to have it! LOL. So i traded in my Barina for my bigger, better Astra! It wasn't until a year later that I cried at how much interest I was being charged. Seeing as i didnt shop around and just got it on the finance company Holden provides (eek - NEVER do that!! LOL) So i put all my savings onto it, and then got a loan from my parents and paid off the car, and last month.. i finished paying back my parents!! YAY!!

So, here it is...
Let me know what you think! Thanks :)

"My Car"

Well Done MATTY!!!!

All last week Matty has been in New Zealand visiting his family!! (its been a while since we've seen them!) . He has a great time catching up with everyone and even took some great photos:

He also did a race on the Saturday! The Marlborough Portage Kayak Race which he did real well in!! (so happy and proud of you Matty!)
He came 3rd Overall and 2nd as an individual!!!

The Start

Matty (in front)

I was happy to have Matty back home - i picked him up from the airport yesterday!! He brought me back so lovely gifts!! So spoilet!! Love the bangle made from Jade he bought me!!!

Xx Jess

My Very 1st...

Im so excited!! Firstly, to find that there were not only bills in the letter box, but there was also this....

My 1st ever commissioning letter from a magazine!! Scrapbooking Memories!! So dont forget to buy Vol 9 No 4, to see my very first publication!!!

Yay!!
Xx Jess

Cyber Crop - Week Four...

This weeks challengs by Lusi Austin at the Wentworth Falls Scrapbooks, Paper & things website (see side bar) was good fun and in continuing the theme of Mother's day seeing as we just celebrated mothers day last sunday!

The Challenge:
"Mum"
You must include:
* journaling about what your mum (or someone who has been there like a mum) means to you
* the colour white somewhere anywhere on your page
* at least one hinge (metal, plastic, paper, make your own....)
* at least 6 different kinds of ribbon (different patterns, colours, textured...)
* some sticker lettering

So, here is what I came up with...
Let me know what you think! Thanks :)

"My Mum"

Close Up of the journaling

Close up of the nice photo of mum & the ribbons

My "Weekend"

As I work in hospitality.. my weekend starts on monday!! lol!
This week, Matty is over in New Zealand visiting his family! I bet he is having a great time! So because he is away, I thought it was the perfect weekend for Siany to come down and stay with me for girls time! We had lots planned for the two days and we did get a lot of it done!
Monday was spent firstly by going up to Scrapbook Moments in Belrose for some much needed scrapbook retail therapy! lol
We then went into Narrabeen and got Dvd's, food and did the banking.
Once we were back at home... we made a real yummy lunch:

Then we watched lots of dvds whilst scrapping!! We got lots of scrapping done, which was great! Normally we aren't that productive together! lol
We also went rollerblading around Narrabeen Lake, such a pretty place to rollerblade around!!

Sian made me a real yummy dinner - chicken in a creamy mustard sauce! Lucky me! We also watched The Holiday a good chick flick!

The next day we went down to the beach in the morning and then also on a walk into town to drop back the Dvd (dont worry Matty, no late fees!!)

We then had decided we were going to have lunch at my old workplace Xenos in Crows Nest. On the way there, we were happily driving along (with the windows down) until Sian spotted a HUGE Hunsman Spider creeping towards her (on the OUTSIDE of the car)!! I sware, we were both squealing!! We rushed to put up all the windwos and this bloody spider was crawling all over the place! As soon as it was safe to do so, I pulled over and Sian and I searched for the spider but he was nowhere to be seen!
After about 10 minutes we both got back in the car - we weren't even talking to eachother anymore! We were just in deep concentration about this spider. We didnt see it again.
We went and ate our lunch at Xenos! It was so YUMMY!!! I had the halumi! It was great to see my old bosses and workmates again!
After our yummy lunch, with the spider still on our minds, we hunted for it and it was still nowhere to be seen, phew, its gone! We knew we were kidding ourselves!
Back in the car and on our way to Chatswood in heavy traffic.. the huge thing came back to say hello "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!" was the reaction from Sian and I (god knows what cars around us were thinking! LOL). Oh, I also almost drove into the back of a car!! So knew we had to get rid of this thing before we got seriously hurt in a car accident! I dont think insurance covers "but there was a HUGE Hunsman Spider" excuses. We pulled into a car park, and we used about 2/3rds of a tin of spider killer spray and finally we could drive in peace. It was sad to kill it, but we felt it was better it than us!

Here is a photo Sian took with her mobile phone camera (how brave!)So, that definately got our hearts pumping!! And we both had a good laugh when we knew we survived!!
I then dropped Sian off in Chatswood where she met up with my brother! I then went indoor climbing with Bec and I was invited for dinner at Bec and Kato's house for yummy nachos and chocolate covered strawberries yum yum!

Its been a great weekend!! Siany has also posted about it with different photos if you want to go see!

Xx Jess

Art Journal Challenge - My Decorated Tin...

I"ve finally got round to making 'storage' for my cards! My mum gave me this tin back last year, and I hadn't decorated it yet as I had no idea what and how I was going to decorate it! But it came to me the other night whilst scrapping!
Im really happy with the results!

Let me know what you think...

Inside the tin

Art Journal Challenge - Week Nineteen...

With Emily's card this week.. I thought it was going to be a tricky one.. but it ended up having a story behind it!!! Yay...

The Prompt for this week: "surprise!"

I had my good friend Siany stay with me the last few days. And I was looking at Emily's prompt this week and i said "oh no! I've got no surprises - doh" and then Sian said.. "surprise!! I bought you a scratchie!". So what better than to do my card about the scratchie!! lol!

Front:


Back:

Art Journal Challenge - Week Eighteen...

I really liked Emily's promt for the card journal challenge this week!!

The prompt for this week: "nature"

I loved how Emily used a gum leaf! It made me think of how much i love Australia and its ruggered land that is filled with desert, bush, snowy mountains and so much more! The more I thought about it the more it got me thinking about a great Aussie song. I decided to print the lyrics of "home among the gum trees" and add it onto my card!

I hope you like my card?!!

Front:


Back:


Back with flap 1/2 open:


Back entirely open with lyrics to the song:


I've been around the world a couple of times, or maybe more,
I've seen the sights, I've had delights on every foreign shore,
but when my mates all ask me the place that I adore,
I tell them right away.

Give me a home among the gum trees,
with lots of plum trees, a sheep or two, a ka-kangaroo.
A clothes line out the back, verandah out the front,
and an old rocking chair.

You can see me in the kitchen cooking up a roast,
or Vegemite on toast, just you and me, a cup of tea.
And later on we'll settle down and mull up on the porch,
and watch the possums play.

Give me a home among the gum trees,
with lots of plum trees, a sheep or two, a ka-kangaroo.
A clothes line out the back, verandah out the front,
and an old rocking chair.

There's a Safeway up the corner, and a Woolys down the street,
a brand new place theyve opened up where they regulate the heat,
but I'd trade them all tomorrow for a simple bush retreat
where the kookaburras call.

Give me a home among the gum trees,
with lots of plum trees, a sheep or two, a ka-kangaroo.
A clothes line out the back, verandah out the front,
and an old rocking chair.

Some people like their houses with fences all around,
others live in mansions, and some beneath the ground.
But Me, I like the bush, you know with rabbits running 'round,
and a pumpkin vine out the back.

Give me a home among the gum trees,
with lots of plum trees, a sheep or two, a ka-kangaroo.
A clothes line out the back, verandah out the front,
and an old rocking chair.

Give me a home among the gum trees,
with lots of plum trees, a sheep or two, a ka-kangaroo.
A clothes line out the back, verandah out the front,
and an old rocking chair.

Art Journal Challenge - Week Seventeen...

I've finally caught up on the last three weeks of Emily's Art Journal Challenge!!

The prompt for this week: "your bedroom"

The journaling on the back of my card reads:
As a little girl i always wanted a PINK bedroom. I was lucky enough to get one! As a kid I had a beautiful bedroom & I loved playing in it with my "babies". My gorgeous dolls! Now i've got a little bedroom w/ Matty. Its not that pretty but its ours & that makes it special + we have fancy big framed photo in there that Matty gave me & i've got nice sheets that match it!!

I hope you guys like my card!?

Front:


Back:

Cyber Crop - Week Three...

This weeks challend by Lusi Austin from the Scrapbooks, Paper and Things forum was good fun!

The Challenge:
“Text”
adding text to your photos can be a great way of utilising the space on your page but it is also achieves a fun creative look too!
You must include:
* At least 4 photos on this layout – any size
* Text on one or all of your photos – the text can be journaling or a title
* Your text added to the photo can be in the form of DIGITAL printing or RUB ONS (she also said hand written was okay)

(its hard to see the journaling on the photo from this copy, but its easy to see it when your looking at the layout in real life. I've written in yellow and black)

So, here is what I came up with...
Let me know what you think! Thanks :)

"Cockatoo"



Close up of the gum leaves and cut out photo of bird

My first full day nannying Jade...

I had my first full day at looking after Jade today and she was just gorgeous!!! She is the CUTEST baby with the best personality! She is always smiling and happy!! We had lots of fun together!!
Here are some photos i took (most of them i took with my mobile phone camera so they aren't the best quality, but i love her little facial expressions)

Jade taking her afternoon nap
Look at that gorgeous & a little bit cheeky smile!!

Jade & Jess "selfie"

Look at her cute little tongue!

I wish i was that flexible! hehe

Narrabeen...

Today I decided to take my camera and take a few shots around Narrabeen. The reason for this:
For Christmas Matty bought me a *huge* framed photo of Narrabeen. The photo was taken in 1950. Its great to see the change! So today I decided to go and take a photo from 2007 of the same view as in the photo. Many trees have grown in the last 50 years!! I think i'll need to go back up the hill and try and attempt to take another panoramic shot...
So here are both shots..

My framed photo of Narrabeen (taken in the 1950s)

Narrabeen in 2007

I also went into North Narrabeen and took a photo looking back down onto Narrabeen where the ocean flows into the lagoon!
Here is that photo:

North Narrabeen

Just thought i'd share the photos of the beautiful place i call home!
Xx Jess

Look what I bought!!

So, to go with my new cooking phase (which i really dont like - but its better than eating out and having to ask and trust waiters if there is Gluten in foods) I bought myself this cute kitchen scale at 40% off!! My favourite homewares store in Warringah Mall is closing down, and its 40% off storewide. Nice! I like a bargan! Im off to make meat balls for dinner!
xx Jess

Dancing, Berowra & Happy Mail!

Last night Bec, Kato, Matty & I went to Sydney Dance Company to do a class! We did Jazz (beginers) and it was a workout!! I was hopeless!! It was so funny tho.. i loved seeing the boys there dancing!! They weren't so happy tho! I think it was really unlucky for them, that the dance teacher had just been to the Beyonce concert. As the dance we learnt was very "sexy" Beyonce like! After about an hour, the boys walked out. Too bad too, as they were both better than me! Bec whispered to me thru the night "this is a comedy". It was great to see us all there.
This dancing all started because Bec, Kato, Steve & Eva did Swing dancing and Matt & I joined them for that a few weeks ago. But i know Matt didnt think the music was right up their alley, so we figured they'd like Sydney Dance Co more (even tho its way harder)!! Im keen to see what dancing we try next!
Any Suggestions?? (keep in mind, i have no rythm and two left feet)

This morning Matty & I went up to Berowra Waters. I used to live up there when I was little. It was fun to see my parent's old restaurant! It looked so different to when we owned it!
We even caught the ferry just for a bit of fun! Here are a few snap shots...

The Berowra Waters Ferry

Me on the ferry with my parents old restaurant up on the right (bit of a blur)

Matty

a boat with the Aussie Flag!

a selfie

When I got home this afternoon, i checked the mail only to find.. some "happy mail" from Siany!! She made me this bank deposit pouch!! I cant believe she made it! Its so funky. Thanks Sian!

Closed
Open

Xx Jess