Creative Camping

But first.... this is who I got to spend Christmas and the last few days with.

 - below photos taken today.

 'Snug as a Bug in a Rug' in the lovely blanket Great NanNan made him for Christmas below and above in  NanNan's knits - little jacket and booties.

Special times and lots of cuddles.

Back to blogging - When I went into Google Reader today after 2 weeks' absence there were 225 blog posts awaiting to be read - I have managed to skim through over half so far.

Now back to the week before Christmas - Creative Camping.  I set off for the lake armed with some supplies and was pleased with what I managed to create.....

 in a corner of the awning. 

and a few closeups - I didn't get time to photograph them properly in the rush between getting home and taking them to Z's album however these shots give the general idea.

A voucher I was given for Xmas was quickly used on this new punch.  Layout created with Bo Bunny Gabrielle Collection papers, Martha Stewart Punch and Wild Orchid flowers.

 'Hello' also using the Bo Bunny Collection, 2 different Martha Stewart punches and liquid pearls around the circle shapes.  Flowers are Wild Orchid. 

 The layout below was created using Maraposa papers and was the only paper that went with the papers in the limited stash taken camping.  Orange alpha are Basic Grey. 

 It is way past my bedtime so the rest will have to wait for another day. 
Hope your week is going well.  We have been enjoying some terrific weather.  Thank you for visiting my blog. 

Take Care

Dianne

Festive Season

Wishing you all a Happy and Safe Festive Season.

As you can see by my lack of blogging, life leading up to the end of term and Christmas has been very busy.  Work finished on 16 December and on 17th we headed for the lakes with the caravan for the week prior to Christmas.  We had beautiful calm, hot weather, unfortunately not a lot of fish (not that I am the fisherman but enjoy eating it and sometimes go at 6.30a.m. to drive the boat for DH).  Nothing beats an early morning ride on a mirror calm lake with views of Mount Cook and the mountains. 

I have lots to share as while up camping I achieved 3 pages of my new first Grandson's first week, 3 cards and 3 DVD pouches - just have to find the time to edit and post them.

We arrived home early Friday morning and were working through the list of pre-Christmas preparation when we got an SOS from DD#3.  She had flown from Dunedin to Christchurch that morning for her work Christmas Function and was playing lawn bowls when the first quake hit.  After the 3rd one in which she was inside the reception of their accommodtion that was it and dear Mum & Dad  were called to collect her and her colleage from Christchurch as they were not coping too well.  They now have a new appreciation for what the Christchurch Community are going through. 

We had a lovely Christmas Day with our Girls etc and of course our beautiful wee man.  We got to baby sit for a couple of hours tonight and he is still asleep since putting him down.  I will also be sharing one of my Christmas Presents once photographed  - it is a series of photos of my daughter's grand and great grandparents which she altered for an art project and I just love them. I had seen the early stages of the project but not the completed ones so am thrilled to be given them.
Another highlight of Christmas was that I was the lucky winner of Ingvild Bolme's Blog Candy.

Sorry no photos available to post today but I will be back in a couple of days with some.

Thank You for stopping by. 

Dianne

Bo Bunny Card

It's hard to believe that this time last week we had just been to the 5-year-old birthday party.  Another week has disappeared.

Here's the little card I made using a Bo Bunny 6x6 pad which I was my prize in the Paper Chase October Sketch Challenge.  Check out their December Challenge here. The image is from Lili of the Valley. 

 I used a scrap of bling for the bunting and used rubons onto the triangles.

Wild Orchid flowers.  I basically copied the design from a layout.  KindyGlitz added to create a bit of sparkle. ... and a side view!

I haven't got near the scrap room this week.  It needs a massive cleanup before I get started on any new projects so better get off and have a look.

Wishing you an enjoyable weekend and hope the weather is kind to us.

Bye for now.....
Dianne

Too Cute

Just have to go and visit this special wee man in the weekend.  He is growing so so fast. 

Hope your week is going well.
Bye for now
Dianne

75th Birthday Wishes

We have just had our fourth summer day in a row - love it!  Tomorrow it is supposed to rain though.

Today we celebrated my Mum's 75th Birthday with a trip to Riverstone Kitchen for lunch.  The award winning food was up to expectations although a couple of us decided to try something different with the special of the day "Karitane Paddle Crab".  While the dish tasted delicious it is not something I would choose to eat at a restaurant again - we were given finger bowls and a little spike type fork to retrieve the crab meat from the legs, in fact it was all legs - what a mess I ended up - breaking the legs squirted sauce all over my top (lucky it was black), I stabbed my finger with the fork and luckily had some plasters in my wallet but I wouldn't be beaten and was last to finish my meal.  Consequently we three were a good part of the lunch time entertainment lol.   The Riverstone Birthday Cake was delicious and presented beautifully to each of us accompanied by icecream and berries. The hospitality and service superb.

Riverstone is a fantastic venue to visit with the award winning restaurant, homemade preserves can be purchased and three shops have an abundance of gift ideas and Christmas Decorations.  With the weather being perfect the children with us enjoyed a play in the magnificent playground with a real looking fort all surrounded in the manicured gardens from which the restaurant vegetables and herbs are grown. 

Here is the card I made for Mum.

 Created using a Lili of the Valley image with Prima and Tim Holtz papers with Wild Orchid Flowers, pearl hearts and lace with a little Kaiser pink added to the flowers. 

 the '75' was painted with Shimmer Paint and then coated with Kindyglitz.

 I forgot to take a photo of the inside but used a Martha Stewart around the page flower punch for the white piece to write the message.
This week Lili of the Valley Challenge is "Anything but a Christmas Card" so I have entered the above card.

 Two little princesses helped NanNan blow out the candles. 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

We went to a 5-year old Birthday last night so will be back with that card next time.

Dianne