Wow I've Done Some Cooking....

Well my best attempts are always something easy straight from the freezer, but me and DH decided this morning we would have a nice meal together, but...... it had to come out of a weightwatchers book, and we hadn't time to look together, so I bought all the ingredients for a 3 course meal, have chilled the wine and I have made the Starter, Sweet Potato and Chilli Soup, and the Dessert, which was supposed to be Very Cherry Mousse, but Tesco didn't have tinned Cherries, so now it is Very Strawberry Mousse, hope DH still likes it, and he is going to make the Main Dish which is Spicy Sausage Pasta, made with Chorizo which I know he loves....

My plans were nearly blown away when DD woke up this morning unable to breathe, this has never happened to her before, none of my 10 chldren suffer from Asthma and she was crying and panicing and I was trying to calm her down. I got an emergency appointment at the Doctors and appaarently this can happen to a lot of children, where the ribs meet the chestbone, the bone hasn't yet finished turning to bone and is still cartlidge and it becomes inflamed, this can happen due to exercise (she did the beep test and sit ups at school on Tuesday) or a viral infection which they ruled out her having, and the only thing she can take is ibuprofen for the pain, but once the pain dies down, her breathing becomes much easier, so fingers crossed this will heal quite quickly, although the Doctor did say it could take up to a week.

Belle my little pug was given the all clear by the vets today, they say her collar can come off on Monday, and we can also bath her then, which is excellent as she is getting a bit smelly because of the collar. In the meantime I have taken the very hard decision of re-homing my Great Dane. If anyone can give her a genuine good home and you have experience of Great Danes, then please contact me. I think she will be better off as an only dog, but she is really affectionate and loving, just not around my other dogs. (LindaLLoyd@gmx.net)

So all that leaves me to do is post today's card before I go and liquidize my soup.... and here it is, lots of Stampin Up stuff on here....


I used Perfect Plum and Pale Plum Cardstock and stamped the canvas stamp onto the Pale Plum Cardstock using Perfect Plum Ink. The scallop edge was cut in Whisper White using the Scallop Edge Punch. The other scallop edge with the holes was made using the Fiskars Threading Water Punch. The Ovals were cut using the Spellbinders Nestabilities. The Stamped Image is from A Rose Is A Rose Stamp set and cut and mounted on Dimensionals. The sentiment was stamped onto Whisper White Cardstock using Perfect Plum Ink and is stamped using the Best Yet Level 1 Hostess Set. So there we go a card using mainly Stampin Up today, if you would like to purchase any of these items that I have used today, I am offering free postage on them until Sunday, just contact me on LindaLloyd@gmx.net.

Have a great weekend all xx



And yet another card.....

Haven't done much this week, so nothing much to report..... its like the calm after the storm, and things are settling down, its a great relief to have everything so calm after a week like last week. DH saw a consultant yesterday and they discussed his blood tests and the consultant said they were all fine, so that leaves a couple more visits to the Consultant and that should be that... (hopefully!)

I got some exciting news from Stampin' Up! today, but unfortunately I cannot share with you yet, but watch this space.... and start saving your money.... lol

Here is the card for today....



I used Real Red and Bashful Blue Cardstock, the Stampin' Up! Scallop Edge Punch and the Stampin' Up! Never Ending Joy Stamp Set. Cannot remember who made the Patterned Paper though, sorry, it was in my stash. The stamp set is £15.95 and has Easter Sentiments too, so would be ideal for Easter Cards. If you would like to buy this set, just e-mail me and I will order it for you. I will ship it to you for free too, as long as you order it before Sunday.
If you would like to become a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, I will give you 1 of each of the Saleabration Sets for free as soon as you are signed up, so that is 4 free stamp sets which will no longer be available after Sunday. So in effect they are Limited Edition. Contact me on LindaLloyd@gmx.net for more information.
Have a great evening all xx




Another Card to Share With You...

Have been making a few cards today and a little gift, but cannot show them yet... but in the meantime I have a couple of cards to show you.

For this card I used Cosmo Cricket Paper (I think) and the sentiment is from Papertrey Inc Stamps. The cross is too... I used Real Red Cardstock and flowers from my stash.

For this card I used Bashful Blue and Whisper White cardstock, the Bashful Blue stitched Grosgrain Ribbon and the sentiment is from Verve Stamps. The scallop edge was made using the Fiskar's Threading Water Punch and the scallop ovals were made using the Nestabilities. The patterned paper is the Bashful Blue Patterned Paper from Stampin' Up!
And that is about it for today, have a great evening all xx


Wow, what an awful week I have had, which is why I haven't updated my Blog.....

So last week was one that I would like to forget, one that I wish I could wave a magic wand over and turn back the clock.... DH has a few health problems at the moment and was sent for blood tests over a week ago now, they came back, not normal but what was expected, so he went to the Doctors and they said he needed another blood test, so off he went to the hospital and there were 31 people in front of him and he needed to get to work. On the Sunday his car brakes were very strange and so he had to use my car, so half term holiday, no car..... so not only on the Tuesday did he have 31 people in front of him for the blood test he was also trying to get the parts for his car too... total nightmare, his car does not take parts that his car should, they look up the year and type of car and it is never any of the bits it should be, so after the hospital he had to come home, take the wheel off his car and take photographs of his brake cylinders (bearing in mind he has on a shirt and tie ready for work) and eventually gets the bits he needs. Then back to the Doctor's on Friday about the blood test and voila.... excellent, they did the wrong one...... so he had to go back yesterday for yet another one, and then off to the Consultant on Wednesday and the Doctor's again on Friday, I can see his boss getting fed up pretty quickly. In the meantime on the same Tuesday as the car and the 31 people, it is 5pm in the afternoon and my son comes running to me shaking and crying saying my little pugs eyes is popping out, at that minute she runs to me and it is probably the most awful thing I have ever seen in real life, I couldn't even look at her.... so no car, and injured pet, and distraught child and my mind goes blank. I eventually manage to ring my daughter for a lift to the vets, manage to persuade the vet that it is an emergency and no I cannot wait an hour and a half for an appointment. We get there they rush us into a consulting room and say they have to operate right away, "has she eaten".... I say yes, they say well there is a danger whilst she is under anaethestic that she may vomit, choke on it and die, there is also a danger she will loose her eye. I signed the consent form and walked out the vets in tears.... I arrived home and my son is fixing DHs car, and then DH arrives home, the vets ring his mobile phone, they say she is going to lose her eye as the optic nerve has been severed.... this is a nightmare... they ring again about 40 minutes later saying we can pick her up.... poor little thing is so drowsy and is so not herself. One of the children sleep in the lounge with her that night. She is getting used to her problem now, although she still has a large collar over her head as she cannot pull her stitches out her eye, that would be awful, but she has learned now to drink and eat with it on.... here is a picture of her, it doesn't look as horrific as it sounds and when she is asleep you cannot even tell... but I feel so guilty that it happened...



So I have been busy looking after her all week along with the children on half term. I also had a major sort out, change around and new furniture in my bedroom which is also my scrap room.... I will take some photos and post in a few days, I will post some before and after photos... wow there is such a difference, I absolutely love it now, although some things have gone missing and I haven't found them yet.

Yesterday we went to London O2 Arena to see The Killers.... they were absolutely awesome, I am a huge fan of them ever since I saw them support U2 in Poland in 2005, we went to Berlin in 2007 and saw them live there too, and we were between 3 and 5 rows from the front, although I must admit some German kid did try and start a fight with me then.... so last night we had seats instead, although I must say the UK fans are very reserved and so I may have to go abroad next time I want to see a good band and dance and sing along.... and here is the wonderful Mr Flowers...


Wish I could go back again tonight and do it all over again. We also had a wonderful meal at Las Iguanas at the O2 definately worth a trip if you are in the area.... awesome food and excellent staff... the cocktails weren't bad either.

And yes I have made some cards, so here is my card for today....



The Cardstock used was Lovely Lilac and So Saffron, the papers were from my stash, the lace edge is a Fiskars Border Punch. The sentiment is from Verve stamps in US and the flowers and brads are also from my stash. And for those of you who like to see my cards made only with Stampin Up products, keep your eye out as I have a few to post over the coming week.
If anyone would like to sign up as a demonstrator for Stampin Up, today is really the last day to let me know as you need to sign up before the end of February (which is only 4 days away) to get your 2 free stamps sets from the catalogue and your 2 free Saleabration sets which will no longer be available once February is finished... so contact me on LindaLloyd@gmx.net if you are interested. As well as all these free stamp sets you will also get a Starter Kit worth £250 for only £139, plus a discount on your own stash. You dont have to make it a business (although you can if you like) you can just be a hobby demo and buy your own stash at a discount.
Have a great day all, take care


Yay.... I am feeling happy....

Because I am getting through my to do list today pretty well, and have nearly finished it. First thing I went to the Doctor's as my blood pressure has been high for over a month now and on Tuesday when I went to see the nurse it was still high, so she booked me an appointment with the Doctor today, and guess what, it was normal, so she wants to see me in a month just to check. My daughter also went along to the Doctors to get something to help her give up smoking, whether she will succeed or not I do not know, but let's hope so...

Cant say too much about other things I have done incase DH decides to read my blog today, but I did make his Valentine's card today and have sorted a couple of other things. I also got my tickets for The Killers today, soooooo excited, just over a week to go, I just so cannot wait, although I still have things to scrap from when I went to see them 2 years ago in Berlin... I collected all the bling that fell from the ceiling and DH managed to get me the guitarists plectrum which he threw out into the crowd.... I do have one of our photographs from then as my desktop though... he he

Anyway now to todays card...




The colours used are Not Quite Navy and Bravo Burgundy Cardstock. The Patterned Paper is form my stash, the punch used on the inside of the card is Martha Stewart. The Stamp Set I used is Carte Postale, the idea came from the Stampin' Up! catalogue, which used the same sentiment as I did from God's Blessings. The pearl is from the Pretties Kit.

Have a good Friday evening all xx


Bad, Bad Blogger

I am such a bad blogger, I try to update this every day except the weekend and this week I have failed badly, I haven't even got around to making a card using my own Sketch Challenge, although my members forum does have the latest Colour Challenge on it.

Today I have been busy making a Valentines Card for my son to give to his girlfriend, he said he wanted a heart and a bunch or roses. Unfortunately I was not sure how to make a bunch of roses as I only had single ones on my cricut and I dont have any bunch of rose stamps, so he will have to settle for a couple of roses...



At the point of photographing this card I hadn't realised that one of the roses had fallen off the front, the 2nd rose is positioned on the top curve of the heart and is now securely restuck there.
For this card I used Real Red, Garden Green, Handsome Hunter and Bravo Burgundy Cardstock. The Patterned Paper is Tea and Crumpets. The roses and hearts have been cut using my Cricut Expression using the Wedding Cart and the Indie Art Cart. The lace and bling was from my stash. The inside of the card was stamped using the Seasonal Wishes Stamp Set and the "Love You" is from the Stampin' Up! Rub-Ons. The top layer of the hearts was embossed using a cricut embossing folder.
Had a trip to the orthodontist today with DD, unfortunately her teeth have not moved enough yet, so she is to go back in 8 weeks, eventually she will have to have a bottom fixed brace to match the top one. Couldn't believe how everywhere around here is still so flooded, I took a route to the orthodontist that I wouldn't normally take, mainly because the roads around here were not gritted and they were literally skating rinks, the children had the fright of their lives on the way to school when DH braked and he continued travelling onto the other side of the road, and twice the lady behind nearly ran into the back of him because she couldn't stop, thought she would have learnt the first time...
Have a great evening all, dont forget to have a go at my Weekly Sketch Challenge... take care xx

Sketch Challenge Monday

So a bit later today, but I have finally got around to publishing my Sketch Challenge for this week, Mr Linky will be added later this evening...


Once you have finished your card add it to Mr Linky so that everyone can get some inspiration from it, tell your friends about this challenge too because the more people who enter, the more inspiration we will be able to get. You can interpret this challenge in any way that you please, you can spin it around in fact the sketch is just for inspiration you do not have to follow it exactly as it looks, it is up to you.

I have made this card today, I spent a certain time each month making more religious type cards for an ongoing order that I fulfill each month, so here is todays card...

The paper is Foofala I think, the sentiment is from Verve stamps in US. The crosses were cut on my cricut machine using Real Red Cardstock. The pretty corners are cut using a cuttlebug die and Whisper White Cardstock and little gems have been used to decorate it further. So not too much Stampin' Up! today, but watch out in the days to come as you will be seeing more.

The weather today has been awful, I took a walk into town to pay some money into the bank, I didn't realise I would get so wet, but I thought walking up the big hill would help with my weightloss although I couldn't breathe by the time I got to the top, more exercise methinks. Just to keep you updated on my weightloss, last week I lost 2.5lb and this week I have lost 2.25lb, so a weight loss of 4.75lb, so although not tons, a nice steady loss, so hopefully I wont put it back on again once I reach my target weight.

And some really exciting news, we actually got tickets to go see The Killers in concert on 23rd February at the O2 arena.... I am just soooooooo excited, the last time I saw them live was March 2007 in Berlin and before that was July 2005 when they were the support act for U2, who we went to see in Poland, so quite novel going to a concert in the UK...

Have a great evening all, take care xx





No snow here, but I have been productive...

So the rain in Spain has come to my home town and it is miserable, and the rain is melting the last of the snow, guess that is what happens when you live on the coast.

Today I have been quite productive, I have actually made 4 cards and packed and posted another Stampin' Up! Stampers 10 Club order out to all the girls. But I am only going to show you one card, so that I have some to post when I dont make any.... lol



I got a lot of inspiration for this card from the Stampin' Up! catalogue. The Cardstock I used is Really Rust, Whisper White, Old Olive, and the Patterned Paper is Cosmo Cricket. The Stamp Set I used is Baroque Motifs, with Very Vanilla Taffetta Ribbon and pearls etc from the Pretties Kit. I used the same Cardstock for the inside but used my Martha Stewart Punch for the edges. The circles were cut using various sizes of the Stampin' Up! circle punches.
And that is about it for today, need to go cook a roast for dinner and maybe I will get time to sit and read my book whilst it is cooking. Have a good evening all xx

I thought I would get a lot done today....

But then I realised I had to take 2 of my boys to the dentist for fillings, and then my Stampin' Up! parcel arrived which I needed to pack and take the parcels to the post office, then I had to go and get worming tablets for my 3 dogs and give them to them, oh yes, and the 3 loads of washing I have had to do, the forms I needed to print off and explain to someone and the school run, and here we are, nothing has been done and I have a great big pile of ironing to do... well I guess I could start a card now, but by the time it is finished it will be too dark to photograph, so I may as well get the ironing out of the way whilst it is dark which gives me a day tomorrow to make..... or so I think at this moment in time!! lol

So I thought I would show you a card I made a while ago, I used to do a lot of Sugar Nellie and Magnolia images, until I started selling Stampin' Up! of course and now I rarely get to use my old stamps, so here is today's card...


Sugar Nellie Stamp, Basic Grey Patterned paper, leaves are quickutz die cuts and flowers and brads are from my stash.

So that is about it for today, nothing exciting to report, quite boring really... hope you all have a good evening, take care xx

The snow is melting..... boohoo!!

Have I ever told you how much I love the snow, well it is all melting here and although forecast for later in the week, I wont hold my breath, as I said yesterday it rarely falls on us here, the children are back at school, although the secondary school had to go in later today because of the ice, and can you believe after I finally cleared all the ice from my car this morning, I still could not open the back doors as they were frozen shut, plus my window wipers, front electric windows and heating wouldn't work... luckily it was just a fuse, and a very nice customer in the car part shop came and put it in for me.... thank you.

Today I started off this card as a card sketch I saw somewhere, but then changed my mind halfway through when I decided not to add the sentiment to the front of the card.




I added the sentiment to the inside instead. It did turn out prettier than I thought it would and I ended up quite pleased with it. But the image is a stamp I found in my draw, not sure who made it, the Patterned Paper is American Crafts, but... the pale blue is Bashful Blue Stampin' Up! cardstock and the buttons are also from Stampin' Up!. The ribbon is from my stash, and the sentiment stamp is from Verve...
So that just about winds it up for today, have a good evening all and keep yourselves warm xx

Wow... look at the snow!!

Well despite often being threatened with snow where I live it is very rare to get any amount of snow over a few flakes. So this weather today is absolutely amazing, I remember once when I worked in London the snow being bad there, but obviously not as bad as today with no buses running and the underground shut too... The children's schools were shut so they have been home all day, totally amazing how on a school day, you cannot get them out of bed, but today, they were out early building snowmen. Even my husband didn't chance getting into work and has worked from home today.... so here is the children's handiwork.


I have no idea what we are having for dinner tonight as I haven't managed to get out shopping today, so will have to dig down in the freezer to find something.
Anyway, despite placing a Stampin' Up! order and taking photo's of children, I have managed to make a card using my card challenge, not sure I really like it, but was distinctly missing my mojo today even though I thought my card challenge would inspire me.



I have used Real Red and Brilliant Blue Cardstock, the image is from a Level 3 Hostess Set, Window Dressing and the sentiment is from the A Bit of Birthday Cheer stamp set. The buttons were from my stash and the paper I have had for ages, not sure what it is....
Be careful in the snow and have a good evening all xx

Monday Card Challenge

Here is today's card challenge, looks a bit neater than last weeks and I haven't made my own card to go with it yet.


Please feel free to take part in this challenge and add a link to your card in Mr Linky so that you can give inspiration to other people.... will be back later with a card... have a great snowy day xx