he looks so cute

don't you think so ? Boy he is losing teeth so fast he looks so different when he opens his mouth. 2 more are already loose, the other upperfront tooth and the bottom cornertooth on the right.





Oh and DH has been playing with Adobe Lightroom, some seriously cool effects can be made with that. Check out this pic, I look ok even though I have the flu ...





I was so happy with my DD , for those who missed it :




The other DD babes rocked it too ! You can see what they made here, and I'm sure you can live up to this dare, c'mon give it a try !

Turbulence

This is been a turbulent month for MLS ... A month of saying goodbyes, expressing gratitude but also a chance to reflect, change and new ideas for everyone.

Scraps is starting their own store in Gouda and we wish them lots of success with this !

Daphne is taking a little break with some time for herself and her mini me but not without a fun prenatal scrapafternoon for the dt.

Charlotte will be plunging herself into more schoolwork and Scrap!, we wish her lots of suc6 and of course we will be checking out your work there !

Monique is still rebuilding her new house but promises to give a housewarming party so we can admire her lovely Scraproom. We will be keeping her close though as a regular guestdesigner !


Francine will be plunging herself onto a adventure @ work with a new client and cannot help us out with our newsletter. A loss for us but luckily we do not have to miss her writing style as we can read, laugh and cry along with her on her blog.

Jo-Anne has a lot of great opportunities for workshops, ScapinStyle TV and within her job @ Nike that doesn’t give her enought time for MLS. We totally understand and don’t have to miss her too much as we all can check out SISTV, ask her as a guestdt every now and then and check out her blog (and since I’m a bff LOL I don’t have to miss her at all).


So that leaves a bit of a small dt that made the dutch dare this week, but they are still fab as usual. Here's a sneakpeak of mine, lot's of bling in this one !

Picture of me

We are in a great position to have so many friends that are photography geeks (LOL I mean this in the sweetest possible way sweeties) so DH has been getting lot's of tips on which camera and lenses and such. And even better position because one of our friends loaned us one of her extra's and Ed is playing like there's no tommorow ! Here's a couple of a whole series he made of me and I love them !

on a creative high

Well at least I think so this week as I've been finishing lots of 1/2 started projects (of which I have a box full) ....

This is Colin about 3 months old.


photo made by the sweet Francine.

A fun and inspiring Adrienne Looman workshop, made this for my friend Liek. Hope to give it to her Sunday !

last weeks dutch dare which I pimped a bit afterwards with some journaling:

And I don't think I ever shared this one of Colin with the title on it, but it's been finished for ages with thanks to this post of last year.

I also made some cards, I will share those next week !

wondering

What I've been up to ?

I'm totally digging sites like goodreads, facebook & hyves. And have been exploring facebook a lot these last few days.

I've been creative, wow finished 3 lo's and making a bunch of cards with scraps I had left over.

Went to a crea market to sell some stuff, wasn't a big suc6 but a learning experience (like check out the location and make sure the organizers promote it enough !)....

Have been giving a fab beginners workshop to enthousiastic scrappers to be.

My scrap studio is finally tidy, so this weekend I can get my admin up to speed and get cracking on those RAKS I promised centuries ago LOL.

Well that's it really, so what have you all been up to ?

2 anouncements

Birthday update will follow this week, I'll show you all the yummy gifts I received ! A lot of things in pink ;)

*1 New Dutch Dares are up today and it was a fun challenge, here's a sneak peak of mine.





Check out the challenge Mandy gave us.


*2 If you are in the neighbourhood of Badhoevedorp this saturday there's a small creamarkt in the dorpshuis and I will be there with some shopstuff. Lot's of creative things will be for sale there 3d cards, beads etc. It's from 10.00-15.00 and the entrance fee is only 1 euro !


So unlike most people, today is a day I think about all the families that have been affected by the aftermath of 9/11. As the day after is probably the day they really realised all that had happened and to whom ... My heart aches for them !

My treat

Unexpectedly going to a workshop of Adrienne Looman today and since it's my d'day {*edited well if you know my age it is d'day but I meant B'day LOL} I wanted to treat my friend Corinne, who's also there working hard @ giving some fab workshops, to something yummy, but since she's working hard at her diet I thought I'd treat her to my first ever felt project, a cupcake. Zero caleries and longlasting yumminess .....

Charity

I'm a sucker for charity ... If I had more funds I would spread it around over all the charities there are. But we have to make choices so we have a list of 5 charities that we are long time donors for; Aids fund, WNF, Greenpeace, Clini Clowns and Cancer fund. But I must say we can never resist someone who's collecting for all the other charities that are out there that pass us by.

And because I love a good cause I wanted to make you aware, for those that have not heard about these 2 initiatives : {edited : make that 3 !}

Scrap-a-Little Sunshine
Scrapping cute mini albums for children with cancer, now who can resist that ? I have 2 free workshops scheduled for this cause on monday September 24th and Friday October 12th. If you're interested you can email me to register for this.


Scrapping against Cancer
The Art Noevoo girls, a belgium scrap blog, are organising a day to raise funds for cancer on november 11th in Ekeren, Belgium. If it's not too far out of your way and you're in for a fun day then you should definately register for this Scrappen voor Kanker event !

A sisters Hope
I was waaaaaaaaaaay behind on a sweet and talented lady's blog and it turns out she's doing something wonderfull for cancer too. Monique Helfrich is walking the walk and has pledged to raise 1.500 euro's through donations but also by organising all kinds of sales in her hometown tommorow. I wish her a lot of money so she can make the goal, I will surely be helping with this and will donate money in her name ....

So let your fingers do the typing or scrapping and donate or create but please do your part for cancer. We all know how important this cause is !!!

TOOOOOOOOOT

Yes a huge toot .... But not for me but for my DH Bubbah !

For what you might ask, well he hasn't scrapped (yet) but has so many fans all over the world that love his blog, he's been interviewed by an online mag for scrappers in Manilla. Check it out here; My Scrapworks

Amazing that something that started out as a practical joke on me has resulted in a this, a fun blog for men and women somehow connected to scrapbooking.
I'm a proud wife, not that I wasn't yet, he is one in a million my sweet Bubbah !

Oh and if you are a frequent visitor of his blog please leave him a comment as he'd love to know who you are, c'mon don't be afraid !

Friends

I value friendships and know how important they are in my life.

I do not have a lot of old friends as I moved a lot in my youth and it's hard to keep friendships when this happens. But sometimes friendships end for other reasons or for no reason at all and I feel it's like a divorce really it hurts and it takes (well in my case) a lot of time for my heart to heal....

But you know the good thing about friendships ?

You can always make new friends, and I'm happy to say that over the past few years for the one that ended 3 years ago I've made lots more. I've been lucky enough to meet great new friends who trust me, love me and take me as I am, ones who I laugh with, share things with and have lots of fun with.

Thanks to all my new friends for making my life fuller ! You know who you all are !

DD #21

Yep a new wednesday so there was a new challenge for the dutch dare. It was a tough one for me to be honest ...... I had a LO half done when I thought up a different project. I've just decided it needs some embellishments, but here's a sneak peak and check out what the other babes did with loads of fabric !

Happy Birthday Mandy !

Hope you have a wonderful day and get spoiled rotten LOL. Unfortunately I don't know your year or birth so you're going to have to calculate all the special details yourself : http://www.paulsadowski.com/birthday.asp
(btw this is total a scraplift, with a technique I've been wanting to try for quite a while ! I recently discovered this blog and she makes the loveliest cards just like her SIL!)

And this card was for a friend who celebrated her birthday last friday.

Pfffffffffffffffffffffffff

Today I don't know if I'm PMS'ing or i'm tired from going to bed late, or if the boys are too intense at the moment after their first week of school (actually they are), or it's because I have to go to work monday or just feel a bit lost or lonely but I just feel PppppFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF you know ;)


Still wanted to share some random things with you, and then I plan not to dwell but take some vitamins and get a hug from my men ..... and have some laughs that will help.

I just got an invite from my friend Wendy for a spontanious braai tonight and it made me smile so the first smile is in the pocket. Just what I need, thanks sweetie !


This also made me smile this week, just a fun day with a friend, something I need more of as it gives me so much energy just a day of hanging out, chatting, bit of windowshopping and nothing on the mind ..... Thanks Anita for a fun day !





On the dutch dare blog we are sharing our inside stories about the lo's, plan to do this in the week after the dare reveal. Really loved reading the story behind Mandy's lo, mine is on there now and Mirjam and Liek are soon to follow. Check it out, it's nice and sentimental to read ;)

We're going geocaching today for the first time, so we're staying in the area. There are over 100 caches we can search for within the 10 km radius. I'll let you know how it went.


Hope you have a nice weekend, I hope to have feel better on monday ;)

Ouch x 2

Right after our holiday we had a dentist appointment for the boys which went well. Michael was having a gum problem (started right before we went away) and the dentist was concerned and wanted to remove the moulder that was causing it. Michael had a choice ; either I would be poking in his mouth every day trying to get the bump on his gum cleaned out and he would have to keep rinsing with a discustiing substance of he could have the moulder removed. Guess what he chose ......



It went pretty well considering he is 6 ... he did scream a few times but we said he was allowed since the dentist was puling out a moulder with a pair of pliers (that's what he called it a "nijptang") and I gave him my hand to squeeze. Which wasn't a good idea because of all the tension I was squeezing back a few times LOL. I didn't have the heart to take any pics at the dentist or right after as he did look pretty weird with his fat lip and dried blood everywere. But trust me the moulder scrapped !

Another thing causing some ouch is my birthday, now would you be offended if all your friends are cancelling on you LOL ?


Now I'm the kind of girl that loves birthdays (especially my own), it's one of the 2 days a year I get spoiled by loved ones and doesn't everyone love that ?! Problem is that I'm appearantly celebrating my birthday in a popular weekend. I wanted to do a grownup party on a saturday evening, hopefully in the garden if the weather keeps going like this so I emailed everyone in advance to get their babysitter organised for the party. But I keep getting cancellations, all good reasons that people can't help but still if this keeps up Liek will be the only one showing up haha If that happens I'm taking her out !

Oh and you'll never guess what we will be doing this weekend ! C'mon try everyone can play except Anita cause she knows LOL.

Grade 1 & 3 (long story ...)

The M&M's returned to school on monday and I'll try to give you an impression of how this went @ 7.00 mondaymorning.



C yelling from his room:
Daddy where's mommy ? (I was out for dinner the night before)
Daddy's @ work, Mommy is here.
Oh ok, hi mommy.
Do you know what kind of day this is Colin ?
Is it school day today ?
Yes it is.
Jiiiiiiiiiiiiiiipppppppppppppppppiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee (arms in the air) I'm going to school.

And for the next 45 min. he was jumping up and down screaming "who let the dogs in" LOL.



M:

Michael wake up sweetie !
Hhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmpfffffffffffff.
Me opening the curtains, come on wake up. aaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhpffffffffffff.
(By this time Colin was already dressed, I had to look twice I was so surprised.)
Come on Michael wake up !
PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFfffffffffff....
Michael I am going into the shower, and if you're not up and dressed by the time I come out you will be going to bed earlier tonight, obviously you are going to bed tooo late if you cannot manage to get out now (he gets to go 15 - 30 min. later than his brother) .

And there he was with me still in the shower but fully dressed :)


Some random stuff they said before, during & after school:


The teacher sure reads slowly, i kept having to go back to page 1 and 2 ......
If the teacher says a bad word I will tell you and daddy about it !
I only have to learn how to write in a pretty way, I don't have to learn anything else.
Is it time for our lunchbreak yet ?
I like grade 3 better than grade 2 !
When are we allowed to go to bed ?
What are we going to do now ? Is it lunchtime or are the mommies outside ?


Some pics :







So now you're totally in the loop on the boys getting back into their routine, now me hmmm different story ............ How are you getting back into the swing of things after the summer ?

Altering, Vintage, Shabby Chic

So I've been wanting to get more into altering books and stuff and was looking for a good book. Celine has lots on her blog from amazon and I saw a few that appealed to me, with good reviews.
BUT if you're into altering, vintage, Shabby Chic etc. what is YOUR fave book and do you know these ?????

Fanciful Paper Projects: Making Your Own Posh Little Follies
by Sandra Evertson

Altered Books, Collaborative Journals, and Other Adventures in Bookmaking
by Holly Harrison

Fabric Art Journals: Making, Sewing, and Embellishing Journals from Cloth and Fibers (Quarry Book)
by Pam Sussman

Fabric Memory Books: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration
by Lesley Riley (Author)

Oh and do you know this site "Good Reads" ? I was invited by Amber to join it and it's fun to see what you're friends are reading and what they think of a certain book. Now I need to figure out how to add another address list to it as I only added some of my scrapfriends and I have lots more LOL.

some pics

During the holiday the boys and I have been visiting some friends since we have nothing better to do LOL. Last week I went to see Liek and spent some time in the park by her house and this week we went to see Francine. I only took pics over at the park with Liek as Francine and I were chatting away, we forgot .... (although Michael did take some pics you can check them out here)

And we had a house full of boys this weekend as my friend Martine was moving house, her sons came for a sleepover and had a blast !

Oh and I've been taking more pictures of myself to train myself to get more comfortable and here are some of my favorites;

Which is your favorite ? I had some without sunglasses but somehow they have disappeared :(

Dutch Dares # 20

Woohooo I finished another LO in one evening, I'm getting better at making decisions lol ( I made one LO last friday @ Corinne's house ...) it's for the dutch dare # 20 (presented to you by a wonderful scrapper and sweet lady !) and if you like the peak, check out the rest here .....

THE Scrapstudio

(sorry can't seem to get everything outlined the way I want ...)

Well we worked very hard friday to get 2 cupboards out, 1 in and then moving all the scrapstuff from the cupboards (my mom and auntie came over for some extra muscle power).
Yesterday I got all the shelves sorted in heights that work and got most things where I wanted, still have to sort a few things out.
But I'm getting there and since I promised here are some pic's of the current state. I hope to get an idea for a little corner that is bare and as I do need some more shelving or bags or maybe one of those old fashion hanging fruit baskets (it's 1.40 high and 38 cm wide so if you have idea's ....).

My Shop :

Still need to tidy up the sale dept.:

Details :

My storage unit on wheels for workshops (unfortunately it doesn't fit under the cupboard ....):

My corner (notice the bare area that needs to be utilized on the right):

These jars make me happy !

My books:

My unfinished projects and my own (small) papercollection:

Need one more shelve so this looks better :

My Desk:

Above my desk (these buckets and stampholder will be hung under the window):

Under my desk (needs to be sorted ):

2 summer hotties

Just wanted to share these with you, they were made last weekend @ Colin's Birthday bash:
















I think we need to photoshop M's pic to get the seatcushion out of there !

Oh and according to Elwira I rock, thanks Babe !






I think these chicks rock too :

Liek cause she's my oldest and bestest friends, beautiful inside and out

Corinne cause she's a fab scrapbooker, a great new friend and she's soooo photogenic I hate her for it LOL.

Francine cause she is the best storyteller and Mom I know ( that last thing totally makes me want to be her !), thanks for inviting us into your life !

Florence cause she's sweet, rocks at taking pic's and is the fastest scrapbooker I know !

Oh and for those who are wondering where in the @#!&^ their RAK is, I'm still purging LOL. a few days ago I decided the bookcases/cupboards I bought for the scrapstudio are not working for me so I sold them and have already found some new (secondhand) Ivar ones and we're putting them up (after a real good cleanup, they're airing outside now) tommorow. Hopefully that will work better and I can finally get the mess sorted in there ...... Maybe I'll even show some pic's ...