{day10} and FREE Blogwear and more

{Day 10}

Here is my page for day 10{click to view larger if you wish} Imagination is not a problem for me...sometimes it is too active! And I like to live in the present not the past...so day's 10 quote was very suitable for me.
I have made a digital layout for Designs by Tina-with her new kit Indian Summer, it is a truly gorgeous kit!


Here is my LO with it: (my boy!)
I have some new stuff in my Etsy store
I have these ATC backgrounds-in digital format. You can print them out at home and design your ATC's on them for swapping and fun!
Also some new Marie Antoinette tags printed on high quality 200GSM mixed media paper-three in a set for only $3.25 and I have a special at the moment-

Choose any TWO sets of 3 tags and get a Third set of 3 of your choice FREE!!!($3.25 worth free!)

OR

Choose any 3 sets of tags (3 or 6 in a set) and get 2 sets of 3 for FREE!!!(that is over $6 worth of free tags!!!)


And then I wanted to show you what I created as a journal for my 15 year old niece..
She loves it...it's the kind of thing I would of wanted at that age..maybe without the skull though!
And lastly I think I am going to start creating FREE blog wear. It's quick, easy and fun!
So you can click on the label in the sidebar that says "free blogwear".

My one today is made from vintage images and commercial use brush work I purchased from Rhonna Farrer. If you use my free blogwear products, all i ask is you take the little button below and put it on your blog and link to my site please as well as give me credit on your blog. Thank you.

Just right click on the header and background and open in a new window and then click "save as" by right clicking on the images. Then you save to your PC or upload to photobucket.
The blog background was made with a 3-column blog in mind,like mine is. I am not sure if it will fit a 2 column blog, but you can try! Also they are in png format.

For blogger, you can click on layout, then click on "add a gadget" and then
you can choose HTML/java script and put the code below into the box and click save.

{note: it comes with the blog button credit already on for you}
Otherwise do the other way by saving to your PC as I mentioned. I hope you enjoy it and would LOVE to hear your comments!!

{day 9} 21 challenge

Enthusiasm. Something that has been one of my goals this 21 challenge and so far so good.
It definitely helps lead to success.
Enthusiasm leads to motivation, which in turn leads to action=success!


How are the rest of you 21-ers doing with the challenge? We can do it!!!

Digitally,
Jen, my sis, has a freebie using my vintage clusters on her blog.
Thanks Jen.

{Day 8} 21 day challenge

Day 8...


Rhonna thought was about living a creative life, it doesn't have to be perfect, it doesn't matter, what matters is that you have done it and accomplished it! Its about breaking old habits and forming new ones and letting go of fear.


I just love that there are so many of us doing this challenge, each with different goals, but at the end of the day we all just want to be our best selves. Thank you for the support and encouragement to those who have left comments. I still can't comment on some of your blogs, especially the ones with the box and then it says" choose a profile" I choose google account and hit submit and nothing happens, the box empties and no comment shows up. I tried signing into blogger first, going back to the blog, refreshing it, etc etc, nothing works. Have no idea what to do, it is only those blogs with the choose an option block and big block for comments, like this:
Anyway if you know the deal , would love the solution. Tried to look on the blogger help pages, but couldn't find anything.
will be back with my day 9 tonight.

{Day 7}-One week done!

I used some of Rhonna's products I purchased, brushwork, vintage images and stickers.

Day 7
Today's quote: "Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success. " Dale Carnegie

Today I did my journal post digitally, printed it out and worked on it some more with stickers, pen and journaling. SO glad the weekend is over, I love weekends, but not this past one... due to it being a difficult date. I feel like I failed a bit lately, but as Rhonna said on her blog, failure is no excuse to give up! And so I press on....
I love what she said for day 6...when you feel like giving up...do what your best self would do!
That struck a cord in me...my best self...I have two selves...my everyday self and my best self...I want to be my best self everyday! What a great thought! A HUGE thought and such a motivating one!

Looking forward to Tuesday...to be being my BEST self and to not giving up.

{day 6} 21 Day challenge

Oh why did I bother getting out of bed this morning? SUCH an opposite day to what I had on Friday...nothing much to journal about...here's wishing for tomorrow....

and....

I KNOW I can do it...just need to take each day at a time.

{Day 5} 21 Day Challenge

I hardly ever use my pc on the weekend never mind blog! But Rhonna's challenge is still on going even over the weekend, so I thought I would stick to it and be CONSISTENT.

It's not an easy weekend for me as it is 6 months since my brother passed away. I am battling to hold it all together, to stay positive, to stay consistent. I have relapsed since Friday due to this, but I know tomorrow, Monday, will be better as then I am back in routine. Weekends are hard, I loose focus cos I have no routine or direction. I haven't given up, I just need a breather and tomorrow will be back on track.
I have, however been creating and this has helped a great deal. It makes me feel worthwhile to know what I creates inspires others. Sharing my story is not always easy, but I feel if it can help someone else, then I need to do it.

I have tried to leave comments of a few of the 21-ers blogs, and it asks to choose a type of account, which I do, and then write my comment and press "post comment" and then my comment disappears and it does not end up on the blog I just commented on! It is so frustrating!
So if one of the blogs is yours, please tell me what I am doing wrong, as I would love to comment on your posts!
Treasures
Michelle Roycroft { I wanted to tell you that I Can help you with your blog !) give me a shout
scottshandmadecrafts
They all ask for the same format, so I don't know if that has something to do with it.

Can anyone help or tell me why I can't post?

21 Days-Day 1, 2 and 3

I am doing Rhonna's 21 day challenge. The thought behind this is that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. Who would of thought? LOL! I of course have a huge MOUNTAIN of things I need to change about myself-who doesn't? But I figured I would concentrate on 3 things that pretty much set the scene for a lot of things to follow after that.

1} Be POSITIVE and Show ENTHUSIASM

I used to be a very optimistic, positive person, and in a lot of ways i still am. It's not like I go around like Eeyore with a little black rain cloud over my head...I am generally a happy person, I smile and joke a lot, everyday. The smallest things amuse me...I guess being positive as in I can make a difference, I can be a good influence in others lives...but it has to start with me. I also need to show more enthusiasm....the weird thing is that when someone does something great for me or gives me a compliment or a gift, I SO appreciate it and inside I am squealing with excitement, I just have a hard time bringing that across, I need to be visible so that I don't offend others.

2} Be on time!
I am so often late for things: late to take my kids to school, late for gym classes, late for important meetings, late , late LATE. It has to change! ha ha!!

3.} BE Consistent!!

I always seem to know what I want, it is just how I end up getting it or achieving it that is the problem. I do things in a very round about way sometimes, get side tracked, de-motivated and this ties in with point number 1-feel powerless and so get negative and then don't get anything done or little of what I plan to do! I achieve lot most days, but sometimes not the things I really need to get stuck into...It's a nice mixture of procrastination, despondence, and feeling over whelmed sometimes. I just need focus and to concentrate on one thing at a time until its done and then move on... This point is very general, but it applies to lot of things I am working on in this challenge, some of which are personal.

So with that in mind.. Day 1
{click on image to view larger if you wish}
I've had fun cutting, pasting, sticking, decopaging, painting!

day 1

Day two:




Day 3

I'm having fun with it, and I know it's only the beginning, I have done the challenge before (see sidebar) so I know there are BAD and GOOD days and you just have to take each day at a time, you might fall, you might relapse...don't give up...keep going...I did it last time, and I know I can do it again and if you are a fellow 21-er, then you CAN do it too!
Today I actually was on time in getting my son to school-granted it helped my husband took my daughter to school, but I left early and he got there with time to spare instead of running like the wind as the bell rings!! -amazing and it felt so good because I got at least 30 minutes EXTRA out of my day!!

Thank you

Me, my brother Rob and my sister Jen December 2008.

Thank you for all your thoughts for our family.

Finding strength for "normal" things is just very, very hard and I am taking one day at a time. Getting through each day is my main focus at this point. My sister arrives tomorrow of which I am so grateful for. My other brother who lives in London cannot come right now, which is terrible, I last saw him 8 years ago...I wish he could be with us right now, but we speak on the phone everyday. I feel the most for my dad...I can't imagine loosing a child...he already lost my mom when I was two. And of course I feel so much for my sister in law...they had been married 18 years this month (had just celebrated their anniversary)...
It helps me personally to cry, to talk about it when I need too. It is my own way of dealing with it.Sometimes I just can't and I just need to shut myself up or sleep. Sleeping helps and is great, because then I don't have to feel anything. The mornings are the worst as I wake up and for a few brief seconds life is normal until it hits me all over again...

The hardest thing is that life around you carries on. You still need to feed the kids, be a mom, do the washing, etc etc. you wish the world could stop so that you could just grieve. I suppose in time it will be the normality of these little things that will help me. My husband has been the most amazing man in the world. So utterly supportive and kind. He cries with me, he cleans for me, he does everything he can. And shame, he is still suffering with his own physical pain from his broken leg and limping around.

Bring back the Nature Table

Bring Back the Nature Table


I recently read an article in a British magazine “Country Living” which I purchase monthly.
It spoke about how children are loosing touch with their natural environment. Britain has started a campaign called “Bring back the Nature table”. It encourages parents and grandparents as well as schools to take their children out for nature walks; in the woods, parks, meadows, even the back garden. To let them experience nature, let them get dirty, let them get full of mud. Show them how to explore, forage, dig etc. I remember as a child always going off into the surrounding forests and woods-exploring, having awesome adventures. Building forts and poo fey-slides, (when you attach a wire to a tree on one end and to a higher tree or platform so that it slopes downwards. You then attach a rubber handle and holding on to this handle you jump off from a height and slide down the wire to the bottom)
We had great fun. I guess, and speaking from my own experience as a mom, things have changed drastically from the time our parents were children, to when we were children, to our children today. It is no longer safe to let them wander off exploring,even if it is a few meters in front of your own property, never mind in a nearby forest. It is said that if a child is not exposed to nature, to RAW nature before they are 12, that they will never make the connection with nature and this will stay with them for life.Let me quote the article as it put it so well, “If you ask an adult to think of a time when they felt most secure and happy, it's nearly always when they were a child playing in a natural place, such as a den in the woods or a park. Dr Bird explains : “But if they are not exposed by the age of 12, they will never make that link. A walk through the countryside will mean nothing to them-in fact, they may even perceive it as something to be feared.”.

Scary and Sad. I try and do things with my children outside as often as I can. If it a beautiful day, they have to play outside, and 9 times out of 10,I don't have to prompt them, they go on their own. Fortunately we have a lovely big garden with trees and a tree house too. I also take them on outings as often as I can, like to our local nature reserve. I realize they will never have the type of childhood I had, free and (relatively) safe, but I can to some extent give them that.

Anyway, although the article was for the British and the campaign is for Britain, this really applies to all Children in all countries. So I thought I would make a nature table for my kids. I gave them a table to use and I encouraged them to go outside and find things to display and decorate it themselves. I was so pleased with their sweet efforts and my daughter even arranged a pretty border of rocks and stones around the table. I told them that when we go on our walks, they must be on the lookout for things lying on the ground to add to our table, as things die, they will get replaced with new things.They are very excited about this prospect and with our 6 week holiday coming up beginning of December, I think this will be fun project. I might even start a nature scrapbook with them and dry out what things they collect to stick in.


I am so thrilled you all like my story! Thank you so much for the kind and positive words as it really was a big step for me sharing it to begin with! I will have to carry on writing it now so as not to disappoint everyone and leave it in the lurch!! ha ha. I have often wondered if writers think of the whole story in their heads, from how it will start to how it will end, or if they make it up as they go along. I for one, am making this up as I go along, although I sort of an idea the direction I want the story to take!

Without further Ado, here is Part 4 of "The Ivy House"

The Ivy house by Bonnie van Esch is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 South Africa License

“Mrs March” said Sandy, “I wanted to thank you for opening your house to us for the holidays. I mean, I know we are paying you for it, but it it still must be odd having strangers come and stay in your house. My husband should be here in two or three days to join us. He is just finishing a work contract.”

“Oh my dear, it really is not a problem, I could hear by your voice over the telephone that you were a lovely young woman and every time I heard those little darlings chattering away in the background, I knew that is what I wanted again. The sound of children and life in this old house again. It's been 10 years since The late Mr March died. Poor George. So it has been lonely here all on my own. Just Gladis who stays at the back of the house. She does all the cooking and cleaning. And old Saul who comes twice a week to mow and work in the gardens. But this place really is too big for me now. I am getting too old for all this. So I decided to rent it out to couples such as yourselves for holidays. I still get to stay here and enjoy a bit of company and you get to enjoy your holiday, no cooking or cleaning to do. Makes a good deal don't you say?” Said Mrs March. “Oh, and call me Margaret” she finished.

“Well Mrs...I mean Margaret” said Sandy, “We are looking forward to it. You have a lovely big old house and the gardens look like a lovely place for the children to explore. And if you can't find a replacement maid, I really don't mind doing the cooking myself.”

“Nonsense. I Will find a replacement, what kind of holiday is it if you have to cook and clean? That's what you do at home-no doubt every day. All mothers need a break!” Said Margaret and chopped a big potato right in half.

Sandy began peeling and chopping the vegetables, while the children played happily on the floor. Margaret and Sandy chatted about this and that and then fell into an amiable silence. Sandy finished her last carrot and put down her knife and looked around at the kitchen. It was done out in Maple wood. It was a good size. Probably four by five meters. The ceilings were high with exposed wooden beams. That ran straight across from one side of the room to the other side. The cupboards reached high and on top sat rows of assorted tins: Biscuits, tea, coffee and sugar, lovely vintage images adorning them. The handles on all the cupboards were little brass knobs. All the appliances, except for the big old stove and oven, seemed to be new. Stainless steel and black, but somehow the old and the new tied in nicely together. Next to the laundry room was the tall pantry cupboard which stood open. You could step inside it to retrieve your goods. Inside was a cement floor with a small wooden stool for reaching the higher goods. Next to the pantry was a bookshelf mounted above the working surface. It was packed with cookery books, some with cut our magazine recipes that spilled out the tops. The stove stood with its large warming drawer. Along the next wall were more bottom cupboards and two large rectangular cream apron sinks. In front of the sinks were two large wooden windows that opened out. Pretty blinds with large lemons and strawberry's, hand painted it seemed, framed the view. The butchers block underneath had 8 wicker baskets, four in each row of equal size. In these where all kinds of vegetables and fruits. The aromas mixed and filled the kitchen with a lovely scent. The kitchen had a very old fashioned feel,but looked modern and country at the same time. It was busy but not cluttered. Only the necessary things were on dark wooden tops. The kettle, toaster, coffee peculator, and some jars of assorted sizes in stainless steel for sugar, coffee, tea and pasta's.

to be continued....

Piracy

IF you come across files on 4shared or in a yahoo group marked BvanEsch followed by the kit name etc, please note that these are pirated files. I have made it so that my files do not show up if searched for. I know of two such files on 4shared at the moment that someone has pirated of mine. They were never a freebie, in fact the same file is a kit in my shop. This person did not even bother to change the name, she left it as is. This makes me so mad, even though I try not to let it bother me, if I am honest, it does. I work very hard to design kits and while some others do if for a hobby and for fun, I really need the money I make from it. (as do a lot of designers I know)- I have come to depend on the income.
Edited: I just wanted to add that even if designers do not necessarily need the money and are designing just for the enjoyment, still does not give anyone the right or the justification to come along and abuse the copyright issue.
This person and others alike, that steal these files and then uploads them elsewhere and shares them in yahoo groups are thieves of the worse kind. If the roles were reversed and they were the ones working hard, spending hours on a kit designing it and they came across someone pirating their work-how do you think they would feel? It is only because they are not, that they feel justified doing this. I don't understand why people do this, as most of the time, they are not re-selling the kit, they are merely sharing it for free after I presume they have bought it(or how else would they get the kit?). If they are not gaining anything by doing this-why do it???
Besides the fact what they are doing is illegal, dishonest, disgusting and fraudulent.
All I can say is that what goes around comes around and they will get their just desserts in other areas of their lives, because someone who can do that, can't be a very nice person to start off with....pitiful actually.
Thanks for reading...I needed to get that off my chest.

Laundry, home-file and photos

I wanted to have a bit of fun today and also just share some latest things.

So first of all...Laundry...
I know, the word in itself makes me want to run and bury my head under the blankets. It strikes fear into the heart of most woman. IT conjures up mental images of huge mountain-like baskets, over flowing with clothes that need ironing...
I do not have a domestic helper and have not had one in years. I prefer to do it all myself as I must admit I am quite fussy about how I like things done. Saying so, I have gotten myself into a good routine and can zip around my house within a morning on on Monday (when the house is at it's worst after the weekend)within around 3 hours. That includes: tidying up, vacuuming, mopping, dusting, changing all the bedding and remaking the beds with clean linen, unpacking and repacking the dishwasher, putting on washing and hanging it up, cleaning the bathrooms thoroughly. The rest of the week I have a system going in which I nip around the house normally within an hour and a half and complete all my chores.
Of course, I don't profess to be a Martha Stewart but I thought to share a few tips I have learned.
1) Instead of folding up my towels, I roll them up and then secure each end with an elastic band. This helps not only to retain their shape, but saves loads of space in your linen cupboard. I tried the folding method with the towels below and the rolling method and the folding method took up two shelves, while the rolling method as you can see from the photo, only took up one shelf.



2) When taking down the washing off the line ( I don't have a tumble drier as here in South Africa every day is normally a hot and/or windy day and I can do about 4 loads or more a day and have it all dry at the end of the day).I take down all the stuff that needs ironing first and then get to the rest of the stuff. This way, when it comes time for sorting the laundry, I sort it all out-packing each member of the family's laundry into their own little basket, and all that is left are the things that need ironing which stay exactly where they are.

3) When I clean, I carry around a bucket with all my detergents, cloths etc. I start at one end of the house and work my way to the other end. I also have with me a plastic bag for rubbish and a basket for belongings that belong elsewhere. This means that when I start at one end of the house, I take all the things (normally toy's )that don't belong in that room, and put them in the basket. I clean the room thoroughly, dust shelves etc, change bedding and put any rubbish in the plastic bag, before moving onto the next room . This saves numerous trips I would of made to each room to deposit the belonging, or to the laundry room to throw away the rubbish item.
(huge time saver).

4)With RE to the point above,when going to the next room and looking in the basket for any items that belong in that room, I put it immediately in it's right place to save me coming back again later to do it.

5) As far as the dreaded ironing goes. I have a basket for each family member. As I do the ironing, I deposit the articles of clothing into each respective basket. That way when the ironing board is packed away and it comes time to packing away the ironing, all I have to do is simply take each basket to the right room and pack it away.

This may help someone!

6) This is the shelf in my laundry room. I recently attacked it and thought to get more organized. I covered a whole lot of shoes box's with pretty rose wall paper I was given. One of the box's houses my iron, another all my sponges, cloths. Another my dishtowels.


7) I also got a bit more organized with RE to my paper scrapping supplies. I bought this cute drawer unit on holiday. I put all my embellishments into it. Divided into 6 categories: chalks and inks, flowers, brads, ribbon, tickets and stickers, and I can't remember what is in the last drawer. This kind of compact storage system is great! It can be stored under a table or on top and you simply take it out when you need to scrap-it is quite lightweight.

8)A project I did this weekend: I hate the TV remotes lying around all the time, it drives me crazy. So I thought to get a tin to store them in and decorate it to tie in with my color scheme and also explain what was in the tin. I cut out two letters, "T" and "V" from the TV guide and then painted them, I also put some contact over the letters. I also decorated the tin with flowers and buttons. Simple but I think effective and Hubby is using it! shock of shocks-ha ha!


Okay so that is it on the tips. Hope you enjoyed them. I have also been busy making more journals and note books. I plan to make a whole lot and then try to sell them.


And lastly I wanted to show you some pages from my home-file. Kari mentioned this on her blog. I have kept one for ages. I cut out pictures from magazines and words that inspire me, motivate me and things for ideas or something I would like to try in my own home oneday. I have filled a whole book with images. I am very much into the shabby-chic, vintage and country look.







wow, that was a long post! A long time coming! I hope you enjoyed it! Please scroll down while you are here and tell me three things about yourself..see previous post! Would love to hear from you!

To journal or not to journal

I hauled out all my old diaries the other night...a huge pile of them! I have kept a diary since I was 12! In a way i have documented most of my life. I still keep a journal although I don't start off with "dear diary" anymore...lol!

It is fun to page through them, read back on what I thought and felt at 13, 15, 18..Memories otherwise I think I would forget were it not recorded for me to read. Sometimes reading these journals have brought back a memory I hadn't thought about in years. For me, keeping a
journal has been about recording my life, my thoughts, my feelings, my memories. It has been a form of escape, a creative outlet, a vent, a need. I feel fulfilled after making a journal entry. I am sure if someone had to find them years from now, when I am long since kicking up daisies, they will think, "Heck, poor woman, to live in such times!" ha ha! My journals are pretty boring I reckon. Nothing incriminating or overly embarrassing in them! I stick a lot of photos in, pictures, quotes, I draw, doodle, whatever inspires and grabs me at the time. I've told my husband that if I die, he must keep them and pass them onto my children for them to read so that they can really "know" who there mom was, thier lives are recorded in there too, my memories of
them, the funny things they did and said, their growth from pregnancy to now. It would be selfish of me not to share it with them. I wouldn't want eveyone reading them, but my hubby and kids would certainly be allowed to!

So do you keep a journal? how many years have you kept one? What sort of things do you write about/keep in it? I don't write every day, probably once a week or twice a week and then I do a recap of the week. Or sometimes I print out my blog entries and stick those in, espicially if it has been about my day.

I found this top the other day-isn't it lovely? I just love the Japanese feel to it!

Something disgusting: I heard on the news today that over 20 million liters of raw sewage leaked out into three large rivers up country from me, due to the load shedage that Eskom (our main electricity provider) has been doing lately. Every day they cut off the power to certain areas at a time to save power and re-direct it to places that need it more. We've had them here too. In fact the other night I noticed when we were on the way to our dinner, all the lights were out and the street lamps and I was freaking out thinking the restaurant would also be out, but luckily when we got there they had power! My poor sister, Jen has had power cuts up where she is living like the whole day almost now for the past week! (go check out her blog by the way, she has an awesome Freebie on it!)

Make time for youself

One thing that Rhonna's challenge really stressed is how important it is to make the time for yourself. This has always been something quite important to me and something I really strive to do. I feel that as a mom you are torn in so many different directions: your children, your husband, your friends, your hobbies, your home, your responsibilities and duties, that chocolate in the cupboard...Sometimes you feel like a piece of meat amongst a pack of lions-everyone yanking you in different directions!

You meet someone, you fall in love and for a while it is just the two of you. Wasn't it great? Remember the lie-ins, the sleep-ins, breakfast in bed? The "what-shall-we-do-today" whim on a Saturday morning? Remember the times you didn't feel like cooking and suddenly decided to go out for dinner? There was no last minute dash to arrange for a baby-sitter, run around grabbing nappies, bottles {Although thank goodness that is all over with now!} so that by the time you two were ready to leave, you were so past hunger and were on the verge of eating each other!

Now days...being a mom..everything runs according to a schedule {*shiver-I hate that word*}
Planning is required, routines are needed. Budget is a word now in your vocab. In fact, as moms we are so organized we could be the sectary for a small country! Imagine: We can find it, we can plan it, we can make it from scratch (especially if it involves anything to do with cardboard, cello tape and paint) We know how to turn peanut butter, noodles and cocoa pops into a meal, we have eyes at the back of our heads, we can sense impending danger, can foresee spillages and falls, forecast lies and catch out the smartest of cheats.

Yes it is hard work being a mom, it is a challenge, but also a blessing and privilege . Underneath that title though is still a person, a woman. Not someone who sorts colors from whites, unpacks the dishwasher, scrubs play-dough off shoes, holds out her hand when her toddler wants to spit out some disgusting gob-filled green mush. There is the person your husband fell in love with-she is still there, you just have to look past the broom and mop.

What your marriage is, is like the best {or worst} example to your children. How they will grow up and enter into it depends on what they learn from you. So they also need to see mom and dad as two individuals who like to go out and have fun.

I always see these couples at restaurants in their say, 50's or 60's, eating a meal. Even when their forks are down and their mouths are empty, there is no conversation at all. They stare blankly past each other, lost in a world of their own.. Not even attempting to talk about the weather. That scares me the most. I would hate to be like them. I don't want to look at my spouse one day , when my kids have left home and say "So...what do you like? " staying in touch with them is about making the time for yourself to do what you enjoy, what makes you happy so that you have something to talk about.

I guess I am writing about this cos It is something I think all of us should do, more so being a mom when your time is so torn between everyone and everything. and It is my 9th anniversary on Wednesday and we are going out to eat and I love that special time! I am having my hair cut and styled and we have a baby-sitter and I can't wait to drink a glass of wine and hear music in the background not "Mommy, can you come wipe my bum?" echoing from the distance! I don't have to stare into the depths of the freezer and wonder what the heck I am going to make out of a lamp chop and what looks like either a packet of frozen peas or some worms my kids have frozen....bliss!!

Link removed


Enjoy and see you tomorrow and if you read this..tell me how you make time for yourself-whether it is 15 min a day or 2 hours a week?

Days like this...

I love them! It's Saturday, I don't normally post on the weekend (and theres no link today) but I gotta post my LAST page of the 21 challenge! Cos I made it!! Yay!

Thanks Rhonna!!!!
I loved this challenge. It IS true that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit! I proved it! yeah!! Some of the habits were too personal to share but the ones I didn't mind sharing were:
-to work in my garden everyday -which I did unless it rained!
-To create everyday-which I did! This was important to me and something I try to do anyway because I am a firm believer that if you make time for yourself each day to do things you as a PERSON not as a mom, wife or friend, but just YOU like, (and 15 min a day is fine too, it doesn't have to be like an hour or two!) then you will happier for it, you will be more fulfilled as a person, which in turn will make you calmer and more productive in other areas. Less crabby or irritable cos you are getting the things you want to get done-done and in turn those around you will be happier too! Everyone wins! I know from personal experience that if I go for long periods without doing anything for myself, I get moody and take it out on everyone around me ! I become Bonnie the Beast-a fire breathing dragon! ha ha.
-To do something positive and fun with my children everyday-which I tried to do.
(the last one at times for me was the hardest cos I am not really the type of mom that likes to sit down and play Polly pockets or go sliding around on my knees pushing a car around the house making ridiculous brrroooommmm sounds! I love doing crafty things with my kids or playing with them outside or doing puzzles. And I let them bake and make a huge mess cos I know it is teaching them good things.

Thanks to you all who shared your hilarious and embarrassing stories yesterday-oh man I had such a chuckle! You should read some of the comments!
I could write a whole book on the things I did as a child or the things my kids get up to!
{couldn't we all?}

WARNING: LONG STORY
Take this scenario for instance: Going back in time to when I was about 8. ...
I remember it was school holidays- summer holidays which was about two months long.
At the end of the holidays it was time to get all my school stuff together and get my bag ready for school for the next day. I remember I had one of those leather satchels with the buckles in front. I thought it was cool! {could barf now thinking about it!}

Anyway there I was happily hunting for my cool little brown satchel, finding it, opening it....
That's when things go blurry for a moment, the lights go out, utter darkness! {the smell must of been so bad it blocked that bit from my memory}.

I am not sure if I was the inventor of some type of new gas but the smells eeking out of that bag were lethal!! I'm surprised I lived to tell the tale! Now, if you think the SMELL was bad, oh my word, you should of SEEN what was inside the bag!!

Some time of bomb had gone off inside of it-there was green/brown fungi growing all over the inside and my lunch box was bobbing up and down in some type of fermenting liquid.
"WHAT DID I HAVE FOR LUNCH TWO MONTH AGO?" I wonder to myself.
Terrified of the "thing" growing in my cute little brown satchel I wondered what to do!
I had two options:

1) Tell dad about the "thing" in my bag and risk a long lecture and possible punishment-cos really the bag was totally WRITTEN OFF! There was no way on earth I was ever using it again!
2) Dispose of the evidence-claiming the bag was eaten by the dog in a moment of sheer starvation or possible case of rabies.

I went with option 2. I waited until no one was around..put on my shoes, gingerly picked up the bag and dumped it into a plastic bag {whilst holding a sock over my nose} and set off to destroy all incriminating evidence. I went down to the little forest across the road from us and there in the bush, I dumped the bag. I said goodbye to my cute little brown satchel, skipping off happily -already thinking about the cool little pink Barbie bag my daddy would buy me...

By some unknown , amazing and awful chance the bag came back to haunt me!
I still don't know to this day how it happened! But later that evening my bag was there-staring up at me with those scathing satchel eyes "Why??? why did you leave me to rot in the field?!" I couldn't believe it.! What kind of sick joke was this?? Who would do such a sick thing??!!

I don't know what happened after that...I seriously have no memory of it..{must of been pretty bad!} cos I don't remember ever getting that cute little pink Barbie bag!!

more tales to follow another day!

Swaps, giveaway and lots more

Lot's to say today! (ha ha,makes a change!)
First my quote...{Yes you are welcome to download and use these, please give credit when using them}.Click on it to view full size.

I love this quote...It has a lot to do with the 21 challenge I am doing at the moment too. Sometimes it is harder changing and being the person that makes you the happiest, than carrying on in your normal way of living because it is easier that way. I have been breaking a habit and making a new one the past 2 weeks. Some days are harder than others, but for the most I have been pretty good with it. I have a few pages of Rhonna's challenge to catch up on which I am going to do tonight, so hopefully I can post those tomorrow.

Okay so first of all some recent pics of my flowers growing so nicely...


This morning I got out a dress of my daughters and wanted to try and see if I could copy it. Note: I can sew-I have a diploma in Interior Decorating, I make all my own cushion covers, bed covers, quilts, blinds and curtains but as far as clothes go-I have no clue! I don't know how to read a pattern and I have never made anything with RE to clothes before. Well I tried today and it came out quite sweet! Here she is wearing it! It has a lace collar and lace sleeves with a small ruffle to them. I still have to sew the hem and iron it.
Giveaway!!!!

And now for a giveaway. I feel like being generous! This is a little hamper I have put together.
It is South African goodies : Rooibos tea, milo( a nice chocolate energy drink), 2 sauce packets for two traditional South African recipes - Tomato Breedie and Babotie (both yummy and you have them with rice.) Alice's appricot sweets (I used to eat these as a child all the time-they are the orange sweets/candy)
A PS chocolate made by Cadbury's. It says "Never give up" on the wrapper. A packet of Eet-sum-more biscuits (shortbread) Jambo's (blackcurrant jam centers) A pack of on-the-go energy crunch (low GI) A Cd made by me of a few of my fav songs; 2 pink tea light candles; a couple of pretty decoupage serviettes; 9 ATC's made by me; Some love quotes on velum.

All you have to do is leave a comment on my blog (PLEASE STATE that you would like to go into the drawing) between now and the 19th October. One comment is enough to enter. I need your name, your contact email address or blog address. Without this you will not be entered into the drawing. I will announce the winner on the 20th October and mail it out anywhere in the world after the 25th October.SWAPS

I am also in urgent need of new art supplies. By that I mean scrap booking embellishments,(NO PAPERS) stickers, rub-ons, transfers, images, tags, etc. I have figured out the best way to do this is to do a swap. I have done so many and I always receive the nicest things. Since I don't have a supply of these kind of things myself, I am offering to swap two packages with two people for a trade for what I need.
The first package consists of fabric samples, decoupaged serviettes, cord, ribbon, a meter each of vintage wallpaper (for crafting not wallpapering!)a hand made card. I can and am willing to add more, depending on the person.The second package is for someone looking for something to do with an anverssary or a gift for a loved one. It consists of two cards I made (both with quotes in velum in the inside) heart packing, two tea light candles, a "I love you" PS chocolate , red rose serviette. Again, I can add to this too.
I am looking for the following to trade:
>Birds,butterflies and wings (any kind-paper, fabric etc) Like on tags, stickers, rub-ons. etc
> Vintage stuff : frames, postcards, fabric
> Roses- anything with roses on.
> (yellow and pink though, not red).
> Paper scrapbook things-anything scrapping related to transfers, stickers
> (love peel and stick embellishments like tags, anything related to nature,
> flowers, roses) quotes.
> Flower embellishments
> Rubber Stamps (really need some of those!)family, children, nature, friendship or pictures.
> small Metal embellishments
>Anything that can be used for art journaling.

If you are intrested in either swap/trade, please leave me a comment or email me at bouncingbonbonatgmaildotcom. and I will get back to you and we can discuss further.

PLEASE only respond if you are serious about the trade and won't change your mind as I have had a few bad experinces in which I have sent parcels out to others and they in turn did not send me theirs as promised and avoided all email /blog contact after that too. Very rude and dishonest. I would never do that to someone.


I also wanted to tell you that at the site where I sell my designs we have 7 challenges (monthly) running. They are great. I host three of them. The prize is a whole kit- the kit is divided up into 7 links-one link per challenge completed. so if you want the whole kit you need to all 7 challenges. Each month is a new kit to grab. This month's one co-ordinates with the free daily download from the blog.

So go on join up and join in the challenges! They are fun!
Thanks and have a good day!

October the 1st!

I love that quote -ha ha. That is SO me! On a Monday afternoon I zip off to gym as it is the only day that hip-hop dance class is on. You will catch me shaking my booty to Umbrella by Rihanna and " the way I are: by Timberland! The rest of the week..If I am going to go to gym, I have to do in the morning before my body realizes what is going on! ha ha!!
Hello by the way! I am late...even for me! It's about 10pm here. I wasn't going to post today, I have such a migraine... but felt too bad to leave, I did promised the downloads would start today!

It's October! -In case you didn't know! ha ha. Wow, this year seems to have whizzed by at a phenomenal speed!

While you are here, I have a little question for you: What are you looking forward to for October? What was the best thing about September? I love to remember the good things in the past month and also think about the good things coming.
For me, September was the start of Spring, warmer weather has come! We got to spend some time outdoors. I planted seeds that actaully grew! yip-they are doing well! I crushed some egg shells to sprinkle around them-yay,no more snails!
Did you know that plating lavender around plants/flowers that snails normally go for also helps to combat them? That and egg shells....
I got some home things done: repainted my son's room, re-decorated my room and bathroom, made a new bathroom blind and new kitchen blinds. It was a good month!
October the 10th is our 9th wedding anniversary, so that is always something I look forward to!
And I am seeing my sister-Jenni (my only sister! ) again after a long 8 months this month!

Today is the first day of my new daily download here on my blog. 21 links in total. No links on weekends. Starting today. Grab them quick, each link will only be up for a day.

Would love to hear your thoughts! Please don't share the kit in any form or part. It is FREE, but it still comes with copy right laws and rules. If you are not sure, please read the TOU that accompanies it. Thank you.

DOWNLOAD NO LONGER AVAILABLE

Have a good day and see you tomorrow!