Journal for a friend

This is a journal for a dear friend of mine, Emma, who lives in the UK.
She and her DH (*Cackle* Roberta, it's all your fault) are meeting up with us in Paris for a day and staying the evening in the same Hotel as us.
I am so excited to be seeing her again, I last saw her in 2009.

So my dear friend, I hope you like your journal!
I made a little fabric bag for it as I know it might get damaged.



And of course it has to have something corny in it, like this "label".


I won't spoil it completely and post all the pages, but here are a few inside:

And I made a little bag for mine too
So the best friends journals will be traveling together in their little bags!


Please come back tomorrow for a GIVEAWAY!!! {yes that's right!!}

Paris Travel Journal 2009 {pics}

As promised here are my pics from my Paris travel journal 2009.

The front. {I used an old Anthropologie catalog , so it's more like an altered art journal} I just loved the colors and words in the photography of the catalog that matched the feel I wanted to create for this journal.




This is hilarious-check out my dreadful visa photo!! ha ha, I look like a convicted felon!

I used a lot of rubons for this journal.
stuck in all my receipts etc.



Wherever I could I incorporated the images already in the catalog. In this case a lovely model, So I cut her out and placed my photo underneath her arms so it looked as though she is leaning on it.
The white pages were already there, handy!

Postcards I bought there I included in the album.


Love this page I found I think in an issue of Somerset studio.
Pockets and tags.



Portrait of an afternoon was already in the book -lucky me and so perfect as I only spent 8 hours in this beautiful city last time...so luck to be spending 8 days soon!!!









And that is that!


By the way if you want to see gorgeous photos of Paris and some lovely travel journal photos, follow Mary ann as she is in Paris right now on her holiday and has some lovely ideas and photos!

Remembrance.

{written Friday the 11th, scheduled post}


Today marks the second year since my dear brother died. I know, I know... you didn't come here to read something sad or depressing...but hey, c 'est la vie {that's life}- isn't it? While we all want life to be full of smiles and glorious happy moments, sometimes there are those incredible painful ones that rip your heart out and although your heart does heal over time, it never becomes whole again.


I've had this impending sadness all week, despite my excitement for my Paris trip. I knew it was coming, I tried to ignore it. But it was inevitable.


I actually cannot believe it has been two years, the full force of that fact hit me last night while standing in the shower and I just stood and let the water rush over me and sobbed for a good solid 5 minutes..

I like to use this time to remember him, his smile, his laugh, the little twinkle in his eye he got when he was up to some joke.
To think about the impact he had on my life.

I think about my dear niece who has spent two years of her little life without her daddy and my sister in law who had to deal with what would of been their 20th wedding anniversary just a few days ago....my heart aches for them.

I miss him so much.

Thank you for reading...

A happy ending for a sad beginning.

Yesterday my son found a baby bird in the garden. We looked around for the nest or the mother but the mother was gone and the nest lay in a broken pile on the ground. I reckon the wind blew it out yesterday and the mother flew away thinking that was the end. We found it's little sibling on the ground but it was covered in ants already.

So we took the bird inside. I had some vague memory as a child looking after an abandoned bird and feeding it pronutro through a syringe. So we took it inside, it's little cheeps were barely audible but there nonetheless. It's little eyes were not open. We put it on a hot water bottle and a little blanket around it and I gave it some pronutro. It gulped it down. I then noticed it had an open wound on it's chest. I told the kids not to expect too much, it probably wouldn't survive till morning...

I went to bed feeling so sad about this tiny, fragile little life. With no mother to care for it and spending it's first and last moment alone. It broke my heart.

I was overjoyed this morning to see it was still alive {after asking hubby to check first as I couldn't bear to}. It was warm and cheeping softly and had some more food. The wound looked a bit better too.

I thought to myself..."what am I going to do now? We are off in less than 10 days to Paris for 10 days and what must I do with it? "So I phoned our local vet who gave me the number for a local lady who deals in bird rehabilitation.

I phoned her and she said to bring it right on over. Which is what I did.

I think she thought I was a bit bats!

As I started telling her about the bird, I started to cry! More on that tomorrow (scheduled post coming up tomorrow) but I just felt so sad having to part with the little thing, in a space of a few hours, I felt like I was its "mommy" weird I know.

I was granted a happy moment though, it opened it's little eyes for the first time in front of me and saw it's little world for the first time! How sweet.

She assured me that it was going to be find. The wound was in fact it's crop that had burst open but she said it looked like it was healing and she would raise it and care for it and was positive it would survive.

By the way it is a red eyed-ring turtle dove. (or something along those lines!)

So I am grateful for the happy ending.

I needed a happy ending so badly today.

Have a good weekend! Whatever you do, I hope it is filled with your loved ones around you.

Sunburst Granny blanket {crochet} It's coming along...

Remember I showed you the sunburst granny squares I am making for my blanket?

Well I started piecing it together cos I couldn't stand the suspension anymore of waiting until all the squares were done!

I still have a lot more to do, but I thought I would show you the progress...




I started these squares about a month ago, maybe 5 weeks ago. So It's not bad going I think!
I worked out it takes me about 10minutes to crochet one square.
So far I have done 35 in the blanket and I have another 10 in my bag.



Did anyone know it was international pancake day yesterday? I made cinnamon and sugar pancakes for my kids. Unfortunately I can't eat them due to the wheat content... I know ! And I am going to a place that loves to make and eat crepes!! Go figure! I think a more Mediterranean place would be more suitable to my diet!


I feel a giveaway coming on..I haven't done one in a while...watch this blog!

Parisian Travel journal {pics}

I wanted to quickly give a big shout of thanks to Mary ann from Dispatch from LA blog, She was so kind and helpful in her email giving me tips on my trip to Paris.
Also my friend Veronica who sent me the most helpful and practical email ever!! So fill of advice , I will be printing it out and taking it with me!
Thanks to Roberta for the tip to contact Mary ann too!

I so appreciate all your help!

Just one thing I had to laugh at you Vee, in your comment you said it might not be a good idea to walk around Paris in the shoes I posted yesterday!! Ha ha, I had to laugh!! I spent 8 grueling hours on a hot summer day walking Paris flat!! And I wore flat shoes and my feet hurt!!!

I did Montmarte too with all the gorgeous cobble stones...

Don't worry...I would not walk around for the sole purpose of sightseeing in those shoes! They are for going out like for lunch or dinner!

The other thing I remember is that to have a wee in Paris cost 1 euro! I just remember thinking "This is the most expensive wee I have ever made!" hee hee.

Here is my travel journal I am taking with. I had a lot of fun putting this together.


Putting my itinerary as a keep-sake in this little envelope.

When I get back, I have space for photographs. This Is a transparent pocket sewn onto the page.

love using paper doilies

more envelopes for all those receipts, tickets and memento's!
I have put journal space on most pages and pockets with tags or envelopes with paper inside to journal on.



Another transparency sewn on, with one side left open to slide a photograph into

Got this wonderful secret window idea from Tara Anderson of The pink Couch.
She inspires me all the time! Going to use them for photographs too.




more secret window envelopes, recycle and reuse! Saving the environment one art journal at at a time!! :)







yes, I am addicted to the secret window envelopes! For a change I look forward to my bills arriving in the mail, so I can use the envelopes!! (who would of thought!)
Well that is it! I want to show you my 2009 Paris album too, but another day!
take care! xx