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Let the routine return.  I'm all for routine.  I need it back.  I'm struggling with the days passing by and the work not getting done.  Monday was Jacob's birthday.  He turned 11 and started intermediate school yesterday.  Today I celebrate a fabulous 14 years marriage.  Tomorrow Abby turns 6 and Saturday we are doing the party thing. 
I'm all partied out. 

How amazing my kids looked in their uniforms though – Jacob as a newly inducted Intermediate School kid, Braden as a Senior at Intermediate, Abby moving up to a year 2 class.  Its a long way from the mud covered children carrying bowls of squirming tadpoles that I had in the house last night.  I do love summer really.

I'm still working on my BPS content, various classes and a few other assignments.  I have lots on.  Lots.  More than ever before.  Onwards.

New Cappella from BasicGrey…
Laters

I love hot rain.  You know those really hot days, the humidity is off the scale and the black clouds slowly build in the sky.  The humidity gets too much, the skies open up and the rain falls, along with thunder and lightening, it's quite the amazing show.  And for a weather nerd like me, watching the lightening radar as the clouds build in the sky, it's a dream.
These are from yesterday and the day before, taken at the end of our driveway.  Both extremely humid days where one minute it was 28-30 degrees and the road was too hot to walk on, the next minute the skies have opened, the water is falling.  The fun part?  The road remains hot – warm water, fun to play.

 
 CHA is over and the new products and the product images are everywhere.  Linda's blog has some really good pics, the Prima Blog has a video of their booth, scrapscene has a few write-ups from various people, and there is a whole message board dedicated to reviews, opinions and other stuff from CHA here at 2 peas.

More BasicGrey for you…. this time a pet line… I never use the lines in the way that they were designed.  I loved this collection, it was full of bright reds and teals.  I could have used this for so many layouts.  If only I had the time!

laters 
 

Sometimes I'm surpised by just how much more can be released at each new CHA tradeshow.  CHA opened today in Anaheim and the buzz is huge. 

From what I can tell, the favourite collections so far seem to be Dear Lizzy by American Crafts,

Pink Paislee, including pleated ribbon, now that's going to save me a lot of cursing as I try and bunch my ribbon through the sewing machine…

And there is a lot of buzz about the new BasicGrey lines, but most of all, the Basics line.  They should have called this the Nic Line because it is me. All. over.
See Sande's post here…

Wanna see what I did with the new BasicGrey Kioshi line?
love this line! (love this little girl, she belongs to fab scrapbooker LG…)
Will share more over the next few days…

laters

Back into the routine she says.  Back into working a full day with 20 minute lunches, she says.  Back into getting up at 5.30am for a run, she says. 
And so she did.  And it's never easy getting back into the routine of things after a few weeks off overindulging in all things remotely bad for you.  Like good company, fine food and more than one's fair share of duty free Coruba Rum.
So one would expect the run to be refreshing, if not a little tough, but getting back on track has to be a wonderful thing.
If one hadn't got fat feet over Christmas.
I must have looked like a right plonker.  I did run a good run, but felt a little sore in the feet halfway.  I got to within 15 minutes of home and decided I'd scored a large blister.  Investigation showed that I had, despite the fact that my shoes are so worn in they are old friends now, scored myself a huge festering weeping blister on the back of my heel.  Too much of a visual going on there?  You should have been there.  Anyway, back to looking like a plonker… here I am, in my Nike dryfit running gear, my ipod in my ears and walking barefoot carrying my shoes. 
Seriously sad.

So the new year back into the fitness regime hasn't been all too successful.  The sad thing is the realisation for me to get 3 blisters (there wasn't just one!), my feet must have indeed put on weight over Christmas.  Either that or the 30 degree 100% humidity type weather has them a little puffy.  I'm choosing to go with the latter.

Back to editing for the re-run of my Point Of View class for big Picture Scrapbooking.  Due to run 28th january through til 24th February.  Let me know if you are joining me.

Here's a layout from the January Tarisota kit.  Nothing like scrapbooking photos of the beach, at the beach.  That's real sand on that layout. ;o)
Laters

there are some things a girl can never have too much of  A). Time on holiday at a Coromandel Beachhouse.  B). Time snuggling with family.  C). Good books and time alone to read them D) Good books and time along to read them.  Suffice to say that I was forced into a no-computer and no-scrapbooking zone over the Christmas holidays.  AND that I did read several good books.  Sadly i would rather have been enjoying the beach, but the tummy-bug did the rounds and I was a little house-bound while we were away.

BUT I'm grateful for family time, sun, sand, surf, and that this fabulous country I live in offers so much, and I can't wait to do it again next year.  Minus the Thursday phonecall to say that Grumpr had been taken by ambulance to hospital would be fab….

All good.  Holiday time over… work time begins… this includes a 5kk run in the morning, good luck to ME I say.

So quick linking….

I've created layouts with lots of new Prima goodies… keep checking back here to perhaps see them posted.  I'm a very lucky girl to be part of this Prima DT.  A new DT call goes out in Feb sometime.  Apply.. I encourage you all to apply…

Tattered Angels… A new Heidi Swapp collection of GlimmerMist. 
Glimmer Glaze… Lots of other new releases I can't let you know about just yet.. but they are variations on the GlimmerMist …keep an eye out…

BasicGrey – yaaaaaaaaaaay – the crowd goes wild – the new website is LIVe… including a new retail store that includes re-releases of some of the  favourite old collections…

Big Picture Scrapbooking… my popular Point Of View class from last year is re-running at the end of this month.. very cool class based around my book.

Ok I think I'm done with quick links – I'm back, you'll see me update more often with links and layouts.  *Settling back in on the blogging couch* see you back here soon.  It's good to be back.

laters.

Back in 2007 I published my  book, "That's Life".  It was dedicated to one of the most inspiring souls ever, Shauna.  Shauna was battling cancer, and many of you followed Shauna in the last few years, via her blog.  Shauna passed away on the 3rd of December last year, and on the 3rd of January, friends and family gathered in Oregon to celebrate her life.  There were stories and tributes, photos, videos and a sharing of friendship.  I wasn't able to be there, which was sad for me, but in the following days I found my own way to send my love to her.

Shauna and I had often talked about the ocean between us.  With her being in Oregon and me in New Zealand, there was just the big ol' Pacific ocean in the way.  It was at the edge of the Pacific Ocean, at Cathedral Cove, one of the most beautiful places in the world, I sent my love to Shauna.

Miss you Shauna.
xoxo.  Nic.

laters.

It's been a while.  I've had so much going on.  From school finishing to my younger brother arriving from London, to Christmas and Brady's birthday… it's been busy.  Check out what a gorgeous family I get to share it all with, though.  Those of you that know me, know that I'm not the tallest… well I'm crouching in this photo, my Mum is tiny!

Pair that with over-eating, copious amounts of over-drinking, recovery from said over-drinking and trying to fit in enough exercise to combat the over-eating and over-drinking guilts, I think you'll agree I've had a fairly typical NZ Christmas.

I did manage to do two things I really wanted to acheive though - one of which was to run 5km by Christmas, I managed to fail getting to that distance every day in the weeks leading up to Christmas, can we round up 4.2km to 5km?  no?,   but woke up Boxing Day and realised it was still Christmas somewhere in the world and ran it.  Now comes the realisation I need to keep repeating the performance. 

Things don't slow down yet though, with the settling in of house sitters while we pack for the annual trek to the beach.  Nothing like a few weeks of hot sun, sand, surf, jellyfish, more over-eating and over-drinking.  You know how it goes.  I've completed my BasicGrey CHA layouts and they are on their way.  I've got Prima to arrive anyday to get going on as well.  I've got this post on Cathy Z's blog to inspire me for my holiday pics.  I think I'm ready for the new year.  Bring it on.

Laters

I think Christmas is the time of good intention. 

Like how I intended to have all my Christmas cards posted by the first week of December.  I did get them done and posted yesterday, for those of you wondering if your yearly dose of Howard cuteness will arrive in the mailbox anytime soon. 

You will notice the crossover to the dark side when you get them.  Some of you will stand and look at said card and nod and say "oh yea… we converted Nic to the dark side…." Some of you will gently touch the front of the card and say… "hang on, is that… did she? I think she did…"  and some of you will take one look at the card and decide that obviously I was running waaaaay short on time this year (there are those good intentions again…) and enlisted the help of some very clever digital Christmas fairies.

For the record, there was some scrapbooking technique involved in the whole process.  I cut the card fronts, Ok so Jacob did, sorry about the crooked ones, he did a fabulous job really since he was watching the Jonah Brothers at the same time.

You'll also notice the addition of the glittery gluey stuff.  That right there makes those cards a little hybrid venture.  Oh the places I'll go….

(photoshoot for these cards done by Lesley Cooper – I got some amazing pics, will share more in the coming weeks as they appear in projects!)

Laters 

What a weekend.  We have so much on at the moment and the past weekend was Christmas at the Zoo, the Pukekohe Christmas parade and a christening of a friends deck.  Yea i was the one that christened it, spilt my drink  – Sunday drinks.  Busy busy.  I had a great weekend with family doing all those things but I couldn't help thinking "Shauna won't see this again, she won't know this happened." I had a great time but those thoughts kept sneaking in and tears were always right there lurking, ready to show themselves far too easily.

One thing that has come of this has been all our mutual friends reconnecting.  One of which posted a pic of herself and Shauna, but in this pic Shauna was wearing a paperdoll on her heart.  It took me a while to remember, but then I realised what the paperdoll was.  It was me. 

I was meant to travelling to Arizona on Sept 12th 2001 (Sept 11 in the USA).  My bags were packed, my kids were at Mums and we got the phone call in the middle of the night to tell us all of the events of 9-11 were happening.  Shauna rang me later on as well and we talked about how much I wanted to go to the USA, but how unstable the world was (and at that point we really didn't know what else would happen) and Shauna told me how afraid she was.  For me, for her, and our families.  "Don't come over, Nic, it's not worth it, stay home, hug your family close, keep tight with them, it's not worth it to come over, you can't leave them".

And I didn't.

Shauna made sure I was there in spirit though.  She made a paperdoll and pinned it to her shirt so I was there too.  Here is a pic.  These are things that I had forgotten.   I guess there is a little good to come of it all.  Something else, too.  it's made me really appreciate the friends I have.  So many friends that I always know are there, but don't neccessarily see often.  We might not see each other much, we might not chat often, but it's unconditional and it's times like this that they show up, and that is so freakin cool.   I even had some flowers delivered on Saturday night – totally anonymous (who was the mystery flower person, I'd love to know!  Thank you so much!) – they just turned up. 

Anyway.  Here's to good friends. 

A layout to share – I'm writing down as much as I can of these things Abby says.  She is so cute right now.  She is attached to my hip, a real Mummy's girl, and I can't get enough of spending time with her.
Off to get the washing in – rain on the horizon again…

Laters

It's been a surreal kind of a day.  The rain has pelted down in what is totally unusual weather for summer.  We had 14 degrees today, and as I sit typing this I have just heard that the Met Service has released weather warnings of almost Civil Defence standards for a storm to hit tonight.  they are forecasting flash floods and power cuts.  With the way the rain is hitting the windows right now, I believe them.

It kind of matches my mood today.  This past few week have been hard as I've known my dear friend Shauna was losing her battle with cancer.  Today Shauna passed away. IT was a brave fight, but it doesn't make it any easier to say goodbyes.

Those of you that have known me for a while, know how much Shauna meant to me, to so many of us.  When she was diagnosed with cancer in June 2006, I made her an album, and entered in the Chatterbox Make it Meaningful contest.  I sent the album to her last year, when things really started to get rough. 

Shauna was the foundation of my scrapbooking.  She was my mentor and my hero.  She was my encouragement and someone I will always hold dear.  When I wrote my book in 2006, it was Shauna it was dedicated to.
Goodbye sweet Shauna.  Your soft, gentle and loving ways will never be forgotten.

(Pages from the album I made for Shauna, 2006.)