Sunday 29 April 2012

Project Life: Week 17

Hi everyone :)

Unbelievably we are almost at the end of April… how did that happen so quickly??

It’s been another eventful week in our household.  I went back to school on Monday and Toby has decided that HE DOESN’T LIKE IT!!!  He’s really kicked up a stink about being left at home this week but we’ve had some funny moments to go along with it!

Here’s an overview of my week:Full_1

When I got home on Monday there was a courier envelope on the door for me.  I couldn’t think what was in it because I hadn’t remembered what I’d ordered but it was tickets to SENZ for me and Nina.  It’s during the next school holidays and we’re super looking forward to it.  I’ve been to the last two in Auckland but didn’t bother to do any classes but this year I’ve bought a three-day pass so I’m looking forward to seeing what classes are on offer.

On Monday Toby decided that he was going to eat the sandals that I wore to school in Term 1… I think it was his attempt to keep me at home! LOL

Here’s a look at the start of the week:Left_1

On Tuesday Toby decided that he was going to eat through the bags of potting mix by the back door… talk about having a mess everywhere!

Of course it was ANZAC Day on Wednesday and I read a really wonderful book to my class called ‘Present from the Past’ by Jennifer Becks… it’s a powerful and moving story that I highly recommend.

I spent part of my day off reading a book by Lesley Pearse.  I’d never read any of her books until just the week before and in less that I week I’ve read over 1000 pages!!  I love it when you find an author you really like.

Here’s the second half of the week:Right_1

I was on a teacher course on Thursday and it was brilliant!  It’s the kind of course that is down to earth and practical which is a refreshing change.

Toby has continued to make mess after mess around the house.  I don’t know how long this ‘puppy’ stage lasts but I’m definitely over the mess!!

Mikayla had her hair cut on Friday and ended up paying $50 for it which I thought was a bit weird since it’s more than I pay at the same hairdresser.  I popped in on Saturday to enquire about the pricing and it turns out they thought she was older than she was and didn’t realise she was a student so she got a refund… that’s GOT to have earned me some ‘good Mum’ points!! LOL

I’ve had a great day today!  Loreen came over to catch up and do some scrapping.  She was busy working on her layout and said to me that her paper wasn’t sticking to her layout… turns out she’d forgotten to put on any adhesive!!! LOL

We decided to recharge our batteries over lunch and we went to Relish cafe…. we both HIGHLY recommend it!!  Fabulous food, great service and a wonderful atmosphere!  If you’re ever in Rotorua it’s worth trying out!

Here’s my creative piece for the week:Creativity_1

ANZAC Day felt really important to me this year so I dedicated my creative piece to the men and women who served our country during the war…  LEST WE FORGET

‘Uncle Keith’ came over this afternoon to pick up ‘Auntie Loreen’ and Toby was super excited!  He tried to get him to play with him but Uncle Keith wasn’t interested in playing the game so Toby tried giving him ‘kisses’ without much success. 

When ‘Auntie Loreen’ got into her motorbike gear Toby was quite interested and then he rushed outside to say goodbye to them.  IMG_7378_1

So that’s been my week… lots of reading, lots of ‘Toby times’ and time spent with friends.

I hope you all have a great week xx

Wednesday 25 April 2012

Log your Memory: Week 17 & ANZAC day

Hi everyone :)

It’s ANZAC day here in New Zealand which means no school but I’ve also been thinking about the men and women who went to war all those years ago and shaped our history.  It’s impossible to imagine what they went through and the hardships they faced… but it isn’t hard to remember that without them and the sacrifices they made we wouldn’t have the life that we do now.

At school yesterday I read a story by Jennifer Becks that was absolutely beautiful… the illustrations are gorgeous!large_9781869437398

A young girl is reluctantly waiting at the airport for a distant aunt to arrive. She discovers that the aunt is carrying a special gift from the past. During the First World War, soldiers and nurses were given a very special Christmas present from the Princess Mary - a precious box containing sweets or tobacco as the Royal Family's thanks for the hardships they were undertaking.

Here’s a photo of what the box looked like:356256_Large

Unfortunately the book is now out of print but if you’re able to get it out of the library I highly recommend it!

Now for Week 17 of Log your Memory.  This is the final prompt from the ‘Occupation’ section of this project.  This week it’s all about your work environment. 

Of course many of you know that I’m a school teacher… but classrooms these days are so different from when I went to school.  Thankfully there’s no chalk dust any more LOL

Here’s my layout:Week 17

I spend a LOT of time in my classroom each week and up until this year it’s always been about the kids and their learning… as it should be!  This year though I’ve made a couple of subtle changes that have had a bigger impact than I thought they would.

I’ve always talked about my girls in the classroom but often the kids don’t really take it in.  This year I have a ‘Toby wall’ near my desk and I’ve got photos there with my girls and Toby.  There’s even a couple of photos with nieces and nephews. 

When the kids bring their parents in they always want to show them their work… but they’re also keen to show them the ‘Toby wall’ and share a bit about my life with their parents.  It’s not something that I was expecting but it’s made the parents think of me differently realising that I have a life outside of school.DSCF0113

I also have fresh flowers on my desk this year… and in fact I’ve had the odd flower brought to me be the kids.  Quite often they’ll come up to smell the flowers when they want to talk to me.  The boys actually take more notice of the flowers than the girls… that’s another surprise for me! 

So that’s it from me… I’m actually heading into school soon to get some work done LOL

Enjoy the rest of your week xx

Sunday 22 April 2012

Project Life: Week 16

Hi everyone :)  It’s the end of another week as well as the school holidays!  I’ll be heading back to work tomorrow and I’m actually looking forward to it.

Here’s an overview of my week:Full_1

On Monday night I was brushing my teeth and I could hear singing coming from my room.  I quickly grabbed my camera and managed to get a photo of Mikayla singing Toby a lullaby!

Tuesday was pretty full on… I went to Hamilton with Ann as she was helping me pick up some more paper stands and we caught up with Krystal for lunch.  She’s doing so well at uni and loving having a place of her own… she even invited us back to her place in the afternoon for chocolate cake… that’s my girl!!Left_1

Wednesday was hair colouring day… I’m loving the new colours in my hair!  I also had to ‘re-sticky’ my silhouette mat as it’s had a MAJOR workout since I got it but it’s just like new again now.

Wednesday afternoon was all about school.  I had my first mentoring session with Veronica and we got lots done.  Plus I got all my photocopying finished and organised… go me!

Here’s a wee Toby story:  On Friday I was having a quiet afternoon reading my book and snacking on some camembert and crackers.  I went outside for a minute and then I heard Toby’s lips smacking together… end result, NO CHEESE LEFT!  I told him that he was a “cold-blooded, cheese eating thief” at which point he looked at me as if to say…. is there any more Mumma?  Not funny at the time but it is now LOL

Here’s the second half of the week:Right_1

Sue and I went to Fashion Island to do some clothes shopping for the winter terms.  I took her to Merric which has got to be my favourite clothing store and we had a fab day together.

On Friday I got some more plaster of paris t-shirts done.  They’re for an art project at school but they’re taking a LONG time to do!  The idea is to take an old t-shirt and dip it in plaster of paris and then let it dry so that it goes rock hard.  Great in theory but in reality I can only get 2-3 shirts done at a time before the plaster sets :(  So it’s now a case of mixing small quantities of plaster and working slowly.  I’ve got 7 done…. only 21 more to go!

It was Mum’s birthday yesterday and I organised a surprise picnic for her.  She’s hard to surprise but I got Richard (her husband) involved and between the two of us we managed to really get her!!!  Richard kept mentioning that it was going to take 2 hours to get to the ‘mystery tour’ and she thought she was off to Taupo!

I ended up with so many photos that I decided to do another 6 x 12 insert all about the day:Mum front_1  Mum back_1

I made lots of treats which ended up lasting throughout the whole day and then we spent all afternoon chatting and catching up before Mum invited me to stay for dinner… so pleased that I did too!

Toby loves parties and food so he was in his element… especially when he managed to get the last of Poppa’s egg!  He also enjoyed having one of Grandma’s cut glass bowls for his water bowl for the day!

Here’s my wee bit of creativity for this week:Creativity_1

I used a photo strip die cut (it’s a mini one) along with a digital print of a telephone since I’ve spent so much time on the phone this week.  The flower is a Prima one that I had left over from another project.

So that’s my week… lots done and still some things left to do but that’s life isn’t it! 

I hope you all have a great week xx

Wednesday 18 April 2012

Log your Memory: Week 16

Hi everyone :) 

This week is flying by and I’ve only just remembered that it’s Wednesday which means time to update the blog!

The challenges for April with Log your Memory are all about your occupation.  One of the questions they had this week was: “Is your current occupation a good fit for your talents and skills?”

I’d have to say a big YES to that one!  Which is possibly part of the reason that I’m still teaching.  I love variety, trying new things, being creative and working both as part of a team as well as on my own. 

I surprise myself though because I also like structure.  I like knowing what I have to do and working towards getting things done. 

Here’s my layout for this weeks prompt:Week 16 I’m a bit of a ‘Pollyanna’ really because I like lots of different things.  I get really enthusiastic about my reading programme… and then I’ll do a maths course and all of a sudden my maths lessons become new and exciting.

Throw in a bit of art, sport, technology and writing and it makes me really happy.

I NEVER ask the kids in my class to do something that I wouldn’t try myself… and they know that!  Somehow teaching just fits all sorts of criteria for me and having a good class makes the whole learning and teaching process that much more interesting and achievable. 

So that’s this weeks prompt done… there will be another ‘occupation’ layout next week.

Have a good week everyone xxx

Sunday 15 April 2012

A ‘double whammy’ today!

Hi everyone :)

As you all know sometimes things happen at the same time so today I’ve got a Project Life update as well as a Scrapbook Dreams challenge.

First up is Project Life: Week 15.  As most of you are aware I’m a school teacher so with the school holidays I’ve been able to catch up on a few things… still got lots on my ‘to do’ list though!Full_1

One thing I really wanted to do these holidays was to watch ‘When a City Falls’.  When it was on TV I didn’t watch it as I had Dad staying and catching up with him was a bit more important than watching TV :)  I’ve now seen the movie and I have to say that I’d give it a very high rating!  I was impressed with the way Gerard Smyth tackled this project letting the photos and people speak for themselves.  Overall it was the stories of hope, resiliency and humanity that moved me to tears.  It also made me feel very connected as a New Zealander.

Tuesday was full of school work.  I decided to spend the whole day doing school work… mostly planning for Term 2… and it was so worth it!  I’m feeling quite organised now even though I still have some things to do.  Best of all I got the photocopier at school all to myself when I went in!Left_1

Mikayla and I also had a picnic with Toby.  We went out to Holdens Bay, which is one of Toby’s favourite places, and had an ice cream and a play.  Toby was extremely interested in what was in the picnic basket!!!

On Wednesday Toby and I packed up our things and headed over to my sisters’ place to spend the night with them…. I’ve got inserts to show you about our ‘Auntie Dates’ :)

You might remember that in last weeks Project Life there was an Easter card along with an invitation for each of the kids.  When I arrived I found that Reece had been waiting on the doorstep for 2 HOURS because “Auntie’s going to be here soon”.  We went to the rocket park for a picnic morning tea and then off to Toyworld to buy another car for his collection.

Insert Reece_1 Insert Auntie_1

We spent the rest of the afternoon at home catching up with everyone.  Toby discovered that Reece is the perfect height for kissing/licking!  He also would go around and around Reece to which Reece replied… "”It’s ok Auntie, Toby is just huggling me”… too cute for words!

Toby and I slept in the lounge and the next morning we ended up with all three kids coming in for some cuddles.

On Thursday I had two ‘Auntie Dates’… first was Leila.  She got to choose where we went for morning tea and then we went to Toyworld to buy her a belated birthday present.

For lunch it was Aidan’s turn and he got to choose where we went… he chose a pancake place in a beautiful bush setting… so relaxing and so much fun!

Insert Leila_1 Insert Aidan_1

I got some really great photos so I thought I’d do one page about each date… plus I’m sending the kids a copy of their own page… that’s got to get me some Auntie points!!

Here’s the rest of my week:Right_1

I got to drop off and pick up Reece from kindy which was very cool… love how excited he was to see me!  Miss Leila had a bit of a tantrum when we got home from town because she wanted to do her bag straight away!!  It was too good of a photo opportunity to miss!  She sent me a photo of her finished bag the next day and it looks awesome!

I had a night class on Thursday when I got home and we made some really lovely cards with a checkerboard pattern and then the following day Nina came to visit.  She wanted to cut out some leaves from an old shirt.  Clearly I was being a bit too careful with the fabric because she turned to me and said “It’s a BIG shirt… you don’t have to be stingy with it!  LOL

I also got some of my kids artwork mounted and labelled along with cutting out heaps of moose and camels to finish them off… very eye catching!  Now they just need to go up on the classroom wall.

Here’s my creativity for the week:Creativity_1

Since Friday was the 13th I decided to cut out a wee ghost on the Cameo and then I sprinkled him with super fine glitter… love how it turned out.

It’s been a busy week full of lots of different things but that’s how I like it :)

Now for the Scrapbook Dreams sketch challenge.  This month we have a cool sketch from Page Maps for you:mar12_12x12_d

Toby, Mikayla and I go to Holdens Bay quite regularly (although never enough in Mr Toby's opinion!) and we often get lots of photos. When we went on Tuesday he found 'something' under the ramp for the wharf... we don't know what because he couldn't actually get it out which was probably a really good thing! Here's my layout about 'good smells':Good-smells_1

Our Guest Designer, Vicki, created a gorgeous layout about meeting Brenda IRL for the first time! Here's what Vicki said: Here’s my take on the sketch. That was a good one and may just have to do it again. This layout is when we met up with Brenda for the first time after being bloggy pals for quite a while. So cool when you find you still like each other IRL and not just over the computer LOL   Totally agree with you Vicki :)P4030012

So now it's your turn to create a layout using this months sketch. Upload your finished layout into the April gallery and it might be you who is our Guest Designer for June!

So there you have it… a busy week and lots of creativity!  If you’ve got the kids at home I hope you’re all enjoying yourselves.  Have a great week everyone xxx

Wednesday 11 April 2012

Log your Memory: Week 15


Well it’s Wednesday and time for another instalment of the Log your Memory project.  I’m quite enjoying this months prompts which are all about occupation!

This week one of the questions was about your time schedule and how much control you have in your average day.  Although I ‘live my life by the bell’ during the week there is actually quite a lot of flexibility in it.

Before I became a teacher I got ‘bored’ with lots of the jobs I did.  I was a secretary, receptionist, photocopy specialist, sign writer, merchandiser and a few other things.  I’d love the first few weeks of a job… while I was learning lots of new skills… and then the monotony of the job set in.  Every day started looking and feeling just like the day before.

All that changed when I became a teacher!Week 15

One day will be in the classroom doing all the ‘usual’ teacher things… reading , writing, maths, spelling etc and I really enjoy doing all those things!  The very next day will be a sports day… or camp… or art week… or the Webb Ellis cup coming to our school… or a Professional Development day… in other words there’s LOTS of variety!

I started my teaching career with a Year 7 and 8 class (intermediate age) and the very next year I was working with Year 2… you can’t get much different than that!

For the past five years I’ve been teaching Year 5 and 6.  I’ve found the age group that I really like.  They’re developing their own ideas… they often think they ‘know it all’ but at the same time most of them are really willing to learn!

This year I’ve got the best class I’ve had in senior school.  There’s a couple of children that are still pushing the line but I’ve done more teaching in one term than I did in the entire previous year!

I’ve rediscovered my passion for teaching!  I haven’t had a single day of ‘Monday-itis’… and I’m loving it!

Right now it’s school holidays and I’m loving that too!!!

Have a great week xxx

Sunday 8 April 2012

Project Life: Week 14

This has been a fantastic week… and I’m not just saying that because the school holidays are here!

I started off the week at school with a million things on my checklist of ‘Things to do’ and by Thursday afternoon it was pretty much all completed :)

Here’s a look at this weeks pages:Full_1

‘Uncle James’ had his birthday on Monday so Toby sent him a very nice email… and Uncle James even sent him a reply.

We had a staff meeting for our new school data collection on Monday afternoon and I’m happy to say that I really like the new programme!  Best of all I can access it from home which is going to make things so much easier.

I also got some Easter cards made for my nieces and nephews as well as some invitations for one set of kids to spend some quality ‘Auntie Time’ with me…. all individually… absolutely looking forward to that!Right_1

Four of my kids spent several hours this week constructing an enormous flower to go on our classroom wall!  They had a photo to work from and boy did they work hard!  There was heaps of team work, problem solving, thinking and FUN :)

By the end of the school week we knew which group had the most points and the boys had really worked hard to earn them so we had lunch at McDonalds on the last day… it’s only a five minute walk from school so it’s a great place for a treat.

Mikayla and I also managed to get our groceries done on Thursday so we were all set for the big weekend!Left_1

On Good Friday, the three of us all headed down to my cousins place to spend some time together.  Toby got to meet some of his horses and he was amazed at how BIG they were.

That night I cooked a three-course dinner at his place while Toby ran around with his new girlfriend!  YES Toby has a girlfriend LOL

Her name is Willow and she’s an American Bull Mastiff cross and just five months old.  She’s got a lovely nature and a pretty face.  Toby definitely has good taste!IMG_6993_1

Toby and Willow spent some time getting to know each other which of course involved… butt sniffing, ear licking and pushing each other around.  Willow is the same size as Toby and she gave as good as she got. 

By the end of the evening Toby and Willow were curled up together and sharing all of Willow’s toys and bones.

They were both sad when the evening came to an end and Toby has definitely been missing her, so we’ll have to get together again soon.

For my creativity piece this week I’ve done another Easter Bunny.  I’m definitely over making them now as I’ve made big ones for cards and little ones for ATC’s!Creativity_1

So that’s my week… I hope you’re all having a very happy Easter xxx

Wednesday 4 April 2012

Log your Memory: Week 14

This week at Log your Memory and prompt is all about your name and name badges you wear.

When my sisters and I were born Mum had wanted to call us Kelly, Teresa and Marina… thank goodness Dad got his way because we’re Shelley, Tracey and Kathryn!

Unfortunately for Mum (who doesn’t like shortened names) we’re often called Shell, Trac and Katey!

These days it’s mostly just my parents and one of my sisters who calls me Shelley.  The rest of the time I’m known as Shell… especially in the scrapbooking world!

Obviously the girls call me ‘Mum’ and Toby calls me ‘Mumma’ :)  I guess one day I’ll be adding “Nan” to the list too but hopefully that’s a long way off!!

I LOVE being ‘Auntie Shelley’… it’s one of my favourite roles in life. 

Here’s my layout for this week:Week 14

When I first started teaching at Selwyn I was known as ‘Ms Honig’ which was a whole different role in my life.  The only downside was that I’m the only Honig in the local phone book so I used to have parents (and children) phone me up on the weekends or when I was trying to cook dinner.

I left Selwyn and went to work at a couple of other schools before returning to Rotorua and Selwyn again.  When I came back I decided to be ‘Whaea Shelley’ which I really like.  The upside for me is that almost all of the kids and parents have no idea what my last name is so the phone calls don’t happen anymore.

I bet there’s lots of you out there, who are like me, and wear lots of different hats with various names attached to them. 

Have a great week everyone xx

Sunday 1 April 2012

Project Life & Scrapbook Dreams

Hi everyone :)  I’ve got a ‘double post’ today so you might want a cup of coffee while you look through this post LOL

First up I’ve got my Week 13 pages for Project Life.  Even compared to my regular weeks this has been super busy!!!  Lots of things happening but it sure did make the week go FAST!!  Full_1

On Monday afternoon I found out that I was on the Tutor Teachers course on Tuesday.  It meant an early start to the day as I had to travel over to Tauranga for it but it was well worth it!  It’s definitely the start of a brand new journey on my career path.

On Tuesday night I was the Guest Speaker for the local Quota club… and what a lovely bunch of women they were.  We mixed and mingled before dinner and then had a scrumptious meal.  After that I did my ‘speaker’ part before showing the ladies how to make a paper pieced Easter Bunny card.  Then it was their turn and I can confirm that all 19 women made gorgeous cards to take home!

Here’s a closer look at the beginning of my week:Left_1

On Wednesday, my class was responsible for hosting the school assembly.  My kids did a FANTASTIC job including making a photo Powerpoint Presentation about our recent senior school camp.  I was super proud of their behaviour and speaking… especially in front of almost 500 students/teachers and parents!

After school Wendy and I went to Sweetart for a cupcake… and all I’m going to say is… YUM!!!

Here’s a look at the right side of this week:Right_1

This week I’ve taught at Quota club (Tuesday) as well as night classes on Wednesday and Thursday.  It’s been busy, creative and mostly fun!  I also managed to get some photos of my kids cleaning up the classroom on Friday afternoon… we actually really enjoy our Friday afternoon routine which includes a class game of Bingo!

On Saturday, Toby and I took ‘our’ car down to get a W.O.F.  Toby was fine watching the car sitting in line while we sat under the shady trees…. but he wasn’t very impressed when the W.O.F. man got into it and drove it away!!!  It was such a beautiful day that I decided to get Toby an ice block and boy did he like it!!!  Check out this photo:

IMG_6878_1

On Saturday night I went around to Carey’s for dinner and a movie.  We watched ‘One Day’ and actually both enjoyed it although there were some ‘tear jerker’ moments towards the end!

Of course I wanted to include the fact the Daylight Savings is over… somehow it seems like summer passed us by this year :( 

But I did use my ‘extra hour’ very wisely visiting with my friend Loreen and looking at lovely things in a scrapping store :)  Thanks for the GREAT catch up!!

Here’s my little piece of creativity for this week:Creativity_1

It’s very simple this week but I really like it.  I’ve used a snippet of Graphic 45 paper for the background and cut and inked some butterflies from another Graphic 45 paper before popping them up with pop dots.

So there you have it… 13 weeks completed… it’s a GREAT feeling!

Now for the second part of the post.  It’s the 1st of April today which means it’s time for a new Scrapbook Dreams challenge.

This month instead of a theme we’re going to have a challenge... and the challenge is to use FABRIC somewhere on your layout. The fabric should be at least 6 x 6 in size but it can be any sort of fabric you like. There are so many options with how you do this challenge... it’s completely up to you!

I had some gorgeous photos of Mikayla and Toby playing with dandelions that I've been wanting to scrap so I put them into a film strip (using Photoshop) and printed them out. I've teamed them with some Echo Park paper, Prima flowers and a Jenni Bowlin bingo card to come up with this:Dandelion-Fun_1

Our Guest Designer this month is Vicki and she's worked her creative magic with some Websters pages netting under her photo and used stitching as well. It's a beautiful soft look:P3290002

Now it's all up to you... go and raid those fabric stashes and see what you come up with!

We also have a winner for the March challenge!  This month there was a layout uploaded that, to me, had the perfect mix of great colours, fantastic embellishments and good use of techniques with just a hint of humour... have you guessed who's layout it is yet??IMG_1435

Congratulations to... (insert drum roll sound here)... Brenda!!  You’ll get to see more of Brenda’s creativity next month when she is our Guest Designer :)

If you’re still reading this post… THANKS for hanging in there!  I hope you all have a wonderful week xx