So what's been happening?

I thought it was time to do a bit of a catch up with you since I haven't been around for a while... although I have lots of plans to change that!!!  This is going to be a bit of a random update... I've got school/work stuff... family stuff... creative stuff... basically lots of stuff... and since it's all jumbled around I'll do it all in no particular order.

Since we last talked I've... gone to Invercargill.

Right now I'm sitting in my daughter's (Mikayla's) house in the deep South awaiting the arrival of my first grandbaby.  I flew down from Rotorua to Invercargill on Tuesday which was very exciting... and to be honest just a little bit nerve wracking since I haven't been on a plane in YEARS!

Bubs was due on Wednesday (12th July) but so far there is no baby!  Poor Mikayla is so over being pregnant... and I'm quietly wishing for bub's hasty arrival as I have to fly back to Rotorua on Thursday (20th July).  They say good things come to those who wait but Mikayla doesn't feel like waiting anymore and I'm firmly agreeing with her!

Since we last talked I've... made some cards.

So while we're on the subject of my wee grandbaby I thought I could share some of the things I've made for her.  First up are some Thank You cards that are technically for Mikayla and Chris to send out after baby is born.  I decided to make a set of 10 cards... the same but different... I started off by making one card to get the design idea and here's what I came up with:

That sweet little elephant is from My Favorite Things - Adorable Elephants stamp and die set... as is the wee flowers and butterfly.  I later added a balloon to the card but you'll see that in a moment.

Then I set up a production line of all the elements needed on the cards:

Here are the 10 cards all finished... there's four different elephants, three different balloons, three different butterflies and two different flowers in the stamp set... and I used them all!  No cards are exactly the same but they definitely make a nice set.

 On the inside of the cards I stamped a sentiment that I'm pretty sure will apply to the newest addition to our family: and though she be little she is fierce

I actually took lots of step by step photos while I was making these cards so don't be surprised if you see a blog post dedicated just to them in the near future :)

 Since we last talked I've... made some cot sheet sets.

Along with the cards I also promised Mikayla that I would make her some fitted and flat cot sheet sets... and since she lives in the deep South where it gets really cold I made them out of winceyette which is super snuggly and just seems to get better with washing.

I started with some super cute fabric:

Unfortunately the yellow fabric with pink dots turned out to be only 90cm (36 inches) wide so it wasn't wide enough for a sheet but I'm sure I will use it for something else.  

Choosing the fabric turned out to be the easy bit (although Michael might disagree with me!)  Once I had the fabric home it turned out that I couldn't sew it for a while due to my knee... more on that in a moment.  So instead of having the sheets made three weeks ahead of me leaving I was actually still sewing them the night before I left... but I DID get them done and the fitted sheets even have French seams... very classy!

Here are all three sets of sheets packed into the baby's suitcase ready to go to Invercargill... YES Krystal and I totally filled an entire suitcase with presents and clothes for our wee arrival (the one that hasn't actually arrived yet LOL)

Mikayla was pretty pleased with the sheets... she particularly liked the pink pandas and she's now made the cot with them and it looks so gorgeous:

Since we last talked I've... damaged/injured my knee!

In early June (10th) Michael, Krystal and I went to visit Mum in Tauranga.  She had Kody (my niece) staying and we were all just hanging out together having a good time.  I went down the hallway and was minding my own business (Mum might disagree with me!) when I turned to say something to Mum and I felt/heard a 'pop' in my knee... followed by instant agony!

I managed to get through lunch with my leg up on a chair but the pain was pretty intense.  Then we decided to go to KMart for a look around and Kody was thrilled to bits when we found a wheelchair for me to sit in.  She might only be 10 but she's a good little driver!

The pain wasn't really getting any less so we decided to head back home and on the way back it actually got worse so Michael and Krystal decided to take me straight to the hospital.  Several tests and x-rays later it turned out that I'd done some real damage to the ligaments in my knee and would have to be in a brace and use crutches... say what???

They told me that I would need to take the week off work... what???  I didn't have time for a week off work!!!  By the end of the first week I was still on crutches so another week off work was ordered by the doctor... and in fact I didn't make it back to school for the rest of the term (4 weeks off work!!) AND I still need to use the brace at night.

Since we last talked I've... joined Cathy Zielske's Design Your Life 2.0 class

Design Your Life 2.0, is Cathy's first ever live class on CZ Classes.  Here's what Cathy said about it: This four-week online workshop has one goal: to teach you the core principles of graphic design that you can apply to your scrapbook pages for more beautiful, timeless and well-designed results.

To be honest... I haven't made a scrapbook page in a LONG time!  What I do know is that I really like Cathy's style... and I like the way she teaches (I did her 30 Days of Thankful class last November)... and I already own lots of her digital templates... so I thought... Why not???  What have I got to loose?  Registration will close July 25th at midnight... so if you're keen there's still time to join in.  Check out this LINK for more info.

So far I've watched one of the Week 1 videos... and downloaded all the necessary files and I've already got an idea for a layout I'd like to make brewing in my mind :)

So there you have it... lots of snippets of info... I will definitely be back with another post very soon... and hopefully I'll be a Nan by then!  Thanks for stopping by xx