the midnight scrapper

i've gone scandinavian & baltic crazy...

It would seem that in the last month everywhere I turn I am being inspired by something from Scandinavia or the Baltic countries.

It all started with this...

   

Yes I know I am coming to these books late, but I ploughed through them all in my 2 weeks holiday and thoroughly enjoyed them (besides butchering most of the places and names in the book!!).

Then Becky had this print on her blog...

Just as I was looking for something to put in with Gary's 50th birthday present (Gary's father was Estonian, but we have never been there) this wonderful photo montage appeared on Becky's blog. Printed it off and put it in an 8" x 10" frame with 3" white mount and it looks great, and is meaningful to Gary .

And then my friend Libby was enjoying herself here...

 
 Yes, she is on a Baltic cruise (and so much more) and seeing the most wonderful sights.

I visit these blogs for inspiration...

 

 

and love on all the clean white organisation!

What is inspiring you at the moment? 

wow, a half century on the board...

My dear husband Gary turns 50 today! Yes, I can barely believe it myself. It seems just yesterday that he was meeting my parents as we prepared to go out on our second date, and he was trying not to look shocked by the taffeta tutu (come on people , it was the 80's) I was wearing. 

I was trying to come to turns with his "casual" getup (boots, T shirt & navy cord jeans) for our big night out - yes, we were going to the same place LOL.

jody (21) & gaz (23) - meeting the parents before the big date.

Still, it must of been the right mix of crazy because here he is turning 50 and he's still my guy! 

He doesn't have the boots any more, and I've ditched the tutu, though I still have it in a box in the back of my wardrobe - it would probably fit on my left thigh now, but that's another story.

We have two wonderful kids, great family & friends and we still have fun. 

Dinner and presents with the family tonight and then we are getting all dressed up and heading to Sydney for a fancy dinner with friends on Saturday night.

Happy 50th birthday Gary!!!

 gaz (49 + 361 days) - watching Oscar at soccer.

I know, I think I'll make a "random" scrap quilt...

Yes, that's right I believed that I would be able to let go of years of control and planning and just whip up a quilt using all my scrap fabrics.

Let me back up a little. You know when you bounce around blog land and you see so many good ideas, well that happens to me all the time and I often find myself cooking or sewing or crocheting something I found on a blog. Well this time I saw a post about using up your scrap fabrics with a scrap quilt.

Sounded easy. All you had to do was cut different lengths of the same width and sew them into rows and then sew the rows together. No sorting or matching, just, well...random.

I can do that! (thought delusional Jody!)

So I find myself in Maitland on another girls scrapbook weekend, only this time I announce that I am making a random scrap quilt. Ok Jody, do you really think random is your, er, thing they asked. Of course I can do random.

I then proceeded to iron fabric and cut exact sized squares and rectangles and was patiently placing each fabric for full effect.

I unpicked rows that didn't look "aesthetically  pleasing" when sew together. I pondered and dithered about too much red or colours that "clashed". I could hear the snickering from those assembled...we knew you couldn't do random Jody, so not your thing!!!!!

I'll admit that the whole random thing freaked me out and I really did have to put my big girl panties on and just get it done. Which I did. 

I had it quilted at Hobby Sew and then finished off the binding by hand.

Why oh why do my corners never meet exactly???? But we won't worry about that right now because I have a lovely, girly (the boys are horrified by all the pink backing fabric LOL) scrap quilt.

Lesson learn' t... I don't do random!!!!!!

What I do have planned is something very "non-random" for these lovelies :)

Fabrics from Hobby Sew.

Fabrics from Quilt Fabric Delights.

this week you can find me...

                                
over at the write click scrapbook blog.

I will be spending the week with...

and we will be solving problems, and doing a little scrapbooking... 

and busting out those 90's moves!! 

Word to your mother...it's going to be fun!

who wouldn't love an extra 5000 calories in their day...

Oh you think I jest but no, I am now in the possession of the Pioneer Woman's cookbook and I threw caution to the wind and got to whipping up a little country treat.

 

I thought I would start off with a fairly easy recipe...Olive Cheese Bread (or cheesy olive bread as we kept calling it).

  

Seemed easy enough, just lots of chopping and mayo and butter and cheese.

OK, all going well so far, kids sniffing about instinctively knowing something different was on its way!

Into the oven it goes and the house starts to smell good  :)

Oh my, this was delicious. I mean really good and we ate it all...every single glorious calorie. Of course I now have to go find me a farm to work those calories off!!

High calorie it may be, but it has made the cut and is heading to the recipe folder. Thank you PW :) 

what is the difference between these two photos...

   

Finally, after 120+ hours of learner supervised driving (mainly by Gary, I just don't have the "emotional stability" for this type of thing!!!!!) the big day arrived for Oscar to sit his Driving Test.

It was a quiet ride out as Oscar prepared mentally. The motor registry was super busy and we had to wait for over 40 minutes even though we were booked in. The nerves kicked it up a notch and then he was called and off he went with the instructor while I tried to stay calm and read a book.

After 45 minutes he was back and had to wait to be called for the results. After lots of paper shuffling the results were in...PASS! 

Official business to take care of and then...   

We have our red "P's" (Provisional License ) and we are very, very happy.

The final exchange. Oscar is no longer a Learner Driver.We make a few calls to spread the good news. I am happy and at the same time terrified. How is it that my first born is now allowed to drive alone? I doubt I will have a good nights sleep ever again.

Then reality sets in as I learn that:

1. He thinks he should get the car whenever he wants, because he's a driver now!!

2. Our car insurance just went up $200.00 a month and our excess doubled! Can you believe that. 

  

When he got home he had to quickly change for Soccer and then he drove off alone for the very first time. Maybe I asked him to call me when he got there just to let me know he was safe. Ha! (he did, just to make his mama happy).

So to answer the opening question...the first photo shows a nervous learner on his way to the RTA. The second photo shows a very happy licensed driver on his way home :)

Note: In order to avoid emotional trauma / embarrassment I was forced to take the indoor photos on the "down low", no flash, no holding the camera up to my face so I was lucky to get what photos I did LOL  

just going to pretend I was never m.i.a...

 

It's a new month over at write.click.scrapbook so head on over for our new gallery. This month we have all scrapped about our "home towns".

I had fun playing tourist in my home town and choosing photos that sum up  the feel of our city. Even broke out and did a 12" x 12" page + 6" x 12" page. Of course it caused all sorts of dramas to scan, but it seemed like a good idea at the time!