Dolly's Dreamings

Go Figure

I had a lovely day yesterday.

The rib painw as so much less. I felt like I was well ont he road to recovery.

I enjoyed a lovely long lunch with my work colleagues from Magna (one of them even drove me as that still is not on the agenda)

The heath fire was thankfully not near us and all was good with the world.

Then, for no apparent reason at all, my ribs said no - we are not letting you relax. We are not done with you yet!

 

I had an awful pain filled night maybe gettinga  couple of hours sleep at best.

Today it has been painful all day - so much worse and no rhyme or reason for it.

But we soldiered on. I shopped for essentials with Nigel, I scrapped and I sat and watched the new Mission Impossible which was very good. I did fidgeta  lot as I couldn't get comfortable so I was glad no-one was sat near us.

 

It looks like it is due a storm - very very very muggy and cloudy and dark. Let there be rain. Please.

The sad thing is it is cloudy and so possibly won't get to see the lunar eclipse and the blood moon and mars.

 

I did another prompt from the Shimelle layering class #layeringwithshimelle which also worked for FOTLOPP challenge os strawberry red again. Nigel and I looking stupidly young at the start of our lifelong romance

 

Today I am thankful for

• a great day yesterday
• lovely colleagues ... having had some in the past who were anything but, this is lovely to cherish
• some better days (wish they all were but then I wouldn't appreciate the good if I didn't have the bad eh!)

 

Too many funerals

It hasn't been a good few months with losses to be honest.
We went to the funeral of a good friend's young daughter in May. Just 10 days ago saw the funeral of my cousin's young son who was only 24 and yesterday we buried my aunt. My cousin lost her mother and son in the space of just two weeks. So awful. Then there will be the funeral for Dawn too.

Life is short, my friends. We never know what is around each corner and we must, we absolutely must, make the most of each and every moment we have.

 

I feel very blessed. I said to Nigel only last week, if I were to die tomorrow he should know I have had a very very happy life. I don't WANT to go yet of course, but I am about to enter the year I have dreaded forever. In two weeks I will turn the same age as mu Mommy was when she died and I have always feared this year. It is totally irrational, but then aren't fears always.

 

My lovely cousin suggested that we took the flowers Nigel and I had brought for Aunty Betty onto Mommy and Daddy's grave. Aunty Betty and her sister - my Mom - were so close. It was a lovely thing for her to suggest and we were so proud to do it. I hope my parents and my cousins parents, who spent so much of their lives together doingt hings as a four, are all together now and that heaven is having one heck of a party they are all dancing in.

 

It is so unbearably hot - there seems nowhere to get cool. Thank goodness we have the balcony. It gets a bit of a breeze and we spend a lot of time there.

I did scrap this morning though as that is when my scrap room is coolest

 

This is a page made using a piece of paper I have had for more than 10 years and was inspired to use by the new layering class with Shimelle

 

 

I also have a digitial page that is very special ... it was made witht he last collection Dawn made before she passed away. It released yesterday and is on offer at the moment. I hope lots of people will feel they want to purchase it

It is called the Botanical Bundle and has a FWP too

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• the beautiful products Dawn created that we all loved so much
• family laid to rest in beautiful services ... never easy but we did them proud
• the blessed life I have had so far. Let me never forget how lucky I am
• shimmelle's new class inspiring me

 

 

Paper today

It's been beautiful today - I don't know why people always rave about the gorgeous weather we have in September saying it is an Indian Summer. My recollection is that it is OFTEN beautiful in September.

From heating on last week it is back to shorts and t shirts and the balcony today. Warm, sunny and beautiful.

I have a paper page to share today made with the new sketch on Stuck

 

It is another for our 2016 WOW America album, this time from California Adventures that we thought we wouldn't like and we loved it. Apart from Radiator Springs - which was exceptional - this was our favourite area of the park - Grizzy Peak.

 

 

I also have my latest LSNED to share

 

 

and finally this page made with a superb collection by Tiramisu Designs called Hello September.

 

 

The photos were taken at Westonbirt Arboretum - I would like to visit again one day.

 

Today I am thankful for

• a beautiful day
• exploring
• our balcony - I do love it

 

 

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so glad it is over

Today has been a horrid day and I am so glad it is over.... finally.

Anglian came back again - this is an ongoing saga that has been going on since April and ... finally ... I think we are done. The door is incredibly stiff but we will live with it. The bad bits have been fixed and I just don't want workmen here again for a very very long time. The entire triple patio door had to come out again. The mess, the noise, the worry. Horrible.

In addition to that - and with dustsheets throughout the house and two vans on the drive, a lorry pulled up with our replacement suite. Our new suite had to be re-made as it was made of two different leathers. The new one is now in and fine and now pretty much everything that we have had done this year that went wrong has been corrected.

Balcony - up, down, up again and now fine

 

Roof - fine, leaking, refelted, fixed

 

Artificial grass - down, up, down, up, down, up and finally down

 

Patio doors - in, our, in, adjusted, out, in, out, in

 

Three piece suite - in, out, in

 

Kitchen windows in - end caps to be refitted then we are done!

 

Oh boy - what a year. Done now. Not doing any more 'home improvements' as it often doesn't improve the home. House now deep cleaned, cats comforted (it has been hard ont hem) all fixtures and fittings back. Champagne tonight.

 

I tried to scrap today to relieve the stress. It didn't. But this is the page I made anyway.

 This the first September challenge for Stuck Sketches and it is a page for the Disneyland Holiday. Mary Poppins was just such a bright vibrant section of the parade and the sketch worked well for it.

 

 

 

 

It was nice to scrap a happy colourful page (using very old Basic Grey)

 

Today I am thankful for

• today being over
• the house being restored
• hopefully the end of the workmen ... well at least indoors.
• my wonderful husband who manages to deal with the work and my anxieties

 

 

some more of those bar codes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thinking of friends in Florida and Georgia

It makes the rain of the last few days here seem pathetic. England has, by and large, gentle weather. The information about the hurricane seems so variable and we are watching updates carefully. I feel so sorry for the people int he islands who have already suffered such devastation. I hope that people in Florida stay safe. The warning are very severe and hundreds of thousands have been told to get out to safety. The news has just said 6 million. It must be a terrifying thing to experience - to leave behind everything you own and not know what will be there when you return. I know they are only 'things' but they are YOUR things. Just awful.

Thoughts and prayers for everyone affected in any way.

 

I have news of new scrapping things today.

Dawn has a lush new collection out called Don't Be Sad and it reduced at the moment

 

I made this page with it - definitely not sad. Just a very happy photo of three gorgeous girlies.

 

 

I also scrapped with a brand new template collection called Wanderlust #6 by Heartstring Scrap Art and it is an amazing set

 

This is what I made with it - our Death Valley trip

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• Time with a friend who has amazing equipment - we are having stuff embroidered and printed
• an easier day
• the weekend
• being safe

and finally LSNED

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Yet another beautiful day

It dawned misty again and it burnt off into the most glorious day again. I didn't even have a jacket on when we walked along the cliffs and the beach. Utterly springlike.

 

This was before the mist burnt off completely

 

 

 

The tropical gardens

 

 

 

 

 

and I even bought myself a spring wreath - have been going to make one for years. Bought this instead

 

 

 

 

New scrapping to share today

another for the WOW paper album

The closest we have ever managed to the hollywood sign

 

 

Last night we went to the cinema - we almost never go but there was a film we both really wanted to see, and we were so NOT disappointed. It made us laugh and cry - a real feel good film and a true story. It is well worth seeing

 

 

 

and here are a couple of trailers ... enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• my life - I love my life

 

 

 

 

 

Lovely quiet weekend

We have had a lovely quiet weekend - not doing much apart from some long walks int he freezing cold and a lot of scrapping.

I remember how weekends used to be frantic as we tried to cram everything in in those two precious days. I prefer our chilled weekends.

 

I have new scrapping to share - both paper and digital

I am all caught up on my weekly pages and this is week 4 ... I am loving doing these ... it's a bit like the photo a day that I would then scrap as weekly pages but without the stress of having to take a picture EVERY day. They are not elaborate pages but will just serve as a record for us of 2017. Of no interest to anyone but us really!

 

 and I have a new paper page to share made for a challenge on UKS to make a pocket page. It's a heck of a big stitched pocket to hold the Disneyland map!

 

 

 I had fun printing off the different elements from various scans and kits I had - recolouring where necessary.

 

I cannot believe we didn't get a new copy of the map as we exited the park - I am usually so good at that. The one I have had to use is one we carried round all day and is well loved. Still, I suppose it is authentic!

 

Today I am thankful for

• a lovely, un-rushed weekend
• time - don't ever knock it
• Some awesome new digital kits you will see int he next week or so that I have been working with

 

Fiki is currently experiencing a major Mommy crush ... he is just on me all the time. I love it!  (I think he is cold!)

 

 

Better than expected

We didn't have the storm predicted yesterday or today - so all was good.

Today was beautifully bright and sunny - though a definite nip in the air.

 

I also managed to finish my photobooks - both now ordered and I am excited about seeing them.

 

Never ever ever buying two credits at the same time again though! Too much pressure making countless pages over the last few days.

 

This was one of the pages I made today to finish off - a record of the Christmas Tree Festival we attended this year which was lovely.

 

 

I also made this paper page - just because I was sick of staring at the computer screen.

 

 

It was hard to believe that you were in California when you walked around Solvang. It was an utterly beautiful town but very very bizarre. Often mistakenly called Dutch it is a Danish town in Southern California, just 132 miles north of LA.

We were planning to go to another area altogether, butt here were wildfires in the area that has closed the roads and I remembered reading about Solvang so we took a diversion there and to Los Olivos - another gorgeous town.

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• a lovely trip to the water again

 

• finishing two photobooks

 

 

no stopping us

It was a bit grey and bleak today - not raining but one of those special English days.

However it didn't stop us going out. After a lunch of home made soup (OK so it tasted fine but do you know what - I really don't think it was worth the trouble.) we went for a walk.

I never fail to be amazed at some fo the houses in our town. Not right by us but in areas like Liliput and Sandbanks. There are some seriously incredible properties. I think the people who live in them, apart from being millionaires, must spend their time being worried about being burgled though.

So many of them are all glass and have water frontage. We looked at a new one just been finished and at first assumed it must be apartments as the building was huge. But a little further along the huge sign had pictures of the inside and details. On three floors with balconies overlooking Poole harbour from every main room, and with an indoor pool, gym and a boat dock and slipway, it has 6 bedrooms, all en suits, a media room, two lounges and views to die for. No idea of the price but I am guessing between 4 and 5 million at least. Nigel and I agreed we'd be lost in just one floor of it.

 

I have been digi scrapping today as I am trying to garner enough pages for my next photobook that I have a credit waiting for.

This was made for a challenge on PBP this week.

 

 

The challenge was to use black and white and just two colours - red and kraft. I actually used some Christmas supplies from Created by Jill for most of it.

 

Having been an Angels fan since 1981, touring the stadium with no access denied was a dream come true for Nigel. I loved seeing him enjoy it. I couldn't resist the picture of him with Mickey though. For a period of time Disney owned the Angels and there has always been a connection with Disney and the Angels ... when Gene Autry was wanting to find a place for his baseball team he first looked at Long Island but the town planning dept were insisting he call the team the Long Beach Angels and he wanted it to be called the California Angels. That was in 1961 and whilst he was looking his good friend Walt Disney told him there was a lot of land near where he had just built a theme park in Anaheim - Disneyland of course. Gene Autry went to look and the rest is History!

They have been called the California Angels, then the Anaheim Angels and now the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

 

No matter what they are called - he loves them. We have more Angels clothing and memorabilia in this house than they had in the team store as it was end of season! Me ... I like the Dodgers! They were the first team I saw play for real but ... don't tell Nigel ... I prefer the Angels now!

 

The techniques used ont he page included stealing the A logo from the internet, using a mask to fade out the top picture, and winding ribbon through the lettering.

Today I am thankful for

• a lovely walk to blow the cobwebs away
• accepting that I am not a domestic goddess!!
• the chance to help make dreams come true.

 and this just made me laugh!

 

Brrrrr and wow

It was a glorious day today - so bright and sunny but Oh my goodness cold. However, when we stood int he sun you could feel the warmth of it. It just wasn't enough to take the freeze off.

We had to call in to Nigel's mom and so after we decided to go to Bournemouth Beech and ride their 'wheel'

 

Ok so it was not quite the London Eye. It was much smaller and much less beautiful but it was a cute ride and a very clear day. Jolly cold up there though

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we walked along the prom and it was heaving with people - I guess everyone was celebrating the Bank Holiday and the last day before work resumes ... well not the last day for us, obviously LOL!

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were also just taking down the huge Hannukiah too

 

 

we were so cold we had to stop for lunch to warm up!

 

I scrapped the last Scrap Like You mean it re-boot today too

It is another page for the WOW album - well actually the second WOW album as I have filled the first.

 

 

 

We loved this statue at California Adventures ... the perfect parallel to Partners

 

 

I found some very old letters that perfectly matched the metal of the statue so I was quite pleased with that.

 

 

 

Today I am thankful for

• a lovely treat out - something different. I am trying to do something new each week so that is this week done!