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Tuesday 24 November 2009

This is not a good day

It's a good thing that I am currently spending the middle of the day on my own today. I am in such a foul mood. It started this morning when OH hijacked my making of eggy sandwiches for kids lunch box (just because I'm moaning doesn't mean I don't want to do it) I was actually trying to make the point that the eggs I had bought from the farmers market where so fresh the shells wouldn't peel off properly. But never mind.

For the whole of the rest of the day so far I have been annoyed. Keep finding things OH has done to annoy me. I know he does it on purpose. He lies in bed at night cooking up ways to irritate me.

And then if that wasn't enough, have spent most of day sorting out PTA accounts (I am treasurer) which has given me a headache, and made me even more annoyed. Still haven't finished but brain is now swimming, and no more will go in.

All I want to do is be making crafty things. Instead I had to clean kitchen and have yet to do bathroom. My friend is coming over later, her house is always immaculate, so I feel I need to make an effort.

Never mind! This evening I am going dancing! Off to Tap & Jazz for some hard core work out!
Yay! I'm sure that will help put me in a better mood, and if not, I can always get some chocolate on the way home.

Monday 23 November 2009

Out of Time

I have been intending to tell you all about my busy busy week, but I've been so busy I haven't had time. Having said that, I have been so busy that I have just spent an hour reading Soule Mama's Blog dreaming and feeling very inadequate.

Soule Mama is someone I aspire to be. I would like nothing better than to lead a bohemian existance, crafting, creating and being the earth mother to my earthy children. I cannot imagine Soule Mama ever raises her voice or gets angry. It's not like that in my house.

I swear I am going to die of a heart attack before I am 50 (and the fact that my mother has just been diagnosed with angina doesn't help). If I go ONE day without screaming, it's a good day. I wish I was serene, but I'm not. I am highly strung. I even wind myself up! It seems to be a female trait in this house, as my daughter is following in her mothers well trodden path. Fortunately I can see that she seems to be more clone than chip off the old block and have been teaching her strategies to calm herself down and de stress. She is only 8 but about a year ago started to go through the 'change' early and became mostly hysterical, and sometimes just angry. I have to say that I did the calm understanding nurturing thing (which didn't work) and then gave up and gave her an ultimatum (stop now, no one wants to hear it type thing) (which did work). She has been much better since then, only occasionally slipping back into the hysteria.

So consequently this is not a calm oasis. I would like it if it is, but I feel I am mostly responsible for the overall ambiance of my household. I have never been a calm person. I am emotional and as such everyday is a rollercoaster. I feel things in an outwards fashion, and project my emotion outwards. If I didn't I would explode quite spectacularly.

So, Soule Mama, I will continue to follow your beautiful blog, and continue to aspire to be more serene. I can't promise anything, but I haven't shouted today. Yet.

Thursday 12 November 2009

Socks and Monsters

So I got involved in chatting to my fellow Folksians which is something that can take over your life if you let it! But whilst chatting and reading threads, I stumbled upon Hotdogandme's challenge to fellow Folksies to transform one of her marvelous sock creature kits to be sold on Crafteroo's page on Folksy to raise money for children in need!


Luckily I managed to nip in at the end and nab myself one of said kits, and a couple of days later this is what arrived...

Originally I had marvelous ideas ideas about making a curly snail with big wobbly feelers and it was all very exciting but when it arrived it was nothing like I expected! I wouldn't exactly say I was disappointed, but thoughts of snails disintegrated quite quickly, luckily to be replaced by new ideas. It's rather bizarre to think that a humble sock can have a hidden identity. Lets face it, it's just a sock. What do socks do? They keep your feet warm and stop them rubbing on your shoes. At least, that's what I thought until Hotdogs kit turned up. Now it has taken on a whole new identity. Its almost akin to a sculpturer revealing the hidden treasure inside the stone.

So, faced with a sock adorned with hearts, i had two options, cute, or not cute, and as anyone who knows me will tell you, I don't really do cute, so I hit upon the idea of a monster that was cute, but didn't want to be! At first there was a bit of stitching and unpicking as my perfectionist self wasn't impressed with the outcome until eventually Hartley Sockosaurus was born! And here he is!
Ginger No.1 and 2 didn't want him to be sold, and tried to hide him, but Hartley just didn't understand and kept 'un-hiding' himself. A couple of days later he was bought by a lovely lady and shipped off to his new home. The place just isn't the same without him!

Tuesday 3 November 2009

A Blog is Born

I am writing this whilst surrounded by paper kites and the sounds of children laughing and crying, Liza Minelli and Joel Grey sing 'Money, Money' in the background. Actually it's not so much in the background, as attempting to drown out the crying. It's not working, but it is blending in, in a bizarre way.So this blog is all about what goes on in our lovely chaotic household, and my trying to make some sense out of it all. Sometimes I do wonder why I bother, maybe I should give in and just embrace the chaos. I'm not actually sure if I am making sense either at the moment. It is quite difficult with all this noise going on.Let me explain who we all are...

There is Alex, he is daddy. He spends most of his time at work, or honing his skills at the squash court. You may hear about him every now and again. His favourite place in the world is in bed. Asleep.

Next in line is me, I am Nic, currently a stay at home mum and crafter. I used to be a normal person, but then I had children and gave up work. My brain shrank to the size of a pea and since then I have been struggling between my two lives (more about them later).

Further down the line is Ginger No1. Willow is 8 yrs old and an emotional roller coaster. She's one of those artistic types, and will probably still be getting away with outbursts at the age of thirty because of it. Mind you, it works for me, and as my mother keeps pointing out, she is a chip off the old block.

Rounding off our little quartet is Ginger No2. Oscar is 5 and has just started school. He is our construction king. And an aspiring stand up comedian. He hasn't quite perfected the art of a good joke, but he's working very hard on it.

On the four legged front we have Ginger No3. Diablo the cat. We have had him from a kitten, when he was cute and a pain in the backside. I have never met a more aptly named cat (el diablo), although he is getting rather fat these days and has calmed down quite a lot in his old age. A very talkative cat and very pig headed.

Thomas is cat number 2, but thankfully no more gingers, he is black. He is a recent addition to our household, an extremely timid feline, quite surprising really as he is monstrously huge. We saved him from the terrors of city living. He couldn't hack it as a city cat, so came to live with us earlier in the year. He and Diablo are still vying for top cat position which is a bit fraught and not great on the nerves.

So that is our little family, and this blog is all about me, craft, and them.