Thursday, September 24, 2009

I think Paul Henry is SO funny...











Oh, and I've finally figured out how to 'embed' a youtube vid into my blog! Yay!

Byeeeeeeeeeee

OH, and this one....

You've probably seen this before, but...

I think it's SO funny!



Have a great Thursday everyone!

Toodles, B x

I found it...

Thanks to Trina for reminding me where I saw it in the first place...

This is the stuff I was talking about. Once I've tried it out, I'll let you know my opinion... I've heard fab things about it :)


Toodles, B x

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Lush...?

Quite a while back I read on someone's blog about a product they bought from Lush that was a great deodorant... but I can't remember where I read about it. Was it you? If it was, email me, please!

Monday, September 21, 2009

It gets me every time...

It's one of my all time favourite shows to watch... I'm pretty sure I've been watching it ever since it started, like a million years ago, but THIS season, man... It gets me EVERY time. There hasn't been a single episode of this season of E.R. that I haven't cried. Every time a coconut. I'm not sure if I'm getting soft in my old age, or if it's the fact that it's the FINAL SEASON EVER so they're finishing some of the character's storylines, or what. But it gets me. Every. Single. Time. Anyone else have that problem, or is it just me?

Official Results...

Official time across the line - 58.21 (under an hour!) The one hour countdown that I heard was for the runners, who left the start line a couple of minutes ahead of us walkers. I finished 38th overall, and 8th out of the 17 in my age-range. Not bad!

I'm still in one piece!!!

Yup, I did it... 1.6km walk, 11km bike ride, then another 1.6km walk. In just over an hour... literally. My time (yet to be listed on their website) was 1 hour and ??? seconds. Frustratingly I heard them do the 10 second countdown to the one hour mark as I was JUST out of reach. Bummer.


Today I have a bit of a sore back, as my riding stance on Dad's pushy was more 'stretched' than the riding stance on the cycle at the gym, and I am a bit tired in general, but I DID IT!


I had my two-man cheering squad with me (D and J), who took pics as I strode round the track, then kept overtaking and stopping in front of me while I was out on the bike to take more photos. Every time they drove past me cycling up the road, I could hear J yelling out the car window 'Go Mum, Go Mum, Go Mum...' Funny! Mum and Daddy-Jim came out to watch the end of the cycle part and my second walk to the finish line too, so that was cool. Lots of (sweaty) hugs at the finish line! Ewwww!


So, not the most glamorous, but here is the photographic proof that I was there... I may not be the smallest person (although I am trying to do something about that of course), but I wasn't the largest person there either. It was great to see so many people of all shapes and sizes there participating. Esp. for such a great cause. Right, photos:


The walkers, just heading off...
Starting to spread out... I am about two-thirds of the way across, right near the back

Note the Red Cross in the background! (not needed by me, fortunately!)
Striding it out, around the track

I have a little 'helper' coming to assist, as my first walk comes to an end...
Getting ready to set off on the pushy...

And I'm off!
Coming back into the circuit after the 11km bike ride...

Desperately trying to get my legs to walk properly (they feel a bit jelly-like at this point)
Back out on the track again...

Hearing the countdown for the one hour mark, I RUN to the finish
ALL DONE!



So that's it people, my first ever (baby) duathlon. Didn't know if I'd be able to manage it when I registered, but the training I did at the gym paid off. Also a big thanks to my workplace for sponsoring me into the duathlon in return for some photography work I did for them.


Oh, and I won a spot prize at the prize giving - a voucher for a Triumph Triaction Sports Bra from Ballantynes.... worth around $50. Fantastic!


So that's it from me, time to get ready for work. What did everyone else get up to at the weekend?


Toodles, B x

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Wish me luck...

I'm off to do this soon... Will update you later (if I am capable!)

Toodles, B x

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Cupcakes, Camp and Cars...

'Cupcakes?' I hear you say... Yup, I got a mention on Nic's blog here... nice to see that those icing flowers finally got put to good use Nic, ha ha ha! I haven't made any since my birthday back in July, but that's just so I don't EAT THEM ALL!!!!!


Camp, yes, finally I am going to give you a 'debrief' on how the Embellishit Winter Camp went down... It was awww-suuum (to quote Doug from the Instant Kiwi ads!).

I arrived late afternoon Friday to help unpack and get the shop stuff set up - always a bonus to get to see the lovely new products before everyone else does :) After tea I got started on my cupcake album - using the Kaiser MDF Cupcake Album, and some oober-cute Prima Mommy and Me Papers. The idea was to make a cute little book to keep on the kitchen bench, using my two favourite cupcake recipes, and some family recipes from my Nan and two of my Great Grandmas. I was pleased with how it turned out... VERY cutesy! Here's some pics:






After I got that finished off, out came the Kahlua-and-Coke-Zero (to get just a little bit more mojo workin) and I was off! I started a layout using two of my favourite photos of my boys. The first shot is J lying on top of D having a story read to him. The second shot is of J in bed, reading to his Dad. I just wanted to be able to explain to J how proud we were that he had started to reach that milestone of being able to read to someone else. And I just love the fact that both of the photos show them concentrating on what they are doing, like a little snapshot of a private moment between them, not posing or smiling for the camera because someone told them to. These are the kinds of photos that show real life. Real emotions. Real love. The layout was reasonably simple, but I did quite a bit of machine stitching on it, and considering the sewing was done at 2am, with a couple drinks on board, it was actually straight. Mmmm. Me thinks I sews best when up late/drinking. Weird!

*****Pics of half time change sides layout*****

By the time I got it almost-finished (all but the journalling) it was 3am, and SO time for bed. The next morning I was up at half seven, but unfortunately there was a problem with the hot water, so a VERY quick, VERY cold shower was what I was greeted with. Brrrrrrrr. I wasn't feeling all that great, even after breakfast, so after morning tea (and a visit from my boys) I went for a bit of a kip in the bunkroom. Sleep proved elusive, so I gave up after an hour and got back up, and had lunch. After lunch I had a lovely HOT shower, and felt SO MUCH BETTER! Amazing what a bit of hot water can do :) Oh, and while my boys were there, we took the traditional camp photo, and a few of us cowgals too... see:





But camp is not camp without a little mischief, and somehow I often find myself right smack bang in the middle of it (oops!). For the last few camps, there has been a group of us that go with a 'theme' for the weekend... two camps ago we were the Scrap Angels (all of us complete with our own with fluffy halo), last camp we were Scrap Bunnies (yup, cutesy fluffy wabbit ears), and this time, well.... we were the Scrappin Cowgirls...!








L-R: Nic, Me, Jo, Kath, Fiona and Brenda. Yeehaaaa! Now, what you CAN'T tell from looking at the photos is that those picnic tables were REAL close to tipping up completely (what with all of us sitting on one side, teeheehee!). Real close. Oops again.


And this next one of me and Nic was taken especially for our Dr Rob - we knew he'd get a kick out of seeing his patients behaving like loonies! Poor Nic went for a visit on the Tuesday after camp, and THIS PHOTO was his desktop background... hopefully he's changed to something more tasteful by now :)







Anyhoo, back to camp... After lunch we were given the camp make and take to do, but I was busy getting the journalling punched into my label-maker, so I decided to leave that for another day, and keep on going while the going was good. Everyone else's Timeless Template Pack-a-Picnic Baskets looked great though, so I definitely intended to make mine at home. I have a couple of other Timeless Templates already, and they are SO easy to use. Just great.


Oh, and back on the subject of mischief, Jo and I thought we'd better have Rachel on, so I kept watch while she tied knots in Rach's pyjama bottoms, then we snuck along after her when she went to bed to listen to the response :) Sneaking is very hard to do when one of your fellow sneakers says 'Don't make me laugh, or I'll fart' (you're all class, Kath!).


Oh and then we got the bright idea to put the picnic tables in front of her door so she couldn't get out, but this was not without a few problems. The first problem was that the first table we tried to move was BOLTED TO THE CONCRETE - oh dear. Then the others we moved had to be carried quite a wee ways, and we had to be very quiet, which is hard to do when you've got the giggles. Needless to say, I think she heard us coming. Seriously. I am NOT quiet after I've had a couple of vinos, if ya know what I mean! Then we realised that if we didn't wake her up and get a reaction, we'd not only miss out on her response, but we could actually cause a bit of damage to anyone who tried to get out in the middle of the night if nature called... Mmm. So we (again) very quietly snuck up to her bunkroom door, knocked loudly, then sneaked away quietly (NOT). Here's the proof:







Although Rach got her own back when Jo slept in on Sunday morning, and she awoke to the tables having magically appeared in front of HER door :)


Late in the day I vowed that I would not be going to bed that night until I had finished another layout, so I started trawling through my papers and photos (as I hadn't planned what on earth I was going to be doing) trying to decide what to work on. Man, that can take some time! I eventually found inspiration in some Basic Grey Lime Rickey paper... the little birdie print made me think of some of the silly things I say and do when I'm taking photos. You know, like 'where's the birdie?' etc etc.




With only the journalling to be done, I got to bed at about half three, but by 4am I decided to abandon the bunkroom and drag my mattress and sleeping bag back into the hall to sleep.... There was a heavy snorer resonating through the concrete block wall from next door, my bunkmate in the bunk above me was talking/muttering in her sleep, and another bunkmate was also snoring, aarrrgghhhh!!!!!! Seeing as I knew I wasn't going to have long to sleep, I decided I may as well make a good effort at sleep.....elsewhere! I dozed until 7am when Bridgette came in, then grabbed a HOT shower while I could. Hooray!


After brekkie I got to work on the journalling, then started to pack up my bedding and the scrap stuff that I figured I didn't need to use for the rest of the day. I got a little bit done on some mini albums for my boys before we had to pack up altogether. Note to self: get those bl**dy books finished, woman!

And finally, cars.... Yes, I have bought a NEW CAR! And it is way cool. Seriously. It's a racey red one, and a million miles better than the poor old Toyota Corolla I have been driving for two years that now has 311,500kms on the clock (affectionately/insultingly called 'The Rolls').

Check. It. Out.... my 2007 Ford Focus (with only 51,000kms on the clock, I might add!)




I call her Zippee :)

Righto, I still have WAY more to tell you, but that'll do for starters peeps. Have a great Tuesday and don't work too hard, yeah?

Toodles, B x

Sorry Heidi...

Yes, that WAS a bit of a tease, but I can assure you that I spent over an hour last night typing a post, which just needs the photos inserted and then it's hot to trot... you should see it later today, ok?! Jeez, some people are impatient!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Hey!

I have SO MUCH to tell you, because I've been blog-absent for a bit... but when you read all the posts I am about to get started on, you'll understand why :)

See you soon! B x