I had planned on using Basic Grey Porcelain for these photos, but I spied the box of Bittersweet papers instead - and couldn't resist! The colours are yummy and of course they're all about chocolates so it was absolutely perfect. The paper, rub-on, sticker, chipboard and brad are all from the Bittersweet range. I added Kaiser pearls, Dymo labeller and unknown ribbon and flowers. What do you think: does that face look like its had just one chocolate bar??
The 2008 school photos have been scrapped! Mr 10 looks so grown up - I can't believe how the time has flown, and in less than 2 years he will be at high school and even further on his journey out into the big wide world. And Mr 6.9 is so cheeky!! I hope he never loses his sense of humour. I'm really happy with these 2 layouts. They are still quite minimalist, but I have tried a few things I wouldn't have previously. 
Love the colour combinations on both of them. Its hard scrapping these types of photos with the fuzzy background, but this isn't a bad look and the boys will be there in my album to look at forever! I've never used buttons much before, but received these Sassafrass lass buttons in a recent sale, and found a perfect use for them as soon as I took them out of the box!!
This first layout is a colour combination I find very hard to use ... red, orange & pink. But the photos of Miss A in her gorgeous hat just had to be scrapped!! So I threw caution to the wind and found some reddish pattered paper, layered it on red cardstock, added hot pink and orange ribbon (just love how the velvet ribbon feels to the touch ...) with a fancy ribbon buckle, some bright coloured silk flowers from the Kaiser range with some bling brads and an MME title die-cut. 
Allcraftz had a cybercrop to celebrate the Australia Day weekend, with themes of green & gold and red/white/blue amongst others. I didn't get to complete these layouts in time for the CC, however they gave me inspiration to scrap these photos. The first is a set of photos for Mr C and his best mate at the cricket in Sydney - C'mon Aussies indeed!
The second layout is Mr C in his cricket gear - ready, set to play! I used Kaiser PP and felt, Bella fabric letters, Jenni Bowlin 4x4 paper as a journalling block and hand-cut felt star with some machine stitching as a border. I have several sheets of felt here in my stash, but seeing as fussy-cutting isn't my "thing" I Have been reluctant to get it out and use it. But what's the point of it just sitting there?? Absolutely none!! And it was the perfect red colour for this layout too.
I have had some Basic Grey Urban Prairie papers sitting there in my stash for a while now, just waiting for a photo to do it justice. And look what this little birdie came up with!! During our long hot summer, Miss A had a ball in our spa with Nan, and of course she loves to dress for the occasion. Here she is trying out Nan's glasses in the spa. She certainly does have her own free style!! The chip stickers looked gorgeous all by themselves so I didn't add much else except the hand-coloured journalling block and some bling. 
I have had this SEI Paper in my stash also for a while, which came with a monthly kit I subscribe to. It was shown with vintage photos (which I don't have any of) and I thought it extremely hard to use. However one day Miss A popped herself up at the piano and started to play - the dark wood of the piano just cried out for these elegant PP and thus this layout was born. Adding the little sheet music was inspirational - I love how it turned out.
Scrapboxx is running a free intermediate scrapbooking course with Sheree McGee - the first class was blocking, and this is my layout using the kit and techniques taught by Sheree. Super-easy to follow, and the effect is really easy to achieve as well. I had to add the big flower at the bottom - it just matched the PP perfectly. The photos are my 3 Christmas angels from 2008 - all cheeky little monkeys indeed. I wouldn't be without them for the world.
Also from Allcraftz, the generous Ebony sent out a heap of Making Memories paper samples from the recently released Paperie range, then set us 3 challenegs to complete using the samples with 5 rules to follow. This layout uses 3 of those rules - a photo showing the back of something, 3 things matted on the layout and a one-word title ending with a ? I painted the chip letters, and love how they turned out. I will definitely be using that technique more often!
Finally, my second layout using the blocking technique from Sheree's classes at Scrapboxx. This time I used Basic Grey Euphoria PP, chip stickers and rub-ons. I added Core-d'inations cardstock which had been run through the Cuttlebug and sanded back to show the core colour. And there is a little bling here & there as well. My tiny dancer swirled around on the floor of my scrap room before she could walk - now she twirls around in the lounge room to the Spice Girls (among others ...)
This first layout is of Mr C on his 7th birthday (the frightening thing is, his 10th birthday is coming up next week - how time flies!) He got this cool LOTR outfit, and it was the first time he wore a neck chain - I think it suits him, and have encouraged him to wear one more often, but it annoys him when he is playing sports or jumping on the trampoline. I used the Basic Grey "Boxer" range, added rhinestones on the photo matt, and an MME rub-on which teamed with the Boxer letters for the title.
This second layout is Mr A up to his cheeks in pink icing from a cupcake at the local school fete. From memory, I'm not even sure he ate the cake, just kind of smeared the icing around till it covered his face! I spied this little chipboard cupcake in my stash from the latest Boxx kit, and of course it was just perfect for this layout. Had fun painting it then sprinkling glitter over it too. The papers are from Basic Grey's "Cupcake" range, and the letters for the title are Pink Paislee. I also managed to use an old K&Co frame I found in my stash.
The final 2006 layout for now is The Wombat Hat - in Mr C's final year of junior soccer, the coach had this fabulous hat with a stuffed toy wombat on it, which the player of the match got to keep and wear for the week until the next match. You wouldn't think 7-8 year olds would fall for this stuffed toy animal, would you? But they did - in a big way! This match, Mr C scored his first (and I think only) goal of his career - I can still remember how it happened too!! He took the shot and kind of mis-hit it so it really just dribbled up to the goalie, and the goalie missed it completely and the ball then dribbled into the goals. Maybe not stupendous, but well worth the wombat hat and the cheesecake he chose afterwards. Now he tells me he doesn't like cheesecake - go figure ... I used Bais Grey's Granola range for this one.
The final layout is an newer photo - from 2008. Mr C just smiling and being happy. I tried something a little different with the PP and the ribbon & buttons, the silhouetted photo and the border. I also used Tim Holtz's distress powder for the first time - not sure if it turned out how its supposed to (it didn't 'bubble' up the way embossing powder does to coat the inked image) but it looks ok, so I'm happy with it!
These are my 2 boys mucking around on the rope swing at Millfield last October. A different type of layout for me - I tried a few different techniques like sewing and distressing, not to mention persevering with the felt border to actually get it (almost) straight! I used the Love Elsie Forrest range - love the little word tiles which came together beautifully with the words & colours of the photos. They do look like they are having a ball, don't they?? 
This little beauty is Miss A on her 2nd birthday, doing a spot of gardening. The light at sunset was just gorgeous, she in her jewelled crown and all! I couldn't resist scrapping this photo. The border scrolls are hand-cut (about the closest I will ever get to fussy cutting!!) and I love the bling. I tried something different with the large flower as well, putting rhinestones on the petals of the largest flower - a girl can never have too much bling, right??
And finally "what a mess!" Miss A got into some nappy cream probably 12 months ago now - one of those priceless photos which no doubt will surface on her 21st birthday - I wasn't really happy with how this turned out because I couldn't get the paint to splotch the right way. I loaded up the paintbrush and jerked it at the cardstock, but the paint wouldn't budge. Stayed on the brush. Wouldn't splodge the way I wanted it to whatsoever! So I ended up dabbing the brush all over the cardstock - and its just not the same to me. But given my usual layouts, this is a step outside the square for me!
This layout is 100% scraplifted from SC 62, a superb layout by Tatum Woodroffe on page 16. I have previously scrapped this photo of my boys in Canberra in September 2007 - the usual "this is where we are and what we are doing ..." but when I saw Tatum's layout and particularly the journalling it dawned on me to use the photo as the basis for a completely different type of layout.
These are the final few layouts from 2008 - this one is actually a photo from Christmas 2007. We took the kids for our annual Christmas lights tour - it was the first time Alannah had taken notice of all the pretty lights and displays, and she was absolutely enchanted with them. DH was pretty much just as enchanted with her and her delight in the lights. A very happy tradition we hope to continue for may more years ... 
This beautiful little card just kind of fell into place! I used a scrap piece of PP, a frame from MME which was cut to size and re-fitted, a few flowers, some ribbon, some bling a rub-on and a few staples. I must like it, because I'm having trouble thinking of someone to give it to. It might just have to stay in my collection for a while ...
I still have LOs left to post from last year - eeekk!! Can't start with this year's batch (not that I have actually finished any off so far this year ...) until I have closed off 2008. This is another FK entry - Anthony after bath time. He is so loud & precocious, yet every now & then I take a photo of him which captures the little boy inside - a little shy and unsure of himself. And those photos take my breath away. This is one of them. I experimented with stamping the background cardstock, and swirls and circles of water.
Some time in the middle of the year, Miss A started playing tea sets with Nan. Not just any old pretend tea sets, mind you - she had her own little china cup and sat up at the table to drink tea while Nan had coffee. Then they progressed to cake. She is lovely to watch, but quite often I get shooed away, because there's only room for two at this tea party! For her birthday, Miss A received a second tea set which lives in the big house (not at Nan's place) so now I get invited for tea ecvery now and again, and she knows that I have milk with mine as well!
Also in the middle of the year one day on the train coming home from the city I mused over the fact that Mr C was half way to becoming an adult - a scary thought!! He is a little lost at times, trying to keep up with what he thinks everyone else wants him to be and do and say. But he is so special, such a caring boy - I don't think he realises that all he has to do is to be himself. I so wish he can become comfortable within his skin, and reach his potential; have goals that he can fulfill. Find his place within the world. And enjoy the journey to adulthood.
And finally, my favourite piece so far. I just adore this photo. I don't know who took it, but its at that precise moment when Mr C handed DH my wedding band. Just perfect. It was so important to me that both the boys took part in the ceremony - and we weren't just getting married, we were becoming a new family. In a way, this photo is a giving of my heart from Mr C to DH, so they can all share in my love and care. I like the way the LO turned out too!
This layout was completed over the weekend - a gorgeous photo of Miss A in a tigger suit (just like her 2 older brothers!). Doesn't it show off her big blue eyes! Working with orange was not easy, but searching through my stash I found this PP with flowers and went with a matching blue background, and added more paper flowers with (of course) some bling! And for the first time I tried the print & cut method of journalling - I'm happy with the results.
