Thank you card

As promised, here is one of the thank you card's that I made last Friday. I actually made two of these, so for those of you that read yesterday's post - this makes 5.

I made these for our neighbours, to thank them for all the kindness and support they gave to us during the chimney fire and in the days since. I wanted them to know just how much we appreciated their help and that it hadn't gone unnoticed, nor had it been taken for granted.

So there we are - five cards in one day - challenge complete!

Slow return to normal . . . . . . .

I had to make two birthday cards for family birthdays this month. Having struggled to create a Valentine's card for DH, I was hoping that I wouldn't struggle so much to make the birthday cards. Now in an ideal world they would already have been made and posted by now but, as you can see from last week's posting - it isn't an ideal world!

I like to be organized and work best when I have a deadline - so on Friday morning I decided that by the end of the day I had to have made 5 cards - 3 birthday and 2 thank you cards. I had an appointment with the assessor (for the chimney fire) so I planned that I would have at least one card finished before he arrived.

Despite constant interruptions (DH working from home, DS finishing school early and the assessor being late) I managed, somehow to meet my self imposed challenge (could this be a new way of working??)

The birthday cards:

Tomorrow I will show you the thank you cards.


Until the next time.

Valentine's

Hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day yesterday.

This year I was a bit stumped for an idea for a Valentine's Day card for DH. I had given it a lot of thought but due to events of late, it appeared that my mojo had just up and gone. Last week seemed to fly past and by Thursday afternoon I was still without a card for him. I decided in my infinite wisom to back up all the photo's that are stored on the 'puter to disc and to put the disc in the fireproof safe (probably because on what happened last Monday!). Whilst doing this, inspiration struck. I had loads of pics of DH, so I decided to use these as a basis for a card. I spent ages cropping, resizing and making the photo's black and white before printing them on photo paper, followed by the lengthy task of cutting them out and sticking them in place. I also hid one of me amongst the others.



He was really pleased with his card - just as well, as I won't be making one of these again any time soon!!

Until the next time - happy crafting!

Scary times & flames

I can think of nothing nicer, on a cold winters evening, than to cuddle up in front of a roaring fire. Which is just what we were doing yesterday evening.

Let me set the scene, I had lit the fire, DH had made the coffee, DS had just arrived home and Eastenders was on the TV. We're all lovely and cosy when I heard a strange noise. I asked DH & DS if they had heard it, which they hadn't, reached for the remote, hit the mute button and there it was again - an ominous roaring. I don't know what made me look at the fire place but boy am I glad that I did.

The ominous roaring sound was in fact coming from the chimney - the chimney was on fire!! Grabbing the wood tongs I damped the fire in the grate, throwing a bucket to DH to get some earth from the garden for me to throw on the wood. Having smothered the fire in the grate, I closed the doors to the fireplace and hoped that by some miracle the chimney fire would cease. Despite our best efforts the chimney continued to burn. Our neighbour came round to help, other neighbours started gathering at the front of the house. We called the fire brigade, I grabbed the cat & a coat and pushed DS out the door in front of me. DH followed having made sure the doors were closed.

The fire brigade arrived within minutes but those minutes seemed endless. A lifetime seemed to pass - more and more people gathering to watch events unfold and to offer assistance; more and more sparks spewing from the chimney - time simply went into slow motion. With relief I heard the fire engine approaching, blues and two's all the way. With ruthless efficiency the firemen took over, assessing the situation, closing the road outside our house. Another unit arrived with a ladder, pulling up outside a neighbour's house - they must have wondered what on earth was going on! All I could do was join the onlookers and hope and pray that the fire could be contained, taking comfort from the fact that we had all got out safely. Winnie was buttoned in my coat, DH was talking to the firemen and DS was by my side - we were safe.

I was amazed and grateful for the support and help offered to us last night from the people in the surrounding houses, some of whom we have never even spoken to before. Both sets of neighbours were wonderful and I was grateful to be taken inside and given coffee and support on such a bitter night.

On an up note - we have been incredibly lucky as there is no water or smoke damage (although my mind is saying that I can still smell the smoke!!), just, though of course it is enough, damage to the chimney itself. But this is a material thing and can be repaired.

I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank everybody who helped us last night and a big thank you to our immediate neighbours either side for their support and help and of course an even bigger thank you to the firemen.

My thanks also, to Hélène for my flowers and to the little boy next door for our picture to cheer us up - it has pride of place on my fridge.

February already

I can’t believe that today is the 1st of February! What happened to January? Typically, January feels like a long month, what with that after Christmas feeling, the awful weather and pay day feeling a million days away. But this year January has simply disappeared. Maybe I simply filed it away with all the year end paperwork – who knows?

The middle of January saw me celebrating my birthday. I had a great day and was spoilt rotten. DH had the day off and DS had a short day at school so we spent the afternoon playing Guitar Hero – what a giggle! I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much and Guitar Hero certainly brought out the “rocker” within – could this lead to a career change – I think not!!

The weather continues to be appalling, snow, snow and more snow! We have had snow for the best part of 2 months now and the novelty has certainly worn off . . . . . roll on the summer.

Having mislaid January it is time for me to get back to the design table and see what I can come up with for this year.

Check back soon and see what we’ve come up with.

Happy New Year!!

 

Wishing you all . . . . . .

     

Here’s hoping that 2010 will be a great year for all of us.

Last post for 2009

Merry Christmas

and a

Happy New Year!!

Almost done

The food shopping is done, DH and DS have finished work/school and all that remains is to ice the Christmas cake, make the Yule log and the brandy butter (enough to be getting on with I know).  The turkey is defrosting nicely, the mince pies are made and I am looking forward to seeing our friends this evening. 

 

Yesterday I finally got around to finishing our Christmas crackers.  Having left them to the last minute I was a bit worried about how they would turn out – I hate having to do a rush job!

I am quite pleased with the result, though had I had more time, I would have liked to have added some decoration.

Perfect

Just look at what our friend made for our Christmas table . . . .isn’t it just perfect?  The photo’s just don’t do it justice.

 

It also has little LED lights and looks fantastic both with and without the lights on.

Hélène made one for us last year (have a look here)

Thank you Hélène for such a gorgeous centrepiece for our Christmas table.

Another Christmas card

DH calmly announced the other night that he needed two cards for the following day.  I didn’t waste time asking why he hadn’t asked me earlier, I just started thinking what I could do.

This is what I came up with.

I cut a rectangle of heavy gold paper, rounded the corners  and then embossed it with one of my favourite cuttlebug folders – the lace Christmas tree.  This was mounted on a pearly gold card.  The star I found hidden in my craft box.  A second, identical card was soon made.

Not bad for a “quickie” eh?

Nearest & Dearest

It is always a challenge to come up with new ideas for Christmas cards for DH and DS.

Here are this year’s efforts . . . . . 

 

Bearing in mind that DS is Converse mad, I based his Christmas cards around the Converse logo.  The letters for the Noël were cut using the Craft Robo and the Christmas tree was done with my Cuttlebug lace Christmas tree folder.

I decided on a “Christmas Shoe” for DH, as like most men he has an appreciation (and an opinion!!) for shoes and because of our dancing classes.

Both DH & DS loved their cards – result!!

Snow

We have woken up to snow – not just a light dusting but a decent amount.  My first job this morning was to grab the broom and head out to the garden to poke the snow off the roof of the pergola.  DH was kind enough to have made me a nice cup of tea before heading off to work which was most welcome when I came back in!

Now, I like snow.  I like the way it makes everything look beautiful (covering all the ugly bits!!) but why, oh why, couldn’t it have waited until the Christmas holidays started?  You know the time when there is no pressure to be anywhere and you don’t have to go out if you don’t want or need to and can sit in front of a roaring fire. Huh!!

Once again, my apologies for the lack of blog posts.  My continuing ill health has forced me to use my limited reserves to prioritise and only do what I must do and the things that I like to do have had to take a back seat.  Hopefully, I have now turned the corner and normal service will soon be resumed (fingers crossed).

Now onto nicer things – this past week saw us receive not one but TWO handmade cards.  Its lovely when you receive a card (whatever the reason) as you know that you have been thought of but that feeling that you have received something that has been made just for you, well, you can’t beat it.

This is from our dear friends, Paul & Hazel and is one of Hazel’s lovely creations.  Have a look here to see last year’s one.   Thank you for our lovely card.

This one is from our dear friend and neighbour – isn’t it a beauty?  Thank you Hélène for our beautiful card.

Well, I best get on – this afternoon I want to make some Christmas crackers and I should think about doing some shopping . . . . . . . . . .

Until the next time, Happy crafting!Y

A joint hobby

DH and I have taken up ballroom and Latin American dancing. We go to classes once a week for 75 minutes to trip the light fantastic. Last Saturday we had our first ball. The theme for the ball was black & white. We had a great time and it was lovely to be able to have the chance to have a go at the dances that we have been learning. We are already looking forward to the next ball in December.

We both learnt to dance years ago when we were kids. DH learnt both ballroom & Latin American and I only did ballroom. We have been amazed by how much we remember from the first time.

This is the first time that we have both danced together properly! So far we have learnt the basics for the waltz, quickstep, swing fox, cha,cha,cha and last week we started learning the rumba! As you've probably guessed we are devoted Strictly Fans, woe betide anybody who disturbs us when its on!!

On that note, I shall now introduce you to another of my fish (in the small tank) – Anton du Plec!! (groan!!)

Sorry - I couldn’t resist adding another fish picture.

In true Strictly fashion, until the next time . . . . . keep dancing!!!

The small tank

I found it hard to get back to work after having played with my camera yesterday, with my willing model, Stewie.

I decided to try and get some pictures of the small tank – the fish are a little camera shy to say the least but yesterday afternoon, they turned out to be more than co-operative.

Let me introduce you to Boris, my beautiful Siamese Fighting Fish.

According to all the write ups he can be an aggressive little critter. The local fish shop had him in a tank of cardinal tetras and he seemed quiet enough with them. The big thing with this fish is to only have one male. He is in a tank with 3 dwarf gouramis (supposedly a no-no depending on which website you look at or fish keeper you speak to), 2 baby plecs and 4 cardinal tetras. Boris has settled in a treat, no fights and a pleasure to watch with the other fish – this has worked for me (happily) but this set up might not work for everyone. If I had encountered problems with him at least I had the option to move him to the bigger tank.

He is a knowing little so and so, loves his food and is a pain in the fin when it comes to tank cleaning time. He is often to be seen at feeding time with a wafer in his mouth, desperately trying to get another in at the same time! He is fond of the beehive house and loves to brush against your hand when it is in the tank. Occasionally he will flare at his tank mates mainly because he doesn’t want to share my attention.

And some people think fish are dull . . . . .

A week on

Firstly, apologies for the lack of blog posts last week. Unfortunately, I was ill and although I made it to the computer most days, that was about all I could manage.

One lovely, restored aquarium (yes, I know the windows need cleaning but Stewie needs the algae!!

It has been a week since our disaster with the fish tank. With some tender loving care the fish that survived are just about back to their normal selves. I have been constantly monitoring the water and as everything had stabilized we cautiously bought some new fish this weekend. We specifically chose fish that had a low bio load (meaning they wouldn't cause too much extra work for the filter). We now have 5 baby gold Chinese Danios and 4 glowlight tetras.

Now, you know that things are getting back to normal when the fish, namely Stewie start doing the things that you have come to expect them to do . . . . this morning proved to be a classic example.

I have got behind with a lot of things because I have been ill. I have also got into the habit of regularly (possibly obsessively) checking the tank. This morning I discovered Stewie trying to get to a delicious bit of algae in the most awkward place, well, for him at any rate. He is a big fish, about 5” and he chose the smallest place to settle. As I had my camera to hand, I decided to try and capture his attempts!

I watched him manoeuvre his body into position, a series of perfectly executed reverse moves until his nose was it the right spot for a munch!!

Oshi has come to have a look to see what all the fuss is about!

Watching him extricate himself was something else entirely and I couldn’t photograph it as I was laughing too much!!

Well, best get back to it – have a great week and check back soon.

A quick update

A kuhli loach, believed to be missing in action can now be confirmed to be ALIVE.

Since Sunday, the tank has stabilized, we've added some more plants and the water is as clear as glass and sweet smelling too!!

The remaining fish are still showing signs of stress (who wouldn't - I am too!) and are slowly but surely settling down, the main thing being that they are still eating and swimming around the tank. (I know they are feeling the effects of the weekend as they are all showing some colour loss).

Fingers crossed, that the worst has passed and we can spend some time getting the remaining little critters back to full health.

I'd like to thank all those that sent e-mails and got in touch to offer advice & support - so very much appreciated, more than you will ever know.

Friday the 13th

I would never have considered myself a superstitious person. I don't walk under ladders, not because of superstition but because I don't want anything to drop on my head!

Now not being superstitious by nature, Friday the 13th shouldn't be a problem, so you would think.

The day did not get off to a good start. I got up as usual and began the morning rituals: put the kettle on, feed the cat, feed the fish. All fairly normal so far except when feeding the fish I found a dead one. DH was summoned from his slumbers to remove said fish and we all continued with the preparations for the day.

The postman arrived with a parcel at 8.20 (now this was unusual!!), DH & DS had left for work & school on time - so far so good.

Now most Fridays, and this one was no exception, I do what I have to for Krafted Keepsakes in the morning and then Friday afternoons I make a start on cleaning the fish tanks. I cleaned my tank, raked the gravel, clipped the plants and made sure everyone was happy. I then moved onto the big tank and that was when everything went rapidly downhill. As I switched on the light I noticed a dead fish at the bottom. I removed the lid of the tank and found another, floating on the top. Further investigation revealed 2 more - what was going on??

I removed the dead ones and then tested the water - nothing abnormal showed. Now the big question, what to do next? Whatever was going on it was killing the fish! After a quick call to DH we decided the only thing we could do was to do a big water change- which we did. Friday evening was spent pulling dead fish from the tank - this carried on until Sunday morning. We'd done everything that we could, water changes, adding chemicals, you name it we tried it! Still no improvement - we even phoned our friend on Sunday morning but between us we couldn't solve the problem, though it was appreciated that we had someone to call who understood our despair.

For some reason, the filter has stopped working. Now if the filter had been mechanical we could have fixed it (and quickly) but the filter relies on cultures of good bacteria that are built up over time. We decided that as we had so few fish left that we would do yet another massive water change. DH & DS set to and as the lid was opened DS exclaimed "that's what our school toilets smell like on a Friday!" BINGO!! toilet smell = ammonia. Our fish were being poisoned by ammonia. We completed the water change, added some bacteria culture and some furniture and plants from the small tank (which would also have healthy bacteria on them) and hoped for the best.

By midnight, the tank had stabilized and no more fish had died - finally we were getting somewhere. This morning was the same - no more casualties. Having spent the weekend in tears (caused by despair and frustration) I am now allowing myself to feel "cautiously optimistic".

All in all we lost 18 out of 23 fish (about EUR 100). Its not about the money, its about these little critters that we have bought and added over a period of time and have got to know and love for their own characters.

R.I.P.
3 x Cory's
5 x Red minor
1 x ott
2 x kuhli loach
1 x silver tipped tetra
2 x tiger barb (affectionately known as Tweedledum & Tweedledee)
2 x Moon Fish - known as Baco & Foil
2 x Glass Fish

From now on, Friday the 13th ceases to exist. The next time it happens I'm staying in bed!!!!!!



Paul said...

Hi Lesley, now I understand your comments in the email, it the very least it can be very disheartening but very sad when you them grow and adapt to the older fish in the tank. Our tank suffered in a very similar way and now we are down to only 4 fish two originals and a couple of the babies that our bronze Cory's delivered.
Hopefully you have read my email by now and woken up ...lol

Lots of love Hazel & Paul

19 November 2009 21:26

Variation on a theme

It is my cousin’s birthday today and I was stuck for an idea for his card. Having enjoyed making the green and blue card (see post 10-11-09), I wanted to make it again but of course, with a difference. I decided to personalize it and add the greeting – both cut using the craft robo (I am surprised that I can still remember how to use it!!).

Lest we forget

Birthday time

It was a dear friend’s birthday last week and this is the “creation” that I came up with.