Some exciting news!

Very slack blogging from me lately, but now that Ben is starting to settle into something that remotely resembles a routine, I hoping to get some more scrapping and blogging done! Since he was born I have done only 1.5 layouts (the 0.5 layout is still unfinished from over a month ago!) plus another for Scrapbooking Memories that I can't share, but..........there will be more to come because..........

I have just been offered a 6 month guest designer stint with http://www.limetart.com.au/! I am very excited about this, a this kits are just gorgeous and Philippa does such a phenomenal job putting these together! I am itching to get my hands on my first kit and get creating! Its about time!

I have 2 other Masters projects on the go, other than that my life revolves around my little man. He is 8 weeks old now (already!) and we have had a few issues with feeding (he had tongue tie) but thats all sorted now and things are getting better. We are now madly trying to avoid swine flu, as someone Paul works with has been positively diagnosed with it...but this thing seems to be running rampant so I wouldn't be surprised if it goes through us too. God help me if it does......being cooped up indoors for a week or so would drive me insane!!!

Since I have no scrapping to share, I will leave you with these pics of baby Ben....

At long last, may I introduce....

my newest little man, Benjamin James.

Isn't he just gorgeous?

I went into hospital on Tuesday 14th April to be induced, mainly due to my other 2 boys both being overdue and large (9lb 5oz and 8lb 2oz respectively) and partly because I went private this time and was calling the shots! With three other kids at home, and being school holidays, it was easier to schedule babysitting and "holidays" for Paul from work too. I was given the gel at 4.30pm and told to expect it to work quickly as this was my fourth labour, but alas....much like his older brothers, young Benjamin was in no hurry to greet the world either! By 10.30pm I hadn't even had a niggle, so at 11pm another dose of gel was followed by a horrendous hour of furious contractions, only to stop at 12.30am. *sigh* so much for my April 14 baby!

The midwife suggested I have a shower to see if gravity would do the trick, and sure enough the contractions started. By 2.30am they were 2-3 minutes apart and by 3am I was taken down to delivery. I was a bit sceptical that the epidural was correctly placed since the "practice"dosage of local anaesthetic only numbed my right leg, and with my previous labour I felt everything down the left side as well. And....I was right. The right side was blissfully pain free, the left side felt every bloody thing! By 5am I told them I was ready to push and the midwife laughed at me...until she checked and found I was fully dilated! The OB was called from her slumber for the delivery and arrived at 5.54am, said "let's have a baby by 6am" and was pleasantly surprised when, after just 2 pushes later, that Benjamin arrived at 5.56am.

Benjamin James Gordon weighed 3480 grams (or just a tad under 7lb 11oz) and was 50cm long, head circumference 34.5cm. 10 perfect fingers, 10 perfect toes and everything else where it should be!

He also has 1 very proud sister, 1 very chuffed big brother and another brother that, quite frankly, couldn't give a ........ !!!!

I stayed for 3 nights in hospital and had a lovely rest before coming home to the chaos. Reality bites, but life goes on and Ben is proving to be a model baby that only wakes up once a night for a feed...lets hope that continues! I am itching to scrap some photos but finding no energy in between feeds and dealing witht the other kids....hopefully once school goes back I will find some mojo.

Thank you to everyone who has sent me messages via email, Facebook and text too...

Some pics to share....we also celebrated Ella's 7th birthday yesterday and mine falls on Friday (I am turning 54, according to Jack!) so April is busy busy busy for us!

Waiting and nesting....

4 weeks to go and counting....I can't stop nesting and I HATE cleaning!

Not much else going on, just a quick update of some layouts I have done recently as I am sure there won't be many more in the near future! I am feeling like a bloated whale and after meeting the lovely Anne-Marie Cox last week, fellow SM Master, I feel even bigger! I mean, she has TWO in there and I only have one! Anyway, we had a great catch up and gossip, hopefully we can get together again soon with all our little boys once they arrive!

Here are all the pages from my Kaiser clear album that is in the current SM mag 11.1: (they are all out of order...still haven't figured out this upload thing on blogger!)










Here are a few layouts I have also done:

A little bit to share...

OK I got my act into gear and scrapped 3 layouts over the long weekend!

Here's the first one:

This one is of me and Mum, circa 1975:

Journalling reads: Now that I am a mother myself, I am

able to reflect upon this photo and not only see the love and

devotion you have for me but I can understand it too. I see

the same look of love in your eyes as I have for my own children

today. {1975}

And Jack and some of his creations from kindy last year:

Other than that we had a very quiet long weekend. Today marks the 28th week of my pregnancy and this morning I went for my glucose/diabetes test, so both arms are sporting bruises at the moment! Its hard to believe there's only 12 weeks to go! Time flies when there's other kids to look after. Speaking of which, we're on the countdown til Monday when Ella starts Year 2 and Jack will go to kindy 2 days a week, leaving me at home with Tom. *sigh* I wish the 2 year old tanties would subside!

Looks like the east has inherited our hot weather this week and we have a bit of relief...hope everyone is coping OK!

Chat soon,

J

Slack slack slack....

Poor blog, I'm sorry I have been neglecting you but this is still all so new to me. Now that Christmas is over and school holidays are nearly over, I promise to be more attentive!!!

I have actually been scrapping, a little bit anyway, but nothing I can share at the moment. I am trying really hard to get motivated, and after reading my blurb in the SM magazine about how messy I am, I got quite embarrassed and promptly went out and spent over $800 at Ikea and organised all my stuff! Its a great feeling to know where everything is and where it all goes away. Now I just need some inspiration to use it. Perth weather has been pretty draining lately, and together with 3 kids and being 6 months pregnant, all I want to do is vege out.

Can someone please find my mojo and send it back to me? Pleeeease?????

Finally!

The long awaited magazine has arrived! I have yet to devour it, but so far so good....WOW there is some amazing talent in that mag and I hope I can do my title justice. Thanks for all your lovely comments!

OMG this blog stuff is frustrating the hell outta me...I am trying to work out things and it just isn't happening, I feel so stoopid!!! I will keep persisting.....

So today was damn hot, over 38 degrees and I am NOT a summer person. Being pregnant obviously doesn't help that matter either! Talk about a crankiness factor of 10+....Paul and the kids are steering well clear away from me LOL. We also spent 55 minutes in line waiting for the obligatory Santa photo this morning...luckily the 3 boys behind us had bubble blowers and kept my 3 amused for the entire time! Unluckily though, Jack had a complete meltdown once we made it to Santa and dead flat refused to have his pic taken, so it was just Ella and Tom and a crappy one at that! Oh well, I guess thats what make Santa photos so funny....in hindsight.

Decided to share a few pics of some recent projects I have been working on...not a lot of scrapping going on lately since Masters and with so many birthdays and Christmas too. Anyway, hopefully my mojo will pic up over the xmas break and I will have more to share soon....hope you like!



Tom doing his usual runner from me, wherever we may be!



Jack in happier times than today LOL

Christmas gifts for Ella's teacher

Our reaction to the (woopsie!) pregnancy!

Thanks for looking! (and PS....this entry just took me 2 hours! Its gotta get easier, right??)