venturing into the loft......

I wrote a post a week or so ago, with 100 facts about me... one was that i don't do ladders, so have never been up into our loft. Having wrote this and read it back, i thought, how pathetic does that sound!!!! I don't like heights, even little heights, i really do go wobbly so ladders aren't good. I want to do a carboot sale, hopefully this weekend, to get a few pounds and declutter a bit.And I knew from Andy's descriptions that the loft needed sorting out, and basically that unless i did it it wasn't going to happen. So I decided today was the day to get over it , and get up in that loft! And I did it, I did take my mobile up incase of emergencies- which Andy though was hilarious, I thought it was very sensible myself, it wasn't as if he was going to hear me yelling from out in the studio, was it?! Anyway, of course he was right- i was fine, and after being very wobbly on the first go up and down it did get easier. I minimised the journeys by lobbing down as much as possible, which I'm sure the neighbours really appreciated.I did find one bit of "treasure" lurking up there- a huge box of soft toy material, that sort of fake fur, plush stuff. My nan gave it me years ago and i'd completely forgotten about it. There's all sorts of colours and patterns, so I'm sure I can fnd a use that.
Now, I'm having a little coffee break whilst writing this, before i carry on sorting through, and work out what can be sold and what should be binned. We seem to have had an obsession with keeping the packaging from electrical items, so i've broken up the boxes and got that into the recycling bin just before the lorry arrived , and i'm going to ring the scrapstore and see if they want the polystrene. My main problem will be that the kids will come home and see all this stuff that they suddenly "need" to keep, despite it having been up there since time began. I think I'll try and convince them it's a good idea to sell everything , by promising them an indian takeaway if i get enough money- hopefully that will do the trick.

just couldn't resist it

I saw this book the other day and just had to have it! now i'm off to rifle through my stash and see what i can make, or at least start making before it's time to pick up Joe and Maisie from school/preschool.

plymouth race for life

Well today was the big day... and i did it! it was pretty warm which made it a bit harder but I'm so glad I took part. I'm really chuffed to say we managed to run it in 30 minutes.There was a brilliant atmosphere, with over 5000 women taking part, it was great to be part of something like that and I'll definitely do it again.
Joe and Maisie having fun before the race started.

We didn't realise everyone would be wearing pink- but at least that made us easy to spot!
It was moving to read what everyone had written on their backs.

On mine I wrote that I was running for Geraldine Walters and Anne Spencer- the mums of 2 of my best friends who have had breast cancer in recent years and thank goodness survived.

Geraldine was there today to support me with my friend Sarah. It was great to have them there.Geraldine nearly had me in tears at the end when she said that the reality is if she'd got cancer years ago she would have died and that she is so grateful to everyone running to raise money to help make sure more people survive.It just brought it home to me that we had been part of something very important. It's bringing a lump to my throat now just thinking about it.
A sea of pink.
We did it!!!
A big thank-you to everyone who has supported and sponsored me I really appreciate it. And if you haven't donated but would like to, just click on my online sponsorship page ( link in side bar) where you can make a pledge of £2 or more. Thanks.

I have an etsy shop!

Well I've been and gone and done it! I decided it was worth risk and I've opened an Etsy shop. Only a few things there at the moment but I'll be adding more in the coming days and weeks.
It's called D Made It, and you can find it here. I'd appreciate any feedback you have. Don't be put off by the prices being in dollars, you have to list them, like that.- Good exchange rate at the mo! :)

To Etsy or not to Etsy

I'm toying with the idea of opening an Etsy shop, to try and sell some of my crafty creations. I've had a quick look and the fees are pretty low so I'm thinking it might be worth a go. I'm not looking to make tons of money , but if it pays for the materials and allows me to buy more bits to play with i'd be happy. I love making things so it would be a bonus to make a few pounds at the same time.

Have any of you sold on Etsy? I'd love to hear how you got on.

meet Dweee and Schmoo

Here's the latest sock creatures...

Here's Dweee
and this is Schmoo!
I've made these for Joe and Maisie. In a few weeks time Andy and I have to go away for work over a weekend so Andy's parents are kindly looking after them. I thought it would be nice to make the kids a little goody bag for then, so I've got them each a "where's Wally? " book , and now they've each got a new sock friend, and I'll look out for or make a couple more little treats.

Maisie's shell garden

Every time we go to the beach, we always come back with "treasure", so I suggested to Maisie that she could use the collection of shells and pebbles to make a garden in the old sink that I covered with mosaic some years ago.( unfortunately some of it's dropped off - a little repair job is needed if i get time)She thought this was a great idea and had lots of fun arranging everything. She also added some little glass fish and shell shapes that we had, and feathers she found outside the pigeon loft.

So this is me!

Apieceofwood, recently wrote a list of 100 random facts about herself, and because I love lists, here's mine. It's not planned so I'll just let word association flow an see what happens.
1. i love lists
2. being able to cross things off a list motivates me
3. i feel blessed to have 2 healthy children
4. after giving birth to Maisie i felt complete
5. Andy and i have been together almost 21 years
6. we've been married almost 11 years
7.we met at an under 18's disco in Torquay
8. i have 2 brothers
9. both are younger than me
10.i was a teacher for 10 years
11. enjoyed it at the time
12. but have no desire to go back to it
13. most of the time i am very content with my life
14.i've never smoked
15. i don't drink alcohol
16. because i can't stand the taste or smell
17.i have 2 nephews and 1 niece, and theres another baby on the way
18.i spend too long on the internet
19. i have a facebook page
20. i haven't held a passport for a few years
21. for our honeymoon we went on a cruise around europe
22. i like going to art galleries and museums
23. the library is one of my favourite places
24. i drink decaf tea and coffee
25. I go to african drumming on wednesdays and love it
26. i've owned 4 cars including the current one
27. i passed my driving test 2nd time
28. my dad taught me to drive
29. i went to an all girls grammar school
30. i wanted to take A level pyschology, but the time table wouldn't allow
31.when i was at uni i thought i might do a phD afterwards
32. it hasn't happened yet
33. and don't think it will
34. i like my own company
35.i love searching for "treasure" at the scrapstore
36.love baking
37.as a child i collected postcards
38. then i collected thimbles
39. i haven't kept either collection
40.i like to declutter regularly
41. my husband is an artist
42 and a falconer
43.but i'm not at all interested in falconry
44.i enjoy hearing birds sing
45. i wish our road wasn't so busy
46.like to keep intouch via email and text
47.think it's sad no one writes proper letters anymore
48. i'm not at allinterested in watching sport
49.wish i could draw what i can see
50.love organising
51. find it difficult to knuckle down to housework
52.i'm on the committee at maisie's preschool
53. find it hard to sit still and watch a whole film
54. i'm allergic to penicillin
55. absolutely love charlie and lola
56. i go weak at the knees when only a few feet off the ground
57. get dizzy very easily
58. even watching the kids on a roundabout makes me dizzy
59.as a child one of my favourite books was "the magic faraway tree" by enid blyton
60.my eyebows would meet in the middle were it not for years of attcking them with tweezers
61.i've never learnt to ride a bike
62. i think it would be too embaressing to start now
63.i much prefer silver to gold
64.i took A levels in maths, economics and art
65.i went off chocolate completely when pregnant with Joe
66. luckily didn't have morning sickness with either pregnancy
67.trying to breast feed Joe was very stressful and didn't work
68. it was completely different with Maisie
69.i'm very independent
70.i don't like being late
71. I love the smell of parsnips
72. can't stand bacon flavour crisps
73.love trying new crafts
74.i've been writing this blog almost 2 years
75. i'm in the process of taking entries from the blog and turning it into ahard copy as a photo album/ journal
76.i'm thinking about trying to sell some of my creations on etsy
77. i don't own scale to weigh myself on
78. don't do diets i'd rather just do extra exercise to burn the calories
79.one of my favourite cookery books is "hovel in the hills
80. i like going to beaches when they are deserted
81. as each year passes i'm becoming more myself
82. love the support of the blogging community
83. love reading random facts
84. but not good at remembering them!
85.a soak in the bath with a good book and a cup of tea is bliss
86.i never do the lottery
87. i've never been in our loft
88. because i don't do ladders
89. but i think i should try and get up there because it really need sorting out!
90. i like to try and make my money stretch as far as possible
91.i've never been on a sunbed
92. and never will
93. i hate wasting food and always try to use up the left-overs
94. i've never been to a concert
95. i wake up at the slightest murmur from my kids
96.i'm not at all religious
97. i try to be positive as much as i can
98. andy and i are often like 2 people with one brain
99. rainbows make me smile
100. I believe things happen for a reason

The art of stone balancing

On Sunday we went to Beesands, where we had a fantastic, relaxed afternoon. After picnicking in the car we spent ages playing together on the beach, balancing pebbles on top of one another to make stone towers.

This required lots of concentration...and patience!Maisie demonstrated super human strength lifting and carrying huge rocks across the beach, and Joe was determined and patient whilst constructing his towers.
They also had great fun rolling down the beach...and chasing each other around.Joe went " all caveman" on us and made a spear from driftwood and a piece of slate he shaped himself.Neither of them wanted to leave, but we've promised we'll go again soon.
Oh, and here are some of our works of art- Andy Goldsworthy would be proud!

World Environment day

Yesterday was world environment day, i did plan to write a short post - then forgot! When i realised this morning, i did think at first , oh well it's to late to write it now, but then quickly realised that of course it wasn't. Days such as World environment day (W.E.D) are put in place to raise awareness, that doesn't mean you can't try and raise awareness and encourage others to make changes in their lives on other days. The link to the site about W.E.D is here there's some useful information about small changes that are easy to make in your life that really make a difference.

It got me thinking about changes we've made over the last couple of years , and changes i'd still like to make.
1. We already re-use/ and or recycle, paper & cardboard, batteries, clothes, glass, tetrapaks, plastic,tin cans- I'd like to extend this by buying more second hand items and things that are made from recycled materials.
2. we grow a very small amount of our own food-, and i'd like to gradually up this over the coming years.
3. I've started using public transport occasionally, i don't use my car everyday as it is , but i'd like to keep a record for a couple of months to see how often I do use it , then try to reduce the number of journeys, and perhaps aim for a certain number of car-free days per month.
4.We've had cavity wall insulation fitted and when money and time allow , i'd like to clear the loft and get loft insulation put in.
5.We have 3 compost bins being used in the garden, we now need to sort out some water butts.
6. We've stopped using kitchen roll- now using cloths to wipe up spills, clean etc- some bought cloths , others are rags made from cutting up old worn out clothes.
7. I make all the birthday, xmas etc cards we give and i'm now also making most of the presents too. Often these projects involve recycling materials that i already have.
8. I'm pretty obsessed with turning lights etc off when they're not being used- just need to train hubby now!
9.We use the library a lot and buy quite a lot of books secondhand rather than new.
10 We have a stash of reuseable shopping bags so we can refuse plastic ones at the check-out.

Reinforcing positive behaviour through needlework

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about my need to be patient and take notice of signs around me. I decided, inspired by Steel Kitten's post to do a bit of needlework to remind me of this need.
So here it is - the almost finished piece. I picked 4 "mantras" to stitch which i felt I need to concentrate on. The hearts were chosen as i wanted a fairly simple motif that could be repeated but not distract too much from the words which are meant to be the main focus. The tree in the middle was quite fiddly to stitch but I enjoyed it and would like to do some more intricate work like that. I chose the tree as a sort of symbol for growth- if i do the 4 things on the "sampler" - it will be my growth. I'm really pleased with it, as you can see it is still pinned around the edges- i need to decide now how it will be displayed/ framed, ( i think I may attach it to a box canvas)i want to have it in my bedroom so that i see it every morning when i get up and every night before i go to sleep- maybe that way it will sink in!

Sunny days are just perfect for...

These photos were taken a few days ago when my 2 children mysteriously morphed into 5 and set up their own beauty spa in our garden.

Last summer my two, and the girls next door realised that if they lowered the ladder for our trampoline over the garden wall all of them could have the run of the two gardens. We decided along with their mum that this was fine as long as they were careful. After all we live on quite a busy raod and neither of us feel comfortable with letting them go down to the local park on their own yet so this way we know roughly where they all are but they've also got a bit of freedom.On their most recent jaunt over the wall they decided to fill the old sand pit with water then add freshly picked herbs and flowers to it , to make it into a foot spa. Half way through the afternoon another little girl from 2 doors down also appeared over the wall!


They invited me into the spa, and for the princely sum of 60p I received a foot soak and massage, neck massage, and suncream applied to my legs! Can't be bad.