Halfway...

...but not to paradise. To the other side of the city. It started yesterday on the way home from the city centre after a bit of shopping with my eldest. I have to have someone with me on these trips because I am not reliable and tend to get a bit stressed. Well...I got on my bus to go home and suddenly realised that I hadn't got my handbag...(purse to our USA friends). I couldn't do anything about it so I stayed on the bus home and then had to decide what to do. Tried to remember where I had misplaced it and came to the conclusion that I had left it on the previous bus, or left it at the bus stop when I put my bags down. First thing I did when i got home was ring my mobile. No answer. Then phoned the bus company and was told that if I had left it on the bus and someone handed it to the driver, it wouldn't reach the depot until midnight. Tried my mobile again and got an answer. It was the driver of the bus..thank goodness! Then had to arrange to go today and collect my lost property. Phoned my son and he came with me as I didn't have a clue how to get to Halfway, and had to borrow the bus fare. Was re-united with my bag and it's contents....was so relieved. This little adventure has shook me up a bit.....thinking what problems there would have been if my bag hadn't been handed in. It just makes me feel so much more vunerable. At least, hopefully, I will be able to relax and get some sleep tonight.

Another busy week.

The end of another busy week. 2 hospital appointments since my last post, some gardening and a card made.
Wednesday's appointment was with the occupational physiotherapists. It was supposed to be an hour long but due to missing buses was 20 minutes late...hence a shortened appointment. It was good though. She gave me a thumb splint to wear and already I can feel the benefit. She has also written a letter to my landlords(housing association) and requested another hand rail for the stairs, and she is also trying to sort getting my armchair highered. I have to go back in 4 weeks when she is hoping to give me some other methods for getting some quality sleep.  As many people will know (or maybe not), sleep is something M.E. sufferers have a real problem with.  It's not the amount of sleep but the quality which is the problem.
Got a little gardening done but not much......just a bit of tidying.

The card I made was for the Crafters Re-united inspirational challenge. The card could be any theme, any colour, any shape, as long as it was no bigger than 31/2 ins x31/2ins. perfect for those smaller images that I'm sure most of us have.  I usually do 6x6 or 5x7 cards .....but I do have some blank 5x5 which I might try. Enough waffling...here's the card.  The main image is, I think, Bentley Bear, but definitely by Adam Prestcott..... I love his images. Backing paper is My Minds Eye. Nesties and embossing folder used, ribbon and gems  from stash. The sentiment stamp..which I think is very appropriate for the challenge..is from another set but I can't remember the name.

Finished it!

Finished what I hear you asking.  Cataloguing all my stamps, that's what. Put all my clear stamps in empty cd cases...all nice and neat ..and I know what I've got now. Stamped all my stamps onto paper and sorted by type...floral, cute, flourishes, sentiments, Christmas etc.. and then into sleeves in a ring binder. Each image has a cd case number, or if it is a wooden backed. Now all I have to do is browse my folder and locate the stamp I want quickly and easily. Sorted! The inspiration for this method came from Peejay...thank you. Now the next job is to sort my digi images. I have quite a few..some purchased....others generously given as freebies.  Most of them are in a folder on my external hard-drive....which is fine....but it would be easier to browse an actual folder, and then I would know at a glance what I have. Sometimes I think I've got a particular image but can't remember if it is a digital or a stamp. Will save a lot of time.  I've also been busy sorting other craft stuff....my ribbons especially. They were wound onto wooden dolly pegs but they had outgrown their space. Now they are wound onto card and colour coded...all in a their own box which I can keep in sight instead of being hidden away in a drawer. All this re-organising has made more room for my buttons, brads and eyelets which tended to get pushed to the back of drawers.  My crafting space is very limited but now it's easier to find things. I'm a happier crafter now.  All this re-organising hasn't left much time for actual crafting though.  Hoping to get some done in the next few days. though.  I had a busy week last week..town on Wednesday with eldest to do some shopping and banking.... and then town again Thursday for lunch and a good old natter with Anne...needed that! was hoping to do some gardening at the weekend but the weather and the fact that I was totally beat put paid to that.  The weather has been a little better the last couple of days but no chance of gardening. I went to the the hospital today for a rheumatology appointment and got a definite diagnosis of osteo arthritis and more medication. That's seven lots of medication I'm on now. I don't have to go back for another 6 months.  Tomorrow and Thursday I have 2 more hospital visits. Both at the same hospital at the other end of the city. Tomorrow is with the physiotherapists for the arthritis, Thursday for breast screening.  It's a lot of travelling and extremely tiring. Thankfully the boys are being very good and pulling out the stops as far as housework and cooking go. They don't always show much awareness of my health difficulties but they are being very considerate at the moment, and I am grateful for that. Oh..got my new specs. Varifocals and they are great!!  I knew I'd missed having them but didn't realize just how much until I got these new ones. I'm finding the computer a lot easier and hopefully will be able to catch up with everything. I'm so behind with my blog list, updating this blog and keeping my Picasa ATC pictures up to date.  It's great not having to constantly change glasses whenever I need to read something...eg...instructions, shopping, visiting the library, filling in prescription forms.

Been a busy bee..

..spring cleaning, gardening and a bit of crafting. The cleaning has been a lot easier to do with my little steam cleaner, and kinder to the environment and my purse, no chemical cleaners to buy (not that I used many before). I've done the back garden and discovered that I'd lost a few plants due to new fencing being erected. The front garden is taking a little more time and effort even though it is considerably smaller. The plants have been flourishing and I need to cut back what passes for a lawn.  In the past it would have taken me a couple of days, but I have to restrict myself or I wouldn't be able to do anything for a week. Getting there though and we have had beautiful weather...sometimes a little too hot for gardening. 
Went to the opticians yesterday for my eye test...only 2 years overdue..and get my new varifocals next week. I've hated having to wear 2 separate pairs, forever switching, but the optician has the varifocal offer so I've taken advantage of it. Can't wait...freedom again.
Done a little crafting but mainly sorting through my craft stuff and doing a bit of re-organizing.  Found some things that I'd forgotten I have.  I hope to sort out my clear stamps this week..at the moment they are all in a cardboard box and mixed up. I've got quite a few empty Cd cases so I'm going to transfer the stamps to them and then I can catalogue them....that way...hopefully... I'll know what I've got.
Here are the cards I've made in the last month.
An easel card for Anne's birthday. Lilac pearlised card embossed with one of my new Sizzix folders. Pyramage is by Maria Maidment, added a touch of stickles glitter glue to the flowers (can't see that very well in the pic) and matted onto dark blue card. Lace, ribbon, adhesive pearls and glitter butterfly from my stash

 Another easel birthday card, this time for my sister-in-law. Again a Maria Maidment pyramage and embellishments from my stash. I don't have the punch to do the edge I wanted so I improvised. Used my scallop scissors then my silent setter for the holes..turned out not too bad.

This card was one of those that non of us ever wants to make. It was for my sister- in -law who's brother has died. He was a Liverpool football fan so I did the colours in red white and black. Decided to keep it simple and thought the single poppy was fitting.

 The last card..another birthday...is for my niece. I also entered it for the Crafters Re-united April inspirational challenge. Any card, any size as long as it had a button. The main image is a freebie from Jak, mounted onto rainbow card then blue glitter card. Butterfly is a punch and the button is a chipboard. A stamped sentiment but I've forgotten the make. It's not a good picture, camera phone and glitter card don't mix very well.