Happy Halloween.....
We don't really celebrate Halloween over here but I'm enjoying everyone's blogs with their home decorations, pumpkin inspired food and preparations for the big day!
Here are some magazine images I found .... fashion can be so creative its sometimes borderline scary....non?
Have a fun spooky filled day!!!

Images:
* Kristen McMenany for Marc Jacobs
*From Vogue USA
*Hamilton Jewelers ad
*NARS ad

Baking + Books....

Thanks for all the comments on the potty training...Neo is slowly making progress - two successful pee pees in the potty! We'll get there eventually....

We had a huge thunderstorm the other night!! i love storms!
Andrew was away for work so after I put the boys to sleep, I thought Id better do some cleaning up as my house looked like a mini tornado had gone through it...but somehow I ended up making choc-chip biscuits instead....does this ever happen to you or just me haha....well with all the lightening and rain I was just drawn into the kitchen for some tea and ended up baking instead....now I cant stop eating these...they are really yummy!
Perfect with a cup of coffee and some good reads! I finally finished 'Mrs Dalloway' which was suggested by Cherry....quite a few girls, Cherry included, couldn't finish it but I didn't mind it in the end...
The next book we're reading is 'Behind the Scenes at the Museum' by Kate Atkinson.
Im upto page 30 and its so depressing...hope it gets better!
I also received in the mail last week from Melissa, a book called 'Three Cups of Tea'....this was part of Karen's book swap so Im looking forward to starting that....I like to have a few books going on at the same time.

on the crafting side, Ive also been doing some 'DAD' inspired ATCs for a swap....made one so far....4 to go!!
for this one I included a map image of Australia as my dad arrived here when he was 23, some street maps of inner city Sydney as this is where he lives and a male image looking forward to life in a new country...

Illustration Friday - Grow

Act your
age
Not your
Shoe size.....

For more GROW illustrations have a look here

The week that was.....

Wow, this week has just flown by for me...I have a small list of all the things I need to do but I might as well just throw it away as I don't feel Ive completed any of my 'To do's...'
I love writing lists,
its gives me focus but sometimes it also puts pressure on what needs to be done and takes the fun out of it....
Australian Papercraft magazine got in touch this week and they want me to make 3 Black & white ATCs for the mag - Im thrilled!! I have two weeks to complete so thats a relief!

and for the third week in a row I didnt submit anything to Illustration friday...I love doing my IF challenges but this week's topic 'Extreme', had me stumped...I started a few sketches but nothing came of it...
I might try again after lunch when Neo has his afternoon nap.

Im off to my optometrist this morning to get my eyes tested and I think I might get some new glass frames.
I wear contacts everyday but with hay fever (which for some reason feels so much worse this year!) my eyes get so itchy and tired....so Im looking forward to that!
Another challenge for me at the moment is getting Neo toilet trained - he'll be 3yrs old in 2mnths time but is still not interested...he actually sobs hysterically for his nappy ...which makes it hard - any tips?
I know each child is different but the pre-school we have enrolled him in next year will only take toilet trained toddlers....so I still have three months I guess..!

These images are magazine clippings that I sent to Anna - it was for
Jen's Tear Sheet swap....send 5 magazine clippings that you find inspiring - what a cool idea huh? Jen is also hosting a Christmas Tear Sheet swap in November if anyone is interested.
I have so many old mags still intact because I cant bear to tear them apart but lately with all the clutter in our spare room, I think some drastic changes need to be made to my hoarding problem! ha!

* Top pic from
a back issue of Inside Out magazine - the rest from Real Living magazine

Birthday Celebrations....



Today was my sweet Mumma's birthday so we organised to go out for a nice Mexican meal last night....


I really wanted to organise a birthday lunch at my house but Andrew said, 'lets just go out for dinner...its so much easier' so I booked a local restaurant instead.

The other day my mum rang to tell me she was going to invite everyone around for a birthday lunch as well so I felt awful that she was going to spend her special day cooking for us all but we had a great casual and laid back lunch...the woman can cook! she'd beat Martha in any
cook-off, thats for sure....





Such a warm day too,
i love just chilling in the sun!
Look at my parents vegie patch...its wild! we've been eating lots of healthy greens!


* top pic from flickr.com

PaperGoodies galore

My paper goods have all been sent off down to the new 'Meet Me at Mikes' shop...if you're in Melbourne, make sure you go check it out!
it opens next Monday!

I made tags and

greeting cards, some journals and a couple of collages...and I had to have a crafty name too so Ive gone with 'Percival Road Designs'...this is where I spent most of my childhood...my parents rented a house on Percival Road in the early 70's and then bought their first house in Australia across the road so we were there for over 10years! its where I day dreamed and spent hours drawing, dreaming and playing make believe!
I hope to open an etsy store soon...why not? playing with paper (new and old) is so much fun....

A relaxing Friday....

ive had such a nice day so far, the boys and I had a good play and Neo is now having his afternoon nap, Peter is busy cutting paper and making 'stuff' and im just enjoying my day off!

My papergoods for Pip's new 'Meet Me at Mike's' shop, are almost finished...i have to add some more ribbon and embellishments and off they go! here are some of the happy sunny journals...

Yesterday I drove into town to meet some girlfriends for lunch and I deliberetly parked far away so I could walk through Hyde Park....well ok, parking in the city centre can be hard to find but when do you get the chance to walk through a beautiful park that takes up 3 city blocks....it was so nice - people lying in the sun, having picnics, reading, some walking barefoot, Ibis birds everywhere ...the smell of bark and soil...it was wonderful!

I popped into Borders for some magazine supplies (ohhhh weee found Marie Claire idees!!) and bought my boys a treat, a Charlie & Lola DVD

and a little treat for me too....Eloise - The Ultimate Edition! Hilary Knight's illustrations are so fun!!!

Spring has Sprung.....

We just got back from a weekend getaway in Canberra...its only a 3hour drive from Sydney but we stayed overnight and got to see a bit more of the city ...was fun but freezing!
lucky we bought winter jackets and scarfs - we all had a great time though...we visited Floriade
an annual spring flower festival and the tulips were so so beautiful!! too bad I suffer from hay fever haha!

A sea of flowers!

Painted Gnomes and lots of coffee breaks!





Just wanted to say what fun I had at the Bloglandia Ball the other day - wow so many bloggers came by to say Hi and left a comment!!
Thank you all SO much!!! what a great night....everyone looked stunning of course!! thanks Elizabeth for hosting!!
Blog parties are so much fun! whens the next one??