Snow and Teaching

Today I have decided to have a bit of a rant. Over the past few days the press have been very negative about teachers, and I really want to set the record straight. Today is the first day I have not made it into school and that our school has been closed. I set off at 7.15 - ten minutes earlier than usual, and took an hour to get just less than a mile. Our school was announced as closed at 7.50 and I still haven't heard how many staff have made it back home safe and sound. I spent over half an hour stuck on a road in Sherwood. The ring road was down to a single lane. I eventually managed to get myself back to the road where I live, but had to leave my car at the bottom of the hill after hitting the curb several times whilst attempting to get up the road. I am feeling really fed up. Believe it or not I really wanted to go to work today. Some children in my class are really beginning to make good progress and I want to use every possible moment to make sure they succeed. When I've finished my rant I will be making some resources to use with them and planning for next week.
I feel a responsibility towards the children in my class that is not very far removed from the responsibility I feel as a parent. I teach them, yes, but I also put plasters on their knees, mop up their sick, return their hugs and tell them that I am there for them every step of the way, because in some cases I'm the only adult in their lives that will be. So, when some local radio presenter says that Teachers are lazy, am I over-reacting by feeling upset? What is that saying about walking a mile in someone elses shoes? This week I have delivered staff meeting, dealt with cuts and bruises, 'Choral' vomiting (Why do parents send their children to school when they have been throwing up all night?) headlice as big as rodents, computer gliches, snowball fights, falling out over football and still managed to teach 5 lessons each day to a class of 27 wonderful, vibrant, positive children who want to make me proud of them. I'd love to see that Radio presenter do the same.

Four Seasons

Here are the four panels of my Dad's Birthday card. They each measure 13cm square. All stamps are Graphicus except for the distant trees on the winter panel - they are a Stampin' up! image. Outside it is snowing and yet again the gritting lorry has failed to find our road - getting to work tomorrow could prove tricky!

Friends and Family

Here is a quick card I put together for a friend. The text stamp is from Crafty Individuals and the seed heads are a cuttlebug embossing folder.
I've been working on my Dad's 80th birthday card, and I've completed two square panels. I've started a third, but it is still a work in progress. Dad spends many an hour walking out in the countryside around his home. I wanted his card to reflect many of the things he would see on his walks, so started off with birds and grasses (inspired by Deby at Just Add Love)

This had a Spring/ early summer feel about it, so I decided to give the next panel an autumnal feel. With yellows and browns, mushrooms and trees losing their leaves. All of the stamps on these panels are from Graphicus.

So, my quandary is this. What do I do with them now? Whatever I do I need to be able to post it, so it needs to be flat. Do I do 4 panels, one for each season? Do I make it into a book or a concertina card or something else? Any suggestions welcome! Notice I didn't do a big 80 for him? I think he would disown me if I did, lol!

Bon Voyage

Here is the card I mentioned in my post yesterday. I used Hot off the press background paper, Journey stamp and two girls image from crafty individuals paper frame (Crafty Individuals) run through the cuttlebug and coloured with creative colour sprays from Crafty Notions. I finished it all off with a ribbon and stamped scrabble tiles (Stamporium unmounted plate). I'm now off to unwrap and cut up oodles of lovely new stamps from the Grahicus sale!!

The Road to Recovery

Just a quick post tonight. Julie made it through 13 1/2 hours of Surgery and came round from the anesthetic yesterday evening. Her husband says she wants to thank everyone for their kind thoughts so I'm passing this on to everyone who read my last post. Thanks to Lynne and D.K. too!
I'm now off to make a Bon Voyage Card for the sister of a workmate who is off to New Zealand...

For Julie

Do you remember that Angel, Julie who cooked my Christmas turkey for me when the oven broke? Well, today she has gone into the Christie hospital in Manchester for MAJOR surgery. She first became ill a year ago and was told she had ovarian cancer. She went through chemotherapy only to be told that she had pseudomyxoma peritonei. You can find out more about it here. Tomorrow she will have a 12-14 hour operation. They will be removing everything she can live without and filling her abdomen with warm Chemotherapy in the hope of finishing off this awful cancer. We met at antenatal classes, and have been close friends ever since. We have watched our daughters grow up together as close friends too. So, whatever you are doing tomorrow, spare a thought or say a prayer for this incredible, kind, generous, brave, amazing, courageous woman, in the hope that she will make a full recovery.

Real Mushrooms!

I took photos of these mushrooms in Glen Trool whilst on holiday in the summer. Definitely the Amanita family, but which member I'm not sure. We all enjoy woodland walks, and Fungi were some of the first things that helped fuel Megan's love of nature and photography (She has posted some of her Mushroom Pictures from the same walk). There are also some great mushroom photos on D.K. Fisher's blog too.

Mushrooms!

As a fan of Fungi I thought Steve would appreciate a card made with the Graphicus Nature's Table plate. I started off thinking 'Fly Agaric', but forgot to put the white spots on before I embossed it! These mushrooms are more like field mushrooms in shape though, so I had another go.

Stamps in the background come from the Arboretum and Wild Meadow plates (also Graphicus).

More ATCs

These are my final two ATCs for the Crafty Individuals competition. They both use stamps from the crafty elements range. The leaves are stamped over an adirondack colour wash background using butterscotch, lettuce and cranberry. I overstamped the leaves in versamark and brushed over with Blonde Moments pigment powder in Gold.

The last was meant to be a very quick stamp and sponge, but I made 4 before I was totally happy! This is not the one I sent, as I was hurrying to get them in an envelope, but it was the next best! Adirondack Dye inks in Butterscotch, lettuce and Red Pepper this time.

Plum and Gold Challenge

Here is my entry for the Graphicus Colour Challenge, Plum and Gold. The background behind the bird was made with Adirondack colour washes in cranberry and eggplant. The background paper was made using versamark ink and rubbing over with twilight, cranberry and eggplant inks.

A Guitar and an ATC

I was asked to make another guitar card for a friend's daughter. She is seventeen and has just saved up and bought herself a Fender with polka dots! The shiny card was silver mirri card, put throught the cuttlebug and then rubbed over with stazon. I thought it looked a bit 'grungey' and suitable for a seventeen year old rock chick!

Here is my 4th ATC for the Crafty individuals competition. I used a stamp from one of the Crafty elements plates. Now I've sent my entries in I'm feeling all inspired to make some more, but I need to get on with Steve's birthday card and not end up making it the night before, as I have on numerous occasions in the past!

Another ATC

Here is my third ATC for the crafty individuals competition. The background used stamps from the Crafty elements range, stamped in versamark and sponged over with peeled paint and broken china distress inks. The wren was stamped in stazon and coloured with adirondack dye inks. This is a very well used stamp - I love the clear image.