Has anyone noticed ...

( ... or am I just slow to catch on ) that whatever you've been looking at buying online shows up in a scrolling bar over on the right hand side of your screen ... well it does on mine as I'm with AOL and they like to reveal all my dirty little secrets ..... like the fact that I've been looking at summer sandals and White Stuff handbags for an unfeasibly long time this morning. So , just in case anyone's going to check out my shopping preferences as they glance at my screen, I'm off to go look up running shoes, gym memberships and health foods.

You learn something new every day

I've been hankering after the new neon Mr. Huey sprays over at Studio Calico but at $25 plus postage from the US, the price was ridiculous for something that I may not even like.

With a few minutes to spare , I had a hunt on amazon for some supplies which I could use to make my own. I've just discovered the world of Tattoo ink . Wow , what an eye opener.  But just in case my eldest son gets the wrong idea and thinks I'm pro tattoos, I've opted for a much cheaper option . For less than a fiver I've managed to pick up a set of 6 fluorescent marbling inks. I'll have a play and report back when I've got something to show. Watch this space.

And inevitably ... as one thing leads to another, there's a whole neon world out there I didn't even know existed . I'm off to buy some neon bingo daubers now to polka dot some designs.

Is this the excuse I've been looking for ...

... to buy yet more washi tape ? I think it may be.

I like to staple my student's assignments together along one edge but the rough side of the staples are always snagging against things, so I hit upon the idea of covering the stapled edge with washi tape. The possibilities are endless .... I can colour code by topic or subject ( especially useful for my dyspraxic children ) , brighten up their day , work my way through my washi stash ... which only means one thing .... I get to go and buy some more ! As they say ( somewhere) you can never have enough washi tape.

Latest Layouts

Loving grey at the moment.

This last one is made with my latest Studio Calico kit - Neverland with the addition of some Crate Paper photo frames from their recent DIY Shop range - can't get enough of them . In fact I've just used up the last of my pack which never usually happens . Also managed to squeeze in a few sequins from www.sequinworld.co.uk - love these matt star gunmetal grey ones especially.

Beautiful but ...

..... if I had a blue book and not a red or a green one , would I be allowed to put it in this cupboard ?

I can also see all of the carpet either side . Would this happen in real life ? It's made me realise why I don't buy interiors magazines anymore - I can't aspire to the perfection in them.

Having said that , it is very lovely and it has cheered me up and .... oh wait .... I see something yellow pinned to the inside of the door . Is that allowed ?

Thankful

As I sit at my desk catching up on a day's worth of emails and messages , I can hear my youngest son upstairs laughing out loud with his friends on his X Box. They aren't in the room with him but are scattered around the world on the end of a set of headphones , courtesy of XBox Live ( as if I even knew what that means ). Say what you like about these gaming console things , but there has to be something going for a device that brings relatively harmless fun ( they're in the middle of a virtual football match ) within reach on a dreary rainy midweek night.

They're singing now and there's much hilarity going on . I'm not in on the joke but there's a fair amount of competitive banter going on which is making me laugh . In fact he's just appeared in the doorway telling me that he's off to bed now. I haven't had to wrench him , goggle eyed , from in front of the screen . We've spent the evening eating together round the table and enjoying a few laughs about the day's events. Even my eldest son eats with us every evening and enjoys the chat at the end of the day , a chance to catch up with his family.

Being the mother of two teenage sons is not the easiest role in the world and I'm not going to pretend its been plain sailing. But we seem to have survived ... so far ... and I realise that it's got a lot to do with talking, keeping an open mind, laying down some strict boundaries and 'catching them' being good. I read about this somewhere a while ago and it instantly struck a chord. It's easy to be on their case the whole time, and believe me I often am, but every now and then I delight in being able to tell them that something I've noticed about their behaviour or attitude to life has really impressed me.

The funny thing is , I've just about got the hang of this parenting lark and before long they'll have flown the nest. I suppose better late than never.