Winter Fun

Holy Moly is it ever cold outside today. The temperature has dropped to the lowest yet this year - about 9F. I didn't even bother setting the alarm to get up for Aqua Fit even though I probably could go now. Not taking any chances of setting off another series of brain disorder attacks! We did have to go to the bank and make a couple other stops today and just going from the car to the buildings and back again were enough for me. Speaking of the bank, do you have a financial adviser? We have and she is great but that is one job that I would not enjoy doing in spite of the fact that I used to work in the bank - secretary, loan dept, general ledger, postings for the chequing and savings dept (before computers people we did it by hand) but financing? No way. Too complicated! You not only have the bank procedures to follow but the governments as well. Joe and I have a habit of deciding if we could enjoy doing certain jobs or not. Not a question of "if" we could do it, but would we enjoy it. I'm no dummy and I could learn how to be a financial adviser but I would not enjoy it - and that's the kicker. For instance, besides a financial adviser, Joe mentioned last week while watching me cook, that I would make a lousy chemist. I don't measure when I cook. He was watching me add stuff whilly-nilly and and he said he could picture a lab blowing up if I was a chemist - and he would be right. "Close enough" would not work in a lab.

Speaking of blowing up, we had our tea kettle blow up today. When we got home from running the errands, I immediately filled the kettle and plugged it in to make a coffee. Yes, we drink instant coffee which my kids all hate, but we like it. I went upstairs to get changed and I heard him yell so I asked him what was wrong. He said he was standing by the counter and he heard a loud bang and a flame shot out from the kettle so he unplugged it right away. Yeow, did that ever stink! It left a mark on the counter but I was only smoke so I got it off. He said if he hadn't been standing there it could have caused the house to be on fire. Scary!

OK, enough about that, on with the post. I thought I'd continue with the winter scrapbook pages.

This is a single page layout because it is the first page in the album. The title "Winter Fun" was made with polymer clay. I had bought some clay alphabet cutters and just had to try them out. Worked OK and I think I may make some more for other layouts. Paper is from my stash. The snowflake border at the bottom was made by punching out snowflakes and then added a piece of white paper behind it. The snowman is a Sizzix die - you have to die cut each piece and then glue them all back together - love making these. The silver bits are Dazzles from Paper Wishes. My son-in-law's shirt was the only thing red on the page so I added the two red pieces on the photo of my daughter to form the "invisible triangle" that keeps the eye going around the page. The three snowflakes between the pictures and the ones at the top came from the bottom strip and I added clear gems in the centre. If you notice on my daughter's photo there are two strips of paper - one says fun and the other has snowflakes. I added that there because there was a very distracting element in the picture. That is the best way to eliminate something that is distracting, or just plain ugly in a picture.