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All the photographs have been taken by myself including those of holiday.

Saturday, 23 August 2025

Summertime


 Hi,

These two pictures were entered in a competition on Facebook,  they are downloads from Debbi Moore Gomes Side Scene Dimensional kit,  

The top one is a gnome on the beach with a bucket and spade.

When I was printing out  the top card,  the printer decided that it did not want to print the card I also wanted and printed out the one below,  so as not to waste card,  I made both cards and entered them.


He is a gnome fishing on the beach,  either way they are both related to summer,  I hope you like them,  I do love this Gnome kit, and so far I have made four from it,  still a few more designs in the kit.

Have a lovely weekend.

Margaret 


Sunday, 17 August 2025

CD Sunday challenge- anything goes #165


 Hi,
As I write this post,  we are in our 4th heatwave and today it is hot,  we are actually by the weather forecast we are hotter than the east side of England.  We would love some rain,  not kidding fall we seem to get occasionally is about six spots on the patio,  certainly not enough for any plant.  As we drive around our country lanes,  the trees are shedding their leaves,  a sign that they are in distress,  in fact I saw several trees yesterday that looked like they are dying,  horse chestnuts trees seem to be suffering more than any other trees,  the fields are dry and there’s no green grass,  many of the cows are now inside,  farmers are keeping inside in the cool,  eating the winter feed, come winter farmers are going to be short of feed unless the grass starts to grow soon. Apparently cows don’t like it too hot,  at the moment neither does anyone else.  I have travelled all over Europe and beyond,  been in many heatwaves,  last time we were in Turkey during the day it was 45c+ and 39c at night,  yes it was hot, a dry heat,  here in the U.K. it’s a sapping wet heat that just saps the energy out of you,  anyone doing the rain dance please don’t over do it,  we just need some rain,  enough to green up the countryside and refill the reservoirs.

Time for another challenge at CD Sunday,  for this fortnight Jo is the host, 

For my card I used a backing paper and matching image from the Enchanted dreams CD by Joanna Sheen, I matted tge images onto silver Hunkydory Miri card,  I made a spray of a blue and white feathers, silver ribbon, and a flower die with green foliage,  added  Hunkydory diamond sparkles in blue and a hand made silver ribbon bow.

CD Sunday Plus challenge has a Facebook page for those who would like to enter the challenge and do not have a blog,   here is a link to the page the challenge and do not have a blog,    

I hope you will visit the CD Sunday Plus Challenge site, and remember if you want to enter the challenge you must use something from a CD, USB or digital material no matter how small and let us know where and what you used the material from,   and that it is a card or a project.    Here is a link to CD Sunday Plus Challenge blog  we would be pleased to see you.

I hope you have a lovely weekend

Margaret 

Friday, 15 August 2025

Happy Wedding Anniversary Vernon


 Hi,

Today is our wedding Anniversary,  we have been married 23 years today,  

This is the card I made Vernon,  I embossed the red card and I can’t remember the name of the embossing folder I think it might be a cutter bug one,  added a spray of red ribbon roses, red feather and rose leaves,  and spotted red ribbon,  and added happy anniversary in peel offs. A simple card so I hope he will like it.

Tonight we are having a Chinese meal.  

Margaret 

Thursday, 14 August 2025

VJ Day

 Hi,

No pictures today as a mark of respect,  today 80 years ago Japan surrendered marking  the end of World War Two,  I know that many of those fighting the Japanese did not come home for many months after they surrendered.

My mother was a Japanese POW,  I have no idea when she finally arrived back in the U.K.,  she never talked about it and only rarely,  she was a nursing sister assigned to the Royal Navy,  the ship she was on was torpedoed and she was captured by the Japanese,  she spent two and half years in a POW camp.

At different times in my life things were revelled,  like when I was five and in Italy we were walking down the street in Rimini,  when a strange man was shouting Bubbles,  we turned around and there she was talking to him,  it turned out that was her nickname in the Royal Navy, and he was on board one of the ships she was on.

Several times throughout my life she was recognised,  did she remember them not sure but when there’s three thousand men on one ship,  she could not remember all of them, even if they remembered her.

I remember moving into a new house,  I was unloading the car and a voice said “never thought I would see you again”.  My reaction was who are you,  he was talking to mother,  they talked about different things that happen,  he said if she thought the men needed exercise she would match them around the deck even in a force nine gale.   He then set her a challenge to march  the young boys working on the site,  to see if she could get them marching,  challenge excepted,  by the time they reach the end she had them all in step, marching.  

I did try to find her war record,  unfortunately I failed,  without her service number and what camp she ended up in,  there’s no where left to find her record,  I was told one day something might pop up well so far nothing,  I was told that when they went into camps the records of those  POWs in them was destroyed by the Japanese 

Mother died in 2014,  but I have the memories of life that the Japanese ruined,  I remember one Christmas I was not very old I was unwrapping a Christmas present and she saw written on the box made in Japan,  the box was taken out of my hand and thrown in the dustbin.  Nothing that was made in Japan was allowed in the house,  she would not buy anything made in Japan,   Over the years she did sort of accept items only because it was not made anywhere else.   Her injuries yes she had a lot,  she had to have a new hip,  it was pinned in Japan during the war,  I took into the hospital, along came a junior doctor,  Japanese  doctor,  she was in so much pain, I thought she was going to walk out,  but she stayed sitting,  after the operation in recovery,  she must have heard his voice,   Whatever she said he got a mouthful,  a few days later I was asked does your mother not like the Japanese,  the nurse had an answer she was not expecting.  After that he would come to bed, she would pretend to be asleep,  he would bow to the bed,  she used to say if I could lift my leg he would get it.   A few years before she died she moved and had a new doctor,  he was taking her blood pressure and saw some marks on her arm,  he asked who did this, looking at me,  she said nothing so I told him much to her disgust,  they are Japanese war wounds.  

Mother like thousands of POWs never spoke much about their time in the Japanese camps,  it was certainly not a bed of roses,  today people say we should forgive and forget,  it’s not hard to forget when you grow up with a disabled mother,  she suffered a lot,  and my life suffered to in many ways.

We should never forget the past and hopefully learn from it,

Margaret 


Wednesday, 13 August 2025

Granny Square Day 15th August 2025


 Hi,

Today as I write this post we are having a heatwave,  it’s going up to 32c according to the weather forecast,  in our climate of damp air,  it’s sticky, exhausting and energy sapping.

They have a day for everything these days,   I recently found out that  there’s day for Granny Squares,  its actually tomorrow but I have a post for tomorrow so I am doing this a day early,  I don’t like doing more than one post per day,

The picture above I have shown before this is a blanket I made in the lockdowns,  I learnt or rather started to learn crochet in lockdown,  I used up lots of wool I had,  as a knitter I an always one seem to be buying wool especially if I like the colour and then there’s always left overs,  so granny squares is idea.

I thought I would make another blanket,  in granny squares and I found a bag with some in,  now don’t ask  the name of the pattern, no idea,  so there’s some different bits of patterns in the bag,  so all I have to do is find the pattern and make some more,  easy we will see.


If and when I start or rather finish the blanket I will post it,  please don’t hold your breath.

Margaret

Sunday, 3 August 2025

CD Sunday challenge - anything goes #164


 Hi,

Here we are at the beginning of August, this year is going fast,   As usual our challenge this fortnight is anything goes,  the host this fortnight is Meg,

For my card I have done a Christmas card,  and I used Party Penguins 2 CD by Debbi Moore,  for the image and backing sheet plus the sentiment and ribbon band,  I matted the image on gold Miri card by Hunkydory and added a red ribbon bow.

CD Sunday Plus challenge has a Facebook page for those who would like to enter the challenge and do not have a blog,   here is a link to the page the challenge and do not have a blog,    

I hope you will visit the CD Sunday Plus Challenge site, and remember if you want to enter the challenge you must use something from a CD, USB or digital material no matter how small and let us know where and what you used the material from,   and that it is a card or a project.    Here is a link to CD Sunday Plus Challenge blog  we would be pleased to see you.

Hope you have a lovely weekend

Margaret