Happy New Year

I would like to wish you and your loved ones a wonderful New Year! Thanks for visiting my blog, and hope to see you again in 2008!

Ingrid
xoxo

Merry Christmas

Photo and design by Florence Bavinck - September 16th, 2007

Hip Hip Hooray!

Today Sanne is turning 5. She looked forward to her birthday so much and now it is finally the day! She made this gorgeous birthday hat herself in school. She loves it, and even wore it on Saturday when we ran errands. And when we came into her bedroom this morning she had already put it on. LOL! We won't have a big party today, but of course our family will come to visit us.

Sweetie, Happy Birthday!! xoxo

So Proud

This morning we arrived at the local indoor swimming pool at 7.40am. Yeah, we had to wake up early on Saturday morning. Fleur had to do exam for swim certificate B. She was so happy last Wednesday when she heard that she was selected for the exam, and so was I. She did really well, and I am very proud of her. No more weekly swimming lessons. Well...at least for a few weeks, because it is very likely that Sanne will start in January or February.



I am also proud of this cutie. Isn't she adorable? She was in such a good mood today. So sweet and helpful. I wish she was like this every day. LOL! Her big sister has the most beautiful long eyelashes, but she has the most beautiful dark brown eyes in our family. Hihi...I guess you can tell I am a proud mommy.



My friend Wendy made this cute Magnolia card for Fleur. She also bought Fleur a cute diary, and wooden beads. Isn't that nice? Thanks girl! I already told you that Fleur really liked your cards and gifts.

Almost 5, and snow!

Sanne will be turning 5 on Monday December 24th. Last Wednesday after we had dinner I realized all of a sudden that I had to make some treats for school. SHOCK! Since the girls are off from school as of this afternoon Sanne has to celebrate her birthday at school today. I totally forgot about it. Well, almost. Yesterday we had a Christmas dinner party so I really had to create something on Wednesday evening. Actually she wanted me to bake cupcakes with a marmelade 5 on it, but I told her that mommy had no time to bake cupcakes and suggested to make some lollipop flowers. Fortunately she really liked this idea. ;-) So I quickly went to the supermarket (fortunately they are open till 8pm) and bought some lollipops. At home I cut 60 flowers, and 30 circles. So glad I still have my BigShot die cutting machine. LOL! This is the final result, and Sanne is really happy with it.



Yesterday morning I was totally suprised to see snow. The first snow for this year. I was in a hurry in the morning, so I had no time to take some pictures. So, as soon as the girls were in school this morning I took some pictures in our backyard. I really like snow......as long as I don't have to drive.

Happy Birthday, Lisette

Today my sister-in-law Lisette celebrates her birthday. I mailed her this card a few weeks ago, and hopefully it arrived safe and sound in Melbourne, Australia. Happy Birthday, Lisette! I will call you on Skype later this morning (evening for you). For now I'll leave you with a virtual kiss and big hug. :-)

Deck the Halls

Yesterday afternoon we decked the Christmas tree. Fleur and Sanne wanted to help me so badly. They just love to deck the tree with all the ornaments. I first had to put up 400 (!) lights in the tree. I can tell you that is my least favorite part of decking the Christmas tree. We only have white and pearl ornaments in our tree and I love it. Of course we took some pictures. We hardly have any Christmas pictures of us as a family, so I asked Eric to take some pictures. Thanks to the tripod we also have some pictures of the 4 of us. Eric also put up the lights in the trees in our garden, and it looks so nice and cosy.



Birgit mentioned on her blog that she wants to see your favorite ornament, and learn why it is your favorite. These ones are my favorites.



It are the glass bauble and the pearl string of 'beads'. They may not be my most beautiful ones, but they are very special to me. They remind me of my sister-in-law Lisette (Eric's sister) and her family. Until September 2006 they lived in the UK. We visited them once a year, and they came over to the Netherlands twice a year. When we visited them in November 2005 - only a few weeks before Christmas - we went to the local garden center where I bought these ornaments amongst others. The ornaments are a great keepsake of our visits. Now that Lisette and her family live in Melbourne, Australia we definitely don't see each other a few times a year. It has been a year and a half ago since we last saw them. Fortunately they will come over to Europe next week. They will first visit their family in the UK, and then be in the Netherlands at the beginning of January. Of course we stay in touch via Skype, e-mail and our blogs, but it will be so nice to see each other in person again.

Xmas Decorations, and 2 Winners!

This morning I went to the garden center to buy a Xmas tree. I am pretty late this year, but fortunately I managed to buy a nice and reasonable priced tree. Gosh! The trees are really expensive this year. I "saved" money on the tree by not buying the most expensive one, but I spent a fortune on ornaments and other decorations. LOL! I just loved all the gorgeous and sparkling Xmas decorations that they have. I bought two plates to decorate. One matches really well with the white ornaments that we have for the tree, and the other.....Well, with 3 girls in the house you need something pink too. Don't you think? I might decorate the tree this evening, or otherwise on Saturday.





I had planned to draw two winners for the RAK yesterday, but I was just too busy. So, a little late....BUT....better late than never! The girls are in school, so I had no one to help me pick two names. Therefore, I used Random.org to randomly pick the names for me. Very easy! The winner is.....

#41 - Ellemieke

And 1st runner up is.....

#12 - Mistylynn

Congrats, girls! Please e-mail me your address and I will post the RAK a.s.a.p.

Thanks to everyone for all your lovely comments. I really appreciate your visits!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Girl!

Today our eldest daughter Fleur is turning 7. I remember the day she was born so well. Not the actual birth itself as she was born by c-section and I was put under an anaesthetic, but of course I do remember the moment she was put in my arms very well. What a wonderful feeling! A tiny little girl (44cm - 2,750g), born 22 days too early. Now, 7 years later, she is a gorgeous girl and doing so well. Happy Birthday, sweetie!!



We woke Fleur up at 7am. She was already awake for 10 minutes and anxiously waiting for us to come into her room. She was so curious to find out what we bought her. Sanne bought her clothes for the Bratz dolls, and we bought her the Playmobil Hospital that she wanted so badly. Needless to say, she was thrilled with the gifts. She also received a beautiful card made by auntie Lisette. This afternoon our family will come to celebrate her birthday. The party for her friends will be on Friday.

Close to Home

Inspiration can be found close to home. I am not talking about distance here, but about my own family. My sister-in-law Lisette lives Down Under. Not really close in distance, but through our blogs and Skype we stay close and in touch about each other's every day life and scrap projects. Last week she posted a gorgeous layout on her blog which inspired me to create this Xmas card. Thanks, girl!



Supplies: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey Dasher PP, Ellison Design Stars Die, Autumn Leaves Clear Stamps, Hero Arts Clear Stamps 'Laughter & Merriment', Versafine Onyx Black, and Black Zig Writer.

If you want to win a RAK don't forget to leave a comment in the previous post. :-)