Mosaics

I have been looking how to create mosaics from http://cindyzlogic.blogspot.com/, who put up a mosaic and how to do it from another website.  So to keep the chain going I thought I would have a go as it looks really good.  I did mine by using my own flickr images, just to see what it looks like, I will probably take some photo's with this in mind now that I know how to do it.  Using big huge labs.com Tutorial via

http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/2009/07/making-photo-mosaics-tutorial.html

Right, enough of the advertising here is my effort of some photo's I took in Wroxham in the summer.

Pretty cool eh, there will be no stopping me now especially on my dolly blog.  Just noticed not so cool as I have used 2 of the same picture!  Oh Well better luck next time.

Lego

Lego has always been one of those toys that as a family we have always loved.  It is one of those toys that the whole family can get on the floor and play with.  As a child all I had was red and white bricks, then later blue and yellow.  Simple windows and doors and wheels.  When my children where growing up you could get an airport and police stations and for the girls beach houses and cafes. However you still had the instructions which would show you how to make 3-4 different  things with the same bricks, and you could make what you like.

You go into the Lego shops and you see recent films glorified for eternity in little plastic bricks.  I have posted  a Harry Potter he is what he is, you could use the bricks to make other things but Harry Potter looks like Harry Potter complete with scar,  same with Captain Jack. Star wars, pirates of the Caribbean, all immortalized in the little brick.  We love our Lego and really enjoy, yes making up the ships and trains, but please not to many specialized bricks, continue making a good variety of bricks, that help the creative juices in a child flow.  Making the item is just the first step, the child then plays with it firing their imagination creating all sorts of wonderful people having wonderful adventures.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28083135@
N06/6448751047/ 

Lego is not just about Harry, Captain Jack, Luke Sky Walker, and others, yes they play their part, but they all come from the imagination of others.  I went to Kensington, to the doll's house fair, in December and going through St Pancras International Station, I saw a Christmas tree at first, I thought oh a bit boring to symmetrical not how a Christmas tree should be at all, until I got close enough to see. what a wonderful sight stood in the middle of the concourse it was a beautiful Giant Christmas Tree made of lego, it was made of 600,000 lego bricks and stood between 10 and 12 metres high, depending on which paper you read.

I know that a lot of the children, not just the children that saw it went home and got out their Lego boxes and created all sorts of wonderful Christmas scenes and hopefully it was on the list of more than one child.  They couldn't buy a pack to make one but I bet more than one child tried, and that is what Lego is all about.   One of my son's helps in a beaver pack, and those ten minutes at the end of a meeting, while the children sit on their mats to await their parents, are the longest of the whole night.  Last year he went up in the loft and took away 2 boxes of Lego, now silence reigns for those ten minutes and all you can hear is the clatter of bricks and the murmuring of children.  The sad part is when he told me that some of his boys had never played with Lego before.  So go on get a box out of it's hiding place and no matter how old or how busy you are get playing, a bit of escapism is just what we all need, even if it is just for half an hour, I love it.

Loft clearing

As I am clearing the loft, what do I do with the old toys, paperwork from school, even some clothes, belonging to my children.  In the past when the children where younger a lot of their stuff when finished was handed on to someone else through jumble sales, fetes, charity shops etc.  Now I am thinking that most of this stuff has been around over 20 years.  If it has been in my loft that long surely it can stay in the loft a little longer while the kids decide what they want to do with it.  I am of an age were most older couples have a few grandchildren running around, my children  have yet to settle down part of me thinks good for them, there is no point tying yourself down to young, find out what you want to do with your life, travel, build a career.  Then I have that little voice in my head saying wouldn't it be nice if we had grandchildren it can't be long now surely.  They then would be able to enjoy the old things of their parents youth, my children loved the fact that Kevin and I had hung onto a few bits and piece, some old exercise books from when we where at school.

Sentimentality does not alter the fact that I have loft filled with over thirty years of stuff, and it could end up being there for them to clear out when I am dead.  I know for a fact most of it will end up as land fill, so I am better off getting rid of it now so that someone can get the benefit of it and the children can enjoy the toys.  Despite the fact I know that if I do some one will make an announcement, sods law I'm afraid.  Oh well Maureen what has to be done has to be done, out it goes.  I may compromise and keep one box for each child.  Shame however I can't do that for Kevin but never mind eh.

Maureen's Moans

Have you noticed when you go in to a cafe or coffee shop, and get a hot coffee it is never hot enough.  I get told that, that is the highest temperature that they are allowed to make it. Rubbish!! When Kevin has a black tea, it is at least ten minutes before he can drink it, let alone hold the cup.  So I have now started looking at their machines with their fancy coffee's and I ask for them to make it slightly hotter, some do, some just look at me as though I am stupid, and some still try to tell me that it is health and safety.  However it is alright for some one drinking tea to be scolded.  I have even been told very pompously that, the machines are set at the best temperature for serving coffee, set by whom, not me I like my coffee hot! hot!! hot!!!  I now only go in to shops where I know they have steamers and when I ask they will make it hotter for me.

Tuesday 10/1/12

Today I went up the downs for a walk, I went with my husband Kevin, it was very blowy so we did not take the kites with us. We stayed for lunch which we really enjoyed the sun came out while we where eating unfortunately it went back in again when we where ready to come back down, although it was only 3pm it did look rather dramatic so I took a picture of it.

Last night as we put out Christmas decorations back into the loft we noticed how cluttered it was up there.  The children having flown the nest have left boxes of school books and bags of clothes that are packed ready for when they settle, and not forgetting loads of toys.  So we decided to make a start to reduce it.  Old college stuff of mine came to light, and Kevin has more than one box up there.  We have done one corner and feel quite proud, we still have the rest to do and it will properly take quite awhile but I am sure the bin men will be kept busy and the charity shops will like the toys, and clothes.  I will keep you posted if  anything exciting turns up.

Happy Birthday David 8/1/12

Back in 1972, what were you a T-rex fan, or a Bowie fan.  Bolan fans would back comb their already long hair until it frizzed,and wore glitter around their eyes. The Bowie fans had their hair cut short, and when  it grew into the layered look, Aladdin sane made it a must have Bowie cut.  Being in an all girls Catholic School being radical was a little hard but we had out haversacks which we would paint, with our favourite Hero's on the front flap.  Our exercise books would be covered with plain wallpaper so we could draw, write, or scribble on the front.   However Changes were to come and we were mixed with the boy's school, and not even the nun's could stop the Gene Genie of raging hormones.

Happy Birthday David 
65 today 

Hitchin Beckons 7/1/12

Good morning it  is an early start as I am going over to Hitchin today to visit my daughter. We travel by bus via Luton and Hitchin so we add in time to go shopping.  At least the weather from yesterday is holding out and hopefully they will be no rain today.  If I have time this evening I will write some more and add a few photo's if I take any.  Oh well got to go it is time for breakfast.

I will be putting the time somewhere in each of my blogs for some bizarre reason no matter how many times I change it, the next time I do a post it is a weird time, like now it states  00:37 Oh well as long as it gets the date right I suppose I can live with it.

Can you believe that I have put the new date in and it has stayed I am going to leave the title as it is just in case.

Well it was a lovely day, the weather was fine, no problems and no problems with the buses a good day.  We had a meal out in a local pub and I took a few pictures. here is one of the clock above Samuels.

Christmas Clean Up 6/1/12

Due to the appalling weather yesterday I  stayed hunkered down and played about with my blog I think I have it sussed.  I also managed to put some photo's on flickr quite old one's from the summer, as I don't want to put to many of the same up at one time.

Yesterday I  started the great Christmas Clean Up, I have taken down all the decorations although I didn't put that many up this year, and today I will pack it away, and put it where it belongs in the loft.  I say I didn't put many up, put I love the toy's you can get that sing, and this year I got a Christmas tree that sings "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree".

One problem I see looming is the sun coming through the window which at this time of year tends to tempt me to go for a walk up to Dunstable Downs, or even round town.  Which means my day will be shortened by 2 hours, and given that it is nearly 11am and I am still in bed with my laptop, (my favourite place may I add)  I will soon be running out of time, never mind.

I worked over Christmas and New Year so I am having a few days off now, so hopefully I can give my blog a good start as it could be a good few days between blogs once I am back at work.

Well it is all done and dusted the decorations are all down and packed

away.  The great clean up begins, sweeping the floors and cleaning

 a way the last of the remaining debris. 

 it's amazing where bits of tinsel and strands off the Christmas tree manage to lodge themselves.

Decorations all laid out ready to
 pack away for yet another year. 

The Christmas decorations are
all packed  away ready to go into the loft. 

Maureen's Magic Moments

This is for those magical moments that happen at any time any place some big some small.  From the 24th of December through to the 29th of December I had all my family around the only time for a few years we have all been together and it was wonderful.  After Christmas we went up Dunstable  Downs kite flying and then we went to watch a pantomine "Jack and the Beanstalk" and went for a Chinese meal afterwards.  This being a massive moment.

Maureen's Moans

This is going to be a collection of little moans, those little things in life that annoy me.  So this is my first one.

If there is one thing I can't stand it is when it is raining and your on the narrowest part of the pavement and car's will still come to close and when they do get it right and splash you they take great delight in beeping there horns and giving you the thumbs up when your stood there freezing cold looking like a drowned rat.

Happy New Year. 5/1/12

As this is my first posting, I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year.  I have thought about blogging in the past but I have never got round to trying it,  A New Year a new start so time to bite the bullet.  On a home front it is my lovely husband Kevin's birthday so a happy birthday to you, I am not sure what we will be doing as it is pouring down outside, and extremely windy, so that rules out going up the downs to fly kites.  So I might just stay and experiment at different ways to change the lay out, so don't be surprised if during the day or coming days my layout changes.  I do like taking photo's and I always have a camera with me so I will be posting pics from time to time.

As you can see I like Betty Boop this one in particular, as my name is Maureen not because I am a bikers moll as the only bike we have is Kevin's push bike!! Never mind one can dream.