Eighteen, 18, XVIII

It doesn't seem to matter how I write it, I still can't believe my firstborn is 18 today!

On Wednesday 23rd September 1992 at 2323hrs Renae Lauren Manning was born weighing in at 9lb 7oz. She was in no hurry to meet us and took quite a bit of encouragement to enter the world. I can remember it like it was yesterday, even visualise the delivery room with Steve on one side and Vicki on my other. Renae was taken to Neo Natal immediately and spent the first few hours being monitored - Steve never left her side! Sometime during the night she came back to me and that euphoric feeling of falling in love instantly was overwhelming and has never left me.....ever.

Here she is sunning herself inside the window of the hospital (she was a little jaundiced too).

3 months old - what a cutie - to this day when she gets angry those "stork marks" still fire up!

This morning we shared in our family ritual of opening presents on our bed before Renae headed off for work. It has killed me all day that she only got to open a couple of small gifts from us this morning as I have been working on this surprise all day long.....A bedroom makeover!

Gemma bought her this canvas with her Star Sign on it.

Wide angle view of the whole room.

New bed linen, throw rug and cushions.

Another view of the lovely fresh bed linen.....there's nothing nicer is there?

The roman blind is going to be replaced with a white holland blind next week and a new pelmet will also be added.

Now there is a funnyish story around this rose wall art - I bought the gorgeous satin fabric and decided to ask Gemma to help me staple it to the canvas....well she staple gunned the palm of her hand together and ended up needing a tetanus shot - I'm not sure what kind of story she made up to tell Renae - but I don't think she was any the wiser! ;-)

New laundry hamper.

New nick nacks.

More new nick nacks.

Chalkboard frame on the door of her wardrobe.

We are looking forward to celebrating tonight with a family dinner - so I might be back with some more sooner rather than later!

Today's the big day

Tonight at Tomorrow's Memories I will draw the Birthday prize out of the hat for a Photoshoot with yours truly to the value of $225.00......if you live locally and would like to enter then simply visit Tomorrow's Memories before 8.30pm tonight and you will get a ticket into the draw. As simple as that, you don't have to buy anything, just visit them and wish them a Happy 5th Birthday - EASY!!!!!!!!!!!!

But if you do find something you fancy and let's face it, that's not too hard at TM's then you will get...................drumroll please maestro.................

25% OFF STOREWIDE TODAY ONLY

WEDNESDAY 13TH MAY 2009

(Floor stock only)

What have you got to lose! NOTHING!

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Otherwise I have been kept very busy here at home with Steve away and Renae's Year 12 Ball on Saturday there has been plenty to do. Amongst all that we are trying to sell my little Mazda 3 :-( and buy new vehicles - a process that is not all that enjoyable....apart from the fact that I'm impatient and want it all done NOW!

I have a Wedding to shoot on the 23rd May which I am really looking forward to.....simple ceremony by the river and lunch at Sitella's Winery - what could be better on a beautiful (hopefully) Autumn day.

I'll be back tomorrow to announce the winner of the photoshoot, so "see" you then!

Happy Mother's Day and Special Announcement

I'd like to wish all those Mum's out there a very special Mother's Day and I hope you were thoroughly ruined like I was!

Also a very important announcement!

to Tomorrow's Memories!!!

"Come in and wish us a happy birthday and you will receive a ticket into the draw to win…. A photographic session to the value of $225.00 kindly donated by Sharon Manning! "

Find out more here............http://tomorrowsmemorieswa.blogspot.com/

How exciting! Make sure you get into the shop and join in the celebrations, there's heaps going on and heaps you can share in, what have you got to lose! NOTHING!

Good Luck Everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See you Wednesday night for the draw, Thursday morning for Morning Tea (check out their blog) and Friday night again at the Red Carpet Moonlight Scrap.....wow it's going to be a busy week for me.

Too much going on

There is so much to share about what has happened in the last few weeks I will try and keep it short and to the point.

Gemma competed in the West Coast Dance Festival during the holidays and placed 2nd in the Novice - Modern Jazz section for Under 16's, so proud of her! She has worked so hard since the beginning of the year on her solo routine and improved so much. Well done Chicken!

Renae has been studying during the holidays ready for exams in 5 weeks time and also preparing for her first game of soccer which was yesterday - she played well and will only improve as weeks go by. Although perhaps we will remember the sunscreen next time, the weather was beautiful and warm which took it's toll on the players.

Renae's dress has arrived for the Year 12 Ball (16th May) and we have had our first fitting and will hopefully pick it up by next weekend.

Last weekend was a surprise 30th for our friend Luisa at another friends house (Cathy's) around the corner from home - the surprise part was a huge success - she had no idea!

The Girls!

The Boys!

Friday morning I went to Taylor's in the Swan Valley with Lis and Morganne for breakfast for an early birthday celebration and she gave me this lovely book which I am reading very slowly as I hope to make it last as long as I can - just beautiful.....Thanks Lis!

I went to Tomorrow's Memories on Friday night for their moonlight crop and they are celebrating their 5th Birthday during the month of May. Be sure to check out their blog or website and join in the festivities coming up! Lots of specials and prizes to be won.

Today is my 43rd Birthday and last night Steve cooked dinner (Minestrone Soup and Italian Meatballs and Fetuccine) and we had some friends around to celebrate.

This is what my gorgeous husband gave me......I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Swarovski "Sparkle" ring - girl's gotta have some bling once in a while!

These are what my gorgeous girls gave me for my Pandora bracelet - nearly full now, just a few more charms to go!

Steve is off to Albany for work today for the next 3 weeks (home on weekends though thank goodness), I'm going to miss him lots but I also have plenty to keep me busy!

There hasn't been alot of crafting around here lately with all the other stuff going on, but I'm hoping to get back into things this week as I have a few committments that have fallen behind schedule.

Oh and I hope to make an exciting announcement sometime this week too so stay tuned!!!! Something to do with a photoshoot by me that you could win.

Well I think that just about covers it. Until next time take care and enjoy your week.

Happy 40th Birthday!

To Lis! Happy Birthday sweet lady. I hope you have a fabulous day and all your wishes come true.

It's ok I got rid of the spinach in the teeth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You can check out some of the birthday celebrations on Lis' blog.

She's 16 today!

I'm glad I've had my first cup of tea for the day because blogging this one is not going to be easy!

My eldest daughter Renae turns 16 today! Happy Birthday sweetheart, I hope all your dreams come true.

After fighting to keep you for 5 months during my pregnancy, you were born at 23:23 on 23rd September 1992 weighing 9lb 7oz and our world changed from that moment on. You have grown into a beautiful young lady with a caring, thoughtful and all round gorgeous nature that we are extremely proud of. As you enter the next stage of your life and alot of changes are going to happen in the coming years, we wish you all the love and happiness you deserve. Love Mum, Dad and Gemma xxx.

Renae had a big 16th party with all her friends on Saturday night complete with bonfire....

I was informed after everyone went home that "it was the best party ever". Phew!

Last Friday night Gemma performed at her School Dance concert and was the star of the show with 9 appearances throughout the night and she was named Best Dancer for Year 9! Well done to my Dancing Queen! Steve got to see her solo competition routine and was blown away - he was speechless! I hope to take a photo of her with her trophy on the weekend. We have her Bullsbrook Dance Academy concert this Friday night, Competition next Tuesday at Karrinyup and then we are finished for the year! I'm looking forward to a break from dancing and I'm sure Gemma is too.

I'm working on my workshops for Hyden and should have some more sneak peaks later in the week.

We also have our Nieces wedding on Sunday which we are all looking forward to, she is going to make a stunning bride! Hopefully I can snap a few pictures and post up next week. I might even get a family shot of the four of us if I'm lucky!!!!!!!! Now that's rare.

Lately......

Yes I’m still here, I haven’t been doing a lot of creating lately, although I am meeting my commitments (just!). I have to find a balance between work, home, family and me time. The me time seems to be disappearing a lot lately but hopefully I will be taking that back into my control. We all reassess our lives at some stage or another and a couple of health issues have made me make this a priority at the moment. I don’t like putting things off and not meeting deadlines and I need to learn to deal with the consequences – that’s me feeling like I have let someone down. Anyway enough negatives, let’s look at the positives…..

I have now completed my 12 months with Paper Pesto and I can honestly say that their kits are well worth it. They have so much in them and the choices the girls make when putting these together are spot on. Congratulations to Kate, Fiona and Steph on making a success of a dream that they all had. I’m sure the business will go ahead in leaps and bounds in the future. Check out their blog and all the lovely projects that have been created with the June kit. Sneak peeks of the July kit should be going up soon too. But be quick because the last few have sold out!

Gemma turned 14 on the 13th June and we had a great party for her at home on the 14th, boys included! Here she is with a new hair-do and looking oh so grown up.....I on the other hand feel very old!

She also placed 2nd in a recent Dance Comp doing her solo modern routine. This means she now goes up a grade in the comps. I was one very teary proud Mummy.

Gemma has also settled this year at school and her grades are definitely improving, the more she applies herself the better she does.

Renae has just completed her first Year 11 exams and has passed 4 out of 5 so far - she is waiting on her Biology results now.

I really couldn't have wished for 2 more beautiful daughters!

I had my 3rd Scrappy Sunday yesterday and again we all had a great time with 2 "newies" Kris and Vicki, who joined us and hopefully you were made to feel very welcome. Congratulations to Kris on winning the door prize, my new Travel Journal Kit - I can't wait to see it finished! If you want Steve's Pizza's back then I won't be offended, really, they are VERY good Pizza's!

Mistra kindly donated her time and held her first Photoshop Tutorial for us "How to create a Black & White photo with a highlight in colour…" and you can download it here if you would like to learn some more about Photoshop. Nothing like sharing your creative knowledge! I have also added a "Tutorial" section to the front page of my website, so if you would like to share some of your creative side and would like to submit a tutorial then please email me.

Scrap IT! 2008 looks like being a great day and I know we are all really looking forward to a day full of laughs! I might actually get to scrap....what a novelty. If you would like to join us, it's not too late. The details are on the front page of my website (down the bottom).

I'm going to be running a Cybercrop from sharonmanning.com.au in the next few weeks, I promise, once I have set some challenges and a date.....please email me if you have any ideas about what you would like included in the evening or if you would like to join us then register at sharonmanning.com.au and the Scrap & Yap chatroom will appear in the top menu.

An interesting article I read the other day - It happens no matter what genre! Interesting that art of any kind is open to interpretation even interpretation of someone else’s art!

I thought I would share this photo taken at sunrise from our balcony last week. Check out the fog filling the valley.

I touched it up a little in Photoshop to bring out the blue in the sky.

I think I have finally mastered my camera on Manual and it hasn't been back on Auto for some time now.....I'm also shooting in RAW format which makes a huge difference when it comes to editing in Photoshop.....so many more options which means more time wasted playing with a photo! But I'm loving it!

Well I know that was a long post but hopefully I didn't bore you too much.

Catch you all next time and don't forget I love reading your comments so don't be shy and let me know you are out there!

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who left messages and emailed me for my birthday, I had a great day.

The Make and Take class went off a treat at Tomorrow's Memories and Vicki even made me my favourite cake (a recipe we have shared for many many years) Apricot Choc Chip! Yum! Although Clori missed out on a piece - sorry Clori - next time I make one I will bring a piece in just for you.

Saturday night we went to dinner with very good friends and enjoyed yummy food and great company. There is a story behind this photo, a story too long to go into today, but let's just say it it's especially for Kath!

Sunday was a lazy one in the morning and then in the afternoon we met up with some friends at the Chocolate Factory - boy was it busy - the "kids" had a great time as you can see.....

Back to reality now though, I have a project for a workshop to design, a new kit to design and some photography enquiries to answer! So I had better get my behind into gear.

Shooting blind!

While I don't recommend this as a way to take good photos, I'm finding I shoot blind more and more and to be honest I'm loving the results!

Here is a photo I took yesterday at a photoshoot by simply lowering the camera and roughly judging the frame.





Sure they are hit and miss, sometimes all I get is sky or dirt but generally I'm pretty happy with them.....let's face it only the digital age allows us to do this!

The photoshoot yesterday was for Lis and her family and when we can decide on which ones we want edited I'm sure she will share some more on her blog. They have a fantastic property with lots of old rusty trucks and farm machinery so it makes for a great photoshoot location and at this time of the year everything is so green and lush.

It's my birthday tomorrow (42 - not that I feel like I'm 42, I still feel about 26) and I will be at Tomorrow's Memories for their birthday 12 hour crop and I will be doing a special Make and Take - so if you are joining us I will see you there! In the evening we have some plans for dinner and Sunday looks like being a casual one too - not too many chores I hope.... yeah right!

I came across this site some time ago and every now and then I discover a great tutorial about how to make something - this morning this one leapt out at me......How to make a Moleskine Notebook.... check it out, the instructions are very detailed and heaps of diagrams too.

Paper Pesto have released their May kit and it is to die for.....check it out here. I can't wait to see what the girls' create with this kit - it looks very inspiring.

The very talented and gorgeous Judy Wilkenfeld has just returned from the US teaching at ArtFest - you can read about her travels here. Judy and Michael de Meng (they're in love you know!) are joining to bring you a very special workshop in Bali -"Temple of Dreams"A 5 day workshop March 11-19 2009 - more information can be found here at Arcangelo Productions or on their respective blogs. Looks fantastic!!!!!

Well I think that's about it for today. I have heaps to get through today, so I best be off to get it all done. Have a good one everybody!

Update

Just to let you know that Paper Pesto have now released all their Sneak Peeks of the September kit so go take a look at the Paper Pesto blog. Yum gotta love that Scenic Route!

I have been working on my secret project which is nearing completion and what would a secret project be without a few hiccups! I'm trying to iron out one last hiccup and I should be ready to launch. Sorry this has taken so long and I know I have been teasing you long enough already, but what's that saying - "Good things come to those that wait".

Sports carnival last Friday for the girls and Gemma did really well and won her 50m and got 2nd in the 100m and also competed in the long jump and relay (poor thing she had to run 200m in the relay cause they didn't have enough girls in her year/faction to compete)! She got pipped on the line too....another 2nd.

Happy Birthday to my brother Peter today, I won't reveal how old he is, but he is older than me! I hope you have a great day and that Harley becomes a reality one day....lol. Happy Anniversary to Peter and his wife Sandra too , married 27 years ago today, yes they were married on Peter's birthday cause he didn't want a 21st birthday party.....ooops, just gave away your age didn't I....sorry!

Off to lunch at Lis' place tomorrow and catching up with Alli too, so I'm looking forward to that too. Happy Hump Day and catch you soon.....take care.

Birthdays!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My baby is 13th today, wow where have the years gone Gemma? Happy Birthday sweetheart, we love you very much and hope all your dreams come true.

Celebrations are going to have to wait as Gemma dances tonight from 4-7pm and Renae is not home tonight either. So we hope to celebrate in a week or so when things are a little less hectic.

Another birthday today, my niece Paula turns 22! Happy Birthday to a gorgeous woman who we love lots. We hope your birthday is everything you hoped for and more.

Gosh this is even scarier as Steve and I met the week before Paula was born, it feels like a lifetime ago.

There was also another birthday on Monday, Rhiannon's Gemma's best friend who also turned 13th! Congratulations sweety and there are only exciting times ahead for you in the coming months and we wish you love and happiness.

Rhi is the young lady in the photo in my last post with her Sister Sami.

Thanks for checking in and have a great day.