...and seven months later...

I'm not so good at this blogging seeing as this is only the second post this year :(  I was never any good at keeping a diary so it didn't bode well.
Anyway, homelife is about the same as ever, the kids are growing up, Jack's just started copying everything I say which is rather funny and Amber has thoroughly impressed me with how brave she is this last week.  She had to have 2 injections to catch up on her immunisations and managed not to cry and then a few days later she had to have an injection and have her first baby tooth out at the dentist.  The new one was coming through but the baby tooth wasn't budging so the adult one was growing in the wrong place.  I was so proud of her, she just let him do it even though she was scared :')  They gave her a bouncy ball for it and Jack was given one too - so that made her day - and of course the tooth fairy was ever so generous knowing she'd been through so much ;)
I've had a few changes on the doll front.  In february I finally got my dream doll...well his head anyway!!  The first doll I ever fell in love with was an Elfdoll Red, and there was a head for sale with the original faceup and he was at just the right price at the right time - it must have been fate!  So he came home and his name is Sam.  He is definitely my favourite and I kind of wish I'd saved up and bought him back then - but never mind, he's here now.
I've sold a few dolls this year and am still selling some now - I'm contemplating selling my Volks Nono at the moment, I want to get Sam his body and selling Nono would pay for that.
I've also had a few other newbies, all from trades.  I have a bobobie isabella (on a bei body) who still has no name!  (incidentally my miyou is now called Boo as someone at the meet I went to in January said she looked like her from monster's ink - and she does - and it stuck).  I also have Jesse, who is an IOS Asyd head, and Icari who is an Infinitidoll Reina head.  ooh nearly forgot my newest who was a birthday present - a Planetdoll Riz who also has no name yet!  Jesse and Icari are characters in the book I'm writing and I've also added Sam into it now too!
As part of a trade Fly (my soah hybrid) had some restorative mods and a face up and looks amazing!

Also I recently sent Red (my dollzone yuu) for a new faceup and he's looking fantastic too!  I need to do a photoshoot with him with his new faceup soon.
That's about it for now, hopefully it won't be half a year until I write again!
Px

eek where did the time go??

Well, first blog of the new year.  Both Amber and Jack had chickenpox over christmas and new year so we didn't get out much.  I've not done that much with my dollies either.  I made Red my dollzone yuu a pair of felt boots as I'm going to my first meet next sunday and I couldn't take him barefoot.  I'm in the process of attempting to make my doll family miyou (who still has no name) a dress for said meet.  In fact I should be doing that now instead of being on here!
I did take pictures in the snow for a small photostory but as my miyou has no name yet I can't post it :(  I wish she'd hurry up and let me know what it is!  I'm liking Florence at the minute but I'm not sure it's her.
Ok I've managed to make myself feel guilty and now need to go and work on the dress!  Might even get to bed at a decent time tonight...not...

I'm pretty tired tonight.  I feel like I've wasted quality me time today.  My husband is working overnight so I had the evening to myself once the kids were in bed, so what did I do?  Nothing!  I normally do something dolly related but I haven't, I've just lazed around watching an old episode of Due South - gosh I really used to love that programme and now I'm going to head off to bed, much earlier than I normally do.
   I'm a little bit annoyed with myself because I bought some croc shoe keyrings off ebay for my christmas doll (really going to have to think of a name for her) and they arrived yesterday and they're all right feet and bigger than what I thought they would be!!  I wouldn't mind so much but I studied the picture closely to see if there were both left and right shoes and there definitely were!  Obviously I now realise that it was just a general stock picture but I'm still peed off.  I'm going to contact the seller and see if they've got a set of left feet and I'll buy more when I get paid next week.
Well that's about as exciting as it gets today, so I'm going to keep it short and send myself off to bed.
G'night x

   It's my dad's birthday today.  It was lovely seeing him and Amber on seeing the number of candles in his cake asked me if Grandad was 3!  I told her he was a little older than that...  Jack was on top form and spent the afternoon wandering from room to room and pressing every button in sight.  He loves their dogs so much, he just laughs hysterically at them.  Jack has what I call the 'mad scientist laugh' it's a very deep, kind of wicked chuckle, it never fails to make me smile!
   I also have a very happy husband today. Sunderland beat Chelsea 3-0 so he's on cloud 9.  Much better than the terrible 5-1 loss against Newcastle, not so long ago!
   My christmas doll arrived earlier this week.  She had rather a harsh face-up so I wiped it off and gave her a much gentler one.  I'm not that good at face-ups but I'm getting better and it'll do until I can save up to send her for a professional one.  Mind you she'll have to get in the queue.  Fly, my Soah hybrid is first.  But she'll need some work doing as I bought her as an unfinished modded head. 
   Anyway, I restrung her with thicker elastic and hot glued her and now she poses like a dream.  She's a doll family miyou and I love her chubbiness.  I'm also pleased that sometime last year I bought some croc shoe keyrings, I think they were about 60p each, thinking they'd fit one of my dolls but they didn't.  I kept them because I thought they were cute and I was so thrilled to find they fit miyou perfectly! 
   So now I have to decide what to do with her.  I should really pack her back up and let my husband hide her until christmas, but he made the mistake of saying I could have her now if I wanted but I won't get anything else.  That doesn't bother me at all.  But I can't make up my mind.  I think I might make her some clothes and then parcel her up...but we'll see. (I told you I can never make a decision!)
  Hey hum, work tomorrow and I'm taking her in to show her to someone.  I love working where I am at the moment because they like my dolls.  It's nice to show them off.  :)
   I'm getting excited about going to my first doll meet soon.  I'm sooo nervous though as I don't know anyone and I'm pretty sure I'm going to be one of the oldest if not the oldest person there.  But it's about time I went to one so I'm going to just bite the bullet and just go!!
Well that's it for now, bye!

A whistlestop tour of my life!

Probably a not very original title for my first blog but hey you've got to start somewhere and I could spend all night trying to think of something witty and interesting!
My problem is that I think too much about things, I can't make a decision to save my life!  (and I use exclamation marks much too often).  Christmas shopping is a nightmare because they've got to really like what I buy them, whereas my husband can take less than 10 minutes to buy for all of his side of the family!  I worry too much about what people think, I don't want to offend anyone by saying the wrong thing - I drive myself mad!
   As I'm getting older I think I'm improving.  I feel more confident in some situations, mainly because my priorities in life are clearer.  Family comes first.  Nothing else matters - Nothing!
    Four years ago I had it all, a loving husband, 2 beautiful girls and a good, well paid job.  Then in January 2007 our world was turned upside down when my eldest daughter Ruby, then 3, started limping.  After a week of 3 visits to the GPs, 1 to see an orthopaedic consultant and finally a whole day in A and E, my darling girl was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.  That night we entered a different world.  A world where you live one day at a time, a world where you have to block out the future because the thought of it without your child is too hard to bear.
   Ruby battled on despite the odds being stacked against her and we managed to hold onto her for 2 more years.  She died on Tuesday April 7th at 02.50am in my arms at Derian House Children's Hospice.  A wonderful place that we continue to fundraise for in Ruby's memory. 
   If anyone wants to know more about Ruby I've written about her in more depth on a website for her at rememberruby.co.uk.
   I came across BJDs a few months before Ruby was ill and I truly believe that they've helped keep me sane.  (of course that's debatable!)  They are my muses for the book I'm writing, although since I've been collecting them I haven't written as much.   I spend more time sewing clothes for them and attempting to take photos of them - which I am so rubbish at!
   Anyway that's a quick peek at my life.  I've never blogged before so I don't know if I'm doing it right - if there is a right way!
Bye for now!