Caranana Cookies

These are Caranana Cookies. That is probably not the technical name for them but that's what we call them here. They were a staple treat in my Mum's group days (remember that Jill?) and we used to make them all the time.
I am sure Jillian made them first and inflicted their envil influence upon us all. I haven't made them for years but my recent interest in Banoffee Pie sparked the memory of these and the kids love them!
I am not 100% sure if I make them the same as we used to back then but this is how I make them now.

Ingredients -
* Arnotts Buttersnap Biscuits
* Thick Caramel Topping
* Spreadable Cream Cheese (I use a light one...balances out all the sugar....Bah! Yeah right!)
* Sliced banana

Method -
* Mix caramel topping with the cream cheese to taste. Just start with a tablespoon or two and keep adding until it tastes yummy and is still quite thick and spreadable.
* Spread two buttersnap bikkies with the cream cheese mix and place banana slices in the middle of the sandwiched cookies.
* That's it!
* They need to go in the fridge for a couple of hours at least, preferably overnight, to allow them to soften. You can eat them straight away but they will still be crunchy, guaranteeing the insides to ooze. Like that's a bad thing!

Today was a bit of an odd day. It started with a mix up with car keys and a few issues in the morning and ended up with the kids and I staying home...all day. That's right...we wagged it.
We baked a cake, made caranana cookies (see above), sorted socks, played monopoly and watched a DVD. It was absolutely lovely to be honest. Everyone has been tired and grumpy the last few days and we all needed a recharge. To stay in our jamies and play all day without once getting in the car was so much fun.
It is something we never do so it felt a little bit naughty...but we got over it in a hurry ;)

I asked Mikaela and Ethan to sort out the massive pile of socks I had avoided folding this week and offered them 5c for every pair they folded. They managed to swindle me out of $4.25 which amounts to a ridiculous amount of pairs doesn't it? *blush*
Maybe I need to do an audit.
Of course no sock folding party is complete without a game of 'sock wars'. These two somehow introduced blindfolds into the event and had a bit of a scuffle amongst the socks...as you do.

What Miss M is doing here exactly I don't know.
Some form of pre-sockwar meditation pehaps?


Tomorrow we will go to school.
Probably.

52 Pick Up

It's my turn to host the 52 Pick Up Challenge over at LSBS this week. Pop on over if you are playing along to see what is in store for you :)
This is my example layout. The challenge is to use a quote for a title. Nice and easy one for this week. The photo is of me and my nephew...lovely :) I am loving the Basic Grey Marrakech. I also made these couple of layouts for LSBS last week using this range.

I better go and get organised for the week. I have another big week coming up this week before I go away to Sydney for a girl's 'midweek weekend away' for the Colour conference. There are 18 of us flying down this year for a huge few days. I am sooo looking forward to it!!

This week...

I was lucky enough to scrap with Shan yesterday and started this layout using some of my favourite October Afternoon. Now I know I say 'favourite' a lot but this stuff really is ;) I am hanging out for some new OA products when they finally hit our Aussie shores.

This photo I took of my nephew and parents last week is now one of my all time favourite (yeah I know - favourite again) shots. I love it!

*OK now this one has gone...this post is going to look ridiculous*


I bought some papers last week from newish company My Little Shoebox and they are so cute and funky.
How cute are the die-cut papers!?...makes for some 'fast-food' scrapping.


*Yikes - this was a quick one! Created - Submitted - Accepted for publication all in under four hours! Crazy LOL*



More 'My Little Shoebox' papers...I haven't used black for a background for a while and I like the black with these papers.

Our Lethal Ethan turned seven this week, despite telling everyone he knows he is really eight. I know - he is a little odd. He had a few people convinced, despite me telling him 'I was there - I know you are seven'.

We had a party with his school friends and a heap of parents and siblings which was great fun. We own an inflatable rock climbing wall and the kids had a blast! It was a huge success and Ethan was pretty wrapt with his day. The kids decorated their own cupcakes for the birthday cake and played on the jumping castle between climbs.

Lastly is a plea for help. I have played with this photo of my niece Piper in photoshop and have edited it to a sweet vintage look. Doesn't she look like she should have been born 100 years ago?!

I want to scrap it but just can not come up with a suitable paper range to use. I was thinking Basic Grey Porcelain but it is not my usual style of papers. Seeing as I do not do a lot of vintageor shabby scrapping, this is a challenge for me!

Does anyone have a suggestion for papers to match this photo?

This is the original photo so you can see the full edit. I removed the 'Dora' transfer on her T-shirt, belt and patch on her shorts to better fit the vintage look.

Dora doesn't really do vintage does she? ;)

A lovely Sunday

Rich is in Melbourne for work this week so the kids and I went to Mum and Dads for breakfast this morning to catch up with my sisters and all the cousins. We had a lovely BBQ brekkie and the kids played for hours and hours. What a fab way to spend a Sunday :)

The Monkeys...
My niece Piper reclining...

Watering from the rainwater tank...mostly herself of course...

The lovely Miss Jenna skygazing perhaps??

Proud Grandparents admiring the newest addition...little Lachlan...

This is how I imagine the wise men to have been lining up to meet the baby Jesus...

A little grin for his Aunty Kerryn. He has yet to actually see my face without the big, black lens in front of it ;)

Smoochy boy about to ingest a sequin or two....

And me...having my fix...

Never Basic and No Grey

This layout is one I am teaching for a class this month at Scrapbook Princess. If you are on the Southside of Brisbane and want to learn how to use these KI Memories sheers then give us a call and book in for a class :) There are many different classes I am teaching this month and in April so bring a friend for a fun, interactive class. I'd love to meet you!

The new Basic Grey range 'Marrakech' is simply stunning so I was very happy to receive some in my Little Scrapbook Shop design team kit this week. I jumped straight in and made a couple of layouts using these beautiful colours and designs. I love this range! LSBS has the entire Marrakech range in store now so be sure to check it out.