Take Time Be Creative Part 2

I have been thinking a lot about this topic this week and I have discovered part of our problem is that we feel like we are not allowed to take time for ourselves.  But honestly, we need that time.  By taking time to be creative and to enjoy the process we are recharging ourselves so that we can do the other things of life.  I have also discovered there are times when we feel inspired to be creative and other times when we don't.  When we are inspired our creativity just flows and we can make things almost with ease.  We we don't feel inspired it can be very hard.  Creativity can not be forced, creativity should be a fun and playful activity.

As adults we are suppose to be serious and grown up (really?!)  Are we not allowed to be fun and playful ... of course we are, it's just that I think sometimes we forget about it.  We should take time to let that fun and playfulness out.

I came across a neat little video that I would like to share with you about creativity and see if sometime this weekend you can give yourself some time to let the fun, playful and creative side of you show.

Take time to be creative

It is so hard when life just seems to constantly get in the way of being about to sit down and create.  Driving people here and there for school, work, groceries, taking care of the house, meals and then of course you have to fit work in there some where as well as family time.  It is exhausting just keeping up with life - or at least that is how I feel some times.

Some how for me crafting and being creative recharges me (ok so does exercise) but crafting seems to help spark more creativity.  I would like to challenge myself this year to spend a bit more time each week to be creative.  It maybe making a card, a layout or even writing or drawing.  But putting the creativity back in the everyday.

So last weekend I grabbed some paper and a fun design from the Silhouette online shop and this is what happened.

It was really fun to create this little box.  Honestly I have no idea what I am going to do with this.  The process of making it was the reason for creating it.

I do get to be creative each month with the ScrapPacks and here are the layout I created this month.

 I loved creating this layout and using the sewing machine and then roughing up the edges of the pattern paper

 This layout is of my girls and I at the Color Run.  The funny part is we were spectators and did not participate this year.  But it looks like so much fun we will definitely be doing the 5km run next year.  Getting covered in powdered paint and partying afterwards is an awesome idea.

 I really liked these big concrete blocks down at the Auckland Viaduct and thought, "Time for a ME layout"

 Over the summer holidays we found some awesome mountain biking trails in Rotorua.  We now have an excuse to go away for a weekend now and then this year - stunning forest!

Lastly this month I decided it would be fun to pay tribute with a layout for at least one of the sets of duckling we had at our place this year.  I think over all we ended up with four separate families of ducklings over the course of the season (we still have one set visiting now and then even though there are just about to learn to fly)

So on that note I am going to go be creative before I need to do the next life run ... how about you?

In the Garden

I love scrapbooking, it isn't a job to me it is something that makes me happy and I love being able to share what I love with others.  To inspire others.

I have discovered that as much as I love my scrapbooking it is also good to enjoy other things too.  I always admired how my mother could grow such beautiful and bountiful gardens.  In the last few years or so I have started trying to grow veggies and flowers.  This year has to be one of my best years.  I have had a bountiful harvest of strawberries, not much else as my strawberries kind of took over.

Anyway, I was checking on my veggie patch the other day and my poor little self seeded tomato plant - I almost lost it in the wind a couple of days before.

But then I turned around and just happened to look over at the other side of my back yard and was very surprised by some more self seeded tomato plants.  I have a habit that I chuck stuff out from my veggie garden to the area behind me.  I had done this last year with some not so good tomatoes from last years plants and to my surprise this is what I saw.

It is also funny as I was just mentioning to Brad that I needed some more veggie garden beds and in these areas where I found the new tomato plants.  So now I guess I should do some cleaning up of the areas and create a better bed for them.

Also this season my wonderful Mum was kind enough to give some of her Dahlia tubas.  I have not had a go at growing flowers in a very long time.  But this has been the result this year.  I am very excited about maybe getting more flower gardens going as time allows.

This weekend I decided to tidy up the rock garden I have between my house and the garage.  It had become a little unruly with some weeds.  I was given some wonderful weed mat by a lovely friend and so decided it was time to move all the stones, put down some weed mat and put all the stones back again.  It is now completed and I am very pleased with the results.  There are a few more stones that I have found in another area of the garden and will move them to here during the week.

When moving all the stones I did find some little paving slabs.  Instead of hiding them under the stones this time I have moved then and they are now in between my veggie garden beds to make it easier to get to the beds and to keep the weeds down there too.

This is a view looking down from our front deck.  I am very pleased with the results so far in my garden.  It is nice to have another hobby that lets me get outside and a little exercise at the same time (yep, feeling some muscles I had forgotten about today).

I do think I will be in my craft room this afternoon creating so will post again real soon.