Blog @ starsandmoon.net

http://journal.kirstybase.com

:)  I’ve had a good run: 807 Posts, 1,056 Comments, 1 Page, 4 Categories  lol. Don’t ask how many spam comments I’ve had… We’re talking over 146,000 that’s been caught and taken care of!  Thank you askimet!

I wonder just why I didn’t upgrade to the latest wordpress before… I’m so stuck in my ways haha.  But really though, I’ve been soooooooo busy doing website stuff, and after drooling over all of the professional photography blogs and finding out the template cost about $170 (or there abouts) I decided to heck with that I can do it myself.

And it has been very hard work, but after giving up on flash after over 5 and a half days trying to get it to work, I found a few other avenues to go down and the lovely people over at the Wordpress forums, I have got some photoblog themes that can have a flash header if you download the plugin there are 3 themes at the moment but I’m putting them up at my portal and that’s not completed yet, although the green theme is up and running at the photoblog, complete with a few pictures from yesterday in their full glory (the whole point of the photoblog ) you can check that out here: http://www.kirstybase.com/blog.

My personal blog is up and running over at kb.com but I tried everything to transfer over this blog with all the posts and it just won’t go. Poopy. I will pretty much post an entry when I’m moving over there though.

Anyway, now for photos.  Here’s Stewart and his mural in his son’s room:

The baby changing mat (not much longer til the little cutie makes his arrival - can’t wait to meet my nephew!)

Baby clothes :heart:

Buster soaking up the rays…

I feel so bad about not keeping up with everyone’s blogs I’ve had a lot to deal with myself.

The service was beautiful, so many people turned up that they couldn’t all fit in. Nan had about 100 sympathy cards as well, and I spent the entire time sat holding on to Gareth for support. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the church. The service was so great as the lady taking it knew gramp well as he went to church every Sunday. The only person in our family to go, actually. She said how they could have done with him that day as he was the one who put the chairs out lol, but the thing that really made me cry - mostly tears of joy, was when she held up the service sheet and it was a photo I took of gramp on the cover and she said how wonderful it was and that it captured Grampy Sid beautifully.

From there we went to the Crematorium… this part was for family and very close friends only so there was only a few of us there so it helped us to grieve more privately. They had the curtains open for us to go up and touch the coffin and leave so we could say our goodbyes. I held on to Gareth so tightly because the whole scene was just so upsetting. My manly cousins and my tough brother, were sobbing their eyes out. My mum with my dad (who was also crying), she just collapsed on to the coffin, wailing. Grampy Sid was very much a father to her, she left home very young to live with my dad, nan and gramp. They went on holidays together and they had this amusing relationship where they would tease each other, and it tore her to pieces to have to say goodbye. The wake was just a short event for me, as by 3pm I was so exhausted emotionally I had to go home. That’s when I got back and Gareth made me a hot chocolate, got my PJs and the duvet and tucked me in on the sofa and I was out like a light. He’s so good to me.

Last Sunday we had to say goodbye once again as we buried the ashes. It was a miserable raining day, but my family all turned up to church after the service. We all had the opportunity to say a little something but I kept quiet. What I would have said was I’ll miss him calling me David Bailey, and asking us if we’re alright before telling us he’ll soon sort it out lol. I’ll miss doing the crossword with him on a Saturday, the sausages he always cooked for the table and how he slaved away cooking them just for us while he chuckled. We all helped putting the dirt back on by shovelling a little back in the hole

In fact, it still hasn’t sunk in to my head, I keep forgetting dispite having said goodbye to him and all. I walked to nan’s house today with mum (as it was nice) and when I walked through the door we go in the side door into the dining room and I went straight towards the living room to say hello, expecting him to be in the chair and he wasn’t. Friday afternoons and Saturdays are going to be hard for a long time. My Saturdays at my nan’s are everything to me. If I don’t go, my whole weekend is thrown into disarray.

I also have a sewing machine. Hopefully I will be able to start sewing some awesome stuff.

and even more exciting, I have my wedding shoes… Although that’s about as far as we’ve got lol

I’m going to have to go and wake Gareth up in a second. I need to jump in the shower and start sorting myself out. I had to get up early as I had 3 CDs for gramp’s boys, but that’s done and to be able to do those I had to sit and edit a photo of grampy’s dad in his uniform. The photo was torn and ripped, and in very bad condition. He had sent the original off to a family member as she wanted a copy, and she returned the COPIED version and kept the original. Gramp was fuming, as I would be. But I’ve tidied it up the best I could:

Me and dad went through some old photo albums and found some gems

My great nan and great gramp (My great nan Jones died 2 years ago, aged 97)

and gramp lol:

Right, I have to get moving to say goodbye to grampy.

Random post. Another one, I know. Sorry

Weather is supposedly raining on Tuesday, I hope not - please say that have it wrong. That’s gramp’s funeral day.

I’m Yours - Jason Mraz
Broken Strings - James Morrison and Nelly Furtado
Circus - Britney Spears
Beggin’ - Madcon
One Step at a time - Jordin Sparks
Bruises - Chairlift (from the nano advert)
Let Your love flow - The Bellamy Brothers (from the Barclays advert - it rules, I’d love to get home that way!)

Other random things, I’ve watched TONS of Brian Conley adverts. Scary thing is, when some of the poems from the Larry The Loafer section (awww :heart: Larry!) I STILL remember by heart

My classmate Trev sat next to me
my god he didn’t half honk
He had this really dreadful smell
which got right up my conk
His breath stank like raw onions
his feet like god knows what
His armpits ponged of mouldy cheese
whenever they got hot
But last week Trevor moved away
and went and joined class three
the trouble is, the smell’s still there
which means it must be me!

Little Bo Peep couldn’t find her sheep
when she woke up under a hedge
They were down at the shops, cut up as chops
next to the frozen veg!

Yeah, try and get me to learn “Monday’s child…” poem while at school and I couldn’t do it. Replay Brian Conley over and over til I wore out the tape, and 17 years later, I can still remember those poems from memory lol!
I’m off down nan’s tomorrow, My mum went down on Thursday and she said all the adults (ie, gramp’s biological children, and my nan’s kids - my aunt, uncle and dad) have to be there at 1pm… and no kids (yes, we’re still referred to as “kids” even though I’m 26 and my older cousins are in their 30s LOL) but mum mentioned me and I’m allowed to go.

I had a random idea of doing a sort of documentary of my family. I printed a ton of sheets off for my family but none of them have filled them in. This really upset me as there’s so much about my gramp I never got to find out about before he died and I swore that wouldn’t happen after I planned on interviewing my great nan and then she died.

Cos Brian Conley rules, I had a huge crush on him when I was 9 lol. The best bit is from 2:12, and you HAVE to watch the wong at the end. Laugh!

And Septic Peg with the real Mystic Meg

It was nice to see everyone today, I saw Sarah down nan’s house. But it didn’t feel right.

I’m just waiting for a call so I can head over to mum’s house and pop next door to get some shots of the baby nursery and then I can start on my nephew’s scrapbook. Stewart started drawing the mural on the wall so it won’t be “complete” if you catch my drift, but I helped him build the cot on Tuesday. We had to do something to keep us busy and I wanted to be with family, but I will show off the photos here

Oh and that design course I did back last year, I will have to remember to post a video up flicking through my folder for you all to see, as I won’t be sharing all the layouts and I wanted to post like a “thank you” to our teacher, Cathy, as if it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have all these memories captured. But oh boy! The album is huge and heavy lol. I tell you, American Crafts 12×12 albums are the way to go I love that system.

4.30 ish this morning my parents had a call to say my gramp had passed away. He went in for his pacemaker to be fitted yesterday which he’s been waiting for ages to have done.

I had a complete breakdown when my mum told me, she called me at 6.20am thinking that I had my alarm set for 6am, when it’s actually 7am, but I immediately knew when I did 1471 and it was my mum’s number that it couldn’t be good news.

The last thing he said to me (on Sat) was asking me if I was happy (normally he quickly retorts: “we’ll soon sort that out!” lol) but he just smiled and asked me how Gareth was, he gave me a big hug and kiss and I told him I’d see him on Saturday, as I do every single week.

Even Stewart is really upset. I’m just trying to keep myself busy between the tears and I’ve gone through all my old photos for any photo I could find with him in it. Waiting for a call from Stewart or something.

What a week everyone has had! Monday we awoke to lots of snow, Tuesday was more snow but it had melted by the afternoon. Wednesday was just very icey, Thursday there was more snow but quite a bit had melted by the afternoon and then this morning was just… wow.

I’ve been leaving an extra 20 minutes in the mornings all week, and this morning it was blowing a blizzard. I had the local radio station on who were basically saying that you probably shouldn’t even bother going out lol. We had obviously run out of grit around these parts and the roads were just a complete nightmare. I rang work to find out who was in… I was so sorely tempted to ring in to work and tell them I was turning around because no one was moving anywhere. But I braved it. Only 5 minutes late, where the poor 9am starters were 20 minutes late.

All photos are from various days this week:

Even though I was peeved that I had no work to do and I had to stay at work, the drive home was a dream as no one was out! Apart from the snowy roads still though.

I’m lucky that at work, they don’t want the chipboard they have and after I asked if I could have it, I get these awesome pieces of chipboard for books

Thanks to my mate Keili as well, I’m currently perusing Midnight Sun, Twilight from Edward’s perspective.

How wonderful! My studio calico kit arrived today. Me and G went and picked it up from Royal Mail on the way to do our shopping. I seriously love it!

I really love Two Peas too. They have a classroom up nd I hope to do a little bit of each class. Shimelle’s also doing a free class too, and not forgetting UKScrappers have their Whodunnit cybercrop in February. Go team FBI! (Would have preferred CSI, but hey, you get assigned teams so it’s tough)

I made a cute little book as well. I will show it off soon

I remember when I used to post often lol. It seems all that’s going on at the moment is lots of wedding talk anyway, but the last 2 Saturdays both me and G have been down in Cardiff with his family.

I’ve also been completely, totally and utterly engrossed in Twilight. I’m trying to savour the last couple of chapters as I’m on the last book now anyway, then once G has finished the book I bought him for Christmas he will start on the books himself. I’ve been driving him absolutely nuts: it’s been Twilight everything! I got the soundtrack (amazing, you should check it out!), the movie companion book as well. I even dragged my mum to watch the movie and then spent the journey home discussing all the parts from the book that I thought should have been in the movie lol.

I made some bookmarks, should anyone want to make some themselves you can download them here: http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?wqjfqmuyi4j

Sadly my printer prints stripey, and I covered them in sticky back plastic so I couldn’t use the flash so the photos don’t do them enough justice:

I was lucky and was on my own on Xmas eve… I forgot the iPod, but I had my mobile phone and headphones and I sat and listened to Radio 1 while I did my work. It was awesome listening to the festive songs, and heard a reading of The Grinch.
Once it turned 12, I was out of there.

Christmas day we woke up. Opened some presents because we just couldn’t wait til we got to my parents house lol

Then I had one big box left over, but of course I’m used to my dad’s wrapping and that presents are always hidden, so I opened the big box to find a box of match makers. Then proceeded to quickly dig further where I found a ring box… which was way to fast lol. Poor Gareth was unprepared for me to find it so fast lol. So he asked: Will you marry me?

From there it was to my nan and gramp’s house, as gramp had just got out of hospital Xmas Eve. Then to G’s parents for dinner and to his Aunt’s house for fun and merriment.

Here’s something quite cool - posting a blog entry from work. Decided to give my Princess Diaries book a short break (It’s Princess Present) and I have just checked out my little character on Animal Crossing too - who was still wearing her Witch halloween costume lol. So cool to see all the snow on the game

Our official chance of snow on Christmas day is 0% lol. No snow for us, which is a bummer. I think my ideal Christmas scene is being at my parents house for Christmas dinner, then all sat around the fire (when we were little, my parents used to push the sofa to the centre of the room to be closer to the fire to stay nice and toasty!) and for there to be snow outside.

I also find it particularly amusing that the postman read a letter I attached to the door for the courier who is delivering my Twilight books, and followed my instructions lol! So G said I had a nice box from Florida awaiting my return from work! Woo-hoo!

I’m feeling much perkier, dispite the fact I’m possibly the only loser to be working until the official works Christmas break (roll on midday, Christmas Eve!) everyone else has managed to get their holidays used up… Where as I had to use my holidays for when I was sick, otherwise I’d have been in serious trouble on 5 weeks worth of statutory sick pay.
Still, with the lack of people in the building, this year I might just not get told off for playing some Christmas music (ah, note to self: Charge crappy old iPod) as I will be the only one sat in the room. In theory.

So I’d better start sorting myself out to start work again. I should easily get all this stuff done in time

Aww, got some cute winter stuff. I love my colour changing ear muffs It’s funny that I’m having a really hard job finding some cute winter outfits. The coat was a good deal from “Wrong” a couple of months back.

I’m up (G is still in bed, but I will have to get him up soon if I am to shower and get ready by 11!) as it’s the Saturday before Christmas! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! I will grab my camera and tripod ready to have fun at nan’s house. I had fun doing some photos last year

As for the crash, I was right when I said I didn’t see any other cars involved. Both the man who died and the dangerous driver were in the same car. I heard rumours they had stolen the car, had been drinking and were doing over 100mph, so then I didn’t feel so bad as I thought at the time it was an regular man going about his business that had been killed… Then I had the realisation that as they were being so careless, what if they would have hit any of us other cars going in the other direction, and it was a story about us on the front page? The whole thing has left me very down and not very Christmassy. I very rarely go home at lunch, I was going home to get my studio Calico kit which as it turns out had been left on the doorstep so it was a good thing.
The car had split into 2, and was unrecognisable from the one angle. Everything was as I had described it - right down to the white van that was in front of the car in front of me that had pulled over to go help, on the front page of the local paper. Only the car had been moved on to the road.

Anywho, less depressing stuff!
I just read the Sims 3 blog, and they already have a “hart” family. Aww, man. I will have to think of a new surname, unless I just play that family in lieu of making my own Legacy. Apart from the fact the parents are insane. Literally.

My mum’s present has arrived and it’s not half bad. Yay! We got Lips dirt cheap from Woolies. If anyone didn’t know already, the awesome shop that is Woolworths is closing down because of the credit crunch. The company has gone under which is so so sad. More info at wiki. It had been going 100 years next year
But I sang some songs with G last night. We got a ton of gamer points, and I was sooooooooooooo pleased with myself as I unlocked all the medals and got a really high score (the highest actually - “Big Bang”) while singing Coldplay’s “Yellow”. I will play it later when he’s at his Christmas party

I was driving home at lunch time today and I was behind a trail of cars. Everything else that happened after is sort of a blur. I remember seeing something in the corner of my eye and that all the cars in front of me were slowing right down, and then I saw some smoke coming from the green area from something that was on the side.

It was then that I realised it was a car, I remembered all the carnage around too. The car was a mangled mess, a bloke was on his hands and knees with a bunch of other people trying to get someone out of the car. Several trees were a mess and a pole (telephone I think) was broken and the lines were dangling right over the road.

I ended up 10 minutes late back to work, and explained why I was late. At one point I was telling people to turn around one of the roads as the police had closed this little road off on to the road where the accident had happened and people were still trying to get down it, and I was stuck down there with some other people and we couldn’t go anywhere until the other people had reversed back up it. While I was home, I rang my mum quick and told her what had happened and to avoid the road on the way home.
She text me at 3.30 ish to say the man in the car had died, and someone else had been arrested for dangerous driving. From where I was back in the line of cars I didn’t see any other car involved.

The story is here:
http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/news/Man-dies-car-accident-Gloucester/article-558467-detail/article.html

It says they are appealing for witnesses, but I didn’t actually see anything, only what I think was the car flipping in the corner of my eye, and it smoking, and nothing else, so I can’t really help.

But it’s so sad, it really shook me up (I got back to work shaking like a leaf) a week before Christmas, and the guy was only 33 - he might have had kids.

… Just a little gem from bed last night. We were discussing Christmas presents, and I was thinking about some PJ bottoms for G so asked him what he thought of “Black & White”. Sadly, yes I’m generally vague and jump into a conversation I’ve already been thinking about in my head, so no one knows what I’m on about.

“Black and White what?” He asked. “Y’see I’m not to keen on Black and White TV, but I don’t mind Zebras…”

LMAO!

I’ve done days 1 & 2, but here’s day 1 for now.

Still not done Cathy’s class (waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!) still have a few crafts that NEED to be done this weekend and no later (double waaaaaaaaaa!) and I have a candle party… and I have to leave in 10 mins so I have to go & get ready.

Why are there not enough hours in the day!

Woooooo! Haven’t started this week’s Cathy’s class yet I must admit, but that’s because I’ve been super busy decorating and doing more Xmas Crafts. I made myself a cute Christmas book, and I have frosted snowflakes in the window and the Xmas lights up in the window too. It’s so festive in my front room it’s awesome. Quite fancy putting a few bits up in the bedroom, as aside from the frosted snowflakes in the kitchen window too, the only decorated room is our lounge lol.

I have a digital kit from Digital Design Essentials ready for Shimelle’s Journal Your Chistmas class that starts tomorrow, I will try my best to keep up, and I have a “Christmas Past” accordian album I have in mind… and A month of Gratitude book from Cathy… and a “Holiday 2008″ album from Cathy too… lol… dunno how I’m going to get it all done!