WOYWW Goodies + Stormy East Coast Low

For Shaker card for Bizzy Bec's, please scroll down or  click here.

Mm, running a tad late for WOYWW or What is on your workdesk Wednesday over here, at the moment hosted again by our Lunch Lady Jan (Thanks, dear LLJ!). 

Latest news from Jan's post,  for non WOYWW-ers, who asked to be updated for prayer for Julia:

 "Julia came out of hospital last Saturday - her post op brain scan was clear so it's a case of slowly recovering. I saw her yesterday.. was surprised to find her downstairs rather than in bed. Julia's face has dropped on her right side because of palsy caused by the op. Has exercises to help the nerves and muscles work again. Her stay in hospital was good, excellent treatment + care. A case of slowly slowly now, may take up to a year for nerves to grow back. We had a good laugh - she says hello to you all." (EDIT: I tried to enlarge this but not able to, sorry)

To my desk this morning - front and centre Happy Mail arrived today! from Shaz Silverwolf and Nikki C - THANK YOU, both of you!!! I know there is one more on its way, too. I'm working on an inky card, hence two stamps there at the back, and it is still not done!

More happy Mail ...isn't this one amazing card sent to me a a thank you from the amazing Darnell of NBUS fame and I think Hammy must have had a hand in this one .. but not sure he went up in those balloons though.. isn't the detail amazing!?? thank YOU, dear friends, all of you!

All up and down the east coast of Australia, from Gold Coast, Queensland to Tasmania there has been tremendous storm damage from a huge east east coast low. it wasn't just one system but two that joined up and also it coincided rather unhappily with the June King tides..

SURFS UP... wave anyone?

Foaming breakers on rock wall, you could not go down the rock wall as normal, as it was breaking over it well and truly as later images show.

The waves breaking over distant rock wall into the marina, this is at almost low tide. Five hours later at 8:30pm, when another king tide hit, the high thundering waves destroyed some marina walkways, office building and sunk two yachts.

People had to be rescued from their yachts/ boats 'cos they couldn't get along marina walkways. They've had to leave boats now as the walkways in some places are destroyed.

Impact of waves pounding this office also collapsed the marina Office building, it fell in on itself.

Creek and beach area near home, storm surge came up onto grassed area and beyond to trees..

A lot of the beach was washed away, and has been deposited in creek mouth clogging it up more.

Peaceful now, after the storm...

Thanks so much every one for popping over for a peek and chat!

May God bless your day wherever you may be. 

Shaz in Oz.x

...this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation." Isaiah 25:9b

Stickeroos, Di's Snippets + WOYWW!

Hullo there everyone - well here we go again.. 

The merry go round of months passing by with great rapidity - yup!! we are now in the third month of the year .. and here is it is again:

 What is On Your Workdesk Wenesday again!! so to join in do pop over to our chief's desk - aka Julia, the Queen of Desks at the Stamping Ground.

 Lo - here is my desk!!

Ooh yum! new, unheard of, unseen before "stash" - all from Di of the Snippets Challenge! Thanks so much, Di - and also she sent lovely card - see Di's card in the left inset!

The funny thing about this stash, they are called "Stickeroos" by Penny Black.

I had never heard of them ( I actually thought it was Di's name for them, but they are called that on the back, shows how ignorant I am of such delights). When they appeared on Di's desk, I remember Mrs A. commenting about "kangaroos in the playground" - almost as if she knew they were coming downunder to kangaroo country :D.

Aren't they beautiful?.. and as you can a see I have made two cards with them already... 

 I have number of birthdays in March - thankfully not as many as February, so made these two up yesterday for today and Fridays birthdays.

On this card I used the new Spellbinder set, a Christmas pressie, called Decorative Labels 8, snippets DP from SU, discontinued. Other used more snippets, Sizzix textured Expression embossing folder enlarged. Did it for another card but didn't work on it, and the Nellie Snellen rectangle die. {Linking these up to Di's Snippets for this week.Yay! get to play in the playground again!}

For the Aussie shots today thought would update you with my pineapple which showed you back in this post here - and it is a Brommeliad family for those who did not see the post. 
{Edit: to answer Maggie's Question - it is a regular pineapple and is edible. My friend grew them that is why we put a top of one of our pineapple in the ground - just to try it!}

We had a lot of rain here lately, so it has grown quickly in the month (now about 7" or 23cm). They are pretty slow growing - not that I have ever grown them before!! If you want to know how it was started, please look at link above.  

Also appearing in the lawn was this very curious flower. 

What caught my eye was all the flies hovering around it but when came to photograph it, they took off - but notice all the dead flies inside it (more inside than photo shows)?? It did not have a strong aroma to me but guess it did to them! Tried to find out what it is but no success! {EDIT: Caro suggested it maybe a Star fungus and think she is right see here and here - see how wonderful WOYWW is?}

 I also want to welcome my wonderful new encourager AMY of the Insomniac Crafter ( a woman after my own heart) - please pop over to see her wonderful bog HERE - she is a new blogger, was in Di's top three last week!

Thanks so much everyone for popping over for a peek and chat and may God bless your day wherever you may be.,
Shaz in Oz.x

WOYWW, JoZart's work, Memory Box Dies

(Warning - picture heavy post) 

Hullo there again everyone!

Now to the business end of this post – Wednesday is the highlight of many of our weeks when we go on the biggest blog hop in the world hosted by Julia over HERE ~ What is On Your Workdesk Wednesday!! 

Mm, well some goodies indeed here for me today - totally spoilt!

There is a Memory Box die (nay two!) and blaming Sarn for that .. you see I saw this card HERE, and thought, yes! that is nice (AND they were so reasonable :D)

Then at the back you can see a lovely parcel which winged it way across the seas to me - all the way from beautiful England's fair shores. 

If you want the details of the wonderful gifts Jo has made not just for me - but for many others - please look across to her post HERE please... thank you, dear Jo!
 Also on left of my desk is the card which was missing, when did my last card show from Christmas 2012.

Thomas' Card,  THANK YOU Thomas (he is three years old. I think he and mummy did a grand job!)

I would also like to share a tip seen on Ikki's blog ages ago. It maybe old hat, so scroll on if it is. I had heard that Memory Box dies were hard to get out (these are my first ones, so not sure). To to be safe I rubbed the candle end over surface + dust off excess wax with soft cloth. As you can see it came out superbly - maybe these ones do? 

NOTE - craft card, this is from an iceblock packet. I love how many nice kraft colours you can get on the inside of packets.. have you noticed?

I am going to close with flood. One taken on Monday before flood, as it was building up, rest yesterday after the flood. Most homes in our town were not affected, but not so for many in Brisbane, Ipswich, coastal Qld north of Brisbane, Northern NSW.

The beginning of the flood at our local creek just down the two blocks from us. it is teeming with rain when walked down to take this ..and blowing a bit, but a gale later on.

The debris yesterday from creek shows the high level it did reach, near the railway bridge over creek.

Seas raging like a washing machine out of the harbour.

You cant even see the island which is visible on the horizon normally.

Jetty Harbour yesterday too, is the only place protected from the huge sea swells. There are surfers catching a wave.. all the black dots on left of centre picture are surfers, one is catching a wave.

If anyone would like to see my latest calligraphy post it is HERE or simply scroll down, just below Oriental cards.

Well, thanks so much everyone for popping over for peek and chat.. and may God bless your day wherever you may be.
Shaz in Oz.x. 

A special prayers and thoughts for those here in Oz fighting the fires down south and west, or recovering from our incredible floods. Australia is a land of contrasts ~ "of droughts and flooding rains". As Dorothea McKellar said in her poem, My Country - "the Wide brown land for me!". She was a true blue Aussie.