{ Week 3 - Jan. 14th to Jan. 20th }

This is Week 3 of my Snap Life 2013.  This week the weather changed drastically and we got our first snow of the year.  Not only was it the first snow of the year, but it was also Rupert's first snow.  The pic below is the two page spread.  On the left I used a page protector that holds (2) 3 x 4 and (1) 4 x 6.  On the right I used a page protector that holds (4) 3 x 4. (I find these the easiest and quickest to work with).



Week 3 - Both Pages

I used a Simple Stories journal card to create my date card.  As this process is all still new to me I have been trying different things.  I used a pre-printed "Enjoy the Everyday" card for my date card and used up some of my Echo Park kit stickers to create the Week 3 and then my Simple Stories Typeset Snap Stickers for the actual January dates.  At this point, when creating my posts I have noticed that everything has been kept quite simple so maybe I need to ramp up the journal cards and inserts with a few more embellishments.

 

This week started out snowy and ended snowy. The photo below is of the light dusting of snow that we received on Monday morning. They had predicted heavy snow on Monday but that's not what we got. The weather here doesn't ever seem to be consistent from one year to the next and even more so the news never seems to get the forecast right. It was still dusk when I awoke, quite early, so with the early morning and the snow on the ground the world seemed to have a bluish tint to it.

 

Once it did actually snow enough for there to be a few inches on the ground Rupert absolutely loved it. We weren't sure how he would respond to it as he typically doesn't like to be out in the rain so we thought that he would like the snow even less. However we found that he quite enjoyed it, as long as he was out playing in it. 

When the heavy snow did fall they had predicted only about 3 inches so out of curiosity I decided to measure the snow fall to see what it truly was. This is me putting a ruler in the "snow drift" that was resting on the top of our patio table. Closer to 5 1/2 inches.

My journal card is just basic - plain white card stock with some details about the week created in Word on my computer. (Not sure if you can actually read the journaling on the card, however this was the first time that I haven driven in the heavy snow after living in the UK for over 7 years. Yes it has snowed before, but typically I have either had a "snow day" or had Simon drive me to and from work, that is, if they hadn't closed business for the day due to the snow). Being from California originally it's not like I had many an opportunity to drive in the snow and be comfortable with it.

The Monk Bench that Never Was: I have been wanting a Monk Bench for quite some time and decided that I was going to get one this year. At Christmas (or actually a few weeks before that, as I wanted it to be delivered near Christmas) that I would get this as a present to myself. There was a perfect "hole" in the front hall where it would sit nicely. So I searched around (on the internet that is) for one that I liked and that could deliver within a 2 to 3 week window, which would get it here just in time for Christmas. Well suffice it to say that nearly midday through January they still hadn't delivered it and were giving me nothing but excuses as to why. So with regret and a bit of annoyance I cancelled my order. That spot in the front hall would have to stay empty just a little while longer.

Came home to a bit of a shocker on Tuesday after a very long stressful day. When I got in Simon informed me that our landlord had popped in (yes, we rent) to let us know that the rent was being increased by 10% as of the "start" of the new year (which would be the 21st of the month as that was our move-in date). She wanted to make sure that we have received the 45-day notice letter from the estate agent informing us of this. Surprisingly we had not. This made an already stressful day even more stressful and didn't make for a good evening. However, I came to find out the next morning that Simon had got his information wrong, she was only increasing the utilities by 10% not the entire rent payment.

Well, that's the end of Week 3, hopefully I will continue to persevere! So far, so good.