Drama King Blog Train....All Aboard!!!

I have 2 blog trains going at once this month!!! This one is for the Drama King Collab Kit from Pretty Scrappy. Here is the preview....click in the preview to be directed to the store for purchase.






At each stop on the blog train you will get (2) goodies....

1. A FREE brag book page made using the Drama King kit
2. A PIECE of the coupon that once all collected will get you a special discount in the Pretty Scrappy store for purchasing this awesome kit.

Here is my FREEBIE BRAG BOOK PAGE:

Click on BB page for download

And don't forget to snag the piece of the coupon at this stop.....CLICK HERE to download.

And last but certainly the most important...the rest of your stops along the blog train so you can gather more BB pages and the remaining pieces of the coupon that will get you this kit at a special price.

Ginny http://ginnytallent.blogspot.com/

Stacey http://www.staceycrossley.blogspot.com/

Lynn http://themathematiciansassistant.com/

Mara http://mmarti2564.blogspot.com/

Kathy http://kathy70.blogspot.com/

Wendy http://www.inkinandthinkin.typepad.com/

Tanya http://crossbonecuts.blogspot.com/

Helen http://helenparker.blogspot.com/

Jewel http://bothmadandgenius.blogspot.com/

Manda http://nibblesskribbles.blogspot.com/

Anne http://limescrapped.blogspot.com/

Suzan http://suzankurtz.blogspot.com/

Gail http://gailsmomentsintime.blogspot.com/

Monday again.....

Well, it is Monday again...hence my text color choice of blue, LOL. I am not feeling blue necessarily....just wishing I had one more day. Oy, story of my life...one more day. But, we are not promised one more day....EVER so I will make the most of this day as it comes.



The weekend was an odd one. I didn't feel great Friday or Saturday. Did some odds and ends cleaning (though it does not look like it)---gave Miss Molly a much needed bath---scrapped several pages---went to church---looked at computers with my dad at Best Buy and WOW can you get some awesome deals on desktop computers as compared to my laptop. Good thing I really love the portability of my lappy!



Here are some of the pages I scrapped this weekend...click on any of the photos to make them larger to read and journaling & such, enjoy!

'
This was just a random layout I did after I snapped a few photos of Molly playing with her dogfood over the weekend.



This was a layout I did for a challenge I am hosting at Pretty Scrappy in July called "A Garden Make-Over" where you take and very early-on digital scrapbook page and revamp it to show the new techniques & styles you have acquired since starting to digi-scrap. I love how it turned out.


This was a LO I did for a speed scrap. I am still not convinced SS's are for me. I think I know what I need to do next time to end up really liking the page I did. I like this page but I don't LOVE it. I feel rushed in a SS (duh, maybe why they called it a SPEED scrap and not a SLOW scrap) and sometimes my creative mind does not work that fast. Ok, let's face it, my mind (period) doesn't process that fast, LOL.


And this is a LO I did for a challenge at http://www.digidares.com/ where we had to scrap about something that causes CHAOS in our lives. Now in my layout you might think it is all the things I listed that bring me chaos but look closely at my title "Time Is My Enemy" and it is how I manage my time among all these things that makes me feel my life is in chaos.

That's it for my weekend. Off to work I go....HI-HO, HI-HO!!


ps-- I just realized I went a whole entire weekend without scrapping a page of Caiden or Trev. Whoa!!!!! Too funny :)

Bloglines is my new fave!!!!

So, I have discovered Bloglines and I am lovin' it! If you don't know what it is I promise you I cannot explain it in a way that will do it justice. My basic, non-techie definition is "it's like getting an online newspaper delivered to you everyday with JUST the articles you want to read about." You probably have heard of this thing call RSS feed, huh? Yeah, I think it stands for Real Simple Syndication but Lord, I could have just botched that term royally. And even if that IS the term, what the heck does that even mean. I dunno! So, how in tarnations with this plethora (aha, do you know what that means??) of knowledge did I come to love Bloglines??? Easy....they make it really easy. See, I have many digi-scrapping sites, blogs, & other sites where I like to go to and check out the latest buzz. The way I usually do this is by memory of the site....by the blogs or sites I follow on my own blog.....or if all else fails I will look in my bookmarks. Alot of times I go to check a blog and it has not been updated since my last visit so I move on to another....to another....to another. With Bloglines, I am able to "subscribe" to my favorite sites with the click of ONE, just ONE button and by making Bloglines one of my default start up pages when I open the internet, I can instantly see if there are any new posts on any of my fave sites. It will show me which ones have new posts and when I click on it, voila! the entire post appears on my screen without ever leaving my current screen. I know this is a horrible way to describe it. Trust me though, it is super-duper easy and is already saving me time. I scan through them to see what seems worthy of deeper focus and so far I have even clicked on other links within some of these posts to find more awesome sites I started subscribing to. It is quite addictive I tell ya. Here is a screen shot of my Bloglines.....




This is my home page. You can see where I (not so prettily) sectioned off some things in red, purple & green over the on left of the screen shot. The one I circled at the top in "green" are the total feeds I subscribe to right now. BTW, this site is free, did I mention that? Cool, huh? The next section below it is circled in "red" and is my digi scrapping feeds. Of course, there are more here than anything. Go figure. Then the "purple" feeds are misc blogs that aren't strictly about scrapping but I love them and want to keep up with them. Now, if any of these sites had new information posted they would be in bold and there would be a number next to the bolded name which tells me how many new feeds there are to read at that site. I am current on all of mine so there are no bold ones to show you. Here is what the screen looks like when you click one of the sites to read their posting(s)....



I will use the post I read when I came home from church, lunch & shopping for computers with my dad today. The site is Studio Girls ScrapbookGraphics and this particular entry was posted in the "Studio Matters" area of the site. Now, I can simply choose to read the entry directly from my bloglines page as it shows in the screen print above and this is perfectly fine. Sometimes though, when I am new to a site I like to go ahead and click on the link to go directly to the site. See where the blue line leads up to the arrow by the large blue type "STUDIO MATTERS"? This is a clickable link and I can choose to go to the site....read the post and then browse around in the site....cause remember it is new to me and I have not yet had a chance to really sink my teeth in and learn all the cool things they have to offer. It's like going to a museum....or shopping mall....or library...whatever floats your boat and you start to walk around these places to see what super surprise is around each turn. So, here is a screen shot of when I clicked on the STUDIO MATTERS link:




See how the Studio Girls ScrapbookingGraphics opened up into a new screen in the foreground...I have bracketed it in red? I still have my Bloglines in the background, too. Now, I can make my foreground window full screen and start browsing around in the site. Again, if I am squeezed for time, I will simply read the post from Bloglines and if there is something more I want to check out from the post itself, I will copy that section of the post and save it in a document I keep on my desktop computer at home labeled "to read or explore".


Well, I did not mean for this to turn in to a clumsy tutorial for Bloglines but it did. Who knows, maybe it inspired someone out there to give it a shot. If you have a lot of different sites you like to keep up with all the latest buzz then let me suggest Bloglines to you. It is such a great time saving tool!!

Oh, before I forget....I really had planned to simply post the entry from the Studio Matters post today because it was such a terrific piece of writing and I became A-D-D and posted about Bloglines. But, I really want you to read the post Raven did today. She takes a walk down memory lane and if you are over the age of 30 (maybe a little younger) you will certainly, in your minds eye, go back to your childhood days and you will do a little reminiscing of your own. Here is the link...I highly encourage you to read her post about the difference of her childhood vs. the childhood her own son is now experiencing. http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/wordpress/?p=2226

Nature's Garden Blog Train Freebie

There is a new kit coming onto the scene today from Designs by Angel, called NATURE'S GARDEN!!! I have fallen madly in love with this kit. The little critters she includes are just too stinkin' adorable!

Check out the preview....


Angel, being so generous, is offering a coupon to receive this kit at a discount for a limited time....here is your coupon (click on coupon to link to Pretty Scrappy store)


COUPON CODE FOR ALL STORES IS GARDEN_69

You can also find this kit at these stores as well....

Faith Sisters

KJoi Studios

Here are a few layouts I have already created using this darling kit.....

And for the icing on the cake for todays post.....here is a FREEBIE quick page I made for our blog train. Below my freebie is a list of the other stops on the blog train route where you can pick up more freebies made with this fabulous kit. Just click on the image below to be directed to the download page...




Here are your next stops on the blog train...happy traveling!!
Angel
Cindy
Kay
Kim
Lisa

The Daily Digi "Bright Idea"

Here is a post I copied from The Daily Digi site! I love these ideas....read on:





One of the freedoms that digital scrapping gave me was to scrap what I want, when I want and not constantly feel “behind”. Even with that revelation though, I still wish I could get more scrapped than I do. I’m sure you can relate…maybe just a little? I have a few tips I have learned over the years that have helped me to make the best use of my scrapping time. I would like to share a few of those with you today. Then, I will ask you to email anything you have discovered that helps you “get it done” for a future post!

1) Remember that your scrapbooks are a journey not a destination!! Take time to enjoy the process of preserving these memories! One of the things that I love most about scrapbooking is that we can enjoy the moments and memories the first time they happen, again while we are scrapping them, and then each time we look through our albums. If we are enjoying our lives, we will most likely never be “caught up” because for each memory we scrap, there is another memory being made…and that is a GOOD THING!!

2)When you have some time to scrap, shut your email, close your internet browser, and then keep them CLOSED!! Resist the temptation to hurry and check email, or buy that one kit. When I started doing this, I was shocked at how much more productive I was during my scrapping time! Remember that scrapping time is precious and needs to be used for SCRAPPING (haha)!

3)Schedule time to scrap. I have done this many different ways. When I first started digital, I had an online friend (that soon became a IRL friend) and we would IM and scrap every Saturday night. It was fun to show each other layouts as we were working on them.
I have also scheduled scrap weekends away from home that proved to be very productive! I have a childhood friend that has gone digital and she schedules one Friday a month with her girlfriends (that are all digital too) and go to her mom’s house to scrap. This way, there are no kids and they can stay and scrap as late as they want. If it is impossible for you to get big chunks of time to scrap, then give yourself a reward at the end of the day or during nap time and scrap for 30 minutes or an hour. One of the beautiful things about digital is that you can start a layout and keep it open on your desktop, stealing a few minutes here or there to work on it.

4)Start a “Ready to Scrap” folder. There are times when I might have time to scrap, but I’m not really feeling like it…my mojo is gone for one reason or another. Instead of forcing it, it will work on my “ready to scrap” folder. I create a 12×12 canvas and then pull the photos, papers, and embellies that I want to use for a layout onto the canvas. I usually make note in a text box, what supplies are there, and then save it as a PSD file inside of my “ready to scrap” folder. Then, when I have big chunks of time (like my weekend retreats) I can just go to that folder and not waste time figuring out what photos and supplies I want to use. This is one of the best time saving techniques I have used.

5)Don’t use every photo you take. Give yourself permission to scrap a one or two-page layout of an event and that’s all…nothing more. It really is okay! I am one that hates scrapping events (birthdays and holidays especially), but I know those will be important to my kids someday. Some of my very favorite layouts have been ones where I put as many pictures as I tastefully can from one event and then journal about what happened.
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Some of these tips might be ones that you already use, but I’m sure you might have others that have helped you GET IT DONE!! If you do have some tips, then email me at steph@thedailydigi.com and I will share your tips with our readers in future post!

I want to start doing #4 immediately as I think it will keep me focused on not only what I "want" to scrap but what I "need" to scrap.

Four Generations!!!

On Father's Day I gathered the guys up and plopped them on the couch to get a Four Generation photograph. Next time we will take turns taking the photos because they didn't know which camera to look at, mine or Andrea's. Trevor & Caiden were being stinkers and would not look at the camera's. But, you know what, I got a photo with all of them at once so I am pretty happy.

Back row: Brian, Dad, Jeff, Josh (2 sons & a grandson)
Front row: Trevor (grandson), Caiden (great grandson)

Kit Credits: Urban Garden by Lorilei Murphy of http://www.roseyposeystudio.com/ As part of her creative team I had to do a layout using this kit. When I saw the wordart cluster, family, she made for the kit I knew exactly what photo I wanted to use. But, I was a bit concerned about my elements being too "girly". I think I made good choices with the metal elements & the netting to help in this area. It is a beautiful kit and I really like the colors....I do not have hardly any kits in these colors, yay!

Pure Life Revamped...love this kit!

I so love this kit by Charlize Creations over at Natural Designs in Scrapbooking! I am blogging about it because I am debating on whether I want to actually purchase it. I have so many kits that I need to start being more selective in my purchases. One thing I want to start doing it not purchasing something unless it is on SALE! This kit is not so I will most likely hold off until it does go on sale. The only exception to my rule will be if I need a specific kit for a project and I cannot find one I like that is on sale. Otherwise, I am not making anymore "off the cuff" "based solely on the fact I like the kit" purchases unless it's on sale. Here is the kit previews. I just love these colors so much!!! So hard not to buy it, lol. If you want it now, just click on the previews to be taken the NDISB store!!!

Isn't it GORGEOUS?????

Lemons...Stinkers....Drama!!

Caiden took his first taste of a lemon on Father's Day. His daddy loved lemons when he was little so we were curious if Caiden would, too. I won't say he "loved" them but did take several tastes. Here is a layout I did showing the faces he made afterward. I have one with the lemon at his mouth but it came out blurry!!


Credits: BeachyKeen kit by Leora Sanford of Little Dreamer Designs



Here are a few layouts I did using a kit that will go on sale at Pretty Scrappy on July 1st, called Drama King! I think these photos were perfect for the name of the kit!!!


Journaling reads: Trevor, you were quite a handful today...on your daddy's first father's day. We ate at Bob Evans and you wanted to grab everything within your reach! It was your way or no way!!!


Journaling: You would think by these photos you were being tortured!! In reality all mommy was trying to do was change your clothes to go out to dinner. At nearly 1 year of age you are constantly on the move and you don't want to be made to sit still for ANYTHING! And you let everyone know it!!

Singles Conference & Concert Coming Soon....

What? Singles Conference & Concert

When? Saturday, Sept 26, 2009 @ 2:00 pm

Where? First Baptist Church Maryville, 7110 State Route 162, Maryville, IL

Who? All single adults welcome....widowed, never married, divorced!!!

**Tickets Required--Advanced purchases $20.00 includes dinner; Day of concert $15.00 does NOT include dinner** Call 618-667-8221 for tickets.

Highlights....

Guest speakers include Kent Bottenfield, former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher turned singer/songwriter. John Harris, Adult Sunday School Minister at First Baptist Church Maryville. Angie Moutria, member of First Baptist Church Maryville. Three break out sessions being offered on the topics of flexibility, unity & purity.

Human Video - performed by First Baptist Church Maryville's very own Steve Moutria.

Dinner being catered by a local restaurant yet to be determined. ADVANCED TICKET PURCHASE required for the dinner.

Concert by Kent Bottenfield following dinner

Prize giveaways!!!!

If you are in need of an event that is designed to uplift, encourage & strengthen you in your singleness we sincerely hope you will come out and enjoy an afternoon & evening of fellowship.

Do you live a few hours away?? Fear not....we have several hotels within minutes of the conference venue and the event does not begin until 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. No excuses!!

My 50th Post!!!!!!!

This is my 50th post since I switched over to Blogger. Yippie! If I were a digital scrapbooking designer I would have some kind of awesome freebie to give away. But, I'm not....so I don't. Sorry :(

I have mentioned before how much I love Amanda Taylor of TaylorMadeDesigns. If you read the credits of my scrapbooking resources enough you will see I incorporate many elements from her kits into my pages. I was excited to see her newsletter in my email inbox yesterday and of course, had to open it and read it right then! I didn't get much past the 2nd paragraph though. She talked about how she was a guest for the month of June over at http://www.digidares.com/ and she said they have all these really cool challenges (dares, if you may) every week. I had to go on over and check out this upcoming week's challenge, which took me into creating a new layout. Do you see why I didn't get past the 2nd paragraph? That's okay because I have the newsletter tucked safely in my inbox for further reading. I love challenges because they really get (or so they should) the creative juices flowing. I was anticipating what this awesome challenge would be and when I read it I was like "SIGH, this will not be hard and yet it will be extremely hard all at the same time." We were challenged to scrap about a painful or heart-breaking time in our lives. An additional part of the challenge was to use blending techniques in your layout. Here is mine...

Journaling:

I was forever changed the morning of March 8, 2009. I was supposed to be in the sanctuary that morning but could not bring myself to get out of bed. To think I could have been one of the many who had to witness that unexplainable act of violence. You were ripped out of our lives with one fatal shot and we were left behind to forever wonder why. Why you? Why us? I can only come back to the truth that God is God and His ways are NOT my ways. For some reason God chose FBCM to be shaken to the core. I believe God has a plan for us still. But, I cannot help but think...it will never again be the same without you as my Pastor.

Credits:

Papers/Frame: Weather by Dawn Inskip

Photo Tearing: Torn Templates by Sweet Genevieve Designs

All Other Elements: TaylorMadeDesigns Signature kit.

Photo Blending used:

Steeple: 100% overlay & 45% Linear Light

Photo behind journaling: 100% overlay used twice

Here is a layout (a bit more cheerful) I did for a template challenge at http://www.faithsisters.com/

This is The Blakester when he was all of 1 year old. He was stinkin' cute even back then! I am working on an album for just him and this is the 2nd LO so far. The template was a freebie from the June 18th challenge over at www.faithsisters.com and the kit I used is a "soon to be released" kit from Designs by Angel called Nature's Garden. I am loving this kit to pieces!

Thanks for stopping by to check out the latest. I will have father's day stuff posted later as well as a post about our upcoming single's conference featuring former Cardinals baseball pitcher, Kent Bottenfield. I am HOPING I can upload the short video we did with him yesterday. Stay tuned.....

CT Call from Pretty Scrappy!!!

Pretty Scrappy is looking to add some more busy bees to our growing garden! I have been with them since March of this year and LOVE them! They were my first ever CT and have been wonderfully patient in helping me learn the ropes. Have you been thinking about joining a Creative Team lately but a little hesitant? Let me encourage you to give it a shot. Here is the info:

Late Night Inspiration

I completed a challenge at Pretty Scrappy tonight called, Sowing Seeds. The challenge was to choose various items from various categories which corrulated to different digital elements. Tonight it was revealed what our initial choices stood for. My choices yielded me the following elements....

• (1) photo


• Bow or tie


• Staple


• (2) flowers


• Blending Technique

Here is my take on that challenge. I had fun playing with some new kits I got from The Daily Digi today.

Credits:

BG Paper - TaylorMadeDesigns Blending In Paper Pack

Flowers & Bow - Spiced Chai Latte by Amy Hutchinson

Staple - Dawn Inskip tag alphas

Blending Mask - Beachy Keen by Leora Sanford, Litter Dreamer Designs

The Daily Digi

Oy, I stayed up too late last night. Not really by choice...I drank too much iced tea at dinner so between the caffeine & my bladder, I could not fall asleep. But, it's all good because today is FRIDAY!!! Yay!



One of the blogs I love to check almost daily (key word: almost) is Katie the Scrapbook Lady. You, too, can check out her blog....find the link over in the right sidebar under "Check Out These Blogs", or click on the gray link in the previous sentence. Today was especially good. She belongs to a site called "The Daily Digi" and I was linked to it from her blog post today. I love this new site. It has been bookmarked as a new fave....here are some screen shots and the explanations behind them. I encourage you, if you love all things digi-scrapping, check out this crisp, clean site!!!


Screen shot from their home page


A snap shot of the store section of their site


Check out these adorable DOODLES! Love them!!!

And here are some more "Happy" doodles!


Even though I do not get many chances to scrap in "pink", I love this happy little kit called "Whirligig"!!!

Thursday's thoughts....

I recently signed up at http://www.abibleverse.org/ to receive a daily scripture verse by email. Here is today's verse....

Ephesians 5:1

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children (NIV)

Some of the first thoughts that popped into my head were....what does it mean to be an imitator? Well, I would say it means to take on the actions/characteristics of people around you. We have these 2 darling little boys....Caiden and Trevor....you probably know them well since they are about all I blog & scrap about, LOL. They are of an age where they love to imitate the people around them. You stick out your tongue, they will stick out theirs. You wink your eye at them and they....well, they TRY to wink back at you. It is an absolutely adorable age. But, at the same time it is an age where they are tremendously impressionable. This is the age we need to be pouring into them words of love....teachable moments....hugs & kisses! Why? So, they will become imitators of these very things.

Often, as adults, we still continue to imitate those around us. Sometimes it is done in a joking manner just to give someone a hard time. Like for instance, people like to imitate me by "snorting". When I get to laughing really hard, yes, I snort. I admit it. When I do it, everyone around pokes fun and imitates me. That's okay, because as my good friend Jackie says "as long as they are making fun of me, they are leaving someone else alone."

Sometimes we begin to imitate the world around us and don't even realize we are doing it. But, this verse tells us to be imitators of "God"...not others or the world around us. So, how do we do this? I am no expert but I would say by getting in His word daily....by learning His character and meditating on that regularly. Only then can we begin to imitate Him. Okay, that is my mini-sermon for Thursday, LOL.

Here are 2 layouts I did last night. The first is one of those darling boys I was talking about, Caiden. The one below it is my mom when she was about 16, wowza!!

Credits: a new kit (yet to be released) by Designs by Angel called Natures Garden. I LOVE IT!

Credits: Kit called Posies by Lorilei Murphy of www.roseyposeystudio.com

Monday's Nugget

"For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23

"He is my refuge and my fortress; my god, in Him I will trust." Psalm 91:2

Just a few verses to start the new day/week with. The Romans verse is one we talked about at the One Verse Evangelism class last night at church. It was led by Jack Harris of Texas and it was a wonderfully simplified, yet very effective, way to share Jesus with others. The verse from Psalm is from Our Daily Bread, Walking Through The Valley of The Shadow. It talked about how, as Christians, we have Someone to hold on to in times of sorrow, heartache, crisis, disaster. We aren't spared from experiencing these trials but rather HE is our life preserver that keeps us afloat during them.

Another weekend almost over...

Oy, I am thinking about telling everyone I am going on vacation and then driving to the local Holiday Inn, checking in with my computer in hand, and just spend a few days doing nothing but nothing!


The weekend started off with a fun jewelry party at my friend, Sheila's house. Afterwards we transitioned into game night. We played Guesstures which is similar to just plain charades only more stressfull....but lots of fun, too. I called it quits at midnight.


Saturday, as I think I said in my previous post, I worked with my friends at a local food pantry. We only had 2 customers so it was pretty boring but I was happy with boring since last month was a huge collection day and we received over 400 bags of items to sort through and stock the shelves with. Afterwards we went to lunch at a tiny but authentic mexican restaurant in town. Yummmm...I ate the whole bowl of chips by myself (thanks Sarah!) And from there it was just down to Sheila and I. We went back to her house to brainstorm about our upcoming singles conference. After about 2 hours of planning I went home and yay, was home for the rest of the evening.


Sunday (today) is the usual. I did not get up in time for 8 o'clock service so I went to small group and then worship service later. We went to Ponderosa (my favorite place to eat.....NOT) for lunch. Have to be back at the church at 5:00 for a class on sharing your faith and I will probably stay for the evening service.


Needless to say I have been gone more than I have been home and frankly, I hate it. I may take another 1/2 day off work tomorrow just to make up for the busy weekend. We'll see.


So.....on to digi-scrapping news! I did not get the position with Danielle Donaldson as part of her creative team....bummer. No, I am okay with it. God probably did me a favor there since things are only going to get more & more crazy as the conference gets closer. My original designer, Angel, of Designs by Angel, has a kit about to be released so I am super excited to do some work for her again. And Lorilei of Rosey Posey Studio sent me a kit a few days ago in which I just downloaded and did a layout.


This kit is called SKEERED and is so stinkin' cute.....full of cute little monster elements. Here is the preview of the kit and if you click on the preview image it will take you to the store where you can purchase it.....and I think it is 25% off right now!!!




And here is the LO I did using the kit. This is Trevor & Caiden....who else do I scrap about? I crack up when I see this photo of Caiden just bawling his little heart out!!!

Site Change...

Bear with me as I update my blog to a new, summery look! I also have a few alignment issues I need Shannon to help me with but more than anything I need to go back on my previous posts and change my font color to something dark. But, right now I am getting ready to do a speed scrap so I will work on editing me posts later on. Hope you like the new look!!!

Getting Organized!!!!

If there is one thing I am NOT, it is organized. It is something I LOVE to be but DESPISE trying to accomplish. I would much rather scrapbook a layout, watch a favorite TV show, get my wisdom teeth extracted again....than work on organizing! It is just not something that comes easily to me. I envy my cousin, Angela, who actually craves organizing her life & home. See, if I had the money I would just pay someone like her to come do it for me.

Well, since I do NOT have the $$ to pay a professional, I must dig down deep into my being and become more disciplined in this area. I am going to start with all my digital scrapbooking supplies & photographs. You might think "hey, that is a good, bite-sized area to start with!" Oh, you are so wrong. For you digi-scrappers out there you know exactly what I mean. This is going to be more like a 10 course meal...not just a little bite, LOL. See, I have been digi-scrapping for almost 2 years now and I have accumulated many, many, many scrap kits along the way. Each of these kits contains on average, 10 papers, 30+ elements, and 1 set of alphas. As it is right now, I have my various kits sorted into 1 of 3 categories...By Kit Name, By Designer, By Theme. That has been okay but I am finding I am not utilizing these beautiful kits & all the splendid papers & elements. I keep going to the same kits over & over mostly because I like them but because I don't want to take time to open all my others up (because I cannot remember what color/theme they each are). So, I feel like I am wasting $$ by allowing these kits to sit unused, and essentially I am.

So, while surfing around on the http://www.jessicasprague.com/ website yesterday, I came across her organization section. I started reading about ACDSee Photo Manager and how it can ROCK your WORLD when it comes to getting all your digi-supplies organized. So, after much reading, video watching & researching on the subject of this program, I decided to download the trial version. I also purchased an online class (self-paced....the best kind) that will walk me through how to get the most use out of this program because it is a little overwhelming to begin. So, for $25, I get the help of a professional organizer and all her wealth of knowledge. Okay, that I can swing!!! I am so excited to start using this program even though it will not be a "sit down one evening and have my stuff organized by bedtime" kinda project. No, this will take many weeks to do but I believe in baby steps.

If you would like more information about this program & how it can help you get organized with your digital supplies & photographs, check out these sites....

This is the site where I did ALOT of reading & watching videos about ACDSee
http://digiscrapinfo.com/joomla/

This is the link to Jessica's shop where you can purchase the class to learn how to use the program to its' fullest potential
http://www.jessicasprague.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage-ask.tpl&product_id=12&category_id=21&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=85

Critique Me....please

just be nice about it, LOL!

Below is a layout I created for Brit. She gave me some photos of her oldest son so I could start working on a scrapbook of him since his little brother has his own. Some of the photos (such as the one I used in this LO) are not of good quality...very grainy, low resolution, etc. I took this photo and played around with my effects until I reached this finished look. I wish I had the before of the photo to show you but I don't right now. I am just curious as to what you all think. Please leave a comment if you would telling me your thoughts. Remember, be gentle, hahahaha

Like Photography? Like Free?

Then you will LOVE this......

I love Jessica Sprague's blog!! She is offering a FREE photo editing class in July! If you are like me and you want to learn all you can about your PSE or PS program and how to get really cool looking photos but don't want to spend tons of $$ then register for this FREE class!!!

A simple click of a button.....

and you get a photo like this.....

Journaling reads:
If I were to caption this photo based solely on your postures & facial expressions it would be:
Trevor: "Mom, Caiden tried to deflate my ball!"
Caiden: "No way dude, I didn't touch your ball. I swear!"

I used a free template from Designs by Angel and the kit, ZING, by the new designer I am creating for....Lorilei Murphy of Rosey Posey Studio

Are you afraid of death?

A friend sent this to me by email and I just loved the analogy of it. I hope you are blessed by it, too.

Are You Afraid Of Death?
A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to
Leave the examination room and said,
'Doctor, I am afraid to die.
Tell me what lies on the other side.'
Very quietly, the doctor said, 'I don't know.'
'You don't know? You're, a Christian man,
And don't know what's on the other side?'
The doctor was holding the handle of the door;
On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining,
And as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room
And leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.
Turning to the patient, the doctor said,
'Did you notice my dog?
He's never been in this room before.
He didn't know what was inside.
He knew nothing except that his master was here,
And when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.
I know little of what is on the other side of death,
But I do know one thing...
I know my Master is there and that is enough.'

And on a little lighter note....here is a layout I cranked out before leaving for work this morning. This is Trevor's favorite ball (hence, the title) and I captured these shots last weekend while he was playing in my yard.

Credits: Papers & all elements except the "You" word art are from the kit, Dude Style by Flutter Expressions. The word art is from TaylorMadeDesigns kit, Charmed.

Great Aunts & Dandelions!

A few layouts I did of Trevor with his Great Great Aunt Maxine and picking dandelions out of his yard at home.

I discovered a new technique by playing around in the effects area of my PSE program. It is the "Lighting Effects" and wow, can you do a bunch of different lighting techniques! In the bottom LO I wanted to highlight Trevor zeroing in on the dandelion in the grass. I like this technique and will have to use it more often.

The layout below with Aunt Maxine poor Trevor looks a little scared. I didn't remember him being tentative on her lap but I guess he was. I also played around with this photo using some different blending modes. I converted it to BW and then added a soft tan paper...and I cannot remember which modes I chose but I am sure one of them was luminosity. I like the feel of this photo....kinda has an antique look to it especially with the added mask I used. Both LO's were fun to create and I am slowly learning to tweek my photos own my own since I no longer have some of my photo actions due to changing computers. Thanks for stopping by!

3 months today.....

and it hasn't eased the pain of losing you the way we did. I have reached a point where the thoughts don't come every few moments anymore. But, when they do come, they seem to last longer and tear deeper into my soul. I do take comfort in knowing you are where you are....praising our Savior all the day long. But, the selfish, human side of me wants you back....wants things the way they were....wants a chance to not take you for granted. I heard your voice as clear as day last night as I stood in another, unfamiliar church, during the time of invitation. With my eyes closed, head bowed, I heard YOUR voice start saying the ABC's of becoming a christian. I had to open my eyes for a moment it seemed so real.

Newest Member of Rosey Posey Studio Creative Team!

I am very very excited to announce I have been accepted as part of the creative team at Rosey Posey Studio. Lorilei Murphy emailed me yesterday to give me the good news! And, today I see in my inbox a kit to work with....wow, she puts a person straight to work! Her new kit is called DELIGHT and it is such a gorgeous combination of blues, yellows & greens! I absolutely adore this kit and knew I had to do a layout using the photo I took of Caiden yesterday at mom/dad's anniversary party. Caiden's blue eyes go perfectly with her kit. To purchase this kit, just click on the layout to be directed to the Rosey Posey Studio store...thanks for stopping by!

Happy 50th Anniversary Mom & Dad

Who would have thunk it....50 years!!! I have had the Barry Manilow song stuck in my head for days, "Looks Like We Made It". God granted us a gorgeous, breezy, sunshiny day to celebrate this milestone occasion. Sorry I didn't take time to edit this photo so you don't see the mops/brooms, etc in the photo but I wanted to get this post posted before June 6th was over. Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!!! Love ya both so much.

6:45 a.m. and the day starts...

Arose early (check)
Battery on charger (check)
Dishes almost washed (half check)
Clothes washed (check)
Molly-dog loved on (check)

I only wish that meant I was close to be caught up....NOT!!! I went to start my yummy corn/avocado/tomato salad when I realized I did not have olive oil or salt. Oy! Turned helium tank on to start filling balloons and it is making a hissing sound all on its own and don't know if that is normal so I turned it back off for now. Should wait awhile before filling them anyway. So, will run to Walmart to grab another tank just in case this one leaks out before I can fill all the balloons. Remembered I forgot (don't you love that saying?) to go by Walgreens to pick up the 4x6 photo I plan to put in this frame that reads "Life is a journey not a destination" for mom & dad. That's okay cause now I need to get salt & olive oil.

Well, I am off to check email while waiting for clothes to dry. Come back later to see how the event went!!!

A weekend of celebration!

This weekend my siblings and I along with other family and friends are celebrating the 50th anniversary of my parents. We are having a laid back gathering at my parents home. Tomorrow mornings' check list...

• Arise early....get a Starbucks fix


• Fill 30 balloons with helium & decorate mom/dads yard with them


• Pick up cake at 10 a.m.


• Pick up subway party trays at 11:30 a.m.


• Put camera battery on charger

My singles group from church have been working on the plans for an upcoming conference in September. One of the ways we hope to raise funds for the event and cost of a speaker/performer is through the sale of T-shirts. These aren't just any run-of-the-mill shirt designs. We designed them ourselves using the goals our late Pastor, Fred Winters, laid out for our church just months before he died. Those goals are FLEXIBILITY, UNITY, PURITY. So, the past week was full of emails back & forth between the printer and myself trying to seal the deal for our initial order. So glad to have that behind us and can't wait for them to be in our possession!!

With the start of a new month there comes with it new creative team responsibilities over at Pretty Scrappy! I have been trying this month to learn how to kill 2 birds with 1 stone (so to speak) to get more done with less effort. Still need to work on honing that skill. I was able to do 1 layout for a designer I was assigned to and work it into another challenge at the same time. I applied for 2 more creative team positions this week as well. One is with Danielle Donaldson over at ScrapArtist.com. Here is a link to her blog...can't wait for a little down time to really dig into her writing.

http://danielledonaldsondesign.blogspot.com/

The other position I applied for was with http://www.roseyposeystudio.com/. I love Lorilei's kits and just purchased one called, Angel, and can't wait to use it. I don't know if I will make it on either team and I am okay if I don't but will be thrilled if I do.

Here are a few of the layouts I have done this week just to show you I did work from my recliner...LOL! Have a blessed weekend all :)

Fun In The Sun at Pretty Scrappy!!!

Pretty Scrappy has an awesome new Collaboration kit available for June called Fun In The Sun.


Here is the link to the kit: http://www.prettyscrappy.com/xcart/p...2&cat=0&page=1
With purchase of the team collab, you will receive the quickpages for free.
Use coupon code SunnyFun good until the June 30, 2009 for $2.00 off.

There are also so terrific challenges happening in the forum. Here are just a few....

Admire the Arrangements
Let's Go On a Scavenger Hunt Thru the Gallery! Leave some love and earn some points!

Doodle Challenge
Host will provide a few themed doodles for the participants to make layouts with. You must use the doodles in your layout.

How Did You Grow That? Challenge (Hosted by me)
A quirky twist to the usual scraplift challenge. You will scraplift a layout created by the challenge host but the twist is this: you don’t get to SEE the layout. You will be given 5 clues by the host to begin. Participants will be allowed to ask 10 more questions. Once 15 questions/answers are posted, the clues stop. You will have until the end of the month to create a layout that most closely resembles the host’s layout in design.

Plant By Numbers Challenge
A challenge in which you must use a certain amount of an item, whether embellishment or paper, whether alot or a little.

Happy June 1st!!!

We start a new month and a new week on the same day....how about that? I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Throwing this post in real quick before I get ready for work. The weekend was busy and the camera flash was busy so you know what that means....more scrapbook layouts to come.

But first, a new month means a new PRETTY SCRAPPY COLLAB KIT is available!!! Can I get a big WOO-HOO????!!!!!???? Click here to be directed to the Pretty Scrappy store where you can purchase this amazing kit called "Fun In The Sun". Here are some layouts I have done using the kit and I am sure there are more to come!!

The first layout is one of my BF's sons, Christian or Camden, but not sure which one. I never have been good at telling those 2 apart. The layout below that is of the Blake-Meister from last summer.....ridin' around in his John Deere jeep-thing.