Now THIS is profound!

We must be willing to get rid of the life we had planned

so as to have the life that was waiting for us.

- Joseph Campbell

But wait . . . how do I know what the difference is? How do I know when the life I had planned really isn't going to happen and should be aborted so as to jog in the different direction?

Yup . . . these are the kinds of thoughts provoked by quotes like this . . . for me.

Life's Simple Pleasures . . .

I can take EXTREME pleasures in some small, odd things.

pretty pajamas . . .

fancy pillows on the bed . . .

my handmade chocolate dipped and decorated pretzels . . .

lampshades with beads . . .

girly magazines . . .

. . . others include the smell of mowed grass, candles that smell like baked goods, pink, the sunny spot on the floor, black and white together, cold green tea, pretty paper, falling back asleep in the morning, snow days, new eyeliner, the smell of a fresh washed baby, fresh batteries, thick cut Delmonico with melted gorgonzola, really hot showers, vintage clothing, Jamie's laugh, flocked wallpaper in paisley patterns, words as art, profound quotes, newness, black and white photographs, Bradley's smile, and so much more . . .

Great Boy Kit from Studio Dana!

While this kit is themed more to younger kids play, I used it to make a funny layout for my 18 year old son! I love Dana's use of bright colors! You can find this kit titled Mud About You at Studio Dana, ScrapbookGraphics.com - along with all her othe fab digi-scrapping kits!

Another Great Studio Dana Digi-Scrapbook Kit!

So here are some layouts using Dana Frantz's Bella Kit (which is on sale for only $4.50 today!) from Studio Dana at ScrapbookGraphics.com. Even though it is kinda girly, I used it to create some sweet boy pages!

I especially LOVE the yarn stitches in this kit. I'll be using them again and again!

It was Photoshop Friday for me!!

Little Dreamer Designs is starting an Appentice Program. This will be a competition from start to end and they claim no design experience is necessary . . . so why not give it a whirl?

Submissions are not accepted until February 15. Think I can learn Photoshop CS3 that fast?

This is what I learned today. Keep in mind, up until now I've really only used it for photography work. So I googled tutorials and played and played . . . I learned a lot about brushes and textures and opacity.

Here is my first attempt!! Sorry, I haven't uploaded this to a server for downloading yet, but will if there is any interest in it. I will have to scrap a page with my own stuff - WOW!!

ANOTHER Studio Dana Kit . . .

Today I played with Dana Frantz's kit called This Amazing Life (which is on sale today too!). It has a fabulous metal alphabet, along with other metal accents. So much to play with here!


The first layout used one of Bradley's photos! This is a photo of Bradley's friends, both named Briana, for his scrapbook.

The next layout is for my album (I'm doing more "me" layouts.) This photo is from 2001! Wow, I look so much younger.

SUPER EXCITING NEWS!!

I applied for a Guest Creative Team position with Dana Frantz at ScrapbookStudio.com and was selected!! After doing the happy dance and reviewing the requirements and sending back my acceptance email with about a 100 exclamation points (grin), I started working on creating layouts with her FABULOUS kits.

This designer has a varied style - there is lots of whimsy, traditional elements and styles, embroidery (love that!!), dark and light but LOTS OF COLOR . . . it is so easy to scrap with her stuff!!

My absolute FAVORITE kit is her brand new one called Dreamery. Isn't that the coolest name for this kit. It is so perfect.

When I opened it, I thought of a photograph I took of Bradley last fall where he was in the field catching grasshopper's . . . it begged to be the first photo I scrapped with this fairytale-like kit. I love the glitter/sparkles. I can see me using them again and again. Even on a boy page like this!

So without further ado . . . I introduce my first layouts from Dana Frantz's Dreamery Kit:

Go grab this kit - you'll love it!!

More Layouts of Jamie's Childhood

Scrapping the day away . . .

In order to alleviate the guilt for not working, I scrapped older photos of Jamie that I need to finish for his album for graduation (yes, these photos go back up to 18 YEARS!!). I'm trying to do my journaling as I imagine him looking at these with his children and grandchildren, and want them to know the story about Jamie and his younger life.

My biggest problem is dating the photos! Uh, if I don't know . . . then how will anyone know if it's incorrect (grin). But I did get NINE pages done.

I know he doesn't read my blog, but I did hesitate for a moment to even post these because of the (gulp) BAD HAIR DECADE!!

Songbird Avenue Scraplift Challenge

Never heard of a scraplift challenge? You find a layout you like - then use it as a base for your own design. Kept the main concept the same, but personalize it . . . change the papers, embellishments, photos and title to suit your photograph!

Songbird Avenue, who I've posted about before here, is hosting a scraplift challenge. I found Shabby Miss Jen's Our Snow Hats layout over at DigiShopTalk's gallery and used a photograph of Bradley's friend Brianna and the Songbird Avenue's kit of the month to create a similar page.