Deck of Me - Week 22

This isn't the final card, but my project went horribly awry & I am not going to recreate the sewing (I am very slow!). The prompt was what do you want to learn. My journaling on the back:

1) to sew (more than a button) & no, ella did not make this card, i am just that challenged by a needle & thread
2) to play guitar - it just seems so romantic
3) to love to exercise
4) to cook - without following a recipe
5) to ski
6) to speak spanish
7) to not be affected by other people's perception of me
8) to be a better photographer
9) to APPEAR organized - i know where to find things, they just aren't in neat piles!
10) to simplify

Deck of Me - Week 11

I'm a bit out of order, but the prompt for week 11 was "your initial." The journaling on the card reads "As a kid, I could never think of adjectives that started with 'K.' I'm no 'klepto' so I tried to be 'kool."

Deck of Me - Surprise!

Prompt "Surprise!" I really loved this prompt because it led me to journal about memories that otherwise may have stayed buried! The card is simple, it's the journaling on the back that is important to me as it prompted me to write about experiences that I otherwise wouldn't have thought to share with my children. But, of course by the time they are old enough to appreciate these cards, they will probably already be familiar with my apparent control issues! The journaling on the back says:

Don’t get me wrong, I love to be surprised with flowers or dinner when I come home from work. But, the three most stressful memories in my life are 1) my 16th birthday party; 2) the day I was sworn into the State Bar; and 3) my wedding proposal. I distinctly remember being annoyed that my mother wanted me to run into a restaurant and pick up my own birthday cake. When I walked in the restaurant, all of my friends were there. A lovely gesture, but oh was I uneasy! All of the effort everyone went through to attend made me uncomfortable. On the day I was being sworn into the Bar, my (now) husband paged me. When I came to the reception area, he was there with my mother & sister who had flown into town for the day. Another LOVELY gesture, and yet I was paralyzed. They all laugh that I looked like a deer in the headlights. It’s a good thing that my husband witnessed my unfortunate reaction to surprise because all I remember of his proposal is that I wanted back in the car ASAP! I know I was wearing the ring when we got to the restaurant, but did I even say yes?

Deck of Me - Week 18

The prompt was "nature." The paper is handmade with pressed flowers. My daughter collected items from the yard to embellish the card. She loved cutting the grass, collecting sticks and cutting some flowers to put in her bedroom. Journaling on the back.

Deck of Me - Week 16

The challenge was to get someone else to contribute to the card. So, my 4-year-old daughter agreed to participate.

Purple Challenge

A little Mother's Day tribute. The paper is Rhonna Farrer, the stickers are from Tia Bennett & the photo frames are Heather Ann Designs.

Rhonna's Brown Challenge

This is my first attempt at a historical family page. Ultimately, I would like to digitially scrap old family photos and print out keepsake books. It takes some playing around to find what I am looking for. But, this gorgeous brown paper from Rhonna seemed like the perfect backdrop. Photo frames from Heather Ann Designs. Swirl from December free kit (Rhonna) available at 2peas. All other embellishments from Spring free kit (Tia Bennett).

Rhonna's Red Color Challenge

Got a little behind on projects! These are part of a 4 page birthday party spread for a ladybug garden party. I thought the theme fit well with Rhonna's Red Challenge.

Yellow Challenge - Bedroom Card (Week 17)

I am knocking off two birds with one project. Yellow isn't a color I do much with so I incorporated yellow from Rhonna's Color Challenge into Emily's Deck of You challenge. The yellow doesn't show through well on the scan, but it's vibrant in person! The Deck of You Challenge is about a bedroom. My childhood bedroom was a pastel mess! Butterflies galore. The wallpaper carried over to my blinds to really showcase the 80's feel of my bedroom! I still remembering helping my Dad paint all of my furniture for the room, my (non-digital) clock radio alarm clock I got in 3rd grade. The original cheap phone I had in the room (I can't remember how old I was) and then, the fancy black & red phone that was my transition into a more modern teenage room.

Deck of Me - Week 12

The prompt for week 12 was "I believe . . . " The photo is a bit too shiny, but the card reads "I believe when we are open to the world around us, good things happen."

In the past 4 months, I have been especially affected by the stories of new acquantinces. In other situations, I may not have noticed how similar their experiences were to challenges I was facing in my life. These random conversations with people I met at parties profundly affected central decisions in my life. I began not just to question how I was living my life, but what concrete steps I could take to live the life I imagines. It strikes me how it was much more likely to have an inconsequential conversation in a new social setting. Yet, something drew me to these women with a story to tell. How grateful I am that I listened.

Deck of Me, Week 13

I have a lot of my mind this week. So, I was drawn into Emily Falconbridge's Deck of Me challenge. This week's challenge - "What's On Your Mind." This was an easy one for me. Balance. Life/Work/Family. I'm not close to finding the balance, but I have taken steps in the right direction. Now, I am anxious and excited knowing that changes will be coming soon.

Rhonna's Green Challenge

I am having a lot of fun playing around with digital scrapbooking. I am so glad that Rhonna Farrer started hosting this challenge because it gives me an excuse to try to learn the digital programs. I may not have the fanciest layouts, but it sure is fun trying new techniques and seeing the great creations other people come up with. The paper and swirls are from Rhonna and the picture frames are from Heather Ann Designs.

Green is not my color. I don't like to wear it or decorate with it and I never use it as a primary color in scrapbooking. But, I love this paper and I love the designs I have seen from the other challenge participants. So many lovely shades of green. Spring is such a green time of year, new grass, flowers, trees, I think the color is growing on me!

The Blue Challenge

It was intimidating to join such a talented group of people for this challenge, so I was thrilled to receive so many encouraging comments. I can't wait to see what everyone does with blue this week. I love taking the time to notice all the blue in my daily activities.

Blue was a fun color for me. It was my favorite color growing up and I associate it with fabulous beach vacations, spring blooms and, lately, Christmas. I picked photos from Spring and Winter for my projects (no time for new photos this week).

This is my first digital card attempt and I am still learning the software - any good suggestions on how to become more proficient in either Digital Image Pro or Photoshop Elements? The photo is one of my favorite of my daughter & I thought this would make a nice Mother's Day card. In the original photo, her blue eyes look gorgeous and I wanted to emphasize that feature. My plan was to have the original blue come through in a color spot. However, I couldn't get that to work correctly in PSE. So, the color is exaggerated.

The template is from Heather Ann Designs. The paper is a free kit (Mary Mary) from 2peas (love the color) and the scroll is another free kit (New Years) from 2peas by Rhonna Farrer. The quote is often attributed to Abraham Lincoln. I am definitely not comfortable with digital scrapping yet! Any suggestions on good tutorials?

The traditional scrapbook pages are all Scenic Route paper. While the paper might not reflect a lot of blue, the mood of the day was definitely blue (in a good way!). It was a gorgeous clear blue day - and in my memories, I see that blue sky and my daughter's big smile!

Rhonna's Orange Challenge

I only recently discovered digital scrapbooking and have no idea where to start! So, while I dabble with tutortials I find on the web, I wanted to jump in and get inspired! This week, I am working on Rhonna's Orange Challenge. Even if I can't modify my photos yet, I like the challenge to look at colors in a new way. When I first read the challenge, I was perplexed because orange is not a color that I associate with Spring in Utah. To me, it symbolizes the fall harvest. Nothing is blooming here and more snow is expected this week. But, I spent a week looking for orange in my world and was pleased to find orange inspiration in my daily life.