February Flu

My sick girl last Saturday
She was all curled up in a ball, looking so tiny on the couch, and I was trying to capture my feelings for the moment.
It's so sad when your kids are sick. On this day, She was so tired, and so sick. She just seemed so tiny and frail, and so like a baby. I have pictures of her sick from last February , too. In taking these pictures, I really was trying to capture this from MY point of view. I had been sitting net to her on the couch, in that blank spot, just watching her. When she fell asleep, I snuck to get the camera, and took these shots without the flash, because I didn't want to wake her and knew that the light from the window would be sufficient. I took a shot looking down on her, which I didn't put here, but while it was adorable, it wasn't the view I had wanted to capture. So, I sat back down on my side of the loveseat to take pic #1. #3 was the picture that showed how I felt, to see her there on the loveseat, all balled up, so small. Picture #2 was cute, but it didn't capture these feelings, her smallness.





I'm always trying to become a better photographer. I take a lot of pictures that I never plan to print, now that I have a digital. It can be hard to capture something that you see. When I was on the cruise, I had taken my daughter to a crowded reading of the "Night before Christmas". I had her squeeze through the parents to go sit on the floor with the other kids, but could see that I wasn't going to get close enough to get her picture. I looked up at the ceiling, specifically at the huge glass chandelier, and there was the reflection of what was taking place on the floor! I tried to capture that, but it didn't really work. My point is that I tried. I like to spend waiting time playing with my camera. Learning about it. I tell my daughter that mommies and daddies might not look like they have toys, but we do. My camera is my favorite toy!



Read the blog below, too. It's new.





Scrap Happy!

Even the bad memories are ours

As you can see from these pictures, we ended up in the hospital after our baby girl was sleeping for 3 days. She was severely dehydrated and needed an IV. Poor little thing!
Her favorite stuffed animal
She always has her little ankles crossed.
It was a loooong day in the hospital. I hated that she was sick, but I loved holding her in my arms again, like I had when she was a baby.

She is doing so much better now, the fluids that day really helped her. I fet weird taking the camera to the hospital. But this is a major event in her young life, and I wanted to document it just like all the good ones. I've done a page in her album about our dog when he died. I don't want her to forget him! If you are documenting life, you need to document it truthfully. All of the good and bad together make you the person you are. The older she gets, the more honest her album will get. Meaning, I used to leave out the bad things that happen on vacation, but someday, she is going to think that vacations as a child were perfect, and that isn't acurate! So, I am evolving in my journalling. Growing myself, even as she grows along side me.

Scrap Happy

Hello Good-bye!

Hailey and I at 2:45 AM, just calling it a night! (This is typical for us.) We only started scrapping after everyone else left, and each got about 4 pages done.

Christine, aka Aunt Cricket comes to support me
My Mom came, even though it was her birthday! Happy Birthday! She and Ruth became good friends from coming to workshops here in my Mexican Marketplace.
Here I am with Fred and Royanne. Fred is going to start scrapbooking, digitally!
Friends Forever! me and Bekah
This is the first time my friend Christina came to scrapbook with us! I'm afraid we overwhelmed her!

I had my Hello Goodbye sale this Friday. I made a huge dent in my scrapbook inventory, got to see my scrapbooking girls, and did finally get to start working on my Disney Album! The "Hello" part of the sale was introducing everyone to Camile Smith, my friend and new CM consultant. I don't have a picture of her here, because we didn't remember until she was leaving! Hugging some of the girls goodbye as they left really made me tear up! But overall, I am really happy that I'm no longer a consultant, and I really plan to have scrap nights once a month. Next month's scrap is March 7th!

I'm so thankful that everyone came! It was really good closure for me, and even though only Hailey and I actually scrapbooked, it was nice to have everyone there. I know they just came for the good deals...NO, I'M JUST KIDDING! I know that they were there to stand by me. I just want to say "Thanks!" Thank you for coming to events and asking questions that made me scramble for the answers and keeping me in business 4 years, and taking my opinion on your pages. It all has meant so much to me. I know that I wasn't the best consultant, far from it, but you were patient, and reminded me of things, and best of all was the way we all confided in each other, helped each other, and just enjoyed being together. Friday nights without you are boring!

Thank you! I hope you always Scrap Happy!

Melting Snowman

I had set a personal goal for myself to start on my Disney Album this weekend. Well, that didn't happen, but I did clean the house! There has been some transition in my life. I am no longer a Creative Memories consultant! I missed my deadline, and didn't place my order in time! It was a complete accident, but it is all for the better, because I do have plenty to keep me busy. It was a shock, but now I feel relieved. I'll miss my customers, and having a store in my basement! That was really nice! But I am still going to scrapbook, and I'm still going to keep writing this blog as well. I will still use Creative Memories supplies, because they are the best. I even want to keep having crops, because I love to scrapbook with others, and sometimes I don't get around to scrapping unless I'm having a crop. I am still going to take way too many pictures! I just completed the 14th album for my 5 year old daughter!

We have had some cold weather in Pennsylvania, and some snow. This snowman was made using most of the snow in our yard. When I got called outside to take a picture of this large icecube, (I had been napping on the couch!) I liked him immediatly! In fact, this photo is now my My Space profile picture. There was something whimsicle about him. My daughter was so proud of him, even though he towered over her and I suspect my husband did most of the work. When Mr. Snowman melted, she cried so hard! I'm glad that I took this picture so that she can remeber her first snowman.

Scrap Happy!

Skyline

Everytime we drive into town, I think about how beautiful the skyline is. Even having been to New York, I still think our city competes. In fact, I was amazed how familiar New York City felt. It WAS much bigger, but it really reminded me of Pittsburgh. I like the city. I wouldn't want to live there, but it's exciting to visit. I love the archictecture of the tall buildings and the way the lights shine. It's cool to see the stadiums and be reminded of concerts and games we saw there. I always look for the saxaphone player on the bridge near PNC Park. Even though the river is brown, it's still special to walk along the brick path right next to it. It's fun to watch the boats on a sunny day, and I especially like to catch a glimpse of the Gateway Clipper. One of my husband and my first dates was on that boat! I think it's awesome that we have inclines, and that we have so many bridges. I'm proud of our city. Proud of the towering buildings, the teams, and the fact that you can see broadway shows so close to home. My favorite sight of the city is when I'm coming home from a long trip and see it appear suddenly when I come through the tunnel! It's always a thrill, and a reminder that I'm almost home.

I've taken pictures of my city before. Usually from the top of Mount Washington, because everyone around here knows that's the best view. But this shot was different. It was just getting dark, and we were riding across one of the overpasses, in our truck, moving quickly when I snapped this shot. I didn't have time to take any more. Thankfully, I didn't need to. I love it.

Scrap Happy!

Little moments

My daughter and my husband were sitting together as she read her school sentences. I took this picture with the flash.
Next, I took another picture, this time closer, and used the flash. I like this one.
This last one is the most intimate, and really captures the soft comfort of snuggling with your Daddy. This one was taken with the flash turned off. I chose to get down lower because I was having trouble seeing her face as she often moved the papers. Without a flash, I really need to hold still, and I really needed my subjects to hold still. I held the camera in my right hand and helped hold my arm steady with my left hand. I usually hold my breath when I take a picture without a flash. I took a lot of pictures, because that's the best way to get a good one.

Quote of the Day: "I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see."

-I'm unsure who wrote this, but it fits my life so perfectly that it could have been me!

Scrap Happy!

Water Cameras

I (almost) single-handedly used up 3 water cameras on our cruise! I couldn't help it! We went snorkeling, played with a dolphin, went swimming in the Carribean right beside the Pirate ship we were on, and fed stingrays. So, we were in the ocean a lot! I loved the water camera, except for the fact that you have to wind it. And if you automatically wind it right after you take a shot so that it will be ready for the next one, you might end up with a bunch of wasted pictures if you accidentally hit the lever that takes the picture while you are swimming! Now that I have gotten used to our digital camera, it was hard not being able to look at the pictures I had taken to see if they were any good, since most things happened so fast. We ended up purchasing the package that a professional photographer had taken of us with the dolphin, because I didn't know if the pics had turned out, and this was a once in a lifetime event!!!!

Tip of the Day: Water cameras are great for the beach because you don't have to worry about the sand or sea spray. If you do have your regular camera at the beach, or somewhere you expect it might rain or get wet, keep it in a ziplock bag. I can't tell you how many positive comments we have gotten when we pull our camera out of it's ziplock. "What a great idea!" Hey, it works!

A Lazy Day at Sea

There are some pictures that take you back there the moment you see them. You remember that moment, that day, that time with a wistfulness... just from seeing a picture. This picture does that for me. It was a lazy day at sea on board our amazing cruise ship. You looked out the window, and all you could see from every direction was aqua blue water. It is a view I never tire of. It gets you so relaxed, and that is really the feeling that this picture conveys for me.

Tip of the Day: Try not to use your flash whenever possible. I took this picture with a flash the first time, but then realized that if she looked out the window, there might be enough light. Having her look out the window gave an added benefit. Her relaxed state of peacefulness no doubt came from looking out at that vast blue sea.

Scrap Happy!

Cheering for the home team!

We were blessed this year to go to the one and only playoff game of the 2007 Steeler's season! It really was a great game, even if we did lose! You can feel the excitement in this picture, as we got a touchdown and the fans went crazy! I loved the rush I got when I saw the Terrible towels waving all around the stadium! It was cold and drizzly, but you'd never know it the way we all carried on. Screaming, banging on the seats and of course, waving that Terrible Towel!
Ready to go into the Steeler stadium and cheer until we're hoarse!
We also took our daughter to a Pittsburgh Penguin game. She loves the Pens, and even though our seats were really high up, it was a great game. We won! As you can see below, the last goal of the game was a hat trick, (3 goals by the same player in one game) and everyone tossed their hats out onto the ice.
I usually don't do anything with the pictures I take of my husband and I without our daughter. So I won't be getting the pictures I took at the Steeler game printed out. However, I'm toying with the idea of making an album for myself online of our kidless pictures. Just so I have something to remember the times I did something without her!

Tip of the Day: Going to sporting events and cheering for the home team is a blast! If you find yourself going to watch a game and don't know much about the team, take some time beforehand and "Google" the team a little. If you find out a little more about the players, you will have more of an interest in the game. (Guys don't need to know anything more than the player's name, stats and the number on their jersey, but women usually need to feel some sort of attatchment to the players if we are going to be at all interested!)

Just a hint of color....

Happy New Year! and my apologies that it has taken me so long to write. From now on, I am going to post a new blog at the beginning of every week, either on Sunday or Monday. I AM busy, and on top of that, the computer I most frequently use has Net Nanny and won't let me get to my blog to write. That said, here is one of my Christmas pictures! I challenged myself to take pictures in black and white, with just an accent of color this Christmas! It's a setting on my camera that I didn't even know I had until I finally came across the manual in late November. I love it! This is a picture of my mantle on Christmas morning. I don't know if I'll ever do Christmas in black and white again, just because it is such a colorful season, and I felt my pictures were left wanting because of my black and white experiment.

Since I've written, I had my scrapbooking retreat, Harvest party, Christmas, New Years and Thanksgiving. I have been on a vacation to Disney World, and on their cruise as well. It's so hard missing 2 weeks before Christmas, just because that's the time if the year that's sooo busy with cookie baking, cards, presents and wrapping, Christmas parties and decorating. But being away was incredible, and I wouldn't change it. We had such a good time. I'll share pictures in another blog. Now that I've said my apologies, I hope that you will continue to offer me feedback on what you want to see, page ideas, picture taking tips, just let me know what your favorites are and what you think I'm missing.
Scrap Happy!!!!

Self portrait

There are a lot of times when you want that picture, but there just isn't anyone around to take it. Don't be afraid to turn the camera on yourself.

I love my cousin, inside jokes, being warm and needing to wear sunglasses...

I love My daughter, wearing blue, standing out for a good reason, feeling pretty, taking pictures, and the sunlight in late afternoon.

Having a digital camera makes it so much easier to take a photo of yourself! If you are going to do this, here are some tips:

*It is still important to take the picture from a good angle, I like this one. When you are looking up, your neck is thin! But watch that your nose doesn't look weird in the shot. (yes, I'm serious!)

* you don't have to be looking at the camera to get a good shot.

* Keep trying! After each shot, look at your picture and do it again if it cut part of your head off!

* Watch the lighting! I have taken pictures of myself in the direct sunlight, and that doesn't work well. It doesn't always work too well when you use a flash either, because you aren't able to hold the camera far enough from your face.

* Be careful that your arm doesn't show up too much in the shot! It may take away from the picture.

*If there are 3 of you, hold your heads side by side, literally cheek to cheek, and have the one in the middle take the picture. If one of you is slightly in front of the others, they will look huge!

* Lastly, if you have never done this and have no idea how to, simply hold the digital camera out and face it toward you. This will end up being a close up, remember! Aim it at your face, and make sure you keep your arm steady as you push the button. (Rememember that everything is reversed. I have turned the camera off due to pushing the wrong button more times than I can tell you! If this happens to you, you are not alone! )

Falling from my memory

Ahhh the fall! Leaves falling from the trees, Pumpkin stands by the road, the sweet crunch of a caramel apple....all of these things bring back memories of years past. I feel like last year's ride on the haywagon just happened a few months ago, but I already have pictures from this year's pumpkin patch experience, so it had to be over a year ago! Life gets confusing, especially if you wait a few years to put your pictures into an album! Here's another example! Last night on the news, the weatherman was talking to another anchor about the weather, and that we were getting the first frost of the season. This is unusual, he said, because at this point in October, we have usually had several by now. The anchor said, "I remember that we had snow on Halloween a few years ago." The weatherman says, "Actually, that was 10 years ago!"
If you already have years and years worth of pictures that are collecting dust somewhere, don't stop with just feeling guilty! Put those pictures into an album with journalling telling what was happening. If you are starting a new phase of your life, as a wife, mother, or gramma for example, start scrapbooking those memories and photos now. You will never regret it!

What's that girl doing?

There are always opportunities to take pictures at the Children's Museum! This page turned out just as I'd hoped it would! It really is very basic! I used a perfect fit paper from the Inspirational pack, so the word, "Discover" is already written on there! Then I added the title using letter stickers. I matted my favorite picture (I am really into pictures of the back of people right now!) and that was easy to do because the paper came in the same pack, so it matched perfectly. I cut out the boat that my daughter had made, and that's it!

So, lately I've been scrapping a lot, staying up pretty late, too. It's worth it, though, because I have really gotten a lot done. I just finished the 4th of July, and now I'm doing the 5th of July! Ok, JK. I just did the 5th , too. Yes, it is that bad, if you must ask! I have a retreat coming up in November, so I think I'll get everything done by my vacation! That's my goal!

Thanks to everyone who came to the workshop last night! We had a good time, pumpkin pie and cranberry tea. I stayed up long after the last of you had gone! I finished 7 pages! That isn't much I know, but the 4th of July was hard for me this year due to the fact that I feel I have exhausted every patriotic theme over the past 5 years. Other than that, I have really been inspired and having great page ideas. That makes scrapping so much easier! I have almost 2 books done now, and they need journalled.

Of course, scrapping is not all I have been doing with my time! I have been busy with teaching, meetings and something new, a Creative Memories party that I didn't even drive to Murrysville to do! It's a catalog party, but we just put the info in to my website, and then my customer (the host) sent out e-invitations explaining that everyone could look over the website online and order whatever they wanted and it would be shipped to them in days! She will still get the class credit for sales. This worked out perfectly for everyone involved, since they were all busy, and knew all about scrapbooking already. If you would like to check out my website and see all the new products and even order, click here: www.mycmsite.com/alea

Tip of the day: When you are using a new tool, make sure you try it out on a dud or a scrap piece of paper first. This is especially important if you did not purchase it from Creative Memories. One of my customers found this out the hard way and ruined a picture of her and her husband from the early days that just cannot be replaced.

Scrap Happy!

Filling the page with pictures

We went to the Children's Museum with friends, and I took just over 100 pictures! Of course I picked through them and didn't keep them all, but there were still A LOT of pictures I just had to get printed. In order to save room in my daughter's album, I completely covered the page with pictures and was able to pare our Museum visit down to a mere 4 pages. Above are 2 of the pages. I used the new everyday alphabet stickers to write the first letter of each kid's name. I liked how the super bright and fun stickers went with the pictures and memories. The top page shows the title I made using the same stickers, but also regular letter stickers. Don't worry, I did leave room on the pages not shown here for some journaling!

School Picture Day

I took my daughter to get her picture taken the other day. School photos! We are homeschooling, so I get to pick the company that takes my daughter's pictures! Just an added treat! I love the way they turned out. Something new they are doing is taking close ups so that they can use them in a sort of picture collage. They took a close up of her hands pointing to the globe, her hands folded in front of her, (I loved this because it showed a close up of her shirt and jeans, which I had carefully picked out for her to wear) and other close ups of that nature. I loved the idea of showcasing certain elements like that! I couldn't see paying for the close up of her shirt and pants, but I did take the very same picture in the parking lot as soon as we left!

Tip of the Day: Did you know that at most picture places you can bring your own props? I have been doing this more and more. I used to hate props in pictures because they didn't mean anything! Plus, they often are old and cheap looking, having been chewed on and played with by hundereds of other kids. I still think that some occasions don't need props. You don't want to take away from the outfit or person in the picture. You simply want to enhance. You also might want to write down pictures that you want the photographer to get.

Some examples of props I brought:

boy and girl picture: a live, fresh rose when my daughter and Daniel had their pic taken together

Kindergarten: I brought her school books, new backback, a fun, feathery pen, an apple and the globe

Easter: a giant basket I have that my girl can still fit in, her Easter basket, a marshmellow chick, a new stuffed bunny and a crystal cross

Christmas: a candy cane

Fun with Paper!

Sometimes I just can't find a sticker to go with my pictures! In these photos, you will see shots of pages and page elements I did for the album I made for the 10th grader. (now 11th!) When I can't find the perfect sticker, I enjoy making my own paper decorations!
This paper clown was made using a circle from the cutting system for the head, the flower from the mini punch for his puffy hair, and the star from the mini punch decorates his hat. The hat is a simple triangle shape with another flower punch on top. I free hand cut the collar around his neck.
I added sticker bows to these little bunnies to dress them up a little!
FLIP FLOPS!!!
Another great thing about making your own paper embellishments is that you can custom design them to match your page! Using scissors, punches/makers, and the cutting system, there's no end to what you can dream up!

Blossom

I created this page with the new blossom pack. It's paper fits perfectly on a 12x12 CM page, but I cut it to fit just half of this one. I made a tag with the matching stickers, which are thicker than your average sticker. I matted the sticker with a piece of paper and cut it out with zig zag scissors. Then I punched a hole in the top and threaded thin strips of paper through the hole. I used it as a title by using letter stickers. The tag was really the only page element, and I love how it turned out!

These pictures came about because my mom always used to take our picture in front of her Azalea bushes in the spring. She took my daughter's picture there last year and wanted to stick with the tradition. So this is a sentimental page!

Evening Bubbles

You know those times when you wish you had a camera? Well, I had a moment like that last evening. In the lighting, and just the perfect way my daughter was standing right in front of me when she reached out to pop the bubbles I was blowing, I saw her perfect reflection in the bubble! It would have made the perfect picture! Quickly, I ran into the house to get my camera before the light changed, asking my husband to refill the bubble wand as I raced by. But alas, I never was able to catch that picture. :( It floats in my head instead, taunting me! However, as we played with the bubbles, taking turns watching as one of us ran with the bubble wand while bubbles billowed out behind us, I was able to catch this picture, which I like a lot. I love the way the light is shining, and that my daughter is running toward it. It's some small consolation for not getting the picture I wanted.

I have completed several pages, although I feel stuck right now on a 2 page spread of all the various things we did in May. I just can't tie these 2 pages together, and I so desperately want to. So, I put them aside, because obviously the DVD I was watching was too interesting to pay attention to my scrapbooking!

Scrap Happy!

School in my Pajamas

"Can I wear my pajama's to do school?" My daughter asked me on her official first day of school. Considering that I had spent at least 20 minutes in my bed the night before mentally going through her clothes for the perfect outfit, it was bittersweet to give up my dream and tell her yes. Watching her walk down the steps in her pajamas, carrying her new princess backpack directly in front of her, didn't bring up the smallest teardrop! I knew that she wasn't going away for school, but rather just to the front porch for that traditional "first day of school" picture!

Even though it is only kindergarten, it's time consuming! So, I gave up my picture perfect living room in favor of a table that I can leave my pictures and scrapping supplies out on full time, until I can catch up on her albums. I do feel like I'm making more headway now in her albums, and I'm not stuck away in my basement by myself. Sometimes, you have to do what you have to do!

Hershey Park

When you travel to the land of Chocolate, (as we did right before we went to New York) you discover that even the air is different. It's tinged with a delicious smell....CHOCOLATE! The light fixures on some of the main streets are Hersheys Kisses, both wrapped and unwrapped! Even the roads appear to be chocolate brown, and I'm not sure if that was just my imagination or not! At first, everything seems to be one big commercial for Hershey's, but the longer you stay, the more normal that seems!
We were there in August, and you would expect the chocolate to be melting at that time of the year in Pennsylvania! Instead, it was chilly and rainy. We toured Chocolate World, and rode the "How chocolate is made" ride over and over again because my daughter loved it. It's free and they even give you free chocolate at the end of the ride! In the land where nothing is free, it was a nice change! Because of the rain, our plans had to change slightly because we couldn't spend time at the water park and even the amusement park would have been miserable in the cold rain. But we ended up finding some other surprises! We found a Diner (The Soda Jerk) that was awesome! It was right next door to a candy store, where we went crazy and spent $10 on all kinds of candy! We also went to the Harrisburg mall where we spent a good hour in the Old Pro Bass Shop. Ok, neither my husband nor I fish or hunt, but the store was really cool! My daughter really loved it. They had tons of "stuffed" animals acting out various scenes. ( My daughter and I always looked for the bullet wound.) They had a huge "mountain in the middle of the store that you could climb (with the proper shoes!), and a huge tank of fish. My daughter loved climbing onto the various boats, and we played putt putt with the test clubs! I only wish I had taken some pictures there! One night, we gave in and went to Hershey Park in the pouring rain. We did get a lot accomlished, in spite of the rain, which reminded me of bullets as I rode a coaster in the rain. Ouch! The next day, our last day in Hershey, the rain stopped at last, and we were able to tour the amusement park along with the hordes of others who had been waiting for the same thing! Overall, it was a good trip! You just can't beat the smell of chocolate in the air!

Scrap Happy!

Tip of the Day: If you are going on a trip and can think of specific pictures that you want to take, make sure you write the ideas down, take that list with you, and put it in a place that you will find it when you are there, maybe in with your toiletries!