Gettin' By

Photo Friday | Spring Break 2015

I'm just now getting around to editing our spring break photos from Mexico, and thought I'd share a few of my favorites here today. And since while viewing other people's vacation photos is best done with la large supply of adult beverages, I'll wait to share until you are properly equipped. (And if it's too early for margaritas, then at least grab some chips & salsa!) 

 Here we go! 

I'm sure you'll be seeing these (and many more) on scrapbook pages in the near future! Thanks for stopping by and hey - happy weekend!

 

Five on Friday: Favorite Christmas Photos

I was not a very good photographer for the Christmas festivities this year, and the fact that I took less than 75 photos of the whole celebration will attest to that. I'll attribute this to the fact that  (1) I need to have my favorite lens serviced so it stops taking every third frame out of focus; (2) I was being lazy...egg nog lattes and butterbraids will do that to a girl on Christmas morning; and (3) I'm making a concerted effort to experience moments by being IN them, rather than being behind the lens.

Needless to say, I still ended up with shots that I love, even though they are far from being technically perfect. There is blurriness...there is funky lighting...there are poor compositions. But this is real life and sometimes that happens. These five scenes from the holiday still capture my heart: 

1) Surprised expressions realizing that Christmas wishes do come true

 

2) Celebrating with all creatures, great and small.

 

 

3) Paying homage to Clark Griswold and the all-hallowed metal Flexible Flyers

 

4) Reveling in the excitement of new gifts

 

5) Pink cheeks, roaring fires, and warm mugs of cocoa

 

Now to print out some of these and get to scrapping! Hope your holiday (and photos) were wonderful as well!

NYC Recap

Here it is Wednesday already and I'm still playing catch-up after a (super fast) trip to NYC last weekend. It was not nearly enough time to see and do everything on my bucket list, but I did manage to cram in a lot of venues in the short time we were there. This may have required staying up 'til the wee hours of the morning (3:30 anyone?), an act which I may still be paying for four days later. I think that means I am officially an old fart.

At any rate, while I go tackle my tasks for the day, please enjoy a few of my favorite photos from the trip. It was all iPhone photography here - my heart was racing too fast the entire trip to worry about DSLR settings and such - but I did capture some shots I love!

The kids have fall break on Friday which means a three-day weekend at the cabin in the mountains - a distinctly different scene than last weekend. And definitely an earlier bedtime. 

Happy Wednesday, my friends!

Meet Jasper.

On Monday the kids and I were picking up some dog food at PetSmart, and as we usually do, we strolled by the adoption center to see the animals. Several new kittens had been brought in just a few hours earlier, and a little orange one who was huddled in the back corner of her kennel caught our eye. She was timid and cautious, but slowly crept toward us and offered up a meek meow. 

We spent the next hour in the introduction area, playing and cuddling and petting this little creature. She had a shaved belly, fresh from her spay the day earlier, and had been through microchipping, vaccinations, deworming, and transport to the center in one day. She was a bit weary, with broken whiskers, matted fur and watery eyes...but with a giant purr that belied her tiny presence and rough start in this world.

It was that purr that did me in. It reminded me that amongst the hardness of the world, there are still soft hearts. And purring kittens. We had no plans to adopt a new family member that day, but she came home with us. Of course she did.

So we have been spending the past few days introducing her to the other family members, orienting her to the new surroundings, and doing lots and lots of snuggling. Meet Jasper, the newest member of our purr brigade. (Or as Riely insists we spell it: JasPURR.)

And the bonus? She's got a mean vampire kitty impression - just in time for Halloween!

Happy Friday!

 

P.S.  I know I promised you all a video this week but iMovie and my new iPhone are not playing nice and I've spent an ungodly amount of time trying to get them to kiss and make up so I can get the project done already.  I think I finally figured out the kinks, and am hoping I'll have the new video posted Saturday...Monday at the very latest! Thanks for your patience :)

Back from Break.

If I were really being transparent with my blog post titles, that would read: Back from Break. BLAH. Because that's kinda how I'm feeling ever since returning from spring break in sunny Mexico. But it would also mean that I'd be whining about a decidedly pathetic topic like post-vacation hangover and it would probably make you want to punch me in the face (um, deservedly so.)  So I went ahead and deleted the Blah part. And then just went on to type three more sentences about it. Ok, now I want to want punch myself in the face.

So while we work through our anger management issues, let's take a moment to view some pretty beach photos from our vacation, ok?  After all, you can't really be mad when you've got a view like this:

Oh yeah, baby.  Or how about these:

And you've got to smile when you're spending time with some darn awesome people:

and meeting the all the charming local characters:

or exploring the deeps of the great blue sea:

or enjoying the all-hallowed afternoon siesta in one of these:

 

Because this right here, is the cure for just about everything:

So now we are back home in Colorado and nightly conversations revolve around how exactly we can quit our jobs and move to Mexico permanently, thus avoiding SpringBreakIsOver-itis altogether. So far, we've come up with business ventures involving golf cart rentals (Mike's area of expertise), a service that locates lost beach items (Hayden found a camera on the ocean bottom and Mike & I found a set of car keys on the beach), or margarita quality control for local restaurants (my personal favorite). 

But until something pans out south of the border, I'll be here on a more regular basis now. I do have lots of projects and stuff to share and will get those posted just as soon as I finish this margarita.  ¡Salud!

 

How to Take A Christmas Card Photo.

1. Pick the coldest possible day of the year to shoot. Because it's not fun unless someone gets frostbite.

2. Beg your handy husband to put those power tools to use and make a giant lighted star as a prop (and - BONUS! finally cross one DIY project off your Pinterest board!)

3. Bribe a child to stand in front of said prop while you set up the tripod and get the camera settings dialed in.

 

4.  Take lots and lots and lots of shots. Expect that most of them will be unusable, because at least one family member will have their eyes shut...

 

...or it will be completely out of focus....

 

....or the timer will go off at random intervals when no one is prepared.

 

5. After at least one family member has shed tears, threatened divorce, or been grounded for the rest of 2013, upload all your photos and send up a quick prayer to the photo gods that at least one will be decent enough to use on your Christmas cards.

6.  Have a drink! (And get those cards ordered - it's December 10th, for pete's sake!)

 

Week in the Life 2013

I've finally accepted the fact that I am not a good Project Life scrapper. As much I would like to document every week in our lives, I just can't keep up.  And when I fall behind, I get stressed and  grouchy, which is not much fun for anyone. (Just ask my kids.) Plus, I really don't need another unfinished project to stow away in my craft closet. There are plenty in there already, mocking me every time I open the door.

But even though I can't seem to be able to keep up with the Project-Life style of scrapping, I do love the idea of Week in the Life. Documenting one week seems much more attainable than tackling all 52 of them, you know?! So last week, after giving myself a caffeine-induced pep talk (You're good enough...You're smart enough..) I made an effort to take daily photos that I thought would give a good overview of a typical week in our lives:

So I have the photos - now to do something with them!  I'm thinking of using one of the new BasicGrey Capture journals for this project. These albums are 7x9 and come with tabbed inserts, cardstock pages, and page protectors so there's plenty of options for my 75+ photos and journaling. I'm also planning to use the Hey Boy collection if I need any additional papers - love the patterns and colors in this set and I think they'll work well with my variety of photos.

In addition to the photos, I'm wanting to add in some "daily life" memorabilia - receipts, shopping lists, notes from school, etc. Hoping that capturing this week will make me feel better about not tackling the other 51!

So how are you documenting Week in the Life? I'd love to hear your plans and see your projects!

Give-It-Away Thursday: Big Picture Classes

I'm kicking off this Thursday with some exciting news from Big Picture Classes! Today their newest class, The Phone Photography Project opens for registration. I'm excited to be a contributor to this class, because like many scrapbookers, my iPhone has become my go-to camera and I'm always looking for ways to improve and perfect my phone photography.

The Phone Photography Project is a month-long workshop where you'll learn to take better photos with the camera you always have with you. Document your summer adventures—with help from 32 incredible instructors who will be issuing daily smartphone photography challenges, as well as:

• dozens of tips and tricks from the pros for taking better photos with your mobile-phone camera
• a handbook of 60+ photography app reviews for iPhone and Android, so you know which are worth your time and money
• dozens of project ideas for getting photos off your device and into your world
• interaction with 32 experienced iPhoneographers and Androidographers, and hundreds of fellow students in a private classroom and on Instagram
• giveaways, contests, discounts, bonus downloads, and fun fun fun!

Here's a nifty video preview of some of the fun you'll find in this class:

Right now you can register for the introductory price of $39, but this price won't last long, so don't delay!  You can find out all the important details at Big Picture Classes. I hope you'll join us for this fabulous fun summer course!

And while we're on the topic of Big Picture classes, I have a spot to give away in the fabulous May Flaum's newest adventure, Camp Scrap:

Camp Scrap 2013 is the place to be this summer! Spend the entire month of June scrapbooking with May Flaum and hundreds of her closest friends in an online, choose-your-own-adventure paper crafting camp. You'll enjoy more than 40 new and exclusive projects from May, a dozen "mini class" videos with accompanying handouts, daily emails, a bustling student message board and gallery, and more!
 
This 4-week workshop includes all the fun, instruction, and inspiration you'd find at an in-person scrapbooking retreat. But you get to participate entirely from home in your shorts and flip-flops (or whatever counts as your comfort gear for summer).

If you'd like to be entered to win a spot at Camp Scrap, just leave me a comment today telling me what you're most looking forward to this summer! I'll randomly pick a winner from the comments on Monday, May 13. And let the countdown to summer begin!

UPDATED WITH WINNER:

Five on Friday.

I know I've been a bit delayed (read:lazy) in posting any vacation photos, so today's list-o-five features some of my favorites from our time in the Bahamas:

And while I know that viewing other people's vacation photos is a task embarked upon only with a large supply of both patience and booze, should you wish to attempt the feat, you can see our Atlantis album in its entirety right here.

Happy Friday, friends!

The Fishing Hole

One of my favorite places ever to take photos is in Kansas on our cousin Jack's farm.  He's got a few fishing holes out in the pastures that he stocks and the kids and their cousins head out there for several hours of drowning worms each time we visit.  The light is always amazing, especially just before sunset, and I have gotten so many magical shots there. 

It's the place where this boy has learned to fish...

...and bait his own hook.

Where the bait is squirmy, slimy, and pretty irresistable...

...and sometimes more fun than the fishing itself!

It's a place to break in your very first rod...

....where patience is learned and laughter is plenty...

...and where deep concentration requires you to stick out your tongue.

(even if you're not fishing).

It's where the sunlight can make a little girl look like an angel...

....where big brothers can teach little sisters...

...and where a daddy's lap can be the best spot on the shore.

And if the fishing stinks, you can always resort to rock-throwing:

Just remember, when the sun goes down, it's time to head home for supper!

 

Where's your favorite photo spot? And what kind of memories have you captured there?

Enjoy your Wednesday!