a combination of good things

1. My mother in law gave me PhotoShop Elements 11 last week. I installed it on my new, Windows 8 laptop (this is a post for another time but to sum it up: learning curve is steep).

2. After Mass on Christmas Eve, we had our pictures taken quickly and got lucky with a few good ones.

3. I stumbled across a great assortment of Project Life quote freebies on Elise Blaha's blog.

1+2+3=a new timeline cover photo...

I hope you have had a great Holiday. We surely have. I cannot wait for a great 2013.

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getting my merry on-

There have been fancy parties for work...

plenty Elf on the Shelf shenanigans...

treat making of the sweet and savory variety...

 

Mason jars for sweets.

 

Tree shaped veggie pizzas for an annual ornament exchange...

Admittedly, since Friday it has been hard to find any spirit at all. The sadness over the shootings in CT is crippling. My girls and I have been speaking openly and praying fervently. I know of nothing else to do.


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2013 calendars for gifting

This is my 4th or 5th year for making calendars for my family members. My love of digi scrapbook stuff + picture taking always makes this a given. But this year I have worked more, taken most photos with my iphone instead of my DSLR and I find myself with less time to make this tradition happen. About 10 days ago, I thought this would be the year I did NOT do them.

And then I saw these awesome 4x6 printables from Eighteen25:

And we did an impromptu at-home photo shoot that resulted in a handful of worthy pictures of the girls, dog and family. 

Last year I gave simple 4x6 photos that contained a monthly calendar and were joined by a 4x6 magnetic frame and acrylic easel. Easy peasy.

So to capitalize on the Eighteen25 freebies and last year's framing options I devised this plan...

I retrofitted an 8x10 calendar template from Scrapflower to include one photo of my girls and to print at 4x6. Making this:

into this:

I printed all freebies from Eighteen 25 and included two more photos (one of just my girls and one of our family). I spent just under $15 for all of these at Costco and I will have a total of 10 sets to give (and 1-2 for myself!).

Today I quickly packaged them in a cello bag and added a bit of washi tape and they are ready for giving! Woot Woot and Merry Christmas!

Past calendars:

I hope this gives those of you who think it may be too late for handmade gifts an extra push. Pin It

I'm bringing Blogging back!

I miss it. I am not sure who will remain as followers after my very sporadic performance over the last few months but that doesn't matter {much}. Perhaps the biggest void is personal because when I sit down {so rarely these days} to work on recording memories, I do not have this digital diary to consult. As my kids get older it may be that I share less about them both because as a pre-teen, one may not want her photo and life details broadcast and secondly because I have a truly duel role now as a mom and a person fully back in the work force. The good news is that while the photos may not be of my kids specifically, that date stamp on the posts jogs my memory as does the meal I may have prepared or craft we created. That is enough of a creative boost for me to easily plug in details to our family scrapbook.  I also am immersed in social media and have interesting clients and colleagues who expose me to new information daily. I plan to share those kinds of tidbits here as well.

So as an attempt to finish off 2012 in strong fashion here are a few glimpses of what has been going on!

I am still a Pinterest enthusiast. I have added a board for items I actually make, bake, create or in some way complete. I add in a little commentary as well. Here's the latest:

Creamy Banana Sour Cream Cake. 

Very yummy. Easy to prepare. My downfall is that the cakes did not release well from the pans. Boo!

Another fun board that I add to regularly is Contests On Pinterest. I do this because I like to participate in some of them although I have yet to win. I also collect these because I am involved in planning and executing contests like this for clients and I like to see what others are doing and especially see what works well and what doesn't. 

My shameless plug...please participate in the Fresh Express Salads Sweepstakes on Pinterest. There is one running now through the end of November and another will begin December 1. Click ::HERE:: to enter. 

Happy Thanksgiving! 

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meal plan monday: 9/24

It's going to be an odd week but since I have one or two things planned, here goes:

Monday: Pasta with cherry tomatoes and basil. My basil plant is still kicking!
Tuesday: Slow Cooker Parmesan Honey Pork Roast Recipe

Wednesday: Dinner out as we are all going in a separate direction.
Thursday: Shelby's Choice! Her sister will be gone on a school trip.
Friday: 6:30 Basketball game so we will likely order pizza after.

I volunteered to make 4 dozen Cream Puffs for a school/church event on Sunday so I'll be spending most of Saturday on that. Easy recipe but it does take time to bake them.

 (Betty Crocker)

More meal plans ::HERE::.





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my project life*ish instagram page

(click to view slightly larger) 

 Today I completed this page that contains 9 instagram photos taken in the month of June. I am hoping in the years to come that pictures really are worth a 1000 words because this is just the bare minimum when it comes to memory keeping. And in the words of Ali Edwards, I am OK with that.

Just to see what exactly I have gotten recorded for 2012, I placed an order for 12x12 pages at Costco today. I have 13 pages to be printed and I already 4 in my possession. That takes me to 17 for 2012. I have told stories through July of this year. Yes; I have a lot left that I would like to do but I am happy when I review what I have accomplished.

Are you a chronological scrapper? Do you always say I will never catch up? Funny because I think I am a pretty Type A personality but I just don't let myself go there when it comes to this. Go me...giving myself a break!

Now for a Type A story...I cracked the crown off my back tooth last Saturday. At the dentist on Monday he said that comes from clenching teeth during the night from stress. I have tried to take a lot of deep breaths following that news. I don't feel stressed in an overwhelming way but this is evidence that it exists. Working through that :) Pin It

Pinterest: Pinned It, Made It

It's been awhile since I shared my Pinterest successes! I made two recipes this week that were both very tasty and so simple to make.

First, Pea Salad:

You can find the Pea Salad Recipe ::HERE::.

Last night I made this amazing cornbread from two Jiffy mixes! Jiffy is fun and retro. Those boxes have never changed, have they?

You simply combine one cornbread mix and one yellow cake mix PLUS all the ingredients listed on each box.

Thirty minutes later you have this! Find the recipe ::HERE::. 

I have never made cornbread in my life but I do eat it on occasion at restaurants. This was as good.

Pinterest is not a waste of time when good food is the result. That's what I tell myself!
 

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Monday Meal Plan 9/10/12

With the kids back in school plus a much busier schedule, better meal planning is a must.

Monday: BLTs for the adults and bacon and toast for the kids. The girls and I have to be out the door by 5:15 for dance classes so we will eat and leave cooked bacon behind for Dave.
Tuesday: Cheesy Mostaccioli from the freezer, salad and garlic bread. 
Wednesday: Another busy night with after school activities. Grilled Cheese and fruit for me and the girls before we leave.
Thursday: Insanely busy night will likely mean a drive thru meal.
Friday: Grill out at home. Hot dogs and Italian Sausage with sauteed onions and peppers.

The temps are starting to cool off a bit so I may make chili over the weekend to divide up for meals on the go.

View more meal plans here! Pin It

Project Life Instagram Page

If you follow along with the *official* Project Life products, you will see they are introducing page protectors that house square photos for people who use/adore/are addicted to, Instagram.

During last weekend's predicted non-stop rain and then finally actual rain, I created a template for 3" square photos. I began with a page of all May photos and I had to work hard to whittle it down to just these 9 because I took a lot of iPhone photos that I "instagrammed". This is very straightforward and the photos are enhanced with just a few digi scrap products, all from {Scrapflower}.

Do you use instagram?
Do you print them or scrapbook with them?


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digital scrapbooking freebies

Over the past few days, there have been a few freebies that I do not intend to pass up. Top of the list, CD calendar templates from Persnickety Prints. Each year for the past 4-5, I have made calendar gifts for my family at Christmas. This is not optional, it is an expectation!

I love the simple, graphic nature of these. Family: close your eyes because this will be this year's design! A few shots of past years:

2009

2011

2012

Also available beginning yesterday, are some awesome journal cards, perfect for Project Life. Scrapflower is having a blog buzz. Start ::HERE:: to  get the freebies. Here are a few samples:

available on ::Facebook:: 

available on ::Facebook:: 

Here in Ohio, we are expecting lots of rain from Hurricane Isaac over this long, holiday weekend. I am hoping to spend some of my time indoors being creative! 

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digital scrapbooking-project life*ish pages

Using some of my most recent photos and I'm getting a few more memories recorded. Plain and simple but I'm calling them good.

To find products used for the above layouts visit: Scrapflower. 

Click to view them {slightly} larger.

The first one was inspired by this layout that I just LOVE. 

Find details ::HERE::. 

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Have you updated your apps lately?

Several apps that I use daily on either my iPhone, iPad or both have benefited from recent updates. Fortunately, I got the heads up through Twitter and Facebook but I wanted to pay it forward here as well. Apps you should update ASAP:

Any others I may have missed? Pin It

return to life

Project Life that is. Not going to stress about catching up on scrapbooking the months and moments that have gone by, but when I sit down and get a page done, I love it. This is from a few weeks ago:

And it is from July. I think my last page prior to that date back to March or April. Maybe when the kids return to school I can commit a bit more time to working on this.

It is not like I don't have enough pictures or awesome product. Here are a few things I am dying to use from {Scrapflower}.

You can find all of these in the shop. 

And finally, I feel compelled to say something about my absence. So there, I said it :) I want to return to this space so let's hope it goes according to that plan. 

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I "do" social media

and apparently I am not alone! Love the facts shared in this infographic about Social Media and my hometown, Cincinnati.

My early introduction to LinkedIn and then Twitter were a godsend. I was an early adopter of both channels and they have led me to incredible opportunities. I am now solidly established as a social media consultant and I love my job! Along with the two mentioned, I sincerely embrace Facebook for business, Pinterest and email marketing. When all of these channels are properly connected and maintained with an influx of great content, it is a winning combination.

Go Cincinnati!

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Monday Meal Plan:: June 25

By planning out the week's menu I can accomplish several things: we will eat better, I will have a menu in mind and I have something to share on this here blog!

Monday: Poppy Seed Chicken (in the oven right now) along with steamed broccoli

 {source}

Tuesday:  Frozen pizzas with side salads and/or veggies for dipping (Work Day + late afternoon orthodontist appointment)
Wednesday:  Kraft Sizzling Salads Asian Kit. I bought this on sale at the grocery. I think I will marinate Salmon instead of chicken since we will have had chicken on Monday and Dave has become a big salmon fan recently. I think this is a great idea: marinate and dressing packaged together and the portion is not huge.
Thursday: girls night in or out...Dave golfs so we will likely have something simple at home
Friday: Dinner with friends at our favorite Mexican restaurant (woot!)

On Saturday night I made this Butterfinger Grape Salad. I know it is an odd combo of things and it doesn't really photograph well but trust me it is outstanding! My friend Kim has been making this for about a year and I finally tried it myself and took it to a potluck where it was a hit.

It has been an extremely hot here and while my pooch is not a fan of plain ice cubes, he does love treats. LOVES them. So, inspired by this idea, I mixed equal portions of water and beef broth together and filled muffin tins. The girls broke up a few soft dog treats and put those inside too. Skipper gobbled his first two right up. Bonus, it kept him busier longer than 15 seconds. We are going to try this in a jello mold and than drive a stake in the ground to hold it in place while he works on it. Seems like it could be a good, lengthy distraction for when we have guests over...otherwise he non stop begs for people to throw a ball to him.

And in unrelated news, CatScrap has closed and {Scrapflower} has bloomed beautifully in it's place. I am supporting the site by providing content via Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. Join in! Great freebies available this week.

Find other meal planners ::HERE::. 

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InstaFriday

Hmm. Not been blogging much. Not much at all. Trying to find a rhythm in the chaos that allows me a manageable balance of being a mom + employee. Especially now with the kids at home. I am making it all work. Not effortlessly but we are all surviving.

So how about I share some phone snaps in an effort to resuscitate this blog?




Pre Recital



Post Recital




Traveling to the lake for a few days. Mason came in our car for the last hour.




The lake bath. Classy.



Go Fish at the lake house.




Marina view from the lake house



Loads of laughter




Driving the boat




And this very frightening find in the camera roll.

Linked up at LifeRearranged. 


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone Pin It