Took the words right out of my mouth



9 months

This is as about as current as I can get with posting a scrapbok page AND picture of Jeralyn.  I created this page yesterday/today.  I'm thankful for the short blurbs of creativity I get to indulge in!  And that's all I have to say about that...

And I obviously still cannot help but use Erica Zane's With You kit!  Although not all of the elements are from her kit.

Owl Always Love You

Hello!  Well, I sure am glad I enjoyed those nice days last week because the weather has turned ugly!  Wind, rain, wind, rain, etc.  It's a good excuse to stay inside and scrapbook!

I created this page a few weeks ago when I was on a scrapbooking sprint:

I added another category to my 'happy' lists on the side bar called Happy Baby & Happy Mama.  I like good resources; I hope you do too!

Have a wonderful morning/afternoon/evening!  I'm off to scrap or read!

I think I still have pregnancy brain

Some moms have told me that "pregnancy brain" never really goes away.  So is it the cause of me not being able to make a decision about anything?  Like even simple decisions?  And then just a moment ago I was like, "Oh, this is the time of year we are usually on vacation." (as I sat there with this day-dreaming look in my eye).  And then I was like WAIT A MINUTE!  This is MAY, not September.  Oh dear!  I was confusing Memorial Day with Labor Day.  This is not good!  And then sometimes I'll be thinking so deeply about something that I'll forget where I am...like not really, but I'll have to bring myself back to reality.  It's so weird!  Haha!  Ok, am I freaking some of you out now?  Please tell me this is normal after having children!  Ha!

And I apologize if I've already posted this page, as you can see, my memory isn't completely back to normal.  Whatever normal is...



A recent decision that was hard for me to make has been to take a break from design.  I've basically already been taking a break.  My time is precious.  Very precious.  I only have so many hours in a day to have time to think and be creative.  I have decided I want to devote that time to scrapbooking and other creative endeavors.  She takes two naps a day now.  My time during her first nap is completely devoted to exercise, showering, putting on make-up (because I don't leave the house without it!), and catching up on blog stuff (if that!). Second nap is like my breather, a time to relax a bit, but it's full of all sorts of stuff, like cleaning, organizing, prepping for dinner, scrapbooking, reading, or sitting on the deck and being a big ole lazy bum on those beautiful sunshine days.  Sorry, I didn't mean to go into great detail about what I do during naptime.  Ha!

Anyway, so taking a break from design (or maybe stopping for forever--who knows!) has been a hard decision for me to come to.  At first I wanted to please others.  When I mentioned my thoughts about stopping to Quent, he was surprised.  Then I wanted to backtrack.  But I realized that I needed to make this decision for myself, and not for anyone else.  I don't want to be a people-pleaser in that regard.  It took me weeks to decide.  And now I'm 98% good with my decision.  The 2% is still that longing to design and fear that I won't get back into it...but I'm ok with that too.

So I'm not sure when, but I will be having a big retirement sale at MScraps.  I will let you know when!

Have a happy day!

Week 32

It's been awhile since I've shared a scrapbook page.  Oops!  I'm still plugging away at her weekly baby journal.  I get caught up, then I get behind, and so on.  I really have been enjoying it!  And doing this weekly has helped me remember different stages of her growth.  And it's a clear visual of just how fast this goes by!  It's like we blinked and here she is now 9 months old (in two days).

My friend Rebekah linked me to a great site that I think other mothers would be interested in checking out.  It's been eye opening to me.  It's called Hands Free Mama.  I'll probably share more about it later. 

Until then I'm going to enjoy the sunshine!

Mother's Day

This is a little late...  I feel so very blessed to be a mother.  It was something I desired since shortly after we married, but especially in all of the 7 years we were waiting for our baby.  And the hardest times during those years was when I had to face the issue of not being a mother, like on Mother's Day.  Years ago I vowed I would never go to church on Mother's Day again until I had a child.  It was just too heartbreaking.  (Ok, this is extremely hard to open up like this, but I'm doing it anyway).  We went to a church that honored all of the mothers with a gift on Mother's Day.  It was really sweet, but when all of the mothers get to stand and you are still sitting, that breaks your heart!  I found myself in the bathroom in a stall crying.  And when I came out of the stall there were 5-6 women there to embrace me and encourage me.  I will never forget that day.  And it was the last Sunday I found myself in church on Mother's Day, until this one.  So you can imagine how glorious it felt to be standing there with my baby girl, to be honored as a mother with a gift of a rose and chocolate.  Ha!  It's not about the gifts, it's about the gift that God blessed me with, my little Jeralyn.  My heart is overflowing with joy!  She fills my life with sunshine (and there's a LOT of cloudy days in Southeast Alaska).

And I was so thankful to celebrate this Mother's Day knowing that a small group of friends, who have also been waiting to have a baby, all have their babies now!  God is so good!

Soap box

Every once in awhile I have to hop up onto my soap box, so here it goes:

I've been thinking a lot lately about security/insecurity.  Recently I've been doing a little reading and something got me thinking about it.  From what I read, children start to categorize things at a very young age.  And then there comes a time when they compare themselves to another as in categorizing objects, likes, dislikes, etc.  It's a sense of belonging, a sense of feeling like they are apart of something.  They find things that are common; they see things that are uncommon.  And this goes on through the teenage years through adulthood.  Tis true, but some children, teens, and adults take this comparing and categorizing to a level that produces insecurity.  If they are different than others, they may feel bad about themselves.  If they don't have what others have, they may think they aren't good enough.  This could happen with grades, sports, hobbies, penmanship, anything!  We can all see what we have and don't have compared to the next person--it happens all the time!  But what are we going to do about it?  Are we going to feel like less of a person?  Or think we are better?  Can you stand alone in your preferences?  Are you secure in who you are?  Are you secure in your differences? 

To be honest, it bothers me that kids see the differences.  I wish that they would all notice and then move on, being ok with the differences.  We are all different and unique!  No one is exactly the same!  But why do we feel safe when something is "the norm" or because we fit in to a group or society?  Why do we feel like we have to fit a certain mold?  Are you ok with being yourself?

Over the years I have learned to grow my strengths and stop pouting about my weakness.  I've learned to accept those things I'm not great at and focus on those things I am good at.  It doesn't mean I don't try harder in those weaker areas, but I no longer focus on them as if I'm a failure.  I've also learned to enjoy the differences between me and my fellow man.  For instance, I used to feel jealous when I would see women all dressed up cute and stylish, but now I realize that is not me.  I don't even like to dress up!  And now I admire that about other women and compliment them, at the same time feeling great in my jeans and t-shirt!  Such freedom!  Goodbye insecurity!

I've said it hundreds of times (and this is a reminder for me, too) and I'll say it again:

BE YOURSELF!  It's the BEST person you can be!

2 pages

I just put Jeralyn down for her morning nap, so I thought I would post some more pages before I exercise.  Speaking of exercise, I've been on working out on my stationary bike 5-6 times a week during her morning nap.  I'm still trying to figure out what time of the day I should do toning exercises.  I'm also wanting to get back into running, but I feel like I need to be more organized in order for that to happen.  My ideal time to run is in the morning.  After she wakes our mornings are busy, so I will have to great creative if I want to run during that time.

The digital scrapbooking kit I've been using a lot lately is With You by Erica Zane.  I just can't seem to get enough of it!  I used her kit for most of everything on these 2 pages:

1st family photo

I've been scrapping a lot lately which I am SOOOOOO thankful for!  I've just been in this scrapping mood so I'm trying to get as much done as my heart desires.  Ha!  That is, when I get the chance.  Persnickety Prints is having a sale starting on May 4th, so I'm trying to get as many 2011 scrapbook pages completed as possible to have printed.  I'm on a roll, so I'm excited!

I Love Grandma

Here's another page I recently worked on.  I'm having so much fun scrapping!  But with that being said, baby is waking and I need to get dinner started!  Ta-ta for now!

Every Single Day

I am having so much fun with this new kit from The Shabby Shoppe!  I've made a goal for myself to scrap one page a day.  Right now it's attainable, but I do have days where I don't get to it.  It's not a pressure goal, but more of a relaxed goal.  My little word for the year is "create" and I'm finding just how important that word has been for me.  I need to do creative, constructive things during my down time.  It's important!  More pages to come soon...

Cheating with templates

Ok, I admit it!  Scrapbooking your children is no easy task.  Why?  Why??!!  Because there are SOOOO many pictures to scrapbook.  I'm trying to reign myself in and pick my favorite photos.  I'm trying to use journaling prompts.  I'm trying to think about the most important moments I want to highlight in my pages.  It's not easy!  So I'm really trying to not scrapbook every series of pictures.  And what's really awesome about it is that I'm actually scrapping!!  It's been fun and it feels so good to be creative!

But sometimes I don't want to think too much about how I want a layout to look, so I've been using templates.  I call it cheating, but it's really not.  It's a handy-dandy way to get your photos on a page so you can chase after your child who is pulling on every cord imaginable in your computer room.  Whew!

Both of these pages were created using templates from Double-D Studio (Designer Digitals):

Queen of my heart

A pinner on Pinterest led me to buy a new digital scrapbooking kit.  Yes, Pinterest made me do it.  Ha!  The kit is from The Sweet Shoppe called With You by Erica Zane.  Sometimes I just need a little something new to motivate me to scrap.  I  know I'm a digital scrapbook designer, but I still feel that I'm a scrapbooker first.

Week 27::Baby Journal::

So I'm caught up on the baby journal to Week 27!  But wouldn't you know, Jeralyn is 34 weeks today!  So I won't let this "catching up" fool me!  I am right on track with journaling though.  I'm thankful for that!  Sometimes I have to jot down the date and what she did on a piece of scratch paper so I won't forget.  It's fun having the exact date of something that happened!  So here is what I did for Week 27:

She's growing so fast!  She's crawling!  She's clapping!  She says "dada" and "mama", but I'm not sure if she actually understands that I'm mama and that Quent is dada.  She probably does though.  She's learning and picking up on things; it's amazing!  I'm seriously just in awe of the things she learns and does without us even purposely teaching her.

I love being a mother!  I love being home with her; it's what I dreamed of for so long!  And every single day I still mentally pinch myself that this is for real!

I have more pages to share with you soon!

Polaroid No.1

I have a very simple set of frames for sale in the MScraps store.  They are 20% off through the weekend.  When I mean simple, I mean simple.  Ha!  They have twisty drop shadows that give them a fun "lift" off of your digital pages.  Not bad for only $2.00.

Journal Pages

Well, I thought it was time I posted some more journal pages.  I've been trying to play catch-up.  I have the journaling up to date and the pictures, but it's just the final outcome that takes awhile.  I'm having fun with the collage style that I chose almost 7 months ago.  The only problem I'm having is scrapbooking the regular pages that aren't going to be in her baby album.  Oops!  I'm slowly scrapping those pages, too. 

"J" and Pinterest

Ah, I see that Blogger has decided to change some things.  So hopefully I can post from the computer I work from.

Pinterest...my new obsession...my new addiction...shall I say more?  I love it!  I love the inspiration I find!  But it's awfully dangerous.  DANGEROUS!  Have I mentioned before that I'm an 'all or nothing' person?  Well, the hardest thing for me about Pinterest is that I want to live in reality.  I don't like pinning things that aren't attainable.  I don't see the point.  Does that take the fun out of it?  Probably.  Yes, I do have a board labeled "Dreamy White Kitchen" where I collect ideas for a kitchen remodel that may happen someday.  Someday.  So I try my best to stay in the realm of reality.  I guess my thought is if I can't have it, why pin it?  Haha!  I know, I'm so boring, right?

So the very first thing I pinned was something attainable.  I just fell in love.  And so my love affair began and one click on an Etsy link and I was smitten.

Peggy from Letter Perfect Designs was amazing to work with!  I had ideas in my mind and she had color combos for me to choose from.  And so after many conversations back and forth on Etsy, I arrived at my decision:

I don't think my photo really does justice, so you will just have to come and see it for yourself (haha!).  For many years I've been in love with the letter "J", and now we all know why.

Jeralyn.

My sweet baby J.

Anyway, I'm loving this new addition to the walls of Jeralyn's room!

Pink Ruffle, Tie-Dye Baby, and Beautiful

Yikes!  It's been almost a month since I last posted.  Thanks to my other computer not wanting to blog regularily, the process takes a lot longer now.  Sorry about that!  I will post 3 pages to make up for it, plus I'm not sure when I will get to this again.

I'm not used to being "behind" on scrapbooking.  (I hear that chuckle)  I do what I can when I can.  I'm many weeks behind on Jeralyn's baby journal pages.  I have the journaling and the pictures, but not completed pages.  Oops!  And 2011 pages are getting lost in the shuffle.  So does creativity.  Although I have been creative in other ways.  I've been working on a lampshade project.  I've been knitting.  I sewed something for Jeralyn today.  So I guess I have been creative.


Love this page!  I absolutely LOVED the pink ruffle shirt on Jeralyn!  Adorable! 

Same thing for the tie-dye! 

And this picture just needed to be on it's own, big and bold!

My mom came for a couple of weeks to help me with Jeralyn since I was on weight lifting restrictions.  It was so great to have her here, but so sad to say goodbye.  I hate goodbyes!

Well, I must get the baby ready for bed. 

Templates

Scrapbooking can very easily go to the wayside these days, so when I do get a chance to scrap (and if I feel creative enough) I want to do something quick. I've been using some of Kaleigh Wiles' templates from Designer Digitals. Her part of the shop/designs are called Studio Double-D. I love her style and I love that she incorporates other designers designs in the templates. These are a couple of pages I created using some of her templates.

It snowed today! It seems like I haven't seen the white stuff sticking to the ground like this in quite awhile. We probably have about 4-5 inches. Just yesterday I noticed the crocuses in our yard, and now the poor things are buried in snow. Hopefully spring will be on it's way soon!

Jeralyn hit the 6 month mark last week! I can't believe it! And she's really changed in the last couple of weeks! Wow!

I think after my 6 weeks of recovery after surgery I will try to run again. I miss it! Actually, I miss exercising! I've done some walking here and there, but nothing crazy since I'm mending and healing.

As far as knitting goes, I'm currently working on my 5th pair of slippers.

Until next time...

Just BE

Just be: this is a good reminder for myself right now. In fact, that reminds of of a quote I found and have been wanting to share. I'll have to post that soon.

So I am at home recovering well. Thank you, Lord! I feel like I am getting stronger each day. The incision is pretty crazy, but it's nice to have the staples out. I won't go into details, but Quent says it looks like a centipede walked across my belly. Ha! It's really nice to be home and with my family!

Jeralyn changes daily it seems. She's hilarious! Her personality is coming out more and more!



I feel so behind with everything right now, but that's to be expected.

I'm excited to get some new yarn my mother-in-law picked up for me from Frankenmuth, Michigan! I am becoming a yarn-snob!

Well, this is all for now. Have a super awesome weekend!