Ok, so I would consider myself a capable person. A tad creative, really organized and entertained by those things that I am not good at that others are. You may have to know me a bit better to understand, though, why I get frustrated when things like a computer or software program don't do EXACTLY what I TELL them to do!!!

I think it's mostly because I expect things to be VERY user-friendly. Why, one might ask themselves, would I DO something if it wasn't going to be USER-FRIENDLY??? Don't I WANT people to use it? Don't I want them to be HAPPY when coming accross this certian trait/feature/service???

For example, we have success now that I've discovered that in order to resize an image in Adobe Photoshop Elements, one must select File --- Export. Export. Not copy, not move, not paste, not "resize for web"... Export. Humph.

Enough of the rant. Good news is that I finally have uploaded pictures for a few pages of Gavin's album which I returned to his mother a couple of weeks ago! This will just begin to introduce you to my style. I look forward to sharing many more pages with you now that I've discovered "Export"...!





And this is an example of a page that I finished mirroring a page Gavin's mom had done previously. I think it turned out well color- and style-wise.


If you contract with me to complete a personal scrapbook for you or a loved one, one option is to upload photos such as these for your approval before they are affixed to the page. This provides input by you and as long as they are regularly checked, should not add much working time to your project. Something to consider. :)

Have a happy day! It's Friday! Whoo-hoo!!

While I await my first "official" customer, I must say, I am having a BLAST getting set up! I'm so giddy it's almost rediculous. Well, I'm sure some would say it IS rediculous... actually, my husband, for one would answer that in the affirmative. He does his best to keep up with my enthusiasm, but many times I go way past his threshold.

In addition to getting my scanner to work this weekend, we are using tax return money (still have to figure out the delicate balance of not LOANING MY MONEY to Bush) to invest in a color laser printer. YIPEEEEEEE! And it does EVERYTHING, let me tell ya. Well, I don't have it actually set up yet (I'm cleaning my office and am using the promise of opening the box as my carrot/reward)... but the young man at Office Max was very knowledgable and assured me it has everything.

Here's a picture of it:

:)

In all seriousness, I was floored by the customer service provided by Office Max. The staff was SO helpful, really knew their stuff and spent T-I-M-E with me... do you remember what that is? I can't recall any other retail establishment I've been in the past six months - a year, probably - that spent as much time with me as these people at Office Max. Do check out a location near you - and if you're in the Twin Cities, head straight to Stinson Blvd and The Quarry. Oh, and well-priced, too. THANKS GUYS!

Yesterday was "Memoranza!" - a pleasure as always to sit in a sun-filled room with good juices flowing and good conversation. During the day, I thought a lot about my new adventure by way of this blog and business interest... why something such as this would hold my attention longer than other hobbies I've embarked upon (from the beginning? signing, writing, musical theatre, cross-stich, knitting, stamping, sewing, quilting... need I go on?).

At the end of the day, I believe photography, recording stories and yes, eventually scrapbooking... are all about heritage, family origin, moral teachings and faith. A desire to be connected can range from "don't care" to "live and breathe". I think I reside around the 80th percentile... it's pretty important, but not all I am. In addition, I know from personal relationships that the study of geneology is sometimes painful for a variety of reasons. My suggestion would be that there's value from whatever the past is, as long as there is no bondage emotionally or spiritually. Ahead is an unwritten book and we have every opportunity in front of each of us!



This is a photo of my great-grandparents and their children... my Grandpa Johnson is to the far right. He passed away in 1994 - and it seems like yesterday. I share this as a celebration that my scanner is working... and a celebration of the future: what a handsome lot they are - how blessed I am to have come from these beautiful people. May my boys know their character and experience their dedication, work ethic and family roots.

I'll let you know soon how my own personal family heritage album is coming along!

I’m so excited because tomorrow I have the opportunity to sneak away and scrapbook ALL DAY LONG! My sister-in-law is having a scrapbooking event at a beautiful Catholic church here in the Twin Cities… floor to ceiling windows; every scrapper gets her own table, unlimited supplies and good conversation! Heaven!!! Just heaven, I’m telling ya!



This picture of Gabe is of his first birthday… and when I was immediately panic-stricken that I had not one picture of him in the house. See, we went digital right after his birth… and no printing, no saving, no nothing had taken place. YIKES! I didn’t have a photo to send to daycare the next day (immediate problem) and I didn’t have any plan for how to archive our family memories (future problem).

This brings me back to when I started scrapbooking: when my baby was one year old. This was almost three years ago. What a pleasure it’s been! I went to my first scrapbooking event, much like the one I’m going to tomorrow, and I think it took me like three hours to crop my first picture. Slowly but surely I got used to cutting away unused space, and creating a story from the photos. My style as obviously evolved, and I’m more and more comfortable using all the supplies that are offered these days!

Most of all, I’m thankful for the keepsakes I’m creating for our family… the joy on the boys’ faces when they look at their books… and I’m looking forward to how good I’ll feel in the future, knowing it's all done. :)

The what, where and how of scrapbook lettering is one of the most challenging tasks as a newbie. There are several scrapbook techniques that address this problem but the biggest trick is to take your time.



One way is to stick the letters to small squares of mounting paper, and then adhere the mounting paper to the page. Another is to use a strip of backing paper from your photo tabs or tape runner. Place the letter stickers with their lower half on the backing paper. Move the stickers until you have the spacing as you want it and then gently lay them on to the page. Press down the parts of the stickers not on the backing paper and then ease away the tape and press down completely.

Letter stickers can be tricky to evenly space on a page, but one of these ideas usually produces perfectly placed letters!