INSPIRATION - April Review & May Plans

Wow, April flew by so very fast! It was a month full of INSPIRATION around here.

April Review
1. March Top Five - Yikes - I did not complete any of my March Top Five! However, I did scrap several additional layouts to document stories from January and February of this year. This layout about Mama getting up early is one of my favorites. (Layout INSPIRATION from the old BPC Simply Playful Accents class.)

I love this FUN photo of Mama! She has a habit of closing her eyes just as I snap a photo, so I almost always have to take more than one. This day I was also joking with her about still sleeping since she was up earlier than normal (waiting for my nephew & his family to arrive).

2. Hope & A Future Class - I had a great time teaching my mixed media Scripture canvas class at Scrappin' Goodtime.

3. BPC Membership - I fully utilized my one-month free membership and found lots of INSPIRATION at the new Big Picture Classes site. In fact, after lots of pondering the pros and cons, I've decided to continue my membership as there were several new classes added that I would like to check out. The turning point in my decision came as I was talking it out with Robbie, and he asked, "Will you get at least $2.50 worth of INSPIRATION each week?" Um, yes! :)

4. Crop With LeAnne - My trip to Houston to visit and scrap with my friend LeAnne was so much FUN! Our friend Heather joined us for a day, too. There was lots of scrapping, laughing, eating, and visiting! Thanks, LeAnne, for a great visit!

6.  READING FOR INSPIRATION - I am enjoying Part II of the Laura Ingalls Wilder course at Canvas.net.

I found lots of other creative INSPIRATION in April and completed 19 layouts, 9 cards, 1 Photo Album Scrapbook, and a gift tag . . . along with 50+ simple layouts for the scrapbook-for-hire retirement album I'm working on. I also published 11 blog posts and listened to 30+ podcasts.

For the month of May, I'll be exploring and acting on INSPIRATION in several ways:
1. (March &) April Top Five -  I'm challenging myself to scrap my top five (photos or stories or events) from the previous month. Along with my March Top Five (that I didn't complete in April), I'll be scrapping these stories from April: (1) Easter , (2) those little green arrows, (3) putting in the crop, (4) annual get-together with Cheri, and (5) Michelle's clowning-around birthday.

2. Scrapbook-For-Hire Albums - I am excited to be working on a firefighter's retirement scrapbook. Actually, it will be two volumes because it covers a 24-year career. I met the firefighter's wife when I stopped by Scrappin' Goodtime on my way home from Houston. She was delighted to find someone crazy enough willing to take on this project with a four-week deadline! Fortunately, she had all the photos, memorabilia, newspaper articles, and notes organized by year in folders. I'll be sharing more about this project once it's done, as well as my thoughts on scrapbooking-for-hire. Here's a look at a few of the completed pages.

3. National Scrapbook Day - I am hosting a small crop here tomorrow to celebrate (inter)National Scrapbook Day. Mama and I are hoping to be joined by my friend Thayer for a day of scrapping, laughing, snacking, and visiting.

4. Photo Crush - I've signed up to participate in the Simple Scrapper Photo Crush free seven-day event. Although my digital photos are already organized, I'm always interested in tips and INSPIRATION for getting and staying organized as we continue to add digital photos to our files!

5. Focus Your Craft & Soul - I'm planning to participate in Jennifer Grace's next blog event May 15-17. Here's how Jennifer Grace describes what's in store - This will cover a variety of ideas on how to focus your crafting, about living in the moment, making sure you appreciate the little things, and how to use focal points. We’ll also be using a lot of icons like targets, frames, arrows, triangles, and cameras!

6. Road Trip - We'll be taking a 2800 mile road trip in May . . . and I'll be checking an item off my 50 Things To Do Before I'm 50 list. As I've said before - there's so much INSPIRATION in travel - opportunities for photography, enjoying nature, learning new things, trying new foods, building relationships, linking up with blog friends (hopefully) . . . and, of course, lots of photos and memorabilia to scrap afterwards!

7. READING FOR INSPIRATION - I'll be continuing my participation in Part II of the Laura Ingalls Wilder course at Canvas.net.

What kind of INSPIRATION did you enjoy in April? What are your plans for exploring and acting on INSPIRATION in May?