August's Twelve Photos - at the library

We had a fun adventure with this month's Twelve Photos prompts from Stacy Julian's Twelve workshop. The twins were here for a very quick visit a couple of weekends ago, and as usual we made a trip to our local library. Before heading out, I printed two copies of the photo prompts list, and Robbie and I each paired up with one of the twins to capture photos with our new iPhones. We tried to stay hidden and not let the other team see what we were photographing, so it was fun to see how many items were the same (and the ones that were different) when we met back up.

1. Wet - this was the first and easiest prompt as we always check out the fish in the aquarium when we arrive at the library. We split up after watching the fish for a few minutes.

2. Tall - Both teams had the same idea for this one as there is a tall staircase leading up to the second floor.

3. Talking - Our favorite photo for this prompt was the sign Robbie found leading into the Quiet Room.



4. Laughter - Paige and I found a book with people laughing on the cover, and when I went to snap the photo Paige asked if she could be laughing, too. Unbeknownst to me, Laurie had asked Robbie the same thing when they found a cartoon book to photograph.

5. A Recent Purchase - Both girls were wearing new tennis shoes, so I snapped a photo of Paige's; but Robbie and Laurie found a sign near the library's new purchases.

6. A Set of Something - We both chose this set of Encyclopedias for a set of something.

7. A Salad - We found salads located on the cover and inside books.

8. A Heart - Here's another example of the girls choosing the same item without knowing it. We both snapped photos of this wall mural in the children's section.

9. A Map - It was fun pulling books off the shelves to find the perfect map.

10. A Scenic View - We went in two different directions for this prompt. Paige and I found a snow scene in a book while Laurie and Robbie snapped the view out the library window.

11. Something Official - This was a little more challenging as we had to explain what "official" meant. Paige and I ended up with a photo of my official library card and Robbie and Laurie captured the official express check out booth.

12. Something Yellow - A big yellow sun on the front of a book and this yellow apple on the library wall fulfilled this last prompt.

At the end of our visit, we had two lists completely checked off.

I've enjoyed finding different ways to capture photos using these prompts each month. It was especially fun this month to see the twins enjoying their very own photo scavenger hunt. Which reminds me, I still have photos to find to complete Rinda's Photo Scavenger Hunt.

Picasso's Flowers in a Vase

Several years ago we encountered Pablo Picasso's Flowers in a Vase at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas, and the photo was perfect for another layout inspired by materials in the Dimensional Details workshop.

I had fun creating these embellishment clusters with premade flowers, chipboard pieces, and miscellaneous paper and plastic leaves.

Have you created any dimensional clusters lately?

Christmas Layouts

It's almost time for Cate's 100 Days to Christmas blog series to begin, which has me thinking about Christmas and a couple of layouts I created a while back that I haven't shared yet. So, here's a little taste of Christmas scrapping as summertime winds down.

This first layout showcases the first two photos we snapped with our new camera this past December.

Journaling reads: What's the first thing we do when we get a new camera? Snap a photo of each other, of course!

 

I've had the idea and title for this next layout in mind since I took the photos back in 2008.

 

Journaling reads: After we set up for the 2008 Kick Off Christmas Brunch, Robbie & Daddy sat down and me & Mama sat down at the other end - 16 feet away! I laughed & said we were like those rich people in the movies who eat at opposites ends of the table.

Honestly, I haven't really thought much about Christmas yet this year, but I guess I need to decide if I'm going to make any gifts or cards so I can get started. If you're looking for more Christmas inspiration, Jacky has started making Christmas cards - clean & simple ones and layered ones.

July - Our Month in Numbers

I'm a little late with my July Our Month in Numbers layout, but at least I've gotten it done before the end of August!

(Digital template from Simple Scrapper. Papers from Cheryl McCain's Tea Party Sampler.)

 

* 6 family members at Mama & Daddy's to celebrate the Fourth of July

 

* 2 errors by the Texas Rangers when they lost to the Minnesota Twins (although it seemed like more!)

 

* 1 chance for Melissa to meet Stacy Julian in person while she was in Dallas

 

* 3 Karen Kingsbury books from Mama & Daddy for Melissa's birthday

 

* 4 day trip to New Mexico to celebrate Melissa's 43rd birthday

 

* 12 roses from Robbie waiting at the Taos Country Inn Bed & Breakfast

 

* 20 minute delay on the chair lift at the Taos Ski Valley

 

* 9 minute 51 second video created by Melissa to explain process for 6 layouts

 

* 1 get-together for Melissa to crop with friends

 

* 15 layouts completed, 8 trading cards created, 26 blog posts published

Dimensional Cruise Layouts

It's currently week seven in the Dimensional Details workshop, but the last few weeks have been extremely busy around here and I'm just now sharing my layouts inspired by the week four materials. These three layouts are for our 10th Anniversary Cruise album.

This first layout showcases the photos we took at home on Christmas Day before we headed to Galveston.

Once we were on board the cruise ship, Robbie purchased yellow roses for our stateroom. I pressed some of the petals between the pages of a book when we were packing on our final day at sea. I included those petals in a clear envelope on this next layout. (I was scrapbooking with friends when I created this layout and just had to use a strip of that lacy ribbon that Frances had in her embellishment container - thanks Frances!)

And finally a layout that shows our New Year's Eve fun (& quirky) activity.

I'm hopeful that I'll find time to catch up on the last few weeks of Dimensional Details materials soon, but first I'm off to visit blogland and see what everyone else has been up to!



July 2012 Photo I Love

I originally thought I'd choose a photo of my new craft room for my favorite photo in July, however, as I scrolled through my photos from last month a different one jumped out at me, and I decided to include it in my 2012 Photo I Love album instead. I'm enjoying how these pages look with the square punched pieces of patterned papers and cardstock around the edges. (These squares represent the papers I used on layouts in the month of July.)

Journaling reads: When we arrived at the Bed & Breakfast in Taos for my 43rd birthday trip, Robbie (as usual) had arranged to have roses and a chocolate cake waiting. I love how he always remembers to call ahead for this special treat!

July's Twelve Photos - Birthday Gifts From Robbie

I was a little disappointed that I didn't take a day to capture the list of items on July's Twelve Photos handout in the BPC Twelve workshop. However, as I pondered this dilemma (should I just skip it or should I take the photos now in August or did I somehow have 12 photos from July that I could use), I realized that I could use photos of my birthday gifts from Robbie. He always goes a little overboard, so it was fairly easy to find something to go with each prompt (although admittedly some are a little bit of a stretch!). Here's a look at the overall haul.

And here's my interpretation of the twelve prompts:

1. Something in Motion - a Splat Clock for my new craft room. It looks perfect on those yellow walls and makes me smile every time I glance up to check the time!

2. Sweet - a birthday cake Robbie had waiting at the Bed & Breakfast in Taos.

3. Words - I can use lots of words talking on this new phone for my craft room.

4. Refreshing - new supplies my stash are always refreshing.

5. Your Summer Shoes - a fun pair of Crocs!

6. A Seasonal Fruit - some of the names of these inks are perfect for this prompt (Lady Bug, Tangelo, Cantaloupe, Dandelion, Pear Tart, Cottage Ivy, Bahama Blue, Danube Blue, Lilac Posies, Grape Jelly, Rich Cocoa, Tuxedo Black).

7. The Inside of Something - inside this box, I found a lovely bracelet that I had admired at Hallmark a week or so before my birthday.

8. Something White - this white sheet of paper displays the new alphabet stamps Robbie secretly picked up while we were browsing a fun stamp shop in Santa Fe.

9. Nature - a dozen roses were also waiting at the Bed & Breakfast in Taos.

10. Your Keys - the old typewriter keys on the front of this reading journal remind me of my days in typing class. And there are keys (well, buttons really) on the bottom of my new Kindle in that green cover!

11. Parts and Pieces - Crazy Crayon Disks made from shaved pieces of crayon. These will be fun to use in my art journal!

12. Entertainment - something fun, just right for playing!

What do you think - did these items fit the prompts? The August list of prompts comes out today, and this time I plan to snap photos before the end of the month creeps up on me!

#12 - A Labyrinth

When I saw #12- A Maze, Labyrinth, or Trail on Rinda's Photo Scavenger Hunt list, I figured I'd be able to find a trail, but I couldn't remember the last time I ran across a maze or labyrinth. However, as Robbie was scanning the tourist brochures on our trip to New Mexico, he pulled one out and said, "Here's your labyrinth!" Sure enough, it was a brochure about a labyrinth right there in Taos. Robbie came to the rescue again as we were heading out of Taos - he spotted the tiny sign almost hidden among tree branches that marked the turn off to the labyrinth.

The labyrinth was open to the public as a place of meditation. As it was fairly early in the day, no one else was around, so I was able to get a few good photos.

Robbie and I walked the labyrinth and discovered someone had left a little note along the way.

A few days earlier, I had captured photos of some black diamond ski trails from the chair lift at the Taos Ski Valley, so I'll share those, too.



This leaves me with seven more scavenger hunt items to find. Are you participating in the hunt? How many items do you have left?