Busy, Busy

It's been a hectic couple of weeks! We've had family in, football games, and a trip to MD Anderson in Houston for a checkup with my oncologist (all is well.) I was glad I had several photos printed and a bunch of layouts and sketches Pinned! I got a lot done since I'd planned ahead.

This layout was lifted from a Pintrest layout. I loved the raised circles. I used plenty of pop dots on this one! I love the way the elegant flocked paper contrasts with the rusted fencing wire in this Laura May picture and with the burlap flowers (and Arch didn't think I'd use flowers. Hee Hee). I used a metal key and some of my old fiber stash to display the three metal tags which say: Listen, Imagine, Inspire. I added a metalic sheen clock as well.

Another one of Arch's senior photos by Laura May. I had a lot of fun with tearing, inking and layering the papers. I added a leather label frame with the word Remember, buttons and a sticker that says "When you love life, it will love you back."

These two are not really a 2 page layout, but companion pieces. They are from Halloween. The first shows Arch, Kat and two of her friends who came home to Winters and went to the Halloween Carnival with Archie. I had fun with my bendable ruler in making the curves. The second I focused on Arch and Kat's Doctor Who costumes and brought back two of their costumes from years ago. I used some of the same paper to connect the two layouts. 

This one also features photos by Laura May. Arch was posed on railroad ties that we had stacked out at the farm. In the left photo, Laura used a sepia tone and on the right, she used a saturated color. I used a sketch from Pinterest. The quotation reads, "Life is a song, Love is the music."

The ring layout was fun. I had this owl transparency and decided to layer some of the things under it and some on top. Archie had Philippians 4:8 on his ring, so the journaling quotes that. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

During Archie's senior year, my dad died and he spent a lot of time with us helping to get the house ready to sell. Grandaddy had a massive desk in a tiny room and Arch and Dad had to take it apart to get it out of the room--with some challenges. I had this diagram paper and thought it looked really cute with these pictures. The circles came from a sketch on Pintrest. 

Getting Work Done

Well, nearly had this whole post done and accidently bumped the touchpad mouse on my computer. It is now disabled, I hope, since it deleted the entire post. :(. Anyway, I was saying that today I have been clearing off my desk. My husband is getting stuff ready to build my counter while I'm up at school later today working in my room for a while and then working at the Fall Festival at the Kindergarten booth. So, I spent a good bit of today organizing and trimming my photos that were already printed. Now all I have to do is pull out the bag of pictures I want to scrap and get busy--at least for a few layouts! Now on to the fun stuff. These are the layouts I've done over the last several days. 

The first is another senior photo shoot picture by Laura May. Archie is on the back of an old work pickup in front of the old stables. If you look closely, you can see part of the word Stables on the sign behind him. I used several ribbons and some dried flower embellishments I have had in my drawer for years. The quotation is: Amid a world of noisy, shallow actors it is noble to stand aside and say, "I will simply be." Henry David Thoreau.

The next layout has two more photos by Laura May. She played with the focus on these giving one a sharp focus and the other a soft focus. I loved the bird on the background paper and found the cardstock sticker in my embellishment file. The epoxy stickers were there as well. They say, Sing, Play, Experience, Happiness (if you read that together, it's almost a sentence.) I used Tim Holtz distress tissue tape for the stripe. 

These reflection pictures amazing. There was little wind and the reflections were so clear. Laura had such fun with them. I had to laugh while doing the layout. The reflections were so clear, I nearly stuck a picture on upside down. The layout is based on a Pinterest sketch. The sticker says: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. I had to use at least one Prima flower in this album, but Archie, I promise it does have music notes on it. 

Blizzard Band is a two page layout of pictures I took throughout Archie's senior year. The large shot is the trombone section. I used ribbon for the left border and under the smaller pictures. I used some scraps for the patterned paper at the top. I had one last snowflake brad in a set of brads, so I used it. At some point during Archie's senior year, I found a chipboard mini-album that was snowflaked shaped, so I snatched it up, knowing our school mascot is the Blizzard. (We live in Winters, remember.) The outline for the cover seemed to just fit around the snowflake brad, so I inked it Blizzard Blue and then wallpapered two other pages of the album with some more paper. I used one for a journaling spot and the other for part of the title. The journaling reads: Archie was active in band all during school. His senior year he was section leader. He was asked to perform in a brass ensemble with Mr. and Mrs. Mooney and another student for the Veteran's Day program. He had a solo during marching season, as well. 

Catching Up Part 2

One of the things I got behind on with my cancer was my son's senior album. He graduated from high school in May of 2012 and will graduate from college this May, so I'm frantically getting that album finished. I've challenged myself to use my stash up and not buy anything but adhesives and cardstock that I might not have in the right colors. So, I'm having fun pulling out all those old embellishments, patterned papers, ribbons, Primas (well, not many of those! He might protest,) and all sorts of goodies.

Here are the first few layouts from the album:

We start with the title page. This photo is by Laura May of Bluebonnet's Photography. I loved the layered look I saw in a layout on Pinterest, so I scraplifted it for this one. The scripture quoted is Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."

The pictures for this next LO were taken at the end of Arch's junior year for his 17th birthday, but we both agreed since he was 17 for most of his senior year, they worked in this album. Besides, I found the stained glass paper in my stash and HAD to use it. The quotation is People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. The photos were taken at the Old Buffalo Gap Cemetary.

Next is a layout I actually did a few years ago. Arch competed in Robotics competition all through high school and was team captain his senior year. Team Fluffy took 5th place in the Regional Competition that year. 

This is another LO I did back a few years ago. Photos again by Laura May. This is Grandpa's old tractor. Arch really wanted to wear his tux for a few of the shots and play his trombone (much like his sister did her formal and flute) in unusual places around the farm and other spots around town.The epoxy sticker says "Life is better when it's fun." 

 

The photos on this next one are the proofs for the senior photos the school took. Photographer was Wayne Hennington Photography. I put them on Artist Trading Cards and used a sketch I found on Pinterest. Arch was concerned the "bling" would be too girly, but he approved after I got it finished. The scripture is "To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under Heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

The next is another photo by Laura May. It was taken at an old, run down stables that is now owned by a church member. Lots of interesting old architecture, in this place. The quotation is "The life given us is short, but the memory of a well-spent life is eternal. Cicero

Next is another Laura May photo. This was an old Butler bin on our farm that a storm blew over several years ago. Jeff and Arch hauled it up to Heartbreak Hill on the place and it just curled over like this. It had such a cool look that Laura and I had to get it in some shots. I love the juxtaposition of the tux and brass horn with the rust and corrugated metal.  The charm is from an old zipper pull that I saved. I added a rub-on to the velum tag at the top and a sticker to metal tag. The cog embellishment is from a set I had. The quotation is "Courage and perseverance have a magical talisman, before difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish into air. John Quincy Adams. 

These are all fun shots of Arch being silly (and not happy with us making him get on the bike) that Laura May took. They just all seemed to go together. The top two are at the old stables and the bottom are at the farm. The quotation is "You are you. Now, isn't that pleasant?" Dr. Seuss. 

Last for this set, we're back at the curled Butler bin. Laura had fun with settings on this one, I love this shot. I had to include all three variations.  Kathleen told Arch it looked like a cool album cover. I spattered the patterned cardstock with paint and inked the edges of the photos to add to the rustic look. The quotation is, Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and everything. Plato

Catching up Part 1

So, I intended to get back to scrapping and posting back in January, but at my check up that month we found some suspicious nodes in my lungs. We had to wait till March to see about getting a biopsy so that they could either grow or go away. In March we confirmed that they were indeed the cancer that had metastasized again. So, in April I started chemo. After a very long spring and summer full of treatments (and some horrible allergic reactions), I finished chemo in August just as school started. I have moved to kindergarten this year and have been busy getting adjusted to the move. Speaking of moves, in July and August we worked around my treatments and got Kathleen moved to her new apartment and job teaching Pre-K and K music in Snyder. So now I have a new room to craft in. I've spent the past several weekends getting it set up--sort of. I have some more stuff to move and Jeff needs to build a counter and put a door on the closet, but I'm organized enough to scrap. More about that in another post. I'll post pics of my new room as soon as it gets finished. I haven't had this much space--ever! I'm having fun playing with my stash and finding stuff I totally forgot about.