Project Life... August through September

"I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don't intend to waste any of mine."
-Neil Armstrong

The momentum continues... I'm still cranking away with my digital Project Life scrapbook for the year... I had a few busy weekends where I got behind, but knock on something... I think I'm now caught up to last week. It seems like in the last couple of weeks I have really found my rhythm.

Life continues offline, even when I'm not posting here regularly. These are the stories of our life over the last few months...

Week 7: July 30-August 4, 2013. Back to school. Mike and Amy come for the weekend.

August 5-August 11, 2013. A week of firsts. Marie's birthday party.

August 12-August 18, 2013. A morning in my life. Friday date night.

August 19-25, 2013. Softball continues. Sunday at St. James.

August 25-September 1, 2013. Mama's in town!!

September 2-September 8, 2013. Christmas in July Crafternoon.

September 9-September 15, 2013. Rob's beach ride scouting trip. Fall Festival at church.

September 16-September 22, 2013. New iPhones. Working from home. Singin' in the Rain.

September 23-September 29, 2013. Meal plan. Happy Fall!

September 30-October 6, 2013. New car. Lesa's birthday. Tibetan monks. International Festival. Our 6th wedding anniversary.

Christmas in "July" Crafternoon Recap!!

"What you create doesn’t have to be perfect."
-Dieter F. Uchtdorf

For over a year now, I've been pinning ideas related to crafting parties on my Craft-ernoon board. Saving ideas until I had enough local friends to invite over for a similar shindig.

I've been so blessed this last year to become close to gals both at church and at work. So on a whim a couple of months ago, I decided just to bite the bullet and send out a Facebook invitation for a Christmas in July Crafternoon get-together two weeks later. The response was really positive, but the date didn't work out. So after comparing our calendars, we moved it back... to Saturday, September 7th.

Since then I've had to push away my doubts about whether I was up for hosting such a big endeavor, but I'm so glad I took the leap and put myself out there. [Momentum at work!]

I've been scouring sales, digging through thrift stores, and hoarding craft store coupons to buy all of the supplies. Since I asked my guests to bring $10 to help cover the cost of supplies, my budget was $2 per person per project, and I think I got pretty close to meeting that goal (although I stopped keeping track towards the end).

I planned five stations with Christmas-themed crafts: three that could be given as gifts and two that could be used as Christmas wrapping. I hope to share more details about each project in the next few days. The project list:

• Burlap garlands
• Dry erase frames
• No-sew t-shirt scarves
• Felt giftcard envelopes
• Confetti gift tags

Although I originally thought the party would last from 1-3pm... we ended up crafting for hours. The last guest left around 6!!

To keep us fueled for our crafting endeavor, I had a few snacks on hand, including turkey crescents, tortellini and pesto skewers, and yummy cupcakes. One of the highlights was the custom labels for the water bottles... what an easy way to take your party up a notch!

I think everyone had a great time. An afternoon away from husbands and kids to be crafty and creative. As I had hoped, some of the guests took the project ideas and made them their own. And, even the self-proclaimed "non-crafters" were super proud of their creations.

I hope that this becomes a tradition we want to continue... although maybe next time I can delegate the food prep and the hosting!!

Project Life... I've bitten the bullet...

"The album we've made is much more than a book. It's worth even more than the time that it took."
-Kimberly Rinehart

I have always said I was going to start Project Life when I found out I was pregnant, but last weekend on a whim, I decided “why wait?” This will be the perfect way to reflect upon my 30th year and to record our everyday life... before we leave our twenties and before we have little busy-bodies under foot.

Project Life digital title page: "Staying fine @ 29"

I love the idea of the physical Project Life album as a place to collect the paraphernalia of everyday life (ooo, pockets!!),  but I'm not so into the scraps and the mess (and the expense!). My plan is to go all digital, with the hopes of printing a 8"x10" Blurb book at the end of the year. I've created some templates in Photoshop and am often browsing my ever-growing collection of digital embellishments. Although I'm not afraid to tweak the files or just create my own illustrations and wordart when I can't find exactly what I want. My design style tends to be minimalistic with bold graphics (although sometimes I have to remind myself of this when I start to add too much stuff on the pages).

I've backed up a few weeks to start the project with my birthday week. Now all I can think about is how to make this new project fit my life and my style…  Each night this past week, I've worked for a few hours trying to get caught up. And, I'm getting close!

I'm hoping I can keep this momentum (and that I'll get quicker at putting the pages together!!) I've started an Evernote document to keep track of memories, quotes, and photos in real-time. I also marked the occasion by starting a new Pinterest board to collect inspiring design elements.

Week 1: June 15-21, 2013. It's birthday week!

Week 2: June 22-June 30, 2013. Our adventurous trip to Utah.

Week 3: July 1-July 7, 2013. A rainy and wet Fourth of July week.

I'm excited... can you tell?!?!?

Sketch it out...

“When the creative impulse sweeps over you, grab it. You grab it and honor it and use it, because momentum is a rare gift.”
-Justina Chen Headley, North of Beautiful

The coolest birthday present I received this year... a Wacom Bamboo Connect tablet. As I tore off the wrapping paper and realized what was inside, I immediately knew exactly what my first project would be.

I've been following along with the One Little Word workshop prompts this year (and totally loving where it's guiding me, by the way!!), recording my thoughts and ideas in an Evernote document. However, I'm a little behind in the creation of actual album pages.

I have been stuck on the May prompt... not too enthused about the doodles that I've sketched on notepads at work. But with a tablet, a whole new world was opened.

On our rainy 4th of July, I spread out across the dining room table and got to work. Drawing and tweaking... drawing and nudging... drawing and twisting.

I'm totally tickled with the results and can't wait to print them out for my album.

To celebrate my first tablet project, I'm sharing my wordart with you. Download them here [right-click the image and save as]:

• This is the adventure
• Ready, willing, open
• Be fabulous today
• Focus on what matters
• Make it happen
• Say yes and figure it out later
• Step one is showing up
• Can't hurt to try
• Onward and upward

___

I'm also eager to use the tablet for other scrapbooking and design projects... any ideas? Do you know of any resources or sources for inspiration? Share with a sister!

Every knee shall bow...

"So that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth."
-Philippians 2:10

Tomorrow is a day that many of my friends and I have been waiting anxiously for... it's the day that our pastor and friend, Chris Barrett, receives a bone marrow transplant.

The miracle of modern medicine and the miracle of prayer will come together to transform the very marrow of this man.

He has a long road ahead, but after tomorrow, he will be one step closer to victory over Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

To show your support and solidarity with Chris, check out the Support for Rev. Chris Barrett Facebook page. You can even download/post a pic of this "awesome" graphic [designed by yours truly]. I'm sure Chris will take all of the prayer warriors he can.

One Little Word album...

"Getting momentum going is the most difficult part of the job, and often taking the first step is enough to prompt you to make the best of your day." 
-Robert J. McKain

Because it's so personal, I've gone back and forth about whether I wanted to post the progress of my One Little Word scrapbook. But, I'm just tickled with the results, so why not share it...

Page 1 - text from blog post on Jan 1
Page 2 - definition of momentum with vintage dictionary page

After picking my word for 2013, "momentum," I spent several days brainstorming and researching all of the different nuances of the word. I have a work-in-progress Evernote document where I have recorded all of my thoughts and then moved them around until they made logical sense. Only then did I attempt to put my creative spin on them.

Pages 3 & 4 - monthly intentions for January to December
each month includes a catchy focus, an inspirational quote, and two bucket list goals

I'm amazed by how often my word has inspired me in just the first three weeks of the year. I look to it when I'm making a tough decision or even as I choose how to spend my days. I'm also keeping a running list of ways I've embraced "momentum" so far, which I hope to include in my album each month.

Full speed ahead...

2013... momentum

"'Momentum,' she repeats. 'You can't just stand there if you want something to fly. You have to run.” 

-Lauren DeStefano, Fever

I'm beginning 2013 in a good place mentally, physically, spiritually... I have found a healthy balance between a job that I love, a home that Rob and I have built together, and even a little community where I can thrive. 

This year I want to continue moving forward, embracing more of the opportunities that life presents. This is the year to make progress on a lot of things that I've put off, felt not ready for, or been too scared to attempt before.

For the third year in a row, I am inspired by Ali Edwards's "One Little Word" concept... and this year, I've chosen the word "momentum" to ponder throughout 2013. [Previous years - 2011: gratitude | 2012: create]

Thanks to some extra Christmas cash, I've splurged on the online workshop this year as well. I'm excited to see where this year and this word takes me. If nothing else, it should be an adventure.