Saturday morning Jam session

Sometimes I think I'm as addicted to my kid as I am to coffee.

I don't really care to waste time wondering if that's good to bad, but in the meantime... I thought it'd be nice if we had some photos of us doin' what we do when we're hanging at home on a saturday morning.  This jam session happened after we built a snow fort in the living room.  We froze our toes off the day before so I decided to be lazy and just bring the snow in so I could enjoy coffee and the couch while she enjoyed the snow.  

I think it's important to stop organizing, stop packing, stop worrying, stop everything and just enjoy being exactly where you are right this moment.

I usually forget that and just run around the house like an  angry person and stay up all night fretting and scheming.
So for my new year, I'm going to not plan to do anything or stop doing anything.  I'm going to just try to remember to enjoy what I have today, and realize that I can live with much less.

And I'm going to put down all the sad pages...





Along with the happy ones.



I'm still trying to get my december daily mini album finished, so I'll get to that...  it's just these darn impromptu photo shoots that get me side-tracked!



I feel like I don't know what the heck I scrapbooked about before Eleanor?  I don't know what I did? lol.  I know all parents say it, but it's so true...  have no clue what life used to be before I had a kid.  All I do know is that it's so much better.  No matter what hard times we're going through.

:)  xo Fitts

Apple seedy yes indeedy!

So despite the back of the hand slapping we always receive when we go here, we somehow ended up back at Russo's in Chesterfield for Apple picking this year.
We thought about not going and trying another place but... we thought misbehaving again at the same farm is more fun than behaving at a new farm?!
We think at least. Next year we'll discuss again briefly and then probably end up back there letting our kids ride in the wagons, move the gourds out of place, and throw hay.


Eleanor knows how to spell her name, but I don't think she knows how to spell mine.. which made it funny when I realized the wagon she picked had my name on it. Yes, that's how you spell Fitty on wagons.  On the interwebs it's F  I T T Y.  Wagons, K A R E N.  Got it?  Good.    And Collin on a wagon is spelled K A T H Y.   It has something to do with the Secret National and International Association of people who use wagons for secret agenty purposes.   How do I know about it... heh...

I love how this blog has turned into a big crunchy photo share...  I've been busy but I don't even have to promise that I'll be scrapbooking these pics...  they are just too yummy! I might even do a mini album!



This is the newest member of our clan, Collin.  I just can't stand the adorable that pours outta this one!!!  He's the little nugget belonging to one of my besties Mary.  Right now he's also the easiest to grab shots of because he's not running around chasing other running around boys while throwing rotten apples.  So I was able to snap a few of those bad boy blues!!



Can you stand it!

And with each new pic of Eleanor, I say it's my fav... just like the latest song you wrote, you might as well throw out the rest.. But in this case, I'll be keeping them all. This one reminds me of an Olivia Newton John record album cover... Have YOU never been mellow?



I probably shouldn't point out the dirt smudge on her nose... coz before I wrote that, I was the only one who noticed.



oh, and they have pumpkins too.. all mine lost their stems rolling around the back of my car... :( boo!



Horsey is the ewesh when it comes to what Eleanor carries around with her, but the little sewing kit she found in one of my bags is a new addition. I don't know if she thought she might need to sew some apples back together or something. When we got home she did tell me she was mad at me for not fixing Luke's stuffed Sonic yet... It hasn't been a week yet, but I guess I should get right on top of that. After all it is a neck wound and this is the stuffie ER!!


And with that, the lost boys and I bid you farewell! Happy OCTOBER!!! YAY YAY! I mean HAPPY I WISH IT FELT LIKE OCTOBER AND NOT A RAINFORST THAT MAKES IT HARD TO DECIDE WHETHER TO PUT THE AIR ON IN MY CAR OR JUST LEAVE IT OFF AND FEEL COLD AND STICKY AT THE SAME TIME OCTOBER OCTOBER!

Weekend Revisual: Project life July 20-21, 2013

Hi there frens!

Had a great weekend!  Just wanted to throw out some weekend pics, and then how we put them together for a weekend project life spread!

This first collage was actually made with a windows app called Turbocollage.  So far, a benefit is the ability to use a lot of pics in one collage.... like 20!  So I was able to sum up a birthday party pretty completely in three 4x3' spots on my PL layout.  Well... plus a couple 4x6's that stood out...

Here's some of the other pics we used:

And here's our spread!

And here's a video Roo did to tell you a very quick version of the entire weekend's activities...  she also goes on to demonstrate some Gelatos...  so if you're in need of toddler entertainment...  it's right here....  in a barbie dress.

Thanks and enjoy the rest of your crafty week!

Day in Revisual: Big time Rush Concert

This is me

So last month I took part in an online Studio Calico class called "This is me"with Lexi Bridges. She is awesome, just go check her out!

For some reason, I feel almost wrong scrapbooking about myself... like I'm saying...  "Hey, I think I'm cool!" or something.  It's like a selfie on facebook, you just don't do it unless there's some good reason or you have something ridiculous on your face that covers most of it. I don't know, but I think you all agree, it feels weird to move the direction of the focus off of our family, friends, and pets and onto ourselves.  And if you're a mommy, it's always all about the kids.

What intrigued me about this class was that the goal was to make a mini album. This is something I've never done. Like cards, I had little interest. But I can't lie, I'm now hooked. I love the idea that you don't have to pick out a cover (you can), but you can create the entire thing from scratch.

I cut some chipboard, covered it in fabric and vvvv wwaaa laaa I had the beginning and the end.  Now I just needed to fill it. To do the pic on the cover, I used printable fabric and then sewed it on the cover fabric that I chose before I modge-podged it to the chipboard.

The whole process was pretty dang enlightening. What was I going to include? That was tough... I feel like there are so many things that can be part of someone's life.. things that affect them on a daily basis. Though I felt like cleaning the house was not something that particularly touched me on an emotional level. Though re-organizing does have a way of setting free the endorphins of inspiration!

No, but seriously... I pretty much have to re-arrange my peg board or something before every craft session to get the juices going. It's like magic!

So anyway,  I narrowed my book down into a few catergories:

1. Family: ok, I know... but that's what makes me who I am. My family. And they're the most important. So of course, there's a big spread of my favorite little lady as well as the Hubs and the fuzzys.

The big swingy pic of Roo was also printable fabric. 

2. Interests/hobbies: Basically my crafty adventures using paper and a collection of sewing machines that each have a strength and weakness.. one with the fatal weakness of not working! Yikes!

3.  Music: Besides giving piano lessons, music is a big part of my life. When I was making this book, I decided to collect a handful of artists that I admired and just make a little pic collage. By no means did this include all, but whatever came to mind or what I've been listening to lately. This is where I really got sad... and happy at the same time... because I couldn't remember the last time I just sat and listened to an album... just for the sake of enjoying it. Granted, there's been a lot of disney and nick music blasting in my car due to Roo, but in-between audiobooks, there hasn't been a recent "GOD I CAN'T STOP LISTENING TO THIS SONG!" So I'm on a mission to change that. To make an effort to just listen like when I was a teenager with a new Belinda Carlisle cassette on the bed following along with the lyrics.

 4: Some random current interests/likes.

5: Goal. Yes one goal. To cure my headaches.

6. A short note to my Grams.  She's the one person I think about everyday. She was awesome and I miss her.

It's not over embellished... some pages are down right messy! But I decided not to over-think it and just let it be what it was going to be. So it ended up longer than I imagined, and much more journally than I imagined. I felt like I had so much to say about every page...  and in the end I was re-introduced to myself and I'm now kinda itching to pick up things that I put down throughout the years.

To not do things because I care what people think, or don't think... or say or don't say... but just to do them because it's fun and enjoyable.  To share for the sake of sharing and not worry about who will make fun of me tomorrow...  After all, does it matter? The most important things are the simple ones. So ENJOY them! And don't forget to take pictures!

I know ... I keep saying I'm going to do a workshop and never follow through... but I will! And I think this would be a great first project. So if anyone's up for finding yourselves in June, I'll make it a point to set something up.

Life is a project... Make it pretty damn it!

Just a project life installment here.

Sometimes there's no good reason for a photo shoot. That's the best kind! And Roo seems to think every minute has potential for good photo making... as do I.

So this scrap session is all about any ol saturday

Where not much of anything was going on...

but we had fun enough to document!

Please enjoy the making of this installment here below

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It IS super easy!

Is is sooo easy to throw a layout together in less than 30 minutes and still say "Yes. Instead of throwing that away, I will hang onto it!"

There is very little involved here...

1. Three different papers

2. Some letter stickers

3. A couple velum arrows

4. A few brads

5. A a touch of sewing and doodling.

ALL optional.

I threw together this super short vid... it's just a series of photos showing the very short evolution of this layout. Just to throw it out there that YES, you can do some scapbooking on a weeknight! I did this page on a thursday night in about 33 minutes. I used the December Studio Calico kit exclusively! Joining kit clubs I think is a great way to be inspired every month. It keeps things fresh and exciting!
I will be starting one in January for those of you who need a little push! And I will post some ideas along with each kit to get the juices flowing!

The video is not so great, I apologize... but it was the best I could do with my current set up here... :)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irzbvzwz8lk]

Halloween in November

If you don't plan to scrapbook any other Halloween, plan to do this years. When has Halloween ever been in November?

I couldn't help but start with this photo because it's my favorite. It just... looks like I swiped it out of one of my mom's old photo albums.

We tricked and treated around Grandma's neighborhood just for a couple hours in the cccccooolld.  But from the looks of their collections of goodies, we could've said we were out all day.

This is mostly made up of Jennie Bowlin stuff.  A think I stole the yellow and grey polka dot paper from a Studio Calico kit...  and the instagram button. I just LOVE that. Even though this photo wasn't an instagram... it looks like it should've been.

Up in the top right corner where the scalloped circle is... well the main purpose of that is to cover up a BOOBOO! lol... I frequently get a little quick with the ink pad and end up dropping it on the paper.  So that's what happened here, i got a big smudge of brown ink up there and I just didn't like what it did for the page.  So I just punched out a circle and covered it.

IT's THURSDAY! my fave day! Except for my head hurtsness.... errgh.
And looking forward to some time with friends tomorrow night!... and the next night...
and... hopefully in there do some Holiday decorating around here!

xo
fitts Mcfinister!

Hay... A happy life tradition.

Yes, the pics in the hay that everyone has!

I have them too... And to go with my orange striped fall wardrobe... I have some orangey scrapcents!

October 6th, we went with our dear friends The ROSTA'S to the pumpkin patch...   We saw all the wood cutouts that almost looked just like the characters they intended to be.

This is made with the October studio calico kit... Which really had nothing to do with fall... But I went with a color scheme rather than a theme.



The sewing went a little wonky at some points, but it really doesn't matter in scrapbooking. There's no RULES! 

(put your shirt back on)  THERE'S ONE RULE!

I just LOVE that commercial!!!  I cracked up so hard the first time I saw it... and then the second... and then all the times I watched it on Youtube.

So where was I?  YES YES so there is a giant threadball of pink hell on the back of this page that I neglected to take a picture of.

I'm also getting bored with just shoving my pages into a plastic sleeve and into a binder.

I have this one 12x12 display item that i found on sale one day at AC Moore, and I LOVE IT!  It's like one of those photo flippers on a stand, but big. I'll take a pic of it when I get a chance...   so that's one way I like to display pages... but I tend to just throw in my latest creation, then switch em out.

Well, I better get my butt in gear so enjoy your weekend! 

Enjoy the colors! 

Enjoy the friends!

Enjoy the apples and the pumpkins!

AND Enjoy the ...  frost... to be totally current.

Sometimes... the day before is better than the day of...

Sometimes your daughter has a 3rd birthday.  Actually, it normally only happens once.  After 3, sometimes it skips 4 and goes right to 5... but it never goes back to 3 again. And you're at your moms house because she always has a picnic on labor day, so you bring your newly 3 year old daughter and you also bring your camera because you think you're gonna get some really good pics of her on the exact day she turns 3. But then it turns out to be the yuckiest most HUMIDIFIED day ever there was the whole summer and  your daughter spends the entire day in the pool with TURNY... (i love when nicknames evolve out of mispronunciations from toddlers ) .  Should be Tierney.  :)

So let's just say the birthday pics were a wash...  but the dancing vids from that day will be cherished!

Luckily the day before, I just happened to tote my camera to my friend Michelle's house for her son's 4th birthday party...  and sitting across from Roo, I was able to snap a series of her eating her philly swirl push up pop.  Though I could've easily included 15 pics, I chose my 5 faves and smooshed em into an instagram collage and then cut em apart after I printed them. And this is probably to be my last layout of summerness that I'll do until next year.



So just this past August I

finally got my hands on some Studio Calico kits.  So this is mostly from the August one ... or the September one... I'm not really sure because Roo mixed them together...

But hopefully I can dedicate some pages to just one kit exclusively..  because I LOVE THEM.

And I'm trying a new thing where I just kinda ...  turn off the brain and just go with it.  Ya know how when you think too hard, you just get frustrated and end up with nothing. This way, I just throw it all down and then edit later. Because after you've thrown down, inspiration surely follows and you suddenly just start getting ideas.

To make these sunshiney spotty lights, I used this simple app called "Bokehful".  You can make them in a few different shapes.. the hex is my fav...  as is prob. for most.

If I ever get a new iphone... I fear I may abandon my camera all together because between the apps and the ever-evolving quality of photos it takes...   I may just lose the need...

I've also been addicted to foam adhesives lately.  I feel this need to make things pop out..  So there are several different heights going on with the photos.  You can probably tell from the shadows... a couple are flat... then some are off the page a little, and some a little more.



There are some things in the works that me and my hubs are trying to plan.  Maybe some workshops or collage clubs.. lol.  But we'll keep you posted.  Would love to get together with some of my local friends and make some art!

Digital scrap

 

I know I've mentioned this before, but it just got easier...

 

Close to my heart has this great ONLINE software you can use to make digital scrapbook pages.  You have a lot of artistic freedom like you always did, but now they've got what they call "express layouts". 

So if you don't want to think, you don't have to!  They've made layouts for you that are adorable!

 



There are a bunch to choose from, you just pick the one you want, and slide your pictures over onto it. 



And when you slide in your photo, you'll see this window pop up with more options for editing your photo.  You can change it to sepia or black and white. You can zoom in or out.  You can crop, rotate, and matt it!



And the prints come out beautiful.  I've made books on snapfish, shutterfly, walgreens, cvs, blurb, and Studio J.  And I've loved every one of them.  But the biggest difference I noticed between the photo sites and Studio J is the quality of the photos.  The pages in my photo books seemed to have faded over time and my Studio J prints are still as bright as when I first got them.  They are 12 x 12 high quality prints. Perfect to just slide into your favorite scrapbook.  Also a nice idea to make one here and there and add it into your project life books.

So check it out, play around!  I know you'll love it if you have very little time and want to make something special!

STUDIO J

CLOSETOMYHEART

 

TADA!!!