In the Storm

project life 2014 | week 42

Oh my, a crazy, crazy, wild and crazy week. Jeff flew to Indiana, the boys and I got Mom's room finalized, Jeff rented a vehicle, rented a dumpster, plowed through 40+ years worth of stuff, purged, trashed, packed, and moved Mom down here. Jeff and Mom flew in on Thursday after a whirlwind several days. Then we began again with a truckload full of furniture + boxes and our living room was packed to the brim.

I realized after putting the two sides together they don't really go together but you know what - I don't care. The Left side is mostly black and white...

...and lots of color on the right side. Oh, and the week wasn't over when the boxes arrived. Jeff and the boys had the semi-annual Boy Scout boston butt cookout (a 24-hour + fundraising event held in May and October) that happened to be this weekend.

 

project life 2014 | week 41

Yippee! I actually completed Week 41, which was this past week, this week, instead of sometime down the road or skipping it altogether. I thought I'd taken more photos but Jeff's worksite rounded out the need for photos and since this Week was a memorable job completion they fit in nicely.

I'm still keeping my pages clean and simple and it doesn't get any better than that. Ali Edwards, Cathy Zielske, and Paislee Press are still my go-to digital designers for product and embellishments to highlight our story.

Hey, look! I took a selfie!

Enjoyed putting these pages together and they came together in a couple hours - I know - a couple hours - crazy!

 

project life 2014 | week 38

So behind with Project Life it isn't even funny. But, alas, here is Week 38, a week(end) that I actually took pictures. That is really my problem - no pictures as the week goes by, any week, and no pictures.

For this week's two-page layout I used a ton of Ali Edwards, both older products and a couple newer products from her 'new' website, which I absolutely love but wish she'd blog more regularly. I also used Cathy Zielske and Paislee Press digital products.

Two things I love about these pages: 1) I used a couple 'in motion' photos and I love them! 2) The color scheme flows nicely.

and guess what...

I made a 6 x 12 insert so I could give the photo of us with the Christian band, Mercy Me its own spot and the story of the birthday weekend.

project life 2014 | week 35

Have you seen Ali Edwards new website. Fabulous! Probably one of the most awesome blogs (and so much more than a blog) I've seen in a long time. She's got new digital products too...I used a couple on this one-page.

I went with a one-page to keep it simple and because I really wanted to complete the weeks Project Life before I got behind again. Still need to be taking more pictures to choose from.

The weekend is still the most-often time I get pictures taken and somehow I need to fix that. Just not sure how. There are photo-a-day lists out there galore but I haven't been able to find that place to just make a pages of Project Life with generic type photos, even though they'll be photos of our life in some way. Just hard to wrap my mind around. Maybe I'll try it soon though.

I still love white, simple, clean, few embellishments but word art. It is truly my go-to way of scrapping Project Life.

Jeff flew to Indiana to visit Mom in rehab. We solidified Mom coming to live with us - now the work begins to make it happen.

The boys and I had an appetizer meal one night watching NUMB3RS all night - yummy!

The boys made homemade laundry soap...we were down to a half a coffee can container.

I caught up on reading the Lord of the Rings because through the week Physical Therapy + errands + a trip to Bluffton for a meeting killed our reading time.

I made homemade popcorn. It's just the best way to eat popcorn. On the stove, in a big pot. And I also made, homemade, a Pina Colada. I was concerned my taste buds wouldn't like it but it was really good. Pineapple, coconut, and rum - yum!
 

project life 2014 | week 34

Life has thrown us a ton of curveballs. Mostly exhaustion, and responsibilities in which we just don't know where to turn. I am not afraid to document life - as is. When a week is hard: long, long work hours, morning responsibilities that mean little sleep; boys short changing our meals with their lack of attention, outside work taking up alot of study time; Eagle projects that need tending; a family blowout (ok it only lasted less than an hour but still...); and on and on.

This was a hard week!

Amidst a hard week God blessed me with good weather and an evening sky to enjoy! I don't take it for granted.

Our Friday date night, Saturday serving at church (Jeff and the boys), and our Sunday morning and small group fellowship Sunday evening made the week end not so bad.

project life 2014 | week 32

This weeks Project Life is a little different. I used this blog post, Seven Degrees of Random to create a two-page Project Life spread; stories, from the past couple weeks, or a culmination of a story over a period of time.

I kept the pages clean. Simple. I used Cathy Zielske templates and Paislee Press templates. I am working with a few designers these days in an effort to streamline my pages, keeping them first and foremost simple.

Because I just don't have time.

Please ignore the wrong date stamp.

Thank you.

These random little vignettes needed to be told. It's a good idea to put them into Project Life, where I record those random bits of life anyway.

It is just broad strokes of life. Right now. Spread out over our 24-hour days which seem to run together. It is but for a season and I hope to see fresh days soon.

project life 2014 | week 30

All black and white and Paislee Press digital products I picked up recently. I had plenty of pictures for this week so I didn't procrastinate with my pages for the week.

Recording our weeks, even missing one here and there, has been so rewarding.

I am memory keeping.

A recorder of memories.

I document our life.

The highlight of the week was the boys' 17th birthday.

Jeff and I had a fabulous date night downtown City Market. We ate at Vinnie Van Go Go's and walked City Market...then sat on a bench in City Market and listened to 70's-80's music from a live band and people watched. Just an awesome night.

Jeff put on running boards on the truck. We also put in front seat covers, a sun screen, and heavy duty, solid full size floor mats for both front and back floors.

I made business cards for John and Jarrod's lawn business.

We gave the boys their birthday present - tickets to Christian Music Day at Carowinds, North Carolina.

project life 2014 | week 29

I finally took some pictures.

No, I am not caught up.

Not sure I'm going to go back and create pages for the weeks I've missed or just call it good.

So, this week was an eventful week: Boys came home from Texas. Jeff and I had a date night. We bought a new truck. Just stuff like that.

Rather than one journaling card I put my journaling with the photos and I think it covers the week pretty well. I used a ton of Cathy Zielske digital products and a couple Ali Edwards - both are my go-to designers for digital products.

I love the clean and simple style plus white space. It just works for me since I'm not creative when it comes to embellishments.

I don't like missing weeks but I just can't stress over missing weeks. Maybe, I'll just journal the week and make an insert. And now that I've written that down it really sounds like a good idea.

project life 2014 | week 25

I'm catching up weeks of project life, two-fold: I've been trying to stay off the computer to protect my neck and shoulders and also I took very few photos weeks 25 and 26 (actually I took no photos week 26); not sure if I'll just skip week 26 or not.

I used my usual go-to supplies by Cathy Zielske and Ali Edwards but for this week I visited my Paislee Press stash and used her 'good times' and 'yes' photo templates  - love them and really need to stock up on more of her work because I love it!

Week 26 big news were Jeff's 'annual' review plus subsequent pay raise and job change and his works 25th Anniversary celebration in which they took the entire company to Ashville NC for a day+ night stay at the Grove Park Inn/Biltmore. It was a whirlwind trip but just really an amazing 24+ hours. 

project life 2014 | week 27

Between trying to stay off the computer so I don't get a headache from neck and shoulder issues and taking absolutely no pictures except fireworks from the 4th of July, and being way behind I am posting project life weeks way out of order. I will, at the very least get one-page spreads up for those weeks 25 and 26.

The camera has been quiet and even life has been somewhat quiet. Our highlight of the week, because both Jeff and I have worked Mon-Thu without really seeing each other. But, we did spend the 4th with my family down south at my sisters where she put on an amazing cookout and my brother put on awesome fireworks - so cool!

Supplies used: some 4th of July freebies, Cathy Zielske templates, and Ali Edwards overlays and brushes. Super simple!

My brother Rich, and his cohort 'in crime' did a wonderful job on the fireworks display with only a few glitches - like the finalle - but it was still 18 minutes of pretty! With the fireworks so close they are really beautiful. This was a great time for Jeff and I and we've talked about maybe heading down again next year since the 4th is on the weekend again.