In the Storm

Stories 2018 | So Love This Food Memory

Today I am sharing a page I totally scraplifted from a traditional page created by Ali Edwards. I was flipping through a binder full of scrapbooking layout ideas one afternoon while I was watching The Closer on Prime video, and pulling out pages of ideas that I wanted to scraplift. This one is from one of Ali's Creating Keepsakes magazine articles for her AE column. Ali has been a major player in the scrapbooking realm since she blasted on the scene in 2001 and I've been following her ever since.

In fact, in September, I'm going to Oregon and go visit her. I will be participating in her semi-annual project Story Camp and I'm ecstatic beyond belief. I've wanted to go from the beginning and kept talking myself out of the trip. But, this time I'm going. Super excited! Pinch me, I'm dreaming.

For this page I used a mountain of word phrase sticker (digital stickers, of course) and a couple photos plus journaling and that is all.

Stories 2018 | Build journey

It is an amazing experience to see all your hard work to come to fruition, to see the fruit of your labors being used for Kingdom work. In the spring before Journey 2018, Jeff, and his building partner Jeff, for all things Journey, were tasked with building two sets for the interactive Christmas moving production that Compassion Christian Church puts on every other year, usually the beginning of December. Each set would be two scenes along the Journey to Bethlehem, one for Mary’s home and one for Joseph’s home, because while they were betrothed they were not yet married.

Towards the end of May, on most Saturday’s through the middle of October, Jeff, Jeff, and their team of ‘builders’ planned and built the two sets, forging a friendship that would carry on long after the Journey was over. Once the sets were built, the creative director and her team came on the scenes and transformed those sets into homes of Nazareth, were Mary and Joseph lived.

Jeff’s team were ecstatic seeing all their work finished, but more so, when ‘travelers’, (guests who were coming through The Journey) gathered around the sets that they built and heard the beginning of the Christmas story and the long awaited Messiah, and the intricate plan and part Mary and Joseph would play in the story. It is a huge time commitment, we all have to adjust our lives around Jeff going to the church to build, but it is always so worth it. Over the years, the two Jeff’s have become skilled at time management, planning out the project and managing it so well, that while they work long hours it isn’t overly taxing on family time.

Stories 2018 | so much joy

A near naked baby, especially one with chubby little rolls that shouts healthy is so stinkin' cute! Elizabeth posted a picture of Sophia Rose eating her first baby food - say it isn't so! Would time just please stand still? I'm dying here. I'm in Georgia and Miss Sophia is not. I just want to cuddle and snuggle and poofle Sophia until she giggles. I'm imagining holding her in all her precious chunky goodness. Oh my! My heart aches. Yet, it is so thrilled to see beautiful Sophia even in a picture.

Many years ago, because I too was in the military, I lived far away from my parents. Thus, they didn't get to see their grandchildren only once a year sometimes (even less). I know their feelings. Gut wrenching!

Stories 2018 | First Haircut

I have a voracious need for photos and stories of my grandchildren. When one of my daughters posts a rare set of photos I promptly upload them to my computer and am usually just as quick to scrapbook the page for inclusion into the current year's album.

These photos of Samuel and his first professional haircut blew me away. I was quite literally giddy with excitement - in getting the photos and seeing the amazing transformation from ragamuffin to polished darling. It's in the everyday that I love documenting. Even better when I have journaling - in their own words - but if not, I make do.

I have been scrapbooking various sizes of albums and I recently saw on Pinterest, and elsewhere, some Halloween albums in 3 x 8 - sized. My plan - I have most of the photos downloaded (at least most of Elizabeth's kids costumes from about 2008) - is to make a Halloween album of all my grandkids' costumes and activities to include pumpkin patches and, maybe, fall.

When the kids were growing up Halloween was my least favorite holiday so it wasn't a priority in our home but I love that the girls are giving it to the grandkids. Which means I get to scrapbook their costumes and stories! So, look for the beginnings of that album soon! I'm hoping to get started this week.

Don't let the 'girly' page fool you! These guys are all men. And real men can wear pink and orange without hindering their manhood.

And that has nothing to do with the story.

For John and Jarrod's birthday celebration we all awoke super early on a Saturday morning so we could drive out to Tybee Island and get into line (yeah! we were first in line) - because there is always a line - for the 7 am opening of The Breakfast Club, our favorite Tybee Island breakfast - club for the atmosphere, the food, the togetherness, and the music.

With 70's Rock playing non-stop on Pandora and seating at the counter directly behind the short order cooks, we enjoyed a full plate of amazing food. Jeff and I ordered our go-to plates (he orders an omelet fully loaded with hash browns and I order the club's homemade sausage, eggs and, of course, hash browns). John gave me a chuckle when he ordered a burger for breakfast and received a kudo from the cook because they're tasty burgers. John concurred. Jarrod ordered thick, syrup laced French toast - yummy!

We love interacting with the cooks and we always, in addition to tipping our server, tip the cooks (for their beer money). I know. It's enabling. But, they do this cheezy banging and sing out every time someone tips the cooks.

stories 2018 | you are my sunshine

Living so far from grandkids I am under the photo-taking discretion of my daughters. Sooo, when Elizabeth posts a bunch of photos on Facebook I am a 'saving as' grandma to my computer for the purposes of making sure these sweet things make it into our albums - even though I'm not there.

Most of the time I'm sharing my words, like here, but sometimes my girls write a few words. I love that - getting their perspective and including those into the stories told. Noah seems excited and yet serious about feeding his baby sister, Sophia - and, then, he gets this soured face. I'd love to know why!

Besides that, the photos are seriously precious!

stories 2018 | a few more

Our 'friend' Webster, so named by Jeff, when he (Webster) made his web on the front porch every night. Thankfully, he has since moved to higher ground, because, more than likely, the bugs are more prevalent. A cheesy little story but a conversation each morning as Jeff walks me out to the truck to say goodbye as I head for work.

Sometimes little stories come to me that, really, have no pictures, nor are 'important'. They are just stories that are fun, and they were a part of our life as a whole. A story in a nook of my life. This story is about how I, and Jeff and I, and how even the kids and us, have used military phonetics over the years. Only because I happened to use my initials in military phonetics did it make me think of these stories. And, made me think about this last time Ashley and Brad were home that I talked to Ashley in military phonetics (rather than spelling out the words) because her boys can spell now). The story has continued on through.

I seriously do not like summer. It's hot and humid here in Savannah. Give me air conditioning any day of the week. But, this. This is the best thing about summer.

Observing thunderstorms like this. In the distant. And capturing with my camera.

all about me | today

Not today today as in today but today as in Saturday today.

A Facebook friend created a page recently of no pictures just words of her 'feelings' of 'today' (whatever day she was documenting). I took her page more literally and documented my (our) day with broad strokes, same concept, different approach. I used digital stamps, stickers, and chipboard and quick blurbs about our day.

8/18/2018

I woke up with excruciating back, hip, wrist, and knee pain to the point of tears. After two weeks of near pain-free I was totally bummed the pain had returned.

I planned the meals for the week, made a grocery list and went to the commissary for our groceries.

I made a dozen egg cups for this weeks breakfasts: chopped ham, red pepper, onion, pickled jalapenos, and Monterey Jack pepper cheese

Jeff and Jarrod served at Compassion for the Journey set building that Jeff co-leads. Serving in this way is Jeff's sweet spot.

I washed our bedroom sheets. Nothing like clean, fresh-smelling sheets on the bed - glorious!

I organized my scrapbook albums.

I created 2 scrapbook pages and added tons of photos to my Blue Wall 4 x 4 template and folder on my computer. Once I get 286 photos in the folder I will have them printed and replace all the photos currently on the Blue Wall's frame in our living room with these freshly printed, newer photos.

Today was stinking hot and humid and I'm so thankful for air conditioning.

Jeff and I went on our weekly date night to Sugo Rosso Italian Kitchen, a fairly new spot in Savannah. Phenomenal! Unbelievably, amazing! I'm not sure what we did, or maybe our server was just ecstatic and generous, but she gifted us with a huge piece of the best (I'm not lying!!!) piece of cheesecake smothered in the best caramel sauce (I'm still not lying!!!) I've ever eaten.

 

Project Life 2018 | Week 32

Wait!

Wait, just a minute!

What happened to Project Life weeks 13 through 31? Yeah, that.

They didn't happen.

That doesn't mean they won't. Because I might be able to scratch (I mean scrap) together a week here or there - but probably not.

Will there be a week 33?

I'm glad you asked.

We'll see.

That's the plan right now and this week is going good so far - picture taking wise.

So, here is week 32. It was a really. good. week. Sure. There were some down spots but even those were infused with good things. My post yesterday pretty much highlights the same week I just expanded on a couple of the stories rather than bullet statements of good things.

Digitally, of course, 2- 12 x 12 pages for the Stories 2018 slash Project Life 2018 album that I am putting together in addition to my All About Me album. Except for the digital templates by Cathy Zielske all digital chipboard and stamps are by Ali Edwards and they are all about summer.

stories 2018 | a few more pages

The last of the more recent pages I've created over these past couple of months that I haven't shared here on the blog. A couple are for my All About Me album and the other one for Stories 2018 - those stories that aren't either my story per se, or solely my story, but are more family-oriented stories I'm telling.

This first one (above) is about me, of course, and a book I read that is going into a 'stack' of keepers.

 

I realized it has been awhile since I read aloud and I was a bit out of my groove, but I still gave it a go because I wanted to read aloud the unabridged yet illustrated Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone that we got Ian, who loves everything Harry Potter, for his birthday in June. We bought him the illustrated books of the first two in the series (and I think a couple more in the series, the illustrated books) will make a nice Christmas present, too)

I love lists as is quite obvious if one has been around my blog for awhile. For my All About Me album I scraplifted the idea for an Elevensies page from another digital scrapbooker who I've come to admire for her designs. She's Australian and elevensies is a British-term, a short break taken at 11 am with tea and biscuits, but translated the term to a list of 'eleven' things - instead of the typical top 10. Because it was July and half of the year has passed - reading my heart out - I decided to record my favorite books - so far - this year.

Most months, at the end of the month, I include a page, or two, of my favorites of the month, highlighting those things over the month that I celebrated - in my heart.