Life in Focus

Around Here...

Around here, it's been a whirlwind of activity for the past couple of months and I've been doing my best to keep up with it all! And so is she...although we've discovered that sometimes it's best to just park yourself at the top of the steps so you don't have to run up and down so many times! :)

Around here...

This boy came home from college after a very successful first year away and we are so proud of him!

This girl made a speech, got elected as a Drama Club Officer, earned 5 amazing undergraduate awards, and finished her junior year of high school with flying colors.

This boy turned 14, made a speech, got elected as Senior Patrol Leader, began work on his Boy Scout Eagle project, and completed 8th grade with great success.

These two began Cross Country training together and I'm so happy that they will have time together as a Freshman and Senior next year!

I went to California with my big brother and sister-in-law to help my niece create the wedding of her dreams. It was beautiful and so much fun!

I created our very own lemonade stand in my kitchen as a little "Welcome to Summer" surprise!

We made chocolate chip cupcakes with chocolate chip butter cream and they were YUM!

I fell in love with a goat...but that's a story for a different day! :)

We celebrated Father's Day with a delicious feast and I was just so thankful to have that time with both my dad and my husband, two of the most amazing daddys I know.

I ran in the Color Run 5K with my colorful kids and colorful friends and it was so much messy fun!

And now that Summer is officially here, the kids are all home, and we're settling into a routine, I'm looking up and taking a deep breath...

Heading out to our favorite park as often as we can...

Matching and folding a whole lot of white socks (whew!)...

Spending time just being together...

Sitting around the campfire and gazing at the stars...

And eating ice cream with rainbow sprinkles whenever I get the chance.

Here's to a beautiful Summer full of blessings!

 

 

 

Turning 40

So, since I just had my 41st birthday this month, I thought it was time to make a layout from my big 40th last year. :)  For my birthday,I bought myself these super awesome colorful and fun shoes.  Whenever I wear them, I get compliments and they make me feel so happy!  I guess it's kind of a symbol and reminder for me of the life I'm designing and living...colorful,fun, and happy!

By the way, I absolutely love the new Fresh Print Clothesline collection of papers and embellishments from Little Yellow Bicycle.  There is no way you can create with them without a smile on your face!

Birthday week :: creating

I'm still having fun creating with graphic 45 papers and especially love the Botanicabella collection! It's filled with so many inspiring designs and speaks to my nature loving heart.  With all of the time that my family spends outdoors adventuring (and the stacks of photos that I've collected), I'm sure to get a lot of mileage out of these beautiful papers. :)

This week is all about celebrating for me!  My birthday is on Sunday (the first full day of spring) and my family has a tradition of making the entire week special!  So, each day this week I'll be doing something fun to celebrate.  Today I'm happy to be breaking in my brand new running shoes with a long run, browsing the book store for inspiration, and then I'm off to meet a good friend for a yummy lunch! 

Birthday weeks are highly recommended and so good for the soul!

Today

I have a big stack of freshly printed photos on my desk.....

and a big stack of inspiring goodies in front of me.

Today I'm telling stories, playing with paper and glue, and feeling grateful.

Today the sun is shining.

Holiday House

Hello there!  I hope this December Wednesday is finding you joyful.  As for me, I'm cuddled up at home recuperating from knee surgery and watching the snow fall outside my window.  I have a quick project to share for today in between icing my knee and resting my body.

It's my Holiday House!

It's just a fun little book that I made of our holiday season using photos throughout the years.  The chimneys on top are actually the tabs for each section of the book, labeled create, decorate, and celebrate.  Since these are my top 3 ways to enjoy the season, I included a few traditions in each section to highlight.  Here are a few of the pages...

CREATE

 

DECORATE

 

CELEBRATE

Here's to the traditions that make the holiday so much fun and....

fixed up knees with the promise to dance again!! :)

Grateful Week :: Saving the memory

Today I have a simple layout to share about our Thanksgiving celebration.  With just a couple of words and a photo grid, it tells the story of our day and bottles up the memory so perfectly for me. Every time I look at this page, I can't help but feel grateful for so many blessings.

 

Enjoy a beautiful Thursday friends!

saving the memories

Happy Wednesday!!

I treasure the time that I carve out of my schedule to do something fun and meaningful with my photos and memories. This creative play gives me that much needed boost that feeds my soul.  For today, I have a couple of recent pages about my 2 oldest that are now teenagers (um, yes....I do believe I blinked!)  Add a little vintage ephemera with some Jenni Bowlin goodies and I'm a happy girl!

 

GROW :: vintage sheet music, buttons, and lace trim

JBS paper, bingo card, mini flower

 

RECOGNIZE :: vintage dictionary page

JBS chipboard buttons, paper, rub on

What about you...what have you done lately to feed your soul??

love letters

I have known about this stack of beautiful old letters for quite some time.  They are worn from many years of reading and rereading and are filled with love, hope, and dreams from a time long ago.  These are the love letters that were written between my grandmother and grandfather and each precious envelope tells a bit of the story of their lives.  The stack includes small folded notes written while they were "courting" to letters written when my grandfather was away at war and longed to be back home again.  My grandmother cherished these letters so much every day of her life and even bundled them up and wrote on the top what the subject matter of each letter was.  To her, these handwritten words were just as important as any photograph in her collection.  They are her life in beautiful handwritten words.

When my father came to me recently with three big boxes stuffed with these notes, cards, and letters and told me that they now belonged to me, I nearly cried.  Understanding the importance of saving these memories, he gave them to me knowing I would treasure them always.  I spent hours carefully opening up envelopes and unfolding notes and reading all the love that poured through each piece of paper.  Some made me cry and others made me laugh out loud and I envisioned my grandparents reacting the same way. 

I knew that I would need a very special home for at least some of the letters to display.  I wanted my children to know and understand the great grandparents that they have never met and keeping some of these letters accessible means that they will be read....and appreciated.  So, in one of my flea market adventures, I came across a sweet little red train case and I knew that it would be perfect!  Combined with a little vintage ephemera, some scanned photos and letters, and my favorite Jenni Bowlin goodies, I got to work creating. 

Here's the finished project:

and here's a view of the inside with a collage on the lid and some vintage sheet music and JBS paper covering the bottom:

and this is the chain of tags made out of vintage milk caps:

I'm so grateful that my grandparents wrote these letters, that my grandmother cherished them the way she did, and that I have this special gift that tells of their love story from so long ago.