Just Telling Our Story

Grungy

I have always been what I would call a simple, graphic-style scrapbooker. My layouts are almost always completely linear -- with strong horizontal and vertical lines and very few crooked photos in sight. Embellishments are simple, few and far between. My favorite scrapbook designer of all time is Cathy Zielske, with Becky Higgins (picture simple sketches from Creating Keepsakes from what seems like long ago) and Ali Edwards so, so close in the ranks. I love them, because they're just my style - simple, clean, classic. I just can't get enough of that style in my albums.

I like to focus on the photos and typography, I guess.

But, enter a new class I am taking from Jessica Sprague, Digi: In Deeper (a birthday gift from my hubby). We're only three days in, mind you, but I might be falling in love with the "grungy" style of scrapbooking. Here's my first page exploring this style.

I like it.

Note the brush strokes on all sides of the photos and the messy, uneven, unpredictable borders on the main photo. Heck, there's even a photo cocked ever-so-slightly to the side. Soooo not like me.

But, again: I like it.

Will I ever do this style again? Only time will tell. Honestly, it's time-consuming and leaves a lot to the creativity of the designer. And frankly, I am feeling a little limited in the creativity department lately, at least when it comes to scrappin'. But it's been a fun stretch of my little comfort zone, and it's worth playing around with.

And geez, after wandering the Internet for more than an hour this morning, checking out all of the Photoshop brushes and textures available for free by way-too-kind designers all over the world, I'm pretty sure I could have some fun.

Three Things

My husband recently initiated what has quickly become a favorite (albeit short-term) tradition around here: Three Things. Every night, when we tuck the kids into bed, we share three things we liked about each of them. Then after they're in bed, Chad and I share three things we appreciate about each other. Sometimes they're specific to the day's events, and sometimes they're just general things we like or appreciate for the day.

In the past week or so, both my son (age 8) and daughter (age 5) have started adding their own "Three Things" to the nighttime ritual, sharing things they like about us, too. (We share these things privately - just one kid and one parent at a time.)

The kids have really liked this. They look forward to our nightly Three Things. Our daughter has even gotten teary-eyed when she had to go to bed when I wasn't home recently. The next morning, she needed her Three Things bright and early.

Anyway, tonight, after I shared my Three Things with my sweet little girl, she shared her Three Things about me:

1. "I like that you love me."
2. "That you fill my heart in." (She made a little heart with her hands. Melt my heart.)
3. "That you fill my bucket." (Something the guidance counselor at her school has been teaching the kids this week -- to be "bucket-fillers" instead of dipping people's buckets.)

I gave her a huge hug. She made my day.

And then there's my all-boy son. After giving him his Three Things for the day, he took my hand and pulled my face close to his. I thought he was going to kiss me on the cheek, although that would admittedly have been a rare occurrence on its own. Nope. He pulled me in, put his face next to mine...and belched in my ear.

Grounded.

Our son said something bad on Tuesday. Really bad. In fact, it was so bad it landed him in the principal's office, and later it landed him in his room – for a week.

Just saying bad words wouldn't normally warrant a strict punishment, I will admit, but in this particular case, exactly what he said was pretty shocking. In fact, when the principal called me, she put him on the phone to tell me what he had done, and I was so shocked when he told me (a little too matter-of-factly), I had him repeat it –– probably not my wisest move, since the principal was in the background.

The thing is, he doesn't even know what he said. He doesn't understand what his words meant, thankfully, and I know he didn't hear those words –– phrases, actually –– at home. He told me from whom he had heard them, and I am not completely surprised. But I am surprised he repeated them...and got caught. He knows better. And I wasn't happy.

(He's in third grade; I would have hoped he would have been much older before he heard language like that, but that's a topic for another day.)

Chad and I decided he would have three punishments, hoping something would sink in:

1. He would write a sentence, "I will not say bad words," 50 times. He had that done in less than 30 minutes, I'd say.
2. He would spend a week in his room during what would normally otherwise be "free" time. He would not play outside, watch TV or movies or play video games. We honestly thought this would be the biggest punishment for him, but it turns out #3 was much more painful for him.
3. He would not be allowed to go to Chuck E. Cheese today, when our daughter was invited to a birthday party. (He is about the same age as our daughter's friend's brother, so he was really looking forward to this.)

Today was Day 3 of his punishment, and it's the first time he seems to really realize what being "grounded" means (or at least really feel the effect of being grounded). He was a total wreck not being allowed to go to CEC. So much so, that he was trying to "make me a deal" before our daughter and I left for the party. He offered to add a day onto the end of his grounding if we let him go tonight. When I said no, he bawled his eyes out. He cried later, too, apparently, when we were gone.

When our daughter and I got home from the party, he gave me this note:

Chad thought I would be mad, but I wasn't at all. I am just glad he's talking to me, even if it's through frustrated words on a note like this. In fact, I love it.

I do communications for a business, but I'll be the first to admit I'm not always great about communication with the kids. I get frustrated. I get tired of repeating myself 85 times before they hear me, much less do what I ask them to do. And I am amazed at how our son can make some bad choices sometimes in the interest of being seen as "cool" with his friends, despite what we teach him at home. But every night, when I tuck him in, we talk about his day. Sometimes he doesn't say much. Other times, he opens up to me. I am incredibly thankful for those little talks every night, even when they only last a minute or two. Communication...it's a good thing.

And I guess in some way, he feels like he can be honest with me. So when the words are hard to say out loud, I'll take a hand-written note from my 8-year-old any day.

(And for that matter, I'll take a little hand-drawn sad face from our younger daughter, too. I'll have to share one of those in another post.)

Love you, Bud.

Soaking it all in

Ah, moments like these remind me of why I love being a mom.

Journaling:

I just can’t get enough of moments like this. The two of you are snuggled together on G’s top bunk, reading one of my favorite children’s books, Bats at the Library. E, you’re only 5 and you’re just learning to read simple words. G, you’re becoming quite the pro at reading, and I love that you’re taking the time to read to your little sister. You’re doing a great job, and she’s loving you for it. You two are so lucky to have each other. I look forward to many more moments like this to come.

Sources:

• Frame: Katie Pertiet, Curled Photo Frame, DesignerDigitals.com
• Yellow and white background papers: KTeague, Dirty Stocks kit, TwoPeasinaBucket.com
• Fonts: Chunk Five (title) and my handwriting

Innocent & Handsome

Well, I've been swamped with work the past week and haven't made time to scrapbook at all. So, I'm pulling out one of my favorite layouts for the sake of posting something this week! If you and I are friends on Facebook, you've already seen this one.

This photo is one of my all-time favorites of my little man. I only wish I had taken it! Still, I absolutely LOVE it, and I owe all the credit to Connie Phillips, a fantastic local portrait photographer. She'll shoot you about anywhere if you're in central Indiana, I'd bet, so call her up if you want amazing photos like this for your living room walls. You won't be disappointed.

Journaling:

INNOCENT & HANDSOME
This picture stops me in my tracks every time I see it. Not only does it show how incredibly handsome you are, but also how innocent and pure you are at this age. You are changing every day, being exposed to different people, different ideas and different attitudes. Sometimes I wish I could just keep you at this age and protect you from the world. Obviously, I can’t. But I look forward to watching this handsome young boy turn into a handsome young man. I love you, Buddy. Love, Mom.    (11.2009, age 7) 

Supplies • Fonts: Stone Sans (little title) and Minion Pro (journaling) • All elements: Nighty kit by Sherah Kraan, Skrapper Digitals, www.stoneaccentsstudio.com

If at first you don't succeed...

Here is a long-overdue spread! I have been wanting to scrap these pictures for some time, but the thought of weeding through dozens of photos from this day held me back. I finally got over that, though, and made the plunge. This page took me two nights, only because my computer crashed mid-layout last night. (Not fun, but I like the new version MUCH better than where it was headed last night!) Anyway, these are pics from more than two years ago when my son was learning how to ride his bike without training wheels. He seemed to have dead-on targeting for every mailbox on the street, but he surprised us at how easily and quickly he mastered the sport! It was literally just minutes before he had it figured out. :o)

Journaling: We were surprised by how easily you were able to master riding your bike without training wheels. With just a few shaky starts (on your too-little Harley Davidson bike) behind you, you got brave enough to try the “big-boy” bike, easily collected your balance and took off, sailing down our street without a worry in the world. Your aim was perhaps a little shakier than your balance, though. Nearly every mailbox in sight seemed to be your direct target for those first few rides on your Hot Wheels two-wheeler!

Sources: All patterned paper from Tracy Collins' Welcome Home kit. Scallop journaling blocks are my designs, using Tracy Collins' patterned papers.

Silly Sayings

G brought home one of those keeper school projects the other day, the kind that will stick around until he's 30-something and I'm cleaning out my house like my mom is doing right now. (And then it will go right back to him!) I know I keep a LOT of his school work—something I'm trying to get better at—but seriously, this one is a real keeper!

His teacher wrote on the chalkboard a bunch of starts to common sayings, and the first graders had to complete the sentences any way they thought fit. They drew pictures to illustrate each sentence, then put them in a little construction paper booklet and titled it, G's Book of Silly Sayings.

Here are G's responses, complete with his inaccurate but way-too-cute spelling: (The more typical responses are at the end of the page.)

• Don't put all your eggs ... in the jack pot.
• Don't count your chicken ... before the jack pot comes in.
• People who live in glass houses ... shouldn't go to the bathroom.
• You can lead a hourse to water but you can't ... make him drownd.
• You can't teach an old dog ... how to drive a trackter.
• Don't bite the hand that ... herts.
• The grass is always greener ... than leavs.
• A penny saved is a ... flying squerl.
• When the cat's away the mice ... will chant we ate the cat!
• Don't put off until tommorrow ... but you can run.

The "real" sayings:

• Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
• Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
• People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
• You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink.
• You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
• Don't bite the hand that feeds you.
• The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
• A penny saved is a penny earned.
• When the cat's away, the mice will play.
• Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today.