Tag: Little by Little

Filling my Cup

When the days get hectic, my posts become a bit farther apart but I thank you for sticking with me this summer as I have dusted off this blog and given this a try and posting more regularly.  As I shared at the beginning of the summer and you will find as we continue, this will not be a daily blog update but typically I will share one or more times a week.  I have had several posts outlined out but not quite finished so hopefully I can get a few extra ones scheduled for next week.

Yesterday, was a day of recharging for me, a vacation day I wanted to take a couple of weeks ago but with several commitments at work recently this was the best day to put it on the calendar and make it happen.  I know of myself that sometimes I just have to put a day like this on the calendar to allow myself time to recharge.  Often in our family we remind each other that we are only able to be the best we need to be when we take care of ourselves first – we like to remind each other of this with the image that we are to “put on own own oxygen mask first” just like they tell you on an airplane with the safety instructions.  So whether I am “Filling my Cup”, “Putting on my Oxygen Mask” or another cute way to remember to make “self care” a priority, I know that this is important for me.  It is necessary for me to be the best version of me for those around me.

How do you like to recharge?

  1. Time alone: For me, it typically requires some time of being by myself with an unscheduled, block of time and having that time at home.  For those of you who have studied the Enneagram, I am finding that I am very much a #2 and I want to be a helper to everyone around me – which sometimes can be distracting from the things I need to do for myself and can be exhausting when I am trying to sort through the needs of others and can’t even figure out what is on my own lists.  To recharge, I have to have some time to think about what I need and then I can be more focused when other needs are weighing on me.  (If you are new to the Enneagram, I recommend the book The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile or the summer series EnneaSummer on the Podcast: That Sounds Fun by Annie F Downs)
  2. Time with my people: Connecting with my closest friends and family is an important part of recharging to me.  Time to hear how they are doing and to talk through the challenges and celebrations I am facing.
  3. Time to make progress: Typically a part of recharging for me also includes making progress on my to do lists.  It may be running errands, projects around the house, work with my own photo projects or other projects I have had on my lists whether it be a mental lists or one of the many post-its or notepads floating around.  Sometimes even the act of regrouping my lists can be helpful too.  I know my fellow lists makers can understand this one.

It sometimes takes work to make happen but I have been blessed with a few things sprinkled over these last few weeks that have helped fill my cup in both big and small ways.

  • Lunch and dinner catch up dates with dear friends that I haven’t seen in months – oh how it sometimes takes us way too long to make those happen but they are so sweet when we finally connect.
  • Hugs from kiddos I love and time hearing what is important & exciting in their lives.
  • Checking items off my list of to dos and errands – this list is finally starting to look a bit shorter. It might need to get below 90 degrees on a weekend I am home for me to tackle that mulch project I didn’t get done this spring.
  • I received flowers (shown in the photo above) from someone at work as a simple thank you for the work I do.
  • A wonderful unscheduled day off from work to have the space and the room to think and dream a bit.

I would love to know how you find your rhythm with recharging.  What fills your cup?  We are all different and motivated by different things.  Do you need time to yourself or do you need to be with others?  Do you seek out a day every few months or do you have a routine that let’s you recharge more often?  Do you crave a few hours or a day to recharge?  What activities help you feel more grounded and ready to tackle what life throws your way?

This doesn’t always fit in a neat box or in my timing but I know that it is work fighting for and making sure I get it scheduled and make happen on a regular basis.  I hope you find your own way to take care of yourself and fill your cup so you can be the best YOU for those around you too!

Finding my Rhythm & Workflow

When I am able to spend some consistent time working with my own photos, I find a rhythm – a routine, a flow to the way I work.  I would love to share a bit of my process with you all.  There is not one correct way to do any of this but I find it helpful to hear how others organize their process and get their projects done and hope you will find this helpful too.

I am finding the best progress when I spend my time focusing on my favorite photos first and working one month at a time.  I have been using the 15 Minutes a Day approach I share about in The Power in 15 Minutes for months now to have my photos organized into a Favorites album in Forever.

I use Forever’s Artisan software for most of my photo projects these days since most of my photos are digital already.  It is a HUGE timesaver when I get to photos I have already worked through and picked my favorites.  I have recently wrapped up my 2017 Page Prints and started my 2018 Page prints so I will walk you through my flow on 2018 since that will be most easily able to be adapted to a complete book project or page print project. I personally love page prints for my annual albums because they give me the most flexibility in my albums and allow me to still use my Creative Memories style albums and insert traditional pages if I wish or if I happen to have printed photos or memorabilia that I want to include, I can do that easily too.

I start a NEW project for each year in Artisan and work through my pages in chronological order.  I always choose a 12×12 Hardbound Book project (even though I typically am going to print as page prints).  This allows me to have the features for viewing a 2 page spread which is my favorite way to work.  I like to choose a Pre-designed template to get me started.  I love Forever Design Maps as a good base to work with.  By choosing a Pre-designed kit rather than blank, I have at least some pages ready to pop my photos in and finish off quickly.  I can always switch around the pages or even pick other pre-designed pages I have from other kits or p2p Blueprints I have received with my membership each month.

I use the View Tab at the top of Artisan to choose the option to View 2 Separate Trimmed Pages (Yellow Highlighted area will give you this option) and I turn off the Print Guides to have the best working space.  My screen look like this when I am getting started.

A bonus tip if your page doesn’t look like this on the Elements Panel (left side), hover over the area between the Elements panel and the Welcome tab about where the magenta arrow is and there will be a small area.  Use your mouse and left click and drag this Elements Panel wider to see more detail like I have shown.  Play with this and find the way you like it best.

Once I have my project set up, I add just one month or one event photos at a time.  I find it is easier to work with 10-25 photos at a time rather than hundreds. I will my photos from my Forever Account > my 2018 Favorites Album.  I add the photos first and fill in the photo spots first, add more or remove any that aren’t needed and then I go and add paper and embellishments if the template needs any.  Remember to SAVE often so you don’t loose any work along the way.

Before I go to the next page, I add a title and journal at least a short caption or quick story that relates to the photos on the 2 pages. My final step is to go through and add shadows to photos and embellishments and text.  I typically add a Heavy Shadow to all photo boxes, titles and main elements of paper or embellishments and a light shadow to journalling and other lesser significant embellishments or top layers of paper.

Once I have 5-10 pages complete, I upload those completed pages to Forever Print to order with the next special and I save the JPGs so I can share the completed page either on social media or through my Forever account.

A few other tips that may be helpful as you are working through this process:

  • I like having lots of templates and blueprints available to pick from so when I use all of the templates in the base kit I have picked I have plenty to choose from.
  • You can change the template by going to the Home Ribbon and choosing Template (to change) or Add Page (to insert a new page).  You do have to switch back to the single page view to Add a new page but if you are changing you can do that from the 2 page view.
  • Whether you are changing a template or adding new page, you will be asked if you want to choose your template from an Art Kit or from your Computer.  Your Art Kit options are those kits that have been purchased through the Forever store.  Your p2p Blueprints will be found by using the Templates on your Computer.
  • One trick I often use is to go ahead and put photos in the template I have in front of me even if I don’t like it.  When I go to pick another template the preview will show me the new template with my photos already in it.  My photos may not be in the exact right spot but it gives me a good idea if it would be a good fit.  I can shuffle the photos as needed.

Do you want to see more?  I am happy to set up a time to do a 30 minute screen sharing conference call and show you how this looks when I do it and let you ask questions as I do.  Message me or comment below if you would like to join me for the next screen sharing conference call or if you would like to see this demo at my monthly workshop, July 13th.  Be sure you sign up if you are interested in joining us for the July workshop to hold your spot: July Workshop Sign up

The Story of the Sunflower

I have a great hope of a day when I have a yard with flowers and plants that can be enjoyed regularly and maybe even mulch that is put down at the correct time of the year but until then I will celebrate when I have a few living flowers in pots or keep the grass alive another summer or the clay dirt is not too exposed in the flowerbeds. 

This past spring my mom was helping me re-pot some flowers that we had hoped might survive another season and shared with excitement that she had picked up some sunflower seeds and that “WE” should plant them at my house.  This “WE” in our family normally means one of us has a great idea and all of us are going to “get the opportunity to” participate in some form.  So off we go, right that moment to the back yard and size up a good spot for our seeds to be planted.   The encouraging part to me was as my sister read the package that these seeds needed bright sun but that actually thrive in bad dirt.  Good thing because I believe that any beneficial top soil was scraped off my lot long before my house was complete and I have some mighty fine packed clay to work with in this little yard.

We proceeded to plant our little handful of sunflower seeds along a flower bed I had started to prep a few years ago.  Like I said we have some fine clay underneath that thin layer of mulch but needless to say we planted our seeds and hoped for the best.  I did my best to remember to water them and watch for how they were doing and sure enough after a few weeks, we had a few sprouts and then those sprouts began to grow.  It has been fun to watch this out my back window and see as I go and come each day from work.  When the weather has brought heavy rain and even hail a few weeks ago, I was quick to check and see how our sunflowers were handling it.  A few leaves and one of the stalks did show some damage but the main stem was still strong and growing.

This little plant has been a great reminder of all the lessons we can learn through a garden – even a garden of just a couple of sunflowers.  This plant didn’t require good soil – it makes the most of where it is planted.  It weathers the storms that come it’s way.  It needs nurturing, water, sun and a bit of tending but no matter what how much help it gets from those things, it still kept growing.

This weekend it was fun to wake up and see the first peak of yellow pop through.  I don’t know how many flowers we may get this summer but this one bud beginning to open has been a treat and blessing to watch.  I am reminded of how it started from a simple seed in the dirt.  If you haven’t had a chance to read the book Cultivate by Lara Casey, she makes a great parallel to our lives about how Good things grow in the dirt and It is OK to Grow Slow and my favorite – Little by Little progress will add up. So as I continue to watch the slow and steady progress of this beautiful flower, I will remember the other progress I am working on in goals related to health, projects around the house, work assignments, etc and remember that the little bits of growth and progress can turn into something very beautiful in just the right time.

 

Mark your Calendar – July Photo Workshop

 

Our July Workshop is just 4 weeks away so now is the perfect time to sign up and make sure you have a spot reserved for you.  We have a great time each month gathering with friends who also want to work with their photos and create meaningful albums and scrapbooks or just get them all corralled into one place.  Plan to join us for a few hours or the whole day, there is an option that will work for you no matter how much time you have available.  To see all the details and available events coming up be sure to check out: the Events Tab above.

If you have a Creative Memories order, please submit to me no later than July 1 to ensure that I include it with my next order.  If you haven’t checked out my Summer Sale, be sure to check out it out as new items are being added each week and let me know if you would like your order brought the workshop or you can pick up sooner at my house in Apex.

If you would like to add an order to my July Media Conversion Group box, bring your items with you or get them to me no later than July 12th so we an add it to this box.  Check out details about Forever’s Media Conversion Box Services and the Price List for when you add to a group box.

What does caught up look like to you?

Years ago, I would hear people who scrapbooked with me say that they were so many years behind and I could tell it bothered them.  I decided then that my more realistic goal was to be no more than a year behind.  If I was scrapbooking last year’s Spring this Spring, then I could enjoy the fun new products and memories at just the right time.  I did from time to time jump in and do a few pages of a current event to make sure I didn’t forget the details but I set my expectation to not stress on the staying “current with today” mentality.  As the years have gone on, I will swing from 6 months back to almost 2 years but generally hover around the 1 year mark and that is success for me.

This last year brought a few life changes, a big job change and with that came less time to scrapbook, pair that with a year that seems to have been a big photo year with travel and lots of fun and I had slipped further behind than I like to be but I kept working a little at a time.  Starting with 2019, I also took on a slightly different strategy to help my work move along a bit quicker.  I started focusing my 15 minutes a day several days a week on picking my favorites and I would knock out one month at a time.  I started as I always do with the current photos (January) and once I got caught up with the current month in 2019, I would go back to the next month that I had with my project and spent a few days picking my favorites and putting them in a sub-album.  If I didn’t have time to scrapbook then I would at least get my photos prepped and ready.  This has made a huge difference and I am already well on my way to having my favorites picked out already for 2019 once I get ready to do those photos too.

Remember that “caught up” can and does look different for each of us – it may be finishing one important project for you from years ago, it may be getting the next year’s album done, it may be gathering your photos and picking your favorites so that they are where you can find them and share the when you wish, it may be creating a gift for a friend.

What project do you want to get caught up with this month?  I am excited to have made some great headway the last few weeks on my project and am down to one remaining week in 2017 and will be jumping on 2018 soon.