Football Frenzy

It's fall so at our house, that means football rules. Our son has played football since he was five years old, but this was our first official year of high school football and we were ready because practice started in August. I remember one very warm afternoon waiting in the parking lot for him to finish and listening to the band practicing.  There's just something about the band's drum line and football - the two seem to go hand-in-hand.  I was giddy with the anticipation of the first game!

My Football Hero!

Our almost-six-feet-tall, 200 pound freshman was pulled up to play JV football so our world was rocked a little more than expected, and going in to a brand new school not knowing anyone, it was an adjustment for him and us!  He did great, though, and the team had a great year (6 and 3).  Of course, I had my camera at all the games and I think I averaged about 250 pictures a game.  Considering there were 9 games in the season (plus numerous scrimmages), I have well over 1,200 images!  Thank goodness I have the dates of each picture because seriously - they all look alike.  1,200+ images of my son and his teammates running this way, running that way, carry the ball, kicking the ball, making a tackle...do I really need to have 1,200+ images of the same thing over and over and over?  I could, but that would not be a very interesting photo album, would it? Plus it doesn't make sense to spend all that money printing them either individually or in scrapbook pages.

District Champions

So what's a shutter snapping, photo addict like me to do in a situation like this? The answer:  make friends with the "DELETE" button.  This has been so difficult for me because I take pictures with a purpose, pictures that mean something to me. There's my kid in it, for crying out loud and if I delete it, that's like throwing away my child! Do you ever feel that way, too? Get over it, Jackie! Deleting an image does NOT throw away your child. I'll have the best images saved, printed and I'm learning to delete by following these steps:

1.  Go through and get rid of the blurry, out-of-focus images. Even if it was the best play of the game...no one enjoys looking at a picture that doesn't look good. Period. Let it go.

2.  Get rid of duplicates. Is my son standing in formation before the ball is in play?  Sure, I think he looks good standing there, but do I really need 100 pictures of him like that? No! Choose 5 that are the best and delete the rest! Whoa. That's a darn good mantra:  choose 5 that are the best and delete the rest!

3.  Let's take it game by game (day by day, event by event or however you have your photos organized) and choose from each the 5 that are the best and delete the rest! Let's say that I had my continuous shooting going on my camera and I have 10 images that show second by second an awesome play. I said it was a mantra, remember? It's not the law so I can bend a little here and there.  Images like that would make an excellent collage on a page. But I have to keep that to just 1 or 2 per album and remember the mantra for the rest.

I am the queen of keeping it all so I understand how difficult it can be to delete images, but let's face it.  No one wants to sit and look through albums filled with thousands of pictures. A single picture can tell an entire story so of course, 45 images from the 9 games will make a memory book filled with many stories and great memories to last a life time!

Most importantly, I want my son to be able to look back fondly on his first year of high school football and have an album that will make him smile for many, many years to come.

Aaaaggghhh! Fruit Flies!

There's nothing better than fresh fruits and vegetables right from the garden. It's like Heaven on a plate! But every rose has it's thorn (thank you Bret Michaels): fruit flies. Yup, I have them all over my house and they're driving me nuts! The worst part is that they are not only a nuisance, they can be a health hazard (((shudder))). The rotten little buggers can contaminate food which can make you and your family very ill! I did a LOT of research online from many, many different sites and links with so much information my head was spinning. Seriously, they're little, nuisance flies, but here's the scary part:

They love bits of rotting food remnants and seem to thrive in even the smallest amount. When fruit flies move in, they just don't want to leave and will lay eggs in and on anything they can find - fruits & vegetables left on the counter, sink drains, garbage disposals, empty bottles & cans, garbage bags, and even mops and rags.

A Few Fun (okay, not really) Facts About Fruit Flies:

- Can lay up to 500 eggs at a time

- Their entire lifecycle is complete in about a week

- While considered mainly a pest, they have the potential to contaminate food with dangerous bacteria

We all know that removing the food, getting rid of the garbage & cleaning up plays a big role, but we also know what it's like to move a piece of fruit and have a swarm of fruit flies fill the air only to escape your attempts at killing them. Where are they gonna go? Obviously the ones flying around can't be easily captured or killed, so they'll linger about until they find some other place to lay eggs and the whole cycle starts again. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

I read about folding an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper, making a cone, and placing it in a jar with vinegar or banana. Pain in the butt in my opinion. I read about buying traps from the store. Expensive!  Check out an idea using a banana:

1. Get a small jar you don't plan on using again ( like a baby food jar or something similar ) and wash it out well. Make sure it is not a jar with a funky smell such as a used pickle jar or anything that use to have strong spices. You want a clean, odorless jar.

2. Take a chunk of banana and place inside the jar. This is why you want a clean, odorless jar - so that the banana smell won't be overpowered by other not-so-tempting smells. Banana seems to work the best, but you can experiment.

3. Fit a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the jar, making sure that it fits tight and well sealed around the edges. Then take a pen or pencil and poke 4 to 5 holes in the plastic, just big enough for a fruit fly to fit into. Once a fruit fly crawls in, it can't get out. You would think they would just fly back out through the holes, but they won't!

4. Place the jar in an area where you have seen the most fruit flies. Depending on the amount of fruit flies you have, you can expect to start seeing the jar fill up within just a few hours. After 24 hours, you will discover just how bad your fruit fly problem is!

This simple, inexpensive & safe method works perfectly and if you don't want the jar on public display, you can always slip it behind the garbage can, in the cupboard or even under the sink (Just don't forget about it!). You will want to empty the jar every 3-4 days before any eggs have a chance to hatch. While adult fruit flies can't easily escape through the holes, their maggots can very easily, and besides that - they are disgusting to see crawling around in the jar. You don't want to see these things crawling on your counter!

Cleaning out the jar shouldn't be a problem. Kill the bugs with bug spray, wash out the jar and start the whole process over again if there are still some fruit flies left to capture.

For bad fruit fly problems, you will want to use this method for a good two weeks to make sure you've captured the majority of fruit flies. You might even want to use a few jars in different places. Before long, your kitchen will be back to normal.

Maybe for some people, but not for me. Too many steps & too much hassle of maintaining the darn thing. And I don't use bug spray (it's the organics in me). So what do I do? Simple. Fill a small jar with apple cider vinegar, add a few drops of liquid dish soap, mix it up and set it out on the counter where there have been a lot of fruit flies. Watch them come in for a drink (and because the soap breaks the surface tension of the vinegar, they fall in) and voila! They can't get out! Dump, clean and re-fill as needed until the buggers are gone

I understand that the fruit flies really love beer (I wonder who conducted that survey?) but too bad I won't let them have a "happy" death - that would be too nice of me. I guess they love red wine even better (ditto on the survey). Sorry little pests. If I have red wine in my house, it certainly won't be for YOU to drink!

And don't stop eating fresh fruits and vegetables like my husband suggested (go figure). Just accept the challenge and fight to win! Now I must go clean my counters AGAIN.

MyMemories Suite 2013 Gold Award Winner

Why do I love MyMemories Suite so much? I could go on and on, but do you have 3 1/2 minutes to watch this video by Top 10 Reviews to hear why they rated it a GOLD WINNER?  Click the link below:

Top Rated Digital Scrapbooking Program

MyMemories Suite Version 4 digital scrapbooking software is a fun and creative way to create scrapbooks, photobooks and more, whether you have a Mac or PC. The software's design tools will help you to build entire albums and other printable projects effortlessly using one of the many installed templates or designing your very own pages from scratch.

Available worldwide. Intended for English-language computers. Technical support is English-only.

You can click the link to the right on my blog screen or click this link here. But wait! Before you go, you should write down this code because I give it to all my friends and family and new visitors, too!  The code (STMMMS70891) will take $10 off your purchase price of the software! Unbelievable price and quality galore...you simply can't beat it. But wait...you CAN beat that deal. Purchase MyMemories V4 and you'll receive a free photobook (you'll get all the details with your purchase receipt)! So what are you waiting for? Head on over to purchase this fabulous scrapbooking software that the entire family can use. You'll be creating works of art in no time that will be cherished for ages!

Digital Freebie from MyMemories!

Being affiliated with MyMemories, I am given the wonderful opportunity to give away some really neat freebies, and here's one for you! How cute are these hearts?

You can easily make these (or have your kiddos or grandkiddos do it for a fun summer project) and use them as decorations or party favors. Oh yes, I have TWO 50th wedding anniversary parties coming up, one for my in-laws in August and one for my parents the end of November...can you just see these little babies decorating a room? I can! They're easy, simple but absolutely adorable:

Our set of three freebie packs are simply packed with lots of goodies for you:

Kit #1, Honeychurch Paper Hearts (click link) includes 17 page elements and 4 quick pages. Free!

Kit #2, Made in the USA Hearts (click link) also includes 17 page elements and 4 quick pages. Free!

Kit #3, Summer Sorbet Paper Hearts (click link) includes 16 page elements and 4 quick pages. Free!

To download, simply click on the links above to download the freebies from MyMemories. For complete assembly instructions (with step-by-step photos to follow!) click HERE.

Be sure to grab them by July 28th as after that date, they'll be placed in the shop and they won't be free any longer!

Remember, if you use MyMemories Suite V4 to digitally scrapbook, you'll have the ability to customize these hearts. If you don't have MMS V4, it's a sad day to be sure.  That can certainly be turned into a happy day, however...you simply have to click your mouse over to MyMemories and download the software which can be used on PCs and Macs!  Be sure to use my special code, STMMMS70891, to receive $10 off the software. You'll also receive a free photobook from MyMemories upon checkout after your purchase (see your receipt for details). It's get no better, folks! I guarantee you'll be happy!

Mission: Zucchini

I plant a garden every year at my parent's house (I have a yard full of trees, thus too much shade for my own garden at home) and between what I plant and what my parents plant, we have very abundant crops. The garden's about 200' x 300' and there's 37 rows! Let me just say that I spend the majority of my summer pulling weeds because we garden organically and use no herbicides to assist with weed control. My two hands are all the control we need! Well, that and a good rototiller!

Zucchini is one of those vegetables that grows quickly, produces quickly and continues to produce through most of the gardening season. Inevitably, we end up having so many zucchini that we aren't sure what to do with it all! We give it away to friends and family, donate it to food pantries, eat as much as we can, freeze it, dehydrate it and there's STILL more!

My mission this year? Eat as many zucchini as we can in ways I haven't eaten them before (as well as the old ways that are tried and true), ways that are delectable and, well, down right delicious. I found a new way and when I tried it, I was hooked. I AM hooked. And I will make it over and over and over!  The recipe/idea was found in a raw food cookbook (don't stop reading because you saw the word "raw" - trust me!). But first, I needed a special piece of equipment...

I found a great deal on Amazon for a spiral vegetable slicer by Paderno Cuisine about a month ago. It literally cuts veggies into "noodles" just like spaghetti! I bought it on sale but if you look around you can find one that costs less. I found one that looks exactly the same (same little holes in the side and everything!) from a different manufacturer but that is only $21.99.  Hmmm, if it walks like a duck...

I picked my first zucchini and knew I wanted to make it into "noodles". First, let me say how easy this little device is.  Insert the blade by dropping it into place, load the zucchini and that's it:

It's not electrical so it runs as fast as your hand can turn the crank and push it through. SO easy my 10-year-old was able to use it while I took pictures!

And it's just plain fun. Had I read the directions, I would have read that I needed to cut a notch out of the zucchini so that the noodles would only be a certain length. As it turned out, I didn't put that notch in it and ended up with some strands that were 12 feet long (I measured it to see!). From a zucchini. TRUE story! Look at this one noodle:

No big deal, though. I just cut them into smaller lengths. But seriously, how fun is this? I didn't cook them this time because I didn't want them to break apart although I think a quick steam or boil would make them taste much more like spaghetti (I liked the "crunch" similar to spaghetti squash). What I DID do was sprinkle the noodles with a very liberal amount of salt and left them sitting in a colander to drain off the liquid. I rinsed them with water after 30 minutes or so, heated up some pasta sauce and put the hot sauce over my "noodles". The sauce warmed up my pasta because it was at room temperature to begin with. A little sprinkle of Parmigiano Reggiano on top and, well...can I just say it?  YUM!!!! The looks? It looks pretty green in spots, but it would look just like regular pasta if I would have peeled off the green skin first. With so many of the vitamins and nutrients found IN that green skin, it's best to leave it on, though. It's a fab dose of goodness most bodies couldn't and shouldn't pass up!

This little slicer says it works great with potatoes, carrots, apples - pretty much anything that isn't too hard or too soft. We will be having fun with the interchangeable blades. I can't wait to see and eat what we cut next because I have a feeling if it fits and can be cut, it will be!

Tis Better to Have Loved and Lost

"'Tis better to have loved and lost than never  to have loved at all." - Alfred Lord Tennyson

I typed this and thought I was at the point where I believed this, but really, I don't think it's true. At least not yet. Because the way I see it, you love with all your heart, and when that love is gone, you don't feel better knowing you had it. It just hurts and it hurts deeply because it's gone.

On June 18th, I had to have my little dog put to sleep. She just turned 2 years old on June 5th and shortly after her 2nd year, her life had to come to an end.  I'm crying right now as I type this so I know it's too early for me to feel okay about this and I picture a fork stuck in Alfred's eye.

When I do feel the best after all this happened, though, is when I think about something she did or used to do every day that made me smile, and I'm finding that some times, it will bring a smile to my face. Not a joyful smile, mind you, but a smile filled with sadness from missing my little friend so. It's the memories that will help with the healing...

I remember the first time I saw her. I laughed because she looked like a white, fluffy Muppet who acted like Tigger, and that's how I described her to my kids. I knew instantly that this little bundle of energy would be a great addition to our family because she would get along just fine with my kids.  We had our moments with potty training (here's one!) but that's normal with a puppy.  She was such a smart little dog, though, and learned quickly. So much so, in less than 24 hours, she learned how to ring a bell on the door to go outside and go! I was so proud of her.  She even learned to ring the bell when she knew the neighbor's dog was outside and she wanted to play! I think she was a little too smart.

She was amazing.  And she's missed. And it hurts. And I don't feel better right now. Tennyson, you are not right yet.  But hopefully, someday, I'll be able to share a happy story and feel better because I did love her, I know she loved me unconditionally and I'm a better person because of it. Pictures will help, and I'm so thankful we have them.  But I'm not quite ready to create her final album just yet.  It's exactly one month today that she's been gone, so that album will have to be some day later when I agree with Alfred Lord Tennyson.

Rest in peace, Sadie. You are loved, you will always be loved and you will always be missed.

Final OM Update for 2013!

I stated back in March that I would update my OM team's status (March OM Info).  Well, update I shall!

My team went to Regionals, competing against 16 teams, and took 1st place in their division!  But even more exciting than that if you can believe it, they won the most coveted OM award of all, the Ranatra Fusca Creativity Award! Judges nominate and vote on the winners for this prestigious award so it was an extreme honor to win!

We were giddy with excitement as we began to practice more and more and more for the State Finals that were held in April.

In April, the team competed against 17 teams at State and took 1st place once again, but THIS time, they earned the highest scores in all three categories they're judged on so they had a perfect calculated score of 350! AND!?! They won another Ranatra Fusca Creativity Award!  Here's a pic of the Michigan State Champs after they received their 1st place medals and Ranatra Fusca medals!

With that win, the team earned one of two spots at the World Competition representing the State of Michigan for their problem (which was Problem 5, Division 1). We worked and worked and worked even harder preparing for competition knowing that China would be one of our biggest international competitors.  We had no idea what competition we'd have with the U.S. teams so we went in with the thought that the team has already proven themselves as winners and that we were here to represent the best they could and that the focus should be on having FUN.  And that's exactly what they did!

The team competed against 50 other teams from all over the U.S., China, Singapore, Mexico and Poland at Michigan State University Memorial weekend. They had an amazing long-term performance and, while they received a low score on one of their categories for judging (my co-coach and I contested with the officials to no avail), we felt that the team would still place in the top 10.  At the closing ceremonies, they announced 6th, 5th and 4th and didn't call our team name.  Then they called 3rd and 2nd and didn't call our team name.  They called the 1st place winners and guess what? They called our team name!  Yes, our team came in 1st place, beating China by over 18 points! I cried. I cried hard. I couldn't stop so when we had our pictures taken, I was a red-faced, tear-stained, blubbering idiot! I am SO proud that I'm sharing some of the scores here:

Our kids, each one a World Champion, received individual gold medals and one ginormous trophy as seen here:

I am so proud of these kids. The OM year began the first of September and ended on Memorial weekend. They spent NINE MONTHS devoted to this event and had to miss a lot of fun activities and events because of practices, meetings and lots of set creating sessions. It's a long season and we're happy to have a couple months to recover, but we will always look back fondly on this year and remember some of the most amazing moments of our lives. Thank you, Crestwood Team #1886, for such an amazing year! You really socked it to 'em, didn't ya? Congratulations, World Champions - the best in the World!

Spin Cycle!

Thank you for letting a proud coach brag a little...okay, I bragged a LOT. But thanks for humoring me!  ;)

1st Place, Baby!

Wow. Wow. That's all I can say at this point as I'm STILL in a state of euphoria! My team knocked it out of the park on Saturday at their OM competition and took 1st place in their division (there were a total of 16 teams competing)! But even more exciting than that (can you believe we get more excited about something other than taking 1st place?) is my team was honored with the most coveted OM award that is given out at competition. It's called the Ranatra Fusca Creativity Award and is presented to teams or individuals who exhibit exceptional creativity, either through some aspect of their problem solution, or an extraordinary idea beyond the problem solution. Judges write up nominations based on what they witness throughout the day and then vote for the winner(s). In our case, there happened to be four awarded that day and our team received one of those four! We are honored, humble and thankful for all the blessings and support our team has experienced!

It was a day to remember and a day filled with joyful tears! The suspense at the end of the day finding out who the winners are...there were two coaches and seven kids who were just about having a heart attack waiting for the announcement of winners. You see, they start out with 6th place and announce all the teams from all problems in all three divisions (there were 5 problems) in 6th, then they move to 5th place, then 4th and on and on.  As soon as they finish announcing all the 2nd place winners, they stop for a few minutes to give out what they call the OMer Awards. When THAT'S finished, they announce the 1st place winners. We don't know our scores at that point so once your team hasn't been called and they're preparing to announce the winners, we say it's either "1st or crap!" We ended up with 1st!

Now we prepare to move on to State competition in April (with much more practicing so my presence on-line will be limited!), so until we find out if we move on to World's from there, I won't be posting any videos yet (it's not allowed!). As soon as I am able, I would love to share it here so you can see how hard these talented kids worked! Until then, here's a picture of our team in costume in front of set at State competition...

Odyssey of the Mind

Oh my goodness. I looked back to see that my last post was a long time ago! Terrible. Just terrible. But I haven't been shirking my duties for no reason at all. You see, I have been spending all my waking moments as well as sleeping moments DREAMING about my Odyssey of the Mind team that I'm coaching this year.

What IS Odyssey of the Mind?  The Odyssey of the Mind teaches students to learn creative problem-solving methods while having fun in the process. For more than twenty five years, this unique program has helped teachers generate excitement in their students. By tapping into creativity, and through encouraging imaginative paths to problem-solving, students learn skills that will provide them with the ability to solve problems -- great and small -- for a lifetime. The Odyssey of the Mind teaches students how to think divergently by providing open-ended problems that appeal to a wide range of interests. Students learn how to identify challenges and to think creatively to solve those problems. They are free to express their ideas and suggestions without fear of criticism. The creative problem-solving process rewards thinking "outside of the box." While conventional thinking has an important place in a well-rounded education, students need to learn how to think creatively and productively.

The Odyssey of the Mind has its roots in the Industrial Design classes of Dr. Sam Micklus, Odyssey of the Mind founder. As a professor at Rowan University in New Jersey (formerly Glassboro State College) Dr. Micklus challenged his students to create vehicles without wheels, mechanical pie throwers and flotation devices that would take them across a course on a lake. He evaluated them not on the success of their solutions, but on the ingenuity applied and the risk involved in trying something new and different. Students had fun. Word spread and the students' activities attracted attention from the local media. Soon, people on the outside wanted a part of the action. This public interest led to the development of a creative problem-solving competition for school children. The Odyssey of the Mind was on its way. Since then, Dr. Micklus's life has been happily consumed with developing problems for other people to solve. His rewards are in the joy and pride of the millions of participants who rise to the challenge of solving those problems.

OM has been such a huge part of my daughter's life these last 3 years (my daughter seen here creating a "banner" made out of drink pouches by sewing them together for her team's 2012 problem!) and, as a coach of the team, has had a huge impact on MY life! If you'd like more information about OM, please don't hesitate to read up about this fantastic organization and all it can do for your child. Amazing!

With all that being said, I am currently coaching a 2013 team of 7-5th graders and their Regional competition is this Saturday, March 9th. As soon as that's over, I'll be somewhat back to my normal self and will continue posting whatever crosses my mind (oh, that's just down right frightening at times!) but if my team moves on to the State competition, I'll be with them practicing, practicing and more practicing! I'll keep you posted and hope to post their long term performance video here (have to wait until after competition, though, as it's truly top-secret!). Until then, have fun scrapping and capturing those precious memories...

iPod Valentine Cards

I was busy making iPod-like Valentines and finished them yesterday. You ever make something and it just seems as though it's not quite right? Yeah, that was the problem. You see, I try to get as many items on a page that I can to control printing. I used an 8 1/2" x 11" page initially and really should have used landscape to begin with!  I was able to fit 3 on a page instead of just one now in landscape. Now that's what I'm talkin' 'bout! (I have watched Despicable Me quite a few times. That and Si.)

Here's the new Valentine I came up with for kids. Once again, I looked through a catalog to get some ideas and then opened MMS to create my own version.  It's truly THAT easy:

I inserted an identical page and then changed the background paper each time. I have a few more sayings like, "U R a Rock Star" and such (although you don't see them all here). Just create some of those funny little Valentiney sayings and you're good to go. On the blue background, I thought it looked a little plain so I added a couple hearts I found in embellishments.  Grabbed one, mirrored it and placed it on the opposite side.

I now have 5 sheets of 3 Valentines each that my daughter feels are acceptable to pass out to girls and boys (nothing terribly "lovey-dovey" for my 10-year-old!). We can print them on cardstock and she can cut them out, address them to her classmates, sign her name and she's done (or get real Martha Stewarty and add headphones made out of yarn)!  I honestly think she'll prefer the owl Valentine because it's a candy holder, and that just has kid appeal and charm. It's really the candy appeal, but I get that.  I was a kid once and am still one at heart. Anyway, the purpose of these is to simply show you how easy it is by starting with a shape, add a few more shapes, add a text box and a few shadows (because, you know, I like shadows!), choose your paper for backgrounds and it's all done. I didn't line everything up perfectly like I usually obsess about just because I know my daughter won't use these, but be sure to throw on your guides, rulers, grid and you can use the tools in MMS to align vertically and horizontally. It's a lovely feature.

If you haven't seen the owl Valentine, check it out here.  In the meantime, get inspired and then get creative!  You can do it and it's easy in MMS to do both (be inspired and creative).  Have fun!

Kid's Owl Valentines

Last year around this time I created an easy Valentine (you can see it here) in MMS for my daughter to hand out at school. They totally rocked! This year? I knew if I just found a little inspiration I could easily re-create a Valentine card. And that's exactly what I did. I grabbed a catalog from a company that sells cards and took a looksy. And then came up with my own version.

How long did it take? Ah, that would have been smart of me to clock it, but being a mom, I just didn't make a Valentine card in one sitting. I baked a turkey, worked a little on the card, fed the dog, medicated the dog, worked a little on the card, did a load of dishes, took the dog out to do her thing, etc. Need I say more? An estimate would be about 30-45 minutes. But it was fun, fun, fun!

Anyway, I saw a cute little owl and thought to myself, "I can make this!" I quickly looked through embellishments and didn't find an owl that I thought would work, so I went with Plan B. Make it from scratch in My Memories Suite V4:

1. I went to the Shapes menu and added a circle, square and triangle. Created the sizes I wanted, duplicated the triangle and used them for the ears rotating them slightly to look like real owl ears, the square for the head and the circle for the bottom of the owl body.
2. In the Shapes menu, I selected the "Paper" option and selected different colors of paper to place in the shapes as the background color. I think I chose nice Valentiney colors! Noticed the ears looked plain so I added two more little white triangles and placed them inside the ears rotating as needed.
3. Went back into Shapes, added 2 circles leaving one larger and white while making the other a little smaller. I chose to fill the smaller circle with a different paper and added a thin matte around this iris. Then I grouped it, copied and pasted for the other eye so I only had to make it once. Then moved them over using the grids to make sure they were in the same line.
4. Used the new Paint function by adding a black circle in the middle of the iris for a pupil. Did that on each eye. Paint option in MMS V4  is FUN. Be sure to play around with that when you have a chance!
5. Needed a nose.  Triangle!  Shapes menu again, added, re-sized, rotated, colored it orange and put by the eyes.
6. I needed to add wings, but believe me, there are no "owl wings" in embellishments! (I really didn't look...that's just something you have to assume.  =) I went into the Shapes menu again and found an acorn which looked like it would work.  Re-shaped, colored orange, doubled, mirror-flipped it and placed them for wings. It looked plain, so I went back into embellishments and found a little scroll. Added one, copied, mirror-flipped and placed it on the other wing.
7. Added a text box and added a cute little "owl" saying.
8. Went back and added shadows under the eyes, nose, ear triangles, wings and text. I like shadows.  =)
9. Grouped, copied and placed one on the right. Re-grouped the two, copied and placed them on the bottom part of the page so I had 4 on one page, lining them up using the grids. Chose different colors from my papers, added a different saying for each owl and inserted a duplicate page. IF I was smart (that's a hugeIF), I would have duplicated the outline first before adding the eyes, wings, and such, but that's hind-sight. All I had to do was take a little time to delete everything off the body of the owl and added a text box with a To: and From: and it was complete!

Now all I have to do is print on card stock (front page of the face, back page with the To/From) and have my daughter cut out! Once she cuts them out, we'll make two small vertical slits at the bottom and slide a Pixie Stix in (or a pencil if you're worried about tooth decay). Not only did we make a Valentine but it's a treat/gift holder, too!

Want to see?

Notice I have the colors on page 2 in different spots? Yeah, that was on purpose. When I print them, it'll match up color for color.

It was easy, fun and quite enjoyable! Who can't have fun playing in MMS V4? I also made an Iphone Valentine, but I'll share that NEXT My Memories Monday. Until then, have fun making your own Valentines! 

Photo Project Ideas for 2013

If you haven't checked out Photojojo yet, you really don't know what you're missing! I absolutely LOVE this company. It's fresh and fun and they offer some of the best photo products! And one of the best parts? I signed up for their emails and I'm lovin' it! They give great advice about photography tips and tricks that you'll want to bank...forever!

Even though it's past January 1st, you can still do a quick makeup and get some photo projects going for 2013. You don't have to have a project a day or anything like that if you don't want to, so don't give up already! I promise - there's still time to get a project going. Need some ideas? Photojojo has some great ideas you can check out here. They say there's seven, but they have so many links to other areas there are many more than just seven.  Enjoy!

Digital Scrapbooking