Template Time

I have another template for you today. This one was also inspired by a Speed Scrap, this time over at Inspiration Lane. My daughter is sick today and I was struggling to help her and scrap. So instead of completing my layout in time I turned it into a template. That way I can share it with all of you (yay!) and I can go back and scrap it later when I have a little more time. The file is a layered PSD and each layer is labeled with what should be clipped or placed on it. Have fun!

Download Here

On my list

I have a list. Many lists actually. Things I want to do and be. Goals and dreams and ambitions. Some things are fairly simple, daily little tasks that I'm trying to make a habit, like flossing every night. (I had six cavities fixed in the last two weeks and decided I better make that a better habit.) Other things are a little harder, and some days seem a downright impossible to me. It seems as thought I always have so many things I wish I could do... and not just do, I want to do them flawlessly. I want to take beautiful pictures or create the most delicious meal for my family. I want to craft and create and make things that look like they took hours....but didn't. I want to be a designer and make wonderful creations. I want to run a business out of my home incorporating all the talents I wish I had. I want to do it all! haha And there in lies my problem.

I've been editing wedding photos for the last month. That's right month. My cousin got married in October and asked me to take pictures at her wedding. I borrowed my moms nice DSLR camera and snapped my little heart out. I was so excited! My enthusiasm quickly faded though when I uploaded the pictures to my computer and saw the results. They needed work.... a LOT of work. Poor lighting and the gym floor had put an ugly yellowish tint over everything. I didn't know anything about white balance or have an external flash handy. Heck, I didn't even have my own camera! Thankfully, I know a little about photo editing. But still, I expected myself to create these amazingly beautiful portraits on my very first try. Realistic....probably not.

This is where my mind drifted earlier today as I sat on the couch, face half swollen from a before-mentioned dentist visit thinking about all the things I wanted to do and be. And feeling a little discouraged about how I was ever going to do any of it. My 20mos old daughter was playing in the living room... or rather destroying the living room. A whirlwind of toys covered our floor in a chaos only a toddler can create. I hadn't been sitting there thinking THAT long had I? Some how she navigated her way over to me with a basket of books asked me to read to her. And so we read. My numb tongue stumbled and sloshed my words around a little, but I don't think she cared. Somewhere halfway through the 3rd book Jack Johnson's "Better Together" came on my iPod mix. "How fitting," I thought as we read each and every book in her basket. As she climbed back down and the melody of Ben Folds' "The Luckiest" sang through the speakers and my epiphany hit me.

I may not be good at everything I want to be right now, and quite frankly, I don't need to be. But I don't want to risk missing the chance to be good at the things that I can do right now. I may not serve exquisite meals for my family each night, but I am able to cook and serve meals my family can enjoy together every evening. I may not be able to take breathtaking portraits or cute digital scrapbook kits. But I can make memories with my little girl and I can record those memories for us to share again later. I may not be good at everything on my list, but I can keep trying and enjoy the opportunities I have to even try. I guess I just need to be reminded of that every now and then and just work on being the best I can be right now. The rest will come with practice.

FREE Photoshop class!

**If you are looking for the STS Blog Train scroll down one post.

Jessica Sprague is offering a FREE class over on her website. She is an amazing and talented teacher and scrapbooker. Most of her classes require a fee, but she is offering a final holiday course this year for absolutely FREE.

I took the opportunity to sign-up last time she offered a free class, and I LOVED it. I learned a ton of new skills and got to brush up on some old Photoshop techniques I had forgotten. I would highly recommend her classes to anybody who uses (or wants to learn to use) Photoshop. Plus, whenever you take a class the course materials and videos are available to you forever. You can go back and review the tips whenever you like! Registration for the class started yesterday and class begins November 16th. Click the preview to head on over to her website to sign-up. You'll need to create a free account and enter a coupon code to join. Hope to see you there!

November Blog Train: Morning Solitude

I jumped in at the last minute again this month. I just couldn't resist this BEAUTIFUL color palette. ohhh....

So today I have a lowercase alpha for you. It has all the English letters A-Z, plus numbers 0-9 and some punctuation. I was originally going to do the Alpha in mixed colors, then I decided I'd just chose one or two, and in the end you get one of each! hehe So you'll receive 5 copies of the same Alpha in each of the different colors (except brown, because its the base color). Yay! That way you can mix them yourself, or keep the ones you like and throw the others away. Enjoy!

Click HERE for the Alpha letters
Click HERE for the Numbers & Punctuation

And as an extra bonus I also have 2 WordArts for you. (I told you I love this color palette!)

Download them HERE

And of course, here are the links to all the other fabulous designers!
Don't forget to leave your love along the way!


Scrap Like Crazy
Manda's Scrappin' Creations
Rainamoon Scraps
Becky aka SAHM Scrapper
Scrappin' Serenity
Life Is Not A Cereal
light's digiscrapworld
Christin's Creations
Scraps 'n Pieces
Midnight Scrapping
Kori's Scraps
Desertgirl Designs
Farrah Smith Designs
Little Red Scraps
Always Be Neighbors Designs
Ányi + a digitális scrapbooking
Grandmas Templates
The Scrappy Kat
Digi-Scrapz by Christi
Jensen Motley Crew Designs
Ginger's House
StashHappy Designs
My Scrappy Heart
Dream Big Designs
Shel Belle Scraps
Adriana's Cafe
Mommy Me Time Scrapper
momsuniquepossiblities
A Fish Design
Nibbles Skribbles
A valóság tükre (Osli's blog)
Knittinjen
Borsmustár
Saphira's Scrapdesign
CityGurlCreations
ThisLittleMissy <---You are HERE
Let Me Scrapbook!
scrapattack
Crafting at Your Special Delivery
Flower Scraps
Every EverAfter Moment
Nita's Things
Craft With Me
Mad Genius Designs
The Latest Scoop, Too
ABC Scraps
JW DigiScraps