Is this why I scrapbook?

I have a terrible memory. Not just, "Oh, I meant to call the doctor" kind of forgetful, but so often people will recall an event or a moment that we shared, and I have no idea what they're talking about. It's weird, and also a little scary.

And just to prove the point, as I was chatting with my husband and mother-in-law about how there's always some new research about coffee or alcohol and its supposed health benefits, I said, "I recently saw a news report about something that helps prevent Alzheimer's, but I can't remember what it is." It took a moment for me to get why everyone was laughing.

So, maybe that is why I try to capture all the little moments, because I will actually forget them. And also, I like pretty paper. Here's another small story from our road trip. Spending so much time together in close quarters was bound to cause some arguments and some inside jokes. And now in a few years, when someone says, "remeber 'shock?'" I probably will.

Let's get the Story Started

It's time to start sharing photos, stories, and layouts from the big 'ole Deutsch Family Road Trip, 2012.

First, here's where we went: NJ-Pennsylvania-Ohio-Kentucky-Tennesse. Then back to: Kentucky-West Virgina-Maryland-Pennsylvania-NJ-and back home again to NYC. Some of those states we just drove through, but I count them anyway.

Our most frequent thought during this trip was how extraordinarily large this country is. It's amazing to me that we could travel for 2 weeks, drive for several hours a day, and still only covered a small fraction of it. And, while I'm used to vistas that look like this:

So much of this country looks like this:

Taking pictures of farms certainly helped pass the time in the car ( I wasn't the driver).

And now for some layouts:

Right now it looks like I'm headed towards an album of only road trip layouts, so I think this makes a nice first page. (And I got to use another one of my beloved farm house photos.)

I am not scrapping in any particular order, and this one is from the last leg of our trip, when we hiked a bit in Pennsylvania. Max asked for my camera, and I will never say no to my kids if they express any interest in photography. And I always have my point and shoot and phone, so I still took lots of pictures too.

I'll be back with more as they come!

A Sketch Challenge

I know I've sung their praises before, but I will do it again. I just love sketches. They are just a great starting off point when the mojo is going slow. I ordered a bunch of pictures from our road trip, and I am awaiting their arrival. So I needed a little boost to help me scrap some old photos. So I headed on over to The Studio  to help me out:

And then I made this:

I have loved this photo from Max's bar mitzvah. There were lots of posed family portraits of the event, but I think this one just came together as all the kids were playing, and the fact that they're all just piled together on top of each other and on top of my dad, well it just adds more feeling and story to the photo. Still the photo sat unscrapped for a while, and sometimes I thought, "should I just put it in a frame and call it a day?

And that is why I love sketches and online challenges, because sometimes when you're stuck, and not quite sure what or how to scrap next, some guidelines and  a deadline are a nice push. I would never have come up with this design on my own, but I really like the way it came out.

One of the goals on my summer to-do list

On one of my summer to-do lists, I wrote: "more stamping, embossing, and misting on layouts." In my crafty life, I often move back and forth between "staying true to my style" and "exploring new ideas and techniques". The former is honoring the commitment to fulfill my own creative vision without feeling the need to keep up with trends, or just doing things because everyone else does. And the latter is an attempt to keep moving forward, to creating in new ways, and, well,doing things because they're trendy, and because everyone else does. Ali Edwards wrote in a recent newsletter (52 Creative Lifts) about seizing opportunities for   "creative reinvention." So, yeah, lets call it that.

This title is a quote from Sam's report card, at the end of the year. 

Until about a year ago, I had NEVER used patterned paper as a background. Not once. Patterned paper was only used in small doses on a solid, neutral background. Once, way back in 2010, I used bright orange. Anyway, once I started getting my Cocoa Daisy kits, I realized I'd need to work a little harder to use up all that patterned paper, and I began to use papers with a nice subtle design.  And now, I have moved into the world of bright and colorful papers.
While working on each of these, I had a point in the process where  I hated how it was turning out; My eyes hurt from all the action. But I managed to stick with each one, and when they were done, I kind of liked them. And , at the very least, they tell good stories.

As a reward for all my hard work, I made this one.

Ahhh.

Bittersweet

I know we are already in the throes of summer, but I still have some layouts to share from right before the summer. While we are always excited for summer vacation's arrival, this year it was a bit more complex.  Of course now that the transition to summer is over, we are enjoying every free minute that we have. (At least I am.)

Last summer was so amazing from start to finish ( I was still scrapping about it in January of this year), that at the beginning of this summer, I was feeling a little wistful about last year. 

And with Max graduating from eight grade, his usual end of the year exuberance was tempered by the fact that he and his friends since kindergarten would be going their separate ways. I'm not sure why I didn't foresee that at all. I was just focused on the excitement of his being done with grade school. And maybe because each day at dinner I was treated to a litany of complaints about how his school was run, I did not think about the fact that he has spent the last nine years in one place, and with the same people, and that saying goodbye might be hard. In a way, I was glad that it was hard for him since, you know, it's nice to see your child grow into a thoughtful and sensitive human being.

Sam had a bittersweet ending to school as well, because his favorite teacher would not be returning to his school next year. I liked school (within reason) as a kid, I had lots of good teachers, but I don't think I ever loved one so much that I would have been affected by their absence (Except for my third grade Hebrew teacher. It was my mother, so it's fair to say I loved my teacher and I would have been upset if she left and did not return.) Instead of counting the days until summer vacation, Sam was counting the days until he had to say goodbye. Again, it was sad to see, but also it made me a little happy to know that he had a teacher that he cared about so much. Because, really, how often in life does that happen?

From here on out, there will probably be more straightforward, happy, summer thoughts, layouts, and photos, as I recount our adventures from our road trip.

And Now for the Layout:

I took my twelve photos this month with my phone, which was a first for me. That made me want to print them nice and tiny and fit them all on one page. I added my journaling block using the template provided in Ella's Take Twelve Guided Inspiration Kit. 

I'm kind of madly in love with that patterned paper from My Mind's Eye, which came in my July Cocoa Daisy kit, as did the foam letters, the tags, and some brads. (almost all the other elements are from past CD kits.) I had that moment of hesitation of not wanting to use so many pretty embellishments right away, but that's what they're there for, so I might as well, right?

Remember to upload your photos here by midnight EST on  July 18th, for a chance to win these three collections from Bell Blvd!

Good Luck! And check out the rest of the Take Twelve Team:

Elizabeth Dillow

Van Nguyen

Margie Scarpignato

Janette Kincaid

Monica Bradford

Jennie McGarvey

Lisa Day

Valerie Bishop

Amy Prior

Stephanie Medley-Rath

Angela Gutshall

Lisa Ottoson

We're Back...

We had an amazing road trip that I can't wait to write and scrap about, but it is good, so good, to be home.

First on the list (after unpacking and laundry) is to share my Take Twelve photos. On the 12th, we were visiting Hershey Park. I have to say, meh. This part of the trip was for the kids, because really, the whole theme park thing is not for me. So my pictures are not about rides and games, but rather about our road trip life; driving, more driving, the scenery while driving, the trusted GPS that made driving infinitely easier, laughing and playing in the car, and sleeping in the car. There are some details from our day at Hershey, walking together, eating (loved that there was Kosher food available), Sam working some poses, and a giant Hershey bar. After the park, we had our motel room dinner, followed by dessert at Friendly's. We went to Friendly's three times on this road trip. She will be getting her own layout eventually.

Link up your photos or layout here for a chance to win three (count 'em-3!) collections from Bella Blvd. You have until midnight of July 18th EST.

Good luck! 

Take 12 On the Road

The Deutsches are in the midst of a family two week family road trip, which is making blogging a bit difficult, so this will be short and sweet.

It's the end of the 12th here on the East coast, (I tried and failed to post this in the morning) and my pictures are taken for the day.

If you missed it, no worries. You can take twelve tomorrow or the next day! Trust me, when you're done you'll love them. There were many a month when midway through the 12th ,I felt my pictures were boring and uninspired. But whenever I put them together at the end of the day, I have loved the story that the pictures tell. Every time. And I look at my album over and over again.

Next week we'll be back home, back to my computer, my scrapbooking supplies (!!!!), and I shall share my photos then.

Today I did not feel like lugging my big camera around, so I took all my pictures with my phone. That was a first for me. I think I finally discovered what all the hype surrounding instagram is about. I get it now. It's cool.