New Layouts

I know it's been too long since I've posted layouts when my desktop is completely full. I've really liked the layouts I've done recently--yay for mojo! I was also asked to join 2 new creative teams, so I can't wait to begin working with their kits. I LOVE getting this stuff for free!

Back from a long absence...

Now that I'm nearly done with Christmas shopping, I can finally get around to updating my blog. Today I spent quite a while taking photos of the kids for our Christmas card. Not very successful. It definitely went much better when there were two adults to corral kids and maneuver things. I had this brilliant idea that we should get a photo of each of the kids and the two of us holding letters so they spelled NOEL. It's a good idea in theory, but it was a pain in the rear to execute. Averi's reflux didn't make things any better: I wish I could say that was the only time it happened, but I swear she spit up every four shots. By the time we were finished, both the sheet and her shirt were soaked. I did retakes in the afternoon, and I finally got some pictures that were useable: I was completely unable to get Paul to look at me. I think he thought it was some kind of game. If it was, he definitely won. Katie is in that stage where she feels compelled to make weird faces whenever she sees the camera. Of the over 50 photos I took of her, only a few were suitable for a card: Now I have to wait until Aaron gets home from his trip to try and get pictures of the two of us together! That should be interesting...

Photo Shoot

Since Averi is two months old today, I decided to try and set up a real photo shoot with Averi in our garage. I'm very pleased with how it turned out. We had to be creative: Aaron was very clever and used the sunshade for the van as a reflector to fill in; we used a white sheet for a backdrop; and we set up his work lights for additional lighting. Here are some of my favorite photos: These are straight out of the camera. I was too excited to share them and had to post them before I had a chance to play around with them in Lightroom. I love how they turned out and I can't wait until my--OUR--new Nikon D40 arrives! ETA: I just wanted to show an example of what can be done in Adobe Lightroom.

Sweet Baby

Heather asked me if there were any new pictures on my blog, so I thought it was time to put some up of Averi. She's 7 weeks old--I can't believe how quickly time has gone. She's such a pretty baby and very good. Right now she's not as good of a sleeper as her brother and sister were/are (I don't know how kid can sleep as well as Katie does), but she has a little while to catch up. Here are a few photos I took today: I love how smiley she's become lately! She will grin at the most random thing, and her whole body starts to wriggle. And she makes the cutest baby noise. I took several videos of her making those noises, but I don't know if they'd be interesting to anyone but me! Maybe her grandparents...

Digital Scrapbooking Day

Today was one of the 2 main events for digital scrapbookers: Digital Scrapbooking Day. First, and most importantly, nearly all the stores have huge sales. There are also tons of ways to win free stuff and lots of games going on. It's really a lot more fun than you might think. I also set a new record today for the number of pages scrapped: 3. It doesn't sound that impressive, but it is. Trust me. Aaron scored tickets to the UNM/Utah football game, so I was able to scrap my heart out while he was gone. Now to show the fruits of my labors!

Quote of the Day

'“Need” now means wanting someone else’s money. “Greed” means wanting to keep your own. “Compassion” is when a politician arranges the transfer.' -Joseph Sobran

Trunk-or-Treat

We had our ward's trunk-or-treat last night, and we had a really good time. I, of course, waited until the last minute to finish up the kids' costumes, so I was running around like a mad woman before it began. (Can anyone explain to me why it started at 6 on a week night? How does everyone get home from work, eat dinner, get costumes ready, and get out the door in time?) But it was worth it. The lighting wasn't good for pictures, so we didn't get very many that turned out well. We'll definitely be doing a photo shoot later on. But here are some pictures just so you have an idea what the kids looked like. And, I have to brag: I made each of the costumes myself!! We only managed to get 2 photos of Katie with her wings on, and the other turned out blurry. I had to crop this one down so that you didn't have a million other people in the photo. Here's Pepe Le Paul, reprising the role of "Skunk" that Katie played 2 years ago. I'm still really proud of this costume, and glad that it got some more use! This picture really doesn't do the costume justice, but it was the best one we got last night. Is there anything cuter than a baby in a tutu? If there is, I can't think of it. Averi made an adorable bumblebee. Katie learning how to do the YMCA. Notice the bare legs: her tights disappeared and we never were able to find them. And by this point, Paul had removed his tail. Dancing.

Some Layouts

I keep my scrapbooking layouts on my desktop until I post them so that I don't forget any of them. It's good incentive; I know it's been a while when my desktop is so covered with icons I can't find anything. So without further ado...