Goodbye 2009, hello 2010.

I can't believe this year has blown by.  In fact, I can't believe a decade has gone by.  Seems like just yesterday we were worried about Y2K.  Remember that paranoia?  

I'm stealing this idea from some fabulous bloggers - my favorite 10 projects from this year. 

Ok this last one will not upload.  So, here is the link from Two Peas.  Probably the quickest mini I've made. 

Maybe if I have my act together tomorrow, I can post my favorite photos from 2009.

Happy New Year!

And just like that...

Christmas has come and gone.

From Christmas Eve:

Christmas morning:

 

Hope your Christmas was as wonderful as ours!

Ok, it's crunch time.

I have no idea why I do this to myself every year, but I've got a dozen things to do on my list, and not enough hours to do them in.  I just finished cooking 12 quarts, yes, 12 quarts, of pasta sauce.  It's currently cooling on my stove.  I need treat bags for daycare, two mini-albums to complete, a few gifts to wrap and one to buy (thanks ALOT Kohl's.com!).  I'm getting up early tomorrow to hit the stores and get the ricotta for the lasagna we are making tomorrow.  I have a plan for the food prepping.  That's the easy part. It's everything else I need to squeeze in.  Right now I'm debating between going to bed and getting up earlier tomorrow, or staying up and trying to get moving on a project or two.  I'm leaning toward bed.  I need a four-hour lunch hour tomorrow.  Not sure work would agree with me though.

On a happy note this is my new favorite picture of Ava.  I did not take the photo (John's brother did).  And I am now coveting his camera (a Nikon D90)... *sigh*

I cropped it down and had it printed (minus the lovely Ariel tattoo) for my wall.  Her eyes are so BLUE it still amazes me.  Although not as much as her blond hair amazes me (which is getting darker :( this winter, but still definitely a blond).

December Daily - 12/20

Less than a week until Christmas.  I'd be lying through my teeth if I said I wasn't getting a bit stressed and time crunched.  Luckily, Papa Frank took the girls last night for a sleepover and John and I got all the wrapping done, except for a few small items. 

I had the chicklets help make cookies today.  I think Ava was more facinated with playing with the flour on the table then making cookies.  These will be the photos for today's December Daily page. (Which I finally got all the pages in until the 25th.)

Friday, we had an impromptu photo shoot on Friday night.  Still trying to get better at pictures with the flash.  Or at least, better at editing them, since I'm stuck with the camera I have.  I need to figure out how to correct skin tones when using flash.

Finished up some projects for tomorrow.  Cards for my coworkers are completed and a wine box for my supervisor.   I don't alter too many items (never know what to do with them afterwards) but this was easy.  Love this OA paper from last year.

And with that, I'm off to pack all those bags for work tomorrow.  Its our Christmas party and I need to get a list together so I don't forget anything!

Wrapping.

I'm taking a quick break from wrapping.  I forgot how L-O-N-G it takes.  Yeesh.  Ok, I won't lie.  I'm procrastinating going back to wrapping gifts.  Unfortunately, dinner will be hard to eat with the table covered in paper and tape. 

I'll be back later with some Dec Daily pictures and a recap from Alexa's Winter Program at school.

December Daily, December 13 photos

We headed out to Great Lakes Crossing today for some Secret Santa shopping.  Before we left, the girls put on some reindeer ears.  Alexa loves them.  Ava, eh, not so much. 

At the mall, Bass Pro Shops (the Secret Santa store we needed) had indoor ice fishing.  Alexa gave it a whirl with the help of Joe.  She caught her fish pretty quickly.  We opted for "catch and release." 

I've finally been printing out some pictures for my album.  (One drawback to my laptop, no wireless printing in the house.)  Hopefully I can get some pages done tonight.

December Daily 11

The end of the work week. Almost. One more day tomorrow at another clinic. But, from today here are the chicklets:

We painted their little toes:

And our tree, I took this the other night. It will go in my December Daily, on another date.

I should have some scrappy stuff to share soon. The Apron Strings Kit goes live on the 12th.

Have a good weekend!

More fun with Photoshop (elements)!

I have downloaded a bunch of actions and filters and have been playing around with editing my pictures. I have a ton to learn, but I love this Butterscotch action from Coffeeshop. And, its free.

Butterscotch:

Original:

December Daily 12/6

We finally went to Build-a-Bear and used the gift cards from last Christmas. All I can say is THANK GOD for the gift cards. That store is a total rip off.



The girls are proud owners of two pink unicorn's: Sweetheart (Alexa's) and Pinky (Ava's).


If anyone can tell me how to remove the yellowish color cast from a picture (indoors, used flash), please let me know! Ugh, I have a few pics I just can't get the color right.

And why do my pictures on the blog look distorted? Something's off after editing them. hmmm.

December Daily 12/5

We'll, this may not make it in before the stroke of midnight, but you get what I mean!

Fun with cousins!

December Daily 12/3

I didn't take any pictures of yesterday's activities, but I'm going to journal about my favorite guilty holiday pleasure (Peppermint Mocha's from Starbucks - which I do have a picture of!)

Today, I decided to to try and take pictures of the girls under the tree for a Christmas card. We'll call it "Attempt 1." *Note to self, check Ava's face before taking pictures, she's messy.

"Attempt 1" lasted about 7 minutes before Ava had enough. Next time: bribery with chocolate.

I also tried another Coffeeshop action "eye bright" on Ava's photo. There was a difference from the original to the editted photo, but I'm not sure it's totally right yet. Still learning.

Fun with Photoshop

I have so much to learn, but can't wait to try this out on more photos.

Spot color: I've always wanted to do know how to do this.

And it was easier than I thought!

Now I just need to add my photos to this computer.

December Daily 2009

Inspired by Ali Edwards, I'm attempting a "December Daily" album again this year. If you are playing along this season, I'd love to see your projects! Here are today's photos:

The girls were able to get outside and burn some energy off before dinner, and before it got dark. It looks like snow (!!) is coming soon so were trying to take advantage of the outdoors before having to bundle them up completely.

Once I get a chance in the daylight, I'll take some pictures of my album. It's a work in progress, but the base is complete.

I'm off to figure out this new laptop and to work on my projects for the December Apron Strings Kit. If you'd like to see a sneak peak, there are a couple of my layouts up on the Apron Strings web site. The kit will go live on the 12th.

P.S. - All month ASD is celebrating 25 Days of Sketches on the blog. If you are looking for inspiration and some prizes, check it out!