Callaloo Soup

What was happening in your life two years ago?

I was expecting a baby. You? Here's another layout that I did with the March Little Black Dress Kit (you can see the first two here and another here).

This idea came to me one day as I was in the shower. I looked down at my feet and remembered that two years ago that would have been impossible! So I came up with a list pertinent to that time and dug into the archives for a rare preggo photo of me.

 

It's never too late to scrap a photo! Take a moment to think what your life was like around this time two years ago, then find a photo and do a page about it!

Keep Calm and Spoof On

Who else is in love with all the Keep Calm posters that are popping up everywhere now? I wish I could own them all, and I have my eye on this one for sure. Someday it will be mine! So I started thinking "What would a poster like that be like from Kieran's perspective?" Next thing you know I was making some!

 
I created an entire series that is now available in my Etsy shop.

Each poster is available in each of the six colours. Currently you can purchase the PDF file and print at your own convenience. Actual printed posters will be aded to the shop soon.

Then since I was in the groove, I came up with what I imagined would be Kieran's (or any toddler's) dream list of rules.

This one is available as shown, as well as coloured backgrounds with white text.

And I'm not done yet! I'll be adding other versions to the shop as time allows.

So remember to

 

Project Simplify: Kieran's Toys

With his second birthday fast approaching, I had already penciled in a toy purge for this month, so this week's Hot Spot hit the spot, so to speak! I'm not sure that I made a lot of space, but what I did do was come up with a workable storage and toy rotation system.

We keep the bulk of his toys in the living room, since this is where we spend most of our time, so I concentrated on those. He really only has three or four toys in his bedroom. I talked about his toy bins before, when I posted his drawstring bags.

Since then we also acquired a toy box, and of course I set up his play area.

Here are some more photos of the before:

The toy box - vintage construction set, legos, chipos, bucket with shovel and rake, stacking boxes, tambourine and numerous smaller bits and pieces
 

Bin #1 - mainly stuffed toys but also musical books and music makers.

Bin # 2 - blocks and other wooden toys, plus some random stuff

Finally two bins of toys that I keep in my office area and rotate out occassionally.

In sorting I mainly got rid of lots of stuff that weren't "real toys": things like catalogs and cardboard boxes and other bits that he plays with, which are great, but also make the place look very untidy and cluttered. Since these are easily replaceable (hello, junk mail!), I had no qualms in chucking them in the recycling bin. The other main thing I got rid of were soft toys. He's not really into them, and will only ever pick up two or three: a teddy bear, his Elmo and his funky giraffe. Finally a few things that he has definitely outgrown like rattles and his soft football.

My reorganisation was based on noticing that lately he mainly takes toys from the toy box, and rarely goes to the black bins. What this meant was that by the end of the day the floor would be covered with legos, clipos and construction pieces. which take forever to pick up at night.

So in the toy box I placed his favourite toys (also known as the toys Mummy would prefer him to play with) like legos, wooden blocks, two pull along toys, stacking boxes and music instruments. Also Elmo, Teddy and his doll. In the bins I put the things we use less regularly, as well as other kinds of blocks, that way I can rotate things out when I sense he is getting bored.

Of course the first thing he did on Thurday morning after all this was done, was to go to the black bins! But I managed to distract him back to the toy box and he seems pretty happy with the new set up.

No doubt I will have to re-evaluate after his birthday. We are encouraging books as the ideal gift though! I'm very happy to have worked out a better system, and I can already feel the difference when it's time to clear up at night!

I Don't Watch the News

Or listen to it on the radio, or read it online. I have yet to see one image of the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. And it's not because I don't care about what's going on in the world. In fact I think it's because I care too much. I was in the US on September 11th, and it's possible that that was the turning point. I watched the towers fall live on TV and it traumatized me for months, just as I am sure it did most of us. Simply thinking about it almost 10 years later is enough to make me tear up.

My policy is that if it's bad enough, someone will tell me what's going on. And between Twitter, Facebook and my husband who would die if he didn't listen to the news all.the.time, that's exactly what happens.

So I knew about the terrible devastation going on. I chose not to click on the links I came across, because just the poster's horror was enough for me. I didn't need the visual to back it up. Do you ever feel like sometimes we are too connected? That's the feeling I get when there is a disaster these days, like there are too many ways we can learn about horror, too soon after it happens.

Don't get me wrong, I see the upside of all this. That instantaneous connection no doubt plays a huge part in information getting to where it needs to be, and people getting the help they need when they need it. And this is where I start to appreciate the connectedness. When I start seeing the links about donating and sending help. Those? I click the heck out of.

 

 

Speaking of the Everyday....

Here are two of the layouts that I did using the March Little Black Dress kit.

Kieran playing peekaboo with his stacking boxes. This was soon after he got them for Christmas 2009, so these photos are over a year old. He loved to watch me stack them up. That is until he figured out how much fun knocking them over was!

This photo is even older and was taken in January 2010. I was just messing around in front the mirror, and I love how the shot captured him looking up at me. Because of this photo and page now I have fond memories of a totally random moment that I would probably have forgotten about.

You can still enter the giveaway for the Ella e-book here! Entries will close tomorrow.

Everyday Scrapbooking with Ella Friends

 

 
Welcome to the second Ella Friends Blog Hop! Thanks for sending everyone over Lee! if you're a regular reader of my blog you will find the links to continue the hop at the end of the post.

Today we're talking about scrapping the everyday details since this is the topic of the latest Ella e-book, written by Elizabeth Dillow and Tina Cockburn.

If you've been reading my blog for a while you've probably already seen that I am not much of an event or special occassion scrapbooker, so this new e-book is right up my alley. And if you're looking for inspiration for getting everyday details recorded, this is the book for you! Just on my firt look through alone, I bookmarked about 10 different ideas, and I practically ran to my scrapdesk to make this page when I saw one on a similar topic done by Tina

It's about laundry. Yes laundry, that never ending, constant, annoying chore. I'm happy to say that after struggling with laundry for years I finally came up with system of which I am probably unreasonably proud. So proud in fact that I wrote an entire blog post about it. I decided that I needed to get a page about this into my scrapbook too!

Some details

I used some thematic items on my page, but not ones pertaining to laundry. The stickers all came from love themed sheet of stickers!

I think you're really going to love this e-book which is now available at Ella Publishing for $5.99. But wait! I am actually giving one copy away today! Leave me a comment letting me know an everyday moment that you captured recently and plan to scrapbook. Entries close this Wednesday at midnight PST.

Now it's time to hop on over to Diana's blog

Hey guess what? She's giving away a copy of the e-book too! In fact so are all the Ella Friends, so be sure to visit each blog.

Here's a list in the hop order in case you get lost along the way:

Brenda Johnston
Donna Jannuzzi
Jenni Hufford
Monika Wright
Jennifer Larson
Valerie Mangan
Lee Currie
Francine Clouden
Diana Chen
May Flaum
Keshet Starr
Mary Jo Johnston

 

I hope you enjoy hopping with the Ella Friends!

 

Project Simplify: Paper Clutter

This week for Project Simplify we had to tackle paper clutter. I am by no means even halfway through this, but I did get started, and partially worked out a system to stop the clutter before it starts.

A couple years back I did start implementing a system in late 2008 in my panic-before-the-baby-nesting phase. It consisted pretty much of a folder for each category, and the wooden magazine holders. But lately things haven't been ending up in the folders, but instead in a lovely pile on our too small computer desk.

I decided to tackle that this week. I also added some binders for certain categories, one is labeled Kieran and everything concerning him will go there. I made one for current utilities as well. In France it's quite often that you need to prove your address with a utility bill that is no older than three months, so I will keep those in a binder, then move them into the folders once a month. In theory.

In my decluttering I also came across a handy article which says how long we need to hold on to different kinds of documents, so I will use that as a guide to empty out the folders which are becoming quite stuffed.

I think I will paint the magazine holders grey to match the binders. That patterned paper is by Studio Calico and came in the December 2010 kit. The labels are from Pugly Pixel.

I still need to work out some sort of inbox/action item system so that paper gets dealt with and filed ASAP instead of hanging around on the desk for months. How do you deal with your incoming mail and other paper clutter?

Three Layouts of an Adorable Boy

These were all made with the February kit from Little Black Dress. I know. It's already mid March. I'll share the March projects soon, but first I need to show you these!

1. Beach Fun

I'm still fondly remembering our vacation, so here are some more photos of Kieran and Lucas enjoying the beach. I hand stitched, yes you read that right, around the block holding the word Beach. I free form cut the wavy pattern at the top. I like to include symbolic stuff on my pages, hence the pair of birds at the top. Papa bird and Baby bird.

2. Music Maker

I've had these photos printed out for scrapping for a few months now! You might remember them from this blog post. I decided to do some paper piecing to break up the rigid layout, thus the paper rolls next to the title and the circle border at the bottom. Originally I printed all the photos out the same size and in colour, but then decided to enlarge the one where he is looking at the camera directly, and convert it to black & white.

3. Your New Table

These photos were taken before I redid the table and chairs in the play area. When he is having a non-messy snack he can have it at his own little table. With Elmo for company. And a kitty who believed she wasn't in any danger while he was eating. I journaled on a piece of graph paper that I cut from the rub-on packaging.

So that's February! March's projects are somewhat more varied in subject matter. Stay tuned.

A Week of Good Eats

We've been trying to up the ante with meals over here. Recently we'd gotten into a rut where we were having the same thing over and over again. Lots of pasta for one (which Kieran didn't mind at all!) and the same kind of meats and veggies. I find that tends to happen a lot in winter, I guess because there is much less available during this time. So not only did we finally start weekly meal planning before grocery shopping, but we have been trying out some new recipes.

They have all been hits. Every single one.

These are the Sloppy Joes that Lucas and I had for lunch on Wednesday. With Belgian beer. They were made with leftovers from the chili I made in the crockpot on Monday. The recipe came from my trusty crockpot recipe book (English version is here)

Here are the other recipes we tried:

Butternut Squash risotto

Crock Pot Pork Chops with Cranberry Stuffing

Slow Cooker White Bean Soup

We enjoyed all of these and will definitely make them again, some with a few adjustments for our taste.

Just yesterday we had this Moroccan Vegetable stew, and it will also be added to our arsenal, albeit with more spices.

I usually do a whole chicken in the crock pot, and have just been tossing it in with onions, carrots and potatoes. This week I plan to try either this recipe, or this one. Actually, maybe I'll combine them! Stay tuned for my report.

 

Screen Reads

I am a voracious reader, and not just of books. Thanks to Twitter and Facebook I find a wide variety of articles and blog posts online, by following links posted by others. Here are some that I've really enjoyed lately.

Everything will conspire to stop you on copyblogger

The Dalai Lama reflects on humanity over on fountly

Five powerful habits on Enlighter

Blogging & jealousy by Marta Writes

The Real Daily Mile on Run Like a Mother

What is TED Wondering? (this one is actually a video)

Two Things from Stacy Julian

Choosing a Camera Lens by Karen Waldrond (Chookooloonks)

I am a Human Being, another video. (Original French version here)

 

Do you have any must reads to share?