Can you believe June is over already? How is it already July?!  This month is looking to be a busy one with lots of trips planned and weddings to attend, therefore, it’s sure to fly by even faster than June. Which, stinks because I’m not looking forward to going back to school in August.

Anyway, I wanted to share some fun scrapbooking stuff while life is boring around this blog.  This is my July Desktop, thanks to Shabby Princess.  I had fun editing the photos and adding my own touches.  Last month was definitely one of treasured moments from watching my girls play together to a smiled filled creative day with Savannah and I love seeing that reminder each day.

You can find other July Desktops at Girl Talk and Misty Cato Designs.

Last Wednesday was the first really warm day we’ve had in a while. Since last year Savannah was a tiny baby and didn’t play much we don’t have any outside toys. So, I brought out some sidewalk chalk and bubbles for us to play with! She’s just getting the hang of how to color (ya know, scribbling!) and it’s super cute to watch her discover this whole new world out side. I’m so glad spring is here!

This was my lovely sun, inspired by the real sun shine beaming down on us. You can also see Savannah’s scribbles to the left:

For more Photo Friday visit Crazy Hip Blog Mamas.

It’s some one’s birthday today! Mark is officially the big 21. Not that that means much since we don’t really drink, but still, another wonderful year has gone by that I’m so glad to have shared with him. Here’s to hoping this next year is even better as we inch closer to his college graduation!

We’ve got a date night planned to celebrate. Now is a good time to use our Texas Road House gift certificate from Christmas, don’t you think? Some ribs sounds mighty yummy right now.

And, can I tell you how much I love Adobe Photoshop? I pull out some digital scrapbooking stuff, download some new fonts, say what I want to say, and wa-la! A custom card equipped with his favorite color (orange), an original orange cupcake and even a kid-like font for Savannah’s name. Sweet!

What I have here is the front and inside of his card, I just print them on photo paper and paste onto some blank cards I have. It’s so simple and I love that I can do whatever I want to do with it…and I don’t have to leave my house to buy it!

Not only has the beautiful, warm weather kept me away from blogging land this week, so has the many trips to my little brother and sister’s school for various reasons. Lunch with one, lunch with the other, watching talent show try outs, or simply picking them up after school. I can’t imagine how many school visits there will be once Savannah is that age!

But really, the main reason of my absence: a new hobby. Gasp! I know, and I’m in love. With digital scrapbooking! I dove in it one afternoon earlier this week and it’s been my nightly craft every night since (carrying me way too late into the night…). I realized I had so many pictures I wanted to do stuff with (ya know, besides sit in my flickr account or, the few that I actually print out get stuck on a shelf hidden away) and the computer seems to be the only way I get things done (I think if laundry were virtual I’d be on top of things!). I had grand plans of making scrapbooks for Kaylee and I to give me something to do after her birth and capture memories for us way back in 2004. Family and friends were extremely generous and bought me very nice supplies. From albums to pens, papers, cutters, organizing folders and even a scrap booking book bag! I had everything I needed, I still do. I made a grand total of 3 pages. And those pages? Nothing to do with Kaylee. And all that stuff now sits in a big box in the garage. So, I thought that maybe going digital was the way to go for me.  Here’s why I love it:

1) Saves time. Don’t have to mess with cutting pictures and decoration papers by hand. Just point and click and it’s always a straight line!

2) Saves money. The graphics you buy online you can keep using over and over, mixing and matching, unlike paper and “real” decorations. Once you use it, it’s stuck.

3) No printing individual pictures! I just don’t have time for that. It’s easier to get one page created within just a few minutes and send it off to be printed and mailed to me already in a book.

4) No MESS! Especially with a 1 year old running around, I’ve got enough mess on my hands. And, I’d rather not have my nice pages and hard work destroyed. Plus, with our living situation, there just isn’t room for me to spread all my things out! With digital everything is held nice and organized on the computer, away from small hands and where I’ll actually use it.

Get this though, everything I’ve done so far has been FREE! I downloaded a free 30 day trial of Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 and all the backgrounds and elements I’ve worked with have been found at various digital scrap booking sites for free. I couldn’t afford the newest Adobe Elements, so I bought an older version at a much cheaper price (it’s being mailed to me as a type). This program really makes scrapbooking easy! Everything is pretty much open the picture/graphic and drag to where you want it. I’ve learned a lot through tutorials to help get me started.

And now, a taste of my joy:

A few of my favorite resources:

1) The BEST place for awesome freebies (where most of the above is from):  Digital Scrapbook Place

2) Tutorial- How I learned to use the program: Free Digital Scrapbooking 

3) Tutorial- How I learned to colorize photos: Photoshop Momma on YouTube 

4) More great free stuff: Computer Scrapbook 

*sigh* I wish I could just scrapbook and write all day. I’d be in heaven.