friendship/gratitude project #3

this woman is pretty special. she's one of those people who i can't quite believe wants to be my friend, because she's so smart and talented and generally brilliant that i don't know what she gets out of the deal by comparison. but i'm not asking too many questions in case she catches.

she has the added bonus of coming with an awesome husband (who gets his own page and blog post soon), and two gorgeous sons who arty adores. that's a pretty brilliant combination.

friendship/gratitude series #2

josie is one of my closest friends. i mean, she would probably be the first person i'd call if i had a body to dispose of. she's oddmother to my son, has the spare key to my house, and i have her wedding to her boyfriend josh extensively planed on pinterest.

and here is her page:

i'm a little frustrated with my inability to express the extent of my josie-love on a 3x4 card, but i think it's unrealistic to really expect that, so this will have to do.

double page anniversary spread

this year (back in april...) sj and i celebrated our tenth anniversary.

i wrote about it over on the family blog, but i also made a double page spread in my 6x8 album, so that's got to be shared here:

i wanted to keep it simple, so it's pretty much just a couple of photos, and the card from the restaurant where we went for dinner (i love the gold spiral kikki k paper clip for holding that in place). after ten years, the fact that we're us, happy and strong, is really the point.
well, that and dessert.

love letter to an inanimate object #1

you've got to look after the one you love, right?

i like this layout because i used an old envelope, and a page cut out from a magazine. nothing fancy, but i think the effect is nice. it's good to remind myself that i don't need special supplies to make things that make me happy.

friendship/gratitude series #1

i am incredibly lucky and happy in my friendships.

i have somehow managed to surround myself with a bunch of people who challenge, amuse, inspire, support and encourage me, love my family, and are collectively some of the best humans around.
so i've decided to start dedicating pages in my 6x8 journal to each of the many people i love, and talk about why they are each special and amazing.

making a record of who you love and how you were loved seems to me to be a worthwhile pursuit.

so i've made a start, and i'll continue to work on this little project. i'm not trying to do them in any kind of order, rather i'm making pages as the right photographs present themselves.

here's the first one, dedicated to one of my littler friends, maeve:

the joy of being behind on project life

it's so easy to get stressed out about long term projects.

i don't know anyone whose life is so predictable and structured that they can reliably stay on top of all their responsibilities and hobbies.

the quantity of 'free' time we have ebbs and flows like everything else in life. and that's ok.

when i took up project life, i decided that i would do my best to stay reasonably up to date, but not to beat myself up about falling behind. it's supposed to be fun after all. it's supposed to be relaxing, and restorative to spend time going over pretty photos, playing with lovely paper, and recording thoughts and memories. if it becomes a chore and a drain, it loses a large part of it's value.

the last few months have been really busy at our place, and my project life albums have indeed been one of the first things to get put on the back burner. my last completed spread is a week in march.

but do you know what that means?
when i do get time, i get to sit down and do a whole bunch all at once! that's brilliant! i can put on some music, spread out on the dining table, and really get on a roll. i can immerse myself in all the whole lovely, tactile, colourful process, and really restore that little creative corner of my soul.

that's not something to feel stressed about. that's something to be excited about.

me and my man

this little 6x8 album is turning out to be full of love for my little boy. 

it was always intended to be a reflection of who i am, so i guess that's about right.

i really like the little heart button on the bottom right card. it's from two peas in a bucket (who have such a lovely range of supplies that i can almost forgive their huge international shipping costs).

maybe arty'll look through these albums one day, and be reminded of how much he's been loved from the very beginning. i hope so.