Thatcher Park

It was spring and we had cabin fever! I had spent December 23rd-February 6th on bed rest due to problems with my pregnancy with Zach. When I finally was allowed to get up, I still was pretty restricted. It wasn't until early April that most of the restrictions were lifted. The very next day it was one of the first beautiful Spring days. Dave packed a picnic lunch and we headed out to Thatcher Park. 

I remember when I first showed Dave this finished layout he said, "I just love that picture," referring to the picture of Caleb all alone in the swing. Caleb was entertained just watching his shadow. When we tried to get him on the slide he was too scared, so Daddy rode down it with him. It was just a great day - not a care in the world!

Scrapbooking Tip:

I did not want to crop these photos down too much, so the best way to fit them all on the layout was to butt them right up next to each other. A couple strips of pattern paper, a few stickers and a little journaling completed the pages - and in record time.

Easter Baskets

With Dave's crazy schedule as a trooper we had to get a little creative when it came to holiday celebrations and traditions. Easter was especially tricky because if Dave wasn't working, there was a good chance that he was playing on the worship team at church which meant he would be up and out of the house before the boys woke up. So revealing the Easter baskets was different every year.

One time I had the boys' baskets in Dave's truck and when he got home on Easter Sunday he brought them into the house and said that the Easter Bunny left them at his station. Caleb figured out at three years old that there was no Easter Bunny, so we had to change tactics. 

These pictures were taken the night before Easter 2012. Dave was scheduled to play on the worship team, so after he got home from the Saturday evening service we told the boys to cover their eyes and then brought out the baskets. This way Daddy could be in on the fun!

Scrapbooking Tip:
My favorite scrapbooker is Allison Davis (allisondavissg.typepad.com). One technique I've seen her do over and over is to place a large shape behind her photo arrangements. That's where I got the idea to use a large circle. Using a large shape is a great way to keep the page relatively simple, but also create visual interest and incorporate another color or pattern paper. I love layouts that are simple but also colorful!

Happy Easter - 2008

This layout is from Easter 2008, the only time (in my lifetime) that Easter fell on my birthday, and I was 18 weeks pregnant with Zachary - so it was an extra special holiday! It was Caleb's second Easter, but his very first Easter basket. I don't know about Caleb, but I had so much fun filling plastic eggs with Teddy Grahams, and arranging the basket with little toys and a Bible story book. (I also had fun dressing up Caleb in his little sweater vest.)

One of the things that I absolutely loved about Dave was how much he enjoyed being a daddy. He got excited about the little things like showing Caleb his Easter basket. He opened up the eggs and would pretend to eat the Teddy Grahams. There wasn't anything he wouldn't do to get a smile and laugh out of Caleb - and Caleb had the best baby belly laughs!

The family picture on this layout is one of my favorites of Dave, Caleb & me. Dave set the timer on the camera then ran into the shot. I love how natural our smiles are. I look back and remember how simple our life was then. These pictures bring back such precious memories.

Popcorn!

I couldn't help myself - I had to do a layout about Zachary and his love of Popcorn, and after our Popcorny incident, I didn't go too far from him whenever I gave him his favorite snack food. I also had to record how Zach would call popcorn "pa corn". 

Scrapbooking Tip:

Being a mommy to boys, I don't often get to use hearts. But Zach LOVES popcorn, so I "justified" the use of a focal point heart. One of my favorite embellishments are buttons.The colors of the buttons matched the striped paper so I included it. I thought they would stand out better then mimicking popcorn like I did on the Popcorny page. To make sure the title didn't blend in with the pattern paper, I traced the letters in a dark pen.

Smiley Boy

I think this picture is a must for every parent - their child in a laundry basket. Zach is no exception to this rule. It is rare to get a picture of Zach sitting still - so I had to document it.

Scrapbooking Tip:

This was one of the fastest layouts I did. I picked three pattern papers that looked good together, cut four squares and one rectangle. Pasted it all down and there was the layout. I added the title, journaling and some word stickers, and the page was done, all in less than 15 minutes. I wasn't really inking edges when I originally made this page, but now I wish I had inked to the pattern papers. It would have added two minutes to the overall time, and it would have defined the three papers against the bright background. The longer I scrapbook, the more I realize that it is the little details that add the biggest WOW factor.

Ready to Rumble

I love pictures of the boys wrestling with Daddy! Dave had to be so careful with Caleb, but always made sure that the Caleb didn't feel like he was being treated differently. If I remember correctly, Dave was sitting on the floor with Caleb, and Zach surprised Dave by jumping on him. Dave pretended to fall backwards taking Caleb with him, and Zach jumped on Daddy again. The next few minutes were spent laughing and screaming while I snapped pictures. A good time was had by all!

Scrapbooking Tip:

I did not want to crop these pictures down because the boys filled the whole frame. I work from sketches from Scrapbook Generation, and one of the reasons I love the sketch I used here is it allowed for larger pictures, but still included lots of pattern paper and as a result a lot of color. This was an easy page to put together and I absolutely loved how it showed off the pictures.