Merry Christmas, everyone!

Remember these little guys from... oh, a million years ago (it seems)?



They humored their Aunt Kristina this afternoon and let me take pictures. Such cute little guys. Doesn't seem like it was nearly four years ago when the photo above was taken. :)



Hope your holiday is merry and bright!

Things I did this weekend:

• Decorate for Christmas with Jen (yes, it's not even Thanksgiving)
• Put an autumn wreath on the front door (even though it's Christmas inside, I figured it's still Thanksgiving outside)
• Baked some dinner rolls for a family gathering tonight. I used my sister's recipe (at the end of this entry... Thanks, sis, for the photos. I totally borrowed them).
• Finished up some TwoPeas projects (still a few more to go that are due tomorrow... AHH!
• Started on my card club project for this Thursday. We're making advent calendars. I'll post the finished project once I'm finished.
• Bought tickets to go see The Forgotten Carols live with the fam and Jen. :)

And the recipe in Marisa's words...

DINNER ROLLS

2 Tbsp. yeast
1/2 cup warm (105º-115º) water
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 cups hot (120º-130º) water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter shortening
2 eggs
2 tsp. salt
7-8 cups flour
butter, melted

Mix together yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, and 2 Tbsp. sugar. Let sit for 10-15 minutes to proof (get all fluffy). Whisk in large mixing bowl 2 cups hot water, 1/2 cup sugar, shortening, eggs, and salt. Add yeast mixture. Add flour one cup at a time. Let dough rise in greased bowl for one hour. Shape; bake at 350º for 16-22 minutes (I baked mine for 18 minutes). Brush with melted butter.

You could let the rolls rise for another hour after you shape them, but I was crunched for time and didn't let them rise again and they turned out just fine. It's just your personal preference.



Okay, here's how I shaped them. I put my left hand into an "OK" shape.



Then, I pinched off enough dough to make about a 1 1/2-inch ball. Instead of rolling the ball, I just put that dough atop the hole I made with my left hand, then pushed it through the hole with the pointer finger of my right hand, while slightly closing the hole. As the dough gets to the end, I pinched it shut and put the seam side down on the greased baking baking sheet. If you look in the top right-hand corner of the picture below, you can see the shaped rolls before they were baked. They look like little white domes. This method of shaping is so easy ... even my four-year-old can do it! (Although, the rolls he makes are quite a bit smaller.)

Okay, so today was Halloween at work. Seriously, SU! goes all out for Halloween... let's face it, we're creative people so we love to play pretend. :)

There was a costume contest that was just... HILARIOUS! Some departments went all out by decorating their cubicles and some even performed for the rest of us down in the atrium at lunch.

Anyhow, here are some of the photos I snapped today. And don't forget the video at the end of this post... Mwa ha ha! Blackmail material, right?

EDITED TO ADD: Nope, I'm not in any of these pictures. I didn't dress up... I'm lame like that. But it was fun to see everyone else! :)

Brought home a new camera tonight, a new Canon EOS 50D... oh. my. word.
He's beautiful.

I have dubbed him Paco.
After Pachelbel's Canon in D.
Get it?

He's gorgeous.
I love him already.
I'd marry him if I could.

His battery grip, extra battery, and 8GB memory card arrive tomorrow.

Sigh.

All I need is something interesting to take a photo of.

One of the girls at work (Jodi) just had a baby! These are just a few snapshots from the baby shower that her team threw for her.

Didn't the girls did such a great job decorating the atrium at work? And HELLO! Look at those cupcakes! :) And the butterflies? SO cute! I think one of the girls cut out the butterflies at home and then attached them to the balloons. So cute!

NOTE: I haven't forgotten the CI Round-Up. I'll post that tonight after the deadline. :)

Hi all! I'm in the middle of prepping for stamp club tomorrow... Man, this project is really supply intensive! I've been cutting card stock and paper all night! I guess this is what I get for procrastinating. :)

Yes, in the picture that's a stack of recipe cards. 392 cards to be exact. There are 14 people in my club. I cut out every one of those recipe cards with a paper trimmer. I'm an idiot. I should have paid a small neighbor child to do it. My arm hurts.

Okay, enough complaining. At least I'm almost done. I just have to collate all the cards into the boxes (I'm going to do that tomorrow at lunch... Lauren, you said you'd help, right?) and also pack up all my things, and then I'm set!

I'm going to try to get some pictures of my cute stamp club girls tomorrow night so ya'll can see what we're up to. Hopefully they won't be shy. :)



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Winners! Yeah! I decided to draw three names. The winners are:

Coral Faust who commented at 9:40 am this morning.
Jeanelle who commented at 10:20 pm last night
Liz in IL who commented at 12:27 pm this afternoon

Thanks, ladies! If you haven't already, you should receive an email from me. Just reply with your mailing address and I'll get the CDs out to you.

And thanks to all of you who commented. What a response! Wow! And just for a CD... I'm so thrilled!

Hi all! I'm finally back in town. Back to the regular schedule. :)

I had tons of fun in New York City! It was awesome! Anway, I thought I'd use some pictures from the trip for inspiration for card for the next fews days. This first card was inspired by a peeling sign I saw in Chinatown. An awesome new friend at Basic Grey (hey Jen!) sent me some paper to try out and when I saw it I knew it was perfect for this card!

The paper I used is from their Periphery Collection, and it's awesome! I've always loved Basic Grey stuff because it's so grungy and eclectic. The graphic designer in me just loves all the layering they include in their artwork. I tend to go more graphic and clean, but sometimes a girl's gotta break out of her usual routine, ya know? :)

So this is a bit of a messier card for me. Definitely a challenge and departure from what I usually do. Hmmm... Do you like it?

I'll also leave you with a couple videos. The first is self-explanatory, and the second... well, I used a song in it, so I couldn't put it on Revver. Hopefully the YouTube video works. :) Enjoy! BTW, here's a shout out to the lovely Annie who is in the videos. Hey Annie!

Hey U - Defining Alphabet stamp set, Basic Gray ink, and 1/8" hole punch: Stampin' Up!; date stamp: 7Gypsies; textured card stock: Bazzill; patterned paper: Basic Grey; ribbon: Fancy Pants; buttons and thread: unknown.

Hi all! I'm sitting here waiting for my flight, so I thought I'd show a few photos from my trip to Minnesota to visit my sister. Enjoy!

So a few of you (read: a lot) have noticed that a few of my cards are in the September issue of Stampin' Success (the magazine for Demonstrators). :) I was one of the lucky ones to "test drive" the new Demonstrator Business Web Site. Let me tell you, it's awesome! Ya'll are going to love it!

Yesterday, I got my goodie box from Northridge Media (I have things in both Cards Magazine and Scrapbook Trends). Lots of fun things to create with, including some AWESOME paper from Creative Imaginations. Check it: cherries, skulls and cross bones, edgy stickers. So cool! I'm pretty sure all of it was made with a teenager in mind, but I love it anyway!

Here's a card I made with the cherry patterned paper.

You Rock - Patterned paper: Creative Imaginations; stamps (Well-Worn Alphabet, Rough Edges Alphabet, Straight Up Alphabet and Numbers, Three For You), ink, embossing powder, eyelets, ribbon, and card stock: Stampin' Up!.

I also had a workshop this afternoon. The hostess is an avid photographer and requested card with photos. I wasn't sure what to do because I haven't put pictures on cards before, so I asked around and someone suggested I try photos on this card. Renae, you're a genius!

Here's how the photo card turned out. I used photos from a shoot I did for my good friend Melissa (see some shots here). This is her little guy who is so HUGE now compared to when these photos were taken.

Baby Card - All supplies from Stampin' Up! Polka Dots and Petals stamp set; Pumpkin Pie and Soft Sky card stock; VersaMark ink; Old Olive Prints Designer Series Paper; 1-1/4" square punch; Certainly Celery wide grosgrain.

My niece's birthday was today so we celebrated! Here are a few shots from the family party tonight... definitely scrapbook worthy.

The cupcakes I made, sitting in the Cupcake Courier:

One of my good friends Colleen and her family have their annual "Gathering of the Girls" this weekend. I got to tag along for a bit and take photos of this too cute family!

Before I get to the photos, I have to tell you that this family gets together each year over Mother's Day weekend and just spends time together. All the women in the family who can be there. What a great idea!

Before I left the park after taking their pictures, Colleen and all the girls gave me an early birthday gift! And it was so cute--each of the them signed their name on the outside of the box! And inside... Tons of Scenic Route scrapbooking product! AH!! They really know a way to a girl's heart, don't they? Too sweet of them! Truly, Colleen is one of the most genuine and kind people I know and I suspected that her family was the same. Now I know they are. :)

Anyhow, here are just a few of my favorites. I couldn't narrow it down to less than ten, so there are a few here and then make sure to go over here for the rest of the ten.

And here's Colleen and one of her daughters. Aren't they beautiful?!

So now that I have CS3 installed and I'm basking in it gloriousness (is that a word?), I have to learn about all the new features.

The coolest thing I've found so far is the new Black and White Adjustment tool in Photoshop CS3. FREAKIN' AWESOME! This simplifies converting photos to black and white into one tool and gives me total control over the image.

Granted, I wouldn't want to edit every single photo from an hour long photo shoot this way, but it's an incredibly powerful tool when I want to make a really wonderful photo even that more special. :)

Check out how it works with this video from Photoshopsupport.com: Black and White Adjustment Tool.

Remember this mommy? I had the chance to take pictures of the baby today! He's nearly a month old and the cutest little thing you've ever seen. So adorable!

And just 'cause I love daddy photos:

I've received a few questions as of late and thought I'd share my answers with everyone (just in case anyone else was wondering):

The filing cart in your scrap room-- Does it hold 12x12 card stock? (This question came from one of my stamp club members. Hey Laura!)
No, not right now. I believe that particular cart is capable of storing 12x12, but only if you have 12x12 hanging file folders. I think there was a scrap company that sold 12x12 hanging folders, but I don't recall which company it was.

How do you convert color photos to black and white in Photoshop?
I started looking into this about a year ago as well after I realized that the Grayscale command in Photoshop just wasn't cutting it. In the process of searching for good black and white conversions, I checked out the 2Peas photography board. Many people were praising photographer Amber Ludlow's black and white conversions. I believe you can purchase her tutorial on black and white conversions for only $20. I'm not sure if she's still selling it, but you can try emailing her at ludlowphotography@hotmail.com.

Hope that helps! Any other questions?

I have been reunited with my scrap stuff (and the rest of my things, but really, priorities people?).

A nice old man from Northwest Airlines (I actually flew United... strange) dropped off both bags about an hour ago. My lovely red luggage was a bit dusted with white stuff (salt I assume, since it's hovering around 0 degrees outside), but that was soon put to right. It came right off. Other than that, right as rain. It's like as long as I know where my patterned paper is, all is well. Hee hee! I'm sure many of you can agree with that. Then again, many of you probably have children and they might take presidence over your scrapping stuff, eh?

Oh, to be single and not have a care in the world above scrapbook supplies. (Ya'll know I'm kidding, right?)

I just stepped out of the shower (ahhh!) and now I'm letting my hair dry while I type. Such a luxury! Usually I'm in such a hurry that I don't even have the time to let my mop of a head dry by natural means. I'm definitely a hair dryer girl, but I do love the silky feel of letting it air dry.

OKAY! The best part of my trip out here (not the luggage lost thing, obviously) was eating at the Denver airport. THE best BBQ chicken pizza I've ever had! I bought it at the Wolfgang Puck Express. I figured if he can make a rice cooker, he probably can make a pizza. Yum! Highly recommend it. I hope my layover in the Denver is long enough on my way back home that I have time to grab another one. I may have liked the first one so much because I was starving.

Thought I'd share a couple photos that my first day out here. I'm sure these will end up on scrapbook pages in the next little bit, but I just can't wait to show off my cute nieces and nephews. SO CUTE!

I've had a few questions about my process for photographing my cards and pages, so I thought I'd write up a few little things about how I photograph and what I use.

First things first, lets cover how I shoot:

Camera Body - Canon Digital Rebel XT
Lenses - I mostly use a 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. I have other lenses, but this is my favorite lens for everyday use.
Photo Software - Photoshop CS3

QUICK TIPS:
1. Use only natural light
2. Take lots of photos
3. Try different angles. Move around the subject, bend your knees so you're lower, stand on a chair.
4. When you're getting ready to press down that shutter, take a deep breath, let it out slowly, and then press the shutter. This reduces camera shake.

TIPS:
...First of all, KNOW YOUR CAMERA. I cannot stress this enough. The reason why many of my shots work out is because I've played around with my camera and learned what worked best for me. Also, take a LOT of photos. Generally I'll take 15 shots and only 2 or 3 are real options to choose from.

... Never use a flash unless you have lots of experience (and success!) using a flash. I don't, so I never use a flash.

... Low-light situations cause problems no matter how expensive your camera is. Most point and shoot digital cameras do not handle low-light situations well, and manual SLR cameras have to be on the correct setting. To alleviate some of the problem, photograph near a window. This will also give you the most correct colors.

... If you're taking photos at night (like I usually do because I work late most nights), make sure you have a good positional lamp. Generally they have a softer light (unlike a flash). I use a regular desk lamp that's attached to my drawing table. It swivels and turns so I can get just the right angle.

... If you can adjust the white balance on your camera, do so. Make sure that if you're using a lamp like the one mentioned above that you select the "tungsten" option.

PHOTOSHOP TIPS:
... I try to take the best picture possible so that I don't need to use Photoshop, but most of the time I do need to change some things. When I do make changes, they are minimal and I try to keep them simple. I generally do only three things:

1. Crop the photo so that it's showing only what I need.
2. Adjust the Levels. I do not recommend selecting Auto Levels (though I do sometimes). It's better to adjust the levels manually so you get exactly what you want.
3. Auto Color. Sometimes I skip this step if it alters the coloring too much.

Anyway, those are some basic tips. Hopefully that answers a few questions. :)

I just wanted to share one of my favorite photographs from Williamsburg, Virgina. I was there last fall and it was an incredible experience. This photo was taken in the blacksmith's shop. Colonial Williamsburg is an acutal working town, so the men working in the shop were making things for other citizens of the town.

From a photographer's point of view, there was absolutely gorgeous light filtering into the shop. I couldn't help taking a few photos.

NOTE: I added two more galleries to my photos: the photos I talk about below, and some of a family photo shoot I did over Christmas break.

I had the chance to take some photographs of one of my good friends this morning. She's expecting a baby in a few more weeks and needed some "soon-to-be-a-mommy" photos. Isn't she beautiful?! And she's going to be the cutest mom ever!

So, this link is currently circulating among the American Craft gals... (prepare to wet your pants):

New American Crafts! (Winter '07)

Oh, the goodness! I have never been more excited and grateful to be on the design team--I get to work with this stuff extensively! Wahoo!

In other AC news, I met Sarah Champion and a couple more AC people last Friday. Sarah invited me to a "Nacho Party" at her friend's house. It was SUPER fun! It was like being at a party with all the cool kids--everyone was just so funny and great to be around.

I now have most of my blog all figured out... still trying to make an archive of just entry titles. I've also created new photo galleries using the coolest Movable Type templates. Check out the galleries.

PHOTO REMOVED FOR PUBLICATION

Okay, so who loves their Crop-A-Dile?! I got one for Christmas from my Dad and step-mom and I'm absolutely loving it! I used to massacre eyelets, but now it's just a simple little squeeze and the eyelet is set! I love it!

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I got sidetracked from the "Christmas Break Card Fest" by a trip to visit my step-family. It was my step-brother's birthday yesterday so we went bowling (my score was a hefty 89!--watch out!) and had dinner (enchiladas YUM!).

I also received my Crumpler camera bag today (6 Million Dollar Home). It was a Christmas gift from my mom, but it arrived after Christmas. It's such a great bag. I already know I'm going to love it!

:)

I attended my step-sister's homecoming today. She returned from serving an LDS mission in Wisconsin. Anyhow, after church everyone gathered at my Dad and step-mom's for lunch and visiting.

I was super glad I had my camera with me because I got to take pictures of my little niece. She's nearly six months old and SO adorable!

(And I apologize for the copyright lines over the photos—I guess I'm just paranoid that some idiot will try to steal my photos. Not that a little copyright line will do much, but maybe it will remind them that it isn't theirs to take).

I took photos of the cutest family today. One of my friends needed some family pictures for her Christmas cards, so I got to spend part of the day with them at Murray Park. Her three boys are just adorable! Anyhow, here are a few of my favorites...

And last, but not least... The family all together (this happens to be my absolute favorite)... Hee hee...

I photographed my step-brother, his wife, their kids and her extended family this morning. It was a very brisk, cold morning, but still lots of fun. The only little kids were my two nieces. The older one wouldn't look at the camera at all during the family pictures, but I did manage to capture a few cute moments while she was running around and playing peek-a-boo from behind a tree (I must remember that game/trick the next time--it was perfect!).

Anyhow, here are some of the highlights: