Halloween in Wonderland Star Album

I love all things Graphic 45, and I waited a long time to find this Halloween in Wonderland collection. 

The holiday and the book - two of my favorite things!

I followed Robin Shakoor's tutorial in Graphic 45's Project sheets.

I did everything as Robin did, and then added my own embellishments.

It was really quite easy and I would definitely make one again.

I wish you could see the shimmer on the cover and inside as well!

These Chairs Tell a Story

These two chairs, although 60 years apart, are connected by great family stories.

The bentwood rocker was a Christmas present for my daughter from my aunts in 1980.

Her brother, who was about 3 at the time, banged on it with pipe fittings, leaving marks all over it.

Maddening at the time, but always a good story!

I was visiting one of those aunts in the early 2000s when I noticed the little wooden chair, which I'd never seen before. She said it had been hers when she was a little girl in the early 1920s. I asked her about the black circles and marks on the chair, and she told me that her brother (my father!) had played with his chemistry set on it. 

Two chairs, similar stories, family lore.

All paper is from Bo Bunny's Heritage collection.

Alphas - Bo Bunny and EK Success

Brads - Bo Bunny

2012

And then came 2012.                   

Geography Bee

Mowing the lawn for Grandma

Summer fun with his brother

A thoughtful moment

2010

As I continue making the album for my oldest grandson who's graduating this year, I find gaps. 

One of the gaps was 2010.

More Wrestling!

Two grandsons wrestle, and I try to get to their home tournaments.

This year I was lucky enough to go to one in Palmer as well.

February: Anchorage Feb. 5 - 22

I'm exploring Project Life! I've tried using this approach to scrapbooking a couple of times in the past, but I wasn't super happy with the results. I saw that Scrapbook and Cards Today was offering a year-long class called In the Pocket, and I signed up right away! This month's topic is Color, and Meghan Andrews' lesson really made a difference for me!

Lots of blue...

...and some red, too.

 There was a lot of blue in my photos, so I decided to go with that as my main color - the "gallon" color! There was some red as well, and it is complementary to blue, so that became the "quart" color. My "pint" color is gold, as I thought the layouts could use a bit of bling, and since the Alaskan sky is full of stars in the winter! To counterbalance all of that bold color, I used a lot of white as a neutral.

I live on Kodiak Island, Alaska, but I spent a good part
of the month in Anchorage, house/dog sitting for friends that went to Hawaii - now they had the right idea! My photos are highlights of my time there - from moose in the neighborhood, to frigid walks with little Snickers, to seeing the sled dog races go right by the house, to visiting with the adorable new baby of some friends, to going up to Palmer to see my grandsons wrestle. Each month I like to document the books I've read and the movies I see, and this time I also went to the museum and an Alaskan Native art collection. (And needless to say, I hit up every store that carries paper crafting materials!)

I'm really happy with how this month's layouts turned out. I've come a long way, and it's only been two months! I'm excited to see what comes in March and all the months beyond!

Paper - Bazzill and Pinkfresh Studio
Alphas - Basic Grey, Pinkfresh, and Stickopotmus
Library Pockets - Fancy Pants
Star Punches - Martha Stewart
Puffy Stars - Elle's Studio

Who You Are Now (Questions for the Grandkids)

You are the Gold at the end of the Rainbow

I asked two of my grandchildren
some questions to get a snapshot of them at this age. I used the colors they named as their favorites. This was fun, and I'll repeat it in a few years!

You at 10