One Post Might Be Good...

...don't you think, before the year is over?  I know it's been quite a long time since my last blog entry.  2012 has been the kind of year where my attention was just needed elsewhere.  Nothing really terrible has happened, but there were some things going on with me personally, and with my family, that brought on the long hiatus.  So, let's get back to it, shall we?

My absence here has not meant that I haven't been creating, and here's some things I've been interested in, or that I've enjoyed documenting over that last 11 months or so:

Art Journaling
In January, I found myself very interested in art journaling.  I picked up a traditional paper journal, which I have started painting backgrounds in, but have felt drawn more to digital art journaling, so that's what I've been exploring.  I've found it's a great way to either "dump" feelings onto paper without worrying about it being "right" or "trendy," or a fun place to try a technique I've been too nervous to put on a layout.  I have been a bit sporaidic with it lately, but plan on continuing with it.  I find it makes me a better scrapbooker when I regularly do art journalng.  Here are just a few of those pages:

Cooking and Gardening

I've discovered some fun cooking blogs, some of which center around vegetarian and vegan cooking.  And no, I'm not switching permanently to either of those eating plans.  I'm not a fan of drastic changes.  Rather, I'm just choosing to incorporate some of the recipes into our regular menu rotation.  I'm also becoming more aware of all the additives in processed food, and trying to either eat less of them, or at least choose those that have shorter ingredient lists or are minimally processed.  So of course, I've been spending more time in the kitchen.  I also started a fall garden, and have been babysitting a bunch of cool weather veggies:

Family Activities
We aren't as on the go as most families, but it is great to see different members of our little brood taking part in things that interest them.  Lately, pictures from these types of activities have been really fun for me to scrap:

Oh, and I just added an activity for myself.  I've recently joined a low-key ballet class for adults.  Since I've only been to two classes, I haven't had much of a chance to do any layouts about it.  So keep an eye out for that in the future...;)

Online Classes
Currently, I'm taking part in a really fun class taught at jessicasprague.com, called {Mo}tography.

It's all about using various photo taking apps on your smartphone, and learning to make them look great and share with friends and family.  It's been great so far and we still have a week to go.  It's amazing how many different photo taking apps there are for these phones.

Another class I enjoyed in September was from Shimelle Laine:










Learn Something New Everyday focused on looking at the small lessons that are around us everyday, and being on the lookout for them.  Class members received a prompt everyday, which we could work from or we could do up a layout on a topic of our choice.  I learned a lot about myself during that time, and was able to complete a great photo book with all my pages from the class.  You can check it out below:




Create your own Photobooks with Inkubook.com!

OK, and to finish off, here's my most recent page, where I documented Thanksgiving 2011.  I used fabulous page kits from Jen Martakis:

 

Thanks for sticking with me for all of that!  And, I have great hopes of doing another blog post very soon.  

Have a great day!