Edit like this…

Edit like this… is a set of simple picture only photo editing tutorials. If you need something more clearly explained, or you have a question feel free to comment with it. I used Photoshop CS3 to complete this edit.

2013 Book Challenge–I finally hit 50 books!

In celebration of finally, finally, finally making it to 50 books on my 2013 Reading Challenge (my goal is to read 100) I thought I’d share a little post about books! I’m going to say a little bit about each of my favorite books I’ve read so far. Enjoy!

the only order those are in is alphabetical

A close up on my shadows.

When it comes to scrapbooking I spend a lot of time and thought on my shadows. It gets kind of weird obsess-y. Anyway… I spend a lot of time on them. I want them to look as near perfect as I can get them. Mind you, they aren’t perfect, but, if I may so, they are pretty dang good. Converting my layouts to web size I think sometimes takes all that hard work that I did, and it kind of tones it down.

I decided, earlier today, to participate in one of my first challenges at Two Peas in a Bucket – mind you – Two Peas is a primarily paper store and gallery. I am not a paper scrapbooker. BUT. My goal is to make my digital pages look as realistic as possible. So, it seemed like a good idea.

My page for their 213 in 2013: Me - May 8:

(for a full credit list see here: http://scrapstacks.com/scrap/66408)

We’re going to grow some veggies.

Last year we went all out and bought the Jiffy Professional Greenhouse Kit and planted pumpkins, squash, okra, carrots, and um, something else. We got all organic seeds and the big boys and I spent an evening getting it all set up. Then we babied it, and watched it, and watered it, and followed the directions to a tee.

Then we noticed the only thing that survived and prospered to planting time was the squash and pumpkins. But that was fine – we could live with that. Then we got these nasty black caterpillars that came and ate all our poor baby plants. To put it mildly, we weren’t too happy with how our little foray into gardening went, and it just reminded us why the only plants we have are our hardy bushes and azaleas out in our front bed.

A few weeks ago Bella found some seed packets that somehow ended up in one of the drawers in the kids’ dresser and ever since she has been begging us to plant them and make a vegetable garden. It’s all the girl talked about for days and days. But we really didn’t want to spend a ton of money on it again in case those nasty caterpillars came back. We had just finished a large container of eggs and it just so happened to be a biodegradable container – so we picked up some dirt this weekend and decided to plant us some veggies.

Our life in black and white.

If you know anything about me and my photo editing preferences you know this – I’m not a fan of making my photos black and white. I can love to death someone else’s black and white photos, but when it comes to my own, eh… not so much.

Then last night while I was laying in bed, it came to me.

Just call me Eeyore.

I feel like everyday lately has just been bad, and I’m getting just so, so, so tired of it. I'm not depressed, so no worries there. It just seems sort of like life is just ganging up against us.

It seems like every time that we make a step or two into improving things in our life a few new things pop up. They might not be big things, but when they jump out all together at us it just seems like so much. And it makes staying happy and positive so hard sometimes.

I know I seem to only be posting woe-is-me stuff lately, but I’ve just been feeling all woe-is-me lately, so I can’t help it. But I promise tomorrow will just be happy. I have some mighty cute, sweet, and funny zoo pictures to share.

Lets look at it this way.

I see people *coughmomscough* constantly arguing and nitpicking each other to death about different parenting choices.

“You’re wrong! You’re wrong! And you’re a horrible person! Here facts!! (insert link) See how wrong and horrible you are!”
”No! You’re wrong! You’re not just wrong, you’re backwards and horrible and ruining your child for life! See! (insert link)”

Generally this starts when someone asks a simple question. Generally not the person who is yelling at someone else, that person has usually been scared away by this point, so really you most likely aren’t educating anyone, you’re just yelling at a brick wall.

I see other peoples parenting choices this way “It ain’t my business and it ain’t anyone else's either. I don’t agree with you, but you know what, you don’t need to know that, so I’m just going to sit here and keep my mouth shut unless someone asks about my side of it.”