Looking Back

While the kids napped this afternoon, I pumped out two layouts. I'm quite impressed with myself, actually. When you've got your groove on, a lot can be accomplished! And, not only did I get two layouts done, I also vacuumed, cleaned the bathrooms, and re-organized and cleaned out the front entry closet this morning. It was a very productive day!

Every day, for the month of February (and then some), I'm tackling one room or cupboard- anything that desperately needs some cleaning and organization, and I'm getting this beloved house of ours straightened up. The girls are going to be three- I've decided I've lived in a baby proofed house long enough, and its time to start bringing out some of my prized possessions. My wedding pictures made it out onto the sofa table, along with my wedding bouquet; my prized hand made table runner for the sofa table (that I bought while visiting Michigan a number of years ago- specifically an Amish town, but I don't remember the name of it), and the table runner for the kitchen table. I need a centre piece, but haven't the slightest idea what to put there!

I printed out a whole bunch of pictures this afternoon- I had a ton of picture frames that I found in my linen closet when I cleaned it out yesterday, and I plan on putting up the rest of my gallery wall tomorrow, hopefully. If not tomorrow, definitely in the very near future. Its already become obvious that I desperately need more picture frames! Currently, the gallery wall is only on one side of the wall into the basement. It may expand to the other side of the wall, too. We shall see!

Back to scrapping. The first layout, Published, is celebrating my first.ever. publication in a magazine. Every so often, I submit my layouts to Canadian Scrapbooker magazine. I make a lot of one photo layouts, and it would be nice if they accepted more of those, but they don't. Well, they do, but they prefer multi photo layouts. Such as the one that was published. The girls were riding on their little scooters in the backyard last spring. Originally, I was going to title my layout Zoomy, because it was (and actually still is) one of their most favorite sayings. But, once I found the paper I used for the layout, inspiration hit me, and I changed the title to Metro. The lamp post was ingenious, and the girl- well, she was too. It just worked. Beautifully!

I picked up the colors in the girls' outfits- the pink in Addisons' dress, and purple, instead of blue, for Maren's dress. That is all in the original layout that I made. That was published.

The layout about being published was made with papers from the Faded Denim collection by Colorbok. Mostly. The green/yellow patterned paper is from another collection, and at the moment I'm not sure what it is. Once again, I was inspired by a layout I found on Pinterest. How did I ever survive before Pinterest?!

There is a tag peeking out from the side of the picture in this layout- its hidden journalling for the kids. The tag reads, 'don't ever give up on your dreams'. Being turned down a number of times didn't stop me from submitting layouts for publication. I kept hoping that one day my dream would come true. And, it did. I hope they hang onto their dreams and never let go. One day their tenacity will pay off.

The second layout, Great Oma, happened while I was flipping through older pictures, looking for material to scrap about our life in Saskatchewan. I feel its important for the girls to know where they came from, and give them a glimpse of the house they lived in for the first year of their lives. I've been avoiding doing it, and part of me still wants to avoid it. I'm not totally sure why- I miss living in Saskatchewan, and part of me wishes we were still there. The other part of me is uber happy that we're here back in Alberta. I honestly can't put my finger on why it bothers me so much. But, its there.

Anywho, when I saw these pictures of the girls meeting their Great Oma for the first time, I couldn't help but smile. She obviously loves children- which is testimony to why she had so many children to begin with (9, as a matter of fact!!) Every time we visit her at Miller, she brightens right up. The kids are the highlight of her day. The smile on her face, and the obvious happiness they bring her, warms me to the core, and makes me smile in turn. She doesn't know who they are; she doesn't know that they are my children. But, it doesn't matter. They are children, they are full of life and energy and purity, and they give her more to be happy about and look forward to than anything the nurses could give her.

The girls were only 5 months old when they met their Great Oma for the first time. She was in the hospital with a broken hip, and I remember her asking whose kids they were when we walked into her room. She remembered me as a small child myself. She couldn't believe I was old enough to have my own children. And, twins to boot!

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of my Oma (their Great Oma), is Blue and White. To me, they symbolize being Dutch. Most of the artwork in her house, and in her apartment before she moved into Extended Care, was what I call Dutch Blue. I don't know the correct term for it, or what style of art it is. Its just Dutch. Heh. That's where the colors come from in this layout. I thought the yellow would stand out nicely against the blue, so I used a yellow/green combination patterned paper for the journalling spot the title work is adhered to, and for the banner. To tie the red of the title work into the layout, I used a pink paper flower.

I just love how this layout came together. Quickly, seamlessly, and incredibly quickly! And, with the kids (half way through it) interrupting me every two minutes. Of all the layouts that I've made lately, I have to say this one is my most favorite. There is a lot of love, meaning, and sentimentality behind this layout. I'll treasure it for years to come, and I hope the girls do, too.

The sketch that inspired this layout didn't include any room for journalling. I needed to add a little something about the girls meeting their Oma, so added a few lines underneath the title mat, and journalled away. I think I'll have to do more layouts of their Great Oma in the future. They need to know what a good natured, saucy, strong lady she is!

I'm grateful and incredibly glad they had the opportunity to meet their Great Oma. I only wish they could have met their Great Grandmother on their Papa's side (Grandpa). She would have been enamored with them, too.

Till next time...

~a