according.to.kim

PI 22/52: Finding our tribe

I took this photo in the park on Monday evening. I'm so glad I ran across a similar photo from last summer which inspired me to get this photo for "finding our tribe." Dash is on the left.

The girls having been having a fun week. Neil took them (including B) swimming at the Sandra Schmirler on Monday, bowling at the Golden Mile on Tuesday, and to PlayEscapes (-B) on Wednesday afternoon. There were several other kids there that they know. This afternoon, Georgia enjoyed a playdate at Henry's house. The girls have also been playing with Zoe (neighbour) at every opportunity.

The girls' swimming lessons end tomorrow. I look forward to going along on their last day. Neil says he's going to miss swimming lessons because he gets to sit and read all morning. (He's enjoying the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson.) All three are doing quite well so I'm sure they'll pass. They won't have swimming lessons again until next summer.

Sophia and Madeline are super excited about going to camp in a few days. They have already started packing, but we will spend quite a bit of time this weekend making sure they have everything they need and that it's all labeled. The list of supplies they require is quite long! The weather looks great for their camp days -- sunny and hot. I don't think they'll be cold at night, but I hope they don't get any severe storms!

I'm off work now until August 8th! Woohoo! And, other than driving the girls to and from camp, I'm staying home the whole time! I love that. I will be working practically the whole time (housework, paperwork, yard work, BSS work), but that's okay. Actually, it's GREAT! I have so much to do. All progress will be thrilling! (I always remind myself that any progress is good because I can never get everything done.)

The past couple of weeks, I have been doing a lot of extra work for Bite-sized Scrapbooking in addition to my usual weekly tasks:

• I'm supplying a 6-month subscription as a prize for a contest at a major scrapbooking store in California, so I provided some information for their blog post.
• I'm writing a guest post for a popular scrapbooking website and I want to provide high-quality content, so I'm working very hard on that! When it goes live (which may be several weeks away), I will certainly share the link here (and everywhere!).
• I'm developing another Bite-sized Scrapbooking product. I've been working on this project a little every weekend for a couple months now. I'm not quite ready to share details, but I'm excited about it!
• I'm in the midst of finding and getting permission for the last 19 layouts of the first year of BSS. This is my third time doing a big search for layouts, spread over a couple of weekends each time. (In January, I lined up the first 17 layouts; in April, I secured the next 16 layouts, and this time, I need 19 to complete 52 weeks of BSS). From my efforts last weekend, I've received permission for 10 layouts, and I will spend several more hours this weekend trying to establish the last nine. I estimate it takes me about 90 minutes per layout when all is said and done (that doesn't include developing the content when the layout is scheduled). Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier to design my own layouts! But there are many more good things that come out of connecting with others in the online scrapbooking world. Plus, it's great for subscribers to get layouts from different designers, and my layouts would certainly not be as varied in design or products used.

Winner of the Exclusive Kit

The winner of the Big Idea Festival Kit Giveaway is Cathy Boeche!

Congratulations Cathy!

I'm delighted to give away one of the Big Idea Festival Exclusive Kits on behalf of Big Picture Classes. Thanks for entering everyone!

Big Idea Festival Kit Giveaway!

I'm giving away an Exclusive Kit for the 2011 Big Idea Festival at Big Picture Classes! Cool, huh? I've already signed up for this FREE festival (of course!). Have you?

Big Idea Festival 2011 - Words to Live By

You are invited to a FREE festival packed full of big ideas at Big Picture Classes this August! Join us for 12 fun-filled days featuring 12 of our talented instructors. Each instructor will be giving you a word of the day, which we hope will inspire you, along with a downloadable template (in both printable and digital format) so that you can create a mini layout about that day's word and how you applied it in your life. Finally, each teacher will leave you with an inspirational video message and a preview of the page they created with their word.

Exclusive Kit information

Big Picture Classes has also created our first-ever kit to go along with the Big Idea Festival! While the kit is not required to participate, we've designed this kit to make creating your mini album easy and fun. Click here for a complete list of items in the kit.

We have created a limited number of kits, and once they're gone, they're gone!
MSRP: $39.99
BPC Member Price: Only $32.99!

To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on this post before Wednesday, July 27, 2011 at 11:59pm (midnight) EST. One winner will be chosen at random from all entries received. Good luck!

Photos & tidbits from the week

Our Shasta daisies are lovely, but they were getting a bit unruly so I've trimmed them a little (after this picture).

On Tuesday, we celebrated Laurel's birthday with cake and ice cream out on our patio. It was very hot and humid outside.

The girls are enjoying their swimming lessons at the Lawson. Sophia's in level 5, Madeline in level 4, and Georgia in Sunfish.

Sophia and Bronwyn stayed overnight with their grandparents in Avonlea last night. I think they had plans to go golfing.

Madeline is looking forward to going to a "Luau" birthday party for her friend, Kaitlin, this afternoon.

The mint on our back step is thriving. Perfect for Mojitos! Neil makes them for me occasionally. Mmmm.

Our new double echinacea is just starting to bloom. I look forward to seeing the "double" part when it comes out.

Katy Perry concert!

On Wednesday, July 13, Laurel and I took Bronwyn, Sophia, Madeline, and Georgia to see Katy Perry on her California Dreams Tour. It was a spectacular show! Very fun to watch. We had waited a long time for this concert and I'm happy to report that it was worth the wait. First, we had our tickets for nearly six months before the concert date; and then we arrived at the Brandt Centre shortly after 6:30 pm (an hour before the start time) and waited 2.5 hours for Katy to appear on stage. I was asked many times, "Mama, where's Katy?!"

Here's a photo to show the location of our seats. We were in section 222 with a railing in front of us which was kind of nice. The best part about our seats was that we could see everything in one view. Some of the light shows were very cool and we had a great vantage point for that. I wish I had taken a picture of the awesome lights during E.T.! I'm glad Laurel did, though. (I wasn't getting my camera out too often because I was warned that if security thought it was a professional camera, they'd take it away.)

There were two opening acts: Janelle Monáe and DJ Skeet Skeet. Janelle Monáe had quite a unique show with an orchestra band. I thought, at least where we were sitting, the sound was terrible (thankfully, it was much better for Katy Perry). My favourite of Monáe's performance was her cover of The Jackson Five's ABC. She really sounded like the young Michael Jackson. Madeline entertained me with her comments during this opening act: "If I fall asleep, don't wake me up." and "Is she a famous singer?" No. "Then why is she singing?" I'm sure Monáe is quite talented, but it may be impossible to impress an 8-year old who is waiting for Katy Perry!

DJ Skeet Skeet was confusing -- to me, anyway! I've never heard of a DJ for an opening act. But what do I know? :) We kept thinking Katy Perry would be coming out any minute, and it wasn't happening. He was trying to get the crowd going with a dance party atmosphere, which worked to some extent. I think he was playing popular songs, but I was paying more attention to the screens showing tweets from people who used the #ReginaDreams hash tag. I tried to get on there, but didn't appear. It was a good distraction for the kids anyway: "Watch for my face on the screen!"). After yet another break, Katy Perry finally started her show about 9:00 pm.

The show was a dazzling spectacle of lights, images, dancers, acrobatics, costumes, and glitz. The stage was set with giant candies and colourful steps. (This reminds me of Madeline's question during the second song: "Are these all going to be candy songs?") There was a running dream-sequence story that played intermittently throughout the concert on the three big screens. And Katy Perry wore 17 costumes! Seven of those were during one song. (Costume stats and set list were published here: Katy Perry delivers a sweet, sweet dream to Regina crowd.) The first two photos above were from the first set. The third photo shows Perry on a small platform that rose out of the stage. In this picture, the platform had already lowered about 1/3 of its total height, but I chose it because you can see the aerial acrobat above/behind Perry. (Click the photo to enlarge if you'd like to see her better.)

The next two photos are from when Perry boarded a pink "cloud" and "floated" above the crowd, so everyone could get a closer look at her. She played guitar and sang a slower song during her flight. Since we were on the upper level at the back, we did have a good view of her on the cloud. She was securely attached to the thing behind her that looks like a candy cane. The third picture below is of Sophia and Bronwyn when Katy Perry was closest to us.

The next images are from one of our favourite songs: Hot N Cold. This is the song in which she wore 7 different costumes. That was pretty cool. Some of her changes were like magic. For example, glitter falling down on her and voila! new costume. Georgia and Madeline were very impressed! (I was impressed, too!) For the third image, I created a sequence of shots showing a costume change (of course this one wasn't like magic at all, but I never knew when those were happening!)

The photos at the beginning and end of this post, I took during Firework which is my favourite song of Katy Perry's. (If you haven't seen it, check out the video for Firework. I think it's quite touching.) This was the last song before the encore. When it looked like the concert was over, the girls were wondering why she hadn't played their favourite, California Gurls. And that, of course, was the encore performance. The girls were so excited! Sophia and Bronwyn were screaming at the top of their lungs. The concert didn't end until after 11:00 pm -- a full 2 hours with Katy.

I'm glad we were able to get tickets. (We were lucky to get them! The public sale sold out in six minutes, but Neil used a presale opportunity and was on it immediately). The concert was very memorable, not too expensive, and the girls loved it! They have been fans of Katy Perry for quite awhile, based on a handful of songs: California Gurls, Hot N Cold, Firework, and Teenage Dream (which is a bit mature for kids). I wasn't familiar with her other songs at all -- except I had heard I Kissed a Girl and E.T. once before. (And there were definitely some songs inappropriate for kids, but they weren't clear enough to understand if you didn't already know the words. The girls were so focused on all that was going on visually, I'm sure deciphering the lyrics was the furthest thing from their minds. It would be over their heads anyway. Phew!)

PI 21/52: From the heart

This heart-shaped pumpkin leaf seems a fitting symbol for my love of taking pictures in the garden. And, below, shooting from the heart... a scene from my life with three wonderful daughters. I'm so blessed to have them!

Our calendar was quite clear this weekend (except for the Rider game on TV, which only affects Neil's time -- and mood*), which allowed us to tackle a number of jobs around the house and yard. Lots of check marks on the to-do list!

On Friday, I worked for several hours on Sophia and Madeline's room. This was Part 2 of The Big Clean. I decluttered, cleaned, and reorganized every surface (they're lucky to have numerous shelves). Unfortunately, I ended with a box full of various things that still require decisions. I didn't really want the girls' help in the cleaning phase, but I need them to decide (with some guidance) what to do with their property, and we ran out of time to do that together.

Meanwhile, Neil gave the van and truck a thorough cleaning on the insides. As usual, the van cleaning was long overdue and therefore, quite a big job. It is clean now, but still full of toys, books, and shoes that need to be donated. There's no place to keep these things in our house so they have to stay in the van until we get rid of them. I didn't mind having them there for a few weeks because I have been adding to the bags and boxes, but now they need to go ASAP.

Saturday morning, Neil and I prepared our back-alley driveway to receive slag from a friend and neighbour. (Slag is a by- product of the metal smelting process and it's a good material for driveways. We have a local source.) We had to move some crusher dust into the yard and clear patches of dead moss (luckily, Neil had already killed all the weeds back there). Thursday evening, I said to Neil, we need to get some slag for behind the garage. I guess the universe overheard and decided to arrange things for us: Friday afternoon, my friend Lisa called and asked if we wanted 3 or 4 yards of slag because she had ordered 7 yards and only needed about half (it was the same price for 7 yards or less). She only lives a couple houses down the alley, so on Saturday and Sunday morning, we hauled slag from her driveway to ours with a wheelbarrow. We haven't spread it out yet, but we think there's enough to cover the area. Since we still need to order crusher dust and clay, we left lots of space for those to be dumped. We worked on this project about five hours total. We managed to avoid the highest temps for this heavy labour, but it was already quite hot out by the time we finished each morning.

Also on Saturday and Sunday, I worked on and completed my monthly photo tasks for June. Thank goodness I had started selecting and editing photos last Monday and worked on it several times through the week. With Mosaic, Picture Color, and other events, June was a huge photo month. Plus, sifting through a couple hundred poorly-lit Irish dance photos is time-consuming and not very fun. I'm glad I didn't have to sit down for a long grueling session (as I was determined to get this done in time to get 9-cent prints at Costco!).

On the weekend, we ate out on the patio twice. We love eating outside! Saturday evening, as we finished supper about 7:30 pm, I just sat there on the patio for awhile because it was gorgeous outside: not a breath of wind, no mosquitoes, and the temperature was perfect for me (about 25C). Also in the fun department, Laurel and Bronwyn took Sophia to see the final Harry Potter movie on Friday afternoon (which she loved!), and I took the girls and their new friend, Zoe, to the spray pad on Sunday afternoon. Sunday night, Neil and I started watching the CreativeLIVE course, Food & Culture Photography with Penny De Los Santos. Love it!

*I was very proud of Neil for deciding not to listen to the post-game show after this terribly disappointing game (and this is significant because he ALWAYS listens to it). I think avoiding it really reduced the amount of dwelling on the loss.

PI 20/52: Excavation

Nature, colour, and light. These are the things I am most eager to capture -- besides my children. I took this photo last Sunday morning and have had this post in draft for six days. That's the kind of week it's been. Spare time is scarce!

Last weekend, we were worried about Neil's dad. He went to hospital by ambulance Saturday morning after feeling extremely dizzy and clammy. He didn't have a heart attack, but was admitted to the Cardiac Surveillance Unit where he stayed overnight. On Sunday, he was discharged with the plan to have a stress test on Wednesday. His test results were great, so his heart has been ruled out.

On Saturday afternoon, Sophia and Georgia had their hair cut at D.A.M. Hair Company (great prices for children!). Sophia asked to have more layers. The length at the back is still about the same as before, but her hair is much more layered around her face, with a shorter section on one side (like very long bangs). Sophia loves her hair cut and it looks great (though sweeping it all into a pony tail, as she's fond of doing, is much more challenging now; and she knew it would be).

Georgia asked to have her hair cut like mine. :) Her hair is significantly shorter than before. Now it's shoulder length with some soft layers around her face. It looks awesome and is SO much easier to brush (we only brush her hair slathered in conditioner while she's bathing). Surprisingly, it doesn't appear to be curlier than before. I thought with so much length off, it would bounce right up, but it's about the same.

While Neil was at the Rider game on Saturday, the girls and I went over to L&B's to see Shauna and Wayne and the boys. The older kids went to the park to play, while Georgia and Rian stayed home with the grown ups. Bronwyn, Sophia, Madeline, and Cole were enjoying looking at the ducks and snails in the lake when I picked up Sophia.

I took Sophia home to pack a bag and then over to Meghan's for a sleepover. I also picked up Neil after the Rider game, and it was close to 6 pm by the time we got to the hospital to visit Lou. After a short visit, we went to Laurel's house for pizza and Neil's mom came with us. Later, we took Georgia home to bed while Madeline stayed overnight with Bronwyn (and the Pilgrims went back to Avonlea).

Sunday morning, I enjoyed taking some photos in the garden. (And I took photos throughout the day for 10 things on the 10th.) Meghan and her dad dropped off Sophia mid morning. In the afternoon, I spent several hours cleaning Sophia and Madeline's room while Neil prepared bison ribs and pork ribs, plus classic barbecue sauce, to take to Weisshaar's (Neil's aunt and uncle's place) for supper. They were very tasty.

The original plan had been to go to Avonlea for supper and to visit with Pilgrims before they left SK, but the location was changed to Weisshaar's since Lou was in the hospital until mid afternoon. We're so lucky he was discharged, though, as the doctor had planned to keep him in until Monday and then changed his mind. Since the entire family on Neil's side was able to be together Sunday evening, and this is a pretty rare occurance, we took some quick informal family photos in the back yard at Weisshaar's. We also got a few shots of the six cousins together. Shauna and her family left for MB the next day. We're so glad they could visit us in SK this summer!

Two weeks of summer fun

We've been having gorgeous weather. Summer is truly here! Just wanted to give a quick update on what the girls have been doing on their summer vacation so far. As of today, they've been out of school for two weeks, and

• they've gone to the spray pad a couple times
• Sophia went to a movie with Meghan one evening (Monte Carlo)
• they've attended PlayEscapes a few times (we have the planned activities on our bulletin board, so they know what they'll be doing when they go; they enjoy it!)
• Madeline went to Mattea's house one evening and they decorated white tank tops
• they've set up a sheet fort on the front lawn
• Sophia went to a movie with Cyandra one afternoon (Soul Surfer)
• all six of us went walking and riding on the bike path for over an hour one evening
• they've spent some time with their cousins, Bronwyn, Cole, and Rian
• Sophia went to Meghan's house for a sleepover
• they've pulled out the Perler Beads and made several cool creations (they're into making their own designs now rather than following the patterns)
• Madeline stayed overnight at Bronwyn's house
• they've signed up for the Summer Reading Program at the public library, and are eagerly colouring in a fish for each 15 minutes of reading
• they've set up the mesh/fabric tunnels on the lawn

So far, so good!

10 things on the 10th (July)

Ten photos I took today. For a listing of all July participants, see 10 Things at Shimelle.com.

P.S. The 4th photo is Georgia. Major haircut yesterday!

New perennials & record keeping

These are the new perennials we've put in this week:

• Boltonia latisquama nana 'Jim Crockett' (Star Aster)
• Campanula 'Deep Blue Clips' & 'White Clips' (Bellflower)
• Echinacea 'PowWow White' (Coneflower)
• Echinacea purpurea 'Magnus' (Coneflower)
• Echinops ritro 'Veitch's Blue' (Globe Thistle)
• Lamium 'Beacon Silver'
• Lupine 'Gallery Blue'
• Monarda 'Petite Delight' (Bee Balm)
• Monarda didyma 'Panorama Mix' (Bee Balm)
• Salvia x sylvestris 'Blue Queen'  (Meadow Sage)
• Sedum 'John Creech', 'Alpine Blue Spruce', 'Voodoo', 'Angelina', and 'Golden Acre' (Stonecrop)
• Thrift 'Splendens' (Sea Pink)

I took some time this morning to snap pictures and then add text to the photos as a visual record of the perennials in our yard. Here are two of the six pictures with labels. I'm just showing the best-looking areas right now! The first photo is in the back yard (if you'd like to read it, click the photo to enlarge). You can see what I mean by needing to eliminate grass and weeds from the pathways. I didn't label the poppies or the volunteer Lupine that we're going to move. The second photo is in the front yard. I didn't label the annuals which are: Torenia Hybrid Summer Wave Bouquet 'Gold' (front), and Coleus 'Chocolate Drop' (middle). The others are wild violas.

Online classes: 2011

For the past five years, I've taken numerous online classes in the areas of scrapbooking, photography, and organizing. I love online classes (which you probably already know if you read my blog!). Through them, I have learned a great deal, accomplished much that I wouldn't have otherwise, and "met" hundreds of virtual friends. Online classes have been very valuable and wonderful for me. At the same time, I will admit there are times when I probably took too many classes (this spring, for example!). Yet, I feel like I have restrained myself -- especially this year! There are so many fantastic looking classes out there.

I thought it might be interesting (or, more likely, convince you that I need help*) to list all of the classes I've taken over the years in a series of blog posts. For each class, I'll give some basic info (class name/instructor/price/time frame/website) and my results or general thoughts. I'll start with 2011 past, present, and future, and then in four additional blog posts, I'll list the classes I took from 2007 to 2010 (in reverse order). You'll see that BigPictureClasses.com is my first, favourite, and most frequently used website for classes, but there are others I enjoy as well.

I also want to note (pledge, perhaps?) that I plan to take fewer classes in the future because my life is getting busier AND I have a number of projects I want to tackle. I have to make space in my life for these things. Wish me luck! :)

2011 Past:

Decorate Life/Darci Dowdle/$18/4 weeks/
BigPictureClasses.com
I enjoyed Darci's class, A Baker's Dozen, so much (twice, in fact) that I couldn't resist this class. It was good, too, but I was very challenged to keep up. The timing (January) was SO bad for me! But I did complete 13 out of 14 layouts, so that's pretty good, I'd say! I don't know if I will ever do the last layout, and I'm okay with that.

Picture Winter/Tracey Clark/$30/1 month/
BigPictureClasses.com
I completed this project in real time and I enjoyed it, although winter is my least favourite (i.e., most challenging) time of the year for daily photos. In addition to taking photos, I also received the huge side benefit of blogging every day during January which was an extremely busy month. I never would have recorded so much during this time period without the additional commitment of Picture Winter. (I know that sounds weird.) Worth every cent for that reason. Plus, this was my 4th of the four seasons of Picture classes and I couldn't miss it! I felt a sense of accomplishment after completing this class.

Embrace Imperfection/Karen Grunberg/Free/2 weeks/
BigPictureClasses.com
I read the two handouts and thought they included some great information and layouts, but did I learn anything new? I don't know. Honestly, I probably would not have signed up if it hadn't been free since I don't feel like I need the information (I'm well aware of the need to resist perfectionism and have been working on this for years) and I definitely didn't have time to create anything new based on the class materials. I may use the included sheet of quotes at some point or re-read the handouts if I feel like I need a reminder. (Embrace Imperfection is still available as a self-paced class.)

Blogging for Scrapbookers/Shimelle Lain/$15/3 weeks/
Shimelle.com
I hadn't taken a class from Shimelle before so I didn't know what to expect. I was very impressed with the content! I really enjoyed reading her handouts. Since I'm a blogging veteran, there were many things I already knew or didn't need to do, but I still learned a bunch and implemented a few things. This class helped rejuvenate my interest in blogging, and for that alone it was worth the money. (Blogging for Scrapbookers is still available as a self-paced class.)

Beyond Blogging for Scrapbookers/Shimelle Lain/$15/
3 weeks/Shimelle.com
I enjoyed this class, too, although I haven't read the last three of 15 lessons or watched the videos yet. This class included lots of excellent information and I'm glad I signed up. I really liked participating in the group projects, My day in photos and 10 things on the 10th. I plan to continue doing 10 on the 10th, read the lessons I missed, and I'm sure I'll refer to some of the handouts in the future.

Finally Get Organized/Jennifer Wilson/Free/4 lessons/
SimpleScrapper.com
I read all of the content from this class, which was good, but I didn't have time to implement anything at the time. Also, I probably didn't need more of this type of information. So why did I sign up for it? I like Jennifer's approach to simple memory keeping so I wanted to see what she had to say about organizing, and since I didn't really need the class, the price was right (free). I've taken several organizing classes, my supplies are pretty organized, and I'm planning to read The Organized & Inspired Scrapbooker later this year, so I'm not sure I'll revisit the class content, but it's there if I want to. (Finally Get Organized is still available as a self-paced class.)

Picture Color/Tracey Clark/$30/1 month/
BigPictureClasses.com
I was totally committed to Picture Color and didn't miss a day. This was one of my favourites of all the Picture classes I've taken (seven!) and I've learned more about the settings on my camera than in any other class in this series. I was not only motivated by the daily prompts and the community (such a friendly group and I always enjoy receiving comments in the gallery!), but also my commitment to blog each photo along with some record of the day. While I haven't tackled other popular "everyday life" projects such as Ali Edwards' Week in the Life or Becky Higgins' Project Life, I know that for these months when I blog daily, I am capturing a bunch of everyday- life kind of stuff. And that's good enough for me.

2011 Present:

Organizing with Your Kids/Aby Garvey/$45/4 weeks/
Simplify101.com
I have listened to all three lessons and learned a lot (hurray for MP3s because I don't have time to sit and read the lessons!). While I won't have time to implement everything during the four weeks of class, I know the class content will be very useful to me through this summer and beyond. I have worked with the girls to declutter their toys and I came up with rewards based on suggestions in the first lesson and knowing what motivates my kids. I did approach these things a little differently thanks to the class. I've had great success with other organizing classes from Simplify101, so I'm familiar with Aby's approach to organizing and I know it works well. I will be referring to the lessons going forward, and I'm very glad I signed up.

Finding Photo Freedom (Alumni)/Stacy Julian/Free/
10 weeks/BigPictureClasses.com
This is my fourth time in this class, formerly called A Library of Memories (LOM), and I have done fewer things with each session -- but I was very successful during my first one in 2008, so my LOM is set up and working for me. All I'm after now are the updates and the inspiration to tweak a few areas. So far in this session, I have read some of the handouts, watched several videos, and decided I need to implement one of the elements introduced last year (identify my top five stories per quarter). I am also enjoying all of the new motivational email messages. My main focus for this session is to practice and improve my triaging skills. I have completed all of the triage assignments during each past session of LOM, so my category drawers have hundreds of photos in them (and I have used my category drawers many times), but I haven't been triaging photos (pulling them out of my storage binders) on a regular basis, so that's what I need to work on. I think Finding Photo Freedom is an essential class, and having access to all the new content for free? Priceless!

Picture Inspiration/Tracey Clark/$36/1 year/
BigPictureClasses.com
I am committed to this project and haven't missed a week yet. Sometimes it's a real challenge to make time for this task. When I "just get it done," the result isn't always great, but that's okay; I still like receiving the weekly prompt and having something consistent to post on my blog every week. It also keeps me using my camera on a regular basis which means more shots of my children and documentation of life in general. I'm happy to be in this community. (Picture Inspiration is still available.)

One Little Word/Ali Edwards/$36/1 year/
BigPictureClasses.com
I selected my word (patience) and I think about it quite often, but I haven't done a thing with this class except for posting one picture in the gallery (which I actually took for Picture Winter). Months ago, I made the decision to set this class aside because I have no time for it, and I guess I don't feel motivated by the end result of an album reflecting my word and its presence in my life. Will I use the class materials someday? I don't know. I love Ali's stuff, and I'm happy to have forever access so I could do it if I wanted to, but who knows? I am much more successful with classes when I participate along with everyone else. My bad for signing up for a workshop/ community for which I didn't have time or feel totally committed. I admit I was swept up in the online excitement. At least I did not buy any of the recommended supplies! I'm sure this workshop is great; it just wasn't right for me at this time in my life. (One Little Word is still available.)

2011 Future:

The Art of Composition/Tracey Clark/probably $99 $300**
(I learned after posting)/12 weeks/BigPictureClasses.com
This class will run October through December this year. I'm excited about it and already feel committed. I'm reading the Shutter Sisters' book, Expressive Photography, right now as a primer. I think I'll be able to keep up with this class since I won't have any others running on a schedule, except Picture Inspiration (which shouldn't be any trouble in parallel with a photography class!). (If you're interested, listen to Tracey's audio message on the BPC 4 Experts page.)

The Power of iPhoto '11/Lesa Snider/$19/1 day/
creativeLIVE.com
This is about 5 hours of video. I don't have iPhoto '11 yet (I have '09), but in the few minutes I watched of the live class, I learned some things that I'm already applying daily! I know I'll be upgrading my iPhoto and will use the content from this class, so I snapped it up and can watch the videos anytime. (I paid less than full price b/c I purchased it during the live class.) (The Power of iPhoto '11 is still available.)

Photoshop Elements 9 for Photographers/Lesa Snider/
$49/2 days/creativeLIVE.com
This is about 10 hours of video. Again, I only watched a few minutes of the live class, and I don't have PSE 9 yet (I have 8), but I could see she was covering some methods and techniques that I will definitely use (including some things I can certainly use with my current version). I use PSE all the time and will upgrade at some point, so I grabbed the class on discount. Now I can watch the videos whenever I want. (Photoshop Elements 9 for Photographers is still available.)

Food & Culture Photography/Penny De Los Santos/
$99/3 days/creativeLIVE.com
This is about 15 hours of video. I see this more as edu-tainment for both Neil and me, rather than strictly an online class. When the live class was in session, we had it playing on two computers while we did housework. We knew we wanted to view the whole thing more attentively, so we bought the class and plan to watch the videos on our TV downstairs. Most of the shows we were watching are over now, so I think we'll start watching this soon. (I also purchased this class at a significant discount.) (Food & Culture Photography is still available.)

***

Okay, I know what you're thinking: How does she have time for all of these classes? After making this list, I'm wondering the same thing! Well, firstly, I didn't participate fully in all of them. And that's not how I like to do things, so I absolutely agree that my 2011 Past and Present lists are too long. But I did manage to read most of the class content (except OLW) and complete quite a few assignments. I think this is how: I only watch 2 or 3 hours of TV per week (and some weeks, none); I get up early on weekdays so I have time before work; I have an hour-long lunch break when I'm at work; I have a messy house (i.e., I don't spend a lot of time on housework); and I have a stay-at-home husband who does all of the laundry, grocery shopping, and cooking. Yes, this last one is a major factor! Otherwise, I just squeeze it in; I read a little here and little there. Anyhow, as I said, my plan is to not take so many classes in the future! Clearly, I have plenty of class material to go back to should I feel the need to learn something. :)

The next post in this series will be about the online classes I took in 2010.

*Yes, I could certainly use some house cleaning help! ha ha

**I didn't realize it would be this much. :( But I know this class will be worth it. And this will strengthen my resolve not to sign up for more classes; I'll be pre-spending my 2012 budget!

PI 19/52: Dig in

These are Madeline's hands, but my hands were getting plenty dirty, too, as I was weeding the veg garden last evening. We didn't see many earthworms yesterday and I suppose it's because of the hot weather. Perhaps they're further down in the soil. Just guessing. I'll never forget the time, a couple years ago, when I was weeding the same garden bed and there were dozens of earthworms all coming up out of the soil and moving along the ground surface at the same time. It was bizarre and I've never seen such a thing before or after that.

The back yard doesn't look great right now, but I think I'm on the verge of being able to spend more time working on it. I don't mean just this summer, but in the years to come. Our yard always looked better before we had kids. I was able to keep up with it. I think it's just very difficult to get yard work done when you're pregnant and exhausted, have babies and toddlers, and also when you take trips in the summer. I have none of those things to contend with this year! Hey, it's only July 6 and I have the four centre beds weeded already (still need to do the pumpkin patch by the garage). Getting the grass and weeds out of the paths will be my next task. Also, we need to order some clay, dirt, and crusher dust, and build up the problem areas and paths in our yard. We already have a pile of wood chips ready to spread (from last year's tinsel mulch program). I'm determined to get these things done this year so we can avoid having a slough in the spring again. I look forward to getting the yard shaped up. As it is, I enjoy going out to check the plants in the morning and after work. I will love it even more when the yard is looking tip top!

Also, this morning, Neil and the girls went to a greenhouse because I had spotted a big sign off the Lewvan that said Perennials $2. They got 16 perennials for less than $40! (15 were $2 each and a Globe Thistle was $6). Woohoo! I can't wait to fill more garden beds with them, and cut back on annual flowers which are rarely successful in our yard. They bought some Lupine, Sedum, Monarda, Campanula... not sure what else. Can't wait to see them when I get home!

P.S. I just learned a bunch of interesting things about earthworms here (and I was right about the hot weather): http://www.learner.org/jnorth/search/WormNotes3.html

Birthdays and toys galore

I adore these petunias with the green edges. So cool. This one is growing in one of Laurel's beautiful planters. I've also seen them in some city-owned pots downtown.

After posting almost daily for a month, it was good to have a little break from blogging but I certainly don't want to miss recording some of the details of our weekend.

We spent Thursday evening at L&B's to celebrate our niece's 11th birthday. Neil had taken the girls over earlier in the afternoon and then he picked me up from work so we could go straight there. Shauna, Cole, and Rian had arrived from Edmonton earlier in the day, and Donna, Lou, Darren, Ali, Gabe, and Avery were there as well. We had a great dinner (bbq'd hamburgers, corn on the cob, etc) and birthday cake from Coldstone Creamery. We didn't get home until about 9:30 and I was exhausted, so I stayed in bed after reading to Madeline and Georgia.

I was up early on Friday, Canada Day. I worked on email and Bite-sized Scrapbooking stuff until after lunch and then weeded the garden for three hours in the afternoon. Meanwhile, Neil took the girls to a Rider practice (11:00 am) where they got a bunch of things autographed, and then to the park for Canada Day festivities in the afternoon. Laurel, Bronwyn, Shauna, Cole, and Rian also did those things with them. Around 5:30 pm, we picked up Donna from the Pasqua hospital where Grandma Louise is recovering from surgery, and we went to L&B's house for our nephew's 7th birthday celebration. We had Houston Pizza for supper and a delicious "zebra" cake which Shauna made and decorated with white icing and red fondont maple leafs. After supper, Sophia went to a movie with her friend Meghan, while we stayed at L&B's until almost 9 pm. Once again, that was the end of the day for me. I don't know why, but I can't seem to stay up late any more! I guess I'm working harder these days.

On Saturday, I got up at 6:00 am and did a little more BSS work. I really don't mind getting up early on weekends. For awhile on Saturday morning, I appreciated the complete silence of the house. Not even the A/C was running. :) When Madeline got up, she and I (with coffee in hand) enjoyed a stroll around our garden on a gorgeous sunny morning. I loved chatting with Madeline as we looked at the plants and flowers. I love to hear her perspective on things.

Before too long, I went to work cleaning the living room and dining room floors while Neil hauled all of the toys out to the front lawn, placing them on top of old sheets. Once everything was out and the floors cleared, Madeline and I took a little break to pick up bread and treats at Orange Boot Bakery (I was after the Rhubarb & Walnut muffins in particular). At 1:00 pm, Neil took the girls to go swimming with their cousins at the Sandra Schmirler Leisure Centre. Meanwhile, I sorted toys for about six hours straight (with Neil's help for some of those hours). Can you believe that? I didn't think it would take that long -- and was frustrated that it did -- but at least it was a gorgeous day outside. And it is great to have this done but I know there are more toys lurking in our house somewhere. There are a few obvious things missing from sets and games. That drives me nuts!

Neil made an awesome supper (bison tenderloin steak, perfect potatoes/carrots/onions, corn on the cob) and we ate out on the patio for the first time this year. And then I had to take the girls to 7-11 for 5-cent candies because I had promised. Ugggh. What was I thinking? Oh yeah, that they were supposed to help me with the toy sorting -- and they did, but less than I was hoping due to the swimming excursion and playing with their new friend, Zoe, from two doors down. After that, we hauled all of the toys into the house.

Sunday was another gruelling day of working with the toys. This time indoors, we went through every container deciding what toys to give away (all but one miscellaneous box as we ran out of time). The girls did pretty well. We collected another large box full of toys and dress-up clothes, 30 small stuffed animals (unfortunately, very little relative to the remaining stuffies: I cannot get them to part with Webkinz!), and a bag of play dough paraphernalia (we kept the best tools and cookie cutters) to give away. Also on Sunday, Neil and the girls took Dash for a play date, we took Neil to the Rider game, and the girls played with Zoe for 90 minutes before supper. When we finished going through the stuffed animals in the evening, which was quite challenging, I rewarded the girls: for each stuffie they gave away, they received 25 cents toward DQ treats. They ended up with $7.50 total, so we went to the new DQ at 8:00 pm and they each enjoyed a small sundae. We also picked up Neil, just two blocks from our house, on his way home from the football game (he often walks home; it takes about 40 minutes). It was another LONG day -- with an extremely messy kitchen at the end of it.

After all of this toy business, I now have good solid inventory of the things we're hanging onto (for now), and have divided them into these categories: (1) All-season, (2) Summer (Jun-Sep), (3) Fall/Winter (Oct-Jan), and (4) Winter/Spring (Feb-May). This week, we'll be be putting away categories 3 and 4, totally out-of-sight and inaccessible to the kids. My hope is that we'll be able to keep the girls' rooms and our living spaces tidier on an ongoing basis. It's got to help, right?!