Two Blogs Beasley

My love of Fire

2011-12-07T07:35:00.001-08:00

Let me tell you a story. I've wanted a Kindle for a while. This desire grew more intense over the past 6 months or so. I had decided that, if possible, I was going to finally get one for my birthday this year. Then, the day after my 20th wedding anniversary, Jeff Bezos delivered an announcement and I knew exactly what I wanted: not just a Kindle, but a Kindle Fire!

This sounded like a device that was tailor-made for me. As I said, I wanted a Kindle but held out for many years in the hope of one day having a color screen. I wanted an iPad since I already had an iPhone; I knew many of the tasks I used the phone for could benefit from a bigger screen. The iPad was definitely on my wish list but considering our lack of funds, it remained elusive. This new "Kindle Plus" device seemed like it would, if nothing else, be a good tablet-ish choice for me while I continued to dream of one day becoming an iPad owner. I figured if I got enough money for my birthday, I'd preorder a Kindle Fire. And that's what I did. :)

Background on me: I like technology & gadgets but have had a pretty limited budget over the past few years. (The rumors are true. Turns out kids ARE a "time suck" and a "money suck".) We are a 1 income, 1 car family. Our iPhones are not the latest models, and they were refurbished models whe we bought them, as well. I'm not complaining here; I'm just saying I can be satisfied with less than the "latest & greatest", and I suspect there are others like me. :) For what it promised to deliver to me (bigger screen than my iPhone, popular apps, Netflix, etc.), the $199 price tag was right. I also felt fairly confident that having an Amazon/Kindle pedigree would give it a good chance to succeed. From the start, we were hearing that it was selling well. I believed two things would contribute to the success of this tablet-hybrid. One, having that Amazon name & ecosystem. Two, it had an attention-grabbing $199 price tag. Yes, there are better tablets with more features. Great specs are nice, but it isn't always the whole story as to why something will sell. For an example of this, look at the latest generation of gaming consoles. The Wii certainly did not have the superior specs compared to the Xbox 360 or PS3. But it had the cheaper price tag, the gimmick/novelty of the Wii Remote, and the pedigree of Nintendo and their licensed characters like Mario & Zelda. It was family-friendly with a price that families could afford. And it sold like crazy, driving hard-core gamers crazy since it obviously was an "inferior system"!

So...November 15th arrives. Reviews break out on the web right around the release, and they are mixed. Some are glowing; some are downright ugly. But a lot of what I read in the negative reviews were based on comparing the Kindle Fire to the iPad. And the question should be asked: is it fair to compare the two? My answer is no...and yes. (I'll answer the "yes" part more in a bit.) My own Kindle Fire arrived on November 16th. Some of the criticism is fair. The carousel is a bit flaky in terms of where it lands. There is no hardware volume control, which would really be nice to have. But some of the criticism gets colored by people who are iPad users. And as I said, if you're comparing a product that is not as feature-rich to a more expensive tablet, it will naturally pale in comparison.

Let's go over some of the advantages that were given to the iPad in reviews I read. First, people said the iPad's app store was much larger. This one is silly. You're comparing a two year old product's store to one that was just released. When the iPad was first out, the app store for iPhones was much larger than the iPad store, you might remember. I'm quite happy with the Amazon App Store for the Fire. It has a good selection of popular apps, and some Android app makers are even releasing Kindle Fire optimized apps. There's quite a bit there considering the Fire's been out for less than a month.

Another advantage of the iPad? The larger screen. Why, yes, the iPad screen is larger! If you're going from an iPad down to the Kindle Fire, then the K Fire will seems smaller (because it is) and will perhaps seem inadequate. But...what if you're like me and moving from a phone to the larger 7 inch screen? I used to watch Netflix and read Kindle books on my little phone screen. I don't spend my time thinking my Kindle Fire screen is too small compared to an iPad. Sorry! And even though it's smaller than an iPad, this also can end up being an advantage depending on your situation. Some say the smaller size makes it more portable than the larger tablets. Not having carried around an iPad, I can't fully comment on this. But I will say that I find the Fire to be easy for me to carry around the house, and holding it for a while is not fatiguing for me.

And I'm sorry, but one of the dumbest negative critiques I heard about the Fire was its design. My understanding is that it looks like a Blackberry Playbook. Ok, so it's not all that exciting. But one thing I noticed is that when I saw all the Kindle models side by side on Amazon's front page, this particular design seems to fit nicely in the Kindle family. I read a review that mentioned an important point: the design may not be sleek and impressive, but it also doesn't distract from the most-viewed part of the device, the screen. I think if you're spending any amount of time complaining that the Fire is too "plain Jane"- looking instead of using the screen and playing with the tablet itself, then "you're doing it wrong". ;)

Why, then, does the Fire get compared to the iPad so much if it's not exactly a comparable product? (You'll notice Amazon was clever enough to brand it a Kindle, as opposed to calling it an Amazon Tablet.) Why did we hear extremes from reviewers calling the Fire something as important as an "iPad killer", while other critics felt the Fire was a piece of garbage that no one should bother to buy? Simple: because, in a way, it IS fair to compare the two items. Like myself, this could be the first foray into the tablet world for a lot of people. Even though the Fire is not a complete tablet (which is why the "Kindle Plus" or tablet-hybrid title suits it better), it does an awful lot of the same things that many folks would be doing with a tablet/iPad. And the other things the Fire can't do? Many people can live without them, considering the price is less than half the price for the Fire as opposed to the cheapest iPad.

Everyone has different needs. If your budget allows it, you'll be very happy with an iPad, I'm sure. But there IS a market for the Kindle Fire. Just like I mentioned in my earlier example, there ended up being a group of people who bought a Wii, and a group of people who bought an Xbox 360. To say that the Fire, compared to the iPad, isn't worth thinking about simply because the iPad is better, is to discount the needs of the person who might be looking at the Fire in the first place. I believe that the market can handle more than 1 popular tablet product. I believe the iPad will still be the standard, #1 tablet for quite some time. But #2 hit the ground running, didn't it? ;)

Oh...and, one more thing. ;)

Remember that "iPad killer" comment that circulated? I, too, laughed at that one. But, guess what? I just realized the other day that I don't have iPad envy anymore. The idea of owning an iPad has kinda dropped off my radar. I heard the other day that Apple isn't worried about the Fire as competition, and that they even think the Fire could prove to be a "gateway drug" into the the land of the "real" tablet, the iPad. And yet, what if Amazon does come up with the larger tablet that they are expected to release next year? And what if it has more features than the Fire and has a cheaper price tag than the iPad? There are a whole bunch of people who are now getting thrown into the Amazon ecosystem and they might not exactly feel like buying their apps again in iTunes. Hmmm...the future is an interesting thing, isn't it?

First popsicles, now ice cream? Yes, because it's PEANUT BUTTER & CHOCOLATE!!!

2011-06-29T08:09:00.000-07:00

Making popsicles in the Zoku reminded me of my old Donvier Ice Cream maker. We bought it back in the 90s, and design-wise, it's similar to the Zoku. You've got a metal canister filled with coolant that goes in the freezer, and once the coolant is frozen you put the ice cream wannabe liquid in the canister & crank the dasher occasionally. 20 minutes or so later and you get soft serve. Freeze it to get full-blown ice cream. Sweet!

My favorite flavor of ice cream, since my youth, has been peanut butter & chocolate. No, not peanut butter ice cream with chocolate bits. That's just so wrong, Ben & Jerry! You want it like old school Baskin Robbins, where I enjoyed many pb & c cones as a child. Chocolate ice cream with peanut butter chunks...that's good eatin'! So now at 41 years old I decide it's time to make some pb & c ice cream at home, since I've got this Donvier machine waiting to be used again. I planned to make Cook's Illustrated chocolate ice cream & then add peanut butter, so I searched for "peanut butter chocolate ice cream" to get ingredients for the peanut butter "ribbon". And the first recipe that came up was from Joy the Baker's site, http://www.joythebaker.com/ . Looking at the recipe, I said, heck, I'm just going to try this one! I found the use of cornstarch in the base instead of eggs particularly intriguing, especially since I'm not very fond of eggs. (Cookies & cakes & meatloaves are fine for eggs. Raw or partially cooked eggs are yucky, IMO. And I only eat scrambled eggs once or twice a year. They are just not my favorite thing.)

I did a few things differently from her recipe. I used darker chocolate (a Dutch cocoa blend for the cocoa, and a 60% semisweet/bittersweet chocolate chip) in order to get a richer chocolate flavor. I also added some agave syrup (probably no more than 1/4 cup) to the natural peanut butter to sweeten the pb, since I think they usually sweeten the peanut butter in the commercial recipes. You can find Joy's original Double Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream here: http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2008/07/double-chocolate-peanut-butter-ice-cream/ . And yes, you should go there. :)

The other difference for me, aside from the different chocolate and the sweetened pb, is that I didn't have whole milk on hand. So I used 1 1/2 cups of 2% milk plus 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream for the 2 cups of whole milk, and used 1/4 cup 2% and 1/4% heavy whipping cream for the 1/2 cup of whole milk that gets mixed with the cornstarch. Hey, don't judge; it worked out ok. :)

And tastewise? Well, I'm blogging about it, aren't I? :D Really, really good ice cream. The texture is akin to a super-premium ice cream like Ben & Jerry's , although part of the texture will depend on your ice cream maker. (The more air that gets whipped into the ice cream, the "icier" and less dense your final product will be, I believe.) I like to think this ice cream is what frozen Nutella would be like, if Nutella was made with peanuts instead of hazelnuts. Maybe it comes off more like a frozen custard or frozen pudding, but I don't care. I just want to eat it! Chances are if you're a pb & c freak like me, you'll want it,too.

My new "6 sticks" rule

2011-06-29T06:01:00.000-07:00

Made strawberry/pineapple/coconut Zoku popsicles yesterday. But before I could make them, I needed to make a run over to Williams Sonoma for more sticks. I've come to the conclusion that if you ever want to make more than 1 flavor of popsicles with the Zoku, you better have a good supply of sticks! The 6 that come with the machine just don't cut it for more than a single batch, and it doesn't look like those things are going to multiply on their own. I'd say plan to have at LEAST 6 sticks per batch of popsicles, and more than that is even better. I ended up needing 10 for the s/p/c popsicles yesterday, which was all I had on hand since I still had 2 plain strawberry in the freezer. Of course, you can always keep your popsicle base in the fridge until you get some of your current popsicles eaten. ;)

So, word of warning, when you're buying your Zoku, pick up extra sticks. $12 for a box of 6. You're welcome. :)

Summer? What happened to spring?

2011-06-27T06:36:00.000-07:00

LOL, I just checked & saw that I last posted here at the end of January! Talk about neglect!

We're in full summer mode here. 100 degree temps. Dips in the kiddie pool. Staying in the air conditioned house a lot. And now popsicles. I bought some Caribbean popsicles from Aldi that I love. My favorite fruit flavors are involved: strawberry, pineapple, and coconut. (Also mango & passionfruit.) Those three flavors were in my favorite smoothie from Frullati: the Affinity. I don't even think they make the Affinity anymore although I think you can get a similar smoothie there. Anyways, these popsicles are close and now when I taste them, they will make me think of summer.

And speaking of popsicles...last weekend we broke down & bought a Zoku Quick Pop maker. My friend Sara had bought one recently & raved about it, so I was curious. (Visit Sara's blog at http://www.threehungryboys.blogspot.com/ .) And since I could easily see myself spending hundreds of dollars on Caribbean popsicles for myself (not to mention strawberry ones for my son), I thought, hey, I really need to start making them at home instead of buying them. So...$50 later & about 24 hours later, we made our first batch of strawberry popsicles. Still being a novice to the Zoku, we did have the popsicles stick on us, but once we got them out of the machine, they were delicious! Just like a really sweet, cold strawberry. I used a recipe from food.com which you can find here: http://www.food.com/recipe/strawberry-popsicle-375304 . I'm guessing the water in the recipe may have made the pops stick too much, so I need to tweak it 'til I get it right. Tastewise, as I said, they were awesome!

I also hunted down a mocha popsicle recipe I'm going to try, as well as the pineapple & coconut recipe from Zoku's blog (http://blog.zokuhome.com/ ). So I'll be busy freezing this summer instead of baking, I think. Although...I did want to make some inspired-by-strawberry-lemonade cookies soon. We'll see if I'm desperate enough to run the oven during a 100 degree day! :)

'til next time!

Trying to update

2011-01-31T09:13:00.000-08:00

In case you're following my other blog, you've noticed that I've started updating the Seebee's Freebies again, including a new Dream Trip addition yesterday. I really like the Toy Room mini kit; the cloud paper was especially nice for the background paper of my Toy Story Midway Mania layouts from our Disney 2010 trip. :) Yes, scrapping the album tends to lead to creating new papers & elements, which leads to new Seebee's Freebies items. And I'm not even halfway through the album, so I expect a few more things to go on that blog. Stay tuned.

Also, the holidays caught me doing a LOT of baking! (Most of it went to teachers & family as gifts, since baking staples were cheap at Aldi & we didn't have a lot of money this year.) Thanks to the America's Test Kitchen group, I'm getting more comfortable with pie crust, so I made several pies for the holidays. And, of course, their cookie recipes are favorites here, too. Being a diabetic, it's not really a great idea to have tons of cookies in the house, so I end up giving the bulk of the food away to my husband's coworkers or my kid's teachers. I'm finding that I really enjoy the process of cooking almost as much as the eating. Of course, the cleanup continues to be a pain. :D

Just to give you something to look at, I posted the picture of the coconut cream pie I made for one of the teachers. I've NEVER made one before, since I'm not a big fan of the texture of coconut. But the little bit I sampled of the filling tasted good, and I was told it was delicious. Another successful recipe from the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook!

I want to get some more work done in my album this week, but I've also made a commitment to make several dozen cookies for someone. So, that'll cut into my computer time. If you want to get in a cookie mood, I'll tell you that the ones I'm making this week are: oatmeal (no raisins), peanut butter chocolate chip (my favorite), Wookkie Cookies from the Star Wars cookbook (double chocolate chip with cinnamon; really tasty & my son's favorite!), and triple chocolate cookies (ultra rich & yummy).

Speaking of baking, I have plans to make either M & M sugar cookies for Valentine's Day, or Red Velvet cupcakes. Or both. Again, teachers will be receiving the bulk of my work. I'm sure they hate me. Well, at least their scales probably do. ;)

All this food talk...can you tell it's lunchtime here? LOL!

Taking a breath

2010-08-21T08:30:00.000-07:00

Ah, late with the updates again! If you've followed me on Facebook, you would have found out that I retired from selling my designs at the end of July. I had no problems with Digitals; I merely became "burnt out". No desire, no inspiration, no time. And while I still have some scrapping to do, I can tell you that I haven't opened Photoshop nearly as much this year as in the past few years, and I haven't regretted it. :) I still am a scrapper but I'm taking a much needed break.

My time lately has been spent reading & cooking, with a splash of cleaning thrown in there. While our house is still a mess, it's on the right track to getting it back to a clean-ish state. ;) My daughter starts school in a few days, and I'm sure having my Little Destruct-o out of the way for several hours in the day will help. (I love her, but our house has never been the same since she became mobile. Seriously.)

Hey! I can tie these two topics together by mentioning that I did open Photoshop to do a little scrapping, in relation to her starting school! She picked out this cute ladybug "purse-style" lunch bag for school. (Like a lot of stuff around here, it's from Target.) So I was trying to find a good thermos/drinking cup to go with it. It's more challenging than you might think because my daughter is autistic and she still hasn't figured out how to use a straw. I needed something that was not going to leak, but would allow her to tip & drink like a regular cup. I ended up deciding on the insulated coffee cup with removable insert by Aladdin. I believe it's this model. And I used my A Bug World kit to throw together an insert that works with the lunch bag. I'll see if I can get around to taking a pic for you.

Have a good weekend!

This week's update

2010-05-26T11:03:00.000-07:00

Still working on the new kit. The working title is Sherbet Forest. There's a mild floral theme & the colors are pastels that remind me of sherbet. Now you know! :)

On a different note, a few weeks ago I was blessed to be led to the Mars Hill Church podcast sermons, originally through the Stitcher app but now I subscribe through iTunes. God has been rich with His Spirit in Pastor Mark, and it's been so refreshing to hear these sermons. Highly recommend checking these out. Search for Mars Hill on iTunes or check for videos on YouTube.

Bye 'til we meet in blogland again!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Scrapping update

2010-05-21T12:36:00.001-07:00

Hey there! So today I'm outside, listening to the Betamouse podcast on my iPhone. It's motivated me to give you a post. I've been doing some design work over the last week, but am having trouble focusing, as usual. The pirate kit I've been working on for months continues to be in limbo. I've come to realize that pirates are just something I don't have a passion for! Sorry, Jack Sparrow! I think I will finish it eventually but I've put it on the back burner.

So I started another kit which is zipping along. I decided instead of trying to do something trendy, or trying to create something with the thought in mind of "Will it sell?", I would make another kit with my own taste in mind. That's why I started designing in the first place but I kinda lost sight of that. And it's amazing how much faster I can work when my goal is to just create what I want. I finished 6-7 digipapers in about 2 hours! I really have a feeling this kit will be available soon. Stay tuned.

Also I have a lot of pics from our recent WDW trip to scrap. I finished a few layouts, and I'll get you a link to view them when I get back on my computer. (If you're on my Seebee's Facebook page, you can view them there.) I'm currently scrapping Small World pages, so I may have a little freebie up on the Seebee's Freebies blog. I can't promise anything but I'm trying.

That's all for now!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Quick update

2010-05-12T14:44:00.001-07:00

Hard for me to believe, but 2 weeks ago I was walking around the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World resort! It doesn't seem like that long ago. I've been working on a (way too wordy) trip report, which I'm posting exclusively at the Be Our Guest podcast forums. (I believe that's at www.beourguestpodcast.com/forum if you're interested.)
I'm also in the process of finishing up that pirate kit that I've been working on for Digitals. Keep up with my Seebee's fan page on Facebook for the latest on its inevitable release.

Of course a trip to WDW means I've got pics to scrap! Once I get into that, it wouldn't surprise me if another Seebee's Freebies or two comes out. We'll see how inspired I get!

Take care; have a good Wednesday! :)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Cupcake picture

2010-03-14T07:17:00.001-07:00

Not the best picture, but I never claimed to be a food stylist. I can tell you they taste great, though! :)

Yummy Red Velvet Cake w/ cream cheese frosting!

2010-03-08T16:26:00.001-08:00

Ok, I don't have time to type up the recipe and I haven't taken any photos yet. But here's where you can get the recipe for the red velvet cake & cream cheese frosting that I used for my cupcakes yesterday. The only difference is that I portioned the cake batter into 24 cupcakes, and cooked them for 18 minutes. I also halved the frosting since I figured half would be enough for the cupcakes, as opposed to the layer cake. (I was right; I have almost a cup of frosting left over in the fridge.)

The cake is good, but I'm particularly impressed with the frosting. Perfect texture, easy, and it's more reminiscent of a buttercream frosting flavored with cream cheese. I find it to be a perfect blend of sweetness with a light cream cheese flavor. Already I'm thinking of trying this on my favorite banana chip snack cake. (Also an ATK recipe from one of their cookbooks; it's fabulous!)

You'll probably need to create a login account with Cook's Country TV, but it's free and believe me, the ATK crew's recipes are well worth having. Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Country are my go-to recipes. I've loved them for years. :)

Go here to get the Red Velvet Cake & Cream Cheese Frosting recipe from Cook's Country. (Remember that you may need to create a login to view it, plus the recipes are only free during the current season of Cook's Country. So this recipe may not be available for free, depending on when you're reading this post.)

Not much today

2010-03-08T07:40:00.001-08:00

I'm sitting here with a sick kid on my lap. I expect I'll get very little accomplished today unless she takes a nap. I did get some nice red velvet cupcakes made yesterday, so that's something, right? I think ATK has created a recipe for the best cream cheese frosting I've ever tasted. I'll post it if I get a chance.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Yeah, there's a "new" product

2010-03-07T11:16:00.000-08:00

I just popped on here & noticed I never added the latest paper set, "Party Elegance" to my Kaboodle feed. So if you look over on the right>>>>>>> and see something you hadn't seen before, keep in mind this is not exactly new but it IS the latest product I have at Digitals. You'll never be able to call me super-speedy, apparently! :)

And again, become a fan at my Seebee's Facebook page to get the latest updates on freebies, my Digitals products, challenge givaways, etc. Go to the Seebee's by Chris Beasley fan page by clicking here. (And yes, I did actually mention when the paper set was released there, so it's definitely a good way to keep up with the Seebee's stuff. ;) )

Testing iPhone blogging

2010-03-07T09:26:00.000-08:00

You can pretty much ignore this post. I just wanted to make sure this whole "posting from my phone" thing works. :)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Whoa, a new product is actually available?

2009-11-18T17:21:00.001-08:00

Goodness, it's true! This is just a quick note to say that I finished up a quickie project and got a new little embellishment set available over at Digitals. The It's a Swirl World Word Frame set allows you to emphasize a word or phrase on your layout, in swirl-ridden style. ;) You can pop over to Digitals to check it out, and I created a layout using it that you can find here. (I'm on a computer right now that doesn't have access to the files for me to give you a pic here, but I'll get that corrected later.)

Other Seebee's happenings

2009-07-11T09:04:00.000-07:00

Taking a break from the brain block issues this morning to work on another little "project". I'm in the process of working up the wording for a limited commercial & S4H license to go along with a few kits. These will be the same kits that are already available, but for a little more money, you will have a license that allows you to use the kit items in your S4O/S4H projects, use on the design of your personal blog, use to create cards/products for your photography business, etc. So, stay tuned. I'll post here when those products are up & available.

Brain block!

2009-07-10T21:04:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm in the middle of working on papers for August bonuses. It's hard going for me this time, although papers are usually not a problem. It's coming up with designs that work with this month's theme. :) (I won't spoil it for you yet.) My brain's not doing a great job, or my drawing skills are lacking...something like that. I'm sure I'll get through it.

Also, I signed up for Digitals' Christmas in July special, which is coming up. (In this month, obviously. ;) ) Look for more information on what that's going to entail soon! If I can get past my brain block, I'll see about getting some freebies together for that time for the SF blog. But I can't promise anything since it's been hard to get on the computer this summer. (My daughter is a waterbug and she keeps us outdoors a lot!)

TTFN!

New kit, Bug World, is out!

2009-06-03T19:47:00.000-07:00

It's finished and now available at Digitals! I enjoyed making this fun, colorful kit, which started out with my son in mind. But it ended up taking a more general "kid" turn, so it would work well for boys & girls, IMO. For instance, I can envision a cute "baby's first crawl" page with the Crawling Snail tag. :D Anyways, you guys are more creative with scrapping ideas than I am! I'm just happy to finally get it finished & up and running. You can click on the Kaboodle link at the right, or the Digitals store link to learn more about it.

This week's Seebee's WW sale products

2009-06-02T20:22:00.001-07:00

Just a quick note to say that I have marked down 3 kits for this week's Wonderful Wednesday Sale at Digitals. Look for Appletime, That Happy Feeling, and Plush Jazz Summer to be marked at 30% off on Wednesday, June 3! (I think technically the sale starts at 2 AM Eastern, but don't hold me to that!) Happy shopping!

As for me, I've just about finished my next kit, called Bug World. I've got to put the final touches on the example layout and get everything uploaded. I would think it'll be up by Thursday at the latest. Then, I have plans for another embellishment/template set that will be pretty nice if I can do what I plan to do. LOL! Plus it's about time to work on the July bonus stuff for the Digital challenges. And on top of that, my daughter's last day of school for the year is on Thursday, which means working around her craziness. So yeah, I'll be busy. ;)

Hey, if you didn't already see it, I put up a new Seebee's Freebies freebie last week; it's my first Dream Trip mini kit, and it was designed with castle pictures in mind. I even made an example layout which I have forgotten to post! Maybe I can remember to do that tomorrow. (I'm on a different computer right now.)

Take care, and I'll talk to you soon!

How about an exclusive Seebee's shopping discount?

2009-05-15T16:51:00.000-07:00

For anyone reading this blog, I've got a nice coupon for you. Enter this coupon code (d1006afeaf) to get 50% off any Seebee's products you buy in a single order! This offer is good May 15-31, 2009, and is only good once per customer. And I've not NO restrictions, so it's good for half off of any of the Seebee's products. (Buy 'em all if you like!) Go to:
http://digitalscrapbookpages.com/digitals/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=153
to start shopping! Thanks for reading!

New series: Photoshop Love!

2009-05-14T07:24:00.000-07:00

I came up with the idea of starting a new series of posts by me called "Photoshop Love". (Other rejected titles were "How Photoshop Saves My Bacon" , "Proud of My Photoshop Crutch", and "Photoshop: Changing The World One Clone Stamp At a Time!") Here's what I'll do: I'll post a SOOC photo (that's straight-out-of-camera), and you can see just how bad a photographer I can be. LOL! Then, I'll show you that by the awesome power of Photoshop/Photoshop Elements, I'm able to get a salvageable photo out of these...let's call 'em "missteps". :) So, look for the label "PS Love" on this blog for these if you ever need a good laugh or want to feel better about your photography. Just sayin'! :D

Please keep in mind that I'm not trying to say that the "after" pictures represent the most stunning photography in the world. Mostly this is just to show how much fun it can be to play in Photoshop.

So, to start this, here's one of my most dramatic rescues. I have this picture of my daugther back when she was crawling, and we'd just bought this tutu/tulle skirt from Gymbo. I liked the little bare feet with the skirt, but there were soooooo many distractions. (That's a nice euphamism for toy junk, btw.) Here's the SOOC .jpg, although it was resized for the web post here.

So, we've got junk, we've got flash shadow, we've got bleckh. I ended up doing something I now call "digital housecleaning". Let me tell you, real housecleaning is much easier! Your digi tools of choice for digital housecleaning are the clone tool and healing brush. This was all done back in PSE4, btw. It involved some cutting and pasting of clean areas of the wall, too. Some blur was added, too, to help mask the clone job. And, the first step was, of course, to crop it.

Anyways, here's the after:

(Now why can't my house always look this neat? Oh, right...kids!) Hope that was interesting. Thanks for looking!

No work for me today, I guess.

2009-05-14T06:11:00.001-07:00

Darn it, it looks like our desktop monitor died last night. The good news is that we have another monitor to swap out with it. But that won't happen 'til later today, after my daughter's home from preschool. I was getting closer to finishing that kit, too. Well, there's still plenty around here to occupy my time.

Just dropping in to say hi!

2009-05-11T06:57:00.000-07:00

It's been quiet here lately, hasn't it? :) I find myself to be on the computer less, so there's your problem. Doing cleaning, cooking...getting back into sewing...that kind of thing. The most likely way you'll hear from me nowadays is through Facebook or Twitter. My FB account needs approval for adding you, but anyone can follow me through Twitter. Look for "ChrisBeasley". (I went crazy with the name there!) And if you look over to the right >>>>>>>>, I just added the ability for my latest 5 Tweets to show up here.

And yes, I am working on a new kit; I'd say it's about 2/3rds of the way finished. It's got some fun, bright colors; nice for spring/summer! I need to start working on my June mini kit bonus, though, so it may be a few weeks before it's up. (Or not. You never know!) Once it's in the store, you'll probably get a FB status update or a Tweet about it.

New baby announcements finished!

2009-02-06T12:46:00.000-08:00

So, after I finished up the February bonus for my Q & A challenge at Digitals, I got to work on these baby announcement photo cards. We're all suffering from baby-on-the-brain at Digitals, because the store owner's expecting. :) This is making me wish I had been a designer/digiscrapper when my kids were born; I would definitely have sent something like this. So, marvel at the pics of my daughter and son. (He's only in the 1 announcement, and the other two examples have stock photos. Which is why the pictures are better. LOL!)

Here's the link to the girl cards:

http://digitalscrapbookpages.com/digitals/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=&products_id=14026

and the boy cards:

http://digitalscrapbookpages.com/digitals/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=&products_id=14027

After I get the March bonus complete, I'll either be working on a new spring kit, or more announcements. Or something else...you never know! :)

Yummy! Microwave Chocolate Pudding

2009-01-16T20:00:00.001-08:00

So, a recipe that I find myself making often lately is this quick & easy chocolate pudding. I have to admit that I like making things from scratch more than from mixes. I have a hard time justifying the cost for convenience foods. Although, I know that a box of instant pudding isn't all that expensive, but this tastes much better. :)

This is from the 365 Great Chocolate Desserts cookbook.

OLD-FASHIONED MICROWAVE CHOCOLATE PUDDING

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups milk

2 (1 oz.) squares unsweetened chocolate, cut up

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a 2 qt. glass bowl, mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt until well blended. Gradually whisk in milk until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Add chocolate.

Cook in a microwave oven on High 7 to 9 minutes, whisking every 2 minutes, until mixture is cooked through, smooth, and thickened. Whisk in vanilla. Pour into 4 individual serving dishes.* Cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming on top. Refrigerate until cold.

* I just put it in a plastic container in the fridge with the plastic wrap and then portion it out as needed.

Whoo hoo! Cards done!

2008-12-06T08:56:00.001-08:00

I swear, I was really thinking that photos for this year's card wasn't going to happen. I'd tried before, but got no cooperation on the part of my daughter. And what I did get just wasn't cutting it. But, we tried again yesterday, and I'm happy with these photos. So, I got a card together lickety-split, and it's now uploaded for printing. The final version has a bit of a wording difference from this web version, but it's the same. So, if you're getting one, this is a preview you're only going to see here. (Sorry to spoil the surprise!) And everyone can consider this a virtual card from me!

What a week!

2008-12-01T21:35:00.000-08:00

Ok, so Thanksgiving approaches, and I start feeling sick, as I mentioned my last post. My throat hurts, chills...fun stuff. At first it was being controlled by ibuprofen, but by Wednesday night, things are getting worse in the throat department. So, our Thanksgiving plans got cancelled. And I had to wait 'til Friday to confirm...strep throat! Oddly enough, I'm 39 now and this is only the second time I've had strep. (Thankfully!) And the last time was only about a year or two ago.

Meds are working now and I'm much better. Whew!

Anyways, I had mentioned I was knitting my daughter a hat, and last week I finished the hat part. Today, I stitched it together, made the chin strap, and added the buttons. So, it's done!

*I have pictures, but I'm on the "wrong" computer right now. I'll post them in the morning.*

Ugh, sick again! :(

2008-11-25T17:40:00.001-08:00

I guess it's not that hard to believe since my daughter started having a bad runny nose on Sunday, but now dh and I are sick again. I'm currently alternating btwn. chills and feeling flushed. (sigh) Hurry up & work, medicine!

This does mean that, while I know I need to, I can't say for sure I'm going to get over to the Digitals forum and hand out bonuses for Q & A today or tomorrow. But I don't want to wait too much longer, so hopefully I'll get a quiet moment to do that. Sorry for the delay!

The weekend is over!

2008-11-23T20:42:00.000-08:00

Well, I made it through the weekend without losing too much more of my sanity. (chuckle) I finished several S4H projects, got some more work done on my daughter's hat, and my hubby even got home from work today a little early. Tomorrow the routine starts again for a few days. My daughter's managed to get another cold/runny nose. (sigh) I guess I should be glad she's not lethargic and feverish, though. She'll be ok, but boy, I'll be glad when she doesn't bring home every germ and virus under the sun. (That does happen, right? ;) )

Well, this will be "interesting".

2008-11-22T07:53:00.000-08:00

I'm not really going to have a weekend. For that matter, neither will my dh. He has to work. Both days. Let me tell you, in the almost-18 years that he's worked for this company, I could probably count on one hand the times he's had to work a Sunday. I think we are hanging onto our sanity because we know that next week's going to be a short one thanks to Thanksgiving.

So now you know why I have all these projects and books around...to keep my sanity! :)

I'm thinking I need to get cracking this morning on my next S4H project, and get some more work done on those Xmas elements!

Today's happenings

2008-11-21T17:10:00.000-08:00

I am currently working on 2 Scrap 4 Hire projects, with another one to follow immediately. Plus, I came up with the idea for a new Christmas themed element set, so I quickly started on that. Top that off with the fact that I am reading Peggy Noonan's When Character Was King, and I started knitting a hat for my daughter...and I guess you can say I'm not good at focusing on one project at a time. LOL! The book & knitting keep me busy when I can't get on the computer, and I need to jump btwn. several scrap projects to keep me fresh. That's my excuse, anyway.

Oh, and of course I have my kids to watch. ;) And dishes that are piled in the sink. So yeah, you could say I'm a bit busy today.

Yay!

2008-11-20T08:02:00.000-08:00

I just finished up all the items for my December 2008 bonus kit for the Q & A challenge. :) Now I just have to get the kit assembled & uploaded, so it'll be all ready for next month. Oh, and I have to think of a question, too. ;)

You're getting a sneak peek here! Hope you'll join me for next month's challenge. (Or check out this month's if you haven't already.)

No work for me today, I'm afraid

2008-11-18T16:14:00.000-08:00

Ok, so the day's not over quite yet. ;) But I had planned to get a little extra sleep after my daughter was at preschool, and then I'd work some more on next month's bonus kit. But thanks to a lack of sleep last night and a killer headache this morning, that didn't happen. I am glad that the headache was better this afternoon and I managed to make a run to the library. I picked up 7 books for myself. A few of them are on typography, something which I'm hoping to study to improve my designing.

I'm also glad to say that my son is feeling better today; yay!!! :) I was starting to think I was going to have to drag him to the doctor, but you'd hardly know he was sick now, he's acting so normal. He may not be 100% healthy, but he's much improved. It also helped that WALL-E came out on dvd today, and he's WALL-E obsessed. So it's given him something to watch (and watch and watch!) while he recovers.

OH, and I never mentioned on here that there's a new Dream Trip freebie over at Seebee's Freebies, if you haven't already popped over there. I woke up early on Sunday, and the idea for it came to my mind. So I dropped everything and created this mini-set before the idea left my head. :)

The "fun" continues...

2008-11-17T12:38:00.000-08:00

Boy, it never stops, huh? Yesterday was the first day that my family was (mostly) healthy in about a month. Today, my son's running a temperature and vomiting. :( That poor guy's been through so much. He still hadn't fully shaken his cough from the last cold. In a way, I can't wait for the school year to be over. (It's been this way since my daughter started special-ed preschool a little over a month ago.)

So, this week I'm finishing up December's bonus kit for the Q & A challenge, plus I have a couple of Scrap 4 Hire projects that need to get done soon. As long as my daughter and I stay healthy, and my son is resting comfortably, I get some work done each morning while the little one's at preschool. Aside from the sickness, it's been great to have her there, for both of us. She enjoys getting out and I enjoy the 3 hours a day to do what I need or want to do. :)

Speaking of knitting (lol), the picture is one of many pics I took yesterday while we were visiting family. Almost all of the pics turned out to be rotten with a lot of blur. I believe I should have been using Tv mode, which is my usual choice with my kids. For whatever reason, I didn't choose that, and I suffered. (So let that be a lesson to all to stick with what works!) I did manage to get this mediocre picture of my daughter wearing a dress that was knitted by Grandma. It's the first time she's worn it, so I wanted to document it for Grandma. Love the dress, although the buttons on the back are too small; we spent a good amount of time chasing my daughter around to rebutton her. :)

Holy moley, an update!

2008-11-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

Hey, bloggy friends! Here's a quick update. :) I know I've been MIA for a couple of months; I've had a lot going on. And I'm still busy, busy, busy. Some of that's designing, some of it's learning CS4 (my birthday present!), some of it is spending time playing Guitar Hero World Tour when I should be doing other things (yet another birthday present!), and some of it's trying to get our house healthy. Yes, we've been battling one virus after another around here, it seems. The joys of school!

As far as designing, I'm finishing up my final 2008 Christmas Card set (2 of these are already available, and I'm working on the "multiphoto" set). I'll have 3 sets available this year, plus the 2 from last year. So, if you're Christmas/holiday card shopping, check them out at Digitals. :)

I've been good about keeping myself logged into 4shared regularly, so all my Seebee's Freebies are still available. I wouldn't want to go through another data loss & reload if I can help it! Also, since I haven't mentioned it in a bit, don't forget I run a monthly challenge at Digitals, the Questions & Answers challenge. There's a freebie every month for completing that. And I still try to get a couple of video tutorials each month for Digitals.

Anyway, I'll *try* to do a bit better job of updating this blog, at least. I can't guarantee anything. I suppose it doesn't help that I'm the middle of changing computers. (I needed to go to our faster desktop in order to run CS4.) And on top of my normal design duties and Scrap4Hire stuff, I gotta work on my own Christmas card! :) But I'll try to pop in and keep everyone abreast of what's happening better than I have. That's it for now!

My Dallas Photowalk Slideshow

2008-09-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

I participated in Scott Kelby's Worldwide Photowalk last month, which was fun. I didn't get any particularly stunning and fabulous photos, but I've put some of the nicer ones in a Slide slideshow down at the bottom of this blog, if you care to peek.

Also, check out the Kaboodle box on the side, because I've got a brand-new kit out! It's Appletime! :)

Yay, I had a date! :)

2008-08-22T08:43:00.000-07:00

Last night was one of those anomalies: my husband & I got to go on a date! :) And if you know me, you'll know that it was inevitable. Steely Dan was in town. We have not missed them in Dallas since their July 2000 show, where I officially became a big DanFan. We went to Luby's for dinner (I know...not so romantic, but we were pressed for time and I didn't want fast food) and in a bit of serendipity, we heard "Do It Again" on Luby's music system while we were eating. I told dh that it seemed like a very appropriate choice.

This was my fifth SD concert, having gone to the ones in 2000, 2003, plus 2 in 2006 (Dallas and San Antonio). I think the 2000 one will always be the gold standard for me, but I certainly enjoyed last night. We got The Royal Scam again, which hasn't been done here since it was the opener after the 2000 intermission. I finally got to hear a Donald Fagen song live (The New Frontier). Walter Becker sang a song again, after skipping any vocals in 2006. (Walter, maybe you're not the casual fan favorite, but I & others enjoy you and would LOVE to have heard something from Circus Money, a d*** fine album.) I was missing Carolyn Leonhart a bit since I'm a fan of her, but I can't argue with the wonderful trio of ladies they currently have.

And it almost didn't happen, but I got to see a Fez Guy. Every SD concert we've been to in town, I've seen some guy(s) wearing a fez. I now make it a point to check for Fez Guys; it just wouldn't seem like a SD concert without 'em. :) So, Fez Guy at the souvenir stand after the show, we caught ya and we salute you! I was hoping to see one before the show, because I figured they'd be happy to hear (if they already didn't know) that The Fez was *finally* part of the setlist this year, albeit in instrumental form.

Due to our smidgen of a budget, we couldn't spring for close seats this year. We were up in the balcony, but I think it worked out pretty well because there were only about 8 people in our section. So we had some privacy,which was nice. (This is assuming you can call a concert with thousands of people "private". LOL)

Mr. Fagen announced in an article earlier this year that there would be the possibility of a solo tour in the fall. If either Donald or Walter do this, PLEASE COME TO DALLAS. We usually get overlooked in favor of the coastal cities. So, somebody pass it on, ok? :) Thanks!

I've had a busy couple of days, so I'm looking forward to trying to relax before Monday arrives. (Monday is THE DAY: kindergarten for my firstborn!)

Please don't let The Mole season finale be the finale!

2008-08-07T21:31:00.001-07:00

In only a few more days, we'll find out who this season's Mole is, on ABC's The Mole. If you're watching and you like the show, consider taking a moment to pop over to The Mole message board at ABC.com and sign the online petition to save the show. If you read the board, you'll find there are other ways to get involved, too, but the petition is quick and only requires you to register to post, then give your name & city. Every person we add can help!

Oh, and I'm still picking Mark as the Mole, Craig as the winner, and Nicole as the loser. We'll see soon! :)

Man cannot live by bread alone...

2008-07-23T17:39:00.000-07:00

...but with these rolls, you might consider it! :D I just finished up another double batch of Honey Oat cloverleaf rolls, my favorite rolls! This bread dough recipe makes enough to have 1 dozen to eat & 1 dozen to freeze. It's from The Bread Machine Cookbook series of books (Nitty Gritty Publications), although I forget which one. (I think it's the very first one.) Anyways, I make the 2 lb. loaf in my bread machine on the dough setting, and then shape them into these.

Here's what you need for the 2 lb. recipe for Honey Oat Bread:

1 1/2 Cups water

2 Tablespoons oil

1/3 Cup honey

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 Cups oats

3 1/2 Cups bread flour

2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

I put it all in the bread machine in that order, and I choose the dough setting. Then, when that's done, I'm ready to shape rolls! You can expect to need two 12 count muffin/cupcake pans for this. I divide the dough in half, then start pinching off bits of dough that are just slightly smaller than ping-pong ball shape. Roll it into a nice ball, and add it to a muffin cup. Put three of these in each muffin cup.

I also prefer to double-baste them with butter. One basting goes on before they cook, while they are rising, to promote browning. Then, as soon as they are out of the oven I'll baste them with butter again, which adds more flavor and keeps the crust softer. (Yeah, the butter's not so healthy, but it's good. It *might* work with something like Smart Balance Spread, as long as you're using one with a high oil content.) I've been cooking them in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. They may not be the prettiest rolls on the planet, but man, are they tasty!

The Mole: We're down to 4!

2008-07-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

Well, either I got the text clue correct, or I'm lucky with that 1 in 5 chance. :) But I really, really had a feeling I was going to be right when the show started to milk Nicole's comments about throwing the game & going home. And when Jon (love ya, Jon!) said there was a tie, I figured that was the big "shocker" that was mentioned on the Behind-the-Scenes blog. (The shocker being that she doesn't go home like you would expect after all that talk.)

I'll go ahead & make my prediction for who goes home next week: Paul. This is just based on some web readings. Plus, the preview for next week showed Mark & Nicole reacting (or in Mark's case, not really reacting) over the next execution. I can envision Nicole reacting that way about Paul.

One week to go to find out, though! LOL!

Mole thoughts, and a reminder...

2008-07-21T11:39:00.000-07:00

It's Monday! That means...another episode of The Mole! :) Mark is still around, although after last week's run on the treadmill, it's hard to say if it was done to throw off Mole-y suspicion, or if it was genuine. I don't have a good theory at this point, so I'll stick with Mark.

And I'll make another prediction. (What the heck? We'll all have a good laugh if I'm wrong. :) ) Supposedly the text clue for tonight's ep is EP 1245. Most people are speculating that the number "3" is missing in that sequence. And usually these text clues point to whoever is going home on that episode. I've looked at some thumbnails of screen shots of tonights show, and Clay (and his wife) are sitting in the number 3 spot. So, I'll guess Clay is leaving. We'll know for sure around 10:55 Eastern!

The reminder: Friday is the last day of the Christmas in July event. All my Xmas stuff at Digitals is 50% off through then, plus there's a non-Xmas related Product of the Day that's 50% off each day. (Today it's the Neutrality paper pack, which will give you 16 "go-with-anything" papers for $1.75!) And we're on day 8 of the Christmas quickpage givaway. Check out my Seebee's Freebies Blogspot for that.

I also got up a new product in the store over the weekend: it's the Fairyland brush set, for Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. It's a fun way to add some "pixie dust" to your layouts. :)

That's all for now!

Who is The Mole?

2008-07-14T17:37:00.001-07:00

With the second half of the season beginning tonight, and a recap show about to start in 20 minutes, I figure it's as good a time as any to proclaim my love for The Mole. :) I normally abhor reality tv, like Survivor or Big Brother, but The Mole is more like a mystery, and not a popularity contest like the others. I started watching around the middle of the first season thanks to a friend's recommendation, and it wasn't long before I was hooked. Seriously, if you haven't watched before, give it a try; they could use the ratings & I really would like to see it return next year. (It's even given me a reason to look forward to Mondays! LOL!)

And if you want my current opinion on who The Mole is, I'm choosing Mark. (Now, watch him get executed tonight!)

Christmas is now in July, you know. :)

2008-07-14T12:03:00.000-07:00

Today is the kickoff of Digitals' Christmas in July sale! All of my Christmas themed products are 50% off, plus I'll have one other non-Xmas related product on sale each day for 50% off. (Today is the Country Sweetheart kit.) Here's the official sale information with participating designers:

The following Digitals designers have part or all of our designs on sale July 14-25 so you can do some Christmas in July shopping for yourself! Click on each name to go to that designer's products.

Alessandra Designs 20% off entire store!
Alisha Hess
Amanda Thorderson 15-75% off everything, 35% off Christmas designs
Beth Rimmer
Chris Beasley
Christine Smith
Dea Spina My entire store is on sale, up to 70% off!
DeDe Smith
Diana Burton 30% off entire store.
Elka Romero 25% off entire store!
Georgia Oliver My entire store is on sale for 25% off.
Glenda Ketcham EVERYTHING in my store is on sale for 25% off. Don't forget to get your Christmas gift from me. You can find the clue here. Also jump on my blog for some wonderful free downloads.
Hybrid Physical Albums 12% off everything including Cosmo Cricket, Basic Grey, 7 Gypsies and More!Jennifer Maceyunas All of my Christmas themed items are 30% off July 14th thru midnight, MOUNTAIN time on July 19th! And don't forget to check out my blog after NOON, EASTERN time each day to download my Jack Album created with my Christmas Glow Kit.
Joyce de Jonge
Juliana Gordon
Katey Green 22% and 40% off. Some items will be further discounted upto 60% for odd days.....so keep checking back .......as new items are going to be included!
Kathryn Estry 50% off Christmas items!
Katie Mann 25% off entire store!
Lifesong Kreations Hey folks my Christmas stuff is on sale for 50% off I have a remake of my Christmas Hope and the Family Traditions series. All other items are 30% off.
Lynne Simmons 25% off entire store!
Maddy Fernandez
Nini's Notions 25% off entire store!
Sarah Meyer
Scrap4Brains My ENTIRE STORE is on sale for 30% off!
Shawn Walter All Kits, Albums and Templates are on sale 30% off! And while you are visiting my store, don't forget to look for your gift (the clue is here). And then stop by my blog for daily freebies July 14-25th.
Silvia Romeo 30% off Christmas products!
Sophia Davies Everything in my store is 35% off! You may find some extra savings if you find my hidden Christmas present!
Spellweaver 35% off entire store!
Stacey Mann 25% off everything, even my brand new kit!
Tallula Moon Designs 50% off entire store through July 19.
Twisted Sisters 25% off everything!
Wendy Page Enjoy 25% off everything in my store, CU included!

And, if you didn't already see it, pop over to Seebee's Freebies Blogspot to pick up my freebie each day of this event. When the event is over, you'd have an entire album's worth of Christmas themed quickpages for the Cosmo Cricket "Jack" album.

Merry Christmas!

My inner nerd is excited!

2008-06-26T14:11:00.001-07:00

I've been thinking of upgrading our cell phones, since we're out of our last contract period. So, they offer some nice discounts to get you to sign another contract. Along the same lines, I decided I wanted to get a new MP3/iPod player, since my old player only holds about 20-25 songs. So this past weekend I was doing some browsing on the AT & T website, and I found a Sony Ericsson Walkman phone on the list. I bought one for me that's nice & girly. (It's metallic pink!) It arrived on Tuesday & I'm in love with it!!! :D I love the built in mp3 player and FM radio, plus it came with a USB cord so I can even transfer the pics from the phone's camera to my computer. (My last phone made me send them through e-mail for a charge.) And it has separate ringtones for different callers, which was something dh & I decided we wanted. I also love the fact that I can design my own wallpaper for the phone, which I've already done. (If I get a chance, I'll take a pic.)

It's just a fun little toy, and it's been keeping me off the computer a bit. But I'm still around some! :)

New quickpages up!

2008-06-18T21:17:00.000-07:00

I've got my second Quickpage album available in the store now. This one fits the Cosmo Cricket "Jack" chipboard album, and uses the Plush Jazz Summer kit papers.

Fun with sigs!

2008-06-18T16:32:00.000-07:00

Aside from regular old digiscrapping, I find it fun to make signature files for some of the online message boards I frequent. The one here is my latest one for DFW Area Moms, slightly modified here to remove my kids' names. It's inspired by a collage in the liner notes of Sam Phillips' latest cd, Don't Do Anything. As soon as I saw the collage inside, I knew I wanted to try to make something in that style. (It also reminds me of a scrap LO I've seen by Chris Ford in Digital Scrapbooking Magazine.) I'm in love with this look right now. :)

So many projects!!!

2008-06-14T11:25:00.000-07:00

I always seem to find myself in two designing modes: on and off. LOL! Either I can't seem to come up with an idea to save my life, or I've got so many different things I want to do and not enough time to do it. Right now, I'm in the second phase; I've already uploaded a couple of new things in the past week, plus I have one other larger project in the semi-complete stage. And I'm working on another Quickpages album for the Jack Cosmo Cricket album. Plus I need to get my mini bonus kit for July finished. But my daughter's decided this was not a good time to get a full night's sleep, and I can't sit down and work with her around a lot of the time. (Sigh.) I really do need a "noneday", as Carolyn Leonhart would say!

Anyways, if you're a paper or digital scrapper and you haven't already checked out Digitals revamped hybrid section, I'd recommend it. We kicked off the selling of the Cosmo Cricket chipboard albums on Tuesday, and it's been going very well. I did do a set of "That Happy Feeling" Quickpages for the Kate album, and even though I threw it together as quick as I could so it would be done for launch day, I think it's still a nice album. It would probably make a good little gift for someone, too. My hope is to get the Jack album finished in the next week or two, plus one more Jack album.

Ok, sleep, toddler. Sleep! (sigh)

Finding projects

2008-05-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

I came across this website called Instructables as part of my browsing the BzzAgent site. And Instructables is pretty cool, I have to admit. (Granted, there's some junk there, too!) I think I could spend way too much time looking at little projects to do. For instance, one of the things I came across was how to make your own cooling scarf. If you have no idea what this is, it's a long, thin piece of fabric that's filled with polymer beads that expand & hold water when soaked. The water is slowly released from the bead, and it keeps the fabric damp. You wear it around your neck to help keep you cool. My dh and I started using these several years ago back when we were in our rollercoaster/themepark days, because it gets hot walking around in the summer in Texas. :) I'd always had a general idea of how to make them, but there were step-by-step instructions with photos on Instructables. Just think...I could probably find some Disney fabric and make these for a Disney trip. Cool! (If I ever do that, I'll post a pic. :D )

Anyways, there's all sorts of stuff to look at there, so you might find it worth a visit. ;)

It's strawberry and gardening time!

2008-05-16T17:18:00.000-07:00

This is in my fridge right now. Jealous? :) I got the new Kraft Food & Family mag yesterday, and looking through it today, I knew I wanted to make this. The little bit I've sampled proves it was a good choice. :D Strawberry season has snuck up on me; somehow I still feel like we should be having winter, although the weather sure doesn't feel that way. We were outside a bit today and I planted some chives, plus my dh planted some tomato plants that he got through the mail. I've already got a basil plant outdoors. I love basil! But it's my hope to have some homemade salsa before the end of the summer, with home-grown tomatoes. Wish us luck!

The pin shadowbox question answered! :)

2008-05-09T19:23:00.000-07:00

My friend Fran asked about the Disney pin project I posted earlier this week. So, here's what's involved. I found a 12 x 12 inch shadowbox frame at...I think it was...Target, about a year ago. My intention was to use it for a regular scrapbook page, but this worked much better. I used 2 12 x 12 inch cork tiles, which were stuck together with the little adhesive tabs that came with the package of (4) tiles. I think these were from Michael's or WalMart. Then I used photo safe double sided adhesive tape from Creative Memories to affix the 12 x 12 printed layout onto the tile. I took all my pins and did a general placement test (with the pinbacks still attached) so I could get a good idea of how I wanted the pins laid out. Once I was happy with the placement, I took one pin at a time, took the back off, and poked it through the photo into the cork. (2 cork tiles was just the right thickness so that the pins wouldn't pop through the back; they are well stuck in cork.) Finally, the whole shebang was placed back under the glass and the back was reattached to the frame. Thankfully it all fit. :)

The bluebonnets!

2008-05-05T08:51:00.000-07:00

Now that bluebonnet season is over, I'm finally finished a layout made with this year's pictures. (There weren't many; we had all of a 5 minute shoot one day.) This was made with some retinted Whimsey and Whimsey Seasons papers, and I scraplifted something from the latest Target sale flyer. :D See if you can find it! It's in the May 4-10 flyer...at least, it's in the DFW one.

Yay, my pin project's done!

2008-05-04T07:45:00.000-07:00

I've planned to do this for a while (at least a year, I think). But this past week I finally ordered the print for the background, got together the supplies, and got it finished! This is a 12 x 12 natural wood frame shadowbox, with one of my Seebee's Freebies Dream Trip papers used as the background (with a title strip added). And, as I suspected, I still have some leftover pins. I envision that I'll eventually have 3 of these...maybe 2 smaller ones on each side, or maybe all three will be the same. But it would be a while before I have enough pins to finish 3 of these. :) So I'll hang & enjoy the 1 for now.

Happy National Scrapbook Day!!!

2008-05-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

If you've checked out Digitals today, you'll notice that most of the store is on sale for 30% off. How about a little extra for you, Blog Buddy? :) Use the coupon code 2061820683 at checkout when you buy Seebee's products, and you should save an extra 10% on those products. (This coupon code is good for TODAY only!) All my products are included in the sale, so that's 40% off of everything I have at Digitals including my new That Happy Feeling kit from the previous post!

Have fun shopping & scrapping!

New kit!!!

2008-05-02T10:16:00.001-07:00

This is my most ambitious kit so far, with a whopping 15 digipapers plus borders, frames, mats, and stickers. I love the colors of this set! I went ahead & kept the price of this the same as my other kits, too: $4. And don't forget with National Scrapbook Day being tomorrow, there is a big weeklong sale that starts at Digitals tomorrow. (Hint, hint.) I think you'll want to check back here tomorrow; I'll have a 1 day only coupon to give you a little extra savings. :) See you then!

New products arriving!

2008-04-22T10:27:00.000-07:00

I've had several projects in stages of development for the past month or so, and I'm finally getting them finished. Two of them are done and you can see them in the Kaboodle showcase off to the right: the Floraswirl Brush Set and the Kidquotes Quote Set. More stuff coming soon! :)

The Picture of Today

2008-04-22T10:16:00.000-07:00

This is a candid portrait taken of my son last weekend when we were at a friend's house. He may not be smiling but I have a few others where he is. :)

Btw, I do have a few bluebonnet shots from this year, but not many so far. We went out on a VERY windy day and were in the field for all of 5 minutes. I got one nice one and a few more usable ones, I think.

More bluebonnets

2008-03-16T10:14:00.001-07:00

Another Picture of Today that features bluebonnets. :) It won't be long now 'til I can get some current pictures, so I'm still getting myself into gear. And I realize that I need to get a Picture of Today that has my son in it!

For those curious, I'm currently working on a new set of video tutorials about using the Brush tool in PS & PSE. I also have a mini kit I need to finish for next month's Q & A challenge at Digitals. After that, I'm not exactly sure what I'll be doing!

Picture of Today

2008-03-15T08:03:00.001-07:00

Taken sometime during this last week, this photo is one of the ones I've been taking while I play with my new flash. I love my daughter's expression here, although I couldn't tell you what kind of expression it is! LOL! But I like it, whatever it is. :) For those who care: ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/60 second, and the lense was at 135mm on my Canon 28-135 IS lens.

I would never want to be in tech support!

2008-03-10T13:50:00.001-07:00

I sat down on Friday and made an effort to back up my photos. When I got PSE6, my greatest hope was that they had resolved the issue I was having where it wouldn't let me make incremental backups. Every time I was backing up in PSE4 I had to do a full backup, which takes hours and hours. No fun, so it also made me not back up as often as I should be. Well, it *looks* like the incremental problem is fixed in PSE6, but I'm still fighting either the program or my dvd burner. I get about 60-70% done with burning a disk and then there's a write error. So I've been fighting this stuff since Friday (yes, I took a break over the weekend) and still have not been able to get PSE or Nero to back up my photos. (Oddly enough, I can burn a partial single disk in Nero, but I get a write error when I try to write a full disk. If you were here right now, you'd hear me tearing out my hair over all this.)

So, since I need my photos backed up pronto, I'm currently using an online backup service. Once I get my dvd situation straightened out, I'll use that, too. But at least I can get SOMETHING done today so I feel a little better.

Hope your Monday's going a bit better than mine!

The Picture of Today is from a year ago!

2008-03-07T08:23:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking seriously of getting this printed for display somewhere in my house. I love bluebonnets and we're creeping up on that time of the year again. :) Man, I love flowers! Of course, as I'm writing this there's snow on the ground. We've had several late winter cold spells here, which is pretty unusual for our area.

So, last year was my first time getting bluebonnet shots. I trooped out before 7 in the morning to drive 20 minutes away to get some sunrise pictures of a local bluebonnet field. It was a little cold and I was sitting on the concrete or kneeling in the mud a few times, but it was worth it. Then we took the kids there the next day around sunset and got some more wonderful pictures. I also went to the Dallas Arboretum a few times during Dallas Blooms to shoot some pics. Did I mention I love flowers? :)

Whoo hoo! Flash!

2008-03-06T17:12:00.001-08:00

I'd been saving my pennies, and took advantage of a sale at Roberts* and I bought a 430EX Speedlite for my Rebel Xt. :) I love it so far, although it'll take me a while to get to the point where I'm really good at bouncing and getting some directional flash. (This pic is a bit flat, but has nice catchlights.) So this is my Picture of Today.

*The sale ends tomorrow if you're interested. $199 for the flash.

A project I'm finally working on

2008-03-05T11:28:00.000-08:00

For a long time now, one of the things I've been saying I'm going to do is get my Disney World pins on display in the house. My plan has been to make some sort of background, affix it to some cork, and then mount it in a frame after I stick my pins in the background. I've been collecting pins that relate to rides, places, & events at WDW since our first trip in 2000. So I have quite a few now. :)

I finally felt motivated today to get to work on a background, and this is what I have so far. I say "so far" but I'm pretty happy with this, so I'll probably get it printed & see how it turns out. The main background paper is from my Retro Mouse paper pack that is over on my freebies blog. Each photo at the bottom was taken during our trips, then I ran the Cutout filter on it until I got the look I wanted, joined them all together, and then faded/lightened and gave it an extra saturation boost. Then the white border frame was added with a stroke, plus I painted in dividers with white and a square brush. The "Walt Disney" font is Waltograph, and the World is something I keep in my word art stash, because it's a comination of a couple of fonts plus an extra bit on the "W" is removed.

I'll post an update if I get this framed & finished the way I want it to be. :)

If you haven't looked...

2008-03-05T09:18:00.000-08:00

...this is a good time to pop over to the Digitals blog if you're wanting a nice sale. :) Today is Wonderful Wednesday, and in conjunction with my time as their Guest Blogger I'm offering even more products on sale than usual for WW. Click on the link to Digitals blog on the right of this page, then scroll down & look for my last post with my WW info.

I'm pretty excited today because we're expecting a few mail orders today & tomorrow. Today we're getting an extra guitar for Guitar Hero, and tomorrow I get my first external flash. Fun new toys! :) I have some design things to do today, but I just *might* be a little busy shredding my new guitar. LOL.

The Doll Project

2008-03-04T09:00:00.000-08:00

I really enjoyed working on this project & I got permission to share. :) This is a print that my friend will be giving her mom for Mother's Day. (Obviously I removed the names & blurred faces for web sharing.) This doll has been passed through the family and now the original owner's granddaughter has the joy of playing with the doll. So we wanted something that showed love passed down through the years. It just so happened that my new Classic Moments kit had papers that matched that doll's dress, so I used that as a starting point. There's also a frame on the older photo that is available on my other blog, http://seebeesfreebies.blogspot.com/ .

I made the word art specifically for this, but I'm thinking a set of word art similar to this would be a good idea. You never know. :)

A different sort of day!

2008-03-03T19:10:00.000-08:00

We had a big change today in that my husband has got a new work schedule. So things were a bit topsy-turvy today. :) I finished up a project for someone and also am putting together my Address Book kit for Digitals. (You can see the sneak peek here .)

And, what REALLY made the day different is that it snowed a bit tonight! Our first snow of winter, and it's in March. LOL! I hadn't watched the weather in a few days, so it was a surprise to me! If it's still around tomorrow, I might be able to get a pic for the ol' scrapbook.

The Photo of Today, which is likely inappropriately named

2008-03-02T06:23:00.001-08:00

While I'm calling this The Photo of Today (which, btw, is not called Photo of the Day since I doubt I'll have a new photo to post ever day), it was actually taken yesterday. It took me over 12 hours to get this off my camera and into Photoshop because I had a Photoshop crisis last night. Somehow PS lost my registration information/serial number and it wouldn't open. Well, that was annoying enough but then I couldn't find my PS disk anywhere and I needed it to reinstall & have my serial number. Holy moley, I was panicking! One hour (at least) later, I found the disk...exactly where it should have been. (Don't you hate it when that happens? Or is it just me that sort of thing happens to?) So, I got Photoshop reinstalled, everything was hunky dory, but it was bedtime. This morning, I still wasn't able to open the file because I needed to reinstall the latest version of Camera Raw. Ahhh, the joys of computers! :) Finally, everything is back to normal and I was able to edit the picture & get it ready for you to be The Photo of Today!

If you're wondering what this is, it's a flower/bloom off the tree in our backyard. This just goes to show that it's getting closer to spring, at least here in Texas. If I was a fancy-schmancy person, I'd call this picture "Springing" or something clever. When I saved it for uploading, I just called it Treeflower.jpg . LOL! For anyone who cares about such things, this was shot with my Rebel XT with my 28-135 IS lens racked out, using a Canon Close Up filter with manual focus, and handheld. (Yes, I know, Scott Kelby, you said I MUST shoot Macro on a tripod. But my tripod wasn't available to me at the time. That's my argument & I'm sticking with it! I used the IS plus steadied my camera on the bench where I was sitting.) ISO of 200 shot in Manual mode at f/18 and the shutter speed was 1/100. It was underexposed a bit but I shoot in RAW so it was bumped up in there. It also made the usual visit to the PS playground for some cropping,defog, noise reduction, sharpening, Soft Light color pop, and vignetting.

Gee, Chris, couldn't you have just said, "Here's a pretty picture of a spring bloom" and left it at that? Guess not! :)

Now I'm a bit disoriented

2008-03-01T19:32:00.000-08:00

I've had it with IE6. I've used it for several years now but I've been seeing more & more problems with it lately, like things not being displayed properly. I have IE7 on another computer and wasn't too impressed with it, so I decided it was time to try Mozilla's Firefox. So far, so good, except that when it imported my IE favorites, things aren't quite in the same place so I have to do some rearranging. Other than that, it thankfully doesn't look too different from IE6. And the problems I've been having are nonexistant so far. Wish me luck!

I temporarily need a name change! ;)

2008-03-01T08:14:00.000-08:00

This week only, you can call me Three Blogs Beasley! Today is the first of March and I'm starting my week of being the Guest Designer Blogger at Digitals blog. If you like-a the freebies, I'll have a few posted there. Today I posted the information about how to download the Date Marker system that I offered in a chat last September. There's also a coupon code there for my products at Digitals, good this week only.

I went with a friend to see Semi Pro last night. I'm a big SNL & Will Ferrell fan, so I guess that means I'm the type of audience member they're expecting to get. We thought it was very funny; there were a few parts where I had difficulty breathing from laughing so hard. Gotta love all those 70s clothes & hair!

Well, welcome, Blog Buddy!

2008-02-29T08:12:00.000-08:00

Today is that weird anomaly of life, a Leap Year day. Happy birthday if you were born on this day. (Do you normally celebrate the day before or after your birthday when there's no Leap Year? I'm curious.) Anyway, since it's an unusual day, why shouldn't I create an unusual concept, a second blog? I'm probably not the first one to do that, anyways. (I'm making an assumption here, but I'm sure SOMEONE has a second or third or more blog.) In fact, as of tomorrow I'll be the guest designer blogger at Digitals blog, so I'll be working 3 blogs. All without breaking a sweat, likely. So be on the lookout for me at the Digitals blog, because I have a couple of free goodies to give away during my week. And hopefully I won't scare them away from letting me blog there in the future. :) (I'll be good. I promise!)