merry christmas and a small gift ...

Merry Christmas y'all!

No matter where you may live or how you celebrate this time of the year, from our home to yours, we wish you all a most joyous holiday season, a very Merry Christmas and an incredibly happy, healthy and prosperous New Year in 2012!

Since my last visit, I have been pretty ill (my bad :p) after having pulled an all-nighter to get my portion of the December Blog Train up and running.  The bugs my precious little grandson was carrying decided to take advantage of my compromised immune system and they bit me hard somewhere between 3 and 4:00 am on December 1st!  ROFL!  Ouch!

I think I slept for most of the first two weeks.  After that, it was hit 'n miss.  I'd be feeling decent one day and then could not get up the next, so I listened to my body and simply took it as easy as possible.  Lots of herbal goodies too. *smile*

We celebrated our family Christmas gathering a week early, just as we had our Thanksgiving, and I spent one day decking the halls and the following day cooking, serving and cleaning up!  I was thrilled to have been feeling good enough to pull it all off with the help of my incredibly sweet and most precious man and a few of the boys (yes, they are sweet and precious too!).  So blessed to have them all *sigh*

The photo I used for the frame cluster is of our grandson, Jace.  He spent the night with us after our Christmas dinner on the 17th and waited patiently for Grandma to tell him that it was time to decorate the tree.  Uhm, can we say distractions?  LOL!  I cannot effectively carry on a conversation and a chore at the same time these days.  Fail.

After several inquiries as to when we would be decorating this poor, naked tree and Grandma responding with the same, "as soon as I finish cleaning the kitchen", Jace leans on the counter with his elbow beneath his chin and with a gentle whisper says to me, "I am going to decorate the tree myself".  Oh. My. Gosh.  I about lost it.  I think I did lose it. *big grin*  Are not we constantly amazed at what comes out of the mouths of babes?  Uhm. Yeah!

So, there you have it.  Jace preparing to hang Grandma's favorite ornament.  Okay, I really have several favorites, but this one is really, really special! *wink*  I always think of the song, Silver Bells.  Back in the day, my oldest daughter and I spent many a night in the garage crafting.  Yup.  I actually created and sold at craft fairs and consignment-type stores.  I forget what they were called, but it was a shop that would rent out space by taking a certain percentage of your sales each month.  It was short-lived as we moved here to Copper just a few months later.  I eventually found a spot here in town, but that was short-lived as well when the owner decided not to use his shop for anything other than what he was selling!  Understood. *smile*  Anyhoo, my daughter would glue and glitter the ornament bases and I would decorate them.  What a team.  My oldest son just mentioned to me the other day that my 'ol crafting days brought back very fond memories for him.  *heart. skipping. beat.*

I do have a crafter's heart.  I just lack the time and space to accommodate my stock of supplies!  Someday ... maybe. *chuckle*

I hope everyone's hearts are overflowing and ready to take on the new year with all it has to give.  I love renewals and/or fresh starts!  So, be prepared for the upcoming departure of the January Blog Train, which shall be making it's way through Scrapland on January 1, 2012!  There, I said it.  WOOT!  I guarantee you shall refresh your digiscrapping supplies! *wink*

My small gift today is the frame cluster at the top of my post (preview below).  I will also be giving you a few flowers along with the leaves, newsprint postage frame and a couple of grunge prints this coming week, God willing.  If you have not already dowloaded *Holiday Traditions*, you can find the link on my sidebar beneath the preview image.  It will be available for downloading until the departure of the January Blog Train.

Don't forget to board the January Blog Train on New Year's Day, Januay 1, 2012! *big, big grin*

Thanking you all from the depths of my being for your continued support over the past year and here is to a more productive year for us all come 2012!

Oh, oh, OH!  And I shall reply to each comment left for the December Blog Train.  That is a given *smile*

*Sorry, this link has expired*

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holiday traditions ... dec 2011 blog train has departed!

 This was the first time all six of my children were together at our home in just a little over

two years.  I am so hoping that we are all able to follow through with our bi-annual

gatherings, *sigh*  It surely does a Mama's heart good.  Speaking of which, I need to

work on a plan to visit my mama!  Just in case you see this Mom, I love and miss you

dearly and I really do hope to see you soon - XOXO

Hi y'all!

Happy December and here we go, continuing the holiday season!!!  Hope everyone here in the states had a fabulous Thanksgiving no matter where you were or who you were with.  *smile*   

Extra blessings were flowing this year as my daughters flew in from Washington (with grandson, Henry, in utero and my darling granddaughter, Katelyn, whom I've not seen for nearly 1-1/2 years!) and Matt, my oldest son, met up with my oldest daughter and her husband,  having come in from Dutch Harbor, Alaska and spending a few days with them,  then finding an extra seat on the same flight here to California!  Smooth move *happy dance*
  

I apologize for being a wee bit late.  I decided to scrap a layout using my mini-kit contribution for this month's blog train and it was a good thing I did!  I had a plan for that  P.R.I.C.E.L.E.S.S. tag and it was no where to be found - ROFL!  Argh!  Ah, yah, how about getting a little sleep there Linda.  An oxygen deprived brain is not the best way to get 'er done!  He, he ...

You should be coming in this afternoon (evening, night or morning too :) from ...

MIKKI DESIGNS # 73

You are now here ... 
BON SCRAPATIT DESIGNS #74

Your next stop on this amazing digital scrapbooking train is ...

CHARM CITY SCRAPS #75

If you are following the list from (or just in case you get lost along the way) ...

THE BLOG TRAIN BLOG ... well, then you are a little over three-quarters of the way through this massive haul with 90 designers contributing!  *Woot, woot ... yeah!*  You can also take a peek at all of the contributions on The Blog Train Blog's lovely slideshow!

I know it is a long ride and as always, please give it at least a full 24 hours for everyone to get their files uploaded and links posted as we are participating from all across the globe *big grin* 

For those who might remember me (LOL!), I am finally gifting myself with a new computer this Christmas as I struggle to get anything accomplished with only 3 GBs of RAM powering PSCS 4!  Can we say S.L.OW.?  I will catch you up just as soon as humanly possible and I even have some photos to share.  *Yay*

I will also be adding some journal strips and/or word art and a few more embellishments to *{Holiday} Traditions* over the course of the next week.  You would think that the kiddos all dressed especially for this color palette, but they did not.  Imagine my surprise when I started working with the group photo, which I did not have time to enhance as I had hoped to, and realized they all coordinated with *{Holiday} Traditions*!  Outstanding *big smile*  So, naturally, I am going to scrap some of our Thanksgiving photos! 

I did alter the hue of the blue jeans a bit to better match the blue in the palette *wink*

We are doubling up the end of this year and will have another train ride come January 1st!  Yahoo!  Lots of scrap happiness to end 2011 and to begin 2012 with!  Sweet!

A personal high-five and thank you goes out to Trish Heffner, our dearly beloved Blog Train Coordinator, who keeps this train on track and has been doing so now for 3-4 years.  You are more than amazing sweet lady and I look forward to another year of train rides through Scrapland!

Here is my preview of *{Holiday} Traditions*:

Sorry, these links have expired and will be added to my shop soon!

Now, I have but one request ... *Get your scrap on!*

Stay happy, keep on scrapping and I'll see you soon ...

Thank you for stopping in!

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the october blog train has a "bundle of baby boy joy" on board!

Happy October and Happy Fall y'all!  This is our favorite time of the year, when the air becomes crisp, cool, filled with wonderful scents and the holidays are on their way!  *big smile*

The October Blog Train has left the station and has begun it's journey through Scrapland with lots of goodies for you to download for helping to preserve your most precious and priceless memories!

Toot, toot!  You might be arriving from ...

Boy Girl Boy Designs

This month's blog train, once again, has an open theme.  You will find a sweet variety of scrapping goodness awaiting you with well over 100 hundred designers participating this trip!  I just love seeing the variety of interpretations from the same color palette!  Makes me smile.  Really big.

If you read my post from yesterday evening, you will have already seen a sneak-peek of my theme and contribution!  My baby girl (oldest daughter, April) is having a *Bundle of Baby Boy Joy*!  Little Henry Richard is due to make his debut into the world January 21, 2012 and things are getting very exciting for both the first-time parents-to-be and the rest of the family!  *squee*

 My preview:

Download Here

Your next stop on this amazing train is:

Charm City Scraps

If you should get lost a long the way, make sure to visit The Blog Train Blog for a complete list of designers, links to their blogs and a slideshow of the entire trainload of goodness!  Leave 'em some love!

Thank you for another fun ride Trish!  *hugs*

Remember:  it's scrap-happy hour 24/7 in Scrapland y'all!  Enjoy!

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joy, oh joy, it's a boy ... and a sneak-peek!

 

Hi y'all!

Hope to find everyone staying happy and healthy!  I simply cannot believe that it has been two months since I last posted.  I shan't bore you with details at this moment, but will catch you up a bit as to what I've been up to since we last saw each other!  Some of you have seen me on Facebook, Twitter or Google + a time or two, but I've rarely been either of those places either!  LOL!  What?  Me?  Not being social???  Hmm ...  *blushing*

I just wished to stop in quickly to give you two pieces of news!  Yup, just two!  He, he ... (I can still ramble a good let me tell you, however, I'm on a work related flow and don't wish to interrupt it :)

Firstly, my oldest daughter, April, and her husband are not only expecting their first child in January, they are expecting a *Bundle of Baby Boy Joy*!  We are so excited for them and for all of us as we prepare to welcome another grandchild into the world and into our ever expanding family! *sigh*

Secondly, the image above is a sneak-peek at some of what I will have posted for your downloading pleasure come early tomorrow morning (Saturday, October 1st) as The October Blog Train departs the station and begins to make it's way through Scrapland!  Toot, toot ... yeah! *beaming smile*

See you at the station bright and early!  *wink*

 

 

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the august blog train has arrived! get "a fresh start" to your day, week and month of scrapping ...

Happy Monday, happy first day of August and all aboard y'all!
  
You might be arriving here at Bon Scrapatit Designs, #99 by way of  Keep In Touch Designs who is #98 on this month's "open themed" blog train!  Yes, you read correctly.  It was a free for all for the first time to my knowledge and a total of 100 designers have all taken one palette to create their digitally delicious goodies for your downloading pleasure!  You are truly in for a treat!  *smile*

I'm going to keep this short and sweet to keep the train moving steadily and, hopefully, smoothly down The Blog Train track!  LOL!

Here is a preview of my contribution.  It's called *A New Start*.  I had a bit of difficulty in coming up with a name, but after coming across my sister-in-law Corinne's photo, things began to fall into place when I saw her always fresh smile and the reason why she rooms with us part-time!

As always, I look forward to your feedback!  You will find my download link now gives you access to all zip files in one file location so I only need post one link here for you!  *Yay*   I have a little add-on that I will post once the traffic has tapered off a wee bit so as to avoid any confusion.  Uhm, yup, that would mostly be on my part! *wink* 

Your next and final stop is at Mommyish

Please, please try your best to leave a little thank you for the designers you download from.  I understand you have lots of stops to make and I'd just like to remind y'all that each designer spends quite a bit of time creating her contribution, then sorting and packing it all up, uploading it and then creating a blog post and testing links.  It surely does each one of those 100 hearts good to read a thank you from y'all!

Just in case you jump the track and/or need to return to the complete list of participating blogs, here is The Blog Train Blog!  While you are there, leave Trish a little thank you too for heading up this faithfully departing bi-monthly train!  MWAH!  Y'all rock ... and then some!  Oh, and if you are new to hopping aboard the blog train and find some blogs not hooked up yet, please give them a little time as there are huge differences in some of our time zones across the globe.  Also, for anyone who possibly has any difficulty downloading; i.e, incomplete downloads or not wanting to download for you at all, give it about 24 hours.  I like to compare blog trains to commute hour traffic on the freeway!  LOL!  Sometimes there are just too many people attempting to download a link at once!  Hope this helps y'all a bit. 

See you soon and remember:  It is scrap-happy hour 24/7 in Scrapland y'all!  *big smile*

Sorry, this link has expired

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my new gpa ... and happy 1st birthday katelyn rose!

GPA might also be translated to:  Google Plus Addiction - LOL!

I owe y'all big time!

Please forgive me for neglecting to put on my blinders this week, but something bit me and I've been under it's spell for the past several days!  Yup, I would be referring to Google+!

I am not a technical writer, but just wish to let you know why I am really liking Google+, even better than Facebook.  It is extremely user-friendly, much more private (in my opinion) and you can communicate with groups of people in the circles that you put them into.  In other words, and unlike Facebook, if you post something to your status in Google+, you have the option right then and there as to who you wish to see it.  Let's just say it's like incorporating a private messaging system and a public one all in the same place rather than having to open a separate window or being taken away from your current page.

I am so loving the circles concept!

For example, I have created separate circles for scrapbooking, family, news, photography, technical stuff, etc. (not necessary the titles of my circles, but to give you an idea!)

If I wish to post a link, photos, a random thought, etc. and don't wish it to be seen by some who might not be interested, I can post to only those circles that I add in via the click of my mouse and this way I won't be bombarding everyone with my posts.  By the same token, I can arrange people into different groups that like to share a lot of links, previews and such, so that rather than wading through them to find something I might really be after at the time, I can simply choose the circle or circles of the streams I wish to view at any given time.

While Facebook has a lot of good features, I really, really like the simplicity of Google+ in being able to effectively communicate with others.  Plus, at this point, no games!  Just good quality communication and feedback!

My head is swimming with all that be done via Google+ and it will take me a few weeks to really determine how I wish to integrate it into my business and personal life.  I, personally, love the ease of mixing both my business and my pleasure on one page.  Although, I've always considered my business and pleasure to sort of be one and the same!  LOL!  Yah, I love y'all all the time!

I would love to have you come and join me there!  It's a great place to hangout (this allows 10 people to come together for a video chat/conference), to voice chat, type chat, or to just sit back and see what others are up to!  Oh, and when I say it is more private than FB, I really like that you can log on, stay logged on and no one knows you are there unless you are streaming your status publicly or to all of your groups.  The way I see it, G+ puts us in more control of how we wish to communicate with others in a safe, time effective manner without getting overwhelmed by all that is being posted by everyone else - unless, of course, we choose to!

For those already on Google+, I would love to hear your thoughts thus far.  If any of you are in need of an invite, leave your email address in the comments section and I will send you one as they are still in beta and looking for lots of good feedback (what you like and what you don't like) before opening up to everyone.

You can find me here:  Linda Walton

Have an awesome weekend everyone and I hope you will come and take a look around at G+.  If you have any questions that I am able to answer, I am more than happy to.

We will be working with our furbabies this weekend, so I hope to have Part Two of *Getting Your Brush On* uploaded by Tuesday with, perhaps, an extra goody included for your patience with me!

Happy "1st" Birthday to our precious little granddaughter, Katelyn Rose!  I will share some birthday pics as soon as I receive them from one or both of my daughters! :)

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that's just how i roll ...

Or, should that be unroll?  LOL!

Our precious little granddaughter, Katelyn Rose, who will be celebrating her first birthday this Friday, July 15th!  *sigh*  Has it really been an entire year since I cradled Kate's tiny newborn body in my arms?  *bigger sigh*

Joan sent a couple of photos and a video clip to my oldest daughter and I last night from her iPhone.  Would you believe that I had already retired?  LOL!  What a sweet and delightful visual first thing morning while checking emails!  And, of course, Grandma just had to play with it in Photoshop.  *grin*   Does not that little face appear to be saying what the caption reads?  He, he ...

I've just started my Photoshop classes with Andrea Gold over at Go Digital Scrapbooking and I am hunkering down to prep kits for uploading to my MyMemories store.  There have been lots of changes going on there and I thought I'd wait for the dust to settle a bit while at the same time tending to our Golden Girl the past couple of weeks.

Once I get a few kits uploaded, I shall update y'all on what's happening at MyMemories!  They are really getting their scrap on!  I am excited to finally get it going on!  O.B.S.T.A.C.L.E.S. be warned, I am working with blinders on this week!  ROFL!

Wishing you all a most scraptacular week ahead and I hope to be back tomorrow with *Get Your Brush On*, Part Two!

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"get your brush on" tutorial, part one!

Happy (now belated) Independence Day to my fellow Americans!  To my neighbors in beautiful Canada, Happy belated Canada Day!  (July 1st)  And, to my friends outside of the USA and Canada, Happy Everyday!  *big smile*

I had it already in mind to show you how to create your own background papers from an image while I was making the *Monkeying Around* brushes, however, stretching my thinking power just a wee bit further (ouch!), I thought why not show y'all how to create brushes in Photoshop first!  *illuminated light bulb above head*

Before I start today's tutorial, I would like to answer Gem's question about whether the *Monkeying Around* brushes will work in PSE (Photoshop Elements).  The answer is yes!  While I am not a PSE user (I design in PSCS 4), I do have a copy of PSE 4 that I installed on Robert's computer to give them a test and voila, they work!  The only thing I was not able to accomplish is dragging and dropping the ABR file from where I have it stored and right onto the Photoshop work space.  However, you are still able to load the ABR file to your brush palette from any location.  Yay!

Okay, let's get rolling with Part One of my Get Your Brush On tutorials!  This tutorial will work in both Photoshop and PSE.  I will make a notation of any major differences I find when using the steps for PS in PSE.  I will post screen captures first, followed by instructions (PS only).

Note:  Each screen capture may be enlarged for sharper details by clicking on it directly.

Get Your Brush On, Part One

How to Create a Brush in Photoshop

 Bigger is better!  Yup, when it comes to creating a brush (or a custom shape), starting with a larger canvas is definitely better.  As most of us have come to learn in our digital scrapbooking and/or designing experience, it is much easier to start big and reduce if the need be rather than trying to enlarge an image.  Why?  Well, we can reduce without losing quality from stretching pixels that will ultimately cause for a distorted image upon enlarging to 100%, which is a no-no in Industry Standards in Graphic Design.  Shrinking down an image is much easier (wouldn't it be lovely is this were true with a real, live physical image as well? *sigh*) and it allows you to use your brush over and over again without having to recreate it!  Think of reduce, reuse and recycle!

The largest size we are able to create a brush in Photoshop is 2500 px X 2500 px.  So, unless you are wishing to do nothing more with your images than, let's say, create scatters, it will always be best to start with your canvas at 2500 px X 2500 px!  You can select a smaller brush size once your new brush is installed and ready to use.  I will give you an example once we've created our brush.

Note:  I do not use keyboard shortcuts, however, you will see them as I use the drop-down menus in the event you wish to do so.  Why don't I?  Hmm, I guess I take after my kitties.  I'm a pretty good mouser!  LOL!

Click on File > New

Give your new canvas a name.  Preset = Custom, Width = 2500 pixels, Height = 2500 pixels, Resolution = 300 pixels/inch, Color Mode = RGB Color (8 bit) and Background Contents = White

Note:  When creating brushes, the background must always be white.  This will become transparent when loaded into your brush palette :)

I am inserting an extra step here as we are creating a custom setting for a canvas size of 2500 px X 2500 px so that we will not have to type it in each time we wish to create a new brush.  Now this is my kind of shortcut!

Click on Save Preset

In the New Document Preset window, give your preset a name.  Keep all boxes ticked under Include In Saved Settings.  Click OK.

Note:  The next time you wish to create a new brush, Click on File > New and then click the drop-down arrow next to Preset (Clipboard), find your 2500 px X 2500 px Custom Preset, click on it and then on OK to open your new canvas.

Click Layer > New > Layer

Note:  We are going to create a custom shape from which we will then create our new brush!

Give your new layer a name if you wish to.  Click OK. 

 Find your Custom Shape Tool in your Tools Palette and click on it to open.

On the Custom Shape Menu, click on the Drop-down Arrow beside Shape and choose a shape you wish to use for your new brush and click on it so that it shows as the image next to Shape.  I have chosen an airplane in hopes that I can fly y'all right on through this tutorial!

Note:  I was unable to capture the cross-hair for this step, so the arrow is taking it's place.

Make sure that your New Custom Shape Layer (mine is Plane-1) is active (mine shows blue) on your Layers Palette.  Set your Foreground color to black or a dark shade of gray.

Place the cross-hair in the upper left-hand corner of your canvas.

While holding down the Shift Key, drag your shape as far down as you are able to without going off the canvas.  Make sure you keep the Shift Key depressed to assure your image is drawn out proportionately.

You may notice that your Custom Shape is a little rough around the edges and this is nothing a little Rasterizing or Simplifying won't take care of!  

Right-click on your Custom Shape Layer (again, mine is Plane-1) in your Layers Palette.  In the Drop-down Menu, click on Rasterize Layer.  (Simplify Layer in PSE)

Ready to start getting your brush on? 

Click on Edit > Define Brush Preset

Give your new brush a name.  This is important for identifying your brushes once loaded into your Brush Palette.

Click OK

Note:  I missed a screen shot!  Argh!  I know I may be overly detailed for most of you, but there are always newbies that might not yet know where all the tools are.  

Find your Brush Tool in your Tools Palette and click on it to open the Brush Menu at the top of your Photoshop Desktop.  Locate the Drop-down Arrow to the right of Brush and click to open the Brush Preset picker.

Your newly created brush will the very last one in your Brushes Palette as shown above with the arrow pointing to the airplane.  Note the size is just a bit shy of 2500 px X 2500 px and that is okay.  It is still a large brush and will serve us well!

Voila, now you can really get your brush on ... your canvas!

Use the Master Diameter Slider to choose a size for your brush.  (In PSE, click the arrow to the right of Size to use the Slider)  I have reduced my original 2496 pixel brush to 360 pixels for my dabbling below.  You can also play with the Hardness with 100% giving you nice crisp, hard defined edges.  As you decrease the Hardness, your image's edges will soften and lessen in opacity. (PSE does not have the Hardness option)

In the image above, I have simply chosen my brush, reduced it's size and clicked on my canvas several times to check out it's appearance.

Get creative!  Play ... play ... and then play some more!  Create a new layer for each brush stroke, add effects, colors, etc.

In Part Two of my *Get Your Brush On* tutorials, I will show y'all how to add Shape Dynamics and Scattering settings (these are different in PSE and I will do my best to duplicate what I've done in PS) to your brushes which, for me, make brushes so much more fun to work with!  You can really let your imagination soar as your brush flows across your canvas!  We will also save a set of brushes, creating an ABR file.

Computer time has been scarce the past 10 days.  Robert and I have been nursing our Golden Girl, Chloe, who turned 13 on June 9th, back to health.  She had us very concerned for several days and I am happy to report that she is doing better and better with each passing day!

Happy July everyone and have an amazing week!  I will catch up on your comments this week and if you have any questions regarding today's tutorial, please ask in the comment section and I will reply to you as quickly as I am able to.  Also, if any of you have anything to add, please do!  As I've mentioned in the past, I'm pretty much self-taught and I have no doubt that I may take the long way around often, so I welcome your tips and tricks too!

See you soon. *smile*

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i love you this much, a very special announcement and a freebie!

Click on image to enlarge

Happy Friday y'all!

Sorry it's taken me so long to return, but with summer in full force, it's been C-R-A-Z-Y!!!

Summer actually arrived right on time here in Copperopolis this year.  Uh, huh, we started the first day of summer dipping into triple-digit temps!  Nothing new for us and I'm not complaining as we had more rainy days this year than we've had in some time and I love the cooler weather!  Is my age showing?  *wink*

I have been playing in Photoshop and even though I have Photoshop and Illustrator classes coming up, I still like teaching myself, which is usually the way I learn most things.  Thus the reason it takes me longer to appear here with the goods!  ROFL!

Before I show you what I have to share with you today, I have a very special announcement to make.  Yes, I'm sure you have a good idea already from my blog post image above!  I am so proud to announce that we have another little monkey on it's way! *heart flutters*

While I have never been a partial person, nor have I ever loved one child or grandchild more than another, I wouldn't be honest in not telling you that my oldest daughter, April becoming pregnant is definitely an extra special miracle in the making.  How so?  Well, it goes something like this ... my grandmother (on my father's side), my mother and myself have all been very prolific in regard to bearing children.  Between the three of us, we have delivered 8, 7 and 6 children respectively.   My children's grandmother on their father's side delivered 8 children!  Did I mention that we were prolific?  *eyes open wide*

April, my firstborn, was born with a nurturing spirit.  She has been a little mother ever since I can remember and she helped me in raising my youngest, her twin brothers, Luke and John!  In fact, she once commented that she felt the boys to be more like her own children than her brothers!  That says a whole lot right there, eh?

April is currently 34 years of age and has tried on-and-off to get pregnant over the years, but it just was not happening.  Some years ago, she was diagnosed with PCOS, which carries with it multiple symptoms, one being the inability to ovulate.  Nuff said!  With a little help from a miracle drug my son-in-law, Ethan and my daughter, April are pregnant with their first child!  *squeeeeeeeeeeeeee*  And, they are only having one baby!  I figured with twins running on my side of the family, plus the Chlomid, twins were a good possibility!  The kids are most happy with one!  *smile*

The photo showcased in my little monkey's arms was emailed to me the day before yesterday after a visit to the doctor.  Baby Buckmier is 9 weeks, 5 days in gestation, between the size of a grape and a cumquat and April was able to see his/her itty-bitty arms and legs moving about in the womb!  Baby is upside-down and you can see the tip of the red glittered heart pointing the way! 

April has decided to go ahead and tell everyone she is pregnant so I am able to make an official announcement today - YAY!  I actually found out some time ago at 5:30 in the morning when she had "peed on a stick", as they say, and it formed the word pregnant before her precious eyes and hubby was away on a hunting trip and didn't answer his phone!  LOL!   Woot for me.  I got to be the first one to hear the good news!  *wink*

To any of you reading that might be trying to get pregnant with a little extra help, I am sending positive thoughts and prayers your way!  I told April that I am only thinking good things just as I did when I found out I was carrying twins and every book I picked up informed me of the risk of this, that and the other thing.  I took all of those books back to the library and stood in faith that I was going to have healthy babies!  I carried Luke and John full-term and they weighed in at 6 lbs, 14 oz (same weight as April at birth:) and 6 lbs, 2 oz!

Okay, enough of my jabbering!  Boy, I can talk a good one can't I?  Y'all are real troopers to hang out with me this long.  I guess this is what happens when I go missing for a week or two at a time!  *grin*

So, I've been dabbling in brush making for a bit now and decided I wanted to make some cute little monkey scatters to go into the extras edition of *Monkeying Around* for y'all.  Well, one thing led to another and then another and voila, I created my very first brush set and guess what?  Y'all are going to get it!  I was so excited when the lovely, Trina Clark agreed to let me share the set with y'all since the cute little monkeys I have created were done so using some cutting files I purchased from Trina last month.  

If you've never been to Trina's website and you adore country art work, clip art, stamps, borders and such, you are in for a treat!  I have just placed a banner at top of my blog for you to click on to check her out.  You will be there for a while, as she has hundreds of images.  Talk about one amazingly talented artist!  *head spinning*  I first became familiar with Trina's work when I got my start at 3Scrapateers six years ago and I, sadly, lost track of her.  I found her on Facebook a while back and finally paid her a visit when looking for monkeys!  A treasure chest of goodness to behold and her terms of use are insanely generous, not to mention her prices!

*Monkeying Around* brush set includes an ABR file with dual versions of five brushes and individual PNG files for those unable to use ABR files.  As the image above shows, each brush offers both a single shape tip preset and shape dynamics and scattering presets, which are fabulous for some easy scatter creating on your canvas.  Naturally, you are able to play and adjust the settings to your liking if you wish!  TOU for the brushes is the same as for all of the other files.  You may use them for personal-use, scrap-for-hire and scrap-for-other.  Please read TOU for specifics!  I've also included instructions for saving and loading them into Photoshop.

And here is *Monkeying Around*, Extras Edition!   I have included each scatter layer separately so that you can mix-and-match them as you prefer.  I've even included a grayscale distressed version of each scatter layer, none of which are shown, for easy coloring.  Oh, I nearly forgot to mention that you are seeing the same monkey I included in the first download via The June Blog Train because I revised it!  *blush*

Wishing you all a spectacular summer filled with sweet scrapping memories and to my fellow Scraplanders on the opposite side of the equator, a wonderful winter of the same!  

I love you <---- this ----> much!

Sky Drive has changed things up a bit since my last post and I've finally figured it all out.  I am not able to give you a separate link for each file, unless I create a file for each link and that is just a bit too time consuming.  The alternative is actually a win-win for all of us as I can now put all links into one folder and you are able to download as many or as few of the links as you wish to!

Click on the link you wish to download and a download window will open as before allowing you an instant download.  The fourth and final link is a download them all at once!

As always, I appreciate your feedback here in the comments sections on my blog! 

Thank you and Bon Scrapatit!

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since my last post ...

Our grandson, Jace and Robert doing a little monkeying around of their own!

Cluster created using *Monkeying Around* by Bon Scrapatit Designs

I lost my back up computer after having shut down for the thunder and lightning storm!  LOL!  No, I don't believe it had a thing to do with the storm, it was simply it's time to go!

I had relied on my older computer to keep me connected to the Internet.  I could keep my HootSuite open and lean over to check on things when I was waiting for files to be saved and such on my work computer!  You know, you get used to a certain little routine going on and when something disrupts it, you must find a workaround, right?  Well, I literally found that workaround - I now turn myself around, wheel my chair a few feet and use Robert's computer when the need be!  LOL!  So glad he's a good share bear! *wink*

I did not have much time to mourn the loss of my computer due to a wonderfully anticipated sleepover with our grandson on his mommy's birthday last week!  Upon his arrival Tuesday morning, Jace (3years, 2 months) handed me a small box with a pretty pink top.  I opened it to find a very sweet and special Grandma (you're the best) necklace and matching earrings for my birthday this past Saturday!  *heart flutters*

Yes, the images above are from a sequence of photos I took while Jace and Robert were enjoying some play time together!  LOL!  The two had a day of it for sure.  They golfed, filled in gopher holes, watched educational videos, Spiderman, The Land Before Time, chatted outside with Uncle Matt while he was standing on the top of a mountain he climbed in Dutch Harbor, Alaska and had a rather lengthy pillow fight!  Can we say F-U-N! 

Naturally, Grandma balanced out the equation with food, drink, trips to the bathroom, digging through Grandma's toy baskets, story time, lots of hugs and kisses and, of course, a photo shoot or two!  I think I tired more from following Jace and Papa Robert around with the camera!  He, he ...

While we all did quite a bit of literal *Monkeying Around*, it unfortunately kept me off the computer and unable to finish up my extra goodies for y'all.  I'm just about finished and wanted to head in and let you know that I'm still alive and the goods shall be delivered soon!  *smile*

Hope to find y'all scrapping to your heart's content!

See you soon.

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ps ... an amazing deal on photoshop and illustrator classes! please read, time sensitive ...

Hi y'all!

So, did you spend the weekend *Monkeying Around*?  LOL!  I wish I could say I did, but with a lovely storm brewing that produced some magnificent thunder and lightning, I shut down our computers for a good 24 hours plus!  LOL!  Uhm, yes, it is June!  *grin*

Thank you all so much for the sweet comments.  I shall be catching up (once again!) with those tonight I hope as well as finishing up a little goody for y'all too!

I've dashed in to announce to you a most amazing deal on some incredible Photoshop and Illustrator classes being given by the infamous Andrea Gold over at Go Digital Scrapbooking!

For those who are newer to Scrapland and digital scrapbooking, Andrea, in my recollection, is the first digital designer to start giving out free templates via her blog several years ago.  I believe this was before she actually started designing kits and such too, but don't hold me to it!  Anyhoo, Andrea's store at GDS now boasts of some 1,000 templates!  Yah!  Amazing, eh?  My head was swimming when perusing her store the other night as I'd not been to visit in some time.

I've always wished to take some of Andrea's Photoshop/Illustrator classes, but just haven't been able to afford to do so ... until now!  Well, I really, really cannot afford to but, with the deal Andrea is offering through tomorrow (meant to post on weekend but had to shut down), June 8th, I simply cannot afford not to!

Happy Birthday to me!  With my designer anniversary on the first of June and my birthday coming up this weekend, I decided to gift myself (Robert is helping out too!) with the purchase of (5) five classes at half price!  Classes are normally $30 and are now only $15 through tomorrow.  Good deal, eh?  I'm not finished yet!  Through tomorrow, June 8th, for every class you purchase, Andrea will send a coupon for a free class!  Yes, you read that correctly ... a free class!  So, classes are currently selling at half price - $15, with a coupon sent for a free class which makes the class only $7.50!  You simply cannot beat that price anywhere that I know of and I've scoured around for a long time.

Check out Andrea's Photoshop classes here and make sure to read down where she lists all that she covers in each class.  All you need to do is look through Andrea's store and you can see her mad PS skills at work!  She's got the Photoshoppin' down to an art! *smile*  Well, not to mention Illustrator too!  Check out the Illustrator classes here.

Even though I've been designing for four years now, I am self-taught and I am very sure that I do many things the hard and/or long way, so I'm starting with the Beginner's class so that I do not miss out on anything!  Y'all know me, I love to be as thorough as possible! LOL!

You will not only be learning Photoshop skills, but Andrea teaches a lot of designing techniques as well!  So, what are y'all waiting for?  I'd love to see you in the forum with me next month as I begin from the beginning!  *Squee*

Note:  There are also Photoshop Elements and Paint Shop Pro classes available at half price, however, they are taught by other instructors and do not include the same buy one, get one free offer as Andrea's.  See Andrea's blog for detailed information on receiving your free classes.  You will also find via both Andrea's blog and store that she is having a drawing to win her entire store plus two other prizes.  Each $5 in purchases gives you one entry.  Unlimited entries. Entries are from any purchase made in Andrea's store from June 1st - June 30th.  Just remember that the deal for BOGO Photoshop/Illustrator classes by Andrea Gold ends tomorrow, June 8th!

Scrap happy and I'll see you soon!

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"monkeying around" ... june blog train goodies are up! yay!

Happy 1st day of June y'all!

I am so, so sorry for being so late in getting my goodies posted for the June Blog Train, *Monkeying Around*!  I have been up for two days straight (no sleep, not even a cat nap), trying to get everything ready to upload.  ROFL!  Please don't ask (I'm sure you won't!), but it's just been one little thing after another.  My computer is being backed up and I had maxed out my RAM so it was painstakingly slow in getting all the files finalized, together, TOU prepped, etc.

I was supposed to remove *The Wild Ones* yesterday, however, due to my tardiness, I am going to leave it up until tomorrow (preview and link can be found on my sidebar to your right) in the event there is anyone who still wishes to download it.  Those of you who have already downloaded and left me feedback, a thank you or some love, thank you so much!  Appreciated more than you can know ... or, perhaps, you do know!

Before I post the pertinent info for the blog train, I just have to tell you before I forget!  Today is my fourth anniversary as a digital scrapbooking designer!  Woot, woot ... yeah!  It is difficult to believe that I have been blogging  and giving away goodies for almost four years!  My blogoversary is near the end of August and I hope to hoop it up real good with y'all this year!

Okies, without further ado my wonderful and patient friends, here's the official blog train scoop!

You should be arriving here from:

Angel Hartline Designs (unless you've popped back over to see if I've posted yet! *smile*)

In checking Angel's link, she still has not posted so make sure to head back over in a day or two.

You are now at Bon Scrapatit Designs and your next stop on this fun and exciting train ride is:

Chocolate Geranium Digital Designs (this still sounds delicious as I'm a bit behind on eating as well!)

Linnie has posted!

Please take a moment to say, "thank you" to all of the amazing designers who have contributed to this month's blog train.  Everyone works hard to make this happen, especially our fabulous conductor, Trish Heffner.  You can give her a heartfelt thank you right here on the Blog Train Blog, which is also where you will find all 90+ links of the contributing designers starting with hers!

Once again, I thank you for your patience is awaiting my post.  Y'all rock ... and then some!

Here is my preview: (I didn't have a chance to add my customary grunge splats/splatters.  I will be posting a little add-on to this in the next day or two.  I also have some more word art to go along with it too!  Believe this or not, I am not really a theme designer and I continue these trains because the color palettes and themes keep me challenged!  For that I thank Trish immensely as she continues to dedicate herself to keeping this train on the track, even though a few of us have attempted to derail it from time-to-time.  Sorry Trish, if you happen by, I promise I was not *Monkeying Around*, but I'll be a monkey's uncle (like that could really every happen, eh?  he, he ...) if technology did not start monkeying around with me a few days ago, causing some unexpected monkey business to happen this side of the screen!  I honestly cannot say that it was more fun than a barrel of monkeys having a monkey wrench thrown into the mix and then having a monkey on my back when trying to follow a schedule and catch a train on time!  LOL!  Gee, you don't suppose I've actually learned a thing or two in the process of preparing for this train, do you?  *grin*

Enough of my rambling.  Y'all could probably give a monkey's! *wink*

MWAH!  Have fun ...

Uploading my freebies to Sky Drive is giving you a direct download and no more frustration in waiting for 4-shared.  In doing so, I no longer have any way to track how many downloads I receive, which helps me to know what you like and what you don't!  I simply ask that you leave a quick thank you either in the comments section here on my blog (not the one on Sky Drive!) or in the chat box as a form of feedback.  

Thank you and Bon Scrapatit!

Papers

Embellishments

Word Art

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i think i can, i think i can ... the little train that "could" and "will"!

Jumping the track to let you know that I will have my part of the June Blog Train posted in just a short bit. I have struggled all night with a less than cooperative computer that is being backed up and slower than molasses. Quite frustrating to say the least as a snail can crawl faster than Photoshop has been!

Anyhoo, I deeply apologize for the inconvenience y'all. Please come back if you are passing through. You should be coming in from:


Angel Hartline Designs

I just visited the link above and she has not yet posted either, so make sure to check back with Angel as she always has something delicious to share!

Your next stop is:

Chocolate Geranium Designs (mmm ... that almost sounds good enough to eat right now!)

LOL!  Okay, we are on a roll!  Linnie has not posted her portion of the blog train yet either, so bookmark her and head on back later tonight or tomorrow as we do like to give everyone a full 24 hours to post as we are coming in from all around the world!

This was my first visit to Linnie's blog.  Be still my heart.  Girl's got game and can she design some scrumptious stuff.  You might wish to peruse her blog while there downloading after she has posted.  Beautiful showcase of layouts too!

Okay, since none of the above are on this ride through Scrapland yet, if you need to get back to the Blog Train Blog where all of the links are, click HERE.

See you shortly with my portion of the goodies!

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roses are red ... and apples are blue?

These apples are not only blue but really good for you too! Check out what The Doctors have to say about this amazing new product and then read my post below the video for details on how to purchase these by way of an amazing deal at Mamapedia Sweet Deals:


SEE VIDEO HERE!  (I did not realize that it plays automatically every time my blog is logged onto!  Argh!  Sorry.


Who isn't trying to pinch pennies these days?  After viewing the white paper section listed on the how it works page on the BluApple website, I am ordering three sets (the maximum allowed).  I will be sending a set to each of my girls who both eat lots of fresh fruit and veggies!  At $5/set (shipping is a flat rate of $3), you simply cannot bypass this fabulous Mamapedia Sweet Deal!

If you've never purchased via Mamapedia Sweet Deals (similar to Groupon, which I subscribe to as well), head on over, check it out and sign up for future deals to be mailed right to your inbox each day.

I look forward to seeing what's offered each day and, while I delete most of them, there is the occasional killer deal that I just have to take a closer look at.  Before purchasing the daily deal, I always scour the website hosting the offer to make sure I know exactly what I am going to receive, how many I can purchase and when the code will expire.  The latter usually being the most important to me! *wink*

You will not see me posting anything like this on a regular basis, however, if I really feel it something that you might be interested in and/or is unbelievably priced and difficult to pass up, I will jump in to post as quickly as possible to try and ensure that you are able to take advantage of the deal too!

This particular Mamapedia Sweet Deal ends in 2 days and 9 hours or so from the time of this posting!

Let me know what you think and if you decide to purchase the deal!  I know how much produce I throw out from spoiling (not intentionally) and am looking forward to putting that to an end! *smile*

Here's to an apple a day of a different color!

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have you been mia? a couple of reminders ...

One more day to download *The Wild Ones* here on my blog for free!  Grab it HERE! 

Hoping that everyone here in the USA has returned home safely from any holiday travels.

Robert and I remained on the home front and watched a few documentaries together.  Our thoughts have been toward all those who have lost their lives while serving in our military services, along with full hearts of thankfulness to each and every one of them and their families for the sacrifices made for our country's continued freedoms!

One more reminder as the holiday weekend comes to an official end.  If you've not yet had the opportunity to check out Action FX, this will be the final day (as far as I know) to purchase a membership to Al Ward's plethora of Photoshop resources for scrapbookers, designers, photographers and more before he launches his brand new website!   I'm in for two more years!  I, personally, love the huge collection of brushes and custom shapes!   Lace even!

Al offers so many options.  Actions to help your scrapbooking, designing and photo work.   Lots and lots of brushes and custom shapes, from which the possibilities are endless here alone!  There are complete alpha sets, type effects, overlays, video tutorials and even a few books that Al has authored to help your Photoshop workflow!  A fabulous commercial-use resource website!

For those renewing a current membership, the price is $19.95/year.  New memberships are only $29.95/year. This is a fraction of what the membership price will be upon Al's launching of the new website and price structure shown below:

One Year - $199.95 Full Access Membership
Six Months - $124.95 Full Access Membership
One Month - $29.95 Full Access Membership

Check it out!  You can use the link here or click on the big banner at the top of my blog.

A quick note of thanks to all of you who have left such incredibly sweet and wonderful comments aka feedback!  I am still working on catching up on replying to each of you!  MWAH!

Wishing y'all an incredibly wonderful week ahead.  I know there have already been some graduations and there are more to come, so I would like to extend my personal "congratulations" to anyone with a graduate in the family!  Woot, woot ... yeah!

See you soon!

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