Recent Layouts

Here are some more layouts from the Month of Challenges.

This one is a 2013 year in review page. I went through each month and picked the one picture that represented a unique but important event for that month. January is a secret though. I really like how this page turned out. The Optical Templates by Liz always look great. Actually, it just occurred to me this isn't an Optical Template. It was a freebie made at the same time as Optical Templates in honor of taking 12 pictures on the date 12/12/12. It's in Recyclables 19 now. I shall correct the credits.

Cream and Sugar and Pocket Stuffers 2 by Valorie Wibbens; Pops by Allison Pennington
Wire Rimmed Alpha by Sahlin Studio; Recyclables 19 by Scrapping with Liz

This was a quickpage challenge. I did a little Photoshop magic to "move" the photo cluster and I added some rainbow stripes in honor of the oh so popular "Rainbow Loom."

And here is what the quickpage looked like.

And this one was an All About Me page. I've never done one of these "Favorite Things" layouts before (at least as far as I can remember right now), but I've been thinking about it for the last few weeks because I've been particularly enjoying some things right now - like bread and butter pickles and reading library books on my Nook. In the spirit of scrapping a page every stinking day and trying not to go insane because of it, I chose not to label my list but let the pictures speak for themselves.

Circle Templates 1 by Scrapping with Liz; Cream and Sugar by Valorie Wibbens
Little Charmer by Laurie Ann; Clippy Frames 3 by Allison Pennington

The Month of Challenges isn't really driving me insane. I just thought that sounded clever. But I am happy to say that many of the layouts I've made this month have come together very quickly, and that's a good thing.

And just a little bonus here: my 12/12/12 layout. This one was not chosen as a top most favorite from December 2012, so it never got shared here on the blog. Here are twelve pictures taken on December 12, 2012.

Recyclables 19 by Scrapping with Liz; Dreams of Smitten by Kasia Designs; Glitter Sheets by Two Shutter Sisters
Vintage Vogue Elements by Sahlin Studio; Paper Pretties by Studio Vivarant

Thanks for stopping by.

Recent Layouts

Here are some more recent layouts. Some are from the Month of Challenges, some are not.

This first one was a MOC challenge to use a template. This is a picture of Miller waiting while I take pictures before we can start playing. He was getting irritated, but I thought the castle built out of toilet paper was so cute. I wanted a picture of him playing, all natural like. Didn't really happen.

You Can Bring Me Flowers by Pink Reptile Designs; Eco-Friendly by Pink Reptile and T for Me; You and Me
  Freebie by Pink Reptile Designs; A Bit Worn #1, 2 and 4 by Valorie Wibbens; Art and Soul Freebie by
  Sahlin Studio; Vintage Vogue Elements by Sahlin Studio; MOC Template by Valorie Wibbens

Here are a couple of pictures of our Christmas tree. I put lights and beads on it, but no ornaments - kept it simple. This MOC challenge was to mix two different templates together in the same layout.

MOC Templates by Amy Martin; Winter Wishes Lilypad Collab; Very Merry by Sahlin Studio

Pocket Stuffers 2 by Valorie Wibbens; Froggy's Cardstock by Gina Miller;

Document Your Day Cards by Emily Merritt

The Halloween costume. This MOC challenge was to lift a paper layout.

Bootiful Night by Kaye Winiecki and Erica Zane; Oogly Boogly by Kaye Winiecki and Kate Hadfield
Something Wicked by Kaye Winiecki; Love Blooms Here by Kaye Winiecki and Flergs
Fun with Envelope Templates 2 by Scrapping with Liz

Here is the layout I lifted, by Adrienne Alvis

This one was not for a challenge. These are pictures from the day that Santa turned off Elf Michael's magic so that he could be played with.

Gigglebottom Kit by Etc. by Danyale; Free template by Brittish Designs

And these were some pictures of a nature walk.

Along Kit, Early Morning Kit, Dailies 8x10 Templates, 3 Minutes Kit, Lemon Squeezy Kit by creashens

Thanks for stopping by.

New Recipes Tried and Liked

The past week has delivered a few major new recipe successes - I will definitely be making all of these again.

The following  two recipes come from Taste and Tell Blog.

Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Muffins. A great light and sweet muffin. I think it tastes a lot like a chocolate chip cookie. They are best out of the oven, cooled down a bit but still warm and melty. When I saw this recipe, I suspected it would be similar to the Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake at Noah's Bagels that Miller likes. It did not disappoint.

Thai Chopped Chicken Salad. Very good. The scientist really like it. The only flaw was that the peanut butter sauce was a bit thick and hard to get a nice drizzle over the salad. The chicken marinade called for 1/2 cup of vegetable oil, which seemed like a lot to me. I only put in 1/4 cup and was able to marinade two medium/small chicken breasts. I do suggest preparing 2 breasts because then you can have it for lunch the next day too, which is what we did.

The next two recipes come from Kitchen Simplicity.

Slow Cooker Roast Chicken. This is brilliant because it frees the oven for making side dishes!

Baked Crispy Chicken Sandwiches with Homemade Shake'n Bake. Love these! The scientist praised them several times. I thought it was weird to marinate the chicken in a sour cream mixture, but it was good! I think it made the chicken very tender. And in my opinion the Quick Aioli really makes this sandwich. I'm planning to make this again next week. I have left over shake'n bake mixture so it will even be less work next time. Love that! There were two leftover chicken pieces so we got lunch the next day on this one too.

I can't wait to try more recipes from these sites. Another new one is on the menu for tonight, actually. Happy cooking!

More Month of Challenge Layouts

Here are more Month of Challenge (MOC) layouts.

This challenge was to scraplift a book cover as inspiration. At the end of every yearly scrapbook I add a summary page listing some of the major highlights of the year. I like to call it a time capsule instead of a summary. I think this is the second year I've had a circular theme for it.

Wonder Papers by Allison Pennington; Fortitude Basics by Laurie Ann

Here was the book cover that served as inspiration.

These were just some silly pictures. The challenge was to use a free style scatter/cluster on your page. I thought this template was perfect for a free style page.

The Good Stuff by Valorie Wibbens and Karla Dudley; Retro Mod by Sahlin Studio
Sparkly Confetti by Sara Gleason;  Shake It Itty Bitty by Fiddle Dee Dee

This challenge was to use word-art in your title. I have a lot of pictures like these from visits to the park. I used the Story Swoop technique for the journaling, using the park pictures to tell a story about his overalls.

Simple Things by Pink Reptile Designs; New Beginnings by Kaye Winiecki; Capturing Fall Lilypad Collab
Document This by Laurie Ann; On The House April Template by Jenn Lindsey

These are just pictures of two cousins having fun. This challenge was to use filters in Photoshop to create a watercolor effect on a photo (I used it on the large photo). This is a newest favorite layout. I didn't do much journaling here. I used the tabs to fill in just a few details ("beaver tracks," "telling secrets," and "hiding from the police"). I love the effect.

Vintage Florals by Valorie Wibbens; Cleaning Bug and I Am Not Perfect by Pink Reptile Designs
Wood Prints by Lynne-Marie; Dear Diary by Little Butterfly Wings; Country Fair Picnic by Sahlin Studio
Document This by Laurie Ann;  Recyclables 27 by Scrapping with Liz; CU flowers by Wendy Page

I'll have more in a few days. Thanks for stopping by!

Recent Layouts - MOC

I'm 4 for 4 so far in the Month of Challenges at The Lillypad. Here's what I've made.

Challenge 1 was a blind scrap in which you are given a list of instructions taken from a layout. This was just a cute picture of a gift Miller received at the end of Kindergarten. It was such a perfect gift considering his love of sea creatures.

Froggy's Cardstock by Gina Miller; Hello There, Talk to Me and Yours Truly by Allison Pennington
Sweetness by One Little Bird; Years Elements by Rachel Young; Trademark by One Little Bird and Lauren Reid

Challenge 2 was an Art Journal page. This isn't really as artsy/messy as I usually see, but considering there are supposed to be no rules in art journaling, I guess it is ok. As I was returning from my holiday travels I was looking at all the oak trees with their bare and twisted branches. I decided to start an oak tree photography project. These oak trees are near my home now, but they are not the same species as the ones in my childhood home. Those ones back there are way more spooky and twisted. These ones on campus are a lot better for climbing (with lower branches).

Cleaning Bug by Pink Reptile Designs; Messy Marvin Deconstructed by Amy Wolff
December Storyteller Template by Just Jaimee

Challenge 3 was a technique challenge to place stamps realistically over multiple layers. These were some funny pictures of dramatic play.

Daddio by Allison Pennington; H Is For Happy by Kaye Winiecki; Nectar Vol. 1 by Sara Gleason
Double Monthly Challenge Templates 11 by Scrapping with Liz

And here are Thanksgiving pictures.

Together Lilypad Collab; Good Foundations by Rachel Young; Mulit Mini Templates by Scrapping with Liz

Thanks for stopping by!