What Goes Up Must Come Down!

I had such fun making the first layout of my big boys making a sand castle that I made a second layout! This one shows how they destroyed their masterpiece. David grabbed rocks as he balanced on two upended logs, and Steven held David steady so his brother didn't fall in the lake. John actually froze his feet off as he waded into Lake Superior (about 39 F) to throw the huge rocks they had used back into the lake. Why is it such fun for guys to lug rocks around?

Sue



Credits:
Materials: Template 10, The Paper Iris; “Beach Holiday”, Vicki Parker (A Work in Progress); “From the Heart” alpha, SuzyQ Scraps
Programs: GIMP, PSE 6
Font: Arial Bold

Fog on the Bay

As we drove into Grand Marais at dusk, we were greeted by this eerie harbor scene. With a fog horn sounding mournfully in the distance and fog rolling in off Lake Superior, the view of the bay was so striking that I immediately asked Harry to stop the car so I could take these photos.

Sue



Credits:
Materials: “Eau bleue”, Galiscrap (papers); “Touch of Summer”, Happy Family Scrap (cloud); “Pirate Princess” alpha, Digi-Designs by Nicole
Programs: GIMP, PSE 6
Font: Arial Bold

Pretty Fishy!

Sometimes you can fish all day and catch nothing, but it’s always more fun when the fish are biting. This photo is from a summer day in 1968 when our family caught the limit of blue gills. What fun! At least it was fun for us girls. Mom and Dad had to bait hooks, unsnarl lines, run the boat, take fish off hooks, clean the fish and fry them. We just had to catch fish and eat them!

Sue

Credits:
Materials: July DSO Color Challenge 2 Kit by Becca – Cherish Life, Create Beauty (papers); “Catch of the Day”, Pressed Petals (fishing elements, some re-colored); notebook paper by me
Programs: GIMP; PSE 6
Fonts: Arial Bold, Maiandra GD Bold
I submitted this layout to the July DSO Color Challenge 2.

Lunchtime: It’s for the Birds!

A couple of weeks ago, on a walk in the Superior National Forest, I heard a strange high-pitched trilling coming from a small hole twenty feet above me in a pine tree trunk. As I watched, two adult woodpeckers took turns flying to their nest to feed their baby chick. Right after one of the adult birds flew away, the chick would start trilling again, asking for more. I guess baby woodpeckers are just like teenage boys --- they’re always hungry!

Sue

Credits:
Materials: DSO July Color Challenge 1 Kits by Chaos Lounge (gold paper), Ruth Melody (purple paper), Kim’s Scrappin’ (navy blue paper, frame), Maurine Stettler – Let Me Scrapbook (gold string); Twiggy Alpha, Designs by Sarah Bryan
Programs: GIMP, PSE 6
Font: Segoe Script Bold
I submitted this layout for the DSO July Color Challenge 1.

Remembering Papou

On a glorious summer day in 2005, our family spent an afternoon with Harry’s dad in the park-like setting behind Papou’s senior high rise. The lush, green gardens made a lovely setting for this set of photos.

This is a deceptively simple set of pages that I pondered over for months, seeking the right layout and colors to complement these special photos with Papou.

Sue




Credits:
Materials: Template 12, Bao Scrap; “Spring Blossoms”, AliSarah Designs (papers); “Atacama”, Imagine by Fran (grass); Button Collection 5, Scrappin Cop (button)
Programs: GIMP & PSE 6
Fonts: Credit Valley Bold, Rockwell Bold

Playing in the Sand

As everyone knows, a vacation by the lake is not complete until you have built a sand castle. My boys first used a traditional sand-only design with a rock breakwater to slow the disintegration of their masterpiece. Then they decided to add a massive tower. To provide support for the tower, they dug up large rocks from the lake bottom and stacked them in huge pile. David especially enjoyed lugging around the largest rocks he could find. They covered their rocky pile with sand, and added crenellations (flat stones), battlements (large sticks) and a flag (birch bark). Their castle was ready to repel all invaders, and they enthusiastically celebrated their achievement. Sadly, I made the boys destroy their beautiful shoreline hazard before we left.

Sue



Credits:
Materials: Template 10, The Paper Iris; “Beach Holiday”, Vicki Parker (A Work in Progress); “From the Heart” alpha, SuzyQ Scraps
Programs: GIMP, PSE 6
Font: Arial Bold

Gooseberry Falls

Despite its strange name, Gooseberry Falls is actually quite lovely. This summer we spent a day climbing around the falls, and I took LOTS of pictures. Here are a few of the photos I took of my son and his girlfriend.

Sue
Credits:
Materials: “Spring Love” alpha, Delicious Scraps; Teen Bold font
Programs: GIMP, PSE 6

Wildflowers

As we hiked in Superior National Forest this summer, my husband and I saw many different types of beautiful wildflowers growing alongside the trails. Harry patiently waited for me whenever I stopped to take pictures. He even waved off the swarms of voracious mosquitoes that would swoop in to attack. What a sweetie! I had a lot of fun sorting through all those photos to make this two-page layout.

Sue



Credits:
Materials: “Bunny’s Challenge”, Joni Gray Digiscrap Freebies; Template 30, The Paper Iris; “Showers in Spring” alpha (recolored), Vicki Parker
Programs: GIMP
Font: Segoe Script Bold