Ali Edwards's Blog, page 199

Supply Replenishment No.03

When I started getting ready to make a bunch of new layouts for Type I put in an order at 
Scrapbook.com for a few new things. 

Here's a look at what I spent my money on this time (more vellum please and thank you): 

AE Supply Replenishment 03 from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

Here's a list of products from my order at Scrapbook.com:

Crate Paper - Confetti Collection - Cardstock Stickers - Tiny Phrases
Hero Arts Wood Stamp - Old Letter Writing
Hero Arts Wood Stamp - My Checklist
Project Life Photo Fuse Sleeve 3x4 (edited 4/21 - got a message that the Photo Fuse Tool was now available as well)
Project Life Photo Fuse Sleeve 4x6
Elle's Studio Happy Moments Vellum
Pink Paislee Atlas Cork Stickers
Pink Paislee Atlas Travel Tags
Project Life Embossing Folders Inspire Edition
Crate Paper Black Foam Thickers Adorn
Amy Tangerine Rise And Shine // Lana Pattern Paper
Websters Pages Gold Stars Vellum
Crate Paper Backdrop Pattern Paper (text pattern)
Crate Paper Process Pattern Paper (stars)
Crate Paper Hardcover Pattern Paper (text pattern)
Tim Holtz Small Talk Stickers
Tim Holtz Big Chat Stickers
Tim Holtz Typed Tokens

See my other Supply Replenishment videos here: No.1 // No.2

Memory keeping products come my way from a combination of sources. Sometimes companies send me samples of their new products. Sometimes I will request specific products from companies when I have a particular use in mind (such as for a workshop). Sometimes I'm the one designing the products. And other times I order supplies from companies because I like the simplicity of picking and choosing and supporting both the online retailers and the manufacturers with my own money.

Around Here

I can't tell you guys how good it feels to be home. 

I'm home for awhile with no plans to go anywhere for a least a month. I love to travel, but man it feels good to settle in here again. 

Here are a few things happening around here recently: 

1. Type starts today. You still have some time to join this 12-week workshop that's focused on the ways we incorporate type into our memory keeping projects. One theme per week keeps it simple and focused and fun. I'd love to have you join the community. Full details here. For me it's going to be all type all the time for the foreseeable future. 

2. My yard is coming alive (peonies coming soon as you can see in the photo above) and I'm looking forward to getting myself organized and efficient in my office so I can get outside more. Not having anywhere to travel for awhile helps give me the chance to get organized and stick to the tasks right in front of me (vs. having to get ready to go somewhere). 

3. I have had zero interest in cooking for months now. Zero. It's an ebb and a flow for me generally - sometimes I'm totally into it and other times it's all I can do to get a decent meal together for the three of us. Popcorn counts at least once a week (with a side of cheese and apples of course). 

4. My kids rooms are in dire need of a clean up and a clean out. The legos are out of control in Simon's room need to be sorted (this is more of a group project so I need to be ready to have the time to get in there and help with the organization by color into bins). The more "little kid" things need to be moved out of Anna's room and shared with someone who will give them love. I have an antique headboard and footboard in the garage that I'd love to get painted in a fun color for her room. Adding that to my list of things to make happen in the coming months. 

5. Soccer has started again for Anna. I love watching her play and I love the chance to connect with other parents at her practices and games. 

6. I can't believe that we are close to summer again. Our local outdoor pool will be opening next months which is one of my favorite things to do when the weather warms up. 

7. Now is the time of year that we figure out what's happening for the kids during the summer. Chris and I will have a sit-down meeting soon to figure out the logistics - camps, Grandma & Grandpa time, camping, etc. 

I also wanted to take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to all of you who have supported me in the last year with the transition to the new site and the new products. Your continued support means so much to me - thank you for participating when you can and for continuing to want to tell stories together through products, inspiration and education. 

Happy Monday!

TYPE WORKSHOP GIVEAWAY WINNER

Here's the winner of the Type workshop giveaway: 

katie1980 | I'd love to take this class as it sounds amazing. Especially the fonts bit - I'd love to learn how to mix fonts and ideally space them right to be able to create my own "subway art" with the blocks of text with tons going on but with a clean look! I seriously thought about taking the class, but I just can't afford to right now, with three year old twins and too much going on, money wise. So to win this would be awesome! I'd really like to be involved with this classroom, Ali! Thanks for offering us the chance.

Congratulations Katie! We will be in touch. 

Give Sunday | 15

This year, in honor of my 2015
One Little Word® "give," I'm sharing a hand-drawn quote each Sunday here on my blog.

This quote from Ansel Adams seemed fitting this week as the prompt we are working on in One Little Word® is photo-related and my newest Story theme centers on photography (Click). Just a heads up that we will be closing the 2015 One Little Word® classroom to any new students as of April 30th. If you were still thinking about jumping in or want to join a community of people who are working to make their words visible now is the time.  

Click here to read my initial post and download the #givesunday word art title and checklist for helping you to give a little something today. You can also view all the past #givesunday quotes via the archives. 

Click here to download the #givesunday 15 quote. Please note: If you are reading this post via email you need to click through to the actual blog post to download the file. 

You're invited to join me. What will you
give today?

Have a wonderful Sunday. 

New Story Theme Now Available | Click

Say hello to a new
Story Theme for my Story Subscription Program: Click. 

I can't believe a new month has come around already and we are in mid-April 2015. Crazy. 

This month we are telling stories of some of our favorite photographs, stories of our relationship and history with photography and pictures, stories of times when things just clicked, and stories of the people we click with best. 

If you are already a subscriber to you can now access the content in the classroom (
make sure you are logged in to your account). 

If you are new to the Story Subscription program, check out all the details 
here. 

Here's a look at the Story Kit™ contents:

And the Story Stamp™:

We also have a 
Digital Story Kit™ subscription available that includes access to the classroom content. 

Here's a look at what's included for Click:

Here's a video overview of the products included in the kits this month: 

Story Stamp™ & Story Kit™ | Click Product Overview from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

And a couple peeks at the layouts I created with the kits this month (
full details, including video and how-to handout, are included with subscription): 

Let's tell stories together!

REMINDER | There's less than a week until my new 12-week workshop Type gets underway (begins April 20th). Get all the details and register here. 

Through The Lens | Version Scrap Tabletops

Yesterday I wrapped up three full days of teaching workshops at the Version Scrap event in Paris, France. 

It's been a whirlwind trip to one of my favorite cities. Katie and I arrived last Tuesday morning and did a bit of sight-seeing, visiting some of our favorite places during the first few days as we acclimated to the 9 hour time difference. Mostly it was walking around because just doing that in Paris is so awesome. The event began on Friday and between then and Sunday I taught 8, 2.5 hour long workshops to some of the most wonderful people on the planet. Kind, interested, excited to be in on the workshop - really a great group of people. We all spoke the language of memory keeping. To the students - thank you so much for taking time out of your lives to come to the workshops, to listen to my attempts at French, and for sharing your own stories. It was a pleasure to meet you all. 

And serious hats off to my fabulous interpreter Emilie - she totally made the experience that much better: professional, fun, excited about memory keeping, knowledgeable, etc. Loved meeting you Emilie. 

As I walked from person to person, table to table, it was so fun to see what each spot looked like from above as the students worked on their projects. I decided to take a few shots with my iPhone of their projects in progress to share with you today. 

We'll be in the air most of the day today, flying home via San Francisco. I'm excited to get back to the kids and get ready for Type (new 12-week online workshop) to begin next Monday. There's still time to join in before class begins (registration will remain open during the first two weeks of the workshop as well).

Have a great day!

Give Sunday | 14

UPDATED | I apologize for the apostrophe mistake. When I return home from my teaching event in Europe I will fix it and repost a correct version. 

This year, in honor of my 2015
One Little Word® "give," I'm sharing a hand-drawn quote each Sunday here on my blog.

Click here to read my initial post and download the #givesunday word art title and checklist for helping you to give a little something today. You can also view all the past #givesunday quotes via the archives. 

Click here to download the #givesunday 14 quote. Please note: If you are reading this post via email you need to click through to the actual blog post to download the file. 

You're invited to join me. What will you
give today?

Have a wonderful Sunday. 

Give Sunday | 13

This year, in honor of my 2015
One Little Word® "give," I'm sharing a hand-drawn quote each Sunday here on my blog.

Click here to read my initial post and download the #givesunday word art title and checklist for helping you to give a little something today. You can also view all the past #givesunday quotes via the archives. 

Click here to download the #givesunday 13 quote. Please note: If you are reading this post via email you need to click through to the actual blog post to download the file. 

You're invited to join me. What will you
give today?

Have a wonderful Sunday. 

Type | Workshop Giveaway

Here's your chance to win a spot in my upcoming, brand-new 12-week online workshop Type. 

Leave a comment below letting me know what you hope to learn most/take away from this workshop.

For a second chance to win head over to Scrapbook & Cards Today blog (giveaway open until April 9th) and leave a comment on their giveaway post. 

For full details about this workshop, including a video overview, click on over to the shop page here. 

Also, don't forget that Monday April 6th is the last day to sign up before the 20% discount goes away. 

I hope you guys have an awesome weekend and Happy Easter!

This giveaway will close at midnight on Wednesday, April 8th. The winner will be announced shortly after. 

Rules For Living | Scrapbook & Cards Today Spring 2015 Article

The Spring issue of 
Scrapbook & Cards Today is now available and my article this time is all about documenting Rules For Living. We've updated my column for 2015 and it's now called Spark Your Story and each article will include a specific Story Spark to get your storytelling mojo going.

In this issue I'm continuing a collection of layouts I started for my Hello Story workshop a few years back (it should be available again here as a self-paced class very soon). In that workshop I introduced the idea and for this article I took some time to add more pages that are rooted in the same core concept. I love the idea of building a collection of pages around the same theme. Some of the questions I ask myself as I'm thinking about my own Rules For Living include: What are the life-affirming concepts I want to pass on to my kids? What's important to me and what do I value? What do I hope for them in their lives? What would I want them to know if I was gone tomorrow?  

My friends, scrapbooking is an awesome opportunity to get these kinds of things documented. And please know that you absolutely don't have to have kids to document your own values and or what's important to you in your life. 

Today I'm sharing the full images of my layouts here but invite you to click over and download your own FREE digital copy of the magazine and read my full article that includes more about the concept and ideas related to each layout. You can also become a subscriber and have it delivered to your home address(awesome). They have even set it up where you can download just a PDF of my article: Spark Your Story.

Here's a look at the pages I created for this issue: 

Rules For Living #001 | Give Love

Here's the journaling: 

One of the most important things in life is to feel loved and to give love . Here’s some of my own personal thoughts and observations about giving love throughout your life: Give love by being present. Give love to your family members - sometimes it’s easy to start taking those you care most about for granted. Give them the gift of your love every chance you can get. Give love even when it’s hard. I wish I could tell you it’s always easy and simple to give love and maybe it will be that way for you. For me, sometimes it’s hard, especially when I feel hurt or am having a hard day. Give love to new and old friends. Give love by sharing your life with others. Use your words to tell people what they mean to you. Give love by following your heart. It may lead you to some really amazing places and experiences. Make your own map. Give love as a way to grow. Giving love doesn’t mean that everything has to be (or will be) perfect. Giving love is about being open - to yesterday and today and the possibilities of tomorrow. Give love to yourself - take your time, honor your intuition, give yourself a break when and if you start being too hard on yourself or too rigid. Give love by showing up. Be the one that shows up again and again. Give love in the morning. Give love in the afternoon. Give love in the evening. Give love by going out of your way to do something nice for someone else. Give love by volunteering. Give love by calling a friend just because. Give love even if it’s not immediately given back. Giving love isn’t always as simple and easy as it should be - do it anyway. Pay attention. Give love by asking how you can help. Giving love makes you feel loved. Give your full attention - look each other in the eyes. Give love by hugging just a little tighter and a little longer. Give love by accepting other people as they are and not trying to change them. Give love with big and little deeds. Give love by saying “I love you.” out loud and often. Give love by forgiving. Give love by loving yourself.

Rules For Living #003 | See The World

Here's the journaling:

Get on that airplane or bus or boat or in that car and Go. Say yes to adventures that get you out of your normal everyday. Go see the world. Learn about new places and be open to new experiences. There is so much to see and to experience in this big world. Travel really does open our eyes to so much. Study abroad. Backpack around Europe. Get lost. Have overnight adventures to local places. Close your eyes and take off. Make time to see stuff and be amazed at how awesome this world we live in really is - meet people and ask questions and learn. Breathe it all in. Love you guys.  

Layered template used in the above layout is available here. "Aka get outta dodge" was cut with the Silhouette. 

Rules For Living #004 | Always Say Please And Thank You

Here's the journaling: 

It's a ridiculously simple rule. Say please and thank you. Every time. Every single time. I would encourage you to err on the side of being overly polite. It shows you are paying attention. It shows you are aware of what's going on around you. And it's the beginning of a life-practice of gratitude. Gratitude is bigger than please and thank you, but I think it might just possibly start there. One of my greatest hopes for you guys is that you will be the kind of people who not only feel but express gratitude. It's a great way to start and end your day. We often do it before dinner and I know sometimes it feels silly or you feel uncomfortable having to come up with something but it is so, so worth it in the long run for your life. Please and thanks is just the beginning. You can do it. I know you can and I believe in you. 

That lovely type treatment on the layout above is a sticker from one of Me & My Big Ideas Big Sticker packages: The Good Life. I am totally loving their giant packages of alphabets and phrases. 

Big thanks to Scrapbook & Cards Today for being so great to work with! 

Join Me For TYPE | 20% Off Offer Ends April 6th

If you are interested in telling more of the stories of your life sure to check out my next 12-week online workshop Type. This class will focus on all kinds of different ways memory keepers can use type/alphabets to help tell the stories of our lives - as you can see from the layouts above, type is a big part of what I use to tell my stories and embellish my layouts. I'll be sharing design and storytelling ideas, tips, inspiration, and how-to's throughout the 12-weeks via handouts and videos. Please remember that regardless of the topic of workshop, all my content tends to come from the place of story. How does type help us to communicate our stories  more effectively? How does playing with type make memory keeping more fun? 

There's just a few more days to register during the 20% off promotional period (ends Monday, April 6th). Click here to watch a short video where I outline the weekly topics and sign up. Class begins April 20th. 

Spring Break RV Adventure 2015

As you might remember from some of my previous posts, for Spring Break this year Aaron and I decided to plan a week-long RV adventure with all five of the kids. 

We survived. 

We started with grand plans - Utah, Grand Canyon, California - and then scaled back as we considered some of the basics such as this being our first time renting a RV, not knowing how it was all going to go, etc. We spent a bunch of time talking about closer places to go here in Oregon and ended up deciding on spending half of our week at Sunset Bay State Park and half at Jessie M. Honeyman State Park. Our thought process was that we would drive to the one that was farther away first (Sunset Bay) and then have a quicker drive home at the end of the week (in a car it takes about an hour and a half or so to get from Eugene to Honeyman - just outside of Florence - depending on traffic). We reserved our campsites in advance online through Reserve America. 

We rented the RV from a local RV dealership - Guaranty - and it was a pretty easy process all around. We chose the 2015 Itasca Spirit 31H because it included enough sleeping spots that each of the five kids could have their own space at night. It was a really good choice for this group. 

I loved the suggestions that many of you gave for our trip in the comments this post. Thank you again for sharing your experiences. 

Aaron and I picked up the RV on Friday afternoon and brought it over to my house and started loading it up before the kids were picked up and dropped off. The dealership had actually asked us to pick it up on Friday (our reservation technically started on Saturday) because it was going to help them with the scheduling and walk-throughs with other renters. Picking it up the day before we left made it really easy to pack (it still took a few hours) and make sure we had everything before we took off on Saturday morning. 

Before we left, I jotted down a few of the things I was looking forward to on the Notes app on my phone: 

Taking photosHanging lights outside the RVBeing together // connectingHiking // walking // being outsideDisconnecting 

The photos I'm sharing in this post are a mix of iPhone and Canon 5D.

Of course I had to do a camera-on-the-dash-self-timer-shot before Aaron started driving. 

And as you can see, Simon and all the kids were pretty darn excited about embarking on this adventure. 

It took 4 hours or so to get from my house to Sunset Bay (we stopped for lunch along the way). 

Here's a look at our campsite at Sunset Bay State Park. This is close to my parents house and we had them go check out a spot for us that was close to the showers and bathrooms. They did a great job picking a spot that fit what we were looking for this time. 

Keep in mind, this is spring in western Oregon. Spring Break for us never means sunshine necessarily and it most often includes rain. It's how everything stays green of course. We knew this going into the adventure so we were ready for it to rain or be sunny (or a crazy mix of both as it turned out).

We were pretty happy to see the sun when we pulled into our spot. 

As soon as we started unloading the kids were off to explore on their bikes. I'm so glad we decided to bring the bikes. We went back and forth a bit and ended up renting the bike carrier attachment for the back of the RV and then stored the girls bikes underneath in some of the storage areas. Next time it will be more awesome for Anna because she will be done with those training wheels. 

The first thing Simon did was get a map so he could explore the entire campground. 

Walkie-talkies came in super handy to keep track of these guys. 

We brought along a bag of coloring books for the girls as well as a basket of books and some Playmobil people. 

These two are quite the pair actually. They are just a little over a month apart (both 6) and they really enjoy each others company most of the time. We intervened a few times for little arguments here and there but for the most part they were just so darn happy to play with each other for six days straight. 

We did choose to bring along electronics, mainly for the mornings.

We did have one day where it rained buckets and buckets and we stayed in the RV the entire day. 

I'm not going to lie, that day was rough. 

But we all made it through and the next day was overcast and warmer - which was much, much better than pouring down rain.

We're Oregonians, we make it through. 

This is a beach that Simon has been to many times before with my parents. I love watching him explore.  

After a couple nights at Sunset Bay we packed up and drove the short distance to my parents house before making our way to Honeyman. My parents were actually in Seattle visiting my new niece Olive so we missed getting the chance to see them but we did take advantages of their hot showers, wifi, and awesome stairs down to the beach. 

As you can see, the blue sky appeared again. 

I love how kids don't really care how cold it actually is outside. 

Grandma and Grandpa have cool stuff to explore. 

Audrey and Anna wrote a note to my parents while we were visiting their house: 

After we finished up a load of wash, showered and had lunch we started the drive to Honeyman. It's about a 2-hour drive between the two in a RV. 

Aaron and I had picked out our spot at Honeyman on that weekend we stayed at Washburne State Park around Valentine's Day. At Honeyman we wanted a spot close to the showers/bathrooms, close to one of the trails to the sand dunes and close to the playground. This spot also worked out great. 

Honeyman is the second largest overnight camp in Oregon and is located basically right next to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area - 40 miles of wind-sculpted, shifting sand dunes. 

Really it's just an awesome place to run and jump and get your photo taken and then roll down giant sand hills. 

Not everyone could fit at the table at the same time so when the weather was nice some ate outside or we did it in shifts. 

We did end up planning out our meals which definitely made things simple. I brought the crock pot for chili and for meatball sandwiches. We did grilled cheese (or tuna & cheese for some) one night and burritos another night and hot dogs on another night of course. We did bring a little more food than we ended up needing, but it wasn't too crazy over the top. We did sandwiches most of the days for lunch and cereal or oatmeal (or toast for Simon) for breakfast.  

I ordered a tube of glow stick bracelets and brought them out one evening. For the win. 

The weather kept getting better as the days went by. Honeyman is on a lake which makes for some fun swimming spots - especially in the summer when it really gets warm enough. 

Of course, the kids didn't seem to mind. 

These four played and played and played. Simon explored and then sat down to chat with me and Aaron. 

One of my favorite memories from this trip will be reading Harry Potter (Goblet Of Fire) out loud to the kids a couple evenings. 

Aaron's oldest son Isaac (just turned 10) has read them all multiple times so he and I engaged in some fun trivia - including Simon when he was interested. 

On Friday morning we packed up and drove home, getting back in time for the other adults in the kids lives to come pick them up. We spent the next couple of hours unpacking and then cleaning the RV before driving it back over to Guaranty and then falling into my bed after a very full, fun week.  

On Saturday we drove up to Portland to celebrate Aaron's sister's birthday (check out this awesome Tiki Bar called Hale Pele next time you are in town). We also celebrated making it through the RV adventure. 

Would I do it again? Absolutely. I'm someone that already likes camping and will definitely sleep in a tent again in my lifetime. But add in a warm, dry place to cook and sleep that's not a tent - I'm totally sold. 

As with any vacation (or life experience, ha) there were some challenges. Personalities colliding. Agitations. Fairness stuff. Discussions about this and that and he said and she said. Tears shed. Escalations. I had a few moments where I lost my cool and needed a break. I think we all had a few of those moments. Lots and lots of sweeping (even with a shoes off in the RV policy). Moments where we felt like all we were doing was cleaning up from one meal and starting on the next. Moments that tested communication abilities all around. 

Real life stuff comes along on vacation too. 

There was also a lot of laughter and silliness and exploration and independence building and fresh air. There were smores and glow bracelets and bike rides and new friends at the park and jumps off the dunes. There were two families coming together, in all our imperfections, figuring it out one moment at a time. Expanding hearts bit by bit. 

PS | Don't forget that the Spring Sale is happening now with 40% off my digital products and 25% off all alphabet stickers. Shop the sale here. Also don't forget to sign up for my new 12-week online workshop Type - signing up before April 6th gets you 20% off the full price.