I think I have a solution to my scrapping conundrum. I decided that if I was ever going to scrap again that I had to do something to make it easy to scrap on the couch with the family. In order to make that happen I have to have supplies on my computer hard drive. Thing is, I don’t want to move all of my supplies over to the laptop. I need to do some culling of the supplies anyway, so I have decided that I would only move over what I really use.
To begin this process I wanted to start on a Disney album and start getting those pictures scrapped while the memories are still fresh. I hooked up to my EHD and picked some neutral background papers and one kit for the album. This forces me to stick to one basic color palette for the album, which makes it a more cohesive album and also saves time. No more spending a half-hour hunting for “that one element I know I have.”
I also downloaded the trial for Photoshop Elements 8 so I could give that a whirl and see what I think. I used it to create this page about our dinner at Planet Hollywood -
Journaling:
It’s a pretty simple page focusing mostly on the pictures and the story. It’s also a new format for me. I decided to try an 8-1/2×11 page format for this album. I kinda like it.
We’ll see what the final verdict is in 30 days.
Saturday morning we were back up early and dressed quickly. We arrived at Epcot early and made it in time for rope drop! Yay! WHile the characters were greeting and rope drop festivities were happening Party Boy and I were examining the map and planning our strategy! 
Most of the big rides at Epcot have height requirements, so Captain Chaos spent a lot of time at alternate activities while we parent-swapped the rides.
I didn’t get as many pictures here because it started raining off an on all day, so I had to put my camera away pretty early to keep it safe.
Captain Chaos’ favorite spot was The Seas pavillion. He loves fish and especially Nemo!
Best dinner of the weekend was at the Garden Grill. We visited with Mickey Mouse, Pluto and Chip and Dale!
You may notice that Hollywood is missing from the photos. She is still a little put of by characters in costume. She won’t scream and try to run away anymore, but her tolerance usually ends at giving a high-five and then keeping her distance unless I or Party Boy go with her for the picture… What can you do?
Meeting Goofy and Donald
Eating ice cream
Riding Big Thunder Mountain
Meeting Lilo and Stitch
Hollywood’s dessert at dinner – a Mickeylodeon!
It’s taken a few days, but I have finally recovered from our trip. And by “recovered” I mean I’ve done approximately 30,000 loads of laundry and can now see that the hamper is not, in fact, bottomless as I once suspected!
We left for Orlando last Thursday for a whirlwind weekend. Our first evening we went to Planet Hollywood for dinner in Downtown Disney. While we were there MOTS received a button celebrating her birthday earlier in the month. It was a very cool street party which involved her dancing in front of a rather lareg crowd…
On Friday morning we got up and drove into the happiest place on earth, The Magic Kingdom.
We rode a couple of rides, including Pirates of the Carribbean. When we came out of Pirates we noticed a….pirate. He was setting up for some kind of show that turned out to be Captain Jack Sparrow’s Pirate Tutorial. It sounded like fun.
Captain Jack made his appearance and after a little fun with the whole crowd he started calling kids up from the audience. I guess he saw MOTS birthday tag because he called her up by name!
She sword fought his assistant -
then pointed off into the distance and said, “Look! It’s the governor’s daughter!”
The pirate turned to look and she scurried away. All important skills for a pirate according to Captain Sparrow. At the end, MOTS received a certificate naming her an official pirate under the service of Captain Jack Sparrow. Very cool!!
We had an amazing day in the Magic Kingdom, riding every ride that we wanted to. Favorites were Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin, Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor, and Mickey’s Philharmagic. They really enjoyed Pirates, Haunted Mansion and Big Thunder Mountain as well.
We were surprised at the number of rides that Captain Chaos was able to ride (most all of them) and enjoy. We all had a blast!
Tomorrow, Epcot.
We got back late last night from a whirlwind trip to Orlando. The kids are still asleep and the laundry is running load after load after load. It was a fun trip and I’ll do a highlight post once I get the pictures uploaded.
In other news, the fish and the onion seedlings survived our absence.
We have a busy week ahead with appointments and garden chores and laundry, oh my! And let’s not even get me started on how excited I am for the premeire of LOST tonight! Oh my cow. I can hardly WAIT!
So, how’s your week shaping up?
Time to round-up the events of January 2010.
What books and/or magazines did I read this month?
Shoot/Don’t Shoot
The Seed-Starter’s Guide
The Homestead Year
The Organic Garden
Martha Stewart’s Guide to Homekeeping
The Gardener’s A-Z Guide to Growing Organic Food
The Practical Encyclopedia of Garden Pests and Diseases
Designing the New Kitchen Garden: An American Potager Handbook
The Organic Gardener’s Handbook to Insect and Disease Control
These are all linked to Amazon on this page.
What movies, television shows, plays, etc. did I watch this month?
Miracle at St. Anna’s, Avatar, Harry Potter 1-6, Lord of the Rings 1-3, 24, CSI:, Bones, The Office, Jersey Shore, The Real Housewives of Orange County, Mythbusters, Dirty Jobs
What fun things did I do with my family and/or friends?
Celebrated our 11th anniversary with dinner out and watching Avatar in 3D!
Lowe’s Build & Grow
Disney World!
Got fish – first Neon Tetras, then Dalmation Mollies.
What gifts did I give and/or receive?
Gave MOTS a fish tank set-up for her birthday.
What special or unusual purchases did I make?
A fish tank…
Books. I hardly ever buy them.
What illnesses or health concerns did I have?
For whatever reason, my nose runs when I eat. Weird.
What were my accomplishments this month?
I finished my December Daily 2009, helped organize a student event at church, cleaned out the girls overwhelming supply of clothes, got rid of my desk and the clutter on it, combined and cleaned out our file cabinets and re-organized the one we are keeping – took the extra to charity, completed 3-1/2 weeks of school, cooked dinner more than we ate out, started onions from seed in newspaper pots that we made ourselves! I also opened an accout at MyOtherDrive and started uploading and backing up our files off-site.
What were my disappointments this month?
I didn’t have much time to spend scrapping. I am hoping to get some time in this week that we are off school. I didn’t get as much done outside as I would have liked (flowerbeds cleaned out, etc.).
Anything else noteworthy to include?
I made a really good start on Captain Chaos’ stocking before putting it aside to plan and study up for this years garden.
Outside my window…Dark. It’s been a perfectly lovely day and a nice crisp evening.
I am thinking…that cleaning a house with kids in it is a little like shovelling snow during a blizzard.
I am thankful for…cr@p TV. Nothing better to decompress to than junk on TV that requires little thought.
From the kitchen…Baked ziti (big hit with the kids!) and lemon cake (big hit with Party Boy!)
I am wearing…long-sleeved t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. And a baseball cap, because Captain Chaos thought we needed to match.
I am creating… Captain Chaos’ stocking
I am going…to bed early!
I am reading…Shoot/Don’t Shoot by J.A. Jance and Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook
I am hoping…to get the yard mowed in the morning. Yeah, mowing in January… only in Texas.
I am hearing…chatter from the kitchen and generic TV noises.
Around the house…mostly laundry and some general cleaning and organizing.
One of my favorite things…frozen chocolate chip cookie dough. Ate some this afternoon. Yum.
A few plans for the rest of the week…swim class, church, field trip, yard work.
A picture to share… these are newspaper pots that we folded to start our onion seeds, which have sprouted, by the way!
You just roll with the flow, man…
The other day I was cleaning out the CDs in our office. Party Boy is a fan of Classic Rock and has a few collections scattered here and there. I was gathering all of the CDs to organize them in one place.
As I was completing this task Captain Chaos wandered in and saw this CD laying on the floor next to me
He picked it up and studied it for a few seconds.
He looked at me with excitement all over his face. He pointed to Nancy Wilson (on the right). “Dat GRANNY!” he squealed and ran off to share.
Party Boy nearly collapsed from laughter.
A few minutes later Hollywood pops her head into the office and holds out the CD case. “Is that Granny?”
Ummmmm, no. She believes anything Captain Chaos tells her.
“You are about to board the Sue Sylvester Express. Destination – Horror.”
We are all about Glee on Wednesday nights here. I mean, when Glee is on our household comes to stop and we watch it, usually allowing it to get about 20 minutes ahead on the DVR so we can skip the commercials.
Currently, we are considering wearing black armbands until the show returns on April 14th. And no, we are indeed NOT fans of American Idol.
All of this to explain the following.
We got the Glee soundtrack recently. We listen to it. Alot.
Captain Chaos can now sing “Don’t Stop Believing” almost on key. I’ve even caught him humming it a couple of times while playing with toys. It’s probably the number one sign that we’ve been listening to the soundtrack a little much.
