Hello there. How's it going? I seriously can't believe it's already the middle of September. My kids have been back to school for a month now and we're finally transitioned into a good routine. It was rough going for a bit, but things have finally evened out (thank goodness). Sometimes I forget it's not summer, since it's still so hot here in Arizona. I'm dreaming of slightly cooler temperatures, though we won't see those for more than a month. A girl can dream, right? If you come to my blog regularly, then you'll notice things look a little different. I recently completed a migration to WordPress. I started blogging way back in 2006 and have been using Blogger since the beginning. Now that I'm all grown up, it was time to make the switch. I'll be adding links to my Etsy shop, as well as some peeks at my freelance (design) portfolio, which has been steadily growing.

Anyway. Today I have a couple of new layouts to share. These were created for Simple Scrapper using Spetember 2013 premium templates and story starters.

This first one features a photo of Shelby and her teacher, Mrs. D. Shelby has Mrs. D for third grade and we were thrilled to have her again for 4th grade. The layout implies that the photo was taken on the first day of school. It wasn't. It was taken the second week of school. I was out of town on business the first week of school, and I wasn't super "happy" with the photos Mike took on the first day. I love my husband. And I love that he always snaps photos when ever I ask for them (I say ask, he says demand) … but I'm definitely a little pickier about the results. SO, I decided to "recreate" the first day of school, so we could have photos that I loved. These photos aren't just "better", they also do a better job of telling the story of the new school year and Shelby's love of Mrs. D. So, why do I tell you this? Don't be afraid to "re-take" some photos if you aren't happy with them. Obviously, you can't always do this, but if you can and you want to … then do it.

Template: Simple Scrapper Premium Membership

Journaing reads: I blinked and Shelby was no longer a baby. My sweet Shelby Rose is now a fourth grader. I’m equally happy and heartbroken. I love the girl she’s growing up to be, but I miss that little baby of mine. This year marks Shelby’s third year at Satori (we love it there) and she’s blessed to have Mrs. D again (we love her even more than Satori). Here’s to another awesome year.

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This second page was inspired by one of the awesome story starters you get each month as a premium member at Simple Scrapper. We all have lots of stories to tell, but sometimes, we have a bit of a brain freeze when it comes time to commit those stories to paper. This is why I love the story starters. They give me a push to get a story told that might not have made it from my memory to a page.

 Story Starter: Simple Scrapper Premium Membership

Journaling reads: This has been our home for more than six years now. I love it, but I hate it. I love the city we live in. I love that we’re close to family. I love how big our house is. I love the memories we’ve created inside its walls. I love that it’s close to the airport. I love that we have an extra room for my “studio.” I hate that it lacks the character of our last house. I hate that it doesn’t “feel” more like Southern Arizona. I hate that it’s so far from “town” and school.  I hate how poorly it was constructed, it’s literally falling apart. It’s been a good house, but I’m ready to move on.

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The Premium Membership at Simple Scrapper provides skills and shortcuts to help you simplify and find more meaning in your memory keeping.