back to life, back to reality

This past weekend, my mom and I spent 3 days in sunny Arizona for Creative Escape.......a weekend filled with creating, crafting and consuming (food not alcohol)!! We laughed a lot, made a few projects, and met some amazing women along the way. But the best part for me, was that my passion was scrapbooking was reignited.

I'm not exactly sure why, but over the past year, my desire to scrapbook has all but disappeared. Because I am working more? Because I have a 2 and 4 year old? Because it's not convenient? Because I wasn't inspired? Because I was in a rut? Because I was overwhelmed?

It was probably a combination of all of those things. But after this weekend, I am ready to jump back on the scrapbooking bandwagon. I am ready to document our memories again. I am ready to create magical moments, and then record them for eternity. I am ready to pair photos and words to tell our story. I am ready to "taste life twice."

I was reminded this weekend that despite scrabooking's somewhat corny reputation, there is nothing corny or frivolous about being the family historian. Every time I make a scrapbook layout, or a mini-book, or take the time to write down something silly my children said, I am showing them that they are important, that they matter, that they are loved. I am leaving our mark on history. I am elevating the "ordinary."

So it's time to bust out the supplies again and get crackin.' Thank you Creative Escape for reminding me.

p.s. I decided to leave my big SLR at home this weekend, and only brought the point-n-shoot = huge mistake!! The above photo is the only (and I mean ONLY) photo that I can even stand of myself. I couldn't figure out how to turn off my flash (no one at the event could figure it out either), so every single photo looks blown out, blurry and ridiculously unflattering = another lesson I learned this weekend......just bring the darn SLR!!!