trying to get my scanner to work....

I really, really want to post more pages in 2011 but I am facing some challenges. First of all, my scanner seems to be producing inconsistent images. Parts seem overexposed and I'm not sure what to do about it. Secondly, I have yet to find a great stitching program that works with Windows 7 and and doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I used to use a program that came with my scanner - well, two or three scanners ago. That definitely isn't going to work now. Third, I really, really stink at photographing layouts. Even when I use a tripod I can't seem to get a good image. If anyone has any good tips I'd love to hear them - this is how my layouts are coming out right now:



BTW as bad as that image is, I LOVE those photos. That's my niece last summer grabbing onto my daughter in the kiddie pool. Plus I love those bright Doodlebug papers, and the simplicity of the whole thing. Thanks to Jennifer for giving me the Bazzill border.

Our awesome friend, Matt Wilga, has just released his first single, There I Go. In celebration of his accomplishment and getting to see him play live in Amherst, we stamped these shirts to wear to the show. Being a crafter is extra handy for things like these - I already had these huge Heidi Swapp stamps (which I love) and some black Crafter's ink by Colorbox. I'm not sure the show was strictly appropriate for our daughter, given the other acts and the lateness of the hour, but she is a big fan so we didn't want her to have to miss it. He dedicated a song to her and gave her the set list.

I'm so glad the cold weather is almost behind us for another year. Esme and I like to sit outside with paints or colored pencils, at home or at the park, and let Ethan serenade us while we create. This is one of my last winter-inspired pictures for this year, and it's a typical scene from my life! It's just a quick sketch with oil pastels and acrylic paints, where I made some swirls on paper and saw what kind of people would emerge. Now I'm looking forward to Friday, when I hear we might hit 72 degrees here in the Pioneer Valley, and hoping that soon pictures of little girls in flowered dresses will emerge from those swirls.

Yesterday was my Esme's birthday - I can't believe she is 7 years old! We had quite a nice day together. We are still waiting for her first two wiggly teeth to come out though.

I made this scrapbook page the night before while scrapping with my friend, Lisa, via Skype. Skype is one of my favorite inventions ever - we live many miles apart but can get together pretty much every week to scrap together!

A couple months ago I tried the Northampton Arts Night Out with my family and few friends, but didn't find much going on. Esme and I went out last night and were very pleased to find LOTS of things happening! We started at the Smith College Art Museum. On second Fridays admission is free and they have lots of activities for families. Esme got to get her face painted, have some snacks, and do some beading. The best part was a coloring book with different images throughout the museum in it - she loved tracking each of the paintings down.


Next we headed over to Pinch, to see this show by one of my favorite local artists, Sarah Ahearn. I got to meet her at Paradise City last Fall and I love her collages/paintings. Her new work is wonderful and I was glad Esme and I got a chance to talk to her for a few minutes.

The last thing we did downtown was stop by A.P.E. Esme was fascinated because there was a man in the window doing a bit of a performance piece. He was painted himself and he would slowly move to pretend to be painting color onto a real flower. Esme has been to several animatronic science shows lately, and would not believe that the man was not a robot, no matter how many times I insisted otherwise. We went inside and watched for a bit, and even then back outside on the sidewalk it was hard to tear her away.

It was a very nice evening out with my baby! I love sharing these things with her!

Since her dad and I are both sick and have been laying around listlessly most of the day, Esme needed a little Mommy time. I decided to sit up for a while and scrap with her, and wanted to do a new layout of us together, just to remind her how much I love her. Some girls over from the peaboard have a new challenge blog, so I thought I would give their first one a go. Esme and I had a nice afternoon together and now I'm back to bed!