Gerry Landreth

It sounds like lots of us are juggling things right now. I chuckled at the thought of Laurie trying to erase that one last stray pixel when the car hits a bump. Hopefully, you will have a smooth road.

 

Growing up, we would drive from Alabama to Duluth, MN to visit my mother's Aunt Bonnie, a gregarious character who knew how to laugh and spin a yarn. Mother (holding the fish) loved to go fishing with her cousin who always had a pair of waders and a rod ready for her.

 

Aunt Bonnie raised parakeets which is why a random bird is looking at the fish.

Thanks Annie.

 

I'm too am a CCR fan. In those days, there was always a bad moon a-rising when we loose on a Friday night.

This one is a bit off the wall ... It's Raining Men, "THE" dance song in the mid-80s.

 

Almost 40 years and several joint replacements later, jumping around on a dance floor is but a memory. A hazy one.

 

All pictures and overlays are from Pixabay and Freepik.

I was trying to make the background reminiscent of an old photo album. Success, in this case, is elusive.

 

Carole: The fonts I used in this challenge were from Creative Fabrica, either from the freebies or the $1/font sales. I encourage everyone to sign up for emails from them and Creative Market. Both offer free fonts and resources such as clipart and backgrounds.

 

Day 4 - Dayton Script: Dayton Script Font by Stellar Studio · Creative Fabrica

 

Day 5 - Calligraphy Script: Calligraphy Script Font by Shape Studio · Creative Fabrica

 

Day 6 - Magical - Magical Font by agniardii · Creative Fabrica

I wanted the backgrounds to be reminiscent of an old photo album. It's not quite there.

 

Carole: The fonts I have been using come from Creative Fabrica. In addition to the free fonts, I always check out their $1 font sales.

 

Day 4 - Dayton Script: Dayton Script Font by Stellar Studio · Creative Fabrica

 

Day 5 - Calligraphy Script: Calligraphy Script Font by Shape Studio · Creative Fabrica

 

Day 6 - Magical/Magical Sans: Magical Font by agniardii · Creative Fabrica

A sad anniversary is coming in a few weeks. It will be one year since Lynda passed away at 12 years. It was difficult to let her go.

 

She was a mother to the cats, River and Rudy. She was raised by two cats, so it came naturally.

A collage of my parents in their early years together. I will revisit this one. It needs a frame, but I need more practice on that skill before I get to what I want.

 

Carole - I'm a big fan of the scattered photo script.

Rudy was excited about being a mask model to help promote COVID precautions. After so many creative assignments, he was not impressed with the latest one.

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CAROLE!

Day 2 features a trip to Cathedral Grove in Muir Woods in San Francisco. It was a moving experience.

 

REVISION: I added a ledge for the squirrel. He is not the same species as Rocky, The Flying Squirrel, and it bothered me that he was just hanging in the air. I uploaded the full layout which shows the change.

Here is Day 1. The pictures in the ovals are my nieces. There are two pictures of each of their kids in chronological order.

 

We have big birthdays this year. In addition to the new addition, three are reaching milestones - 6, 10, and 13. One of the others turns 12 and has already started counting the days to 13. Noah turns four which means age is irrelevant as long as there are presents.

This is the first time I have tried working from a sketch. It was a good experience.

 

River is one of two of my cats. She was quite crusty when I found her at a few weeks old. Little did I know ...

All of the pictures this week have featured my great-nieces/nephews. The Day 7 project features my nieces, their mothers.

 

Carole: Thanks, as always, for a fun and challenging week. It's always a pleasure to learn new things and see the works of all the participants.

 

Font: Autour One. Frame: Pixelscrapper - Sharon-Dewi Stolp, Picnic Day Wood Veneer.

Brelan, 12.75-years old, is the oldest of my great-nieces/nephews. The countdown to a full-fledged teenager is well underway.

 

Font: Aclonica. Smile doodle: Pixelscrapper - Janet Kemp. Frame: Pixelscrapper - Jessica Dunn. Mask: Pixescrapper - Melo

 

Carole: The distortion technique is cool. I'm trying to figure out how one "accidentally" discovers such a thing, but I guess that is why it is an accident. A happy one.

 

As always, it is a pleasure to scroll through the posts to admire the projects, enjoy the stories, and learn from the questions.

My great-niece Maggie turned 12 recently. This picture is from 2016 when I first moved back to Alabama. It is still my favorite picture of her because of the impression she made on that day. She is named after my mother.

 

Font: Tiberius. Paper: Pixelscrapper - Gina Jones, Embrace Change Stacked Paper. Leaf Element: Pixelscrapper - Gina Jones, Autumn Winds

Londyn is a middle child who is always full of interesting surprises.

 

Font - Artifika; Background picture - Pixabay.

Day 3 - Corinne

 

Corinne has two older brothers who understand their place in the sibling hierarchy, also known as Corinne's World. She turns six in April.

 

The kaleidoscope colors came from the bridge of her sunglasses.

 

Frame/Mask - Melo Vrijhof's Mixed Media 3 Spill Frames from Pixelscrapper. Font - Spicy Rice (appropriate!)

Day 2 - Noah.

 

Noah turned three in December but has already started announcing that he will soon be four. Since he lives in Texas (we are in Alabama), we don't get to see him more than once or twice a year.

 

The plaid effect is a great tool. I tried several versions before realizing that I could either keep going or cook dinner. Mother was getting hungry, so the latter won out.

 

Bull Dog element - Pixabay; Font - The Rollingstone

Ann: I have a special place in my heart for vultures. In Miami, I worked downtown, surrounded by high rises. Every year at the same time, the turkey vultures would return to circle around the top of the buildings.

 

One morning, a co-worker squealed with delight. "Christmas is coming. The turkey vultures are here!"

 

Some areas mark the change of seasons by the weather. In Miami, there is a different kind of signal of change.

Baby Xavier was joined by Baby Amelia this past September. She is my mother's 6th great-grandchild. After a challenging year, with more challenging months ahead, Amelia's giggle lets me forget the ugly for a little while.

 

Paper - Pixel Scrapper (Maria Lerin); Font - Sinentosa; Hand with butterfly - FreePik; Butterfly element - Pixabay.

Athens, AL USA (near the Huntsville Space Center - rural to the west and high tech to the east)

 

One of the many fascinating aspects of this group is the diversity, including geographic.

Carole - As mentioned earlier, this project will be a work in progress for a while. But, I wanted to thank you for this challenge. Each one is an adventure in learning, exploring, and growing. It's always great to see everyone's work, and particularly exciting when participants share tips and ideas.

It's always fun and inspiring to see everyone's work. This project will be a work in progress for a while.

 

I am trying to find a way to help my mother keep up with birthdays. At 81, her eyes balk at small print. Using pictures of the kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids in their birthday month should make it easier.

 

Those who live in the far north, feel free to make fun of the "snow" in the January layout. Alabama doesn't get much, but it freaks them out when there is even a dusting. It's been a while since I lived in Boston, but the memories of digging the car out of snowdrifts still haunt me.

Hello! Carole's challenges always push me to learn new skills and fellow participants always push me to expand my creativity. The two don't always work at the same time or move in the same direction, but I always enjoy trying.

Ann Adams, thank you for sharing a wonderful story. With all that is going on around us, it is easy to forget that there is a lot of goodness out there.

 

 

Thank you for an excellent challenge. It's always fun to see everyone's work, but the stories were an added bonus.

 

Carole: I confess that I had to look up the number of steps there were to the bell tower. At the time, I had two concerns: was I going to have a heart attack before reaching the top or have one before I hit the ground after losing my balance.