our hawaii photo book.

many years ago, my parents took my sisters & i on a trip to hawaii over thanksgiving.  it was the coolest way to spend the holiday.  we went to a luau, snorkeled, danced in rain, and found some awesome local adventures.  of course, we loved it and ever since then have wanted to make another trip back to paradise.

then this past november, the scheduling gods finally aligned and after many years of wishing and hoping, we got the entire family to celebrate another thanksgiving in maui.

we were there for a week or sand, sun & fun.  many new memories were made and many photos taken.  when we arrived home, i didn't know what to do with the photos.  i had already added a few of my favorites into my project life spread and didn't think an entire mini book was necessary.  then i remembered about artifact uprising.  a friend of mine posted a sneak peak of her book on instagram & i was intrigued.

it was one of the best decisions i've made.  i chose the softcover 5.5x5.5 book and just dragged & dropped the photos from our trip into my preferred layouts.  the entire book building process took me about 45 minutes- or in my case, an episode of scandal.  90% of the photos used were from my instagram feed so to be honest, i was nervous about the quality of the images since i didn't change the resolution.

but any worry was in vain.  the book turned out beautifully and the quality fantastic.  i love the recycled paper & matte images and in about 20 pages, i packed in over 100 photos memories.   let's just say i couldn't be happier.  this is the perfect memoir for our once-in-a-blue-moon family vacation.

please note: artifact uprising did not ask me to write this post.  the views are that of a very satisfied customer and are all my own.

weekly letters.

dear radster, every morning you make me feel like the most loved pup-mama ever.  i'll cherish this snuggle time always.  lazy saturday mornings, sometimes despite your gorgeous sunshine and perfect temperatures, all i want to do is paint.  thanks for being consistent so we can play later in the day.  dear mr. adventuruss, things have been challenging for you lately but your get-it-done gusto & plan making is so inspiring and uplifting.  i'm grateful for a love like yours.  dearest sculpin ipa, i miss you already.  i'm counting down the days until i can enjoy your fizzy hops.

31 adventures// a flight to catalina island.

i'm starting this challenge with one of the most grandiose adventures, i know.  however, one of the best perks of being a pilot's wife is every once and awhile, i get to go on some really cool flights around san diego.  last week, andrew needed to get an endorsement (pilots have to get different endorsements to qualify in various airplanes) & in order to do so, he needed to go on a cross-country plane ride.  that being said, we flew in a six-seater plane with one of andrew's instructors and his family from a small san diego airport to the one and only airport on catalina island.

flying in a small plane is so different than a regional jet.  first, it takes much longer to get places which, i found surprising and in some cases, it's actually quicker to drive.  then, there's the issue of noise.  the airplane is really loud and you have to wear specialized headsets to not only protect your ear drums, but also communicate with one another.  as i discovered on this flight, if your headset doesn't work you really miss out on the entire conversation!

finally, you have this amazingly intimate view from above.  on this particular flight we had spectacular weather.  the ocean and skies were the brightest blue, the city sparkled under the sunlight and seeing southern california from above just blew my mind.

once we arrived to catalina, we had a quick lunch at the airport, scoped out the conservatory, and a couple hours later, headed back home.  it was a quick trip- much faster than our day trip last fall.

i feel so fortunate to have opportunities like this.  andrew loves to fly; it's definitely his passion.  i on the other hand, love to travel- and flying is a means to get where i'm going.  but watching him fly is so much fun & makes me appreciate the craft that much more.  flight is an amazing thing & no matter where you're headed, it's most definitely an adventure.

springtime faves.

around these parts, spring is my favorite.  the weather is perfect, flowers are blooming, food gets lighter, and i'm always inspired to make pretty things.  here are a few of my faves right now.  what are you favorite things this spring?

fitbit// julie's kitchen// kitchen aid citrus attachment// martha stewart's encyclopedia of sewing and fabric crafts// essie sheer bliss nail polish// gold leaf vases// studio calico project life kits// swiss cheese philodendron

project life 2014 // january & february.

last year was my first attempt at project life.  i didn't know much about this project when i began- only that it seemed like a cool way to document our life over the course of the year.  so i dove in head first, bought everything i needed on amazon, & began the 52 week process.

and very briefly, here's what i learned: i really enjoy project life.  the simple, turn-key process took the fun (but sometimes daunting) task of scrapbooking & turned it on it's head.  & i love that.  however, this was also a much bigger commitment than i was prepared for.  52 weeks of documenting is hard work.  i won't lie, my motivation definitely wained & by september i almost thought i would give up.  but then, i flipped to the front of the book, strolled through the rhythm of our life and knew that a project like this was too cool not to complete.

fast forward to today.  as i wrapped up my 2013 book (i didn't share any of the books progress online- mostly because i fell behind on blogging all together, not because i didn't want to) i knew i wanted to keep project-life'ing'.  i also knew i didn't have the enthusiasm or bandwidth to commit to another 52-week project.  and i was okay with that.  i have other things i'm passionate about and chose to spend some time exploring those avenues instead.  that said, i still love capturing the everyday small stuff (that ends up being the big stuff) in our lives and decided to complete another project life album this year as well- only on a monthly basis.

it's so refreshing and i'm having a lot of fun with this format.  i'm finding time to be more creative, play with paper and paint and embellishments.  i spend more time looking for inspiration and don't worry about documenting everything.  while i'm sure it will seem a bit more abridged compared to our 2013 album, it still tells the story of us, vibrantly, honestly and with lots of love.

this time around i'm sticking with a format that's more me.  i'm not a fan of 12x12 spreads.  personally, i think the binders are too big (they actually don't fit on any of our bookcases) & it takes a lot for me to find inspiration without a lot of embellishments.  so i opted for an 8.5x11 binder and since there aren't too many pocket options for this size book available for project life, i chose to use the ever-classic baseball card sleeves.  the only downside to this format is that you have to cut everything since the precut project life cards don't fit into the sleeves.

right now my intention is to keep using these pages throughout the year- maybe with a few modifications, of course- and share each layout the following month.  i'm finding inspiration through some of my favorite project life designers all who have embraced their style and made this project work for them.  i love the diversity of project life; it's a keeper.