Back to School Round-Up

It's the beginning of August and children are headed back to school throughout the month. Luckily, we have a few more weeks of summer at my house!

To get into the "back to school" mood, I've gathered together a few school-related craft projects, as well as some educationally-themed posts.

Back to School Project Tutorial: Upcycled Pencil Holders:

Week in the Life: Back to School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011:

Words of Wisdom: Try Something New:

Tutorial: Framed "Things To Do" list for School-Aged Children:

Would you use dryer lint on a [school-themed] scrapbook layout?:

12 Favorite Children's Books to Read Aloud:

 

Smashed Advice: Learn Something New:

Shopping for clothes and supplies were my favorite things before going back to school. What was (or is) your favorite way to prepare for a new school year? ~Danielle

Mail Art Exchange: Earth

The people at the post office must be smiling since it's Mail Art time! 

I was first introduced to the Mail Art Exchange by Lisa who received a gorgeous piece of art in the mail from Ginger and Ginger got the idea from Pass the Book. Make sense? Confused? Either way, you can read all about it on Ginger's blog and find out how to participate in the next round.

Anywho...after reading Lisa's Happy Mail post, I jumped at the chance to participate and wasn't I lucky? The theme was Earth.

I dug into my scrap paper container, pulled out leftovers from when I made eco-friendly business card bookmarks with DCWV recycled paper and created this card:

Eco-friendly Greeting Card

I decorated a bill envelope with paint (added in pink glitter but you can't see it here), ink and stamps to send the card to Melissa, who shared the mail art here.

Decorated Envelope for the Mail Art Exchange. 

Then I waited for my mail to arrive from Natalie and boy, I was excited when I spotted it in my mailbox! Who doesn't like receiving beautiful things in the mail?

Eco-friendly Postcard by Natalie of Almost Never Clever.

I love how Natalie decorated chipboard with strips of paper and turned it into an eco-friendly art postcard. This little project is giving me some big ideas!

Stay tuned for the first installment of Scrapbook Saturday as I introduce my long-time Twitter friend, Zaira! Click here to find out how you can be featured on a future Scrapbook Saturday post.

Related:

A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession
Illustration Friday: Mysterious
My simple craft room

Do you have one word that explains your life's mission?

I remember the days when all my reading would take place in books and magazines. Nowadays, I'm ingesting information from my cell phone and laptop. 

Blog after blog, article after article...it's easy to get lost on the information highway. Yet, it's a wonderful thing to find a post that sticks with you.

I read Shannon Entin's post What's on Your Ticket? during the summer and I tend to keep going back to it in my mind. Take a minute and read it. I'll wait.

My ticket would say CREATE. And that's what I try to do everyday.

A doodle from my Sketchbook Project.

What's on your ticket?

Related:

Words of Wisdom Wednesday
Illustration Friday: Mysterious
A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Illustration Friday: Boundaries

Illustration Friday Topic: Boundaries

Think outside of the box. No boundaries. That's how I try to live my life. 

How do you interpret this into your life? 

Feel free to share your answers below.

Related:

Words of Wisdom Wednesday

Illustration Friday: Mysterious

Secret journaling tool for scrapbookers

I ate beef (for the first time in over a year)

Today is the final installment of my twisted Week in the Life project. I've already taken you through six days of my life (including the thoughts that go through my brain) and showed you things like how I decided to purchase a new phone and what not to wear to Mi Hacienda.

On the last day of a Week in the Life, I ate something I shouldn't have.

Day 7: I Ate Beef (for the first time in over a year)

It was good, but I'm not doing it again.

The back story goes like this...

Thinking I was allergic to strawberries, I went to see an allergist to find out why I had an itchy skin rash that spread from my face to my back and chest. I ended up taking two different allergy tests and found out that I am highly allergic to almost every single weed and tree and mildly allergic to beef and crab (I'm also allergic to dust, dust mites, dogs, cats, nickel and probably to the dye/preservatives that are added to strawberries).

I had been wanting to stop eating beef and this was the perfect excuse to do so.


June 2010 was the last time I ate beef. 

Our family meal plan changed drastically with occasional complaints from my meat-lovin' husband. Every once in a while I would prepare some cow for the family, but I refused to eat the stuff.

Slowly, I began to crave a hamburger. Veggie burgers and chicken sandwiches couldn't fulfill that craving and watching shows like Man vs. Food didn't help either. Finally, I caved in, but with one condition: no fast food burgers (have you seen Fast Food Nation or The Meatrix movies? Seriously, go check them out! And if I would have watched those videos before I decided to cave in, I wouldn't have even considered eating beef again).

I bought the beef patties and the hubby happily fired up the grill. Once cooked, I smothered it with all my favorite toppings and devoured it. It tasted like that burger I'd been missing for so long and I was satisfied (but a little nervous that I might end up in the hospital which is why I chose to eat beef when the girls were still visiting the grandparents).

Obviously, I survived.

Update: I'm back to being beef-free after a few beef-infused (homecooked) meals resulting in major intestinal issues (felt like someone ripped out my intestines, beat and scratched them and stuffed them back inside of me. Luckily, there was no fever or other nasty issues, just belly pain that lasted about five days.)

Lesson: Don't eat beef if you are allergic to it no matter how much you crave it.

Glad I'm not allergic to chocolate.

Day 1: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 2: Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Day 3: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Day 4: I don't wear a mini-skirt and jump for joy when I have four days of freedom
Day 5: The not so picture-perfect transfer during a Week in the Life
Day 6: What not to wear (to Mi Hacienda)

What not to wear (to Mi Hacienda)

Have you ever wondered WTH is this person thinking? (Maybe you're thinking that right now about my Week in the Life project and if you are, then read this first.)

Day 6: What Not to Wear (to Mi Hacienda)

Please, do not make these fashion mistakes ;)

When my husband and I get a chance to go out to dinner, we have a few favorite spots. And when we are in the mood for margaritas, we head to Mi Hacienda in Toledo.

You can find an assortment of people in Toledo, wearing all kinds of crazy things and here are just a few of them:

Tucked-In Jersey Man Without A Dress Plan

Lesson: Don't wear a football jersey tucked into your pants unless you are a football player.

Jersey Man Without A Dress Plan

Halloween Costume in July: Cruella De-WTH?

Lesson: Don't wear a Cruella Deville Halloween costume to dinner in the middle of July.

Cruella De-WTH?

Holey Army Pants! Why Women I Should Dress My Man

Lesson: Don't EVER wear a t-shirt with a hole in the armpit to dinner with your wife (or camouflaged shorts). And that IS my husband.

My Husband

I'm not usually a judgmental person, but I love to people-watch and often wonder WTH are these people thinking.

Tomorrow is the last day of my twisted Week in the Life project and I ate a hamburger. That may not be a big deal for you, but I stopped eating beef in June 2010.

If I made you laugh today, feel free to share this post with your friends :)

Day 1: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 2: Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Day 3: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Day 4: I don't wear a mini-skirt and jump for joy when I have four days of freedom
Day 5: The not so picture-perfect transfer

The not so picture-perfect transfer during a Week in the Life

On Monday, I shared how I chose to buy an HTC Evo 4G (start there if you are new to my Week in the Life series) and when it's time for a new phone, it's also time to remove all those photos and videos from the old cell phone. 

I did it the hard way.

Day 5: The Not So Picture-Perfect Transfer

This is how NOT to transfer photos from your cell phone to your computer.

One by one, I emailed each and every photo...each and every video...to myself in order to download everything from my Blackberry to my computer. That was not a quick and easy task, nor is it the way it's supposed to work.

Why did I take on this task? My computer was hit by a (stupid and annoying) virus a couple months ago so I had to take it in to be serviced. Luckily, all my documents and photos were unharmed, but the computer has never been the same. It didn't recognize my phone, even after uninstalling and then reinstalling the software.

I could have just waited to have all the photos transferred to my new phone, but they still needed to get to my computer (and I was also worried about losing pics during the transfer).

Two-hundred photos and videos later, the transfer was complete. It took a big portion of my Friday, but I was also working on other projects in between all the sending and downloading. 

It wasn't as bad as it sounds.

I edited the photos and uploaded them to Shutterfly, leaving the videos to be dealt with at a later time.

Lesson: Download photos from your phone to your computer on a regular basis so you do not have to transfer almost a year's worth of pics in one day.

Tomorrow is my favorite day of my Week in the Life project: What Not to Wear (to Mi Hacienda). My doodled people aren't stick figures (although they aren't completely proportional) and they ARE funny.

Day 1: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 2: Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Day 3: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Day 4: I don't wear a mini-skirt and jump for joy when I have four days of freedom

I don't wear a mini-skirt and jump for joy when I have four days of freedom

Hello and welcome to another addition of a Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain! 

If you have no clue what I'm talking about, start here. And if you know what's going on, then you know all about Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011 and Mortal Kombat.

Being a mom has its perks and when grandparents are involved, it can mean freedom (at least for a couple days or so).

Day 4: 4 Days of Freedom

You'll never EVER find me wearing a mini-skirt.

I love summertime. 


Thanks to my parents and in-laws, I have at least one weekend a month to do whatever I want (like doodling, shopping without the gimmies, datenight and visiting the library without security telling my children to stop running around).

Obviously, I was happy to have four days of freedom. I may not have been jumping for joy like a cheerleader wearing a super-short mini-skirt, but I absolutely LOVE having time to rejuvenate (and quiet throughout the house without any screaming and bickering children).

Oh, and my girls are waaaay cuter than the doodled girls. I almost went back to fix them, but this project is not about perfection (and I can't wait to show you the people of Day 6...hilarious!).

If you enjoyed seeing me in a mini-skirt or any of my Week in the Life posts this week, share them with your friends (and I'll give you a cookie).

Tomorrow is Day 5: The Not So Picture-Perfect Transfer

Day 1: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 2: Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Day 3: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Today is Day 3 of my twisted Week in the Life project. If this is your first time here, you'll want to read more about this project, find out why my doodles look funny and learn about my cell phone brain. Also, if you feel like finding Mortal Kombat for me, try that here.

Day 3: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Back-to-School Shopping: Times have changed!

When I was a child, mid-summer was the time to go back-to-school shopping. My mom and I would hop into her car and drive down the road to a big box store. We'd shop for hours and then once we had a cart load, my mom would wheel it to the back of the store and put it all in layaway.

All my new stuff. Gone.

Week after week, we would drive back to that big box store and my mom would give the cashier twenty bucks. And week after week, I had to leave my new stuff behind. Then the day came when my mom would make the final payment. The cashier would walk to the storage area and come back with a few boxes.

The boxes came home with us and there were always a few forgotten surprises inside.

Times have changed!

The moms of today have it much easier. We can search for the best deals online, pick out what's needed, add to a virtual shopping cart and pay with plastic. Five to seven days later, a big delivery truck pulls up carrying boxes filled with back-to-school supplies (hopefully delivered by a smokin' hot man). Easy-peasy!

Another thing moms love (especially yours truly) is to have four days of freedom...that's tomorrow.

Day 1: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 2: Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Searching for Mortal Kombat during a Week in the Life

Yesterday, I showed you how I decided to buy an HTC Evo 4G and told you all about my twisted Week in the Life project.

Today is the day of Mortal Kombat.

No, I'm not going to challenge you to a fight.

My challenge is this: Find the hidden Mortal Kombat game.

Day 2: Where in the World is Mortal Kombat?

After the entire family spent the day searching for our Mortal Kombat game, it's still missing (even one month later).

Did you find it? Neither could the four people that live in this house! (By the way, we actually have more rooms in our house, the German Shepherd IS bigger than our fish and the basement shower isn't always running.)


This house was the very first sketch I created for my Week in the Life project. I originally planned on making my project more like a scrapbook, but upon finishing the house, I laughed at myself and figured What the heck? Who's stopping me from using this? 

UPDATE: It's almost one month later and we STILL can't find that dang game.


Tomorrow: Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011

Yesterday: A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

A Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain and a phone obsession

Day 1: How I chose to buy an HTC Evo 4G

One stressed-out, crazy-haired mama, researching cell phones and wearing her pink fuzzy slippers.

Sorry for the long post, but my twisted Week in the Life project needs a little explanation.

Obsessions. 

We all have them from time to time. Some are long-lasting while others may only stick around for a day or two.

The first day of my Week in the Life project was centered around my obsession to find a new cell phone. After two years of having Blackberries, my husband and I were ready for a change.

As the photographer of the family, I wanted a phone with an awesome camera and plenty of photo apps. And since I love to listen to music (when I craft and shower), a big data hog, I had to have unlimited data.

So, on Day 1 of a Week in the Life of Danielle's Brain, I researched dozens of cell phones, various providers and an assortment of plans. I'm pictured with thought bubbles, along with my crazy, stressed-out hair and of course, my fuzzy pink slippers (drawing people is not my forte).

After going from one site to the next, the decision was made to purchase HTC Evo 4G phones and go with Sprint since they are the only providers offering unlimited data. You may notice that the iPhone is not listed and this is because we bought our phones through my mother-in-law, an ACN representative. Unfortunately, ACN does not carry the iPhone. Thus, we now have androids.

Let's talk a bit about my zany idea to draw my thoughts instead of taking photos...

Basically, I wanted to do my own thing. I went with the flow of my thoughts and chose not to take dozens (if not hundreds) of photos a day. I challenged myself to draw. Well, actually they are more like doodles (I call them my brain doodles...Why? Because I think I'm funny sometimes, a little weird and I still can't draw the same images I see in my brain. If I could, I'd be a brilliant artist making tons of cash. And thoughts cannot be photographed).

With EcoScrapbook, I'm all about experimenting with alternative scrapbooking, from using eco-friendly scrapbooking supplies and recycling to digiscrapping and photography, which is why I chose to use an unwanted children's book as my canvas.

My supplies for the entire Week in the Life project included items that were in my stash (well, more like my daughter's stash): a black Sharpie, Crayola markers (the new eco-friendly ones), colored pencils, pen, glue stick, paper scraps, magazine letters, diecut letters, scissors, old printer paper and a children's book called How to be a Star in 7 days or less (perfectly fitting for a Week in the Life project).

What can you look forward to during my Week in the Life series? Well, there'll be some Searching for Mortal Kombat, Back-to-School Shopping 1985 vs. 2011, 4 Days of Freedom, The Not So Picture-Perfect Transfer, What Not to Wear to Mi Hacienda and finally, I Ate Beef (for the first time in over a year).

Stay tuned tomorrow for another brain doodle.

Until then, check out my 2010 Week in the Life project: 9 Days of sCRAPs and for the real deal Week in the Life project, including more information about it, visit Ali Edwards.

Further Reading:

We can change how we scrapbook (so we don't look like this in the future)
Attention Scrapbooking Manufacturers! Tell me you're green!
Don't delete your past, the future depends on it