Okay. I'm ready.
It's been a busy morning/afternoon - but now I'm ready to share my internet journeys. Ready?
Good. Hang on tight.
Starting my day - these are the non-scrap related blogs that I begin my day with. Every day.
- Facebook. I love facebook. There, I said it. I love connecting with people, but even moreso - I love the banter. I crave banter. Facebook makes banter easy.
- Google Reader. If anyone is still waiting for me to do a Google Reader tutorial - let me know. I had one written up once - and then they changed everything, rendering my write up useless. Google Reader is a marvelous time saver if you're addicted to reading multiple blogs - as I am.
- Our local radio station. I check the weather, check the news, in the winter I check school closings before waking up my crew. I don't hear well, so I prefer to read the station at 6am rather than turning it on and waking the house just so I can hear it.
- And my own blog - to type my daily post. I don't pre-write - it doesn't suit me. So I write when I wake up.
My kids favorite sites
- Starfall - My four year old is the most into this one right now - love that it helps with phonics/reading. Love that the 2 year old sits beside him and sing "aaaa aaaa aaaaa" and is learning too
- American Girl - Wendy goes between this one and Barbie.com I try to sway her to stay towards AG. LOL
- Jan Brett - This is one of my favorite children's book authors - so I gravitate to her page when looking for projects/coloring pages. It's not real easy for the 4 year old to maneuver, and the 8 year old has outgrown in - so I'm the one that goes there for something to do's.
Favorite New Blogs: As I was going through my list of blogs to share - I realized that I have a few new ones - as in, they just started blogging and I'm enjoying them already!
- I Got it on Film - This is my cousin Brita's blog. Brita and I both share that same desire to photograph. and photograph. and photograph. We blame, um, hmmm....... I'm not sure who we inherited that from. Anyway - Brita is starting to share some of her work and is available as a natural light photographer in the Keweenaw area.
- The Health and Happiness Blog - Remember a month or so ago I said I went to my friend Laura to get some reflexology done and I pestered her to start her blog? Well - she did! Laura excels at eating healthy and natural, keeping fit, homeschooling, thrifting and raising children. She plans to share recipes, healthy living tips, exercises and inspiration. I'm personally anxious for her 'just like Clif Bars' recipe - as I loooove Clif Bars!
- Note to Self - I have to give this one a shout out. Meghan, a photography major, is one of Kim Kesti's daughters and is every bit as talented as her mother. Her blog shares a refreshing view, wit, skillful photography and pictures of her mother that we might not otherwise ever see. How fun is that!
Besides being fresh new blogs, these three also share that Finnish heritage and large family bond. Brita had her 9th not too long ago, Laura has 8, and Meghan is one of 8. Neat, huh?
Those Scrapbooking sites I hit each day: First - I confess - I'm still feeling a little lost and wandering since Scrapsupply closed. I don't feel like I've landed somewhere yet.
- Get it Scrapped. Fabulous place. Get it Scrapped is a teaching site with a great community. I check in on the chatter daily, play along with the challenges when I can, heckle the other teachers (no - I dont' do that), and occasionally teach. (I'll actually be doing quite a bit of teaching beginning in November - stay tuned for more on that)
- Studio Calico - I love SC for their kits, their message board chatter and the way they stay so impressively on top of their game. April and Scarlet are a joy to watch in action - so I check in daily to see what's new. Awesome awesome gallery as well.
- Two Peas - I still check in here daily. I miss the old days, but I can still count on seeing a familiar face and finding inspiration in the gallery.
My search continues tho for a place to put all my layouts since Scrapsupply. Get it Scrapped is more for those layouts and challenges that pertain to the classes and challenges there - I have a hard time posting non-kit layouts at Studio Calico (my own quirky brain, I'm sure) and Two Peas is just big - layouts fall in the cracks quickly.
Where is your layout home?
Favorite photography blogs, today
- Tara Whitney. Actually - this never changes - it's been a favorite for years. I love how comfortable Tara makes her clients look. I recently told Tara that she was born with a make magic gene - her photos have brought me to tears more than once. She captures something rare that I don't often see in other photographers galleries. One of my dreams would be to just watch her in action for a week. To absorb just an nth of her, that would be delightful.
- The Wiebners. Okay - this one has been on the list for a long time as well. The Wiebners shoot a lot of weddings and receptions and families. I'm drawn to their style, and their reception photos. I love the candidness they capture, and the depth. I often find myself looking around all the far reaches of the photo to see what they caught, and I find myself studying their angles and lighting.
- Matt Nicolosi. Fact - I am not a fan of email updates - my inbox is too bogged down as it is. But for some reason, I wasn't able to add this one into my blog reader so for him - I made an exception. He's the only one that I've made that exception for - he's that worth it. Also - my Google Reader has now accepted him, so I've deleted my email updates. Awesome awesome photography, mixed with humbleness and humor. Perfect.
- Grant and Deb - Now if these guys would get Google Reader enabled - my life would be complete. (*ahem*) I've known Deb for years already - hard to believe. She's a scrapbooking connection, used to go by the name of Toehead - which is what first attracted me to her quickly followed by her humor, compassion and talent. It's been wonderful to watch her talent grow these past years. Grant and Deb have got it going on. And no - I don't subscribe to her emails/if they have them. I'm on enough message boards with her that I just click her link now and then. But Google Reader-bility would be awesome.
Now - gathering all those links for this post took longer than I anticipated. And here It thought today's was an easy challenge. hah! Thanks for all of those who have shared so far - I'm looking foward to browsing when I burn the midnight oil again this evening!
As for my other categories and link shares - those will have to wait for another day - seems the boys are expecting dinner. Of all things.
It makes it SO much easier for me to pitch, sort and dump on a regular basis. I've also listed it in the new category that I'm working on way down there on the left of some of the books we enjoy or that I've mentioned. Also...if you hold your mouse over the book title you'll see some notes I've jotted down about each book.