my_weblog: Back into the groove...

November 23, 2008

Back into the groove...

I'm finally settling back into my usual routine since arriving home from California. I spent much of the week playing "catch-up" and working at the October Afternoon office. Once the weekend arrived, I decided it was time to relax and take a little time off from the busy pace of the work week. Because the holidays are just around the corner (along with Ethan's second Birthday), I took Ethan to one of my favorite garden centers, Gertens, to visit with the many trees and Christmas decorations on display at their store. It's a Christmas haven to many locals in the area. Gertens sells every Christmas product imaginable during the holiday season. There are trees styled and covered in ornaments galore, along with lights, trim, flowers, and both traditional and non-traditional items. There are rows and rows of Christmas decor items that inspire holiday spirit and creativity. It's not easy to walk out of the place without an item or two. We purchased a few gifts for my parents. They've done a lot for us this last year since having lost Eric. I couldn't help but pick up a little something for them while at Gertens today.

Ethan had a fantastic time at Gertens! I couldn't pry him away from the Christmas trees if I tried. He was fascinated by the lights and ornaments. Laugh. He would approach a Christmas tree and touch everything on it. I had to carefully watch his every move. He even got a good look at one of the inside of the trees. He couldn't figure out why there weren't any ornaments on the inside of the tree. I had a good laugh. While navigating the trees, he came across some life size toy deer in the back of the store. He called out to them and tried to get them to visit his hand. He truly believed they were real. I can hardly wait for him to see Santa this year..laugh. So many new things for Ethan to see and investigate. We had so much fun today!

I took a few photos while at the store. You can see them below. Also, I finished a layout this weekend. It took a little bit of time to get used to working with a 12" x 12" palette again. I must of stared at the page for hours before completing it. I moved a lot of pieces around and tried out some fun new techniques. I took out my Sassafras product and put together a jewel tone montage of papers & embellishments. I don't remember the last time I used the hue "purple". I combined it with neutrals, turquoise and pink. I wasn't able to catch a picture of the entire layout today, but I did grab a detail shot of the layout this evening. I'll post a picture of the entire layout tomorrow along with some techniques I used for creating the layout.

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