it's just me. . .

topsy-turvy

so, do you ever wonder how many times your life can get turned upside down? i do, just fleetingly, long enough to remember that i have more blessings than trials, that God loves me and is my Hope in all things.

my last post on monday, 07/21 was at the beginning of the "dare to get dirty" challenge over at splitcoaststampers. that was a lot of fun and i should have a few things to post for that.

the next week, i started the next digiscrapping class plus my wonderful great-niece reeree got to visit with me! that's right, rob's daughter! oh, you just cannot imagine the joy of having her with us for a week. :) well, maybe you can, because of course, you're pretty special yourself.

the week after that i was plagued with migraines. horrible horrible ones. down in the bed or on the couch migraines.

 

Mom, early July

that friday afternoon i got a call from mom that she'd gone into the hospital for some tests.

Mom & me, Aug 9 ~ she's just a bit jaundiced :) and we were a little silly.

saturday morning i got the call that it's pancreatic cancer.

i immediately threw clothes in a suitcase and drove home to stay with mom in the hospital. three weeks later we still had an unconfirmed diagnosis, meaning that they couldn't get an actual biopsy of the mass. ~ i tell momma the mass on her pancreas is as stubborn as she is. anyway, we're at Mayo now, and i think the biopsy this a.m. was successful because she's been in recovery several hours and i've not been told that it was unsuccessful. :)

it was the FOURTH attempt to get tissue for a final diagnosis. now that's stubborn :) 

Dare to Get Dirty, '08

Good Morning!

 

Today is the second day in Dare to Get Dirty 08 at Splitcoaststampers. Each day will feature 2 different challenges by a member or alumni of the Dirty Dozen, the design team. As members of the Fan Club, you get to participate in the challenges and upload your take on them to a special gallery. If your not a member of the Fan Club, check it out. It gives you access to special forums and galleries that the DT girls rock every month. I can speak from my experience on the team, that a whole lotta heart and a whole lotta soul goes into every creation they make. Also, for Dare to Get Dirty '08, if you're not a Fan Club member, you may still view and comment on the uploads in the gallery. Normally you wouldn't be able to view these beauties!

So, here is my take on Miss JulieHRR's challenge:

 

 

• paper: {suthnheart} white
• elements: vintage postcard: katie pertiet @ designer digitals, scroll border: jjohnson Call to Act, tab: kgiarusso Call to Act
• brushes: spots dots brushes n stamps: katie pertiet @ designer digitals
• font: dymofontinverse, feena casual

Now go play! and make it a Lovely Day1

Free Online Photoshop Class

good morning!

i am still operating on 2, count'em 2, laptops today, but it's still a great day!

as i was reflecting on my post yesterday, i realized i should have inlcuded something more focused on photoshop, not just digiscrapping. i knew it; i mulled it over, but i was sooo tired that i didn't go back and add it.  

i did, however, have an idea of what i wanted to add, and lo and behold, in my email this morning, was a message from HP regarding their online classes. i've done these before and really liked them.

so, yes, virginia, there is a santa clause, and he comes to us in the form of the HP Adobe Photoshop for Photographers class. it looks great, and has wonderful information. if you are familiar with digiscrapping already and just need to know more about PS, such as what all those weird-looking buttons are, this may be just what you need.

also, i want to recommend a book to you by Scott Kelby. It's called The Adobe Photoshop CS3 Book.

i love this book. this book travels with me everywhere ~ even though it's huge! and let me say that the $31.49 pricetag at amazon is much less than the msrp i paid <hmph!>, well. . . mom, paid. :)   i used this book even before i got cs3. i was still on ps7 ~ and it was still a huge benefit to me. i would take some time at your local library or barnes & noble to peruse it. but then i would definitely BUY IT.

here are a few more photoshop links for when you are cyberloafing:

• Scott Kelby's Blog
• Planet Photoshop 
• Photoshop User Magazine 
• Photoshop User TV

mmmmm, and they are gooo-ooo-ooo-oooo-ooood!

enjoy your day!

marcia