I forgot one

You know those silver steel shelves that you can get from Bunnings for about $20 - meant for the shed or the laundry (where mine was destined for).  Well, I got rather sick of the kids reading books and the husbands newspapers (our weekly delivery of the Queensland Country Life and the NQ Register.  And if you haven't heard of them, I am not surprised - content rural /agriculture based!) all over the place.  So I spent a HOUR AND A HALF putting together these stinking shelves...which I think don't look that bad actually!  The writing you can see on the wall is where we measure the kids heights (considering transposing to a strip of timber each and relocating to another spot).  I threw the kids reading books and sight words from school in the little baskets - instead of dropped wherever they left them or on the coffee table.  The newspapers and truck books go on the bottom shelf....and the top shelf hold a few pretties just to try and make the shelf look less like it should be in the shed, and more like a peice of modern designer furniture!  :-) It sits near the dining table/kitchen area.

With clever angles and careful editing

I've taken up Nicoles challenge from last Friday. I wandered around my incredibly dusty and untidiy house (school holidays not helping rectify the situation!) with my new 50mm lens attached to my camera, and took some snaps.  Little bits of my reality, on this day.

I pruned some long braches off a gum tree in the garden and found these amongst the offcuts. Too good to leave them there, they came inside. Love flowers in a vase...I know they won't last long. But still, they make me happy.

who would believe that gold fish were so dirty.  Incredibly grubby tank, and my finger getting the attention of the fish who wanted to hide in the corner.  The tank lives either on the kitchen bench corner or the dining table.

These grassy stalky things are in a big pot on near the doorway to our bedroom. Trevor hates them as he has to brush past them  (they hang into the doorway) when he goes to bed. I love their colours and their shape, and really should put them in a different spot. Also an old photo (from over 8 years ago of Trevor and his family).

pillows on my bed.

the new alarm clock the kids and I got Trevor for his birthday. It has huge green numbers and lights up the room crazily.  I certainly can read it with my short sighted night vision ;-) but then again, we can nearly read the newspaper by it, its that bright!   and just to keep it real:  dusty, marked bed side table.

new pretties put away neatly in a new jewellry organiser.  I can see where everything is now!

the floor of the boys room.  this is rather tidy actually.

new recipe binder, in which a4 page protectors do not fit. grr.

we live in an old house.  the bathroom has two doors. This is one, the one that opens from the back landing and steps. kids swimming bags.  I like the weathered colour of the door.

on the outdoor setting table downstairs on the cement. trying to keep the kids occupied.

my heavy duty work horse. :-)

our home.

Hopefully I can put these photos into a digi/hybrid page tomorrow, with a few words.  It would be good to do this perhaps on a yearly basis, capturing the little details that catch your eye at that moment, of your home and reality.  Hope you have enjoyed these tiny slices of my world.  You might have noticed that the floor was not included in any of the shots, for good reason. :-) the floor, and any other flat dust collecting surface!

The Everyday and Extraordinary of 2010

So, in 2008 I joined Nicole and did 52 weeks (which isn't really finished yet - but I do have all of the photos, just need to print the journalling - so, so close!), and for 2009 I am doing a best of (will share that process soon) and 2010?...

Nicole again prompted me - she is doing a week to a page using divided page protectors (her example below)

Brilliant idea, but I know I would struggle to finish it - I think I would get through to the end of January...but instead!  I plan to do a MONTH at a time! I got myself some of these same page protectors, made myself a little template in Elements so I can get printed 4x6 photos that have two little photos on them, and I also made some monthly title blocks to go.  To fill any empty pockets I will use scraps of paper to suit the title block, and journalling if needed. 

And if I have LOTS to share, well I can do another page if I want, or simply do my own collage of photos (the way I have so far) have that printed and slip into a standard page protector within the album.  I have a AC 8.5x 11 album not being used ready for this project.

I even thought I could include 2011 in the same album, using the same format, or whatever brilliant idea Nicole comes up with for then. ;-)

This should be so easy! Here are the little monthly title blocks  - will get them printed monthly with my photos.  Crop and slide into the pockets.  Quotes from quote garden on the net.

Here are some other ideas of how you could capture your year....I am particulary taken with the business card holder and the page inserts (but I've already got my A4 sized pages...) Cute and concise!

The two items above I found at kikki k, but I think you could source the same thing at a lesser price at office works or the like.  The same with these A4 sized business card holders - perfect if you take landscape photos more than portrait style. (or you could chop a full sized portrait 4x6 in half and just slide each half into the appropriate pockets)

A blogless reader of mine (hi Kathy!) showed me the brilliant way she put together Project 365 this year.  She bought a photo box from Kikki K, and simply slipped her photos in the standard photo holders.  But doesn't it look great? Simple and effective and easy on the eyes.

As you can see, the lid flips around and it closes up like a normal stationary box file. This same concept could be used to catch a few photos from your month, with title blocks slipped into the pocket to divide your month. No fiddling around to crop photos, journalling could be printed on a 4x6 block as well, or like Kathy did, printed directly onto each photo in your editing program of choice.

So there you have it, how I plan to capture our 2010, and some other ideas to hopefully inspire you.  Good luck on your journey...