Project Life: October 2012, New Baby Edition

Obviously the big news around here for the first 2 weeks of October was the birth of BabyM.  In general I'm not a fan of the "pink for girls, blue for boys" school of thought, but lately I've been digging pale pink.  When I had to choose nail polish for my last pedicure, I chose pink with silver sparkles, in honor of BabyM's impending arrival.

So when I got down to work on Project Life for the past 2 weeks, I felt a strong pink vibe for my cuddly baby girl photos.  I thought the Studio Calico Heyday 6X6 Paper Pad would work well with its pastel color scheme.  I've also been hoarding some Dear Lizzy Neapolitan paper, and one of the floral patterns I didn't care for had a lovely pale pink on the other side with a cool number pattern on the part that usually gets thrown away.

At first I was reluctant to use the WRMK page protector with the giant skinny strip down one side, but I realized it would work for some short journaling/photo captions and then I could use all of the other slots on that page for photos.  The page has a convenient combination of landscape and portrait orientations and thankfully, either works for the Instagram square photos.

Click the photos to see a larger version.

Oct 1-14, 2012: Welcome BabyM!

Oct 1-14, 2012:  Painting pumpkins, playing at the park and meeting BabyM

This came together pretty quickly once I finally sorted through the photos the nurses took at the hospital, plus the ones from my new DSLR at home, *plus* all the baby Instagrams I've been taking.  I am actually planning to make a mini-album for BabyM's first week (or maybe first month) so I am "saving" a lot of the photos for that.  Not to mention a few need to go in her baby book as well.

While I love using 6x6 paper for Project Life because the smaller patterns work better, I'm always left with a 2x6 inch scrap after cutting what I need for the slots.  So I decided to get crafty and layer my scraps together for one of the 4x6 slots above (the one with my mom and BabyM).  This also helped tie together the patterns I used on the facing page, without requiring me to add yet another pattern to the mix.  I think that helps my pages look a bit more cohesive, which is something I struggle with because I just love all my STUFF and try to cram it all in.

I love that the chevron washi tape I got in one of my Studio Calico monthly kits matches perfectly with this paper. I also realized I could use it for an actual purpose - to keep the photos from sliding out of the slots.  I hate the side-loading slots on some of the page protectors.  As we flip through our album, the stuff never stays in those pockets.  So I'll be going back through the album, washi tape in hand, to tape those slots up so things don't fall out.  Good times.

I was worried that BabyM's arrival would result in me dropping Project Life for the rest of the year.  So far, so good. I love doing it, and it's a quicker form of craft therapy than some long involved project.  So I have high hopes about finishing the rest of the year - only 5 more layouts left for the year!

Linked up with The Mom Creative for Project Life Tuesday.