Picture Perfect 32 by Aprilisa Designs


Picture a Family Bundle by Trixie Scraps


Scourge of the Seven Seas by Magical Scraps Galore


Going the Distance Flowers and Rock This Way Kit by JB Studio


Evening Time Elements by B2N2 Scraps


Memories by the Gingerbread Ladies


Journaling: The last few years have been some of the most challenging I have experienced – emotionally, physically and financially. Raising 3 teenage boys pretty much on my own after a divorce, working two jobs and yet still having a hard time paying the bills have taken a toll on me. It can be difficult to focus on the positives when there are days that it feels like the world is out to get me. Honestly, sometimes I allow myself to wallow a bit in my own private pity party, and it can be tough to pull myself up out of that place. Those are the days when I need to take a good look in the mirror and give myself a little wake up call (and occasionally even a slap upside the head) and remind myself of all the treasures in my life.... and I'm lucky that there are many. My family, my friends, my health... these are but a few of the valued treasures that are reflected in my photographs and memories. Music is the key that helps me unlock those wonderful treasures! Don't you just love how it has the uncanny ability to transport you instantly back to a time and place from the past? When I listen to the Andy Williams Christmas album, for example, my mind recalls the sites and sounds of Christmas eve gatherings at my parents' house - my dad and neighbor Larry with their Santa hats and Oozo in hand, our never quite perfect tree with a little too much tinsel, and the excitement of waking up to Christmas morning. My high school years come flooding back whenever “Teach Your Children” plays on the radio, and I remember singing it on our graduation day as the class of 1983. “Everybody Have Fun Tonight” by Wang Chung brings me to a dance hall in NH during my college years, and into the arms of the guy that I had a mad crush on at the time. I remember the excitement of my first real date with Ed that night whenever I hear the song.  “My Life” by the Beatles was on a CD made by a colleague to celebrate the birth of my youngest son and is forever associated with that happy time. When listening to Bon Jovi's “Lost Highway”, I am back to 2008, preparing for my first ever 5K race. “Collide” by Howie Day can't help but conjure up images of a special person and a relationship that just wasn't meant to be, but still had a significant impact on my life and certainly taught me a lot about myself. I still feel a bit sad when I hear it, as the feelings are bittersweet. Thankfully, I have the music from “Shrek” and “Mary Poppins” to almost instantly brighten my mood when I’m feeling down. The pride and joy that I feel when watching my boys on stage and feeling the magic of their performances is something I relive whenever I hear the songs from their shows.  Life experienced without music is impossible to imagine. Music is the thread that weaves together my treasured memories and is the background tune for every treasured photograph. “The music I listen to can tell you more about me than my mouth ever could.” ~ unknown