MID MOC Check-in and Challenge HELP!!

Honestly, the biggest challenge for me is leaving the love!! The first thing I do every day - before even checking to see if there's a new challenge posted in the forum, is to read all the sweet things people have to say on my layouts <3 I've made it a goal this year to be much more "vocal" in the gallery and leave as much love as I'm receiving. That being said, there are so many layouts that are just wowing my socks off and I'm spending all my time drooling over technique, kit choices, photography skills, clustering, etc. and am struggling with leaving as many comments as I would like!
I am all caught up now, though, so hopefully tonight I can spend some time leaving the love

 

I'm only a couple of pages 'behind' at the moment so I'm feeling good. MOC is actually helping me deal emotionally with a family member's crisis this month; when I need a mental break from that, I go and make a MOC page.

I keep putting off the Explore challenge, and I think it's because I haven't decided which kit to use. I can't buy something new so I'm going through my stash and nothing has struck me yet as the 'perfect' kit. I love to journal so I know that's not the issue. I will get it done one way or the other in the next couple of weeks.

 

There's a few pages of computer screens! It might not be inspiring, but it's fun to see different computers, and whether people are watching tv too, or just scrapping, or chatting. I don't know when you start work, but you could take it a few minutes before on your way in the door if you start at 8am? With low light, you could change the photo to black and white. For my example page, I changed the one photo to black and white because I was watching tv, and the screen changed and that photo looked really bad in color! I'm not normally a black and white scrapper either.

 

@bestcee @Sokee
I did the computer screen thing (included the cat to make it a bit more interesting!). Thanks for the suggestions.

 

This year has been the best for me!!
Its now just my husband, our 12 year old son and myself at home. so no extra cleaning or wrangling grandbabies. My son has autism, so the crying would get him all worked up so it was never quiet here, never content. I was always mediating and cleaning. Now its so quiet and my son has his sanity back! I have more money for the same reasons, so I can buy a few kits here and there, and not have to try and complete the challenges on limited kits. I do a layout a day ( twice I was 1 behind, but I dd two in one day and caught up pretty fast) and have been having a blast!!! i sometimes wish we had regular challenges to do as well! Im on a roll!

 

Well, I'm caught up as of yesterday, the challenge for January 21 hasn't been posted yet, and I'm lurking. I seriously thought I'd have to abandon the MOC when my MIL suffered a stroke last week. But it was a minor one & within a few days she was home, only to be admitted again the day after she was discharged with another small one. I haven't been able to visit with her because I came down with a cold/fever for the second time this month. But yesterday DH & I both stopped in to visit. She was transferred to a rehab facility, and if truth be told, she looks & sounds amazing. She'll be 90 this May, so ever day she is around is precious. She's a political junkie, so she has been glued to the TV and when she tires of it, she has her political magazines. What a time to be watching politics...

The inspiration challenge board was fun for me, I immediately saw the bricks, thought of urban. But we live in a rural area, no really large city around us for a hundred miles. So I went to my stash of pics & found one from Prague when we vacationed there in 2006. And then there was the art doll for inspiration. I think I found 7 things that spurred me on.

I have been not sleeping well, so I get up at 3:30 - 5ish every morning, don't have to leave for work until 7:20. That leaves me some time in the a.m. to work on the MOC. I may try to take some supplements to try to get me sleeping more than 5 or 6 hours, but I'm happy right now with those extra 2-3 hours in my day.

 

I'm caught up but have to say I'm getting tired of doing pages that I really don't care for as much as I would if it were all my choice. Fortunately, we only have 9 more to do and I think some of the ones I like least are over! (I hope) I must say that the Pollys etal have come up with a great variety of challenges.

But I really do have to get back to my PL though..

 

I have to have surgery on my thumb (dominate hand of course) tomorrow. I have done so well getting completely up to date, but am nervous that I will not be able to scrap to finish MOC5 Since it is at least a 6 week recovery time, I am hoping that my left hand will pick up on how to work the mouse! Should be interesting. (And yes I am stalking the forum to see if the challenge will be posted before I have to leave!)

The challenge is definitely leaving love. With so many people playing along I usually get sucked into looking at all of the digital goodness, and then completely forget to comment.

 

Today's If the Walls could talk is going to take some thinking, glad Cynthia posted it early so I can "sleep" on it.

 

@bumblebeee Good luck with your surgery and recovery! I hope your left hand can pick up the slack! I know my DH is left handed, but uses the mouse in his right hand. So, crossing my fingers for you!

 

Those two got me as well. I ended up doing one LO I love and one that is ...meh.... Funny how much clean and "simple" seems to be a misnomer.

 

The thing that is getting me is TIME. I have all of my ideas written down, and everything is organized. I just haven't had the time to get the layouts done.

I work full-time, and I've had a sick child and have been busy getting another one moved out of her post-college grad apartment and another one settled/moved to her university/new college town, so I haven't been home hardly at all. Really frustrating because I want to finish. It'd be great if we had until 2/4 or 2/5 to get them done.

 

Ditto to both! Wishing you a speedy recovery. I'm left-handed too but could never use my left hand for the mouse (or to use scissors either).

 

I completely agree Margaret! Time is my enemy! @londoncuppa

With my challenge hosting, commenting, other duties, and some family things (school issues with the boys, MIL sick, etc) going on, my ability to give my time is curtailed! I wouldn't change it though... I have loved seeing the creativity and layouts from those that completed my challenge, and actually hosting this year is wonderful!