New talents...

So, I'm so proud of myself because I downloaded some digital scrapbooking elements, figured out some html code at work, and made this background for our blog. Granted, it's not the cutest thing in the world, but I'm still figuring out how to make the prettier downloads open with the programs I'm using. Of course the uglies work perfectly. :)

I've decided that I'm going to jump on the digital thing and try that kind of scrapbooking. I often hate having to conform to newer technology - I remember CDs and DVDs being a pain to switch to - but this might be a good thing. Certainly less messy! I don't have Photoshop, and I'm told that works best, but until I acquire that program I'll do my best with the lesser ones.

Eldon and I decided that I'm not going to go crazy scrapbooking our kids' lives. They are going to receive a baby book, that we'll look in often while they're growing up, a "childhood" book that they will receive when they enter Young Men or Young Women (12th birthdays), and an "adolescent" one they will receive on their graduation day. Of course there will be many family albums, framed pictures, and CDs (or whatever newer thing I'm going to have to learn someday) of pictures too plentiful to print, but those are going to be the only scrapbooks. I think that's a good plan. I know it's going to be a challenge to actually DO those scrapbooks, so it's good to aim low and actually achieve the goal rather than aim high (yearly scrapbooks, for example) and pull my mommy hair out because it's too much to do. And Elder at our mission reunion - well, not an Elder anymore, I guess - told me I should use my time NOW to make the scrapbooks for our third, fourth, fifth etc. children because otherwise they'll be neglected. :) That has a lot of sense ... I should probably do that. And their baby blankets too.

Also, we've decided to name our daughter Chiara, pronounced Kee-Ara, and to keep the Italian spelling rather than Americanize a beautiful Italian name with a K or something. She may grow up to resent that, but if she loves Italian culture as much as we plan on our children loving it, she won't mind correcting people's pronunciation for the sake of the spelling. :)

P.S. I edited the picture on our header so you can't see where I knicked myself shaving off my widow's peak. :) The growing out process is going well also ... the hairs are about an inch long and HIGHLY attractive when they fan out across my large and spacious forehead. Maybe I should adopt a real bangs look for the next year or so until the widow's peak is back.