Q: What is your family and home life like?
A: They’re both interesting! :) My husband Scott and I have been married for 5 ½ years, but have been together as a team for 8 years now. Scott holds a position as a software architect at a local company that builds ERP (enterprise resource planning) software for medium to large sized businesses. I work from home designing digital scrap products. We have two children. Our daughter Madison is 6 and our son Nicholas is 5. Madison is in first grade and is a very proud Brownie Girl Scout and a budding artist. One of her favorite things to do is to draw and paint detailed pictures and create and tell the elaborate stories behind them. Currently, she says that she wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. Nicholas was, at the age of 3, diagnosed with Autism and is in an Autism Impaired program through the intermediate school district in our county. He has progressed through his IEP goals and will be moving on to a more “advanced” program next year. His biggest developmental challenge is the fact that he’s about 99% non-verbal, but he's making slow and steady progress with his language. Despite the fact that discomfort with affection toward others is a rather common characteristic of people with Austism, Nicholas loves to be hugged and cuddled by people he is comfortable with. He's my little cuddle-bug. :) He shows strength in music. He loves to play his piano and will, sometimes, replay some songs by ear. He also enjoys playing video games, and I think it's because he is a very methodical, problem-solving oriented thinker. Our little family also consists of our kitty Jasmine who turned 4 this year, and our newest addition, Ajax, an 8-month old Alaskan malamute.

Q: How long have you been scrapping, and how did you get into the hobby?
A: I started scrapping when I was pregnant with Madison, so for about 7 years now. I discovered the hobby when Scott and I were out shopping one day and wandered into a scrapbooking store. I purchased my first album, a pack of paper, a pair of paper edging scissors, adhesive, and two Zig Writers. I remember it like it was yesterday!

Q: When did you discover digi-scrapping and do you still paper scrap?
A: Well, Scott had been pushing digi-scrapping for years, but I resisted. I really did enjoy the tactile sensation of playing with paper. I remember he even sat down at his computer and whipped up a layout once and said “see, you can just do all of your scrapping with your computer.” I made a face at him and said, “No.” I finally caved in and seriously started working on my first digital layout about a year ago. It took just that one layout to become hooked. I hadn’t scrapped with paper in months because at the time we were living in a tiny little rental house and I had no room to dedicate to a scrapping area. The thought of dragging everything out, making a huge mess and putting it all away again kept me from scrapping most of the time. I don’t paper scrap at all anymore. I gave all of my supplies away to family who make handmade cards. I haven’t looked back since and I don’t regret it!

Q: What software do you use for scrapping/designing?
A: Photoshop CS2 is my weapon of choice for both designing and creating layouts. My husband introduced me to Photoshop eight years ago because he used it frequently, at the time, in his web design business. I tinkered with it on and off for a long time, but never was really serious about learning the ins & outs of the program. My interest in Photoshop intensified in the last 3 years or so. I have never had any classroom training in Photoshop. My education has come solely through self-teaching (a.k.a. try it, mess up, try it again, mess up again, try yet again and end up with something cool) and direction from my husband. I don’t profess to know everything about Photoshop. It’s a very large, powerful program. But I have lost the intimidation factor that I first felt when working with it. I’m extremely comfortable with it now, and would find it difficult to switch to a different product now that I am familiar with the overall workings of Adobe programs. I also use Illustrator CS2 for drawing with my Wacom tablet.

Q: What made you decide to start designing digi-scrap products?
A: Designing my own supplies was a natural extension of digital scrapbooking for me. Because I was very comfortable with my graphics program by the time I started scrapping digitally, it was not a big leap to start making my own papers and elements. Designing is something that I really enjoy doing. It’s a creative outlet for me. I’m very artistic by nature.

Q: What accomplishments have given you the most satisfaction and why?
A: Maturing and growing into the person I am now is, I feel, one of my biggest accomplishments. I used to be very uncomfortable in my own skin and had very little self-confidence. Now I am comfortable with who I am, inside and out, and I think it has made me a better person. Relationships with other people are much more rewarding too now that I’ve stopped worrying about living up to this fictitious idea of perfection I had in my own head. I’m just happy being me. It leaves more energy for me to enjoy my husband and children and has enriched my appreciation for each of them as individuals.

Q: What is your best organizational tip for digital scrapbookers?
A: Be mindful of your pictures folder. :) Don’t let it get out of control. Take the time to organize with folders and label and date those folders properly when you’re dumping photos from your camera to your computer. Take it from me, I have personal experience! For a long time we were lazy about photo organization. We’d take the camera with us here, there and everywhere and would finally dump the photos to the computer after several picture sessions. We ended up with a million folders with photos from a mish-mash of activities and dates. It made it impossible when I wanted to find a specific photo to scrap. We had 2 GB worth of pictures with no rhyme or reason to their location or organization. When I finally had enough, it took me three straight days of sorting and organizing. I think it’s a good idea to organize your photos according to the way you scrap. For example, I’m a “date scrapper.” I like working from the oldest to the newest (yes, I’m always playing catch up with my scrapping! I’m never current!), so I have my main pictures folder divided into folders labeled Friends and Family and within those I have subfolders labeled by year, and inside each year folder folders labeled by occasion, date or person. Optimize your system for the way you work rather than fighting it.

Q: What are you currently reading?
A: Sadly, nothing at the moment. I’ve been so involved with designing lately that I haven’t taken any time to crack open a new read. I finished Pride & Prejudice before the holidays. I think I’m going to have to add “make time to read” on my to-do list! Hee hee.

Q: Are you a morning or night person?
A: In a perfect world, I’m definitely a night person. Real life dictates that I have to at least try to fake it and function like I’m a morning person. :)

Q: If you could take off to anywhere in the world tomorrow with no worries, where would it be?
A: Ah…that would be a three part trip! The first stop would definitely be Rome. My husband and I are both into Roman history and we would love to see the coliseum and the other ancient architecture. The second stop would be Venice. My husband was there when he was on float in the USMC, and the pictures and video he has made me swear I would go there some day. The last stop would be somewhere tropical and quiet. I don’t think I really even care where, as long as it has sunny weather and miles of sandy beach!

Q: What is your most prized possession?
A: Even though they’re not a possession, I have to say my family. My husband, daughter and son are each very unique, interesting and outstanding individuals. I cherish them very deeply.