In the paint

Yesterday was our last basketball game of the season, and Mason scored 12 points. Last year I think he scored 4 points the entire season. One of the best shots he made was a snake-like move from right under the basket, much to the surprise of the kid who was guarding him. Points aside, he has really matured as a player in defense and overall awareness, and he seems to truly love the game. I enjoy watching him play so much, which surprises me, because I'm not a big sports person. But then my life seems to be conspiring against me there, especially with having three boys. Can't avoid ESPN forever, can I.

Looking for action(s)

I've been having fun teaching myself Photoshop lately. It's such an involved program that I'm only able to learn bits and pieces here and there. However, lately the pieces are beginning to look like they fit together, which is a nice feeling. Some of the bits I enjoy using the most are Actions. These guys are like mini computer programs that run within Photoshop to make something happen without the end user needing to know all the steps. Basically, you find one that will do what you want, load it, select the layer (or thing) you want the action to change, and press play. Easy peasy and best of all there are some places you can download them for free (you have to google "photoshop actions" and then wade through a ton of sites to find things you want.) There are several scrapbooking type actions at Atomic Cupcake I've grown to love, and even though you pay for these (about $5 a piece) it's worth it, because I love the effects I get from them! I've attached a few examples below for your viewing pleasure!

I start with this simple text layer, pick the action I want and press play . . .








The pencil sketch action:

The puffy felt action:

The painted distressed chipboard action:

The inked edges action:

And the "make it look like torn cardboard" action:

Photoshop is magical! Now if it would only raise my kids and clean my house!!!