Photo Challenge

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It isn’t a secret that my photography skills are lacking.  I have always loved pictures.  Love looking through them, taking them, smiling and laughing over them, etc.  Growing up my mom didn’t take many.  She still doesn’t, but she always wants me to “send {her} that one”.  Taking pictures, however….not my strong suit.  I want to get better!

20 week challenge

So I made a decision to do a 20 day photo challenge that I found on Pinterest.  (This will not be my first Pinterest inspired challenge.)  I loved the idea to work on getting better.  The challenge would of course be a time suck (turns out I had no idea how much) and require me to post something every day.

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11 days in, I’m loving it.  Obviously, some days needed an extra picture.  I have been going back and forth between two different photography apps in order to teach myself how to edit pics and add text.  It’s a whole new world.

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The first one I used is called Over.  I was lucky enough to snag it awhile ago at Starbucks for their weekly free download.  (LOVE Starbucks)  It is super easy to use and allows you to do a lot of editing that a normal person would want to do.  Now I can edit a pictures pretty quickly.

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However, then I got trailed down a road into “Obaby”.  This is another app from the creators of over that pretty much lets you do a lot more creative things that are baby oriented.  Perfect things for Little Bug.  I think it cost $4.99, but I would recommend it for anyone who has a baby or is pregnant.  I actually think it would be a great gift if you know the person would use it.  A great way to add monthly text onto your growing baby bump or monthly text to document your newborn’s growth.  I just love it.

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The other app I used is called PicLab HD.  This was another freebie from Starbucks (see the theme) that I was lucky enough to snag.  I have no problem paying for an app that I will use, but it’s hard to know before I start playing around in them.  The benefit of this app is that I am able to rotate my text.  I haven’t figured out how to do this on Over.  I assume I can, but I’m not sure.  It seems like a small benefit, but I have had some creations where my text HAD to be rotated in order to look good.

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It’s been a really fun 11 days so far.  I have learned a lot of necessary editing that Little Bug needs.  And I’ve gotten more familiar with Instagram and hashtags as well.

We would love for you to share some of your pictures with us.  Pick a day or two and join in!  If you share you photo, you have a chance to win $15 in Little Bug credit.  (And if you can’t make it this round, there will be more.)  Here’s to always working on making yourself better!

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Summer

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Our family LOVES summer. (I know, who doesn’t?)  We are teacher schedule people, so it seriously feels like the same feeling you had when you were a kid.  All of a sudden school is out, and summer is here.

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Since I’ve been staying home for the last year, I didn’t have quite the rush I would normally get at Memorial Day.  Neil has an extended contract since he is a counselor.  Our “family summer” started in the middle of June.  He gets 6 weeks off so I have nothing to complain about there.

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Now that my parents have a lake house at Table Rock, we try to get down there as much as possible.  It isn’t easy with the kids.  Sometimes it feels like too much work just to pack.  As much as we try to have a 2nd set of everything down at the lake, it is hard to leave the house without feeling like we could just as well live out of our car.

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I was so excited to get some new 4th of July designs.  I love getting my kids dressed up.  It’s nice that there are many more patriotic holidays out there for you to double dip your outfits.

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We hope everyone has a relaxing (ha), rejuvenating summer.  Most of all, we hope you get time to snuggle your bugs close and laugh until your face hurts.

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