Strong Women Rule - Giveaway!

I grew up in a home with a strong mother - a woman who fought her brothers to go to school when they thought she should stay home and learn to cook and clean...who retyped her school applications when her brothers tore them up, a woman who was the only female at the boys' science college, came to America and made the life that SHE wanted. Although we don't always see eye to eye, she certainly can't argue about where I get my independent spirit!



As we're exploring STRENGTH this month at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out, I'm amazed at the great layouts we're seeing from our members about what it means to be a strong woman.

Some think there’s a tension between strength and femininity. What do you think? Do you subscribe to traditional views of masculinity and femininity? Do women wield different sorts of power than men? Do you see yourself as powerful, and in what ways? Who are women of great strength that you can think of, and how have they influenced your life?



And are we getting stronger as we get older? Is it all about physical strength, or is there a strength in wisdom?



Tell me what strength means to you and you'll be entered to win a subscriber premuum gift pack from SFTIO...please leave your comment before 5PM Pacific on Friday...

Love,

Rachel

March 2009 Inspiration - Spirit

It's never too late to play along with us while we learn and grow as artists...here's our Inspiration page for the March theme, SPIRIT. If you'd like to see our Design Team's LOs for Spirit, click here!

Journaling Prompts

Your Inner Light: Spirit can be described as many things - one is your inner light. There’s a spark in all of us - a spark of consciousness, conscience, greatness, and sometimes genius. To me, this spark is the definition of the life force in all living things. How would you describe your inner light? What places, things, experiences or connections bring out the spark in you? What beliefs do you hold that express the life force inside your soul?

Wild Child: There's part of spirit that is about the hidden you – that voice inside you that isn't always the good girl. So many of us are brought up to follow the rules and do the right thing. Do you consider yourself a 'good girl'? Do you struggle with doing the 'right thing'. How often, and in what ways do you give yourself permission to let loose and be free? Do you have an alter ego that looks and acts nothing like the 'perfect' you? Tell us about her!

Shooting for the Stars: It takes drive, gumption, and yes, spirit, to achieve your dreams. What drives you to pursue what you love and to try to accomplish your goals? Where does your strength come from? Whom do you admire, especially among the women in your life, who really go for it and grab for the gusto? Are there people outside your immediate sphere who inspire you with their spirit of adventure and stick-to-it-iveness?

Spirit Journey: We couldn't talk about spirit without looking at spirituality. What do you think about the role of the body vs. spirit, and how our faith in whatever we hold dear impacts us? Are we human beings having a spiritual experience, or spiritual beings having a human experience? Is faith an important part of your life experience? What is your connection between faith and your personal spirit?

Music Playlist:

Quotes

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. Albert Schweitzer

You can kill the body but not the spirit. Robert Stevenson

I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are sons of one religion, and it is the spirit. Kahlil Gibran

Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art. Leonardo da Vinci

The spirit becomes free only when it ceases to be a support. Franz Kafka

I'm a free spirit; more people should become free spirits. Mark Roberts

This I know; the spirit of Man cannot be stopped. Walter Reisch

The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which mean never losing your enthusiasm. Aldous Huxley

Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit. e. e. cummings

I like to be a free spirit. Some don't like that, but that's the way I am. Princess Diana

A child's spirit is like a child, you can never catch it by running after it; you must stand still, and, for love, it will soon itself come back. Arthur Miller

I need this wild life, this freedom. Zane Grey

They put me on television. And the whole thing broke loose. It was wild, I tell ya for sure. Elvis Presley

You were once wild here. Don't let them tame you. Isadora Duncan

I feel like a wet seed wild in the hot blind earth. William Faulkner

Take a walk on the wild side. Lou Reed

Words ought to be a little wild, for they are the assaults of thoughts on the unthinking. John Maynard Keynes

Wild oats will get sown some time, and one of the arts of life is to sow them at the right time. Richard Le Gallienne

Every man has a wild beast within him. Frederick The Great

Adventure is not outside man; it is within. George Eliot

Life is either a great adventure or nothing. Helen Keller

We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open. Jawaharlal Nehru

One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure. William Feather

What I love most about this crazy life is the adventure of it. Juliette Binoche

Life is beautiful but people are crazy. Charles Osgood

I think I have a lot of crazy layers. Blythe Danner

If we weren't all crazy, we'd just go insane. Jimmy Buffett

I'm crazy, and I don't pretend to be anything else. Calvin Klein

Passion rebuilds the world for the youth. It makes all things alive and significant. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Passion is the genesis of genius. Tony Robbins

Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion. Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

There are two good things in life - freedom of thought and freedom of action. W. Somerset Maugham

I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will. Charlotte Bronte

All men are by nature born equally free and independent. George Mason

I've always felt like I was on the margins. Once upon a time that's what independent used to mean. John Sayles

When the going gets tough, let the tough get going. Frank Leahy

My light shines when things get really tough. Tippi Hedren

I'm off to save the universe again. It's a tough job but someone has to do it, and I'm glad it's me. Lexa Doig

I'm tough, I'm ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay. Madonna Ciccone

I'm just a tough old woman. Marjory S. Douglas

My grandmother was a very tough woman. She buried three husbands and two of them were just napping. Rita Rudner

If the track is tough and the hill is rough, THINKING you can just ain't enough! Shel Silverstein

Just pray for a tough hide and a tender heart. Ruth Graham

You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through. Rosalynn Carter

Links

How to Get in Touch with your Spirit
The Labyrinth – Walking a Spiritual Journey
Creative Fun for Inspired Women
Strong Women, Strong Girls
Women in Extreme Sports

Need some JOY in your life?

We're having the best time being JOYFUL at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out...October is all about JOY!

This kit is so much fun! This is your chance to get in touch with your all the things that bring you happiness in every part of your life...

You'll be inpired and excited by these bold, brash, happy colors - orange, hot pink, yellow and turquoise...and fabulous design. These are truly up-to-the-minute products...we've got all the trends that will make you laugh and play: tangerine puffy vinyl thickers, American Crafts' Moda Bella line, Jenni Bowlin Sun chipboard, Maya Road Cupcake chipboard, a Prima felt film strip, and a Luxe floral transparency and rub on sheet...and that's just the beginning! Check out our buy-a-kit page to learn more.

As always, we'll have so much to share - our Design Team's fabulous layouts, our Inspiration page with a HUGE music playlist, quotes, journaling prompts and more.

We're also welcoming the super-talented designer Wendy Sue Anderson, who will be sharing her beautiful work and chatting with us all month.

Everday joys, deep and meaningful happiness...no matter what, It's All About You!

Don't miss it - it won't be the same without you! Our subscribers get a great discount, access to premium content, and free gifts. Most importantly, you can be part of a great community of women who care about creating art, personal growth and supporting each other's process.

We look forward to welcoming you!