S/O of S/O to How Old Are You Thread: 40-49 yr old's: Check in Here!

[Florida Cindy]

Marge granted permission to "borrow" her thread for the 40-49 yr old age group.

Now I'm curious...who are we? (raising hand proudly)
I think that we are the generation that may have not grown up with computers in our homes, and I wonder sometimes if things just don't come as easily to us.
Come on ladies!


Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?

Talk to us: the over 50 yr old ladies are going to watch this thread! :lol

[~justme]

I'm one of them...will be 44 this Sunday.

[Krash]

Guess I don't count Cindy because I'll be 39 this year:) Not quite to 40! I sure didn't grow up with computers in the home! lol Remember the 1st computer class that opened up in my high school. I couldn't even get into it! There were 2 computers for a class of about 22.

I never, ever used a PC until I got a job at a phone card company. There I had to admit I didn't know how to do e-mail and ask a 18 yr. old to show me how.

Got my own PC in 2001. Took me 2yrs. after that to do anything at all with photos or digi scrapping...I discovered digi scrapping in late 2002.

Hey I think all the late 30 somethings and the 40 somethings are every bit as funky and creative as the "youth"!! lol :D

[karenheckyeah]

Who are you? Karen Heckathorne! (karenheckyeah digital designs)
How old are you? I will be 48 on September 3rd
What are your interests and challenges? I am a criminal justice major working on my Bachelor of Science degree, so criminals are an interest. And it's also a challenge because I will be 48 years old before I have a degree finally! It is never too late, folks!
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? Heck no! I'm as funky and creative as they come, I just happen to know that there are more funkier and creative people out there than me, lol!:lol

[scrapyardkath]

I am Katherine Lent, I am 41.
I did not grow up with computers and many of todays things, plus we were poor anyway so I did not get things when they did come out like tape decks, Walkman or VCR, even cable TV or even a color TV!

My interests do include computers and I worked for Apple for 5 years before having my third child, Corinne, now 3.

I also love gardening, although did none this year due to EXTREME allergies. I have been suffering from them every single day since April!

I also like hiking, ice skating, amusement parks, and sci-fi.
I have lot's of other interests I will persue as I get older, like sailing.

My challenges include my weight, lack of college education, I dropped out of HS and got a GED. Also my allergies, chronic heartburn, and social anxiety.

My main concern in life right now is my daughter Corinne's Leukemia and her ongoing chemo treatment.

I think Digi Scrapping has been a great source of confidence in my creativity and I am very happy with my LOs and my 'style'. I don't feel hindered my my age, perhaps enhanced by it. I think my age and experiences have added to my overall frame of reference and source of creativity.






Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?

[Gayle]

Gayle Hodgins checkin' in at 47. Besides digi-scrapping I'm a daily jogger/walker, "weight watcher" and mom. At 47 I have a 13 year old and an almost 5 year old. Yup, had Lola at 42 so at 44 and 47, respectively, DH and I have the family life of 20/30somethings. I don't think I'm as funky as other digi-scrappers but every bit as creative. I'm still a paper scrapper at heart and my designs probably reflect that. Hmm. Does that make sense. Funky, not so much. Creative, yes :)

[LeslieL]

Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? :lolI'm Leslie, and I'm 44.
I'm a music teacher and band director at a boys' school, and I'm really enjoying a nice summer break right now. I have a 4 yo son and a 2 yo daughter, and we're having a big time!

My first jobs used Word Perfect on big ol' DOS systems. My first few years of teaching, we were still using ditto machines (with the purple ink and that great smell!). Then my school got a bunch of Mac computers, the little boxy ones with the tiny screen. Then I was one of the teachers in a pilot program that started about 8 years ago - every teacher has a laptop and access to desktop machines for students. I was in the first group of teachers to get a laptop, so we had to come up with all kinds of creative ideas to sell the program to the board of directors. I use my laptop for my lectures and we do special units on music composition.

I just started digiscrapping in April, and I really enjoy it. It's been a great creative outlet for me. I do feel a little behind the curve here, but I'm satisfied with what I'm coming up with. I try something new in every layout; at least I try to.

[lcbannon]

Who: Cheryl Bannon (lcbannon)
46 as of today- makes me a Bang Baby
First Comupter stuff in High School was using punch cards (that should throw the 20-30 yr olds for a loop.

Interests. Anything on PC, gardening, reading.

I am creative but due to medical issues finding it hard to express right now. Used to do all kinds of needlework and little crafty projects. Now I love to surf web, and am a dedicated software junkie.

[diannerigdon]

Yay Cindy! I was really feeling like a fringe element! :giggle. Now I can be "IN"! Woot!

Who are you? Dianne Rigdon
How old are you? 43 and a half!
What are your interests and challenges? For interests, other than digital scrapbooking, I have web design, sewing, painting, crafting, music, photography, reading, poetry, homeschooling, and oh there's probably more. I would say that "interests" are my downfall lol. As far as challenges, I homeschool three kids. I think that counts as a challenge, don't you? LOL. Also I have weight problems (although I am down nearly 60 this year and still going strong) and I am a type II non insulin dependent diabetic and I have "female issues" and I have Lupus. I am a Christian and love the Lord and believe that He is caring for me and even with all of these challenges I feel very very blessed.
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? I do sometimes in a way. I mean...I will see something fun and funky and think oh I wish I could do that or I wish I could try on that style...and technically I could but it's not me you know? And of course my energy levels are much lower than some of these young do it all mom/designers and that may not be age related so much as health related. But...I am very blessed in that I have confidence in what I do and most of the time I just love my stuff so much that even tho someone else does a page or makes a kit that totally rawks my socks off, I don't really feel challenged, but invigorated. I have had a few slumps here and there creativity wise, but I know that at the other end of a slump is a high so I just wait for it! ;)

[Stacey42]

1. Who are you? Stacey

2. How old are you? I'll be 40 on July 20th

3. What are your interests and challenges? I love history. I love reading. I actually love homemaking. :) I like to cook, I like making my home a place of peace & contentment. I was in telecom before my kids were born. I had my first child at 35 & that was a big challenge. His brother was born 15 months later, an even bigger challenge. My biggest challenge is giving everyone in my life the time they want & also getting the time I need to myself.

4. Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? I wasn't funky when I was 20 & I certainly don't feel funky now. But, unlike when I was 20, I no longer feel I must be funky. :) I do my own thing & I am happy with it. I ee I am very creative in many ways. I think there are plenty of more creative women than me here. I appreciate their inspiration. :)

We did have a computer in my house. We got an Atari when I was 14 & I used to type in the code for games that came in Atari magazine. I was so proud of myself when I figured out how to create my own program that took the entered items, mixed them with a preset list and then randomly generated a recipe with the ingredients. :) My first 'real computer' was a 286 that DH bought when I was in grad school in 1990. I haven't been without one since. All of my jobs since college have been computer oriented.

The coolest thing in the world when I was kid was when a friend of mine's older sister put an 8 track cassette player in her VW bug. :) Now I insist that my next car come mp3 player ready so I can just plug it in.

[~justme]

Ok....I was the first to reply and really meant to close out the window, not hit submit and come back later....got interrupted by one of my dc....anyways...now to actually answer the questions.

1. Who are you?

My name is Jo...I am mom to 4 dc....16, almost 17 yo dd, 11 yo ds, 8 yo dd, 3, almost 4 yo dd. I home educate all my dc and my oldest will be in 11th grade this year:eekMy wonderful dh and I just celebrated our 23rd anniversary this past June.

2. How old are you?

This Sunday I will be 44.

3. What are your interests and challenges?

I have been a paper scrapper for years and years. Have messed around with PSE and do some web design and actually do a paper scrap site for our local store...and help coordinate the DT and teach a class there monthly. I have always used my computer to add various things to my scrapping...mostly journaling to begin with and then different little things here and there...was hybrid before I even knew what the term meant. I put off trying to scrap digitally for a long time because I knew once I started I would be hooked...and I was right. I love what I am able to do digitally...I also love paper scrapping and doubt I will ever stop doing that either. My other interests would have to be reading and shopping....I never used to like to shop, but since I have lost quite a bit of weight (GO WW!:spin) I LOVE shopping for clothes, jewelry and shoes!

Challenges I face....not enough time to do what I want (scrap wise), not able to learn as fast as I would like, would LOVE to have PS instead of PSE, would LOVE it if my dh would build me another computer for the downstairs (we only have 1). I am sure I could come up with more if you would like :lol

4. Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?

Only because I have only been scrapping digitally for about a month now. To me age is just a number, it doesn't define who I am. I am always wanting to learn more, do new things...my biggest problem.....trying to figure out which thing I want to master next....there are too many of them!!! :lol

[twoboyz00]

I'm Cathy, age 41. The first computers I worked on in high school were the Radio Shak TRS-80 and Apple 2E, and used VAX systems in college. Luckily, as an engineer, I've pretty much kept up with computer technology. I'm not so saavy with some of the newer things, like Hello and Kaboodle (though I did learn about these recently). My two boys keep me pretty busy. I spend a lot of time scrapping, but also enjoy hiking, camping, vacations, and computer games. I don't feel as funky as the younger gals, but that's probably more related to my geek-brain rather than my age. Creative - I guess I do ok there.

[Maidi]

I am 40 years old, feeling young and love this thread.

I got my first computer when I was 22 years old and that was my first contact to it, it was love from the first moment until now.
I am (do not know your words) at home - mother of three small children - that is enough for me.


Interest: I used to read trivial literatur and loved it. I love my garden, but most work is my husband doing, I like more to watch the flowers.
I love taking fotos of my children and since I started scrapbooking, there is no time for more.

I would love to be creative, but my brain stoped working, when my children arrived, I am to tired and the parallel work of creativity and educate children is not going, I guess I am to old for the parallel.
So I do my best, admire the funky designer stars, buy some kits, I sure never will use (but I feel funky then :-) )
and I am happy with that.

[melrio]

Gotta put my 2 cents worth here: LOL

Who are you? Melanie aka melrio

How old are you? 42 and feeling fine!!!!

What are your interests and challenges? DigiScrappin!!! I love it as it is not only a hobby but a way for me to DE-stress and meet up with women that have the same interests. Also, I'm a grandma (yep, thanks kids!!) and feel like I'm in better shape, look better, and feel better than my mother did at my age. What I mean to say is that when I was younger...my mother seemed 'older' at 42 than how I am right now. Funny huh?!?!

Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? Sometimes I don't feel all 'Funky' and 'Creative' but then there are times that I could just scrap all day long. And as long as I'm happy with the outcome, then that's all right with me. Love the word Diane used....Confidence.

[Kazadoodle]

Who are you? - I am me, Karin - pronounce it anyway you like, I've given up :)

How old are you? I will be 43 this November and I'm the mother of a 6 year old, who will be 7 at the time.

What are your interests and challenges? I have a lot of interests - reading, writing, being creative, etc. My challenges mostly revolve around being the mother of a child who is the age that she is - not that I have a problem with and I keep up with her just fine, but all the other mothers are SO MUCH YOUNGER than me - or, if they are close to my age, they all have older kids.

Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? Never - I've always been funky and creative but I've never been trendy - being trendy bores me and it always has.

As to computers - I started in the workforce just at the onset of word processors hitting the secretarial desk - 8 years down the track, I knew almost every word processing package there was and I was in high demand when I started doing temp work. I can't remember exactly how old I was when I had my first computer, around 21 or 22 - it was a Commodore 64 - I still miss that thing.

[diannerigdon]

STACEY!!! I totally loved this. First of all....what kind of car do you think my very first car was? (Wait that sentence is poorly structured lol but anyway...) a VW!! and what do you think was IN that car?!? An 8 Track Tape Player! And it came with some funky old 8 track tapes! Woot! I had the Righteous Brothers and I don't remember who else oh! Donna Summer! ROFLOL! Ahhhhh those were the days. :giggle


The coolest thing in the world when I was kid was when a friend of mine's older sister put an 8 track cassette player in her VW bug. :) Now I insist that my next car come mp3 player ready so I can just plug it in.

[Florida Cindy]

Who are you?: My name is Cindy Jones.

How old are you? 40 (41 on 8/19)

What are your interests: Writing to alot of pen pals, digi scrapping, photography, working out at the gym, making cards, journaling. I love visiting lighthouses and places of history. I also collect digi items. LOL!

My challenges: Depression/OCD/Osteoarthritis

Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? LOL! Fun and funky? For me, that's creating a layout w/o a quick page! I'm pretty conservative and my layouts reflect more photos than digi scrap items.

My Dad purchased a Commadore 64 in the early 1980's. I used the computer to produce a club newsletter for a year. After that, I didn't use a computer until I married DH in 1996. We shared a computer for a few short months after we married. Then, he bought one for me and I've been an addict ever since. I used PS and Pagemaker when it first came out. My Dad and I photographed the Hooters, Busch and other racing series. We'd correct the photos, print them out on die sub printers and sell them. I began producing a racing program and used Pagemaker. Then, I wrote for a Hooters Pro Cup website. But the long working weekends took a toll on me and I decided to return to a halfway normal life.

[Krash]

STACEY!!! I totally loved this. First of all....what kind of car do you think my very first car was? (Wait that sentence is poorly structured lol but anyway...) a VW!! and what do you think was IN that car?!? An 8 Track Tape Player! And it came with some funky old 8 track tapes! Woot! I had the Righteous Brothers and I don't remember who else oh! Donna Summer! ROFLOL! Ahhhhh those were the days. :giggle


I might not be 40 yet BUT!! LOL!! I've got a whole spin rack of 8-tracks on a shelf in my laundry room!! The Eagles, Doobie Brothers...:clap Guess what dh's 1st car was? A bright yellow VW~with plywood for a floor!! ROTFLOL!!

[suejones]

Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?



I am Sue Jones.
I will be 42 in 3 weeks time.
Hmmm interests and challenges. Getting up each morning is becoming a challenge. Nah, don't listen to me - I'm just pms'ing. :lol
I have 3 children 21, 17 and 5. The 21 year old is making me a grandma in November. Still can't believe it. The 17 year old is adding my grey hair count and I still haven't found the battery compartment on the 5 year old so that I can remove them to slow her down a bit. :p
I work part time in a gym but I feel like a live there. When I'm not actually working, I'm either working out or in helping the boss out with stuff. I do a lot of unpaid work atm. I'm also studying to be a personal trainer (I'm the fat one lol). I've lost 20kg so far and I'm still on a weight loss journey. My main reason for becoming a PT is to work with people with weight issues, children and the elderly. Other interests (when I don't fall asleep on the lounge at night) are reading, sudoku, designing and paper scrapping.

I remember my first contact with a computer was when I was in my 20's and it was a friends Commodore with a dot matrix printer. I typed up my xh's book manuscript on it for him. I grew up with no computers in the house, a beta VCR, tape decks and vinyl records!

[Lill-B]

Who are you? I am Lill, living in Norway, mother of two sons at 8 1/2 and 5 years old and married to my dh for 9 years now.
How old are you? I turned the magical 40 last december.
What are your interests and challenges? My interests ar digiscrapping ofcourse and photography. Anything that challenge me to be creative. My challenges - well I have bad hands and shoulders. I have to operate in september again.
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? Nope, I love to be creative, and when I can't figure out a layout or what to scrap- I just design something instead.

[ikscrap]

Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?I am Ingeborg (ikscrap) mother of 3 children (14, 12 and 12) and married for 22 years to Rob. Living in the Netherlands.

I am 46

First of all scrapping, designing and then making photo's, writing reading. I just want to be creative and a good wife and mother too lol.

I think creativity has nothing to do with age.
I first worked with a computer 20 years ago, doing secretarial work with wordperfect, loved that program. I got my first computer in 2000 and two years later I started digital scrapping.
I just love computers, even games like warcraft and others.

[nanasdinky]

That would be me!!! Im nanasdinky :) (Gerri Phillips)
Im 47.....
I had never been around computers at all until my DD's BF at the time (now husband) brought one home for her.They kept trying to get me to get on it and I remember saying no....huh uh...Oh no...not me!!! lolololololol
I love to digi scrap...sew,quilt,garden,cook,read & fish just to name a few things
Do I ever feel not as funky & creative as the younger ones??? Sometimes but I dont let that bother me...Im just me and I have to scrap the only way I know how...I know thats why I wouldnt be picked for a lot of creative teamns out there...but again ...I just have to be me :) There are times Id like to be funkier but sad to say I just dont know how !

[Kazadoodle]

Oh Ingeborg - WordPerfect - I HATED that program - the minute I saw it, I knew it was going to be a dinosaur - LOL - thanks for the memory :)

[Tracey Monette (formerly mybetrside)]

Who are you? Tracey Gilbert Monette - Canadian who has lived in the states since she was 24!
How old are you? Arghhhhh! 46. I'm confused - how did THAT happen!!!
What are your interests and challenges? Passionate about designing, love shopping (too much), always enjoying new friends, (I'm a social type but still a little bit shy - and very good at putting my foot in my mouth), love the coast and exploring new places, reading, hiking, coffee with friends. I have a 7 years old daughter who is the little love of my life!!!

Challenges? Learning from books as opposed to video or someone actually there teaching me. Keeping up with my 7 year old. Trying to get life and fitness back on track after several years of one injury after another - very frustrating. Typical memory issues of not remembering names or words when I want to!!!
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? I grew up in a family of artists, have always been artistic and funky. However, It's hard to feel cool around a group of 26 year olds who probably think I'm an old lady because they haven't lived their lives long enough to know I'm not - lol.

You want to know me more? Just "hello" mybetrside. lol.

[4noisyboys]

I'm Debra, and I'm 45 years old. I was born and raised in California...just a block from the beach. I love the smell of the ocean air, and would die if I coudn't drive to see the ocean in less than one hour. I've always lived on the west coast (Seattle and Alaksa too). I have 4 boys, and they used to be noisy, but since two are gone, one almost out of the house, and they youngest being almost 16, they're not too noisy anymore! They are 24, 21, 19 and 15. My oldest moved to Texas last year, and even though he's come home several times to visit, I miss him terribly!!! Everytime I think of him, I get tears in my eyes (like right now!!) I just celebrated my 25th wedding anniversary this year to my one and only love.

I was pretty much a SAHM for many years, and I homeschooled all of them for many of those years. Really, those were the best years, and I look back on them fondly. I wish I had more patience then though. One of my boys (19) is bipolar, and we have had a long rough road. He is supposed to start Job Corps in two weeks, and I'm just holding my breath! I just have an awful feeling that he'll do something totally stupid and won't be able to go! I need this break SO bad!! It is a federally funded program where he'll learn a trade, so I hope he can handle it. He is not very responsible about taking his medication, so that is going to be a problem!!

My husband will be leaving on Sunday for 2 - 3 months to go up to Alaska (we are in SoCal) to work. His siblings are up there and really need him to do a job for them. I'm starting to stress about handling everything while he's gone. I don't really have anyone to call if something were to happen (like my air conditioner blowing a fuse!!!).

I guess I forgot the questions!! Um...I like to read, scrap, and I've always enjoyed crafts of all sorts! I used to LOVE shopping, and I could've probably kept up with Ginal Miller, but not anymore. I just don't seem to have to time anymore. I work at a Brighton store now...mostly for fun. I LOVE it...the ladies I work with are amazing...I am treated very well, and I get to buy fun things at a great price!! Oh yeah...and I am definitely funky and creatively challenged!! I struggle so much with the clustered element look, and if it weren't for Nancy Comelab, I'd never be able to cluster frames either!!

[1967jodie]

Who are you? I'm Jodie, live down under in Australia,part time pharmacist and Mum to two children, Jacob 7 and Bianca 4.5 yrs

How old are you? I turned 40 in May

What are your interests and challenges? I love photography, gardening, reading anything I can get my hands on, I have done lots of different crafts, chilling with my family.
As for challenges... getting up on time ;) Seriously, we had a long struggle with infertility and as a couple that was our biggest challenge. It was the hardest thing that I have ever dealt with, but at the end of the day it strengthened our relationship and we were lucky enough to be blessed with two beautiful children. Hmmmm....my baby is 4.5 yrs and I still have not lost the baby weight, exercise and dieting is a challenge for me. But mainly, as does any mother, I feel challenged by juggling all my roles in life and keeping it all balanced so that everyone is happy and has their needs met. Oh and it is a standing joke on most of my creative teams that I am "purple challenged" I don't do purple lol.

Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? No, never. I am happy with my creative style. I am happy with where I am right now in my life. I love that as I have aged I have found the freedom to not worry about the stuff I can't change and what people think.

My first experience with a computer was in my final year of high school... it had the dot matrix printer with purple ink and we wrote little programs, can't remember what they did. I grew up with LP records, I can remember when we got our first cassette deck, I had left home before my parents got a VHS. My kids find it hilarious that I can remember a time without mobile phones !

[Flatlander]

Who are you?
How old are you?
What are your interests and challenges?
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?


I'm Ruth and I'll be 45 in October. I've been a SAHM since I was laid off from my job 5 years ago just after I found out I was pregnant with DD. In the past 6 years I've relocated back to the US (was working in Europe), gotten married, had DD, had a miscarraige, and relocated twice more for DH's job. We're now adjusting to living in the "South" here in NC.

I struggle with my weight - always have since high school. We bought an elliptical last January and finally have it up and running in our spare room. I've been pretty good about getting on daily for a half hour or so. My other struggle is balancing time for me and time for DD. I was 39 when I got married and 40 when I had DD. I am very used to having plenty of "me" time. I like to read, cook, and bake - and am passing on all of those interests to DD. I make baby quilts for my extended family on my Dad's side (my Dad's Mom used to do this and taught me how when I was a kid) and for my friend's kids. I used to do counted cross stitch but not so much anymore as after 20 years or so, I'm finally leaving the "Country" look behind. I still need to finish my brother and SIL's wedding sampler - they were married in 1999 :lol :lol :lol

My high school started offering computer classes (with a punched tape for input) in the late 70's. I never took it but helped my friend's write their programs. In college, I used punch cards for a few years before they got an online editor. I remember choosing to type a paper my senior year rather than having to learn how to use a word processor. At my first job, I learned Lotus 123, AmiPro, and dBase. I learned to use Word Star and various other programs while in Grad School. I got my own PC in 1993 - a 486 DX2 with a 40MB Hard Drive. :lol I spent the better part of a year learning Micrsoft Publisher inside and out to create family newsletters. In 1995, I switched jobs - became a traveling business consultant, and got a laptop and learned MS Office (as it had now taken over the world). In 2002 - we bought and iMac and now are starting to discuss replacing it. I started digi-scrapping in November 2005 after figuring out that paper scrapping wasn't really my thing. Got to love that Undo command. ;)

I've always been creative (I went to summer school during HS so I could still take art classes as well as College Prep) but have never been funky (heck I have an undergrad in Engineering and a Masters in management). I identify with a lot of the younger sets' issues because I'm chasing a pre-schooler too. I just wish I had their energy. ;)

[bluefiji97]

Count me in this group!

Who are you? Nancy
How old are you? 43
What are your interests and challenges? Well, the obvious being digi scrapping, but I do LOVE my job. I work at home for an ad agency. I'm a media buyer and I get to make decisions for my clients on where to advertise. So I get to watch tons of TV! I got married at 33, had my first child at 35, second at 37 and third at 40. A little later than most people I know my age. Most of my friends have kids in high school or college even. So I can relate to my 40-something friends and also women much younger with young families. I even get comments from people that can't believe my age. I hope they're not just saying it to be nice. I like to believe I look younger than 43. ;)
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? Not at all. I don't think age limits creativity. In fact I think your horizons broaden with age. I am definitely more open to many more things than I was in my 20's.

[diannerigdon]

Me too Nancy...so odd to have small children who's friends mom's are ALSO young enough to be one's daughters roflol. :ack


Ruth...I have several projects saved up like that too....baby gifts for babies who are now toddlers.....etc etc etc roflol.

Debra I'd love to hear more about what you did with those boys for homeschool highschool! Feel free to pm me if you want!

Loving this thread btw. All of you are so cute in your avatars I wouldn't guess 40's on any of you. Okay. So. Some of you are talking about your first experiences with computers....mine was my mom who, even tho we were dirt poor...we are talking can't buy new clothes but once a year and then only a couple of outfits poor? Macaroni and cheese for dinner everynight poor? (Back when it was a quarter a box roflol.) Anyway...my mom HAD to have a computer. So she scrimped and saved and, I think, defaulted on a few power bills roflol...and bought an Adam. Anyone remember those? And an Atari we got one of those too and thus began the attachment to geek toys for me. I mean, the Adam was basically a glorified typewriter, no? But we were COOL. Hehehehe.

[pagebypaige]

Who am I? My name is Paige and have been married almost 14 years to a wonderful guy and am the mother to a 6 and 8 year old! (yes I feel like I'm always the oldest mom around) I work full time as an Asst. Principal at an Elementary School... but I do get sometime off during the summer! I'm originally from Kansas but have lived in Texas now for almost as long as I lived in Kansas... now that makes me feel old! Our dream is to move to Phoenix... which is where we spend most of our time during the summer break. Actually that's where I am right now!

How old are you? 42... when I turned 40 I swear I wore black the entire month of my birthday! I had no idea that it would be so tramatic for me to turn 40! It actually caught me off guard!

What are your interests and challenges? Well digiscrapping obviously!!! I have to admit that I don't have much time for myself with work and family which is how I got into digiscrapping in the first place. I was complaining to a friend of mine that all I did was do for others and never took the time to do anything for me so she showed me some of her digi pages... and I thought humm I could try that! So now I find the time to do this... and would love to have more time to spend on my photography! I'm also having fun making some jewelry with my dh this summer and teaching her how to digi scrap!

Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? YES!!!!! Everytime I look in through the gallery... I think oh I'd love to scrap like her when I grow up! I think alot of it is just lack of self confidence to try new things. I'd really like to try some hybrid projects too but not sure where to start... I see so many creative ideas and I think to myself that I never would have thought of that on my own


Oh and as far as computers go... we had an atari when I was a teenager... ya know the kind that all you could do was play pong on it!!!! Didn't have my first computer until I was in grad school at the age of 27!! Now we have 4 in our house! My kids have such an advantage as they are both wizes on the computer!

[LeslieL]

It's fun (and encouraging) to see all of the over-40 moms with little children at home! What a relief to meet some other people like crazy me!

[Lynn G]

I'm Lynn. I live in New Zealand with my DH Bernard and two daughters (one is 13 and the other is 5) I am originally a political and financial journalist (and author of a guide to providing accessible information to people with learning disabilities) by profession but now work solely as a digi designer.

How old am I? I stopped keeping count when I turned 40 a couple of years ago LOL!

I am interested in autism (because of my DD Maddie and because I also worked in that field in London until recently), history, travel but mainly digiscrapping. My challenges are mainly around my health, as well as meeting the needs of a slightly autistic but also academically gifted 5 year old. Interestingly most people in New Zealand don't get married and have kids until much later than in the States so the few friends we have who have had children all have even younger children than us! The 40s here very often are the "dealing with toddlers" years.

I don't think of myself as "funky" but that has nothing to do with my age but just my style. In this community I see amazing creativity and skill displayed by people who are in their 20s (or younger!) and also by grandmothers. It's wonderful!

[Jude]

I'm loving reading through this thread - great idea.

1. Who are you? My name is Jude and I have been married to my best friend for 30 years just gone in May. I live in Melbourne Australia and have 2 daughters, 1 son, 1 son-in-law, 1 daughter-in-law and two beautiful granddaughters …. Oh and 2 furry feline friends.

2. How old are you? I turned 48 in March this year.

3. What are your interests and challenges? I love digital art (I use Painter X) and digital scrapbook designing, photography, cooking, reading. I have used a computer probably since my late twenties but mainly for work or word processing – until I fell in love with photoshop and digi scrapping three years ago. Now my laptop and I are joined and where I go it goes… luckily my husband and I have our own business so it is easy for me to take puter and tablet to work. Lately I have been dabbling in Illustrator as well. My challenges are to fit so many wonderful things into a day… there are just never enough hours to learn all the things I want to learn and to do all the things I want. Such a shame about office work and housework ☹

4. Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community? I am what I call a “dabbler” designer and really I just make stuff that I like and because I love to be creative and do something with all these ideas in my head …. but I do happen to like “funky” … there are far more funky people out there than me but I don’t feel any less funky because of that…. I admire their work though.

[Roberta]

Who are you?
I'm Roberta D'Achille. A single mother of two. I am the owner and only designer at Rendered Memories.
How old are you?
I turned 48 in February, so before too long I'll be on the 50 - 60 thread :)
What are your interests and challenges?
Interests include digital scrapbooking and photography. Being the only responsible adult in my children's daily life carries a whole host of challenges.
Do you ever feel not as funky and creative as the majority of women in our community?
Honestly, no. I am not usually lacking for creative ideas - I am usually lacking time or money to see them through.