Zoom About Ellen - video journaling and sharing ways to dream big and live authentically

Wordless Wednesday ~ No words can describe

Wordless Wednesday ~ Industrial Beauty

IMG_3247.JPG, originally uploaded by zaellen.

What I am doing this holiday season to make a smaller footprint?

I've always been a garage sale/thrift store junky. I LOVE the feeling of reusing and recreating. This year I also promised my kids that we would go a little crazy with lights outside and in...So, I've been to every goodwill, consignment store, thrift store within a 40 mile radius and collected all of the lights I could find. The thing is...they all work AND were so cheap. I've collected lots of other cool stuff too and have been busy recreating. I'll share some cool pics of ReCaptivation creations soon (hopefully launching our website too). In the meantime... I did it! I made my holiday card with Smilebox. Hardest part was picking out the pictures...too many cute ones. I didn't have any trouble with the song...Jack Johnson's version of "Someday at Christmas" is my favorite holiday tune and I can't stop humming it constantly. So...my gift to you...now it'll be in your head too!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Please comment and remember...there's still time to go green and make a Smilebox holiday card and by the way...if I don't have your email address, YOU LOSE! Just kidding...I am making ZoomAlbum photo books of the slideshow for stocking stuffers and gifts. Let me know what you think...don't be shy :)

Sparkly Princess Retreat Memories...

Just sent this out to my new friends from the Startup Princess Retreat. Fun memories and sweet, quick way to share them. Maybe something else special coming to them from Kelly King Anderson (and ZoomAlbum, shhhhhhh!).

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Coming soon...putting the finishing touches on my holiday Smilebox with one of my FAVORITE holiday songs by one of my FAVORITE artists (hint...his initials are JJ) AND will include exclusive pics of the ZoomAlbum I'll be putting in stockings this year. (Good way to test whether or not my family reads my blog by who's surprised on Christmas...hee, hee or should I say ho, ho).

Seattle Marathon...on the Purple Pedal Bike!

So much fun...Today I got to ride Shoot n' Roll in the Seattle 1/2 Marathon. Yes, I was signed up to run it but had to grab the opportunity to ride the bike and take pics of it every step of the way (and flip video, of course). The Seattle Marathon people were nice enough to grant permission (knowing of course that I COULD run it if I wanted to, lol) to let me "cover" the marathon by riding my Purple Pedal bike. Here are some highlights...(for more videos of the ride, check out my YouTube page) AND here are the pics the bike took along the way! I made a big sticker for ZoomAlbum and Smilebox for the side of the bike...stay tuned for the ZoomAlbum photobooks and Smilebox slideshows I'm gonna make of this and future rides! For more info on Yahoo's Purple Pedals and to see what the other bikes are up to, go to www.purplepedals.com or www.flickr.com/groups/5purplepedals. Btw, looks like they're going to let me keep it for longer. Comment and let me know if there's something here in Washington you'd like to see and I'll ride to it for you! :)

Pirate Pete...seriously took me like 5 minutes to make!

I know you expect to hear this from the mom, but dang is he ever cute...Don't you think? No kidding, fast, easy and cool gift to send FOR FREE, with added bonus of tunes too! I LOVE SMILEBOX!

Make a Smilebox postcard

Shoot n Roll's soccer tournament adventure...

So, it's been a crazy week around here...My Yahoo! Purple Pedal Bike arrived on Monday, just in time for me to go out of town for a few days for 6sight 2008 in Monterey where my dad and I WOWed everyone with ZoomAlbum (lol). Got back on Thursday night and got geared up for my 9 year olds weekend soccer tournament, The Turkey Shoot. Here are a few videos of my 1st week with the bike. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Purple Pedals, they are super cool purple bikes with camera phones mounted between the handle bars. While riding, the camera randomly shoots pics and uploads them to flickr, mapping the location of the pic and the route of the bike. Cool, huh? I'm planning all sorts of adventures on the bike while I have it (for 3 more weeks) and look forward to any comments and suggestions about where I should take it (in the Pacific Northwest, of course) between now and Dec. 17th. Here are some of my ideas:

• Around North Bend (my town) with flip video - promoting local business and getting reactions to the bike.
• To Tree House Point in Fall City
• In Seattle Marathon - I'm signed up to run in the 1/2 and am going to see if they'll let me ride the bike in it instead (since I've run 11 and am going to ride 13 before the marathon so I know I can do it :)
• Across I-90 bridge into Seattle
• Around Seattle Center
• At Snoqualmie Pass (if not TOO much snow)
• Ferry ride from Edmonds to Kingston and then ride to around Olympic Peninsula

Watch the videos and give me some more ideas. TALK ABOUT TAKING MY LIFE WITH ME!!! My only complaint so far about the bike is the lack of cup holder (I'll attach one) and no holder for my blackberry so I can be twittering/keeping up on email during ride. I may look at mounting something to hold my flip so I can have it videoing snippets of the rides. We'll see...I need to get some work done too! It will be tough while the bike is here so you can also support me by checking out ZOOMALBUM and SMILEBOX and trying both out!!!
CHECK IT OUT! and stay tuned for how I'm living authentically and DREAMING BIG this week and other silly stuff. May be time for me to change the blog name to Adventures of Ellenmental... :)

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Sweet ZoomAlbum Photobook for Gwen Bell (and Joel)

Gwen gave me awesome pictures of her and her fiance, Joel on at thumb drive at the Startup Princess retreat and look what I made with them! Popped them in the mail today... Can't wait till she gets them. Watch this for the first peek and to see exactly how easy it is to make ZoomAlbums! :)

I LOVE TWITTERMOMS!

Check it out... and join!

AND check out the TWITTERMOMS HOLIDAY CATALOG! Seriously cool stuff and deals on ZoomAlbums in there too!

This is real. This is me! Please help me by submitting thoughts for contest!

Because of my 9 year old daughter, I have a song from Camp Rock running through my head...Click here if you want to watch my daughter and her best friend singing it!

"This is real, this is me.
I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be now.
Gonna let the light shine on me.
Now I know who I am.
There's now way to keep it in.
No more hiding who I'm supposed to be.
This is me."

There is so much to share from the Start Up Princess Retreat that it's hard to know where to start. HUGE thanks to wonderful mentors, Holly Buchanan, Barbara Jones, Gabrielle Blair, Gwen Bell, Janet Meiners Thaeler. Thanks to other fairy godmothers and inspiring friends , Kelly King Anderson, Carol Rice, Rachael Herrscher, Leigh Anne Willkes, Quinn Curtis, Jenny Johnson, Sarah Jane, Marie LeBaron, Amber Passey, Michelle McCullough, Kris and Kim .

One thing I know for sure is that I will be putting tons of new ideas into action over the next couple of weeks that will include lots of link love offering inspiration that will blow you away. In the meantime, I want to share a few changes that are coming soon...

ZoomAlbum will be launching a new website shortly that will be DRASTICAllY improved and easier to navigate. When this happens...thanks to amazing suggestions from Janet Meiners Thaeler (aka, newspapergrl), I'll be launching a new blog specific to ZoomAlbum. I hope to have testimonials and guest submissions and LOTS and LOTS of link love to everyone that has made a ZoomAlbum! Additionally there will be awesome ideas and contests. You'll be amazed at how many ways these little buggers can impact your personal and professional life!

Once the new site and blog is introduced, I'll be continuing to evolve Zoom About Ellen by adding video journaling, photos and written thoughts, ideas, tools and sharing about validation, empowerment, intuition and essentially ways to make your busy life easier and more fulfilling! It's the counselor/art therapy seeker in me, I know! So I've decided to take the advice of one of my favorite blog goddesses, Angie Pedersen and GO FOR IT!

In the meantime I want to ask that you all participate in my contest for November. IT"S SO EASY! As I mention over and over again, I am all about empowerment, intuition and keeping your dreams close to you. All you have to do is share what you do or are going to commit to doing to keep your dreams close. Here's how to enter:

Submit a picture/quote/idea/strategy that you use to help you remember your dreams and continue down the path of pursuing them. You can:

A. Submit the comment here or
B. Email me at ellen@zoomalbum.com with an attached picture or comments or
C. @zaellen on twitter referencing November contest

I'll choose randomly from what comes in 1 person who will receive enough to make 10 FREE ZOOMALBUM pocket-sized photobooks! THINK GIFTS, and STOCKING STUFFERS!

Can't wait to hear your inspiration! You never know...it may empower someone else to keep their dreams close to them and MAKE IT HAPPEN!

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