Yes, I'm still here. I've been cooking up something pretty amazing, and my blog fell a few notches on my priority list. I can't share yet, but soon enough!
In the meantime, I was recently interviewed by Woman's World magazine for a column about summer scrapbooking. It sure made me miss my magazine days. It's good to know there are still some print titles that are hanging on, who care to spread the good news of memory keeping (and houseplants that cure anxiety) now and then.
The editor kindly sent me a handful of hard copies of the August 17, 2015 issue, featuring the interview with "scrapbooking maven Angie Lucas," plus a digital copy of the article.
"As a writer and editor myself, it's somewhat surreal to see myself referred to by last name only," says Lucas. (Wink.)
No matter where you stand on the scrapbooking spectrum—chronological, theme-based, pocket-style, traditional, digital, or just figuring out your memory-keeping approach—I think you'll love the idea behind my favorite album, which is quite possibly the one ablum I'd grab in the event of a fire.
If you're new to scrapbooking, this type of album is a great place to start. If you're experienced in the craft, then you already know that a scrapbooker's work is never done, and this is just one more wonderful addition to your album library.
It's called "Our Best Days."
This is one of my few albums that is chronological, instead of organized randomly in order of page completion. I like the free-flowing, hodgepodge nature of the rest of my albums. But this one has a narrow focus and tends to progress in date order.
It serves as a simple timeline for the major events and milestones in my life, including:
our engagement our wedding day our sealing in the LDS temple the arrival of my daughter the finalization of Keira's adoption the day she was blessed and sealed to us my stepson's high school graduation
These pages don't always include a lot of journaling. For events like these, there's just too much to say, and those in-depth stories are probably captured elsewhere. Plus, it's fairly obvious why these days would be special to me.
It is also a place I gather pages about particularly magical in-between days, like:
the day my premature nephew came home from the hospital the day a beloved pet came home after a near-death experience the day we completed a 25-mile bike race as a family an idyllic anniversary trip to Midway, Utah
These pages tend to include more journaling and longer stories, because it wouldn't be obvious at a glance why these days would make it into a "best days" album.
Why I Love This Album The album helped me solve a dilemma I've been facing. There were certain events and moments that I wanted to make sure never get lost in my standard ongoing albums, and I know if I were to ever look for these layouts in the future, I'd search for them based on date the event happened. So, I decided I should also organize them by date.
In so doing, I created a specific gathering place for layouts about my family's very best days—the highlights of our life. (This album could also be called "Favorite Days," as it follows the concept of my "Favorite Photos" album, where I gather those one-in-a-thousand shots that capture an emotion, relationship, or scene with perfect clarity—those that hold the biggest emotional impact for me.)
I call these types of albums—both Favorite Photos and Our Best Days—"ongoing theme albums," because they each have a specific purpose, and all the layouts within each of them share a common theme. They're not planned out or created in one sitting or even over the course of a couple of weeks. They are simply gathering places for all the layouts I create that suit the topic, whenever and however they get created. I'll continue adding to both albums as new page ideas come to mind.
My typical scrapbooking process is to create pages in random order, based on whatever inspires me at the time (see "About My Process" below). And it's usually only after a layout is done that I decide which of my albums should be its home.
But "Our Best Days" is one exception to that rule. If I'm scrapbooking about a momentous event, huge celebration, important milestone, or even just a fabulous regular day, I save it for Our Best Days—slipping it into it's chronological space in the lineup. This album is my one chronologically organized haven in all the creative randomness that rules the roost most of the time.
Embrace Design Randomness For this album, I don't try to coordinate products or designs from page to page—all layouts stand on their own. But most of these pages do have one design trait in common. I include the date prominently, and usually on a tab that sticks up off the top of the page. The size, shape, and style of the tab certainly evolves, but I like that subtle, common motif to repeat throughout the album.
About My Process Generally, I complete scrapbook pages and leave them in piles for months. Every so often, I'll go through and sort them into thematic albums. I have albums for:
Me Keira Jane Jeremy Conrad All About Us (pages about relationships between my immediate family) Things We Do (pages about vacations, events and outings) People We Love (pages about extended family and friends) Favorite Photos
I have plenty of small, single-topic theme albums as well. But these are the overarching themes for my larger 12 x 12 and 8.5x11 pages. The album themes are subject to change, and sometimes pages get shuffled between them.
The system is loosely inspired by Stacy Julian's system, outlined years ago in Simple Scrapbooks magazine and her Big Picture Scrapbooking and Photo Freedom books. The system is so intuitive that I like to think I would arrived at this approach on my own eventually. But the truth is, it didn't occur to me that I could make pages in any other way than chronologically before I encountered Stacy's work.
Note about the bookshelf picture: I'm continuing to embrace imperfection, which is why I shared a picture of my scrapbook albums as they currently sit on my bookshelf. No, they are not perfectly coordinated. And my plans to add coordinating labels to their spines has yet to materialize. The little green circles, punched from sticky-back cardstock and written on with a Sharpie, are serving as my temporary labelling system. (Temporary for about 2.5 years now.) But I'm not going to let it keep me from sharing my ideas. Too many of us are held back by impossible standards of beauty and perfection. I'm working on letting go of my own hesitations and inhibitions day by day.
For Christmas the year before last (back when I had NO time to blog, but I did have time to take pictures), I used a simple, repeatable formula to create meaningful gift albums for all of my nieces and nephews. Well, except for the two who are too young to appreciate them; they will get theirs in a few years.
You should have seen everyone's faces as they unwrapped their gifts at our family party. Moms and dads teared up. Kids looked through their albums again and again, comparing notes, giggling, trading and trading back. I even spotted two of the albums in a place of honor on my brother's fireplace mantel a few months later.
It was worth every single minute of time it took to pull them together.
I found these personalized, laser-cut, wood album covers on Pick Your Plum a few years ago. It's a deal-a-day site that features limited quantities of craft supplies each day. When they're gone, they're gone. (And these are most definitely GONE. I couldn't even locate anything like them in a Google search.) But you could complete the same project with any type of album.
My Album Recipe:
1 favorite photo for the cover
1 personalized title page
1 photo of me with the recipient
A list of "5 Things I Love About You"
5 favorite photos of the recipient
A list of "5 Hopes for Your Future"
A self-portrait page (for the recipient to fill in)
A 5-question quiz (for the recipient to complete)
You can breeze through all eight albums in this 2-minute video, created in the iMotion time-lapse app for iPhone. Or scroll down for close-ups of two complete albums. Music: "New Soul" by Yael Naim.
An Album for Thomas
I printed and trimmed the cover photos to leave about a 1/2-inch margin around all sides. I adhered them with a super-strong, permanent adhesive like this one or this one.
Each album begins with a personalized title page, with a tiny hand-written note. Fonts used: KG A Little Swag and orange juice. Both are free.
Next up is the very first photo ever taken of the two of us together. Sweet little Thomas was a 25-week, 2 lb. 2 oz. preemie, so I didn't get to hold him for a picture until he was 3 months old.
I selected a different sheet of double-sided patterned paper for each album, trimming them to fit across the top of each page. They are not adhered in place, just slipped loosely onto the jump rings in between the pages.
I included hand-written captions on each photo. I want the kids to know WHY these photos are my favorites; what they mean to me. I love the personal touch that handwriting adds to any project.
I printed most photos to a squarish size and centered them in the space, so there would be room on the bottom for the caption.
I tried to achieve a variety of photos in each album: some close-ups, some full-body shots, some from various ages.
How do you decide among all the wonderful photos you have? Just select the ones that mean something special to you. It almost doesn't matter which you choose. You're not telling a whole life story. This album is just a snapshot of A FEW of your favorites.
I also make sure to include one or two that really show off the child's personality, like this one.
Next up: "5 Hopes for Your Future," personalized for each child.
I reserved a page for each child to draw a self-portrait, showing off his or her current artistic skills.
Each album ends with a 5-question quiz for the child to fill out. I honestly don't know if any of the children have completed these pages in their albums, but I wanted them to have the chance. Here's hoping!
An Album for Haylee
This album was for my oldest niece, born before the turn of the century. (As in, the year 1999. :)
As you can see, all of the interior pages are pretty much the same from album to album, so I could print multiple copies of each page, and then personalize with handwriting and patterned paper.
Why am I including a photo of myself in these albums? Because they are a gift from me. They share MY perspective about the recipient, not some objective truth, so it makes sense that I make an appearance somewhere.
The hardest part about these pages was narrowing them down to just 5 things. And actually, I kind of didn't. You can tell that some numbers mention multiple positive qualities. That's okay. The numbered list still makes them more inviting to read than if it had been one long paragraph.
I mentioned before that all of the patterned papers I chose are double-sided. On some albums, I used both sides of the paper, alternating sides from page to page.
It wasn't possible to crop every photo to a square. For those that were more vertical, I'd just fill the vertical space and write my captions sideways.
Some of these favorite photos have already appeared on scrapbook pages I've completed for me to keep, so it was fun to be able to print copies to share with some of my favorite little people.
I like to include dates when I know them. Because children will inevitably wonder, "How old was I in that picture?"
Photos that showcase relationships are a must. The oldest of 12 cousins, this girl has always been so wonderful to all of the littles.
Close-ups, full-body shots, portraits and candids. The more variety, the better!
Five hopes for her future. I drew on each child's current strengths and qualities as I thought about what I truly wish the future holds for each of my nieces and nephews.
For bigger kids, a self-portrait might be a "selfie" taken with a smartphone. I'll leave that up to the child to decide.
The album ends with that same 5-question quiz.
My sisters and sisters-in-law joke that I scrapbook about their kids more than they do. It's probably true. I don't mind holding the title of "family historian."
And I truly believe that every memory preserved is a victory.
Here's a little holiday project I've been working on here and there for the last few weeks. It's my Christmas Alphabet Advent Calendar (or CAAC for short...just kidding), inspired by Wendy Smedley and featured on Write.Click.Scrapbook.
The first year I displayed this, I used it as an advent. Since then, I display it intact all season long.
This sturdy, hand-crafted box (from Adorn-It, but no longer available) is divided into 25 squares, which leaves one box for every letter of the alphabet, with one left over. I gathered one tiny ornament or Christmas accent for each letter of the alphabet, and I added three ("I," "U," and "Y/Z") a few weeks after the rest of the project was finished. Hey, it's harder than it looks to find items that fix a 2-in by 2-in box!
Here are a few close-ups:
a,b,c,d,f,g,h
k,l,m,p,q,r
r,s,t,w,x,y-z
And here's how it looks for today, the first day of the countdown: On December 1st, "A" is for "angel."
Here's the whole crew. (Don't worry, little friends, you'll all get your turn!) I'll pull one little guy per day to add to the appropriate box, as we countdown to the big 25!
The Alphabet A is for Angel B is for Bell C is for Christmas Cookies D is for drum E is for Elf (Hermey the Elf, to be specific) F is for Frosty the Snowman in a snowglobe G is for Gifts H is for Holly Berries I is for Ice Skate (my friend Jori sent me one in the mail!) J is for Joseph and baby Jesus K is for Kris Kringle L is for Love (represented by a red heart) M is for Merry Christmas N is for Nutcracker O is for Ornament P is for Penguin and Peppermint Q is for Quail (definitely a Christmas bird around my house) R is for Rudolph and Reindeer S is for Shephard with his Sheep T is for Tree U is for Santa's Underwear (those iconic red long johns, found at a cute etsy.com shop) V is for the Virgin Mary W is for Wise Men X is for XOXO (a big Christmas kiss!) Y/Z is a sleeping reindeer, you know, catching some z's? (I know it's a stretch, but I couldn't find a miniature Yule Log)
And here's what the back looks like. I cut a bunch of 2.5-inch squares out of different patterns of the Websters Pages papers and decoupaged them onto the back.
There you have it!
p.s. Trust me, you'll want to visit the Write.Click.Scrapbook. blog every day this month! (The new gallery is up today.) There are amazing holiday pages, projects, recipes and more being featured every day by that VERY talented crew. Just to prove it, check out the advent calendares featured so far (click here and click here).
This has been a hard thing to admit. And while I don't always believe in the pop-psychology, shout-it-from-the-rooftops approach to dealing with one's internal struggles, it's important for me to say this out loud. To say, "I am infertile," without choking up with unwanted tears, wanting to hide under a rock, or immediately trying to reassure people "but I'm OKAY, really."
I was inspired by a woman I saw on a local tv show, Studio 5, the day after my sister-in-law Becky and I appeared on a breast-cancer panel as part of their "Finding Strength through Hard Times" series. I didn't want to identify with Kerstin Daynes, or be inspired by her. But I was. She said:
Talk about it. One of my mottoes is "talking about infertility is much better than not talking about infertility." Sure, it is hard and uncomfortable—it is an intimate part of life, after all. But, as you talk about it, it becomes more normal and you find a voice for what you are dealing with. Additionally, you will likely find others who are dealing with the same thing you are! You might also find that once you start talking about infertility, it is sometimes difficult to stop. Don't be ashamed of infertility. Say it…"I am infertile. I don't like it, but I am not afraid to talk about it." Louder…"I am infertile. I don't like it, but I am not afraid to talk about it." Doesn't that feel good?
It's not like it was a huge secret, anyway. If you're a Mormon woman who's been married for going on 7 years and you haven't produced one, two, or possibly three offspring in that amount of time, people around you will assume that you're infertile before they ever assume that you're choosing a child-free lifestyle. And in my case, they're right.
I mean, it's not like people with cancer can always hide it. They may not like it, but hiding from it doesn't solve anything. By being open, as Becky was, you give the people who love you a chance to share in your sorrow, and to help you if they can. And, as in Becky's case, you can also inspire and strengthen others by facing your struggles with courage and conviction.
So this is me, saying it:
I Am Infertile
Thank you for being here as part of my self-help therapy session.
Part of the reason I never wanted to admit this out loud is that I didn't want to encourage all the unwanted advice. "You know, if you'll just relax and calm down about it, you'll get pregnant." (Oh really, so it's my fault then?) "You should adopt. I know ten people who adopted babies and then found out they were pregnant the next month." (Yes, this does happen, but I never wanted to pursue adoption as a means to an end. I wanted to adopt when it felt like the best choice for me, which it finally does.)
And the thing is, after all these years, it's not precisely clear what's wrong with me/us. I've been told I'm "borderline PCOS," which means I have a few of the symptoms of PolyCystic Ovary Syndrome, but not all of them (e.g., the blood test came back negative). This was not welcome news. Women with PCOS can deal with hair loss, unwanted facial hair, acne, difficulty losing weight, extremely painful menstrual cramping, and increased risk for breast and ovarian cancer. "Great," I thought. "I'm going to grow up to be a fat, pimply, balding, bearded, dead woman."
The fertility specialist I met with said that, based on the amount of time we've been trying, it looks like we only have a 2-3 percent chance of getting pregnant unassisted. Great odds, right?
While I was in the midst of my infertility treatments a couple of years ago, I created a layout that I needed to keep to myself for a while. It was incredibly therapeutic to honor my struggle in this way. I put words to it, and pictures. I made it a visual, tangible thing. This layout says that my grief is and was real, and that it's a part of my life.
A few more thoughts:
As strange as it sounds, and as much as I've always longed to be a mother, I've known in my heart that the time hasn't been right before now. This is out of my hands, and I've relied on my faith to see me through it. And I'm seeking joy in my life in the meantime. I was recently called to be the Primary President in my church congregation. This means that, every Sunday, I am in charge of the spiritual education of 48 children between the ages of 18 months and 11 years. I am doing what I can to influence and bless the lives of children.
I'm grateful to be a stepmother. I know that children are unbelievably adorable at 6 months, and 2 years, and 5 years old. But Jeremy is living proof that 7-year-olds, and 10-year-olds, and, yes, even 16-year-olds are delightful too. I met Jeremy when he was 7, and I felt very bonded to him very early on. Children bring a fresh perspective and youthful energy to life, and I'm grateful he's been here to make every Mother's Day a happy one, not to mention the days in between.
I'm grateful that I've never been pregnant. In other words, I thank my lucky stars that I haven't had to endure miscarriage after miscarriage. That's a silver lining for sure. As hard as my situation can be sometimes, it could definitely be worse. (I can just hear myself channeling my Grandma Neva: "If you can't have the things you want, be grateful for the things you don't have that you don't want.")
I have not exhausted all medical possibilities with regard to infertility (no need to go into the gory details). But at a certain point, it stopped feeling like the right path for us. And you have to trust what feels right. No one else but you knows what's right for you. These days, there is literally no limit to the amount of time and money a person could spend trying to become pregnant. No limit. I've learned to let go of the guilt of supposedly "not wanting it badly enough" to keep pushing beyond where I felt comfortable.
I am not unhappy. I am not unfulfilled. I do not wallow in misery every day of my life. About every three months or so, I throw myself a pity party, and I roll around in my sorrow and disappointment until I'm just plain sick of feeling sorry for myself. I call my mom or a sister or a friend and talk, talk, talk. Then I pick myself up and soldier on.
I have been able to survive baby showers unscathed, and I welcome the news of family and friend pregnancies with true happiness for them (eventually, if not right away). I've had six nieces and nephews join the family during the time I've been trying to have a baby, and I love them all dearly. The initial news is always hard to hear, but by the time the timer goes off, I'm just as thrilled as anyone could be. Just because it hasn't worked out for me does NOT mean I hope it doesn't work out for others.
That said, the initial news can be a shock, depending on my mental state. My advice (from my personal experience) is to break pregnancy news to your infertile friends personally, rather than at a big party or gathering or via Facebook. Especially if she's a close friend, let her feel special by entrusting her with your news before it goes public. All you have to say is, "I wanted to tell you first. You have no idea how much I also want this for you, and how happy I'll be when it's your turn to share your news with me." If she cries (which she likely will, either there or later), give her a hug and tell her that you love her. Please don't begrudge the fact that she may not be thrilled for you right away. She'll get there.
On the flip side, if you're infertile, do your best to "get there" and be happy for others. Try to be thrilled for your pregnant friends, just like you'd want them to be thrilled for you. Pregnancy can be very hard, for some more than others. Allow your pregnant friends to complain a little if they need to. Your friend may be going through something profoundly difficult for her, just like you are. (If the complaining seems excessive, insensitive, or unnecessary, you can gently say, "Believe it or not, I very much look forward to being nauseated for 9 straight months." I think most women would respect that.)
Please don't feel too sorry for me. For those of you who have kids, remember that just because you cannot imagine living one day of your life without your kids (because you know them and love them beyond words), that does not mean you'd be a quivering heap of misery every day of your life if you had never met them in the first place. You wouldn't quite know what you were missing.
A huge step in my journey has been the ability (only recently) for me to say and truly believe (at least sometimes), "I can imagine living a happy and fulfilled life, even if I never have children." I can be the best stepmom, aunt, and future step-grandmother on the planet. And Travis and I have a darn good time together, so I can be grateful for that. As a sweet new friend quoted to me just last night, "Come what may, and love it." For me, this means being open to every eventuality, while maintaining hope for the one thing you want most.
For the first time in five years (and I've been praying about this all along the way), adoption feels like the right path to pursue. I'm 90 percent excited and 10 percent terrified, and I can't wait to see how things work out for us. At the moment, we're in the middle of massive amounts of paperwork and red tape. We are officially "applicants for parenthood," auditioning for the role that other people fall into naturally and even sometimes accidentally. We have to be "chosen," and there's no small amount of pressure involved in that thought.
This layout is the latest addition to my ongoing nieces & nephews baby album. (Size: 8 x 8.) I take a picture of me with every new bundle of joy that joins the extended Jeff & Janet Hill family, and I add it to this highly templated album. The product line is an older Heidi Grace line that I fell in love with in 2007, I believe.
This may seem like a LOT of nieces and nephews, but that tends to happen when you have five siblings. My older brother, Matt, has four children; my younger brother Jon has two children; and my younger sister Michele has three children. I also have a brother and a sister who are in their early-to-mid 20s and are not married yet!
The title page says "Baby & Me: All the babies I've loved before," and it starts by showing pictures of me with each of my five siblings as babies. Half the fun of this album (besides seeing all the cute babies) is watching ME grow up through the pictures.
First, there was Haylee. I couldn't believe how much more love I felt for my first little niece than I had ever felt for another child before her. I was instantly hooked on this whole aunt thing. And the feeling came back with every new arrival, starting with Haylee's little sister, Breanna.
Jensyn and Thomas arrived just three months apart. (Of course, they were supposed to be six months apart, but Thomas joined the world really, really early.) My background pages are red for girls and blue for boys, and there's a little journaling card tucked behind each monogram that shares my experiences getting to know each of them.
And now for a couple of boys in a row! The sheet of monogram die-cuts I used for this album includes only one of each letter, so I had to trace the "b" from Breanna's page to make a new "b" for Brock's page. I've instructed my family members not to repeat any more first initials in the future. (ha!)
Derek and Gillian are just four months apart, which is only possible because they're cousins rather than siblings. Derek is my older brother Matt's fourth and last child, while Gillian is my little sister's second child.
And this is the newest nephew to join the crew, baby Townes. Again, I had to trace a "t" from Thomas's page to make my own monogram. (Thank goodness I used removable adhesive!) Townes is the little brother of Gillian and Thomas, and he's definitely a keeper.
To make the ongoing-ness of this album super easy, I gathered all my extra supplies and slipped them into the remaining page protectors in this album. I cut lots of extra journaling cards and journaling pockets up front, so I wouldn't have to go back and remember sizes or dimensions on future pages. (Or if you don't like the hassle of coordinating supplies, you could always wait until everyone's done having babies and create digital photo books that you could print multiple copies of for each of your siblings!)
I have enough supplies and enough room in the album for 10 more babies. At this point, it's hard to imagine that there could be 10 more, but if just ONE of us follows in my parents' footsteps and produces a half-dozen offspring, it's entirely possible.
Hi friends. Today, I'd like to share a project with you that is one of
my favorite gifts for a new mom! It's a simple, month-at-a-glance,
fill-in-the-blanks album that covers baby's first year.
This is the fifth gift album I've
created that follows this same basic formula, and every new mom I've
given one to has absolutely loved it. It doesn't replace a traditional
baby book; it simply gives an overwhelmed new mother a quick and easy
place to display one favorite photo per month. This particular album
was the easiest I've created so far, thanks to a series of coordinating stickers (click here, here, and here) printed with useful phrases and icons that Susan from SRM Press sent me.
(Thanks, Susan!) The clear phrase stickers ("Welcome Little One" and "Watch Me Grow")
were especially helpful, as they'll match any color palette. With the
cover and title page you see above, I've established the theme of the
album and the basic color approach that I'll follow on the remaining
pages.
In
the first few pages of the album, I give the recipient a place to show
off the baby's first photo; to record a few facts about the birth; and
to put mom, dad, and the rest of the family in the spotlight for a
moment. I've included photos here just for reference; the actual album
I gave to my friend didn't feature any photos of my cute niece Jensyn.
But as you can see, I do provide a few hints and pencil guidelines so
the mom—especially a non-scrapbooking mom—knows where to put the
photos. And if the mom isn't a scrapbooker, I always include adhesive
and an archival pen in the gift bag with the album. (Note: if you'd
like to use this exact quiz for a baby album of your own, download the
.pdf at the end of this post!)
There are six more pages in between the above picture and the below picture, but they follow the same color pattern as the images above.
The
Baby's First Year stickers baby made the month-by-month pages especially easy. For past
albums, I've combined number stickers with handwriting or I've printed
my own custom tags on the computer. But here, I just chose a sticker from the sheet,
dropped it on a complementary background, and assembled the page! To
speed up the process, I followed a rotating pattern with my pages, as
follows: yellow strip with green square, then green strip with pink
square, then pink strip with yellow square. Repeat. For some albums I'll include a note on the 1-Month page that says, "Take a picture with the
baby once a month with the same object, so your album shows how quickly
baby grows."
And then, depending on how many page protectors
are left in the album I purchased, I may include an extra page or two
at the end of the book. Some might say "happy family," "big girl," "big
boy," or something as simple as "love."
Album supplies: flip-style 5 x 7 album (Making Memories) +
patterned papers (Melissa Frances, KI Memories, and Making Memories) +
slimline flower border punch (EK Success) + scribble flower stickers
(Heidi Swapp) + white letter stickers (American Crafts) + scalloped
heart punch (Fiskars) + all other stickers (SRM Press)
See, how simple that was? The next time you're stuck thinking of
the perfect gift for an expectant mother in your life, try this sweet
album approach.
Lucas out.
p.s. Below is that Baby Stats Quiz I promised. To download, just click on the image for a larger view, then right-click the image and Save As. If you find that it saved you a lot of
time deciding what to say on a page, then you definitely need to pick
up a copy ofQuick & Creative Quizzes.
The "have other people write your journaling for you" strategy was so easy that we followed the same approach to create an album for Grandma Neva, who turned 80 on February 6. Again, we simply picked out a standard photo album with 4 x 6 sleeves, created 85 journaling cards, and mailed them out to all the relatives, asking everyone to contribute a memory and a photo to the album. With no family reunion to help kick off this project, I spent a Sunday afternoon assembling journaling cards with my mom and sister-in-law. We used a coordinated product line and a repeating design to make the process simple.
Create a title page. This is my grandma as a little girl, pictured with her brothers Jay and Glenn. I created a quick title card to serve as the introduction to the album. It says, "Words of love and gratitude for our beloved Neva Turner Nielsen, on the occasion of her 80th birthday. February 6, 2009"
Write whatever you want. My cousin Becca shared a treasured childhood memory, while my stepson Jeremy wrote a little note of thanks. Tip: Alternate the placement of the journaling cards, especially if they contain bulky items like brads or dimensional stickers. This will help the album close properly.
Get creative with the format. My cousin Traca and her kids decided to combine their photos and notes into mini scrapbook pages. This is a fantastic way to use up extra wallet photos from school-picture packages.
Involve the kids. Let your little ones scribble or place stickers on their cards, as my sister-in-law Suzanne did here. Tip: You can transcribe a note from a 3- or 4-year old (like Brock) who can speak clearly but not quite write. For a toddler (like Derek), just make up a sentiment that fits your child's relationship with his or her grandma. Examples: "Thank you for letting me give you big, wet kisses," "My eyes light up whenever I hear your voice on the phone," or "You always send me the best presents."
Accept a variety of photos. Allow each relative to send in the picture of his or her choice, whether it's a family photo, a favorite picture of just grandma, or a portrait of the person who wrote on the card.
Add to the collection. Don't forget to save a card for yourself. Here are entries from me and my little brother. For me, the journaling was the easy part; it was the photo that presented problems.
And now for a super-duper magic trick! Here's just one of the reasons it's so great to be married to a graphic designer: you always have access to the latest digital design tools (CS4 Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, etc.) Plus, you have a built-in coach who offers helpful Photoshop tips as he passes by and notices you making a horrible mess of things. Over the years, thanks to bits of advice from my live-in design consultant, I know my way around Photoshop's Clone tool. This came in especially handy for this project. Here's a little before-and-after example for your viewing pleasure.
Before
After I know that Grandma dislikes seeing pictures of herself with the oxygen
apparatus strapped to her face, so I sat down at the computer, turned
on a favorite iTunes playlist, and spent 45 minutes cloning the tubes
out. (What's cloning? You basically zoom in really, really close. Then
you sample a few pixels next to what you want to remove, and you "stamp"
the pixels on top of the unwanted item, blending it into the background. You do this over and over and over
again.)
How about a drawing? Just leave me a comment (any ol' comment) and I'll draw one random winner who will receive the leftovers pictured below. You could win the 14 double-sided papers left in the Designer Paper pack, plus brand new packages of fabric-covered brads, paper-flower brads, felt ribbon, and die-cut labels. It's all fromK&Company's Classic K "Margo" and "Charlotte" lines. Let's hear it!
I, Angie Lucas, hereby present the easiest journaling strategy ever imagined by woman: Have someone else write it!
Last Fall, I organized a two-volume tribute album for my Grandpa Bill to present to him on his 80th birthday. And I only had to come up with enough words to fill a single, 4 x 6 card! I outsourced the rest of the writing to my multitudinous relatives. Some of you may remember the album from pages 42-43 of Quick & Easy Photo Albums.
Here's the Story
I was in charge of a craft
project at our summer family reunion. So I brought a coordinated
product line and a bunch of supplies, and I put my relatives (ages 11
to 55) to work. We assembled 85 journaling cards, assembly-line
fashion, right in front of Grandpa, in less than 2 hours. Why 85? This
particular octogenarian has four daughters, four sons-in-law, 17
grandchildren (most of them married), and 37 great-grandchildren. When
we started creating, we told him it was just a random "scrapbook
project," which is about all you have to say to most males to send them
sailing for the door. It didn't matter anyway, as he spent most of the
time kicking everyone's butt at horseshoes. He wasn't even suspicious.
Aunts Can Be Wonderful Assets Then, each of my aunts took enough cards home to distribute to their families, instructing everyone (even the kids) to write a memory of Grandpa, a note of thanks, or a list of admirable traits. I followed up with everyone by email, asking them to mail the cards to me with accompanying photos. They could choose a favorite picture of Grandpa, a self-portrait, or a shot of the two of them together. I gave them a strict deadline, and most complied.
Absolutely No Pressure Allowed This part is important. In my follow-up email, I reminded everyone that the purpose of this album is to present a wide collection of memories, impressions, and thoughts. They don't have to fit the whole of their experience with Grandpa into 4 x 6 inches. And this doesn't have to be their biggest, best, most transcendent memory of all time. Their only job is to contribute a piece to the collective experience, to simply write enough to fill the space.
Did He Like It? Grandma says she finds him looking through it all the time. And he can't talk about it without his beautiful blue eyes getting teary. (I'm not just saying this. He has the best eyes in the whole wide world.)
And Then Grandma turned 80 six months later. Tune in Thursday to see the album we assembled for her!
Angie Lucas is a writer, memory keeper, mother, stepmother (not the wicked kind), and an ENFJ personality type. Her first picture book will be released in spring of 2019!
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