Write. Click. Scrapbook.

Scrapbook: Three elements

Hello! It's Jennifer Larson. I'm at a very busy time of year--one more month in the term to grade papers, my son's birthday, and the beast called winter. To relax, I love scrapbooking, but if I have to think too much, it slows me down. To stay creative, I remind myself to think only of three elements: photos, journaling, and title. Though I love embellishments, I center the embellishments around one of those three elements to avoid design paralysis.

If I start with those three elements, the rest seems to fall in place more easily. Here's three pages where I did that.

With this page, I started with the photos, printing them all the same, small size to get them on one page. They fit best in one block, so the most logical thing to do from there was to put the journaling above the block. I could have put the title below for balance, but I always try to save the tickets for baseball pages, so I put the tickets in an envelope below and budged the title against the journaling. I embellished to highlight the title and the journaling, two of my key elements with this page.

For this next page, I again started with the photos:

I had two 5x7 inch photos, so I opted for a two page spread, the photos centered along the spread to give them equal importance. I may be the only one in the world with this problem, but I seem to have a bucketload of Project Life cards, so I picked ones with similar natural hues and themes to surround the photos, including a journaling card in the mix. The most logical place for the title was in a line below the photos; I chose to embellish the title, then the other side of the page for balance.

Finally, this page flew out of my brain starting with the title (pardon the pun):

The title was the first thing from my head, so I gave it due space in the bottom quarter of the page. I centered the embellishments around the title. I had many Project Life card-sized photos of this event. My son helped me narrow them to his three favorites. Since they were Project Life-sized, I picked my most autumnal cards from the bucket 'o cards, making sure to include one journaling card.

Thank you for letting me share with you my design process! I hope if you get as busy as I have been, you can focus on these three elements and let the design flow easily from them.!

 

Scrapbook | What a Difference Ten Years Makes

I loved Diane's post yesterday. Maybe it's the big hair (and I don't just mean Diane's!!) and maybe it was the nostalgia. But it got me thinking about times' past.

Combined with the overarching theme of decades, I went looking for a picture from 10 years ago and a recent one. Looking at them together, I got to dreaming about life ten years from now. I realized that the changes from the past ten years aren't going to hold a candle to those that are coming! Egad. I will admit that there might have been some crying attached to the making of this layout.

To help me keep the elements all organized, I made use of one of Crystal Wilkerson's page templates. I do like how it helped me with repeating elements and allowed the next ten years to have a place of prominence even though there are no photos.

I hope that this gives you an idea for documenting a decade of your life, too! You may want to keep some kleenex nearby if you choose to make your own. Creator beware!

Thank you for stopping! I hope you have a wonderful day!!

Write: This was the year...

Hello! It's Jennifer Larson, sharing an idea for a page I did last year that I will probably do every year, a page that starts with journaling.

 

The purpose of the page is to assemble the highlights of the year in one page, starting with the prompt, "This was the year that..." What kind of things can you include? Anything that jumps out at you. Here's some ideas:

1. Accomplishments
2. Something new
3. A loss
4. Something about a hobby
5. Something you finally did
6. Something you enjoyed
7. Places
8. Something challenging
9. Milestones
10. Something that ended

I make the list to include the whole family. It's my point of view of what was significant to your year, but you could certainly involve your family and friends. I think that would be fun!

 

Here's the page I made for 2013:

I used leftover, unscrapped photos that represented the journaling. In other words, I tried not to print anything new.

And some details from the page:

 

 

I haven't yet made my page for 2014, but here's my list:

1. We crossed the Mississippi Headwaters.
2. We packed out to camp at Lake Maria State Park.
3. I became technologically superior to my husband with my iPad Air for work and my iPhone 6.
4. Derick celebrated his 50th at Holland, Michigan.
5. We survived the Polar Vortex and the June floods.
6. I began running again.
7. The boys took up acting.
8. Dominic joined orchestra.
9. The boys started their final year of elementary school.
10. We lost our beloved Agatha but gained our kitten Pepper.
11. Derick traveled to London for work.

I might add another thing to the list just because the oddness of 11. I'm just that way.

Thank you for reading about my suggestions for jouraling your year-in-review! I hope you enjoy it and that it gives you ideas.

Write: 31 Childhood Christmas Journaling Prompts

Welcome to the week before the week of Christmas! This is Amy Sorensen, and I hope your holiday plans are going smoothly. (Me…I still have 75% of my shopping left to do. It’s been way too warm here in Utah, unnaturally warm, and the weather is totally raining on my Christmas spirit. Actually, I’d welcome even some rain right about now!)

When I was a little kid, one of our holiday traditions was to hop into the car one night close to Christmas, all six of us squished in together. Then we’d drive around for as long as we could, looking at the lights on people’s houses. Sometimes we’d bring treats to snack on, or stop for a soda to drink in the car, and a few times we’d go to a restaurant somewhere along the way. But the focus was just on being together and admiring beauty.

I’d forgotten all about that tradition until I read the journaling on Jennifer Larson’s layout in this month’s gallery , and then the memories came tumbling back: the way the vinyl seats of our old Plymouth felt against my legs, the shivering before the car got warm and the luscious heat after. All those big, beautiful houses lit up to celebrate Christmas. My sisters and I alternatively arguing and laughing, my dad telling us stories.

How’d I forget that?

So I’ve been thinking this month about my childhood Christmases. The strongest memories and the vaguest. (I have a very fuzzy memory of sitting in an old, unfamiliar house next to an old-fashioned Christmas tree, eating those walnut cookies covered with powdered sugar, but no one in my family can explain it for me.)  Writing down some details, asking my mom and sisters about others, even sifting through old photos at my mom’s. Even making a layout about myself!

 

(Forgive my crooked photo of this layout. My regular camera is being repaired and I just cannot seem to get a straight-on picture with my cell phone! I tried 18 times...)

All of this remembering has given this December a unique feeling. It’s put me back in touch with how it felt to be a kid at Christmas (wasn’t that the best time to be a kid?), as well as given me some renewed holiday energy for making my kids’ Christmas more magical this year. I think that sometimes, in the rush and excitement of December-daily style albums (of documenting right now) we forget that our memories of Christmas are also important. So here’s a little tiny December challenge: write down something about your childhood Decembers. Maybe make a layout, or post it on your blog. Don’t make it complicated—just write down a story or two!

To get you started, here are 31 Christmas journaling prompts. I’m including a PDF at the end for you to download and keep.

1. The Christmas tree. Just one, or multiples? When did you decorate the tree? Real or fake? What color of lights?
2. Ornaments. Cute? Elegant? Homemade? Fancy? What were your favorites? What stories can you tell about the ornaments? Where are they now?
3. Decorations. Aside from the tree, how was your house decorated? Thematic or eclectic? What decorations did you love?
4. Gift-opening traditions. When did you open gifts? What kinds of things did Santa bring and what did your family do? Did you open gifts one at a time or was it a free-for-all?
5. Holiday meals. What sorts of food did you have at Christmas time? How did meals change during the holidays?
6. Christmas breakfast. A tradition every year, or random dishes? Did you eat before or after opening gifts?
7. Baked goods. What sort of baking did you do in your home, specifically for the holidays? Do you still make these treats?
8. Siblings. Did you exchange gifts with your brothers and sisters? What experiences did you have with them?
9. Extended family. Did your grandparents show up on Christmas morning or did you go to their house? What about aunts, uncles, cousins—how did you interact with them during the holidays?
10. Santa Claus. How did the man in red function at your house? Did all the gifts come from him, or just a few? Did he wrap or not wrap?
11. The stockings. What did they look like? Where did you hang them? When did you open them? What gifts were you likely to find every single year in your stocking?
12. Your worst Christmas ever. Which Christmas had some memorably bad or difficult parts? How did that change you or your relationship to the holidays?
13. Christmas Eve. Did you leave cookies for Santa? On what kind of plate? If not, did you leave something else? What other Christmas-Eve traditions did your family have?
14. Parties. What kind of holiday fetes did you attend? Do you have any stories of things that happened there?
15. Going to visit Santa. Where did you see him? Did you see the same Santa every time? What do you remember asking him for?
16. A unique experience. Do you have something unique that happened to you during the holidays? Something that was unlike anything else and only happened once?
17. Favorite gift. What was the best gift you ever got?
18. Memorable gift. Maybe you absolutely hated it, but you never forgot it: the most memorable gift you ever received?
19. Life-changing gift. Big changes can sometimes be caused by small gifts. What gift altered your life, and how?
20. Wrapping traditions. How were your presents wrapped, and who wrapped them? Was there anything unique about how your family wrapped gifts?
21. Your adolescent Christmases. How did things change after you were a teenager?
22. Finding out about Santa. When and how did you find out about Santa Claus? How did this change you?
23. Christmas music. Did you listen to Christmas music as a kid? How and where? What were some of your favorite Christmas songs?
24. Church + Christmas. How did your family combine Christmas with religious observations?
25. Christmas break traditions. What kinds of things did you do during the weeks between Christmas and school starting again?
26. Gifts that repeated. Which gifts were always under the Christmas tree? Did you like this repetition or did it start to be obvious after a while?
27. Christmas entertainment. What movies, books, or TV specials were a part of your holidays? Did you go to A Christmas Carol or The Nutcracker or Handel’s Messiah?
28. The holidays at school. What kinds of holiday crafts, programs, or plays were you involved in at school?
29. December weather. Was it usually snowy during December? Did it ever snow on Christmas day? Was there a time when the weather influenced your plans or traditions?
30. An old photo. Find a picture from one of your childhood Christmases and study it. What details does it include? What memories does it spark? Write down a list of memories, or pick one to focus an entire paragraph on.
31. Snippet of memory. What has writing about your childhood Christmases helped you remember about Christmas outside of these questions?

Here is the PDF:  Download 31 Childhood Christmas Journaling Prompts

write | prepping for a Thanksgiving page/album

Hello! and welcome to Thanksgiving week. I am so excited to work together to put an album or page together. I think it's going to be plenty of fun.

 

Did you see Sue's post from earlier this month? I did and I loved the idea. I am going to copy it for out Thanksgiving day. You might remember that last year I totally forgot to take any photos. So busy cooking was I. This year, I don't want to repeat that mistake so I thought I might preplan a page/album. I'm not toally sure how I want to put it together, but I know I want to follow Sue's format of documenting hour by hour.

 

To help me with the journaling, I have put together journaling tags that list the hour. I will let the photos guide the stories, and add notes that coincide with the times. I'm so excited.

Here are the tags. I made them a bit generic so that I might reuse them for another project/holiday.

If you would like to download them, you may do so here. I hope that you might use them to put together your own Thanksgiving project!

See you tomorrow!

write | what do you see

Welcome to November and new theme! This month, as you know, our theme is Look Around. I am thrilled to explore this theme in my pages this month as it seems endless. Today we are going to make a layout based upon something we see, or rather something we feel or think.

 

This morning as I took the dog for a walk, the air was crisp and cool. I found myself thinking how glad I to have a dog to walk, as it gets me out of the house, and into the fresh air that I love so much but avoid so often. Then I began thinking about how much I love crisp air. How it wakes me. How it provides such a clean start to my day. How it send filled with possibility. I thought about how crisp air reminds me of being in school and walking to school for so many many years. It makes me hungry for apples. And makes my love of denim and sweaters seem so perfect. 

All that from a walk around the block. I snapped a photo to use to pretty up my page (because everyone loves a good picture book!) and now I can make my layout.

 

I'm pretty certain that if I had taken the picture, then found it next week, or next month, on my computer, and decided to include it on a layout, I might have written,

Today the sky was very blue and the air was crisp and filled with the hope of autumn. I love Ohio in fall.

Which is all true, but all very blah blah blah. And not why I took the photo. Sometimes if I let a photo sit too long, I don't remember the purpose behind taking it. And then my journaling becomes overwrought or filled with inauthentic platitudes that don't truly express my feelings. Which brings me to my challenge to you today. If you have a story to tell: write it down. Even if you don't make a page right away, write it down, add a date, and put it somewhere accessible. Then when you have moment to scrapbook, you will have something real to say.

Happy Monday. and in the words of Amy, happy writing!

Welcome, October!

It is the first of the month and we couldn't be more excited! This month we are all about making use of what you have. Shopping your stash. Reduce/reuse/recycling all those piles of paper and all those drawers of embellishments. To get us started, our team created an entire gallery with scraps they had lying around. They weren't allowed to use anything new or whole (except a background paper, of course!). They did an amazing job! The layouts are hip, fresh, current, and well designed. A reminder that we have lots to work with even if we haven't shopped lately!

Let's go look, shall we? Don't forget you may always click over to the gallery album to read the journaling and see the layouts in a larger format! Enjoy!!

 

Leftovers | Aliza Deutsch

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper (Chic Tags, Cocoa Daisy, Elle’s Studio) + enamel dots (Freckled Fawn) + thickers (American Crafts) + stickers (Jillibean Soup, Evalicious, My Mind’s Eye, Heidi Swapp) + fonts (Skinny)

A Note from Aliza
You know that time of the month…When you have used your favorites from your monthly kit, another kit is not due to arrive for a few weeks, and all you have left is dozens and dozens of older supplies that are sitting in your crafting area. It is not the easiest time to scrap, but it gets some older products used, and flexes those creative muscles.

October Fun Fact
I work at a preschool, and every October I have to give a presentation to the parents. It’s always good, but it sure does get my nerves going!

 

 

Build | Jennifer Larson

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper (Basic Grey, Crate Paper, Jillibean Soup) + buttons (Studio Calico) + wood veneer (Pink Paislee, Studio Calico) + rub-ons (American Crafts) + tag (Jillibean Soup) + brads (American Crafts) + twine (American Crafts) + pen (Copic)

A Note from Jenny
The scraps may be hard to see—I wanted a neutral background with mixed papers, so I dug into my scraps bin and found these three pieces. I layered them and taped the back of the page to create the foundation for the page.

October Fun Fact
My eleven-year-old is almost as tall as I am. I’m 5’9”. Yikes!

 

 

Hello! | Lisa Borbely

8.5 x 11 | materials patterned paper (Simple Stories, American Crafts, Crate Paper, Cocoa Daisy, We R Memory Keepers) + letter stickers (Jillibean Soup)+ stickers (Simple Stories)

A Note Lisa
On this layout I have used the easiest way to use up scrap paper; punching circles from them. Super simple and it makes a big impact!

October Fun Fact
I am addicted to pumpkins. Yep, totally need to buy a lot of pumpkins!

 

 

We Read | Sue Althouse

12 x 12 | materials cardstock (Bazzill) + patterned paper (Jillibean Soup) + buttons (October Afternoon) + thickers (American Crafts) + Silhouette die cut (Lori Whitlock Square Background Shapes) + floss (We R Memory Keepers) + typewriter (Remington)

A Note from Sue
This layout was created with leftover strips of patterned paper die cut into a 9-square grid. Then it was just a matter of filling in the shapes!

October Fun Fact
This month our granddaughter will be 6 months old. She is an incredible joy and delight!

 

 

Believe in Mischief | Amy Sorensen

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper strips from my scrap vase + fonts (Art Brewery (brush script), Veneer Extras (ampersand + birds), Century Gothic)

A Note from Amy
One of my favorite sources for scraps is what I think of as paper selvage. You know...that .5"x12" strip you cut off your patterned paper? If they have any print on them at all (almost all of them do now), I save them. Quite often, I'll use the selvage on the same layout I use the patterned paper it came from...but not always. I keep them in a tall, skinny vase I bought at an antique store one day. Sometimes one of those strips is just the right little thing! For this layout, I sorted through all of the strips I have and used the ones with coordinating colors. I opted for a black and white photo to make the image stand out from all the different patterns.

October Fun Fact
My fitness goal this month is to start lifting weights again, four times a week.

 

 

Juicy Juice | Diane Payne

12 x 12 | materials cardstock (American Crafts) + patterned paper (Studio Calico, Chickaniddy Crafts, BasicGrey) + buttons (A Flair For Buttons) + stickers (Freckled Fawn, Pebbles) + die cuts (Studio Calico) + bow (American Crafts) + stamp (Gossamer Blue) + ink (Tsukineko) + pen (American Crafts)

A Note from Diane
This layout was made using the scrap patterned paper left overs from the organizer I featured on write. click. scrapbook. last month.

October Fun Fact
This is my favorite month of the year (well, tied with December). Bring on pumpkin everything!

 

 

I Pick Apples | Cristina C. Scrap

12 x 12 | materials documentary papers (Sahlin Studio at The Lilypad) + In the Orchard elements (Stolen Moments Design at The Lilypad) + fonts (NeoRetro Draw, DJB gimme space)

A Note from Cristina
I have had this digital kit for about a month, but I had only made one page with it so far. I acquired it just around the time I took these pictures so I precisely knew what I wanted to scrap with it.

October Fun Fact
Like every year, this is the time I put together our annual calendars that we give as Christmas gifts to our parents. I usually gather the favorite pictures taken over the past year, but a photo shoot is often required to get the missing few shots.

 

 

Have Fun | Amy Kingsford

A Note from Amy
Inspired by this month's topic "Happy Scraps" I chose a rainbow color scheme and photos that made me feel happy for my page. Then I used this foundation of patterned paper strips and sprinkled random little bits to recreate the look of "scraps" on my digital page.

October Fun Fact
October is my absolute favorite month of the year. Bring on the corn mazes, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and Halloween costume making!

 

 

Make Your Own Magic | Celeste Smith

12 x 12 | materials kits (Make Your Own magic papers and Sprinkles v27 by Valorie Wibbens; Documented by Sahlin Studio; Bright elements by Allison Pennington; Launch Pads v14 by Jacque Larson) + Template (Lots of Layers by Heather Joyce) + font(The Contessa by Heather Joyce)

A Note from Celeste
I used little bits of digital patterned paper in the same manner I would normally use scraps. Layering up little pieces gives the grouping more weight and the jagged edges create energy.

October Fun Fact
My boys are just not into being in front of the camera lately. This is where having a teenage niece comes in handy. She’s selfie and photo obsessed! I love it.

 

Harvest | Valerie O'Neall

12 x 12 | materials cardstock (American Crafts) + patterned paper (My Mind's Eye, Sassafras, October Afternoon, Glitz Design, BasicGrey, Studio Calico) + thickers (American Crafts) + pen (Sharpie)

A Note from Valerie
I loved having a good reason to dig through my scrap drawer and use some up for the gallery this month. I got out a square punch then cut the squares down into triangles. I played around with the pattern until I found something I liked. I stitched down the middle of each column of triangles and them pulled up the edges for some dimension.

October Fun Fact
I've been using the same DSLR, a Nikon D50, for eight years now. I'd love to upgrade, but if it's not broke, don't fix it. Right?

 

 

Enjoy 15 | Amy Coose

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper (October Afternoon, Crate Paper, Carta Bella, My Mind's Eye) + acrylic numbers (Chic Tags) + flair (Chic Tags) + stickers (October Afternoon) + pen (American Crafts) + die cuts (American Crafts, Chic Tags) + wood sprinkles (Jillibean Soup)+ cut file (The Cut Shoppe)

A Note from Amy
Every year I do a layout for each child about their favorites at the moment. This is about my boy at 15.

October Fun Fact
As much as I enjoyed our summer, I am so excited to get back into a routine this month and enjoy the fall weather.

 

 

Halloween 2002-2012 | Jennifer Hignite

12 x 12 | materials template (Jennifer Hignite Designs) + patterned paper (Pixels & Company designers) + black cat (Deena Rutter) + stitching (Scotty Girl Designs)

A Note from Jennifer
This layout is a look at 10 years of Halloween memories! Digital templates make putting together years of memories a cinch! Small photos can be used with a template, printed individually, or you can use up all of those small index photos you have lying around! Small scraps of paper can be cut up and pieced together to create the pumpkin (or really any shape you want!)It is a fun touch to make the layout scream Halloween!

October Fun Fact
This year we have made a list of 10 fall activities we want to accomplish this month! Our calendar is jam packed, but the fall always goes so fast and we want to fit in as much fun as possible before the busy holiday season is upon us!!

 

 

Thanksgiving Dinner | Marnie Flores

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper (Jady Day Studio) + notebook paper, journaling strips, flair, owl, arrow, conversation bubble (Crystal Wilkerson) + fonts (Bebas, KG Falling Slowly, Ameritype)

A Note from Marnie 
I love trolling through old kits to see what I haven't used in awhile. I have a few that are archived, but I am pretty frugal so I have most still accessible. Even still, it seems I reach for the same handful over and over. It was fun to push myself to find things I haven't used in a long while.

October Fun Fact
I already have Halloween decorations up! This year we get add in the poseable skeleton we got at season's end last yea! I can't wait!

 

 

Summer's End | Francine Clouden

12 x 12 | materials patterned paper (Sassafras Lass, American Crafts) + rub-ons (October Afternoon) + flair (Studio Calico) + sticker (Jenni Bowlin) 

A Note from Francine
It was fun digging through my box of scraps and finding bits and pieces for this page. I should do that more often! 

October Fun Fact
I haven't bought new scrapping supplies in over a year. And yet I still find tons of stuff to use on my pages. Fancy that!

In Review

This month we celebrated the return to schedules, and homework, and school. We said farewell to summer and hello to autumn. Before we get lost in all things October and Halloween, let's take one last look at our September gallery:

 

 

Let's start with finding some journaling ideas!

I Remember | Lisa Borbély

:: write about your childhood school or your memories of school ::

 

 

Walking Tall | Amy Sorensen

:: write about a past teacher that your child loved ::

 

 

Hello Senior Year | Diane Payne

:: make a list of classes that your student is taking ::

 

 

Visit the Old Teacher at Meet the Teacher | Marnie Flores

:: write about the unexpected in the usual. such as seeing old teachers as you meet new ones::

 

 

Now let's move onto some photography ideas! 

Grade School Years | Sue Althouse

:: pull out those old school photos and use them on a layout ::

 

 

First Day Back To School | Jennifer Hignite

:: if you missed photos like these on the first day of school, it's not too late to stage some ::

 

 

School Days | Lisa Borbély

:: school beginnings aren't the only photos worthy of comparing ::

 

 

Year 1 | Cristina C. Scrap

:: celebrate your success and growth by capturing yourself often ::

 

 

Currently Loving | Amy Kingsford

:: don't forget to look down to describe your children. footwear tells a lovely story ::

 

 

And lastly, some ideas for making well designed pages.

Goodbye Summer | Aliza Deutsch

:: design in 3s. Aliza used three hearts. small yet significant ::

 

 

Kindergarten | Jennifer Larson

:: Jenny's write up discussed how she (finally) put these pages together to
celebrate her OLW, do. Try it yourself. See what doing can do ::

 

 

First Day | Valerie O'Neall

:: grids don't need equal treatment in every quadrant ::

 

 

4th | Celeste Smith

:: themed pages do not need themed papers ::

 

 

First Day of 5th Grade | Jennifer Hignite

:: look for clever ways to further your story. Like the stamp under the five for fifth grade ::

 

We hope you have enjoyed the month, both the gallery and the posts! Only four more days until our new gallery!!

Writing Your Back-to-School Story

 

Hi All! Amy here and it’s Back-to-School Week at the Kingsford-Collard home--so I’ve decided to focus on that during the next three days that I’ll be spending with you as your Write.Click.Scrapbook hostess.

Back-to-School time has always been a big deal for me ever since I was a child. And so it has become a part of my family’s life that I take special care in preparing for and documenting. As a result I enjoy sharing our story with others via blog posts, scrapbook pages and the likes.

In fact every year I typically write a big blog post heavy on words and photos, documenting the event—from finding the perfect new backpack and shoes, to this year’s homemade teacher gift, to my own excitement and anxiety about the triumphs and challenges that lie ahead for my boys.

If you're interested in taking a look here are links to my Back to School 2012 Post and my Back to School 2013 Post.

 

 

This year, however I found myself a little overwhelmed by the task of putting together a “big Back-to-School post.” You see my son broke his arm this last week and a lot of the energy I would have normally put into back-to-school has gone into making sure he’s comfortable and taking special care of his arm so that we might avoid surgery.

But that’s not the only reason I’ve been avoiding the topic of Back-to-School it’s because everything still feels very much up in the air and somewhat overwhelming...

 

 

"Will he be joining his classmates on the first day of school? Or will he be recovering from surgery?"

"How will missing out on Back-to-School Night and the first day of school impact his ability to cope with being at a new school?"

"How will having a cast affect his learning, participation in school activities and his efforts to make new friends?"

 

All of these questions make it difficult for me to focus on the fun and excitement that surrounds this time, but they also have me realizing that no matter what, all of this is still an important part of our “Back-to School Story” this year.

So while we may be holding off for now on making our home-made teacher gift and taking our Back-to-School photos and we may end up having to skip Back-to-School Night and the first day of school, the one thing I’m not going to put off or skip this year is recording this part of our “Back-To School Story.”

 

Back to School? by Amy Kingsford | Supplies: Mommyish Designs and Digital Scrapbook Ingredients: Seek Happiness Collab; Celeste Knight: School is Cool; Creashens: Band of Rubbers; Laura Passage: Filed Away.

 

Journaling: 

Back-to-school time has normally been a fun and exciting event for our family in years past. Caleb couldn’t be more excited to start first grade, but for some reason I was a little more anxious about things this year. Caleb was attending his first public school, in which his class size alone would be three times that of his previous class.

Every time I drove past his new big school it made my tall and lanky six year-old seem so much smaller. I would wonder if he’d thrive in the hustle and bustle or if he’d simply just disappear.

As if all of these feelings weren’t enough to completely stress a mother out, one week before the start of school Caleb broke his arm. And all of the sudden everything seemed up in the air. I was left to wonder: “Would Caleb be going to school on the first day? Or would he be recovering from surgery? How would missing out on Back-to-School Night and the first day of school impact his ability to cope with being at a new school? How would having a cast affect his learning, participation in school activities and his efforts to make new friends?”

It almost gets to be too much to handle and then I look at my son and he’s carrying around his backpack and picking out his outfit for the first day of school (changing his mind every couple of days) and I realize that he is no less than ecstatic to be starting school--cast or no cast, this week or next. All I have to do is take one look at that smile and I just know that everything is going to be alright!

 

What does your Back to School Story look like?

 

There is no denying that the excitement, overwhelm and even the anxiety that surround this time of year are a big part of our stories. The printable below includes several prompts to get you thinking/writing about some of these feelings and how they fit into YOUR “Back to School Story.” 

 

 

You can download this printable here.

I hope you’ll join me tomorrow for tips on photographing Back-to-School and there will be a printable Back to School Photo Checklist for you too!

write.

Hello and welcome to a brand new week! Today we are going to try out some of those WRITE prompts from Saturday's post. There were five. I hope that you will find one or two appealing. I am excited to get some layouts done without having to figure out what to say! heehee.

But seriously, lately things have been running at an emotional extreme around here. Teenagers. Every time I sit to write, my mind races around in hurried thoughts disconnected to the photos or stories that should be being written. Instead I push things round and round the page and become more and more disenchanted and frustrated. So I was really looking forward to sitting down with Saturday's prompts to actually get some pages done.

 

1. Your Calm

The first is based upon Aliza's layout. Her journaling talked about how her grumpiness evaporated once she was out of the city and into nature. I decided to do a layout about how much I love the sun as it is the thing that seems to make me happiest these days!

 

2. Include the Emotion

The second writing prompt was based upon Celeste's layout. She included a snippet about how her sons were excited to go on the boat. Sometimes we give the facts, but fail to talk about how it makes us feel. So this prompt was to remind us to include that, if just a little.

For this journaling prompt, I created a page about the winter-that-would-not-end. And how it made me feel. (And how it made my hyacinths feel! :) . )

 

3. This Is What ____ Looks Like

The third prompt comes from Jennifer's layout. She used the phrase, "This is what summer looks like." It was such a great one--I knew exactly which picture to use it on. I love this pic and all its happiness. And that was just the word to use to fill in the blank.

 

The next two are for you:

4. WRITE about the things you love in your own backyard.

5. WRITE about the relationship you have you with your cousins, or the one that exists between your kids and their cousins.

 

I hope that you will consider using some of the WRITE prompts to help your pages get started, or to take flight! If you need more ideas, you might consider making a list of prompts from each of the gallery's layouts. Why recreate the wheel? It's summer! Sunshine is calling. Let our prompts be your shortcuts!

I'll be back tomorrow to put the CLICK ideas into layouts. Please stop by--I'd love to see you!