This was for the My Mind’s Eye November Newsletter.
Journaling Reads:
There’s nothing I love more in this world than watching the two of you hug and show love towards each other. It makes me so grateful. I love you so much.
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I wrote this post for My Mind’s Eye’s blog as part of my guest designer post back in September. This is an exact copy, just like to preserve it on my blog. Click layouts to see them in more detail and read journaling. When I first started scrapbooking, I didn’t add a lot of journaling on my pages. I tried to jot down the bare basics and call it a day. A few years later, I was entering a competition and it said that journaling was required in all my pages. So I started to journal. To my surprise, I quickly realized that I loved adding my thoughts and feelings to my pages. When I look through my scrapbook pages, I always cherish the ones with stories more. It’s not that I don’t like my photos, but coupling the photos with my words gives so much more meaning to my pages. It helps me remember details from that time in my life, it allows me to relive the moment and the feelings I had then. It makes the memory so much stronger and more alive. So, for me, journaling has become an essential part of my scrapbook layouts. And since I care about stories so much, I wanted to have a way to organize all my stories. One of the first things I did was see if there was a pattern to the kind of stories I’d like to tell. (I am a computer-programmer by trade, so patterns are my thing.) Here are some of the categories of stories I like to tell. 1. Small, tiny events that I cherish but will definitely forget. I have a really bad memory. And I have two young boys who grow up quickly and go through many phases. I love making layout pages about fleeting moments that feel so special but they are small and will immediately be forgotten. Here’s a layout I made of my older boy back when he was a toddler. One day, while my husband and I were chatting, he opened twenty little squash balls and said “ball” every single time. We both laughed so much, watching him. This moment would have disappeared if it weren’t for the layout.  And here’s another one of my younger boy who didn’t like his legs to touch the grass so each time he sat on the yard, he’d hold his legs up a little so they wouldn’t touch. Another tiny moment captured.  2. Therapeutic and to help me get my feelings on paper. Scrapbooking has helped me go face so many of my emotions. There’s something magical about mixing paper and paint with deep emotions that’s magical. I feel so strongly about the healing powers of art that I started creative therapy a few years ago to ensure I would scrap these emotional topics regularly. Here are two of my favorites. The first one is about my son when he was four months old and still not sleeping through the night and I was exhausted and very sleep deprived.
 And here’s another after a particularly rough situation with someone whom I thought was my friend but realized otherwise.
 3. Small/Special details from events. While I do try to capture them, I am not an event-scrapper. I don’t make tons of layouts about my kids’ birthdays or our vacations. What I do like to capture is some specific detail that makes the event special to me. Here is one of my older son. On his third birthday, we bought him three little cakes with a candle on each. After he blew out the candles, he gave one cake to me, one to his dad and ate the third. I loved that he shared and wanted to capture that story.  And a recent one of my little boy turning one. He had this birthday hat that he kept wanting to take off so I wanted to make sure to scrap that story.  4. Things I need to remember. Advice. Scrapbooking really helps me remember things. It helps me keep track of my thoughts and my feelings. It helps me write down things that I want my kids to know. Here’s a recent one of my son who helps out so much and because the little one needs so much help, I often forget that he’s just 5 himself, so I made this layout to remind myself to be gentler to him.  And one to remember how much he helps me and how thankful I am for him.
 These are just some of the kinds of stories I like to tell. When I look through my pages and look at other people’s pages, stories like these are the ones that speak to me the most. Knowing this helps me capture more stories like these and create pages that will forever be meaningful to me. What kind of stories do you like to tell? I urge you to spend some time thinking about the stories you like to capture the most. The stories you wish you told more. There’s nothing stopping you from making your layouts more meaningful to you.
I am not going to tell you about how tired I am today. How I haven’t slept past 4am for days now. I am just not going to whine. Instead I will tell you I made a layout. I exercised. I got some good news. I got happy mail. Those are some of the good things to tell. Nathaniel’s been a handful. While I work, he wrecks the house. A lot. Poor David cleans up. But he wrecks again.
And David’s such a champ. Kind and generous and helpful. He can be difficult sometimes too but he’s such a good kid.
So is this one. I am so blessed and lucky.
Just feeling a bit worn out right now. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For: In the beginning of October, I started walking every day. I decided that this was time to tackle my issues for once and all. I spent the first month walking while listening to a book on tape. I listened to several books and I felt that the book was keeping my attention focused elsewhere and helping me exercise. For the month of October, I averaged 15 minutes per mile. That’s not so bad for someone who hasn’t exercised a day in the last five years. (Actually, probably longer than that.) This past Saturday, the book I was listening to was really boring so I decided to put some music on my iPod instead. I wasn’t sure if this would keep my attention in the same way but I didn’t want to waste time thinking about it so I put some of the loudest songs I had on my computer on the ipod and I got down to the business of exercising. And let me tell you…..music makes a BIG difference. While the book might be more interesting, the music is definitely more inspiring and gets me going in just the right way so that I can push myself harder and more without trying. I was so amazed at the results on Saturday that I have moved to using only music on my runs now. Today’s average was: 11.16 minutes/mile. That’s almost 4 minutes per mile faster. And the only change has been listening to music instead of audio books. Talk about the inspirational power of music.
This was the fifth day in a row that Nathaniel woke up at 3am, feeling wide awake and unable to go back to sleep. I am tired, worn out and about to keel over. I tried so hard to get him to go back to sleep. I took him in my own bed even and rubbed his back but nothing. So we got up. And thus started our day. Which meant I was operating on low batteries all day long. I did take a short nap but it didn’t make up for the lack of proper sleep. I made a list of all the things I do every single day now and it’s getting pretty big: 1. full time job These are things I do every single day. It gets tiring. Especially when I wake up at 3am. So today I wasn’t so great at taking photos. I got this from David who did not want to be interrupted.
But Nathaniel smiled at me.
I am off to do more work so I can take off for my book club. More tomorrow. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
Journaling Reads: Tim Holtz Products used: Details:
Today was all about crafting. I had a few projects that I want to complete before the goodie boxes come this week. I am leaving for NYC in 5 days and I have so very much on my list until then. I know I will be filled to the brim with anticipation all week, too, which won’t help productivity. I get to see my sister in five days!! My sister. Her husband and my nephews. I haven’t seen my sister in over a year and a half and my nephews and brother in law in almost four years! And in less then a week, I get to see them. In NYC of all places. My favorite city in the world. After some morning crafting, we all decided to go to Whole Foods for some lunch. As I shot photos of my layouts, Jake got the kids ready and I couldn’t help but snap a photo. It’s low quality but I love it.
Nathaniel’s firmly in terrible twos land right now. We see a lot of this.
While David is kinder than ever. He has to put up with me going insane with Nathaniel’s shrieks.
But he helps, trying to make the little one laugh.
And we get this laughing while crying face.
He also shares his crackers and works hard to clean up all the mess Nathaniel creates fifteen times a day.
The little boy is super lucky to have a brother who does so much work and putting up and still loves him so so much. And now I am off to do the worst part of all this creating which is processing photos and then maybe, just maybe I can actually read a few pages in my book. I need to start making my book list for 2011 too. 52 more books to read. Any suggestions? Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
I forgot what a huge mess December Daily creates. I finally set up my book today and after pondering it for so long, I love how it turned out, of course. I always love it. It was David’s Wii day but the little one decided to have a go first.
And then imitated his brother.
Who is much more skilled at the whole Wii thing.
Most of what Nathaniel does is look up to him with envy and respect and love.
A lot of love.
And I tried to tear David away to snap some photos.
I got the funny faces, of course.
And while I worked on my book and David played, the little one created a huge mess. I should have taken a photo cause it was phenomenal. But he is so cute and so sweet that we just cleaned it up lovingly.
Besides exchanging a jacket and cashing a check, I got literally nothing done other than my December Daily. It took my entire day. Wait, I did exercise. More than ever before even. I did 30 minutes and 2.5 miles. I ran for 17 of those 30 minutes. Now I am aching all over and I have all the other items on my list that didn’t get done. I am off to do some of that and process December Daily photos. More coming soon. Hope you had a lovely Saturday. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
Happy Friday!! Love Fridays. Especially Friday evenings. Especially on a weekend where we have no commitments. While I was making lunch for Nathaniel, my mom called us on Skype and my nephew was there too so he made lots of gestures to try to get Nathaniel to imitate. Nathaniel watched with great interest.
And tried to imitate a bit.
He clapped and opened his arms and waved and we all laughed. Mostly at the joy of our kids interacting over such a long distance thanks to great technology.
When David came home, Daddy came soon after so he took him for a short bike ride.
And when Nathaniel realized he was being excluded from the adventure, he wasn’t happy. Not at all.
But when they were done, he made sure to put the helmet on a few hundred times and he even got Daddy to put him on the bike for a minute. Oh the little boys who get their way.
We have a friend of Jake’s coming over for dinner tonight. We normally get Turkish take out when we have rare guests. And tonight is no exception. But since I am trying to be so much healthier, I ordered salad for me and made sure the appetizers are things I dislike but Jake loves. Trying, really trying. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
Journaling Reads: There is so much in nature that inspires me. The towering redwood trees of Marin, the endless Pacific Ocean, animals, flowers, the sky. Sand, water, snow, leaves. Pretty much all of it leaves me speechless. On days when I am down or in need of some inspiration, I take my little boy and go on a walk in my neighborhood. I take the time to look at small details. The way young leaves of a plant are several shades lighter green than the mature ones. The way a single flower can have six shades of blue or red. The way a tulip opens wide like it’s waiting for a hug. When I lived in Southern California, I used to go to the beach for that. My mom always said that she didn’t like seeing an endless ocean. She likes to look at the sea and see other islands, some land. Not me. I love the immensity of it all. I love how it makes me feel like all my problems are so small.
I am at the bottom of my photos so I need to go take some more. It’s been a little too hectic for some photo trips so I need to take the time. Today started with a trip to the TMJ doctor and some more shots to the temple. He did adjust my splint though so I am in a lot less pain than I was. Then we came home, Nathaniel napped, I worked, I walked, I worked. After lunch, I decided to put some clothes on him cause his pajamas were soaking. So I also snapped some photos.
I love this one so much.
My sweet boy is so handsome.
And then he went and dug up David’s shoes to complete the outfit.
When we got David, I tried to get some shots of him, too but he wasn’t as accommodating.
But I got one!
And that’s the end of another day. I did a small crafty project today so I am happy about that and I walked/ran so I am happy about that, too. Time with my kids, work, eating veggies. That’s about all I hope for from a day these days. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
Foreign Affairs was another book club pick. An old book but a Pulitzer Winner. So I had expectations. And the reviews said it was awesome and hilarious. So I had even more expectations. In the end, I think it was so-so. I didn’t feel strong connection or empathy to either character. On the contrary, I felt like Vinnie was being a stuck up, stubborn, annoying person the whole time. And if I can’t stand a character, I can hardly read the book. I made my way through this one but I am not sure what I thought of it. It wasn’t terrible but it certainly was not hilarious. At least not for my sense of humor. |
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