Gift Idea to Treasure

A few years ago, I wanted to do something special for my mom. She was getting up there in age, and I really wanted to do something special for her. I really didn't know much about scrap booking, plus there wasn't time to learn. The holidays were not far away. I knew I loved to take pictures and had many in boxes.

After some thought, it occurred to me that she was especially proud of her grandchildren. She had eight of them, now ages six years to adult. I thought of making some type of book about them. If I used a scrapbook or photo album, I could put pictures in each open section. That would mean that each grandchild would be featured on 2 pages.

I went to A.C Moore and picked out a scrapbook that had clear wrap on each page. Although I really didn't know anything about scrap booking, I decided to go ahead and just try it. Looking at scrapbook areas in stores, gave me many ideas. I found all kinds of background paper that the pictures could be glued to. I tried to match the paper with the personality of each child. I picked soccer paper for one child, and dance paper for another. Then I searched through all my photos of the kids and pulled the best ones.

Each child's section started with their baby picture. I then included photos of them at various ages and special events. Once I got started, it was really fun. I arranged the pictures first. Then I remembered funny things they did or said and wrote them down neatly on colorful little paper and glued them to the page.

I also went to many other stores like Walmart and the Dollar Tree. Just looking in the craft areas at their samples helped me tremendously. I found little stickers for music, pets, camping etc. I used these stickers to help show the interests of each grandchild. It really made the pages come to life. I found myself adding more and more with every new idea that came to mind.

When it was finished, I was very anxious to give it to her. She loved it! She showed it to everyone. It's still on her coffee table, and it is already 2 years old. She continues to show it to everyone that visits her as if she just received it. I know that it means so much to her. Even now, the grandchildren enjoy thumbing through its pages.

I am so glad I decided to go ahead and make this memory book for my mother. It is a gift she really treasures.