Several years ago, I put together this mini album around Thanksgiving time.
In it, I used an acrostic- I spelled out the word "Thankful" and then wrote something about each of those letters about how thankful I am for my boys.
I placed the mini album inside this lunch tin and decorated the outside.
To make the pages, I trimmed pattern paper to 7 1/2"x 5 1/2" and rounded the corners.
Then I sandwiched two pieces together and used two pieces of ribbon to adjoin each set of pages.
My journaling says, "This album is dedicated to you boys so you'll always know
how very thankful I am to be your mom."
Using the ribbons in this way, I was able to make hinge pages for this album.
The journaling says, "T is for time. I'm thankful for my time with you two. Getting to be a stay-at-home mom has been the most rewarding and fulfilling thing I've done in my life. I get to be with you from morning til night experiencing every little situation with you. I wouldn't trade anything for the time we spend together.
The hinge pages flip upwards and each layout is actually one page on top of another.
The journaling says, "H is for happiness. I'm thankful for the happiness you two bring into our lives. I love watching you grow, taking delight as you pass through each phase. I love listening to you two play together. So often, Daddy and I look at each other and smile
at something one of you has said or done."
"A is for adore. I'm thankful that I adore you. Some parents are so busy that they don't always stop to adore their kids. . . adore their habits, their personalities, their uniqueness. I adored you both from the first moment I held you in my arms. Every day I adore you more and more."
When my second son was a baby, I made a set of pilgrim hats just for pictures.
Every year, I posed my boys in these same hats.
(kinda cheesy, I know, but now I'm so glad that I did it!)
This journaling says, "N is for need. I'm thankful that you need me. You need me to get your breakfast, wash your hair in the tub, and listen to your stories. You need me to be the peacemaker when you disagree. But you know what, Boys? I need you two, too.
Probably more than you need me.
For most of the layouts, I used one 4"x6" photo and two wallet size photos.
This year's photos; however, were so cute, I couldn't choose just three. So I printed out four additional small photos and staggered them across the bottom.
The journaling says, "K is for kisses. I'm thankful for your kisses and hugs. You are such loving boys. Ethan, when you get excited about something, you just have to hug somebody. Sam, when you crawl onto my lap when we're reading at night, I cherish that closeness with you. I'll always have hugs and kisses for you two."
The journaling on each layout is handwritten.
The journaling on this page says, "F is for faith. I'm thankful for my faith. Daddy and I try hard to teach you two about God. We read a Bible story every night and attend church on Wednesday nights and Sundays. I value and cherish how deep my faith has become while trying to instill faith in you."
Each layout has the same embellishments, too: a pilgrim hat and photo corner on the top part of the layout, and a larger photo corner and some sort of embellishment on the bottom part of the layout.
This journaling says, "U is for ultimate. I'm thankful that God chose me for this ultimate job of trying to raise you boys. Guiding you, teaching you, loving you, taking care of you. . . hopefully raising you to be good, strong, Christian men."
Somehow, my last layout is missing a photo. . . I'll have to go through my files and find it!
The jounaling says, "L is for love. I'm thankful for all the love in our family. The first word (besides family names) that you both learned to spell was love. Ethan, whenever a piece of paper is left out, whether it's a grocery list or one of Nonny's school papers, you scribble "Love" on it."
The last page in the book is just a final note to my boys.
"Sam and Ethan, I am truly honored to be your mother. . . to be part of your daily lives. . . to witness the amazing changes as you grow. . . to make a difference in your lives. . . . to help you become great men. I love you to the moon and back, Mommy."
I actually hadn't looked at this book for some time. I was so tickled as I read it and looked at the photos. It truly is a keepsake. I'm thankful that I have these thoughts documented for my boys!
Thanks so much for stopping by and God bless.
Know that the Lord, He is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Psalm 100:3
This post is linked to Between Naps on the Porch, The Dedicated House,
1 comment:
This looks so cute! I love it!
Thanks for joining the Link Up this week and Happy Thanksgiving! :)
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