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Celebrate, Inspiration, Memory Keeping

Photos to Take This Summer, and What to Do with Them!

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Pictures to Take This Summer #closetomyheart #ctmh #summerphotos #photoideas #memorykeeping #scrapbooking #summer

We will be rolling out those hazy, lazy, crazy days of summer real soon, and to prep we’ve compiled a list of photo ideas so they won’t be so “hazy” come fall (how “lazy” and “crazy” these next couple of months are is up to you! 😉)

Whether you’ll be going on a huge vacation or planning on sticking around locally, there is so much life to capture during the summertime. The best part, these moments don’t require extravagant locations or fancy dress. All you need is you and your people and, of course, your camera.

Before we jump into our list of photo ideas, let’s talk about what to do with all of these photos once you have them. The worst thing you can do is take hundreds of awesome photos and then loose them to the seemingly bottomless pit of a gallery that you have saved on your phone or on social media, to never be seen again. Let’s just not do that this year. We can do better, and here’s how.

The first step is to turn digital images into printed pictures. We all take multiple photos of the same thing to get that “perfect pic.” Choose your favorites, print these off, and then delete the rest (you can do it!).

The next step is deciding what you want to do with these printed pictures—do you want to scrapbook all of them or put a few on display?

If scrapbooking is not your thing, make it your thing! It is not an archaic medium, and it certainly is not obsolete. One of the wonderful things about scrapbooking is that it combines your creativity with your photos and memories in a way that is personal and unique to you. If you already journal this way, a scrapbook is not that different. In a scrapbook, however, your memories will be better preserved through the years because your pages are in clear plastic pockets we call Memory Protectors™.

Pictures to Take This Summer #closetomyheart #ctmh #summerphotos #photoideas #memorykeeping #scrapbooking #summer

Regardless of whether scrapbooking is or isn’t something you’re into, if you’ve got a lot of summer photos that you want to put in an album, pocket scrapbooking is a great solution to quickly scrap all of your photos (even those photos that you may have multiples of because you couldn’t pick just one as your favorite). Add journaling, a few pieces of paper here and there, and you’re done!

Pictures to Take This Summer #closetomyheart #ctmh #summerphotos #photoideas #memorykeeping #scrapbooking #summer

If you’ve got a lot of pictures of one particular subject, like a trip or a person, the Short Story approach by Story by Stacy™ may be the way to go. The instructional workbook walks you through the process of visual storytelling in a 6″ × 6″ album, using a large group of photos topped off with a personal story written at the very end.

Pictures to Take This Summer #closetomyheart #ctmh #summerphotos #photoideas #memorykeeping #scrapbooking #summer

Displaying your summertime fun is definitely something we encourage! You can frame individual photos or create collages of all shapes and sizes. Add stickers, patterned papers, journaling—whatever will fit with the feelings you’re hoping to capture and the story you want to tell.

Now, as promised, here’s a list of photo ideas to take this summer. Use them all, just a few, or maybe use these as a jumping off place to new ideas of your own. Whatever you do, find and capture moments during this summertime so you’ll not only have an answer to the “so, what did you do this summer?” question, but also a keepsake for yourself and your family for years to come.

SUMMER PHOTO IDEAS

  1. Wearing sunglasses
  2. Lounging in the sun
  3. Tan lines
  4. Enjoying a cool summer treat
  5. Summer beverage
  6. Summer reading
  7. Seashells
  8. Flowers
  9. Sunset
  10. Working on a summer craft

  11. Favorite summer footwear/“where I stand”
  12. Fireworks
  13. Summer bbq/cook-outs
  14. Water fight
  15. American flag/July 4th decorations
  16. Patriotic clothing
  17. Fireflies
  18. Sun flare
  19. Road tripping/vacation
  20. Beach landscape

  21. Feet in the sand
  22. Eating watermelon
  23. Bubbles
  24. Blue skies/summer clouds
  25. Family time
  26. Shopping
  27. Kites
  28. Summer dress/beach hat/go-to summer outfit
  29. Ducks
  30. Temperature (on a thermometer/screen)

  31. Mani/Pedi
  32. Attending a sporting event
  33. Deck chairs
  34. Riding bikes
  35. Silhouettes on a bright sunny day
  36. Fun in the yard
  37. Fun on the water (boating/paddle boarding, etc.)
  38. Car wash
  39. Local carnival/fair
  40. Enjoying the outdoors (nature walks/hiking/camping/bonfire)

  41. Summer garden (veggies/flowers)
  42. Sidewalk chalk
  43. Summer love
  44. Pets outside (on a walk/at a park)
  45. Kids taking photos
  46. Around the house
  47. Colorful fruit
  48. Golden hour lighting (about an hour before sunset or an hour after sunrise)
  49. Your front porch
  50. Nap time

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Create, Inspiration, Learn, Memory Keeping

20 Pocket Scrapbooking Tips & Ideas

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  • Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhsummervibes #ctmhtimber #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking

For a lot of us, September marks the beginning of one of the busier times of the year. The “-ber” months. With the start of a new and unique school year, followed by the most celebrated family centered seasonal time, including fall festivities, then Thanksgiving, and eventually Hanukah and Christmas, during which we try to cram as much jubilee as possible into our already busy lives—we all have so much going on, and it may feel like there is just no time to dedicate to preserving all of these fond, albeit sometimes somewhat hectic, memories.

What if we told you that scrapbooking can be fast, simple, and easy! It is a perfect time to discover, or rediscover, the simplicity of scrapbooking in pockets! By using Memory Protectors™ with multiple pockets, you can quickly catch up on your scrapbooking or just add photos, art, and journaling (and any other keepsake that you can fit into a pocket) to your albums.

From how to tell a story to the creating of the artwork that goes along with it, pocket scrapbooking is a memory keeping style all its own. If you are new to this style of scrapbooking or are simply looking for inspiration for your pages, we’ve compiled a list of artwork tips and ideas for you below!

Pocket Scrapbooking Tips & Ideas:

1. Fill no more than half your pockets on a page with non-photo elements.

2. Stick to a color palette, pulling color ideas from your photos.

3. Use Picture My Life™ pocket cards (designed to coordinate with each other in theme and color).

Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhtimber #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking
  • Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhtimber #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking

4. Design and make your own pocket cards from papers, Thin Cuts, stickers, and stamps. (This is a great way to use up some of your scraps, too!)

5. Fill pockets with other things, besides cards or photos (ticket stubs, loose CricutÂŽ shapes, sequins, etc.).
Tip: We sealed the sequins pocket you see in our example so the sequins wouldn’t fall out.

6. Make a statement and split large titles or photos into multiple squares.
Tip: Consider printing a large 6 x 8 photo and split it up into several pockets!

7. Use the negative space of a CricutÂŽ shape to create a pocket card. If the space is large enough, back it with a light color cardstock and use the space for journaling. If you are cutting several small shapes (like our 2019 below), back it with cardstock or any other paper that will add interest to your layout.

Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking

8. Add a sentiment to your photos by stamping directly on them
Tip: If your photo has any sort of finish on them, we recommend you use StazOn™ ink. If it is a truly matte photo, Archival Black is a good choice.

9. Don’t want to stamp on your photos but want a similar effect? Stamp directly onto the pocket Memory Protector™ with StazOn™ ink, instead.

10. Add embellishments to the outside of the Memory Protectors™.

11. Use Flip Flaps™! If you have too many photos or things that you want to work into a page but not enough pockets (or enough to fill whole other page) add these stick on pockets that flip up (or in any direction that you attach them) to reveal whatever is underneath!

12. Similarly, if you have too many photos for a traditional scrapbook layout, and don’t want to create another layout with all of the remaining photos, use pocket pages to display these.

Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhsummervibes #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking

13. If you have a piece of memorabilia to display that is too small for a pocket, mount it onto a piece of paper that will fit.

14. Create a window to the next page in your album by partially filling a pocket (use a smaller photo, half a pocket card, etc.).

15. Number your photos to give your page or layout a more narrative direction. Take this a step further by adding numbered journaling to a pocket card that corresponds with the numbered photos.

16. Create color visual triangles. This means to purposefully place the same color in three different places that, when connected, form a triangle.

17. Don’t have time, or care for, writing in full paragraphs? Use bullet journaling to keep track of the details of a memory!

18. If one of your pockets is holding a card that you want to remember to pull out when you revisit the page, add a tab along the edge of the card on the open side of the pocket.

19. Easily add some visual interest to your photos by trimming them down Âź” and mounting them on a piece of paper that fits the pockets exactly, creating a border around your photos.

20. Sometimes things don’t fit in pockets—like notes, journal pages, your grandma’s favorite clock—take photos of these things to include them in your stories.

21. We said 20, so this one is a bonus: plan ahead. If you know you will be going on a tropical vacation, or camping, or pumpkin picking—there are activities that you know for certain you will be participating in (playing on the beach, sitting around a camp fire, walking through a pumpkin patch, etc.). When you are scrapbooking with pockets, it’s easy to lay out some pages really quickly for these types of events without having the photos yet. Once you have them, add them. If you don’t like the way it’s laid out, rearrange! Easy-peasy!

  • Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhsummervibes #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking
Pocket Scrapbooking #ctmh #closetomyheart #picturemylife #pocketscrapbooking #ctmhsummervibes #memorykeeping #storytelling #scrapbooking

If you just went through our list and still find yourself at a loss for how to begin, or otherwise feel that your finished pocket layouts didn’t turn out quite right, try revisiting one of our previous posts, 5 Approaches to Pocket Scrapbooking, where we share additional ideas to get you thinking about how to create a pocket page or layout, and to get you up to speed on this popular style of scrapbooking.

Whether you’re cutting things up, attaching them to a pocket card, or creating a pocket for a group of items—there is no wrong way to tell your story. In the comments below, share with all of us how you are using pocket scrapbooking in your memory keeping.

Recipes:12″ x 12″ Hooray for Today Pocket Scrapbooking Layout
D1938 My AcrylixÂŽ Love Lives Here Stamp Set, D1926 My AcrylixÂŽ Simple Florals Stamp Set, X9017 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6047 Black Cardstock, X6044 Peach Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6047 Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6502 Peach Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2851 Saffron Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2896 Smoothie Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7258D Summer Vibes Picture My Life™ Cards, Z4235 Gold Loose Sequins, Z3132 Watercolor Paints, Z1950 12″ x 12″ Memory Protectors™ Design 3, Z1951 12″ x 12″ Memory Protectors™ Design 4

6″ x 8″ On this Day Pocket Scrapbooking Layout
D1929 My AcrylixÂŽ Paper Pal Beach Day Stamp Set, D1932 My AcrylixÂŽ Joyful Sunflower Stamp Set, CC7203 Happiest Place Coordinating Cardstock, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, Z1375 Kraft Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7258D Summer Vibes Picture My Life™ Cards, Z4304 Silver Loose Sequins, Z3191 6″ x 8″ Memory Protectors™ Design 2, Z3192 6″ x 8″ Memory Protectors™ Design 1

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Celebrate, Create, Memory Keeping

Photo-a-Day Album for December

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Days of December #closetomyheart #ctmh #ctmhhollyjolly #daysofdecember #photoaday #decemberdaily #christmas #christmasalbum #holidayscrapbook #christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #photoprompts

Scrapbooking is more than just a hobby. It is the preservation of memories, a way to pass on a precious legacy to all you hold dear. Even the smallest, most simple moments can turn into powerful memories that can bring joy to you and your family for years to come. Whether you put it together for yourself or as a special gift for a loved one, the Days of December album is a must-have!

Days-of-December-pages11-12

To help capture all the precious memories that the month of December has to offer, we recreated last year’s popular Days of December photo-a-day album with our new Holly Jolly paper packet and Holly Jolly—Scrapbooking stamp set!

The idea behind a photo-a-day project is to go about your regular activities and to then take a photo of what you consider is the highlight of your day. This 6″ x 8″ album is simply bursting with festive cheer! Each page provides plenty of room to tell your stories through your own photos and words.

Days-of-December-pages16-17Get ready to have some fun this Christmas season as you document your most treasured holiday moments each and every day in December! In case you need a little help getting started on this beautiful Days of December album, below you’ll find a list of 31 photo prompts and ideas, one for each day. For those of you who did this with us last year, you’ll remember that we provided a similar list of photo prompts then, too. (Click here to see last year’s list.) We intentionally made this list different from last year’s so that we can have both to reference—that’s a total of 62 photo ideas to pull from!

December-photo-prompts

Download printable version, here. (Here for AU/NZ.)

Use these prompts in chronological order, switch them up, or pick and choose your favorites to use in conjunction with some of your own ideas. The important thing is to enjoy the moments, capture the memories as you make them, and then preserve them to treasure for years to come. We are memory keepers, after all!

Days-of-December-pages23-24

The Days of December album kit is only available through the end of November, while supplies last. Make sure to grab yours while there is still time! <3

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Celebrate, Community

50 Things to Do This Summer

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The excitement of summer is in the air and we want you to enjoy every bit of it! To get started, if you haven’t already, check out this fun list of 50 Things to Do This Summer we’ve compiled with no one else but you in mind.  (Take this list on the go by downloading the printer friendly version, here.)

Summer Activities #ctmh #closetomyheart #thingstodothissummer #summer #vacation #holiday #bucketlist #todo #summeractivities #summerfun

Do you have any more fun ideas to add to our list? Tell us how you’re planning on spending your summer in the comments below!

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Celebrate, Memory Keeping

25 Journaling & Photo Prompts for Recurring Life Events

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25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography

Are you in one of those families that go to Disney World once year? (lucky! 🙂 ) Do you spend most Christmas mornings at home in your pajamas? What about a birthday? We all have one every year. Holidays, birthdays, vacations, parties—the good times just keep coming, and so do the stories and photos that accompany them.

Earlier this month we shared a post about New Ways to Document the Holidays. We thought it would be worthwhile to follow that up with some additional ideas and prompts for other recurring life events so that we don’t always take the same photos and document the same stories year after year.

The following ideas can be used to take photos while you’re in the moment or as a place to start your journaling while you’re documenting the memory. If you’re new to scrapbooking or you’re just in a memory keeping rut, the following prompts can help get you going.

 

VACATIONS:

25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography1. Why are you going on this vacation?
2. How did you get to where you were going?
3. What did you pack for this trip?
4. Did everything go as planned?
25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography5. Who are the people that are with you?
6. Did you meet any interesting folks along the way?
7. What was your favorite meal/restaurant on the trip?
8. What cool souvenirs are you bringing home?
9. Has your life been changed by this trip?

 

CHRISTMAS/HOLIDAYS:

25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography10. What are you celebrating?
11. Do you have an ornament you love? Where did you get it and why do you love it?
12. What’s a favorite holiday treat? (Include the recipe!)
13. How does your family serve others?
14. Do you have any traditions?25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography15. How does “magic” happen in your home? (Ex. Is there an elf sitting on a shelf somewhere?)
16.What wrapping paper did you pick out, and why?
17. How did you decorate your home?
18. Are there special movies that you watch?
19. Do you have any favorite holiday music?

 

BIRTHDAYS:

25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography20. Did you get a cake? What flavor? If not, why?
21. What were the reactions to gifts? Was there a favorite?
22. Who did you celebrate with?25 Prompts to Document Recurring Life Events #ctmh #closetomyheart #birthdayscrapbook #vacationscrapbook #holidayscrapbook #Christmasscrapbook #scrapbooking #memorykeeping #journalingprompts #photoprompts #journaling #photography23. Interview the guest of honor and record their answers
24. Screenshot and document birthday messages from social media
25. How has life changed since your last birthday?

We hope you’re as inspired as we are to use your next birthday, holiday, or vacation to try out some of these memory keeping prompts. You can document your memories in creative ways by taking photos and answering some of the questions we’ve given you here today. Focusing on sharing the details around all of these topics will highlight what makes each vacation, birthday, and holiday particularly special on its own. We’d love to hear your ideas for scrapbooking these types of events. Share them with us in the comments below!

Recipes:

12″ x 12″ NYC Holiday Fails Page
C1725 My Acrylix® Simply Said Stamp Set, E1042 My Acrylix® Outline Classroom Alphabet Stamp Set, E1043 My Acrylix® Solid Classroom Alphabet Stamp Set, X9000 Seasons Mix-in Paper Packet, X6007 Lagoon Cardstock, X5986 Mint Cardstock, Z6503 Mint Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2731 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Re-inker, X7238C Oh What Fun Complements, Z4222 Hello Pumpkin Shapes, Z3314 Black & White Dots, Z4245 Opaque Matte Texture Paste, Z4247 Palette Knives, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen Journaling Pen, Z3503 Cricut® Artbooking Digital Collection

CricutÂŽ Shape:
Artbooking
6″ Overlay <g> (p. 62, #M3F0A2)

12″ x 12″ Baking Magic Page
C1725 My Acrylix® Simply Said Stamp Set, X7236B Hello Pumpkin Paper Packet, X7235B Boutique Paper Packet, X7238B Oh What Fun Paper Packet, X9000 Seasons Mix-in Paper Packet, X6028 Black Cardstock, X5986 Mint Cardstock, X6016 Pixie Cardstock, X6027 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2805 Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7238C Oh What Fun Complements, Z4216 Raspberry Baker’s Twine, Z4305 Thin Cuts—Fancy Tags, Z3317 Thin Cuts—Stitched Hearts, Z2027 Mini Stapler, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen, Z1951 Memory Protectors® Design 4

12″ x 12″ Wonderful Birthday Wishes Page
D1804 My Acrylix® Your Special Day Stamp Set, E1042 My Acrylix® Outline Classroom Alphabet Stamp Set, E1043 My Acrylix® Solid Classroom Alphabet Stamp Set, X7235B Boutique Paper Packet, X9000 Seasons Mix-in Paper Packet, X5990 Carolina Cardstock, X6021 Sapphire Cardstock, X6027 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6505 Carolina Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7238C Oh What Fun Complements, Z4304 Loose Sequins—Silver, Z4241 Thin Cuts—Decorative Borders, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z3500 Cricut® Artistry Digital Collection, Sewing Machine

CricutÂŽ Shape:
Artistry
ž” Banner <New Years> (p. 50, #M41864D)

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Memory Keeping

100 Journaling Prompts

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Tell Your Stories #ctmh #closetomyheart #journaling #journalling #prompts #tellyourstory #story #stories #storytelling #memories #memorykeeping

Scrapbooking is all about the memory keeping. And because it’s easy to get stuck and not know what “counts” as a story worth preserving, we came up with a list of 100 different journaling prompts to get you going.

Current Favorites

  1. What are some of your favorite things?
  2. What is your favorite book?
  3. What are your favorite quotes?
  4. Who are your favorite writers?
  5. Do you have favorite paintings?
  6. What are some of your favorite creative outlets?
  7. What are your favorite games?
  8. What are some of your favorite gadgets? (this will be fun to look back on)
  9. What are your favorite restaurants?
  10. What desserts do you enjoy?
  11. What are your favorite recipes?
  12. What are your favorite TV shows/movies? (Netflix binging counts!)
  13. What is your favorite song? Do you have a favorite musician or band?
  14. Where are some of your favorite places/landmarks?
  15. Do you have a favorite travel destination?
  16. What is your favorite holiday or season?
  17. Do you have some favorite holiday traditions?
  18. Do you have favorite Christmas carols?
  19. Is there a special Christmas tree ornament that is your favorite?
  20. What are your favorite Sunday rituals?
  21. Who are your favorite people?
  22. What are some of your favorite things about your family?

Lists

  1. What accomplishments are you really proud of?
  2. What do you want to do in your life? (bucket list)
  3. What goals do you have for this year?
  4. What things do you want to do this summer/fall/winter/spring?
  5. What are some things you would like to learn?
  6. What books do you want to read?
  7. Where do you want to visit?
  8. What things do you want to see?
  9. Who would you like to meet?
  10. How do you indulge yourselself?
  11. What are you grateful for?
  12. What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
  13. What are you obsessed with?
  14. What are some things you miss? (including “back in my day…”)
  15. What reasons do you have to be happy?
  16. What are some things that cheer you up?
  17. What makes you laugh?
  18. What inspires you?
  19. Who inspires you?
  20. Who are your friends?
  21. What are this month’s highlights?
  22. What random things do you know?
  23. What weird things do you like? (you know you have some)
  24. What are some things you can’t go without?
  25. What are some things you’ve done that you never thought you could?
  26. What things would you do if you weren’t afraid?
  27. What is happing in the world today? (current events)
  28. What tattoos do you have and what are their meanings?
  29. What are you good at?
  30. What makes you unique?

From Your Childhood

  1. Where did you grow up?
  2. What were some things you enjoyed doing as a child?
  3. What are some things you always did with your parents as a child?
  4. What do you remember about your childhood home? (or did you move a lot?)
  5. What was your favorite toy?
  6. Who was your childhood pet?
  7. What was your favorite meal as a child? What were your favorite treats?
  8. Where did you go to school? Who was your favorite teacher?
  9. Who were your friends in elementary school?
  10. Who were your friends in high school?
  11. What sports/extracurricular activities were you involved in as a teenager?
  12. When was the time you got in the most trouble?
  13. What were your favorite TV shows or movies?
  14. What was the best gift you ever got?
  15. What was the best/worst birthday/Christmas?
  16. What did you want to be when you grew up?

Firsts…

  1. Who was your first crush?
  2. Who was your first kiss?
  3. What do you remember about your first car?
  4. What was your first airplane ride?
  5. What was your first job?
  6. Who was your first concert?

More Memories…

  1. What is your love story? (how did you meet your spouse/significant other?)
  2. What is your saddest memory?
  3. What is your happiest memory?
  4. What is your funniest memory?

If…

  1. If a genie granted you three wishes…
  2. If you could have dinner with anyone (dead or alive) it would be…
  3. If you could meet any fictional character it would be…
  4. If you could live anywhere…
  5. If you could change history….

Family

  1. What do you remember most about your mother/father?
  2. Is there anything noteworthy about your parent’s upbringing?
  3. What are some of your mother’s or father’s favorites?
  4. Do you have any famous or high profile family members?
  5. Are there other family members that were/are important to you? (grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc.)
  6. Who are your siblings?
  7. How do you spend family time?
  8. What family vacations have you gone on?

Motherhood

  1. What do you remember about each birth?
  2. What are some of your mom fails? (we all have them)
  3. What are some of your mom wins?
  4. What is mom life really like?
  5. What are your parenting goals?
  6. You love this kid because…
  7. Kids are funny because…
  8. Kids are scary because…
  9. What do you love most about being a mother?

Now that you’ve got these prompts to get you started, the next step is to do something about it! You may want to start by writing the story down and then finding photos to support it, or you may want to approach it the other way around—find photos related to your memory and then add a few written details. Either way, don’t allow your precious memories and stories get lost with time.

Whether by simply keeping a journal or by scrapbooking in whatever method best fits your style, now is the time to commit—or recommit!—to memory keeping.

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Memory Keeping

Telling Your Story In Lists

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Journaling is the key ingredient that turns our scrapbook pages from a decorative photo album to a memory-keeping keepsake. Sometimes, even though we may know it, we get so caught up in everything that life throws at us that we don’t take the necessary time for this essential step. A quick and simple solution to this journaling dilemma is to incorporate lists in your memory keeping. Lists can be a fun way to include stories and details of stories that otherwise might get left out or would take too long to write out in paragraph form.

Take a look at the following examples we came up with.

list journaling #ctmh #closetomyheart #journaling #journalling #memorykeeping #summerbucketlist #list
How many of us create lists of things that we want to get done, either during a season or maybe even a lifetime? These bucket lists are such a big part of who we are and why we may have some really cool and unique photos later. These kinds of things from our story tend to not be told and eventually get lost over time. Imagine how special a list like this would be for your children and grandchildren to have of you, or even for you to look back on in later years.

list journaling #ctmh #closetomyheart #list #journaling #journalling #listjournaling #listjournalling #memorykeeping #bucketlist #summerbucketlist

There are several approaches to scrapping a bucket list. You can start with your list, before you begin checking things off, like we did here in our example. If you choose to include photos, you can find stock photos online or photos you already have that somehow relate to your list.

You can also go the other way and scrapbook your bucket list as you accomplish it. This second way you will probably have more photos of you actually doing what is on your list, but it won’t include your whole list with all the things you hope to eventually do (and in reality, we don’t always accomplish everything on our lists exactly how we think we will, so there’s that to consider, too).

list journaling #ctmh #closetomyheart #roadtripmusic #music #list #journaling #journalling #listjournalling #memorykeeping

Our second example doesn’t include photos at all! Yep, we went there (and you should, too, on occasion 🙂 ). Including a page like this one in a road trip or family vacation album, for example, will add so much of your actual personality and will also give the reader (including future you!) a glimpse into your world at the time of the event you’re scrapbooking about.

List journaling really is so simple and effective! You can include so much detail and information that would otherwise get left out, and quite possibly eventually forgotten, by organizing it all in a list and adding it to your memory keeping albums.

For more list journaling artwork inspiration, revisit the following posts:

12 Days of Christmas
Preserving Holiday Memories

Recipes

12″ x 12″ Summer Bucket List Pocket Page
B1484 My Acrylix® Jennifer’s Hand Stamp Set, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2805 Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, 1772 Glue Dots® Ultra-thin Dots, Z1950 Memory Protectors™ Design 3

12″x 12″ Road Trip Music Page
B1484 My Acrylix® Jennifer’s Hand Stamp Set, D1787 My Acrylix® Music Speaks Stamp Set, X7232B Fresh Air Paper Packet, X5958 Peacock Cardstock, X5978 Glacider Cardstock, X5963 Poppy Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2849 Peacock Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2895 Lagoon Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2852 Poppy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4177 Documented Dots, Z3328 Thin Cuts—Basic Ovals, Z1979 Marvy® Uchida® LePen™ Journaling Pen

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Memory Keeping

5 Movies Where Scrapbooking Saves the Day

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In honor of the Oscars last night, we want to share with you 5 movies where scrapbooking saves the day:

1. Up5 films where scrapbooking saves the day! #ctmh #closetomyheart #scrapbooking #movies #memorykeeping

This one is a personal favorite of ours at Close To My Heart! In this heart-warming Best Picture nominee from a few years ago, the pages of a scrapbook remind an elderly man named Carl about how good his life has been, while also showing him that adventure is still out there!

2. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood5 films where scrapbooking saves the day! #ctmh #closetomyheart #scrapbooking #movies #memorykeeping

A famous New York playwright blames her spunky southern mother for her unhappy childhood, sparking a long-distance feud, but reconciliation is ultimately found after the daughter learns more about her mother’s past from an old scrapbook.

3. Age of Adaline5 films where scrapbooking saves the day! #ctmh #closetomyheart #scrapbooking #movies #memorykeeping

While looking through photos and scrapbooks from her unusually long life, the ageless title character of this film resolves to embrace the present, recognizing that true happiness comes from the relationships she has shared with others.

4. So Dear To My Heart5 films where scrapbooking saves the day! #ctmh #closetomyheart #scrapbooking #movies #memorykeeping

In this Oscar-nominated film from 1948, figures from a scrapbook come to life and encourage an orphan boy named Jeremiah to work hard and never give up on his dreams.

5. The Parent Trap5 films where scrapbooking saves the day! #ctmh #closetomyheart #scrapbooking #movies #memorykeeping

A picture torn from a wedding scrapbook becomes the key to reuniting twin sisters who have grown up in separate households and meet by chance at summer camp.

From encouragement to reconciliation to celebrating relationships, this small selection of movies really shows what scrapbooking is all about! Did we miss any good scrapbooking movies? Tell us about your favorites in the comments! And the next time someone asks you why you scrapbook, be proud! Tell them it’s your way of saving the day. 🙂

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