Memory Keeping

As a kid, I always had a "Sticker Album." In high school I kept a photo album filled with magazine clippings, photos and concert ticket stubs. It was natural that as a young adult I would become a Scrapbooker.

  

Scrapbooking has exploded in the last decade. Companies started using metals, and ribbons, and the sky was suddenly the limit. As a creative person I was thrilled, but I did set limits on the things I would produce. It is easy to want to scrapbook every photo, and it's very easy to feel behind all the time.

As an adult I set out to attend one event or accomplish one goal that was scrapbook worthy per month. I would tell myself "My ancestors would not want to see 35 photos of my dog." It was fun to seek out adventures every month, and I loved having things to look forward to. Reliving the experience while making a scrapbook page was a bonus!

An instagram photo of our resident squirrel scrapbooked in a Smash Album.

As life changes, so does my approach. I bought a Smash Album for less serious pages, and I will use it until it's full, but I prefer the good old blank canvas of a piece of cardstock. I fell  in love with the beautiful Project Life designs, and I like the concept of the Simple Stories Snap Album but I know myself and I know I need to begin with a blank slate. It inhibits my creativity when I purchase things that are trying to guide me in a certain direction.

I have let go of the monthly program that worked for me years ago. Now I scrapbook the things that are important, and the trips I take. This works better at this stage of life, though I am still left feeling behind all the time!

XoXo, Liza