In So Many Words

Today is my son Michael’s 7th birthday! I can hardly believe it – I remember being amazed when he turned 7 months old, and now here we are with this big kid running around our house.

A few weeks ago, I got an idea to make him a scrapbook for his birthday. The plan was to fill it with positive words that describe him and would build up his self-image, which can often be very negative. He loves the alphabet, so I decided to make it go in alphabetical order. I used bright colors for the backgrounds and put them in rainbow order, which is also a must for him!

My friend Lisa and I got together last Friday night and actually put the entire thing together in a six-hour marathon scrapbooking session. I could never have done it without her help and expertise, and I am so amazed by the finished product that I had to share it with everyone.

Visit 5 Minutes for Mom for more Tackle It Tuesday. I’m also over at 5 Minutes for Special Needs today, talking about Teaching the Value of Money. Whether you have a child with special needs or not, we’d love to have you join in and share your ideas on this topic.

With my son’s birthday coming up on Tuesday, I had gotten the bright idea to make him a scrapbook that would be filled with positive things about him to help improve his self-image (both in terms of accuracy and self-esteem).  I didn’t realize how long it would take me to actually figure out how I was going to do and get started on it.  Earlier this week, I finally got photos picked out and found a variety of paper, stickers and other items to use for the project.

The plan was to have words from each letter of the alphabet, since that is one of his loves, and I decided to use bright color backgrounds and put the colors in rainbow order (another strong preference of his).  Well, I went to my friend Lisa’s house on Friday night, thinking that we would get started and then I would spend the next two days holed up in my basement finishing it . . . but wouldn’t you know it, we FINISHED THE ENTIRE THING in a marathon six-hour session!!! 

The finished product is amazing (IMHO), although we are NEVER doing anything like that again.   I can hardly wait until Tuesday evening to give it to him.  Here’s a sneak peek of the first page:

Make a Smilebox postcard

I had commented on Who Says 8 Is Enough? that I couldn’t believe she had scrapbooked several pages of her sisters’ birthday party by the next day, and she shared her secret – Smilebox. So although I really do plan to start scrapbooking this year (I know, it is June already and I haven’t started!), I thought I would try it out. I downloaded the software and used one of the basic designs to create this “postcard” of the Little Guy’s preK graduation from last month.

It was very easy to use and even generates the code to blog your creation. There are paid options to get additional designs and other features, as well. Just a note, when you click to play the postcard, it will take you to a page on their site and there is some background music (just in case you are not reading this somewhere you want music to suddenly start playing).

This project doesn’t actually have any stamping in it, but I have been having a lot of fun making these little explosion albums. This one was for the Little Guy’s honorary aunt for her birthday. She is a collector of all things M&M’s – thus the paper design.

To make the cover, you need 2 – 6″ x 6″ pieces of scrapbook paper and 2 – 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ pieces of foam board or corrugated cardboard. Simply wrap the paper around the foam board and tape it down with your favorite tape for stamping or scrapbooking. You may have to experiment with the folding to see how you like the corners best; just be careful not to tear the paper.

For the inside, you will need 5 pieces of card stock cut to 8″ x 8″. Each piece should be scored down the middle both horizontally and vertically. Then flip the paper over and score it on one of the diagonals.

Crease each piece along the score lines and then start putting them together. For the first piece, attach it to the top of the album so that one of the solid sections (i.e. not the part that is scored diagonally) is taped down. The diagonally-scored sections should fold up towards you.

You are now ready to insert your pictures. You can do this however you would like – straight onto the card stock, matted on another color card stock or scrapbook paper, whatever you prefer. I taped my pictures directly to the background, using a 3 3/4″ square for the size.

For the photos on the diagonally-scored sections, think ahead to which direction you want them facing and where that will mean you are cutting the picture in half. You can also make a triangle template for one-half of the diagonal areas and cut your picture into that shape. The other half of that section could be decorated with scrapbook paper or with a piece of card stock with a greeting to the recipient or journaling about the photos.

Once you are done, tape your ribbon to the back cover and tie in the front (close and open it before attaching the ribbon to be sure it will open in the right direction). I know your chosen recipients will love them as much as mine have!