Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Say What? - Journaling Tips

I have to admit, this is a tough topic for me. I am not a writer. I am a facts type of person! Yet, I think it is important to tell the story behind the pictures. If you read Lori Gentile’s post here some weeks ago- about how to go beyond the pictures, I would say that was a great post, with fantastic tips.

In this post, I will highlight how we can incorporate parts of us (the scrapbooker) into the pages we do about our subjects (in my case, my children).

I really do not like to do pages about myself. But yet, it is important to pass on something about yourself, your qualities, and your life to your children. Very often, I will see my children doing something that reminds me of a characteristic of my own. So why not incorporate that into your journaling. Tell them a little about themselves, and try to tell a little about you, all in the same story.

Here is an example about what I am talking about. My daughter (3 at that time) had just started drawing and coloring. I used the flower she drew as a metaphor of what we have seen as a characteristic of hers. She kept drawing and coloring, till she was happy that she had a flower in which she had colored inside the lines. That symbolizes how much she is rule-type of person. Very much like me! It took me a long time to start playing a little outside the rules. Not breaking them, but pushing the limits and trying different things. I tell her that in the journaling, and my advice to her, is to play by the rules when she must. But to also question boundaries and limits placed on her. The picture of her is one of those ChuckeCheese ones! The random picture you never know what to do. Use them for “moments” layouts like these!

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