Monday, November 29, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1985

Looks like I missed a day...working nights does that to ya sometimes. It'll all even out though, because tomorrow's a 2-pager.



Anyway, here's 1985, which has suddenly made me realize that up to this point every page has included at least one picture of actual Christmas Day. This was all I could find from 1985, but I like these pics. That pink dress was one of my favourites, though my mum never really put me in it that often. I never wore much little girl pink back then. The hair makes me think this must have been my Annie-fan days.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1984



Yay for the 80's! I still remember this Christmas and all those toys. And getting up at 5 in the morning when it was still dark.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1983



In the process of making this album, it was apparent there were some years with lots of pictures and not a lot of memories (the 70's), or lots of memories and no pictures ('86 and '87). Then you get 1983, a year where I had ample family pics full of memories, and then after inheriting most of my Gran & Gramps's old photos...even more. This is an example of a Christmas where good memories were kept fresh by having lots of pictures. Which, of course, makes scrapbooking them a bit of a challenge...I wanted to include as many pictures as I could, and also a lot of journalling, since I do have very specific memories of that exact day. So I did my best to incorporate both here. These are my favourite kind of pages to make.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1982



These last 2 pages were from the years we actually started unwrapping our own gifts at home before driving down to Toronto, which was by the way 2 hours from where we lived at the time. Or at least when my parents started taking pictures at home first. It's interesting how your memories are shaped (and maintained) by what was actually captured on camera, especially when you're someone who loves looking through photo albums. That's the main reason I started scrapbooking.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1981



Christmas pages are my favourite to scrapbook...there is just so much beautiful paper out there! The papers on this page and the last are both from Daisy D's...I just love the vintage wrapping paper look. It's so perfect for these old Christmas photos.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1980



This picture is actually a scanned and enlarged Polaroid. You can barely make out my month-old baby brother on the corner of the couch. But once again we're in Toronto with family...and is that the same outfit I had on in last year's Christmas pictures? It always took me a while to grow out of (or into) things. Happy Tuesday!

Monday, November 22, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1979

Good morning! I'm enjoying my morning (1:53 in the afternoon) cup o'tea and a late breakfast while thinking about Christmas. Yes, I worked nights this weekend.

Today we move along to 1979. I was just over 1 1/2 and still an only child, and once again we celebrated in Toronto with all the family. I still had baby hair. It never grew all that quickly.



Both this page and yesterday's were created with Karen Foster Christmas papers which I received in a kit from the scrapbook store I designed for in 2006. These 2 were the first ones I made for the album, though by no means did it get completed in total chronological order It mostly went by what years I had pictures for at the time.

I actually did my first Christmas baking of the year yesterday! Gingerbread cookies, of course. My special recipe. December is getting closer!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Christmas Memories: 1978

So like I mentioned, this year I'm counting down to Christmas with pages from my all-Christmas album. It begins in 1978...the first Christmas I had pictures of, at least that I could pin a year to...as it was my first Christmas ever. This began the tradition of celebrating Christmas day in Toronto with my grandparents, cousins, and other extended family. Surrounded by loving family...what could be better?

Monday, November 15, 2010

Attitude and Gratitude

It's been a while. My apologies for my flaky online presence...once I get momentum with something, that tends to be all I do for the next little while, whether it be a streak of scrapbook pages, Sculpey figures with my boy, or renovating all the closets. I'm sure some of you know the feeling!

I noticed something yesterday that I wanted to mention while it was still with me. After talking with people in the last couple days it's really become clear that you reap what you sow with your attitude. Cynical people will tell you not to trust this person or that, or not to go out of your way for anyone because you will never be appreciated and any extra efforts will become expectations. The thing is, that has not been my experience. Gratitude is important to me and I do my best to always show it, for things large and small. In return I have also been aware of it when it is directed to me, in word or in action, even in situations where cynics have told me I would not find it.

I don't stir things up. Sure, my aversion to competition and confrontation is perhaps extreme in many ways and admittedly has caused me anxiety in certain situations, but it also makes for a more positive world around me, one with more trust and less tension. It basically creates a world where I don't have to use things I'm not good at, like assertiveness, as often.

You can't change everything, but you can control your attitude, and that's often enough to effect change. So keep it positive.

Thanks for listening. I hope to try something new on my blog this year as Christmas gets closer (I wrote it in my daytimer so the chances of me getting it done are better!) I love Christmas pages...my favourite album to look through is my all-Christmas album. So I would like to feature it here, one page per day, starting November 21st. Come see it, if you like!