You don’t need “The Luck of the Irish” to take some St. Patricks Day photos and make them spectacular.  All you need are some cute little subjects (which you’ve already got) and a few inexpensive props (that you can easily and inexpensively obtain at your local party store.)   Couple those with a bright sunny day and, possibly, a field of grass or clovers, and you’ll have the perfect equation for some high quality, memory-made prints of your wee lads and lassies.

Here are some ideas for some creative St. Paddy’s portrait keepsakes:

• Balloons:  A simple bunch of green balloons is a unique way to draw attention to the picture.   Sometimes one big green balloon will add a little bit of uniqueness to your photo, too.  Against a stunning blue sky, on a bright sunny day, you are bound to create a setting that everyone will dote on.

• Hats: Local party supply stores have a lot of different styles;  Derby hats, green glittery top hats, a striped stove hat, or a charming plaid Gatsby style topper.   Add one of these hats to your baby, toddler, or older child’s precious little head, and you will definitely capture a fun mood in your shot.

• Green Feather Boa: This fun prop can be wrapped around your sleeping baby or wrapped around your diaper clad infant or toddler.  It adds texture and color, all-the-while capturing that winning photo.

While adding props to your portrait scene can really make your prints interesting and entertaining, there are a few things to remember and do that will make a good picture, a phenomenal picture.

• Lay the kids down, with their heads touching, and shoot from above.  This perspective is fun!

• Follow the “rule of thirds” by place your subjects on one of the imaginary lines that make up three vertical and horizontal columns/rows.   This rule produces an image that is very aesthetically pleasing.

• Seek motion in your picture by letting your subjects move freely while you shoot.  Sometimes this type of photography will produce that accidental image that you will treasure always.

“May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,
May good luck pursue you each morning and night.”
~Irish Blessing

by Vera RaposoDuring my pregancy I didn’t really have the desire to have my pregnancy-photos taken, I really wish I would have made more time to get them done.

If you’re anything like me, you’re usually the one holding the camera. Make sure to give the camera to hubbie so he can get the shots you can’t.

Here is what I believe are the best pregnancy-photos that you need to have done. Ok, some may sound a little strange, but believe me you will love looking back on even the silly ones!

Read my list of must have pictures!

Photo #1
Of course the day you found out you were pregnant! There are lots of women who keep the actual pregnancy test… why not take a picture of it and that can go into your pregnancy album?

Photo #2
If you have children…. take a picture of their reaction to the news.

Photo #3
Don’t forget the picture of the surprised daddy!

Photo #4
Get hubbie to take a picture of you calling your family & friends. If you’re having a dinner party to announce the wonderful news, be sure to click away that night.

Photo #5
Get a picture of yourself infront of the doctor’s office on your first visit, even get one with your doctor.

Photo #6
The next time I would bring the camera is when you get to hear the heartbeat for the first time. What a moment to capture! That’s the best moment there is for a mom to be.

Photo #7
Time for some mugshots! Get a nice front shot of yourself, then turn to your side for a profile shot. Do this every month as your pregnancy progresses. Easy to do.

Photo #8
Do you know a friend who can take some pictures of you and your husband? Get some nice shots of your husband with his head on your tummy….putting the music to your tummy…. kissing your tummy…. I could go on and on. Very cute and loving pictures.

Photo #9
Repeat Photo #8, but insert your older children.

Photo #10
Did your older children make something for your baby? Take pictures of them with their proud creations.

Photo #11
Get at least one picture of your doctor measure your belly. This is something that us women do every month with the doctor and it’s so comforting that the baby is growing properly.

Photo #12
Waiting around for an ultrasound? Bring the camera, get a picture of you infront of the hospital. You know they will make you drink a ton of water, so you’re doing the dance anyhow. Bring the camera to keep yourself busy. If there’s no one there with you……you’re in your gown right? Get a nice shot of those swollen feet.

Have fun with your pregnancy-photos! Create your pregnancy album during pregnancy is alot of fun.

About the Author
Vera Raposo has been scrapbooking since her oldest child was 5. With tons of scrapbooking tips and ideas, Vera is now sharing some of her best scrapbooking ideas for your new baby in her newsletter www.baby-scrapbooking.com.

by Nancy Wurtzel

Looking for an unusual and memorable gift? Why not preserve a slice of history by creating a time capsule for your loved one?

A personalized time capsule can be made for any special event, such as a birthday, wedding anniversary, graduation or even the birth of a child. Your personally designed time capsule preserves history, popular culture, special memories and can help link generations of a family together. It is a unique and thoughtful gift that will be appreciated and long remembered.

There are a number of steps to keep in mind when creating a time capsule gift.

Make Your Own History
Traditionally, a time capsule provides a “snapshot” of a specific day in history. Consequently, if you are making a capsule to welcome a new baby into the family, then you would focus on the baby’s birth date — what was happening in the world and with the baby’s family on that day. On the other hand, if the capsule is to mark your grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary, you probably want to make it more of a “retrospective” on their many years of marriage.

Time Capsule 101

1. Start Early. The best part of any time capsule is the thought and preparation that goes into it. Be sure that you don’t rush the process. If you leave everything until the last minute, it will look that way!
2. Choose a Container. Think cool and dry when you search for just the right container. Check online for affordable time capsules and you will find a variety of styles. Some will even engrave the person’s name on your selected capsule. However, to make it very simple, you can make your own capsule by choosing a sturdy metal container that can be properly sealed.
3. Select an Unsealing Date. Perhaps you want to set a significant date, such as a child’s 21st birthday, a couple’s silver wedding anniversary or return from military service. Most people give their time capsule to the recipient unsealed so additional items can be added. However, you can seal it before it is presented and have the contents be a total surprise when it is opened.
4. Put it in Writing. This is especially important if the time capsule will be opened far in the future. Make a capsule document that details everything about it, including the contents, unsealing date, purpose of the capsule and who should be present when it is unsealed. Then keep it in a safe place.
5. Storing the Time Capsule. Although you may be tempted, it is not advisable to bury your capsule. You are likely to move or forget exactly where it is buried, and the contents could be damaged by the elements. It’s a better idea to give the capsule a special place in your home — perhaps the fireplace mantle or on the family piano. Let the capsule become a conversation piece as you show it to friends and family and talk about its significance.

Capsule Contents
The key to a meaningful time capsule is to make it personal, relevant and interesting. Following are some ideas on items to include and more importantly a few to leave out. www.allbaby.com

First, it is strongly recommended not to include food, drinks or liquids. Basically, anything that could ruin the contents or create a bad odor. Instead, consider coins, money, stamps, a small keepsake album, newspapers and magazines. Write a letter explaining the time capsule’s purpose — be sure to use acid-free paper that won’t deteriorate as quickly. Cards and photos are an excellent choice, but consider layering them with acid-free paper as well.

If you are making the capsule for a person with special interests, try to incorporate their personality into the contents. For instance, a political junkie will enjoy campaign buttons and literature. Someone who is a golf fanatic will love golf paraphernalia or the signature of a famous golfer. A college graduate will get a kick out of seeing the plastic and metal “character” style toys that kids were playing with when he was born.

You can choose contents that are more lighthearted and funny or more serious and reflective. Just remember that you set the tone.

To learn about the history of the time capsule and how to register your personally created capsule, please visit the All About Baby website at www.allbaby.com.

About The Author
Nancy Wurtzel founded her ecommerce business, All About Baby, in 1995. All About Baby specializes in personalized and memorable gifts for children. Ms. Wurtzel also consults with small businesses seeking to enter the marketplace.

by Rachel Paxton

A family memory journal is a fun, easy way to preserve family memories. A couple of years ago I was sorting through a pile of unused journals (many given to me as presents!) and was trying to come up with a way to put them to good use.

One day after a family gathering, I sat down and wrote a short description of the gathering in one of the unused journals. I wrote where the gathering took place, the occasion we were celebrating, the names of the people who had attended, and anything about the day that had stood out in my memory. I did this for the next couple of family get togethers and then just stuck the journal in a drawer somewhere.

It didn’t seem like that big of deal at the time, but probably a year or more later I pulled out the journal again and looked at the entries I had made. It was really fun reading them again. I had already forgotten some of the things that had happened, or thoughts that I had at the time that fortunately I had thought to write down.

I’ve been really forgetful about writing in my family memory journal, but in the past couple of years have probably chronicled two or three family events a year. When you think about it, 25 years from now, the journal will be full of family memories.

Family journals are a great thing to pass down to your children and grandchildren. At the time they don’t really care about what’s going on, but some day they will appreciate being reminded of some of their childhood memories.

In the past year or so I’ve really gotten into scrapbooking. I was just thinking that my memory journal will be a great resource for my scrapbooking projects. Sometimes it takes months to get your photos ready and pages laid out. By that time you will forget any memories you had to go along with them. If you have your family memory journal, you can use it to add journaling to your scrapbook pages, with your memory as clear as if you had taken the pictures yesterday.

Don’t let time pass you by and let those special family moments get away from you. Sometimes an event as routine as “another family birthday party” might make a great memory later in life. Especially when older relatives start passing away, it’s special remembering the times they were involved in family get togethers. Someday when you’re that older person, your youngest family members will enjoy reading about their great- and great-great grandparents.

About The Author
Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who is the author of What’s for Dinner?, an e-cookbook containing more than 250 quick easy dinner ideas. For recipes, tips to organize your home, home decorating, crafts, and more, visit Creative Homemaking.

by LeAnn R. Ralph

Preserve Your Family History by Writing Family Stories
“Everyone has a story to tell.” It seems like a cliche—but it’s true. After working as a newspaper reporter for more than eight years, I know that everyone does, indeed, have a story to tell.

But even before I started working as a journalist, I knew that life experiences make interesting stories. Consider my parents.

My mother was the daughter of Norwegian immigrants, and her grandfather homesteaded our dairy farm in Wisconsin in the late 1800s. My father was the son of German and Scottish immigrants. When Dad was a little boy, his parents worked as cooks in a lumber camp in northern Wisconsin. As I was growing up, Mom and Dad would tell stories about their own childhoods. When Mom was a little girl, the whole family would sleep in the screen porch on hot summer nights. Indians also used to stop at our farm, and gypsies would camp nearby during the summer. When Dad was a little boy, he enjoyed spending time at the lumber camp kitchen because all of the cooks knew that little boys needed special treats during the day: a piece of Key-Lime pie, a slice of chocolate cake, or a couple of extra-large sugar cookies. When Dad wasn’t staying with his parents at the lumber camp, he lived with his grandmother, a tiny tough-as-nails German woman who owned a German shepherd named Happy.

Unfortunately, I never wrote down any of those stories, and I never asked Mom and Dad to sit down with a tape recorder and tell those stories. My mother died in 1985 at the age of 68, and my father passed away in 1992 at the age of 78. The majority of their stories, except for the few that I remember, are lost forever. Your family stories do not have to share the same fate.

Here are some tips for writing your family stories:

• Decide which person you want to interview first (Grandma or Grandpa, Mom or Dad, Aunt or Uncle), and then tell that person about your plan to write a collection of family stories and ask for permission to conduct an interview.
• Set a formal date and time for the interview. This will give your interviewee an opportunity to mentally prepare and to remember various stories that he or she would like to talk about.
• Provide a list of questions several days or weeks before the interview. This will also give your interviewee time to remember various stories.
• Focus on a single subject or event in your list of questions—school, holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July), birthdays, seasons (spring, summer, winter, fall)—the list is endless.
• Ask open-ended questions and not “yes or no” questions. “How did you get to school?” is better than “Did you walk to school when you were growing up?”
• Use a tape recorder to record the interview. Taping the interview will help you gather details that you might miss if you are only taking notes.
• Chat about something else for a while if the person you are interviewing seems nervous at the prospect of being tape-recorded. Your interviewee will soon relax and won’t even notice the tape recorder. And once you start the interview, you will find that one subject will lead to another and one question will lead to another.
• Transcribe the tape and write up your notes after you have finished the interview. This, in itself, will provide a fine record of the stories that are told “in their own words.” And you will be in good company–Studs Terkel’s oral history books are written that way, and they are fascinating to read. Terkel’s books include Division Street (1967), Hard Times (1970), Working (1974), The Good War (1984), The Great Divide (1988), and RACE (1992).

After you have finished all of your interviews and have written down the stories, print the stories from your computer and put them into a three-ring binder. Make multiple copies and give them to family members as gifts. Or you might want to consider publishing the stories POD (print-on-demand). There are many POD companies, and for a price that starts out at a couple of hundred dollars, you can publish the stories as a trade paperback. To find POD companies, conduct an Internet search with the keywords, “print-on-demand.”

Here are some examples of questions to help you get started with your interviews:

Subject: school

• Where did you go to school when you were growing up?
• Tell me about any amusing or unusual incidents that happened on your way to or from school.
• What kinds of clothes did you wear?
• How many students were in your class? How many students were in the whole school? How many grades?
• What was your favorite subject? Why?
• What was your least-favorite subject? Why?
• Who was your favorite teacher? Why?
• Who was your least-favorite teacher? Why?
• Tell me about your best friend.
• Tell me about your happiest moments in school. What was your best accomplishment?
• Tell me about your worst moments in school. Did you learn anything from your worst moments?
• What advice would you give to students who are in school today?

About The Author
LeAnn R. Ralph is a freelance writer for two newspapers in west central Wisconsin, is the editor of the Wisconsin Regional Writer (the quarterly publication of the Wisconsin Regional Writers’ Assoc.) and is the author of the book, Christmas In Dairyland (True Stories From a Wisconsin Farm) (Aug. 2003); trade paperback. For more information about Christmas In Dairyland, visit ruralroute2.com.  bigpines@ruralroute2.com

by LeAnn R. Ralph

Although the phrase, “everybody has a story to tell” may sound like a cliche, it’s true.

And after working as a newspaper reporter for nine years, I know that everyone does, indeed, have a story to tell, including your family members.

Think about it.

Do your grandmother and grandfather — mother and father — aunts and uncles — tell stories about the “good old days?”

Do they talk about going to school? The fun they had with friends? Family celebrations and holidays? Picnics on the Fourth of July? Snow that was so deep it covered fences? Pets that were so smart they belonged in the Guinness Book of World Records? Making ice cream? Their parents? Their grandparents?

Have you wanted to write down those stories to share them with other family members and to preserve them for generations to come but don’t how to go about it?

Guess what? You don’t need “literary talent,” special training or special equipment. All you need to preserve those stories is a list of people to interview, a willingness to listen, a set of questions to ask, a tape recorder and a computer (or even a typewriter would work!).

Here are the steps for gathering and writing your family stories:

1. Decide which people you would like to interview and make a list.

    

2. Ask for permission to conduct an interview.

    

3. Set a formal date and time for the interview.

    

4. Provide a list of questions several days or weeks before the interview.

    

5. Focus on a single subject or event in each list of questions.

    

6. Use the “who, what, where, when, how, and why” strategy when formulating your questions.

    

7. Ask open-ended questions and not “yes or no” or “one word answer” questions.

    

8. Use a tape recorder to record the interview.

    

9. Chat about something else for a while if the person you are interviewing seems nervous at the prospect of being tape-recorded.

    

10. Transcribe the tape and write up your notes after you have finished the interview.

     

11. Edit the manuscript.

     

12. Spread out your interviews.

     

13. Print the stories from your computer or publish them in another way.

From the e-book: Preserve Your Family History (A Step-by-Step Guide for Writing Oral Histories) (66 pages; April 2004; $7.95) Click Here To see the table of contents and several sets of sample questions. Preserve Your Family History* includes step-by-step instructions for conducting interviews as well as 30 sets of questions (more than 400 questions in all) on 30 different topics that you can print out to use “as is” or that you can use to generate your own questions.

About The Author
© LeAnn R. Ralph 2004 LeAnn R. Ralph is the author of the book, *Christmas in Dairyland (True Stories from a Wisconsin Farm)* (trade paperback; August 2003). For more information, visit ruralroute2.com.

by Andrea SteedI really enjoy giving scrapbook albums as gifts to my close friends. Two of my favorite albums are the ones I gave to my two best friends in college, showcasing each of our friendships in different ways. They each received one for their birthday last year and loved them!

The problem is that like many people, I always wait until the last minute before deciding what to give them for their birthday, so I don’t always have a lot of time to spend on creating a meaningful book. In creating these two albums, I’ve found a fantastic system for creating a gift album in less than a week that I’d love to share.

While my albums were both ABC albums about friendship, I’ve found that the system can work for any type of small album, such as a wedding album, graduation album, anniversary album, and many others.

Below are the steps I took to create my quick gift albums:

MONDAY

Collect Photos. The first thing I did for each of these albums was to collect as many photographs as I could find that represented the friendship that I have with each girl. I collected about 60-70 photos for each album, scanned them, and had re-prints made at Shutterfly.com. This of course wouldn’t be necessary if you had original photos that you wanted to use. Since I was using photos that were already in some of my other albums, I used re-prints for the gift albums. By having prints made at Shutterfly, I was also able to change some of the photos to black and white and do some pre-cropping before I had them printed, which helped in the overall look of the album once it was finished.

TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY

Journal. I decided to do ABC albums for both books, so I started writing words for each letter in the alphabet that described our relationship and then described each of the words by talking about different things we’d done, and recalling memories from our college years. I also found friendship quotes that helped describe our friendships and added them to my journaling. I did all of this in a Microsoft Word document in a couple of afternoons. I’d say this is probably the most difficult part of creating the album, but it’s also the most interesting!

THURSDAY

Choose Your Products. Now that you have all of the “memory” elements of the album, it’s time to decide what products you want to use. I’ve found that the easiest way to choose papers is to choose a line of coordinating patterned papers to use throughout the entire album. Paper lines such as Mustard Moon, Patchwork Paper, KI Memories, Kopp Designs, Making Memories and many others are perfect for albums like this, because their papers come in a variety of colors and patterns that all match each other quite well.

In addition to deciding what papers to use, you’ll want to decide what fonts or lettering templates to use. I used three fonts in each album: a typewriter type font for each letter and the words for each letter, a print handwriting font for the journaling, and a script font for the quotes. Since all of my journaling was written in a Microsoft Word document, it was easy to change the fonts and page margins. I printed all of the journaling on white cardstock, so that I would be able to cut each section out easily and adhere them to the pages.

FRIDAY

Do Some Pre-Scrapping. This is what makes creating the album easy. Now that all of your journaling and photos are ready, put them into page protectors in the order that they will appear in the album. Cut each letter and journaling block out so that they’ll be ready to adhere to the pages. Decide what photos will go with each journaling section and add the photos to the page protectors. This is a great task to do in front of the television! Now your album is ready to put together!

SATURDAY

Put it Together! This part goes very quickly since most of the work is already completed. I’ve found that starting at the beginning and just making your way through the album is the best way to complete it. Since all of your papers coordinate, simply start pulling papers and making your pages. I kept both of my albums simple and used colorblocking and paper tearing techniques to create varying backgrounds. Add a few embellishments and stickers to your pages, and you’ll have an album to cherish in no time at all! With all of the pre-scrapping and planning done, you can easily complete the entire album at an all-day crop or in a couple of afternoons.

The key to this system is having your journaling done first! It makes creating the rest of the album quick and easy…and I’ve found that it makes a very meaningful album to read, and a wonderful gift to receive.

About the Author
Andrea Steed is the author and creator of Scrap Tutor, a web site and CD-ROM that teaches you how to create scrapbooks and how to perform many popular techniques used in scrapbooking. For more information, visit www.scraptutor.com.

by Andrea SteedMany scrapbookers want to know how to save money and keep from buying things they won’t necessarily use. I always suggest buying only the items they need for each layout, rather than just buying whatever looks interesting to them. It can be hard to do with all of the fun new products coming out, but it can be done!

Bring your photos. Bring the photos that you want to work on in the next few weeks with you when you go to the scrapbook store. I like to separate the photos by layout so that I can work with one set of photos at a time. Portable photo organizers are great for this.

Choose cardstock and patterned paper. Use your set of photos to choose background and accent papers that coordinate with the colors in the photos. The best way to do this is to hold the photos next to the papers as you walk through the store. Be sure to choose enough paper for the background, matting, accents, journaling blocks and any title blocks. It’s a good idea to start thinking of a general design for the layout so that you can estimate how many sheets of paper you will need.

Choose coordinating embellishments. Since the paper is the base of the layout, next you can choose the embellishments. The colors and patterns in the paper will help you decide what embellishments will work best with the layout, whether it be tags, stickers, die cuts, fibers, charms, etc. Avoid buying every embellishment that would work on your page (because inevitably there will be many), and choose the one or two that will feature your photos best.

Decide on the title style. Titles can be the hardest part of a layout. Luckily there are tons of products that make them easier, whether it’s a die cut title, sticker title, eyelet letter title, punched title, letters on tags, or any of the many variations. The colors and embellishments that you’ve already chosen will probably help you determine which type of title will work best on your layout.
Once you’ve chosen all of the products you need, your layout will be ready to assemble. You can move on to choosing the products for the next set of photos. After you’ve bought the products, put them into page protectors with the photos for the layout, and you’ll have everything you need to complete your page in one spot. Using this system will make scrapbooking a much faster process when you sit down to complete the layouts since all of the products will be chosen already – and you’ll be saving money by only buying what you need.

About the Author
Andrea Steed is the author and creator of Scrap Tutor, a web site and CD-ROM that teaches you how to create scrapbooks and how to perform many popular techniques used in scrapbooking. For more information, visit www.scraptutor.com.

by Andrea SteedWe all have birthdays, at least once a year (they’re kind of un-avoidable), so it’s inevitable that birthday layouts will be found in all of our scrapbooks. Some scrapbookers may love working on birthday layouts, but I find them very challenging—especially when I want them to be different every year.

Since it’s not my specialty, I brought in the experts for some advice. I asked a group of scrapbookers what they do when they’re faced with another birthday layout and got some fantastic tips that I’d like to share with you!

Birthday Themes
A birthday theme can help direct your scrapbook page. For instance, a Barbie birthday party would naturally lend itself to a Barbie scrapbook page! Here are a couple of tips and ideas from different scrapbookers on themed parties and layouts.

Have theme parties! That gives you something to work with other than the traditional cake, presents, and candles kind of layout. —Gayla Feachen

For Brandon’s first birthday we did a Time Capsule. I sent a note with the b-day invitation asking everyone to bring something to put in the capsule—it could be a photo of their family or a news article or a newspaper etc. I asked the grandparents and great grandparents to write Brandon a letter and seal the envelope. We will give him this when he turns 21. — Martha Crowther

Must Have Birthday Photos
Sometimes simply taking some strategic photos can make creating a birthday layout fun and easy! Below are some fantastic ideas for must-have birthday photographs.

I usually take a photograph of the cake from overhead. I often silhouette it and use it as an accent/embellishment on the page…especially on the topper or in a journaling block. — Laura Linda Rudy

Take a photos of the cake (candles lit) turned towards the camera, so you can read or see the decorations. — Linda Porter Jones

Take one of the birthday boy/girl blowing out the candles (at our house, this is done with all the lights off, so I’ve gotten a few really cool photos, just the candles and flash) — Linda Porter Jones

Opening gifts. Try to get photo of birthday person, with gift and person that GAVE the gift. — Linda Porter Jones

A “group” shot…birthday person with ALL their gifts around them. (or on table) — Linda Porter Jones

Birthday person getting their birthday ’spanks’. We started doing this tradition this year…Have a photo of Mike bent over Dad’s knee, getting spanked!! Too funny! — Linda Porter Jones

We usually have a balloon bouquet, and I try to get a close-up of just the balloons. — Linda Porter Jones

For little kids’ birthdays, take a photo of them holding up how many fingers old they are. — Linda Porter Jones

A special birthday photo that I always try to get is of us measuring Matt’s height. He tracks his height on a wall in the garage. And, yes, I took one of these photos on his 20th birthday! — Jill Winholt

One of the things I make sure I do now after many years of birthday parties is get a good group shot of all the guests. I would have pictures of them as they were involved in the party but it always seemed like someone got left out. Now I have a record of everyone there in ONE picture. I also get a picture of my child with all their gifts arranged around them after the party so they can remember when they got certain items. I do this after opening presents on Christmas morning also. — Alaine, www.scrappingbyalaine.com

Take a photo of the birthday boy/girl’s face being illuminated by candlelight. — Briana Fisher

Take a photo of the birthday boy/girl’s face puffed up blowing out the candles. — Briana Fisher

Capture the reaction of someone that is touched by a gift you gave (perhaps Grandma crying at a special gift you made) or your kids throwing their hands up in joy for something they received. — Briana Fisher

Take photos of the guests playing games (like pin the tail on the donkey) — get a photo of someone trying to put the tail on the donkey (and got it wayyyy over, not even close to the picture!) — Briana Fisher

If you make your own birthday cake, get a picture of you (or your child) making it or decorating it. — Briana Fisher

Make sure YOU get in the photos! Have a picture taken with the birthday person. If it’s your birthday, then give your camera to someone else for the evening! You need to be in your scrapbook pages too! — Briana Fisher

Every year, get your child to stand in a certain place, say next to a tree in your garden, and photograph them. Not only will you see how much your child grows but you’ll see how your garden and/or the tree has grown with them. — Lynn McCorry

Journaling and Layout Ideas
What really makes scrapbook layouts meaningful is the journaling. Birthdays are a fantastic opportunity to reflect on how a person has changed or grown in the past year. Below are some great tips from scrapbookers for different information that would be interesting to include in a birthday layout.

Ask the child questions every birthday about their favorite color, song, hobby, etc. and use the same questions every year. — Martha Crowther

What I love to do for some variety with kid birthdays is to do an interview page. I just use fun shots of them, not necessarily birthday party pictures. I ask them some of their likes, dislikes, what they want to be when they grow up, and if they had three wishes what they would wish for. It’s really fun to see how the answers change through the years! — Heather Uppencamp

Do a page detailing specific things about the month they were born (that month’s flower, zodiac, and/or birthstone) and how you resemble those traits. — Briana Fisher

Journal about (20) reasons why you are glad to be you…and the (20) can be your age… — Briana Fisher

If your family has a tradition you do for birthdays then journal that so the tradition can be carried on and include a photo or photos of the tradition. — Briana Fisher

Do you have a special song that you sing at birthdays? My family is Polish and sings a song that means, ‘May you live to be 100 years’ in which my grandma has taught everyone in the family. Journal special songs that you may sing (even the silly ones your kids always sing!) — Briana Fisher

Make a checklist of things that happened for your journaling and number them (ie. Invited friends, lit the cake, sang the birthday song, blew out the candles, gifts!). Then number your photos to match your checklist. Use paperclips or circular clips to attach the numbers to the photos. — Briana Fisher

Make a timeline and use photos from different birthdays and journal the age you were for each. This will help take some miscellaneous photos and use them in a unified way. — Briana Fisher

At the party, have your guests sign their names on a scrapbook page. Use the guest list as a part of your birthday layout. — Briana Fisher

Journal a list of the presents they asked for (and received). You’ll see how much the things they want change over the years. — Lynn McCorry

Include actual memorabilia or scans of things like party hats etc. in your birthday layouts. — Lynn McCorry

Products
All sorts of birthday themed scrapbook products are available in scrapbook stores.

Use a theme from pre-made products centered around birthdays. That makes creating a birthday layout easy! — Jill Winholt

Use die cuts and get the guests in on the action. Have each person at the party write their good wish (one word) on the candle die cuts. These then make up the border for the page. Words like happiness, love, health, fun, zest, chocolates, humor and wonder and the person’s signature are on a candle. You can also put them all on a cake paper piecing. Very fun idea and I hope to use it some time myself. — Rockester

Jolee’s by You has a lot of birthday embellishments that are fun to use, including a HAPPY BIRTHDAY string banner, wire balloons and more. Some are in primary colors, others are in silver and gold to use in adult birthday pages!! — Briana Fisher

Pebbles, Inc. recently released a whole line of die cuts with a birthday theme!

About the Author
Andrea Steed is the author and creator of Scrap Tutor, a web site and CD-ROM that teaches you how to create scrapbooks and how to perform many popular techniques used in scrapbooking. For more information, visit www.scraptutor.com.

by Andrea SteedThere are a million things that you want to remember about your baby, most of which can easily be recorded in a scrapbook. Below are some ideas for facts to document, things to write about, and photos to take when creating a baby’s “First Year” scrapbook album. While it’s certainly not an extensive list, it might give you some ideas for things to write down and photograph as your child grows.

Facts to Document
Weight at birth
Length at birth
Color of eyes
Color of hair
Doctor’s name
Time of birth
How long you were in labor
First smile
First time they rolled over
First time they crawled
First time they sat up
First steps
First bath
Favorite songs
Favorite bedtime stories
Favorite toys
Gifts received
Price of gas, houses, cars, etc at date of birth
Family Tree

Things to Write About
What does their name mean?
Were they named after anyone?
How long did you stay in the hospital?
Who was present at the hospital?
What did they eat?
Did they sleep through the night?
How did they react around people?
Did they cry often?
What entertained them as babies?
What was their first “outing” like?
How old were they the first time they had a babysitter?
Where did they sleep?
Did they suck their thumb?
Did they use a pacifier?

Photos to Take
Document growth by taking monthly photos of your baby next to a large stuffed animal
Photos of their nursery
Photo of the house you live in
Photos with mom, dad, siblings, grandparents, and other family members
Sleeping baby photos
Bath photos
Photos with favorite toys
Photos each day of their first month
Any “firsts” you can capture
Happy and not-so-happy moments
Black and white photos
Facial expressions
WELCOME BABY PRINTABLESLooking for a way to start off a scrapbook for your baby? Print a Welcome Baby Treasured Keepsakes for Newborns!
 

About the Author
Andrea Steed is the author and creator of Scrap Tutor, a web site and CD-ROM that teaches you how to create scrapbooks and how to perform many popular techniques used in scrapbooking. For more information, visit www.scraptutor.com.