Tag Archives: daughter

Jul 31

Sunshine, documented.

I love when my daughter sends me photos on my phone; they’re always about something cute or funny she’s doing. I found one such photo that I especially love, taken by her girlfriend while outside the friend’s house. Using Sunday’s sketch from Big Pictures’ “28 Days of Sketches”, I decided to make a big banner out of one of the strips of paper, and while spritzing the page with Mister Huey’s mist, I accidentally got too much on the lower right corner, and then it smeared making an ugly mess. I contemplated gently taking off all of the papers and using a new background page, but everything was glued too well, and would have torn. So, I cut out a piece of white paper and inserted it over the mess after I cut a heart into the corner (why the heart? I don’t know, it just seemed like fun!). I’m not unhappy about it, or I could have started all over. Sometimes accidents can enhance the creative process!

Next time you make a mistake on a layout, try to see how you can make it work for you. If all else fails, cover it up! Thanks for stopping by!

 

Aug 14

A Summer Mini Album

I discovered two really great mini-albums from two different sources. I couldn’t resist either, so I got both. They’re both DIY, and lots of fun for me to put together. But two? I decided to make one primarily about my summer, and this one I’m going to show is all about my daughter’s summer. This album kit came from Scrapbook Circle, and included all kinds of cute papers and alpha stickers from Studio Calico, Sassafras and Crate Paper, with journaling tags from Elle’s Studio. I finished my daughter’s album today (I’m more limited with photos of her since she’s spent so much of the summer away) and wanted to show it off:

The cover

Gosh, looking at this, I’d say my little girl had a pretty awesome summer! Good for her! I know that some day, looking back, she will come to cherish this. These are moments you never want to forget! I’m still working on my summer album (which is by Elise Blaha), and when it’s finished, I’ll post it here, but it’ll probably have to be a video, or something like that, because it’s huge!

Enjoy these last remaining summer days; they’re swiftly coming to a close!

Apr 15

Proud mamarazzo.

Oh, my, I went past my 100th post without any fanfair or recognition whatsoever. Oh well! This evening, I am posting as a mom. I’m lucky to be the proud mom of one beautiful daughter, and I find myself once again, wanting to record and document everything she does because I know that this is my once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience her childhood growth, and I’d better get it all down because this kid grows like a weed! Someday I will look back at all these scrapbooks I’ve been putting together and think “where did the time go? It was just yesterday that she was that little…and look at her now!” I have no other children to experience mothering with. This is it. So, with no further adieu, we have today’s layout. My daughter’s award ceremony at her elementary school today. I am very proud.

I felt so grateful that I was not working today, so that I could be present. I think it’s only the second time, maybe, that I have been able to be there when she received an award. I am so proud and grateful, also, that she has received so many awards. My husband teased me this morning about me taking my camera and photographing it, and you know what? I have decided that I am a shameless mamarazzo, and I do not apologize for it, because of the reasons I explained above. Yes, I embarrass my daughter taking so many pictures of her, but I’m sorry, kiddo, a mom’s got to do what a mom’a got to do! Carry on, mamarazzi of the world!

Mar 8

Oh, sweet treasure found!

Rifling through some old papers the other day, I came across something I hadn’t remembered I had (for shame!). After a large gasp, I put it aside for a special page I will put it on, in my scrapbook. Boy, these are the kinds of treasures I love the most, and one of the many reasons I scrapbook (otherwise it would be lost in never-neverland). It’s a poem my daughter wrote herself for me a few years ago (sadly, I didn’t date it then).

Parents, hold on tight to these kinds of things. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go hold on tight to my kid.

Feb 11

Let the photo speak…

I have a confession to make: I was at a total loss today about what to post. Is life that boring and uneventful? No, I’m just brain-fried from work today. So, I came up with this little idea of going to my photo folder, randomly picking a photo, and talking about the story behind it. This is what we have:

This is my little girl and her daddy. This photo was taken on the last day they saw each other, before my ex had to hop on a plane and go back home. These two hadn’t seen each other except once when  my daughter, Noelle, was 5, and before that, she was 2, and has no memory of it. She’s now 11, and is getting to know her father, relatively speaking, for the first time. Unfortunately, he doesn’t live close by, and she gets quite sad because she has missed so much, and doesn’t want to miss any more. But at least she now has him in her life.

Long story short, mistakes were made, and Noelle’s father and I should never have gotten married or remained together when I found out that I was pregnant. We thought we were doing the right thing, however wrong we were. He was so unhappy, he moved out one day while I was at work, and I came home to a half-empty home, and a half-empty heart. It took at least two years for the tears to finally stop, and to get my life back into a forward-moving direction. I still have regrets (and most likely always will) about not appreciating my baby as much as I could have during that time. I was not in the present moment like I should have been; I was not the mother my girl deserved. But Noelle was too young to remember having her father around, and fast-forward ten years, out of the blue, she began asking questions about him. What is he like? Where does he live? Who is his family? And, the touchy one: What happened between you two? No, I do not tell her all of the truth. I tell her what she needs to know; that Mommy and Daddy just weren’t happy together and Daddy needed to go someplace else where he could find that happiness on his own. All other inquiries, I suggested one day, she should ask him about, if she’s interested. Luckily, she was and she did. I was always hoping that they would eventually find a way back to each other and renew that sacred relationship between father and daughter. I’m a believer that a child needs both parents equally, even if they cannot live together. And when we did contact him, I discovered something magical that gives me a wonderful feeling: all that water has passed under the bridge (and the bridge didn’t burn). There has been a tremendous amount of forgiveness and healing that has taken place between Noelle’s father and I; no regrets, no bitterness, no animosity, no unhealed scars. We speak to each other just like two people who happen to be in love with the same little girl and want nothing but the best for her. Complete cooperation, understanding, and respect between us, and we are so lucky to be able to be on the same page there. I feel so happy for Noelle to be able to have her daddy in her life; the one man who calls her his princess, the one man who loves her as much as I do…and I am so happy that there are no bad feelings to hide in the process. None. ZERO. I have been blessed, I know it, and I am so very thankful. That is just another reason why I love photos; they preserve the memories and keep the significance of life fresh and alive.