Too Stuffy For Me...Part 2!

My photo wall in my former living room/dining room...soon to be craft room/game room,  make over is complete and I love it!  

My original idea was to use canvas prints.  However, I quickly learned that I'd either have to win the lottery to afford that or I'd have to alter my plan a bit.  I chose to switch things up since there is no hope of me winning something I don't play.

Here's what I came up with!

It wasn't a difficult process but there is no way I could have done it without my husband's and dad's help (a huge thank you and 'I love you' to both of them).  I started off choosing photos I wanted to use.  I chose all photos that I'd taken rather than using professional pictures.  I want this entire space to feel casual and comfortable so I thought snapshots and home photos would be a good way to go.  I used old photos I'd taken with my DLSR as well as pictures from my iphone and Instagram.  I added filters to many of these photos so they'd be a little more artsy.

A Birthday Filled With Memories

My dad's birthday is in November and he is so hard to shop for!  Seriously, it's near impossible to find the perfect gift for him.  I always feel bad because I end up getting him some kind of gift certificate to a restaurant or the movies.  Sure, he likes the gift certificate and he enjoys using it.  It just never seems special or personal.  This year I decided to check around on Pinterest (my favorite place) to see if I would be able to find something unique.  And boy did I ever!  Thanks to "Nothing But Bonfires" blog, I was able to give my dad a gift that I think he truly loved and was excited about.  

Check out the post I used for my inspiration...

http://nothingbutbonfires.com/2011/06/sixty-years-memories

And here it is!  My dad's gift!  It doesn't look like much, but it really is special.  This stack of envelopes contains letters and birthday wishes from every person my dad knows and has known over the years.  It has letters from acquaintances he only slightly knows to friends he's had for over 50 years...some of which he's lost contact with.  I sent a simple email (most of which was borrowed directly from Nothing But Bonfires) that stated my dad was having a birthday and I wanted everyone to write him a birthday wish or a special memory they have of him.   Here is the letter I emailed and posted to friends on Facebook.

My Photo Book Process

My last post showed the photo books I make to remember my kids' childhoods.  Because I make at least 3 books a year I've had to come up with an organization process.  I've been making these books for seven years and have been known to become overwhelmed by them.  Now that I've made so many, I have a process that works for me.  Hopefully you can take some of my elements and come up with a way to organize your photos so that you can make photo books too!

I use a MacBook Pro and this is what my iphoto screen looks like.  I take a ton of photos; more than most people I know.  I keep an "album" (similar to a folder) for every month.  

Photographic Memories

Sometimes it seems like my life is flying by.  I can't believe that I am about to have two of my three children attending grade school.  I'll have a Kindergartener and a First Grader (plus a wild 3 year old)!  From the minute I had my daughter I felt like I wanted to remember every single moment.  I wanted to soak her up and never forget a single second. I felt that way about all of my kids.  I knew I had to find a way to recall as much as possible; a way to remember as much of their childhoods as I possibly could.  

I originally thought I'd use baby books to keep a record of my kiddos' childhoods.  It was overwhelming though.  I had to print photos out and glue them in the baby book, remember to get the baby book out and find the right page when a "milestone" took place, and remember to watch for specific milestones that were already mentioned in the book (otherwise that particular section would remain blank).