This month the design team is talking about how we document our travels. I LOVE Nikki’s layout about her future travel plans. Brilliant idea!! And yay to going to Barcelona! I spent many a happy week there in my 20’s (even met a boy, wink, wink) so I wish her an amazing trip. It’s such a vibrant city with stunning architecture. And the food … one day I’ll get back there.
But for right now, my biggest travel plans are taking my eldest daughter Marley to University in Ontario in September. Which brings me to my travel interpretation today.
With Marley having just graduated, and the frenetic pace of all the activities associated with that event now over, I can take a moment to reflect. It’s been an incredible 13 years (15 if you count pre-school). And being the “good scrapbooking mom” that I am (HA!) I have documented them all.
A tradition that our elementary school has is that those Grade 12 students who attended the elementary school, get to return in their caps and gowns and parade through the halls while all the K-7 students cheer them on. Marley got to do this right at the end of June (in fact, I organized it so you bet your boots I was there to film and photograph it!)
It was so special. And a couple teachers who had retired since this class left the school, returned to witness the event. This group of kids is pretty special. I know I’m biased and all, but there are always “those years” that for whatever reason are stacked with really good kids. Intelligent, athletic, kind, funny, and caring. And the teachers that teach them remember them always. Marley’s year is that kind of year.
While we were there, I specifically told Marley that I wanted a photo of her with her Kindergarten teacher as a way to bookend her school career. Which leads me to my layout and travel topic for today’s post.
Time Travel.
Or more specifically, documenting the passage of time by using significant events and photos.
Since the beginning of their school careers, I’ve been taking a photo of each child at the beginning of the year with their teacher, and again at the end of the year with their teacher (elementary years only). Covid has thrown a wrench into that plan with my youngest but we will adapt.
With Marley, when she graduated Grade 7, I also managed to get photos of her with all the elementary school teachers who were still at her elementary school. So when she returned in her cap and gown as a Grade 12 graduate, I knew I wanted a photo of her with her Kindergarten teacher so that I could create a layout just like this.
It’s a way to document the passing years. The changes over time. The “travelling” she did from a nervous 5 year old, to a confident, grown up, 18 year old heading off to distant shores.
I filmed this layout coming together and if you click on the photo above you’ll be taken to the YouTube video.
If you’ve been a Scraphappy member for awhile, you may recognize this cut file as one that I used for a Featured Designer layout in a past LOAD challenge (please don’t ask me to remember which one!) I loved bringing new ideas to it with this layout.
And seeing as I had that lovely curved line to follow, it just made sense to have my title on a curve.
I like to pre-plan my layouts as much as possible – especially if I’m filming them coming together! In my product gathering phase of creating this layout, I’d chosen a 3×4″ vertical journaling card. When the layout was more than an idea, it became clear that the journaling needed more space and weight. It’s a pretty weighty story, but also, that large central space needed to be filled in more than my original journaling card was going to do.
Thankfully the Good Life collection from Simple Stories has many 4×6″ horizontal options to choose from! Creating a layout is a journey too, and knowing when to change course if your original plan isn’t working, is important.
Just like in world travel!
And now my first little bird will spread her wings and fly out of my nest for adventures unknown. She’s looking forward to it, and so am I. Both for her and for me. She’s an amazing kid but damn, is she a LOT ! You know what I mean? It’ll be nice to have time to focus on my younger two daughters, my store, my scrapbooking, and my husband. Can’t forget about him – LOL!
So there you have it. A way to document a travel through time. Whether you are traveling around the country or world at the moment or not, there is always a way to travel through our memories when we scrapbook.