Memory Keeping at Christmas

For about the last 4 years I have attempted (some years more successfully than others) to take part in Journal your Christmas with Shimelle.

The concept is one that makes me warm and gooey about holding on to the anticipation and the happiness that Christmas brings.  A photo and a thought each day from a prompt that arrives in my inbox. From the lovely Christmas displays in the shops and in the homes we visit to the novelty holiday takeaway cups at Costa Coffee, there are some amazing things to photograph and document during the Holiday Season, with or without prompts.

I will admit that my love for Christmas was wearing a bit thin when I decide to give this challenge a go the first time, and although I did struggle a little to keep up and on a few days admitted defeat, I gained a renewed enthusiasm for all that Christmas can be if you look a little deeper.  It suggested we remember our old family traditions, these were stored way back in my mind from my childhood (well it was along time ago!).  It encouraged me to look with different eyes at the small things that make Christmas both special, fun and unique in our home.

Olivia is now 9 and a very big Christmas fan, her list was written some time ago and her enthusiasm for all that the season brings is so important to document, as I know only too well that this will be a an all too short period in her young life.  The time will come where she won't want to visit Santa and see the Christmas lights and choose a new decoration for the tree each year. It makes me sad to think of this but I will have all of the memories recorded and I will look back and I'm sure I will get teary, I am way to soppy!

I really think that it is the best month of the year, yes it's hectic, it's crowded and a tad stressful at times, yes my oven is never big enough to cook a Christmas dinner without me cursing slightly under my breath, however we see family, we eat together, we play board games, some of us cheat! We laugh, and hug more, and I want to capture as much of these wonderful memories as I can.

This album was probably my most successful with regards completion and the reason was that we went here, Disneyland Paris  and captured some of the best memories ever! We arrived home on December 23rd and all the food shopping to do, arrrggghhhh it was chaos, but so, so worth it!

This year I will use my Project Life goodies to document my December more quickly, it will help me to stay on top of my prompts each day and I am determined this year with my PL album to simplify things and get it finished and make it my most successful Journal Your Christmas ever..................!

If you would like to make an album of your Christmas or all of December then Project life from Stampin' Up! is just the tool you need. If you would like some ideas of the sorts of things to document in this type of album I'm happy to provide a list of ideas, just leave me a comment.

Bel