Here is my crafty daughter Rainie at the Ben Franklin in Redmond, our first stop on the NW Paperchase. She loved their child- sized baskets for shopping!

National Scrapbooking Month Promotion “Dotty for You”

Celebrate National Scrapbooking Month with Close To My Heart's exclusive Dotty for You paper packet! Dotty for You includes 24 specially designed, coordinating B&T Duos® sheets (2 each of 12 patterns) and an artwork idea insert to get your creative juices flowing.

Please, allow me... a personal challenge, shared...

This layout featuring a vintage photo of my mom and I really brought a lot of emotional pondering my way as I created. The beautiful die cut from Close To My Heart's Felicity collection helped me to bring a "full-circle" feel to the page. A few new found notions collected on the Northwest PaperChase now happening added a few little pops of fun! 

Do you struggle with journalling on your scrapbook pages? I sure do! A swirl of thoughts surrounded me while I was creating the elements on this page. I thought of how much I enjoy doing mundane chores around the house with Rainier by my side. I thought about the fact that my mom was probably just as scared at being a first-time mom as I am! And that sometimes you just, "Fake it till you make it." That I'll always be better at ordering dinner than making it, haha. I thought of how motherhood has helped me to walk a few miles in her shoes, and that we have so much more in common than I ever acknowledged! As I crafted, I couldn't help but consider my relationship with my daughter, and how I may be influencing her, as my mother influenced me and who I've become in countless ways. She truly was my first teacher, and continues to remind me that like any good teacher, mothering is a lifetime of work! I've always been shown the utmost love from her.

Along with an underlying message of love, some life lessons I hope to pass on to Rainier include... to have a lot of Confidence, Courage, Compassion, and CRAFTING!

I challenged myself to journal on this layout. Not achieving that personal challenge, I figured, okay, use the confidence instilled in you and broadcast your emotional response to this layout to the World!

 lol, you know, MOM upside down is WOW, and I just have to say "Wow, Mom, you have really helped me to be the best mom I can be. Thank You!"