tribute

i made this as a gift for richie on father's day. i want to capture his joys as a father, thus the sub-title.

what made it more special is the note that euan wrote... his first, but something that he understood this time :)

happy father's day richie... thank you for being my strength and my comfort. know that euan and i loves you so much!

wow!

this was my son's word when he saw the recent LO i did of him for the Pagemaps challenge. 3 letters. big impact. and it came with a BIG, BIG HUG too!

i cherish the fact that it helps him remember the story when the photo was taken. i could also sense that he is happy to be part of my work. he is not big with words yet but hearing him express his thoughts on my work takes me on a different high. seeing him appreciate my work gives me a whole new sense of direction in documenting our life story. it inspires me to create more.

now on to the challenge...
i am a HUGE fan of pagmaps... i LOVE all their sketches and now, i am having FUN to actually try out the sketches... this is my 3rd 12x12 LO! yey! i am just so happy to be reunited with my papers again! here's the sketch and the goodies...

here's my son with my take on the pagemaps challenge...

Title: Baby Love

Materials used: Papers: Tree bugs in Rug, Basic Grey, Bella Blvd; Inks: Ranger; Transparencies, Jute string, buttons, flowers, and pearls

Journaling: You were just babies. But can we help it if you adore each other so much?

i did a few techniques here and did some hybrid embellies... i distressed the cut-out flowers and i also experimented on printing some digital elements on transparencies for those butterflies and flourishes. i love the effect!

i also love this picture of euan and AJ, it makes them look all soo grown up. they were both 2 years old when this was taken... and all that hug? we were all surprised when AJ hugged him so i just clicked away... now, what would euan think if he sees this years from now? hmmm...

amazed

dear son,

you'll never know how proud i was when i discovered that at three, you have learned to write your name. what started out as doodling became the letters of the alphabet. you can recite and recognize the alphabet well but you never displayed much interest in writing. or maybe i just failed to notice. so it came as a surprise when during one of our writing activities, after several times of guiding your hand to write, you took the cue and wrote down your name, all by yourself! this is a major achievement for you as a toddler and for me as a mom. i know you get frustrated at times when you can't get to write the letters properly, but you just don't know how i love those cute, imperfect strokes and reversed letters!
yet it gives me a gentle reminder to be big with praises each time you do it right (and to be generous even more when you can't seem to make everything right!). i cherish the fact that those words worked like magic for you to do more and learn more.
this is a beautiful start of your quest for knowledge. may you never tire, my eager learner!

love,
mama

today i am reminded

...to cherish every single moment

...to value whatever the world holds for me

...to look beyond the ordinary and see everything as a blessing

...to be thankful because i am loved

...to be joyful no matter what the consequences are

...to remain faithful because i am a child of god