More crafty thoughts

So. My younger granddaughter's Christmas gift will be four handmade journals, with blank spaces for her to add drawings/photos/stickers and a written description. Frequently when I start a project like this, I end up thinking about it before I drift off to sleep, and sometimes even dreaming about it.

Since there are four books, instead of just adding random fabric covers, I'm going to make one blue (winter), one pink (spring), one yellow (summer) and one orange (autumn). One quilting fat quarter is enough to cover each journal. Since I'm heading to Sam's Club today anyway (SOB! No Costco here in the Middle of Nowhere, nor in the entire state of West Virginia), I can make a stop at JoAnn's for fabric.

Each of the four journals has four four-page signatures. This image shows
them after they've been sewn together and the glue (I use Mod Podge) has dried.

She might not pick up on the significance of the colors representing the seasons. I had originally intended to type up an instruction sheet to go with the books, but I think I'll make an instructional bookmark for each season. While I'm at JoAnn's I'll cruise through the scrapbooking stickers and pick up a few sheets – beach vacation, birthday, Christmas, Easter, school – to add to the package.

My son and his wife have read to their daughter every day of her life since she was born, and a car trip always includes an off-the-cuff story or two. This young lady is very verbal, and now that she knows how to read and write, I think her parents will appreciate the gift of seasonal journals. Each one has 31 pages – I don't expect a five-year-old to pull off a NaBloPoMo for a year! But something write-worthy happens every two or three days in a kindergartener's life.

I hope.

Last year it was doll clothes. This year it's journals. She doesn't watch television, and is thus not tempted by commercials for the latest new toy. I hope I can get away with giving her handmade gifts for many more Christmases.