When my first son was around four-years old, I started to feel guilty.  Okay, no, you’re right.  I’ve always felt guilty.  At any given time, I feel guilty for one thing or another—something I’m not currently doing, something I feel like I should be doing, or something I’m not doing well enough.  But on this particular occasion, the one when my son was four, I felt guilty about my scrapbook.  Or, rather, my lack thereof.

I kept a photo album chronicling the days since he was born.  You know the kind:  you peel back the plastic paper, stick the photos in, and press the plastic paper back down.  I even decorated it a bit, so it  looked more like a scrapbook.  But Creative Memories was not in my budget, and scrapbooking certainly did not fit into my schedule.  Nonetheless, the popularity of scrapbooking had me feeling bad for my poor, un-scrapbooked children.

And so, I caved.  If you thought this blog was going to be about how I stood my ground and said, “My photo album is every bit as good as your Fancy Schmancy Scrapbook,” well, I’m sorry to disappoint.  I’m feeling guilty about that, even now.

Instead of standing my ground, I took my checkbook and my frugal self to my friend Michelle’s house, where she schooled a dozen of us in how to preserve our children’s childhoods on acid-free paper.  Acid-free!  I should’ve known those photo albums were junk.  I bought parsimoniously:  an album, the pages, page protectors, and some paper.  No pricey paper cutters for me, thanks.

Another day, I will tell you about what a fish out of water I was at that event, and at almost all Creative Memories events to follow.  Nothing against Creative Memories—I think their products are fantastic.  But, somehow, it just wasn’t my crowd.  I tried, they tried, everyone tried, but I think we all knew I just didn’t have a crafty bone in my body.  Maybe it’s because I was copying their page designs.

I started slowly, with a family scrapbook that documented all of the Fantastic Fun we have as a Fantastic Family.  (Look at the album, you’ll see.  No tears here!)  I soon realized that these other women were working on more than one scrapbook.  What?!  Yes, it’s true.  You may even be one of the crazies:  They had a family album and an entire album for each child.  Every ice cream cone, sports team, and pretty new dress beautifully detailed for all future generations to see.  You people kill me.

Guess how I felt?

Still, I knew I couldn’t commit to a lifetime of scrapbooking every moment for every child.  Instead, I cheated.  And I absolutely love what I came up with.  Or, really, what my friend Michelle came up with.  She was the one who listened to my woes and gave me the following suggestion.

At the time, Creative Memories sold smaller albums, in a 7 x 7 size.  I bought three, one for each boy, in a fun denim fabric.  I don’t think they carry these anymore, but I’m sure you could find something like it at Michael’s in another brand.

In each book, all of the page layouts and designs are the same.  Keep it simple, stupid, right?  So each book has it’s own design, but it’s the same design on each 2-page layout.  In one book, for example, I tape a ¾ inch strip of paper down the side of the page, with 3 small circles running along the strip, in coordinating colors.  I use the circles to write their age, and the year.  The colors of the paper changes, but the design is constant.  Simplicity at its best.  But that’s only a part of what makes this doable for me.  Here’s the key:  I only put their annual photo (5 x 7) in the album.  For the first two years, I included the 6-month, 1-year,  and 18-month photos, but after that, it’s my son at 2, my son at 3, my son at 4.  Flip, flip, flip and you can see the years flying by.  It’s a perfect snippet.

For the details, they’ll need to check the family album.