Journaling Christmas - the setup

I read several scrapbooking and stamping blogs for inspiration, and saw an idea on one that caught my attention. The challenge was to journal and scrap everything you can about Christmas this year, from December 1 until January 6 (the 12th day of Christmas). The challenge cost $30 to join and included prompts, layout sketches and access to discussion among other scrappers. Well, I know how to keep a journal and how to scrapbook, so I don't need to pay somebody $30 to tell me what to do! It's a great idea and I'll make it personal by doing it all my own way.

The first order of business was finding a suitable journal for the project. I didn't want something too small or fancy, and I didn't want a traditional scrapbook. I wanted this to be something that could bear my handwriting mistakes proudly and would end up stuffed with photos, embellishments and trinkets from the season. This is Bear's second Christmas, but the first he'll really be aware of, and I don't want to miss a thing.

I happened upon this journal at Target, and it's absolutely perfect. It's 8x8, spiral-bound, and has lined pages. There are even some heavy cardstock pages with pockets for storing bits of things that won't fit on the page. And at $2.79, it was a complete steal. I bought two others but might see if they still have a few more. There's so much that can be done with these journals!

(Aren't my placemats cute? I practically stole them from Kohl's. I got four of them for $2.00!)

My personal challenge is to journal and scrap every little thing about Christmas this year. I started the day of my son's birthday (which was the day before Thanksgiving), because Christmasy things happened that day. I think I'll finish on whatever day we put away our decorations. I hope to carry my camera with me everywhere, and if I see pretty decorations or something festive, I'll snap a photo and write about it. We have concerts, parties, lots of good food and a sweet baby's excitement to capture. I want to remember it all!

It's not too late to do this if you want to. Just find a journal and start writing. Your decorations haven't been up too long, so snap a few pictures of them and write about the experience. Did one of your kids break a pretty glass ornament? Write about it! Have you tucked into the eggnog already? Journal it! is there an awfully gaudy house in your neighborhood? Sneak out at night and take its picture! If you're not a scrapbooker, who cares? Just have fun.

Be present this Christmas. Remember it all.