Journal Your Christmas Giveaway
The first time I did any sort of journal/creative adventure during the holiday season was Shimelle Laine's Journal Your Christmas back in 2005 (check out my December 2005 archives for more).
My experience in Shimelle's workshop inspired me to create my first December Daily in 2007 that was published in my Studio A column in Creating Keepsakes magazine. The main differences being that I set up the structure of my album in advance (trying to keep it simple) and that I wanted to focus on documenting the daily activities over the course of the 25 days leading up to Christmas without specific prompts.
Over the last couple of years there have been lots of people that have combined the two concepts - creating a foundation in advance and using Shimelle's prompts as guides for page topics and inspiration.
It's a creative adventure I highly recommend so I thought it would be fitting to give away a spot to Shimelle's class this week.
One person and a friend of their choice will recieve a spot in Shimelle Laine's fabulous Journal Your Christmas online workshop.
Journal your Christmas is an online class that takes you right through the Christmas season, from the 1st of December to the 6th of January - the twelfth day of Christmas. Through 37 full colour prompts that arrive in your inbox daily, you'll be inspired by topics that let you enjoy this year's celebrations while reliving your very favourite Christmas memories, and you'll have plenty of ideas for making your pages with hundreds of beautiful examples from a variety of scrappers.
Instead of letting the holidays run you, a Christmas journal has helped many women take back their Christmas so they can enjoy and celebrate the magic of Christmas. Other class benefits include a printable Christmas planner, digital and printable supplies designed exclusively for class and a bonus guide to improving your Christmas photographs including easy-to-use tips from dozens of professional photographers.
To be entered into the giveaway please leave a comment below sharing how you plan to create a more sane holiday season (or more crazy if that's what you need). Comments will be closed on Thursday at 8pm Pacific with the winners posted shortly after.
This year I am going to take time to enjoy the little things and look at Christmas with the same Magic as my Kids. We are already reading a family Christmas story to get us ready. I like to scrap the important things about Christmas that I want my Kids to remember as adults.
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I am going to let the little people help (my three sons, not the elves...) and so what if things are a bit less than perfect. Hopefully they will make some happy memories.
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I just completed cut the crazyiness out of christmas class. I am further ahead than I have been in a long time. Journaling needs to be part of my christmas.
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Well to make it less insane than last year I'm hoping not to have builders working in the house until the week before Christmas. I'm determined to stay small with the presents and reduce the stress of doing too much that really isn't that important.
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We are not buying to many presents that they really don't need or want this year. Each of my children will make a list of one thing they need, one thing they want and one thing for the family. Hopefully this will help them think about what is really important in their lives and their families life. Hopefully or it may all just backfire.
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Having a running list of ideas for gifts to buy or make and starting my shopping and creating very early, has really made my holiday season much more enjoyable. Last year was easier and hopefully this year will be even more so, especially with hubby coming home in a couple of weeks!
Right now, 90% of my shopping is done and I only have a few things left to create...besides my cards and my December Daily album, which I am starting now!
Thank you for continuing to share your December Daily album and for the chance at winning a spot in Shimelle's class, I've heard great things about it!
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My mantra for the 2009 Holiday Season is JUST SAY NO to excess. Excess spending, excess parties, etc...
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Like last year, i hope to keep things simple and just enjoy being with my family. And hope to do most of my Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving instead of after:)
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My hope is that my husband is able to get time off to enjoy the holidays and we can spend uninterrupted time together.
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Ali you always so inspiring and last year I completed the Daily December album. It was so much fun to do and I really savored the little things of the season. I had no idea at the time I created the album that it would be our last Christmas in that home. I am so very thankful that I will always have the album to remember our daughters first home.
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I plan on doing most of my shopping online this year and to try to take time each day to be "in the moment."
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One thing that we are doing that will help make our holidays much more sane is, all the adults are exchanging names for gifts instead of everyone buying for everyone. The other thing that makes things so much easier for us is, my husbands family comes over on Christmas Eve, we celebrate at our home on Christmas morning, then go to celebrate with my family later in the day. Next year, we switch! (And the family that celebrates with us on Christmas Eve gets to have us on Thanksgiving.) We see everyone without trying to do it all in one day!
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Life is a work in progress. Baby steps are needed to achieve even the smallest of goals with limited stress. Since my daughter's recovery from Leukemia, i have learned to just STOP. Stop and take a deep breath. Stop and take it all in. Stop and make the world around me mean something more than just what it is. This is a work in progress. I am a huge follower of Shimelle's blog and have contemplated to purchase the journal this year....I hope win!!!
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To create a more sane Holiday season this year we have added and changed a few things.
We have a large family, 6 kids. We have always encouraged a family gift vrs. an individual one for each child. This is hard for family and close friends to abide by. So, we have decided to do the good ol' name drawing. We have also incorporated a spending limit. This keeps it simple and on the less expensive side.
We are also doing A LOT more homemade gifts. We (the kids also, with direction)are trying to create crafts that are personable and or useful to the reciever and baked goods. This makes for a more thoughtful gift. We started jotting down ideas last Christmas.
We have a family christmas party every year for our close friends. It has grown every year as we are blessed with new family friends. This can cause for a greater expense for the party. We have turned it into a potluck stle party, asking everyone to bring a dish to share with at least 10 people. Decorations are part of the party games early on, with everyone bringing some. We also have everyone bring a family favorite game. I make the invites. It is one of the highlights of the Christmas season.
Paper products!!! We go to grandma's house for Christmas. It can get quite crowded. When it is proper we do paper products. We use them for desserts and snacks and drinks. However, during dinner there is a formal table set. (Don't fret:))
Another one we have recently added- Sleeping over Gma's . Saves on gas and travel stress.
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Ali, thanks for all you do. I finished BPS' Cut the Crazy out of Christmas and have my binder ready! Loving the Yesterday/Today class and the call back to my roots of scrapping - photos + words. I am doing December Daily for the first time this year and am embracing all chances to remember and tell. I'm even learning a little PSE along the way! :) Thank you!
pennyscraps
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I am so excited for the holidays this year. My mom just moved here from England and it will be our first Christmas with her in a long time! And she moved to Florida, and we live in Wisconsin! Sun for the holidays:) Anyway, I just hope all our travels go well and we arrive in Florida safe and back again safe!
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Such an adorable album!
The best way I can make the holidays sane for me is to do most of the shopping & holiday card making *before* December hits. All of our family lives out of town so I have to get my shopping done early anyway. And if I can avoid the post office during the month of December I'm a much happier person. That way when when the holidays roll around I can spend my time doing the fun and less stressful stuff like decorating, making cookies and spending time with my family & friends.
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I have spent two years following your Dec Daily. THIS year I have been telling myself that perhaps it would be a way to be present. To NOT ignore that it is coming. To celebrate. To reflect. To wish. That idea combined with the prompts to get me going. . .sounds like something I might be able to accomplish.
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This season is about remembering and savouring. We realize how precious life is and remembering what christmas is about. We will celebrate lives, remember those no longer with us and talk about the little baby that started this season!
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This class looks amazing...my goal is to focus on all the positive things that happen. My son has asperger's and we have an "attikid" book where we only track the positive things that happen that day and right before we go to bed we read it with him...this has helped so much and I am hoping that my first ever December daily album will be that kind of positive experience for my whole family!
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I'm going to make a finite list of expectations -- decorate the tree, ride the Pink Pig at Macy's, etc. -- and focus on doing those things. Then, anything else that might come along is gravy, but no pressure to do absolutely everything that the season can contain.
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This year, instead of getting caught up in what I'm unable to do, I'm going to enjoy spending time with my family.
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This year, I plan to be more organized at Christmas - keeping track of receipts for the gifts I buy, putting up the decorations early, etc. And, plenty of REST!
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Wow, I would LOVE to do this class. I do try to do as much before December even starts as I can so that I can really enjoy the holidays. Sounds simple but it really takes a lot of discipline to make it happen.
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This year I hope to be more organized - from keeping better track of receipts of the gifts I buy, decorating early, and getting plenty of REST!
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