"If I Could Share..." by LauraMarie

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I cannot tell you how difficult it was to choose today’s Layout of the Week. In fact, it has literally taken me all day to tackle this post and I am finally pulling it together just a few minutes before midnight.

Not because I didn’t have several pages to choose from … because I did.

And not because the choices were not worthy … because they definitely are.

This week’s choice was especially difficult because our topic for the week was such a tough one … “What are your biggest fears?”

Let me just say, I am extremely impressed with the brave scrappers who tackled this prompt. It is not easy to face our fears … and harder yet to put them in writing and then share them with the world.

Yet more than two dozen gals did exactly that.

And while scrapping our fears has proven to be quite a challenge, reading about them isn’t so easy, either. You really have to let yourself be vulnerable to share this kind of stuff … and reading it tends to make you realize just how alike we all are in this area.

When I finally managed to narrow down one page to share as our Layout of the Week, I chose this one by leeann77…

Weekly Challenge #9 Layout by leeann77

Why? Because Leeann does such an amazing job of summarizing the fears that seem to be universal among mothers … and throughout our gallery this week.

The fear of losing our children. The fear of losing our spouse, our parents, our loved ones. Leeann even had the courage to come right out and use that word that most of us pretty much danced around. Not only that, but I think she really hit this one on the head when she said… “I guess what scares me about admitting my fears, in writing, is that it will make them come true.”

Yet she still had the courage to write those fears down, scrap a page about it, and share it with the rest of us.

Congratulations to Leeann on having today’s Layout of the Week! She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. And a huge thanks to everyone who shared your pages for this challenge. If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to brace yourself and take a peek in the Challenge Gallery. And while you’re there, I hope you’ll take a few minutes to thank these gals for sharing …

Get the inside scoop, be the first to know about new product releases & get special discounts by subscribing to our new weekly newsletter, the Log Your Memory INSIDER. Delivered directly to your INBOX every Sunday afternoon.

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If there’s ever been a journaling prompt likely to apply to nearly every active participant in an online community, it’s the one we tackled this week.

Weekly Challenge #8 poses the question: How has your daily life changed because of the Internet? And though no two layouts are exactly alike, it’s amazing how much we all have in common on this issue.

Take our Layout of the Week, for example. When was the last time you typed out LOL? Now… when was the last time you said it out loud? I don’t know about you, but this layout describes exactly how much this little acronym has become a way of my daily communication and thought process.

And it’s not even my layout … this is the creation of the talented Ericksoc. Here’s what she says…

LOL by Ericksoc

LOL… Funny how this phrase is so common that when I really laugh out loud, I have to say ‘It made me literally laugh out loud.”

Doesn’t that just make you want to LOL yourself?

Congratulations to Ericksoc on having today’s Layout of the Week! She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to check out the other layouts in the Week #8 challenge gallery … and be sure to tune in next week when we’ll begin a brand new Weekly Challenge Chat series especially for Book Club members. Details in this weekend’s INSIDER.

Get the inside scoop, be the first to know about new product releases & get special discounts by subscribing to our new weekly newsletter, the Log Your Memory INSIDER. Delivered directly to your INBOX every Sunday afternoon.

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Believe it or not, we’re already nearing the end of Week #7 in our Logbook Weekly Challenge series, this week responding to the prompt: “Who is your favorite person in the world?”

By design, the Memory Logbook caters to individual needs by providing a variety of variations on each week’s prompt. This week is no exception and our chosen Layout of the Week is a perfect example of adapting the weekly challenges to fit your needs.

"A Few of My Favorite Things" by flowersgal

“A Few of My Favorite Things” by flowersgal does not directly answer the challenge question, nor any of the variations, though it is easy to see how it could have been inspired by the challenges. That is exactly what the Memory Logbook is intended to do … get your creative juices flowing and lead you to scrap parts of your life you might not otherwise think to record.

Congratulations to flowersgal on having today’s Layout of the Week! She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. Be sure to check out the other layouts in the Week #7 challenge gallery and plan to join us next week as we begin Challenge #8 … the topic is one I am sure every one of us can relate to!

Just a little reminder … if you haven’t done so already, be sure to vote for your favorite January 2010 Yearbook Layout & Artist before midnight (Mountain Time) tonight! Details in the February 14th Log Your Memory INSIDER.

Get the inside scoop, be the first to know about new product releases & get special discounts by subscribing to our new weekly newsletter, the Log Your Memory INSIDER. Delivered directly to your INBOX every Sunday afternoon.

Please share your thoughts in a comment below …

It’s Friday and you know what that means! Time again to share our pick for Layout of the Week – one fantastic page selected from Book Club member posts in the current week’s Logbook Weekly Challenge Gallery. It’s Week #6 and our featured layout was chosen by our lead Calendar Girl for the month, Jen DeLorenzo.

This week’s journaling prompt posed the statement: I have a love/hate relationship with … The response to this prompt has been quite interesting, but when it came down to decision time, Jen chose to highlight “I Love My Freckles” by Jackie Doremus (aka tettletop20).

"I Love My Freckles" by tettletop20

Here’s what Jen said about her choice:

I chose this darling layout by tettletop20 because of the whimsical design.  The tilted frame and the random elements add to that whimsy. I love the great colors and the creative titlework.  A very fun page!

Congratulations to Jackie on having the Layout of the Week for Logbook Challenge Week #6. She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. Be sure to check out the other layouts in the Week #6 challenge gallery … and better yet, add one of your own!

Get the inside scoop, be the first to know about new product releases & get special discounts by subscribing to our new weekly newsletter, the Log Your Memory INSIDER. Delivered directly to your INBOX every Sunday afternoon.

Please share your thoughts in a comment below …

This week’s Logbook challenge poses the question: “What are your bare necessities? The things you just can’t live without?”

For many of us, the lists are shaping up to be quite similar. A good cup of coffee. Our computers & a reliable Internet connection. Our favorite gadgets & scrapbooking tools. Our treasured books.

But one particular layout jumped out at me because the designer sees things a little differently – literally. Terry very creatively described her need for four pair of glasses in “Not an Issue,” our featured Layout of the Week.

This layout is amazing on several fronts … it really pops out of the gallery as soon as you enter and commands your attention because of its dark background, bold colors and beautiful brushwork. The photo is crystal clear & taken from a very effective vantage point. The titlework, too, is very striking. And perhaps my favorite feature – the way Terry emphasizes the repetition of the word FOUR throughout her journaling to tie it all together.

Check it out…

"Not an Issue" by Terry

Count ‘em. FOUR. That’s right. FOUR pair of glasses. Without them, I can’t see. I can’t read. I can’t see distance, either. At age FORTY, I graduated to bifocals so I could read. Every couple of years I get new glasses. FOUR pair. One regular. One spare regular. One for the laptop. One for the desktop. FOUR pair in all. I can’t live without FOUR.

Congratulations to Terry on having the Layout of the Week for Logbook Challenge Week #5. She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. Be sure to check out the other layouts in the Week #5 challenge gallery … it’s amazing to see how similar our “bare necessities” can be!

If you haven’t visit the forum & gallery lately, you’re missing out on a great opportunity to tune up your journaling skills and have a lot of fun in the process. We’ve had two Sweet Talk Journaling Challenge opportunities so far, with a dozen more planned throughout the rest of the month. Don’t miss this chance to get some great “real life” scrapbooking done, earn a few hearts & maybe even a prize along the way, and get inspired by the amazing talent pouring out of our wonderful community! Find out how to get started here…

Please share your comments through our community forum…

It seems like we all have fond memories of at least one childhood game. Sometimes we don’t recall how the game started, and as adults, the rules may seem a bit strange. But something about that early experience sticks with us and creates a story we want to share with others and if possible, replicate for our own children.

Such is the story behind today’s Layout of the Week. “How to Play” by Jackie Doremus, aka tettletop20, tells the story of “The Thimble Game” played by Jackie and her two sisters. I chose to feature this layout for a couple reasons – first, I like the way Jackie modeled her design after a typical board game’s rules. But even more, I love that she told the story of the game’s past, as well as her hopes for its future. Read her journaling for yourself…

"How to Play" by tettletop20

Growing up I remember playing this game with my sisters in the “front room” of our home. It’s the only place Mom and Dad would let us play indoors. I think because it wasn’t the main living area of the house. On warm days I remember sitting outside and playing it. It’s a game that Dad taught us. He played it when he was growing up. It’s funny looking back on it now because there is no way I’d play it today. I’m not into getting wet just for guessing a color correctly! Although, I do have to say that I will be teaching it to my boys in hope that they will grow up with fond memories of it too.

Congratulations to Jackie on having the Layout of the Week for Logbook Challenge Week #4. She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. Be sure to check out the other layouts in the Week #4 challenge gallery … there are lots of wonderful memories of favorite family activities shared there!

Be sure to check our Blog tomorrow for information on the Sweet Talk Journaling Challenge, our new month-long challenge that will begin Monday, February 1st! Included in tomorrow’s post will be information on how you can get a jump-start on the challenge and earn bonus points simply for helping to spread the word about this fun event. See you then!

Please share your comments through our community forum…

Journaling is sometimes the most difficult part of scrapping our real lives, particularly when the topic is very personal. But sometimes you can let someone else do much of the talking for you, particularly if there is a song that really conveys the message you are hoping to send.

Such is the case with “When There’s No One Around,” this week’s Layout of the Week by SierraB6. The lyrics provide the perfect springboard for the heartfelt journaling describing this artist’s most inner thoughts and feelings. Read on…

This is my song. This is my life. It’s not just the lyrics that speak to me, even the music swells in my chest and communicates with my soul. It’s a song about the inner me, the one no one sees. The one I don’t necessarily want anyone to see. My failures and fears are hidden in this secret place but so are my deepest joys and hopes. This is where my happy place is. It’s not perfect but it is all mine. This is who I am when I don’t have to be anybody else.

Congratulations to SierraB6 for having this week’s Layout of the Week! She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to check out the other layouts in the Week #3 challenge gallery. It’s sure to bring a song to your heart.

Please note … the Layout Gallery and Community Forum will be CLOSED this weekend (January 23-24) for maintenance, updates & improvements. My apologies for the inconvenience, but please be sure to visit Monday to check out what’s new!

Click on “comment” below to share your thoughts…

Lost jobs. Shattered dreams. Poor health. Self-doubt. The search for balance. Battles with depression. Weight issues. The unique challenges of parenting … or being unable to parent.

This week’s Logbook challenge question was a tough one: “What has been your biggest challenge or most frequent struggle?” But that didn’t stop our Book Club members from putting together a gallery full of insightful and powerful layouts, making it rather difficult to choose just one for our featured Layout of the Week.

But I did find myself repeatedly returning to one particular page because of it’s intensely honest journaling and beautiful design.

“It’s every girl’s dream,” writes alien21xx. “Why can’t it be mine?” Read on…

"Yes..." by alien21xx

It’s something I’ve constantly asked myself when I started having serious relationships: Am I really ready for this? Do I even want it? The honest answer is “I don’t know.”  And I know that Jay won’t be too happy with it. We’ve talked about it as if we’re fait accompli once his legal issues on his previous marriage are resolved, but honestly, I don’t know if I could get over myself enough to be able to say yes. Even though, technically, I have said yes. I feel that I have too many doubts about myself. And it’ll be hard to explain it to him when he finally pops the question. How do you say “It’s not you, it’s me” without turning the one you love away?

Tough stuff. It takes courage to admit to yourself when your feelings don’t match what most would expect of you, even more to not only put it on paper but share it so publicly. And as if the journaling wasn’t enough, this talented gal pulled it all together with a perfectly blended photo, elegantly personal handwriting and a touch of sparkle.

Congratulations to alien21xx for creating this week’s featured layout! She will receive 10 bonus points through our Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program. If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to check out the other layouts in the Week #2 challenge gallery. There’s a whole lot of heart and soul there waiting for you.

After a couple of weeks of rather intense challenges, we’re all looking forward to our Week #3 challenge that’s on a much lighter “note”. We’ll kick it off Monday with a special guest post featuring a Q&A-style interview with this month’s Guest Designer, Julie Klaus of Julie Marie Designs. We’ll also reveal Julie’s full version of her fabulous “Color of Music” kit, with an opportunity for one lucky blog reader to win the entire kit absolutely free! You don’t want to miss it…

While you’re waiting, be sure to stop by tomorrow and check out the new additions to our on-site store! Let’s just say a couple wishes might have been granted this week…

Click on “comment” below to share your thoughts…

Now that our New Year is underway, our pick for Layout of the Week each Friday will come from Book Club member posts in the current week’s Logbook Weekly Challenge Gallery. Also, once a month our featured layout will be selected by our lead Calendar Girl for the month, in this case Heather Guenther.

This week’s journaling prompt posed the following question: What would you do if you found out that you only had one year-THIS year-left to live? Our Challenge gallery is already bursting with a variety of amazing pages created in response to this question. But it won’t take you long to discover why Heather chose the page that she did to highlight as Layout of the Week.

Here’s what she said about her choice:

“There were a lot of really good ones, but I read the journaling in ‘Not Today’ by Heather Prins and was mesmerized. Where I was stumped by what I would journal to go with the challenge question, she tackled the challenge head-on and wrote the most beautiful and heartfelt journaling. She paired the journaling with a great collection of photos showing the love between her family members and those who mean the world to her. It was a knock-it-out-of-the-park beautiful layout in capturing her fears as well as capturing her bravery and determination to live each day.”

"Not Today" by Heather Prins

I agree wholeheartedly. Read Ms. Prin’s journaling yourself – you’ll be glad you did…

What would you do if you found out that you only had one year-THIS year-left to live?

Just writing this is difficult for me; it is my biggest fear. What if I die before I finish living? What if my tomorrows are indeed numbered? What if I don’t get to grow old and witness my children live their lives? What if i don’t get to cry at their weddings or hold my grandkids? What if I don’t celebrate their next birthdays? Will they know how I loved them so? That my heart ached everyday until they walked in the door? Will they know that every breath I took from the moment they took their first was always for them? Will know they how proud I was of each of them every single day, just being their mom?

Admittedly ,at first, I would probably go a little insane (okay a lot insane). I would write them letters, buy trinkets, relive old memories, pour over photos, make videos, etc. And then, when the anger and the sadness became unbearable, I would take a deep breath and say

”Not today. Today I am going to live and breathe and laugh and love. Today I am going to hug my babies. I am going to make my mom laugh and kiss my husband. We are going to giggle and be silly and be thankful for this normal day. I am going to count my blessings today and not waste a single second more about ‘what if’, today is mine.”

Now don’t get me wrong, I may be able to always see silver linings (at least I have a whole year and i know it, right?), there would be many hours of darkness, a million tears cried, silently in the wee hours of the morning, alone. There would be a gaping wound in my heart that would never, ever heal. But I also know that in that broken heart there would be love. A love for my family so strong, that its light cannot be shadowed by fear. And it would shine through those broken pieces like a kaleidoscope, guiding us through the sadness, and again I would whisper “Not Today”.

Congratulations on being selected, Heather! As a special reward, you will receive 10 bonus points this week through the Real Deal Book Club Rewards Program.

Want a chance at having one of your creations selected for next Friday’s Layout of the Week? Simply participate in our next Weekly Challenge question & post your layout in the Challenge gallery by noon (MTN) on Thursday. (You’ll need the Memory Logbook or Real Life Scrapbooking Weekly Challenges book to participate, as well as take a few minutes to register for our Book Club).

Click on “comment” below to share your thoughts…