Why do I do what I do?

This question really has two sub-questions:

1. Why do I scrapbook?
2. Why do I help other people with their photos?

There are lots of answers to each of these questions, and I will share a few of them.

Why do I scrapbook?

I love reviewing the life I live and that we live as a family. When my children were little, scrapbooking was one way for me to show them how much they were loved and to remind them that our family was really fun. It showed them that they and their friends were important to us and that they mattered. I believed it would help them have good self-esteem to be able to see and reflect upon how much they were loved. Believe me, if you know my children personally, you know that they have nice, healthy self-esteems (is that a word?).

Not too long ago, this really hit home for me. Our younger daughter brought her boyfriend (now husband) home to meet her friends (we had already met him) and we threw a big cookout for the event. She had been living out of state, so this was an opportunity to not only introduce her boyfriend to her friends (and make sure he passed the Friend Test, which he did, with flying colors) but also to hang out with her friends while she was home. So, there was food and drink and music and a beautiful summer night…and she and her closest friends were sitting in the Living Room, looking through scrapbook albums from their childhood. They were laughing and telling stories and doing the “remember when…” thing. Her boyfriend was able to see her as a child, as a teenager, at her High School graduation. He was sitting on the arm of the couch, taking pictures of the scrapbook pages so that he would have pictures of her when she was little. I loved that the bookcase full of scrapbook albums was so important to all of them and that they were able to enjoy the trip down Memory Lane. And yes, I did hear “I wish MY mom had made albums about my life” more than once!

Why do I help other people with their photos?

I love hearing people’s stories and helping them enjoy their photos instead of being overwhelmed by them. I love the look of accomplishment on their faces when they tell me they have completed a project and love the way it came out. I love when they tell me that their kids sat on the couch last night and looked through their albums and enjoyed the stories of their lives. I love it when people find old photos of loved ones and are transported back in their minds to a place or a time with that loved one. I love it when I can help someone who has multiple tubs filled with thousands of pictures organize them into Power Sort boxes so that now they can actually find what they are looking for and begin to put them in albums. I love it when husbands tell me how much they love the fact that their wives do albums for their families, and when the children grow up and want to make albums of their own. It amazes me that I have a job that can bring so much joy to so many people, and I actually get paid to do this!

I would love to help you, too! Are you overwhelmed by your printed photos or by thousands of digital images on your phone or tablet? Would you like to have them organized, enjoyed, protected, usable? I can help. Please contact me and let’s get started!

Until next time,