Day 1: Your arrival
Let’s start your book with your beginning! You can make this as simple as you like. The most important thing is to tell the story that works for you. No one has the same life you do, so everyone’s story will be different. Each prompt is here to inspire you. You don’t have to create a page exactly as suggested! The challenge is to tell your own story.
TIP: Don’t get caught up in the details that you don’t know. Instead, focus on what you DO know!
BASIC:
Create a layout with your name and birthdate. Use embellishments to make it pretty. Think of this as your introduction page. Include a baby photo of you if you have one.
GET SPECIFIC:
Share your birth story if you know it. If you don’t know it, can you ask? I didn’t know the story of my birth and I was fortunate to be able to talk to my mom. After I stopped laughing, I was able to write it down for my layout. If you can’t ask your parents try other family members, aunts are often a great resource for family info.
(Please do not pin images from this class.)
A DIFFERENT STORY:
If your birth story is not one you wish to record, you don’t have to share it! Find the details you are happy to record and skip the rest. You are the author of your own story, so tell the story you want to share.
DETAILS:
If you don’t know your birth story that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing to share! You can research details about the weather and world or local events from the time you were born. You can research the cost of living the year you were born. Although these details are not specifically about you, they help to set the stage for the story of your life.
Examples:
The day I was born:
It was a Friday.
It was the day the Fourth Soviet Constitution was adopted by the USSR.
The year I was born:
- An average house cost $49,300.00
- Average income per year: $15,000.00
- Average monthly rent: $240.00
- A postage stamp cost: $0.13
- A movie ticket: $2.00
- A dozen eggs: $0.48
- A loaf of bread: $0.36
World Events of 1977:
- The first Apple computer goes on sale.
- The first MRI scanner is tested.
- Elvis Presley dies of a heart attack at age 42.
- France used the guillotine for the last time as a method of execution.
- Voyager 1 and 2 are launched to explore the outer solar system.
- Pierre Trudeau was the Prime Minister of Canada
- Jimmy Carter was elected President of the United States
Movies Released in 1977:
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Rocky
- Saturday Night Fever
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Popular Songs/Musicians:
- Rod Stewart
- The Eagles – Hotel California
- The Bee Gees
- Barbra Steisand
- Fleetwood Mac
TIP: Don’t worry about having the right photo. Instead use a photo that works.
PHOTOS/NO PHOTOS:
If you have a baby photo of yourself… Bonus! If you don’t, here’s some other image ideas that you can use instead:
- baby footprint – it doesn’t have to be yours to be a cute embellishment!
- birth certificate – you can use a scanned copy of it
- use photos of things from the past, like a car from the year you were born, or something related to a world event that happened the year you were born.
- a picture of you with your parents – this does not have to be a baby picture, it can be a picture of you at any age!
- a photo of the hospital you were born in
DESIGN TIPS:
Baby pages are perfect for a soft palette with pastel colours. You may also wish to include fuzzy details, baby lambs, diaper pins, baby rattles and more!
Next topic: Your mother.