FREE PRINTABLE: Capture your child’s life now with this New Year’s interview

Kids grow and change so fast, and those of us who are parents or grandparents often wish we could somehow capture a slice of life from each stage to hold onto forever. So today I am offering you an opportunity to do just that!

The changing of the calendar year is a great time to reflect on the rapid changes in our kids’ likes, dislikes, and personalities. I created this interview sheet to use with my own kids, and decided to share it with you here. There’s a download link below, but first, here’s how the interview looks:

It’s two pages long so you’ll want to print on front and back. Keep in mind that in our family, we have four kiddos ranging in age from newly four to seventeen, so I included questions to fit preschoolers through teenagers. I purposely started out with the easy questions like favorite colors and foods, then progressed to the more thought-provoking ones.

If you are using this with toddlers, you have several options for adjusting it to their level:

1. Print the first page only, and use the empty space on the back to stamp a handprint or let the child “draw” pictures. (Read: scribble)

2. Selectively answer whatever questions from both pages you feel apply to your child.

3. Make changes to the questions that don’t fit your child’s age. For example, with my youngest I’ll cross out “youth group activity” and replace it with “things to do with my friends.”

Even if your child or grandchild isn’t talking yet, you will want to fill in favorite songs, toys, foods, etc. to have a record of this stage in your baby’s life. You might even want to fill one in for yourself while you’re at it!

Of course, you also have the option to use my idea as a starting point and create your own interview to fit your family’s needs. But for those of you who want to skip the hassle and use what I’m sharing, here’s the link:

New Year’s Day Interview Sheet 2013

Our family always has a special dinner on New Year’s Day and that’s when I plan to go over these sheets. Our older kids will fill them out on their own, and I’ll let our youngest dictate her answers to me.

Won’t it be fun to look back in a few years to see how their answers have changed?

By the way, this is my very first FREE PRINTABLE offer, so please leave a comment to let me know what you think.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Scabs and siblings

Lately I’ve been feeling the itch to scrapbook…But, since that’s an itch I just can’t take the time to scratch right now, I decided to content myself with posting some already-made pages. Though the photos are older, these are the most recent layouts I’ve made (…recent being a relative term, here). As you can see, I’ve been in a keep-it-simple phase lately. Remember, you can click on each photo to enlarge it if you can’t read the journaling.

Maybe I should have entitled this first one, What Every Little Girl Wants. Or, maybe not.

And yes, that was Addy. (I told you I’m a little behind.)  Ahem. Moving on…

I’m trying to do better about recording not only the big events (birthdays, holidays, etc.) but also all those little everyday occurrences and the things that showcase each child’s unique personality. All children try to manipulate their way out of naps; this was Remi’s method:

I’m also attempting to do a better job of documenting relationships, especially within our family. I made these pages to remind our kids how valuable the connections with their siblings are. (OK, and ’cause I liked the sweet pictures!)

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Girls’ night

I’ll admit it: I’m a sucker for a happy ending. Although it’s an older scrapbook page and not my best artistic work, I still love the layout below because I love the happy ending. And I’m not at all unhappy with the photo-booth pictures of my little princess and me, either. (The princess is Addy at age six. You can click on the photo a couple of times if you want a good look at the photo strip.)

(Side note for my scrapbooky friends…This paper was, obviously, already quite busy, so I just added the photo strip, a few 3-D elements, and lots of white pen detailing.)

Journaling reads:

I’ll always smile when I look at these pictures…not just because the photos themselves are so silly, but because I truly love the memories we made this night. After dropping the boys off at Lazer Zone for a birthday party you and I headed to Toys-R-Us to spend your birthday money. (You chose a Littlest Pet Shop set.) We headed to the mall to play at Sugarland but it was closed…so instead we shared some Bourbon Chicken & you rode a little speed boat ride. Then we did these silly pics together & left with you trying to bite into the biggest gumball I’ve ever seen! Later, when I asked what you remembered most about this night, you said, “We were together.” I  love you! 🙂

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She’s wearing her pigeon pants again

I wasn’t a bit surprised to see her coming down the stairs in what she proudly calls her “pigeon pants.” They are her favorites, after all, and for a good reason. I guess you could say they’re like trophy pants. Ripped and stained, they tell a special story.

Knowing we won’t always have those pants around to remind us, I added that special story to our family scrapbooks. (You can click on the picture below to enlarge it, but I also printed out the journaling below since it’s so small on the page.)

Journaling reads:

Addy began chasing pigeons as we left the zoo…nothing new there. Then we looked up to see her holding every last    tail feather from some poor bird that barely got away. She cried about the possibility that she’d hurt it…but not for long. A couple of minutes later she was holding a pigeon. She’d actually caught the whole bird with her bare hands. She desperately wanted to bring her new “pet” home (NO!) and beamed with pride over her great hunting skills. On the way home, she said, “I skinned my knee, I ripped my pants…This is the best day ever!” She was only sad that the place where it scratched her didn’t leave a scar!

So, I guess it’s not surprising that she loves those pants so much. But I’ll feel better knowing that, in case you ever see her in them, you’ll know why I let her wear them.  😉

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A little bit of sugar and a whole lotta spice

Several friends have commented lately on how much Remington looks like Addison did at the same age, which of course has had me thinking back to when Addy was little. That, and seeing her outside catching frogs tonight both reminded me of this scrapbook page I made some time ago. I love that I was able to capture her wearing a velvety, pink ballerina costume while sporting a toy gun and her boots (on the wrong feet, of course).

(Journaling is below.)

Journaling reads:

Sweet, funny Addison…..You are ALL GIRL: a pretty little princess who loves to wear ball gowns and ballerina dresses, purses and bows, jewelry and pink nail polish. You are equally at home in your cowboy boots, toting a pistol and an attitude! You love mud and bugs and dogs and frogs and dirt, and I love the different aspects of your personality and how they combine to make you who you are. So yes, you are all girl, all sugar and spice…..but I think the spice outweighs the sugar!

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Now we are six

I’m a HUGE fan of A. A. Milne.  His Winnie-the-Pooh books contain so many quotable lines, like “Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” and  “If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.”

If you, too, are a fan of his works, you’ll recognize the title of this scrapbook page as the title of one of Milne’s books of poetry. It’s what popped into my head as I looked at our bowling shoes in all different sizes, and it reminded me how much I love being part of a family of six. (I made this page just before Christmas. Journaling is below.)

Journaling reads:

I love having a family of six. I grew up in a family of six myself, and always wanted to have a big family some day. It makes me happy whenever I see signs of 6…Six plates at the table, six stockings hung, or—today—six colorful bowling balls and six pair of bowling shoes in a wide variety of sizes! 🙂 I thank God for making us six.

Thanks for stopping by!