For months I wrote in each one all the best recipes and household tips I had. From what to do when there is sickness in the household to how to entertain a toddler and keep kids busy in wet weather!
I included recipes from Mum and the Great Grans, the family trees as far as I could get them, descriptions of people now gone, cards and letters from the Great Grans and so on. They started to come together as treasures of family information, keep sakes, recipes and tips.
I started with a solid journal with a thick cover so it might stand the test of time.
Being a big project I approached it that I would write in them a couple of times a week and collect things and over time they just grew.
In each I added into pockets cards and letters that Great Gran L had been given during her life, some when Chloe's Nana was born like the baby card above.
Chloe had written to Great Gran B and she had replied to Chloe with this sweet letter so I included that in Chloe's book with a lovely photo of when Great Gran was young. She had loved getting mail from Chloe, I think this must have been when Chloe was six or seven.
They were really lovely to make. A trip down memory lane as I did them. And thoughtful like what would I want the girls to know if I fall off the perch before I get to tell them some of these things. I love this photo of Chloe and Great Gran B. They were very fond of each other. Lucy has the equivalent photos too.
I gave the books to the girls one Christmas and they loved them. Making something like this really would be a wonderful wedding present or gift anytime for a daughter, great grand daughter. Cards, letters, recipes etc are all easily lost but become the treasures and links and memories.
As I still find new tips and recipes quite often at Christmas I will write the new best ones into lovely cards or writing paper and give them to the girls to add to their books. Eventually I should have the books back for a week and write new things in and give them an update.
I'm so glad I started these. Chloe also showed me a book I had written out for her when she first moved out of home. It was all the things I thought she needed to know and didn't. Some of it is funny now! But sweetly she kept it. Even writing and collecting for a few years will create a keep sake that will be amazing one day as long as you keep at it. And if you still have your Nana or anyone getting older get them to write out for you their tips and best recipes or fill in some pages directly for you. What treasures they become!
Yesterday I got huge heads of celery at the supermarket, they must weigh around 2 kilos each. And they were $1. So today I am making a huge pot of cream of celery soup. It is another really lovely autumn day. A perfect day for Prince William and Kate to be in Adelaide. My bobble crochet blanket is nearly finished, I think I can finish it on the weekend if I go fast! Being a short week things are flying by but long weekends are good fro crochet!
I hope you are having a happy day.xxx
How wonderful and how special those treasured books are and also will be in the future Annabel. xo That is such a beautiful thing to do. I must gather up the fragments before they are lost. There is not much materially (as in letters etc) for me to pass on, but there are memories. My Gran had shown me once her "treasure box" which was letters and other things I had made or given her over the years. (I had no idea she had kept these) She said they were mine for remembrance when she passed. It was so heartbreaking when she died that no one knew where they were and someone probably even threw them out as junk!!
ReplyDeleteDid you make the beautiful velvet dress Chloe is wearing in the picture?
Kaye I think a friend made these dresses and I addd the collars from memory, I know the girls had matching dresses and that Nana loved them. That day we had taken Nana out to lunch and there was a beautiful garden. Its terrible the letters your Gran kept were lost. Yes we must record and gather when and while we can. Writing down your own memories is still very good, I did this, my memories of how my Nans were with me when I was little. Thanks for your comments Kaye.xxx
DeleteThis is a lovely, LOVELY idea. My girls and I both would love receiving gifts like this.
ReplyDeleteHugs and happy trails,
Kelley~
Thanks Kelley. If you get a good book to work in, you can just add things slowly over time and eventually it builds into a treasure. Im so glad I did these! xxx
DeleteI love this idea, and here's a different take on it. One year, after my grandfather had died, I contacted all the family and had them write letters of memories of my grandmother. I also contacted her old friends and asked for the same things. I gathered all my grandmother's best recipes, photos from throughout the years, and things I thought she would like.
ReplyDeleteThen I made copies for everyone in the family. We presented a "This is Your Life" book to my grandmother. She was very touched, but it was a great present for all the family. She is gone now, but I look back through that book often and remember what everyone liked best about her.