Dreams

Over Thanksgiving, my mom presented me with a battered folder stuffed full of my old artwork, report cards, writings, etc. from childhood. It was an interesting trip down memory lane, piecing together all the different things I wanted to be and do and see in my life...and realizing that I've experienced many of them. I guess you could say that those dreams came true. Of course, there are others that I still need to work on. But it was a nice reminder that, when you're a kid, no dream is too big.

Now that Avery is just a few weeks away from her 8th birthday -- and brimming with dreams and ideas of what she wants to do in her life -- I decided to create a repository to capture all those thoughts in her own words.

The book was a bit of an experiment. I created it by making a chipboard backing that I folded twice to make a spine. I punched holes in the top and bottom and bound with twine.

The inside pages/pockets are made from glassine bags that I folded at different increments to create a tabbed effect. The pockets are labeled: i want to be, i want to see, i want to live, i want to go.

The embellishment is pretty simple on each pocket. Just a strip of patterned paper, a strip of trim and a couple of pieces of ephemera with the label.

For each pocket, I created a small card for Avery to write on. I love that the cards show through the glassine for a hint of what's inside.

I can't wait to see what she writes on each card. And hopefully someday, many years from now, she'll thumb through it and see some dreams -- big dreams -- that came true.