Thursday, September 10, 2009

Monthly Calendar Pictures

calendar pictures 3

I have a friend who is brilliant! First of all this picture itself. How fun to have a record of your children, by their adorable feet! Gorgeous picture. My friend started this tradition of themed monthly pictures to put into a calendar, when her first child was a baby. Brilliant. I have been one of the lucky recipients of monthly pictures of my friend’s children. It is the best way to log her children’s growth and seasons, that I have ever seen!

calendar pictures 1

My friend gives out these small calendars to the lucky few who will receive the monthly pictures. Then, each month she takes an adorable themed picture of her children. She mails them out monthly, to be placed into the calendar by the recipients. She comes up with such great themed pictures every month.

Some are quite elaborate like her Cinqo De Mayo (May) picture for this year. She had a Mexican blanket laid out as her backdrop. Each of her kids had on sombreros and beautifully embroidered Mexican shirts. They were all holding margarita glasses that she had made up for this picture, with Green Jello in them and lined the glass rims with sugar! Seriously brilliant, right?

Some are beautifully simple like her June picture this year. Each of her children was holding a bouquet of flowers for Mom (symbolizing Mother’s Day).

You would not believe this month’s picture! The theme was “You’re The Apple Of My Eye!” Her children were dressed in their school uniforms, and it’s a closer up shot of them….she painted apples around each of their left eyes! So stinking cute, I swear! But since I wont share picture of my children’s faces on here, I certainly wont do it with my friend’s children either…so you’ll have to take my word on these pictures!

calendar pictures 2

You know you are loving the rain boots for “April Showers”! There are so many things that I love about this tradition. First, it is a wonderful gift for those who have a vested interested/love for your children! Secondly, they are a super cute calendar to have on hand. Third, she now has a record of her children, month by month! Wouldn’t it now be so easy for her to organize all of these pictures into awesome photo albums, or to use for gifts. A small pocket book of all Fourth of July pictures? A Valentine’s Day gift to Grandma, with pictures of her Grandchildren at Valentine’s for every year of their life! So many possibilities! It is so much fun to go back through these calendars from the beginning. To see the first picture where the newest child is added, or the one with the child’s arm in the sling from a playground accident. So many memories are recorded with these monthly pictures.

I could not stop thinking about these pictures, because my children had their school pictures taken today. I think I like my friend’s way of preserving memories of her kids, better than how the cheesy, overpriced school pictures turn out. No offense to school photographers. But my kids always end up getting pictures taken right after recess, and we live in AZ where it was well over 100 degrees today. What’s the best I can hope for in these circumstances? ;)

Rebecca

PS Thank you so much to my super sweet and talented friend for letting me share her wonderfully brilliant and adorable idea! As always I am in awe of you, your creativity, and your togetherness!

~~~

Yay! I was honored last August, when I started receiving these monthly pictures. Their little piggies displaying AU GU ST... I was so delighted. I had been watching Rebecca get these adorable pictures for years. Our friend puts so much into these pictures. When I reveice the envelope in the mail, I can't wait to rip it open to see what picture is going to grace my calendar that month.

Thanks J for adding me to your list. Have I told you lately how much I love them?

Anjeanette

3 comments:

RootsAndWingsCo said...

I agree with your description of your friend. ;)

I also agree that it is fabulous that she remembers and puts so much effort into taking unique pictures every month.

I tried to do monthly picutres of my boys when they were infants till they reached a year. I don't know why I stopped. Oh and I did montly foot prints of them for the first year as well.

Laurel @ Ducks in a Row said...

A crafty friend is a good friend to have - especially if they don't mind you using their ideas!

Michie said...

This is such a cute idea. I have been putting together pictures of my daughter from every month of this year, with the idea of making a calendar for next year...but this way the pictures are current - pretty cool. I'd just be afraid that it'd be the middle or the end of the month and I'd suddenly remember that I hadn't taken a picture yet!