Storytelling | Plant Your Story

Just Press Play :: May 2014

May 2, 2014 By Mrs. Gleason

Just Press Play | May 2014 Story Challenge by Sara Gleason at Plant Your Story

Welcome to the Just Press Play monthly story challenge for May 2014!!

Just Press Play is a monthly challenge that is story-and-prompt centric. The spirit of this challenge is inviting and fun and encourages us to take a fresh look at how we are telling our stories. It’s where story meets creativity. And journaling meets fun.

My hope is to encourage you to Just.Press.Play. Just start, just begin — dive in to telling your story one page, one journal prompt at a time and have a lot of fun in the process.

And it works like this:

Each month I will share a basic prompt for journaling (on your scrapbook pages, in your project life pages, or on your blogs, or where ever and however you like to get your story on paper). Some prompts may be longer and ask us to dig a little deeper in to our story and others will simply be “story starters”.

To join in the challenge each month, simply create a layout or project or post following the posted prompt. Then, upload to the Plant Your Story gallery and comment in the monthly blog post with a link to your posted page. You have until the end of the month at midnight EST, to complete the challenge.

Each month one participant will win a $10 gift certificate to my store!!

My vision for these is that there will be room to “play”. The monthly prompt will just be a place to start from. There will be no product requirements, no parameters beyond the journaling nudge. You will go where your creativity guides you in design and in words.

If you *do* use my products (remember: this is not required!) you will earn one extra entry and chance to win the gift certificate to my store.

This month’s story nudge is:

Time of Day

YOU choose your Time of Day…could be morning routine, evening, quiet time, a moment you have to yourself, a specific appointment or special event, something you look forward to, a moment of every day hustle and bustle, whatever moment in time that inspires you.

You can make a note of a specific time (i.e. 8:37 am), or you can capture a collage of different times throughout the day.

It could be something you think of in advance and plan for, or it could be something you stumble upon..being careful to take note of the *exact when* the moment happens.

You can take a series of photos during your selected time of day..paying particular attention to the details, or you could snap a single shot of a person or place or object that is the focus of your story. Then, scrap it with as much or as little journaling as suits the story.

Here’s a peek at a little Time of Day inspiration.

In this page, You Love Days Like These (10.17), I documented a collage of specific moments and times throughout a single day in a kind of Day in the Life approach to documenting time. I love to capture the details that live in The Story and this page was perfect for documenting those little nuances of our day.

journaling (scattered and about these time snapshots in a “day in the life” ) reads: One thing I know for sure is you love days like these. Nana is in town and that means you get lots of extra loves and hugs. You started the day doing just that, sitting with nana as she checked emails. In the morning we went for a walk.. Daddy ran, and you got a ride in your jogging stroller while mommy and nana walked around the neighborhood. Since nana was in town we went out to eat for lunch and you just loved the change in routine. And You were such a good girl sitting quietly and enjoying your drink and lunch while we played “I spy” and colored. Every day we spend time reading our favorite books and playing with your favorite animals. this day was no different. Your imagination flies high as you play.

There is a special kind of magic that lives in the documentation of story details. And this kind of story nudge — encouraging us to hone in on a specific time of day — is the perfect opportunity to dig deeper and highlight the details that live in our story.

In this page, e.r., I chose to document a specific single event. In this case it wasn’t a shiny happy kind of event, but it was one of those moments of True Story. A time of real parent worry, real life cloudy-ness. And those moments are important to document too.

My approach to this particular brand of Time of Day is to document the happenings and then broaden the lens a little and color it with the lesson that lies in the moment. Since most of my journaling is written directly to my daughter I find myself writing about the Takeaway, the Lesson Learned, the Big Picture, or the Legacy I’m hoping to sow. And you can see shades of that in my journaling here.

journaling reads: Well, today was one of those days a parent dreads. A day when your child is in pain and sick and you can’t help them feel better with magic kisses, cuddles, rest, water, or over-the-counter medicines. It was our first visit to the emergency room. Poor Bugga has a urinary tract infection. We had suspected this from the things she was telling us and I’m so glad we listened to our instincts so she could get treatment right away. She was such a trooper at the hospital and (thank goodness) didn’t need to be catheterized to diagnose. We had a fabulous doctor who was thorough and kind. We brought her favorite animal and a few books to read which helped ease her anxiety. And once again we find ourselves counting blessings. We are blessed that this is a relatively minor hiccup as far as health concerns go. We are blessed to have health care coverage so our sweetie can get well. And we are blessed with a strong and sweet little girl

scattered (handwritten): Our first trip to the e.r. You were in a lot of pain and even so, you did SO well listening and helping the dr. figure out what was wrong. you were SO brave. the doctor said “your lungs sound wet” so off you went for an xray too.

Jen beautifully captured her favorite time of day in her page. The balance and palette here underline her storytelling of “magic” that lives in mornings for her.

Creative Inspiration for the May 2014 Just Press Play challenge with Papyrus {April} page designs by Jen

Journaling: I am a morning person. There is just something so magical about getting up early in the morning and going for a run when the majority of people are still sleeping. I just love to be out on the trail before the sun comes up, and enjoy being alone with my thoughts. It is my own special time of day. If it is a misty or rainy morning then I get even more excited, and just cannot wait to get out the door. There is nothing more fun than splashing through the puddles and feeling the rain sting my face as I run. It makes me feel like a kid again! Wonderful, magical mornings!

I love Stacy’s take on this prompt. Here she documents the amazing accuracy of her dog’s internal clock. And captures the details of Time of Day through the eyes of the family pet. I love the spirit of lighthearted fun here and how she elevated the documentation of something very everyday by making her sweet pooch the star, journaling directly to him.

Creative Inspiration for the May 2014 Just Press Play challenge by Stacy

Journaling reads: I can set my watch by your stomach, Jedi. If you wake up before 7:00 am, you pace back and forth next to my bed whimpering and whining softly… but to no avail. If that clock says less than 7, my answer to you is “too early!” You’ve learned the meaning of those words. You’ll lay down and sigh loudly until it’s time for breakfast. Then promptly at 5:30 pm you go outside Tommy’s door and start barking for him to feed you dinner. I don’t know HOW you do it, your internal clock is amazingly precise, babe.

Angie chose to use this story nudge to document the Best Part of her day. I love the look-down Where I Stand perspective of the photo and the energy she subtly communicates through the use of color and starburst background paper.

Creative Inspiration for the Mayl 2014 Just Press Play challenge by Angie

jppwinner Congratulations to last month’s winner, lorryfach!! Her page 50 Shades of Red (cleverly titled) documented her cruise experience, including some very hot and sun-burny moments. I loved her use of color and pattern that seemed to echo the sense of “heat” and sun exposure while capturing an overall summery sense of vacation and relaxation.

I can’t tell you how much I loved seeing all the stories off Happiness Is in the gallery!! What inspirational storytelling and scrapbooking! Thank you, thank you all for playing along! I look forward to seeing the pages for this month’s challenge!!
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To join in the challenge this month, simply create a layout or project or post following the posted prompt. Then, upload to the Plant Your Story gallery and comment here with a link to your posted page.

You have until the Saturday 31 May 2014 at midnight EST, to complete the challenge. I will randomly select one winner to receive a $10 gift certificate to my store!!

I can’t wait to see your Time of Day inspirations!

Just Press Play :: April 2014

April 7, 2014 By Mrs. Gleason

Welcome to the Just Press Play monthly story challenge for April 2014!!

Just Press Play is a monthly challenge that is story-and-prompt centric. The spirit of this challenge is inviting and fun and encourages us to take a fresh look at how we are telling our stories. It’s where story meets creativity. And journaling meets fun.

My hope is to encourage you to Just.Press.Play. Just start, just begin — dive in to telling your story one page, one journal prompt at a time and have a lot of fun in the process.

And it works like this:

Each month I will share a basic prompt for journaling (on your scrapbook pages, in your project life pages, or on your blogs, or where ever and however you like to get your story on paper). Some prompts may be longer and ask us to dig a little deeper in to our story and others will simply be “story starters”.

To join in the challenge each month, simply create a layout or project or post following the posted prompt. Then, upload to the Plant Your Story gallery and comment in the monthly blog post with a link to your posted page. You have until the end of the month at midnight EST, to complete the challenge.

Each month one participant will win a $10 gift certificate to my store!!

My vision for these is that there will be room to “play”. The monthly prompt will just be a place to start from. There will be no product requirements, no parameters beyond the journaling nudge. You will go where your creativity guides you in design and in words.

If you *do* use my products (remember: this is not required!) you will earn one extra entry and chance to win the gift certificate to my store.

This month’s story prompt is a simple phrase derived from my tag line and it encourages us to find the story that lives in our everyday moments:

Story Lives Here

For me “story lives here” usually resides in little moments and in everyday moments. The overlooked kinds of moments. Like the notes my daughter writes to me and leaves around the house. Or an exchange with a dear friend on the phone. Or how, just last week, our little family huddled around a mini campfire to make s’mores together and listen to my daughter read to us a story (she called it a “legend”).

Something simple…but something that means MORE. Story Lives Here moments are the kind of moments that cause me to pause in time for a moment…realizing that this *means something*. It isn’t just an idle conversation, or a passing gesture, or a forgettable shared moment…it is a symbol of a greater truth or emotion, a symbol of a relationship or of values I hold.

This is a prompt you can take in virtually any direction. You can use it as the actual title for your page, you can use it as a #hashtag, you can use it as a caption for a photograph. Or just a general thought to carry in your head or heart whilst scrapping…letting it guide your story and page as you do so.

Here’s a peek at a handful of pages of mine that really capture the spirit of the Story Lives Here nudge.

Here, I summarize our April Fools’ Day 2014 by reflecting on my daughter’s anticipation and excitement about all the prankster related fun she found in that day. And in doing so, I’ve painted a bit of what I call a “personality portrait” wherein I document a snippet of who she is becoming.

journaling reads: This is the first year you decided April Fools’ Day is something you should care about. This means you “pranked” me with fake kitty poops on the floor and brown Es (these were actual letter Es cut out of card stock with a note saying she made me some fresh “brownies”). And you pranked Daddy with animal figurines in his boots and pillow case and pictures of onions by his bedside. And you were hoping and wanting and expecting pranks for herself too! The giggle-loving, silly and happy-go-lucky part of your personality is shining brighter every day. It won’t be long before you have a fabulous sense of humour just like your Daddy. He makes us laugh every single day and let me tell you: that is the best gift you can give a person.

This kind of prompt really lends itself to reflective journaling, which is one of my favorite ways to get Story-to-Page. I’ll look at a photo, let myself reflect on the moment it memorializes and then I write about how the photo makes me feel. I’ve done that here with this page, Hand in Hand. It’s a simple, almost unremarkable photo of my daughter walking with her Daddy. It’s an everyday kind of snapshot. But as simple a moment as it is…it means MORE. It’s the perfect everyday kind of “story lives here” moment.

journaling reads: everywhere you go, when you’re together, there you are hand in hand. you just race to sidle up next to Daddy’s strong and safe form and slip your hand into is like there is no where else you’d rather be. whether it’s walking down the path at grandpa’s, in the store, or even wandering the yard, you just love to walk hand in hand with your Daddy. And just so you know, no matter how many years or how much distance is added in the future, your hand will always be the perfect fit right inside Daddy’s.

This is a page taken from my album entitled “today”, which really could just as easily be titled “story lives here” because it’s full of pages that capture “regular” moments – portraits, candids, nondescript, everyday happenings. The journaling on these kinds of pages gives a snapshot of Who, What, When, and Where of the photo while also injecting a smattering of the Real Story: the why I treasure it so. This one captures a moment of cuddle between my dear grandfather and my daughter.

journaling reads: today I love…seeing you with Great Grandpa. His 96 years, and your 5 having fun together. Laughing. Oh how I treasure this moment. this re-meeting. Seeing you with this man I so adore and admire and respect. And seing the ease with which you settle into his lap and the content and the calm on his face as he holds you. It makes the sting of the years between and the miles apart feel less painful. This moment…this reunion, is Joy.

Jen has brilliantly documented the Story that lives here through in a page that is part “personality portrait” and part everyday documentation with the benefit of hindsight. I love how she writes to her son, reflecting on how he has grown and changed, through her description of the space-and-time during which this photo was taken.

Journaling reads: Weekends at the construction site. The location of our new house and the opportunity to document our home being built. You were always so eager to point out the new additions and see what progress had been made each week. Some days there would be a digger loader on site and you would just relish the opportunity to climb all over it! What seven year old wouldn’t? Back then, you just loved being the focus of attention, and needed no persuasion to pose for a photo! Looking back on the photos, I realize that just as the house was growing and changing each week, so too were you. And while these days you do not like being the center of attention, I still see that cheeky smile and mischievous twinkle in your eye! If I look through each week’s photos, I am sure I can find at least one photo of you in the sand. I secretly think that is what you looked forward to the most!

I love how Stacy has used the nudge to guide her title work and how her journaling reflects on her documentation of her stories and memories. She so beautifully highlights how she acts as a family historian and true story keeper. Her heart for the story shines through her photo and journaling.

To join in the challenge this month, simply create a layout or project or post following the posted prompt. Then, upload to the Plant Your Story gallery and comment here with a link to your posted page. You have until the Wednesday 3o April at midnight EST, to complete the challenge. I will randomly select one winner to receive a $10 gift certificate to my store!! Those who create their submission using my products will receive an extra entry to win.

I hope you’ll join with me and scrap something rooted in this inspiration!

And as a kind of “welcome back” to the Just Press Play challenges I’ve created a fresh free download that you may use when scrapping your Story Lives Here pages (though feel free to snag even if you don’t plan on using it for your challenge page).

Goofy For Quotes

January 3, 2013 By Mrs. Gleason

I’ve long held a fondness for quotations and lyrics. They are like little bite-size nuggets of inspiration or wisdom or sarcastic fun. I think I love them so much because of their easy resonance. That quality of “aha”: that quality that has me smiling the moment I read it or nodding my head or feeling nostalgic.

I find many times that someone else has voiced (and far better than I ever could) precisely what it is I may have been feeling or thinking. Other times, a quote or lyric holds a general tone or mood for something I believe or love or hope for. Or it is the “posterized” version of a more complex idea: short and sweet and to the point.

Quotes and lyrics have a unique way of striking a chord, getting to the point, and moving our heart in just a few short sentences. In a universal kind of way.

I used to reflect on lyrics and quotes quite a lot. I even had a blog tag “goofy for quotes” because I was a) that geeky and b) that inspired by the brief nuggets of truth.

Recently I’ve been finding a renewed and refreshed love for quotations and snippets while browsing and pinning on Pinterest. So many fabulous quotes have been shared and every time I come across one that gives me that resonating “aha” feeling, I pin it so I can come back to it later. And I’ve been cataloging and art journaling some of my most favorite quotes and snippets in one of my SMASH books.

And I wanted to encourage you to embrace the Goofy For Quotes. Because it’s that feeling, the “aha” resonance, the inner “yes!” or “word.” that our heart speaks when we see or hear a quote that moves us to remember it, that plants seeds for some amazing storytelling to be harvested later.

Listen to that resonating echo. Why does that particular quote or lyric strike a chord in you? That feeling is there for a reason. It’s there because it relates to you or speaks your heart or challenges you. And when we let ourselves think about it beneath the surface, there is a bit of our story there.

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You you can use a quote or lyric in a simple way that communicates “these brief words express exactly how I feel about a person”. As I did in this (very old) page when I scrapped a snippet of the song “You are My Sunshine”:

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Maybe the snippet speaks a truth you want to share with someone you love. A “scrapable, teachable moment”, if you will.

As was the case when I scrapped this quote from Albert Einstein. I wanted to share with Bugga what I believe is true and what Einstein stated in the perfect little “nugget”: “There are only two ways to life your life. One as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”:

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Or maybe the words of a quote or song speak to our heart and reflect deeper hopes. I had taken this photo on a bad day…a day that was full of bad news and worries. But I just love this photo of Bugga. And looking at it reminds me that, no matter the challenges we may face, we are so blessed. And that’s what the journaling is about. It’s about my wish for bugga..that she will always seek and find the silver linings and the blessings. I also included lyrics from one of my favorite inspirational songs. And the page became a kind of prayer for my daughter:

journaling reads: I love this photo of you. It’s moments like these where in an instant I am reminded of God’s grace and His majesty and all the beautiful ways He has blessed our lives. It can be easy to fall away into the world and find yourself a little too focused on worldly worries, wants, and preoccupations. I hope that you are presented with moments like these when the world gets in the way. Moments that remind you of what is most important. Moments that remind you that God loves you very much and that you are blessed. This song is my wish for you, my love.

Give me one pure and holy passion. Give me one magnificent obsession. Give me one glorious ambition for my life. To know and follow hard after you. Give me one pure and holy passion. Give me one magnificent obsession. Give me one glorious ambition for my life. To know and follow hard after you. To know and follow hard after you. To grow as your disciple in your truth. Because the world is empty pale and cold compared to knowing you my Lord. Lead me on and I will run after you. Lead me on and I will run after you.

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Sometimes quotes or lyrics or verses inspire us to challenge ourselves or live it more in our lives.

I was scrapping my “life verse” in this page..akin to a One Word, this was meant to be my compass for the year(s):

verse: Whatever is true, whatever is noble,whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent & praiseworthy, dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8

journaling reads: I’ve always had a struggle with worry with focusing a little too much on the worst
case scenario. I suppose it’s a self protection thing. But I’ve made a commitment to myself
and more importantly to God, to dwell not on that which is worrisome, but that which is beautiful. This is my “life verse”. My reminder to count blessings, give thanks, have faith and be God centered.

faith.family.fellowship.nature.learning.creating.G od’s provision all the good things

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But that “aha” feeling…it’s there because you’re feeling inspired to share something. A bit of you, a bit of your story. So I hope to encourage you with a simple, heart-led prompt series of shared quotes here on the blog. In the mean time, go and reflect on the words that resonate in you. Share them here if you are so inspired! ♥

Just Press Play :: November 2012

November 9, 2012 By Mrs. Gleason

Welcome to the Just Press Play monthly story challenge for November!! Just Press Play is a monthly challenge that is story-and-prompt centric. My hope is to encourage you to Just.Press.Play. Just start, just begin. Dive in to telling your story one page, one journal prompt, at a time and have a lot of fun in the process.

It goes like this: I post a prompt. You get your story on, creating and sharing your page or project inspired by the journaling nudge. One winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to my store! (more…)

Just Press Play :: October 2012

October 5, 2012 By Mrs. Gleason

Welcome to the Just Press Play monthly story challenge for October!! Just Press Play is a monthly challenge that is story-and-prompt centric. My hope is to encourage you to Just.Press.Play. Just start, just begin. Dive in to telling your story one page, one journal prompt, at a time and have a lot of fun in the process.

It goes like this: I post a prompt. You get your story on, creating and sharing your page or project inspired by the journaling nudge. One winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to my store! (more…)

Just Press Play :: September 2012

September 4, 2012 By Mrs. Gleason

Welcome to the first Just Press Play monthly story challenge!! Just Press Play is a monthly challenge that is story-and-prompt centric. My hope is to encourage you to Just.Press.Play. Just start, just begin. Dive in to telling your story one page, one journal prompt at a time and have a lot of fun in the process.

It goes like this: I post a prompt. You get your story on, creating and sharing your page or project inspired by the journaling nudge. One winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to my store! (more…)