Trying to hold back the tears

For the last few months I have been compiling a book. I am using free easily-downloadable software from www.blurb.com for the second time. The first occasion was to produce an illustrated book of my mother’s poems for her 80th birthday – a gift with which she was surprised and delighted. I simply emailed the artwork to Blurb.com and, in a matter of days, a beautifully printed hardback arrived on the doormat. Unbelievably, it was very inexpensive, so another feather in their cap as far as I am concerned.
So I thought I would design another, this time for Son’s 18th birthday. To date, it is 100 pages long and is a pictorial record of his childhood – from birth to 17. As a keen amateur photographer it has been a labour of love to select images from the huge collection I have of him, not least because he is very photogenic. I am also including some facts & figures, as well as excerpts from a diary I began writing for him while pregnant. I am blissfully deleting any negative recollections I may have made, preferring to concentrate on my boy’s small successes. Anyhow, re-reading my diary has proved an emotional experience and reminded me of what it was to be a young, inexperienced mother. It has brought back sights, sounds and smells that I had completely forgotten. Apologies in advance for saying this, but seeing pix of him as a toddler again makes my heart lurch with happiness – I know it is because I am biased, being his mother, but he was gobsmackingly gorgeous (and still is of course, but in a more manly way these days).

So, My Tip Of The Day is click onBlurband make a book for someone you love – it doesn’t have to be massive, a few pages of photographs, a collection of your child’s drawings, or perhaps a few of your favourite recipes will do. It will make an unforgettable Christmas present and, as we all know, the ho, ho, ho season will fast be upon us (am sure the supermarkets’ storerooms are already bursting with festive nonsense).