We just got back from a week at the beach, a trip that my grandparents planned and took us on as a chance to spend a whole week with me, my hubs, and our two daughters. Can I just say how much I love my grandparents? Very, very much.
My girls, ages 3 and 5, hadn't been to the ocean since they were both babies. Older now, and able to play at the beach for an entire week, this trip was especially exciting for them. I wanted the girls to create a keepsake that we could share with my grandparents, as well as keep for ourselves... and what better way to document a family trip they loved so much?
In their own words, of course.
As soon as we got home (okay, maybe a few days after... we did need to recuperate from all that sand and sun and ice cream first) we sat down at the computer and the girls told me about their trip. They picked topics they wanted to talk about: The swimming pool at the hotel, the ice cream parlor with the sticky blue ice cream, the sand castle they built, the seagull that pooped on Mommy's shoulder... you know, all the important highlights of the trip.
Then, I had them take turns telling me about it and I typed while they talked, being sure to keep their voices intact. I did need to prompt a little, encouraging them to tell me about how they made their sandcastles, or who they played with in the pool. But for the most part, everything was done by them.
When I was done typing, I printed the pages and let them add illustrations. Here are some of the pages they came up with:
When we are all done documenting our trip, I'll tape our favorite family photos to sheets of paper. Then, it will only be about $10 to have the front page and back laminated, the pages photocopied, and a spiral binding added along the side for an awesome keepsake for the girls to give to their great-grandparents as a thank you... and of course, keep a copy for ourselves so they can remember the trip always!
Summer is a-coming... let your kids create a book to document their adventures, too!
xoxo,
