When you open the November issue of Creating Keepsakes, you’ll notice a theme running throughout the pages: home. When we gathered as a team to brainstorm the issue, it was the topic that popped up over and over again. Plus, you’ve told us that you want more ways to scrapbook home—from the everyday moments that fill your living room to the memories of your childhood homes. Planning for and reading through our November issue brought back many memories of home. There’s nothing like a trip down memory lane!
Speaking of home, here’s a few fun home facts about our November issue:
* The number of homes of people who contributed to the issue: 119
* The number of states or countries outside the U.S. where those homes reside: 21 states and 4 countries
* The number of layouts with “home” or “house” in the title: 10
* The cover layout came from the home (and talented ideas) of Ali Edwards.
If you want help taking your own trip down memory lane about your childhood home, check out “Going Home Again” by Lori Anderson on page 52. You’ll even get a peek at a photo of Lori when she was 8 years old—just turn to page 54 to see how adorable she was.
Quotes on Home
When you’re ready to share a favorite memory of your childhood home in your scrapbook, let one of these quotes be your springboard:
* “Home is not where you live, but where they understand you.” —Christian Morganstern
* “He is the happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
* “There’s nothing half so pleasant as coming home again.” —Margaret Elizabeth Sangster
* “Home is the most popular, and will be the most enduring, of all earthly establishments.” —Channing Pollock
* “A house is not a home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.” —Benjamin Franklin
* “The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of the home.” —Confucius
* “There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.” —Jane Austen
* “Where we love is home—home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.” —Oliver Wendell Holmes
* “You see much more of your children once they leave home.” —Lucille Ball
Take Home Great Products: It’s a Giveaway!
We have a stash of fun, home-themed products to give away in honor of the issue. Simply share a favorite memory of your childhood home in the comments section by Monday, October 19 at midnight MST to be entered to win.
Enjoy!
Brittany Beattie, Managing Editor, Creating Keepsakes
I loved playing outside in the back yard!
My favorite memory is dancing ( standing on my Dad’s toes ) in our living room to LP’s played on the stero.
My favorite memories of childhood came from my grandparents’ home where I spent most of my time. My grandmother had a beautiful garden with lots of raspberry and blackberry bushes, I loved picking the berries and eating as many as I picked!
I actually had many, many homes in my childhood–we moved 12 times in 15 years, so I don’t have one particular place I call my childhood home. But there are certain things that I associate with home, pieces of furniture or knick-nacks that followed us from place to place. Home really is where your family is–and just for the record, as an adult, I have lived in the same place for 10 years!
I remember playing in the basement under the staircase. We divided it into sections. Oldest with tallest part and youngest (me) with the lowest part. We each made our section into our little fort, including mailboxes.
Ahhhhhh, the memories!
The tire swing in my backyard. I would go out there and swing for hours singing made up songs!
My dad made a wooden swing that hung from our willow tree…it was the best place to leave your cares behind. We invented a lot of ways to use the swing- it was so much fun!
My parents STILL live in the same house I grew up in, which is awesome! It always smelled good- can’t tell you specifically what that smell is/was- it’s just the smell of home!
I still live in the same city I grew up in and love to visit my childhood home and drive around the neighborhood and just remember!
I lived in a small town called Star City in the middle of nowhere in Indiana…my favorite thing about growing up in our home is that we lived in the middle of nowhere with neighbors 1-2-3 miles away. We were the ONLY house on the road…and the road was DIRT! Literally! Ok, there were a few rocks…but it made for a dusty road, and I loved playing outside and not worrying about cars or other vehicles. My parents still live in that house–and I hope that I will someday return to live in that house! I LOVE IT!
**Another quick story::: We have always called it the Hoover Homestead. I love that we made it ours by changing the rooms and the decor or the yard or even the buildings on it….but my fav thing that we did was name our property:)
One favorite memory of mine is having a big fat real pine christmas tree with those glass large bulb lights that had the fabric wire and when they got too hot they popped. Not safe at all – but oh the memories!!!
I think of that awesome shag carpeting that made the best grass for our toys!
One of my favorite childhood memories is of my grandmother telling me the story of Little Red Riding Hood – I never got tired of hearing it!
going on vacation with my Grandpa
I really look at my first home with happy memories! my 4 brothers & sisters, climbing up the fig tree and eating way to many figs at once, catching baby birds who would fall of the big tree in the middle of the back yard! our pet dogs! we had more than one! seeing the cows & horses from the fence! and let’s not forget the chiken coup! and dad’s pet crow, the fun fields to run in!
loved having two closets in my room and I remember when we put carpet in my room. Now I am trying to talk my step dad in to taking up the carpet and restoring the floors. They would be fabulous. He put down laminate instead. He said after was gone I could do whatever I wished to the darn floors.
The one thing that stands out in my mind about my childhood home is the fact that my parents always entertained.There was never a Sunday where there was not a visitor at our dinner table after church. Often old friends of my parents would stop by and my mom would make iced tea with mint leaves from her garden. Those were the days!!!!
My favorite childhood memories are of my grandmother quilting and baking tons of sweet stuff at Christmas. Another favorite is playing with Barbie dolls and playing school with my sister.
Definitely family. There was always tons of family around. Not just at the holidays, which were and are my favorite, but also every day. Looking back, I don’t know how we did it in such a small home, but we had so many people around.
Two things immediately came to mind when I think of my childhood home – extended family gathered at holidays and my best friend living around the corner.
I love that my parents still live in my childhood home. Even though they have remodeled it many times over, it still holds so many great memories. I love the brick hearth where we gathered for many pictures and hung our stockings. I also love how my name is still carved in the wall of my former closet.
I love that my parents still live in my childhood home. Even though they have remodeled it many times over, it still holds so many great memories. I love the brick hearth where we gathered for many pictures and hung our stockings. I also love how my name is still carved in the wall of my former closet.
My family home was very far out in the country (22 miles from the nearest small town) so I guess I would have to say my favorite memory as a child was coming into the house after doing the evening chores and smelling supper cooking. Our family always sat around the supper table and discussed various things, i.e. what happened that day, etc.
It is hard for me to pick out only one memory of my chilhood home to share, but one of my favorite memories is coming home from church on a snowy winter Sunday to the smell of wood burning in the fireplace & cooking Sunday dinner with my family. Classic!
We moved a lot when I was a kid, so I have lots of home and memories to choose from! One that really stands out in my mind is the year my grandparents came to visit us at Christmastime. Usually we went to their house, so it was so exciting to be able to show them my room and my school and stuff.
My yard seemed HUGE when I was a child. As an adult going back, it wasn’t all that. BUT my brother made the most amazing fort, and we were often allowed to have our dinner out there. My brother decorated with candles, and leis, and it was the neatest place EVER!
I loved the weeping cherry tree in the front yard. It was beautiful with blossoms in the spring and had a perfect crook in its branches to hide out and read books.
I loved the weeping cherry tree in the front yard. It was beautiful with blossoms in the spring and had a perfect crook in its branches to hide out and read books.
A cute memory of my childhood home was when I built a “playhouse” in the crawl space under the house. It was about 4′ high with a door that I decorated as an entrance.
Every Friday night riding in the back of dad’s tractor’s trailer full of grass clippings or leaves (depending on the time of year) with my brothers through the woods to go dump the trailer’s contents onto a GIANT pile of clippings. We’d hop out of the trailer and play in the pile until dad had emptied his trailer.
My favorite memories of home are outside. I loved that we could ride bike in the alley behind our home and up to grandma’s house. I love that we had a huge 5 bay garage to play in (and I still have stuff stored in the apartment above the garage.)
My fav. memories of home are simplye one of birthday parites, and family gatherings, of homemade goodness baked by my grandmother and of tradional and yummy dinners at home.
Thanks for this it really made me think and smile.
We had huge windows in our living room. I loved dancing and doing gymnastics at night in front of them and watching myself. It wasn’t until years later that I realized everyone in town could see what I was doing as well! (LOL)
My older brother and I had our own world in our backyard. We could be anything we wanted to be.
I remember thinking that our front door looked like a bird’s face.
I remember thinking that our front door looked like a bird’s face.
I always look back at my childhood and all the goofy things my brother and I did. It wasn’t always fun and games but most of the time we were best friends and we still are.
love this issue.
My fav childhood memory is probably Christmas. I had tons of wonderful Christmas’s in that house. One Christmas when I was like 10- 11 ( I think). I got this really cool Polly Pocket house thing. I was soooo excited.
Oh, I miss the swimming pool. So many days were spent splashing and sliding and jumping and making up stupid pool games with my cousins. Great times!
Making up games to play in the backyard, riding bikes with my friends, walking through the field from my house to the drug store for candy…all great memories of my childhood home!
A favorite memory of mine is sleigh riding on teh little bump of a hill on our front lawn… it wasnt really that big but when you little it seemed to be!
The big green table that mom would make us rolls and cookies on.
My favorite memories are of the old front porch that my father ended up closing in to make a larger front room. I loved the beadboard tongue and groove ceiling in that country shade of green. The porch was long and we used to “perform dancing recitals” there. Man, I miss that farmhouse. I miss Mom and Dad too. ^j^
I love that my parents still live in my childhood home, the home where my mom made birthday cakes and halloween costumes, and my dad played baseball with me and read to me, where my brother and I argued, made up, and played together too, and best of now those moments and more can happen with my children too.
My favorite memory, is that I bought my house as a young, single mother. That was 8 years ago, and I have loved every minute if making it a “home” for my family.
I have so many happy memories of my childhood home We rolled down the hill until we got dizzy, sledded, played ball in the yard and roller skated in the driveway. But as a kid, what impressed me the most was that my house was the first on the block and the house number was “one”. As a kid, it didn’t get any better than that. Guess I should get busy doing a layout about my childhood home.
I remember always sitting down at the table for dinner every night–both my parents and all my siblings would be there. And since we lived in the south we didn’t have to drink milk with dinner, but we always had ice tea. I love my mom’s ice tea!
I was a Navy brat, so I didn’t have one home. But I do remember wherever we lived, lots of kids running the neighborhood all day long. We swam during the day and played spotlight (flashlight tag) at night. Our neighborhoods were safe and full of kids. I wish my kids could have that!
Thank you!
We moved from my childhood home after my Dad died, but I still have fond memories of the wonderful holidays we spent with family around the table. Memories of the barn filled with straw and the fun we had playing softball in the yard or washing cars together. They may sound like chores, but they are always good if they are being completed surrounded by family.
I remember hiding from my mom in the front hall closet. I could see through the slats of the bifold doors, and I would laugh and laugh that she couldn’t find me… it took me a lot of years to figure out that she was pleased as punch to let me stay in there as long as my heart desired =).