When Life Gives You Lemons

Yesterday, DD8 and a friend decided to get secretly creative in the kitchen and make lemonade -- with real (read: expensive) lemons, using the electric juicer. Now, this did not please me for a number of reasons, not the least of which being the mess and "waste." DD heard me descending the stairs and tried to catch me with a confession before I witnessed the work in progress. With a nervous smile she announced, "We're making lemonade!"

"With what?" I (foolishly) asked.

"(Pause) Lemons."

"How many lemons?"

"Just three." (Worried smile.) Three of the four lemons that had a designated purpose.

I didn't get angry, but it was clear that I was less than impressed as I shooed them outside reminding them that they need permission to do things like that, etc., etc.

I tasted their concoction and realized why it had yet to be drunk. ;-P

Then it sunk in that I had a choice: I could let my daughter and her friend feel guilty that they'd done something they shouldn't have, and dwell on my displeasure; or, I could just make lemonade. After all there was nothing else to do with the mixture they'd created. So, I decided to go for this:

I called them into the house and sent them into the backyard, where their mouths dropped at the sight of this:

They were beside themselves with amazement at how "beautiful" it all was and how "special" it made them feel, and bubbled over with sweet words of gratitude. I didn't get permission to post a pic of DD's friend, but here is my little Starlight exclaiming over the loveliness of it all:

Wow! I'm so glad I made the choice I did! It took two minutes of effort on my part, but it made a world of difference to two little girls who thought they were in trouble. And it sure brought about a change in my own attitude. If only I took those few seconds to think through my reactions ALL the time!

Is there a time when you've had a choice in your reaction, and you've chosen the more creative, life-giving reaction than the natural, critical one? (Well, "critical" seems to be the default reaction for me, anyway!) Please leave a comment and tell me about it.

Or -- just leave any comment so I know you've been here:)

Fibonacci Art

I mentioned that we've been listening to Jonathan Park CDs -- and we've been learning lots. One of the things that I don't remember ever learning about before was Fibonacci numbers. As Wikipedia explains, "By definition, the first two Fibonacci numbers are 0 and 1, and each remaining number is the sum of the previous two. Some sources omit the initial 0, instead beginning the sequence with two 1s." So, the sequence of numbers begins 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13 . . . .

The cool thing is that this sequence of numbers creates design patterns, including what is referred to as "The Golden Spiral" and "The Golden Rectangle." I find myself fascinated by this, though I would not describe myself as mathematically inclined! LOL! What I find most amazing is how these patterns are reflected in nature -- from the  number of seeds in a sunflower, to the shape of a ram's horn, to the swirl of a storm cloud, to the design of a shell -- the list is long and lovely. To me this speaks volumes of a Divine Creator, a Master Artist. Such designs are not random; they are carefully crafted. I just think that's so awesome!

So, yesterday I tried my hand at conveying some of the beauty in this sequence of numbers. My work is simple and just barely scratches the surface of the study one could do of Fibonacci numbers. (A simple google search will reveal just how much there is to learn!) My hope is that you will be inspired to explore this amazing feature of creation yourself, and see the handiwork of a loving Creator.

Using boxes the sizes of the number sequence (ex. 1x1, 2x2, 3x3 . . .), I created a "Golden Rectangle" (13x21). I coloured in each box with water colour pencils, and then applied water and a Sharpie border. Then I used a Sharpie to create the "Golden Spiral" within the rectangle. I wanted to emphasize the numbers associated with the boxes (hence all the numbers). It all looked a little too plain for me (still does!), so I added some images of examples of the "Golden Spiral" in nature. DS11 would especially appreciate the fiddlehead (not!).

One of the websites I visited pointed to some of the flowers that reflect the Fibonacci sequence. I thought that was really neat, so I created another "Golden Rectangle" with the images of flowers whose number of petals fit into the sequence.

I'm just amazed at the lack of randomness these little bits of creation exhibit! Is there anything that you've learned or discovered that just says, "There IS a God!" to you?

A Few More Portraits

Listening to audio lessons instead of me reading aloud in the afternoons has freed up my hands to do some drawing. (And it sure makes the CED challenge easier to meet.) So, while we learned about the differences between micro and macro evolution today, I worked on some more lessons from Usborne's Drawing Faces:

It's amazing what a little instruction does to improve one's work. I like this profile much better than the ones I did in this Art Reading Response post.  

Meanwhile, DD8 ran around this morning leaving creative little notes like this for everyone:

You'll have to excuse me now -- DS3 wants to do some "maph" together, so we're counting colours of linking cubes while making these formidable swords:

Copy Cat Art

Since I've been lamenting my deficiencies, yesterday I decided to spend a little while in the art room upgrading my portrait drawing skills. After all, we have plenty of art resources to which I can refer for instructions. So, I started with this book:

My intent was to study proportion and shape for realistic portraits. However, before I even opened the book, my eye was caught by the tissue paper woman with the orange hair. I thought she looked fun and simple enough to make. So, without looking at the instructions, I went to town in my art journal with these supplies:

Here is the result:

She was harder to create than I had anticipated (sticky tissue paper is rather delicate!), but it was fun seeing her take shape. The word "wonder" is a scrap of vellum I found on the floor when I entered the art room (DD12 had been doing some mysterious creating the day before -- I wonder what that was all about! ;-), and I stuck a piece of leopard tape at the top just because I thought it was fun and quirky like my lady.

Of course, if I set out to do something artsy, I'm usually joined by fellow artists. So, while I was making my lady, DD8 and a friend took some of these:

And did this:

She'd seen the idea on Art Attack, and had been dying to try it. Methinks they used a little too much paint and rolled the marbles a tad too long (because the colours completely blended -- not exactly the original idea of the project) -- but they had a blast, repeating the project a few times. I was really proud of myself for not jumping in and giving all kinds of artistic advice about how they could make their project better (in my not-so-humble opinion); I just let their creative juices flow. Besides, I was there to do my own project. AND -- I didn't complain (too much) about the mess.

By this time, DS3 had joined us, asking if he could do a "pojec," too, so they all moved on to creating with clay (far less messy!):

I moved on to trying the lesson that taught how to draw this woman (also pictured on the front cover of the book above):

Here is a photo of my initial drawing (before shading). I was afraid I might wreck it with my shading, so I wanted to make sure I had a record of it before I started! I should have scanned it instead of taking a photo, so I apologize for the poor quality:

I didn't capture the Asian quality at all, and the facial shape is all wrong in relation to the original -- but I see a tremendous improvement over other attempts when I was just "winging" it.

Then I followed the instructions for the shading, with these results:

I have lots to learn, and look forward to playing with portrait drawing some more.

I know there are different opinions about "copy cat art" -- but I have found it quite useful to learn by imitating. After all, as we observed with DD8's copying of the Art Attack project, often our own creativity takes over and something new and unique is produced.

What do you think -- should we learn how to create art by imitating other artists, or, if we want to learn how to do something, should we use generic instructions and directions and apply them to our own imaginative pieces? Does it matter? Is anything lost by imitation?

Seriously -- I'm interested in your comments!

Just one more thing . . .

While we were creating the above, DH was doing some masterful work of his own! I don't have any "before" pics, but here is the foot stool (acquired via freecycle) that he re-covered. (Yes, he copied the pattern of the original covering, sewed it, and everything!):

Sweet, eh?!?!? Did you notice that the upholstery nails match the ones on the club chairs in the background? ;-) That's my beloved!

Video success (sort of!)

I finally figured out how to post videos to my blog, though I have yet to figure out how to manipulate them within the post. But if you'd like to see cutie petutie DD8 (I'm not biased;) doing some "sensory spelling" on the driveway, go back to my Loving Learning post. It's at the bottom of that post : )

Doodle Art

Yesterday, my DD8 needed some "tomato staking" (aka "time-in" with a parent) -- or "steak and tomatoes," as she calls it;) But instead of just keeping the miserable soul at my side while going about my business, I decided we would break out some new "Blendy Paints" she got for her birthday and spend some chill time together. Wow! What a transformation! She just about went out of her skin at the mere mention of the idea! So, my girl (who generally can't sit still for more than five minutes at a time) and I sat for a good hour colouring pictures that reminded me of the "Doodle Art" I remember from my own childhood -- except these had secret designs that were revealed when the colour was applied. Her attention span exceeded mine this time; every time I finished one and suggested I might try something else, she'd say, "Oh, aren't you going to do another one?"

Here is one of hers:

And one of mine:

Clearly, a little creativity goes a long way! My happy girl is back!

Afterwards she said, "Mom, you know what? I needed this time with just me and you -- you know, girl time! Thank you for doing Blendy Paints with me!"

If only we always had such affirmation of our parenting decisions ;)

I sing for joy

A couple of weeks ago, our pastor read a passage of scripture during the service and  one verse has stuck with me since: "I sing under the shadow of your wings" (Psalm 63:7 NIV). When I looked it up, I discovered that I liked the NLT version even better: "I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings." I knew as soon as I heard the verse that I'd like to visually represent it, so in the spirit of CED, yesterday I tried . . .

I didn't really know how to convey the majesty of the wings of God, so I left that part for last, and it suddenly occurred to me that the shadow of the cross also looks a bit like the shadow of wings. I like that mixed metaphor. However, I don't like the fact that it almost looks like she's on the cross herself -- that was not my intent at all. Also, at the risk of sounding self-deprecating, I need to learn how to draw faces -- and bodies for that matter! LOL

I wasn't quite satisfied with the above attempt, though, so I tried again today:

Of course, the same issues apply, but it was fun to explore the same verse with some variation in images. And it felt really good to just be creative.

Again I wonder -- what are some other ways you and I might respond to scripture in creative ways? Repeatedly, I find myself drawn to visual responses. The CED challenge theme for April is the senses, and it sure has made me aware of how significant vision is to me. I really should challenge myself to try responding with some other sense. I might surprise myself.

The Blessing Meal

It's been a busy few days, but I did not forget that in my last post I promised to write about our "Blessing Meal." So, here I am to do so.

A number of years ago, I read a book called The Family Meal Table by Nancy Campbell from Above Rubies.  She encouraged a number of ways to be creative at family meal time, one of which was to establish a tradition like Shabbat. For our family, it has become what we call "The Blessing Meal" (so named by our oldest DS because of the blessing of the children, which I'll describe later). In essence, it has become a family time of celebrating the Eucharist (also known as Communion) -- a time of remembering our Creator and Redeemer, and the power of His blood and risen body using historical and familial symbols. It has been a wonderful teaching tool about the tenets of our faith; and it has provided lots of opportunities for sweet memory-making.

We start by setting the table -- usually all in white to symbolize a bridal feast, at which we are "the bride of Christ."

My children like to add little decorative touches, so this week we have some swans and golden geese that actually house salt and pepper. (The lady at the bazaar thought I was bizarre for actually buying them!) The chunky red goblets were also selected by DD8 instead of the usual crystal. And the everyday cutlery won over the silver for ease of access -- but we usually go all out. That's our good china -- a large plate for the main meal, a smaller plate for the bread, and a small ramekin for the oil.

We begin the meal by having Mom (that'd be me) light the two white candles, one representing Christ as the Creator, the other Christ as the Redeemer, and then pray. This is followed by a hand-washing ceremony in which we pass around a bowl of soapy water (sometimes with a bit of lavender oil, just for good measure;) and sing, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me . . ."

After hands are clean and dry, we do a "heart check" and ask forgiveness for anything we have done to wrong one another in recent days. Sometimes this is a bit of a bust ("Nothing to confess; I'm good"); other times, it's quite moving to hear family members work at restoring relationships that have been marred by hurtful words and actions.  

Next, Dad lifts the white cloth from the bread, which we've heard is also referred to as the talia, or "dew from heaven," and reminds everyone of the manna that appeared to the Israelites with the dew while they were in the wilderness (demonstrating God's provisions).  Then he holds the challah (braided egg bread -- which we usually make with the help of our breadmaker) and draws out from the children the significance of the three strands in the bread: representing the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Next, DH proceeds with the breaking of the bread, reminding everyone of Jesus's association of his broken body with the broken bread using the scripture, "This is my body, which is given for you: do this in remembrance of Me" (Luke 22:19). He also explores the significance of the herbed oil and vinegar into which we dip our bread. The children describe how Jesus was offered a vinegar-like drink on the cross, and then the women brought oil and spices to annoint his body after he was buried, only to find the tomb empty because He'd risen. One of the children then leads in an echo prayer, "Blessed are You, Lord God, King of the Universe, who sent forth the bread from the earth."

While we begin nibbling on the bread and oil, DH leads a discussion of the significance of the red juice/wine as a symbol of Christ's blood using the verse, "This is my blood of the new testament (covenant), which is shed for many for the remission of sins" (Matthew 26:27).

Then another child leads the echo prayer, "Blessed are You, Lord God, King of the Universe, who sent forth the fruit from the vine."

Once this little ceremony is done, we enjoy a special dinner -- usually a roast with mashed potatoes, gravy, occasionally Yorkshire puddings, and vegetables. We make an afternoon of the preparations, with everyone pitching in to help peel vegetables, load the breadmaker with ingredients, braid and glaze the bread, and set the table. (I like to call it "life skills" lessons.) We dine by candlelight, sometimes with appropriate dinner music, and DH often inspires thoughtful conversation with a story or question, such as "What makes you feel loved?" or "What are some strengths that you see in each member of our family?"

At the end of the meal comes the blessing part. Daddy calls each child to him individually and prays over them, then marks them with the sign of the cross. Conversation and bustle goes on around them, so this becomes a whispered few moments between just father and child.

As our lives get busier with a growing family, it's sometimes difficult to carve out time for traditions like our Blessing Meal. And yet, we've come to realize what a powerful instrument it is for creating a sense of belonging, not only in our nuclear family, but in the family of God. In addition to relishing that special family time, when the elements are passed around at church, our children know what we're doing and why, resulting in excited anticipation of "community time" (as DD8 calls it) with the congregation.

I've shared this family tradition with you because it has made me realize how powerful such things can be in the lives of our children, as well as in our own lives. (I can't tell you how many times I've been moved to tears by the awesomeness of that special time!) And my hope is to inspire you to think about how you might take a meal and create a memory for your family. Perhaps that event will become a cherished tradition for you!

Or perhaps you already have a special tradition that unifies your family in some special way. Would you tell me about it by leaving a comment below or by emailing me? I'd love to hear your story!

Good help is . . .

. . . getting EASIER to find! (All the training is paying off :)

My oldest three children finished their cleaning jobs before I did this morning (the youngest was napping), so they decided to get creative in the kitchen. DD12 got started on grilled cheese for lunch (for the third time this week, actually!) while DS11 and DD8 started peeling carrots and potatoes for our "Blessing Meal" tonight (more about that in another post)  -- all without being asked.  How awesome is that?!?!? Even more of a blessing to me was the fact that DS11 and DD8 both commented on how much they were enjoying working together. Sigh. Makes a mother's heart swell with joy! (Maybe they were listening when we read Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends in the fall. It's a great book, BTW, written by three young siblings around the ages of my children.)

Please ignore the messy kitchen (an open cupboard -- oh no! Sorry DH!;) . . .

On another note, during devotions this morning, DS11 got creative with some math manipulatives and asked me to take some pictures of his creations:

There -- now they're saved for posterity -- and can be put away:)

Art Reading Responses

One of the ideas suggested in Authentic Parenting in a Post-Modern Culture, which I wrote about in my first post, is to respond to scripture with art. So, since we have those art journals I created for our Art Fair, I decided that during our morning devotions today, we would each take some time to respond artistically to the passage -- at least visually artistically. (See this post at Creative Every Day to see why I make the "visually" artistic distinction.)

Of course, my three-year-old is too young to get it, but here is what the rest of us did with a basket of markers in response to Proverbs 18:

Something in the passage made DD8 think about Jesus dying on the cross and being put in the tomb. It might have been our discussion of verse 24: "And there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother" (Yes, I like the KJV:)  because we did end up talking about Jesus in relation to it.

DS11 responded to something that struck him funny.( Imagine!) I was tempted to be perturbed that he wasn't taking it seriously -- but then I'd have been judging his response, which would have been ever so wrong -- right?!?!? Anyway, he found it amusing to imagine verse 17: "He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him." The guy on the left is coming to search his neighbour with a magnifying glass! The big head at the top is what he sees upon close inspection:)

DD12 responded to verse 12: "Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility."The colours on the bottom represent people who begin with humilty (humble, muted colours like brown and green) and are elevated (or honoured) to the bright, "poppy" colours. The bold colours on the top represent the haughty folk who are ultimately destroyed, as evidenced by the breaking apart of the checkers. Personally, I'm impressed:)

The verse that struck a chord with me was 21: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." Convicting simply as a person -- but even more so as a parent. Shame on me for the times my tongue has not been tamed to speak in love and gentleness, but rather in anger or harshness. No matter how often I seek forgiveness, the holes are still in the fence, so to speak. (If you're not familiar with the analogy -- imagine our ugly words as nails driven into a fence, which is another person's life. We can remove the nails by seeking forgiveness, but the holes remain as a permanent scar.)

Have you ever tried responding to scripture with art? I don't think I ever have before; but I really enjoyed it (though I confess I lamented my lack of portrait drawing skills). I imagine my DD8 would prefer to respond with dance or some sort of creative movement, although she does love creating visual art, too. What would be your preferred artistic response? Drama? Instrumental music? Song? Poetry? Pottery?

Are you an artist?

Last night I had the luxury of one and a half hours to sit, quietly, while my youngest children enjoyed their Awana program. I wasn't sure if I'd have the pleasure of my friend Susie's company, so I brought along some art supplies so I could be productive whether I was alone or enjoying a chat with her. (Alas, she had errands to run; I missed her -- but I know we all need to use our time wisely;) My youngest daughter had recently purchased some new water colour crayons -- a medium I'd never heard of before -- and I was anxious to try them because, well, they looked pretty fun!

So, while I was creating this altered page tangle,

several people who passed by (and it really wasn't a high traffic spot!) stopped and asked, "Are you an artist?"

Now, given the the origin of this blog, and the convictions I have about us all being artists of one sort or another, you'd think I'd have been able to respond with a confident "Yes" -- or at least a "Well, I'm starting to view myself as one." But my feeble response was, "Oh, no -- I'm just playing with some art stuff that belongs to my daughter!" Then, the conversation moved more comfortably to the tools rather than my work.

Why is that? Maybe it's a confidence thing. Maybe I just haven't thought of myself as an artist long enough. Maybe I've just never had that face-to-face interaction about my art work with strangers. (The reality is, I haven't.) Or maybe, while I'm getting comfortable thinking of myself as an artist, I'm not used to other people viewing me as an artist. Weird, eh? What's the stumbling block? Have you ever experienced such a conundrum in your creative journey?

Anyway -- the water colour crayons were pretty cool. I think I like them better than water colour pencils because they're more intense, though it's harder to do fine details. Have you ever tried them? Got any good project ideas to use them? Leave a comment or email me with your suggestions:)

Loving Learning

We awoke to a beautiful, sunshiny day this morning, and I decided it was time to do some creative learning outdoors with my youngest daughter, who feels most comfortable moving and making noise outside anyway.

First, though, she had to spend some time with the bunnies. She couldn't quite understand why I didn't want her to drink any more of her tea after she'd let them lick the spoon -- even though she'd let them lick the handle end of the spoon while she used the other end :)

Once we were outside, we did some math --

And some spelling . . . I took a little video of her hopping to spell out words, but I can't figure out how to upload it! :(

Wait -- I managed to put it at the bottom of this post. I'll have to learn how to manipulate video in here!

Some copy work:

Some reading on the porch, with "The Beast" (aka "Prince Caspian") listening nearby --

And some impromptu science, in which she was trying to determine why one wheel on her bike spun on its own for longer than another. ("And how does that wheel spin by itself, anyway??") In the spirit of creativity, I decided to try capturing the moment in the reflection of the van --

My little one said it was soooooooo much fun doing her independent work this way -- and wonders if we can do it again tomorrow:)

Are there any fun ways that your children learn important stuff?

Drawn by Moonbeam

I mentioned that my daughter has started creating her own anime characters. Well, she's also decided to start her own blog, so perhaps I'll send you over there to see them  . . . Drawn by Moonbeam. I'm sure she loves comments as much as I do, should you feel so inclined to visit: )

Tickled -- and CED update

First of all, call me silly, but it just tickles me to know that people from all over the world are visiting here. I get notices from my counter every time there's a new visitor (no, it's not annoying yet:), and I'm being introduced to places I've never heard of before -- so it's a kinda cool learning tool for me! (There ya go -- a creative learning opportunity!) And to think that I can share a bit of my world with someone from France or Uruguay -- that's just so awesome. (What would be even more awesome is if some were to leave loving comments -- then I could be like Sally Fields and claim (to myself, not the world), "They like me! They really, really like me!" I tend to think the worst of silence. But this blog is not about my foolish insecurities, so let's get back to talking about creativity, shall we?!?!? ;)

When I signed up for CED, it was never my intent to post daily, or stress over whether or not I'd been creative any given day. But I committed to looking for more creative opportunities, and to documenting them here because, well, that's what this blog is all about :) So, to encourage you and perhaps give you some ideas of how to fulfill that part of you that is created to be creative, I thought I'd just list some of the things that my family and I have been doing to be creative every day. Perhaps, also, the list will help you to see evidence of the creativity that already exists in your life -- every day stuff that will make you say, "Hey, maybe I AM creative!" (Some are repeats of recent previous posts. Check my blog archive if you want to see what you've missed -- I won't take the time to make links to them right now -- but if that's something you appreciate, leave a comment and I'll do it in the future.):

• I've been working more at reading aloud in a creative way by employing different voices for different characters. Books that have lent themselves well this week have been The Gruffalo and Brian Jaques' Redwall series. Funny -- my children have been asking a lot for those books to be read to them ;)
• I've been writing. (Book reviews and blog posts:)
• I've been working on my altered book challenge.
• I've been trying different ways to study academic topics. One of my friends lent us some Jonathan Park Radio Drama CDs and we've been enjoying learning some creation science that way.
• My 12 yo dd  has been creating her own anime characters. I have her permission to post some here, so I will do that soon.
• My 12 yo dd just made falafel -- so this post will not be much longer ;)
• My sons and 8 yo daughter have spent considerable time creating an assortment of swords and daggers using linking cubes (intended as math manipulatives;); they've also made themselves sheathes with belts.
• 8 yo dd has been writing love notes to Mom and Dad.
• 8 yo dd received some ceramic pieces for painting. She painted them and chose to bless a friend with them rather than keep them for herself.
• My husband has been shopping the grocery fliers, so I have been preparing meals with what we have rather than making lists of what I want. This week we were low on rice, so I "got creative" and supplemented it with barley. Not bad -- though I think we all still prefer straight rice:) Got any creative uses for diced tomatoes? We seem to be well stocked with those:)
• I used my calligraphy skills (learned in high school) for some invitations rather than printing them on the computer.
• 11 yo ds has been using his free time playing in imaginary worlds with his knights. The sound effects are the primary evidence of the incredible drama being played out in his head.
• I've been trying to take pictures from more varied angles, like this one of some of our baby rabbits:

That's all that comes to mind right now. How about you? What creative things have you been up to? (Seriously -- these are not rhetorical questions. I want to hear from you. I love hearing other people's ideas for creative living! If you'd rather email me, try the new address at the top of my blog page :)

My latest altered books

So, the other night when I introduced you to the Create Every Day challenge (see button on sidebar), I mentioned that I was off to work on the April challenge for the altered book yahoo group I'm in. The prompt was simply: feather. Here is my response:

The painting was inspired by an evening drive a few weeks ago when I saw an open field, the silouette of a single tree covered in birds, and a beautiful red sky with streaks of gray.

When I connected it to the feather prompt (cuz feathers make me think of birds:), I immediately thought of the contrast between what it seemed to be (a tree with a bunch of black birds) and what it MIGHT be (a tree with a bunch of WHITE birds). So often things are not what they seem, don't you find? And things are not always as black and white as they seem. (Finally found a use for the zebra tape! :) Sometimes those dark nights in life are golden opportunities, with rich, red sunsets. We might see darkness, but behind the darkness is sometimes something wonderful.

Anyway, that's the story behind my response to this month's challenge. I tried to keep it simple -- and I sure had fun! (Well, except when I got a dab of glue on my dried sky, and the paint came off when I wiped it, and I had to get all the paints out to try to fix it, and I was afraid I'd wrecked it . . .)

As I was working on the above project, I realized that I had never photgraphed the journal I made from an old encyclopedia:

Isn't that cover lovely? I did nothing to it -- just kept its original beauty:)

I rather liked the inside cover pages, too. (I'm sure there's a more technical name, but I don't know what it is. Do you?)

I simply removed the covers from the spine and bound pages, then glued the edges down for a finished look. I had hoped to Cerlox bind the actual covers, but they were too thick, so I had to add cardboard extensions. I interspersed a couple of pages from the encyclopedia -- just for fun :) The rest are just blank, white pages with a couple of red cardstock ones thrown in for good measure.

Any thoughts on how I could use this journal?