My oldest son, Calum, a week ago, moved off to college. Sigh.
I know other people understand what that feels like. I am absolutely, from my heart, so happy for him and I know that he will do great things. I am the person I am worried about. I miss him. I liked having him around. I was his mom, he gave me a value to my being that I never thought possible.
Not only that, but all of my parenting skills suddenly have come into question — “what if I didn’t say (fill in the blank)?”
The (Short) List of Life Rules
Here’s a (short) list of things I did tell him…
- Do your best
- Just as in high school, your grades won’t be important once you’re done
- It’s okay to change your mind — you can do whatever you want to do
- Be thoughtful of your roommate
Another (Short) List of Life Rules
- If you go to a drinking party, don’t drink anywhere but on the first floor
- Nothing ever good happens when someone says, “here, hold my beer”
- Don’t leave your drink unattended
- Don’t ever pee off the side of the Grand Canyon
As he got ready to leave, I knew that he had recently started journaling. I think this is SO GREAT for him to do so. It provides him a great way to capture his thoughts during a new transition in his life (AND it gave me a way to be creative with his going away gift).
Traveler’s Notebook Cover
This is the Traveler’s Notebook I made for Cal. I tried to make it as bare bones and masculine as I could.
It is constructed of the following materials:
- Chip board (aka Cocoa Puffs cereal box)
- Two sheets of scrapbook paper
- Fusible webbing lined batik fabric
- Bookmaker’s twine
- Repurposed gift bag handle ribbon
- 3 handmade TN inserts
The entire notebook is handmade. I know that most people use elastic for the insert holders and that they try to “hide” it in the way they wrap it, but I really like the added texture to the outside of the cover. I think it makes the book more rustic and masculine with the added element of being hand made. After all, if I would have wanted it to look like a store-bought journal, I would have just bought one.
I tried to make it as generic as possible as I wanted Cal to really make it his own place for memories. That being said, I took 45 minutes the night before we moved him to school to write down some of my thoughts. I put this letter and a few photos of his brothers in, just in case he needed to see home.
Cal’s Journal Flip-through
Here’s a quick rundown of his journal. It really is very basic, but again, I want him to make it his own and add experiences that he sees fit. What a cool way to document your life but in a personal way such as this.
How to Make a Traveler’s Notebook Cover
The cover is made from a cereal box, scrapbook paper and a fusible webbing lined batik fabric. I used bookmaker’s twine to hold the inserts in. I repurposed a woven ribbon from a gift bag for the closure. The video below is NOT the same journal cover I made for Cal, but the process is extremely similar. I would recommend you watch the video to see how I did it.