Happy Fourth of July!!!

Every Fourth of July, we travel to my sister-in-law's house at the lake. All of my husband's family joins us and it's such an awesome little getaway! My sister-in-law is the queen of party planning, so we always have different themed nights and lots of yummy foods! The kids run and play and there's lot of fun out on the boat. Last year it rained like crazy, so we are hoping for nicer "lake" weather this year!

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The kids don't usually have too much down time, but I always like to pack a few activities for them to have incase anyone really needs some quiet time (like momma!!).

Last year, I put together a few books for the kids to draw, write, paint in and they loved them, so I thought I would do something similar this year!

I used the papers and embellishments from the July Gossamer Blue Themed Add-On to make these super simple paper albums. The books are 4x4 inches, include several pieces of patterned paper and a piece of printer paper and are sewn together down the middle.

I used two sheets of 12x12 paper and two sheets of printer paper to make these four books shown here.

To make these books:

Trim your patterned paper into 4x8 inch strips

Score each paper down the middle at 4 inches

Stack your papers together

Sew or staple where your score marks are

I used the Heidi Swapp Epoxy stickers that are included in the Themed Add-On to add a title to the front of each mini book. I kept the inside super simple since I know the kids will enjoy filling them in with pictures and drawings.

I'm taking a few embellishments, stickers and wood veneer along with us, and packed it all into a paper bag. I'm also taking along my Instax camera so we can snap some photos and add them into the books! I can't wait to see how each one decorates their own book!