Grow into Your True Selves while on the Path of Positivity

 I made a card today for the Path ofPositivity midway challenge reminder. The theme is Growth. Looking back on the last 29 years, I remember using a ruler and marker (as my dad used to do with my sisters and me) to chart my son’s and daughter’s growth throughout the years. I stopped when they grew to full height.
Luckily, that growth chart is not the only method used for marking time and growth in their lives. My many scrapbook albums keep a record of changes in their appearance, as well as milestones in their emotional, intellectual and spiritual growth. Another way I’ve charted their personal growth is through artwork, letters and award certificates, neatly kept in one of their elementary school backpacks for each child.
I know, it’s difficult to imagine the 8-12 years of saved (and very precious) creations and honors made and earned by a child, crammed into the restricted depths of a single backpack. However, if you were to give it to them before they really need to remember their childhood, what exactly would they want with a stick-figure drawing of the family, or an honorable mention for a poem they wrote? It would go into the “circular file” without a second thought. Why? Because it doesn't have the same emotional attachment that a parent gives it.
So I pare down what I keep. If something is too close to my heart to keep in its original form, I take a photo of it (especially all those 3D masterpieces) and add it to that year’s folder. Each of my kids has a backpack waiting for them to discover and reminisce over, and possibly show their own kids how it was “back in the old days.”

My card today uses an image from the Gumball Wishes set from this month's sponsor, Sparkle & Sprinkle. The set comes with colored and uncolored images of the gumball machine and gumballs.  It also comes with several sentiments. I used the colored image on my card, and coordinated the patterned paper, cardstock and ribbons with the image's colors. I also doodled with colored and white gel pens, and cut out a piece of transparency paper to pop onto the gumball dish to help it look like glass.
How does my card reflect what I’ve just written? Growth is accomplished by change and change occurs over time, and like gum balls, sometimes life can become sticky. Too, if you put in your quarter (talk about the old days-it used to be a penny), you would expect a fresh gumball bursting with flavor as you bite into it. Without change, those gumballs would feel like jaw breakers and taste nasty! So, in a round-about way, the Sparkle n Sprinkle digi image I used points me in the direction of Growth. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it! LOL 
 Come join us on the Path of Positivity with its new monthly theme of GROWTH. Sparkle N Sprinkle is the sole sponsor for the main prizes of this challenge.  They are offering up two prizes for this challenge, which will be:

• $15.00 worth of digital images for the post or project that the DT deems most inspiring of the bunch.
• $15.00 worth of  digital images for a person chosen in a random draw based on all entrants.

There will also  be:

• One digital image from Creative Bug Digital Stamps for each person chosen as a DT Delight.
• One digital designer paper (made to order in a few different ways) from Décosse's Dynamite Doodles for one lucky voter who leaves a comment.
• One digital sentiment for every single person who enters the challenge

Challenges I am Entering:

Crafting by Designs - Anything Goes

Creative Fingers challenges - Anything Goes