Glorious isn't a word I use a great deal, but it does a perfect job of describing my family's time together Easter afternoon. After church and lunch, we took a blanket outside and sat under a shade tree. That doesn't sound so special, but I can't remember the last time we did anything similar to that. But like the commercial says, having a baby (in the family) changes everything!

Grandson Andrew, now 10 months old, was the center of our attention. We watched every move, and photographed them as well. Much of the time, he had at least three cameras focused on him, and sometimes four. (One of my favorite pictures of the day shows Stacey, Allison, and I all taking pictures of him at the same time!)

Easter has been my least favorite holiday ever since my dad died unexpectedly, in his sleep, on Easter morning, 1999. With each passing year, we've drooped through the day, without much joy. Easter 2006 was the first time I can remember being happy, and it was all because of Andrew.

I have some great memories of the day...my sister Karin running around the yard, trying to fly a kite in high heels...daughters Stacey and Allison entertaining Andrew with bubbles...Andrew clapping and waving on cue...my mother, who her whole life has cringed if one hair gets out of place, playing with Andrew while her hair blew every direction, leaning over him and laughing and smiling, looking like a young girl again.

We captured all these moments on film, and I know that many scrapbook pages will be made from this glorious day. All five of us scrapbook -- my mother, my sister, my two daughters, and I -- and we each have our own style. We'll make some beautiful pages, but none of them will be the same. That's what is great about this hobby.

When I was back home by myself, I did find myself reflecting on family that wasn't there with us, sitting on a blanket under a shade tree, and reveling in the newest member of the group. My dad isn't around to see his great-grandchild. My grandparents are gone, too. How I would have loved for them all to be there.

When I was a young mom, I don't think I was aware of anything beyond that moment. Now, as a grandmother, I feel like I'm living in three dimensions -- past, present, and future. I'm almost always conscious of how fleeting is our time together, and that the moment we are experiencing will never come again. That's why scrapbooking is so important to me. I feel the need (and the privilege) to unite the generations who will never know each other except through the albums we create.

Today's excitement at Scrapbook Generation:
New arrivals...
-- Junkitz: three groups of paper, in a different style than their past offerings;
-- Reminisce: a huge selection of paper, cardstock stickers, and epoxy stickers for the following themes -- general travel, Las Vegas, graduation, wedding, Kid Crossing (trains), circus, 2006, twins, birthday boy, birthday girl, zoo, dogs, farm, park, retirement, doctor visit, tooth fairy, ages 1-9, Genuine Girl, boy, grandparents, sister, son, daughter, dad, mom, brother, and cousins.