Mail Stories - By Brian and Jacob

Last week my aunt, uncle and cousin came to visit from Minnesota. We don't get to see them very often, so it was a treat for us to be able to spend time with them during all of the 4th of July festivities. 

Birthday parties are kind of a big deal in our family and we don't often get to have a birthday party for my little cousin, Jacob. This year we decided to remedy that and throw one a month early while he was here.

During their visit, Brian and Jacob had a lot of fun making up creative stories together.  Jacob has a great imagination and Brian was happy to comply with his requests for "more stories!" and "then what happens?!". When we started brainstorming what to give Jacob for his 8th birthday, Brian had a brilliant idea inspired by the fun they had story telling.  

We started with a small lined journal that would fit easily in an envelope.  I stamped the cover with the title "Mail Stories" and with the authors names (Brian and Jacob).  Brian began by writing the beginning of a story onto the front page of the journal. The idea is that Jacob will write the next part of the story and then send it back to Brian to continue..and so on (with an illustration or two by yours truly). We also added a pile of envelopes and book of stamps. 

Jacob seemed SO excited about his gift - it's such a simple concept with simple materials, but what fun to be able to write a story with a friend AND get fun mail on a regular basis. I can't wait to see how the project turns out! (and, of course, what happens to "Smoth") :)

('till next time, Jacob. We miss you already!)