So my dad’s text messages wend their way to me from the Southern Hemisphere and I plaster them – band aid like – across my heart. It’s been two months since we were with them and already the photos we’ve printed and plastered across the boys’ bedroom walls are wrinkled from all the telling and re-telling of the story of home.

Micah sleeps with photos of meerkats under his pillow.

We dream of South Africa.

Nando’s chicken, melktert and the smell of a highveld fire in winter.

We walk our earmarked memories.

And wonder if perhaps you too would like a pocket-sized travel journey for recording your walkabouts.

travel journal pages

Because the incredibly creative Katie from Gadanke has just such individual, memory logs each hand crafted and available for you.

I love how her love for journaling was born:

I started wondering about all of the other women who have stories deep inside of them, and I started thinking about how my tendency to just listen and ask could help put those stories onto paper.  Gadanke was born with fabulous writing prompts and recycled papers.  I feel so lucky to be living my dream and celebrating stories.

I am a lover of stories. And if carrying around this handmade journal helps you stop and capture yours with even just five minutes of writing here and there, that would make both me and Katie very happy.

She sent this travel journal home with me to South Africa.

It traveled alongside my passport. They’re about the same size – pocket friendly. And at only $17.00 they’re a steal for a personalized place to record your memories.

I love to flip through the pages of how others have used their Gadanke journals – whether they’re for travel, love, doodle, or prayer – they are each exquisitely personal.

She even has ones just made up of silly lists – putting a spin on anyone’s ordinary to-dos.

And she’s offering them to Gypsy Mama readers at a lovely discount – just enter GYPSY10 from now through the end of the week and received 10% off your order.

I rarely do any kind of reviews over here – but I travel and any way I can find to capture memories in the moment is something worth sharing.

And if you do snag yourself a Gadanke journal – please tell me – I’m snoopy like that and would love to know what makes you want to stop and just write.