This is one portion of our walk - along a boardwalk. We have a conversation with Ginger every morning about the bird activity along this stretch. I've captured snippets of the conversation above the stitched panorama. Plan to photograph this with a DSLR and stitch together more seamlessly.

I would then add this as a fold out to the mini album.

Anne asked whether I had little ones with which to share this project. I think the "little one" is Ginger. Have begun to realize that I treat her like a toddler. With two grown sons (almost 24 and 20), I don't have any small children, so Ginger gets to be mothered. ;-)

My map project has become a mini book. The printed map is contained in a kraft envelope. I have wood embossed cardstock for my cover (haven't made the back cover yet). I would like to use a Chicago screw post to hold the book together (found source, need to purchase) rather than the leather. I will continue to create the photo pages with journaling. I'd also like to be able to add pages in the future - photos of wildlife, etc. Size is 4 1/4" wide by 5 1/2" tall.

Next steps - finish the journaling for the numbered points on the map; take additional photos; send photos (with Instagram filter??) to Persnickety Prints for processing (have used them before for Instagrams and really liked the quality); print journaling onto kraft (will do sample page soon); create booklet cover and title page.

Used http://maps.stamen.com/ to get a watercolor background of our neighborhood for my map. 

City map made from cracker mix. I really needed a cracker mix with more variety than this one provided.

Here's a sample page of a key spot - the beaver dam - with journaling. Shot better photos this morning during the walk of a few key spots. If I make this a hand-held small "book," I would craft a pocket for the map and have individual pages for the featured spots. Thinking about textures - wood grain cover, kraft cardstock for pages, leather tie in upper left corner to hold the individual pages together.

Created a city out of gummy bears and mango licorice. As I was making the city I became accutely aware of those people who end up living close to the major roadways, and those who live near parks, insulated from the roadways. This town is loosely based on the town in which my grandmother lived - Shallowater, Texas.

Updated Map with numbers that correspond to photos of Ginger in the environs (taken by cell phone today; plan is to take with better camera sometime soon!).

Still pondering the final project - interactive/digital or printed. If digital the user would click on the numbers on the map to bring up photo along with journaling.

I created an Everplaces map of Asian restaurants at which we ate in Berlin during our visit in late March 2012. https://everplaces.com/jeanmanis/collections/berlin-asian-restaurants-9goSpTEzMDI

New approach to map - path of walk from perspective of visuals and smells for Ginger.

Photo of my husband and Ginger on the "boardwalk" towards the "green line" our turnaround point of the two-mile walk. Photo taken on February 2 - lots of fog that day in the Pacific Northwest.

Hand-drawn version of map with key elements relevant to Ginger's walk.
My perfectionism definitely gets to me - starting with my handwriting! I spent 30 minutes worrying about what pen I would use. Listened to Anne's comments and realized that I really do just need to deal with it and get something down on paper to move forward. :-)

Hundred Acre Wood from Winnie the Pooh - inspirational map for my project

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Why am I making this map? For fun? A client? A gift? To showcase my favorite places? Etc.
Taking a daily walk with Ginger, our 8 1/2 year old Golden Retriever is a significant start to my day. I've learned to view the world in an entirely different way through her eyes.

• Why am I the expert to create this map?
  Technically, Ginger is the expert, but as the human who knows her the best, I'm the next best expert.
  
  
• Who is my target audience?
  My family is my target audience. This will be something that my husband and I will treasure even after Ginger is gone (a thought that I can barely think without a hint of grief).
  
  
• Do I want my final project to be printed or digital? How is going to be used/held? What other constraints do I need to keep in mind moving forward? (Note type can be smaller on printed maps than when viewed on web)
  DIgital with the ability to be printed.
  
  
• What level of detail do I need to include? (Names, addresses, contact info, street names, website, hours, descriptions, color coding, etc.)
  I want to include descriptions along with the visual representations.

Challenges/Considerations/Ponderings:

I am not an illustrator. I am a perfectionist and studied engineering in college - implication being that I struggle with going off the grid, so to speak. This map is more than a map; it's a journal of different events from many of the walks. One day we saw a beaver emerge from the waterway. We've never seen the beaver since, but the fact that we did one time deserves a place on the map. Ginger has mapped that event in her own mind and we have to be mindful with her leash as we approach that area. Our walk is not a loop per se, but because we walk on one side of the road on the way to the destination and come back on the other, it is a loop.