3 Easy Ways to Organize & Keep Your Family Memories

I’ve always said I’d like to become a better memory keeper. I take thousands of photos each week, but sadly most of them are of the things we’ve eaten for dinner. They make for great pictures, but they don’t quite capture my children and our day-to-day lives that I would like to have on record.

As a blog writer, there is naturally some daily documenting that goes on, and some of it gets recorded and shared sporadically among the recipes and kitchen tips that I post each week. But I’d also like to develop a more private method of keeping track of our family’s milestones and memories.

Seeing as it’s 2020, I can’t really take on projects that are overly involved or complicated, so I’m looking to build on a few things I’ve done in the past that I know will work well. Here are three of the ideas I plan on putting into practice next year:

Get Creative With Displaying Instagram Images

I have loads of family photos on Instagram. Of course I enjoy the social sharing aspect of the website, but I absolutely love having these pictures printed onto magnets, which line the front of my fridge. There are so many options for capturing and displaying photos now, including this heart-shaped snapshot from Minted, these photo puzzles from Black’s, and even these ‘instant photo books‘ from Shutterly (just to name a few.) They’re a great way to capture and bring to life pictures of a family vacation or birthday party or any special memory.

Keep a Journal

I’m not great at documenting every adorable thing my kids say, but I do have a ‘Gatherings’ journal, where I take note of each birthday party, dinner party, and gathering we host. I write down who was in attendance, what food was served, and which kind of celebration it was, as well as any special decorating ideas, games played and gifts received. Because our indoor gatherings have ceased for the moment, I’m adding another journal to my collection this year. I plan on keeping a dedicated notebook nearby so I can jot down sweet things that I’d like to remember throughout the year. It could be a quote or one-liner from one of my kids, a place we went, something they shared with me from school. I’ll add the name of the child and the date and keep a running log for the duration of the year.

Make More Photo Books

I find it easier and less time consuming to make photo books for large batches of photos than to print off all of the images and file them into a photo album. I’ve only made a few to date and my goal for this coming year is to make one for the first and last six months of the year. I usually make the hardcover ones, and leave them on the coffee table so everyone can flip through them at their leisure.

What is your favourite method of memorializing the special moments in your family’s life? Are you a scrapbooker? Do you have another way of documenting special memories?

Related Reading:

Best Photobook Sites for Canadians