12 Ways To Help You Record Your Life This Year

(This was originally posted on the regular TIMC, but I thought I would post it on here as well for anyone who doesn’t read both blogs.)

This year, I thought I would help you all start the new year off by sharing a compilation of ways to help you document your new year!  





 I know lots of people who say they will record what goes on later (honey, are you reading this?) but I know that time dims memories.  How many times have you read something that you wrote down just a few months or years earlier, and you smile because you totally forgot?  Well, I hope this year, you will make a resolution to do better at recording your life!

You can use these ideas for personal or family history.  These are not my ideas (except one), so I’ve included the links for you to click on if you wish to see more!  These are not in any specific order, just in the order I found them.  Ready?  Here we go!

#1:  Perpetual Journal.  You just write the day on top of the card, and every year you write a bit about what you did that day, then start over the next year on the same cards.  I found this here on the Design Sponge blog. 
I’m going to do this with my family starting in a few days, and I’m so excited for the years to come…and what fun it will be to see what we did that same day on the previous year(s).   I didn’t cut my cards in half, and I want to make or find a fun little container for it still.  (I will have to post it on here when I get it all done.) A fun ready option would be to buy those index cards that are already bound together.  There won’t be 365 cards, but you could have 3 or 4 sets.  Another idea I had was to buy the 4x6 index cards and put them in the 6 spot page protectors, but that would require a little extra work in taking out and putting in, but it would also protect from dirty hands and make for easier viewing.

#2:  A Journal Jar.  One of our Team Members, Robin, made a whole jar where you pull out one question a day and write the answer. 
This is great for someone who has a bit more time and wants to record things from the past.  Robin has even typed up 366 questions (go here) that you can get via email for just $5, and print them out.  Write or type up your answers!

#3:  The One Line A Day—A Five Year Memory Book.   If you are short on time and want something all in one place that is easily portable, this looks like a wonderful option! 
The days are already there, and you just write a bit a day!  The journal is $16.95 + shipping.  Check it out here.


#4:  Project Life. I’m sure most of you have heard about Becky Higgins’ amazing brain child, Project Life.  If you haven’t, basically you take a picture each day and do a bit of journaling.  I’ve done this for 3 years now, and I love that it really showcases the regular things you do each and every day…basically, life! Becky says, “Take a picture on each of the 365 days this year. Some pictures will illustrate bigger moments and some shots will be routine stuff in your life. It all adds up to paint the full picture of your life right now.”  (Don’t know what you would take a picture of everyday?  Check out Becky’s list here.)
There is the physical version, the digital goodies to make a digital version, or you can even do it through a photo book.  Check out the details here!

#5:  3-A-Day.  This one is actually my own idea…I have written in my journal faithfully for almost everyday since I was 10, but I went through a period of time when life was “boring” (aka, I had 4 kids and stayed at home all day long feeding said children and changing diapers) and I felt I didn’t have much to write about, nor the time.  So, I decided I would just jot down 3 things that happened that day, and they had to be positive, even if it was a positive spin on something bad that happened.  Now, I don’t feel like I have to do this everyday, so if I have a day where I want to write, I can!  I found a few pages from my journal that doesn’t give away too much, and this is what it looks like.


#6:  Peaks, Pits, Praises & Prayers.  It’s similar to what I do…this is where you write something good that happened, something bad, a praise to God, and a prayer that you have about something in your life or for someone else. 
This is something that you wouldn’t have to do on an everyday basis, but it would be fun to do on a weekly or monthly basis if that is more keen to your style and time available.  You can see how Deana did it here.


#7:  Year in Review Jar.  (This is an idea from Pinterest without a good link…sigh…this is why Pinterest etiquette is GOOD!)  This one had a picture, and I’m posting it on here, though I don’t know who to give the credit to.  (If you know, please let me know and I will put it on here!)
For this one, you have an empty jar and when something happens you want to remember, write it down.  Then at the end of the year, go through and read them all!  I thought this one would be fun to do as a family!  You could write down things kids say, good news, bad news, funny things that anyone does, etc.

#8:  365 Things I’m Grateful For Journal.  Simple and easy…just write down one thing that you are grateful for everyday!  I’ve seen these all over Pinterest, and I’m sure you have too!  They range from super scrapbook-y types to a simple store-bought journal.  I did find one journal by Monika Wright that I really loved here.  Plus you can link through to her store and buy your own journal just for this. 

#9:  A “Currently” Journal.  I thought this was a really fun idea, and I’m totally doing this one this next year!  You have a random list of things or topics and record once a month what you are currently doing/wanting/liking at that time.  Then you compile it at the end of the year and have a cute little album of your life!  It doesn’t have to be scrapbooked…it could just be written or typed up. 
Check out Paula Gilarde’s blog here to see this in more detail. 


#10:  25-Day Photo Challenge.  This is a wonderful alternative or addition to Project Life.  Photographer Katie Evans came up with this wonderful list of ways you can document your life right now in just 25 photos.  You could do them all in one day or one week if you don’t want to do just one a day.  This looks so fun, plus it can help you improve your photography skills!


#11:  Fast Fact Friday.  Of course I couldn’t make this list and not include what we do here on this blog!  The 2nd and 4th Fridays of every month (minus December) we have what is called “Fast Fact Friday”.  It’s just 5 questions that you can answer as quickly or as in-depth as you would like.  If you do every F.F.F. this year, you will have approximately 130 facts and/or stories recorded about you and your life by the end of the year! 




#12:  This Is Me Challenges.  Yes, the whole point of this blog is to help you record about you…because sometimes we forget to do that.  The weeks that there aren’t Fast Fact Fridays, there will be a challenge question to help get your mind going about something that you can record about.  Plus, there are always ideas from Team Members and sometimes there are freebies to help you out!  We hope you’ll join us in writing your story!


Well, there you have it!  Which idea(s) are you going to do this year to get your history written?  I’d also love to hear about any other ideas that you may have, so feel free to leave a comment/link about something that you do that others may benefit from!

Happy New Year, and remember to have fun recording your life!

Recording Basic Histories Of Children

*This post was originally posted on the regular TIMC, but I’m putting it up on here for those who may not read that blog!*

There is no doubt in my mind that children grow up way too fast. If you have children and/or nieces and nephews of your own, you probably whole-heartedly agree. Life is funny though, in the aspect that you don’t really notice the children in your life growing up until they hit major milestones.

Time goes by quickly. Too quickly, in fact. But…there is one way that we can stop time for but a small moment—record it! Have you ever thought about someone you haven’t seen in person for awhile, and the first thing that you think of is a picture of them? It helps to jog the memory for sure! But what other than pictures can we do to help us remember these milestones? Well, I’ll share a few ideas to help you record a little bit about the lives of the children in your lives!

Babies

Yes, you can record personal histories for babies! Obviously, babies don’t remember anything, but you can record your thoughts and feelings, their milestones, and how they are growing. You don’t have to do ALL of these ideas, just choose one or two and don’t forget to do it!

• Write down milestones of your children as they grow.  (Height, weight, when they sit, 1st foods, etc.)  Get or make a calendar just for these things.  Put it in a place you will see it often and record things as they happen--this way, you'll always have that info in a safe, recorded place. If you’re more of a techie person, set up a milestones blog just for you and close family. I received a free calendar just for new moms while I was pregnant—it came with stickers and everything to easily record what went on. Then, later when I had more time, I went back to the calendar to see my baby’s milestones and incorporated them into a scrapbook page that I made for each month of his first year.

• Take pictures regularly.  You can do it every day, once a week, or at least once a month. Be sure to somehow record how old your child is in the picture. You can make a sign (simple or extravagant), use baby blocks or puzzle numbers, or add it digitally.
• Keep track of your baby’s size by using a larger stuffed animal or toy and take a picture of your baby with it every month, place your baby in the same basket every month, or even just next to a measuring tape!
• Make a video slide show of pictures from your child's first year.  Set it to music and make a few copies (for you, baby, grandparents, aunts/uncles, siblings, etc.)
• Make foot prints every month for the first year. You can do this on paper, or even on a large canvas.
• Make a scrapbook page of your child growing his or her first year.  The top one is a digital page where I chose my favorite picture from each month.  The bottom one is a traditional page where I used leftover pictures and cut them all at 2 inches square.  They are just in order, but some months there are 2 pictures, and other months there are 0.  Either way is great, it’s just fun to show progression!

Toddlers

When children start to show preferences of things they can start helping you record their personal history! Of course, the older the child, the more s/he can help and be more involved in what you do.

• Measure height and weight every 6 months.

• Take (or get) a good set of pictures every month or every 6 months. Make sure you get at least one good close-up shot and one full body picture with something that shows size. (You can still use that stuffed animal from babyhood, the basket or tape measure.)

• Make hand prints every year.  I do this on paper, and use it on the first page of my kid's scrapbooks for the year. Even if you’re not a scrapbooker, this is a very easy method! All it takes is cardstock, a marker or pen and ink or paint!  (As you can see, I don’t put a lot of time into these pages, I like simple!)

• Record what your child is saying, and be sure to record how s/he says it!  Video is great for this! Most digital cameras and phones have video capabilities on them. To keep track of the videos, make a specific folder on your computer. You can even make sub-folders of who is in the video or special occasions. There are sites you can upload your videos to and share them privately with family and friends or you can share them on your blog.

• Keep some of his/her artwork in a 3-ring binder with page protectors.  Be sure to label it with the date and how old your child was!

• Get a journal or a notebook.  Have your child draw pictures about their day/week/month/vacation.  Write the details of the picture down so you don’t forget! This is the first picture my son drew of him and his dad—I had him explain it to me, then I labeled all the parts so I wouldn’t forget what the drawing was.

Children

• Have your child write his/her name, draw a self-portrait (or use a picture) and make handprints for one page. You can put this in a scrapbook or a special 3-ring binder. When they were younger I also included a picture, but now their hands are getting too big, so I have them write their name on it instead.

• Keep some of his/her artwork in a 3-ring binder with page protectors.  Be sure to label anything with the date and how old s/he is.

• Write down or record the funny things your child says! You can have a specific journal or computer file for this, or do it on a blog or scrapbook page!

• Get your child a journal or diary and encourage him/her to write in it at least once a month.  You can assign a topic (Write about your favorite pet/color/chore/friend/toy/etc.) or they can choose a topic. Do this together so you both have an excuse to record your lives and spend some quality time together! 

• Measure how tall s/he is.  Mark it on a removable growth chart.  (Door frames are fine too, but you can't take them with you if you move!)  Or you can record it by writing it down or even by pictures.

• Take pictures.  Try to take a picture in the same place every year at the same time (birthday, first day of school, or a specific holiday) to measure growth.  You can even use the stuffed animal from babyhood if you did that!

• If you are a scrapbooker, you can let your child take over his/her pages around the time they can write, cut and glue! Trust me, it’s kind of painful at first to see how “terrible” the layouts turn, but as I’ve let my oldest do this more often, it’s given me the chance to teach him about design skills, math concepts, spelling, handwriting, and writing skills. I’ve come to cherish the pages he has done, because they are all him—even if they’re not as pretty and good as I’d make them. Plus, it’s given me extra time to catch up on other scrapbooking!

Teenagers

If you’ve had a chance to instill the importance of recording your own life to your children, it won’t take much more work as a teenager. But if you haven’t, it’s never too late to start. Most teenagers will have plenty of opportunities in school (especially in English class) to write and record all about themselves. I think the key to helping them realize that it’s not just an assignment, is for you to be a good example to them in this area.   Also, save some of their best work all together in a special place (like a binder).  Some other ideas:

• Show them some of the things you’ve recorded about yourself when you were a teenager.  (A journal, scrapbook, newspaper clippings or your yearbook.)  This may help them realize that you were once young and  they’ll see how fun it will be for their kids to see them this age as well.  If you haven’t yet recorded anything from your teenage years, make a goal to do so. 
• Pick a topic at dinner and have everyone talk about it, then record write what they said.  You can do this as a game or just by casually asking.  Whatever your teenager is up for! 
• Indulge in their wanting to scrapbook or buy them a journal to write in.   Show interest in what they are recording without being too snoopy.  Obviously don’t go find their private journal and read without their permission, but if you see them writing, you could ask what they are writing about in an interested manner.
• Encourage them to participate in the challenges here with you!
• Make a binder to put some of their school writing assignments in (especially non-fiction).  Even if they don’t want to be involved in recording their history, you’ll have some fun stories!  You can always add some simple pictures of them if you don’t scrapbook.

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When you take the time to record your child’s life (or help them), you will never be disappointed or feel that you’ve wasted your time. Recording these moments before they are gone is so important, and it is one regret that you have! I guarantee it!

Overcoming Roadblocks to Writing Your Story

*This was an article posted a couple weeks ago on the regular This Is Me Challenge.  I decided to put it on here too for those who don't read that blog.*

Recording your personal history is something that a lot of people find intimidating.  There are many roadblocks to getting it done, I hear the excuses quite often. “I don’t know what to write.  I don’t have time to do it right now.  I don’t know how to do it, and no one even cares if I do it or not”.  But I’m here to tell you today that every single one of those roadblocks is actually very easy to overcome!  

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First roadblock:  “I don’t know what to write.”  

Finding things to write about is intimidating.  Do you record the main events of life or little things?  How much in detail do I need to go?   I have found that it really takes a little bit of both the big stuff and the small stuff.  I recommend starting big and then going small—write a basic timeline of your life, record the dates of important events, then start filling in with smaller events and every day things.  There are also journaling prompts in books and all over the internet (like the This is Me Challenge!).   

Second roadblock: “I don’t have time to do it right now.”   

This is one excuse I hear a lot from people, but really, it’s a matter of priorities.  Instead of watching TV, take a half an hour to record something from your past or something that happened that day.  (Or you can even do it while watching TV if you are a good multi-tasker.)  If you don’t even have time to watch TV, you can still record just one little thing in 5 minutes if you commit to just doing it.  Make time!  Often we think that we need to do some elaborate writing that will take hours to edit and perfect.  I personally think that even making a small list on a sticky note and putting it in a notebook with others like it is just as great of a way as writing a whole diatribe!  At least it's something.  And don’t forget that you can record your personal history along with your family!  Get the whole family involved.  Set aside time each week to all work on it--hello Family Home Evening idea!  Doing this together will not only bring you closer to one another, but will create the time needed to accomplish your goal!

Third roadblock: “I don’t know how to do it.”   

Like I already mentioned, I like to focus on the fact that how you do it, is not as important as just doing it.  Here is a list of many different ways I’ve thought of to record your history.

-Use the computer and a word processing program.  You can make one file folder (mine is labeled “Personal History”), and save each topic individually in your folder, or you can make one long document with all your history.  You can add pictures when you want to as well using this method.

-Start your own personal history blog (that you can make private or public, depending on who you want to see it), and write your history.  Blogs are great because you can not only write, but you can post a video, add pictures or even scrapbook layouts.

-Make a scrapbook layout (digital or traditional) about a specific topic about you. 

-Write it in a journal—an age-old solution, but still a good one!  Plus, those who someday read it, will get to see your handwriting and mistakes you made—making you more real!

-Take (or find) pictures from your past that make you smile.  Put them together in a photo album.  You can save one of the slots to hand write about the pictures on that page on a 4x6 piece of paper (acid free to keep from destroying the picture on the other side of it), or you can make a 4x6 answer on your computer in a photo editing program, and print it off with your other pictures!

-Make a video.  You can do this by either taking pictures and adding music to it (like a slide show), or by using your video camera and record yourself talking about you.

-Make an audio file of you talking about your history.  You could do it in the car on the way to work, while getting ready for the day, in one of your favorite locations, or while you're sitting in bed. 

-Write a poem about an aspect of your life.  Some people are very talented in this area!

-Make a digital photo collage or album through an online site.  Add to it regularly.

-Focus on one topic and make a list of things about you concerning that topic.

-Create a table in a word processing program.  Choose one topic and fill it in with what you did in the past, what you are doing in the present, and what you hope to do in the future.

-Publish a photo book through an online site, with old pictures and stories about them.   This is great because you can make multiple books in one easy click of a button!

-Draw some things about you.  For example you can draw your favorite foods.  (This would be especially fun for younger children to do!)

-Do it together as a family!  Set aside a specific day every week to get together.  Think of a topic and everyone can record about themselves in one of the ways above.

-Interview your parents, grandparents, or other close family members or friends, and have them tell you stories about them.  This would be so cool for you and your family to have when they pass away!

Fourth roadblock: “No one even cares.” 

This is so untrue!  Everyone has a story.  EVERYONE!  Record what makes you, YOU!  There is only one you, and you are loved by so many people.  You possess unique talents, habits, and quirks that no one else has.  You think and feel differently.  You say and do things that no one else would do.  Share those things that make you unique! 

It would be a tragedy to not leave anything behind for your friends and family to remember the real you by.  Help your family remember who you really are now, and who you were in your younger years by recording your history before it’s too late.  With a little bit of determination, time, and thought you can overcome those roadblocks and record your story before you know it!  Your posterity will be very grateful if you've recorded some things about you--and your testimony! 

Challenge #11—Count Your Many Blessings

Since it’s the beginning of November, the month of Thanksgiving in the US, I thought this week’s challenge could be all about remembering your blessings. 

What are your many blessings?

There are hundreds of ways to do this challenge.  Make a gratitude journal and record the things you are grateful for each day.  Similar to that is that you can write in your regular journal each day and record seeing the hand of God in your life (Bonus Challenge #1).  Take on the gratitude challenge (Bonus Challenge #3).  Make a tree and add leaves of blessings throughout the month, or do it with a turkey and feathers.  Have your family write their blessings on a poster board or large piece of paper (see here).  Write your blessings on slips of paper, put them in a box and read them as a family on Thanksgiving.  Make a scrapbook layout showcasing your top blessings.  Post one of your blessings each day on your blog or Facebook/Twitter.  And there are tons more of ideas floating all around cyber-space right now!

A number of years ago, for Family Home Evening, my husband and I set a timer for 5 minutes and wrote the whole time all the blessings we could think of.  At first we wrote things down quickly, like family, a home, the Gospel, etc.  Then we both started to slow down.  We really had to start thinking about the little blessings in life that we don’t normally think about. 

When the timer went off, we shared our lists with each other (our oldest was only a baby at the time so he didn’t have much to add).  We complied the list into 100 things that we were grateful for and named it “Our Top 100 Blessings”.   Yes, there are some things that I was more grateful for than my husband and vice-versa, but it’s fun to see other’s favorite blessings on there too! 

I typed it up, organized it in alphabetical order and printed it off.  We still have it hanging up today on our hallway bulletin board. 

This is a closer look—I had to patch it together so it looks like it’s 3 papers, but it’s really just one.  You just couldn’t read it unless I did this.   Also, you can see the wear and tear on it, but that’s what makes it special!

Last year around this time we had our then 5 and 4 year olds help us make a new list.  (We had to add in things like toys.)  It’s always a good reminder for our family to see it—it helps us remember what really is important in life and that we truly are very blessed! 

Now I challenge you to record your blessings!

Using the Challenges for FHE

(*This is a repost from the original TIMC, but I actually wrote it with the LDS version in mind, I just changed a few words.)

Did you know that you can use the “This Is Me” questions for Family Home Evening?  This is a great activity to do as a family, so you can each write your own and family stories!  It’s always more fun to do something together, right?

Set aside a time each week (um, hello FHE!). Your family can focus on one challenge to complete each time or you can do a quick answer of three or four challenges at a time.

Here are a few fun ways for you to do this: (And you don’t have to do the same thing every time either!)

*Get a notebook for each member of the family.  Write the challenge question on the top of a new page.  Introduce the question, talk about your different answers, then let them write (or draw) away!  You can come back to this one time and time again!

*Type the question on the top of a document, print one page out per person.  Do the same as the above, then put the answers all together in a binder (in protective clear sleeves).  Then you have a fun family history book to always look at!

*Gather some construction or scrapbook paper, markers, crayons, scissors, stickers, etc.  Find a picture of each member of the family.  Choose a challenge question, and use the supplies to answer it!

*Use your video camera and take turns video recording your answers!  How fun will this be to watch in 10 years?

*Create or add your family’s answers to a blog for other family members to read!  (This would be great typing practice for kids who are ready to learn that!)

*Do the challenge to incorporate the whole family.  (For example, if you’re going to do the “Me By The Numbers” challenge, you can make it be with #’s that represent your whole family, so it ends up being “Our Family By the Numbers”!)

A great way to compile this would be to put all your answers from each challenge into a family history binder that you can all cherish for years to come!

I have a few things to help you decide on which challenges to use for your next FHE. 

*First, here is a complete list of all of the challenges from the original TIMC.  And here is the list of LDS TIMC challenges.

*See the tab “Ideas for Completing the Challenges” to get some more ideas, or to help you come up with your own!

*If you look over on the right under the challenge categories, you’ll see one that says, “Great for kiddos”.  Those are the questions that is more pertinent to younger children who haven’t had as many life experiences and therefore can’t do some of the challenges.

Now you have no excuses for not knowing what to do for FHE, right?