These memory keeping solutions will help you get started.
We all set out with big aspirations in the New Year, but sometimes, the smaller, simpler, more bite-sized approach will help us make progress.
Jill Broadbent shares how to tackle some of the hold ups we have when it comes to memory keeping so we can start this new year off strong.
Find more inspiration from Jill on Instagram, @craftyafternoon.
How to Get Started Memory Keeping
Whenever I start talking about memory keeping with people, they always lead with how much they want to do it, but there is always something stopping them.These are a few tips to help you just start.
SETBACK #1 – What if I want my family to enjoy photo albums, but I’m not crafty?
First of all, the hobby of scrapbooking is not synonymous with memory keeping. You can absolutely be a memory keeper even if you don’t want to create with patterned papers and other scrapbooking supplies. I think that is why a lot of people started – because of the hobby, and then stopped because it wasn’t fulfilling or fun for them.
- Mentally separate memory keeping and scrapbooking
- Determine what approach you want to take to documenting
- Photos + journaling cards in albums (pocket page albums)
- Photobooks
- Digital template pages
SETBACK #2 – What if I am so far behind, I don’t know where to start?
- Break from the chronological concept
- Set a goal to document one story a month – photos + words
- 12 totally random stories from the course of your lifetime. Each one counts!
- As the stories come to you, drop the idea or the full story in a note in your phone. (More stories will continue to come once you start and you’ll likely end up with many more than 12.)
SETBACK #3 – What if I don’t have any spare time?
- We all make time for what matters most to us.
- With technology, we can work on this project anywhere, anytime.
- Set aside small windows weekly – Sunday afternoons are my favorite time to sort, organize, print and plan my photos.
- Add captions to your photos in your camera roll – swipe up on a photo and simply type in the details or the story you want to remember. You can do this while waiting in drive throughs, carpool pick ups, doctor appointments, etc.
SETBACK #4 – What if I feel overwhelmed with the amount of photos I have?
- Not all photos are created equally.
- You do not need to keep or print all photos.
- Edit to make a folder on your phone of your 2023 highlight reel
- Add in just your favorite 20-50 photos from last year and add print
SETBACK #5 – What if I am not a good writer?
- Remember that the stories matter to your family/posterity more than the details.
- Use prompts (Family Search has a list of 52 stories to tell)
- Use lists
- Add facts + feelings – when you start with the facts, that’s usually easiest. Then, ask yourself how you felt in that moment and see what details come to mind. (things we’d all like to know about our grandparents and older generations is how they felt.)
Take a deep breath, make an action plan that works for you – just start. Adapt if not working.
Jill Broadbent has been in the memory keeping industry for over 20 years. As an avid scrapbooker, Jill has a passion teaching people how to tell their stories in unique and meaningful ways. From paper crafts to hand lettering to painting, sharing creativity is her key to joy. She feels fortunate for the opportunity to make her talent and passion her work. Jill has three children and a very supportive husband, Dave.
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