New Year Memory Keeping

I was like most Mama's when TC was born, and had the best intentions of keeping up with his growth and milestones in the cutest books and charts. AND... just like most Mama's I lost track and stopped doing all of that stuff when he was around a year old. Let's be honest - life gets in the way, and we are busy.  I tried to come up with a way that I could keep up with the most important things in a way that would be easy to keep track of. That is where these next two tips come in - and a freebie for you too!

Personal Growth & Memories:
Frustration and guilt over not having recorded our favorite memories led me to come up with the New Years Day Memory binder idea a few years back. I bought a binder, some page protectors, and printed some pages for our little guy using our home computer. It wasn't much, but it took on a life of it's own, and it has since become a tradition.

Every year on New Years day, when the hustle and bustle of the holiday season is behind us, we spend some time reflecting and recording in our binder.

TC writes his name, traces his hand and foot, creates some art, and we write all of our favorite memories and milestones.  It's been easy to keep up with, and is so much fun to look back on each year. We slip each page into a plastic page protector, and keep the binder on the shelf with the photos albums.

FREEBIE  ----> This year I decided to create the pages ahead of time, and share them with you! They are all ready to go and FREE at my TPT store. You can download them ** here **. 


Homeschool Memories:
As a homeschooler we capture so many fun moments during learning activities, co-ops, field trips, etc. I knew I could order a yearbook through our homeschool support group, but I also wanted to capture specific memories for TC from his exciting school year.  I am creating him his own yearbook using Shutterfly's Photo Book creator, and I LOVE it!

Did you know that if you have an account with Shutterfly you are given unlimited photo storage at no cost to you? That's my favorite thing about them! I also downloaded the app on my phone, and I upload photos regularly. EASY.

Creating a yearbook could be stressful but with Shutterfly I can do it all while maintaining my sanity! Their site allows you to start creating a photo book at the beginning of the year, save it under your projects, and add to it as your kiddos make memories!

You can use their school memories page layouts and create an authentic looking year book for your homeschoolers too. We have one in the works, and I love how easy it is to add to. At the end of the school year I'll finalize it, and have it shipped. Oh! And I won't be stressed because it's being stored and organized for me. YAY!  (I'm not a Shutterfly affiliate. I just love their site and products.)

How do you keep your child's milestones and growth memories organized?

Wishing you all a Happy New Year!