Preserving Memories

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As I sit writing this post with a steaming hot cup of coffee by my side, I look around my house and see toys scattered about and my oldest son running around in sports shorts and no shirt (despite the chill in the air) looking for his favorite toys. The baby is toddling around in his jammies that are getting just a little bit too snug, giggling while he tries to keep up with his big brother. Thomas the Train is playing in the background as my husband flips pancakes in the kitchen for our yummy weekend breakfast. Our house is cozy and crazy as we make plans for the beautiful fall day. I take a sip of my coffee, smile and think to myself, “These are the moments I never want to forget.”

IMG_0441I am admittedly a memory junkie. I take thousands and thousands (and thousands!) of pictures every year. I take videos of my oldest spelling his name and my youngest doing the cutest dance you have ever seen. I know that I can never ever have these precious days back, but I can experience the joy of reliving the moments again and again through the images and videos I capture.

Considering how priceless my memories are to me, it is very important that I have a way of preserving and safeguarding all my pictures and videos; and today, I’d like to share with you how I do that.

Shutterfly

I back up every single picture I take to the free photo site Shutterfly. I organize my photos by year and month, making it really easy to find that picture I am looking for from Halloween 2010. I also use Shutterfly to make photo books for both of my boys highlighting each year of their lives. This is a super easy process since every photo I have taken that year is already uploaded into the program.

Note: If you use Apple products, iCloud is a great option to back up your videos and photos as well as your whole  iTunes music library. iCloud provides minimal space for free, and additional space can be purchased starting at $20 a year.

Memory Cards

I will be honest: I have not found a method I feel 100% secure with when it comes to backing up my videos. Right now I upload my videos to my computer and then proceed to upload some to a YouTube account that I have set as private. When my memory card from my video camera gets full I put it in our fireproof safe and buy a new card. I feel that my videos are pretty secure using this system, but I would love to know how you back up your videos.

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Display Your Photos

This tip is not about keeping your photos secure but rather preserving the memories by actually putting your photos on display and enjoying them day after day. My absolute favorite spot in my house is the gallery wall in our living room. I love picking out my favorite photos (these are all our professional photos taken by our wonderful family photographer KandE Productions) and putting them on display.

Tip: When making a gallery wall, plan your layout by cutting pieces of newspaper to match the sizes of the picture frames you want to display, and then hang the newspaper up on the wall with tape. This will make it easy to visualize your layout and to make changes before you start using a hammer and a nail.

What are your favorite ways to preserve photos and videos?

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