how about being a better steward of your families memories? ohhhh snap. i'm all hyped up about this for 2 reasons: first, i recieved my blog as a book for a gift and it is incredible. not because i made it(ha), but because it logs our memories for 2 years. i had it sent to my mom's house so she could wrap it, because she paid for it, and i wanted to be surprised by the finished product. when i opened it, she told me she cried looking through it... it's just so much life lived.

and it is. so much life, in a hard-bound book. i look through it and don't remember some of the things that i wrote about. the pictures make me laugh and ok, i cried looking at some of them too.i wish my mom had this kind of technology when she was a mother...the stories of a family of 10 would have been hilarious...even though it was just "normal" everyday things. i think some of us mommy bloggers hesitate to put things on our blog because it's not "sensational" enough. it won't get any comments. hey, that's stupid. you don't blog for comments, you blog because this is where your memories go to be safe. no one can touch them here. it's your own story the way only you can tell it. example, this is my foreward to the book and the summary of my thoughts for the year:
to my family,
there are a lot of things i don't do right as a mother. but i hope you can see we had a lot of fun together, and that, most of all, i loved you very much. you were worth ever difficult, hilarious, embarrassing moment.

(one of my favorite pics)
anyway, this leads me to my second reason for blogging: fear. one them is dying.i've been living in fear lately about lots of things. i don't know if it happened when my grandpa died or something...i've just been pondering it lately. but if i die, i want things to be "just so"...i want the memories to be safe. what would my kids know about me if i died? what would i want them to know? what would i know about them that only i can recall? mothers are the keepers of so many memories...there's just too much to forget trying to function day to day anyway...let alone, remembering funny/meaningful conversations with the kids and spouse. write them down. you will be gone one day.

(another fave)
i know, it's a morbid thought actually. i'm just being honest though. fear can definately be a healthy thing but i will admit that my fear has become annoying lately, and i've had to bring it in front of the Lord and tell him that i've been kind of hoarding it for a couple weeks. so i'm working on that. or rather, He's working on that in my heart. as i write this.
but let's not ponder such sad thoughts...let's think about your sweet and cherished blog book. do this. it's $100 on the cheap end and can go up from there depending on where you purchase them. blurb.com is awesome if you want total control(i thought i would) but it annoyed me...it was just too much work. remember, i just want to log my memories...it doesn't have to be a work of art. so i chose blog2print because, they suck everything out of your blog, whether you use pictures from photobucket or load them right into your post, it takes it all. condenses it to the least amount of pages and BOOM...there's your book. you don't pick the font or the background or anything, just simple words and pictures. i love it. all the fuss is gone and what's left is pure memories.

(and last fave)
i also printed out the hard copies of my favorite prints from this year. our computer crashed a while ago and we lost a lot of pictures. some of them were posted to the blog...PTL! but alot of them weren't...so i'm determined not to let that happen again. print them and put them in little albums...don't let them sit around and get stuck together or even lost in a move. take care of your memories. as a mother or wife, this is generally your realm. you're the memory keeper. do a good job.

(seriously, last fave)
don't have a blog? now's the time! (amanda williams, this means you.)
that's all. i have to go make dinner now.
that's so weird that you said you've been thinking about death in a morbid way. i have to. i wonder why satan has decided to attack two sisters. i've actually lost sleep and my body is out of wack because of this. anywho, i started working on my book two days ago. it's taken forever but i can't wait to get it.
ReplyDeleteWord.
ReplyDeleteWhat perfect timing. I was looking at getting a blog book last week, but wasn't sure if it would be worth it. Thanks for changing my mind.
ReplyDeleteI second the vote for Amanda to get a blog!
ReplyDeleteI'm not a mom but 1) this post is adorable. your kids are the cutest. and 2) it makes me think about my own reasons for blogging. I write some pretty random stuff and I'm not sure if I want that to be what I leave behind. Good thoughts to ponder... thanks for sharing!
I would love to do this. I'm not sure it's possible with LJ though. (Just another reason I should switch to another platform) but alas, I am too lazy for that much work.
ReplyDeleteI know I've mentioned once or 10,000 times but I ♥ the music here. I'm currently out of free listening on Pandora too. Wondering why you have tons of hits from small-town Kansas? That's me. Working at my Dad's office with your blog rocking out.
This is a great post. I am passing it on.....and printing my blog to a book. Thank you for the suggestion, I was trying to figure out what site was the best. ♥
ReplyDeleteI so want to make a book! It's not in the budget right now, but it is of high importance to me...because I absolutely agree with you all the way. I want to keep the memories and that's why I blog. I also don't write anything down in baby books or whatever, so it's good to look back and see what they were doing when etc...
ReplyDeleteDude, I'm inspired now just need to get motivated=) Your's is super cute btw. And the death thing- hit the nail on the head. I was totally flipping out during turbulence on the plane ride home yesterday. Motherhood totally changes things. Thanks for your perspective.
ReplyDelete**BTW blogger is being WACKY so this might post 2+ times. grrrrrr.**
Just dropping in to say thanks for this blog. My fave: "Mothers are the keepers of so many memories." So true! I started a blog a little over a year ago. We were losing my father-in-law to cancer and it just felt right to start logging all those family memories. Seeing those blogs and pictures that I posted brought him so much joy in his final days on this earth. And now blogging our memories brings me so much joy. My bf Bethany told me about your blog today and that I had to go read it because funny enough, I just posted today about how I was about to turn my blog into a 2010 memory book on blurb.com. Now I will be checking out the blog2print. Thanks so much for this blog. Good stuff.
ReplyDeletethank you
ReplyDeleteagree.
ReplyDeleteWeird. It is totally not something I think about a lot, but since I have started blogging (poorly) it has caused me to go think about "if i die at least they will have 27 posts I wrote to remember me by... that sucks. I need to write more." more frequently than before. Thank you for putting it better than my brain did and for reminding us that we are in fact, the memory keepers in the family. I need to take better care of ours.
ReplyDeleteI so agree!! Good for you for printing the blog. I'll have to look into that. :)
ReplyDeleteCan you please share where yours was printed. Thanks in advance :) I'm SO looking forward to getting ours done. I was writing a post very similiar to this one because a lot of people don't "get" why I blog and why I blog sometimes about not so important things and sometimes very personal things... "why would I want all our stuff out there." Hello. First off I do it for me, and this is my new way of scrapbooking and preserving us, here and now :) Thanks for sharing once again!!
ReplyDeleteLa-uve,
Your Filipina BFF(ha)! ;)
My husband and I were just talking about the memory stuff this morning. Weird.
ReplyDeleteMy husband had the first year of our blog made into a book a couple years ago and I love it but I never followed through on doing the rest. I probably should get on that eh?
Would you dare share a picture of the inside of your book? We used Blurb last time and it didn't turn out quite like I thought it would so I'm curious to see how another site does it.
jeez, why do you have to go and get all inspirational?
ReplyDeleteamen to that sista'!
ReplyDeleteIt's true--it's a memoir of sorts.
ReplyDeleteYour family is SO photogenic.
I just started reading your blog..and I love it..I love your honesty! I have been blogging for awhile now and often I am afraid to put down my true feelings...but I think I need to start doing that more often......thanks for the inspiration!!
ReplyDeleteso true! your kids will appreciate hearing the bad with good later on in life when you can laugh together about the day to day life you guys shared. i need to do this.
ReplyDeleteHey, i love your blog,(i'm kate's sewing friend) and am inspired to get brave and start a blog. The idea of printing your blog into a book is phenom. Have you, can you, give us a toutorial on how to get a blog started??? Tips, suggestions, etc?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the inspiration, and for your "ministry of transparency" to mothers, wives, and the real world.
do you know what is weird? A lot of people say WEIRD when they comment on your post.
ReplyDeleteAlso, WEIRD, I'm about to order my third blurb book including one from Europe.
I totally checked out Blog2Print the other day - I LOVE that idea! It's totally going to be worth something to save up for! And I am so excited for your beautiful baby on the way...I need some preggo news!
ReplyDelete@the stories of your son and what he says...... HAHAHAHA HILARIOUS!!! :)
ReplyDeletei need to blog!! i seriously love yours and look forward to every one you post!! i may need your help setting one up! lol
ReplyDeleteThanks for the inspiration to get better about updating my blog.
ReplyDeletehello! just found your blog through location central!! i'm a fellow kansas cityan~!! :) i love your photos and the effects you put on them and i am a new follower!!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sandyalamode.com/
The primary reason why I blog. I've been meaning to print months ago...but it just seems like a monster to take on. I better get on it!
ReplyDeleteYour family is just beautiful.
Hey there! It was wonderful meeting you last night! I thought this was a wonderful post to read as my first From the Nato's blog :)
ReplyDeleteMuch love!
okkkaaayyyyyy....i will do this, i so totally agree with you. i need to prioritize keeping these memories because they are flying past me. though it IS another thing to do. i think i can, i think i can.....
ReplyDeleteThat is an AWESOME idea! Though I think my personal blog would read a little too much like a junior high girl's diary :/
ReplyDeleteHey, be sure to enter my CSN stores giveaway:
http://lovelylittlenest.blogspot.com/2011/01/csn-giveaway-happy-new-year.html
Happy New Year!! :)
What a great post and great reminder of why we blog. I think making your blog into a keepsake album is a SUPER cute idea too!
ReplyDeletehey there. Just wanted you to know I found you through Emily Anderson and all her amazingness. And I really, really love your blog. That is all. :)
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to let you know that even though I don't comment often (due to 2 little ones keeping me busy), I love reading your blog. You continue to encourage and inspire me so I just passed a blog award on to you.
ReplyDeleteCheck it out...http://naturallychicmama.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-100th-post-and-1st-award.html
Happy New Year!
i am so so glad i read this. it is perfect, and your blog as a book looks so beautiful! i will definitely have to do that.
ReplyDeletei also try to get everyone i know to start blogs, because i think it is such a fabulous way to document your life.
i look back at things i wrote about a few months ago and forgot about, and just laugh and laugh. its awesome.
Where in the world have I been?! I didn't know you could turn a blog into a book. Way cool.
ReplyDeleteI'm back in blogland.
Hello, and Happy New Year!!
I've been going back and forth on getting a blog book...I'm pretty sure after this post that it's a must. It's so hard to drop $100 on something like that, but the memories are definitely worth it.
ReplyDeleteThat's so exciting that you got your blog printed. Where did you get the book printed at?
ReplyDeleteso very true. love this post. you are right on.
ReplyDeleteI love that I'm not the only one to take photos of kiddos crying. It's just too cute right?
ReplyDeletewhat a lovely idea for a book. I must go check it out!
Thank you for writing this! My blog is a baby and I want to raise her right-you have pointed me in the right direction! I am putting you on my favorites girl!
ReplyDeletehttp://first-day-of-the-rest-of-your-life.blogspot.com/
This inspired me to re-vamp my blog and start recording our memories more often. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteMy daughter is almost two, and at least once a day I am reminded that if I was gone she would never remember me. It's sad but also motivates me to keep my journals, scrapbooks, and blog posts up to date. By the way, I had no idea you could have your blog printed in book form! Good to know. Thanks!
ReplyDelete