How do you want your grandchildren to remember you?

I have been thinking to all the grandparents out there, and at the same time, to my future self, as I look forward to the day I will be a grandma too.
Grandchildren are the next generation, the ones that hopefully will keep our memory alive, at least this is what we all can hope...
If you don't want to leave the preservation of you memory to the fate though, there is something you can do now.
Whether you have 1 grandchild or 10, whether they are newborns, toddlers or grown ups, I am pretty sure  they will all love to know how you were as a child, as a teenager, as a spouse, a parent, and how you feel as their grandparent.
You can make sure that each and everyone of them knows your story, by putting together your pictures and your memories in a book.
When you create this book digitally, you can make as many copies as you need.
I love the online Studio software since it allows me to create my books and also to have my project preserved for years to come, so, should you be blessed with more granchildren in the future, you will always be able to print more books, and what's even better, you can modify any  page to add that new grandchild in your list of grandchildren.
You can take your time and create your book from scratch, or you can take advantage of a template.
All you will need is a computer, your pictures, a scanner for the pictures that have not been digitized yet, your story, and naturally, your love.

I just discovered these gorgeous templates that are just perfect for telling your story to your granchild!
How I became your grandma
How I became your grandpa
I am just in love with them!  These templates are not only easy to personalize with your pictures and story, but also guide you step by step in your story writing. And don't forget that they are completely modifiable, so you can change backgrounds, duplicate or remove pages, add or delete pictures, make them bigger or smaller, anything!
So, you have no excuses! Start writing your story today, and give your granchildren a gift that will last a lifetime, and more...

Hurray for Story Maps!

Ok, so you are so excited and want to start writing a book about your mom, your grandpa, your child or even yourself, but all of a sudden you stop because you don't know where to start and what you should put in the book!
All I have to say is: Thank goodness for Story maps! All you have to do is get up and go interview the person you want to write about using the simple questions and storyline that you will find in each specific story map.
If your loved one is too far away, grab the phone, and call them, with the added bonus of making that person's day because you thought of him/her.
 Our story maps help you plan your storybook from cover to cover. Use our maps as a template and have your "hero" answer the questions provided or create your own questions. You'll find interview questions, photo suggestions, and even writing tips!

Life event stories
Life Story

Love stories
Love Story

Baby stories
Baby Story

Cornerstone
Child
Parent
Grandparent
Family Values
Aren't they awesome? What a great tool to help you in your storybooking endeavors!  
And don't forget that you can always find great ideas on my blog, and I am here to help you preserve your heritage, every step of the way!

Christmas in July gift giving idea: Storybooking for healing

Not all Holidays happen to be as happy as one wishes they could be. Some years a loss might have happened in the family that just makes someone feel sad, and sometimes it might be really hard to even just smile.
If this is your case, or you know someone in your family or among your friends that is going through a difficult time because they are mourning the loss of a loved one, there is something you can do to help them heal...
Collect as many significant pictures as you can of the departed, ask questions, write the answers down, have the ones that knew the family share their memories, and organize all this in a storybook.
Sometimes when you lose someone you don't want to talk about it, but other times you wish people wouldn't act like it never happened, like your child, your husband, your mom was forever forgotten. Having the story written on a book helps overcome the pain and the loneliness one can feel, and makes the loved one come back to life every time those pages are read, and the pictures recall happy memories.
When nothing else can comfort a grieving heart, a Storybook will be like a bridge between that deep sorrow and the possibility to smile again, knowing that the loved one is not going to be forgotten.
Whether it was a still born child, a few months or years old, a teenager, 100 years old, whether it was the child, sibling, parent, grandparent, spouse or dear friend, Storybooking their life and the impact they had on the lives of others will give a new light to everything, and help in the process of grieving and healing.

This is something dear to my heart as I lost my dad when I was 13 and I feel like I am still grieving...
This is why I am writing a card to him in which I tell him my feelings, and why he is an hero to me, while I wait to be able to talk to his side of the family who is still in Italy, my aunt and my cousins that are older than me and got to know him better, since I want to write a storybook about him, how he touched everyone's life, and the example that he has been to me.
I think I will be able to totally lift this burden from my heart when the book will be completed.

I hope my words might have inspired you, I wish I knew English better because I feel like I am at a loss of words when it comes to to express my feelings about this matter.
When I take the time to put together a book about my family, I grow a deeper love for each of them, and when I collect photos and stories about someone, I am blessed since I get to know him/her better. When the book is completed, this blessings are passed on to all the people that will open it and will be reminded of good memories or discover something new about that person.

Take time to touch your loved ones' heart, it will be the best gift you will ever give them.

Today's Chrismas in July Idea

Do you like seeing your Christmas gifts in next year garage sale? Do you like giving always the same kind of gifts?
I don't, and I am going to give you some wonderful and thoughtful ideas this month that will help you create some unforgettable and very meaningful Christmas gifts.

Picture CD idea:Make a CD with all the family pictures you can find. If you still have most of them in shoe boxes under a bed or in the closet, take them out, and scan them. If you don't have time to do so, hire a professional photo scanning specialist, it is totally worth it! Make the CD even more personal, by creating a beautiful cover with some of the key pictures on a 3panel family fold!
You can make as many copies as you like, and you will have made so many family members happy, and probably some will even shed some joyful tear!
I have already scanned many of my husband's grandparents pictures, and I am going to look for more. As soon as I have found all the pictures I can, I will burn the CD, including pictures, maybe a word document telling them what I felt going through their story in pictures, and I will have this CD cover that will really make the CD stand out!
I am so anxious to see their reaction when they see it!!!!

Stay tuned for more Christmas in July gift giving ideas!

Are you going to be remembered when this chapter of your existence comes to an end?

Many of us would like to think that we will be remembered long after we are gone.

We spend our life trying to build some kind of wealth, we collect objects that are dear to our heart, maybe some particular jewelery item that we would love to pass to our children, take pictures, record home videos, possibly leave a testament thinking that takes care of everything...

The truth is that fortunes are spent, properties are sold, jewelery can't be possibly divided among all of our descendants, records and stories are lost and memories fade.
Still, we want someone to know we existed. We want someone to know we made a difference. And that existence and difference has value. Unfortunately we often don't know what that value or worth is.

Perhaps this value is best understood to those who will follow us - our children, our grandchildren, or even strangers - those who will remember and learn about our lives of trials, of dreams, of hopes, of success and failures and can gain or learn from it.

The present is fleeting and soon to be… the past.

And although we may have thousands of photos and maybe hours of home movies the reality is that we've probably never recorded the obvious for posterity... what it is that we experienced, what we learned, why we did what we did, what we thought was important, and what words of wisdom and faith we wanted to pass on.

Taking the time to write your story and make sure that is is preserved, that the pictures you leave aren't just images from the past, but are connected to the experience and feelings you had when it was taken, will ensure that you leave a Legacy for your family and friends to appreciate and learn from for generations to come.

Your life is important and thanks to Storybooking, you can make sure that it is not forgotten.

Life happens

Yesterday I was in a car accident.
It was pouring down rain and I was being much more cautious than usual, but this person didn't see me while I was going from a parking lot to another and hit my car.
My car is now totaled, but I know Somebody was watching over me. I got bruises from the seat belt and my right arm got kind of burned from the airbag explosion, and am now wearing a splint for my broken wrist.
I am so glad my children weren't with me in the car.
For a millisecond I thought my time had come.
Was I prepared? My children are all under 5 years old. Would they remember who their mom was and how much I love them? Would they have memories of the things we did together, of what were my dreams for them?

Now more than ever I am so glad that I discovered Heritage Makers and have been Storybooking since then...
My children have books about them that will always remind them how special they are and how much they are loved. They will know their parent's love Story which will make them feel even more special.
They will know our family Story through the yearbooks I have been creating, and they will know their family heritage through the genealogy posters, folds and books I have published.

I had many of my books with me in the car and when I saw the smoke coming from the air bags I feared that the car was going to take fire and I would have not only lost the car, but my precious books. Then I realized that my projects were preserved in my online account, and I could have printed as many copies as I wanted at any time, so my memories and my work weren't lost.

Don't wait for tomorrow to be the Heritage Maker in your home.
Life happens.
I know it now more than ever.