Author: keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Preserving Memories, Digitally

Posted on by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Somewhere along the line, I appointed myself as the family historian.  (Well, as one of the family historians – My dad has done incredible family research, which I’d be lost without, and both my parents have preserved so many family moments in pictures and videos.)  I don’t know why or when this happened, but I can’t help but spend free time researching family trees, scanning and organizing old photos, and digitizing old home movies.  It’s definitely a mixed blessing.  This can feel like a time-sucking hobby, for sure.  I also feel a strong urge to be recording my current family’s moments, as well as, you know, LIVING these moments.  But, since it’s part of who I am, I may as well embrace it, enjoy it, and try to be efficient in it.

One of the issues for me has been how quickly technology and systems change.  Just when I think I’ve found a good way to do something, a better system presents itself.  Ah, well.

PHOTOS

I started my journey as the family photo scanner.  I scanned countless photos over the years and have countless more that haven’t been touched.  (My family of origin REALLY liked taking photos.)  Here are some of photo scanning tips, from my experience:

–I know not everyone agrees with this, but if you’re dealing with massive amounts of photos, or even a moderate amount, I recommend only scanning the “star” photos.  I started by scanning EVERY. SINGLE. PHOTO.  Not only does this eat up scanning time and computer memory, but it’s just more to sort through and label.  And, frankly, there’s not much desire to even look at all of these, so why go through the trouble?  Not everyone has this “problem” of too many memories preserved in photos, so it may sound strange, but for those who are blessed with a lot of photos, this is my recommendation.

–When I did most of my initial photo scanning, I used a scan bed.  Now there are apps that make this process ridiculously simple.  I don’t have much experience with them, but I would definitely be using these if I was starting the digitizing now.

–I recommend labeling as you go, and labeling groups of photos, rather than individual ones.  I used to label each photo with who was in the picture and where it was.  Not to say this isn’t helpful, perhaps to future generations, but I just keep it simple for now.

Here’s how I label photos so they can be sorted in order–  YEAR-MONTH NUMBER (then) MONTH.  [Example:  1985-03 March]

When programs or computers organize in alphabetical/numerical order, this will ensure the photos stay in order.  Also, if you only know the year, you can still get photos into their general chronological order.  After that basic label, I then decide if I want to add details.  If years aren’t known, I try to group by decades based on the ages of the people in the photos.

–I also wish I had posted these into an online file storage site as I went.  At the time I started scanning, I was copying everything onto discs, and now I wish I had just been sharing and storing things online from the start.

SLIDES

We inherited quite a few boxes of slides, so I was very excited to find a way to convert them into digital format. I used a simple converter machine for awhile – nothing fancy, but it worked.  It actually seemed a bit flimsy at first, but it did what I needed.  Now as I revisit the lightweight machine years later though, I’m sad to say it hasn’t held up.  I’m trying to decide if getting a new converter is worth it for the remainder of the slides we have.  Our local library system has a Library of Things that loans out everything from board games to telescopes.  They finally got a slide converter in the system, but it’s checked out for months in advance.  Just requires a little patience and planning.

8MM TAPES

Researching how to convert 8mm video tapes took me FOR.EV.ER!  I finally figured it out and purchased an old camcorder and a VidBox and it’s been super easy ever since (just time-consuming).  The tapes do have to play and record in “real time,” but I find that if I’m doing other things and get a tape started, this doesn’t really matter.  Tips:

–My family of origin has Sooooo much footage.  I know this might not be a “problem” most people have, so some of this may sound silly to those who are happy to have the little bits of home video they do have.  For me, I find that it’s really helpful to transfer our footage into iMovie and do some editing.  There is no way my family is ever going to sit and watch the hours and hours of video.  Sometimes I edit these by events.  Sometimes I simply upload a short bit that would be fun to view and share.  I’ve got a clip of my brother at age 10 waving to the camera and saying “Hello” to his future kids, who are now that age.  How cool is that!  So, I uploaded that 15-second video by itself.  But, usually, I’ll edit a sports game or recital or holiday or trip as its own video.

–Sites like Sync, Google Drive, Dropbox, etc. are great for sharing old videos or photos.  You can organize into folders and share select links.

CURRENT

The tricky balance for me is keeping up with the current photos and videos, in addition to all those cool ones from my own childhood.  I know many people who take tons of photos and footage on their phones and then hardly look at it again.  I try my best to do something with the footage I take, but it’s tough.

–I regularly download photos onto my computer and organize/label by month.  (Nope.  I’ve finally caught up with the times and use synching iCloud)

–I delete the bad photos/videos or less-than-awesome ones.  (Hard to do with sweet kiddos in the pic, but worth it.)

–I (*try to*) regularly pick the best photos/videos of the month and transfer them to an online storage platform.

–Even with all the other digital chaos I’ve got going on, I always take a monthly photo of each child and load it to a file.  I also work very hard to make a short birthday compilation video for each child every year.  Having at least these makes me feel better that I haven’t organized the hundreds of photos and videos I take each month.

SHARING

For me, one of the best parts of all of this is sharing with other family members.  I know the photo/video sharing thing is crazy trendy on social media sites.  But since I don’t have the Twitter or Instantgram, I thought it would be fun to share old photos in a place where they can easily be accessed and categorized.  In the past I’ve put together discs, online storage files, and even private blogs.  I’m currently working on some online Family Trees for each branch of the family.  I may be the only one who actually looks at these, but I love having these as a reference, and someday, someday, someone from the family may be interested.  (I recently went to a virtual Genealogy conference, and I was so relieved to find some people who are just as dorky as I am about family history.  Huzzah!)

 

I’m working at realizing this is an ongoing process and not a project that I’ll get to just cross off my to-do list one productive Saturday.  I’m trying to enjoy the treasures of videos and photos I do find and share, instead of thinking about the pile of ones I haven’t gotten to.  I’m trying to remember that sometimes by preserving/digitizing a special handful of photos and videos rather than the whole massive pile, I can actually have the space to appreciate those ones more.  For anyone else in the rare position of having an overabundance of preserved family memories, perhaps you can relate.  But some of the methods above have helped me at least begin this journey, and I’m hoping that maybe some of these ideas can help someone else.

 

Resources for Songs, Rhymes, and Finger Plays

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Online Resources of Song, Rhyme, and Finger Play Collections

–Alina Celeste
Alina’s YouTube channel has an incredible assortment of songs and finger plays.  Many of them are in Spanish as well!  Her cute quirkiness and fun interactions make these entertaining for kids and adults.

–Jbrary
Dana and Lindsey are children’s librarians who have posted a very generous number of videos that might be found at a StoryTime circle.  There are songs, rhymes, finger plays, and more all organized by theme.  They are so darling to watch, and they remind me of some of the enthusiasm I used to have with children before becoming a mom.  =D  Check out their website too for wonderful book recommendations and felt board activities.

–Singing Games for Children
Dany Rosevear has an amazing collection of songs and resources on here, as well as links to her singing them on YouTube!  So sweet and so organized.  I want to sit and have tea with her on a weekly basis!

–Mamalisa
MamaLisa has a beautiful collection of children’s songs from around the world.  Most of the songs have an audio of the song, lyrics in multiple languages, sheet music, and links to multiple YouTube videos of the song.  The blog also has incredible links and information.  If you’re looking a multi-cultural approach to your children’s song collection, you must visit this site.

–Molly Whuppie
Ack! Just found Molly, and I love her so much!

Children’s Songs and Musicians that Aren’t Annoying

In this post I talk about how often I walk into a kids’ shop and hear either completely sappy ‘kid’ tracks that seem to belittle our kids’ tastes or pumping club music that seems to rob our kids of childhood with every bass thump.  Here’s the thing.  There’s PLENTY of kid-geared music in between these two extremes.  I’m just not sure why the shops I’ve visited can’t seem to find them.

So, here’s a(n ongoing) list of some of the songs and musicians who (I, personally, think) find the wonderful balance of gearing their music towards children, without trying to “sing down” to them and without trying to make their music into a dance club.  Bonus is that it’s all music we adults can enjoy too.

–Emily Arrow
We found Emily on her YouTube channel where she sings songs based on children’s picture books.  But she also teaches ukulele, writes books, and runs a podcast, among other things.  She’s darling, and I adore her.

–Okee Dokee Brothers
I only recently found the Okee Dokee Brothers.  Joe and Justin sing Nature-themed songs that are so much fun.  Love these guys.

–Minnutes
I can’t find a lot of information on Minnutes, nor can I tell if they’re geared solely towards children’s music, but I’ve heard some of their songs on Spotify and they’re fun and happy.

 

–Elizabeth Mitchell
I “found” Elizabeth Mitchell when I was pregnant with my first.  I immediately fell in love with her gentle and soulful interpretations of children’s folk songs.
You can also find some music videos on YouTube for some of her songs that always make me yearn to run through meadows and picnic under the stars.

 

YouTube kid songs:

–Lily on Adventure Sandwich has wonderful songs like: Just the Way You Are, New Friends Make You Feel Special, and Happy Father’s Day

Peanut Butter Cookies

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Recipe

I’ve been trying to find a peanut butter cookie recipe for years.  They’re not my personal favorite, but there are a couple people in the house who love them.  I’ve been disappointed by the last few recipes I’ve tried, and so I’m more and more hesitant to make these.  One of the big issues is that we use an all-natural peanut butter.  And I know the tips say to use a name-brand for p.b. cookies, but I just refuse.  The ‘extras’ in Jif and other brands give me the shivers and make the peanut butter taste plastic-y, in my opinion.  So, I’m left with more crumbly homemade peanut butter cookies at this point.  But, it’s worth it.  And maybe I’ll stumble across a way to fix this problem, while still sticking with our pure peanut butter.  But this recipe tastes yummy, despite the somewhat crumbly nature our p.b. gives them.  I think I should have been more patient with the mixing and actually had the egg at room temp.  I’ll try again in the future and update if I find a way that works better with the non-plastic, natural peanut butter.

Little Red Gliding Hood

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Little Red Gliding Hood (2015)
written by Tara Lazar
illustrated by Troy Cummings

This picture book is a playful visit to the land of fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters.  Little Red’s ice skates aren’t looking so good anymore, and she’d like to win the brand-new skates offered as a prize at the skating competition.  The only problem is – slippery slush! – she doesn’t have a skating partner.  Everybody seems to have already paired up – the dish with the spoon, Bo Peep with her sheep, and so on.  Turns out the Big Bad Wolf is also looking for a partner, and he’s really a not-so-bad wolf after all.  We love the cute references to different fairy tales and nursery rhymes hidden in the story and pictures of this book.  A fun picture book to read and see!

The Value of Picture Books

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Picture books haven’t always been such a big part of my life.  Sure, I remember the picture books that cropped up here and there in my young adulthood as ones with “bigger” messages for adults too —Oh, the Places You’ll Go, Hope for the Flowers, etc.– but even though children’s chapter books have been a love of mine throughout my life, I didn’t give picture books the place they deserved on my shelf until having children.  Here’s the thing:  Without mentioning specific ones, there are some REALLY not-so-great picture books.  There was a time when I thought picture books were somewhat interchangeable–that reading was the important part, but that these “temporary” books were just for babies and young kids.

Wow, was I wrong.  There are SO many gorgeous children’s books!  Beautiful stories and illustrations that I’m proud to have on our shelves and have no intention of downsizing when my kids are older.  My oldest is at the stage where reading chapter books at bedtime has been the norm for awhile.  And her younger brother is actually quite engaged by read-aloud chapter books as well.  But I still make a conscious choice to pause between chapter books every once in awhile and make sure we’re getting a good dose of picture books too.  Not that we don’t read these during the day, but I think it’s important to give them that sacred, snuggle-in-bed place as well.

Picture books beg to be read out loud, regardless of age.  I love listening to my husband read to the kids or hear Story Time librarians read to their circles of young library visitors.  Picture books lend themselves well to rhythm and humor and Life messages cleverly hidden in a concise and beautiful story.  In hearing the pacing and timing of these picture books, children learn much more than if they’re left to only read on their own.  Just because a child can read on their own doesn’t mean that read-alouds should be dropped.  And, as much as I love the ability to imagine the scenes of a chapter book, the illustrations of a really great picture book provide so much to the story and its readers.  I’ve often heard that writing picture books is far more challenging than writing other books.  To be able to tell your story and share your message in such a limited space?  It makes sense.  And the vocabulary?  I once tried to re-learn Spanish by checking out Spanish picture books from the library.  Even with the aid of a fluent speaker, we couldn’t make out many of the words.  Picture books–good ones– are rich in beautiful, new words.

When I worked at a school library, I used to cringe that students seemed to only be reading for “points” in their reward system.  They’d aim for longer and longer books that held more points for them.  It saddened me to see so many wonderful, shorter, “simpler” books go ignored.  Another thing I’d hear in my time working at schools was teachers telling students that a book was “below their level” and they had to read something else.  How can we expect to foster a love of reading when we can’t let children read what they would like?  I almost exclusively read children’s or young adult –or PICTURE!– books; this doesn’t mean I can’t read anything beyond these.  But these are the stories that grab me, that entertain me, that bring me joy and tears and a desire to read more.

Picture books – the good ones- are powerful and beautiful.  They aren’t just for the non-readers or early readers.  Those who don’t know this yet haven’t had the pleasure of a really great picture book.  I’m tired of the competitiveness of our society.  Children, and (let’s face it, mostly) parents, want bragging rights.  Having a child read long books at a young age has become some sort of strange milestone to boast about on social media.  Reading long books at a young age that a child can’t relate to yet sounds empty.  Connecting to a book (no matter the length or level), growing a love of reading and books (yes, even wordless ones!), being able to appreciate the subtleties of language and illustrations– THAT to me is the foundation for a reader.  We, as a society, need to discover and embrace the precious picture books that authors and illustrators have gifted us.  Not just for our children, but for all of us.

 

“With the popularity of e-books and DVDs and the push toward early chapter books, then the still-thicker books that follow, we may not realize that traditional picture books are endangered. They are. Publishers won’t keep publishing what there’s no market for. Which means that what picture books offer children–something they get no other way–is endangered, too.”  – Mary Lyn Ray

See this article by Mary Lyn Ray