Scrapbook Journaling: Documenting Highlights of the Year

Make a list of the highlights for a fun look back at your year.

I was going through some older layouts when I came across this one from 2008:

Why does 2008 sound like a lifetime ago!?

The layout features a photo block of several photos throughout the year. I loved reliving those moments through the pictures, but the journaling is what I am drawn to most. I made an individual list for each person, highlighting the most memorable moments of the year.

For some reason this is the only year I made a layout like this. Oh how I wish I would have done this every single year! It's so fun to read and remember all of these moments!

The last three years we have done something similar, I just haven't documented it on a scrapbooking layout.

Yet.

We have made it a tradition to answer a series of questions on New Year's Eve.

Some are about reflection on the previous year...

• What was your most embarrassing moment of 2019?

• What was a lesson your learned in 2019?

• What was your biggest accomplishment in 2019?

• What was your biggest failure in 2019?

• What was your favorite memory from 2019?

• What do you wish you could go back and change in 2019?

Some are just for fun...

• What is your favorite restaurant?

• What is your favorite dinner?

• What is your favorite color?

• What is your favorite animal?

• If you had $100, what would you spend it on?

And some are about goals and the future...

• What is your resolution/goal for the new year?

• What are you going to do differently this year?

• What is your prediction for 2020?

I also have a large jar that sits in our living room and beside it sits a stack of small squares of paper and some pens. Anytime something memorable happens, we write it down on one of the papers, fold it up, and put in the jar. It doesn't have to be a major event. Ours are generally small moments that we would probably easily forget if it wasn't documented.

We focus on things like:

• an accomplishment (big or small)

• a funny moment

• happy moments

• sad moments

• proud moments

• a struggle

• a breakthrough

• conversations or interactions

Next comes my favorite part!

At the next New Year's Eve we take that jar and read all of those little memories on those folded up squares of paper. We laugh, we reminisce about the memories of the last year, and talk about our hopes for the next year.

It's the perfect closing to the year.