Let’s learn how to make a first grade school time capsule today. So they already have school  supplies out at the big box stores. Some schools are starting back up earlier this year. Poor kids. I remember when my Summer break was actually 3 great, long months of freedom from homework. It was fantastic!

Some kids actually are excited to go back to school. I know I was one of those kids sometimes. I could not wait to go school shopping to buy new clothes, supplies, etc. It was a time of family bonding with my parents. My mom especially used our school shopping time to learn about my personality and what clothes I liked or did not like. She used the shopping experience to teach me how to budget, and find great buys for my money.

As school starts back up, I am reminded some days of how I do not remember what all I did as a child to get ready for school. I also do not remember every fun project or worksheet I did in my classes. More importantly, I do not remember each and every day of laughs or great memories created at school. This is why I want to challenge you to make a school time capsule with your child this year, especially your child is going into the first grade. Imagine opening that time capsule when your first grader graduates high school when a senior. What all kinds of memories could you save in the time capsule to represent this year, that you could look back on in the future. Imagine the excitement of seeing what is in the time capsule when you  open it in the future.

What to put in a First Grade School Time Capsule

We do not recommend you bury your time capsule, but instead display it in your home to taunt your child for years. You can put it on their shelf in their bedroom, or hide it in a closet if you do not trust them and think they may open it early. You do not want your memorabilia destroyed, while in the ground which is why we tell you to display it instead. I know they say ‘duck tape works for everything,’ but don’t trust it to seal a time capsule for the ground.

• Letter written by your child and their teacher, like filling out a “Message to the Future” predictions letter about what cars, homes, or other things will be like in the future.
• Video recording of popular tv shows at this time.
• Newspaper articles about popular events at this time.
• Popular toys or favorite toy from your child in the first grade. (keep the price tag on the toy)
• Photo of your class from school, your house you lived in at that time.
• Popular baseball or sports cards
• A favorite shirt your child wore all the time for first grade.
• A magazine of new homes and their cost at that time.
• List of prices of gas, milk, bread, and other daily expenses.
• Current music from the year of your first grader.
• Fill out an “About Me” activity sheet.
• Have your first grader answer the question: “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
• Trace their hand on construction paper to save.
• Drawings from your first grader and report cards or other favorite artwork you saved.
• etc

Make your own First Grade Time Capsule today with your child. Click here to start. We have an “Any Occasion” DIY Time Capsule, so you can have your kids put any photo of themselves, their friends, or whatever they want to decorate the outside to make a first grade school time capsule. Your child can even paint or draw on the outside of their time capsule. Then, on the inside have your first grader put their favorite memories and mementos in, to preserve it until he or she graduates high school. Then have a big party with your family and your kids friends over, and have them open their very own first grade school time capsule. What a priceless moment that will be.

It is amazing to see how old things come back again in the world to be popular again, like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I remember playing with my brothers with them. They were my Barbies’ dates at the time when I was younger. Now you see people wearing shirts again from these old (I mean new) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

What other popular items can you think of that has come back again? Comment below and let us know.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

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Photo Credit: Scrapbook page from the Italian voice

at https://www.flickr.com/photos/desiitaly/1565849623/.

• an old school photo of yourself. Make sure your photos have dates on the back and describe what you were doing in the photo, along with who all was in the photo.
• a wrapper of your favorite candy bar at that time in your life.
• an old favorite book
• a photo of your bedroom and if you were a teenage girl a poster of some of the popular tv or movie stars you had on the wall in your room.
• a “Message to the Future” letter from a teacher, parents, family member or friend about predictions of where they see you in the future.
• a movie or concert ticket stub of what you went to see at that time.
• a page from your diary or your entire journal can be saved in the time capsule.
• a menu from your favorite restaurant (is that restaurant still in business 20 years later?)
• a price list of several items from that time (gallon of gas, gallon of milk, bread, coffee, McDonald’s hamburger, a pizza, pop, candy bar, pack of gum, pair of jeans, average t-shirt, cd, tennis shoes, movie theater ticket, new car, average house, etc).
• a list of your favorites (color, snack foods, meal, desert, restaurant, movie, tv show, book, song, car, sports team, sports, subject, etc)
• an about me page to fill out (height, weight, hair color, eye color, last time at the doctor, shoe size, address, school/work name, and other important facts about you).
• souvenirs from vacations or favorite places or events.
• newspaper from the day the time capsule was made.
• a school year book.
• a Birthday Card from the year you made the time capsule.
• List of websites you used the most at that time.
• List of employees you worked with, your work schedule, and pay stub.
• party supplies left over from your special birthday in the past.
• etc.

The post Birthday Time Capsule Ideas appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Check out these fun birthday time capsule video questions, after you read this exciting story.

She had all the balloons set up, food spread out on the table and the card game started with her son on his birthday. It started out just like any other birthday party he had in the past.

But, this one was going to be different this time. This one was a surprise party in two different ways. One, he had no clue who all was going to just show up randomly at the house to “drop by” and say “hi or happy birthday.” Secondly, there was  a birthday time capsule waiting for him to open once everyone arrived finally. It was going to be a day to remember.

Can’t you just see this special event now in your imagination?

It was a time capsule moment as his old elementary, high-school, and life long friends and mentors arrived at the house for his birthday. The look on his face was priceless. The room started to fill with laughter and tears and memories were shared. “I haven’t seen you in years…” he said. “What have you been up to lately?” Let the memory flooding begin as stories are told of the “good old days.”

Then, the Birthday Time Capsule was brought out to the table. What do you think was in it? He forgot he started to fill out time capsule questions years ago as a child. It is amazing how when we keep something special tucked away somewhere in the home, we eventually forget about it. However, that is the point of a time capsule, so that by the time you open it up again, you get to reminisce and remember what life was like when you were age 5, 10, or any age 20, 30, or 50 years earlier. There is no special date. You decide when you want to open your own Birthday Time Capsule.

As a reflection of his past, it was fun and funny to watch old embarrassing videos that were saved of him in cute skits as a child at church and school. There was another video (made 20 years ago) included that asked thought provoking questions about his future similar to the following ones listed. It is like a “digital diary.”

List of Sample Birthday Time Capsule Video Questions

• Have you met someone yet/married?
• Do you have any kids (how many)?
• Are you happy?
• Are you still into solar energy?
• Did you ever travel out of the country?
• Have you bought a house?
• What is it like being a father now?
• Did you ever find a way to focus all your creative energy/start your own business?
• Where are you at in your spiritual journey?
• How is your relationship with your family? When did you last call them?
• How many grandchildren does your parents have?
• Are you out of debt yet? Did you pay off your car yet?
• What kind of cell phone do you have now? I bet it will be better than the one you have now.
• What keeps you working or motivated to reach your goals in life now, compared to the past?
• Are you still in good shape or eating healthy? How much weight have you lost/gained?
• Where do you work now? Did your volunteer years influence what you do now?

These are just some of the questions that you can ask yourself or someone else for a Birthday Time Capsule video. Next week we will discuss more about things to put in a Birthday Time Capsule. It was fun watching all the family and friends laugh at some of his answers now, compared to 20 years ago when the video was made. Priceless.

Make your own Birthday Time Capsule using our “Any Occasion” DIY Time Capsules to put any photos you want on the outside of the time capsule tin. Then add all the mementos and souvenirs you want to celebrate years later. Also included are “Message to the Future” stationary sets to write letters of prediction or words of wisdom for the person to read on their birthday years into the future, when the time capsule is opened. Get your own DIY Birthday Time Capsule here.

What would you ask in a Birthday Time Capsule to be opened 20 or 30 years later? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

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Save old toys in a time capsule for your grandchildren to play with in the future. When I was a young teen, my parents had some friends that they hung around with a lot.  Their names were Doug and Mary Jane.  Mary Jane grew up in the country part of Missouri on a farm.  Even as a young teen, I can remember visiting their farm with them and playing in the fields and barns.

I can remember one time we all went tubing down a river.  The farm hands drove us in the back of their pickup (When you could still ride in the back) to a drop-off location.  We all got into our inner tubes and floated down the river, through some rapids, and around trees and rocks for a couple of hours to a pickup location.  It was a wonderful relaxing time.  No canoes, no paddles, just the quite of the river, the voices of friends, and a day on the water.

A few years after the river trip, Doug and Mary Jane were cleaning out one of Mary Jane’s dad’s barns and found some old rusty toy trucks.  They weren’t much to look at, and they were really nothing more than trash.  There were no wheels, and the paint had completely come off.  They had been left in that barn for many years, and the moisture and exposure to the other elements had left them in bad disrepair.  Still, before throwing them away, they asked about them.

Treasures from your Past

They were informed by Mary Jane’s mom that the trucks had been her dads.  He had played with them as a child and wanted to give them to his children.  Over the years, they must have been put into the barn and forgotten.  That is when the plan began.  They decided not to throw them away, nor tell her father about them.  They simply took them with them.

Over the next few months, they took those old trucks to many different specialists.  They were sand blasted, sanded, primed, painted, and restored from other original parts that would have been on those trucks in the beginning.  It took much more money to restore them than they were worth!  By the time it was all said and done, they were able to salvage 3 of the toys and they looked spectacular!  They were all original, except for the paint, and they looked brand new.  That year, Mary Jane presenter her father with those trucks as a birthday present.

Now, Mary Jane’s dad was not an emotional person.  He was a good man, and loved deeply, but he was not notorious for sharing his emotions.  He was also not a man who would be easily silenced.  He had an opinion about everything, and had no problem sharing his opinion.  I can still remember when he opened the first box.  He lifted the lid, removed the paper packing and peered into the top.  His eyes filled with tears as he pulled the metal truck, a dump-truck style ice truck, from the box.  He set the box on the ground and just looked.  He looked at the top, all the sides, the bottom, front and back.  Even with the tears in his eyes, there was a smile on his face.  After what must have been 10 minutes of silence, he looked up and said, “I played with a truck just like this when I was a child.  It was the same color and everything.  I probably still have it somewhere.  How did you know?”

Preserving Old Toys and Memories

The room erupted in laughter as they realized he didn’t know this was actually the truck he was talking about.  They explained they had found them in the barn and the condition they were in.  They explained about the restoration process and even gave him a photo album of all the different stages of the restoration.  Those tears just kept getting bigger and bigger and rolled down his face.

Mary Jane’s dad lived another 15 years after that day.  He treasured those trucks and was even seen actually playing with them like a child from time to time.  He would get them down off the shelf and play with them with his grand-kids even.  They became one of his most prized possessions.  After his death, they found a letter he had written to them and never sent about how much he loved “receiving the toys of his youth” back as an adult.  He talked about the memories that were attached to them as a child and how they were one of the few things that really meant something to him in this world.

Save Sentimental Toys in a Time Capsule

This is a time capsule at it’s finest.  A real time capsule is not just the information that is inside, although that is important as well, but more about the emotions that are involved.  What would give to have a letter from your Great-great-grandmother?  What would you want to know from them?  What were they thinking when they first saw you in the hospital?  When they first held you?  What was the first toy you loved?  Your first pet?

These are the moments that make you who you are.  These are the joys that you bring others that you do not even realize you are bringing.  These are what our memories are made of.

Today is the day to save a memory.  Today is the day to save something special for the future?  Today is the day to start your time capsule for your precious moment!  Don’t let your toy trucks stay in an old falling-down barn to be destroyed by the elements.  Instead, make your time capsule and protect your precious memorabilia.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Mark

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Ah the days of friendship bracelet memories. When I was a teenager, (Many years ago) it was popular among girls to use embroidery thread of many colors to tie friendship bracelets and give them to all their friends.  There were many patterns and styles that could be used.  Most were made by tying different knots into the threads to form different patterns.  There were others that were made by braiding the threads.  Some had clasps, others tied and still others came with charms and jewelry embedded or attached to the threads.

I was thinking about this over the weekend.  See, today is Memorial Day in America.  This is a day that we set aside each year to remember the Veterans of the past.  We remember those who have not made it through our wars and those who are currently serving our country.  We remember them by exercising our freedoms.  Some of those freedoms include the right to gather.  We gather in homes for barbecues and grilling.  We gather in campgrounds and state parks.  We gather at memorials and graves.  We gather.  We eat.  We relax.  We play.  It is generally a great time to spend with friends and family.

Our family generally goes camping in a local state park with a group from our church.  My wife and I have not been able to attend for several years, but we came down a day late this year because we needed the break.  As I sat at the campfire talking with friends that I have known for more then 30 years, I wondered what was the real bond of friendship?  Within this group we have lost grandparents, parents, and siblings.  We have watched and supported as our group has had kids, struggled to have kids, and not want kids.  We have watched as some have gotten married, others divorced, and still others want and desire to find that special someone.  Yet, no matter what happens to this group, we seem to remain friends.  We seem to push through it all.  We seem to fight the physical and spiritual wars that come along and get closer each time.

I have friends in this group that I know will remain close to me and support me throughout the rest of my life and into the next.  These people are as close to me as my own family, and I would do anything for them.  While our lives are different now from when we were growing up, the reality is that the relationships remain the same.  We tell each other the problems and we share with each other the joys.  The women look at the men and wonder when we will actually grow up, and the men sit there, fart, and laugh.  (Yes, even though most are pushing 40, and some are even over that now, we still think that farting is funny!) Save these special fun moments in a time capsule, to relive all over again years later as friends when you open it in the future. What a day of reminiscing that will be for all of you.

Celebrating Memorial Day with Friends

The “threads” of these relationships go well beyond being in the same church growing up.  They are stronger than the friendship bracelets that our women made as teenagers, and they have survived the tests of time.  I can honestly say, in most of these cases, the bonds of friendship are stronger than steel.

This weekend, I was able to catch up with my friends from my childhood.  This is especially important for me this year, as my life has taken some interesting turns the past few months.  So, as I sat by the firelight talking to these precious people, I realized that these relationships were keeping me warm inside just as the fire was keeping me warm outside.  I sat there thinking about the men and women who are overseas right now, fighting for the freedom that I am exercising at the moment.  I thought about all the people I have lost from my life along the way, and all of the soldiers who gave their life so that I can sit and play cards with my friends, outside, on our beautiful camp site.

While I never served in the military, I was acutely aware of the sacrifice of those who have gone before me.  I am aware of people, like my brother, who served our country so proudly in the army.  I am aware of my father-in-law, and my foster kids who served with honor.  I was reminded of the youth from the youth group I lead who are actively serving in several branches of the military, and the one who recently swore in with the Marines.  All of them served using words like Honor, Code, and Freedom.

To all of my friends . . . We share a bond that is woven through my heart.  You are part of who I am.

To all our Active duty and Discharged Military Veterans . . . That bond is possible because of the Freedom YOU provide.  Freedom isn’t free!

Thank you!

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A couple of weeks ago, I had my 40th birthday.  I normally don’t give much stock to birthdays, and really, I think there should come a point in our lives where we should stop celebrating the day that someone else pushed and heaved us into the world.  That age is about 23.  I also believe that we should begin celebrating again around the 95 mark.  Not so much because you have come into the world, but because you continue to make it another year!

With that said, my parents, who are both still alive, do not see things the same way.  They felt the need to not only celebrate this milestone, but to do so with a party.  Now, I discouraged this as much as possible, but they both have minds of their own and decided this was a requirement.  They succeeded in throwing a party for me, which we had last night.

There I sat in a room filled with my loved ones from multiple generations.  There were friends of my parents who have always been in my life, and frankly, almost another mom and dad to me.  There were friends of mine from school and church youth group growing up.  There were friends from college, and there were even young adults who have been a part of the various youth groups I have helped lead over the years.

We laughed and joked.  We told stories.  We horsed around and even hurled a few insults.  A few of us cracked “inside jokes” and laughed while the rest of the room simply looked at us and wondered.  (And, no, we did NOT explain them!)  All-in-all it was one of the best evenings I have had in the past few years.  I can’t remember when I sat in a room with so much love.  It was fun for me to be able to introduce the different worlds of the youth group I grew up in and the youth group I led.

Milestone Moments

As I sat there watching my worlds collide, I realized why my parents thought this was so important . . . Milestone Moments.  This company is founded on the principal that we let too many moments slip through our fingers and forget to take time and really appreciate them.  There I sat, like a person holding a handful of sand, letting the moment slip through my fingers. Slow down time and capture your memories in a time capsule. Get the “Any Occasion” DIY Time Capsule here, to start preserving your life history today.

The 40th birthday is not about being “over the hill” or having a mid-life crisis.  It should be a time to stop for a moment, and think about those that love you, and have helped you along the way.  It should be a moment to plan a little for the future.  It should be a time to think about all the people in your lifetime that will continue to help you along the way.

So, 30-or-so people who were at my party, Thank You!  For those of you who have been in my life for 2, 3, or 4 decades, thank you for the help.  For those who have been in my life for less than that, thank you for joining us!  Last night was truly a wonderful Milestone Moment!

Together we do great things!

What did you do for your 40th Birthday party?

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Mark

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Reason Season or Lifetime

There are people in your life that are here for a reason, season, or lifetime. August 16, 2000, is a date that I will remember forever.  I was 25 years old.  I was on summer break from my college, and was working for Nordictrack selling treadmills.  I was having “the summer of my life!”  For the second year in a row, I had purchased a Season Pass to Paramount’s Kings Island with 2 of my friends.  I had been a pastor to these two young men in years past, and they had both worked for me as well.  We were a few years apart, but were still rather close.  Our relationships had gone from that of a pastor and his youth to that of friends.  On August 15th, we had decided to make another trip to Kings Island the next day.  Upon arriving home, I could tell that my brother was having a bad day.  We were both living at home, and my brother was down on his luck.  Life had gotten the better of him that day, and it was showing.  I decided that what he most needed was a day of good old fashioned thrill seeking, so we invited him along.  He didn’t have the money, but that was not a problem.  We convinced him that it was on us and he agreed.

The plan was simple – I had to work in the morning, but got off around noon.  I would head home, change, and we planned on leaving around 1:00.  As with all good plans, it didn’t work like that.  One of the young men who was to go with us ended up being called into work, and didn’t notify us until after he was there and we had been waiting on him to show up.  It was more like 2:30 before we left.  My brother had the nicest car and wanted to drive.  Secretly, I wondered if he was hoping that I would fill up his tank upon our return, and he could get some extra gas out of the deal, but that would have been fine.

We never made it to Kings Island.  A few miles from our house, we pulled into an intersection and a speeding SUV “T-Boned” us at around 50 MPH!  The impact killed my brother instantly, and I had to take a rescue chopper out of the accident. My friend was sitting in the back seat and was basically unhurt, but was in shock.  He tried to dial 911 on his cell phone to get help, but wasn’t coherent enough to talk to the operator, so he hung up.  He dialed 911 a total of 16 times in 9 minutes with the same result each time.Now, why would I tell you such a terrible story?  No, I do not need sympathy, or empathy.  I simply want to make a point.  My brother and I had only recently found the kind of relationship that didn’t include fighting.  He was four-and-a-half years older than me, and that made things difficult growing up.  You can ask anyone that truly knew him . . . He was gruff on the outside, but had a heart of gold.  If you were freezing, he would give you the coat off his back but then say, “If you tell anyone, I will deny it . . . Then kick you butt for telling!”I valued that relationship, and was enjoying the way it was changing.  We were getting along and in a lot of ways, were beginning to understand each other; even help each other.  We each had our rough edges, but were both mellowing.  I loved my brother, and I miss him everyday.

My Brother’s Senior Photo Donald Allan Norton 11-1970 – 8-2000

Reason Season or Lifetime

This reminds me of a poem called, “Reason, Season, or Lifetime.”  People come into your life for one of three purposes:

A Reason – They make a change in your life, or you theirs, then they leave as fast as they arrived.

A Season – They are their for a time, then you simply move on.

A Lifetime – They come into your life, and will never leave, no matter what.

When I think about my brother, it occurs to me that these lines are a little blurred at times.  My brother was in my life for a Season, but the influences he has had on me will be with me for a lifetime.  I have had Friends that have come into my life for a Reason, but they too have changed me for a lifetime.

My brother and I at our Grandma’s

I wish I could tell my brother one more time that I love him.  He would probably smack me on the back of the neck and say, “Quit being so mushy,” or he might say, “Whatever Holmes!”  It would do my heart some good to feel his 4-fingers on the back of my head a few more times.  I would smile and give me a hug afterwards.  He would hug back but say, “Don’t tell anyone I did this.”

It has been almost 15 years since my brother went to be with our Lord Jesus Christ.  I will see him again when I pass from this life.

I leave you with this thought . . . Never loose the opportunity to tell someone you love them.  You may think they are a Lifetime, but God may see them as a Season or a Reason.

For all the relationships you cherish and want to remember:  You can pay a tribute to your relationship with the

Any Occasion DIY Time Capsule

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Mark

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I walked in my craft room saying to myself, I have got to learn some tips and tricks to organize sentimental items. If you are like me, your rooms are wall to wall with items. You have a hard time letting go many times.

I remember when my husband and I first moved from out trailer to our huge house we have now. We said “how are we ever going to fill up this place?” I never dreamed I would use 4400 square feet in a home, but I do now.

Over the years, memories accumulate. Clothes, ticket stubs, souvenirs, cards, stuffed animals, etc. It all adds up in your home. At The Original Time Capsule company, we understand the sentimental value that your items have for you. So let’s learn how to organize these items and which ones to physically keep, and which ones to take a picture of and keep in a photo album.

It seems like we just keep boxing things up and store it on top of each other. I am a sentimental person when it comes to my items and especially heirloom belongings. So, how do you know what to keep, what to get rid of, what to give away? For example, what do I do with my old baby blankets, birthday cards, wedding napkins, work certificates, etc. What do you do? How do you keep your memories organized without feeling too much guilt or shame getting rid of things?

1. Use decorative boxes with labels
2. Use clear containers if you want to see your items.
3. Keep similar things grouped together (for example, all of your favorite old lotions or perfumes together).
4. Organize your memories by category (for example, for your kids save a file for each year they are in school).
5. Use a jewelry organizer to separate out your old sentimental necklaces, earings, etc.
6. Keep all of your favorite sentimental things in one place, like a time capsule or shadow box. Put a favorite book in the time capsule, and pass it on to your great grandchildren to read in the future.
7. Keep your important papers and photos in one binder or photo album (for example, birth certificate).
8. Use Mason jars to save sentimental items in and display them as unique art around your home (for example, your Florida beach vacation sand).
9. Make a Christmas ornament out of your old clothes, photos, or objects you want to keep forever (in those clear Christmas bulbs sold at stores). Keep your baby’s first lock of hair in one of them.
10. Save audio and videos on You Tube of your special moments using the sentimental items that you want to keep. Then you can get rid of the items, but keep the video of someone special using them. Make a video of you reading your child’s favorite book, so when you have to be gone, the video is still there.

It is even harder going through boxes of your sentimental items when you lost a loved one. I cannot imagine the experience of having to rehash a hard story of seeing someone leave this earth, by going through old boxes of clothes, toys, letters, etc. I am truly sorry for those of you who may have lost a loved one recently. I hope in some small way we offered you some creative ideas of how to let go, and yet pass on a legacy at the same time with these ideas.

Get a Time Capsule today to get started as a family preserving the things that matter most to you. Paint on it, draw on it, or put any photo you want on the outside of your “Any Occasion” DIY Time Capsule. Then have family members write a special “Message to the Future” letter to grandchildren and great grandchildren of your family, describing what each sentimental item is and the story behind that belonging.

What are some of your tips or ways you organize your sentimental items? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post Tips and Tricks to Organize Sentimental Items appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Who else needs ideas of 5 ways to organize sentimental items? I was walking through my garage on one of the warm days we had so far this year, and realized I have a lot of “stuff.”

Although the problem is, it is not just ‘stuff.’ It is important life stories, journals, objects that I just cannot find it in me to get rid of. I am sure you have been there. Although, it is Spring cleaning time.

Precious Keepsakes

Sometimes we think we do not have time to organize. Many people just sit down each night to watch tv. Why not spend the time putting your pictures in a photo album while watching a movie at the same time. Whatever you do, make sure you store your photos in two different backups. You can never replace your photos.

What about the items that do not fit in a scrapbook or photo album?

You can put things like special wine glasses, graduation cap, sea shells, or other milestone moment items in a shadow box or a shelf. What fun display can you create for everyone to see when they visit?

What about all your old clothes?

You can make a T-Shirt quilt (with the help of a You Tube video). You can also put a favorite shirt in a shadow box as well. What about the idea of cutting up your favorite shirt with the special picture or logo on it, and then sewing it onto a new kid sized shirt for your child to wear? It will certainly be a flashback of memories watching your child walk around your home, in your old college team shirt. Get creative and try to repurpose some of your collections.

How to let go of sentimental items

It can be so difficult to let go when there are many of our senses attached to items. Certain smells, textures, sights, and audio memories can make it difficult to let go. Always remember your memories are within you too. You are not your stuff. You are so much more than just your things. You also never know how much an item that you may donate, may help someone else so much more, value wise. Sometimes holding onto items keeps us from truly feeling freedom. Remember that when you go through your trash, give away, and keep piles. You can still hold onto some things with the pictures of the items, instead of the actual object.

Make a DIY Time Capsule

It can be difficult to let go, so for the times when you absolutely cannot get rid of something, then you can also pass it on to your future child in a time capsule. When things are so close to your heart, an “Any Occasion” DIY Time Capsule is something special you can use to store your own, your baby’s, or your family’s sentimental items.

Decorate the outside of your DIY Time Capsule with any photo you want. You could even put artwork on the outside. Then make sure to create a label tag for each item you put in the time capsule, so you know why you kept that specific object. Once you fill up your time capsule, include a “Do Not Open Until” date on the lid of your time capsule. You can get your own DIY Time Capsule here, to get started today. What a beautiful treasure to pass on to future generations in your family.

A time capsule is a great way to honor your stories and share them with your children or great grandchildren in the future. Keep the best of the best memories in a time capsule. Stay tuned to our blog as we continue to discuss this organization topic on Wednesday (4-1-15).

What is a way you have learned over the years, to help you organize your sentimental items? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 5 Ways to Organize Sentimental Items appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Lets have fun looking at these 10 fun nostalgic activities for your kids. In our last blog I gave you a challenge challenge on to you to turn off the TV for one night. Do fun things like they did in the past without a TV. Let’s discuss some nostalgic activities to do with your kids.

I hear it all the time. “The reason to have kids is so you can play with the toys yourself.” It brings back memories. challenge on to you. Turn off the TV for one night. Do fun things like they did in the past without a TV. To learn more ideas of things you can do, stay tuned in for out next blog.

1. Go outside and fly a kite. Make education more fun for your kids, by teaching them while they get to have fun at the same time.

2. Put on boots and jump in puddles. You can go way back in history and put bread sacks over your shoes with rubber bands to hold them on. Who remembers doing that? My grandma always saved old bread sacks just in case we wanted to go outside and did not have our boots with us.

3. Climb a tree. Remember when we used to see who could climb the highest in the tree? Spend time bonding with your child and make a homemade tree house. The tree house is where some of my brother’s best memories come from.

4. Skip stones across a pond. Again, it is a time to see how many skips your rock does. I still think my brother miscounted, even though he always won.

5. Have a picnic outside and make animals out of the clouds in the sky. This is a great activity to stretch your child’s imagination.

6. Sit back and just spend time listening to the rain under a tin roof. Teach your kids how you can tell how far away a thunderstorm is by the number of seconds between a lightening bolt and the thunder crack sound. It is approximate, but the number of seconds between the lightening bolt and thunder, equals how many miles away the storm is.

7. Visit a farm and see the animals. Take a horseback ride. Teach your kids not everything you eat comes from the grocery store.

8. Write a letter to yourself in the future. What do you think the world will look like 10, 20, or 50 years from now?

9. Get out your old toys as a kid and play with your child’s new toy dolls. It is like meshing two generations into one play family.

10. Make a time capsule together, preserving some of our child’s toys. You can also make a family time capsule together. Let each of your children throw in one special toy that they do not play with anymore but want to save. Pick out other items that represent your family.

Recall your old school life or childhood with your friends and siblings, as you play with your old toys of the past. Break out your Rubics cube. Call your friends over and tell them to bring some of their old toys. This could be one fun baby sitting hour with your children, while you go back in time playing with each other. Remember Teddy Ruxpin? What other stuffed bears were popular in your time? Have a Super Soaker squirt gun fight in your yard. You can still find some old Super Soakers on Ebay.

What was your favorite toy of the past? Compare your old baby doll to the newer technology dolls for your child today. I remember when Cabbage Patch kids were popular. Now there are baby dolls that talk, cry, and are very life like. What about the popular time of beanie babies? What is the most popular stuffed animal of today? I am sure it will be worth a fortune years in the future.

Save your old toys in a time capsule, to pass on to your children in the future. You never know how much of a collector’s item these toys will be in the future. You are preserving your child’s college fund when you put these items in a time capsule now.  You can get your own DIY Time Capsule here, to get started today.

So go outside today. What old nostalgic activity would you like to do with your kid today? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 10 Fun Nostalgic Activities for your Kids appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.