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.

Have you ever wanted to write a message to the future letter to yourself? It sat in my closet for years. I don’t even remember what is in it. Do you remember making a time capsule as a kid in elementary school? Do you know what ever happened to your own time capsule?

How have you changed over the past years? What has affected you in life to make those changes? What advice would you give to others or your own children or grandchildren about life today? A time capsule is a great place to save that advice, so when your loved one is of a specific age, you can give them the time capsule filled with your valuable insight about life.

Write Letters of Advice

When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone you love? Remember that feeling of receiving an actual letter in the mail, rather than email? Technology is amazing, don’t get me wrong here. I would not be able to stay up to date with the life of my aunts, uncles, and cousins in Texas if we did not have social media and email. However, there is nothing like receiving a personalized note or letter in the mail.

What to Do with Your Accumulating Wisdom

So as we all grow up, we accumulate more wisdom on a daily basis. So what is your view on life? What mistakes have you made that you do not want your children or grandchildren to make? What success have you had and what steps did you take to get there? Most importantly, do not ever forget to tell your loved one how much you love them in a letter. You never know what can happen to your life, unfortunately.

Don’t Wait Until You are Gone to Be Remembered

Pass on your legacy today. There are many different ways to share your wisdom in life to your children and grandchildren. How else do you know what you have in common with your grandparents or great grandparents, if they never share their stories with you?

Topics to Write About in your own “Message to the Future” Letter

1. Favorite recipe and how you created it or who it has been passed down from.

2. Teach a skill, like fishing, fixing something on your house, or how to advance yourself at your job. The ideas are limitless. Share your gifts and talents with your children and grandchildren.

3. Talk about your family tree and use one or two words to describe the personalities of each person.

4. Pretend like you are going through family interview questions, and talk about your own biography. Many people’s lives are so fascinating, but you will never know about them if these stories are not written out. Talk about what life was like when you were young.

5. Talk about what clothes you wore as a kid, or what you did for fun when you were bored.

Make a Bigger Connection and Add Personal Mementos and Memorabilia to Your Time Capsule

Finally, add more tangible items to your time capsule, along with these sentimental letters. I am sure you have a box somewhere or a storage container in your attic with items that can help tell your life story. What do you want to pass on to your children or grandchildren that you want preserved forever? By passing on your memories, you are making sure you will never be forgotten about.

Do not wait until it is too late to pass on your life story. It will be the most memorable and lasting gift you can give to your children or grandchildren. Check out this other helpful article about Five Ways to Pass on Wisdom to Younger Generations. Get your own time capsule here today and get started on your “Message to the Future” letter to your children or grandchildren.

What is your favorite story from your grandparents? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 5 Topics for your Message to the Future Letter appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

This is a continuation of our blog posts discussing, who all can use a time capsule. Time capsules are not just for the receiver, but for the giver who created it too. Grandparents are special people in this world, filled with treasured stories to tell us all. They are filled with so much wisdom.

When you make a time capsule about your life, your grandchildren gain understanding and insight as to why you are filled with your wisdom. It will be pure joy to save special paperwork or projects your grandchildren made on their own, for you. Time capsules help bring together many families and close the generational differences and/or geographic distance.

One special day, my cousins, aunts, uncles, and my parents decided to make the most special gift we have ever given my grandmother. She is one of the funniest, sweetest, and wisest woman you will ever meet. She has a lot of stories herself about life during the ‘good old days.’ We wanted to give back to her in a creative way, and make it something that would be remembered for years to come in the future. This is the point of our time capsules, to give back all these stories for generations to come.

How to Make a Grandparent’s Memory Book or Scrapbook

Luckily, we have a few creative people in our family, and we all communicate well. So, each family member was mailed decorative card stock paper in different sizes, like index cards. We were each assigned to think of sentimental stories, funny sayings, or fun memories we all remember Grandma saying or doing with us in years past.

The family profile really started to fill in quick, as we started to hear past stories about what my father did with his mother and brother when he was younger. This was such a great bonding moment for us all. This is also a great way to make sure your family heritage is passed on, and never forgotten. You can write about family accomplishments, milestones you have overcome together, projects made, and overall how things used to be (in the world without the internet or cell phones).

• Pictures of your grandparent’s wedding

• Pictures of what work in the fields looked like in the past

• Pictures of what family time consisted of in the past

• Pictures of family Christmas get-togethers

• Pictures of old vehicles driven or old tv shows of your grandparent’s time

• Pictures of making your favorite recipe with your grandmother

Do not forget to put in the Grandparent scrapbook, great photos to make her laugh, cry, and reminisce. Showcase her personality. Again, similar to our time capsules we sell, you can also include newspaper clippings about your grandparent, the bandana he or she always used, the candy wrapper showing her favorite sweet, her grandchildren’s artistic drawings, or anything else meaningful to describe her. Make sure to include a journal time line in the scrapbook answering the who, what, when, where, and why the moment was significant, for each photo or note card story you fill out.

After gathering your photos, stories on the colorful note cards, and memorabilia then you can put together your scrapbook pages, along with the additional scrapbook stickers, art, or stamped images to add more character and make the scrapbook a finished product to be proud of.

Presenting the Grandparent Memory Book or Scrapbook

It’s a party. It’s a celebration of life. Make sure you wrap the Grandparent scrapbook, and give it as a gift when you are all gathered around as a family. Also make sure someone video records this milestone moment. You do not know what you have until it is gone. You can even save your scrapbook in a Baby Time Capsule, to give to the next grandchild who is about to be born. What a legacy gift that will be. Get your artistic Baby Time Capsule from http://www.timecapsule.com/product/babystimecapsule/.

Start today and document your family’s history and create a lasting gift for future generations. This is a heritage scrapbook project that keeps on giving.

What is your favorite memory about your grandmother? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie
www.timecapsule.com

Note: Grandparent photo with baby taken from http://www.grandparents.com/family-and-relationships/grandparent-names/choose-your-grandparent-name

The post How to Make a Memory Book for Grandparents appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

What do you remember from your first grade year in school? A school time capsule helps slow time down, so we do not forget the milestone moments in our lives. This blog is continuing the discussion about who can use a time capsule. Who wouldn’t want a time capsule from their first school year, or any from any grade in school for this matter?

Teach students that they are in the driver seat of their lives or destiny. Time capsules can be used by teachers, to help drive this point home. You can teach interviewing skills, writing skills, and organizational skills. A time capsule is like combining the Art and English courses into one.

Think Outside the Box to Teach

As many of you teachers and parents are getting ready to start buying those back to school supplies, think about how you could use a time capsule in you lesson plans this year. You may even find yourself reminiscing about your own school years growing up, as you do this project. I know I am already thinking about the teachers who have impacted my life career decisions, as I am even typing this blog. There is so much to do, and yet the weeks fly by for the kids, parents, and teachers throughout the school year. Slow down this time, by preserving some of their special artwork, writings, or even audio speeches or videos in a time capsule.

How Can a Teacher Use a Time Capsule?

I will warn you, when you start the time capsule activity for one class, you will more than likely stir up excitement of the younger classes who will now look forward to this activity when they come to your class next year.

For First grade, you could include things like:

• All About Me questionnaire, which can include their basic bio stats
• Take a photo of their first day of school, then the last day of school to see changes
• Include a string to measure their height this first year of school, to compare to how tall he or she is when they graduate high-school.
• You can decorate your own tin, container, or box or purchase an artistic Baby Time Capsule from http://www.timecapsule.com/product/babystimecapsule/
• Ask your students to draw about what they want to be when they grow up.
• Help your kids get to know each other, by having them each share what they included in their time capsule. For a FREE Digital Download of a time capsule survey check out http://amysfinerthings.com/2011-time-capsule-printable-my-new-years-gift-to-you

For Older grades, you could include things like:

• The time capsule activity is great to have students practice their writing skills with an essay written after interviewing a family member or someone in their generational lines.
• With the social media world now, you could have students make a You Tube video or digital time capsule about their predictions or where they see themselves in 5 to 10 years. You could then evaluate the video as a speech. This may actually be a speech they would enjoy doing.
• Have students write about what they want to be when they grow up, and how they plan to make the world a better place.
• For more ideas and a sample evaluation sheet for this project, check out http://www.timesaversforteachers.com/freeforms/timecapsulesample.pdf
• You could also have each teacher from the student’s past, be writing letters to the students about how they did in their class, or where that teacher sees the student in the future. What a legacy letter or “Message to the Future” to pass on to the students in their time capsule, to open when they graduate high-school. Talk about a touching moment.

What would you put in your school year time capsule? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

www.timecapsule.com

The post How to Make a School Time Capsule appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

As many of you may already know, from reading previous blogs (which my husband and I are still building upon – stay tuned), I met Mark over the internet. We are a family owned business sharing our life, experiences, and help to you about creative ways to use the baby or wedding time capsules, latest trends in the baby and wedding industry, and insights about family and milestone moments in life to preserve and pass on for generation to generation. Mark and I have been to some trade shows with our products, and it is a great place to meet new people. It can be very fun, yet awkward to meet someone new at the same time. Let’s learn more about how to meet someone new.

Your Resume Does Not Define You

Recently I have been trying to advance our business, by participating in business webinars and chats with other entrepreneurs. Like so many others, it feels uncomfortable “selling” yourself, when you meet or talk to someone new. Keep in mind, your resume does not define you. You have far more to offer. To build relationships with others, you have to continually give deposit slips of friendship, knowledge, value, care, etc. No matter where we go, this is why my husband and I try to do, and this is how we started to become excited and want to continually talk to each other more and more.

It is easier for me to genuinely find a common subject first to have a natural conversation first, not to mention it eases me more in the connection, to talk about something from everyday life. This is why many people like sitcoms. We all can relate and they make us laugh. It is hard to tell others who you are without telling them what you do too. However, if you want proof that your resume does not define you, just look at your social media accounts. For example, if you are Pinterest fan, you can understand this. Pinterest is just a billboard offering value everywhere, DIY projects, podcasts, blog help, crafting ideas, food recipes (man I am hungry now LOL). Anyways approach the conversation with social media being popular, so let me “share” something with you that might help you too.

A Time Capsule is like your Resume, Only Better

Hopefully, you are still following what I am saying at this point. If not, feel free to comment below and ask questions. A time capsule, is so much better than your resume, because it fills in the details of the stories in between your stories of what you “do” in life. That is the real reason, why your resume does not define you. We all are humans at our jobs, not robots, with different life stories. A time capsule captures all your stories for years. It is these stories that we want to help you preserve and share with new people you meet in life. For a job interview, we may sound self-centered and look at what the job can do for us, when we should be thinking about what I can do for the company or new friend I just met.

We are All Walking Pinterst Billboards. What is On Your Board That You Have to Offer Others?

When we meet someone new, the usual question is “so what is your story?” Continuing from the conversation about being a Pinterest fan, think about this. If you are an introvert, think about what is on your social media, like Pinterest, and find a common interest to talk about. We are all walking Pinterest billboards. What is on your board that you have to offer others? We usually like to meet new people we can know, like, and trust. Build these three important keys with a new friendship, using your commonalities from social media. I choose to live in a world of paying it forward. I want to share what I know about life, or something that I shared on my Pinterest board or other social media, that may be helpful to a new friend I meet in life.

So, what else is in your time capsule, that you can open (metaphorically speaking) when meeting someone new, whether it is for a job, at a business trade show or seminar, or at a social gathering? You are more than what is listed on your resume. Remember, your resume does not define you. What relationship building goals can you make when you introduce yourself to someone new? Look at this great article, if you want additional tips of what to say and do when you meet someone new at http://www.smallfuel.com/blog/entry/how-to-introduce-yourself-to-someone-youve-never-met/. Build bridges with whomever you meet, because you never know how they may be able to help you after you help them. I am so glad that Mark and I introduced ourselves to each other, and told our stories, or we would not have been married.

What is on your Pinterest board, that you can share with others you meet? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

www.timecapsule.com

Credits: Introduce Yourself Quote is from http://www.imgquotes.com/your-life-is-waiting-for-you-go-introduce-yourself-best-quotes-sayings/

The post How to Meet Someone New – You are More than What Your Resume Says appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Father’s day is just around the corner. What are you going to do? Why not create something different this year, and make it an unforgettable gift that lasts a lifetime.

Record your memories in a book, scrapbook, audio file, etc. That is what a dad really wants – to know he is loved and appreciated.

There are so many stories I remember with my father, like helping make homework fun, to the point that now I love math. I used to cry myself through the math homework, but because of my father’s patience and creativity, he took on my challenge to turn math into games, to help me remember better. What do you remember the most about your father?

How to Remember and Thank your Father

Not everyone will have a happy Father’s day. For some it is a painful reminder that dad is no longer around. It does not have to be that way though. You can still honor your dad by leaving a legacy and telling your children stories about their grandfather. Create a memory book for him. While you miss your father, help yourself through the continued grieving journey and explain to your children what all you learned from him, passing on his wisdom, insight, funny stories or jokes.

Thank your Father with Photos and Memories – Help Keep Traditions Alive

Whether your dad is with you still or not, plan the best Father’s day this year with a gift of shared stories and mementos. Create a gift to pass on from one generation to another, telling your father’s history and contribution to your family. Create a time capsule for your dad.

What to Put in a Time Capsule for your Dad. Make Unique Father’s Day Keepsake Gifts.

A time capsule for your father, is the most personalized gift you will ever give him. You can make this a family gift, having your mother or siblings help, or make is special only from you. Look around your house, your mother’s house, in your old photo albums, in his secret cave man rooms of fun, to find things to put in the time capsule. Ask family members and his own friends to fill out letters or “Message to the Future” notes about where they predict he will be later on in life.

Other Things to Include in Dad’s Time Capsule

• Stories about funny or sentimental moments you had with your father (written or voice recorded).

• Then and Now photos of your father.

• Written letters to him about milestone moments in his life or how he was there for you in your life for meaningful events.

• Include an “All About my Dad” worksheet to fill out for family members.

Download this FREE Printable “All About My Dad” for you kids to have fun filling out. Get it at http://allforthememories.com/blog/2011/6/7/free-fathers-day-printable.html

• Play a practical joke on him, and put it in the time capsule. You know you owe him for all the jokes he played on you.

• Include your dad’s favorite magazine or newspaper in the time capsule (so when he opens it about 20 years later, he can read about his interests in the past and what life was like then at that time.)

• Current photos of your dad’s house, before he does anymore remodeling. You could also include a picture of his current car he is driving, which will change in the future.

• School projects or drawings from you or your siblings of your dad or made for your father.

• Ticket stubs from special movies seen, or places you went with your father.

• Anything special from his job, to show his accomplishments in life at this time.

These are just a few suggestions to get you started on such a memorable activity and gift for Father’s day. You could even have fun and hide the time capsule in your home, then set up a geocaching game to have him find his own gift, then open the time capsule to see what is inside. Keep in mind, this time capsule can be closed again after he opens it on Father’s day, to be displayed for several more years into the future, when you and your siblings get to decide when he opens it again. When he reopens the time capsule again, in the future, it will be like re-living and re-celebrating this Father’s day all over again. What a fun moment that will be to see whose predictions were right (in your letters), or to just listen to the stories all over again and see how much your dad has changed.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

www.timecapsule.com

The post Father’s Day Keepsake Gifts appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Memories are some of the most special moments we want to treasure forever. That is more difficult for us all, as we get older.

“She just does not seem to be all there anymore. She is forgetting more. She is having a hard time recognizing me as her daughter. She is forgetting my name.” – my Aunt complained to my mother over the phone. My aunt was living in Texas with my grandmother, and my mom (her sister) lives in Indiana. It was heart retching knowing there was very little my mother could do, to help my Aunt and Grandmother, in Indiana.

What To Do To Help the Older Generation

Despite our distance, my grandmother and I were close. She prayed for my future husband for years, wherever he was in life, to be ready for me mentally, emotionally, and physically. Her prayers worked as I found “the one.” How could I ever give back to my grandmother who was an Alzheimer patient. I do not wish this problem, or any other memory disorder, on anyone. It is hard to deal with, as family members let alone being the actual person trying to live through this struggle.

How a Memory Box or Time Capsule Helps

Even though my family lived far away from my grandmother, that does not mean we could not help. We helped my Aunt recall memories, wrote down stories we remembered, recorded our voices, and of course as grandchildren created homemade cards for grandma.

A memory box or time capsule can do a similar function to help. What would you put in a memory box to stir up a loved one’s memory, emotions, and thoughts?

Image taken from http://sheffieldtimewalk.wordpress.com/2013/12/05/manor-memories/

A Memory Box or Time Capsule helps us all Recall the Past

Include things like:

• Newspaper clipping of special events, or marriage announcement

• Postcards of places visited

• Favorite recipes (maybe even take the time then to make the recipe together)

• A letter from each of you as family members thanking your loved one for all he or she has done for you.

• Family photos

• Special necklace or watch your loved one constantly used to wear

• Video of your loved one growing up. Go through the video slowly pausing to say each person’s name (especially if they are family members) to help your loved one recall names with faces.

• Hobbies your loved one usually does (for example: a sample of his or her quilt or a golf ball)

• Include items which an Alzheimer’s patient loves or boosts their self-esteem. Things that give your loved one their identity back.

• A memory box or time capsule can help an Alzheimer’s patient on all sensory levels. Include things that relate to all their senses. For example, maybe include their favorite perfume or cologne in a small bottle.

This is a fun activity to do for the family, as much as it is for your loved one to open the memory box or time capsule. You all get to share sentimental moments with each other, bonding closer and inspiring conversation about the nostalgic items. Whatever you include in your memory box or time capsule, make sure it reflects the senior’s loves, interests, and significant or milestone moments in the history of their lives, and has strong meaning to him or her. You may want to include an inventory checklist of each item you include with a tag on each item with the story associated with each nostalgic memento. This will help your loved one be able to read and review things on their own time too.

If everything goes well, memory boxes are a great means to help an alzheimer’s patient, because when a senior sees one memory trigger, it may help them recall another memory to talk about. You may even find out something new about them, that you had no idea about. To read more about this topic, check out http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-10/09/music-memory-box

What would you put in a memory box or time capsule for your older loved one, to help them remember better? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

www.timecapsule.com

Credits:

Main Family Quote is available as wall art from http://www.wisedecor.com/decor/wall-art/theloveinour.html

The post Top 10 Reasons to Make a Time Capsule for an Alzheimer Patient appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]A time capsule is a fun and simple way to celebrate an important milestone moment in your family or personal life. It is a great way to involve your family and friends. It is a way to reflect on a past year. History is important so we can learn from it, so why not pass it on to the future generation. Where would we be if we did not have any historical information written down or recorded? Traditions are a way to unite all generations.

Traditions

A time capsule is a great way to keep traditions alive. Preserve your keepsakes in a time capsule. As Christmas approaches, I look forward to going to my parent’s house. There is something about reminiscing and starting the holiday season with a ritual you look forward to each year. The smell of Christmas cookies to heirloom recipes lingering in the air is so sweet. Many families like to pick out the Christmas tree together. How special would it be to cut off one piece of the bark of your first Christmas tree when you are born or married starting your new family with your signatures on it. My family loves to gather around the table playing board games, watching classic movies like “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Decorating the Christmas tree while listening to Christmas music and the crackling fireplace, brings back so many sentimental feelings. This is always a time for my family members to get the warm fuzzies inside us, as we all share laughs, tears, and stories about the ‘good old days.’

So what…

Traditions help us pass on values and culture to the next generation. A time capsule helps provide a sense of family history, identity, belonging, togetherness, and help increase family bonds. To express how important traditions are, just try and get a fake Christmas tree one year, if you are a family who has always bought a real tree. It makes you feel uncomfortable, and some family members may even revolt. They did in our family. That again, is what a time capsule is for…to help keep traditions and memories that matter, alive for generations to come.

Save your precious Christmas memory ornaments.

http://www.mountainemeadows.com/catalog/piece/yesterday/

Everyone lives in this fast, instant, hectic world and we all many times let these important traditions fade. Instead, let’s take life by the hand and pass it on to our future children in our family through the use of traditions written down, with photos, recordings, recipes, or other meaningful items to put in a time capsule. Bring comfort and joy to your family this year by making a time capsule together. What a bonding, milestone moment that will be.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_single_image image=”2561″ img_link_target=”_self”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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