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Pictures are a given, right?
Once you have spent the time, energy and money to plan a great trip, you will want to remember it! I have been guilty of letting those photos live only on my phone.
If you are planning a trip and are looking for a great way to document that isn’t really boring, try these things.
1. Family Journal
We use a family journal to mark every important event. It is a blank journal, as plain or fancy as you like, that every member of the family can write in when they have an important thing they want to remember.
Writing in the journal can be a great activity for driving home from the trip or ask everyone to write in it on their birthdays.
If you write a little every few months it will be a great record for your family to look back on for years to come.
I recommend that every family keep a family journal all the time. Keep it available for everyone to write in anytime they have something they want to share. I find this much more attainable than baby books…
2. Movie poster
You can submit a family photo and some details to a freelance artist on Fiverr and have them create a movie poster for your trip!
I think this would be a really fun way to display vacation photos, you could print and frame this and it would be such a cool thing to hang in your home.
I love the look of this artist, and you could get a great product for $25 – 50
If you have never used Fiverr, it is just a platform where freelance artists can advertise themselves. They will offer a job with details about pricing and what is included. I recommend you communicate with the artist to make sure they understand what you want and choose someone who offers a revision. This way you can get the poster back and ask for any changes, so that you can be sure to be happy with the work they provide!
Print, frame and hang that thing up!
3. Highlight Video
What about creating a highlight video of your vacation using a free video editor like Animoto! I love Animoto and it is super beginner friendly.
I made this short clip in less than half an hour with their templates! They are super intuitive and easy to put together, their free version has some stock videos, music and images to use in your video. Once you are done you can download it and share on social media or save in your memories!
Creating a cool edited version of your vacation films really makes it feel more special when you re-watch those videos. I know my kids love to watch videos of themselves and I love having them available to them.
4. Kids Memory Books
Speaking of kids, my kids also love looking at photos of themselves! I find that traditional printed photo books are out of my price range.
I have 4 kids and I like to give them each a book of their own.
The solution for us was to buy these simple, durable, photo albums and print the photos.
These books are full of pictures I printed on my home printer, using Dollar Tree photo paper. So simple, and so affordable.
We also grabbed a few 3×5 cards and wrote some simple notes to add to the album. I will often find my kids curled up in a chair looking through their albums. They also make a great birthday gift.
5. Photo Map
If you are planning to travel in the US, this photo map allows you to crop photos from each state to make a cool collage of your experiences across the state!
You could make it as simple as printing your Google Maps plan and frame it up! Done is better than fancy.
6. Maps and Measurements
How far you drove, how big the tiny hotel room was, GPS coordinates, the combined height of the family members who went on the trip?
I also found this creator on Etsy who will create a gorgeous print incorporating up to ten maps of places you have been.
7. Theme Song
This one is cheap and easy. Select a theme song for the trip. Play it when you leave the house, when you arrive at your destination and when you get home. You can play it as much as you can stand! Whenever you hear the song you will all be reminded of the trip!
A Google search will give you lots of options for road trip music. My favorites are
-Everyday Is a Winding Road
-Life Is a Highway
-Shotgun
-Party in the USA
8. Make a List
When I was in 8th grade I was given the book 10,000 Things to Be Happy About. It is a great tribute to happiness. It is a very simple list of things that made the author happy, some are 1 word and some are phrases.
Creating a list of things that made you and your family happy on the trip would be a great memory. Even without a ton of context, the list is sure to jog some great memories from the trip.
9. Get a Tattoo
Maybe not for every trip, but a very special trip might merit a very special way to remember it!
If you think you might want a tattoo, take plenty of pictures on your trip so that you will have lots of inspiration to show a tattoo artist. You could also use a map as inspiration.
10. Family T-Shirts
Design some REALLY COOL family shirts for your next trip. I love getting these for my little kids and passing them down. You might consider making them cool and memorable without being very personalized, so that they can be donated or sold later.
You can design and print T-Shirts here. If you want a professional design, you can hire someone on Fiverr! Choose a quote and search tshirt design on Fiverr, a platform for freelance artists to advertise their services, look at the artist’s work and ratings and choose someone to design a shirt graphic. I recommend you look for someone who offers at least 1 revision so that you can ask for any changes!
You can send the graphic to someone who can print the shirts in all the sizes you need. Custom Ink looks like they have the largest range of sizes, offering nb-24m onesies as well as 2t-5/6 youth sizes up to adult 4x.
11. Key Ring
I personally keep “Do Not Disturb” door hangers and string them onto a key ring, I love seeing the collection grow! I write the date on them with a Sharpie and a one line memory of the trip.
This could also extend to menus, photo booth pictures, ticket stubs, business cards or brochures. Hole punch the corner and string them onto rings like these.
Documenting the trip will extend the fun and adventure you worked so hard to plan (and likely saved for). I recommend you make at least one really meaningful memento every year. Nothing gets everyone smiling like talking about a great shared memory.
What is your favorite way to capture family memories?
