Blogging for Memories

By Nichole Giles

When my little sister’s family moved 1000 miles away, we all cried. Moving was a good thing for them—and I knew it. But that didn’t make it easier to kiss my two-year-old nephew goodbye—or hug my sister knowing I couldn’t get in the car and go see her whenever I had the urge to knock on her door.

That was two years ago. With the price of gas on the rise—and airline tickets along with it—visiting is becoming more difficult. Phone calls are a great lifeline, but don’t make up for missed occasions and sudden growth spurts.

That’s where blogging comes in. A family blog can act as a digital scrapbook, complete with music, countdown widgets, and all types of personalization. The best part is that blogs can be viewed from anywhere in the world. Wherever your family goes, they can find your blog.

But what about safety? As much as we want our loved ones to see the pictures we post, is blogging safe? Personally, I’m not comfortable having strangers sifting through pictures of my children on our most recent vacation, or on their first day of school, or at their birthday parties. But Blogger has offered a simple, safe, and easy solution to the problem. Some people don’t realize that Blogger has privacy options, which can be enabled to protect your precious memories, while still allowing you to share them across the world—with people you choose. These blog options must be enabled though, and then family and /or friends with whom you’d like to share your memories must be invited. It’s a simple solution, and so worth it.

To open your own blog, start out by going to Blogger.com and click the “Start a Blog” link. Following the directions is fairly simple, and takes mere minutes to complete. Make sure you read the tutorials so you understand how to post your entries. When you get to the settings page, watch for the “who may view this blog” option. Click the option that says, “Only invited readers.” You’ll then have the option to email an invitation to readers of your choice—and you can send an invitation at anytime by going to the settings page.

This is a fun option for those family members who live even a few miles away, and a fun addition, or even an alternative (sorry Kim!) to scrap booking. The best part is that since you are preserving family memories, there is no guilt like you might feel if you spent hours every day surfing the websites of strangers.

I still haven’t talked my sister into starting a blog, but my sister-in-law and I both have, and hopefully my sister will follow suit now that she’s due to give birth again this fall.

Our memories are precious, and in many ways, technology is a blessing. Take advantage of it!