Sunday, January 1, 2012

21COFH - The 21st Century Organized Family Historian - Week 1

Artwork from freeclipartnow.com
with modifications.

Holiday Greeting Cards

Before we get into the meat and potatoes of this year's project, let's tie up one loose end. If you haven't already sorted through 2011's holiday greeting cards, now is the time. Last January, I wrote about my criteria for saving them and several readers chimed in to tell about how they handle theirs.

These days we need to start thinking about digital greeting cards as well. What is your plan to preserve them?

This week, tell us what you do with your annual collection now that the holidays are over by leaving a comment or writing your own post and leaving the url to your post in the comments section.

Since we are just getting warmed up this week, there will be bonus content on Tuesday or Wednesday that I think will be helpful to all of us. Also, I should have our 21COFH badge finished in the next few days.

Michelle's project for this week is here.
© 2011, copyright Michelle Goodrum

11 comments:

  1. Here is what I do with the holiday cards: Check them over for address changes. Check over for news of family, new babies, passing of elders, add all data to data base. Toss them all, unless from kids, those get scanned and added to my data base multimedia. Digital cards, same, immediate family, they get added to data base, others, get the delete key.

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  2. Aaargh...I only just put up the decorations a week ago and now I have to take them down before I go back to work tomorrow. I resolve to be better organised next year. Yes I'm with you - only keep the ones that have really newsy stuff in them. The rest I toss - correction - recycle.

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  3. Good topic! I hope in the next day or two to write a post! Thanks Michelle!

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  4. Looking forward to others way of handling the cards. I just took my pile and put them in the desk. You know...out of sight, out of mind! :)

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  5. Carol, Is the RV factor part of the reason why you scan and toss? It certainly is one way of lightening the load - whether living the mobile lifestyle or not!

    Jenna, Been there done that. More than once. LOL

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  6. I have followed Jenna's method for the last several years, but instead of putting them in a desk mine have gone in a box. The only good thing is that I sorted them by years! Then I came across this post on creating Christmas card books. I will be trying this method and only saving those with letters and/or photos. Those with only a "Merry Christmas" message are going to be recycled. I can't save everything, even though apparently I have given it a good try. LOL. Here is the link: http://eighteen25.blogspot.com/2011/12/christmas-card-books.html

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  7. Tracy, That is absolutely brilliant AND beautiful. I'm putting the instructions on the post in my holiday card box (and my to do list for fall) so I can make those little books in time for the holidays next year.

    THANK YOU!!

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  8. Here is my post Michelle!

    http://www.myheritagehappens.com/2012/01/21cofh-21st-century-organized-family.html

    Oh Tracy! I LOVE the idea of Christmas card books!!!

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  9. Michelle, yes, indirectly I suppose that the RV life style is part of the reason I do the scanning. I started scanning documents and photos many years ago, so I could have them with me when I went away in the RV or when I went on a research trip. I heavily use the multimedia section of my family research data base. In the last few years I "upped" the anty by adding greeting cards/letters/etc and photos of family heirlooms to the mix. My long term goal is to not only have a data base with dates and places but, with family stories, a chronological history of people in my data base, from their birth to their death, but to also have a document and photo chronological history of them. A visual history. Believe me, the visual history will grab the attention of even the most reluctant family member, you know cousin Sam who says, I just have NO interest in this stuff. Well, he will like the photos and documents, and you can suck Sam in that way! LOL

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  10. My post is at http://anglersrest.blogspot.com/2012/01/21st-century-organised-family-historian.html

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  11. Ditto on that idea about the Christmas Card books ! I will do that with my old ones from my relatives now deceased that I do not want to cut up .

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