Sometimes the thought of being a family historian can be overwhelming.\u00a0 Social media can be an excellent way to keep up with our living and deceased family members’ history.\u00a0 This\u00a0past week has found me frantically trying to finish up last year’s family events with 2018 posts on Facebook.\u00a0![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.thefhguide.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/7-facebook-300x113.png\")
One of the reasons I enjoy this is because\u00a0our family is spread throughout the country and each family has\u00a0events and interesting things happening.\u00a0 All three of our adult children have lived\u00a0internationally at various times while raising their families and have\u00a0had some incredibly broadening experiences. I want all the grandkids to know about their long-distance cousins.\u00a0 They don’t get to see each other as often as most grandparents\u00a0wish.<\/p>\n
Sometimes as a grandmother I see myself as the glue that keeps the family connected and informed about the lives\u00a0of their siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles\u00a0and even us, their grandparents.\u00a0 I feel these efforts over the years\u00a0have\u00a0been very beneficial to the closeness that our ten\u00a0grandchildren feel for each other.\u00a0 It has also kept their very busy parents more closely connected to their own siblings.<\/p>\n
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Social media\u00a0has been a wonderful\u00a0way to participate and keep abreast electronically in the activities, joys, and growth experiences of our immediate family.\u00a0 We all enjoy taking photos with our smartphones and sharing on Facebook or Instagram.\u00a0 In 2008 I began blogging and have\u00a0done over 3000 posts about\u00a0family and other things. Many of those stories have\u00a0made their\u00a0way to Facebook in an abbreviated version and have\u00a0captured many things that occurred long before\u00a02008.<\/p>\n
I also use Pinterest\u00a0as a kind of personal journal.\u00a0 I post\u00a0photos of people, places and things that I really love and enjoy.\u00a0 When I use Pinterest I think to myself, “What\u00a0would I really love to have known about my own grandmothers and what they liked and enjoyed?\u00a0 Pinterest is excellent for sharing through pictures\u00a0of everyday things that mean something to us.\u00a0 Our interests\u00a0are very much a part of who we are. Plus it is fun!<\/p>\n
Social Media is also a very wonderful way to keep people up to date on immediate situations that people have.\u00a0 You can create private groups on Facebook just for your own family.\u00a0 This has been so critical in getting immediate information\u00a0to our family members and friends\u00a0about serious medical issues, etc.\u00a0 Our youngest granddaughter has Spina Bifida\u00a0and has had more than 20 surgeries in her 11 years of life.\u00a0 Social\u00a0media can save you from many hours of phone calls by\u00a0connecting to everyone at once and in a concise and timely manner.<\/p>\n
If you are a person\u00a0that likes to be organized\u00a0and likes to dovetail your efforts social media is pretty amazing if you use it in a creative way.\u00a0 I think\u00a0the people that think social media is a waste of time, have\u00a0not explored using it for good and as a way to benefit\u00a0others.<\/p>\n
The reason I have been frantically\u00a0catching up on my posting\u00a0for Facebook is that I make a yearbook\u00a0of our family’s history\u00a0each year.\u00a0 I simply sign on to one of the companies and select the dates I want to be included in the book (Jan.1 2018-Dec. 31 2018).\u00a0 The program automatically\u00a0goes through my posts in 2018 and selects\u00a0the\u00a0posts that had the most\u00a0likes and comments over the year. I can be reviewing my book within less than 5 minutes after I click the button that says create my book. I then have an option to edit it or print it as is.\u00a0 It is a very simple process.\u00a0 I get to select the size, cover, paper quality, etc.\u00a0 It is so simple and so worthwhile to get this done in such a timely manner and the prices are very reasonable.\u00a0 I have used a few companies.\u00a0 My personal favorite is pastbook.com.\u00a0 I have also used other companies, but I like PastBook because the large book gives your two 5’x7′ photos per single page.\u00a0 It is strictly my personal preference. Shop around to see what you like best. It’s a good\u00a0time to get started only 6 days into 2019!\u00a0 I enjoy that I can now see these photos and events in a hardcover book rather than having them buried in a cell phone by the thousands! I also have access to the link for the books and can share with as many people as I wish.\u00a0 That way each family member can have a digital copy of their own.\u00a0 They can also have them printed if they wish.<\/p>\n
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If you do a FaceBook book you can add in things like old photos of your ancestors as well.\u00a0 It doesn’t have to be restricted to one year either.\u00a0My first book covered my first 9 years on\u00a0Facebook.\u00a0I added a photo of my husband’s grandmother who died several years ago, as an example.\u00a0 The possibilities are unending. Now her posterity will all have access to a photo of her.\u00a0 You also have the exact same options to do this with your Instagram account.<\/p>\n
So if you are looking for a fast and relatively easy way to do your family history stories and photos, think of social media.\u00a0 Captions on your photos are included in the books which makes them excellent for future generations. One week at a time it is pretty easy and quick. If you’d like to learn to use Social Media and need help go to this link<\/a>\u00a0in The Family History Guide.\u00a0 You will find help on several Social Media platforms there. If you have used Social Media in other ways for your own family history please share with the rest of us!\u00a0 Thanks!<\/p>\n \n