We Will Always Have Paris: Journaling Project Life (including printables!)

I don't scrapbook in real time. I wish I could be one of those women who has her pages done by the end of the week. Two kids, softball games, Girl Scouts, ballet, gymnastics and everyday life get in the way and I may not get around to scrapbooking today's week until 2017.

In addition to not being able to scrapbook in real time, I can't remember anything. Well, that's not true. I can quote you most every line from "Steel Magnolias" and I can remember who I took to the '91 Prison Break Date Dash in college. His name was Bernie. Seriously. However, I can't remember what I had for dinner last night. I can barely keep my kids straight. And I only have two. So, if I were to scrapbook this week's activities in 2017, I would not be able to recall anything.

A few years ago, I came up with a solution. I call it my Project Life Diary. Every couple of days I jot down what we've been doing -- what we've watched, what we read, what we ate, who said something funny and the little things that make up our everyday lives. I record that my daughter picked up sticks in the front yard for hours to earn enough money to buy a Minecraft poster. I record that I loved a book that I just read. I record recipes we tried (hits AND misses) as well as places we went out to eat.

The front of each weekly page has sections for each member of our family as well as prompts for things we're doing.

The back of each weekly page has a space for each day of the week. This is where I jot down the stuff that doesn't show up on the family calendar -- the last minute play date, unplanned sleepover (a big thing in our house these days) or dinners out.

I'm currently working on my Project Life 2012. I love the fact that I can combine the ephemera I've stored (I'll write more about that later), photos I've taken and my Project Life Diary to remember everything.

I may not scrapbook in real time, but I'm cool with that. I've got it covered.

To make your own Project Life Diary, download the front page and the back page (just click on the link and then right click on the image to save it), print them, then bind them (or punch them and put them in a three-ring binder). I put a fancy printed paper cover on mine. It's that simple. Hope this helps you preserve those memories!