Memory Jar

As the new year continues, with all it's promise of possibility, hope, and prayers for positivity, an easy way to capture the moments you want to remember is the use of a memory jar. I saw this idea on Pinterest  a couple years ago and decided it would be a fun new tradition for our family. We started our own memory jar in 2012, filling it with scraps of paper documenting moments that made us smile and laugh, like finding out we were pregnant, that we were expecting a boy...then a girl, the day Adeline was born, our babymoon to Hawaii, etcetera. On New Year's Eve, we open the jar and relive all the wonderful moments that year brought us. A perfect way to reflect and be thankful. It's also a nice pick-me-up to sneak in a early mini-reading when you're not having the best of days. 

Of course you can use any type of container for this project, but we started with an old spaghetti sauce jar. After we enjoyed the sauce, we washed it out, soaked it in hot water to remove the label and used a little Goo Gone to get off any stubborn remains. Once the jar was refreshed, we sanded the lid to remove the writing, which revealed a pretty old-world finish. Next, Tim drilled a hole in the top and inserted a knob. (World Market has a great variety to choose from.) Lastly, I ordered labels from a company online to add to the front of the jar. We purchased a cheap sheet of stickers and used them to create gifts for others as well. The memory jar pictured above was a present for one of our baby shower hosts. 

I pray 2014 holds a year full of memory jar worthy moments for you and your family!

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