Genealogy Hack: Journal Like a Pro

Let’s focus on journaling in this article. Journaling is part of genealogy and has the added benefit of being therapeutic. I personally love to journal even though I’m not consistent at it, but that’s ok! Let me share what works for me and my family and you can see if it works for yours.

Journal for Busy Moms

I know life is tough right now. You feel overwhelmed, stressed, worried, and anxious. Genealogy is usually the furthest thing from your mind. But what if I tell you that writing your everyday moments is considered genealogy. Yes, it is! It may not be the traditional way of finding records and researching in dusty basements, but you can do genealogy right now. It takes a little bit of strategy, but you do that anyway with your kids. So, let me show you how I write my everyday moments.

I use Evernote for my note taking on my phone. This is a common organizing tool for genealogists, but anyone can use it. There is a free basic plan and a paid pro plan. I use it to make different notebooks for each area of my life, which includes genealogy. Then I add a reminder, record audio, add an attachment, start sketching, take a photo, or write on a blank note. It keeps it all in one place on my phone and then I can share it with my husband or whoever else is using Evernote. I’ve used it to organize my thoughts for the day, to write down the funny things my husband and daughter say, and to break down home projects into smaller steps. So it’s not just for genealogy, but the everyday things we do write down are genealogy. Get it?

Kids

How can you help your kids journal better? Well, to be honest I don’t have the magic elixir that will make them want to write down their thoughts and feelings. However, I do know that trial and error can get you pretty darn close. I’ve tried having my daughter pick out a pretty diary and special pen to write with, but she’s not much of a writer right now. So she’ll draw in it instead and it gives me a peak into her little soul. I know there are some amazing companies out there who sell family journals to help solve this problem of connection.

Loom Journal, a small journaling company, just partnered with Promptly Journals and they make a back-and-forth journal that you use with your kids or your husband. They have prompts and questions that get you inspired, then have the rest of your family answer them. It’s an awesome company, but it’s only one out of many who do the same thing. I would love to do this, but I’m waiting for my daughter to get a little bit older before we start this.

Journal for Couples

If you’re anything like our family, then you know that husbands are generally not big writers of their feelings. Now congratulations to you if your husband is different. But how do we help our husbands journal? When my husband and I were going to college in two different states, before we were married, we would email each other almost everyday. And as a good genealogist, I kept every one of those emails! You’re welcome! The point is how did you connect back then and can you do something similar today?

Sometimes we fall into a routine that has us going through our everyday motions. How was your day, honey? What’s happening at work? Did you have a hard day with the kids? We forget that when we were a young couple there was more vulnerability. We expressed ourselves differently then we do now with careers and kids. So can you find a way to do that now? You won’t know unless you try.

Conclusion

The point is that journaling isn’t just for genealogists. It’s for anyone who wants to preserve their memories and those of their family. You can do a small journal action everyday starting now that won’t feel overwhelming. Then you can thank your future self for doing those actions because it will help you write your life story later. So don’t worry if you feel you don’t have time to journal. You can try little steps in a convenient way for you. That will help you more than anything else.

If you want to learn about the other genealogy hacks that I’ve shared, then click the link below to get the latest hack.

• Genealogy Hack: Document Using Your Phone

In the meantime…good luck and happy hunting!

Tiffany

P.S. Do you want more tools to help you in your genealogy journey? Then sign up for my email list and get a free download of all of my favorite American and Scandinavian genealogy websites.