Family photos (official and candids) are important keepsakes, and around the holidays there are plenty of photo opportunities. One thing we’ve done in my family for years (long enough that my kids refer to it as a family tradition) is to take a photo of the kids in the same position. For our family it’s a photo of the kids on Christmas Eve, wearing their pajamas, standing in order by age, in the same funny pose. It’s an easy tradition, and it’s fun to look back on them over the years. One of these days I’ll have to gather the “series” and make a little photo book.

However, as much as I enjoy family photos, I have to caution the shutter-happy. Take a handful of pictures throughout the holiday break, but don’t get carried away. It’s more important to live the moment than to record it. With my first daughter on her first Christmas, I was so interested in catching each moment that I spent the whole morning taking photos. Yes, I got a couple of real winners that I can keep forever, but I realized I had missed the experience.

While we’re discussing keepsakes… the holiday break is a good time to go through the growing stack of A+ papers and art projects your kids have brought home from school and thin it down to a few select keepers. Put them in a folder and/or box for more reliable storage (don’t forget to label it!). Check out this dedicated School Years Keepsake Box: