Did you take pictures over the past weekend as our country celebrated its 250th birthday? Did you celebrate with family and friends? What activities were the most memorable? If you wrote them down and made a little book about your celebration with your family you could have your own Independence Day of 2026 keepsake souvenir.

When I was in high school and college we saved memories in scrapbooks. The practice of making them became more sophisticated in more recent years as people were challenged to make major art productions with acid-free papers, stamps, and a wide variety of other supplies. The problem with scrapbooks is there is only one book to share for all your trouble. Which child in the next generation will inherit it? Who will not have a copy?

With the help of today’s smart phones and their built-in cameras, and with access to writing and publishing software, simple or complex books can be created, and everyone can have a copy to treasure.

Some online companies create templates to make your book super simple, but they are not very flexible and don’t give much room for writing the story. Microsoft Word files can be created and saved as PDF files. These can be uploaded to online printing facilities such as Lulu.com, where you can order as many copies as you want—even if it is only one copy, though I recommend more.

When I think back to my life as a child and I compare it to the lives of children today, I feel a tug of sadness over what they have missed. Those thoughts brought to my mind the American Girls Doll Collections that came out in 1986 and continued to produce more for about 20 years. Each doll was given a different historic and ethnic background along with their stories. The books shared what it was like for 9-year-old girls living in America.

Our generation has been given a unique opportunity if we are willing to take advantage of it. We can write about our own lives—in the present time or as it was when we were growing up. I’m not trying to suggest these are books to sell on Amazon or anywhere else, but simply books to share with your own family as keepsakes for future generations.

Slice of Life Memory Books

When the idea of writing memories first came to me, I wasn’t thinking of writing a book. Instead, I wrote many short memories, printed them on fancy stationary, and put them into a loose-leaf binder for my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary. I made copies for my brothers and sister as well. I called it my Family Heritage Album. Some of the memories were only one or two paragraphs, while others were more complete stories. One of these stories was A Backwards Party in a Hoghouse. I can share it with you as a few years ago I added this one to my blog.

Family Vacation Books

This is July. You might be on a vacation now, or perhaps you just returned from one. Keep the memory alive by writing about it. If you are traveling, keep a daily account of the trip in a notebook. When you get home, you can type it into your computer, add your pictures, save it as a pdf file, and upload it to Lulu.com or any other easy to use book printing website. Choose your best picture for the cover, give it a title, and order your book—as many copies as you want—for your personalized souvenir.

Books to Celebrate Family Events

The first family book I made was for my father when he turned 90 years old. I called it This is Your Life, Paul E. Ducker. I gathered as much information as I could collect about his growing up years, added his ancestry and our family experiences. My brothers and sister helped me to write it. I also included a little about each of our families.

A few years later we celebrated the 90th birthday of my mother and her twin brother. What fun as both families had five children so we each had a “twin cousin.” They all pitched in and helped write the stories to include in Paul and Pauline, Their First 90 Years. My mom gave me a lot of information about what her life was like growing up as well. I treasure the opportunity to learn things I would never have known, had we not written this book.

Write About Your Faith Walk

Another reason you might write a book for your family is to share your faith. How did you learn to trust Jesus? What were your earliest experiences as you learned about God? Did you have a rebellious streak somewhere along the way? What brought you back? What caused you to seek to know God and Jesus better? What kinds of challenges in life have helped build your faith?

You do not have to be an eloquent writer. Simply tell what you have experienced and how it drew you closer to Christ. Share moments when Christ came through for you. Moments when you felt especially close to Him. The more open and honest you can be about your struggles and victories, the better chance your book has of reaching into the heart of your reader. This book won’t work if all you write about are your accomplishments—even if you give God the glory. People need to see your struggles and how Jesus helped you overcome them.

Do not be discouraged if no one is interested in reading your book(s) at the time you write it. But know that one may prove to be a lifeline to a grandchild, something that helps them to accept Christ, even after you have gone on to your eternal reward. Your words in your books can still be there for them when they need them the most.

Keep your books as simple or long as you are comfortable in writing them. It’s sharing your heart that counts with family books. Enjoy the challenge. Invite others to help who were involved with the situation. Above all, have fun creating your memory books.

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