5 Ways to Recap Your Year

Naomi Middleton

As we start a new year, I thought it would be fun to share five simple ways to remember your year.

Some years I’ve done all of these, and other years I’ve only managed one or two. The goal isn’t to document every single moment. It’s simply to create small habits throughout the year that help you remember the people, places, prayers, and everyday moments that made up your life.

The best part is that none of these take a ton of work. If you start in January and add to them little by little, by the time December rolls around, you’ll have such a meaningful way to look back on your year.

1. Mood Boards

Throughout the year, I collect little things from meaningful adventures and experiences—ticket stubs, postcards, photos, notes, maps, or anything else that reminds me of a particular moment. I add them to a mood board that becomes a collection of memories from the year. Not only does it create something personal and beautiful to display in our home, but every little piece has a story behind it. By the end of the year, it becomes a visual snapshot of where we went, what we did, and what mattered to us.

2. The "Good List"

This is one of my favorites because it’s so simple! In my Notes app, I keep a running list throughout the year of favorite memories, milestones, answered prayers, funny things the kids said, unexpected gifts, and anything else that felt particularly good. The moments don’t have to be big. Sometimes the ordinary things are the ones you’re most thankful you wrote down. At the end of the year, I love going back and reading through the list. It’s a simple reminder of just how much good happened over the course of twelve months—and it becomes even more meaningful to look back on years later.

3. Family Video

Throughout the year, I take short videos on my phone of everyday life, vacations, birthdays, holidays, and all the little moments in between. At the end of December, I download the clips into iMovie and combine them into one family video. I don’t do anything elaborate—just putting all those little clips together is enough. Then, on New Year’s Eve, we watch the video together as a family. It has become such a fun way to close out the year. There are always moments we completely forgot about, and I love knowing we’ll have these videos to look back on as our boys get older.

4. Family Photo Album

I haven’t been as consistent with this one in recent years, but I love having a physical family photo album for each year. We take thousands of photos on our phones, but so many of them never make it beyond our camera rolls. Creating an annual album gives our favorite photos a permanent home and tells the story of that particular season of our family. You don’t have to include everything. Pick your favorites from each month, trip, holiday, or milestone. Even a simple album becomes incredibly special as the years go by.

5. One Line a Day

I love the idea of journaling, but realistically, I’m not going to write pages every single day. A One Line a Day journal has been a much more manageable way for me to capture everyday life. I don’t necessarily write in it every day. Instead, I jot down anything I want to remember—a funny quote, something one of the boys said, a favorite moment, a milestone, something I’m learning, or simply a little detail about our day.

I also started one for each of our boys. They’re technically five-year journals, but my plan is to keep replacing them and writing in them until they graduate. Someday, I hope they’ll have this collection of little stories and memories from their childhood that they probably wouldn’t remember otherwise.

You definitely don’t need to do all five of these. Just pick one that feels doable and start there. The point isn’t to perfectly document your life—it’s to notice it. A few minutes spent recording something today can become a memory you’re incredibly grateful to have years from now.