13 Memories to Make This January

Memories can and should be made everyday. Making memories and celebrating life doesn’t always mean having to go somewhere elaborate or by spending lots of money. Memories are made by spending quality time with people you love. This year I want to inspire you to do something special, something you perhaps wouldn’t have thought of doing each month. Every month I’ll share several ideas of ways that you can make memories, and I’d love to hear your ideas as well. Just comment below or send me a Tweet with your ideas!

1.  Bake something new: You know all of those recipe books collecting dust on the shelf? Crack one open and try making something that you’ve never made before. If you’re like us, January is typically a little bit slower than most months, so why not try some new flavors?

2. Play in the snow: If you live in an area that gets snow every winter this is probably nothing special – but for those of us who can only dream of a day of winter wonderlands and waking up to a blanket of snow you might have to travel to get there. See how far you have to drive and make that trip.

3. Create a photo album from last year: Gather all of your images from last year and either upload them to a photo book site or have them printed and create one the old fashioned way. I hadn’t made an album in several years, but finally created one for 2015 after sorting through nearly 1,000 photos! (Slight photo obsession?)

4. Make a movie night: With cold and rainy weather, there’s no better time of the year to cozy up under some blankets and have a Friday night movie marathon. Pop some popcorn and make some special snacks.

5. Visit a town that you’ve never explored: Even though we travel a lot through many small towns around here, there are still so many nearby towns that are less than an hour or two away that we have never explored. Take an afternoon and visit one of those towns, driving around neighborhoods and walking through the downtown area. Stop in some local shops and enjoy places that you otherwise would have never knew existed.

6. Watch a basketball game together: Even if you aren’t a huge fan, head to a game with some friends. The excitement from the crowd and fun atmosphere always makes for a fun evening.

7. Have a board game marathon: We spend WAY too much time on electronics (guilty). Take an afternoon and break out your old board games and share them with the kids. Anika and I have recently taken to playing Scrabble. It not only is fun and competitive, but it also teaches her spelling and makes her brain think. 😉

8. Plan a ladies night with your friends: Head out with some of your close friends and find something fun to do. Find a Broadway show, head out for dinner or drinks, take a painting class, or just do some retail therapy. Catch up with the friends that you didn’t see much during the crazy holiday season.

9. Work on this year’s vacation agenda: Do you have a vacation or staycation planned out yet? Take some time and do some research online and have everyone help plan things to do on your family getaway this year.

10. Take a family walk around town: On a non-rainy day, head out for a walk around town. Take a few moments to slow down and enjoy the crisp air.

11. Go bowling: Because it’s great exercise and makes for a fun family afternoon.

12. Volunteer for a couple of hours: If you don’t volunteer in some way, find somewhere to volunteer your time. Check out your local school’s PTA group, church organizations, soup kitchens, Habitat for Humanity, etc. and spend a couple of hours a month helping others out. You might meet some new people and will feel good about giving back.

13. Try a new restaurant: If you are a foodie (like me) you probably have a list of restaurants that you still want to try. Cross one of those off this month and order something that you might not normally try.

Life should always be celebrated – let us know if you have done any of these activities this month with your friends and family!