The Family Website
This time of the year it’s become common to receive along with a holiday card a multiple-page, photocopied update from the sender on how their family (and others I probably don’t know) are doing and succeeding (my dad and I were talking this weekend that isn’t it funny that they never say anything bad in these letters? “Well, John was arrested in August and still serving time …”).
In this “social networking” age, why not think about putting all of this online and keep it running all year long? As you’re sitting by the fire, surrounded by opened presents, perhaps on your new laptop you just received, why not think about starting a virtual site to share with others about what’s going on with the family. Updates on the kid’s sports, travel experiences, accomplishments, favorite videos, etc. - the possibilities are endless.
There all types of really great tools that are easy to use (and many are free) to do this. Here’s a list of possibilities:
Flickr.com - create photo albums online
Wordpress.com - go beyond just photos and start a family blog
MyFamily.com - get the family online together (best part are the birthday reminders!)
Twitter.com - regular, quick posts you can enter from the web, from IM or text message
Facebook.com - sure, why not? My 70+ year old dad just became my friend!