Tidyology STL

10/15/2026

Guilt over Gifts

I recently did a talk about what I do and basic steps for organizing photo and memory collections. In that talk, when talking about options for gifts you received that you may no longer want, I used the example of "that bowl from Aunt Sarah". After the talk, one of the attendees came up and told me about how his wife had a dish she had received from a family member. She no longer wanted it, but felt guilty letting it go. They took it to the family gift exchange, and now it gets passed around to different family members every year.

What an amazing way to keep the dish in the family, while at the same time let it go from their home and create a family tradition at the same time!

Gifts received from family members often trigger guilt at the idea of letting them go. There are lots of ways you can honor the gift while recognizing the value in the relationship with the giver and still let it leave your home. Ask friends and family if they would like it. Museums may take historical items. Organizations related to the type of item may be able to make use of it.

Artifcts.com is a fantastic way to preserve treasured history, heritage, and stories! See the website or download the app to sign up for a free membership!

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09/28/2026

Music Monday!

And it's a great day to be alive
I know the sun's still shinin' when I close my eyes
There's some hard times in the neighborhood
But why can't every day be just this good?

'It's a Great Day to be Alive' - Travis Tritt

09/25/2026

We've been busy with lots of super meaningful projects! We just love the work we do each and every day. Here are some highlights from the last few weeks.

We scanned photos for a client so she could return them to a family member before she moved out of the country. 🇳🇱

We've continued to add keywords (aka tags), including dates, family members, and key locations to a large digital photo collection of previously scanned photos. 🏌️🌴

We scanned nearly 2,000 photos and digitized over 30 VHS tapes and 8mm film reels and delivered them to the client. This included an 8mm reel of her parents' wedding. 💍

We've been helping a client create a very special custom photo book gift for a family member.♥

We digitized over 40 camcorder tapes for a family of 6. The collection included around 10 years of the kiddos' first years of life, activities, birthdays, and holidays. 🎂

How can we help you?

09/10/2026

Check out this awesome article from Artifcts about how to document your highlight reels!

06/22/2026

🎵Music Monday

".... Hands, put your empty hands in mine
And scars
show me all the scars you hide
And hey, if your wings are broken
Please take mine 'til yours can open too
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you

Oh, tears
make kaleidoscopes in your eyes
And hurt, I know you're hurting but so am I
And love, if your wings are broken
Borrow mine so yours can open too

'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we're breaking down
We can find a way to break through
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you"🎹

-Rachel Platten, Stand by You

06/15/2026

🎶 Music Monday

"Oh, oh, oh sometimes I get a good feeling, yeah
I get a feeling that I never, never, never, never had before, no, no
I get a good feeling, yeah
Ooh, sometimes I get a good feeling, yeah
I get a feeling that I never, never, never, never had before, no, no
I get a good feeling, yeah" 🎧

-Good Feeling, Flo Rida

06/08/2026

Music Monday

My Dad Jack's birthday is this week. He would be 82 this year. We lost him suddenly at age 60, way too early. We played this at his memorial service. Miss you Dad! 💔

"Looking back
on the memory of
the dance we shared
'neath the stars above;
For a moment
all the world was right.
How could I have known
that you'd ever say goodbye?

And now, I'm glad I didn't know
the way it all would end, the way it all would go....

Yes my life
is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
but I'd have had to miss the dance.
Our lives are better left to chance;
I could have missed the pain,
but I'd have had to miss the dance."

-Garth Brooks, The Dance

06/07/2026

Some of the ways we supported clients and our community this week.

📝PLANNING:
Picked up a collection of 39 camcorder tapes to convert to digital. These are MiniDV type tapes- they generally hold around 30 minutes of video.

Sometimes I get the rare opportunity to help with a special kind of legacy project. This week I received a call from a Mother and Grandmother. She recently lost her son and has been tasked by her granddaughter to create a photo book of his life as a keepsake. I'm looking forward to meeting with her next week, to see if I can use my experience, resources, and skillsets to help preserve his legacy in a meaningful and lasting work of love for his daughter and many after her.💔

📚EDUCATION:
We learned about a death-positive creative project called "PUNKS NOT DEAD! (but my uncle is)" that is helping normalize conversations around death and dying. Check them out on Instagram: . And check out our friend Lauren Ponder, the heart behind With Love events: .

🌟
Remember those photos in the tote? Upon doing a thorough estimate, we counted around 2,000 photos. How many did you think?

FOREVER helps you preserve, organize, share, and enjoy your photos, videos, and memories for generations - with permanent storage, digitization, photo printing, creative projects, and family storytelling tools.

06/01/2026

Music Motivation Monday

"If I can see it, then I can do it
If I just believe it, there's nothing to it
I believe I can fly
I believe I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
Spread my wings and fly away
I believe I can soar
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly"

-R. Kelly, I Believe I Can Fly

05/30/2026

Some of the most meaningful work happens behind the scenes. Here are the highlights of how Tidyology supported clients this week......

📝PLANNING:
Picked up a photo collection of photos for scanning. We scanned several thousand items for this client a year ago and created a Forever.com storage hub for her family. These photos are from her parents' house. We will add them to her Forever.com account, building onto her digital hub.

📼Scheduled a pickup appointment for a 40-tape media conversion project. We're converting them to .mp4's, removing any blank space and snow, and adding title pages to the video for context.

🌟CURATE:
You know those photos we've been scanning the last couple of weeks? This week for that collection, we tagged over 3,000 people and fur babies in over 3,800 photos. This will help with easy and quick searches of key players in the future. We also reviewed several photo discs and loose negatives, adding missing images to the hub.

How many photos are in the tote? Put your guess in the comments! I’ll reveal next week! See less

FOREVER helps you preserve, organize, share, and enjoy your photos, videos, and memories for generations - with permanent storage, digitization, photo printing, creative projects, and family storytelling tools.