This idea of an Adventure Box from Amy Mossoff is just too fantastic:

The Mossoffs are a young family (although the individuals composing it are not so young), and until now we’ve been a bit unsettled, but we’ve managed to start at least one family tradition that I think will stick. I call it the Adventure Box. Every year at Christmas time, we decorate a shoe box in gift wrap and put it on a shelf that is easy to access. Throughout the year, we put mementos from trips, special occasions, along with all the greeting cards we receive, into the box. Next Christmas, we go through the box and label each item so that we won’t forget what it meant. Then we write the year on the box and put it away and start a new one.

It’s a simple idea, but we love doing it. It gives us a place to put all of those things that you don’t want to throw away, but which have no “home.” And we don’t stress out about getting a souvenir from every single place we go, but having the Adventure Box in mind gives us something to think about when we’re at a new place, and helps to tie all those experiences together. Going through the box is a great way to wrap up the year, and every single time, we’re surprised at how many fun things we did.

For further details, read Amy’s whole post. I love the idea, and I’m definitely going to implement it. I’m not a collector, nor particularly sentimental about stuff. However, I would like to save some important personal mementos of Paul’s and my life in a reasonably organized and compact way. (I hate clutter.) Also, Paul and I do enjoy reflecting on the unexpected and interesting twists and turns of our lives. The holidays are an excellent time for such reflections. An annual “Adventure Box” would allow us to do all that — without much time or effort.

Thanks for the great idea, Amy!