Creating an online journal using Word

One of the challenges with journaling in our scrapbooks is having access to the information.  You can create a simple online journal using a standard word processing program like Word.  Follow these easy steps and you'll be journaling in no time.

1. Open a new Word document.
2. Save it As Journal on your Desktop.
3. Start each entry with the date - consistency is key and details can be helpful, ie, instead of using just the numeric date, you may want to add a little more info: 12-16-2011, Friday, First day of Christmas Break...This of course isn't necessary for everyday, but if you think you may want to search by a particular piece of information it's good to include it in the dateline/title.
4. Whether you prefer to write whole sentences, or bullet points doesn't matter.
5. I always add the newest entries to the top of the first page. That way I don't have to scroll to the end to make an entry. 
6. If you use a SmartPhone, set up the document on your desktop to sync with the same document on your smart phone. That way if you want to note something while you're away from your computer the two documents will stay consistent.
7. Finally, when you download pictures onto your computer, you can put a note right into the journal or even cut and paste the file path into the journal. When you're ready to scrap, it will be easy to find the images that go with the journal entry.

Wow. That was easy!  Now, when you need to access journaling notes you can open your Journal, click on the "Find" icon (small binoculars), put in a date or keyword, and your computer will take your right where you need to go!  It's so simple.