I can’t tell you how many parents I know whose computers have crashed and have lost hundreds of photos of their children’s early years.  When it happens, it kinda makes you sick to your stomach.

So I have a personal policy that my special photos must be stored somewhere besides my personal computer.

I usually burn the photos to a CD or DVD, but I don’t see this as a fail-safe plan because they would be destroyed if the house burnt down. (I know, I’m a little paranoid.)

To resolve this I have an account with Shutterfly and upload my special photos there.  (Snapfish is another option.)  There is no cost and no limit to how many photos I can store there.  If, heaven forbid, the computer crashes or the house burns down, they are safe.  I could download them or have an archive CD created and shipped to me.

And in the meantime, I can use my Shutterfly account to create and order photo albums and to share photos with friends and family.

Uploading doesn’t take long and the small time it does take is worth the peace of mind.

Image: africa/FreeDigitalPhotos.net