Don’t you just love photos of your grandkids? Did you know you can use your digital photos to make unique holiday gifts for your family? Wouldn’t you agree that homemade gifts are more enjoyable to create than buying store-bought presents? It’s economical. And your family and grandchildren will cherish them even more.

I’ll show you how to create your own fun video of your grandkids—as jolly little elves! It’s easier than you might think. They are free to use and free share with your family and friends.

“Snowball fight!” created with JibJab.com

Click on the little Play triangle below.

Try JibJab.comSendables® eCards today!

You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give. ~Kahlil Gibran

I enjoy discovering innovative websites. I surf the Net with my “Grandparent eyeglasses” on, looking for fascinating, easy-to-use places where I can produce fun creations for my grandchildren. I ask myself, “How can this website be useful to me and other grandparents?” (What’s in it for me?) These websites spark my imagination, and I think how exciting it would be to design something for my grandkids to enjoy.

There are many really cool websites on the Internet you can use to connect with your grandkids by creating entertaining projects for them. I wrote about some of these in December’s Cyber-Savvy GRAND column in GRAND Magazine. Sites to develop projects from your digital photos, like Scrapblog and SmileBox. Sites for photo sharing, like Picasa, Kodak Gallery, SnapFish and ShutterFly. (Read our Picasa review here.)

Dancing Coo Coo Clock elves created with ElfYourself.com

Let’s look at two websites where you can create videos starring your grandchildren: JibJab.comand ElfYourself.com.

I created the two videos above at JibJab.com and ElfYourself.com. The ElfYourself site is powered by JibJab’s innovative software. They employ the latest technologies such as face recognition.

ElfYourself from OfficeMax is a whimsical online program that allows you to create videos of elves dancing—with your grandchildren as the stars of the show. Simply upload  the photos you want to use, adjust the face to fit (size, outline, and rotation), choose a ready-to-use dance, and click the button. It quickly produces your video. You can post it on your blog or family site, and email the link for free. If you like, you can download the movie for $4.99. (Note: ElfYourself is only available during the holiday season.)

JibJab has a variety of ready-to-make videos, pictures and ecards. Some are free. Some require a $12.00 annual membership. Downloads are $4.99, or only $1.99 with a membership. The steps to build a video at JibJab.com are similar to the way described above. You upload photos to create “heads” (faces). You choose the video, movie, or picture to make. Try a JibJab Risk FREE Trial!

JibJab’s Photo-Maker lets you create fun still pictures like this one.

At ElfYourself.com and JibJab.comyou can also purchase other products like mugs, ornaments, greeting cards, etc — all with your picture on them.

So go make some videos of yourself or your grandkids. Give a video or picture to them as a merry little gift. They will enjoy seeing it over and over again. It’s sure to have the whole family giggling with delight.

In future posts, GrandparentsTLC will review more websites to create fun stuff for your grandchildren.

Enjoy! – Grandpa Shayne

Have you used JibJab or ElfYourself or another cool online program? How has it enabled you to connect with your family and grandkids? Please share your comments. We enjoy reading about your experiences.

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Snapfish.com is offering The Oprah Winfrey Show viewers a free 8″ x 11″ photo book! It’s a 20-page custom-cover book, printed from your own digital photos. You upload photos to Snapfish, organize them the way you want. They print the book and mail it to you.

Here’s a quote from Oprah’s website about what to do with the growing piles children’s art projects. “Take digital photos of their artwork, upload them to Snapfish.com, and they will send you back a beautiful, bound book of the kids’ artwork. So, over time, you can build a library of your children’s artwork—let the pieces go, but keep them in this form forever.”

Now I’m putting my “Grandparent glasses” on, as Shayne likes to say. I’m thinking, “What’s in it for me as a grandma?” You know all those digital photos of your cute grandkids you get by email or on family websites? Why not create a photo book from those photos? You could give it to your grandchildren’s parents or your spouse as a Christmas present — or give yourself a gift. You could also use Snapfish’s suggestion to create a photobook of children’s art. For me, that means grandchildren. I’m making a photobook this weekend.

If God had intended us to follow recipes, He wouldn’t have given us grandmothers. ~Linda Henley

So grab your computer, have fun, and be creative! Here’s how to proceed…

1. Collect the best digital photos you’d like to use for the project. If you like, you could create a temporary with a copy of them, and trash the folder when you’re done.
2. Sign up for your free Snapfish account. (Other services work in a similar way.)
3. Read Snapfish’s tips for working with children’s art.
4. Start your project online and choose a page theme.
5. Upload your photos.
6. Create your book online.
7. Preview it and check out. (You pay for shipping.)

There you are! You’ve just made a one-of-a-kind photo gift.

Now, to receive this free offer, you need to act fast and sign up before midnight (PST) tonight, November 14, 2008. Then you need to create your book this weekend, by Sunday, November 16, 2008, before midnight (PST). *

So click here to over to Oprah’s site and read the (short) details. Then click on the “Get your free book” link there to create a Snapfish.com account or log in to your existing account.

Have fun! – Grammy Tanda

[ * UPDATE: Receive this notice from Snapfish: Due to the amazing popularity of our free book offer, we've extended the time you have to create your free book to 11:59pm PST on Saturday, November 22nd.]