The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.-Ruth Hulburt Hamilton
I looked down at my newborn in absolute awe and wonder. The wisps of his strawberry blond hair were as soft as chick down. His button nose was exactly that... cute as a button. I inhaled his sweet scent, the combination of powder-scented baby wash and milky goodness. Oh, our introduction was pure bliss! Who was I to deserve such perfection? I found myself head over heels in love with a person I had just met... and I promised myself that I would never forget that tender moment.
Weeks passed, then months, even years and I constantly found myself enraptured in this precious child’s countenance, creativity, and downright cuteness. I knew first-hand what it meant to say “the days are long but the years are short”. Sure, our days were far from perfect but my baby grew up before my eyes and I clung to each milestone, looking for a pause button on life. Where was it? I wanted to hold on to each moment, never losing sight of how quickly this child of mine was growing, changing... but life propelled us forward at breakneck speed and I clung to every way I could document these special times, lest I forget.
Like many first-time moms I followed my firstborn around like the paparazzi, video camera in one hand and still camera in the other. I filled camera cards with hundreds of photos, several of which looked identical but not one I could delete because each one was in its own right “special”. When my second son was born I was equally enamored, this child so beautiful in his own way, so different. I never wanted to be that mom that had a photo album full of photos of the firstborn, but hardly anything to show for children that followed. And yet, inevitably it happened. With only so many hours in the day, and much of that time spent chasing little boys, the camera found itself housed in its case more than draped around my neck, meaning Little Boy #1 got less model-time in front of the camera as he grew and poor Little Boy #2 had half the baby photos that his older brother got. Inevitably, a wave of mom guilt washed over me... baby brain had its wrath on my memory and after five years of motherhood and three pregnancies, I concluded my brain cells must have fallen out with the placentas. Hungry for any way to hold on to these special moments, I made the grievous mistake of searching for ideas on Pinterest. Hundreds of beyond creative ideas filled the screen... ideas that I was a day late and a dollar short for. Scrapbooking and journaling seemed too time-consuming, besides I was so far behind already. I concluded that my time and energy limitations needn’t be a hindrance; we would just go about documenting the everyday in simple, doable ways. Thankfully, over time I collected a few ideas from some other mamas who had “been there and done that”. For us, these have been our greatest ways of making keepsakes to look back on:
- Facebook. Sounds like a given, right? I figured if I was already on it, I might as well use it to my advantage. My photo albums serve double duty, both to share with family and friends what’s going on in the life of our family, but also as a back-up memory for myself. I add subtitles to each photo to remind myself the context of our photos and this works as a great memory jogger for the end of the year, when I try to put together an annual photo album. My kids like looking through my old FB albums, too, reminiscing at all the fun times we have had. For a lot of people, a personal blog works the same way but knowing my limits, I’ve decided Facebook is sufficient in this season of life.
- E-mail Journals. I got this idea from a personal organizer that spoke at one of the moms groups I attend and it immediately struck a chord with me instantly. As soon as I got home from that meeting, I set up individual e-mail accounts for my children and informed all our close family and friends that the kids each had their own e-mail address. When one of the kids does something cute or funny, I jot a note and e-mail it to their account. If we get a stellar snapshot, it goes not only on Facebook but it’s sent to their e-mail account with a caption as well. One day when they’re older they can access their accounts and find years of photos, short notes, and greetings from friends, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and one very smitten Mama.
- Quote Book. As parents we all do it- we laugh uproariously at the witty little things our children say and swear we’ll write it down, only to later forget. A plain notebook would suffice, but one of my all-time favorite products is a journal called My Quotable Kid: A Parent’s Journal for Unforgettable Quotes, which can be used for one or all of your children. Each page has a little spot to fill out for set-up to your child’s witty saying (what the child’s name is, how old they are, where they were when they said their funny “ism”, etc). I keep mine on my nightstand so that I have easy access and in two years’ time, I have dozens of my kids’ quotes. When I read through them, I’m immediately transported to that moment- everything down to what the kids were wearing when they made their cute sentiment!
- Birthday Scent. Did you know that scent is your stronger memory jogger? The smell of oatmeal raisin cookies immediately takes me back to visits to my grandmother’s kitchen while a whiff of Yankee Candle Co.’s Home Sweet Home instantly transports me to my parent’s house. Why not use scent to your advantage to conjure special memories of your child and his special day? If you’re still expecting, consider finding a special Bath & Body Works lotion to take with you to the hospital. Wear it during delivery and recovery and then take it out each year on your child’s birthday to wear again. If Baby’s already here, no worries. Just pick out a special lotion or body spray and make note to wear it on your little one’s special day. Given time, your child will grow to recognize his/her special scent and it will be a sweet reminder on their special day of the sweetness of their life. If you have several children, this can be particularly meaningful that each has his or her own scent.
- Birthday Letters, Surveys, and Movies. I already mentioned I don’t journal. One of the ways I try to make up for it is that I write our children annual birthday letters. In them, I try to document basics like what size they wear, how tall they are, what their interests are, etc. I include what the year was like from my perspective as their Mama, as well as specific challenges we encountered and strengths I’ve seen each child develop. I typically send a copy of their birthday notes to their e-mail addresses, but I also print them off and put them in a special box I’ve designated for birthday notes as well. From the time they’re old enough to talk, we also do a short home video of the kids on their birthdays asking them what their favorites are (colors, books, movies, foods, etc.) and the kids love the opportunity to bask in the limelight!
When I was expecting our first child I received a lot of advice, but the overwhelming response was the same: don’t blink because the years will go by too fast, and you don’t want to miss a thing. It all seemed relative until the children came and then I knew what they meant. These have become simple and meaningful ways to reflect on sweet memories from the year and keep the memories alive... memories I’m thankful are preserved because as the poem goes- and as I can now personally attest- babies really don’t keep.