Three Ways to Capture Your Kiddos’ Memorable Moments in Words, Not Pictures

If you’re like me, you want to capture every moment, every adorable mispronunciation, every dance move, and every unexpected and amazing thing that comes out of your kiddos’ mouths.  Basically, we want to hold every moment in our palms forever, and we’re afraid of forgetting.  Sometimes I even find myself feeling sad in a moment that is totally joyful, because I’m already lamenting that it will soon be over and I won’t be able to remember it in all of its beautiful vividness.  Do you ever feel like that?  It’s like not living in the moment, but living a little bit beyond it. 

What can we do?

Yes, we should try to live more in the moment and fully experience the joy the moment is offering us.  And yes, we should focus on all of the beauty and not the loss of it, like we appreciate the radiance of flowers in bloom.  But we can also try to capture certain precious moments.

As the saying goes, “a picture is worth 1,000 words,” and in so many cases that’s true. But words can be so powerful in a way that a picture is not, so I think recording certain moments in words is equally, if not more, descriptive than a photo.  Plus (and I’m sure I’m not alone here), how often can we actually reach our phones in time to catch a moment as it’s happening…and also…do we really want to always do that?  I do take a lot of pictures and videos so I can capture their changing faces and voices, but sometimes I feel like it dampens the authenticity of the moment, and makes the kids feel like they’re putting on a show. 

So, here are three easy but amazing ways we can capture our babies’ memorable moments in words we can cherish forever:

1. Daily Journal
2. Qeepsake Text Journal
3. Valentine’s Heart Door

Daily Journal

One thing I picked up (and am beyond grateful I did!) when I was pregnant with my first (Carter) is a little journal called The Happiness Project One-Sentence Journal For Mothers – a Five-Year Record (find it on amazon here)

I keep one of these journals for both of my littles, and they have become treasured keepsakes in our family.  Every night (ok, 95% of nights) I write in these journals, anywhere from one to three sentences, describing a highlight of the day related to each child, recounting phonetically how they pronounce (or mispronounce) a particular word (right now, Kensley says “boop” for book, and it’s thankfully something I’ll never forget!), a current favorite thing or activity, a lost tooth or other milestone, or challenges or issues they’re facing.  And every night, I have the gift of reading through my entries for years past, and without fail, they make me (and my husband) smile and remember those wonderful moments in time (and marvel at how fast time flies! Slow down time!). Each day also offers a lovely, inspirational quote or thought, which is just a nice bonus!

It may sound onerous to journal every single night, but I’m telling you, not only does it take maybe 30 seconds for each journal, but it makes me so much more mindful throughout the day of things I want to record, and I cannot emphasize enough how absolutely treasured these journals are to us. They may be #1 on our what-we-grab-in-case-of-fire list!

I have gifted these journals to several expecting mamas, and have told many others about them, but I often hear later “oh gosh I never started using them, and now my little one is 3,” and how bummed they are that they haven’t started journaling yet.  But it’s never too late!! Ever! Your kids will always, always, have daily moments that you will want to remember, no matter their age.  So start now.  You will not regret it.

And finally, this is a beautiful gift for your kids when they’re older.  Imagine how touched and loved they will feel reading through your beautiful entries and memories of them.  It is something they too can treasure long after they’re grown (and, in my case, laugh about my terrible handwriting).

Qeepsake Text Journal

Qeepsake is a text message journal (https://www.qeepsake.co/).  You set up a profile for each of your kids, and every week or so, qeepsake will send you a question about your children (what is Carter’s favorite activity right now? What is the sweetest thing Kensley said to you this week?).  You respond via text, and qeepsake will save all of the questions and responses in each child’s private journal.  You can also go into your account and edit responses and/or add photos to supplement your responses.  And though I’ve never done it, you can also print a qeepsake book, which I think would be amazing!! I’ll update this post if (when!) I do it.

This may seem duplicative of a daily journal, but I like it because it asks me questions I wouldn’t necessarily think of, and provides a secure, online repository.  In this case, more is better!

Valentine’s Heart Door

Ok, so, I thought I invented this (truly!), but since I started it I’ve seen others post about doing something similar.  So, maybe I didn’t, who knows.  Or maybe I’m a pioneer and everyone copied me (likely).  But no matter the origin, the idea is one I love.

Every February, the month of love, you can write a sweet love note on a construction paper heart to tape onto each of your kiddos’ doors.  Not only does this get you back into high school crafting mode (total bonus), but it allows you to focus, each and every night, on a unique thing you adore about your little love.  And seeing the smiles on their faces each morning, either reading (if they’re old enough) or asking you to read to them the new heart, is, well heart-warming!

At first (and he will admit this), my hubs thought it would be impossible to say new things every night, and especially as the years go on.  But it honestly is not.  Our kids change so much, not just year to year, but day to day, and they are constantly giving us new and wonderful ways to love them. 

And make sure to snap a pic (yes, a pic!) of them in front of their adorned door at the end of the month.  Then print this picture and keep it, along with the hearts, labeled with the year, in a special place.

I hope these ideas are helpful, and even if you just take one away, I’m sure you will be so grateful to capture, in your own perfect words, these perfect memorable moments of your children.