small confession. i have 4 kids and none of them have a baby book. i feel guilty every time i see one that has been diligently filled out by a really good mom (you know who you are!). my poor kids. sometimes i feel for them, but most days i’m cool with being the mom god gave them and that mom is not good at filling in charts or making a list of their favorite baby foods or keeping a lock from their first haircut.
there are however days when they say something funny or i notice something new about their personality or i want to tell them just how madly in love with them i am without it going in one ear and out the other.
and then there is my husband and oh my gosh i want him to have silly love notes from me during this season in our life and i want to remember our dinner table conversations and well i think you get the point.
problem is, i didn’t really have anywhere to record all this wonderful stuff until this happened:
a little journal made out of index cards, mini file folders to keep things divided by months and a felt “box” to hold them in while they sit on our family room shelf.
it’s been so nice to have…. and would make a cute gift for the new year.
{keep reading for the instructions and download!}
SUPPLY LIST: ruler, piece of felt, piece of cardboard, 400 – 3×5 index cards, tacky glue, 4 clips, scissors, the file folders & card stock
STEP 1: download and print your file folders. cut your cardboard to 5-1/4 x 3-1/2 inches. cut a piece of felt to 8-1/2 x 6-3/4 inches.
STEP 2: ( s e e p i c t u r e b e l o w )
STEP 3: fold the long sides of felt up around the cardboard and then the short sides… you should have a little flap. put a generous amount of glue on the flaps and wrap them around the sides of your felt. use the clips to hold them in place.
STEP 4: allow to dry, remove clips and fill with index cards and dividers.
then, place it somewhere handy or maybe even in the way so you remember to jot things down. it would also be cute and fun to print and add photos to your journal!
so, how do you save memories? journals, baby books, scrapbooks??? let us know in the comments!
we’ll see you on thursday with one of my favorite breakfast recipes and trust me, you don’t want to miss it.
xo . rae
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Hi. Loved this!
Hi Rae,
Love this alternative to a stiff card box for the “year at hand”.
I have only just discovered the charm of journaling cards. Because I’m quite a digital junkie, I prefer to create my journaling cards that way. Mainly because they’re reusable then: I can print out additional ones on special topics to create mini albums for family and friends, for example.
And I also wanted to tell you: My mum gave a “baby plus book” (covering EVERYTHING till I left home, would you believe it!!!) to my hubby and me the night before our wedding. Even though it was a very sweet thought, I was SOOOO embarassed! She admitted later that, if it hadn’t been so darn obvious, she may have ripped out a page or two, but had guessed that I’d told everything anyway… Well we never, do we? So for your children’s sake, cards are quite a good idea…
Best wishes from Germany, Stef