Leaving Memories for Your Child

I think my mom was on to something as she stashed away all of the little things when we were younger. Things like receiving blankets, baby blankets, pictures that we drew for our parents to the hundreds of craft projects that we came home with over the course of our school years. My sister and I literally have a rubber tub each filled with these treasures. It has been fun over the past year or so to pull out that tub and look through it. It guarantees a good laugh and it has inspired me to do the same for my children.

One thing that I do wish that my mom would have done was write down her thoughts of what it was like to be a parent in the moment. Especially now that I am a mom. I find myself asking my mom if she ever went through the similar feelings that I have been experiencing with my children and my mom tells me that she really can't remember. This resulted in me starting an "anything box" for each of my children. Each box is equipped with blank recipe cards that I can write down something that I thought was particularly funny in that moment or if I felt incredibly frustrated. I write down my thoughts and put them into the box with the intention of organizing it all at a later date. Other things to be found in the box(es) is each child's outfit that they came home from the hospital in, hospital ID tags, monthly height/weight measurements, newspaper clippings of events that happened on the day they were born on, first hair clippings and so on. Basically, thoughts and/or items that I think that my children would enjoy when they get older or they themselves become parents.

I am always looking for ideas on how I can share my experience(s) with my children when they come of an age when they are curious. And then I came across this blog site via Stephanie over at Adventures in Babywearing. Our Seven Qtpies is endorsing this FABULOUS book. What a great idea! I mean, who wouldn't want to leave a legacy of memories behind for their children to have as treasures once they get older? Just think, if you are a parent right now, wouldn't it be so very touching to read letters that your parents left to you? Just knowing that you are going through those similar feelings now with your children as they did with you? I think that this book is going to be a very good read for me. I plan on ordering it today and will definitely share with you all, all of the beautiful ideas that come out of it.

So, on an ending note, I just wanted to thank my mom. Thank you mom for saving all of those precious memories of us when we were children. You don't know how touching it is to go through all of the scribbles that you saved, or that I get to wrap my children in the receiving blankets that I was once wrapped in. I get infused with warm fuzzies every time I go through my box of memories. What you saved for me is a treasure that will always remain near and dear to my heart. Thank you for sharing with me just how loved I was when I was a child.