I was talking to a friend the other day about things such as sleep deprivation, thumb sucking, rolling over, walks outside, etc. You know, the usual. And I told her how badly I wish I could remember more of the fine details of when my little kids were even littler. I remember most of the big things, and I remember bits and pieces of the in-between things, but overall – I wish I could remember more.
Instagram is great and all, and Chatbooks have become a popular and handy accessory for memory retrieval, but what about something a little more personal? If you’re anything like me, you like the idea of keeping a journal but lose momentum or desire more often than not… At my baby shower for my second baby I was given a Promptly Journals Childhood History journals. An incredibly detail-oriented journal with prompts, places for stats, room for memories, and questions to answer that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise written down anywhere and therefore, wouldn’t have remembered the answers.
I don’t think I realized the value of what I was given until I opened up the journal and looked through the pages. Sadly, this wasn’t until my baby was a couple of months old. Before that time I didn’t realize that pregnancy was a part of the journaling. If so I would’ve opened it MUCH sooner! Not only does it start early, it has room and prompts for your child up until they turn eighteen!
A super cool thing I recently learned about these journals is the variety they have! Not only do they have a womb to 18 years option, but also an adoption to 18 years journal as well! Perfect for any family! I especially love that there are also love story journals too, these don't just pertain to children and growing up, but also to individual love stories - such a sweet sentiment and hands down a super thoughtful gift!
Anyway, back to my experience. I spent a few nights trying to fill in the information provided in the early pregnancy pages of my childhood history journal and then I’d simultaneously fill out the newborn pages to try and get all the way caught up. But, like most of my previous journaling experiences, it fizzled out pretty quick.
It wasn’t until I started writing this post that I pulled it out again...months later! And after opening it up again, I’m already motivated all over again. I can’t believe the details I wrote down that I have forgotten about! And I’ve re-evaluated to more consistently write in here because I just know that if I don’t write some of these things down, I’ll be really incredibly sad that I didn’t. Especially when I had such a valuable and resourceful journal right at my fingertips.