The first giggle. The first real smile. Those strange but ever so adorable dinosaur sounds they make when they are deep in their slumber. Their very first wobbly steps and their first words. If you could document every single precious moment of your baby’s first year, you would. That first year, however long some nights may feel, ultimately seems to fly by so fast. Let’s look at some of the cutest ways that you can document your baby’s first year! Because trust me, you will want to keep looking back on these precious memories in the years to come.
9 Ways to Document Your Baby’s First Year
Memory or Shadow Box
Their hospital bracelet, going home outfit, the first lock of hair, footprints, and handprints are some of the few items in my baby’s memory box from her first year. As the months go by, you can collect some of the key items most precious to your heart. Those sweet moments and photos you collect can be stored here as well as a special, meaningful clothing item. How amazing would it be to look at this shadow box together with your child when they are older? I cannot wait to share ours with my daughter when the time comes.
Letterboard
We’ve all seen it. The ever-popular letter board has been used everywhere! Incredibly convenient to use, it has become a hot commodity on social media in displaying your baby’s monthly milestones. An adorable photo of your baby can be displayed with the letter board every month to display their monthly milestones and special moments that have occurred in this time. It’s also a definite plus that letter boards are very affordable and readily available online.
Instagram Page
This might not be the right fit for every parent since some parents are against posting pictures of their children on social media. However, if you are open to creating a private account for your little one to share photos with only your loved ones that you approve to follow, this is a great idea to journal your way through baby’s first year and beyond! You’re also reserving their handle, which they might appreciate in the future.
Donuts/Cookies/Dessert Galore
There’s been an overwhelmingly cute display of babies with their monthly milestone in donuts/cookies/other items! Taken each month, you can display a snapshot of your baby using donuts to indicate how many months have gone by. It’s absolutely scrumptious to see these snapshots. This idea will pretty much work for any dessert! You can change up the dessert based on the seasons or the monthly milestones that have occurred—for example, Halloween-themed donuts in the fall or festive donuts during the holidays.
Quilt Blanket
Some people take their most treasured baby’s clothing items from each month of that first year and then get them professionally sewn and quilted into a blanket. What an adorable and creative idea to turn your memories into an actual material keepsake! I love that you can have a practical home blanket from it. Also, you just can’t get any cozier than that! This can be handed down for generations as well and can become part of your family tradition.
Photobooks
These easy peasy photo books are trending everywhere. It’s easy to upload a few favorite photos from each month and quickly create a photo book to treasure your baby’s first year. These can usually be made within an hour with a few clicks. Although, I end up taking hours to create a photo book! If you’re indecisive like me, the most challenging part will be picking out your favorite photos. Decisions, decisions! There always seems to be too many to choose from!
Film/Videography
Many photo studios also have a videography service where they can create a beautiful video keepsake after acquiring your baby’s photos and videos. You can browse around and ask photo studios if they provide this service. This can help out busy parents with no time on their hands. Essentially, you will be handing over hundreds of photos and videos taken throughout that first year. What you will be left with is a masterpiece to treasure forever. This can be played at your baby’s first birthday and made even more special. Warning: there will be many tears.
Baby App
There are some great apps that can help you record your child’s memories. We all can get busy in parenthood and forget to mark down each important milestone and date. Check out the apps like Tinybeans, BackThen, Day One, and Qeepsake. I love how Qeepsake will prompt you with texts by asking questions about what your child is doing. Later, all the answers and photos you upload can be turned into a book!
Baby Journal
There are gorgeous journals out there. I have one myself, and I wrote some love letters to my baby girl. These are letters that she can read when she grows older. I enjoyed filling it with little bits of random information, such as when she had her poop explosions (every parent has experienced this) or the month she started blowing raspberries. Trivial at the time, looking back, it warmed my heart, and I was glad to have documented those moments.
However you choose to document your baby’s first year, it will be such a precious keepsake. Often that first year is the hardest yet most fulfilling year of raising a baby. Each year will have its special quirks, but there’s something very remarkable about that first year. I truly felt that not only did my baby grow exponentially that first year, so did I as a mother. Treasure it. Document it. Remember it. You’ll never regret documenting these memories!
