by Kelly Robinson

Created on: May 09, 2008   Last Updated: May 12, 2008

The moment your baby is born, your life becomes about details. Feedings, changing diapers, nap times, doctor's visits - on and on it seems. Time to talk on the phone, read a magazine or take a shower seems like an unattainable luxury.

Then one day, they smile at you. The life of details blurs a bit and a new chapter begins. It is the time of firsts. First smile, first time turning over, first coo. The feedings are still happening and the diapers still get changed, but you don't notice as much. You are looking for that next smile, that next milestone.

It is easy to forget to record all of these things in a baby memory book because you are just so busy, but you'll regret it if you don't. Keeping a detailed journal, whether it is an on-line baby book your whole family can access or a baby record book that you keep for yourself, this baby book will become an invaluable resource later. When things calm down enough for you to start scrapbooking all of those firsts, knowing the exact dates will become important. You are so exhausted in the beginning that you cannot expect to remember all of these things later. This is where the personalized baby book becomes so important.

Scrapbooking has become a national passion, and not by accident. Having a baby photo book that memorializes all of those firsts will not only become one of your most treasured keepsakes, but will be important to your child when they grow up. It has even been said that it helps a child's self-esteem to know that their parent has put so much time and effort into something that is just about them.

Whether you are just trying to create a simple journal without photos or a scrapbook where the photos have detailed descriptions, both are important. The journaling tells what the photos were about and the photos catch a moment in time that you can treasure forever.

With scrapbooking and memory books becoming such a driving industry, specialized kits can be bought for pretty much any occasion. There are items that are specifically for boys or girls, there are items that are for adoptions, twins, schooling, sports, graduation - you name it, it is out there. Once you get started, you will want to keep memory books of each one of your family members and of special times you've all shared.

Don't let the craziness of those first few months rob you of years of enjoying the details. A simple notebook documenting each day of a child's life will give you years of memories that might otherwise be lost. Another way to create a special baby memory book is to print the baby's age on a letter-sized piece of paper and lay the baby by the paper and take a photo each month for their first year. A book documenting the rate your child grew next to the size of the paper will be a delight to both you and your child as they grow older.

Baby memory books are something you will cherish as they grow older, grow away from you and eventually go out on their own. Babies don't stay babies for very long. Cherish it while you can and memorialize it in their own personalized baby book.

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