21 Baby Keepsakes Ideas - What to Keep!

Everyone always says that time goes so fast when you have children and I never appreciated how true this was until I had my first child.  In a sleepy haze of 3 and 4 hour routines; drifting between feeds, changes and sleeps - time inevitably escapes you. 

They grow so fast and having those few special items that remind us of how tiny and precious they were can be really important. Not just for us parents, but also for the children.  When they are older, all of these special keepsakes and memories can be passed onto them to cherish.

So what kinds of things can you keep?  The answer is simple.  Anything.....anything that means something to you and reminds you of your child and your pregnancy.  One of my favourite keepsakes, for some reason is the car park ticket from the hospital when I went into labour with my first child.  It was left in the car for at least a couple of years before I rediscovered it - perhaps that's why it's special because I kept it by accident.  Either way I love it and still have it.

You can start collecting keepsakes from the first moment you find out your pregnant and then continue throughout the baby's childhood.  Here's our list of 21 keepsakes ideas:

1. The positive pregnancy test
2. Appointment cards given throughout the pregnancy - hospital and doctors.
3. Scan photos
4. Photo of mum's tummy in the last days of pregnancy
5. Photo of the baby when it is first born
6. Hospital ankle band    
7. Hospital car park ticket
8. First size nappy to remind you how small they were
9. The card that was attached to the hospital cot
10. Umbilical cord clip (some people even keep the umbilical cord stump... I admit I preferred the car park ticket)
11. The outfit they wore when they came home from hospital
12. A newspaper from the day the baby was born
13. Their first Christmas bib / baby grow
14. Imprints or casts of their tiny feet and hands
15. Their first pair of shoes / booties
16. All of the congratulations / new baby cards you were given
17. Any item of baby clothing that was special or represented a special time to you. 
18. Writing letters that record what the baby is doing, how she is growing etc as well as all my dreams for her future.
19. Creating and keeping a scrapbook that includes photos, summaries and records milestones- or completing a record book that prompts you for the information.
20. The first lock of hair
21.  Copy of birth announcement cards (if sent out)

I'm sure you'll have a few of your own ideas and if you've got any to share, please do comment below.  We'd love to know, however obscure they might be ;o)

FKS x